It’s Halloween today. You may have noticed. I looked for a tune that reflects the essence of Halloween. It boils down to a thrilling fear. This tune has a lyrically neat trick of being built entirely on the acronym F.E.A.R.
Della
In the days before ebay and cheap CD reprints, record hunting was a thing. It took me seven years to find a copy of this single. I finally tracked it down in a small record store in Manhattan.
Kenny
“On a warm summer’s evening, on a train bound for Norway.”
Stragglers
I heard a feature on NPR on the way home on Friday where Tom Waits shared some thoughts on creativity.
It’s a negotiation. Some of his songs just appear fully formed, others need to be coaxed out, some put together from found things, like bits of chewing gum on the underside of chairs.
10p
I had two sources of income in the mid-80s. A paper round and a Saturday job stamping brochures in a travel agent. My work rate on brochures was variable; I could get through a box of Saga Holidays in no time, while the Yugotours naturist holiday brochures were tackled at a more sedate pace.
Nobel
Time for a topical tune given the news cycle this week.
“Someone’s got it in for me, they’re planting stories in the press.”
Belgium
A tough World Cup exit for the USA at the hands of Belgium on Tuesday.
I researched Belgian music for this week’s tune, fully expecting to make everyone feel better by scoffing at the paucity of Belgian musical talent. And to be fair, it is a pretty shallow talent pool.
Winner
I’m very excited. In one week, German electronica trailblazers Kraftwerk will be in Seattle. They were so ahead of their time that, in order to realize their grand musical vision, they invented electricity.
BMW
It may have escaped your attention that the football World Cup has started in Brazil.
Several notable musicians have proven to be capable footballers. Luciano Pavarotti, for example, flirted with becoming a professional goalkeeper.
Predictions
Simon Smith and I sat next to one another in art class, every Tuesday morning.
Both inept artists, we would instead play a game to guess the top 5 singles chart for the week.