Clarence Ewing: The Million Year Trip writesFriday MP3 Shuffle: Happy Birthday Vince Clarke Edition

Today we say Happy Birthday to one of the most accomplished musicians and songwriters from the world of Synthpop. Vince Clarke was one of the original members of Depeche Mode and wrote many of their early songs, including their first UK top-10 hit “Just Can’t Get Enough.” Although their album Speak and Spell put them on the map as a musical force, Clarke and his band mates parted ways soon after its release. No hard feelings, though; While the band went on to international stardom, Clarke teamed up with singer Alison Moyet to form Yazoo (Yaz if you’re in North America) and released two albums, one of which is the underrated classic Upstairs at Eric’s. He then joined forces with vocalist Andy Bell to form the duo Erasure and sail through the charts with Dance-Pop hits like “Oh L’Amour,” “Chains of Love,” “A Little Respect,” and “Breathe.”

Along with having mastered analog and digital electronic instruments, Clarke has produced a fantastic catalogue of music. Wish him a Happy Birthday by taking your MP3 player, pressing the “shuffle” button, and sharing the first 10 songs you hear:

1. "Track 12" by Edgard Varèse and the Jazzmen (unpublished album): One of the world's first recordings of Free Jazz, with a group that includes Charles Mingus on Bass

2. "Picnic Food in a Pinch" by Bob Dey's Tank Engine Man (Bob Dey's Dream): A guitar lays down a looped pattern while sub-sonic effects erupt underneath. This is an interesting concept album that combines a spoken word story about a very weird evening out to a party with Alt-Folkish music

3. "i" by Kendrick Lamar (To Pimp a Butterfly): (I suspect) one of the early contenders for Album of the Year. This is one of my favorite tracks off of it

4. "Declined" by VARSITY (VARSITY): A Chicago band that kicks out some quality buzzy garage Rock

5. "Good Times" by "Mount Salem" (Endless): Full-on Psychadelic Doom-Rock that moves like a volcanic mudslide. Kind of sounds like what would have happened if Heart decided to go Metal

6. "Broken Mirror" by Midnight Masses (Departures): A kind of ghostly, neo-Psychadelic bedroom digi-Pop, it has the airiness of Tennis with a heavier back-beat 

7. "808 State" by Lopez (Fused): Thick heaping handfuls of UK Big Beat Rave music 

8. "Senses Working Overtime" by XTC (English Settlement): One of my favorite songs of all time. "And all the world is football-shaped. It's just for me to kick it's face."

9. "Heal This Land" by Máire Brennan (Perfect Time): A gentle, optimistic track from the lead singer of the band Clannad, the arrangement is similar to something her countrywoman Enya would do, but more Pop-oriented

10. "The Mightly Ship" by The Housemartins (Now That's What I Call Quite Good): A brief and upbeat vocal-less interlude with heavy doses of harmonica

comments powered by Disqus