Every day...

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Having just written about school days, it seems appropriate to remind myself that every day's a school day, still.

I had a bloke in my team at work once who loved Electric Six. He wasn't there for long, just maternity leave cover for one of my regular staff, but to help find some common ground and establish a talking point I thought I'd put the effort in, have a listen and see why he liked them so. Prior to that the only Electric Six tracks I really knew were Danger! High Voltage, which I liked well enough, and Gay Bar, which I thought was okay.

After the requisite amount of YouTubing, I gave up on my conversation-starter project, because I decided I didn't have much time for Electric Six. Also, I couldn't believe how unrepresentative of their wider sound Danger! High Voltage was. And that may be partly because I was completely, dumbly unaware, until a DJ on 6 Music mentioned it today, that additional vocals on that track were provided by none other than Jack White. I know, I know, I have clearly been living under a rock...

Anyway, regardless of such waffly nonsense, this is a terrific video. Frontman Dick Valentine appears to be a bit of a loon, which is possibly why my former mat-leave temp contract guy was so in thrall of him.

All good things...

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Today is the last day of the school year for Amusements Minor. Which means it's close enough for government work, as the saying goes, for me to mark the anniversary of when I left school. Okay, I would have to dig out my old diaries (shudder) to be sure of the exact date, but it's pretty much 35 years to the day since I finished the sixth form and got the school bus home for the last time. A lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then but I can honestly say I have only happy memories of school days, and only good things to say about my alma mater and its staff. I sometimes feel sorry for people who had a different experience of secondary education, and I accept I was fortunate enough to go to a brilliant school, with a unique spirit, at a special time. Not fortunate to gain a place there, because I earnt that, but fortunate that the place was there to be earnt, I suppose. And of course I met and befriended The Man Of Cheese there and the rest of that, as they say, is history.

There was no end-of-school prom for us, like there seems to be at the drop of a hat for schools these days. No. Instead TMOC, Roachford, a third boy (whose nicknames would no longer be considered appropriate) and I went into the city in Roachford's Allegro, for a spot of lunch; on the way, we popped into the hospital to see another boy - let's call him Horse - who was in for a hernia op, if memory serves, and so was missing the last day. After a fry-up lunch in Sarnies we went back up to school, via a quick pub stop for a pint, for an afternoon of "mingling" on the school field with the rest of the upper sixth and a few staff. I wandered around with a point-and-push Halina camera, taking a few pics of those that had hung around for the end though, truth be told, not everyone had. It was all decidedly low-key by today's standards.

I'm glad there was no prom for us though. I was terribly shy and so almost certainly would not have enjoyed myself. That said, I love this little clip from Spiderman: Homecoming in which Peter gets nervously excited for his prom (and date), perfectly soundtracked by Save It For Later by The Beat.

As I may have mentioned before, I also love the reinvention of the Tom Holland Spiderman era that allows me to fancy Aunt May...

...but enough about Marisa Tomei. When I arrived home from school that last time, Mum met me at the gate and took a picture of me with that same point-and-push. In it, I am trying to smile but look sad. I think I felt life was, if not over, certainly up in the air. I didn't know it for sure at the time but university was waiting, and a whole other adventure that is also full of almost exclusively good memories. But at that precise moment, as I came through the old front gate with my hands in pockets, trying and failing to look cool, I looked like a boy who'd not only had the rug pulled out from under him but had then been forced to watch whilst the rug was trampled on, shredded and finally set alight. That's how much I loved my school days.

Anyway, it's not from 1989, the year we are commemorating here, but it is from the 80s and it is good, so let's hear that Beat track in full:

More to follow, no doubt, when I have another "getting old" anniversary to ruefully acknowledge...

Monday long song: Begging You (Lakota mix)

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

This Lakota mix is a longer version of Begging You, for me the highlight of The Stone Roses' much-maligned second album. The Lakota was released on the CD single but not, for some reason, the 12" vinyl. But whatever the format this sounds huge, and I recommend a proper pair of headphones to fully appreciate the pulsating rhythm section magnificence of Mani and Reni. Plus there's far less Ian Brown "singing" on this version ...

Farewell Wendy

Yes, yes, sabbatical-schmabbatical. But I can't regularly and overly praise my love of The Shining without commenting on the passing of Shelley Duvall, can I?

For sure she had her problems in later life - her mental health struggle was publicly over-documented, I would say. And she had a full and varied acting career beyond Kubrick's 1980 masterwork. But if she had only ever brought Wendy Torrance to life, that would still be something, wouldn't it? He she is, firstly getting some feedback from Kubrick, and then talking to the inestimable Barry Norman about the film.

RIP Shelley, with an emphasis on the "P".

Watching from periphery

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Fallen For You by Sheila Nicholls is just one of many songs that I was introduced to by the High Fidelity soundtrack ... which, in case you were wondering, is outstanding. Go and buy it.

As an aside, can anyone think of a better use of "periphery" in song lyrics?

