Marti Caine

Speaker 10:00

Hello, I'm Kirstie Young, and this is a podcast from the Desert Island Disc's Archive. For rights reasons we've had to shorten the music. The programme was originally broadcast in nineteen seventy nine, and the presenter was Roy Plumley.

Presenter0:32

On our Desert Island this week is the entertainer Marty Kane. Marty, do you play records a lot?

Marti Caine0:37

Yes, I do. Yes, I love music. It's my hobby.

Presenter0:40

You're a hi-fi expert, aren't you? Am I doing it?

Marti Caine0:42

Expert is a slight uh well, a l a little bit hyperbolic, I think. I'm not exactly an expert, uh but I've learned how to switch it on in about ten minutes now.

Presenter0:51

But it's all got to sound right, and a lot of machinery travels round with you.

Marti Caine0:55

Yes, yes. I can't be without my music.

Presenter0:55

Uh

Presenter0:57

Did it take you long to choose just eight records that may have to last a long, long time?

Marti Caine1:02

Oh yes, it took me ages and ages. Loads and loads of thought and I thought well

Marti Caine1:06

Perhaps um records or sounds that associate

Marti Caine1:10

sort of remind me of things and when I sat and thought about it it was uh quite amazing.'Cause I couldn't take all my favourites anyway, you know, my sort of modern present day favourites because

Marti Caine1:19

Otherwise I get bored very quickly.

Presenter1:21

What's the first one you've got there on the pile?

Marti Caine1:21

Uh

Marti Caine1:23

A record called Birdland by Manhattan Transfer, which just happens to be my record of the moment, it's very cheerful and always sort of cheers me up.

Presenter1:30

And this is one record of the moment that's going to last, you think?

Marti Caine1:33

Yes, I think it will.

Marti Caine1:53

Five thousand like it's from Birdland, but I'm still preaching the rhythm.

Marti Caine1:59

Long gone up tight years from bird living, I'm still teaching.

Presenter2:05

Birdland by Manhattan Transfer

Presenter2:08

Marty, you're from Yorkshire, aren't you?

Marti Caine2:10

Yes.

Marti Caine2:11

How did you know?

Presenter2:12

Well you can't keep things secret in this business.

Marti Caine2:14

No.

Presenter2:16

Very early in life, I think when you were about eight, you had a very rough time when your father died.

Marti Caine2:21

I was seven, yes.

Presenter2:23

Seven.

Marti Caine2:23

No rougher than most kids, I suppose.

Presenter2:25

But it really led to hardship. In fact, you went hungry.

Marti Caine2:29

Uh I did it one time, yes, uh after that.

Presenter2:32

What happened? Tell tell us the story.

Marti Caine2:34

Um, well, my mum uh just couldn't get the fact that

Marti Caine2:39

She'd lost my father together at all and sought to

Marti Caine2:43

But make things easier, you know, sort of erase memory things and went from one thing to another and we moved to Scotland and

Marti Caine2:50

All the money went on sort of mindy raising stuff, but, you know, I could understand why and

Presenter2:55

In in fact, you were sort of sent away in care, as it were, for a bit, weren't you?

Marti Caine2:59

Yeah, only for two weeks. It sounds very Dickensian when you say she's. She was brought up in an orphanage, you know.

Presenter3:02

Do you

Marti Caine3:05

And I was in fact I was only in there for two weeks and I r I ran away. Yes. And I was eight or nine, I can't remember whether it was eight or nine. You ran away. How much money did you have?

Speaker 13:10

European

Marti Caine3:13

I well, I started off with half a crown, no, seven and six, because my grandfather used to send me uh a half a crown postlorder every week. This was my spending money.

Marti Caine3:22

along with the children's newspapers and

Marti Caine3:25

sort of little parcels of sweets and things and

Marti Caine3:28

And uh I'd saved this seven and six up for uh you know three weeks and I decided right with this I would make my grand escape. I could get to Australia with seven and six, it was a fortune.

Marti Caine3:38

And uh I had the um

Marti Caine3:41

The post lauders in in me bag I decided I'd cash them on the way to school that morning.

