Dublin Part One - Coming Home, Friends, Irish Theatre and Lazy Day

It's taken me a while to start my holiday blog, life has been difficult recently, and for a while I could not put fingers to laptop. But now it feels best to keep occupied and remember the fabulous time I had in Dublin, and in time these great memories will over-shadow the sadness of recent days.

October 5th

Like the Queen, this year I had two 60th birthdays, a real one and an official one.  My real one had come and gone and the official one was set for October 9th, to be celebrated in style in the penthouse suite at the Clarence Hotel in Dublin. This fell in the middle of a week's holiday with friends in the city. Besides a brief weekend visit in June this year, we hadn't been to Dublin since May 2012 and were ready to spend some proper time there.

I met up with my friend  Debbi at Manchester Airport and we had delicious lunch in the Grain Loft there. It's always good to get together, we just pick up where we left off in that easy way close friends can.

The flight was smooth I was sandwiched between Debbi and a rather large man.  I noticed as we were getting up that he had a tee-shirt on that had U2 on it so I asked if he was a fan. He said that his name was Bobby and that he worked for Jay Z who was performing in Dublin on Sunday, on checking the Net it seems he is the Tour Manager. We said we were U2 fans and he said he'd met them a few times and that they were really nice guys, which of course we knew. Then as an after-thought he asked if we'd like tickets to see Jay Z, we said yes (anything for nothing!) and he gave us his email and said for us to contact him.  We did send an email, but we didn't hear anything back, which, to be honest, was almost a relief, as neither of us can stand Jay Z's music!

We got a taxi into the city, complete with very entertaining driver in the way only Irish drivers can be, warm, friendly and chatty. He was an educated man, trained teacher (no jobs for teachers), had taken courses in writing and written a screenplay, plus he was a natural comedian.  Wasted as a taxi driver, but he said he enjoyed meeting people from all over the world in his job. As I listened to the driver's lilting Irish accent and watched the familiar landmarks pass by it felt so good to be back in a place that feels like my second home.

Smithfield Tower, our home for the week

We were dropped off at Smithfield and met up with Pat, the owner of the duplex apartment at Smithfield Tower which we were renting for the week. He's another natural comedian, and if there was a human form of a leprechaun, it was Pat. Small, rotund, grey hair, rosy cheeks with a mischievous air about him. The apartment was wonderful, directly opposite the old Jameson Whiskey Distillery chimney, modern and spacious with everything we needed..

We'd barely made our cup of tea (well, we are English and you've got to have a cuppa when arriving at your destination!) when Dianne and Dan arrived. They had come over to Ireland from Canada a week earlier and had been touring the North and got the train from Belfast to Dublin.

We had a relaxing evening catching up, eating pizza and drinking wine. We ended up playing a game where we picked music we like that may not be so obvious and Deb would play it on her iPod for us all to hear. It gave an insight into the very diverse musical tastes we had - some of my choices were, The Slave's Chorus from Verdi's Nabucco, Hallelujah by Jeff Buckley and Good Vibrations by The Beach Boys.

I always love the first evening of a holiday, being with friends again and a whole week or two stretching out ahead full of good times, nothing beats it!

October 6th

A mean and moody Killiney Beach

We caught the Luas to Connolly Station and got the DART heading south to Killiney.  It was initially cloudy but as the day passed the sun came out and it was lovely. I love Killiney beach, which is a couple of minutes from the DART stop. Whatever the weather it is beautiful with the graceful sweep of a horseshoe bay with Dalkey Island to the north end and Bray Head to the south. We wandered along beach-combing, relaxing, enjoying the fresh sea air, sometimes the simple things in life are the most enjoyable.

After Killiney, we travelled one stop on the DART to Dalkey where we went to bustling Finnegan's Pub for a late lunch. I had the cottage pie and it was scrumptious!

Dan and Debbi in Dada

That evening we went to a Moroccan restaurant we had never been to before called Dada. I was a bit cautious about it as I can't eat hot spicy food, chili and curry are lethal to me! But I was assured that not all their food was hot and spicy. The restaurant was atmospheric, darkly lit (in fact we had difficulty reading the menus lol!) Lots of lanterns that cast beautiful patterns on the walls, it was a very relaxing place.

We shared dips and bread for starters and then I chose the lamb tagine with apricots, walnuts and cinnamon. It was to die for, the lamb was so tender and succulent and the subtle flavours of the spices made for a fabulous dish. Everyone else really enjoyed their meals too. Prices were reasonable and service good, I think we will be going back to Dada on future visits to Dublin!

October 7th

Every time we are in Dublin we go to Bewley's Cafe Theatre, it is cheap, intimate and, best of all, the plays are also always good. The theatre is a small room on the second floor of Bewley's Cafe. Set with tables and chairs and a small stage set in one corner and for a small fee you can get soup and soda bread if you want.

The play we saw was Fred and Alice by the Limerick county Writer John Sheehy.  It is about two special needs people who have different obsessions, Fred's is music, Alice's is numbers. They met in the mental care institution, Alice's effervescence brings out the shy Fred, and he is the calm shelter and support when she flies off too high, obsessed by her numbers. They compliment each other. The acting was amazing, and it's such a great experience to be so near the performers as you are at the Cafe Theatre, it draws you in, you get very involved in the play. The play moves forward to the couple living in their own home and the basic difficulties of independence, you really want them to succeed and their upbeat attitude wins out, they want to succeed in the real world and they will, in their own way.

