Showing posts with label Disney. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Disney. Show all posts

Tuesday 29 June 2021

Encountering The Adversary

Possibly an unexpected title given that England play Germany in the Euros tonight but that is not what this is about. This is the least I've posted in a month on this blog for over ten years, it's not that I've not been not writing, but have been publishing on Vocal which has changed the way I write and also actually increased my writing in a year when I said I was going to slow it down. You can see my Vocal posts here.

The benefit of posting here is that I don't need to wait for story / article approval , which may be a good or bad thing, but I should not neglect this blog.

I have been suffering from a cough / cold possible after effects of COVID jab and since Thursday I have lost 3Kg in weight , probably because of my effective total fasting on Thursday and Friday. Yesterday my weight was 91.8Kg which is 202lb or 14 stone 6 lb , I haven't been that low since my early twenties, so I am now thinking maybe one day a week I will try fasting. Today my weight is 92.1 Kg.

So to the point of this article, I am currently rereading The Adversary Cycle by F Paul Wilson and while I know the overall picture I was surprised to find that the publishers push it as a six book series when in reality two of the books are only marginally related. I thought I was going to start what is sometimes advertised as the third book "The Touch" but looking through my collection I realised I didn't have a copy (I think I borrowed it from my mate Steve Kirby about twenty years back) so I ordered a copy on my Kindle Fire.

I am currently on book three of the four, "Reprisal" having read the excellent "Reborn" which soon became obvious was the real follow up to "The Keep" the start of the series (also a Michael Mann film).

When I reread "The Tomb" I was thinking "This has nothing to do with The Adversary" although the hero (or anti hero) Repairman Jack reappears in the Adversary Finale , "Nightworld", 

All the books are excellent trending towards eventually apocalypse mixing mystery , horror and detective genres which some excellent characterisations and given that I am normally a slow reader , this series is one that I will revisit when I am finished.

So I am going to share Mussorgsky's "Night on Bare Mountain" a scary bit from Disney's "Fantasia" which is a good soundtrack for this piece from one of my mums favourite films.

Tuesday 13 April 2021

Coincidentally ... Ken Nordine

A couple of days ago on my Instagram #MusicWhileYouWork sequence i shared some of "Stay Awake" a collection of off the wall takes on Disney classics and the opener "Hey Diddle Dee Dee, An Actors Life For Me" from "Pinocchio" featured a spoken rap by someone called Ken Nordine who I was sort of unaware of but I, and you, have probably heard his voice.

His perfect enunciation was ideal for voice overs and "Dispepsi" by Negativland features a lit of uncredited adverts and I am sure that Nordine is in there. 

You can listen to him in the video above but while a lot of the beat poets hit the listener hard and fast , Nordine gives the listener time think and absorb the words and idea.

In the documentary "Tom Waits: Under The Influence" Tom Wait's influences' get mini documentaries themselves and Nordine has his and was active until his death in 2019, a very well spoken man and someone who I will be investigating further as he takes listening in another direction.

It's not everyone's taste, but I am glad to have discovered someone else that stimulates my imagination.

Take a listen and see what you think.

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Sunday 4 August 2019

Growly Night


There's thunder, lightning and rain. It's getting dark early. I'm amazed how accurate the weather information app is though I always look out the window to confirm what's happening . Another lightning flash , another roll of thunder.

Today when mowing the lawn there was a small short shower, but now we have the reall stuff. The positive is that I don't have to water the garden. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be able to walk into work without being forced to get a bus.

I wasn't going to post today but the image of "growly night" just seemed to be something worth capturing and recording.

My grandma used to say that thunder was the angels playing then pin bowling, which is a fairish analogy.

So given that I've nothing really to say I'll share an appropriated of music, "Night on Bare/Bald Mountain" by Modest Mussorgsky possibly rearranged by Rimsky-Korsakov and featured in Disney's "Fantasia" which he created to teach children about classical music and it is largely successful with stunning animation.

"Night on Bare Mountain" was also rejigged as "Night on Disco Mountain" on the soundtrack of "Saturday Night Fever"

So enjoy.....



Thursday 8 March 2018

Fermat's Last Theorem, Pills, RIP NME on International Women's Day


It is International Women's Day and I am shocked how18th Century most of our politicians and people in power are, continually denying what women want , true equality. But it's similar with race and lots of other artificial human divisions. Misogyny is still rife and is prevalent in men and women. While I would employ a skinny small woman as a hod carrier, I wouldn't employ a skinny small man to do the smae job, but there are lot's of women who would make a far better hod carrier than I. But follow the link and remember treat everyone with the respect they deserve and do not discriminate.

Reading the Simon Singh book I finally found out what Fermat's Last Theorem is and the problems it has caused. In lots of nots he said he had found irrefutable proof that there are no natural numbers (1, 2, 3,…) x, y, and z such that xn + yn = zn, in which n is a natural number greater than 2. This was finally proved in 1995 by Andrew Wiles with help from his friend Richard Taylor . See article here.

Homer Debunks Fermat's Last Theorem
The Simpsons supposedly debunked the theorem and you can too, but only because of the
inaccuracies of ten digit pocket calculators.

