🎧 Only The Shit You Love: The Podcast (Damian Cowell)

Listened Only The Shit You Love: The Podcast, by Damian Cowell from Damian Cowell

Over 18 rambling episodes, as a companion piece to ‘Only The Shit You Love’ the web series, album and graphic novel, Damian goes behind the songs and behind the eyes of the bloke who wrote the songs – er, that is, him – and talks about things he loves, things he hates, his musical inspirations, his fumbling, crappy beginnings as a musician, his career before and after that famous band he was in, and a whole lot of other vaguely relevant stuff. In other words – only the shit that Damian loves.

Only The Shit You Love: The Podcast by Damian Cowell

Only The Shit You Love: The Podcast is a dive into the past into all things nostalgia. Damian Cowell has always scoffed at the thought of getting all ‘Glenn A. Baker’ on his time in music, instead he looks back at various disjointed moments throughout his life stemming from the web series, album and graphic novel, what he might term the ‘secret shit’. Cowell provides perspectives on the modern world, such as his thoughts on Spotify, work and the importance of drums, as well as moments from the past such as Abroz and the London Tavern traffic lights. I think that this is less about digging into some hidden archives to ascertain who said what as it is about telling an interesting story. In some ways it is all a continuation of his dislike of categories. These episodes can also be listened to as a part of Damian Cowell’s Podcast Machine feed or separately as a standalone feed too.

Notes

Episode 1 & 2

Only the Bits I Love

  • All My Loving by The Beatles (first record owned) pop track with a hook, melody and vocal harmony.

SPOTIFY AND COWELL’S Childhood Soundtrack

  • The Rain, The Park and Other Things by The Cowsills
  • Lady Scorpio by The Strangers
  • Candida by Dawn
  • Mouldy Old Dough by Ltd Pigeon

‘Secret Shit’

  • Love like Anthrax by Gang of Four
  • Non-Alignment Pack by Pere Ubu

GOLD 104.3 and ‘Only the Hits You Love’

  • She’s Gone and Sara Smile by Hal and Oates
  • Thom Bell and Philly Soul
  • Free Fallin’ by Tom Petty

Episode 3

  • Aunty Donna

‘Only’

  • I Only Have Eyes for You by The Flamingos
  • Only You by The Platters

London Tavern’s Traffic Lights

  • One Perfect Day Little Hero (Featuring Peter Linley)
  • Hot for the Orient by Skyhooks
  • No Nonsense

Only the Bits I Love – Roger Dean

  • The Dawn by Osibisa (which includes the sample “We’re going to start these happy vibes right from the root”)
  • Music for Gong Gong by Osibisa
  • Roger Dean artwork that served as inspiration for De RigueurMortis cover

Episode 4

  • Curtis by Curtis Mayfield
  • She’s Gone, Sarah Smile, I Can’t Go For That by Hal and Oats
  • You Make Me Feel by The Stylistics

Only the Bits I Love – Prog and Abroz

  • Close to the Edge by Yes
  • Lucky Man by ELP
  • Ummagumma by Pink Floyd
  • LCD Soundsystem
  • Tales of Great Ulysses by Cream

Episode 5

  • Without You by Kid Laroi (hated song)

Only the Bits I Love – off the beat

  • Party Out of Bounds by B-52s
  • Elvis Costello and The Attractions
  • The Who
  • Dr Feelgood
  • James Brown
  • Smack Your Bitch Up by Prodigy

Episode 6

Devil’s Harmony and Outsider Music

  • Portsmouth Sinfonia
  • Yesterday by The Beatles
  • Y Beckhurst

Fuckin’ Annoying and Parlour GIGS

  • Macarena by Los Del Rio

Only the Bits I Love – Kestral Hawk

  • Black Dog by Led Zeppelin

Episode 7

Springvale High Talent Competition

  • Paper Planes by Status Quo

Only the Bits I Love – first concert

  • Mackenzie Theory and the Killester Senior Girls Social
  • Skyhooks
  • The Jellabad Mutant by Ariel

Episode 8

Poetry and AAAAAA FOrm

  • Abacab by Genesis
  • Dictator Dan by Tony Martin
  • Romeo and the Lonely Girl by Thin Lizzy

