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‘At my funeral I want people dancing in the aisles to Madness’: David Gray’s honest playlist

The Guardian UK Sunday 07 June 2026, 08:00 UTC By As told to Rich Pelley 1 min read
Key Points

The singer knows all the words to Grease and channels Kenny Rogers at karaoke. But which classic musician does he liken to Picasso?The first song I fell in love withWhen I saw Night Boat to Cairo by Madness on Top of the Pops as an 11-year-old, something happened to me on a molecular level. There was something about the way they moved.

The singer knows all the words to Grease and channels Kenny Rogers at karaoke. But which classic musician does he liken to Picasso?

The first song I fell in love with
When I saw Night Boat to Cairo by Madness on Top of the Pops as an 11-year-old, something happened to me on a molecular level. There was something about the way they moved.

The first single I bought
I Don’t Like Mondays by the Boomtown Rats, from Swales Music in Haverfordwest, a 15-mile bus trip from the little fishing village in west Wales I lived in when I was eight.

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Madness (ORG) David Gray (PERSON) Grease (ORG) Kenny Rogers (PERSON) Cairo (LOCATION) the Boomtown Rats (ORG) Swales Music (ORG) Haverfordwest (LOCATION) west Wales (LOCATION)
Originally published by The Guardian UK Read original →

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