John Simm's Revealing Playlist: Starting with Childhood Favorites to Unexplained Dislikes

The earliest track I became enamored with
My earliest recollection is stepping into a room at kindergarten where they were playing Yellow Submarine by the Fab Four. I was captivated by the audio textures, and Lennon bellowing: “Full speed ahead!” When it reached the hook, I remember thinking: “This must be music!”

The inaugural 45 I bought
When I was eight years old, I was victorious in a competition at school to choose a new record to play at the weekly dance party we had on Friday afternoons. My instructor took me to a local store, and I opted for Come Back My Love by Darts. The first single I purchased with my own savings was Mull of Kintyre by Wings from a music store in Lancashire. It was topping the charts at the time, and I chose it when my father noted that it was by one of the Beatles.

The tune I perform at karaoke
I honestly actively avoid public singing and dodge it at all costs. But if forced, I’d go with Summer Wind by Frank Sinatra.

The track I inexplicably recite all the words to
I just realised that I know virtually all the lyrics to The Boy in the Bubble, You Can Call Me Al, and each track on Graceland by Paul Simon.

The ideal song to put on at a gathering
It hinges on the point of the party you are at. At the start it would most likely be I Heard It Through the Grapevine by the soul legend. As the night wears on, I’d work through Prince, the Rolling Stones and David Bowie, and when it hits its peak, Phat Planet by the electronic act, Born Slippy .NUXX by Underworld, and Ascension by the virtual band, which is an massive track.

The song I can no longer hear
I for some reason detest Mr Brightside by the Killers.

The ideal song to make love to
Come Together by the Beatles.

The LP that transformed me
When I was 12 and starting to study the guitar, I’d only listen to 1950s rock and roll, and was obsessed with The King, Chuck Berry, the killer, the New Orleans legend, Buddy Holly and Eddie Cochran. Then my childminder introduced me to Let There Be Rock by the Australian rockers. It was still guitar music, but it was powerful rock music. The moment he put the record on the turntable, I was hooked.

The tune that wakes me in the AM
What’d I Say in its full glory by Ray Charles.

The song that brings me to tears
Most music makes me touched. Aretha Franklin, The Chairman of the Board, Elvis and the Fab Four all bring a tear to my eye because of the harmony and sheer beauty of the voices. But The Ocean by the Sheffield crooner strikes a chord consistently.

The track I’d like to be played at my final send-off
The King. If I’m given a cremation, I’ll have Burning Love. If I’m laid to rest in the ground, I’ll have Way Down.