Now give him a proper chance

Another sabbatical-busting post, to mark the monumental election result from last night. There's only one thing to do at a moment like this...

Of course we should be under no illusion about the size of the task facing Starmer et al. Sure, a colossal majority will help them get their agenda through untrammelled, but they are inheriting a country not just in decline but in a state of collapse. And a country with very little cash to splash on solutions. How long, I wonder, before those that have been clamouring for change turn on those they have chosen to make it happen?

And for all the joyous Portillo moments (goodbye Rees-Mogg, so long Truss, farewell Mordaunt, adios Keegan, sayonara Shapps), plenty of others survived (Sunak, Hunt, Cleverly, Dowden, Badenoch and, worst of all, Braverman). Not only that but the country has had a mirror held up to it, and the reflection shows a massive level of support, in vote-share terms if not elected MPs, for Reform. The batrochoidal pub-bore took his dog-whistle to Clacton and won. Other coastal towns on the east followed suit, with Skegness and Yarmouth letting themselves down. It should be a source of national shame that Reform has four MPs now ... although I take comfort in the fact that is significantly less than the thirteen initially predicted by the exit poll.

On the other hand, we should take pride, and maybe a little hope, in the fact that the Green Party also now have four MPs, with a record share of the vote too. It's tempting to say the electorate are waking up, but of course they're not, just old voters are dying off and new ones are coming of age.

I'm also pleased to see the resurrection of the Liberal Democrats. Whatever you think of them, and their leader, three-party politics is better (and more interesting) than two.

Whatever, On another day, and in a colder light, people will point to how Labour's vote share showed only a very modest increase and that, in reality, the cause of the monumental swing is primarily blue defection to Reform and LibDem. But it seems churlish to point that out, right now. Because right now is a time for celebration. Farewell Tories, you total feckless shower, you heartless, inept, morality-vacuum, you corrupt puddle of cronyism, sleeze and entitlement ... farewell. Don't rush back.

And remember, kids - things can change...

Fifteen

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Ye gods.

Do the right thing, right

I'm breaking my own sabbatical for this, for whilst I anticipated an election in 2024 I didn't think it would be this early. Anyway, here's a graph that speaks for itself:

That should be enough on its own to sway any undecided voters. However, at the last election more people chose not to vote at all than supported any single party, so I guess this is a timely reminder from Norman Cook at Glastonbury - if you want to change to happen, you have to vote for it...

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But look, I know that no political party is perfect. No single manifesto aligns perfectly with my views (nor yours, I suspect). And all the leaders are flawed, and prone to saying whatever they think it takes to win you over, safe in the knowledge that pledges made during election campaigns are not legally binding. Keir might not be your cup of tea, nor Ed, nor Carla/Adrian. But at least they are palatable cups of tea, unlike another dose of Rishi. And whatever you do, don't be tempted by any dog-whistling Trump-lite with a pale blue rosette and a promise to "save Britain". No, no, no. If you are unsure where to place your X, may I refer you to this handy tactical voting guide by constituency, which makes no bones about its sole intent: to prevent a Conservative win.

Most of all, though, do the right thing, right? After all, you know who Johnny will be voting for, don't you? Be more like Johnny.

And don't forget to take your photo ID with you

People are stupid so, you know, they'll buy anything

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

If I've got my dates right, Wimbledon starts today. A fortnight of sporting excellence and perhaps the best event of its type in the world. I'm crossing my fingers that Katie, Emma and Andy all make it into the second week, but that seems slightly optimistic written, as this is, in the middle of December. Anyway, it seems like a good time to share a video that might have passed you by if Wimbledon is the only tennis you watch all year. Lots of detail in this to enjoy.

And so, with a tenuous tennis link, this is La Electricidad by Spanish band McEnroe. After spending much time pasting text into Google Translate, I can tell you that McEnroe are from Getxo, a little town just north of Bilbao, and have been recording off and on since 2004 (although currently they seem to be on hiatus). Main man Ricardo Lezón seems to have a competing solo career, from what I can make out, and publishes poetry too. Anyway, La Electricidad opens side two of McEnroe's 2015 album Rugen Las Flores (The Flowers Roar) and sounds like this:

Here are the original lyrics, and a rough translation, with all apologies to Spanish speakers everywhere:

La Electricidad

Electricity

Acuérda te de mi, cuando pises algún charco Cuando escuches algún pája ro cantar Acuérda te de mi, cuando veas algún rayo Agrietando todo el cielo como un cristal No dejes de buscar, incluso en la hora más oscura Puede apa recer de pronto la electricidad Yo estaré por aquí, escondido en algún recuerdo O en el leve movimiento de sentir Y cabe la po si bi lidad De que te vuelva a encontrar, en algún incendio Y cabe la po si bi lidad De que te vuelva a encontrar, en algún incendio Me acordaré de ti, parado en algún semáforo O afinando justo antes de salir Estás por aquí, escondida en alguna frase O en el leve movimiento de vivir Y cabe la po si bi lidad De que te pueda olvidar, en algún momento Y cabe la po si bi lidad De que te pueda olvidar, en este momento

