John Peel - Fabriclive 07

· music ·

We got this album (compiled by John Peel) last weekend in the fabulous Fopp in Bristol. Peel has hugely varied taste in music, that the label "eclectic" doesn't adequately cover, so we knew when we bought it that we would probably hate a third of the tracks with a passion. But it only cost us £10, so we thought it a reasonable gamble. We were right: we hate 9 of the 24 tracks, but the others are so gloriously brilliant and unexpected that £10 seems like a bargain.

Some of the highlights, then: there's Joy Division â€" Love Will Tear Us Apart (always fantastic), The Velvelettes â€" Needle in a Haystack (hideously catchy Motown magic), Elementz of Noise â€" Clock (electro-modern stuff with a voice over that reminds me inexplicably of the novels of Jeff Noon) and Derrick Morgan â€" Moon Hop (relaxed sunny ska). The track that made me marvel and laugh out loud was The Kingswoods â€" Purty Vacant. Have you ever heard the Sex Pistols' Pretty Vacant played hillbilly-style on banjos? No? Then you haven't lived my friend, you haven't lived.