Smudger

Whilst driving along the coast in menorca i caught a glimpse of turquoise through a hole in the hedge as we were going to Binibeca and stopped immediatley the first photo is what we saw, need less to say we went for a swim as there was no one around at all. The rest are from visits to the Lizard in cornwall where we saw loads of Choughs ,the last one is kynance cove where there were hundreds of people just waiting for the tide to go out so they could get onto the beach you can see emerging from the sea.

Yes loads of tortoises ,this year seen 2 different snakes( non are poisenous) loads of lizards hoopoo's large birds of prey circling may be buzzards not sure.watched a cormorant chasing fish in a little inlet and we could see the fish scattering . There is a cycle / walk trail all the way around the island 155 km called the Cami De Cavall and this is where we do most of the walking,here is a photo of the bay we stayed at Alcuafar very quiet one hotel on the beach and a taverna other side of village.

Every Spring bank holiday we go to Menorca ,it is a beautiful island with a protected environment policy, hear are 2 photos of the same field one taken after they had had quite alot of rain in march april(2014) the other (this year) when it has been drier. The difference is stunning there were wild flowers covering the fields for miles and butterflies moths and thousands of caterpillars making the most of the conditions. We go walking looking at the wildlife especially the tortoises (which my wife is mad about) ,always find some but this year we had a thunder storm one afternoon so we got in the car and went for a drive whilst it was still raining,we called into a little coastal village and as it was only dizzling went for a walk .Within 1 hour we found 42 torts. which because it had rained came out to get a drink as they have to make the most of any water they find. I didn't take the camera as it was unplanned ,she had her phone so have got some shots ( i will add some later she is out at the moment) We learnt alot about how they survive and it is quite rocky ground and found a hollow in the rocks that had filled with rain water and saw 3 torts heading and drinking in that spot,there was also a shaded area next to a abandoned barn that had quite a bit a spagnam type moss that had soaked up the water and 5 tortoises in that area appeared to be eating the moss but we realised they were just squeazing it in their mouth to exract the water.

i dont suppose the writers had heard this first

R.I.P. Bobby One of my Favourites B side of Roses Somewhere

touché !

Can't believe this! i know he hasn't been well but was only chatting to him at H & G a great bloke ,him and Glen will be in soul heaven playing havoc. RIP JIM

And soon you" May" be paying it for anything bought from Europe !

Name probably taken from below Theatre Owners Booking Association, or T.O.B.A., was the vaudeville circuit for African American performers in the 1920s. The theaters mostly had white owners (the recently restored Morton Theater in Athens, Georgia, originally operated by "Pinky" Monroe Morton, being a notable exception) and booked jazz and blues musicians and singers, comedians, and other performers, including the classically trained, such as operatic soprano Sissieretta Jones, known as "The Black Patti", for black audiences. Contents [hide] 1History 2Additional reading 3References 4External links History[edit] The association was established following the work of vaudeville performer Sherman H. Dudley. By 1909, Dudley was widely known as the "Lone Star Comedian" and had begun an attempt to have a black-owned and operated string of venues around the United States.[1] By 1911 Dudley was based in Washington, D.C. as general manager and treasurer of the Colored Actors' Union,[2] and set up S. H. Dudley Theatrical Enterprises, which began buying and leasing theaters around Washington and Virginia.[3] By 1916 the "Dudley Circuit" had extended into the south and Midwest, enabling black entertainers to secure longer-term contracts for an extended season; this circuit provided the basis for T.O.B.A.[3] His circuit was advertised in a weekly column published in black newspapers, "What's What on the Dudley's Circuit", and by 1914 it included over twenty theaters, "all owned or operated by blacks and as far south as Atlanta." T.O.B.A. was formally established in 1920 by people associated with Dudley's circuit.[4] Its President was Milton Starr, owner of the Bijou Theater in Nashville;[5] its chief booker was Sam Reevin of Chattanooga.[6] The organization had more than 100 theaters at its peak in the early to mid 1920s. Often referred to by the black performers as Tough on Black Artists (or, by Gertrude "Ma" Rainey, as Tough on Black Asses), the association was generally known as Toby Time (Time was a common term for vaudeville circuits). It booked only black artists into a series of theatres on the East Coast and as far west as Oklahoma. T.O.B.A. venues were the only ones south of the Mason-Dixon line that regularly sought black audiences, according to one reference.[7] T.O.B.A. paid less and generally had worse touring arrangements than the white vaudeville counterpart. But like white vaudeville, T.O.B.A. faded from popularity during the Great Depression, collapsing in late 1930 when Dudley sold his chain of theaters to a cinema company.[6][8] According to writer Preston Lauterbach, "a basic TOBA troupe carried about all the variety a single stage could hold, not to mention all the personalities one sleeping car could hold", including tap dancers, comedy teams, actors, and blues singers. Their backdrops, costumes and props moved with them.[6] Its earliest star performers included singers Ethel Waters, Gertrude Ma Rainey, Bessie Smith, Edmonia Henderson,[9][10] Mamie Smith, Minto Cato, and Adelaide Hall; comedian Tim Moore with his Chicago Follies company (which included his wife Gertie); the Whitman Sisters and their Company; musicians Fletcher Henderson, Fats Waller, Louis Armstrong, Noble Sissle, Eubie Blake, Joe "King" Oliver, and Duke Ellington; comedians Sandy Burns, Salem Whitney Tutt, Boots Hope, Seymour James and Tom Fletcher; future Paris sensation Josephine Baker; songwriter and pianist Perry Bradford, the mime Johnny Hudgins; dancers U. S. Thompson, Walter Batie, Earl "Snakehips" Tucker, and Valaida Snow; comic monologuist Boots Hope; and many others. In addition, later well-known names such as Florence Mills, Lincoln "Stepin Fetchit" Perry, Hattie McDaniel, Mantan Moreland, Jackie "Moms" Mabley, Dewey Pigmeat Markham, Johnny Lee, Marshall "Garbage" Rogers, Amanda Randolph, Chick Webb, Cab Calloway, a young William Basie (before he came to be called "Count"), and four-year-old Sammy Davis, Jr. all performed on the T.O.B.A. circuit. The most prestigious black theaters in Harlem, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C., were not part of the circuit, booking acts independently; The T.O.B.A. was considered less prestigious. Many black performers, such as Bert Williams, George Walker, Johnson and Dean, Bill "Bojangles" Robinson, Tim Moore, and Johnny Hudgins also performed in white vaudeville, often in Blackface. Additional reading[edit] Nadine George-Graves, The Royalty of Negro Vaudeville: The Whitman Sisters and the Negotiation of Race, Gender, and Class in African American Theater, 1900-1940, in Dance Research Journal, Vol. 33, No. 2, Social and Popular Dance (Winter, 2001), pp. 134–138. David Krasner, A Beautiful Pageant: African American Theatre, Drama, and Performance in the Harlem Renaissance, AIAA, 2002, ISBN 978-0312295905. Bernard L. Peterson, Jr., Profiles of African American Stage Performers and Theatre People, 1816-1960, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2000, ISBN 978-0313295348 Henry T. Sampson, Blacks in Blackface: A Source Book on Early Black Musical Shows, Scarecrow Press, Second edition, 2013, ISBN 978-0810883505 Redd Foxx and Norma Miller, The Redd Foxx Encyclopedia of Black Humor, W. Ritchie Press, 1977, ISBN 978-0378083027 Iain Cameron Williams, Underneath a Harlem Moon ... the Harlem to Paris Years of Adelaide Hall, Bayou Jazz Lives, Continuum, 2002, ISBN 0826458939[11]

