So. The Barman (he of the stained apron and soggy socks) has suggested to me that I provide a Top 10 for 2017. Now, bearing in mind that I am no-one’s idea of a professional rock writer, and that my little world bears even less resemblance to the mainstream…
Bear in mind, please, that this is the stuff I’ve been listening to on rotation and in the car.
Top 10 Albums
Andrew McCubbin and Melinda Kay: Where Once There was a Fire
Hugo Race and Michelangelo Russo: John Lee Hooker’s World Today
The Braves: All Through Paradise
PiL: Disc Four in the ‘Album’ box set
The Systemaddicts: Brokenhearted on the Nullabor
...and one more to make it not just 10 but the hallowed Spinal Tap number...
The Chickenstones: Johnny Streetlight
But there’s plenty of others which have fought for the attention of my turntable. Leadfinger andJulitha Ryan spring to mind.
What else have I been listening to? Monk, Mingus, Waits, Wire, Charlie Marshall, the Circus Chaplains, Jeremy Gluck, the Barracudas, the Clash (bootleg dub stuff), Magazine’s ‘Play’, Barry Adamson, the Radio Stars, Sacred Cowboys, Suicide, The Damned ‘Machine Gun Etiquette’ two disc thingy, Siouxsie and the Banshees ‘The Scream’ …
Oh, yeah, and the Velvets and the Stooges.
There’s a huge pile of stuff I haven’t listened to yet, though…
Best gigs I remember over the last year - I wrote about most of them so that’s easy enough I guess. I think there’s a few I may have missed.
All the gigs which involved Michael Plater, Dean Richards and Rossco Jalopeno
Hugo Race and Michelangelo Russo
Fear and Loathing
The Muscle Shoals Fayre extravaganza in Melbourne
Books (not at all music related) that I’ve enjoyed this year (among many others, these are the ones I haven't put away yet and really represent what I've been pawing through over the last couple of months)
Brewer’s Rogues and Villains
Blacky Audett: Rap Sheet
Bobbitt: Terror and Consent
Bill Bryson: The Lost Continent
Ben MacIntyre: Agent Zigzag
Martin Gilbert: The Day the War Ended
Junge: Storm of Steel
PG Wodehouse … I read about ten of these (again
Eric Williams: The Wooden Hors
Sir Patrick Hastings: Cases in Court
I really should pull out a few more by Gerald Kersh. Next year, then. Good.
Best radio shows:
The Devil’s Jukebox (Northern Radio);
Mike Drive (3D) - particularly when featuring Japanophile and Francophile P. Slater Diddy.
Well, let’s face it. If I’m going to listen to the raido, these are pretty much the only radio shows I’m going to tune in to…
