Hello, I hope all is groovy. It's well groovy here as I'm still on hols with my grumpy kids ("my holiday is ruined, I've been bitten TWICE by a mosquito now")  and it has been warm and sunny. I have also been gorping at my wife in a bikini all week, and going all weak as a result.

Yesterday I had reports of a little weather misery in London and around the UK, so for the #50pFriday album today I was thinking of something all up and cheerful and summery, even though it's sort of still not quite landed yet. And then I saw the sleeve for Jazz Pops, a great little under the radar Neal Hefti album, and I thought it reminded me of thinking about summer holidays and would therefore be a good thing to hear right now. It's a great LP, and has an absolute killer version of Take Five on it, when he brings out his funky brass and goes all oompah oompah in a modal fashion for you. That is not the best description of the track, but I'm not a jazz critic and I think you probably still get what I mean. Neal Hefti's Jazz Pops is right here. 

Late last night, having watched The Guns Of Navarone again - I have to watch it if I am in Greece - I started looking up stuff on line and began investigating Seeburg music. It has nothing to do with The Guns Of Navarone, but started about the same time the original Alastair MacLean book was written. It was a musical system of players and discs (a bit like Musak) that companies could use in their shops or businesses allowing them to have legal background music playing. I see the weird discs for sale on eBay quite a lot and they often go for huge sums of money. Anyway, I came across this groovy geek called drh4683. He saves, preserves and collects old Amercian tech. He makes brilliantly dull but superbly watchable videos. Here he is with the 1963 Seeburg Encore. He's worth exploring. If you want to hear more Seeburg, there is a site. 

I am now off to push my grumpy half term kids in the pool in an attempt to make them even more grumpy.

Thanks for listening

Jonny