Stevie Nicks signing

I can't believe it but I met Stevie Nicks today. It was at a HMV signing so it wasn't the private affair I had imagined when I was younger but it still left me shaking like when I was an obsessed 12-year-old fan.

Rod Stewart & Stevie Nicks at Hyde Park

Hard Rock Calling 2011:

Rod Stewart

Stevie Nicks

Adam Ant

Rumer

Hyde Park, 26 June 2011

I seem to be becoming a Hard Rock Calling regular, this is now my third year in a row. That said I certainly didn't imagine being back with Rod Stewart as the headliner, but when it was announced that Stevie Nicks would be playing her first solo show in the UK for 22 years at this festival of course I couldn't not go. Aside from Stevie, the whole line-up was really not my kind of thing but some I wanted to catch for curiosity's sake and some, such as Train and The Lighthouse Family, I wanted to plain avoid.

He Stopped Loving Her Today

Since it's Father's Day I thought I'd post this classic song, He Stopped Loving Her Today by George Jones. The Possum is without doubt one of the greatest singers but the greatest man I've ever known is my dad. Named Noel because he was born just before Christmas, he was a big, tough Irish man with the warmest smile and a mischievous twinkle in his eye, who held his ground but never, ever held a grudge. He had a great sense of humour and a soft and gentle side too though I only saw him cry three times: once when he was watching that old movie The Bells Of St Mary where Ingrid Bergman plays the nun who dies of tuberculosis, just once when he was very sick, nearing the end of his life, and the thought of being parted from us momentarily overwhelmed him and once when he was listening to this song, by his favourite singer George Jones. He would put the record on, sit there, eyes closed and get lost in the music. I can't really blame him since it quite honestly is the saddest song ever written even more touching thanks to Jones' sob in the voice delivery. So, as corny as it sounds, this song will always make me think of my dad, a great man and a great song to remember him by.

Judy Collins at Leicester Square Theatre

Judy Collins

Leicester Square Theatre, 12 June 2011

Early last year I passed up the opportunity to see Judy Collins live and I immediately regretted it. I thought that, at the ripe old age of 72, there wouldn't be many more opportunities to see her live but I needn't have worried: it turns out Collins still loves to tour and seems well able for it too, seeming more lively than many acts half her age and sporting a pair of high heels that even I wouldn't have been able to stand in for a couple of hours.

Emmylou Harris at the Royal Festival Hall

 
Emmylou Harris & The Red Dirt Boys

Simon Lynge

Royal Festival Hall, 1 June 2011

Oh Emmylou, could you be any more perfect? I've seen Emmylou Harris before but this time she seemed energised and happier, walking on to the stage with a little dance. It almost goes without saying that she looked absolutely radiant, wearing a silver headband and layers of brown velvet, satin and lace and the most amazing fringed suede boots, she launched into a song from her new album Hard Bargain, the upbeat, toe-tapping Six White Cadillacs, following it with Orphan Girl and Red Dirt Girl, both of which got a big cheer. Tonight, she told us, she would be digging out some old tunes and trying out some new ones and it really was a lovely mixture of both.