taken from the you tube copy The stomping beat of Wilie Mitchells 'The Champion' with an added vocal by Tommy Hunt.A limited press of 200 singles for the Lougborough Soul Clubs 2nd anniversary in 2010.Check out the flip side 'You Got It' for a similar cover version

There was another boot with Benny Spellman fortune teller on tuther side and from memory it had a good sound quality,i think i gave it to Shaun at Red Bar https://www.discogs.com/Benny-Spellman-Fortune-Teller/release/3398811

Back in the 90's at one of the early weekenders ,i think it was Cleethorpes but it could have been Fleetwood ( mists of time and beer) .Whilst roaming around on Saturday afternoon i heard the dulcet tones of Sandra Wright Midnight Affair coming from one small room so i went to investigate , the room was virtually empty but Andy Davies was In the D.J. booth in one corner playing some tunes so stopped to listen . He played a record and i thought Wow ! that's brilliant so went over and asked who it was ,got all the info logged in my brain or so i thought ,but as always happens forgot all about it. Now i always used to get Black night Records lists off of Gary so a few months after the above ,i ordered several records over the phone and awaited arrival ,he had miscounted on 2 of the records and sent me a replacement Album the track he recommended from the Lp was the very same i had inquired about from Andy Davis earlier see pdf of Garys llist and letter. 2017_03_16_14_16_00.pdf

Yesterday at work 35 waxwings landed in a tree inside the school quadrangle and stayed about an hour only had one of our i pads to take the photo's where's a decent telephoto when you need one. Location Doncaster

This one really made my ears prick up haven't heard it for ages lovely record and its things like this that make this place so very special

R.I.P. Tommy Tate Awesome! and thank you

What a unique voice ,and songs sung with a passion Tommy is an all time great ,have to agree the first time i heard School of Life it blew me away, superb and here is one from me

This one ain't too shabby too and only £0.48p on discogs

Bloody Ell where you been !

Vinyl sales up over 50 % https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-38487837

On first listen Temptations Then Paul Williams on lead ? Spinners slower version of Teahouse Brenda holloway What good am i ( my fave Gladys track) I have a soft spot for Gladys and Tops so all theirs

also see these https://www.whathifi.com/news/hd-vinyl-promises-better-sound-and-cheaper-production https://www.whathifi.com/news/symcon-aims-to-boost-vinyl-sound-quality-through-new-manufacturing-process

For the first time in 12 years Vinyl sales are more than downloads Great news ! https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/dec/06/tables-turned-as-vinyl-records-outsell-digital-in-uk-for-first-time

Just a few of the stunning Stax?Volt sound Would bet that Willie Tee and co are musicians on this this one is sublime and avaiable on 7" Carla Thomas off the memphis Quenn LP remind you of something?

The last 30 seconds sums up my style !