Last night at around 10 minutes past midnight (it had just turned Dec 8th), I drove to 72nd street, corner of Central Park west to the Dakota building. There was NO ONE around, not even a guard. I sat in my car blasting Hide your love away, feeling eeire- thinking this is the same spot John Lennon was shot in 1980. Imagining that horrible scene gives you a nasty chill, especially when you are at the scene of the crime. Then an overwhelming feeling of sadness comes over you. Hard to describe, you just have to visit the place to FEEL what I mean.
Every year on Dec 8th Beatles fans gather in Strawberry Fields to sing Beatles and John Lennon songs. I got there around 7 pm at night, it was naturally dark and FREEZING BEYOND belief (20 degrees fahrenheit/-1 celcius) AND it was windy as FOOK.
The bitter weather didn't stop the vigil. Every one sings along to the 5 or 6 guitarist who were in the middle of the circle they formed around the Imagine mosaic. I went alone, didn't know anyone there- and just sang along with everyone, as you do. It felt SO NICE to be around other Beatle fans. SO FUCKING AWESOME.
It was extremely difficult to get a picture or get anywhere close to the middle.. so many swarmed around it.. I had to stand on tippie-toes and take these pictures (not a place to get even slightly pushy so you just wait and try)
Not sure how long the guitarists were all there, but I could only take an hour of the brutal cold. My toes were frozen solid and I had a hard time walking back to my car as my toes would not bend anymore; I looked like marching soldier the way I was walking, lol, trying to avoid bending icy toes out of fear they would have snapped in two lol. Only hardcore Beatles freaks were there, you could tell. Everyone knew every word to every song and people were even making the electric guitar notes in 'Something'
When I left they were in the middle of 'Let it be'. No sign of Yoko this year. She did come out to the vigil in 2005 though.
After the vigil I went to an amazing wine bar and met some wonderful new friends. You just never know who you will meet in this city. Then I met up with Jonesy and we went and did some karaoke. I sang "Helter Skelter" as my Beatles tune for the night. I wore a Beatles shirt too to show love. John Lennon; gone but never, ever forgotten. Mark David Chapman – may you rot in hell.
I know this blog is late, but as they say, better late than never
As always, Motörhead pulled through, showed everyone a good time and put on a fantastic show. They always treat me like family and let me bring two of my friends backstage to say hi and hang out. Phil was generous with the champagne, Reese's peanut butter cups (he has LOADS of them in his dressing room) and pizza.
Awaiting me at the box office window was a few tickets AND laminated passes. That's always a good thing. It was sold out, packed to the brim.
That is my friend Jill ^. She is from England but spends A LOT of time here in NYC. The guy in the red cowboy hat on your blog is GASS WILD.
His band is called THE LOVE PIRATES . Super nice bloke. Jill is a ROCK chick to the core. She wrote her own blog about the Motorhead show:
"New York!,we are Motorhead and we play Rock and Roll!"
So I went to see Motorhead last night with Dr Dot,it was insanely good.I had an "all access' pass courtesy of Dot and the band.I've now decided I cannot see another show in my lfe without one of these things,lol…ahhh the heady power.
We watched the gig from a slightly elevated area to the side of the stage.The venue was packed,the fans on the ground level were mental,the mosh pit was one of the most dangerous looking i've ever seen!,the security guys really earned their crust last night.
Having said that,even though the mosh area was bordering on riot,they all looked to be having fun.
Motorhead,well what can I say??these phuckers turn their shit up to way past 11,they are tight as hell and sound the business,special shout out to Mickey D who played some blinding drums.Also I couldn't help noticing what great thighs Lemmy has,Dot reckons it's from all the shagging.Yeah,so all in all a blistering set,those mofo's can RAWWWWWWWWWK!
Backstage….
Now,i'm not saying Lemmy's moles have their own gravitational pull….but ermm…..anyway,lol.I met him,he was lovely,charming even.His dressing room was filled with an assortment of girls as you would expect and I thought"uh oh the potential for more cock-blocking incidents are high tonight"(see previous blog),however it didn't happen,I talked to him and got a photo which you can see in my comments section.I can't put my pics in album section as i'm using a computer at an internet caff.
Most of the time we hung out in Phil's dressing room as Dot is good mates with him.It was quite a surreal experience,I made a mental note of all the things on their riders,lot's of alcohol of course but thankfully no bowls of "green only" M+M's or wotever wanky thing David Lee Roth once requested,lol.I also thought there's a lot of ego stroking which has to go on with a band,ego stroking and reassurance I suppose,thought to myself it must be exhausting if you work for the band or are a girlfriend or something.Fortunately in this instance it would be easy to stroke their ego's coz they were brilliant but what about times when they are shit?people must tell them they were great anyway?Don't think I could do that,if you were shit,you're gonna know about it, no doubt my back-stage privileges would soon be revoked,lol.
