Kon Tiki: or the Lures & the Dangers of the Exotic

I thought I would stay on this theme for a little while in order to counterbalance the space given to fitba.

I remember lying in a bed in St George’s Hospital, Hyde Park Corner then, I only mention the location as my friend Robbie, another Librarian, is starting work in the current Tooting location, (co-incidence??), & thinking to myself, I have done a fair bit of travelling, now is the time to settle down & get married.

I had just experienced a 4 month, mind – expanding, vacation on the old hippie trail. Maybe it was a moment of weakness or perhaps it was the fact that I had survived almost intact. I did have hep – b & I could have been delirious, but I did get engaged to my childhood sweetheart by phone from my hospital bed. This was a difficult process as no-one was brave enough to bring the phone into my isolation ward, except a chap, who had thwarted an armed robbery & had the back of his kneecap blown off as a result.

Anyway, I am well – pleased that my youngest son has proposed to his long - term girlfriend from an exotic location, Kos. This is their second visit to the island and I hope & trust that it will always be special to them. Might I suggest there is a pattern here? My son is deeply frightened that he will become anything like me. I was like this before I became just like my own father. It’s just something that happens. If Billy Preston was still alive (R.I.P.) he would sing, ‘That’s the Way God Planned It’: a great tune and a beautiful piece of work to leave the world.

On the garden front: we have a rose that usually blooms for the above mentioned sons’ birthday on 2^nd August, but I did use animal manure for the first time this year, and as a result, we have an early bloom. Incidentally, the other flowers, who usually struggle in this weak soil, are now thriving, so it has been a worthwhile exercise although it has been a little smelly at times.

Outside the Dream Syndicate

My earliest memories are of trying to escape from the mundane. As a child I would disappear after school into the hills. Most of the time I was on my own, but if I had company, then that was ok, too.

On the wild & wet & windy days, I would escape into the wonderful world of books. At this stage in my life, I loved travel & adventure, the more exotic the better. I loved reading & learning about faraway lands. ‘This Wonderful World’ with John Grierson was on tv and I had an uncle, who dropped off these magazines, who’s title eludes me, but it was the magazine equivalent of the exotica vinyl covers, that graced the record racks in shops. I have used a variety of the latter, in previous posts.

Shifting forward to the present day. Absolutely nothing has changed. I am listening to Ethiopiques, vol 4, Raymond Scott - Manhattan Research Project, John Cale’s - Church of Anthrax, Joe Meek & his Blue Men – I hear a New World, Elizabeth Waldo’s - Maracatu, Various – Café Samba & lastly, Dorothy Ashby’s - Rubaiyat: an extraordinary piece of jazzy exotica, like a female version of Sun Ra. I am not travelling to far off lands, but I am creating my own piece of those realms within my living room or garden space: an area of wild grasses & bamboo & my current escape route, (if only this rain would stop!).

Planet Latino


Talking to my friend/colleague Nick Peacock out in the sunshine yesterday. What an interesting chap! A photographer/dj & who is also well - travelled & another obsessive/compulsive music fan & he also shares a few friends & memories of the old days. We were on the same wavelengh right away chatting about Gilles Peterson/Simon Hodge/Latin music, especially Brazilian.

He mentioned the fact that Radio Scotland has started a new Wednesday night slot hosted by Simon Hodge over the summer on Latin music: Planet Latino:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/radioscotland/view/show.shtml?jazz

We had a rare chat about Ed Motta etc... but sadly I had to go back to work, but I am sure we will revisit this subject again, as the series continues.

Still Game


What a collective sigh of relief when the English finally got knocked out of the World Cup. This is a trophy they expected to win! They constantly told everyone they would lift that trophy. Get a reality check. They got the easiest games in the tournament.

Anyway, this is not an anti English rant. This is an anti- English media rant. We can enjoy the rest of the competition, although for this writer, I was shocked at the performance of Brazil & much as I did not rate France, they thoroughly deserved their place in the next round.

