Index of Posts & Songs
“Music is its own reward”
“After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music.”
-Aldous Huxley
Magicmenagerie is Ralph Brown, a happily married british actor, writer & musician based in Brooklyn. He has worked with some of the greatest directors in the business, including Steven Speilberg, George Lucas, David Fincher, Ang Lee, Richard Curtis, Bruce Robinson, Simon Curtis, Paul Schrader, Bryan Singer, Danny Boyle and Chan-Wook Park. His writing has been translated into French Spanish Italian and Japanese. If you want to contact Ralph, you can contribute to the blog under each chapter, or write to me at Twitter : https://twitter.com/Ralphwjbrown.
My blogging was limited, initially, to major events in my life which I wanted to record for posterity and share. Co-incidentally, the first two both concerned Africa : the World Cup in South Africa 2010, and a Charity Cycle Ride across Ghana which I completed in 2009. Since then I’ve blogged the World Cup again, in Brazil 2014, and started a random musical autobiography called My Pop Life.
SOUTH AFRICA WORLD CUP 2010 Part 1 : Cape Town
SOUTH AFRICA WORLD CUP 2010 Part 2 : Bafana Bafana
SOUTH AFRICA WORLD CUP 2010 Part 3 : Please Not Penalties
SOUTH AFRICA WORLD CUP 2010 Part 4 : Soweto
SOUTH AFRICA WORLD CUP 2010 Part 5 : Jozi
CYCLING ACROSS GHANA TO RAISE MONEY FOR VILLAGE WELLS 2011
BRASIL WORLD CUP 2014 – Copa das Copas – 1
BRASIL WORLD CUP 2014 – Copa das Copas – 2
BRASIL WORLD CUP 2014 – Copa das Copas – 3
MY POP LIFE – starts here, for full index scroll down a little more
I subtitled My Pop Life “My Life In The Gush Of Boasts”. No prizes for knowing the reference there.
A chequered musical quilt of an autobiography, in song-shaped episodes, My Pop Life takes one moment in my life and looks at it through a piece of music. Sometimes the piece of music fits that moment really well, other times not. It is not a list of my favourite songs. It is my look back at an eventful, dysfunctional, random musical life. It is both therapeutic and hopefully without regret. There is no plan. I hope you find it entertaining and informative, and possibly find some new music hidden amongst the anecdotes, stories and boasts.
For some reason my World Cup blog – in five parts – invites you to read part 5 first. This is not encouraged. I’d advise beginners to start with part 1. Then 2 and so on. You’ll thank me!
To receive email notifications when I post a blog, click on the FOLLOW button at the bottom right of this page – when you scroll the page up & down (ie toggle) a menu appears bottom right click the three dots and follow is there.
You can also use the search engine for specific years, people, TV shows or films I’ve worked on, or random musicians, actors, architects and essential workers.
MY POP LIFE : index & links
2. International Feel – Todd Rundgren
3. I Don’t Blame You At All – Smokey Robinson & The Miracles
4. Music & Rhythm – The Mighty Sparrow
6. She Is His Only Need – Wynonna Judd
7. Do The Right Thing – Redhead Kingpin & The FBI
8. I Wanna Be Like You – Louis Prima
9. Ballade Number One – Frédéric Chopin
10. Slavery Days – Burning Spear
11. Bye Bye Baby – The Bay City Rollers
13. The Green Fields Of France – The Fureys & Davey Arthur
15. Original Nuttah – UK Apache & Shy FX
16. The Art Teacher – Rufus Wainwright
17. People Got To Be Free – Dionne Warwick
20. Everything Must Change – Oleta Adams
21. That’s The Way Of The World – Earth Wind & Fire
