PAUL C IN 23 (21)

PLACES I AM READING

I am going to read a book by Amos Oz this month in honour of the state of Israel and its brave people. Not all Muslims wish you ill. This one esteems you as the progenitor of the three main monotheistic creeds and for your wisdom, traditions, solidarity and generosity of spirit. x

JERUSALEM

Opening Words

Amos Oz is one of Israel's finest authors; he was also a leading proponent of a two state solution - a solution set back years by the terrorism of Hamas.

I will be reading his final novel; Judas published a few years before his death.



" Here is a story from the winter days of the end of 1959 and the beginning of 1960. It is a story of error and desire, of unrequited love, and of a religious question that remains unresolved. Some of the buildings still bore the marks of the war that had divided the city a decade earlier. In the background you could hear the distant strains of an accordion, or the plaintive sound of a harmonica from behind closed shutters. "

Interested.................................?

BOOKS COMPLETED - Q1

January
1. The King's Fool by Mahi Binebine (2017) 125 pp Fiction / ANC / Morocco
2. The Golden Ass by Apuleius (c 170) 216 pp Fiction / ANC / Tunisia / 1001
3. Driftnet by Lin Anderson (2003) 262 pp Thriller / Rhona MacLeod 1
4. The Eagle of the Ninth by Rosemary Sutcliff (1954) 292 pp Fiction / BAC
5. Free : Coming of Age at the End of History by Lea Ypi (2021) 310 pp Non-Fiction / NF Challenge
6. The Bridges of Constantine by Ahlem Mosteghanemi (1993) 305 pp Fiction / ANC / Algeria
7. Bloodlines by Fred D'Aguiar (2000) 161 pp Poetry / BAC
8. Borstal Boy by Brendan Behan (1958) 372 pp Fiction / 1001
9. Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson (2008) 300 pp Fiction / AAC
10. U.A. Fanthorpe : Selected Poems by U.A. Fanthorpe (2013) 153 pp Poetry
11. In the Country of Men by Hisham Matar (2006) 245 pp Fiction / ANC / Libya
12. Foundation : The History of England Volume 1 by Peter Ackroyd (2011) 462 pp Non-Fiction
13. Closed Circles by Viveca Sten (2009) 451 pp Thriller / Sandhamn 2
14. The Albemarle Book of Modern Verse edited by FES Finn (1961) 181 pp Poetry
15. Brooklyn Heights by Miral al-Tahawy (2012) 220 pp Fiction / ANC / Egypt
16. The Midnight Bell by Patrick Hamilton (1929) 221 pp Fiction
17. The Siege of Pleasure by Patrick Hamilton (1932) 118 pp Fiction
18. The Plains of Cement by Patrick Hamilton (1934) 188 pp Fiction
19. The Stories of Vladimir Nabokov by Vladimir Nabokov (1995) 663 pp Fiction / Short Stories
20. The Madness of Crowds by Douglas Murray (2019) 267 pp Non-Fiction
21. The Death of Murat Idrissi by Tommy Wieringa (2017) 102 pp Fiction
22. Foster by Claire Keegan (2010) 88 pp Fiction

February
23. Torch by Lin Anderson (2004) 230 pp Thriller / Rhona MacLeod 2
24. Things I Don't Want to Know by Deborah Levy (2003) 163 pp Non-Fiction
25. The Book of Chameleons by Jose Eduardo Agualusa (2004) 180 pp Fiction / ANC / Angola
26. Dearly by Margaret Atwood (2020) 122 pp Poetry
27. The Days of Abandonment by Elena Ferrante (2002) 188 pp Fiction
28. The Cost of Living by Deborah Levy (2018) 187 pp Non-Fiction
29. The Lost Art of Sinking by Naomi Booth (2015) 86 pp Fiction / BAC
30. Poetry of the Thirties edited by Robin Skelton (1964) 287 pp Poetry
31. The Darkness Knows by Arnaldur Indridason (2017) 338 pp Thriller / Scandi
32. The Whistling Season by Ivan Doig (2006) 345 pp Fiction
33. The History of England Volume II : Tudors by Peter Ackroyd (2012) 471 pp Non-Fiction
34. Male Tears by Benjamin Myers (2021) 264 pp Fiction / Short Stories
35. Woman of the Ashes by Mia Couto (2015) 254 pp Fiction / ANC / Mozambique
36. Real Estate by Deborah Levy (2021) 297 pp Non-Fiction
37. Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner (1971) 569 pp Fiction / 1001 Books / Pulitzer

March
38. Deadly Code by Lin Anderson (2005) 261 pp Thriller / Rhona MacLeod 3
39. Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (2003) 307 pp Fiction / ANC / Nigeria
40. My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell (1956) 308 pp Non-Fiction / Memoirs
41. What Goes On : Selected and New Poems 1995-2009 by Stephen Dunn (2009) 195 pp Poetry / AAC
42. I'm a Fan by Sheena Patel (2022) 203 pp Fiction
43. Native Guard by Natasha Trethewey (2006) 46 pp Poetry / AAC

BOOKS COMPLETED - Q2

April
44. Anne Boleyn : 500 Years of Lies by Hayley Nolan (2019) 282 pp Non-Fiction / BAC
45. Hotel of the Saints by Ursula Hegi (2001) 170 pp Fiction / AAC
46. Dark Flight by Lin Anderson (2007) 392 pp Thiller
47. Boulder by Eva Baltasar (2020) 105 pp Fiction / Spain
48. Moscow by Nick Carter (1970) 155 pp Thriller
49. Thirteen Months of Sunrise by Rania Mamoun Short Stories / ANC / Sudan
50. The Waste Land by T.S. Eliot (1922) 32 pp Poetry
51. Felicity : Poems by Mary Oliver (2014) 81 pp Poetry
52. Wandering Souls by Cecile Pin (2023) 238 pp Fiction / Vietnam
53. Justice on Trial : Radical Solutions for a System at Breaking Point by Chris Daw (2020) 264 pp Non-Fiction
54. The Jewel in the Crown by Paul Scott (1966) 488 pp Fiction
55. Bullet Train by Kotaro Isaka (2010) 451 pp Thriller / Japan

May
56. Taste : My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci (2021) 299 pp Non-Fiction
57. Tell Me the Truth About Life curated by Cerys Matthews (2019) 177 pp Poetry
58. Those Feet : An Intimate History of English Football by David Winner (2005) 268 pp Non-Fiction
59. The Arctic : Poems by Don Paterson (2022) 82 pp Poetry
60. Suffer the Little Children by Donna Leon (2007) 342 pp Thiller
61. The Missing Months by Lachlan MacKinnon (2022) 63 pp Poetry

June
62. Easy Kill by Lin Anderson (2008) 390 pp Thriller
63. Civil War : The History of England Volume III by Peter Ackroyd (2014) 470 pp Non-Fiction
64. Ruth Pitter : Collected Poems by Ruth Pitter (1996) 299 pp Poetry
65. Dance of the Jakaranda by Peter Kimani (2017) 350 pp Fiction / ANC / Kenya
66. England's Green by Zaffar Kunial (2022) 70 pp Poetry
67. Time Shelter by Georgi Gospodinov (2020) 302 pp Fiction / Bulgaria
68. The Illustrated Woman by Helen Mort (2022) 82 pp Poetry
69. Oxblood by Tom Benn (2022) 245 pp Fiction
70. The Swerve by Stephen Greenblatt (2011) 263 PP Non-Fiction
71. No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy (2005) 309 pp Fiction
72. The Breast by Philip Roth (1972) 74 pp Fiction 1001 Books
73. Heritage by Miguel Bonnefoy (2020) 149 pp Fiction / Venezuela
74. Doctor Who : The Androids of Tara (1978) 143 pp SF / BAC
75. Veronika Decides to Die by Paulo Coelho (1998) 210 pp Fiction /1001 books / Brazil
76. Collected Later Poems by Anthony Hecht (2003) 238 pp Poetry
77. Zazie in the Metro by Raymond Queneau (1959) 177 pp Fiction / France
78. Quiet by Victoria Adukwei Bulley (2022) 81 pp Poetry / ANC / Ghana
79. Bonsai by Alejandro Zambra (2006) 74 pp Fiction / Chile
80. Pyre by Perumal Murugam (2013) 194 pp Fiction / India
81. Small Country by Gael Faye (2016) 183 pp Fiction / ANC / Burundi
82. Fieldwork in Ukrainian Sex by Oksana Zabuzhko (1996) 161 pp Fiction / Ukraine

BOOKS COMPLETED - Q3

July
83. Lenin on the Train by Catherine Merridale (2016) 291 pp Non-Fiction / Reading through time
84. Selected Poems by W.H. Auden (1979) 319 pp Poetry
85. Paradais by Fernanda Melchior (2022) 118 pp Fiction / Mexico
86. Final Cut by Lin Anderson (2009) 344 pp Thriller
87. John Heath-Stubbs : Selected Poems by John Heath-Stubbs (1990) 144 pp Poetry
88. Kingdom of Characters by Jing Tsu (2022) 280 pp Non Fiction / Taiwan
89. Cemetery Lake by Paul Cleave (2008) 347 pp Thriller / New Zealand
90. Fly Away, Peter by David Malouf (1982) 142 pp Fiction / Australia
91. East of Eden by John Steinbeck (1952) 602 pp Fiction / 1001 Books
92. Profiles in Courage by John F. Kennedy (1955) 226 pp Non-Fiction / AAC

August
93. Trespasses by Louise Kennedy (2022) 309 pp Fiction
94. August 1914 by Bruno Cabanes (2014) 196 pp Non-Fiction
95. The Shameful State by Sony Labou Tansi (1981) 116 pp Fiction / ANC / DRC
96. Told by Starlight in Chad by Joseph Brahim Seid (2007) 71 pp Fiction / ANC / Chad
97. The House of Doors by Tan Twan Eng (2023) 304 pp Fiction / Malaysia
98. Six Weeks in the Sioux Tepees by Sarah F Wakefield (1863) 87 pp Non-Fiction
99. Winchelsea by Alex Preston (2022) 334 pp Fiction / BAC
100. Blue White Red by Alain Mabanckou (1998) 147 pp Fiction / ANC / Congo
101. The Trees by Percival Everett (2021) 308 pp Fiction / AAC
102. Bound to Violence by Yambo Ouologuem (1968) 182 pp Fiction / ANC / Mali
103. The Great Alone by Kristen Hannah (2018) 438pp Fiction
104. Standing Heavy by Gauz (2014) 167 pp Fiction / ANC / Ivory Coast
105. So Long a Letter by Mariama Ba (1979) 95 pp Fiction / ANC / Senegal
106. The Following Story by Cees Nooteboom (1991) 98 pp Fiction
107. Requiem for a Wren by Nevil Shute (1955) 250 pp Fiction
108. The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell (2022) 436 pp Fiction

September
109. Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line by Deepa Anappara (2020) 344 pp Fiction
110. Assembly by Natasha Brown (2021) 100 pp Fiction
111. The Maidens by Alex Michaelides (2021) 356 pp Thriller /BAC /Cyprus
112. Careless by Kirsty Capes (2021) 317 pp Fiction
113. The Cry of Winnie Mandela by Njabulo Ndebele (2004) 146 pp ANC / South Africa
114. In a Lonely Place by Dorothy B Hughes (1947) 222 pp Thriller / AAC
115. The Furrows by Namwali Serpell (2022) 266 pp Fiction / ANC / Zambia
116. Prophet Song by Paul Lynch (2023) 309 pp Fiction
117. The Dictionary of Lost Words by Pip Williams (2020) 419 pp Fiction
118. So Late in the Day by Claire Keegan (2023) 47 pp Fiction
119. Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo (2016) 163 pp Fiction / South Korea
120. The Lonely Skier by Hammond Innes (1947) 176 pp Thriller
121. The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese (2023) 715 pp Fiction ANC / Ethiopia
122. Old God's Time by Sebastian Barry (2023) 261 pp Fiction
123. Black Butterflies by Priscilla Morris (2023) 278 pp Fiction / Bosnia
124. We Need New Names by NoViolet Bulawayo (2013) 290 pp Fiction ANC/ Zimbabwe
125. Our Town by Thornton Wilder (1938) 114 pp Drama
126. Tom Lake by Ann Patchett (2023) 309 pp Fiction

