A Lark Ascending

I think you're right. At one time there was a lot of the smug, over-wealthy rock star (with un rock starrish political thoughts) aura about him - how much was real, how much just appearances, I would not know. I know he was often a default butt of jokes in the UK, evoked as a symbol of tastelessness. A bit like Sting. Collins I can live with; I still can't cope with a grown up who calls himself Sting.

No-one has explained to me yet why Phil Collins is a bad drummer. I'm getting neutotic. All I hear is a drummer. I can't understand why I should dislike his drumming when compared to Nick Mason or Charlie Watts or Ringo Starr. Someone explain. [Comments from those who have praised him acknowledge: I'm just interested in why some single him out as bad.]

They are pricey! But they do look interesting. They appear to be available as either two separate volumes or one single volume. The $100 tag seems to be for the single volume version. The two separate volumes are priced at £35 each here - expensive, but not prohibatively so for books that would not just be read once but constantly referred to. The key point for me will be how technical (or not) they are. I'll have to see a copy first.

A couple of interesting looking (if pricey) books on the horizon: I suspect they may be too academic for me; hopefully not. I could do with something that can unravel some of the goings on in this music in laymans terms. I'm increasingly taken by the music but know I'm just scratching the surface.

The clocks went back last week in Europe, not in America. I believe they use the Julian calendar too. Cannonball knows all about the changes. Very good!

Just out of interest, why is Phil Collins a 'bad' drummer? No axes to grind...I don't know enough about drumming and generally don't pay drums a great deal of conscious attention. Though I've always found the drumming on the instrumental passage towards the end of 'Supper's Ready' very engaging. Just curious. Is he a 'bad' drummer full stop. Or did he become 'bad' in the late 70s when he seemed to be part of that move to fill up space with loud, echoy, regular timekeeping?

The clocks went back last week in Europe, not in America. I believe they use the Julian calendar too.

Just finished: One of those rare novels that can really communicate an enthusiasm for music, in this case chamber music. Also reaching the end of: Tells the life story in a very matter of fact way, working hard to nail the myths. But in the process is a bit colourless with virtually no commentry on the music itself. 'Testimony' (which I read about 30 years ago) and Ian Macdonald's book on Shostakovich might get criticised for being inauthentic (Testimony) or overcoloured and speculative (MacDonnald) but they both really made me want to listen to the music. The historian in me approves of Fay's account...but it didn't excite me.

You're late. The clocks went back last week.

I don't care what musicians wear (though I do get irritated by self-consciously hip dressing, probably because I'm self-consciously unhip). Just as long as they (or the management) don't tell me what to dress in. I've always found the 'dressing up' nature of classical music off-putting. I recall finding my first few classical concerts in the mid-70s a bit daunting - in the UK classical music is still very much associated with a social/intellectual elite, one that was outside my direct experience. Those running concerts would probably claim the penguin suits etc are all to do with marking out the 'serious' nature of what is going to happen musically. I still feel it's equally about keeping the riff-raff out.

Phil Collins was considered quite a facile drummer in his time. May not be your cup of tea, but listen to any Genesis album between 1973 and 1981. I have a feeling that Phil Collins gets it in the neck more for his popular success, celebrity status and (in the UK at least) threatening to leave the UK if Labour got elected at one point (being a Tory rock musician has never been wise!). I'm no expert on drummers but he seemed to do the job perfectly well back in the mid-70s Genesis highpoint. Bill Bruford goes out of his way to present him as a very decent bloke in his recent autobio. I've no grudge against drummers - just the chap in the recording studio who started turning them up in the late 70s, insisting they punch out a regular beat. Maybe the 'click track' should get the award for worst drummer.

The wierdest one I ever heard was advice from Hyperion Records when I sent back a disc that whirled in the player and just stopped. I was told there might be too many molecules on the inner ring - if I inserted a pen and ran it round the ring a few times all would be well. The bizarre thing is that it worked...and has worked many times since.

I save them until I get about 30 and then put them in the washing machine at around 40 degrees. You have to disable the 'spin' function, however, unless the discs are particularly swinging. You should separate your colours too...don't want the blues getting into everything else.

Would seem to be this one: http://www.progreviews.com/reviews/display...vdgg-tlwcdiwteo

Which was based on Humph's 'Bad Penny Blues' which was based on....

Lots of jazzers on Robert Wyatt albums...Evan Parker, Gilad Atzmon, Annie Whitehead, Mongezi Feza as well as the above mentioned Charigs etc. In that vein you might include the Tippett/Evans/Charig axis that turned up on a couple of early King Crimson albums. Here's an odd one...the first solo album by someone who came to be loathed by the hip and fastidious in the 80s and 90s: Ronnie Scott turns up on that album (which I rather like (I don't do hip or fastidious)...never got round to the rest). And I believe Humphrey Lyttleton turns up on a Radiohead album somewhere. John Martyn has the likes of Jon Stevens and Tony Coe on some of his albums. And I believe Tubby Hayes is on one of the early Family albums. Not to mention Henry Lowther who you'll find on all sorts of late-60s/early 70s rock albums...he was even at Woodstock with Keef Hartley.

A veritable institution (which went bust last year leaving a major building vacant on nearly every small town high street...the one in my town is still unoccupied)! In fact we're surprised that it exists in the US. I was doing a lesson on the Lunch-counter Sit-ins a few days ago and my 16-17 year olds were amazed to see a photo of Woolworths in the USA. How little we know of one another.

They had a high presence in the high street up this way - shops in Nottingham, Sheffield, Meadowhall etc. I recall the first one opening in Nottingham in the late 80s and it had a fair stock of to be expected jazz records - ECMs and the like. Just rather expensive. When I moved to Worksop in 1991 they had one here - in fact they were often the only chain record store in smaller towns. Not much of a back catalogue but for a while new releases that had some mainstream cache were stocked. I didn't buy much jazz in them but recall buying back catalogue rock, solk and some classical. I think they lost the plot in the later 90s. Like all such stores the CD stock went down as video/DVD went up. And then they started giving huge amounts of floorspace over to mobile phones. Don't think they could compete there with the big boys. The 'Last Shop Standing' book I mentioned a while back has some things to say about them - I think the writer worked for them for a while.

There was a chain in the 80s/90s called 'Our Price'. Don't know if they were being ironic but they were generally more expensive than other places.

They used to look like this: They even have their own Wiki entry! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Top_of_the_Pops_(record_series)

From the former Jamie Cullum bassist. No idea what the music is like but had to smile at the cover.

Thanks, Chris. And it's great to see you back on this thread. I love your Central Park shots. You have an amazing view! That last one could be a painting!

Ha! Well that's 'townies' for you!

Snape Maltings...must be one of the most magical settings for a concert hall anywhere:

A brilliant cloudless morning in Aldeburgh, Suffolk. Once home to Benjamin Britten and forever associated with Peter Grimes (though much of the latter was written in the USA):