Marti Caine3:46

and go down and buy a a ticket to England, is it to Sheffield. But unfortunately someone got there before me and and pinched me my postal orders. So I in turn had to steal a penny from under a milk bottle.

Presenter3:55

So I

Marti Caine3:58

And I remember there was a threateny bit. Do you remember those things threatening?

Presenter4:01

It's reality.

Marti Caine4:02

And I left a threppne bit and just took the penny thinking, Well, God'd forgive me if I left a threppenny bit and I got a platform ticket.

Presenter4:09

That was your only capital.

Marti Caine4:09

Your only

Marti Caine4:10

Yeah. I did splendidly with it. I got all the way to Carlisle before I was found.

Presenter4:15

Well

Marti Caine4:16

We couldn't do that today, you know.

Presenter4:17

So what happened to you when when they found you?

Marti Caine4:20

Uh oh, I remembered, you know, thinking it was all very glamorous and very film like, and I remained stumm while these German officers interrogated me. Where are you from? Said nothing. All I told them was my grandfather's address.

Presenter4:34

Yeah.

Marti Caine4:34

in England and eventually I can't really remember much more, except being given tea out of a saucer, which I loved, you know, being able to drink sweet, sticky tea out of a saucer.

Marti Caine4:44

And I had uh a Mars bar and a Kit Kat that they bought me, you know, and penguin biscuits and all sorts of garbage that these uh these very kind porters sort of shovelled down me in an effort to get me to talk.

Presenter4:58

Then you got in touch with with Grandma.

Marti Caine4:59

They got in touch with grandfather, and I I suppose he came and collected me. I can't remember my grandfather.

Presenter5:03

Now he sounds a marvellous old caddy.

Marti Caine5:05

He was a character who was very Victorian.

Marti Caine5:08

He didn't smoke and he didn't drink and he was very, very domineering and

Marti Caine5:12

I suppose he wondered what on earth had happened to him when I came along.

Presenter5:14

But he really looked after you.

Marti Caine5:15

Oh yes, he ruined me. From the day I was born he ruined me.

Presenter5:17

Proceed.

Presenter5:19

Was it his idea that you should go to dancing classes and that sort of thing?

Marti Caine5:21

Yes, it was.

Marti Caine5:23

I I I was doing it because it was something to do over Wednesday evening and my grandfather wanted me to go and it was better than creating any rows about it, so off I'd go.

Marti Caine5:31

And I enjoyed it. It found, you know, a lot of new friends there.

Presenter5:34

You were a Sally Carmichael sunbeam.

Marti Caine5:37

But I was indeed.

Presenter5:37

There was indeed.

Marti Caine5:38

Well, it was Sally Carmichael's dancing school we went to and I was one of the sunbeams so there.

Presenter5:40

We went to Snarl.

Presenter5:45

Let's break here for your second record. What shall we have?

Marti Caine5:47

Um my second one. Oh, it's uh a Bing Crosby record called Dance Ballerina Dance and

Marti Caine5:52

Oddly enough, I I chose this one specifically because my dad used to sing this to me every night.

Marti Caine5:58

Dance ballerina dance.

Marti Caine5:59

So really to day

Marti Caine6:01

In your little office where we sort all the records out.

Marti Caine6:04

was the first time I'd heard it since I was five. And when I heard it today the the words seem so apropos for today, I wondered if he realized at all whether or whether it's just a huge coincidence. It must have been a huge coincidence. But

Presenter6:14

Yeah.

Marti Caine6:18

It reminds me of my dad anyway.

Speaker 36:20

Dance ballerina dance And do your perouette In rhythm with your aching heart

Speaker 36:32

Dance ballerine, a dance You mustn't once forget A dancer has to dance the part

Speaker 36:44

Cleral Ballery

Presenter6:49

Dance ballerina dance

Marti Caine6:50

Mm-hmm.

Presenter6:51

Marty, you were married when you were very young. Yes.

Marti Caine6:54

Yeah.

