Sunday, September 26, 2010

47. Work

Broadcast 28th September 2010

Three perspectives on work including the radio premiere of Sarah Roberts' piece The Bloody Avant-Garde delivered in Sarah's own inimitable style - think Matthew Collings meets Les Dawson and you're a quarter of the way there!

The second half of the show is the second part of our four-part serialisation of Shakespeare's Macbeth.
The Dialect of the Black American
Western Electric, 1970

Interesting linguistics record which presents different (staged) examples of African American dialect (as well as some cod-Scottish) and presents the linguists' perspective that such dialects are simply different and not inferior.

The Bloody Avant-Garde written and performed by the artist and cleaner Sarah Roberts.
http://www.sarahroberts.net
A witty and incisive investigation of art as a job of work from the perspective of someone with a far deeper insight than the subjects of her monologue. Great stuff!

Cotswold Craftsmen
Saydisc, 1973

Totally absorbing accounts of crafts and occupations, most of which have now died out, at least in their pre-industrial form. Voices from a different era, interspersed with questions from a very BBC-voiced interviewer, which conjure visions of a very different world.

William Shakespeare Macbeth
The Shakespeare Recording Society
Caedmon, 1960
Macbeth
With a cast including Robert Hardy as Duncan, Ian Holm as Malcolm, Stanley Holloway as the Porter, Jill Balcon as Lady Macduff and Anthony Quayle in the lead role. Another cracking production under the direction of Howard Sackler on Caedmon.

Monday, September 20, 2010

46. Shetland with Christine De Luca

Broadcast 21st September 2010

We welcome our very first studio guest to Voice On Record, the Shetland poet Christine De Luca. Christine reads some poems from North End Of Eden in English and in the Shetland dialect, and talks to me about a record I found in Orkney, a copy of which she hasn't seen since she was a child growing up in Shetland.

Also, to stick with a broadly Scottish theme, we begin our four part serialisation of Shakespeare's Macbeth.

Eftir Da Hümin Words and Music of Shetland
Presented by the Shetland Folk Society
Waverley, undated (post 1945)
Shetland Shetland Landscape

North End Of Eden
Christine De Luca
(2010) Luath Press Ltd., Edinburgh
recorded for the show by Sean Williams
De Luca
For more information please visit Christine's website www.christinedeluca.co.uk

William Shakespeare Macbeth
The Shakespeare Recording Society
Caedmon, 1960
Macbeth
With a cast including Robert Hardy as Duncan, Ian Holm as Malcolm, Stanley Holloway as the Porter, Jill Balcon as Lady Macduff and Anthony Quayle in the lead role. Another cracking production under the direction of Howard Sackler on Caedmon.

Thursday, September 16, 2010

45. Sherlock Holmes 1

Broadcast on 14th September 2010
Two stories featuring the famous resident of 221b Baker Street read by Basil Rathbone. I picked up two of these records in Millenium Music in Portland Oregon. This is a shop I've spent many hours in over the past 10 years and has changed with the times but still manages to stock a load of cool second hand vinyl and CDs as well as staying on the pulse of current releases. And it's open til 10 o'clock at night!

Stories of Sherlock Holmes, Basil Rathbone
The Adventure of the Speckled Band
The Final Problem
Caedmon, 1963
Sherlock Holmes 1

Alec Guinness, A Personal Choice
RCA Victor, 1965
Alec Guinness

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

44. Voice of the Theatre

Broadcast on 27th July 2010
Voices of incredible actors talking about the craft of the theatre.

talking about Theatre
Noël Coward, Albert Finney, Peter Hall, Sean Kenny, Siobhan McKenna, Harold Pinter, Sybil Thorndike, Kenneth Tynan, Peter Ustinov.
Argo, 1962
Theatre

43. Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Broadcast on 20th July 2010
Richard Burton's reading of Samuel Taylor Coleridge's epic poem.

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, read by Richard Burton with John Neville and Robert Hardy
An Argo recording, Spoken Arts, undated
Ancient Mariner

Animal Sounds - Fishes
Commentary by Peter Scott, script by Cathy Jarman.
Produced for Purnell's Encyclopedia of Animal Life and MacDonald Junior Reference Library by Procaudio Ltd.
BPC, 1970
Animal Sounds

42. John Arlott

Broadcast on 13th July 2010
My favorite voice ever to grace the airwaves, and a great friend of Dylan Thomas, John Arlott was the quintessential cricket commentator, bringing a poet's mastery of the
English language to elevate the wonderful game to new heights of aesthetic pleasure. Sit back and marvel in John's consummate skill.

