Flea Market and New Merchandise Update

BACKGROUND HISTORY: The first musical bands originated in New Orleans among black musicians who have traditionally been the innovators. The first jazz record ever recorded was by The Original Dixieland Jazz Band in 1917, and of course they were white because racism always rears its ugly head to hold black people back. But during the Roaring 20’s, young white people couldn’t resist the dance beat laid down by the black jazz bands. Fletcher Henderson, a black man, became the first band leader to achieve national fame possibly because he featured Louis Armstrong on trumpet. Duke Ellington, a classicly trained musician, brought a level of style and sophistication to jazz that hadn’t been seen before. But it wasn’t until 1935 that jazz bands with a “swing beat” achieved national attention due to Benny Goodman who I think was the best clarinet player ever to blow air into that instrument. Benny also had the good sense and taste to bring the first great drummer, Gene Krupa, into his band.

When rock and roll exploded into human consciousness during the early 1950’s, black musicians like Bo Diddley, Little Richard, Chuck Berry, and Smokey Robinson pioneered the way, but a white DJ named Alan Freed is believed to have coined the term “rock and roll”. The first real rock and roll record was “Shake, Rattle and Roll”, written by Jesse Stone who was black and recorded by Big Joe Turner who was also black but it wasn’t a hit. The first big hit rock and roll record was “Rock Around the Clock” written by James Meyers and Max Freeman of obvious ancestry, and that one catapulted Bill Haley and his Caucasian Comets to stardom. During the 1950’s and early 60’s, there were countless “do wop” groups, rock groups, singers and songwriters but until The Beatles hit the charts, there had been very few bands which contained talented songwriters. The vast majority of jazz and rock bands recorded songs written by songwriters who were not performers, with occasional exceptions like Duke Ellington and Buddy Holly. As time goes on, it’s increasingly clear that Lennon/McCartney songs are brilliant classics which will never be forgotten. Now here’s why The Beatles are the most creative band of all time:

1. BEST EXAMPLE OF FORM = CONTENT

As I sit here writing this at the keyboard of my computer facing the unique and colorful Beatles poster in my bedroom, I’m aware that I have been directly and indirectly inspired by John Lennon’s music as well as by the way he lived his life offstage. Squarely in front of me is a full color poster of all four Beatles standing in a heavenly-like flower garden at about the time of the Abbey Road album. Paul is angelic in his pink suit with a white laced shirt. John is enigmatic peering out from the background. George is charismatic staring directly into the camera from the lower right. Ringo is on the left with a stylish blue suit and his pink ruffled shirt. I always wished I could dress like those guys but obviously there’s a bit of a problem with a money differential there. Surrounding this gorgeous poster which I have never seen elsewhere are my 45 speed original Beatles hit records, including I Want to Hold Your Hand, She Loves You, Please Please Me, Twist and Shout, Can’t Buy Me Love, She’s A Woman, Yesterday, and of course, Hey Jude. And surrounding all that is a chain of 1-1/2″ long orange flicker flame lights which are the most beautiful and unique Christmas lights I’ve ever seen. I chose to decorate the wall directly in front of my work station this way because, as I’ve written elsewhere on this site several times, the Beatles were my major musical influence and having them on the wall in front of me inspires me to write web pages like this one. I was also among the millions of people who were inspired by how The Beatles were actually living their off stage lives. The Beatles’ music creatively stimulated millions of people to change the way they were living, and The Beatles behavior encouraged people to have fun by trying new life style experiences. That’s what I call a perfect example of FORM = CONTENT. In this case it means that the creatively and masterfully varied music The Beatles were producing (form) embodied the real life styles which each of the four Beatles were living (content), together as a band as well as separately as unique individuals.

