6 Music Launches Season Supporting Libraries

Here at Ransom Note, we love a public library. If you haven't had a browse through the CD section of your local branch (assuming it didn't get shut down when David Cameron decided to shit up library funding) then you haven't lived. Ever wanted to check out creaky 40s gospel humdingers, jazz randoms and Bollywood soundtracks? The library's your boy. And don't even pretend you can search this stuff online – how are you going to work out where to begin when you haven't got a clue in the first place? Plus they've got books (remember them?), and they're warm, and (in the case of Hackney Central Library anyway) they provide a kind of free drop in centre for the local nutters, so they can peaceful read and mutter to themselves without getting harassed by vicious junkies or the old bill. What's not to love?

It seems that BBC 6 Music love libraries as well. They're about to launch a season in celebration of the humble library, with shows looking at the musicians behind some of the finest library music, a search for the countries longest over due book, and most interestingly, a trawl through the music room of Manchester Central Library on Stuart Macconie's reliable weird Freakzone show, and a look through Manchester's oldest libraries with Elbow's Guy Garvey. According to the BBC –

"Guy visits the beautiful neo-gothic treasure trove that is John Rylands Library, the newly refurbished Manchester Central Library and the hidden gem that is the Portico Library. In each library the enthusiastic guide discovers some of Manchester’s most precious artefacts and invites listeners to learn about the city’s history with a great tour soundtrack…."

"Guy said: “The libraries we visit are beautiful buildings, they are parts of our history, they celebrate the things that Manchester has done first and they also remind us of our gloomier hours. They’re not just about old books they’re also important for our community today as places where people can meet, learn and share ideas.”
 

Closer to home, Steve Lamacq will be hosting a show from within the British Library, exploring the libraries archive of recorded sound – one of the most comprehensive in the world.

more info on the season can be found on the BBC website.