Of iguanas, the Hit Factory, presidents and Tina

It's another snippets post, dear reader:

• Killer reptile news: A chilly cold snap in Florida has led to an unforeseen hazard - iguanas, unable to warm up enough to move, falling out of trees! It sounds amusing until you find out that adult male Green Iguanas can reach five feet in length, and weigh up to 20 pounds. I wouldn't want one falling on my head, thanks...
• History lesson: the tiny Somerset vllage of Barton St David (population 600) has a major claim to fame - its historical links to no fewer than five American presidents! Not Trump. He's German.

• Pop legends news: Stock, Aitken and Waterman - one of the most successful songwriting and producing partnerships of all time, with more than 100 UK Top 40 hits, including thirteen UK No. 1 singles (and three US #1s), who launched the musical careers of the likes of Our Princess Kylie, Dead or Alive, Mel and Kim, Jason Donovan, Rick Astley and Bananarama [or made the latter into superstars, at least] - have unveiled a Historic England blue plaque in their honour, at their old studio in Southwark that became known as "The Hit Factory".
• Basic biology news: A US court has ruled that elephants are not people. Well, there's a surprise!
• And finally - a posthumous discovery from an icon: A never-previously-heard track by the sadly-missed Miss Tina Turner, believed to be lost, was premiered on BBC Radio 2 this morning. And here, for your delectation, it is!

Tina Turner - Hot For You Baby

And the weather? Miserable. [But thank heavens we're not in Northern Ireland or Scotland!]

Help?

Yup. Back to the commute...

The weekend was a bit of a non-event - which was not unwelcome, given the rather hectic "social calendar" of late - thanks to the arse end of Storm Bert [basically gusty winds and showers that rather prevented any gardening; or anything, really]. Now we're back in "Groundhog Day" again.

Hey ho. How about a celebration?

That titan of power-pop, the late, dearly-departed Miss Tina Turner would have been 85 years old tomorrow! She always seemed to enjoy her collaborations with fellow entertainment goddess Cher - but, on this Tacky Music Monday, who invited the producer's Auntie to the dressing-up box??

Cher, Tina Turner & Kate Smith sing the Beatles

Have a good week, dear reader.

Under the spell of Sitges

And so we're back, from an idyllic few days in "the St Tropez of Spain" [^©Mitzi], Sitges, tanned and happy! Needless to say, having only got back to the house at 11.30pm last night, today has been a less-than-active one...

Even though a "little" gang of nine of us (plus two who already live in Spain) were gathered there for "Jurassic Paul"'s 70th, we really only got together in the evenings. The Madam and I did our own thing by day, doing what we do best [bugger all!], sitting in the chiringuitos [beach bars], eating, drinking, enjoying being a stone's throw from the sea - and, of course, totty-watching.

Shopping, sightseeing, gossip and, well, just fun were also in order, obviamente...

[click any pic to embiggen]

Bliss, from beginning to end...

Did I bring back any new music from Catalonia? Nada. However, here's a beloved old fave song from an artist who was actually born in the province (albeit to Andalusian parents, who moved back there when she was a child). I haven't featured it for a few years, so it deserves another airing:

Mónica Naranjo - Europa

And what did we miss while we were away? Not much, really, news-headline-wise. Inconsequential stuff like Phillip Schofield quitting ITV's This Morning show eclipsed Volodymyr Zelenskyy's visit to the G7 summit in Hiroshima and the Ukraine War in the headlines, which says a lot; there was some kind of "chav riot" in the dystopian council estate of Ely in Cardiff; and some twat called De Santis decided to run for candidacy for the US presidential election against another twat called Trump (yawn). 

There was, however a slew of departures [or at least, news about their deaths] of some very famous names indeed, including: George Logan, aka "Dr Evadne" of the fantabulosa Hinge and Bracket; the (formerly) gorgeous Helmut Berger; satirical author Martin Amis; fabled light entertainment show choreographer (with his troupe "The Young Generation") Dougie Squires; (erm) the former "national treasure", TV star, Royal portraitist and hit singer who was latterly revealed as a sex offender Rolf Harris; film-maker and author of the scandalous Hollywood Babylon Kenneth Anger...

