One day...

Hullo ma wee blog,

My Lovely G and I went to the cinema the other day. We went to see ‘One Day’, the film based on the book by David Nichols. We saw him at last year's Edinburgh Book Festival talking about this book which he had just completed and on the back of enjoying the evening we both read the book. I thought the book was really good. I thought the idea of using one repeating day the across some two decades to catalogue and tell the story of the relationship between a boy and a girl/ a man and a woman was a unique idea.

The book is partially set in Edinburgh, where the two main characters meet during the University time and then follows on elsewhere across the years and a relationship where they are emotionally never too far apart but never quite together in one of those familiar tales where teenage angst develops into adult confusion, longing and the fear of having let something incredible slip away as you settle for an uncomfortable friendship rather than risk losing someone you need and love.

It's always strange watching a film set somewhere so familiar, as the way a cinematographer will cut shots of individual places together can be confusing, almost annoying even, when you know the place so well yet watch characters stroll down a street, turn a corner and end up a couple of miles away, turned yet another corner and find themselves (in reality) back with they started. Of course that's not something that affects the majority of moviegoers, most of the time anyway.

One of the main benefits, having read the book, was that the film stayed very true to the structure, content and style of the book. This is probably due to the fact that Nichols himself wrote the adaption to screenplay which gave the whole a nice clarity and continuity with the book and especially the characters, which is unusual in a film of a book rather than the book of a film. I've often gone to see a film made from a book and been disappointed because the screen experience doesn't measure up to the imagination. While I love cinema, I also love what a good book can create in your imagination. The two aren't always compatible and lots of movies I've seen have left me feeling disappointed and sometimes cheated. I think that this continuity was really important in this film because the book is about character predominantly and the author's touch was retained in the screenplay. Despite that it's not a patch on the book.

This film isn't high art, it's entertainment. It's a decent story well told, well cast, filmed and produced but it's not going to win any Oscars. Anne Hathaway for example, right for the part as she may be, sometimes struggles to maintain an English accent. Despite this the film kept me engaged, entertained and just as importantly for my lovely G – awake. One difficulty is casting lead roles and expecting actors in their thirties to play an age range from 18 to 40. Belief is stretched just a little thin, particularly in the teenage years. It's been getting mixed reviews too.

I enjoyed it. But then again I did write in my blog profile that I'm becoming scarily fond of chick flicks but maybe it's an age thing!

I'd still recommend it.

See you later

Listening to:

Where the Bodies are Buried.

Hullo ma wee blog,


Sorry to have been ignoring you over the last week but in my sad life where very little happens it's been a hectic few days. From a holiday weekend that saw us go from a concert to a jaunt to the remotest west highlands, to a couple of full days of childrens hearings and all the preparation needed for that and a night in Edinburgh at an event with my sister-in-law, I feel my hands have been quite full. Add to that the insurance company taking away the carcass of my old laptop to confirm it can't be repaired before parting with any of their cash forcing the lovely G and I to have an extended period of sharing computer access and before you know it several days have slipped by without me posting a single solitary thing.

Wednesday night saw me in Edinburgh with sister-in-law K  to attend the launch of Christopher Brookmyres latest novel 'Where The Bodies Are Buried'.  Christopher - or Chris as his publishers are now marketing him - is one of my favourite Scots authors, a scathing, irreverent and hilarious satirist who's tongue-in-cheek-boot-firmly-applied-to-the-establishments-posterior style has often had me creased with laughter, often in places where I should know better like waiting rooms or on aeroplanes. The event, held on the eve of his latest books publication, marks his first foray away from his previous satirical genre into what is described as a more serious mainline crime thriller style, took place in Edinburgh's historic old town, just off The Grassmarket, in a candle-lit and dungeon-like small venue beneath one of the areas oldest buildings.  A glass of plonk kicked off an hour of readings and chat with the man followed by a question and answer session about his writing, life, the universe and everything. From the couple of readings he did it seemed to me that he  has created some credible, grounded characters who are still capable of raising a smile while working within the dark, more realistic backdrop of Glasgow's underworld he has created.

A first for me, I stayed around at the end to stand in line and buy a pre-release copy for the man to sign while we chatted for a moment. I'm looking forward to getting to grips with it soon. I might even let you know how it goes.........

See you later.

Listening to

 

At the Movies........

