I first saw Carole Bouquet back in the mid-70s at an art-house movie cinema in Johannesburg, in Luis Buñuel’s classic That Obscure Object Of Desire. Good grief.
What’s that? Color? I’ll give you color:
And she hasn’t got any uglier as she’s aged, either:
Lovely.
I see with great sadness that Moody Blues bassist John Lodge died a couple of days ago, and although I know that the passing of boyhood heroes is pretty much a daily occurrence now that I’ve reached my own senior years, this one still hurt.
Lodge was one of those musicians whom few people noticed — attention focused mostly on lead singer Justin Haywood and occasionally on multi-instrumentalist Ray Thomas — but if you ask any bassist what he thought of Lodge’s contribution to the Moody Blues, all you’ll get is praise. His playing was rock solid, either complex or simple as the song required, and he never tried to overpower the music with his undoubted virtuosity. Oh, and he was an excellent singer as well, either as the lead or in his tuneful harmonies.
Just listen to how the bass drives this classic Moodies song (written mostly by Lodge himself). And note that Lodge is not just playing the bass, but singing at the same time. You know: back when the musicians played their own music and didn’t have to rely on Autotune.
I think I’ll go and listen to a Moody Blues album or two. My favorites: On the Threshold of a Dream and In Search of the Lost Chord.
And I think I’ll make a series of this thread. Yeah, it’ll be somewhat tilted towards bassists and drummers, because I was once a bassist, part of the band’s rhythm unit. Sue me.
Mostly, I find the “reaction” videos on Eeewwchoob to be exercises in frustration, because most of the reactors don’t have a clue about music, or what the songs represent and so on.
But this one is absolutely priceless.
It’s just a pair of musical morons listening to one of the greatest songs ever written — but their reaction is pretty much the same as mine when I first heard it.
I dunno what that means or what it says about me… but hey, you get to listen to Gerry Rafferty, so how bad can it be?
Sail Away, sweetheart.
From the People’s Soviet of Portland:
An online anarchist platform encouraged people on Wednesday to shine lasers at federal helicopters in Portland, Oregon, a crime that law enforcement officials say can create extreme danger for pilots.
A post on the leftist, Portland-focused website “Rose City Counter-Info” tells viewers to scatter throughout the city’s streets on Saturday for the attack — nicknamed “Laser Tag” — as federal agents respond to demonstrations near the city’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility. The goal is to “ground” the helicopters by making it difficult to safely fly them and flash too many lasers for law enforcement to hunt down those using them, according to the anonymously-written post.
“All you need is a laser. Leave home – they can see where the laser is coming from,” the post reads. “Go to a park, a field, or some other public place, and once the clock strikes 9 unleash your beam at the cop copter. Mask up. Coordinate with friends to throw a laser party!”
“Let’s take back the night together!” the announcement continued. “It won’t take many of us to ground the helicopters!”
Wouldn’t it be nice if there were a few patriots scattered around said parks and fields, likewise equipped, so that when one of these goblins shines a laser up at a chopper, he or she could find themselves lit up in turn…
All together now:
“♫ ♪ ♫ ♪ You say you want a revolution, well you know…♫ ♪ ♫ ♪”
…done these three things:
I always thought that Dr. Who was an infantile take on sci-fi — just hearing people talk about the show irritated me — so I never bothered. I kinda feel the same about Star Trek, although I have watched a few episodes of that series, always kicking myself for wasting time immediately after the closing credits.
I don’t know why I never read Jilly Cooper’s books, unless it was because of my misogynistic attitude to female writers. No, I can’t be bothered to explain that, either. Reading the blurb on the back of any of her novels, I always wondered why I would ever be interested in her silly, two-dimensional characters and fluffy inconsequential plot lines, and I’d return the book to the shelf, un-tempted into its purchase. The only thing I can find to recommend Dame Jilly, other than the obvious:
…is that she always had a very casual attitude towards sex, both in her writing and in her observations about the people around her. Not judgemental, she. Besides: it was the 1970s and -80s, FFS [sic].
Horses are filthy, fragile animals, prone to all sorts of illnesses, and even the “quiet” ones are always trying to kill you. Besides, as black powder and muzzle loaders have been superseded by metallic cartridges and bolt-actions, our transportation needs have evolved and we don’t need them.