Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – The Music Column – 1988 – Plane Drama, New Zealand, Kylie and request from Adele Marie Park

Posted on October 18, 2018 by Smorgasbord - Variety is the Spice of Life.

Welcome to my series where I share our adventures on a year by year basis and the music in the charts that are still on my playlist today.

I am also taking requests and all you have to do is either put the artist and track in the comments or the link to the music on Youtube..

1988 – Plane Drama, New Zealand and I Should Be So Lucky!

For the first few months of 1988 both of us were working hard at our individual jobs and getting know the people we worked with as well as our neighbours. I was promoted to Advertising Sales Manager at the paper where I worked which was gratifying, but added an element of pressure to the job. I enjoyed that and set about building the classified sales team for the weekdays and introducing a telephone sales team in the evenings and weekends for cars and property.

It was the end of the summer before we knew it and we both felt we needed to go for a really good holiday. We had spent time in the Alps both in summer and winter and loved it, but we suddenly realised that we had a huge amount of air miles accumulated with Continental Airlines. It was coming up to our anniversary so we decided to go as far as our air miles could take us first class.

Believe it or not we could go to New Zealand and back first class for free! We decided that it was too good an opportunity to miss and duly booked our flights to coincide with our Wedding Anniversary in November.

The journey would turn out to be one that has stayed in my memory for the last 30 years. Flying first class was of course amazing and the flight to San Francisco was a delight, and I even managed to lay flat for a good nap. We waited for an hour for our connecting flight and found that we had the two front seats in the upper cabin and buckled up for the flight to Hawaii where we were due to refuel. We arrived late that night and we were both a little jet-lagged by this time… We dozed as they refuelled the plane and then returned to our seats for take-off.

It was fine for the first couple of minutes as we ascended into the dark pacific skies until they tried to lower the wheels. Then the huge plane began to judder as if it was about to fall out of the air. At first I put it down to turbulence and David even dropped off to sleep again. However, I soon realised something was very wrong and woke him up again. Then the captain came on the intercom and announced that it appeared the landing gear had suffered hydraulic failure, and there was no indication that the wheels were up or down or locked in either position. We would now be circling Hawaii for 90 minutes dumping as much of the fuel we had just taken on board as possible. David felt there was nothing he could do about this so went back to sleep! I sat white knuckled for the entire time and spent a terrifying five minutes in the brace position as we landed. Thankfully the wheels were still locked down and we arrived safely. We then spent four hours waiting for the repairs to be completed and they then expected us to get back on the same plane!!

Having landed safely in Auckland we spent three days exploring the City of Sails including the fascinating aquarium and took a trip on a boat made entirely of recycled Coke cans.

As you can imagine despite all the thousands of miles I had flown in my lifetime around the world, I was rather nervous about flying so soon after the recent incident. However, we were booked into a hotel in Queenstown on Lake Wakatipu and had to take a flight to Wellington on South Island and then to Queenstown. The problem was the planes got smaller and smaller and eventually we were on a rather bumpy flight in a tiny prop aircraft.

It was worth it however as you will see from this amazing photograph of Lake Wakatipu and we threw ourselves into the activities.

Jet boating at breakneck speeds, hiking the surrounding area of amazing geographic diversity and enjoying a spectacular lake cruise on the TSS Earnslaw which is a vintage steamboat brought overland and reconstructed on site. The ship took us to the other end of the lake when the captain appeared in dressed for another job entirely. His first mate was a sheep dog and they showed us how to round up a flock and then shear them. Brilliant day.

One of the highlights was dinner for our anniversary at the now closed Treetops restaurant where the brave could climb a staircase into a tree for their dinner. We stayed on ground level thank you very much and the seafood was stunning.

One of the activities offered was definitely more up David’s street than mine. White water rafting did not appeal especially as it meant wearing a skin tight rubber suit! It was a beautiful day and the ranking for the route was moderate. David headed off and I enjoyed some sun shine on the balcony of the hotel. Unfortunately within a very short space of time the danger ranking for the white water was upgraded to the top of the range, and since the trip was captured by photographers along the route here is the evidence.

Bungee jumping was not at its peak at the time but here is a bridge that the more adventurous and later tourists could jump from.

A gentler and potentially more profitable activity was gold-panning and we spent a very pleasant if fruitful afternoon sifting the bottom of this alleged laden tributary off the lake.

We had a wonderful time and I tried not to think of the return flight and the potential hazards of flying. We boarded the plane in Auckland and were a few rows back in the bottom cabin this time. All was uneventful with a routine refuelling stop back in Hawaii followed by a peaceful flight to San Francisco. As the plane came into land we suddenly were slewed sideways and the plane started to climb rapidly accompanied by shrieks and screams from the passengers…We had experienced wind shear and had to go around twice before we could land.

When we arrived back in the UK I announced that my flying days were over for the time being and threw my passport in a drawer.

With work and various other outside activities music took a bit of a backseat but here are some of my favourites of 1988. Kylie Minogue – I should be so lucky and Locomotion. Phil Collins – Groovy kind of love, Belinda Carlisle – Heaven is a place on earth, The Hollies – He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother, Whitney Houston – One moment in time, Pet Shop Boys – Always on my mind, Elton John – Candle in the wind and the amazing late Robert Palmer with She makes my day.

Bearing in mind the luck of flying free, staying in the air, and the holiday I have chosen Kylie Minogue.. I should be so Lucky to share today.

Buy Kylie Minogue Music: Amazon

Now time for this week’s request from Adele Marie Park

I’d love if you could play this tune for me, it reminds me of becoming who I was and creating my own identity. lol X Ray Spex was one of my favourite bands and the singer Pauline fought against mental health issues all her life. I have chosen a tribute to Poly Styrene from other artists.

Adele Park, Buy: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Adele-Park/e/B01G9VHA9W
Website: http://www.adelemariepark.com/

Have you followed an artist and love their music.. why not share them here.. pop the link into the comments.

Thanks for tuning in and hope you have enjoyed.. Sally.

Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – The Music Column with William Price King – #Jazz #Musicians – Fats Waller

Posted on October 16, 2018 by Smorgasbord - Variety is the Spice of Life.

Delighted to welcome back William Price King who has had a very busy few months. William will be moving to every two weeks and so pleased that we can get back to enjoying his expertise and interesting posts.

This week William shares the life and music of the legendary Fats Waller with some of his music that showcases his extraordinary talent.

Image courtesy of Biography.com

Thomas Fats Waller, the youngest of 11 children, was born to Adeline Locket Waller, a musician, and the Reverend Edward Martin Waller May 21, 1904 in Harlem, New York. Waller came from a very musical family—his grandfather was an accomplished violinist and his mother was the organist of his family’s church. His first exposure to music was in the form of church hymns and organ music, an instrument he was taught to play by his mother and the church musical director. When he was six years old his mother hired a piano tutor and he learned how to read and write music. She paid for these lessons by working in a grocery store. Four years later he was playing the organ at this father’s church. His father hoped that he would follow a religious calling rather than a career in jazz, but his love of jazz proved too great. Waller attended high school for one semester, but left school at 15 to work as an organist at the Lincoln Theater in Harlem, where he earned $32 a week. Within 12 months he had composed his first rag.*

* rag or ragtime is a musical style that enjoyed its peak popularity between 1895 and 1918. Its cardinal trait is its syncopated or “ragged” rhythm.