Books Completed Q4

October
127. Study for Obedience by Sarah Bernstein (2023) 189 pp Fiction
128. The Night of the Hunter by Davis Grubb (1953) 246 pp Thriller
129. New Selected Poems by Philip Levine (1991) 292 pp Poetry
130. The End of Everything by Katie Mack (2020) 210 pp Non-Fiction
131. The Left-Handed Woman by Peter Handke (1976) 67 pp Fiction / Austria
132. Our Lady of the Nile by Scholastique Mukasonga (2012) 250 pp Fiction / ANC / Rwanda
133. Luck is the Hook by Imtiaz Dharker (2018) 122 pp Poetry / Pakistan
134. Black Water by Joyce Carol Oates (1992) 154 pp Fiction / 1001
135. The House at Sea's End by Elly Griffiths (2011) 353 pp Thriller
136. The Bee Sting by Paul Murray (2023) 643 pp Fiction
137. The Conquest of Plassans by Emile Zola (1874) 302 pp Fiction 150Y Challenge 1/150
138. The Dreadful Monster and its Poor Relations by Julian Hoppit (2021) 223 pp Non-Fiction
139. The Master of Ballantrae by RL Stevenson (1889) 228 pp Fiction 150Y Challenge 2/150
140. The Napoleon of Notting Hill by GK Chesterton (1904) 192 pp Fiction 150Y Challenge 3/150

African Reading Challenge 2023



Plans

January - NORTH AFRICA https://www.librarything.com/topic/347131 read 5
February - LUSOPHONE LIT https://www.librarything.com/topic/348039 read 2
March - ADICHIE or EMECHETA https://www.librarything.com/topic/348955#n8081025 read 1
April - THE HORN OF AFRICA https://www.librarything.com/topic/349799 read 1
May - AFRICAN NOBEL WINNERS https://www.librarything.com/topic/350564
June - EAST AFRICA - https://www.librarything.com/topic/351192 Read 3
July - ACHEBE or Okri https://www.librarything.com/topic/351931
August - FRANCOPHONE AFRICA https://www.librarything.com/topic/352728#n8220656 Read 6
September - SOUTHERN AFRICA https://www.librarything.com/topic/353344 READ 3
October - MUKASONGA / NGUGI WA THIONG'O https://www.librarything.com/topic/354018 READ 1
November - AFRICAN THRILLERS / CRIME WRITERS
December - WEST AFRICA read 1

Total : 23

BRITISH AUTHOR CHALLENGE



January - Rosemary Sutcliff & Fred D'Aguiar Eagle of the Ninth by Sutcliff, Bloodlines by D'Aguiar
February - Novellas & Short Stories - The Lost Art of Sinking by Booth, Male Tears by Myers
March - Vita Sackville-West & Tariq Ali
April - British Queens - Anne Boleyn : 500 Years of Lies by Hayley Nolan
May - RF Delderfield & Jan Morris
June - Time Travel - Doctor Who : The Androids of Tara by David Fisher
July - Nadifa Mohamed & Tom Holt
August - Seafaring Stories - Winchelsea by Alex Preston
September - Campus Books - The Maidens by Alex Michaelides

AMERICAN AUTHOR CHALLENGE



January - YA Books - Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson
February - Richard Powers
March - Poetry - What Goes On : Selected and New Poems by Stephen Dunn
April - Ursula Hegi - Hotel of the Saints
May -
June - Wildcard - No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy
July - American Presidents - Profiles in Courage by John F Kennedy
August - Percival Everett - The Trees
September - Crime Queens - In a Lonely Place by Dorothy B Hughes

AROUND THE WORLD IN BOOKS IN 2023

Countries : 54 (11 October 2023)


Create Your Own Visited Countries Map

BOOK STATS

Starting Stats of the Year :

Present TBR : 5,679 books
Pages to Read : 1,943,264
Average Book Length : 342.18

Books Read 131 (4 Oct 23)
Pages : 31,601
Pages per day : 114.08
Average Book Length : 241.23 pages
Female Authors : 55
Male Authors : 73
Various : 3
Countries Read : 52 (UK, Morocco, Tunisia, Albania, Algeria, Guyana, Ireland, USA. Libya, Sweden, Egypt, Russia, Netherlands, Angola, Canada, Italy, Iceland, Mozambique, Nigeria, Spain, Sudan, Vietnam, Japan, Kenya, Bulgaria, Venezuela, Brazil, France, Ghana, Chile, India, Burundi, Ukraine, Mexico, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand, DRC, Chad, Malaysia, Congo, Senegal, Cote D'Ivoire, Mali, Cyprus, South Africa, Zambia, South Korea, Ethiopia, Bosnia, Zimbabwe, Austria)

Fiction : 68
Thriller : 16
Non-Fiction : 20
Sci-Fi/Fantasy : 1
Poetry : 20
Short Stories : 5
Drama : 1

1001 Books First Edition
Read 7 (334)

Nobel Winners
Read : (75)

Booker Winners
Read : (38)

Pulitzer Fiction Prize
Read 1 : (21)

Women's Prize
Read : (7)

Books Added in 2023

372 (4 Oct 2023)

Books Read in 2023

131 (4 Oct 2023)

Books Culled in 2023

438 (4 Oct 2023)

Revised TBR : 5,482

Welcome to my 21st thread of 2023. xx

Happy new thread!

>14 amanda4242: That was quick, dear Amanda. xx

Happy new thread Paul!

>16 quondame: Thank you, Susan. xx

Happy New Thread, Paul! I can't keep up, but I'm glad to be here at the beginning of this one. I just added an Amos Oz to my collection, A Tale of Love and Darkness, but I know I won't get to it as quickly as you will read yours. I'm glad to know I'm in good company though.

ETA: I don't know what to say in the face of horror except profound sadness all around and prayers for peace somehow.

>15 PaulCranswick: I happened to click on Talk as you were setting up, so I got the coveted first spot!

>18 LizzieD: Peggy it is lovely to see you here.
I am heartbroken about what one set of people can do to another for no other reason than hatred.

Happy new thread Paul!

>20 PaulCranswick: “Hatred” is a big reason that needs to be investigated, not a trivial excuse.

>19 amanda4242: Of course for me it wonderful to see it was you!

>21 humouress: Thank you, Nina.

>22 booksaplenty1949: It certainly needs to be confronted. The world needs to stands up against acts of indiscriminate hatred such as occurred in Israel a number of days ago. Israel's response will be condemned as it will soon be conveniently forgotten what brought us here and the fact that their very existence is intended to be expunged.

Happy new thread, Paul!

>25 FAMeulstee: Thank you, Anita. xx

Got a call from the bookshop to come and collect some more orders:

393. Pearl by Sian Hughes
394. Western Lane by Chetna Maroo
395. The Mountain Lion by Jean Stafford

BOOK #135



The House at Sea's End by Elly Griffiths
Date of Publication : 2011
Origin of Author : UK
Pages : 353 pp

In this episode we face a possible wartime war crime as bodies are discovered buried in a rocky recess on a beach and people seem to die rather than give up its possible secret.

Ruth is now a mother and the identity of the father (which we the reader know) is being kept from all and sundry.

It is a favourite series of mine these days.

In October 1972 Bread released their second album of the year Guitar Man



The album included some very good tracks but this thing of timeless beauty : "Aubrey"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9IWxocGm21U

In October 1973 Elton John released the brilliant Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.



Everybody points to "Candle in the Wind" but my track is "Bennie and the Jets" - wonderful stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wo1OwRTRKRk

Happy New Thread, Paul. I hope you enjoy Western Lane . I’m sure you will . It’s a good read and short too .

What is my favourite Billy Joel album? Unquestionably, it is the one released in October 1974 Streetlife Serenade.



This is about his infatuation with a prostitute who he "knew" during his stay in LA and hoped to move her from her profession but she was making more dough than him! "Roberta" - love this live version from 1975.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onWEQF8Wvn0

>31 vancouverdeb: Good to see you, Deb. I only have the Paul Harding to track down to get a full house of Booker longlisted books this year.

Happy new thread, Paul.
>2 PaulCranswick: Dear Zealots: Letters from a Divided Land was available at my local library, I borrowed it.
>28 PaulCranswick: Thank you for reminding me about the series, I know the first two volumes and will continue with them.
All the best for you and your family, my friend!

The Who were a great band and especially in their original formulation. In October 1975 they released what I consider the last of their top notch albums: Who By Numbers



There are some good rocking tunes on the album but this is lovely "Blue Red and Grey". Shows up Townshend as a sensitive lyricist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBa3tr2A1sk

>34 SirThomas: Great to see you, Thomas, my friend.

I really believe that this is a time for non-Jews to step forward and show solidarity with those of that much persecuted faith. You may have a territorial dispute, you may have some legitimate grievances over house, home and oppression - you do not express that by the decapitation of children and the brutalising of women. Those who are giving that a free pass and for goodness sake some are even celebrating it need to be exposed for who and what they are.

In October 1976 Harry Chapin released his On the Road to Kingdom Come



I love to be told a story and few did that better than Harry. This is a fantastic live version of the title song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uow2kNySgsE

Happy new thread, Paul! I hope Hani feels better.

October 1977 is one of favourite musical months with great albums from Bowie, Queen, Kansas, Barclay James Harvest, Sex Pistols, Meat Loaf and Joan Armatrading. The album that most impacted me from the time though was Out of the Blue by Electric Light Orchestra.



With its brilliant cover and great music, the first song by them I loved was "Sweet Talkin Woman" but "Mr. Blue Sky" blew me away.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMY5xe36cfE

Pure joy.

>38 DianaNL: Thank you, Diana. Lovely to see you, my friend.

HAppy new thread!

The song I most remember from October 1978 is from Dr. Hook & the Medicine Show's Pleasure & Pain



It is the indescribably catchy, "When You're in Love With a Beautiful Woman"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCJpzpd-8us

They were talented but as mad as hatters.

>41 figsfromthistle: Thanks Anita. Always great to have you stop by.

October 1979 is another strong month with Tom Petty, The Police, Madness, The Specials, Boomtown Rats etc and so on.



Tusk was a strange follow up to the smash "Rumours" but for its eclectic variance, I adore the weirdly engaging title song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ATMR5ettHz8

In October 1980 Dire Straits released Making Movies



I am an old sentimental. Who could not enjoy "Romeo & Juliet"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rC95MEenIxA

Three generations of my ladies are in Sheffield - Hani, Yasmyne and Pip. The Human League were from Sheffield and their October 1981 album Dare



spawned the world-wide smash "Don't You Want Me?" - all the way from Sheffield.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uPudE8nDog0

>27 PaulCranswick: Oh no. So sorry to hear that ;0)

>47 humouress: As someone who uses sarcasm often to make my points - I'll happily take my share on the chin, neighbour! xx

Hi Paul. Love your header and your sentiments! Happy new thread!

>49 Kristelh: Thank you, Kristel. As (I think) the only Muslim in the group, I thought I had a particular obligation to make my own position on this clear.

Good idea to read something by an Israeli author, Paul. I was thinking about the same right now.

I'm enjoying your album suggestions here. Currently, I'm going through 100 Greatest Albums edited by Jacob Hoye. For many years, I listened primarily to classical music, and I still need to catch up with a lot of popular music. So, I listen to the albums listed in the book and then read the essays by the different writers. I have come to love several new albums, but also had to skip a few as it was far from my taste. I will finish it this year. Also, it's good to sit down and listen to a whole album and follow the lyrics.

>51 ctpress: Nice to see you, Carsten.

I would find it hugely difficult to choose 100 albums, although easier if I was limited to one per artist funnily enough. Choosing my favourite album from a particular artist is also tough and I constantly change my mind on :
Bob Dylan
Electric Light Orchestra
Van Morrison
The Beatles
The Rolling Stones

>52 PaulCranswick: To choose my favorite Bob Dylan album would be tricky - but he would definitely be in a top ten. Also, contenders would be a Van Morrison, a Dire Straits, Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon, U2's Joshua Tree, Bob Marley, well already it's crowded and I'm just naming names from the top of my head :)

>1 PaulCranswick: I got so mad today when I received an email that said "Pray for Christians in Israel and the West Bank." How about instead we say "Pray for the people of Israel and the West Bank"??

>2 PaulCranswick: I really need to get a copy of that one! It has been in the BlackHole forever.

>28 PaulCranswick: I may have to give that series another try. I never got beyond book 1, I do not think.

Happy new thread, BTW. My final check in before I head out!

Amos Oz is one of my favourite writers!

>1 PaulCranswick: Sad that two of the monotheistic creeds followed Abraham (guy who would stab his son to death instead of himself)

in place of Noah or Joseph...

You are running through a great period of music. (El Dorado would be my favorite ELO and I was just listening to it after a long time a couple days ago)

I just finished Bel Canto this morning. I know you are thinking of reading it. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Happy new thread, Paul. I remain in awe of your productivity.

Happy New thread, Paul. What is it now? Three hundred twenty ninth? 😂

Wishing Hani a relatively easy bout of Covid and a quick and full recovery.

I’m avoiding the news these days, though it’s impossible not to be aware of the devastating losses among the civilians in both Israel and Gaza. I find myself in tears so many times every day over it.

Have a good weekend, and don’t forget to post a pic of Pip when you get the chance.

>53 ctpress: I came up with 100 artists that I would want to include Carsten, but even there there are a fair few that I have probably have overlooked.

>54 alcottacre: In certain places in the world the value of human life seems to be measured differently, doesn't it, Stasia? I cannot conceive of the thinking or mind set that would actively desire the demise of someone because of their ethinicity, race, gender, sexuality, creed - aren't we all creatures of this earth together?