Remember me, when you step in some puddle When you hear some bird sing Remember me, when you see some lightning Cracking the whole sky like glass Don't stop looking, even in the darkest hour Electricity can suddenly appear I'll be here, hidden in some memory Or in the slight movement of feeling And there's a chance That I may find you again, in some fire And there is the possibility That I'll find you again, in some fire I will remember you, stopped at some traffic light Or tuning up just before I go out You're around here somewhere, hidden in some sentence Or in the slight movement of living And there's a chance That I can forget you, at some point And there is the possibility That I can forget you, at this moment

So there's a first for New Amusements, a Spanish language track. Bastante buena, en mi opinión. ¿Qué te parece?

BTO

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

No, not Bachman Turner Overdrive. Johnnie Walker has a feature on his 6 Music radio show called BTO - Better Than Original. Listeners write in to propose cover versions that are, as the feature suggests, better than the original.

So without further ado, from 1980 here's the original Getting Nowhere Fast by Girls At Our Best! (their exclamation, not mine).

Good though that is, I think the 1987 cover by The Wedding Present is better:

Which do you prefer?

The lifecycle of a song

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

I've had these three videos languishing in my YouTube Watch Later list for a few years now, so it's time I stopped prevaricating ("the enemy of achievement," after all) and did something with them. And what better day than Paul McCartney's birthday to highlight three markedly different versions of the same Beatles song.

First up, the original studio version of I'm Down, written by Sir Thumbs-aloft and released in July 1965 as the B-side to Help. It's a straight up-and-down rocker that really showcases Macca's vocal range and ability to wail. Amazing to think, if YouTube comments are to be believed, that the next song to be recorded after this was the couldn't-be-more-different Yesterday. Anyway, here's I'm Down after being given a sympathetic remaster in 2009.

Even without the remastering, this feels tight and orderly. Four lads that shook the world they may have been, but they knew how to behave in the studio too.

Compare this to a loose and limber live rendition as part of the Blackpool Night Out, filmed for TV on the 1st August 1965. The second track in a six song set, this is a little rawer, for sure, but still accomplished and utterly confident live, as only bands that have ground it out on stage together for years, and in all circumstances, can be. John's keyboard solo is a joy.

Next up, another live performance, this time at the Circus-Krone-Bau in Munich and recorded exactly 58 years ago on 24th June, 1966. Nearly a year has passed since Blackpool, and lots has changed. First, there's Paul's intro in German - clearly those years in Hamburg had a lasting effect. Then there's the start of the song - Paul cannot remember the lyrics, and gets them nearly all wrong or in the wrong order, despite John's attempts to remind him. Note Ringo's reaction about 59 seconds in as Paul fluffs another line. Then comes the guitar solo, for which John puts his hands behind his back so as not to crash George's moment. The band look visibly less ordered than in Blackpool, and you wonder whether they might have had a drink, or a smoke, before going on. They certainly look more "relaxed" and you couldn't blame them for this, surely, nor for forgetting the words - they were living in a whirlwind, the likes of which we cannot imagine. And yet, despite the "loosening" of the band, and the song, the performance still sounds great.

The Beatles tended to close their set with either this or Long Tall Sally for every live performance they gave from here on, continuing through Germany, Japan, the Philipines and the USA, right through to their last ever stadium gig at Candlestick Park on the 29th August that year (a Sally night, since you ask). I wonder if they got any better at remembering how to play it by the end of the tour? And has Paul solo ever played it live? Any Beatles obessives out there know?

Another one gone

Another sabbatical break for another RIP post. Donald Sutherland has died, aged 88.

Most obits will rightly wax lyrical about his role in the excellent Don't Look Now, or about his fantastic turn more recently as tyrannical President Snow in the Hunger Games trilogy. But of all the films he made or was involved in, the 1978 remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers will always be my favourite. This first clip features a cameo from Kevin McCarthy, who starred in the 50s original.

And of course there's the famous ending:

Such a good film. Avoid all subsequent remakes, you can't top this.

As for Donald, RIP. I think his son Kiefer summed it up perfectly; a life well lived indeed.

With a heavy heart, I tell you that my father, Donald Sutherland, has passed away. I personally think one of the most important actors in the history of film. Never daunted by a role, good, bad or ugly. He loved what he did and did what he loved, and one can never ask for more… pic.twitter.com/3EdJB03KKT

— Kiefer Sutherland (@RealKiefer) June 20, 2024

Already seven years ago

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

I don't understand how this is already seven years ago, this very day. Where does the time go?

When they first returned to the fray, original lead guitarist Ed Bazalgette was involved, as you can see, and I liked that. Nothing against Dave's son Dan, who has slotted into place nicely in subsequent years, but when it comes to reforming, three quarters of the original line-up will always be better than half. Anyway, seven years ago today... enjoy!

