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Thanks, coincidentally one of my near locals has a copy. I might try and go in to give it a preview

How's the Lee? I've nearly bought it a couple of times

The vagaries of fortune...and football Everton continue their ever more tenuous grasp of the Premier League. They may well go down next year along with Luton and probably Sheffield United.

Half time and Leicester are the best placed of the three...

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannabis_use_disorder I just wondered about your statement TTK and did a search. I certainly know that what's available these days is a lot stronger than when I partook and wondered if there was any recent research suggesting addiction. It would seem that there is a suggestion that its constituent elements might be addictive. Most of the results were from rehab organisations so I discounted them as they may well be biased. I do not mean to make any judgement here, I was just interested to see what current thinking is. I also realise this is hijacking the thread, so mods please delete if necessary

I need to catch up on that one

I was very taken by his contributions to Lenox Avenue Breakdown yesterday. I had forgotten he was on it. Don't know the one you posted though. Have a fair few LPs,all of which are more than listenable

I always think it's a shame that this line-up didn't record more

I have about six of them and I'm very pleased with them all. No sonic issues, lovely pressings, good quality production on the covers. As to whether they're worth the cost I think that's probably an individual choice but I don't regret spending the UK price of about £35 on mine.

Yes, absolutely. Definitely not alone but a signature album in a trend

Agreed, it took me too many years to fully appreciate it for the masterpiece that it is. Quintessentially English, is how I hear ot now, steeped in a tradition of English romanticism (although I may be guilty of overthinking it 😀). And yes, Norma's voice is very special. I remember hearing her live for the first time at one of Kenny Wheeler's birthday concerts (the one released by ECM) and being completely knocked out.

I always think the key to enjoying Halsall, which I do quite a bit, is not to think of him too much as a Jazz player. Within that term of reference there's some fairly noticeable shortfalls.

Surely all West Ham fandom has to be semi-ironic?! I speak as someone whose very early years were spent obsessed by Moore, Hurst and Peters

Michael Garrick Sextet w. Norma Winstone - The Heart Is A Lotus [Argo, UK 1970]

😂

Such thoughtful parenting is to be admired! No child needs route one at that age but also incompetent playing out from the back could scar for life too. A minefield. Yes to this but I'd break that down to stratas even within white collar. I've hardly done a manual day's work in my life but in all my jobs it's been football talk over rugby and polite bemusement towards my cricket enthusiasm. Friends in city financial and legal careers are always off to Twickenham and Lords, have children playing rugby and will occasionally slum it at the Emirates or Stamford Bridge. Saracens v Harlequins sold out the Tottenham Stadium this season, I tried to get tickets thinking there'd be tons available.

There are two codes of rugby, Union and League. League is very much focussed in the northern industrial areas of England and here rugby can be very popular and played in state funded schools; traditionally Rugby League is a working class sport. Rugby Union is most often played in public schools (confusingly these are not open to all but fee paying establishments) and has a link to a more affluent socio-economic group as a result. Although in some regional centres in the South West it has a working class tradition too. Only in some parts of northern England will Rugby League challenge football in popularity, not so Rugby Union anywhere. I think in Scotland rugby Union may challenge football in popularity in some regions. In Wales rugby Union rules supreme, part of the Welsh DNA practically All rugby fans will make the claim that it's a toughness building game, part of it's raison d'etre. I had the misfortune to play rugby in my teens, hated it - not fast enough to keep out of ttrouble, not big enough when I was in it! Really enjoy watching it now although the very strong link with brain injury and damage is beginning to take the shine off for me.

Milford Graves w. Arhur Doyle & Hugh Glover - Children Of The Forest [Black Editions, 2023] Fiery!

Yes, that's correct, rugby Premiership and football Premier League. I shall pay my penance at the altar of sports marketing 🙃

Me too, it's financial doping, next up Newcastle United. Oil state owned football clubs won't do anyone any favours apart from the money men. In contrast, Chelsea's experience this last season goes to show how poorly managed mega-spend doesn't work. Boehly's like a kid in a sweet shop. Lots of coverage here of how City's premiership win has a bad taste to it although I fear that vested interets may find a way of prevailing.

Nice story Niko Now on this, contemporary SA Duduzo Makhathini - In The Spirit Of Ntu [Blue Note, SA 2022]

Malombo Jazz Makers - Down Lucky's Way [Tapestry Works 2023 RE] Fabulous SA jazz from 1969. Two more soon to come from Strut. I remember Julian Bahula playing around when I first came to London.

Of course you can 😁

😃👍

No, not at all. Minor league football (soccer) is still town/city focussed and is either semi-pro or amateur as you go down through the tiers. The FA, our natonal football ruling body, has about 10 tiers in its pyramid. At the bottom you're looking at teams playing in very local leagues and representing small towns/villages. All tiers will have promotion/relegation making it feasible but very, very unlikely that a team representing a small town can rise through the pyramid to the four professional leagues. The FA Cup, an annual knockout competition is open to all clubs affiliated to the FA no matter which tier they play in. Occasionally a tier 5 or 6 amateur team will perform well enough to appear against a top tier side - that's what we quaintly call "the romance of the Cup" The same structure exists in rugby and cricket but is smaller as the sports are less popular. Universities have there own inter-universiry competitions but they don't intersect with the structure above. True but it's often overlooked that Leicester did have money from their Thai backers, not the amounts of Man City, Newcastle or Liverpool but they weren't financial minnows compared to all other sides and were probably the richest outside the big 5 or 6 at the time.