Went back to work yesterday, for my first Saturday working in the shop. It was actually a pretty quiet day, many of the cafés and bars on Park Street were closed, so it felt more like a Sunday really. I like the fact that at this time of year it’s really easy to lose track of the days of the week. Today I’m off see Bristol City play Bournemouth, obviously that would normally take place on a Saturday, so tomorrow I’m going to be convinced that it’s Sunday, better make sure that we both remember to go to work. Then when we get back on track they go and throw New Years day at us, so another day off and more mental confusion for a simple chap like me.

We had a gently social time over the past few days. Met up with a few friends on Xmas eve to celebrate my birthday, had to have a late change of venue for our lunch gathering as the place which we had booked, was not actually serving food, although they had neglected to tell us this. Still we managed to find a nice café on Gloucester Road and had a fine time. After the meal a few of us popped into the excellent Repsycho, where we marvelled at their wonderful collection of the kitsch and the classic from the 50’s 60’s and 70’s.

Xmas day itself went really well, we finally staggered home and just about managed to stay awake to watch Belleville Rendez-Vous. Boxing day was a very lazy, apart from a brief trip to the dustbin, I did not leave the house all day, which was fine.

Whilst I was working Orynthia introduced her cousin Caroline (who is spending Xmas with us) to delights of the ladies lunch club at the Boston Tea Party.

Last night we popped round to see Rick and Louise and as is often the way. I found myself engaged in a long an interesting conversation about music with one of Rick’s friends. Having started off talking about “cool” bands like Joy Division, we eventually found ourselves admitting to our Prog Rock and Heavy Metal past’s. We all have our skeletons in the cupboard.

Record of the Xmas period for me, is the latest brilliant album by Outkast – Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. Really inventive, funny and funky, it’s a great record.

Despite a couple of weather forecasts raising our hopes, no sign of any snow here yet. We are long overdue a decent snowfall, maybe this will be the year!

Looking past Xmas, we booked a couple of things to look forward to. Firstly in early January we have got tickets to see the marvellous Ladybug Transistor in London, as luck would have it we were due to visit London on the 9th January for “Tea at The Ritz” (a Xmas gift from last year), amazingly the only gig that the band are playing in the UK on this trip across The Atlantic was scheduled for the night before, so we will be heading up to London on the Thursday in order to catch the gig as well, also pleased as we managed to book reasonably priced (for London) accommodation very close to the venue.

Then on Friday 23rd January the equally splendid Camera Obscura are playing at The Cube, the perfect place to see the band which gave us one of the best albums of 2003. I had a chat with the guy who has been arranging it for The Cube, and it sounds as though he has been having great fun trying to decipher those lovely Scottish accents over the phone, during the negotiations.

We’ve also booked the flights for the Bilbao trip for the first week in February, so all in all we’ve got a lot to look forward to in the New Year.

Although there is no such thing as an Imperial Music Xmas bash, the previous couple of evenings and seen me out and about on a pair of festive nights out.

On Wednesday Orynthia’s company treated us to an evening in the gothic splendour of Ashton Court Mansion. For the first since leaving BT at the end of October, I had to slip into a suit, luckily I just about remembered how put a tie on as well. Orynthia looked radiant and it was quite nice to be in a dressy environment for once.

Last night, the Monday night football gang finally managed to arrange a social night out, mainly thanks to the organisational skills of Scott. Nine of us met for a curry, before somehow blagging our way into the South West Press Xmas party, for a late drink. Scott is about to join the Australia exodus, which many of our musical friends seem to be experiencing this winter. Geoff is already down under for an extended visit, John and Jane head out for a month early in January. Scott and his musical partner Andy Smith have the exotic sounding prospect of a New Years Eve gig in Sydney, then New Years day in Perth, before squeezing in one more show in Singapore on the way back of their whistle-stop trip.

Had a pretty frustrating day today, sitting in the traffic of a grid locked city. I think that everyone must have finished work at lunchtime and decided to drive home. What should have been a pretty quick trip to take my sister to the supermarket, turned into a bit of a marathon.

