Stirrike...

Playlist
Lambchop – OH (Ohio)
Secret Machines – Secret Machines
Autorotation - Everything is Everything
Dar Williams – Promised Land
Depeche Mode – Singles 1981-1996
Flare Acoustic Arts League – Cut
Hawkwind – The Space Ritual
Jimi Hendrix – Electric Ladyland
Matt Eaton - Finish Your Chips
Moby – Last Night
Derringer – Singles A’s & B’s
Sherwood – A Different Light
Simon & Garfunkel – Bookends
Steve Abel and the Chrysalids - Flax Happy
Van Tramp – Van Tramp
We Are Scientists – Brain Thrust Mastery
William Fitzsimmons – Goodnight
Jimmy Smith - Back to the Chicken Shack
The Stills – Without Feathers

Soundtracked today, including whilst taking a walk over the Dean Bridge...



...by many of the albums I’ve been buying recently, especially those from the recent Manchester trip...

FOPP attracted yet again at lunchtime and I partook of Canadian band the Stills’ sophomore (as they say) LP, “Without Feathers” – a track “Helicopters” appeared on an NME compilation I bought after last year’s holiday in Canada and impressed...

Upstairs, and a Jimmy Smith classic on Blue Note was mine too...

A fiver for the two...

Another warm but stormy day...



Back home, Anne was out ten pin bowling (three strikes in a row apparently), so the house was blasting with new music...

Upon her arrival back home, “Mock the Week”, “That Mitchell & Webb Look”, "Reaper", “Question Time” and “This Week” entertained before we turned in...

Highlight of the Day : The very irreverent Frankie Boyle on MTW...

Get in the swing, boy...

Playlist
UK – In the Dead of Night (3CD-R)
Lee Morgan - Volume 2: Sextet
Art Pepper – The Return of Art Pepper
Art Pepper – Modern Art
Art Pepper – Meets the Rhythm Section
Art Pepper – The Art Pepper Quartet
Lambchop – OH (Ohio)
Secret Machines – Secret Machines

Up and off to bring home some legitimate bacon rather than sick pay – although I have been working from home as much as possible during my time away from the offices of “The Man”...

Of course I’ve been suffering from FOPP withdrawal symptoms – nine days away...

And so, I took a wander along at lunchtime...

There were indeed some new delights - firstly, the latest by Secret Machines which, only a few weeks ago was a whopping £12 – now £3...

Then Lamchop’s last, again just £3...

Upstairs, intending on partaking of a few more classical bargains, I stumbled across a Lee Morgan Blue Note for just £2 and, finally, a 2CD set for £5 of four Art Pepper albums (the CD of just one of which was in the racks elsewhere for £7)...

Nutter alert...

A stormy and sunny day...



...on which a FOPP bag full of goodies was brought home....



...and with nowt on the telly, after a splendid home made beef chilli from the Exec Producer, it was upstairs for some listening and some typing and some reading...

So, still not 100% over the swine flu I feel, and the arm causing pain but, getting back in the swing perhaps...

Highlight of the Day : New purchases...

Tronic tonic...

Playlist
John Surman Glancing Backwards : The Dawn Anthology
Various – 10 CD Set

Ripped 190 tracks to the hard drive in preparation for a celebratory 10CD set...



Spent some time surfing Youtube and found some previously unseen clips...

Robert Fripp playing a Frippertronics piece on what looks like mainstream US TV...

Some rare footage of 72-74 era King Crimson...

The Allan Holdsworth Group I saw play in Glasgow last September....

Watched “Freefall” re the property market balls up – ok they had to pack a lot in in 90 minutes and they did it quite well but it was still a little too pat...

Listened to more British Jazz – Nucleus being the highlight of the evening...

Back to the offices of “The Man” tomorrow – swine flu hopefully behind me...

Highlight of the Day : Undiscovered Fripp...

Moped...

Playlist
Various – Prog 1967-1979
Circa – Live 2008
Harmonia – Harmonia Deluxe
Daft Punk – Human After All
If – Tea Break Over
Jeff Beck Group - Truth
The Revolutionaries – Channel One Dub Room
Roy Harper – BBC Tapes Vol 6 In Concert 1978
Various – Zunior Sampler 4.12
John Surman - Glancing Backwards : The Dawn Anthology

Moped around the house most of the day apart from watching a very funny set on video from comedian Sean Lock...

Worked on the running order for a new 10CD set for an upcoming celebration...

The latest edition of The Wire arrived...

Once I’d gotten it away from Meg the Black Cat...



