Friday, March 14, 2008

A Fine Yarn


Two sources of joy today.

1.
Stumbled over this article today at lunchtime. Thank God I did, or I might just have 'Gone Postal' in the afternoon. As it was, I had a right good laugh and approached the afternoons turgid grind with a smile on my face. In the article, Aussie speedway rider Dave Gifford tells the story of his travels with a mad compatriot of Lithuanian descent called Rim Malskaitis. Speedway back then, as it is now for Kiwi's and Aussies was about learning the ropes at home, then venturing over to Britain or Europe where the team contracts and prize money were. Particularly galling in that the sport was probably invented by Aussies. Nonetheless, Dave & Rim set off on the ocean waves to find fame and fortune. It never quite happened for them, but what Gifford conveys so beautifully is the sense of adventure and mischief in his travels with Rim. Anyway, enjoy the article, you don't need to know the first thing about speedway to appreciate it..............

2.
It's not often I read a blog post that has me silently mouthing all the way through "Yes!, Yes!, Yes!" This is one of them. Clairwil at her toppermost form.


Cheers!



Glen Campbell - Guess I'm Dumb

Not a huge Glen Campbell fan, but he certainly knew how to pick his songwriters. Probably best known for his Jimmy Webb collaborations, but this Brian Wilson song was passed his way sometime in 1965 as a 'Thankyou' for filling in on the road for the reclusive Beach Boys genius. It's widely known that Lennon & McCartney offloaded their spare songs in the early sixties on 2nd division Brit-Beat talent, and whilst Brian Wilson could be equally generous with his material, the best was usually kept for his own use. 'Guess I'm Dumb' however was a great song, well arranged and performed wonderfully by Campbell. It should have been bigger than it was. In many ways, this was Wilson starting off on his Pet Sounds trip and it was maybe an early indication that he wasn't going to be able to take everyone on the journey with him like he had when he took the trip to the beach some years before. .

(Sorry, all links are Wikipedia. It's late, I'm tired and it's all pervasive. Sue Me Jack!)

4 comments:

Mondo said...

Hello - Thanks for the link up and the Glen Campbell tune (which is new to me). I'll adding your blog to my chart rundown today

PS have a peep at my funky new mix here if you get a chance - I am banging on about it, but I am quite chuffed and puffed with it

http://fufustew.wordpress.com/

or try the two minute teaser trailer here

http://www.divshare.com/download/4019400-a05

iLL Man said...

Welcome Planet Mondo!. I'll take a peek at those later, cheers!

Guess I'm Dumb is one of those songs that I'd heard of for ages but never actually heard. It's on the Glen Campbell Capitol Years double CD, along with some other interesting bits and pieces. CD1 is worth the money alone.

The Birdwatcher said...

Thanks for the link to Clairwil. It cheered me up abit.

iLL Man said...

No problems BW. One of my favourite bloggers is Clairwil.