Blog
Carling Rocks Cork: Gig 1
A few words on Lark By the Lee, breweries and music sponsorship, warm Canadian lager, Alsan, Paul Cleary, Cactus World News, and the story of four outdoor gigs in Cork during summer 1986.
Road Relish 7” Singles
A few words on the 14 7” singles released by Road Relish between 1999 and 2004.
Top 10 Picture Disc 7”s and the history of the format
A few words on Picture Discs, the history of gimmick vinyl formats, sexist Blondie advertising, Stiff Records, Britt Ekland, Lana Del Rey, Lady GaGa, The Smiths, New Order, Warren Zevon, Echo & the Bunnymen, Men Without Hats and the Apollo 8 lunar mission.
Top 20 Most Valuable Vinyl LPs
I’m been thinking about the value of records. Here’s a list of the Top 20 Most Valuable LPs from my record collection. The order is based on Discogs’ “Median” valuation as of January 2026.
Top 10 Irish Albums of 2025
The third of three posts cataloguing vinyl purchases in 2025. This is my Top 10 Irish Albums of 2025, Best Irish Single of 2024 and three Special Mentions.
Top 10 Reissues of 2025
The second of three posts cataloguing vinyl purchases in 2025. This Top 10 is a countdown of my favourite reissues from 2025 including a best of, two live albums, two expanded reissues and a various artists compilation.
Top 10 Vinyl Finds of 2025
The first of three posts cataloguing vinyl purchases in 2025. A Top 10 of secondhand vinyl finds in 2025. These were picked up in record shops in London, Puglia, Arles, Dublin and Cork. There is nothing rare here, just a bunch of records I couldn’t leave behind.
Top 10 Live Albums
A Top 10 of live albums prompted by the realisation that I bought Rank by The Smiths 37 years ago this week. Taking in: the reasons why live albums are released, The Fall supporting Talk Talk in 1986, Galaxie 500 and Luna, the 5-piece Smiths, Van Morrison, bootleg live albums, John Cale in Vicar Street, Manu Chao in the Ambassador, 16 Horsepower in Whelan’s and a whole lot more.
‘The Rats’ by Stump
A few words on ‘The Rats’ by Stump taking in: Rob McKahey, Kaught at the Karpark, ‘The Waterford Boys’, The Dubliners, Stephen Street, Ron Kavana and ‘Charlton Heston’.
16 Horsepower
From the archives: An interview with 16 Horsepower’s David Eugene Edwards from 2001. Edwards chats about the albums Secret South and Hoarse, 16HP’s sound and shares his thoughts on Americana.
The Sentimental Tourists
A few words on The Sentimental Tourists taking in: Dave Long, Paul Page, Into Paradise and Whipping Boy.
Michael O’Shea - Listen Back
A talk from February 2025 about Michael O’Shea’s 1982 self-titled album as part of Cork City Library’s “Listen Back” series in the Rory Gallagher Music Library.
Top 10 Movie 7” Singles
A Top 10 of movie 7” singles taking in: Irish pressings, Czechoslovakian New Wave cinema, film noir, folk horror, a flea market in Brussels, Venice’s side streets, Doris Day, Sly Stone, Brian Wilson and “the worst song ever written”.
Factory Records: Top 10 Comps
Factory Records - Top 10 Comps, taking in: Cian Ó Cíobháin’s An Taobh Tuathail Factory special, New Order, Joy Division, Section 25, Happy Mondays, A Certain Radio, Anthony H. Wilson, Ian Curtis, Martin Hannett and a whole lot more.
The Fall at Sir Henry’s
A few words on The Fall taking in: The Fall at the Arcadia in 1980, The Fall at Sir Henry’s in 1997. Mark E. Smith, Dave Simpson’s The Fallen, Freakscene and Gigantic at Sir Henry’s, The Beatles, Freakscene flyers, Uaneen Fitzsimons and No Disco, The Fall at The Pavilion in 2012, and Rob Anthony’s Number One Fan comic strip.
Record Store Day: A Top 10
A Top 10 of Record Store Day releases taking in: New Order, Joy Division, The Wicker Man, Alfred Hitchcock, Fontaines DC, Low, The The, Nick Cave, Pulp, Clint Mansell, and Chris Bell.