...and, of course...

---

RIP, Miss Tina Turner!

Ike & Tina Turner Revue - Proud Mary [Ed Sullivan Show, January 1970]

Tina Turner - What's Love Got To Do With It?

Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock, 26th November 1939 – 24th May 2023).

Legend!

That's What I Want

And so, farewell, then, Mr Barrett Strong. Who? I hear you ask...

In a long, long writing partnership with the late Norman Whitfield, Mr Strong was a powerhouse songwriter for Motown Records, and many of his creations remain beloved classics to this day. Including these:

Nick Kamen in 1985 Levi's Ad "Laundry Day" [Marvin Gaye - I Heard It Through the Grapevine]

Temptations - Papa Was a Rollin' Stone

Paul Young - Wherever I Lay My Hat (That's My Home)

Flying Lizards - Money (That's What I Want)

Edwin Starr - War

Steps - Too Busy Thinking About My Baby

Tina Turner - Ball of Confusion

Temptations - Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)

The Northern Soul dancefloor in Fabulon is filling to the brim as we speak...

RIP, Barrett Strong (5th February 1941 - 29th January 2023)

Strictly Ballroom

[Photo: Gavin Conlan]



John-John and I (and a little crowd of chums) were treading in the footsteps of the stars last night, as we bravely traversed the badlands of South London for Piers's 50th birthday bash at the fantabulosa Rivoli Ballroom in Brockley.

With its perfectly preserved arched ceiling, maroon velvet and gilded walls, chandeliers and banquettes, not only has this legendary vintage 1950s ballroom (one of very few still in existence across the UK, and probably the most intact) played host (on and off the stage) to such luminaries as Kylie Minogue, Meatloaf, Oasis, Florence & the Machine, Kings of Leon, Damon Albarn, Rumer, the White Stripes, Jimmy Page, Rihanna, and Chris Evans and the cast of the WW2 flashback scene in Avengers: Age of Ultron, but also...

...Dame Elton:

Elton John - I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues

...that "professional weirdo" Miss Del Ray:

Lana Del Rey - Burning Desire

...The Beautiful South:

The Beautiful South - I'll Sail This Ship Alone

...and none other than Mama Tina!

Tina Turner - Private Dancer

Fabled company, indeed.

It was a great evening!

Rivoli Ballroom on Wikipedia

Rivoli Ballroom official website

Fragrant beauties

[The utterly splendid (and beautifully scented) Gladiolus murielae - also known as "Acidanthera bicolor" - which sprouted from some bulblets that we had no idea we'd transported from our previous garden (in some old potting compost, probably). Not bad for the end of November!]

Where do these bloody weekends go, exactly..? No sooner do we stride purposefully away from the office and into real life on Friday evening, then whoosh! Time for work again. Groan.

It may be dark, dank and gloomy, and nobody wants to leave the confines of their bed for that - but at least there are two things to cheer us up today.

One, it's payday.

Two - it is the 79th birthday today of our Patron Saint of unstoppable hip-shaking, Mrs Tina Bach (née Turner, of course). On this Tacky Music Monday, let's leave the wake-up call to the Mistress - in a clip that includes not one but two of our icons (Cher being the other), and the ex-Mr Joan Collins (Anthony Newley), to boot!

Cher Show - 12th October 1975

Fab! Many happy returns, Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock, 26th November 1939)

There's a chance that we may fall apart before too long

Oh bum. Monday again...

After a weekend of enjoyable meanderings, shopping for trimmings and stuff in Walthamstow and Camden markets (it gets me out of the house and away from murderous thoughts about those marauding brats upstairs), having to get up and out in the murk and gloom of Monday at this time of year is particularly harsh.

It is still a Tacky Music Monday, however! So let's thank heavens for the combined talents of yesterday's birthday girl Miss Tina Turner, together with the unstoppable Cher, and - rather incongruously - Miss Kate Smith [unknown over here, but notable in the US for her campaigns against "indecency" and her famous rendition of God Bless America] and their most bizarre "Beatles Medley" to cheer us up...

Cher, Tina Turner & Kate Smith sing the Beatles

Have a good week, peeps!

