Going back to my roots...

I watched a very interesting documentary today about the rise and fall of independent record shops in the UK. It gave a great insight into how music has changed over the years and about the way in which we purchase and learn about new music. It's called 'Last Shop Standing' and if you haven't seen it you should definitely take a look. Find out more about it here. This film made me consider my own journey and how and why I became a music lover in the first place. I know I've touched on some of this before, but I decided to take a trip down memory lane and look into all the things that I remember that have shaped my musical taste, and especially the shops I spent time in.

My parents both loved music and when me and my brother were growing up it featured around us a lot. My mum was a Mod and my dad was a Rocker which made for a very interesting combination. Mum always loved the latest tunes and was a big fan of Cliff Richard and the Beatles. We used to have music playing in the house and in the car all the time and I think this had a big influence on both me and my brother. Dad was a bit of a DJ in his youth and we had a lot of vinyl in the house. I remember the hi-fi unit we had which featured a double tape deck with a turntable on the top and room at the bottom to store your LPs. It stayed with us for a long time and in the LP stack were things like 'Dark Side of the Moon' by Pink Floyd and 'Machine Head' by Deep Purple sitting along side various Beatles albums. I think the first time I heard 'The Chain' by Fleetwood Mac was when I pinched the vinyl of 'Rumours' and played it.

Welcome to the dark side

As much as I heard a lot of music growing up, I didn't begin to buy my own until the late 80's when I would've been around 11 years old. I tended to buy 7 inch singles from places like Woolworths for the latest chart music and I was into the likes of Kylie and especially Rick Astley. I still have Rick's first 2 albums on vinyl, although sadly they are not currently in my possession. When I left London and moved to the Midlands over 10 years ago they didn't make the journey with me. In fact, I am not actually sure where they are. In storage I think. One of my tasks is to be reunited with them at some point soon.

Anyway. I come from East London and grew up in a place called Chingford. You've probably never heard of it, but the most famous person to come from there is probably a little known footballer called David Beckham. Nearby we have Walthamstow (the end of the Victoria Line on the tube) and also Highams Park and both of these places have produced the high quality musical stars (ahem) East 17 and Blazin' Squad. Top class entertainment...

East 17. Who knew one of them would one day manage to run over himself whilst driving his own car

We had a few independent record shops where I grew up which we spent a lot of time in. I had to text my brother earlier to ask him the name of one of them as I couldn't actually remember what it was called! In Highams Park we had a very small shop called 'Master Blaster'. It sold mostly vinyl I recall and I think this would've been where I bought my Rick Astley LP's. It was a tiny shop which had a section of vinyl in the middle and it was very tight to actually move round someone who was looking through the racks. The only other memory I have of buying something from the shop was getting a cassette of 'Some Fantastic Place' by Squeeze as it was an album I didn't have. I still have the cassette somewhere actually.

Chingford is sort of split into 2 main areas for shopping with North Chingford having Station Road and South Chingford having the Mount. Both locations had a branch of a record shop called 'Turntable' which I spent a lot of money in. The one at the Mount was slightly larger and we knew the staff in there quite well. In fact, we went to school with one of them. They didn't stock everything, but you could order stuff in and they would usually be able to get it for you within about a week or so. As far as I know, the shop at the Mount went first during the decline of people buying records in the 00's and was followed by the Station Road branch a few years later. My brother bought some of the storage racks from the Station Road shop when they were having a closing down sale. He also got me a Semisonic mug which they had for the release of the album 'Chemistry' and it's the one I always use for a cuppa when I go home to see my mum.

Chingford. It really is the end of the line.

Walthamstow is larger than Chingford and has a street market which apparently is the longest in Europe. We used to shop down the 'Stow on occasion and it was a treat to visit there as they had a McDonald's and of course a pie and mash shop called 'Manzies' which was amazing. On the high street there was a record shop called 'Sounds Familiar'. It would later change it's name to 'Cavern Records' and this was the place I remember visiting. It was a fairly large shop and had lots of vinyl, and Cd's and you could spend a long time in there checking out the stock. I don't really recall what I bought from there, but it would have probably been some cassettes or CD singles. It's gone now which seems to be par for the course for independent stores. There was also a shop called 'Record Village' which I think was further down the high street, but I don't remember it as well as Cavern.

Meanwhile, down the market...

Another place I bought vinyl from was 'Mike's Record Shop' which is in the indoor market at Wood Street in Walthamstow. It's actually still there I believe and has lots of second hand rare vinyl. I bought some Queen records from there in the mid 90's including the rare 'Queen's First EP' which cost me over £10. Of course you can now pick this particular EP up online for just a few quid, but I'm glad I got my copy by sifting through piles of records and finding a little gem for my collection in a proper record shop rather than faceless online purchasing.

My other half comes from Liverpool and I asked him about buying records where he grew up. He told me that the first record he bought was 'Dancing in the Dark' by Bruce Springsteen on 7 inch vinyl. To be honest though, bought is a bit of a lie. Now, hang on a cotton picking minute here. Do not go stereotyping please. The story is this, apparently when you purchased a pair of shoes from Clark's shoe shop they gave you a voucher for Woolworths to go and spend on a record. He used his voucher to get the aforementioned Springsteen single and thus started his collection. His vinyl now mostly comprises of 90's dance tracks as this was what he was into at that time. Compared to my britpop and rock albums it does make a rather interesting talking point.

Hey baby!

