30 May 2010

For years now, we in the UK have treated the Euovision Song Contest with thinly disguised contempt. We have shrugged it off with unfunny commentary, and accusations of ‘favouritism.’ In more recent years I’ve tended to pay more attention to it, as the artists and music have improved beyond recognition, and especially from countries previously regarded  as jokes. Last night over 120 million from all over the world viewed the show from Norway, and were treated to a rather special event, full of simple yet highly effective touches. Not for the first time I reckoned the Brit song didn’t stand a cat in hell’s chance of winning, but a more than even chance of coming last. Last night the UK and its music industry were humiliated - once again. I didn’t like the winning song or performance, incidentally written by Brits, but it struck a popular nerve due largely to its previous success in European and Scandinavian markets. 

There were at least a dozen pop songs that were better, including my favourite, the Russian entry followed closely by Denmark. In fact, one was spoiled for choice in what is fast becoming an excellent world showcase for the talents of pop performers and writers from around Europe. The diversity of music on show was frankly mind-boggling and was only matched by presentation styles. Eurovision ceased being a joke many moons ago, and with an audience that has continued to grow to become one of the world’s largest for a single TV event. The UK has now become the joke due to the unbelieveable incompetence of the BBC, and its belief that by wheeling out ageing, middle-of-the-road song writers and very average performers, we can win. Can one treat the BBC seriously when it enlists avid train buff Pete Waterman? As in so many areas, the BBC’s judgement is found to be wanting. It has become lazy and complacent, and has made a mockery of our music industry.  How can British radio listeners and watchers be taken seriously when fed a monotonous and repetitive diet of largely pop mediocrity, day-in, day-out? Last weekend was BBC Radio 1’s ’Big Weekend’ whose validity in today’s climate I recently questioned. Well, I had a peek at the most recent Radio 1 A, B and C playlists and guess who dominates them right now? The artists who appeared at the ‘Big Weekend’ and not only with studio recordings, Oh No… Radio 1 is also currently peppered with live tracks from the ‘Big Weekend’ by the very same artists, which makes me wonder precisely what deals were struck…

There are great performers and writers out there who can’t get a look-in during daytime or night-time airplay hours, and I’ll warrant that many of them could have come up with a Eurovision winner. It’s time that the BBC was held to account for the damage it is doing to the British music industry, and the great talent it chooses to ignore. And it’s time we grasped the opportunity that Eurovision provides to showcase our best - not our worst. It’s time for the BBC to relinquish the responsibiity for Eurovision and pass it to a body or person who cares; really wants to win (or at least restore the country’s reputation); and has the ability to recognise reguinely great talent and songs… You can forget the other public service broadcaster Channel 4 who is obsessed with ‘pop personalities.’ Oh, and if you think we have a downer on the BBC - you’re friggin’ right, and justifiably so. When it changes for the better, our view will change, but until that miraculous event happens, we’ll continue to diligently watch and report the truth. Australians have a saying, ‘Give ‘em a fair go.’ It should enter the BBC’s policy vocabulary and be applied to those talented musicians it so unfairly and unjustly ignores… and who need its taxpayer-funded support. I’m not done. Ivor Novello would be turning in his grave at hearing the latest round of gongs awarded in his name. I’m beginning to wonder how much more mediocre we can become…

The last time I really felt the loss of a potentially great politician and political leader was when John Smith died. For me, he was the last opportunity we had to take the UK into a new and exciting phase of development and change. Instead. we got Blair and Brown… The sad loss of David Laws, who impressed me greatly pre-election and as Treasury Secretary for three short weeks, is a loss, in my view, of almost similar magnitute. I think most would agree that he made an immediate impression on his colleagues and the public at large. The newspapers will generally gloat, and the revealing paper The Telegraph, will undoubtadly claim they landed a blow for democracy. Commentators will claim that the ruling coalition is badly damaged…  But how many past defaulting politicians have resigned within hours, and for far greater misdemeanours - without be forced? Blair and Brown took this country to the edge of economic darkness, with the former responsible for the death and injury of thousands of innocents, but they carried on regardless. At a time of personal crisis, David Laws acted with candour, honour and and in the best interests of his colleagues, government and country. He deserves a second chance, and our sincere appreciation. I wish him well.

