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This programme was broadcast on BBC Radio 2 on 4 January 2014, from 3:00pm to 5:00pm. The programme contained the news and four advertisement breaks, reducing the running time to approximately 111 minutes.
In the programme, Roger plays his favourite tracks, 28 in all, and talks briefly about each one. David Bowie is the most represented artist, with two tracks ('Under Pressure' and 'Cat People (Putting Out Fire)'), plus a further track written by him ('All The Young Dudes'). Queen also have two tracks ('Under Pressure' and 'One Vision'), while all other artists have one track each.
The full list of tracks played is as follows, and a full transcription of the programme is given below.
All Day And All Of The Night (The Kinks)
All My Life (Foo Fighters)
All The Young Dudes (Mott The Hoople)
Anarchy In The UK (Sex Pistols)
Back In Black (AC/DC)
Big Block (Jeff Beck)
Brass In Pocket (The Pretenders)
Cat People (Putting Out Fire) (David Bowie)
Denis (Blondie)
Fire (The Jimi Hendrix Experience)
Get Off Of My Cloud (The Rolling Stones)
I'm A Boy (The Who)
Killing In The Name (Rage Against The Machine)
Knights Of Cydonia (Muse)
Let's Have A Party (Elvis Presley)
Love Letter (Bonnie Raitt)
Man Of The World (Fleetwood Mac)
Me And Bobby McGee (Janis Joplin)
One Vision (Queen)
Rip It Up (Little Richard)
Rocky Mountain Way (Joe Walsh)
Speed King (Deep Purple)
Stay With Me (The Faces)
Sunshine Of Your Love (Cream)
The Rocker (Thin Lizzy)
Under Pressure (Queen and David Bowie)
Walk This Way (Aerosmith)
When The Levee Breaks (Led Zeppelin)
Hello, good afternoon and welcome to the show. This is Roger Taylor, I'd like to indulge you for the next two hours, as I delve into my record collection, and bring you some of the finest rock tracks from the last six decades. This seems like the perfect place to start.
['The Rocker' by Thin Lizzy]
Yeah, that was Thin Lizzy, 'The Rocker'. We did a couple of tours with Thin Lizzy in America, and we had wonderful memories every day on the plane, we used to fly commercial in those days, good old Phil, different girl every day. They were a great band Thin Lizzy, and they were pretty tough, it wasn't easy following them. But as I've already said, over the next two hours, I'll be picking a selection of rock tracks, new and old, to help dust off the cobwebs for the new year, and it seems appropriate to go back to where it all began.
['Rip It Up' by Little Richard
'Let's Have A Party' by Elvis Presley]
Two giants of rock 'n' roll there, the last one the late great Elvis Presley with 'Let's Have A Party', I remember that as a kid, and before that, Little Richard, and a track called 'Rip It Up', seminal stuff. I think Little Richard and Elvis really represent everything that was great about rock 'n' roll in the fifties, really never been improved on that much, but here's something a little more recent now, from a band who are just so good live, they're just extraordinary, great drums, great guitars, great theatre, great vocalist, this is Muse.
['Knights Of Cydonia' by Muse]
'Knights Of Cydonia' by Muse, the closing track from their 2006 album, 'Black Holes And Revelations'. I've seen Muse quite a few times now, live, and it started many years ago at the Reading Festival, and I couldn't believe how big a noise three guys could make, they're just a, all round a great band, and I think that really explains why they're one of the biggest live attractions in the world today. Well coming up shortly, I'll be playing a couple of very good songs, featuring two of my favourite drummers, but now, here are two great tracks, from two superb lead singers
['Denis' by Blondie
'Walk This Way' by Aerosmith]
That's Aerosmith, 'Walk This Way'. Two great bands there, both with fantastic lead singers, you heard Blondie and 'Denis' from 1978, and 'Walk This Way' by Aerosmith from 1975. I remember Blondie and Debbie Harry, we met them very long time ago in the seventies, before they were famous, in a motel somewhere in the back of Hollywood, and they were sort of semi-punky, a very stylish New York band, and there was something about them that said, you know I think they're gonna go somewhere, and especially with Debbie Harry, was such a iconic look, something special and it all happened for them. Likewise, we sort of spent a lot of time in those days with Aerosmith, and Joe Perry and Steven Tyler, I remember Joe was very influenced by the great Jeff Beck, and Aerosmith were a very sort of English styled American band. Anyway, this is Roger Taylor, and you're listening to BBC Radio 2.
