Ed with the Good Hair

Bluey Robinson

2009-07-14T17:16:00.006+01:00

Yes, that is his actual name..

Bluey Robinson is a lovely-new-young-RnB star in the making and excellently, homegrown in the UK. His style reminds me of a mix between the beats and backings of Lupe Fiasco with lyrics of Kanye and vocals of John Legend. A hearty school of talent i'm sure you'll agree.

His first major release is called 'I Know' and has been getting a lot of support by BBC 1xtra for the general reason that it's totally amazing. Can Bluey finally bridge the huge gap in quality between UK/US RnB? I reckon that with his quirky style and cracking tunes, it's a definate possibility. Infact, i'm so smitten that i'm considering changing my name from Ed to Bluey.... Anyone with me? Oh...

Mr Hudson - Supernova

2009-07-10T11:32:00.005+01:00

I'm still finding the Kanye/Mr Hudson collaboration an odd one. How the hell did this happen? A superstar world renowned black rapper making music with a slightly eccentric Oxford graduate.

Anyway, below is the video for their first track together, 'Supernova'. It's getting a lot of radio play and shows a distinct change of direction for the band...a direction i'm not all too keen on.

Have a listen....

I'm still, I'm still an animal

2009-07-02T16:24:00.012+01:00

So, the other day in the post I recieved a physical copy of Calvin Harris' new single (woo) and a business card with the below picture on it.

Being the inquisitive type that I am I searched online and found out that it is artwork for new band Miike Snow. Have a listen...

What do you think? I really like it for reasons I can't exactly work out - I just spent the last hour

listening to it on repeat and all I've deduced is that his voice sounds a bit like Phil Collins....

Raygun - 93 Feet East

2009-06-24T13:45:00.030+01:00

Last night saw the end of Raygun's first headline tour as they played the hallowed turf of 93 Feet East on Brick Lane in London.

Ray bounded onto the stage in his usual manner, strutting his way around the space with the hip wiggles of Mick Jagger and dance moves of James Brown.

The crowd, consisting mostly of industry people (think hundreds of fake glasses and trilby's) seemed cold to Ray's advances for the first couple of numbers yet the ice was truly broken when the band gave a cracking performance of their 1st single 'Just Because' .

This jovial mood continued into the rest of their set as heads bopped to the addictive 'Rocket Blast', the extremely funky 'Waiting in Line', and monumental (deserves to be massive) 'Lord Forgive Me'.

For the first time, the guys also showed that they aren't all about disco by playing a slower track called 'Fools Rush In'. Heartfelt, desperate and ultimately beautiful. This track has 'music-festival-sing-along' written all over it.

Their first single 'Just Because' is due to hit national radio in the next week. Fingers crossed you'll be hearing a lot more from Raygun. We all deserve it.

Raygun's Myspace

Audacity of Huge

2009-06-22T15:05:00.019+01:00

No, it's not the title to a dodgy new bond film, 'Audacity of Huge' is actually the latest single from Simian Mobile Disco....and huge, it just might be.

SMD have skirted around the mainstream since the release of their debut album 'Attack, Decay, Sustain, Release' in 2007 which featured some incredible tracks inlcuding 'Its The Beat' and 'I Believe' - but they've failed to connect with audiences in the same way that simliar acts like Basement Jaxx and The Chemical Brothers have.

Audacity of Huge is a much more chart bothering record with a strong lead vocal line, big chorus and accessible sound. If this is the way SMD are going - i'm following.

New Calvin Harris

2009-06-22T13:04:00.017+01:00

So Mr Harris may well have done good with 'Im Not Alone' - full of soaring synths and a MASSIVE chorus but how do you follow that up? With this....

It's called 'Ready For The Weekend' and it's really rather good.

It's great to see that Calvin is really embracing vocals on his new tracks - it adds a new depth which will ultimately keep these singles alive for far longer than his previous efforts, but obviously with more vocals, how do these tracks work in a live environment?

It must be said that Calvin ain't no singer..... Check out this video of him performing 'I'm Not Alone' from the Isle Of Wight Festival a couple of weeks back.

I am lurking somewhere in the crowd - and despite the slight out of key vocals his live performance works perfectly and certainly got me and my mates dancing about.

Looking forward to him touring his new album... It's gonna be big.

