Tonight's SNMC is supposed to be a guest post from young blogger Kit, provisionally titled 'A Guide to House Music for Old Farts'. But it still hasn't arrived.

So, for the benefit of blues-loving OFs everywhere, here's the very great Robert Cray doing his classic number Smokin' Gun. I'd give my right arm to play guitar like that. If that wouldn't be self-defeating, of course.

Cray is one of the few artistes of whom I actively seek to own every recording. But despite being a fan for 20 years, I had never caught him live until he played the Jazz Cafe in Camden earlier this year. He didn't disappoint.

Kind of Blue era Miles and Trane. Doesn't get any better than that, does it? Love the way Davis uses Coltrane's solo as an excuse for a fag break, too.

Busy day today. I'm about to take Daddy's Little Princesses to Hamley's to pick their Christmas presents. Yes, shopping in the West End on a Saturday in December. Hell.

But I should have more fun this evening, because me and the bird are going to see the Buzzcocks at the Forum.

These punk band comeback gigs are usually a good laugh. You're almost guaranteed to bump into somebody you haven't gobbed on since 1978. As for watching an audience of out of condition drunken fortysomethings trying to pogo ... it hilarious.

Just to celebrate, here's some footage of the band from 29 years ago. Gosh, that's before Kit was born.

UPDATE: The Buzzcocks were bleedin' great, actually. I've been to quite a few of the punk 'comeback' gigs over the last decade - Pistols in Finsbury Park, Stooges at the Apollo, Damned - and these were old men going through the motions for the pay cheque.

But the Buzzcocks actually put some effort into it. Of course they did the hits, but the new material sounded good too. And the accompanying backdrop projection of sleeve artwork and original photography really added to the effect.

In short, tonight was the first time for years that I yelled 'more!' after a set and actually wanted to hear more, rather than just being motivated by the feeling I hadn't had my money's worth.

Supporter act were Eater. That's right, Eater. Only the real saddos will remember them. I had successfully expunged them from my consciousness for three decades. Now they will be back for good. Arguably, they were better tonight then they were in 1976.

Last week I attended an academic seminar to discuss the EU reform treaty. During the discussion, it was mentioned that Britain did not have a written constitution. Most of those in the room, being overseas students, were literally aghast. To them, the very idea was inconceivable.

This country is one of only a handful in the world in this position. New Zealand and Israel are the only others that come to mind. Nor has the left traditionally campaigned to reverse this position, either tending to consider it of little importance or else arguing that the very concept tends to favour conservative forces in a society. As a result, the ruling class has essentially been able to make up the rules of politics as it goes along.

The constitutional reforms seen enacted by the Blair administrations can certainly be criticised for not going far enough. House of Lords reform has been fluffed. But the Scottish and Welsh assemblies do represent democratic advances.

Gordon Brown will shortly unveil proposals for further constitutional reform. These are likely to include an end to the right to declare war and appoint bishops by royal prerogative; US-style confirmation hearings for top public jobs; and a UK bill of rights.

We’ll need to see the small print, of course. And unless a substantially greater proportion of independently-minded MPs are elected to replace the current crop of lobby fodder, some changes that are sound in principle will mean little in practice. But it is encouraging that these issues are at least being debated.

UPDATE: I've just seen this quote from Peter Facey, director of the Unlock Democracy campaign for constitutional reform, which encapsulates the issue better than I have managed to do:

"Boosting the powers of select committees and ceding royal prerogative powers to Parliament are necessary steps, but in themselves woefully inadequate.

"Any programme that does not address House of Lords reform, electoral reform, devolution and, most importantly, the need for a comprehensive constitutional settlement is merely scratching the surface."

Exactly.