In an interview with John Sheehy I found the following paragraph enlightening, it describes the essence of the play in a way I could not.

What was it about the issue that attracted you as a playwright?

I am interested in the idea of personal identity, where it comes from and how much it is affected by society and by those closest to you. By writing about characters whose brains are wired differently than what is considered "normal" I was able to look at the effects of labelling a person as an illness rather than an individual. Fred and Alice reject all labels and find their own unique way to live their lives.

We all loved the play, it covered a subject matter rarely looked at in such a positive way. As a ex-psychiatric nurse I would love to see Sheehy write a play about people with psychotic illnesses and show that people with mental health problems are just human beings trying to make their way in a difficult and unsympathetic world.

After the play we all walked the short distance to Cafe en Seine for our lunch. This place is a fabulous over-the-top  French belle epoque-style cafe. I had smoked salmon on soda bread with chips and it was absolutely delicious and very reasonably priced too. after their lunch Dianne and Dan left and Debbi and I embarked on our "lazy day". We started this last year in Nice, when we just drifted from place to place and had a drink, no particular plan, we just went into places we liked the look of. We enjoyed it so much that we decided it would be a feature of future holidays! So, our lazy day started in Cafe en Seine with cocktails, I had a Singapore Sling which was one of the best cocktails I'd ever had, absolutely delicious!

On leaving the Cafe en Seine we walked about twenty yards and went into Samsara and had cocktails there. we went for the good old Cosmopolitans. They were very strong and I had to water mine down with some lemonade (bit of a wuss I am lol!). Debbi managed hers without any watering down.  

A mirror in the glam toilets at Cafe en Seine

Next stop was a restaurant called Pasta Fresca. We saw a sign saying "prosecco bar" there so couldn't resit that invitation. We had our prosecco with some garlic bread which went down very well indeed.  It was so mild that we sat outside and it was not cold, amazing for October in Ireland!

Our next stop was just across the road, the Clarendon Bar, an Irish bar. We ordered prosecco again, and it came in a snipe (new for me, never knew those little bottles were called that) and bucket of ice! The server was so lovely and made us feel special.

We decided it was time to finish our lazy day after this, we'd sampled French belle epoque, ultra modern, Italian and Irish bars so had done pretty well! We headed back to our apartment at Smithfield. I was even sober enough to cook the evening meal of lasagne and salad which we all enjoyed. Afterwards we relaxed with some wine and chat. A lovely end to a great lazy day.

Waiting For God .....

Bono was recently on Letterman TV show in the US and when asked about the new album this and below is what he said:

“You know Quincy Jones said to me ‘Bono, you’ve got to wait for God to walk through the room’ and I said ‘Q, why is God so unreliable in the music department’. And he said ‘Just to teach you to wait’, so we are waiting,” Bono said.

 “We have a deal with our audience, they give us a great life and they expect us to be great and that’s tricky,” Bono said. “As you get better you get very good and very good is kind of the enemy of great. You can mistake it for great. People don’t get excited about us being very good. Who needs a new U2 album? There are loads of them out there. We have to make a great U2 album and they don’t care waiting as long as it’s great”.

Personally, I think it's bollocks and its starting to get booooooring. But  this made me laugh, us U2 fans have to have a sense of humour and shedloads of patience.

You can watch the interview on Letterman below.

Another Decade and Things To Do

September has flown by and I've neglected my blog, I've been busy with all kinds and the weeks just slip away. I celebrated my 60th birthday on the 20th and had a fantastic day, I was thoroughly spoiled. For a while I wasn't looking forward to becoming 60, (after all not that long ago I would have started receiving my State Pension at that age). But as the date approached I changed my view and embraced it, each year is to be treasured and lived to the full and I've got lots of things to do on my bucket list.

I certainly don't feel 60 inside, sometimes my body does tell me I'm not as youthful as I was, but my spirit is still young, the essence of you doesn't change with the years.  And besides the wisdom you gain by living life, there are also are other benefits - I can now get 1/3 off rail fares, free eye tests and my B & Q Diamond Card to get 10 per cent off every Wednesday LOL!

Mind you, my 60 celebrations are not over yet, I've had my real birthday, but I'm having my official birthday (who says only the Queen can have two birthdays?) in Dublin with a party in the penthouse of The Clarence Hotel on October 9th - as well as a long overdue weeks holiday in the city. Soooo looking forward to that.

So here's to a new decade, and also a Happy Birthday to Bruce Springsteen, 64 today and still rockin', what better role model for over 60's people can there be than him?

U2 Album 2014 It Seems....

Sounds like 2014 is the likely release date for U2's next album, there have been rumours but an interview with Bono on the Irish Newstalk FM kind of makes it definite, or maybe, more accurately, 2013 definitely NOT happening!

The interview mainly covered the death of Seamus Heaney and Bono's recent trip to Ghana. At the end the interviewer, Pat Kenny, asked Bono about what the band were doing at the moment. 

Kenny: The band, what are you up to at the moment? Back in studio, or finished or ... what?

Bono: The band? Uhm, we're nearly there, I think -- though this can change. There's no sense from the band of any commitment to any release schedule, any ... to anything. They just want to be really -- make some great music.

But I think we're nearly there, and once we're there we'll know it. I'd like to think that next year, there'll be a U2 release.

I mean, it sounds like we've been faffing around, but actually what we've -- what's just happened is that we just got lost in the music and went right back to why we wanted to be in a band in the first place -- listen to the music of the mid-70s, punk rock, electronica -- we're really sort of beginning again.