Lily Allen - Fuck You

2009-06-20T13:57:00.009+01:00

I was a bit surprised to hear that Parlophone had decided that Lily Allen's 'Fuck You' is worthy of single status. The song itself is ok but sounds very simliar to 'Alfie' from her first album 'Alright Still' and doesn't say much more to me than 'ooooh this song has lots of swearing in it and is abit controversial'.

Anyway, the video is pretty cool. Christ know's how this song is going to get radio play, but then, i'm sure Lily doesn't give a crap about that.

Not too bad is it? Whilst hunting out this vid I stumbled across this one

below made by a gay French website called 'Gay Clic' posted on the

International Day Against Homophobia.

Raygun - Finally

2009-06-19T15:32:00.003+01:00

So I first blogged about Raygun bloody ages ago... (see a few posts below) and FINALLY a snippit from the video for their first single 'Just Because' has emerged.

It's directed by Joseph Kahn who is behind the videos for Toxic and Womanizer for Britney.

Have a look....

It's not totally finished but you can certainly tell that's it's going to be rather epic!

If this has wet your whistle, check out their Myspace and get yourself a free download below.

Raygun's Myspace

Daisy Dares You

2009-06-19T14:49:00.017+01:00

I always walk towards new pop acts with trepidation and fear....you see, I secretly am a (huge) closet pop consumer. From Girls Aloud to McFly to Pink to The Saturdays - I love it all.

This obviously causes me some problems with my 'cool muso mates' when they ask what i'm listening too at the moment. My latest 'COOL' CD to drop into conversations to keep my street cred is 'Regina Spektor's new release despite the fact i've never heard it. It always gets nods of appreciation from my peers and means that we can be friends that little bit longer...

Well, it looks like finally my pop vs street cred fears have collided in the shape of Daisy Dares You. She makes the kind of credible pop that 'The Ting Tings' would kill for plus she looks like she could eat you alive in one foul swoop.

So the music - cute, fun, soulful and epic. A contradiction? Possibly, but have a listen for yourself below.

Daisy Dares You Myspace

Dasiy Dares You Free Track

I Did. You Can.

2009-03-20T12:52:00.009Z

Currently, on every form of public transport I frequent is this advert to the left. It is for a meal/exercise supplement called 'Maximuscle' and features a beefed up wanker who thanks this product for pretty much revolutionising his life and changing the world for the better. He even cites, and I quote that Maximuscle 'spurred me on to start my own business'. Ah yes of course. All us non-muscular beings wouldn't know where to start....It's all about the muscles.

What a self satisfying twat. This advert does not make me want to buy the product but more punch this guy in the face for staring down at me with his ridiculous muscles and wanky haircut from every bus/train/tube I get on.

'I Did, You Can' - OK, FUCK OFF.

Kanye is cool

2009-02-25T10:34:00.008Z

Despite looking a little bit like Mr T at the moment (see left), Kanye West is officially cool. FACT.

People did think he'd gone a little bit crazy on the release of '808's and Heartbreaks' (me included). Why stop rapping and replace it with out of tune, auto tuned singing which really doesn't work all that well recorded or live?

If i'm honest, I found it a very tough album to get into.... I'm not sure why I have to 'be honest' about this but for some reason, I feel like I will be shot down if I don't say I immediately loved it.

Anyway, enough rambling. He is cool in my eyes because of this... It is the video for his new release 'Welcome to Heartbreak' and it's incredible.

Welcome back Mr West.

Duffy

2009-02-24T23:16:00.009Z

1. I am not a fan of Duffy

2. This, has not made me a fan of Duffy

3. How does cycling round a supermarket warbling something about being yourself represent Diet Coke...or do I need to be a single mum called Sharon from Dagenham to relate? Or am I missing the point? Is there a point?

Raygun

2009-02-13T01:26:00.013Z

Looking to come from the leftfield and kick the UK music scene right up the arse are 'Raygun'.

The 4 piece hail from Brixton where their rocket ship apparently crash landed and they were forced to make sonic landscapes. In reality, two of the members come from other bands; lead guitarist Adj from the now defunct 'Kubb' and drummer Sam from '5 o'clock Heroes'. Lead singer Ray and bassist Ben have dabbled in the recording industry for the last few years.

The sound, think something along the lines of 'Scissor Sisters' meets 'Bowie' meets 'Sister Sledge' meets 'The Rolling Stones' and you're sort of heading in the right direction.

