Ian Anderson, Al Di Meola, Leslie Mandoki, Richard Bona In 1992, László "Leslie" Mándoki, a Hungarian drummer and producer, started his Soulmates project. The original line-up was: Ian Anderson (flute, vocals), Jack Bruce (bass, vocals), Al Di Meola (guitar) and Leslie Mandoki himself (drums, vocals). That's plenty to justify a post in these pages. But…Read more Blood In The Water
Livin’ In A Bubble
Do you ever feel trapped? Hemmed in by petty laws that curtail your freedom. Or confined within the boundaries of convention, your creative spirit stifled, denied the oxygen that gives life to the fire of original thought? If so, you will know how Medicine Head's songwriter felt when he wrote Livin' In A Bubble. You…Read more Livin’ In A Bubble
The Trees and I
As a child, an oak tree grew outside my bedroom window. Its leaves were a rich dark green, and it produced a copious crop of acorns every year. On the next street corner, there was a sycamore tree whose seeds twirled like helicopter blades as they fell in the autumn. In the park that my…Read more The Trees and I
Fragments
If you live in the U.S. or Australia, you may be familiar with the word 'trifecta'. It's a type of bet in which the punter predicts the first three finishers in a horse race, in the right order. But this Old Man is not interested in horses or gambling and, anyway, here in the U.K.…Read more Fragments
Prelude to Ecstasy
The Last Dinner Party were formed in 2021 in the midst of the Covid lockdown. They exploded onto the indie/pop scene in April 2023 reaching no. 19 in the UK pop charts with the single, Nothing Matters. Their debut album, Prelude to Ecstasy, was released on 2nd February 2024, and it's a corker. As a…Read more Prelude to Ecstasy
Gånglåt i femtakt
"Walking song in five beats" (Google Translate) This track came up in my Release Radar recently, and it pleased the ears. https://open.spotify.com/track/2cAINrpYiy2zEb6g8PP9ep?si=45718c55398d4383 It's from an album called Åtråvärld, released late last year by the Swedish band Å. They are: Joel Öhlund – vocals, guitar/bass guitar Milovan Fredriksson – guitar/bass guitar, backup vocals Erik Wallin –…Read more Gånglåt i femtakt
The Omnichord Real Book
Meshell Ndegeocello Hmm. Ominchord. What's that, I wonder? Just a minute, while I look it up ... ... Well, as far as I can make out, it's the electronic equivalent of the autoharp. It was invented by the Suzuki Musical Instrument Corporation in 1981 and was in production throughout the 1980s and 1990s. A new…Read more The Omnichord Real Book
Dormiveglia
Did you know there's a word for that state between sleep and wakefulness when you slip into the world of imagination, but you are not quite dreaming? In fact, there are two words in English: hypnagogia for the transition from awake to asleep, and hypnopompia for waking up. Italian has just the one (as far…Read more Dormiveglia
The Songs & Tales of Airoea
Book I Book II Book III As we watch the opening scenes of 2024 unfold, let's get this continuing tale of good and exceptional music back on the road with some classic progressive rock. The Songs & Tales of Airoea is a triple album by a Norwegian band calling themselves The Chronicles of Father Robin.…Read more The Songs & Tales of Airoea
Signs of Life
Is it alive? I am going to give Signs of Life the highest accolade available to me: after one spin it was ordered for the Crotchety Collection and will soon make a small dent in the bank balance. It's a curious beast, though. More an album of poetry than music. And it sits well off-centre…Read more Signs of Life
Crotchety Man 