The rag tirade

Microsoft man

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I have of late begun to wear the chinos and shirt uniform of the damned you see above (I always had the smug grin). Once you go slacks, you never go back – there's just so much more room to manoeuvre. So in honour of my sartorial demise, this week we present 50 years of songs in 50 minutes about clothes. From Goodbye Pork Pie Hat by Charles Mingus to Bellbottoms by the Blues Explosion.
If you can survive the Teutonic vocal style of Renate Knaup-Krötenschwanz, the Amon Düül II tune has some pretty moments of classic Kosmiche rock. And, of course, the programme is peppered with a few indispensable classics: Hand in Glove, Dedicated Follower of Fashion and Ants in My Pants. Is that US pants or UK pants?

1. Goodbye Pork Pie Hat, Charles Mingus, Mingus, Ah Um, 1959, Columbia
2. Hard Sock Dance, Quincy Jones and his Orchestra, Quintessence, 1961, Impulse!
3. Boot-Leg, Booker T and The MGs, 7", 1965, Stax
4. Dedicated Follower Of Fashion, The Kinks, The Kink Kontroversy, 1965, Pye
5. High Fashion Queen, The Flying Burrito Brothers, Burrito Deluxe, 1970, A&M
6. Green Bubble Raincoated Man, Amon Düül II, Wolf City, 1972, United Artists
7. Ants In My Pants, James Brown, 7", 1972, Polydor
8. Blue Jeans And Moonbeams, Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band, Blue Jeans And Moonbeams, 1974, Virgin
9. Tell Me Your Plans, The Shirts, The Shirts, 1978, Harvest
10. I Hate the Universe, The Cravats, Burning Bridges, 7", 1979, Small Wonder
11. Tomorrow Night, Shoes, Present Tense, 1979, Elektra
12. Baggy Trousers, Madness Absolutely, 1980, Stiff
13. Hand In Glove, The Smiths, The Smiths, 1984, Rough Trade
14. T-Shirt Tucked In, Huggy Bear, Our Troubled Youth (split), 1993, Catcall
15. Bellbottoms, The Jon Spenser Blues Explosion, Orange, 1994, Matador

Far out!

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Let's freak out and take a 50-minute journey to the centre of our minds and back again. On the way we'll listen to a few classics and a couple of rare gems, such as the first track, Get High by Gran Am, lifted from a compilation called Chains and Black Exhaust. I wonder why the production is a bit wonky.

1. Get High, Gran Am, Chains and Black Exhaust, 2002, Memphix
2. Eric's Trip, Sonic Youth, Daydream Nation, 1988, Enigma/Blast First
3. Yellow Brick Road, Captain Beefheart and The Magic Band, Safe As Milk 1967, Buddah
4. Journey To The Centre Of The Mind, The Amboy Dukes, Journey To The Centre Of The Mind, 1968, Mainstream
5. Expecting to Fly, Buffalo Springfield, Again, 1967, Atco
6. Bike Ride To The Moon, The Dukes of the Stratosphear, 25 o'clock, 1985, Virgin
7. Traveling, Eden Rose, On the Way to Eden, 1969, Katema
8. Out There, Dinosaur Jr, Where You Been?, 1993, Blanco y Negro/Sire
9. Run, Spiritualized, Lazer Guided Melodies, 1992, Dedicated
10. One With The Freaks, The Notwist, Neo Golden, 2002, Virgin
11. Coming Down, The United States Of America, The United States Of America, 1967, CBS
12. A Little Lost, Arthur Russell, Another Thought, 1994, Point Music
13. Can't Find My Way Home, Blind Faith, Blind Faith, 1970, Polydor
14. Time, Dennis Wilson, Pacific Ocean Blue, 1977, Caribou

Back to the country

Clarence White with the Gene Parsons b-bender Telecaster

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Another stroll down the country road. From a play list largely suggested by my sister, here's 50 minutes of music from the good old boys. Featured twice this week is the peerless playing of Clarence White. First, barely out of his teens playing with the Kentucky Colonels and then with the Byrds, three years before he lost his life.

1. In the Pines, The Louvin Brothers, Tragic Songs of Life, 1956, Capitol
2. Listen To The Mocking Bird, Kentucky Colonels, Appalachian Swing!, 1964, World Pacific
3. The Race is On, George Jones, The Race is On, 1965, United Artist
4. Long Black Veil, The Band, Music From Big Pink, 1968, Capitol
5. No Longer A Sweetheart Of Mine, Dillard and Clark, The Fantastic Expedition Of Dillard and Clark, 1969, A&M
6. Galveston, Glen Campbell, 7", 1969, Capitol
7. Mama Tried, Merle Haggard, Okie From Muskogee, 1969, Capitol
8. Yesterday's Train, The Byrds, Untitled, 1970, Columbia
9. Tennessee Stud, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Will The Circle Be Unbroken, 1972,
10. United Artists
11. Pancho and Lefty, Townes Van Zandt, The Late Great Townes Van Zandt, 1972,
12. Tomato
13. Boulder to Birmingham, Emmylou Harris, Pieces of the Sky, 1975, Reprise
14. Me and Paul, Willie Nelson, Me and Paul, 1985, S and P
15. Carrie Brown, Del McCoury and Steve Earle, The Mountain, 1999, E-Squared
16. I Am Weary, Let Me Rest, The Cox Family, O Brother, Where Art Thou? (OST), 2000, Mercury
17. Van Lear Rose, Loretta Lynn, Van Lear Rose, 2004, Interscope
18. The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down, The Band, The Band, 1969, Capitol

Rough Trade records

Neil Megson and Geoff Travis discuss hair dos

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A selection of my favourite tracks from the Rough Trade vaults. We can't take a listen to the Rough Trade catalog without the first song, Nag Nag Nag by Cabaret Votaire – a song that could stand as the manifesto for the label. It was also a favourite pick from my employer Tim Gane when he appeared on the programme at the start of 2010.

1. Nag Nag Nag, Cabaret Voltaire, 7", 1978
2. Skank Bloc Bologna, Scritti Politti, 7", 1978
3. Alternative Ulster, Stiff Little Fingers, 7", 1978
4. Mind Your Own Business, Delta 5, 7", 1979
5. Quality Crayon Wax O.K., Essential Logic, Beat Rhythm News - Waddle Ya, Pay?, 1979
6. The Monochrome Set, The Monochrome Set, 7", 1979
7. Shouting Out Loud, The Raincoats, Odyshape, 1981
8. This Angry Silence, Television Personalities, And Don't the Kids Just Love It, 1981
9. Shipbuilding, Robert Wyatt, Nothing Can Stop Us, 1982
10. I Feel Voxish, The Fall, Perverted By Language, 1983
11. Cattle And Cane, The Go Betweens, Before Hollywood, 1983
12. Stunn/Rough Trade
13. Well Well Well, The Woodentops, 7", 1985
14. Never Had No One Ever, The Smiths, The Queen Is Dead, 1986
15. Blue Thunder, Galaxie 500, On Fire, 1989
16. Vacuum In My Head, Pere Ubu, Raygun Suitcase, 1995