OLD HAUNTS...

Another flyer for the 'Old Haunts' album which will be released at a special launch party in November....

And another 'Old Haunts' flyer...

Nice shapes in this one: A path to the old haunts ... and maybe even a path to a public house called Ye Olde Haunts.

Nice sky and starkness

Another 'Old Haunts' image...

I read the title ‘Lost In The Cosmos Again’ ... for no reason in particular I think of Gene Autry’s ‘Back In The Saddle Again’ ...

Finally, and after a great deal of trial and error, deliberation, wasting CDRs on different draft assemblies, I've now arrived at the best, (and final,) running order for the tracks on the 'Old Haunts' album. I think this new sequence of songs works well, with key changes between individual tracks easing the flow of songs along, and the mood encapsulating the feeling of reverie and melancholy that the album tries to project. It's quite an emotionally charged album with some unguarded lyrical moments. Quite raw and honest in some cases but also deeply coded in others.

I'm glad that this stage of its production is settled at last. It's not been an entirely easy ride. Knowing how to shape the mood of the album has been a concern, but I think it has ended up in a reasonable light. In some ways it is one of those deeply personal recordings that I come up with at times. But, I'm always wary of baring too much of my soul in that respect. I think it is suitably obscured where it needs to be and naked where its clothing requires removal. Ultimately, it's an innocent, sincere, piece of work, and, (I hope,) an album that will move the tender hearts of those who enjoy my more unguarded music.

So here is the final running order. Some of you who have been paying attention to my posts about the progress of the album may notice some slight changes to the track titles. These are deliberate and reflect the final state of play:

1: 'GENTLE SPRITS PREVAIL'

2: 'ONCE UPON A RIVER.'

3: 'RAIN TOWN.'

4: 'ANTIQUE INTERIORS.'

5: 'IN A HAUNTED ARCADE.'

6: 'THERE ARE GHOSTS HERE.'

7: 'BELLS RING SWEET ACROSS THE MEADOW.'

8: 'THE PHANTOM PALACE OF THE PRINCE OF DREAMS.'

9: 'AS THE STARS BEGAN TO GLOW.'

10: 'LOST IN THE COSMOS AGAIN.'

11: 'MY NEW EROTIC GUEST.'

12: 'TO IMAGINE IS HARD.'

13: 'THIS GILDED AGE.'

14: 'WHEN ART SCHOOLS SHAPED TOMORROW.'

15: 'THE DARKNESS WILL REMAIN.'

16: 'SOFT LIGHT.'

The album will not be available in any form until November of this year.

The running order selection is now underway. Will try to post the final running order this weekend if I get it finished. Had to record another new track for the album though...I felt it needed a short, gentle opening so have created a track titled 'Gentle Spirits Sing.' to open the album. More later but for now here's another flyer...

Looking forward to get lost in all these titles 👌🏼✨

Ok, I've now mixed the final track for 'Old Haunts' so here is a list of the completed songs. This is NOT the actual running order of the album...that still has to be decided, but just to pique your interest, this is the list of recorded songs that I'm hoping to include on the album:

'RANDOM ENCOUNTERS.'

'THE DARKNESS WILL REMAIN.'

'BELLS RING SWEET ACROSS THE MEADOW.'

'THERE ARE GHOSTS HERE.'

'ANTIQUE INTERIORS.'

'ONCE UPON A RIVER.'

'THE NEW EROTIC GUEST.'

'HARD TO IMAGINE.'

'RAIN TOWN.'

'THE PHANTOM PALACE OF THE PRINCE OF DREAMS.'

'IN A HAUNTED ARCADE.'

'SOFT LIGHT.'

'THIS GILDED AGE.'

'LOST IN THE COSMOS AGAIN.'

'THE STARS BEGAN TO GLOW.'

'WHEN ART SCHOOLS SHAPED TOMORROW.'