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Right, time to play a couple of songs that get your feet tapping. Both of these bands have made their mark on the music industry and continue to inspire artists of all kinds. Led Zeppelin have made such an impact, especially in America, they have one of the greatest drummers of all time, probably the best rock drummer of all time, John Bonham, and what a fantastic band, so heavy, but so dynamic. This is a song written and originally recorded in 1929 by Kansas Joe McCoy and Memphis Minnie, but performed here by Led Zeppelin. The drum sound on this is probably one of the most sampled sounds on any record ever made, and everybody wants their drums to sound like this.
['When The Levee Breaks' by Led Zeppelin]
That was the fantastic Led Zeppelin, don't hear enough of them in this country, more, more, please. Here's another band, and they've got two of the most talented drummers in the world, the band was started by drummer and guitarist Dave Grohl, who was formerly in Nirvana, you probably know that. He's the singer, and the main writer. They also have a really great drummer in the Foo Fighters, he's my friend Taylor Hawkins, he's a great inspirational drummer and an all round good guy. And this is the Foo Fighters with one of my favourite tracks of theirs, 'All My Life'
['All My Life' by Foo Fighters]
That was a band I've played with a few times as guest, the Foo Fighters, wonderful band, check 'em out if you've never seen them live, it's a good time. This is Roger Taylor, you're listening to BBC Radio 2, and here is an early track you don't hear very often, The Who, 'I'm A Boy'
['I'm A Boy' by The Who]
That's from 1966, The Who with 'I'm A Boy'. A band with another wonderful, inspirational drummer, Keith Moon. When I first saw Keith Moon on TV, you've never seen anything like it, he looked like he was a washing machine or something, just a ballet going on, this frantic arm waving, fantastic sound powerhouse, and The Who were really quite a band, one of my favourite bands of all time. And now for something completely different.
['Killing In The Name' by Rage Against The Machine]
Great record, one of the heaviest records I can think of. Rage Against The Machine with 'Killing In The Name'. Not your typical Christmas number one, taken from their self titled debut album, released in 1992, quite a long time ago, you may remember that particular track did become the Christmas number one here in the UK in 2009, beating X Factor winner Joe Mcelderry's 'The Climb'. Good. Here's a song now, from a great rock chick, wonderful band, produced by Chris Thomas, The Pretenders from 1979, 'Brass In Pocket'
['Brass In Pocket' by The Pretenders]
Produced by the great Chris Thomas, who also brought you the Sex Pistols, INXS, Pulp, and worked with all sorts of people, including The Beatles and Pink Floyd. This is Roger Taylor, and you're listening to BBC Radio 2.
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['Under Pressure' by Queen and David Bowie]
Myself and the boys, and the brilliant David Bowie, an interesting man to work with, endlessly creative, and completely inspirational actually, and what a great singer, I think people forget what a great singer he is.
['Cat People (Putting Out Fire)' by David Bowie]
This is BBC Radio 2, and you're listening to 'Taylor Made'. OK, let's get a bit bluesy now, here's Joe Walsh, taking us up to the news.
['Rocky Mountain Way' by Joe Walsh]
That was Joe Walsh and 'Rocky Mountain Way', great track from 73, if that didn't get your foot tapping, I don't know what will. Coming up in the next hour, tracks from the Sex Pistols, Mott The Hoople and Janis Joplin. This is BBC Radio 2, online, on digital radio, and on 88-91 FM.
[News break]
['Anarchy In The UK' by Sex Pistols]
This is Roger Taylor, and you're joining me in the midst of my record collection, picking out some of my favourite rock tunes. That was a classic from the Sex Pistols, 'Anarchy In The UK', released as their debut single in 1976. I remember them recording it, again with Chris Thomas producing, and it was quite a long process I think and suddenly he walked in the room and a great rock and roll track was born, the power and anger was unmatched, it was fabulous, I really love that track 'Anarchy In The UK', that became the sort of seminal punk anthem I guess, that was the fashion then. Here's another song from the seventies, written by someone we've already heard from in this show, Mr David Bowie, it's Mott The Hoople and 'All The Young Dudes'.
