Regenerations

I must truly have been spending my time living under a rock* recently because I almost missed out on this. See you in Brum? I'll be the one in the top hat and simian demeanour, trying to get Paddy Kingsland to sign his copy of Fourth Dimension.

And you'll probably want to check out Into The Music: That Doctor Who Sound courtesy of ABC Radio National.

Not to mention Radio Clash #173: Radiophonic At 50.

Also whilst we're at it, you'll be wanting a copy of the Wed, 5th March edition of the Radio on Music podcast download. It was "Sculptress of Sound: The Lost Works of Delia Derbyshire", a cracking Archive Hour I did intend to post on this blog, but now you can get it direct from the horse's mouth.

Coming up, I'm pleased to announce that I've just got my paws on a copy of Listen Move & Dance No.4. Ripping times ahead!

Oh, and this this is rather lovely too.

*Such a lovely rock though...

The Electric Music Machine

Five days at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop (1988)

Super Space Detective Captain Zep

Theme From The BBC TV Series Captain Zep - Space Detective by The Spacewalkers (1983). I have no recollection of watching this at all, guess there must have been something better on "the other side".

Captain Zep looks like it was a pretty awful show but it's a great pop theme tune all the same. Side B "A Race Against Time" very much sounds like an instrumental by Rush or Marillion if they were on a tight budget. Fans of anal retentiveness may also be pleased to note that I have added a bonus 'side C', being "Zep One Interior" by Dick Mills as taken from BBC Essential Hi Tech Sound Effects. 

The Spacewalkers (Paul Aitken and David Owen Smith) also made music for other BBC children's favourites Take Hart, Hartbeat with Tony Hart and Knowhow with Johnny Ball, under their own publishing company Catslick Music.

Whilst throwing this post together I was both surprised and extremely pleased to discover that two albums by Paul Aitken and David Owen Smith (The Catslick Gallery 1 & 2), featuring music taken from both of the Tony Hart shows, are currently available as legit downloads from all the usual legit mp3 vendors. If you've enjoyed the music of Richard Denton and Martin Cook I've already posted on Ripping Yarns, or if your simply after more "Programmes For Schools and Colleges" nostalgia, I highly recommend searching them out and giving them a listen.

Captain Zep patronising two dimensional aliens with ropey accents, earlier.

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Pre-Recorded Briefing

Here's a CDR I made back in 2001 (..."back in 2001"? That just doesn't sound right) for my own amusement and to share with friends. I got inspired by listening to Solid Steel , especially Ninja Tunes artists Coldcut, DJ Food /DK, Kid Koala also guests artists like Steinski, DJ Shadow, Cut Chemist and the way they played around with old spoken word samples and beats. Hence I aped this approach in my own small amateurish way using clips of various Stanley Kubrick films, Blade Runner, Tom Corbett: Space Cadet, Stylophone commercials and other trippy silliness ripped off VHS tape as raw material. It's all quite relaxing and I hope you enjoy listening as much as I did the making.

Tracklisting:
01. Pink Floyd - Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Spectra Edit)
02. Steve Miller Band - Space Intro/Fly Like An Eagle
03. Susumu Yokota - Morino Gakudan
04. Lemon Jelly - Soft
05. Grantby - Grimble
06. The 5th Dimension - Stoned Soul Picnic
07. Lamchop - Up With People (Zero 7 remix parts 1&2)
08. Kool & The Gang - Summer Madness
09. Andre Previn - Executive Party
10. Hairy Diamond - Givin' Up
11. DJ Food - Conciousness
12. Akasha - Brown Sugar
13. Raymond Scott w. Jim Henson - Limbo: The Organised Mind
14. Sounds Orchestral - Image
15. Henry Mancini - Lujon
16. John Baker - Muzak from 'The Macra Terror'
17. Dick Mills - Macrocosm
18. John Baker - Muzak from 'The Invasion'
19. Dick Mills - Seascape

dl as individual tracks

No.14 - Signature Tune: A New Beginning

Brian Hodgson with the dismembered piano that created the Tardis sound.

Dr Who: 30 Years at the Radiophonic Workshop (1963-93). Essential electric goodness from Radiophonic heroes, Brian Hodgson, Delia Derbyshire, Dick Mills, Elizabeth Parker, Paddy Kingsland and Peter Howell.

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Radiophonic Rock

The Soundhouse - The 1983 25th anniversary lp. Highlights include Paddy Kingsland's cues for the Hitch-hiker's Secondary Phase and some spooky ambient pieces for Radio 4 by Dick Mills.

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Secrets Of The Chasm

BBC Radiophonic Workshop - 21: The 1979 21st Anniversary disc is probably my favourite RW album. It was also the hardest one to track down, at a realistic price that is. A companion programme was produced at the time for Radio 3 and can currently be listened to courtesy of Cottage Of Electric Hell! Well worth checking out, it's quite brilliant.

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Space Themes

The cover says it all and Mat Irvine's sleeve notes say the rest. Bonus track: Relive those days of the white heat of technology with the Tomorrow's World theme ringtone!

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No.19 - Metebelis III Atmosphere

To celebrate its imminent return to our observation screens, here's No.19: Doctor Who Sound Effects. Of all my Radiophonic collection ripped so far I'm afraid this is in the least best condition. I've done the best I can restoration wise, but there are still clicks and pops in places. It's interesting to reflect how menacing and otherworldly the show sounds circa 1978 in comparison to the sonic blandness of the orchestrafillinginallthegapssothatyoucanbarelybreath approach favoured by more recent regenerations.

This album has been re-released and is therefore no longer available for download via this blog.

Time Warp Start, Run, Stop

 

Out Of This World Atmospheric Sounds and Effects from The BBC Radiophonic Workshop (1976). Spooky, atmospheric, ambient, eccentric. Great stuff. Ripped @ 320kbps as individual tracks.

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Listen to the Unmann-Wittering Out Of This World compilation. Very nice.

No. 26 - Dodecahedron Energy Beams

Sound Effects No.26 Sci-Fi Sound Effects (1981) . A classic and home of "The core, a huge evergrowing pulsating brain which rules from the centre of Ultraworld". Ripped @ 320 kbps into individual tracks. Enjoy.

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No.23 - Forest Adagio

BBC Sound Effects Vol.23 Relaxing Sounds - This is worth hearing in particular for two icily ambient BBC Radiophonic works, by Messrs. Limb and Mills. Mills' 'Forest Adagio' is an extended and re-worked version of the track found on 'The Radiophonic Workshop' LP with added rainforest effects - far superior to one of those cheesy new age relaxation CDs mind you. The rest of the album is stereo field recordings some of which are binaural  so you'll want your cans on for this one. And relax...

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