troubled diva

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Friday, May 07, 2004

I would be failing in my duty...

...if I didn't post a reminder that The Scissor Sisters are appearing tonight on Later with Jools Holland. They may be big stars now, but they're still my band. None of that "build 'em up, knock 'em down" nonsense round here, thank you!

Nevertheless, I do now need a new "pet band" to bang on about until they become huge. The current lead candidates are Dogs Die In Hot Cars (two singles to date, both terrific), but I might yet give the gig to Selfish C**t, depending on what I think of them next Thursday at Club NME @ Stealth. Any other suggestions?

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Now that she's dropped the Bunton, does Emma go under E?

Buni came round last night to help us shift the furniture around (we've been having something of a re-vamp). While he and K did most of the heavy lifting in the sitting room, I sat on the floor in the hall, re-alphabetising various merged piles of CDs. Job finished, the three of us sat down to dinner.

"Well, that was a fair division of labour", I chirped, tucking into my salmon. "You boys did all the butch stuff, and I filed my CD collection."

"God, I hate that sound", K snarled.

"What sound?"

"That constant shuffling of plastic. It's like having to listen to you f***ing your lover in the next room."

He's good, isn't he?

(My reply, though devastatingly effective, is sadly non-bloggable.)

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Thursday, May 06, 2004

Eurovision 2004 preview: the semi-finals, 2nd half.

12. Lithuania - What happened to your love - Linas & Simona
I can't help but feel that this is trying too hard to be too many things at once, as the straightforward old-fashioned pop of the song itself is mixed up with all manner of Latin brass flourishes, oh-so-modern "scratching" effects (it'll never catch on), r&b-style vocal trills (which just don't sound right when mixed with Baltic accents), and clattering percussion (clattering percussion breakdowns are now rivalling "operatic" vocal styles as this year's Big Thing). The overall result is rather fiddly and confused, like an over-ambitious piece of "fusion cuisine" in a mid-market brasserie with ideas above its station. 47 points.

13. Albania - The image of you - Anjeza Shahini
Now, this is more like it. Bearing all the signs of having been assembled by skilful, experienced professionals who have done this sort of thing a good few times before, The image of you builds most effectively - from its gentle ballad-style intro through to its genuinely uplifting chorus, complete with gospel-style choral backing. Just as you think that the chorus might be in danger of outstaying its welcome (how exactly are they going to fill the last minute?), the song shifts into what you assume must be its mid-section breakdown. The mood drops and builds back up; the gospel element becomes more pronounced; the choir become more animated; the already high-pitched Anjeza lets rip with the really high notes; and then - now, this is the clever bit - having saved all the best bits till last, the song ends there and then, without need of a final chorus. To do well in Eurovision, you've got to wow us in the last minute, and this is where the Albanians truly succeed. 77 points.

14. Cyprus - Stronger every minute - Lisa Andreas
After God knows how many uptempo numbers in a row, this stately, timeless orchestral ballad - of the sort that gets all the "bring back the orchestra" diehards of a certain age squealing with glee - is well placed in the draw, offering a refreshing change of mood. Some lovely touches in the orchestration serve to lift the song above the pedestrian, and Lisa carries the tune ably enough - despite an oddly squeaky voice that might have benefited from a bit of "bottom", as it were. The whole thing threatens to splutter to an early halt at around the two minute mark, with a rather conclusive sounding "please stay" mid-section, before gathering its skirts up again and making a spirited dash for the finishing line. Not really My Kind Of Thing, but I doff my cap respectfully to its craft. 64 points.

15. FYR Macedonia - Life - Tose Proeski
In a word: overwrought. Despite some skirling Eastern strings on the chorus, (and if this moves Wogan to trot out his "whiff of the souk" quip ONE MORE TIME, I'll... I'll... I'll... well, I don't know WHAT I'll do, but it WON'T BE PRETTY) and an awful lot of sweaty heaving and straining on the part of Mr. Proeski (I'm seeing throbbing veins on temples here), it doesn't really add up to an awful lot at the end of the day, does it? Meanwhile, the tortuously self-analytical lyrics ("roaming through my old emotions, I find new feelings of misery") could have been lifted straight from a particularly angst-ridden teen-goth Livejournal entry. 42 points.

