FA Cup Third Round draw we play…

…those sheep botherers Cardiff at home. One for police overtime then.

Stoke City 1-1 Man City

Good point after we dominated the first half and then scored late on trough Matthew Etherington aided by a Tuncay piece of trickery. Next two games are key – Wigan away, then Blackpool at home.

FA Cup third round draw tomorrow – I’d like Port Vale please so we can stuff them

Top 10 prog rock/metal 2010

There have been a few good prog rock & metal albums that deserve a mention…

1. ARK ‘ Wild Untamed Imaginings’ ProgRock Records

Ark comeback with a wonderfully diverse album that encompasses then 80’s neo-prog sound, folk and more modern proggers like Kino.

2. AVANTASIA ‘The Wicked Symphony’ Nuclear Blast

Tobias Sammet gathers together another all star ensemble and this time it is spread over tow albums. Bob Catley and Jorn Lande are amongst the vocal highlights.

3. STAR ONE ‘Victims Of The Modern Age’ Inside Out

Arjen Lucassen is always a busy man and good to have the second studio album from Star One. More straight ahead metal than Ayreon with a SF background.

4. PURE REASON REVOLUTION ‘Hammer And Anvil’

OTT harmonies? Check OTT keys and synths? Check Dance backing? Eh? Yes this band may put off some but that’s their loss as PRR take prog, pop and dance music, spin them around and come out with another enjoyable album.

5. DAVID MANASIAN ‘Random Acts Of Beauty’ Prog Rock Records

Beautifully crafted music – the Moody Blues and Camel come to mind. Camel’s Andy Latimer guests on one song as well – his first recorded work since recovering from illness.

6. MYSTERY  ‘One Among The Living’ Unicorn Records

Now vocalist Benoit David is also fronting Yes interest in this album has rocketed and rightly so. Mystery do it again with another strong melodious album that owes more to bands like Styx than Yes.

7. KAMELOT ‘Poetry For The Poisoned’ Ear Music/Edel

Not their best but still much better than most bands in the prog metal genre.

8. ROSEWELL SIX ‘Terra Incognita: A Line In The Sand’ Prog Rock Records

Not quite as strong as the last album but still plenty of good, melodic prog rock to enjoy.

9. SPOCK’S BEARD ‘X’  Mascot Records

Their best album to date for me as they successfully mix their keen ear for melody with the extended musical passages they do so well.

10. THE ENID ‘Journey’s End’

Hopefully not the last we will hear from this band and on this album Robert John Godfrey successfully taps into the band’s classic 70′s sound and brings it bang up to date. If the classical market wasn’t so exclusive this album would have massive crossover potential.

WBA 0-3 Stoke City

Two penalties, one by Etherington , the other by Walters who also scored the third, saw Stoke keep up their remarkable record against West Brom (in fact the last time we lost to them was when I was at the game and I’ve seen us lose 4-1 and 6-1 to this lot back in the mid-late 80′s).

Pennant went off injured after eleven minutes but hopefully won’t be out to long. We are hoping to sign him on a permanent contract in January when his loan period runs out but as he’s been playing well I reckon we may have competition now for his signature. Plus his wages will be more than we will be prepared to pay.

Best of 2010

 Here is my selection, not in oder (possibly subject to slight change when I remember a good album I’ve forgotten!)…

             1. FREEDOM CALL ‘Legend Of The Shadow King’ SPV/Sony

Power metal how it should be done. Gloriously OTT.

2.      GIANT ‘Promise Land’ Frontiers

First of three albums this year to feature vocalist Terry Brock and although it may not quite meet the band’s classic debut album it certainly deserves the Giant name.

3.      BRIAN HOWE ‘Circus Bar’ Frontiers
Former Bad Company singer comes good with a solo album ideal for lovers of melodic hard rock.

