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Apr 15 2022

TO WHERE I AM NOW

With the pool closed on Good Friday and seeing progress in weight loss and fitness, I decided to run to the psychedelic psupermarket and although I’m not Usain Bolt yet, it was a revelation. Ten weeks later I can actually run, I couldn’t do that before, now I reached all the way to the traffic lights at the end of the road that led to the shop. A short breather below the trees and then I set off again. Was I puffing and panting? Yes, I was. But I wasn’t in the pain I was before when my body refused to move beyond walking pace. Strengthening muscles in the gym, losing weight with cardio, flexibility from swimming has not quite taken me to Kate Moss proportions but 23lbs/10kg/1.5st less later, fewer headaches and getting back into old T-shirts that seemed destined to hang in the cupboard never to be worn again has shown me that dedicated intense work can give real results. Stopping the Coca-Cola and the scrumptious Portuguese cakes have also contributed as has eating less bread and having rich salad lunches and regular vegetable juices and fruit smoothies, blended with yoghurt and soya milk, pushing the right ingredients into my eternally grateful body, has worked.

After that trip, the shopping, the run, Olivia came to meet me to help me carry everything back. I was so quick I was halfway home before she met me. I got in, I started making lunch and realised I had everything except I’d forgotten to go to the bakery for the bread rolls. I ran out quickly as we had a meeting with Stephen, our label man at Schoolkids Records. Olivia wanted me to pick her up some sweet thang, but couldn’t remember what it was called so she drew a picture of it, a spiral. I got to the bakery and in my haste realised I’d forgotten my mask. I lifted my loose-fitting (haha) Big Star T-shirt up around my mouth. They know me so well there they were cool about it. I got back for the meeting and then finally ate, that exercising makes you hungry.

A sesh with Fred in Minneapolis, followed by Noel in England and all that took till dinner which meant Picard followed by War Of The Worlds, a sci-fi dinner fest. The days just disappear before you have had a chance to acknowledge they exist. This day didn’t include me reading, writing (yet), composing but it had gone. Between life’s chores, life’s desires and life’s responsibilities, the pleasures of your aspirations, I really can’t imagine boredom setting in. Thankfully I don’t paint or play the piano (haha), although…

I was demonstrating today for both Noel and Fred how my 1967 Rickenbacker is such a beautiful sounding guitar with that tone that Pete Townshend had with those classic Who records. The guitar itself looks a mess, broken in half, butchered bridge, replaced machine heads, broken scratchplate, no one would even want a guitar with this much damage, but the sound is priceless and that’s the prize.

In the street today I saw a lovely old MGB. It looked perfect in the sun, roofless and speeding along, old Portuguese plate, white letters and numbers on a black background. It was a gorgeous magical deep blue, and if you stared into it long enough you would be transported to another place where there were stories of sculptured machines and everyone drove a car pre-1979. I’m sure when I looked back at my reflection I was wearing flared trousers. I don’t notice all the other cars, just these beauties that show up now and again, although I do notice the odd names that cars are given like the Nissan Qashqai. I’m going to collect some names one day and list them.

Music today has simply had to be the first Egg album (1970) even though I posted it recently. I can never get enough Egg and it seems that for every reader that this music doesn’t attract, there’s always someone who is thrilled to discover it.

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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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
Marty & Pablo! 📷 Rod MacQuarrie Marty & Pablo!

📷 Rod MacQuarrie
At last, a proper door stop. 📷 @judgeschamber At last, a proper door stop.

📷 @judgeschamber 

#grammysitting 👵
🌵 Texas Acoustic Dates 🌵 31 December - DALL 🌵 Texas Acoustic Dates 🌵

31 December - DALLAS
7 January - CELINA
12 January - HOUSTON
14 January - AUSTIN
15 January - SAN ANTONIO

With @salimnourallah and @joereyesmusic

More info here: https://mailchi.mp/e47ede06acd6/texas-acoustic-dates
Doors & Delays 🎸 @workshop21_guitarclinic #the Doors & Delays 🎸

@workshop21_guitarclinic #thedoors #fenderstratocaster #fenderhotroddeville #nashtelecaster #rickenbacker
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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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