Life’s A Riot will probably always be my favourite…stark but inventively tuneful and percussive guitar with angry and heartfelt lyrics in equal measure.
Of the more band approach albums, Talking With the Taxman […]

Great review. Big fan of Billy Bragg here, have been since Life’s A Riot back in 83. I try to see him most years and he never disappoints. In an election year his sense of anger and commitment never fails to […]

I’d say for half price give it a go. It is a lot funkier then those two, but a kind of embryonic, post punk kind of funk, if that makes sense.

I saw them about 3 years ago at a festival in Brighton. I only have one single by them, 1981’s Lil’ Red Riding Hood, so I can’t claim to be an expert. I wasn’t even there to see them particularly, I was much more […]

Great interview Steve, as a fellow fan those are just the questions I would have wanted asking.
I couldn’t understand why The Big E wasn’t huge but hey, as is suggested here, if it had been, would they still be […]

Simpering Wreck, that so perfectly sums up my attitude towards the farcical situation we now find ourselves in that I can’t actually follow it. Well said Sir.

That’s a great song. The current incarnation is called The Chords UK (the original singer long having relocated to Japan I think) and they still do a lot of gigs, Chris Pope is now the singer but I don’t think […]

Fourth place behind the Purple Hearts?? Very controversial Rigid!
Yes, Beat Boys is a very good album which still very occasionally gets an airing. I also got the follow up, “Ambience,” at the time, of which […]

A friend of mine thinks his voice is beguiling. I just find it deeply annoying. The same as I find his stage movements, (hunching over the piano etc) which just make me cringe.

HEARD
Bit of a barren month for new music stuff quite frankly, to me anyway. Been mostly listening to podcasts for the last few weeks (Everyone Loves Guitar and Baker/Lineker’s Behind Closed Doors.)

SEEN
Finally […]

I think it might well be that a lot of the noodling on Dire Straits albums mean a good few of them could do with editing, or at least a trim.
With my punk and new wave tastes I really ought to be a Straits […]

Oh great call on Dance by The Lambrettas, or surely “Da-a-a-ance” or however it was originally spelt in 1980? Great new wave/mod revival song. Think they were seen as a slightly naff crew of Jam impersonators at […]

Oh, another one for What’s Up by 4 Non-Blondes. I have been known to belt this one out very loudly if it ever comes on in the car…

Just as a brief update to this, her first week went really well and she seems to be having the time of her life. Really pleased for her. We weren’t even going to mention potentially visiting until she brought it […]

John, that’s a little bit how I felt about it too before mine got old enough but as Moseleymoles says it is rightly very different these days. Don’t forget that this is the generation who have (in many cases, but […]

Reading the list I found it interesting how a few shows I started to like more recently because my own kids did. I’m not saying they particularly deserved to be in the top regions of this chart but Inbetweeners […]

That’s a role I covet too, except I’d probably use my own trusty red Epiphone SG. I also have a Green Burns Steer, same model as 1984 vintage Billy Bragg, for those moments when I come over all political and feel […]

As I may have said on here before, I was at the first night of last year’s gigs, at a tiny arts centre in Swindon. Many men (and a few women) old enough to know better found they had something in their eye that […]

The Courteeners…I wanted to like them, as my 18 year old daughter is such a fan. I tried. But really, how on earth are this very dull band so popular? I had previously just assumed they were one of those totally […]