4.      FOREIGNER ‘Can’t Slow Down’ Ear Music/Edel
Although the US were lucky enough to get this album last year it was well worth waiting for. Not a duff song in sight and good to see the band tapping into their more rockier side.5.      FM ‘Metropolis’ AOR Heaven
FM are back and with possibly their strongest album of their career. Happily gone  is the plodding blues rock of the Andy Barnett era and instead we get a mix of top notch melodic rockers and blues rockers.6.      BELLOWHEAD ‘Hedonism’ Navigator Records
A band recommended for those who think they won’t like folk but will be converted by this album. Good mix of ballads and sing-a-longs all backed by their wide musical instrumentation including brass, accordion and some stunning sax.

7.      ARK ‘ Wild Untamed Imaginings’ ProgRock Records
Ark comeback with a wonderfully diverse album that encompasses then 80’s neo-prog sound, folk and more modern proggers like Kino.

8.      NELSON ‘Lightning Strikes Twice’ Frontiers
Billed as follow-up to their smash hit 1990 album ‘After The Rain’ (they have released albums in-between times but sadly not with much success sales wise). The harmonies and radio friendly tunes are here.

9.      PHIL CAMPBELL
Singer/songwriter who recorded most of this album himself, which surprises the listener given how much is going on musically. ‘Vodka Milk’ and ‘ are two of the songs of the year.

10.     DOWN ‘N’ OUTZ
Def Leppard’s Joe Elliott hooks-up with some of the Quireboys to produce an album of covers from Mott, Ian Hunter and British Lions. Quite possibly the best things Joe Elliott has sung on since the glory days of Def Leppard. Great songs and great fun.

11.     AVANTASIA ‘The Wicked Symphony’ Nuclear Blast
Tobias Sammet gathers together another all star ensemble and this time it is spread over tow albums. Bob Catley and Jorn Lande are amongst the vocal highlights.

12.     ASIA ‘Omega’ Frontiers
Easily the best album they have done since reforming.

13.     MASS ‘Sea Of Black’ Escape Music
Another 80’s band producing some of the best music of their career. They have turned up the guitars and rock out big time.

14.     GLYDER ‘Yesterday, Today And Tomorrow’ SPV
If this is indeed the band’s swansong it is a strong way to finish.

15.     PRETTY MAIDS ‘Pandemonium’ Frontiers
They don’t release albums that often but when they do they are essential. This new one is no different and they are one of the few bands who can successfully meld classic metal riffs with their more melodic rock side.

16.     GRAND ILLUSION ‘Brand New World’ AOR Heaven
So good to have this band back! The pomp and vocal harmonies are still in place as ‘157^th Breakdown’ proves.

17.     LAST AUTUMN’S DREAM ‘A Touch Of Heaven’  Escape Music

Amazingly the band’s seventh album in as many years and easily one of their best.

18.     CHRIS SINGLETON ‘Lady Gasoline’ Indie
‘Twisted City’ was a great album and this new one pips it. A delightful pop rock journey from start to finish.

19.     STAR ONE ‘Victims Of The Modern Age’ Inside Out
Arjen Lucassen is always a busy man and good to have the second studio album from Star One. More straight ahead metal than Ayreon with a SF background.

20.     TONY HARNELL & THE MERCURY TRAIN ‘Round Trip’ Frontiers
Ex-TNT vocalist Tony Harnell revisits some of the TNT classics he recorded plus songs from his
other bands including Westworld. All are redone in an acoustic setting and the songs take on a whole new slant.

Re-issues:

1. JACKDAW4 ‘Retrospectables’ The band’s first two albums and a veritable aural delight for those who like their pop rock with a barbed edge.

2.      RICK SPRINGFIELD ‘Venus Exploding’ Frontiers
Quite possibly his best album to date and great to see it get a full release.

3.      SAVATAGE ‘Still The Orchestra Plays – Greatest Hits Volume 1 & 2′ Ear Music/Edel
Never tried Savatage before? There is no excuse now with this best of and you can see where the massively popular Trans-Siberian Orchestra got some of their musical ideas from (along with band members!).

4.      URIAH HEEP ‘On The Rebound: Best Of’ Universal
Like Motorhead and Saxon there are many ‘best ofs’ littering the market by Uriah Heep but this one is the best for successfully straddling the band’s classic 70’s Byron fronted era, through to the underrated n80’s line-up featuring Pete Goalby on vocals and bang up to date with the Bernie Shaw years.

