harrymcnallysblueandwhitearmy

The 'big four' minimalist composers are all edging towards their mid-70s. I wonder who'll be the first to reach the end of the drone? LaMonte Young Terry Riley Steve Reich (in the afternoon) Philip Glass ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I feel sure this can be turned into another of my posted-in-once-in-a-blue-moon backwater threads, maybe as a home for all things classical and avant-garde, just for Twelvetrees, NAP and myself. One or two other interesting names to throw out there: Pierre Boulez, angry young man of serialism (now old). Milton Babbitt, even older serialist and theorist. Estonia's finest, Arvo Pärt.

The upcoming Open Championship and the announcement of Seve’s long overdue retirement led me to wonder what old golfers are still out on the course but trudging towards the great clubhouse in the sky. The DL has a half decent record with golfers in past years (Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson) and while most of the game’s legends are either gone or not old enough (Nicklaus, Palmer, Player), there are currently, to the best of my knowledge, just 7 men who have won a Major still alive at 80+. No idea how their health is, but step forward: Tommy Bolt, 89 Kel Nagle, 86 Doug Ford, 85 Jack Fleck, 85 Jack Burke, 84 Roberto de Vicenzo, 84 Bob Rosberg, 80 None would be famous enough for the DL, but might be a consideration for other pools. Now now, don't all run at once to get involved in such a blockbuster of a thread...

I can find an Ali, a La Motta and even a Naseem Hamed thread, but no general boxing one. It seems a fairly dangerous activity to me, as evidenced by the appearance of Panto Frank on the 1989 DL as he was about to face Tyson. I'll get to my point, shall I? I guess even boxing is less dangerous than shooting.

Being a rubbish songwriter myself, it's time to salute the people who make the pop musical world go round. Most aren't on the verge of death, but never mind (all over 60, though). Off the top of my head, my living greats include: Chip Taylor Les Reed Arthur Hamilton Jackie DeShannon Barry Mason Geoff Stephens John Carter Tony Macaulay Bob Crewe Bob Gaudio Gerry Goffin Carole King Sandy Linzer Denny Randell Tony Joe White Jeff Barry Nicky Chinn Mike Chapman Hal David Burt Bacharach Mike Batt (just kidding) Bobby Hart Dan Penn Jimmy Lea Noddy Holder Jimmy Webb PF Sloan Roger Cook Roger Greenaway Pete Callander Mitch Murray Rob Davis Neil Sedaka Mike Stoller Barry Mann Cynthia Weil Tom T Hall Jerry Chesnut Chips Moman Kenny Gamble Leon Huff Holland-Dozier-Holland

If we can have football, cricket, ruggerbuggers and baseball (hell, even wrasslin') threads, I don't see why there shouldn't be a US football version. These guys are always doing drugs, shooting and raping people, organising dogfights etc, so there should be plenty of DL action for them. And we have our fair share of transatlantic members to consider, don't forget. To get the ball rolling, today saw the college football equivalent of Carlisle (or summat) beating Man Utd, as tiny Appalachian State downed mighty Michigan in one of the biggest shocks ever. No-one died, though. Go Pack, go Badgers! Edit: on reflection, this is unfair on Carlisle. A more accurate example would be Man Utd losing to the bobbins robins of Altrincham.

They seem to be the elephant in the DL's living room, but I don't think we can let the biggest and longest-running story of the year go by without adding our two pence/cents to the matter (yes, I'm aware that a related thread was strangled at birth a few months ago). Conspiracy theories are welcome, but idiocy is not. As to whether guests should be allowed to post, I'll leave that to those further up the greasy pole. Anyway... SCARPER!!!

Things have come to a sorry state of affairs when you start having DL-related dreams. Last night I imagined there was some secret portal that I could get into while the 'waiting for log-in' page was on the screen. It took me to a croquet game, which no doubt signifies some bizarre sexual perversion - all dreams do, don't they? Someone (and it might have been a DL member) hit a ball several thousand miles, but that's about all I can remember. I hope the rest of you haven't been similarly afflicted in your sleep, but I'll bet one or two have. Come on weirdos, share, whether they be connected to the DL or not. We'll get Dr StarCrossed in to analyse them.

I find it sad that ridiculous thread titles like this one and the Andy Ripley boofheads are gradually being homogenised for convenience. The world gets ever more literal day by day. How long until Piper at the Gates of Heaven becomes Musicians of the Psychedelic Era?

"Alan flamin' Bennett?! A bloody poofter who lives in Primrose 'ill?! Is 'e 'eck as like. If e's a professional Yorkie I'll go t'bottom of t'stairs" (blah blah etc). Old Godot was a bit of a pro-Yorkie wasn't he? Lived/lives in Surrey if I remember rightly.

