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BBC Radio 4
Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe take us on a musical journey of discovery, exploring the web of connections between tracks across the breadth of all musical styles, from pop, rock, reggae and hip-hop to classical, jazz, folk and country.
Episodes
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Aug 22, 2025 • 43min
Alison Balsom and Linton Stephens celebrate the BBC Proms
With three weeks remaining of this year's BBC Proms, Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe present a Proms-themed edition. Studio guests are the celebrated trumpeter Alison Balsom, who'll be performing in this year’s Last Night of the Proms, and bassoonist, Radio 3 and Proms presenter Linton Stephens. Expect music from the Proms and beyond as we head from a live, scaled-back Springsteen anthem to the Outer Hebrides, via Mendelssohn, Shostakovich and Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Producer: Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna PhoebeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Born in the USA (live) by Bruce Springsteen
2nd movement of the Symphony No 10 in E Minor by Dmitri Shostakovich
Superstar from Jesus Christ Superstar by Andrew Lloyd Webber & Tim Rice
Andante: 2nd movement of the Violin Concerto in E minor by Felix Mendelssohn
Hùg air a’ Bhonaid Mhòir (Celebrate the Big Bonnet) by Julie Fowlis Other music in this episode:A Night on the Bare Mountain by Modest Mussorgsky
Trumpet Concerto in E flat major by Johann Nepomuk Hummel
The Lovecats by The Cure
Born in the USA by Bruce Springsteen
I Don't Know How to Love Him by Andrew Lloyd Webber & Tim Rice, sung by Yvonne Elliman
Touch the Sky (from the film Brave) by Julie FowlisYou can listen to every Prom and unmissable moments from across the season on BBC Sounds. Just search ‘Proms’.

Aug 15, 2025 • 43min
Victoria Canal and Roderick Williams launch a brand new series
Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe return with a new series, in the company of two studio guests - Spanish-American singer-songwriter and composer Victoria Canal, and baritone and composer Roderick Williams. Kicking things off with that Rickrolling earworm, the first five tracks include a celebrated Bizet composition and some playful Lovecats with a very distinctive bassline.Producer: Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna PhoebeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley
Au fond du temple saint by Georges Bizet
Paper Planes by M.I.A.
Paper Bag by Fiona Apple
The Lovecats by The CureOther music in this episode:Finale of the William Tell Overture by Gioachino Rossini, arr Hans Zimmer
Paradise by Coldplay
Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley (from Pianoforte)
Straight to Hell by The Clash

Jun 27, 2025 • 43min
Debbie Wiseman and Ben Gernon round off the series
Wolf Hall composer Debbie Wiseman and conductor Ben Gernon join Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe as they add the final five tracks to the playlist for the current series. From the UK's first Eurovision winner to a heavy metal classic via Europe's second-longest river, the team wrap up the series before returning in August.Producer: Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna PhoebeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Puppet on a String by Sandie Shaw
The Blue Danube by Johann Strauss II
Hai, Dunărea mea by Elena Roizen
3rd movement of the Piano Concerto in A Minor by Edvard Grieg
Overkill by MotörheadOther music in this episode:Somebody That I Used to Know by Gotye
Petit Pays by Cesária Évora
Always Something There To Remind Me by Sandie Shaw
Congratulations by Cliff Richard
Back Home by the 1970 England World Cup Squad
Shang-a-Lang by The Bay City Rollers
1st movement of the Piano Concerto in A Minor by Edvard Grieg

Jun 20, 2025 • 43min
Anna Lapwood and Andrew Roachford celebrate the 100th episode
Star organist Anna Lapwood and singer/songwriter Andrew Roachford join Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe to add tracks 496-500 in this 100th edition of the show! What better way to celebrate than a double dose of organ, and a trip to Mumbai, Hawaii and Cape Verde?Producer: Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna PhoebeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Thunder and Blazes (Entry of the Gladiators) by Julius Fučík
Star Wars: Throne Room – End Titles by John Williams, arr Harald Feller
Jai Ho! by A R Rahman & The Pussycat Dolls
Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwoʻole
Petit Pays by Cesária ÉvoraOther music in this episode:Top Hat, White Tie & Tails by Fred Astaire
Old Town Road by Lil Nas X
The Bells of Notre Dame, performed by Anna Lapwood
Only to be with You by Andrew Roachford
I Heard it Through the Grapevine by Marvin Gaye
Entry of the Gladiators by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra
Thunder and Blazes - Sounds of the Circus
Afro Circus from Madagascar 3
Throne Room: End Titles by John Williams
Davy Jones from Pirates of the Caribbean performed by Anna Lapwood
Jai Ho! (Hindi version) by A R Rahman
Believe by Cher
Somewhere Over the Rainbow by by Harold Arlen with lyrics by Yip Harburg, sung by Judy Garland