Tonight it’s going to be the last ever Four Corner’s at The Croft, hopefully a decent crowd will make it a night to remember.

You can see some pictures here of our recent trip to Tate Modern in London.

Had a surprise visit tonight from one of our Spanish friends. Jose is from Bilbao but has been living in Bristol on and off for the past few years. We got in touch with him recently because we are hoping to go to Bilbao next February, so we thought we would pick his brains about accommodation.

He popped in this evening to say that he is going back to Spain for Xmas in a couple of days time, then after a brief return for New Year in Bristol, he is off to start a new job working for UNESCO in Jamaica! I think that he is still a bit stunned by it all, but what a great adventure, one thing does worry him though. I told him that the Jamaicans love cricket. For all his adaptability and willingness to adapt to local ways and customs, the majestic game of cricket has always remained a cause of bemused confusion for the poor chap. He once asked me “How can a game last 5 days, and still end in a draw?” Maybe with that warm Caribbean sun shining on his back the game will make more sense to him then it does in chilly old England.

We’ve had some interesting customers in the shop recently. Of course all our customers are interesting, but some stand out more that others. Last week Julian Cope spent sometime in shop before picking up a copy of the Gonga album. Today we spent a while with Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin fame, he was in a very chatty and jolly mood, buying lots of goodies. In fact it was a pretty busy day, the Xmas rush really seemed to begin, now all we need it some snow. One of my old BT colleagues also came into the shop. The old team that I used to work with is being merged with another team and it sounds as though things are generally pretty miserable there at the moment, which is a real shame for the people concerned. I am so pleased that I left when I did.

Woke up this morning to a cold and foggy day. In fact the car would not start, I guess due to a combination of cold and damp, luckily this meant that I had a lovely walk through the misty splendour of Redland Green Park. Lots of birds were skipping around, I thought at first that were having their breakfast, but when you think about the ridiculous time which birds get up at, then I guess it would have been more like lunchtime for them.

Once in the shop, it was one of those days when lots of friends happened to visit. In quick succession 5 people came in, the funniest was Darren, more of an acquaintance really. He is one of the many people that we know through Steve Vowels. We watched a few football games together over a glass of wine. He was about to leave empty handed when he spotted me by the door, I was checking the stock situation, so I had pen and paper in hand. It’s been awhile since we’ve seen him so his was unaware of my change of career. He assumed that I had an enormous Xmas list that I was working my through and was shocked to find that I was working in “the best record shop in Bristol”. He kept on congratulating me on my new job and laughing out loud. After a few minutes of banter I’m pleased to say that he left with a couple of purchases.

Tomorrow night we shall be heading into town to try and complete (or at least break the back of) our Xmas shopping. We actually don’t have to buy too much this year, helped by the fact that my sister and her 3 boys have decided that they no longer recognise Xmas or indeed birthdays!

Our final gig in the crazy sequence was great. Belle & Sebastian played lots of different songs from the London show and went down a storm on their first visit to this part of the country. Support act Franz Ferdinand impressed me a lot with their spikey, angular performance. Have to say that they reminded me a lot of Josef K, Scottish favourites from a previous century.

I can’t really believe that we are so close to Christmas. Usually by this time of year, I’ve been out for lots of work related Xmas meals. I have to say that I quite like the fact that nothing like that goes on in the shop. The thing is that we all have a great time in work anyway, so we don’t need to conjure up an excuse for some joviality. I also love the fact that we can give such joy to people. It’s great to sell someone a record which they have been trying to track down for ages, and it’s also good fun helping out all those confused mums who come into the shop with scribbled notes indicating the music that their loved ones would like Santa to bring them. I guess in a way we are just Santa’s little helpers!

At last the chart the world has been waiting for is here! The definitive guide to the best records of 2003, can be found at the Imperial Music website. Did your favourite make the list?

So it’s been a really busy few days. The Strokes gig in Cardiff on Wednesday night was fantastic! They played for about an hour, and were gone without any encore, which was exactly right. Incredibly tight, they ripped through their set as though their lives depended on it. Next time they come to the UK, I fear they will be playing the big stadiums, so this may be the last chance I get to see them – if so, what a brilliant way to remember them.