Presenter6:55

And with a couple of children it wasn't easy to start a career.

Marti Caine6:58

Well, it wasn't so much easy as a necessity.

Marti Caine7:01

You know, it was difficult to bring two children upon one wage, especially since we were only seventeen.

Presenter7:04

Species

Presenter7:06

Yeah.

Marti Caine7:06

And I think Malcolm was earning four pounds ten shillings a week.

Marti Caine7:10

In those days and after that we had to pay the rent and everything and support.

Presenter7:11

Yeah.

Presenter7:14

Well you decided on

Marti Caine7:14

Call you to serve

Presenter7:16

A career in the entertainment business. Since you were a sunbeam, had you done any entertaining?

Marti Caine7:21

Oh yes. I think I was about two when I did my first pantomime.

Marti Caine7:25

And only in a a very amateurish sort of way. In fact, some people argue that I still am sort of amateurish. I don't know. But uh I'd certainly not done it in a professional capacity. I didn't want to work during the day because I had two young children and enjoyed them.

Presenter7:39

An enjoyment.

Marti Caine7:41

Although if if needs must, then I would have worked during the day if I'd have had to.

Marti Caine7:45

So instead I decided to work at night.

Marti Caine7:48

So I decided to

Marti Caine7:49

I'd try singing.

Marti Caine7:51

On the working men's clubs and pubs. How did you start? Well, I started with a nervous breakdown sort of thing. I was so scared. I've never been so scared.

Presenter8:00

Uh

Marti Caine8:00

I I I bought three copies of music and

Marti Caine8:03

Uh off I went to my local working men's club to do an audition for an agent and it was absolutely dreadful. I really was terrible. I sounded like um

Marti Caine8:12

Edith Piaff and and Burl Ives mixed together. Couldn't get the right key and I was so nervous the voice was like that. It was dreadful.

Presenter8:21

What was the first engagement?

Marti Caine8:23

That was at Old Walk Road, Rotherham, and I think I earnt four pounds for the night, which was as much as Malcolm was earning.

Marti Caine8:29

For a week

Presenter8:30

Yes.

Marti Caine8:30

It was amazing suddenly we were millionaires.

Presenter8:33

And you were working mainly around Sheffield, where you were living.

Marti Caine8:35

Yes, around Sheffield and I expanded and went to Doncaster and far-flung foreign places like that.

Presenter8:41

Some of the clubs are a bit rough.

Marti Caine8:42

Yeah, some of them, but always good audiences. When I say good, I mean if they didn't like you, they showed that they didn't like you, and if they did like you, well they appreciated you. So it was very good schooling, it was sink or swim, you had to be

Presenter8:51

Who's

Marti Caine8:54

You know, very hard-skinned very good.

Presenter8:56

Did you vary your act very much?

Marti Caine8:58

Yes, I started as a very clumsy singer.

Marti Caine9:01

and I was always terribly nervous singing. In fact, even now I have to stand rooted to the spot.

Marti Caine9:07

And I found that the only way to relax myself was to talk to them, just talk to people. I was alright at talking to people because I'm interested in people, I like people.

Marti Caine9:15

So never had any trouble talking to anybody. Complete strangers. In in the North there's no such thing as a complete stranger. Or at least there wasn't in those days. If you fancied talking to somebody, you just go and talk to them. That's fine.

Speaker 19:22

Or at least there wasn't

Speaker 19:26

That's fine.

Marti Caine9:27

So I had no trouble at all, and before I knew where I was I was booked as a comedienne. The introductions to songs became longer and longer and the amount of songs became fewer and fewer.

Presenter9:31

The introduction

Presenter9:36

Was there um a lot of work about it?

Marti Caine9:39

Yes, yes indeed. I had um yes, plenty of bookings which increased working side

Presenter9:42

I mean, I think it's a very good idea.

Marti Caine9:45

Yes, towards the end, a bit well before New Faces, yes, I'd become quite well known in the club circuit.

Presenter9:50

I'll talk about new faces in a minute. Let's have another record in the meantime.

