Let's Swim to Eel Pie Island |
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Eel Pie Island, in the River Thames, is located in Twickenham, of Rugby fame, about 16 kilometres from central London. During the early sixties, the Eel Pie Hotel gravitated from being a jazz club to a nascent centre for British rhythm and blues. The Rolling Stones, Rod Stewart, Eric Clapton and Long John Baldry all performed there. Howlin' Wolf sang "That's evil, evil is goin' on wrong." I saw Howlin' Wolf perform on Eel Pie Island; I recall he brushed past me on his way to the bar. This was not my first visit to Eel Pie Island?that would have been for a St. Mary's Teacher's College dance. Traditional jazz, played in a dimly lit dance hall, where the floorboards beamed when you walked across them and zodiac signs adorned the stage's wall. This was probably in 1962; I remember very little else. A few years later I worked at the door, checking tickets for one of the Chiswick Polytechnic's school dances.
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Two Islands: England and Eel Pie Island |
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London in the early sixties; a backdrop of rhythm and blues music on a small island in the River Thames; some forgotten insights to those days. Located about 16 kilometres
from central London, Eel Pie Island in the River Thames, Twickenham,
was a nascent centre for British rhythm and blues in the 1960s.
In the summer of 1963 I frequented Eel Pie Island Hotel to listen
to the Rolling Stones. They had made a 45 single called "Come
On," a Chuck Berry song that was played on the crackling
208, Radio Luxembourg. For a young person living in South London,
it was a rite of passage to walk across the footbridge and visit
the dimly lit Eel Pie Island Hotel's dance hall with its beaming
floorboards. |
Cyril Davies had the island blues |
| There is famous picture of the late Boris Yeltism dancing at a rock concert. He was wearing a tie and looked square. Most of the pictures I have seen of Cyril Davies he is wearing a tie and looking square. He was most decidedly un hip but then he was much older than the mega starts that he influenced. Cyril was about 31 and they: Paul Jones, Mike Jagger, Brian Jones and Rod Stewart were about 19. The later except for Rod Stewart were from the bohemian, beatnik pseudo student world. We know Cyril Davies was a pioneer of the British Blues and left his mark. |
The Medical Waiting Room |
| "You
may never have been inside a church or a casino and you may have
avoided the opera and rock concerts, but it is unlikely you will
avoid visiting a medical waiting room." This article reviews
what happens in the waiting room and its surroundings. It has
universal appeal with much humour to brighten up this gloomy
experience. "You wonder are all these people going to the same doctor?" 1900 words |
Tennis above the net? part 1 |
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A look at the sport of tennis with its mannerism and perceptions as seen by a tennis player. Writing about tennis is easy, but playing it well is difficult, and I know if I am too critical of the sport and its players I risk not playing so often. Since this article does not offer advice on how to improve one's tennis game, most tennis players are unlikely to read it. Tennis players are interested in only two things: how to improve their game, and their next game. 1724 words |
Tennis above the net? part 2 |
| Tennis personalities. As soon as you start playing tennis, even if its after a day or so on vacation, the following personalities will emerge. There is always a Coach Henry. From Eastbourne to Melbourne,………..then there is a William J. Spaford somewhere who is results oriented and sets non-negotiated goals for him self and everyone else. His business card says Vice President of Operations………… Other tennis personalities are perennial. There is Hutterite Jake. He always has two or three large bags plus coats when he walks on to the court. Now Thin Ron will neither sail the Atlantic single-handed nor buy tennis balls. Commentary Penelope will any day join BCTV Tennis Sports Channel. Well at least she will get paid for her real time run down…… Technical Bernard has a M.Sc in structional engineering and runs the material testing.. 1417 words |
Are there any modern classical composers? |
| Did not know there were any? Well can you name any? Are they any good? Well maybe. Difficult to listen to? Generally yes. Are they still alive? Generally yes or only died recently. This article names 29 modern classical composers plus 13 musical performers. It points out that modern classical composers are less international that suspected and that there are few girl composers. The apparent irrelevance of the symphonic concert hall compared to the popularity of opera and cinematic music is boldly discussed. "Do we have responsibility to support living artists? Well let's not wait for us all to be dead." 1131 words |
And what did you do at work today? |
| Set in London England but it could be any city. Reviews what work we do all day. If my fellow passengers introduced themselves would I understand what they did all day?. No one understands what consultants do but everyone seems to hire them. Much of our working society and some of our non working society profess job descriptions that they alone understand. They inherited a job title but no pay increase. How do you explain to your computer illiterate ski buddy that your new girl friend writes Web pages?. You brought her to a Christmas open house where she.... 725 words |
It's Free? |
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This essay is an illumination on
the many free pleasures and activities that surround us each
day. There are more than we realize. 1326 words |
Humour is a funny thing |
| Humour
is a funny thing but writing about humour need not be funny.