Frank Stavala and Rock Impresario

  • Mighty Rock by Stars
  • Tickle Your Fancy by Taste

Only the Bits I Love – All-Ages Disco and Punk Music

  • Love Is the Drug by Roxy Music
  • Heart of Glass by Blonde

Episode 9

Bullshit, Artifice and Imposter Syndrome

  • Book: The Island of Doctor Moreau by H.G. Wells
  • Jocko Homo by Devo
  • Non-Alignment Pack by Pere Ubu

Only the Bits I Love – Springvale Learn to Dance

  • See My Baby Jive by Wizard

Episode 10

List of the songs mentioned by Tony Martin and Damian Cowell throughout their conversation:

  • Gilbert Sullivan
  • Golden Years by David Bowie
  • Bad Habits by Billy Fields
  • Atmosphere by Joy Division
  • Pink Frost by The Chills
  • Anything Could Happen by The Clean
  • Roll Out the Barrel by Myron Floren
  • Spanish Eyes by James Last
  • Pulled Up and Talking Heads
  • Collapsing New Habits by Fad Gadget
  • Cardiac Arrest by Madness
  • Baggy Trousers by Madness
  • Virginia by Dave McArtney and The Pink Flamingos
  • Counting the Beat by The Swingers
  • Everyday People by Sly & The Family Stone
  • Gutter Black by Hello Sailor
  • Totally Wired by The Fall
  • Rio by Duran Duran
  • O Superman by Laurie Anderson
  • Marquee Moon by Television
  • Give It to the Soft Boys by The Soft Boys
  • Penthouse and Pavement by Heaven 17
  • The Logical Song by Supertramp
  • El Bimbo by Bimbo Jet
  • Popcorn by Hot Butter
  • Rockit by Herbie Hancock
  • Save Your Love by Renee and Renato

Episode 11

  • Jesse’s Girl by Rick Springfield

Step Aerobics

  • I Feel Love – Donna Summers
  • Roxette by Dr Feelgood
  • Joe 90 Theme

The Bermuda Triangle of Record Stores

  • Too Bad by The Faces
  • Waiting for an Alibi by Thin Lizzy
  • Clash City Rocker by The Clash
  • Asia by Steely Dan

Guitar Music

  • Kid by The Pretenders
  • The Cars
  • Cold Chisel
  • Australian Crawl
  • Daddy Cool
  • Skyhooks
  • Custard

New Wave

  • The Police
  • Elvis Costello
  • Nick Lowe
  • XTC
  • The Undertones
  • Ian Dury and the Blockheads

Only the Bits I Love

  • Girl by The Records

Episode 12

Fans

  • Play Mistral for Me by TISM

Breakfast with Buddha, Punk Music and Tall Stories

“Punk didn’t last, but the jihadists did”

  • The Reals
  • Nich Cave
  • Iggy Pop
  • Sacred Cowboys
  • I Ain’t the One by The Angels
  • I like It Both Ways by Supernaut
  • Unemployed by The Nauts

Only the Bits I Love – Bass

  • Elvis Costello and the Attractions and the work of Bruce Thomas

Episode 13

Only the Bits I Love – Crystal Ballroom

  • The Fall

Episode 14

  • Hunters and Collectors
  • Hunters and Collectors by CAN

Book: Retromania by Simon Reynolds

  • Interpol
  • Future heads
  • British Sea Power

Postpunk

St Kilda’s Crystal Ballroom, Clifton Hill collective and Fitroy little band scene

  • Flowers
  • Friend Catcher by The Birthday Party
  • Wendy World
  • Plays with Marienwets
  • People with Chairs Up their Noses
  • The Models
  • Serious Young Insects
  • The Cure
  • Echo and the Bunnymen
  • Tear-drop Explode
  • Suzi Sioux

Only the Bits I Love

  • Talk of the Town by The Pretenders
  • Aimee Mann

Episode 15

  • Time Warp from Rocky Horror
  • Rhiannon
  • Bohemian Rhapsody
  • Make Your Mind Up by Bucks Fizz

I Can Run and the Mod Phase

  • Paul Wellar
  • The Who

Music from Improvisation

  • The Magic Whip by Blur
  • Mosquito by Yeah Yeah Yeah
  • New Order
  • Comsat Angels

Purchasing a TR 606 from Hans Music

Only the Bits I Love

  • Cosmic Baby

Episode 16

  • Serious Young Insects
  • Steve Pyke
  • The Coloured Balls and Lobby Loyde
  • Synthetic Dream
  • Scrap Museum > Blue Ruin
  • Nick Seymour’s Drummer

Only the Bits I Love

  • Losing My Edge by LCD Soundsystem

Episode 17

Only the Bits I Love – Trance Music Before Trance Music

  • Ramble Tamble by Credence Clearwater Revival

Episode 18

  • Little Red
  • Gram Parsons and Flying Burritos
  • Ice-Cream Hands

Only the Bits I Love – Patience Hodgsen

  • Crying All Night by The Grates

Episode 19

The Greek word for “return” is nostos. Algos means “suffering.” So nostalgia is the suffering caused by an unappeased yearning to return.

