The Superions - 'Batbaby'

I have seen the future of the music video and it is daft. But also epic.

The Superions have returned with 'Batbaby' just in time for Hallowe'en and they've produced a ten minute video to go with it. Part 'B' movie and part music video, it's ever so slightly fab and great fun. Go on, take a look and then download the single. But, if you see a bat in a nappy, beware ....

Mixed Britannia

I've been watching 'Mixed Britannia', a documentary series by George Alagiah about mixed race life in Britain. Previous episodes have been historical, looking at the start of mixed race marriages in the sea-ports of the 1900s which has been fascinating, but this week's episode brought things right up to date, to things that I can recognise because I grew up in the 60s and 70s. From the Limehouse docks in London to Tiger Bay in Cardiff and to Liverpool, most of this country has taken part in the story of a mixed race Britain. George ends the final programme by saying that he is proud that Britain is one of the most mixed race countries of the world and so am I.

George is best known as a newsreader for BBC News but, based on this series, he's wasted doing that.  He has a great ability to talk into the camera and make you think he's talking to you. In this series he draws on his own family and his own mixed race marriage to make his points more personal. And it works. He tackles a difficult subject and humanises it.  He should do more of this.

This final episode took me back to my school days and reminded me of a school friend I haven't thought of in years.  I grew up in a small mining village in north Durham and went to the local grammar school.  And so did T, a black girl that lived half a mile away.  She wasn't just the only black girl in the village, she was the only black anyone within a 15 mile radius, brought up by adoptive white parents. I hadn't thought of T for years - we were friends at school but lost touch 30 years ago - but some of the stories I heard in the programme this evening made me think of her and wonder. I'd love to meet up again.

I was on the bus going down Brixton Hill the other day and thought to myself that I loved the colour I saw.  Not skin colour, but cultural colour with women in veils and saris, men in muslim hats and Nehru jackets, white lads with blond dreadlocks, a bloke in a turban and denims and a little old lady in the most floral of floral frocks you can imagine. I loved it. That's the ultimate diversity, it's people being who they are and who they want to be and I'm quite pleased that in my world people can be who they want to be. 

Who called the British a 'mongrel race'?  I don't know, but it's true.  Since we're on the edge of Europe, and there's a history of peoples moving west, so this little island has seen a host of peoples coming here.  The Celts, the Romans, the Angles and Saxons, the Vikings, the Normans, Jews escaping the pograms, Jamaicans and Indians in the 50s to help the country grow after the war. None of us are 'pure blood' as the far right would want us to think, we're all bit of a mix.  I am Northumbrian and Irish and probably some Scots in there as well and I grew up in the land of the Prince Bishops. I claim my Native American blood through Buffy Sainte-Marie and my Caribbean blood through Jimmy Cliff.  I am a citizen of the world and claim you all as brothers and sisters. You don't really have any say in it.

I'm with the mighty Poly Styrene when she sang, "When it comes to my bretheren, I and I, Jah simply choose to remain colour blind".  Poly was mixed race herself, part Somali and part British white. And she was perfect.

'Crazy For You' at The Novello Theatre

After a less than pleasant week at work it was a delight to realise that we had tickets to see 'Crazy For You' at the Novello Theatre on Friday night.  'Crazy For You' is billed as "the smash hit Gershwin musical" and it's the ultimate feel good song n dance spectacular - I loved it!

It's adapted from 'Girl Crazy' with more songs added and story that wouldn't stand up terribly well if you held it up yourself, but since when has a well-crafted plot been essential to a joyful musical extravaganza? It's the tale of Bobby, the rich kid who wants to be a dancer on Broadway who is sent to a dead-end hick town in Nevada to close a theatre-cum-post office who falls in love with the daughter of the owner and decides to put on a show to raise money to pay off the bank.  All sorts of mayhem and confusion ensues in a careful and knowing way which was great fun.  I particularly liked the line when challenged about putting on a show in a decrepit old theatre when Bobby said that Mickey Rooney does it all the time...

Our heroes are Sean Palmer as Bobby and Clare Foster as Polly Baker, the girl he falls for.  Both have a lovely stage presence, throwing themselves into their roles with abandon and having great chemistry as the star-crossed lovers with lovely voices and killer dance moves. They're ably supported by David Burt as Bela Zangler, the Broadway producer.  David has great comic timing and a good voice but, y'know what?  I'll always think of him as Petal from 'Taboo' with his too-short miniskirt and flambouyant knickers with a sock stuck down the front (I assume there was padding down there). It was great to see him again, particularly in the slapstick drunken scene in the second half.

