Musings on the byways of popular culture
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Pretty obvious stuff, really. Just because a photographer has given permission for one site to publish a pic. doesn’t mean everyone else can then copy it from that site and re-publish without permission.
Let’s be careful out there.
https://www.politico.eu/article/ecj-photographer-permission-ruling/
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I remember watching some of this when it was originally aired. I was a 7-year-old nipper (what were my parents thinking?) and remember being pretty scared by some aspects of it.
Now it’s cited as a classic and a ground-breaker and so forth. I’m going to give it another go and see if it’s really that good. Available for 11 months. Those Afterworders who aren’t resident in the UK may need to resort to nefarious means to view it.
Wonder if we’ll also be getting “The Quatermass Experiment” and “Quatermass II”..
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Some life-lessons from 2016. Some have been superseded by reality, but some are eternal truths. In my opinion. Especially Nos. 1, 2, 5, 17, 20, 35, 37, 39 probably, 40 almost certainly.
Further comment on #37: Our UK roads are already full of cars and getting fuller, yet everyone considers it a Rite Of Passage for their kids to get a car and learn to drive it. There is a little shortcut called Bunns Lane in North London between Mill Hill and Grahame Park, favoured by driving instructors, that I was obliged to drive when I was employed and driving a company van. One one journey a few years ago I counted 13 driving school cars in that single road. Guaranteed Total Gridlock in about 10 years, folks, possibly sooner. The common Sci-Fi trope of the driverless car you just call up to get you where you need to get to and then it goes away cannot come soon enough for me. I used to quite like driving. These days I fucking hate it.
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Shure have announced that they are discontinuing all phono products, effective from this summer.
“In recent years, the ability to maintain our exacting standards in the Phonograph Cartridge product category has been challenged, resulting in cost and delivery impacts that are inconsistent with the Shure brand promise.” “In light of these conditions, and after thorough evaluation, we have made the difficult decision to discontinue production of Shure Phono products effective Summer 2018.”
If you’re a Shure cartridge user, I suppose now is the time to stock up while they’re still around.
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This cropped up on a random play earlier. A big international hit in 1962, apparently. Quite a nice tune, but blimey those lyrics and the sickly singing style. Pass me the sick-bucket. The poor sad soft bugger will not be seeing his teen sweetheart for a whole summer of unalloyed misery. Woe is him.
“Yes, it’s going to be a long lonely summer, but darling I promise you this. I’ll send you all my love every day in a letter. And seal it with a kiss.”
In early-’60s suburban white America you could get away with such drippiness. In Doncaster or Huddersfield I feel expressing such utter wetness would have been seen as good reason to get yourself a kicking.
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If you’re a reader of vintage science fiction, this might interest you. I certainly intend to dig in.
From the Archive.org site
Galaxy Science Fiction was an American digest-size science fiction magazine, published from 1950 to 1980. It was founded by an Italian company, World Editions, which was looking to break in to the American market. World Editions hired as editor H. L. Gold, who rapidly made Galaxy the leading science fiction (sf) magazine of its time, focusing on stories about social issues rather than technology. Gold published many notable stories during his tenure, including Ray Bradbury’s “The Fireman”, later expanded as Fahrenheit 451; Robert A. Heinlein’s The Puppet Masters; and Alfred Bester’s The Demolished Man. In 1952, the magazine was acquired by Robert Guinn, its printer. By the late 1950s, Frederik Pohl was helping Gold with most aspects of the magazine’s production. When Gold’s health worsened, Pohl took over as editor, starting officially at the end of 1961, though he had been doing the majority of the production work for some time.
Under Pohl Galaxy had continued success, regularly publishing fiction by major writers such as Cordwainer Smith, Jack Vance, Harlan Ellison, and Robert Silverberg. However, Pohl never » Continue Reading.
