Sgt Pepper is not a very good album

(The title alone should spark some debate (and/or hatred directed towards me))

To qualify the title: Sgt Pepper is a good album, but in comparison to the rest of The Beatles output I think its a bit lightweight.  It is however wholly redeemed by the inclusion of 'A Day In The Life'

Today has been 'Beatles Day', albeit in a slightly random order.  First off this morning was Rubber Soul followed by Revolver.  Then Beatles For Sale, and then the rest of the catalogue in chronological order.

Current favourite = Help! (Abbey Road is a close (very close) second)

A quick critique from 'Beatles Day':
Please Please Me - sounds like "just another album" until 'Twist & Shout' come along and places the whole album in context and you then realise the importance of what you've just heard

With The Beatles - More of the same

A Hard Days Night - All Lennon & McCartney originals.  Two immediate brain responses from listening to this album: (1) From the film, the band playing cards in the train carriage singing 'I Should Have Known Better' ("Aye Aye, the Liverpool Shuffle") (2) The Rutles signing 'I Must Be In Love' (as parodies go, The Rutles is exceedingly close to the real thing in terms of personality AND music (see also 'Get Up and Go' which was dropped from the original Rutles soundtrack for being too damned close to 'Get Back'

Beatles For Sale - Different sound (no longer just the 'Happy Mop Tops').  Fantastically moody picture on front cover ("very cool").  Definite sign of development from 'Hard Days Night' to 'Help' (which is probably when it was released when it was!)

Help! - Soundtrack to the film, which is a good film, if somewhat confusing (surreal?).  Contains two George Harrison songs which are pretty much equal to those of Lennon & McCartney.Some The Night Before

Rubber Soul - First album I listened to today because I realised of all the Beatles albums, this is the one I've listened to leaset.  I have no idea why?  Norwegian Wood, Nowhere Man, Girl, In My Life.  That's only 4 tracks - all 14 are great.  Note to self: stop ignoring this album.  Listen more!

Revolver - Free(ish) from touring commitments and live work, this album contains the beginnings of studio experimentation which would form the basis of the Sgt Pepper recording.  Fantastic collection of songs and styles and contains two of my favourite Beatles tracks: 'For No One' & 'And Your Bird Can Sing'

Sgt Pepper - (see above)

The Beatles (White Album) - Heavy Metal was invented with 'Helter Skelter', 'Revolution 9' gets on my tits, and 'Good Night' is a really weak song to end the "White Album Experience"

Yellow Submarine - Nice collection and soundtrack to the animated film.  Needs the animation to properly work but eminently listenable.  You really do have to be in the right mood to listen to the George Martin composed 'Pepperland Suite'

Abbey Road - if it wasn't for 'Her Majesty' the last we'd hear The Beatles say is "... and in the end, the love you take is equal to the love we make" - that's philosophy that is!

Let It Be - If this one had included 'Don't Let Me Down' it wouldn't be so disappointing.  mind you following Abbey Road would make just about anything sound disappointing?

Beatles Day is nearly over - tomorrow I will take a whistle stop tour of the solo years, starting I think with George Harrison's All Things Must Pass

Music and Pictures - The enduring link

Songs tend to be inextricably linked to a memory.
The use of songs in film or TV gives rise to another linked memory.
These are examples of the images immediately conjured up in my head when hearing the songs:

• Wings - Jet = Alan Partridge jumping around his room at the Linton Travel Tavern
• Ray Charles - Mess Around = Driving the car in Planes, Trains & Automobiles, before John Candy falls asleep at the wheel
• Booker T & The MGs - Green Onions = Harry Hill miming playing a pretend organ (possibly on TV Burp, but not 100% sure)
• Booker T & The MGs - Soul Limbo = BBC Cricket
• Buddy Holly - Raining In My Heart = Heineken (or Carlsberg?) TV Advert from the 80s
• Elvis Presley - Wooden Heart = Pledge TV Advert from the 80s

April 29th - There is a Wedding on or something

Plans for the end of April:

Thur 28th: CAMRA Beer Festival in Reading

Fri 29th: Day off work - avoid watching TV

Sat 30th: Wedding Anniversary - better buy a bunch of flowers or some such

Getting Older & Being Annoyed By Trivial Stuff

Now I have passed the milestone age of thirty-ten (or 40 as my family like to keep reminding me), I find that I  am becoming increasingly annoyed by insignificant things.

