Willy Vlautin writes stories for dark, lonely nights of the soul -- and his taste in music reflects that.
When the US author and Richmond Fontaine frontman arrived in to pick the songs for the show, he admitted, with a grin, that he did try to think of cheerier numbers, but ultimately his tastes are minor-key in tone, reflecting the mood of his riveting novels, which include Northline, The Free, Don't Skip Out on Me, and the wonderful Lean on Pete, which has just been made into a movie starring Chloe Sevigny and Steve Buscemi.
Nick Cave, Bat for Lashes and The Unthanks all featured on the playlist, and Vlautin spoke about why he got into music and writing in the first place.
“John Steinbeck was like a best friend to me as a kid,” he said. “I wanted to live inside his books and I didn’t know how. I didn’t have much talent, so I never thought I could be a writer. I wasn’t from some important family and I wasn’t ever going to go to a fancy college. But I was a fan -- and then it dawned on me. Well, you have to join up. You have to plant your flag.”
Vlautin writes fiction because writing gives him a kind of fulfilment. "Sometimes writing about lonely people makes you less lonely," he said. "Sometimes I write for that. Maybe my books make people feel less lonely."
Listen back to the show by clicking the play button on the right -- and let us know what you think of Willy's music choices by tweeting @nadineoregan or @songsinthekey.
Willy Vlautin's Playlist
- Richmond Fontaine 'Horace Hopper'
- Bat for Lashes 'What's a Girl to Do?'
- Nick Cave 'Push the Sky Away'
- Craig Finn 'God in Chicago'
- Lee Hazlewood and Nancy Sinatra 'Sundown, Sundown'
- The Shadows 'Apache'
- Neko Case 'Margaret vs. Pauline'
- Bobby Vinton 'Blue Velvet'
- The Unthanks 'Bird in the Blue'
- Drive By Truckers 'What it Means'
