Trying to think positive thoughts on the worst Monday of the year, while getting back into the commute and work groove. Positive thoughts, positive thoughts...
When Isaac died my friend Chris Rotter (Chris Mackin) recorded a song for Isaac, a twenty three minute version of his song 86'ed (which I'd first heard when Andrew Weatherall played it on one of his radio shows. Chris recorded as Bad Meat Club and was also a former flatmate of Lone Swordsman Keith Tenniswood and the guitar player in the garage band version of Two Lone Swordsmen, not to mention the man whose guitars adorn Andrew's 2008 solo album A Pox On The Pioneers). At the time when Chris re- recorded 86'ed, we'd never met but had been friends online. Since then we've met a few times, usually at Todmorden's Golden Lion.
Poet Or Prayer and 86'ed (on Andrew Weatherall 6Mix, 8th August 2010)
Poet Or Prayer is from Andrew's unreleased second solo album, a record that became the subject of a dispute between Andrew and the engineer Steve Boardman (who wanted co- writing credits and who took the hard drive hostage, at which point Andrew walked away, onto the next thing, later saying he quite liked the idea of having a legendary, lost and unreleased album. Laugh Myself To Sleep has never seen the light of day although the title track appeared on David Holmes' album Blind On A Galloping Horse, covered by David with guitar from Tim Fairplay). Chris plays banjo on Poet Or Prayer.
Chris' new version of his song, 86'ed (For Isaac) is still up at Bandcamp, soaring instrumental cosmische with the proceeds going to The MPS Society (the charity that looks after families affected by MPS diseases and funds for research into cures and treatments).
Last week Chris released a new series of tracks for Isaac. This was a complete surprise to me and a lovely thing to do. Chris also sponsors a dolphin, Rainbow, so the new album is under a new guise, Dölphin Plays Music For Isaac. There are five long pieces of instrumental music, all variations on a theme, starting with the thirty minute long Ocean Droog (a minimalist piano and synth excursion, the perfect backdrop to thinking positive thoughts), and then Cowboy Droog (echo, lonesome guitar, glorious synth drones), Beautiful Droog (horns, swelling synth choirs), Space Droog (cosmische synths and Vangelis vibes) and finally Cosmic Droog (piano, space, more horns, fuzz guitar). The whole album is at Bandcamp. It's a pay what you want/ free deal but if you can Chris has asked people to donate to The PMS Society by way of payment. Thank you Chris- it's beautiful that Isaac is still being remembered in this way. Positive thoughts.