Musings on the byways of popular culture
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I’M THE MAN-WULF Stewart Lee has commissioned Glasgow’s garage punk veterans The Primevals to write a suitably haunting song for his new touring stand-up show Stewart Lee Vs The Man-Wulf, which opened in London this week.
The music is available RIGHT NOW on Bandcamp, and will be available on 7″ single early in 2025
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HO! HO! HO!!!!
Come, gather round by the tree, help yourself to a sherry, or a mulled wine, or a sparkling water, and tell us – what have you been listening to, reading, watching or otherwise losing yourself in recently?
And – is there anything coming up we should be aware of ?
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It’s November, already! Gather round, please, and share with us what you have been up to this last month
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The Distractions told us that Time Goes By So Slow, and I cannot argue with their perspective.
However, here’s a thing. This photo is The Primevals, just off-stage at Level 8, Strathclyde Uni, Glasgow, supporting The Gun Club, on 20th October 1984. Everyone in the photo is still in some level of contact, and 3 of us are still in The Primevals.
That gig was forty years ago. Forty years before that, on 20th October 1944, the Second World War was still in full flow. General MacArthur returned to the Philippines, and Soviet and Yugoslav troops freed Belgrade from the German Occupation that had lasted 1287 days.
In some ways, that gig feels like last week – I can still picture the shenanigans of getting in – “of course a five piece garage band requires an eleven man road crew”, as we blagged our friends in, setting up my ACTUAL SPARE GUITAR alongside a fur-covered monster that our bassist wanted to have represented at the gig, and two other pretty guitars that were not actually gig-ready but looked nice in front of my Fender Twin Reverb, and, of course, the frenzy of the gig. We plated our » Continue Reading.
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Come all ye! I’ve got a blazing bonfire in the back, there, potatoes baking underneath, mind your hands if you try to pull one out. There’s hot drinks in the flasks over by, cold beers and assorted soft drinks in the cooler under the table, wine on the table itself. Please, dig in, make yourselves at home, grab a stick to roast some marshmallows and then tell us all – what have you been up to this last month ? and is there anything coming up we should know about ?
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I love music. I love spending time listening to dear old favourites – Hendrix, Otis, Monk, Miles, The Ramones – and I also love hearing new music – “new” meaning “new to me”, so that covers Furry Lewis and Chappell Roan and Thundercat and and and ….
Sometimes the new music is a bit “Meh”, other times it is a brand new joyful thing – Fiona Apple!! Mulatu Astatke!! Emahoy Tsegue Mariam Guebru!!!!
During lockdown, as I was working from home I had time to listen to a new album every day, and this site popped up as a recommendation (most likely from here) – https://1001albumsgenerator.com/elhombremalo/history
I am now 25% of the way through my journey, and it has been entertaining, albeit with some pish on the way. If anyone is wondering how to get a feed for music that they have missed out on, this is worth doing. It’s free, and it will recommend one album a day from the book. It’s up to you if you make time every day to do it. I have enjoyed most, been challenged by some and been contemptuous of others.
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First Friday of a new month, you all know the drill – HUT! HUT!!
(Bilko reference because I remembered describing my organisation of work travel across Southern England so that I could go to see Wilko Johnson at a Word event at the Lexington as “Bilko-ing my way to see Wilko)
What have you been listening to, watching, reading, or otherwise indulging in this past month ?
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Apologies for the delay in firing the starting pistol for this edition of the gathering, Friday was disrupted by “stuff”.
Nonetheless, we are all here now and I hope you are ready to share what you have been up to over the last month, and if there is anything coming up we should be aware of
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Come away in, please leave your wet boots on the newspapers there, take off your oilskins and hang them on the drying rack, then help yourself to a cup of soup and sit by the fire to tell us – where the hell has summer gone ? And, what have you been listening to, watching, reading, or otherwise distracting yourself with since we last caught up?
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We appear to be heading in to late Autumn. Summer flies by so quickly!
Gather round the bonfire, help yourself to a baked potato and whatever fillings you like, a warming drink, and then tell us, please – what have you been listening to, reading, watching, and is there anything coming up we should know about?
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This is a hard post. My dearest friend passed away last week, suddenly. Like me, he was slowly approaching requirement.
It is a traumatic time for his family, most of all, but also for all of his friends who, like me, had pictured years of retirement where we could go for a leisurely lunch which descended into an afternoon on the lash, followed by a phone call home to get one of our children to collect us.
One particular mountain to climb, which his partner has asked for my advice on is – what music to have at the funeral? (I will post the most likely outcome below).
