MARILYN

I have always been obsessed by Marilyn but lately it has grown and deepened. An appreciation of her trying to find her, the person, the vulnerable and adored. I have an understanding as to how bright and sensitive she was, her poetry, her letters and statements. Evidence of her human side rather than being 'her' as she would put it! I have a theory which I am sure is not unique that she was woman shaped and everyone loved her because of it. The camera loved her for a massive variety of reasons but we loved her because she was a universal, a Jungian archetype, the sexy girl woman next door and the glamorous star. Here's more evidence . . . . . . 

American photographer Sam Shaw took these intimate photographs of Marilyn Monroe and her husband, the playwright Arthur Miller, eating hot dogs from a New York street stand in 1957.
These photos, taken over the course of 3 days in New York with Marilyn's husband Arthur Miller are especially poignant because they were taken just a month after Marilyn suffered a miscarriage. In every shot she’s so plump and youthful and healthy and full of hope and love, the shots with Miller are intimate and gentle, and you can see his adoration of her and all the comfort he gave her at that point in their relationship.

Personally HOW can she do this?
She is eating for pity's sake!
We all look dreadful with food in our mouth. Not Marilyn! She looks unaware of the camera (she wouldn't have been) she appears natural and unselfconscious. She is with her husband who she adored and it again is my contention that had she been able to conceive they would have stayed together much longer . . . . her some several (at least four) miscarriages bely the tragedy that she was always looking, desperately searching, for someone who could bring her what she needed but it was not to be 

Here is the evidence she is with normal everyday folk and is entirely at home . . . . 

but here in a shift dress looks simply stunningly sexy!

TRUE STORIES!

Don't forget to Shop!

People Like Us

Not only driving, but parking . . . . hey, there's Louis! . . . . . 

MARTY BALIN 

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MARTY BALIN R.I.P. 1942-2018

Marty Balin, a co-founder of the legendary rock band Jefferson Airplane whose soulful tenor contributed to the band’s distinctive sound, has died at the age of 76, his representative said on Friday. The guitarist and singer, who co-founded the psychedelic group in San Francisco in 1965, died on September 27, with his wife, Susan Joy Balin, by his side, spokesman Ryan Romenesko said in a statement. The cause of death was not announced.

Jefferson Starship, the splinter band that Balin also played in for a number of years, paid tribute to their former bandmate on its official Facebook site. “With heavy hearts, we learn today of the passing of Marty Balin. He was a true talent and inspiration to many. We send his family and friends our deepest condolences,” the group said. Balin teamed up with the guitar player Paul Kantner in San Francisco and the band launched its debut album, Jefferson Airplane Takes Off, in 1966. Kantner died in 2016.

The band, best known for their hits sung by the vocalist Grace Slick, including Somebody to Love and White Rabbit, played at the Woodstock music festival in 1969. It was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1996. Balin also wrote songs like Volunteers and Today for the band, as well as contributing to hits for Jefferson Starship, including Runaway and Miracles. The band went through various line-ups, and Balin left Jefferson Starship in 2008 to focus on a solo career. - theguardian.com

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From his website:

Marty Balin

Michelangelo claimed that he did not create a sculpture. Rather, the form was contained within the block of marble; he merely removed the excess, revealing the work of art. “I feel the same way about music, and about all the projects I’m involved in. The projects do themselves; the music comes through me.” The same vision Marty had when he launched the Jefferson Airplane is present today. In fact, nearly everything he has worked on over the years has been fueled with his vision of art and music as vehicles for expressing a positive message. “I still have the same attitude. “I still love the positive, uplifting songs, and I believe in songs with those qualities. I believe that music can help change the world for the better.”

Know I love you baby yes I do!

Grace and Marty

peaking . . . . . 

Marty web here . . . .

Nuff said . . . . . . I love the story behind this song, that Macca wrote it for Julian upon the break up of his parents and reassuring the boy everything would be all right. John choosing to know he wrote it for these reasons . . . . . goes towards exactly how close these two were . . . closer than brothers

 . . .take a sad song and make it better . . . . . 

