Head Space Daily Words...

Friday night was all about the soul in Shepherd's Bush, as the Daptone Super Soul Revue rolled into town for their pre Glastonbury session. The chance to see Charles Bradley and Sharon Jones is just too good to good an opportunity to pass up. They are from an old school stock of soul singers who can effortlessly conjure up raw emotion - pain, passion, joy, love and loss - with the tone of their incredible voices and in Sharon's case, with the fervour of a gospel singer. They have the audience in the palm of their hands as you can feel nothing but love for these amazing artists. If you can, take a look at the Charles Bradley documentary, Soul of America - the story of a guy who never expected anything - and be uplifted. He has had a tough life, taking in homelessness, a near death experience, the murder of his brother and living very much hand to mouth in the projects in New York, occasionally singing in clubs as a James Brown impersonator. It was at one of these gigs that he was spotted by a founder of Daptone Records, who signed him up - and the rest is history. He is 65 years old now and released his first album No Time For Dreaming in 2011. Never give up on your dreams. Whilst Charles's story is one of struggle, hardship and hope in the face of adversity - a prerequisite for an authentic soul artist - Sharon Jones has only recently overcome pancreatic cancer after undergoing chemotherapy. What a woman. Last night, her words, sung in a gospel preacher style, about her treatment, her bald head and will to survive, were thoroughly moving and joyful at the same time - another soul prerequisite, the bitter made sweet. Charles Bradley and Sharon Jones are singers and performers who must be revered and held close to our hearts as there are not many of the original soul generation left and with the sad news of Bobby Womack's passing, the need to support and treasure these incredible performers and uniquely talented vocalists is ever more important as they are a precious commodity...

Head Space Daily Image...

The view towards the stage at Shepherd's Bush Empire as Sharon Jones and The Dap Kings performed at the Daptone Super Soul Revue...

Head Space Daily Tune(s)...

A three tune, soul bonanza today!!


The Valentinos - Sweeter Than The Day Before

Bobby Womack sadly passed away last Friday and this is a big Northern Soul tune by the Valentinos, a  group Bobby fronted back in the 1960s along with his brothers. Great tune, memorable voice. Rest in Peace Bobby…

Sharon Jones And The Dap Kings - People Don't Get What They Deserve

Sharon Jones was sensational live at Shepherd's Bush Empire on Friday night and this is a terrific tune from her latest album. I love the lyrics, the backing singers, the humour of the track. It is a pleasure to listen to.

Charles Bradley - You Put The flame On It

I do love Charles Bradley. I love his voice, his music, his story and his sheer innocent love of life. We can learn a lot from Mr.Bradley.

Head Space Daily Image...

Union Flags proudly flying, last week in West Drayton...

Head Space Daily Words...

Today I want to talk teeth. I opened my sock drawer this morning and found a couple of little gnashers gleaming up at me. This is where some of my youngest son's teeth have been stashed, after being rescued from under his pillow - or in his mind, taken by the tooth fairy - to be replaced with a gleaming object of another variety - a one pound coin. The tooth fairy is a mightily industrious member of childhood mythology, who quite quickly becomes a member of a tooth fairy army, as she couldn't possibly do all this rather thankless work by herself. In fact the tooth fairy is utterly selfless, as she not only extracts the tooth from beneath the pillow - by physical force, or magical powers - she then lugs said tooth, or teeth - by physical force, or magical powers - all the way back to fairy land. 

This selfless act is all done to help in the continual building of the fairy castle. Not only is she a tooth trafficker, she is also a construction worker. What a life!! She should have opted for a quiet life and become a nun. It's no wonder little girls want to be fairy princesses, as according to the laws of hierarchy, this must mean power over the worker fairies and an easier existence. My youngest son no longer really believes in the tooth fairy but he puts on his best poker face and goes along with it, believing that if he declares himself a tooth fairy atheist, he will no longer receive a pound coin under his pillow.

In centuries to come, when our age is being dug up on archaeology shows by the future Tony Robinsons, should such things still exist, they will be shocked to discover treasure troves of children's' teeth, leading them to believe that weird cannibalistic practices took place, or bizarre rituals, involving tooth removal. They may well discover that we quite simply told pleasant, yet slightly strange lies to our children. I don't know what they will make of Father Christmas!!