>55 torontoc: I didn't much enjoy his book My Michael but I have enjoyed whatever else of his I have sampled, Cyrel.

>56 m.belljackson: I am not a theologian, Marianne; there is good in all people and all creeds though organised religion has been the source of much evil and a lot of the atrocities committed are in the name of a supposedly loving God. The fanatics who rape, brutalize and murder whilst screaming "Allah u'Akhbar" dishonour a religion whose very name stands for peace.

>57 RBeffa: Eldorado would merit consideration as my favourite ELO album too as it is the first of their great records. I would almost certainly go with Out of the Blue or A New World Record though.
I am looking forward to Bel Canto, Ron, and will try to get to it next month.

>58 ArlieS: Thank you, Arlie. I am not expecting to be overly productive today! Brunch with Belle at the French bakery followed by a day immersed in reading.

>59 Storeetllr: This tough Northern Englishman is tearful too looking at news reports these days, Mary. The taking of sides between peoples sickens and saddens me immensely. We can have sympathy for the Palestinian plight and still condemn the brutality committed by terrorists ostensibly in their name. We can still support the people of Israel, its right to grieve for and defend its people and its right to exist whilst recognizing that it has an eventual need to find an accommodation with its neighbours.

I will put a picture of Pip up today. xx

Happy new thread, Paul. Fingers crossed that Hani recovers from her bout quickly and thoroughly. She has grandmothering to be done!

>64 Familyhistorian: Thanks Meg. Yeah she is missing the little one already!

In October 1982 Supertramp released its last album with founding member Roger Hodgson. Famous Last Words....



It was a patchy effort but included one of my mum's favourite songs "My Kind of Lady"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0FXu6bv_8k

October 1983 was another strong month but I will choose Merseyside based China Crisis - Working With Fire and Steel.



They were a much underrated band. And that is not just "Wishful Thinking"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldQpRMegYc0

October 1984 was stronger still with a few of my absolute favourite albums released. Lloyd Cole's "Rattlesnakes" followed me through college, Big Country and Frankie Goes to Hollywood released their best albums as did Bronski Beat and Julian Lennon. It is Ireland's U2 though this month with The Unforgettable Fire



It is a special record for me for two main reasons.
Firstly, it was playing when I first kissed my first love at a party.
Secondly the song "MLK" was the lullaby I used to sing my children to sleep with.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDH7oD_AQW8

In October 1985 Midge Ure released his solo debut; The Gift



The song "If I Was" displays his talents more than sufficiently.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1JrRwKeAP4

In October 1986, The Housemartins were darlings of the UK University circuit - one of the best bands I have ever seen live and they used to bill themselves as the 4th best in Hull. Their debut album was London 0 Hull 4



Their most successful original single was "Happy Hour". Great fun.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KfDoPEN7n5k

Happy student days!!!

October 1987 also gave us a very good Springsteen album and a fantastic release by The Communards.
It is Newcastle's Sting with his album ....Nothing Like the Sun



It has to be "Englishman in New York"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d27gTrPPAyk

October 1988 gave us that super group Traveling Wilburys whose album I really enjoyed but cannot choose instead of Fisherman's Blues by The Waterboys, although I did like it better at the time.



I play the title track almost as much as any other song in my collection.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pM5LASoFb1w

Scottish crooning band Wet Wet Wet close out the eighties with Holding Back the River



Lead singer Marti Pellow was a great singer, at least until heroin took its toll. This is "Sweet Surrender".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXxvpPVr9BQ

Finally concentrating today on The Bee Sting and I read almost a third of the book in a sitting. Let's see how close I get to finishing it today. So far it is certainly better than Study for Obedience but I don't think it matches Prophet Song from the shortlist.

Paul Heaton from the Housemartins see >70 PaulCranswick: left the group to form The Beautiful South. Choke was their second album released in October 1990.



This is the lovely "A Little Time"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lGzJwksSv4

I'm liking the latest batch of music offerings, Paul. Mind you, I'm a child of the eighties.

>69 PaulCranswick: Most people forget that, together with Bob Geldof, Midge Ure came up with Band Aid and Live Aid.

My favourite album from October 1991 is Warren Zevon's "Mr. Bad Example" but I am going to go with Erasure and their album, Chorus.



Sing along, foot tapping magic. Wonderfully camp and none the worse for that. Andy Bell and Vince Clarke should get more credit for the pop music they produced through these years.

"Love to Hate You"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ygLy02y7_n8

>76 humouress: We are sneaking into the nineties, Nina. I have been listening to music all weekend and am feeling nostalgic and surprised at some of the emotions and memories stirred up by some of the music. I always consider the early 90s as a musical wasteland but it is better than I recall.

I like the Soul Asylum album but October 1992 has to be REM and their finest record Automatic for the People.



I could have chosen almost any of these songs but I have to choose "Everybody Hurts" - delicious.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rOiW_xY-kc

Crowded House followed up the excellent "Wood Face" with Together Alone in October 1993.



I was initially disappointed with this record because it didn't have the immediacy of the album it followed, but it has held up well.

This is "Nails in My Feet"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqxobKeH4Zs

October 1994 is a straight run-off between The Cranberries and Suede - although Dog Man Star is the better album the best song on both albums is on No Need to Argue by Dolores O'Riordan and her band



That song is "Zombie"

I met Dolores in the early 1990s in Tralee - she is much missed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ejga4kJUts

Two brilliant Britpop albums surfaced in 1995 - Oasis with "What's the Story Morning Glory" - one of the albums of the decade but in my view it was bettered by Sheffield's Pulp with Different Class. It was indeed.



Jarvis Cocker remains supercool. This is "Misshapes"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0DRch3YLh0

It is 1996 and I am happily married but about to go off the rails and choose The Rutles and Archaeology as the album of the month of October for this year.



Beatles spoof and it is tremendous. This is "Shangri-La" which has elements of A Day in the Life, Strawberry Fields, For No One, All You Need is Love, Mr Kite and Lucy in the Sky.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sc2IEWZjeGU

October 1997 and I have to choose USA's Everclear and their breakthrough So Much for the Afterglow.



This is the lead single "Everything to Everyone"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1vQJFF2TKQ

>72 PaulCranswick: bands I know, bands I don't, but this one, you get a bang on the ear. One of my faves.

>85 RBeffa: It is a great track, Ron isn't it?

In October 1998 let's drive along the highways of Sweden with The Cardigans with Gran Tourismo



This is the contagious "My Favourite Game"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9WgtlgGAgs

Btw before I get any complaints I know it is not Sweden in the video.

James were a fantastic band. Though from the wrong side of the Pennine hills, Tim Booth is a staunch Leeds United fan.

Their 1999 album Millionaires is one of their very best.



This is the album track "Strangers" - one of the best songs they never released as a single.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q75mhIIUYHk

I will tiptoe into the new century as I close this evening and return to The Bee Sting.



Many of you will know that I love American country lady singer songwriters - Nanci Griffith, Lori McKenna, Alison Moorer, Iris Dement and others. One of my favourites is Laura Cantrell and she released her debut Not the Tremblin' Kind in October 2000.

This is the title song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WG57UaMkrDc

Well, nearly 100 messages in, but my first visit, so… happy new thread!

Happy Monday! You future dweller you! :)

The Housemartins! You are the first person I've known in a long time that has heard of them. I love them.

And James. They were right in my wheelhouse too. Our James story is when Laura and I were first dating, we went to a Neil Young concert @ the Greek. James was one of the opening bands (yeah, kind of a genre mis-match, but we enjoyed them). When they were done, some jack-hole in front of us started yelling the "Hey Hey Bye Bye" thing. And Laura told him off. Thought I, the bookish introvert, was going to have to get into a fight with the guy, luckily it didn't escalate that far. 30ish years later we still talk about it. LOL

>79 PaulCranswick: I might be in the minority, but I've always thought "Nightswimming" was the best track on that album.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahJ6Kh8klM4

>90 drneutron: Better not so late than never, Jim. Always great to see you DocRoc.

>91 mahsdad: That does seem an unusual combination, Jeff, to pair them with Neil Young (who I also like quite a bit by the way). The Housemartins were great fun and made number 1 in the UK with an acapella version of "Caravan of Love".

>92 amanda4242: I could have easily chosen that one too, Amanda, or Sidewinder or Man in the Moon for that matter too. Their best record. Period.

>36 PaulCranswick: I completely agree with you, Paul.
And the little booklet impressed me very much and made me think.
It will certainly not be my last by this author, thank you very much for bringing him to my attention.

Happy new thread!

>96 foggidawn: Thank you, Foggi!

>79 PaulCranswick: Automatic For the People is certainly REM's finest album. The band had quite a few good songs spread over the years but I don't think anything as a whole got close to this. I bought my first CD walkman, discman they were probably called, and played this album over and over. You talk about commute albums now and then Paul, this was one of mine. I had a cassette adapter so I could play the CD through my camry's cassette player.

Great stuff

>98 RBeffa: Yeah, I can see that, Ron. It wasn't a commute album for me but I can certainly see how it could have been. It is a very cohesive collection of songs

>39 PaulCranswick: Me too Paul! I loved that whole "Concerto for a Rainy Day" side.

>42 PaulCranswick: Another favorite! Did you know that a lot of their early songs like "On The Cover of the Rolling Stone" were written by the poet Shel Silverstein?

Happy New Thread also!!

>100 hredwards: I probably listened to side two the most, Harold and there was no hits on that one; unlike the other three. "Night in the City", "Starlight", "Jungle", "Stepping Out" great and underrated.

>101 hredwards: Indeed so, Harold. I used to think he was actually in the band!

>102 hredwards: Thank you, dear fellow.

How do, PC, on my first thread visit. Hoping your good lady wife is trudging through her COVIDity with less irritation by now.

>105 richardderus: Nice to see you, RD. She remains grumpy and still testing positive.

>106 PaulCranswick: Grumpiness is perfectly understandable. One feels truly grotty and as though dragged backwards through a holly hedge by a team of oxen.

>107 richardderus: She'd probably quite enjoy that, RD!

My son Kyran is 24 today - 18 October.

>108 PaulCranswick: I send the newly-minted quarter-centenarian many good birthday wishes.

>109 richardderus: Thank you RD. He is in good spirits actually and has already made his birthday present request.

>108 PaulCranswick: Best wishes for a happy Birthday to Kyran, the young uncle!

>111 quondame: Thanks Susan. The young uncle wants a PS5 - I said how old are you, ten?!

>112 PaulCranswick: No want shaming! And maybe asking for something also enjoyed by someone younger he's still allowing you (asking you for)
parent status.

Happy New Thread , Paul. Happy Birthday to Kyran .

>113 quondame: Shame / complain or otherwise, Susan, his benefactor has already transferred the money to his mother in order to attain his wants!

>114 vancouverdeb: Thank you, Deb. He is the next best reader in the family - I had a very interesting discussion with him on the telephone on Sunday on the subject of Elegy poems (plus Milton, Mary Shelley and Ann Radcliffe). He was a little taken aback that I was able to quote from Grey's Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard ... The curfew tolls the knell of parting day / The lowing herd wind slowly o'er the lea / The plowman homeward plods his weary way, / And leaves the world to darkness and to me. Kids don't do that sort of poetry recitation any more.

>115 PaulCranswick: I live among a couple of communities that play through costuming and role-playing and love games and crafts and any number of pursuits that are considered less adult than professional team sports and golf or skiing, and love all sorts of toys. Also I personally felt badly used by being told I was "too old" for something by some arbitrary standard when we were supposedly being encouraged to be different from "them". So, well, yes, that is a bit of a sore spot.

>116 quondame: Difference is, Susan, I was just having banter with my son, whom I love to distraction. He knows I was kidding him and he has already ordered his present. We Cranswicks (Hani possibly excepted!) are not an exceptionally thin-skinned bunch.

In October 2001 Starsailor released their debut album Love is Here



It is a very accomplished first record and includes this moving track "Alcoholic"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UA6C_0ERHww

Happy Birthday to Kyran. He is in good company with many who love their PS5. It has to be so hard to have your children spread out around the world. I think being states apart is too much. My children are all close for which I am thankful. We just celebrated my youngest granddaughter’s 15th birthday. We all were there!

Welsh singer songwriter David Gray should be more internationally renowned.
In October 2002 he released the album A New Day at Midnight



This is "The Other Side" which is in response to the passing of his father who died of cancer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsLcCYf0OLA

>119 Kristelh: Thanks Kristel. We had a group video call this morning which was really good (Belle and I in Kuala Lumpur / Hani in Chesterfield / Yasmyne and a gurgling Pip in Sheffield / Kyran in London and his lovely girlfriend Yasmeen in Sacramento). We had a lot of laughs tinged with a bit of sadness at being so separated. It was funny because Yasmyne joined the call at the appointed time but was in the process (apparently) of breast-feeding Pip. Hani being entirely oblivious and a little blinkered kept asking to see Pip which of course she needed to finish eating first!!