John Arlott talks Cricket
Charisma, 1982
John Arlott
1. Early Memories
2. May's Bounty
3. Mead/Brown/Tennyson/Strudwick
4. The Golden Days
5. Laker/Hobbs/Sutcliffe/Fry

The Lord's Taverners: Best of Test Match Special featuring Brian Johnstone, John Arlott, Christopher Martin-Jenkins, Fred Trueman and Trevor Bailey.
Haven Records, 1984
Test Match Special

41. Wales part 3. Land of My Fathers.

Broadcast on 29th June 2010
Rounding off our Welsh trilogy with another tale from the Mabinogion, more Dylan Thomas, and finally, Oliver Postgate's famous creation, Ivor The Engine.


The Mabinogion extracts from the four branches.
read by Gwyn Jones
A Welsh Arts Council Oriel Record, 1976
Mabinogion
Pryderi Lost and Found
The Sorrows of Branwen
Catching a Mouse
Lleu and the Flower-Bride

Poets of Wales John Ormond, Raymond Garlick
Argo, 1971
Poets Of Wales Poets Of Wales cover
Some more Raymond Garlick poems.

Under Milkwood by Dylan Thomas with Richard Burton and all Welsh cast in the original BBC production.
Argo, 1954
Under Milkwood
Quite possibly the finest spoken word recording of all time. If you don't already own this it can be purchased on CD and should be a part of your collection.

R.S.Thomas reading his own poems, recorded at the poet's home, July 1976
Welsh Arts Council Oriel, 1976
RS Thomas

Ivor the Engine reading his own poems, recorded at the poet's home, July 1976
Trunk Records, 2006
Ivor
With music lovingly composed by Vernon Eliot, who also plays the bassoon which is Ivor's voice. This always brings tears to the eyes. Oliver Postgate's amazing work continues to make so many people so happy. We love you Oliver.

And another thing that always brings tears to the eyes, especially during the Six Nations is Land Of My Fathers despite not being at all Welsh.This is one of the truly magnificent songs. You could count on the fingers of one hand the number of audio experiences in the same league as this song sung by a stadium full of Welsh voices or a small church choir.

40. Wales part 2

Broadcast on 22nd June 2010
Welsh poets including three Thomas'

Poets of Wales Dannie Abse, Leslie Norris
Argo, 1971
Poets Of Wales Poets Of Wales cover
Some of Leslie Norris' poems including Skulls, A Girl's Song, Ransomes for Edward Thomas.

R.S.Thomas reading his own poems, recorded at the poet's home, July 1976
Welsh Arts Council Oriel, 1976
RS Thomas

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, read by Richard Burton with John Neville and Robert Hardy
An Argo recording, Spoken Arts, undated
Ancient Mariner
Richard Burton reads Frost at Midnight from this record.

The World of Dylan Thomas in Poetry and Prose with excerpts from Under Milkwood. Richard Burton, Emlyn Williams and other readers.
Argo, 1971
World Of Dylan Thomas
The Hunchback in the Park and Fern Hill read by Richard Burton, and In My Craft Or Sullen Art read by Richard Bebb.

This is followed by more poems by Dannie Abse and Leslie Norris.

39. Wales part 1

Broadcast on 15th June 2010
The first in our Welsh trilogy - a land that hasn't featured too much yet but which we will now address.

Children Talking
Children Talking

English With A Dialect - and Irish, Scottish and Welsh Accents
BBC Records, 1971


The Mabinogion extracts from the four branches.
read by Gwyn Jones
A Welsh Arts Council Oriel Record, 1976
Mabinogion
Pryderi Lost and Found
The Sorrows of Branwen
Catching a Mouse
Lleu and the Flower-Bride

Not all these stories are played in this episode but I'll work out which was and update this page eventually.

Poets of Wales John Ormond, Raymond Garlick
Argo, 1971
Poets Of Wales Poets Of Wales cover
I played some of the Raymond Garlick poems only from this disk.

38. Peter Scott part 3.

Broadcast on 8th June 2010
Probably the last Peter Scott programme based on a collection of 7" singles that accompanied a children's encyclopedia.

Animal Sounds
Commentary by Peter Scott, script by Cathy Jarman.
Produced for Purnell's Encyclopedia of Animal Life and MacDonald Junior Reference Library by Procaudio Ltd.
BPC, 1970
Animal Sounds
5 7" records
Birds
Insects
Amphibians and Reptiles
Mammals
Fishes (see episode 43 for this record after the Ancient Mariner)

37. Wildlife In Danger

Broadcast on 1st June 2010
Voices from the conservation bodies as well as recordings by some of the greats such as Ludwig Koch, Eric Simms and the like of many species which were endangered in the 20th Century, some of which are doubtless now extinct.

Wildlife In Danger BBC Wildlifre Series No.8
BBC Records, 1971
Wildlife In Danger
One of the excellent records in the BBC Wildlife Series produced by Eric Simms.

