William's Study (Diary Of A Hyperdreamer)
July 2009
Tuesday 21st July 2009 -- 8:20 pm
Just checked my website to remind myself when my last diary entry was posted. Could it really be so long ago? As long ago as January? Apparently that's exactly when it was.
Somehow I'd imagined that there had been at least one further entry since then, but evidently not. Perhaps I was merely thinking about it. A conceptual diary, words written in smoke on thin air, ghosts of good intentions.
So why the biggest gap yet in this ongoing literary ramble?
Well, it's the result of one damned thing after another and very little of it worthy of mention here beyond what readers of this diary may have already surmised.
My main (and daily), concern has been for my mother and the unfortunate circumstances she found herself in after the death of her husband, (to whom she had served as a dutiful wife for 28 years).
The last 14 months or more have been an unwelcome ordeal for her, not just because of the bereavement she has suffered, but also as a direct result of the litigation she was forced to undertake and the emotional toll it subsequently imposed.
Her legal struggle has only recently come to some sort of modest resolve but, although two months have already passed since she accepted the offer which was finally made to her, she has yet to see the practical results. Now, it seems, there are further legal fine-tunings to be dealt with before she can, hopefully, put this regretful and miserable business behind her and get on with her life.
Naturally, it has been an extremely stressful and unpleasant time for her and a worry for friends, neighbours and family who have expressed their concern about her situation and well-being...and, although I'm trying not to make too much of it, it's proved a depressing and demanding experience for me too.
Sadly, as is so often the case with inheritance disputes, much grief and a great deal of expense could have been avoided had some sort of fairness prevailed at the start. But, human nature being what it is, especially where money is concerned, fairness was always going to be too much to hope for. Damning as that conclusion is, it's hardly more than what was expected. If nothing else, the experience has been revealing. However, the subject is unworthy of further attention so I'll not offer any further comment but simply move on and away from it.
Despite the many months of dealing with the above situation, I've continued to work extremely hard to maintain some sort of creative flow. It's been far from easy under the circumstances but, by putting in even longer hours than usual, I now have FIVE new albums awaiting release and a SIXTH album almost complete. (Plus, I should add, a seventh album, which is a collaborative project, finally coming to fruition.)
Could it be that I've sought some sort of internal release from various external problems and pressures by allowing myself to become lost in music? Well, if so, it certainly wouldn't be for the first time.
In any case, I've become a little bored with the notion than albums should always be 'major statements,' torn from the very core of one's being, precious highly polished jewels to be dispensed to the masses as if they were pearls beyond price. Or, as Todd Rundgren once expressed it, products of 'The ever popular tortured artist effect.'
My own albums are like personal letters, monthly magazines, glimpses into private sketchbooks, whispers in a lover's ear, keys to secret wardrobes filled with fetish clothing that only priveleged and trusted friends are allowed to see. (Strange how often eroticism creeps into these metaphors!)
But, even so, the music still emerges, unavoidably, unbidden, from somewhere deep inside, the complex result of endless little struggles with myself. It's just that I try not to make too much of a fuss about it. (So many artists' declarations of creative 'angst' ultimately turn out to be little more than romantic self-promotion, or cunningly contrived marketing ploys.)
So, here's a summary of work accomplished in my home studio this year:
ALBUM 1: A vocal based album titled 'FANCY PLANETS.'
This is something of a departure from the work of recent years in that it attempts to reconcile my '70's era style with my more contemporary output. The balance seems to be tipped slightly in favour of the past though...which for me, as someone whose natural inclination is to never return to fields long ago harvested and left barren, amounts to a kind of heresy. Maybe there's an element of nostalgia involved too, albeit tinted with post-modernist irony.
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I suppose I'm not entirely convinced that this is a credible or dignified album for a sixty year old man to have recorded, though I'm probably far too close to it to tell. However, I do expect that it will be warmly embraced by a certain percentage of my audience, despite any apparent trepidation or nervousness on my part.