I have been going through my cumbersome TBR and trying to think of ways of encouraging myself to read more off my shelves rather than year on year adding more than I complete.

I am thinking (and I have taken this hint from a few of our peers) of trying to read one book originally published in every one of the last 150 years. i.e. 1874 to 2023 (without repeating authors). With 5,485 books on the shelves I have plenty to choose from and have plenty of choices for all years.

I will spread out the challenge equally over the period so that in Month 1 I will read 1874, 1889, 1904, 1919, 1934, 1949, 1964, 1979, 1994, 2009.

I plan to start with :

1874 - The Conquest of Plassans by Emile Zola which is one of the Rougon Macquart books (number four in the series) I am less familiar with.



It will not prevent me from reading more than just that book from that year during the challenge period as the book will only count following the sequence I have proscribed myself. It should also enable me to get to more 1001 books than I have been doing recently.

In October 2003 the ethereal sound of Belle & Sebastian reemerged with their sixth album Dear Catastrophe Waitress.



This is the song that could apply to so many of us here "Wrapped Up in Books"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBU-MxydbWQ

I am going to start Small Worlds soon. I think you had thought of reading that one this month?

>124 Kristelh: That has been on my reading table so many times, Kristel. I may try to get to it alongside you.

Happy Birthday Kyran!!

>126 hredwards: Thank you, Harold

>122 PaulCranswick: Never read that one...nor am I sure I've ever heard the title before. hmmm

I will be really really interested to know what the read offers to you.

>117 PaulCranswick: Of course he knows you love him. I don't doubt at all. And yet. Parents are not the best judge everything even about a most beloved and supported offspring.

>128 richardderus: I have not yet read anything by Zola that I didn't take something from, RD. He had a great skill for describing the seedier side of humankind.

>129 quondame: Oh, I don't ever pretend to understand him. It is part of the joy as well as the frustration of being his Dad. He is a sensitive soul, impassioned and takes very firm positions on most issues that he has thought pretty deeply about. He is anti-organized religion, like me, but far more vocal in expressing his view much to his mother's chagrin.

Belated happy birthday to Kyran!

>122 PaulCranswick: That is my next book in the Rougons-Macquarts series. A few years ago a publisher started the series in new translation, but didn't get beyond the third book. So I am stuck, most recent edition is from 1969.

>131 FAMeulstee: Thanks Anita.

I am reading the Oxford World's Classics version with 2014 translation by Helen Constantine.

He is not everybody's cup of tea but I must admit to liking James Blunt's first album Back to Bedlam released in October 2004



It is not the most famous song on the record but my favourite track is "Goodbye My Lover"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVyggTKDcOE

One of Paul Weller's most underrated albums is As Is Now which he released in October 2005



A good mix of rockers, rootsy and gentle numbers. As a mellow fellow I have picked this one ; "I Wanna Make It Alright"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xt3PMrgNtvA

I like very much some of the American Indie bands that surfaced in the first decade of the century. One such band is Cold War Kids from Long Beach.
In October 2006 they released Robbers & Cowards.



The album included "Hang Me Up to Dry"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrrGKR8Xii4

>135 PaulCranswick: Cold War Kids are a great band! I'm so pleased that one other person's heard of them, as they get zero attention nowadays, but confess that I'm unsurprised it's you that's the other guy who knows of them.

>136 richardderus: It is a sort of compliment I guess dear fellow or just proof that we are a couple of geeks!

>137 PaulCranswick: I'm goin' with the shared geekery theory myownself.

BOOK #136



The Bee Sting by Paul Murray
Date of Publication : 2013
Origin of Author : Ireland
Pages : 643 pp

What a big-hearted book. Murray writes people well. He understands how they think, how they feel, their goodness as well as their foibles and how the former cannot always save us from the latter.

Can we change our lives? Are there key moments of watershed that if we choose differently our whole life outcome will be different? What hand does fate, chance and ill-fortune play in our destinies?

He raises these questions and more but he doesn't really answer them....well because you can't really do so can you?

Certainly too long and a little way off my idea of an award winner, but, for all that, an important book. Should it beat Prophet Song? I don't think so and I am always wrong about these things.

By the way I am perhaps in the minority in thinking that the ending made perfect sense and fit the novel splendidly.

>138 richardderus: I think that you are onto something there, RD.

>112 PaulCranswick: Interesting idea, I shall enjoy reading your thoughtsas you go Paul.

>139 PaulCranswick:
If they take an author's entire oeuvre into consideration for the Booker then Paul Murray will probably win, simply because he has been nominated for the Booker previously while Paul Lynch hasn't. I am really enjoying my reading of Skippy Dies and now will have to put Bee Sting on my TBR list.

Hi Paul, a very belated Happy New Thread, mate.

>141 Caroline_McElwee: Thanks Caroline. First book almost done.

>142 benitastrnad: Which they don't, Benita. It is Murray's third novel which is hardly a large body of work although two of the three being smash hits is pretty good.
Surely it would be tipped towards Paul Harding in that respect with a Pulitzer under his belt already.

>143 johnsimpson: Thank you John. Always great to see you.

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/354535

>139 PaulCranswick: I'm glad you enjoyed The Bee Sting, Paul. Nice review. I'm fine with the ending, though it took me a little to decide that. I watched a book tube fellow explain what he thought that most likely ending was, and couple of other possibilities as well. With our luck, the judges will choose something like Study for Obedience for the Booker Prize.

>115 PaulCranswick: I only had one teacher in Grade 6 that required everyone in the class to memorize and recite poetry to the class. If, High Flight and I Wandered as Lonely as a Cloud. I'm not sure it really benefited anyone, but I still recall most of those poems. At least you have someone in your family to discuss books with. Dave reads, but pretty much all mysteries. Both of my kids say " I don't read". They read, but not books. My sibs are all readers, but not so we would discuss books.

>146 SilverWolf28: Thanks Silver.

>147 vancouverdeb: At the moment with three of the shortlist done it is anything but Bernstein's book.

Mental gymnastics are important, I think, Deb. The brain is a muscle and we should use it and exercise it as such. Memory is a strange thing but isn't it strange how people with smart phones cannot remember anyone's number anymore and the calculator has lead to people's mental arithmetic skills falling away atrociously.
Similarly reading leads to better vocabulary skills, improved spelling and articulation too. Plus it is pretty darn enjoyable too. It is a special feeling to get gripped by a book, isn't it?

October 2007 and it was Revival time with a returning John Fogerty.



I remember playing the album three times in a row whilst driving from KL to JB and this one is my favourite track. "Gunslinger"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZ_lKjzAOlM

Still very distinctive.

October 2008 saw the wonderful Ray LaMontagne release his third album Gossip in the Grain



This is the lead single and probably Ray's most well known song "You Are the Best Thing".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfHoyFQLC5g

Mumford and Sons debut Sigh No More is one of my absolute favourite debut albums ever. Is it really as long ago as October 2009.



Almost impossible to pick one track but I will just about go for "Roll Away Your Stone"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUsFijbyouo

Elton John & Leon Russell were not the most immediate pairing that spring to my mind as a dream duet but BOY did it work.

The Union was released in October 2010.



This is a live version of the beautiful "When Love is Dying" (with a visibly waning Russell).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcCFdD1Fa9k

October 2011 and Florence and the Machine released their second album Ceremonials



Baroquely beautiful, bountiful music.

This is "Shake it Out"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbN0nX61rIs

Some people - you can tell by their names - were always marked out for stardom......and then there was Jake Bugg. Released in October 2012.



This is "Simple as This"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWNg5JnSDbE

Not my favourite album of theirs but Arcade Fire are always interesting.

Reflektor was released in October 2013



This is "We Exist"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bgtEbcCeD28

October 2014 was an introspective time and not so many singers are more introspective than Ben Howard. He released his second album I Forget Where We Were.



This is a compelling live version of his first single from the album "The End of the Affair"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4yh2NZ0kJw

Dave Gahan was the lead singer of Depeche Mode and what a singer.

In October 2015 he released his second collaboration with Soulsavers Angels & Ghosts.



This is a brilliant album with production quality beyond belief.

This is "All of This and Nothing"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXzppoqAaRc

And speaking of lead singers Bright Eyes had plenty of moments but I much prefer listening to the stripped down sound of Conor Oberst solo.

His Ruminations album was released in October 2016.



This is "Tachycardia"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnxqsZcczfA

Weezer have a frontman with a name like a drowning politician - Rivers Cuomo.

Some of their music is breezy power pop, some of it is grungy and some of it is difficult to categorize.

In October 2017 they released Pacific Daydream - a bit like a supersonic version of The Beach Boys



This is the slightly experimental "Feels Like Summer".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efPWrIvzGgc

Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper a combination a bit like Fish and Jam but somehow it was sensational.
Their update of A Star is Born was riveting



I have personal reasons why the song "Shallow" is very important to me, shared as it was with someone very dear to me who is no longer with me, having passed away from an embolism to her lungs in 2021. I cannot listen to the song without crying.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bo_efYhYU2A

Alison Moorer is a favourite of mine. Great songwriter with a crystal clear voice.

In October 2019 she released the very personal collection Blood

to go with her memoir of the same name.

This is an extended live version of the title song with her explaining some of the background. Heart rending.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqOFf5xLDJM

In October 2020 at the height of COVID Jeff Tweedy released Love is the King



This is title track with a very clever video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHklzxUtLh4

Jerry Cantrell is a voice that speaks for the plains and prairies; electrified.

In October 2021 he released Brighten.



This is "Siren Song"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=doCLB_wHAtw

Wrapping up my journey through the October releases of my lifetime is Arctic Monkeys from Sheffield. They released "The Car", their seventh album in October 2022.



It included "Body Paint"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zgEObNc_-k

My Friday lunchtime additions:

396. The Entrepreneurial State by Mariana Mazzucato
397. Maror by Lavie Tidhar
398. Land of Milk and Honey by E Pam Zhang

>6 PaulCranswick: A nice collection! I'm slowly gaining on you, though this month I'm sticking with horror novels...

>166 ocgreg34: Great to see you Greg - I suppose it is the right month for horror novels!

Listen to David Gray’s White Ladder today - really good!

BOOK #137



The Conquest of Plassans by Emile Zola
Date of Publication : 1874
Origin of Author : France
Pages : 302 pp
150 Years of Books : 1/150

Zola wrote four of my absolute favourite novels and - I think - four of the greatest novels, certainly of the nineteenth century. These are Germinal, La Terre, La Bete Humaine and L'Assommoir.

This, the fourth in the Rougon Macquart of twenty novels doesn't quite reach those heady heights but it is an excellent read nonetheless with plotting and characterization par excellence.

Small town politics, venal machinations and corruptive greed abound as a priest arrives in Plassans to lodge with the mercantile Mourets. It is also a novel of some prescience given the calamity that ensues when religion mixes with politics. We have enough examples of that today.

Plays on the emotions right to its splendidly ruinous conclusion although there is tragi-comedy in that the only relatively good person in the whole shebang is driven from his home and into the asylum by those professing his betterment.

Recommended.

>168 drneutron: It is the first thing I ever bought by David Gray, Jim, and because of the song Babylon which received a lot of airplay at the time. "Sail Away" is a great song too IMHO.

BOOK #138



The Dreadful Monster and its Poor Relations by Julian Hoppit
Date of Publication : 2021
Origin of Author : UK
Pages : 223 pp

A history of taxation and expenditure riveting? Hardly. It is an important subject mind being the glue that holds nations together - at one and the same time alienating those who feel they over-contribute and at the same providing succour to those unable to provide for themselves.

The relation of the United Kingdom to its then constituent parts to the manner in which the subjects of those parts were diversely (or not) taxed and how the central governments in London divvied up those proceeds tells in part the story of how Scotland was initially solidified into Union but how Ireland much less perfectly was not.

It also demonstrates the implosion of economies of war. The British economy was crippled by three wars in a century and a half (the Napoleonic Wars, the misnamed Great War and World War II). The first war sowed the seeds for the eventual breakup of the Union in the need to levy taxes to pay off the cost of the war timed with the re-integration of a martial workforce in an increasingly mechanized economy. The second war removed the mirage for ever of British economic superiority leaving the Union in hock and unable to stay together. The third war lost the UK its Empire and its position as a Great Power as well as paving the way for a much more egalitarian society.

Would I recommend you to read this? Students of history may get some benefit as may nationalists and republicans (in a non-American sense) but generally not. As my review can reveal - I was fascinated and horrified in almost equal parts.

>169 PaulCranswick: Balzac-ian contempt for, and impatience with, do-gooders running so deep in me as to form my psychic marrow, I wonder if I'd survive this read without another cerebro-vascular accident.

>171 PaulCranswick: I *KNOW* I wouldn't survive that one. The topic alone causes my outrage circuits to overheat.

