Not that I like food or anything but what I’m most looking forward to back in California is El Pollo Loco, chili at Pappy and Harriet’s, Joshua Tree Saloon, especially their margaritas, a proper Denny’s, In-n-out burgers, great breads and cheeses, Sizzlers, Sam’s Indian on Joshua Tree (best Indian food) and more and looking forward to trying the Korean restaurant in Yucca Valley plus BBQ’s on our land.
Chili at Pappy and Harriets’s in Pioneertown
Pioneertown is an old purpose built movie western town with a store, post office and two bars including the world famous Pappys and a wonderful motel.
Our property in Joshua Tree, the National Park in the distance The Desert Queen
Last night’s excellent episode of SVU told the story of a young TikTok star, a wannabe ‘influencer’, desperate to get more followers.
I am envious of all the technology that kids have today, I would have died to have the recording apps like GarageBand available and the film making ability, like iMovies, let alone ProTools, Logic or Final Cut.
I remember buying my first 8mm camera, with film and going to Roath park lake and filming the swans. I then had to take it to develop it whereas today the iPhone has broadcast quality instant filming. This gives creative control back to creators which is brilliant as do the music recording apps and platforms like iTunes and Spotify that you can instantly upload your music to.
There is a downside though to the social media apps in particular, including TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.
I’m sure most people will agree it is hard enough growing up, without the need to almost be perfect on social media. There is pressure for body imaging and ‘challenges’ that young people feel they have to do. I look on Instagram’s Reels looking for cute animal videos but these are far outnumbered by videos of women in what could be called comprising positions, doing challenges that involve their bodies, just to be cool or inclusive. There is obviously money involved, as they try to get followers, hence make more money. Younger girls though see these and feel they have to act that way too.
There have also been many cases of bullying on line, too many of which have resulted in young people taking their own lives. Many of these have involved other students from schools picking on one person, There is pressure to share intimate photographs which then of course are shared and then are forever available online. As the episode said last night, once something is on the internet, it is there forever.
I was so lucky in hindsight to have a relatively drama free childhood but times have changed. I would be out all day, on my bike, riding around my home town of Cardiff in Wales, aged from eight up, with my dear friend Wayne. We’d cycle down to the docks and along the coast road, and be gone all day. Or we’d be playing tennis every night or football, all so innocent. One day that stays in my mind is the day he and I, both fourteen, cut school and went to London on the train, where we met Tony Curtis and the gorgeous Jacqueline Bissett, who wanted my white Afghan hippy coat. On our return to Cardiff Wayne found his mother waiting for him at the train station, who proceeded to drag him off by his ear!
By then I had discovered music properly and was working on Saturdays and during school holidays in a very cool record store, Sound Advice, but even then it was a different city,
As I grew older I’d stay out later, often in the city centre. I certainly wouldn’t today I don’t think. I loved Cardiff, the clubs – Bumpers and Casablanca and all the late night restaurants, especially Caroline Street and the chicken curry and chips but today news reports consist a lot about murders, assaults or stabbings most weekends. The main streets look like a war zone at the weekends. I’ve been back a number of times and it is true, you can’t go home again.
My band used to rehearse in the heart of the city but it has all changed, as indeed has Nashville. I would go to the nightclubs and discos all the time and never ever had any trouble. I went back a few years ago for my son’s wedding and it was a different city, but I guess that’s progress?
How I’d have dealt with social media at say fourteen, who knows. Relationships are hard enough especially when you’re young. Some people though feel the need to post every detail about their life and relationships. I’m glad for example we didn’t have cell phones then, they make you so available. “Where are you?”, “Why don’t you pick up your phone?” I doubt I would have got away with half of what I did, not that I was really doing anything wrong.
The sad thing about growing older of course is that we start to lose friends. The friend I mentioned, Wayne, tragically died three years ago, as did a few years earlier another friend, Martyn. Martyn and I had a memorable weekend in Paris and a few years later he visited me in Santa Barbara; precious memories.
WAYNE
I feel much like I did at sixteen, although my body sometimes gets tired! William shatner is in the news at the moment and what an inspiration to every one.
William Shatner
Aged ninety he has of course just gone into space. He also rides horses and is very active, and he looks great. I have a long way to go before I’m ninety but if I make it I hope I’m like him.
Directly in front of my desk in the cottage are pictures of people who have inspired me, including this one of Welsh poet and writer, Dylan Thomas. Thomas tragically died in 1953 in New York at the early age of just thirty nine, leaving many to think ‘what might have been’. He was a heavy drinker, as was his wife, Caitlyn.
