A Lark Ascending

Rubbish summer in UK (weather-wise) is now official: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19427139 I blame Nick Clegg.

There are the usual strategies: Celebrity conductor/performer looking terribly serious on the sleeve. Beautiful young thing in evening dress promising the genius of the future. Nice bit of visual art to remind you that you are buying into high culture. But every now and then the companies do some very odd things - Nige and his punky hairdo from the 80s sticks in mind. Here's a strange one that is being pushed in the UK at present: Both have classical programmes but the last is a live disc with spoken commentary by Rhodes with naughty words (I believe, haven't heard it). Blurb: Just as well he became a professional pianist - the only alternative with that resume was to be a Tory politician. The suffering artist - a great selling point since at least the late-18thC. What other 'odd' approaches have you come across? [Just in case there are any classical marketing departments watching this board, I'm a sucker for a nice painting!)

Count on it. Four weeks of kids complaining 'I can't do no wok, it's too 'ot.'

Amazing picture - love the way the water has been caught. Here its mainly grey or raining. We had a week in late July that was summer as it should be. Apart from that it's been very disappointing.

A beautiful film about the Adderbury Morris Men from Oxfordshire. In Between 1914-18 all but one of the morris side were killed in World War I and morris died there. In 1975 it was revived again and the team has continued. Beautifully photographed, the film culminates with a visit of the current side to the Somme to pay respect to those earlier men at Thiepval. Very moving.

The same could be argued for Angela's Ashes. If you are sympathetic to it. Taking with a pinch of salt; magnified.

It's a novel, and not a good one, but also a document of great interest to jazz fans. Really? It's 35 years since I read it - I was always under the impression is was sold as an autobiography. Agree, it's a fascinating book; but even when I read it as someone new to jazz I was hurling bags of salt between the pages.

I took my mother to see the film and she said it was unrecognisable compared with her own life growing up at the same time in Athlone (the next big town to the north-east). Admittedly she came from a stable, skilled craftsman family so there might have been a class difference. I agree that different standards apply between fiction and a 'real life' recollection. Wonder where that puts 'Beneath the Underdog'? I suspect it will be defended as using exaggeration, braggadocio and fantasy to illustrate deeper truths.

That brings back memories. I still hear 'Positively Fourth Street' with the 20 second gouge where I overdid the penny!

Thomas de Quincey has had his Booker Prize revoked too.

Well, the upholstery is white. And Eric should be looking backwards through his mirror. Both are happy as Larry.

I regularly go on field trips round those various Badger beers.

Sad indeed. The excitement of that time has never really been recaptured despite lots of wonderful scientific explorations elsewhere. Had a huge impact on culture at the time - film, TV, music, books etc. Just look through your 60s/early 70s records (if you have any). R.I.P. Mr Armstrong.

Although I tend to find beers over 5% a bit too sickly, I really like this one. The gumpf on the label has fooled me into believing I can taste a liquorice flavour. Always have a couple of bottles before I hit the woods in the Welbeck Estate at 2.00 a.m.

Good programme - lovely to hear Lol Coxhill on a relatively mainstream programme; especially enjoyed the Coleman Hawkins and Dizzy Gillespie tracks. And was reminded to get my 'Birth of the Third Stream' out by the track with Miles on.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-19378460

The chop it up, saute it with some garlic and olive oil, and then bon apetit! Good eats! Well, when I'm gone, they are quite welcome to do that (though some of it is pretty undigestible). But while I'm around, I'll listen to it.

I doubt if anyone would want my collection. It always gets strange looks when people come round.

Who inherits all the nice meals you've eaten in your life? Think of your music, in whatever form you choose to consume it, as something to enjoy, not as property.

In the British case in the time period you mention, not many. More the case now (but I suspect that's equally true in the USA). Again, and in the time period you mention, most. Lots came up through dance bands, amateur trad/skiffle bands; some played in radio orchestras. By the 60s/70s many were getting their grounding in blues bands (McLaughlin for example) and later still many started in rock. Today's younger performers are far more likely to come up via academic training though that is not always classical and I can't say the classical training is what I hear first and foremost in most players. It does sound different to American jazz, even contemporary American jazz, but that is more due to the different environment and a very conscious effort by many musicians since the 60s (not all) not to sound American. I'd imagine something similar is true of other non-US countries with a strong internal jazz tradition.

Folk music - mainly English with a bit of Irish, Scottish and American. Since largely giving up on newly minted rock in the late 70s jazz, classical and folk music have dominated my listening, each one going in and out of focus at different times. In recent years folk music got a bit squeezed by the classical/jazz giants. But a week of total immersion in live folk music reminded me about what first attracted me to the music. It just does things very differently to the more self-consciously arty musics (though it has plenty of its own airs and graces and its very own self-appointed police forces dedicated to preventing deviationism, fortunately largely ignored). Not better, not lesser, just very distinct and different.

Not another Lynard Skynard thread!

Utterly bewitched today listening to Christy Moore singing 'Shine on You Crazy Diamond'. A grand, technicolour piece if ever there was one, stripped down to a simple, gentle, poignant ballad. I love the original but Christy makes the song his own by simply not even trying to approach the scale of the original. Comes from here:

Found an inexpensive set a couple of weeks back and am moving through series 1. I saw a fair few when televised 10 to 15 years ago but they bear revisiting and there are plenty I missed. Absolutely tremendous - one of the best send ups of arty pretension anywhere. Brilliant writing. All praise to the Godfather of Reality:

Have you read: This one didn't win the Booker Prize, Sacred Hunger did. No. But having read the blurb on Amazon I will add it to my list. The deconstruction of historical myths always appeals.