I’m doing a swimathon on Wednesday, where I shall be ploughing through swathes of small children on their half term holiday, and swimming as many lengths as I can for a charity close to my heart: the Prader-Willi Syndrome Association UK. Tomorrow night I’ll be loading up my waterproof mp3 player with podcasts and choons. So, can you lot help me out with any recommendations on an aquatic theme, to entertain my ears and brain while I gradually lose all feeling in my arms and legs and turn into a prune?
I’ve started the playlist off with Morphine – Sharks (which contains the insistent command to “Swim like a motherf**er!”) and Courtney Barnett – Aqua Profunda (which has slightly less urgent focus: “I was getting dizzy/My hair was wet and frizzy”). Any memorable watery-themed podcast stories would also be welcome…
(There’s more information about the PWSA UK charity on my Just Giving page, plus some rather ‘interesting’ and possibly ‘slightly Photoshopped’ training photos. You could always sponsor me too, if you’re feeling generous!)
I’m something of a swimming obsessive and just got my first underwater MP3 player last week. I’m finding I want a very different playlist to the one I use in the gym. I like slow music for swimming. Something that goes with the feeling of stretching out (if that makes sense). My favourite so far is the soundtrack to The Big Blue. Probably because it makes me think of the aquatic scenes from the film.
In case all that water gets a bit much…
a mariner’s revenge song
the ocean rising
i wish i was ocean size
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KofSmnRaFk
headed for the ocean
ocean
i’m the ocean
Stating the obvious
Swim Good
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmN9rZW0HGo
marry the sea
a floating leaf always reaches the sea
きのこ帝国
cold water music
hot water music
goff goff goff
water no get enemy
send di water
black muddy river
unutterably gorgeous
Rachel’s.
What a superb band they were.
that was the river
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pU00jvfCUJk
six days at the bottom of the ocean
wade into the water
Should you suffer from aquaphobia then maybe this is for you.
Pretend you’re being pursued – that’ll keep you going
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bF_H5QS2n-I
Douglas Dare – Swim
The Floaters – Float On
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZklwTGZutc
An energetic sea shanty or two should do the trick.
Skinny Lister If the gaff don’t let us down
The Storm Weather Shanty Choir – Drunken sailor
Jim Moray – All you pretty girls
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1ftNqpxn-Y
Holger Czukay – Cool In The Pool
Abdullah Ibrahim Trio – Water From An Ancient Well
For the first time in my life, I saw Abdullah Ibrahim live in concert last week.
I’m delighted to report that the great man is still on fine form at the age of 82. Really nice gig. He was received rapturously, and deservedly so.
Surfer Blood – Swim
Bobby Darin – Splish Splash
Paul kelly, ‘deeper water’ and ‘so much water, so close to home’.
Toad the wet sprocket. ‘walk on the ocean’
John butler trio, ‘ocean’
Water. Develop a relationship with it, as my old swimming coach used to say.
Couple of antipodean efforts
and one they wrote about me
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnnp9scb9v8
Trouble with songs about water in my collection is that they all include the D word…….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddthszRK9NQ
My favourite bath song.
Close second.
https://youtu.be/gG__FRHmpnM
Good old Great Uncle Charlie. Mind you, he’s been banned from the baths since that boomerang incident.
Some cracking suggestions there, many of which are new to me. Thanks for not tempting fate with the D word, @retropath2, and blimey, @kid-dynamite, I think you’ve found your métier!
Good on you @drakeygirl, one of my late great aunt’s grandsons has PWS, he’s a super chap, despite all his trials. Which reminds me, I owe him some photos…
All the very best in your wonderful endeavours. Nice to see some NMA in there, I’ll give you this one.
Thanks, @bobness. It’s a small world – the condition affects around one in 20,000 people in the UK, but there’s something to that six degrees of separation thing…
You could do a bit of water drumming as you swim.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zY9OMN2bNr4
An old jazz banger that should do the trick.
Ramsay Lewis Trio- Wade in the water
This has to go on the list:
…and you might find those prawns.
Good luck with the swim – Here’s Mr Gabriel “I Go Swimming”
https://youtu.be/xz524Cm4YRw
Couldn’t resist this one:
https://youtu.be/lV8i-pSVMaQ
A bit of Agua from Brazil
Water to drink – Tom Jobim
Waters of March – Tom Jobin and Elis Regina – such a joyful clip!
A late entry, but… There are a few remixes of Tracey Thorn’s ‘Swimming’ on youtube. I like this one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXBKeCJLoO8
A watery themed Artist, singing about the rewards you can imbibe once the marathon is achieved
Sailor – Glass Of Champagne
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcqK_j0eSFU
Allo Darlin’ – Lets Go Swimming
REM – Nightswimming
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-YHU6BwPR0
just limbering up, @drakeygirl
how did I not think of this one last night?
martha tilston’s wave machine
swimsuit issue
crawled out of the sea (from the album ‘alas i cannot swim’, of course!)
school of fish
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JQgqAgznBU
shark fin blues
(the album this is from has one of the best titles ever)
splooosh
i followed rivers
we flood empty lakes
stella was a diver and she was always down
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XuAVO089fWA
slow divers
going to stop now, or it’ll be fish out of marillion before you know it.
Robert Wyatt – Sea Song
Delicate, touching and really quite beautiful. Just like you in the water, I imagine, Drakey. 😉
Good luck.
Take a dip with Florence.
And she swam and she swam right over the dam…
400 lengths completed.
Blimey!
I bet you’ll sleep well tonight!
You beauties! A grand selection of your choons kept me going (along with some There’s No Such Thing As A Fish podcasts). I swam 400 lengths (10k, or 6.2 miles), with a little loo break after every 100 lengths. And I reckon I still had some more in the tank, but I had to be back home before Mr DG headed off to work on nights.
Tonight, like an absolute madwoman, I went to squash training, and sweated out the remaining chlorine in my system.
I am now opening a bottle of Perroni, and am about to wolf down a Toblerone. And then, it’s bed, and no doubt some aching muscles tomorrow!
The sponsorship total is now more than £800, and a fair few donations have come from Word/Afterworders, so thank you so much. My Just Giving page is still open if you can spare a couple of squid.