I know we do this periodically, but you have to. And so ... it's very different, very fresh sound, and some beautiful songs ... big hooks ... and yeah, you'll be sick of us. I hope!

The usual vague Bono stuff, but at least we know that we aren't getting a new album this year! Let's hope they are not too "lost in the music" to know when to go ahead and release the stuff!

Seamus Heaney RIP

Bono has paid tribute on U2.com to Irish poet Seamus Heaney, who died today at the age of 74. As usual Bono's tribute is very moving and true.  Here's what he said:

'Seamus was a great, great poet. I know people throw around this phrase a lot, but his poem From the Republic of Conscience, literally changed my life.  As an activist he was the quietest storm that ever blew into town. In fact, in so many things he was a gentle genius, whose words challenged us with the grit and beauty of life as much as they gave us solace.  He wrote with a brevity that strangely spilled to the brim. 

'We all envied how he made that most complicated of things, the balancing of work and family, appear so simple.  In Marie he found his other whole. And it is a joy to be around his kids... Michael, Chris and Catherine Ann.  They have all of his humility in their sharpness.

'I take his poems with me wherever I go.  I was in Liberia just a few days ago and I gave his collection 'Electric Light' to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, whose entire country is in darkness.  She knew exactly who he was and immediately started reading the poems while standing beside me.  A few days after that I gave another collection 'Seeing Things' to President John Mahama of Ghana, whose vision of his country is everything... 

'I am bewildered to think Seamus is no longer with us. Because his words will be around forever, it seemed so would he.'

You can also read an obituary Obituary: Seamus Heaney

What a Show, What a Night, What a Zooropa! - Memories of the Tour

I've been reminiscing a lot over the past couple of weeks as it has been 20 years since Zooropa, arguably U2's best tour, and certainly a tour that has a special place in the hearts of many long-time fans such as myself.

For me it was the tour where I saw the most shows - we saw them in Glasgow, London, Cardiff, Leeds, Dublin and even one in Germany.  And in some of those places we saw more than one show too. Ticket prices were so much more reasonable so we went to as many gigs as we could afford.

A large group of us fans - "the girls" - would meet up and there was a wonderful camaraderie, a sense of belonging and also a mutual craziness!  And yes, I have to admit we were quite obsessional in those days. We all came from different parts of the country and abroad, united by our love of U2.

Looking back I don't know how I managed all the travelling about - I can remember coming back home to do one night shift and then, without sleeping, set off to the next venue, couldn't do that now. Those were the days when we would queue from lunch time and run like hell when the gates opened to get to the front. Once hogging that much cherished place it was impossible to get out again so it was a test of endurance for our bladders! Our first port of call after the show would be the toilets then getting something to eat and drink. Madness yes, but it was also fun.

It was also an exciting time on many fronts. Zooropa was a dazzling spectacle, their first big production that bombarded the senses. This, along with the the fantastic new music from the albums Achtung Baby and Zooropa as well as their older back catalogue made to make this tour a most amazing and innovative experience in every sense.

Something that made it more exciting for me was that in those days I edited a U2 fanzine called Eirinn - no such thing as all singing and dancing U2 websites in those days! Fanzines were true labours of fandom, they took a lot of time and work to produce. U2 recognised this and were generous to fanzine editors in those days, they gave us photo and hospitality passes and two free tickets to one gig. I used my passes for Zooropa at their Leeds show and it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life! There weren't many people photo shoot and we had a great position, stood on a high step (that someone hand to help me up onto) right in front of the stage, we were actually leaning on the stage.  I've had other passes, but this one was by far the best position.  When the band came on the power that exploded from the audience behind us was spine-tingling. I had to remember to take photos during those first three songs that we were allowed to photograph, I got so caught up in it all, it was special to be so close, almost part of the show.  Bono gave us a little wave (we had met him a few times so he knew our faces) and my friend Jane got a kiss.  An amazing experience.

It was also a time when we got to meet all the band members after a lot of the shows, they were always patient and friendly with the fans. At Wembley for some reason Bono came out carrying a sunflower lol and I got the photo I've included here.

There have been other wonderful U2 tours and times since Zooropa, but it had just that something extra. U2 were at their creative best, we were able to see lots of shows, we were a great group of liked-minded friends that knocked around together, where ever we went we saw familiar faces.

Now U2 are still making albums after 37 years as a band, which is special in itself.  But though their music is still good, they are not as creative and innovative as they were, maybe that is an inevitable part of getting older, I don't know.

Bono, Leeds, August 1993

I am lucky enough to still be good friends with a couple of the girls (Debbi and Dianne) I was with those 20 years ago, we have a lot in common beyond U2 and our friendship has continued and prospered over the intervening years. Others from "the girls" have drifted off completely or I just see occasionally during tours, some I still have contact with via social media, one has even sadly passed away. I kind of miss the fun we had as a big group on that tour, the camaraderie, the sheer madness of it all, the crazy spontaneity of those days.

Zooropa was one of those special moments in time, but everything changes and moves on,. I'm so glad I'm an avid diary writer and have recorded those times in great detail, think I'll re-read the Zooropa weeks and re-live it as best I can!