26 May 2010

As a photographer, just like musicians, I look for inspiration. It doesn’t come easy, especially in my line of work. However, there are photographers not involved in concert photography who do inspire me, and I discovered one recently. He came by way of the small print in BBC 4’s channel listings; part of the Storyville series of documentaries. With so much garbage and repeat programming on the BBC digital channels I mostly ignore it, but on this occasion I came up trumps with a film that should have been shown instead on BBC 1 or 2 - for the optimum number of people to see.

The film, shot beautifully by Richard Parry, followed the career of photojournalist Robert King from his first experience of war photography in Bosnia during the 90s. King was just 24 years old and a frightened, inexperienced photographer who the film’s commentator did not think would make the ‘front line grade.’ Armed with a battered, old Nikon film camera and a 50mm lens, King did indeed seem totally out of his depth and admitted that he was so frightened that he could hardly breathe. But he persisted, eventually landing a cover picture for The Guardian newspaper depicting corruption and prostitution in Sarajevo. During the film, the brutality and futility of war was graphically illustrated. There was one scene shot by King in video of an old man lying on the ground, still alive, with both his legs torn away at the knees following a mortar attack. A journalist was trying to help him but eventually had to walk away… another body lay close by, decapitated.

It was a desperately sad, horrific scene that both angered and frustrated me (do polititians have any realisation of the implications of their decisions to go to war?), and it was these emotions that King’s work was successful in generating. King was eventually regarded as a ’safe pair of hand’ by the media and went on to become one of the foremost war photographers covering global conflicts.

At a point in his career King; from Memphis, Tennessee; moved to Russia and shot a series of photographs about alcohol addiction. It was there he met his future wife who understood the ramifications of marrying a war photographer - the moods, mindset and damage caused. King was filmed at his home in Tennessee, waiting patiently in his hide, gun ready to shoot passing deer. This need to shoot animals perplexed me, in a man who had seen so much human suffering. But when asked about the horror of war and having to step over literally hundreds of dead and mutilated bodies, he responded by saying ‘he was just doing his job’ and it didn’t bother him. He also admitted to being ‘damaged goods’, both before, during and after conflict coverage. King’s work on conflict and, more importantly, its effect on people and places, is extraordinary and effective, and for me, truly inspirational. As for the dispassionate view of his subjects, I understand completely.

Some years ago a young female music photographer dominated an issue of Canon’s quarterly professional magazine. The quality of the photography - both creatively and technically - was nothing short of a joke, and took up a cover and six pages. I openly criticised the images and met with both sympathy and hostility to my views. She also provided text to the feature, including an explanation of her need ‘to connect with the artist.’ Perhaps this was sub-text to providing what the artist wanted, however, in a journalistic sense this is plainly wrong. My job, and I am sure Robert King’s job, is to shoot obectively, dispassionately, creatively, and to meet technical requirements as each situation allows. I see my job as reporting what I see and feel during the usually imposed 3-song shooting limit.  At one point in the film, King was embedded with USA soldiers covering the Iraq conflict, but on one occasion shown was angry because he was not allowed to travel on one convoy/mission because ‘there was not enough room.’ King made it quite clear that the real reason for his exclusion on that particar day was that the troop command did not want him photographing what was about to happen. Photojournalism is about conveying the truth, however ugly or controversial or uncomfortable (he was banned in Russia eventually for his photos of that country’s substantial drug and alohol addiction problems), and it’s this that King does so well. Below is the video link:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00sjdmt/Storyville_20092010_Killer_Image_Shooting_Robert_King/

The BBC still continues to spend huge amounts of money in sharp contrast to the rest of us and the commercial world, and with dubious results. Last weekend was BBC’s ‘Big Weekend’ held in Bangor, North Wales. When one considers the cost of many of the artists appearing (for example, Rhianna must have cost the BBC over £100,000 alone…), stages, security, technicians, etc. etc. the bill must have been well over £2 million. But maybe, these artists came cheaper, in return for having their music played to dramatic excess on BBC Radio 1 & 2… Looking at the extensive lineup, it wouldn’t surprise me.

