The Last Shadow Puppets - The Age of the Understatement

I heard these guys on the Jonathan Ross show the other night and thought I’d try the album. Interesting. Has elements of Sixties retro in the orchestration, and the boys voices on several of the tracks are resonant of the mainstream groups from that era. I’m a fan of British pop from the Sixties, and maybe because of that, I think this is a good album and well worth listening through. The songs are belted out – not in the same league as The Proclaimers, but then who is?

Caetano Veloso

The Caetano Veloso CD finally arrived from Play.com over the Christmas period. The first CD seems to have been lost in the post, but Play’s no quibble policy soon had another copy on its way to me.

My first reaction was of disappointment. Probably foolishly, I selected the ‘Definitive Collection’ album, which seems to be an odd mix of material, from his earliest to his latest. As an album it doesn’t really work, but then ‘best of’ albums seldom do.

Having listened to it a few times now though I’ve found it has grown on me. Veloso has an interesting voice, not quite perfect in the way we’re used to our manufactured and highly produced music being and some of his interpretations of the Bossa and Samba rhythms are truly original. My preference though is for the later, more mellow songs, such as Odara and Coisa Mais Linda which suit Veloso’s voice much better.

If only I could speak Portuguese! Here's the critically acclaimed version of Cucurucucu, Paloma which Veloso sang in 'Hable Con Ella', the Pedro Almodovar film which first brought him to my attention.

All in all though I’m glad I stumbled across this guy.

Georgie Fame

I confess I have eclectic music tastes. If you look at the tracks on my iRiver you’ll find everything from Salsa Celtica (salsa with bagpipes) through to Scissor Sisters. One artist I think I’ve overlooked recently is Georgie Fame, so when Somebody Stole My Thunder dropped through the letter box from Play.com it was a pleasant surprise. It’s a collection of some of Georgie’s “Jazz-Soul Grooves” from the1967-1971 period. Very refreshing to hear music with an edge, and how quirky is El Pussy Cat? Of course, the title track is very well known, being originally released around the end of the 1960s. The whole album is an easy listen, but not easy listening! Blues Brother meets early British pop! Good stuff.