So, I beseech all of my music-daft friends here to take action, to document the very specific details of what music you want- “Kashmir, Page & Plant at the SECC Glasgow as the intro” – lest you end up with ‘Angels – Robbie Williams’ – “well, it seems pretty popular for cremations these days.” ‘
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The Primevals have been making their own kind of din since 1983, and we have organised a short tour to promote our new EP.
Gigs are : Thursday June 20th – Leith Depot Saturday June 29th – Afternoon – Preston Goes Pop Evening – The Talleyrand, Manchester Sunday June 30th – The Black Prince, Nottingham Monday July 1st – The Lexington, London – Stewart Lee Event
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Cautiously, I think we can agree that we are not entering Literally Spring – the daffodils have been and gone, the bluebells are out, and there is more than a rustle in the hedgerow.
So, gather round the picnic table, help yourself to some cider or some apple juice – it’s a little too early in the day for Calvados but that will be along soon enough – grab a bite to eat from the hamper and please tell us : what have you been up to this month ? And is there anything coming up we should be aware of ?
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Welcome to this special False Spring edition of Blogger Takeover. Actual Spring will be with us, in the fullness of time, but in the meantime batten down the hatches, put sandbags out to help minimise the impact of impending floods, and please tell us all – what have you been listening to, watching, reading, or otherwise using to distract yourself from waves hands ALL THIS?
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Welcome to a very special Saint David’s Day Blogger Takeover. Please come in, help yourself to a cup of tea and some Bara Brith, or a glass of Brains if you’d rather, and tell us all – what have you been listening to, watching, reading, or otherwise using to divert yourself from grim reality ?
As today is a special day, an optional bonus question – what’s your favourite record made by people from the Principality ?
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Interesting programme with Peter Capaldi, on what advice he would give to his younger self. The line that I heard in a trail was “when I was young, I gave too much power to people who did not deserve it”.
He is funny, and thoughtful
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Wayne Kramer, guitarist in the MC5, has passed away aged 75, after suffering from pancreatic cancer.
I loved the MC5 LPs and was lucky enough to see the reformed band with the surviving members and guest stars – once in London and once in Glasgow.
Detroit News obituary – https://eu.detroitnews.com/story/entertainment/people/2024/02/02/mc5-guitarist-wayne-kramer-has-died-at-age-75/72456133007/
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It is the first Friday of a new month, so, by the powers vested in me by the Old Gods and the New Gods, I welcome you all to step forward and share what you have been listening to, reading, watching, and anything else you have been using to help you through Dry Veganuary
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It is the first Friday of a new month, a New Year, so please come in, help yourself to the leftover cheeses and oatcakes, pour a glass of whatever you like (we always seem to have port left over, or there’s sparkling water, too).
Please tell us – what have you been listening to, reading, watching, and – have you made any resolutions for the year ahead?
All best wishes to everyone for a better and brighter 2024
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Sadly, I can confirm that Jack McLean has passed away. He had been in failing health for a number of years, but still greatly enjoyed being out and about.
One of his former colleagues announced the news yesterday (28th Dec 2023) – “Some sad news for all old Herald hands. Jack McLean, the self-styled “Urban Voltaire”, died this morning in Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth hospital. He’d been ill for a while and, despite a heart attack and various other ailments, had studiously and typically ignored medical advice. Funeral arrangements when available. RIP Jack.”
There was a previous discussion on him in reads – https://theafterword.co.uk/jack-mclean-the-urban-voltaire/
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Alex Harvey talking about his early days – edited from the interviews for the TV show “Jock & Roll”.
So charismatic
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It is the first Friday of a new month, and propitiously, also the first day of a new month. Please come in, help yourself to some chocolate from the Christmas Tree, pour yourself a suitable libation from the sideboard, gather round the roaring log fire and tell us all – what have you been listening to, watching, reading, or otherwise distracting yourself from …. all this ?
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It is the day before the first Friday of a new month, and I may not be online on Friday, so – please gather round, hang up your wet coats and hats, help yourself to a cup of something warming and tell us all – what have you been listening to / watching / reading this month, and is there anything coming up we should know about ?
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Little Richard is fundamental. Documentary on Channel 4.
I would have posted a link to the Channel 4 website – but their website is a binfire.
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It is the first Friday of a new month, so we all know what we need to do.
Come away in, help yourself to a glass of something refreshing, warm yourself by this roaring candle and tell everyone – what have you been reading, watching, listening to this month? and is there anything else you would like to share?