Marti Caine9:54

Well, this this is um a very selfish motive for wanting this one. When I finally started to make some money that didn't have to go on kids' shoes or whatever, you know what it is, your money is always accounted for when you've got a young family.

Marti Caine10:07

Well, when new phases happened I started earning more money and I spent an awful lot of money.

Marti Caine10:12

On a hi-fi.

Marti Caine10:13

Setup.

Marti Caine10:15

You know, because I got into sounds by this time. I liked records a lot. So I spent an an awful lot of money. I felt so guilty about it.

Marti Caine10:22

And the first record I played was from an Elton John album called Blue Moves and as it happened the side was Tonight.

Marti Caine10:30

in which he uses the London Symphony Orchestra.

Marti Caine10:33

And it was so superb on that new system that it dissolved every every penny of guilt I felt.

Speaker 110:40

Tonight.

Speaker 110:45

Does it have The old thing.

Marti Caine10:54

Tonight

Marti Caine10:58

No, it's like

Speaker 310:59

She would lay.

Speaker 311:04

To chase the rainbow that you're after

Presenter11:10

Elton John Tonight.

Presenter11:12

Now who suggested that you went in for that television talent contest show new faces? Was it your idea or your?

Marti Caine11:19

Oh no, it wasn't my idea. I thought it was awful I I hated the idea of doing auditions.

Marti Caine11:25

Because then

Marti Caine11:26

In the working men's clubs you didn't have to do auditions when you were well known, and you didn't do Sunday noons either.

Marti Caine11:32

And you only did two spots a night. That way you knew you'd arrived, you see.

Presenter11:36

Is

Marti Caine11:36

Especially if you had your own transport as well.

Presenter11:39

and this meant devising a very short act.

Marti Caine11:42

Oh yes, three minutes. Yes, which wasn't easy.

Presenter11:45

How many years have you been working in the clubs by now?

Marti Caine11:47

I have fifteen.

Presenter11:49

Yeah.

Marti Caine11:49

Yeah.

Presenter11:49

Yeah.

Marti Caine11:49

Hmm.

Presenter11:49

Did you feel in any way confident about the

Presenter11:52

About the competition.

Marti Caine11:53

No, no, no way. There were about two hundred acts there.

Marti Caine11:57

all of whom seemed superb to me, you know, some of whom I knew very well and I knew to be talented people.

Presenter12:03

Where did you audition?

Marti Caine12:04

in a club called The Blue Angel in Leeds, with

Presenter12:06

Yeah.

Marti Caine12:06

Richard was a cabaret venue.

Presenter12:06

Channel was a

Presenter12:08

This was a sort of regional audition, was it? They were having them all over the place.

Marti Caine12:09

Yes, a Yorkshire audition. And I wouldn't have gone actually because it was on a Friday. And Friday was the day I did my shopping, you see.

Marti Caine12:18

And I could have found many, many m other things to do, more rewarding, I thought, than going to some audition somewhere.

Presenter12:23

Yes.

Marti Caine12:23

But uh I'd I'd left some shoes in a dressing room that one of the contestants happened to bring along in case I went along.

Marti Caine12:31

So that I'd got my shoes back. And the shoes were £12.

Presenter12:34

Well, there is a plasma stock.

Marti Caine12:36

So I thought, well, I'll get my shoes back, which is why I went.

Presenter12:38

Yeah.

Marti Caine12:38

With no confidence at all, stood by watching everyone else, thinking, Oh, and I'm sure they'll get on. And uh didn't think for a minute I'd I'd manage it at all, and and wouldn't have been disappointed if I hadn't.

Presenter12:48

How long was it before you heard?

Marti Caine12:51

It was about three days.

Presenter12:52

Yes.

Marti Caine12:52

I was amazed. Totally amazed.

Presenter12:53

Totally amazed. Then you were booked for the first round, as it were.

Marti Caine12:58

Yes, they said well you have to wait perhaps six, seven months, but um the audition I remember was in November.

Marti Caine13:06

And what happened was

Marti Caine13:07

One of the acts that they had on for their Christmas show couldn't make

Marti Caine13:11

The show because he was doing a pantomime.