>172 richardderus: There is a fair bit of hyper-ventilation reading that Zola. I would also agree that of the books of his I have read it is the one that reminds me most of Balzac.

>171 PaulCranswick: I'm tempted, but not quite enough, especially it's not the kind of work that would turn up in a library in the United states of Insularity.

Good luck with your plan to get your TBR read, Paul!

Good luck with reading from the TBR, Paul! That's my current focus, but there are lots of shiny new books, aren't there.

>174 ArlieS: re: >171 PaulCranswick: As it's not in the Los Angeles City library system you are dead right. So sad.

>174 ArlieS: An interesting history actually, Arlie, because it certainly helped to explain for me - with my Irish antecedents - why the Union with Britain was doomed to fail.

>175 Familyhistorian: Thanks Meg. 149 books to go although I think that I will finish another one at least today.

>176 banjo123: I won't stop adding books to be sure, Rhonda, but probably at a slower pace and I do need to give some concentration on to some of those books I should have read an age ago.

>177 quondame: Well at least you have a library system, Susan! Cannot claim that in Kuala Lumpur sadly.

150 YEARS; 150 BOOKS; 150 AUTHORS; 15 MONTHS

Done : 1874

Next up is 15 years later 1889.
In that year Robert Louis Stevenson published The Master of Ballantrae and that is what I am now reading.

>179 PaulCranswick: 3 to which I subscribe and more to which I could. And I am daily grateful for the bounty.

>181 quondame: Oh Susan, I am so jealous. With my five and a half thousand unread books on the shelves I am still not satisfied!

Paul, according to Wikipedia , Kuala Lumpur does have quite a few public libraries. http://kllibrary.dbkl.gov.my/client/en_US/pkl Is just that the books are written in Malaysian? I do hope that one of the books that we like will win the Booker, Paul. Either Prophet Song or Bee Sting, in my opinion. I'm glad you enjoyed The Covenant of Water so much that it is at the apex of your books for the decade! I'm not sure what books would be the best of the decade for me. I'd have to have a bit of a think on that.

>183 vancouverdeb: There is the national library which is mainly a reference library for the nations documents. There is an exceptionally small lending section which I am a member of but I am pretty sure that I have more books in my home.

>184 PaulCranswick: Oh, how disappointing, Paul! You'll be glad to return to the UK where they do have proper public libraries. I sure enjoy my library( ies) .

>179 PaulCranswick: That's just an excuse to raid Books K, Paul. While Singapore does have the National Library system, when I first became a member I could never find books that I wanted to read and the shelving system (still) frustrates me so I - like you - started filling my own shelves.

When we lived overseas I loved being able to use the public libraries there and then I discovered Overdrive (now Libby) which I could use with my existing library cards. And though I prefer to read physical books, I have access to so many more e-books on Overdrive. Plus I don't have to fork out the dollars, in case I don't like a book (because I find it impossible to re-home them once I own them). And, especially after the lockdown, even the Singapore library has a good selection of books now. I've been able to get most of the book bullets that I've been hit with on LT.

Did you watch the rugby last night? What a heartbreaker.

>185 vancouverdeb: I am well enough served by the bookshops though, Deb, to be honest!

>186 humouress: An element of truth there, Nina!
Singapore is definitely ahead of Malaysia although the local library system does cater a little better for those who prefer to read Islamic books, self-help and Bahasa pulp fiction.
South Africa rode their luck a little but hats off to them too. Our boys played with pluck but it was not quite enough.

BOOK #139



The Master of Ballantrae by Robert Louis Stevenson
Date of Publication : 1889
Origin of Author : UK
Pages : 219 pp
150 Years of Books : 2/150

There is no doubt Stevenson was a master storyteller (Jekyll, Long John Silver and David Balfour are memorable in the extreme) but here he overdoes himself.

The story - a tale of fraternal struggle and cruelty - has more ups and downs and changes of course than a game of Snakes & Ladders and has a similar level of logical sense. The Principals are very close to caricature and the potentially most effective and sympathetic, Henry Durie acts in ways that are simply unbelievable.

Worth reading but not re-reading.

150 YEARS; 150 BOOKS; 150 AUTHORS; 15 MONTHS

Done : 1874, 1889

Next up is 15 years later 1904.
In that year G.K. Chesterton published Napoleon of Notting Hill and that is what I am now reading.




1904 saw an unusual number of serious metropolitan fires with Alesund, Baltimore, Madison and Toronto all greatly damaged. It was year when Japan's attack on Port Arthur started the Russo-Japanese War (a feat of sneakiness they were to repeat almost 38 years later at Pearl Harbour). The year saw the first performance of Madame Butterfly, it saw the signing of the Entente Cordiale and the start of the building of the Panama Canal as Teddy Roosevelt got re-elected. Mr. Rolls met Mr Royce and the Olympics were hosted by St. Louis.
Salvador Dali, Dr Seuss, Cary Grant, Glenn Miller, Pablo Neruda, Deng Xiaoping, Reynhard Heydrich, Robert J Oppenheimer, Joan Crawford and Graham Greene were among those born in this year.
Anton Chekhov, Herbert Von Bismark, Henry Morton Stanley, Theodor Herzl, Kate Chopin, Antonin Dvorak were amongst those to pass away.

>188 PaulCranswick:. I was expecting more from that one too, not on my list of books that I would reread.

>190 Kristelh: In order to be successful with such a story there needs to be one character that has sufficient redeemable features that you will plug along in hope that he/she prevails. He definitely took that one character in the wrong direction.

>188 PaulCranswick: I never made it through the damn thing. Even at 23, life was too short to suffer through twirled mustachios and jaw-dropping coincidences. Kudos for having the patience.

>192 richardderus: It seemed longer than it little more than 200 pages, RD. There were moments of Stevenson living up to his storytelling chops but they were few and far between.

>193 PaulCranswick: It's that short?! In my memory I gave up on p587.

All caught up with you again, Paul. I love that you can have poetry discussions with Kyran. All three of my children are readers but alas no poetry buffs in the family. I couldn't agree more with your statement somewhere upthread..."reading leads to better vocabulary skills, improved spelling and articulation too. Plus it is pretty darn enjoyable too. It is a special feeling to get gripped by a book, isn't it?" Well said my friend!

>194 richardderus: Fairly small print but, yes, 228 pp if you count the Appendix.

>195 Donna828: Lovely to see you, Donna.
Of course being a member of this group I am an enthusiastic reader but a worried one too when I rarely see the younger generations with a book and book stores of renown like The Tattered Cover closing shop.

Hi Paul! Finally catching up a bit after two mostly-absent weeks. Hope you are well... as always, I'm in awe at the pace of both your reading and your music listening. I find you most inspiring.

I'm so far behind on your numerous posts that I'm losing track of the links! So I just won't use any...

I concur on Bel Canto... one of my favorites. I actually listened to it, rather than read a paper copy, and found it to be very compelling. I'd recommend that approach if you ever enjoy audiobooks!

I'm so sorry Hani had Covid... I think a lot of people are having an easier time of it, now that many people's immune systems have figured out how to respond - I hope that was true for her. Surely she’s on the mend by now…

So, so agree about Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper and their remake of A Star is Born… brilliant.

And I could comment on many, many of your wonderful posts about music, but suffice it to say I deeply admire both your knowledge and your taste.

And finally, thank you for your sensitive words about the chaos in Israel Palestine… such tragedy all around.

>197 PlatinumWarlock: Thank you for that lovely post, Lavinia.

I did tear up listening to Bradley & Lady G - it really is a wonderfully emotional piece - the bit where Lady Gaga takes the song up a notch is one of my favourite musical moments.

My friend's death brought to a close a very dark but hugely compelling part of my life and one I found difficult to recover from. It is also a period that made Belle and I inseparable and made Hani and I re-evaluate everything and realize we were on wrong paths that needed to re-coalesce. Thankfully we are in a much better place together and appreciate each other more than ever before.

>160 PaulCranswick: I agree re the film and I loved that song. However, the rest of the score wasn't particularly stand out compared to the earlier versions, all of which I like.

>199 Caroline_McElwee: I did like some of the other songs too, Caroline. Streisand and Kristofferson also offered us some good stuff.

BOOK #140



The Napoleon of Notting Hill by G.K. Chesterton
Date of Publication : 1904
Origin of Author : UK
Pages : 192 pp
150 Years of Books : 3/150

Chesterton wrote beautifully and those who haven't tried them I would heartily recommend the Father Brown books.

This "predicts" a future 80 years ahead of 1904 (ominously given future literature, 1984) where everything is pretty much as it was - except hereditary succession has been dismissed in favour of some sort of arbitrary selection. A new King is chosen and his idea of a jape ends in unexpected circumstances when he devolves power to the separate London boroughs and one of the "Provosts" (Notting Hill) takes him seriously.

Nonsense but on occasions genuinely funny. Paul Beatty and Percival Everett would be wise to read him more carefully and learn from his ability to write with humour.

Are we still on for reading By the Sea by Abdulrazak Gurnah around November 15th? I will need to request it soon so that it will be here when we are ready to read it.

>29 PaulCranswick: I very much liked the music of the Group called Bread. They had one particular song regarding clouds. Everytime I travel on a plane, the words to this song return.

Thinking of you and your emotional support for Israel. Today's news mentioned that two more hostages were released.

>198 PaulCranswick: Your emotional expression of your happiness that you and Hani were able to work through some tough times, brought tears.

Sometimes I think of silly, stupid arguments Will and I had that created a lot of difficult feelings that stung for a long time. Now that he is gone, I do wish that those stinging actions and words would have been worked through in a different way. It is too late now to go back. You and Hani did the right thing in working through things and knowing your love was strong.

>1 PaulCranswick: I am going to read a book by Amos Oz this month in honour of the state of Israel and its brave people. Not all Muslims wish you ill. This one esteems you as the progenitor of the three main monotheistic creeds and for your wisdom, traditions, solidarity and generosity of spirit

Thank you, Paul. I am so heart-broken over what is happening in Israel and Gaza. I lived in Israel for a year and love that country and its people so much. Over half of my family are Israeli. Two of my dearest friends and their families live in Israel. One was actually coming to visit me this weekend (until the war broke out, that is). I haven't seen her for 21 years - since my last visit to Israel in 2001. My cousin's kibbutz was struck by a missile from Hamas last week, but fortunately she remains fine. However, she did evacuate with two other family members. I am terrified of what lies ahead for my family and friends in Israel. I can't stop watching the news.

I am currently reading a book by the israeli author Meir Shalev. I hadn't planned ahead to read it, but found it just by chance in a huge donation of books that I received from a friend for my Little Free Library.

I am also currently also watching Israeli movies. I just discovered that my library has a system (Kanopy) by which its members can stream movies without ads and free of charge. These are not movies of great commercial success, but tend more toward movies which have won various film festivals so they are really good movies without the "Hollywood/Bollywood" content.

For news about Israel, I can't take too much of it at once so I just follow breaking news on i24 which is the Israeli news channel. Hoping and praying for the release of all the hostages. *deep breath*

>202 benitastrnad: I am fine with that one, Benita and the date suits me too.

>203 Whisper1: I liked Bread too, Linda. In fact I saw David Gates, their original lead singer, perform his and their songs just after the birth of Belle (some 19 years ago!).
There are occasions when you have to take a stand and a side in an issue. I find support for Hamas by anyone obscene and wrong-headed. If Israel don't put an end to that organization, they will never sleep safely in their beds.
I have shared with you separately, Linda, on some of my personal travails at that time but I am very grateful that Hani and I were able to work through things together. She has the biggest heart of any person I have ever known.
In the final analysis we will remember the good times and the warm (even sometimes the mundane glories) moments whilst overlooking those irritations we faced. They are not important when we look back on a special relationship lovingly shared. I am sure Will realized that, my dear friend, and looks down on you with protective care.

>204 SqueakyChu: I don't have family there, Madeline, and I also don't have, to my knowledge any Jewish antecedents, but I greatly admire the fortitude, bravery, resourcefulness and brilliance of its people.
For me the existence of our very civilization is at stake. Do we live in peace with each other and tolerate the various points of view and belief systems within an internationally accepted rule of law or do we give free reign to terrorism.
The failure of parts of the Western media to condemn the barbarous attack on Israel by the Hamas disgusts and saddens me. I am not anti-Palestinian and this is not an Israel-Gaza war as parts of the media reports it but an Israel-Hamas war. The Palestinians need to rise up and throw off the yoke of these monsters and the rest of the world, Israel included, will help them.
I daily pray that the outcome in that troubled region will be one that results in a lasting peaceful coexistence.

>204 SqueakyChu:, >206 PaulCranswick:, Madeline, my heart and prayers are with you and your people. Everything Paul says, I say Amen.

>207 Kristelh: Nice, Kristel. xx

>207 Kristelh: Thank you, Kristel. It's rough.

Just checking in to see if you are okay, Paul. I finally have time to look at the threads and notice yours hasn't moved in a while which is not normal.

