The Actor's Honest Musical Selections: Starting with Childhood Favorites to Unexplained Aversions
The initial song I became enamored with
My earliest memory is stepping into a space at preschool where they were playing Yellow Submarine by the Fab Four. I was enthralled by the sound effects, and Lennon shouting: “Full speed ahead!” When it arrived at the chorus, I remember thinking: “This must be music!”
The inaugural record I purchased
When I was eight years old, I won a competition at school to choose a new vinyl to play at the weekly dance party we had on Fridays. My teacher took me to a local store, and I picked out Come Back My Love by Darts. The first single I purchased with my own pocket money was Mull of Kintyre by Paul McCartney's Wings from a record shop in Colne. It was topping the charts at the time, and I selected it when my dad noted that it was by a former member of the Beatles.
The tune I sing at karaoke
I candidly cannot stand karaoke and steer clear at all costs. But under duress, I’d select Summer Wind by Ol' Blue Eyes.
The song I inexplicably know each line to
I not long ago discovered that I know almost every word to The Boy in the Bubble, You Can Call Me Al, and each track on Graceland by the legendary songwriter.
The best track to play at a soirée
It relies on which phase of the party you are at. At the start it would probably be I Heard It Through the Grapevine by Marvin Gaye. As the party deepens, I’d move on to the Artist, the Rolling Stones and David Bowie, and when it gets lively, Phat Planet by the electronic act, Born Slippy .NUXX by the techno pioneers, and Ascension by the virtual band, which is an undeniable hit.
The song I can not bear
I inexplicably detest Mr Brightside by the Las Vegas band.
The best track to get intimate to
Come Together by the Beatles.
The LP that changed my life
When I was 12 and starting to study the six-string, I’d only listen to 1950s rock and roll, and was obsessed with The King, the rock pioneer, the killer, Fats Domino, the glasses-wearing icon and the rockabilly star. Then my childminder played Let There Be Rock by AC/DC. It was still rock’n’roll, but it was electrifying rock ’n’roll. As soon as he put the record on the turntable, I was hooked.
The track that gets me up in the AM
What’d I Say parts 1 & 2 by The Genius.
The piece that brings me to tears
All music makes me emotional. Aretha Franklin, The Chairman of the Board, Presley and the Beatles all stir my emotions because of the harmony and sheer beauty of the vocals. But The Ocean by Richard Hawley strikes a chord every time.
The track I’d like played at my memorial service
Elvis. If I’m given a cremation, I’ll have Burning Love. If I’m buried, I’ll have Way Down.
