Album of the Year – 2010

Posted by Malcolm Toogood on December 31, 2010
Posted in: Albums of the Year. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

2010 seemed to be a somewhat slow year on the music scene, reflected in the fact that my album purchases were probably the lowest they have been this century; in fact quite a lot of the output seemed to have somewhat of a retrospective air about it, including the influences that inspired possibly half of this year’s selections.

AOTY10
Of course, recession years often mean that quality album output is somewhat sparse, because the music industry tends to put what investment it can into singles releases to ensure a quick return.  The promotional effort goes into creating singles-artist trends that are aimed to keep particularly popular songs at the top of the charts for many weeks.  However, even that failed in 2010, with just two tracks managing the maximum-stay for the year of just three weeks, and only two artists managing to have more than one individual number-one during the year. Continue Reading

The end of the Queue

Posted by Malcolm Toogood on August 29, 2010
Posted in: Nostalgia ain't what it used to be. Tagged: , , , , .

There is something wonderfully English about queueing; not only is it the only word in the Oxford Dictionary that strings five vowels consecutively together, but it could be worth no less than 119 points in a game of Scrabble if strategically placed for a triple-word score and formed by using all seven of your tiles – the odds of which occurring are, realistically, probably in excess of those for winning the Lottery.

queue

However, it isn’t just the word that is fascinating, but the concept that an undefined number of people can randomly assemble themselves at a given point on the planet at the same time, all seeking the same, or similar, end to the quest that called them there.  Having done that they will, almost unerringly, regulate themselves to acquire what they seek in exactly the same order in which they arrived, with minimal communication beyond an inquisitive eyebrow-raise, or surreptitious beckoning hand, occasionally accompanied by a polite “after you”. Continue Reading

The Hawk

Posted by Muntle on August 1, 2010
Posted in: Short Stories. Tagged: , , , , , , , , .

Kirsty settled into her steamer chair next to the small pond in her garden.  It was late Friday afternoon, and she liked to relax for an hour or so before the turmoil of the weekend burst upon her, normally heralded by one or other of her, now fully-fledged, children bursting through the door with news of their exciting week.

She had finished all of the chores necessary for their home to be as spick and span as it could be for the homecoming.  Her husband, Michael, was tapping away at that infernal computer in his study at the front of the house.  She had hoped that, after a lifetime as an international salesman, his new job that allowed him more time to work at home would give her more access to him, but the lure of the Windows Desktop had proved as strong as the call of the road.

She loved her garden.  It was small but fashioned in her favoured cottage-style over the many years they had lived here.  The borders bristled with colour, attracting the many bees and butterflies that flitted between the myriad of blooms competing for their attention.

Of course, it was not all her own work.    Michael had stretched the canvas by building the conservatory, laying the patio, digging the pond and then linking it to the small stream via a water feature.  But she had flourished the brush that painted the shapes and colours, softening the harsh lines of edging bricks that defined the terraced lawns and borders.

She lay back in the chair and looked at the sky.  It was as clear a blue as she had seen all summer, with not a cloud to break the continuity of the backdrop.  It was another blank canvas awaiting a picture, she thought, except for the small shape of a hawk circling high above.

Continue Reading

Album of the Year – 2009

Posted by Malcolm Toogood on December 31, 2009
Posted in: Albums of the Year. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

2009 was not a vintage year for new music; in fact for the most part it was a somewhat uninspiring end to what has been a most interesting decade of diversion and innovation.   Which is primarily the reason for the unusual lateness in reaching a final decision; a delay, I am pleased to say, brought about by a sudden rush of better-quality material at the end of the year, the result of which is a somewhat more pleasing top three albums than appeared likely in October.

AOTY09

Most purchases are, nowadays, invoked after seeing or hearing a live performance.  Radio’s 1, 2 and 6 are featuring ever-more studio sets, and on TV there is expanding festival coverage, plus regular series like ‘Live at Abbey Road’ and good old Jools.   We managed to get to more gigs as well this year, although these were predominantly catching-up with old favourites that we hadn’t yet seen ‘in the flesh’, or simply wanted to see again. Continue Reading