23. Somethin’ Else – Eddie Cochran
24. Requiem : Sanctus – Gabriel Fauré
25. There There My Dear – Dexys Midnight Runners
26. At The River – Groove Armada
27. Concerto in F – George Gershwin
28. Too Far Gone – Bobby Bland
29. Take Me In Your Arms & Love Me – Gladys Knight & The Pips
30. Two Lane Highway – Pure Prairie League
31. On The Radio – Donna Summer
32. Everything I Own – Ken Boothe
33. We Got Our Own Thang – Heavy D & The Boyz
34. Symphony In Black ft. Billie Holiday – Duke Ellington
35. Right Said Fred – Bernard Cribbins
37. A Salty Dog – Procol Harum
38. Liberté – Franco et TPOK Jazz
39. Knocks Me Off My Feet – Stevie Wonder
40. I Ain’t Mad At’cha – Tupac
44. Autumn Almanac – The Kinks
45. If You Love Me – Brownstone
46. Deportee (Plane Crash At Los Gatos) – Dolly Parton
47. The Great Gig In The Sky – Pink Floyd
48. Photoshop Handsome – Everything Everything
49. This Guy’s In Love With You – Herb Alpert
50. Breakin’ Down (Sugar Samba) – Julia & Company
51. Tom Hark – Elias & His Zig Zag Jive Flutes
52. Complete Control – The Clash
53. My Girls – Animal Collective
56. Morning Has Broken – Cat Stevens
57. Let’s Push Things Forward – The Streets
58. St Elmo’s Fire – Brian Eno
59. Looks Is Deceiving – The Gladiators
60. Theme From Shaft – Isaac Hayes
61. Fight The Power – Public Enemy
62. 4th Symphony – Ruhevoll – Gustav Mahler
63. Games People Play – Joe South
65. Wake Up Alone – Amy Winehouse
66. Untold Stories – Buju Banton
67. Yun Na Thi Muj Se – Asha Bhosle
68. Desafinado – Stan Getz & Charlie Byrd
69. Love Me Always & Dub (Angolian Chant) – Dennis Brown
70. Can’t Give You Anything – The Stylistics
71. Song For Sharon – Joni Mitchell
72. La Vie En Rose – Grace Jones
73. ‘Til Tomorrow – Marvin Gaye
74. We Major ft. Nas & Really Doe – Kanye West
76. St Matthew Passion : Kommt Ihr Töchter – J.S. Bach
77. Shirt – Bonzo Bog Doo-Dah Band
78. Then Came The Last Days Of May – Blue Öyster Cult
79. People Get Ready – Curtis Mayfield
80. Heartbreak Hotel – Elvis Presley
81. Theme from ‘The Virginian’ – Percy Faith & his Orchestra
82. Lilizela Mlilizeli – Mahlathini & The Mahotella Queens
83. Country Boy – Ricky Skaggs
84. All Along The Watchtower – Jimi Hendrix
85. The Undercover Man – Van Der Graaf Generator
86. I Know You Got Soul – Eric B & Rakim
87. Prélude À L’Après-Midi D’Un Faune – Claude Debussy
89. Some Folks Lives Roll Easy – Paul Simon
91. The Trail Of The Lonesome Pine – Laurel & Hardy
93. One Day I’ll Fly Away – Randy Crawford
94. Tannhäuser : Overture – Richard Wagner
95. Delaney’s Donkey – Val Doonican
97. Where Are We Now? – David Bowie
98. When Something Is Wrong With My Baby – Sam & Dave
99. La Tristesse Durera – Manic Street Preachers
101. Tired Of Being Alone – Al Green
102. Israelites – Desmond Dekker
103. Focus II – Focus
104. Smokestack Lightnin’ – Howlin’ Wolf
105. Come Rain Or Come Shine – Ray Charles
106. A Wedding In Cherokee County – Randy Newman
108. Sumer Is Icumen In – Richard Thompson
110. Dreams – Joe Walsh
111. Heroes & Villains – The Beach Boys
112. The Night – Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
113. God Save The Queen – Sex Pistols
114. There’s Nothing Better Than Love – Luther Vandross
115. Ma Jaiye Oni – King Sunny Ade
116. Left Bank Two (Vision On) – The Noveltones
117. Umdlwembe – Zola
118. Glass Onion – The Beatles
119. Evidently Chickentown – John Cooper Clarke
120. I Love It ft Charli XCX – Icona Pop