There are, of course, a few stray tracks that reach beyond the album's central concept, (or maybe they're just attempting to escape it). Perhaps it is these tracks that will provide me with the most creative satisfaction.
But, who knows? I have no clear idea what people want from my music any more. Maybe that's always been the case. The truth is, I make music simply because I derive great pleasure and a certain degree of personal insight from doing so. For all my clouds of unknowing, this album could be as bright as a full moon sky filled with shining stars.
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​Anyway, the track list for 'FANCY PLANETS' runs as follows:-
1: 'Fancy Planets.'
2: 'The Golden Days Of Radio.' Compact mix.
3: 'Kiss Me Goodnight, Captain Marvel.'
4: 'The Land Of Dreams Is Closed.'
5: 'This Leads To That Leads To This.'
6: 'Where Are We Now.'
7: 'Twice In A Blue Moon.'
8: 'Everyday Now Is Forever Again.'
9: 'She Dreams Of Fires.'
10: 'I Hear Electricity.'
11: 'Mysterious Object Overhead.'
12: 'Dream Cities Of The Heart.'
13: 'Mystery Engine.'
14: 'The Golden Days Of Radio.' Hypermix.
​
ALBUM 2: A guitar-based instrumental album titled 'HERE COMES MR MERCURY.'
This is an album of, (mainly), bluesy-jazzy tinted improvisations and tunes. All electric guitar and some groovy beats mixed with a touch of electronica and occassional weirdness.
The track list is as follows:-
1: 'Never A Dull Day.' (For Les Paul.)
2: 'Coop's Place.'
3: 'Six String Skyway.'
4: 'The Standard Fireworks Stomp.'
5: 'Teatime In The Republic Of Dreams.'
6: 'Soda Fountain Swing.'
7: 'Attempt To Re-assemble My Fragmented Self.'
8: 'Autumn Noodle No1.'
9: 'A Dream For Ian.'
10: 'Mars Welcomes Careful Drivers.'
11: 'Here Comes Mr Mercury.'
12: 'Dance Of The Pagan Energy Ghosts.'
13: 'Tomorrow Today.'
14: 'Red Planet Blues.
(The Ritual Transfiguration Of Spaceman Albert Fitzwilliam Digby.)'
ALBUM 3: A keyboard-based instrumental album titled 'THEATRE OF FALLING LEAVES.'
This album has subtle hints of guitar on two or three tracks but is predominantly a keyboard-oriented project. There are deliberate, somewhat ironic '80's touches where mono-synth sounds are merged with more contemporary tones. The album is a surreal mixture of melancholy and mirth. My personal favourite track is 'SuperSerene,' an 'outsider' track in that it bears little resemblance to any of the other pieces on the album. This particluar track is another component in an ongoing series of orchestral compositions and, if I may presume to plead, achingly beautiful.
The full track list is as follows:-
1: 'Thoughts Travel. (For Miles.)'
2: 'You Here Now In William's World.'
3: 'The Darcey Bussell Rubberwear Fantasia.'
4: 'Tiny Mice Are Dancing In The Cottage Of Her Dreams.'
5: 'Planet Of Sleeping Buddhas.'
6: 'Pagoda Dreamhouse.'
7: 'Tumbletown.'
8: 'Dance, Mighty Robot, Dance!'
9: 'SuperSerene.'
10: 'Theatre Of Falling Leaves.'
11: 'Sparkle And Spin.'
12: 'Space Ace Gets His Girl.'
13: 'Django Dreams Of Twinkleland.'
14: 'From Here To Far Orion.'
​
ALBUM 4: This year's 'Nelsonica' fan convention album titled 'THE DREAM TRANSMISSION PAVILION.'
This, as is usual with the Nelsonica convention albums, contains an eclectic mix of music featuring both vocal and instrumental tracks, ('though mainly vocal).
I often think of the Nelsonica albums as being made up of 'left-overs' or 'B-list' material but this year's album could quite easily qualify as a full-blown 'A-list' release. It has some very interesting material on it.
