Bye Joe. Thanks for all the music.

Bono 4th most loathesome person in America.

Been a bit quite here recently, but here's an end of year roundup. Mainstream pop is now almost complete valueless, so more and more of us look elsewhere (and record companies wonder why sales are poor). By contrast, the Americana/alt-country/no depression scene has been very lively and vital. Great sets I have seen this year include The Flatlanders (OK, rather old school), Laura Cantrell, Tift Merritt, David Olney and not forgetting the fabulous Tom Russell. Icing on cake is the new Johnny Cash release.

After making a rough mix, Bono listens to and studies this comp over the next few days, changes a word or a line or a verse, rephrases and re-sings, and the process takes place again. In this way, he begins to hone in on a performance, an attitude, a persona. He discovers who is singing the song, and what kind of world that person inhabits.
- Brian Eno

Derek is no longer playing with himself, he's gone to play with the angels.

I like the one he does with Mel C.

Mr Hodge is off on his travels, but he's left this list of his 50 all-time favourites (which of course he has already disowned):

• THE BAND The Band
  
• THE BEACH BOYS Pet sounds
  
• THE BEATLES Revolver
  
• BEULAH The coast is never clear
  
• BOBBY "BLUE" BLAND His California album
  
• THE BLUE NILE A walk across the rooftops
  
• JOHN CALE Paris 1919
  
• RAY CHARLES The definitive collection
  
• THE CLASH London calling
  
• SHAWN COLVIN Cover girl
  
• CULTURE Two sevens clash
  
• SANDY DENNY Like an old-fashioned waltz
  
• NICK DRAKE Bryter layter
  
• STEVE EARLE Transcendental blues
  
• THE FOUR TOPS The singles collection
  
• NANCI GRIFFITH The last of the true believers
  
• MERLE HAGGARD Lonesome Fugitive: the Anthology
  
• EMMYLOU HARRIS Pieces of the sky
  
• MIKE HERON Smiling men with bad reputations
  
• KELLY HOGAN Beneath the country underdog
  
• THE INCREDIBLE STRING BAND Earthspan
  
• THE ISLEY BROTHERS 3+3
  
• MILLIE JACKSON Caught up/ Still caught up
  
• THE JAM All mod cons
  
• BERT JANSCH Three chord trick
  
• RICKIE LEE JONES Traffic from Paradise
  
• LITTLE FEAT Dixie chicken
  
• THE LOVIN' SPOONFUL The very best the Lovin' Spoonful
  
• DAVE MASON Alone together
  
• JONI MITCHELL Blue
  
• VAN MORRISON Tupelo honey
  
• VAN MORRISON Wavelength
  
• HEATHER MYLES Highways and honky tonks
  
• RANDY NEWMAN Lonely at the top
  
• LAURA NYRO The first songs
  
• DAN PENN Do right man
  
• THE POGUES Rum sodomy and the lash
  
• ELVIS PRESLEY From Elvis in Memphis
  
• CHARLIE RICH Feel like going home
  
• TOM RUSSELL Borderland
  
• THE SILVER JEWS Bright flight
  
• PERCY SLEDGE The very best of Percy Sledge
  
• GARY STEWART Out of hand/ Your place or mine
  
• JOE TEX The masters
  
• RICHARD & LINDA THOMPSON I want to see the bright lights tonight
  
• BUNNY WAILER Protest
  
• LUCINDA WILLIAMS Car wheels on a gravel road
  
• BOBBY WOMACK The poet/ The poet II
  
• BETTY WRIGHT Danger high voltage/ This time its real
  
• X-RAY SPEX Germ free adolescents