We'll be Surfin’ in Boston…

A Big Wednesday Beach Bag for you
(see also cool new song of the week player below)
The terrible weather (strangely) and an article took me to the Beachboys this week, also because me and My Bro’s are going to be real Beach boys this weekend I may not do a Friday Lucky bag so please accept this in advance.
The article was about a new exhibiton at Tate St Ives “If Everybody Had an Ocean: Brian Wilson: An Art Exhibition”. It’s a collection of popart, Peter Blake etc linked to Brian willson and the boys. It sounds good and links with st ives sufing heritage well too.
Two things sprang to mind on reading the article Jonathon Jones , uses the tired cliché about Brian Wilson: that he went mad and lived in a sand pit. Now like all legends this is based in fact and fits with a simplistic view of mental illness that he reverted to childlike state. Happily the story is more interesting. I’ve scanned it in from Brian Wilson autobiography “wouldn’t it be nice”. So you can read it for yourself, basically it was a slightly wacky attempt to bring the beach into the studio. Considering the mad things rock stars do this is hardly excessive. click on the text/picture for a larger view!













I do think it’s hard on Brian Wilson he seems to have suffered from depression for most of his life, received very little help for it until finally he stopped writing music, the money started to dry up and then people took notice. He’s seems more well now but not entirely happy and yet travels the world spreading joy by playing his wonderful music and yet people still go on about the blessed sand box.



Notional Surfing:Another thing that springs to mind about the title of the show is the story Dave Marsh tells in his seminal rock book “The heart of rock and soul the: 1001 greatest single ever made”. In entry 517 (why so low?) for “surfin’ USA” he recalls growing up in a landlocked middle American town and hearing the tune, in fact mishearing it .What he heard was “if anyone had a notion “ “instead an ocean” he goes on to talk about how fitting this is because the Beach Boys are about the idea of surfing rather than it’s actuality. It’s probably why they are so popular in Britain, where we are a long way from the golden sand of California and where the notion/ the idea of surfing is doubly appealing.

Badge of Honour:Which brings to one of the nicest awards I ever got. We saw Brian Wilson at Glastonbury 2005 on a warm Sunday afternoon, the mud had almost gone and I was there with my family and friends. Too strange things happened firstly I was suprised have few of the songs my friends knew. No, let me explain they new beach boys songs but not the hits. They had grown up in the strange world where “pet sounds” is played more than “best of Beach boys”. Now “Pet sounds” is a master piece but so are the singles.
Anyway once the songs were in full swing everyone was grooving and then we got our award. A women came through the crowd and came up to us and handed us some badges ,saying we deserved them for dancing. On them in yellow writing said the simple universal message “Listen to the Beach Boys”. She smiled and slipped back into the crowd. We were most proud and touched too. I’ve never had a badge for dancing before, of course listening Brian Wilson sing is reward enough but the badge made it doubly special
It seems that this mysterious woman does this a lot which is a really nice and simple way of spreading happiness. I think this her on myspace. (it is she sent me an email, she’ll be handing out more badges at this years Glasto)

By the way isn’t “listen to the Beach Boys” the best piece of advertising, it’s almost zen in it’s directness, some how “listen to Mcfly “isn’t quiet the same.

Retail Tales:While we are on the subject of surf music. I visited Notting Hill this week bear with me. I was in search of obscure Spanish pop. Having fought my way through the crowds on Portobello market. I reached the calm of Intoxica! I can’t believe I’ve lived in London for so long without visiting it. It specialises in 60’s vinyl. Beat groups, girl groups exotica and surf and drag music. I purchased a single I’m not saying what and how much, but while flicking though the racks I saw a record which should by in the Tate exhibition because it was more a work of popart than anything on show normally in gallerys. It was a copy of The GO Sound Of The Slots! By the Revells. Not your standard drag racing record, no this is a slot car racing record. Yes, an entire record of veiled Beachboys and Jan Dean covers, based on what we call Scalectrix. The cover looks great and the song titlea are just as good, there’s even a glossary of slot car slang, Cool.
Now the music may not be great which is farely unimportant as with the notion of surfing above this piece of near mint 12 inch cardboard and vinyl embodies the thrill of the early 60’s, where if you were well off and lived in California there were no limits and even kids games had cool soundtracks.

