It’s been a busy week or so. Am still alive, and so far, being thirty has been way better than I thought it might be. I went out for dinner with my better three-quarters and then she and I went to see Half-Man Half-Biscuit. I have also now sorted myself out with a new computer and so am hoping to be doing more regular updates.

What I would like to point you in the direction of is a website called Jocknroll where they are polling readers for their favourite ever scottish singles. Please go and vote. It’s certainly NOT just indie, as there have been many great scottish acts who weren’t.

I keep changing my mind about my Scottish Top Ten singles, but right now it would be:

1. The Delgados ‘ No Danger [Kids’ choir edit]
2. Franz Ferdinand ‘Darts of Pleasure EP’
3. Aberfeldy ‘Heliopolis by night’
4. Associates ‘White car in Germany’
5. Shop Assistants ‘I Don’t Want to be friends with you’
6. Belle and Sebastian ‘This is just a modern rock song’
7. Proclaimers ‘Sunshine on Leith’
8. Sons & Daughters ‘Johnny Cash’
9. Arab Strap ‘Turbulence [Bis remix]’
10. This mortal coil ‘Song to the siren.’

Mind you, even typing out that list, I realise that I haven’t included Mogwai, Jesse Garon and the Desperadoes, Teenage Fanclub, Cosmic Rough Riders,Mull Historical Society, Blue Nile, Boards of Canada, Mylo, Travis, Deacon Blue, Cocteau Twins, Josef k, The Fire Engines, Idlewild, Bis, Simple Minds, Eurythmics, Wet wet wet, Texas…what do you mean, I cannot be serious about the last four? Granted, some of them produced some…rubbish, but they also produced some gems:
Simple Minds’ first albums, up to about 1984 were fab (Belfast Child is hideous, though), Texas were great until they decided to start cuddling up to Chris Evans and the Wu-Tang Clan (I Don’t want A Lover is excellent), Eurythmics produced some stunning early stuff like Sweet Dreams, and wet wet wet’s High on the happy side album has some great moments. Love is all around was tedious by the end of it’s reign, though. Way I see it, if the Beatles were all still alive, and had never split, there would have been some hideous records from them (check the solo careers).

So go to the site, work it out and add your own list. They also want worst tracks…well, even a country with a music scene as fertile as this one can’t get it right all the time!

And please, let me know what you think. This blog continues to get quite a lot of hits, so let’s have some feedback!