Music has always played a big part in my life. I remember when I was 12 wanting to be a DJ on radio 1. I can remember sitting in my bedroom playing Duran Duran "Girls on Film" at full volume shouting in a Tony Blackburn voice "And that's the sen sensational sound of Duran Duran at number 1 in the charts " as if I were the great man himself. Like everyone I know exactly the name of my first serious record purchase. It was Going Underground by the Jam. A proper band and it was going down the charts. Number 20 as I seem to remember and it came in a white plain record sleeve when I brought it from the now defunct department store of "Shepard's" in Ashington. I carried it home in a small brown bag which if I used that bag today would have a 'Tree hugger handcuffing themselves to it in protest of chopping the Rainforest's down ! (A noble cause by the way).
As I got a bit older I manged to bluff my way onto Hospital Radio. The mighty Radio Wansbeck where I had 4 shows a week. My favourite was a Soul, Dance and Funk show called "The Soul City Walk" which I did on a Saturday evening from 6 till 10. I was known as 'The Soul master" and had jingles which used ring across the airwaves such as " Your Funky DJ in touch with your needs !"
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| Some pics should be left in the family album ! Me in my Soulmaster days at Radio Wansbeck ! 'Your Funky DJ in touch with your needs ! ' |
My dreams of superstar DJ stardom faded as I got older and started my working life but when I started working seriously as a Photographer and used to spend loads of hours on the Countries roads my love of music continued. I used to start the day with the radio being switched on almost as instinctively as turning the car key in the ignition. Music would fill my mobile speaker from whatever Radio station I could pick up depending on where I was or going to !
Peterboroughs Heraward Fm was my local station but then as I left the counties borders a new station would light up my Radio. Stations like Hallam FM, Radio Aire, Key 103, Picadilly sound, Viking FM and when in London or around the mighty M25 it was the one and only Capital FM and Tarrant in the morning.
I said before I used to photograph a lot of cars and as in car CD player's became more popular then so did my purchasing of Cd's to play in them. I remember buying "Definitely Maybe" by Oasis in a supermarket in Corby in Northamptonshire and playing it on a high quality CD player in a Mercedes Benz I was photographing and it totally blew me away. A great CD in a stylish car.
One of my most memorable car photography and music moments was photographing a BMW late one summers evening on a road on the Holy Island Causeway in Northumberland. No one was there just me a nice motor and Talking Heads....."Once in a lifetime watching the days go by......"
Just as the music was important in my photography career when wandering into cooking as a job it became just as important.
The Radio for 10 to 14 hours a day was sometimes your only contact with the outside world. If a news story broke you would hear it on the Radio first unless you were on a Tab break in which case you would have to rely on the pot washer to bring you up to speed ! If an asteroid hit the earth during your shift the first you would know about it, if it were not for the Radio, would be when if you worked in a basement kitchen table 3 came crashing into the Pastry section ! Not a bad thing at least it would wake the dopey, prima donna arty Pastry Chef up ! Yes he has the hands of a highly paid skilled Surgeon but ask him to take your mash off or to prep the Sea Bass then he's as much use as a condom machine in the Vatican ! Heh maybe that's an augment I need to get into on another day ! Ha ha !
Yes I have miserably peeled sack after sack of various root vegetables while listening to most kitchens favourite "...But what was the year...?" radio slot. Where Chefs would debate and argue about the exact year that Spandau Ballet's sickening song "True" came out.
"Its defo 1989.....I was sh**g**g this waitress at the Ox....Nice lass she's a Plumber now and she certainly knows how to handle her pipes...." The kitchen would erupt into sick twisted laughter. The joking Chef would have Potato peelings thrown at him.
"Neh it nots it's '93' I was at the George and Dragon.....
"More like Chasing the dragon Chef..." More laughter.
Then when all the stars in the kitchen were in line and an agreement was made the year would be texted off to the radio Station and then 10 minutes of kitchen banter silence while they waited for the year to be revealed and more so for a "Big shout out to the kitchen posse at The Waterfront and that's Big Baz, Not so Clever Trevor, Bunter, Cheesy and Pete ! the lad that sent the Text never put his nickname on it. Your close lads but no its.....95 !" The kitchen would groan. Yet another disappointment in life ! Ha ha !
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| the Kitchen Beat Box ! |
That's the point. Like learning new recipes or cooking techniques music changes at a pace and there is so much stuff out there to enjoy. I like to put songs up that I have discovered or remember from times gone by that you may have missed or forgotten about and its great if you 'You Tube' the songs (because most of them will be on there in some form or another) and give them a listen you might not like all of them but you might just find a little gem that makes you want to 'Bop till you drop' !!
I have tried to list my favourite 20 songs ever which is difficult infact I failed and had to put 4 CD's on there and its 22 and not 20 ! I am sure if you ask me in a weeks time they will have changed but its a bit like whats my favourite food or dish which I get asked...Its King Prawns....but next week it will be Feather blade beef...Variety is the spice of life...if you want to post your favourite cooking songs then please do.....Enjoy !
Kitchen Kev's Golden Classics.
1.Eton Rifles-The Jam
2.First Picture of you-The Lotus Eaters
3.Scipt For A Jesters Tear-Marillion
4.Once In a Lifetime-Talking Heads
5.Me No Pop I-Kid Creole
6.So-Peter Gabriel. CD
7.Hounds of Love-Kate Bush CD
8.Discovery-ELO CD
9.True Faith-New Order
10.Tonight-Smashing Pumpkins
11.Breath-Pearl Jam
12.Porrohman-Big Country.
13.Message In a Bottle-Police
14.Somebody got Murdered-The Clash.
15.Lost In a Supermarket-The Clash.
16.When Doves Cry-Prince.
17.Jack and Diane-John Cougar.
18.W.O.L.D-Harry Chapin.
19.Three Sides Live-Genesis CD
20.11.59-Blondie
21.Tunnel of Love-Dire Striats.
22.Love will tear us Apart-Joy Division
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