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17/02/2018
Daylight Music #273. They’ve hired a grand piano specially for these artists. Poppy Ackroyd and her new album have already been mentioned on this blog. Have a look/listen to the clip from a previous DM appearance to get an idea of what she does. Other artists on the bill are jazz keyboardist/pianist Charlie Stacey and artist/composer/producer Matt Emery. Clips of them are linked from the Daylight Music Facebook page. In the interludes between acts, Jim Bishop will be playing an assortment of tunes on the chapel’s magnificent pipe organ. From 12:00 until about 2:30pm. Tea, cake and quiche will be available and it’s Pay-What-You-Can on entry (recommended £5). If you’re awake with no other pressing business at that sort of time on a Saturday and in or near London, you might find it enjoyable.
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Dennis Edwards, a former singer with The Contours, replaced David Ruffin as lead Temps tenor voice in 1968 after the rest of the group fired Ruffin, who was demanding star billing a la Diana Ross and had taken to travelling to gigs in his own personal limo. His recruitment coincided with a change in the group’s style to what became known as Psychedelic Soul, songs such as “I Wish It Would Rain”, “Cloud Nine”, “Runaway Child, Running Wild”, I Can’t Get Next To You”, “Psychedelic Shack” and “Ball Of Confusion”.
His later post-Temps career included the wonderful “Don’t Look Any Further” with Seidah Garrett.
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I hope the link for this article isn’t restricted to just the UK.
I mentioned this in passing on another thread here, but I think there’s enough “meat” in this article for us Afterwordniks to chew over a bit.
Various data from various studies cobbled into an article suggesting (or does it?) that standards may have slipped.
Whaddya reckon?
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All four of his solo albums in replica cardboard sleeves plus a disc of 10 extras, three of them live. All in a robust little clamshell-type box complete with individual booklets for all of the original albums and a fact-sheet for the extras disc. £26.56 from Amazon.
Truly terrible cover photo for both the box and the extras disc, mind you. Donald looks like he’d rather be somewhere else and his apparent lack of a neck is evident. Donald has never been known as one of the handsome ones, but surely Warners could have come up with something better than that.
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George Mesrop Avakian, Գևորգ Ավագյան (Armenian), Геворк Авакян (Russian)
American record producer, artist manager, writer, educator and executive. Among his many achievements, he produced and edited the Golden Era Series of important jazz recordings for Columbia, culled from the original masters of various defunct labels Columbia had acquired. These were sets of ’78s, the original format of the Record Album. He was later closely involved in the launch of the vinyl LP as a musical format. Discogs.com lists 266 production credits for him, mostly jazz but some of the earliest pop albums too.
Born March 15, 1919 in Armavir, Russia. Died November 22, 2017 in Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA.
98 is not bad going.
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I was looking for Brazilian Electronica for KFDs thread and saw a name of a duo who turned out to be Argentinian. I discovered they’d put up some free tracks on the Free Music Archive Site and I started exploring there. Found this under “Jazz” which it almost entirely isn’t, but nevertheless I found myself listening to the whole thing, which if it was a vinyl album would probably be a 4-disc box. My attention wandered at times, but nevertheless there was enough interesting stuff to make it very worthwhile, I thought. Of course you might disagree and call it a right old load of cobblers. Such is your right.
http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Lobo_Loco/My_Scifi_Sofa_Visions/
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When they’re not playing music, those musician-types can often be cajoled into talking about the stuff. Sometimes what they say is unintelligible rubbish but you can’t shut the buggers up. Sometimes you get one who’s got interesting things to say. I chanced upon this clip of jazz & funk guitarist Jim Mullen having a chinwag with bassist Phil Chen. I found it not only interesting and entertaining, but also informative. I’d already figured Phil Chen must be of Chinese heritage somewhere along the way, because of his name. Didn’t know he was Chinese-Jamaican.
Maybe you know of an interesting clip of musicians shooting the shit.
