#51 HIGH CUP… RUNNETH OVER

Welcome to LEJoG Day 51 Day 51 pre-amble Today’s post is named after High Cup Nick, the obvious highlight of the day. However, I also wanted to give a nod to Cauldron Snout, the waterfall encountered a few miles upriver from Langdon Beck where the River Tees “runneth over” dolerite steps of the Whin Sill […]

#23 “….AND WELCOME TO THE LATEST EPISODE…”

…of 50FootHead Chart Music. Or, in full: [very broad Nottingham accent] “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYUP YOU POP-CRAZED YOUNGSTERS, and welcome to the latest episode of Chart Music.” The man with the accent is Al Needham, who is interviewed about the podcast here. The collective of former Melody Maker journalists is (in order of appearance) David Stubbs, Sarah Bee, Taylor […]

#22 “GOTTA CHEW, GOTTA CHEW”

Welcome to LEJoG Day 22 Day 22 pre-amble Boys and girls of a certain age will probably remember these adverts and instantly understand the context of the post title. For any readers under 40, a brief explanation follows. A man or woman displays his or her supreme talent to a young child, who responds with […]

#21 IT WAS TWENTY-FIVE YEARS AGO TODAY

Welcome to LEJoG Day 21, and a silver anniversary Day 21 pre-amble Nothing to do with Sgt Pepper teaching a band how to play, five years too early. No, just that I fiddled this weekend to ensure that the day I woke up in Glastonbury was exactly 25 years after my arrival at the festival […]

#20 “LO! THE FLAT HILLS…”

Welcome to the Secret Diary of Ben Wainless, Day 20 Day 20 pre-amble Lo! The Flat Hills… Of My Homeland. The (never finished) epic novel written by one Adrian Albert Mole, born 2 April 1967, better known as a diarist and most famous creation of the sadly missed Sue Townsend. Following Day 18, this is another […]

#16 SUNLIT UPLANDS

Welcome to the sunlit uplands of LEJoG Day 16 Day 16 pre-amble This phrase has been somewhat abused in British political circles these last few years. Here I mean it literally. Today was all about Exmoor, I reached the highest point of Exmoor National Park in mid-afternoon, the header image was taken from there, and the […]

#15 LONG HOT SATURDAY

Welcome to LEJoG Day 15 Day 15 pre-amble It’s Wellerworld, not me, that describes this header image as “one for the ladies” (I tend to find that phrase a bit ’70s). In fact, as I was to learn from My Listening Pleasure on Day 36, this video was actually regarded by some as homo-erotic. The Style Council are here […]

#5 NOT EXACTLY A RUSH

Welcome to LEJoG Day 5 Day 5 pre-amble Newquay. Like Proust’s madeleine, the very word brings to mind a cascade of childhood memories: 1978 – a caravan holiday in St Columb Major. My grandad made a navigation error in Devon on the way there and we ended up crossing Dartmoor instead of using A roads. […]

#4 WALKING ON (IN) SUNSHINE

Welcome to LEJoG Day 4 Day 4 pre-amble Quick music test: did this title immediately bring to mind Katrina and the Waves? If so, how about trying this instead? A magnificent disco cover of an original by Eddy Grant. It’s better. It’s not a cliché. Your life will be better for knowing it. Well, perhaps […]