>209 SqueakyChu: I think that the Jewish people need all the support they can get at the moment, Kristel / Madeline.

I saw an interesting comment from an intellectual yesterday:

1) If Hamas / the Palestinians laid down all their weapons today what would be the result?
Answer : Peace

2) If the Israeli's laid down all their weapons today what would be the result?
Answer : Genocide.

>211 PaulCranswick: I missed seeing you post yesterday too and was worried about you. Excellent and true point Paul, which makes the responses here in the US and around the world so alarming.

>211 PaulCranswick: Thanks for checking up on me, Meg. I have had a couple of Court of Appeal cases on Bank Guarantees this week (1 win; 1 loss) plus a Statement of Claim to oversee in an arbitration so RL has ground me down. Also my reliable Number 2 in my site team is on emergency leave as his mum has stage 4 cancer and is finding things tough.

>212 Kristelh: Yes, Kristel, I don't understand some of the protestors at all if I am honest. You have liberal western ladies in short sleeved shirts protesting under a Taliban flag against Israel. The Taliban would put them to death quite happily.

>211 PaulCranswick: The second statement is sadly very true, but the first is not. It would not stop the colonising of the Westbank, and the killing of Palestines who stand in the way. I can't call that peace...

>215 FAMeulstee: I'm not sure that I quite adhere to the terminology of "colonising of the Westbank", Anita. The more extreme of the so-called settlers do need to be made to adhere to the law and I don't believe that the current Israeli Prime Minister is the right person to stop that, but I don't know a single Jewish person who has professed the extermination of the Palestinians and that is a difference between the Israelis and Hamas that we really need to take notice of because it really does matter.

>216 PaulCranswick:
I would also add that the Israeli's have been very careful to state, as official policy, that this is a war against Hamas. It is not a war against the Palestinians.

I read extensively about WWII and I find it interesting that during that war none of the Allies talked about Collateral Damage, or the fact that their bombing of Europe and Japan resulted in civilian casualties. I do realize that many of the War Conventions were signed after WWII, but it does seem a bit disingenuous that modern Americans don't know about our previous policies on civilian casualties. I also find it odd that millions of Americans watched the Oppenheimer movie and somehow didn't get that the central problem that many of the scientists on the Manhattan Project understood that their "device" would result in multitudes of civilian casualties. Perhaps they think that the movie Oppenheimer was fiction?

Happy Thursday Paul

>213 PaulCranswick: It's hard when RL gets in the way like that. Good to see that you have time to get back to posting.

>211 PaulCranswick: But is that comment true? It seems to me that whatever Hamas did, Israel would disbelieve they intended peace, and continue killing civilians in Gaza.

Even before this latest eruption - Israel has been treating Palestinians in areas they control at least as badly as the US, Canada and (I believe) Australia historically treated their own native inhabitants. They feel they have to do this "for their own safety", and the last Israeli PM seriously working for peace was assassinated by a fellow Israeli. I can't imagine Israeli hard liners feeling safe as long as there's anyone alive in Israel's occupied territories.

This is absolutely not intended to put all the blame on the Israelis - there's plenty to go round, shared by a lot of countries, Jewish, Muslim, and Christian. Nor do I see any prospect for a solution.

>217 benitastrnad: Previous policies? Tell that e.g. to Afghani civilians killed in drone attacks that may or may not have also killed someone the US regarded as an enemy combatant. Like every power, the US military routinely commits "collateral damage"; it does however sometimes try to convince US civilians that it's strictly aiming at military targets. Possibly it avoids intentionally aiming at civilian infrastructure (power plants, roads, etc.) even if it's of possible military use, but I frankly doubt it. It MAY however avoid the kind of bombing raid known from WW II, where the entire goal is to break civilans' will to fight.

The US military runs on what are acceptable losses of our own troops. Our own people. The idea of acceptable losses of people in pursuit of aggression horrifies me. I'm sure that's common among militaries, but I feel responsible for the US. one.

>217 benitastrnad: The problems for Israel are close to intractable when people are used as human shields. I saw an Australian news programme yesterday that tried to justify the practice by saying that Gaza is densely populated so how are they going to fire rockets away from the civilian population. The answer of course is not to have fired the rockets in the first place! The same people celebrating the attack on Israel are now calling on Israel to desist. It has to root out and remove Hamas. It is the Palestinian population who should have risen up and done that.

>218 The_Hibernator: Thanks Rachel and the very same to you (even though I am receiving your message here on Friday morning!

>219 Familyhistorian: Yep, it has been a tough week, Meg!

>220 ArlieS: Arlie sometimes by the terminology we use we give away our sympathies. My sympathies are with the Jewish people and I am unequivocal and unapologetic on this. The use of words like "occupation" and more sadly "this latest eruption" (really Arlie? because for me what Hamas did on October 7th was unprecedented and cannot be played down) suggests that yours lie more with the Palestinians. Those sympathies are perfectly understandable and I also ache for the innocent Palestinians.
On occupation I would just remind that Jerusalem was founded by King David (King of the Jewish nation), that nation was conquered by the Greeks, the Romans and the Byzantines but they retained their land. Following the advent of Islam the Arabs (semitic cousins let us be clear) removed the Jews from large swathes of Judea and occupied it.
I do not agree with the wholesale displacement of the Palestinians as my view is that they should live in peace together, but to call the Israelis occupiers in the sense of colonizers is simply a distortion of the truth to suit the propaganda of one side.
There are plenty of non Jews living in peace in Israel and without fear of being put to death.
Let us not pretend that there is equality of intention here. As a Muslim I well know what the Shia groups in Iran, Hamas and Hezbollah intend and it has nothing to do with peace. They are unapologetic in their hatred of Western values and will not be satisfied until all the world bows to their creed.

I don't quite get the treatment of native population point as there is no similarity whatsoever and both sides are native to the place.

I do not like Netanyahu but several Israeli Prime Ministers have been dedicated to peace - Shimon Peres for one and have sat down to jaw not war every time the opportunity has presented itself. I do not pretend that there are not extremists on the Israeli side but they are whilst not quite the exception they are certainly not the rule.

>221 ArlieS: I am a believer in peace, Arlie, especially as civilians do get killed in wars - it is unavoidable. The question is are they specific targets or not and it would be heinous for them to be so. That is what distinguishes Hamas from Israel. The Taliban or Al-Qaeda from the United States.

>222 quondame: Wars are by necessity framed by self interest. You put the safety of your own who are fighting for your nation first and foremost. You you fight with the object of not hurting your opponent you will lose plain and simple.

>211 PaulCranswick: I agree with the intellectual. I think most sane Israelis want peace. Under the Lapid/Bennett government I was so hopeful. Now my hope for the foreseeable future has been dashed.

>215 FAMeulstee: Anita, I think that all has to do with who is running the Israeli government. Things deteriorated very quickly in the West Bank under Bibi who sought and gained the endorsement of the Ultra-religious Jews to form a coalition to get into power again.

>225 PaulCranswick: Fighting as a defense is not what I'm talking about. I don't feel that the battles in Afghanistan where my brother tried to reduce casualties to our forces had sufficient justification for the loss of anyone's life. And that his successful suggestions resulted in the commanders just getting more aggressive until the body count was up to the acceptable limit again.

>226 SqueakyChu: My view too, Madeline. I do, however, accept the point that peace in the region is not helped particularly with Netanyahu controlling the Knesset.

>227 SqueakyChu: I have spent most of my adult life as an advocate for moderation, toleration and courtesy and there is an absence of any of this at this moment - almost everywhere.
No toleration of differing views. No toleration of differing creeds. It is a heartbreaking situation.

>228 quondame: Fighting as a defence is not always easy to categorize, Susan. It could be argued that dropping the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki was done in defending further loss of American and Allied lives. Not sure that the ends quite justified the means in that case, but had I been a serviceman faced with the horrendous bloodshed that would continue to flow in trying to cow the Japanese empire, I may have felt differently.
What are your war aims? Are they morally justifiable? Are they politically expedient? Are the aims existential?

-In this instance the war aim is the eradication of Hamas and/or Hezbollah.

-In this instance the moral justification is of course blurred by hostages, human shields and the loss of life of people who have little or no truck with Hamas.

-In this instance, Israel may not care for political expediency but needs USA and other allies to stand alongside them.

-In this instance the aims are very possibly existential because Hamas will not stop until the Jews of Israel are no more.

Here's the next readathon: https://www.librarything.com/topic/354703

>231 SilverWolf28: Thank you, Silver. x

I have long found that I cannot untangle my feelings about Israel, it's people, it's treatment of the previous landowners of the territory it claims, and it's right to self-determination. Fully half my ancestors are Ashkenazim, my daughter, husband and all of my nieces and nephews have grown up as Jews, but I did not. I don't feel any responsibility for Israeli policy, foreign or domestic, so I do not speak to that. Only my grief at the decades long US misguided behavior in lands that are majority Muslim.

>224 PaulCranswick: 'Jerusalem was founded by King David'
I don't think that is an valid reason, it would be a world wide mess if everone goes back where his ancestors from over 20 centuries ago came from. Although it would be nice if the natives of many countries got rid of last centuries immigrants.

(ETA: And the Palestines still would have their claim on the same land, as part of them are the descendants of the people living there since before that time)

>227 SqueakyChu: I think so too, Madeline. Sadly demographics show that Ultra-religious Jews will run the country in the future. They simply create more offspring than the more liberal Jews.

>233 quondame: You come nearest to my feelings Susan. I am heartbroken for the losses on both sides, and their loved ones. I have Ashkenazi heritage also. It pains me that the UKs decisions historically contributed to this situation and aggrivates it still.

>233 quondame: It is not a straightforward matter that is for sure, Susan.

There are currently 456 million Arabs living in a combined space of 13,132,327 km2 or 35 people per square kilometer. The state of Israel which is comprised of 73% Jews amounts to 9,795,000 people in a space of 20,770 km2 or 472 people per square kilometer. There are approximately 2,614,000 Israeli Arabs or 126 Israeli Arabs (Palestinians) per Km2.
In other words there are proportionately 4 times more Arabs living in Israel than in the wider Arab lands. There are twice as many Palestinians in Israel today than the 1,324,000 there in 1947, although it would be remiss not to point out that in the year of 1948 that population declined from 1,324,000 to a mere 156,000 following the war of 1948.

Those numbers themselves tell a difficult story. There are currently 11.6 million people professing to be Palestinian today compared with 1.37 million in 1948 and Palestinian is a fairly recent construct.

>234 FAMeulstee: So is the answer now to dispel the Jews and have them wandering the Globe like they did before without a homeland, Anita? That didn't go so well for them in Europe did it?
I don't want innocent people on either side to get killed and I want them to live together in peace. Hamas will never allow that, although I do certainly agree that religious zealots of every persuasion, Judaism included are always a roadblock to peace with their intransigence and inflexibility.

>235 Caroline_McElwee: Britain's role from a Palestinian perspective has been criticized but the two state solution / partition they proposed was rejected with Irgun / Haganah involvement and with the explicit support of the Truman Administration. The Holy Land is a mess pure and simple, Caroline - a human tragedy on a scale unimaginable.

Something a little more pleasant ( I am finding the Israel/Hamas war extremely distressing to be honest).

399. Hackenfeller's Ape by Brigid Brophy
400. Payment Deferred by C.S. Forester

>237 PaulCranswick: No, Paul, I didn't mean it that way, I only argued that Jerusalem founded by King David was no valid reason. The present mess started with the Balfour declaration. At that time other options were available, although those might have created a similair mess.

I have no solutions, I only mourn for every victim in this war, on both sides.
There seemed to be a window of opportunity after the Oslo Accords, but sadly it didn't bring peace.

>239 FAMeulstee: We are certainly on the same page in our grief for the victims resulting from these attacks. The people of Gaza caught between Hamas terrorists and the Israeli army are in a position that must be utterly terrifying.

What is happening to England's cricketers? They seem to be in a private battle with Sri Lanka as to who has the worst cricket team and it looks like we're winning.

>236 PaulCranswick: don't you have to factor in how many of those km are desert?

>223 PaulCranswick: The last figure I heard for Palestinian deaths in Gaza was over 7,000. More than 7,000 people who lived in Gaza. Those calls for evacuation - where were/are they meant to go? Particularly as Israel has continued to bomb civilians who left their homes and has bombed the south of Gaza, both people who live there and people who've left their homes knowing that there is nowhere safe to go.

>214 PaulCranswick: What do you mean by Taliban flags? I don't know what the Taliban flag looks like. Lots of protestors carry Palestinian flags. Not Hamas. Not the Taliban. Last Saturday's demonstration included a Jewish bloc of a number of different organisations.

>241 humouress: It has been an absolute train wreck, Nina. England do not often bat well in India but I thought this lot would have done.

>242 m.belljackson: Yes possibly, Marianne, but also remember that the Negev desert covers Southern Israel.

