• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Bands & Projects
    • Marty Willson-Piper
    • Marty & Olivia
    • Noctorum
    • MOAT
    • Atlantæum Flood
    • Anekdoten
      • How I Joined Anekdoten
    • The Church
      • Sleeve Notes
    • All About Eve
  • Discography
  • Gear
  • Talking
  • Lyrics
    • SOLO ALBUMS
      • In Reflection
      • Art Attack
      • Rhyme
      • Spirit Level
      • Hanging Out In Heaven
      • Nightjar
    • NOCTORUM
      • Sparks Lane
      • Offer The Light
      • Honey Mink Forever
      • The Afterlife
    • MOAT
      • Moat
      • Poison Stream
    • Seeing Stars
  • Sleeve Notes
    • Of Skins And Heart
    • The Blurred Crusade
    • Seance
    • Heyday
    • Starfish
    • Gold Afternoon Fix
    • Priest = Aura
  • Bandcamp

Marty Willson-Piper

The official home of Marty Willson-Piper

  • News
  • Blog
  • Shows
  • Songwriting & Guitar Guidance
  • In Deep Music Archive
  • Contact

Dec 14 2020

TO WHERE I AM NOW

Early morning for us, getting up at 9 AM after going to bed after 4 AM, we had a meeting to open a bank account – the details and paperwork involved in moving to a new country. It was quite a walk in the rain, it took us an hour to get there weaving through the streets that we are getting to know, recognising street names and walking past our own new flat that we will move into next week. We were taking note of what’s near – grocery stores, supermarkets, cafes, bus stops. It rained, then it stopped, then it poured, then it stopped. The sky was blue, then black as the clouds covered the city, let go of their rain, and moved away until the next bout of showers. But it was warm, I took my coat but hung it over my bag till later on as the light dimmed, the rain got colder and I was glad I had it with me. I need different clothes for different stages of the day, different parts of the walk – you go out it’s raining, you think it might be cold, walk for ten minutes and it’s hot, stop and shelter as the drops pummel the cars and the pavement, wait under a roof, get cold, put your coat on, walk, get hot, take it off as the blue sky returns. It was like an Elton John gig in a parallel universe where black is the only colour.

In the bank, the lady Isabel was lovely, she was friendly and interesting and most helpful, we were there for ages chatting about the world. When we left, Olivia and I went for a coffee and had a fine discussion about infinity, consciousness, and the universe. After solving all questions of existence we headed to the supermarket to stock up on a very empty fridge. We had to be quick as we had to be back for Olivia’s Portuguese Skype lesson with Helena, the Portuguese opera singer that lives in Barcelona. Helena had to cancel because she wasn’t feeling well – she tested positive for the coronavirus.

It’s 1 AM and Olivia has gone for a nap after a late and a generally sleepless night with another mosquito buzzing around. I hunted two more down tonight, I didn’t know they could survive in December but this is Porto, not Stockholm. We are on the fourth floor, how do they get up here through the raindrops that must look like monster waves to them. Our new flat is on the fifth floor but they drift on the wind, so light and seeking light and the smell of blood, warm pulsating flesh, their monstrous proboscis salivating – this from Wikipedia: “The mosquito’s mouth, also called a proboscis, isn’t just one tiny spear. It’s a sophisticated system of six thin, needle-like mouthparts that scientists call stylets, each of which pierces the skin, finds blood vessels and makes it easy for mosquitos to suck blood. And these bugs know just where to bite.”

I took some pictures of old buildings again today and will probably have thousands of pictures of these atmospheric rundown edifices in the centre of the city. Then there’s the Azulejo tiles on the facades, different designs, some particular to Porto. They were introduced by the Moors and translated from the Arabic (az-zulayj), the word means polished stones. Initially, Islamic law didn’t allow human subjects hence the many geometric and floral designs. Later, the tiles depicted religious scenes and scenes of history. The tiles were also practical, cool in the summer and easy to clean. You can read about their origins and see them here.

Porto is an intriguing city and after 12 days we are becoming familiar with our new home and look forward to a virus-free future where we can investigate the culture, the language, the music, the literature, the art, and the football.

Music today was, yep, you guessed it, The Beatles. But today we woke up to and listened to the whole of Magical Mystery Tour (1967) before we left for the day. The record was released as a double-single in the UK which included the six songs from the television film and as an album in the USA post-Sgt. Pepper’s that contained the EP on Side 1 and the 1967 singles and B-sides on Side 2. Except I Am The Walrus which was the opening track of the EP, the last track on Side 1 of the album and the B-side of Hello Goodbye. I love this record.

Song Of The Daze (CLICK HERE)

Written by Marty Willson-Piper · Categorized: Blog

Missing

This is my stolen 1965 Rickenbacker 12-string, serial number EB157. If there's any chance of this guitar coming back to me before I go to meet my maker, then that would be wonderful. Please contact me if you have any information.

11209512_1669022976719710_7288437867089763325_n

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Primary Sidebar

  • spotify
  • facebook
  • instagram
  • youtube

Liking the blog?

