the Barbs happening

Hello, Dolly



I was recently contacted by my parents who, look you see, said that they had acquired if not procured something which I might be interested in. Upon hearing this I said something along the lines of oh yes, I might, might I be, posing it of course as a polite question. Yes, they said, you might well be.

Some images were forwarded to me in order to ascertain whether it might be the case that the possible might be interested which was expressed might well be translated into an actual interest

Upon viewing these images, this was decidedly to be the case.

Yes, indeed. What you can see here, assuming I upload the images the right way around (I am writing all of this at a time long before I shall be posting it), is the decidedly celebrated Barbra Streisand Television Specials box set. This was, I believe, released in 2005, but was always elusive to me in terms of availability and affordability. So, up front, nice one and thank you very much, Mum & Dad, for thinking that I might be interested and offering to send it my way.

What is it? Well, firstly, how dare you be so insolent as to ask so many questions of Barbs. Barbs gives, as and when she wishes to, and gives for a cost. If we ask questions of this she may well throw a wobbler and just take our money without offering us insights into her art.

Beyond that most obvious of answers, what it is would be a coming together of some most splendid, made for television sort of television specials which Barbs did. When? In the 60s, with a partial footprint in the 70s, too. Five in total, since you are being pushy and asking, and so the set consists of five discs.

As you would imagine, I elected to spend several hours just admiring the set, looking at the pictures, reading the words and feeling a sense of connection with Barbs. And then I decided to play one of the discs.

Which one, though? It would have been far too obvious to start at disc one. Somewhat naturally I was really rather drawn to the disc entitled The Happening At Central Park, in which I took it as a given that Barbs would do a concert in Central Park. Some, say a dozen or so, years prior to Mr Simon and Mr Garfunkel doing the same, only with a lot less Barbs songs in the set.

The Simon & Garfunkel Concert In The Park is fascinating. Other than featuring some most splendid music, it does have some curiosities. Like, for instance, the bit where Paul Simon tries to make out like he is not a total reactionary square by cracking a joke about marijuana. And the bits where Paul Simon makes Art Garfunkel stand around on stage doing nothing whilst Paul Simon does some Paul Simon solo songs.

But, we are not here to discuss other, arguably lesser as they are not Barbs artists performing in what must be one of New York’s top three parks. Certainly, you would think, it is the most central of them. No, we are having a look at Barbs in Central Park. Or at least I was going to, until disaster struck.

Yes, dear reader, that old friend of DVD, region code enhancing (RCE) had blessed this disc, and all the discs in the set. The disc was either locked on Region 1, for the USA only, or Region 0, which should make it “multizone” but for some reason Blu Ray players do not like at all.

Most DVD players, if not all, normally have the means to allow you to freely change the setting of the zone, allowing you to play any DVD from anywhere in the world. This is not the case with Blu Ray players, which are locked on to a specific letter for Blu Ray and a very specific zone number for DVD.

I do kind of “get” why they did all this RCE stuff. It was to “protect” markets and distribution rights, all in some sort of effort to protect certain territories from losing out to cheap imports. Understandable from the business side of it, but not so much for us, the poor consumer. Exploiting customers for every penny they can is the way of the entertainment business, of course. For some reason they think we should appreciate this, and all got very surprised when people elected to use something called “an internet” to avoid being so mercilessly ripped off.

So, does the above all mean that I was unable to watch Barbs in action in Central Park? No, not at all. I was able to wield a little bit of magic and know how, and (ahem) was successfully able to have this particular television special play on my TV system with, quite frankly, gay abandon.

When one starts the disc one is confronted with what one might consider to be an interesting bonus. This bonus is the presentation of the Barbra Streisand introduction, by Barbra Streisand, for the 1987 home video release of this televisual feast. Presumably the 1987 home video release was prompted by the unexpected – and highly lucrative – success of the Jane Fonda Workout home video cassette release. Undoubtedly Barbs wanted some of that, but also told all and sundry that they could f*** right off if they thought she was going to wear leotards and legwarmers for something so trivial as money.

Just let that sink in, then. Here I am in 2017, watching a Barbs special from 1967 what features a special message from Barbs recorded in 1987. It’s like FlashForward come real, man, maybe I am a traveller in both time and space.

What does Barbs say in the 1987 introduction? Quite a few things, as it happens. You have to remember, though, that this was all pre-Clinton administration, so at the time Barbs didn’t really care for political statements as there was no invitation from Bill to come and do a sleepover in the Lincoln Room at the White House. Instead, then, she expresses some displeasure with Lloyds of London, and indeed with the authorities of Central Park who did not allow some 25,000 people to come into the park at one in the morning to watch her rehearse.

In terms of the actual show, or if you like happening (and Barbs does like that), it’s splendid. A bit short, perhaps, and rather top heavy on wisecracks and jokes from Barbs, but splendid all the same.

Any particularly interesting wisecracks and jokes? Yes, they are all wonderful as they are all from Barbs. One of the most heart-warming segments is when she assures us, the poor people, that wealthy fabulous people such as Barbs also have to, from time to time, pay for things like glasses. The spectacles variety of glasses.

That might, then, be just about all that there is what I can say about the Barbs box set for now. Undoubtedly I shall be watching the other four discs in the box set, just as soon as I have weaved some more magic what would enable them to work on my tele and that.