>243 elkiedee: It is an awful situation, Luci, but I honestly don't know what Israel is to do. Wait to be exterminated?

You are right of course there were a lot of groups marching, including Gay Pride for Palestine which seem strange bedfellows to me, given the Islamists attitude to homosexuality, Gay rights etc.
This is the Taliban flag and in my opinion anyone flying it in the West is inciting violence and should be arrested.

Since I am a little depressed these days I wanted some book therapy (having decided I was done for the month yesterday)

401. The Secret Scripture by Sebastian Barry
402. Nothing Like the Sun by Anthony Burgess
403. Tremor by Teju Cole
404. The Flame Bearer by Bernard Cornwell
405. The New Puritans by Andrew Doyle
406. The Annual Banquet by Mathias Enard
407. Face it by Debbie Harry
408. Anthem by Noah Hawley
409. All in by Billie-Jean King
410. Sleeping Dog by Dick Lochte
411. Lies and Sorcery by Elsa Morante
412. Kibogo by Scholastique Mukasonga
413. Liberation Day by George Saunders
414. Journey's End by R.C. Sherriff
415. Was it for This by Hannah Sullivan
416. The Great Railway Bazaar by Paul Theroux

Because of conversations above, I've learned a lot. Thanks to all who posted their views. Much appreciated!

>247 Whisper1: I have to say that we have some very eloquent, intelligent, observant and impassioned people in this group. Nuances of opinion when disseminated in an articulate and sensitive way are one of the things I love most of all about here. xx

100 British Music Albums

What would be my 100 essential British albums if I can only choose one album per artist?
Pretty clear The Beatles, The Kinks and The Rolling Stones, Bowie and Elton John are going to make my list, but which album would you pick as your favourite?

My selections will be alphabetical by artist as I will never be able to rank them.

1. ADELE - 21 : (2011)



Maybe a surprise, but this wonderfully showcases a great singer's range. Eleven songs from the chugging "Rolling in the Deep" to the soulfully beautiful "Someone Like You"

This is Someone Like You:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLQl3WQQoQ0

100 British Music Albums

2. JOAN ARMATRADING - Show Some Emotion : 1977



First quandary for me as people here will probably know that Joan Armatrading is a particular favourite of mine.

I think this is the most complete and consistent of her albums, although it is fine margins. Ten songs all written by the lady herself and not a bad track on it. "Willow" is a lovely song as is "Warm Love" and I also really like the title track. I will choose though the opening song "Woncha Come on Home".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0C8XRpubCo

What a tremendous performer. A crying shame she is more widely listened to these days.

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

3. AZTEC CAMERA - Stray : 1990



Scottish frontman Roddy Frame is a creator of good solid songs with a tremendous pop sensibility. Difficult choice this ones as three of his albums are so often listened to in my house but on balance this one is just about my favourite.

Good Morning Britain is the most well known song on the album and my favourite of the nine songs. This is the other single "The Crying Scene"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9aQXcT71cw4&list=RD9aQXcT71cw4&start_rad...

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

4. BARCLAY JAMES HARVEST - Everybody is Everyone Else : 1974



I loved all of BJH's albums of the 1970s and so this was a toughie. On balance this is probably just the best one. Nine excellent tracks lead off by the outstanding "Child of the Universe"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=00ouLGLOi2Y

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

5. THE BEATLES - Rubber Soul : 1965



First really huge call. Most people would probably agree that the four best Beatles albums were Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt Peppers and Abbey Road but they will not agree about the order.

I pick this one probably because it gets the best of both worlds - the mop-top excitement of the early years melding into the more sophisticated later music. The watershed album which encapsulates their sheer exuberance and brilliance.

Fourteen songs and possibly the best stuff of Lennon's entire career with Girl, Nowhere Man, Norwegian Wood and my favourite "In My Life" - the absolute best Beatles song for me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqpysaAo4BQ

>248 PaulCranswick: That is really hard to do so I appreciate your forum.

>254 SqueakyChu: Thank you, dear Madeline.

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

6. THE BEAUTIFUL SOUTH - Welcome to the Beautiful South : 1989



Paul Heaton, former frontman of The Housemartins formed the group with singer Dave Hemmngway, Dave Rotheray, Briana Corrigan (officially from the next album) and others. This was their debut album.

Three singles came from it's eleven tracks, "You Keep it All In", "I'll Sail This Ship Alone" and the fantastic "Song for Whoever". This is the latter:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwxXIPEW8aA

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

7. BEE GEES - Bee Gees First : 1967



Firstly, they are just about a British act - born on the Isle of Man to English parents and spending their first few years in Manchester, the family moved to Queensland, Australia in the mid 1950s.

Whilst this is their first internationally released album it was actually their third overall having released two earlier records in Australia. Most of the fourteen songs were self-written and their sound is quite different to the disco, falsetto lead sound they developed later - their first such album "Main Course" almost got selected here. I have all the Bee Gees records and, whilst some of it was at times patchy there were a number of gems on each album. On this I like a number of songs but I must include this for my wife as she loves the song - "To Love Somebody"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aKDyyKpimQ

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

8. BLUR - Parklife : 1994



Blur have to be included. None of their albums were perfect but this their third was almost certainly their best.

Damon Albarn the lead singer and main songwriter, Graham Coxon lead guitar, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree were at their most harmonious here. Four singles from the sixteen tracks and at least half the album fantastic. Heralded the conquering onset of Britpop and the "war" with Oasis.

This is one of those singles "To the End"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DjHKqb365A

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

9. BOO RADLEYS - C'Mon Kids : 1996



This is one of my more obscure picks. Liverpool band were very successful with the preceding album "Wake up Boo" which topped the charts in Britain. This was a conscious attempt to be less accessible but I listened to very little else in the month it was released.

13 tracks and influence wise all over the place : some of the louder tracks were singles but this "Ride the Tiger" was the last track released as a single.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kU8pfwlPF4I

For us bookworms the group name source is pretty obvious - thanks to Harper Lee.

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

10. DAVID BOWIE : The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars : 1972



This era Bowie is epic. For most it comes down to a straight choice between Ziggy and "Hunky Dory" released in 71. Marginally stronger this one.
Of the original eleven songs, I can honestly say that there is not a single weak track. From Five Years, to Rock n Roll Suicide, Moonage Daydream but I must go back to one of the songs I listen to more than any other "Starman"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOKWF3IHu0I

Bowie continued to make great music but he never came close to this again in a full length record.

>260 PaulCranswick: "Starman" is probably my favorite from that album.

Bowie continued to make great music but he never came close to this again in a full length record.

Eh. I'd argue that Station to Station gives Ziggy a run for its money, and Blackstar more than holds its own.

>261 amanda4242: I think "Low" is also a good album and there are good songs on most of his records but the music was not as consistent on his later albums, IMHO, Amanda.
Station to Station is an interesting album but has only six songs and several of those TVC15 and Stay in particular wouldn't have gotten onto either Ziggy or Hunky Dory. I haven't listened much to Blackstar to be honest as his later stuff was a bit too experimental and arty for my liking.

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

11. BILLY BRAGG - William Bloke : 1996



Peculiarly and singularly British, Billy Bragg is not everyone's cup of tea. A very committed socialist and fellow traveller from my Tony Benn days, I admit to loving this album and I used to carry and dance with Yasmyne as a babe in arms to his martial version of a Pict Song. My favourite song on the album though is the more gentle King James Version.

I don't have a good version of this as his live renditions are normally much edgier. So there is not much to look at in enjoying this song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhp3Ez06eTo

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

12. KATE BUSH - Hounds of Love : 1985



I had a huge crush on Kate Bush around this time - music was stirring and sensual and I have memories of some of the songs that would make many blush.

The title track is a favourite as is the lead single Running Up That Hill. Cloudbusting is a song I used to play before I went out to play soccer in my University team as it got my blood pumping.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pllRW9wETzw

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

13. CATATONIA - International Velvet : 1998



Welsh singer Cerys Matthews had something. Star quality definitely.
This was the group at its best. Wonderfully commercial with Road Rage, Mulder & Scully and this one I am the Mob.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41SkP55Xyjk

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

14. CHARLATANS - Us and Us Only : 1999



Survivors of the shoe gazing phase and then Britpop and much much undervalued, The Charlatans continued to make great records into this century. I like several of their albums but the musicianship and consistency of these twelve songs is probably their best.

Not a song that stands head and shoulders above the rest, I would probably choose "I Don't Care Where You Live" if pushed. Not quite Liverpool and not quite Manchester and not quite great but they were a very solid group. Enough to lift them above groups like Bluetones and Cast and into a place on this list.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D94tM6WWkv8

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

15. THE CLASH - London Calling : 1979



Apart from the Jam none of the other Punk bands would make my list. I prefer a bit more melody normally instead of noise for noise sake and that is why techno, ambient, British dance and heavy metal don't feature much if at all in this compiling.

The Clash are an exception as well as being exceptional. A nineteen song double album Jones and Strummer produce a masterpiece that has force, meaning and great tunes. I could include Train in Vain or Death and Glory but it has to be the title track. Seminal and essential. THE punk record period. Forget about the Sex Pistols who could barely play their instruments.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfK-WX2pa8c

>262 PaulCranswick: The B side of Low is good, but I honestly can't remember any of the songs from the A side.

Agree to disagree on Station to Station. :)

Blackstar is not an easy album as it's very much concerned with mortality--not surprising considering Bowie died two days after its release--but it has a haunting beauty to it. The last two songs, "Dollar Days" and "I Can't Give Everything Away," always leave me a bit teary.

"Dollar Days" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kpAIv6wUvU

"I Can't Give Everything Away" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sE1Zcngd3VA

I may not be able to join you for reading By the Sea by Abdulrazak Gurnah. I went to the library today to check it out and it is gone from the shelves. It is not checked out but it isn't where it should be on the shelves. I will have to request it from Inter-Library Loan and that can take a long time to get here. I will see what I can scare up in the used books area but will also put in that ILL request and will let you know as soon as I get it.

>268 amanda4242: "I Can't Give Everything Away" is a moving song isn't it?

He seemed to be very driven in getting out that album sensing certainly that his time was nigh.

You would have selected Station to Station as your Bowie album, Amanda?

Do you have a favourite Beatles?

>269 benitastrnad: Thank you for letting me know, Benita.

I will of course wait for you, dear lady. Just let me know when you are good to go.

>270 PaulCranswick: My favorite is actually The Man Who Sold the World. I brought up Station to Station because you said Bowie "never came close to this [Ziggy Stardust] again in a full length record" and it's a later album that I think is comparable.

As for The Beatles, I'm not terribly fond of them; I like just enough of their songs to fill a (short) greatest hits album. I'll take The Stones over The Beatles any day!

>271 amanda4242: Also a good album for sure, Amanda, and aren't opinions wonderful?

The Rolling Stones are a certainty to appear and one of the harder bands to choose a favourite album by.

>272 PaulCranswick: aren't opinions wonderful

Especially when discussed with people who may disagree, but are still respectful. I truly appreciate that about you, my friend.

And Exile on Main St. for The Stones.

>273 amanda4242: Hahaha, I knew you'd pick 'Exile'. A lot to admire there but it will not be my pick.

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

16. COLDPLAY - Parachutes : 2000



Quite possibly Chris Martin et al have become too big and too popular and too enamoured with themselves. This is a very good debut album though, when they were still making seriously good melodic music.

Ten songs and a hidden bonus track. "Spies" is a great song "Trouble", "Shiver" and "Don't Panic" are good additions but it is "Yellow" that made the album special.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKNxeF4KMsY

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

17. LLOYD COLE AND THE COMMOTIONS - Rattlesnakes : 1984



What an excellent debut and another staple of my Uni days; played to death.
Cerebral and melodic. Perfect Skin, Four Flights Up, Forest Fire and Are You Ready to be Heartbroken? are still on my regular playlist as is the supercool "2CV" (a Citroen car for those who don't know}.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8FNQiKtMY0

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

18. EDWYN COLLINS : Gorgeous George : 1994



The career highpoint for the ex-Orange Juice leader. His excellent but introspective first two albums were followed by this propulsive, swaggering effort. The title track is excellent and North of Heaven are great tracks but the album is famous for his smash hit "A Girl Like You"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oqJ0JpMj6I

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

19. PHIL COLLINS : Face Value : 1981



It is hard to believe that there once was a time when Phil Collins was cool.
His debut solo album is fantastic in truth and I had it with me and cassette in Egypt and listened to one side after the other over and over.

In the Air Tonight and I Missed Again were excellent singles as was If Leaving Me Is Easy. I also like The Roof is Leaking and This Must Be Love. It has to be that lead single though.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkADj0TPrJA

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

20. THE CORAL - The Coral : 2002



The latest of the Liverpool bands to conquer the charts, The Coral's debut was full of great songs as well being jolly good fun too. I can just about justify them keeping contemporaries like Arctic Monkeys off this list. Certainly a throw back with rootsy sounding Goodbye, Simon Diamond and I'll Remember When. But the song that elevates the whole album is "Dreaming of You".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXt723fN1ss

>250 PaulCranswick: I confess to being a fan since that album hit my earholes in 1978. I recorded cassettes of it from the vinyl so I'd wear out the cassettes not the album. "Willow" will always be my favorite track from it; my very favorite of her songs is "The Weakness in Me." I think it's the delivery, though the words are very special.

