Crisp, Hyacinth

They lost it the day
They pitched hyacinth crisps not
Salt and vinegar

Germ Free Adolescents by X-Ray Spex

The Sex Pistols may have been a cynically manufactured band, but the one thing they did do is inspire a substantial number of people who saw their early shambolic gigs to go out and start their own punk bands. In 1976 Marianne Elliot-Said (better known as Poly Styrene) did exactly that by putting a small ad in the music papers and so X-Ray Spex were formed.

They were an unusual band in many respects, not least for their anti-capitalist and feminist lyrics and probably the only early punk band to feature a saxophone which was the perfect foil for Poly Styrene’s wailing vocal style.

I was slightly too young for the first wave of punk, but hearing songs like Identity and the sessions they did for John Peel certainly left an impression on me as a dorky, germ free adolescent.

Oh-Bondage-Up-Yours-tastic!

Straw , Wisteria

This is the last straw
You promised that you would prune
The wisteria

White Light by Gene Clark

By my count the Byrds and albums recorded by former members account for 12 entries on this list, tying with The Beatles. Wow. I think that is somewhat over estimating their importance compared with the Fab Four, at least judging by this determinedly middling album from former Byrd Gene Clark.

It’s very much in the Bob Dylan singer-songwriter style, complete with wheezing mouth organ thrown in at every opportunity and a cover of Bob’s Tears of Rage for good measure. Whilst Clark is a better singer than Dylan (admittedly not a high bar to pass), his lyrics are nothing special and he has none of the passion of the Bob-meister.

The album as a whole sort of drifts past without ever being compelling. I didn’t exactly hate it, but it’s unlikely to be played again.

The Mysterious Affair At Styles by Agatha Christie

This was Agatha Christie’s first full length novel and it established many of the tropes of the genre - an Edwardian country house, a dastardly murder, a large cast of characters all hiding secrets, plenty of clues and red herrings, and of course a quirky detective who calls everyone to the drawing room to solve the case.

The book is narrated by Hastings, an Army officer invalided out during the latter stage of the First World War, who is invited by an old friend called John Cavendish to convalesce at his step mother’s grand stately home in Essex. We are introduced to Cavendish’s wife Mary, his younger brother Lawrence, his mother Emily Inglethorp and her new husband Alfred, 20 years her junior. So, what first attracted to the owner of a stately home, Mr Inglethorp?

We also meet Cynthia, a young woman who is working in the dispensary of a nearby hospital, Evelyn, Mrs Inglethorp’s personal assistant, Dr Bauerstein - an eminent toxicologist who seems overly friendly with Mary, Mrs Raikes - a saucy widow farmer, and Dorcas the house maid with a knack for listening at locked doors.

The state is set for a carefully plotted murder involving poisoning by strychnine (something that Christie seems to know a worrying amount about) with everyone seemingly having a motive based around jealousy or money. It’s fortunate that Hastings’ good friend the eminent Belgian detective Hercules Poirot is living as a refugee in a nearby village, and is on hand to investigate.

Poirot himself is a most entertaining character, with what seems like (to a modern reader) an extreme case of obsessive-compulsive disorder which gives him an eye for each clue and object out of place. There is a fair amount of humour to be had in his fussy neatness and occasional manic outbursts as he sifts the clues and builds his case, leading to a satisfying denouement.

I particularly enjoyed Christie’s eye for detail, including maps of the house, the murder scene, a scrap of a burned will and another crucial document, allowing the reader to play detective with exactly the same information as Poirot himself. Some elements are a little far fetched and the obsession with poison is a little jarring, as are the instances of unfortunate racism as well as class snobbery.

On the whole though, thoroughly enjoyable and accessible for a modern reader, and the inspiration for a hundred years of detective fiction that followed.

 

Fallen, Drizzle

Alas, I've fallen
Tempted by a tasty treat
Lemon drizzle cake

Venus Luxure No. 1 Baby by Girls Against Boys

I wasn’t sure about this one at first but it grew on me to the point that I played it again after the first listen. I think it’s the chugging, post punk bass that I like, combined with croaky, growly vocals that have something of the cadence of Mark E Smith, which is unusual for a band from Washington DC

Reading their wiki page, I saw that front man Scott McCloud had been listening to the Fall and Velvet Underground prior to writing this album, and then it all clicked into place. My favourite track is the up-tempo “Let Me Come Back” which is something of a banger.

Good stuff.