The end of the month

 

We've certainly had a number of days that have required umbrellas this last week as we move out of late summer and into the fall as I caught it a little while out and about trying to keep my mind away from the more worrying statements and latest rules  around this health emergency we're living through.

I've been working through some older things here that are seldom if ever used  and donating them to various charity collections not least because someone would get something out them when I'm not and also with Christmas, which sadly will be different this year I imagine, you tend to get things that need to be accommodated.

This week I've been playing a mixture of classical cds and also some new records that required cleaning when it hasn't been so great to be out aqainting myself with compositions and recordings I've always loved and that process often takes me back in time, which is good thing for me.

It might of been rainy but inside it's not like that.

Teenbeat XXVIII - More Rumer

 It's not the week most of us have been wanting to be entering looking toward current affairs but as we can't do much about that we might as well focus on what keeps us going and that for some us includes music.

The artist Rumer to whom a good number of first caught in 2010 with Seasons Of My Soul has recently returned with a album that collects fifteen superb songs by the acclaimed American songwriter Hugh Prestwood routed in Southern folklore of stories told from the heart.

Many of these songs have not been commercially recorded and the arrangements and production by Fred Mollin makes the most of them while Rumer's voice continues to remind us of late great Karen Carpenter.

The song Ghost In This House is a favourite of mine with its folksy feel.

Recommended.

Getting beyond differences

In the week where I haven't been feeling too great between the thing I've had and what I've needed to take to deal with it I've had enough opportunity to reflect upon much of the discourse that's polarized society, heightened sensitivities and turned former friends into enemies.

It is rare for matters to be absolutes with often common ground existing between sincere advocates on each side of an argument and even when not perhaps more of us should reflect upon the reality that each is actually a human being, deserving with being treated with respect.

 There is something much bigger at stake and when we forget that the consequences for all of us are massive.

It doesn't matter what your race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, religion (if any) or politics are, we need to find a way through all of this that is respectful of each other as people first and foremost.

Will you lay down your arms?

A new term looking back

Here we go again

 This week as schools went back although as I'm writing this on Friday, The JCB Academy at Rocester here in sunny Staffordshire has had ask boys and girls not to turn in this morning due to one covid case but I suspect we'll have the odd incident that can be dealt with,  I was looking back at a few things.

One is the extent the age regression wars are over. I mean I have written at length about the origins of the split between Agere and Cg/l at least as it applied at Tumblr but the splits between different groups of age regressors were something else.

There's something in the view that discourse  begets  more and and bitterer discourse around those who seek to replace one view  for "the truth" and having had a ringside view of it it is hard to find adequate words to describe how toxic it really was.

You might of thought anyone who genuinely tried to explain the differences between Chire and Cglre to help find the right side for them would be applauded for at least cutting out the misunderstandings but it wasn't.

In an atmosphere of mutual suspicions arrows were fired at people like the Regression Uncensored tumblr which although I am biased toward Cglre I would say did a good job in trying to explain all to the point their moderators had to leave on a regular basis as they could not take the verbal abuse and trolling.

Thankfully that's all over with so they feel able to move on and in time take the blog down cos that past is just best left in it with people just moving on.

There's been a few entries around the Tartan Terrors on here before now and sadly it was announced last week at the age of 62 Ian Mitchell, a member during the turbulent nine months from April 1976 had died.

 He played guitar on this cover of a Dusty Springfield song that got to in the top ten in November of 1976 although my copy as a UK one in plain sleeve and on the Dedication lp recorded in Canada.

That's him on the far right who took over from Alan when he felt at the ripe old age of 26 he was told to be in pop group!

Thankfully my copy of that record survived much playing at school that year as we were rollermanics and if you scratch beneath the surface still am.