>246 PaulCranswick: You already know I'm going to urge you to read Kibogo before all the others, right?

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

21. ELVIS COSTELLO - Punch the Clock : 1982



Like Dylan, Tom Waits and Springsteen, his singing is an acquired taste, but no one can doubt the brilliance of Declan MacManus' songwriting.

This collection with its horns, hooks and harmonies is more pleasing on the ear than some of his earlier albums which actually got more artistic plaudits. Full of great songs "TKO", "Everyday I Write the Book", "Let them all Talk", "Mouth Almighty", "Pills and Soap", the brilliant anti-war song "Shipbuilding" and my own favourite "King of Thieves". This is "Shipbuilding"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5Cnd1cOg6A

>280 richardderus: "The Weakness in Me" is my favorite Joan Armatrading song bar none, RD. Beautiful and meaningful all together. What a sensitive songwriter.
I will get to Kibogo soon.

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

22. DEPECHE MODE - Playing the Angel : 2005



Depeche Mode are one of a kind. A rarity in that their music seems to get better and more rounded as they get older. The lead singer Dave Gahan's vocal has definitely improved with age and, whilst all their albums and some of their singles were fantastic in all periods - there is a mellow poignancy to their music these days that is very engaging. Thirteen brilliant tracks "The Pain I'm Used to", "The Sinner in Me" and the beautiful "Precious".

This is the latter song.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yn3ViE6mhY

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

23. DIVINE COMEDY - Casanova : 1996



Northern Irish lead and effectively Divine Comedy himself, Neil Hannon, spends his baroque brilliance in this breakthrough album. Difficult for me to choose between this and its excellent follow up but this is slightly more varied and commercial.

"Something for the Weekend", "Becoming More Like Alfie" and "The Frog Princess" but "Songs of Love" is the best tune of a great collection but was never released as a single.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k64RlXzecPU&list=RDk64RlXzecPU&start_rad...

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

24. DODGY - Free Peace Sweet : 1996



Another album from that brilliant year for British music (one of 9 included from 1996) The most famous song is the hugely catchy "Good Enough", other singles included "In a Room", "If You're Thinking of Me" and "Found You" but I love the album closer : "Homegrown"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTIO_T02ZXI

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

25. DR. ROBERT - Realms of Gold : 1994



A secret pleasure is Dr. Robert. Robert Howard (the origin of his stage name is obvious). He lead eighties group The Blow Monkeys but the songwriting and musicianship of his solo music is stellar. Particularly on this album and the later "Flatlands" which is equally (well almost) as good. A Baker's Dozen of great songs and I love all of them. Possibly the most obscure of my picks but one of my favourites.

This is "Have No Roots"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbGDjN-cJ2M

The November BAC thread is up!

https://www.librarything.com/topic/354796

>287 amanda4242: Thanks Amanda. Tough one this. I will be looking at some middle English poetry.

100 BRITISH ALBUMS

26. NICK DRAKE - Bryter Layter : 1971



Tragic Nick Drake who died in his mother's bed only three albums in, created some beautiful wispy music. This is his best album and is very much an ensemble piece with all of the songs being together greater than the sum of their parts. Hazy Jane and The Chiming of a City Clock are memorable but possibly my favorite song is "Northern Sky".

Beautiful, ethereal music.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3jCFeCtSjk

100 BRITISH ALBUMS

27. ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN - Ocean Rain : 1984



Before its time and nuanced, sophisticated post-punk pop from Ian McCullough and the Liverpool band. It got fairly mixed reviews back in the day (although I always loved it) but it has - over time - garnered more plaudits over time with its lighter touch and lovely textured sound. "Silver" and the title track are excellent songs but the best song is undoubtedly "The Killing Moon" which must be my favorite track of theirs, period.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWz0JC7afNQ

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

28. ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA - Out of the Blue : 1978



This double album - the Spaceship Album - had a profound effect on me. It cemented Jeff Lynne and his band as my favorite and got me spending half of my pocket money on music having previously spent all of it on books. I genuinely love all these songs - possibly "Mr Blue Sky" the most but "Sweet Talkin' Woman" ignited my interest in the band, "Turn to Stone" was genuinely a song from the future, "Wild West Hero" was a glorious blast from the past.
I'll include something slightly less well known - "It's Over"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84gmKIKTk40

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

29. EMBRACE - Out of Nothing : 2004



This was their fourth album. After the failure of the third they were dropped by their record company and considered largely an irrelevance. This propelled them back to the top of the new British music scene with some help from Chris Martin who penned the biggest hit "Gravity".

Plenty of other songs to admire here though "Glorious Day", the title track and this one "Ashes" in particular highlights.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EtQ9l0oQmXE

Great stuff.

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

30. FAIRPORT COVENTION - Fairport Convention : 1968



Apart from being the place of my first real job, Egypt was also where I got introduced to the music of Fairport Convention and this album in particular - and by a Liverpudlian alcoholic welder no less!

Great mixture of folk rock and folk with three lead vocalists and multi-multi instrumentalists, this is a diverse and eclectic mix of music. "I Don't Know Where I Stand", "Chelsea Morning", "Jack O' Diamonds" and my favorite track; the beautiful "Decameron"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DPLK1B3XLPM

>291 PaulCranswick: Another vinyl I used as a master to make endless cassettes of in 1978. I've been a fan since their 1974's Eldorado album...probably because I got a terrible crush on Mik Kaminski, who played violins on that album...my favorite track being "Mister Kingdom" and a close second "Can't Get It Out of My Head". So much of the 1970s I listened to Jeff Lynne, Nick Lowe, Dave Edmunds, and company.

>294 richardderus: "Eldorado" could have gotten picked too, RD. I had "On the Third Day", "Eldorado" and "Face the Music" together in a vinyl box set as a present from my late mum Christmas 1979 and I played them to death. Like you "Mister Kingdom" was a favourite.

Nick Lowe also remains very much someone I like listening to.

It seems like a long time (at least a thread, maybe two) since you shared a pic of Pip. Hope all is well over there!

>296 jessibud2: Shelley, this is for you and some of my other pals that have asked for a picture.

From two days ago, Hani and Yasmyne took Pip to Autumnal seaside at Cromer on the Norfolk coast.

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

31. FLEETWOOD MAC - Bare Trees : 1972



I had to consider for a while as to whether I should classify Fleetwood Mac as a British band but it is certainly clear that pre Nicks and Buckingham they clearly were in the vast majority a British group. Even with those two I would possibly have chosen this album anyway as I have always loved it.

Best album cover ever; Dust, Sentimental Lady (by American Bob Welch), the title track and the late Christine McVie's "Spare Me A Little of Your Love"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiGEEHtumDM

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

32. FLORENCE AND THE MACHINE - Ceremonials : 2011



Sophomore albums are meant to be tough but this one is masterful.
Florence Welch is indeed a machine turning out great song after great song. "Shake it Out", "No Light, No Light", "Spectrum (Say My Name)"

This is a live version of the latter:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaSgiMB4aMY

Wow!

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

33. DAVID GRAY - White Ladder : 1999



Not his first album but definitely the one that made him famous. Some of his later work has rivaled it for consistent polish but this had the benefit of introducing a sensitive new(ish) name. "This Year's Love" and "Sail Away" are highlights but the song "Babylon" is what made the record famous.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kj_Ie9wLGU

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

34. GEORGE HARRISON - All Things Must Pass : 1970



The first solo Beatle up and it is appropriate as this was George outdoing his supposedly more illustrious compadres. A triple album no less with so many highlights and a pretty naff third disc of jams. "My Sweet Lord" is obviously the most famous song, "What is Life?", the title track and some collaborative work with Bob Dylan including this song written apparently as encouragement to the great man; "Behind That Locked Door"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohS3XbuLyng

100 BRITISH MUSIC ALBUMS

35. RICHARD HAWLEY - Lady's Bridge : 2007



Interesting fellow, Richard Hawley. Involved in both The Longpigs and Pulp but never in front. The polish and poise of his debut work then was the more surprising. This is a great collection of songs of love and yearning.
Actually a bridge over the River Don in my present family domain in the UK, Sheffield, the first four songs "Valentine", "Roll River Roll", "Serious" and "Tonight the Streets are Ours" is one of the best starts to any album ever.

Could be any one of those tracks but I have to choose "Roll River Roll" as I think it is one of the most beautiful songs ever written.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9QSCd-UNlQ

>297 PaulCranswick:, Pip has been growing! I was thinking about Hani and hoping she was feeling better and I see she is. Nice picture, thanks for sharing.

>298 PaulCranswick: Gosh! That one brings 1972 *roaring* back from the dead.

>303 Kristelh: Thank you Kristel. Because of her very judgemental relatives (Aunties mainly) who heartily disapprove of Yasmyne giving birth out of wedlock (update this is 2023 and isn't compassion demonstrated by tolerance?) Hani tends not to put pictures of Pip on FB so it isn't as easy for me to put pictures up here. That is because I have to take Hani's whatsApp pictures to me (which she sends every day but usually as a video) and send them from my phone to my email and then copied onto my photos and sent to LT.
Hani is completely smitten by our Granddaughter and it is joyful to behold.

>304 richardderus: It is a record that is sadly neglected today, RD. Some brilliant contributions from the late Danny Kirwin who the group kicked out in the subsequent tour for "volatile behaviour".

Another one showcasing the personality of Pip:

>307 PaulCranswick: *baaawww* such a widdle smoochling!

>308 richardderus: I can see why Hani is so smitten.

>307 PaulCranswick: Such a sweetums. How are you not in the picture with her!

>310 quondame: Several thousands of miles is the unfortunate answer, Susan!

Well, isn’t that a sweetie!

>307 PaulCranswick: What an adorable face she is making!

>312 drneutron: Thanks Jim

>313 foggidawn: She reminds me of Belle at the same age, Foggi. She was also a very expressive baby!

This is from this morning - three generations of my ladies:

>315 PaulCranswick: Three graces. We won't talk wyrds, or fates, or ....

Yep three graces.

>315 PaulCranswick: beautiful ladies

Beautiful pictures Paul, thank you for sharing!

Lovely pictures, Paul! All three are looking great!

Thank you for wonderful pics of wonderful people, Paul.
Have a wonderful day!

>316 quondame: They are three graces indeed, Susan.
The first one is my rock, my soulmate and my conscience;
The second one is the apple of my eye;
The third one is able to make me melt on demand (first viewing of her pictures)

>317 Kristelh: Thanks. I am probably / definitely biased but I of course agree with you, Kristel.

>318 mdoris: You are welcome, Mary. Lovely to see you, dear lady.

>319 vancouverdeb: It is a question of counting blessings sometimes, Deb, and I am a lucky guy.

>320 SirThomas: Thank you Thomas my dear fellow.

Paul - When are you going to be with that Baby?!?

>315 PaulCranswick: Very nice!

Beautiful Family Paul!!

Great photos of Pip.

Some great music in your selection Paul, I have a number of thise albums.

Sorry to hear you are feeling low at the moment.

Thank you for sharing the pictures, Paul! Pip is nothing short of adorable.

Not even trying to catch up on your doings for the past 2+ weeks, but I hope you are doing OK.

>324 m.belljackson: My plan is December, Marianne.

>325 figsfromthistle: Thank you, Anita. x

>326 hredwards: Thanks Harold. I am biased but I think so too!

>327 Caroline_McElwee: Nice to see you Caroline. I don't know everything just seems to be too much at the moment. Missing family, work is a genuine headache and the world situation is doubly depressing with extremes of all sides everywhere you look. I am also not finishing books which is another depressing thing.

>328 alcottacre: I am coping after a fashion, Stasia. A bit down so my reading mojo is stuttering a bit which I need to reset.

Getting a little caught up on threads, Paul (I'll never be entirely caught up...). Love the pics of your beautiful grandbaby.

>332 bell7: Thank you, Mary. Lovely to see you. I also need to get caught back up with the threads and will hopefully have a fairly stress free weekend in which to do so.

Thanks for those photos, Paul. Adorable!

>334 jessibud2: My pleasure, Shelley. I hadn't posted any for a while.

>315 PaulCranswick: Heh...littlest one looks like she's not quite sure about this photo-taking stuff (or her diaper was full). Everyone else seems to be having a lovely time.

>336 richardderus: You could be right, RD. She certainly has one heck of a scowl!

>329 PaulCranswick: December Grand-Dad does Dab-hand Diaper Duty...?

>338 m.belljackson: I am a little out of practice, Marianne, but I will definitely do my fair share. x