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Wednesday 9th March 2005 -- 1:49 pm A quick diary entry today. Lots going on. Have now finished 16 pieces of music for my latest guitar instrumental album and I'm trying to settle on the correct running order. As I mentioned here before,12 tracks is my goal but it's good to have more to choose from. I'm hoping that, by my next diary entry, I'll have a final list to announce. (And an idea of when it will be available.) This task is occupying me almost full time but I think it will be well worth all the effort. Now, I have a special message to convey: Regular users of the Rooms With Brittle Views website will have noticed that it was no longer in existence today, due to webmaster Alan Myer's switching it off for good. Unfortunately, it seems that Alan no longer felt that he could spare the time and energy to operate the site and, sadly, has decided to close it down. Like many others, I want to express my thanks to Alan for his input over the last five years and for doing his best to maintain the site under sometimes difficult circumstances. I'd hoped that Alan might have felt like continuing his site alongside the forthcoming 'Dreamsville' one but it was not to be. Alan's day-to-day business has increasingly taken up more of his time of late and maintaining RWBV has become an obstacle. As I have said in earlier diary entries, I have no desire to add further pressures to Alan's situation and I wish him well and hope that he will find life somewhat easier without the time-consuming responsibility of running a BN fan site. Which brings me to the future... We are reasonably close to opening up the new Dreamsville website, which it now seems will have to function in a slightly different capacity to the one I originally planned. I'm looking at ways to develop the new site in a broader direction, providing some of the facilities to fans left by the closure of RWBV. By this, I mean more than just the production and distribution of my recordings, which was the original reason for starting Dreamsville. This will obviously be a little more time-consuming for me but, because of the help I've been generously offered by various people who have already contributed to RWBV's past existence, I think everyone will eventually be satisfied by our efforts. I'm now looking at setting up a discussion board to replace the loss of Northern Dreamer so that fans will continue to have a place to meet and talk. Eventually, this will be incorporated within the Dreamsville site. It will take the form of a 'pub' which, for the moment, is to be called 'The Dreamsville Arms'. This pub will be located within an area of the site known as 'The Pleasure Park' . The Pleasure Park will hold various buildings connected with general entertainment, including a 'box office' where live concert tickets and so on can be purchased on line. There will also be a facility to secure tickets to special fan events such as the annual fan convention which we're hoping to put in place as before, perhaps in an expanded form. More news of this as it develops. The Pleasure Park will also contain 'The Guitar Arcade', an essential building to visit for anyone with an interest in guitars and guitar playing. Dreamsville is a fictional town and it's various buildings will have different functions. There will be a 'Villa Nelsonia' where my diary entries will be found. Villa Nelsonia will also contain other odd musings. Then, there will be 'Dreamsville Town Hall' which will act as a central office for the site. Here is where the 'Mayor of Dreamsville' will reside. The Mayor will act as a public interface for fans and will work closely with myself on the development of Dreamsville itself. My good friend Jon Wallinger has kindly volunteered to fulfill this role and will become the official 'Mayor Of Dreamsville' the moment that the site goes on line. The Town Hall will also contain a guide to the site and regular messages from The Mayor and The Architect's Department about the ongoing development plans. In the Architect's Department, a team will work on the site's structure. Obviously, I will be overseeing this with the help of my long-time design collaborator David Graham and also with technical assistance from Paul Gilby and others. News will be handled by the newspaper office of 'The Dreamsville Rocket'. This will be a fairly regular news bulletin with the visual look of a newspaper. People will be able to subscribe to this for free and will be sent e-mails linking them to each new edition. It will contain visual treats as well as text. Copies of 'The Dreamsville Rocket' will be archived at the newspaper office in the town. Another building will be 'The Museum Of Memory' . This will hold my personal memorabilia and photographs from my private life. Much of the material contained here will not have been seen by the public before. 'The Academy Of Art' will contain examples of my visual work, 'The Music Salon' will document my musical career and 'The Dreamsville Department Store' will provide a facility for people to obtain my recordings, both old and new, plus other merchandise. 'The Post Office' will contain a guest book for visitors to Dreamsville to sign. 'The Transit Lounge' will be where links to other interesting sites can be found and 'Dreamsville University' will provide an unusual educational facility where all kinds of odd ideas will be gathered together. 'Sunny Bungalow' , a sweet looking 1930's style building, will contain photo's of my toy collection and other kitsch collectables. And so on and so forth... More things will be added to the town as time goes on, including a radio station and a cinema if the technical side of things works out. A LOT of work to get it up to full strength but all websites have to start somewhere and, with determination and patience (and some encouragement from the outside world), we should eventually end up with something quite special and unique. Until the first stage of the site goes on line, these diary pages will act as a news bulletin as well as a regular diary. As soon as facilities are in place for people to subscribe to the Dreamsville mailing list, I will let everyone know and we can start to populate Dreamsville with real citizens. Keep checking billnelson.com and this diary to stay in touch. More news as it happens. Now it's back to working on the new album. Its title, by the way is: 'ROSEWOOD... Ornaments And Graces For Acoustic Guitar'. It will be released on my own 'SONOLUXE' record label. A rough draft of the artwork already underway. Patience, dear reader and... Stay tuned! Top of page Friday 18th March 2005 -- 6:00 pm Rosewood now has a front cover. Dave Graham and I finally arrived at the best solution. It's appropriate, colourful and fun... It has fish on it! And electrical circuits! And a guitar! Now I have to make and choose images for the rest of the package. Went out and took more photographs of an old Hoyer archtop guitar of mine for this purpose but need to work with these in my computer before passing on to Dave for him to work his layout magic. I've now recorded 24 pieces of music to choose from for the album but haven't begun the final selection process. It's going to be difficult to boil them down to my intended 12 track running order. The one's that don't fit will be made available on this year's Nelsonica convention album, so nothing will be wasted. The basic form of my Dreamsville website is at the technical assembly stage and should be up and running in a week or two. It will be in a rudimentary form at first but I'll fill it with content over the next year or two. It will look great once it's properly 'stocked.' Whilst on the subject of websites, Jon Wallinger pointed me in the direction of a temporary Bill Nelson discussion board that someone has set up. He said I should check out a posting by Alan Myers on there, so I did. When I read them, Alan's comments came as a real disappointment to me as I've always been appreciative of Alan's website (and Mark and Chuck's too, for that matter), and have tried to offer what input and help I could over the years as well as be supportive of events Alan asked me to endorse. I know that Alan has had some difficult personal times of late and can only think that these have contributed to the underlying bitterness suggested by his posting. What a shame. I won't comment further other than to say that the only reason I've had to look at ways of putting a website of my own together was a direct result of Alan telling people, last year, that he was shutting down his site. And yes, as I once pointed out to some people who were getting far too unhealthily wrapped up in things, it is only a website and, in fairness to Permanent Flame, RWBV was neither the first or only Bill Nelson website on the planet, just the one that I was once pursuaded to contribute most towards. I had hoped that Alan might, once he'd come to terms with his personal life, seen fit to continue the site alongside Dreamsville, as a purely fan oriented site, which is what it was supposed to be when it began, but it seems that was simply naive of me. After all the previous co-operation between us, I'm extremely sorry that Alan has seen fit to make such negative comments in public. What's the point in that, other than to cause damage and distress to myself and my friends? But, needless to say, there's probably much more to this sad story than meets the eye. I'm personally upset but, from past experience, not at all surprised. So... perhaps it really was for the best, after all, despite my initial doubts. Life's way too short for these kind of intrigues, especially at my advanced age (and with the amount of work I've got to accomplish before I'm too old to accomplish it). In any case, people are intelligent enough to judge the real situation for themselves without me getting involved. But at least I know where I stand now. Move on, move away. Life's stressful enough. An e-mail from Harold this morning. He's sending me a brochure from an exhibition of English watercolours that he attended. Harold's Maytime Brighton concert coming up soon. I'm trying not to get too nervous about it at this stage. Hal is his usual laid back, 'when it happens, it happens' self. For all his protestations to the contrary, he's one of the most Buddha natured people I've ever met. Absolutely artistically ruthless but sweet as a nut with it. I envy him his balance. And his aesthetic gifts. Finished reading 'What Did I Do?' by Larry Rivers. I enjoyed it tremendously and ended up admiring the guy for his totally self-absorbed, passionate mission to squeeze as much out of life and art as possible and fuck himself senseless at every available opportunity. An irredeemable rogue who led a scandalous life driven by a fiery, burning intelligence. It really inspires one to cut the crap out of one's own life and make art with all the energy available. Ed Ruscha's book, (which I'm still reading), on the other hand, is cooler, more collected and, at times, as dull as dishwater. More greats gone to Valhalla: Phillip Lamantia, Arthur Miller, Hunter S. Thompson and Jimmy Smith (the latter the best organ grinder in the business). One of my planned but unnanounced live performances in May now cancelled due to venue unsuitability. So I won't announce it. Still one more up my sleeve though, besides the Harold spectacular. Now it's dinner time and then a mixing session. Next week... the Rosewood assembly begins in earnest. Top of page Wednesday 23rd March 2005 -- 9:00 am Signs of Spring on the increase and some sunshine, 'though yesterday was wet and grey. I ended up stuck in the house anyway as I suddenly found myself unable to send any e-mails. I usually deal with the first e-mails of the day immediately after breakfast and before taking my bath. Yesterday, however, I was still stuck in front of the computer at 4pm... and still in my dressing gown. The e-mail service provider I use had changed the way their system worked, now insisting on smtp authorisation. I followed the provider's website instructions to reset my e-mail settings but to no avail. My computer still wouldn't send any e-mails at all, various error messages flashing up on screen. It took me a long while and several phone calls to tech support teams to discover that the problem was with my e-mail browser software... .It basically didn't support smtp authorisation, being somewhat antiquated. Antiquated? Hell, it was only five years old! Software ages rapidly in computerland, it seems. I then had to find and download some new e-mail browser software and install it. This was accompanied by panics about whether I would lose my many thousands of stored e-mails from my older system. I eventually figured out how to make back up copies of these and installed the new software. It took only seconds to install, despite having taken almost one hour to download. Thank goodness everything worked once more and nothing was lost from my e-mail archives. I was surprised by how panicked I was by this escapade. A few years ago, before I had a computer, I poured scorn on those people who seemed unable to function out of arms reach of their PC's and Macs. I couldn't see the need for e-mails and the internet and even avoided the telephone unless it was absolutely neccesary. Now, I realise just how pathologically dependent I've become on the computer to communicate with the outside world. In some ways it's quite amazing, in other's it's sad. The truth is, I now have to give up a great deal of time to answering e-mails and dealing with computer-related activities, time that was once spent making music. My intention, yesterday, was to work on the final selection of tracks for the 'Rosewood' album. Unfortunately, this task was postponed whilst I dealt with the technical problems posed by my Mac. I'll try again today, after dealing with this diary entry. 'Rosewood' has now accumulated 27 possible tracks. As I've mentioned in these pages previously, I need to select around a dozen of these to go on the album proper, the rest being reserved for the Nelsonica Convention album. Choosing the 12 that will best work together will be difficult. The trick will be to only use tracks that work together towards a particular goal. There's some variety amongst the pieces but I think I need to make this album head off in one fixed direction, rather than become too diverse. It has elements of the 'Dreamland To Starboard' album in that it is quite 'interiorised' for want of a better word... 