Its so difficult to find the time for my other pursuits, e.g. garden re-design, with all this football going on! I can only nip out between games & do a small amount.

On the musical front, I have been getting a lot of elusive cds finally. I am a big Dario Argento fan & I got the Goblin soundtracks to ‘Suspiria’, ‘Tenebre’, ‘Amo Non Amo’, ‘Zombi’, & Profondo Rosso’. I love the music when it is in the films. I will see how they sound without the visuals. If I can find the time to listen to them.

On a positive note: I admit I have been dismayed at the 5-0 whitewash of the English cricket team by Sri Lanka. As a sporting nation, they are not doing very well. I mean what was painted on the team coach, One Nation…..Does this mean that the Scots are different, that we should have some real power to secure oil wealth etc…& have a proper health service etc…like Norway??

Anyway, has anyone noticed the quiet progress of Andy Murray, who has made some stupid statements in his young life.

What's the Hampden Roar

Ok so I tried hard not to mention that dreaded word: football. All during the current, mad climate of celebrating the beautiful game on the world stage. The best little country in the world is sadly not represented this time. I don’t feel bad about this as our near neighbours are busy making a fool of themselves as usual and once again, upsetting the whole world with their antics. Even many of the English themselves are growing tired of the hype. To me its like Big Brother goes on holiday. All the lowlives with too much money & very little sense & with the easiest games possible & with last minute rescues, have progressed further, than this level headed unbiased fan of the game thought possible.

Surely Portugal, even with a depleted squad, due to some wicked decisions, will sort them out & stop all this 1966 nonsense. I mean there was a National team in 1967 that taught that 1966 England team a lesson. This I will not forget along with Archie Gemmell’s later piece of magic.

I am sure the suicide rate around the world must soar now that there are so few games & such large gaps between matches.

If anyone thinks I will be supporting England in what is surely their last game, then they do not know me. I am not a big fan of the Portuguese since they cheated Celtic out of a deserved Uefa Cup, but I would rather they won than those loudmouths south of the border.

Also, I would just like to mention how shocked I was at Henry’s antics the other day during the France vs Spain game, where he held his face in an effort to get Puyol sent off. The resulting free kick caused the goal that made the difference & won the match for them. Although Zidane’s magic at the end would have done that anyway.

Although the refs have done a lot to sort out a lot of the cheating in the box during this competition, there is an incredible amount of cheating going on in other parts of the game.

Anyway, I have been disappointed in the lack of flair during this World Cup. Even Brazil have not turned it on. Maybe they are saving it for the final?

Hatfield, the Hungarians & the North

Yes, I know its been a while since an update. Too much happening in my life to deal with at the moment & so much confusion. I mean recently one of my sons played at a wedding. My wife & mother-in-law wanted to go to the church to see the bride ..etc as they knew her family. I just dressed casually, as we were not guests. Believe it or not, my son told me I upstaged the bride because I was wearing a tie-dyed, fractal t-shirt. What’s wrong with these people. What’s wrong with tie-dye?


The last month at work has been so weird too. Usually at this time of year we are winding down, before the summer holidays. However, the past 4 weeks have been so busy & with us being one member of staff short, it has been crazy.
In addition, we have had all the Hungarians spending all their free time (a lot) in the library. Not that this was a problem, we were delighted to have these visitors with us almost every day for the past month, but they had to be accommodated, when the library was very busy. The day before they left, one of the teachers, Judith gave us a couple of atonement gifts: a dvd & a hardback book showing us the area that they come from. This was a fine gesture & if I ever get the time, I will watch the dvd & leaf through the book.

I am now attempting to finish re-laying my driveway, a task I began last summer. So, instead of typing this, as it is dry outside, I should get out there.

On a more positive note, I finally got my grubby hands on those first 2 Hatfield & the North albums on cd, as well as a couple of Matching Mole albums, this has cheered me up no end.

