Musings on the byways of popular culture
I am currently sorting through boxes of 7″ singles with a view to culling the items no longer wanted. I came across this flexidisc which I acquired about 40 years or so ago. I never knew who the artist was at the time, and Shazam has been of no use in identifying the singer, so I’m hoping the accumulated knowledge on here can help. Video is in first comment.
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From Saguenay, Quebec, an area I have visited a few times. Interested in opinions from “across the water”
Apologies in advance if this sounds like a bad soap opera, but legal minds amongst The Massive (or at least some who might have gone round the same loops) might point us in the right direction…
My wife’s mother died in a nursing home earlier this year, and had suffered for a few years with dementia. My wife has two siblings, both older, but for many & various reasons she has been out of touch with them for a number of years, and relations are hostile to the extent that my wife sadly felt she couldn’t even attend her mother’s funeral for fear of a confrontation…
My wife had been expecting to hear about her mother’s will (her father died over 30 years ago) but when she didn’t, she paid for a search, and has been told the last registered will goes back to 2003, but she can’t get an actual copy of the will without the approval of the executors, who are (you guessed it) her siblings, both of whom have refused (though intermediaries) to oblige to date, and my wife, not necessarily unreasonably, suspects they might try and somehow cheat her out of any bequest.
My queries are » Continue Reading.
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I visited my son this weekend and due to age and stupidity I couldn’t remember if I’d locked the car.The mirrors looked as if they folded in but I wanted to check. I pressed the key fob to no avail as I was too far away. My son said to put the key fob to my head and press the button. As we enjoy trying to make each other look stupid I decided I’d not fall for it. “No it’s genuine and it works” said son.
I tried it and lo and behold it worked. I checked it out later and there is some scientific reason it works, something to do with salts and electricity in the brain.
I just wanted to share this with you all.
Any other things you thought was total rowlocks and turned out to be true?
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I posted this interview with the rather excellent Anthony Mason on the Emmylou thread as someone mentioned Simon’s frailty. This is before he started playing live and discusses managing the issue, setting up speakers, what he can now play etc.
Certainly talks a lot slower.
His tour of UK getting very mixed reviews. Read of one guy walking out in Liverpool.
YouTube in comments.
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I’ve been sorely tempted by the Kraftwerk “Radioactivity “ Blu-Ray (BR) since reading @Tiggerlion’s review – but it has also left me with some questions…
If you play BR discs, what do you play them on? Dedicated BR players? Universal disc players?
If you have a universal disc player, do you still use a dedicated CD player?
And do you have full Dolby Atmos set-ups? Or 5.1 or 7.1 surround? Or plain vanilla stereo? Or a Hafler Trio?
All of which leads me to ask: are BR discs worth the outlay, if (on the face of it, at least) one can’t exploit their full potential?
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Planet Rock listeners voted for their best 20 songs last week…..list in comments. Paschendaele is a bit of an odd choice and personally can’t stand Bring Your Daughter ….give me The Clairvoyant or The Evil That Men Do any day of the week. Very skewed to their 80s material which overlooks a lot of good stuff after that.
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Are we the last generation to…. Read a physical newspaper Post a letter Watch linear TV rather than streaming on demand Fill a car with petrol or diesel Buy a cd
Any thoughts or any other candidates for the scrap heap…
“Judas!”
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It may mean nothing to you, but this year’s context is underway in Vienna.
5 songs down so far, 20 to go. Israel’s song passed without incident and also without leaving any impression at all, so I don’t see it as a contender. I’m always wrong with my predictions though, which is part of the fun.
My big flexi disc collecting feature in the Scottish Courier paper/magazine has been put back until 30th May (curse you Alan Cummings article!) but you can see it on the newspaper’s website right now if you like. I do look a bit worried in one pic but I’m not, I’m just an old record collecting obsessive.
Carnoustie collector Shane on lifelong vinyl obsession including rare Slade Christmas invite
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I’ve become keen on small bluegrass/not quite bluegrass bands – couple of guitars, mandolin, fiddle, banjo, bass, invariably a gorgeous Eartrumpet mike. Stumbled on these guys doing an absolutely beautiful cover of Harvest Moon – so simple, so musical, and very cool. They are all about covers, but they seem to smash them all out of the park every time.
The two brothers are the core of the group, and there seems to be a shifting group of people who pop in and out. A. J. Lee has a band called Blue Summit – they do a hilarious shitkicking cover of I’m a Believer.
F***ing AI eh?
Incidentally, I actually quite like the song…
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This post will probably fall on deaf ears (especially after all the recent hearing related threads), but I continue on my mission to sing the praises of the Japanese group “Mono”…
With all the crap in the world right now, what you need is this gloriously uplifting track “Gerbera” – the second track released from their forthcoming album “Snowdrop”
Video in (probably the only) comment on this thread 😉
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He was an original member of the Coronation Street cast, playing Ken Barlow’s brother. He turned up in Brookside, where his character NIcholas Black married Heather Huntington (Amanda Burton) before shockingly revealing he was a middle class heroin addict. But, I most fondly remember him from presenting Picture Box, whose theme seems to have inspired the entire career of Boards of Canada.
He’ll have a head full of steam reading this.
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As some of you may know, today, the 13th of May, is INTERNATION DYLAN THOMAS DAY and around the world various activities have taken place to celebrate the great Welsh poet. I discovered thIs fact yesterday when I went along to Rönnells Antiquarian Bookshop to listen to a reading of UNDER MILK WOOD. Completely free of charge.
Rönnells is exactly how I want a bookshop to be. Piled high with wonderfully obscure books, it’s staffed by enthusiastic bibliophiles with an impressive level of arcane knowledge, It’s a marvelous venue for smaller, more intimate gigs, poetry readings etc. I’ve seen concerts here by both James Yorkston and the Secondhand Orchestra and Welsh guitarist Gwenifer Raymond.
However I was apprehensive. Would anyone turn up? Does anyone in Sweden in 2026 know who Dylan Thomas was?
Would I be able to understand the poem in Swedish?
Would the translation capture the lyricism and the humour of the original?
I needn’t have worried about any of these things. The bookshop was completely packed. I coped quite well with the Swedish. And the seven readers who brought Llaregybb to life did a splendid job.
What an extraordinary gallery of characters Thomas created. Dai » Continue Reading.
For me they’re just about the only new band that float HMS Eddie
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From my local area’s BBC online news pages.
City of London Police said it discovered more than 6,000 fake records worth an estimated £260,000 at a large warehouse in Luton on 22 April. Police are working in conjunction with the BPI on this.
“Vinyl has seen a strong resurgence in recent years, increasing its commercial value – as ever criminals are quick to exploit emerging trends for profit,” said police sgt. James Kirk.
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One of my fave music authors, Graeme Thomson (Kate Bush, Simple Minds, etc), writes about one of my fave acts (Talk Talk).
Out next Thursday.
https://www.simonandschuster.co.uk/books/In-Another-World/Graeme-Thomson/9781917923613
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The Californian responding to Niall’s post blames Wishbone Ash. My road to … pardon started with Deep Purple in Rock tour, consolidated with Jeff Beck’s Wired Tour and nail in the coffin was Grinderman.
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According to reports, 80 Labour MPs have now called for either immediate resignation or a timetable towards his resignation. Starmer is resisting – at the moment. Not sure that Streeting or Rayner in charge would change anything much.
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As welcome as a new Deep Purple record is, they’re really going to town with this collaboration with Revox…click on buy for the prices!!
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Here’s a link to a very good hearing test provided by the National Institute for Deaf People. Headphones will help.
https://rnid.org.uk/information-and-support/take-online-hearing-check/
