What I’m reading

An interview with Alex Marsh, writer of the blog Private Secret Diary and author of the book Sex and Bowls and Rock and Roll, which I like a lot.

Tim Worstall on why self-sufficiency in food is an idiotic idea. It’s not just about wanting bananas, pineapples and rice when you live in New Zealand or – god forbid – England, it’s about preventing famine.

Chad Taylor on why bookshops in France seem to be OK, perhaps because they sell books. Chad signs off here – I hope he’ll be back because I have enjoyed his blogging very much. It is zeitgeisty.

I’m signing off for a bit too. Back next week, with the long-promised Bill Manhire/Dr Feelgood connection. Promise.

Solos

A guest post by my friend Chris Bell, who plays bass. We are too shy to have played together, but my impression is that he is rather good. Certainly our musical tastes overlap a bit. He writes about his Twitter list of Top Twenty Solos:

I’ve favoured great solos in song context rather than solo tunes in their own right. It’s a personal list, not intended as definitive. Disclaimer: Many choices are arbitrary (which Monk, Bird, Hendrix solo to choose?) and the ranking and any omissions personal taste.  Miles Davis's solo on ‘So What’ from Kind of Blue was omitted from my highly subjective Top 20 only for space reasons.

1. Ernie Isley, guitar, ‘Summer Breeze’, The Isley Brothers, 3 + 3

2. Frank Zappa, guitar, ‘Watermelon In Easter Hay’, Joe’s Garage

3. Carlos Santana, guitar, ‘Song of the Wind’, Santana, Caravanserai

4. Jaco Pastorius, bass, ‘Used To Be A Cha Cha’, Jaco Pastorius 

5. Josef Zawinul, keyboards, ‘A Remark You Made’, Weather Report, 8.30

6. Chet Baker, trumpet, ‘Shipbuilding’, Elvis Costello, Punch The Clock

7. Thelonious Monk, piano, ‘Ruby My Dear’, The Complete Blue Note Thelonious Monk

8. Charlie Parker, alto sax, ‘Ko-Ko’, The Charlie Parker Story (Savoy Jazz)

9. Jeff ‘Skunk’ Baxter, guitar, ‘My Old School’, Steely Dan, Countdown To Ecstasy

10. Jimi Hendrix, guitar, ‘Third Stone From The Sun’, Jimi Hendrix Experience, Are You Experienced

11. Jimmy T. Zavala, blues harp, ‘Missionary Man’, Eurythmics, Revenge

12. David Lindley, lap steel guitar, ‘Detox Mansion’, Warren Zevon, Sentimental Hygiene

13. John Coltrane, tenor sax, ‘Giant Steps’, Giant Steps

14. John Martyn, guitar, ‘Johnny Too Bad’, Grace and Danger

15. Steve Gadd, drums, ‘Aja’, Steely Dan, Aja

16. Wayne Shorter, soprano sax, ‘Aja’, Steely Dan, Aja

17. Herbie Hancock, piano, ‘Kuru/Speak Like A Child’, Jaco Pastorius

18. Terry Bozzio, drums, ‘The Black Page (New Age Version)’, Frank Zappa, Make a Jazz Noise Here

19. Ruth Underwood, marimbas, ‘Saint Alphonso’s Pancake Breakfast’, Frank Zappa, Apostrophe (’)

20. Joe Morello, drums, ‘Take Five’, Dave Brubeck Quartet, Time Out

Personally I’d have some Richard Thompson, Eric Dolphy, Amos Garrett, Lonnie Mack, Cannonball Adderley, Albert King, Robert Fripp and Adrian Belew and possibly Split Enz’s Noel Crombie on spoons. But then, what to ditch? 

Anyway, Chris expects to be argued with. Feel free to do so in the comments. 

Lamentations

This is the Tallis Scholars in Merton College, Oxford, performing the First Lamentation for Maundy Thursday by Tomás Luis de Victoria (1548-1611). This year is the 400th anniversary of his death.

The English version of the Latin text begins:

Here begins the lamentation of the prophet Jeremiah.