['All The Young Dudes' by Mott The Hoople]
That was Mott The Hoople with 'All The Young Dudes', a track I think David wrote very quickly after hearing the news that Mott The Hoople were gonna break up, he liked the band and he thought 'ah, they can't do that, I'll write a song for them', and I think you can hear him in the background there, and what a great song it was, and obviously Mott The Hoople went on to write many further hits and a glorious future for a while anyway. Next a track from The Jimi Hendrix Experience, this track had a lot of influence on me, if you listen to the drumming here from Mitch Mitchell, a highly underrated drummer in my opinion, there's so much expression, and of course it's a fabulous song anyway, probably about one take, and here it is from The Jimi Hendrix 'Are You Experienced?' first album, 'Fire'.
['Fire' by The Jimi Hendrix Experience]
That was 'Fire' by The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Next up, another guitar true great, Jeff Beck, with 'Big Block'
['Big Block' by Jeff Beck]
That was the great Jeff Beck, with 'Big Block'
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Next up, we have the wonderful Janis Joplin singing 'Me And Bobby McGee'
['Me And Bobby McGee' by Janis Joplin]
Janis Joplin with 'Me And Bobby McGee'. Yeah, Janis Joplin, the wildest woman to ever hit a stage, fantastic. Back in the sixties, Britain seemed to give birth to some of the greatest bands in the world, and one of those bands was undoubtedly The Kinks, they came up with a series of some of the greatest singles ever made, also almost inventing heavy rock, with 'You Really Got Me'. This is the follow up to that, called 'All Day And All Of The Night'.
['All Day And All Of The Night' by The Kinks]
'All Day, All Of The Night', Kinks. Next up, another great British band, Rod Stewart and The Faces with 'Stay With Me'.
['Stay With Me' by The Faces]
I remember seeing a Faces gig, and it was more like a sort of drunken party really, it was a lot of fun though, and the fun did spread from the stage to the audience, yeah, they were, they were a lot of fun, and another great British band was Cream. Everybody was influenced by Cream at the time I think, Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker, this is one of their most famous and most imitated tracks, called 'Sunshine Of Your Love'.
['Sunshine Of Your Love' by Cream]
That was 'Sunshine Of Your Love' by Cream. This is Roger Taylor, and you're listening to BBC Radio 2.
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It's a rare thing to find a great woman slide guitar player, but the next act is definitely one of those, it's the wonderful Bonnie Raitt with 'Love Letter'.
['Love Letter' by Bonnie Raitt]
That was the great Bonnie Raitt with 'Love Letter'. I remember having the pleasure of meeting Bonnie Raitt in Elektra recording studios on our very first trip to America, and I remember thinking 'wow, yeah, streets are paved with gold here', turned out they weren't. Oh well, we'll go down to Australia now, some of the heavy guys, here they are, AC/DC with 'Back In Black'.
['Back In Black' by AC/DC]
AC/DC 'Back In Black'. Next up, we have a band that have been known in several incarnations, but the original incarnation was Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac. They made some fantastic records, and this is I think my favourite of those records, this is before the later Stevie Nicks, Lindsey Buckingham incarnation. This track is called 'Man Of The World'.
['Man Of The World' by Fleetwood Mac]
Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac with 'Man Of The World'. Another great English band from the sixties actually, they started then, Deep Purple, and this is 'Speed King'. Check the drums.
['Speed King' by Deep Purple]
That was Deep Purple with 'Speed King'. Ian Paice, great drumming, great drumming. Here's a band nobody's every heard of, they're called Queen, and they used to start their stage act with this song.
['One Vision' by Queen]
That was Queen with 'One Vision'. Here's a track you might not have heard in a while.
['Get Off Of My Cloud' by The Rolling Stones]
I'm Roger Taylor, and I'd like to thank you for indulging me, and I hope you've enjoyed some of my favourite rock tracks. This is BBC Radio 2, online, on digital radio, and on 88-91 FM.
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