Royal Oak

I was listening to that very LP this evening! Not so keen on side 1 (the organ side) but side 2 is good - a nice "Django".

To my shame (Russell Brand once said that in rehab, one could safely confess to ANY example of egregious behavior, provided one prefaced it with those three words) I have never owned or listened to any version of "A Love Supreme".

There was a feature on Joddrell Bank on the BBC North West news tonight. I wasn't paying much attention until I heard Monk playing "Straight No Chaser" on the audio. One not infrequently hears jazz on BBC programming, I think it's cheap because it's out of copyright. Almost all of it sounds rather incongruous to me - you might hear "Dat Dere" playing behind documentaries about local councils or consumer programmes, It's a little disconcerting to hear Monk on national TV.

Yes, my mistake, it's "Erotica". Exotica, Erotica, Eroica.......

I found what appears to be an unplayed copy of John Gordon's "Exotica Suite".

The most famous brand in Britain also made full use of the nautical allusions: Captain Birdseye was a household name in the 70s. Don't know if he is still used - I buy supermarket own brand. "Sea" bass is something which bugs me greatly. When I was a lad (and I'm a good few years younger than fish fingers), bass that came out of the sea was just called bass. I don't know why it became "sea" bass. I always felt it was an affectation of culinary types, like calling mash "country mash", or calling gravy "jus".

About 200 pages in now, and I'm still not sure how it is offensive. I guess the knock on Rand is that the plot is contrived, the characters wooden, and the philosophy a paean to utter selfishness. OTOH, she has many acolytes, so I suppose you'll have to read through and decide for yourself. Still going, around 450 pages in now. I can only manage 10-20 pages at a time. I will finish, to claim the right to say I actually read it. I should have given the other side, and said that her beleivers view her as the philosopher of rugged individualism, free enterprise, capitalism and limited government. Anyway, what do you think of the book? I am trying not to let the politics of the author influence my feelings. The characters are very one-dimensional; the heroes and heroine are good-looking, intelligent and honest, while the moochers and looters are badly-dressed, with weak chins and shifty eyes, and whine a lot. The plot is a little far-fetched, though to be fair, no worse than most Dystopian future novels. All in all, I find it rather po-faced.

About 200 pages in now, and I'm still not sure how it is offensive. I guess the knock on Rand is that the plot is contrived, the characters wooden, and the philosophy a paean to utter selfishness. OTOH, she has many acolytes, so I suppose you'll have to read through and decide for yourself. Still going, around 450 pages in now. I can only manage 10-20 pages at a time. I will finish, to claim the right to say I actually read it.

I went to the Lowry Museum last Sunday. As well as the Lowry art, there was a collection of photographs of the Salford slums of the early 20th century, complete with quotes from a Robert Roberts. So inspired was I, I ordered a copy of this. Really enjoying it so far.

I got 25/25 before I ran out of time. Both my wife and my mother say I'm colour blind..........

About 200 pages in now, and I'm still not sure how it is offensive.

Is he British? The Brits use "brilliant" a lot.

Over here in the 1990s there was a famous (well, among those circles) racing greyhound of the same name.

You have a stronger stomach than I. You are the second person in this thread to express their distaste for the book. I haven't found anything in it so far to explain why this should be so. What's the story?

It appears that the phrase "I am passionate about (insert nature of one's job here)" is mandatory in one's Twitter profile blurb. I looked up the word "passion" in my 1983 Chambers dictionary - "strong feeling or agitation of mind, esp rage, often sorrow; a fit of such feeling: ardent love: sexual desire: an enthusiastic interest or direction of the mind". I suppose there are some out there who feel very strongly about their job, but it seems to me the word has become a platitude. Not only that, but one which somehow trumps every other trait someone might display, for example, competence, reliability, intelligence, reason, stoicism, solidity, calm.

Your list is a stellar line-up of world-class words.

I finally started "Atlas Shrugged" on holiday. I'm quite enjoying it thus far (only 150 pages in)

Big balls to "passionate" and bigger balls to "stunning". Two very empty words IMO I have just prepared my children's packed lunches (for the 2000th time it seems) with a mixture of boredom, duty and stoicism.

You can read customer testimonials on the Better Records website. Number 7 made me laugh out loud - the one about the Sgt Pepper causing the listener to be unable to eat his dinner, and have to go home to be alone to contemplate what he had heard.

Jackie McLean - One Step Beyond, from the "Great Finds" thread. "Ghost Town" drove my wife from the room......

I see a lot of these LPs knocking about in charity shops, usually Ronnie Aldrich or classical though.

They were Ebay joblots.

From the same seller as the Don Rendell, I got a mono copy of Jackie McLean's "One Step Beyond". It has a price sticker saying "32/6" on the front.

Who knows, it might come in handy if the hotel runs out of toilet paper. Is that a comment on the book's literary merits, or it's political leanings? Serious question btw. Political leanings. Thanks. I suppose I'll just have to get on with reading it....