In 1920 his mother passed away and Waller moved in with the family of his piano tutor, Russell Brooks. While living with Brooks, Waller met James P. Johnson and Willie Smith, two of the greatest stride pianists of the era. Both men saw Waller’s potential as a born showman. Johnson decided to take Waller under his wing and taught him the stride* style of piano playing, greatly advancing his level of musical education.

* stride is a jazz piano style that was developed in the large cities of the East Coast of the United States, mainly New York City, during the 1920s and 1930s.

Waller’s first recordings, “Muscle Shoals Blues” and “Birmingham Blues“, were made in October 1922 for Okey Records. That year, he also made his first player piano roll.*

*A piano roll is a music storage medium – a continuous roll of paper with perforations (holes) punched into it. The perforations represent note control data. The roll moves over a reading system known as a ‘tracker bar’ and the playing cycle for each musical note is triggered when a perforation crosses the bar and is read.

Waller’s other accomplishments include vaudeville appearances with the famous blues singer Bessie Smith, soon after which he wrote the music to the show Keep Shufflin’ . Waller’s first published composition, “Squeeze Me,” was published in 1924.

“Squeeze me” is a 1925 jazz standard based on an old blues song called “The Boy in the Boat “. The lyrics were credited to publisher Clarence Williams, although Andy Razaf has claimed to have actually written the lyrics. The song has been recorded by numerous artists, including Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Bessie Smith, and Dinah Washington.

Between 1926 and the end of 1927, Waller recorded a series of pipe organ solo records. These represent the first time syncopated jazz compositions were performed on a full-sized church organ

In 1927, Waller met the poet and lyricist Andy Razaf and the two collaborated on several musicals, the most of popular of which, Connie’s Hot Chocolates would bring them great critical and commercial success.

“Honeysuckle Rose” is a 1929 song composed by Fats Waller with lyrics by Andy Razaf. It was introduced in the 1929 Off-Broadway revue Load of Coal at Connie’s Inn as a soft-shoe dance number. Waller’s 1934 recording was inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999.

“(What Did I Do to Be So) Black and Blue” is a 1929 jazz standard composed by Fats Waller with lyrics by Harry Brooks and Andy Razaf, from the Broadway musical Broadway musical comedy play Connie’s Hot Chocolates.). Blues singer Ethel Waters’ 1930 version of the song became a hit, and the song has been recorded by many artists since then. The song is also featured in the prologue of Ralph Ellison’s novel Invisible Man (1952) as its protagonist, while hiding underground, listens to the song being played very loudly and descends into a dream regarding “the blackness of Blackness,” all after smoking a marijuana cigarette.

“ Ain’t Misbehavin’” is a 1929 stride jazz/early swing song. Andy Razaf wrote the lyrics to a score by Thomas “Fats” Waller and Harry Brooks for Connie’s Hot Chocolates. It has a thirty-two measure form (AABA) at a slow-to-moderate tempo. Waller said the song was written while “lodging” in prison (for an alimony violation), and that is why he was not misbehaving. It also became a huge hit for Louis Armstrong.

Waller became one of the most popular performers of his era, finding critical and commercial success in the United States and Europe. Fellow pianist and composer Oscar Levant dubbed Waller “the black Horowitz” Waller is believed to have composed many novelty tunes in the 1920s and 1930s and sold them for small sums, attributed to another composer and lyricist.

On one occasion his playing seemed to have put him at risk of injury. Waller was kidnapped in Chicago leaving a performance in 1926. Four men bundled him into a car and took him to the Hawthorne Inn, owned by Al Capone. Waller was ordered inside the building, and found a party in full swing. Gun to his back, he was pushed towards a piano, and told to play. A terrified Waller realized he was the “surprise guest” at Capone’s birthday party, and took comfort that the gangsters did not intend to kill him!

In 1926, Waller began his recording association with the Victor Talking Machine Company/RCA Victor, his principal record company for the rest of his life, with the organ solos “St. Louis Blues” and his own composition, “Lenox Avenue Blues”. Although he recorded with various groups, including Morris’s Hot Babes (1927), Fats Waller’s Buddies (1929) (one of the earliest multiracial groups to record), and McKinney’s Cotton Pickers (1929), his most important contribution to the Harlem stride piano tradition was a series of solo recordings of his own compositions: “Handful of Keys”, “Smashing Thirds”, “Numb Fumblin’, and “Valentine Stomp” (1929).

After sessions with Ted Lewis (1931), Jack Teagarden (1931) and Billy Banks (1932), he began in May 1934 the voluminous series of recordings with a small band known as Fats Waller and his Rhythm. This six-piece group usually included Herman Autrey (sometimes replaced by Bill Coleman or John ‘ Bugs’ Hamilton), Gene Sedric or Rudy Powell, and Al Casey.

When Waller composed “Jitterbug Waltz” he was 38 years old and at the high point of his career as a veteran recording artist for RCA Victor. It is notable for being one of the first jazz records recorded with a Hammond organ, an instrument that gained popularity in the genre soon after.

He enjoyed success touring the United Kingdom and Ireland in the 1930s, appearing on one of the first BBC television broadcasts on September 30, 1938. While in Britain, Waller also recorded a number of songs for EMI on their Compton Theatre organ located in their Abbey Road Studios in St. John’s Wood.

By the early 1940s Waller was earning a comfortable living as an entertainer. He wrote the first non-black musical for Broadway by an African American, ‘Early to Bed‘ and took a role in the film ‘Stormy Weather’ starring Lena Horne in 1943, which was released just months before his death. He also appeared regularly on radio.

Waller performed Bach organ pieces for small groups on occasion. He also influenced many pre-bebop jazz pianists; Count Basie and Erroll Garner have both reanimated his hit songs. His technique and attention to decorative detail influenced countless jazz pianists including Art Tatum, Count Basie, and Thelonious Monk. In addition to his playing, Waller was known for his many quips during his performances.

While traveling cross-country following performances on the West Coast, Thomas Wright “Fats” Waller died of pneumonia in Kansas City, Missouri’s Union Station train depot on December 15, 1943 at the age of 39.

The musical ‘Ain’t Misbehavin’ opened on Broadway in 1978 as a tribute to the black musicians of the 1920s and 1930s who were part of the Harlem Renaissance, an era of growing creativity, cultural awareness, and ethnic pride. The title comes from the 1929 Waller song “Ain’t Misbehavin’. “ It was a time when Manhattan nightclubs like the Cotton Club and the Savoy Ballroom were the playgrounds of high society and Lenox Avenue dives were filled with piano players banging out the new beat known as swing. Five performers presented an evening of rowdy, raunchy, and humorous songs that encapsulate the various moods of the era and reflect Waller’s view of life as a journey meant for pleasure and play. The West End production opened on March 22, 1979, at Her Majesty’s Theatre.

“Your Feet’s Too Big” is a song composed in 1936 by Fred Fisher with lyrics by Ada Benson. The song became associated with Waller who ad-libbed his own lyrics such as “Your pedal extremities are colossal, to me you look just like a fossil” and his catchphrase, “One never knows, do one?” It was performed in the 1978 Broadway musical, Ain’t Misbehavin’.

Sources and more information

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fats_Waller
http://jazz.wikia.com/wiki/Fats_Waller
https://www.biography.com/people/fats-waller-9522591

Buy Fats Waller albums: https://www.amazon.com/Fats-Waller/e/B000AQ09K0

About William Price King

William Price King is an American jazz singer, crooner, and composer.

