Classic Album Sundays

Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy celebrates the incredible polymath, innovator and musical thinker Brian Eno for the 30th anniversary of his experimental album, 'Nerve Net'. In this never-before-broadcast interview with Brian recorded back in 1992, Colleen and Brian get into everything from Maoism and Chinese opera, to Shostakovich and organic instruments, to Jeff Koons and Shamanism in music. So sit back and enjoy an hour spanning the mind and music of Brian Eno. Read more about your favourite album here: www.classicalbumsundays.com.

Grace Jones recorded her fifth album (and her second New Wave inspired departure from her 70s disco recordings) in Bahamas with a stellar set of musicians known as the Compass Point Allstars. The musicians included Jamaican chart toppers, Sly & Robbie, keyboardist and silent member of Level 42, Wally Badarou, among others all under the direction of Island Records founder, Chris Blackwell and in house label producer, Alex Sadkin. The 9 song collection, 3 of which Grace co-wrote, became the biggest selling album in the Grace Jones catalog and features her most successful US single, “Pull Up To The Bumper”. Fashion, Art and Music became one and left a heavy impression for many future pop and rock superstars to take note of. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

On the latest Classic Album Sundays podcast, we step back to Camp Bestival from a few years ago when Nick Drake’s producer Joe Boyd joined us to discuss ‘Five Leaves Left’ in length with Colleen. Alongside Joe’s production the album features Richard Thompson (of Fairport Convention) and Danny Thompson (of Pentangle) as well as the beautiful string arrangements of Robert Kirby. Despite being championed by John Peel, the album initially sold less than 6,000 copies. Now, over four decades since Drake’s death, Five Leaves Left is seen as an iconic album in British Folk music and his songs are cited as an influence by Peter Buck of REM and Robert Smith of The Cure. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

Dennis Bovell joins Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy to look back at his incredible career and his new compilation The DuBMASTER: The Essential Anthology which charts Dennis’ career from the Seventies up to the present day. Dennis Bovell remains a pioneering artist and popular mainstay in both music and culture. Widely regarded as Britain’s reggae maestro, with a 40 year career that spans a number of musical eras and genres, his new anthology will celebrate both his unique ear for music, which continues to incorporate a rich array of references, as well shining a light on his unique sound that is still so loved by his legion of loyal fans from across the globe. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com/

Brian Jackson joins Classic Album Sundays founder Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy for a deep dive into his 1977 collaboration with Gil Scott-Heron Bridges. Brian will share stories of recording the album and his personal memories of working with Gil Scot-Heron. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy is joined by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark founder members Andy McCluskey Paul Humphreys for a deep dive into their seminal 1981 album Architecture & Morality. Recorded live at The British Library for a special Classic Album Sundays event, this is a a deep dive into the history, inspirations and legacy of OMD's third album. 'Architecture & Morality' took the electronic stylings of Kraftwerk and NEU! and combined them with a pop sensibility and punk ethos that still sounds fresh today. In this programme we hear how the band made their own synths and became a huge success despite having no musical training. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

TYSON joins Classic Album Sundays’ Tina Edwards for a deep dive into ‘The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’. Born and raised in London – via Stockholm, Spain and (briefly) New York – to a mixed musical family, singer TYSON had an unusual upbringing on the road. Her music draws from these experiences, the outcome a celestial, interplanetary R&B that is both reflective and soulful, yet futuristic. Read more about your albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

Louie Vega, one half of the Masters at Work, the man behind Elements of Life and one of the greatest club DJs in the world joins Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy in conversation at The British Library to discuss his trademark soulful house sound, the jazz and Latin influence of his Bronx upbringing and a playback of his favourite tracks on a world class audiophile soundsystem. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

On the latest Classic Album Sundays podcast Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy is focussing on DJ Shadow's classic 1996 album ‘Endtroducing’. Colleen is joined by Mo'Wax label boss James Lavelle for a deep dive into the history, production and legacy of the album. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

Meet a man who was there at the birth of Ziggy Stardust, legendary record producer Ken Scott who joins Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy to discuss the making of the album that shot Bowie into inter-galactic fame. David Bowie was a musical and cultural phenomenon whose significance only seems to increase with every passing year. He rocketed to stardom 50 years ago, in the summer of 1972, with the release of the album 'The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders from Mars'. His appearance on Top of the Pops a month later, dressed as an alien rock star and performing ‘Starman’, was an event that changed many lives. Ken not only produced Bowie’s 'The Rise and Fall…' but also the preceding 'Hunky Dory' and the following 'Aladdin Sane'. Furthermore he was one of the five main engineers for the Beatles, engineered for Elton John, and produced Mahavishnu Orchestra, Billy Cobham, Supertramp and Missing Persons. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

