Saturday, 14 April, will see the centenary of the sinking of the Titanic. There is little need for me to go into the story of that most famous of all maritime disasters. Movies will be shown on TV (including a new mini-series), the History Channel will take time off from Nazis, aliens and truckers to provide all sorts of perspectives, and all kinds of background and new insights will be offered in newspaper, magazine and Internet articles. So, here I add to the saturation with a mix of songs about maritime disasters, including several that record the sinking [...]
Cougar Microbes has teamed up with Southern Comfort to offer one lucky reader the chance to take three mates to the Southern Comfort Juke Joint party on the 17th November at Islington's Metal Works. On the dance floor you'll rub shoulders with live brass band musicians as they jam along to beats by DJs Blonde [...]
You know the one - "Two little boys had two little toys, each had a wooden horse..." . Most people of a certain age in the UK, will know it as a 1969/1970 Rolf Harris hit, successfully covered in 1980 by Splodgenessabounds. What I didn't know, was that Kenny Rogers & The First Edition did a version on their '71 album - Transition, or that the song was written, twice... over one hundred years ago. This tune first surfaced in 1903, and was a popular recording by Billy Murray. Edward Madden wrote the lyrics, [...]
The great Nick Tosches, one of my fave writers on music, boxing, the mob and a lot of other subjects, recently said the following about the People Take Warning! box set: "I've been sitting here watching the remains of this short-lived country go down the drain, and there is no better soundtrack to this than People Take Warning! , a grand and beautiful set - in every sense, from the remastered recordings to the notes to the extraordinary design work - that gives perspective both to these days and those of the past. This is white-hot history, [...]
Few things in life can lift one's spirit like springtime in the South. The rains that turned the earth into an endless muddy swamp have rousted the greenery from its winter slumber. The bare winter branches of hardwoods are filling with buds and the underbrush brightened with the white blooms of Dogwood. Purple blooms of wisteria hang like ornaments decorating the trees along the back roads. There's no sense washing the car. Before it can dry, everything will be coated in thick, yellow pine pollen. Most folks have turned under their winter cover crop and are readying the [...]
A Century in Jumps (Slight Return) 1937 Boots and His Buddies, The Goo. W. Lee O'Daniel and His Hillbilly Boys, There'll Be Some Changes Made. Charles Trenet, J'ai Ta Main. Maxine Sullivan, Nice Work If You Can Get It. Fred Astaire, (I've Got) Beginner's Luck. St. Louis Jimmy Oden, The Road to Ruin. The Dixon Brothers, The School House Fire. Carmen Miranda, Eu Dei. Original Yellow Jackets,
7 Means of Movement: Sailing Fairport Convention, A Sailor's Life (alternate take). Clifford Jenkins, The Sailor's Alphabet. World Party, Ship of Fools. As dark night drew on, the sea roughened: larger waves swayed strong against the vessel's side. It was strange to reflect that blackness and water were round us, and to feel the ship ploughing straight on her pathless way, despite noise,
The sound of the Hawaiian guitar conjures up images of white sand beaches, palm trees swaying in a gentle breeze, and grass skirts swaying from the hips of graceful Hula dancers. I have long enjoyed the sound of the Hawaiian steel guitar. My grandmother used to mix herself an Old Fashioned and dance to her old 78s of Hawaiian music on hot summer afternoons. My sister and I learned to love the sound of ukuleles and steel guitars. When she passed, I inherited my grandmother's collection of 78 rpm records, including her treasured Hawaiian music. [...]
Well the first day back at work went fairly smooth. I like these short weeks. Next weekend is already within sight. I've always considered myself to be lucky to be able to make a good living doing something that I enjoy. As much as I complain about work, I really do enjoy my chosen career, but, I have been doing it for thirty-two years! I'm not quite ready to retire, but I sure do try to enjoy my time off. The Dixon Brothers - Weave Room Blues.mp3 [...]
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Video: Chromatics - "These Streets Will Never Look The Same"
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