His interest in music began at an early age when he studied piano and clarinet in high school. At Morehouse College in Atlanta where he grew up, he sang in the Glee Club and studied classical music. After graduation he went off to the Yale School of Music where he earned a Masters degree. From there he journeyed to New York where he created a jazz trio ‘Au Naturel’ which performed in some of the hottest venues in Manhattan including gigs on Broadway and the famous ‘Rainbow Room.’ These gigs opened doors for performances in Montreal and a European tour.

While touring Europe he met a lovely French lady, Jeanne Maïstre, who, a year later became his wife. King left the group ‘Au Naturel’ and settled in the south of France where he started a new life on the French Riviera, opening his own music school – the “Price King Ecole Internationale de Chant.” He has had the pleasure over the years of seeing many of his students excel as singers on a professional level, and some going on to become national celebrities. He continues to coach young singers today, in his spare time.

His debut jazz album was entitled “Home,” and was a collection of contemporary compositions he composed, with lyrics written by his wife Jeanne King. His second album was a Duo (Voice and Guitar) with Eric Sempé on the guitar. This album included original songs as well as well known standards from contemporary jazz and pop artists. The “King-Sempé” duo toured France and thrilled audiences for more than three years before going their separate ways. King has formed a new duo with French/Greek guitarist Manolis, and is now exploring new ideas, in a smooth jazz/soul/folk direction.

In addition to singing and composing, King has been collaborating with author Sally Cronin over the past few years on her blog “Smorgasbord – Variety is the spice of life,” with the series “A Man And His Music – Jazz, Contemporary, Classical, and Legends” and now, the “William Price King Music Column.” Working with author Sally Cronin has been an exhilarating experience in many ways and has brought a new dimension to King’s creative life. King has also created a micro blog, “Improvisation,” which features and introduces mostly jazz artists from across the jazz spectrum who have made considerable contributions in the world of jazz; and also artwork from painters who have made their mark in the world of art. This micro blog can be found on Tumblr.

His vocal mentors are two of the greatest giants in jazz, Nat King Cole and Mel Tormé. King has a distinctive wide-ranging voice which displays a remarkable technical facility and emotional depth.

William Price King on Tumblr – IMPROVISATION – https://williampriceking.tumblr.com

Connect with William

Website – http://www.williampriceking.com/
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/WilliamPriceKing
Twitter – https://twitter.com/wpkofficial
Regular Venue – http://cave-wilson.com/
ITunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/william-price-king/id788678484

You can find all of the Music Column series in this directory: https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/william-price-king-music-column/

Thank you for dropping in and hope you will tune in again in two weeks for another post in the series Jazz instrumentalists.

There will be another Music Column post on Thursday.. it is 1988 and we settle into life in London… music and requests

The Music Column – Houston and Chester 1986/1987 – Dirty Dancing – Hurricanes – #Requests Robbie Cheadle and D.G. Kaye

Posted on October 9, 2018 by Smorgasbord - Variety is the Spice of Life.

In December 1986 we packed up all our worldly goods that had accumulated whilst we had been living in Houston for two years. Bear in mind we had arrived with two suitcases of clothes each! We now had an apartment of furniture, a couple of wardrobes of clothes, posters of most of the places we had visited and a car that I refused to be parted from.

The company agreed to pay our removals back to England and two men duly arrived from the shipping company and one packed as one sat behind a makeshift desk and wrote every item down. In a nutshell; our furniture and belongings were packed carefully around my Ford Topaz car which had been drained of all combustibles.

In one last massive party our friends congregated in one of the big downtown hotels for a New Year’s Eve party and rather the worse for wear we boarded our flight for London on January 1st.

David was coming back to Prescott as Chief Engineer of the company and we moved into a B&B in Chester for the first six weeks and house hunted in the surrounding area. When not viewing properties we resumed our walks in the Welsh mountains close by and also explored this ancient city. You could walk around the walls in those days and David found a useful spot to lock me away from retail therapy.

We found a very nice house in Runcorn close to the village of Frodsham and in the middle of February we moved in. David left the decorating to me and in the first six weeks I eradicated the smell of nicotine with a couple of coats of magnolia. Our belongings had been delivered and installed and I then set about finding garages that sold unleaded petrol for my Topaz. Eventually I discovered a garage on the M6 about 25 miles away and I would fill the car up once a month. Thankfully unleaded gas became more common and I could stop carrying an emergency gallon in the trunk the whole time.

David found his new job a little different from expected and this was partly down to the freedom he had experienced working in the US for two years. I had only just finished decorating the house when he was offered a job in London with his former boss in cable TV. More money, responsibility and freedom to manage the job. I popped back into the estate agents who had sold us the house and told him to stick the details back up in the window.

David was going to work in the fast growing Docklands development and so we opted to live north of the city in South Woodford backing onto Epping Forest. We were lucky to find a semi-detached house within our price range and moved in April of 1987 having sold the Runcorn house quickly.

Again there was some redecorating required but thankfully this time we would be living here for the next nine years. I began looking around for a job but before I could start work I had another important engagement to keep. As matron of honour for my best friend in Texas, Debby.

In the summer I flew back to Houston and stayed with a friend of ours in the Chancellor Apartments before heading out to the family ranch the day before the wedding. I received a lovely welcome and apart from ensuring that the bride was dressed and on time (not difficult since the wedding was in their back garden!) I also was given another important duty.

Debby’s mother asked me to make sure that all the various guests sleeping in spare rooms and on mattresses throughout the house, were up at 7.00 in time for breakfast. She told me that I would hear her husband get up about 6.30 and be in the kitchen getting breakfast started.

I was honoured to be in a bed and I shared the room with the bridegroom’s delightful elderly grandmother. We kept the door open to allow fresh air into the room as this was a Texas summer and still being jet-lagged I slept lightly. However, on cue, I saw Debby’s father passing along the corridor and leapt out of bed, donning my clothes before walking through the house waking everyone up. In 30 minutes the kitchen was filled with people expecting coffee and a cooked breakfast. Obviously there was a fair amount of chatter and eventually Debby’s mum arrived in her nightdress.

‘Sally…. It is only 6.00… Why is everyone up?’

So I explained that I had seen her husband passing the bedroom door and had assumed that was the signal…

‘Honey… He was only going to the bathroom!’

Anyway the wedding went off without a hitch and was wonderful… Here is a shot of my backside as the ceremony took place in the rose decorated garden.

Back in the UK I began the process of finding a job. In the September I received an interview for a London advertising publication in South Woodford and I began work as Sales Trainer the first week of October. I had barely time to get my feet under the desk when nature decided to rip through our lives. The daily weather on the 14th of October predicted some high winds! That was an understatement as the next night a hurricane, something we thought we had left behind in Texas, devastated many parts of the south of England. Trees were down on our estate of houses but I was able to make my way to the office in the high street. Nobody else made it in that day as there was no public transport but luckily we did not suffer as badly as people in counties such as Kent.

Of course music still played a huge part of my life especially when decorating two houses back to back! Rick Astley was at the top of his career with Never Gonna Give You Up... Starship – Nothing’s Gonna Stop us Now, Whitney Houston – I Wanna Dance With Somebody (A lot of Gonnas and Wannas that year in the charts). Los Lobos – La Bamba, Michael Jackson and Siedah Garrett – I Just Can’t Stop Loving You, Pet Shop Boys – Always On My Mind, Percy Sledge – When A Man Loves A Woman, U2 – With or Without You and one of my most played tracks Labi Siffre with Something Inside – Woman So Strong.