I'm only forty pages into "The Simpsons and Their Mathematical Secrets" but it is providing me with both entertainment and knowledge. Aren't books just wonderful.

 



Tomorrow the final edition of The New Musical Express will hit the shelves. They went to a free publication but it is the end of a music journalism era but given that most news is gleaned from the internet these days it's probably no surprise. It will probably continue online which you can visit here.

I've been listening to the excellent "Masseduction" by St Vincent and had been hearing "Pills" on the radio and it sounds like a mash up of a Disney Musical soundtrack with a latter day Depeche Mode backing band, and it is brilliant.

It's frosty this morning so wrap up and have a great Thursday, and spare a thought for Spurs fans this morning.

Saturday 1 April 2017

Two Songs


One of the benefits of my ten thousands steps a day that I'm trying to do, is that I am listening to a lot of my music on random play and rediscovering music I've either never played or I've just forgotten. My memory has never been good so it' is always difficult when I play or sing a song. so the chances are that I've known the songs but just forgotten them.

Two songs came up that reminded me strongly of other songs, one being a straight lift, other just having similar phasing and phrasing.

The first was PM Dawn "Art Deco Halos" which appropriates Baloo's "I Wanna Be Like You" from Disney's "Jungle Book". My friend Katie quoted it at me when I said that people just wanted to be like her because she was such a good example of  a human being.

Next up was A Flock of Seagulls'  "Nightmares" which is not a song that springs immediately to mind, but reminds me very much of Nancy Sinatra's "These Boots Are Made For Walkin'". YOu may think differently but that's what it made me think of.

Anyway I will include both the songs to see what your opinion is.

Good night my lovely friends.

Wednesday 29 March 2017

Ten Thousand Steps Underground


I'm still nowhere near a hundred percent, but am still hitting ten thousand steps dail, and reading and being inspired by Tom Waits. I remember buying "SwordfishTrombones" on the back of "In The Neighborhood" , putting it on and being totally shocked by the first song "Underground" , and that is shocked in a good way. This was something like a mephistophelean take on The Dwarves Marching song from Disney (which he covered for real on the album "Stay Awake") The only artist who was anywhere near this was Captain Beefheart, so to have another singer who could to this was totally mind blowing for me.

This post is going to be short because I am tired and probably overdoing it physically, but I actually managed to do something at work that amazed me, and hopefully it will make one or two of my colleagues happy. That's assuming it still works tomorrow.

Anyway I am feeling totally drained but will leave you with more Tom Waits.

Sleep well my friends

Thursday 29 September 2016

#LikeNoOther #5 Dispepsi - Negativland


This is a slight deviation from the formula but also the first time that an album taught me a lot about market manipulation and controlling the minds of the masses who buy products. The album was, I think legally challenged by Pepsi and possibly Coca Cola and there is a Wikipedia entry here which mentions the legal shenanigans.

It contains lots of samples including many famous people , digs at artists selling themselves to corporations and includes some clever and witty songs , woven together into a coherent blast at market manipulation.

Drink It Up
It's one the albums that I still listen to end to end, and suggest that you do the same. It came back into mind after watching a TED talk that said that 90% of the media production was now owned by six companies who an make us think about whatever they want.

That is very frightening and Dispepsi predicted what they are doing now over 25 years ago. The album is very difficult to lay your hands on though Amazon have a few very expensive copies here.

Listen to the Youtube link here, if you want a copy, contact me, I will direct you. Below is the TED talk by Christopher Bell that reminded me of this amazing , educational and subversive record, with its demonstration  that Disney are anti powerful female heroes. Listen then watch my friends.


Monday 21 December 2015

Morning Morning 7am - Joy Division To The World


Well another work week has commenced and looking forward to lots of good things happening this week. Time seems to be at a premium although it always is whether you have anything planned or not. Christmas is one of those things where , you actually have advance notice that it's going to happen. I do find it quite amazing in the world of business especially and I suppose socially , the number of people who seem shocked that it is actually here and then have to implement emergency measures to deal with the situation.

Joy Division To The World
My biggest "worry" is remembering to record film's like Brave and specials like the new Sherlock and the Wallace and Gromit Christmas special.

One of the reasons for doing this post is to reshare the excellent Joy Division Christmas Tree and Holly Golightly's "Christmas Tree's On Fire.

So just calm down and you will have a great time , I certainly will

Have a great day , and week , and enjoy yourself.

Monday 12 October 2015

Another Monday Morning - #12 - 1968 - White Horses - Jacky


It's another Monday morning and I'm in a rush again so this is a shorty. 1968 was full of amazing music , but in a completely coincidence I posted White Horses to my daughter's Facebook wall as it's her birthday today, then found it was in the charts in 1968 !!

So there is nothing special in this except:

Skeleton
It's going to be an amazing week , but I haven't a clue what is going to happen . I had a great weekend and it is going to continue on , I will make sure that happens.

Also looking for this video , I got sidetracked as usually with some films for my Facebook group here.

Have a great day every day.

