Wreckless Eric - Almost A Jubilee: 25 Years At The BBC (With Gaps)

In many ways, Eric Goulden was the embodiment of punk's DIY ethic: awkward, rough, fearlessly enthusiastic, occasionally inspired. By the time of his first Peel session in October '77—backed by Ian Dury and fellow ex-Kilburn & The High Roader Davey Payne—he'd nailed signature tune "Whole Wide World" (featured on last month's Uncut CD) and was gaining notoriety for drunken antics on the first Stiff tour. Disillusioned by the '80s, he was fronting the Len Bright Combo for the Saturday Live show, before decamping to France and resurfacing (post-breakdown) as the Hitsville House Band for a Mark Radcliffe session in '86. Last year's "Joe Meek" (from the Jonathan Ross radio show) proved that, though he never did track down that girl from Tahiti, the pleasure and pain was in the journey.

Rating: 3 / 10