I knew Joan Baez more by reputation than her music when I was growing up – as a folk singer, and a protester, and for her Bob Dylan connection. But I do have fond memories of this song, which gave Joan her only hit in 1971. (more…)

About 20 years ago I was at a loose end in Los Angeles and decided I’d track down Lemmy from Motorhead for his first interview since a health scare. (more…)

By my mid-teens my musical interests were moving away from the singles chart and I was looking for something more substantial. Bob Dylan provided an answer.
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Pink Floyd’s next album after Dark Side Of The Moon made an even greater impace on me when I playe it for the first time, just after I left school. (more…)

I can vividly remember my first sight and sound of Dr Feelgood. It awoke something in me that would evolve, a couple of years later, into punk rock. The links are obvious in this performance.

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Midge Ure had his first taste of fame fronting boy band Slik, long before Ultravox, Live Aid and Do They Know It’s Christmas? (more…)

By 1975 I was old enough to drink and smoke and I was beginning to discover that tobacco was not the only thing you could smoke. And ready to discover The Doors. (more…)

Sailor seemed like a homegrown version of Sparks when they steered into the spotlight at the end of 1975 with Glass Of Champagne, led by a real Russian prince. (more…)

There was a time in the early Seventies when the “power trio” was a Thing. All the better to showcase a virtuoso guitarist with blue tendencies by backing him with a brutal rhythm section. (more…)

I‘ve never been a big Led Zeppelin fan – nor even a medium-sized one – but I know their work, and I have a soft spot for their softer spots. Such as this folky little number from their second album. (more…)