Many thanks again, Mum & Dad, for this most splendid set. It is a wonderful and mightily appreciated gift, to be sure.




be excellent to each other!!!!!!

ode to the would-be thieving gypsy bstards of the postal services

greetings


after so many years of being subject to the vagaries of the corrupt, incompetent, criminal and frequently striking ways of the postal system in South Africa i have, look you see, enjoyed the reasonable, safe, secure and efficient ways in which it is all done here back at home. how quite unfortunate, then, that i should experience an incident which shatters this comfort zone.

a comfort zone which, in fairness, i was warned not to get too complacent about. i can just about recall when i got home getting all excited about a postal system that works. a friend, the noted theology instructor Franny i believe, warned me that fundamentally the post services and the staff which populate it are all complete twat in a bad way, and that i was simply setting myself up for disappointment.

that disappointment, alas, came through the letterbox.

the above, as so below, shows a greeting card which came in the post. the handwriting says it is off my sister. whilst the exact reason as to why she would be sending a greeting card escapes me for the moment, i would like to assure you all the same that it is not related to the 14th day of the 2nd month of the year. no, thank you, our family does not work that way.

anyway, as you can see, someone within the postal services has methodically, and indeed quite deliberately, torn a corner off of the envelop in which some form of greeting card is housed. why would they do such a thing? why, to see if there is any money or other such items of value in it, which they would then steal.

on the one side it is most amusing to think that my sister would randomly go "here, brother, have some coins of money in note form". another interpretation would be that "at least" they delivered the mail. in respect of the latter, quite true - in Africa they tended to just dump or burn the mail, irrespective of whether or not the dumper had the imagination to steal items.

an episode like this is deeply unpleasant. it is a shame that we, here in 2017, still have a society in which employment in the postal service is awarded, on a frequent basis, to those with a penchant if not proclivity for theft. all this whilst honest people, ones who would be glad to do the job without grumble and free from theft, remain ungainfully out of employment.

so far as i know, tampering with or intercepting mail in this way is illegal. when you complain, though, you find that the "evidence" requirements are impossible, and that the system is all set up so that no postal service anywhere has to deal with any unpleasant staffing realities. nice work if you can get it.

when one hears of reports on the news that so many thousands, millions perhaps, of jobs are likely to have robots replace humans, we all go "oh, no, that's terrible, where will those people work". it is rather the case, i feel, that we should be embracing this. robots are, i would suggest, unlikely to start stealing items of mail if they were designed, created and implemented to deliver post. robots would also presumably not go on strike at times of maximum inconvenience, such as Christmas.

yes, i am aware of the fact that "the majority" of staff in the postal service probably are decent, non-stealing types. that doesn't make it all ok and fine when things like this happen. saying that is like when you complain about something and get told "well no one else has complained". that you are the first to complain of something probably entitles you to a special badge or similar award, but stating that is the case in itself does not make the problem go away.

right, let me get a diary or calendar or perhaps dictionary out, see if i can't jolly well ascertain what exactly is going on with the greetings card which seem to be coming through the door. welcome, of course, as these cards of greetings most decidedly are.



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

a pleasure denied

hello


of all those who would say that i am sometimes prone to peculiar interests i, look you see, would place myself at the forefront of such a gathering. i'm quite aware of my curiosities, if perhaps not my limitations as a consequence of them.

no, this isn't one of those "be yourself" inspirational sort of posts, although if you do choose, or rather elect, to take it that way then that's nice. this is all rather to do with my interest, or if you like passion, for seeing various dairy products with quite specific dates on them.

sadly, it seems, i am to be denied such pleasures this year. as you can see on the one row there, the milk i found is all dated around, or if you like either side, of the one i would want to see.

why was this the case? who knows. perhaps the cow overlords who determine the lifespan of the bovine produce (or whatever the fancy way of saying milk is) felt like they would make life all awkward and difficult for me this year, making it so that i could not see the date i wished.

also, it could be one of them conspiracy things. the date that i wanted on the milk happens to fall on a Saturday this year. recently, and i cannot be bothered searching for the story, someone worked out that crisps always have a Saturday as their expiry or best before date. perhaps there is some sort of link in all of this, one which sees milk never expire or reach a state of staleness on a Saturday so as to leave the field clear for crisps.

pies, in particular pies what have some lovely pork in them, is where it's at this year, then. when in need, it would seem, one may always trust and rely on Yorkshire to deliver the goods.

so yes, sure, whilst milk would normally be my "thing" for this, i am delighted that some brave and presumably quite plucky pigs stepped up and agreed to be slaughtered for pies in such a way that their best before date would strike upon a particular point on the calendar that i for some reason wished to see printed on a consumer item.

it is indeed cold here, and flakes of snow seem to trickle past my window. indeed, maybe this is interfering with the mechanisms of my mind and as a result that's why i have taken the time to write all of this.



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the guardians of a loveless isle

hi there



it has been, look you see, something of a tempestuous week. this would be if you happen to define tempestuous as being one of change and adjustment, as it happens. and, of course, the testing if not all quite that torrid weather.

when such things flame into being it can be, no matter what your faith or what you believe in, something of a blessed relief when certain elements stay if not the same then quite the same.

whilst that is a distant, or if you like establishing, shot, there can be no doubt that the regular readers of this blog, peculiar bunch that they are, know exactly what the above is all a return of. for those of you who are not regular readers of this blog i would respectfully venture to suggest that you really aren't missing all that much, but know that you are all very welcome.

it has, it feels, been quite a while since the sight of abandoned footwear has greeted me on my travels through this world. this would be, i suspect, the first such instance of it this year, and it was quite a while back into 2016 that i can recall the last one. i had taken this that the people out of a night were taking considerably more care to retain their footwear, or were otherwise attending various social orientated venues in a more barefoot approach.

what's that above? why, it's my old university library card, now some 21 years old. 21 years and a month, as it happens, looking at the date on the back of it. this got handed back to me by Gran earlier today, after she had found it whilst looking for some stuff. yes, it is in Commodore 64 mode for your enhanced viewing pleasure.

in returning to the abandoned footwear, which undoubtedly you find more fascinating that any sort of library membership i had, you're probably wondering where it is where i spotted it. actually, no you are not. you will know, then, that as usual this was left in the vicinity of the celebrated Club Bongo International club, a venue renowned for years as a social place for people to meet socially and be, well social.

