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PODCAST

Steve’s Mix Tapes

Celebrating the art of the mixtape. Ten songs, chosen to fit with nine categories (plus one wildcard). Some curated by me, but also featuring lots of guest mixers.

music music commentary

All Episodes

01:24:35

Steve's Mix Tapes #032 (Chris Ruth aka bzfgt)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/08/23

My guest mixer this week is Chris Ruth aka 'bzfgt'Chris is the man behind the remarkable website The Annotated Fall, as well as the Grateful Dead blog Every Dark Star. He was also one of the esteemed judges on the Fall Cup panel.

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01:34:25

Steve's Mix Tapes #031 (Terry Christian)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/08/16

My guest mixer this week is Terry Christian TV and radio presenter, journalist, comedian and author - he was memorably described in 1994 as ‘the most hated man on television.’ Although, as he points out, this was, ironically, by none other than Piers Morgan. A friend of mine texted me in advance of the interview to say that Terry is 'one of life's good guys and very, very opinionated so it should be a great listen.' Hopefully, you'll find that all that is true!

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01:18:50

Steve's Mix Tapes #030 (Kirsty Pringle)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/08/08

My guest mixer this week is Kirsty PringleIn celebration of her birthday, I invited my lovely wife Kirsty to select a set of songs that she loves and - just about - fit the criteria. (There was some bending of the rules that nobody other than her would have got away with!) She has appeared on one of my podcasts before (episode #29 of the Fall in Fives Radio Show) and we got a lot of positive feedback for that. Hopefully, you'll all enjoy this one just as much...

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01:45:55

Steve's Mix Tapes #029 (Thurston Moore)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/08/02

My guest mixer this week is Thurston MooreThurston is, of course, a founder member of the premier noise-rock band of the late 20th / early 21st century, Sonic Youth. Post-SY, he has had a rich and varied career including a multitude of solo projects and collaborations as well as a well-worth-reading memoir, Sonic Life. This is another longer than usual episode, but hey... it's Thurston Moore ferchrissakes...

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01:32:14

Steve's Mix Tapes #028 (Doug Evans)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/07/27

My guest mixer this week is Doug EvansDoug and I crossed paths via a shared love of the Sombrero Fallout podcast. He resides in North Carolina (the 'Tarheel State', apparently), but in a truly random coincidence it turns out that his great-great-grandfather hailed from the same small Welsh village as my wife! It's great to have musicians, authors, journalists on the show; but it's also a joy to have guests on that are just passionate about the music they listen to...

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01:51:55

Steve's Mix Tapes #027 (Billy Reeves)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/07/19

My guest mixer this week is Billy ReevesBilly is a songwriter, musician, producer and broadcaster who you most likely know from 'A Pessimist Is Never Disappointed', a song that he wrote and played on that was a 1998 top 30 hit for Theaudience (featuring Sophie Ellis-Bextor on vocals). In the 2000s, he turned to travel and sports broadcasting, and has also gone on to record three solo albums, all of which you can buy here). This turned into a bit of a mammoth chat, but it was quite hard to edit it

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01:29:56

Steve's Mix Tapes #026 (Rob Barbato)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/07/12

My guest mixer this week is Rob BarbatoRob played bass in The Fall in 2006-07 as part of a lineup fondly remembered as 'The Dudes'. They were highly regarded as a live outfit, although they never recorded a studio album that did them justice - something that we discuss in the interview. We also talked about the fact that he was the only ever member of the group to be permitted by MES to have a beard! Rob was kind enough to contribute to my Fall in Fives Radio Show a few years ago (his episode is

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01:32:28

Steve's Mix Tapes #025 (Johnny Mac)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/07/05

My guest mixer this week is Johnny Mac.Johnny (real name John McMahon) and I have known each other - via the Wedding Present online forum - for years. As it turns out, we know each other well in some ways, but not so well in others! He was very nervous about doing this interview (the written word is more his thing - but I'm sure you'll agree he made for a great guest, displaying real passion for his selections.

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56:45

Steve's Mix Tapes #024 (Birthday Mix)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/06/28

For the first time in a while, this is one of my own mixes... and that's because it's my birthday tomorrow (or at least it will be the day after this mix comes out).I toyed with various ideas for this mix, but in the end, I just went for songs that mean a lot to me. I hope you enjoy them. Cheers!

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01:08:58

Steve's Mix Tapes #023 (Daren Garratt)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/06/21

My guest mixer this week is Daren GarrattDaren drummed for The Fall in 2013-15, appearing on The Remainderer and Sub-Lingual Tablet. He appeared with the group when they played Glastonbury in 2015 (about which we hear an interesting tale in the interview) - you can see the whole performance here. He has also played with The Nightingales and Dave Lance Callahan (of The Wolfhounds).