Dickie Bird and Geoffrey, the last of the professional Yorkshiremen, both looking relatively gradely at Headingley today.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn8jg8dgy12o Cleo Sylvestre, could have been posted in many threads. A pioneer.

Depending on who you believe, he either turned down being an Eagle at their conception or was kept out at the insistence of other(s), but with Meisner, Frey and Souther all dead that’ll remain a mystery I suspect. JD was a boyfriend of Judee Sill and you get the feeling he wasn’t the most considerate of guys, but that’s pretty much par for the course with the Laurel Canyon rock stars and songwriters, so I’m not going to have a go at him on hearsay. May I add, I’m not an Eagles fan one little bit, though they could do the West Coast harms as well as CSNY or anyone else.

Beware of hidden online entrapment control systems at all times. Aww, I loved little Pantu.

Surely someone must have videoed this piece of art for posterity, but I can’t find hide nor hair. That might be the longest obituary in history… yet leaves us none the wiser on the manner of Mr Ellis’s demise. I’m sure him and Rose can’t have been as bad as Hale & Pace, though the clip I saw wasn’t that promising.

Why start another utterly pointless thread? No idea, other than that I haven’t started one in ages, and to ponder on how best to avoid accidentally seeing or hearing ‘national treasure’ Easter Island statue-headed BBC presenter Clare Balding for two weeks. The over-under on this thread I’d put at 1.5 pages, assuming the wise yet tyrannical Paul ‘flag’ Bearer doesn’t smother it at birth. Ooh, there’s the Bhutan team tootling down the Seine in a pedalo. Not really, but I’m sure the USA will enter the opening ceremony on board an aircraft carrier equipped with nuclear warheads. No sign of the Albanian dinghy yet, but likely to be sinking off the Kent coast with several children aboard. You can bung anything in here, from inevitable terrorist atrocities to Paula Radcliffe shitting in a roadside gutter.

I’m pleased to see that David is still knocking about, I’d like to imagine he still peruses the board now and again for a bit of Carry On Gossiping. Although it had to be done, I do miss the ‘guests’ that were obviously real people and dropped by with info or rants, but quite understandably couldn’t be arsed to join as a full member (Matron!).

A brief listen tells me I wouldn’t give that album to my worst enemy. Only 5 of 21 still with us: Faith Brown, John Cleese, Nina Baden Semper, Lenny Henry and Brian Murphy. Despite the LP’s title, Dick Emery’s You Are Awful isn’t even on there; maybe his estate wanted to spare people further suffering.

Hopkirk (deceased)

But, like Spike and Sellers, his heart will goon.

I’m so devastated that my son fell out of the window that I feel compelled to write a song about it. Um, hey Will, can you write some lyrics for it, mate?

Portrayed brilliantly by Kenneth Williams in Carry on at Your Convenience.

He played in the first game I ever attended, a 1-0 over Newcastle in the 1974/5 League Cup quarter-final second leg. Still Chester’s greatest (virtually only) cup run.

Agreed. I’m not against plagiarism per se, either conscious or unconscious, it’s just what you do with it. Oasis being popular doesn’t make them good or interesting in my eyes (which is obviously another can of worms). One of Noel’s idols, Paul Weller has often borrowed bits and pieces, but to me usually more inventively than Noel. I’d occasionally bring a song to a rehearsal and another band member would say it reminds me of such and such, which I’d only then realise, so accidental plagiarism is certainly a thing.

Noel even stooped to (undoubtedly intentionally) ripping off premier Beatles pasticheur Neil ‘Rutles’ Innes on ‘Whatever’, which again cost them a lawsuit. One of the steals I dislike most, for no particular reason, is the All the Young Dudes bit in the truly horrible ‘Stand By Me’. At least they were on safer ground nicking Pachelbel’s chord sequence (along with many others) for Don’t Look Back in Ongar, as he’d been dead for millions of years. If I want to hear the 65-67 Beatles sound done with style and wit, I’ll listen to Cotton Mather’s underrated Kontiki album, thanks Noel.

Shazza has a thread, but I'm buggered if I can find one for her hubby. Which I find a little insulting, on Ozzy's behalf. He's been in hospital for a 'minor outpatient procedure', but these days a minor op for Ozzy could be like a quintuple heart bypass for the majority of us. Of course he may well prove to be immortal, but only eternity will tell. Feel free to use this thread for Jack, Kelly and the dog (no, not Sharon) as well.