16. Slovenia - Stay forever - Platin
Plod, plod, plod. You know, it's at times like these that my whole commitment to Eurovision is called into question. Yeesh, is that the time? Have we really got six more songs to go? Still? The best I can say for Stay Forever is that it makes an ideal toilet break. Don't all rush at once! 5 points.

17. Estonia - Tii - Neiok�s�
Now, this is where we sort the sheep from the goats. If your acquaintance with the ESC is strictly limited to giggling with your mates in front of the telly once a year, then you'll find plenty to scorn in Estonia's throaty, choric, minor-key "ethnic" offering (and hark, is that the sweet sound of yodelling which I hear once again?). If, however, you have demonstrated a long-term commitment towards the contest, spread over many years of diligent, thankless effort, then the likes of Tii will cause you no difficulties. If you liked Finland's Aava from 6 years ago, or maybe the Belgian runner-up from last year, then this will probably be right up your street. Why, even as I type, I can see the flaxen-haired maidens running through the pine forests in their diaphanous muslin frocks. (Which is possibly the main problem with this entry: it sounds less like a song, and more like an interval act.) 62 points.

18. Croatia - You are the only one - Ivan Mikulic
Cripes, the booze is really pouring through me tonight, haha. Can't imagine what's the matter with me. Er, shall I uncork another bottle on my way back? No, it's no problem at all - leave it to me. I SAID LEAVE IT TO ME. In a word: piss-poor. 8 points.

19. Denmark - Shame on you - Tomas Thordarson
OK, let's run through the check list.
Clattering thwackity-thwack percussion? Check.
Discreet touches of flamenco guitar, to capture that Mediterranean vote? Check.
Key change? All present and correct, SAH.
Operatic yodelling? Sorry, we ran out of funding for operatic yodelling, but we've made up for it by rhyming "FYE-ya" and "diz-EYE-ya" in the chorus; would that be an acceptable substitute?
Oh, it would, it would! Denmark, I kiss you! 55 points.

20. Serbia & Montenegro - Lane moje - Zeljko Joksimovic
Sorry, but what is it with all the clattering percussion this year? Has everybody been forced to listen to the Pet Shop Boys' Se A Vida E before putting pen to paper, or what?

(Which gives rise to another thought: the days of the in-house orchestra may be long gone, but couldn't we all have a whip-round and hire those lesbian drummers instead? Because, with this year's selection, they'd have a field day. What were they called? She-boom, wasn't it? Yes - them. Get them on a plane to Istanbul this instant.)

Anyway, the clattering percussion on Lane moje is of the more muted kind, complementing rather than smothering the mood - which is all chest-beating Balkan butchness, pan-pipes of the forest, skirling gypsy violins, the works. I've developed a real soft spot for this sort of stuff over the years, and this is a fine addition to the canon. 67 points.

21. Bosnia-Herzegovina - In the disco - Deen
The riff from Hot Stuff meets the bassline from The Chase, as Deen indulges in a veritable homage to Giorgio Moroder. Listening to his vocal performance, words like "fey" and "lisping" spring inexorably into mind and lodge themselves there, no matter how hard I try to dismiss them as the residue of some long-buried internalised homophobia. (But come on, she's GOT to be in The Gays, right? I've seen the photos.) So, can we - dare we? - expect another Paul Oskar moment here? (Iceland, 1997, leather kecks, couch, S&M girlies, fond of stroking himself.) A nice try at over-the-top campery, but - like Paul Oskar's offering, in fact - there's a certain thinness at the heart of In The Disco which ultimately works against it. And, really, Donna Summer should sue. 63 points. Nearly there, kids!

