Leeching

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Week from Monday 7th April 2025 - I think it's taking me a little longer to get back to "NORMAL" health this time, following Saturday's COVID needling. I was still feeling some of the side effects several days later, such as the LOWER BLOOD PRESSURE causing achy extremities and the persistent CHEMICAL ODOUR, which may be real or in my own head. But I take it in my stride and try to DO STUFF regardless... PROJECTS, PROJECTS, PROJECTS...

It's the start of a new FINANCIAL YEAR. As a 'BURDEN ON SOCIETY' old person, I'm no longer legally required to do all that wretched SELF-ASSESSMENT malarkey, but I keep my accounts in order anyway, for my own satisfaction. On top of this week's PENSION payment, I've also had some interest accrued on one of my SAVINGS accounts (more than I'd guesstimated!) and a £50 'Thank You Bonus' appeared in my CURRENT account. Which Is Nice.

On Wednesday, I hopped on the 'DEATH VALLEY 69' to Winchester. I donated a few 'culled' CDs to the OXFAM BOOKS & MUSIC where I once served time, including some Soft Machine albums that are now 'swapsies' and some 'purged' latter-day Pink Floyd. I stayed down in the 'DIP' of Winchester and didn't attempt any of the up-hill stuff! But I'd quite forgotten just how long and uncomfortable that BUS RIDE is... I was pretty sore after!

A couple of things have arrived from the BURNING SHED concern... the three-seedy box of SOFT MACHINE's "Harvest Albums 1975-1978" and the long awaited "Complete Recordings 1981-1984" by ANDY SUMMERS/ROBERT FRIPP. I'm also enjoying the 'Perfect Pop With Jazz Chords" of STEELY DAN's live album "NorthEast CorriDor", of which I nabbed a copy in Winchester yesterday.

On Friday, I'm popping up to the hozzy for a routine LEACHING. On this occasion, I have to provide BLOOD TEST data for three different departments! I sincerely hope that my quite recent armful of SPIKEVAX JN1 doesn't affect the test readings too much...

Week from Monday 14th April 2025 - I had my telephone chat with DrDR on Wednesday. The blood tests show that I'm a little bit ANAEMIC again, which might explain the tiredness. That and any lingering effects from Spikey's Vax. But there are no other indications of the MYELOMA coming back, so that's okay. Let's see what the KIDNEY PEOPLE say next week...

I'm taking it a bit easy this week, although I did pop down to Gosport to use 'my' Windoze Peecee to print off some more colour covers for recent CD projects.

#OnThisDay #TwentyYearsAgo Thirty Fifty years ago to the week, I saw GENESIS play "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway" live at [what was then] the Southampton Gaumont. At the time, I hadn't heard the album, so I didn't know any of the music (YET!), but I was, needless to say, gobsmacked by the stage presentation. Well now Messrs GENESIS & GABRIEL have licenced the Canadian "PROGS IN THEIR EYES" winners, THE MUSICAL BOX - previous successes include "ONE OYED HOOND", WHOYTE MOONTAIN", "COONTING OOT TOYME", "ALL IN A MOOSE'S NOYT", "DOON & OOT", "GET 'EM OOT BOY FREUD, EH?" (um, that's enough Genesis-related Canadianisms ...Ed.) - to recreate the entire show, note for note, lighting cue for lighting cue and back projection slide for back projection slide. Even members of the 'proper' Genesis have said that they look and sound "better than the real thing". An exciting direction in MUSICAL THEATRE or a pointless exercise in "nostalgia-for-the-ol'-folks"? At the Southampton Guildhall on Thursday, we get to see for ourselves.
Spooky! It was 1975 again! Only the ticket prices were different (by an increase of 1285%). THE MUSICAL BOX sound EXACTLY like vintage Genesis, even the crap bits ("Gabriel"'s interminable between-songs storytelling, "Bongo Phil"'s backing-vocalisms). The stage presentation was also spot on, even the crap bits (Some of the theatricals are decidedly naff, but then they probably were in the seventies, we just didn't realise it at the time).
I made up the bit about "PROGS IN THEIR EYES", but that wasn't too far from reality. There's something slightly creepy about the "Tribute Band" genre, musicians who totally suppress their own musical self-expression (ergo ego), so that they can [look and] sound EXACTLY like the heroes of their choice.
But as a musical trainspotter, I couldn't help drooling over the amount of genuine, or at least replica, vintage instrumentation on display. When did you last see an ARP Pro-Soloist synthesiser? Or an RMI piano? Or a Rickenbacker double-neck, let alone a left-handed one (The bassist looked just like Mike Rutherford, but back-to-front!)? This must be one high-maintenance show - I was reminded of the Robert Fripp aphorism "TUNING A MELLOTRON DOESN'T". A very strange experience indeed.

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