There probably will be another U2 tour in 2014 and Debbi, Dianne and I have already said we intend to make the most of it. Not being morbid, but we know it could be our last tour, we are all getting older - same goes for the band who are all into their 50's now. We'll never get the glory days of Zooropa back, but then again we like our comforts nowadays lol! But I know we will still have a great time and have fun and new experiences and I'm looking forward to it already.  If anyone would like to read more detail about my Zooropa days you can find my posts about it in my blog dedicated to U2, Luminous Times

Autumn is in the Air

There's a definite nip in the air at night, the first leaves are turning and the nights are certainly drawing in. I don't like winter, it's not so much the cold, but the short days and long nights that gets to me.  But we have had a wonderful summer and somehow winter's not so bad  when you've stocked up on the sunshine and vitamin d!

Mind you, my winter isn't going to be too dismal. In October I'm having a belated 60th birthday celebration in Dublin, can't wait to get back to my favourite city for a whole week! Then I'll be back there again to see in the New Year, and then on the 3rd of January we'll fly up to Iceland for a few days. So lots to look forward to. And I've a feeling in 2014 there'll be lots more travel!

Gardens, a New Canine Family Member and a Dachshund Meet-Up

I've been busy these last few weeks, I think because out lovely warm and sunny summer continues everyone is doing so much more outdoors.  Last weekend I met up with my friend Alison and we went to Hutton in the Forest about 15 miles south of Carlisle.  The oldest part of the castellated house is the pele tower that was built around 1350. Pele towers are fortified houses to protect the wealthy owners from the violent cross-border skirmishes that were frequent in the south of Scotland and very north of England hundreds of years ago, many still survive today. Over the centuries the building was gradually added to by its inhabitants until it became a sizable property. It is also known for it's lovely gardens.

There was no one in the booth where you bought tickets so we entered the grounds and paid the fee via the honesty box. It's nice to be trusted! We only wanted to wander around the gardens so we just paid for that. We walked round the house and into the walled garden. It was separated into four areas by hedges. There was a beautiful rose garden, full of gorgeous old-fashioned tea roses. The flowers were just past their best, they were probably at their most glorious two to three weeks ago, still, they were lovely.

The general theme was of an English country cottage garden, full of flowers that looked very natural and not "designed", not formal. I loved it, and something about walled gardens makes it feel very, very old too. We were the only people there and it was very relaxing and peaceful.

There were some sculpted topiary works, and some more formal beds outside the walled garden. And there was a lake further away which wasn't impressive, but apparently it is all being renovated at the moment, it should look better then.

Ellie and Pepsi

All in all it was a simple but enjoyable way to spend an afternoon. Both Alison and I love visiting places like this so we really had a good time.

A bit of news I have is that I have a member of the family! I fostered a daxie cross dog called Ellie for a week, then she went to new owners, only to come back two days later because she pulled on the lead! Have they not heard of training?? Poor dog.  I had fallen for her before she ever went to be honest and after having her back for a couple of days decided to officially adopt her. So now, she's mine! The boys are fine with her now, they were horrible to her at first! But now they have accepted her, Max ignores her and Pepsi is starting to interact with her which is nice. She's very sweet and gentle, quiet, bright and quite obedient. She's aged two to three and has had a difficult life so far, she's one of the Irish dogs, saved from certain death, then into fostering. But now she's landed on her feet and I'll give her a happy life, and she's already giving me lots of love.

A Tangle of Daxies

Finally, yesterday I drove down to Kendal to a daxie meet up of members of Facebook's Dachshunds of Cumbria and the North.  We met up near the river and went for a walk along it's banks.  There were long-hairs, two wires, one double dapple, one half sausage (Ellie!) and one laid back spaniel. They all got on very well, and their owners were lovely, so nice to meet up with the people I knew only by name and to see their gorgeous dogs in real life.  We created a bit of a sensation as we walked along with our sausages, you don't see a lot of them anyways and to see seven at once caught people's attention.  They are funny little dogs, and it always amazes me how many varieties of colour and coat there is within the breed. We had fun - and good weather - and I'm sure will be doing it again!

LIttle Italy and Springsteen in Dumfries

In September I've got a special birthday coming up, I can hardly believe it, but I'll be 60! The strange thing about getting older is that inside you feel much as you did decades earlier, it's just your body getting older, and it feels odd to think I'm the age I am now lol!  I'm having a little birthday bash in Dublin in October and have invited various people close to me. I asked my friend Dawn but she wasn't able to make it, but then she surprised me by treating me to a meal out and the Springsteen film as a very early birthday pressie.  I was very touched at her thoughtfulness, I am blessed with fabulous friends!

So, yesterday July 22nd was the evening. I drove through the afternoon heat to Dumfries, 37 miles from where I live, unfortunately my car's air con decided to stop working at the start of this hot spell!! I arrived at Dawn's and cooled down with an ice lolly lol. We then set off for the restaurant, Little Italy, a lovely place with a large outside eating area. It was cooling a little now and they had big umbrellas for shade so we sat on outside decked area. We had a gorgeous meal of tomato, garlic and pesto bruschetta followed by a wild mushroom pizza. We took our time and caught up on each others news as we ate, we are never short of chat!  It was great to eat outside in the balmy evening air.

We left and headed towards the venue, parking beside the River Nith and the oldest bridge in Dumfries, the Devorgilla Bridge named after Devrogilla, Lady of Galloway who was the mother of John Balliol, born 1249. The bridge is very old, made of the local red sandstone, at one end is the Old Bridge House, built 1660, which is now a little museum. Dawn said it is really good to visit, it has rooms from past centuries and an old dentists surgery! We made a note to visit it together one day.

