Calm and Peaceful

After the frenzy of last week’s show it was nice to return to a degree of calm normality.  Don’t get me wrong, having Andy and Guy on from The Tangent was a welcome diversion, but it took me nearly a week to shake off the inner child and return to a more mature persona.  Not that I minded, but there’s only so much farting at the dinner table and sniggering to words like boobie and bum my wife can take before I get the stern finger wagging treatment.  Sniff.

On this week’s show I was joined in the studio by Ian Oakley, manager of The Tangent.  Ian’s fast becoming a regular on the show, cropping up every few weeks with a clutch of CDs to bedazzle and woo even the most discerning of the show’s listeners.  I was very impressed with the Ian Gillan CD he brought along, with its laid back version of Child In Time, and with the band UK, possibly one of the first supergroups?  I think so, but I’m not a hundred percent on it.  On the subject of music, it’s about time I mentioned what was played.  Here’s the playlist for Saturday the 7^th of July:

Artist : Album : Track

UK : UK : In The Dead Of Night

Flower  Kings : The Road Back Home : Stardust We Are

Star Castle : Song of Times : Red Season

Ian Gillan : Child in Time : Child in Time

Interview with Roine Stolt from The Flower Kings

Flower Kings : The Road Back Home : Cinema Show

Jakko M Jakszyk : The Bruised Romantic Glee Club : The Bruised Romantic Glee Club

Guy Manning : Ansers Tree : Prof Adam Logan (2001-2094)

Transatlantic : SMPTe : We All Need Some Light

Flower Kings : Paradox Hotel : Pioneers of Aviation

Guy Manning : A Matter of Life and Death : The Dream

Jakko M Jakszyk : The Bruised Romantic Glee Club : Catley’s Ashes

A highlight for me was Roine Stolt from the Flower Kings giving an interview over the phone for the show.  Roine rang from his studio in Sweden around 11:30pm his time and was watching the Live Earth concert.  I was watching it myself earlier and we talked briefly about Genesis, sharing similar views on how they are now compared to their eminent past.  It was a pleasant interview and he comes across as a nice guy, which matches everything I’ve heard about him.  It seems that all the progressive rock musicians I’ve met are mature enough to be real people, without feeling the need to erect fake personas to front any bad behaviour.  It says a lot for adopting the erstwhile label of “intelligent rock” in lieu of the current “progressive rock”; rock played by intelligent people for intelligent people, but that sounds elitist and aloof so it’s not one that I would feel comfortable adopting, truth be told.  I can see where the suggesters are coming from, though.  I enjoyed Roine’s candid approach to the interview, where he admitted that if he was called upon to play one of his monster tracks he would struggle to remember the chords and the words.  It seems strange that he would need to practice some of his own stuff prior to playing it, but I imagine he was just being modest in saying that.  See, a nice guy!  Roine asked for two tracks to be played, Cinema Show from the new Flower Kings compilation album and one from his latest solo album, Wall Street Voodoo.  I managed to fit in Cinema Show but run out of time for the other so that’s something I’m going to make up for this Saturday coming.

Personally, I blame Jakko, bless his new cotton Tangenty socks!  I enjoyed playing some of Jakko’s music in the show and, at the end, when I had time for one last track, It was a toss up between Roine’s choice or another from Jakko.  Well, Jakko has just been confirmed as the new guitarist for The Tangent and the early demo mix of his guitar part on the new T4 album’s A Crisis in Mid Life’s title track, made the hairs stand up on the back of my neck.  When I’d first heard the track earlier in the week I knew it was a winner and that he was a good catch for the band.  So, when Ian suggested finishing off the show with one more from Jakko, I was swayed.  No problems, though, as it means I will play Roine’s choice this Saturday.

So, speaking of the next show, what’s coming up next?  As I write this I am listening to the new It Bites live CD and I am enchanted.  The music is timeless and vibrant, and I’m looking forward to playing a few tracks from it.  What else?  Well, even I don’t know just yet.  Tune in on Saturday evening from 10pm through to midnight on Phoenix 98FM to find out.

All the best,

Dave.

Article by Dave O'Neill, 13 Jul 2007
Posted in The Dave O Prog Rock Show

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