121. Don’t Make Me Wait Too Long – Roberta Flack
122. The Sensual World – Kate Bush
124. Beyond Belief – Elvis Costello
125. Chickery Chick – Sammy Kaye & his Orchestra
126. Blue Monday – Fats Domino
127. He Who Would Valiant Be – Ralph Vaughan Williams / Choir Of Christ’s College
128. A Whiter Shade Of Pale – King Curtis
129. Get Close To Me – Thomas Jules
130. America – Simon & Garfunkel
131. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town – The Crystals
134. String Quartet in C : The Emporer – Josef Haydn
135. I Can’t Hear You – Betty Everett
136. Sanson Ki Maala Pe Simrun Main – Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
137. The Word/Sardines – Junkyard Band
138. Give Up The Funk – Parliament
139. The Way We Were/Try To Remember – Gladys Knight
140. The Right Thing To Do – Carly Simon
142. Gimme Some More – Busta Rhymes
144. Flowers In The Window – Travis
146. I Just Wasn’t Made For These Times – The Beach Boys
147. Days – The Kinks
148. Lost Highway – Hank Williams
149. Little By Little – Dusty Springfield
150. Love Ain’t Just A Word ft Anne Marie – Rudimental
151. Mood Indigo – Charles Mingus
152. The Morning Papers – Prince
153. Small Hours – John Martyn
154. Within You Without You – The Beatles
155. 3rd Symphony ‘Eroica’ : Scherzo – Ludwig van Beethoven
156. Paid In Full – Eric B & Rakim
157. By The Beautiful Blue Danube – Johann Strauss II
158. Tipitina – Professor Longhair
160. River Deep, Mountain High – Ike & Tina Turner
161. Shine – Take That
162. The Way You Look Tonight – Billie Holiday & Teddy Wilson
163. Early – Run The Jewels ft. BOOTS
164. Blitzkrieg Bop – The Ramones
165. My Love – Paul McCartney & Wings
167. Thinkin Bout You – Frank Ocean
168. Pleasant Valley Sunday – The Monkees
169. The Magic Hand – Stephen J. Kalinich
170. Make You Feel My Love – Adele
171. Praying For Time – George Michael
176. Luck Be A Lady – Ian Charleson & NT
177. Don’t You Take It Too Bad – Guy Clark
178. It’s Up To You – The Specials
179. One Drop – Bob Marley & The Wailers
181. Skyline Pigeon – Guy Darrell
182. Am I Wrong – Anderson .Paak ft ScHoolboy Q
184. Mystery Band – Lord Kitchener
185. Between The Wars – Billy Bragg
187. Groovy Little Thing – Beres Hammond
188. Spirit In The Sky – Norman Greenbaum
189. Lost In Music – Sister Sledge
190. There You Are – Millie Jackson
191. Águas de Março – Elis Regina e Tom Jobim
192. Hang On In There Baby – Johnny Bristol
193. People Make The World Go Round – The Stylistics
194. Shhh/Peaceful – Miles Davis
195. Do What You Gotta Do – Nina Simone
196. Pullin’ Back The Reins – k.d. lang
198. Neighbourhood #3 (Power Out) – The Arcade Fire
199. Oh Happy Day – The Edwin Hawkins Singers
200. Hello, Goodbye – The Beatles
201. The Banner Man – Blue Mink
202. O Caroline – Matching Mole
203. Bird of Paradise – Charlie Parker
204. Never Enough – Boris Duglosh ft. Roisin Murphy
205. Sure ‘Nuff ‘N Yes I Do – Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
206. Summertime In My Heart – The Electric Soft Parade
207. How Great Thou Art – The Statler Brothers
209. Symphony No. 1 in D Major, “Classical”: I. Allegro – Sergei Prokofiev
210. The Carnival Is Over – The Seekers
211. Three Lions – The Lightning Seeds with David Baddiel, Frank Skinner
212. Use It Up & Wear It Out – Odyssey
213. Long Tall Sally – Little Richard
214. Belle – Al Green
216. MacArthur Park – Richard Harris
217. Optimistic – Sounds Of Blackness
220. 3AM Eternal (Live at the S.S.M.) – The K.L.F.