'Mellow' might suit it better, I don't really know. Until I start to get to grips with choosing and sequencing the running order, it's difficult to say exactly what the final effect will be. At this point in time, I'm feeling a bit clueless about it all. I recently remarked to Harold (Budd) that I approach music like a blind man with a stick. I should have qualified this further by saying, 'like a blind man with a stick approaching a dangerous highway'. I changed the titles of two or three pieces to better suit their mood. The list of possible track choices for 'Rosewood' is now made up of the following pieces: Filament Ventura Bramble Appolonian Tremolo Cascade (Improvisation For 3 Harp Guitars) Lumia See Through Nightie Lacuna William Is Wearing The Cardigan Of Light She Swings Skirt Aliumesque Tinderbox Cremona Mexico City Reflections (For Gil Evans) Little Cantina Giant Hawaiian Showboat Blues For Orpheus Autumn Tramcar (Yorkshire Raga No.2) The Girl In The Park In The Rain Blue Cloud Hi Lo La The Land Of Lost Time Swingo Collapso Rising Sap Pilgrim The Big Buick Rolling Home (Yorkshire Raga No.1) Somehow, I have to boil these down to twelve cohesive tracks for the album. I must make some progress with this today. In my last diary entry, I mentioned that one of my proposed May live performances had been cancelled due to venue unsuitability. I also mentioined that I had one more live concert up my sleeve. Well, as bad luck would have it, this also didn't work out. I had been asked to play at the Coventry Jazz Festival but the organisers seem to have changed their plan and I'm left clutching empty air. So... the only scheduled appearance for me at this point in time is at the tribute concert for Harold Budd being held as part of the Brighton Festival on the 21st of May. From three shows to one. Received a nice letter from Harold yesterday. Briefly discussing some concert performance plans but mainly talk of other things. Also got an e-mail from the Carlsbro Amplifier company. Seems that my custom, self-designed Carlsbro amp and speaker cabinet has generated a fair bit of interest and the company are proposing that they manufacture a limited edition run of the design, with my approval. Each amp would carry a metal plaque with my signature and a number to indicate its limited edition status. Apparently, quite a few people have asked if they could buy an identical amp to mine. I'm pleased it has captured some player's imaginations. Dave Graham has come up with Rosewood's CD 'on-body' label and it perfectly suits our front cover image. I still have to create the images for Dave to fit into the rest of the package and will try to make a start on this today. I could do it whilst listening to and assembling the draft running order. I'll need to book Fairview studios soon to master the album prior to manufacturing it. I'm praying that 'Rosewood' will be appreciated. Certainly, those who enjoyed my 'Dreamland To Starboard' album shouldn't find it too much of a challenge. After getting sore fingers and thumbs with the acoustic guitar at the heart of 'Rosewood', I'm itching to record some new electric guitar pieces, using a plectrum. I also ought to think about getting to grips with a new song-based vocal album. Right now, though, I'm not in a lyric-oriented mood. I'm sure that something will come to me sooner ot later... it usually does. I'm told that the launch of 'Dreamsville' is not too far away now. I'm in the hands of Adam, the technician who is building the mechanical side of the new site. I'm told he's on with the job and I'll have something to look at very soon. But, there's months and months of work ahead to get all the actual content I have in place on the site. Still, fans can watch it grow bit by bit. The idea is to get the essential stuff in place first, including the town's 'pub' (The Dreamsville Inn), where fans will be able to communicate and discuss to their heart's content over a 'virtual pint' of Dreamsville's best ale. I may even make a real bottle of 'Dreamsville Ale' available in the future, a limited brewing to be sold exclusively at Nelsonicas. I'll need to liase with a nice, small, local brewery to see how this could be manufactured and what the costs would be. Absolutely inessential, of course, but sort of fun in a surrealist way. There's no shortage of ideas for Dreamsville, just a limited amount of time available to put them into action. Ultimately, the music has to take pride of place. I've had a nice response from fans to my request for Red Noise era photos. I now have a few good ones to send off to Paul Sutton-Reeves for his 'Music In Dreamland' book. Music to be selected now, so... back to work. Top of page Tuesday 29th March 2005 -- 10:30 am Almost April. That time thing again. Life passing me by whilst I work myself into a state of stress. And for what? For what I hope will be a beautiful body of music. I complain, I endure, no matter what the turn of events. In an apparently meaningless world, music is the one illusion of meaningfulness that I cling to. My personal, proud folly. I've been struggling and struggling with the running order for my 'Rosewood' album. I'd hoped to keep the track count down to twelve tracks but couldn't slim it down beyond nineteen. (The total recorded now stands at 29 pieces of music.) Listening back to my choice of nineteen tracks in the correct sequence, I was struck by how rich the listening experience was. Perhaps too rich for some people. I worried that it might overwhelm the listener and be difficult to take in at one sitting, thereby diluting its impact. So... I eventually decided to split Rosewood into two separate albums. Not a double album set, but two individual volumes: 'Rosewood Volume One' and 'Rosewood Volume Two'. That way, I won't be frustrated by losing some of the music to lesser projects and the album's audience can access the music in two, much more easily digested, chunks. Having said that, the track count on Rosewood Volume one is still more than my original twelve track target. But at least it is fifteen tracks now and not nineteen. And, more importantly, it works a treat. I listened through to a draft CD-r assembly of it last night and I think it constitutes some of my finest work. It's intense, emotional, thoughtful and spontaneous and very musical, avoiding the fashionably glamourous lure of 'avant-guardism'. I guess you could say it's a mature work. Or as mature as my Peter Panic nature will allow. I think that the final track listing for Rosewood Volume One will be as follows: Blues For Orpheus Escondido Oleander Lumia Filament Lacuna Cascade (Improvisation For Three Harp Guitars) She Swings Skirt Mexico City Dream (For Gil Evans) Ventura The Girl In The Park In The Rain Apollonian Tremolo Giant Hawaiian Showboat Cremona The Land Of Lost Time Sleepless In The Ticking Dark I e-mailed Dave Graham the sleeve notes, credits and track listing last night so that he can lay them into our design package. The album artwork is virtually complete for volume one. It looks really strong and features a lot of my photography. A package as rich as the music it contains. The next task is to assemble a running order for volume two of the album. Dave is already making draft layouts and I need to sort out which remaining tracks fit where. I suspect though, that I'll record at least couple more pieces of music for this to balance out volume two's 'feel'. Rosewood, for all its acoustic implications, is a dense and complex piece of work. It has taken a real bite out of my being, one way or another. I've worked on Rosewood all through the Easter weekend (and for the last couple of months as well). Emi is off work for a week as the flower shop is closed whilst its owner goes on holiday to Egypt. Our lot is far less exotic. Emi gave the kitchen a spring clean yesterday whilst I stayed hunched over my mixing desk in my workroom. We've not been anywhere. Can't really afford to anyway. My output certainly overshadows what comes in. It's been a horrendously expensive few months... so many bills and unforseen domestic expenses. Poor Emi... I'm so lucky that she understands and tolerates my almost non-stop work ethic. I'll try to take her out somewhere today. Hundreds of Caravans lined up in the field opposite... At night, each one flickers with the cathode glow of its internal television set. These folks like to get away from it all but not too far from their soaps and game shows. Or from other people. I don't really understand the attraction of spending a weekend cheek by jowl with hundreds of other campers all boxed up together in a field. Maybe it's a social thing, rather than an escape. I'd prefer to be somewhere miles away from the herd. Of course, I'm an absolutely unrepentant social misfit anyway, so that's to be expected. More and more, these days, I look at the world outside my window with a mounting sense of semi-amused horror. I'm amazed by the shabby attitudes that seem to have become the norm in our society. What happened to the idealism, optimism and enlightened ideals of our 'swinging 'sixties?' Where did our liberated and liberal attitudes go? I suppose these once sweet dreams became nothing more than cheap, easily manipulated signifiers of an impossible utopia, fodder for advertising copywriters, unimaginative designers and middle aged, one-time mods, now sofa-landlocked on an endlessly nostalgic faraway domestic atoll. Poor sods. Maybe I'm one of 'em. Saw a rough draft of the Dreamsville site last week. Some things need a bit of a tweak. The trick is balancing graphic visual quality with practical download times. Something of a trade-off. The site is still in the hands of the technical chap and being knocked into digital shape, 'though the main visual components have been completed. I'm hoping we can launch the site fairly soon. But I've said that before. The consolation in all of this is that I don't want to just 'knock something up' for the sake of getting the site in place. It needs to be right. It will be, as I've also said before, an open-ended, ongoing project... something that will be developed slowly and carefully with attention to aesthetic detail. An extension of my musical and personal life, rather than a peripheral thing. I really need to escape from my room today... health suffering again, various aches and pains, twinges, numbnesses, a general feeling of being drained, exhausted even. I really ought to limit how much of myself I allow to be damaged by all this stuff. My own fault entirely of course. I can't even begin to address the problem. I'm hardly likely to change the habit of a lifetime at this stage of the game. If I really wanted to, if I genuinely felt more than just a romantic revulsion for this arty-farty lifestyle, I would. Throw it all away. It's obviously a tender trap I'm caught in and my wriggling is nothing more than a token defiance. Well... there you go. In the end, I submit to the painful deliciousness of it all. What a loser, what a lucky guy. Top of page William's Study (Diary Of A Hyperdreamer) March 2005 Feb Dec Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2013

Confessions Of A Hyperdreamer 2-CD album set - 10 February 1997 Bill Nelson Albums Menu Future Past CD 1 - Weird Critters: 01) Rain And Neon 02) Candyland 03) Birds And Blue Stuff 04) Radiated Robot Men 05) Coney Island 06) Weird Critters 07) Golden Satellites 08) The Brotherhood Of Sleeping Car Porters 09) Quarter Moons And Stars 10) Wonder Story 11) Cool Blue Heaven 12) Far Too Flip 13) Realm Rider 14) Angels In Arcadia Purchase this download CD 2 - Magnificent Dream People: 01) Sun At Six Windows 02) Bird Ornaments 03) My Favourite Atom 04) The Girl I Never Forgot 05) Circle The World In A Paper Canoe 06) Queer Weather 07) Astro-Coaster 08) Brutal Tinkerbell 09) The Waltz At The End Of The World 10) Secret Agent At Science Park 11) The Twentieth Century 12) Aura Hole 13) Radiant Nature Knows Not The Worker's Sorrow 14) Essoldo Stripshow Purchase this download ALBUM NOTES: Confessions of a Hyperdreamer is the fourth and final album for Resurgence and was a double album of archive material recorded over the period 1992-95, issued on the Populuxe imprint. The set forms the second volume of the My Secret Studio series of releases and comprises two albums, Weird Critters and Magnificent Dream People . The albums were presented in separate jewel cases inside an outer slip case with no extra paraphernalia, and very little information beyond a simple sleeve note. Three quarters of the material was recorded at Tape Recorder Cottage, with the rest coming from Fairview. Although publicised on the artwork, the fan club Nelsonian Navigator would soon be no more, having lasted for just 6 magazines (considerably fewer than Acquitted by Mirrors). Nelson's career from here on would rely almost exclusively on websites as a publicity platform. PAST RELEASES: Just over a year after its release as a double album, the component parts of Confessions of a Hyperdreamer would be reissued as two separate albums, again on Populuxe. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Both Weird Critters and Magnificent Dream People are available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . SAMPLES: The samples in "Rain and Neon", "Radiated Robot Men", "Bird Ornaments" and "Circle the World" are lifted from Charles Bukowski reading his poetry. "Brutal Tinkerbell" (from Magnificent Dream People ): "There are several thousand questions…I'd like to ask you" - Sam Jaffe (as Professor Jacob Barnhardt) from The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951). BILL'S THOUGHTS: "[The small black-and-white drawing seen at the upper-right-hand corner of the covers of Magnificent Dream People and Weird Critters is] a very quickly executed rough sketch I made to send to the package layout designer to represent the collage I'd made for the front cover of the set. (I often sketched out my design ideas in rudimentary form to show how I wanted the finished thing to look). In this instance the package layout artist, (who, if I recall correctly, was Mike Innes), said that he really liked my rough sketch and that he'd like to incorporate it into the package design in some way. So it was used as a little motif throughout the package. If you have the original complete set, you will see that this drawing represents the front cover with the dreaming man in his armchair, the jukebox and the flying car." _____ "Of course, the guitar is the focus of my instrumental energies and seems to be what people generally associate me with, but I do take care over the other instrumentation on my recordings. When it comes to synths, pianos, marimba, bass guitar, mandolin, harmonica, drums or drum-programming, I do try to find something that works within the song. But I'm no virtuoso so it can sometimes take me awhile to get it right! I've no formal education in music so can't deal with it in academic terms...it's simply trial and error and instinct...like a potter putting his hands on wet clay and pushing it around until a shape emerges. You might say that it involves a great deal of trust, the belief that something worthwhile will be the result of the initial uncertainty. Anyway, it works for me..." _____ "Only yesterday Emiko was remembering her spoken performance on "Astro-Coaster", which really brings some charm to that track." FAN THOUGHTS: jetboy: "gorgeous, sexy, MAGNIFICENT indeed..." Paul Andrews: Weird Critters : "I love that album, there's a lot of humour and playfulness involved in it." Johnny Jazz: Magnificent Dream People : "I just never tire of listening to this one. Such an all encompassing snapshot of instrumental style." eddie: Magnificent Dream People : "This is an overlooked masterpiece." Returningman: Weird Critters : "Just listened to this album in detail on the headphones and wanted to state again that it's a thing of beauty. From the Charles Bukowski snippets, the sublime backwards (and forwards!) guitars lines, the nod back to Quit Dreaming , this is one perfect album. The other half of this set (Magnificent Dream People ) is as magnificent as the title would indicate as well." Holer: "I've been stuck in a Weird Critters mode again too. Another great 'sleeper' record from Bill's back catalog. I love it when Bill gets the Weirdness bug up his ass from time to time, and that album is a prime example of sheer weird goofy fun." stormboy: "My favourite track by a long way is "Aura Hole" - the breakbeat/piano mix is inspired - one of the best bits of keyboard work in the whole of Bill's catalogue in my humble opinion...I love the flow of this piece - it feels like you just let yourself go and hit everything just right...The production is fantastic, too - from the stereo panning of the beat to the absolutely-right reverb on the piano - fantastic!" Dar: "Secret Agent at Science Park": "Now THAT'S some wankin', crankin', spankin' GUITAR work." "Candyland": Some of Bill's nastiest playing, and lyrically, right up there with "He and Sleep Were Brothers", for Mondo-A-Go-Go imagery." aquiresville: "Astro-Coaster" and "Secret Agent at Science Park": "...both super-tasty, jet-packin' superior Bill instrumentals (wildly wonderful guitar muscle-flexing on "Secret Agent!") "Angels in Arcadia": "is also one of my morning "must play" tracks -- such a wonderful power, tinged with sad-smile melancholia, a golden "walk into the sunset/end credits" ballad! Lovely!" Parsongs: "Bird Ornaments": "The e-bow tone sends shivers up my spine every time..." alec: "Far Too Flip": "always feels like...a sense of something to do with a Jazz Woodbine-like chuckle with an I'm-Super-Baad swagger, a sense of bemusement and optimism, and built-in coolness, especially as personified by the bass. I'd have to say that "Far Too Flip" is also a 'Surreal' 'n 'Sensual', maybe even 'Lusty' as well." "Golden Satellites": "is kind of slinky and sexy, weird and quirky, finger-snapping, chug-along, like finding a stack of unmarked cash." Phil: "I had to smile whilst reading Volume 1 of Bill's autobiography and discovered that his first two-wheeler bicycle was a 'Dawes Realm Rider'. I just had to dig out my copy of Confessions of a Hyperdreamer : My Secret Studio Volume II and play the "Realm Rider" track from the Weird Critters album. Now, the track does conjure up all sorts of images for me, but I wouldn't list a bicycle amongst them. Maybe the inspiration for the track also lies within the pages of the autobiography, when Bill mentions that in the imagination the bike was transformed into a trusty steed." Merikan1: "Try Confessions of a Hyperdreamer . This is sort of a "bridge" between the older and newer styles." Comsat Angel: "Weird Critters /Magnificent Dream People were the albums that I re-discovered Bill with, and caused me to buy sixty albums or so over the following 8 months..." Albums Menu Future Past

