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Dec 20 2021

TO WHERE I AM NOW

A victory of willpower over weather today. I looked outside, the sky was dark, it was raining and by the time I made a cup of tea, it was pouring (the rain, not the tea). I thought I’m going to get wet on the way to the pool, it’s miserable, do I need to go? Then suddenly I clicked into automatic mode and I was on my way, umbrella in hand. I defaulted to positive mode and shut off the doubt switch. By the time I got outside, it had stopped raining so it wasn’t the drama I imagined anyway. On the walk, a young lad coming towards me coughed horribly, pulled his mask down and spat onto the pavement. Yuck! I crossed over immediately, he saw the disgust in my eyes but I didn’t look back to see his shame or his arrogance, whichever it may have been.

I had my own Ronnie Lane at the pool today, I suppose that as it gets to the week before Christmas people start rushing around thinking about prezzies and organising the family day and getting the food bought in preparation for the mega lunch and the last thing on their mind is going for a swim. But some of us are regulars and the distraction of Christmas isn’t going to stop the routine, the addiction. Having said that I like Christmas probably because I remember it as a happy time as a kid living in the countryside near Glossop. I don’t remember it so much living on The Wirral, probably because I was getting older and realising that Santa was an anagram of Satan and getting worried about it. Haha.

Music today has been a strange moment in 1971 when the Faces released Long Player and Rod Stewart released Every Picture Tells A Story in the same year, three months apart but they were recorded at the same time in the same studios with crossover musicians, mainly Ronnie Wood on both albums and the other Faces Ronnie Lane, Ian McLagan and Kenney Jones on one track on Every Picture Tells A Story which was probably originally meant to be on the Faces album, not the solo album. The main difference between the two is that Long Player is the Faces and the solo album is guests – Micky Waller is playing the drums on the solo album and Martin Quittenton, ex Steamhammer, is playing acoustic guitar, Maggie Bell from Stone The Crows also guests as does Madeline Bell from Blue Mink.

On Long Player it’s mainly electric guitars, piano, drums and bass and a rock singer, there are also live tracks from the Fillmore East, New York (which is now a bank) and it includes a live cover of McCartney’s Maybe I’m Amazed. Ronnie Lane also sings on this album, contrasting with Stewart’s gruffness. On Every Picture Tells A Story, for all of its equally boozed-up image, it’s actually dominated by Martin Quittenton’s acoustic guitar even on the uptempo songs where Micky Waller is banging away on the drums. The electric guitar plays a very minimal role and it’s a major difference between the two albums, that and McLagan’s prominent piano playing on Long Player.

Although it’s Rod that connects the two albums it’s that period before leopard skin ass shaking, blondes and embarrassing videos (Tonight’s The Night). It’s the time when he was just a great singer in a great band and simultaneously an imaginative solo artist having hits in his own right. Maggie May is on Every Picture Tells A Story and there’s a beautiful version of Mandolin Wind which he also wrote – he wrote Maggie May with Quittenton. Tim Hardin’s Reason To Believe is also a gem. The interweaving acoustic guitars show that you don’t need noise to make a great R’n’R album, it’s unique – never has something so acoustic delivered something so simultaneously raunchy and beautiful.

The band on both albums are connected, jamming with chemistry and on Every Picture Tells A Story they credited Martel Brandy and Mateus Rose by name, but they couldn’t remember Ray Jackson, the man who played the mandolin that stands out so clearly on the album, so they credited him as “the mandolin player from Lindisfarne”, at least they didn’t forget him altogether. Didn’t they have telephones in 1971?

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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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
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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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#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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#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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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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