The guys are signed to RCA records and are about to embark on a European tour supporting P!nk....Now that's a pretty huge deal. I've actually seen the band live a few times in London and Brighton and have been hugely impressed, mainly with the lead singer (Ray) who has the swagger of Jagger and the funk of James Brown with dance moves and vocals to match. How this will work in 15,000 seater stadiums is anyone's guess but it's bound to be entertaining.

Album is out at some point this year, but in the meantime CLICK HERE to head to their myspace to download 'Rocketblast' which gives you a much better idea of the guys sound than I can describe. Let me know what you think....

Calvin Harris

2009-01-26T15:37:00.012Z

Right, first up, I LIKE CALVIN HARRIS.

It's taken me a while to be ok with this fact but I think the time is right to come out in the open with it and get on with the rest of my life...PHEW.

'Dance Wiv Me' was one of the big tunes of last summer for me, who'd have thought that the odd pairing of an urban east london rapper with a pasty scottish chancer would work so well?

So what next from Mr Harris? This....

It's called 'I'm Not Alone', has been described as 'eurphoric' and I absolutly can't get enough of it. It's full of deep trancey synths and has a distinct taste of the orient.

If this is the direction Calvin is heading in, then i'm following. Thoughts?

UPDATE - Sony keep taking the track off youtube, so if you want to here it CLICK HERE

Shontelle. Please sit down.

2009-01-22T01:19:00.008Z

Oh my god. Where the hell did they dust Shontelle off from...1999? Or maybe the 1940's.

Horrible, sickly, sexist, terrible and bound to be huge... urgh. 'With nothing but your t-shirt on' - for gods sake. She is the anti Independent Women and might as well chain herself to the kitchen sink whilst hoovering and cooking dinner. What is she trying to say!?

I hate. You?

Master Shortie

2009-01-19T22:09:00.006Z

Right so all the other blogs are banging on about Florence and the Machine, Little Boots, White Lies blahblahblah etc etc etc as being BIG IN 09....

Yeah, not bad acts apart from White Lies (which I really do not understand at all - to me, Editors from 1989), but where is the excitement, where is the different?

I would like to divert your attention to one Master Shortie.

He comes from London, is an ex-Brit School student and is presenting UK hip hop in a totally different style. Gone are tracks about the struggle of life in East London (snore) and lyrics about 'murking' each other and in are funky guitar licks and a girls 'hotness' being compared to that of a somosa.

I like, I think you will too. Check out 'Dead End'

More of the same please

2009-01-19T14:45:00.002Z

This is not at attack on anyone or anything, and I really want to push this point across, it is mearly something I have noticed which I find slightly stunted and dissapointing.

This something is the music consuming habits of the Great British public. Now, yes, obviously this is a vast sweeping statement and doesn't cover everyone but I have noticed some worrying trends that have effected my life and I want to write about them. Indulge me please...

1. Commercial Radio
Commercial radio playlists are afraid to take any sort of risks. Day in, day out, it is the same songs over and over played one after the other with such little audience interaction that the DJ could well be classed as a Jukebox.

But why is this so? Well, commercial stations know their audiences. Listeners want the same things on repeat until they are so amazingly familier with the tracks, they have seen the video, know all the words, have it on their iPods and can even do the dance. Some stations are so terrified of upsetting their audiences that when they do eventually add new tracks to their playlists (gasp) they edit out slightly 'different' sounding sections to make the audience comfortable. Audio valium? Audio pipe and slippers?

2. Covers band
As you may know, I play in a covers band in the sussex area. We played a gig last weekend at a venue we have played a fair few times before. We've been working hard on some new tracks recently and were really excited about busting them out. You see, we have the understanding that audiences want to hear new things, that if we just turned up, played the same set time and time again, got paid and left then we wouldn't continue to get further bookings. Who would want to see a covers band play the same set every few weeks? ..... Apparently lots of people.

One of the regulars at this particular venue came up to us after the gig and asked why we didn't play 'Brown Eyed Girl' or 'That one we do where you talk a bit', (I think she meant rapping.) I asked what she thought of the new tracks and she just looked at me and repeated the above sentence again. Sigh

I can understand the comforting aspect of the familiar in everyones lives, there's nothing like getting into your own bed or sitting on your own sofa (and it's good to have a constant in your life), but when it comes to entertainment why is this so?

I relish listening to new music, discovering new trends and can lose days on Hype Machine and Spotify just exploring new sounds. What is wrong with musical progress and why are people scared of it?

?

