Tinkle Tinkle! Mind out, mate! What's that? A red light? Ha, means nothing to me. Check me out! SQUISH.
Yes, it's the mad, bad and dangerous world of bicycles up for nomination and donderisation in this week's readers recommend. You may want to ride your bicycle, you may want to ride it where you like, but first you must negotiate the Songs About Manual Labour A-list (and the column, with commentability etc): Hugh Masekela – Stimela; Loretta Lynn – Coalminer's Daughter; Van Morrison – Cleaning Windows; Jimmie Rodgers – Blue Yodel No 8; Junior Murvin – Working In the Cornfield; Bruce Springsteen – Working On the Highway; The Imagined Village – The Handweaver and the Factory Maid; The Decemberists – Eli, the Barrow Boy; Sir Vincent Lone – The Potato Pickers; Björk – Cvalda.
Here too, is your B-list. I'm afraid the fact that I (manfully, and without the slightest bit of griping ... well, nearly) have been doing two jobs means I'm going to have to just post the list right now. I hope to go back in and expand later on Friday. Apologies.
Lee Hazlewood – The Railroad
The Small Faces – The Song of a Baker
Kanye West – Spaceship
Nico Wayne Toussaint – Mali to Mississippi
Little Feat – Willin
Serge Gainsbourg – Le Poinconneur des Lilas
Bessie Smith – Washwoman's Blues
Richmond Fontaine – I Fell Into Painting Houses in Phoenix, Arizona
Leadbelly – Take This Hammer
Richard Thompson – Last Shift
Here's a Spotify playlist with as many of the top 20 crammed on as I could find.
Back to bikes now, and I hope it's simple enough. Think it'll be a toughie and, just to confirm, motorbikes, scooters etc do not qualify. This is all about the pushbike.
The toolbox: Archive, the Marconium, the Spill, the Collabo.
DO post your nominations before midday on Monday if you wish them to be considered.
DO post justifications of your choices wherever possible.
DO NOT post more than one-third of the lyrics of any song.
DO NOT dump lists of nominations – if you must post more than two or three at once, please attempt to justify your choices.
DO be nice to each other!
