Bedsit Disco Queen

From March 2013

Last week's Radio 4 Book of the Week was Tracey Thorn's recently published memoir Bedsit Disco Queen.

Tracey Thorn was / is one half of the group Everything But The Girl formed with her husband Ben Watt. Difficult to categorise - bitter sweet bedroom alt-folk? - their first three albums Eden, Love Not Money and the string-driven Baby The Stars Shine Bright formed a backdrop of sorts to my university days. To be honest what I most remember about their debut LP was that the sleeve was made from a particularly heavy textured cardboard (I reckon about 425 gsm); an irrelevant attention to aesthetic detail that I admired. I wasn't so keen on their subsequent venture into the world of trip-hop but Thorn's Tinsel and Lights (2012) is one of the best Christmas albums ever recorded and some of the output from Ben Watt's leftfield Buzzin' Fly label is terrific.

Disappointingly, Thorn's reading of her book made 30 years of creative endeavour sound as exciting as the inconsequential ramblings of a 40-something accountant. It made me want to revisit her music but I won't be buying Bedsit Disco Queen.

Of far more interest is Ben Watt's book Patient which describes his fight with a rare auto-immune disease which almost killed him. I read it with fascination when it was first published (15 years ago?) and am keen to re-read it. Unfortunately, as a result of an early spring clean last month, it now rests on the shelves of North Berwick's Oxfam shop along with a further 499 items from the Pilrig 74 library. Luckily I am visiting East Lothian's premier holiday destination on Tuesday and will take the opportunity of reuniting myself with it. It will be only the second book that I have had to repurchase since the exodus.