2. BEST SONGWRITERS

This should be self-evident, but just because Paul McCartney has the title of the most popular songwriter in history doesn’t necessarily make him the best songwriter in history. The qualities which do make both Paul and John the best songwriters in history go beyond writing the greatest number of catchy classic songs. “Catchy” means that their melodies and lyrics are instantly memorable. “Classic” means that they stand the test of time. But both Paul and John wrote very sophisticated melodies that moved beyond the simple groups of 2, 4 and 8 patterned phrases used by almost all other songwriters. John and Paul’s melodies soared, floated, cascaded, dived and peaked with true dynamics, naturally following the syllabic lyric patterns – but not always. Sometimes the melodic and lyric patterns were independent of each other, almost counterpoint in nature, and as a songwriter, they never ceased to astonish me with their brilliance and originality. In the beginning, their lyrics were simple and their songs were simple love songs. But they soon began exploring new territory by writing about subjects that hadn’t been covered before. Inspired by Bob Dylan, they wrote true poetry with feeling and depth, using evocative and unusual words. Rubber Soul marked the beginning of their evolution as mature songwriters, Revolver was a break-out album, and Sergeant Pepper was an historic landmark album in terms of new and innovative songwriting as well as production. Every song they wrote was significantly different from the last one even though each song had their unmistakable sound.

Most songwriters are only average players on their instruments, but John and Paul are both sophisticated guitarists who were able to integrate their playing into their songs and even into their song structure so that the “licks” they played became as catchy a part of their songs as the choruses and verses. Blackbird and Dear Prudence are only two examples of songs which couldn’t possibly be written by any other songwriter because of the guitar playing which forms an integral part of the song structure. In similar fashion, Lady Madonna is the best example of a great song which derives from the unique and beautiful bass part which only Paul could possibly have created.

Average songwriters achieve the catchy quality by repeating a phrase endlessly or by beating a chorus to death. John and Paul found countless ways to be memorable without ever overly repeating something. The only time they repeated something over and over again for a long time was in Hey Jude, and what they chose to repeat is so gorgeous that one can only wish they had never ended the song. The Beatles were my biggest musical influence and I used to think, “If I could write just one song that’s as good as John and Paul’s worst song, I’d be happy.” People tell me I accomplished that goal and they say one good example is John is Alive, which is my sincere tribute to Sir Lennon.

3. BEST SINGERS

Even Ringo could sing when he got a little help from his friends who lived in the yellow submarine. But to say that Paul and John are two of the best singers in rock and roll is to state the obvious. Combining John, Paul and George created the best harmony vocals the world has ever experienced. Even their two part harmonies were unusual, catching us all by surprise on their first hit record with the fast harmony melisma in the chorus of I Want to Hold Your Hand. John had a knack of placing a unique low harmony line underneath Paul’s high melody line so as to form a second melody which created unusual harmony effects. He did that right from the beginning in the verses of She Loves You. Both Paul and John could blast out screaming rock and roll (i.e. Long Tall Sally and Twist and Shout), and both could break our hearts with touching, deep feeling ballads (i.e. Yesterday and Julia). There seems to be no end to their emotional vocal range, and John even explored the heights of vocal psychedelia in songs like She Said (Revolver) and Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds.

4. MOST CREATIVE PLAYERS

Paul brought a new style of melodic playing to the bass guitar, reaching a new high of creativity on Sergeant Pepper with a level of sophistication never heard before. Many other musicians besides me recognize Paul as being one of the best bass guitar players ever. George is underrated as a lead guitarist by people with average or below average musical knowledge or ability, but most guitarists (including Eric Clapton) know better. George’s strength is in melody, pure and simple. It would be difficult to find a George Harrison lead which is not melodic, and each of his leads has a strong beginning, a stronger middle and a well defined ending. In fact, that’s Eric’s definition of what makes a good guitar lead. George continually developed new guitar sounds for each Beatles song. John and Paul are also excellent guitarists and both recorded great leads as well as innovative rhythm tracks. All three of the Beatles guitarists may lack showy technical fireworks but they make that definition of guitar mastery irrelevant by overwhelming the senses with creativity, style, and pure melody. The exact same thing can be said about John and Paul’s keyboard playing. Ringo may be underrated as a drummer by the public but he is not underrated by other professional drummers. Ringo mastered the art of drum sounds. No drummer has ever recorded so many different sounds on so many different sounding records. Ringo invented a new style of slow drum playing, epitomized on A Day in the Life and Strawberry Fields Forever. John said many times, “Ringo has the best back beat in the business” and the successful studio drummers understand why John was correct.