A child's teeth fall out over a fairly prolonged period of time, marking the loss of childhood, going from an unwavering belief in what they are told by their parents, to doubt surfacing as they become older and understand more about the world, until they reach the point of non belief. The journey is lovely but leads ultimately to a sad, albeit inevitable loss, known as growing up.

Head Space Daily Image...

Is this the magical skeleton of a mythical serpent? Or a neatly arranged line of children's' teeth?

This may look like a random group of children's' teeth but is in fact a strategically arranged pattern, aligned with the stars, to bring eternal life to all those who lay their eyes upon it...

Head Space Daily Tune...

Teena Marie - Behind The Groove

Today's tune is another cracking ebay purchase. The magnificent Behind The Groove by Teena Marie.

Head Space Daily Words...

This Fathers’ Day there will have been a vast number of mildly depressed, slightly hung over dads up and down England, following last nights defeat to Italy. Not that we played too badly, it’s just that we were beaten by a better team.  Everything came down our left hand side, with Rooney offering no support whatsoever to Leighton Baines at left back and the Italian team had free run of that flank. To be fair to Rooney, left midfield is not his position, he doesn’t want to play there, we don’t want to see him play there – so don’t play him there, Mr. Hodgson!! Rooney should be played through the middle or not played at all but I doubt he will be left on the bench. We looked good going forward, although apart from one chance in the second half, which Rooney should have scored, or at least got on target, the Italians’ defending reduced us to long range efforts. The Azzurri is renowned for defensive excellence and once you go behind to them, you are going to struggle to come back. They are a cut above and are always a tough proposition in the World Cup. If we at least draw to Uruguay on Thursday, we stand a good chance of qualifying for the second round, so long as we beat Costa Rica in the final group match. Even if we lose to Uruguay, we can still go through on goal difference, so long as Italy beat Uruguay and England beat Costa Rica by the required amount. Whatever happens, we are still in it and at least it is exciting, which is the word to sum up this World Cup so far, with every match having great attacking quality. As for the television coverage, I personally always prefer to watch sporting events on the BBC rather than ITV. The coverage is better, the pundits and commentators are superior (although Phil Neville was the audible equivalent of watching paint dry) and there are no adverts, which always helps the flow. Adrian Chiles as the front man on ITV, is probably a very nice guy but should not be presenting T.V. It is like watching an embarrassing uncle, as he cracks appalling jokes and comes out with ridiculous comments. He has no dynamism. The coverage on ITV also has a contrived, ‘relaxed’ feel on Copacabana beach, with people playing volleyball in the background and Wright and Dixon sitting on deck chairs. I understand the need to differentiate themselves from BBC but Chiles in shorts is a sight for sore eyes!! The BBC coverage has greater weight, being hosted by a former player in Gary Lineker, with some excellent pundits - Thierry Henry is brilliant. You know you are getting a professional opinion that you can trust. Chiles, on the other hand, speaking to former World Cup winning captain Fabio Cannavaro, just isn’t believable for me. On a brighter note, the ITV opening titles are growing on me and the tune is a proper Brazilian track, rather than Stevie Wonder’s Another Star, which although a great track, is not connected to Brazil...

Head Space Daily Image...

My Fathers' Day present. Summer time reading...

Head Space Daily Tune...

Paul Weller - Study In Blue

I have heard Paul Weller's music described as 'dad rock', maybe because he has been around for a while and perhaps your dad might like it. If he keeps making incredible music like this then I'm glad to be a dad rocker...

Head Space Daily Words...

Spain 1, Holland 5. It doesn’t sound real does it? But it happened. A World Cup classic, which people will be talking about in years to come and Robin Van Persie’s equalising goal will go down in football folklore. It was stunning. A perfect, long diagonal ball, played from the left touchline by Daley Blind, arrowed in to the penalty area, with exact precision, to be met by Van Persie with a perfectly timed, exquisite, looping volley – from his head. Like a leaping salmon, Van Persie jumped to meet the ball with such acrobatic athleticism that your breath was taken away and when the ball hit the net your head exploded – and I’m not even Dutch!! A career in the circus could await RVP after retirement from football. The only thing missing was that when he landed, he was in the perfect position to do ‘the caterpillar’ - the old breakdance move - which would have rounded it off in even more spectacular fashion.