Marti Caine13:14

And they needed a comic.

Marti Caine13:16

and a female if possible.

Marti Caine13:18

Because it was an all-male show, except for a a singer in a duet.

Marti Caine13:22

So they asked me to do that one, so I was totally unprepared. It came too early, far too early.

Marti Caine13:28

A lot sooner than I expected.

Marti Caine13:30

But out off I went and I did my bit.

Presenter13:32

And that way

Marti Caine13:33

Lay awake for nights worrying what I was going to do.

Marti Caine13:36

and did it rightly or wrongly.

Presenter13:38

And then what happened? Um, you you were the winner in that

Marti Caine13:42

In that show, which as it happened was the last of the seven. And on the seventh show they have the All Winners show, so the week after I had to go back for the All Winners.

Presenter13:43

Which is it happened?

Marti Caine13:50

And lo and behold, I won that as well, and I still don't believe that. And what was the prize?

Presenter14:00

Well they were making a web for this, weren't they?

Marti Caine14:01

This is what they were

Marti Caine14:03

Oh, it was great fun and so exciting and

Presenter14:05

Yes. And then you won the All Winners Winners?

Marti Caine14:08

Winners, winners, winners, winners, winners? Yes.

Presenter14:10

And what was the prize there?

Marti Caine14:11

The first prize was three weeks in Las Vegas.

Presenter14:14

Yeah.

Marti Caine14:15

And the second prize was eight weeks in Las Vegas.

Presenter14:18

Now Las Vegas

Marti Caine14:19

I didn't mean that actually. That that wa it was a tremendous opportunity to go to Las Vegas. I mean I owe everything, absolutely everything, to new faces and please don't think I'm sort of knocking them because I'm not for a second I owe you.

Presenter14:19

I didn't mean that actually.

Presenter14:28

Because I'm

Presenter14:30

But Las Vegas w was a challenge. W were you ready for it?

Marti Caine14:33

No way was I ready for it. I was thrown to the lions out there. I really was.

Presenter14:37

Yeah.

Marti Caine14:38

Standing there in the 30-bob mini, you know, with the it was.

Presenter14:42

Didn't they give you a wardrobe?

Marti Caine14:44

Oh, no, no, no, no Had to provide that yourself.

Marti Caine14:48

They provided the fare over there.

Presenter14:50

Uh

Marti Caine14:50

And paid for the hotel, but you had to pay for your own food. And you got paid for doing the job as well, which was three spots a night.

Marti Caine14:58

Six nights a week.

Marti Caine15:00

And uh

Marti Caine15:01

We c we came back actually with twenty five dollars is what we made out of the deal. Plus

Marti Caine15:06

I'd had to pay for all the music and and all the dresses, which was entirely up to me to do. But the thing is what what they gave me, in fact, was

Marti Caine15:14

The best experience in the world, which is what it's all about, which is what is useful as a prize, really.

Presenter15:20

Let's have another record, Marty.

Marti Caine15:22

Right. Well um

Marti Caine15:24

I thought we'd have a Peggy Lee number because uh Peggy Lee figured in my early formative years.

Marti Caine15:29

And uh uh there's a number that I did uh on television called Some Cats Know in a dress that uh

Marti Caine15:36

caused a lot of letters to be written.

Marti Caine15:38

Most of them favourable, they're mostly lightly dressed, thank goodness.

Marti Caine15:42

I I must hasten to add that I have no choice in what I wear. I have this wardrobe mistress who walks all over me and demands that I wear this, that, and the other.

Marti Caine15:50

And my lame protests go unheard. So when I say, Are you sure this isn't too you know, she'll say, Get it on, woman, you do your job and let me do mine. So

Presenter15:58

Let me demand.

Marti Caine16:00

This was the number that I sang in That Dress, Folks. It's called Some Cats Know.

Speaker 116:09

Damn.

Speaker 116:09

Get snow

Speaker 116:14

How the stir of the feeling.