assuming, of course, that the way in which the patrons of the place lose 50% of their footwear does indeed happen in a sociably social way, and not as a consequence of a disagreement which has led to a bout of fisticuffs or similar.

one of the interesting this about this, the abandoned rather high heeled, quasi platform shoe of prosperity and beauty is that it laid, presumably in the spot where it fell, untouched and unremoved for some three days. i would very much like to think that it was left so out of respect for the patron - presumably a lady - who left it behind, with many suspecting it to be a good idea to leave it where left in case she elected to return to collect it.

that said, it is however far more likely that the people passing it by tutted some, and said "well really" under their breath, whilst scowling, lamenting the decline of modern standards and composing a letter in their minds to a suitable newspaper to decry the ills of "broken Britain".

also a lot would have walked along and looked away, not wanting to see it in case they got involved with some police enquiry, should it transpire that the constabulary are looking for it in relation to a criminal matter. 

no dear reader, fear not - the above is not a hack or hacking attempt on my site here. it is a screenshot of a most ambitious and indeed widespread hacking attack which affected many, many websites earlier this week. it was carried out by however you say the name above, although of course i would suspect that this is not their real name.

should you or anyone you know have been affected, indeed knacked, by this hack, then it is the case that you need to update if not upgrade to the latest version of WordPress, WP 4.7.2, to ensure that your safety and security settings prevent, for now, a further assault by those that carried out this one.

strangely it is the case that a disproportionately high number of the sites affected by the above were based in Ireland. it is something of a mystery as to why someone would have gone to the effort to bring the above message mostly to the attention of the Irish, but there you go.

a closer, indeed final since it has in fact now been removed, look at the fancy abandoned shoe? surely.

it is, if only to my mind, certainly a most splendid one, it clearly being exotic, exquisite and smart, oozing as it does the presumed sophistication and class of the owner.

should it have been that my imagination was of a different nature i suppose i could have taken the time to jazz all of this up in some sort of Cinderella referencing story. should you have some disappointment in that it is not, well, you could always just take these images and set your own blog up where you do that yourself.

anyway, time for me to get on with things. nothing in particular, just things.



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Marie Marx - This Is The Thing

howdy pop pickers


to start off with the predictable, as regular readers here know this blog is all just my random thoughts for the most part. this has come about, look you see, after starting it off as a fairly simply way to amuse friends and family around the world. i neither planned nor expected to find so many others all reading it. yes, there's a point.

i don't really set out to do much here beyond entertain myself, with it being admittedly really nice when it seems more than a few take the time to read. it's not normal for me to try and take any sort of advantage off of my dear readers, with one exception. i really like nothing more than being able to showcase and share some unknown pleasures in terms of music that hasn't got the backing of a massive record label to expose it to the world. sometimes this comes in the form of recorded music from dear friends, sometimes it's from people who have flatteringly got hold of me and asked me if i would mind having a listen. in the latter, the door is forever open.

which is all a long, potentially laboured and perhaps irrelevant introduction to the fact that here's a, for want of a better term, review of an album called This Is The Thing by someone called Marie Marx.

if you're asking who, fear not, for so did i when i saw her CD. we shall get to the latter part in a bit, but for now know that all, surely, is unknown to you before you know it.

i still really don't have much of an idea who she is, except of course for the fact that she made a record. that which i have pieced together suggests she is a native of the North East, like myself, and regularly performs in and around the region. perhaps you have seen her live, which would make you one up on me.

yes, review coming. how best to describe the music within the record? on the web i've seen folk and blues uttered, but i am not quite sure this does it justice. to me it's best said to be semi, or just slightly off, acoustic, for once in a while some electric instruments creep in. and, overall, it's a really very lovely album to have a listen to.

and Marie's singing style? i am reticent, if not reluctant, to do comparisons, for i believe all of us have our own voice in this world. Marie, indeed, certainly does. there is, however, only so much scope for that to carry weight in a written review. the best i can do, then, is to say that her voice - very pleasantly - falls somewhere between that bass sound of Adele and that higher pitch of Dido. in respect of the latter, i am very delighted to say it is with the distinct benefit of not sounding like it's sung through gritted teeth.

to be very honest about it i did get off to a somewhat shaky start with the record. the first two songs on it, You're All I Need and Leave Me Alone are, partially respectively, all about falling in love forever for the first time and falling out of love forever for the last time. they're really good songs, but i was sat listening thinking "you know what, maybe me as a gent somewhere in his 40s is not quite the target market for this music". but then came the rest of the album......

it would be fair to say i was solidly hooked as of track three, Where Do You Go. a lovely, more compelling than haunting melody, beautiful instrumentation and a really wonderful lyrical delivery. and then along comes the quirky, beautiful and engaging Just You And Me, and then, well, just a fantastic collection of songs.

provenance, as an aside, of my copy? as in how did i get this in the first place? Magic. no, not magic magic, but the Magic, my occasional co-pilot. we had reason to be at the celebrated and very well reviewed TP Coffee House (yes click the words in colour to visit their site) and they had some copies of the CD for sale. Magic, knowing that i both love music and love having things to write of here, kindly purchased me the copy that i have played a few times now, and that you can see the images of. nice one Magic, cheers.

since i would seem to be in a linking mood, how about a few links to Marie Marx, then? sure, as i am confident this would help you discover more of her music, should these words here have tilted your interest in that direction.

first off, i found this performance of Where Do You Go on that You Tube thing. go on, click and give it a listen. from my experience, if you like that one then you shall surely fare rather well with the rest. and no matter how you got on with that one, please do give Just You And Me a listen, your life will be all the better for it.

as for more on Marie Marx, here is the link to her official website, from where it seems you can purchase downloads of the songs. if you listen and like, please do - we really must get back into the habit of supporting and appreciating musicians financially, otherwise the world will fall silent. and yes, kids, indeed Marie is on facebook, if that's how you prefer to find things.

anyway, hopefully you give the music a try, and indeed it would be just great if you enjoyed it as much as i have, and shall continue to. beyond that, thanks as ever for reading.