There has to come the point when the BBC, funded by the taxpayer to the tune of £billions, has to take a long, hard look at itself and ask the questions: ‘What is our function, and what should it really cost?’ Perhaps they should have been at Liverpool Sound City instead, talking to and broadcasting music from diverse, new and aspiring artists who came to Liverpool in the hope of being seen and heard. Frankly, for a fraction of the cost of ‘The Big Weekend’ the BBC would have been seen to expose the truly underexposed; those acts so unjustly ignored because of the BBC’s massive concentration on the big and famous.

Last week, we launched our new Digital Magazine which still needs refining, but it’s a good start. Meanwhile, our radio shows go from strength to strength. In tonight’s 2-hour show we’re featuring Jeff Buckley on the anniversary of his tragic death, and a young singer/songwriter called Katey Brooks who talks about her new album, influences, and some of her favourite songs from her new album - the best of the old and new.

Last Sunday night, I played the whole of the Flash Gordon soundtrack by Queen, a cover version of ‘Stairway To Heaven’ by the Far Corporation (10 minutes of it…) and Pink Floyd’s live performance of ‘Comfortably Numb’ (another ten-minute song). Hell, even if nobody else enjoyed it, I loved it!

Last week, I also covered the four-day Liverpool Sound City industry event and photographed twenty-three hugely diverse acts at small venues in Liverpool’s clubland. For me, one of the great things about covering music is the discovery of new acts and music, and at Sound City there was no shortage - much of it unsigned. Two newly-signed American bands; Crocodiles and Titus Andronics; arguably stole the band show with fabulous, sell-out performances at the tiny Zanzibar club. However, singer/songwriters were in abundance and I was most impressed by Mr Fogg, The Second Grace, aka, Fabrizio Cammarata (from Sicily, Italy) and Christine Owman from Sweden. Insrumental rockers from Liverpool Mugstar are a band well worth watching out for, while The Mushroom Explosion from the Irish Republic were a revelation. The Jessie Rose Trip from Manchester played a great set at the Krazy House, and with an absolute dynamo of a lead-lady (on vocals and guitar) the band offers something different and distinctive. With over 400 acts playing the event I only managed to cover a fraction of them but this year decided to only cover the smaller venues, and was pleased I did. Of the more established acts, The Archie Bronson Outfit and The Jim Jones Revue were magnificent and rocked something wicked…

Liverpool Sound City is rapidly becoming one of the major international music industry events with delegates arriving from around the globe for the 4-day event. And each year it gets better. I look foward to covering it in 2011, albeit with a little more attention paid to providing more music and information to journalists to make the task of covering it a little easier.

18 May 2010

It all started when I saw Mark Mondésir and Gary Husband’s call and response drumming spectacular at the Liverpool Philharmonic last week during the passage of John McLaughlin’s brilliant ‘Mother Tonue.’ Two very different style drummers, one glorious drumming display. It took me a couple of days to come to terms with what I had witnessed and then came the ‘idea flash’ - hell, what about a 1-hour Shake Revelations radio drumming special? So I started the research and playing but before I knew it 1 hour had turned into 3, then 4… An email to producer JJ: ‘mate, can we do a 3-hour drumming special during Shake Sessions, Sunday night?’ Back came the response: ‘Why not, I’ve got some brilliant tracks…’ And so it was that our pile of CDs grew to State building proportions, and 3 hours seemed like a distant dream. Come the night, come the music, and how! We started an hour earlier at 9pm and finished (presenting) at 1:30am but then programmed in another 2 hours of great drum tracks to play… so a total of over 7 hours of the greatest drum tracks known to man, and it could have gone on for another 7 hours! We through everything into the pot - pop, metal, jazz, fusion, and some. Check out: http://www.shakenstir.co.uk/index.php/features/shake-drumming-greats/features/18064/ and  http://www.shakenstir.co.uk/index.php/features/calon-105-fm-shakenstir-session-playlists/features/5656/ - the greatest radio show ever and I kid you not friends. Great drummers need great songs and so we feasted on a host of drum wizards playing fabulous songs - it was without doubt my most enjoyable and inspiring radio show ever. Go online and listen again (http://www.calonfm.com/105fm/?page_id=825) - and B Insired!