Speaker 116:21

Uh

Marti Caine16:21

They keep fooling round till you're halfway

Marti Caine16:27

To the ceiling.

Marti Caine16:31

Some gets

Presenter16:35

Peggy Lee, some cats know. Right, you're back from the United States. Suddenly you're a a hot property. Were were agents queuing up for the chance to look after you?

Marti Caine16:45

Now, yes, I suppose they were, if that doesn't sound immodest, but

Marti Caine16:49

Had uh

Marti Caine16:50

and had an agent in in Sheffield for

Marti Caine16:54

Oh, seven years

Marti Caine16:56

And

Marti Caine16:57

The thing is about him, he didn't know a lot about the big time. He knew as much about it as I did through years and years of experience in working men's clubs.

Marti Caine17:05

But he was honest as the days long or should I say is honest as the day is long.

Marti Caine17:10

And it'd become

Marti Caine17:12

I I relied on him totally and there was no way I could ever leave him, not after seven years. I couldn't kick him in the teeth and go with some big

Marti Caine17:19

London agent. I just couldn't do that. My loyalties are uh

Marti Caine17:23

Well, we're too firm for for John. And uh I I'm convinced I've done the right thing because he's learnt as he's gone along and made a lot of mistakes like I have. But we've learnt together and I trust him

Presenter17:33

Yeah.

Presenter17:34

And you asked.

Marti Caine17:36

implicitly and is a a marvellous man.

Presenter17:38

And you very quickly had your own television series.

Marti Caine17:41

Yes, yes I did. I I was offered my own television series before the final of uh

Marti Caine17:47

of new faces as it happens.

Marti Caine17:49

A series with some other New Faces winners uh called The Summer Show, which was great fun and I learnt an awful lot from that.

Presenter17:57

Uh

Marti Caine17:57

and from that they offered me a series of my own, which I gratefully accepted and learnt more from.

Presenter18:02

And since then it's been all go. You've been in talk with the town and

Presenter18:06

big cabarets all over the country.

Presenter18:09

Royal Variety Show.

Marti Caine18:10

Yeah.

Presenter18:11

That must have been a big night.

Marti Caine18:13

I I did it from behind Lionel Blair's hat, actually, so I felt quite safe.

Marti Caine18:18

It was the Ascot scene and Lionel had to doff his hat.

Marti Caine18:21

and and hid me completely with his walking stick and hat. He couldn't see me, so it was fine, I didn't have to have any nerves at all.

Presenter18:29

And you arrived in your own Rolls-Royce. Now, in all this success, all this excitement, all this change, it has led, alas, to the break up of your marriage, which must be a great sorrow to you.

Marti Caine18:40

Um, yeah, I d I don't honestly think that was anything to do with the show business, really. It was just that.

Marti Caine18:46

To be fair, you know I mean Malcolm's come out of this very badly if you if you read the papers.

Marti Caine18:51

Through no fault of anyone's, really.

Marti Caine18:54

He's a very, very independent, typical Yorkshire.

Marti Caine18:58

butch sort of man who didn't take kindly to his wife earning the money and made no bones about it, because he firmly believed he should be the one who was keeping me.

Marti Caine19:07

And if that's how he feels, great, you know, I I I'd uh go along with that. That's the kind of man I'd like to marry again.

Speaker 119:12

Okay.

Marti Caine19:13

But I I just couldn't swamp him any any longer. So he wanted a life of his own and and Linda was just a

Marti Caine19:21

I mean, you know, she wasn't the cause of it at all.

Speaker 119:23

Mm-hmm.

Marti Caine19:24

It just happened coincidentally at the same time. So it looked as though it was Malcolm's fault. In actual fact, when the bitterness and and the hurt dies down a little.

Marti Caine19:33

I think we're all able to sit down and analyze things and think, Well, yeah, I must have had something to do with that.

Marti Caine19:39

You know, it's always six of one and half a dozen of the other.

Presenter19:41

Yes.

Marti Caine19:42

Her end of conversation.

Presenter19:45

Right, end of conversation, next record.

