#AprilSongs

I've decided that April will be one post a day with obscure songs possibly related to April. The criteria may vary and even disappear altogether but I will hit at least thirty posts in April. Obviously I may reinclude "April Skies" by The Jesus and Mary Chain which I am including here because, like all their stuff, is absolutely brilliant.

I'm still reading Michael Moorcock's "The Skrayling Tree" and discovered another follow up "The White Wolf's Son" so that is going to be ordered on completion of this post As usual he interweaves lots of traditional mythology in with his own although these are set on Earth roughly post World War II although that has very little to do with the story lines, but it provides me with more to read over the coming months.

My walking over the last two days has severely been curtailed, partly due to having to be in work to catch up after the holiday, but again it's something that is not a major problem.

Today has been a beautiful day but very very cold, but I got some great shots of Newcastle and St James' Park framed by blue skies here.

So this evening I will finish "The Martian" which is an excellent film, and that's it for today.

Strange Lethargy

I just feel tired and lethargic, which is strange after a wonderful and relaxing holiday, with Preston beating Blackburn (again) as well, also a couple of things to do , a delay repay claim, and claim for a lost Discogs delivery (Royal Mail can find the USA, France, Switzerland, Belgium and Japan but not Scotland) and a couple of old phones taken to CEX (A Wiley Fox and a Samsung) , cleared some more CDs to the Charity shops, and basically this afternoon has been spent watching TV  ("The Martian" and "The Lost City of Z" two excellent films) but I have been almost falling asleep.

I did do 21K steps yesterday which is about five miles, and I am ahead of schedule on the walking , and really I have actually done quite a bit without thinking that I have done anything.

Also my writing this year has been very sporadic so I am going to think of a theme for April that will force me to write a bit more often, I'm averaging 1 every two days when I really need to do 3 every four days, but like always, with something that is in my control, I will catch up.

So for absolutely no reason I will play you "Definitive Gaze" by Magazine as  "Real Life" was on the wall in Skipton Sound Bar. Hope you are having a wonderful Sunday. It's work tomorrow!

Another Week In Settle

This week has been quiet and relaxing. I have managed to finish the excellent "Deadwood" , start "The Terror" ,binge watch two series of "Shakespeare and Hathaway", and that's part of the relaxation in the cottage. For some reason I have woken up early, before seven every morning after going to bed between eleven and midnight each night.

I have managed to walk up Castleberg Crag (Instagram video here and a climbing video here) and The Hoffman Kiln (Instagram video here) . There is a decent video of it here.

The amazing thing is the immense relaxation I have got from this holiday. Settle is full of great walks, pubs, eateries and the people are amazingly friendly. It is remarkably well served by public transport, though not a place to drive,many of the streets and roads only six feet wide.

I picked up some vinyl from Skipton Sound Bar and Skipton Market and visited The Huntress of Skipton Castle Woods (Instagram video here) , the train journey from Settle to Skipton  is maybe 30 minutes, so absolutely  local and easy to get to.

So I will share the Bronski Beat / Marc Almond take on Donna Summer's "I Feel Love" which is one of the 12" vinyl records I picked up from Skipton Market.

Nine by Nine, and Three by Three

...We Shall Seek

The Skrayling Tree .....

No I don't know what this means or signifies but it's Michael Moorcock book that is my current read weaving his own universe with modernish times and touches of Jonathan Aycliffe / Daniel Easterman JG Ballard with the unease generated in the first twenty pages managing to drop inn North European and North American Indian mythology, it is a book I am looking forward to, the follow up to the excellent "The Dreamthief's Daughter".

I've just finished John Niven's "Kill 'Em All" his follow to "Kill Your Friends" bringing us into the Trump and Fake News era, though Stelfox is just an even more loathsome protagonist and the book does finish with a misogynist's nightmare sign off. Not to everyone's taste but I enjoyed it, and have loved all his proper novels.

Although you can Google Skrayling (or Skraeling) Tree , which I htink comes from some arcane poem or incantation, I will tell you when it reveals itself to me.

It is Monday morning but I don't have to go to work and am nipping to Skipton to possibly visit Skipton Sound Bar and The Huntress of Skipton Castle Woods. I am going by train so because of that I will share with you "The Last of The Steam Powered Trains" by The Kinks, Ray Davies take on Howlin' Wolf's "Smokestack Lightnin'".

Hope your Monday is good.

Last Night A Laptop Stole My Life

Well Windows 10 decided to do an upgrade, it started about 1):30 last night and went on with that ominous warning "Do Not Switch Off Your Computer" while staying for a very long time on 0% Complete.. The thing is it started progressing every now and then with several restarts before finally finishing at 1:30 this morning. I actually wanted to go to bed, but that was three hours of my life gone and when it's finally finished what has changed? ..... Nothing!!

Then it did it again tonight  though this time it was five minutes, which a slight blessing.This put me in mind of Eddie Izzard's upgrade routine, which I will share with you before I go to bed.

On A Train To ...

Today I took a train from Newcastle to Settle via Carlisle. The thing about this journey is, if you don't do it every day, the scenery is wonderful, going along the Tyne and through the Pennines. The first part of the journey was slightly marred by two Manc druggies on speed who never shut up between Newcastle and Carlisle, continually asking where they were and how long before they got there, and I was thinking pleasant though the journey was (apart from the numpties), I wouldn't like to take children on this journey.

Then on the Carlisle to Settle leg a Jamaican lady with four young children got on, and I feared the worst. I needn't have, they were incredibly cute an well behaved even though the youngestkept running off down the carriage requiring his mother to retrieve him.

So I am now sat in the cottage having eaten at the amazing Ruchee Indian restaurant in Settle, the staff are welcoming, funny and helpful, and food is superb with more than decent size portions, this is one of the many reasons Settle is such a great place to stay. I basically ordered far too much but it was all excellent.

So there was Bhangra music playing all night , I don't know what it was but I have include "Boliyan" by The Safri Boys who I do like a lot.

Do I Have To Cut My Hedge?

It's the last day of February, and it's misty and foogy and soon it'll be garden maintenance time. Half Man Half Biscuit are playing The Boiler Shop in Newcastle so that is one of my favourite bands playing at one of my favourite venues. It's similar to the excellent Wylam Brewery on Exhibition Park is being a very impressive building in a great location and a wonderful place for a gig.

At  The Wylam Brewery gig I was chatting with the guy selling the merchandise (got myself a 12" copy of "Dickie Davies' Eyes") and he told me how they nearly drove into the lake as the walk through Exhibition Park to the building is not exactly well lit.

Obviously the thought of having to trim my hedge coincides with the titel of the new album, which causes everyone who sees  and hears it varying degrees of mirth to eventual hysterical laughter. Whne I originally listened to the album I thought th einstruments were given too much prominence but on subsequent listens, it has just grown on me, and sort of encouraged to redelve back into the back catalogue and realise there are so many absolute gems from Nigel's pen that I have forgotten or completely missed.

You cannot finish listening to a Half Man Half Biscuit album and fail to have a smile on your face, and then want at least a little more. I was going to put a link on here re the genesis of Half Man Half Biscuit in The Guardian but when I did a google search it came back with this huge list. There is this on the lyric project page about half decent articles on the ban, so fill your boots and have a quick gander.

I'll just share "Everytime a Bell Rings" from the latest album (and you know the title) , now go and get your fvcking hedge cut !!