Is it worth a £100 quid yes and no. £100 will buy 8 mosquito nets to save 8 Ugandan children from malaria. But will also buy one of those god awful webdesignertastic so called popart Al Pacino in Scarface prints you see around a lot.
If you want to find out why records like Revells are so important or where they come from, track down a copy of Tom Wolfe’s “The Kandy-Kolored tangerine-flake streamline baby” which describes this teen culture at first hand. The titles cool and the picture on my old picador is equally wonderful.





Song of the week.






I suppose I should post some beach boys but firstly you should have them already and secondly I couldn’t choose 1 track (help me Rhonda) so, I went for a surf tie in with the twangtastic

Dwayne Eddie track “your baby’s gone surfin’ “

like all twanging surf music it’s big and dumb and wears a big milk feed Californian smile so bright it could weld hotrods with it, burn vinyl or even tan Barbarann’s perfect behind an even deeper shade of brown.

Now where did I put my baggy shorts …

Mr "Boodaful" returns

Celebrity masterchef returns

Hurrah more competitive cooking

Some initial thoughts.
Q. “Sally Gunnel, why do you want to be on celebrity Masterchef?”
Real A. “Well Greg, I was a mediocre sports presenter so thought I’d give this a go.”
Oh and it turns out she’s bobbins at cooking too

Emma Forbes shouldn’t be on the programme as both she and her mum use to present cooking programmes

Cullen skink with sweet corn!!?

and there's one over there too

I wanted to return to the Anthony Gormley show, I have a problem with writing about art as I am aware of slipping into “transplendant cathedrals of form” gushing nonsense. Suffice to say I found the show really good with a range of work that’s worth seeing especially "event horizon, allotment and blind light".


Someone clever is working in Hayward shop so we are proud to bring you obscure objects of desire part1.
Say goodbye to the lack of conceptual art on your desk at work misery with “The Anthony Gormley Mist* Globe”


(* couldn’t be bothered to re-edit the title of my film), also with this handy wipeable film you can take the art you like anywhere. Please note contents may settle during transport, statue may contain a small part.

Things we thought to do to add even more fun to the whole thing.

1.Take a scream mask into the mist chamber.

2.Do a quick change and come out of the mist wearing only a towel, with a rolled up paper under your arm, pipe in mouth like a 50’s Dad at campsite toilet block.

3.Put a slim voice recorder inside one of the allotment castings, you know the thing “erm Mr Gormley can I come out now, erm hello it’s dark in here…”

Look there's one

Anthony Gormley:
Went with R and E to Hayward to see Blind Light, the new Anthony Gormley expo. It’s really special, it’s difficult say which part is best, Event horizon a collection of 31 standing casts of AG spread around the skyline within a mile of the Hayward. Its fascinating piece with these startling figures staring down at you, some hidden some right on the pavement on Waterloo Bridge. We spotted 30 of them!

People have commented that they are like the angels in wings of desire. To me they are very like superheroes poised vigilant on the sky line. After a while you start to see them all over, even where they aren’t !

Inside there are more body casts hanging from the walls and also more of the web computer generated body forms similar to that at the

dome “quantum cloud”. These grew on me, they are a bit tricksy but they bear close viewing.

The are two non AG

body cast pieces a large wielded form called “space invader” in the main room as you enter, which is striking. It’s the size of 2-3 caravans and seems to be falling it’s made of tens of welded bo

xes of differing sizes and looks like a 3d digital video game character 27 tonnes in weight.

