Today's entry in these pages comes from Curiosity Corner™. It was prompted by Burning Shed's pre-order notification1 of a 3-CD package containing all three albums by the 'proto-prog' band Clouds. The blogger's curiosity whiskers twitched, and the typing fingers became suddenly restless. What, I wondered, is 'proto-prog' and who was this band? Quick as a…Read more Clouds
1960s
The Price of Love
The Price of Love was written by Don and Phil Everly (The Everly Brothers), and released as a single in 1965. It reached no. 2 on the official UK pop chart. There have been several other versions of the song, too - notably, one by Bryan Ferry included on his 1976 album, Let's Stick Together.…Read more The Price of Love
People
Nat Ural and Art I. Ficial The older I get, the more I worry about the human race. We are supposed to be a rational species, but I hear people making absurd statements and claiming they are undeniable truths all the time these days. Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity. And…Read more People
Gordon Lightfoot
Performing at Canada's 150th birthday celebration, 2017 The Crotchety household was saddened this week to hear that Gordon Lightfoot has died. The missus and I often listened to his 1981 compilation album, The Best of Gordon Lightfoot, in the early days of our relationship. For us, the Lightfoot name brings back memories of feelgood days…Read more Gordon Lightfoot
Those Were the Days
I well remember the sixties. It was a time of unbounded optimism. Well, except for the Cuban missile crisis and the assassination of JFK, it was. Bright young things were putting a fresh coat of paint on everything - fashion, art, music and even politics. The kids were wearing flowers in their hair, and the…Read more Those Were the Days
Stranger in Paradise
A post on Hubzilla this week had me searching the wetware memory banks for a song from the sixties. The tune was familiar, but the title escaped me for a while. In the end it came to me in the shower - it was called Stranger in Paradise, and it was sung by one of…Read more Stranger in Paradise
A Taste of Honey
The other day, on my daily walk (weather permitting), I met a bee. A big, fat bumble bee. The first of the year. And, when I got home, an email informed me that our Little Big Band will be starting rehearsals again soon, now that the Covid-19 restrictions are easing. Better start practicing again, I…Read more A Taste of Honey
Time of the Season
Time takes its toll on all mechanical things. Sooner or later the cog wheels become clogged with a sticky gunge, the hands on the clock face slow to a crawl and the pendulum shudders to a halt. And what applies to the steady tick-tock of a grandfather clock also applies to the fast spinning disks…Read more Time of the Season
Fire
The end of the year is a time for looking back. Today I'm going back 50 years, almost to the dawn of the Crotchety Man era. It's 1968, a time when experimentation in pop music was the order of the day and a slew of highly original acts flourished. One of the most flamboyant of…Read more Fire
Lily the Pink
Important Announcement: There will be no Track of the Week this week as Crotchety Man is indisposed. He is suffering from a bad case of this year's seasonal ailment and has completely run out of medicinal compounds. In the meantime, here is a very silly piece of sixties nostalgia, curtesy of The Scaffold, the comedy,…Read more Lily the Pink
Crotchety Man 