Joy Through Amplification Bill Nelson album - 9 July 2012 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) Ampex One 02) Sex Magic 03) Ampex Two 04) Vortexion Dream 05) Ampex Three 06) The Conjurer's Companion (Every Blessed Thing Is So Damned Fragile) 07) Ampex Four 08) Orpheus Dreams Of Disneyland 09) Ampex Five 10) Imps In The Undergrowth 11) Ampex Six 12) Arco Volta 13) Ampex Seven 14) Fire Gods Of The National Machine 15) Ampex Eight 16) To What Strange Place Will This Transport You? 17) Ampex Nine 18) Heaven Holds A Grand Parade 19) Ampex Ten 20) Weather Blows Wild Inside My Head 21) Ampex Eleven 22) Why Does It Do That? 23) Ampex Twelve 24) These Tall Blue Days (Are Lark Amazed) 25) Ampex Xtra 26) Monsters From Heaven (Flowers And Rain) ALBUM NOTES: Joy Through Amplification: The Ultra-Fuzzy World of Priapus Stratocaster is an album combining vocal and brief instrumental pieces, issued in a one off print run of 1000 copies on the Sonoluxe label. The main title for the album, Joy Through Amplification , was revealed on the Dreamsville forum in May 2011, and was intended for an album of songs written specifically for a five piece band (Combo Deluxe) that Nelson had hoped to form to undertake a UK tour in 2012. A small number of songs were completed by July 2011, but with a number of projects competing for time and material throughout a hectic year, Nelson struggled to make significant progress on the album for the remainder of 2011. Eventually the planned tour came to nothing, but Nelson retained the main title, and added an elaborate subtitle for an album that was somewhat different in content than initially intended. Most of the work on Joy Through Amplification was completed in the first six weeks of 2012, and it was during this period when the idea of alternating each song with one of the series of 'Ampex' instrumentals was formed. Nelson went on to describe the instrumental segments as "an album within an album", inviting fans to listen to these pieces in isolation from the full album. On the day the album was being mastered at Fairview Studios, Nelson decided to add an extra track, "Monsters from Heaven", which had originally been destined to appear on The Dreamshire Chronicles . The album's arrival was celebrated with its own launch party, staged on 9 July 2012. At this event, held at The Leeds Club (in Leeds), Nelson took part in a Q&A session in front of an audience of sixty paying guests, who each received a signed copy of the album and a signed limited edition art print on the night. Nelson's profile was aided by a few reviews of the album in the major publications. The album sold out on 14 October 2015. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . BILL'S THOUGHTS: "Just to, er, arouse your curiosity, I'm currently working on a very peculiar instrumental album with the working title of The Mysterious Echo Chamber of Priapus Stratocaster . (I kid you not!) "This album contains a weird mix of long form and shorter pieces and features odd moments of wild, madman at the helm guitar solos, (ring modulated, overdriven and wah-wahed to Alpha Centuri and back), but set into unlikely frameworks. It may trigger thoughts of the worst excesses of rock guitar imaginable but, at the same time, it's fused seamlessly with music similar in feel to some of the tracks on the Non-Stop Mystery Action , Theatre of Falling Leaves , and Captain Future's Psychotronic Circus albums. A wry blend of the sophistiCAT sublime, (meow...) and the spandex ridiculous. (And probably some of my nastiest, semi-atonal rock guitar lunacy since "The Revenge of the Man in the Burning Ice Cream Van".) "Those of you with a taste for the genuinely perverse will, I trust, love it!" _____ "Have been working somewhat intensely on Joy Through Amplification : The Fuzzy World of Priapus Stratocaster. It's turning out to be a neo-psychedelic, techno-metal album, (much as predicted). Hard, abrasive yet melodic and ecstatic too...a densely rich mix of guitar/vocal ideas with everything pumped up to the max. Headbanging for people with a library ticket? Well...hard to describe it accurately...you'll just have to wait and see... "For those of you who have been hankering for something rougher and grittier...this one may well float your leaky boat." _____ "The album is, in some ways, a response to those who have wanted a rock album from me. I could have done a '70s style, Be Bop Deluxe sort of thing, but there's little fun for me in that as I covered those bases all those years ago...so I thought I'd do something even more rock than Be Bop, but push it out of shape a little whilst incorporating some of the stylised machismo elements that real rock bands take so seriously, (much to my amusement!). So there's some chugging, deliberately dumb and dirty riffs, squalling wah-wah guitars, semi-moronic drumming and even a touch of shredding." _____ "I'm also now experimenting with another approach to the album. I'm separating each main track or song with a series of brief, (all under two minutes), ambient-ish, minimalist guitar instrumentals or soundscapes, completely at odds with the main songs. I want these to function as 'palate cleansers', a glass of fresh water between the thickly sauced meats of the main dishes. I'm giving these little miniatures a group title: They will all be called 'AMPEX' but will carry a number. (So: 'Ampex One,' 'Ampex Two,' etc.). When I have enough 'Ampex' pieces I'll try to re-sequence the songs on the album with an 'Ampex' track between each, to break up the relentless textures of the album. It might just bring the project more into line with my own sensibilities. Or, of course, these 'Ampex' tracks might persuade me that they should have an album of their own. We'll see." _____ "These little quirky guitar gems between tracks are very promising. The guitar sounds are quite processed and often un-guitar like...some people would think they're keyboard sounds, but they're not. Just filtered, delayed, reversed and digitally re-pitched electric guitars. Short and sweet. A nice contrast to the main tracks on the album. (And a gentle challenge to the more rock-oriented types who might not normally give time to such things)." _____ "The title 'Ampex' comes from the name of an analogue tape manufacturer whose reels of recording tape I used back in the '80s prior to my home studio going digital. It also fits in with the word 'Amplification'." _____ " 'Priapus Stratocaster' is, (in my feverish imagination), the ivy festooned god of loud guitars and woodland frolics...a close cousin of Pan, Bacchus and Hermes...round of belly, jovial in demeanour, cloven hoofed and upright of staff. Constantly in pusuit of the most ecstatic guitar solo and comely turn of ankle!" _____ "I've invented the persona of 'Priapus Stratocaster' for the album, Priapus being the Greek god responsible for the protection of fruit, gardens and male genitalia. He's usually depicted with a rather gargantuan erect phallus, chasing some diaphanous maiden or other. I thought it amusing to name a fictional, cartoon-like rock god after him. Adding 'Stratocaster' as his surname competed the joke as many rock guitarists weild Fender Stratocaster guitars in a crotch-humping, phallic manner. Factor in some virtual tight spandex pants, big hair and hysterical male posturing to complete the picture and there you have it: 'The Ultra Fuzzy World of Priapus Stratocaster'." _____ "Oh, and there's a sense of mickey-taking in the album's sub-title...I mean, 'Priapus Stratocaster?' C'mon, it's a jokey reference to 'cock rock,' is it not? The album is not quite as straightforward as it might at first seem...it's the work of a sly prankster. (Which is why one of the images is of a clown guitar)." _____ "I've never stopped making rock music, I've just expanded my musical base to include things on the fringe of it, and sometimes outside it entirely. And I've attempted to cross breed the form, to create interesting hybrids that might inspire the listener to listen beyond his or her 'comfort zone.' (And to get me to play outside of my comfort zone too)." _____ "Noisy as Hell and beautiful as Heaven!" _____ Bill's Listening Notes for the album: 'Joy Through Amplification' Listening Notes FAN THOUGHTS: John Spence: "Well now...what an enjoyable day with Bill. Downloading and mastering tracks for Joy Through Amplification . You people are in for a real treat. If you love guitars you'll love this. If you love songs you'll love this. I'll say no more. I have the best job in the world but days like today make it very, very special." _____ aquiresville: "It's a complex, intricate, adult guitar-bash-up, it's a swagger and a hip-shake with poetry to boot, it's a wild marathon with some lovely "breathers" thrown in (so we can recuperate, before diving in again). It IS Joy Through Amplification ." "JTA is, in my humble opinion, Bill's greatest postmillennial piece of work (so far...! We want MORE, Bill!)" "It's hard to ignore "Sex Magic" as one of the best on the album; Bill coaxes his guitar to soar and moan so freaking delightfully! Had this track a bit of crowd noise, a hardcore fan could close his eyes and hear it as a "lost" Be Bop Deluxe offering (as Bill alludes to in his notes, with the sonic DNA from "Panic")! "THIS is exactly what we want to hear, Bill. Bravo, Bill, and Thank You. More. Bring it on." GettingOnTheBeam: "The songs jump out at you, with maybe the highest energy level of a Bill cd in years. This is Bill's celebration of the instrument he loves, and a celebration of what he can do with it. And that celebration comes through loud and clear." "Unbelievable guitar work. This is why for me Bill is the best guitarist ever, and by far the best songwriting guitarist ever! (A lot of the technical guys aren't much for writing.)" "For me, JTA is the best release of Bill's career. I have not tired of it yet, and play tracks from it regularly. A high energy songwriting Masterpiece." seantere: "Utterly fantastic. Man! You can still rip the hell out of a guitar!" BobK: "The interlude pieces which commence the album and separate the songs: these are short quirky and fascinating.They serve in three separate ways. As individual soundscapes in their own right, the calm before the storm, and indeed the calm after the storm. This works extremely well. As for the songs. Wow. Enigmatic lyrics, sly references lyrically and musically to old classics. They are melodic, catchy, but frequently edgy. Well structured, but prone to going off on a tangent. Some lovely guitar tones here. A little edgier, a little angrier, but BN being BN it is always tasteful and melodic. This is a very special album that should be cranked up, (as indeed it was on Friday night!). It will appeal to those who hanker for rock songs, who love BN's guitar playing, his singing, his gift of melody and love a bit of quirky weirdness." Dar: "The alternating structure of Ampex - Rock - Ampex is unique and interesting, but this also quickly gets more interesting. I found the Ampexii (Ampexes or Ampexions?) acting like strange and wonderful dimensional portals, wormhole tunnels of sound and subtle music, transferring me from one Nelsonian realm to the next." "Congratulations on a genuine masterwork." Face In The Rain: "Imps in the Undergrowth": "wonderful grungy guitar! Had it on in the car yesterday - my teenage son was bobbing his head in approval!" Alan: "I'm really enjoying the album. Although, there seems to be a glitch in my CD, as it keeps returning to "Arco Volta"..." tom fritz: "The Conjurer's Companion": "a seriously rocking number, great drums pounding. Staggered rhythm guitars, jazzy lead fills, fantastic lyrics. Then comes one of Bill's great strengths: the magic outro. It's like a completely different tune when this happens. One of those "play that again" moments." MondoJohnny: "I've been listening to the album since I got it yesterday and I haven't made it through because I keep having to stop and replay songs!" "Bill can be very deep and artistic but he can also just rock your socks off! Sometimes he gives you a gummi bear and other times he give you a multi vitamin. They are both excellent in their own way." "I've been listening to this album, and wow! Bill's still got it. This album is rock but it's something more. I was thinking about what decade it sounded like...and my answer was...now? It sounds like right now! Not what's happening now, or what happened last week, but this very minute. I haven't heard another rock album that sounds like this one. Its really something special." swampboy: "Bill made a comment in one of his posts that this album "just barks". I have to disagree. It HOWLS!! I finally received my copy a few days ago, and it took a few listens to start absorbing it. It really is a pitbull of an album that grabs you by the ears and doesn't let go until the last note fades out. It rocks harder than anything else he's ever done, and commands your attention at every turn. Once again, Mr. Nelson manages to both surprise and satiate us once again." "After repeated listenings, I find that the ampexes remind me of rest periods between rounds in a boxing match. Bill bobs and weaves, jabs and punches with his guitar. At the end of each round, we're given a minute or two to recover before the next round. Bill wins with a TKO, and we're dazed, but happy." steviegray: "One thing I can say about Bill Nelson since he started releasing records, there is no genre to define him. His guitar playing is just incredible and he is one of those guitarists who you know he's playing, nobody can imitate and get away with it!" chymepeace: "Completely brilliant. Gets better with each listen. Simply stunning. Thanks Bill. How you keep it fresh and exciting is a mystery but I'm very glad you do." REG: "In a career featuring so many highlights, this album still manages to stand out, an absolute triumph." Albums Menu Future Past

Viva Lava Liva 1980 - 1983 album - 1984 Sandii & the Sunsetz Production/Contribution Menu Future Past BILL: Nelson is credited with writing the lyrics for one song, "Walk Away". Production/Contribution Menu Future Past

Acquitted By Mirrors Acquitted By Mirrors was a quarterly magazine first published in 1982, given as part of the annual subscription to Bill Nelson's fan club of the same name. Issue 1 - Published Early 1982 Issue 2 - Published June 1982 Issue 3 - Published October 1982 Issue 4 - Published December 1982 Issue 5 - Published April 1983 Issue 6 - Published August 1983 Issue 7 - Published September 1983 Issue 8 - Published January 1984 Issue 9 - Published April 1984 Issue 10 - Published July 1984 Issue 11 - Published November 1984 Issue 12 - Published July 1985 Issue 13 - Published September 1986 Issue 14 - Published Autumn 1987 Issue 15 - Published early 1990 Please reload