Tour Dates

Instagram

Rockin' the MOAT t-shirt next to the real deal! #m Rockin' the MOAT t-shirt next to the real deal! #moatband #poisonstream 🤘🏰

T-Shirt Design by Reid Wilson
Photo by @oliviaelektra 

#schoolkidsrecords #nikoröhlcke #wellscathedral
Peter Walsh and I getting down at the Heron Tower Peter Walsh and I getting down at the Heron Tower disco 🕺🏻 #heyday
Soundchecking at Birmingham Symphony Hall, 10th Fe Soundchecking at Birmingham Symphony Hall, 10th February, 2001. All About Eve supporting Fairport Convention.

📷 by @derektimbrell
Thanks to The Wernickis for a little glimpse into Thanks to The Wernickis for a little glimpse into their new New Mexico listening space 🌵 #nightjar #schoolkidsrecords
Redeyed lad of the lowlands 🎵 📷 @oliviaelek Redeyed lad of the lowlands 🎵

📷 @oliviaelektra 

#danelectro #danelectrobass #redeyerecords #pleasantrylane #pleasantrylanestudio
You usually don’t spend the day in the studio an You usually don’t spend the day in the studio and the night at a gig but if you put the studio next to the gig then there’s a greater chance. So @salimnourallah did just that, he put the gig and the studio next to each other and made it possible for me to spend the day recording and the evening playing live 🎵

📷 @drewliophoto 

#galacticheadquarters #happinessarecordlabel #pleasantrylanestudio #salimnourallah #oliviawillsonpiper
TO WHERE I AM NOW A visit in the studio today fro TO WHERE I AM NOW

A visit in the studio today from old mate Mark Burgess from The Chameleons who has been hanging in Texas recently. I was thinking about the two of us growing up in the northwest of England and all these years later finding ourselves in such an unlikely spot together. We fixed a few issues in the universe and I carried on recording some guitars until Mark had to leave. Mark had played at the Galactic Headquarters next to the studio this year as Olivia and I had four years ago and this reminded me to remind myself to remind everyone to remind their friends that we will be playing there with Salim on Saturday, New Year’s Eve, for the ultimate in intimate performance. You can get tickets here (follow link below).

CONTINUE READING: https://martywillson-piper.com/2022/12/to-where-i-am-now-1045

KEEP IN TOUCH: https://linktr.ee/mwillsonpiper

📷 @salimnourallah 

#markburgess #thechameleons #chameleonsvox #pleasantrylanestudio #happinessarecordlabel #martywillsonpiper #oliviawillsonpiper #moatband
📷 @argirgirl 📷 @argirgirl
TO WHERE I AM NOW Sadness manifested in a buildin TO WHERE I AM NOW

Sadness manifested in a building, today we went to visit Paisley Park. Prince built Paisley Park in Chanhassen, about twenty minutes southwest of Minneapolis. It opened in 1987 and he recorded his later albums there. Apart from Prince, REM also recorded and mixed Out Of Time there, recording Kate Pearson’s vocal on Shiny Happy People vocal. Madonna had Prince play guitar on three songs from Like A Prayer and the two co-wrote Love Song, finishing it remotely due to Madonna not being able to stand the cold weather and the rather desolate location of the studio. Of course, there are things around but it’s not in the city and it’s not in the countryside, it’s in a suburb, no distractions, just what Prince wanted.

CONTINUE READING: https://martywillson-piper.com/2022/12/to-where-i-am-now-1032

KEEP IN TOUCH: https://linktr.ee/mwillsonpiper

📷 @argirgirl 

#paisleypark #prince
Load More… Follow on Instagram

Mailing List

In Deep Music Archive

Songwriting & Guitar Guidance with Marty Willson-Piper
ORDER HERE

"These are awesome sessions that I highly recommend for guitar players of all levels. Very informative, frank discussions on everything related to guitar and music in general. Definitely a must for anyone pursuing songwriting."
(Stephen G., VA, USA)

"Marty knows how to bypass scales and get to the heart of feel and timing. His musical knowledge spans multiple cultures and genres. Perhaps most importantly, Marty is a cool dude. I highly recommend his guitar guidance." (Jed B., MN, USA)

"Ok, so you’re sitting in your home and Marty is across the world but is actually right here teaching you how to play guitar and write songs. He is a delight to talk to and he is your teacher, meaning he wants to see you get something out of his lessons. You know he’s paying attention and wants to steer you in the right direction. I am so grateful and humbled that he offers his time in this manner. This is an amazing opportunity for anyone who admires anything from his enormous body of work. How often do you get to learn from somebody that inspired you in the first place? Amazing." (Ann S., CA, USA)

Missing

This is my stolen 1965 Rickenbacker 12-string, serial number EB157. If there’s any chance of this guitar coming back to me before I go to meet my maker, then that would be wonderful. Please contact me if you have any information.

11209512_1669022976719710_7288437867089763325_n

MARTY WILLSON-PIPER © 2023 - Front Page Images by Hajo Müller