Hullo ma wee blog,

I love a good film and am happy to spend hours squirreled away in the dark watching a movie or two. I'm not overly particular about what genre of movie {except one} I'm going to see either as long as it's well made. Even in a film that doesn't grab me for plot or characterisation I'll often enjoy the music or the cinematography or some other aspect of the production. I just love being at the cinema. The lovely G and I both have 'unlimited' tickets to get into the cinema - pay a monthly fee and go as often as you like - which is worthwhile if you go more than twice a month and that's no problem for us. I used to like all the gore and guts of a good slasher or horror story but as I get older I'm shying aware from these more and more as they get more and more predictable and more and more over hyped. I still enjoy the odd shocker but it's more of a rarity these days. While I love the escapism, action and adventure tales that cinema offers I do like a good story well told and I love films about the human condition, relationships and just good human interest stories. The best films make you think about them long after the final curtain and we've been lucky to see some great movies over the last month or so, so I thought I'd share a recommendation or two with you in case you missed any of them.

Paul Giametti is one of those actors who can often lightly pass by in a movie with his understated performances and lack of screen idol good looks and to be honest I wasn't sure at the start about casting him as the lead in 'Barneys Version' which is a cracking film about life, relationship and regret. I have to say I was absolutely wrong in that and he turns in a wonderful performance that by turns makes you hate, despair and finally appreciate his character. As the film unfolds, and I'm not going to spoil it or any of the movies by just reeling off a plot line, he really manages by slow degrees to make you  aware of the complexity of a life of selfishness, yearning and the regret he has for the way he's lived and some of the choices he's made. A great film. I absolutely loved it and was mesmerised for the whole performance. A great supporting cast too.




I was really looking forward to going to see The King's Speech, although I always worry about films that get so much hype and critical acclaim. I really prefer to ignore all that and make my own mind up. Imagine my disappointment when we went to the cinema as we often do with no firm decision made about what we will go and see - one of the strengths of these 'unlimited' tickets is that we just go, see what is starting soon and go watch and this has let us find some super films that we wouldn't necessarily have chosen to go and see - when my Lovely G said that even though 'The King's Speech was starting first, she didn't really fancy it and would rather wait and see 'Black Swan' that was starting a little later. Like most men I realise what has to be done for a quiet life and so, with a little sigh, I agreed and dutifully went along to this film about ballet, or so I thought.

The movie stars Natalie Portman in this portrayal of obsession and descent into paranoia of a ballerina who has longed for recognition and especially the chance to play the dual perspective lead role in the ballet Swan Lake only to feel this is being snatched from her at the very moment when she should be being acclaimed for it.. Cleverly written and directed and with a well played lead role from Portman this again was a surprising and intriguing film which caught the excitement and fear of the slide into madness in a very graphic way. It's been panned in some areas for being too melodramatic and over the top, but I thought that it captured the fear and angst of Portmans character in a very understandable way and didn't go beyond the limits of realism either with the portrayal of the obsessed star or the conniving and manipulation of the dance troupe by a megalomaniacal director of dance. It's dark and manic and I felt that it draws you in to the story and the passion of these dancers who have a very short career-span before having to give up what they have trained so hard to achieve really effectively. For a film I didn't expect to get much out of I really enjoyed it. Portman - who I've always thought of as credible but not much more puts in a stunning performance and also trained so effectively for the part that you do actually believe absolutely in her as the highly driven and incredibly capable dancer she portrays. It was an Oscar winning performance and I understand why. It is melodramatic and it is borderline over the top at times but that's how I think of madness anyway. Great film, but don't go expecting many laughs.



Next in the movie timeline of recent weeks we went to see a reshowing on the big screen of 'Inception', starring Leonardo Di Caprio. I'd actually seen this before but G had missed it and was delighted to see it reshown as she wanted to see it on the big screen. I'm not the biggest fan of LDC but I do appreciate he is getting better as he gets older and I really thought he was perfectly cast for this role. Great idea, great effects, a great performance by Di Caprio and a great supporting cast all worked together to make this an incredible piece of movie-making. A deeply intriguing psychological idea at the heart of the story and a movie that, although bewildering if not given full concentration, fairly rattles on at a great lick and has plenty going on to keep you rivetted to the screen for the duration. I loved this movie and found so much more on second viewing. One that'll end up in our DVD collection for sure.



At last I got what I wanted when  we went to see .The King's Speech'. I do like Colin Firth and he was great in this film, well cast and deserving of all the praise for sure. Helena Bonham Carter I'm not really a fan of and as usual I thought that although she played the part well that others could have played it even better. She did fit the look and fashion of the 1930's and 40's particularly well and that to me anyway made her  a completely realistic choice. For me though the star of the piece was the character played by Geoffrey Rush as the king's speech therapist. I felt he stole every scene he was in. He just dominates in such an unassuming way. I find him mesmerising to watch. He brings absolute realism to everything he does and for me is one of tha great actors around just now. I was sorry he didn't get more recognition for the part he played in this movie, which is a relationship tale told with great humanity. It really deserved the number of Oscar nominations it received. I thought that for a story about royalty - which I'm also no great fan of - that it focessed successfully on the human side of the tale and didn't lose itself in any of the visual spectacle that would have been so easy to slot into almost any part of the narrative. I though the main characters were all well and sympathetically written and yet it was probably quite near the historical truth. I thought the sub plots of family relationship and antipathy of the establishment to Wallace Simpson were all well done and neither under or over emphasised. It's a film that I felt was well balanced throughout. Even the Lovely G, who really didn't want to see it said that she enjoyed it.