Thursday night we were off to The Thekla to see 3 of my new colleagues in action, When RLF and friends supported The Bug. Brilliantly inventive electronica, with live brass section and scratching, they were great. As for the videos – Genius.

On Friday we took advantage of our journey to London for the Belle & Sebastian gig, and nipped along to Tate Modern to see the stunning installation by Olafur Eliasson, The Weather Project. His enormous fake sun shining through the artificial haze creates an amazingly restful and calming atmosphere. It was very strange to see people lying on the concrete floor, to all intents – sunbathing, although no heat is generated. One couple even appeared to be having a picnic! Well worth taking a look at, and it’s free!!

After a brilliant Indian meal, we set off for The Astoria, when we arrived the “Indie Karaoke” was already underway. The efforts of the highly entertaining Johnny Seven made for an amusing competition, which was eventually won by a chap pretending to be The Mamas & Papas (no mean feat). When the gig proper started Stuart Murdoch appeared to be somewhat out of sorts, which resulted in a slightly tense atmosphere on stage. The mood lifted after Mick Cooke’s splendid impersonation of Herb Alpert and soon the band were back on top form and seemed to be enjoying themselves. Songs were liberally taken from all periods of the bands career and Orynthia cheerfully pronounced it, the B&S gig she had seen. Let’s see if they can top that on Sunday evening in Bath.

Today I went to City play Barnsley in the F.A. Cup, although we battered them for most of the game, we were unable to get the goal we needed, so the match ended 0-0. At least we are in the draw for the 3rd round, when all those millionaires from The Premiership join the competion, maybe we will get our chance to take on one of the big clubs at Ashton Gate, assuming that we get past Barnsley in the replay.

The following note is taken from the Belle & Sebastian website and refers to the the London gig which we are going to on Friday evening. Could be quite amusing.

"To all of you who made it to the Glasgow Album Launch, you'll know the drill already, however, for those who don't, the support band for the Friday London show is going to be an interactive karaoke affair! The Johnny 7 are going to be the band, and we need you, yes, that's YOU!, to choose from the delectable list of indie karaoke delights below and volunteer to get up on the stage at The Astoria and belt it at - simple really!
If you have tickets and wanna display your vocal prowess, please email and tell us which song you want to sing. We'll then contact you to discuss meet-up points for the night.
**Please note, if you haven't already got tickets, we're not going to be able to get you into the show, despite how much you want to participate, sorry.**
Stuart Murdoch will be your compere for the slot and there'll probably be a prize for the best performance too, so even if you're not up for singing, please come along early to join in the fun and shout loud for your fave.
Here's the list of Johnny 7 approved songs!
Aztec Camera : oblivious
Baccara : yes sir i can boogie
Burt Bacharach : this guy's in love with you
Shirley Bassey : goldfinger (or almost any bond theme)
Belle & Sebastian : legal man
Blondie : heart of glass / denis / sunday girl
David Bowie : the man who sold the world
Camper Van Beethoven : take the skinheads bowling
The Carpenters : close to you
Edwyn Collins : a girl like you
Doris Day : perhaps, perhaps, perhaps
The Delgados : pull the wires from the wall
Dexy's Midnight Runners : geno
The Doors : light my fire
Franz Ferdinand : darts of pleasure
Astrud Gilberto : the girl from ipanema
Mary Hopkins : those were the days
Jacky : white horses
Daniel Johnston : speeding motorcycle
Tom Jones : it's not unusual
Kylie : can't get you out of my head
Julie London : cry me a river
Madness : baggy trousers
Maaonna : like a virgin / material girl / borderline
The Mamas and The Papas : california dreaming
Kelly Marie : feels like i'm in love
The Monkees : last train to clarksville / i'm a believer
The Pastels : nothing to be done
Freda Payne : band of gold
Elvis Presley : bossa nova baby
Pulp : babies
Santana : black magic woman
Dusty Springfield : the look of love
The Strokes : last nite
Supergrass : alright
The Supremes : baby love
Teenage Fanclub : the concept
Thin Lizzy : the boys are back in town
Tight Fit : the lion sleeps tonight
Velvet Underground : sunday morning
Bobby Vinton : blue velvet
Dionne Warwick : say a little prayer
White Stripes : you're pretty good looking
Andy Williams : music to watch girls by
And almost anything vintage by Elvis, The Beatles, The Stones etc."

