Ginger and the Wildhearts, the year's finale.

Another year and another Ginger Wildheart birthday bash. I have to say that I needed it this year. I have struggled with 2017 as it's not been a kind year.

On Sunday, my wife and I, made our way to Islington to meet our youngest daughter and her boyfriend, for a nice dinner at Carlucio's. As we were leaving, my daughter discovered that she'd lost her 2 tickets, that I had given her the night before. What went through my head was the fact I would be giving her my ticket and I had to put on a brave face, resigning myself to the fact that I would either be being fleeced by a tout for a couple of tickets or I would be missing the gig. Very quickly we came up with another backup plan. I had sent her a photo of her tickets so we thought we'd see if that was enough to get her in. When we got to the venue, the bouncers said we would have to take this up with the box office and let us through. Anouska kept walking and next thing we are all in the gig. Thank f**k!!!
Ginger was on stage for around 3 hours, performing a mixed set from all the different incarnations over the years, various bands and a multitude of people and friends that have worked with him over the years, came on stage for a few songs. He kicked off gently with some of the mellower stuff from his new album, "Ghost in the Tanglewood", moving on to some of his solo stuff and Hey! Hello! A tribute to Husker Du drummer, Grant Hart, "Wichita Lineman" as a tribute to Glenn Campbell and extracts from "Free Falling" and "American Girl" for Tom Petty.
At one point the stage was filled with a mass of wrinkles and grey hair as various punk and fringe rockstars joined the stage which culminated in a stonking version of "Girls are better than Boys" sung by David Ryder Prangley as well as a superb version of "Live Wire" as a tribute to Malcolm Young. The surprise was to see the great Bernie Torme, a man that played with Gillan and stepped into Randy Rhoads shoes after his tragic death, to finish the tour, a great guitarist and he was excellent: Bernie Torme
It was great to see Dregen from the Backyard Babies performing the Supershit 666 songs, an album that I am not overly familiar with but will be buying very shortly.
Finally the Wildhearts closed the show and everything ramped up a gear. There were various guest vocalists singing the songs, finishing with Frank Turner singing "Shittesville" and "29x the Pain". It was a varied night that was more a celebration than a gig, it was disjointed, familiar and amazing, a set that just ramped up till we all got to scream ourselves hoarse to "Sick of Drugs" and another singalong choruses that cropped up in 90% of the songs. The Wildhearts are what live music is about, they are proof that magic is a collective component and despite the genius that is Ginger, there is always something about the Wildhearts that draws us in and him back to them.

I didn't have the blues that I usually get with a Wildhearts gig, knowing that I had (stupidly) booked 2 tickets to see the Wildhearts acoustic, yesterday, in Southampton. Yep, the plan was to drive 2 hours, straight from work, to a gig, 2 hours home and work the next day...Mission accomplished!
I was looking at the acoustic gig as the poor relation and it couldn't have been further from the truth, sure, it wasn't loud but the audience was as deafening as usual, singing their hearts out. The setlist was a dream choice, every song was a killer, but let's take a step back. We got there just before 7.30, the Engine Room in Southampton is in the middle of a small industrial estate, right in the middle of nowhere. We bought T-shirts and I stocked up on a couple of CD's that I didn't have and then Ginger and CJ came out to meet people. Anouska got her ticket signed by both of them, got the CD's signed by Ginger and had a photo taken with each of them.

Support was Dave MacPherson, a very nice guy, a good guitarist and emotive singer.

The Wildhearts acoustic was simply Ginger and CJ playing acoustic arrangements of the Wildhearts songs. They harmonised beautifully and the set was stunning, kicking off with "Stormy in the North, Karma in the South" and going into "You took the Sunshine from New York" and "You are proof that not all Women are insane", "Vanilla Radio" etc.
Geordie in Wonderland
It just shows the quality of the song writing that the songs stand up acoustically as well as they do electrically and the connection between Ginger and CJ is strong, no second guessing except for Ginger forgetting the words to one of the songs and looking blankly at CJ as he sang them. It was a superb night, personal, funny and ultimately sad to reach the end of the night. I did get that hit in the chest when they played "29x the Pain". I will never understand why they weren't a huge stadium band, their songs have enough pop in them an enough hard edges that they should appeal to the rock fraternity as well as the pop metal fans. Ginger is a genuinely nice frontman, his audience love him and he gives back, constantly touring and releasing new music, and like last night, taking the time to spend some time with us, at a cheap gig where the tickets were about £15 each, the T-shirts were a tenner and I am sure his time is worth more than that (I know mine is!).

I am now going to have to buy tickets for the triple header next year when they go out with Reef and Terrorvision...that is after I go to see the Damned at the Koko in Febuary. To steal a couple of lines from "29x..."

"Kiss my Heart
Like The Damned did from the start"

I've not seen the Damned in a few years and as their last album was a stunner and everytime I've seen them they have been amazing, roll on Feb, unless I have to give up my ticket to Anouska...

Finite Days.

A sticking plaster life ripped away in an instant

Leaving behind a healed scratch

That will fade in time.

This is no life lived, it is a shallow existence,

Not through any fault but years lived.

You were not here long enough

To make more than a fleeting impression,

To graze the surface.

A poor child in this life,

A victim of chance and change

And to circumstances beyond any control.

I blinked and missed your entrance and exit,

But I saw your epitaph, and it broke my heart.

I could see the stolen time,

The future that will never be.

I would give you what is left of my years

Just so you could live that little bit more,

To appreciate the life and love,

The tears and the heartache,

To see the finite day and understand what it means.

I have had fifty dark December days like this,

I may have another twenty more

Where you had but nineteen of them.

I should cherish every drop of rain

On this miserable Winter’s day

But life continues on and we complain,

We continue to worry about circumstances

Beyond all control

And it was these same circumstances

That cut your life so short.

I am so sorry.

...the Young brothers single-handedly shaped the sound of a continent...see the sound continue so faithfully through Airbourne...

Is 2017 the year that just keeps taking? I had a very mixed weekend, all Aussie related.