The other piece is “allotment” tens of cast concrete boxy figures based on the dimension of the people of a Swedish village. These figures fill a room like vast cityscape, they are all different sizes from child to adult. Moving around the space is quite strange, the blocks have characters of the own, the room is very enchanting and stran

gely witty and humane.

Perhaps the be st piece is “Bli nd Light” a 20 square metre glass box filled with dense mist. 20 or so people at a time enter. Immediately you

can’t see it’s like pitch black but pitch light if you

see what I mean. You can’t see a foot in front of you, people loom very suddenly out of the mist, the walls are invisible until you bump into them.

It is a wonderful piece.

Gormley has been said before has a wonderful

gift of mixing the every day with the sublime. He obviously puts great thought into the work and yet you can take them at one level as playful and even jokey they do however make you think and some are even quite

moving.

Great British Menu -The winners

The Final of Great British Menu.
I was pleased with the general results most of the dishes had a feel of these islands and weren’t frenchified clones of UK food. It will be interesting to see how “star gazey pie” goes down with our Gallic cousins. I am a little sad Atul Kochhar didn’t win anything; I fear that this might be hidden racism amongst the foody classes. I half felt he should be asked to do his fish course as an appetiser but this would be patronising. There was a hint of Daily Express “England as thatched cottages and suet puddings” about his exclusion; I’d hoped that he might corner the Britano-asian vote, sadly not.

The robustness of dishes is heart warming (all puns intended) I see it as triumph for us downcast Saxons, Celts and other assorted migrants against our oppressive Norman foody overlords (see most food pages) it’s a 941 year old year battle but one we might win. When we do, Beer will be as honoured as wine (Is there a regular beer review in the broad sheets?) cheddar will be as praised as parmesan, the heat and tang of a well made curry as lauded as an “authentic” Daube and the singular beauty of a well made slightly caramelised Eccles cake as championed as a chewy and bland Nata. It will mean editors and writers have to go to Tadcaster and Lough instead of Florence and Aix-en Provenance for their jollies but that’ll be good for the environment too.
past posts on GBM

Whitsat update Pt 1

Is Small beautiful?

Looking at my previous post I just wanted to say how pretty the adult net single cover is, people always bang on about cd sleeves being too small for good design, but 7 inch sleeves aren't much bigger and they look fine.

Also we all have postcards on our fridges which are often very striking and they are similar in scale to cd's. So why don't cd's stand out more. It could be the behind the glass effect of the case dulling the image, plus the clunkiness of the box. card sleeves always feel more appealing. This being said Francis Bacon's pictures are behind glass and they aren't dimmed any. Also why today aren't dvd boxes smaller (I know all about video racks etc thank you) but cd cases shrank? Good design does still exist in pop, my eye was caught by these posters this week.

I may scan in some classic sleeves for you to continue this.



Neologism of the week
Seen on a pub menu "chicken drumlettes" now I know what a drumstick is I'm not sure I want know what goes into a"drumlette".

Whitsun Luckybag

Snappy crackly pop: Songs of the Week
from the volume of downloads from my file site it would seem you all prefer your pop scratchy, crackly with a dose of fizz, well the following should be just the thing.

First up Adult Net: Waking up in the Sun. The ‘net were a vehicle for the former Mrs Mark E Smith, Brix Smith. It’s as the title suggests a sunny beam of joyful Maytime pop, enjoy.
Brix, having added some glamour to The Fall, she and her present partner are sprinkling some more over the Eastend, from their clothes shop.
On the subject of the mighty Fall here’s a list of the members over the years some of whom usually the glamorous female ones have been married to Mr M. E. Smith.

Next up to celebrate their maker’s u turn on veggie whey powder.
The Undertones: Mars Bar. It’s simply brilliant it was the b side of “Jimmy Jimmy” seen here in all its coloured vinyl glory.

Deptford Flower Show.