The sincerest form of flattery

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

This is What Happens Next, track eight on Danish band Northern Portrait's frankly brilliant 2014 album, Criminal Art Lovers.

Remind you of anyone? Here's track nine, the splendidly titled That's When My Headaches Begin.

And these aren't even the most Smithsonian tracks on an album that I bloody love. Best Discogs purchase ever.

Train to ... the end

This is the fourth time so far that I've broken my year long sabbatical, and the third time that the reason has been the inevitable: the death of someone I admired. Or, in this case, deaths.

First up, Françoise Hardy, whose death was announced yesterday. Her recorded works provide quite the YouTube rabbit hole, but I am going to stick to type and feature her collaboration with Blur on To The End. Not the album version though, but the alternate take (La Comedie) in which they ramp up the Gallic 60s vibe: Françoise takes lead vocals, Damon takes backup, the accordion gets even more time and the video, of course, is in black and white. You can almost taste the Gauloises smoke. Hard to believe this is 30 years ago ... time, etc.

Secondly, I've just read at Dubhed of the death of Arthur "Gaps" Hendrickson, of The Selecter. I saw them live in 2013, in Whitstable of all places, and was very chuffed to get his and Pauline Black's autographs after the show, Sharpied across the cover of a CD. Pauline has always got more attention, but Gaps was an essential part of the Selecter sound. Here they are, adding their 2-Tone credentials to a live rendition of Train to Skaville for Jools Holland's Hootenanny shindig in 2015. Yes, only nine years ago, but pre-Brexit and pre-Covid ... time, etc.

RIP.

Monday long song: Sing

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

The signs were there, right from the start, when they were called Seymour, although their sound would change a lot before they finally became the Britpop behemoth we know today. Early song Sing finally emerged on their 1991 debut album, Leisure, by which time they were called Blur. Graham's droning guitar still sounds brilliant, especially through good headphones.

Long sleeves for the summer

So here I am, breaking my own sabbatical for a one-off post to basically publicise my own YouTube content. Shameless, right? But this is what happens when you have a sort out.

For combing through a box of old cables, adapters and other tech ephemera, I stumbled upon my first MP3 player, the rather splendid Sony NW-E005 (left). Basically a glorified USB stick with a headphone socket and a dot-matrix display. I fired it up to see what was on it and was unsurprised to find all the usual suspects. It's nearly 20 years old but, of course, my tastes haven't really changed, so there weren't too many surprises.

However, I did find three slightly rare Gene radio session tracks. As far as I'm aware, none of these ever had any kind of official release, and were previously only available on the bootleg Lost in the Fog, curated and made available as a digital download by Gene super-fan Lewis Slade. But sadly even Lewis's website is gone now, so I guess if you don't have the bootleg already, finding a copy is going to be hard. I know I downloaded it, so it's probably on an old laptop somewhere. But back then, these are the three tracks I recognised for their quality and rarity, enough to be the only three I put on my MP3 player. Which means that now, I can put them up on YouTube for everyone to enjoy (and I didn't want to wait another seven months for my sabbatical to end before I could broadcast that fact).

First up, well, I don't think there have been too many Take That songs on this blog over the years. But here's Gene covering Back For Good for Steve Lamacq back in January 2000, and having a good laugh doing so, by the sound of it.

And then there are two tracks recorded for Gideon Coe's 6 Music show in November 2004, just a few short weeks before the band's last ever gigs. It's not the whole band - Martin and Steve run through a beautiful acoustic Long Sleeves for the Summer ("one from the mid-Sixties"), and then Martin is accompanied by someone called Howard on piano for the sadly prophetic Let Me Move On. Enjoy.

And what do all the serious YouTubers say? "Don't forget to like, comment and subscribe!" Or do forget, you know. I'm even less prolific on YouTube than I am here.

Lactose tolerant

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Apparently, today is National Cheese Day. I know, me neither. I imagine it was dreamed up by whatever the cheese equivalent of the old Milk Marketing Board is. Whatever, here are some cheese "facts" I have shamelessly cribbed, almost verbatim, from another website:

• According to data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the countries with the highest per capita cheese consumption are France, Iceland, and Finland.
• The world's most expensive cheese is called Pule and is made from donkey milk. It is produced in Serbia and can cost up to £500 per pound.
• According to the International Dairy Foods Association, the first cheese is believed to have been created serendipitously more than 4,000 years ago. Apparently an Arabian merchant had put his supply of milk into a pouch made from a sheep's stomach. Leaving it all day, rennet from the stomach caused the milk to separate into curds and whey.... and the rest is cheestory.
• The UK produces over 700 varieties of cheese, making it one of the largest cheese producers in the world. Well done us.

So there's only one song to feature today, isn't there? Besides, the blog could use some Tim Minchin...

And all I can say to The Man Of Cheese is, it's probably a good thing this song didn't exist when we were at school, because it's all you would have heard from some quarters...