The World of Small Things


I enjoy the quiet moments in life …..these are harder to find…….the world of small things…….the glitchy music where nothing happens…..the Derek Jarman films like blue….the Brian Eno music………when did we stop looking up @ the clouds in wonder…..sometimes you have to take yourself out or away from yourself to see the wonder & beauty in life & God’s creation……
I must admit I find prose/poetry/film/music much more interesting when you look at the cracks in the sidewalk or the in-between days……not for me the grandness & the ultra car chase/crashbang..more of everything that makes up our modern consumer world.

this attitude came to me when I was making 'soundwalks' & listening to other versions of the same idea. It is only when I was recording natural sounds onto minidisk that I discovered how entirely fascinating the audio landscape was around us & shocked by the fact that we are de-tuned to it.

it was only by wearing headphones & by using a microphone that I got hooked into the micro audio universe.

I still find this area of exploration exciting & this has stopped me doing stuff with samplers & synths & turning me to the richer sounds in our ignored environment.

this reminds me of happier times & longer summers, lying on my back staring up at the clouds or closing my eyes & drifting into slumber focusing on this aural delight.

Being a big Hafler Trio fan led me into some of these areas of sound. Chris Watson who was with Cabaret Voltaire & who later formed one half of the Hafler Trio with Andrew MacKenzie has produced some excellent work as a solo artist. In my opinion some of his best work has been recorded in Bonnie Scotland. He works as a sound recordist for the bbc & the quality of his work is exceptional.

Better to Burn Out than Fade Away

What’s new: happy highlanders dropped by on their way to Whitehaven for a wedding, Shangalang has had his hair tarted up & back to black from grey, my car has (ver)sprung a water leak somewhere…………I have to wait for a repair, because of the Hungarian delegation, who are also spending a lot of time in the library with me, although the past 2 weeks have been so frantic with us being 1 person short & the mad rush to finish projects, before the end of the academic year.

I got my opportunity to use my 2 word Polish vocabulary on Darius, who wasn’t particularly impressed. Now we have to wait to get our paper re-cycled because the Hungarians were taken to the Falkirk Wheel!

My sister-in-law has a new boiler & her neighbour took a bad turn & we were all worried as her two daughters live only a couple of doors away. One of the daughters had to go into hospital herself to get her kidney stones blasted & this was the only reason I witnessed Kenny’s handiwork on Shangalangs napper, because he was gardening at his mother in laws.

Another of my neighbours has gone to the usa so I have to remember & put his re-cycle bin out for the Council. Life is altogether very complicated.

The West Dunbartonshire book festival begins on Monday, so I am off to many of these events, missing some of the World Cup games & the cricket no doubt. If the weather changes I can get that driveway finished. It’s still half done since last summer.

On my way back from one of my Reading Groups last night, I cut through a 10k run & saw our Health & Safety man & one of the PT staff, who shouted, ‘hat trick hero’ at me. I don’t like going on about my 52-year-old Brazilian football skills especially in front of Harry from my Reading group, but I did get another extraordinary hat trick during my 5 –a-side match mid week.

All through this madness, I did get a chance to listen to these cds & that helped!

Two Other Ex- Bus Conductors


We will change the world. It broke my heart to learn that John & Margaret's son alan was shot during a peaceful demonstation. It was a rubber bullet & he survives to fight another day. The whole world is watching but no-one is really doing anything about it. God bless.

Tales from the far north

Imagine the situation. You have decided to get away from it all & have a quiet escape from a pressurised lifestyle out on the Cairngorms & then this old weird guy is playing mad, mad music @ crazy volumes. One day it is some obscure jazz rock, that he tells you his totally obsessed librarian friend had transferred from tape to cd in a long labour of love, then the next day he is playing Kevin Coynes ‘ Margery Razorblade’, all about his experiences as a psychiatric nurse in mental wards. To top it all he is screaming some unbelievable story about how him, his wife & his friend went along to Paisley Art Centre to see Kevin Coyne & got lost.