...I gave it a read, the feature on British Jazz in the 60’s inspiring me to take a listen to my John Surman anthology of “out there” stuff

At bed time, I was unable to interest Meg the Black cat in Surman or his contemporaries, Ian carr (and Nucleus) or Keith Tippett...



Not to worry...

Highlight of the Day : Far out jazz, man...

Clever crow...

Playlist
Gentle Giant – The Edge of Twilight
Various – Prog Rock 1967-1979
Cloudland Blue Quartet – Songs and Soundscapes 1996-2009

Slept in reasonably late then, the Gentle Giant frenzy continued with their 2CD anthology, as did the prog frenzy...

Breakfast at home then did nothing all day really...

Still not 100% but to Anne’s mum’s for a small family tea, just me, Anne, Keith, Maureen and Anne’s mum...

Anne stopped off at Tesco on the way for some fish sauce for her mum – I stayed in the car, under quarantine, and was impressed by this crow’s idea of picking dead insects off the bumpers of the parked cars...



High in protein no doubt...

Excellent Thai Chicken, followed by Mary’s strawberry crème tart thing, which was so tasty, it trumped her best sponge in the world...



Home just after eight and watched TV with headphones on – Gentle Giant again...

Compiled a very long list of music for an upcoming event...

Highlight of the Day : Might well be the dessert pictured above....

Return of the giant...

Playlist
Various – Prog Rock 1967-1973
Dvorak – String Quartets
Grieg – Complete Chamber Music
Lennon/McCartney – The Beatles Symphony
Lennon/McCartney – Beatles Go Baroque
Steve Reid Ensemble – Spirit Walk
Hebden/Reid – The Exchange Sessions Vol 1
Seventh Key – The Raging Fire
Gentle Giant – Interview in Concert
Gentle Giant – 11 Albums on Shuffleplay

Up around 8 or so and to the back room where I started re-reading Paul Stump’s book on Prog Rock, “The Music’s All That Matters”, whilst listening back to a couple of the CDs compiled over the last two days...

Breakfast at home, Dvorak’s String Quartet in D Major soundtracking its preparation...

Then, feeling fairly upbeat, retreated again to the back room with Grieg’s String Quartet No 1 and followed this with two attempts at classical-ification of the music of The Beatles...

Then, some tasty jazz from Steve Reid, followed by his experiments with Fridge/FourTet’s Kieren Hebden and, finally, some reasonable heavy metal from Seventh Key - all while Anne was out shopping - I am, of course, still confined to barracks...

Whilst listening, I sorted out some recent purchases into alpha order...



...storage is becoming a problem and full alphabetisation isn’t currently possible...

Helped Anne out slightly in the garden – I am a rubbish gardener unafflicted with hay fever while Anne is a great gardener, totally afflicted with hay fever...

Prepared and enjoyed lunch then watched one of the worst films we’ve ever seen – “Being John Malkovitch” which has been lying around on DVD for over a year – wish we hadn’t bothered...

More buggering about with prog rock followed and, purely by chance (via a mis-click), I discovered that three of the originals, Kerry Minnear, Gary Green and Malcolm Mortimer have formed a new seven piece band, Three Friends..

They are out and about performing GG classics around the world – heading soon to the States and Japan – the vids on Youtube are worth a look if you’re a GG fanatic like me...

Of course this sparked off a Gentle Giant frenzy which was interrupted by an aborted trip the New Happy Palace (I stayed in the car) which was shut for holidays and back to Wong’s (I stayed in the car) for some nice Chinese takeaway...

We watched some of “T in the Park” – the same rubbish “too many talking heads” coverage as Glastonbury last week – then, a DVD of “Al Murray Pub Landlord”, who then turned up as headliner on Michael McIntyre’s show...

As Anne snoozed on the sofa I was drawn in to the film “Armageddon” and stayed up till gone 1 watching that, whilst taping “The Culture Show” for an appearance by Kraftwerk, to which Count Brodski had alerted me earlier in the day with a text...

Not a great Saturday really but I’m not complaining...



Highlight of the Day : Discovering Gentle Giant are back, kind of...

Comfortably numb...

Playlist
Various – Prog Rock 1967-1973
Impossible Songs – Intermittent Stimuli
William Fitzsimmons – Goodnight

A day much the same as yesterday as I continued to monitor work e-mails and compile a very large collection of prog rock...

Alerted by Dr Prog, I also bought a single ticket (front row circle) to see Yes in November at the Usher Hall - in the same week as Alice Cooper in Glasgow - and shortly before seeing both Depeche Mode and Pet Shop Boys (again) a couple of days apart - Winter's not looking too bad...

