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Sep 28 2022

TO WHERE I AM NOW

Last night we stayed in a hotel in Amiens that had no parking so we were told that Ariel would have to either sleep on the street or in an underground car park a few blocks away. The streets were full so it had to be the underground car park plus Ariel preferred the underground option. We are overrun not just by traffic in the waking hours, our streets are infested with parked cars. At night in any town, there are thousands of parked cars, their owners asleep as their cars fill up the side streets, the parking lots, the driveways and every possible bit of space until they are awoken by the arrival of the day and then they transfer themselves from as close to home as they could get, to city car parks like Amiens 2 (as it was called). I checked into the hotel, took all the bags to the room and on return to reception jumped into Ariel’s arms outside and we all drove to the car park. The height limit was 1.8 metres, the same as it was in Biarritz (no problem). But as Olivia drove in slowly, she caught a metal bar above the entrance, but it was too late as we were halfway through the gate, the barrier was up and we were suddenly unsure if we would fit as we descended into the labyrinth of Amiens 2.

It seemed like we would fit, mostly, there were a couple of lower exit signs that brushed the roof but with me walking by the side of April checking for danger (like the first motor cars), we made it to a spot without too much trouble – we were millimetres from the roof but we still fit, just. We walked back to the hotel and that was that. This morning we checked out, left our bags in the storage room and walked back to the car park. On Ariel’s roof, there are four bolts that once held the roof box and they made Ariel just that awkward inch taller. Getting out was not as simple as getting in, the outward was much trickier than the inward. There were pipes, lower pipes, and the bolts were higher than the pipes and the pipes were frequent heading to the exit. At one point I thought the bolts were going to break the pipes, in another moment one of the bolts caught on to a low-hanging wire and dragged it lower from the garage roof – we inched towards the exit. We had to go into the office to pay because our ticket wouldn’t work in the self-service machine. I was dreading going in because I thought he’s going to catch us on CCTV scraping the pipes and the signs. As it happened (I think), he was on his lunch so he wasn’t aware of our struggle to exit. I paid, he disappeared back to his baguette and Ariel’s final action was to bang lightly into the top of the metal gate as she left. The bolts are an issue we need to address if we are to get into these places.

It was about 150kms to Calais and I took the time to get in touch with (almost) everyone in England we would be attempting to see. It’s a short trip and also the continuation of the Archive saga which does actually have an encouraging update that I will share another day or as it develops. We were booked on the 8.20 PM train from Calais but got there early enough for the 6.20 PM train and there was a space so we were able to change our time. Driving the car onto the train is such a convenient way to do this, it’s not cheap, but in 40 minutes you are in Folkestone where as it happens, AAE Andy and partner Lisa live – we were staying with them for a couple of nights. One problem, when we got to the French customs, they swiped our car for explosives and it came back positive. It wasn’t just us, it was the car behind too. The customs men were quite nice about it, they didn’t suddenly draw their guns, they told us that the machine was overly sensitive and that there might have been some chemical used in the car’s previous cleaning that set it off. They had to swipe us again and if we were positive a second time they would be bringing the dogs. Woof.

We arrived at Andy and Lisa’s and caught up on all the Folkestone gossip and we shared all our knowledge about Fado, Ronaldo and Amália Rodrigues.

Last but not least, I have an issue that I’d like to share. When you go to a museum or any such place in a foreign country, you might find that there has been an English translation of the sign that explains what you are seeing. We’ve all seen some funny signs from Asia. What I don’t understand is how in a major institution (like a museum for example) they don’t get an English speaker to do the translation. An example was the sign in a petrol station in France today. Why don’t they it realise that to see be it right there has to being a native speaker to sure make the word order and grammaring is correctful.

Music today is the legend that is Amália Rodrigues, the queen of Fado.

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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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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📷 @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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