Passion Play - William Fitzsimmons
Saturday, 8 August 2015
Sunday, 26 July 2015
Wednesday, 1 July 2015
Hope...
It’s been awhile since my last entry – as is always the case
really.
I’ve seen some incredible live music, from lofty pub summer vibes to full scale O2 arena shows and I realise yet again what a joy it is to live in London. All musicians eventually pass through this concrete jungle I call home at some point. As I watch my bank balance diminish in value with the flow of summer concert tickets being bought, I started thinking about why some people are so in-tune (pun) to music and its power over the audience and why ONE gig is not enough. I was at a gig the other evening at a place in Angel called the Old Queens Head. With wonderful high ceilings, shuttered windows allowing the summer sunlight to beam into this gorgeous Victorian lounge setting. The day was full of incredible musicians and singer/songwriters from all over the country. Anyway, a musician called Sam Garrett made his way onto stage – a man with kind eyes and a warm and welcoming persona. And he said this (paraphrase), “the beautiful thing about live music is it brings us all into the present moment, we stop dwelling on the past or thinking about the future and simply focus on exactly what is happening right in front of us.”
Isn’t that wonderful!
Other than being utterly true, it is that reason in BLACK
and WHITE that keeps me going back for more each and every time. The scary
thought is that in reality how much time do we actually spend in the present
moment? I’m going to take a stab and guess very little. We spend our lives
plotting and planning and pining and rarely stop and see what is actually
happening in front of us – music though demands your attention, it demands your
thoughts, your vision and your ears, leaving little room for you to do anything
but focus. Incredible really.
Or maybe this is all just babble caused my lengthy work
stint in the North of England so I’ll leave you to ponder while I enjoy my beer
in the Great British Sunshine (read as Great British ‘not dark yet’)!
Hope - Sam Garrett
Friday, 17 April 2015
Lucky Now... (NOLATONASHVILLE)...
Where I am finding the time to write this post is beyond me. It is kind of like life has stood still for the last week or so. I am in no doubt that this will catch up with me and I will crash and burn into exhaustion at some point but I’m gonna ride this high a little longer…
So a week ago this time I was in Nashville - Tennessee, rounding up a week long road-trip with one of my favourite friends. We did the classic hire a car and drive East thing. NOLATONASHVILLE. The trip had it all… jazz, drinking, gumbo, cemetery tours, chicken shops at 3am, dancing, singing, bachelorettes, nearly missing flights (Robbie), coast roads, u-turns, detours, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, late night pizza, beach seafood shacks, oysters, crabs, scallops, dolphins (seen not eaten), theme parks, Harry Potter, Butterbeer, Fort Lauderdale, Biltong, Stoney, MIAMI, blue water swims in the Gulf of Mexico, Fort Lauderdale (again), clubbing, Zack/SanFran/Macedonia/Brooklyn/Dawid/Argentina/Greek, firearms, frogs, hostel chaos, Pina Coladas, Nashville, book buying, tree lying under, peace, Budweiser, guitar, Pinewoods, BBQ, fried catfish, banana pudding, Jack D, ID, Dancing (again), hotdogs, Printers Alley, hooters, guitar (again), omelettes, Grand Ole Opry, cheerleaders, rifles, shooting, cowboy boots, Sonic, the Bluebird Cafe, Dolly Parton, Mexican, more guitar, Broadway, ACME/STAGE/PARADISE PARK, Button downed shirts, The Legend (The Unicorn), Printers Alley (again), more guitar, sleep, flight, CANADA, downtown Toronto for 2 hours, flight, London touchdown.
All in all a crazy week and a HALF. I am now back to reality though. However, I feel more like the Amber I know and love than I have in a very long time. There is something about spending time with a friend who has known you for a real long time that reminds one of who they are and who they should be. One WEEK with Laura and I feel like a better person. Besides that the peace of properly disconnecting from life and relaxing (although getting minimal sleep) washes away all the stress, all the worries and all the anxieties of everyday life. I was fearful when I boarded the plane in Nashville that I would get back to dreary London and the weather would be miserable and the holiday come-down would be unbearable…. to be honest I am still concerned that will happen, however, this week has consisted of not one but TWO incredible gigs.
The ODD Couple – Paul Simon and Sting. The O2 London. Wednesday the 15th April.