On this day in music history: September 28, 1968 - “Hey Jude” by The Beatles hits #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 9 weeks. Written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, it is the biggest hit for the iconic British rock band. The first release on the bands Apple Records label, the single clocks in at an unprecedented 7:11, more than twice the length of the average record played on the radio during this time. At the time of its release, it has the highest chart debut in the history of the Hot 100 by entering at #10 on September 14, 1968. “Hey Jude” moves swiftly upward, jumping to #3 the following week, then to #1. Jude’s B-side “Revolution” also charts, peaking at #12 on September 21, 1968. Shortly after the track is recorded, the band video tape promotional clip for the song. The video is directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, who had previously worked with The Beatles on the clips for “Paperback Writer” and “Rain” two years earlier. The clip is shot at Twickenham Studios in London on September 4, 1968, with an audience present, who appear in the background and sing the songs’ epic chorus with the band. British TV host David Frost also tapes introductions for the clip, which are shown on his talk show “Frost On Sunday” on September 8, 1968. The band also shoot a promo clip for the B-side “Revolution” on the same day, which is also aired on Frost’s progam. Both clips feature The Beatles singing live to the pre-recorded instrumental tracks, to avoid the “miming ban” imposed by Musician’s Union in the UK.  In the US, both promotional clips are shown on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour on October 6, 1968, with George Harrison making a guest appearance on the show. “Hey Jude” becomes The Beatles biggest selling single of all in the US, selling more than four million copies, and is ranked the number one record of 1968 by Billboard Magazine. “Jude” is widely covered by numerous other artists including Elvis Presley and Wilson Pickett. The Beatles’ original version is inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame in 2001. “Hey Jude” is certified 4x Platinum in the US by the RIAA.

thanks to Jeff Harris' blog

Aw heck . . . . . it's Friday whatcha gonna do!?

John Prine and Mr Bill Murray and the Steel Drivers  'Paradise' 

The political answer to the current malaise of divisiveness  and split between the parties left and right taking moral decisions , . . . . . . . the answer is here and this is my Friday message to the planet

LET'S WORK TOGETHER!

Canned Heat

Boogie . . . . . 

I bought 'Kites' by Simon Dupree and The Big Sound when it came out and loved that tentative exploration of British hippy vibe but the band had started out as a R'n'B band not dissimilar to the Pretty Things or early Stones and Plain and Fancy has the re-issue album of collected work from EMI worth checking for all you old hippies out there. 




Once again the notes for these make fascinating reading and here by Bruce Eder  . . . . . . 

Simon Dupree & The Big Sound - Rockasteria blog

Re-aquaint yourselves with a wonderful set from Richard Thompson over at Floppy Boot Stomp this morning

Richard Thompson Live at Peabodys 1986 Floppy Boot Stomp

Richard Thompson - Peabodys Downunder
February 1, 1986
 Cleveland OH.
FM Source @vbr

1 uncut file at 1:52:21

Set List
1-Introduction
2-Turning Of The Tide
3-Waltzing's For Dreamers
4-Talk
5-Two Left Feet
6-Talk
7-When The Spell Is Broken
8-Talk
9-Push And Shove
10-I Still Dream
11-Talk
12-The Choice Wife
13-Talk
14-Al Bowly's In Heaven
15-Jerusalem On The Jukebox
16-Talk
17-Down Where The Drunkards Roll
18-Valerie

Play the game . . . . . turn the cheek, take it on the chin . . . . . oh the nerve of some people

If you listen to one thing today . . . . . make it this


Richard Thompson - 13 Rivers here . . . .

Have we had any 'Blondie' for a while? . . . . . Pop brilliance par excellence . . . bar none
"Fade away and radiate . . . . . . . . dreaming is free"

