Therapy For Me

W/C 2nd December 2024Of course there are flip sides to everything. As you will hear I am going to make a plea for more impromptu conversation, and also talk about an epic gig in an epic venue.In both cases near disaster was only just averted. Take note;a) Whilst helping the Australian Lady with her bag as we all got off the train, I put down my rucksack because her case was quite heavy. I realised as I walked through the station that I had left it behind and only just made it back to retrieve it before the train was due to alight. It's the fastest I have scaled a flight of stairs in a good while, as I literally pushed people out of the way and left human debris in my wake.b) I managed to park in the wrong car park at the Cathedral in Liverpool, and only just got back to my car before it would have been locked into the basement for the evening. I then had to walk back to my seat at the front, and disturb the entire proceeding. Its a good job they know me.Stay safe.Take Me To Church - HozierTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 25th November 2024I am currently sat in the McDonalds car park just off J35a of the M1, waiting for Josh to return with £8.08 of food.I literally have no clue what he has ordered, I was merely required for payment. This is one of those times when you are most certainly a piece of flesh connected to a credit card.After a fairly nail-biting game we are driving home with three points. Two sendings off (one for each side) a fine penalty save and lots of nervous noise, but we won out by a single goal. It feels good, though the Sunderland fan I just bumped into in the gents wasn't quite on the same page about it all.Stay safeOnce in a While - Barry BostockTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 18th November 2024I am dedicating this week's TFM to the person I sat next to on the train travelling to Manchester on Wednesday. You are going to hear all about it (obvs) but just to be clear the naming of the episode is most definitely for you.Which brings us to the album that particular track originates from, which is of course Full Moon Fever by Tom Petty. As it happens I had been listening to that long-player just the week before, and one particular moment that I had completely forgotten about had made me smile.At the end of Runnin' Down A Dream there is a little interlude where Tom instructs the listener that because you are listening to the CD version of the album, there will now be a slight pause to allow those listening on cassette or record to get up and turn the album over. Genius.Stay safe.I Won't Back Down - Tom PettyTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 11th November 2024Where are we all at in terms of Christmas Lights?Don't get me wrong I am a big fan, but I went for a run in London on Thursday morning (around 06:15 so still very much dark) and as I stepped from the hotel I was met with the full twinkly, majestic force of the display as I proceeded toward Russell Square.I found myself wondering if the middle of November wasn't just a bit too early to be in full chrimbo-mode.I feel grinch-like just suggesting it, but shouldn't we wait until at least the beginning of advent?Stay safe.Mr Blue Sky - Electric Light Orchestra9-42 John Wiles aka The Old Grey GuitaristTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 4th November 2024The simple fact is that irrespective of whether the outcome is the one we wanted or not, we just have to keep going.It's fine to feel the way we all feel at the moment, and it's fine to try and make some sense of what just happened. It's also fine to want to distract your self with other stuff, take comfort from something that might seem a little irrelevant, or unimportant and it is certainly fine to find a disproportionate amount of happiness in a piece of optometry.So with all that in mind, I give you this week's TFM.Stay safeAmerica - RazorlightKitty CafeTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 28th October 2024A bit of 80's pop you say? Go on then how about this banger from Erasure....And it does talk to at least two things I have mentioned in today's TFM, albeit loosely, so I am on point in a roundabout kind of way.Other than that not much to say in way of set-up for this week, partly because it will detract from the content, and partly because I am late for my morning run.Stay safe.Stop! - ErasureTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 21st October 2024Here we are then, episode 250 of TFM...Yes, you could say it has gone by in the blink of an eye. But then again, if you think about what we have lived through in the backdrop to those 250 episodes, it has been a crazy ride.Whilst the COVID pandemic dominated the first couple of years, how could we also forget the transition of Presidents in the U.S, the nonsense around Brexit and the slow death of the car-crash that was the last Government. I have ranted, I have pulled my hair out, I have laughed and I have cried. I have sat at my desk, in the garden, and at various locations around the globe. I have tried to make sense of the noise, and often been left short, but I have coped, carried on and because of you I haven't felt on my own, So thank you.Stay safe.And So It Goes - Billy JoelAccident