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

february sees further super fanny snow fall

hello


this post would, look you see, pretty much do what it says on the box, if you assume that it is in a box and the title of the post is what's written on the box. except for the parts which are not, but what's the rush, we will get there. maybe. i mean, you might just switch off now, thinking that if i read any more of this i will have a headache, to be sure.

we live in a world in which, undeniably, is populated by charlatans and soothsayers, albeit cloaked as they are under the politically correct term "weather forecasters". in recent times they have predicted something called "snowmageddon" for our fair country, advising all and sundry who metaphorically cross their palm with silver that they are doomed, etc.

indeed yes, as point of fact, what you can see quite clearly - in Commodore 64 mode terms - above is the dramatic damage caused by this most recent "snowmageddon" this morning.

these forecasts, or if you like prophecies, are ones which they have all made since October. one of the perks of being a "weather forecaster" in England, indeed the UK, is that you can earn a living by simply saying "well it might snow" every day between the commencement of October and the business end of March. perhaps i should set myself up with one of them "weather bureau" caravans myself, and roam the land to earn a living in such a way.

no, the above is nothing to do with the "snowmageddon", which thus far has been just yet more fanny snow, as such. the above is indeed a pound coin sterling. an unusual inclusion, granted, in a story about snow and related prophecies, but bear with me, there is a point to it.

it is within the realms of reason that we shall get more sinister snow that this fanny stuff you see in the non-pound coin pictures here. as there is the potential for it then it is of course fit and right that as much warning as possible be given. that said, one does tend to feel all Peter & The Wolf about it, and not the cool version of it what was narrated by David Bowie, either.

there are only so many times one can hear a warning about something which does not without simply tuning out of it all, and considering those warning to be charlatans. 

the above picture shows, in extreme graphic detail. how one of the headlights on my car, The Silver Hornet, has been beautified with an eyelash of snow. it looks quite lovely, and indeed it was a shame when the rather jerky nature of my boss reverse move made it come loose and shake off to the ground.

another look at that pound coin? certainly, and perhaps some clarification as to why i have included it here.

what caught my eye, as i am sure is true for you, is the fact that this pound coin was minted in 1983. it is possible that this was in fact one of the first such coins to be minted, then, as i believe it came into circulation in that very year. well, maybe. i mean, i am all but certain that the 20p was introduced in 1982, and this the year after. all i do know for certain is that it was in 1983 that i ever first handled such a coin. that was when i returned home off of Australia, and such a coin certainly did not exist before then.

if you would be so kind as to indulge some philosophy. it is unlikely, true, but there is nothing to say that this pound coin what i handled is in fact that very first one which i ever handled. if so, who knows what adventures it has been on over the last 34 years. perhaps they have been as interesting as mine, or maybe it has spent most of that time sat in a jar and has only recently returned to circulation.

anyway, back to snow, and an image similar to the one with which we started this jolly adventure, but different as it is not in Commodore 64 mode.

thankfully this was but a smattering of fanny snow, and not the proper hard man stuff. as such, it was not glued or welded to the windows of The Silver Hornet. far from it; all one needed to do was blow on it a little and it scattered back to the winds which brought it, ultimately falling to the ground.

of course there is the chance that the thicker, heavier and most decidedly unpleasant sort of snow shall fall, as predicted, over the next few days. i really, however, rather hope that this is not so.

i can assure you, however, that it is really very cold here at the moment.



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

hard edge the hipster jiving

hi


just one of them sort of posts where i bring some random elements together for the sake of something to post here, really. some of you, look you see, find this to be entertaining, so it's all good i suppose. or at least hope, if not quite trust.

it is not, so far as i know, the circumstance that i have been actively within the realm of Sheffield for some quarter of a century. this has not been a deliberate avoidance as such, but rather that no reason i can think of has taken me there. it's feasible that i have passed through, or visited in passing, but i cannot recall.

anyway, someone i know very much has been, and it is from there that they sent me this image, an image of what is ostensibly a painted tribute to David Bowie.

now, without being unkind, if you are looking at that there above image and suspect that the intended likeness of David Bowie, in Aladdin Sane guise, has gone somewhat wrong, you are not alone. far from it, as point of fact, for i feel the same way.

it's hard to tell what the proposed intention is, really. perhaps it isn't intended to be a Bowie tribute at all, but rather, in some move of vanity perhaps, the store owner - or the artist, if not one in the same - elected to present them on a wall with the famous lightning flash. or maybe google on that "internet" thing led them astray, and when the artist thought they were looking at David Bowie they were actually looking at Ryan Giggs.

should the above actually be intended to be a reflection of David Bowie as the world understood him to look, then surely this is the very personification of that whole "keep calm and carry on" slogan. at some point, surely and early, they must have been aware that it "wasn't looking quite right", but pressed on all the same, or if you like regardless. if so, bravo, sometimes passion is better than perfection, after all.

yes, indeed the above is a picture taken in Commodore 64 mode off of my new phone, rather than with the "classic" mode featuring scan lines like how you can do with an Apple product. some like the above, whereas others do not.

it is absolutely one of them Star Wars branded items of merchandise. yes, i know - quite rare, for there seems to be a reluctance to exploit this particular brand for financial gain. this is, as point of fact, a mug, and reflects the branding of that most recent film, Rogue One, or rather Renegade Ten as i have often pointed out it should be more properly called.