On this day in music history: September 27, 1979 - “Eat To The Beat”, the fourth album by Blondie is released. Produced by Mike Chapman, it is recorded at The Power Station, Mediasound Studios and Electric Lady Studios in New York City from April - June 1979. Coming right on the heels of their Platinum selling breakthrough album “Parallel Lines”, Blondie return to the studio in the Spring of 1979 with producer Mike Chapman. However, with the bands profile now at an all time high, comes excessive drug use and in-fighting between the band members, which hinders the creative process. In spite of this, they move ahead with the ambitious project which is not only conceived as a standard record album, but as an accompanying extended form video album, with music videos shot for each of the albums twelve songs. Blondie work in tandem with director David Mallet (David Bowie), which are initially released as a promotional VHS tape simultaneously with the LP, and then commercially on video cassette and laser disc in October of 1980. Musically, Blondie continue to experiment and push the boundaries of their sound, expanding on their pop, punk and new wave roots by incorporating reggae and funk into the mix. The album is well received by the public, especially in the UK where like the previous release, hits the top of the charts. It spins off three singles including “Dreaming” (#27 Pop) and “Atomic” (#39) (both featuring songwriter Ellie Greenwich on backing vocals). Singer and actress Lorna Luft (daughter of Judy Garland and half-sister of Liza Minnelli) sings backing vocals on “Slow Motion” and “Accidents Never Happen”. Some promo copies of the LP are packaged with a press kit, including a pair of 8 x 10 photos of Debbie Harry and the band, a six page booklet titled the “Blondie Travel & Restaurant Guide”, and a poster promoting their then upcoming TV appearance on the Midnight Special on October 5, 1979. The album is remastered and reissued in 2001 with four additional bonus tracks, featuring two live tracks recorded at New Year’s Eve concert at the Apollo Theatre in Glasgow, Scotland, a live cover of the Bowie classic “Heroes” recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon in London in January of 1980, and their version of the Johnny Cash classic “Ring Of Fire” included on the “Roadie” soundtrack in 1980. The album is reissued again in 2007, including a bonus DVD of the long out of print video album. “Eat To The Beat” peaks at number seventeen on the Billboard Top 200, and is certified Platinum in the US by the RIAA.

I'll have a cup of tea and tell you of my dreaming . . . . . . . 

thanks to Jeff Harris' blog Behind The Grooves

Now we're talking! A great album and angry guitar sounding angst is key! 
This man is a poet and truly creative talent   . . . . . the band are as tight as a gnats chuff too!

On this day in music history: September 27, 1994 - “Monster”, the ninth album by R.E.M. is released. Produced by Scott Litt and R. E.M., it is recorded at Kingsway Studios in New Orleans, LA, Crossover Soundstage in Atlanta, GA, Criteria Studios in Miami, FL, Ocean Way Recording in Los Angeles, CA from April - May 1994. Marking a dramatic shift away from the quieter tone of the bands two previous albums, “Monster” features more loud, aggressive guitar driven material. The band experiences numerous set backs during the recording sessions, with drummer Bill Berry and bassist Mike Mills becoming ill on different occasions, bringing a halt to recording. Once recording starts again in Miami, sessions are stopped once again when lead singer Michael Stipe has to have emergency dental surgery. These events put the band way behind schedule in completing the album, leading to tensions that nearly cause R.E.M. to break up. The first single “What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?” (#21 Pop, #1 Modern Rock, #2 Mainstream Rock), whose title is inspired by an incident in which CBS news anchor Dan Rather is victim of an unprovoked attack by two mentally disturbed men shouting the phrase at him. The album spins off three more singles including “Bang And Blame” (#19 Pop, #1 Modern Rock, #3 Mainstream Rock) and “Crush With Eyeliner” (#33 Modern Rock, #20 Mainstream Rock). “Monster” spends two weeks at number one on the Billboard Top 200, and is certified 4x Platinum in the US by the RIAA.

thanks to Jeff Harris' blog

B ★ O ★ W ★ I ★ E  

HALLO SPACEBOY!

On this day in music history: September 26, 1995 - “Outside”, the nineteenth album by David Bowie is released. Produced by David Bowie, Brian Eno and David Richards, it is recorded at Mountain Studios in Montreux, Switzerland from Late 1994 - Early 1995.  David Bowie reconnects with his former collaborator Brian Eno when Bowie marries Somalian supermodel Iman in 1992. At the wedding, Bowie and Eno talk about working together again (for the first time since “Lodger” in 1979), but at first is unsure what musical direction they will take. Unlike their previous projects, they enter the studio without any material prepared ahead of time.  What they come up with is a concept album based on a short story by Bowie entitled “The Diary of Nathan Adler” which revolves around a dystopian world on the eve of the twenty first century.Bowie and Eno write many of the albums songs along with Tin Machine guitarist Reeves Gabrels.  It spins off three singles including “Hallo Spaceboy” and “The Hearts Filthy Lesson” (#92 Pop), the latter of which is heard over the end credits of David Fincher’s film “Se7en”. “Outside” peaks at number twenty one on the Billboard Top 200.

