Sunday 26 February 2017
An idiots guide to an Idiot: The joy of......vinyl.
An idiots guide to an Idiot: The joy of......vinyl.: I could wax lyrical (no pun intended) about vinyl and have done in other blog things but today is different. We had the boiler engineer cal...
The joy of......vinyl.
I could wax lyrical (no pun intended) about vinyl and have done in other blog things but today is different.
We had the boiler engineer call on Friday. The boiler is in the loft. So is my vinyl. Need I say more? Well, probably yes, I do need to say more.
As I've mentioned before I have intended to find my vinyl and maybe even play the odd album but as usual just thought about it and did nothing. With the bit between my teeth so to speak, with the loft hatch open & me needing to go up there to make some space for the boiler engineer. 'Seek & yea shall find' as the supreme being says, so I did and found all 6 album boxes. In total around 120 LP's I think.
I have replaced alot of these with CD's, but not all & what memories these albums brought back! Not even listening to them, just seeing them again.
One album, Rainbows 'Long Live Rock n Roll' I bought at the gig when I saw Rainbow in 1978, I have already mentioned the gig in a previous blog but what I'd forgotten was on the album inner sleeve (it was a plain one) I had written an account of the gig. Some of it was plain laughable but some things I could have been written yesterday! I still appear to write in the same style ( though I use the term loosely!) One day, when I'm feeling brave I'll put the verbatim account on the blog.
I'd forgotten I'd got six Abba albums, blimey that's not doing my rock credentials any good is it! I've also got an REO Speedwagon album that I'd forgotten about, I knew I had some thing somewhere but wasn't sure whether it was album or tape!
Even got a couple of more collectable items I think. A couple of ELO albums on coloured vinyl & afew albums with posters & one Rory Gallagher with a limited addition single on clear vinyl in with the album. Most of these records would have been bought on excursions into London with my old buddies Alan & Mark. We would usually, but not always, get to Bond Street station & go in the HMV store there, though at that time they seemed abit dearer than other places. Next stop the brilliant Virgin Megastore at the bottom of Oxford Street. At the time the biggest record shop in the UK, across the road from the Megastore in a basement was a store called Simons, if my memory serves. This place was great because it was cheaper than most, mainly because alot of what they had were imports, some had a little nick in the corner, not the record itself but the cover. For the amount we saved this was of little consequence. Mark introduced us to a little record shop in Soho that sold all sorts of bootleg albums and some more rarities, I seldom brought from here though, I was always a cheap date!
On the rare occasion we'd have a beer somewhere though not often (how times change!) and from there we'd be back on the tube heading home, talking of course music. There was a real excitement about our purchases & more often than not we'd probably meet up at one or other of our houses later to play the albums, though I remember Alan was always slow to play them, he'd have quite a backlog waiting to be heard! Buying the latest album from a particular band was always an extra thrill. I well remember getting hold of the first new album Quo had brought out since I'd become a fan. It was 'Whatever you want' & is still a fave of mine & I have to say I still to this very day, I get that frisson of excitement when getting a bands album 'hot off the press.'
Oh, the boiler engineer? Oh yes, the boiler is fine but we have a leak somewhere in the system. Bugger, lets put another record on!
We had the boiler engineer call on Friday. The boiler is in the loft. So is my vinyl. Need I say more? Well, probably yes, I do need to say more.
As I've mentioned before I have intended to find my vinyl and maybe even play the odd album but as usual just thought about it and did nothing. With the bit between my teeth so to speak, with the loft hatch open & me needing to go up there to make some space for the boiler engineer. 'Seek & yea shall find' as the supreme being says, so I did and found all 6 album boxes. In total around 120 LP's I think.
I have replaced alot of these with CD's, but not all & what memories these albums brought back! Not even listening to them, just seeing them again.
One album, Rainbows 'Long Live Rock n Roll' I bought at the gig when I saw Rainbow in 1978, I have already mentioned the gig in a previous blog but what I'd forgotten was on the album inner sleeve (it was a plain one) I had written an account of the gig. Some of it was plain laughable but some things I could have been written yesterday! I still appear to write in the same style ( though I use the term loosely!) One day, when I'm feeling brave I'll put the verbatim account on the blog.