Jack Penate

2008-12-16T17:53:00.006Z

I never thought i'd get THIS excited about the return of Jack Penate.

His new track is called 'Today's Tonight'

To me it sounds very much like something off an Ibiza chillout album. It has a fantastic sing along hands in the air chorus and Hawaiian (ish) guitar riffs.

You can listen to it here.....

Get involved.

Frankmusik

2008-12-08T23:00:00.008Z

Frankmusik is Vincent Frank from Croydon and is apparently one to watch in 2009...so me working in the media industry and being at the forefront of cool, (cough)... i'd obviously never heard of him.

So I decided to have a little listen to Mr Musiks output so I can claim to have been a fan from before he'd even written his first track.

He sways on the right side of Mika (without the crap bits), new rave, a bit bloc party, a touch Killers, a bit Buggles, a hint of Nintendo, a tad Hoxton and a little Goldfrapp with Top Gun highnotes.

All in all, yes, promising and pleasing sounds in abundance. Deff someone I'd like to see live.

Have a look at the video for his track '3 Little Words' with hints of 'Piano from Big'...loving that

Lily Allen

2008-12-05T13:39:00.017Z

Now, i've always had a bit of a soft spot for Lily Allen. I like her slight obvious quirkiness and the fact that she knows she is a total chancer.

Her music too has this oddly endearing quality to it and I was really sucked into the buzz and freshness of 'Alright Still' upon its release in 2006.

So it was with trepidation when I heard that she had been working with Mark Ronson on her new material. How the hell would that work? Well...it does.

There are no trademark Ronson horns and live drums and instead a pleathora of synths and plinky piano bits. Check out the 'The Fear' below.

808's and Mr Hudson

2008-12-03T17:16:00.013Z

Have you had a look through the inlay card of '808's and Heartbreaks'?

It looks like Mr West has a bit of a 'thing' for Birmingham artist Mr Hudson. Not only has he just signed him to his G.O.O.D.Music label but Mr Hudson has written, produced or provided backing vocals on no less than eight of the tracks on '808's and Heartbreaks'... this is surely the weirdest musical pairing since Calvin Harris and Dizzee Rascal.

Mr West said...
"He’s an incredible artist,” West revealed to MTV backstage at the recent EMAs. “I believe Mr. Hudson has the potential to be bigger than me, to be one of the most important artists of his generation. He’s playing these songs, he’s playing them back-to-back-to-back — ‘Dude, I’m telling you, your problems are not going to be getting hit records, blowing up and being a big star — your problems are going to be living real life, and dealing with real life, so just prep yourself.’ Everything I hear from him is a smash!”

Also click here to go to Mr Hudsons website. Its interesting in that it appears to be a huge advert for Kanye West rather than include any information on Mr Hudson....

Kanye is exec producing Mr Hudsons new album which is due out in March 09. Check out the first West/Hudson pairing 'There Will Be Tears' below.

Little Boots

2008-11-23T23:18:00.017Z

I went to Annie Mac Presents at Digital in Brighton on Thursday (amazing) and Little Boots was one of the warm up acts. An interesting choice considering she was the only live act of the night, sandwiched between DJ's.

Now this isn't a review of said performance, as to be fair, I paid little attention to her overall show and was instead waving like a twat at Annie Mac who was filming outside the venue. However, during Little Boots' time on the stage there was one thing and one thing only that caught my attention and that my friends is the wonderous device in the picture to the left...

It's called a Tenori On and is made my Yamaha. I've been aware of it's exsistence for about a year and indeed of it's potential but have never seen it used in a band situation to full effect in the way that it was used by Little Boots.

The Tenori On is basically difficult to explain, and I certainly can't be arsed so watch this video instead. This is Little Boots using the instrument to re-create Hot Chips 'Ready For The Floor'.

Anyone got a spare £600 please?

Britney Leaks...

2008-11-08T18:12:00.011Z

Horrible title...but true. After a little scout around the net today looking for new Britney news (yes, I'm that exciting) I stumbled across this little gem.

It is apparently a new track called 'Kill The Lights' from Britneys album 'Circus' and (luckily) it is very very good.

It sounds like it would belong comfortably on 'Blackout' which is in no means a bad thing and has a very different sound than that of 'Womanizer'. To me, the beat and production sound like 'Maneater' from the Furtado camp which makes me wonder if Jim Beanz or Danja have had something to do with this.

