Open Mic Songwriting Communities

Hello Good People who read this blog….
Here’s me sounding terribly posh with an Ethnomusicology documentary on how acoustic/folk clubs support and help develop new songs and performance. Sometimes, like other academic research, I might be stating the bloody obvious, or putting long words to simple ideas, but I hope you enjoy it anyway.
Part one
[...]

…to Solfest, not a review, but some thoughts…

At Solfest,you can pretty much have the experience you want, whether you have small children,don’t have children, love acoustic music, want to go to various excesses of toxicity, want to be healthy and coherent and attend yoga workshops, want to rock, listen to live world music, chill out all night in a psychedelic way or want to dance.

Behind the Mask or Perfectionism leads to Carnage (+Satan Cowell)

Hello Good People who read this blog
This is another personal rant written during a phase of insomnia due to my own troubled waters and smog over London city both keeping me awake. This is not about hippie counterculture but being one of the last surviving hippies living close to the roots of London’s alternative counterculture [...]

The Police harasses some terribly nice middle-class white English people in possession of terrorist crayons.

Hello Good People who read this blog ( this is a revised version of earlier entries. I do this sometimes when I think of extra things…sorry if it is irritating)
To begin some more meditative music to generate peace in the world

I forgot how completely amazing this piece of music was until  I just listened to [...]

Our shallow superficial culture and talented people

Hello Good people who read this blog…
Some anti-tv vitriol….
I am changing the tone today just for a brief comment on our culture.
I have been watching a bit of TV this week and heard about some exceptionally talented singer on some reality TV programme. I thought I would check out what all the fuss is about. [...]

It’s the same old story…stormtroopers in the street (and I don’t mean the Star Wars variety)

Hello Good People who read this blog…
(I have just realised that I’ve been taken off the Google search engine..a bit weird…anyone know why?)

I thought I’d post a quickie about the police assault on Ian Tomlinson, who died as a result.

Even though now I know for sure that my emails are copied and I could  be [...]

“Political Intelligence” versus sitting around to watch the world end.

Hello Good People who read this blog
I make no apologies for this entry being political.  This is THE most important time to think about politics.

I went on the Put People First G20 March on Saturday.
I had such a great time. I joined the Oxfam group rather than march alone. I have done quite a lot [...]

Peaceful Protest (we hope) G20 London

This morning it’s time to prove hippies still want to change the world.
“On 28th March thousands will march through London as part of a global campaign to challenge the G20, ahead of their 2nd April summit on the global financial crisis.
Even before the banking collapse, the world suffered poverty, inequality and the threat of climate [...]

My Metaphorical Comfort Drug: Gong and a bit of Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah

Hello good people who read this blog
Are you sitting comfortably?
Well before we begin since I don’t have anything specific to urgently talk about let us listen to our first hippie anthem of the day to warm up our cockles on this cold evening ( dancing or waving arms about or playing along with wild [...]

A (relatively peaceful) Revolution!

Hello Good people who read this blog.
I am still here, excuse my absence due to hard work, change and constant illness.
Today is both Maggie Thatcher’s birthday ( don’t ask me how I know this) and the death of Thatcher’s vision.
I am not sure of what state of mind or coherence she is in due to [...]