Dollar Bill - Jack White

Jack White's back with another scuzzed up blues belter, possibly one of the best of his career so far. It's always puzzled me that the blues (and jazz too, but that's a whole different box of brass) ain't more popular than it is when it can be as glorious as this, but that's people for you eh? 

PS: If Dollar Bill floats your boat why not go all the way back to Robert Johnson, a mere 90 years ago, and work forward from there...there's enough great blues to keep your ears entertained until the end of time. 

Chairlift - Bruises

Heard this track on 6Music this morning for the first time in ages and, despite it's slightly dark undercurrent, it has a bit of a summertime vibe too. I've only just found out that the lead singer's Caroline Polachek who's done some great solo stuff over the past few years, like this...

The Rainbow Connection - Kermit The Frog and Debbie Harry

What better track to celebrate Debbie Harry's 81st birthday than her legendary duet with Kermit The Frog... 

When The Saints Go Marching In - Ottilie Patterson

 

Jazz might be having one of its periodic revivals at the moment but 'trad jazz' (which harked back to the style of jazz played in New Orleans back in the 20s and 30s) seems destined to remain consigned to history. That's a shame, as this joyful cover from 1957 proves. If you want to know what some of the trad jazzers got up to back then have a read of George Melly's autobiographies...it'll make your hair curl. 

Scenic Railway - Ervin Jereb

Someone donated a stack of 'library music' CDs to a local charity shop recently and I've been hoovering 'em up. There are some great tracks on them, like this swinging little number from Ervin Jereb. Groovy baby. 

I Want It All - Eve's Plum

Heard this on 6 Music this morning, a blast of classic 90's indie rock grunge from the rarely played Eve's Plum. Copies of the album that spawned it are rarer in the UK than a Prime Minister who lasts more than a couple of years. Now that's rare...

Banana Republic - Boomtown Rats

Okay, so this song was originally written as a protest against the state of the Republic of Ireland back in 1980 but it's been popping into my head a lot this morning as our sixth Prime Minister in ten years  stepped down. Here's what Google defines a 'banana republic' as 'A country labelled a banana republic has many distinguishing features. It has weak structures of governance, which often results in widespread corruption among government officials. Poverty is common, and the government, or a very small upper class, controls all resources. Measures of social and economic inequality are therefore typically high.'

We might not quite be there just yet but give it time. The problem with changing leaders and parties every few years (or weeks in some cases) is that no one's around long enough to actually do anything. I have a pretty radical view of what's needed...a benign dictatorship. A leader who'll make the difficult and sometimes unpopular choices (but choices that generally have the support of the majority of the population) that are needed to sort out the mess that this country's in and who'll be in power for as long as it takes. It won't happen of course, and dictators, benign or otherwise, have a habit of getting a bit carried away but surely we can't carry on like this for much longer?