Doctor Millar - The Bitter Lie (Treasure Island Discs) This album, although released several years ago should due to popular demand be back on record shop shelves within a month or two. In other words it's being re-released. Doctor Millar, or Sean Millar as I'm sure his mother calls him, is a laugh. In one of his songs he tells the husband of his mistress who suspects an affair: "You're not paranoid, you're right." In another he has a go at crusty anarchists: "Shave an A [one of those with a ring around it] into the arse of the silly puppy on a string." The doctor not content with being funny is also a social commentator: his song "Saint Stephen" is about a homosexual priest, "Good Little Country" is about Ireland and its meekness. But what's the music like ... apart from the songs: Doctor Millar has a good voice, however, he's not particularly good at the guitar, and that's about all there is to his music. So why is it so good? "The Bitter Lie" is like a friendly leech. At first you try to shrug it off but it won't go away, you tear and scratch at it and hope it just falls off, until eventually you decide that you'll have to persevere with it and find that it's not so bad, until ultimately you end up liking having it around. It grows on you, and no word describes this album better than the word grower. by Kenneth Foxe