was this at all a gift from my erstwhile if  occasional co-pilot, Magic, by any chance? why yes it was, a most generous and welcome one. one also that he handed to me in person, rather than, for a complete and utter random comparison example, leaving on my doorstep. a doorstep which would have taken some tracking down, not knowing my address prior to doing so.

there has not, in moving on, been much in the way of items abandoned on the street for me to picture and share with you here. actually, there has, but my new phone is somewhat more tricky to take out and prepare for a quick picture than what my blueberry phone was.

but still, from time to time i do manage to get an image. actually, no that's wrong, in this instance i did indeed manage to get an image for you.

yes, i took a closer image so that you can see what it is, we shall have a look at it later. or right now, i suppose, if you are all in some sort of rush and simply scroll down a couple of images. up to you, really, do what you like.

it is not just Sheffield where people send me pictures off of. no, far from it, and indeed further away. Spiros has been off conducted more jolly and merry images around the world, and sent this picture.

whilst conducting some top level stuff that requires his skill and ability as the greatest legal mind of his generation Spiros, as enthusiasts of the chap and his exploits here will know, quite likes to have a drink. he also likes to meet fellow minded gents to make short term but all the same mutually beneficial friendships with. he saw this place, Happy, and decided that it was probably a euphemism for another positive word, such as jolly or merry or cheer. or, indeed, gay. so off he went to have a drink and see if there were any gentlemen in there.

were there? to tell the truth he has not told me as such, so possibly no. or maybe yes, but he just didn't feel it appropriate to discuss exactly what forms the short term friendships he struck up took.

if you wanted to look at more of the ways in which Sheffield has elected to celebrate David Bowie then i am happy to agree to this. although, in truth, it was something else in the below image, also sent to me rather than taken by me as such, that caught my attention.

the above does indeed reflect some most splendid items of popular music celebration. all of them look really rather smart.

i would be certain that you can spot what from the above i would want. if not, then look with more care and concern at the coffee mugs. at the tope one would see one which features the artwork off of the Talking Heads album True Stories. not my favourite album by the band, for sure to be sure, but i do quite like the way it looks there.

sadly, purchasing the mug from this store looks all but impossible, alas. it would appear, for all the world to see, that some rather ultra faction of hipsters owns and runs this store. that could, in this day and age of a golden era of celebratory commerce, be the only possible reason why this shop runs on a very exclusive basis. as in, by all accounts, they only open to allow you to spend coins of money with them on a Saturday, and even then just for five hours.

which five hours? not sure. none, however, that i am likely to be in Sheffield for.

 

that is indeed the close up, promised or hinted at earlier, of the most recent item to have been spotted abandoned on the roads. or, at the least, the one that i was able to photograph for you. and, in truth, i did not a first spot it - Magic did, and asked why such an abandonment had not featured here as yet. well that's that fixed.

it is, as i am confident you can see, a sun visor. one of the styles of ones which was very popular in the 70s and 80s, and one that was made very if not tres popular by no less than George Michael and other such tennis enthusiasts.

prior to the widespread availability of baseball caps in the United Kingdom - something which is only more recent than you may think - these sun visors were the only way to keep the sun out of your eyes here. except for flat caps, bucket hats like what Reni wears, fishing hats, bowler hats, sombreros bought off of holiday in Spain, cupping your hand above your forehead, sunglasses and the fact that we get very little sun from which we need to shield from.

the only other things i have seen abandoned to the streets filled me with too much fear to picture and share here. quite close to a popular nightclub, and i did not explicitly state it was the Bongo but still, i saw a smashed up tea cup and an inexplicably large number of runner beans abandoned.

i mentioned this to Spiros, and he said that it was a sure fire sign of the area being subject to one of them horrid gentrification attacks what has plagued London so.he says that what happens next is that all the proper places go and are replaced by places selling designer cereals and finger sandwiches, and that they all have total pretensions toss names like fusion and segaiolo and gilipollas and wichser. and runkkari.

yeah, that there to finish off is the reverse of the coffee mug off of Magic, thanks. well, it doesn't have to be just coffee, i suppose one could drink tea off of or rather out of it. but so far i have used it for coffee alone. weirdly, yes, i did indeed have a coffee out of it whilst enjoying some pie someone happened to leave on my doorstep.

there's not much beyond offering many thanks to all of the contributors who made all of the above possible. and as i have done that, why not end it there. no, here.



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Depeche Mode - Where's The Revolution

hello pop pickers


i don't think anyone, like me, dare put forward the hope that this year will be as amazing as last year when it comes to most merry music releases. 2016 saw a stack of stunning stuff hit the stores, and yet of course saw us need to bid goodbye to many of the amazing people who made that music.

by this time in 2016 we'd already had Blackstar from David Bowie and Night Thoughts off of the Suede. nothing quite so astonishing yet, but who knows, perhaps it will come. as for a hint of where it might come our way from, Basildon's finest have "dropped" a single on us. yes, as the title of this post gives you every indication of, Depeche Mode have a new song out, and it is called Where's The Revolution.

the trivia, and all that, for the song? sure. a return to new music by Depeche Mode was announced during the course of the last year. this, if we accept that digital downloads are now such, is the lead single off of their next album, Spirit. the album itself gets released March 17, and shall be their 14th studio album.

yes, indeed i did purchase the "download single", which comprises of just this track, for 99p. many would say why bother, for the band, as all do seem to do these days, effectively give it all away for free via one of them "internet" things. i don't know man, i just like supporting artists i appreciate, and always loved the idea of having a collection.

it would seem that there is no video for Where's The Revolution as such, but the official "internet" release of the song in audio alone form, granted with some visuals hinting at the Spirit album cover, can be found by clicking these very words here. for those of you who some reason prefer the snippets i record and upload here from time to time, here.....