One of his most popular poems is ‘Do Not Go Gently Into that Good Night’, but his most famous work is probably Under Milk Wood, a play for voices. I have several versions of this unique masterpiece, which Welsh actor Richard Burton is usually most associated with it.
UNDER MILKWOOD BOX SET
Dylan was the writer of many wonderful books of poetry and I also adore Thomas’ A Child’s Christmas in Wales. He also did many radio broadcasts and toured a lot, including here in the States.
Welsh singer Cerys Matthews adapted Under Milk Wood a few years ago with original songs. It is excellent and well worth checking out.
Richard Burton is of course acknowledged as one of the greatest actors of all time, who though possibly never really reached his full potential. His deep, rich voice is unmatched.
ELIZABETH TAYLOR AND Richard Burton
Apart from his movies, Burton was mainly a stage actor, performing Shakespeare, most notably Hamlet, and many classic plays. His love affair and two marriages to Elizabeth Taylor remains the celebrity relationship. They met at a party prior to the movie Cleopatra and disliked each other inmensley but fate played a part and they became lovers. It was Burton who pushed Taylor to be a better actor, especially on stage in classics like Taming of The Shrew and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Wolfe? Burton’s performance in the film, Look Back In Anger, is a masterclass in acting and one of the first, and finest, British kitchen sink dramas.
He did make a few bad choices; Exorcist II comes to mind. I do though love Wild Geese, a star studded action movie.
THE WILD GEESE
Dylsn Thomas famously had his writing shed above a boat house where he often went to write. The village of Laugharne was the inspiration for Under Milk Wood.
Situated on an estuary in South Wales the house is now a tourist favourite.
I have my version of his boat house/shed – The Cottage! I hope it is as inspirational.
This weekend Watertown held the town’s annual fall mile long yard sale. It was a lovely day, perfect for a cider, which we had sitting on Main Street, people watching. Most houses had a sale in their front yard, and it was nice to see so many people out. There were a lot of stalls, perhaps more than usual and some bargains to be had!
It was held on Friday and Saturday only. I talked with one vendor and he told me they weren’t allowed to hold it on Sunday as people apparently are expected to be in church on a Sunday. It does seem hypocritical – people sin during the week and then go to church on a Sunday to be forgiven. It’s not that simple, and remember Jesus did not like places of worship, “Den of thieves” he called them, but that’s a story for another day!
On our way home we bought a six pack of cider and went home, lit a fire and watched the stars and planets. It reminded me of Arthur C Clarke. As a kid I loved his stories – his imagination was astonishing. In many of the short stories, humans go about their every day lives but on a different planet. Clarke of course has inspired so many people, not just writers, but astronauts and scientists, and NASA.
ARTHUR C CLARKE
His legacy will live on and deservedly so. Most people know Stanley Kubrick’s 2001, A Space Odyssey based on a Clarke novel but there is so much more to Clarke.
Leaves have been falling for a few weeks now, our drive is evidence that Fall is upon us.
I think this time of year is possibly my favourite season. After the humidity experienced in Tennessee during hot summers, the fall temperatures are so welcome. We still do have seasons here in Tennessee, unlike California.
Sunset
This is the first full week of Fall and the sunsets have been amazing.
I’ve always loved the word ‘fall’; it perfectly describes the time of year. There is something though about the word, Autumn, which we use of course in the UK.
Fall/autumn sees us changing the clothes we wear, (although I’d wear shorts all year round) due to the weather, and also the foods we eat; soups and stews return. We dig out blankets and have the windows open, (which seems contradictory!).
FALL; A TRILOGY, available now
The writer, George Bernard Shaw, famously said that the US and UK are two countries separated by a common language. We experience this regularly here when we’re out and I sometimes feel like reminding people that the language we’re speaking is called ‘English’. We were once asked by someone working in McDonalds how we say ‘good morning’ in the UK! They then proceeded to do Dick Van Dyke from Mary Poppins – “‘Cor blimey, Mary Poppins!”, the worst English accent possible.
The big show here at the moment, and deservedly so, is Ted Lasso. Winner of countless awards it features Jason Sudeikis in the title role as an American coach brought over to the UK to coach a premier league football (soccer to the Americans) team. The show successfully highlights the differences between the two countries and but also celebrates what we share.
In last week’s episode, as Ted was reading a letter, he corrected the writer, his therapist, on how she had spelt favourite! They don’t put the letter ‘u’ in words like color or favorite. My auto-correct is set to English (US).