RVP leaps to head the ball...

A random man performs the caterpillar

The funniest thing last night - apart from Casillas’s appalling first touch - was the Fernando Torres miss, in the final minute. If a moment ever summed up a once great player’s complete fall from footballing grace - despite all the trophies - that was it. Who knows, it could even epitomise the demise of this great Spanish team, although it is too early to make assumptions. It is a funny old game and they could bounce back.

World Cup 2014 has got off to a fantastic start. Attack and daring is the tone, rather than the focus being on defence and negativity – Cameroon take note!! The aim has been to win rather than to avoid defeat. After last night’s incredible game, we await England’s first match tonight, against Italy. It won’t be easy but with the attacking nature of the tournament so far, hopefully the England team will follow suit and play to our strengths, using pace to break forward quickly. My prediction though, in the heat of the rainforest and taking Italy into account, is for a goalless draw. Sorry to be a party pooper but I would actually not be unhappy with that result. The most important thing I feel is actually to avoid defeat, knowing we have Uruguay and Costa Rica to come. That’s my view but I hope I am wrong and we play with attacking verve, taking the game to Italy and teaching them a footballing lesson in the way Spain have just been taught one by the Dutch.

Until kick off, it is all about the anticipation of the build up. The excitement of my kids reminds me of Christmas. My old Umbro 1982 shirt will make an appearance for the game itself (see Head Space Daily Image) and my eldest son has already donned his World Cup 2010 England shirt. We are also well stocked with supplies, having acquired large bottles of Fanta and Diet coke, along with Peroni, bottles of Guinness and crisps (See Head Space Daily Image.) My youngest son keeps insisting we will also need plenty of cups of tea to stay awake and he may have a point, it will be way past my bedtime when it gets underway. Lets hope the football doesn’t send us to sleep...

Head Space Daily Image...

As mentioned in today's Head Space Daily Words, here are photos of my 1982 England Umbro shirt and our stash of booze and pop for this evening, accompanied by a Brazilian horn...

Head Space Daily Tune...

Astrud Gilberto - Agua de Beber



Let Astrud soothe those pre match nerves…

Head Space Daily Words...

It's here at last. The World Cup is upon us, set in the country that is romantically associated with beautiful football. Names such as Pele, Garrincha, Jairzinho, Zico, Socrates, Ronaldo and Ronaldhino, trip off the tongue, conjuring up thoughts of 'samba' football, where the pace of the game is dictated - quick, quick, slow, slow, quick - almost like a dance in itself, by breathtaking charisma, skill and daring, with a total lack of footballing inhibition. That is Brazilian football artistry at its best and how we all like to envisage the Brazilian national side. To actually play football in this way though is extremely hard to accomplish. For a start you need players with exceptional ability in every position on the field, who gel as a team, both on and off the pitch. A certain chemistry is required and not every side will be blessed with an array of talent as seen in the teams of Brazil '70, or Brazil '82 - and that team didn't lift the trophy. Although this year's Brazilian vintage has many excellent players, the only real superstar would appear to be Neymar. Perhaps it is too much to expect memories of former Brazilian teams to be resurrected and home advantage could either lift or suffocate them. We shall see.

What we do know is there are many other superbly talented teams at this World Cup. When Brazil won the competition in 2002 in South Korea, it was against a sea of mediocrity. This time around, there would appear to be several teams in with a shout besides the hosts, plus numerous dark horses. Spain, as current World Champions will be hard to dethrone, Argentina look very strong, Germany are always contenders, as are current holders of the Copa America, Uruguay. Then come the outsiders of Belgium and Chile - if they can negotiate the group stage - and you write off the Italians and Dutch at your peril!! 

First and foremost, we all want the football to be good. In South Africa 2010 - apart from Spain - the football was average at best, with a brutal Dutch side forgetting that they invented 'total football' and killed the Final with their newly devised brand of 'anti football.' 

