Paradise Drive

Introduction

I was listening to some Wilko Johnson (my guitar hero and Game of Thrones Executioner), and the song "Paradise" came on, which gave me the idea for this playlist.

Coldplay - "Paradise" from "Moon Music"

Coldplay are not favourites of mine, but I do like "Yellow", "Fix You" and "Clocks", especially the Buena Vista Social Club version. This fits the playlist, but I will admit it is a bit of an insipid opener. Paradise is the word (not bird).

Guns 'n' Roses - "Paradise City" from "Appetite For Destruction"

I do not have a single Guns 'n' Roses album in my collection, but this is an excellent song. Axl Rose's awful schoolboy anagram of a name, I think, is pathetic, and their attitude of turning up late for gigs never sat well with me. I never saw them live and do not regret it. I love Izzy Stradlin's (now there's a name) stuff and like Slash's hat.

Meatloaf - "Paradise By The Dashboard Light" from "Bat Out Of Hell"

I think everyone I know has a copy of "Bat Out Of Hell". Masterminded by Jim Steinman, produced by Todd Rungdren (those are his guitars), and delivered with enormous power and panache by Marvin (or Michael) Lee Aday, aka Meatloaf.

I wrote this when we lost him four years ago:

George Ezra - "Paradise" from "Staying at Tamara's"

I like George Ezra. He is proof that there is always good music being produced. I loved the video he did with Sir Ian McKellen and though it has nothing to do with this playlist, I will include it because it is so much fun.

Green Day - "Welcome To Paradise" from "Kerplunk"

Green Day seem to get better and more relevant every year. "Basket Case" was a staple when I played with Spoon(Newcastle), and this is a worthy addition to the playlist.

Amen Corner - "(If Paradise Is) Half As Nice"

This was suggested by Sandra, one of the many I missed, and we have an Amen Corner in Newcastle where the Vampire rabbit lives.

Stevie Wonder - "Pastime Paradise" from "Songs In The Key Of Life"

A wonderful song from a brilliant album, with a hypnotic string riff. It was one of my favourite songs on the album when I first got it.

Then Coolio adapted it with LV as "Gangsta's Paradise" for the 1995 film Dangerous Minds (starring Michelle Pfeiffer).

Then Weird Al Yankovic adapted "Gangsta's Paradise" for his "Amish Paradise". You know what to expect.

Kid Rock did one, but we never mention Kid Rock (although I just did).

Bon Jovi with Avril Lavigne - "Living in Paradise" from "Forever"

This is not the song I was expecting, but it is rather good.

Elvis Costello and the Attractions - "Living In Paradise" from "This Year's Model"

The song is brilliant, as is the album, but the subject is a lot darker than the title. It was the second Costello album that I added to my collection, though I don't have it on vinyl now.

David Lee Roth - "Just Like Paradise" from "Skyscraper"

This was the song I was expecting from the Bon Jovi one I shared earlier. Classic poodle rock, which would never cause me to turn off the radio. It's probably sitting on some "metal" compilation CD in my collection.

Wilko Johnson - "Paradise" from "Solid Senders"

I think you can see from the image on his best of album why he got the part of the executioner in Game of Thrones.

We're closing the playlist with this brilliant, hypnotic riff. The song was first aired with Doctor Feelgood, but for some reason, this was the first time I heard it, and it has Wilko singing as well.

Thank you for reading and listening, and I hope you found something that you liked