Amsterdam Russ

Not a cloud in the sky here (sitting on the balcony with a bottle of rose)!

Maybe so, Steve, but I still haven't seen one

Never yet seen an osprey! There was a report of a sighting locally a couple of years ago; it was spotted in one of the marshland parks. I always remember Dad taking us as kids to the Loch Garten RSPB reserve after reports of a sighting (we lived in Scotland at that time). All we saw was an empty nest. Other birds I've yet to see here in the Netherlands are owls. If I cycle my way to and from the monthly Amsterdam Soul Club, I often hear them very clearly late at night on the way there and early in the morning on the way home, but I've yet to spot one. One day, hopefully.

Seen Hoopoes a couple of times - first time was in the Beachy Head area when I was a kid. That would have been 35+ years ago. Seeing it was a real thrill as it was so unexpected. Also saw one on the Greek island of Lesvos on our last holiday. Marvellous birds!

Wooah there. Hold your horses... The swifts may be making an early departure, but that doesn't mean summer's over just yet. It's only the 2nd of August. We had a BBQ in the Amsterdam woods last night, and when we got home sat on the balcony til around midnight. Just come in from the balcony a couple of minutes ago (10:30pm local time). Summer is very much still here! That said, I did notice the absence of swifts mid-week. There were a few still around, mainly making their presence known at dusk, but tonight the skies were silent. For those who may be missing them already, here's a couple of pics I took while on holiday. The one of the swift over the water isn't anywhere near as sharp as it could have been, but I do like the effect of the sea in the background. Long live summer!

The original is still the greatest? Not every time, Mr Gray...

Same for me...

Well, I finally watched it last night and have to say that I think it was very well done. Congrats to all those involved. Very clearly, the purpose of the show was to educate and entertain, and provide the general public with an overview of the early days and heydays of the scene. And in this it succeeded. The participants had much to add that was relevant to the context in which they were speaking - even Tony Blackburn, whose contributions highlighted the commercialisation of a movement that went from relative obscurity to full public spotlight. Having said that, of little worth (for me) was Lisa Stansfield. However, at the end of the day she's someone with whom an unconnected audience can identify, so I can see why she was included. Marc Almond highlighted how Northern Soul extended its influence culturally to the degree that it could provide musical fodder for the masses (and even make Top of the Pops, much to Ian Levine's chagrin based on his anti-TOTP comments throughout the programme). I think that what people on the scene forget is that there is no collective consciousness among TV producers - nor the general public - so they're not seeing this in the context of other documentaries that have come before. Indeed, some of those documentaries will have aired before the people making this programme were even born. Only people here will be comparing this documentary to previous ones. It's success therefore, should be measured on whether it educated and entertained as a stand-alone, one-off show. In my view it succeeded very well. That said, I do agree with the consensus of opinion that some exploration of the "post-Wigan" years (i.e., the 80s to the present day) should have been done. The programme did state that the scene continued, but the degree to which it did wasn't made clear at all. If any viewers gave this aspect a moment's thought at all, they probably would have concluded that it contracted in size and went back underground. An additional oversight for me was any meaningful contribution from the young people who - apparently - have given the scene the kiss of life. If that's the case then the lack of such input makes the programme more of a historical "look back" than a review of where the scene came from, where it is now headed, and all the bits in between. Again though, I thought it was a success.

Also available to watch/download on YouTube as a single file... https://youtu.be/-krEap_FGco

Another uptempo number from Mahalia...

Been a fave for years. I do love a good bit of Gospel and especially this type of style that's a mix of Jubilee and spiritual R&B. This is a great performance - and what an atmospheric set! Also available on a 45 with French and Dutch pic sleeves out there to be found.

This site (which I've never heard of) appears to have them in stock... https://www.gak.co.uk/en/numark-dust-cover-for-turntables/18669 Sorry, false alert. Just seen the small print that says the item is discontinued...

