Guitar Emporium

The 2nd of 5 recordings taken from a midi guitar album done in the early 2000's .  Although its nothing like his music the Venezuelan Waltzes of Antonio Lauro are the main influence here. Support the show

This week 5 tracks from a recording made in the early 2000's using a Godin Multiac midi guitar - the CD which resulted was called "PHASES" The Bossa I've returned to a number of times - but this is the original idea. Support the show

A phrase I'm not so terribly fond of - very often followed by something very negative along the lines of - don't do this or that or whatever.... The two drummers in this piece could never work in reality - I'm not even sure they work in this recording  - "going forward" Support the show

So the 6 day trip to northern Spain comes to an end 60 hours of 140 odd hours "On the boat" . Get in the car - off the ferry - M27 west - road closures in New Forest due to fires - and home.  Support the show

The big story was the total eclipse in Northern Spain on 13th August & the 95% eclipse in the UK. I was on the Brittany Ferries boat Salamanca in the Bay of Biscay at the time. We were duly issued with our eclipse glasses and it was spectacular and more than a little humbling. We are such a small part of "space" . Support the show

The second track from my travels to Northern Spain. Due to the heat in the UK rubbish disposal has become a bit of an issue . So good on yer Jack - you got the bin out before the refuse guys got there - THANKYOU. Support the show

ON THE BOAT - not my boat but Salamanca - Brittany Ferries gas powered ferry. Caught the 10pm Friday night from Portsmouth arrived in Santander at 8am Sunday. Last visit to Northern Spain for a while. House and horreos just about sold - sad but there it is , there are much worse things going on... Camped in Playa de Utor - beautiful with 1/2 km walk to an unspoilt sandy cove. Stayed one night with...

As in Ready, Steady Go - which is a TV show well before my time  It ran until 1968. The show went out early on Friday evenings with the line "The weekend starts here!", and was introduced by the Surfaris ' " Wipe Out ", later by Manfred Mann 's " 5-4-3-2-1 ", then Manfred Mann's "Hubble Bubble (Toil and Trouble)", and finally The Rolling Stone...

I met a lovely 80 year old welsh lady this week - she'd had a hard life most certainly - but wasn't having any of it - and certainly had no self pity whatsoever She'd made money over the years and had money perhaps wrongfully taken away from her - no pockets in a shroud - she said at one point . An old fashioned expression but said with no sense of injustice or bitterness.  Here&apo...

Back on the Wiki bit instead of the AI- ( AI is such a know-it-all) Upcycling, also known as creative reuse, is the process of transforming by-products, waste materials, useless, or unwanted products into new materials or products perceived to be of greater quality, such as artistic value or environmental value.  I don't make claim to doing that sort of thing very often but today I turned som...

Twenty Ways Upon the Bells - Thomas Robinson - A lute duet with a ground bass accompaniment repeating its way through the tune with bell like imitations overlaid by the top part - Grade 5 in the UK ABRSM guitar exams at the moment Support the show

Its nearly 2 years since I was out in Spain - where, in many respects, I'd still like to be.  I travelled from Luarca to catch the ferry from Santander back to Portsmouth on Wednesday 12th getting back last night . The wiki bit.. The Cantabrian Motorway (A-8) is a highway in Spain connecting the north of the country, stretching from the French border to Bilbao. This dual-carriageway runs alon...

 The CD and digital download "Creatures" was released on 1st August with this, and many other tunes, on the recording. Click on  Support the Show for more details. This was put up not long ago - when I first saw this Alpaca it was standing in a field on its own near the railway line. It took me by surprise.  Now there are 3 of them - it looks like a mum and 2 offspring. They stand absolu...

This began as "Hold up" as in delayed but is really about being "Holed up" - that is hiding from stuff.. I've likened it to having car problems - only because at the time, in November 2023, the winter was just getting started and I was having the annual car issues. The car issues I have are usually associated with driving far too many miles with a car that is well past its...

Remember Jakes Bark - Jake was our much loved collie cross who died about 3 years ago at the age of 14. The piece is a play on J.S Bach - the piece is in the style of the prelude from the cello suite - with bass added in the style of Jazz pa Svenska ( a 1960's Swedish jazz LP) which I keep going back to.  The CD and digital download "Creatures" was released on 1st August with this,...

Making light of the idea of a "stalker" - I can't imagine how hard it must be to be stalked - unwelcome attention is bad at the best of times but when it just won't go away - terrible. The tune makes it into a children's game."Hide and Seek" Support the show

The old fashioned alternative to feeling depressed - Black Dog . Not as serious as being depressed and considerably easier to shake off, I would imagine, but we all get it to varying degrees.  The CD and digital download "Creatures" was released on 1st August with this, and many other tunes, on the recording. Click on  Support the Show for more details. Support the show

From July 2023 - you choose - who's your conspiracy man / woman / gender ? There are plenty of people to choose from. Support the show

There are alot of them about this summer - not sure if it is the good warm weather that is sustaining them - but it is lovely to see.  The CD and digital download "Creatures" was released on 1st August with this, and many other tunes, on the recording. Click on  Support the Show for more details. Support the show

Have you ever been left "High and Dry"? - Its not a pleasant experience - from 2023. Support the show

Paper Tigers was what Trumpy referred to Russia recently. Nearly 80 years after Mao Zedong called the United States a “paper tiger” to boost morale at home, U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin are exchanging barbs who is the paper tiger of today. In a post on Truth Social, Trump mocked Russia’s military powers and called the country “a paper tiger,” prompting the Kreml...

From 2023 - I'm told I don't do this enough. However, the last time I picked up a call which I didn't recognise some so-and-so tried to scam me . So maybe its not so much of a problem Support the show

From earlier this year and as part of the "Creatures" CD - If you're interested this is on the support the show section beneath. Thanks Support the show

We all want one of these every so often - don't we ? Support the show

Plenty of them around as the warm weather in the UK continues. The CD called "Creatures" is released today with this, and many other tunes, on the recording. Click on  Support the Show for more details Support the show