Look how well my seeds are doing radishes, tommys and Basil. If you want some unusual seeds and want to sock it to those dastardly eurocrats go here for free exotic seeds (sort of)

As seen on TV.
Britain’s leading beer writer Pete Brown and all round top bloke has new a version of last book "three sheets to the wind ",out soon (subtitle "what we did last summer"). He’s also a rising star of the small screen he's on the Culture Show. If half the footage from the shoot makes the tv it should be good stuff. 7.15pm BBC2 Sat.

Golden Square Plus sunshine = mini lunchtime rock festival.

Fire update:
Usually no flames, singeing, scorching, smoke or sparks in 24 hours isn’t news but having survived this long I may have escaped Vulcan’s curse, hang on what’s that smell…..

The only fire service we really trust!

Not so big and clever.

More proof of it's mission towards middlebrow dumbing down, from the guardian. Its sad when a broadsheet journalist is afraid of the odd long word and can't follow an idea longer than a couple of minutes, good choice of biscuit though.

from "Watch this by Sarah Dempster Wednesday May 23, 2007
The Guardian
Jonathan Meades: Abroad Again
7pm, BBC2
Ostensibly a treatise on the career of 19th-century architect Cuthbert Brodrick (he built Leeds town hall before going a bit French and crap), this documentary harbours another, sinister, purpose. To wit: it is the final brick in Meades' Wall of Posh. While his previous discourses have offered some accessibility, this is just impenetrable. Big and clever? Yes. Capable of providing enjoyment when accompanied by a Tunnock's Caramel Wafer? If only."

This is just getting silly pt 10

Workings out how to avoid the trouble with the fire near London Bridge. When the fire alarms went off at work again! No visible fire or smoke when we were let out early. Would have got home early for the match except the tube was packed with train passengers. Burnt me mouth on spud too will this chain of burning never stop?

Fanning the flames

Vulcan! he's back!
another Deptford/Bermondsey fire!
I may have to do a appeasement ceremony or summat!

An unending chain of coincidental combustion

May be, I am cursed or maybe Vulcan is moving his fire balls on to someone else. The Cutty Sark fire is a big shame. Let's hope the damage is superficial, and that it doesn't end up like HMS Victory almost completely replaced with nothing original left.
I was however a little taken aback with the hyperbole about it's importance, I think the BBC et al where going over the top a bit, is it really more important than Sutton Hoo ship, the Marie Rose, SS Great Britain, HMS Belfast, the vikings ships at Bygdøy , USS Constellation, Queen Mary. It's a great landmark and looks good down in Greenwich but let's not get carried away, particularly when Deptford, the Isle of Dogs or Bermondsey where really more Maritime in their hey day (if not as Royal) as Greewwich.
The name Cutty sark comes from an old avenging witch if memory serves.

Ps if Greenwich council were really concerned for Maritime greenwich why do they let all the new horrible housing get built on the fringe of the town centre, or let the pie shop close or possibly allow the market to get turned into fancy flats or for allowing Youngs brewery to close so I have to drink in the union....

The last corner of a your Lucky bag with a few grains of sherbet, a mojo and the tattoos from your germalene bubbly!

breaking good news for a Friday

This is the way, step in side, seats J9-10

Live from Cannes

New Order in 2 good films not a shocker...
Anton Corbin’s new film on the life of Ian Curtis looks good.
The fact that New Order/Joy Division appear in better films that the rest of music industry put together (apart from Slade In flame and that’ll be the day) shouldn’t be a shock, as they are the best band in the world ever.
24 Hour Party People is fantastic and the new film looks good too.
Have New Order broken up? Well considering how long it takes for them to make an album who’d know? Never say never.

update abit later on friday: the picture above wasn't taken In Cannes! I bet Pernod Ricard are pleased Barney's landed in south France there won't a drop left of the dangerous green stuff by tonight.

The Ace Face
Just seen a proper Mod on Carnaby st he was the spit of Stevie Marriot from the faces (which I assume was the point) he even had that hollow checked amphetamine and self abuse street Urchin look about him. Stevie is at the far right as if you didn't know!