again thanks to Jeff Harris' blog Behind The Grooves

You need to pay attention with David Bowie I feel and this set slipped the net with me and (call yourself a Brian Eno fan?) how can that be? . . . . . . it's along boring story but I caught up later. I think I first found this by watching the film and then checking out what album the track came from. This is truly fascinating as is all the collaborative work for this listener with Eno involved and frankly so is everything he produced after marrying his beautiful wife Iman, when he seems to have become settled in his skin somehow and producing like a proper fine artist. I cannot put it any better than that and I am not sure Bowie fans would agree with me. It's just a feeling . . . . from this to 'Dark Star' I followed everything again.

Yesterday saw the anniversary of the release of my top three Beatles album 'Abbey Road', it rotates with Revolver, Sgt Pepper and Rubber Soul so it's a foursome really but some folks only allow me a top three (huh? - ED) 

If I want cheering up I can still rely on what has come to be known as the Abbey Road Medley with the alternating guitar break legend, Golden Slumbers, Carry That Weight, The End although personally I like to conclude Mean Mr Mustard, Polythene Pam segueing into the last three, put it on, it will cheer you up I guarantee!

Beatles - Abbey Road Medley Golden Slumbers from dave christian on Vimeo.

On this day in music history: September 26, 1969 - “Abbey Road”, the eleventh album by The Beatles is released (US release is on October 1, 1969). Produced by George Martin, it is recorded at EMI Abbey Road Studios and Trident Studios in London from February 22 - August 20, 1969. Following the acrimonious recording sessions for “Get Back/Let It Be” earlier in the year, the band decide to put aside their personal differences, to record one more album free of the conflict that marred those sessions. Though it isn’t exactly like their past working relationship, the sessions are productive and largely problem free. The first half of the album consists of individual songs, while the second half comprises mostly of a nearly side long medley running nearly sixteen and a half minutes with most of the songs written by Paul (“You Never Give Me Your Money”, “She Came In Through The Bathroom Window”, “Golden Slumbers”, and “Carry That Weight”, with “Mean Mr. Mustard” and “Polythene Pam” being written by John). The end result of the sessions is one of the strongest albums of the bands career. Though at the time of its releases, it receives mixed reviews from critics who also complain about its then record high list price of $6.98. The albums iconic cover by photographer Iain Macmillan (with graphics designed by John Kosh “aka Kosh), is taken in the zebra crossing in front of the famed recording studio. It spins off the double A-sided single "Come Together/Something” (#1 Pop). “Abbey Road” spends eleven weeks at number one (non-consecutive) on the Billboard Top 200. It is the first of The Beatles albums to pass the ten million mark in sales worldwide in 1980, becoming their largest selling studio album. It is the first Beatles album to be issued on CD, when it is released by EMI/Odeon in Japan in 1983 as part of the “Black Triangle” disc series. However, it remains in the marketplace for only a brief time before it is withdrawn, as it has been released without legal clearance from Apple Corps. “Abbey Road” is officially released on a worldwide basis in 1987, and is remastered and reissued in 2009. The vinyl release of the album, out of print since the mid 90’s is remastered and reissued as a 180 gram LP in 2012.  "Abbey Road" is inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame in 1995, and is certified 12x Platinum in the US by the RIAA, receiving a Diamond Certification.

P.S I love the back cover photo nearly as much as the front . . . . such a particular mood and we bought this classic album when it came out and it was never off the turntable for weeks on end. Well you should see Plothene Pam, she's so good looking though she looks like a man . . . . yeah John sure! 😉 I have no memory of it being expensive over here but hey, it's a Beatles album for pity's sake! 

thanks to Jeff Harris' wonderful blog Behind The Grooves

Paul & Linda in 1989/90 tour

"And in the end the love you take is equal to the love you make . . . . . . "

Classic singles of all time . . . .  riff me this!