I still have my 7 inch singles somewhere (probably in the same storage place as my albums I guess) and I got some of these from a newsagent in Chingford Mount. It was a typical newsagents with magazines and sweets etc, but for some reason in the middle of the shop there was a white carousel type thing (the kind of stand you find greeting cards in) filled with vinyl singles in white sleeves. They had all sorts of stuff from chart hits to slightly older singles and all marked up from 50p to £1. We would spend ages in there getting in everyone's way while we hunted through to find a bargain. I believe this is where I got my single of 'We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off' by Jermaine Stewart. It never actually occurred to me as to why this shop was selling records as it's kind of strange when you think about it. I just knew it was somewhere else that I wanted to go when I was at Chingford Mount.

Another of my posts talks about the decline of record shops so I won't go into that again, but let's just say that when I think back to when I was younger and visited the places I've mentioned above it now makes me sad. I grew up visiting those shops and now none of them actually exist anymore. It is comforting to know though that more independent shops are appearing and that youngsters are visiting them to purchase music. I think Record Store Day is a massive help and I am looking forward to this year's day on 18th April. Check out what is happening in your local store and join in and support the local retailers. Go on, you know it makes sense!

I want my music television...

Music television. No, not MTV. I'm talking about television programmes featuring actual music. With musicians on them. You know, to chat and perform like. I can remember a time when there used to be a few of them on and I probably watched most of them. This was some years ago, but it makes me realise that the choice for programmes about music especially on terrestrial television now is pretty sparse. Were they actually any good though or was it all just a load of old rubbish? And what is missing from our telly boxes in 2015?

I want my, I want my...

Before we look at all of that though, here is an article from the Guardian on why any shows on music that we have had on TV previously are apparently so bad. It raises quite a few questions and will leave you with some stuff to ponder I think. Have a read here.

Well then. Let's start by going backwards. What did we have to watch in the past? Well for me it was things like 'The Tube', 'Top of the Pops', 'The White Room' and any of the chat shows that had a music slot on them such as 'TFI Friday' for example. There was also 'Later with Jools Holland' which still graces BBC2 now. I'll skip that one for now though as I have somewhat of a bee in my bonnet about 'Later' at the moment. 'The Old Grey Whistle Test' was another good one, but that was slightly before my time.

There were also programmes on the satellite channels with this mainly being things on MTV. I mean, that's what the channel was designed for and why Sting was droning on about it with Dire Straits (link to blog title right there, woo!). It was the platform for music videos and bands took this on board and started to realise that by making a kick ass video it would sell the song more. MTV started in 1981 and as you will probably know the first video ever played was 'Video Killed The Radio Star' by The Buggles. Factoid alert - The Buggles featured none other than "The man who invented the eighties" himself, Trevor Horn. I bet you knew that didn't you? Yep. MTV also had various programmes in their schedule and my favourite from the 90s was 'Most Wanted' which was hosted by Ray Cokes. It had chat, live performances and plenty of messing around which seemed to appeal to my sense of humour. It was a shame when it finished in 95.

Anyway. Thursday night was Top of the Pops night when you got to see what was in the charts that week. I don't recall being overly interested in it when I was younger, but when Rick Astley appeared in the charts (my hero!) I became keen to know if he was performing that week. It was the thing to watch and I guess I would've seen it pretty regularly from the late eighties well into the mid nineties. The show was pulled in 2006, but Christmas specials still seem to appear each year. The spin off show TOTP2 is still running and shows archived footage, although they have to be a bit careful about what they show now due to who some of the presenters of the original show used to be. Moving swiftly onwards...

'The White Room' was a Channel 4 programme which ran for a couple of years in the mid nineties. It was hosted by Mark Radcliffe and focused on performances rather than chat with the artists. Bands like Oasis and Suede played on it, but it obviously didn't have the legs or maybe the viewing figures to keep going as it's stint was rather brief. Here's the wonderful Supergrass performing live on the show.

As I mentioned there were some weekly entertainment shows which featured a live musical artist on them. We still have a few of those now I guess. 'TFI Friday' was probably the one I watched the most as Chris Evans was a good host and the music was mostly britpop era bands which I enjoyed listening to. It ran from 1996 to 2000 (on a Friday night obviously) and was a good way to end the week, hence the name! I actually have a negative of The Bluetones which was taken during one of their performances on the show. Cool huh? Have a look below. I've heard just this week that Chris Evans has hinted that the show will be back in June 2015.  Watch this space on that one!

So I guess we have to talk about 'Later with Jools Holland'. I have nothing against Jools personally, in fact he is a fabulous musician and as Squeeze are one of my favourite bands I can't fault him. BUT, I don't watch the show very often now, if at all. I did, however watch it a lot years ago as he had some awesome artists on it. As regular readers will know my all time hero is Neil Finn and Crowded House are my number one band. Well, they have played on the shows a considerable amount of times over the years which pleased me greatly. In the nineties a lot of artists I liked got to play and I still have VHS tapes (seriously) of episodes featuring some great acts. I don't actually have a VHS player anymore and I can't watch them, but never mind about all that. So what is wrong with 'Later' now? I guess it's just become too pedestrian for want of a better word. It seems to feature a lot of MOR artists and doesn't seem to have the same excitement of new and groundbreaking music. I don't watch the yearly Hootenanny shows either as it's the same artists each time and it doesn't interest me that much to be honest. I saw an episode of 'Later' last year as Neil was on it to play some songs from his new album and when Jools had a little chat with him and showed him a video clip of a Split Enz song, Neil told him that the exact same clip was used the last time he was on the show. Slightly embarrassing for the so called researcher I would've thought. I remember seeing a comment recently from someone on Twitter about the programme saying "I always record 'Later' so I can fast forward through all the shite that's on it". I have to say, I do exactly the same thing and it makes it a lot easier to watch.