So Tanned and Lovely!
Also saw Graham Norton looking tanned and healthy holding a little boutique bag. (What did I say about stars and stereotypes?) a bit ginge in real life too.

Friday lucky bag vol 9

Song of the week
When the wind blows by The Earlies
Ithe Earlies are one of those huge collectives popular nowadays. I first heard them supporting one of my favourite bands HEM. Much as been written about their Trans-global distribution, half of them live Burnley or similar, the other half in Texas. They are the smallest band with the biggest carbon foot print!
They play a mix of rock, folk, country and raga tinged dance which usually gets labelled “eclectic” (in journo speak this means they don’t sound like Coldplay and one of the band may be foreign).
Go and buy their album they probably suffer from “UB40itis”: the condition suffered by the Brum reggae stars i.e. how do you pay for everyone in the band with 10 members!

I don’t how they got their name; my hope is it comes from the same source as “the T’wearlies”. This is a subset of the older part of our community, first pointed out by Cov Blog’s Mum.
In the midlands bus drivers coined the name for the old ladies who loiter at bus stops in the morning flagging down buses and then asking the driver “am I too early?” i.e. “is it 9.30 so I can use my freedom pass?”. This got shortened to “Am I Twearly” (pronounced as twirly). In the wonderful way of English a verb became a noun and the “T’wearlies” were born.
I quite like the idea that boozy rockers modelled themselves on little old ladies.


Solipsism of the week: Ashes to ashes
This is getting out of hand, the trail of fire is falling like lava in a video game, I am swerving and dodging it like Mario after a power up. First it was down the road from home, then down the street from work then the work computer system and now my toaster. The bloody thing wouldn’t go out, once that bloomer style bread hits ignition point it burns “like a saint”. I even burned me fingers! (not badly but ya know it did hurt a bit, it was just some dust in my eye honest, worst things happen at sea…) Hopefully this chain of unconnected coincidence will stop soon.

Call it what you will Choddy, chuddy, chungy just please try to avoid the southern “chewy”. It has led to 2 trains of thought this week. Is it just me or does anyone else remember “BEECH NUT” chewing gum. My Friend A from Leeds was casting doubts on its existence but I remember buying little (1cm) almost square yellow packets (with brown or red ends) of beech nut gum in the hard tablet form. I think Stimyrol came in a similar light blue pack. Beech nut I think was cinnamon flavour and stimyrol aniseed? It was delish.
On the topic of choddy, I think I can coin a new phrase instead of describing a boring, repetitive and unending task as a “Forth bridge job” how about an “Oxford st. job” as every morning I pass a guy with a high pressure hose blasting the gum of the pavement. The first time I saw it the backlit cloud of water vapour made oxford st. look like Manhattan with its steaming road vents!
Ps. When I worked for a south London council it cost £30,000 a year to remove gum from the high street. So Oxford st. must 8-10 times that figure.


Come fly with me!
Found some radio control model films on Youtube. There are some excellent ones
The first is just my favourite things people just having big dumb fun because they can.
These guys (they are American) have a huge model of a Superfortress (B-29 fact fans) a four engined brute, which is cool in its self but they also have a Bell X1 rocket plane strapped underneath, which they launch like the real thing in mid air, cool. They also have mock crash and the crew bail out! Cool.
There are a lot of these films on youtube unfortunately they are mostly too long, badly shot and have dodgy American rock soundtracks!
The indoor rc stunt flying is incredible though.

Beer cannon film of the week!
On a similar note and even though it’s an ad for I think a micro brewery this beer can film is very well done and nicely edited.
Enjoy.
More films barmy Serge Gainsbourge and Bridget Bardot or is it a fast show sketch.

Iggy’s a very rude boy.

Ugliest phone of the week.