That year saw the release of one of the most popular musicals of the time. Dirty Dancing still draws people in and the final dance scene is re-enacted at weddings and on reality dance shows every year. And why should this blog be any different!!! R.I.P Patrick Swayze. 💔

You can buy Dirty Dancing: Amazon

Now time for two requests this week…. get in early with yours for next week by emailing me with the youtube link for your favourite track – sally.cronin@moyhill.com… or leave in the comments.

The first is for author Robbie Cheadle ” I dedicate this to my own Mr Fox who took me to see Like a Bat out of Hell in London recently. Such a lovely man”

Meat Loaf – I’d Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That) available: Amazon

Robbie Cheadle is an author in the Cafe and Bookstore

Robbie and Michael Cheadle, Buy: https://www.amazon.com/Robbie-Cheadle/e/B01N9J62GQ
Blog: https://robbiesinspiration.wordpress.com/ – Goodreads: Robbie Goodreads

And the second request this week is from D.G. Kaye (Debby Gies) who says it reminds her of those last dances of the evening, when a little smooching went on…..

Turn off the Lights by Teddy Pendegrass available: Amazon

D.G. Kaye is an author in the Cafe and Bookstore.

D. G. Kaye – Buy: http://www.amazon.com/D.G.-Kaye/e/B00HE028FO
Blog: http://www.dgkayewriter.com – Goodreads: D.G. Kaye on Goodreads

I hope that you have enjoyed today’s music column and please do let me know what your favourite piece of music is, and take an opportunity to promote your blog and books at the same time.. Tune in again next week.. thanks Sally.

Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – Weekly Round Up – Book Launch, Birch Maidens, Sausages and Spies by the Sea..

Posted on October 7, 2018 by Smorgasbord - Variety is the Spice of Life.

Welcome to the weekly round up and for me it has been an exciting week with the launch of my latest book. And also from a renovation perspective…the weather stayed dry enough for David to paint the outside wall of our garden facing the road. The lawn goes down this week and work will begin on the back patio… it has been two and a half years, so you can see why this is a watershed moment.

I know we are only just into October but I have been making plans for the Christmas promotions starting November 12th.. Primarily to make sure that every author in the Cafe and Bookstore is included, and to that end if you are not in the Cafe and Bookstore yet… here is a post to get you started. Also if you are in the Cafe already, please let me know if you have a book out in the next few weeks so I can set up your New on the Shelves promotion.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/05/sallys-cafe-and-bookstore-free-book-promotion-have-you-a-new-book-available-before-christmas/

As always I am very grateful for the amazing contributions of talented writers who spend time and a great deal of effort to put together posts for us.

Paul Andruss is on a sabbatical at the moment so I am sharing some of his earlier posts from 2017 for you to enjoy. The Birch Maiden is a wonderful legend, and in this post she is brought alive by the illustration by Donata Zawadzka who is the illustrator for my latest book.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/05/smorgasbord-blog-magazine-rewind-writer-in-residence-the-birch-maiden-by-paul-andruss/

Last week Carol Taylor identified some of the unexpected ingredients to be found in some brands off hotdogs. So that you don’t go off the delights of sausages totally, this week she gives us the recipe and spices to make our own.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/03/smorgasbord-blog-magazine-the-food-and-cookery-column-with-carol-taylor-homemade-sausages-and-spice-mixes/

Delighted that Jessica Norrie is back with us after the summer break with a post on novels from 1903 to the present day, which feature spies and criminals in a coastal setting. Some classics from authors such as Agatha Christie, Erskine Childers, Graham Greene and in a modern vein…Ian McQuire.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/06/smorgasbord-blog-magazine-the-literary-column-with-jessica-norrie-coasting-with-spies-and-criminals-1903-2018/

Linda Bethea shares the last of her Mixed Nuts family stories… and the good news is that we will see Linda here on a more regular basis as a guest writer.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/01/smorgasbord-posts-from-your-archives-mixed-nuts-part-3-by-linda-bethea/

Esme gave us her predictions for the coming month….

Hi everyone and I hope you are looking forward to the month ahead. One of the main events, is that Venus is retrograde from this week until mid-November. People assume this means that love is going to fly out of the window… but in fact, what it does, is highlight areas of your relationships that could use some TLC.

October for me is an interesting month, in that I find it a ‘buffer’ month, between late summer, early autumn and winter in the Northern Hemisphere and spring and early summer for the heat of high Summer in the Southern Hemisphere.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/01/smorgasbord-blog-magazine-esmes-predictions-for-october-2018/

This week – what I was up to in 1985, music from Foreigner... and a request from Darlene Foster. This week 1986 and more requests.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/02/smorgasbord-blog-magazine-the-music-column-the-charts-1985-and-darlene-fosters-request/

A highlight for me….

This week was very special for me and my latest book was launched with some beautiful illustrations from Donata Zawadzka. I am very grateful to everyone for liking, reblogging and sharing across their social media. It was amazing and I cannot tell you how delighted I am by the response. I was also thrilled to find my first review for the book and that was wonderful. My thanks to Paul Andruss for creating a gif with the new cover and a selection of my other books which I share with you here and it includes some of the illustrations.

And the book’s first review

Appreciative reader Escape from the real world

Fairy Queen Filigree moves her court from the dry Spanish plains to the Emerald Isle, where she and her courtiers soon need warm tweed clothing and fortifying amber nectar. But romance is on the cards to warm things up too. If you want a gently paced read full of enchanting detail, soothe yourself in the author’s carefully imagined world of fairy feasts, storytellers and ever so slightly petulant princesses. Like going back to childhood… This isn’t my usual thing but made a welcome change from real life – and there are some beautiful illustrations too.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/03/booklaunch-tales-from-the-irish-garden-by-sally-cronin/

Other personal ‘stuff’

I responded to Colleen Chesebro’s Tuesday Poetry Challenge with a haiku.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/04/smorgasbord-poetry-haiku-colleen-chesebro-tuesday-poetry-challenge-rose-hips/

This weekend’s short stories from What’s in a Name – meet Jane and Jack.

Jane – The Surprise

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/06/smorgasbord-short-stories-whats-in-a-name-jane-the-surprise-by-sally-cronin/

Jack – A VIP Visitor

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/07/smorgasbord-short-stories-whats-in-a-name-jack-a-vip-visitor-by-sally-cronin/

I am catching up with my reviews on the books that I have read over the summer… slowly but surely

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/06/smorgasbord-book-reviews-psychological-thriller-lies-by-t-m-logan/

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/07/smorgasbord-book-reviews-the-glowing-pigs-snort-stories-of-atonement-tennessee-by-teagan-riordain-geneviene/

Part two of my interview with author Leslie Tate… childhood memories of jungles and monkey poop…

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/03/smorgasbord-magazine-reblog-part-two-of-my-interview-with-leslie-tate/

New books on the shelves this week.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/03/sallys-cafe-and-bookstore-new-book-on-the-shelves-pre-order-offer-son-of-the-serpent-fantasy-angels-series-by-vashti-quiroz-vega/

Cafe Update – Reviews and News.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/01/sallys-cafe-and-bookstore-author-update-reviews-colleen-chesebro-jacqui-murray-and-sacha-black/

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/05/sallys-cafe-and-bookstore-author-update-covers-and-reviews-shehanne-moore-janet-gogerty-and-c-s-boyack/

If you are a regular visitor you will know that I consider Vitamin D to be one of the most essential nutrients for our health. More and more research is identifying new health conditions that improve with an increase in Vitamin D through absorption of our skin (Sunshine Vitamin) or in diet in combination with supplementation.

