Music and more with claudecat17 (aka Chris Davlin)!

Here’s yet another piece I wrote for the old tumblr blog, this one from early 2015. I’d been foisting these old tunes I’d recorded amateurishly on a cassette 4-track thing back in the 80s and needed to cleanse my aural palate, as described below. I’ll turn things over to past me now, and thanks as always for coming, hopefully reading! You have great taste!

After having subjected myself to way too much of my own music recently, I needed a break. A cleansing of the aural palate. Something with absolutely no Americana to it at all, or at least not in any direct way. Tried some of that Bulgarian female folk choir stuff, but after a certain someone’s daughter’s experience with a Bulgarian cad, that wasn’t cuttin’ it. Bad mojo by association. I’m a caring and empathetic dude, despite all evidence to the contrary.

Next I tried some Indian music, which sorta worked. Well, faux Indian music. Shakti, with John McLaughlin. Pretty nice, but still not doin’ it. Finally I hit upon not only the perfect genre, but the perfect song. The British Isles to the rescue! Banishing all blues clichés and swingin’ rhythms from the deepest recesses of my mind, this song worked a treat, as I think they say over there.

This tune is really the only one by the Albion Country Band that does much for me. In truth I haven’t heard much, but this one is head and shoulders above the few others with which I’m familiar. It’s English folk-rock, based heavily on the timeworn traditions of a place with a history much much longer than our own. Morris dancing, ballads going back centuries, the unique flavors of Irish and Scottish music, a rich tapestry of tones and colors that we just don’t have here in the United Snakes of Armenia.

I won’t pretend to know that much about this stuff. I backed into it by way of Richard Thompson years ago. From there I discovered Fairport Convention, Steeleye Span, the Pentangle (whom I’d heard before but not really grokked), the Incredible String Band, John Martyn, etc. My favorites in this genre are still Fairport Convention and Steeleye Span, but somewhere along the way I found this tune by the Albion Country Band and was immediately smitten. Smote? In any case, I liked it a lot.

It reminded me a lot of this one Richard Thompson project I’d heard (under the influence of some wonderful chemicals!) called Morris On, an album of almost all Morris dancing instrumentals with a few fun vocal numbers too (“Cuckoo’s Nest” is delightfully rich both musically and in bawdiness). No surprise there, as some of the personnel is the same, namely Ashley Hutchings (bass/vocals), accordionist John Kirkpatrick, and guitarist/multi-instrumentalist/singer Simon Nicol.

Incidentally, Hutchings was really big in making this electrified English folk stuff happen. A charter member of Fairport Convention, and the main force behind their adopting traditional English folk music, he’d leave after Liege and Lief (he wanted to stick with the old-fashioned stuff, others did not) to start Steeleye Span, intensely researching ancient collections of balladry and the like along the way. He then left that band after a few albums (for the same reasons) to start Albion. Really interesting guy, and in many ways the trunk of this entire branch of the musical tree of life.

Anyway, best thing for me to do at this point is to just shut up and unleash this here tune. “Albion Sunrise” is its name, and it, for me, encapsulates all that is great about this genre. Real old timey, almost medieval feel to it, with some jaunty Morris dance bits along the way. A tour de force of the various charms of this music in just under three minutes. I love the lead singers here. Pretty sure it’s two different guys. Not sure who’s who. Maybe Hutchings, then Nicol for the last verse? Anyone know?

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Today in Baseball History 7/31

1897 – St. Louis hurler John Grimes establishes a major league record which still stands today by hitting six batters in a nine-inning game.

1909 – For the second time in two years – the first was on May 25, 1908 – Bill Burns has a no-hitter broken up with two outs in the 9th, when Washington’s Otis Clymer singles. But Burns and the White Sox win, 1 – 0, besting Walter Johnson in the first of two games. Burns is the only pitcher to suffer this fate twice, until Dave Stieb of Toronto does on September 24 and 30, 1988.

1932 – Cleveland plays its first game in new Municipal Stadium before a crowd in excess of 80,000 (paid attendance of 76,979), but Mel Harder loses to the A’s Lefty Grove 1 – 0 on Mickey Cochrane’s RBI single.

1935 – The Reds oversell their night game, and 30,000 jam in for the match against the Cards. Kitty Burke, a female fan, slips under the ropes around the infield and grabs a bat. Paul Dean lobs a pitch and she grounds out. Manager Frankie Frisch demands it count as an at bat.

1939 – Using yellow dyed balls, the Cardinals beat the Dodgers, 5 – 2, at Sportsman’s Park.

1954 – Using a borrowed bat, Dodger killer Joe Adcock hits 4 homers and a double for 18 total bases in the Braves’ 15 – 7 victory at Ebbets Field. The 18 total bases is a major-league mark and, combined with the seven total bases from the day before, gives him a two-day tally of 25. The two-game total ties him with Ty Cobb.

1957 – The Pirates lose to the Braves and Bob Buhl, 4 – 2. Bucs manager Bobby Bragan is ejected in the bottom of the 5th for making obscene gestures. Before he departs, he strolls onto the field sipping an orange drink through a straw and offers the umpires a drink. Two days later Bragan will be fired by the Pirates.

1962 – The National League rejects Commissioner Ford Frick’s proposal for interleague play in 1963.

1971 – The Orioles’ Pat Dobson shuts out the Royals, 4 – 0, for his 8th victory of the month. Since June 16th, Dobson has won 12 straight games.

1975 – Giants pitcher John Montefusco predicts he’ll shut out the Reds and strike out Johnny Bench four times. The Count’s a little off as the Reds score seven runs in 1 1/3 innings off Montefusco, three of the runs coming on a Bench homer. The Reds win, 11 – 6.

1983 – Brooks Robinson, Juan Marichal, George Kell and Walter Alston are inducted into the Hall of Fame, bringing the total number of Hall of Famers to 184.

1987 – Eddie Murray hits his 299th and 300th career home runs to lead Baltimore to an 8 – 4 win over Texas.

1990 – At County Stadium, Ranger righty Nolan Ryan wins his 300th game defeating the Brewers, 11 – 3. The 43-year-old from Alvin, Texas will compile 324 victories during his 27-year big league career.

2004 – After a close call which goes against the Katy Cowboys, Kacy Clemens’ dad is asked to leave the youth baseball game. According to the league officials, who will later apologize calling it a case of mistaken identity, Roger Clemens is ejected from his son’s championship game for arguing the call and spitting sunflower seeds at an umpire’s leg.

2013 – The Orioles acquire P Bud Norris from Houston for L.J. Hoes and Josh Hader.

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All Today in Baseball History items are courtesy of either Baseball Reference or nationalpastime.com.

“Marge, we had a deal. Your sisters don’t come here after six and I stop eating your lipstick.”

Today is both National Raspberry Cake Day and National System Administrator Appreciation Day! Celebrate accordingly.