Unchain My Heart was written by a guy called Bobby Sharp (about whom I know nothing more). It was recorded by Ray Charles in 1961, by Trini Lopez in 1963 and, of more relevance to this post, by Joe Cocker in 1987. Here's a somewhat muted video of Joe Cocker's version. I recommend you turn…Read more Unchain My Heart
pop
Order! Order!
Looking through my recent 'likes' I see several pieces worthy of a mention in these pages. So it's time for another playlist, methinks. But how do you choose the order of the tunes? Are there any rules? Or does it just come down to personal preference? And what happens if you get them horribly out…Read more Order! Order!
Radar Blips
My Release Radar this week included several interesting new pieces by not-so-new artists spanning a wide range of styles. I'm featuring them in another Spotify playlist this week. But before we get to that, I must pay tribute to Peter Green, who's death was announced yesterday. Rolling Stone placed the blues/rock guitarist born Peter Allen Greenbaum…Read more Radar Blips
Another Language
I enjoy a challenge. Persuading a computer to do what you want is always challenging, but it can be immensely rewarding, too. That's why I chose a career in programming. When I retired after nearly 40 years of writing software I assumed I'd continue to do a bit of coding for fun to fill the…Read more Another Language
Supersister
This post was prompted by the following product announcement by Burning Shed: All five of Supersister's glorious 1970's releases (Present From Nancy, To The Highest Bidder, Pudding En Gisteren, Iskander and Spiral Staircase) on limited edition coloured vinyls. It's a mystery why old Crotchety Man should have taken any interest in this. The band was unknown…Read more Supersister
Billie Jean
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair! The King ruled over a great empire. He had built magnificent temples as monuments to his wealth and power. The inscription on his statue proclaimed his dominion over all the known world. Pretenders to his throne could only marvel at what Ozymandias had built. Marvel and despair,…Read more Billie Jean
Time of the Season
Time takes its toll on all mechanical things. Sooner or later the cog wheels become clogged with a sticky gunge, the hands on the clock face slow to a crawl and the pendulum shudders to a halt. And what applies to the steady tick-tock of a grandfather clock also applies to the fast spinning disks…Read more Time of the Season
Running In The Family
As a schoolboy, Crotchety Man hated the term after Christmas. He never liked the cold winter months and, worse, that was the term we had to go on cross-country runs. The Crotchety lungs couldn't deliver enough oxygen to the blood to sustain even a gentle jog for more than a few hundred yards, so distances…Read more Running In The Family
Fire
The end of the year is a time for looking back. Today I'm going back 50 years, almost to the dawn of the Crotchety Man era. It's 1968, a time when experimentation in pop music was the order of the day and a slew of highly original acts flourished. One of the most flamboyant of…Read more Fire
We Built This City …
For me, nothing sums up the Spirit of Christmas better than this cute and slightly silly video. It's for fun, it's for the family and it's for a worthy charity. And I'm delighted to say that 75,000 people agree with me because it has taken the number 1 slot on the official UK charts. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8iEB8bfP7wE…Read more We Built This City …
