Blitz club lynchpin and modern day electronic music lightning rod, Rusty Egan picks his first and last records he bought and the one he turns to in emergencies
FIRST
Various Artists
‘Tighten Up Volume 3’
(Trojan, 1970)
As a teen in the 70s I was drawn to the sound of Doctor Who, Chicory Tip’s ‘Son Of My Father’ and Python Lee Jackson’s ‘In A Broken Dream’. Trying to remember what I bought first on a rare, privileged visit to Basingstoke Shopping Centre from my boarding school in Rotherwick is quite a task. Bowie, Roxy and Alice Cooper were all were in my head and I knew all the words. I was into Tamla before Bowie, so maybe it was ‘Tighten Up Volume 3’ or maybe Prince Buster as a 14-year-old…
LAST
Ryan Vail
‘For Every Silence’
(Champion Sound, 2016)
Having a radio show means I search for and get sent a lot of music. What jumps out at me are the tracks I would have bought if had to get dressed and head off to the record store, but it’s 2016 so I find it and I share it. I post on social media and I load it on my phone … I use it up and wear it out. What a great album ‘For Every Silence’ is. I also loved boy wonder David August’s live Boiler Room from Berlin, oh, and David Bowie’s ‘Blackstar’.
ALWAYS
Van Morrison
‘Astral Weeks ‘
(Warner Bros, 1968)
My Irish side brought me to an album that has touched me more than anything and there’s not a synth in sight! My older brother was a hippie and I got to hear a lot of prog rock. I was immediately drawn to the keyboards. I do love a Fender Rhodes, but it was used in so many 70s hits it became overbearing. I’m not sure if there’s one on ‘Astral Weeks’, I will need to investigate!
