Safari Soundtrack: The Road to Sirte

Back on the road today. The deadline for negotiations on Sirte is Saturday so it’s time to take a look and gauge the temperature at the front line. That means about a five-hour drive. The only problem is that my driver-cum-fixer Tam and I share rather different tastes in music. So today’s soundtrack has a bit of a funkier feel to it. Irritatingly I bought 15 CDs on my last trip home and have failed to get them on to my iPod so some of this might look a bit familiar…

• Korean Bodega, Fun Lovin’ Criminals – their songs always make me smile
• Boyfriend, Best Coast – this sort of guitar music seems to me exactly right for road trips
• Love is a Losing Game, Amy Winehouse – listened to this album a lot while driving across Botswana. And I know Tam is a fan
• Amandrai, Ry Cooder and Ali Farka Toure – we’re in the desert. Nuff said
• (The Best Part of) Breaking Up, The Ronettes – another band that I know Tam likes.
• Never Forget You, The Noisettes – and any band that ends in “ettes” is a hit with me.
• Love Without Sound, White Noise – I’m a bit of a Delia Derbyshire fan. This album is at times utterly strange and at times incredibly familiar, a sign of how influential it has become
• Roscoe, Midlake – anyway it’s my play list and we need to start the crescendo
• 24 Hours from Tulsa, Gene Pitney – is there a better way to end a selection of road music? I think not (Irritatingly it’s from a compilation, but what can you do?)