Bad day, good day, bad day...

Playlist
Kraftwerk – Rarities 1974-1991
Sombre Reptiles – Songs of the Sombre Reptiles Vol 1
Love Parade – Half the Civilised World
Various – Singles 2008
Crazy Wisdom – Best of the Reptile Tapes
David Reilly - Anthology Vol 5
David Reilly - Anthology Vol 7
Girls Aloud – Mixed Up

Up early and out for breakfast, driving to Café Citron for a bacon roll and an Americano each...

Back home, I whiled the time away, before meeting up with old music buddies Malcolm, Breave and Count Brodski, by burning an old Sombre Reptiles compilation for Malcolm and Kraftwerk and Love Parade discs for the Count...

Midday came around all too soon and I drove down to the zoo, to the pre-arranged meet with Malcolm and Breave, then over to Brodski’s flat to pick him up...

Old stories and catching up was the order of the day as we drove through to Hamilton, for the funeral of our erstwhile colleague Charlie Dootson...

We lost our way a couple of times but managed to arrive at the crematorium in plenty of time, where we met Phil Green, aka “Spooky”...

Potted history time...

Breave, Malcolm and I formed the group Call Me Clive in 1986, using rhythm machines for a year or so until we recruited a very young Phil to play drums – as I recall he was a big fan of Rush’s Neal Peart...

Thereafter we drafted in an even younger keyboard player, Nick Aldridge, who unfortunately couldn’t make it along today due to family commitments...

The quintet was reasonably successful, our highpoint being our tour with Goodbye Mr Mackenzie in the summer of 1988...

I played my last gig with the band in April 1989 - a month or so later I was replaced by Charlie...

Three years later, I met up with Malcolm again, following the demise of Call Me Clive and we started working together as Crazy Wisdom...

After a year or so as a duo, Malcolm drafted in Charlie on guitar and I brought in Count Brodski on keys and that quartet held together for around four years, writing, recording and playing live...

Eventually though, we just kind of drifted apart – Malcolm went off to Holland to live for a while and Brodski and I didn’t really see Charlie, apart from the odd coincidental meet in his favourite bar, The Golden Rule...

However, after Malcolm came back from the continent, a further version of Crazy Wisdom, with Malcolm, Charlie and a couple of others, including Breave, worked and recorded together for a few more years ...

And so, today, the various line ups of Call Me Clive and Crazy Wisdom were briefly reunited to honour Charlie...

Spooky knew Charlie best, having worked with him in the "real" world for a number of years, as well as having been in several bands with him, and he read a superb eulogy to the big man, the superb musician, the lovely guy whom we’d all known and loved...

The picture on the order of service was taken in Bordeaux and reflected Charlie's unconditional love for his adopted home team Heart of Midlothian – though he always kept an allegiance to his childhood heroes of Hamilton Academical too of course...



The T Shirt is from his other favourite bar, The Mish Nish, on Mull, the island where he spent the closing period of his life and which he loved more than anywhere...

We all swapped stories at a nearby hotel later, and it was great to catch up with Spooky and his ongoing musical career...


l-r Breave, Malcolm, Spooky...

Whenever I meet up with my old musical chums, the thought of reforming bands inevitably flits through my head – but only for a moment – I know for sure that the times have been good but, ultimately, they're gone...

There was talk though of a possible couple of numbers by various bands at Spooky's 40th next year - which would be great...

All too soon it was time to go, and we headed on back to Edinburgh...

After dropping the guys off, I made my way home and compiled a 70 minute Best of Crazy Wisdom CD as a kind of memorial to Mr Dootson...

A very sad day indeed...

Meanwhile, Anne had been over in Fife in the afternoon, ten-pin bowling with chum Chris and I'd arranged to meet them tonight for a cheering up session...

I met them in a bar in Dalgety Bay, from where it was a short drive into Dunfermline and an excellent Indian meal at the Royal Bengal – as recently recommended by Mr Sky Clearbrook over at Avenues and Alleyways...



Back to Chris’ flat thereafter and we watched Girls Aloud taking over TMF for the evening and playing their fave videos, before heading back over the bridge and home...

A good evening but, I suppose understandably, my thoughts were still on Charlie and the events earlier in the day...

Lowlight of the Day : Goodbye to an old friend and co-conspirator...