Something for a musical weekend QUOTE

"My music is best understood by children and annimals"

Igor Stavinsky

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aNOtHEr dIp INtO ThE mAGpIE mEMOrY pOOoL.

Desolation Row

I have, from time to time, given those influences that have in some way played a part in the fabric of my Fekenham Tales some 'air space' here. It may be daft to even suggest that a song can influence a wannabe author's tales but this song has played a major part. Not so much in the tune or even the lyrics but rather the way Dylan writes, albeit surreally, of such a wealth of characters that inhabit this song.
The song its self is a masterpiece with Dylan pouring out, to my mind at least, a tune that sounds as if Fellini had directed it. The song is cinematic as characters slide into view and then slink past while we observe them all courtesy of Bob Dylan's visual lyrics. Such a rich range of people all with curious lives of their own that all live and breathe via the wondrous ability of the composer.
Why this hasn't been made into either a short film of a graphic novel is beyond me as it is brilliant in all ways. The tune sparkles with gemstone glitter, the guitar weaves a Spanish sound that dances around the lyrics that are as outrageous as could be wished for.
At over ten minutes long it may seem too much for a 'pop' song but I could listen for much longer and in fact have often wished that Dylan could have created even more odd folk to live down on Desolation Row.

Sheer genius.

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aNOtHEr dIp INtO ThE mAGpIE mEMOrY pOOoL.

Victorian Posters

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aNOtHEr dIp INtO ThE mAGpIE mEMOrY pOOoL.

Tabou Combo

A record found at a flea market some years ago. Tabou Combo come from Haiti and this record was recorded in 1974. The two tracks featured here are the title track "8th Sacrement" and " Pace Domine".

"Formed in the Port-Au-Prince suburb of Petion-Ville by the Chancy brothers, Albert on bass and Adolphe on guitar, this young band won the Radio Haiti mini-jazz competition in 1968. They relocated to Brooklyn in 1971, and their song "New York City," which spoke of the difficulty of life in exile, reached #1 on the Paris pop charts in August 1975. They competed with Ska-Shah for top band honors in the 70s and 80s and fought "musical duels" similar to the Weber Sicot/Jean-Baptiste Nemours battles of the 50s and 60s.

An irresistible live band, Tabou Combo takes Haitian compas to the widest of audiences. From their regular appearances in the '80s at the famous Zenith Theatre in Paris, to an audience of 20,000 in New York's Central Park, to the Jazz and Heritage Festival in New Orleans, in football stadiums throughout the Caribbean, and on the turntables of the top DJs, this band makes people dance. Influenced by funk and soul in their adopted home, Tabou took on the likeness of the Commodores on the covers of their late-'70s releases. They even made a demo tape with hopes of a Motown contract. Their desire to reach the Black US market remains unsatisfied, but they should be proud that popular musicians such as Kassav' from the Antilles/Paris and Wilfrido Vargas from the Dominican Republic have absorbed their music."

Visit the band's official website HERE.

Pioneers over Fifty- Part Three - Thea Gilmore

Thea Gilmore was born in 1979, with music in her blood, of Anglo-Irish parents and with a strong musical influence from artists such as Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, and The Beatles.

She began writing poetry and music at an early age but always, somewhere in her home in Oxfordshire, music played with the constant effect of shaping and flavouring her tastes. Tapping away at a keyboard and writing poetry soon turned to song writing. Music began to rule her life and soon the doodling on the keyboard turned into strumming on an old guitar.

As she grew so did her tastes to encompass true risk-takers like The Replacements, Tom Waits and Elvis Costello. The songs began to flow and the time soon arrived to work at a local studio, Thea left home and quickly discovered that if she wanted to make music her life she’d have to go about it differently.

“I figured that there weren’t many people having sustained careers in the music industry any more. I wanted a chance to develop my music at a pace that suited me, not to be bound by industry standards. So I hooked up with people I really trusted, Nigel Stonier my producer who I met at the studio and my manager Sara Austin. We all decided the hard way was the only way!”

Thea’s first album was released in 1999 on her very own Shameless label and was entitled ‘Burning Dorothy’. It received high acclaim from virtually every corner of the music business.

“vituperative, elegant and sharp as a tack”
-The Observer

Nowadays acts and artists usually go down familiar routes when it comes to releasing albums. It goes something like this.
Year one tour.
Year Two record album.
Year Three release album
Year four have over long holiday
Year five return to studio to knob twiddle.

One year after her first album Thea released her second: ‘The Lipstick Conspiracies’ was released in 2000 and again got virtual blanket approval.

In 2001 Thea met stridently independent label boss Ian Brown from Flying Sparks Records and released what many have described as her breakthrough album. ‘Rules For Jokers’ which was an acoustically driven album with a thoughtful feel which saw her gather even more critical acclaim, afforded her a slot on Later with Jools Holland.