At the moment I think the BBC4 channel has the best music programmes on it. I have thoroughly enjoyed shows on singer songwriters, rock, goth and other such areas of music and it's the channel I always check to make sure I'm not missing something fab. I was quite dismayed to hear that there was a possibility that it would be taken off air last year and I really hope this doesn't happen. Bearing in mind that there is a distinct lack of music shows on telly now it would be a real shame to take away the only channel that actually has something good on it! The recent 'Top of the Pops' shows from the eighties have been great fun to watch.

I suppose I have to make mention of the reality music shows that grace our screens throughout the year. Just as one ends, another one seems to start. I don't watch any of them though as I sometimes feel that we should have surely found all the talent we have by now. Some of these shows have been going for years and I have to admit I can't name very many of the 'stars' they have produced. I know and like Will Young and I'm pretty sure One Direction came out of one of these shows, but I don't think they actually won it though did they? I do like the premise of 'The Voice' more than any of the others as this is solely based on what they judges can hear rather than what the person looks like. My issue with this show however, is the judging panel. I don't really feel that any of them (with perhaps the exception of Tom Jones) can claim to be experts on talent. I mean, Rita Ora? Come on. Na. Sorry, not my cup of tea.

I guess the question therefore is what kind of music show would you like to see? For me, it would have to be one that includes some serious chat with the artists. I listen to a lot of podcasts and radio interviews with musicians I like and to me their opinion and thoughts are of great interest. I'd really like to see this on a TV show and have it as more of a chat show format where a singer comes on, performs a few songs and talks about various music issues and ideas to the host. It would be a great way of actually hearing from the 'other side' of music. As an example, I was listening to a radio interview recently where the singer talked about Spotify from the musicians point of view. I'd never really considered it before and I found it extremely interesting. This is the kind of thing I would like to see on a show. I have nothing against radio at all, I just like to see the folks that are talking that's all. Never mind about Jools jumping in on piano to overshadow your song, let's hear the real views and thoughts of musicians on what the industry is like for them and what their plans are.

There already is 'Needle Time' on Vintage TV which is hosted by music journalist Neil McCormick. This is an interview show with video clips and artists that have graced the show include Jackson Browne, David Gray and Mike Scott to name a few. Vintage TV is available on satellite and Freeview and this channel actually has quite a lot of good stuff on it anyway. I haven't actually seen much of this particular show, but it certainly ticks some of the boxes that I am looking for so depending on the guest, I might well give it a go.

I'm sure I have missed a lot out of this post as to be honest, it's one that has taken me a while to write. There are so many considerations to take into account that it has been hard to cover it all. I don't think I have really, so this may well become one of those posts that gets revisited at some point. Bit like Highway 61 I guess...

I really would like to see a serious show about music grace our screens. One that asks the artists for their thoughts on music as I think there is so much of interest out there that we are missing a trick. And if anyone is looking for a host, perhaps someone new who likes music and writes about it a bit, I am available for a small fee ;0)

So to wrap up here's a great radio interview with Olly Knights from Turin Brakes where he chats about an upcoming gig and touches on the music industry and how it has changed. Spoiler alert - Olly's speaking voice sounds remarkably like David Beckham so please don't get confused and think he's now a musician! It's very obvious that Mr B has stolen Mr Knights' famous speaking voice... (I was asked to write that).

Listen here.

Now this is what I'm rambling about. Imagine something like this, but on the telly. How great would that be huh? Indeed.

Gimme shelter...

I was part way through writing another post on music television (which I'll publish soon) when my tiny brain was filled with lots of thoughts and ideas about gig venues and whether this can have an impact on your enjoyment of the music. As I started writing this piece I was also made to consider the actual venues themselves and what they can mean to the people visiting them or to the local community. I actually ended up changing my stance while writing which I guess is not such a bad thing really.

The main reason this subject has been in my mind is due to a gig I went to last week. I'm not going to name the venue or where it was, but let's just say it was possibly one of the worst places I've ever been to to watch music. It was a pub with a room at the back which they had decided could be used for music. Clearly it had previously been a back yard or similar as the walls were the exterior walls of the building which caused the whole room to be absolutely freezing cold. I nearly kept my gloves on for the whole night. True story.

Unfortunately at the time this kind of made the gig a bit of a downer for me and while I was moaning on about it to a mate it made me consider how much the venue can actually affect your enjoyment of the thing you have gone to see. Be it music, comedy or theatre, can the place the event is happening wreck your night or even sway whether you actually go in the first place? Well, apparently the answer can be yes.

I asked some nice folks what they thought about this and here's what my colleague Jo Cook had to say:

"I generally don't go to mass arena music gigs now. Too impersonal, not close enough, they are usually in London so it takes all day to get there and then the trains don't run in the evenings etc. Best gigs are usually small, intimate venues, same for comedy, learning  etc, lots of space, but small enough for individual conversation. There are bands/comedians etc I would like to see, but I don't bother because of the venue!".

This seemed to be a common theme when I was talking to people and I totally agree with it. They said they had deliberately missed going to see a band due to the venue that they were playing in. I've done it myself in the past to be honest. When I lived in London I was lucky as most of the bands I saw played at reasonably sized locations such as the Hammersmith Apollo or Shepherds Bush Empire. But I guess this was also due to the fact that the artists were somewhat well known so they needed to be in the larger, better venues due to capacity. But then, what about the smaller, upcoming artists?