Saturday was a tough one, I was in the pub watching England vs Australia in the Rugby when I had a message from my wife that Malcolm Young had died. Now I have been a huge fan of AC/DC over the years, I have every album, most on vinyl, including the Aussie imports that have different covers and were released under "Albert" rather than "Atlantic". I wasn't such a big fan of their later output but AC/DC and Thin Lizzy were the first rock bands that I truly loved and they both hold a very special place in my heart.
"Powerage" was the first AC/DC album that I really liked. I first heard it in the very early '80's and still think it may be their finest moment. It is a rock hard and uncompromising album, darker than the earlier albums and what was to follow. It has monsters like "Riff Raff", "Gimme a Bullet", "Sin City", "Kicked in the Teeth", "What's Next to the Moon", "Gone Shootin" and my all time favourite AC/DC song, "Down Payment Blues". People may argue that "Let There be Rock" or "Highway to Hell" or "Back in Black" are better albums but this monolithic slab of rock hard greatness, is my choice and it showcases the relaxed, unflinching backline that kept the band together, the unholy trinity of Phil Rudd, Cliff Williams and the great Malcolm Young.
Malcolm died on Saturday and whilst he had been ill, his death, so shortly after his older brother George, is a shock. He was the lynch pin for AC/DC, the leader, the coolness, the talisman. It was his inconspicuousness that set him apart, he did what he did, he wasn't the frontman, he wasn't the lead guitarist but this was his band, his songs and his life's work. I don't mean to detract from Angus, it was his show and he co-wrote the songs with his brother and I can't imagine what he must be going through but Malcolm was the unsung hero.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l482T0yNkeo

On the chorus, watch as Malcolm and Cliff step up to the mic and then step back, giving centre stage to Angus and Bon but they looked so cool doing it and you know that without them, this all falls apart, they are the rock upon which the music stands, the firmest of foundations and that is why AC/DC are such an enduring and great rock and roll band, they built the songs on the strongest of foundations, the rhythm guitar of Malcolm Young. He was superb and I was amazed that they managed to continue after he left band, due to ill health. It always seemed inconceivable that the band could continue without Malcolm or Angus.

So, onto Sunday and I went to see Airbourne play in Oxford, a birthday present from a friend. Airbourne being an Aussie band and knowing that Joel O' Keeffe is a huge AC/DC fan, I wondered what the tribute would be. We had a double header, a tribute to Lemmy and Malcolm,  nice touch but then they interspersed some AC/DC songs in one of their own, as a tribute to Malcolm as well and that was a bit special.
Airbourne are the natural successor to AC/DC, they a hard rock comic book writ large and it would be plagiarism were it not for the fact that they are just so good. They have lifted moves, style, energy and so much that made AC/DC great and made it their own, and somehow it all feels 100% natural, as if we are looking at the heirs to the throne, new rock royalty, no airs and graces.

They make it look so easy but you can bet that a lot of work has gone into their show. It is energetic to a degree that you won't see a live band work this hard, ever. The songs are stompers, you want to stamp your feet and bang your head, you want to scream the chorus back at them and the backline is identical to AC/DC, no fuss, leaving the centre stage to Joel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjKaYp-J9_4
Not from last night but it does give an idea on what they are about.

As I have said before, this band would've changed my life if I was 14 years old but then AC/DC beat them to it. It was a hellishly hot gig, a sold out show on a Sunday night, people packed like sardines, a mix of old and young but every face was ready to be assaulted. Rock music is so primeval, it is the beat of the heart and once you see that, you can't unsee it, it stays with you and it will become your life, it will be filled with solitary moments, of being the only one but it will also have moments where you are in a room with a few hundred like minded people and the common love means you are in a a room full of friends, you don't get that anywhere else, except, maybe with family...rockers bond, it is what we do. My youngest daughter has online friends with people she met at various gigs and and they meet at the next one. Rock was always about family and looking out for each other, it does sometimes get forgotten in the machismo of certain moments but there are arseholes in all walks of life but last night was one of the few where it was a hall that was chatty and purely there to have a good time and the band responded, they worked hard and got the best from us as we got the best from them and today I wake up with a smile on my face.

Malcolm Young is a big loss for Rock but Airbourne will make sure that the legacy of AC/DC lives on because AC/DC became Australia's greatest sons of rock, the first to break the mould and make something uniquely Australian that we know where the sound comes from at even a brief listen. From AC/DC to Rose Tattoo, the Angels, Airbourne, Screaming Jets, the Cassanovas, Rollerball and many others, AC/DC were the first and greatest but their sound lives on, the Young brothers single-handedly shaped the sound of a continent in the way that no other band has ever done before and to see the sound continue so faithfully through Airbourne, energy and honesty intact, is truly incredible.

...feeling fragile and mortal...

The last two years have left me feeling extremely fragile and mortal. I know that I won't live forever but this is the first time that I have felt an ending of things. A pessimistic way of looking at this would be to calculate how many more 8th of November's I have left, another 20? More? Less? That's 20 more Summers, Christmas', Birthdays etc. That's a number you can count down from. I am not a pessimist but I am feeling that way at the moment. I put it down to the number of deaths in rock and not the approach and overtaking of my 50th year a week back.

I took the week of my birthday off and unfortunately had a cold and I hadn't mentioned that I injured my knee a few months ago and have not been able to run and have struggled to walk on some days but I decided that on my birthday, in the morning I would go for a walk for a few hours. It was a beautiful sunny morning and so I went to Stubbings Wood near Tring. I went there on my last birthday and it was a glorious misty morning then so to see it in the late Autumn in sunlight would be a good contrast. My plan was to walk for a couple of hours and then get an early lunch at a cafe in Tring...it didn't work out that way. Here is the account in WhatsApp messages to my wife and daughters.

My Wife:

My eldest daughter:

My youngest daughter:

I eventually made it back to my car at 1.21pm, 2hr and 21 minutes after my planned finish. My phone ran out at around 12.30 so I had no maps to guide me and my legs and feet were hurting, luckily I had bought food and drink with me but I can honestly say, of all the times I have been lost, and they are numerous, this was properly lost. I didn't get my special lunch and time was so tight once I got home, that I didn't have any time to play my new guitar...

That is a Godin Acousticaster, as thin as an electric but with a resonant tone that means it can be played unplugged, as an acoustic but it has a great neck, is cut away, strings bend easily so it is effectively an acoustic electric as well as a semi acoustic. A dream guitar and I am relearning "Reelin' in the Years" as I've not played that in more than 10 years.

Anyway, still feeling fragile and mortal but I am now over 50 and that is an achievement, even if it is luck more than any form of skill! I am seeing the Doctor on Friday morning to try and get my knee sorted (that's how bad it is!) and Christmas is looming large but I am excited about it. I have 2 more gigs lined up before the end of the year, Airbourne and Ginger's birthday bash on 16th Dec with my youngest daughter, my wife and some close friends and I think my wife is seeing Adam Ant on 21st Dec, probably with our youngest.