I'd forgotten I'd got six Abba albums, blimey that's not doing my rock credentials any good is it! I've also got an REO Speedwagon album that I'd forgotten about, I knew I had some thing somewhere but wasn't sure whether it was album or tape!
Even got a couple of more collectable items I think. A couple of ELO albums on coloured vinyl & afew albums with posters & one Rory Gallagher with a limited addition single on clear vinyl in with the album. Most of these records would have been bought on excursions into London with my old buddies Alan & Mark. We would usually, but not always, get to Bond Street station & go in the HMV store there, though at that time they seemed abit dearer than other places. Next stop the brilliant Virgin Megastore at the bottom of Oxford Street. At the time the biggest record shop in the UK, across the road from the Megastore in a basement was a store called Simons, if my memory serves. This place was great because it was cheaper than most, mainly because alot of what they had were imports, some had a little nick in the corner, not the record itself but the cover. For the amount we saved this was of little consequence. Mark introduced us to a little record shop in Soho that sold all sorts of bootleg albums and some more rarities, I seldom brought from here though, I was always a cheap date!
On the rare occasion we'd have a beer somewhere though not often (how times change!) and from there we'd be back on the tube heading home, talking of course music. There was a real excitement about our purchases & more often than not we'd probably meet up at one or other of our houses later to play the albums, though I remember Alan was always slow to play them, he'd have quite a backlog waiting to be heard! Buying the latest album from a particular band was always an extra thrill. I well remember getting hold of the first new album Quo had brought out since I'd become a fan. It was 'Whatever you want' & is still a fave of mine & I have to say I still to this very day, I get that frisson of excitement when getting a bands album 'hot off the press.'
Oh, the boiler engineer? Oh yes, the boiler is fine but we have a leak somewhere in the system. Bugger, lets put another record on!
Thursday 23 February 2017
An idiots guide to an Idiot: Fish Pie,Storm Doris & hols booked!
An idiots guide to an Idiot: Fish Pie,Storm Doris & hols booked!: The fag end of Storm Doris has hit us, just very windy and cold here, I understand other parts of the country have had it much worse. Anyway...
Fish Pie,Storm Doris & hols booked!
The fag end of Storm Doris has hit us, just very windy and cold here, I understand other parts of the country have had it much worse. Anyway what better dinner could there be on such a day as a nice fish pie.
The Memsahib had a fish pie mix of Smoked Haddock, Cod & Salmon. I mixed this in with some softened onions and garlic, plenty of parsley and made a white sauce with rye flour. This made it a little dark but we didn't have any white wheat free flour. Mixed these two in & cooked the spuds.
Eventually put through a ricer, though I hate to say it I broke one of the ricer filter things you push the potatoes through. There was just one piece of not quite cooked spud that bent the disc out of shape. I couldn't believe how Olly managed to break one not long after I brought it home........I do now! Sorry Oliver! Once mashed I spread the spuds on the fish & used a spoon to make sort of fish scale shapes, brushed with melted butter & baked for 40 minutes or so. Though I say so myself it was very nice & as you can see I got the seal of approval of empty plates!
At last we've booked a holiday! Tara saw a very good deal on the 'Secret Escapes' website of a boutique hotel in Ca'n Picafort in Majorca, going the end of September. Look like a nice place, not too touristy , we're going B&B so can explore the local restaurants etc. Can't wait!!
The Memsahib had a fish pie mix of Smoked Haddock, Cod & Salmon. I mixed this in with some softened onions and garlic, plenty of parsley and made a white sauce with rye flour. This made it a little dark but we didn't have any white wheat free flour. Mixed these two in & cooked the spuds.
Eventually put through a ricer, though I hate to say it I broke one of the ricer filter things you push the potatoes through. There was just one piece of not quite cooked spud that bent the disc out of shape. I couldn't believe how Olly managed to break one not long after I brought it home........I do now! Sorry Oliver! Once mashed I spread the spuds on the fish & used a spoon to make sort of fish scale shapes, brushed with melted butter & baked for 40 minutes or so. Though I say so myself it was very nice & as you can see I got the seal of approval of empty plates!
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| Fish and sauce waiting for potato topping. |
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| Potatoes added. |
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| The finished result. Yum! |
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| Plates loaded and ready to go. |
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| The seal of approval. |
At last we've booked a holiday! Tara saw a very good deal on the 'Secret Escapes' website of a boutique hotel in Ca'n Picafort in Majorca, going the end of September. Look like a nice place, not too touristy , we're going B&B so can explore the local restaurants etc. Can't wait!!