Blue Friday: The Struggle

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

There's nothing new here, musically, with the conventional four-chord jangle. Doesn't matter though. I really rather like this, from The Lathums. Okay, so you might have a wry smile at someone so youthful singing about when he was young, but the lyrics set the tone, right from the off:

I sometimes think to when I was young
To happier times but now they have gone
I’ll try to remember the things that made me smile

I don't want to blaspheme or anything but I do slightly think that if Morrissey and Marr were born post-Millennium, this is a bit like how they'd sound now.

Foxy in a welder's mask

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

In honour of the future wife's birthday, I present this little nugget from 27 years ago. Time flies, eh? I doubt Men Behaving Badly would get made these days.

Great moments in music video history #11: Sabotage

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Kids today, eh? They don't like bands, or albums, they just like tracks. Example: Amusements Minor loves No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn but, despite my best efforts, steadfastly refuses to entertain anything else by The Beastie Boys. Anything! I blame Spotify. Or maybe I'm to blame, perhaps I haven't enthused enough (or too much). But I like this song... and love the video, which feels like all the best and worst aspects of every late 70s American cop show combined in three nostalgia-soaked minutes. Keep 'em peeled for a fleeting glimpse of Starsky knitwear even!

So, bottom line - I'm not picking a specific moment in this video because the whole thing is excellent. "Starring Nathan Wind as Cochese" indeed... Enjoy.

The Priest

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

This is yet another video that has been languishing in my YouTube Watch Later list, waiting for the right time to post it here. Well, there's never going to be a right time, is there, but since it's been waiting for nearly seven years it's time I pulled my finger out.

The official description on Marr's YouTube channel told us this, back in 2017:

Johnny Marr has teamed up with the award-winning actor Maxine Peake to create a new project which sets Peake’s spoken word performances to Marr’s instrumental soundscapes. "The Priest" is based upon the characters that Joe Gallagher met on the streets in the first few days after becoming homeless in Edinburgh. Gallagher wrote a diary of his experiences for the Big Issue under the pseudonym James Campbell when he first became homeless in May 2015 and continued until he found a new home in March 2016.

The protagonist in the film, giving a face to Maxine's vocal performance, is played by Molly Windsor. And the whole thing is equal parts harrowing and essential, I think.

Happiness remains elusive

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Way back in 2013, when I was clearly short of things to blog about, I wrote twice (here and here) about Alex Quick's book 102 Free Things To Do - inspiring ideas for a better life and how I intended to try the suggestions therein to see if life did indeed get better. At the last update, in December 2017, I identified 43 that I had done (green), three that I would never do (red)...and the other 56 were up for grabs. Anyway, here's an update, as at December 2023 - newly done are bold (with explanatory notes in italics):

Go out and look at the stars Keep a diary - but only one sentence a day Meter your energy use with a smart meter (but I quickly got bored of doing so) Give up your car Get up earlier Sketch your relatives - it's better than photos Treasure your precious human body Go on an archeological dig Write a letter to your future self Don't confuse affluence with well-being Memorise a poem Ask a child for advice Take part in a police line-up Give up craving for recognition (and be admired for it) Notice when things have improved Go on holiday without leaving your bedroom Practice random acts of kindness (and, if time permits, senseless acts of beauty) Climb a mountain Turn your house into a restaurant Start a film society Remember that making mistakes is part of being human See the sun rise and set on a single summer's day Get fit without joining a gym (I got in great shape for LEJOG in 2021 ... but am currently back in awful shape) Sit still until you see wildlife emerge Contact a friend you haven't spoken to for years Go cloud-spotting Learn to meditate Volunteer for something Spend a day and night in a forest Cherish older people Reconsider your career Enlarge your comfort zone Achieve your ideal weight (as above, this was when training for LEJOG ... am overweight again now) Learn how to talk to strangers in public Visit Project Gutenberg Gather a meal from the wild Learn another language (if Japanese on Duolingo counts) Invent a language Pretend you are a valet for humanity Go busking Start a book in which to record things that have really, really made you laugh Go somewhere outdoors that is very silent Make Christmas presents for your whole family one year Give something up Cheer up lonely men in public places Swap your CDs Adopt or invent a personal motto Support your local eccentric Become a freegan Swim in the sea Get to know your neighbours

