On Phantoms, Morrison & The Would've Been Question - From the Vault 2005

Another archive bit, this time from Jan 2005. I went to see The Phantom of the Opera in a rare family trip to the cinema. It was an excruciating outing in some respects: I don't love seeing movies with other people in general, and the rest of the party seemed determined to irritate the frak out of me throughout...

Of course, The Phantom of the Opera is not a great movie. It's not as bad as some folks would make out, and I don't think it's aged well but it's not awful.

This is another post that feels like it's from 'before'. Before the real darkness set in; before I pulled myself out of the hole; before, before... I've edited somewhat, partly to make my meaning absolutely clear, but the content remains essentially the same... and in places I've noted where my younger self was basically starry-eyed, naive and wrong. We live, we learn. What a naïf I was...

This stayed with me for a long time after I posted it, opening with a single, simple question:


Would I love Jim Morrison if he were ugly?

Philip Lynott at Ni-ni-nineteen - From the Vaults 2005

I wrote this in 2005, on the nineteenth anniversary of Philip Lynott's death. At the time, I was hugely, almost entirely consumed by the music of his band, Thin Lizzy, and of the work he had given us. This is what I felt and thought then.

Re-reading now, I miss the apparent simplicity of my feelings then. I've edited a little for clarity and length, but otherwise, this is as it appeared on my LJ (aw, bless) in January 2005.

We have now been thirty years without our Philo, but that's a post for another day.

~wavy timey-wimey lines~

Women & Rock Music

Originally posted at Ye Olde Blog on 2 September 2005

Women & Rock Music, Part The Most Recent

I like to think we live in enlightened times. Times where Germaine Greer can muck about on reality TV because she no longer needs to spout feminist stuff. She doesn't need to because we're sorted, more or less. There's still an economic and professional glass ceiling, but it's getting weaker. Chauvinism has no place in Britain anymore, hurrah hurrah...

3rd July 2005 - On Morrison

This was originally posted at Ye Olde Blog on 3rd July 2005, when Live8 was on.

I was yet to return to beloved London at that point, and within only a few days, my beloved city would suffer through another terrorist attack. I was terribly sad about Jim Morrison, because the more things change, the more they stay the same.

3rd July 2005

I have nothing to say about Live 8 that hasn't already been said except that in my great need to avoid RobbiefuckingWilliams, who seemed to be under the impression people were there for him, I missed The Who...

I'm told Roger remains Dorian Gray-like in his ability to stay looking forever young. I'm fairly positive that Live 8 will change absolutely fuck all, because rock and roll cannot save the world. 


Rock and roll cannot even save itself. Which brings me so neatly to the point of this post.