The track listing is as follows:-
1: 'Billy And The High Blue Horizon.'
2: 'Beauty Lifts Her Skirts.'
3: 'The Sound From This Recording Travels To The Stars.'
4: 'Once More Around The Moon.'
5: 'Prarie Hula.'
6: 'Kiss You Slow.'
7: 'The Boy Who Knew The Names Of Trains.'
8: 'Picture In A Frame.'
9: 'Sway And Swoon.'
10: 'A Thought For You.'
11:'Where Does It Come From, Where Does It Go?'
12: 'Trancendental Radios.'
13: 'The Walls Of Which Are Made Of Clouds.'
14: 'I Am The Captain.'
15: 'Here I Am For You.'
16: 'Once More Around The Moon.' (Monitor Mix.)
​
ALBUM 5: An instrumental album titled 'PICTURE POST.'
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This album contains music I created for the American television documentary film, 'American Stamps.' It's an eclectic collection of styles but hangs together very well and manages to work interestingly outside of the film's immediate visual content. I have given the pieces titles, although they don't neccesarily connect directly with their usage in the film. (The tracks originally had no titles, only cue numbers.)
The 'Picture Post' album has yet to be mastered at Fairview studios but the track list will be as follows:-
1: 'Sunny Day For A Happy Postman.'
2: 'Postcard To A Penfriend.'
3: 'Music Spins My Globe.'
4: 'I Send My Dreams To You.'
5: 'A Christmas Cowboy Outfit.'
6: 'Skimming Stones.'
7: 'In Anticipation.'
8: 'Shibuya Screen.'
9: 'September Promenade.'
10: 'Airmail Guitar.'
11: 'A Day At West Acre.'
12: 'Greetings From Surf Guitar Island.'
13: 'Beach Hut Beauties.'
14: 'Dream Of An American Streetcar.'
15: 'Mobile Homes On The Range.'
16: 'Surf King Sails In.'
17: 'Big Ship.'
18: 'Filigree Balcony.'
19: 'Clouds Drift North.'
20: 'The Toy Trumpet.'
21: 'Pagent.'
22: 'Emphatically Yours.'
ALBUM 6: An instrumental/spoken word album titled 'NON-STOP MYSTERY ACTION!'
This album contains 'long-form' instrumental pieces that feature voice samples/cut-ups and, on one piece, my own spoken prose-poetry.
The concept is built around two 15 minute-plus pieces created as soundtracks for last year's and this year's Nelsonica convention opening videos. I'm in the process of recording more tracks to complete this album but it's almost there.
No final running order decided as yet but the album will probably include the following titles:-
1: 'The Departure Of The 20th Century In A Hail Of Memory.'
2: 'Yes And No.'
4: 'Like A Woman Levitating.'
5: 'Machines Of Loving Grace.'
6: 'This Is Like A Galaxy.'
7: 'Welcome To The Dream Transmision Pavilion.'
8: 'Stranger Flowers Now Than Ever.'
​
There will also be a 7th album.
This will be the long anticipated collaboration between myself and renowned American comic book artist Matt Howarth. It's a kind of graphic art 'space opera' with music.
Titled 'THE LAST OF THE NEON CYNICS,' this album will carry a pdf file of Matt's comic book illustration of the story, along with the special music I created as its soundtrack. The album will contain 9 lengthy compositions, all of which relate to episodes and characters within the story. (More about the track list in a future diary entry.)
It's the tale of a space cowboy who travels through galactic worm-holes in a 'intergalactic-tram,' accompanied by his guitar. (A guitar that can actually talk and features as one of the central characters in the story.)
A whimsical and wonderfully surreal slice of sci-fi. Matt and I began working on this collaboration some years ago, (maybe 2003?) but, due to my busy work-load and several distracting issues outside of my creative life, it has taken me far longer to deliver the finished music than would normally be the case. Even now though, with several other albums finished and already lined up for release, it will have to await its turn at the end of this year, before it can be manufactured and made available. But it is something extra, (and rather unusual), for fans to look forward to.
