A new one for me. I wouldn’t describe this as country, despite what Wiki tries to tell you. It’s more in the tradition of Steve Earle. It’s the kind of music Alabama 3 might be making if they came from, erm, Alabama and not Brixton. I could have done without the talky talky bits. Otherwise a very classy alt Americana album.
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I finally got round to watching the Spinal Tap film this evening. A brief VPN switch and a little creative searching led me to where I needed to be - and then the local village cinema announced that it will also be screening The End Continues in a couple of weeks. Hey hoe.
It’s not a bad film - in fact it’s rather good - but it struggle to compete with the original. No shit. Sequels are rarely a good idea, especially when all that went before was groundbreaking and spawned a whole new cinematic genre.
And so I won’t compare The End Continues to the first film. Much…
But it’s impossible to escape the backstory. Even the film itself includes footage from the first Tap movie, to help fill in the gaps for anyone who isn’t up to speed.
The plot is irrelevant. For the film to work, Tap need to be back together again. A rather unnecessary hook is developed in which to hang the next couple of hours or so. All you want to do is to observe the current state of the band relationships.
And that’s what works with The End Continues. It’s a very warm, life-affirming film, more about friendships than it is about rock ‘n’ roll. Trainspotting II tried something similar, but didn’t quite pull it off. Tap get away with it.
It’s impossible not to have any love for the main characters. The axis is around David and Nigel, and their love hate relationship. Age is also a major theme. The End Continue isn’t afraid to focus on death - and not in a metal style, either.
Some of the star cameos by the likes of Macca and Elton don’t work. They feel very forced and distract from the amateurish nature of the band. The ending is predictable, but also needed doing. Look away now if you’re a drummer, etc.
It’s a lovely film that I’m sure even the stiffs in the village cinema will enjoy. All the signposts are there from the original - Nigel and his pedals, the back and forth banter, and even the structure of the end credits.
The End Continues is about growing old ever so slightly gracefully, and a little wiser. But without the drugs.
“At half-time, Tony Woodcock, one of the Miracle Men who won back-to-back European Cups in 1979 and 1980, will be presented with his long-overdue winners’ medal for the part he played in winning the second trophy. He featured in four of the nine games Forest played to retain the trophy, before signing for Cologne — his departure upset manager Brian Clough, and he never received a second winner’s medal, until now. John McGovern, who captained that side, will hand it over.”
Put your records on: eleven Notts vinyl stores worth visiting on Record Store Day
via Left Lion
I had no idea T Bone Burnett was involved in this. It’s still bloody whiny in places. Mr Jones remains a delight. It’s one of those albums that I think I’m suppose to take seriously. But sometimes I just don’t give a shit and want to listen to something that bounces along and makes me want to bop. Counting Crows aren’t that band.
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Bubblegum greeted us as we arrived at the Table of Dreams on Monday lunchtime. Hot sticky scenes, etc. That’s going to cause quite a few issues. Bonus point for whoever can land the ball bag on the bubblegum that is positioned on a sweet spot. Some people.
We pressed on. Our scoring went a little wrong. That’s the reason why I lost 4-1. Bubblegum bummers aside, it did smell and feel like the early, early start of summer. Oh - and the grand old oak tree that some within the Town Council are on a mission to cut down has some fresh leaf growth. Goodo.
Fuck this shit. Seriously.
⭐
The Pogues on HMS Belfast, 1985
via Transpontine
A race like no other: Drama, chaos, and heartbreak at an epic Paris-Roubaix – Gallery
via road.cc
I’ve become quite obsessed with the mid 80’s Mile Davis. You BOUNDER! You CHEAT! Gosh, that’s something that would seriously annoy the Birth of the Cool jazz heads. But it’s just so accessible, in a way that, say. Sketches of Spain can be something of a… struggle.
In particular, You’re Under Arrest is constantly streaming right now. It’s gets off to a bloody awful start with some US cops scene being played out. You’re Under Arrest, natch. But stick with it, and the pop, jazz crossover soon kicks in. Think Kenny G for the cool kids.
There’s a cover of Human Nature - a lovely, lovely song, but one that I find hard to listen to the original now, given what we now know about MJ. Miles' cover of Cyndi Lauper’s Time After Time is Lush. You can see how Prince was keen to hang out with Miles during this time.
The period from around the start of ‘85 through until ‘87 was a rich picking for soul and jazz meets pop. The production values were experimenting, and there was still a strong belief in the song. Christ, even Five Star were half decent.
Miles and Five Star in the same blog post. Now that seriously will piss off the jazz heads.
A delight to listen to, from start to finish. The thing with any Lee Perry album is that you think you already know it, even those most of the tunes are fresh. No one makes a sound like him, stretching out every note, yet still holding the rhythm. This music works best when the sun is shining and you have optimism for what is ahead. Monday was one of those mornings. Aye.
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Confession: I watched this game on delay, having been out at the basketball all afternoon. It was a bloody miracle that I managed to avoid the scoreline. My iPhone has a self-imposed ban for around three hours. I quite enjoyed the silence.
I did start the playback knowing the #lolspurs scoreline, losing 1-0 away at the Stadium of Shite. This made watching Forest at home to Villa a slightly less stressful viewing. I would have been happy with a draw, but also had the fallback that a defeat would still keep us two points ahead of #lolsours.
I’ve always rather liked Villa. It must be a Midlands thing. There’s never been a nasty streak in them - be it the fans or the players. Plus there’s the shared heritage of a Midlands club lifting the European Cup. Still - three points here would be most welcome.
In true Crap Match Report style, I forgot to log any notes of interest during the playback. I felt for Murillo with the OG. He looked a little clumsy, a little leggy. The guy needs some luck to end his season with.
Neco meanwhile was outstanding. It was disappointing to hear him being booed whilst playing for his country. He’s always welcome at the World Famous, especially when he has his shooting boots on, as was the case this afternoon.
Forest were half decent at home - that’s something that we’ve not been able to say in the PL for some time. I like our choice in goal - either Sels or Ortega are a safe pair of hands.
It was good to see Sangare back, bossing what is a very strong Villa midfield. I thought Anderson was a little anonymous, as was MGW.
Jesus ran his bollocks off, Birtles style. The switch to two strikers was unexpected. Woody didn’t really get a look in. But at least he gets another thirty minutes or so of running off the injury.
And so we finish the first game back after the silly international break with a three point cushion between us and #lolspurs. West Ham look to be on the up. I hope that Leeds fall apart, again, on Monday night.
SHOUT OUT the Forest fans, who kept the faith throughout this afternoon.
