(no subject)

[peck72]

I should have known that as soon as I wrote that I'll update this coming weekend, there would be absolutely no chance what so ever that I would. So sorry about that.

I'll begin with the promised news. On the 7th of September I will be getting my long hair (which hasn't been cut since 2000) cut off and the beard that I've had since the age of 18 shaved off, all in the name of charity!

Also know as 'The Hairy, Scary Man' thanks to my favourite t-shirt which has this design on it.

The cause in question is to raise funds towards building schools for the Dalit people in India. I have set up a Facebook group with more details about my temporary madness and which will contain many pictures of my hairless state after the event. Details for sponsorship are on the Facebook pages as are details of where I'll be doing this, so any visitors are welcome. If you want to know anything more about the event or more about why I'm doing this then please comment  here or e-mail me.

On other news, yesterday was the Mathew Street Festival in Liverpool which I've finally managed to get along to see. It usually seems to happen that I'm working when its on and so can't get to it. Technically,  I was working yesterday but finished at 08.00 so I was able to stay up and after a quick shower and change of clothes head back into Liverpool with Anna.
Our first port of call was the Tate Gallery on the Albert Dock for the Gustav Klimt exhibition. Really enjoyed the exhibition even if some of his more famous pieces (such as 'The Kiss') are not there because they never leave Vienna due to their fragile condition.

After the exhibition we wandered up into the centre of Liverpool to see some of the festival and to look for some more of the Superlambanana sculptures dotted around the city. The weather was perfect, so wandering from music stage to music stage amidst the crowds of people was incredibly pleasant and relaxing. It also helped that our route took us past the my favourite comics shop which meant that I could pick up the 'Brief Lives' Sandman graphic novel as my anniversary present from Anna.
On the way home, we dropped in on my sister and got to see her wedding video and look through the official photographers pictures of the day. I was horrified to see that on the video, during the ceremony, you can see me over Claires shoulder grinning like a loon. Ok, it was a very proud moment seeing my little sister getting wed but even so I could have held a little decorum, surely ;)

And so then back home and an evening catching up on tv which having been up since 4pm the previous day really was all I had the energy for.
Definitely a day very well spent.

And to finish, a meme pinched from greygirlbeast.

Go here (UK) or here (US) and see what was on the top of the charts on the day you were born and every birthday thereafter. Learn just how astrologically-musically lame your life has been. If you want, add in your own favorite No. 1 hit single of that year, wishing that your birthday had been cool enough to have that song be #1. Share your findings with your unsuspecting friendslist. Put it behind a cut.

1972

 Little Jimmy Osmond - "Long Haired Lover from Liverpool"

Pref - Slade - "Mama Weer All Crazee Now" or T. Rex - "Metal Guru"
 

1973 

Slade - "Merry Xmas Everybody"

Pref - 10cc - "Rubber Bullets" 

1974

Mud - "Lonely This Christmas" 

Pref - Carl Douglas - "Kung Fu Fighting"

1975

 Queen - "Bohemian Rhapsody"

Pref - David Bowie - "Space Oddity" 

Amused to find both Tammy Wynette - "Stand by Your Man" and Billy Connolly - "D.I.V.O.R.C.E." as no.1’s in the same year

 1976

 Johnny Mathis - "When a Child Is Born (Soleado)"

 Pref - The Wurzels - "The Combine Harvester (Brand New Key)"

 1977

Wings - "Mull of Kintyre / Girls' School"

 Pref – nothing. It was a pretty poor year with Mull of Kintyre the only No.1 of note

 1978

 Boney M - "Mary's Boy Child / Oh My Lord"

 Pref - Kate Bush - "Wuthering Heights"

  1979

Pink Floyd - "Another Brick in the Wall" 

Pref - The Boomtown Rats - "I Don't Like Mondays" A really good year this so virtually any song could appear as a favourite 

1980

John Lennon - "(Just Like) Starting Over" 

Pref - Mash - "Theme From M*A*S*H (Suicide is Painless)"

Very relieved to just miss out on St Winifred's School Choir - "There's No-one Quite Like Grandma" 

1981

The Human League - "Don't You Want Me" 

Pref - Adam and the Ants - "Stand and Deliver" and Queen & David Bowie - "Under Pressure" 
I think this must have been the first year I really noticed chart music as there are a lot of songs that I remember well
 

1982

Renée and Renato - "Save Your Love" 

Pref - Dexys Midnight Runners and the Emerald Express - "Come on Eileen"

1983 

Flying Pickets - "Only You"

Pref - Men at Work - "Down Under" 

1984

Band Aid - "Do They Know It's Christmas?" 