This article appeared last week which would suggest that migraine sufferers could decrease the number of attacks by supplementing with the vitamin.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/02/smorgasbord-health-column-nutrient-in-the-news-vitamin-d-could-reduce-number-of-migraine-attacks/

Starting to appear in the headlines across the media is news that following last year’s high death rates from the flu, and the ineffectiveness of the 2017 vaccine, a new maxi-strain format is going to be available this year.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/04/smorgasbord-health-health-in-the-news-flu-season-vaccination-alert-new-mega-vaccine-available-in-uk-and-boost-your-immune-system/

Humour and afternoon Videos

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/02/smorgasbord-laughter-lines-a-few-funnies-and-a-joke-or-two-its-a-dogs-life/

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/04/smorgasbord-laughter-lines-its-a-dogs-life-funnies-and-a-joke/

A selection of blog posts each day that I have read and enjoyed. Sorry not to mention all that I have visited but I hope I have shared most on social media.

Debby Gies, Leslie Tate, Carol Taylor and Teagan Geneviene

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/01/smorgasbord-blogger-daily-meet-the-reviewers-monday-october-1st-2018-d-g-kaye-reviews-leslie-tate-carol-taylor-exposes-hot-dogs-and-teagan-geneviene-illuminates-the-1920s/

The Story Reading Ape, Claire Fullerton, Christy Birmingham and Jennie Fitzkee

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/02/smorgasbord-blogger-daily-tuesday-october-2nd-2018-the-story-reading-ape-with-claire-fullerton-christy-birmingham-40shealth-and-jennie-fitzkee-reading-preschool/

Sue Vincent, D.G. Kaye and Annette Rochelle Aben

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/03/smorgasbord-blogger-daily-wednesday-october-3rd-2018-sue-vincent-d-g-kaye-and-annette-rochelle-aben/

Charles E. Yallowitz, John W.Howell, Teri Polen, Mae Clair and Beaton Mabaso.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/04/smorgasbord-blogger-daily-thursday-september-4th-2018-charles-e-yallowitz-with-john-w-howell-teri-polen-with-mae-clair-and-beaton-mabaso-on-websites/

Jenny in Neverland, Pamela Wight and Noelle Granger.

https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/2018/10/05/smorgasbord-blogger-daily-meet-the-reviewers-friday-october-5th-2018-jenny-in-neverland-onlinefriends-pamela-wight-shortstory-and-n-a-granger-review/

Thank you again for dropping in and your ongoing support… it is much appreciated.. Sally.

Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – The Music Column – The Charts 1985 and Darlene Foster’s Request

Posted on October 2, 2018 by Smorgasbord - Variety is the Spice of Life.

William Price King has been an amazing contributor every week for the last four years, however William is not just a musician, singer and composer, he is also a teacher. At the moment he is incredibly busy and although he will be sharing new posts again in the future, it will be on a less regular basis.

I love having music as part of the content on the blog and so I will be moving my Friday Drivetime Playlist to the Wednesday slot. I am also taking requests to play each week or in a special request show from time to time.

It is very simple to submit your requests. (If you have sent a request in previously, I am sure you have another piece of music you can share).

Find your favourite track on Youtube and send me the link either in the comments or by email to sally.cronin@moyhill.com.
If you have featured on the blog before there is no need to send anything else.
If you have not featured on the blog before then please email me with the following:
Blog Link, Amazon link, Three main social media links.

Welcome to this week’s music column and my recollections of the music of 1985, our first year in Houston Letters from America 1985 – 1987 and a special request from Darlene Foster.

If you read last week’s post you will know that we had a bit of a shock in the November when David was made redundant. My small part-time job was not sufficient so we both started looking for new options. However, before we could get serious David was telephoned by a former boss and asked if you would like to go to Houston in Texas for two years in a sales role, selling optical fibre to US companies.

We leapt at the chance and despite only being in our little house for six months we hurriedly organised a family Christmas, and then put all our belongings into storage for two years, paid for by the company. The house was put up for sale, and thankfully went quickly, so that we were not paying a huge mortgage whilst abroad.

We packed two moderate suitcases each and boarded the eleven hour flight from London to Houston, arriving late at night. The company had booked us into the Marriott at Greenspoint and David decided that I could drive (on the right hand side of the road for the first time) whilst he navigated. Nobody told us that Green’s Road was about 25 miles long.

Thankfully I managed to get us there in one piece and we checked in and collapsed into bed absolutely exhausted.

The next morning we had our first taste of Texas hospitality in TGI Friday’s which was across from the hotel in the largest shopping Mall that I had ever seen (heaven). We have been fans of the food chain ever since including in the UK and I will never forget our waiter Jesus (pronounced Hesus) and his impeccable service.

David was in at the deep end and after one day in the local office for the company was off on a plane to the west coast whilst I was on a mission to find a temporary apartment. We then planned to take our time looking for just the right place to live for the next two years and luckily I found a very nice one-bed studio close by.

I moved all our stuff across and acquainted myself with the local supermarkets and was astonished by the abundance of fresh produce. It was amazing but one thing puzzled me. There were some horses tied up outside and there were cowboys walking around in full regalia including guns in holsters. Now I had been brought up on Westerns and I like nothing better than seeing a real life good-looking cowboy but I had assumed that those days were behind us. Eventually I asked a cashier why they were around and was told it was Rodeo Week… Okay then!

After viewing a number of apartment complexes we settled on a two bedroom home in The Chancellor Apartments in Parramatta Lane off I-45 and that turned out to be a fantastic decision. Here is David in front of our apartment complex looking very pleased with himself.

The people we met in the complex were amazingly friendly and adopted us immediately leading to the establishment of a regular round of pool parties and outings. Here we are by the pool which was our popular weekend hangout and eventually after some training, I was very honoured to be included in the men’s water volley ball team.. My nickname was Sledgehammer!

Weekends were also for Pappasito’s Mexican Cantina where they accommodated our large number by cordoning off the back part of the floor

Next week some of our travels in 1985 across America and the music in the charts at the time.

The music in the US at the time was slightly different to the UK charts, but there were still the usual artists that dominated the charts. David was away quite a bit with his job and to be honest it took me a while to get the hang of cable television. I was used to three main channels at the time and forty left me bemused. So I watched MTV and listened to the local music radio stations and quickly got into a little country. Here are some of the hits of that year.

Wham and George Michael – Careless Whisper, Madonna – Like a Virgin, Foreigner – I Want To Know What Love Is, Paul Young – Everytime You Go Away, Starship – We Built This City, Huey Lewis and the News – The Power of Love, Whitney Houston– Saving All My Love For You, USA for Africa – We Are The World, Phil Collins – One More Night, The Pointer Sisters – Neutron Dance, Billy Ocean – Suddenly, Tina Turner – Better Be Good To Me and Katrina and the Waves – Walking on Sunshine

All of these tracks are still on my iPod and played frequently, but if I was to choose one it would be Foreigner – I Want to Know What Love Is…MajorApplePie

Foreigner music available: https://www.amazon.com/default/e/B000AQ38RG

This week’s request is from children’s author Darlene Foster.

Please visit Amazon or Darlene’s blog to view all her books and to have the chance to win a FREE copy of Amanda in New Mexico – Win a copy of Amanda in New Mexico

One of the recent reviews for Amanda in New Mexico which you can win a FREE copy off if you head over to Darlene’s blog – through to October 7th.