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2013 William's Study (Diary Of A Hyperdreamer) November 2006 Jan Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Dec Friday 10th November 2006 -- 1:00 pm After four attempts at coming up with a suitable 8 inch by 8 inch artwork for the 'STARS ON CANVAS' exhibition and charity auction, I finally settled on the very first one I'd created. Two others went into the bin and a third I decided to give to a good friend. The canvas I've donated to the auction is called 'STARBOY' and will be exhibited at the Julie-Anne Gilbert Gallery, Arches 283a, Maderia Drive, Brighton BN2 1PT, from the 18th of November. The charity auction, (which is in aid of an organisation called 'Whoops-A-Daisy' which helps children suffering from cerebral palsy), will be held on the 26th of November. Emiko took a photograph of me holding the artwork. As usual, I was horrified by my appearance which seems to get more wizened every time a shutter clicks in my direction. All is vanity...especially in this business. Time still at a premium. I seem to be struggling to keep up, but that's always the case. I'm currently working on several pieces of art which I'm framing as gifts for the loyal and dedicated Nelsonica Team who put together the fan convention every year. I'm taking them all out to dinner in just over a week's time and will give each of them an artwork. The table is booked for ten people but I still need to complete a few more drawings to frame. I find I really have to be in the mood to come up with visual art, whereas with music, I ALWAYS seem to be in the mood. In fact I've got several musical ideas that I'd like to explore at the moment but no available time to do so. Perhaps I should list my plans for the coming months here, just to outline what I'm hoping to achieve. These are in no particular order but the future, at the moment, looks like this: 1: Repair and upgrade my Mackie hard-disk HDR 24/96 multi-track recorder and make a start on mixing the Be Bop Deluxe Decca tapes. 2: Work with Paul Sutton-Reeves towards establishing a 'coda' for his 'Music In Dreamland' book, bringing it up to date. It isn't due to be published until early next year so there's now an opportunity to update the text to include more recent developments. The book was finished almost two and a half years ago but has been delayed due to the publisher's serious illness. The latest information I have is that it will see the light of day early in 2007. 3: Upgrade my computer and video editing software and attempt to make a start on my 'Ghosts Etched On Glass' film autobiography. This will be a more sophisticated version of 'Memory Codex Number One' which I screened at this year's Nelsonica convention. 'Ghosts Etched On Glass' is planned to be part of a special live event at Leeds University's School Of Music next April. 4: Transfer some of my more recent backing tracks onto my multi-track machine and overdub lead guitar parts, then mix and assemble a running order for 'The Last Of The Gentleman Rocketeers' album that will constitute volume two of the 'Painting With Guitars' series. 5: Go through several hours' worth of previously unreleased home recordings from the 1980's and assemble an album from the best tracks. An official title for this project has yet to be decided but working title possibilities are: 'The Time Traveller's Companion,' 'Electrical Goods And Knitting Yarns,' 'An Imaginary History Of Magic. (Music To Conjure The Ghosts Of The Past)' 'Songs From A Secret Museum.' 'Snowballs And Oranges.' As usual, it's quite possible that NONE of these titles could be used and something entirely different concocted, once I've selected the album's track running order. 6: Make a special compilation album using only the oddest, most 'psychedelic,' trippy or eccentric tracks from my past home recordings and solo releases. Working title for this is: 'Superheads Recommend.' I want this to concentrate mainly on vocal songs but with perhaps a few instrumentals thrown in. It should be compiled from obscure tracks that were originally hidden away in dark corners of earlier albums plus some previously unreleased oddities along similar lines. 7: Assemble Volume One of a series of compilation albums focussing exclusively on Nelsonica recordings. These would not be literal copies of the original albums but re-sequenced tracks, set in a different context and with new packaging artwork. 8: Re-release the 'Noise Candy' recordings but as individual albums. Lenin Imports have not been in touch with me for a long time about the original release and have not responded to recent requests by my management for accounting so it's time I turned these recordings to my own advantage, rather than to anyone else's. 9: Attempt to write and record some brand new songs for an acoustic based vocal album. Possible working titles for the album are: 'Songs Of The Blossom Tree Optimists.' 'Every Blessed Thing Is So Damned Fragile.' 'December Lane.' 10: Choose and assemble a compilation album focussing exclusively on past guitar instrumentals, choosing my favourite tracks from various albums. Working titles for this project are: 'Great Northern Twang Magus.' 'The Guitar Room.' 'Six Lane Skyway' 'Like Time Machines.' Again, these are just initial titles. It could end up being something completely different. 11: Create some very short instrumental pieces, between one and two minutes in length which will become the basis of equally short video pieces. These to be made available as digital downloads from the Dreamsville Essoldo Cinema. 12: Work on the second volume of 'Diary Of A Hyperdreamer', to be published by Pomona. 13: Look at the possiblility of a select series of live concerts for next year. My idea is to stage them in interesting or unorthodox venues. 14: Work on my autobiography, 'Painted From Memory,' for publication by Sound-On-Sound. It would be nice to make this a quite lavishly illustrated book, along the lines of an art book. It should also contain an accompanying DVD. It would need to sell as a limited edition expensive item to justify the time and cost involved in its production but I think something very special might come of this. 15: Create a new, commercially available DVD, following on from 'Flashlight Dreams And Fleeting Shadows.' 16: Try to organise something around the 'Orchestra Futura' project with Theo Travis and Dave Sturt. 17: Work towards expanding the Dreamsville site, opening up the 'Museum Of Memory' and 'The Guitar Arcade.' 18: Choose certain tracks from my back catalogue to be made available as internet downloads. 19: Write and record a brand new instrumental album, placing minimalist guitar in a pure digital electronica setting. 20: Work towards an audio-visual exhibition/installation which would gather together drawings, photographs, album sleeve art and video work and present them in a gallery context with an accompanying soundtrack. This would depend on the help of fans who own some of my artwork. I would ask them to loan the pieces to the exhibition. The art would be returned to them afterwards and their names and help would be acknowledged in the catalogue and in the exhibition itself. The exhibition would need to find a sponsor to help mount it. 21: Find a choreographer/dance company who might be interested in collaborating with me in the creation of a contemporary dance piece. I've wanted to try something along these lines for many years now but have never got around to finding out if it could be practically realised. I'm not getting any younger, as they say, so I really ought to put the pedal to the metal and attempt the impossible. And that, for now, is enough. Plenty of goals to score, targets to hit. Went to Whitby last Saturday, just for the day. An absolutely glorious, fiery sunset over the town as twilight flooded the opposite end of the harbour. A breath-taking, magical moment. Unfortunately, I hadn't taken my still camera with me but did have my camcorder so, thankfully, I managed to capture some of the dramatic and beautiful light. It will be used in one of the short video downloads I'm planning. Emi and I had dinner at 'The White Horse And Griffin', as is our habit when in Whitby. On the drive home over the North Yorkshire Moors, we could see firework displays ringing the horizon. Starbursts and rocket trails. I told Emiko about my boyhood experiences of bonfire night, treacle toffee and the selection boxes of fireworks manufactured by such companies as 'Standard,' 'Lion,' 'Pains' and 'Brocks' that my father used to bring home for our own backyard display. Emi likes the idea of bonfire night, even though there's no Guy Fawks equivalent in Japan. Sunday we went to Salt's Mill at Saltaire, another fairly regular haunt for us. Emi managed a little bit of Christmas shopping. I guess mine will be the usual last minute panic, particularly as Emi will be busy at the flower shop until late on Christmas Eve. It seems like only yesterday I was taking down last year's Christmas decorations and packing them away in the cupboard under the stairs. And here it comes again, hurtling towards us driven by hyper-speed reindeers. Found some old photo's of Emiko when she was a little girl, dressed in traditional Japanese costume for a school play. They are black and white photographs but I've messed around with them and got some nice colour effects happening. I may use one or two for a future instrumental album sleeve. Went out with four of our best friends for dinner last night. A belated birthday celebration for Steve and for Emi. We went to 'San Martino' in Harrogate, an excellent restaurant that was introduced to me by my friend Paul Gilby. A very civilised, convivial evening and a further respite from my work. The last two days have seen another plunge in temperature. Feels quite wintery now. Big pullover time. I think I'll go set a log fire...ready to light later this evening. Get the smell of woodsmoke in the air. Top of page Tuesday 14th November 2006 -- 10:10 pm Spent the afternoon with Paul, (Gilby,) who is helping me to update my recording system software. He's fitted a new floppy drive and upgraded the memory of my Mackie HDR 24/96 multi-track recorder. Just a few more things to do to it tomorrow and then I'll be able to mix the Be Bop Deluxe Decca sessions for future release. Once I can set some personal time aside to deal with that, of course. Went to London last Saturday, just for the day. Emi to her usual Japanese Buddhist temple meeting, me to the Tate and the usual round of bookshops. I bought several DVD's: The original BBC TV series of Dennis Potter's 'Pennies From Heaven,' also DVD copies of films I have on VHS but wanted to secure as DVDs: 'A Kind Of Loving' and 'The Magnificent Ambersons.' I also got 'Hope and Glory' and a DVD titled 'Legends Of Western Swing' which features vintage performances by Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys, Spade Cooley and several others. Finding time to watch all these is another matter. It was the Lord Mayor's Parade and fireworks display on the Saturday too, something of which we hadn't been aware of. The city was even more busy than usual. Late afternoon, when Emi returned from her temple service, we met up with her friend Kyoko and had a drink at a Cuban bar in Wardour street, not far from where the old Marquee club once stood. As Emi and Kyoko talked about this and that, my mind drifted back to the time when Be Bop Deluxe performed at The Marquee in 1974. We were booked to support a band called 'String Driven Thing.' It was at that same Marquee Club gig that we were finally signed by EMI Records, an event which led to our first ever album, 'Axe Victim.' In one of my ancient sketchbooks, I have a very rapidly executed drawing of the Marquee's interior that I scratched out under dim lights, whilst bored and waiting for our sound check. (I think one of the figures depicted in the sketch is our then manager, Colin Mawston.) I was thrilled to be playing there, on the exact same stage that my teenage heroes, such as Jeff Beck, Jimi Hendrix and The Who, had performed on in the '60's. That creaky old platform held a special magic for me, as did the tiny, scruffy dressing room behind the stage itself. Several years later, when they demolished the club, I was saddened. It played an important part in the history of British pop culture and should really have been preserved. But so much that should be saved is lost. (And so much that is preserved isn't worth the preserving.) One of the half-wild cats that live in the environs of our house fell sick on Sunday evening. A tiny, lovely little kitten that hasn't yet been given a name by us but has become one of our favorites. There are five or six feral, or semi-feral cats sharing our garden with us. We put food out for them and provide a rudimentary shelter in the form of a plastic waste bin, turned on its side and placed under a garden bench. This particular, recently born kitten is the tiniest of the litter, but the most affectionate and characterful. She is mostly a dark, cloudy grey colour with little patches of ginger and white. A little bumble bee of a thing. I took to her from first setting eyes on her when her mother, a gentle and elegant tabby we call 'Gizmo,' carried her round to our front door, as if the kitten were an offering to us. The kitten was fine midday on Sunday, before Emi and I went into town for the afternoon. Dancing around and mischievous. When we came back home, the other four feral cats all ran out to greet us, as is their custom, but the tiny kitten wasn't to be seen. After a few moments she emerged, painfully slowly, from the aforementioned shelter. She could hardly walk. We picked her up and took her into the house. There was fluid dripping from her mouth. We wrapped her in a thick towel and placed her in a shallow carboard box and watched her anxiously. It looked as if she was dying. I decided to call an emergency vet's number and made arrangements to take the kitten to a surgery not too far away from our home. I was informed that, as it was Sunday and an out of hours call, that it would be expensive. I coudn't have forgiven myself if the kitten had died without me giving it a chance of survival, no matter how slim, so I agreed to the fee and Emi and I drove to the vetinary surgery, the kitten still wrapped in the towel in the cardboard box. The lady vet, who was very sympathetic and pleasant examined the kitten. She said that the poor little thing's temperature was very low and that she thought the kitten might not make it through the night. But she coudn't figure out what the problem was. One possibility may have been poisoning, she thought. She asked if we knew whether any neighbour might have left rat poison around or something similar. I couldn't see any reason for our neighbours to use such a thing as the cats normally take care of vermin and, as a result, we live in a rat-free environment. The vet gave the kitten an injection of antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs but said we should expect the worst. It sounded hopeless. We returned home with the kitten and kept her indoors, wrapped up in a towel and laid on top of a hot water bottle to try and get her temperature back up. We had to keep checking on her heatbeat and breathing as, at times, it appeared as if she'd given up the ghost. Two anxious hours later, she moved slightly, her eyes flicked open, then closed again. Emi and I knelt beside her, fearing the worst. A little while after that, she slowly appeared to be more alert, looking up at us with such a pitiful gaze. Then suddenly she sat up and, after a moment's hesitancy, hopped out of her carboard box. Within minutes, she was playing with the fringe of a carpet, trotting around the room filled with curiosity. A miracle! We kept her inside overnight. She slept in the bathroom adjoining our bedroom, apparently content, even though she'd never spent a night inside before. Now, two days later, she seems fine. We've been anxious to keep an eye on her, dreading a relapse, but, fingers crossed, she is surviving. Last night, whilst I caught a little bit of late night tv, she slept curled up on Emi's bosom, as content as content can be. I'm in two minds as to whether we should keep her in the house as a domestic pet, or let her be part of the wild bunch who live outside in our garden. I have to think of a name for her too. It's odd but I wasn't much of a cat person as a child. My parents preferred dogs. Cats were always dismissed as being 'not very nice' by mum and dad. But now, I really love cats. William Burroughs adored them too and Jean Cocteau said that 'cats contain the soul of a house.' Well...I'm in total agreement with that. Looked through some photographs that Emi had taken of me at the Harold Budd farewell concert just over a year ago. I hate my appearance. That vanity thing again, I know but, I wish I could regain something of my younger appearance. Someone posted, on the website forum, an old picture of me when I used to sport dyed blonde hair. Wow! Couldn't believe it was really me. I should have been out chasing the girls looking like that instead of being Mr. Domestic. (Not that I've ever been particularly adept at the Mr. Domestic scenario.) I also found some photo's from way back, taken when my brother Ian got married. We were both slim young things back then. One particular photo that I like from that wedding day shows just the two of us, me in the backround and Ian in the foreground, outside the registry office in Wakefield, facing in different