Bigger than the Beatles

Thomas Walsh - he's bigger than the Beatles

I have a knack of calling my Single of the Year before the first cuckoo of spring. In fact, if you trawl through this year's back issues I think there were a couple of early contenders who could've been back in the clubhouse before the clocks went forward.

No matter, it's not over till it's over.

Don't you just love bands who leave it late in the day to release a 45 they know will turn heads everywhere it's played? It's like rocking up at the Palace for your gong - half an hour late; the Queen pretends to be pissed off, but secretly admires your chutzpah. Pugwash left it till the arse end of October to join forces with Matt Berry on 'What Are You Like', the second single from the exquisite Silverlake. And it's a top drawer, top deck, top-loader of a song that top trumps all in its wake. (Even Beck's 'Up All Night' which had been sitting pretty until Thomas Walsh and his Dublin cronies came along and gatecrashed the party.)

Pugwash (feat. Matt Berry) - What Are You Like