“Bort Brain Salad Surgery – not very good but alright”
Wha??
Doubtless buoyed by “christmas money” I went out and bought Emerson, Lake & Palmer’s new opus – released a mere month earlier – only to get it home and immediately deem it “not very good, but alright“
Do I sense dissatisfaction setting in with progressive rock gods [...]
“Went up Dicks, back into E.Leigh & got hair done. Sent off radio quiz. After work went got Nigs h.phones for him”
I was thinking about headphones the other day.
Whilst I now spend a proportion of each day (at the gym) wearing the earbuds from my iPod, back in the early seventies I only rarely wore headphones.
About [...]
“Roger came for me at 10 – said Ward wanted me to work all day – did so. Swapped my Scalextric for Bernard’s organ”
I will now pause whilst the more juvenile amongst you make up your own jokes…………
Done?
Good…..
Right, so having been denied an earlier opportunity to become a Scalextrix racing Car driver of some [...]
“Recorded Trilogy and Emerson, Lake & Palmer for Bruce in Evng”
No it didn’t.
As I am currently (i.e. 2009) discovering in the fantastic book “Appetite for Self-Destruction (The Spectacular Crash of the Record Industry in the Digital Age)” by Steve Knopper, major record label executives have inflicted FAR more damage to the business than all the [...]
“Dave came up in the morning and borrowed Pictures and lent me Roxy Music”
I was almost dreading the debut mention of Roxy Music in this blog.
Why? Because it is extremely difficult to explain the impact that the band – and their style – had on this particular teenager. It’s also difficult to explain to [...]
“Lent Tarkus – E.L.P. to Johnny M and borrowed Machine Head and Deep Purple in Live Concert off Gra” / “T-1 day to get Moving Waves (If I have got enough money mite get Focus 3 instead)”
OK, I have officially confused my 50-year-old self here
Most of this is straightforward stuff, but I am having a [...]
“Tarkus” can’t really be described as my favourite ELP album, but its certainly the one I know the most intimately.
Side One features the 7-part concept Tarkus suite, mostly composed by Keith Emerson, that is supposed to tell the tale of the peculiar half-armadillo/half-tank represented on the cover.
Emerson has apparently stated in his autobiography “Pictures of an Exhibitionist” [...]
“2nd Maths Mock o’level – BLOODY hard” / “After two weeks of solid revision, had to do piles of copying up” / “Got Quid for Focus ticket” / “Got Tarkus tape back from Precision”
A diary entry that has made me both remember AND forget things in equal quantities.
Firstly, conveniently forgetting that my Maths mock was [...]
In this ”debut diary year” of 1972 I have spoken a lot about the albums I either bought, borrowed and/or taped.
It would be fair for readers to think these albums would represent what I would have listened to the most in 1972.
Fair, but wrong.
Every Sunday, almost without fail, I would avidly listen to the “Pick of the Pops” show [...]
“had an aircut” / “rote lettta to island about rekord”
Looks as if we’re back in my 14-year-old spelling hell again?
Fact: The barber who cut my glorious flowing locks in 1972 was the very same barber who continued to cut my (grey, spiky) hair in my late 30’s and into my 40’s!
Occasionally, my parents neighbour cut [...]
“argument still on verge” / “got tarkus back from rob”
Mum & Dad are still arguing. (I have actually stopped myself from publishing every date when I write “argument” or “arguverge” as my one and only diary entry for the day. Too painful)
Plus, proof that I didn’t just filch albums from other people, I actually lent [...]
“dad went to school for meeting. meanwhile back on the ranch pulled off all old pictures from walls and put up ELP”
Aw, bless my teenage cotton (more likely, nylon) socks, I replaced the band pictures on my wall.
Not that I can remember what I took down.
Or put up.
If you see what I mean?
Part 2….
Can Keith Emerson sit with his legs ANY further apart in the pic on Page 5?
Part 1 of scans of the official concert programme in advance of my memories (hah!) about my big day at the Oval….
Yes, you CAN ask “Who the hell were Fudd?”
All will be revealed come my concert day post…..
“Bought Melody Maker. ELP win 7 sections in poll. Another addition to concert – Argent”
I probably would’ve purchased Melody Maker anyway – along with Sounds and NME it represented “required reading” each Thursday – but I suspect this particular issue was sought and read cover to cover with a little more glee and excitement?!!
The Melody [...]
“got letter saying I had won free ticket to the oval and LP. no-one believed me. argument between M+D becos M dont want me to go, D does”
….. and this little butterfly began to flap his wings.
A teenage life is full of turning points. I can categorically state that receiving this letter was definitely one of [...]
“Bought set of batteries. 18p. 33 Days”
33 days seems something of a good success rate for one set of batteries to last, given the fact that
a) the past month or so included bi-daily power cuts
&
b) during that time I must surely have listened to stuff more then usual?
I still find it funny…. no, make that [...]
