Top Ten iTunes

1. Paul Weller - You Do Something to Me
2. Snow Patrol - Crazy in love
3. Salt 'n' Pepa - Whatta Man
4. The Three Degrees - Givin' Up, Givin' In
5. Jody Watley - Looking for a New Love
6. The Sugababes - Killer
7. The Rembrants - I'll Be There For You
8. Justin Timberlake - Rock Your Body
9. The Jam - Town Called Malice
10. Lisa Scott Lee - Lately

Incompetence - Rob Grant

About the author: Rob Grant is best known as co-creator of the cult show Red Dwarf, as well as writing various other comedy shows. Incompetence is his second novel.

At some point in the not to distant future in the United States of Europe, the following article is passed:

“Article 13199 of the Pan European Constitution: ‘No Person shall be prejudiced from employment in any capacity, at any level, by reason of age, race, creed or incompitence” (sic)

Thus it is not possible to sack someone for not being any good at their job anymore. Detective Harry Salt (to give just one of his alias) is actually quite competent but must deal with endless ineptitude in order to do his job, and this time the murderer he is trying to track down is also very competent. The book takes us (and Harry) to Rome (via the wrong airport as the pilot got confused), Paris and Vienna on the trace of this rather efficient killer. On his way Harry will meet an armed police chief with anger management issues, a mortician with an unusual hobby and various staggering levels of beaurocracy.

In parts the book is funny, but it is very much a one-joke book and accounts of some of Harry’s altercations with officialdom and other incompetents can be a bit laborious, you are wishing the author would just get on with the story as we have already established the character is a bit of an idiot. There are no deep characters here, we don’t really get to know Harry or anyone he comes into contact with on anything more than a superficial level; it is not that type of book. The book is a comedy book and though mainly is witty and amusing I did not find it laugh out loud funny as others have (maybe it is me – I liked Red Dwarf but wasn’t as fanatical as some)! I have read funnier and more original works. By the end this book is almost a pastiche of itself, although I suspect that may be intentional. The book is very easy to read though. Apart from some frustrating and long-winded pages involving various imbeciles or officialdom that take a long time to resolve, the book runs at a cracking pace. There is not much dialogue but the story is told from Harry’s perspective. Grant seems to try and make the murder solving as part of the book, but it is almost a sub-plot rather than an integral part. I didn’t guess who the perpetrator was but then I didn’t try, I didn’t think of it as important, I was more interested in what particular type of idiot Harry would come across next. The imaginative crimes really are excuses for Harry’s adventures in trying to travel across Europe in shoes made of vegetables.

Did I enjoy it? Mostly yes. As I have already said, it is not the funniest book I have read, although it is amusing. Some parts of the book can be as frustrating to read as they supposedly were for Harry Salt. It is easy to read but will never be classified as a classic.

Bob Marley & The Wailers - Legend

Since seeing The Wailers perform at the London Rise Against Racism festival, it reminded me of how many great songs they have in their repertoire with Bob Marley and decided it was long overdue to buy a Best Of compilation.

The album starts off with Is This Love the Marley penned classic from 1978 and the song really needs no introduction. It was taken from the Kaya album, which revolved around the duel themes of love and marijuana, and this instance the song was about love. It is a beautiful song, and certainly at the Rise concert, got the crowd singing. It is followed by No Woman, No Cry originally from the Natty Dread album and is about the struggle of life in the Trenchtown, the rundown part of Kingston, Jamaica where Bob grew up with his mother after his father died. The version of the song on Legend is not from Natty Dread but from Live! which was a live album that the band recorded in 1975 at the Lyceum in London. It is worth noting that the writing credit for the song is given to a Vincent Ford, a friend of Marley’s who ran a soup kitchen in Trenchtown. It is thought that Marley himself actually wrote it, but the royalties kept the soup kitchen afloat. The song stands out, particularly live, because of the hook “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright” chanted repeatedly.

Could You be Loved is the next track and is taken from the 1980 Uprising album. The single reached No 5 in the UK singles charts, the highest any Bob Marley and The Wailers track reached. This is followed by Three Little Birds, (the ‘Don’t Worry About A Thing’ song) from the 1977 Exodus album, one of band’s more commercially and critically successful albums. Bob’s son Ziggy recently collaborated with Jamaican dance hall artist Sean Paul on a cover of this song. Buffalo Soldier, the next track, was on the post-humous 1983 album Confrontation and is a catchy, classic reggae song written about the black soldiers conscripted to fight in the American Civil War.