But, right now, it's definitely summer and, outside, the sun was beating down...

Meg the Black Cat luxuriated in a particularly sunny spot...



The Exec Producer was ferrying brother-in-law Keith and wife Maureen to a wedding in the wilds of East Lothian – on a beach – good day for it...

Meanwhile, the postie brought a get well card from the Impossible Songs along with a further tonic, in the shape of their new LP, which made for some palate refreshing listening late in the day after the prog marathon...



A call too from Count Brodski and a good chat. His 82 year old dad had to have one of his feet amputated today. Puts things into sharp perspective...

Finished ripping the prog tracks (160 of them) to the hard drive and laid all the source discs in question out on the floor to record for posterity...



Of course Meg the Black Cat had to get in on the act...



Superb pork, mozzarella and pesto dish from Annie tonight – mmm, mmm...

For the fifth time this week, TV highlight of the day was “Torchwood” – and they managed to maintain the quality right to the end - which seemed also to spell the end of this "Dr Who" spin-off - an excellent mini-series nonetheless...

It was followed by "Law & Order : Criminal Intent" and, on tape, the first in a new series of the superb "Mock the Week", including some well desreved jokes aimed at the followers of Michael Jackson...

A call from Dr Prog late on revealed his mix up in his concert ticket purchases...

With Yes playing in Edinburgh on the same night that he already has a ticket to see Steve Hackett in Glasgow and, unable to face a trip on the next day to Newcastle, he felt forced to secure a ticket for the Topographic Progsters in Manchester...

Of course, only after the deal was done, did he discover that the date for that clashes with already purchased seats for Gong and Steve Hillage in Edinburgh - long story short, the ticket for Gong is kindly bequeathed to me...

Winter gets even better...

Will also be a guest at upcoming gigs by both Simple Minds and U2...

And I do so hate live music concerts - my idea of hell on earth would be to attend this weekend's "T in the Park"...

Highlight of the Day : Discovering more excellent music hidden away in my own collection...

A day in the life...

Playlist
Various – Prog Rock 1967-1973

Confined to the house and, to monitor my “The Man” e-mails, confined to the PC...

Of course I’m not supposed to be working as I’m signed off...

My way of relaxing is to start compiling what will be a multi disc set comprising the history of Progressive Rock from 1967 (The Beatles’ “Sgt Pepper”) to 1979 (Pink Floyd’s “The Wall”)...



The selection of albums is not mine but is based on this excellent Prog Rock timeline which has an informed review of each album mentioned (accessed by clicking on the album title) and a link to CD Universe in case you want to buy it, see the track list or contributors list or sample the music...

Obviously my collection is limited to albums I own or from which I have tracks on single artist or various artist compilations...

There are just over 250 albums in the timeline (with a distinct bias towards Jethro Tull and Van der Graaf Generator it seems). I own around 110 and have tracks from a further 50 or so...

Today I made it through to Fripp & Eno’s “No Pussyfooting” at the end of 1973, the 85th of the 160 albums my compilation will feature...

Later on, the fourth episode of “Torchwood” kept up the standard, as yet another stalwart bit the dust and Capt Jack was killed for around the sixth or seventh time this week...

Grande Finale tomorrow...

Dreadful “Question Time” – the majority of the audience were supposedly University graduates or students. Their inability to communicate any idea cohesively (and without the use of the word “like”) was worrying...

Snoozed through “This Week” then off to bed with more Prog Rock in the phones...

Highlight of the Day : Discovering some excellent music hidden away in my own collection...

Cat on chair, cat on box..

Playlist
Van Der Graaf Generator – The Box
Coldplay – LeftRightLeftRightLeft
Various – Cloudland Blue Podcasts XX-XXII
Various – Prog at the Beeb
aMute – Infernal Heights for a Drama

I’m supposed to be resting of course but spent most of the day at the PC working from home on this that and the next thing – finally took a snooze around 4pm...

Meg the Black Cat on the other hand, snoozed for most of the day...

One of her favourite places is the chair at the PC, which she jumps onto as soon as I stand up to go anywhere else in the house – forcing me to use an uncomfortably Ikea stool while she lies in comfort...

Another favourite spot is on top of the box for the new printer...

No doubt she will be disappointed when we finally get round to transporting it into the attic...

In the evening, compiled and uploaded the latest three podcasts and watched “Day Three” of “Torchwood” – very good indeed (despite numerous nit-picks) – no doubt though it’ll flop in the last episode on Friday...

We’ll see...

Lights out...

