Here’s a strange slice of ’60s psych, with fuzz guitars and synthesised strings, from the strangely named and even more strangely (mis-)spelt Hooterville Trolly.

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In 2000 I was flown to Paris (business class) and plied with food and drink at the beautiful Hotel Costes just to interview an unknown French bloke called Mirwais.

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This is skin-crawlingly sleazy – the slippery funk bassline, the euphoric sweep of the strings, the jagged disco guitar… but most of all the words. And the way they’re delivered.

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I’m often drawn to a band by their name, their song and album titles and their artwork. So it was no surprise I loved Death In Vegas when they released their debut album Dead Elvis.

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I first heard his name when Gerry Rafferty released Baker Street. Everyone knew who played that sax solo. Almost as many knew that the same guy played the two sax solos on Bowie’s Young Americans.

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Linval Thompson is a seminal figure in the creation, spread and influence of dancehall reggae. He’s also a sweet singer and a prominent producer with a string of roots albums and dub versions.

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Do You Believe In The Westworld is an epic with its thunderous tribal drums, the mighty clang of that guitar riff, the slightly sinister sax and the dubwise echo that matches the cinematic sweep of Kirk Brandon’s mini-Western in words, carried by his stentorian vocals.

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Mattiel come from the Deep South and have roots in vintage soul and blues – but love to play cover versions of English bands.

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I discovered this rockabilly classic 20 years late when it was re-released on the dependably punk-adjacent Chiswick label in 1978. And it has quite the story behind it.

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The Changing Face Of Eurovision – Ireland 1993 Remembered

That time I went to a tiny village in Ireland for the Eurovision Song Contest in 1993… and came home before it started.