We walked by the river, which was very low due to no rain for weeks, and on to The Robert Burns Centre where the film was being shown.  We went into the very small and very warm cinema there and settled into our seats. I'm a Springsteen fan, actually have been longer than a U2 fan which is amazing! But I haven't seen as many of his shows etc. Dawn isn't a fan, and I appreciated her suggesting this evening all the more because of that.

The film was mainly self-videoed footage of fans talking about the influence Springsteen and his music has had on their lives. It was emotional, moving and funny.  One man talked about the music and what it meant to him and was overcome with emotion and ended up sobbing. One of the funniest for me was a British couple, the wife a fan, the long-suffering husband not. The husband (a natural comedian) was the one filmed and one of the things he berated Bruce was for his considerately long shows!

Some of the best segments were when fans' stories were backed up by footage. Like the young British girl who held up a sign saying  "I'll be your Courtney Cox" (referring to the Dancing in the Dark) video. And Bruce got her on-stage to dance with him for that song, her joy and excitement was palpable.

Another was an Elvis impersonator who went to the gig in full Elvis gear and was pulled on-stage to sing Elvis songs with The Boss and managed to take over the show for a few minutes and pull a ham-string in the process! Bruce dubbed him the Philadelphia Elvis. It was great to hear how it felt for these fans to have their dreams come true. Another man was dumped by his girlfriend the night before the gig so he took a sign saying he had been dumped and Bruce got him on-stage and gave him a big hug, you could see the healing on the devastated man's face, which was very lovely. Bruce said he'd been dumped a lot and that, "They are regretting it now!"

The close relationship Bruce has with his audience came across well, and it is understandable that he has a huge loyal fanbase.  People feel he is talking about them in his songs, ordinary people sometimes feel they don't have a voice, well Bruce is their voice. I'm a fan, not a mega fan, but if I'm struggling with something I often listen to Badlands and it lifts me up, music can be so powerful.

Live performances from throughout Bruce's long career were interspersed with the fans' stories, though sometimes I wanted to see a bit more of certain performances than was shown. Personally I found the film sometimes made me laugh, made me want to get up and dance, other times it made me quite emotional. The live performance of Blood Brothers was stunning.

There was a 15 minute segment of live footage from Hard Rock Calling 2012 in London at the end. Really good to see Because the Night, love that song, and Nils Lofgren's whirling dervish guitar solo was amazing. Paul McCartney joined Bruce for I Saw Her Standing There and Twist and Shout. As usual Bruce was ready to keep going but, unbelievably, the plug was literally pulled because the curfew had been breached!

The epilogue was film of Bruce meeting some of the fans that had the longest segments in the film, including the British Mr and Mrs, Bruce told the Mr that he was now going to do four hour shows lol!  I think anyone who is a big fan of anyone or anything can understand how these people feel. It was a good way to finish the film, and really, seeing how Bruce was with those fans you realise why they love him so much, his sincerity isn't forced, his passion for music is unique and he loves every moment on stage, and he's a very, funny down to earth guy.

When we came out of the cinema into the still balmy night we were sweating almost as much as Bruce on-stage, boy was it hot in there. Dawn was impressed with the film and Bruce's music, I think he's gained another fan! I wasn't surprised really, I know Dawn is passionate about music and this film gave her the chance to hear a range of his music and she appreciated how diverse

So, as I tentatively approach 60, I look at Bruce who's still looking good and rockin' at 63, and he inspires me, I've still got lots to see and do in my life and I'll continue rockin' too!

                                     Honey, I want the heart, I want the soul, 

                                                 I want control right now 

Talk about a dream, 

try to make it real 

You wake up in the night, 

with a fear so real, 

Spend your life waiting, 

for a moment that just don't come, 

Well, don't waste your time waiting

(Badlands, 1978)

.

Gavin Gives the New Album a Thumbs Up

In an article in the Irish Evening Herald today Gavin Friday was quoted as being very positive about the new U2 album. He said:

"I've heard the new album and it certainly is a development. U2 turns corners very quickly and what hits you is how fresh it sounds. With Edge involved, there is still plenty of guitar," Gavin told the Herald.

"They asked me what I thought and I told them I really liked it. It's definitely their most exciting release since Achtung Baby."

What with this and Adam's answer "Sometime next year" to a fan's question "When will we see you back on stage?" recently,  I am officially now letting myself get excited about the new music and tour!

The full Evening Herald article can be read here

The Angels Are Baking Cakes

Most people have lost someone close to them, and it

is hard for a long time but eventually you get on with your life, although there's a part of you that has died with them. Then out of the blue something happens that reminds you of them. That happened to me this evening. Coming in from work  there was a gorgeous sunset that turned the sky pink and immediately it made me think of my mother who died eleven years ago.

I got my love of nature from her, if there was a beautiful sunset we would often call each other to make sure we didn't miss it. But my memories of sunsets and my mum go back much further, to when I was a young child and if the sky glowed pink or red she would tell me that it was that colour because the angels in heaven were baking cakes. I remember I found that fascinating as a child and I still think of that - and my mum - every time there is a beautiful sunset, she would have loved nature's show this evening.

Lazy Summer Days

Our hot and sunny spell continues, we so deserve this good weather after all the crap summers we've had recently. This is when I appreciate working part-time all the more as I can fully enjoy these lovely days.  I don't mind not having a holiday somewhere warm this summer when it's like this, this is such a lovely country when the sun shines! Apparently the jet stream is sitting north of the British Isles instead of south hence the prolonged good weather, hopefully it'll stay there for a good while yet.