I also have a very raw monitor mix of the track 'The Stars Began To Glow' which is just as it was recorded, without any eq, fader moves, compression or effects added. It sounds very immediare and works well in its own right so I may try to include that on the album as a bonus track, though I fear there may not be enough space. If so, it will be included when the album is later released as a digital download. But the initial release will be a limited edition CD only.,

Just about to start work on what will be the 16th piece of music I've created for the 'Old Haunts' album. I've no idea, at this stage, whether all 16 tracks will fit on the album, but once this final track is mixed, I'll begin to work out a running order and see how the timings shape up.

It may be that one track has to be dropped, or perhaps, (hopefully,) all 16 tracks will fit on the album with no problem. We'll see....

It will be interesting to hear all the tracks in some sort of cohesive order. I've not listened back to them for a while, just concentrated on the next piece of music being recorded and, as usual, things develop and change. It's often not until the final stages that I get a proper 'handle' on an album and what it really means, so this next step is crucial.

I'll post the full list of all 16 track titles soon, but the running order will come later after some careful deliberation.

Unfortunately, you won't be able to hear the album until November when the launch party at The Clothworker's Hall will be held. But, I can promise you that this is going to be something special! And it will be the very last album recorded on my 'about to retire' Mackie hardware recording system. In the next few weeks I'll be changing over to the new computer-based Cubase system and I will need some time to get used to the completely different way that things are recorded. It will certainly slow me down for a while, but hopefully, not for too long.... Much music to make yet!

And another...

Another spooky 'Old Haunts' flyer...

The one before the Leeds one is my favourite, bit of a Shambles though........😉

Also ... if you ever collaborate with Bill Sharpe (Shakatak, Sharpe & Numan, Jah Wobble/Bill Sharpe, etc.) 😎

And another nice flyer for 'Old Haunts', this one using an old photo' of Leeds. Note the shop on the right whose name reads 'Nelson and Sharpe.'

Another 'Old Haunts' flyer...

Nine tracks now completed for 'Old Haunts.' (Eight vocals and one instrumental.) The instrumental track is titled 'The Phantom Palace Of The Prince Of Dreams' and has a slightly spooky, middle-eastern feel. I plan to start work on another instrumental track today, possibly a loop-based piece. I'm aiming at a 12 track album but need to get it finished by the end of the month when I plan to switch off my old studio gear for the last time and start the process of changing to the new software based system. That will, of course, call a halt to my recording energies until the new system is up and running and I've had time to learn how to operate it. Luckily, I still have several finished albums waiting for release so there will be plenty of new music to bring to you.

Meanwhile, here's an 'Old Haunts' flyer using another view of the old Butlins Holiday camp that was situated between Reighton Gap and Filey on the East coast of Yorkshire, back in the 1950s.

They’re likely talking about the size of that organ…

.

I agree, Bill. This one is a perfect fit. The organ, the way the women are so engaged in their conversation. To me, this image screams of old haunts.

A big art-deco theatre organ in an old pub...a perfect fit for 'Old Haunts'...

There’s something about this latest one with the green, draws me in. It’s also like a book cover.

Another flyer for 'Old Haunts.' This one is a deliberately distressed photograph of the interior of the Reighton Gap bungalow that belonged to my parent's friends, Herman and Ada Ackroyd and where the Nelson family sometimes had seaside holidays in the 1950s. The photo was taken way back then, I think by myself when I was just a very young boy, probably using the little Kodak camera I had at that time. It is one of only two surviving photo's of the bungalow's interior. A genuine 'old haunt.'

I like how you've treated the photograph. It has a very melancholy air. What you're suggesting with, Old Haunts has a 'Dreamland To Starboard' feel about it to me (I hope). That album was a delivered in spades on a great idea. The treated sounds (with a kind of added 'audio patina') were very evocative. Is this the sort of thing we can maybe look forward to. A cross between Dreamland to Starboard and Dymamos and Tremolos maybe ?

Beautiful tempering of images! It will be another corker!

Here's another flyer for 'Old Haunts.' This is from a photograph of a steam train entering Westgate Station in the 1950s. That neo-gothic clock tower was part of the station and one of Wakefield's landmarks. Sadly, both the clock tower and the station were long ago demolished by an irresponsible Wakefield council.

And here's the original photo' I created the above flyer from...

Awaiting visitations from friendly ghosts ....