Sunday 19 February 2017
An idiots guide to an Idiot: Limehouse Lizzy
An idiots guide to an Idiot: Limehouse Lizzy: Thin Lizzy were a tremendous band sadly of course no more with the death of Phil Lynott an unbelievable 31 years ago! Scott Gorham plays wit...
Limehouse Lizzy
Thin Lizzy were a tremendous band sadly of course no more with the death of Phil Lynott an unbelievable 31 years ago! Scott Gorham plays with Black Star Riders, Gary Moore alas no longer around & not sure about the other former members so someone, somewhere needs to uphold the Thin Lizzy banner. Step up to the microphones 'Limehouse Lizzy.' I don't know about you, but when I initially think 'tribute band' I think second rate & just plays pubs. That's very unfair. The tributes I've seen have all been second to none, other than the original artists of course, I've seen both the 'Illegal Eagles' & 'The Australian Pink Floyd Experience' both of whom were very good indeed.
In a way I guess seeing a tribute band is better than seeing the original. They want to sound like the band they are taking off & tracks sound like they are straight off the album whereas the original could add a few 'twiddly bits,' a tribute band won't do that.
So that's what I think of tribute bands anyway, always well worth seeing.
'Limehouse Lizzy' played at The Stables in Wavendon on Wednesday, its a great little venue, full capacity is 398 seated and another 50 standing, whilst all the seats were taken there wasn't the full amount standing. Those who were included a couple of dyed in the wool Thin Lizzy fans well into their 50's happy to headbang & join in the riffs with their air guitars,& who am I to knock them? They had a good night & so did we. 'We' being Self, Tara, Julian & Kevin & met a customer from MK there, Dave & Clare.
Got there much too early but on the positive side it meant we were parked near the auditorium, also no crush at the bar were a very pleasant pint of Doombar was partaken.
Timing at most gigs these days are pretty good, with curfews and fines for going over them has made venues are better time keepers so Limehouse Lizzy came on at 8pm. There was an interval which was bit of a surprise, helped swell the Stables bar coffers I reckon,it finished about 11pm I think.
They played all the barn stormers you'd expect and want to here: Waitin' for an alibi, Jonny the Fox, Bad Reputation, Whiskey in the jar, Rosalie, The Boys are back in town, Jailbreak, The Rocker & a nod to Gary Moore with Parisienne Walkways plus all the tracks I've forgotten, there's more than one Thin Lizzy tribute band as Limehouse had 'borrowed' a guitarist from a band form Liverpool I think to stand in for their guitarist who has had a op, you wouldn't have known it, they really seemed a very tight band with some amusing banter from the main man, Wayne Ellis who did a very Impersonation of PL. All in all it was a great gig, I'd see them again!
In a way I guess seeing a tribute band is better than seeing the original. They want to sound like the band they are taking off & tracks sound like they are straight off the album whereas the original could add a few 'twiddly bits,' a tribute band won't do that.
So that's what I think of tribute bands anyway, always well worth seeing.
'Limehouse Lizzy' played at The Stables in Wavendon on Wednesday, its a great little venue, full capacity is 398 seated and another 50 standing, whilst all the seats were taken there wasn't the full amount standing. Those who were included a couple of dyed in the wool Thin Lizzy fans well into their 50's happy to headbang & join in the riffs with their air guitars,& who am I to knock them? They had a good night & so did we. 'We' being Self, Tara, Julian & Kevin & met a customer from MK there, Dave & Clare.
Got there much too early but on the positive side it meant we were parked near the auditorium, also no crush at the bar were a very pleasant pint of Doombar was partaken.
Timing at most gigs these days are pretty good, with curfews and fines for going over them has made venues are better time keepers so Limehouse Lizzy came on at 8pm. There was an interval which was bit of a surprise, helped swell the Stables bar coffers I reckon,it finished about 11pm I think.