22. Netherlands - Without you - Re-union
A-ha! Like Rollo & King at Copenhagen in 2001, Re-union come out of nowhere with a simple, good-natured breath of fresh air, which compares most favourably with all the laboured twittering/tubthumping/thwackity-thwacking of the last few songs. Easy guitar strumming, a touch of piano, pleasant harmonies and a memorable soaring falsetto in the chorus are all that are needed to make this a dead cert for qualification. The fire/desire rhyme (this year's third, and counting) is merely the icing on the cake. In a word: breezy. 70 points.

Mike's Semi-Final Top 5:
1. Belarus: My Galileo (or, as the artists themselves pronounce it: Magga Lee Lay Low) (93)
2. Ukraine: Wild dances (89)
3. Albania: The image of you (77)
4. Finland: Takes 2 to tango (75)
5. Netherlands: Without you (70)

Jump to next part.

Labels: eurovision, eurovision2004

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Wednesday, May 05, 2004

Thrill to my tulips.

Come tiptoe with me
Through the PDMG.
So much beauty to see
For you and for me.

Spring bulbs are in bloom
Dispelling all gloom.
The tulips so gay
Chase all troubles away.

Take my hand as we walk
Twixt stem, leaf and stalk.
Cottage gardens in Spring
Are the loveliest thing!

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Window Into My World: The Troubled Diva Pointlessly Detailed Journal Theme Week. (5)

Jump straight to Part One.

And so, on the Friday, after four virus-stricken days of what I can only assume was some sort of divine punishment for attempting to bore the arses off my readers, I finally showed up for work. It was then that I realised that this had been the first week in over six months where being off sick wouldn't have caused huge deadline problems. What an impressively organised immune system I must have.

I leave the office at 16:00, and head straight for the railway station, where I hook up with K. A pleasant journey ensues, down in the "quiet zone" at the far end of the train (it's always worth making the extra journey down to the end of Platform 5). Arriving at St. Pancras station, we are surprised to find ourselves in a brand new building which has been attached to the end of the original Victorian structure (now closed). All this unexpected newness is most disorientating. We jump into a taxi and head off for the newly opened Malmaison hotel in Farringdon (on Charterhouse Square, near Smithfield market). Yes, it's another of those dreaded "boutique hotels" - but, well, look: we had recently stayed in the Birmingham Malmaison and enjoyed it a lot, and our "free bed in Brixton" mates were away for the weekend, and K had found a special weekend deal, and, and, and... So OK, we never learn. But please allow us our materialistic delusions; for they bring us great happiness. Nirvana through shallowness, remember?

Anyway, the hotel is suitably well-appointed (all low-lit clear surfaces in regulation dark brown), the staff are charming (at the reception desk, a sewing kit is procured within seconds) and the room is delightful (ooh, jasmine and geranium body wash!). We unpack and head straight out again, reaching the Royal Festival Hall in good time. Out of the office at four; sipping a G&T at the RFH by ten past seven. This is all going so smoothly! We should do this more often!

The support act is a guitarist and singer from Cadiz called Javier Ruibal, who performs with a second guitarist and a young percussionist. Together, they deliver a stunning set - full of energy, spirit and skill, and far in excess of anything which we might have imagined from a support act.

Another G&T later, and we are back in our seats (fifth row, dead centre, level with the stage) for Omara Portuondo, the 73-year old Cuban singer who achieved global recognition on the strength of the Buena Vista Social Club project. With the death last year of both Ruben Gonzales and Compay Segundo, only two of the film's big names are still with us (the other being the incomparable Ibrahim Ferrer); we had therefore booked seats as soon as we found out about them, keen to experience at least one of the remaining performers while there was still a chance.

As Omara is helped onto the stage from the wings, her physical frailty is immediately evident. The moment that she reaches centre stage, spotlights upon her, all traces of that frailty disappear. The moment that she opens her mouth for the first song, both K and I burst into tears.