Lots of dashing around at the moment, hence the lack of entries here. Just time to say buy the new mini album, The Stereo and God by Joy Zipper, it’s a fine thing.

Managed to squeeze in visits to a couple of new restaurants this week.

On Tuesday we went to one30, the latest venture from Chris Wicks of Bells Diner fame. He has taken the brave decision to open a lovely new bar and restaurant at the lower end of Cheltenham Road, which is not the most salubrious part of town. The place itself is really nicely laid out, plenty of lounging space in the bar and a simple yet stylish restaurant area. As Orynthia had eaten at lunchtime, we decided to share a selection of Tapas for £12.50, which was both plentiful and delicious, great value for two people.

Last night one of Orynthia’s colleagues was leaving work. Every one met up at Wall Street for drinks. To our surprise the ground floor has been converted into a pan Asian restaurant, where you order A La Carte or pay £11.95 for a help yourself buffet. We elected to go for the £11.95 option just to keep things simple and it was a good choice. It was the opening night for this place and gradually quite a lot of Orynthia’s workmates made the journey downstairs in various states of inebriation, so it was a pretty good test for the staff. They coped well enough with the traditional drunken British male, so they should be OK in the future.

Well we have almost shaken off our collection of bugs and could both soon be sneeze and cough free.

On Friday we had our chimney swept in preparation for lots of snug winter tea times in front of a roaring fire. We also had a visit from Kev’s dad, he is coming back today to decorate our bathroom for us, which may be a tad foolish, as we don’t yet know what is causing our shower problem?

Friday evening was spent at Four Corners, lots of people were out and about including fellow blogger Paul Baxter. We have a good chat about the mysterious world of blogging, why we write and why people read them as well. No major conclusions but it we had a good laugh.

Saturday saw my sister coming out of hospital after her recent op and a cracking win for Bristol City against 2nd in the table Barnsley. Maybe we can start to put some real form together now, please!

During the rest of the weekend we have both been working on the end of year chart for Imperial. The web site is virtually done, the poster printing is going to be done by Katja’s company. With a bit of luck, it could all be sorted by next weekend.

Not many updates lately, most of my time in front of the computer has been spent on the end of year chart for the shop. We have made lots of progress now, thanks in the main to Orynthia’s web skills. Getting the chart printed up for the shop is proving to be a time consuming project. I took some staff pictures for the website today, which turned out to be quite amusing.

Other than that, I have fallen victim to the cold bug, which is doing the rounds, and Orynthia is still trying to completely shake off the flu. Ric should be coming to look at our leaky shower tomorrow. We both have the day off which is nice. We will be entertaining the esteemed Mr Ian Green of Fuzz Against Junk tomorrow evening before heading down to Four Corners with him. This week Monday night footie pal Scott Hendy will be joining the 3 wise men on the decks, should be good.

Looks like we might be going to see The Strokes in Cardiff at the start of December! Later that week we will be seeing Belle & Sebastian twice. Looks like the Xmas rush has started.

Oh no! Woke up this morning to find the kitchen covered in water. Looks like the shower is leaking!!

As soon as had I finished writing yesterdays entry, the heavens opened and the wind ripped most of the leaves from the trees. Leaving a lovely squelchy mess all over town.

In the afternoon, I meet up with my one and only cousin Robert. Even though for most of our lives we have lived no more than about 50 miles away from each other, it must be at least 20 years since we have seen each other. My sister Susan and I met up with him at The Watershed and spent the next couple of hours comparing notes. It was amazing to discover how much we had in common, hopefully we will be able to keep in touch, now that contact has been re-established.

