RIP Pete Seeger

It was with some sadness that I read about the death of Pete Seeger a couple of days ago.

Obviously as is befitting a man of his stature, a great deal is currently being written about the man and his work. I will merely relate my own personal experience of Pete Seeger.

I believe that the first time I encountered the name was when as a school boy, unable to afford the purchase of full priced LP records, I came across a folk album in a bargain bin in a Woolworths store. The album was entitled 'Rod McKuen Sings Folk' and as I had never heard of Rod McKuen, the record was obviously purchased because it contained Bob Dylan's 'Blowin' in the Wind'. However another of the songs captured my attention. This was 'If I Had a Hammer' which I learned from the record sleeve was written by Lee Hays and Pete Seeger. Although I did not know it at the time, they were of course both part of The Weavers folk group.

Thereafter, the name Seeger kept recurring as I trawled my way through as many 1960's folk albums as I could lay my hands on.

Of course music was only part of the real Pete Seeger story for he was also an activist in politics, environmentalism and anti-war rallies, remaining active in these causes well into his 90's.

In more ways that one, he was a giant of a man who will be sorely missed. 

RIP Pete.

Inside Llewyn Davis

Since reading the glowing reviews which followed the premiere of the latest Coen Brothers film, 'Inside Llewyn Davis', I have been looking forward to the general release. Clearly I was not alone as the Tyneside Cinema was fairly packed for the mid afternoon screening yesterday.

Set mainly within Greenwich Village, New York during 1961, the story deals with a young and penniless folk singer (played by Oscar Issac) who plies his trade in the various folk clubs situated within the 'village'. The names of real life characters from those days are either not mentioned at all (as in the Aran sweater bedecked Clancy Brothers) or are hidden behind fictitious names. Despite such subterfuge it is still not too difficult to identify Albert Grossman, Peter, Paul & Mary and Tom Paxton. Besides identifying the characters, it is also a lot of fun spotting the various Greenwich Village locations. The directors have done a great job of recreating those famous streets in the early 1960's.

Regarding the film itself, I have to say that the acting was excellent and the music was superb. We were not just offered short song samples but for the most part, we were able to witness and enjoy full performances, many of them being quite mesmerising. Sadly I have to say that the storyline (for what it was) was quite disappointing and the film lacked the cutting humour so often found in previous Coen Brothers films. John Goodman played one of his usual cameo parts but sadly this fell within the least interesting part of the film as Davis travelled to Chicago and then travelled back. Not much happened in between and I wondered as to the purpose of that section of the film.

Nevertheless it was an enjoyable experience and thanks to the soundtrack album, the songs will live with me for some time. As to the best acting performance in the film. I'd say it was a toss up between Oscar Issac playing the title character or Ulysses the cat. See the film and you will know what I mean.

The Gloaming at The Sage, Gateshead

Having obtained a complimentary ticket for this event, I was more than happy to brave the freezing wind that swept along the banks of the River Tyne last night. The Gloaming are being billed as a folk 'super-group' being made up of very well respected musicians from both sides of the Atlantic.

Their brand new eponymous album is also beginning to garner glowing reviews in the music press. The three Irishmen, Caoimhin Ó Raghallaigh  (10 string fiddle), Iarla Ó Lionáird (soulful voice and ipad harmonium) and super fiddler, Martin Hayes, were flanked onstage by Americans Thomas Bartlett (aka Doveman) on piano and guitarist Dennis Cahill. 

Switching between slow mournful ballads and exuberant fiddle driven jigs and reels, the band enthralled the welcoming crowd with a virtuoso display of musicianship. Bartlett in particular added a different dimension to the traditional Irish folk sound with some glorious, tasteful piano playing. At times his work bordered on avant garde though it managed to blend perfectly with the more conventional folk tunes on offer.

Their music combined with the between-song Irish humour, ensured that a fine night was had by all. That is until we spilled out of the Sage once more into that biting cold wind.

Of Bogeys, Propelling Pencils and Days Gone By

Over a couple of beers with friends yesterday, talk turned to the days of our youth and specifically how in a world devoid of computers, games machines and other such electrical paraphernalia, we actually made our own amusement. Someone mentioned bogeys which were like little homemade go-karts (without the engine of course) made from planks of wood, pram or pushchair wheels and with a bolted on front axle that could be steered with the feet or a piece of string or a combination of both. The 'driver' would be propelled along by one or two friends pushing frantically until you reached a downhill section where gravity would take over.

The designs of such contraptions became gradually more sophisticated until one day I came across someone who possessed one with a footbrake - basically a car foot pedal linked to some ingenious mechanism that wedged a piece of wood against one of the rear tyres. Coveting such a wonderful machine I made my opening offer and eventually the deal was done. If I remember correctly, for a bag of marbles and a propelling pencil, the bogey was mine and for a while at least, I was king of our street.