In the garden my strawberries and raspberries are reddening, will pick the first of them tomorrow. I have my first crop of Cox's Orange Pippins fattening up on my apple tree and my potatoes are nearly ready. This is the first year in about five that I haven't planted tomatoes, I gave up as they had failed miserably due to little sun and copious amounts of rain. Ironically, this year they would have thrived!

Took Pepsi to get groomed today, thought he'd appreciate losing his thick curly coat in this hot weather. He's literally half the dog he was lol! Though Pepsi, being the ragamuffin he is, still manages to get his "beard" all over the place!

Enjoy the summer folks!

Here Come the New U2 Album "Leaks".....

A new U2 album is on it's way this we know for sure.  After many months of very secretive recording, suddenly the "leaks" start coming. First an album title and a list of possible track names, now an instrumental piece called Word Press II has turned up. Who knows if it is someone having fun playing with U2 fans or an offical "leak" to get publicity.  Wherever it has come from I must say it does does sound like U2, but as there are no vocals I'm a bit suspicious of it. Have a listen and see what you think.

.

A Night For Christy and Dublin

I felt like kissing the ground when we got off the plane in Dublin, it had been 14 months since we'd been here, the longest time I've gone without visiting since I first started going there in 1989 (yikes!!) It was great to be back, like coming home.

Debbi and I stopped off at the Avoca Cafe in Suffolk Street on our way to the hotel and had some welcome tea and I had a gorgeous mixed berry scone, which I can honestly say is the nicest scone I've ever had, the biggest too! We passed by The Olympia Theatre and popped into the box office to pick up our tickets for the A Night for Christy benefit concert for Christy Dignam singer with Aslan who is fighting cancer, that evening. The fellow in the office said the upper circle - the gods - was unreserved seating and we would need to be there early to queue to get the best seats.

We got to The Clarence Hotel at 11am and luckily our room was available. It was a large twin room with a a small seating and office area that over-looked the Liffey.  We had lunch in The Study which was being used as a temporary restaurant as The Tea Room is now closed and being stripped out to be re-opened as Cleaver East next month.  The food was good, but not to the standard of The Tea Room, they were cooking it in the function room on the first floor!

We did some shopping for wine and nibbles and then got ready for the gig. The Olympia Theatre was less than five minutes walk from the hotel. We passed a load of youngsters excitedly waiting at the stage door - probably for Jedward, yes, we were going to have the joy of Jedward this evening, never thought I'd see the day lol! We went past the theatre and down a small lane and waited at the entrance for the upper circle, there were two other women ahead of us in the queue, we were three and four.

The doors were opened a little before 7pm and we climbed flight after flight after flight of red carpeted stairs until we breathlessly reached upper circle. We got seats right at the centre front of the circle. We certainly were certainly close to the gods, it was very steep and I could almost touch one of the three huge glass chandeliers that hung from the ceiling that was painted red and decorated with white stucco. The Olympia was know as'The Star of Erin' music hall when it opened in 1879 and was then renamed Dan Lowerys Music Hall in 1881. It was finally given the name of The Olympia Theatre in 1923. It. is a wonderful old Victorian theatre, red velvety seats, brass rails, main colours red, white and gold, boxes to each side, you can feel it's history, it's ingrained in the walls.

Deb and I have only seen Aslan play live once in Vicar Street quite a few years ago, unfortunately our visits to Dublin have since not coincided with them playing. It was an amazing raucous show, and Christy performed like I've never seen anyone perform before, we just couldn't take our eyes of him, he was mesmerising.

Ryan Sheridan

While we were waiting they screened a new documentary called Please Don't Stop about Aslan's 30 year career, made last year before Christy was diagnosed with cancer.

The show proper started around 8.30pm,  compered  by none other than Guggi, who did a really good job. It consisted of various artists performing mainly Aslan songs with the other four members of the group. There was a myriad of Irish artists, new and old, some of the younger ones I didn't know.  Others such as Tom Dunne (Something Happens),The Horslips, Steve Wall (The Stunning) brought back many memories of my early days visiting Dublin and the fantastic bands around then that showed so much promise, most fizzled away, U2 were already megastars, Aslan never hit those heights, but not because of any lack of talent, but after 30 years they are still delighting audiences.

Gavin Friday

Gavin Friday performed a very theatrical version of Bowie's Five Years. Jedward, hair kind of coiled on top of their heads lol, did a muted performance - for them, no cartwheels across the stage. With their relatively normal looking hair I noticed for the first time that they are good looking young men. They got a massive reception from the young girls!

I had never heard of Ryan Sheridan, but his performance really impressed me. He reminded me a bit of Bono in his performance and how he engaged the crowd, he certainly has stage presence, plus a good voice.

U2 performed This Is via video link from New York. It was a powerful version of a fabulous song, they really did the song justice. There had been rumours that Bono was going to appear in person but he didn't.

All the bands came on stage to perform This Time with Christy's daughter Keira. Finally for Aslan's most famous song, Crazy World, Christy himself came on stage, the whole place erupted, there was such a out-pouring of love towards him that it was incredibly moving. He looked frail and thin, but was buoyed up by the crowd. I noticed Keira wiping away tears as she stood behind her father and at times she had to help him out with the singing. I think it was very hard for him to perform but I'm sure the love he received from the crowd gave him a boost.  For around five minutes after he left the stage the crowd kept singing.

I thought that I'd be really disappointed if Bono didn't perform in person, but when it came to it I realised it didn't matter at all. This evening, this gig was for Christy and that's what it was all about and it was a brilliant gig. Let's hope one day when he is better we will be able to see him perform live once more.

