Classic Album Sundays: The Blackbyrds 'Flying Start'

Hot Chip's Alexis Taylor and Joe Goddard join Classic Album Sundays founds Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy for a chat about their album 'The Warning'.  The band's second album marked a turning point, balancing off-kilter electronics with deeply human songwriting, and featuring enduring tracks like ‘Over and Over’ and ‘Boy from School’. The interview was recorded at a Classic Album Sundays celebrating the 20th anniversary of the album at Hidden Groove in London.

Since the 1980s, Gilles Peterson has been a pivotal figure in the club and festival scene, renowned for his genre-defying approach to music with jazz at its core. His work has shaped trends, influenced DJs and artists around the world and earned him the enduring admiration and gratitude of listeners.Gilles selects on vinyl some of the music that has meant the most to him and talks to fellow DJ and radio host and Classic Album Sundays founder Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy about his 40 plus years as a radio presenter, club DJ, producer and festival curator.Gilles hosts a flagship weekend programme on BBC Radio 6 Music and in 2016 launched his online radio platform, Worldwide FM. He is founder of the Worldwide Festival in Séte, France and We Out Here festival in the UK. As a label owner, Peterson remains dedicated to discovering and promoting new talent through Brownswood Recordings, bringing fresh voices to the global stage.

CAS founder Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy speaks with Keith Killgo, a founding member of The Blackbyrds, about their seminal jazz-funk album Flying Start. The Blackbyrds were inspired by jazz trumpet player and educator Donald Byrd and the band featured some of Byrd's Howard University students. They signed to Fantasy Records in 1973 and in 1974, released two albums, their eponymously titled debut and then Flying Start which features their Top Ten single ‘Walking in Rhythm’, produced by Byrd.

Classic Album Sundays founder Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy chats with 808’s State’s Graham Massey to explore their breakthrough album ex:el - an electronic landmark album which reached number 4 on the UK Album Charts in 1991. It was ground-breaking with its catchy melodies sung by guests vocalists Bernard Sumner of New Order and Bjork underpinned by 808’s states heavy acid house / techno sound. Massey revealed this album was created through a deeper immersion in the new musical technology of the day and a newfound confidence drawn from the explosion of dance music culture.

CAS founder Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy and British indie-dance trio Saint Etienne explore their debut album 'Foxbase Alpha' in this podcast in an interview recorded at a Classic Album Sundays event at The British Library.Colleen is joined by Saint Etienne bandmembers Sarah Cracknell, Bob Stanley and Pete Wiggs recorded at a Classic Album Sundays event held at the British Library in October 2024. When the album was released on heavenly recordings in 1991, it's fusion of 60 cinematic pop, chill out grooves and deep house endeared audiences and got them a Mercury Prize nomination.

CAS founder Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy and French-African musician, producer and songwriter Wally Badarou explore his cult classic 1984 solo LP 'Echoes' in this podcast in an interview taken from a Classic Album Sundays event at KEF Music Gallery.Badarou’s 1984 solo LP features Balearic and club classic ‘Chief Inspector’ and ‘Mambo’, memorably sampled by Massive Attack on their classic single ‘Daydreaming’. They discuss Badarou’s illustrious career as a de facto member of Level 42, his collaborations and productions with Marianne Faithfull, Fela Kuti and Salif Keita, and his run as a member of Island Records’ Compass Point All-Stars for which he performed on records by Grace Jones, Talking Heads, Mick Jagger, Gwen Guthrie, Robert Palmer and Sly & Robbie amongst many others. He also scored music for films including Kiss of the Spider Woman and more recently the award-winning documentary Dahomey.

Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy sits down with British jazz-funk pioneer and Incognito founder Jean-Paul 'Bluey' Maunick to explore '100° and Rising' 30 years after the album's release. Incognito were pioneers of the acid jazz movement and this album released on Gilles Peterson’s Talking Loud label in 1995 had crossover appeal reaching #11 on the UK Albums Chart and #2 on the UK R&B Albums Chart. The album features some of the best British jazz and session players and included the singles ‘I Hear Your Name’ and ‘Everyday’. Tickets are free but limited.

This interview was recorded at a Classic Album Sundays event at the KEF Music Gallery with Level 42 founding members Mike Lindup and Phil Gould. They take a look back to their worldwide breakthrough LP, 1985's World Machine. This is the album in which Level 42 transitioned from a straight up jazz-funk outfit into a funky pop band and reached number 3 on the UK Album Charts. The album featured a few singles including their US Top Ten hit ‘Something About You’, the ballad ‘Leaving Now’ and the funky World Machine which was remixed by Shep Pettibone and became a dancefloor classic. Wally Badarou also co-wrote and played on the album. 

Radiohead’s second album The Bends was released on the 13th March, 1995 and exactly 30 years later Colleen 'Cosmo' Murphy interviewed producer John Leckie on the story behind the album at an event at The British Library. The interview was followed by an uninterrupted vinyl playback of the full album on British audio brand Bowers & Wilkins’ iconic 800 Series loudspeakers, which were used in the mixing of The Bends at Abbey Road Studios. The Bends is generally considered to show the remarkable evolution of their sound, which soon made them one of the most acclaimed bands in the world. With a healthy dose of the guitar rock and melancholic pop that characterised breakthrough single “Creep”, it also features beautiful ballads, a new range to Thom Yorke’s voice, blistering riffs and solos from Jonny Greenwood and multiple acoustic treats.It was produced by John Leckie, one of the most important and distinctive producers in British music. John Leckie has had an extraordinary career. His early career at Abbey Road Studios, saw him working with John Lennon and George Harrison and then as an engineer for Pink Floyd’s Meddle and Wish You Were Here and Paul McCartney and Wings’ Red Rose Speedway. Among much else he then produced Public Image Ltd debut single, a brilliant early sweep of albums by Simple Minds, The Stone Roses, Muse and many others.

In this interview with Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy, Suede’s Brett Anderson and Mat Osman explore the stories behind the making of the band’s sophomore album and reflect upon its significance today. The interview took place on the 13th October, 2024, and was a feature of a Classic Album Sundays listening event at the Royal Albert Hall’s Elgar Room in association with National Album Day. Suede’s second album Dog Man Star smashed through the nascent boundaries of Britpop and reached number 3 on the UK Album Chart when it was released in 1994. It has garnered even more veneration with the passing decades and 30 years after its release, the band took a look back to this fan favourite.We send a special thanks to Danley Distribution, our audio partners for this event.