London Calling

[RosieH]

Ok, so I'm asking for your help again, but this time it's not all about my outright idleness.

A good friend is leaving these shores to return to his native Seattle, and as part of his going away gift, I'd like to make him a compilation of songs about Britain / England / London. Have some ideas, but was wondering if any of you arbiters of musical taste had any genius thoughts you'd care to add to the mix...

[Applespider]

London in the Rain by Variety Lab (although I make no claims to musical genius)

[Michael Palaeologus]

Selling England by the Pound - Genesis

[TheePope]

I'm tasked with doing a similar compilation at the moment:

London tunes - fairly predictable - Up the Junction, Waterloo Sunset, Itchycoo Park, Going Underground, Foggy day in London Town, Guns of Brixton, Electric Avenue

English tunes, hmmm, When an Old Cricketer Leaves the Crease, Life in a Northen Town,

Guess depends what music they like too.

[Santerme]

Isn't our Vera back in fashion

How about We'll Meet Again or There'll Always Be An England

Quintessentially English

[brum]

...or: Land of Hope and Glory, Land of My Fathers, Flower of Scotland, Danny Boy. Or some Classical pieces by Vaughan Williams: Lark Ascending, Fantasia on Greensleeves, Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1, In the Fen Country, English Folk Songs Suite.

[Easties EL]

Waterloo Sunset - Kinks (Ray Davies)

[ratty]

Rainy night in Soho

[????]

Dirty ol Town - Pogues

Mile End - Blur

London Town - Light of the World

?? Lyndhurst Grove - your man Jarvis

I don't want to go to Chelsea - Elvis Costello

Almost anything by Madness

Streets of London (if you're desperate)

Panic on the Streets of London - Smiths

A Bomb in Wardour Street - The Jam

Down in the tube station - The Jam

White man in Hammersmith Palais - The Clash

There's zillions

[kpc]

Ghost Town - The Specials

Funny how so many appear to be of an era.

[Brendan]

The Pogues and the Kinks both spring to mind. They both a few candidates.

I like Rainy Night in Soho. It always reminds me of London.

[*Bob*]

Rosie,

Ask you so-called 'friend' to provide you with the names of ten songs about England. Then, while she's writing them down, get the restaurant manager's brother's window cleaner's son's best friend to secretly slip three marked ten pound notes into the hood of her coat - and then call the fuzz and have her searched.

Play her at her own game.

[Sandperson]

Village Green Preservation society?

[SeanMacGabhann]

The English Motorway System - Black Box Recorder

A Childs Christmas In Wales - John Cale

Buddah of Suburbia - David Bowie

[PeckhamRose]

Towers of London by my beloved XTC.

They also did a wonderful song RIVER OF ORCHIDS where they talked of walking into London smelling like a Peckham Rose which is where I took my nickname from.

[Atila Reincarnate]

Anything by the Who, Small Faces, Kinks, Madness, Rod Stewart & the Faces, etc

[titch juicy]

great thread and great idea :)-D

babyshambles- albion (don't laugh, it's a fine track)

blur- parklife

the good the bad and the queen- history song

laura marling- night terror

[steveo]

get him a book

[giggirl]

Foo Fighters' cover of Baker Street

[Atila Reincarnate]

London Boys - David Bowie

[pk]

what kinda stuff does he like?

[giggirl]

Guns of Brixton - The Clash

I Live in Camberwell - Basement Jaxx

Down the Tube Station at Midnight - The Jam

Memory of a Free Festival - Bowie

Wild West End - Dire Straits (I really like this song - but it's a big blast from the past)

59 Lyndhurst Grove / Mile End - Pulp (I had to look this up - it's in Peckham)

Electric Avenue - Eddie Grant (about Brixton)Do the Strand - Roxy Music

Waterloo Sunset - Kinks (one of the songs I most hum along to in my head)

King's Cross / West End Girls - Pet Shop Boys

Brompton Oratory - Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Fake Plastic Trees - Radiohead (wankers)

Chelsea Girls - Nico (more likely to be about NYC but I really like this version anyway)

Only Living Boy in New Cross - Carter

God Save the Queen - Sex Pistols (stretching a point I know - the Queen lives in London)

Warwick Avenue - Duffy

Misty Morning Albert Bridge / Rainy Night in Soho - Pogues

Up The Junction - Squeeze

London Pride - Noel Coward (don't laugh - I've got a great version of this you can borrow if you want)

LDN - Lilly Allen (annoying woman)

The Stones must have done SOMETHING - where's Jah?

Ditto the Who

[????]

Play with Fire - Stones ("Now she gets her kicks in Stepney not in Knightsbridge anymore"..er I think that's play with fire)

Pinball Wizard - Who (Soho)

Saturday Night Beneath the Plastic Palm trees - The Leighton Buzzards (mention of Seven Sisters)

Club Tropicana - Wham (the Beate Route for the older among us)

Sound of the Suburbs - The Members

New England - Billy Bragg

[giggirl]

"You Can't Always Get What You Want" - mentions the Chelsea Drug Store - is that London or NYC - I love the song though so I'd put it in - Rolling Stones

[????]

Loads by Ian Dury for east Londoners