And now for a bit of hope

Sunday 10th August

Just when you think that things are pretty dire along comes something to cheer you up.  Even though the war in Gaza appears to have resumed I get the feeling that it may only be half-hearted, both sides showing they are still capable of fighting but are holding back from all out savagery.  Israel obviously knew when it started bombing that it would face opposition and be condemned by many, but I think that even Netanyahu and his cohorts were surprised by the feelings of anger and revulsion felt by so many all over the world at the images of wounded and dying children.   Wars used to be fought by armies in set battles where although many died they were almost all combatants.  But gradually, and especially with long-range missiles more and more civilians are now dying than regular soldiers.  And it is likely to get worse.  Nobody bothered to even count the dead from our ill-fated invasion of Iraq, but in Gaza the numbers, approaching 2000 and almost all civilian, are sickening enough.

There has also been an outpouring of emotions on Facebook and Twitter, mostly appalled at the senseless deaths.  Today (Saturday) there was an anti-war rally where again the depth of feeling, especially from our supposedly uncaring young people was really heart-warming.   Perhaps, just perhaps there will now be more of a concerted move from the World’s leaders to persuade Israel that in the Twenty-First Century it cannot continue to occupy other peoples land, and must negotiate a real peace.   End the blockade of Gaze, give them their own state and stop building illegal settlements on Palestinian land.  And the Palestinians must also stop attacking Israel, must recognize their existence and work for the good of their own people.

If not then we will condemn future generations to even more insecurity and needless death.

What a Dangerous World

Saturday 9th August

When I was a young man I sincerely believed that our generation would do things differently.  Make Love – Not War was the slogan.  Peace, man and all that nonsense.   And that sixties idealism lasted for quite a long  time.  But lately I despair.  Is this just the effects of age; a tiredness with the world or is it a realisation that War, like hunger and disease is ever-present.  We all thought that after Vietnam the Americans would shy away from any more wars.  After Iraq too, there was this feeling of universal revulsion.  But now the Americans are going back into Iraq.  Or not quite, they will be on a humanitarian mission to protect Christians being slaughtered by ISIS.   But we know how these things progress, fighter planes will have to be flown to protect the aid-drops, and then if ISIS continue their ruthless rampage how will we be able to protect those people then except by fighting ISIS.

Gaza is on the brink of erupting again too with Hamas not settling for a cease-fire unless the cruel blockade of Gaza is lifted.  And maybe most dangerous of all is the escalation with Russia now banning imports of European food for a year.   Will the West escalate and ban more Russian goods and so on, tit for tat until we find ourselves at virtual if not actual war with Russia.

So, are we condemned to constant wars, is every generation going to suffer the same senseless killing?  Let us hope not.  I hope not, but lately that hope is being sorely tested.

B is for Beatles Psychadelia

Friday 8th August

At the time it seemed incredible.  Revolver was moving into weirder and weirder territory but none of us was prepared for Sergeant Pepper.  I had heard nothing like it before; the freedom, the variety, the sheer madness of it all was incredible.  I loved the record, maybe too much.  Then on Boxing Day 1967 on BBC2 came the third Beatles film – Magical Mystery Tour.  It was self produced and on one level very amateurish – Brian Epstein had just died and maybe they needed a guiding hand.  There wasn’t much of a story, but a few good songs.  Then came another film in 1968 – Yellow submarine, and the Beatles weren’t really even in it.  Though portrayed as cartoon Beatles it was still a marvelous escapade, full of Blue Meanies and the most brilliant of effects, sometimes the colours just vibrated off the screen.  The Beatles wrote a few songs for the film which have lasted quite well, though at the time they were even stranger than Pepper.

These three albums seemed to suggest that anything at all was possible.  They actually drew back from the edge of madness with the White Album, although this did contain Revolution Number 9, which may rate as their strangest song of all time.  They returned to complete sanity with Abbey Road and Let it Be, but they were hardly a group at all by then, each coming into the studio with demos which sometimes other Beatles joined in on.

Strangely those middle albums, Sergeant Pepper and Magical Mystery Tour have aged far quicker than the earlier records or than the last three.  They sound almost as some sort of a joke or a silly period now.  Only Yellow Submarine, with it’s weird songs perfectly counter-pointed by George Martins instrumental side seems to stand out as really good.