Christy Performing Crazy World

Set List  -  First Half

Paul Walsh – Gotta Make It

Riptide Movement – Lucy Jones pt1

Gavin James – Chains

Jedward – She’s So Beautiful

Steve Wall – Pretty Thing

Danny O’Reilly – Hurt Sometimes

Original Rudeboys – Lucy Jones pt2

Bressie – Angie

Jerry Fish – Rock’n’Roll Suicide

Ryan Sheridan - Wish You Were Here

Gavin Friday – Five Years

Adrian Kennedy

Dublin Gospel – Down on Me

Second Half6

Horslips – Different Man

Damien Dempsey – Bullets and Diamonds (From a Studio in London)

Paul Brady - We Did

Mary Black & Don Mescall - Too Late for Hallelujah

Mark Feehily – Where’s the Sun

Kiera Dignam - Catch Your Fall

Tony Fenton (speaking)

Tom Dunne – Rainman

U2 – This Is (Live from Electric Lady Studios NY)

Kiera Dignam with all other acts –This Time

Aslan - Crazy World

After the show we went back to the hotel and had a drink in the bar, Gavin Friday came in with a few friends. There was a group of loud drunk men near us some of who ended up getting chucked out of the hotel!

We went to our room ordered room service meals, opened a bottle of wine and chatted until it was light outside! I love holidays!

June 22nd. Needless to say we had a long lie in.  We had breakfast served in our room (they serve it until 11am, very civilised in my opinion LOL!) We saw a guy sitting in the middle of the busy road outside the hotel shouting "Do me a favour!" to a group of lads who were in the car he sat in front of. Think he knew them as he just picked on their car, he eventually got up unscathed.

We had a really lazy day, wandered down to the bar for a drink or too and had our dinner in The Study. There was a tableful of very loud, very drunk men there (drunks seemed to be following us on this trip!) They really got on our nerves and spoiled the atmosphere a bit. Had a few drinks in the bar before heading back to our room.

It was a very short trip, but lovely to be back once more. Roll on October when we will be back for a whole week!

Bruce Springsteen, Wrecking Ball Tour, Glasgow June 18th 2013

The sun shone down onto the crowd at Hampden Park in Glasgow and I was excited to be at a gig once more, Bruce Springsteen's Wrecking Ball Tour had reached Scotland.  It had been around a year or so since my last show and it was lovely feeling that buzz and atmosphere of a live concert.  After a while one of the staff came to our area and asked if any of us wanted to move to the lower tier centre, well she didn't have to ask twice! The seats were directly in front of the stage so we were well chuffed! Maybe some corporate types did not turn up (Hampden is one of those stadiums where the stage is set on one side rather than one end, much better really.)

Bruce and the E Street Band came on-stage with no razzmatazz and launched into We Take Care of Our Own. Very early in the show Bruce went into the audience and collected sign requests, such a great thing for fans. The first request played was Jole Blon which I'd never heard of, apparently it is a traditional Cajun song that Bruce has adapted.

The pace of the show was fast, rockin' and fun, the sign requests, the frequent physical contact with the crowd Bruce had certainly made me and the crowd feel very much part of the show, even in a large stadium like Hampden. The boss certainly knows how to engage with his audience.

The pace slowed up for a tribute to the Big Man, Clarence Clemons, stalwart of the E Street Band, who died exactly two years previously. Bruce made it personal by asking people to remember their own lost loved ones too and as he sang My City of Ruins it was very emotional, the whole crowd sang "Rise up" so loudly that the words must have been heard echoing through many streets of Glasgow. Jake Clemons, Clarence's son, played the sax, it must have been very moving for him to see the reaction of the audience. It was sad, yet also full of love and at the end there was an explosion of applause as everyone rose up, it was one of the most touching, spontaneous and emotional moments I've seen at a concert, amazing.

The next sign request was Dancing in the Dark. One girl had a sign saying she wanted to dance with Jake, she was brought up on stage and danced with him and ended up playing a guitar and singing. When she was back in the crowd a camera caught her expression which was priceless. Another lad asked for a pick, Bruce gave him one, from the look on the lad's face you'd think he'd given him a million pounds lol!

Bruce got a middle-aged woman called Hazel up to dance, then after a conversation with her he also got a young girl up, who I think was the woman's daughter, and he danced with both of them. Hazel gave him a tartan scarf.

Next, a very poignant moment, a sign request was for Tougher Than the Rest, one of my favourites. Bruce had picked out a sign from a girl that bore a photo of a man and asked for this song to be played in memory of Shug, the girls dad, 1951-2013. The lovely thing was that at the end of the song Bruce went back to the crowd, found the girl and gave her back the sign, what a lovely gesture. Certainly a teary-eyed moment.



We all sang along with Waitin' on a Sunny Day as the sun started dipping down in the sky. The party continued, for that's what it was like, a party. The band was very tight musically and Bruce's voice in fantastic form, and they were having a party on-stage too. It's so wonderful to see musicians truly love what they are doing so much. Listening to the songs from throughout the decades it struck me at how many genres have influenced the music, rock, soul, folk, gospel to name a few.

Great to hear more faves of mine Badlands, Born to Run and Rosalita. Towards the end the crowd wanted more and more, Bruce laughed,

"I've gotta go home, I'm sixty-fuckin-three!  I'm gonna have a heart attack!"