Beyond the football, to make the tournament live in the memory, you need that extra special ingredient - atmosphere. As FIFA has sanitised the World Cup in recent times, with its flatpack stadia, corporate takeovers and carefully choreographed T.V schedules, this atmosphere has to come from the host country - it's culture, it's people. Germany 2006 had it to a certain degree, although the last tournament to nail it and truly capture the imagination, I feel, was France '98. Exciting football, great talent on show, the French team was superb and the French nation fully embraced it, which elevated the experience above and beyond the mere spectacle of football. It can really help the atmosphere if the host nation performs well. Good luck then to that formidable footballing nation Qatar, in 2022.

Spain in 1982 is the first World Cup that I truly remember and the first World Cup match indelibly etched on my brain is Brazil v Italy. I am transported back to my friend's house, where I saw the match after school. An incredible game of football, accompanied by the continual blare of air horns. Whenever I think of Spain'82, I instantly hear that high pitched buzz. We aren't talking the mass marketed, thoroughly annoying vuvuzelas of South Africa here but a noise which naturally derived from the resourcefulness of the supporters. These days, you wouldn't be able to take an air horn into a stadium, only the bland official merchandise would be allowed in the grounds. The bigger the tournament has become and the more control FIFA has exerted, the more character and personality has been lost from inside the grounds - or so it feels watching on T.V. Outside the grounds is another story, as I have read that FIFA have displaced street vendors, moved people from their own homes and managed to get street parties banned within a certain radius of the stadia. It would appear that FIFA have taken it upon themselves to behave like some kind of totalitarian regime.

A major international sporting event like the World Cup is a great vehicle for a nation's voice to be heard though and the Brazilian public has been protesting en masse against the huge cost that has been involved in staging the World Cup - money which could have been spent on public services - new schools, better housing, hospitals, transport. The hope has to be that any demonstrations during the competition itself are done in a peaceful manner but that voices are still heard.

The other major tension in the lead up to the big kick off has come from the tournament sponsors. Sony, adidas and Visa have all done the right thing and rather than just thinking of the dollar, have demanded to know the truth about potential corruption and bribery in the way Qatar won the right to host the 2022 Finals. It's a shame questions weren't raised at the time, as thousands of construction workers have died whilst building the stadia. We are living in 2014, not building pyramids in ancient Egypt!! How could any nation that is incapable of holding the tournament during the break in domestic football competition, due to its potentially life threatening hot climate, be considered a viable option? OK, Qatar cannot control the temperature but it is an unavoidable fact which should have excluded them. Again FIFA is after world domination, just thinking of expanding their brand, bringing in more money and in the process have lost sight of the game.

One aspect of the build up that I have thoroughly enjoyed, is the lack of hype surrounding England. I am not seeing cars driving around with St,George's crosses stuck to their aerials. Neither are there a great number of flags draped from windows. You can safely say that expectations are exceedingly low. If we get through the group stage, we will have performed well. The refreshing aspect of being no hopers is that you can sit back and enjoy the football of the other nations, which is what I intend to do.

The country of Brazil is a major factor for me. Considering my brother in law lives in Sao Paulo with his wife and kids, I know very little about the country itself. I realise the place is vast, massive, enormous, colossal - beyond my comprehension. Discovering Brazil will be another great aspect of this World Cup. Our generalised view is of a party nation living on beaches, with guys playing football, whilst girls wearing skimpy bikinis look on; or the carnival with its outrageous costumes and persistent beat, in full swing in Rio. I will be glad to see that view blown out of the water and for the real Brazil to boldly step forward.

Our Brazilian sister is here for a few days on business, so we will get to watch Brazil play this evening, in the opening game of the Brazilian World Cup, with a real life genuine Brazilian!! With Spain against Holland on Friday and England versus Italy on Saturday, this World Cup could start with a real bang. I can't wait...


Carlos Alberto 1970...

I couldn't leave an article about the Brazilian World Cup without posting the greatest goal of all time, which just gets better each time you watch it...

Head Space Daily Image...

As the tournament kicks off, here are three World Cup related pictures:

My eldest son's World Cup drawing, featuring Diego Costa of Spain, Neymar of Brazil, Germany's Mario Gotze, Messi and Ronaldo...