What does one say about either of these men individually, let alone together? SPEECHLESS is the word! Sting is way taller and fitter than I ever imagined. Paul is way shorter than I ever imagined. Both of their voices still have the ability to command the attention of 1000’s of fans. Remarkable evening that kept me dancing with diamonds on the soles of my shoes for hours into the night.
Then Ben Howard. Ally Pally (which CANNOT be classed as a London venue even being as pretty as it is). Thursday 16th April.
He is better than he has ever been. His new album live is better than the 100’s of times I’ve listened to it on Spotify. He’s humility and smile as the crowd sings along is awe inspiring. A musician that I see myself following for years to come (not in a weird stalker kinda way….but hey if I was gonna stalk I think he’d be a good pick…).
Anyway… the best hits from the last week or so….
Cupid Shuffle - Cupid
Lucky Now - Ryan Adams
Sitting on the Dock of the Bay - Otis Redding
Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes - Paul Simon
Fields of Gold - Sting
To Be Alone - Ben Howard
Tuesday, 27 January 2015
After Afterall...
- Shantaram -
I am constantly drawn to this book. There is something about the story of Gregory David Roberts that just got me stuck from the moment I started reading it nearly SIX years ago. As I scribe the dribble of these blog posts I am aware that in no way do these words match up to the great authors of the past. And in a similar fashion I realise that the lyrics of songs have that same magic that take stock of the meaning I as a person can never express adequately words.
I am constantly drawn to this book. There is something about the story of Gregory David Roberts that just got me stuck from the moment I started reading it nearly SIX years ago. As I scribe the dribble of these blog posts I am aware that in no way do these words match up to the great authors of the past. And in a similar fashion I realise that the lyrics of songs have that same magic that take stock of the meaning I as a person can never express adequately words.
This year has started. 2015. So far ONE TWELFTH nearly done and dusted. Accomplishments...managed to get out of bed and brush my teeth everyday...oh wait, scratch that, there was that one day that I forgot the latter. [shrieking cries of disgust]. I vowed I'd start this year differently, I'd pray more, I'd think of ways to be kinder, I'd be more helpful, I'd manage my money better, I'd forget about him......... "Push our brave hearts into the promise of a new day...". Matters of the heart do not tread lightly on my mind. They stamp and tantrum and constrict my mind-linked-heart in bondage. We are AFTERALL looking for love of some kind...
"...just fumbling through the grey. Trying to find a heart that's not walking away..."
And it's oh so difficult watching friends and family struggle with matters of the heart. Parents not speaking to their children, children not making time for their parents, singletons waiting for the love of their life, married people wondering if they missed the whole "love of their life" thing, friends strewed across continents, and the list could go on.
Thus as I look at the rest of the year I will strive to be less lonely, give my company to the lonely and perhaps somewhere along the way...who knows...
Ships in the Night - Mat Kearney
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCkfTCjF8SM
After Afterall - William Fitzimmons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoigfEk9NUY
Thus as I look at the rest of the year I will strive to be less lonely, give my company to the lonely and perhaps somewhere along the way...who knows...
Ships in the Night - Mat Kearney
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCkfTCjF8SM
After Afterall - William Fitzimmons
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoigfEk9NUY
Friday, 9 January 2015
(Black) to normal...
Finally the sun shines. Not literally cause I live in London but philosophically. Good joke!
Love that my favourite coffee dealer plays Ram Jam's Black Betty at 8:30am.
Black Betty - Ram Jam
Tuesday, 6 January 2015
Just My Soul Responding... (an open apology)...
I'm usually quite good with words but I suppose this time it is more about the meaning behind them than structuring this eloquently. TWENTY FOURTEEN was by far the most difficult year I've ever faced. I thought that things couldn't get much worse after 2013 but the emotional rollercoaster that I went on in 2014 won and took some of the best of me with it.
I'm at the point where New Year's Eve feels irrelevant, New Year's resolutions feel silly, and changes to my life feel nearly impossible. But I do feel that 2013 and 2014 may have had their way but 2015 will be different.
I suppose I write this as an open apology to the people who tried to stand by me but were shutdown, tried to give be hope but were ignored, tried to help me out but were insulted. I'm sorry. It was just my soul responding.
May 2015 see a revival of who I once was, who I want to be and who I should be.
Stay With Me - Sam Smith
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pB-5XG-DbAA
Just My Soul Responding - Amber Run
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8TysH2a-io
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