So this week's favourite video goes to Tones and I by dance monkey. A bizarre video for sure but quite entertaining to watch.

It will quickly dawn on people as I share my list over the next few weeks that I am still mostly stuck in the 20th century in terms of my music. So just to demonstrate that I have just about managed to make it into the 21st century with some of the music I listen to, this is a song released in 2003 (thought it was later than that).

From the time I was born until I left to come to England in 1992, I used to spend every Easter at Barrington Guest house. This was such a lovely holiday for a special set of families who would converge on the guest house every year for the Easter break. Over the years, these same families became great friends as we enjoyed each other's company. During the Easter break we would walk together in some of most beautiful rain forest in the world, ride horses, feed Rosellas that would eat out of your hand or land on your head, compete in a Davis cup tennis tournament, swim in crystal clear rivers (sliding down a natural rock face slippery dip) and attend one of the most amazing country Saturday bush dances complete with a diagonal couple "Strip the Willow" spin. The older teenagers and twenty somethings would then commandeer a tour bus after the dance and sing songs like "American Pie" until the early hours of the morning. It truly gave me many of the most memorable and enjoyable times in my life.

Yet it was always a downer when the holiday was over and we had returned to Sydney. Although there wasn't much sand at Barrington, sometimes you would find something (say mud or a bloody sock from an encounter with a leech) on your shoes that would make you think, "wow I wish I was back there". Over the years I wrote many silly lyrics to famous tunes sometime to perform at school formals or house parties. Yet the comedown from Barrington one year was enough for me to write my own song (I have only ever written two proper songs in my life) which I guess was along similar lines to this Dido classic. For what it is worth, my chorus went: "it's a matter of time, that drives us fast, pushing our future into the past, a holiday with you, passes too soon, leaving us to steal memories while staring at our room."

There is a sad postscript to this story. In 2006 Helen and I were booked into Barrington Guest House. I drove excitedly to the spot pulling up and getting out of the car to be greeted by someone. The conversation went like this:

Me: "Hi we are here to stay at Barrington"
Bemused person: "you not staying here mate"
Me (a little confused): "why?"
Person: "It burnt down last night"

Why did I not see that? Well the outer shell of the guest house was still standing (I now understand the full meaning of the term when they say a house has been gutted). It was only when you got closer you could see the smouldering smoke rising from the interior. Such a tragedy because the guest house was built sometime early in the 20th century which made it a valuable historical artefact by Australian standards.

OK so yesterday I tried to demonstrate that my musical tastes have just about made it into the 21st century. Alas now I have done that I shall return to the 80s. In year 11 we were asked to write about two songs we liked in an English lesson. The first song I chose was Romeo and Juliet by Dire Straits, the second one you shall find out tomorrow. The two songs I chose were based on clever lyrics. This song has the line "and all I do is kiss you through the bars of a rhyme" which I think was a pretty neat line. Enjoy!

OK as we hit the day 40 milestone thought I might as well take a break from my one hit wonders theme and share something fitting for today.

"This is forty sing it with me......How long to sing this song?"

Yes I know some people (here's looking at you Stuart McDonald) will go what?? I have to admit my musical tastes are very broad partly because there are many components of music which I respond to. One important component for me is lyrics and this song really does summarise all my gratitude in what I think is one of God's greatest gifts to humanity (if you don't believe in God then just substitute the luck of evolution) and that is music. Music has bought so much joy to my life and that is why I embarked on Covid Island discs to share some of the songs that I have enjoyed listening to over the years.

Admittedly, I got a little distracted along the way with songs that felt appropriate for some of the events that have occurred this year whether that be my wedding anniversary, Easter or the dystopian feel of the UK and US governments. Perhaps all three 1984 songs in a row from David Bowie's Diamond Dogs album was overdoing it?

However, that is also the wonder of music. There is almost a song for every possible situation in which we find ourselves; whether good or bad. And so with this final song I bring my Covid Island discs to an end on Facebook although I continued the posts on my website well into 2021.

PS: as a child I absolutely loved Abba and desperately hoped I would win a competition to meet them in person as I had a child crush on Frida. I did get to see them with my Dad in concert although our tickets were near the back of the Sydney showground so could hardly see them (days before the big screens).

PPS: Listen to the song, you might be surprised just how much you enjoy it.

One of those songs everyone has heard and knows. Surprise they didn't use this song for the American Werewolves in London movie.

Second song from Guns N' Roses. I think this is their most best known hit and certainly would sit comfortably in a Hard Rock Café playlist.

Well this song really should have been cited all the way back in week 5 of Covid Island Discs when the theme was crazy tunes, although that theme was tunes of the 1980s and this song came out all the way back in 1977. I am sure it will bring back lots of memories for people who are older than about 50.