The final movie we went to see was 'Never Let Me Go', an adaption of a book by Kasuo Ishiguro. It's always hard to see a film of a book as comparisons will always abound and any screenplay isn't going to have the same impact as the novel. Here though is a film that is so deep, so well rounded and so perfectly sparse and understated that it may well be my favourite out of all the films we've seen recently. The three main characters, played by Keira Knightley, Carey Mulligan and Andrew Garfield, put in stunning performances and Carey Mulligan is perfection. Her playing of the girl experiencing confusion, anxiety, hurt, bewilderment and finally acceptance is simple, graceful and spellbinding. One of those films you talk about all journey back home.




All in all it's been a great couple of weeks of cinema going and I thoroughly recommend you to see any of these movies if you get the chance. Next on my list is 'True Grit' and I'm also looking forward to 'The Adjustment Bureau.

see you later..........

A Night at the Oran Mor

Hullo ma wee blog,

On Tuesday night we went through to Glasgow to the 'Oran Mor', a music venue in an old kirk, to see Lissie perform. This was a new venue to me. I'd heard about it but never been before even though it's been around for some time. It was easy enough to find, sitting as it does on the junction of Great Western Rd and Byers Rd,  two famous Glasgow streets on the western side of town. For once parking was straight forward too and we found a place on street within a hundred yards of our destination. A quick look around showed there were also several restaurants to choose from for a quick bite and we settled on an inviting looking little Italian place almost next to where the car was parked.

An hour later and we were ready to make our way across to the venue and check out whoever might be on support. The small space was quite packed by the time we got in and, as is often the case, it was going to be a hot night all packed in together. Luckily we had both left our jackets in the car.  Despite the crowd at this mostly all standing venue,we managed to find ourselves - well me really - a couple of nice soft seats with a view of the stage, although that would change later as more people arrived. The crowd seemed to cover a large range of ages, which I always find reassuring as I hate to feel that I'm the oldest swinger in town, mainly because it usually tells me I'm not going to enjoy the music as much as I hoped. The support act, a one girl, two boy trio called 'Ramona', presumably after the lead singer, were well into their set and comfortably banging out some tight guitar-driven rock which reminded me of 'James' or 'Texas' meets 'REM', but with a bit more modern edge to it. She had a good voice for lead vocals and I was quite sorry to see them go after only a couple of songs. I would have happily listened for a lot longer. 

The roadies efficiently handled the small amount of kit change and after only about fifteen minutes Lissie appeared on stage, with the small band from the video above, to kick off the first night of her first UK tour as a headline act in her own right. I'd heard of few songs from her on the radio and the first song which I ever heard - which I've chosen for the video -  struck me with the similarity between her voice and Stevie Nicks, one of my all time favorite singers. Much of her material is American folk-based rock and fairly mainstream, but my goodness she has a great voice and needs just a microphone to hold you spellbound. Her voice just soars out over the band across the audience in a way that almost no-one does these days. The vocals are the key to her success. Her voice is very friendly and yet commands attention. I like it. A lot.

I'm going to finish here due to some computer problems which mean this short post has taken almost an hour to write.......

back soon.

Edinburgh Book Festival 2010 - Ian Rankin

Hullo blog,

 As this gig is an immediate sell out on release of tickets I'm glad that my level two membership of the book festival let's me buy before general release as for me the Ian Rankin event at the festival is a must see every year.  It's not just that he's revered by the Edinburgh Book Festival going public and indeed by Edinburgh itself who claim this working class Fifer as one of their own, or that I've read every one of his world famous Inspector Rebus novels, that I share the characters love of pre-1978 rock music, malt whisky, or even that I love that Rebus inhabits a highly familiar Edinburgh landscape even if he has made it one of the world's murder capitals and therefore, fictionally at least, not particularly safe for us mere mortals. It's not either because I'm particularly captured by crime novels other than in a convenient easy read kind of way, at least most of the time, although I really love the need for a tight and hopefully innovative yet realistic plot in a genre which is so densely populated that it's easy to feel like you've read it all before. I suppose it's that somehow he's managed to take a well drawn character, an incredible, and incredibly small, city and a tightly weaved plot and gel them all together again and again without any of it becoming either too glamorous, too seedy, too predictable and, clearly judging by the success, above all to keep it real.

