Music, travel, the novel, and learning things badly at sixty-nine.
The rest of a life. And to be honest, a life that was subsumed under work for decades.
Live music, which I’ll travel a long way for. Places, and the people you talk to in them. Books, food, conversation, the occasional strong opinion.
It’s also where I write about the novel I’m working on — learning the craft, the crushing self-doubt, and what it’s like to be a beginner again at this age. Nothing about the plot.
And about the other stuff I’m trying. Playing the bass guitar I play so-so, the chess I’m slowly improving in, the Italian I keep meaning to learn, and the swimming I’ve finally started.
Being bad at new things is underrated. This is where I do it in public.
1973 and 1989 Encounters The last time I saw Robert Plant perform live was 53 years ago, at Preston Guildhall in January 1973. That set changed my life. I was 15, from a small town in rural Lancashire. I scraped together my money for vinyl …
Number 69 At 69, I travelled from London for the 69th running of the Monterey Jazz Festival. The first was in 1958, when I was one year old. The three days of music had a strong lineup, but I was there for the final evening …
A Years Long Pull Towards New Orleans For years, I dreamed of going to the New Orleans Jazz Fest—but somehow, it never happened. The eclectic sounds of New Orleans. Jazz, blues, Cajun, Zydeco, and the musical mishmash of the Deep South have been a fixture …
The Best Laid Plans ‘Stick or quit’ is not my usual conversation with myself. It’s on my mind now, and I’m not sure if it’s my psyche playing with me, introducing the ‘quit’ word to get me going again. Or is it that time? It’s …
What Do You Do? Transitions from full-time work. I finished my last full-time work role a year ago. It was time. I have worked since I was 16 years old, and my last day at work was fifty years and one month after my first …
Is This As Good As It Gets? That’s the question I asked myself this afternoon. I’m laying low to promote healing following my recent heavy crash. A beautiful, sunny spring afternoon, but a sense of emptiness hanging over me too, a feeling of loss. I …
Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes* The next chapter arrived for me last month when I parted ways with my company after 12 years. It wasn’t long after I wrote my last blog post, “Going Through Changes“. I don’t believe in coincidences. I heard someone say that once and adopted …
I’m Going Through Changes. Take the time to listen to Charles Bradley sing this great version, while I write about change. Does anyone care to guess who wrote this song? Answer at the end. Change is a given in our lives. The more changes I …
I’m A Pensioner Life comes at you fast. Yes, sir, it does. My invitation to get my State Pension arrived today. Life comes at you quickly. I remember my first day at primary school with clarity. Oddly I remember that day better than when I …
Still Rocking For Three Hours My companion Bruce Springsteen came to town last week. I was fortunate to see Bruce him play a typically high-energy three-hour set at Hyde Park on Saturday. He promptly walked on at 7 pm and left at exactly 10 pm. …