Act without expecting anything back Deliver meals on wheels (sort of, and a one-off) Look for glue Send a message in a bottle Have an eco-friendly bonfire Attempt a world record Walk in the rain Give away free trees Do a sponsored parachute/bungee jump (I used to think this was still on the cards, but now accept my stomach for such lunacy has gone) Perform Cycle 100 miles in a day Serenade someone Reflect on something you're grateful for Cook and eat a nine-course meal Write a love letter Create a lair Notice beauty Let go of emotional pain Write down your parents' or grandparents' stories Look at your day-to-day concerns from the point of view of five years from now Fan the flames of desire Contemplate imperfection and impermanence as forms of beauty (after a conversation with a writer friend) Join a gardening scheme where only your labour is required Laugh in the face of death Train your memory Accept the full catastrophe Write the first sentence of a novel Cherish solitude (Sister Wendy does) (realised I always have) Get your friends to sponsor you to go to Spain and celebrate La Tomatina Embarrass your children/teenagers (sadly and more frequently) Work a room Confront people politely Learn a trick Be a representative of your country, in your country Try lucid dreaming Come to terms with ageing Be a bookcrosser Teach a child something fun Make your gratitude less perfunctory Give away your superfluous possessions Grow huge sunflowers Smile Go bell-ringing Form a debating club Take your shoes off and walk in the dew on a sunny morning Dress up Give up your TV Be 'Lord' for a day Write fewer emails and more letters Don't expect that things will be different in Tenerife Find out what's happening near you and join in

So, now 51 done, halfway there... but also back up to four nevers. So am I happier?

No, of course not. I'm still the same cantankerous, miserable old sod I've always been. Important to remember, though, that not being happier isn't the same as being sadder, or even sad. Though of course I am that too, at times. Who knows, by the time this post goes live in May, perhaps I'll have ticked off a few more on the list and reached nirvana ... but don't hold your breath.

Meanwhile ... are you happy? What makes that so? Maybe I'll build your answers into my own, real-world "how to be happier" list some time. Until then, here's the obvious brilliant song from the much-missed Mark Hollis and Talk Talk:

Blue Friday: I Know The End

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

I know very little about Phoebe Bridgers, because I am an out-of-touch old man, but by Christ, this is something.

Leonard Cohen Afterworld

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

It's thirty years to the day since Kurt Cobain took his own life. So yes, more time has passed since his death than he was alive for. A terrible shame, and a terrible waste, like any suicide.

I sometimes have a little inward smile when I see kids, tweens or younger, wearing their Nirvana t-shirts. This would have been like pre-teen me wearing a Perry Como t-shirt - not impossible, but not likely either. Still, times change, I suppose, and a crossed-eye smiley face is a logo, and logos are cool, right? They really say something about that kid who's never heard a Nirvana song, except maybe that contagious one, right? Right?

God, I sound like a right curmudgeonly old sod. (What do you mean, 'sound like'? - Ed.)

Anyway, here's a favourite Nirvana song of mine, from the fabled MTV Unplugged session. Maybe I like this because I too have very bad posture, who knows? Note how impossibly young, fresh-faced and clean-shaven Dave Grohl looks in this clip.

As an aside, help is out there for anyone who gets to feeling like Kurt did in the end, not least from Samaritans.

Left and right

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

It's difficult to know for sure, when this post has been scheduled so far in advance, but there will probably be elections today, for various things in various parts of the country. Council elections, probably, mayoral and PCC elections too. Who knows, there might even be a general election with a bit of luck, though I doubt it (I don't think Sunak will be in any rush for that [assuming he's still PM by the time this post goes live which, given the last couple of years, is far from certain]).

Anyway, if you have a chance to vote today, please do. And we're all of a mind here, aren't we? You know what to do, but in case you need something to help you remember, here's a little ditty from Gavin Osborn at his Braggiest. I've posted it before, a long time ago, but it bears repeating.

Never been to Russia, it's only girls I've overthrown
Never met a communist in my living room at home
And I've never read Das Kapital deep into the night
But I'll always know my left side from my right
And I've never trashed McDonalds but their burgers make me sick
Even when I want to, well, I can never find a brick
I just sit here writing songs when I should get on out and fight
But I'll always know my left side from my right
These days, it always seems the same to me
Cultural stability can't be solved by my TV
But I know I can play my part by loving you, yeah that's a start

I was only two years old when Thatcher came to power
Just old enough to eat on my own and tell my sweet from sour
But now I think I'm old enough to sit and sing this song
Cause I'll always know my right side from my wrong
And I've never held a banner for the men on the miner's strike
Cause in the nightmare of the eighties I just rode my mountain bike
But if you trace back those tyre tracks you'll find me to be true
Cause I'll always know my red side from my blue
These days, it always seems the same to me
Cultural stability can't be solved by my TV
But I know I can play my part by just loving you, yeah that's a start

Never set up a trade union but I've been to the union bar
Listen to all those students discussing life after the Tsar
You know it's better to try and lose than to not try and still fail
But there's always one that buys the Daily M**l
So I've never been to Russia, it's only girls I've overthrown
Never met a communist in my living room at home
And I've never read Das Kapital deep into the night
But I'll always know my left side from my right
I'll always know my left side from my right

I know politics isn't as cut and dried as Gavin's song would have us believe. And I'm the first to acknowledge that the alternatives to the Conservatives aren't perfect either. But without doubt fourteen years of Tory rule has been ruinous for the nation, its people, its public services and its very way of life. It's well past time for a change.

Blue Friday: Where There Are Pixels

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Haven't done a BF post for some time, but here's a thing of beauty from Martin Rossiter. Where There Are Pixels shows that it's still possible to feel lonely, however hyperconnected the digital world has made us all.