He's got energy and stamina that belie those years, I mean, who else does three and a half hour shows? You certainly get your money's worth with Bruce

A rockin' Twist and Shout/La Bamba followed by Shout, a massive hit for Glasgow girl Lulu in the 60's seemed to be the end of the show. The E Street Band left the stage, but Bruce didn't, he got a guitar and played a fantastic acoustic version of Thunder Road. It was stunning, and what a way to end the show. I looked around, usually by this time in a gig a lot of people are leaving to catch the transport or avoid the traffic jams. The aisles were clear, like me, people were transfixed, we knew we were lucky enough to be watching a true music legend.

So, three and a half hours after coming on stage (with no interval) Bruce finished the gig. He showed what a show should be all about, music, the band and the audience, in the right hands you need no more than that.  He may be "sixty-fuckin'-three" but he can show artists much younger than himself how to rock!

Bono "Meaning of Life" RTE Interview with Gay Byrne, 25th June

Bono was interviewed by Gay Byrne for his Meaning of Life series of interviews which was shown on RTE One tonight.  It covered his childhood, his parents' inter-religious marriage, Lipton village, how he met Ali, his relationship with his father, tax affairs, his faith and activism. Nothing really new in the interview to the U2 fan. 

Photo: Irish Independent

When asked about some of the people he has had to talk with as part of the activism, Gay asked if it was sometimes like talking to the devil. Bono relied that he didn't want his activism seen just as the creation of the left and leave the right - and a lot of people - out, he wanted to have,

"A radical centre." 

He obviously still has the passion and drive for that work and said that 7256 less children die everyday because of changes over the last few years. At present he said they are working on transparency to defeat corruption.  You can't help but admire him for the time and dedication he puts into his activism.

He seemed a bit rattled when asked about the taxation issue, which Gay said he felt he had to ask about. Bono came across very much as the businessman and said that he was tough on that front, and that U2 were, 

"Tax sensible as every business is."  

Gay also asked if Bono thought he was now removed from ordinary people. Bono replied that he probably was,

 "I don't think myself removed, but I must be." 

Which really is inevitable for people in his position, fame does isolate "celebrities", though we fans know that Bono makes himself as accessible as is possible.

Nothing was mentioned at all about a new album, but the Irish Independent had an interesting snippet today from Gay Byrne that kind of confirms it's going to happen this autumn woo hoo!

Broadcaster Gay Byrne said that Bono was "very fussy" about when his episode of 'The Meaning Of Life' would be shown on RTE television. The U2 frontman was "adamant" that his recorded interview go out months ahead of when the full series broadcasts in the autumn, as it would overlap with publicity for his band's new album......"He's very fussy," Byrne said. "U2 have a lot going on later this year with musical activities, so he was adamant that this should not be part of that.

Shopping and Graveyards

Had a busy day today! I met up with friend Christine and we went out for a late lunch. We then drove a short distance to Gretna Gateway outlet "Just to look in M & S." There wasn't much there and the other shops somehow drew us in, especially shoe/handbag ones LOL!  I ended up buying two pairs of shoes, and, the bargain of the year, a lovely leather handbag for £10, I was well chuffed.

We eventually got round to doing the original purpose of the trip out, genealogical research. We were going to look round graveyards which are a haven of information for family research. Our first stop was in Langholm, where drove up a steep, narrow road through woods full of bluebells to the graveyard. You may think me strange, but I like graveyards, they are peaceful and this one was in such a beautiful setting, high on a hill, surrounded by mountains, and it was a beautiful day (we've had over two weeks of glorious sunny and warm weather.)  There were two areas, the older graveyard was surrounded by stone walls, this was the one we were interested in. Both Christine and I have ancestors from Langholm and though we saw the same surnames we didn't find any of our people.

Christine said she knew of a very old cemetery in the countryside just outside of the west side of  Langholm. So we drove there. It was indeed very, very old. There was a rusty iron gate that was difficult to open, and once we were in we were greeted by a totally overgrown graveyard full of stones and memorials, many leaning at precarious angles. The ground underfoot was uneven with knee high grass, we had to be very careful not to fall.  It was very peaceful there, the only sounds being birdsong, the river nearby and the occasional car passing by on the road.  I got photos of a couple of stones that probably were from my family of Dalgliesh, though not direct ancestors. As we walked back towards the car I heard a cuckoo calling, long time since I've heard one of those.

Next stop was the little church and cemetery of Ewes, a tiny hamlet a few miles out of Langholm on the A7 heading towards Hawick. I knew some of my relatives lived in that area in the 1700's but there were no gravestones that gave me any further family information there. Again it was such a beautiful location for a graveyard.  I noticed the symbols on the back of one stone (photo right) which were a bit weird!

We headed back towards Carlisle after Ewes and stopped off at Canonbie churchyard. A lot of Christine's relatives were from this little place. For the size of the place the church (built 1812) was large as was the cemetery. As at Langholm there were two areas of burial and we went to the old one. The whole place was teeming with rabbits hopping about in the sunshine, these places are havens for wildlife. We found a gravestone with lots of information about Christine's family which was brilliant.

By now we were getting tired, we'd trailed around shops and four graveyards for about five hours.  It had been a good day though, we'd got some genealogical info and the weather had been perfect. Plus it's always good to do something different and spend time with your BFF!

U2 Album being Mixed in New York - Update

Photo: Jaime Scatena

@U2 has some updates on the info that came out yesterday, seems the band has been doing a bit more than mixing the new album, such as, making a video on the roof of the studio, and for some reason Chris Martin is around now too. I am at last allowing myself to get a little excited LOL! 

Read the updated information here