In so many ways this has been a difficult year, I've struggled with it and seen the death of so many of my heroes but I am ending this year feeling that it hasn't been a bad year, there are those things that hurt, but doesn't every year have those? 2012, a great year but Malachi died in 2012, but his death didn't mean that the other 365 days (leap year) were filled with sorrow. Life goes on and you do often wonder how, but we are resilient beings, we were born to survive and thrive under all conditions. We live in a World of forever starvation, poverty and plague and yet still manage to live out our lives to a reasonable age and relative happiness (in First World Countries). I feel mortal and know that the bulk of my life is behind me, the glory days of youth and the days of being responsible for my children full time, of being in the prime of life. My joints are failing, my eyesight isn't great and years of musical abuse has put paid to my hearing but all those gigs, all those years of a World in constant motion, all the technology that has come into being in my lifetime, all the people I have met and the places I have seen, life is a wonderful thing and I do tend to forget that from time to time. Here's to the next x amount of years and I intend to fully enjoy them!

Tom Petty, Walter Becker and Dave Hlubeck...

It's a difficult time really, so many of the people that I idolised have died and it cuts everytime. I was a huge Tom Petty fan back in the late '80's but wasn't so keen on his solo output although I did buy everything up to "The Great Wide Open" (including the Travelling Wilbury's albums). My first CD was his eponymous debut CD with the over played but never over listened "American Girl" on. I did see him live once and the first half of the show was dedicated to the newer fans and was his first 2 albums without the Heartbreakers but the second half was for the diehards, far more fun, far more rebellious and far more comfortable for me, a slice of Southern pie done in the way that only Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers could do it. They were different to the other Southern bands, overlooked but easily as good. I did have a resurgence a few months back, re-appreciating how good a band they were, "Dogs on the Run", "Rebels", Jammin Me", "Let Me Up (I've had enough)" and so many other great songs and those songs are from just 2 of his mid 80's albums.
His death was a real shock as he still seemed so young and vital. He always appeared to be so laid back but there was a something of the rebel hidden in his music, something of the South that ran through everything he did, not the racist, bigoted side, more the romantic outlaw side, a western made of music. As with all the musicians I am saying goodbye to, the greatest tribute is their own work and words, here is Tom's tribute to Tom Petty:

American Girl
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2nbHpF7-qk

Rebels:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RN7lv9Xn2I

Baby's a Rock n Roller:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcF1zru_dGk

This brings me on to the 2 deaths that were overshadowed by the great Tom Petty, the first is Walter Becker and I shudder to think how many people will ask "Who?" When I started playing guitar, one of the first songs that I asked to learn, was "Reelin' in the Years" by Steely Dan and Walter Becker was one of the founding members of Steely Dan, an interesting, original and sometimes difficult band to listen to, they challenged the boundaries of rock and in the process wrote a whole lot of songs that you will know, "Rikki don't lose that number" and "Do it again" to name a couple.

Reelin in the Years:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-2QzJzqtK0

Isn't it just a guitar heroes song?

Lastly Dave Hlubeck of Molly Hatchet died. Molly Hatchet were a full on Southern boogie band, I have 4 or 5 of their albums, nothing recent but they were just so Southern, Southern like Lynyrd Skynyrd but more boogie, they paid homage to the Allman Brothers with a superb cover of "Dreams I'll never see" but it was with their own boogie magic that they created the wizardry:

Flirtin with Disaster:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojXYCZMAwVc

Boogie No More:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-E6XVHzpAQM

I am struggling with the last 2 years, music is such a large part of my life, to see the soundtrack to my life play out with so many of the people that helped with those memories falling by the wayside, people that wrote a song for me that encapsulated a moment in time and all I have to do is listen to it to remember a moment that has long passed, the people, the colours, the sounds, the places, distant pasts and now they are tinged with more sadness. The songs are my memory and it is probably the best epitaph to anyone, that their life in music has a very real meaning to someone and I, in turn, have passed that on to my children, their memories will be tied in music too, Tom Petty, Steely Dan and Molly Hatchet are already tied in the memories of my youngest daughter.

The Casanova's...an intensity and groove that was infectious.

OK, so let's look at the pro's and cons of the gig last night. Cons, the turn out was rubbish, the food from the takeaway round the corner wasn't particularly good and the journey home was a nightmare due to a fire near the station somewhere South of Watford and as a result, I was stuck there till 3 and didn't get home till around 4 this morning, and my ears are still ringing.

Pro's? Omyfuggingod they were awesome. They had an intensity and groove that was infectious. They weren't running around like Airbourne, they just grooved off each other, something that only a 3 piece can do and it was contagious, I started smiling from the opening riff of "Born to Run"to the finishing notes. Highlights? There were too many but at a push, I really loved "He's Alive".

I would love to have taken all my friends to see them but it clashed with a Gary Numan gig they'd already booked. Do you know what? Their loss, I've seen Gary Numan before and enjoyed him but the |Casanova's would have eaten him for breakfast, this is honest rock 'n' roll, 3 guys turning up on a blowy Thursday night and making a pubful of friends, the banter was minimal but the rock was full on, they jammed, things had a slight psychedelic vibe in places, a big touch of blues that gave more than a nod to AC/DC and ZZ Top and a soupçon of Southern feeling going on somewhere. They seem to bring a whole melting pot of influences and create music that has a 70's feel, ripped up blues and feel good rock with a healthy does of attitude. Even the look of the band has that 70's feel, from the porno 'tache of Damo on bass and vocals and the 70's free spirit surfer look of Tommy on guitar and vocals.
We are now on Monday and I never got round to posting this but here we go and I will try and reduce the size of the videos I took and see if I can upload them as well. Even half a week later, I am blown away by them and in between watching the boxing and watching poor GGG getting robbed of his victory by what can only be either a blind judge or blatant corruption (whinge done), I have been listening to the Casanova;s constantly. Here is a chilled rock vibe so you can see how it can be done and please, the next time they play, do yourself a favour and go and see them:

Terra Casanova: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56hAG5O289E

The Casanova's, how in the hell have I not heard of them for 18 years?!!

I am very lax in blogging at the moment, partly because things are busy and partly because just when I want to say something frivolous or make a serious point, something awful happens, terrorists murder children or disasters leave a trail of death and destruction through peoples lives.

