end of the road

Did you see that terrific BBC4 Squeeze documentary, Take Me I’m Yours, on Friday night? I was more than a little taken aback by the currently be-whiskered Glenn Tilbrook, but I’m sure there’s a plausible explanation for wanting to look like that and otherwise the programme was a timely reminder of the many great songs he and Chris Difford have written over the years. It also put me in mind of an eventful few days I spent with the band in 1980, when they were rather unhappily touring Australia, where I caught up with them in inhospitable Brisbane before we headed for the sunny beaches of Surfer’s Paradise. Here’s a piece I wrote for my old Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One Before column in Uncut.

Stevie Nicks has confirmed that Fleetwood Mac will embark on a reunion tour from April next year. The band behind iconic 1977 album Rumours put an end to months of speculation by confirming their reunion, with Nicks also revealing the band are in talks about recording new music to coincide with the live dates. Speaking to ABC News Radio, Nicks said: "We go into rehearsals somewhere around the end of February. So... if everything goes to plan, we should probably be out [on the road] by end of April [or] May, I would think."

James Bond at 50 seems in pretty good shape.

ELO man upgrades his hits and re-imagines his youth...

The Rolling Stones are being lined up to headline next year's Glastonbury festival, according to reports. With the band's guitarist Keith Richards letting slip that they had been booked to play live shows in London and New York, and sax player Bobby Keys later claiming that the shows would take place in November, the legendary rockers look set to finally hit the road and celebrate their 50th anniversary.

Neil Young is not, at a guess, an artist who suffers much from writer’s block. In the past few years, many of his albums have felt like spontaneous dispatches from an over-productive mind.

A real return to form, though it can't match Van's best...