Always been a huge Clapton fan. Saw him here in Oz in 84. His work with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers was classic stuff, as to was his efforts with Cream. Certainly had a self induced obsession with drugs, booze & women...... in no particular order.
Feeling a bit fragile this morning after a great evening out at Glasgow Green watching Queen with Adam Lambert. Was a bit dubious before going, wondering how anyone could step into Freddie Mercurys' shoes, but it was brilliant. Hit after hit, played a lot of the earlier stuff too. Bohemian Rhapsody was one of the biggest sing-a-longs I've been a part of, the crowd were well up for it. Fully recommended (especially as the tickets were half price!)
Freddie Mercury was a one off, but Adam Lambert is about as good a replacement as you can get. Paul Rodgers didn't do a bad job either when he filled in for Freddie when Queen first reformed.
Brilliant evening on Sunday, with The Levellers finishing off the ninth Doune The Rabbit Hole festival. They really were very good, probably just over 1200 in the crowd (a lot of families with smaller kids, and those with work commitments the following day had already left the site). Really energetic set from them rounded off an excellent weekend, with acts as diverse as The Beat, Big Country, The Orb and Peatbog Faeries (have a look over on the music thread for a full rundown of bands I caught over the three days). Having been at larger festivals (Glastonbury, Reading, T in the Park) the smaller ones really do stand out. They may not cater for the masses, but this has the added bonus of not attracting many (if any) larey loud-mouth adolescents wanting a fight with anyone who looks at them. Being a big fan of all music, the wide variety a small festival can provide over a few stages is impressive, from hard-core punk, trippy dance and ceilidh music to folk, rap and psychedelia. Also, they are accessible to all age groups, from fairly new babies about 8 weeks old to people easily in their 70s - and the craft beer on offer was a challenge to work my way through the menu couple of days to recover, then off to Lagos, Portugal where I'll have just missed the Rrs pre-season camp
Just caught a great music documentary on BBC2 Scotland... Rip It Up, Series 1: 1. Blazing a Trail: www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b0bbbv4w via @bbciplayer Three parts - first tonight, about the rise of Scottish pop and rock bands, from Lulu and Middle of the Road, to Nazareth, Sensational Alex Harvey Band, The Skids and Orange Juice, and some bands I never knew were from up this neck of the woods - some very decent footage of a few big bands....loved the stuff from Alex Harvey and co....
SAHB were a great band, great rock and blues but also something of the decadent and strangely sinister cabaret of Wiemar Berlin about them. And Orange Juice were genuinely different as well.
Looking forward to a double-bill of Robert Plant (and his Shapeshifters) and Van Morrison; with full sets from both of them at BluesFest O2. Just received my new Sonos Beam and can highly recommend, and grouped with additional speakers in the room gives an even increased cinematic sound. Well worth the wait.
Just watched the first part of 1066 on BBC4, a history of the events of that year. A complete dogs breakfast of a programme. Dan Snow presented, sometimes on screen, sometimes voiceover. Three historians in a darkened room pretended to be William, Harold, and Harald Hadrada talking about their claims to the throne. Various other talking heads cropped up. And there were chunks of badly dramatised reconstruction of events as they were ‘imagined’. At frequent intervals we were told of the unreliability of the sources and how we can’t ‘really know’ how things played out. The first episode covered just the first month of 1066. All with ADHD editing and overbearing music. What a shame, they obviously spent some dosh on this and it’s potentially a fascinating subject. Should have gone either the full academic route or done a proper dramatised version.
Haven’t seen that 1066 program but I find that once they start ladelling on dramatic music to emphasise just how important what they’re trying to impart is they lose me, too many programs are ruined by this lazy technique. I’ll write a post about it someday, musical accompaniment permitting
Just seen David Sedaris at Cadogan Hall. I’ve enjoyed his books for years and it’s the first time I’ve seen him speak / lecture in the flesh. What a fantastic evening. Highly recommended, as are the books too. Do give his work a try if you haven’t before.
Just stumbled on your post while we are watching episode 1 on iPlayer. A lot of it is unknown to me but a lot of catchy songs in the background (especially now Donovan's excellent Hurdy Hurdy Man is on - Vintage TV put a mesmerising video to it). Wifey will be happy when we get to The Skids and episode 2 with the Associates will be her thing. Mine will be Franz Ferdinand although I'm, sadly, not expecting anything from the Beta Band, Aliens or Steve Mason's wonderful stuff.
I saw the series a few months back and agree it was a bit hotchpotch. For someone who doesn't know much more than the basics, it was informative but could have been condensed. Qualified historians Trash talking each others armies was very cringeworthy. There is a three-parter on Napoleon that I finished earlier this week was much better - very informative and done with a better documentary ethos (although the presenter is a self confessed Bonaparte fan, promotes his book and admits he is trying to redress negative bias towards the subject).
I think I caught one of the Napoleon programmes a few weeks ago and rather enjoyed it. 1066 is fascinating in itself but the really impressive thing is how the Normans completely dominated the English over the next few decades, a genuine military, political and cultural conquest.
I was quite surprised in how the advances in castle building laid a base for an influx of a then advanced culture and societal structure (sort of like a local scale colonisation). I have only a very basic knowledge on a lot of history so learn a lot even from the lower quality, sensationalist melodrama type productions. However, I would advise skipping the Armada series (called 12 Days to Save England) - Anita Dobson as the Virgin Queen was excruciating.
Saw Steve Mason last year- superb. Loved both Beta Band and The Aliens, and would also be a bit suprised (happily) if they are included in the third.
It was great 1982. Got back yesterday, it's my third trip there as my sister-in-laws husband is from there and they have a holiday home in the centre of town. Plenty of really good restaurants for night time, with street entertainers out in the main squares til midnight. There are an abundance of bars scattered around the small streets for beer and sangria. If you have a pool, try to get to some of the beaches on a couple of days - Meia Praia is the main on, easily accessible from the main town dependant upon where you are staying, although the beach at Porto de Mos is better on windier days (you may need a car to get here). We went to a locals restaurant, Restaurante Bom Apetite, for Sunday dinner, and it was the best octopus I've ever tatsed. Bit off the beaten track, but superb. Lagos has plenty of history, it was home to the largest slave market in Europe,and the building is now a museum, in the main square opposite the Santa Maria church (where my sister-in-law got married, and one of my nieces was christened). There is a big dancing party here in the square every Friday night - has to be seen to be believed, but this would never happen back home. One of the great things about Lagos is it's lack of overseas tourists - the majority of people around are Portuguese, although most speak good English (although my bro-in-law was there most of the time to order stuff for us). Prices are generally quite cheap, with a good daily market on the prom overlooking the marina. There don't appear to be big groups of boys or girls getting trashed, and you wouldn't mess with the local police. Have a great honeymoon - if you want some more recommendations, send me a PM
Excellent, many thanks for the info. We're staying a bit out of the way and it's about a 30-40 min walk to the town, but there's regular buses and a road train I think. Glad to hear it's not commercialised and looking forward to some local cuisine, we're half board but I can't eat in the hotel the whole time! I will take you up on your offer of more info and PM you nearer the time. Thanks again.