It is synthy, bassy, drummy and has a chorus consisting of the lyrics, 'I Kill The Lights' which has managed to embed itself in my head after approximately 2 listens.

The whole album has apparently leaked somewhere online. If this and Womanizer are representatives of the whole album then...
GIVE ME NOW!!!

New Timberlake

2008-11-08T17:49:00.005Z

Justin keeps going from strength to strength with his solo material. 'Futuresex/Love Sounds' was such a fantastic example of exactly what a solo 'pop' male can achieve, so it was with trepidation and 'lets hope he hasn't done a Kanye' when his new track 'Magic' popped into my inbox the other day.....

And luckily, its ace! It sounds like a step forward from his last album's sound and still has that cheeky,sexy, soulful edge that makes Mr JT. Its rumoured that this might have been a demo left over from Britney's album (which makes me raise my eyebrows) but whatever, its a fucking tune!

I still don't know how to link to downloads so here is a youtube clip. If you want the full track, head to hypemachine

YES YES YES YES YES

2008-11-06T15:09:00.005Z

Mr Rascal....on Obama. He won because of Hip Hop apparently.

Kanyeeeezy

2008-11-05T20:24:00.020Z

Like a lot of people, i'm finding Kanye West's new sound hard to swallow. I've heard a big chunk of the album, '808s and Heartbreaks' and here are my thoughts thus far...

Love Lockdown - I was an instant fan, the drums, the lyrics, the sentiment, maybe even the vocoder. Perfect. But, unlike virtually all of Kanye's back catalogue, I now can hardly bare to let it invade my ears. If it pops up on my iPod I skip it. 'Jesus Walks' this ain't. Bad Kanye

Coldest Winter - This track chugs along like a steam train which really shouldn't be in service. It is boring, repetitive, whiny, and sounds a bit like a slowed down version of Love Lockdown mixed with a song from a budget west end musical. Badest Kanye.

Heartless - Vocoder turned up to 11! This is better, Kanye actually does some rapping on this track but the backing is shocking. It sounds like someone with no musical talent is playing an organ best suited to the fairground which conjures up images of Dougal, his friends and a magic roundabout. Bad Kanye

Anyway - This track is full of computery sci fi swooshing sound effects and blippy 80's noises which are always good. The vocoder is turned down to 1 and it has a lot more depth to it than the rest of the tracks. It's actually interesting to listen to and when turned up loud sounds pretty damn good. It's Crying out for a Soulwax remix too. Better Kanye

Robocop - Carrying on the 80's theme perhaps, but swapping the sci-fi computery moments for machine and robot-esq sound effects, clever. The chorus is terrible and consists of the repetition of the word 'ok' over and over and over. The track is also oddly full of Stephen King references and the inspired lyrics 'I don't want a Robocop, you're moving like a Robocop', whatever that is meant to mean... Horrific Kanye

So there you go. Verdict - Bad Kanye. I'm all for musical experimentation but please, leave the vocoder to T-Pain and learn how to rap again. A new Mr West album is usually an exciting time musically...fingers crossed I've heard the worst tracks.

Wiley - Cash In My Pocket

2008-10-21T11:36:00.000+01:00

Did someone say 'Credit Crunch'?

Wiley doesn't think so. Check out this unofficial video viral to publicize his next single 'Cash In My Pocket'. The track's produced by Mark Ronson and features vocals by Daniel Merriweather.

Tune... Tune....Tune!

Props to MC Gordon Brown. BBBBRRRRAAAAAAAP! etc

What if Beyonce was one of us...?

2008-10-19T21:44:00.000+01:00

I get a little bit over excited when big pop stars are on the come back. This excitement is usually short lived when said new music is heard...highly true in Beyonce's case.

She is peddling a new double A side at the moment, If I were a Boy/Single Ladies (banal ballad/booty shaking shouty mess).

The first time I heard 'If I were a Boy', I was certain i'd heard it before. The melody, the structure, the strummy guitar. What does it remind me of?

Beyonce - If I were A Boy (New)
by Le-Tour-2Lor

Hmm, strummy, inoffensive, middle of the road, Alanis Morrisete-esq, rhyming dictionary lyrics, mum friendly...WAIT A MINUTE! Cast your mind back to 1995 . . . . . .

Or is it just me? If my name was Joan Osbourne I wouldn't be best pleased.

The Brown Eyed curse

2008-10-17T11:03:00.001+01:00

Now, this post isn't what some of you may be thinking...(disgusting)

I am of course talking about the ditty 'Brown Eyed Girl' by Van Morrison.