Honestly, if you still don't have the album from whence this comes, sort yourself out!

Music Assembly: Asturias

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Isaac Albéniz (29th May 1860 – 18th May 1909) was a Spanish virtuoso pianist, composer, and conductor. He was one of the foremost composers of the Post-Romantic era, and also had a significant influence on his contemporaries and younger composers. So says Wikipedia, and who am I to argue? Whatever, whilst he is remembered for his piano works based on Spanish folk music, it's Asturias that he is probably best known for, especially the guitar transcription thereof (despite the fact that it wasn't originally written for guitar).

If we'd had Croatian guitar prodigy Ana Vidovic playing this to us, as we sat through another Wednesday music assembly at school, I certainly would have sat up and paid close attention. Am ever so slightly beguiled, even now.

There. Don't we all feel a bit more cultured now? Despite the guy in the audience with the percussive cough?

Sunday shorts: Love

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Haven't done a Sunday short in a long time, but this is Love by Dave Monks of Tokyo Police Club, a gently building acoustic stream of consciousness with a lovely, literal video interpretation... "'cos that is love".

Monday long song: Astradyne

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

I'm not sure that Ultravox get remembered kindly enough. The received wisdom is that they were a serious synth outfit until John Foxx left and was replaced by Midge Ure, who took them in a more commercial, and implicitly less serious, direction.

Well, if that is correct, and it's a big 'if', then Vienna was the pivot around which everything swung. I'm not talking about the brilliant bombast of the single (Joe Dolce though, eh?) but the album of the same name, every second of which is a nailed-on, stone-cold synth classic.

My big sister's best friend had the album, which is how I came by a very hissy taped copy in 1980. This, Astradyne, was track one, side one, and it knocked me sideways.

Still sounds bloody great, I reckon.

Plonk

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

What do charity-shop CD section stalwart Susan Boyle, where-is-he-now TV presenter Phillip Schofield, bespectacled 90s ginge Chris Evans, Noughties chart-botherer Hannah Spearritt and YouTube non-boxer Logan Paul all have in common? Well, today is their birthday ... but (and it's a massive but) you'll be relieved to hear I'm not going to write about any of them.

Fortunately for us all, April 1st was also the late Ronnie Lane's birthday, he of Faces fame, both Small and, er, unclassified.

With Steve Marriott, Ronnie co-wrote most of The Small Faces' hits, so picking one for today, especially one that I haven't featured before, is going to be hard, because there was a time when I blogged about them often. However, here is a live for TV recording of All Or Nothing that amply demonstrates the distinctive bass sound that earned Lane the affectionate nickname of Plonk.

After the regular-sized Faces broke up in '73, Ronnie recorded a number of albums as Ronnie Lane's Slim Chance, and famously collaborated with Pete Townshend in 1977 on Rough Mix, to the delight of old mods everywhere, no doubt. But he never recaptured the success of The Small Faces and Faces. Then, at the tail end of the 70s, Ronnie was diagnosed with multiple schlerosis. Although he continued to work through the 80s, this became harder; his last live performance was in 1992. By '94 he was living in Trinidad, to benefit from the climate, and his increasing medical expenses were being underwritten by Jimmy Page, Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood, since incredibly no royalties from Small Faces' hits were forthcoming.

Ronnie died in 1997, aged just 51. Gone but most definitely not forgotten, his influence on subsequent generations is illustrated well by the songs that have been written about him. You might expect (and will get) Traveller's Tune by Ocean Colour Scene and He's The Keeper by Paul Weller, but let's start with the perhaps less-expected A Trip Down Ronnie Lane by Ride.

Let's finish up with what remains Ronnie's best-known solo track, The Poacher, fittingly enough for circularity in another live for TV recording. Happy birthday, Ron.

Favourite groups? None, really.

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

On this very day, 40 years ago, kids' magazine Look-in published this "interview" with The Smiths. The thing I love about it, aside from the occasionally comedic answers, is that all four band members got an equal moment in the interview spotlight. I wonder what SPM made of Andy's liking for steak...?

I also love Johnny's hobby: "Playing guitar".

Anyway, here are the four tracks identified by the band as their favourite records:

Andy's choice

Morrissey's choice

Johnny's choice

Mike's choice

The title of this post comes from SPM's response when asked to name his favourite groups. I'm frankly amazed he didn't say "The Smiths".

The hold that she had

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

She didn't live in a meadow by a pond - she lived in a first-floor flat, not far from The Cross Keys, but that's far less poetic. Notwithstanding that, she certainly touched me for a moment, an impossibly high number of years ago. I have often thought of the Jonbar point she and I pivoted around, a quarter of a century or so ago, and the cost of my naïve misunderstanding. What might have been? We shall never know. Probably best not to even think about it, not if I want to sleep at nights.

What I do know is that today is her birthday. She doesn't read this blog, or even know of its existence, which is all that enables me to write the previous paragraph, and post this song. Happy birthday.