(Honestly, what are we like? A generation ago, we might just as easily have been swooning over Shirley Bassey or Dorothy Squires. "Shiz a fookin STAR, intshi? Shiz built erself up from NOOTHING, and NOOTHING can take that away from er now; NOOTHING!")

Omara and her fifteen(?) piece Cuban band (containing such great musicians as the nattily togged Papa Oviedo, master of the "tres" guitar) proceed to thrill and delight us for the next hour and three quarters. During some of the better known dance numbers, various members of the audience spontaneously leap out of their seats and start dancing in front of the stage - prompting K to hiss in my ear: "They've obviously all been to their salsa classes on Friday nights, then." As indeed they probably have; but oh, how wonderful it must be to be able to dance with the skill that the best of them are displaying. (My own skill levels begin with sweaty pogoing, end with hands-in-the-air raving, and are probably best confined to wedding discos and dodgy podiums in provincial gay clubs on school nights.)

During one of the massed dancing sessions, a member of the audience hands Omara a large bouquet of cut flowers. With all the excitable glee of a slightly gawky teenager, she waves the bouquet above her head, showing it off to the rest of us like a trophy, the years visibly slipping away. (Indeed, she waves it around so vigorously that she manages to knock her microphone off its stand, sending it tumbling to the floor.) Throughout the show, her effusive character adds a pleasing degree of mild chaos to the proceedings. At the end of some of her livelier numbers, after the band have finished playing, she will keep the chorus going, acapella style - then bringing the rest of us in, singing and clapping along, building us up in volume - then turning and motioning to her band to join in for a spontaneous reprise. At the end of the show, we can see her at the edge of the stage, almost in the wings, refusing to leave until she can bring the band back on for two more numbers. We see her remonstrating with officials, pleading, insisting, refusing to take no for an answer, and finally getting her own way. A world class act. Music just doesn't get better than this.

After the show, I pick up a text from David. He's at the Two Brewers (a gay pub in Clapham with a dancefloor and a late licence) and we're welcome to join him there. I put the suggestion to K; he is not keen. "Going to the Two Brewers after Omara Portuondo would be like finishing a gourmet meal with a Cornetto", he declares, not inaccurately. Instead, we head back to the hotel bar for a couple of quiet beers (and, in my case, a nice Cuban cigar; well, it only seems fitting). Tomorrow is Art Day; we need clear heads and a reasonably early start.

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Tuesday, May 04, 2004

Eurovision 2004 preview: the semi-finals, 1st half.

This year - to the ecstatic delight of some, and the horrified disbelief of others - Eurovision graduates into a two-day event, with a semi-final on Wednesday May 12 and a final on Saturday May 15. In the semi-final, 22 songs will compete for 10 places in the final, where they will join 14 songs from last year's most successful countries (plus the four countries which always ~~stump up the most dosh~~ generously provide a large proportion of the funding for the event, thus guaranteeing themselves a place).

With no less than 36 (woo!) songs taking part in this year, I am splitting my preview into three sections - starting with the first 11 songs in next Wednesday's semi-final. This will be shown live on BBC3, complete with tele-voting, but without the drama of the scoreboard; the ten qualifying songs will simply be announced at the end of the contest, in no particular order.

1. Finland - Takes 2 to tango - Jari Sillanp��
Tonight on Stars In Their Eyes: Michael Ball is... Marc Almond! Singing tango! With just the merest hint of Mamma Mia! Ludicrous but oddly likeable, like all the best Eurovision is supposed to be. Bonus points for the key-change. 75 points.

2. Belarus - My Galileo - Aleksandra & Konstantin
Utterly, utterly demented - and yet, quite, quite brilliant - this comes on like a kind of Eurodisco barndance, with folksy "ethnic" touches, a flute player who appears to be listening to a completely different song altogether, and - best of all! - yodelling. Oh joy! With quite the most eccentric vocal performance of this, or indeed of any other Eurovision, this could either sweep the board or flop completely. One of my personal favourites. 93 points.