5. TOTAL CHARISMA

A good definition of charisma needs to include “an unusual ability to influence people and arouse devotion” and “a personal attractiveness which enables a person to influence others”. No musical group prior to or after The Beatles features true charisma emanating strongly from the entire group as well as separately from each member. The Beatles stunned the world with their photogenic quality, their charm, their bubbling and lovable personalities, their cuteness and their unique style. Even before The Beatles achieved fame, people in Liverpool were imitating their haircuts, the way they dressed, the way they behaved, and the way they lived. Such a simple subliminal message about smoking marijuana got communicated to all the hippies who were waiting to happen without actual words ever being spoken. The Beatles had a lot to lose by being explicit on that subject, but they successfully avoided trouble by keeping it very subtle while at the same time clear enough so that we all got it. The Fab Four kept changing their styles rapidly, almost with each album cover, and soon the message became one of explicit spiritualism. After visiting India, The Beatles introduced eastern mysticism and meditation to the Western world for the first time through the mass media. John’s long saga with internal angst, drugs, spiritualism, politics, personal battles, and ultimately his marriage to Yoko played out like a movie the whole world got to watch in fascination. Paul’s happy life with Linda, George’s great focus on meditation, and Ringo’s equanimity throughout were all perfect examples of the power, the truth, and the effectiveness of true charisma.

6. SEXUAL AURA

Need I say it? Ask the millions of girls who were screaming and fainting at the very sight of them. “The Boys” didn’t move like Elvis or dance like Mick, they just stood there shaking their “mop top” heads around, smiling, laughing, and looking gorgeous as they performed great music and that was it. On their first visit to America, some enterprising weirdo from New York City managed to cut up the hotel bed sheets The Beatles had slept on into 1″ square pieces, and these things were actually sold to girls over the public airwaves by adult DJ’s on the AM radio stations who should have known better. The Beatles phenomenon went way beyond the rock and roll sex star status that had been seen before. Teenage girls in uncountable numbers fell in love, their hearts to be trapped, their heart strings to be continually plucked, and ultimately, their hearts to be broken by the unobtainable object of their love. Worshiping a star from afar? Infatuation? Obsession? Not real love? For many of them, it was their first experience feeling love for a man/boy. Whatever it was, it was very real to all of them, and we all soon understood that The Beatles were The Real Thing.

That’s why I call The Beatles the Most Creative Band of All Time. They were The Real Thing. The Creative Zenith. The high point on the bell curve of musical history.

As one reared in the 50’s and 60’s the artists who performed music at that time were easy to listen to, exciting, and some could raise the hairs on your arms with their voices. Gorgeous bands that played melodies that inspired one to dance and sing all night long were a normal part of my youth. They had voices that sang inside you and tunes that were inspiring. But this is not how I see modern artists and their efforts today.

While still at school I had a part-time job at a milk-bar café opposite the movie theatre in Bondi. As the movies played so did the music ring out across the street and some of it made me stop in my tracks. Artists like Mario Lanza still does it to me when his records play. So do others like Nat King Cole, Frankie Lane, Kathryn Grayson, Howard Keel, and the list goes on.

Who doesn’t love the music of Glen Miller and other bands like that of Bill Haley. But what have we got today to equal them? They didn’t yell or scream notes at you. They crooned and softly let you know that they were artists.

Today’s musicians have a different approach. The notes are still there but delivered in a more violent, raucous manner. The effect on the ears is hard and when played in shops and centers they frequently result in a head-ache. This was brought home to me again today while shopping for new shoes.

In shop after shop the music was annoying, very off-putting, and tiring. In the end I gave up after telling two of the young shop attendants of the damage it will do to their ears. The persistent loud noise is causing the cilia of the ears to react and this can lead to tinnitus and even deafness before they are much older. In the case of the former they will experience ringing in their ears which is constant and for which there is no cure.

Occasionally one hears a nice song played from those early days and my heart sing along with it. Generally, however, the noise of raucous tunes causes me to run away from it. Having been made aware of the danger of such it is appalling that the work-places of so many are spoiled and polluted with this material.

