Ian Brown still can’t sing, but he’s definitely learnt to shout in tune.

I’m still quite surprised they haven’t convinced the Stone Roses to headline since they’ve got back together (I know they were due to in 95). I wonder what festivals will be like in 20 years; they tend to rely […]

There’s a Level 42 tribute band that plays quite often in my local pub. Personally, I think Level 42 made some really good pop singles; they aren’t, however, the sort of band I would expect to inspire the level of […]

Hilton Park, Leigh, 1998. A music festival in a Rugby League stadium. Expected crowd? 12,000. Actual attendance? 450. But Bless Leo Sayer, and his little cheeky chops, he went on and put in such a performance that […]

‘Toxic’…. it’s everywhere, and it’s used to describe even slightly unpleasant atmospheres/environments… I blame Britney Spears.

It may be that, in a similar fashion to Jimmy Saville, this opens the floodgates to lots of other allegations. The odd thing with Jackson is that, despite accusations, he still insisted on ‘friendships’ with kids. […]

I read somewhere that the Spin Doctors quite literally went back to playing in bars. Their reasoning was sound: they love playing music, and they’ll play it whether or not they’re popular.

Yes, I Should Coco still gets played a lot by me.

The Strokes really were a poor version of the Modern Lovers. I simply couldn’t believe the hype they received at the time, and I was 21 when they got big. It was one last attempt by the NME to have that symbiotic […]

The Butterfly Collector by the Jam always threatens to turn into The Crying Game. My mum noticed that one!

I’m sure that a young Noel G. of Manchester was nodding at the pilfering, thinking ‘that’s a good […]

I think Edwyn’s oft-overlooked masterpiece is the acoustic version of If You Could Love Me, which is the B-side of A Girl Like You. It’s made better by the fact that I’ve never met anyone else who’s ever heard […]

Shane MacGowan…sometime in 2006 (?), but definitely in a smallish Manchester venue. He was delayed reaching the venue, so his band at the time, the Popes, just played instrumental versions of the set list. […]

Have I dreamt this up, or did The Smiths-era Morrissey leave the stage because someone threw a sausage that basically landed in his mouth, and he actually bit into it, as it collided with his chops just as he was […]

Good-natured teasing, I assure you, Vulpes. I totally agree that Simon Cowell is a berk, and I’ll always hold it against him that he wears boot-cut jeans to hide his Cuban heel!

I’ll have you know that I saw Simon Callow’s one-man show about Shakespeare: it was brilliant! I also thought he was good in Four Weddings and a Funeral.

In fairness, Red Nose Day has significantly increased the amount of terrible records in the world with an admirable regularity. In the same way that Cambridge University has produced more Nobel Prize winners than […]

‘Tonguing in a gag’ – yes, this was covered well by Fry and Laurie!

I saw this documentary in the wee small hours of New Year’s Day, after stumbling home from a party.

In fairness to the Goss boys: they relinquished all control over the final edit, and some of the arguments […]

It’s interesting that podcasts often replicate what’s gone missing from mainstream radio: an in-depth discussion. I heard, via youtube, Gloria Hunniford interviewing Jeremy Brett, which was originally broadcast on […]

I suppose it must be annoying to be, for example, Cornershop, who made some fab music, but all people would want to hear is Brimful of Asha (the hit remix version). Nirvana stopped playing Smells Like Teen Spirit, […]