All of us here at Brain Damage offer our very best wishes to Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason, who celebrates the very special occasion of his birthday today (January 27th). We all trust you are having a great day, Nick!
The cornerstone of the band, he had his first drum kit at the tender age of 13. A member of Pink Floyd since the earliest iterations, he is the only one to have appeared on every one of their albums. Thanks to his late father Bill, he has been a "petrol head" from a young boy, and cars have been - and remain - one of his major passions in life. His most recent book, Passion for Speed, is worth checking out, as is the DVD of the same name focusing on his Ferrari Enzo car (with Nick heavily involved). Of course, for those who haven't read it, Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd is an absolute essential read, and available in a variety of editions: hardback, softback (paperback) and audiobook, read by Nick himself... Musically, more recently there has been the release of The Endless River, which has had Nick back on the drums in David Gilmour's south coast studio, augmenting the existing recordings with some new drumwork.
Nick has contributed to a number of magazines on motoring issues over the years (including a fascinating monthly column in Octane Magazine), and also became president of the Guild of Motoring Writers. He is a trustee of the Beaulieu National Motor Museum, and a life member
and Guardian of the BRDC (British Racing Drivers Club). He has been involved in motor racing since the early 1970s and has entered Le Mans five times.
In an email and via social media posts to release a new video, timed to perfection to coincide with Donald Trump's inauguration as 45th President of the United States, Roger Waters has stated that "the resistance begins today".
The video is of Pigs (Three Different Ones) filmed live during Roger's recent concert at Zócalo Square in Mexico City, on October 1st, 2016. The target of ridicule in the on-screen graphics is Trump...which understandably the Mexican audience seems to appreciate. You can watch it in full here:
Once Beatlemania properly hit the United States, the commerciality of pop music began to dawn on film producers, who by the time the swinging sixties properly became a "thing", clamoured for any potential act to help boost the chances of their productions. Published at the end of October 2016 is the new book by Simon Matthews which covers this phenomenon, and shows just how widespread it seemed to be. Psychedelic Celluloid - British Pop Music in Film & TV 1965 - 1974 is a well-researched and detailed look at UK film, TV and music during that period.
The publishers note that it was "a time when no film or TV programme was without a group, singer or fantastic soundtrack - and London was briefly the film capital of the world. Containing individual summaries of over 120 films, covering everything from John Barry to Pink Floyd via Blow Up, the Electric Banana, Serge Gainsbourg, Magical Mystery Tour, David Hemmings, Kubrick, Godard, Jodorowsdky [BD note: his adaptation of Dune was due to have a Floyd soundtrack] and the London cast of Hair. With comprehensive listings of over 500 related features, documentaries, TV programmes and shorts, an unforgettable trip through the swinging 60s."
It certainly comes as a surprise the breadth of films which are included, although a few are straight concert/festival films so to my mind, don't necessary fit with the main body of material. Having said that, for fans of the acts in question, it might prove useful to have a guide to these. In terms of the Floyd, there are a lot of good examples included within the pages of this book. Indeed, one of the seeds that led eventually to this book, was research by the author into The Committee, recently released again as part of Pink Floyd The Early Years 1965-1972 box set.
Pretty much all of Pink Floyd's film related material is covered, and films with bits of their music in (such as The Touchables) are also included - some of these will not have been mentioned in Floyd tomes before.
With regard to other artists there are some genuine surprises (for me, at least), such as the Bee Gees' peculiar sounding 1970 film, Cucumber Castle. Some of the oddities within do make one want to investigate further, although that's surely the point of such guides.
A lively, well illustrated and fun book to dip in to, with a concise writing style that doesn't take the subject matter too seriously (an impossible task with some of the fare within); you can get your copy now through the following direct links: Amazon UK, Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon France, Amazon Germany, Amazon Spain and Amazon Italy. Using our Amazon links also helps us hugely with ongoing site running costs and we really appreciate it!
Titled "Roger Waters: Us + Them", the tour - which could run to some 200 or so dates, going by interview comments - promises "stuff from my long career, stuff from my years with Pink Floyd, some new things... Probably 75 per cent of it will be old material and 25 per cent will be new, but it will be all connected by a general theme. It will be a cool show, I promise you. It'll be spectacular like all my shows have been".
A recently published interview in the UK's Uncut magazine noted that Roger's new album is scheduled "for an early May release in advance of Waters' first tour date" and naturally we'll keep you appraised of any firm news about this. In the meantime, just published is this short video from the studio, with a very 'Have A Cigar'-esque vibe about it. Could it be from the new album, or just a new arrangement of a song to be heard on the tour?
Our very best wishes go to Guy Pratt today (January 3rd), who is celebrating his birthday. Born in London in 1962, son of the actor Mike Pratt from Randall & Hopkirk (Deceased), Guy took to a career in music, which lead to his first world tour whilst still a teenager!
Working with the likes of Bryan Ferry and Robert Palmer lead to him being noticed by David Gilmour, who invited Guy to play for Pink Floyd in 1987. This lead to work with other major artists such as Madonna and Michael Jackson, but Guy has stayed loyal to David, performing alongside him up to the most recent tours, including David's 2015-2016 Rattle That Lock tour that concluded in London's Royal Albert Hall.
Life as a musician on the road, and in the studio, inspired Guy to write his hilarious "My Bass And Other Animals" book, an essential read for any Floyd fan. He has toured his memories in a tour of the same name, and has also developed adaptations of the show. Whatever your interests in music are, the book (as with his solo, stand-up shows) give a mind-boggling and hilarious look at life with various musicians. There's plenty of detail within the pages of his Floyd life, so well worth taking a look.
As noted last week, "Guy Pratt is The Sideman" - his latest one-man show, celebrating Guy's 30 years as the bass player of choice for the heavyweights of rock and pop, including Pink Floyd, David Gilmour, Robert Palmer, Madonna, Michael Jackson, Bryan Ferry, Jimmy Page, David Coverdale, Womack & Womack, and The Smiths, is back for another performance next month.
The show (with a live set by Willow Robinson, and a DJ set by Gus Robertson) takes place from 9pm on Friday, February 10th at Juju's Bar & Stage, which is part of the Old Truman Brewery complex on London's Brick Lane. Tickets are a bargain £10 (plus fees) from Seetickets.com.
Many happy returns, Guy, from all of us at Brain Damage!
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