directions. It's only a casual snapshot but it has something that attracts me to it. Maybe it's my casual stance...I've got my hands in my pockets and one foot half off the ground. Or maybe it's my brother Ian's happy expression and the polaroid SX70 camera that he's holding, (which I think he'd borrowed from me as we had a Be Bop Deluxe SX70 club in the band in the late '70's). Anyway, Ian and I both look fit, happy and healthy. And so damned YOUNG! I had my Rolls Royce then and lived the archetypal rock-star life although I deliberately dressed as conservatively as possible 'off stage' to defuse people's expectations. I tried to avoid the rock gypsy vagabond look that was commonplace at the time and was attracted to the idea of looking as un-rock-star-like as possible whilst still being in a position to go on stage and take total command of a rock music audience. An audience which, at that time, was used to men wearing either denim, leather or glam satin. My rejection of this sort of signifying uniform was seen as a kind of inverse perversity, I guess. At least by those who measured authenticity by hair length and flared trouser width. I also recently saw some photographs of the Rolls Royce mentioned above, taken on the same day, (Ian's wedding day). It was a pale metallic-blue Silver Shadow, unbelievably, the least reliable car I've ever owned, apart from the pre-VW era Skoda that I drove for a year or so after my divorce claimed everything of value. I also have a photograph of the Rolls and my Panther Lima taken outside of Haddlesey House around the same time. There I stand, proud as punch, totally unaware of the tidal wave that was soon to sweep all that kind of thing away. I was apparently as unaware of the fact that such an ostentatious display was as much a sign of rock conformity as the tiresome heavy metal posturing I so despised at the time. But then, no one's perfect. But I digress... Wedding Days, Birthdays, Divorces, Solicitor's appointments and Funerals, the incandescent waystations of our lives. I've said this before but, when my brother Ian passed away on the morning of his 50th birthday in April of this year, an entire chapter of my life went with him. Just before he was buried, I arranged to have a little silver Buddhist medallion I owned placed in his suit pocket. It was in an envelope along with a farewell letter I'd written to him. The Buddha medallion had been a favourite of mine and, despite my current rejection of superstition, I wanted to give it to Ian to protect his soul and spirit in some way. Last Saturday, when I was in London, I managed to find an absolutely identical medallion. So, I bought it to carry with me as a physical connection between the two of us. I'd looked for one on my previous visit, a few weeks earlier, but hadn't been able to locate one that was exactly the same as the one that I buried with Ian. But, almost miraculously, an identical medallion appeared. In Watkins esoteric bookshop in Cecil Court in London. I don't know...Miraculously cured kittens and synchronistic Buddha tokens...it's enough to make me believe that there are more things between heaven and earth than I might suspect. If only in a moment of emotional need and weakness. Meeting up with my good friend John Spence on Thursday. We usually only meet under 'working' conditions at Fairview studios. It will be good to take time out from our respective career pressures to relax and chat without any other distractions. The Nelsonica Team Dinner coming up very soon, this Saturday. I've still got a drawing or two to finalise before then to give as gifts to the team members, (as I mentioned in my previous diary entry). Jon Wallinger and Paul Gilby have already claimed their 'thank you' artworks and taken them home. They are local boys so have picked up their prizes during recent visits to Nelson Acres. Reading a huge book about Edgard Varese at the moment, a massive catalogue from an exhibition held in Switzerland. Bought it second-hand locally. The pile of books by my bedside is now so high that I didn't bother to purchase a single book on my trip to London last weekend. And THAT is most unusual for me. I will now go downstairs and see if the kitten is o.k. Nestled up to Emi's breast, no doubt. Lucky creature. ***** The images accompanying this diary entry are as follows:- 1: A rough felt pen/Biro sketch made by Bill Nelson at The Marquee Club, Wardour Street, London, on the 14th of January 1974 when Be Bop Deluxe performed there. 2: A photograph of Ian Nelson, (foreground), and Bill Nelson, (background), taken outside Wakefield's Registry Office on Ian's wedding day. 3: A photograph of Bill Nelson outside Haddlesey House with his Panther Lima and Rolls Royce Silver Shadow cars. Early 1980's. Top of page Monday 20th November 2006 -- 7:00 pm Some tragic news yesterday. Chuck Bird, who fulfilled the role of webmaster at the American Bill Nelson 'Permanent Flame' website for several years, has sadly passed away, a victim of diabetes. I received an email from his brother Larry informing me that Chuck had died just one week previous. I was deeply shocked and saddened. Chuck was a genuine fan who ran the U.S. website without any thought other than to provide fans with a facility worthy of them. Chuck was forever loyal to the music and myself, never allowing temperament or personal ego to enter the equation. He always came across as a modest man and an extremely dedicated and knowledgeable fan. I'm proud to have counted him amongst my friends and I'm still trying to come to terms with this unexpected and unhappy development. I know that fans will feel the same sense of loss that I do. On those occasions when I was able to meet Chuck, he was positive, optimistic and enthusiastic, always polite, respectful and kind. And when the urgent need to provide fans with a reliable U.K. website arose, Chuck was one of several people who gave me the personal encouragement and moral support I needed to go ahead with the Dreamsville project, particularly when I felt like giving up completely as a result of lack of support elsewhere. Chuck, along with a few other generous and far-sighted people, (including Sound-On-Sound magazine, Jon Wallinger, Dave Graham, my management, my close friends and family), helped me to overcome any doubts and fears. They pursuaded me to go ahead and build a website to serve those people who cared about my work. It was thanks to their combined encouragement that the Dreamsville site has become so valued by fans. An example of Chuck's generosity: Without any prompting from anyone, Chuck suggested that I might like to take on the bill nelson.com address that the 'Permanent Flame' site had used since its inception. He offered to transfer the ownership of the internet address over to me for use by the Dreamsville site. He also passed on all the archived files that 'Permanent Flame' had amassed since it was originally created by Mark Rushton, back in 1995. Mark also approved of Chuck's altruistic act and I am indebted to them both for their help and co-operation, along with Paul and Ian Gilby, Sound-On-Sound magazine and the Dreamsville/Nelsonica team, who all have had a hand in setting up and running the current official website. As a tribute to both Mark and Chuck, the original site that Mark initiated and that Chuck came to maintain has been archived as a fixed item in 'The Permanent Flame Museum,' on the Dreamsville site. It will remain as a historical testimony to their initiative and enterprise. Once again though, for the second time this year, mortality has raised its spectre. Increasingly, I find myself experiencing personal bereavements. I accept that this is what must happen when one's friends and family enter a certain stage of life. But the knowledge that these things are inevitable does nothing to soften the blows when they come. When all tears are shed though, it's life we're left to deal with, and our own lives and personal ability (or inability) to face the future with equilibrium and hope. It's easy to lose sight of what matters, to become wrapped up in issues of no positive advantage to us. Maybe I'm allowing pessimism too strong a hand here, but the society we inhabit seems to have become an increasingly cynical and sick place. It's impossible to ignore the malaise that seeps into so many aspects of our daily life. I personally find myself struggling to deal with the general unfairness and moral ambiguousness of 'things', even though I'm sometimes unwillingly sucked into their twisted orbit. But it still comes as a shock to me that some people seem incapable of grasping the bigger picture, the preciousness and fragility of life, whether it be theirs or anyone else's. It's as if some souls are born genetically immune to anything other than the most petty concerns and obsessions. Why is it that gentleness and sensitivity are in short supply whilst cynical spite and small-mindedness flourishes? It seems that it takes hardly anything these days to build an ugly monster from the most insignificant of human emotions. Perhaps we have only two choices, either to resist the route of spiritless ignorance, or to turn our hand to the wheel, (the wheel of Dharma?) and steer away from the cheap and easy option, the tabloid mentality, the lazy temptation that leads to a profound loss of everything that might redeem us. But somehow, it becomes tougher than ever to resist the prevailing darkness and to shine our warm lamps into the cold, mean shadows. I've been personally struggling with various, similar issues of late. I feel as if matters should be directly addressed, that certain injustices need adjustment, that things that have been portrayed in a particular light should be revealed for what they really are. Then again, when I stand back and look at these things in context, they are so pathetic and trivial as to be not worth even the slightest effort on my part. Maybe I should simply let the rotten go to rot. Nature will take its course without any need of intervention by me or by others. No cause for concern. I must simply remember to get on with what experience has taught me to regard as true and real, no matter how meagre these experiences may appear in the overall scheme of things. But it's the only positive alternative and the only one I'm equipped to offer. The empty darkness is for those who have already shown themselves to be without a lamp to illuminate the way. Somemight advise me that life is dark enough without straying into the shadows of others. But....It's not in my nature to be blind to those shadows or indifferent to those who are lost in them. As selfish and pre-occupied with my music as I often am, I find it difficult to stand back and let the suffering suffer, whether that be the runt of a cat's litter or an adult human being. It seems cruel to turn away from these issues. But I am, more often than not, ill equipped to do much about it. Whatever I do will be flawed and stricken by my own inadeqacy. I'm not up to the task, nor do I pretend to be. But I do try. Does that excuse me? Or simply place me among the ranks of those whom I despair of the most? Perhaps only the music I create stands a chance of offering something approaching the value of healing. Some people seem to assure me that it has that quality, or at least a potential to attain that quality. And that's why I am, and will remain, an artist first and foremost. Best to leave the argument and debate about such things to those with little else to do and even less to offer.An old cliche but a true one: A Daffodil doesn't have to agonise about being bright yellow. Nor should an artist worry about what he naturally is. The kitten I referred to in my last diary has survived and seems fit and well, although she has continued to live the outdoor life with the other four cats that we feed. I was heartened by the response on the Dreamsville site to my telling of the tale in my previous diary entry. It says something positive about those people who appreciate my music that they are compassionate towards animals. There was such a warm response from cat-lovers on the site, many of them relating their own similar experiences and even posting photographs of their cats on the Dreamsville Forum. It was something I didn't expect but it was a pleasant surprise to get such warm support for such a simple act of kindness. As someone once said:" Never trust a person who has no empathy with cats." Last Saturday's Nelsonica Team official dinner was a happy occasion. Ten of us around the table, (Jon, Dave Graham, Ian Haydock, Ged, Eddie, Paul Gilby, Duncan, Martin Bostock, Emiko and myself,) even though one person, (Ian C,) couldn't attend as he was away on holiday. We all had a good time although I drank rather too much wine and felt a little worse for wear the next day. At the restaurant, I presented the team with framed artwork that I'd made for each of them. I'd been panicking, worried that I wouldn't get all the drawings finished and framed in time, so it was a great relief to finally give everyone their gift with no one left out. There will be two new members joining the offcial Nelsonica team this coming year too. They have enthusiastically accepted the invitation that Jon Wallinger and the rest of us extended to them,amidst jokes about the strange initiation rites that they would have to undergo. Maybe I really SHOULD devise something along those lines, turn it into a quasi-masonic, mock-esoteric secret society, just for laughs! On a practical note, the new team members will prove extremely helpful as the last couple of years has seen the annual convention becoming more complex and better attended than ever. The original team has expanded to deal with the increased content and organisational skills involved and they make a great job of it, which I know the convention attendees appreciate. This last week, my studio equipment software was updated to deal with the proposed mixing of the ancient Be Bop Deluxe Decca sessions. Paul came over to install new software and replace an ailing floppy drive. It took a couple of days but eventually everything was re-assembled, wired up and put back in place. I'm currently going through various old plug-in hard drives to convert and store specific multi-track masters that were recorded on the old operating system. They have to be put through a special conversion process, one by one, before I can use or store them on the new O.S. There are several pieces that I definitely don't want to erase, particularly the multi-tracks for the Sailor Bill album. That project took up so much time and energy and is so complex that it would feel like sacrilege to not archive the master tracks. I might even want to remix the album, (maybe as purely instrumental pieces,) at some point in the future. Who knows? Better not to lose them, I think. I had a brief listen to the multi-track Be Bop Decca sessions too and was taken aback by how flat and dead the recordings sound, even though they were recorded in what was the classic Decca Studios. When I put up a recently recorded piece alongside them, it suddenly became apparent how far recording technology has come since the early 'seventies. My humble little home studio system sounds expensive, rich and three-dimensional compared to the Decca recordings, which sound like they were made in a fake-fur lined box. I'm increasingly less sure of the 'vintage is best' argument, 'though to be honest, I've always been an early adopter of musical technology. In an ideal world, it's not about either/ or situations. It's fun to combine the vintage approach with the modern and that's generally the way I work with my own recordings. The cold weather back again today. Christmas stuff in town, everywhere you look. I ought to try and get an earlier start on the seasonal shopping this year. But it will probably be last minute, as always. ***** The photographs accompanying this diary entry show:- 1: The rehearsal room used for the Nelsonica 06 concert preparations. 2: Bill's mixing desk in his home studio. 3: A view of Bill's home studio room. Top of page