A fairly non-offensive song on the surface but this song is my own personal hell...

I play keyboards in a covers band, a highly successful covers band at that. We try to be a bit different so edge away from traditional cover band fare and instead try new stuff. A bit of Dizzee here, a Prodigy and 90's dance medley there, but obviously we touch on the traditional Beatles/Abba/Jackson 5 tripe.

One such tripe track in our repertoire is 'Brown Eyed Girl'. I have probably played this song 68,156 times (approx) in the past few years. I've got to the stage with it where i've played it so often that I've started to forget the chords, structure, and lyrics. I blag my way through it singing the odd word I remember and mumbling my way through the rest before the (sadly) unforgettable chorus kicks in. It's like my brain has had enough of it and is slowly deleting it bit by bit.

We have started to leave it out of our sets but to no avail.

You can guarantee that at every gig we play, someone will request this dire song. Usually an inebriated female screeching that it's, 'her favourite song because she too has brown eyes' (crazy). When we succumb to the mind bending torture and start playing it, the audience goes nuts. Literally everyone stands up, dances and sings along to the 'la la la la la' bits.

What the hell is it about this track that makes it so popular? Is Van Morrison some kind of musical hypnotist, packing this track with hidden messages in attempt to recruit some kind of hazel eyed female army? Or are people that love this song running on minimal brain cells?

Have a look at this video of Van performing the track and read the second comment down from 83smileyface.

I despair, and rest my case.

The Family - Channel 4

2008-10-15T17:18:00.000+01:00

Channel 4's 'The Family' is now in its 4-5 episode and sadly, I love it.

But why? This is a question I really can't find an answer for, so am instead just going to raise a few things I find fascinating about this programme.

I like. . .

- The way the cameras are the same colours as the walls they are attached to. Nice work. Subtle.

- The way that whenever there is a huge drama in the house (and there are many), we are shown a picture of the families cat sitting and looking a little perplexed at the action unfolding infront of it. Poor bastard.

- The fact that none of the kids look like the father but they ALL look like mini clones of the mother in a weird 'Children of the Corn', manner.

- The way that the word 'bedtime' seems to be the catalyst for nearly every argument.

- The fact that the family are from Canterbury, which is where I went to university. The reason I enjoy this is down to the middle child Emily. She's the one who goes out clubbing till half 2 every night and from my knowledge of Canterbury she can only be going to one place. A place which I avoided beyond belief as its an utter shit hole. Hello Baa Bars... She looks like a regular.

- The way that the dad thinks that he is some kind of superhuman parent and amazing husband when infact he is a saxophone playing megalomaniac who is hell bent on making his kids lives horrific. How he managed to bag his hottie wife is a total mystery.

Russell Brand

2008-10-14T12:50:00.000+01:00

Russell Brand is the kind of comedian/TV star/actor/presenter who i've obviously always known exists, but who i've always just sort of greeted with a 'meh', response.

I've tried listening to him on BBC Radio 2 (meh), watching him act in Forgetting Sarah Marshall (meh) and in presenter mode on the MTV:VMA's (meh). The word controversy seems to follow him around for no other reason than he is a bit metro sexual, likes sex and wears tight trousers.

Last night, in curious, 'but everyone else loves him', mode I went with some mates to see him test out some new stand up at The Pleasence in the highly depressing Caladonian Road.

After having our phones checked into the cloakroom for risk of any of Russell's new material appearing on youtube, we squeezed into the tiny theatre.

Russell bounded out looking as you'd expect: black T-shirt, black cardigan and black trousers that look like they'd be a total arse to take off. He had a stand next to him with notes on it clearly indicating that this is a work in progress.

...and, it was fantastic. The comedy was spot on and seemingly highly personal. He had no worries showing off his vulnerability, and he does come across as a vulnerable person (which I really didn't expect), but what really surprised me was his utterly fantastic knowledge and intelligence about a seemingly never ending range of subjects. His mind would wander off on a tangent about, for example, Mother Teresa, and he would quite happily and easily pull out quotes, facts and figures about the lady in question, seemingly plucking them from nowhere. Also his vocabulary - engaging, extensive and on the odd occasion bewildering. I've never heard someone use the word aplomb so often and so naturally.

If you get a chance, go and see him! It is easy to see why he was at one time the 7th most Googled thing.