221. Let’s Dance – David Bowie
222. Little Wing – Jimi Hendrix
223. Overjoyed – Stevie Wonder
224. Zouk la Sé Sél Médikaman Nou Ni – Kassav’
225. I Never Loved A Man (The Way That I Love You) – Aretha Franklin
226. Exit Music (For A Film) – Radiohead
227. Paranoid Android – Radiohead
228. God Give Me Strength – Elvis Costello & Burt Bacharach
229. Wish Tower – Glen Richardson
230. That’s The Way Love Goes – Merle Haggard
233. Big Science – Laurie Anderson
234. I Remember You – Frank Ifield
235. You’ve Got A Friend – James Taylor
236. Superman ft. Bucie – Black Coffee
237. Have You Seen Her – The Chi-Lites
239. You’re The First, The Last, My Everything – Barry White
240. Le Tombeau De Couperin – Maurice Ravel
243. The Blacker The Berry – Kendrick Lamar
244. Stay With Me – Lorraine Ellison
245. Double Barrel – Dave & Ansel Collins
246. Taxi Driver – Bernard Herrmann
247. I Like It ft. Bad Bunny & J. Balvin – Cardi B.
248. This Is America – Childish Gambino
249. Duel – Propaganda
250. This Will Be Our Year – The Zombies
251. Merry Go ‘Round – Kacey Musgraves
252. Feelin’ Good – Little Junior Parker
253. What Do You Want From Life? – The Tubes
254. California – Joni Mitchell
255. Overnight Sensation – Raspberries
256. Mother – John Lennon
257. Bird On The Wire – Leonard Cohen
258. Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet – Gavin Bryars
259. A Change Is Gonna Come – Otis Redding
260. Pa’lante – Hurray For The Riff Raff
261. Titanium – David Guetta ft. Sia
262. America – West Side Story Cast (1961)
264. Native New Yorker – Odyssey
265. Jacky – Marc Almond
Ada Jacqueline
Feb 02, 2016 @ 22:30:26
As I was searching Google for my favourite Kurdish artist Sivan Perwer, I discovered your blog today in the Netherlands (Holland) because of your 16 May 2015 article on the Womad Talking Book Volume 4 vinyl. I think your blog is great and I subscribed to follow you.
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magicman
Feb 02, 2016 @ 23:38:40
I’m very happy you dropped in ! That was a wonderful album wasn’t it ? I have also searched for Siwan Perwer…yesterday I discovered that Lebanese electro pop group Soapkills had released a ‘Best of’ last week…
my enthusiasm for new music remains undiminished. Welcome !
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Adam K
Mar 30, 2016 @ 13:28:32
I actually came here via Birds of Tin – every now and then I idly search for them, and today turned up your blog, a wealth of backstage info! What a pleasure and what great photos! I was working with Emma’s brother, Jeremy, and he invited me to see his sister’s gig, somewhere l called the Merlin, I forget where (near the Angel?). I became an instant fan – the band were utterly brilliant and I still remember a gig you did at the Rosemary Branch in Islington, an Xmas thing. A band called Meaow, whose lead was a journo for NME, performed and were…okay. Regular 80s indie jangle. Then you got up and, in an instant, the dance floor was filled. Wonderful, pulsing Eastern rhythms and that soulful sax and, of course, Emma’s lovely voice. I have, somewhere, a cassette of your stuff, probably the demo you mentioned. I loved Foxes, I Can Close My Eyes, that wonderfully sad song that begins “Dead flowers on the table/sometimes left without a hand to hold”, and I’d love to have them digitally. It broke my heart when you left (Jeremy said you’d gone on to do Shakespeare) and I remember cornering Sam at a later gig and saying, “You really should get a sax player”. He was a lovely guy, but he turned quite sarcastic: “Okay, we WILL, for YOU”.
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magicman
Jun 19, 2016 @ 19:44:43
Ahh that’s great stuff Adam. We were a really good band, and before I joined, a C90 cassette called simply BIRDS OF TIN is quite marvellous. I also think these things should be digitised and released to the public – free probably. Great memories. Thank you.
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slenderbill
Nov 28, 2020 @ 12:31:06
Love your prolific and fascinating writings and photos of the olden days – wish we could go back there, just for a quick look…
I have digitised (MP3) a few cassetted BoT songs – featuring your marvellous sax, would you like them? how can I get them to you?
