I took my nostalgia out for a walk
late in the evening, too tired
to pick a fight with certain
sepia filled memories, too ground down
by hopeful idealism
to brawl or come to bloodied nosed
defeat with reminiscence
in which I loved you;
I am just slightly homesick,
but the trouble with having
lived
is that at times I forget
where I have
died
as well.
Ian D. Hall 2017
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
Cast: Daniel Abbott, Francesca Barley, Anna Crichlow, Doña Croll, Benjamin Dilloway, Holly Edwin, Mari Izzard, Matthew Kelly, Steven Meo, Jordan Mifsud, Felicity Montagu, Charlotte Palmer, Leigh Quinn, Mark Rawlings, Kirsty Rider, Tafline Steen, Geoff Arnold, Jessica D’Arcy, Rose Daulbey, Ally Manson.
It used to be said that manners maketh man, that to be seen as genteel, saying all the right things in polite company, was the way that lead to Britain being seen for its conduct in society, that the revolving doors of etiquette depended its life on how people were judged and measured.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *
The working musician seems to always be around, playing away to the crowd but never being recognised fully for their achievements or prowess unless they step into the limelight and take on the responsibility of opening up their heart to an audience that might prefer them to be in the shadows.
Los Angeles resident Todd O’Keefe has had the good fortune to work with some of the world’s greats including the indomitable Ray Davies, Elvis Costello and Beck, it is in that chance to express in what is quite obviously a sublime talent just itching to be set free and communicate his own ideas and musical designs. It is an itching that sees a realisation scratch in the tremendous album Uptown.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
The Power Within Ourselves lays deep, it is the way that it comes out, the way emotionally it finds a way to rage and scream whilst at all times being sensuous and alluring, without this power we can only shrink in to ourselves, we can only find that the doors shut and the windows become locked; we have no power to break the cell down if we neglect our voice and the muscle, no matter how robust, in which to get our point of view across.
Her arm is raised, the red
T-shirt proclaiming her beliefs
and that is just the start
of what this flame
that burns bright
within Liverpool
shows to the world.
There is a sense of magnificence
that resides under the cool music exterior,
always at the heart to show her town
as being the best, the finest, the indomitable,
this Liverpool, this keeper of the Red Flag,
hums along before a note is etched out
and when the music starts
she, with honour, knows that is the best
We had Country Dancing at school,
an endurance test for boys
who wanted no part of the pre-pubescent
courtly game
and for the girls,
though I cannot speak with firm authority,
they wanted no part of being involved with
the boys, pre-testosterone, pre hormones,
before manners, before holding hands
was an aspiration, before the scent
of something more by being renowned
for your dancing moves got you the smile
from the girl in the corner
as she shyly sucked on her Panda Pops
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10
If anything comes close to being the proverbial man eater then music should be the one that is all consuming; it should also not confide itself to one gender, to one specific gene pool, it should consume with passion everything in its path and lick its lips as it salivates over the next soul posing as a tasty morsel to eat.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
There is no reason to believe that Rock will ever die, it doesn’t even seem to exist in a world where it never truly goes out of fashion or sits uncomfortably in the shadows having disappeared into a void of distaste or despair. If Rock can never die then it should come as no surprise that the music that is fluid and robust should at times remind you not only of the best of times but of those once inhabited by the music of the past five decades.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7/10
The flavour of music will normally be governed by what surrounds you, play a lot of Rock, then Rock will be your weapon of choice when it comes to playing something that the brain craves. Likewise, if you spend your life taking in the thoughts of the beautiful but abstract then, the seemingly nonfigurative but somehow alluring sounds that capture the ear, perhaps by accident, perhaps driven by some audible design, then it is no wonder that the music you begin to create is seen by some in the same class as Picasso or Van Gogh, it is isn’t everybody’s cup of tea but it is enlightening to some.
Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7/10
Cast: Emily Watson, Ben Chaplin, Mark Bonnar, Susan Lynch, Olivia Vinall, Stephen Elder, Jack Hamilton, Syreeta Kumar, Assad Zaman, Kezia Burrows, Steffan Rhodri, Adeel Akhtar, Rhashan Stone, Lydia Leonard, Nick Sampson, Frances Tomelty, Laure Stockley, Sebastian Armesto, Denise Gough, Adrian Lukis.
The problem with putting on a drama on the television, no matter how well intentioned, is that in some respects the pace of the script feels disjointed, it can either be too fast and therefore lose the viewer’s attention by being overly complicated or too slow and then being the type of programme in which the person enduring the ongoing situation is forced to believe that many of the scenes or characters could have been cut or not bothered with at all.