The Actor's Candid Musical Selections: Starting with Childhood Favorites to Peculiar Dislikes
The first track I became enamored with
My most primal memory is walking into a room at preschool where they were spinning Yellow Submarine by the Beatles. I was captivated by the sonic landscape, and John Lennon shouting: “Full speed ahead!” When it arrived at the refrain, I recall believing: “This must be music!”
The very first single I purchased
When I was eight years old, I was victorious in a contest at school to choose a brand new record to play at the mini disco we had on Friday afternoons. My instructor took me to a local store, and I picked out Come Back My Love by the group Darts. The first record I purchased with my own allowance was Mull of Kintyre by Paul McCartney's Wings from a record shop in Colne. It was number one at the time, and I chose it when my dad mentioned that it was by a former member of the Beatles.
The tune I do at sing-along
I candidly do not enjoy karaoke and dodge it at all costs. But if forced, I’d choose Summer Wind by Ol' Blue Eyes.
The song I oddly recite all the words to
I not long ago discovered that I have memorized virtually all the lyrics to The Boy in the Bubble, You Can Call Me Al, and the entire album on Graceland by Paul Simon.
The best track to put on at a soirée
It hinges on which phase of the evening you are at. For the beginning it would most likely be I Heard It Through the Grapevine by the soul legend. As the evening progresses, I’d move on to Prince, the Rolling Stones and David Bowie, and when it gets lively, Phat Planet by Leftfield, Born Slippy .NUXX by Underworld, and Ascension by Gorillaz, which is an massive track.
The number I can not hear
I for some reason detest Mr Brightside by the Killers.
The ultimate track to have sex to
Come Together by John, Paul, George, and Ringo.
The record that changed my life
When I was 12 and beginning to play the guitar, I’d only listen to early rock and roll, and was fixated on Elvis, the rock pioneer, Jerry Lee Lewis, Fats Domino, the glasses-wearing icon and Eddie Cochran. Then my babysitter introduced me to Let There Be Rock by the Australian rockers. It was still rock’n’roll, but it was electrifying rock music. Instantly after he dropped the record on the turntable, I was hooked.
The song that gets me up in the AM
What’d I Say parts 1 & 2 by Ray Charles.
The piece that brings me to tears
Most music makes me touched. Aretha Franklin, Frank Sinatra, Presley and the Beatles all make me cry because of the tune and utter perfection of the singing. But The Ocean by Richard Hawley gets me going without fail.
The track I’d like performed at my final send-off
The King. If I’m cremated, I’ll have Burning Love. If I’m buried, I’ll have Way Down.
