The Deep Pool
Jackie Leven
I've been down in the deep pool - i held my breath and stayed down for as long as I dared. You've got to remember to leave yourelf enough air to get back up, but that's not easy when there is so much to see in the deep pool - except of course, for the murky bits where who- knows- what lies in wait...
So right now, on this Monday morning, yesterday was the first real day of Autumn as we know it, with lashing rain all day and a wind that banged doors down the street, with old jazz musicians struggling to get their instruments in and out of the great bar across the road. On Sundays there is always an excellent jazz session with old lads who have played with lots of the top names over the decades, and they've still completely got their 'chops'. My friend the wonderful singer Deborah Greenwood often sits in for a few numbers with them, as she is really a jazz singer (not like what she has to do on my records) and yesterday she sang the classic 'Autumn Leaves' in French. Many an eye was moist, many a glass of wine was held to the heart, and many a forkful of roast beef was suspended in mid-air between plate and mouth till the final flurry of vibraphone and cymbal. I myself managed to drink a double Bell's whisky during this performance, and momentarily forgot the troubles of the world. October, as you may have seen, takes me to the UK towns and cities of Deal, Belper, Worcester and Nottingham. Deal I've never played before, but Haunted Valley Clan member Bob Astridge has described it well for me - see you there Bob, and it sounds as if it will have a slightly melancholic beautiful out-of-season English seaside town feel to it - exactly what I need right now,and the next day I have a big record company meeting in London to decide on how best to sell my latest studio masterpiece which comes out on Cooking Vinyl late January. A whisper of grey wave and grey wing of gull before the grey streets of the frenzied marketplace.
Belper and Worcester are both towns I've played before, and really like - i recommend these two venues heartily. The Nottingham venue, Mistral, I don't know, but I DO know that it only holds 35 people, so get a ticket now if you're thinking about it - apart from anything, I'm terrified of small audiences so always work that much harder (that's not true, big audiences - don't fret!).
In a few days I will see the artwork for the new album that a new designer called Carl Dawson is doing for me - i sent the images that i want to see used, but Carl does unexpected things, so i'm childishly excited - i think my last front image, to Creatures of Light and Darkness worried some people - certainly on the road people have said they found it 'frightening' or 'worrying' - the new one has immense human power and beauty, but is also undeniably disturbing. I told the record company that the new album will be called 'what's that horrible smell?' They just looked at each other and sighed, then said 'how long will we have to wait till we hear the REALl title?' What's wrong with people?
I'll be writing in to the site every month now to let you know roughly what i'm up and what i think. if anything ,so i'll speak to you again in November, during which time I shall be stripping wallpaper from my hall and staircase and sanding some floors - it's dirty work but somebody's got to do it, and I find it very therapeutic actually - 'til then....... Jackie's Book and Record of the month.
RECORD - Palm Wine Guitar Music - by S. E. Rogie - beautiful early African rock from Monrovia, on Cooking Vinyl, funnily enough.
BOOK - London - by Peter Ackroyd - huge poetic history of one of the world's great cities - you'll see the world differently after this!
jl