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Aug 02 2021

TO WHERE I AM NOW

Today was the first Monday in months that I hadn’t been swimming and it felt strange. A busy yesterday indoors in front of the screen so I stayed in bed till late catching up after a mad Sunday and after a lazy long afternoon breakfast I made it into the street. I went to the computer shop and paid them for an adaptor they’d let me try and they refunded me the money for the transfers for my Portuguese keyboard, they’d given me Portuguese transfers instead of English ones. Last Monday at the bakery till it closes for three weeks and some fresh bread rolls and then a hike in the sun to the psychedelic supermarket. It’s been a car trip of late but it seemed an excuse to get some exercise despite having some heavy bags to carry home (even better). But it was hot out there, I avoided the sun when I could and wound my way through the streets till I reached my destination. I realised that from today there are lots of changes in Europe to the lockdowns, Portugal eased restrictions as did England and we are hoping that from this week the vaccinated can travel between the countries without quarantining. I’m expecting the tourist hordes to arrive throughout August.

I went out again a little later and noticed a change in the vibe in the streets. There were more people around. It was warm, sunny, August, vacation time, eased restrictions and the numbers in the streets reflected this. I noticed more tourist types already, people in different clothes, different colours, different heights and different demeanours. I heard one family, all unmasked, speaking a language I didn’t recognise as they flashed by, most people here wear masks in the street and there’s no way a Portuguese family wouldn’t do that. So, the language, clothes, demeanour and general attitude had them down for tourists in a second. Some couples in an odd ugly mixture of brown and red, looking as un-southern European as they could possibly be. But then, that’s me too, a teenage boy came up to me and asked me if I spoke English (he knew I did) and asked me if I had a mask for him, slightly odd.

The locals were out in force too, a man with a ‘Gola’ bag, green letters on white plastic that looked very seventies, a girl in pressed white jeans and perfect hair wearing a T-shirt that said something about being a rebel. The ladies of the day, just one today, sitting on the step on the way into town and a different one on the way back who acknowledged my salute with a wink. Different girls to the usual ones, perhaps summer has an increase in personnel in the sex industry. Lots and lots of two-wheeled food delivery drivers, it seems to be a big business here but I suppose it’s a big business everywhere.

Football is back this month. I hope van Dijk is fit again for Liverpool, he was sorely missed last year. Harry Kane didn’t show up for training at Spurs, ominous. But they are signing Bryan Gil, a great attacking fast winger with lots of skills, great for the premiership. Sancho has left Dortmund for Man U. Musical chairs in the management with Nuno leaving Wolves for Spurs, another Portuguese, Bruno Lage, has taken his place, Ancelotti has left Everton for Real Madrid and ex-Liverpool manager Benitez has stepped in. Crystal Palace have yet to announce who is in after Roy Hodgson’s retirement. Here we go again. The Olympics move on and before you know it it will be the World Cup, but not before Christmas which believe it or not is only 17 weeks away. Happy Christmas everybody.

Yesterday, sessioneer Brian in Indiana reminded me that it was the anniversary of MTV’s debut. It changed the world before it became the antithesis of what it originally set out to do. Tragic. But worst of all, what replaced it attracted more interest. I suppose video after video might have ended up being a bit of a tedious format but it’s sad that a channel that was just dedicated to all aspects of music couldn’t generate enough interest in investors or the audience. Surely there’s enough interesting material out there to keep an audience satisfied, apparently not. What about classic album shows, concerts, interviews, rare record shows, unplugged, programmes breaking down songs, and lyrics, album cover shows, photographers, behind the scenes stories from the crews, programmes on great bands that never made it like Big Star or Doctors Of Madness. Or what happened to Bill Withers or Emitt Rhodes or why hasn’t Tracy Chapman released an album since 2008 or Peter Gabriel or Joni Mitchell, where are their records from the last ten years. New bands, old bands, multiple genres, so much to know, hear, see, but no, not going to happen.

Music today has been Paul and Linda’s Ram (1971) after a mail from sessioneer Craig Miller. (Have you heard our song Amplify Me, mainly his?) He mentioned the sound of Ram as the thing to notice, it’s true, it’s the sound of it that’s the thing. So I listened to that, then McCartney (1970) and then went straight to McCartney III (2020) because I didn’t listen to it properly when it came out and I’m mostly disappointed although I do like The Kiss Of Venus. Some of the others are ok, but Lavatory Lil, oh my.

Music Of The Daze

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

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

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Photo by @oliviaelektra 

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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.

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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 🎵

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#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 🎵

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#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

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📷 @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

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📷 @argirgirl 

#paisleypark #prince
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In Deep Music Archive

Songwriting & Guitar Guidance with Marty Willson-Piper
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"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

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