Also spoke to Mickey D briefly, he has awesome 1980's hair and is from Sweden, Phil is Welsh, Lemmy English.
I think I left at about 2am,Dot had to go get her massage table out of the car,the work never ends for that chick.
Bizzarely,last night I dreamt of Lemmy and I was sitting on his lap and he asked me"when was the last time you went to church?"
Strange huh?
Wotever could it mean?"
Jill
That's me, Phil and Greg, my NYPD friend. Hey! Never judge a book by it's cover. Greg is a heavy metal head who travels to every country he can. He is open minded, has a sharp sense of humor, is well mannered and currently single, ladies ๐
Phil asked Greg to play a joke and go into the opening act's band dressing room and whip out his NYPD badge and scream "ok, who has the weed mother fuckers! NYPD!! Get up against the wall!!" He kept in character the whole time and started frisking one guy and they guy was obviously used to the drill as he said "you better be a real cop mister!". Phil and I watched on with a shocked look on our face to make it seem real. Then Phil started laughing, as did Greg and every one was cracking up. The one against the wall took a minute to give in and laugh over the fact he had just be punked big time. ha ha
Go for it Phil!! Here he is playing my favorite Motörhead tune "just cause you've got the power".. sigh
Pure ROCK AND FUCKING ROLL! ^
Watching the fans mosh pit from this angle was so fucking fun. I can't believe the shit these rowdy rockers were doing throughout the show. I am surprised no one died. lol.
Mickey Dee had a dressing room FULL of hot babes. We had to plow our way through them to say hi. "Oh Mickey you're so fine, you're so fine you blow my mind, hey Mickey, Hey Mickey" (surely that song was about Mickey Dee, no?)
Jesus fucking CHRIST! Can you look any more apathetic Lemmy? Some one get an espresso, quick, before he fucking dozes off.
I didn't take this video footage personally, but I snagged it from youtube so you can have a listen/look at the show..
Dance Recording: "LoveStoned/I Think She Knows," Justin Timberlake, Nate (Danja) Hills, Timbaland & Justin Timberlake, producers; Jimmy Douglass & Timbaland, mixers.
Electronic/Dance Album: "We Are the Night," The Chemical Brothers.
Bluegrass Album: "The Bluegrass Diaries," Jim Lauderdale.
Traditional Blues Album: "Last of the Great Mississippi Delta Bluesmen: Live In Dallas," Henry James Townsend, Joe Willie "Pinetop" Perkins, Robert Lockwood Jr. & David "Honeyboy" Edwards.
Contemporary Blues Album: "The Road to Escondido," JJ Cale & Eric Clapton.
New Age Album: "Crestone," Paul Winter Consort.
Contemporary Jazz Album: "River: The Joni Letters," Herbie Hancock. Jazz Vocal Album: "Avant Gershwin," Patti Austin.
Jazz Instrumental Solo: "Anagram," Michael Brecker, soloist.
Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group: "Pilgrimage," Michael Brecker.
Large Jazz Ensemble Album: "A Tale of God's Will (A Requiem for Katrina)," Terence Blanchard.
Latin Jazz Album: "Funk Tango," Paquito D'Rivera Quintet.
Latin Pop Album: "El Tren De Los Momentos," Alejandro Sanz.
Latin Rock or Alternative Album: "No Hay Espacio," Black:Guayaba.
Latin Urban Album: "Residente O Visitante," Calle 13.
Tropical Latin Album: "La Llave De Mi Corazon," Juan Luis Guerra.
Tejano Album: "Before the Next Teardrop Falls," Little Joe & La Familia.
Norteno Album: "Detalles Y Emociones," Los Tigres Del Norte.
Banda Album: "Te Va A Gustar," El Chapo. Traditional Folk Album: "Dirt Farmer," Levon Helm.
Contemporary Folk/Americana Album: "Washington Square Serenade," Steve Earle.
Native American Music Album: "Totemic Flute Chants," Johnny Whitehorse.
Hawaiian Music Album: "Treasures of Hawaiian Slack Key Guitar," Various Artists, Daniel Ho, George Kahumoku Jr., Paul Konwiser & Wayne Wong, producers.
Zydeco or Cajun Music Album: "Live! Worldwide," Terrance Simien & The Zydeco Experience. Reggae: "Mind Control," Stephen Marley.
Traditional World Music Album: "African Spirit," Soweto Gospel Choir. Contemporary World Music Album: "Djin Djin," Angelique Kidjo.
Polka Album: "Come Share the Wine," Jimmy Sturr and His Orchestra.