They also drop the letter ‘t’ in many words – twenty becomes twenny; water is wa’er. Adding a British accent to the equation does confuse many people in restaurants for example when you ask for water.
If you haven’t caught Ted Lasso yet it’s on Apple TV. Tomorrow night’s episode is the last of this series as the team are fighting to win promotion back to the premier league. Season Three will hopefully be here early next year.
Sudeikis liked one of my tweets recently which was cool so another reason to like the show! haha
I’ve slowly but surely been moving into my new studio and writing space, The Cottage.
One side is the recording studio, the other half is where I write and have my lovely desk. I’ve brought in books by many of the writers who have inspired me, especially when I was starting out – Stan Barstow, Noel Coward, Oscar Wilde (my first band was called Dorian Gray), Bill Naughton, Alan Sillitoe and John Osborne. I was and remain a huge fan of the British ‘kitchen sink’ drams of the 60’s in particular.
Another writer is Joe Orton. His best known play is probably Entertaining Mr Sloane but it it another play, of his, Loot, was adapted for a film which starred Richard Attenborough and Hywel Bennett which is my personal favorite. The film is wonderful with a great performance from Attenborough. The title song was sung by the great Steve Ellis, best known perhaps for Everlasting Love by The Love Affair.
STEVE ELLIS
Hywel Bennett is one of the finest actors Britain has produced. His big success was the television series, Shelley, and he was also in the outstanding film, The Family Way, which had a Paul McCartney soundtrack.
HYWEL BENNETT
Hywel made another film in the 60’s that got a lot of attention, Percy, the story of a man who has had the world’s first penis transplant!
PERCY
The film featured a soundtrack by Ray Davies and The Kinks, including the beautiful and haunting song, The Way Love Used To Be, with a gorgeous strong arrangement by Stanley Myers. It is also for me probably the best song Davies has written.
Hywel died four years ago in Cardiff, after living in Deal where I had the theatre.
Here’s a link to a video on Youtube of the song. Hope the link works!
The tragic case of Gabby Petito continues to grab the nation and indeed the world.
As most know her body was found two weeks or so ago and her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie is missing, and his parents are not talking to the FBI or offering any information.
Personally I’d arrest his parents and charge them with murder, as accessories after the fact. Lock them up and then I am sure he would give himself up in some kind of deal.
BRIAN LAUNDRIE
This case though has raised interesting questions. What has it got so much media coverage?
Many put it down to the fact that Gabby is a pretty, white woman. Hundreds of women and men go missing but they do not get anywhere near the attention Gabby has. I thought it touching that her father, Joe, highlighted this by saying that all missing people deserve this coverage, but it simply doesn’t happen. Is it a racist problem?
in my new book coincidentally this problem is highlighted when two young girls are abducted and go missing. There is also an excellent early episode of Law and Order where it is an integral story line.
Talking of Law and Order, Dick Wolf has just announced it is returning to television. This will mean Wolf is producing nine prime time shows a week – there are fifteen hours of prime time!
JERRY ORBACH
Orbac, who passed in 2004, îs many people’s favorite but it will be interesting who is cast. Wolf is very loyal to his actors, bringing them back to new shows so we will see.
I am a huge fan of Wolf – his franchises include obviously Law and Order, FBI and the Chicago shows. I love this t shirtI found last week in a vintage store in Nashville.
LAW AND ORDER T SHIRT
Law and Order starts again this month. Meanwhile check out the excellent Organized Crime Law and Order, with Chris Meloni, Thursday nights on NBC. Last week’s feature length episode was outstanding.
In the 60’s, following his huge success for Capitol Records, the story is that Sinatra with Dean Martin stood at Hollywood and Vine by the Capitol Records tower and said to Martin that they needed to build their own tower. Reprise Records was born.
It gave Sinatra the opportunity to experiment and that he did. Like Taylor Swift today he re-recorded all his hits, for his own label.
In March 1970 though he released his most adventurous album, a concept album written by little know Jake Holmes – and it remains my faourite Sinatra album.
It could be any singer-songwriter except for ‘that’ voice, still sounding good. The songs, like Elizabeth, are beautiful, acoustic guitar being the dominant instrument. It sounds good today.
The roster of Reprise is so impressive.
Along with Matin and Sammy Davis, Jr, and Sinatra of course, it includes Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, The Kinks, Jimi Hendrix, The Beach Boys and Fleetwood Mac.
Watertown is available on CD but sounds best on vinyl of course.
Jon Johanson 