At somepoint I have to post something so I decided to share the gig I am going to, tomorrow night, with you. I haven't updated on gigs for a while. I saw Ryley Walker a few times, Kings X (Gods they are an amazing band and Anouska cried) and I took my Dad and a friend to see Airbourne.
Airbourne are honest to goodness AC/DC clones in so many ways but they are better live and it doesn't sound or feel contrived at all. It could be the smaller venues work for them but I love them. They are fresh, exciting and have dirt under their nails, just the way rock should be, straight down the line, no bullshit. So, when I saw Airbourne recommending another Aussie band, I had to check them out and boy, are they good. The Casanova's are playing a pub in Camden tomorrow night, "the Fiddler's Elbow", a venue that will hold around 150 people.
For those of you that have never experienced an Aussie band live or only AC/DC, AC/DC are the least good Aussie band I have ever seen and they are excellent live. Airbourne or Rose Tattoo top the tree but I have a feeling that the Casanova's might slay tomorrow night:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r6_EBcHzSI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9ePr7IvSrs

I can't believe that a band this good have been around since 1999, released 3 albums and I have only just heard about them, how in the hell did that happen? I can't remember the last time I booked tickets to see a band I knew nothing about. I have since bought their albums and they are more consistent than Airbourne, although the straight ahead goodness and dirt are all there, they seem to mine the Aussie rock seam and find some differences that set them apart, just a little, keeping the rock intact but adding some touches of the Stones in places with more than a touch of the Datsuns and Jet, no bad thing!

I will let you know all about it as I think I am in for a classic gig, a hole of a venue with a few of the great unwashed to witness our great religion shedding it's light in the darkest of places.

Praise be to Rock!

PS. Here is my Amazon review of the album "All Night Long"

Steve Cropper...the colour blind, silent partner and sideman...

The World has been a very depressing place for the last few months and it had drained my will to write or do anything that required too much thought, but a friend has just ditched Facebook and has gone cold turkey and needs something to take their mind off relationship status's, inane updates from people that they used to know and now remember why they "used" to know them and various guilt laden updates from charities that coerce them into donating more money (having spent their $millions on online marketing companies).

I had a few things that I could've written about, fitting in and race were on the agenda, WW1 and Passchendaele were also a consideration but I have plumped for something not quite so heavy, I don't feel very strong at the moment, physically and mentally. I've not been running and have been sleeping heavily and have had the feeling that I am coming down with something for a few months. I probably just need to get my fat lazy bod out on the pavements and country lanes to enjoy the fresh air, or curse the freshness of the wind in my face as I hack and splutter my way down the damnable lonely roads, away from civilization and my bed.

I actually decided to write about music but not my usual fare, I have been rediscovering music from my distant past. I was a rock 'n' roll fan, Eddie Cochran, Elvis, Gene Vincent etc but as that spilled into the '60's, I was also a big fan of the Beatles and many of the sounds of the late 50's and 60's. The 60's was a remarkable period for music, youth discovered their voice and fashion sense and music moved on. One of the trackers for the development of music during that period, for me, is the Who. They started off as an R&B band, developed the London sound and the Mod scene and then progressed into the archetypal rock band, a singer and guitarist both blessed with the most amazing of gifts, a singer with the personality, looks and voice to carry the band and the guitarist with the chops to hold his own and the songwriting ability that many would kill for. Despite my admiration and love of the Who, this is not about them.

It is about the other side of 60's music, often overlooked but from artists that produced some of the most incredible and moving music of any era and my thoughts were started by a TV show about sidemen.

This is about Steve Cropper to be precise. For anyone of a certain age, Steve Cropper and Donald Duck Dunn were the guitarist and bass player with the Blues Brothers but prior to that they were a duo that played on most of the songs that came out of Stax and they were part of Booker T and the MG's. Steve Cropper wrote so many hits that we all know and love that it is unbelievable that the World at large doesn't celebrate him. "Knock on Wood", "In the Midnight Hour", "Green Onions", "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay" and "Time is Tight" amongst many others. I knew of him, of course, I have enough Stax records in my collection but I had no idea that he was such an integral part of the songs and the sound.

Steve Cropper was the eternal sideman, backing up some of the great names with his distinctive guitar tone and his instinctive musical talents but it was with Otis Redding that he seemed to find his musical soulmate. The TV show concentrated on his relationship with Otis and they were really good friends, it was very sad to see the pain in his face when he spoke about Otis's death, it obviously still cut him deeply to speak of it. They socialised together, wrote together, all this at a time when race divided the US. Steve Cropper saw music and where other people saw colour and division, he was either oblivious or really just didn't care (as with many musicians, it is all about the music, they don't see colour, religion, race or barriers, they just see musical notes). Otis Redding requested Steve Cropper as part of his touring band, the two of them were a partnership, writing 17 hit songs together, the final one they wrote, "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay", Otis never saw completed, dying in a plane crash before he could hear the song finished.

Here is Booker T and the MG's with what I think is an inspiring performance of "Time is Tight" Dunn on Bass and Cropper on guitar:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7VAem_LXj8

This is the same man that played with Sam and Dave on "Soul Man", the same man that was a silent partner in the Blues Brothers, humble and quiet but with a unique tone and a wonderful natural touch. I listen to him play and I am inspired to pick up my acoustic and learn some of his songs. Many musicians write to push the boundaries of their instrument and others, like Steve Cropper, write for the song, it is all about the song, never about him and never about the guitar.

There are many sidemen that deserve mentions, Jimmy Page allegedly played on half the records of the 60's but this post is about Steve Cropper because of his unstinting love of music, his talent and instinctive abilities and for the songs that he co-wrote, the colour blind, silent partner and sideman that made a huge contribution to to music, I am sure that he will still continue on, unrecognised by all but a few, but I just wanted to mention his name and to sing his praises.

Here is the official video for "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTVjnBo96Ug

Notice that Steve Cropper doesn't feature in the video, he co-wrote the song, played on the song and finished it after the death of Otis Redding, adding the electric guitars, the sound of the sea and the gulls and he still remains in the shadows, the sideman.

Chris Cornell...the greatest voice I ever heard, the greatest voice I ever saw live.

Chris Cornell was a huge part of my life. I have probably listened to a song a day of his for the past 25+ years. I bought all the albums, did the tours and he was by far my favourite singer. He had a set of pipes that could drown out aircraft and he lived our lives with us. He got older, as did we. He made his mistakes ("Scream") and we stood by him as we made ours. There was no bargain, we didn't know him but we were all growing up at the same time, at the same rate and hitting the bumps together, albeit thousands of miles apart but he wrote and sang about it.

