LP Select #076 curated playlist inc. Echo & the Bunnymen, Scritti Politti & Snow Patrol

A selection of new music and my track-by-track listening guide

Jul 27, 2026

Before the main course, here’s a Bandcamp bonus from the new album by John Greenwood of Unitopia, who has just released his third solo guitar-based prog album.

LP Select #076 Listening Guide

I’m including links to the videos on YouTube, and the whole playlist is embedded and linked at the end of the page.

Scritti Politti ‘Wood Beez (Pray Like Aretha Franklin)’ (Remaster) from Cupid & Psyche 85 (Deluxe Edition) (1984/2026)
I first discovered Scritti Politti on the legendary C-81 cassette issued by the New Musical Express. That track was from the Songs to Remember album (‘The Sweetest Girl’) and was their breakthrough song. Now the follow-up album has been reissued as a super deluxe edition. ‘Wood Beez’ heralded a new Scritti. Their roots were punk, but by now the band name represented the solo career of Green Gartside, and the sound was even more deeply into polished soul. This track was a hit single and a musical triumph too.
Nicole Atkins ‘Singing in the Mirror’ from Drama (2026)
A seventh solo album and the first for five years. This is classic pop, and Atkins ranges across soul, psychodelia and America in her songwriting. Infectious, sunny, and fun with an underlying darkness.
Exploring Birdsong ‘Spy in the House of Love’ from Every House We Built (2026)
The band date back to 2017 and have released two EPs prior to finally issuing their debut album. They use piano, synths, drum and bass - no guitars here - to good effect. The songs on the album tell stories from a house, so the album has a theme if not a fully-formed concept. Singer Lindsay Ward is influenced by Kate Bush in all the right ways. Outstanding, as is the whole album.
Jah Wobble & Tian Qiyi ‘Tomorrow Never Knows’ from Mystic Liverpool: The Beatles Psychic Psongbook (2026)
Jah Wobble founded Public Image Ltd and Tian Qiyi are an ethno-psychedelic duo. Together they have reimagined the Beatles using Chinese and Mongolian instrumentation. And this is a real reimagining; not easy when the original sounded like nothing before heard in popular music. Coincidentally I’m reading a new book to be reviewed in a few weeks in the Long Play Project - Across the Universe: The Magic and Mystery of The Beatles’ Creativity (aff) by Steve Taylor. All this work is fascinating, because in the case of Taylor he really does mean ‘magic’, and in the case of Wobble & Tian Qiyi they really are ramping up the psychic songs.

Steve Hogarth ‘You Dinosaur Thing’ from Ice Cream Genius (Deluxe) (1997/2026)
Marillion’s lead singer released his first solo album in 1997. The record company promptly ceased to trade (these events are not connected) and, although Hogarth has continued to release solo music in the form of live albums (most recently S.P.Q.R. Live From Sala Sinopoli, Roma), his first effort Ice Cream Genius deserves the renewed attention the current reissue offers. ‘You Dinosaur Thing’ is more basic rock in style than we’re used to hearing Hogarth sing; right back to the type of guitar riffs we’d hear from the Kinks and the Who in the mid sixties. Speaking of which …
Dave Stewart & Barbara Gaskin ‘The Sixties Never Die’ from Spin (1991)
Stewart & Gaskin have recorded seven albums as a duo, all of which have now been reissued. From the Canterbury Scene to covers of Little Eva’s ‘The Locomotion’, among many other covers and a good number of originals, was quite the journey and an entertaining one. The sixties will never die. They are currently working on album number eight.

Share The Long Play Project

Robyn Hitchcock ‘My Dead Astronaut’ from The Confuser (2026)
Great new song from Hitchcock’s new album, complete with a spirited video (follow the YouTube link below). Robyn is active here on Substack - Robyn Hitchcock - and in his publication he’s provided a track-by-track of The Confuser. His description of ‘Astronaut’: “Heroes keep you guessing sometimes. A rockin’ party song for a new dystopia. And a nod to J.G. Ballard.”

Flea ‘Wicheta Lineman’ (feat. Nick Cave) from Honora (2026)
One of the best songs ever written, and Jimmy Webb didn’t have time to complete it. Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers taught himself to play trumpet for his solo album and he uses it wisely here, in a restrained solo. Nick Cave adds a stately baritone.

Dragonflies ‘Slower’ from Dragonflies (2026)
Dhani Harrison and Nigel Godrich is one of those pairings that’s either going to be a masterstroke or a severe disappointment. If this first sample of the album is properly guiding the way, this will be the former. This will play nicely with your Radiohead collection, while embracing the difference Harrison makes. Give this a few listens and it will reward your time.

The Waterboys ‘This Land is Your Land’ (Studio Version) from Atlantic Rain: The Lost Fisherman Blues Recordings (2026)
Atlantic Rain contains lost music recorded during the sessions for Fisherman’s Blues (1986-88), including original Waterboys songs and covers of songs by Bob Dylan, Hank Williams, Prince and Willie Nelson. This is, of course, a Woody Guthrie cover and is played in the spirit of Bruce Springsteen’s version while having a lighter touch. If you’re in the market for a twenty-minute version of Sgt Pepper, by the way, look no further.
Big Big Train ‘Chimaera’ (Live Acoustic 2026) from Woodcut (Deluxe Edition) (2026)
I’ve already written a full piece on Woodcut. Now comes the deluxe edition, with added acoustic live tracks and demo versions, including this beautiful version of ‘Chimaera’.

Snow Patrol ‘Chasing Cars’ (MENCAP Little Noise Sessions/Live at The Union Chapel) from Eyes Open (20 Year Anniversary Special) (2006/2026)
‘Chasing Cars’ is one of those songs that stirs my emotions whenever and wherever I hear it. This version amplifies the same effect. Slower, gentler and in a simpler arrangement than the original, the full depth of the song is presented in a terrific performance. Snow Patrol and singer Gary Lightbody have had their highs and lows in the twenty years since Eyes Open was released. They have a new single featuring Kylie Minogue if you’re up for that.

Echo & the Bunnymen ‘Brussels is Haunted’ from Songs for Isaac (2026)
Finally, speaking of bands who are back, a wonderful new earworm of a single from the Bunnymen. Ocean Rain is one of the great albums, and the initial reviews suggest Songs for Isaac could be another one. ‘Brussels is Haunted’ backs that view up.