Jun 13, 2025 • 43min
Ashley Henry and Amy Harman on Bowie and Beethoven
Jazz pianist Ashley Henry and bassoonist Amy Harman join Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe to add five more tracks to the playlist, taking us from a Bowie dance classic to Marvin Gaye via an unexpected rare, live, performance by a jazz icon in a school in California, surprisingly recorded by the caretaker in 1968.Producer: Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna PhoebeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Modern Love by David Bowie
Piano Sonata No 32 in C Minor by Beethoven
Epistrophy (Live) by Thelonious Monk
Apple by Charli XCX
I Heard it Through the Grapevine by Marvin GayeOther music in this episode:Take it Higher by Ashley Henry
The Magdalene Laundries by Joni Mitchell
Starman by David Bowie
Fame by David Bowie
Under Pressure by David Bowie

Jun 6, 2025 • 43min
Nicky Spence and Heidi Fardell drop in on the Honky Château
Operatic tenor Nicky Spence and recorder player and Baroque flautist Heidi Fardell are the studio guests of Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe. In today's five-track journey they head from the Democratic Republic of the Congo to Belgium, a rural French château, a charitable institution in Venice, finishing up in Ireland where the past casts a long shadow.Producer: Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna PhoebeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Spoiler by Baloji
Panis Angelicus by César Franck
Honky Cat by Elton John
Flautino Concerto in C by Vivaldi
The Magdalene Laundries by Joni MitchellOther music in this episode:The Third Man by Anton Karas
Rapture by Blondie
Rocket Man by Elton John

May 30, 2025 • 47min
Claire Booth and Gavin Higgins on a few very famous notes
Composer Gavin Higgins and soprano Claire Booth take us from a massive Wembley chant to a ground-breaking early rap by a famous white rock group as they join Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe to add five more tracks to the playlist.Producer: Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna PhoebeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Sweet Caroline by Neil Diamond
The Alien by Ben Salisbury & Geoff Barrow
Smoke on the Water by Deep Purple
In a Foolish Dream by Stravinsky
Rapture by Blondie Other music in this episode:Tickle Toe by Lyle Lovett and his Large Band
Horn Concerto III: Mycelium Rondo by Gavin Higgins
Rata de Dos Patas by Paquita La Del Barrio
Firestarter by The Prodigy
Whole Lotta Love by Led Zeppelin
Highway to Hell by AC/DC
Enter Sandman by Metallica
I Love Rock 'n Roll by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts
Walk This Way by Aerosmith
Stay Another Day by East 17

May 23, 2025 • 43min
Errollyn Wallen and Neil Brand launch a brand new playlist
Errollyn Wallen, composer and Master of the King's Music, and musician and writer Neil Brand are the studio guests of Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe as they launch a brand new series. From Lady Gaga to an early Disney classic and ending up in Mexico, the journey begins.Producer: Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna PhoebeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Abracadabra by Lady Gaga
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice by Paul Dukas
Never Let Her Slip Away by Andrew Gold
You’re So Vain by Carly Simon
Rata de Dos Patas by Paquita La Del BarrioOther music in this episode:Good Thing by Fine Young Cannibals
Spellbound by Siouxsie and the Banshees

Apr 4, 2025 • 43min
Tawiah and Linton Stephens round off the series
Singer, songwriter and film & TV composer Tawiah and bassoonist Linton Stephens join Jeffrey Boakye and Anna Phoebe as they add the last five tracks in the current series. Love and longing feature prominently, be it for a distant homeland, a parent to a child, or infatuation. But the curtain rises to a famous march representing the forces of darkness in the evil empire.Add to Playlist returns for a new series towards the end of May.Producer: Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna PhoebeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:The Imperial March (Darth Vader’s Theme) by John Williams
Maria from West Side Story by Leonard Bernstein & Stephen Sondheim
Boricua en la Luna by Roy Brown
Orange Moon by Erykah Badu
Mother and Child Reunion by Paul SimonOther music in this episode:Nut Rocker by B. Bumble & The Stingers
Mars by Gustav Holst
Dance at the Gym from West Side Story by Leonard Bernstein
Vietnam by Jimmy Cliff

Mar 28, 2025 • 43min
Natalie Duncan and Richard Stilgoe celebrate the Red Planet
Lyricist Richard Stilgoe and musician and songwriter Natalie Duncan prepare for a square dance as they add five more tracks to the playlist. With Anna Phoebe and Jeffrey Boakye, they head from Scottish reels to Mars, via California's Santa Monica Boulevard.Producer: Jerome Weatherald
Presented with musical direction by Jeffrey Boakye and Anna PhoebeThe five tracks in this week's playlist:Eightsome Reel by The Scottish Fiddle Orchestra
Scotch Rhapsody by William Walton & Edith Sitwell
All I Wanna Do by Sheryl Crow
Gimme Shelter by The Rolling Stones
Mars by Gustav HolstOther music in this episode:King by Years & Years
Hoedown by Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Boil 'em Cabbage Down, trad, performed by Mark O'Connor
Candy by Cameo