Char Jones Amazing Adventure in the Land of Enchantment July 4, 2018

Amanda in New Mexico: Ghosts in the Wind finds student Amanda Ross on a school trip in Taos, New Mexico. While there, her classmate Cleo thinks she sees ghosts. Amanda feels anxious too, sensing that something or someone is watching her. An engaging adventure ensues during their visit to the Land of Enchantment in this sixth book in the fun and educational series for early middle grade readers. 5/5

Head over and read the reviews and buy the books: http://www.amazon.com/Darlene-Foster/e/B003XGQPHA
Website/ blog: https://darlenefoster.wordpress.com/

And here is Darlene’s request – The Everly Brothers – All I Have To Do is Dream and she shares why.

Here is an oldie but a goodie, one I never tire of. My girlfriend and I won a prize at a local talent show singing this song many many years ago. Loved how these guys could harmonize so well.

My thanks to Darlene for kicking off the requests and please let me know yours so I can include in next week’s music column. Just email me sally.cronin@moyhill.com – with a link or title for the song and artist.. and your website link if this is your first visit… thanks Sally.

Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – The Music Column with William Price King – Don Vappie – Banjo

Posted on September 11, 2018 by Smorgasbord - Variety is the Spice of Life.

Welcome to the next of the series featuring jazz instrumentalists and as with most of the versatile musicians we feature, Don Vappie has a versatile background of playing funk, rhythm and blues, and pop music enhances his unique perspective on music and performance

Here is his offical biography from Don Vappie.com

Don Vappie is a world renowned jazz musician and presenter from New Orleans. He leads the Creole Jazz Serenaders, a classic New Orleans jazz orchestra, as well as his various jazz and R&B combos. He has produced and recorded numerous CDs and film sound tracks and is star of the PBS documentary AMERICAN CREOLE: NEW ORLEANS REUNION.

Known for his virtuosic banjo skills, Don is a stellar bassist, guitarist and vocalist. Add to that his commitment to the cultural creole music of New Orleans he calls “creole jazz”.

As an educator, he has participated, presented and/or performed for programs at Jazz at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Tulane University, Historic New Orleans Collection, NPR, Smithsonian, Appalachian State University and many more. He currently serves as jazz guitar instructor at Loyola University and is a member of the Loyola Jazz Faculty Combo. He is also an instructor at the Don “Moose” Jamison Heritage School of Music sponsored by the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation.

“In The Summertime,” a *skiffle blues, is the first single by British rock band Mungo Jerry, written and composed by its lead singer, Ray Dorset, celebrating the carefree days of summer. In this piece, filmed at “Le Duc des Lombards” in Paris in 2012, one can hear the influences coming from the musical legacy of the New Orleans Creole culture which, by the way, sprang from the mixture of French, Spanish, African and American Indian people who had strong ties to the Caribbean Islands.

* Skiffle is a music genre with jazz, blues, folk and American folk influences, usually using a combination of manufactured and homemade or improvised instruments.

In the span of his 43 year career he has performed with Peggy Lee, Joel Gray, Carol Channing, Danny Barker, Wynton Marsalis, Otis Taylor, Terence Blanchard, Johnny Adams, Eric Clapton, Cheick Hamala Diabate, Bassekou Kouyate (both of Mali), Demma DIa of Sengal, Bette Midler, Ellis Marsalis, Diana Krall and many more.

“That’s a Plenty” is a 1914 ragtime piano composition by Lew Pollack. The composition started out as a *rag but is nowadays played as a part of the Dixieland Jazz repertoire. This song has been recorded by numerous artists and is considered a jazz standard. Don Vappie’s band is composed of extremely versatile musicians with backgrounds ranging from classical to modern jazz. Instead of trying to duplicate the exact phrasing and instrumentation of the original version, they use their New Orleans stylistic talents very creatively. To me, that’s what traditional jazz is all about.

i.e. rag is a musical style that enjoyed its peak popularity between 1895 and 1918. Its cardinal trait is its syncopated, or “ragged,” rhythm.

As a headliner, he’s performed at numerous festivals and venues around the world. His transcriptions of early jazz recordings are available from Warner Bros. Publishing and his orchestral arrangements for banjo and orchestra are distributed worldwide on the NAXOS label.

Buy Don Vappie Music: https://www.amazon.com/Don-Vappie/
Don Vappie Performance Schedule: http://www.donvappie.com/schedule
Sources: http://www.donvappie.com/biography

About William Price King

William Price King is an American jazz singer, crooner, and composer.

His vocal mentors are two of the greatest giants in jazz, Nat King Cole and Mel Tormé. King has a distinctive wide-ranging voice which displays a remarkable technical facility and emotional depth.

William Price King on Tumblr – IMPROVISATION – https://williampriceking.tumblr.com

Connect with William

You can find all of the Music Column series in this directory: https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/william-price-king-music-column/

Thank you for dropping in and hope you will tune in again next week for another post in the series Jazz instrumentalists.

Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – The Music Column with William Price King – Buddy Wachter – Banjo

Posted on September 4, 2018 by Smorgasbord - Variety is the Spice of Life.

Welcome to another post by William Price King in the A – Z of Jazz Instrumentalists and we move on to the Banjo. Another instrument that is perhaps more associated with Blue Grass, Folk and Country music than jazz. This week one of the most respected banjo players across the genres, including classical music.

Buddy Wachter – Jazz Banjoist

Buddy Wachter is widely regarded as the most influential four-string banjo player of our time.

Performing and lecturing internationally as a musical ambassador for the U.S. Department of State since 1990, he has played more than 7000 concerts to audiences in 130 countries. This has done much to unite the world banjo community and has introduced the instrument to some of the remotest parts of the globe. He has also appeared as guest soloist with more than a hundred symphony orchestras, worldwide.

“Buddy Wachter is that rarest of rare musicians who has been able to catapult the lowly banjo to a level of virtuosity and musicality never before associated with the instrument.” Skitch Henderson, Conductor – New York Pops

Here is Buddy’s official biography

The experience of banjoist Buddy Wachter performing live is a jaw-dropper; identifying him as to genre is confounding. He descends from a line of banjo players who use the instrument to express sheer virtuosity in the face of complex music, much the way a mountain climber arrives at the foot of a treacherous peak packing his assortment of ropes and special climbing tools.

Wachter is not a bluegrass banjo player, and although he can perform pieces by Beethoven on the banjo with an ease that would make a listener think the works were originally composed for this instrument, he is not a strictly classical player. He is more the type of player who will move through music from a half-dozen distinct genres, making it all seem like part of a single style that would best be described as banjo playing, or to be technically specific, plectrum banjo playing. Since Wachter’s plectrum-packing idols such as Eddie Peabody and Harry Reser tend to be classified as jazz banjoists, then perhaps Wachter won’t be too seriously miffed being included in their ranks.

Watching Buddy Watcher perform in this video is a surreal experience. His unique technique has become the standard for today. In this video we have a little more than five minutes of Classical flavored music that has many dynamics, sprinkled with sustained lines, weaving counter lines, and thick, resonant chords that he plays with unprecedented virtuosity. The contrasts in mood are very well handled. It is a rousing number that exudes rhythmic intensity, and Classical bravado. Obviously, he commands the attention and respect of audiences, musicians and critics alike.

