From the Rockmine Almanac for today (Friday, 16th January):
Birth
1970. Brendan O’Hare (Teenage Fanclub) born in Belshill, Scotland.
In Custody
1970. Police raid the exhibition of John Lennon‘s lithographs which opened yesterday. They confiscate eight of the lithographs claiming they are erotic and obscene.
In Court
1989. 26 year old pub “bouncer”, Kenneth Simmons, is fined £ 200 and ordered to pay £ 300 compensation at Edinburgh Sheriff Court after an assault on Fish and his friend Robbie The Pict. The trial follows an incident at the Kasbar pub in the city’s Cowgate on August 14th last year. Fish told the court that he was knocked unconscious by a single blow from Simmon’s plaster cast arm, complete with aluminium fingers. When he came to he had been badly cut; there was “a lot of blood”.
In Hospital
1998. James Brown is admitted to hospital in South carolina suffering from the effects of addiction to painkillers. A report in the Augusta Chronicle says the “Godfather Of Soul” was served with court papers ordering his hospitalisation. Brown’s agent, Jeff Allen, declined to comment but confirmed that sheriff’s deputies had taken guns from the singer’s house.
On Television
2004. Late Show With David Letterman (CBS, U.S.A.) Show #2108. Musical guest: Christina Aguilera sings “Walk Away.”
Death
1973. Gospel singer Clara Ward (The Ward Sisters) dies in Los Angeles a week after suffering a stroke and falling into a coma. She was 48.
From the Rockmine Almanac for today (Friday 8th August):
Birth
1958. Chris “Chrissie Boy” Foreman (Madness) born in London.
On Tour
1992. Metallica‘s James Hetfield is seriously injured by a pyrotechnic on stage at Montreal’s Olympic Stadium. He is rushed to hospital where he is found to be suffering from second and third degree burns on the back of his left hand, and first degree burns on his right arm. Although he continues the tour as lead vocalist, he is unable to play guitar and a temporary replacement, Metal Church‘s John Marshall is brought in.
The concert later ends in a riot when Axl Rose walks off after only twenty minutes suffering from throat trouble. Fans set fire to parts of the stadium, destroy seating, and ransack shops before leaving. Outside, they overturn cars and uproot street lights. Police regain control using tear gas. Two police officers are taken to hospital, 20 people are injured and 25 arrested.
In Custody
1983. Harold Melvin and three members of The Blue Notes are arrested on charges of possessiong cocaine in Atlantic City, New Jersey. They are bailed for $ 100,000.
In Court
1991. Eric Clapton is banned from driving and fined £ 200 at Guildford Magistrates Court. Clapton admitted speeding on the A3 near Wisley in Surrey in April. He had been driving his silver Ferrari at 103 miles an hour after visiting a friend to talk about the death of his son, Connor.
On Television
1994. Late Show With David Letterman (CBS, U.S.A.) Show #0210. Musical guest: Celine Dion with “River Deep, Mountain High”. 4m 33s.
Death
1975. Jazz great Julian “Canonball” Adderley dies of a stroke, aged 46.
Babble
As I said yesterday, I thought I’d give you a taste of what the exhibition space/cafe at the Ballerina Ballroom Cinema Of Dreams will look like. Here’s how it looked when I left on Wednesday:
I spent yesterday afternoon in Edinburgh grabbing some culture at the Festival and had a wonderful time at the city’s Fruitmarket Gallery. They were staging an exhibition called “The House Of Books Has No Windows” by Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller. There were six installations, each in their own room and it really was a delight. The highlight for me was “Opera For A Small Room”, a mixed media installation involving 8 record players, 24 loudspeakers and 2,000 records.
It was a celebration of the joy of being alone with a record collection and merged opera, the sounds of rain and a train, the footsteps of the mysterious inhabitant of the room and rock music. Set in a darkened space where often it was too dark to see where to move, it was a voyeuristic fantasy, constantly drawing you closer when the lights erupted. A doorway, several small windows and a large opening reminiscent of a recording studio window, allowed the viewer to glimpse the world of the inhabitant. Each viewing position revealed more quirky things illustrating the moods of the mysterious owner.
For any collector who struggles with piles and chaos it was a heartwarming evocation of life as we’d like to live it. Immersed, maybe even submerged within our collections, how much do we long to live our lives in the sounds we can manipulate? Definitely a must see.
The first posting from my new blog. Trying to ease myself into a new year with a renewed vigour. The last one seems to have slipped my grasp, so here goes.
The Rockmine site is due an update. One of those tedious jobs of changing the copyright date on EVERY page. Aarghh!!!! It can wait until tomorrow. I’m going to relax until then. I still haven’t done my page on the gallery opening I went to in London, before Christmas. Remember Love: John Lennon at the Proud Gallery. A great night out and some serious chat with the photographers. Talking of Lennon, I’m also going to add some of the background to the Lennon autograph I have for sale.
Regarding items for sale, I’ve decided to relaunch my eBay garage sale site and start selling more interesting and rarer items on Rockmine. Anyway, that’s enough waffle for now. Here’s some serious info:
From the Rockmine Almanac for today (Sunday 6th January 2008):
Birth
1929. R&B singer/songwriter Wilbert Harrison (“Kansas City”, “Let’s Work Together”) born in Charlotte, North Carolina.
On Tour
1964. The Rolling Stones start their first headlining tour at the Granada Theatre, Harrow-On-The-Hill, London. It is promoted by the George Cooper Organization. Also on the bill are (in order of appearance) Al Paige (compere), The Cheynes, Dave Berry And The Cruisers, The Ronettes, The Swinging Blue Jeans and Marty Wilde And The Wildcats.
In Court
1981. Mark David Chapman appears in New York’s Supreme Court charged with the murder of John Lennon. Asked how he would plead, Chapman replied, “Not guilty”. Judge Herbert Altman set February 25th as the date for Chapman’s next court appearance when a trial date will be arranged. Chapman’s lawyer, Jonathan Marks, said that his client was fit to stand trial but would be pleading not guilty by reason of insanity.
In Hospital
1987. Elton John undergoes 75 minutes of surgery at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney, Australia. Originally conceived as an exploratory biopsy, the surgeon, Mr. John Tonkin, felt he should take the oportunity and perform curative surgery. Details of the operation are withheld at the request of the 40 year old star.
On Television
1967. “Where The Action Is” (U.S.A.) Tonight’s show includes James Brown performing “Bring It Up”; The Four Tops: “Standing In The Shadows Of Love”; Wilson Pickett: “Mustang Sally”.
Death
1993. Jazz legend Dizzy Gillespie dies in his sleep at home in Englewood, New Jersey, aged 75.
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