If shop owners want to do people a favour and get more customers into their stores then please do it with gentle loving music that makes our hearts sing. Turn off the horrible screaming and loud noise that passes for music at this time.

Street performing has been around since, well, ever! It is likely that it has occurred since recorded history began, though there has been a notable evolution throughout the decades.

Whilst it is impossible to know what the first ever street-performing acts entailed (anything from banging on a rock to dancing), it is likely that it was performed to get attention, mating purposes or to receive goods/services.

Minstrels would perform songs with lyrics telling stories of real and imaginary events and places, however these became less popular as courts became more sophisticated, forcing these minstrels into the streets, becoming wandering minstrels. This remained popular until the 20th century, when it became similar to modern busking.

So when did it start becoming recognised as a potentially lucrative venture?

There is no set date, but it is likely that it was a common mean of securing employment for entertainers, musicians and singers, before recording devices had been established. As there was no music device, except for organ grinders, piano rolls and music boxes, music existed mostly in their live form – thus creating a high demand for performers.

Organ grinders were found performing on the streets on a regular basis – providing a simple yet steady job and income for unskilled workers. Unfortunately, the stereotypical image of an organ grinder and a dancing monkey is true, as these provided a means of visual entertainment, ensuring that passers-by were captivated in the spectacle. This was stopped with the introduction of animal rights, increased use of audio devices and a dwindling audience.

In the 1800s street performers were seen advertising their products and wares, as well as medicine shows selling ‘magical elixirs and potions’ that would improve their health. Towards the end of this century, one man bands began to appear, using an array of instruments attached to parts of the body. This tradition is carried on even today, however now uses MIDI instruments or samples to achieve the effect.

In the 20th Century busking saw a major rise, as well as the number of buskers who later became famous from it, such as Edith Piaf, The Blue Man Group, Robbie Williams, Joan Baez and even Bob Dylan. This led to a counterculture where bands and performers would gather at a public place and perform for free – akin to a busking festival, attracting names such as the Grateful Dead and Jimi Hendrix. This is still continued today but is generally more organised and official.

One of the most popular places for buskers is London, thanks to heavy foot traffic and a glut of tourists visiting, most notably in Covent Garden. Often, businesspeople are able to look out of their offices in Covent Garden and see an ‘army’ of buskers – such as jugglers, magicians, puppetry, performers, living statues and singers.

Busking is not a glamorous profession, however it is not exclusively for the homeless or unemployed, as the stereotype might imply. Subjected to the public, buskers might receive abuse from passers-by or competition from other buskers, as well as thieving from their donation pot.

Busking is likely to continue forever, evolving even further (some artists now cyber-busk – which is posting their music/performing for free online) and, whilst not universally appreciated, can really help to brighten a day and add some life to an otherwise dull street.

Flying up the Gulf of Siam in a Boeing 727 at 37,000 feet we were in and out of the cloud tops and experiencing moderate turbulence at times. With the 727s high wing loading we couldn’t request a higher level because we were already quite close to “coffin corner”. That’s the top area on the performance chart where the two lines converge to show a very small margin between the low and high speed buffet boundaries. Aircraft with large wing areas such as the Boeing 777 can comfortably climb straight to 41,000 feet and fly above most of the weather on short to medium sectors.

Off the coast of Cambodia, one of the young stewardesses came into the cockpit visibly upset by the rough ride we were having. It was her first solo flight after completing her training. The seat belt sign was on and cabin service had been suspended. We smiled and asked her politely to get rid of the food trays, so we wouldn’t have metal projectiles in the form of knives and forks flying around the cockpit, then to come back and sit in one of the observer seats and keep us company for the rest of the flight. We quickly managed to restore some of her self confidence but added that flying in rough weather occasionally was part of the job she had chosen and that she had better get used to it.

I was going to give her the universally held definition of flying; that is, hours and hours of sheer boredom interspersed with moments of sheer terror, but I thought better of it. Instead I gave her the definition of a pilot to divert her attention away from the lightning flashes.

“The average pilot, despite the sometimes swaggering exterior, is very much capable of such feelings as love, affection, intimacy and caring. These feelings just don’t involve anybody else.” She started laughing until tears rolled down her cheeks. I quickly added that the definition did not apply to the three of us, who were overflowing with compassion, affection, and caring for others.