3. Switzerland - Celebrate - Piero Esteriore & the MusicStars
Achieving the rare distinction of running out of ideas within the first 15 seconds, not even two (count 'em!) key changes can save this truly pitiful attempt at clap-along jollity. Look, even I could have written a better song than this. Seriously. So simplistic that it makes Jemini's Cry Baby look like Stairway To Heaven by comparison. 7 points.

4. Latvia - Dziesma par laimi - Fomins & Kleins
The normally dependable Latvia have served up a right clunker this year, with a stridently yowling mid-paced rocker that will appeal to almost no-one. No flow, darlings. Deeply unattractive. 12 points.

5. Israel - Le'ha'amin - David D'or
Ooh, is that what they call a counter-tenor? I'm that ignorant. "Operatic" seems to be one of this year's big Eurovision trends, and our David certainly has an impressive set of chops, soaring away above his cheesy James Last-style backing singers into ever higher flights of fancy. Unfortunately, we're firmly in "peace anthem" territory here - possibly my least favourite Eurovision category of all - but a suitably sincere performance may yet win the day, and banish memories of all that "light a candle" nonsense from a couple of years back. Bonus points for the key-change. Are you spotting a pattern yet? 54 points.

6. Andorra - Jugarem a estimar-nos - Marta Roure
Spirited melodic pop which tries hard (and I have to say that I love the way that Marta rolls her Rs), but ends up sounding merely strained and unmemorable. Destined to be lost in the rush. 23 points.

7. Portugal - Foi Magia - Sofia
Do you remember when they wheeled Margaret Thatcher out during the 1997 leadership election for the Conservative party? "Hague. Hague. William Hague. I like William Hague. That's Hague. Shall I spell it for you?" Well, a similar tactic is deployed here by Portugal, who doggedly repeat the song's title (pronounced "foy ma-ZHEE-ya") all the way through their alotted three minutes. "Foi Magia. That's Foi Magia. Vote for Foi Magia. Remember that name now: it's Foi Magia. And here's another quick reminder: Foi Magia. Would you like me to write it down for you?" 31 points. (Parting thought: why does Portugal NEVER submit any fado?)

8. Malta - On again...off again - Julie & Ludwig
So, like, what is it with all this operatic stuff this year? Who deemed this was hip? Did I miss a meeting? Malta have historically specialised in a kind of fresh-faced naivety that straddles the line between "charming" and "twee", and this is no exception: pretty melodic pop, with a groovy dinner-dance backbeat and some frankly hilarious vocalising from our lovely, smiling duo. The middle section - where our Julie completely goes off on one with some smashing operatic arpeggios - is destined to be featured in "ironic" video-clip montages for the rest of recorded time. Luvvit! 65 points (including bonus points for the key-change).

9. Monaco - Notre plan�te - Maryon
Suffering from being the fourth song in a row with the same shuffling Eurodisco backbeat, this is also not helped by Maryon's rather insipid vocal delivery; when given a chance to show off with some freetyle soaring in the middle section, she blows it badly, merely warbling away inffectually until the key change (bonus points!) kicks in. However, the song is partially redeemed by some rather lovely pizzicato counterpoint flourishes, which distract one's attention quite effectively from the essential slightness of the song itself. 50 points.

10. Greece - Shake it - Sakis Rouvas
Ooh, Sakis, you're such a Romeo; you can pluck my bouzouki any time! With an unabashed cheesiness that is more over-ripe Roquefort than understated Feta, Shake It undoes all of its hard work with a moronic, repetitive turkey of a chorus - after which, not even a rousing percussion breakdown can save it. (And where, pray, is the key change after the percussion breakdown? If ever a tune was crying out for a key change, then this was it. Haven't you read the rules?) However, I am awarding extra special bonus points for being the first of this year's entries to rhyme "fire" (FYE-ya!) with "desire" (diz-EYE-ya!). 51 points.

