Break It All - Los Shakers

Uruguay will always have a special place in my heart. Not just for it's charming colonial towns and cluster of internationally renowned beach resorts, but for it's football team's attempt to cripple the entire Scotland squad during a 1986 World Cup group match, thus provoking unprecedented levels of self-righteousness from BBC commentator Barry Davis ("Pure petulance, Trevor." "The ugly side of the game, Trevor." etc. etc.).

Uruguay's Los Shakers, though merely minnows in World Pop's Group of Death, certainly don't "Set a bad example to the young kids watching at home, Trevor" with this cheeky Merseybeat-via-Montevideo route one stomper.

Uruguay 1989, and a referendum was held to decide whether to preserve or annul a law effectively amnestying the military and police responsible for murders and torture during the dictatorship that ruled from 1973 to 1985.

Mexico 1986. It's 0-0 between Scotland and Uruguay, and it's a year too late for moustachioed Uruguayan generals to arrange for the 'disappearance' of loathsome, purple-faced then Scotland Manager Alex Ferguson.

"It's a cruel game, Trevor."

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Beautiful People - We All Together

Peru will always have a special place in my heart. Not just for it's rich areas of tropical rain forest and unspoilt fishing villages, or even for it's football team's 3-1 humiliation of Scotland in the group stages of the 1978 World Cup in Argentina.

No, for me Peru will forever be associated with Badfinger/Wings copyists We All Together who recorded two exquisite pigeon-English pop albums in the early seventies.

With a smile, a song, a quick chew on some cocoa leaves to suppress their appetites, and a six string guitar at the end of their wristies, these boys from the Andes certainly knew their way around a meoldic pop tune.

Scandal overshadowed Scotland's 1978 World Cup campaign when, after the defeat by Peru, Glasgow Rangers winger 'Wee' Willie Johnston was sent home in shame for failing a drugs test (speculation suggested that he'd taken two paracetamol with his Irn Bru or that someone had laced his Tunnocks Tea Cakes with Beta Blockers).

Similarly, in 2004 the entire population of Scotland was sent home in shame for failing a cholesterol test.

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Manifesto & Book News

If it's ever been on K-Tel or Ronco, it's in. If it features hand claps, cow bells, syrupy orchestration, walls of sound, wrecking crews, sha-la-las, toothy teen idols, candy-based metaphors for carnal acts or lyrics about hugging, squeezing and rocking all night long, it's in.

'CU Jimmy hats. £1'



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