Certainly these sorts of players display some of the important traits of jazz, such as the ability to interpret music from other genres and make a personal statement from it. Listeners are expected to pay attention to this kind of music, not put it in the background at a weenie roast. On the other hand, if a jazz musician is a person who plays a theme, then follows it up with a lot of weird, unconnected noodling and whose discography is some kind of vision quest toward the ultimate in weirdness, then that isn’t Buddy Wachter at all.

He was born Andrew John Wachter and had already learned the mandolin by the time he was nine. He switched to banjo and by 15 he was already well-known for his skill on the instrument. The aforementioned banjoists from previous generations were influential, but so was hot jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt. Wachter got on a Baltimore television show with a few other famous banjoists at 16, and the flashy playing from one so young and green came to the attention of the Vega banjo company. With the help of this manufacturer of superior vintage instruments, Wachter was given the opportunity to perform at the Hollywood Bowl with none other than the legendary Peabody.

The next year, Wachter joined the easy listening-orientated Fred Waring Orchestra, beginning an on-the-road professional career almost directly after his high school graduation. It would turn out to be a nearly three-year stint and some half a million road miles by his estimation. He returned to Baltimore with the notion of trying something different, and began to study chemistry at the University of Maryland. He formed a duet with pianist Ray Nelson and the two developed a strong following in the Baltimore area. Happening upon a Wachter performance by chance one night in Baltimore, German television producer Klaus Peter Dencker was blown away by both his technique and intensity, and this contact led to the banjoist’s premier shot at recording, entitled Banjo Special, and well-promoted at least in Germany with a connected television special on the Saarlaendischer Rundfunk.

Here, Buddy Watcher is with his jazz quartet playing pure jazz in a modern swing style with a fresh sound and no musical clichés. Watcher is very careful to avoid the characteristic obvious banjo licks.* Rather, he displays one of the most important traits of jazz, such as the ability to interpret music from other styles and make a personal statement from it. He is the kind performer who moves through music from a half-dozen distinct genres, making it all seem like part of a single style. He comes from a line of banjo players who use the instrument to express sheer virtuosity in the face of complex music, be it classical or jazz, and this video is just another perfect example of this.

i.e. A “lick “is a short musical phrase that can be substituted for another phrase of the same length and follows the same chord(s). They, more often than not, sound catchy or exciting and are sometimes known as “hot licks.”

Years of performing and teaching workshops followed, including 26 European tours and appearances with Arthur Fiedler, Richard Heyman, Eric Kunzel, Benny Goodman, Ferrante & Teicher, Teddy Wilson, Paul LaValle, Max Morath, Bob Hope, the Count Basie All-Stars, and Béla Fleck. He made his Carnegie Hall debut in 1992 with Skitch Henderson and the New York Pops. Wachter’s career advice to musicians, incidentally, rings the same as the punch line to the old joke about that venerable performing institution, in which the lost musician who asks how he can get to Carnegie Hall is told to practice.

Plenty of the latter would be a requirement to come anywhere near the ability of Wachter, who is a master at not only Beethoven, but jazz, ragtime, and a variety of folk styles. Appearing as a soloist with symphony orchestras remained his specialty through the ’90s and early 21st century. He worked in this capacity throughout the United States and abroad, such as a performance with the National Orchestra of Venezuela. Even more travel comes with his position as a musical ambassador for the U.S. Department of State, which he held for more than a decade beginning in 1991.

In 2000, he undertook a three-month State Department tour of Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, U.A.E., Pakistan, Bahrain, Kuwait, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and India. Similar to several other successful plectrum banjo players, such as Don Van Palta, Wachter maintains an active website and offers a series of instructional recordings and videos. He has not been particularly well-represented on recordings, however. In 1994, he appeared as a guest artist on the Tony Trischka production World Turning, in which a great variety of banjo styles are presented, meaning Wachter must have felt right at home.

Source: Buddy Wachter Facebook
All Music: Biography
Buddy’s Banjo Emporium: http://buddysbanjos.com/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Buddy-Wachter-Live/dp/B002PR8Y6S/

About William Price King

William Price King is an American jazz singer, crooner, and composer.

His vocal mentors are two of the greatest giants in jazz, Nat King Cole and Mel Tormé. King has a distinctive wide-ranging voice which displays a remarkable technical facility and emotional depth.

William Price King on Tumblr – IMPROVISATION – https://williampriceking.tumblr.com

Connect with William

You can find all of the Music Column series in this directory: https://smorgasbordinvitation.wordpress.com/william-price-king-music-column/

Thank you for dropping in and hope you will tune in again next week for another post in the series Jazz instrumentalists.

Smorgasbord End of Summer Party – #Music requests from Stevie Turner, Jaye Marie, Lisa Thomson and Dolly Aizenman.

Posted on August 30, 2018 by Smorgasbord - Variety is the Spice of Life.

I thought I would share this in the ‘just after midnight slot’ as Letter’s From America is now on a short break until a couple of weeks before Christmas, when my letters to my parents began again following their return to the UK at the end of November.

Unfortunately there was not the space or time to play all of the guest requests at the four meals over the weekend but I promised to do so during the week. Here were the missing tracks from Brunch.You can find more about these guests in more detail Sunday Lunch

Author Stevie Turner works part time as a medical secretary in a busy NHS hospital and writes suspense, women’s fiction, and darkly humorous novels in her spare time. You can read more at Stevie Turner Stevie has a wonderful blog and you will find short stories, interviews, posts on writing and also ones that give you something to think about such as this one on education: Exams fiasco

Here is a selection of Stevie’s books, find them all and the reviews Amazon

Stevie mentioned Rimsky-Korsakov’s ‘Scheherazade’ as her favourite piece of music and I found part of the 2nd movement of the suite.

Jaye Marie is one-half of the writing partnership, Anita & Jaye Dawes.

Jaye will often be found around the blogging community and social media and is very generous about sharing all our posts. You can find out more about Jaye and enjoy posts and book reviews on her blog Jaye’s books and reviews can be found on Amazon

Jaye requested something from the 1980s which offered me an excuse for a walk down memory lane….so I selected Take My Breath Away by Berlin.. for lovers of Top Gun.. and to remind you that they are making a sequel.

Lisa Thomson is a recent and welcome addition to the Cafe and Bookstore.

Her two self-help books, “The great Escape; A Girl’s Guide To Leaving a Marriage” and “A divorce Companion”, help economically-dependent women going through divorce. “Hearts Unbroken-short stories”, is her first published fiction. Lisa now resides in Vancouver, British Columbia. You can find out more about Lisa on her website You can find and read the reviews for Lisa’s books on Amazon

Lisa requested American Pie by Don McLean and explains: So much music means everything to me but the last month it’s been this song. It reminds me of my childhood, a time when my family was close.Courtesy of maildavenow

You can buy Don McLean’s music on Amazon

And my final request comes from Dolly Aizenman of Kool Kosher Kitchen blog and cookery book.

Dolly is now semi-retired, loves to cook, and has time on her hands to share recipes and exchange new food ideas. Find out more, including the fabulous recipes from around the world on Dolly’s website You can find Kool Kosher Kitchen and reviews on Amazon

Dolly requested Yesterday by The Beatles courtesy of Various Artists – Topic

Thank you so much for tuning in and for all the comments and shares for the End of Summer Posts.

There is one final celebration and that is tomorrow morning, just after midnight, when Paul Andruss, who has been on an extended break, shares a brand new post written to bring this week long party to a close.

