If I had the kind of memory I envy this entry would comprise film and song titles intermingled. Anyone who has followed or dipped into my entries will have known that I piggy back experience, using the experience of others, sometime inverting, sometimes projecting aspects of my own, sometimes being a fan.
To day should have been an exception. Totally my own invention. The only inventiveness is to share my usual AOL daily Blog entry with MySpace fans, if I had them, but this is not a complaint, or disappointment, for if it is to be, it will be sometime, and if not, I'm not bovvered, you think I'm bovvered?
Instead of concentrating on my own invention, accompanied by a bottle of champagne left over from 100th birthday celebrations. I allowed myself to be taken along by the flow of others. Just after midnight a email arrived from a local radio station where I listen to a weekday programme about regional football teams where there are five, two in the premiership and one temporarily in the championships and two others, usually in the lower echelons of the lower echelons but where one has been showing the torchlight of consistent achievement. It was the first opened birthday card as others which had arrived early were awaiting an opening together with those in the post delivery, which did not arrive until just before lunch.
Associated with the radio station is a results prediction competition spread over the football season and where thirty predictions of the outcome of premiership games could result in winning a new car. Anyone that clever or lucky should gamble on the outcome of matches. I have roller coasted between the upper 100's to 900's one week when I forgot to make any predictions, and then recovering to the 200's with a couple of 80% accurate predictions. I could sustain the position by following the majority, whereas I make variations punts in the hope to gain over others, but usually results in worsening position. Why do I do it? The psychological terminology is completer finisher, someone who likes to end what is started using the original framework and objectives. It is not my main psychological characteristics, fortunately, but one which compels me to persist and persevere, much to the irritation of others.
There was one other similar e mail from Classical FM the radio station which plays classical music and used to have the largest audience of the new independent stations an produces inexpensive collections of the great music and voice humans have produced so far.
The third electronic card was unexpected from a MySpace 'friend'. This nicely brings me to the wonder of MySpace. I find much wonder these times. I like following or laying trails and my space the trails are endless, I find music which I like, presently contemporary blues singers who compose some of their own music with the intention of checking out their friends who often play the same kind of music, but then like someone discovered so much that I start to follow their friends and then find someone I like so much that I start to follow their friends. I could do this for days and weeks contentedly but presently ration for a few hours before bedtime.
Last night, knowing I had an important event in the afternoon, I successfully attempted sleep around 2 am. As you get older the waterworks requires more frequent attention so getting up between sleeps becomes an increasing necessity. This time there were a couple of rising with going to sleep almost immediately and rising before 9am. I abandoned the plan for the birthday as I had done a matinee theatre visit the previous afternoon when an electronic invitation arrived to engage in debate with a government minister who was visiting projects in the region. The meeting involved matters which had been at the forefront of concerns over a four year period and I could only guess how the invitation had arisen, but if I was make good use of the opportunity I would have to undertake some research which these days can be quickly accomplished through knowing where to go on the internet. Fortunately and unfortunately there was so much information that I was forced to concentrate on a few matters and note others to return as soon as I could, knowing that if do not, they will be added to the growing pile of things to do. I do sort into priorities from time to time but as the total increases I know I will expire before completion, but God is good. I am doing more work and activities now that I want to do than I have ever done.
For birthday lunch I had 400 grams of a mex tex ready meal comprising onions rings, potato wedges and sweet corn fritters, minus the sour cream dip replaced by some barbecue sauce, as a celebration fancy from my usual salad mix followed by a banana. Earlier I had tea with two soft to hard boiled eggs. Tonight I baked a trout, too lazy to use the steamer accompanied by remaining vegetables unfrozen steam fresh packed from the local supermarket acquired by Wal-Mart, a full glass of a Times Wine club selected red, usually have half a glass, but no Pepsi today after two cans yester. Now during writing a bottle marked Evian but filled from a giant bottle, one of two bought as emergency reserve some time ago and needing to be recycled.