It's reality that shines out of Ian Rankin. It would be easy to brush by him in the street or in the pub for he is like most of us most of the time - pretty anonymous - and that seems to be how he likes it. He lives in Edinburgh and clearly loves the place. You can bump into him, like I have, in Rebus' favourite den, 'the Ox' or the Oxford Bar, simply because this is one of the places where he has drunk for years and he's comfortable enough in his skin to be recognised or not and not be put off by either. Rankin and Rebus both drink there for the same reason. The beer's good and they are comfortable there, they always have been. It's real in every very ordinary sense of the word

Last night there was no new book for a reading so there was an extended conversation with the chair for the event, fellow Scots crime novelist, Lin Anderson, followed by the usual question and answer session. Much of the conversation naturally turned around Rebus, even though Rankin retired him a few years ago {the novels worked in real time and Rebus like all detectives had to retire at 60} and has published two books - still set in Edinburgh - since. People want to know how Rebus is coping with retirement {drinking more and working part-time on the cold case team at police headquarters, Fettes}. Are there any plans for a book based on his female sidekick Siobhan? {it's something I've considered, so perhaps at some time} or his arch nemesis Cafferty? {ditto} And what about the main character of his last book 'The Complaints', Malcolm Fox, teetotal policeman of  the internal complaints dept. Will this become a series {Very likely. Both Fox and Breck, the other, more dubious police character feel like they have more mileage in them. Fox will definitely be featuring again and I think his character will develop more now I have got to know him a bit better. He may have a few more faults in his character to come out.}. Would Fox and Rebus ever come together in a novel? {It would be interesting to have them working in the same building on cases that converge. It's fascinating how Rebus might react, worrying if any of the skeletons in his cupboard might surface and how Fox would react under those circumstances too}.

Ian spoke about 'Open Doors', the tale of an Edinburgh art heist. This first novel after Rebus was his most successful ever. {If I'd known that was going to happen I might have pensioned Rebus off earlier! }.  He pointed out that it was only after it had been published and recognised as a success that he realised this was the first book he had written where no-one had been murdered. It's been picked up to be worked on for TV, as has 'The Complaints'. Interestingly Rankin has retained some rights in these transactions and hinted that he would have some, if limited, say in the adaptions for screen play and even in the casting of characters, something that never happened with the translation of the Rebus novels to TV. He admitted that although he has copies of the TV Rebus at home, he has never watched any of them, even now after the apparent demise of the character. The reason for this, he said, was that he didn't want another persons interpretation of Rebus to get into his head. Questioned about who was best cast as Rebus he did say that one of his friends commented on the difference between John Hannah and Ken Stott playing the part was that at least Stott looked like he would punch you in the face.

The fact that Rebus the series still lies unwatched in the Rankin household would seem to say that Ian really is unsure that Rebus has finally left the stage. I wonder if he is haunted by his spectre across the bar-room in 'The Ox' too..........

Interview over Ian picks up his i-pad; a small sheet of paper covered in tiny script detailing what he is doing every day this week. He smiles at the audience, the grin of a cheeky schoolboy.

" The screen size is great, it's lightweight and the battery lasts for ever!!! "

{I've paraphrased Ian's responses to questions}

Ian's wki bio is here, his website here and an interview with him here

Listening to Mogwai 'Friend of the Night'

Edinburgh Book Festival 2010- Christopher Brookmyre

Hullo blog,

Last night my brother-in-law Leonard, AKA Leen,  stepped into his ill girlfriends shoes {nice heels by the way, Leen}  to come with me to The Book Festival event with Christopher Brookmyre, another of my all time favourite Scots authors and raconteurs. It's been a great festival so far and tonight held firm promise of this continuing as Chris has never failed to impress on any of the dozen times I've heard him speak at this kind of event in the past. Chris is a very different proposition compared to authors like Ian Banks or Ian Rankin being a scathing satirist with very firm anti-authoritarian/establishment and anti organised religion views. His books are breathtakingly sharp, bloody and irreverent in the extreme. They've been labelled  'Tartan Noir',  are certainly not for the faint hearted or easily offended, yet are both excruciatingly funny and uncomfortably insightful when looking into the abyss of those corrupted by power, greed or even the modern facade of  newspaper feted 'celebrity'. A Brookmyre book is strewn with  bodies, gore and expletives in a way that is often visceral, certainly creative and often indulgent yet at the same time can be weirdly restrained and considered, even occasionally innocent. A skewering, literal or figurative, from this mans pen leaves no-one in any doubt that there has been indeed a skewering of humongous, even biblical, proportions. His books are laugh-out-loud bundles of absurdity, yet are carefully, skilfully crafted, populated with character traits familiar from anyone's life and jammed full of twists and turns in a clever plot-driven pastiche of reality that's just close enough to the real thing to make you sure that much of what's going on between the pages could probably happen out here right now without too much help from anyone else given just a few changes in circumstances.