One relatively new aspect of my home studio involves Django, (the cat), who seems to have developed the habit of curling up next to me on one of my studio chairs (the one with the kitsch 'Elvis in the army' cushion), whenever I'm recording. In fact, he's close here beside me now, as I type these words, black, sleek and handsome. He's an intelligent and affectionate creature and we've become great pals.
The volume of the studio monitors doesn't seem to bother him at all and he will happily spend a fair proportion of his day dreaming along to the music whilst sleeping on Elvis's face. It is this pleasant development that gave me the title 'Django Dreams Of Twinkleland' for the 'Theatre Of Falling Leaves' album. A thought: Maybe I should compose another piece with the title ' The King And The Cat.' Well, yes...I think I will.
A major pre-occupation for me at the moment is to make sure that everything is ready for this year's Nelsonica fan convention.
Lots to do, as always. It seems to have come around even quicker this year, but maybe that's because we had a late start to the planning process and have an earlier convention date than usual. (Last year's Nelsonica was held in November but this years will be on the 19th of September.) Consequently, I'm under some pressure to keep everything on schedule.
This year, Nelsonica will be held at a new venue, the rather elegant 'Crown Hotel' in Harrogate, once the haunt of Sir Edward Elgar. We've secured a very nice room, complete with a modest built-in stage, which should suit the style of Nelsonica 09's live performances perfectly. The loyal Nelsonica team are adding their special talents to the mix too, (as always), and it promises to be a unique and memorable day for fans who are able to attend.
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I've just completed this year's opening video for the event, after one month's constant work on it. It lasts over 15 minutes and is titled ' Welcome To The Dream Transmission Pavilion.' It functions as a companion piece to last year's epic ' The Departure Of The 20th Century In A Hail Of Memory ' video. Whilst that piece dealt with the passing of time and the nature of memory, this year's video is loosely themed around the way that memories and dreams sometimes become entagled as the mind gives way to the gentle erosion of the passing years. I think it's about how the real becomes unreal and vice-versa. Or something like that. These things are often arrived at by intuition. It can be somewhat like dowsing or like feeling one's way through a 1950's British fog. There's a vague sensation of where I'm going but it is often only afterwards that I fully grasp where I've been and what it means. Guided by invisible forces, unconscious impulses, strange currents, dim lamps. Beautiful, and all the more so for the uncertainty.
Sections of the video are a 're-mix' of familiar themes from some of my previous visual work but there are several sections that use previously unseen footage from old home 8-mm cine film. Amongst this archive material are glimpses of Be Bop Deluxe in America, not on stage but in casual, 'off-duty' situations at gas stations, in a dressing room, or outside a rehearsal studio in Los Angeles.
These are fleeting, tantalising glimpses, filmed by myself in casual moments, but made even more poignant by their brevity. No digital camcorders back then so it was shot on short reels of super-8 film, film that only ran for three minutes before a new reel had to be fitted.This involved finding a room or cupboard where all light could be exluded from the camera so that the film would not be exposed whilst changing reels.
Because of this restriction, I tended to take very quick shots, lasting only a few seconds, so as to make as much use of a single reel of film as possible before having the hassle of loading up another reel. Now, of course, the digital camcorder offers much longer shooting times.
Even so, with hindsight, I wish I'd have captured much more of the band and far less of American barns and trucks rolling past car windows. What little footage there is of Charlie, Simon and Andy is precious, so I've trimmed away all the above mentioned passing landscape and tried to focus on the band members.
I only seem to feature as a camera-toting reflection in dressing room mirrors, and even then for only fractions of seconds. I'm always there but virtually invisible, a facilitator. the means by which others are seen. There's something appropriately Cocteau-esque about that!
One of the people glimpsed in the footage is Jeremy Fabini who acted as our projectionist on the later Be Bop Deluxe tours. Jeremy carried his own home-cine camera and filmed lots of the band's adventures on the road...also at our Juan-Les-Pins recording session in the South Of France.