I remember watching Chris Cornell on the "Euphoria Morning" tour, he was a frail performer, all nerves and uncertainty but with a voice that was unmistakable, powerful and lyrical. I'd not heard anything by him in 3 years since Soundgarden split and then we had the contrast that was "Euphoria Morning" but it was just so good to have something new by him and the tour was amazing,

Here is one of the many surprising moments off that album, sung live in 1999:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8K92bgVELY

But to take a step back and contrast the man that sang this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTr8BNLqrOM

This was the year I saw Soundgarden live for the first time:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QI2upwk5z0

I had been a huge fan of "Bad Motor Finger" and the side project "Temple of the Dog" released about the same time. They always rate in my top 5 albums of all time (along with Rush of course!) and I listen to them and I don't hear 25 years worth of rust on those albums. "Bad Motor Finger" still pushes boundaries that rock has not pushed since and the follow up "Superunknown" went in a different direction, pushing boundaries in a different way. "Black Hole Sun" was the breakout hit but there were some amazing moments, some psychedelic moments, some dark moments and some all out rock moments.

I did buy the complete back catalog at the time, on vinyl of course, so I have "Screaming Life/Fopp", "Ultramega OK" and "Loud as Love". Talking to another devastated friend the other day and he pointed out that Soundgarden never released the same album twice, they were a band in constant motion and the only album that didn't push boundaries was "Down on the Upside" the album that was responsible for their split the first time around. "Down on the Upside" is a great album, I loved it then and love it now, it isn't the same as the other albums as it has a mellow core to it but it has some very dark moments, you can tell that each of these albums were a form of therapy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnplBELUVIQ

Soundgarden split and I waited 3 years for "Euphoria Morning". It was an unusual return but it is a great album that I still listen to. Then it went quiet and we heard rumours that he was shacking up with Rage Against the Machine members to a form a new band, "Civilian" who quickly became "Audioslave". I was there for the first tour and only their second or third live gig, at the Astoria in London. I was offered a small fortune for my tickets, no chance. It was a good gig, great to see Chris live again but Audioslave were a more commercial proposition but he did unveil his new voice, the soulful, thicker voice, that we had not heard till Audioslave:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1mexmK6bDY

Yes, of course I bought all the Audioslave albums and saw them on all the UK tours (3, I think). They were a good live band and the mix of songs from their previous bands were interesting, in places.

Then came the split and the return to his solo career. I was excited, thinking back to his other solo album but it didn't quite pan out. 2 more solo albums and the quality was mixed. I am a fan but I am not deaf, none of them were great but the subsequent solo tours were triumphant returns, he was warm and engaging, seemingly comfortable in his skin despite the very obvious unease with performing. Here is the song that you will know, from his solo career:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJ-Ec_3qiOE

My daughter finally got the chance to see him as part of her birthday present in 2012, she was finally old enough. We went to Symphony Hall in Birmingham to see him on his acoustic tour, just him and a guitar and it was amazing. I already knew we were going to see the reformed Soundgarden at Hyde Park so this was to be a bumper year, but just the man and an acoustic guitar is very precious, it is an artist opening up because it gets very personal and it is a very brave thing to do.

Symphony Hall: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=maYcIAtg44Q
Hyde Park: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkGHMdqDMW4

Next came the new album and it was not what was expected. Typical Soundgarden threw a curve ball and released something that was a throw back without being a move backwards, "King Animal" was just different, they had done what we should have expected them to do and released something new.
It was simply amazing to have them back and my youngest daughter was beside herself, she never thought she'd see them live.

Then, in November, Later with Jools Holland had Soundgarden on, it was simply glorious:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3JfiAUnUIq8

The next year came the tour to promote the new album and myself and a friend saw them at Shepherd's Bush, a tiny venue and an amazing gig. They were vital and alive, they could never be a vintage act, there is too much lack of compromise and too much energy in the music to die of old age. Then came Brixton, the last time I saw Soundgarden and Chris Cornell. I had both daughters with me and it was electric:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JVQhZEw5Wg

Then his last solo album, "Higher Truth" which I ordered from his website and got a signed copy. It's his weakest album. sadly. It is very upbeat, without his usual darkness, a bit too cheery but at least there was a new Soundgarden album due....

Then we saw they were touring Temple of the Dog. A friend actually suggested we get tickets for the New York gig and just fly over for it. We didn't, there was a very good chance they'd tour Europe with it next year. It was tempting though, one of the greatest albums ever, in memory of Andrew Wood, who sang on another of my favourite albums...it just gets so incestuous but you can't help but ask why people got Nirvana but missed Soundgarden and Motherlove Bone? I will never understand.

Then he died.

All I seem able to do is to recount my history. I can't speak about anything because I genuinely don't have the words. I feel choked and sad and I can't listen to the songs that I love because in the darkness of his words lie his eventual demise. I have no idea whether he saw it coming but it was there, in plain sight, in his own words.
My daughter can't accept it, I struggle with the fact that this is it, no more getting older and watching him in 20 years time, croon his acoustic set at 120 decibels to cater for all the old fogies with their dodgy hearing from too many Soundgarden gigs. Or where the new Soundgarden album would have taken us. Or why we didn't fly to New York to see Temple of the Dog...

I am lucky to have had him in my life. He wasn't a friend but he felt like one sometimes. He was the greatest voice I ever heard, the greatest voice I ever saw live, he wrote some songs that set my blood boiling and others that take me to the pits of despair, there are no compromises. For a gentle soul, he wrote some of the most aggressive music, chest beating, bloodied knuckles, full of machismo and at the other end of the spectrum was the feeling of alienation, alone, out of touch and unseen, the outsider. I guess we all relate to these things on some levels, it's instinctive and animalistic and in 1991 it shook my world and took me on a journey that was worth every year. Soundgarden were the band that should've changed the World, they had the talent and abilities that other Seattle bands couldn't hold a candle to but for some reason, where other bands got the acclaim, they were moderately successful, I guess they will now become mythical.

I wish I could say more, I wish I knew what to say, maybe in time I will be able to write something worthwhile about him, but it's unlikely as all I can really say is thanks for the years of help, getting me through days, providing part of the soundtrack of everyday of my life for the past 25+ years, creating some of the highlights and some of the excitement, for the memories and the friends that I share many of the memories with and those same friends that have been as lost as me since Thursday morning, we've all been texting crap to each other, various links, memories and thoughts, it has rocked us all...

I will leave you with two things, a link and a picture:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_w_wE4RlHuE&t=20s

Chris Cornell...I am out of words...

I am beyond gutted. I had a call from my daughter and she was in floods of tears and I am out of words...

