When Fran Kelly announced she was leaving RN Breakfast after 17 years, everyone I know had a little cry. Maybe it was the same for you too, because this legendary journalist has been waking up with us for a long time. Fran has held those in power to account and told stories we may never have heard otherwise.

But it’s not often you hear Fran’s stories. That’s why I was so stoked and honoured to have her Take 5 with me, the day after she wrapped her final show on RN Breakfast. The theme was simple; life, so far. And from singing around the kitchen table, to hitting the road to get to her great love, this is a beautiful capture of an extraordinary human.

The Tokens – The Lion Sleeps Tonight

The Easybeats – Friday On My Mind

Lucinda Williams – I Just Want To See You So Bad

Yothu Yindi – Treaty

Gurrumul - Wiyathul

The first time I heard Stella Donnelly, I knew she was a star. Then I saw her live, and the heavy weight and brutal honesty of her songs made way for comedy interludes, even cabaret. There’s more to Stella Donnelly, than meets the eye.

For all of these reasons, I’ve long wanted her to Take 5. Her music has given many a sense of community, a home, so I wanted Stella Donnelly to tell me about the songs that belong, for her. From Billy Bragg to Jenny Hval to male choirs from Wales, this is a beautiful and charming insight into her musical heart.

Valentine's Day Is Over - Billy Bragg

Hiraeth - Morriston Orpheus Choir

Lance Jr - Courtney Barnett

Spells - Jenny Hval

Seabird - Alessi Brothers

Damon Albarn is one of the busiest men in music. We first met him as frontman for Blur, he kicked off Gorillaz a decade or so after that, and in between collaborated with Malian musicians, wrote operas based on Monkey, and formed supergroups with members of The Clash and Tony Allen. You get the sense that he doesn’t like to sit still, so it was a coup to ask him to do that, for a spell, to Take 5.

On the day he released his new solo album, Damon invited you into his universe across songs. There are not many people that can mention legends like Lou Reed and Bobby Womack as friends, but it’s the reverence he holds these makers in, that makes this truly special.

Ghost Town – The Specials

Trench Town - Bob Marley

Lou Reed – Dirty Blvd.

Bobby Womack – Across 110th Street

The Clash – Rock the Casbah

As soon as I heard Amyl and the Sniffers, I was hooked. The name for one: genius. And this band out of Melbourne, with a phenomenal frontwoman and wild live show, held a lot of promise. They delivered on their debut, and kept that fire alive on the follow up too. Amy Taylor is the lead singer of Amyl and the Sniffers, and every time I’ve spoken to her I’ve been left feeling giddy afterwards. As we kick off Ausmusic Month for another year, who better to ask to Take 5? From Slim Dusty to Barkaa to AC/DC and beyond, this is Amy Taylor’s Australia.

AC/DC – If You Want Blood (You’ve Got It)

Maureen Elkner  - Rak off, Normie!

Barkaa & Mackridge - 22Clan  

Slim Dusty - Looking Forward Looking Back

Yothu Yindi - Treaty (Radio Mix)

When people ask me who’s on my bucket list to Take 5, Billy Bragg is up there. The poet and activist has been part of my life since I was born. He’s a regular visitor to Australia, and his activism, songs and stories have captivated me for decades.  So having him join me on the day he released his new album, was a dream come true.

The Million Things That Never Happened is a pandemic album, and we all leaned on songs to get us through the last two years. So I asked Billy to share his songs for the soul. From The Supremes to Laura Nyro to Curtis Mayfield, this is a grounding and beautiful convo about the power of music to keep us afloat

Willin' - Little Feat

Stoned Love - The Supremes

Move On Up - Curtis Mayfield

Save the Country - Laura Nyro

Musical Communion - The Skatalites

Ruby Wax is an icon of comedy and interviewing.

Through the 90’s and early 00’s Ruby’s BBC TV specials saw her chatting with the most famous people of the times: Madonna, Jim Carrey, Imelda Marcos, Donald Trump, OJ Simpson, and Pamela Anderson.

Her disarming docu-interviewing style preceded people like Louis Theroux, and when she wasn’t getting up in people’s grill, she was script editing Absolutely Fabulous.

These days Ruby is an author and mental health advocate, but she still does it all with that acerbic wit. And it was on show in this brilliant conversation, as Ruby took us through her survival songs from childhood to today.