Pref - Frankie Goes to Hollywood - "Two Tribes" or Nena - "99 Red Balloons"

1985 

Whitney Houston - "Saving All My Love for You"

Pref - Foreigner - "I Want to Know What Love Is" 

1986

The Housemartins - "Caravan of Love" 

Pref - Falco - "Rock Me Amadeus"

1987 

Pet Shop Boys - "Always on My Mind"

Pref - T'Pau - "China In Your Hand" 

1988

Cliff Richard - "Mistletoe and Wine" 

Pref - Hollies - "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother"

1989 

Band Aid II - "Do They Know It's Christmas?"

Pref - Marc Almond with Gene Pitney - "Something's Gotten Hold of My Heart" 

This one must have been mums influence, as she loved Gene Pitney 

1990

Vanilla Ice - "Ice Ice Baby" 

Pref - Sinéad O'Connor - "Nothing Compares 2 U" and Adamski - "Killer" but a (dis?-)hounourable mention for Partners in KRYME - "Turtle Power"

1991 

Queen - "Bohemian Rhapsody / These Are the Days of Our Lives"

Pref - The Clash - "Should I Stay or Should I Go" and Vic Reeves & The Wonder Stuff - "Dizzy" 

1992

Whitney Houston - "I Will Always Love You" 

Pref - Shakespear's Sister - "Stay"

1993 

Mr Blobby - "Mr Blobby"     Dammit!

Pref - The Bluebells - "Young at Heart" 

1994

East 17 - "Stay Another Day" 

Pref - The Artist Formerly Known As Prince - "The Most Beautiful Girl In The World"

1995 

Michael Jackson - "Earth Song"

Pref - Blur - "Country House" 

1996

Dunblane - "Knockin' on Heaven's Door / Throw These Guns Away" 

Pref - Babylon Zoo - "Spaceman" and Baddiel & Skinner & The Lightning Seeds - "Three Lions"

1997 

Teletubbies - "Teletubbies Say Eh-Oh!"     Curse these Christmas novelty songs!

Pref - The Verve - "The Drugs Don't Work" 

1998

B*Witched - "To You I Belong" Who? 

Pref - Manic Street Preachers - "If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next"

1999 

Westlife - "I Have a Dream / Seasons In The Sun"

Pref - Baz Luhrmann - "Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)" Not great that a novelty song was the best of the year for me but it was fun. 

2000

Bob The Builder - "Can We Fix It?"     See 1997

Pref - U2 - "Beautiful Day"

2001 

Robbie Williams & Nicole Kidman - "Somethin' Stupid"

Pref - Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya and Pink - "Lady Marmalade 

2002

Girls Aloud - "Sound of the Underground" 

Pref - George Harrison - "My Sweet Lord

2003 

Michael Andrews feat. Gary Jules - "Mad World"

Pref -  nothing, Mad World was the best song that year 

2004

Band Aid 20 - "Do They Know It's Christmas?" 

Pref - U2 - "Vertigo"

2005 

Shayne Ward - "That's My Goal"

Pref - Nizlopi - "The JCB Song" and Gorillaz - "DARE" 

2006

Leona Lewis - "A Moment Like This" 

Pref - Sandi Thom - "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker (With Flowers in My Hair)"

2007 

Leon Jackson - "When You Believe"

Pref -  Kaiser Chiefs - "Ruby"

 

Comments

Anyone would think you were born near Christmas!

[(Anonymous)]

Doomed to have the X Factor winner as No 1 for a long as Simon Cowell desires - poor you!

Andy

Re: Anyone would think you were born near Christmas!

[peck25.livejournal.com]

Yeah, those last 10 - 15 years had some very slim pickings with regards to the no.1s, although I'd happily have a talent show winner over Mr. Blobby anyday.

Re: Anyone would think you were born near Christmas!

[(Anonymous)]

Maybe but having Mr Blobby at no 1 was worht it to see the look on Take That's face when they realised they'd been beaten by him!

[trixie-chick.livejournal.com]

oooh, congrats on losing the hair to a good cause! that really sounds wonderful. ^_^

and man, that meme looks like a lot of work! but yeah, all the christmas songs... ^_^;;;;;

[peck25.livejournal.com]

I think I'd been expecting more christmas songs then eventually turned up. A number of them just missed the christmas no.1 by a week, so I did escape a few. This is all made up for by the fact that I do get Slades 'Merry Xmas Everybody', which is just a class song ;)

Thanks on the congrats too, I'll make sure to post pics of the end result here, so you can see the difference.