It’s been a few months since the Polish Ex-Serviceman’s club at Ecclesall Road saw some action on the Jazz scene from Sheffield Jazz but last night we saw a welcome return to an old stomping ground when Dylan Howe and his quintet gave us their own version of what they can do with a few well used instruments. The first number was lively and by the time that the second half took place Dylan and his band were turning out some raging Jazz which pleased the crowd who roared and hooted with delight. Strangely, the quintet became a quartet due to some sort of sudden domestic incident but in spite of that a great night out was had by all.
September 22, 2007
August 1, 2007
[munch][munch][munch] …… picks up small red book from the 1960′s. Waves it around in a Chinese sort of way and begins to chant….. “Comme Chez Soi ! Comme Chez Soi ! Comme Chez Soi !” (Deep frowns from the European Union chambers at the other end of Brussels).
…. puts down one set of ten different types of silver service knives and forks…. looks at the one hundred page wine menu once again…. picks up glass … sluuurrppp….
You know, they said to me when I was over in the Ban Sen Juku dojo why was I sitting in front of them ? I said that it was because there was a restaurant owner over in London who had used so many nasty four letter words in my direction that I had first of all wandered along the road to l’Gavroche to avoid him and then I had jumped on Eurostar to Brussels to avoid London and all of the rude people that live there. Seiji Tomita and Mieke couldn’t understand why a Tomiki Aikido person would want to go to such a brilliant dojo like Ban Sen Juku to practice traditional Aikido. I had to explain that it wasn’t just the Aikido but the restaurants as well. After much use of a jo and a sword whilst doing some aiki-iai we got back to the sake once again. More talk of Aikido. Back to the next seminar.
Comme Chez Soi. A place where you can have a really great night out. The wine waiter has impeccable taste. His English is just brilliant. As for the wine ? Well, what can you say ? An endless choice. The menu gives you either a do it yourself option or a set menu with all the trimmings. Not quite like eating fish and chips in Sheffield but easily more enjoyable. I’ve probably had more enjoyable nights out round the corner at Bocconi with Mark Shuttleworth of Ubuntu fame or round the corner from there at a well known Belgian pub or brasserie again with Mark Shuttleworth. But, there’s nothing quite like Comme Chez Soi for the quality and breadth of the menu. Eating the cheese course with something like a desert spoon is also something that you don’t quite get somewhere else.
The only other thing that I’ve seen in Brussels that really matches the excellence of Comme Chez Soi is La Monnaie which houses the National Opera of Belgium. This easily rivals anything in Germany or Italy. Although, whether it can outclass the New York Metropolitan I am not sure. I think you have to forget about the Met and New York culture when you are in Europe ? After you have understood the Brussels tram system and you get to know the Metro you can then settle down to some Belgian hospitality which is only really rivalled by the Irish.
On top of that the first class trip there and back from London on Eurostar is probably better than anything that you can get on the Shinkansen in Japan. It’s not really first class travel but if you’ve had to put up with a slow and broken public transport system in England which was created by Mrs Thatcher’s wish to “improve” England then you will love Eurostar.
Next stop is Bouillon 
Monsieur weel be ‘aving a leedle more ….
July 31, 2007
When I first went to Greece (before it became crowded) I wanted to go to the Peloponnese to have a look around. When I got down there on one day of the week I was cycling along a road and was greeted by the site of some ponies. I stopped and leaned over the wall to have a closer look. As I stood there one of the ponies started to dribble a ball in the way that a footballer would when practicing for the big match. Then it passed the ball over to it’s friend and then they dribbled the ball and passed it backwards and forwards for a while. Then some more ponies joined in and something of a match took place. At one point one of them took the ball away from the others and using it’s two front hooves it manouvered the ball over to a building in the field and kicked it up against the side of the building. Then the game resumed. I don’t think they understood the concept of a goal post or scoring. But, it was great to watch. Like a live version of The Magus written by John Fowles.
When I came back I told people about the Peloponnese Pelé ponies and how good they were at passing a ball around and about the team spirit. Probably much better than David Beckham and the England football team.