Milan Kundera – Ignorance

You can suffer nostalgia in the presence of the beloved if you glimpse a future where the beloved is no more.

Milan Kundera – Identity

Only the Bits I Love

  • Autumn Almanac by The Kinks

13 responses on “🎧 Only The Shit You Love: The Podcast (Damian Cowell)”

  1. I have long been encapsulated by Chilly Gonzales and his ‘musical genius’. Whether it be his work with various artists, pop music masterclasses and minor christmas album, I have been enamoured with the way in which he manages to break music down to capture what is essential. I was therefore intrigued by a book on Enya.

    I purchased the Enya: A Treatise on Unguilty Pleasures in good faith with little idea what to expect. I thought it might be some sort of technical breakdown of Enya’s work. Although I am always interested in what Chilly Gonzales has to say about any sort of music, I was not sure how interesting an extended breakdown of Enya’s music would actually be. What I had not expected was the way in which Gozanales used Enya and her music as a frame for his own memoir on music.

    It was almost a joke that rose up from my unconscious. But it was my way in. With Enya as a constraint, I could finally write a musical memoir, the very book the publisher had asked for years ago.

    http://www.chillygonzales.com/books/enya-a-treatise-on-unguilty-pleasures/

    Fine Gonzalas spoke about the Enya’s lullaby quality, the guilt often associated with liking such music, her use of the pizzicato strings on the Roland D-50 synthesiser in lieu of a rhythm track and the way in which she has managed her career by continually say no. However, often these references are merely jumping off points for Gonzales to reflect upon his own memories and experiences with music. Whether it be the relationship between harmony and melody:

    Harmony is melody’s bitch, with no life of it’s own.

    http://www.chillygonzales.com/books/enya-a-treatise-on-unguilty-pleasures/

    His desire for music that can be both serious and drop into the background:

    This is what my Enya book is about. This idea of music that sounds good while you eat or party or take a bath, versus music that you give your full attention to. And you guys are having the wrong argument. It’s not that all music falls into these two categories. The goal of music should be to function on both levels. It’s like with people.

    http://www.chillygonzales.com/books/enya-a-treatise-on-unguilty-pleasures/

    Disdain for loud voices:

    Vibrato is a bit like my formerly beloved jazz fusion: technically very difficult to learn but even more difficult to listen to. But to sign with no vibrato at ll, to let the music itself do the emotional work is the purist’s choice.

    http://www.chillygonzales.com/books/enya-a-treatise-on-unguilty-pleasures/

    And his preference for the music over lyrics:

    Wordlessness works for me. I was never a lyrics junkie outside of my affection for listening to rap. Rap lyrics are direct, playful and journalistic, standing in contrast to the impressionistic, poetic style of singer songwriters. With some exceptions I listen to music where the lyrics are in the passenger seat. No one really hears or cares what the Bee Gees are singing about, and I doubt that a single Bee Gee would even dispute that.

    http://www.chillygonzales.com/books/enya-a-treatise-on-unguilty-pleasures/

    In some ways Gonzales’ reflection on Enya reminds me of Damian Cowell’s Only the Shit You Love podcast. Like Gonzalas’ constraint as a guide, Cowell uses his video series as a starting point from which to reflect upon music past and present. They are both musical memoirs of artists engaging in artifice. Maybe the real purpose of such texts is not to uncover the author but to provoke the reader (or listener) into considering their own thoughts and finding their own good mother in music.

    If you enjoy what you read here, feel free to sign up for my monthly newsletter to catch up on all things learning, edtech and storytelling.Share this:EmailRedditTwitterPocketTumblrLinkedIn

    Review – Enya: A Treatise on Unguilty Pleasures by Chilly Gonzales by Aaron Davis is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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