FT Life of a Song Podcast
1) Kate Bush's Wuthering Heights
When "Wuthering Heights" was released 40 years ago this year, it became the first song written and performed by a woman to reach number one in the UK charts. What was the song's — and Bush's — sp...Show More
2) Sincerity or self-branding: what defines millennial music?
From the unstoppable rise of hip-hop to the 'millennial whoop', what does today's new music sound like? And how has social media changed the relationship between artists and fans? Harriet Fitch Litt...Show More
3) 1968: The Year that Music Changed
Set against a backdrop of protest and upheaval, the songs released in 1968 represent a turning point in music. FT pop writers David Cheal and Peter Aspden are joined by author Tot Taylor to debate the...Show More
4) The best Christmas music: a definitive guide
What makes a good Christmas song? Should it be cheesy or serious? And why do millennials love them? FT pop writers discuss festive classics old and new - from carols to Mariah Carey, Greg Lake ...Show More
5) The Life of a Song: Strange Fruit
Billie Holiday’s 1939 'Strange Fruit' was called 'the first significant protest in words and music, the first unmuted cry against racism'. Other singers attempted it, from Nina Simone and Diana Ross t...Show More
6) The Life of a Song: Make You Feel My Love
From Bob Dylan to Adele, the song that was first called 'a spare ballad undermined by greetingcard lyrics' is now a karaoke tearjerker. FT pop writers David Cheal and Helen Brown debate the origins, m...Show More
7) The Hits that Shook the World
In a special episode to mark the publication of The Life of a Song book, FT pop critics Helen Brown, David Cheal and Ludovic Hunter-Tilney debate whether a song can really change the world. Hear the s...Show More
8) The Life of a Song: Wild Thing
It achieved distinction in an era of elemental riffs, and journeyed effortlessly to and fro across the Atlantic. It also marked a turning point in the career of the greatest guitarist who ever lived: ...Show More
9) The Life of a Song: Elvis Presley's Heartbreak Hotel
The singer’s old label boss called the song ‘a morbid mess’, but it shot to number one in the US. Ahead of the 40th anniversary of Elvis’s death in August, FT pop writers Peter Apsden and David Cheal ...Show More
10) The Life of a Song: Radiohead's No Surprises
Twenty years after they headlined Glastonbury, Radiohead return to the British music festival. FT pop writers Ludovic Hunter-Tilney and David Cheal discuss the band's lullaby of despair 'No Surprises'...Show More