Here is Soundgarden from the last time I saw him:

His own words and one of my favourite songs:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HFUuwmcrsU

Here is his cover of the classic "Stay with me Baby" and it appears that someone else created an homage to him a year or so back but here is the face of my late teens and early twenties and beyond. I bought all the records, went to the gigs and he was a seminal peer figure in my life.

I will write more when I can collect my thoughts.

Brexit negotiations will shape my vote... but this doesn't mean that I am happy.

They say a week is a long time in politics but it is feeling like a lifetime at the moment. Politics hasn't let up since the last election in the UK. We went straight from that into Brexit, the last 9 months have been spent debating speculation and now we are into another General Election and it feels like this is going on forever.

I dislike much of what I'm hearing from all parties, the Lib Dems are a non-entity that fail to recognise democracy at work and have a leader with a very sticky moral position. He is a man that is quite willing to sacrifice his own religious beliefs for political reasons and whilst I don't agree with his religious take on gay sex or abortion, I would have a smidgen more respect for him if he showed some backbone and stood by his religious beliefs rather than showing himself to be a man of suspect values that can change with the wind. Belief is a powerful thing that goes someway towards honesty, if you are not honest about your beliefs, how can you be honest about other things? I don't trust him.

I do like Jeremy Corbyn but his party is a mess. There is something so amateurish about their presentation and the people they have in positions of potential power that I can't vote for them. I can't vote for Diane Abbott and many of his shadow cabinet can't even bring themselves to mention his name so they praise the manifesto rather than him. It is a party in disarray and to a certain degree, it is a shame as he is a decent man but there is no unity or cohesion to them and I can't help but feel there is a very fragile peace in place there.

The Conservatives are a difficult one. Yes. I will be voting for them because I think Theresa May is best placed to negotiate Brexit but I am not convinced that their handling of the Country has been particularly good. I drive to work on third World roads. My daughters and my wife have all been misdiagnosed and palmed off by the NHS and I am convinced this could have been avoided with more investment in the right areas. I see drug dealing happening on most street corners, in broad daylight due to the lack of police. The streets are filled with litter and we feel like a country in decline. Despite that, I can honestly say that financially, I am in a good place, the economy has enough hope that customers are still buying and projects that had been on hold are coming live again.

I do worry that fox hunting might be on the table again but the Brexit negotiations will shape my vote in this election but this doesn't mean that I am happy. 

I expect the Conservatives will win the election, Labour, rather than uniting behind a leader, will oust Corbyn and elect another Blair type figure (a scary thought). On the plus side, the Lib Dems may disappear and something more worthwhile might take their place. It is inconceivable that the LibDems are so unelectable, they are a party that is meant to sit somewhere between Labour and Conservative but they gave up the middle ground to Blair and have been a party without a message for years. Clegg lacked a backbone and ruined any chance of being taken seriously by backing the increase in student fees. Labour have always ruined the economy and then swept to power after the Conservatives have cleaned up their mess and the cycle starts again. Don't forget that the economy was in a very good place when Blair came to power but he spent money like it was going out of fashion and look what happened...the coffers where bled dry and in 7 years, we are still struggling to recover, yet I still like Corbyn - he is squirming like a fish on a hook as they try to pin him down on Nuclear weapons, being a pacifist etc and all I see is the media attacking him yet in difficult times, he carries himself like a decent man. I think the sharks involved in the EU negotiation for Brexit, would eat him alive. 

I simply have an opinion and a bunch of reasons about where my "x" is going but I am cold to it this time around, I have no passion for it or even much care. It is important that everyone votes but more important, no matter how the vote goes, we all have to shut up and move on with life once it is done, no more taking to the streets to protest democracy or crying because life isn't fair, because it isn't fair. Lower your expectations, and whilst disappointment will become a standard part of your day, you will harden up, you will appreciate the times that you win and you will stop having that sense of entitlement that we all dislike about you.

Songs for the Bank Holiday Weekend!

I think we need some cover versions so here are some that I really like. I have included Inglorious as I saw them do this song live and it was phenomenal, they were supporting the Winery Dogs (another superb band) and it was just a great night, 2 excellent bands and it has to be said that Nathan Hughes, Inglorious singer, has an amazing voice and range and is an excellent frontman.

Here they are covering Toto's "Girl Goodbye"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FlKhCwjU-CQ

I saw Paul Freeman supporting Chris Cornell on his acoustic tour a few years ago and this song was highlight of the night:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UX11NjsfCVE
I should probably state that Chris Cornell was the highlight because he was incredible AND this song by Paul Freeman has stayed with me over the years.

I was a big fan of the Almighty, back in the day, saw them a few times including watching them blow the Ramones off the stage in London, a truly fearsome live band. Ricky Warwick is now the frontman of the Black Star Riders, formerly Thin Lizzy and this is him covering the great SLF track, "Alternative Ulster"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vzYkxUXbIZg

Roberto Durán - Manos de Piedra

I was fortunate enough, last night, to spend an "Evening with Roberto Duran". What an absolute legend. I have mentioned Marvin Hagler before, he is my all time favourite Middle Weight fighter but Duran was one of the big four of that time, along with Hagler, Thomas Hearns and Sugar Ray Leonard.
This was the golden age of the Middleweights, as the era of Ali, Frazier and Foreman had been for the Heavyweight division, a few years earlier. Although the Heavyweights accrued the glory, the Middleweights were the everyman division, it was more competitive and blessed with some of the greatest fighters ever.
Duran was more than just another Middleweight though, by the time the '80's rolled round, he had already been in the ring for 3 decades and finished his career in 2001, spanning an unprecedented 5 decades with World titles at 4 different weights, Panama's favourite son and ranked within the top 10 in the best fighter of all time lists by all of the reputable and knowledgeable publications and pundits.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O0g8-KVp06s

Duran speaks very little English but he is a very warm man and his personality comes across, he is mischievous and funny with a naughty glint in his eye and always a smile. This isn't the man destroyer that they nick named Manos de Piedra, "Hands of Stone" but as he sat there, speaking mostly in Spanish with his son translating for him, we came to get a glimpse of who he is. He was born with nothing, he came from the dirt with an absent father and rose to become the greatest son of Panama, a flawed hero that endeared himself to the world, despite a fiery temper and an uncompromising personality, he was the genuine article, a warrior and now the elder statesman but the passion is still there but the personality has softened or maybe we are seeing the other Roberto Duran, the man that loves people and shares his life with a room of complete strangers that quickly became his adoring friends (I kid you not, he was an absolute star but such a nice guy).