How desolate lies the city that was once full of people:

the queen of nations has become as a widow;

the ruler of provinces is now subject to others.

By night she weeps in sorrow

and tears run down her cheeks.

Word of the week

Fergus Barrowman of Victoria University Press tweets at IIML:

Just published a book with Victoria Unversity Press on the title page.

I do sympathise with Fergus, but heh. “Unversity” is such a good word. Think of AUT, and one or two other educational institutions not a million miles away . . .

A note for overseas readers

The best source for news updates on the Christchurch earthquake is on Fairfax’s website Stuff, at  this page.

The best eyewitness account is this by Vicki Anderson.

Jim Tucker has uploaded a swathe of dramatic photos to Flickr here.

Cash donations can be made through the Red Cross here.

Because New Zealand is so small most of us have friends and/or family in Christchurch who have been directly affected, and we don’t yet know how many people are dead – 75 have been confirmed but unofficial reports put the missing at perhaps 300. It is a very sombre time throughout the country.

UPDATE:

According to Stuff, “Police say there are 238 people on the missing persons list but say many of these people will simply have left town.” Let’s hope. 

UPDATE 2:

Two more good eyewitness accounts, from Zara Potts and Philip Matthews, and a sequel to Vicki Anderson’s one linked to above.

Worst headline of the week

On CNN:

Libyan demonstrators say they’ll soldier on despite violent crackdown

There’s something wrong with that second verb, isn’t there.

Kicking Berlusconi

Paul Whitehouse and Harry Enfield in Harry & Paul on BBC2 suggest that the Italian PM may not be a stranger to corruption:

Monitor: Lindsey Dawson

Happy birthday Barry Humphries

Every 17 February we wish the Greatest Living Australian a happy birthday. Today is his 77th.

One week ago he was named Oldie of the Year by Richard Ingrams’ excellent Oldie magazine.

Oldie readers of this blog will remember Ingrams as the editor of Private Eye, which published the Barry McKenzie comic strip written by Humphries and illustrated by the New Zealand-born cartoonist Nicholas Garland. There was later a film or two, but as Wittgenstein put it, “Whereof we cannot speak, let us remain silent.” Or as my mother would say, “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all.”

In the same Oldie awards Prince Philip was awarded Consort of the Year. Phil the Greek, as Private Eye dubbed him, may be an appalling racist and all-round shit but he is also a good sport – he accepted.

The big four banks

Stuff reports: 

Banks face downgrade

The big banks look set to lose their prized Aa2 credit ratings after ratings agency Moody’s Investment Services said it was considering a downgrade of them.

I am not surprised. These people are idiots. Three of them keep sending me emails saying that my account with them has been frozen due to unauthorised access, and can I please log on again to confirm my identity, when I don’t even have an account with them. This is no way to run a business in the modern  world.

Ruby Heartbreaker

Until Silvio Berlusconi’s trial – which, amusingly, will be before three women judges –  we will not know for sure what he got up to with the teenage pole dancer Karima el-Mahroug, otherwise known as Ruby Heartbreaker or Ruby Heartstealer (depending on your translator), or with the dental hygienist Nicole Minetti. But I think we all have a fair idea.

Berlusconi is a huge embarrassment to Italians – though they did vote for him, so one’s sympathy is a bit limited – but OMG he and his harem have been good for my blog stats. As mentioned before, people all over the world – i.e. men, possibly lonely men – come here because I included photos of the comely Ms el-Hahroug and Ms Minetti in a post that I thought would amuse readers. Attracting pervs has never been the purpose of the blog but never mind. One is increasing the sum of human happiness, and that can only be a good thing.

Except that this case is not amusing at all because it shows up the abuse of power that these men indulge in. Frankly, they wouldn’t get a shag based on their looks or, one suspects, their charm or sense of humour.   

The Economist has had a beady eye on Berlusconi for years and has long been the best place for coverage of his sins – not so much the sex stuff which is trivial, really, compared to the corruption and abuse of power. I’m not sure if non-subscribers can get to this but here is the magazine’s interactive guide to Silvio Berlusconi’s legal troubles.