Ride of the Valkries - Wagner

Creep - Radiohead

Eleanor Rigby - Beatles

Fire and Rain - James Taylor

Heal - Lady Gaga

Have you ever seen those videos online where someone hears a song, and they’re instantly transported back to a moment? It could be someone with Alzheimers or Dementia, or with a brain injury or trauma that language can’t reach, but music can. Maybe you’ve known someone with autism, who is non verbal but can communicate with song.

It’s called music therapy, and the science behind it, is incredible. Usually the Take 5 is with a muso, or person in the public eye. But I wanted to step into another realm, and get inside the brain of a registered music therapist. Chanelle Henderson is just that. She works with a really broad array of people too, from elderly clients to little kids and preterm babies and their parents. And across five songs, she invites you into this world and tells you the stories of some incredible breakthroughs. From three chord simplicity, to bonding with babies, and the music that takes us back instantly as a sensory memory, this is a beautiful conversation about the scientific and emotional power of song.

You Are My Sunshine - Johnny Cash

Stop - Spice Girls

Raining on the Rock - Warren H Williams

Song for Sammy - Missy Higgins

Sitting On The Dock of the Bay – Otis Redding

Over the past decade, James Blake has gone from grabbing our hearts with the Wilhelm Scream, to collaborating with some of the biggest names on the planet. The London born producer, singer, and multi-instrumentalist has always kept it moving; expanding his sound, testing new waters, and through it all remaining grounded in what matters.

I first met James back in 2011, just as the hype around him was beginning to grow. And I’ve been lucky to catch up with him over the years at various points. But he’s never done a Take 5, until now.

On the day he released his fifth album, he joined me to play over people’s tunes. Specifically, his favourite heartbreak anthems. From Stevie Wonder to Pink Pantheress to Al Green, this is a capture of an incredible music mind and heart.

Stevie Wonder - Never Dreamed You’d Leave In Summer

Jeff Buckley - I Know It’s Over

Dijon - Many Times

Pink Pantheress - Break It Off

Al Green - How Can You Mend A Broken Heart

Sufjan Stevens is one of the most prolific songwriters working today, and it feels as though his drive to write songs is as much about the creation of music, as it is the understanding of creativity itself, and finding different ways to explore it. He first heard Angelo De Augustine a few years ago, and when you hear Angelo’s voice you’ll understand why Suf signed him to his label. And why they decided to make an album together.

A Beginner’s Mind is a record inspired and created by a few forces. Sufjan and Angelo holed up in a cabin in upstate New York to write it. They would watch old movies at night; classics like Point Break, She’s Gotta Have It, Silence of the Lambs, even Bring It On Again. Then they’d use these stories to write their own. But they also threw in the I Ching, and a Zen Buddhist principle of Shoshin, or A Beginner’s Mind.

What’s come out of it is a beautiful collection of songs, and the inspiration behind my Take 5 theme of Absolute Beginners. From an epic recording of Nina Simone, to the short and surreal world of Ivor Cutler, and the incredible world of Prince, this is a beautiful journey with two absolute angels.

Judy Garland - 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow'

Prince - 'The Ballad of Dorothy Parker'

Nina Simone - 'My Sweet Lord / Today Is A Killer'

Ivor Cutler - 'Sharks'

Beverly Glenn-Copeland - 'Ever New'

It’s a special Take 5, as we mark the 30th anniversary of Nirvana releasing Nevermind. This was the record that brought grunge into the mainstream, it changed the game not just for the Seattle sound, but catapulted it into a worldwide movement. To celebrate this iconic moment, I dug up some of my most treasured conversations from the Take 5 archives, with the people at the centre of the scene.

You’ll hear from Butch Vig, the producer who shaped Nevermind. From Jonathan Poneman, who signed Nirvana and co-founded Sub-Pop; the label at the centre of the scene. Billy Corgan will pop up, whose Smashing Pumpkins were another huge player in the scene. And we’ll revisit my chat with Michael Azzerad, who penned a bestselling biography of Nirvana and also an iconic capture of the late '80s and early '90s indie scene in America, with Our Band Could Be Your Life. Nirvana’s connection to Australia is significant too, and photographer Sophie Howarth will bring it close to home with her memories of hanging with the band and seeing them play on their only Australian tour.

It’s a wild ride, and I feel so privileged to have shared this space and these stories. So don the flanny, pull on the cords, let your dirty hair down, and revisit one of music’s most loved era’s.

Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit

Smashing Pumpkins – Disarm

Neil Young – Ambulance Blues

Fugazi – Waiting Room

Feedtime – Shovel