They played all the barn stormers you'd expect and want to here: Waitin' for an alibi, Jonny the Fox, Bad Reputation, Whiskey in the jar, Rosalie, The Boys are back in town, Jailbreak, The Rocker & a nod to Gary Moore with Parisienne Walkways plus all the tracks I've forgotten, there's more than one Thin Lizzy tribute band as Limehouse had 'borrowed' a guitarist from a band form Liverpool I think to stand in for their guitarist who has had a op, you wouldn't have known it, they really seemed a very tight band with some amusing banter from the main man, Wayne Ellis who did a very Impersonation of PL. All in all it was a great gig, I'd see them again!
Saturday 4 February 2017
An idiots guide to an Idiot: College Lake walk.
An idiots guide to an Idiot: College Lake walk.: I popped over to College Lake this morning, hadn't been there is ages. It's changed considerably since we used to go there with the ...
College Lake walk.
I popped over to College Lake this morning, hadn't been there is ages. It's changed considerably since we used to go there with the boys as 'Friends of College Lake.' Once we got the dogs it didn't seem right going for a walk without them as you can't take dogs in so our membership lapsed. Now its owned by the Berks, Bucks & Oxon Wildlife Trust (BBOWT). It has lost some of it's charm and everything is a bit more official, guided walks for instance have a set number that they will not exceed due to health & safety! The cakes used to be made by a couple of old ladies and were proper home made cakes that stick your ribs together, now it's Mr Kipling's airy fairy cakes, it's still an interesting place to visit for all that.
I had a wonder round and went into a couple of hides, there's alot of Canada Geese there at present, I'm no expert but I do enjoy just gazing over the lakes, my old binoculars at the ready, I also took a few photos with varying degrees of success that I have attached here. You'll see the photo of the shepherds hut built at the John Farris foundry in Shaftesbury, Dorset, this is a real coincidence as we've had ancestors from Shaftesbury who have worked there, the foundry is long gone now of course the houses built on the site are on Farris Close as I recall.
A very pleasant couple of hours, off to the NEC in Birmingham tomorrow for a trade show until Thursday.....I can hardly wait!
I had a wonder round and went into a couple of hides, there's alot of Canada Geese there at present, I'm no expert but I do enjoy just gazing over the lakes, my old binoculars at the ready, I also took a few photos with varying degrees of success that I have attached here. You'll see the photo of the shepherds hut built at the John Farris foundry in Shaftesbury, Dorset, this is a real coincidence as we've had ancestors from Shaftesbury who have worked there, the foundry is long gone now of course the houses built on the site are on Farris Close as I recall.
A very pleasant couple of hours, off to the NEC in Birmingham tomorrow for a trade show until Thursday.....I can hardly wait!
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| General view from near the visitors centre & café. |
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| The Octagonal Hide I'd just been in. |
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| Display of old farm machinery and wagons. |
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| The Shepherds hut mentioned. |
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| The details of where it came from, how it ended up here don't know. |
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| Snowdrops out already. |
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| A few Wigeon. |
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| Wigeon. |
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| Arty shot of some Coot & Mallard gliding across the water. |
Friday 3 February 2017
An idiots guide to an Idiot: Dinners.
An idiots guide to an Idiot: Dinners.: Kathy came over to dinner this evening which was nice. haven't seen her in ages so it was good to catch up and all that. Just the three...
An idiots guide to an Idiot: Dinners.
An idiots guide to an Idiot: Dinners.: Kathy came over to dinner this evening which was nice. haven't seen her in ages so it was good to catch up and all that. Just the three...
Dinners.
Kathy came over to dinner this evening which was nice. haven't seen her in ages so it was good to catch up and all that.
Just the three of us so what to cook? We've enjoyed the Rick Stein series on weekend breaks & with our minds still on wanting to go to Cadiz I chose a recipe he did from there, its called Baked Sea Bream Rota style.
It called for 3 Sea Bream, got the already gutted but with the heads left on for extra flavour whilst cooking. As usual the best recipes are usually pretty easy to make, just thickly slice some waxy potatoes & bake for 20 minutes or so, in the meantime fry onions, garlic, green peppers ,bayleaf & then some chopped & skinned tomatoes. The tomatoes ended up being one of the biggest faffs as one lot of boiling water didn't seem to split the skins so a second dowsing was needed.
While this is cooking away you need to make the Picada. In a pestle & mortar you beat the living daylights out of some fresh parsley, garlic cloves and sea salt to make a kind of paste, this is spread on and in the fish. Add to the part cooked spuds, pour the peppers, tomatoes etc over them and bake for half an hour or so. Though I say so myself it was delicious. I took the heads off prior to serving & left a plate out for the bones, there seemed to be quite a few little ones in my fish.
