Three of a kind #34 (+ some Club 8)

Large parts of the UK were hit by an earthquake last night, which had people panicking and jamming the emergency services' switchboards all over the shop. This being Blighty, though, the earthquake was only a fairly teensy one (lasting just a quarter of a minute and registering a steady but unspectacular 5.2 on the Richter scale), which thankfully didn't kill or seriously injure anyone. In fact, the sum extent of the damage it wreaked appears to be a few toppled chimney pots here and there.

Anyway, gawd help us if we were ever to get a proper quake - the way some of those affected in this 15-second one were carrying on when interviewed by the never-knowingly-understated British media about it this morning, you'd think the end of the world had been nigh.

Ah well, time for a bit of levity in the form of a trio of apt tracks to ease the pain on this, ahem, deeply harrowing and devastating day I think!

The Darlings - You Shook Me All Night Long mp3

Carole King - I Feel The Earth Move mp3

Herbie Hancock - Rockit mp3

(mp3s available for 7 days)


In other news, tip-top Swedish label Labrador have today reissued the first four albums by excellent Saint Etienne-esque combo Club 8, complete with lots of bonus tracks. Our friend Lito from the splendid Spanish language blog Lito Music has five of Club 8's finest tracks available for download here. (I'd especially recommend Spring Came, Rain Fell and Whatever You Want.)

Get the Club 8 reissues here.

You can buy music from today's other featured artists here and here.

Spike Spike Bo Bike Banana Bana Fo Fike Fee Fi Mo Mike...Spike!

Three classics from female singers today. First we have a song which gives us hours of fun! Well, at least five minutes of fun as we learn that there isn't any name that we can't rhyme, according to Shirley Ellis. Given the trouble I have spelling in song, you can imagine how many days it took me to learn how to play The Name Game...

Shirley Ellis - The Name Game mp3 (available for 7 days)

I love Carole King, I do. So does my mum. So does my brother. So does kippers. In fact I'm not sure I know anyone who hasn't openly declared their love for her. I even forgive her for being half responsible for the distinctly dubious He Hit Me And It Felt Like A Kiss since the following song was a hit in the same year.

Carole King - It Might As Well Rain Until September mp3 (available for 7 days)

I believe my words upon hearing I Can't Stay Mad At You for the first time were, "Why don't all songs sound like this?" Still a perfectly valid question, I feel. (And it was written by Carole King - huzzah!)
If you get a spare moment, have a read up about Skeeter - her story is pretty amazing. Particularly the part where her best friend's mother pumped her full of drugs and told her she was responsible for the death of said friend in a car crash.

Skeeter Davis - I Can't Stay Mad At You mp3 (available for 7 days)

All of these songs can be bought on the great compilation Early Girls volume 1: Popsicles and Icicles.