This coming week is Independent Venue Week, a 7 day celebration of the small music venues around the UK. Places like The Fleece in Bristol and Surya in London will host both up and coming artists as well as some bigger names like Frank Turner. Frank is the ambassador for Independent Venue Week and has been publicising the current e-petition which has been set up to ensure that anyone who buys or rents a property within a set distance from a music venue should sign a waiver giving up the right to complain about the noise. The UK 'Toilet Circuit' as it's known is running the risk of these venues shutting down due to escalating rent and noise pollution orders along with redevelopment which could mean closure may well be around the corner. These venues have nurtured some big stars over the years and by considering closing them down we run the risk of preventing up and coming acts getting off the ground as these are the kind of places they will look to perform at. Take a look at an article from the Independent on this here.

Bigger venues can be a pain in the arse too though. I have been to a fair few arenas over the years and you either end up sitting miles away from the stage and having to watch it on a screen (if there is one) or you're in the nosebleed section, looking down at a dodgy angle and not really seeing much at all. I know I went to see David Gray at Earls Court years ago, but I have no recollection of actually 'seeing' him as I was so far away from the stage I could've been watching anyone. And of course, a bigger venue means bigger speakers which means blown eardrums. Not good. Sometimes though, you have no choice but to go to the arena due to who the artist is. Bigger bands mean that more tickets will be required for the fans and there is no choice but to schedule the gig at an arena.

Can you hear me at the back?

In Nottingham we have a variety of venues of different sizes which can suit most musical crowds. We have a rather large arena for the bigger acts, the famous Rock City which is of a big enough size to get lots of popular artists playing there and the smaller more intimate Rescue Rooms or Bodega. There are loads of others too which is great for those of us living here as it means there is generally always something going on somewhere. We have had closures here too though and most mornings on my way to work I pass Bar Seven (or Junktion 7 as it was also known) which was a great music venue, but has been shut for a number of years now. There was talk that it would be turned into student accommodation, but so far it still remains derelict.

Something else I have been following with interest is the Save Soho campaign which was set up following the closure of world famous Madam Jojo's. The aim of group is to protect and nurture the music and performing arts venues of Soho which are rapidly disappearing. The coalition (which is formed of performers, residents and politicians) understand that redevelopment has to take place, but they want there to be an assurance that the character of Soho is still kept. You can find out more information and sign the various petitions for Madam Jojo's, the Curzon Cinema or Save the Spirit of Soho on the Save Soho website which you can find here. You can also follow the campaign on Twitter and Facebook. Look for 'Save Soho'.

The fight for Soho seems to be another in a long list of closures and I was also sadden to read about renovation of Denmark Street or Tin Pan Alley as it's affectionately known and the closure of the 12 Bar Club and Enterprise Studios. Since the 90's Denmark Street has been a parade of guitar shops, but it had great personality and remained untouched with no chain stores or coffee shops. Once upon a time it was the centre of the UK music industry with major music publishing and management companies being based there as well as recording studios which were used by artists such as the Kinks and Elton John. Redevelopment is inevitable, but it's still disappointing to see so much history disappear. Despite a petition to save the 12 Bar Club, it was ignored and the development moves on. The club has relocated elsewhere, but the heart has now been taken away from this small corner of London. This is something that seems to be happening more and more nowadays.

When I started to write this post it was mainly to talk about crappy venues and how they can ruin a gig or night out, but as I've been researching and thinking about it I have discovered this. The venue is important to the show. Of course it is. It can make or break your experience and if you end up somewhere that has a bad PA system or sticky floors you will probably come away feeling like the night has been shite. But here's the thing though. Sometimes those crappy venues are the starting point for a new artist who can't get to play anywhere else and without them, where can they go? An unsigned band is not going to be able to play the O2 arena now are they. Nope, it's the back room of the pub with the freezing floor for them along with the hope that one day they'll be playing somewhere a bit better to a bigger audience.

The fight to save these venues is an important one as without them the music scene will falter. We need to preserve the history of these great places and allow a whole new audience to enjoy and appreciate the reasons why they are there. I want to be able to tell people that I saw 'blah' perform in front of a small crowd in a tiny venue before anyone else knew who he was. And I can't do that if there are no tiny venues for him to perform in now can I? It may well be a ballache to go to the dodgy pub, but just think. It could actually turn out to be one of the best experiences you'll ever have so surely it's worth it in the end. Right? Just remember to take your gloves with you...

Blah? Yes, I saw him before he was famous

Music shop lovers of the world unite...

Right then. Hands up if you got some sort of music bought for you for Christmas. Now then, what was it? Did you get a nice CD or maybe some gorgeous vinyl? Yeah, me too. But I'm sure some of you also got either an iTunes voucher or the promise of some sort of downloaded music too. Correct? Thought so.

No feeling the presents

Now, I've written about physical vs downloaded music debate before, but this reared it's head again with me just before Christmas when it became apparent that the lack of music retailers available now is a huge pain in the arse. A friend of mine at work wanted to buy a relative a CD as a gift and had to ask where in town she could actually find a shop selling CD's. And you know what, when we thought about it there weren't that many to choose from. It left me feeling very sad. To make matters worse I saw a tweet from someone a few days later saying that HMV was absolutely rammed when he was out shopping. And why was that? Cos people want to buy bloody physical music and films, that's why. Pah. 