The good thing about this recipe was it was all in one, you didn't need anything else with it. Unfortunately in my enthusiasm in cooking and eating I forgot to take a photo so the attached is from Rick Steins recipe website, though mine looked pretty similar!
Poached pears for pud, just six small pears peeled and poached in red wine, vanilla pods, cinnamon sticks an strangely some thyme. Cooked the pears for about 35 minutes then reduced the liquor to form a syrup, all topped with cream. Another simple but effective recipe.
A very pleasant evening had by all, Kathy is very easy to talk to & we talked about all sorts though of course quite alot about Alec & Laura who we all miss greatly, sounds like they are having a great time & off pear picking shortly to top up their savings.
You'll notice the title of this blog thing is 'Dinners,' the plural, that's because today I cooked a spag bol. Nothing out of the ordinary there but its another good hearty winter meal and also a meal that benefits from cooking slowly. I always add a few bits and pieces so I suppose its not just a spag bol. Purists may be outraged! It's got peppers and carrots in & smoked paprika a genuinely awesome find thanks to our good buddy Stanley PS!
Basically once you've softened the onions & garlic bung everything in and cook slowly. Don't forget to add some chocolate.....Yes you read that right, chocolate it does bring out the flavour though I didn't put it in the Memsahibs version which is of course meat free, oh yes, sling in s slung of red wine as well, you know it makes sense. Cook for at least an hour, longer if you can , just on a low heat, it's no problem just give it the occasional stir. Cook up some pasta mix both together, grate some cheese over the top, a good Cheddar of course & enjoy.
Just the three of us so what to cook? We've enjoyed the Rick Stein series on weekend breaks & with our minds still on wanting to go to Cadiz I chose a recipe he did from there, its called Baked Sea Bream Rota style.
It called for 3 Sea Bream, got the already gutted but with the heads left on for extra flavour whilst cooking. As usual the best recipes are usually pretty easy to make, just thickly slice some waxy potatoes & bake for 20 minutes or so, in the meantime fry onions, garlic, green peppers ,bayleaf & then some chopped & skinned tomatoes. The tomatoes ended up being one of the biggest faffs as one lot of boiling water didn't seem to split the skins so a second dowsing was needed.
While this is cooking away you need to make the Picada. In a pestle & mortar you beat the living daylights out of some fresh parsley, garlic cloves and sea salt to make a kind of paste, this is spread on and in the fish. Add to the part cooked spuds, pour the peppers, tomatoes etc over them and bake for half an hour or so. Though I say so myself it was delicious. I took the heads off prior to serving & left a plate out for the bones, there seemed to be quite a few little ones in my fish.
The good thing about this recipe was it was all in one, you didn't need anything else with it. Unfortunately in my enthusiasm in cooking and eating I forgot to take a photo so the attached is from Rick Steins recipe website, though mine looked pretty similar!
Poached pears for pud, just six small pears peeled and poached in red wine, vanilla pods, cinnamon sticks an strangely some thyme. Cooked the pears for about 35 minutes then reduced the liquor to form a syrup, all topped with cream. Another simple but effective recipe.
A very pleasant evening had by all, Kathy is very easy to talk to & we talked about all sorts though of course quite alot about Alec & Laura who we all miss greatly, sounds like they are having a great time & off pear picking shortly to top up their savings.
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| Similar to how my version looked but in a different bowl! |
Basically once you've softened the onions & garlic bung everything in and cook slowly. Don't forget to add some chocolate.....Yes you read that right, chocolate it does bring out the flavour though I didn't put it in the Memsahibs version which is of course meat free, oh yes, sling in s slung of red wine as well, you know it makes sense. Cook for at least an hour, longer if you can , just on a low heat, it's no problem just give it the occasional stir. Cook up some pasta mix both together, grate some cheese over the top, a good Cheddar of course & enjoy.
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| Spag Bol bubbling away nicely. |
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| Veggie spag bol also simmering away. |
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| Nice piece of Cheddar. |
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| Our dinners all ready. Meat on the left veggie on the right. |
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| All washed down with a nice glass or two of red. |
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