There was a cloudless blue Springish day outside but cold as I drove to the cathedral city of Durham full of students and arriving early parked for a while near the riverside university cricket ground where Durham County used to play before its own ground was created. What happened at the meeting remains private, although it reshaped how I would use time over the coming week. I had a good visit to my mother on the way back and there was little time to think about the afternoon and matters arising from birthday communications before three hours of American idol where the total votes cast came to 37million spread among sixteen contestants reduced to twelve. Whereas the X factor had outstanding talent with a gulf between all the others, there are two, Lakisha Jones and my favourite, just, Melinda Doolittle.. However the other four ladies should also make the top 8her along with Brandon Rogers and Chris Sligh, Sundance was good too but rejected by the USA popular vote surprisingly. I confess I went to sleep for 20 mins missing his performance.
Tomorrow is catch up work day and FA Cup Day when I want to watch the Boro try and defeat Man U and I must finish the health Ombudsman reports review requests. It could still be a great year for the region with Boro going to the new Wembley. I am going later for the Princess Diana memorial concert having secured four tickets in first ticket release. Checked site no further announcement of artists or tickets which suggests problem created by decision to postpone inquest until Autumn. Sunderland could get into play offs if the they get automatic promotion but will these be held at Wembley too and Newcastle may get to Glasgow for the EEFA cup and Hartlepool get automatic promotion that’s what football fans dream about, but it never happens of course.
I was still at school when I discovered big band music on British Radio and then two films widened my experience with the Glenn Miller Story, 1953 when I was 14 and the Benny Goodman Story 1955 at the age of 16 when I left school to work as an office clerk.I cannot remember if I had heard the blues before meeting someone who was knowledgeable about all forms of jazz and took me off to Soho haunts when Ken Colyer played authentic trad along with Cy Laurie at his club until he moved away, and then more modern trad sounds at what had been the Humphrey Lyttleton Club and became the 100.I have never believed in a direct form of reincarnation, but if it exists then I was black slave who learnt to express his or her feelings and never made it into full maturity. I tried to play blue jazz clarinet but I was hopeless.
I still have my first record of Great Blues Singers which featured Ma Rainey, Ida Cox, Sara Martin, Bessie Smith, Tricia Smith, Mary Johnson, Hociel Thomas and Chippie Hill with King Oliver and Johnny Dodds among the accompanists. Some 50 years later I paid significantly less for in real money £5 for A 4 CD set from the local supermarket entitled Simply Blues. In addition to Bessie Smith, Ida Cox, Ma Rainey and Trixie Smith there are Alberta Hunter, Sippie Wallace, Victoria Spivey, Mamie Smith, Clara Smith, Memphis Minnie Ethel Waters, Lil Green, Big Maybelle, Big Mama Thorton and Ruth Brown.
Not that my interest was only with the ladies although there was something about the sorrow in their voices that was already in my gut. In 1957 I rushed to buy the recording of the Alan Lomas Journey 'Blues in the Mississippi Night,' and one crazy weekend on the Saturday night we went to the Cy Laurie Club and then a few streets away for an all night at the Skiffle Caller, before after a coffee and hot sandwich we moved on to the Thames embankment for an all day riverboat shuffle to Margate and back and where on the trip was Brownie McGhee and Sonny Terry who were blown away by a playing of When the Saints which went on for ever as it took time to get us docked and tied up back in the evening by a little known modern trad band called Sandy Brown. I bought their record in 1958 that is Brownie and Sonny, but I also bought Sandy Brown but that is another write up about the trad jazz band experience and hearing Louis play live, as I did Duke Ellington, Count Basie, the MJQ well just about everyone who came over after the ban was lifted.
On last year's amazing value set the Birth of the Blues CD includes, Robert Johnson, Charley Patton, Blind Willie Motel, Skip James, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Furry Lewis, Bukka White, Tommy Johnson, Mississippi John Hurt, Lonnie Johnson, Sleepy John Estes, Big Bill Broonzy, Leadbelly, Josh White and Blind Willie Johnson. This sets includes Blues and Boogie and Blues Legends with Muddy Waters Howlin Wolf, Memphis Slim, Lightnin Hopkins, Jimmy Witherspoon and others, 60 tracks less than ten pence a track.