The CD also contains early tracks such as Get Up, Stand Up written by Bob and original Wailer Peter Tosh (McIntosh) and is on The Wailers 1973 Burnin’ album. At this time they worked as The Wailers only, Bob Marley and The Wailers didn’t become an entity until after 1974. The song became the anthem of Amnesty International and was important in the Rasta movement. Its militancy is quite typical of the Wailers at this time. This is followed by Stir it Up, a gentle, chilled track from The Wailers’ first album Catch a Fire, released in 1973, the album was important in the fact that it brought reggae out of Jamaica and into the international arena.

Easy Skanking in the next track, taken from the album Kaya, and is homage to marijuana. I was not as familiar with this track as some of the others but it is as slow and laid-back as you imagine it would be! This is followed by One Love/People Get Ready, another of the well known songs (although not a hit in the UK) where Marley was influenced by Curtis Mayfield and his song People Get Ready. Back to early Wailers songs, the next track on the compilation is I Shot the Sheriff, a song about justice with a great reggae beat from the Burnin’ album. It was covered successfully by Eric Clapton who had a US No 1 and a UK Top Ten hit with his version. Then we are back to the Exodus album with Waiting In Vain, a beautiful, love song about unrequited love.

I was not overly familiar with the next track on the disc, Redemption Song from 1980’s Uprising album. It is one of his more religious songs written whilst Marley was fighting cancer and in a lot of pain, according to his wife, Rita. It is an acoustic track and Marley sings about emancipation from mental slavery. Satisfy My Soul is a gentle ska/reggae hybrid from the Kaya album, a song that fitted in quite well with the commercial ska movement in the UK at the time. Exodus, from the album of the same name, was Marley’s second UK hit. Written whilst Marley and his wife were living in London, after an assassination attempt on them in their Jamaican home, it is possibly influenced by this but also the Rasta movement and has a strong funk beat running through it. Jamming is the penultimate track, a catchy, popular track that was Marley’s first UK Top Ten (with Punky Reggae Party). While at first listen this seems like “I wanna jam it with you” is about a musical jam session, but on closer inspection is actually more about uniting in front of God (or Jah as the Rastafarian God is known). The final track is a bonus track, Punky Reggae Party, described as a ‘tribute to the flourishing cultural intersection in the UK of reggae and punk rock’, although it definitely sounds more reggae than punk to me.

Marley developed a form of skin cancer which spread around his body; he died in Miami in May 1981, unable to make it home to Jamaica to die. He was 36.

Who were the Wailers: Bob, his school friend Bunny Livingston (later known as Bunny Wailer) and Peter Tosh were the Wailers at the beginning of their international success, although had previously been a six piece. After Bunny and Peter left and the group was disbanded in 1974, Bob re-formed them as his backing band featuring:

Aston Barrett – Bass Guitar, percussion

Carlton Barrett – Drums and percussion

Al Anderson – Lead Guitar

Junior Marvin – Lead Guitar, backing vocals

Tyrone Downie – Keyboards, percussion, backing vocals

Alvin Patterson – Percussion

I-Threes:Rita Marley, Marcia Griffiths, Judy Mowatt – Backing Vocals

Earl Lindo – Keyboards, percussion, backing vocals

Earl Smith – Lead and Rhythm guitar, percussion

Donald Kinsey – Lead Guitar

Bernard Harvey – Piano, organ

BB: Over at last

This series went on way to long for me, and there were way to many housemates.

Six were left for the final week, where they did daily tasks, Nikki had tantrums and Aisleyne cried. Glyn got to speak Welsh to a Welsh BB and Richard remembered how to say "I'm Feeling Horny" from his Welsh language class task for the occassion.

Jennie left first, followed by a stunned Nikki who almost got booed off the stage during her interview by claiming she was too scared to speak. Richard went next and was followed out bu Aisleyne in third. A surge of internet support for her meant she was a hot tip to win, but that was not the case. Pete (as predicted) won with Glyn as his runner up.

Can I have my life back now please?