Friday 7 August 2015

The World of Steampunk and Mystery


We all love a mystery and to see something that doesn't make sense , well maybe it does, but in a skewed fashion, and was discussing with a good friend about the concept of Steampunk , and minority religions and ancient nature.

Steampunk , like every movement seems homogenized and refined in places with no grasp of the real concepts behind it . Some welding goggles and cogs and it's steampunk isn't it. Well no. Steampunk is an analog alternative future , this is where the cogs come in because they drive this world...

Flying Icarus
.. and when you start cross breeding it with Wicca , Goth ancient nature you open up a whole new fantasy world that can become real for everyone involved. Sometimes I'm not sure what is what byt love the Disney  films such 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea and Mysterious Island and The Time Machine which brimmed with genuine steampunk imagery and it's surprising that I think the first book to genuinely buy into this genre was Michael Moorcock's Warlord of The Air. When I read this when it came out the term Steampunk hadn't been coined and when I looked at the imagery I realised how forward and backward looking this book was.

Anyway I love the genre , the associated literature , music , the clothing , and everything about , sort of almost a forward looking nostalgia for things that never were and never can be, although they could if time had turned a different corner.


Anyway this is an excuse to include Steam Powered Giraffe , and it's the weekend , so start to enjoy yourself.

Monday 9 February 2015

Brief Encounter at The Tyneside Bar and Cafe where Dali Meets Disney


Today after doing a couple of hours at the excellent Oxfam Books and Music in Jesmond , I got mack into Newcastle and decided to go for a cup of coffee and a cake at the Tyneside Bar and Cafe. I was chatting with the girl behind the bar (who's name I didn't get) and she recommended the carrot and cinnamon cake to go with my coffee and I noticed the film playing. The Tyneside Bar and Cafe has a program of silent film screening every afternoon and a couple of weeks ago I caught some of The Battleship Potemkin. It's really brilliant idea to have these films as a backdrop to be engrossed in as you have your coffee or cake.

Anyway I asked what the film was that was showing and she told me it was a thirties rendition of Faust, she didn't know much of the story of Faust but was determined to find out more having watch most of the film and , like me she was impressed with it. It's a two hour film and you can watch it above. This led to a chat about German Surreal Horror and Salvador Dali's involvement with film and I was racking my brains about a film that I'd seen recently but also seen as a child with some lasting images of strange angular paths and a bearded eyeless monk through a window (yes I remembered that from my childhood). Anyway a girl a the bar called Amy who also works at the Tyneside Cinema and threw in some ideas including Un Chien Andalou and L'Age D'Or but more intriguingly mentioned a Salvador Dali and Walt Disney collaboration. This is a short film called Destino started in 1946 and completed in 2003. You can watch it below and to me it is jaw dropping, I have to thank Amy for telling me about this absolute gem:


However I still couldn't  remember the film I'd seen,
That Path
so decided to search while I had my coffee and cake. After about ten minutes I remembered it had featured in a documentary on European Horror films by Mark Gatiss and then googled European Surreal Horror and there it was "The Cabinet of Doctor Caligari" , which I had discussed at some point with my friend Craig another Tyneside Cinema guy. So I had a really good day , discovering things I didn't even know about thanks to Amy and finally remember THAT film , which I'll use to finish off this post.

Have a great night everybody, because I have had a great day

Saturday 6 December 2014

Frozen ... December Is Here



Just got up and all the cars are frosted up. Looks like I got back up the road just in time (not a fan of driving on ice).

 Reminds me of a couple of years back when in a William Hill's shop a couple of old guys nearly came to blows because the racing had been cancelled at Newcastle. They blamed the Council. they left the shop moaning and under protest and probably better off than they would have been on a normal day. The thing is there was still racing going on elsewhere , but that wasn't acceptable to them. It is strange how sometimes people have to have something exact when there perfectly suitable alternatives.

Ice Road Baby
Also driving on Ice makes me think of The Ice Road Truckers program. I don't follow it but will watch the odd one and am still amazed to see these people will to drive articulated heavy lorries across frozen, but very deep lakes, Amazing stuff.

This week I also started watch Disney's Frozen which is well up to their normal standard and everyone has heard Let It Go, I've been subjected to it ever since the film came out from certain people who shall remain nameless who were hooked from day one. I'd love to inclde the video but we know Disney won't allow it on Youtube so I'll take Madonna's song of the same name for today's video.

So you all wrap up well and stay warm and enjoy your weekend.


Sunday 14 October 2012

Without A Net

An interesting thing happened last week. It was my daughter Juliet's Birthday. I'd spoken with her about presents when we last ate out at The Stand in Newcastle and she told me she had an Amazon Wish List!!

I knew it was her birthday on Friday , however because I had to sort out petrol , a broken cooking bowl and various other things it completely slipped my mind that it was her birthday as well !!

Still no damage done and I phoned her , and sorted a card and present , but I was thinking that I do rely on internet and phone access without really thinking about it. I just assume I can log on and send something , and when you remove yourself from that ballpark , you are back in the world of postcards , royal mail and physical shopping, which while being very relaxing , I'm not sure that I like the internet . phone calendar being my Jiminey Cricket conscience !!