Tolpuddle. I'd completely forgotten about the Tolpuddle festival on Sunday. And about saying I'd go this year. It's an annual thing marking an event in early trade union history.
Last time I went, New Labour sent Estelle Morris to address the audiance from the podium about how the original Tolpuddle martyrs were Blairites. She was virtually booed offstage - and thoroughly deserved it.
I don't know who's drawn the short straw in the New Labour cabinet this time, but I expect the same speech and the same response.
There's also live music from the stage. Last time the headline artist was Billy Bragg - and he was pretty dire he was too. This year, Asian Dub Foundation would be nice, but I'm expecting another man with a guitar.
Anyway, another two and a half hour journey in a hot car, this time to Dorset. Followed by selling Socialist Worker simply to annoy the shop stewards, "participating" in the speeches, and "discussing" points of contention with the stalls of other far-left groups. And then another car journey back again.
Take some sunblock. Because I've got sunburn and I don't want any more of it.
UPDATE: I'm told it's Billy Bragg again. Sigh
It's getting close to that time again. The time when I have to wipe this laptop's hard disk and reinstall Windows and several dozen applications from scratch. Because, in spite of regular ministrations from System Mechanic, Ad-Aware, Tracks Eraser and Spybot, operation is slowing down to unusable levels.
But first, the ceremony of backing up mp3s and wmas, jpgs and gifs, installation files and miscellanious data to CDRs. Followed shortly by the ceremony of losing the CDRs after the disk is formatted.
It's also somewhat past that time when I move all the items in my bedroom between surfaces in an effort to make things neater. This is a little like sorting the grains of sand on a beach into bands of colour, right before dancing on them.
Oh, I found the Gatecrashing song via the magic of P2P. It's...okay. Much like most other songs by the band, very 80s with horns, crashing snares and chunky bass.
I also rediscovered ZZ Top, one of those bands I always enjoyed hearing if their music was playing, but wouldn't select from a jukebox. There's a lot of music like that - passively enjoyed a great deal, but never actively sought at the time.
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Ha! I learnt all about the tollpuddle matyrs at skool. They were martyrs and there was a spinning jenny involved somewhere I believe.
ReplyDeleteAnd ZZ Top have veeeery long beards. Or might be dead. dunno.
erm. still can't log on so for now
bye.
K
PS we're recording yet another hit that WILL see the light of day before a zimmer is required.
Think positive. Wiping your hard drive might erase Piggy and Tazzy's blog URL from your computer's memory so you need never read their filth again. Better yet, it may cause a blockage so they can't leave comments on your blog. Hallelujah.
ReplyDeleteThe Annonymous Kamakura:
ReplyDelete>Ha! I learnt all about the
>tollpuddle matyrs at skool.
Good for you. My skooldaze were all Tudors and Stuarts. That and being very good at "showing promise".
>ZZ Top have veeeery long beards.
And the one called Mike Beard doesn't have one. And they tended to appear as visitors from outer space in their videos.
These are pretty much all the Fascinating Facts I know about ZZ Top.
>we're recording yet another hit
>that WILL see the light of day
>before a zimmer is required.
Ah good, I was starting to wonder what was happening. Do you by chance have a little demo version?
MJ the Infomaniac:
>Wiping your hard drive might erase
>Piggy and Tazzy's blog URL
Hmmm. I wonder if they can sing? I'm a musician/producer without a vocalist and they're like Divine without the sequins...
What an intersting idea! :-)
Piggy and Tazzy can't sing but they can fart 'God Save the Queen.'
ReplyDeleteBut can they burp in harmony? I'd pay to see two grown men making music from "both ends" simultainiously. A stink quartet.
ReplyDeleteOh I wouldn't pay in money. I'm not that impressed.