The soundwaves in his ocean.
Frank Ocean’s Boys Don’t Cry zine landed on Sunday and along with a Kanye West poem about McDonald’s, it includes a hefty list of Ocean’s favourite songs.
As is to be expected from an artist whose own album features such a motley crew of guest contributors, it’s a pretty eclectic mix. Cue: Aphex Twin, Kraftwerk, Steve Reich, Mazzy Star, Donna Summer, Gang of Four and James Blake. There’s also a nod to the late, great Japanese synth pioneer Isao Tomita, as well as legendary jazz vibraphonist Bobby Hutcherson, who died on August 15. See the full list below.
It’s been quite a week already for Frank Ocean who released two albums in the space of three days – visual album Endless, which dropped on Friday, and surprise full-length Blond, which landed in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Blond is an Apple Music exclusive for two weeks and features Beyoncé, Kanye West, Andre 3000, Pharell Williams, Tyler, The Creator, Jamie xx, James Blake and Rick Rubin. The cover artwork was shot by Wolfgang Tillmans, whose track ‘Device Control’ closed Endless.
Ocean sheds some light on the new album in two emotional Tumblr posts, which you can read here.
Frank Ocean’s favourite songs:
‘Crosstown Traffic’ – Jimi Hendrix
‘How Insensitive’ – Frank Sinatra
‘Scarborough Fair’ – Simon & Garfunkel
‘Alina’ – Arvo Part
‘I Feel Love’ – Donna Summer
‘To The Last Whale’ – Crosby & Nash
‘Prints Tie’ – Bobby Hutcherson
‘Jardim Dos Deuses’ – Joyce Moreno
‘Fade Into You’ – Mazzy Star
‘No More Shall We Part’ – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
‘I Never Learnt To Share’ – James Blake
‘One Mo Gin’ – D’Angelo
‘The Last One To Be Loved’ – Gabor Szabo
‘Shadows’ – Lonnie Liston Smith & The Cosmic Echoes
‘Images Live In 1964’ – Nina Simone
‘The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face’ – Roberta Flack
‘It’s Gonna Rain’ – Steve Reich
‘Stardust’ – Willie Nelson
‘Nós e o mar’ – Tamba Trio
‘$’ – D.R.A.M.
‘When I Die’ – Goldlink
‘The Man-Machine’ – Kraftwerk
‘Asiko’ – Tony Allen
‘Earth Bound Hearts’ – John Mclaughlin feat. John Surman
‘Simply Beautiful’ – Al Green
‘Mr. Bojangles’ – Nina Simone
‘Flamingo’ – Todd Rundgren
‘The Medley Of Praise’ – Daryl Coley
‘Claire De Lune’ – Isao Tomita
‘Calls’ – Robert Glasper feat. Jill Scott
‘Your Smile’ – Chaka Khan and Rufus
‘Bitch Please’ – Death Grips
‘Anthrax’ – Gang Of Four
‘I Am The Walrus’ – The Beatles
‘Jesus Children Of America’ – Stevie Wonder
‘Garden Of Linmiri’ – Caustic Window
‘Home (YouTube Rip)’ – Kim Burrell
‘Vibrate’ – OutKast
’12 Aisatsana’ – Aphex Twin
‘Mis’ – Alex G
‘Right Down The Line’ – Gerry Rafferty
‘Anytime’ – Ray J
‘Jesus’ – Curtis Mayfield
‘Something About Us’ – Daft Punk
‘Your Daddy Loves You’ – Gil Scott Heron
‘Portrait Of Tracy’ – Jaco Pastorius
‘Rusholme Ruffians’ – The Smiths
‘When U Were Mine’ – Prince
‘Road To Nowhere’ – Talking Heads
‘Boys Don’t Cry’ – The Cure
