Times not a' changin'

The point of the illustration is in no way related to the story above the fold of this issue of The Times (the edition printed daily in Dubai, for which we ex-pats are very grateful and will continue so to be until The Guardian does likewise, at which point my loyalty will switch back!).

In the advert below the fold there's the GearOne Automotive Television logo among those of other partners in the Car Middle East Awards initiative.

As consultant to the television channel I was pleased to be part of implementing a cross-media tie-in with such a reputed print publication.

It was also amusing to see an entity with which I am involved referenced (albeit commercially) in The Times.

Why is this significant for me, personally? Because ex-wife number one (of only two) emailed me that day, 12 December, to share her recollection that 42 years ago exactly we tied the knot at the Chelsea Registry Office on Kings Road. And 42 years ago I found myself for the first time referenced, validated even, in the Sunday Magazine of The Times. And, stretching the long arm of coincidence even further, back in the day there was also an automotive aspect to the story.

I was working in 1965 for an American record producer who started a label in London to promote the California sound of Jan and Dean and the Beach Boys, the sound associated with drag racing and Little Deuce Coupes and the like. One of the first singles was released and launched to a fuel-head public at the Santa Pod Raceway in Northamptonshire, and that's where The Times interviewed us about this new niche lifestyle with its own music. We worked very closely with a trio called The Ivy League, whose falsetto and almost a capella singing were easily on a par with the West Coast kids.

Kids? We all were, back then. Funny how life can be. The clip title is Funny How Love Can Be. Yes, there's that, too.