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Blur frontman and Gorillaz founder, Damon Albarn is Tom Ravenscroft鈥檚 first guest to Peel Acres; lending a hand (and two ears) in making sense of his dad鈥檚 vast record collection - tens of thousands of albums and singles collected over a lifetime. Damon first visited John Peel鈥檚 home back in the late 90s, when Blur recorded a session for his Radio 1 show.

Presented by Tom Ravenscroft
Produced by Kevin Core

Episode Sleeve Notes:

Track 1: Kurious Oranj - The Fall (from I Am Kurious Oranj)

Damon instantly hones in on I Am Kurious Oranj, a 1988 album by The Fall which was written to soundtrack a ballet, in collaboration with Scottish dancer Michael Clark. Credited as John Peel鈥檚 favourite band, the post-punk outfit was led by Mark E Smith - the only constant band member in an ever changing line up.

Track 2: Please No More Sad Songs - The Idle Race (from Idle Race)

Taking 鈥渁 complete punt鈥�, Damon next pulls out a 1969 album by the Birmingham band The Idle Race - who he鈥檚 surprised to discover is the first record produced by Jeff Lynne, who also provides lead vocals. After this album failed to chart, he made the move to鈥� The Move, who later become Electric Light Orchestra (best known for the track Mr Blue Sky).

Track 3: Lady Rachel - Kevin Ayers (from Joy of a Toy)

Damon鈥檚 next pick is another 1969 record, and one he remembers from his own parents鈥� (much more limited) collection. Joy of a Toy was the debut solo album of Kevin Ayers, a founding member of rock band Soft Machine. He compares the 鈥渃lassic English whimsy鈥� of Ayers鈥檚 voice to that of Syd Barrett, Pink Floyd鈥檚 original frontman and lyricist.

Track 4: Why Diddle - Blah Blah Blah

The next pick is the B side to a 7鈥� single by Blah Blah Blah, a band from Clacton-on-Sea in Essex, which Damon introduces 脿 la Peel. Tom compares their sound to the avant-garde music of Captain Beefheart.

Track 5: Save Yourself - Soft Machine (from The Soft Machine)

Fun fact: Damon鈥檚 dad, Keith Albarn briefly managed the Soft Machine. This debut album is the only one to feature previous pick, Kevin Ayers - alongside lead vocals from Robert Wyatt. Tom reveals that Wyatt was a regular visitor to Peel Acres and still occasionally calls now (he鈥檚 known to leave wonderfully long answerphone messages).

Track 6: We Shall Overcome - Mahalia Jackson

The next pick is 鈥淭he Queen of Gospel鈥�, Mahalia Jackson - who is considered one of the greatest voices of the 20th century and one Damon has known since a child. With a singing career spanning over 40 years, she also took an active role in the American civil rights movement and sang just before Martin Luther King Jr delivered his famous 鈥淚 Have a Dream speech鈥�.

Damon is a fan of early gospel vocal quartets, and says his favourite classical piece is A Child of Our Time, by British composer Michael Tippett - which includes sections of spirituals. Which leads on to talking about polyphony - that is, combining a number of parts, which each form an individual melody and harmonise with each other. He references composer P茅rotin, who developed early polophonic work in Notre Dame, Paris in the 12th century.

Track 7: From Poems and Songs of Middle Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien

The A side of this 1967 album features writer J. R. R. Tolkien reading poems from his The Lord of the Rings and The Adventures of Tom Bombadil books. Side B features songs from Middle Earth, with music composed by Donald Swann - who features on piano, accompanying the fittingly named singer William Elvin.

Track 8: Alone Again Or - Love

Damon鈥檚 final choice, by the LA psychedelic rock band Love, was apparently a tour bus favourite for Blur. This track appears on their third album Forever Changes which, despite only moderate success in the 1967 charts, is regularly named among the greatest albums of all time.

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