The next time you pass by, he has some lost rare 60s psychedelia blaring & the lyrics are Old Testament dirges sung off - key by someone, who was in Afghanistan in 1965? Can you believe anything this old man tells you?

Later he is muttering about how he & his librarian friend used to be Bus Conductors, (whatever that might have been?) & how they also worked in a sewing machine factory?

You start to consider your own lifestyle and realise that you are glad you have adopted this sensible attitude to your health. These children of that 60s culture are deeply scarred & damaged. The strangest thing is that it doesn’t appear to bother them. They seem happy enough, lost in their thoughts & dreams of some Utopian world, where wealth seemed unimportant & where everyone had time to talk with each other & respect each other as an equal. They are all well – read, opinionated & oddly totally radical in the way that only children of Red Clydesiders can be.

Never ever ever let your children mess with your hair:

Drifting


I was having one of those eno moments as I listened to some post rock or Finnish psychedelia with the windows open & the street sounds, birds, hovermowers cut in & out. I do listen to a lot of ‘soundwalks’ these days as well as producing my own.

There is so much sound around us especially during the Spring/Summer months that you only hear, when using a microphone & a pair of headphones and focus-in on your audio environment.

I remember lying on my back during those endless summers of youth, eyes closed absorbing the natural sounds around me. Where did that time go: it was only yesterday. Walking the Kilpatrick Hills even after school, catching trout with my bare hands, reading ‘Lord of the Rings’ in 1969 on these hills after hearing Tyrannosaurus Rex & their Tolkeinesque lyrics on the John Peel show.

Thinking about the time I was in a hospital bed in London in another eno moment, suffering from Hep B. (not the hep c for lightweights, that the junkie cons pick up!) & I had some money left after travelling about in India/Nepal & asked a male nurse to pick up some cassettes for me….Santana’s Caravanserai still takes me right there, right now.

It is appropriate that my favourite singer for the last 40 years has a new cd entitled ‘Drifting’ . Scott Walker like the Blue Nile knows that a 10 year gap between albums is ok.

Maybe drifting is all we ever achieve in this life. I personally accept this as a lifestyle choice.
Conrad Schnitzler ex-Tangerine Dream, ex-Kluster seems content to drift in last month’s ‘Wire’ magazine interview, taking care of his garden.

Paul Simon’s new album ‘Surprise’ is just that. What a disappointment! However, I did think of his lyric……..there is a moment: a chip in time’ apologies if I misquoted, but saying goodbye to Clare today, although it fills me with sadness, I am happy that we shared this time. I choose to see our team of professionals in the library like the John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers of the 60s so many great people passing through & moving on. This is getting too heavy man………but then life is like that (am I getting too old), our lives drift they sometimes touch, but then they split apart & we are gone.

Moyshe McStiff & the Tartan Lancers of the Sacred Heart


It just gnaws away at you all the time. If you are a compulsive cd buyer like myself, you cannot leave it alone. My excuse is that I saw it on vinyl 35 years ago and should have bought it then even although, I would not have had the money. I just had to go back to Lost in Music (actually my son went for me) & buy that copy of that classic Clive Palmer album by his band COB. This had to be done to avoid that neverending stress & turmoil.

10, 000 Things to do if I had the Time

1. Make a list
2. Make another list
3. Make a list of lists
4. Make a note of where my lists are
5. Index the lists
6. Spend more time with my family (If they are on any of the above lists!)
7. Transfer all my experimental psychedelic mixtapes to cd to keep my Neath fanbase happy
8. Transfer all my own recordings from minidisk to cd
9. Find those obscure 60s lps that shook my tree

Yesterday I woke up sucking on lemons

What is this madness that engulfs us? Climbing up a ladder to reach the coffee jar before I am awake enough to climb up a ladder to reach the coffee jar before I am awake enough to climb up a ladder to reach the coffee jar before I am awake enough to….