Jeremy used to live, (I think), in Italy, maybe Milan. I wonder where he is now and if he still has the extensive film footage he shot? There would be lots of it and I would probably feature quite a bit in it too, (in contrast to my own cine footage where I'm behind the camera).
I'd love to get it all digitised and transferred to my computer so that I could combine it with my own shots and make some sort of personal documentary about those long-lost times.
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Other archive 8-mm cine footage I've incorporated into 'WELCOME TO THE DREAM TRANSMISSION PAVILION' video shows the exterior and gardens of my old home, 'Haddlesey House.' It also gives a glimpse of the Rolls Royce and Panther Lima cars I drove at that time. Looking at this footage now feels very strange. It's as if I'm observing someone else's life, as though in a dream, and yet, at the same time, it's extremely familiar, as if it happened only yesterday. But, of course, it was more than thirty years ago...
The music soundtrack I've created for the video is slightly unusual in that it features a spoken prose-poem, (with myself as narrator), recorded specifically for the piece. This voice-over runs through much of the video.
Hopefully, it will set the scene for the convention attendees in an interesting and curious fashion.
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As usual, I'll be performing live as part of the day's programming. The plan is for a solo set of instrumentals AND a separate trio set with my occasional 'Orchestra Futura' project which features my wonderfully talented friends Dave Sturt and Theo Travis. I'm hoping that we'll have six pieces of music to offer our audience. These pieces will be spontaneously improvised around loops and pre-recorded tracks and atmospheres.
I'm also hoping to perform a separate improv piece as a duo with Steve Cook on keyboards. We're thinking of naming ourselves 'Bleep n' Booster' for this one! (An arch reference to a vintage British television children's cartoon series.)
I'm currently working on several new pieces for my own SOLO performance at the convention and have already completed two or three of these but will decide which ones to incorporate in my set, (if any), a little nearer the time. Actually, I need to give some further thought to the set's running order and decide upon it's contents before mastering the backing track cds at Fairview. All being well, John Spence will be mixing the live performances at the convention.
I also have to prepare my guitars and various other items of equipment in advance of Nelsonica.
Because I give concerts so rarely these days, my somewhat complex stage rig doesn't get used very often. My studio guitar set-up is comparitively basic, due to the extremely small space I'm forced to work in here at home more than anything else. Consequently, it's essential that I re-aquaint myself with the comprehensive live effects rack and its numerous pedal boards each time Nelsonica rolls around.
To this end, a day in a rehearsal studio has been booked, near the convention date, so that my full set of equipment can be properly set up and tested. Hopefully, this will allow me to familiarise myself with the technical demands of the live set, which pedals connect to which sounds and compositions, etc, etc.
I find live performance more nerve-frazzling each year, not just because I'm unused to playing live, but because my creative standards and targets have evolved, often beyond the limits of my basic technical abilities. Sometimes I leave the stage feeling down and frustrated by it all. It can be demoralising and depressing for me, though not, I hope, for my audience who generally seem to enjoy themselves, regardless of my self-critical nature. But that's how it goes...the old cliche of, 'the more you know, the less you know.' The hardest thing is to trust one's instincts and intuition and just PLAY. What's the point of a daffodill agonising about whether it's yellow enough or not?
But here at home, there are other, more important concerns. The most recent regarding Emi's mother, who has just been admitted to hospital in Tokyo. The intestinal cancer, for which she underwent surgery last year, has returned and also now spread to her liver. She is too frail to survive further surgery and it seems that there is little that the doctors can do for her. It is difficult to say exactly how long it will take for things to progress towards their ultimate conclusion but maybe six months at best, according to the doctor's current estimate.
Of course, Emi is extremely distressed about the situation and has now made plans to fly to Japan to spend some time with her mum. I would prefer to go with her to lend whatever support I can but Nelsonica responsibilities won't allow that,
The fact is, there's far too much still to prepare and if I went to Japan, it would almost certainly mean that the convention would have to be cancelled, (and tickets have already been sold, venue booked, etc, etc.) So I must stay here in Yorkshire and do my best to stay focussed on what must be done. Nevertheless, it's a very difficult and worrying time.
