James Last's Well Kept Secret

Album number 109 by James Last - a record of supreme 70s lounge funk - is one of the very few albums he made that can be viewed as 'good'.

And by good I mean REALLY good as, orchestration aside, there's very little to make you think this is by the Mr Last that we know from charity shop bins around the world.

But what I love most about my copy is the stamp on the inner sleeve stating that it was once owned by the Head Office of the British Forces Broadcasting Service. The thought of this album soundtracking our forces as they nobly protected our country during the 1976 Icelandic Cod Wars makes me smile.

Four-Foot Snake

Already being reviewed to death, there's not a great deal more that I can say that hasn't already been said about the debut album from FFS. 

It sounds exactly as you would expect a collaboration between a rejuvenated Franz Ferdinand and Sparks would do. Sixteen tracks of excellence split over two bright red discs, crammed full of art rock chords and lyrical wit.

So, collaborations DO work. I'm guessing a lot of reviews will say that too.