Listening to Radiohead acoustic recordings at 7.00 a.m. on a Saturday, having quality time with my son before he goes off to work. How many 52 year olds would do this Thom Yorke? Darius is just about to start his shift for today building my neighbour’s extension. Carpentry is such a fabulous gift.

Returned to fitba after such a long layoff with such a nambie- pambie injury. Scored a hat trick that henrik would be proud of. Kenny’s on his hunkers. Shang-a-lang has the lassies in training for this years’ 10k. Is that another year gone? Passing so quickly now.

Mr Beloushi is back from Oman but worried about his ability to move from Further to Higher Education. I have a stack of Post Rock stuff to go to Deko.

The Happy Highlanders are off to Perth to see Jackie Leven (again!).

The sun is out at last, so its falling asleep in the garden time for me again. Is this the highlight of the year now for me at my age? Well actually yes. Oh & lets not forget that Channel 5 has the cricket rights for the next 4 years. Nice one mate.

Sometimes, I listen to more comfortable music: like the stuff above or (at last I found it!) East of Eden's first lp: Mercator Projected. Trouble is while I was in Lost in Music, I also saw the C.O.B. cd Moyshe McStiff & the Tartan Lancers of the Sacred Heart & Comus' s first 2 lps on one cd. I could go on & on...............

I Woke Up Laughing........

Pet Hates: People who talk during gigs

One of the happy highlanders is often on a short fuse now that he is well into his twilight years. Recently, he bit the bullet & attended a Triptych event in Aberdeen i.e. King Creosote, Akron Family, Adem etc…..I suspect he knew that he was running a risk going to the Lemon Tree as it might have been full of youngsters.

However, despite him being his usual subtle self & making increasingly louder comments to his wife,(never fearing the size of the well-fed youth), this event was spoiled for him because of ignorant students who attend events & chat, only to state that they had been there!

I must admit this is one of my own pet hates. I don’t know why it happens now. It never used to occur. Too much money? People go to gigs for the background ambience?? Who knows?

This behaviour stopped me attending the Ferry in Glasgow. I have been told by Keith that the Orange Moor at the top of Byres Road is the same. Clare says that she went to the Arches recently to hear a really quiet singer songwriter & there they were again the chattering clinking classes.

If you are not there to see the artist please stay at home mate or go to a real pub!

In Search for Lost Psychedelia

The beauty of this current download culture is that those stupid mistakes you made as a teenager, when bread was in short supply, can be rectified, (almost).

I did not sell much of my valuable vinyl collection, but I do regret selling: tontos expanding headband/brian auger/nice- thoughts of emerlist davjack.

I recently got a copy of the latter & its still sounds superb (to these 52 year old ears).

I have also managed to acquire most of the Tonto tracks & a range of Brian Auger tracks. The Tontos Expanding Headband were so far ahead of the game & produced that magnificent album. I couldn’t understand why it was so difficult to track down until I realised that Stevie Wonder had been so smart that he brought Malcolm Cecil & the other part of the duo on board & must have gave them such a lucrative contract that their own output stagnated & died. Stevie was to reap the reward for this as the albums that followed were so innovative.

Anyway all I need now is the time left to catch up on listening to this wealth of rare Mexican, Japanese or Brazilian psychedelia that I have now amassed. Why there is so much Brazilian psychedelia available is totally beyond my ken?

Jazz rock or jazz funk fusion?

Back after a dead week of winter vomiting, (in spring?). Picked up Billy Cobham best on cassette from the happy highlanders & it is now transferred to cd copy. I had forgotten how great a lot of that jazz rock fusion stuff was. It all began for me quite early with Peel playing that first Chicago Transit Authority double gatefold lp to death. I have since bought about 3 copies of it on vinyl/cd. He also complimented this lp with the first Blood, Sweat & Tears album. These have remained 2 of my favourite albums to this day.

Later maybe it was the times we lived in, but it all got so cosmic. I remember seeing John McLaughlin, a firm fixture under my own, or happy highlander no. 1’s arms, at greens playhouse and being totally blown away. Can it ever get any better than this? Well yes. I am sure my friend and myself will always have strong feelings about this period & we have exchanged recordings of this era with knowing glances that indicate no need for words. Pure quality.

