I’ve been trying really hard not to think about the FA Cup but I can’t get away from it – I’m gutted. And going out to Liverpool as well! It literally couldn’t be worse. Well, it could, obviously, but we’ve not lost the Premier League yet! And it looks like Rooney’s staying with us, despite the rumours that have been circulating on transfer deadline day.
So I’m trying to forget about football this week (although I will watch the Stoke game tonight, obviously) and concentrating on some other stuff. There are a couple of really interesting bands in the studio this week and I’m enjoying working with them. The lot I’ve had in today have put down three tracks and I honestly think they could be something big – they’ve got a really original sound. And the (female) bass player’s not bad looking either.
Which reminds me – I’m off out on Friday night with a girl I met a couple of weeks ago in a Manchester bar. We got talking about restaurants in Manchester that we both like and it turns out her favourite is also mine, so we’re going there on Friday. She’s also a singer so it seems like we might have a few things in common – maybe I can help her with some recording! Speaking of which, I’ve had a few people ask me recently for some music recording tips so I’m thinking of doing a blog about it later this week, to help out all you bedroom musicians out there – watch this space…
I only managed to catch the highlights from last night’s Carling Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Man City, but it looked like a cracking game. As a United fan, neither team winning was ideal for me so I guess a 2-2 draw was about right! Liverpool obviously go through on aggregate and good luck to them – we may be rivals in theory but… well, it’s only football at the end of the day! Looking forward to our FA Cup game with them on Saturday though – and I hope we stuff them!
I’ve invited quite a few people round to watch the game at mine so I think it’s going to be quite a party – a 12.45 kick off means it could be a long day too as I expect we’ll head into Manchester afterwards for a few beers around the bars. That’s if we win anyway – some of the lads get really depressed when we lose big games and the party spirit really goes out of them. I can understand why but I never let it affect me that much; I’d rather still go out and enjoy myself than sit at home moping!
I managed to go and look at that Mazda 5 yesterday and I must say I really liked it. They’re really well made cars and it’s a good size for me – definitely given me something to think about. Anyway, just one more day of work this week – finishing a band’s demo off tomorrow – then the big FA Cup weekend. Here’s a little reminder of some United magic to get me in the mood – a classic Bryan Robson goal against Liverpool in the 1985 FA Cup:
A decent win for us at the weekend over Arsenal – always nice to get one over the Gunners! Still not enough for us to take the top spot in the Premier League though, with City getting a (lucky) win at Tottenham and staying three points ahead of us. There is still plenty of time yet but I must say I’m not as relaxed about it as I was at Christmas – we need to keep a good run of form in the league now and hope City lose a bit of their momentum otherwise things could be getting a little desperate.
This weekend’s all about the FA Cup anyway, with us paying our old friends Liverpool a visit on Saturday. Always a heated game with our north-west rivals but there should be some good football too. Glad I’m not going over for it anyway – much better to stay at home and watch it with a few mates than get caught up in all the hassle of travelling over there. City have got Liverpool away tomorrow, in the League Cup, so it’ll be interesting to see how we both get on with them in the same week.
It’s been a steady week in the studio, which has been nice. Some good, interesting work as well as a bit of time to sort stuff out. More car hunting this week – I’m off to look at a used Mazda 5 tomorrow, to see if it would be a good model for me. They’ve got a bit more room in them than the others I’ve been looking at so it might suit.
Nice to see United back to confident winning ways at the weekend – 3-0 to Bolton is just what we needed, let’s hope it stays that way in the Premier League from now on! The press seem to be getting obsessed with the ‘red card gesture’ at the moment – after the incident with Wayne Rooney against City, where Mancini accused Rooney of asking the ref for a red card for Kompany’s tackle, Mancini has now been accused of doing the exact same thing in their game against Wigan. It all seems a bit ridiculous to me really – the players can say or do what they want (within reason and the rules of the game, of course) as the decision should be the referees alone. I know it’s difficult in the heat of the moment but that’s their job, isn’t it? They basically get paid to make pressure decisions!
I suppose there will always be arguments about it though – especially when the referees’ decisions go against you. In my days of (very) amateur football, when I was younger, our manager always used to say to us: “The referee is always right, even when he’s wrong.” Maybe someone needs to tell Rooney and Mancini this – although I’m not sure it’d go down too well! Anyway, looking forward to continuing a good run at Arsenal this weekend, then it’s on to a more pressured game, away to Liverpool in the FA Cup the weekend after that. Looking forward to it, if a little nervous.