On this day in music history: September 26, 1964 - “Oh, Pretty Woman” by Roy Orbison hits #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for 3 weeks. Written by Roy Orbison and Sam Dees, it is the biggest hit for the legendary singer and songwriter born in Vernon, TX. The song is inspired by Orbison’s wife Claudette. When Roy asks her if she needs any money (to go shopping), Dees says to her “a pretty woman never needs any money”. Deciding that “pretty woman” would make a great song title, the two get right to work, writing the song in an afternoon. Recorded at Monument Studios in Nashville, TN in the Summer of 1964, “Oh, Pretty Woman” is completed in only two takes.  Released in early August of 1964, it is an instant smash. Entering the Hot 100 at #51 on August 29, 1964 it hurdles to the top of the chart four weeks later. Ironically, “Oh, Pretty Woman” is his last major hit for almost twenty five years. In the years following, Orbison suffers major personal tragedies when he loses his wife Claudette in a motorcycle accident in 1966, and two years later loses two of his three sons in a house fire while he’s away on tour. After the devastating losses, he won’t perform publicly for nearly ten years. He experiences a major career resurgence in the 80’s as a member of The Traveling Wilburys with George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and Jeff Lynne. That success restarts his solo career when he records the album “Mystery Girl” with Lynne and Petty co-producing. Sadly, Orbison passes away from a heart attack on December 6, 1988. He scores his tenth and final top 10 hit with “You Got It” (#9 Pop) posthumously in April of 1989. “Oh Pretty Woman” is inducted into the Grammy Hall Of Fame in 1999, and is certified Gold in the US by the RIAA.

Imagine writing a song like this to your wife! Awesome song and killer riff, made famous twice by the film of the same name. 

with thanks to Jeff Harris' blog Behind the Grooves

LEON REDBONE

We haven't featured any Leon Redbone for a while and it is odd because he is or was certainly an old favourite and I would have a separate section on him back in the day. 
I have pretty much every album released and enjoy them all . . . . . here's why

JOHN BONHAM

Yesterday was the anniversary of John Bonham's death and he stands as perhaps the greatest rock drummer of all time


 Led Zeppelin - 'Moby Dick' Live at the Royal Albert Hall 1970

An alcoholic and depressive (he was on medication for anxiety and depression) he was found dead having choked on his own vomit at the age of 32 after a day spent drinking something approaching 1.5 litres of vodka having been put to bed at Jimmy Page's house in Windsor. He was found to have a blood alcohol level of  of 276 milligrams per hundred millilitres. 

Note: 35 milligrams per hundred millilitres is the drink drive limit. 

As you were . . . . . . . . but not quite ever again . . . . . . 

On this day in music history: September 25, 1967 - “Strange Days”, the second album by The Doors is released. Produced by Paul A. Rothchild, it is recorded at Sunset Sound Recorders in Hollywood, CA from May - August 1967. With their debut album finally taking off with the release of “Light My Fire” the same month, The Doors begin recording the follow up.This time, the band have more advanced technology at the their disposal, recording on an eight track multi-track tape machine. They also have one of the first Moog synthesizers built to experiment with. Having previously covered Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill’s “Alabama Song (Whisky Bar)”, many of the songs on “Strange Days” have a darker and moodier feel like that German cabaret song. That feel is most apparent in the first single “People Are Strange” (#12 Pop), though many of the songs were written at the same time as their debut and represents what they have in reserve. Those songs include “Moonlight Drive”, based on a poem written by Jim Morrison and “My Eyes Have Seen You”. The cover photos are taken by photographer Joel Brodsky, though do not feature The Doors themselves. Instead it uses a group of street performers including a strong man, a musician, a juggler, acrobats and twin dwarfs (seen individually on the front and back), in an alley way. With these type of performers hard to come by even in New York, a cab driver is commandeered and paid $5 to participate in the photo shoot, with Brodsky’s assistant standing in as the juggler. The Doors themselves are represented on the cover in the form of a poster on the alley wall with the album title posted underneath it. In spite of this, Elektra Records affixes a sticker to the shrink wrap to make it more easily identifiable as a Doors album. Released only nine and a half months after their debut, “Strange Days” starts off strong but quickly loses momentum and sells considerably less. It spins off two singles including “Love Me Two Times” (#25 Pop), with the closing track “When The Music’s Over” also becoming an airplay favorite. Issued with both dedicated mono and stereo mixes, part of the original press run of mono LP jackets are printed in error with the stereo LP prefix “EKS” on the sleeve spine instead of “EKL” as indicated on the front and back. Originally issued on CD in 1985, it is remastered and reissued in 1999, and is reissued again for its fortieth anniversary in 2007 with new remixes. The album is also reissued as a 180 gram vinyl LP by Rhino Records in 2009. “Strange Days” is also issued with 5.1 surround remixes (and the original stereo mixes) as a hybrid SACD by Analogue Productions in 2013. The mono mix of the album, out of print since 1968, is reissued as 180 gram vinyl LP on Record Store Day in April of 2015, individually numbered and limited to 12,500 copies. “Strange Days” peaks at number three on the Billboard Top 200, and is certified Platinum in the US by the RIAA.