Got my sun-roof down; got my diamonds in the back

Among a raft of birthdays today - including such odd bedfellows as poet William Cowper, "Peanuts" creator Charles M. Schulz, playwright Eugene Ionesco, Pat Phoenix ("Elsie Tanner"), George Segal, DJ Paul Burnett, Shadow Foreign Secretary Hilary Benn, John McVie, La Cicciolina, Jean Terrell and Queen Maud of Norway - one name stands head and shoulders among the rest.

Just today, one of our Patron Saints paid tribute to another, as Cher said:

“Tina Turner was, is, and always will be, a Goddess to me‼️ It's impossible to stand next to her on stage, and not feel a little bit eclipsed.”

Indeed.

And here they are together with Shame, Shame, Shame:

Tina Turner and Cher - Shame Shame Shame

Don't stop the motion
If you get the notion
You can't stop the groove
Cause you just won't move
Got my sun-roof down
Got my diamonds in the back
So put on your shaky wig baby
If you don't I ain't comin' back!

Many happy returns Mrs Tina Turner Bach (nee Anna Mae Bullock, born 26th November 1939)!

Shake your music makers!

It's Monday morning - after a week off for study and an exam on Friday, it is a bit of a jolt, to say the least, getting up to head back to the soulless office.

Still, it is a Tacky Music Monday, and in honour of the 74th birthday this week of Annie May Bullock aka our Patron Saint Miss Tina Turner - and of course, in honour of the fact that another Patron Saint Cher is still going strong - here are the two unstoppable ladies together!

Cher and Tina Turner – Makin' Music (Is My Business)

How about that for a wake-up?

Mrs Tina Bach

David Bowie, Eros Ramazzotti, Sade, Giorgio Armani and Oprah Winfrey are all invited to a party at Tina Turner's place this weekend.

From Hello magazine:

Miss Turner has tied the knot with her long-term partner Erwin Bach after 27 years together, it has been revealed. The 73-year-old singer and German record company executive Erwin, 57, exchanged vows on the shores of Lake Zurich in Switzerland.

The happy couple will celebrate their marriage with a Buddhist ceremony this weekend in Zurich, where Tina has lived for the past 15 years.

According to Swiss newspaper Schweiz am Sonntag, Tina will wear an Armani gown, and has requested that all the guests wear white to the celebration.

The couple have also sent out letters to neighbours and local residents apologising in advance for any noise.

Congratulations!

"What's love, But a sweet old-fashioned notion?" Indeed...

Tina Turner - What's Love Got To Do With It?

Tina Turner website

Dydd Gwyl Dewi Sant Hapus!

It is the national day for my homeland of Wales, St David's Day.

Who better to celebrate it with than not one, but two, of its greatest vocal sons, Bryn Terfel and the ever-lovely Tom Jones, reminiscing about The Green Green Grass of Home?

Tom Jones and Bryn Terfel - Green Green Grass Of Home

And here, with something rather interesting down that Hot Leg, Jones the Trousers gives it some willy welly in a battle of the belters with Miss Tina Turner...

St David's Day

Shake your tail

It's pissing down out there, and it looks like this is in for the weekend. But it is the weekend, after all, and thank heavens for that!

Time, methinks for us to get our big wigs on, drag out that short shimmy frock - and, on what would have been Ike Turner's 80th birthday this weekend, shake our tail feathers with our very own Bold Soul Sister Miss Tina Turner and the Ikettes...

Thank Disco It's Friday!

Tina Turner - Bold Soul Sister

Keep warm.

Proud Mary keep on burning

I almost forgot to wish Miss Tina Turner many happy returns - the great diva turned 71 yesterday! I hope she had a rocking party...

Ike & Tina Turner - Proud Mary

Remarkably Tina Turner has never had a Number 1 hit in the UK!

Tina Turner fan club website

Rollin', rollin'...

It may be a blustery Bank Holiday, but any Monday is Tacky Music Monday - especially when we are "treated" to none other than Lynda Carter (Wonder Woman) doing Tina Turner impressions... Amazing isn't the word! Enjoy!