They were wonderful, but dangerous times. Thankfully I recall only one arm being broken during that summer of fun and luckily it wasn't mine.

Of course that also raised another conversation on the subject of propelling pencils which are I believe called mechanical pencils in the US. This is a contraption that looks like a slim fountain pen but contains a piece of lead instead of ink. 

Often these came in pen and pencil sets that appeared to be the favoured Christmas or birthday presents from Grandmas. By my teens I must have accumulated a drawer full of the things. Of course the problem with propelling pencils was that you had to twist the casing until a short length of lead appeared at the pointy end. You began to write - and the lead snapped. More twisting produced more lead, More writing produced more snapping - and so it went on. Until you realised you had no lead left in your pencil and that, as all you guys know, is no laughing matter.

New Year - New Experiences

At the beginning of a new year it is traditional here in the Western Hemisphere to make some new year resolutions. These are simply promises to oneself to do something new or different, or to take up some kind of self improvement activity. I doubt that many resolutions made in the early hours of the new year are actually kept beyond the end of January and I confess that in past years that has certainly been the case with me.

However, I have decided that this year is going to be different.

Consequently I have signed up for a few activities which should keep me busy until at least April and hopefully well beyond. I have already attended and thoroughly enjoyed a session to learn Tai Chi - something I have yearned to do since visiting China a couple of years ago. Also, having given up trying to play the guitar several years ago, my youngest son's acquisition of a ukulele inspired me to give that a try. I have to say that my first group session last week was a lot of fun and I am looking forward to this week's lesson. Finally, I have also agreed to attend monthly 'jazz appreciation' sessions to try to broaden my knowledge of a musical genre with which I only have a fleeting familiarity.

With all these new activities and my constant desire to improve my Spanish language skill and to read all of the books I actually own, I clearly have my work cut out. However, it should also be a lot of fun.

I'll keep you posted.

Box Sets #9 - The Rise & Fall of Paramount Records

I feel that I am doing this package something of an injustice to call it merely a 'box set'.

Billed in the publicity material as a 'cabinet of wonder', this must surely be the most elaborate and dare I say beautiful package ever assembled for the purpose of bringing music into our homes.

Jack White's Third Man Records and John Fahey's Revenant Records have teamed together to bring us volume one of 'The Rise & Fall of Paramount Records' and in so doing, they have created a truly wonderful limited edition set. First there is the cabinet itself which is manufactured from quarter-sawn oak and which replicates the cabinets which once housed phonograph record players. All very appropriate considering how Paramount actually began as a furniture company manufacturing these very same items for other recording companies. The cabinet is lined with lush velvet upholstery with sections housing each of the splendid contents. These include six long playing records on burled chestnut coloured vinyl which themselves are set within a laser etched, white birch folio. Then there are two books. One is a 360 page field guide containing fascinating portraits of the artists and a full catalogue of Paramount record releases. 



The second is a 250 page clothbound hard-cover art book. Finally, what is designed to resemble the metal contraption that held the needle on old phonograph machines, turns out to be a USB stick containing no fewer than 800 tracks by 172 different artists.


Phew!





Of course, the fact that this package is so aesthetically pleasing means that in so many reviews, the actual musical content has been all but overlooked. This is a great shame!

True, we are dealing here with sounds that were produced between 1917 and 1927 and Paramount were infamous for using cheap materials in the production of their recordings. Consequently we are not being treated to hi fidelity sound. Nevertheless the music is vibrant, often energetic and always historically relevant. For this is where modern music began. Included within the styles are blues, jazz, gospel, folk, vaudeville and quirky novelty songs. The artists represented include some well known names such as Ma Rainey, Jelly Roll Morton, King Oliver, Louis Armstrong and Blind Lemon Jefferson. There are also some whose names I was familiar with but whose music I was not. These include Alberta Hunter, Fletcher Henderson, Ida Cox and Ethel Waters. How glad I am to have discovered them.

Obviously I have not worked my way through all 800 sides yet but of those I have heard, I have been delighted by The Beale Street Sheiks (listen if you can to 'Mr Crumb Don't Like It'), Jack Penewell (listen to his awesome and appropriate slide guitar playing on 'Hen House Blues') and the wonderfully named Jimmy O'Bryants Famous Original Washboard Band.

Congratulations to Third Man and Revenant for having the guts to produce this wonderful package. Also there is Volume Two to look forward to towards the end of 2014. This will cover the remainder of Paramount history from 1927 to 1932 and will I am informed contain music by Charlie Patton, Skip James, Son House and many others.

If you are interested in any of the artists contained in this set and wish to get in touch, then please contact me either through this blog or by email. I look forward to hearing from others who appreciate this 'cabinet of wonder'.

Bye for now.

Books#10 Diableries by Brian May

Having voiced my enjoyment of an earlier book of stereoscopic photographs ('A Village Lost and Found') by Brian May, I felt compelled to invest in this latest volume, 'Diableries'.