The Go-Betweens, Leonard Cohen, U2 and Boston Celtics’ Reggie Lewis
A few words on The Go-Betweens, Leonard Cohen, U2, Boston Celtics’ Reggie Lewis and my greatest vinyl find.
Top 10 Reissues of 2024
The third and final Top 10 of 2024. This one is a countdown of my favourite reissues from 2024, including three collections of previously unreleased songs.
Top 10 Irish Albums of 2024
Top 10 Irish Albums of 2024. Best Irish Compilation of 2024, Best Irish Single of 2024 and two Special Mentions. Songs from all ten of these albums were featured on Songs To Learn And Sing on 103.2 Dublin City FM throughout 2024 and Episode 990 featured some of my favourite songs from these albums.
Top 10 Vinyl Finds of 2024
A Top 10 of secondhand #VinylFinds I purchased in 2024. These were picked up in record shops in Manchester, Sydney, Tarragona, Dublin and Cork. There are a couple rare collectables here but mostly it’s just a bunch of records I couldn’t leave behind.
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July 2026
2
- 23 Jul 2026 Carling Rocks Cork: Gig 1 23 Jul 2026
- 6 Jul 2026 Road Relish 7” Singles 6 Jul 2026
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June 2026
3
- 27 Jun 2026 Top 20 Most Valuable 7” Singles 27 Jun 2026
- 22 Jun 2026 Clancy - Road to the Heart 22 Jun 2026
- 1 Jun 2026 Underground magazine (1987-1988) 1 Jun 2026
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May 2026
1
- 31 May 2026 The Sentimental Tourists - Without Love We Expire 31 May 2026
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March 2026
2
- 7 Mar 2026 Dave Couse (A House) on The Frank and Walters 7 Mar 2026
- 2 Mar 2026 Keith Cullen (Setanta Records) on The Frank and Walters 2 Mar 2026
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February 2026
2
- 17 Feb 2026 Top 10 Picture Disc 7”s and the history of the format 17 Feb 2026
- 4 Feb 2026 Top 20 Most Valuable Vinyl LPs 4 Feb 2026
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January 2026
2
- 30 Jan 2026 Songs to Learn and Sing: Volume 3 30 Jan 2026
- 1 Jan 2026 Meat Loaf, an inflatable bat, Power Rangers, Pearl Jam, Van the Man, and the Green Glens Arena, Millstreet 1 Jan 2026
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December 2025
2
- 10 Dec 2025 Top 10 Irish Albums of 2025 10 Dec 2025
- 5 Dec 2025 Top 10 Reissues of 2025 5 Dec 2025
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November 2025
1
- 30 Nov 2025 Top 10 Vinyl Finds of 2025 30 Nov 2025
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October 2025
1
- 3 Oct 2025 Top 10 Live Albums 3 Oct 2025
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September 2025
4
- 21 Sept 2025 ‘The Rats’ by Stump 21 Sept 2025
- 20 Sept 2025 16 Horsepower 20 Sept 2025
- 16 Sept 2025 Cathal Coughlan - ‘Im Long Mé Measaim’ 16 Sept 2025
- 1 Sept 2025 Van Morrison at 80 1 Sept 2025
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August 2025
1
- 19 Aug 2025 The Sentimental Tourists 19 Aug 2025
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July 2025
1
- 9 Jul 2025 Michael O’Shea - Listen Back 9 Jul 2025
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June 2025
1
- 17 Jun 2025 Top 10 Movie 7” Singles 17 Jun 2025
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May 2025
4
- 28 May 2025 Flotsam: Cork’s Old Venues 28 May 2025
- 24 May 2025 Listen Hear Seán Ó Riada 24 May 2025
- 6 May 2025 Martin Barry: 20th Anniversary 6 May 2025
- 2 May 2025 Factory Records: Top 10 Comps 2 May 2025
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April 2025
2
- 19 Apr 2025 The Fall at Sir Henry’s 19 Apr 2025
- 14 Apr 2025 Record Store Day: A Top 10 14 Apr 2025