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When Emi went to visit her mother in hospital in Japan last year, readers of this diary will probably recall how much we missed each other and how pathetically useless I was at dealing with everyday domestic issues. And this time, there will be my convention preparations to deal with too. But I have no right to feel sorry for myself. Emi's situation will be far more difficult and stressful than mine...in comparison, my selfish concerns amount to nothing. And, in any case, she is hoping to return in time for Nelsonica.
It's been a difficult year for Emi in so many ways. After being made redundant from the flower shop where she'd worked for for eight years, she then suffered further redundancy at her next job when the company that employed her went under due to the current economic climate. Subsequent attempts at finding employment have been fruitless. it's proving difficult for many people to find work at the moment, but Emi, being both sixty years old and Japanese has found it particularly hard, (especially when prejudice and ignorance have come into the equation). But being the sweet-natured lady she is, she doesn't see these things quite as cynically as I do.
Still, there have been some encouraging developments. Emi's talents as a floral artist have brought some freelance commissions to her during the last few months. Without any proper advertising or self-promotion, she's picked up several orders for floral arrangements, mostly for personal gifts, mother's day bouquets, birthdays and funerals, but also for some weddings. Last week she was busy creating beautiful flower arrangements for the third wedding in two months and has a fourth wedding booked for mid August. In fact, it is the wedding work that has prohibited her from travelling to Japan earlier. (Her flight to Tokyo is booked for just after her next wedding commision.)
Emi has also been giving private flower arranging lessons to several ladies, some English, some Japanese. These have become pleasant social occassions for her as well as floral art classes and she has been able to convey something of the refinement and beauty of Japanese culture to her students, sometimes preparing traditional Japanese food as part of the lessons.
That this attention has come her way purely by recommendation is heartening. People seem to appreciate her talents and the personal, one-to-one service she provides.They've spread the word amongst their friends and families without any immediate need for advertising. That said, I'm planning a glossy printed brochure for her and hope to complete the design of it, (with the essential and valuable help of my good friend David Graham), once my Nelsonica duities are fulfilled.
Whilst ALL business are struggling to one degree or another at the moment, I'm trusting that there is still a market for something a little more special than the standard florist approach. It seems to me, as (I admit), an outsider, that commercial floristry is as depressingly predictable and uniform as the popular music scene. But hopefully, there are people who will appreciate something more sophisticated, something with a touch more depth, just as there will always be music consumers who require something other than the manipulative fluff they're sold by the mainstream music industry.
In any sort of creative work, music or otherwise, I hold on to the (perhaps naive), belief that it's important to provide people with unique alternatives...alternatives that aren't neccesarily defined by commercial taste...Timeless, thoughtful alternatives too. But then, who knows? Maybe I'm just an old-fashioned idealist. (And some other old-fashioned idealists might say that the meek have no chance of inheriting the earth because the mediocre but bold already own the lease.) ;-)
Well, sod that for a proverbial game of tennis.
Back to my own work: One of the consequences of spending so much time in my studio is the negative effect it has on my health, mentally and physically. I have to admit I haven't felt great of late and the studio lifestyle definitely does nothing for my middle-aged waistline.
Which brings a thought: Am I still allowed, at SIXTY, for Christ's sake, to refer to myself as middle-aged? Wouldn't it be far more appropriate to refer to myself as 'old' or maybe as a senior citizen' instead?' Whichever way I look at it, I can't quite grasp the concept of actually BEING sixty, other than via the daily physical aches and pains, creaks, groans and depressions that have become impossible to ignore. And the infamous, capitulating, milestone, millstone, Bus Pass, (which I've steadfastly refused to claim).
But as far as creating music goes, I feel just as motivated as before. And I suppose, for what it's worth, seven albums lined up for release in one year is something of an achievement ...for anyone, let alone a depressed sixty year old.
