Candie Payne - All I Need To Hear (Deltasonic, 2006)

Delightful noirish pop

Candie Payne seems to have disappeared since her ultra-cool post-Foxbase Alpha debut album in 2007. Maybe she's paying some kind of penance for working with Mark Ronson.

Like fellow singles 'I Wish I Could Have Loved You More' and 'Take Me', 'All I Need To Hear' is rollicking 60s girl group dynamism meets Portishead spy theme moodiness whilst hanging out in an Art Deco cafe with Saint Etienne as they hatch a plan to turn Dusty Springfield's 'I Can't Wait To See My Baby's Face' into 'Nothing Can Stop Us'.

Class.

Download Candie Payne 'All I Need To Hear' (Deltasonic, pop, mp3) (Divshare)

The Creation - Making Time (Planet, 1966)

Tight, angular Mod pop.

Probably best-known as the band that gave Alan McGee a name for his label and his own band, The Creation served up some tight, almost funky Mod pop.

'Making Time' is decidedly influenced by The Who, spinning some adroit guitar slashes into a chugging RnB number. Ace.

Download The Creation 'Making Time' (freakbeat, mod, mp3) (Divshare)

Blur - For Tomorrow (Visit To Primrose Hill Extended) (Food, 1993)

Kinks-y slice of string-laden London loving.

Was this the start of Britpop? I know that 'The Drowners' came out first but I prefer not to sully Suede's name with the label Britpop, they were better than that.

Despite the scent of sulphur and cynicism that, for me, Damon Albarn carries with him, 'For Tomorrow' is a delight (as is the 'Modern Life Is Rubbish' album). This extended version let's the song stretch out, a breathless bike ride, looking out over London.

Download Blur - For Tomorrow (Visit To Primrose Hill Extended) (indie, Britpop, blur mp3)

The Beach Boys 'Child Is Father To The Man' (Bootleg, 1967)

Harmony-drenched, excessive, far-out, genius from the aborted 'Smile' sessions.

I remember first laying my hands on a bootleg of The Beach Boys' lost classic 'Smile' about 15 years ago. I also remember how long it took me to make the leap from the simple but amazing pleasures of 'Pet Sounds' to get my head round 'Smile'. It's a journey away from straightforward songwriting into another world.

'Smile' is to 'Pet Sounds' what 'Bitches Brew' is to 'Kind Of Blue' - both great records, just a little bit more so.

I find myself posting about this album as I've just found out that 'Smile' is coming out as a staggering £125 box set - 5 CDs, 2 7"s, 2 LPs. I thought that the 3-disc version of 'Pet Sounds' was excessive - utterly brilliant - but surely as far as you can go in forensic analysis of 'classic' records. That was until I found myself forking out for the complete 'Funhouse Sessions' set by The Stooges...

Anyway, while I wrestle with the decision of whether to shell for this, check out 'Child Is Father To The Man'. It's song which veers from eerie contemplation to expansive harmonies and Charlie Brown trumpet, drilling further into the central motif in a very jazz kind of way.

Let's get lost, as someone said.

Download The Beach Boys 'Child Is Father To The Man' (classic, genius, sixties, pop, Beach Boys, Brian Wilson, mp3) (Mediafire)

mp3 courtesy of the excellent Beach Boys blog, Warnakey's Beach Boys Blag.

The Left Banke 'Desiree' (Smash, 1968) (mp3)

Delicious, strident and swirling piece of baroque sixties pop.

The Left Banke crafted two albums of baroque, string-laden pop and also wrote 'Walk Away Renee' which was made (most) famous by The Four Tops.

By the time of their second album ('Too') principal songwriter Michael Brown had left making just one contribution to the album. 'Desiree' builds to an urgent, storming pace from an intro of voice and cello, taking in brass, strings and lashings of harmonies.

Recently released on Sundazed along with their debut album.

Download The Left Banke 'Desiree' (mp3) (Mediafire)