There was an exhibition at the Lighthouse a few years ago devoted to Scottish indie bands and their achievements. I went along and discovered that my old friend, Jim Lambie, who used to be in the Boy Hairdressers, was doing the floors.

I immediately thought: “Oh right, Jim must be a tiler.” He and I had played in various Glasgow bands and were old friends, but I’d not spoken to him for a few years.

I said: “How’s it going, can I buy you a drink?” Of course, I was thinking: “Poor guy, he used to be in some great bands and now he’s doing floors.”

It wasn’t until three weeks later that I realised he was a renowned artist. Naturally, I felt a bit embarrassed. It was a fantastic multicoloured floor and, looking back, I should have realised it was part of the show.

He must have been wondering what I was talking about. I was offering to take him to lunch — I even told him that he could come and stay at mine if he needed somewhere to stay.

He’s hugely talented and yet down-to-earth. I love his exhibition at Glasgow’s Gallery of Modern Art. It seems so simple and, yet, when you walk across it it seems to swallow you up. I’ll have to see if he’ll do a floor for me some day.

Bobby Bluebell’s Bob’s Full House is at Oran Mor, Glasgow, every Saturday

Times Recommends

• Catalogue of failings ‘leaves others at risk’
• Tourists told to stay away amid Venice floods
• Google generation has no need for rote learning