It gets a little scary at times though...I mean, why do I feel such a compulsion to make music...and where are all these different ideas coming from? Each of the seven albums listed above has its own identity, its own tale to tell whilst still, I imagine, sounding exactly like me.
But, every album I make, in some strange way, feels like it's my first, even though I've filled a small universe with albums over the years.
I've contemplated these things before...they're part of an ongoing mystery that I'm reluctant to delve too deeply into for fear of short-circuiting whatever magic might be at work. Maybe if I drew back the curtain, instead of a wizard, all I'd see is an obsessive, driven, fearful, socially-inept personality suffering from low self-esteem, (hiding a desparate need to feel loved and approved).
Hmmm...better not go there.
I once vowed that I wouldn't allow myself to fall into these self-analytical musings in my diary entries any more but the temptation, it seems, still remains. And what was it I was saying earlier about artists flagging up their angst like a banner advertising a supermarket sale?
I'll move on.
My reading, over these last few busy months, has been confined to bedtime, as per usual. Books read (or still being read), are:-
'LAFF' by John Boyle.
'WHY MRS BLAKE CRIED: (William Blake and the Sexual Basis of Spiritual Vision.)'
by Marsha Keith Schuchard.
'THE PALACE OF STRANGE GIRLS.' by Sallie Day.
'THE BOYS BOOK OF AIRFIX.' by Arthur Ward.
'CARTOONS AND CORONETS. (The Genius Of Osbert Lancaster.') by James Knox.
'PHILOSOPHY. The great thinkers.' by Philip Stokes.
'IN THE COUNTRY OF COUNTRY.' by Nicholas Dawidoff.
'THE ILLUSTRATORS. The Art Of British Illustration 1800-2007.'
'THE MAKING OF WAKEFIELD. 1801-1900.' by Kate Taylor.
'THE GOLDEN BUILDERS.' by Tobias Churton.
'THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE.' by Peter Marshall.
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As far as listening to music goes, (as opposed to making it), my pleasure tends to be restricted to the car, whilst driving. Albums recently played are:
'TOGETHER THROUGH LIFE.' by Bob Dylan.
'LAST NIGHT THE MOON CAME DROPPING ITS CLOTHES IN THE STREET.' by Jon Hassell.
'HALLMARKS.' by Jim Hall.
''I, FLATHEAD.' by Ry Cooder.
'HISTORY, MYSTERY' and also 'FOLKSONGS.' by Bill Frisell.
' WRITTEN IN CHALK.' by Buddy and Julie Miller.
'FINGERPICKING GUITAR DELIGHTS.' by various artists.
'HANK WILLIAMS-The Absolutely Essential Collection.' by Hank Williams.
'SO MUCH GUITAR!' by Wes Montgomery.
'GREEN STREET.' by Grant Green.
'ELLA FITZGERALD SINGS COLE PORTER.' by Ella Fitzgerald.
'EAST!' by Pat Martino.
'GIL EVANS.' by Gil Evans.
'SWING IS THE THING.' by The Mills Brothers.
'THE BEST OF GEORGE FORMBY.' by George Formby.
'PORGY AND BESS.' by Miles Davis.
There are various other happenings, doings, commentaries, observations, trials and tribulations that I might have added to this diary entry, if only I'd found more spare time to bring the reader completely up to date...but I've already spent far too much time typing when I really should be working on Nelsonica preparations and projects. Already, despite several omissions, this long overdue entry has taken a couple of days to assemble. So, I'll close here.
Hopefully, another entry before too long...or at least a little sooner than it took for THIS one to appear. I'll attempt to include a few more of the events of the last six months in it. For now though, it's back to the mixing desk and the drawing board.
But back with you soon, given a little luck and a following wind.
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*****
Attached images are:-
1: Django in my studio.
2: Some of the guitars I use for jazz tones.
3: A self-made 'Fancy Planets' advert.
4: Another variation of same.
5: Just one of several recent wedding floral arrangements by Emiko.
6: Nelsonica 09 T-shirt design.
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