Approaching Rayong we copied the ATIS (automatic terminal information service), briefed the approach, and asked for descent clearance. We were radar vectored in a wide arc and we were number 9 in landing sequence. Eventually we were cleared for an ILS (instrument landing system) approach to runway 21R at Bangkok’s Don Muang Airport. At the final approach fix we were handed off to the tower for landing clearance. A trainee air traffic controller asked us to maintain 1,500 feet which was contradictory to the approach clearance we were flying. When we were over the runway threshold, still at 1,500 feet, she cleared us to land. That’s asking a bit much of any pilot of a large aircraft, despite the 13,000 ft runway. I suppose with the pressure of trying to handle so much inbound traffic, she simply forgot about us. In any case, it meant following the published missed approach procedure. Realizing our plight she had us handed back to approach control who gave us radar vectors to the back of a long queue for another approach. It was 6.30 pm with aircraft converging from many points of the globe.

We eventually landed after 11 other aircraft. It was not critical, just a little inconvenient, as we had plenty of fuel. As we were leaving the runway, a trainee stewardess came through the cockpit door bearing a silver tray on which were placed three crystal glasses containing champagne and brandy – this was called a “reverse thrust”. Normally this kind gesture would be handed out at the gate, if at all, and not while taxying to the gate. She returned a few minutes later and stuffed 3 cold lagers into everybody’s flight case for the “fourth sector”. No objections here! The schedule involved flying three sectors terminating in Bangkok. The trip into central Bangkok in the hire car was called the “fourth sector” because at that time of the day it could take almost as long to get to the hotel as it did to fly up from Singapore. The flyover had not yet been constructed.

As I had a flight into Bangkok about every 14 days, I got into a routine for my 16 hour layovers. On arrival at the hotel I showered, changed into casual clothes, then hailed a tuk tuk (motorized samlor) to take me to the Oriental Hotel on the Chao Phraya river. I would relax with one, or perhaps two, cocktails in the Bamboo Bar listening to jazz while soaking up the atmosphere of this excellent watering hole. Afterwhich I would wander up Charoen Krung road to “the Wall” restaurant which was partially hidden down a small soi (lane) off Suriwongse road.

This restaurant was unusual for two reasons. Firstly, in the evenings there was always a log fire burning in the fireplace. Outside the temperature was 30+ degrees Celsius, but inside it had been cooled down to a chilly 18 degrees. Requests for tables by the fire were common. I usually managed to get one because I was a regular who arrived after 9.00 pm. The place was very dark and the only illumination came from candles which were placed on every table as well as the glow from the log fire. The menu clearly indicated that the proprietor was Swiss. The food was very good and not at all expensive.

The second unusual feature was that there was another menu on the table featuring a wide selection of music. Every evening, except Tuesdays, a big white-haired Frenchman sat at a table grand piano and played anything that the diners ordered from Rachmaninov to Blues and everything in between. He was a likeable character and extremely versatile as a pianist.

After dinner I would take a taxi up to the bar area centered around Patpong, and spend two or three very pleasant hours in the “Other Office” or “Lucy’s Tiger Den” imbibing the local beer and chatting to some interesting characters, or listening to the exploits of a group of Air America pilots who had been involved in the secret war in Laos, and were now resident in Bangkok. In these two bars the girls did not hassle patrons, but were available if you wanted them. Often I’d finish up the evening with a massage to loosen up a little before walking back to the hotel. On Friday and Saturday nights the bars stayed open until 1.00 am which made it just that little bit harder to go to work the next day. However, with an 11.00 am departure time it was still quite legal and well outside the “eight hours bottle to throttle” rule. The next day was an easy single sector day of just under two hours flying.

Of all my South East Asian layovers I enjoyed Bangkok the best. The girls were friendly, the food and beer was cheap, and there were plenty of interesting and slightly eccentric characters to talk to. My only regret was that we saw Bangkok by night and didn’t have the opportunity to get out on the river or do any of a myriad of other interesting things in the daylight. The sort of things that make up real Thai life!