Gems #040 Glastonbury
Welcome to Gems, my weekly playlist ranging from classic to current tracks, with each playlist now coming in at about 60 minutes. Listen on Spotify and Apple Music - links follow after the notes. This Gems is with you a day later than normal … well, there was a music festival on the television.
Gems #040: Glastonbury
I’ve never been to the Glastonbury festival. But I have visited Glastonbury the place, the town, the spirit, many times, and will likely do so again. Everyone should experience the view of the Somerset Levels from the top of the Tor at least once.
The whole Glastonbury area is deeply connected with myth and spirit. The Abbey is beautifully ruined. The Chalice Well is still and peaceful - I have beautiful memories of dangling my feet in the cool, rust-coloured water. The town’s atmosphere and the new age (for want of a better expression) shops are special. Normal for Glastonbury will give you an idea.
To the songs. Except for the opening track by The Waterboys, and the closing one by Claire Hamill, all the tracks are by artists playing Glasto this year. According to the Victoria & Albert Museum (I had no idea they kept this database) The Waterboys have played ten times previously, most recently in 2022.
The Waterboys 2. Sampha 3. IDLES + LCD Soundsystem 4. LCD Soundsystem 5. PJ Harvey 6. Beans On Toast 7. The Mary Wallopers
While The Waterboys ‘Glastonbury Song’ isn’t about the festival, Mike Scott captures the spirit of the location and the “green hill far away”.
And then we’re into music from artists who played at the festival in 2024. Of course, when you scroll through the programme you’ll discover there are many, many, many! more than this hour can cover. This playlist is not intended to be representative - just music I like and, in some cases, discovered, by watching.
LCD Soundsystem come and go. They connected with the audience by bringing commitment and - in places - sounding like David Byrne/Taking Heads from a parallel universe. They didn’t link up with IDLES during the festival as far as I know, but ‘Dancer’ from their new album TANGK is a successful collaboration. PJ Harvey was assured, grounded and could only be Polly Harvey - here is ‘England’ from Let England Shake. Then off to Scotland and bagpipes in the Beans on Toast track ‘Sunny Sunny Scotland’. Lastly, my Celtic roots show with the punky tradition of The Mary Wallopers.
Side 2
7. Bombay Bicycle Club 8. Femi Kuti 9. AURORA 10. Tanita Tikaram 11. Toyah + Robert Fripp 12. Billy Bragg 13. Claire Hamill
There’s little better than an unexpected “Wow, this is great!” moment. That was my reaction to Bombay Bicycle Club. It’s amazing how much is packed into this one track - complex yet accessible. Femi Kuti doubles up as this week’s WOMAD track (see below for other WOMAD news) with a rousing call to ‘Stop the Hate’ from the album of the same name. We’re in the final stages of an election in the UK and, sadly, we need this message more than ever. Femi Kuti also joined Coldplay to perform a cracking sax solo during their song ‘Arabesque’. (Coldplay’s heading set on Saturday was amazing). I saw AURORA interviewed after her set. She was charmingly bonkers; ‘Echo of My Shadow’ is chilled and trippy. Tanita Tikaram seems to be getting well deserved recognition again. This is an acoustic version of her beautiful ‘Twist in My Sobriety’. Toyah & Robert Fripp always seemed an unlikely pairing but their lockdown videos were a joy and now they’re touring and covering all manner of classic songs. Billy Bragg is an artist who has extended his range over the years. I chose ‘Waiting for the Great Leap Forwards’ because it’s an infectious song and there just might be such a move in this election week. Finally, Claire Hamill has never played Glastonbury as far as I discover, but I liked the idea of closing where we began - with another beautiful song about Glastonbury.
Video Gem of the Week
The Bookshop Band
Pete Townshend is a strong supporter of The Bookshop Band. I hadn’t spotted they were at Glastonbury until I found this video. Their songs are inspired by novels - in this case, The Binding by Bridget Collins (Bookshop.org aff.). A sunny day, with gentle acoustic music as we overlook the festival site. Eden.
Messages and comments are open. I’d love to know which track you enjoyed most this week. WOMAD takes place at the end of July and I’ll compile a themed Gems for that festival too.
LP is back with another archive Glimpse early next week, while I focus on completing the book.
Speaking of which - pre-orders are open on Burning Shed.
Enjoy the music,
Ian
Thank you for taking the time to listen to Gems, and read the notes. LP also includes a weekly 5-minute read (a Glimpse) about a classic album, and long-reads for paid subscribers. If you have not yet subscribed please do - paid subs are invested in buying new music and keep me writing, and free subs demonstrate your support for music writing.