I went Christmas shopping at one of the faceless, massive shopping malls we all love so much and my partner had a look at what shops were there online before we went. He informed me that HMV had closed down and that there were no music shops there any more at all. I was gutted. He was in fact wrong though (or the internet was) as HMV was still there. And of course it was packed and we struggled to get near anything. Which is interesting if people are supposedly not buying physical music anymore. Hmm...

People, people everywhere...

I went to a gig last week and afterwards I bought a rather beautiful limited edition purple vinyl from the lovely merch lady and also got it signed by the artist. Now buying at a gig is all part of being a fan. You may be lucky enough to get some really great stuff that you can't get anywhere else. Could I buy this vinyl in a shop? Not likely. I may get it online, but would it be the correct one? Doubtful. And I definitely wouldn't be able get a signed copy of it. That in fact takes a mixture of a certain little smile, along with a little charm and a lot of style to go with it (wink). Or just polite harassment. You choose. Which is why buying in person for me is always better than taking your chances online. Plus I can now look at my signed vinyl and smile. I can't do that with a download can I? Well, I could, but I think people would be slightly more concerned about me than they usually are...

My partner knows that if I enter a music shop I will disappear without a trace in approximately 10 seconds flat. He's given up trying to keep up with me and knows that at some point I will appear again by the front door to find him. It's a fact of life. I go into a music shop, I will be kept occupied for a considerable amount of time while I roam the aisles. I love checking what is on offer, seeing if there's an album I haven't got or looking at the staff recommendations to find something new.

When I was younger we had a couple of independent retailers in my home town. Me and my brother used to love going to them and wasting away time looking for bargains. There was also the institution that was 'Woolworths' when we were growing up. I think I bought most of my 7 inch singles from there to be honest. It was a sad day when these shops closed down and our town had nowhere to buy music from. We had friends who worked in these stores and lost their jobs when they shut. We had to go further a field to buy CD's. It was the beginning of the end and for music fanatics it was the grim reality that it would never be the same again.

Who misses Woolies then?

Another mate of mine who also happens to be a musician, fully embraced the digital age of music not that long ago. He got rid of all his beloved vinyl and CD's and now only uses Spotify to stream his music. When I asked him why he'd chosen to do this he told me that he is fully aware that physical music is going to disappear in the near future and he is preparing himself for it in advance. Brave man. This is not something I can even consider doing though as I love my CD's way too much for that. When I moved house a few years ago I had to go through my boxes of singles and ended up chucking some of the older, rather obscure ones that I had collected over the years. It was a painful experience and even now I have the awful feeling that I might have accidentally binned something I wanted to keep. My partner didn't understand. He basically owns about 10 bloody CD's himself so he has no idea.

My brother on the other hand, does understand these things. He came to the gig with the last week and we were having an in-depth debate about vinyl on the way there. There has been a so called 'vinyl revival' of late where folks seem to be going back to buying this format over mp3. I said this to my bro who looked at me with a raised eyebrow and said "Well I've never actually stopped buying vinyl Nic". To be fair he is a DJ so I guess I can let him off on this occasion. But I do think he is correct. The muso's among us will no doubt be of the same opinion. Vinyl never actually went anywhere in the first place. We then had a long and rather interesting conversation about white label records and how you had to be in the know to be able to find the rare ones. None of this ordering them over the internet, nope. You had to visit a record shop and hope they had a copy somewhere under the counter (and that the they liked you enough to sell it to you) as they weren't advertised. Those were the days.

Mysterious white label record

When HMV collapsed a few years ago it didn't look good for music retail. The availability of cheap CD's in supermarkets was blamed and of course the online market such as Amazon. Funny thing is the supermarkets I go in only ever have a very small selection of CD's and usually only the so called 'chart' and not much else. Not the kind of place you would go to if you wanted to buy a specific album. Amazon does fare better I guess. I have bought quite a few albums from here, but mainly because I can't pick them up in a shop myself. Some of the HMV shops were saved, but the fact that the flagship store in Oxford Street has gone is somewhat of a crime. I spent a lot of time pacing those 3 floors and it was one of the many places I liked to shop when I lived in London. They now have a smaller place not that far away, but it's just not the same.

I was over the moon when a local campaign to save Fopp here in Nottingham worked earlier this year. The store was under threat of closure as their lease was coming to an end, but some local people got together to protest and finally they found somewhere it could relocate to. It's a great shop and every time I walk past it there and tons of people inside having a good look around. Fopp are leading on the vinyl revival and are proud to state on their walls that vinyl is killing mp3. Very nice indeed.

The debate is ongoing and could be considered to be about preference (as are most things in life). We sadly now have a lack of places where we can embrace music, be part of the discussion and spend our time thumbing through the LP's on offer in the hope of finding that little something special. We should support our local independent music retailers as much as possible because without them this becomes a thing of the past and those among us who truly love the physical aspect of buying and owning music will be left with no option but to become online consumers. And as someone whose house basically looks like a small branch of HMV, I can definitely say that it's not as much fun...

Got it, got it, got it...

It's the end of 2014 as we know it, but what did I find...

A few people I follow on Twitter have written end of year blogs about the music and other such things that have inspired them during 2014. So, as someone never wanting to miss out on an opportunity to ramble, I decided to jump on that bandwagon and do the very same thing. This may not be a in-depth review of the things I have been listening to, but I hope it will read as some of the music that has captured my attention and soul this year.

Someone recently asked me what was my album of 2014 and I have to admit this did leave me pondering a bit. As much as I love new music and am always open to suggestions on what to listen to, for me this year has been mainly about rediscovery. Or being a bit late to the party I guess. I have been revisiting my youth and catching up with some albums that I unfortunately missed at the time. This post should probably be called 'Better Late Than Never Dear'...

