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Oct 15 2021

TO WHERE I AM NOW

The mist, the sun, then the mist and then the sun again, what kind of day is it going to be? The mist won in Somerset and the clouds seemed to be winning in Wiltshire. But when we stopped briefly in Hampshire, the sun was back. We went to Andover to see if we could see any evidence of The Troggs and I was walking through the streets whistling With A Girl Like You (1966) but nobody clicked. The Troggs (originally called The Troglodytes) weren’t our main focus of attention today, it was something a little older – Stonehenge.

Olivia hadn’t been before and I hadn’t been since they had built the new visitor centre and the bus from the car park to the site. It’s now such a popular tourist attraction that it needs stewards and guards and all kinds of admin people. At summer solstice it attracts 30,000 people. In the good old days (4,500 years ago) you could drive and mingle very closely but now it’s just too popular. The first thing we noticed wasn’t the stones themselves but the crows. Such odd creatures, they seem to be analysing everything they do, like they are really thinking about it. “How do I get this worm out of the ground? What would be the best way of doing it?”. Then I thought, at any minute one of the crows is going to ask me a question! They went on pecking, cawing, croaking and looking intelligent as we turned our attention to an amazing place.

The stones are a sight to behold, shrouded in mystery, in ritual and you are in awe of how such giant stones were put there and how important they might have been to our ancestors. You circle around them, contemplating their significance from all angles and trying to imagine the stages of history where they were in the presence of mysterious figures, hooded worshippers of something we can only guess at. Having said that the alignment of the stones with the sunrise on the summer solstice, the barrows that surround it and the burials associated with it, make me wonder about dark and doomy funerals and processions. It’s not quite so simple to express the magic of the place but the travellers in the vans across the field are here because of it, the tourists flock to experience it and in the end, all you can do is simply stare at it in wonder.

One of the stewards was an Australian girl with a broad accent from Leeton in NSW between Wagga and Griffith. I told her I’d played in Wagga Wagga (I think) and she knew all about the ex-band and we talked about Aussie bands in the presence of the stones, quite odd really to be discussing Australian Crawl, Brian Mannix and Uncanny X-Men, Chisel, The Oils, Flowers (Icehouse), Kids In The Kitchen, Serious Young Insects, Hoodoo Gurus and the like. I couldn’t get away from the ex-band today, we took a picture for a couple and for some reason, music and then the ex-band came up unprompted and Priscila, the lady from Brazil, was a fan. Hi Priscila and husband if you are reading this.

By the time we got close to London, we were in traffic and crept our way to New Malden, past the Thames, through Sunbury and Richmond and saying hello to Henry at Hampton Court. We arrived as Biggles returned from walking Bear (the dog) and we had a lovely campfire dinner and as usual a fascinating conversation about the universe. Colleen, his partner, was away, living it up with her mates on the Isle Of Wight which we will be sailing by on our 28-hour ferry on Tuesday.

Music today has been c/- me old mate Biggles, with whom we are staying this weekend. Eez sumthink of a (prog) metal geezer!

Tremonti – A Dying Machine (2018)
Alter Bridge – Blackbird (2007)
NMB – Innocence & Danger (2021)
Yes – The Quest (2021)

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.

📷 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 🎵

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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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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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#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 

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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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