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March 2025
3
- 30 Mar 2025 Peace Together 30 Mar 2025
- 19 Mar 2025 Zerra One and The Cure 19 Mar 2025
- 13 Mar 2025 Robbie Coltrane’s 50th birthday, Dan Aykroyd, Badly Drawn Boy and Twisted Nerve Records. 13 Mar 2025
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February 2025
1
- 25 Feb 2025 Songs to Learn and Sing: EP 1000 - the final episode 25 Feb 2025
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January 2025
3
- 22 Jan 2025 Robert Forster – Interview 22 Jan 2025
- 5 Jan 2025 The Go-Betweens, Leonard Cohen, U2 and Boston Celtics’ Reggie Lewis 5 Jan 2025
- 2 Jan 2025 Top 10 Reissues of 2024 2 Jan 2025
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December 2024
2
- 20 Dec 2024 Songs to Learn and Sing: Christmas 2004 Compilations 20 Dec 2024
- 5 Dec 2024 Top 10 Irish Albums of 2024 5 Dec 2024
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November 2024
2
- 28 Nov 2024 Top 10 Vinyl Finds of 2024 28 Nov 2024
- 17 Nov 2024 The Chariot Race 17 Nov 2024
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October 2024
2
- 25 Oct 2024 Peel Sessions 25 Oct 2024
- 15 Oct 2024 Songs to Learn and Sing: 20th Anniversary 15 Oct 2024
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September 2024
2
- 17 Sept 2024 Spadgietown 17 Sept 2024
- 1 Sept 2024 Another Spark 1 Sept 2024
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August 2024
3
- 30 Aug 2024 SKiN and BONE 30 Aug 2024
- 12 Aug 2024 Short Circuit: Live at the Electric Circus 12 Aug 2024
- 10 Aug 2024 Oasis - Knebworth setlist 10 Aug 2024
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July 2024
1
- 30 Jul 2024 The Chills’ Martin Phillipps - An Appreciation 30 Jul 2024
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June 2024
3
- 27 Jun 2024 Top 10 Irish Songs* 27 Jun 2024
- 9 Jun 2024 Peter Watkins’ Privilege 9 Jun 2024
- 5 Jun 2024 The Smiths - Rarities 5 Jun 2024
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May 2024
3
- 29 May 2024 The Smiths - Singles 29 May 2024
- 24 May 2024 The Smiths - Bootlegs 24 May 2024
- 11 May 2024 Steve Albini - An Appreciation 11 May 2024
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April 2024
4
- 27 Apr 2024 Morrissey - Bootlegs 27 Apr 2024
- 19 Apr 2024 Colin Blunstone and The Zombies 19 Apr 2024
- 15 Apr 2024 Julian Cope’s Postcards 15 Apr 2024
- 8 Apr 2024 Sonic Youth and Nirvana - Sir Henrys 1991 8 Apr 2024
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March 2024
1
- 6 Mar 2024 Werner Herzog in Ireland 6 Mar 2024
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January 2024
3
- 28 Jan 2024 “Records give you more of what you want” - CBS Records 28 Jan 2024
- 21 Jan 2024 David Ackles - American Gothic 21 Jan 2024
- 1 Jan 2024 Bill Drummond’s The Man 1 Jan 2024
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December 2023
4
- 31 Dec 2023 Top 10 Vinyl Finds of 2023 31 Dec 2023
- 27 Dec 2023 Dead Dog’s Eyeball - Songs of Daniel Johnston 27 Dec 2023
- 16 Dec 2023 Robert Wyatt’s ‘Shipbuilding’ 16 Dec 2023
- 4 Dec 2023 Top 10 Irish Albums of 2023 4 Dec 2023
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September 2023
9
- 26 Sept 2023 Dark Star - Twenty Twenty Sound (Harvest, 1999) 26 Sept 2023
- 22 Sept 2023 Rollerskate Skinny – Interview 22 Sept 2023
- 21 Sept 2023 The Box Tops – The Letter 21 Sept 2023
- 17 Sept 2023 Damien Jurado – Interview 17 Sept 2023
- 9 Sept 2023 American Spring 9 Sept 2023
- 8 Sept 2023 Sufjan Stevens – Interview 8 Sept 2023
- 6 Sept 2023 Guy Chadwick – Interview 6 Sept 2023
- 5 Sept 2023 Richmond Fontaine – Radio Session + Interviews 5 Sept 2023
- 4 Sept 2023 My #CassetteTape Top 10 4 Sept 2023