Claim Management FirmsTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 14th October 2024Although I will mention Keir this week, the episode title is not meant as a comment on the whole Taylor Swift affair/gate/scandal. Admittedly the idea that a politician meeting a famous pop star, and the police ensuring her safety doesn't take me to quite the same place as say illegally proroguing parliament, or breaking your own lockdown laws. But I will leave that one alone.The choice of song is inspired by John, who I met this week, and how amazing things can be the result of doing something in all innocence of what the potential outcome could be. Doing something because you can, and with no expectation attached.I like that, it kind of made my week.Stay safe.Innocent Man - Billy JoelThe Old Grey Guitarist (1)The Old Grey Guitarist (2)Ian Dunt ArticleThe Big Red BuildingFurnivals InnTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 7th October 2024However I was also very wrong, though as it turned out probably not because of a well thought through plan.The fact is that the Tories are now going to lurch to the right, in a desperate and misguided ploy to try and regain some of the votes they have lost to the Reform Party. One group of headbangers try to appeal to another group of headbangers, all with the zeal of the converted.I find it hard to believe that we are going to have to listen to even wilder diatribes on why the UK isn't sovereign enough, or didn't Brexit hard enough, and that all the answers lie in a referendum on membership of the EHCR.You may be right, but that isn't the place that you win from.Stay safe.You May Be Right - Billy JoelWar Game DocumentaryTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 30th September 2024You will hear me talk about the Penshaw Monument in this weeks TFM, and pretty much everything I said about it was (on further investigation) wrong.It is in fact a memorial rather than some sort of Victorian Folly, and was built to commemorate the death of John Langton, the first Earl of Durham and the Governor-General of British North America. It is indeed officially know as the Earl of Durham's Monument.What is true is where it stands, on Penshaw Hill near the village of Penshaw, between the towns of Washington and Houghton-le-Sping in County Durham, and that for many locals it is the reassuring sign they are in the right placeSo I got some of it right.Stay safe.The Tipping Point - Tears for FearsJames BluntPenshaw MonumentTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 23rd September 2024I am writing this at 10:02 on the 27th September.By my reckoning it is the 54th time I have witnessed this date, and would imagine that for forty-odd of those occurrences I should have some recollection. Except I am not sure I have.I have probably done many interesting things on this day through the years, for example it's possible it is one of the first days I spent at University back in 1990. I may well have been to a gig, or stood at Bramall Lane watching the mighty Blades on this date over the years - but ask me for specifics and I have none to offer.Wouldn't it be great if there were some way to retrieve that information, a sort of retrospective diary-on-demand, to remind you of the significance of this day, over the years.Stay safe.Memory of Water - MarillionBilberry Reservoir DisasterTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 16th September 2024So I sat outside the British Library for a bit this week (as you will hear) with my face in the sunshine, and it was bloody lovely.There was a place to get coffee, one of those horse-boxy, old caravan style ones, and so I ordered a flat white. The coffee they were serving was 'origin' and it took me right back because the first time I had origin coffee was in Padstow about 15-20 years ago.It turns out that they are celebrating their 20 year anniversary, and the reason I stumbled across the brand in Padstow is that Cornwall (Porthleven, to be precise) is the origin of their story (see what I did there...).Needless to say the coffee was smashing, particularly as it came with a thread to the past which allowed me to think back to early morning walks along the Camel Trail.Stay safe.How Far We've Come - Matchbox TwentyOrigin CoffeeTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 9th September 2024Jarvis is so cool.And it doesn't matter what you think of Pulp as a musical force, he is just very, very, cool. As you will hear the choice of today's title came very much in the moment and as such I wasn't expecting to be listening to this song, or indeed watching the video.And it is so Pulp, so Jarvis, so bloody cool.Stay safe.Help the Aged - PulpCabin PressureTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 2nd August 2024As a slight departure from the norm I have chosen the live version of this song, taken from the Secret World tour. The reason being that it is one of the best live DVDs I can remember having seen.Back in the early noughties I was working for a music instrument retailer called Academy of Sound. I was working in the purchasing team, and every so often I would get little special assignments.What that meant in this case was that I spent a week or so in the Preston Store helping