Throughout 1969 they were breaking up, and by 1970 with the end of the decade it was also the end of the Beatles….but not the end of their records.

Yellow Submarine

Too busy to blog

Thursday 7th August

Well, it seems a long time since I was blogging.  I was in France with Mum and Dad and honestly I hardly had a minute to myself.  Not that it was hard work, just busy.  Eating, drinking, sightseeing and generally having a good time.  It was mostly sunny too, so a great time had by all.

I am now back in Blighty and ready for work.  Full steam ahead for a few days.

Another Night Market

Saturday 2nd August

Back in beloved Eymet again and last night was another night Guormand market.  This time in the park behind the Chateau, which is actually just a ruined old castle dating back to the 13th Century when the town was established.  Built by Eleanor of Aquitaine to defend the British land from the marauding French.  And nothing much has changed – hahaha.  The Brits are here in numbers, trying to take back a bit of France for its true owners.  It is only when you come to a place like this that Europe begins to make sense.  We have had the foghorn of UKIP baring in out ears for so long and now joined by the chorus of Cameron that one tends to forget what a great and revolutionary idea Europe is.

But back to the Gourmand evening.  The usual tables and small stools were laid out with nice paper cloths and the food stall were all around.  There wasn’t wuite as much choice, but we had frites, ratatouille, canard with risotto and a dish of pulled pork with pineapple, followed by cakes and ice cream.  All rather delicious and fuelled by a couple of bottles of rose.  There was a girl singing and playing guitar; she was actually really good – a bit like Alanis without the histrionics.  So, another lovely evening in the Dordogne and tonight will be another I expect.   When it comes to food and drink they certainly know how to do things down here.

B is for mid-period Beatles – consummate professionals

Friday 1 st August

By late ’64 the Beatles had achieved super-stardom.  They could have recorded album after album of popular rock and roll songs by other artists and made millions.  But they strove for something better than that, simply to be the most creative and intelligent group in the world.  And they achieved it.  Their songwriting just got better and better; you can see the progression in albums from Hard Days Night to Revolver.  Studio techniques were evolving too, and they incorporated echo and phasing and multi-tracking and even other musicians into their music.  For many of us these were the truly creative years, each album a seismic improvement on the last.  At the helm was George Martin who pushed the boys to ever greater heights.  Music was suddenly exploding, pirate radio stations, Radio 1, California and new groups were popping up weekly.  The Beatles were like a sponge, they soaked it all up, and re-processed it, all the while retaining that special Beatles feel.

They stopped touring in ’66, and spent more and more time in the studio.  And taking drugs too.  The music was starting to become weirder and Sgt. Pepper was just on the horizon….

For me, their coolest record by far is Rubber Soul.  Full of brilliant songs and arrangements it still hangs together as a single snapshot of a time we somehow lost among all that hippy glitter.

GSU 2D Design

 

And now for a bit of hope

Sunday 10th August

Just when you think that things are pretty dire along comes something to cheer you up.  Even though the war in Gaza appears to have resumed I get the feeling that it may only be half-hearted, both sides showing they are still capable of fighting but are holding back from all out savagery.  Israel obviously knew when it started bombing that it would face opposition and be condemned by many, but I think that even Netanyahu and his cohorts were surprised by the feelings of anger and revulsion felt by so many all over the world at the images of wounded and dying children.   Wars used to be fought by armies in set battles where although many died they were almost all combatants.  But gradually, and especially with long-range missiles more and more civilians are now dying than regular soldiers.  And it is likely to get worse.  Nobody bothered to even count the dead from our ill-fated invasion of Iraq, but in Gaza the numbers, approaching 2000 and almost all civilians are sickening enough.

There has also been an outpouring of emotions on Facebook and Twitter, mostly appalled at the senseless deaths.  Today (Saturday) there was an anti-war rally where again the depth of feeling, especially from our supposedly uncaring young people was really heart-warming.   Perhaps, just perhaps there will now be more of a concerted move from the World’s leaders to persuade Israel that in the Twenty-First Century it cannot continue to occupy other peoples land, and must negotiate a real peace.   End the blockade of Gaza, give them their own state and stop building illegal settlements on Palestinian land.  And the Palestinians must also stop attacking Israel, must recognize their existence and work for the good of their own people.

If not then we will condemn future generations to even more insecurity and needless death.