A timeless image of an England flag stuck in a flower box... 

The ubiquitous St.George's flag taped to the wing mirror of a truck on a construction site. Have some of that Dave...

Head Space Daily Tunes...

Sergio Mendes And Brasil '66 - Mas Que Nada


This Brazilian classic was made famous by the 1998 Nike ad, featuring the Brazilian football team - with the original Ronaldo - showing off their skills at the airport...

New Order - World In Motion


The only World Cup song that really matters. As John Barnes says, "this ain't a football song," and never have truer words been uttered, it is so much more...

Stevie Wonder - Another Star


Congratulations to the BBC for turning one of the most uplifting pieces of music ever made into a football anthem...

Back Home - England World Cup Squad 1970


Not only could Booby Moore inspire England to winning the World Cup in 1966, he could also orchestrate a good old sing song. Surely the best of the England World Cup records...

Head Space Daily Words...

Head Space Daily has been anything but Daily in recent times, largely due to the fact I have been working, which is an extremely good thing but leaves me little time to write anything remotely coherent. Any spare moments have been generally taken up with running my youngest son's football team. Talking of which, our final game of the season took place a couple of weeks ago, with a resounding 5-0 victory, ending in a champagne shower of Fanta, copious amounts of custard creams and Celebrations aplenty, as we bid farewell to one of our team, who bowed out with a hat trick. Get in!!

One of the best things about being freelance is working in different locations and being able to experience different areas of London town. So far this year, I have spent time in Docklands, Fitzrovia and my latest haunt has been Kensington High Street, which is truly another world. The amount of money sloshing about those parts is a whole different level. The houses are incredible and the streets, as well as probably being actually paved with gold, have the feel of old well to do London. Kensington Palace is a stone's throw away, with Britain's most expensive street - Kensington Palace Gardens - with it's foreboding security guard sitting in his hut, running alongside the Palace. What you see is what you get - a sense of look but don't touch.

On my first day, parked opposite the building in which I was working, was a black and red sports car. A grotesque, hideous, ostentatious, monstrosity - a gigantic, ill formed, metallic reptile. It is obviously an exquisite piece of craftsmanship and bespoke engineering but not my cup of tea. If you couldn't guess, I'm not into cars in the slightest. To me they are a functional means of getting from A to B, then again I have and never will be in the position to afford a Maserati. Having googled the car, it looks like it could be a Maserati Birdcage, which can reach a top speed of 217 mph, which must come in handy in London. 

These kind of cars are status symbols, as are personalised number plates, which seem to have become the latest middle class trend of status display.

The funniest personalised number plate I have seen recently was when a guy in a porsche drove past us on the M6 with a number plate that spelt the word JIT5U. He was branding himself via his registration number, saying to guys - back off, I'm really hard - and to girls - I'm tough and available. I think the number plate D1CK would have been far more suitable.

At least he got his message across coherently though. The number plates that mean nothing are the worst. Why bother? On the internet I found a personalised number plate for sale which reads BI5 JMY. Look at it. It means nothing beyond a random combination of letters and a number five. Yet how wrong could I be. This little combo translates as "BIG JIMMY." Good grief. Treat someone like a fool and they'll behave like one I guess. I would love to know if anyone has bought the registration number M5V TWT yet.

Anyway, back to Kensington. I don't know West London very well at all, so it is an area to explore. A walk along Kensington Church Street and you're in Notting Hill, where I have not been for a long time. There are some tremendous buildings and places of interest but I would never feel as comfortable there as I do in South East London, where I live, or the East End. That's where home is and the particular area of West London that I've been talking about, feels like a different world, the playground of the mega rich. Fair play to them, they've earned it, they can enjoy it and spend it however they want. Although it is a lifestyle that is out of my reach, I would never want to grab hold of it, even if I could. You can keep your strange Maserati batmobiles, I would rather live in a world of nonsensical registration numbers...

Head Space Daily Image...

A commuter stands on the platform at Westminster underground station...

Head Space Daily Tune…

Change - Change Of Heart


Picked up this great little soul tune today from my favourite charity shop in Forest Hill. What a gem…