If murder, mayhem and witty one liners are your thing and you've not bumped into Christopher Brookmyre's work before, then consider giving him a shot at the title.......

The night started off with a few stories from Chris about writing, being an author and public speaking, all in his typical robust , tongue in cheek 'call a spade an effing shovel' style, which oddly detracts not a jot from his wit, intellect or vocabulary.  His latest work is Pandaemonium, which he then went on to give us a reading from. It's a bit of a departure from his previous works {this is his 13th book} in the crime genre, with its theme of debunking religion, God and the Devil.

 It's a book in which vengeful demons meet grief stricken, horny, angst ridden Scots teenagers on retreat in a remote location and huge quantities of blood get shed in the process - or is it the guise - of dispatching characters and giving demons a good kicking. I mean let's be honest,  in any fight between vengeful demons and your average teenager, demons are punching well above their weight!  But, under all the usual gleeful gore and cheerfully strewn viscera lies Brookmyre's optimistically beating big heart and cheekily irreverent brain cell pounding away with its apparently genetic determination to give the bleeding heart lefties a good poke while the right equally gets the usual swift and deservedly accurate kick in the pants.

On describing it as a Gothic horror novel at pre-publishing event, he was challenged about what made it 'Gothic'. His response was  "Because it's got Goths in". You have to love a guy like that.

With his trademark typically vivid plotting, detailed characterisations and vigorous but considered debate over the nature of, in this case, heaven and hell, all coupled with ample profanity, sex, and copious amounts of cheerful slaughter, teenagers will probably devour Pandaemonium in the same way hordes of us did with Stephen King when we were weans too.

Chris also gave us a world exclusive peek into his next offering, which is still work in progress, via a short reading from "Where The Bodies Are Buried".

I could tell you what it's about, but I'd have to........ well, I'm sure you catch my drift.

A fairly lively Q+A session brought the evenings proceedings to its natural end and a horde of eager groupies followed Chris to the book signing tent as Leen and I headed to the bar in the nearby Spiegeltent for a beer and a chat about the evenings event, books, authors, life, the universe and everything, before I dropped him at Waverley station for his train back across to Fife.

I bet he was glad to get those heels off when he got home................

It was everything I'd hoped for and now I'm looking forward to Ian Rankin on Thursday.

For more on Chris, his wiki page is here, website here and an interview with him here.

See you later.

Listening to Semisonic, 'Secret Smile'

Edinburgh Book Festival 2010- Ian Banks

Hullo Blog,

Tonight it was back to Edinburgh and the book festival for one of my favourite authors, who also happens to be one of my favourite raconteurs; Ian Banks AKA Ian M Banks. Ian's a novelist in both mainstream fiction and sci-fi, where he uses the Ian M Banks moniker. Unusually for the book festival, tonight there was no reading from an existing book or a work in progress, merely an extended interview and extended Q+A session.  The evenings event was sponsored by Highland Park malt whisky so free samples were on offer as you came in the door, but as I was driving - and had already had a beer with our dinner beforehand - I declined, or more accurately - postponed - as I have a small one beside me while I'm writing this.

Ian was on fine form. In fact he was so animated and so different from his laconic self at previous events that I think he had perhaps tried a few samples of his own before the off. {who can blame him - sip - it's lovely stuff and he is an aficionado of malt whisky, having written a book on the stuff!}  The interview, more of a monologue with a few interruptions in reality, was highly entertaining as Ian gave free rein to his wit and experience in response to the questions and showed clearly how his imagination allows him to both create and handle multiple threads and yet retain the ability to tie them all neatly together before bringing the subject to a close. I've long admired his socialist principles, something that I like to think that to a large extent we share, and the way he holds these close in his writing - he put an embargo on his books being sold in Israel in protest at the recent forced boarding of an aid ship bound for Palestine and famously also cut up his British passport and posted it to Tony Blair in protest at the invasion of Iraq. He was challenged on this latest protest by a member of the audience and responded by explaining that while he had a great admiration for Israel in general and Jewish culture in particular, that he did not feel that he could stand by while they mistreated their neighbours in such a callous way and that of all cultures it was a shame that the Jewish people, who had suffered so badly at the hands of others, would allow themselves to treat other human beings in the same way.

