I first remember hearing Andy Glitre on Triple J in the late 1980s. At the time I was living at Bourke in Western NSW. Staying in a pub in Sydney, I tuned in to Triple J and recorded tapes which I could took back to Bourke so that we all had some “interesting music” to listen to. Of all the Triple J announcers, Andy was reasonably special with his soft English accent, his strong musical knowledge and a clear passion for the music he played.
Andy Glitre was responsible for putting together this collection and it shows. In many ways, it’s like listening to one of those tapes from Bourke: a carefully chosen – with passion – eclectic experience that stays in the memory.
The CD starts with a terrific version of “Sunny” by Twinset featuring Barnaby Weir. Unlike the versions by Dusty Springfield and Boney M which travel at a thousand miles an hour, this version slumbers along with an intensity and passion which makes you think he really does love “Sunny”. In my Perth bedroom with a blanket over my knees, I am transported momentarily to Bondi RSL on a warm Sunday afternoon or to the Opera Bar at Sydney Opera House in the midst of summer.
Yes. This CD is Sydney! In the same way that “Sunny” takes me to the warm, great-feeling Sydney of summer, another track, “Just” by Aya Larkin transports me to that other Sydney that people don’t wish to acknowledge exists, the artsy, intelligent reflective Sydney that you find at pubs in Newtown or acoustic nights as “The Basement”.
Is that Grace Knight who sings “Did you see my dog on celebrity pet”? during “Clever Guy” by Junglehammer?
Favourite? I really like “Troubled Lives” by Tracky Dax. The combination of the deep driving rhythm, the deep sexy lead vocal, and the gorgeous chorus-like refrain of “people get by with all the trouble in their lives” hits the mark for me in so many ways.
Highly recommended.