Wednesday 28 August 2013

Beth Orton - Central Reservation

Old Pa's Wednesday Club

...MICHELE FRIENDLY
Here is a pic of  Michele & friend
 
BETH ORTON - Central Reservation - Spiritual Life Remix

What is Michele Friendly?

Well it started quite a long time a go, probably in the eighties. You see I had a big problem with Old Ma.  If we were having a drink at home, she just did not like my choices of music. If  Dylan, Van or Joy Division came on, the evening would go flat or we would end up having an argument about how lousy Dylan's voice is etc etc.

What was the solution? well I came up with the Michele Friendly cassette. I would hand pick songs I thought she would like, she did lean towards disco and dance. The song would only get on the tape if I liked it as well. Essential.

I even made picture covers and took a lot of care to make them look appealing and attractive. I convinced OM that they were her tapes and that she had actually really good taste. I made one up every few months and made it out to be a great event. 

'Lets have a drink and we can listen to one of your fabulous 'Michele Friendly tapes'

Of course I would convince her that she had great taste and I was only putting on tape what she liked. 

A typical tape may have Santana, always a few Reggae, as luckily she likes that, maybe some REM or U2. New Order was acceptable so there certainly was room to manoeuvre. I would also have some of the latest dance music which I would of course have to like. 

The big thing for me was to slip on something really daring and get off with it. I did manage to slip on a Joy Division track The Eternal. She even ask who that was as she liked it. I even managed to get off with a Dylan track Belle Isle. Oh how I loved that.  If only you could have seen how I glowed.

It's all a case of doing what you have to do, but at the same time making the best of what is available.

I progressed from cassettes to Cd's, always with carefully prepared covers. I still do MP3 play lists which I know will be compatible with OM.

Anything for a quiet life. That's me!  

I chose Beth Orton remix of Central Reservation as it was typical of the type of song I would put on. I knew she would like it and I certainly did.  

If I ever formed a group (unlikely) Michele Friendly would be high on the list as a potential name.

'You know what Old Ma? you have got really great taste, even if I say so it myself!'

Here is the album version. It is just a bloody good song no matter how you hear it. The Ben Watt re-mix is not to shabby either.

 
BETH ORTON - Central Reservation (1999) 

P.S. Good Job Old Ma does not read my Posts!

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Beth Orton - Central Reservation
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Oleh

5 comments

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28 August 2013 at 09:13

This is lovely Old Pa. Brings back memories of making my own compilation tapes for other halves (or potential other halves) and slipping in the odd ringer, usually Dylan, and seeing it become accepted - how satisfying is that? Brilliant that you still carefully construct Mp3 playlists for Old Ma after all this time. Do you still have all the old tapes & CD's with original Old Pa © artwork?

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28 August 2013 at 09:18

TS - yes I still have them all somwhere probably in a box in the UK...I did have a search around as I wanted to use some of the covers in the post.

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28 August 2013 at 11:20

Excellent, very funny...anything for a quiet life. Old Ma would always Hulk out to anything by Dylan or Van so especially satisfiying if you can get away with a musical hand grenade. A big part of my life too as the unavailing of the latest tape would be with great fanfare.

Remember making the official World Cup tapes etc? Infact I found a box of all tape sleeves with dates and songs lists (i threw away the tapes) and started re-compiling the songs on Spotify. It's not the same as making a CD or C-90 tape, I definitely miss that.

Excellent track choice too, one that will go down in the annals of Michele Friendly.

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28 August 2013 at 13:22

FC - yes the official world cup tape was always an event now bleeding Sctland can't qualify it is a distant past....as you say compilations have always been a big part...official holiday tapes and probably the best ever....Don't like Yours (DLY)....that is a post if ever there was one.

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sfw
28 August 2013 at 21:36

I fondly remember the Welsh Cultural Attaché visits to the Mac'bar in Eton road. FC & I would hog it (we were young), but you would always manage to put on a Michele Friendly track on. Must have been an old Jedi(dah) mind trick that you learnt in the desert.

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