Pablo U like paint! Like mixed media! And the music! Pablo Ugartetxea dropped by Surf Europe and gave us a bit of insight to the tunes that make his easel dance…

“I don’t really listen to albums much these days, often there are only two or three good songs on any LP that gets released. Of course, there are always exceptions. Here are the albums I’d take to that desert island, and a few singles for good measure…” reckoned Pabs.

Albums

The Rolling Stones, ‘Sticky Fingers’
An amazing variety of rock n’ roll, rhythm & blues and acoustic ballads all laced with a heroin-infused twist, including gems such as Dead Flowers, Wild Horses and Brown Sugar. Andy Warhol’s zipper sleeve was the first to feature the Rolling Stones iconic tongue & lips logo by John Pasche, a graphic design student at London’s Royal College of Art. Apparently Jagger only paid 50 quid for the design.

Burning Spear, ‘Marcus Garvey’
A classic reggae number for all the dreadlock rastas out there. A dub version of it was released four months later as Garvey’s Ghost.

Beethoven, ‘Concerto for violin and orchestra in D major Op 61’
My dad always used to play this at home when we were small, the second movement is flawless.

Ella Fitzgerald sings the Duke Ellington Song Book.
In 1957 two jazz heavy weights Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald hooked up in the studio with Duke’s orchestra and came up with this epic three-disc album. Showcasing her famous scat singing, her performance on this record won her two Grammy Awards.

J J Cale, ‘Naturally’
One of the pioneers of the ‘Tulsa’ sound, a combination of blues, rockabilly, country and jazz and original composer of Eric Clapton’s ‘After Midnight’ and ‘Cocaine’.

  

BRAZILIAN
Brazil along with America has got to be one of the world’s most prolific music makers, and generally the variety and quality you find is impressive.
Gilberto Gil, ‘Indigo Blue’
A great song by the versatile GG, one of the original members of the Tropicalia movement that revolutionized Brazilian pop music in the late sixties.
Tom Jobim, ‘Desafinado’
The Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd version is my favourite. One of the best tunes to come out of the 20th century.
Cidinho e Doca, ‘Rap Das Armas’
Part of the soundtrack to the great film Tropa de elite, this Carioca funk number is the typical rap sound to come out of some of the most violent favelas, recounting the police raids suffered by the inhabitants.

REGGAE
Reggae is essentially all I listened too when I was in my teens.
Alpha Blondy, ‘Afriki’
In Africa he’s considered as nothing less than the heir to Bob Marley.
THE ABYSSINIANS, ‘Satta MasSagana’
A true classic of the genre.
The Rolling Stones, ‘Send it to me’ They’ve always enjoyed flirting with the reggae vibe.

 
ROCK & pop
Talking Heads, ‘Slippery people’ (live version)
Split Enz, ‘Six months in a leaky boat’
Sid Vicious, ‘My way’

Books

‘Bel Ami’ by Guy De MaupassanT
Although this author is better known for his short stories, the three or four novels he wrote appealed to me more. Bel Ami is a portrait of social climber Georges Duroy in 19th century Paris. Vain, ambitious and dishonest, the protagonist is willing to achieve success at any price.

All Truman Capote’s books
‘In Cold Blood’, ‘Music for Chameleons’ (which includes the brilliant story ‘Hand Carved Coffins’), ‘Portraits and Observations’ etc. In his stories and novels every single detail is meticulously thought through. A true master of the art.

‘Fouché’ by Stefan Zweig
A fictional biography of French politician Joseph Fouche during the turbulent period between the Revolution and the Napoleonic Empire. Again it tells the immoral story of a man who’s willing to stop at nothing.     
 
‘The secret life of Salvador Dalí’ by Salvador Dalí
At the age of 38 and at the height of his career, the Catalan artist published this entertaining autobiography littered with juicy anecdotes. The first paragraph starts: “When I was six years old I wanted to be a chef, and when I was seven I wanted to be Napoleon. Since then my ambition has only grown steadily.”