In more recent times I was doing one of my many long walks along the West Highland Way on the west coast of Scotland. I stopped at the Kings House hotel at the top of Glencoe for two nights. On the first morning I went out to the local cafe to check my mail at their £2.00 an hour net connection. As I walked out through the door of the hotel a dozen catholic nuns from Greece started to perform a ritual around me which was a complete reconstruction of the Peloponnese Pelé ponies kicking a ball around in front of me. It was so bizarre that all I could do was laugh.
July 31, 2007
It’s still there.
I first went to Ronnie Scott’s back in 1978 when I went to work at the Imperial Cancer Research Fund at Lincoln’s Inn Fields. At that time Ronnie Scott’s jazz club was known as Ron’s place.
I used to live there. Once in a while I might be found in my flat back at Bayswater or even at work sometimes. But, there was nothing quite like Ron’s place. The usual crowd of known suspects were to be found in there. Ron picked me up off the floor once when I was extremely drunk. Then he bought me a drink. A botle of wine. Between 1978 and 1982 I saw George Melly, Georgie Fame (both good for a late night boozing session) and Wynton and Branford Marsalis. What a session that was. Hardly anyone had seen either of them in England before and I was there on the night that it happened. In more recent times I found Ike Turner sitting in front of me giving his all and better now than he was when he was a young man.
Thanks to Ron I understood more about music and life and George Melly helped me to understand more about paintings. I didn’t really understand what Ron had done for me until I went out to work in the Caribbean back in 1984. That was where I met and mixed socially with what was left of the Glen Miller band. After that I followed George Melly’s nose – not something that’s easy to miss – and started on my own investigation of the New York Jazz scene and local artists and photographers down in the village. It’s not what it was but some history can be interesting. Daniel Falgerho who is a local photographer introduced himself to me and we had a chat about architectural photography and then I asked him why he wasn’t doing some work on the streets. After listening to me he did some work on the NY bus system. After all of that I ended up in San Francisco where the Jazz can be good.
It’s good to see that Ron’s place has survived the death of it’s founder and that it has now come back up and is once again the showbiz jewel that I knew it be when I was a young man.
July 31, 2007
Well,
…. puts pint of Stannington Stout down on the table ….
Just two weeks ago I was reading through the Mail on Sunday when I picked up the Financial Mail. What a surprise. On the front page and at page 3 there was a feature with large graphics and photographs with the heading “Kier in turmoil due to boardroom tryst” and “Deena Mattar, finance director of construction giant Kier, is expected to face shareholder pressure to quit after the disclosure that company employees were provided to renovate her new home.”
Let’s see….. I’ve been waiting for repairs to my own flat in Sheffield since April. Any move so far ? Just yesterday two plumbers turned up and started on something but now we have to wait for a plasterer. Meanwhile the board of Directors can have anything they want at any time that they want it. I’m not alone. As well as myself there are hundreds of people waiting for repairs to flood damage and long term maintenance which needs to be carried out.
More info….
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/investing-and-markets/article.html?in_article_id=422106&in_page_id=3
Have I seen this before ? …..
“ Twas on a Tuesday morning the carpenter came round.
He hammered and he chiselled and he said:
“Look what I’ve found: your joists are full of dry rot
But I’ll put them all to rights”.
Then he nailed right through a cable and out went all the lights!
Oh, it all makes work for the working man to do.
‘Twas on a Wednesday morning the electrician came.
He called me Mr. Sanderson, which isn’t quite the name.
He couldn’t reach the fuse box without standing on the bin
And his foot went through a window so I called the glazier in.
Oh, it all makes work for the working man to do.
‘Twas on a Thursday morning the glazier came round
With his blow torch and his putty and his merry glazier’s song.
He put another pane in – it took no time at all
But I had to get a painter in to come and paint the wall.
Oh, it all makes work for the working man to do.
‘Twas on a Friday morning the painter made a start.
With undercoats and overcoats he painted every part:
Every nook and every cranny – but I found when he was gone
He’d painted over the gas tap and I couldn’t turn it on!
Oh, it all makes work for the working man to do.
On Saturday and Sunday they do no work at all;
So ’twas on a Monday morning that the gasman came to call… “
… picks up pint of Stannington Stout ….