Marti Caine19:48

Well, this is uh one uh from the modern jazz quartet which reminds me when I was a kid, you know, well, when I was a ki a kid fourteen or fifteen, that's a couple of years ago now, um well we'd uh we'd all queue outside for the cheap seats to go and watch Dave Brubeck and the MJQ from from behind the

Marti Caine20:06

The Lions on stage at the City Hall in Sheffield. I think it was one and ninepence which was hard saved.

Marti Caine20:13

And one of my favourite pieces that the MJQ played.

Marti Caine20:16

was um a thing called England's Carol, which is the same as God Reshi Merry Gentlemen.

Marti Caine20:21

And well, I think that'd be nice on a desert island because I like carols at Christmas.

Marti Caine20:26

So

Presenter21:20

England's Carol by the Modern Jazz Quartet.

Presenter21:23

Marty, you have changed your style a bit. I was watching your act the other evening. No Funny Falls anymore. I mean, it is your martyr.

Marti Caine21:30

What do you mean no fun involved? Didn't you see the dance routine?

Presenter21:33

I saw the dance routine, yeah. Or one funny form.

Marti Caine21:35

Well, listen, when you fall from that height, it's a-it's it's far enough to fall, and often enough, I promise you.

Presenter21:39

They're nothing new.

Presenter21:41

But you're musty

Marti Caine21:41

But you must see the act before you know what you're talking about, you see.

Presenter21:44

You're much more the glamour girl now than than the comedian.

Marti Caine21:47

Uh, I look much more the glamour girl, but I'm afraid I'm still as stupid underneath all the fine clothes. I do silly things and stupid and trip and uh general walking disaster area, I'm afraid.

Presenter21:58

Yeah.

Marti Caine21:58

The look is f more sophisticated.

Marti Caine22:01

But it's still me.

Presenter22:02

Oh, it's still you, all right.

Marti Caine22:04

Still put my H's in the wrong places.

Presenter22:07

And you've got a first-rate accompanist. Now that's a great asset.

Marti Caine22:09

Oh, Roger, yes, Roger's been with us for years now. He's

Marti Caine22:13

He's uh a splendid musician, superb. I couldn't have managed without him at all. He's also a very good friend.

Presenter22:19

What's for the future? What have you got lined up?

Marti Caine22:21

Well unless Roger puts his fee down, I've got another musical director lined up and I hope you're listening, Roger.

Presenter22:27

If a

Marti Caine22:27

Yeah. Uh

Presenter22:27

Yeah.

Marti Caine22:28

I've got a cabaret run and uh more television starting on December the twenty seventh. At least I start recording on December the twenty seventh.

Presenter22:35

Twenty seven.

Presenter22:36

You're going to Australia, I agree.

Marti Caine22:38

At some time or other, yes. I will be going to Australia and probably America before Christmas to uh

Marti Caine22:44

to begin laying the rhythm tracks for anew.

Marti Caine22:48

album which I'm doing in America. It's all exciting stuff.

Presenter22:51

Of course it is. Now th this quieting down process, you you you've been talking of doing some serious acting.

Marti Caine22:57

No, there's only me been talking about doing serious acting. Nobody else talks about me doing serious acting. And you would like to have a girl. I'd love to have a girl, yeah. Yes, I would, yeah.

Presenter23:05

Yeah.

Presenter23:06

I can see that happening.

Marti Caine23:08

You?

Presenter23:08

Yeah.

Marti Caine23:08

Oh, I'd love to have a go, just to just to just to see if I could.

Presenter23:12

Sure you can. Next record.

Marti Caine23:13

Talking of my television series, uh I thought I'd like this one because it is the theme tune to my television series which we found on uh

Marti Caine23:21

On a Brothers Johnson album and it's called Q.

Presenter23:51

Kill by The Brothers Johnson. Let's go straight into your next one at number seven.

Marti Caine23:55

Oh well that's got to be Singers Unlimited singing a number called Snowfall because I'd really miss snow. Do you know I I love snow? I mean I won't when I'm

Marti Caine24:04

much older, you know, and I feel terribly sorry for the for the old age pensioners and when I'm driving I hate snow.

