Rowan Atkinson as Marc Almond

Funny, but so unfair to one of the genuine mavericks of the British recording industry.

But yes, it is funny.

Did I say it was funny?

It must be September...

David Ford, Union Chapel 2, originally uploaded by sp3ccylad.

If it's September, it must be Fordtime. Indeed, more to the point, if it's 26th September: for last Friday marked not only David Ford's only headline UK show for the remainder of the year, but also the anniversary of Ford's quite incredible secret gig at Sleepers in Huddersfield.

It was massively significant for me too, because I made a decision that day after a conversation I had at that gig. It had all slipped into paradox, as the conversation was clearly designed to achieve the opposite, but he wasn't to know what effect his words were having on me. You see, I'd been given plenty of time to think in what must be the biggest single miscalculation anybody's ever applied to me: so I decided; no more being mucked about, no more tolerance of any old behaviour, no more unpleasant surprises. It took a shockingly short amount of time for that decision, and my commitment to that decision, to be tested.

In fact, I was reminded of that in the funniest way on Friday, when a friend I made that night - she tried to give me money; which is always a winning opening gambit with me - said that she was in Wetherspoons on John William Street trying to work out Huddersfield's geography when "this hat flashed past at some speed. That was when I knew which direction the gig was..."

I laughed and said "I shan't tell you why, but I was in the foulest of foul moods at that point, which explained the speed. But it's gone now. I'm OK."

And it has. Friday was a day I doubted I'd see in this buoyant a mood. One year on, and I feel back to an old self I don't think I've seen in 20 years, a quieter, less forceful me. One who feels in control, and not forever desperately grabbing at unsustainability. Somebody happy enough with himself to do what he thinks is right - not cool, daring, or even exciting. Just right.

I know what makes me happy. It's me. Nobody else. You're welcome along for the ride, but just enjoy me for what I am. 

And if you ever wish I was somebody else, then go find that person instead. Deal?

It's just like watching Brazil!

"Whatever Robinho's got, it's catching! They're all at it!"
The Guardian's report of what was, by any standards, an exceptional City performance.

The genius goes bonkers

You know, unlike a lot of bloggers, I like iTunes' new genius feature (see post below). But tonight: well, everything's gone a bit Pete Tong.

I chose a bit of an oddity for a seed - "Barriers", the B-side of Soft Cell's "Numbers". 

Yeah. I'm sure you're all whistling it now.

Anyway, this is the (frankly deranged) playlist it gave me: 

I mean: WTF? How do you get Arctic Monkeys, Soul II Soul, Haircut 100 and Laurie Anderson in the same playlist? It's like a party for surrealists. And when we get to "My Sweet Lord", well: words fail me.

I quite like the idea of iTunes taking the piss - now I'm playing them, it seems like the sort of mad playlist I'd put together for a compilation. It just beggars belief how a computer would come up with it. I might even save the playlist for posterity...

Big Train: Small Train

One of my more bizarre set-piece rambles when I'm bored revolves around musing aloud about what our world would be like if there was no such thing as scale drawing. What would maps be like? I guess the answer would be "Big. Very, very big."

Globes would be downright irresponsible, I suppose.

This vapid nonsense constitutes the flimsy excuse I require to post one of my favourite Big Train sketches: the one about the minister who can't grasp scale. A work of pure genius.

Enjoy.

Stevie Wonder - Play Loud

Oooh, Stevie Wonder. The godlike Stevie Wonder. Absolutely imperious on Jonathan Ross's show the other night - but this must be the lad in his pomp.

What a guy - thanks to Sparkin for hunting this out.

John McCain Gets BarackRoll'd

Can't beat a bit of Rick Astley. Ta to GBS

iTunes does a Last.fm. Sort of.

I've been a fan of last.fm for years now - not least because I do like the idea of parading my somewhat individual music taste. Now, finally, Apple bring their own offering as part of iTunes 8 - the modestly named Genius. For an overview of how it works and how the other players in the market are taking it, take a look at this piece from Wired.com.

All in all, I like it. The playlists are sensitive with the odd surprise, and I've re-discovered a few gems I'd completely lost in the morass of music I have.

However - is it really as clever as it makes out? Well, I tried it out on me. The next step up from vanity googling, I suppose. 

Nope. Nothing. Nada. Last.fm wins there. Still, in the great scheme of things, I am possibly the ultimate in minority tastes on iTunes. I've seen the sales figures. Let's just say the Lear Jet will have to wait until next week. So; not surprised there, to be honest.

However, there is a fly in the ointment. PC World tried the same stunt with a somewhat less-unknown band. I'll not spoil the surprise. 

Has the Large Hadron Collider destroyed the earth yet?

Click here to find out.