Political Spin: Kate Campbell

What was the first record you bought? 

It was Kylie’s I Should Be So Lucky on vinyl. It was amazing. I remember it really clearly: I bought it at Woolworths, and it was the record [cover where] she had her hair up in a hat, but the hat didn’t have a top bit, so her hair was coming out the top of this hat. I just thought she was the coolest thing. I also loved Neighbours. I was very little, probably about six. That was my first single, my first album was Mel and Kim. 
 
What record will always get you on the dancefloor? 

There are tons of them because I love dancing, but it’s not really the dancefloor any more. I dance to them when I clean up my kitchen and start cooking my tea now, as I’m quite busy. But my favourite at the moment is Tightrope by Janelle Monae. 

What is your karaoke song? 

I don’t do karaoke, and I’ll tell you why. My partner and I bought a house, and we’ve been renovating it. I was upstairs stripping wallpaper and he was downstairs doing the same. I had my headphones in and I was listening to [Chappell Roan’s] Pink Pony Club, and I was singing away at the top of my voice. He came running up the stairs, worried I’d injured myself, and that’s why I don’t do karaoke.  

What song would be your first dance at your wedding, and why? 

I’m not married. We’ve been together for ages and we keep meaning to get married, but we keep getting distracted, so I think we’ll probably elope which means that we probably won’t have a first dance song, but if we did – and he won’t mind me saying this – he is a terrible dancer. He’s an amazing man but he is a terrible dancer, so it’d have to be something like The Proclaimers’ Joyful Kilmarnock Blues just so we could jolt about to it.  

What songs do you want played at your funeral? 

I do have a funeral song. It’s called Wayfaring Stranger. There have been a few versions of it, but the one that you have to listen to is by Eliza Carthy and Norma Watterson. Their vocals are amazing. It’s about dying and crossing over but it’s just so beautiful, it’s so emotional. The other one would probably be Paint It Black by The Rolling Stones.  

What songs/music is guaranteed to make you cry? 

There’s not a song that’s guaranteed to make me cry every time, but there are songs I find that sometimes catch me in a way. I remember someone I knew quite well had died unexpectedly, and I was listening to Summertime by Dusty Springfield and suddenly the words just made sense to me in a way that they hadn’t before, and I think that’s music sometimes, you can listen to a song over and over again and it doesn’t affect you, then suddenly it gets you.  

What music would you always associate with your childhood? 

My mum used to listen to Billie Holiday, a lot of Van Morrison, and Nina Simone. Then, when I got a bit older, I was really into indie music. Blur was one of my favourites, and when I was a bit older, Nirvana was a favourite. 

What record do you absolutely hate but can’t get out of your head? 

I was in a restaurant a couple of weeks ago and one of the chefs was whistling something, and it was in my head for about three days, and now I can’t remember what it was. 

What record would you be embarrassed to own up to having in your collection? 

It’s Spotify now so I don’t really own anything, but the cheesy music that I love, that makes me really happy, is 80s pop like Wham!, Gold by Spandau Ballet, or Rio by Duran Duran, that kind of thing. It just makes me very happy and I’m not embarrassed, but I probably should be. 

What was the last band you went to see and who with? 

The Proclaimers, and it was with my other half and his siblings. It was quite a few years ago at Edinburgh Castle.