A selection of insignificant stuff that annoys me:

• Using Mobile Phones at tills.  It a pretty ignorant thing to do, and surely nothing is that important that you can't stop your conversation and talk civilly to the cashier, rather than just pointing at what you want, handing over your money, grabbing your change and walking out of the shop without exchanging a single word with the person who just served you
• Peoples inability to make decisions.  Anyone can make a decision - flip a coin.  And there is no such thing as a "Wrong Decision"
• Adding "... gate" to the end of any celebrity scandal.  If some garden furniture was stolen from the house of a 1970s British Childrens TV animator and film-maker, would it be reported in the papers as "Oliver Postgates Post & Gate-gate"
• Daytime commercial radio and the same 17 songs played back to back for eternity
• The use of Take That's "Rule The World" or "Greatest Day" on any TV show to signify someone has won something and/or overcome adversity to do so.  Similarly, is there a clause in Gary Barlow's contract that says whenever there is a charity appeal, one of his songs must be used?

I think I'm in danger of becoming the bloke on the Fast Show who considers everything to be Rubbish

Stuff you leave outside your house for collection once a fortnight - Rubbish

I don't like Downloaded Music

There just too impersonal.

Music buying (to me at least) is about the ownership of the physical artefact and making records you own - the memory of where records were purchased.

I can pretty much remember which shop in which town virtually all of my records and CDs came from.
Examples:

• Captain Beefheart - Trout Mask Replica
  Slightly overcast day in Hay-on-Wye.  Bought from a bookshop (is there any other kind of shop in Hay-on-Wye?)
• Sex Pistols - Never Mind The Bollocks
  Bought from Pop Records (second hand record Shop in Reading (under Yeild Hall Lane Car Park))
• Thin Lizzy - Live & Dangerous
  Bought from Our Price in the Butts Centre, Reading.  Got given two copies of Sides 3 & 4, and had to go to the Broad Street branch to exchange for Sides 1 & 2
• Kate Bush - The Whole Story
  Bought from Boots with the money I'd got as Christmas tips from my paper round
• T.Rex- Futuristic Dragon
  Bought from Woolworths when they were closing down for refurbishment.  I think they'd just cleared out the stock room and placed it in piles in the racks and on the floor.

I know where all the downloads came from - I was sitting here in this chair and pressed a button.

Amazon is convenient and easy, but does not have the same joy of trawling through racks of stuff to find the thing you've been hunting down for weeks (or even months).

With the demise of the independent record shop, the loss of large chains like Zavvi and Fopp (sorely missed every time I go into Reading (I just stand in West Street staring at what is now Somerfields with a feeling of loss)) and the laughable stock holding of HMV, Record Fairs are the only place where I can find a breadth of items and people who will sell them whilst advising me the "Track 2 is a bit of a stinker" or other gems of information which is an integral part of the purchasing process (at least to me)

Insignificant Things That Really Make Your Day

Been shopping at a local hypermarket (rhymes with Besco).
It was around lunchtime, so purchased some sandwiches.
Quite fancied the Egg & Tomato sarnie, plus it was reduced in price (not that I'm tight or anything)

Here's the insignificant "Day Making" bit:
Egg Sandwiches, made the proper way with Salad Cream, none of this fancy foreign Mayonnaise stuff.

Insignificant, unimportant, completely trivial, but Egg & Salad Cream Sandwiches are enough to make me smile, think that the world is not just a bad place, and show that sometimes Tesco is worthwhile visiting.

Pub Grub

Discounting Bar Snacks, most pubs offer a "cheap & cheerful" menu.  It is, after all, another income stream to supplement the Beer & Nuts money.
The Menus tend to be pretty much the same wherever you go.
The usual array of Fish & Chips, Burgers, Chicken, Scampi and Salads.  Steaks & Mixed Grills are also common place.
Add to this a selection of sandwiches/rolls/baguettes/sub rolls (same fillings, just different bread casings).

Some hostelries will offer 'Chef's Specials', so you may get Chinese, Thai or Indian (or Polish, depends where the chef was born))

Everything is served with Chips (or Jacket Potato if you wish) - why not Mashed Potato?

One dish (one of my favourites actually) I have never found on a Pub Menu is Shepherds Pie.

Why? Easy to prepare, easy to heat up.  And I'm willing to wager that it would sell by the bucket load (this is not a serving suggestion!)

Not just Pubs - the same applies to the "Feed The Family For a Fiver" places (Beefeater, Harvester, Sizzler etc)

Put Shepherds Pie on your Menus - You Know It Make Sense