SISTER ROSETTA THARPE - "JESUS TAUGHT ME HOW TO SMILE" (1943)

It’s Easter. Here, beneath the static and crackle of an old 78, is Sister Rosetta Tharpe.

JANUARY PLAYLIST

It’s that time again to look back on what’s been playing in Monkey Mansions. Feel a bit guilty about not including a Bob Dylan track seeing as how I played over twenty of his LPs this month but competition is tough. Ten songs in 27 minutes and a winner every one.

1. Sister Rosetta Tharpe – “This Train” (1946)
Wonderful to see Tharpe gather a new batch of admirers this month. Easy to hear why.

2. Graham Bond Organization – “Long Legged Baby” (1964)
Mr. Bond, ably assisted by Messer’s Baker, Bruce and especially Heckstall-Smith, tears it up.

3. Melvin Davis – “It’s No News” (1964)
A clippity-cloppity dancer featuring the immortal lines “If a monkey rode a donkey on a trip to the moon and got back by noon – that’s news” is more than enough to secure a place in this month’s highlights.

4. Q65 – “Cry In The Night” (1966)
Few beat combos could out-punk the Pretty Things like Dutch delinquents Q65.

5. The Golden Dawn – “My Time” (1967)
This is the way to make a psychedelic garage record.

6. Jim Sullivan – “U.F.O.” (1969)
Jim Sullivan had the voice of a giant singing marshmallow. Maybe he still has, but he vanished into thin air in 1975. An alien abduction seems the most likely explanation.

7. New York Dolls – “(There’s Gonna Be A) Showdown” (1974)
My money’s on the other guy. Johansen and the other Dolls can hardly stand, bless ‘em.

8. The Sea Urchins – “Pristine Christine” (1987)
The Sea Urchins were hindered by having a singer whose voice peeled the paper from damp bedsit walls but with the jingle-jangle set to ten it provides just enough distraction.

9. Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan – “Hawk” (2010)
How can fair maiden Isobel be responsible for this junkyard howl “Green Onions”?

10. Lloyd Cole – “Westchester County Jail” (2010)
There were about four contenders from Broken Record. This is the most “instant”.

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SISTER ROSETTA THARPE DAY

Today is Sister Rosetta Tharpe Day in Pennsylvania. Not sure of anything significant about 11th January but any day is a good one to celebrate the good sister’s music. BBC Four are showing an hour documentary The Godmother of Rock ‘n’ Roll over the weekend and then presumably on the BBC iPlayer. Hopefully they’ll get to the bottom of whether she really does sing “wankers” on ‘This Train’ (surely not). In the meantime, this’ll whet your appetite.

SISTER ROSETTA THARPE - UP ABOVE MY HEAD

No dance class this week, simply the magnificent Sister Rosetta Tharpe giving it some serious testifying. Love the guitar break in the middle.

Hallelujah!