Highlight of the Day : Finally getting a snooze...

SF sorrow pretty things...

Playlist
UK – In the Dead of Night (3CD-R)
Dar Williams – Discography (7xCD)
Van Der Graaf Generator – The Box
Tangerine Dream – Albums 1970-83

A hellish, sleepless night last night...

I had to stop taking the painkillers due to side effects like hot and cold sweating, dizziness, nausea and other items I’d rather not mention...

Consequently the pain in my shoulder is horrendous – hence no sleep – spent the night from 2 am sitting in the living room listening to music on the headphones trying not to make too much noise with the incessant coughing...

During the day I did manage a couple of hours sleep, in between being logged in to “The Man” and working from home while listening to Dar Williams...



Meg the Black Cat kept my spirits up by getting into places she ought not to...



So I had a doctor’s appointment at 5pm (best I could get after phoning in yesterday morning for one)...

I was hoping to get some painkillers which won't have such a drastic effect on my well-being but still block out the pain....

Off I trudged up the road to get the bus to the surgery...



I found it pretty hard to believe but the doc diagnosed Swine Flu!!

He said they don't do tests for it anymore as the labs would just be swamped and I’m also too far gone to get Tamiflu...

So, signed off for a week but, although I'm far from 100%, I felt I could have struggled on if I could just resolve the painkiller situation...

Thankfully, this has indeed been done, by removing Ibuprofen from the equation and giving me other drugs to counteract the codeine side effects...

I am not too unwell I must say but the doc advised the sign off is more for other people's benefit than mine - I wasn't even allowed to go to the chemist to get my prescriptions....

Quarantined for a week under orders to take paracetomol, loads of fluids and get loads of rest...

Back home, I started taking the cocodemol again and Anne cheered me up with a very tasty Red Thai Chicken Curry...

We enjoyed last week’s “Law & Order : Criminal Intent” followed by the second “Torchwood” episode and a new comedy quiz which featured the excellent Richard Herring...

A comparatively early night thereafter, using Tangerine Dream to lull me to sleep...

Highlight of the Day : Well, it’s not every day you get told you have Swine Flu...

Quite far from the promised land...

Playlist
Bruford – Feels Good to Me
Bruford – One of a Kind
Dar Williams – Promised Land

Soundtarcked by Bill Bruford's solo albums from the tail end of the seventies...

Not feeling too great right now - mucho pain as I've had to stop taking the painkillers due to side effects and I also appear to have contracted the lurgi - can't stop coughing annoyingly...

Buoyed today by the arrival of the latest Dar Williams CD from e-bay, having, at lunchtime, bravely carried around 5 Classical sets in FOPP for some considerable time before placing them back on the shelves and walking away...



On TV tonight the first of this week's five episodes of "Torchwood" was "promising" - in fact, to be fair, i'm very much looking forward to tomorrow's continuation...

Highlight of the Day : New Torchwood/New Dar Williams

Say "no" to vocals in jazz...

Playlist
UK – UK
UK – Danger Money
Bruford – Feels Good to Me
Bruford – One of a Kind
Bruford/Moraz – Music For Piano and Drums

Morning spent compiling a three disc set featuring UK and Bruford - some judicious editing of tracks carried out to remove the annoying vocals of Annette Peacock from Bruford's 1st album...

At one, we picked Anne's mum up and drove down to brother-in-law Keith's to celebrate the return from a six month stay in the Southern Hemisphere of his step daughter Rebecca (and to watch the tennis)...



I felt grim - but it was enjoyable nonetheless - excellent Pimms and pinapple, home made hot chilli and Keith's signature dish, lemon mouse with raspberries...

Much of it enjoyed out in the sunny back garden...







Felt sorry for the wee rabbit though - not much of a life...



Gave nephew Craig and his girlfriend Dawn a lift home along with Anne's mum...

Watched a bit of TV then headed for bed not feeling the best...

Highlight of the Day : Keith's chilli...

Skippy got married...

Playlist
Cloudland Blue Quartet – Soundingfall
UK – Best of UK

A glorious hot day....



...the majority of which was spent celebrating the wedding of old schoolchum Lesley to her one true love David...



What's this?



It's the wedding cake of course - from the Sicilian Pastry Shop - I suspect it was very tasty although I didn't partake myself for some unknown reason...



School chum Denise was in attendance with husband Mike - our first catch up for a goodly number of years...



Very interesting place cards were in use - your correspondent was suitably transformed into a lad insane...



Romance was in the air...



Now, who can this be?