Maybe this concentration on the jazz rock output meant we missed the jazz funk period. These London soul boys who make my listening these days like Gilles Peterson were well up on the jazz funk bizness. I am catching up now on a retrospective trip.

Oh in case I forget, thanks for the new Donald Fagen. Steely Dan took all that jazz & made some of the sweetest funky jazz rock in their lifetime & it still sound so good today.

TUNE UP

Despite repeated warnings to the Happy Highlanders along the lines of: are you sure about this?

They suggested they would come down form Glenmore to see Bill Wells latest project @ CCA in Glasgow.

As I suspected there was another librarian at the gig, Stephen pastel & another pastel, catriona (who was to play drums on stage). I was astonished to learn that the Highlanders wanted to attend this gig, as they frequently despair at my eclectic taste in music, especially with regard to glitch/minimalism/Japanese noise etc.

Each year, I try & convince them of how superb the Instal @ the Arches had been. I am sure they just nod to placate me. To be honest I was not sure what to expect @ the CCA, as apart from great respect for Bill Wells, I did not know the work of the other musicians on the programme.

Although, I had a sneaking feeling that I had seen Kama Aina playing in Mono last year?

This concert was part of the Scottish Arts Council’s ‘Tune Up’ Programme of taking tours around more remote parts of the country. Along with Bill Wells there was Maher Shalal Hash Baz, Tenniscoats, Kama Aina & Kazumi Nikaidoh. The latter was unquestionably the star of the show.

My friends were pleasantly surprised, as they were impressed by the musicianship & the melodies. The madcap surrealism was captivating, as you were never sure what was to happen next.

I am quick to associate Japanese music with either noise (Merzbow/Aube) /retro psychedelia (Acid Mothers Tempel) /acid jazz (Mondo Grosso) /brazilia etc..and I realised that there is just so much more great music coming from that country. However, to see these acts live is such a delight.

RAVI SHAKAR



Yes, I know, sometimes its hard to find the time to update the blog. I accept the comments from those concerned. My rainbow making kit has been sheltering these last few days. However there is a break in the cloud cover & the sun is shining.

Watching Dan Cruickshank getting his ear hair burnt off in Istanbul has opened up possibilities for me. Taking my moustache off, would remind my sons & I of my dad’s last days in the hospital. The nurses had shaved off his moustache. My sons had never seen him without it. I could detect a look of concern, when they thought mine was gone. Maybe I am only being hopeful here? I had just trimmed it, although I had rendered it almost invisible. Playing around with facial hair is such a lark. People take it too seriously. Lose the ego, man!

Mothering Sunday, what’s all that aboot? Anyway my wife got 2 dvds, one we wont mention, but the second was a Joni Mitchell one of her in concert with her artwork surrounding her. It was really enjoyable. Am I stuck in a sixties thing or what?

I recently obtained a cd copy of the ‘Hair’ soundtrack. I used to loathe this at the time, but with the benefit of hindsight, it actually sounds good to these ears at this time in my life.

Seeing Donovan at the time of ‘Cosmic Wheels’ in concert made me cringe. Were we really that naive? I also watched the old George Harrison concert for Bangladesh. I remember seeing it when it came out in the cinema. Am I really that old! Anyway, I still enjoyed it immensely, the wrong Beatles died.

What about old Ravi Shankar though, he rocked. He has left his talent to his fine daughters. Why is it I can only remember, Norah Jones’ s name & not the other one who follows closer to her fathers’ footsteps.

Talking of fathers & sons & daughters: I recently discovered myself shouting at the tv. My dad used to do this also. So a word of warning to Hugh & Keith, I never thought it would happen to me! This brings me back again to the old unwanted hair problem. If you hear a fire engine in my neighbourhood, you will know the old Turkish barber trick with the naked flame is extremely dangerous!