Of these I have a Memphis Slim 500 dollars 1961 LP, an undated Blues from Gutter, Champion Jack Dupree, Jimmy Witherspoon Sings the Blues LP from 1964 I have lots of the Billie Holiday recording with one LP and a four CD set. About a couple of decades ago the Sunday Times newspaper produce 100 CD collection which include Raw Blues where Ray Charles was added to names such as Muddy Waters, Memphis and Lightnin. Blues in Jazz included Bessie, Joe Turner, Jimmy Rushing as well as Holiday and Big Bill Broonzy. And also last year a 22 track CD was purchased with from Leadbelly, Josh White, Bessie, Holiday and Jimmy Rushing. About forty years ago I discovered the work of Nina Simone with for 10p in a Woolworth sale her 'I put a spell on you' LP, for 20p the 'In concert LP' and a little more expensive separately purchased LP for 35p just called Nina Simone. There was also a blues band by Alexis Corner. And when I was young and innocent the lass I fell in love with at a distance was Ottile Patterson who sung with the Chris Barber Band and how many time have I played from her Trouble in Mind EP and wanted a lass to shimmy like Sister Kate.
And of course there was a time when I scoured the airways in search of jazz programmes, and joined the music Library of the American Embassy, although by then my taste had widened further to include Brubeck, the MJQ and Carlo Menoti and his telephone. I read all what I could and have a small number of books from the Jazz Book club and the 1955 and 1956 editions of Jazz on LP which covered the known output of Decca, Brunswick Capitol London and Felsted. The Barry Ulanov Handbook of Jazz has sixty pages listing all recognised Jazz Musicians. Now that was a proud boast.
I listened again to this small collection when making the first attempt at writing about those years before and after leaving school up until, going to work, joining the non violent protest movements of the 1960's getting an education at university level, and then into professional child care work. Then I met my wife, saw out first daughter born and stopped feeling blue. Now with the discovery of 'MySpace' I can listen all over again and to all those of today and enjoy, but also remember, and look forward to finding out what happened to all those names whose music became part of my soul?
The Good Shepherd
The film has excellent credentials, Directed by Robert De Niro who has a support role with Frances Ford Coppola as a producer, but who left the film after disliking the characters, it is said, and staring Matt Damon and with Michael Gambon in a good support role along with several others.
In general the critics did not like the film because for many it lacked pace and suspense, and it is long, and you are quickly allowed to understand the make up of the central character around whom the story is built and therefore much of what happens is inevitable and predictable.
The story centres on the creation and development for the C I A counter intelligence agency-people seem to forget what CIA stands for- when they come to make judgements. The film goes through the life of the main character from the circumstances of the death of his father, his love life and marriage, the birth of his son while serving the CIA in Europe and why he entered the service as a high up and went even higher on his homeland return, and on the consequences of having a secret role and a secret life on his family, progressing through the Bay of Pigs affair which is pivotal to the film and how he overcome what happened in relation to his own role and that of his dept, in order to protect his son, himself and re-establish a relationship with his then estranged wife.
The film goes back and forth which some will not like but I do as this mirrors the experience of my mother and my approach to the work project, so I am in tune and the critics are not. Matt Damon is brilliant communicating all the required emotions while appearing emotionless.
There is one major theme. Once you enter into this kind of service and role you cannot trust anyone, especially those closest to you, especially those you love. You must expect to be betrayed when you least expect and by whom you cannot anticipate.
But you are more likely to be quickly doomed if you base what you do on this realistic understanding. You need to believe and be something of a romantic to do what you have to do well.You will not be liked and mostly those around you will act from fear.
You may take this in your stride at 20 and 30 but at 50 and 60? It is understandable and the film makes the point well, that you can find yourself having a better relationship with the enemy, that with those on your own team, something which all politicians have to learn.
What I like most about this film is that everyone is cultured, sophisticated, thoughtful, recognising situations knowing, understanding, accepting, all very remote from James Bond's Missions Impossible. I can even forgive some of the film's howlers such as street lighting in wartime London. I was there went the lights came back on!
No comments:
Post a Comment