5 GREAT ALBUM TRACKS FOR FRIDAY (Part 13)

Another week in which your scribe gives himself sleepless nights trying to work out which five to select.

The really good news this week is that Malcolm Middleton has consistently released his best songs as singles, and so they don't qualify for inclusion today. That means for fans of Loneliness Shines, Break My Heart, A Brighter Beat, Beep Beep I Love You, Fight Like The Night, We're All Going To Die, Blue Plastic Bags, Red Travelling Socks and Zero, I apologise. But as fans you'll love and adore those songs anyway (although when it comes to fans of Fight Like The Night, I think the taste police might pay you a visit one day.....)

That means I've only around 50 songs to choose from. And its been bloody difficult. The good thing is that by going with Malky this week, I've had a great excuse to listen to his work in its entirety all week while going back and forth from work.

The final five chosen today probably wouldn't be the five I would choose next week. I really cant decide from about 20 of his album tracks which ones I prefer over others...much of this is down to the fact that I've seen him play gigs so often and in different settings that the memorable live renditions are a big influence...

But I'm going to give it a go.

There's two tracks from his second LP Into The Woods, which was released in 2005 and really did make a lot of people sit up and realise that here was someone who was equally as talented a songwriter as Aidan Moffat, the other half of Arab Strap. It's a consistently excellent record, and I've gone for these:-

mp3 : Malcolm Middleton - Devastation
mp3 : Malcolm Middleton - Monday Night Nothing

The former is an amazing song about the joy, happiness, worry and misery of having a relationship....and must be the only song that name checks McCoy's crisps. It was also one that Malky played when I asked for it at a record-shop appearance years ago...so it will always have a special place in my heart.

The latter was the first song that featured the violin of Jenny Reeve who would become a mainstay of his touring band for the next four or so years as well as a central part of the sound of later albums. In some ways it is a typical Middleton song featuring a downbeat self-deprecating lyric over an upbeat tune!! Someone a few days ago asked which songs vest represent Scotland - this is one I'd likely have on my list.

In 2007, he released A Brighter Beat, his first record since the break-up of Arab Strap. It was another strong record featuring some very catchy and hummable tunes. Just a pity that with a chorus of Fuck It I Love You, the most catchy of these was never destined for daytime radio, while the substitution of Beep Beep for Fuck It somehow diminished the song's impact.

mp3 : Malcolm Middleton - Superhero Songwriters

An epic tune that is almost seven minutes in length with loads of changes in tempo and volume, it's one that was a highlight of the live shows that year. And the one where I punched some arsehole at the Classic Grand in Glasgow for talking very loudly all the way through it, particularly the really quiet bit about three and a half minutes in.....

Moving on to the mini LP Sleight Of Heart released in early 2008, this was the first album in which Malcolm listened to those folk who had been telling him he was a talented lyricist and that he should include them with the records.

mp3 : Malcolm Middleton - Love Comes In Waves

Another terrific number about the up and down nature of relationships. I'm particularly fond of this as it contains the line 'Love is raining in Glasgow' which can be interpreted in so many ways.....

And finally, given that he has said he will continue to record but in different ways this is from what may or not be the very final Malcolm Middleton solo release Waxing Gibbous which hit the shops in 2009 :-

mp3 : Malcolm Middleton - Shadows

See....he can do great pop songs as well!!! Just dance as Lady Gaga might instruct.....

I know I haven't included anything from the 2002 debut LP 5:14 Fluoxytine Seagull Alcohol John Nicotine, but I thought I'd make up for it with a promo for one of the standout but admittedly rather depressing tracks:-



Honestly. If you don't have any Malcolm Middleton material, please do something about it. A great place to start is his double live CD which can be bought at this place.

Thanks for listening.