The following day we heard the sad news of the passing of one of the most distinctive and best heavy rock vocalists and writers, Ronnie James Dio. It was just a few hours earlier that we had been playing songs featuring Ronnie and Vinney Appice, and although we knew that a Heaven & Hell tour had been cancelled due to Ronnie being ill, I certainly didn’t realise it was because of the relentless progress of cancer. As I write this I’m listening to Ronnie’s last full-length album under the Heaven & Hell moniker called THE DEVIL YOU KNOW. It’s a fine example of the great man’s vocal power and expression. Dio in Italian means God, Dios in Spanish means Gave. Ronnie was a rock God and Gave us some of the greatest heavy rock music, ever. He will be missed and cherished (check out our cover feature). JJ is putting together a tribute show which will be broadcast tomorrow night (19 May) at 10pm which you can listen to online at www.calonfm.com and locally at Calon 105FM. It’s one show you simply must not miss…

13 May 2010

Well, it’s been a dramatic week, and in more ways than one. Musically, it’s been one of my best weeks in years and started with the fire-spitting, skyscraper shoe platforms and face-paint of KISS at the Liverpool Echo Arena. Yes folks, it was showtime and what a show! After so many years, this band still kicks ass and if you’re looking at bang for buck (literally), few other acts deliver like KISS. That was followed by a formidable piano jazz performance by Neil Cowley’s Trio in a backroom at the Liverpool Philharmonic in front of a miniscule but capacity audience. I loved every minute of it, but the massive poster front-of-house reminded me that in a few days time I would back to the venue proper to witness the world’s greatest jazz guitarist/writer with one of the genre’s greatest drummers - both British! John McLaughlin and Mark Mondésir are the two musicians, and together with Etienne M’Bappe (bass guitar) and Gary Husband (keyboards)  - both world-leading players - offered up one of the greatest musical experiences in my extensive concert experience. And if you want to share that inspiration with me, buy John McLaughlin and The 4th Dimension’s new album TO THE ONE (along with Neil Cowley Trio’s RADIO SILENCE) and I’ll guarantee you that you will get to grips with the jazz genre, and never look back! Finally, last night on our Shake Revelations show I played the whole of Roger Water’s AMUSED TO DEATH album - an album capable of moving one to tears, and certainly one of the greatest albums of all time. WHAT A WEEK!

The Election. I was disgusted by the media’s approach to covering the election and especially the latent bias shown for one party and against the others. Newspapers means NEWS PAPER, i.e. reporting the news without fear or favour. It was like living in a state-controlled, undemocratic environment, more like old Russia than Great Britain. It was a disgrace. Then the BBC chimed in with some of the most confrontational interviewing I’ve seen in years with people like John Humphries refusing to allow politicians to answer questions. To top it all, the BBC provided the most extravagant election night coverage that must have cost millions, and patronised viewers like never before. Hell, they even provided a party for celebrities… It was tabloid journalism of the worst kind that cost the taxpayer dearly. However, the good news is that a strong coalition has been formed between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats which appears to be more than skin-deep. Both Cameron and Clegg have come of age and I’m optimistic that it’s a 5-year partnership that will bear fruit. I smell sincerity and openness between the two leaders and new cabinet colleagues which is unique in my experience. I’m disappointed that a proportional voting system will not be adopted, but there will be a step change for the better. Looks like Rock ‘n’ Roll to me…