Maria McKee (1989), the eponymous solo debut of the former Lone Justice lead singer, is an album that Dave discovers during the course of Dead Man Singing, and it’s one that found me while I was a student at around the same time.

Opening track I’ve Forgotten What it Was in You (That Put ...

Someone recently said to me that the Beatles were overrated. Now, I have no problem with people saying they don’t like the Beatles – musical taste is subjective, and we like what we like – but that’s very different to saying they weren’t good, or that they are overrated...

U is for unbalanced games

If you’ve never been involved in kids’ football, some of the scorelines in Foul and Fair might have caused some raised eyebrows. In my time coaching, I saw my team win by margins or nine or ten, as well as losing by a similar distance. I never personally encount...

I was aware of Lindisfarne for years without every properly checking them out. There was the single Run for Home in 1978 which the primary school aged me quite liked at the time, even if it now feels a bit more glossy and polished compared to their earlier stuff, and of course I knew Fog On The Tyne...

T is for Touchline.

Most grassroots games have the coaches and substitutes on one touchline, with the supporters (from both teams) on the opposite one. I’ve spent a lot of time on each side of that divide, variously as a parent or as a coach, and in both cases the atmosphere can vary widely.

T...