Happy Birthday to Marianne Faithfull - thanking you for that time at Meltdown.

 Seen here at Somerset House at Chris Stein's Book Launch talking to Debbie Harry.

and there was that time when I saw her sing at Meltdown Festival, Southbank.

Marianne Faithfull... She walked out on stage. We applauded. She got emotional, then we got emotional... every song perfect for her. Started with Broken English, Tower of Song (Cohen), she did Tears go by (almost 50 years later). A John Prine Song, a Randy Newman song... she lit a cigarette. Bill Frissel was a master one man back up band. Ended with Tom Waits' song Strange Weather: Everyone's the same, all over the world, talking about the weather.

 It was a little cloudy on the way there. 

The sun came through.

Just after we drove past Highbury it bucketed down.

I saw a National Treasure.

When Yoko Ono chose the stella cast for MELTDOWN FESTIVAL 27 June 2013 London Southbank.  

Set list 

Broken English

The Stations (Glitter Twins) 

Tower of Song (Leonard Cohen)  

Why Did We have to Part

She

Rich Kid Blues (Terry Reid) 

Vagabond Ways

As Tears Go By

Crazy Love

I'll Keep It With Mine (Bob Dylan)

In Germany before the War  (Randy Newman)

Working Class Hero (John Lennon)

The Ballad of Lucy Jordan (Shel Silverstein) 

Strange Weather (Tom Waits)

 

The Boulevard of Broken Dreams (Hal Kemp)

 

 

Special Badges. SPECIALS.

 

FLASHBACK: Martin Rev. 23 December 2017 New York - Bowery Electric. Blondie Mural Phoebe Artwork

 It was FER-REEEEZING cold out ... 13 degrees C. But Puma Perl came out and David and Emil and Delphine Blue ... and downstairs at the Bowery Electric it was PACKED. And SMOKING HOT because of Martin Rev - he was astonishing - just amazing - just so powerful - in his leather vest and shiny black pants and glasses. I don't know WHAT he's doing - smacking -  giving his synthesizer (?) a charlie horse and I dont know what the hell the box was on the top there with all those wires and bits and pieces but what he did just hoovered me to the front of the room and i was go-go girl ... - and this doesn't sound right either but I would never have got into Suicide so deep if it wasn't for Tim Broun So THANK YOU. Martin Rev is force - I just admire the living daylight nightlight flashing lights of him.

Martin Rev 

 Walked along Bleeker Street and spotted PHOEBE street art, some of them I could peel off the wall and they came home with me. Moon was up. The Blondie Mural (photos by Bobbie Grossman and Shepherd Fairey) is no more. 

Set List - Wreckless Eric. 299 Club, London

 

Set List ---Rocket From The Tombs (Pere Ubu) - London Fields 10 December 2014

This is the drummer's set list from the Rocket from the Tomb gig at London Fields. It is wet because the drummer, Steve, took off his t-shirt, wrung it out and played the encore. (so much water came out of the shirt you would think it had been in a wash cycle) When he hit the drums you could see steam rising...

29 January 2023. Tom Verlaine RIP

 He'd often pass me on 17th Street. He would be walking to the Strand bookshop. He looked great in a blue shirt.

Once I was on the bus in the Julius Knipl district, those old garment factory brick bulidings with their black windows, the bus yellow like the cat in Totoro. I looked up from my book cos I thought the bus was on fire. It was him, wearing a wool coat and a Peaky Blinders cap. He'd obviously just put a cigarette out, a bonfire cigarette, the sort you catch a fire from when you share the match. 

One time we saw him. There weren't a whole lot of people. Big stage. High and long. Grey crowd. Space. Him in a black shirt by the black drum kit, with the black guitar. They thought he was just tuning up and getting restless. Might have been a full moon. But we were to find out this man could change the tuning of his guitar mid-song. And someone, Scottish, (who was staying at our house as it happened) shouted, "Come on you To-om" and he looked up. 

Those guitar solos took you to your tip-toes, and lift off. 

The very next day, we stopped on St Mark's Place to look at the bootleg cassettes and there was a recording from the night before. We bought it and played it over and over. The man with the tape recorder must have been standing by our Scottish guy. Come on you, To-om.

This is on my staircase. 

When I pass it ... elevating