is it any good? it's not bad, as such, it just happens not to be the sort of Depeche Mode sound i like. for me, it's things like Ultra and Playing The Angel, and more intensive, faster sounding things from Violator and so on. this is their quasi-industrial sound slowed down somewhat.

my (considerably) better half, who is quite the ardent follower of all that Depeche Mode do, absolutely loves it, however. especially the, what i think she called it, the mis-timed or mis-cued bass on it.

one thing which is most decidedly baffling me is that a lot of people out there are declaring this as a "return" to politically motivated material by the band. whilst there's no refuting there is a political slant to the song (the band have indicated it is something of a reaction to Brexit and the US election), for the life of me i cannot think of any song from 1981 onwards which they did what had a political overtone, overt or otherwise. if you can tell me what meaning i missed somewhere, let me know.....

anyway, any misgivings or lack of outright enthusiasm for Where's The Revolution which my thoughts may provide a harbour for shall not prevent me from pursuing the album entire. stalkers, would be assassins and the like, then, should know that they shall indeed find me in my nearest HMV on Friday, 17 March 2017 so that i may purchase the record Spirit proper.

what hopes would i have for the record? if we take the last three recordings, it would be most happy times if it is a lot like Playing The Angel in sound. it will be ok if it all goes a little Sounds Of The Universe. it will be a let down if it's something like Delta Machine again. but, we will find out in just slightly north of a month from now. or, well, i will, when i buy it and have a listen.

seen and not seen

g'day


some more delving into the past for you, then. this would be standard i suppose as, alas, i have no power to peer into the future, look you see.

this time round the discovery, if it may be termed as such, comes not from me digging through boxes of memories. no. here we go with the great courtesy and grace of Richard, who forwarded on some pictures of something that which if i had ever stopped to think of at all i would have thought was long since gone.

should you look upon the above and see no more than my name stencilled on some wood, possibly in a fashion which is carved in and then gone over with a marker or felt tip pin, then a truth is with you. the rather interesting, to me at least, thing is exactly what and where is wood may be found.

quite clearly, i would think, the wood is part of a bed. indeed this was, once, my bed. many years ago. as in this bed is off of a place no lesser, and arguably with few that would challenge a status of none more splendid, than Australia.

well, splendid would be argumentative. how about we say none more Australian than Australia, yes?

no, the above is not related at all. it's just the calendar page this month on some sort of Star Wars calendar what i got on the cheap. i am reasonably sure that i posted the images for January off of it, so figured i might as well keep this going. yes, indeed, that is some more concept art off of the first Space Battles film.

anyway, beds in Australia. no, not beds which are burning in Australia, you cheeky Midnight Oil fans forever on the look for a means to crack a joke. what with all our travels around the world, and the fact that these would have long since been outgrown, i would have taken it as a given that these beds were long since gone. they have, when all is said and done, travelled from Australia to England and then onwards  to South Africa, the latter being the answer to the "where are they now" question.

indeed i did share these bunk beds with Richard, and it is as stated above Richard who forwarded on the images. he has reassembled them for the benefit of his offspring, or if you like children, and kindly sent on these very pictures you see.

and yes, Richard enthusiasts, here you go, here he is presumably chilling after assembling them.

who slept where upon these bunk beds, or if you like and word things in such a way beds of bunk? for a while i believe i slept on the top. an unfortunate incident, however, saw me fall from it and break one of my arms (i have two, if you were wondering). after that i am all but certain that i was prohibited from sleeping on the top ever again.

Fraser, a very good friend, once explained to me and Spiros how sleeping arrangements for bunk beds in prison are established and earned. i would not care to share the explicit details of how the order of who sleeps where inside a prison cell is set. it is knowledge that convinced me to remain firmly on the correct side of the law, however, which is to say the side that does not see one go to prison. Spiros, in contrast, reckoned that what Fraser told him is probably stuff he would do anyway, and so has no fear of such incarceration.

did Richard too carve his name into the wood associated with his bed of the bunk beds? why yes he did, and indeed did so with far more flair, imagination and creativity than i.

should the approximate time of purchase translate to the inception date of these beds - and i have no idea as to if they were new when we got them, or for how long they may have stood stored prior to our use - they are then some 36 years old. and going strong, it seems. hard stuff, Australian wood, then.

nice one for keeping them in good order, Richard, and even more nice one for kindly sending on the images. a most splendid stroll down the lane of memories!




be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

room full of mirrors

hello


it would very much distress me, look you see, if people out there reading this got all distressed at the idea of me leaving something that was to be followed up and i did not follow it up. this is all the more so when it has been a particularly popular read amongst you, the people.

this has been the case with a recent post, namely this one, concerning three rather superb recordings by Jimi Hendrix which my Dad sent on. in that post i, i think, gave every indication that my Dad proposed to send on more. he did, and i got them, and here they are.

such is the dynamic clarity of Commodore 64 mode with the scan lines on that i do not believe i need to tell you which three further recordings arrived. if, however for some reason you cannot quite make out which three, there at the front is the compiled recordings released under the name People, Hell & Angels. behind that is another compiled recordings release, named Valleys Of Neptune. and behind that is Band Of Gypsys, which is a different set of recordings from the Filmore East concerts which i got the week before in the form of Machine Gun.

indeed no, Room Full Of Mirrors as a song does not actually feature on any of these sets, but it is a song that i happen to quite like, so i just went with that for the title.

if, as is widely known, Jimi Hendrix "only" release 3 official records in his all too brief lifetime, then how is it that, many years later, many "new" songs from him turned up? as in where were they and why only at some point was it decided to release them in the late 90s onwards? a good question, or set of questions, and not ones without controversy, for some had alleged that, due to the sheer volume and quality of the recordings, perhaps some were not Hendrix, but were recorded more recently and released simply to allow the Hendrix estate to cash in on his name.

the final point above is poppycock, or just sheer spiteful nonsense. the provenance of all the recordings is laid out for all to see, and no one involved in the recordings with Jimi has ever refuted the authenticity of them.

