The Joe Gibbs Seven Inch Spectacular Box Set is exactly what it sounds like. Four of Joe Gibbs spectacular singles on 7″ vinyl in one beautiful box set, all for only £25. With only 1000 made and all hand numbered, it was something I wanted the moment I saw it in Brighton’s Borderline record store.

It was just my luck that on the afternoon I spotted this gem, I’d left my wallet at home. Not to worry. Tomorrow. Tomorrow I’d get it. I’d come first thing in the morning and buy it, take it home, play each disc once and then display the box on a shelf (and not let anyone touch it).

The following morning I woke up, had some breakfast and… went about my day. I’d forgotten about it. How this happened I don’t know but happen it did. And it wasn’t until two weeks later that I remembered it as I walked past the same record store. I checked my pocket and my wallet was with me this time. I practically ran in to find it but it was pointless. It was gone. When I asked whether any more were expected in, the staff replied with an intake of breath and “Oh, doubt we’ll see any more them. Limited edition you know?”

Yeah I knew.

Absolutely gutted to have missed out on such a brilliant box set I set off to another record store to try and find something to cheer me up. A discounted copy of Stop Making Sense by Talking Heads (in my opinion, the greatest live album of all time) caught my eye and although I already own several copies of this record, I still went to pick it up. A man next to me reached for it at the same time as me and we soon got chatting about Talking Heads, then he asked me a question.

“Did you see David Byrne when he played Brighton Dome last year?”

I didn’t. I’d missed out there as well. That time I had no money in my account when tickets went on sale and had to wait another week before I’d get paid again. By which point tickets had sold out.

With my day clearly not going well I went home and by chance came across a live album by Serge Gainsbourg called Et Caetera: Live Au Palace. I had never even heard of this but soon found out that it was the live concert of Gainsbourg’s unbelievably good reggae album Aux Armes Et Caetera. According to amazon.co.uk they only had one copy left too.

I didn’t let that opportunity pass me by, it’s being delivered tomorrow.