Oh, his practical photography advice is still great. No doubts about it. It's his opinions as an 'independent reviewer' of camera equipment that I'm cynical about. Bearing in mind his dominance in the search engines for anything Nikon-related, he's not going to make much revenue telling people that the standard Nikon kit lens - or whatever - is actually crap.

Yes, I've been in and out of Ken Rockwell's site since I first got a Nikon - a D40 - some years back. Sadly he's become too commercially oriented with his advice and likes - recommends - absolutely everything. And links to retailers are obviously placed in every review at every opportunity. Worse - he still claims poverty and the need for donations to support the "free" service he's offering!

Thanks, Steve. I bought a field guide for the camera and am working my way through that slowly but surely. It's much better than wading through Nikon's own manuals. I've already encountered some things that I don't like, all of which I hope I can get a better understanding of so that I can either make better use of what they do, or avoid them. The first one - and initially I thought there was a fault with the camera - is something called "ISO sensitivity setting". To all intents and purposes it appears to be an override for manual ISO settings. I was trying to get some underexposed landscape sunset shots and even though I had ISO on a manual setting, through the viewfinder it said auto - and it was impossible to under expose the shot as the ISO kept changing to an optimum level based on my aperture and shutter speed. Eventually I found the function for that in the menu and turned it off. Still need to read up on it and see what it actually does. It must serve some useful purpose. Another thing is that the camera sensor seems to be automatically over exposing shots by something like half a stop. And the colour seems to have a light but noticeable blue cast - as if white balance is set for fluorescent light. White balance and everything else can be modified using Camera RAW software settings when the pics have been uploaded to the computer, of course, but I'm keen to know if there is an in-camera setting that's causing the blue tinge - I hope so. All an adventure, I guess, but I'd much prefer to be at the destination rather than on the 'voyage of discovery' - if you know what I mean.

Have been out a couple of times with my new camera. Much to learn about it yet - where functions are, what new things it can do that my previous camera couldn't, and generally getting a sense of how it performs. Give it a month or two and I'm hoping that I'll be as familiar and confident with it as I was the old one. This first batch was taken in the Amsterdam woods early evening when there was a beautiful golden light all around. These were taken earlier today at a Napoleonic water fort, of which there are a good number in the Netherlands.

Another one here that's never had tippex on it.

Off topic, I know, but worthy of a reply, I feel... You may jest, and as comedic as it may sound, living in the Netherlands and occasionally playing records at the Amsterdam Soul Club and other places, that's exactly what I do. I don't have a car and so cycle everywhere. Pannier choice is made entirely with record boxes and 12" vinyl in mind. My bike can take a 120 count singles box on each side. Or I can mix and match with smaller 45 boxes & some 12's if needed. Before moving house last December, the cycle ride to the Amsterdam Soul Club was 8 miles, and half of that's through the pitch dark Amsterdam woods. Now that I've moved it's 11 miles there and 11 miles back - and it's not always a smooth ride, particularly when it's tipping it down and you can't see where you're going. Always relatively easy on the outbound journey, but often a bit tricker after a good few beers at three or four in the morning! It may seem trivial to some, but how to transport records from home to venue is actually of quite some importance to me and to others - hence why this whole discussion about record bags is taking place.

Still looking for a copy...

Here you go, Barry...

Yup, several discussions in the archives on cleaning with wood glue. I find it can work very well. Better on vinyl than styrene though.

Nice! Just bought me a copy…

Records received safely today, Phil. Thanks! And do excuse me - for some unknown reason I thought the Rail Band came out of Dakar/Senegal. Having read the notes on the card that came with the 45, I see now that it's actually neighbouring Mali! Regardless, two great tunes. Cheers!

Artists, musicians, producers, arrangers, song writers, label owners… They're all worthy of recognition and all worthy of a category in any 'soul music' hall of fame. As I said in the earlier post, I think it's a great idea. Not only would it bestow a sort of 'official' accolade/recognition upon recipients, but it would also give tremendous kudos to Soul Source above and beyond the limited boundaries of its members. Top idea, Lorraine!

What an absolutely marvellous idea, Lorraine! Brilliant - and I'm all for it!