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magicman
Nov 28, 2020 @ 14:50:57
best to email one at a time to rbiko@mac.com I look very forward much ! Thank you. Treasure.
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Lance Nielsen
Sep 11, 2020 @ 22:11:10
A happy coincidence to come across this blog as I just got off the phone from Danny Webb and was chatting to him about the African Cup of Nations 2012, which was the subject of the screenplay that I submitted to a comp for Netflix last week, so read your African World Cup adventures with interest. (and then your horror stories from the set of Alien 3, many of which I was already of aware of) oddly I also use to live just off Archway Road, really miss Archway Video & Donna who worked there, whom until I recently I was still in touch with. Sorry we have lost you and Jenny to NYC, you’re two of our brightest stars by far.
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The Truly Gordy Berry
Oct 15, 2020 @ 23:51:06
Lockdown has got my fingers in pies that I really have no business delving into but this blog is just so soulful and full of music and life. I’m going to continue to enjoy and thank-you.
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Jane Clemetson
Apr 02, 2021 @ 16:19:42
Hi R***h (in case you are in incognito mode) – I just came across this whilst trying to see how hard it actually is to find someone who doesn’t have a “digital footprint” on the internet – and discovering it can be quite hard – and using Jon Vincent, my former boyfriend, as an example – those were happy days. I am so sorry to hear about Colin – he was always very gentle and kind. Seems like quite a few of us became lawyers – Heather Rogers now an eminent QC and me a moderately eminent media lawyer
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magicman
Apr 02, 2021 @ 17:41:22
Hi Jane, no I’m not incognito, which is clear from the 253 entries in the blog so far I think. Nothing to hide here! I nearly became a lawyer but found another way forward which has meant an interesting working life. Moderately eminent is totally acceptable indeed I wouldn’t strive for more than that. Celebrity life isn’t for me.
Thanks for reading, and very best wishes to you xx
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Rachael Smurthwaite
May 11, 2021 @ 16:19:14
Hi you wrote about Sheila smurthwaite from lewes/ ringmer In the 70’s please contact me
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Amber
May 22, 2021 @ 21:32:01
Hi there, I saw you wrote about Wayne Hill (real name Robert Dale) he was/is a vibraphone player and composer, I was wondering if there’s any more information you could give about him? I’m on a hunt to see if there’s any information about him and your blog has got me the furthest to a conclusion.
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magicman
May 23, 2021 @ 09:36:45
Hi Amber. I wrote this some years ago, and have no current recollection of more detail, but I guess if you put The Noveltones into Google something else should come up? Good luck!
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Sue
Sep 17, 2021 @ 09:20:35
Can’t stop reading and listening. So good XX
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Noel
Sep 27, 2021 @ 23:02:40
Dear Ralph, thank you for sharing your thoughts on a lifetime of music and art! I stumbled my way here only to find lively stories surrounding some of my own personal favorite tracks. I never thought I’d come across someone with a similar infatuation with O Lucky Man!, for example. We must be cut from the same cloth. Do you ever do public readings of any of your writings? I’d love to hear that. Your neighbor in Astoria, Queens, Noel.
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Cris
Nov 09, 2021 @ 20:20:59
Dearest Ralph,
You are a bamboo leaning to mountain indeed.
Jenny & You bring the core of this Earth & Heaven closer.
You hugged my heart with your words. Thank you for sharing of yourself and making me feel that I’ve not taken this journey alone. Truth & Love are vibrantly alive in you.
What a gift you both are I hope you allow yourself to feel the love you give to all.
with Gratitude,
Cris
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Ralph Brown
Nov 09, 2021 @ 21:28:25
Thank you Crissy, you yourself are an inspiration. Know it.
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James Weaver
Feb 21, 2022 @ 22:18:23
Hello Mr.Brown My name is James Weaver and I am cohost of the somewhere out there podcast straight out of San Antonio we would like to have you on to talk of most notably or your work on Waynes World 2 it would be an honor, contact us for any questions or concerns.
Sincerely from your friends @somewhere out there podcast
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