Politics was a large part of the nights discussion, and he freely admitted that as he gets older he is becoming an increasingly angry and a typically curmudgeonly,grumpy old man. {See any more similarities between us here anyone?} He was particularly scathing on Capitalism, the bonus culture and the way the new government is proposing to deal with the recession;

" Take the National Health Service, it's there to care for people, to make their lives better, to make a difference. Now look at how government is acting. According to them public ownership equals bad - old fashioned, inefficient, ineffective, a drain on public resources. It has to be made to work better and the only way to do this is by privatisation. This means that it has to work harder, to deliver more with less resources and it has to deliver a profit to its shareholders, be managed outwith public control by people who have a clear conflict of interest between public good and private profit. According to politicians this is the best way forward possible. Control of this edifice is simply not possible by people who simply want to operate solely for the benefit of the general public, who have no purpose other than meeting a social need or making a better, more caring society.

Now, ask that same politician why he or she went into politics and they will tell you without exception that they want to make a difference to peoples lives, they want to make things better, build a better society, give something back to society, etc etc etc.............

To me, something doesn't add up here........... if we apply the same principles to them as they are to others, shouldn't we be privatising politics? But suggest that to any one of them and what do you think the answer would be? " *

All in all a highly entertaining and thought provoking evening.

Another good one!

Thanks Mr Banks............

You can read his wikipedia bio here or an interview here

*Quote Paraphrased

see you later.

Listening to Grace Jones, 'Private Life' {long version}

Edinburgh Book Festival 2010 - Michel Faber

Hullo ma wee blog,

Yesterday afternoon The Lovely G and I went to the first of this years book festival treats. For the last several years as part of my birthday present she has bought me a membership to the book festival, allowing me to pre book events with my favourite authors, usually in the format of a reading by the author, then an interview and finally a question and answer session with the audience, all of which takes about an hour. As an avid bookworm it's a time I look forward to eagerly for months beforehand, impatiently waiting for the event brochure to land.

Yesterday was a bit different as I booked for us to kick off the festival with Michel Faber, one of The Lovely G's favourite authors, although not someone I know well, having just finished reading a collection of short stories in preparation for the event. I did find his work intriguing though so was looking forward to hearing the man himself. I found his stories very well written, humane and thought provoking. He seems to write in various styles with equal effort which I found I really liked in his short story collection.

At the event he read one of his short stories and was then interviewed by another author, a lady I had never heard of and for some reason I can't remember her name for the life of me, before doing another short reading from a novel he is currently working on. I found him shy, engaging, self deprecating and a complex and highly intellectual character.  We both felt that although he appeared open he was very careful about how much of himself he gave away to the audience. He is clearly a very private person and lives quite in seclusion in the Scottish highlands. He admitted to not having a TV or even to reading any other authors unless he has been asked to provide a review - he has a column in  newspaper -The Guardian I think - or if he has been given one as a gift by a friend or if a friend makes a recommendation. It was an enjoyable hour and an interesting insight into someone I am definitely going to read more of.

You can read an interview with him here, or his bio here on wikipedia.

Tonight the book festival continues with an event I am taking my brother-in-law to, Ian Banks, a favourite of both of us. Over the years it's become a bit of a tradition that we go and see him together, ave a meal and a few beers. A rare boys night out.

See you later...

Listening to Phil Collins,  'Invisible Touch'

Jamie Cullum - All Hail 'The Piano Man'.............

Hullo ma wee blog,

The lovely G and travelled through to Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall last night to go to our first Jamie Cullem concert. G was the instigator, listening to bits of his regular slot on BBC Radio Two as she comes home from work sometimes. I was an interested companion, loving piano music in most of it's forms, even if I do struggle with the density of some jazz. I was, it has to be said, unsure of a full blown jazz piano concert by someone I had heard very little of, but willing to give it a go. It turned out to be one of the most fantastic nights for a couple of years and as we reflected back on the night on the way home, we both agreed that he can sign up another two fans.

We were ably set up for the show by a half hour set from supporting act Eliza Dolittle's quirky voice and engaging character. Each track she gave us was original, interesting and very musical, yearning back to phrasing, styles and form of previous years in a highly sympathetic but completely modern way. She too captivated us right from the start and can add also us to her list of fans. A creative and cracking little performer and a talent to watch out for in the future for sure.

By the time Jamie Cullem came on stage just shy of 9pm the audience was ripe for a great show. I was intrigued before the show with the range of ages of lots of beautiful women from teens to fifties, carefully and very stylishly dressed for the night out. It appeared that oor Jamie has a willing set of following 'groupies' {and pardon me ladies if that is less than flattering for you} with an age range as wide as his musical influences.

