Family members : Sue Forrest
Meeting Sue, after her set was broadcast during Colleen's last Balearic Breakfast episode, was a real pleasure. Let's talk about her love for music!
1) It was so refreshing listening to your mix, I especially loved the first two songs you selected as they really set up a special atmosphere, both calm yet tense and somehow uncertain. Can you tell us your relationship with these two?
Really pleased you liked those opening tracks! The Raices track I heard watching a Quincy Jones documentary, there's a small section when they showcase the composer Alfredo Rodriguez, and I was really moved by its simplicity. There's only 3 instruments including the voices, and there is something really sweet about it that almost moves me to tears, to be honest. I recently watched a performance of it on YouTube which actually did make me cry, as they are playing after Quincy's death and they pay a lovely tribute to him, there was obviously a lot of respect, appreciation and warmth among them that really comes across in the video.
The Marcos Valle track I heard when I was out vinyl shopping with my son in Manchester when we went to have a look at the university and city a few months back. I really love the vibe of it, reminds me a lot of movies from the late 70s and 80s when I was growing up, and it has this cool and playful element to it that really stands out. We were both really taken with Manchester, loads going on musically, so I think I was getting a bit swept along with this too!
2) I also felt a lot of freedom in your selections, and also in the way you presented the songs, it felt your intention was “track driven”, like you wanted us to enjoy every song on its very own. Which is very relaxing indeed! Did you prepare the mix or did you do it on the fly? What was your mindset like while recording the mix?
Ah that's so lovely you noticed that because that absolutely was my intention. Every track is a winner in my opinion! I did prepare the mix in advance. I immediately knew I wanted to include the Stephanie Mills track as I love it, and then I also knew I wanted to include the Michael Henderson, Antoine Bourachet and if I could, the Guru tracks, but then I needed to think about how to connect them together.
I knew that Random House Project were going to be on after me and that was going to be house music (it was such an interesting interview, and a great mix btw!), so I thought I'd follow Colleen's format of start super chill, go mid-tempo to gradually build up, and end on a few more upbeat tracks ready for RHP. As I really love the Raices track and the Marcos Valle tracks, it then made perfect sense to have them open.
The remaining tracks came to me through a combination of songs that I grew up with (EWF, Badiyah and the Style Council track), the Guru track I played a few years ago at a gig, and it went down a storm, so I thought I'd put that in for good measure. Rachelle Ferrell is so ridiculously talented I just thought I had to include her somewhere. She's ideally better to watch in person, as the way she sings is mind blowing, but I hope people get it on that note she holds at the end of the track...... Insane!
I really enjoyed recording the mix, was really happy throughout, and grooving when the beats picked up! Felt a bit sick afterwards, to be honest, when I sent the e-mail to Colleen as I had no idea if anyone else might enjoy it, let alone the captain.....! Thankfully, and to my great relief, it seems to have been very well received!
3) Which song from your set is That special one, like one you can’t live without?
This is a really hard question, as they all have something about them that led me to choose to include them. I don't think I can choose just one, sorry! Still, I believe it would have to be Stephanie Mills for that syncopated rhythm and her voice, it's such cool toe-tapper, Michael Henderson's track as it brings an immediate smile to my face the minute you hear those opening notes and it's a track that is so representative of the time and genre, Rachelle Ferrell as she's a vocal lengend , and then the Guru and Antoine B tracks as they are so good to dance to in different ways. Sorry, I have absolutely NOT answered your question 😂
Sue and her wife, Michelle
4) We’re all linked together by the Love of Music, but is there a kind of music you never ever listen to? Like “no way, this is not for me!”
OMG, that's a really funny but great question. I cannot bear thrash in all its different guises, but I think 'teutonic thrash' is the absolute worst for me. I also heard and got really scared at We out Here Festival this year when we wandered over to The Bowl space one evening, and there was this honestly, horrific noise coming out the speakers. It was just NOISE, and it was angry and it was frightening, and we ran away (thankfully to the safety of the Beat Hotel, which saved us! Lovely vibes by a DJ called Alex I think. The DJ that literally saved our lives!!).
5) Our dear Captain did create an astounding show, and every week we gather together enjoying both new and timeless classics. How and when did you discover the show? Can you share a memory you hold close to your heart?
You know, I've been wracking my brain about how I heard about Colleen and I, with much apology to her, can't for the life of me remember. It's possibly through my social feeds which led me to the BB Tuesday morning shows which I started listening to via the recordings for a while and loved them. I couldn't believe that there was a DJ who played such a range of tracks from super chill right across the board and ending with absolute quality house bangers. I saw her play live at the Southport Weekender a few years back and she was great, no surprise, and then the following year I dragged all my mates into her set with me, and they all LOVED it! We were there from the beginning of the set, and I assured them it would be a masterclass, and it was!
I think a special memory, and it feels a bit tragic to be honest as I'm a middle-aged woman, but it was when she played my first request.......! I was driving home from work listening to the recording as I'd missed the live feed, time was moving on, track hadn't been played, show kept going, still hadn't been played, got to 5 minutes before the end, and I thought, 'oh well, maybe next time.......,' and then here she says, 'and this last track, requested by Sue Forrest' Argh! Made my day, I was beside myself! So tragic 🤣 It's this great track called 'How Did U Know' by Mortimer Snerd, the Full Retouch edit, and it teeters on the edge of being really cheesey which I said in my request, but I'd heard enough of her sets to hope that she'd appreciate it for what it was, and she did! 😆
Ed. Note: Read about the episode here!
It still makes my day when she plays any of my requests, so you can imagine the hysteria in my house when she asked me to do a mix! Music has been so important to me since I was a kid, it grounds me in ways I can't explain (but I know others understand). I was that person who made mix tapes for all my mates in the 80s, wandered round record stores as a teenager to pick up quality vinyl, had a radio show at university, dabbled with mixing over the years and played a few gigs for mates here and there, but have never had the guts to pursue it, so Colleen asking me was such a lovely acknowledgement of all that I knew musically and had gathered over the decades, I was over the moon! So a very big thank you to Colleen for asking!
Can I also add, the BB family is such a lovely, friendly, inclusive space, it's pretty special what she has set up, so it was a genuine privilege to have been able to share songs that have had an impact on me in different ways, and I'm so pleased others have enjoyed it (to add to the tragedy, I've just checked Mixcloud and there have been 1.5k listens, insane!!! I know this pales in comparison to her other shows, but this to me is 💥!!)
Thank you so much SUe for sharing your experience and your private photos with us, Love Saves The Day and, remember... Just Be Balearic!
