‘I used to roundly mock Bryan Adams’: Bill Bailey’s honest playlist

Bill Bailey … ‘Magic Moments has a whistle and a bassoon part. How many songs have that?’ Photograph: Gillian Robertson

The first song I remember hearing

Magic Moments by Perry Como around the house when it came on the radio. It’s got a very jaunty, happy-go-lucky sound with a whistle and a bassoon part. How many songs have got that?

The first single I bought

Combine Harvester by the Wurzels, from John Menzies in Keynsham. I played it on the Dansette in the bedroom, one of those record players that were completely self-contained with a lid, and you could stack up the singles to play on top of each other.

The song I inexplicably know every lyric to

Silver (Tidal Wave) by Echo & the Bunnymen came out when I was 19, when the whole world seemed a place of opportunity. The lyrics have a sense of breaking free of the joy of existence that would have burned into my mind when I was 19, leaving the West Country and heading out into the world.

The best song to play at a party

Groove Is in the Heart by Deee-Lite has got a silly giddy quality to it that is just infectious; no wonder everybody loves it.

The song I do at karaoke

I used to love playing I Wanna Be Sedated by Ramones in my punk covers band, Beergut 100. We’ve performed at the Edinburgh festival on a few occasions.

The song I stream the most

Killing in the Name by Rage Against the Machine, with a tinge of regret. Beergut 100 were supposed to be playing Reading and my son was going to accompany us when he finished his GCSEs, as a rite of passage, standing in front of his mates, shouting: “Fuck you, I won’t do what you tell me” at me. But Reading was cancelled due to Covid, and now I think we’ve missed the boat.

The song I secretly like but tell everyone I hate

I used to roundly mock (Everything I Do) I Do It for You by Bryan Adams and wrote a parody called Hats Off to the Zebras, which was a sort of racial harmony song. But I changed my mind when I saw Bryan in concert. He’s a great showman, a great musician, has a great rapport with the audience and has a really good voice. I don’t know why I was so mean.

The song I can no longer listen to

Love Is a Losing Game by Amy Winehouse, because it reminds me of what a talent she was. It’s unbearably poignant.

The song I wish I had written

(Nothing But) Flowers by Talking Heads is like a beautiful poem about a post-apocalyptic regrowth in nature. It’s incredibly powerful, witty, poignant and prophetic. And it contains the line: “And as things fell apart, nobody paid much attention” which is one of the great lyrics.

The song that changed my life

When we played You Really Got Me by the Kinks in my school band, Behind Closed Doors, at Bridgwater Community Centre, I was allowed to do a guitar solo. I’d never done a solo before, so I flung myself into it. It taught me not to hold back and trust yourself. I remember every note to this very day.

The song that gets me up in the morning

Something nice and gentle like Lovely Head by Goldfrapp, to ease you in with a harpsichord.

The song I want played at my funeral

Once in a Lifetime by Talking Heads. When I first heard it at 15, it was different to all the punk I was listening to. When I was starting out in my career, it was all about: ‘How is this possible? How am I doing this?’ Now it’s: ‘Is this my life? How did I get here?’ The lyrics are all about returning full to nature. That’s how I imagine death to be. So that’s what I want at my funeral. And they’ll play Combine Harvester by the Wurzels as people are leaving the church.

Bill Bailey’s Thoughtifier is touring the UK to 11 March.