The show started with an excited squeal from the hard core following and from the start it was easy to see what could captivate about the personality of the diminutive JC. Instantly, he made you aware of a gentle and unassuming nature, lacking in ego, big on self deprecation, easy on the ear, not grating with any kind of 'I'm the center of attention'. He is a young man {30} secure in his skin and aware he has a gift, seemingly genuinely delighted at being able to share it with you. He led off by saying that we should strap ourselves in for the long haul as they intended to play for as long as energy and inspiration held out. There was, he advised, no set list. "We're going to play what we feel like playing."

For the next two and a quarter hours he proceeded to prove he is a prodigious talent. Songs came fast and loose, covering every genre from trad and modern jazz to rock, beatbox, electric looping and Latin American. His influences showed in the huge divergence of musical styles covered, consumed, tweaked, tugged and twisted in the inimitable style of someone who is a highly individual artist. Above all it was his artistry on show last night. Yes, he is a sex thimble, yes he is a star ,but his skill, his intelligence and his complete understanding of the text he uses to communicate is where he is truly special. He blew me and everyone else in the theatre last night completely and utterly away. He plays piano like Dudley Moore with twenty years of extra practice, he phrases like Frank Sinatra and sings like a cross between Coldplay's Chris Martin and an even cooler Michael Buble. It was hypnotic to watch, it was mesmerising to listen to.

A simple four piece band of extraordinary talent, like the bass players accompaniment to the almost 10 minute freestyle duet interpretation of  'I get a kick out of you' with Jamie, showed a togetherness of real musicianship, connected by the understanding they all had of the subject matter. They quite simply had a blast and let us in on it. The two hours ended with the band having moved down to the middle of one of the side aisles with Jamie out in the audience for a fifteen minute jam session. He encouraged the audience around to come out into the aisle and dance with them - an offer too good for some of the keenest middle aged matrons to resist,  resulting in some unseemly drooling on their part - and then to follow them back down to the front of the stage while the band climbed back on for the finale and a rapturous finish to the night. The band completed an encore and Jamie ended with a heart rending version of the slow theme from Grande Torino.



A simply staggering concert, and one I couldn't fault in any way. Utterly, utterly brilliant.

If you get the chance to see him - dont miss it.............

Chris Rea - Guitar Dancin'.....

Having spent the evening on Monday being entertained by Amy MacDonald, I had high expectations of being more than equally fulfilled last night when we went to see Chris Rea at the Festival Theatre. Actually, I was confidently on safe ground on that score, having seen Chris in concert six or seven times before and never yet been disappointed. I've loved his stuff since I was skinny and especially his blues and slide guitar work which mark him out as one of this country's best, and most under-rated musicians. He's always been pretty much low key here, certainly the media never gave him the kudos of some lesser contempories, and he never really gained the popularity he deserves.

Having picked up my Lovely G from work we headed up The Bridges and across the Royal Mile and on past The Festival Theatre, leaving the car parked in front of the Museum of Scotland in Chambers Street to meet a friend and have a pre show dinner at a small restaurant which came highly recommended last year by a newspaper critic. 'The Pink Olive' in West Nicolson St. is a small place of only about 20 tables tucked discretely away up a side street a couple of minutes walk from the theatre and we had managed to book ourselves the last table which was nice and cosy despite being close to the entrance door. It's rare these days where you can find real value for money without sacrificing quality, and at £11.75 for a THREE course pre show dinner, it's an absolute winner, so much so that our friend magnanimously offered to pay for dinner, and it's got to be value for money for a Scotsman to do that!!!

After a superb - I had the chicken followed by the vegetarian curry - and efficiently served meal we headed off in good time to catch the support act, Paul Casey, who was very good and could actually have been comfortably listened to for an entire performance with his quiet manner and superb acoustic set rolling easy on the ear across the audience. He also returned for the main show as part of Chris' backing band which I thought was a great compliment in both directions and really nice to see.

Chris started off bang on 8.30 and for the next two hours totally, completely and utterly controlled the whole place. It was simply mesmersing to listen to his guitar work as he joyfully extended each song with some superb  solo sections. The favourites were all there of course - 'Julia', 'Stansby Girls' and 'Road to Hell' among them as well as lots of the lesser known stuff. It's the sheer joy of the man in performance that captivates so well. Never a great one for dialogue with the audience, he sequed  seemlessly from one track to the next with a wide grin or a punch in the air to mark the move and he kept at us with those incredible riffs, on and on, developing, shaping, twisting and always returning to the matter at hand and happily, smilingly, guitar dancing, completely gone with the guitar and the moment. He had the whole place jumping by the end of the night. A joy to behold and for any guitar fan, bliss beyond belief. Thats a lot of praise for one man, but somehow doesn't do him justice in my eyes.

