The Prince With The Silver Hand

 I finished "The Swords of Corum" and thoroughly enjoyed it even though I first read it as a teenager. I have now started "The Prince With The Silver Hand" which is the second trilogy of Corum books which has been described by The Irish Times as a whole new dimension to Celtic Mythology. 

"Rings of Power" is moving on quite fiercely and I am very impressed with the series. It fits in well with Peter Jackson's vision of "Lord of The Rings" although there are those who still don't like it, but I definitely do.

I also found out that my American Amazon Author page has a feed from this blog which you can see here. It only shows on the .com site but not others. C'est La Vie.

Music is "Power and The Glory" by Horslips from The book Of Invasions.

Mike Singleton - Vocal Stories

I am not sure if you are aware of my writing on Vocal but these are a few of my stories if you would like to sample them:

1. The Never Ending Story - My Directory
2. The Never Ending Music - My Music Directory
3. The Never Ending Poetry - My Poetry Directory
4. An Owl In A Towel - A Beautiful Book by Lesley and Cheryl
5. Three Reasons Why I Love Settle - Scaleber Force, The Hoffman Kiln and Castlebergh Crag
6. The Accidental Book - Helping a Great Vocal Friend Resulted In Me Publishing My First Book
7. Call Me Les - A Great Friend and An Amazing Writer

Miss Prince?

The double meaning in the post title is deliberate. In the mid seventies I got an album "The Book of Invasions" by Horslips. That album didn't leave the turntable for two weeks, and it kept all my other music off the record player. This was before I had a walkman so music wasn't really that portable, but if I had had one that would have been taped and on continuous play.

I wrote about "Dirty Computer" two posts back in my PAINT DRAW WRITE post about my friend Nicky's Event Exhibition.

This week I took delivery of "Dirty Computer" by Janelle Monae and I have been impressed by here previous output and to be quite honest this is more of the same, except even better. The opener , the title track fades far too soon and is a surprising duet with Brian Wilson supplying heavenly backing.

Every song you want to keep playing but when the next one starts you know you want to hear that.

A lot of this is in a similar realm to Prince so if you miss Prince Janelle can be your Miss Prince , but for me she is Janelle Mae and amazing visionary artings.

Song like "Pynk" and Screwed are pure single entendre but absolutelty great songs. "Make Me Feel" is "Kiss" rebuilt and reimagined by Janelle.

Today I watched the"Dirty Comuter [Emotion Picture]" which is a film to accompany the album and features all the music from the album and is very impressive, very female power orientated and with impressive setting and some great American calssic style hover cars in the "Pynk" and "Crazy,Classic Life" sections and there is a a wonderful line:

"Mansplaining - I fold 'em like origami"

I know my friend Craig Puranen Wilson / Sheena Revolta would have loved this, but we said farewell yesterday.

Watch this film, it is 45 minutes but you will want to watch it again and then get the album. I really need to listen to something else but at the moment this will not move from my player. I think you may find the same.

#TenAlbumsInTenDays #4 - The Book of Invasions - Horslips

I'd got into Horslips through "The Tain" an album based on a story from Irish mythology which Michael Moorcock had lifted from for his Corum section of the Eternal Champion series (which I must attempt to re read).

"The Book of Invasions" got a five start NME review but I was at the record shop on it's day of release and got it home and put it on. This had never happened before but that album was the only thing that was on my record player for two weeks.

There were flashes onf Thin Lizzy (who also were lovers of Irish Mythology) in there, as well as the Irish folk tunes mixed in with the mythology, maybe it just hit me at the right time, but it is on the player as I am writing this, and maybe it's a little under produced but every song that comes on you love listening too and also can't wait for the next one.

Like a good book or film , you don't want it to end. Almost every song is like that and definitely the album makes you feel like that.

It's an album where every song flows into the next one , the same as say "Dark Side of The Moon" by Pink Floyd, you don't skip songs on this.

I found a slideshow for the album which clocks in at forty minutes but it is difficult to choose one song from this essential part of the music I love

Seven Days In The Christmas Holidays

What is a blog , it's just like a daily diary, but most tend to get forgotten about , people do one or two , usually good entries then leave it to die (see the Ape of Wrath) , two years sing the last entry , thought the few that are there are excellent.

So though I've been on holiday and have pictures and that , I'm just doing this to get an entry in before the end of 2007.

One of my most impressive Christmas presents is the The Aki Kaurismaki Collection - Leningrad Cowboys 3 DVD set , which includes the awesome Total Balalaika Show from 1994 in front of 70,000 fans with the Red Army Choir backing . Their version of Gimme All My Loving is Youtubed here.



Absolutely mental , and well worth the experience.

Then another surprise , The Tain by Horslips (as well as Book Of Invasions and the rest) is now available on Emusic for easy digital download here.

That is in addition to the Half Man Half Biscuit back catalogue here

So essential I've had a few decent musical surprises before the year peters out.

Merry Christmas and New Year To All