Let's Go To Tahiti

I caught up with an old mate from Uni yesterday. All the way back in 1993/4, we shared a flat in Pendle Halls at Lancaster Uni. My over-riding memory of my mate (lets call him T) from this time is the music that was always pounding out of his room. This was before the days of i-pods and even CD's were relatively new. My woeful music collection was still on cassettes and I considered myself to be cutting edge with a stereo that had auto-reverse! T was, at 25, a few years older than the rest of us and appeared to be worldly wise and uber cool in comparison. Not only did he have a full blown stereo system and CD's but they were catalogued and categorised to within an inch of their lives. It is because of T that I started my love affair with Paul Weller and The Eagles.

Whenever we catch up, music is normally the first thing we discuss. And yesterday was no exception. New purchases, new bands, up-coming concerts were all discussed and dissected.

"I've got a gem for you" I tell him "JJ Cale"

"Oh my God, I haven't heard that since we were at Uni"

I have to thank my mate Warlock for introducing this great sound to me on our trip to Pendle Hill (spot the link). And it really is the perfect soundtrack for a sunny Sunday afternoon. So much so that T and I listen to it twice!

The lazy guitar and chilled out vocals beg the listener to drop everything and relax. Even the titles of the songs urge you to forget the real world 'Katy Kool Lady', 'Lou-Easy Ann', 'Let's Go To Tahiti' - well if you insist! I was never into recreational drugs even as a student. That whole culture passed me by, it's never appealed, never interested me and it never will but this album is almost like the drug trip without the drugs. With very little effort or thought required, you will find yourself kicking back and pondering life at your leisure. And all without the nasty come down - jobs a goodun!

If T and I were still young and carefree students, this album would definitely have been the start of a large Sunday Session in the Students Union culminating in kebabs at 3am. Unfortunately, the degrees have been long awarded and the professional world embraced. But for the duration of this magical album we can pretend...