It even has its own memory since we often recall funny situations
years later and welcome the enactment of them. My Irish Grandmother
would never have said that humour fights allergies as they were
not recognised as such until about the time the Police released
Roxane. Well just as the Police embark on a comeback tour a bunch
of scientifically in tune people state: "breastfeeding mothers
with a sense of humour may help their babies fight skin allergies
" Well, all I have to say is Da da, dee….." Most people think they have a sense of humour and say they like a good laugh. 681 words |
Ready for Ice |
| A humoristic
account of a sportsman regularly visiting physiotherapy clinics,
due to sports injuries. It covers the initial contact to the
perceived automation at any clinic. These visits always result
in stretching and ice. 'February is hamstring month; May is tennis elbow month.' 'Adrian only works Tuesdays and Fridays from 11:30am until 1pm and is fully booked.' Like all physiotherapists Anne Marie can hold three conversations at once. These conversations can be entertaining. The writer says that 'the treatment I receive is the same for whatever I do to my body; only the stretches change.' Request now "Ready for Ice" 1306 words |
Were you desperate to get married? |
| If you didn't marry your first love, you were probably desperate by the time you married. Your first romantic encounter may have been the girl at school who was your partner in the chemistry laboratory. Not marrying her or her best friend placed you all on the marriage market. This article reviews the always popular subject of mating as applied in the 90s. It suggests that you were less critical of your partner when you married than you were at school or would be now. Some do not realize and other will never admit it, but people are desperate to get married. The article expounds on this premise and it explains why. The article devotes special attention to the problems of professional people marrying. 714 words |
Modern Incongruences |
| Not all journalists write books? Many famous authors studied Law at university not English. There must be at least sixty of them up there on the stage. All dressed in black and belting out Mahler no 1 under the vigilance of a revered gentleman with an unpronounceable Eastern European name. All experts in music but not one original composition between them. Their names appear in the programm but not in any CD catalog. Most engineers can't point to a product that they designed. Most MBA graduates never start businesses.. Why is this? The article, Modern Incongruence tries to reconcile these points and presents further perplexing examples. You might wish to tell people at least you read Modern Incongruences. 1000 words |
How old are you? |
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So you think you are ten years younger than your friends? Everyone says you look so young but you have problems with the self serve gas stations. Take the age test and you maybe surprised to learn that you are not as young as you think. Example do you understand the front page of your country's national newspaper including all show business references? What has changed is that we don't chronologically age at a uniform rate We have multiple ages at the same time and this article reviews the different ages. Yes there are some pointers to hide aging. 1300 words |
The Western Promise |
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A humorous account of a young professional transferred to Vancouver, British Columbia from Eastern Canada. Anyone who has moved cities will relate to the apprehension and confusion that surrounds such or a similar transfer. Moving to Vancouver reveals idiosyncrasies and shortcomings that are not apparent to a visitor. As we read, Vancouverites are acutely aware of the drawbacks of their city, but steadfastly reject the notion of moving. 1961 words |