Was flick through “mobile choice” (“strapline what to buy and how to use it”) the UK leading mobile magazine when I saw this phone B&O Serene. Two things spring to mind that at £1000 they are a bit of a pricey way to send drunken texts to mates. But also they are horrible, the first thing I thought of when I saw them was those old spring loaded address pad things your parents had. You had to dial a number to find your Aunty’s number and they would spring open. (of course this is like me slagging off the design of the gold taps on Roman Abramovich 's yacht)
Bang Olufson is a strange brand. They occupy the same space as Bose and Lexus i.e. expensive and bland. Now don’t get me wrong I love a properly dampered swishy cd tray as much as the next man and will travel along way to see a nice shiny knob but what it sounds like is most important. I am obviously in a minority here as Nelly Furtado was seen nicking some from a shop on CSI: NY the other night. And she’s reet classy!

Big and clever

Jonathan Meades new programme was on tonight it was excellent as usual. It was about regeneration and was the best and most entertaining thing I've seen about this subject. He coined a good phrase to describe buildings like the guggenheim in bilbao as a "sightbite" a visual snapshot that encapulates a whole city, a visual sound bite. I mean what sort of art hangs in the guggenheim most people don't know ( i don't) but i know about Bilboa thanks to the guggenheim's shape. This stream of babble captures the regeneration worlds' nonsense in a nutshell, remember it the next time the olympics is mentioned.
I also like the way he's not afraid of being clever and expects us to understand.It's not elitist quite the reverse expecting everyone to be thick is high handed and patronising. If occasionally you don't understand a bit, well it's not the end of the world, it's taken me 20 years to understand what a dialectic is. I still remember his telling phrase where he blames a lot of victorian gothic as a side effect of "tertiary sypillis"!

That's almost 10 bob a crisp?

Article in't paper t'day, abart cresps from't up tarn. Not sure oft tone of yon article, I think maybes he wants ta keep uz int past. That being sed I've 'ad summa these cresps and they's reet tasty, a bit pricey mind. Especially coinsiderin' how uz Tykes ar suppose ta be tight and that. Any 'ow the're not a patch on Seabrooks now that's a cresp.
PS. He et yon fancy cresp in that there Catalonia ('ark at 'im), I'm not suprised, I've never tak'n wid ya foreign cresp, they're just not reet. Paprika flavour just doesn't bode well and they allus taste abit stale an all.

Friday Lucky Bag vol 9

Song of the week
Bounty hunter By The Nomads
More crackly fun this week , I now very little about this group, The Nomads. I’d hoped they were this lot but I fear not. It’s probably some session men but it's damn catchy. As Duane Eddy once said the “twangs the thang”, nice whistling too.






Stars in their ties
Saw Stephen Fry in the street this week, don’t you love it when people conform to type he was having a crafty gasper talking on his phone wearing full evening dress (at lunch time) his bow tie undone rakishly. I’d like to report he was witty and delightful on the phone but I fear he was just ordering a cab..


Stars and their pies
Also saw Aled Jones and no he was just “walking on the pavement”, he’s a big lad too many welsh pasties or just loads of cakes baked by doting old ladies perhaps.


Excitement of the week
Put on the big light:
Only 59 days to the new to the new Interpol record. I am very excited. July (9th) seems a strange time for the ‘pol to put new “product” out being the most cheery, sunny, bright and light month and The ‘pol being crepuscular at best. This is also the reason I am concerned about them playing festivals, they are not really a field band.
One song from the new album with the killer title “No I in threesome” shows they are on good form.
I am worried about the ‘tash in the photo though.
There is a rumour that the Editors (worst name in rock) will be putting out a new cd on the same day as the ‘pol (best name in rock). There won’t be much competition really it would be like the producers of the Sopranos worrying about a potential clash with The Bill! All together now “subway is a porno…..”


Finally caught up with some new music thanks to my Bro S. Had a chance to listen to The Gossip “Standing in the way of control” it’s a vibrant piece of punkyness, unfortunately it reminded me of the sort track Tina Carrere’s band “Crucial Taunt” in Wayne’s World would play. Only Beth Dittto’s attitude and personality separate the two bands at first listen.