Bought this [and the album] when it came out . . .still have it and it was a moment in music history. . . truly

On this day in music history: September 25, 1979 - “The Pleasure Principle”, the third album by Gary Numan is released (UK release is on September 7, 1979). Produced by Gary Numan, it is recorded at Marcus Music AB in London from July - August 1979. Following two successful albums as the front man for the groundbreaking post-punk synth pop band Tubeway Army, musician Gary Numan begins recording solely under his own name in mid 1979. This happens just as the band scores their biggest success in the UK with the single “Are Friends Electric?” (#1 UK) and the album “Replicas” (#1 UK). Continuing to work with Tubeway Army bassist Paul Gardiner, Numan adds musicians Cedric Sharpley (drums and percussion), and Chris Payne (keyboards and viola) to fill out the rhythm section.  Heavily influenced by German synth pioneers Kraftwerk, Numan constructs a more synthesizer dominated sound, alternately layering multiple Minimoog and Polymoog parts treated with various effects. He also uses synthesized percussion, including the Star Instruments Synare electronic drum in tandem with a standard acoustic drum kit. The new album also differs from the two Tubeway Army albums as there are no guitars featured on any of the tracks, giving it an even more otherworldly atmosphere. It is released to a rapturous response in Numan’s home country and establishes him as a star on an international basis. It spins off two singles including “Complex” (#6 UK), and the landmark “Cars” (#1 UK, #9 US Pop). Regarded as a classic of the synth pop genre, “Cars” and the rest of “The Pleasure Principle” album also proves highly influential not only on other synthesizer based musicians, but on Hip Hop culture and the Electro-Funk music genre. In 2009, the album is reissued as a two CD set featuring a remastered version of the original album on the first disc, and a second including previously unreleased demo versions and outtakes. “The Pleasure Principle” spends two weeks (non-consecutive) at number one on the UK album chart, peaking at number sixteen on the Billboard Top 200.

THE KINKS

Great set from Big O this morning from one of Britain's greatest songwriters, The Kinks' Ray Davies, without whom . . . . etc etc . . . this is a great pre-FM broadcast of the Kinks in their prime from 1980 so is great quality and the band are here during their heavy rockingest (it's a word! It really isn't - ED) era. Check out the lead guitar from brother Dave here, check out 'You Really Got Me'! Extraordinary heavy rock! Given that the band were influences on Mod and Punk and everything since this is really enjoyable!

The Kinks - New York Dec 31 1980

MARCEL MARCEAU

it is maybe worth reflecting on the story of the world's greatest mime artist. the man upon whom all other mime is judged against and the spoof jokes about sliding along an invisible sheet of glass or caught trapped in a box are based. This is who he was . . . . . . . . 

Marcel Marceau, born Marcel Mangel, was a French Jew, originally from Strasbourg.  

His father was murdered in Auschwitz.

  During his teen years, Marceau became active in the French Resistance, in a unit commanded by his cousin, Georges Loinger.  In the Resistance, Marceau was both a forger of false documents for people fleeing the nazis and a resistant who smuggled several hundred Jewish children to safety in Switzerland.  It was while clandestinely moving these young people that Marceau, in order to keep them calm, quiet and entertained, first began to experiment with mime.  

Erich Lessing     Marcel Marceau, Paris     1951

He also credited his experience during the war and the murder of his father with the tragic tone of much of his mime performance.  As he later said: “The people who came back from the camps were never able to talk about it. My name is Mangel. I am Jewish. Perhaps that, unconsciously, contributed towards my choice of silence.” 

another Lessing portrait of Marceau 1951

“I have designed my style pantomimes as white ink drawings on black backgrounds, so that man’s destiny appears as a thread lost in an endless labyrinth… I have tried to shed some gleams of light on the shadow of man startled by his anguish.” 

