In the world of increasingly niche podcasts, I was pleased to find Summer Album / Winter Album, a musical debate podcast based on the conceit that albums can be classified by a season. But what defines that - the lyrics, music or your personal relationship with the record. The culmination of the show is a verdict by the artist themselves. The show is hosted by Jody Avirgan and Craig Finn.
What got me into the show is their most recent episode featuring Paul Simon's 'Graceland'. This album is my desert island disc. Without hesitation. While there are many seminal albums and incredible artists in my music library, the lyricism and musicality of this album remains as resonant and evocative as the day I first heard it.
The podcast is published by Pushkin which was founded by Malcolm Gladwell, who 'coincidentally' appears as the guest on this episode. Given he also authored the audiobook with Paul Simon entitled 'Miracle and Wonder', you need to look beyond the circular promotional vehicle that this could be seen as and simply enjoy the debate. Pushkin also publish Cautionary Tales by Tim Harford which is excellent.
My personal verdict? Summer. It's a hill I'm willing to die on.