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The challenge is to name a totally cheesy “so bad it’s actually pretty good” song from your youth that you know all of the words to and can sing along with. The bigger the cheesy topping the tastier the dish, IMO. Mine is yodelling English-born returned-Australian-emigrant easy-listening/country singer Frank Ifield and the first of his 3 successive UK #1s from 1962-3. Now aged 79 he is still, surprisingly, active. At least one fact fiend among us will no doubt already know that he was the first UK-based artist to ever have 3 successive No. 1s. The only previous three-in-a-row chart-topper here was Elvis Presley. Our Australian contingent will probably point out that he was moderately successful “down there” before repatriating “up here” in 1959.
Over to you…
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13/10/2017
The Radiophonic Workshop are one of the most influential electronic music groups of all time. As the in-house composers of music and effects for the BBC they created the sonic backdrops for Doctor Who, The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, Tomorrow’s World and countless others.
They soundtracked the childhoods of several generations, now they’re back to soundtrack your Friday night with a two part set. The first is a live version of their first studio album for 25 years, the improvised work Burials on Several Earths, with guest collaborator Martyn Ware (Heaven 17, The Human League and BEF). The second is a heritage archive set in which the Workshop perform some of their best known material – including the high water mark of early British electronica – the signature tune for Doctor Who.
Join the Radiophonic Workshop at 18.30 for a special in-conversation event Soundhouses: The Radiophonic Workshop at 60. Tickets include entry to the Late event. Audio installation provided by Bowers & Wilkins Visuals for the night are performed by Obsrvtry, a collaboration between Michael Faulkner, founder of » Continue Reading.
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An 8-CD box comprising the studio albums “Tutu”, “Amandla” & “Doo Bop”, the film soundtracks “Siesta” & “Dingo” and live albums “Live with Quincy Jones At Montreux”, “Miles Davis Live Around The World” & “At The Nice Festival”.
“The package is presented in a stiff black clamshell box with each of the 8x CDs in its own sleeve complete with original artwork. A high-quality 60-page booklet details the history, development and production of all the music, complete with genuinely engrossing & literate essays penned by people like Ashley Khan and Leonard Feather.
The music is all remastered to perfection and the sound (even the live-on-stage stuff) is excellent. At the offer price, it’s a steal.”
I expect it’s available from other retailers, if spending money with Amazon is not your preference.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B016E29ZIK/ref=pe_1229711_212818321_em_1p_3_ti
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04/09/2017
Might be worth a listen if you’re into gritty crime stuff. I just finished the book a couple of days ago and thought it pretty good. May well get her next one.
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I’d seen her name somewhere before but couldn’t remember where or in what context. I spotted a free download of a couple of her concerts and took a punt on what I might find. Pure gold. In my opinion.
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17/09/2017
You may or may not be interested to see Jim perform with house band Just East (Jeremy Shoham – alto & soprano saxes, Neil Angilley – keyboards, Phil Scragg – electric bass, Rick Finlay – drums) at this friendly pub venue for the princely sum of £7. Jim is a founder and current member of those fine UK funksters Kokomo and was also with the legendary Morrissey-Mullen and Average White Band. He’s an astoundingly good player still out there and doing it. It would probably be wise to get your ticket in advance, as the venue is quite small and both seating and standing room is limited. Buying an advance ticket also gets you a 10% discount if you decide to try the food, which is pretty good. Usually, proceedings get under way at The Chandos at 7pm on Sunday jazz nights but this particular one starts a bit later at 7:30. Two 1-hour sets with a short break inbetween. Finishing at about 9:45. I have my seat booked already.
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I have a big box full of old cassettes, many of which I haven’t played in years. A small set of them (about half a dozen) used to live in my old car which didn’t have a CD player or an audio input for an mp3 player. This one, a Sony C-90 entitled “Red Hot International/C’est La Dance” is not one of these, however. This one is much older and was recorded from ’80s BBC radio shows such as Peel etc. and copied over from a couple of those legendary NME cassettes.