with a departmental rejig, and this DVD was playing on repeat all the time I was there. it's actually about the only thing I can remember about the visit.Stay safe.Come Talk To Me - Peter GabrielTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 26th August 2024I don't actually follow the crowd on this album, I loved it then and I love it now. Yes it is over-blown, and pompous and so, so, impressed with itself, but do you know what I really like that about it.There was still other good stuff to come, but this was Oasis at their swaggering best, and this is why they still hold a fascination for some many people.For once I am going to forget the cynical side of what has happened this week, and just wallow in the sheer joy of having the brothers back around and causing mayhem.Stay safe.Be Here Now - OasisTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 19th August 2024This has to be one of the nicest spots I have published a podcast from. I am sat overlooking the sea at the Cafe Iconic in Sant Antoni de Calonge, for no other reason than I need to immerse myself in there Wi-Fi gratis.We are getting to the back-end of what has been a fantastic time in Catalonia, firstly in Girona and latterly at the coast around Palamos. This really is a very special place to spend some time, and a reminder of how life is shaped by the local climate. The promenade is currently dense with a mixture of runners and walkers - everybody seemingly in transit to somewhere else - in a way I would not expect back home at 8am on a Saturday.For someone who likes to observe human behaviour, it's a joy to watch how the world spins and all the local interactions and peculiarities.But enough of this whimsy, I have a croissant to finish, and a café amb llet to start, and if that wasn't enough there is a game of beach paddle (or is it padel) that is reaching a thrilling climax.Stay safe.Walking Down Your Street - The BanglesTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 12th August 2024I can’t remember ever going over 30 minutes for a TFM before, though now I have said it out loud, it is probably not that unusual.Of course it’s an achievement that cuts two ways.For me, it means I have decluttered my brain and let go of some stuff that probably wasn't going to do me much good, especially if I continued to dwell on it. And it has also given me the chance to reflect and smile again at some of the quirks of the week.For you, it means an extra 5-10 minutes of your life given over to a rambling fifty odd year old and his first world neuroses.But them, as the saying goes, are the breaks.Stay safe.Closing Time - SemisonicGirona Opera FellaTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 5th August 2024It seems a little counter-intuitive to have selected this particular episode title, given some of the stuff that has been going on this week, but as you will hear I have had cause to smile at number of things through the week.Also this is a song that 'I knew' for years before I actually tell you who it was, and even when it had been released.And do you know what, it's a song that illicit the same response so all the more reason to share it this morning.Stay safe.Smile - The SupernaturalsTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 29th July 2024A tough week this week. Not because of anything going on in my immediate orbit, just the unrelenting clamour of everything that is going on in the wider universe.I am not convinced we are making a particularly good job of it at the moment, but in reality that is just because of what has risen to the surface over the last few days. What was important last week, last month, last year is still the same and so we have to keep on going in the face of the forces that wish to divide and destruct.I do think it is being called out, both loudly and for what it is - but we have a fair way still to go.Stay safe.Absolute Reality - The AlarmTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.

W/C 22nd July 2024Why not start the weekend with a bit of old-school goth rock I hear you say, well even though you never actually asked for it out loud, I am going to bring it to you anyway.The inspiration is St Leonards Tower in Newton Abbot, a hugely impressive building that I saw for the first time this week. Originally part of a gothic-style church (see what I did there) built in the thirteenth century it was also the site where William III declared he would be taking the English Throne in 1688.The tower has been protected numerous times in the past by local petitions and is now owned by the town council and maintained by the local museum. And it really is rather tremendous, well worth a visit if you are down that way.Stay safe.The Mission - Tower of StrengthSt Leonards Tower - Newton AbbotTherapy For Me (or TFM as I now refer to it) is a bit of an audio curiosity. It started out as a mechanism for me to clear my head, with the hope that by saying stuff out loud it would act as a little bit of self-help. It's remains loose in style, fluid in terms of content and raw - it's a one take, press record and see what happens, affair.If you want to keep in touch with TFM and the other stuff I do then please follow me on Facebook, Insta, Twitter or Patreon. Thanks for getting this far.