The Pop Corporation

Welcome to a new sporadic feature where we let interesting and cool people tell us what they’re listening to, what makes them tick, and what they love about certain records. 10 songs that mean something to someone you’ll be interested in – as easy as that.

Imagine going back to someone’s house after the pub and them excitedly sticking records on and yelling about why they love them. That’s what we’re looking at here. We’ve got some cool people lined-up for this, so keep ’em peeled.

For our first, we have the wonderful Sean from Hey Kids Rock ‘n’ Roll, who you will have no doubt seen crafting beautiful dioramas and art pieces, dedicated to some of the cult heroes and faves from the world of music. Seriously – the Delia Derbyshire diorama is one of the most wonderful things you’ll lay eyes on!

Check this out!

You can follow on Instagram here or go straight to the Etsy site to peruse and purchase gorgeous things.

Now, it’s over to Sean.

1. Myriam Gendron – Go ‘way from my window

“I love this, it’s sparse but everything ticks along like a clockwork toy. She has a steeliness that reminds me of 1930s records, like she’d be staring straight ahead as she sings.”

2. Mario Lanza – Vesti La Giubba

“I often amuse myself by attempting to sing along to this. I fail, of course, but there is fun in the failure. It’s really beautifully crafted so that it all builds up to this one big moment and when that arrives you’re sort of primed to be devastated.”

“There’s many other versions (the Pavarotti maybe a better one) but I happen to have this at hand, and I like being the last Mario Lanza fan in town.”

3. Chuck Jackson – I Keep Forgettin’

“This is like a Looney Tunes arrangement but it’s also a real, deep soul record. It refuses to be boring for even half a second.”

4. The B52s – Give Me Back My Man

“I know they make some people’s teeth itch but I love the B52s! I get the sense of a real determination to have, and be seen to have, fun with Art (and to do so even in the face of really horrible adversity) which I find really inspiring… and they look fantastic.”

5. Mary Chapin Carpenter – He Thinks He’ll Keep Her

“I love how good country music captures little domestic details in the lyrics – ‘She does the carpool, the PTA’s’. And that’s an all-timer of a chorus: you’d never get bored of singing it and if you did you’d just start doing the harmony part.”

6. Mary Epworth – Black Doe

“Brilliant mix of folk horror & Glam stomp and ideally suited to air-drumming! It sounds homemade, not in that it’s in any way amateurish (it’s not, it’s really well made) but that it came entirely from that person’s (or those persons’) specific enthusiasms, and that’s super-contagious!”

7. Philip Bailey – Billy Jack

“A Curtis Mayfield cover with a bit of an afrobeat feel and sort of James Bond film atmospheric strings. Adds a little drama to any day.”

8. Danny & The Champions of the World – I’m In Love

“A song about physical objects, souvenirs, collections of stuff. A bookshelf as a sort of mixed-media self-portrait. I think there is value in owning and displaying things, but then I would wouldn’t I?”

9. Mary Margaret O’Hara – Anew Day

“I play this to myself every New Year’s Eve – I play it other times too but NYE is a little ritual. I think it’s maybe more about wanting to be optimistic than it actually IS optimistic but that in itself is a positive step I suppose!”

“I love Mary Margaret O’Hare – she’s a singular talent.”

10. Roy Hamilton – It’s Only Make Believe

The pinnacle of human achievement.