Unchain My Heart was written by a guy called Bobby Sharp (about whom I know nothing more). It was recorded by Ray Charles in 1961, by Trini Lopez in 1963 and, of more relevance to this post, by Joe Cocker in 1987. Here's a somewhat muted video of Joe Cocker's version. I recommend you turn…Read more Unchain My Heart
Track of the Week
The Priest
Grantchester is a village just outside Cambridge (the UK city famous for its university, not the suburb of Boston, MA). It was the setting for a series of whodunnit short stories, The Grantchester Mysteries, by James Runcie. The books spawned a TV series called simply, Grantchester - the headline picture here is a still showing…Read more The Priest
Answer Me
This week Spotify offered to tell me what I have missed this year. They had already done all the work for me; there on the home page was a playlist titled Missed Hits. My search for a track-of-the-week would be easy this time - there were bound to be one or two worthy candidates lurking…Read more Answer Me
11-11
At the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918 the armistice that ended the fighting of the first World War came into effect. Although, technically, the war had been neither won nor lost, effectively, it marked the defeat of the German armed forces. The peace treaty itself took another 6…Read more 11-11
Christmas Eve
It's beginning to look a bit like Christmas. The high street shops are busy (so I'm told), fairy lights are quietly materialising all over our village and this poem appeared on my radar recently. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZCZIXmC8GE Liz Berry is a poet steeped in the local culture of England's West Midlands. The area where she grew up…Read more Christmas Eve
The Phantom of the Opera
On the whole Crotchety Man doesn't like musicals. I have seen a handful, either on stage or as a film, but they usually leave me cringing with embarrassment for the writers, the cast and the poor, long suffering audience. There are exceptions: Hair had some good songs and a decent storyline; The Little Shop of…Read more The Phantom of the Opera
The Trouble With Angels
It's no secret that King Crimson is one of my very favourite bands. They are also the archetypal prog rock band; they practically invented the genre as the swinging sixties dissolved into the sickly seventies. But it would be a lie to label this track from King Crimson's vocalist and second guitarist, as prog rock.…Read more The Trouble With Angels
Stimela
National Railways of Zimbabwe class 15A 4-6-4+4-6-4 'Garratt' steam locomotive no. 410 'Inkolomi' (built by Beyer Peacock in 1950) at Heany Junction, Zimbabwe, with a coal train, 29th July 1992. Never use two words where one will do. That's what they tell aspiring writers. So let's use the South African word for "coal train" -…Read more Stimela
Mediterranean Sundance
For some of us the social distancing rules that Covid-19 has brought about are torture and the self-isolation rules are a prison. The virus itself is a black cloud that dampens our spirits and darkens our moods, a devilish presence that constantly haunts our souls. But there is a silver lining. We have had to…Read more Mediterranean Sundance
Five Rooms
A crowded 5-room house I should say straight away that this post has nothing to do with the band called Crowded House - unless they are fans of the Norwegian prog rock outfit, Wobbler (which seems unlikely). The headline photo is just an amusing illustration of Five Rooms, which is the title of the recently…Read more Five Rooms
