August 2024: Allow us to reintroduce ourselves...April 2025: It starts in the head and it beginsIt starts and it changes everythingIt starts and it never fades awayCan I lay my head down, will you say,"Every little thing's gonna be okay"?- 'It Starts', Nerina Pallot, 2009. Well hello there. Hope you're all keeping out of mischief … Continue reading It Starts (again)…
Before I take my annual blog / social media hibernation for the next couple of weeks, I just wanted as always to share a little festive something I've written. The actual inspiration for this came from a brilliant post on Instagram I saw last week. Life can throw all sorts of things at us, regardless … Continue reading Be Present
Hello all, So today is my last full day of the year before the festive break. As always, I wanted to share a little something I'd written before I disappeared off to have some much needed down time. Lately I've not really been in the best frame of mind, and it occurred to me that … Continue reading A poem for this Christmas
Hello everyone, Once again I know this festive season is looking different for a lot of people when they hoped it would be approaching something more normal. But I hope with this little poem I have written about my "Grate-ness" list (a Christmas Gratitude List, if you will) that I have encapsulated the reminder that, … Continue reading My Grate-ness List
Hello all, I hope this post finds you safe and well. It may not have escaped your notice that the last post I did on this blog was just under a month ago. Anyone who reads this blog with any kind of regularity may have thought that very unlike me. And indeed, it is very … Continue reading Self Kindness / an update.
Bringing you the only musical time traveling experience that doesn't require a flux capacitor, every Thursday at midday, this is Pop Essays. This week: what happens when major record labels choose paralysis by analysis... Artist: David Jordan Song: Place In My Heart Release Date: 22/10/2007 Writers: Dave McCracken / David Jordan / Tim Hutton Producers: … Continue reading Pop Essays #28: David Jordan, ‘Place In My Heart’
Welcome to this week's Pop Essays, where as always every Thursday, I bring you my thoughts and general love on a personal classic from my extensive music library. And this week's one is just a little bit gorgeous so let's see what it is, shall we? Artist: Zero 7 feat. Sia and Sophie BarkerSong: DestinyRelease … Continue reading Pop Essays #27: Zero 7 feat. Sia and Sophie Barker, ‘Destiny’
Bringing you another genuine nugget of awesomeness from my personal music archives, every Thursday at midday, it's Pop Essays. Many a great duo have been written about before - so here's a twosome that got away for this week... Artist: Marvin and TamaraSong: Groove MachineRelease Date: 26/07/1999Writers: John McLaughlin / Steve Du BerryProducer: Steve Du … Continue reading Pop Essays #26: Marvin and Tamara, ‘Groove Machine’
It's Thursday and it's midday - it therefore must be time for me to trawl my personal playlists of yore to bring you another lost gem in Pop Essays. This week: an album track from one of Britain's most promising teen protégés in the early 00s... Artist: Amy StudtSong: Carry Me AwayRelease Date: 30/06/2003 (on … Continue reading Pop Essays #25: Amy Studt, ‘Carry Me Away’
With more hidden gems then you could find with a metal detector, it's this week's installment of my weekly music series Pop Essays. And let me say that I truly love the geezer behind this week's featured song and his many other works - as I'm sure you will too... Artist: Ed DrewettSong: Champagne LemonadeRelease … Continue reading Pop Essays #24: Ed Drewett, ‘Champagne Lemonade’
The Niche Reference 