The Afterword

Musings on the byways of popular culture

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The DON of all birthdays

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It appears that no-one has wished ‘many happy returns’ to the great(est) man DONOVAN on his 71st. As Heppo would nodoubt inform us, 71 is the very best of birthdays.

Hurdy Gurdy to you, old feller.

Roget Federer, the Wonder Of Our Age

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What a performance! What a win! At 35, coming back from serious injury after six months of not playing a meaningful game, overcoming his absolute nemesis and his own demons from their previous match-ups. And the manner of the victory – his third five-setter of the tournament, being pegged back twice in sets then losing the opening game of the fifth, to then go again and break Nadal twice – just incredible. One of the pundits made a great point that whilst we recognise Rafa’s tenacity, grit and never-say-die approach as something of a trademark, we have tended to overlook the same qualities in Roger because we are dazzled by the apparently effortless elegance of his game…well, after today we should never be in any doubt that he has The Right Stuff in abundance.

Resigning Is The New Black

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Crikey, two more today – Farage (yay!) and now Chris Evans, from Top Gear. Still waiting for ‘Man Of Steel’/frail ’70 year old’ (you decide) to be on trend, though.

Adam Ant – Kings Of The Wild Frontier Tour

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Venue:

York Barbican

Date: 31/05/2016

So, here we are. Thirty six years since Adam and I first had the pleasure (a riotous, aborted gig in Hull on the original KOTWF Tour), we meet again to relive those glorious days of Antmania. I have loved the Kings Of The Wild Frontier album for decades; it remains timeless, primal, witty and unique, particularly in the context of the teen pop stardom that arose from it (see the link above for a great Alexis Petridis Guardian piece on the Ant phenomenon). So I arrived at the Barbican with a high degree of excitement, and a little trepidation. Having just finished reading his (excellent) autobiography, I have become much more aware of the extent and depth of Adam’s mental health issues, and was a little worried that they had eroded his performing abilities or that the strain of such a high-profile tour would be having a detrimental effect on his well-being. Those concerns were put to bed immediately by his arrival on stage. Supported by a terrific band anchored by the iconic two (female) drummer attack, he swaggered on in full Hussar/pirate regalia and launched into a roof-raising ‘Dog Eat Dog’, following on » Continue Reading.

Purple Rain (In Memoriam)

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Year: 1984 Director: Albert Magnoli

A special screening of this landmark Prince movie in tribute to the great man’s passing. Coming some 32 years since I last saw it on the big screen, this was – for obvious reasons – a very hard watch at times, inevitably now coloured and shaped by the shock of recent events. The music and performances remain peerless, but watching him throw those phenomenal dance moves on his signature vertiginous heels carries a terrible poignancy with the dread knowledge of their ultimate consequence. It’s also a shock to be reminded of how bleak the domestic plotline is, and that to his credit Prince didn’t shy away from portraying his character as, frankly, a bit of a twat at times. The intensity of the dramatic scenes are, as ever, leavened by the inter-band rivalry and particularly the brilliant Morris Day. The film’s emotional crescendo is usually reached with the climactic performance, but to be honest, in this awful post-April unreality, I was gone at the sight of the opening silhouette.

Amid the dampened hankies, my wife and I were able to reflect on the huge part Prince has played in our shared life for nearly thirty » Continue Reading.

ATM – Beth Neilsen Chapman

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Having heard a couple of songs by BNC on the radio this evening, my missus was suitably impressed (she’s never heard her before). This put me to thinking that I’d like to get her a CD as part of her Valentine’s surprises. I know there are a few fans around here, and wondered if there was a good introductory/primer album, other than the Greatest Hits. Would welcome your advice. Thanks.

Something is happening here…

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and we don’t know what it is, do we, Mr Jones?

Well, here’s the new Bowie… There’s at least four songs in here, and they’re all good. Echoes of 1.Outside and ‘Pallas Athena’ Uneasy listening at its best. Portentous? Yes, indeed! Pretentious? But of course!

It’s a ‘Hmmmmmm…*strokes chin*….’Yes, I think’ from me.

Holy Holy – The Man Who Sold The World

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Venue:

The Welly Club, Hull

Date: 22/06/2015

For band and audience alike, this always promised to be a particularly significant stop on the current extensive nationwide tour of this extraordinary venture. The band in question, of course, features original Spider From Mars ‘Woody’ Woodmansey on drums, ‘the Brooklyn boy’ friend-of-David and absolute musical icon Tony Visconti on bass, and Heaven 17 stalwart Glenn Gregory with the best fan-boy job in the world, singing his way through the fantastic setlist to the manner born. The location, of course, signified a spiritual homecoming for Woody, back in the birthplace of fellow, much-missed Spiders Mick Ronson and Trevor Bolder. The emotional charge of listening to the music co-created by these absent friends was augmented further by the presence of Ronson’s daughter and niece (along with Visconti’s children) in the band, particularly when Lisa Ronson sang lead vocal on an affecting ‘Lady Stardust’. The purpose of the tour, following last year’s initial handful of dates, is to perform ‘The Man Who Sold The World’ in its entirety, something which Bowie and the band were never able to do at the time. From the first feedback-drenched rumblings of ‘The Width Of A Circle’, it » Continue Reading.

‘How To Be Bohemian’ Rhapsody

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Has anyone else been following this programme on BBC4? Tonight’s second part in particular was fabulous, featuring an interesting range of artists and cultural commentators offering perceptive observations about the subject. But the real revelation to me is Victoria Coren Mitchell, who provides a witty, erudite and provocative commentary and analysis of the concepts and realities of the bohemian lifestyle. What has particularly impressed me is the way she doesn’t shy away from debating and challenging the sometimes awkward dilemmas presented by the moral unconventionalities associated with the notion of ‘bohemian’ behaviour. Any thoughts?

“Never was so little owed for so many…pages”

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For those of us into wartime history or just the great man himself, Amazon is currently offering all seven Kindle volumes of Martin Gilbert’s acclaimed biography of Churchill for the princely sum of…nothing. Zero. Zip. £0.00.

Of course, this should be a no-brainer, but each volume is colossal in size, so I imagine all of them would wipe out any spare capacity your Kindle might have, and then some. Perhaps cherry-picking one or two might be more manageable…

McCartney Sells Out?

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Just wondering if anyone was successful in landing a ticket for the upcoming Paul McCartney shows, or shared my experience. On the stroke of 10.00, signed in, counted the seconds down, chose appropriate tickets/prices etc, did the Captcha thing and…none available, none at all. Tried again in cursory fashion, with same outcome. Noticed there were lots available on GetMeIn! etc, this is at about 10.02. After last year’s experience of the Great Kate Bush Internet Meltdown, I just thought “Love you Macca, but I can’t be arsed with this”. Any more positive outcomes?