36. Peter Scott part 2 - Sounds of the Serengeti

Broadcast on 18th May 2010

Grahame Dangerfeild brings you Sounds of the Serengeti Incredible live recordings of wild life from the heart of Africa. Narration by Peter Scott.
Music For Pleasure, 1970
Serengeti

35. Peter Scott part 1

Broadcast on 11th May 2010.
The first of three, possibly four programmes featuring the voice of Peter Scott and many of his colleagues and feathered friends. I can heartily recommend his autobiography The Eye of the Wind Hodder, Stoughton & Brockhampton, London, Leicester 1961-77.

Sounds of My Life Peter Scott talks about his eventful life.
Peter Scott Peter Scott cover

34. Horror 3 Arch Obelor presents...

Broadcast on 4th May 2010
Arch Obelor presents two weird 50s horror/terror stories that take you right back to the 1950s and the fear of total atomic destruction so characteristic of the period.

Arch Obelor's Lights Out Everybody
Nostalgia Lane Inc, 1978
Lights Out
Oxychloride X (The Ultimate Hole).
Rocket From Manhattan (The play that anticipated the Sputnik).

33. Horror 2 Bela Lugosi and Peter Lorre

Broadcast on 27th April 2010

Suspense Bela Lugosi, with narrative introduction by Bela Lugosi jr.
Mark56, 1973
Bela Lugosi Bela Lugosi still

Peter Lorre, Master of mystery and suspense
The Queen of Spades
Nostalgia Lane Inc, 1978
Peter Lorre

32. Horror part 1

Broadcast on 20th April 2010.
The voice of Horror, Bill Mitchell reads two tales by Edgar Allan Poe and introduces Christopher Lee as Dracula.

Tales of Mystery and Imagination - Edgar Allan Poe read by Bill Mitchell.
Argo, 1977
Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe cover
The Telltale Heart
The Case Of Amontillado

Hammer presents Dracula with Christopher Lee
A HORRIFYING STORY OF VAMPIRISM with spine chilling sounds and music.
Music by James Bernard
EMI Studio 2 Stereo, Hammer City Records Ltd., 1974
Dracula Dracula cover

31. Tolkein 2

Broadcast on 13th April 2010
Part 2 of the Tolkein shows, this week featuring Tolkein reading from The Two Towers and Return of The King plus a little bit of Seamus Heaney reading his own translation of Beowulf, just to give some context to Tolkein's Riders of Rohan.

J.R.R.Tolkein reads and sings his THE LORD OF THE RINGS, The Two Towers, The Return of the King.
Caedmon, 1975
Lord Of The Rings

Beowulf Seamus Heaney. A New Translation
Penguin, 2000
Beowulf

30. Tolkein 1

Broadcast on 6th april 2010.
Recordings of Tolkein reading from The Hobbit and also from Fellowship of the Ring, before having found a publisher!

J.R.R.Tolkein reads and sings his THE HOBBIT and The Fellowship of the Ring
Caedmon, 1975
The Hobbit

29. Dougal and the Blue Cat

Broadcast on 30th March 2010.
Well, this show is entirely made up of the fantastic adventures of Dougal and the Magic Roundabout cast and their encounters with Buxton the Blue Cat. I edited out a lot of the songs so as to fit the whole piece into the show so I urge anybody interested to track down the original to get the full benefit of the whole piece.

Rest assured that this has nothing to do with the dire version voiced by Robbie Williams and Kylie Minogue.

All your friends from THE MAGIC ROUNDABOUT present DOUGAL and the BLUE CAT. Original soundtrack of the film.
Music For Pleasure, 1972
Dougal and the Blue Cat

28. Spring

Broadcast on 23rd March 2010.
To celebrate the changing seasons I have put together a show about Spring, although my methodology is a little suspect since I have mainly gone through a stack of poetry records and looked for poems with the word Spring in the title.

Most of these items are from the following records:
Birds and Other Sounds of the Countryside Recorded and Produced by Eric Simms.
BBC Sound Effects No. 17
BBC Records, 1977
BBC 17

Victorian Poetry read by Max Adrian, Claire Bloom and Alan Howard.
Caedmon, 1971
Victorian Poetry

the poetry of Blake read by Ralph Richardson.
Caedmon, 1958
Poetry of Blake

plus a couple from:
Alec Guinness, A Personal Choice
RCA Victor, 1965
Alec Guinness

Lambs and rooks.

Ogden Nash Reads Ogden Nash.
Caedmon, 1953
Ogden Nash
Spring

Dante Gabriel Rosetti

William Blake

Gerard Manley Hopkins

Lowland broadleaved woodlands

e.e.cummings spring

Alec Guinness Springtime

Blackbirds and Sparrows

e.e.cummings when faces called flowers read by the author

e.e.cummings when faces called flowers read by the Alec Guinness

Gerard Manley Hopkins The Windhover
Lowland Broadleaved Woodlands.
Frogs and toads.

T.S.Eliot reads The Wasteland.
The Wasteland