Sheila O'Flanagan - Suddenly Single

Why do I do this to myself? I bought three O’Flanagan books from the Book Man who comes to work for £5 the set. Bargain I thought. Maybe I have outgrown the genre but I found all the first two rather dull, but not wanting to waste it without giving it a chance (and part as a punishment to myself for buying them without thinking about how dire they could be) I valiantly (or stupidly) proceeded to read this one.

Our heroine, Alix is a career girl in a successful relationship with a journalist. However, the relationship isn’t as successful as she thought, as Paul then dumps her for a woman who will give him marriage and children instead of being driven by her career. Alix is knocked for six and partly refuses to face the inevitable. She has a few dates, reluctantly; more to placate her family but is concentrating more on not being usurped in the work place where she is a successful currency dealer for an international bank. Will Alix let he guard down long enough to face her demons that plague her about her personal life right from her childhood when her father left?

The book does resolve these issues, but it doesn’t really matter as the book is dull and predictable. Competing in a genre like chick-lit where the market is flooded O’Flanagan is found wanting. The book is not particularly well written and lacks the wit and pace of some of her rivals.

Top Dance iTunes

Top Ten dance tracks from dance/club compilations (such as Hed Kandi/Tokyo Collection) that I have listened to on iTunes since June 2004.

1. In Deep - Last Night A DJ Saved My Life
2. Goldfrapp - Strict Machine
3. Joe Smooth - Promised Land
4. Flower Power - Flower Power
5. Open Air - Seven Nation Army
6. The Montanas Feat. Rita Campbell - Love's Just Found Me (Morjac Extended)
7. Mayhem & Bones - Feels Good
8. Soul Rebels Feat Lisa Millet - I'll be Good (Soul Rebels Club Mix)
9. Seamus Haji - Last Night a DJ Saved My Life
10. Mousse T with Roachford - Pop Muzak (Ian Pooley Extended Mix)

BB Update

There has been a right old furore in the media about Channel 4/BB producers asking people to vote to put people back in the house that they had already spent money on evicting. They decided to send in Grace (why??), Lea, Nikki and Mikey. The rest of the housemates were bored with each other and were delighted when the screen showed their ex-housemates and realised they were moving into the House Next Door. They tried to shout to them and then Glyn climbed onto the roof to speak to his mate, the 'lovely' Grace.

BB punished Glyn on Friday by keeping him seperate from his housemates. The housemates played a large board game and jennie won immunity from eviction.

Imogen and Richard were nominated for eviction and on Wednesday moved to the house next door with the ex-housemates without saying goodbye to the others.

The official housemates did a Radio show task which they passed.

Imogen was evicted.

The housemates (excluding Glyn) had to decide which of the four ex-housemates they would bring back in for the final week. It was close between Nikki and Lea but they chose Nikki as they knew Pete missed her and that their was a budding romance there.

Thus, Nikki moved back into the BB house for the final week and is eligable to win.

Palazzo Vecchio

Palazzo vecchio 6
Originally uploaded by Essexgirl.

Inside the Palazzo Vecchio, Florence. May 2006

BB Update

This was a bit dull this week. Mikey aregued with everyone and was up for eviction with Susie, Jennie and Imogen. They passed a university task. Aisleyne discovered she was machivellian.

Mikey went and there was a surprise double eviction, which meant Susie followed him 30 minutes later.

Showing how desperate the BB producers are they are now going to send four housemates back and put them into the house next door on Tuesday. Eventually one will go back into the main house for the final week and be eligible to win the show.

101 Things in 1001 Days - The Fifth Ten

41. Break 2 million on Bejeweled 2 (done 17/2)
42. Call Uncle & Aunt once a month, or see them (ongoing)
43. Sort out garage 29/5
44. Buy new lampshades for kitchen, spare bedroom and hall (Spare room and kitchen done but not put up)
45. Collect all of the Swarovski ‘Wonders of the Sea’ main limited edition pieces. (1/3)
46. Go to bed before 10.30 every weekday night (Sun-Thurs) for two weeks.
47. Frame and display a new photo that I have taken
48. Make a new friend
49. Do 240 sit ups
50. Keep Sims 2 expansion packs up to date and get six successful businesses started in the new one

As more impressive effort so far. 41 & 43 are done. 42, 44, 45 and 50 are in hand or ongoing. I have one business in Sims 2: Open For Business which almost has the top ranking, just another 5 to go.