I was conscious of having a smile on my face for most of this play, seeing the massed ranks of synchronised tap-dancers and singers making me astonished at how they must've practiced to deliver such a slick performance.  Well done people. And the cannon at the end shooting sparkly strips into the audience was the icing on the cake.

I'll definietley want to see this production again while I can. It's full of happiness and joy and you can never have too much joy in your life. Gimme more!

Buffy Sainte-Marie - 'Universal Soldier'

This is a video of Buffy singing 'Universal Soldier' on the BBC4 programme 'Songwriters Circle' that was recorded at Porchester Hall back in June and first broadcast on 14 October 2011.  This song got the biggest ovation of the evening - thanks to whoever downloaded it and posted it on YouTube.

Buffy sang 'Until It's Time For You To Go', a harrowing 'Cod'ine', 'Little Wheel Spin And Spin', 'I'm Gonna Be A Country Girl Again', 'Up Where We Belong' and 'Universal Soldier'. She also sang along with Roger Cook on 'You've Got Your Troubles' and with Donovan on 'Colours'.  That means that the BBC has high definition video of Buffy singing 'Piney Wood Hills' and 'Still This Love Goes On' that, hopefully, we'll see at some point.  How do I know this?  Because I was there for the recording.

'The Killing Of Sister George' at The Arts Theatre

The other night we went to see 'The Killing Of Sister George' at the sweatbox that is the Arts Theatre, a theatre I didn't even know existed until recently despite having walked past it many times. I'm aware of the film with Beryl Reid in the title role but I wanted to see what Meera Syal would make of the part. I was deeply impressed with Meera as Shirley Valentine at the Choccy Factory last year.

The set was a bit of a talking point while waiting for the play to start, with a big wireless speaker (that is wireless as in radio, not as in Internet) covering the stage, with the furniture of George's flat at the front. The decor made me thing 1950s rather than 1960s and I'm not sure whether that was a mistake or deliberate.

Sister George is a character in a radio series who is about to be killed off to try to boost ratings. We pick up the story when George (played by Meera) finds out the news until after the programme is broadcast about the characters' funeral and she's offered the role of a cow in a children's series. There are only four characters in the play, all female, George, her girlfriend Alice (Childy), her downstairs neighbour (played by Helen Lederer) and the proper Mrs Croft from the BBC. It's not so much a play about lesbians as about the desperation of people being forced out of their comfort zone.

The play seemed terribly dated in places and full of stereotypes, with George sitting with legs wide open as the butch one and Alice in girly-girly mode, playing with dolls or putting on a teenagers voice and actions. I couldn't quite imagine them living together for six years or so without killing each other. George perpetually poured herself glasses of gin and Alice made pots of tea while their world collapsed around them.

I can't quite put my finger on it but I didn't really enjoy the production. It was lovely to see Meera again, but I suspect I'll enjoy seeing her more as Beatrice in 'Measure for Measure' (I'm looking forward to a powerful Beatrice).

Kate Bush - 'Wild Man'

Kate Bush's first single from the new album was released yesterday and no-one told me! I've just downloaded it, the 4 minute radio edit and 7 minute album version, and i have to say I prefer this to the lead (only?) single from the last album, 'King Of The Mountain'. It's moody, challenging, atmpospheric and questioning, Like every good Kate song. And, unusally for me, I think I prefer the 7 minute version. Go on, download it from your downloady site of preference.

Punk And Beyond by Gaye Advert

'Punk and Beyond' is an exhibition curated by Gaye Advert of paintings by punk rockers from the '70s at the Signal Gallery in London between 25 Nov - 17 December 2011.  Gaye curated a similar exhibition last year that I missed, but this time I must attend since there will be a small series of tribute portraits of Poly Styrene.

Gaye is, of course, the magnificent bass player with The Adverts in the '70s, the first punk woman of note with her big panda eyes and leather jacket. Before Debbie Harry we all loved Gaye Advert.  She's now an artist and curator of the punk heritage which is a very worthy and important role.

I shall be there.