The Diableries (don't pronounce the letter 's' at the end) were a series of stereoscopic images that were produced in France in the 1860s. Originally produced in monochrome long before the advent of colour photography, the images when viewed from the front appeared in shades of sepia.

However, when they were lit from behind, the images sprang to life in extraordinary ways. Chandeliers and lanterns shone and fires glowed, as did the demonic eyes of some of the characters within the pictures.

The scenes were painstakingly created using miniature sculptures and each scene represented a vision of Heaven, Hell or Purgatory. However as time went on, the artists began to incorporate satirical messages relating to the social or political events of the times.




Several series of Diableries were produced between 1860 and 1890 and these are all reproduced and explained within this fascinating book. Written by Brain May, Denis Pellerin and Paula Richardson-Fleming, the book lavishly lays out each of the images with a wealth of explanatory notes to help the reader more fully understand what is going on within each image.








And of course, as with May's previous book, the package also includes a stereoscopic viewer which can be assembled within seconds and can then then used to view the pictures and allow the reader to gain the most from these fantastic images.








The photographs reproduced in this blog cannot possibly do justice to the wonders inside the book. Personally I am still only a short way into the book but find it something I am regularly drawn back to and I am sure that it will keep me amused and entertained for many years to come.

If you have any interest in 3D photographs, then I wholeheartedly recommend this book.


Here are links to Wikipedia on the subject of Diableries,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Diableries

and to the Diableries website.
http://www.diableries.co.uk/

RIP Eusebio

As an impressionable 15 year old, I have very distinct recollections of the 1966 football World Cup. Aside from England's win, my clearest memory is of the performance of Portugal's Eusebio who scored nine goals during the competition including four in the 5-3 defeat of North Korea, a match which saw Portugal come from being three goals down after 24 minutes.

I recall the sporting way he congratulated England's Bobby Charlton after England defeated Portugal in the semi-final. Then two years later I was fortunate enough to see Eusebio again as his club side Benfica were defeated  by Manchester United in the European Cup Final at Wembley. Once again he was magnanimous in defeat, something that has been sadly lacking in football since those days.

For me Eusebio has always characterised the absolute best aspects of football; blistering pace, magnificent ball skills and great sportsmanship. Without question he was one of the greatest players ever, scoring an incredible 733 goals in 745 professional games. Consequently I was very sad today to hear of his death at the age of 71. A very sad loss indeed.

RIP Eusebio and thank you for those wonderful memories.

Books#9 - Recording The Beatles by Brian Kehew & Kevin Ryan

Happy New Year to you all out there.

Personally I have had a Beatletastic Christmas. The two volumes of The Beatles at the BBC and the Kevin Howlett, 'BBC Archives' book came my way, as did this rather hefty package.

Since visiting Abbey Road Studios a couple of years ago to hear Brian Kehew and Kevin Ryan talk about the history of that iconic building, I have kind of longed to purchase their book, 'Recording The Beatles'. However I always found the price a little prohibitive, not that I regarded it to be overpriced. At over 500 pages and in superb quality, it really has been a labour of love for the two authors and I doubt they will truly be making much profit from this venture. It was simply a case of did I need to pay so much for yet another book about The Beatles?

Thankfully the decision was taken out of my hands when I received it as a Christmas gift.

The book itself comes in a cardboard slip-case designed to replicate the boxes that spools of reel-to-reel tape used to come in. A nice touch and being quite sturdy, the slip-case should help to protect the dust jacket from getting scuffed or torn when being taken from or returned to book shelves. The book itself is almost the dimensions of an LP record sleeve but is considerably thicker, weighing in at a hefty 11lbs.





There are four main sections. One serves as a detailed introduction to EMI Studios, Abbey Road including descriptions and illustrations of the layout of the building. Also the key individuals who helped to capture and define the sound of The Beatles are introduced. Part Two is quite technical, featuring as it does the various equipment that was used in the studios. Something that may be of more interest to the technically minded.

The third section covers studio effects, in-house instruments used and also the other London studios utilised by The Beatles at various times. Finally the fourth section, which is by far the largest and most accessible, takes the reader on a year-by-year journey through the recording sessions while giving in-depth details of how some of the tracks were actually recorded and produced.

Clearly, like Mark Lewisohn's 'The Complete Beatles Recording Sessions', this is not a book one would necessarily wish to read from cover to cover. As the authors make clear, it is a reference book. But like Lewisohn's work, it is immensely readable and absolutely perfect for dipping into while researching a particular period or just randomly browsing over a cup of coffee. The weight may make it difficult to pick up, but the book is also difficult to put down.

Throughout there are great photographs and illustrations. Many of the photos have never been published elsewhere and if nothing else, that should appeal to many aficionados of The Beatles work.

As the hectic activity of the past couple of weeks become memories, I now have the coffee machine fired up, The Beatles on the hi-fi and the books laid out before me.

Now, where do I begin?