Lynda Carter - Proud Mary/I Was Made For Loving You

It's all part of her Rock'n'Roll Fantasy, apparently.

I will see you in the sky, tonight

Happy 70th birthday today to that living embodiment of a "great ball of fire", the eternally sassy Tina Turner!

I have already posted one video of hers this week (with Cher). I have blogged about her before - read my posting from last year.

But in my world, there is always room for a bit more music from the fantastic former Anna Mae Bullock, especially when her special guest is a certain David Bowie...

Tina Turner and David Bowie - Tonight

Just because...

...it's a grey and miserable day, and we need cheering up (and because Paul Burston is hosting a House of Homosexual Culture event on the history of gay clubbing at the South Bank tonight), here are two of our favourite divas Tina Turner and Cher with their version of that Disco classic Shame Shame Shame - enjoy!

Tina Turner and Cher - Shame Shame Shame

Six degrees of Shirley Bassey

Now here's a wonderful example of "Six Degrees of Separation". How do you work out a path that links Glen Campbell with Shirley Bassey (via Tina Turner)? I did...

I heard Glen Cambell's original Wichita Lineman playing in our mate Sally's pub the other night, and that got me thinking. Not just how brilliant the song is, but I remembered a version of the song that was recorded in the early 80s by the British Electric Foundation (BEF).

The BEF was a project that emerged from the split of the original Human League, and their album Music of Quality and Distinction was a musical landmark, re-launching the career of none other than Tina Turner in the process (Tina did a cover of Ball of Confusion, and the BEF boys Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh went on to produce her comeback single Let's Stay Together). Together with Glenn Gregory, the BEF became Heaven 17.

Convinced that the vocalist on their version of Wichita Lineman was Billy MacKenzie, I went searching. It turned out that the vocalist was in fact Glenn Gregory on this track, but in the process I managed to get hold of some of the tracks they did with Billy, including Roy Orbison's It's Over, Bowie's Secret Life of Arabia and Deniece Williams' Free.

Now, Billy MacKenzie and his band The Associates were a major influence on my life. I had a huge crush on him, and love his semi-operatic vocals - Party Fears Two remains one of my all-time favourite songs. I was distraught when he took his own life in 1997. Thus stimulated, I went on a search for more stuff about Billy and found out that he had some other interesting collaborations, not least as a songwriter on a couple of albums by that fab electro duo Yello (another fave band of mine).

Among the songs he wrote for Yello (he even sang a version of the song) was the sensational Rhythm Divine - which, of course, became one of the best songs ever recorded by none other than... Shirley Bassey!

Whew! And just to complete the circle, here's the song that began this quest, followed by the one that ended it...

Glenn Campbell - Wichita Lineman

Yello feat. Shirley Bassey - Rhythm Divine

Rolling, rolling...

At sixty-nine years of age, the glorious Tina Turner effortlessly managed to sing (and dance) that overblown clothes horse Beyonce off the stage at the Grammy Awards. Proof, indeed, that singers just ain't what they used to be...

Simply the Best

Wow! That diva of ballsy rock and soul Tina Turner is 68 today.

Tina (born Anna Mae Bullock) is one of music's truly great survivors. She went from her bluesy roots with abusive husband Ike - with whom she created such classics as Nutbush City Limits and River Deep, Mountain High - through a very lean period in the 1970s, to become the legend she is today.

One of the biggest-selling female artists of all time, Tina recovered her musical credibility in the 80s with the help of those supremely talented British producers Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh, founders of the Human League and later Heaven 17, who on their British Electric Foundation (BEF) album Music of Quality and Distinction gave Tina the break she deserved with her brilliant rendition of Ball Of Confusion. From that came massive international success with her cover of Let's Stay Together (also with the BEF boys), and the subsequent album Private Dancer.

And the rest is history - biggest ever audience for a single performer (over 184,000 fans at the Maracanã Stadium, Rio de Janeiro), record sales in excess of 180 million, and numerous awards including Grammys (mainly for What's Love Got to Do With It), the French Lègion d'Honneur, and MTV, Rolling Stone,VH1 and Billboard Lifetime awards. What a trouper!

Tina Turner - The Best

Tina Turner official website