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01:20:02

Steve's Mix Tapes #022 (Simon 'Ding' Archer)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/06/14

My guest mixer this week is Simon 'Ding' ArcherDing not only played bass for The Fall in the early 2000s, he also played a substantial role in much of the group's output in the last 15 years of its existence. He's also played with a wide range of artists such as PJ Harvey, Pixies, Imperial Wax and Red Lorry Yellow Lorry. We caught up on a Sunday afternoon in mid-May: a bit earlier in the day than I usually do these calls, but he was off to see Dinosaur Jr that evening...

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01:21:15

Steve's Mix Tapes #021 (Keiron Melling)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/06/07

My guest mixer this week is Keiron Melling The Fall's final full-time drummer, who occupied the drum stool for the last quarter of the group's existence; he played on the final half a dozen albums, from Imperial Wax Solvent to New Facts Emerge. He then went on to play in the band Imperial Wax alongside Pete Greenway, releasing Gastwerk Saboteurs in 2019 and Tranquilliser in 2024.

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01:19:26

Steve's Mix Tapes #020 (Paul Hanley)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/05/31

My guest mixer this week is Paul HanleyThe second ex-Fall member to appear on this show (but definitely not the last!), he played drums alongside Karl Burns during what many would argue is the classic period of the group. He is also a successful author, having published Leave The Capital: A History of Manchester Music, Have A Bleedin Guess: The Story of Hex Enduction Hour (which in my view is one of the best ever books written about a single album) and Sixteen Again: How Pete Shelley &

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01:15:19

Steve's Mix Tapes #019 (The Rev Tim Goodbody)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/05/24

My guest mixer this week is Tim GoodbodyI first met Tim nearly 40 (!) years ago when we were both students at Wentworth College at the University of York. I am pretty hopeless at keeping in touch with people from school and university, but Tim and I have (very loosely) kept touch due to a shared love of The Wedding Present - both being members of the Facebook group. He is also the first man of the cloth to appear on the show…

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01:20:43

Steve's Mix Tapes #018 (Tommy Mackay)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/05/17

My guest mixer this week is Tommy MackayTommy is an author, comedian and musician. He’s also the man behind the website Daily Reckless (the Bandcamp page is here; there's also a full discography here). The song I use in the intro to this episode is Totally Weird. As well as a shared love of Beefheart and Ivor Cutler, Tommy and I have something notable in common: we both wrote blogs about The Fall that became books. You can buy Tommy's tome here (and of course you can buy mine here). Given all this

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01:20:42

Steve's Mix Tapes #017 (Gavin Laird)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/05/10

My guest mixer this week is Gavin LairdGavin, as well as being a fellow member of the Fall Online Forum, was the bass player in Telstar Ponies (alongside David Keenan (ex-18 Wheeler) and Brendan O'Hare (ex-Teenage Fanclub)). The song that I use in this week's intro is Last Outpost from their excellent 1996 LP Voices From the New Music. He has subsequently been involved in several other bands, such as The Porch Song Anthology, Lonecop and Macrocosmica. He also records under the name Glass Miniature,

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01:04:42

Steve's Mix Tapes #016 (Jonny Swift)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/05/03

My guest mixer this week is Jonny SwiftI first met Jonny online during lockdown when he set up the Facebook group 'HIP PRIESTS - every album by The Fall', which resulted in him contributing to the introduction to my book You Must Get Them All. He's a singer-songwriter from Dalton-in-Furness in Cumbria - his Bandcamp page is here.

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01:25:57

Steve's Mix Tapes #015 (Gavin Watts)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/04/26

My guest mixer this week is Gavin WattsGavin is one half of the duo (along with Steve) that is responsible for the We Are The Fall podcast, which I appeared on recently. He is also a musician in his own right: his Bandcamp page is here. He and Steve do a great 'deep dive' job with The Fall on their podcast, and his enthusiasm makes him a pleasure to talk to - a top notch guest.

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58:09

Steve's Mix Tapes #014 (The Fall)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/04/19

It's about time we had a Fall-related playlist...I recorded this in a hotel room in Future Inn, Cardiff Bay, the same place where I recorded my interview with Gavin Watts for his We Are The Fall podcast (who will be the guest mixer on next week's episode). It was a very good day: a pleasant journey in the sunshine, accompanied by a playlist of perfect length, and an excellent curry at one of my regular haunts, Zaika. It's a selection of Fall and Fall-related tracks that I had a lot of fun putting

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01:23:37

Steve's Mix Tapes #013 (Ian Grice)

Steve’s Mix Tapes ·

2025/04/12

My guest mixer this week is Ian Grice aka Gricey aka Iggy.Known to the good folk of the Wedding Present Forum as Iggy, to the rest of the world he's Gricey. A primary school teacher for 32(!) years, he and I first met and bonded when I was working in the secondary school down the road. One of the joys of doing this podcast has been catching up with some old friends that I haven't spoken to for far too long, and this was a prime example...

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