11. Ukraine - Wild dances - Ruslana
Yes! Yes! Yes! This is why we love Eurovision so much. Vying with its neighbours in Belarus in the Totally F***ing Bonkers stakes, this is an almost impossibly exciting piece of rousing Cossack dervishry, fronted by a belter of a singer who comes on like Shakira on uppers. I can see her now, twirling her fringed gypsy skirt in the glow of the campfire, as all around her do that cross-armed squatting dance that plays such havoc with the joints. Total entertainment! 89 points, including a bonus for the impressively inept trumpet player (we had one like him in the school band).

Jump to next part.

Labels: eurovision, eurovision2004

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The Troubled Diva Old Curiosity Box - re-picks.

Between March 2002 and July 2003 (i.e. just before the whole MP3 blogging phenomenon really started getting into its stride), I ripped, posted and wrote about just over 140 MP3s - most of which were extracted from my own vinyl collection.

Here's a full list of all the MP3s which I published over that period. If you'd like to hear any of them again - or, more altruistically, if there are any favourites which you think newer readers ought to hear - then let me know in the comments box. I'll then select the 10 tracks which I think are the most deserving - or those whose case has been the most persuasively argued.

1. Cristina - Is That All There Is? (1980)
2. Hard-Corps - Dirty (1984)
3. Zulema - Change (1978)
4. Mick Micheyl - L'Amour, C'est Comme Le Café (1963)
5. Gina X - No G.D.M. (Dedicated To Quentin Crisp) (1979)
6. Ultramarine featuring David McAlmont - Hymn (1996)
7. Linda Lewis - Old Smokey (1972)
8. Yazoo - Situation (Francois Kevorkian dub) (1982)
9. The Anteeks - I Don't Want You (1966)
10. Jack Jones & Susan George - That's The Way I've Always Heard It Should Be (1972)
11. C-Bank - One More Shot (1983)
12. Candlewick Green - Who Do You Think You Are? (1973)
13. Two Nice Girls - I Spent My Last $10.00 (On Birth Control & Beer) (1990)
14. Nick Cave - Disco 2000 (2002)
15. Selma (Iceland) - All Out Of Luck (1999)
16. Brainstorm (Latvia) - My Star (2000)
17. Nusa Derenda (Slovenia) - Energy (2001)
18. Le Tigre - FYR (2001)
19. Madan Bala Sindhu - Mehndi / Madhorama Pencha (2001)
20. Double Dee & Steinski - Lesson One (The Payoff Mix) (1984)
21. Justified Ancients Of Mu Mu - The Queen And I (1987)
22. Bobby Charles - Small Town Talk (1973)
23. Bill Withers - Lonely Town, Lonely Street (1973)
24. The Wolfgang Press - Kansas (Assassination K./Kanserous) (1989)
25. The Pop Group - She Is Beyond Good And Evil (1979)
26. Subsonic 2 - Addicted To Music (1991)
27. Billy Preston - Will It Go Round In Circles? (1973)
28. Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft - Der Mussolini (1981)
29. Laibach (Germania) - Sympathy For The Devil (Who Killed The Kennedys) (1988)
30. Dolly Parton - Stairway To Heaven (2002)
31. Class Action featuring Chris Wiltshire - Weekend (1983)
32. Millie Jackson - Go Out And Get Some (Get It Out 'Cha System) (1978)
33. Planet Patrol - Play At Your Own Risk (1982)
34. Horace Andy - Lonely Woman (1972)
35. Lisa - Rocket To Your Heart (1983)
36. Wayne G & Stewart Who? - Twisted (1997)
37. Della Reese - If It Feels Good, Do It (1971)
38. Pete Shelley - Homosapien (Dance Version) (1981)
39. Mick Micheyl - Mon Petit Mecano (1963)
40. Cristina - Disco Clone (1978)
41. Random House - Blue Ice (1996)
42. The Handsome Family - Sunday Morning Coming Down (2002)
43. Salma & Sabina Agha - Mitha Maze Dar (Dancing Queen) (1981)
44. Sally Timms & The Drifting Cowgirls (featuring Marc Almond) - This House Is A House Of Trouble (1987)
45. Fruit - The Queen Of Old Compton Street (1994)
46. Disco 2000 - One Love Nation (1988)
47. Sparks - Looks Looks Looks (1975)
48. Pet Shop Boys - Can You Forgive Her? (Swing Version) (1994)
49. Tindersticks - Rented Rooms (Swing Version) (1997)
50. The Pop Group - She Is Beyond Good And Evil (1979) (second posting)
51. Klein & M.B.O. - Dirty Talk (1982)
52. Flunk - Blue Monday (2002)
53. Divine - Love Reaction (1983)
54. Shirley Brown - Woman To Woman (1974)
55. Barbara Mason - She's Got Papers, But I Got The Man (1981)
56. Barbara Mason - Another Man (1984)
57. Shirley Brown - I Don't Play That (1985)
58. Kevin Ayers - Stranger In Blue Suede Shoes (1972)
59. The KLF - Whitney Joins The J.A.Ms (1987)