I won’t be going to Arsenal this weekend, mainly because I can’t be bothered to go all that way when I could just watch it at home with the lads (which is what I will do). It also means I can enjoy myself on Saturday night without having to spend loads of money in London or worry about rushing around on Sunday – I love all the bars and restaurants Manchester has to offer, there’s no need to go anywhere else really!
I watched a bit of Man City v Liverpool last night, in the Carling Cup. It was a boring game really, but I suppose that’s what you get with first round cup ties. There’s loads of stuff in the press today about Mancini and Gerrard arguing over Glen Johnson’s tackle. I can see Mancini’s point of view – if his player (Kompany) gets sent off at the weekend for a similar tackle, why does this one not even get penalised? There is an issue with consistency there, although I shouldn’t really be complaining because it was to our advantage at the weekend! That’s football for you I guess – sometimes things go your way, sometimes they don’t.
This week’s been pretty good in the studio. I’ve had two bands in for two days each, recording demos, and they’ve both been really good – nice people and talented, passionate musicians. I even did some backing vocals for one of the bands, on a track where they needed a big group sound. It’s not very often that I’ll do that but they did ask so I thought I might as well. Many studio owners are former or failed musicians who jump at the chance to be on a record but I have to say I’m not one of those! I do play a little piano but I certainly have no designs on being the next Elton John – or Jamie Cullum. I know what I’m good at and it’s definitely not creating music – producing it, yes, but not creating it.
Still, it’s always good to be reminded that there is a ‘proper’ music scene out there, away from all the sugar-coated commercial stuff, and this week’s bands have left me with a positive vibe for the weekend – let’s hope United are in a positive mood against Bolton on Saturday!
I wonder what price you would have got at the bookies for Scholes to come on as substitute at the weekend – you could have been a very rich man if you’d had known, which apparently even the other players didn’t until about an hour before kick-off. It was nice to see ‘Sat Nav’ (as the other players call him) back playing for United – even if he did nearly upset everything with a mistake that led to one of City’s goals! It was a cracking FA Cup tie though – obviously I would have liked us to have won comfortably but I can’t deny the second half made for some exciting viewing. Although, if I was impartial I’m sure I would have enjoyed it more!
We’ve drawn Liverpool away in the next round, on the weekend of 28 January, which should be a classic. One of the lads mentioned trying to get tickets for it but I don’t think I’ll bother – I don’t mind the odd away game but these special ones, with the rivalry, tend to be more hassle than they are worth. I’d rather just enjoy it at home. Anyway, back to the Premier League this weekend with Bolton at home – maybe Scholes will inspire the team to show a little more consistency in the league!
The studio is up and running again for another year. I’ve got a couple of local bands in this week recording demos and it’s the first time it will have been used since before Christmas. I don’t expect it to be booked out all the time but I was a little surprised we’ve not had more interest recently. This time last year I was turning people away so I hope this isn’t the start of a trend – I may look at getting a bit of PR consultancy, just to see if I can raise our profile a bit and make sure it’s being used regularly. That’s about as far as my business plan for this year goes really – try and get the studio well booked!
Right, I’m off to do some recording with today’s band so I’ll leave you with the little ginger wizard – good to have you back Paul Scholes!
Well, my hopes of going into an FA Cup weekend without the Premier League to worry about have gone out of the window. This week’s result with Newcastle was just shocking – a 3-0 defeat just when we needed reminding that we still have a bit of form. Still, there’s a long way to go as we’re only just halfway through the season, but I really hope we start playing well regularly again soon.
It’s a classic on Sunday anyway, playing City in the FA Cup (which I’ve just noticed is now officially called the FA Cup ‘with’ Budweiser) and we have a bit of a score to settle after losing to them in the semi final last year. I don’t begrudge them that, or eventually winning it – I think it’s good to have a decent rival and if they never won anything it would be a bit boring. Still, I do like a derby and I will, of course, be hoping to give them a good stuffing this Sunday!
I do normally try to go to the games with City but I’m not this year. I’ll be out Saturday night as… wait for it… I’ve got a date! I know, I’ve kept that one quiet! I only met her last week actually – she’s a friend of a friend and we just got talking on a night out over Christmas. She gave me her number and I texted her to invite her out for dinner this Saturday and she said yes, obviously. Not sure where we’ll go yet but I’ll probably take her to one of the best Manchester restaurants – can’t have her thinking I’m a cheapskate!