Smorgasbord End of Summer Party #Music Requests from Patricia Salamone, Carol Taylor, M.J. Mallon and Joy Lennick.

Posted on August 29, 2018 by Smorgasbord - Variety is the Spice of Life.

My first request is from Patricia Salamone who was born in Queens, New York to her Italian mother and German father. The Italian influence always dominated in her home, and from that seed, and her tip to Sicily in 2002 to meet relatives, was born her first memoir The Italian Thing Amazon.. A wonderful lady who is an inspiration to us all. You can read some of her wonderful fiction serials on her blog The Writer’s Desk

Patricia requested I Hope You Can Dance by Lee Ann Womack, courtesy of LeeAnn Womack

Available from Amazon

Carol Taylor has been a fixture on Smorgasbord for over a year now with her first series that we wrote together, Cook from Scratch and now with The Food and Cookery Column. She is an amazing friend and collaborator and I am so pleased that she decided to join the club. You can catch up with Carol’s life in Thailand and many delicious recipes each week, as well as her travels in Thailand, on her blog Retired No One Told Me

Carol requested Puff Daddy and I’ll Be Missing You..in memory of all that she has loved and lost over the years.. courtesy of Bad Boy Entertainment

Available from Amazon

Another request from Marjorie Mallon who writes as M. J. Mallon, who I hope has been enjoying the oriental flavours that she loves with the previous courses of prawns, and Thai dishes. She is the author of the YA Science Fiction Fantasy novel The Curse of Time Amazon

You can find out more about Marjorie on her blog Kyrosmagica

Marjorie requested The Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd as it reminds her of her youth…I have selected Any Colour You Like from the Album which is available on Amazon

And as a special guest today Joy Lennick who I was unable to fit in for the party but who popped in and shared over the weekend. She is on the list for the next party. You can find out more about Joy at the blog Joy Lennick and all her books are available at Amazon

Joy has left the choice of music to me and so to end this post today here is one of my favourites by Canadian singer Anne Murray.

Thanks for dropping in today and The Blogger Daily will return on Friday.. I hope you will drop in to listen to more tracks tomorrow with the Sunday Lunch guests. Thanks Sally

Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – The Music Column with William Price King – Accordion – Frank Marocco-

Posted on August 28, 2018 by Smorgasbord - Variety is the Spice of Life.

In this second post on Jazz Instrumentalists William Price King shares the life and music of Frank Marocco.

“In the world of accordion performance, Frank Marocco was a giant. Not only for his mastery of the instrument itself, but for his highly developed musicality. In any style, on the concert stage or in the recording studio, his playing was technically brilliant and musically superb.

Frank Marocco is one of the most recorded accordionist in America (and, possibly, the world), having played on a vast number of movie soundtracks, television scores, commercial jingles and record albums, in the studios of Hollywood and beyond. He has recorded for and/or worked with artists ranging from Brian Wilson, Pink Floyd and Madonna to Luciano Pavarotti, conductor Maxim Shostakovich and composer John Williams. He was nominated eight years in a row for the Most Valuable Player Award by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (N.A.R.A.S) and received that award twice.

Frank was also a consummate jazz artist and a gifted composer with several of his own albums to his credit. He has played his music for audiences all over the world”

Al DiMarco Frank Marocco Official Website

Frank Marocco was born in Joliet, Illinois USA 1/2/1931 – passed away in Los Angeles on 3/3/2012

He was born in Juliet, Illinois and grew up in the town of Waukegan, a suburb of Chicago. When he was seven years old, his parents enrolled him in a six-week trial program on the accordion.

His first instructor, George Stefani, who taught Frank for nine years and was a source of inspiration to him. Marocco studied with him for nine years. His training was in the classics but his teacher encouraged him to explore other areas: he played the piano and the clarinet, he studied music theory, harmony, conducting, and he was a member of his high school band. The next year, he studied with the legendary Andy Rizzo, a master teacher who has influenced many of this country’s accordion artists.

At age 17, Marocco took first place in the Chicago Musicland festival and was rewarded with a guest solo perfomance with the Chicago Pops Orchestra. Playing Chopin’s Fantasie Impromptu for a huge crowd at Chicago’s Soldier’s Field. This encouraged him to seek a full-time career in music. At age 18 he formed a trio which went on tour in several Midwestern states. He met his wife Anne on tour in Indiana and the couple moved to Los Angeles in the early 1950s, where he formed a new band which toured hotels and clubs in Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe and Palm Springs.

This eventually led to him working in Hollywood which led to a successful career as a session musician, becoming one of the most recorded accordionists in the world. He play on hundreds of movie soundtracks, TV shows and albums. Including with composers: John Williams, Quincy Jones, Elmer Bernstein, Michele Le Grand, Hans Zimmer, Michael Giacchino, Henry Mancini and dozens of others.

In the 1960s, Frank Marocco recorded a solo album released by Verve, a legendary jazz record label, and in 1966 he worked with Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys.

“Samba Italiano”(Italian Samba) is a popular samba song, composed in 1965 by Andoniran Barbosa. Frank Marocco, who was particularly graced with a sense of swing, breathed life into every melody that he touched, and did so with a left hand technique that solidly assured the rhythm with a bebop sense of harmony. Marocco used the left hand *Stradella system, making it a unique accompanist to the melody. In “Samba Italiano” there is an ethnic world music feeling in his improvisation which he plays with style, not to mention warmth, intelligence and perception.

He considered one of the highlights of his career was his USO tour with Bob Hope in Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, Philippines and other Pacific countries. He also played with the Les Brown big band during six Love Boat cruises.

Frank Marocco has also played with some of the best Jazz Musicians in America and Europe both on stage and in the studio. The National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences nominated him at the most valuable player eight years in a row.

ACORDEONSFESTIVAL

“Isn’t She Lovely” is a song written and performed by Stevie Wonder from his 1976 album, “Songs in the Key of Life.” The lyrics celebrate the birth of his daughter, Aisha. Marocco, who plays piano lines with his right hand and bass lines with his left, displays remarkable fluidity. His performance is lyrical, warm, and full of harmonic richness. Marocco’s music is popular because it’s so versatile. He learned to love and exemplify diverse styles in his music– from jazz, to classical, to Latin. With “Isn’t She Lovely” Marocco turns the accordion into something audiences can snap their fingers to at the jazz club, and salsa-dance to at a party and shows that the accordion can have an upbeat, catchy sound.

Frank Marocco Accordion Event

In addition to his career as a musician, Frank Morocco wrote and arranged music for solo, duet and orchestra in a wide variety of musical styles, including jazz, international, Latin and classical. He was the musical director and conductor of the annual “music camp”, and the Frank Marocco Accordion Event, which was held in Arizona. The event brought together 50 accordionists from around the USA and Canada, who after three days of instruction and rehearsal presented a full concert of accordion music.

In his career Marocco played with some of the top jazz musicians in America and Europe including Ray Brown, Joey Baron, Herb Ellis, Carol Atti, Gian-Carlo Bianchetti, Pete Christlieb, Larry Koonse, Bob Shepard, Grant Geissman and Stix Hooper to name just a few.

Buy music by Frank Marocco: Amazon

Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Marocco
http://www.frankmarocco.com/biography.html

About William Price King

William Price King is an American jazz singer, crooner, and composer.

His vocal mentors are two of the greatest giants in jazz, Nat King Cole and Mel Tormé. King has a distinctive wide-ranging voice which displays a remarkable technical facility and emotional depth.

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