Love Amy Winehouse's REHAB - just about to download it from the Apple Store. Had her first CD FRANK but just didn't like it.

Don't rent PRIME with Uma Thurman - it is so boring and you just know what is going to happen from scene to scene. Meryl Streep OKish but not as hysterically funny. I also hated THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA! - dreadfully shallow and pointless. Loved THE QUEEN which I did an Orange Wednesday on last week. Mirren is phenominal as is the rest of the cast except for the awful actor who plays Charles. He actaully played it as a caricature whilst the other actors really got into character as it were.

Best DVD in a while was Spike Lee's, who's work I don't usually like, INSIDE MAN. Very clever and I didn't work it out till the last frame. You have to get over all the heavy politcal references which is pure Lee, but it's worth it. Jodie Foster was excellent in a rare 'bitch' part.

Saw FEAR OF FANNY on BBC3 with Julia Davis who was very good even if she didn't go for the deep voice of the real Craddock. Have yet to watch the recent Cracker and Prime Suspect which I have taped.

Just come back from a fab weekend in Northern Ireland, what fantastic beaches and dales. Went into a really old pub in Port Stewart and listened to some live Irish music. When I say listen, you didn't have much choice, the decibel din was off the scale. What with the music and my half pint of Guinness, I enjoyed the craic!

More vinyl to CD tonight with a magical 1952 recording called ELLA & ELLIS. The smooth voice and perfect phrasing of Ella Fitzgerald and the sophisticated piano playing of Ellis Larkins. With the track listing below you just can't go wrong. It's perfect in everyway and the LP was in excellent nic except for 2 tracks.

How romantic are these titles eh? Plus I don't think anyone [Not even Sinatra] sings Someone To Watch Over Me as good as Ella.

ELLA & ELLIS original recordings cut in 1952
This compilation on MCA Records 1983
SIDE ONE
I'm Glad There Is You
What Is There To say
People Will Say We're In Love
Please Be Kind
Until The Real Thing Comes Along
Makin' Whoopee!
Imagination
Stardust
My Heart Belongs To Daddy
You Leave Me Breathless
SIDE TWO
Baby What Else Can I Do
Nice Work If You Can Get It
Someone To Watch Over Me
But Not For Me
Looking For A Boy
I've Got A Crush On You
Soon
Maybe

New layout to celebrate my first year of blogging. Not sure if I like it but I think that's just because it's different - what do you think?

"Davy has no sense of what wasn't allowed" so said someone in the sleeve notes of the 1964 classic flok album FOLK ROOTS NEW ROUTES Davy Graham on guitar and Shirley Collins singing - which I have just gotten as a present from my partner on CD.

Graham's guitar playing is so attention grabbing that, I hate to say it, but you almost forget that Collins is in there as well singing. His strange arrangements and masterful playing hits you immediately with track 1 NOTTAMUN TOWN. Then when you get to track 4 BLUE MONK which is his first instrumental on the album, you are completely sucked in.
Track 6 REYNARDINE is where you first hear Graham's flirtation with Hindustani music, a track which does work on guitar but one you can imagine being divine on a sitar.
This album is a very different world of music to me and I am not yet
fully attuned. All the titles seem to be in a different language and don't mean much to me. And I am not sure if I will ever be a total convert to folk music as I always find that the high pitch of the female singers is not rich enough for me.
Track 8 RIF MOUNTAIN, another Graham instrumental is a brilliant composition and is quite magnificent, more so than his famous track ANJI which does not appear on this CD.
Whilst it is important that these really old songs are recorded to CD for ever, I feel some of them are mislaced when being sung by Collins. BOLL WEEVIL HOLLER for example which is a song about corn fields in Texas, really needs a knarled male voice with a blues slant to it.

Off to belfast on business this afternoon till Sunday. Ipod already in the bag loaded up with Elvis Costello's The Delivery Man and Ry Cooders Chavez Ravine.

..more later.

Still working but still got the turntable on!

Got to get out and do some errands but am waiting for the rain to stop.

So next for the conversion programme is a fab album by Elton John. Now I am not a huge EJ fan, these days he's just schoomsy plus I hate the way he sings in that pseudo American accent plus I don't actually like his voice that much. It was much, much better in the early days, softer instead of the 'belter' style he seems to have adpoted recently.

When I say this LP is great, not the whole put some parts are really great and it took me right back to when I use to play it years ago, I have even asterisked the titles which were my fave on the cover. And it's actually those track which have made it onto my ipod today.

There are some real credits on the sleeve, Terry O'Niel did the space agey cover, Tom Robinson co-wrote the sublime [and sad] gay ballad Elton's Song and most of the LP was engineered by James Newton Howard. There are 2 wonderful instrumentals included which is probably why the album was a commercial flop as it is a bit of a midge modge, Carla Etude and Fanfare. God, it was good to hear them again and the well scored song about love gone cold, Nobody Wins.

If you have this LP in your collection, dig it out and have a re-listen. It's worth it.

THE FOX 1981
The Rocket Record Company
SIDE ONE
Breaking Down Barriers*
Heart In The Right Place
Just Like Belgium
Nobody Wins*
Facist Faces
SIDE TWO
Cala Etude*
Fanfare*
Chloe
Heels of the Wind
Elton's Song*
The Fox

* - ipodded.

