Former Soul Coughing frontman Mike Doughty released his fourth solo album, 'Sad Man Happy Man', in the US last October. Like all his work, both with his former band and alone, the songs have an idiosyncratic charm and lyrical flare that you'll struggle to find elsewhere. The fact that the latest album includes a cover of Daniel Johnston's 'Casper The Friendly Ghost' and a song called 'How To Fuck A Republican' should be reason enough to check it out.

As you might expect, Doughty's live shows are also something quite special, with engaging songs and banter keeping the attention up in a way that lone guys with acoustic guitars often struggle to manage. You can find this out for yourself next week, when Mike will be in London to play a one-off show at The Garage in Islington on 2 Feb.

www.myspace.com/mikedoughty