Monday, July 11, 2011

My little runaround

For reasons that are unlikely to become clear in this lifetime, I've started running. Well. it's been about nine months now so started might be pushing it slightly.

As I run on my own, I have taken obsession with my ipod to the nth degree. For many months, exercise was a method to listen to podcasts. You see, I've tried songs before and frankly, they're too short. As one song ends, so does my motivation. Therefore it's either later Talk Talk (average song length: seven minutes) or it's podcasts and preferably one lasting longer than 30 minutes.

My list of usual suspects includes Adam and Joe, the Guardian's Football Weekly, Mayo and Kermode's film review, Collins and Herring, the Word and so on. Most average 50-60 minutes.

Here's the rub. I have a new phone and a new exercise tracking program, one that pulls music from my playlists automatically. I have, therefore been letting it do so in the knowledge that I've only upload around 40 songs to my phone.

My recent runs have been to a soundtrack of early 80s wonderment. There has been ABC, Japan, Yazoo and the Specials. There has also been some comparative mid 80s maturity in the shape of The Smiths, The Cure and Billy Bragg.

These are all the antidote of the kind of crap you find spouted by sections of the running community who seem to think it's all about beats per minute. Well, to me it's all about listening to a song and forgetting about the fact I'm running at the same time. I need distraction not pacing.

Both above all else, the soundtrack to my running, the thing that has got me going is the enriched vocal talents of Mr Glen Gregory. So despite their appearance on those awful Plusnet adverts and some appearances with the awful La Roux (why name yourself after a mixture of flour and butter?), there is little else to say other than, for the fifteen minutes or so that I'm out running, Heaven 17's Come Live With Me, is the best song ever.

Just don't listen too closely to the lyrics.