Anyway, so what has inspired me this year? I guess I should start with new albums of 2014 that I have been listening to. Firstly, there is 'Caustic Love' by Paolo Nutini. I liked Paolo when he appeared with 'These Streets' back in 2006 and some tracks on that album are still great to listen to now. I kind of left him for a bit, but I was watching an episode of 'Later' which he happened to be on and I really enjoyed listening to him perform some songs from the new album. And it is a great album. Possibly his best work to date and you can tell that he has matured as a performer and songwriter. The wonderful 'Iron Sky' stands out for me and hits all the right buttons as a modern soul / R&B record.

Those of you who have read my previous posts will know that my all time musical hero is Neil Finn. Well, Neil released his third solo album earlier this year entitled 'Dizzy Heights'. I have to admit that it did take me a while to get into this album as it's a sidestep from what he has produced in the past. But this is something I do love about Neil. He is constantly looking for new ideas and in his own words he says "I am working hard to get better all the time". I have grown to love this album over time and in particular the title track and the songs 'Flying in the Face of Love' and 'Better Than TV'.

Neil has received a bit of moaning online about this album, but at the end of the day I think as long as he is doing what he loves and making the music he wants to make then the fans will follow him and appreciate what he does. I was lucky enough to see him live in April and it was a wonderful show and he completely held the crowd in awe as he usually does. He is such a talented performer and I have the utmost respect for what he does. He always has been and always will be my hero,

Beautiful backdrop from Neil's live show

Another of the usual suspects in many of my blog posts is Mark Morriss. Yes, him out of the Bluetones. He released his second solo album this year 'A Flash of Darkness'. It was originally funded through Pledge Music, but it then got a full release through Acid Jazz this year. This album is brilliantly written and performed and shows how Mark has grown musically since his first album 'Memory Muscle' in 2008. There's not a bad track on this album and the songwriting and thoughtful lyrics are a wonderful treat. When I first listened to this album all the way though I sat back and said to myself "Wow, what the fuck have I just listened to?" and then I put it back on again. True story.

There are a couple of cover versions on the album (Mark does love a cover) and I have to say this version of 'Nightcall' in my opinion is better than the original. Just saying. My favourite track (and possibly my all time favourite Mark song) is 'Life Without F(r)iction'. A gorgeous song which features the equally gorgeous guitar of the equally gorgeous Adam Devlin (yep, the little one off the Bluetones! His words, not mine!). The video for a live version of this song has been my pinned tweet on Twitter now for a long time and I don't intend to take it down any time soon. I think overall I can safely say that this album is my number one for 2014 and I can't recommend it enough.

My album of 2014

Now onto my rediscovery. I missed the release of a couple of albums last year, but have now caught up. Firstly, one of my long time favourite bands, the wonderful Turin Brakes released their sixth album 'We Were Here' towards the end of 2013. It came to my attention earlier this year when the second single 'Guess You Heard' was released. I love this album very much and that track in particular as it's beautifully written and performed as is the whole album. It reignited my love for this band and I went back to the previous albums to reaffirm my connection with them. The acoustic style was what brought me to them in the first place and their particular 'sound' is something that I truly love. I am eagerly looking forward to a new album being released hopefully next year and I really do hope there will be a tour to accompany it.

Now, not only do I love the band in it's entirety, I also love lead singer Olly Knights as a solo artist. He released his first album in 2012 entitled 'If Not Now When' and I have the pleasure of owning it on CD and vinyl. It was lovingly put together in his own home using a unique and personal recording style. His journey to make this album was one of inspiration and I have to say I am totally and utterly blown away by it. I have immersed myself in it so much it plays on pretty much a constant loop on my beloved iPod every day. I often tweet Olly and he is good enough to reply to my ramblings about music and other such nonsense and I consider myself very lucky to be able to do this. I was on a train recently with my headphones in listening to the opening track on the album 'Ripcord'. In the quiet of the carriage I could fully lose myself in the track and at 3.38 into the song the most exquisite change happened and my heart completely melted. So of course I had to tell Olly this. I mean, why wouldn't you?

This album is also my favourite discovery of this year, but in the category of 'better late than never'. I have previously posted the documentary that accompanied the making of this album and I would suggest you have a look at it so you can fully appreciate the background to this piece of work. My love of simple, stripped back acoustics is played out here and it has actually made me want to pick up my guitar again and get back to playing. Sometimes less is more, which is what the man himself told me.

I've also been listening to my back catalogue of albums by the Bluetones lately too. I won't go overboard as by now you should be aware that they are one of my most beloved bands and basically they represent my youth. Their final album 'A New Athens' which was released in 2010 has been on my playlist of late and features some really great, under rated songs. It deserves a wider audience and I hope that perhaps it's just a slowburner and that people will one day discover it and realise what they have been missing out on. I can also give a massive thumbs up to the 2006 self titled album 'The Bluetones'. I have no idea why this album did not do better on release as it's possibly the album of theirs that I like most of all.

