Miscellaneous - August 2013

  by Admin

published: 16 / 8 / 2013

intro

Hello and welcome to the August edition of the Pennyblackmusic Magazine. Amongst our Regular Features, we have two new columns. In the first of these, 'Ten Songs That Made Me...'

Hello and welcome to the August edition of the Pennyblackmusic Magazine. Amongst our Regular Features, we have two new columns. In the first of these, ‘Ten Songs That Made Me Love...’, a different writer will be writing each month about ten of their favourite songs by a favourite band. As it was his idea, Andy Cassidy gets things going by writing about the Smiths. In our second new column, ‘Vinyl Stories’, Dave Goodwin will be talking each month to different music fans about some of the records in their vinyl collections, and road tests it by talking to me about six of my LPs and the stories behind them. Elsewhere in ‘Condemned to Rock ‘n’ Roll’, Ben Howarth, with many of his late twenties friends now having lost interest in music, finds the opposite problem and too much new music to listen to. We are also running thirteen new interviews this month. In our lead interview soul legend Booker T. talks about his extraordinary career, and his just released tenth solo album, ‘Sound the Alarm’. Our other headline interviews this month include acclaimed singer-songwriter Nick Harper who talks about his forthcoming seventh solo album ‘Riven’ and attending the sessions for Pink Floyd’s ‘Wish You Were Here’ as a boy with his father Roy Harper; and ex-Auteurs and Black Box Recorder front man Luke Haines who chats about his new solo album ‘Rock and Roll Animals’, a concept album for children and adults. There are also main interviews with Blondie drummer Clem Burke about his new super group the International Swingers and Blondie’s forthcoming new album ‘Ghosts of Download’; and with explosive new Welsh group Catfish and the Bottlemen, whose debut album is out in the New Year. Our other interviews for this month include Tony Hicks, the front man with 60’s pop icons the Hollies; Yes, Asia and Buggles keyboardist Geoff Downes; influential folk and protest singer Arlo Guthrie, and Ranking Roger, the front man with reformed ska/reggae group the Beat, whose second album ‘Wha’ Happen?’ has just been reissued on vinyl. There are interviews as well with Leicester folk musician Andrew ‘Skatz’ Scattergood about his new one man show and accompanying album ‘Father to Say’; indie pop trio and recent Fortuna POP! signing Flowers, and new psychedelic duo the Children of Leir. There is also an interview with former Creation Records owner Alan McGee about his new label, 359 Music. In our Profiles section there are articles on Marc Bolan, the Style Council and the Moody Blues, all of whom have new box sets out. There are eleven new live reviews and Photoscapes, including articles on the Ottawa Bluesfest, the Wickerman Festival, Nottinghamshire boutique festival Deerstock and Fairport’s Cropredy Convention which featured this year surprise headliner Alice Cooper. In our Re: View section in which we look back on albums from the past, there are items on the Mountain Goats’ 2002 album ‘All Hail West Texas’, which has been recently re-released, and also Bill Nelson’s 1986 album ‘Iconography’, which has also just been reissued, Our Website of the Month is ‘The British Record Shop Archive’, a website dedicated to providing a history of the record shop in Britain. There are 32 new album and single reviews. We ran another nine reviews in our album and singles reviews only update at the end of July. As always, this magazine has come together as a result of the enthusiasm and dedication of many people. Thank you to Carl Bookstein, Malcolm Carter, Andrew Carver, Andy Cassidy, Dan Cressey, Nick Dent-Robinson, Gillian Fish, Tom Fogarty, Dave Goodwin, Ben Howarth, Adrian Huggins, Fiona Hutchings, Adrian Janes, Maarten Schiethart, Harry Sherriff, Anthony Strutt, Lisa Torem, Paul Waller, Cila Warncke and Denzil Watson, all of whom contributed articles to this edition or the reviews only update. Special thanks to our webmaster Richard Banks for everything that he does behind the scenes. We will be doing an album and singles reviews only update in late August. Our next full magazine and fifteenth anniversary edition will come out in mid-September. Thank you as always for reading Pennyblackmusic, John Clarkson, Magazine Editor www.pennyblackmusic.co.uk