60. Salma & Sabina Agha - Toba Toba (Mamma Mia) (1981)
61. Cristina - Is That All There Is? (1980) (second posting)
62. Valerie - All My Heroes Hate Me (2002)
63. Voodoo Queens - Supermodel-Superficial (1993)
64. Kevin Ayers - Town Feeling (1969)
65. Josef K - Sorry For Laughing (1981)
66. Orange Juice - Poor Old Soul (1981)
67. Fire Engines - Get Up And Use Me (1980)
68. Max Wall - England's Glory (1977)
69. Lemon Jelly - Ramblin' Man (2002)
70. Big Hard Excellent Fish - Imperfect List (1990)
71. A House - Endless Art (1992)
72. A House - More Endless Art (1992)
73. Chicks On Speed - For All The Boys In The World (2000)
74. Minty - That's Nice (1996)
75. Soft Machine - Pataphysical Introduction/A Concise British Alphabet Part 1 (1969)
76. Soft Machine - A Concise British Alphabet Part 2 (1969)
77. Scritti Politti - Lions After Slumber (1981)
78. Patti Smith - Spell (live in Portland) (2001)
79. Anonymous 4 - Novum Decus Oritur (A New Splendour Arises)
80. Cocteau Twins - Frosty The Snowman (1993)
81. Cristina - Things Fall Apart (1981)
82. The D4 - Don't Believe In Christmas (2002)
83. Fun Fun - Happy Station (Scratch Mix) (1983)
84. 2 Puerto Ricans A Blackman And A Dominican - Do It Properly (No Way Back) (1987)
85. Joy - Bloody Murder On That Dance Floor (1988)
86. Tuff Little Unit - Join The Future (1991)
87. Unmen - Also With You (1993)
88. Winston Heywood - Da Doo Ron Ron (1973)
89. B.B. Seaton - I Want Justice (1973)
90. Dandy Livingstone - Think About That (1972)
91. Kevin Ayers (featuring Greyhound) - Connie On A Rubber Band (1972)
92. Lambert, Hendricks & Ross - Jackie (1959)
93. The Soft Machine - Love Makes Sweet Music (1967)
94. The Saints - Know Your Product (1978)
95. King Trigger - River (extended version) (1982)
96. Basement Jaxx vs. The Police - King Of Pain (Basement Jaxx dub mix) (1999)
97. Gloria/Satisfacton - Eddie & The Hot Rods (1976)
98. 30 Seconds Over Tokyo - Pere Ubu (1975)
99. Where Were You? - The Mekons (1978)
100. I Heard It Through The Grapevine - The Slits (1979)
101. New Look Baby - Dolly Mixture (1980)
102. Don't Want To Know If You Are Lonely - Husker Du (1986)
103. Saturday Night Beneath The Plastic Palm Trees - Leyton Buzzards (1979)
104. T.V.O.D. - The Normal (1978)
105. Mind Your Own Business - Chicks On Speed (1999)
106. What A Wonderful World - Nick Cave & Shane MacGowan (1992)
107. Calimero - Stereolab & Brigitte Fontaine (1999)
108. Band Of Gold - Sylvester (1983)
109. Everything's Roses - Fire Engines (1980)
110. Love Sick - Orange Juice (1980)
111. Your Attention Please - Scars (1980)
112. Private Plane - Thomas Leer (1978)
113. Two Tribes (Keep The Peace: 15 minute cassette single version) - Frankie Goes To Hollywood (1984)
114. Mustafa (cha cha cha oriental) - Staiffi et ses Mustafa's (1960)
115. Kabhi Kabhi (Honey Honey) - Salma & Sabina Agha (1981)
116. Fight Fire With Fire - Shay Holiday (year unknown)
117. In The Name Of Love - Sharon Redd (1982)
118. Give Me The Sunshine - Leo's Sunshipp (1977)
119. Jazzy Rhythm - Michelle Wallace (1982)
120. Double Dutch Bus - Frankie Smith (1981)
121. Was That All It Was? - Jean Carn (1979)
122. Avundsjuk - Nanne (Sweden) (1998)
123. Herzensschöner - Rosenstolz (Germany) (1998)
124. I'll Never Be Lonely Again - Sapphire (UK) (1998)
125. Club "Kung-Fu" - Vanilla Ninja (Estonia) (2003)
126. Wherever You Are - Ulrich Schnauss (2002)
127. Under Mi Sleng Teng - Wayne Smith (1985)
128. Am I Normal? - David (1983)
129. Track With No Name - Forgemasters (1989)
130. Billy Cotton - When A Black Sheep Meets A White Sheep (early 1940s)
131. Deutsch Amerikanische Freundschaft (DAF) - Kebabträume (live at the Electric Ballroom, London) (1980)
132. The 101'ers - Keys To Your Heart (1976)
133. Furious Pig - Bare Pork (1981)
134. Crystal Grass - Crystal World (1975)
135. Nitzer Ebb - Join In The Chant (Gold!) (1987)
136. Johnny Dankworth Big Band - Tomorrow's World (1973)
137. The Gun Club - Ghost On The Highway (1982)
138. Laurie Johnson Orchestra - The Jason King Theme (1971)
139. Slapp Happy/Henry Cow - Extract From The Messiah/A Worm Is At Work (1975)
140. Laura Lee - Wedlock Is A Padlock (1970)
141. Hatfield & The North - Your Majesty Is Like A Cream Donut (incorporating Oh What A Lonely Lifetime) (1975)
142. Laura Lee - Women's Love Rights (1971)
143. Prefab Sprout - Lions In My Own Garden (Exit Someone) (1983)