So, here is a little round up then:

My number 1 album of 2014 - A Flash of Darkness by Mark Morriss
My number 1 better late than never album of 2014 - If Not Now When by Olly Knights

A couple of other things to mention:

Gigs attended in 2014 - 8 so far
New artist I was introduced to this year - Frank Turner
Upcoming artist to watch in 2015 - Leon Bridges
Band to watch in 2015 (cos basically they're gonna tear it up!) - Concerned Citizens
Other albums of note - Lost in the Dream - The War on Drugs / Interlude - Jamie Cullum
Who you should follow on Twitter if you aren't already - Adam Devlin

So there you go. A real mixed bag of stuff which I hope may be of interest to you. It has been a bit of a strange year for me, but I have been to a lot more gigs than usual thanks to my 'Year of Yes' decision and I hope to continue this into next year. I already have 2 gigs lined up for the New Year with the promise of a lot more. There are also some new albums to look forward to including a Mark Morriss covers album and I hope a new Turin Brakes album. I have a feeling 2015 is going to be a good one.

Silent Sigh...

I have come to the conclusion that I am somewhat of a music snob. Or at the very least someone who thinks they know better than anyone else. I am always willing to listen to anyone's opinion on music and will go off and listen to recommendations, but here's the thing. I get very frustrated when I know something is really good and no-one else is on the same page as me. It's basically all about opinion at the end of the day, so why does it make me feel sad that some really great artists get no exposure whilst other dross is everywhere?

Sound familiar?

I went to gig last night. The artist was very good and the show was a sellout. Although the venue wasn't that big in comparison to the big arenas, it was still a lot of people jammed into a room. Now, this artist isn't really a household name, but fair play, he is very popular in the right circles and has a solid fanbase. I like to see smaller artists doing well, it's what it's all about. My quandary is this. How can someone not relatively known to many sell out a venue, whilst someone else who was say, a massive star in the 90s now not fill a room? It pains me, it really does. I'm not going to name names on this, but regular readers will know who I'm talking about.

I have to think that's it's about what's popular now. Just because that person was big nearly 20 years ago doesn't mean they will have the same appeal now. Good point. But what if the older artists have got better with age and are now doing something really good, but they still don't get the crowds in? What happens then? Is it all about marketing or is it as simple as 'you had your time and now you don't matter anymore'? This is what makes me sigh...

I have been revisiting my musical youth (no, not the band) a lot lately and have come to some interesting conclusions. I was discussing it last night before the gig as I do have a tendency to steer any conversation I have onto music as I love the debate. Anyway. My friend was asking my about musical influences and I said this. I like all genres of music. No doubt about that. But I have always been of the opinion that my roots sit firmly in rock as my overall favourite. However, I am now of the opinion that this may not be the case and my roots actually sit in 90s indie music. There, I've said it. Why do I think this? Well, as I have rambled on in the last few posts, my ongoing love affair with the Bluetones is still in full swing with no sign of slowing down and this made me think about other bands of that time. And you know what, I liked a lot of those too.

There has been a spate of 90s bands reuniting of late with one of the most recent being Ride. I was never really a fan of theirs and in fact I preferred the offshoot band Hurricane #1. Again, just my opinion. Interestingly Hurricane #1 have also reformed are going to be gigging again next year, but without Andy Bell who has now gone back to the reformed Ride. Confused? You will be!

Touring in 2015 apparently

My conversation last night continued with my friend asking me to explain why this music means something to me. I guess to a certain extent it's due to my age and the fact that this is what I was listening to at a particular time. Britpop and/or Indie was massive in the UK in the 90s, but I have to say that I wasn't in awe of all of the bands who come under this banner. There were a lot of one hit wonders and bands that never went anywhere. I remember bands like 'My Life Story', 'Tiger' and 'Babybird' who never really did much past the one song that brought them to our attention. 'Your Woman' by White Town went to number 1 in 1997 and I was one of those people who bought the CD single (remember those?). Yep, it was back when chart position mattered and I think the fact that Mark Radcliffe played the song on his radio show may have helped just a tiny bit. We never heard of White Town again though. Case in point.

Here is an article from NME on 50 forgotten bands of the 90s. See how many you can remember.

Whilst I was digging around for CD's lately I found my rather well worn copy of 'Everything Must Go' by the Manic Street Preachers. Released in 1996 after the disappearance of Richey Edwards, it was an album I listened to over and over again at that time. I was never a big fan of the Manics, but this album means quite a lot to me. I've loved listening to it again and shouting the lyrics out loud whilst I'm doing the washing up (not the ironing)! Below is possibly my favourite track from the album.

I was also reading an article recently on the songs that made the 90s. Basically the ones you should know. As I was going through the list and agreeing with a lot of them, it made me think about when I was at college as this was that era. I vividly remember being in the pub near to college celebrating finishing exams and singing 'Yes' by McAlmont and Butler very loudly. What a track. And when I hear it now it always reminds me of this night and the people I was friends with at that time. One of my oldest friends tried to resurrect this music by organising an Indie night at the local pub. My brother was the DJ (cos that's kind of what he does) and I helped in providing the set list. Great fun for us, but it didn't go down that well and our hopes of a regular night were dashed. Perhaps people want to forget this period of music or maybe it just didn't mean as much as some of the others. Bearing in mind that Ride fans are really excited about this upcoming tour, I think that maybe it's all about the bands and not so much the actual music. For me, I know a Bluetones reunion isn't going to happen and I'd have to put my thinking cap on to think of who else I'd actually like to see again. A lot of my favourites are still together so I guess on that level I can't really complain.

So, am I a music snob? Quite possibly. And what's the silent sigh all about? Well, it's just that really. A feeling of deflation that musicians I love from that period of time are still lurking under the radar, but never getting the recognition they deserve. The latest plastic pop creation can fill the big arenas, whereas an artist of long standing or someone who has a hell of a lot of talent can't even fill a room in a pub now. It makes me sad, but on the plus side I guess it means I'll always get a ticket to the show and a good view! Little victories...