The football kicks off at 1pm on Sunday so I’ll have a couple of the lads over to watch it, and hope for a decent win to get rid of these Premier League blues!
Happy New Year! I hope you’ve all had a good break. Mine has been mixed – great to relax with family and friends and nice to leave work alone for a week or so, but the football, of course, has given me mixed emotions. Strange isn’t it, how a game can rule your life so much! Ah well – I wouldn’t change it. We had a great day in the corporate box at Old Trafford on Boxing Day, with an excellent five-goal haul against Wigan. That was one of those days when I just love being a Man United fan! And then on Saturday we lost at home to Blackburn; talk about highs and lows.
I read in the paper about Rooney, Gibson and Evans being fined and all dropped from that game for going out on Boxing Day and not training very well the following day. I can understand Sir Alex Ferguson’s need to be strict about things like that but it seems a little harsh, especially as all dropping did was to help us lose the game, which also means we’re still not top of the Premier League. We have a chance this week, depending on how Man City get on at Liverpool tonight, and our game at Newcastle on Wednesday of course. Let’s hope Rooney doesn’t hit the town again this week!
Anyway, the New Year means, of course, that most of us are making resolutions. Here are mine – only three this year and I’ve tried to keep them realistic:
1. Sort out the new car. I’m going to look at a new Renault Megane this week and I’m determined to get the car sorted this year.
2. Concentrate on work. I really enjoyed having bands in the studio last year so I’m going to make an effort to get more in and help them record some really good stuff.
3. Win the league. OK, so there’s nothing much I can actually do to help it but maybe my good vibes will help!
Well, 5-0 will do me for a Christmas present from Wayne Rooney and the lads. And a special goal from Ryan Giggs too, making him the only person to have scored in every Premier League season. That is some record. I know a lot is said about his age but it does seem remarkable that, at 38, he still looks like he could keep going for another ten years.
Man City’s result against Stoke means that they keep hold of the top spot in the Premier League, for now. Like I said before, they’re just keeping it warm for us! And I’ve got a good feeling about the next couple of games, especially as I’m going to Old Trafford on Boxing Day for the Wigan game, in a corporate box with my mate Phil – bring it on! If we can get a result there (which we should do (not wishing to jinx us!)) and City get a beating away at West Brom, we’ll be top of the league – just how things should be!
I had a look at a couple of cars yesterday, including a Peugeot and a Renault Megane. Guess what? I still can’t decide! I think I’m going to leave it until after Christmas – it’s all a bit busy at the moment and I’ve still got a few presents and things to get before the weekend. Anyway, I probably won’t get a chance to blog over Christmas so this is me signing off for the year – see you in 2012! I’ll leave you with a few classic moments from the great man, Ryan Giggs:
Oh, and here’s my favourite Christmas song this year. I heard it on the radio the other day and haven’t been able to get it out of my head! Another legend, this one of the musical kind – Mr Stevie Wonder. Merry Christmas!
Had a good day yesterday with the lads round for a solid performance by Man United. Nice to see us getting some form back after a couple of sloppy weeks. And nice to see that we’re keeping some decent pressure on Man City as well – we were top of the league for a couple of hours yesterday, before City’s game finished and they took it back. Don’t worry though – they’re just keeping it warm for us up there; we’ll be back on the number one spot before long!
As you know I’ve pretty much shut the studio down for Christmas now – just a couple of small voice over sessions today and tomorrow, then that’s it – but United have got a busy Christmas ahead of them. The next three games – Fulham this Wednesday, Wigan on Boxing Day (which I’m going to!) and Blackburn on New Year’s Eve are going to be crucial for us, so I hope there’s not going to be any Christmas boozing within the squad! City have got similar fixtures so it’s going to be a crucial time for the Premier League. Here’s hoping we can start 2012 as we mean to finish the season – on top!
It’s nice to have a bit of time over the next week to wind down and just tidy a few things up. I plan to have a good look at some cars on Wednesday and Thursday, maybe go and try a few out. The Peugeot lease deals are really tempting me at the moment I have to say, so I’ll be taking a close look at them. Otherwise I’ve got a few presents to get, a bit of food to buy then that’s it – I’ll be all ready for Christmas!
