Wasting time and money...

I noticed that Kraftwerk’s live album “Minimum Maximum” was conspicuous by its absence from my top five live albums acquired in 2005 and this led me to further analysis....

Of course what had happened was that that particular album didn’t make into the top ten for September because there were ten other CDs which I liked better....

But, for example, February was such a low light in the CD year that at least six below par albums made it into my top ten for that month....

So I decided to review all albums purchased in the year and ended up shortlisting 208 out of a total of 335....

Yes that’s right, I’m afraid I averaged almost one CD per day in 2005. In fact, my highest ever intake in a calendar year was a mortifying 448 back in 2003....

Anyway, with these 208 albums, I split them once again into categories of New (15), Recent (26), Re-Issues (43), Live Albums (13), Jazz (36), Classical (31), Single Artist Compilations (27) and Various Artist Compilations (17)...

I then rated each album out of 20 within their classification, then reintegrated them to give an overall rank. For ties at this stage, I used their ranking within their category to sort them out....

Thus, a CD which was ranked first in its category would come out on top of one with the same points but which came second in it’s category....

Of course whilst writing this, I’ve realised that it ought to be the other way round. As a lower position in a category with the same points means a harder category to win and more merit for the CD....

So I’ve now amended again....

Aah – but not so easy – two albums from the same category have to be ranked according to the category of course....

So one more tweak and we have the final ranking – which still throws up some surprises....

No this isn’t working - so back to the drawing board. I think I’ll need to rank each CD out of 100 to stop such large numbers ending up with exactly the same score....

This is how I waste my time....

On e-bay today, for just over £30 I bought 3,000 hit single MP3s. The three sets contain the top 100 singles from each year between 1970 and 1999 (Inclusive).

This is how I waste my money.

While I’m wasting my time and money Anne is off uptown and, when she returns, we watch “Rebus”, taped last night. I spend the first five minutes saying “We’ve been there” until Anne becomes annoyed and I shut up (it’s filmed in Edinburgh you see)....

It’s ok. Probably one (very small) step above Taggart....

Today I listened back to the new CBQ Orchestral Collage CD “Sospiri” for the first time for a few days and it still stands up so I’ll be releasing it shortly.....

I get a message from O2 to say my new SIM card has been given my old number so finally I can send texts – but still find the practice stupid....

I send one to Alan Brodie though, as it’s all he seems to respond to these days. I get a response saying he’ll phone and arrange a meet. I will not hold my breath....

We listen to the new Steve Harley album and then the rather more raucous “Side One” by Adrian Belew before turning o the TV for the night....

Highlight is the first part of a charming documentary “Three Men in a Boat” in which Griff Rhyss Jones, Rory Galbraith and Dara O’Briain re-enact the journey up the Thames made by Jerome K Jerome in 1889....

It was like a good version of “Last of the Summer Wine”. On the way they stopped off at Dave Gilmour of Pink Floyd’s houseboat studio and heard a track from his new album due out in March. No advertising there then as a quid pro quo for letting the film crew onto his boat. The track sounded good though....

Episodes of “CSI Miami” and “Law & Order”, both the last in their respective series, ended off the day...

Highlight of the Day : Working out a ranking system for albums of the year (pretty rubbish HOTD considering I need to have a rethink)