Take 5

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

Matthew E White is a jack of all trades. A producer hailing from Richmond, Virginia, he’s worked with everyone from Sharon Van Etten to Natalie Prass, Justin Vernon to The Mountain Goats. A few years ago he set up Spacebomb, a studio and label which also acts as a community space for artists to experiment.

This all feeds off his own work, as a multi-instrumentalist, former jazz player, and songwriter for whom music has no boundaries. In short, Matt is the kinda guy you love to get stuck talking to in the kitchen at a house party, which I why I asked him to Take 5.

From ESG to Frankie Valli to Marvin Gaye, crawl inside the full spectrum of Matthew E White’s mind.

ESG - You're No Good

Augustus Pablo - King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown

Miles Davis - Rated X

Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons - December, 1963 (Oh, What A Night)

Marvin Gaye - Mercy Mercy Me (the Ecology)

The AIR studios in Montserrat are the stuff of legend. Back in the 80’s, Sir George Martin set up a place to record in the middle of the Caribbean. It was an escape for the likes of Paul McCartney, Elton John, Stevie Wonder, and Dire Straits. The Police captured one of their biggest albums there, and Duran Duran hung out for a spell too. This haven in the West Indies was short lived though; a hurricane then a dormant volcano that became active, changed the island forever. Now this story is being told, by Australian director Gracie Otto. Under the Volcano is a capture of time, when big money was being spent making albums and some of the biggest personalities were making them. But it’s also the story of an island and it’s people, and how they impacted the lives and sounds of these musicians forever. From Arrow to Dire Straits to Elton, Gracie Otto shares her island songs and the stories behind sharing this magical tale.

Hot Hot Hot - Arrow

Grace Jones - Slave to The Rhythm

Ride Across The River - Dire Straits

Stevie Wonder - I just Called To Say I love You

Elton John - I’m Still standing

Comedian Steph Tisdell is here to help. Literally. The proud Ydinji woman may be up on stage telling jokes these days, but a few years ago she was at uni, and looking ahead to a career in human rights law.

That all changed one fateful day, and what led her to stand up comedy is a story you’ve gotta hear yourself.

The comedy path has seen her win multiple awards, and appear on TV and radio across Australia, but social justice remains at the core of all she does. And you’ll hear why this local legend is so captivating to listen to, as she Takes 5 with the greater good. From Miiesha to Sam Cooke, this is a heartfelt and hilarious conversation about creating change.

Lane 8 – Stir Me Up

Miiesha - Drowning

Future island - Seasons

Kelis & Andre 3000 - Millionaire

Sam Cooke - A Change is Gonna Come

John Parish has crafted some of the indie music’s most acclaimed albums. The Bristol producer has been behind Aldous Harding’s last two records, he co-wrote and produced Eels “Souljacker”, and Giant Sand’s “Chore of Enchantment”, and recently he’s been working with The Goon Sax and Parquet Courts. He’s a composer and musician too, releasing his own works and soundtracking beautiful scenes on stage and screen.

But John’s longest creative relationship is also his most celebrated, a lifelong musical partnership with PJ Harvey. You’ll hear the story of how they met, and why their collaboration has been so fruitful, as well as tales from the studios of Aldous Harding, and Mark Linkous, in this beautiful insight into capturing the intangible magic of song.

Dry Cleaning – Scratchcard Lanyard

Sparklehorse – Piano Fire

Aldous Harding - Blend

John Murry – I Refuse To Believe (You Could Love Me)

John Parish & PJ Harvey - April

Danny Cohen is the creator of wild dreams. His music video’s have seen King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard crawl inside a giant custom built vulture, his photography has beckoned Mac DeMarco into a bathful of cigarettes, and his video for Kirin J Callinan, with a screaming Jimmy Barnes over the hills, has clocked more than sixty two million views. The Melbourne based photographer and filmmaker has also just directed his first feature length film. It’s a doco on another regular collaborator, Courtney Barnett, and is a beautiful and vulnerable account of a tough and transitory time for the songwriter. That was the catalyst for asking Danny Cohen to Take 5. But to be honest, I had questions about all of his work. From crazy experiences in Cuba, to an instant bond over a bagful of smokes, and hiring an army tank for an indie band, this is an amazing conversation about realising some truly fantastical visions.

Courtney & Kurt – Continental Breakfast https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHCtH15dpmU&ab_channel=CourtneyBarnettandKurtVile

Mac DeMarco – The Stars Keep Calling My Name https://dannycohen.com/Mac-DeMarco-Bath-time-with-Mac

Kirin J. Callinan – Big Enough (ft Alex Cameron, Jimmy Barnes) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvrZJ5C_Nwg

Loose Tooth – Keep On https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vFamqrm0nHo&ab_channel=LooseTooth

King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – Catching Smoke https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4L3-HOdMeuM&ab_channel=KingGizzardAndTheLizardWizard