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Make ours a mix tape! Each song on March’s playlist has a story for a member of The Simple Things team. They all featured on much loved mix tapes, but which tunes soundtracked crushes, and which got us through our paper round? Read on…
‘Raspberry Beret’ by Prince
“A boy at school made me ten different Prince mix tapes – I only mentioned in passing that I liked one Prince song and thought it was weird he made me so many. I naively didn't think anything more of it…” Karen Dunn, Commissioning Editor
‘(You’re The) Devil in Disguise’ and ‘Suspicious Minds’ by Elvis Presley
“I've had one mix tape and that was from my partner, Udo, when we first got together. I was really touched until I got to songs four and five: ‘(You’re The) Devil in Disguise’ and ‘Suspicious Minds’…!” Joe McIntyre, Art Editor
‘Mr Wendel’ by Arrested Development
“This was on a mix tape that I used to play while doing my paper round when I was about 12 – I knew that when it came on I was almost done.” Karen Dunn, Commissioning Editor
‘Golden Hen’ by Tenor Saw
“When I was 16, my then boyfriend made me a dub/reggae mix tape. I loved this one song in particular and would often sing the lyrics when it played. My boyfriend never wrote down the titles of the songs, so I was mortified to find out – a couple of years later – that the song’s chorus line (and title name) was ‘My Golden Hen’ not ‘My Bowling Name’, as I’d sung it! Might explain why the guy didn’t last as my boyfriend.” Anneliese Klos, Art Editor
‘Accidently Kelly Street’ by Frente!
“My best friend in fifth form, Sally, put this on a mix tape for me when we were 15. It’s cheerful and sunshine-y and was one of only approximately three songs that they ever played in Harold’s café in Neighbours, which we thought was hilarious. Sally still makes me a mix tape nearly every year at Christmas, though she moved to CD a while ago. I’m a cultural vacuum, so I always look forward to musical education. And Frente! still always makes me smile.” Iona Bower, Editor-at-Large
‘Hey! Get Out of My Way’ by The Cardigans
“I put this on a mix tape I made myself to celebrate summer. It was about the time I was old enough to actually enjoy a bit of freedom, but not old enough to actually have any responsibility. Every time I hear it, it takes me back to blue skies and suburban parks and the feeling of possibilities.” Frances Ambler, Deputy Editor
‘Kooks’ by David Bowie and ‘Father and Daughter’ by Paul Simon
“My best friend made a lovely mix tape for me when I had my first daughter. The songs included ‘Up All Night’ by Razorlight, and these two choices.” Liz Boyd, Picture Researcher
‘Short People’ by Randy Newman
“An old colleague gave this to me, just before I started a new job. I’m quite short and when I listen to the lyrics, I’m never quite sure if he meant it affectionately or…” Frances Ambler, Deputy Editor
‘XO’ by John Mayer and ‘Hold Me Now’ by Johnny Logan
“As a kid, I was obsessed with the Irish Eurovision entry 'Hold Me Now' by Johnny Logan. I remember holding my tape player close to the TV and recording it off of TOTP several times (in the days before the repeat function), so that I could hear it again and again. I remember the recording also caught my sister walking into the room shouting, ‘Not again!’ on it. Nowadays, I have a much more ordinary playlist, but my eldest has started downloading some of my songs onto her playlists – our current favourite is this song by John Mayer.” Abbie Miller, Sub Editor
‘The Whole of the Moon’ by The Waterboys and ‘It’s the End of the World As We Know It’ by R.E.M.
“Many moons ago, my husband (then boyfriend) used to make me mix tapes. One of the songs that I discovered through them was ‘The Whole of the Moon’ by The Waterboys. Some 30 years later, I can still hear in my head the starting chords to the song that followed it… ‘It’s the End of the World As We Know It’, by R.E.M.” Louise Gorrod, Wishlist Editor
‘Romantic Type ‘by The Pigeon Detectives and ‘Just a Song About Ping Pong’ by Operator Please
“My mum’s friend owns an antique shop – and has a son. My mum and her friend got talking about how we both liked gigs. We communicated with each other for about a year, solely through mix tapes, passed to each other through our parents. These are both from tapes that he gave me.” Olivia O’Connor, Subscription Manager
‘The Real Thing’ by Tony Di Bart
“When I was about 12, I got one of those CD and tape players that let me record onto tapes – so the first time I could record from the radio. At the time, this was number one, and I kept trying to record it – with the deft art of stopping before the DJ starts talking. I think there were a few belters on that first tape, such as ‘Swap Thing’ by The Grid and ‘Mr Vain’ by Culture Beat. If ‘The Real Thing’ gets played (which is rare) it takes me straight back to that time and place.
Rob Biddiss, Commercial Director
Competition! Now you make us a mixtape!
We want you to make us a mix tape! It can be themed, or perhaps biographical, or simply introduce us to some great music – it’s up to you. Just put together around an hour’s worth of music on Spotify, send us the link or the track listing, along with a couple of sentences on the story behind your playlist to thesimplethings@icebergpress.co.uk. We’ll need it by 23 March. And we’ll feature our favourite in a future magazine.
More of our playlists…