Stereo Star Maps Bill Nelson album - 10 November 2014 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) The Golden Age Again 02) Luminatron 03) Light In The Head 04) Drift Fictions 05) The Sleeping Body Sings 06) Stereo Star Map Number One 07) These Minutes Are Ours 08) Wondertown 09) Tangle Of Wires 10) Atoms, Neutrons, Strangeness And Charm 11) The Art Of Thinking 12) Tingalary Man And The Scarlet Fever Kid 13) Chiming Church With Rusty Bell 14) Another Planet 15) Stereo Star Map Number Two 16) The World Is Lost To Us All In The End ALBUM NOTES: Stereo Star Maps is an album mixing vocal and instrumental pieces, issued in a one-off print run of 500 copies on the Sonoluxe label. The album began life with the working title of Drifters and Steamers , with news of it first appearing on the Dreamsville forum in March 2014. By the following month it had been renamed Stereo Star Maps , although both titles remained possibilities through to May. At this stage in development the album was being planned as a double album, although Nelson kept his options open, admitting that it could turn out to be 2 separate single albums. With 21 tracks completed, 14 of which were instrumentals, Nelson began to assign particular tracks to other album projects, including Swoons and Levitations and Shining Reflector , which between them swallowed up all but 4 of the completed tracks. The remaining Stereo Star Maps material was produced during the second half of May through June, with a draft running order announced on 4 July 2014. This was ultimately finalised with some very minor adjustments to the order at the tail end of the album. Shortly after finishing the music for Stereo Star Maps Nelson was diagnosed with conductive hearing loss in his left ear, which effectively forced him to give up live performances, and sadly brought an end to events such as Nelsonica . However these restrictions in turn led to an increase in his already prolific recorded output, as it gave him more time to devote to making music. Stereo Star Maps went on sale on 10 November, and was removed from sale a week later due to an overwhelming number of orders being received at S.O.S. Unfortunately, it appeared to some that it had sold out, and at least one copy was sold on eBay for an extortionate amount before S.O.S could put the last few copies on sale again. It finally sold out of its print run on 1 December 2014. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . IF YOU LIKED THIS ALBUM, YOU'LL PROBABLY ENJOY: Shining Reflector , Swoons and Levitations , Fables and Dreamsongs , Dreamshire Chronicles , Loom , Fantasmatron , Blip! , The Awakening of Dr Dream , Signals From Realms of Light , Quiet Bells BILL'S THOUGHTS: "Some of you may be aware that I'm working on a possible DOUBLE album for early autumn release. The album's title is Stereo Star Maps . Quite a lot of material recorded so far, but I really want to keep going with this one and build up a large number of tracks worthy of inclusion. When it comes to the cut-off date for assembling the final running order I will decide whether to make it a double album or two individually-titled single ones. A recent acquisition of a Fractal Audio Axe FX unit has inspired a couple of ambient guitar improvisations which sound wonderfully ethereal. They definitely fit the title Stereo Star Maps . "Of course, a variety of styles have been embraced by the tracks I've already recorded for this project, but a certain, nebulous direction is beginning to emerge, based on the two tracks hinted at above. (Well, for one of the discs at least.) As always, these things are in a state of flux until the Muse says that it's done, but, right now, she's rocking me in her arms and has stars in her eyes! Hopefully, another treat in store when the leaves begin to turn gold." _____ "The title I initially came up with for this project was Drifters And Steamers , which was inspired by a Felix Kelly painting. Also, because the first gathering together of possible tracks for inclusion was fairly eclectic in style, I thought of some of them as being 'drifters', (ie: fairly gentle, contemplative pieces in no hurry to get anywhere), and others as 'steamers', (rather more 'driven' or in a hurry)." _____ "The guitar atmospheres on many of these tracks have been created via my recently acquired Fractal Audio Systems 'Axe-FX 2-XL' digital processor. The approach I've taken has been to attempt to slightly blur the structures of these pieces, to locate them in ambiguous, spectral spaces, to scramble the arrangements and sounds in such a way that the songs seem to emerge from a benevolent digital fog, yet still embrace meaning and melody, albeit in nebulous form. You'll have to hear it to understand what I'm driving at. As always, I'm still struggling with my music, still trying to locate my deeper self within it, and, hopefully, guiding it towards your deeper self too...xxx" _____ "Tingalary Man and The Scarlet Fever Kid": "This is a weird one: I didn't write any lyrics down before singing it, just opened up the mic and sung whatever entered my head. No going back over it either, just one single, spontaneous first take. Stream of consciousness stuff, straight from some deep well within. When it was done, the song turned out to be about a long ago childhood experience when I was four or five years old and caught Scarlet Fever, a dangerous illness which has now been eradicated from the world but, back in the early 1950s was very serious. I was hospitalised and not just sick with the disease but deeply traumatised by the experience of being taken from my parents. After a week or so, my father, against the hospital's advice, insisted on taking me home where I slowly recuperated in my own bedroom, the walls of which were hung with sheets soaked in some sort of disinfectant solution. One morning, during this recuperation period, I awoke to see a snowman materialise alongside my bed, walk down to the foot of the bed, cross over to the other side of it and walk back towards my head and vanish through the wall. A hallucination from the fever, perhaps, or a ghostly figure from the beyond which my infant self interpreted as a snowman? Anyway, that strange incident came back in the free association of the song's lyric. "And the 'Tingalary Man?' Apparently, when I was a very young child, I had a tin toy which was a kind of a circular music box which had a handle on the side. When you turned the handle a short musical phrase emerged, with a sound similar to an African 'thumb piano'. This device was referred to, by my dad, as a 'Tingalary'. Somewhere in the back of my mind it echoes still. So, this is basically what the song is about, a sick child, a snowman/ghost and a man turning the handle of a tin music box...all set to a kind of abstract, ambient, semi-atonal guitar loop. It's a very strange thing." FAN THOUGHTS: jetboy: "From the opening guitar effects on "The Golden Age Again" to the closing bars of "The World is Lost to Us in the End" this album opens yet another door to the seasoned listener and welcomes all to yet more musical discoveries from the creative mind of Bill Nelson - a world Bill is constantly exploring, and, thankfully for other fans and visitors to this site, releasing in limited edition albums. Stereo Star Maps is release number 35 under the Sonoluxe imprint and yet again, for this listener it breaks new ground. This album has a sense of playfulness and lightness, is dreamy, haunting and at times relaxed and contemplative." Tourist In Wonderland: "Isn't it just a fabulous album and listening experience?! "Bill pushing forward, moving into unchartered waters, mapping a new course of wonderful musical possibilities for us to discover and share, if we dare take the plunge...Well I'm in!...100% and all the way, following the guiding, twinkling star on the horizon and what a wondrous journey lies ahead... Stereo Star Maps is really having a very deep and profound affect on me, something I've not experienced quite so intensely in a record for some time, (although I do think the last six or seven years has seen Bill Nelson release consistently progressive and fabulous albums, some of the best of his career so far IMHO) and for that, I am truly grateful, nobody does it quite like Bill..." "I have found some of my best experiences when listening to this particular album are when I'm a little frazzled, a bit stressed mentally, a little 'world weary'...it always seems to get me back on track. Sometimes I feel like an old negative roll of film, neglected and left on a shelf, but gradually being reanimated by an infusion of mesmeric Bill Nelson aural chemicals and alchemy...shaped, bent, stretched...pulled back into focus...becoming a proper picture once more...the healing powers of 'proper' music... Stereo Star Maps is a wonderful experience...I love Bill Nelson music..." Holer: "Ahhhhhh Bill...I do love it when you are in Interstellar Space Transmission mode. I've been listening to your new album all week as I drive to work in the dark, rain and fog and am finding it to be the perfect contemplative accoutrements to my travels. About the only critique I would level is that this record should come with a warning label that listening can transport you to other realms. I've had hallucinating snowmen dancing through my head all week." tm14: "I can't pick out individual pieces as special because the whole album has that touch of magic about it. I was only going to play a couple of tracks a second time but ended up listening to the complete disc a second time. I think I have a new favourite. Don't miss this one." Palladium: "Drift Fictions":- "one of those seemingly effortless organic pieces that makes me think Bill has a device from the future which enables him to record direct from his unconscious to disc." "There's so much I love about this album. By the end of track six, you've already got "your money's worth", but the album's only just begun! Current favourite track: "Stereo Star Map Number One" - one of those atmospheric instrumental pieces that puts you straight into another world." December Man: "The Sleeping Body Sings":- "Takes you by the hand and walks you into one of those strange fictional worlds hinted at previously, where 'church bells chime their rusty bells' and 'ghosts' and 'demons' inhabit the darkest hours of night...the past not only haunts the 'now' but also seems to give it a strange kind of meaning by breathing new life into it and feeding the imagination which is the 'life blood' that keeps the artist creating his/her art... "Tingalary Man and The Scarlet Fever Kid" feels like a folk song from out of a contradictory wrinkle in the space-time continuum where Mr. Nelson seems to enter and exit at will...a kind of future-past dimension where dreams become part of the waking world and the waking world enters the realm of dreams...it's a place Mr. Nelson inhabits effortlessly like a musical shaman in order to return and report what’s been revealed to him... In "Stereo Star Maps Number Two" Bill sings for guidance to be brought back 'home' to his own ' centre ' or true self. He repeats the refrain like you would a prayer or incantation as a way of focusing all efforts and energies into traveling back toward that (musical) place that can only be found by following the direction of your own instinctual 'stereo' map of the heart... "The World is Lost to Us All in the End" completes the SSM journey on a poignantly sad note...an honest summation of the realities facing all of humanity...all the beauty as well as the sadness of life that even the artist is at a loss to explain and can only offer us his own sense of helplessness in our struggle to find hope and meaning when we reach that final hour...(and the rusty church bell begins to ring...) Thanks Bill...really enjoying this one!" Albums Menu Future Past

The Boy's Own single - 1981 Moving Targets Production/Contribution Menu Future Past BILL: Production and Photography Production/Contribution Menu Future Past

La Belle Et La Bête Bill Nelson album - 25 June 1982 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this reissue TRACKS : 01) Overture 02) The Family 03) Sisters And Sedan Chairs 04) In The Forest Of Storms 05) The Castle 06) The Gates 07) The Corridor 08) The Great Hall 09) Dreams (The Merchant Sleeps) 10) Fear (The Merchant Wakes) 11) The Rose And The Beast 12) Magnificent (The White Horse) 13) Beauty Enters The Castle 14) The Door 15) The Mirror 16) Candelabra And Gargoyles 17) Beauty And The Beast 18) Transition No. 1 19) Transition No. 2 20) The Hunt 21) The Gift 22) The Garden 23) Transition No. 3 24) Transition No. 4 25) The Tragedy 26) Transition No. 5 27) The Enchanted Glove 28) Tears As Diamonds (The Gift Reverses) 29) The Beast In Solitude 30) The Return Of Magnificent 31) Transition No. 6 (The Journey) 32) The Pavilion Of Diana 33) Transformation No. 1 34) Transformation No. 2 35) The Final Curtain ALBUM NOTES: La Belle et la Bête is an instrumental album released on Mercury Records in 1982. The material was recorded at The Echo Observatory, Selby, England in early 1982 as a soundtrack for a stage production commissioned by The Yorkshire Actors Co. It was initially released as a limited edition free album available with both vinyl and cassette copies of The Love That Whirls . It was packaged in its own album sleeve that slipped inside The Love That Whirls cover (on vinyl), or simply as side two of the cassette edition. PAST RELEASES: La Belle et la Bête was reissued on vinyl as a double album with Das Kabinett (Cocteau, 1985), sporting new artwork. It was given its first and only US release on CD (Enigma, 1989) as two albums on one disc (again with Das Kabinett ). La Belle et la Bête was reissued by Esoteric/Cocteau Discs in December 2017 as part of a 3-CD set of Bill's early soundtrack work, entitled Dreamy Screens . CURRENT AVAILABILITY: La Belle et la Bête will be made available as a digital download in the near future. BILL'S THOUGHTS:: "Of course, the big 'hit single' in Cocteau's film canon is 'Beauty And The Beast'. An absolutely magical telling of a magical fairy tale. It's stunningly beautiful to look at and the scenes in the Beast's castle have a dreamlike quality that, once seen, will haunt you forever." _____ "All the music on my Beauty and the Beast album was created for a stage production of Cocteau's classic film. I attended rehearsals of the play, (which was being staged by 'The Yorkshire Actor's Company'), and with a stopwatch timed each sequence of the action, filling a notebook with information about specific dramatic points and so on. "I then spent a couple of weeks in my home studio writing and recording the music whilst working from the notebook and timings I had taken. The finished music, (which was recorded on very basic equipment), was then delivered to the Yorkshire Actor's Company who then used it in their live theatre performances of the play. It was in the form of stereo reel-to-reel analogue tape mixes as there were no CDs or digital formats back then. The theatre music soundtrack depended upon an operator sitting with a reel-to-reel machine, cueing each piece of my music manually, wherever the live action required it. It actually worked extremely well in live performance. "The album uses exactly the same music and mixes as was used in the theatre, though the album was released as an afterthought. The music wasn't created with an album in mind or as a 'stand-alone' listening experience...it was meant purely as an atmosphere creating device and as a sonic punctuation to the physical/visual drama of the stage-production." _____ "In some ways, that period of my life was very exciting as there seemed to be a very open-minded spirit in the air. People were, it seems, a little less less conservative than now and more ready to experiment and foster a more artistic approach to popular music. "These days it seems as if there's a reluctance to open up to beauty and wonder, an element of dumbing everything down to the lowest common denominator. It’s as if cynicism and pessimism has triumphed over good faith and optimism. Cocteau's work celebrates the artistic vision and the inner life and does so without shame, irony or embarrassment. Beauty is the brave hero and the Beast is subdued by her power. A lovely metaphor for the civilising influence of Art." _____ "Context has a lot to do with it. Also, not to beat around the bush, it's an 'art' piece, not pop, rock or ambient. It was also made with very slender resources, minimal recording gear, (four track), and primitive instrumentation. It's music to accompany a theatrical performance, but, if you can dig it, it also works on its own as semi-abstract sonic fragments, little vignettes of sound. It's a bit like painting. Close your eyes and let your