Finishing on a song would not work – would it?

CSOMEONE considerably wiser than me (there’s a long list) once commented that the most melancholy of all thoroughfares is ‘The Road Not Travelled’.

From time to time we all come to a crossroads where we have to make a decision that could alter the course of our lives.

Sometimes we take the right one . . . sometimes we find ourselves regretting the path we took.

If we’re lucky, we can retrace our steps and start our journey again.

When I started out as a comedian, I used to feature songs in my act, having had singing lessons from that talented vocalist from Neath, Mister Alun Davies.

I sang in my act because at that point I didn’t have enough comedy material to fill an hour, which was the time I was expected to do on stage.

I was fortunate that in most of the places I worked back then, the audiences appreciated a half-decent singer.

In today’s comedy venues – that is, when they were open - comics rarely mix jokes with songs, if at all.

Can you imagine Frankie Boyle winding-up two hours of hard-edged, often vicious, stand-up by saying “I’d like to finish with a beautiful song dedicated to all the lovers in the room. It’s featured on my latest CD ‘It’s Not True I’m Married To Susan Boyle’ and it’s called ‘I Will Always Love You’ . . . hit it, maestro!”

Or Alan Carr ending his act by belting out “The Impossible Dream”?

It just wouldn’t work would it?

Unless they’re spectacularly multi-talented, entertainers have to decide whether they want to be a comedian or a singer.

I was no exception in my younger days and had to make a decision whether to stick solely with comedy or keep the songs in the act and see if I achieved success that way.

I decided to take the comedy route to fame and fortune.

I’m still on that same route, but due to encountering a few diversions, roadworks, red lights and the occasional immovable object along the way, I haven’t reached my destination yet.

Is it too late for me to start having singing lessons again?

SLEEP. We all need a good night’s sleep to recharge the batteries and to maintain good health.

How else will our bodies repair?

Some of you reading this will, without doubt, have a few sleep challenges, which can range from insomnia, not needing much sleep, to needing more sleep than most.

But for me, it’s vivid dreams on an extremely regular basis.

This could be down to the fact I have an over active mind or the fact that I don’t relax or unwind before bed time.

Either that or there could be a much more serious underlying cause. Who knows?

One thing is for sure, my disturbed dreams could easily be part of a documentary on the subject of sleep and the source of many after dinner stories.

In fact, I could easily dine out on my back catalogue of vivid dream for many years to come.

The good thing is, I stopped sleep walking many years back, but if you do spot me walking the streets in my pyjamas late at night, don’t wake me up - just point me in the right direction home.

You can follow Phil Evans on Twitter @philevanswales or visit www.philevans.co.uk