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Sunday, May 02, 2004

Comment of the week...

...came from Alan of Oddverse, in the comments box attached to this post. Because I would hate for any of you to have missed it, I am reproducing it here.

Seven o'clock... Spend an hour tapping away on the laptop, chronicling minutae of existence. K vainly tries to distract me with text messages. "Nkd bloke in street doing push-ups. Snail not dead yet.", but I tap on undeterred. The sun is setting, a glorious blood-orange glow is cast on the wall behind me, dappled through the gently waving leaves of the ancient ash tree that stands guarding the back wall of the garden. Surely there can be no greater bliss than this - a man, a laptop, and somewhere, a boyfriend torturing snails in an effort to get attention...

(On learning of this comment, K smirked broadly - indeed, almost triumphantly - from ear to ear, as I started frantically searching the cottage for hidden webcams.)

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Thought for the day.

There is so much security in knowing it doesn't matter how many times your boyfriend has slept with other people, no-one's going anywhere. If you can be around a succession of great looking one night stands over a certain number of years ... you rather get the impression that nothing is going to take someone away. Lust can't do it. Once you take the sexual jealousy out of it you're left with 'do I want to spend the rest of my life with this person?' And you're free to say yes or no without sex being the issue.

- George Michael, ROTM in this month's Attitude magazine.

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