John Martin's 'Apocalyse'

Yesterday we went to see the first dedicated exhibition in over 30 years of the paintings and prints of John Martin - 'Apocalypse' at Tate Britain.

John Martin is from Northumberland so is a local boy done good and the Laing Gallery in Newcastle has a good collection of his works.  I went to the Laing a few times in my teens and only remember a few Pre-Raphaelites and a few John Martins - I can't remember the names of the Pre-Raphaelite painters but I remembered his name.  I visited the Laing again a couple of years ago and headed straight for the two Martin's on display at the time - he may not be the best painter ever to pick up a brush but he makes an impression. 

The first painting you come to is 'The Bard' (on loan from The Laing) and this epitomises Martin's works for me - grand scale, impossibly dramatic and romantic, and peopled with the teeming millions of people, tiny against an immense background. On the right on top of a mountain is the last Welsh bard and on the other side of the gorge is the army of Edward I hunting him down.  The scene is dramatic and is the perfect still from a blockbuster film to draw you in.  In reality, of course, it's made up.  The mountains in Wales aren't like that at all and the army wasn't anything like that, winding round and up and down the mountain passes. But why spoil a good scene? 

The word 'blockbuster' kept cropping up in the exhibition and it accurately reflects a modern take on the paintings - they are blockbusters.  The leaflet you're given on the way in suggests how Martin has influenced films, record covers, fiction and music and, if you squint slightly, there's a clear route from Martin to a Yes album cover.  The domes of his new Jerusalem could easily be at home with our modern visions of living on the Moon or on Mars.

One thing 'The Bard' lacks is the colour red, a colour Martin obvious fell in love with for some of his most dramatic paintings.  The red of Vesuvius exploding and raining down hell on Pompeii or the red of 'The Destruction of Sodom and Gomoraah'.  'Sodom' depicts a fire burning out of control, wreaking havoc and destruction in all directions and you can almost feel the heat radiating out at you.  Then there's the darker red and black of 'Pandemonium' when Satan's city rises intact from the lava with an endless army ready for the final battles.  I told you he was dramatic.

One of the highlights of the exhibition is a sound and light extravaganza for his 'Last Judgement' triptych, three giant canvases the size of one of the walls of your house (yes, *your* walls) that went on tour in the 1850s around Britain and America. It's a great idea to try to replicate the experience with the three giant paintings side by side, illuminated and darkened to a soundtrack of someone explaining the subject matter with real showmanship.  The show last about 15 minutes and is held every half hour and is a great way to see the paintings.

It's a grand exhibition in all senses of the word.  A good selection of his works, enough of them to be substantial and a good experience but not including every last sketch he ever made and watering down the experience.  We were there for about one and a half hours which felt about right to be wowed and over-awed but not too long and not pummelled to the our knees by the sheer weight of the drama.

 If you get the chance then go and see it - I'd recommend this exhibition any day!  John Martin may not be the best painter of people but is unsurpassed in drama! 

Buffy Sainte-Marie on BBC Four

You need to know that Buffy Sainte-Marie will be on BBC FOUR next Friday (14 October) at 9.30pm in 'Songwriter's Circle', along with Donovan and Roger Cooke.  I was lucky enough to be at the recording of the show at Porchester Hall earlier this year and it was great fun.  You might even see me in the audience.

Here's my write-up of the show.  It'll be interesting to see which songs they include in the show - I'm assuming it'll be four or five songs each. 

Buffy is also featured in the programme immediately afterwards called 'Singer-Songwriters at the BBC'.

If you're going to be out next Friday night then I recommend you set your machine of choice to record mode from 9.30pm onwards, you won't regret it!

Buffy Sainte-Marie - 'Still this Love Goes On'

Buffy Sainte-Marie has perfected her own version of the 3 minute pop song, often dripping with imagery on top of a simple and memorable melody. One of my favourites is 'Still This Love Goes On' from 'Running For The Drum'. It packs in the seasons in Canada with animal tracks in the snow and summer running up and down the mountainsides. She sings about powwow singing, the drum and the Jingle Dancers, painted ponies and sweet grass burning.

I love this song and it's not just one of my favourites from 'Running For The Drum', it's one of my favourite all-time Buffy songs. It's simple and complex at the same time, and here's a lovely video of Buffy singing it live earlier this summer. Enjoy!