Travelling Underground with iTube
Inspire is a strong word, but Duffy’s song Warwick Avenue set me off down a train of thought. Quite literally: underground to a tube train of thought. What other songs are named after London Underground stations or, more precisely, have the names of tube stops in the title? Yes, you’re right; it’s exactly the sort of thing St Diamond Geezer would do with a great deal more panache than me.
So, I’ve limited myself to what’s on my iPod, discarded two songs by the Jam (Going Underground and Down in a Tube Station at Midnight) and anything by Whitney Euston and descended for a personal trip on the iTube. Mind the Gap.
My first stop, as you might expect, is VICTORIA (the Kinks) and seeing as I’m on the Victoria Line, I’ll rattle south and give you two more: From a VAUXHALL Velox by Billy Bragg and The Clash’s sublime Guns of BRIXTON.
Without losing momentum, it’s back up to Stockwell and to the Northern Line. I’ll head all the way down so I can tick off MORDEN by Good Shoes before bearing north for Abba’s 1976 Eurovision classic WATERLOO, the Donovan favourite Sunny GOODGE STREET, Suggs’ CAMDEN TOWN, a Blueroom in ARCHWAY from the Boo Radleys and FINCHLEY CENTRAL courtesy of the New Vaudeville Band before changing track southwards on the City branch of the Northern Line.
Waterloo: couldn’t escape if I wanted to. Rather like changing from the Northern to the Jubilee line.
It’s Roxy Music’s ANGEL Eyes, then BANK Holiday from Blur; where I’m going to change on to the District Line and head off to the far eastern wilds of Essex. Pulp’s portrait of MILE END persuades me not to get out and rather head ever onwards to Ian Dury’s PLAISTOW Patricia and do an about turn at Dogs Were BARKING from Gogol Bordello.
It’s back into town (with a quick detour down the East London Line for Carter and the Only Living Boy in NEW CROSS) and all aboard the Jubilee line for David Bowie’s Maid of BOND STREET and (what took me so long?)