imagination project pictures. It might help to see Cocteau's film, (the music fits it almost as well as it fitted the stage production). If you like it, great, if you don't, no problem. "Sometimes I make music for lots of people to enjoy, sometimes for just a few to enjoy. Of course, I personally enjoy making ALL of it and I think of it as just one continuous expression of my creative life. But, some people might say that Be Bop and Red Noise comprise my mainstream, mass market work, the 'ambient' instrumentals are for folks who like to float, dream and chill, and things like Beauty and The Beast , Caligari and Crimsworth are for art gallery and theatre goers... and so on, (add your own categorisations according to taste, personal bias, etc). At the end of the day, they're all just aspects of my personality, reflecting my interests, curiosity and passions. "I've often talked about the wide range of music that I enjoy listening to and the equally wide range of film, art and literature. Add a dash of occultism, esoterica and left of centre philosophy and you'll get an idea of what all this diversity adds up to when I choose tones, textures and forms to express my own inner life. There's no escaping the fact that its deeply personal music and that it only entertains by accident, rather than design. But...when in doubt, simply shove it all in a big box and simply call it MUSIC. Nothing more, nothing less. Everyone knows music...It’s the food of LOVE. And we're ALL forever hungry for that." FAN THOUGHTS : Numbat: "It was much later that I first saw Cocteau's film. Its beauty and gentle strangeness obviously inspired Bill to create his own modest yet sumptuous "sound-play" to suit the Yorkshire stage production of the classic story. I reckon Bill did a fantastic job, using his clunky old analog technology to great artistic effect, lending the whole work a misty, autumnal "old world" feel. Nice one, Bill!!" zeitgeist: "I made the fatal mistake of dimming the lights, so that only a bat could navigate around the room. Then I tripped over the table to put the light up, and retrieve my 'phones. Once again settled, I lay back in the dark, along with the shadows, and relaxed. Then the eerie calls of: 'La Belle..La Belle', the grunts of the Beast, and the dreaded thumping heartbeat section just about put the willies up me." tommaso: "What I really like about this album (and many other of the early instrumental works) is the synths sound. Very unique, as if Bill had put them through some distortion device or something, creating a sound that is at once 'broken' and 'poetic' (for want of a better word). So, not to be missed, surely, and an ideal complementary album to The Love That Whirls ." Albums Menu Future Past

Nelsonian Navigator - Issue Four- Published September 1996 Back to Top

Sunday 2nd July 2006 -- 11:00 am THE TOKYO CAPER: PART THREE. As previously mentioned, our trip to Japan was dominated by an intense schedule of meetings, mostly connected with Emi's family obligations and with her friends. Her diary was crammed with appointments throughout each day and we hardly had a moment to ourselves. These meetings were sometimes difficult for me as, due to my small grasp of Japanese, I couldn't really join in the various conversations and so had to politely sit there smiling, offering an occasional "Domo Arigato" when someone would re-fill my beer glass. I did, however, appreciate that this was a rare and important opportunity for Emi to meet up with her old friends and I felt content to just sit on the side-lines and allow her as much time and space as she needed to talk with them. She bought a mobile 'phone as soon as we got to Tokyo, (at under 20 pounds it was actually cheaper than renting one,) and within a few hours had set up a network of connections. We were deluged with invitations, so much so that we couldn't fit them all in to our 12 day schedule so some meetings had to be politely declined. Of course, one of the most important reasons for our trip was for Emi to see her mother and two brothers. She hadn't seen them for three years, the last time being when her father died. Emi's mother is in her eighties now and looks frail although her health is reasonable at the moment. She was, naturally, extremely pleased to see Emi. Emi's family have always been very good to me and they all made me feel very welcome. Food and eating plays a central role in Japanese family and social life so there was lots of sitting around tables sampling various delicacies and much uttering of the word 'Oishi', which means 'delicious.' I do enjoy a lot of Japanese food but there are a few things that don't particularly appeal to me. These tend to be things of the glutinous variety, certain sweet things and, whilst I'm a firm lover of seafood, I'm not a fan of the eel-like fish that are sometimes served up and which Emi adores. Not because of their flavour, but because of the tiny bones one must encounter whilst eating them. Good wine tends to be very expensive in Japan and cheap wine is, to western tastes at least, almost unpalatable so I contented myself with Japanese beer which was very clean and refreshing, particularly with all the heat and humidity that we encountered. Every day required us to do a fair amount of walking and also to take train rides on the busy Tokyo local railways and subway systems. At rush hour, these trains are crammed full of commuters. It's amazing how many people are compacted into each carriage, squashed up together like sardines in a tin. It can be a little disturbing to the unwary 'gaijin' such as myself. I'm sure that, in this country, such intense overcrowding would break all safety regulations but no-one seems to think anything of it over there. There's even uniformed, white gloved platform staff who help push people through the doors, squeezing as many of them into the trains as possible. This makes for some rather intimate physical encounters between the passengers. For a still red-blooded male like myself, it can provide one with a pleasant few minutes of travel if one is lucky enough to be crushed up against an attractive Japanese lady or two. (And yes, I really should feel guilty about admitting that!) Less so if it happens to be a halitosis stricken Japanese businessman bearing down upon you. But my, oh, my...aren't the girls out there skinny? It's kind of worrying. Many give the appearance of being virtually anorexic. There seems to be a widespread obsession with being super-thin. I get the impression that this is connected more to fashion's dictates than anything else. One of the first things I noticed upon returning to the U.K. was that women here have dangerous curves and full breasts. Of course, these variations and sexual preferences are cultural inheritances as much as anything else, 'though it seems that many Japanese men hanker after a more 'meaty' physicality and fantasise about western women quite a lot. But then, we English men often find the Japanese female face and form beguiling, so maybe it's our perception of 'difference as exotic' that makes the grass appear greener on the other side of the fence. Oh dear, I fear I'm beginning to sound like a stereotypical, old-school, un-reconstructed, politically incorrect male here, (or one of those cartoon randy old-goats of the Leslie Phillips variety...) Perhaps I should change the subject! Not all of our time in Tokyo was given over to Emi's busy schedule. I was allowed a couple of indulgences of my own. One of these was to accept an invitation to visit the Terada guitar factory in Nagoya, which is a two hour train ride from Tokyo on the super-fast Shinkansen train. We were met at Nagoya station by one of the factory's executive staff, Mr. 'Chet' Nakagawa who turned out to be a lovely guy. Chet treat us to lunch at a small restaurant that served one of Emi's favourite Japanese dishes, 'Unagi', (The eel-like fish I mentioned earlier.) She was very pleased to have an opportunity to eat this. I ate some very good Sahshimi, (raw fish), washed down with Japanese beer. Chet then drove us to the guitar factory. The Terada factory makes guitars for Gretsch, (which is how I came by my invitation), but they also build guitars for D'Angelico, D'Aquisto and several other companies. They seem to specialise in building archtop style guitars. It began as a family business in 1915 when the company made violins and it is still a family run business today. The tour of the factory that we were given was fascinating. I'd expected something very high-tech and modern but was surprised to find a series of quite modest, semi-dilapidated buildings that looked as if they were at least 50 years old. Each building dealt with different stages of a guitar's construction, from stacked piles of raw wood to beautifully finished, shiny instruments. The craftsmen building them are mostly young guys, all with university degrees in guitar-making. Everyone who works there is a guitar player too and they take a tremendous pride in the high quality instruments that they create. I was impressed by the obsessive attention to detail and obvious care that went into each guitar. I also was introduced to Mr.Terada who runs the factory. Terada-San was very gracious and told me a little of the company's history. He also let me in on some new work the factory is planning to undertake but that's to be kept under my hat. Unfortunately, I didn't take any still photo's of the work being done there but I did manage to shoot some camcorder footage which I hope to incorporate into a little documentary video about my Japanese trip which, all being well, I'll screen at this year's Nelsonica Convention. After the factory visit, Mr. Chet Nakagawa became our tour guide and generously took us to see the impressive Nagoya Castle which looked like something from the animated film, 'Spirited Away.' He kindly took a photo of Emi and I standing in front of the castle, (which I've attached to this diary entry). Afterwards, he drove us back to Nagoya station for our two hour trip back to Tokyo on the bullet train. We invited him to look us up if he should visit England in the future. We'd be very happy to put him up and show him the beauty of Yorkshire's moors and coastline. A very nice, warm man. Another guitar related event on our busy schedule was my interview and photo session for 'Player Magazine.' As mentioned in an earlier diary entry, I wasn't expecting anything more than a brief interview and therefore hadn't prepared clothes for a photo' session but, as the magazine said they wanted to create a six-page feature about me and my guitar collection, it seemed churlish to complain. The photo session and interview was held in a professional photographic studio in Tokyo. No-one complained when I kept my dark glasses on, so I was reasonably happy. Actually, from what I've seen of the polaroid roughs, taken as the shoot was being set up, the end results shouldn't be too bad at all. But I genuinely do dislike being photographed these days. I much prefer being behind the camera, rather than in front of it. Another enjoyable part of our trip was the evening when we had dinner with my good friend Nick James and his wife Yoko. Nick has, astonishingly, been living in Tokyo for 17 years now. He originally hails from Selby in Yorkshire, which is where we first met. He was a young guy trying to get into the music industry at that time, his main interest being in studio engineering. But Nick is also a fine musician who plays keyboards and, in recent years, some guitar too. He owns a beautiful Martin acoustic which I envy. Nick and I have worked together in the past, most notably on my old Cocteau Records single 'Life In Your Hands'. Nick engineered that and played piano on it too.These days he's in demand in Tokyo as a producer and composer as well as an engineer and has created musical scores for films and tv there. His wife Yoko is a talented singer and they have a very comprehensive home studio set-up that makes my own equipment seem quite minimal and humble. When Nick and Yoko were married, back in the early 1990's, I was proud to be asked to act as Nick's best man. They married in England at Brayton Church on the edge of Selby. My after dinner speech was pathetic, I developed food poisoning at the after-reception party and ended up in a bit of a state, but it was still a memorable day and the only time I've ever worn the traditional full tie and tails regalia. I seem to recall that I looked rather smart, quite the gentleman toff in fact. Anyway, on this latest visit to Japan, Nick and Yoko took us to a little Italian restaurant where it was good to enjoy a meal without requiring the public display of my rudimentary chopstick technique. (Actually, Japanese people always seem to compliment me on my use of chopsticks so maybe I'm not quite as clumsy as I think I am. Either that or they're just being typically polite.) Of course, I once lived in Tokyo for almost 12 months so it was a matter of 'chopsticks or starve.' Well...I soon got the hang of it. Another evening was taken up by a re-union party of Emi's old workmates. When I first went to live with Emi in Tokyo, she was in charge of Kenneth Turner's flower shop. Kenneth Turner is a renowned English Floral Designer who is highly respected in Japan. The flower company that Emi used to work for, (Floral Vision), was chosen by Kenneth Turner to manage the Japanese branch of his business and Emi was chosen to run his shop for him. I was always impressed by Emi's efficiency and professionalism when I dropped into the Kenneth Turner shop, close to Tokyo Tower. Her staff showed an obvious respect to her and Kenneth himself thought highly of her. Her floral designs were regularly featured in interior design magazines in Japan and I'm pleased that she's kept a number of these magazines for her archives. But it's been several years since the company staff have been together in one place, many of them moving off to start their own flower businesses or going into teaching. On this latest trip though, a special party was arranged to honour Emi's visit to Tokyo and I found myself the only westerner amongst eleven Japanese girls and two Japanese males. There was much warm humour and, (unsurprisingly), lots of good food and drink. Once again, I found myself disadvantaged by my lack of conversational Japanese but everyone was extremely good to me and it proved to be less of an ordeal than I'd expected. What I love about these situations is that Emi is able to converse naturally in her native tongue. She seems quite different from her U.K. persona, when she has to carefully consider how to translate her thoughts into English. Even though she's made great progress since coming here to live with me as my wife, she still feels that she lacks confidence in speaking English and is often hesitant or uneasy about the matter. We understand each other in ways that only two people who love each other can so the technical side of any language problem is not such a big deal for us. But in Japan, Emi's steady, considered speech changes to rapid fire, energetic conversation, filled with laughter and sparks. I get a real pleasure from seeing her freed from the constraints of the English language. On another occasion, we had lunch with a different set of Emi's friends, one of whom, Gan-chan, turned out to be a collector of vintage Japanese toys. When I spoke to him about my fascination with an early 1950's Japanese cartoon character called 'Atom' (or, as he is sometimes known, 'Astroboy') he immediately left the table, hopped on his pushbike and cycled off in the direction of his home. Ten minutes later, he returned with two gifts for me from his private collection. One was a vintage plastic figure of the Astroboy/Atom character, the other was a now ten-year-old reproduction of an almost two-foot high statuette of the same character. I couldn't believe he was giving me these things as they're quite rare and therefore, I presume, quite valuable. I'm very pleased to have them on display here in my home. I'll try to take a photograph of the big one for the diary pages soon. There's still more to tell but it will have to wait until the next diary entry. Once again, exhaustion is taking its toll and I'm losing concentration. The heat here today hasn't helped much either, nor the running around getting Emi's car repaired, serviced and M.O.T.'d. My car's turn tomorrow. So...later. ***** The Photographs attached to this diary entry are:- 1. Buddha Head at a Kamakura Temple. 