Cool as Ice - Be Music Productions (New Order) Spotify Playlist

Have just found this little gem on Spotify. The LP Cool as Ice collects various New Order Productions as Be Music between 1983 and 1984. This was just as New Order were dancing headlong towards electronic music and away from the Martin Hannett  Joy Division production template.




The LP collects the various members of New Order as they produced other Factory Record acts (no doubt Tony Wilson hoping that some of that chart bound magic could be sprinkled on other artists).

The Be Music productions were divided into three teams:

• Barney and Donald Johnston of ACR (aka DoJo)
• Hooky
• Stephen and Gillian 

Section 25, Marcel King (Shaun Ryders favorite ever Factory track) , Paul Haig and Quando Quando (including future M People main man Mike Pickering) were produced by Barney and Johnston, Nyam Nyam and the Be Music Theme are the work of Hooky and Life, Thick Pigeon and 52nd Street by Stephen and Gillian.

The two Section 25 tracks are wonderful, full of the fragile grace and brittle melodies that also marked out New Order at this time. They could be out takes from Movement or Power Corruption and Lies. The Looking From a Hilltop 12" Megamix is a real lost factory classic all bleeping bass, interweaving male and female vocals and a great synth string part. 

The Be Music Theme has shades of the New Order track murder in its mix of sampled(?) speech, tribal drumming and keyboard washes. Fate/Hate by Nyam Nyam is with is chugging baseline and midi synth parts is beautiful. The New Order pair of Stephen Morris and Gillian Gilbert also played on the Nyam Nyam record and went on to produce and play on the LP Too Crazy Cowboys released by Factory in 1984.

You can purchase the LP in CD and Vinyl formats here:

http://www.ltmrecordings.com/cool_as_ice_ltmcd2377.html

Spotify London Playlist

London via Spotify

I have pulled together a collection of my favorite songs about London in a Spotify play list. Its covers London from many different view points and musical styles. I was born and raised in Plumstead, Southeast London and lived in London until I was 19 and went to University.

Powis Square is the Market Square in Woolwich were I spent my teenage years buying vinyl records so its a good place to start.

This is the track listing.

Powis Square - Ry Cooder

London - Third Eye Blind

I Love London - Crystal Fighters

South London Boroughs - Burial

Duke of Earlsfield - The Sabres Of Paradise

The Battle Of All Saints Road - Big Audio Dynamite

Upper Clapton Dance - Professor Green

Bow E3 - Wiley

Imagine - Dissie Rascal

Bidc-In-Hamm Palace (12’) - Peter Tosh

Cockney Translation - Smiley Culture

London Town - Light Of The World

South Of The River - Mica Paris

London Belongs To Me - Saint Etienne

Stagger - Underworld

West End Girls (7” Mix) - Pet Shop Boys

Waterloo Sunset - The Kinks

London Calling - The Clash

The Only Uving Boy In New Cross - Carter The USM

For Tomorrow - Blur

Towers Of London (Edit) - XTC

West One (Shine On Me) - The Ruts

London, Can You Wait - Gene

London - The Smiths

Tower Of London - ABC

Sights And Sounds Of London Town - Richard Thompson

Missing You - Christy Moore

We Are London - Madness

The Greater London Radio - Heftner

A Rainy Night In Soho - The Pogues

It covers songs about London, about living in London and those with geographical locations in the titles and lyrics.

This is the link to the playlist - London

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