Goldie joins Classic Album Sundays’ DEBONAIR for a deep dive into his groundbreaking album Timeless. A musician, music producer, DJ, visual artist and actor, Goldie was a pioneer of the 1990s UK jungle, drum and bass and breakbeat hardcore scenes. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

Classic Album Sundays founder Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy is joined by chart-topping singer-songwriter with the phenomenally successful band Texas, Sharleen Spiteri, at the Royal Albert Hall as part of the National Album Day 2021 celebrations with Bowers & Wilkins. 2021’s National Album Day spotlighted women artists and their huge contribution to music and culture through the art of the album. Sharleen discusses her favourite women in music and how they have influenced her, culminating in choice cuts from the new Texas album Hi. Texas’ 10th album, Hi is a stunning result of looking back with eyes fixed firmly on the future. Collaborations include Dark Fire, written with Richard Hawley, Look What You’ve Done, an intoxicating, classic duet with Clare Grogan of Altered Images, and a swaggering collaboration with the Wu-Tang Clan on the record’s title track.

British DJ and journalist Greg Wilson joins Colleen to discuss Wendy Carlos’ score to the film ‘Clockwork Orange’. Wendy Carlos is what you might call a true genius in the world of twentieth century music. She has always been ahead of her time…expanding boundaries and challenging listeners and herself. Her dramatic score for the legendary Clockwork Orange motion picture is an interesting collection of solid, dark, electronic proto-new age music. Greg began DJing in 1975 and is regarded as one of the most important figures on the UK dance scene. He enjoyed hugely popular residencies in the early eighties at Wigan Pier and Manchester’s majorly influential Legend, having originally started out in his hometown of New Brighton. He was a pioneer of mixing in the UK and in 1983 he became the first ‘dance music’specialist hired for a regular weekly session at Manchester’s now legendary Haçienda club. Greg was instrumental in breaking the new electronic, post-disco records coming out of New York, a sound he has dubbe

For the latest Classic Album Sundays podcast we have a special session, recorded at We Out Here, where Tina Edwards spoke with A Certain Ratio's Martin Moscrop about the album ‘Sextet’, the band's creative process and their influences. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

Sherelle joins Classic Album Sundays’ Raj Chaudhury to dig deep into Sbtrkt Sbtrkt. Sherelle is leading a new generation of high-speed ravers who are addicted to jungle, drum ‘n’ bass, footwork and juke. Through her DJ sets, radio shows and record label she gives a platform to both scene elders and new talent and is committed to pushing 160bpm+ dance music into the future. Here, she discusses her love of Sbtrkt and the influence the album had on her. ‘My Classic Album’ is a series of free-to-view artist interview streams created with support from the Arts Council England Cultural Recovery Fund. Interviews have featured artists such as Steven Wilson, Goldie, The Kooks, Emma-Jean Thackray, Moses Boyd, Nitin Sawhney and many more. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

Featuring influences from a variety of music styles such as 1960s pop, cabaret, folk and electronica, Felt Mountain was described as "simultaneously smarmy and seductive, yet elegant and graceful" upon its release in 2001. While certainly not "poppy," it never has a truly weak moment. And while the songs aren't all that different from one another, the flow from track to track makes perfect sense. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com.

We were lucky enough to be joined by Horse Meat Disco's Luke Howard and Princess Julia for our Grace Jones Warm Leatherette album launch party at the all new Eagle London. Grace Jones teamed with the great reggae production duo of Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare on this 1980 album, and made the transition from straight dance and club act into quasi-pop star with reggae and urban contemporary leanings. The single "Private Life" was one of her best, and the overall album had more energy and production gloss than previous LPs that had been aimed completely at the club market. It helped that Jones seemed enthused about the session and really put herself into the songs. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com

Black Midi’s Morgan Simpson joins Classic Album Sundays’ Raj Chaudhury at The Room Studios to dig deep into D’Angelo’s Black Messiah. Formed in 2018, Black Midi made an immediate mark on the scene with their blend of experimental rock, math rock, noise rock and post-punk, culminating in a Mercury Music Prize nomination in 2019. Read more about your favourite albums here: https://classicalbumsundays.com/

The latest Classic Album Sundays podcast is taken from our series of events at Royal Albert Hall when we were delighted to be joined by The Zombies Rod Argent, Colin Blunstone, Chris White and Hugh Grundy to discuss their 1968 classic album Odessey and Oracle. The album is considered to be one of the most significant British psychedelic records, and including the iconic hit song Time of the Season.

Lisa Stansfield joins Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy to celebrate the 30th anniversary release of her debut solo album ‘Affection’ as part of the ‘Venus Unwrapped’ series at Kings Place in London. Read more about your favourite albums here: classicalbumsundays.com