Just started reading John Cooper Clarke’s autobiography, I Wanna be Yours. It is predictably excellent, but for the first time ever I’m wondering whether an audiobook, read by the author, would be the ideal way to experience this.
Off Topic The Review Thread
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Heard him on the radio last week plugging the book - hilariously dry throughout the interview. Audiobook would be fun.
Took Jnr to see him at a festival last year, think the whole campsite were jammed into the tent to listen to him!
Have made my way through three books in the last few weeks, two of which I listened to while cycling [not on the roads].
(1) Mythos by Stephen Fry [audio]. A fantastic retelling of the Greek myths - many of which are very familiar, and some of which were either new or more expansive than I'd appreciated. Nicely chunked up into individual stories and so you almost feel like you're listening to a podcast series. Enjoyable to realise how much of today's language and culture is still derived from these stories. [Or perhaps how much of the Hellenic culture which they projected into these myths we still live with, but you know what I mean.)
(2) A Bit of a Stretch by Chris Atkins [audio]. Fascinating account of Atkins' experience of HMP Wandsworth, how he coped, what he saw, and his reflections on what might need to change in our prisons to make them more effective. If you've read 'The Secret Barrister' book and have an understanding of how easy it could be for an innocent person to end up in prison, the account is slightly chilling.
(3) This Is London by Ben Judah. Oddly gripping account of those who you might never meet in London - from Romanian tramps living in Hyde Park to the super rich Arab community a few roads away. Judah goes to live with many of these communities, including sleeping rough for a period of time and sharing an overcrowded room with four Polish builders, to best capture the thoughts and feelings of the people he interviews. Perhaps best described as a 'fly on the wall' book? Definitely a book which gets you pondering.
(1) Mythos by Stephen Fry [audio]. A fantastic retelling of the Greek myths - many of which are very familiar, and some of which were either new or more expansive than I'd appreciated. Nicely chunked up into individual stories and so you almost feel like you're listening to a podcast series. Enjoyable to realise how much of today's language and culture is still derived from these stories. [Or perhaps how much of the Hellenic culture which they projected into these myths we still live with, but you know what I mean.)
(2) A Bit of a Stretch by Chris Atkins [audio]. Fascinating account of Atkins' experience of HMP Wandsworth, how he coped, what he saw, and his reflections on what might need to change in our prisons to make them more effective. If you've read 'The Secret Barrister' book and have an understanding of how easy it could be for an innocent person to end up in prison, the account is slightly chilling.
(3) This Is London by Ben Judah. Oddly gripping account of those who you might never meet in London - from Romanian tramps living in Hyde Park to the super rich Arab community a few roads away. Judah goes to live with many of these communities, including sleeping rough for a period of time and sharing an overcrowded room with four Polish builders, to best capture the thoughts and feelings of the people he interviews. Perhaps best described as a 'fly on the wall' book? Definitely a book which gets you pondering.
I’ve read the first two and The Secret Barrister (frightening stuff) and will try This is London. Thanks for the recommendation.
Just noticed this after my post. Being time poor with a busy patch at work and sprog #2 I've tried a few more audio books recently, combined with cycling to kill two birds with one stone. With the right book it's very enjoyable. Bit frustrating not to be able to highlight great quotes or pause to think without scrabbling around with a phone though.
Just bought tickets for the Hyde Park bash in July next year, mainly for the wife, but we are going with friends so should be a hoot - Duran Duran, Nile Rodgers/Chic, Grace Jones. It also emerged that my daughter almost literally bumped into Nile Rodgers (certified musical genius) in Heathrow last year and got a very big wink and and a grin for her ‘wow, it’s you’ comment. I’m proud she knows who he is, as. 20 year old.
Review to be supplied.
Review to be supplied.
Mrs saw Nile Rogers a couple.of years ago - you are in for a treat!
As we're on previews rather than reviews at the moment, my birthday present to my wife (her birthday is annoyingly close to Christmas) is tickets to the Alfie Boe and Michael Ball Les Miserables show at the Sondheim theatre next week. I'm oddly excited by the prospect.
It might get a bit messy in the bar at half time.
Mainly for my wife
In all seriousness, I really like all three of those performers. I love Nile Rodgers, I saw Duran Duran live about six times in the eighties and nineties. John Taylor is right up there with the great bass guitar players and doesn't receive the acknowledgement he deserves. Le Bon never fails to give 100% on stage. His bum note at Live Aid during the performance of ' A View To A Kill ' still haunts me. Grace Jones's Slave To The Rhythm, drum part is something I often listen to. It's wonderful. The breaks and the the fills and all of the off beats require remarkable timing. The song was produced by Trevor Horn so it had to be good. His 2004 concert at Wembley Arena is a treat if you YouTube it. There's also a good Frankie Goes To Hollywood performance on there with a video of how they found a replacement for Holly Johnson who refused to perform.
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I ordered my copy of 'This is London,' it arrived this morning. Unfortunately it arrived upside down, which rendered it completely unreadable. Such a shame.
Well I tried to read it but it started from the end.
Btw, did he get to live with the Arabs?
How odd. I got the impression he spent a few days / nights with them, but not the whole night given it was mostly rich younger women [one referred to as a princess] betrothed to sheikhs etc.
Cheers Raving, I'll get to read it. Having driven a cab around London, I've witnessed the inequalities of that area and it is quite astounding what you can witness from one side of the street to the other. Absolute extremes. Apologies for the attempted joke.
One of my favourites, and another classic, on BBC2 tonight - The Hill. A very young Sean Connery amongst others, haven't seen this for years
Sidney Lumet, a brilliant director, and Harry Andrews is excellent.
I watched a chunk of this. Really very good indeed, but man it’s bleak. Like, unremittingly bleak. I’m sure they used to show it in the afternoon on telly in the old days.
Connery was well into his spell as Bond when it was made.