Hey! I'm on the front row!

You can tweet me at @call_me_cynical if you have any comments. Or even follow me if you like. I don't bite and can sometimes even be mildly amusing :0)

Get under the bloody covers...

I was considering what to write about next last week and the whole cover versions debate came into my head. I was just about recovering from being subjected to hearing a someone sample 'Cecilia' by Simon and Garfunkel and it made me think about what a good cover version is. To be fair The Vamps haven't covered the whole song, they've just pinched the chorus. This song has been covered quite a bit, but the version I most remember is Suggs from 1995. Thing is, I don't remember it so much for the song. I have to admit that the reason I remember it is because Chris Eubank was hosting Top of the Pops when it was in the charts and due to his rather heavy lisp he had a lot of trouble reading out "At Six it's Cecilia by Suggs"...

Apologies to anyone with a lisp, it was the unfortunately chart placing that means it's stuck in my head not the fact that Chris had a speech impediment.

Anyway. Back to cover versions. When I listen to new music nowadays and I hear a sample or cover of an old song it does pain me somewhat if the new version has destroyed the original. As an example, I spent yesterday humming a little bit of a tune in my head as it was frustrating me why Olly Murs new single sounded so familiar. Now I'm not saying he has sampled someone else, but 'Wrapped Up' sounds very much to me like 'Love Come Down' by Evelyn Champagne King at the chorus. So much so that I took to annoying my other half by singing it over the top of Olly's song to prove my point.

It also makes me consider that perhaps new bands or singers don't have the talent to write their own music so they rely on classics to score a hit. Maybe or maybe it's a sure fire way to get them noticed and the managers are just playing it safe. The X Factor seems to rely on a lot of cover versions to score hits, although I don't watch the programme myself as I have other things to do, like watch some paint dry...

Was this always the case though? I'm sure back in the 80s when I was getting into music the issue would have been exactly the same. But I guess being of the age where you listen to that particular band or singer you probably won't know any different and just think 'hey, that's a good song'.

I asked, they told me

So I asked some lovely folk for their opinions on good and bad cover versions and this is what I was told:

"It has to do something different or add something to the original. Chili Peppers took Stevie Wonder's Higher Ground and added a shot of funk. Mark Morriss made Nightcall his own, blasted the original out of the water. If you want bad, then pretty much any One Direction cover takes the hook and loses the feel of the track" - Mike @mike_mimo

"Mindless Self Indulgence almost unfailingly does great covers, as well as Anthrax. 97 Bonnie and Clyde and Enjoy the Silence by Tori Amos. Bad would be Adele doing Love Song by the Cure. Already overdone and her version is pitiful". Michelle @littlehotmess77

"I think it needs to be something different or a really good take on the original without messing it up". Nicole

Now, I did ask Mark Morriss himself what he thought about covers as he has done a fair few himself with and without The Bluetones and is in fact putting together an album of covers which is hopefully being released next year. As somewhat of an expert I asked his opinion, but was told that "He's tied up at the moment, putting some stuff together and finishing off some important work". He was in fact doing his ironing at the time so was a tad preoccupied...! Nice to know that even the rock stars among us take the time to do their own housework. I'm sure his creases are amazing...

Worst superhero ever?

According to the all knowing Wikipedia, 3 different types of entertainers who might do cover versions are tribute acts, cover bands or revivalist artists. Tribute acts are bands who make their living by recreating the works of popular artists (eg, Bjorn Again, the Australian Pink Floyd Show). Cover bands are entertainers who perform a broad variety of crowd pleasing music for audiences on cruise ships or in bars (not sure about this one to be honest). Finally revivalist artists are bands who are inspired by a entire genre of music and dedicate themselves to introducing it to younger audiences who may not have experienced it before (eg, the Blues Brothers). A bit of food for thought there.

There are some bands though who just cannot be covered. I will always moan about people covering Queen songs as I don't think anyone could do it justice to be honest. Freddie Mercury had such an amazing voice and for anyone to try to emanate it, it would always fall short. That's just my own personal opinion though, as is most of what I write.

A few people mentioned that they like to hear something a bit different when an artist is covering a song and I would agree with this. Hearing the Bluetones do a cover of 'Woman in Love' by Barbara Streisand was quite unique as although it was written by the Gibb brothers, I don't think it was intended for a bloke to sing! The same with the Elaine Paige and Barbara Dickson duet of 'I Know Him So Well' from the musical Chess. It has been covered by various people, but the one that stands out for me is the John Barrowman version which he recorded with Daniel Boys. Worth a listen I'd say!

Sing along everyone...

I don't think this post is actually answering the question of what makes a good cover version to be honest as I guess it's really all about opinion. Some people will love it, some people will think it's an abomination, but it's their choice. I like some, hate others and have no opinion on the ones that are just a waste of time. Whilst trying to appear a bit professional and researching online for some examples I came across the video below by Okkervil River. It's a cover of the 80's song 'Dance Hall Days' orginally by Wang Chung. It was listed in Paste as one of the best covers of 2013 and stated that with horn section and Will Sheff's unmistakable low-croon, it could slip by in a live set without younger fans knowing any better. Very true.

So to recap, basically it's all about opinion. I'll leave you with the best response I got to my quest for insight on covers which comes from Adam Devlin, guitarist extraordinaire. He summed it up very succinctly as "the good covers are good, the bad ones are bad and the TV ad 80s acoustic covers are the ugly". Amazing...

He speaks for the people