COOL TRACKS ICE CREAM VAN

In hot weather, my musical selections get increasingly random so I thought I’d share a few tracks that have been providing the backdrop to the current UK heatwave — proof that there’s no science to this stuff, just vibes.

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Glass Chattering by Yoshio Ojima

Proving my late father was cool to the end, one of the last albums he bought was Kankyō Ongaku: Japanese Ambient, Environmental & New Age Music 1980–1990. Listening to it now on a hot day, I imagine myself sitting in a cool, concrete Zen structure by Japanese architect, Tadao Ando, sipping chilled mugicha with ice cubes rattling around in the glass.

This track even sounds like ice cubes clinking against the side of a glass.

Refreshing.

Java Jive by Andy Shepherd

This was my first introduction to contemporary jazz as my next door neighbour Marcus James (a few years older than me) played it to me one day while his parents were hosting a summer afternoon party out in the garden. Though Shepherd never made a track or album as assessable as his debut, I remain forever indebted to the beauty of Java Jive as a calm welcome to modern jazz.

Love Is Contagious by Taja Seville

The first time I heard this song, it instantly sounded like the pop music equivalent of an ice lolly or reflected sunlight at the peak of summer. I even went as far as buying Taja Sevelle’s debut album on cassette. I can’t remember any of it now, except for this strangely timeless tune.

Eye Know by De Le Soul

Picked up this 12" version of De La Soul’s Eye Know from Klangtone Records in Stroud and asked for a discount, as the B-side remix features the sound of a woman orgasming to the classic tune — which could make for some awkward listening in social situations. Shaun (the proprietor) said he should really charge me double for the privilege.

All jokes aside, the original version of this song takes me right back to my teenage years. This hippy-hoppy track stood in contrast to the angrier voices of the time — like Public Enemy and N.W.A. — with its soulful-breezy summer vibes.

(You Don't Know) How Glad I Am by Nancy Wilson

I find myself increasingly loving Nancy Wilson's work as I get older, appreciating the smoothness and joy in her voice, which sits somewhere between Lena Horne, Esther Phillips, and Peggy Lee.

(You Don't Know) shows off Wilson's effortless range in a sort of jazzy pop style.

Supersymmetry by Arcade Fire

I went through a bit of an Arcade Fire phase around the time of the release of their album The Suburbs, and then kind of forgot about them—until I heard this cool song during the end credits of Spike Jonze’s Her. They also did the score for the entire film, so there’s a nice musical continuity between the soundtrack and this eleven-minute track, which feels like an electro-pop meditation on love in the digital age.

Let Your Love Decide by Aztec Camera

I’ve been going through a bit of an Aztec Camera/Roddy Frame reappraisal lately, and Let Your Love Decide from his album Dreamland always resurfaces as one of my favourites. Frame is so good at singing languid love songs that feel as sultry as a summer heatwave—and this is one of the best.

Vroom Vroom and Party4U by Charli XCX

I’m a bit late to the party (pun intended) when it comes to Charli XCX, but after catching up on a few of her tracks, I can see she’s a unique pop talent. Her sound blends the digital fragmentation of Kanye West—especially his 808s & Heartbreak, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, and Yeezus era—with the hedonistic pop nihilism of Lady Gaga, particularly on The Fame Monster. Of course, she brings her own distinct hyperpop/club music ingredients as well.

Given how chaotic the world has felt lately, there’s something oddly comforting about indulging in the banality of dysfunctional relationships through pop songs. It reminds me that when you’re in love—or out of love—it can feel as though the external world disappears, eclipsed by your own emotional landscape.

Love In Marvellous Times by Mos Def

From Mos Def’s underrated The Ecstatic album—which fetches a pretty penny these days—I remember blasting this track back in the days when I worked at a local record shop, usually when the boss wasn’t around.

I was recently bombarded with a tsunami of old-school rap tracks (via text) by an old school friend, and I humbly offered this one as a retort.

As rap retorts go, I reckon this is next level.

The Old Stamping Ground by Willie The Lion Smith And His Cubs

Heard this on Radio 3 this morning, and it went straight onto my summer playlist. It evokes a books-and-coffee vibe—sitting under the porch, enjoying the shade like a literary Wyatt Earp. It also reminded me of Don’t Cry Baby by Erskine Hawkins, another lazy, books-and-coffee type of jam.

The Mountain Of The Night By Abdullah Ibrahim And Ekaya

Around the same time I was introduced to the music of Andy Sheppard, Abdullah Ibrahim and Ekaya also entered my life, instantly sparking a lifelong love of African jazz. I saw Abdullah live a couple of times (both at Bath Jazz Festival), and the last show was the best jazz gig I’ve ever experienced.

Listening to The Mountain of the Night as the sun begins to dip and the moon starts to glow, I feel a kind of blissful serenity in the track that cools you just by listening to it.

It’s a night breeze in musical form.

Friends by Francis And The Lights

Just this morning, I was sitting by the canal at Stroud Brewery when this underrated gem started blasting through the speakers. As I gazed at some hovering dragonflies and cooled off with a pint of local cider, I was reminded of how much I love this collab track with Francis and the Lights, Bon Iver, and Kanye West.

Coconut by Harry Nilsson

In light of the recent passing of screen actor Michael Madsen, I dusted off the old Reservoir Dogs soundtrack and thoroughly enjoyed revisiting Tarantino’s eclectic song selection for his debut feature. As an album, it has a surprising sense of continuity, interspersed with droll commentary from K-Billy DJ Steven Wright.

Coconut by Harry Nilsson also happens to align perfectly with my recent taste for chilled coconut water while playing tennis in the blazing sun.

Ego Death by Ty Dolla $ign (feat. Kanye West, FKA twigs & Skrillex)

Ego Death is a track I return to far more often than I ever would have expected on first listen. But it's just so damn well-produced—an anarchic blend of house, deep house, hip-hop, and electronic/experimental pop—that I find it repeatedly mesmerizing.

A stone-cold banger, as the kids say.

LA Monster by Ye

As an indictment of the place and the industry that he's frequently found himself pilloried by, (Kan)Ye West's LA Monster seems the perfect anthem for those emancipating themselves from the poisoned chalice of that dream.

Me included.

It's the ugliest nightmare born from the prettiest dreams
Millions of people tryin' to get on the scene
And everyone sellin' their souls, everyone sellin' their...
Everyone sayin' they woke
But they sleepwalkin', dead, eyes closed

L.A. monster
I pray the Lord my soul to keep
Lord, save these people, they asleep
They lettin' Satan run they streets
Lord, save us from
L.A. monster

I pray the Lord my soul to keep
Lord, save these people, they asleep
They lettin' Satan run they streets
Lord, save us from
L.A. monster

Everything We Need by Kanye West

Switch my, switch my attitude
I'm so, I'm so radical
All these people mad at dude
This for who it matter to
What if Eve made apple juice?
You gon' do what Adam do?
Or say, "Baby, let's put this back on the tree

"'Cause we have everything we need (Ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh)

In a materialistic world, it’s nice to have a song that reminds you we don’t need much—even if that sentiment is being expressed by a man who clearly loves material things. Of course, a Buddhist perspective might say that it’s perfectly fine to enjoy material things, as long as you’re aware that they lack inherent existence.

Anyway I enjoy this song, so there.

Wave by Antonio Carlos Jobim and Frank Sinatra

Saving the best for last, perhaps—here’s one of my favourite collaboration tracks by Jobim and Sinatra. It features that irresistible samba rhythm of the Brazilian Composer and an elegant arrangement that perfectly complements Sinatra’s Caipirinha-cocktail-style, laid-back singing.