1972 was my pop music year zero – just turned 9 and I discovered Top Of The Pops for the first time, and just as glam rock was taking over the charts. Hearing Slade’s “Mama Weer All Crazee Now” takes me right back there.

The golden age of the cap-sleeve t shirt

Puts me in mind of the Rod Stewart lyric: “She was tall, thin and tarty/And she drove a Maserati”

Pretty feeble list – I think I’d more or less parted company with Q by this time. 1996 was the year of the Afghan Whigs’ Black Love, Screaming Trees’ Dust and Labradford’s self-titled third to name three that b […]

Ooh, my kind of thread. In no particular order: Rolling Stones – Exile On Main St Iggy & The Stooges – Raw Power Van Morrison – Into The Music Various – The Harder They Come Soundtrack Sly & The Family […]

This, from Sometimes Salvation by the Black Crowes: To lessen my troubles I stopped hanging out with vultures And empty saviours like you

Listening to: Willie Nile – a late discovery for me, I think from someone mentioning a gig they’d been to that was read out on Marc Riley show. Now thoroughly immersed. Dungen – filling in the gaps in my col […]

Happy Birthday! I’m 60 next month.

My favourite version of this song, Colin, and second only to Who Knows Where The Time Goes as my favourite Fairport performance.

It marks a transitional sweet spot that’s brilliant but fleeting. See also Beggars Banquet, Filles De Kilimanjaro, Heart Attack And Vine etc

I’d argue that the odd bum note simply adds to its in-the-moment charm. It still has tremendous impact and shows a shit-load of ambition

She did

Seconded!

The greatest Rolling Stones track is this deep cut from Exile:

Got my copy on Friday last week. It is, indeed, excellent. Thanks for the review @Colin-H – I expect those 200 copies are going to sell out quickly

George W Bush’s Secretary of Homeland Security – but I don’t think anyone’s ever confused me with him

Meaty, Beaty Big & Bouncy was always their best singles compilation, and contains a version of I’m A Boy that doesn’t seem to be available anywhere else.

They were the first grown up band I loved, but came to them too late to see them live in their prime. Stylistically Live At Leeds (expanded) is all over the place, but I think that’s precisely the point about […]