‘This is a stunningly fine album’
**** UNCUT

Not content to rest on her laurels Thea then went to work on her fourth album which she released exclusively on the internet in 2002 (no surprises there then!). The album was entitled ‘Songs From The Gutter’. This was no acoustic follow up but rather a raw and raucous blast of an album. Backed by a paired back four piece band it rattled the walls and shook the windows. Arriving when it did, this album had no real home to go to, and has previously only been available at live gigs.

‘One of the most intelligent and provocative English singer/songwriters around’.
-Mojo

Following upon her album-a-year work ethic, 23-year-old Thea Gilmore signed a new deal with indie label, Hungry Dog Records. She then released her fifth and undoubtedly the best album of her career…

’Avalanche’ was an album of twelve extraordinary songs of majestical musical insight and a mature depth from one of the country’s major artists that belied her years and wooed even the most hard-bitten of musical journos

‘Have you heard the towers are shaking/heard the bible isn’t true/have you heard that you’re mistaken/to want something to cling to’
from ‘Avalanche’- ‘Have You Heard’

‘I like to play with genres. I don’t believe in classification.. So this time around I made a full band album with lots of quirky tics in it and the next album will be different again. I don’t want anyone to expect me to follow some unwritten formula. Keeping my output diverse has been a major part of my career. It keeps me fresh and keeps everyone on their toes... I never did like boxes!’

“some kind of genius” -Logo

‘Avalanche’ was a coming-of-age from a young songwriter. One who had chosen an independent stance. An individual who had no problem in NOT flocking with the herd but preferred roaming free.

“I love you like the tarmac loves the kiss of morning traffic”

Since then Thea has released a number of other albums and appears to be someone who enjoys the work ethic. She even toured whilst heavily pregnant.

If you like your music with punch, power and passion then Thea Gilmore is for you.

Here is a list of her album releases:


Burning Dorothy (1998)
The Lipstick Conspiracies (2000)
Rules For Jokers (2001)
Songs From The Gutter (2002)
Avalanche (2003) UK #62
Loft Music (2003)
Harpo's Ghost (2006) UK #69 (illustrated)
Liejacker (2008)
Recorded Delivery (2009)



The fourth track on my distinctly alternative Brit Rock CD is "Resurrection Man"
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aNOtHEr dIp INtO ThE mAGpIE mEMOrY pOOoL.

Ooeer Missus!

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aNOtHEr dIp INtO ThE mAGpIE mEMOrY pOOoL.

UK Comics part three (The Dandy and Beano)

Now where would UK Comics be without those two standard bearers of the British comic universe?

I am talking of course of The Dandy (1937) and The Beano (1938).

Without either of course there would be no Viz.

But let's go back a bit, back to 1937, three years prior to the Golden Age of comics, back to the time when Arthur Barnes, the Editor who brought into being, on 4th December 1937, The Dandy Comic, as it was originally called, and ushered in a new age for British Comics.

Yep, Arthur was the man responsible for giving us the comic that broke the British comic rule book by dropping the broadsheet look in favour of the tabloid. And, of course, kids loved its easy to hold and easy to read style. Another innovation was the introduction of thought and speech balloons which up until then hadn't existed in British comics.

It was the introduction of some of the greatest ever comic book characters that really fired the public's imagination. Korky The Cat and Desperate Dan being two that instantly jump to mind. As British as the Thames - their appeal, unlike American superhero comics, was not universal but limited to the UK only. But in one area, however, they have proved to be the equal of any comic any where in the world. Longevity. The Dandy is still going to this day and there are no signs of it ever stopping.

The humour of The Dandy along with The Beano is very much of another age and very typically, almost stereotypically, British. Nothing is taken very seriously and there are no, to speak of, adventure strips. Everything is very much of a 'custard pie', or in the case of Desperate Dan, Cow Pie, in the face mode.

The Dandy is now very much a tradition as is the older sibling to the other very succesful 'tradition', The Beano.

The Beano followed hot foot on the success of The Dandy, and was, unashamedly, based upon the earlier forerunner. The Beano arrived with us in July 1938 and like its big brother was a humorous vehicle for another bunch of incredible characters.

Reg Carter gave us Big Eggo. Dudley Watkins created Biffo the Bear both of whom remained as two of the most popular characters and then, in the early fifties came the character who is probably The Beano's most successful and popular character The Worlds Wildest Boy Dennis the Menace who was the brain child, literally, of David Law.

A whole host of others followed. Lord Snooty, Roger The Dodger, Minnie the Minx and, my personal favourite, The Bash Street Kids.

As I have said, both of these enormously successful and popular comics are the stuff of Empire and the glory days of Great Britain but with out them we wouldn't have that very strong strain of modern satirical British comics.

The amazing thing is that their popularity doesn't seem to be waning at all but rather remains pretty constant despite all the social changes that we Brits have gone through. And of course their influence has been enormous and can still be felt today.

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aNOtHEr dIp INtO ThE mAGpIE mEMOrY pOOoL.