Captain Sensible is the sort of artist they don’t seem to make any more, the kind of man who could be at the heart of the punk scene before going on to have a massive chart his with a Rogers & Hammerstein cover as well before ending up sampled by Dizzee Rascal, and so on. It’s not bad for a kid who wanted a Hammond for Christmas but got Bontempi chord organ and has a career including a magnificently Spinal Tap moment in which he ended up "starkers" onstage after a Hoover didn’t keep his dinosaur outfit on. tQ last spoke to the Good Captain many moons ago about his enthusiasm for trains, and it’s a similar spirit that imbues his Baker’s Dozen selection which, like a Class 37 diesel pulling old LNER stock carriages, timber flatbeds and a purple guards van, stretches all over the place from Canterbury scene to shoegaze and old rock & roll to the wonderful Felt. Says Captain Sensible, "This is comprised mainly of records I’ve loved for many years – it takes a remarkable new platter to enter the hallowed shelves of the Sensible vinyl collection. One duff track is enough to trigger rejection, but having said that there are a couple of more recent albums in here. Well, post-1980 anyway… (laughs). Sorry there’s no punk!" To find out how Jimi Hendrix saved Captain Sensible from a life as a toilet cleaner, click the image below. The Damned play Brixton Academy this Saturday, November 26th and full details of their current tour can be seen here.
Sorry There’s No Punk! Captain Sensible’s Damn’ Favourite LPs
Forty years after The Damned released New Rose they're currently touring the UK. The genial Captain Sensible got in touch to tell us about his favourite LPs, from Stereolab to the Bee Gees, Soft Machine to Felt and Jimi Hendrix. Damned live photo by Dod Morrison.