Jimi, in truth, was prolific. when not on stage, or doing drugs, or getting acquainted with ladies, he was in the studio. actually one suspects the last three happened all at once more than once, but to dwell upon such things shall only serve to make me, and millions of other, insatiably jealous. Jimi left behind enough material for many albums to be released posthumously, although obviously he did not do so deliberately. one or two came out after his passing, as is the way of a posthumous release, but further ones were blocked when rights, permissions and money were all brought to the fore. all things resolved eventually, and hence the flurry of releases which eventually came along.

musicians having a stockpile of recorded yet unreleased material is the norm rather than the unusual. the classic example is Tattoo You by The Rolling Stones. brilliant record, compiled from some ten years of unreleased recordings. Prince, as is well known, has left more than he released in his lifetime locked in a vault. and, well, so on.

anyhow, thanks again Dad for the further Hendrix experiences!



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

sketchy doodles

heya


one of the more popular type of well liked posting updates i do from time to time here for you, dear reader.

my (considerably) better half is prone, or if you like has a passion, look you see, for doing doodles. over the months, years perhaps, here i have had instance to share some of her celebrated painty doodles with you. for a change, then, here are some sketchy doodles, for they were sketched with a pen.

sketch, pedantic fans, might i yield if not concede be a term retained for the use of images drawn, or if you like sketched, with a pencil. no matter, we shall call them sketchy doodles regardless, for i would have thought that anyone quite so pedantic to take me to task on such terminology would have long since given up on reading all of this here.

if the above strikes you as being somewhat Halloween in nature for a sketchy doodle that is undoubtedly due to the fact that it stems from the rather more Halloween period of the calendar than which we find ourselves now, unless you are reading this one October. sorry, if you had thought that these were all recent, or if you like cutting edge, sketchy doodles then you are quite mistaken. this is more of a bringing together of them.

provenance of the sketchy doodles, then? collated and collected over time. we were sorting through some papers of negligible consequence and stumbled upon them.

the above, as will be the case with the remaining two, were produced on the medium of some of that "post it" paper. you can see, if you look with some care, the discolouration strip on one side of each, for that is where the semi quasi glue of post it paper would be.

is this a medium that my (considerably) better half has a preference for expressing her art through? not particularly. no, it's normally that when she is awaiting some sort of differential node engine to work its magic on a calculation she has little to do but watch the Windows hour glass spin and turn, and so doodles away as she waits for some sort of fabulous report to be generated.

i too, as it happens, do some doodles when i am waiting for similar things. normally on a reporter's book rather than "post it " paper. and no, nowhere near as good in quality. what do i draw? usually images of Arnold Schwarzenegger in cinematic character punching an animal.

in respect of the above, i would appear to have a particular passion for drawing Arnold as Conan off of Conan The Barbarian, recreating that bit where he punches a camel in the face and knocks it out. i would draw the one where he punches a reindeer and then gives it beer - Jingle All The Way i think - but the antlers are quite tricky.

actually, i find camels quite tricky to draw too. and Arnold. normally, on the rare instances when i have shown the people my art, they are unanimous in being aware of it being a picture of Arnold Schwarzenegger punching an animal in the face as part of a film plot only after i have explained that it is in fact an image of that.

there is no such quarrel, of course, with the clarity and quality of sketchy doodles which my (considerably) better half does. and has allowed me to share with you.

yes, i quite too really rather like the "page curl" part what she has drawn on the above one. the above one which is indeed a different shade to all them other "post it" note papers, but is i assure you still a piece of "post it" note paper. or, you know, whatever it is so called.

and so yes, i have run out of sketchy doodles to show you right now, so i know you will have lost all interest in the remainder of this blog post. best i leave it there, then.

many thanks indeed once again to my (considerably) better half for letting me show off her talents here.




be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

some weeks after the day of release

hello there


i did something this weekend, look you see, that is quite rare for me to do. no, not that, although now that i think on that would have been jolly splendid, enjoyable and predictable. no, dear reader, i happened to read a newspaper. one of the several petrol stations i use, for i do believe in spreading my wealth across all the petrochemical companies, gives you a free paper when you use them. if they are kind enough to do that then it is not unreasonable to expect me to at the least glance at it.

during the course of reading the newspaper i happened to look upon the most recently published of music charts. i of course merrily skipped over the "singles" one, for that is now all a load of rubbish based on "streams" and "you tube hits" rather than what we in the 70s, 80s and 90s called "purchases". the album chart is, however, mostly full of recordings which people have actually bought.

in considering this chart, one album that had been in the charts for at least a couple of weeks caught my eye and commanded my attention.

yes. well, yes it is him off of the band Yes, but no that's not why i am saying yes. no, i am saying yes as this is indeed, in the classical format of Commodore 64 mode with scan lines on, Piano Portraits as recorded, or if you like portraited, by Rick Wakeman. yes, the Rick Wakeman who was out of Yes, the celebrated prog rock band. as was Jon Anderson, whose stuff with Vangelis i like quite a lot. so yes, paybe i should pick up some Yes albums.

this charted recording caught my eye because the name suggested something interesting. an investigation of the track selection, done on something called Google on one of them internet things, confirmed this.

i had not heard any previews of the record, but the pedigree of the artist (he did, after all, do piano for Bowie on a number of tracks on the Hunky Dory album, with Life On Mars? in particular being quite celebrated) was enough to see me head to HMV to pick it up. apt, i suppose, really - the first copyrighted 2016 release i got was Blackstar, so why not have Rick Wakeman as the first of 2017?

