Professor Eddy

Unsplash “This is the soundtrack for a bar in the mid-70s Los Angeles, the kind of place where Warren Beaty and Julie Christie might meet in the afternoon for a secret rendezvous. There’s a high quotient of blue-eyed soul, some airy R&B and the odd singer-songwriter. The pace strictly mid-tempo: it’s too warm for anything faster.” (Saint Etienne Present Songs For The Fountain Coffee Room) Enjoy this new part of Sunshine Radio !  Tracklist: Jorge Calderón – City Music (1976) Bee Gees – How Deep Is Your Love (1977) Martee Lebous – Chance To Dance (1976) Just Us – Just A Thought (1978) Ambrosia – Holdin’ On To Yesterday (1975) Steve Miller Band – Wild Mountain Honey (1976) Tamiko Jones ‎– Who Is She (And What Is She To You) (1975) Bobbie Gentry – Thunder In The Afternoon (1978) Betty Everett – Bedroom Eyes (1975) The New Seekers ‎– It's The Real Thing (1971) Bread ‎– Baby I'm-A Want You (1972) John Gary Williams – The Whole Damn World Is Going Crazy (1973) Somerset

Pexels In 1977, when their days as teenage idols were over, Mud was a bit unsure which direction they should take. In the meantime lead singer Les Gray signed a solo deal with Warner Bros., although he did not leave the band officially. He recorded a slow disco version of The Mindbenders 1966 hit, A Groovy Kind Of Love . The single reached a respectable #32 in the UK, but it was completely ignored elsewhere. I remember finding it  in the sales bins in my local record store at the time. It is one of the tracks on this Smooth Sailing part. Enjoy! Tracklist: Say She She – Astral Plane (2023) Patrick Simmons – So Wrong (1983) James Sayer – Cherry (2023) Zachary Crawford – Alibi (2023) Bill Withers – Oh Yeah! (1985) Brick ‎– Seaside Vibes (1981) Cheryl Lynn – Sleep Walkin’ (1982) Carly Simon – Tranquillo (Melt My Heart) (1978) Janette Renee – What’s On Your Mind (1979) Les Gray – A Groovy Kind Of Love (1977) Climax Blues Band – Couldn’t Get It Right (1976) Rickie Lee Jones – Ch

Pexels Although some of the songs are quite recent, this could be the soundtrack to an eighties movie, I think. At least I was inspired by the indie pop hits in the teenage films from director John Hughes about studs, naughty girls and misfits (in short). Best known songs are If You Leave by OMD (“ultimate prom song”), Pretty In Pink by Psychedelic Furs and, of course, Don’t You Forget About Me by Simple Minds. By the  way, all of these John Hughes originals are on the box set Life Moves Pretty Fast: The John Hughes Mixtapes .  Enjoy this Mixcloud Exclusive ! Tracklist: Alan Gorrie – That Kinda Girl (1985) A Flock Of Seagulls – Wishing (If I Had A Photograph Of You) (1982) Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark – If You Leave (1986) ABC – Think Again (1987) Taffy McElroy – What’s On Your Mind (1981) Yumi Seino – Sky Restaurant (1981) Scritti Politti ‎– Oh Patti (Don’t Feel Sorry For Loverboy) (1988) Prefab Sprout – The Best Jewel Thief In The World (2013) Jimmy Whoo & Desire –

Pexels Enjoy this new part of Smooth Sailing ! It’s built around Phil Carmen’s On My Way To L.A. I tried to keep that laid-back feeling of being in L.A. all through the mix. Closing track You’ll Like It by Mud is on the recently released compilation album Mud: The Singles 1973-80 on Cherry Red Records. The band with front man Les Gray recorded their first single Flower Power in 1967, followed by a couple more, but they all failed to chart. Things started to look brighter, when they were picked up by RAK label boss Mickie Most who liked their energetic live performances. He introduced them to Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman, a very successful producers and songwriters duo at the time and known for their work with glam rock acts The Sweet and Suzi Quatro. They wrote Crazy and Hypnosis for the band, two singles that made the UK Top 20 in 1973. Finally Mud had reached what they were looking for all those years, although the two singles were not representative of the group's sound. W