Welcome to my blog : Archive
Here is an archive of all my past blogs, just incase you missed any! To view my latest blog please click here
Downtown train
Posted Wednesday, February 28, 2007
I'm heading up to Buxton today to do another show. The Where You From? Tour is doing very well it would seem; were doing fantastic business and people seem to be really enjoying it, which is a good thing. Ive been making little cuts and changes throughout the tour and so far Id say weve cut at least half an hour out of the original script. Jon Canter used to love cutting we wrote together from 90-97 and his big thing was cutting out waste materials We dont need it, its gone. We had this thing that if it took too long to get to the punch line or it was waffly or it didnt sound like me then it had to go. Took ages for us to get to that point though. Jons written a book called Seeds of Greatness, you should check it out its funny and moving and all that good stuff. Its also about the world of comedy and late night talk shows and the insecurities of funny people wonder what inspired him?
Im reading Innocent When You Dream a collection of Tom Waits interviews edited by Mac Montandon, published by Orion books. If youre in any way a Tom Waits fan youll love this book. You get everything from he very first press release written by Tom himself for The Heart of Saturday night in 1974 also Rolling Stone and Playboy magazine interviews, plus some nice team up action with Elvis Costello and Jim Jarmusch partnering Old Gravel Voice respectively. Its a great dip into book and I highly recommend.
This means Ive been listening to a lot of Tom Waits product recently and although I can say with hand on heart that Im not hugely over fond of the gutteral mouth rhythm, screeching,field recording, smacking things with iron bar Tom. I love the tender, melodic, the swinging funkateer, the bluesy growly TomSo I have to cherry pick each album. If you havent got Orphans, Brawlers and Bastards youre crazy! This is a three CD Tomfest of gigantic proportions, featuring kick ass rock and roll, funk work outs, weird hitting things with a two by four whilst recording in a basement type songs and lovely, plaintive country blues stuff too. Id say if you got the beans, splash out and spend time getting to know a true musical original Icon. Hes the maraschino on the sundae.
Ive also been listening to Dane Cook, a young stand up comic who has made various CDs and appeared on lots of late night cable. You can catch him on Comedy Central, hes also in a movie called Employee of the month. I saw him on cable when I was in the States last year and I thought he was very exciting to watch very good physically and great word choice. Good voice too could easily be one of those Shock Jocks, you know. His
M.O. is that of being quite a violent young man with a tendency to fantasise. Hes always telling the audience what hed love to do (Have Spaghetti shoot out of my fingertips) or (Uppercut a Punk ass) or how hed like to be remembered (walk up to some kid and push their Ice cream in their face theyll remember it for ever) Hes funny. His album is called RETALIATION and I laughed my ass off when I heard it. The audience is insanely happy /drunk/high throughout the whole thing, but I think that adds to the general melee of comedy loveliness.
The play we recorded a few weeks ago THE MAKING OF SLAVERY for radio four is scheduled to go out on March 24. Im really proud of it, it was written by Peter Jukes and features Greg Wise, Jenny Jules, Adrian Lester, Brian Blessed it was directed by a very talented guy called Stephen Canny .its about a motley crew of actors led by comic Lenny Henry who are trying to come up with the best way to commemorate the abolition of slavery. Should it be deadly serious ? Or could humour be involved in some way? Ive listened to it and it doesnt sound like any radio play Ive ever heard.
The wifes interviewing all her favourite male comedians for her new documentary strand : The boys who do comedy So far shes done Frank Carson, Graham Norton, Hugh Dennis, Jack Dee, Alexei Sayle- Im in there somewhere (bribed her with diamonds and chocolates) so it promises to be excellent TV! Shes also interviewed Jethro (Oh MY God) and Doddy is going to feature too.
Ah well, just 28 shows to go and then I can have a lie down.
Peace
Len.
On Lens Ipod be :
- Step right up Tom Waits
- Hang on St Christopher Tom Waits
- In the Neighbourhood Tom Waits
- 16 shells Tom Waits
- Big in Japan Tom Waits
- Downtown Train Tom Waits
- Boom Shake the room Fresh Prince and Jazzy Jeff
- Hounds of Love- (whole album) Kate Bush
- If it aint ruff it aint me NWA
- Bustin out Rick James
- P-Funk live especially Undisco Kidd and Mothership
- Connection/Star child/ swing down sweet Chariot Parliament
- Discreet Music by Brian Eno. .ahhh, thats nice innit.
Just started reading Crime and Punishment by Dostoyevsky (I know ponce)
But hey also reading The Iluminati by Brian Michael Bendis, Daredevil by Ed Brubaker, Powers by Brian Michael Bendis, Civil War by Mark Millar etc, etc
Still giving big respeck to Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman, Warren Ellis too
Big up yourself Zane Lowe!
Funny bits:LAUGHS
About:ME
Contact:ME