As Duran speaks very little English, his son, a TV presenter back in Panama, had taken his holiday to spend it on this mini tour, translating for his father. He explained that his father was a generous man, he never forgot his roots and spent much money helping out his local community, people would ask and he would give and that is the key to him, we became his community for the night but we didn't want his money, we wanted his stories, to be with the man that was one of a few that changed boxing, bringing a magic and a skill to it that very few have managed and still remains relatively unknown in the mainstream.

Yeah, I know I sound all gushy about it but how many people do you ever meet that you could regard as genuinely legendary? There are people that I greatly respect but very few that I would call legendary, in any sphere of life.

The prospect of Duran and Ray Leonard touring together next year was touted and then mentioned they may try and get Hearns and Hagler on the tour as well...that would be incredible, that would be a hell of a photograph, the Kings of the Ring!

So for any UK fight fans, we saw Duran at the Cutting Rooms in Wellingborough, a really homely venue, easy parking and the ticket included a photo with the great Roberto Duran and food.

...I just received the new Harry Pane EP, "The Wild Winds" and it is brilliant.

I know that there is a General Election coming up in the near term and I have no doubt I will have plenty to say on it but before that, I just received the new Harry Pane EP, "The Wild Winds" and it is brilliant. Go to his website and buy it: http://harrypane.com/

Here is his latest single:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ym1Jxno_eZM

Another little something for the weekend...

On the way into work this morning, Planet Rock played "Rebel Rebel", one of my favourite Bowie songs and it was exhilarating to listen to so I felt I had to share:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vy-rvsHsi1o

"spaghetti and stuff"...simple, tasty, vegetarian and gluten free.

I am a foodie. I love food and I cook most nights. We have a staple of recipes that I go back to throughout the month, comfort foods that are unique to the family but I am guessing that every family has some dishes that are unique to them, flourishes on known dishes to give it that home comfort taste.
Being a recent vegetarian of a few years, I still find that I am finding my feet, still adapting some dishes and discarding others totally. Given that my wife and daughters are gluten free as well, I thought that there must be other people out there with the same problems so it seemed like a good idea to share the things I come across, menus, restaurants, recipes etc.

I recently invented a dish and my daughters have named "spaghetti and stuff" and it is meal that stems from the foods that we all like. It started with my wife liking fried courgettes and I thought the meal needed a "meat" element and as I am not a fan of the diced Quorn, but do like the Quorn fillets, I cube a few of them. My eldest daughter loves cheese and we all love garlic butter and it all seemed to be a perfect topping for spaghetti, a train of thought that translated into a dish that is simple, tasty, vegetarian and gluten free.

Ingredients:                   Spaghetti
                                      Quorn fillets
                                      Courgettes
                                      Butter
                                      Garlic
                                      Soft cheese

Put the spaghetti on to boil and simmer

Fry the courgettes and the cubed Quorn fillets (chicken or pork would work), until they all start to brown nicely

Melt a good quantity of butter in a pan. Don't let it boil. Finely chop 4 or 5 cloves of garlic and add those to the melted butter. You are not looking to brown the garlic, you simply need it to caramelize it and flavour the butter.

Put the spaghetti into the bowls, top with the courgette and Quorn mixture. Sprinkle with small cubed pieces of soft cheese. I usually use Camembert and Brie.
Pour the hot garlic butter over the whole lot and the cheese will start to melt into the mixture. It is truly a comfort meal and whilst I am sure that someone must have something similar, I've not come across it.

I will add some avocado to it next time or maybe a pinch of dried chilli or smoked paprika, little twists to personalise it even more, I am sure you can think of somethings to improve it further.

...Kings X, a unique band...sweet hooks...harmonies...bludgeoning riffs.

I have sung the praises of Kings X before. They are such an underrated band and they should have been huge but they were on the edge of success, the music press  loved them, musicians loved them but as they were not a commercial sounding band, they stuck to their guns and made music that was out of time and out of kilter with whatever was popular. They weren't LA hair metal, they weren't grunge, they weren't thrash, they weren't AOR, they were, are, just Kings X, a unique band with a sound that had such sweet hooks and harmonies and some such bludgeoning riffs.
Unfortunately, not enough people "got" them. I did, I've been a fan since I first saw them play Milton Keynes in 1989. I have seen them a good few times and have all their albums and my youngest daughter has, in turn, become a fan.
Sitting in the pub the other week with some friends and my daughter, shortly before she left the old fogies to it, one of my friends asked if I was going to see them. I had no idea they were even touring, it was like a ray of light in my life and I did see my daughter getting emotional about it, where I never thought I'd see them again, she never thought she'd see them.

I even felt myself getting emotional over this video!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2SYPzKzD94

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1LXLIcx354

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4nDxpgqEZsU

I have now purchased 3 tickets to see them in London and I couldn't be happier, this year is looking so good for music. I have Kings X lined up, Ryley Walker is touring again and I have tickets to see Kiss at Wembley and I am planning to go and see Love/Hate in Oxford on April 1st, no joke.

Ryley Walker:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqq6HbruXD0
And yes, he really is that trippy live, elements of the Doors, psychedelia and the '60's.

Kiss:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KK8AzjNOww
I've seen Kiss a few times but never in makeup, which kind of gives you an idea on when I saw them last, yes, it was quite a number of years ago, even decades ago...

Love/Hate:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCX0ZAfAOKc
This lot were part of the LA scene in the late 80's. I saw them a few times and they were always good fun, they even made the global news when the singer crucified himself to the Hollywood sign.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LOwKav3WR6Y

This will take me up to the end of May and it couldn't be looking more glorious at this moment in time.

Tony Bellew walked past me...I had just been given a sign

I have reverted back to type, I have once again become an avid boxing fan. I have a goatee and I grew it, not because it was about to become a rock 'n' roll thing (back in 1992), but because Marvin Hagler was one of my heroes, one of the greatest Middle Weights we've ever seen, a man who fought in his real life, as much as in the ring. Anyway, I have been following boxing closely for around a year, this time around and it has really come to life, we have some great boxers here and on the way. Gennady Golovkin, Vasyl Lomachenko, Conor Benn (if he ends up anything like his Dad, we're in for a treat) and there are many others, Kell Brook, Artur Betbiev, Joshua (of course) and Tony Bellew.