what is this record, then? 15 cover versions, or if you like interpretations, or if you prefer to go as even more how Rick Wakeman would like portraits, of select songs. at least i think they all are, one or two of them i had not heard of so forgive me if they are indeed original compositions. the deal with these covers / interpretations / portraits is, but of course, that they are all done off of a piano.

if i am not what you would call a big Rick Wakeman fan (nothing against him, i just don't have any Yes records and, if i read right, this is 100th release in his own name yet the 1st i have bought), what's the draw? not sure. am i a big piano fan? not really. maybe. yes. Piano Man off of Billy Joel is one of my all time favourite songs of all time. and, through Spiros, i've listened to quite a few Liberace and Elton John recordings, quite often in some rather exotic clubs.

i don't know, it just appealed enough on the sound of it to go and buy it. and, as it turns out, this was a most splendid appeal, as i am rather enjoying it.

any particular highlights? that's quite a tough one, to be sure, as there's a lovely flow to the album as it is. it would feel somewhat mean to select or pick and choose certain titles, but on the off chance you have read this far and want to seek out some samples, so be it.

to start with the most obvious, there's nothing new to the recording of Life On Mars? here, and nor should there be. just what would it be that Rick Wakeman, or anyone, would be able to add to existing perfection? the other Bowie inclusion, Space Oddity, is marvellous. it is, to me, how you'd imagine how Bowie himself might have arranged it if he ever had elected to do one of them Vegas residencies.

the starting track, a rendition of Help!, seems to add considerably more layered depth to the song than one found in the original, enabled in part by "borrowing" elements off of other Beatles tracks.

if i were forced to select but one portrait to take as why you or anyone should give Piano Portraits a go it would be Stairway To Heaven. here, stripped of Plant's wails, removed from Page's guitar, free of Bonham's drums and yet arguably missing Jones' bass, you get to rediscover what at core is one of the most astonishing pieces of music ever to be created.

and so there we go, the first album released proper in 2017 that i went and bought turns out to be a most splendid one. true, granted, it is (so far as i am aware) free of any original compositions as such, but it is loaded with fabulous interpretations of some truly amazing songs.

maybe this is all we really do have left, you know. possibly all great songs that were ever to exist have been done, and now all we can do is revisit and reimagine. that said, the year assures us of a brand new Depeche Mode record. who knows, maybe Kasabian and The Stone Roses shall indulge us too.

the very healthy chart performance of this record says i need not go out of my way to encourage people to purchase it. if you've not heard of it but like me find yourself intrigued, however, then may no harm befall you if you also go and purchase it for your listening pleasure.



be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the secret life of pets

Hiya


Being a parent, or indeed a guardian, look you see, of children of an age deemed to be minor means that one gets to see a good many films which they might not have naturally selected to watch. I am no exception to this.

Over the course of the last ten or so years I have watched far, far more animated and family orientated films than I would have chosen of my own, so to speak, volition. If left to me I would have by now seen things like Inception, and a good many movies which were overloaded with gratuitous amounts of sex and violence.

This is all setting up to say that, at the behest of William, I recently picked up the Blu Ray (and DVD, for it came as a set) of the film The Secret Life Of Pets, and subsequently watched it with him. And I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Provenance of my copy? HMV, of course. It was part of their “2 for ₤25” deal, but I could find no suitable other disc, and so just paid the face value ₤14.99 for it, or if you like a penny south of ₤15. Rather infuriatingly I could see some titles I quite liked in their “3 for ₤25” and indeed “5 for ₤30” offerings, but no matter.

Plot? This is where I let out a groan, dear reader. Yes, I did like the film, but bear with me. Despite both the title and the trailer offering something different, it turned out that this film has the plot of virtually all pet / dog related films, in particular animated ones. Yes, something happens that sees the pet dog (in this case ostensibly dogs) separated from the owner, and it is all a quest for reunification.

After a really promising, quirky and different start it was a shame to see this film just go down the particularly clichéd road that is this story. Well, it may have all been done before, but this one at least gave something different to see. And very funnily so, too.

I don’t quite recall the last time I laughed so hard at a film, to be honest. Probably recently, as in the last few months, but still. The Secret Life Of Pets is indeed really funny, as funny as the trailer promised and then some. There’s just about enough spin on the tired old story idea it uses to make it feel quite fresh.

With regards to the package I bought, I noted with some interest that the special features on the Blu Ray are, for a refreshing change, virtually all there on the DVD. This is true in particular of the “mini movies”, one of which features the ever popular Minions out of Despicable Me and, er, Minions. Quite a nice bucking of the trend, really. In recent times a number of releases – Star Wars Episode VII : Mission To Moscow in particular – have caused upset as the DVD release features no extras. Not that, in the case of the example, the extras on the Blu Ray were all that great.

As this film was released somewhere during the middle to central parts of 2016 I do appreciate that I am somewhat late to this party. William just happened to see a trailer for it in passing and asked about it now. But still, if for some reason you didn’t see it as and when it was released and you’re wondering if it is any good, the answer is yes indeed it most decidedly is.

Any gripes, other than the tired and clichéd plot that it somehow manages to rejuvenate? Sure, Sing. Sing is the name of the next film to be released off of the people who made The Secret Life Of Pets, as point of fact I think it is out now. Whilst the Despicable Me / Minions references are fun as they’re familiar, the stuff for Sing, a film unlikely to have been seen by someone prior to watching this, are obtrusive and annoying. You find yourself momentarily stop watching a film with knowing references and start seeing heavy handed plugging.

Well, there you have it. I found this, despite some comments above, a most splendid way to spend some 85 or so minutes of my life.

Hopefully, as ever, this review is somewhat of some use to someone, somewhere out there on one of them “internet” things.




be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!