The skill of Rachel Flowers...

Playlist (Play) (Download)
Cockney Rebel - The Psychomodo
Steve Harley - Hobo With A Grin
Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel - Love's a Prima Donna
Miles Davis - Live in Tokyo
Various - Natural Progression
Alban Berg Quartett - Hommage: Haydn, Mozart, Hoffstetter
Roy Harper - HQ
Rachel Flowers - Tarkus
Rachel Flowers - Karn Evil 9 1st Impression

A strange day today - seemingly comprising several two hour "projects"...

Up not too early and some stuff done for two hours - including good listening to Steve Harley and Miles Davis...

Over to Dr Prog's at 10 to take him to Dunfermline to his childhood home, to collect a goodly number of LPs he no longer wishes to keep...

He, I and Count Brodski will go through these and, no doubt give some things a listen - there are some autographed items the Doc may indeed want to keep and there may be a small selection either I or the Count may wish to retain, before the Doc decides what's to be done about the rest...

Back home around midday and some initial sorting done...

Lunch with a having painted Exec Producer - much "do not touch that door" scenarios, annoyingly for the Exec Producer, accidentally forgotten about on occasion (by both of us it must be said)...

A two hour session on the Tivo Box re one of those very annoying talking head programmes "Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Dr Who by People Who Weren't Born When it Was On" scenarios...

Good - but would rather have had a straightforward documentary on the history of the programme...

More Dr Who related nonsense remains on the box to be watched...

More time spent sorting Dr Prog's LPs...

Then, the next two hour "project" - in relation to transferring Capital Models rehearsal tapes to a hard drive...

I use a portable mini-disc player plugged into the desk to capture these moments...

Dr Prog availed me today of his old machine, which was duly set up...

However, the line output is just too loud for the laptop which, very annoyingly - and I should have checked this of course before buying - has no line input - so the mic socket needs to be used - and, frankly, it's rubbish...

Much frustration, shouting and swearing and researching and searching on the net to try and put in place a line out to USB in facility going forward - while Hearts were thrashed again 4-1 at Dundee Utd and Queens got a valuable three points by winning 1-0 at Dumbarton...

With necessary items on their way to Crispycat, this project closed for the time being...

Post a tasty pasta based tea, the next project opened up...

A full run through of the two sets for the month end gig...

Then the next one - two episodes of the excellent "Borgen"...

Some late night footy...

Then, last thing of the day - a find on Youtube - the blind pianist Rachel Flowers - who seems to specialise in the music of Keith Emerson of Emerson Lake & Palmer fame...

This one of many videos on Youtube...



I was mesmerised by her impromptu rendition of ELP's "Karn Evil 9 1st Impression" at a soiree, with just a few people in attendance - apparently the shout went up "Rachel, why don't you play something?" - and this was the result...



I appreciate not everyone is a fan of ELP but this is very complex music being played by a young lady who cannot see (she was around 17 when the Karn Evil recording was made)...

Recommended...

Highlight of the Day : Rachel Flowers' skill...