Ah, Tony Bellew. I had a feeling he would beat David Haye but my head told me that Haye would win. The last time I had a feeling about a fighter winning a fight was way back to Holyfield/Tyson 1. I woke on the morning of the fight, knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that Holyfield would win. I just knew that Tyson couldn't beat him. This isn't anything about thought, it was knowledge, as if it had already happened, I knew with 100% certainty, that Holyfield would win. I was working that day and nearly called home to tell my wife to put a bet on it but didn't, common sense told me not to and I listened.
I listened to my common sense this time around as well. I was in London for the day and was wondering around Greenwich when Tony Bellew walked past me. He was in a light grey tracksuit, on the phone and carrying a Prada bag, obviously a present for his wife. I didn't say anything to him, I had no reason to because I had just been given a sign...
                                                                                       
                                                                                         ...I nearly listened to my common sense.

I listened to the fight on the radio, on the train on the way home. There was something so Rocky (ironically) to this fight. One guy trains in the public, posting regularly on twatter and Facebook from sunny climates where the other guy is pounding the streets of rainy, grey Liverpool, probably ending up at a Butcher's warehouse to pummel sides of beef and pork with his bare fists. You had the bad guy and the good guy with the odds stacked against him but with heart and determination, he had the eye of the tiger, without a doubt. Maybe Sly Stallone needs to sue for plagarism.

I've never placed a bet before but as Saturday was my wife's birthday, it did help pay for dinner.

Thanks Tony and what a great fight!

...something for the weekend.

Given that it's Friday, here is a little something for the weekend:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DPjs79y-to

I loved this song growing up, from as young as I can remember and it is still a great song, I have it on my phone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iMtVjDPk-8

I do love my rock music but I do have to return to rock 'n' roll from time to time.

Stop with the baby tears, if you are old enough to vote then act like a bloody adult...

What in the hell is wrong with people? Is it a sign of age that I am not understanding all the "crying foul" that is going on in the World? It just seems that facts, democracy and common sense are thrown to the wind in the rise of populist social media babies that like nothing better shedding tears and throwing tantrums because things aren't going their way.

It all started with something on Yahoo about someone called Zayne Malik and Gigi Hadid, whoever they are. It was something about a video she made, apparently she was mocking "Asian eyes" and I was curious about the great offence she had caused, had she painted herself yellow and pulled her eyes? No, she held up a Buddha statue that had closed eyes and she actually closed her eyes, mimicking the statue. Jesus Christ, the stupid, insensitive woman closed her damned eyes and offended every Asian person in World. Her boyfriend made some comments defending her and has been called out for supporting racism.
I am beyond speechless...WHAT THE FUCK!!! I was going to abbreviate that but I am too angered by cry babies looking for reasons to be offended. A woman closes her eyes whilst holding a statue of Buddha and is accused of racism. Come, say it with me, loud and proud, WHAT THE FUCK...

A few years ago, we had a complete tosser running this Country, Tony Blair. He was responsible for the death of David Kelly and helped George "Dubuya" Bush wage an illegal and immoral war on Iraq as well as running this Country into a huge amount of debt, sending us into more wars than any other UK leader within living memory, whilst cutting the defence budget at the same time. I detest Tony Blair, I never trusted him and never voted for him but I didn't take to the streets and spend my time crying foul because I didn't get my way. He was the worst possible outcome for this Country and we are still paying the price for his corruption and incompetence but I accept democracy and we don't always get it right but that is the whole point of voting. I will admit that even democracy doesn't always get it right, it is a flawed system and every Country does it differently but we know the flaws of our individual systems and we accept that. If you don't get the result you want, you can't cry foul after the event (unless something illegal happened in the voting process), you know the flaws in your system and you have to accept the results of a democratic election.

I am no fan of Donald Trump but as the democratically elected leader of the US, people need to shut up and move on, the election has been run and he won, it is as simple as that. Why are people protesting an election result? It is absolutely incomprehensible, you lost, it's a life lesson, get over it and get on with living. I appreciate that social media has opened many curtains to many windows, many of them are good, friends, social welfare, charities but it is the advent of of the social cry baby, those that feel that their opinion is worth more than democracy, that is causing the mass stupidity we are seeing in democratic countries, we see it in the UK with Brexit, people can't accept the result and it is normally privileged people with a  big platform to air their views, people that belonging to Europe won't affect or younger people that feel they have a right to be heard...as a minority. Minority rule is a dictatorship. To use a phrase stolen from my friend Duncan, people need to HTFU (harden the f**k up).

Stop with the baby tears, if you are old enough to vote then act like a bloody adult and part of that is accepting that life isn't fair and you don't always win.

It's the 6 Nations!

Rugby is an amazing sport and anyone that watches American Football should look it up. No padding and a punch up on the pitch isn't unusual but the ref's understand that tempers are high on the pitch and break the fights up, occasionally with a warning. The refs are treated with respect and their call is final. Sure, like all sports, the rules can be confusing but this is a game of really big hits, lots of blood and passion and they only need one team for defence and offence.

The Six Nations is simply the greatest derby on the planet. England vs Wales, vs Scotland vs Ireland vs France vs Italy to crown the champion. It is exciting, strategic and lucky. The fans don't feel the need to fight each other, they are allowed to drink in the stands and the fans aren't separated, they all sit together, out sing each other and have a great time. The violence is all on the field of play.

I wasn't able to watch last Saturday's matches live so I had to watch them on catchup and it took everything to avoid any headlines, TV, pubs or random talking in London and on the train. So Sunday I watched all 3 matches, 240 minutes of rugby bliss. My heroes of the day were Scotland for beating a great Irish team. Of course I am supporting England and they played enough to get a win over France but it was far from pretty and with Wales this weekend in Cardiff, Wales always raise their game against England and despite Wales not looking anywhere near form, they have such a strong squad, a team capable of pulling off miracles.
My hero of the weekend was the Italian Captain, Sergio Parisse, a proper Captain, he leads by example and is such a great player, it is a real shame that the whole team aren't at his level.

Anyway, just a quick post to let you know how excited I am!

...it's Friday, let's try and get some positivity going...

I had a million things I wanted to say but as I was typing it out, I was boring myself with it. I wanted to point out something about rebelling, something about concerts I've been to and those I am booked to go to and something about running and photography but trust me, it was so boring and uninspired that I wondered what the hell I was doing and suddenly realised I was writing for the sake of getting something written and posted.

But as it's Friday, let's try and get some positivity going, try and get rid of the pessimist in me for a few moments. So, for your listening pleasure, here are some upbeat songs to welcome in the weekend:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YSTeJOxiaw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85BVnQMiFFw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PeXjBWN8LO8