It's Mr George, whose arrival in the evening along with Mr Paul and Mr Jamie added in spades to the entertainment of the day...



The Exec Producer does not partake in community singing...



A good day...

Highlight of the Day : Seeing old chums again...

Freeloaders...

Playlist
Schubert – Complete trios
Schubert – Late Piano Sonatas
Grieg – Complete Chamber Music
Janacek – Complete Piano Works
Schumann – Complete Concertos
Ibert – Complete Chamber Music
Handel – Italian Cantatas
Grieg – Complete Lyric Pieces
Rachmaninov – Complete operas
Debussy – Orchestral works
Poulenc – Camber Music, Piano Music
Ravel – Complete Orchestral Works

Some of my latest classical purchases, including those from yesterday, provided today’s soundtrack in shuffleplay mode...

Off to Fife around midday for a meet relating to a possible large deal for “The Man” – went well...

In the evening, having returned home and watched Andy Murray, rather predictably, lose to Andy Roddick in the Wimbledon semi-final, we headed back into town, initially to Thomson’s Bar...



Then, over the road to McKirdy’s Steakhouse to cash in on one of two large denomination vouchers received by me from the staff of “The Man” (and “The Man” himself) on the occasion of my fiftieth birthday, already two months ago...

A slap up feed ensued, mainly comprising sirloins, curly fries, onions, pepper sauce etc etc...

Tasty...

The wine which accompanied the meal, along with the imbibing earlier and the continued taking of strong painkillers, resulted in the following snaps of...

The Exec Producer...



The bus home...



The Moon....



Meg the Black Cat...

An enjoyable day...

Highlight of the Day : Out with Anne...

PS revised moon pic for Sid and John...

Don't fear...

Playlist
We Are Scientists – Brain Thrust Mastery
Jimi Hendrix – Electric Ladyland
Jimi Hendrix – Axis: Bold as Love
Dream Theater – Black Clouds and Silver Linings
Moby – Last Night
Sherwood – A Different Light
Jason Lytle – Yours Truly, The Commuter
William Fitzsimmons – Goodnight
Amy LaVere – Anchors and Anvils
The Olympic Symphonium – More in Sorrow than in Anger
Schubert – Complete Trios
Schubert – Late Piano Sonatas
Grieg – Complete Chamber Music
Janacek – Complete Piano Works
Schumann – Complete Concertos
Ibert – Complete Chamber Music
Handel – Italian Cantatas
Grieg – Complete Lyric Pieces

An absolute scorcher today from the word go...



Soundtracked again by ten cracking newly bought albums...

Didn’t intend on going to FOPP at lunchtime but, somehow, found myself there...

After a browse around, I was about to leave empty handed, when some new bargains in the classical section caught my eye...

And so, this evening, these six box sets have joined the collection for just £18 – around the price of five pints of lager (yes that’s just one of the many ways in which I justify my mad music purchasing)...



“Reaper” returned and entertained – with so many of our favourites having now come to an end, this old friend is very welcome back...

Other than that, the evening, still stiflingly hot at almost 11 pm, was spent ripping and sampling the new acquisitions and rounded off by staples “Question Time” and “This Week”...

Highlight of the Day : New classics...

Sunshine and showers...

Playlist
Various – Chilled 1991-2008
Hawkwind – The Space Ritual
We Are Scientists – Brain Thrust Mastery
Jimi Hendrix – Electric Ladyland
Jimi Hendrix – Axis: Bold as Love
Dream Theater – Black Clouds and Silver Linings
Moby – Last Night
Sherwood – A Different Light
Jason Lytle – Yours Truly, The Commuter
William Fitzsimmons – Goodnight
Amy LaVere – Anchors and Anvils
The Olympic Symphonium – More in Sorrow than in Anger

Soundtracked today by some chill out music which, for the most part just wasn’t chilled out enough for my liking, and by the mighty Hawkwind, and by my fave 10 rock/pop albums of the recent mental buying spree...

Spent three hours today on public transport – in and out of town twice in the blistering heat – which was accompanied by the occasional thunder shower...



The second visit was for this month’s Secret CD featuring Emma Forman, Pete Michael Rowan, Lorraine McCauley and Townhouse, featuring Lisa Paton, Stuart Clarke and John Farrell...



A trip down south precluded old chum James Jamieson from attending but it was great to see Ali Hutton from Impossible Songs and Mr Ian Sclater too...

The music on offer was of a reasonably high standard and the air conditioning, though rather noisy, was definitely needed...

Managed to catch the last bus home and the good music continued on the headphones...



Highlight of the Day : Chat with chums...