What a show. If  ever he's playing within reasonable distance I'll be there. An incredible live performer. Much better than as an album artist and that's probably why he remains such an open secret and why the waitress at dinner said,

"I think the whole restaurant is going to the Chris Rea concert tonight but I've never heard of him. Is he any good?"

Oh, my, yes. He's good all right.......

Very!

See you later.

Listening to The Move 'Flowers in the Rain'

Monday Night Is Music Night

Hullo ma wee blog,

Monday night saw the latest live gig, Amy Macdonald at the HMV Picture House in Edinburgh, a complete sell out. We got there early as I met the lovely G from work and we had a lght dinner at the cafe in 'The Filmhouse' just across the road. Then, as usual, G insisted we get in the queue early to make sure we had a good slot for the show. As it turns out - again, as usual - she was right and we ended up in the front row of the balcony, dead center with the perfect view at this small venue.

Support was Jersey Budd, singer songwriter, and very good he and his band were too. Echoes of 'Oasis' and 'The Verve' with a twist of 'Stereophonics'



The roadies were very efficient and the support act cleared and Amy set up in less than half an hour.

Onstage by 9pm, she was in good voice and in great form for a lengthy session covering off her last two albums in their entirety.

A great show, great crowd and great venue. Couldn't ask for much more from my late birthday present. She's a great little entertainer, writes her own material and gives a powerhouse performance. She's got an engaging style, some fabulous lyrics and can come up with some unforgettable tunes. I have wanted to see her live since I heard her on the radio for the first time and it was such a great concert. Amazing.

2 hours over all too soon and then time to hit the road to home.



Cant wait till Thursday and Chris Rea.

Never too much live music in your life!!!

see you later.

Listening to Chris Rea 'Stainsby Girls'

Made in Scotland - from Irishmen

Clydeside Auditorium {The Armadillo}

Hullo ma wee blog,

1am and just in from a sojourn back across country to Glasgow Clydeside Auditorium for a concert of Snow Patrol, who formed as another band called 'Reindeer Section'while students here some 15 years ago. They spent the first 10 years of their careers gigging predominantly in Scotland so have a huge fan base here.



Thanks to the lads for a wonderful nights entertainment. A retrospective of the whole 15 years and also including some pre snow patrol tracks. Great music, stage show and craic, especially in a venue for just 3000 people.

Two and a half hours of sheer bliss.

My lovely G who bought me the tickets despite not being a fan of the group has been converted, as can often be the case when faced with a live performance. They worked hard with no support but clearly absolutely love being on stage and performing. They were eager, responsive and refreshingly, for such a big band, completely without ego. Everything they said to the crowd came across as absolutely genuine and its clear that they recognise the years of support from their Scottish fan base as being crucial to them staying the course until eventually reaching a wider audience. They love it up here and consider it home ground, and the sentiment was returned with equal sincerity. I've seldom seen an audience respond with such complete respect for success hard won.

If you get the chance to see them, take it. You won't regret a minute of it.


And they also covered this track from 'Elbow' another of their heroes, and another great band from Manchester. Winner of the Mercury prize in 2007 { when the Unthanks were nominated too}

Thank/Unthank

Hullo ma wee blog,

Tonight my lovely G and I took a short 20 minute trip across the border into England - well, Berwick upon Tweed, which was stolen by a long legged English king centuries ago and has been trying to get back ever since.

Anyway the purpose of going across to 'the dark side' was to go and see 'The Unthanks',a folk band from the north of England. They were nominated for a Mercury music award a couple of years ago and are seen to carry a heritage of traditional north east folk music into modern music and culture in a very special way. Rachael and Becky Unthank have a unique way of delivering what can be very bleak themes with sparse orchestrations and yet are very captivating to listen to - for a while at least.

We went to see them early this year in Glasgow and enjoyed it - well, the lovely G did more than me - I struggled with 2 hours of mainly morose songs. But I was keen to go again and see how I reacted a second time, so when a friend dropped out and there was a spare ticket I was taken out tonight to see them. I am more of a folk music fan than the lovely G and for most of the evening I thoroughly enjoyed it. There were times though when I couldn't help thinking that Geordie's are a dour bunch who like to wallow in sadness and wishing that the two Unthank sisters would just crack a smile and give a couple of lighter stories to lift the mood, and of course they did eventually but again I struggled a bit to get there with them.
They are very good at what they do but I cant class them as being casual entertainment. Fascinating, thought provoking, deep, dark and sobering perhaps and the grils themselves keep up quite a cheery banter with the crowd but after a while I do find it uncomfortable and a bit relentless both in theme, arrangement and mood.

Maybe I'm shallow.

The video at the top is the title track of the new album and one of the happier songs we heard tonight.

I think I'll stick mainly with 'The Corries'


see you later.

listening to REM 'Shiny Happy People'