Saturday Snapshots #108 - The Answers

Greetings, Mad Men & Women... here are this week's answers...



10. Two lumps for baby prince(s).

Two sugar lumps.

Apparently one of the Princes in the Royal Family is called Archie. I only just discovered this, and I couldn't help thinking of Breaking News by Half Man Half Biscuit...

"A woman who described herself as “A little bit Bridget, a little bit Ally, a little bit Sex And The City” and chose to call her baby boy Fred as a childishly rebellious attempt at a clever reaction to those who might have expected her to call him Julian or Rupert. Bit of advice: call him Rupert, it fits, and besides it’s a good name. Don’t be calling him Fred or Archie, with all its cheeky but lovable working-class-scamp connotations, unless you really do have plans for him to spend his life in William Hill’s waiting for them to weigh in at Newton Abbot."

The Archies - Sugar Sugar

Yes, I know The Archies really looked like this...

...but pictured above are the male and female vocalists who actually sang on that track: Ron Dante & Toni Wine. The track was written by Dante and (previous Saturday Snapshotter) Andy Kim. There were a bunch of fake bands created by the record company who went around touring as The Archies back in the 60s, but they weren't the real thing. Believe me, a lot of unnecessary research went into sorting out this clue.

9. No pop in Scottish Sin City.

Pop is your dad.

Sin City is Vegas, so that would be...

Glasvegas - Daddy's Gone

8. Looking for a second one in the mirror, not seeing it.

Oh, you can work this one out yourself.

The Seekers - I Know I'll Never Find Another You

7. Small sums for Latin god.

Latin for God is "deus", as in "deus ex machina" (god in the machine).

dEUS - Little Arithmetics

Sam's teacher told us at parent's evening that they're not allowed to call them "sums" anymore. They have to call them "calculations". I can't help but blame Michael Gove. Then again, I blame him for most things.

6. Onioned acorns are unparalleled.

"Onioned acorns" is an anagram...

Sinead O'Connor - Nothing Compares 2 U

5. Hurry - dial a ghost!

Radios used to have dials. Remember?

Rush - Spirit Of Radio

4. Marina will accept any old rubbish.

Took Rigid Digit a few guesses, but he got there in the end...

The Yachts - Easy To Please

3. Scottish study craze with a nasty spot, proves invincible.

Mc-Fad-den (a den being a study) and (eurgh) Whitehead.

McFadden & Whitehead - Ain't No Stopping Us Now

2. Change the way you look at the top of a shoe... and get buried in kisses.

Trans = change. Vision = look. Top of a shoe is, apparently, a vamp. Who knew?

Transvision Vamp - Landslide Of Love

Look, I was at a very impressionable age, all right?

1. With bits.

Shortest clue ever?



More Hamm-y nonsense next Saturday...

My Top Ten Maths Songs (Volume 1: Basic Math/s)

The two essential subjects for all students at the college where I work are English and Maths. As an English teacher, I'm supposed to embed a little mathematics into all my lessons, so I thought I'd try embedding some into this blog. I'll work my way through the various branches of arithmetic (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division) over the next few weeks (though perhaps not all at once), but I thought I'd start with basic maths... or math, depending on which side of the Atlantic you do your sums on.

Special mentions to Maths & Physics Club, Mutemath, and all those weird Math Rock bands I find so very hard to get into.


10. Jimmy Buffett - Math Suks

Now, that's not a very good attitude to start off with, is it, Jimmy? Go to the bottom of the class!

(By the way, your spelling's not all that great, either.)

9. Half Man Half Biscuit - Mathematically Safe

Just about the closest Nigel Blackwell ever got to writing a straight-up love song.

8. The White Stripes - Black Math

Uh uh uh uh uh uh uh uh uh ah...

7. Brad Paisley - You Do the Math

Ah, I just love that happy guitar sound and those cheery (swap they r for an s if you're so minded) lyrics. Long may Brad strut his country stuff.

6. Los Campesinos! - Don't Tell Me To Do The Math(s)

Starts out sounding like Belle & Sebastian, then goes cheerfully mental, like all the best Los Campesinos! records. When Americans miss the s off the end of Maths, Aleksandra, Oliver, Tom, Harriet, Gareth, Neil and Ellen Campesinos! start overusing exclamation marks.

5. Jim's Big Ego - Math Prof. Rock Star

Carmine Infantino was a legendary comic book artist, most famous for an extended run on DC's The Flash back in the 70s and 80s. His nephew, Jim Infantino is the man behind the hugely entertaining alt-rock band Jim's Big Ego, perhaps most famous for their song The Ballad of Barry Allen, about Uncle Carmine's most famous superhero. This is another great song from them, reminiscent of the Fountains of Wayne with added REM guitar.

When he was young he never thought that he would be a
Math Prof Rock Star

And after hours outside of his office, there's a line waiting
Full of girls lining up to ask about their quadratic equations
She leans over the desk and twirls a pencil in her hair
Complains that the grade he gave her was way unfair
And all the professors they laugh about it and wish him well
But the guys in the class are just jealous as hell

Find out more about "the Greatest Band In The History of Recorded Music" here.

4. dEUS - Little Arithmetics

Quick geography test: how many bands can you name from Belgium?

Tougher than you think, and I could only think of one better than dEUS. Any guesses?*

3. Margaret Glaspy - Emotions & Math

Title track from the excellent 2016 debut record by this refreshing Californian singer-songwriter which I took a punt on via eMusic after hearing Cerys play it on 6Music. So far, the gamble is paying off... though the rest of the album isn't as radio-friendly as this one...

Counting all the days 'til you're back
Shivering in an ice cold bath
Of emotions and math
I've gotta get outta this tree
Off of this limb
I'm a woman acting like a kid
A skinny mess
That's breathless from telling you
All the things that I'm gonna do

Phew. I reckon I need an ice cold bath after that one...

2. Idlewild - Close The Door

Always good to hear some classic Idlewild again, and here they are at their best...it's time for the maths test!

1. Cherry Ghost - Mathematics

I saw Cherry Ghost play live around the time this track was big. This was by far their best track, reminding me of the New York romanticism of Dion... which was odd, because Simon Aldred's a gruff Manc. He's made some great music since, but Mathematics is still his finest moment.





*My answer was Soulwax.


But which one wins your maths test?