5.      JIMI JAMISON & JIM PETRIK ‘Extra Moments’ Melodic Rock Records
The two Survivor pals present an album of ‘demos’, whose production puts many ‘finished’ albums to shame. Needless to say this is a ‘must have’ for fans of Survivor and it includes the song Jimi Jamison used in his Survivor audition back in the day.

Gigs:
FOREIGNER
They blew Europe of the stage at the ITunes gig. Kelly Hansen is the consummate frontman – like a younger version of Steve Tyler minus the big lips.

FM
They are back and sounding on top of their game.

SAINT JUDE at GUILFEST 2010
First time I had heard anything by this band – female fronted blues/classic rock. A must see live.

JUDIE TZUKE
A name I knew a lot about but not heard much by before. She has lost none of her powerful voice and one of the gigs of a lifetime, never mind the year!

DAN REED
An acoustic gig backed by a very talented band including Tommy Denander this gig combined his newer solo material plus some Dan Reed Network classics. His rendition of ‘Rainbow Child’

DVD:
I watched a few this year but ELO’s ‘The Early Years’ (Eagle Vision) wins hands down as it shows the band just about to hit the big time. It also features the late Mike Edwards and of course Kelly Groucutt who sadly passed away last year.

Let downs…

A fair few albums failed to deliver…Strangeways (tried to appeal to fans of both styles of the band but failed), Allen/Lande (good album but mushc too similar to what had gone before), Y&T (a couple of cracking songs but the rest is pretty average by this band’s high standards).

Journey + Foreigner + Styx UK dates in June 2011 :)

A dream line-up (although being greedy would be great to add Night Ranger and Damn Yankees)…

Stoke City 2-0 Liverpool

What a great win for us! Last time we beat Liverpool was back in 1984. Goals from Ricardo Fuller (not his best but hey a goals a goal) and Kenwyne Jones (who needed a goal) saw us pull of a famous victory. Not bad at all seeing as Liverpool beat Chelsea the weekend before. Come on Stoke!

Poll – Who will get relegated from the Premiership this season?

http://polldaddy.com/poll/4046091/

Stoke City 3-2 Birmingham

Hurrah! At last a win as we squandered a two goal lead after goals from Huth and Fuller, before Whitehead made sure of the three points for us. Great to see Fuller back with Pennant shining also against one of his former clubs. We face another of his former teams on Saturday as well – Liverpool.

Tony Pulis has put forward the idea of managers voting for the referees at the end of the season and the bottom three get relegated from refering in the Premiership the following season. Nice idea but unless one of the big teams get behind it not a chance it will be considered seriously.

Sunderland 2-0 Stoke City

…cuffin’ ‘eck five defeats on the bounce now and only one place above the relegation zone plus we’ve lost the most games of any Premiership team to date – seven. Not looking good at all and next up at home our bogey team Birmingham. 

FA Cup 1st round as well today with Dover dumping Gillingham out and Crewe lost to Tamworth. Sadly Port Vale came back at Dartford to get a reply.

Charity screening of ‘Sugar Drop’ movie this Saturday 6th November

Nov 6th showing of the short movie ‘Sugar Drop’ at Ashford (Middx) hospital.

Full details can be found here…

www.sugardropashford.org.uk/

All proceeds to Diabetes UK and organised by my wife

Saturday 6 November 2010

Lecture Theatre, Ashford Hospital
London Road
Middlesex
TW15 3AA

Nabila Ritchie is organising a screening of the film Sugardrop on Saturday 6 November 2010 from  10am to 11.30pm.

It will take place in the Lecture Theatre of Ashford Hospital, Middlesex.

Dr Helen Ward, a Consultant Endocrinologist at Ashford and St. Peters’ Hospital will lead a short, informative discussion about diabetes prior to the screening and will then host a question and answer session at the end. Tickets are £5 and can be bought on the day. All proceeds will go to Diabetes UK.

Note: due to some content not suitable for the under 15′s.