Marti Caine24:10

But when I'm just walking in it, you know, it's great to roll about in, I think it's wonderful. I feel such an idiot if I s look up and watch somebody watching me rolling about in the snow. But this would remind me of snow.

Presenter24:20

Snowdoor

Speaker 124:26

Softly.

Speaker 124:32

Change me.

Marti Caine24:37

Drift down

Marti Caine24:44

Snowflake

Presenter24:49

Snowfall by The Singers Unlimited. Now, you've shown yourself to be a very capable and an adaptable lady. Could you look after yourself on a desert island?

Marti Caine25:00

Oh yes, I'm sure I could. Yes. Right? Yes, I can hammer nails in and things and

Presenter25:02

Mm-hmm.

Marti Caine25:05

I I well, I think most housewives find that necessity is the mother of invention.

Marti Caine25:10

And that the improvisation that housewives do is amazing. It would defeat most scientists.

Presenter25:16

Yes.

Marti Caine25:16

have found, you know. Like what do you clean your teapot spout with when you when your teapot spout brush has fallen to pieces? Well there's always something somewhere you can lay your hands on. So that's put me in good training. I think any housewife would do very, very well on that.

Presenter25:29

So your shelter would be quite elaborate.

Marti Caine25:32

Oh, we should have all modcon, yes.

Presenter25:34

Would you try to escape?

Marti Caine25:35

Oh no, I don't think so. I it depends how bored I got, how quickly. Perhaps after two days I'd try to escape.

Presenter25:41

Yeah.

Presenter25:42

Yes, give it two days, make sure. Your last record, what's that?

Marti Caine25:44

Yeah.

Marti Caine25:46

That's going to be a Marshall Hain one called Coming Home, which has no Freudian meaning behind the words or anything, it's just that I like this album very, very much indeed.

Marti Caine25:58

Oh baby.

Marti Caine26:00

The This and that

Marti Caine26:04

I can understand your surprise.

Speaker 126:10

Uh Uh I really all lost love calling you.

Speaker 126:16

I'm just a joker in disguise

Presenter26:23

Marshall Hain, coming home. If you would take only one disc out of your eight, which would it be?

Marti Caine26:29

Well, after listening to Dance Ballerina Dance and the joy it gave me to hear that again.

Marti Caine26:34

I was undecided between that and the last one coming home, but I think it'd be coming home, because that had given me the determination to get off there.

Presenter26:42

Coming Home by Marshall Hayne. And one luxury to take with you.

Marti Caine26:45

One luxury. I would take some sort of uh bearing in mind that I can take my eyelashes.

Presenter26:50

Oh yes, of course. A supply of eyelashes, if those are essential.

Marti Caine26:50

What's the survival?

Marti Caine26:53

If they're in my handbag, they're they're all right. I would take some sort of uh solar heating system to to allow me to have as much hot water.

Presenter26:54

Yeah.

Marti Caine27:01

And some bubble bass, because I live in the bass.

Presenter27:03

All right, that we can organize. And one book apart from the Bible and Shakespeare, which are already there, and we don't encourage big encyclopedias.

Marti Caine27:13

Well in that case I think I should take some science fiction. Probably Robert Heinlein or Heinlein however you pronounce it.

Presenter27:20

Robert Heinlein, um two or three of your favorite books bound together.

Marti Caine27:24

Yes, is that permissible? Of course. Oh, yes. Can you think of one title? Her Glory Road.

Presenter27:25

Oh yes.

Presenter27:28

The Glory Red. Well, that'll be the first one and we'll put two or three others in behind.

Marti Caine27:31

Thank you.

Presenter27:33

And thank you, Marty Kane, for letting us hear your Desert Island Disc.

Marti Caine27:37

Oh, thank you, Roy. I've enjoyed it tremendously.

Presenter27:40

Goodbye, everyone.

Speaker 127:48

You've been listening to a podcast from the Desert Island Discs Archive. For more podcasts, please visit bbc.co.uk slash radio four.