‘Our rivalry with Take That was tongue in cheek’: Tony Mortimer’s play list | Music

The first single I bought
Shut Up by Madness, from a music shop on Hoe Street in Walthamstow, London. It gave me the freedom in the world to choose what I wanted. And as a nine-year-old, you can get 10p off the back of the sofa and get a mad badge at the market to put on your shirt.

The song I make at karaoke
I’ve only done karaoke once, very loud and weak because of Japanese. I had a few and thought: “This is not doing much”, then it hit me like a hammer. That was a chaotic night. If I had to do karaoke now, I would do East 17th House of Love, because I would probably remember the lyrics.

The perfect song to play at a party
C&C Music Factory’s Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now) is like an electric shock. And when I’m DJing, CeCe Peniston’s Finally gets the crowd going. I have also removed the dancefloor. I was selfish once and played Shannon’s Let the Music Play – and everyone went to the bar.

I can’t listen to that song anymore
My late brother used to sit in his room and play Romeo and Juliet by Dire Straits on guitar. It’s a lovely song, but it’s just getting me down now.

A song I secretly love, but tell everyone I hate it
Perseverance by Taking It. I thought it was a great comeback song. Our “competition” is always tongues. We secretly loved each other. The competition was between our fans.

The song that changed my life
I have to say Depth. I know it’s mine, but it broke a lot of doors open. Without that song, there would be no band. That’s how I value it.

The song that wakes me up in the morning
There is a beautiful remix of Bob Marley’s Sun Is Shining by Funkstar De Luxe that just brings sunshine. I’m not a jumpy person. But lately I’ve been cycling in the morning to lose weight.

A song that makes me cry
Adele’s Someone Like You – as soon as I heard this, I just found it very interesting. It’s the tone of his voice. He sounds very dedicated. You can tell it’s coming from a place that is really real to him.

The song I would like to be played at my funeral
It’s easy to make people cry. But it would be my last chance to put a smile on their faces. So I would have Monty Python’s Always Look on the Bright Side of Life. I heard it at a funeral and you just feel like the person is still there. I think I will put it in my will. But when I die, people can play whatever they want. He can play Ding-Dong! The Witch is Dead….

Tony Mortimer DJs at Bush Hall, London, 28 May and Brudenell Social Club, Leeds, 29 May as special guest at D:Ream. More information Here.