If you missed Vic playing 'what time is arse' on Radio 1 last week, it's still available as the first track on his podcast for another couple of days. The second section (with wahwah guitar) gives you a chance to hear exactly what happens when Radio 1's broadcast compressor gets to work on something that hasn't already been squashed to a pulp at the pre-mastering stage … it's not pretty. But that is John Purser saying 'shite 'n' onions' at the beginning. I suggested to the producer that they incorporate it into the Radio 1 jingle permanently but he said no.

All this playing with myself is all very well, but I do need to get out a bit and encounter other musicians too from time to time. The next two Wednesday mornings are looking up in that respect: Barnaby Brown's coming over tomorrow to play, and next week in Edinburgh I'm meeting Pamela Thorby, who said something oblique about improvisation ... 

There's a new tune on its way out too, but I'm trying to resist the temptation to record it until I've learnt how to play it properly. It's difficult to decide when to record something: is it better when it's fresh and exciting, or when it's secure and confident? Or somewhere between the two? All are possible.