Side A: Come Back (original) – The Mighty Wah Shellfish Bamboo – Frank Chickens Bring It On – James Brown See-Saw – Aretha Franklin Hand On My Heart – Shriekback Hot Lava (party mix) – B-52s One More Heartache – Marvin Gaye Five Minutes – Bonzo Goes To Washington Red Hot International – Zeke Manyika Abele Dance – Manu Dibango Good Rockin’ Daddy – Etta James
Side B: What I Like Most About You Is Your Girlfriend – Special AKA How Soon Is Now – Smiths Out Of Sight – James Brown C’est La Dance – African Connexion Mi God, Mi King – Papa Levi The Wildstyle – » Continue Reading.
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Venue:
The Half Moon, Putney.
Date: 26/07/2017
Not so many of the original lineup were present as the last time I saw them (April 2016, same venue) but the new faces were all excellent. Tony O’Malley(vocals, piano), Frank Collins (vocals), Jim Mullen and Neil Hubbard (guitars) as usual with Helena-May Harrison (default female vocalist since Dyan Birch’s forced retirement) and Charlotte Churchman (replacing Paddy McHugh) on vocals, Jennifer Maidman on bass (replacement for the late Alan Spenner for some years now), Andy Treacey on drums, a guy whose name we were told but I forget on percussion and surprise stunning lead vocal on Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On” and Ross Stanley on Hammond replacing Mel Collins’ sax and flute. All four vocalists got solo spots to shine (and they did) and harmonised well throughout. Ross Stanley played some lovely churchy organ on some slow ones. Big Jim Mullen played several fantastic solos and Neil Hubbard got a few good ones in too. The percussionist’s surprise vocal spot was a well-received treat. Doing justice (and he did) to “Let’s Get It On” is no mean feat. Andy Treacy’s drums were solid and funky. Jenny Maidman got a couple of » Continue Reading.
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When I was very, very young indeed, The BBC broadcast Music While You Work on The Light Programme in the mornings. It was instrumental music intended to be listened to in workplaces. Bright and breezy undemanding stuff to hum along to while you did your job and earned your pay. When I finished my education and went into the world of work, Radio One had begun transmitting and it was common for radios to be softly playing the hits of the day in the electronics assembly workshops where I earned my weekly pay packet. Later on, in the later ’70s working in Hotel kitchens, there was usually a radio playing. Still later, as musical styles divided and stations proliferated, when I was working on building sites there would be competing radios. Painters in particular seemed incapable of working without a radio playing. By the time I retired, early last year, radios and other music players were banned on all major building projects (noise nuisance) and personal stereos too (health & safety*). Shops still tend to play music as you browse. The occasional clothing shop still blasts music out into the street but they’re rare these days.
What’s your view on » Continue Reading.
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26/07/2017
Top British funksters Kokomo are playing 2 gigs later this month at The Half Moon in Putney. The 25th and the 26th, to be precise. They will be back there again on the 8th & 9th of November, if you can wait that long. They’re also at Colston Hall in Bristol on November 12th on a double bill with their old pals The Average White Band and finally on 16th November they’re playing at The Stables near Milton Keynes. Of the original band, singer/keyboardist Tony O’Malley, singers Frank Collins and Paddie McHugh, guitarists Neil Hubbard & Jim Mullen, sax/flute man Mel Collins and conga player Jody Linscott are still on board, with Helena-May Harrison taking over from Dyan Birch on vocals, Jennifer Maidman replacing the late Alan Spenner on bass and Andy Treacey on drums. I’ve booked for the 26th July. Only £15 (plus just over a quid booking fee). These Half Moon gigs will sell out, so if you’re interested, don’t hang about.
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No, not the album or the movie.
I have been working my way through a load of “Recordings Of Independent Origin” on an old hard drive and, having arrived at a folder entitled “Sir Henry At Rawlinson End” thought it still contained dodgy copies of the “Sir Henry” BBC radio episodes. It seems the files within are all corrupted and unusable. Any Stanshall fans here have these important hysterical artifacts?
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Story songs. There are loads of them in just about every genre or style. What I’m interested in is story songs with an unexpected twist. Here’s one to get you started. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZyhxMtDft0 I’m sure you lot can think of some more that I’ve not heard yet, which is after all the point of starting a thread you hope will be full of video clips of songs and stuff. Over to you…