Marcel Marceau, 1965

Some nice early R.E.M. ROIO's from Matt over at 

EIGHTIES R.E.M. 

Midnight Cafe: REM - Bochum West Germany 2/10/1985

Matt Brewster says:

Notes from Mat: Awhile back somebody gave me a bunch of old REM shows. Unfortunately they mostly didn’t include any text files or other information other than show dates. Also they tend to be low bit rates. I’m not 100% positive I have the correct date on this one as all info I found online lists a bunch of songs that aren’t included in my download. However I am definitely in the camp of any REM is good REM so I’m happy to share.

Midnight Cafe: R.E.M. - These Days, London Hammersmith Odeon 1985

Different Points of View - Dylan's Tangled Up In Blue

In the light of the latest in the Official Bootlegs being announced as 'More Blood, More Tracks - Official Bootleg Vol 14' people are already getting  excited and the guys over at Aquarium Drunkard have just posted this fascinating article:

More Blood, More Tracks – The Bootleg Series Vol. 14, the latest slab of previously unreleased Bob Dylan recordings, lands in early November. The six-disc collection features the complete New York City recording sessions for Blood On The Tracks, giving listeners a fly-on-the-wall look at the creation of one of Dylan’s bona fide masterpieces. In some ways, though, the songwriter has never stopped creating Blood’s opening track, “Tangled Up In Blue.” Onstage, the song has been an ever-changing landscape, a canvas for Dylan that’s never quite complete, lyrically, musically or otherwise. It’s a living, breathing thing. “You’ve got yesterday, today and tomorrow all in the same room, and there’s very little you can’t imagine not happening,” he once said of the song. In other words, you can see the song from many different points of view.

A.D. then explores various version of 'Tangled Up In Blue over the years since it's creation
Truly fascinating 

Of course with the six CD deluxe collection taking advance bookings for what will be a limited edition at £25 per volume a total outlay of nearly £150 may seem a tad steep but as per usual the price offer stands if it should transpire it costs anything lower on publication you will get your money back but I wouldn't hold your breath. Does it occur to anyone that they are actually waiting to see how many folks order at the full price before deciding!? Call me a cynic but that doesn't strike me as the most moral way of pricing your product  . . . . but hey we're probably all dumb enough to shell out anyway!

Bob Dylan - More Blood More Tracks

Well something was going on around this time of the year . . . . . . . 

Classic pop songs of all time . . . . . . 

I didn't 'get' Sheryl until long after she had become famous and don't always enjoy what I have heard but this is about as classic as it gets and is funk rock and then some . . . . . 

I like it . . . . . now
Great guitar . . . . 

On this day in music history: September 24, 1996 - “Sheryl Crow”, the second album by Sheryl Crow is released. Produced by Sheryl Crow, it is recorded at Sunset Sound Recorders, Sunset Sound in Hollywood, CA, and Kingsway Studios in New Orleans, LA from Early - Mid 1996. Following up her multi-platinum, multiple Grammy winning debut “Tuesday Night Music Club”, Crow returns to the studio with producer Bill Bottrell. Bottrell abruptly leaves the project in a dispute over musical direction, with Crow taking over the production duties herself. The album features a number of guest musicians including Neil Finn (of Crowded House), Steve Berlin (of Los Lobos), Jim Keltner and Pete Thomas. It spins off three singles including “If It Makes You Happy” (#10 Pop) and “Everyday Is A Winding Road” (#11 Pop). The album is also the subject of a minor controversy over the lyrics to the song “Love Is A Good Thing” in which one line states, “Watch out sister, watch out brother, watch our children while they kill each other with a gun they bought at Wal-Mart discount stores”. This leads to the mass market retailer banning the album from being carried in their stores when Crow refuses to change the lyrics, or remove the song from the album. The album wins two Grammy Awards for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance (for “If It Makes You Happy”) and Best Rock Album in 1997. “Sheryl Crow” peaks at number six on the Billboard Top 200, and is certified 3x Platinum in the US by the RIAA.