Sue goes into hospital for another operation next week, she should be in for about 4 or 5 days, leaving 2 of her teenage boys at home together. Amazingly the two lads have not spoken to each other for about a year! I can’t imagine how they can live like that. Maybe next week they will have to break the ice as Sue won’t be around to act as an intermediary between them.

The Holly Golightley gig last night was a bit disappointing. The band seemed to lack a bit sparkle, so we made our way home before the end of the show.

Tonight we are off to a bit of party at Ceri and Simons and then aiming to end up at the latest Grumpy Man evening.

It’s strange but after only 2 weeks, Thursday now really feels like Friday used to. I’m enjoying working 4 days a week (who wouldn’t?). It has been a busy week, on Wednesday night we went out straight from work for some tapas with Mark and Bab’s before heading off to see The National at The Louisiana. I really enjoyed the band although some of the other reactions from our friends were a tad mixed.

Last night we meet up with Ashton. We were finally able to give him his 45rpm T-Shirt for his 45th birthday. We bought it for him about 11 months ago, pleased to say that he loved it. Then Mat and Helen joined us, before heading into The Fleece to see the divine Martina Topley-Bird in action. What a wonderful voice she has, also love the lose and laid back, blues edge which she has bought to her music. Marvellous stuff.

Looks like the Imperial Music end of year chart will have a web presence, when it is finally compiled. It may even have staff photos on it, so you will be able to see the guys that I am working with. So it looks as though the new digital camera will come into it’s own then. Actually it’s a lovely autumn day here today, so I might try and take some pictures of the neighbourhood in all its golden leaf glory.

Over the past few days I’ve revisited South of the Border, West of the Sun by Haruki Murakami. It’s a really beautiful book. On the surface it’s very simple and understated but it captures the uncertainty of seemingly successful man brilliantly. It’s much more straightforward then most of his work, but is still well worth a read if you have the chance.

Looks like we may be off to a few gigs this week. On Wednesday it’s The National at The Louisiana, Thursday it’s Martina Topley-Bird at The Fleece and on Friday it’s Holly Golightly at The Croft. I also have got to try and catch up with my one and only cousin as he is studying in Bristol for a few weeks. Have to try and do this before my sister goes into hospital next week, which is going to be tricky!

It seems like the people of Bristol aren’t drinking enough at the moment!

It sounds like our favourite fortnightly Friday night out – Four Corners at The Croft, is under serious threat because the bar taking aren’t high enough. It’s true that on some occasions the place has not been packed to the rafters, but when it is busy people tend to be dancing or watching the band, rather than rushing to the bar to get blasted. It will be a real shame if it does close down, it’s always a really social night out for us.

The same is apparently true of The Albert in Bedminster. The Albert is a pretty basic pub, which has built a brilliant reputation for the Jazz and Folk nights, which it puts on. The landlord Ian has attracted some of the best names in the world of modern Jazz to this small pub. However the recent rise in property prices in the Bedminster area sounds like it has prompted the owners into thinking that they could make a lot more money by converting the site into expensive flats. Of course, there is obvious financial logic in this, but the reason why Bedminster has started to become popular is because of places like The Albert and The Tobacco Factory, sure they would all be worth more split up into tiny units and sold for stacks of money, but then the people that live their won’t have anywhere local to go to, so a previously vibrant and interesting area becomes a sleepy suburb again. The curse of gentrification I guess.

We surprised ourselves yesterday. We actually managed to get a radio/cassette fitted into our new car for exactly the amount of money we hoped to pay AND within about 30 minutes of leaving the house. We thought that having a cassette player installed might be a problem as every one wants CD players in their cars these days, but we were pleasantly surprised. We have enough problems locating CD’s, which are spread around the 4 players in the house, without wanting more being suck in the car. Also we don’t have the technology to allow us to burn CD’s so the good old mix tape is fine for us. Of course in a few weeks the car will become littered with unmarked tapes as we load it with our latest favourites.

A bit of a spin on the American "Most wanted" playing cards can be found here
I've spent some of my day off doing homework! Mark wants a list of my fav 30 albums of the year, for the grand, Imperial Music end of year chart. It's hard work you know!!