Stately Homes of England's Podcast

There's a libertarian, old skool socialist vapour wafting through the skirts of these selections from the Stately jukebox. Use your vote wisely on May 6th.

The Edgar Broughton Band kick off the show live from Amsterdam in 2006 with some anti-war harry-foolery before handing the baton to the long-forgotten David & David with their recession-proof power ballad, Welcome to the Boomtown.

The best we could offer in response was Dignity by Deacon Blue. One up for the Yanks then.

Mick Jones' Carbon Silicon hit back with The System, using patented power chords to deliver the message "If the system doesn't work for us, then we should take it back." This is the equal of any Clash polemic... when Jones hits that high note in the last chorus, you want to give him a huge pat on the back.

Then it's back to N.Y for The Nails' blank classic 88 Lines About 44 Women. It's a brilliant list song, the dumb kid brother of Walk On The Wild Side and completely devoid of any Herbie Flowers. Sassy and smart and, to quote Mark Smith, "Shut that bloody Space Invaders machine up."

Deep joy then from Captain Sensible and Glad It's All Over, the sort of pop song that could only come from the 1980s. Humanity, warmth, a loving message and the sort of tune that the postman can whistle. This reminds us of Robert Wyatt.

Following that is an unreleased Stately Homes of England dubplate of Atmosphere, our tribute to the genius of Russ Abbott and the end of the party flop. The original can be found on our debut album, available over at Bandcamp.

A handbrake turn on a narrow pass takes us into the heart of Bulgaria with Angelite and Huun Hu Tuur's Mountain Story, quite possibly the most beautiful piece of music ever committed to tape. A testament to the wonder of the human voice.

Closing statement this time comes from Jade Goody, naturally.

TTFN x