Hello, hope that everyone is well & all is good.

I have been a little quiet on here recently due to life being busy & time flying by at an alarming rate! However, I thought I would drop a quick post to see if anyone is interested in receiving some free books. I am having a clear out & tying to stop books taking over the house seeing as I currently buy more than I manage to read! Most have gone to the charity shop or the lovely book box we have at the end of our street, but there are a few I thought were Afterword friendly so I wanted to offer up here first.

If you fancy any of these then either comment below or send me a DM with your address & I will get it posted to you. If any ar enot claimed I will drop them at the local charity shop next weekend (14th Sept).

I know there are some fans of Mr Hitchcock on this site so thought there will likely be some interest in this – an announcement of his memoir 1967.

Below is lifted from Pitchfork;

n a press release, Hitchcock says, “1967 is the point when I and the world went through the change. It was all just blissful synchronicity as I grew nine inches in 15 months, just as Dylan was electrified and pop groups turned into rock bands. Arguably as much was lost as was gained, but at the same time, you had Jimi Hendrix and Pink Floyd and others producing music that couldn’t have even been described three years earlier. You had the Beatles wearing suits and ties producing inaudible shows with tiny amplifiers, in many ways playing to the old rules of showbiz, and then suddenly up came Dylan with his thousand-watt PA and Jimi Hendrix with his Marshall stacks, and the whole thing erupted.”

We are not even 2 weeks in yet, but from a day of solid listening I predict that Bill Ryder-Jones’ new offering ‘lechyd Da’ will feature prominently on end of year lists. There will likely be much bigger fans of his work than I on this blog, but I have always enjoyed his output though would not be able to class myself as an avid follower. I popped his album on whilst working this morning & am very very impressed. It is full of gorgeous songs with lush orchestration & flows perfectly. I think a trip into town to purchase the vinyl will be on the cards this weekend

I am not a fan of him (or his party) in any way, but I do agree with the proposal to phase out smoking laid out in Rishi Sunaks speech at conference yesterday. It seems like a step forward for public health & is a good move. The cynic in me does think that this is exactly the sort of announcement used to divert attention away from the fact that they are failing badly on poverty & that foodbanks are now widely used etc., but I am still for it.

There is a wider issue here & that is should a PM be able to enact whatever new laws he/she wants without it being part of a manifesto etc?. It is quite indicative of how much of a mess politics is at the moment.

Anyway, to try & put a bit of a lighter note on this (& following on from a conversation me & my partner had about this), what law would you bring in if you were in charge?

Some rules to keep this light (and civil, I promise i have not raised this to start an angry thread!). How about just sticking to the » Continue Reading.

Word Alumni Jude Rogers book ‘The Sound of Being Human’ is on the Kindle deal so available at £0.99.

I loved this book when I read it so would heartily recommend

As a bit of an accompaniment to @RigidDigit thread Song NOT to play at the Guitar StoreI thought it would be good to know what song/riff is your go to when handed a guitar/bass/oboe etc.

I tend to like most music, or at the very least appreciate it & look on it kindly. Some things might not be for me (Dua Lipa, Busted, Van Morrison* for example), but I do get why others would be enamoured with it & thus show it the respect deserved.

However, todays Discover Weekly playlist on Spotify has thrown up a doozy & I felt obliged to share as it could well be the worst song I have ever heard. The song in question is called ‘Everywhere Is War’ & is by a band called ‘The So So Glos featuring Conor Oberst’. I class myself as a bit of a fan of his band Bright Eyes so i was reasonably excited to here what a this would be

Before clicking on the link, just have a quick read of the bands bio on Spotify & see if you can marry this to the godawful song in any way: Influenced by the punk energy of the Clash, the garage rock of the Stooges, and the ’60s pop of the Kinks, the So So Glos are a politically charged punk outfit from Brooklyn, New York

*this is a joke. I am » Continue Reading.

An accompaniment to @dkhbrit post about being hopeless but with a different slant.

What mundane tasks are you really good at?

Warning – self indulgence alert!

Earlier this month I saw Pulp in Sheffield, which according to the little intro video before they came on stage, was their 532nd gig! Rather selfishly, I was more interested in the fact it was my 500th!

What started with a couple of failed attempts (see below) & has taken in some of the biggest names in music, it felt quite fitting that I celebrated this with Richard Hawley & Pulp (two artists I adore) in their hometown.

You may ask how do I know this is my 500th and the answer is that I am an absolute loser who keeps a spreadsheet of details for all concerts I’ve attended! However, this has meant that I have a log of every gig (with supports!) which is a great record to have & is great to look back on.

A few stats;

First – Bon Jovi (9th July 1996) with Skunk Anansie, Ricky Ross & a local band called Alone supporting. As I have mentioned on this site previously, I should have seen Nirvana (27th March 1994) but it was postponed for Cobains overdose in Rome & then ultimately cancelled for the obvious! » Continue Reading.