Could it get any darker? Today I feel I have a real case of SAD syndrome made worse bt the fact that I have probably had one of the best summers of my life. I know it's the seasons and it's the way the planet works and all that stuff but quite frankly I need the sunshine and I need to be outside more than in!

My speed of work today is somewhat in the tortoise realm and to cheer myself up I am ploughing through my old vinyl at the same time.
As I am taking them as they are on the shelf, the next up was Bridge Over Troubled Water by S & G. Found that I had all the tracks on CD anyway so moved on to Wet by Barbra Streisand. Would have skipped over this one but my partner is a big Barbra fan so have converted to vinyl accept for one track which was jumping.

It's a concept album and a fairly contrived and insipid one at that,
The front and back covers has Babs in typical 'wet' poses in the bath, all steam and bubbles with a strategically placed water droplet on the bottom lip of her partially opened lip.

Starts with the self penned Wet which actually is quite good but not a leader track at all. Then a limp rendition of Mercer & Arlen's Come Rain Or Shine which ends with a lot of irritaing and false laughs. Splish Splash is vaguely reminiscent of Status Quo and then we fall into the slushly Bergman and Hamlisch stuff she favoured in the 70's.

The one biggie of course is the duet Enough Is Enough with Donna Summer which still stands up and gets the feet tapping.

Here's the rundown:-
WET CBS Label 1979
SIDE ONE
Wet
Come Rain Or Come Shine
Splish Splash
On rainy Afternoons
SIDE TWO
No More Tears [Enough Is Enough]
Niagra
I Ain't Gonna Cry Tonight
Kiss Me In the Rain

No this is not some new music I have discovered, I am in Frankfurt for the Bookfair. Over 2 days I had 10 appointments, one with an extremely tall Vienesse man who was terribly nice but terribly tall - even when sitting down. I am back in my hotel room now and thinking of what the hell I can do until I get up at 4.30am to catch my 7am flight home.

I hate travelling unless it's a holiday and I especially hate being alone in a hotel room. I have promised myself a Jack Daniels later in the bar until then it will be some yoga [I have not been very relaxed over the last 2 days and am a little knotted], something to eat, the JD then settling down to watch THE LIFE OF BRIAN on my laptop.

I have enyoyed my ipod walking to the Messe and back, a touch of the Beautiful South and then the new Diane Krall album.

I am missing my partner and am glad I have this blog to while away 5 minutes and catch up on all my friends blogs!

Guten Tag!

Hope you are all having as much sunshine as me today, I just do not want to let go of summer.

Still on my vinyl journey and dare I tell you what has graced my turntable? For fear of you never reading my blog again I will divulge:

POPULAR CONCERT No. 2 Arthur Fielder & the Boston Pops Orchestra.
And I even lifted a track - Greensleeves, along with Gershwins Summertime, these are my 2 top tunes. The cover of this LP is a sick pink with an equally sick looking, way-to-close-up of Arthur himself complete with large liver spots.

But the cover of the next LP is a real 60's peach. It's TIME TO PLAY Russ Conway. And call me naff but I have lifted Roulette and Side Saddle for my download to the ipod purely because my mum use to play the spoons to these 2 tunes!

Not only is Mr Conway smiking on the cover but what you can't see is the Russ 1 number plate on the Rolls Royce. Heady days eh?

Hope you are all having as much sunshine as me today, I just do not want to let go of summer.

Still on my vinyl journey and dare I tell you what has graced my turntable? For fear of you never reading my blog again I will divulge:

POPULAR CONCERT No. 2 Arthur Fielder & the Boston Pops Orchestra.
And I even lifted a track - Greensleeves, along with Gershwins Summertime, these are my 2 top tunes. The cover of this LP is a sick pink with an equally sick looking, way-to-close-up of Arthur himself complete with large liver spots.

But the cover of the next LP is a real 60's peach. It's TIME TO PLAY Russ Conway. And call me naff but I have lifted Roulette and Side Saddle for my download to the ipod purely because my mum use to play the spoons to these 2 tunes!

Not only is Mr Conway smiking on the cover but what you can't see is the Russ 1 number plate on the Rolls Royce. Heady days eh?

Hope you are all having as much sunshine as me today, I just do not want to let go of summer.

Still on my vinyl journey and dare I tell you what has graced my turntable? For fear of you never reading my blog again I will divulge:

POPULAR CONCERT No. 2 Arthur Fielder & the Boston Pops Orchestra.
And I even lifted a track - Greensleeves, along with Gershwins Summertime, these are my 2 top tunes. The cover of this LP is a sick pink with an equally sick looking, way-to-close-up of Arthur himself complete with large liver spots.

But the cover of the next LP is a real 60's peach. It's TIME TO PLAY Russ Conway. And call me naff but I have lifted Roulette and Side Saddle for my download to the ipod purely because my mum use to play the spoons to these 2 tunes!

Not only is Mr Conway smiking on the cover but what you can't see is the Russ 1 number plate on the Rolls Royce. Heady days eh?