The Cavalier years

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

If I've got this right (and that's by no means certain, given the challenges of scheduling posts months in advance), this evening will see Comic Relief on the Beeb. Now, I know you're not allowed to say this, because it's all for charidee, but not all the comedy on offer this evening will be that funny. So here's a 15-minute CR special from 1988, can you believe, that still is. Stephen Fry's King Charles is particularly enjoyable...

Cromwell: The moment has arrived. Are you ready to meet your maker?
King Charles: Well, I'm always absolutely fascinated to meet people from all walks of life but, er, yes, particularly manufacturing industry.

It's just snappy, quotable line after snappy, quotable line...

"...your family's record in the department of cunning planning is about as impressive as Stumpy Oleg McNoleg's personal best in the Market Harborough marathon..."

"...I'm a busy man and I can't be bothered to punch you at the moment. Here is my fist. Kindly run towards it as fast as you can."

They don't make them like this any more, sadly.

Amazing

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

On this day in 1969, Paul McCartney married Linda Eastman. The BBC's news coverage of the day reported that "hundreds of people gathered outside the Marylebone Register Office to catch a glimpse of the couple as they arrived" and that "a dozen policemen were on hand to fend off enthusiastic teenagers, many of whom were distraught that the last remaining bachelor Beatle was tying the knot". Apparently the ceremony was delayed because the best man, Paul's brother Mike, was late - he had been travelling from Birmingham where he had been performing with his band, The Scaffold, the night before, and his train was delayed. Plus ça change, right?

Paul and Linda's marriage certainly endured, unlike so many others in showbusiness. And he wrote this ...

Baby, I'm amazed at the way you love me all the time
And maybe I'm afraid of the way I love you
Maybe I'm amazed at the way you pulled me out of time
You hung me on a line
Maybe I'm amazed at the way I really need you

What an absolute cracker, still. But blimey, Paul, you're making the rest of us look bad - a bunch of flowers from the 24-hr garage doesn't really measure up, does it?

Karaoke time

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Do you have a karaoke stand-by? Something you can manage a passable rendition of, should a microphone be forcefully pressed into your reluctant hand? I once, drunkenly, attempted Roxanne by The Police but that was a mistake - Sting's voice is very high in the chorus. REM, Bowie and Morrissey have provided me with safer ground, at various times. One thing's for sure, I have never been drunk enough to attempt Daltrey vocal gymnastics like this:

Ah. There's nothing I don't love about that clip. Anyway, here's how Baba O'Riley should be performed live - a track which remains a career highpoint for The Who, in my humble.

Places to go, people to see

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

If all goes to plan, by the time this post goes live this will be the state of my travel map. At a meagre 31 countries it's getting there, but there's still so far to go. Lucky international travel is so cheap these days, eh? Oh, hang on, it's ruinously expensive. Sigh.

Of the many countries I haven't been to and you have, which would you most recommend, and why?

Elevation

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

I've written many times before about the fine margins that often separate a song, or a band, from being great or being also-rans. But what elevates a song, and makes it special? Can it just be one thing?

Ian McCulloch and, by extension Echo and the Bunnymen, grew out of a fertile late-70s Liverpool scene that gave us plenty that made it (Julian Cope and Pete Wylie being two further examples) and plenty that didn't (... er, the fact that I don't have examples illustrates how they have been forgotten). So how thin is the dividing line between being good and being great? Between being transient and lingering in the memory?

Example, you say?

Well, there was a fair amount of guitar-led indie jangle in 1984, much of it confined to the Recycle Bin of the mental hard drive. But Seven Seas doesn't just linger on, it still sounds fantastic. Why? What elevates it? Well, there are some lovely guitar motifs running through it, it has a catchy melody and the artfully odd lyrics help (we've all kissed a tortoise shell, right?) But what really elevates this song, for me, not just above most of the guitar-led indie jangle of the day but also above other Bunnymen output is Ian's understated vocal ululation at the end of each verse (for example, at about 39 seconds in, below).

1984 was a good year for music, and this is right up there with the best of it all. Probably my favourite Bunnymen track too. What's yours?

I wasn't really sure what was going on

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Mother of god, this blog is nineteen years old today. Cue an obvious song. The impact of this, and the accompanying video, on the teenage me is hard to overstate - when this came out, it looked and sounded so completely new and fresh. I even taped the video off the TV (probably Top of the Pops), so I could watch and rewatch it on grainy VHS. It was just so different. Ironic, then, that I post it to celebrate the birthday of something that is basically the same, week in, week out. Whatever. Paul Hardcastle's 19 might have dated a bit, but the video remains powerful.

Unlike this blog, 19 was a global smash, as shown by Wikipedia below. It even did well in the US, despite the subject matter. Or maybe because of.

Not so little now

Disclaimer: this post was written in December 2023, and scheduled for future posting. Its contents may no longer be accurate or appropriate.

Like I need an excuse for a spot of Gene...