Portrait of Sinead by Lindsey Best. 

I made this mix for Jeff Barrett, at Heavenly Recordings – the label responsible for releasing Sinead O`Connor`s cover of The Trouble Of The World. A take on the gospel standard – made famous by Mahalia Jackson – issued to raise funds for, and awareness of, Black Lives Matter. Jeff had seen my review of the record – which contains a comment about how I was finding it hard to fit the song into a mix – and sent me a message saying “if you ever do manage to make one please pass it over”. In my mind, throwing the gauntlet down. 

I`d been trying to have Sinead intro a pretty Cafe del Mar-type sunset “chill-out” session. But her reading`s too heavy. It made everything else feel slight. The easy thing would have been to sequence it with a selection of raw blues – but right now who could cope with / want to listen to that? Since the release is concerned with discrimination, I thought that the mix should celebrate diversity. So I went vinyl globe-trotting. I wanted the mix to demonstrate unity – despite any apparent divisions. While the pieces are sung in different languages, and often “prayers” from differing religions, sonically there is a similarity – at least to my ears – proof perhaps that despite the walls we’ve constructed, once we all came from a common root. 

This might sound a little “academic” – well, I am Dr. Rob – but Sinead`s cover still knocks me sideways – it seems, if I’m honest, full of her personal pain and heartbreak. Worryingly so truth be told. I put the mix together on a Saturday afternoon – just with records I had to hand – those piled up around my decks. A couple of years worth of previous club nights and parties that I’ve been too lazy even in lockdown to shelve. It wasn’t painstakingly researched or anything. I mean, Jeff Barrett asked me for a mix! – sort of. I had to do something. It might be cool to extend it, with a bit more digging and thought. 

Sinead O`Connor`s The Trouble Of The World is available digitally, and now on vinyl from Heavenly Recordings. 

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Track-list
Sinead O`Connor – Trouble Of The World
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan – The Game
Waak Waak Djungi – White Cockatoo
Anuradha & Kavita Paudwal – Gayatari Mantra (edit)
Ayub Ogada – Ondiek
Sainkho – Naked Spirit
El Chocolate – A Clavo Y Canela
Ry Cooder / Harry Dean Stanton – Cancion Mixteca
Les Nouvelles Polyphonies Corses – Onda
Sarah Vaughan – The Mystery Of Man
Dead Can Dance – Spirit Dance (live)
Siti Muharam – Kijiti
Bombay Jayashri – Raghavam
Daniel Lanois – Amazing Grace
Ikue Asazaki – Yoisura Bushi (Kuniyuki mix)
Golden Gate Quartet – Go Where I Send Thee
Sinead O`Connor – Trouble Of The World