Gospel Performance: "Blessed & Highly Favored," The Clark Sisters; "Never Gonna Break My Faith," Aretha Franklin & Mary J. Blige (Featuring The Harlem Boys Choir).
(Tie.) Gospel Song: "Blessed & Highly Favored," Karen Clark-Sheard, songwriter (The Clark Sisters).
Rock or Rap Gospel Album: "Before the Daylight's Shot," Ashley Cleveland.
Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album: "A Deeper Level," Israel and New Breed.
Southern, Country or Bluegrass Gospel Album: "Salt of the Earth," Ricky Skaggs & The Whites.
Traditional Gospel Album: "Live — One Last Time," The Clark Sisters.
Contemporary R&B Gospel Album: "Free to Worship," Fred Hammond.
Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: Love (The Beatles) George Martin & Giles Martin, producers (Apple Records/Capitol Records).
Score Soundtrack Album for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: "Ratatouille," Michael Giacchino, composer. Song Written for Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: "Love You I Do (From Dreamgirls)," Siedah Garrett & Henry Krieger, songwriters (Jennifer Hudson).
Musical Show Album: "Spring Awakening," Duncan Sheik, producer; Duncan Sheik, composer; Steven Sater, lyricist (Original Broadway Cast With Jonathan Groff, Lea Michele & Others).
Musical Album for Children: "A Green and Red Christmas," The Muppets.
Spoken Word: "The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream," Barack Obama.
Spoken Word Album for Children: "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," Jim Dale.
Comedy Album: "The Distant Future," Flight of the Conchords.
Instrumental Composition: "Cerulean Skies," Maria Schneider, composer (Maria Schneider Orchestra). Instrumental Arrangement: "In a Silent Way," Vince Mendoza, arranger (Joe Zawinul).
Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s): "I'm Gonna Live Till I Die," John Clayton, arranger (Queen Latifah).
Engineered Album, Non-Classical: "Beauty & Crime," Tchad Blake, Cameron Craig, Emery Dobyns & Jimmy Hogarth, engineers (Suzanne Vega).
Surround Sound: "Love," Paul Hicks, surround mix engineer; Tim Young, surround mastering engineer; George Martin & Giles Martin, surround producers (The Beatles).
Classical Album: "Tower: Made in America," Leonard Slatkin, conductor; Tim Handley, producer; Tim Handley, engineer/mixer (Nashville Symphony).
Orchestral Performance: "Tower: Made in America," Leonard Slatkin, conductor (Nashville Symphony). Producer of the Year, Classical: Judith Sherman.
Engineered Album, Classical: "Grechaninov: Passion Week," John Newton, engineer (Charles Bruffy, Phoenix Bach Choir & Kansas City Chorale).
Opera Recording: "Humperdinck: Hansel & Gretel," Sir Charles Mackerras, conductor; Rebecca Evans, Jane Henschel & Jennifer Larmore; Brian Couzens, producer (Sarah Coppen, Diana Montague & Sarah Tynan; New London Children's Choir; Philharmonia Orchestra).
Choral Performance: "Brahms: Ein Deutsches Requiem," Simon Rattle, conductor; Simon Halsey, chorus master (Thomas Quasthoff & Dorothea Roschmann; Rundfunkchor Berlin; Berliner Philharmoniker).
Chamber Music Performance: "Strange Imaginary Animals," Eighth Blackbird.
Small Ensemble Performance: "Stravinsky: Apollo, Concerto in D; Prokofiev: 20 Visions Fugitives," Yuri Bashmet, conductor; Moscow Soloists. Classical Vocal Performance: "Lorraine Hunt Lieberson Sings Peter Lieberson: Neruda Songs," Lorraine Hunt Lieberson (James Levine; Boston Symphony Orchestra).
Classical Contemporary Composition: "Made in America," Joan Tower (Leonard Slatkin, conductor; Nashville Symphony Orchestra).
Classical Crossover Album: "A Love Supreme: The Legacy of John Coltrane," Turtle Island Quartet.
Short Form Music Video: "God's Gonna Cut You Down," Johnny Cash.
Long Form Music Video: "The Confessions Tour," Madonna.
Recording Package: "Cassadaga," Zachary Nipper, art director (Bright Eyes). Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package: "What It Is!: Funky Soul and Rare Grooves (1967-1977)," Masaki Koike, art director.
Album Notes: "John Work, III: Recording Black Culture," Bruce Nemerov, album notes writer.
Historical Album: "The Live Wire — Woody Guthrie in Performance 1949," Nora Guthrie & Jorge Arevalo Mateus, compilation producers; Jamie Howarth, Steve Rosenthal, Warren Russell-Smith & Dr. Kevin Short, mastering engineers (Woody Guthrie).