The band LYR released their latest album last Friday & I reckon I have listened to it about 50 times in the last 5 days! This is an exaggeration to make a point, but I’m probably not out by much. I think it is wonderful & will likely feature on a few end of year lists if there is any justice.

LYR are made up of Richard Walters, Patrick J Pearson & poet Simon Armitage, whose lyrics are as you would expect & are thankfully included as a sleeve with the record. I discovered them by way of the ‘Discover Weekly’ playlists on Spotify in 2021 & the track Cascade Theory was the one that tempted me to delve further.

I’ve enjoyed a lot of albums this year, but this is the most enamored I have been with a new album for a good few years. It has that brilliant thing where something new is jumping out with each listen and each track has a claim to be the best on the LP. Today it is the closing track ‘To The Fashion Industry In Crisis’, but when I had it on last night it was ‘Hockney Red’. On » Continue Reading.

Just posting this here in case it has been missed by anyone interested. This Cultural Life is a BBC Radio 4 show/podcast with John Wilson & is an ‘in-depth conversation with some of the worlds leading artists & creatives across theatre, visual arts, music, dance, film & more’.

I only stumbled across it this morning & have devoured the Nick Cave episode which I thought was wonderful. I have downloaded quite a few more episodes & think it will become a staple of my podcasts if the first one is anything to go by

We all know the format, so let’s share the 8 tracks, a book & a luxury item to keep us busy whilst marooned on a desert island. Also mark which track is the one you would save from the waves..

As a bonus, if you are a fan of the radio show then please share your favourite episode

1 – Tonight We Fly by The Divine Comedy 2 – Atmosphere by Joy Division 3 – Toluca Stars by Underworld 4 – Topaz by The B52’s 5 – Wandering Star by Portishead 6 – Just A Girl She Said by Dubstar 7 – Virile by The Blaze* 8 – On Melancholy Hill by Gorillaz

Book – Vernon God Little by DBC Pierre

Luxury – A 1973 Fender Telecaster Deluxe & amp

Favourite Episode – Nick Park. He introduced me to Fleece The World by John Shuttleworth & if I remember this correctly, I felt that Kirsty Young seemed a little bit smitten with him

As we are now 25% of the way through 2023 (how the hell has that happened?!) I thought it would be grand to see what 2023 releases have wowed you so far.

For me it is this earworm from Iona Zajac called Rubbish Jubilee. I enjoyed it on first listen but it is one I keep going back to

Over to you

It was 60 years ago today that Sam Cooke played the Harlem Square Club & produced what I believe is one of the greatest live albums of all time.

I have it on now & suggest you all do the same.

I’m having a clear out of books (New Year, New Me & everything) & thought some would be of interest to you lovely lot. All I ask is for the cost of the postage or a contribution to charity.

Below is a list and if there any you fancy then send me a message & I’ll get them sent recorded delivery (should be about £4 for postage and the envelope I reckon). I can then share my PayPal details. Or as mentioned above, something to charity would be grand.

Jim Bob from Carter USM tweeted this morning as below;

‘Based on an early morning trip to Tesco I have decided that all Christmas Songs recorded since Fairytale of New York are rubbish’

I disagree with this as I think there have been a few crackers (SWIDT), although I do believe that FoNY is a classic despite suffering from the curse of being over played these last few years.

A couple of great Christmas tracks beloved by the little ones are below

The new Björk track has just been released & I think it is a good un.

That drum sound is second to none & sounds great through headphones. Hopefully a good indicator of the upcoming 10th album

Spotifys Discover Weekly threw up the Matt Berry track ‘Take My Hand’ this morning. I find the studio version a bit dull & forgettable if I am honest. However, the live version of this track is absolutely storming & has an energy to it that is lacking in the former.

Are there any other tracks where this is the case?

The shortlist has been announced & nothing of great surprise on there by the looks of it.

*This year’s Mercury prize nominees* Jessie Buckley and Bernard Butler – For All Our Days That Tear the Heart Joy Crookes – Skin Sam Fender – Seventeen Going Under Gwenno – Tresor Kojey Radical – Reason to Smile Little Simz – Sometimes I Might Be Introvert Fergus McCreadie – Forest Floor Nova Twins – Supernova Self Esteem – Prioritise Pleasure Harry Styles – Harry’s House Wet Leg – Wet Leg Yard Act – The Overload

Of those listed I very much enjoyed the Yard Act & Self Esteem ones, but I’ve not got to one or two of them yet (although i have heard some good things about the Harry Styles one). I will address this over the coming days.

Are there any glaring omissions? For me the album of the year has been SOAK with ‘If I Never Know You Like This Again’ & I doubt it will be surpassed. I have listened to it at least once a day for a couple of months now & it gets better each time. Would love to see them get some deserved recognition.

» Continue Reading.