Solipsism of the week
In an earlier blog about being stalked by the fire god Vulcan (or more likely Roy Wood) well, I may have been too flippant as our office server had small fire this week.
Exciting pictures of fire engines.





























Cocks behind bars with big ears

To Harewood house north of Leeds for a family event. I last went there in 1978 when it was called “Harewood bird garden”, Chippendale chairs not being that exciting to 8 years olds. The bird garden has a sad air now, like a lot of zoos, solitary penguin being teased by children. Mournful pheasants, nice cocks and the odd flamingo.
The most impressive birds were the wild ones, some herons and a red kite which flew close over head (sorry couldn’t get a better picture) oh and next time some one say’s that’s a noddy car here’s the real thing.

















Soviet food adverts of the week
Seemingly real food adverts enjoy.


Soviet film posters of the week
From the same site, truly wonderful

Lyrics of the week
The last song on the new Nick cave album Grinderman mentions “Women’s hour and gardener’s question time”.






Sweet Treat of the week
I’m blessed that both my two brothers are good cooks. Without stirring up anymore internecine competition than already exists. Let’s say they both have areas of skilliance.
Our S is best at pizzas and other veggie treats
Our A is good at many things including “daddy biscuits” and this week carrot cake
My specialties, well modesty prevents….
Al’s cake is from Nigel Slater’s recipes. But that shouldn’t detract from his brilliance.

Film of the week
Do yourself a favour and dust off Dusty.







Guitar hero of the week.
This young lad is lucky the witchcraft laws have been liberalised in the UK or he would be burnt as a witch (or should that be warlock). I fear as the UK gets a nicer place to live, the sheer boredom of suburbia will be reduced, meaning lads like this won’t spend the time in their bedrooms doing the aimless noodling it takes to play like this. So keep Britain boring I say.

Pub(s) of the week
The Town street Tavern
A fine example of how pubs should be, a simple bar that sells local ales, tasty foreign bottled beer, good food (I’m told) no music, no smoke just adults talking and drinking perfect.
They’ve a few other places all seemingly along the Wharf valley!

Bank holiday Lucky Bag

Song of the week

Rosie Thomas and Sufjan Stevens: the one I love
Some new music this week, well a new cover of an oldish song it’s by Rosie Thomas and Sufjan Stevens of “Illinoise” fame. It’s a nice cover of the REM anthem. I was wary of Sufjan initially as he smacked of enforced wackiness, which can get very tiring very quickly but his Xmas album was good, so I’m coming round. I do fear he will be this year’s Baby Bird i.e. produces lots of off beat songs in a short space of time and then disappears.
It’s from an Uncut cd of “Americana” which is the marketing term coined because certain hipsters can’t admit they like country music.

Glossary
Electronica: computer music made by people who own New order and kraftwerk records
Emo: the music your kohl eyed niece likes that “you just don’t understand”
Lo-fi: music made in bedrooms by people who like Pavement
New wave: it would seem any music made by people with guitars in straight trousers and ties since 1979 to present.

Things I learnt from the BBC

From the "antiques road show": Ronnie Corbett, told a good story about how at Ronnie Barkers Memorial service the Cannon of Westminster Abbey organised for the usual procession of 2 vergers carrying two candles to be doubled to four candles!

Also on Radio 2 there was a doc about Mozzer. In it Alan Bennet talked about how Moz use to pop round his place in Camden for tea. Apart from them both only finding Jimmy Clitheroe to talk about, Bennet always found it hard to call Morrissey by his first and only name. In fact he avoided using his name at all. This is strange on 2 counts , firstly because Alan Bennet is always going on about being an outsider and yet his books are full of the famous people he’s met, I think he doth protest too much. Also it’s lucky for him he’s not the sort of Gay man to hang around with Kylie, Lulu, Liza,….

