This is a companion piece to a similarly-themed article on Pete’s site which, all things being equal, should be published at roughly the same time.

Ladies and gentlemen, we are listening to Nick Drake.

1. Hazey Jane II from Bryter Later – I have to confess that once again I have failed to listen to this playlist properly. I was listening to it while I worked last Wednesday, and enjoying it but paying no attention to the details. Then on Thursday I listened during my commute, and had a few thoughts which I didn’t write down. School-blogger’s error, no?

2. Poor Boy from Bryter Later – Lyrics by AA Milne, but missing the gospel-style tiddly-poms. Performed by Eeyore.

I don’t dislike the song at all. I can imagine Pete and Nev doing a version of this (hopefully twisting it somehow). It will probably be th one that remains after all the others have drifted into sleeplessforgetful-land. It’s quite long.

1. Cello Song from Five Leaves Left – This song begins with some guitary stuff, bongos (I think), and then a cello. Hence the name, I guess. Although I suppose it could have been called Guitar and Bongo Song. I like it best before the singing starts.

2. At The Chime Of A City Clock from Bryter Later – I find myself wanting to use the word “nice” a lot while writing this review, and then looking at it and seeing how damning that is. For once the music doesn’t just make me sit here influence-spotting, which is refreshing. Obviously. But I think this is something that may take more than a week of listening to click with me. Rufus Wainwright took about six weeks and a gig before I got into him.

On more attentive listening, this song starts lightly and builds well; given the chance I am sure it would be a grower.

1. Sunday from Bryter Later – This instrumental piece is beautiful, but sadly I can’t not think about a Peruvian pipe band shuffling sideways across Trafalgar Square while listening to it. I feel that the artist was going more for Albatross than pigeon.

2. Way To Blue from Five Leaves Left – I’m starting to find it all a bit boringly dreary and samey.

3. I Was Made To Love Magic from Time Of No Reply – As above, with some sparkly bits.

4. Strange Meeting II from Time Of No Reply – I like the weird story in this one. Sounds like an old folk tune. Perhaps it is.

5. One Of These Things First from Bryter Later – Finally a bit more upbeat, just before I drop off under the desk and have a nap. It’s all been very soothing.

Listening to this songs reminds me of a moment a few years ago when I heard a similarly-themed song written by a 22 year old singer-songwriter. Nick Drake made it all the way to 26 before deciding that there were all these things he could have been and wasn’t; he suffered from depression and I’m not making a judgment here. Just saying, you know, you’ve really got to be more than a quarter of a century in before you decide you missed all your chances.

1. Northern Sky from Bryter Later – This song made little impact on me. The whole playlist made little impact on me. I’m a busy woman, and only the important stuff is retained. Actually that’s a lie; most of the important stuff slips through the net as well.

Next week: a change of plan.

This is a companion piece to a similarly-themed article on Pete’s site which, all things being equal, should be published at roughly the same time.

1. Caledonia Mission from Music From Big Pink – Starts all jangly blues, immediately slows right down and becomes tuneful and pretty. Nice piano stuff going on. A song the way they used to make ‘em.

2. Up On Cripple Creek from The Band – More guitary bits than the last one; this is the one that has been sticking in my head all week – that catchy chorus and the fact that it reminds me of the similarly-named Neil Young song, but is so much less whiney.

3. Whispering Pines from The Band – Talking of whiney, this one has rather more of a Neil Young vibe about it. Is this not the same tune as Jealous Guy?

4. W. S. Walcott Medicine Show from Stage Fright – This one makes my feet dance. When I have drifted into not-listening-to-the-background-music, this one brings me back.

5. Chest Fever from Music From Big Pink – Weird organ music at the beginning makes you think they’re about to launch into Toccata. But they never do. Instead, the opening bars of Tunnel of Love by Bruce Springsteen then form the main tune of the song.

6. King Harvest from The Band – Another song that grabs my attention, reminds me of various other artists who were presumably heavily influenced by Robbie Robertson, and makes me tap my feet.

7. It Makes No Difference from Southern Cross – See above. Perhaps that makes these songs ‘classics’ – the feeling that I have heard them all many times before, when in fact I don’t think I have. This is all very much the dad-music kind of stuff, but funnily enough, not something I remember anything about from my teenhood. This one’s clearly a Tom Petty influence.

8. The Shape I’m In from Stage Fright – See above.

9. Don’t Do It from The Last Waltz – I think Pete is going to write about how he likes this list, but finds it hard to write about the songs. I am experiencing the same thing. All of these are very listenable, and vastly better than most of the rubbish we’ve had to write about. Apparently we only get wordy when we have something negative to say. And that’s just sad.

10. All La Glory from Stage Fright – Sweet. See all above remarks. Plus Bob Dylan.

It has been raining heavily, and extremely windy. We went down to check on the plot, make sure things were where we left them (the cold frame wanders off when it’s windy). It’s looking much better than I expected it to look this year.

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This is a companion piece to a similarly-themed article on Pete’s site which, all things being equal, should be published at roughly the same time.

Flying Nun is an independent record label from New Zealand, feted by John Peel. When first mentioned by Pete, I was reminded of the mix tapes my cousin used to send me when he worked in a record shop in Sydney. Sadly I didn’t enjoy the playlist as much as I loved those tapes, which I no longer play because of their obsolete format. One of these days I should set Pete on the job of finding all the MP3s.

1. Not Given Lightly Chris Knox – The sentiment of a Dido song and the style of a breakfast cereal ad. If this was written as a love song to me, it would not get me into bed.

2. Nude Star Garageland – A noisy late-80s song with a very long intro; should have remained under the floorboards.

3. Death & The Maiden The Verlaines – A song I would classify as coming from the other side of the earth even if I didn’t know this was a New Zealand playlist. Really bad singing.

4. Nothing’s Going to Happen Tall Dwarfs – A weird song with interesting stereo effects; and rather nonsensical lyrics in very long sentences. I think I like it.

5. Pink Frost The Chills – Chilling indeed. Terrifying, in fact. This mysteriously sweet-sounding song is dark as Hades, so very very bleak. Brrrrrr. (Best of week)

6. Point That Thing Somewhere Else The Clean – Seems to be mainly about guitars, and feels very long, but is not awful.

And I believe that’s all we had this week.

If, like millions of other women, you have gone to pre-natal classes with the National Childbirth Trust, you will have had it drummed into you that good, caring mothers breastfeed, while selfish, irresponsible ones give their babies bottles..

I shall be teaching just such a class as this on Saturday, in my final few weeks before qualifying as a full-blown Gestapo Lactivist Cow.

I shall be taking along my drum and making sure the mums know that I’m only prepared to support them if they try really, really hard. If those nipples ain’t cracked, you’re clearly not committed to the cause.

Daisy Goodwin’s article is one of many to be expected during Breastfeeding Awareness Week. Why do you think that might be? A 2006 study reported in The Ecologist showed that companies spend £20 per baby on promoting their products, and the government spends 14p per baby promoting breastfeeding. But that’s not even half the point, because speaking as a nearly-breastfeeding counsellor, I’m not about promoting, I’m about supporting.

So I am hacked off already, and it’s only day one, with accusations that we promote breastfeeding without providing the necessary support – the whole point of what I am doing is to provide the support; and that we make out that breastfeeding should be easy and natural (or you’re doing it wrong) – see my posts during July 2006 for proof that I know that’s not true; and that we think less of mothers who do not breastfeed.

What’s that F-Word? Failure. You didn’t hear it from me.