I close my eyes.
Best dream this week is the one where I became for some reason poet in residence at pizza express. Rhymes for pineapple and capricosa please

Bad Tan/tie/teeth/tash of the week
Saw Tim Wonnacott from BBC’s “Bargain Hunt” in “Pret” this week, I felt vaguely queasy, He is the poor man’s Lesley Philips. Like a man who uses a tray purse, men who wear their specs on chain are never to be entirely trusted.






Newsnight Review reviewer review
Saw Mark Lawson in the street presumably on his way to Broadcasting House. He’s a big old fella easily 6” 2, and looks very much like his Viz cartoon character tee hee. As to his walk past a newsstand, I think it lacked conviction and was essentially light weight and sadly thoroughly derivative of Paul Morley a jokey reference to Mark Kermode just as he went round the corner did however raise a smile.





Joke of the week
I went down the local ice-cream shop today, and I said, "I want to buy an ice-cream" The man said, "Hundreds & thousands?" I said, "We'll start with one." He said, "Knickerbocker Glory?" I said, "I do get a certain amount of freedom in these trousers, yes."

Gdansk, Gdansk, Gdnask....

In the world of easy jet and Ryan air many places have become unlikely travel destinations. In fact there will be some people who have only ever been to Estonia or Tallinn and have not enjoyed the delights of traditional tourist spots such as Paris and Venice.

This on the whole is a good thing (we’ll sidestep boorish stag dos and the rise of sex tourism for a minute) but of all the places to offer a tempting break, Gdansk would be the last. That is until I saw this poster on Oxford st. Now for old gits like me Gdansk, if it brings anything to mind, it’s shipyards and Lech Walesa. Closer to home it’s the place one of my forefathers set off from when he headed for the brave new world of Hull.

Cleverly Gdansk has gone for leather coated sexual intrigue, fronting their campaign with a flame haired beauty who seems to be descended from the union of a handsome Polish lancer and a milk skinned piano playing countess, sorry I’ll stop now before I turn into Barbra Cartland.
If you take up their offer, why not print off my useful guide to polish sausage.


Polish Lancer pasta

There are a number recipes inspired by the military, chicken chasseur, garibaldis, boiled eggs and soldiers! This one was brought together from things from the local shop, long thin lance like polish sausages, nice tomatoes and even some basil. I like to think you could make this from the contents of well stocked saddlebag/hedgerow. It’s a variant on the classic tomato and basil pasta sauce, sorry there is no veggie alternative.
Should take 20-30 mins
Will feed 4 depending on how much pasta to sauce you like, just add an extra sausage and more tomatoes.

Ingredients:

Kabanas allow two per person
About 2-3 medium tomatoes per person /or a large tin of plum for everyone
1 onion medium
3-4 cloves garlic
5-10 basil leaves to taste.
Splash of tabsco (optional)
Salt & pepper
Pinch sugar
Couple of inches of tomato puree if your fresh tomatoes aren’t ripe.
Grated hard cheese to sprinkle
Pasta 100-200g person of penne or shells etc

Gently cook the sausage for 3-4 minutes to release their oil and cook them through remove with slotted spoon and leave oil in pan.
Chop the sausage into 1cm coins and set aside
Chop onions into fine dice
In the sausage oil soften the onions
After 3-4 mins add the garlic, cook until the onions cooked and taken a little colour
Chop the tomatoes into chunks (if I’m being fancy I take the skins off)
Add to the onions stir and cover for 5 minutes
Let the tomatoes cook for 10 min or so.
Check seasoning add sugar to bring sweetness in tomatoes and or add puree.
Add in sausages and the tabsco and keep warm on a low heats
Cook pasta something to soak up the sauce up tubes or shells perhaps
When cooked mixed pasta, torn basil and sauce (and little pasta water if sauce too thick)
Serve immediately with cheese passed separately.

This weeks download chart (sort of)
As of last night here are the positions of stuff download from my blog

1. basil.jpg
2. negative pic.jpg
3. Flamenco.mp3
4. radish2.jpg
5. radish.jpg*

*errata wrongly labelled should be “Mustard & Cress”