2. Bill and Emi at Nagoya Castle. 3. A Kamakura Temple Carp. Top of page Friday 7th July 2006 -- 7:00 pm THE TOKYO CAPER: PART FOUR. One of the duties/perils inherent in any trip to Japan is the buying of gifts to bring back for family and friends. This time, because of the crowded nature of our schedule, there was only a little time available for shopping, 'though I managed to grab some extra time whilst Emi dealt with other matters. I put in a lot of walking...hard work, due to the humidity. Nevertheless I managed to grab quite a few things to take home as gifts. The problem with Tokyo is that the city is virtually one giant department store and there's so much on offer. Seeking out things that are suitable for a wide range of friends, not 'over the top' expensive things but sensible ones, practical for packing into suitcases is not an easy task. It's all about context. The shops in Tokyo are so beautifully designed, carefully lit and laid out that even the most mundane goods take on the glamour of jewels.Things that, in the U.K, you would normally pass by thinking them frivolous or slight, become super-stylish objects of desire. The background music in these shops is equally evocative and sleek. No Brit-pop lads with lagers, monkey legs and '70's guitar re-treads here, just spare, minimal, ambient backdrops. Clear notes hanging in the air like chimes from heaven, subtle beat manipulations, all discreet, knowing, swish, elegant, elite. The carefully sculpted sounds add to the sense of exquisiteness in the stores. In some ways, it's style taken to extremes, artificial, phoney, far too obviously studied and mannered. But it does the trick. Some of the things we bought, when we got them home, looked far less impressive in the cynical light of a Yorkshire living room. Of course, there are less sophisticated shopping areas. There are back streets around Harajuku that cater to a very young generation of Tokyo shoppers. Here the music is a Japanese interpretation of rap or reggae. Sometimes hilarious in its misappropriation of those particular genres. The street fashion is often a meaningless mix of styles, no coherence, no awareness of the negative effect that certain combinations of clothes have on the wearer's body. There's one very odd, (though tackily interesting), trend that I noticed. I saw several girls dressed in what I can only describe as 'Kate Greenaway' chic... ('though it's far from 'chic' in reality). These girls look like something from a vintage English nursery rhyme, 'Little Bo Peep' perhaps, all layered lace, bibs and pinafores and mop hats tied under the chin with pink ribbons. When encountering them in the street, it is as if the cast of an English pantomime has left the theatre in full costume. In some ways, it's quite perverse. There's a knowing hint of fetishism in the eyes of the wearers. It's like an inverse 'Goth' look. For all its super-tweeness, there's something dark and sinister about it. But 10 out of 10 for bravery. Japan is full of these surprises and contradictions. For someone such as myself, a person with an interest in trash culture, fine art and the blurred boundary in between, walking down the street for an hour or two can cause one to re-think the world. Whilst we were in Japan, I deliberately severed all connection with the western hemisphere. (Apart from a couple of 'phone calls to my mother.) At the same time, I was wondering what would await me on my return. I knew that there was a long list of projects requiring my attention. These days, being a cottage industry type of chap, music is only one of my pre-occupations. As regular readers of this diary know, my work doesn't stop there. I personally oversee every aspect of what I create. It's very hard work and often deeply frustrating, but its the path I've chosen so I shouldn't complain too loudly. Not so much a control freak but more of a 'vision freak.' I suppose, ultimately, I'm the only person who knows what my work is about. I spend a lot of time trying to explain it to others in the hope of some fortunate connection or other. I DID try not to worry about the project list in the U.K. But my thoughts strayed across the oceans to England and the next few months busy schedule. (And beyond.) I've commented on it before, but it is often quite a struggle. Earning a living from my music, and earning the right to make more albums, is a precarious thing. My age, my personal musical preferences, my refusal to deal with the industry on its own terms, all these things, well...they often work against me. Still, I continue to try it on. To bang my head against that old brick wall. Maybe it's a habit. Eventually, we had to pack and prepare to leave Japan. It was hard, particularly for Emi, to say goodbye to her mother and brothers, but, if truth were told, we were not sorry to leave Tokyo itself. Yorkshire and it's beautiful moors and coastline beckoned us and promised us a spiritual sense of space denied to us in our temporary hole in Shibuya. Quality of life, I guess. At least Emi and I are able to recognise the difference and appreciate our luck at being able to access those places and spaces within our Yorkshire habitat. Beyond price, really. The journey back was longer than the outward one. I drowned myself in alcohol again. After a seemingly endless flight we arrived in Holland. The hours that we then spent at Amsterdam's Schipol airport were hyper-boring. We holed up in a cafe called 'Sandwich Island.' It was dreadful. The staff were hopeless, got conversion rates wrong, short changed us, served up poor food. Then, as we sat at a table finishing our meal, two rats ran across the cafe's floor and between our legs. And all this in a shiny, chrome, steel and glass airport that prides itself on its modernity. We were not impressed. Eventually, Emi and I boarded our transfer flight to England and soon found ourselves flying over the coastline of Yorkshire, just above Spurn Point on the Humber estuary. Spurn Point is one of those special places for me. A place I've visited since childhood. It's magical and romantic, sand dunes, sea grass, shells, wild birds and an old lighthouse. It reminds me of my father and three or four romantic relationships from my haphazard past. To see it from the air, particularly after two weeks in Tokyo, was a wonderful 'welcome home' treat. I watched the Humber estuary twist and flow into the river proper, saw the city of Hull and the elegant Humber bridge pass by below me, and then, in what seemed like a few scant minutes, the pilot announced our descent into Leeds-Bradford airport. There is only one place in the world I'm reluctant to leave when I fly abroad, and that is the South Coast of France. Villefranche-Sur-Mer and it's environs is the only place where I would be happy to stay, to settle, if, by some miracle, I could afford a home there. Anywhere else on this planet, no matter how interesting or entertaining, I can generally leave behind without a single tear. But, the Cote D' Azur aside, Yorkshire claims something of my soul and I have no qualms in surrendering to its charms. Our neighbour Steve was waiting for us at the airport. A good and true friend. We were both pleased to see him. I was by now, of course, inebriated in a haphazardly loquacious fashion. Part articulate, part incoherent. Babbling like an idiot but pleased to be home. Steve put up with this obviously over-tired tirade and drove us quickly and safely home. A stack of bills awaited us and a house that smelled damp and un-lived in. Our neighbours, Jim and Claire, had kindly watered the plants for us and kept their eye on things. Suitcases were opened, clothes assigned to the washing machine and gifts checked for breakages. In a very short space of time, it felt as if we'd only been away for a day or two. then the jet-lag. Several nights of sudden awakening, bedside lamps being switched on and reading glasses donned. Now it feels as if all this happened months ago. A vague memory, a dream. But, that's life. Now... the usual stresses have returned. I'm inundated with emails. There's a 'to do' list that freaks me out every time I think about it. I've been to visit my brother's grave in Wakefield cemetery, laid fresh flowers. Oh, dear...how I miss him, want to see him, hug him. I dreamt about him again. (Last night was the third or fourth time since he passed away.) I visited my mother last weekend but not yet found time to see Elliot, ('though we met in the street just over a week ago). Elle is due to visit from London soon so maybe then. I have gifts from Japan for them both. I managed to get both Emi's car and mine through the M.O.T., (though not without expense). I've photographed almost my entire guitar collection for Player magazine, (with the generous help of Jon Wallinger and Paul Gilby). A three day job in total. Had dinner out at a brand new restaurant in town, (with Paul), 'though it was a restaurant that was suffering from teething problems. (Wrong food arrived, etc, etc.) Spoke with Dean Campbell about the next stage of my signature guitar and am looking forward to seeing what may turn out to be the final design soon. Dean called me 'Gretsch boy.' (He'd read my diary.) Well, maybe I'm just a guitar-whore and he's jealous...;-) All I can say is that it's a good job it's guitars and not women, otherwise I'd really be in trouble! Today I posted a CDR of photos of my guitar collection and home studio to Player magazine in Tokyo, arranged emails of a couple of extra photos for their forthcoming feature on my work, (including a Martin Bostock portrait). I also spoke to Opium Arts about the go-ahead on my deal to licence my 'Getting The Holy Ghost Across' album for re-issue later in the year. (First official release of the album on CD.) Various details discussed regarding distribution, review copies, release dates, etc. I now need to speak with my graphic art buddy Dave Graham about various things, including a new design for the 'Holy Ghost' album's re-packaging. Spoke with my good friend John Spence about mixing the Be Bop live tracks for the EMI RECORDS box set...studio time pencilled in for next week. Will I remember what I wanted to do with this material? It seems unlikely...I listened to it months ago and made mental notes. All lost in fog now. (I also need to talk to John about booking some time at Fairview to remaster 'Holy Ghost,' and SOON too as I need finished copies of the album to put to the media for review by the start of September.) Today I took delivery of a lovely little Greco L-10P archtop jazz guitar that I bought in Tokyo. (Can't wait to use this on something. In fact, more than anything right now, I'd like to start work on a new album but...there's no time available. And I have such a lovely list of titles to inspire me at the moment.) I also need to do more preparatory work for this year's Nelsonica convention, make a start on the 'Ghosts Etched On Glass' film, attempt the 'Romance Of Sustain volume 2' album, work on the 'Arcadian Salon' convention album, create some drawings for the convention, and several more things that I either can't recall or am recklessly trying to avoid. 'Neptune's Galaxy' is due for official release soon too...maybe next week although no-one should attempt to order it until the official announcement is posted on the site. The Dreamsville/Sound-On-Sound store can't deal with pre-orders due to the nature of the computer system used but, once the album is in stock, there will be no problems and people can order at will. It's a superbly apt album for this time of year and will compliment a relaxing day in the garden or by the sea. It also has the power to transform a cold autumn-winter night into something more balmy and paradisiacal. Despite the work pressures, I've managed to write a few diary entries, answer several emails, (but still more to deal with), looked through some household bills, (but not paid any yet), made another couple of trips to the supermarket for domestic supplies and am duty bound to help Emiko with a freelance flower job tomorrow. There is, as diary readers may have noticed, nothing 'nine-to-five' about my life. Only one week returned from Japan and I'm even more exhausted than before I went there. It's a kind of endurance test. Why do I do it? Because I have no choice. The luxury of leisurely contemplation is denied me. It's simply all action, compulsion. Nervous energy, empty mind. Orgasmic Zen. Now I will open the case of my little Greco guitar and play some blues in the heat of my tiny recording room. Summer hums in the dark outside my window. ***** The photographs attached to this diary entry are:- 1. Tokyo train. 2. Shibuya Scene. 3. Bill Nelson Signature Model Campbell Transitone guitar prototype. Top of page Tuesday 11th July 2006 -- 9:00 pm Tokyo has now faded into the mist of memory and I've picked up my workload with a vengeance. It's been almost non-stop since returning home. It seems as if something new appears on the horizon every day. The latest development concerns a deal with Sony Records to license my 1980's 'Getting The Holy Ghost Across' album from them. The terms of the deal, which will allow me to re-issue the album on my own Sonoluxe label, have finally been agreed. When the album surfaces it will be the very first time that it will have been officially available on cd. I'm looking at late October as a possible release date. Of course, I have to pay Sony a cash advance and a percentage of the album's sales as part of the deal, (ironic, as it's my own damn music and it's normally the artist who gets an advance), but those are the terms Sony have laid out. I must comply if I'm to be allowed to re-issue it. (And even then, it's for a limited time only.) Sony do not seem to have any interest in releasing it themselves though. I also have to pay the costs of transferring the original tapes to the digital domain from the analogue masters.Then I will re-master the tracks at Fairview and create, (with the assistance of my pal David Graham), a brand new visual package for the album. I also need to write some new sleeve notes, setting the album in its historical context. Then, once all that is done, the album and its artwork can be manufactured. Putting all this together isn't cheap, in fact the whole process is much more expensive than usual. If I rely on website sales alone, I may well lose money on it. The amount of albums I sell via the site is so small that, if my usual album sales figures were applied to 'Getting The Holy Ghost Across', it simply wouldn't be worth doing. The production/licensing costs add too much to the equation. However, if I can sell some copies of the album, through a distributer, to record shops, I may be in with a chance. (Or at least, hopefully, break even.) The album really needs to come to the attention of those people who are unaware of my Dreamsville site or who may be newcomers to my music. So...the distribution route is being looked into at the moment, as is the possibility of getting review copies to various magazines. It's all a bit of a financial gamble. Let's hope that the regular fan requests for this album to be re-issued are followed up by firm orders. One of the problems of being an independent artist is that it is impossible not to have to deal with these things. Music is the starting point but the process doesn't stop there. There are so many other things to consider and to work on. It's extremely time consuming and often frustrating. But perhaps that's the price of artistic freedom. I've also been debating the title of the re-issue. It's original title in the U.K. was 'Getting The Holy Ghost Across' but this was changed for the U.S.A. release. The package design was changed too. CBS Records, (since bought out by Sony), who originally released the album, were concerned that several right-wing Christian fundamentalist-owned record stores in the U.S. wouldn't stock the album due to it's 'controversial' title and mystical-alchemic-occult art work. It seemed that there was a paranoia about anything that might smack of 'magick'. So, in America, the album was re-titled: 'On A Blue Wing' and an entirely different package was designed, one that could not possibly cause any offence to anyone. (Except the artist, of course. I was not particularly pleased about it at the time.) But with the re-issue, I really want to re-think the packaging, bring it up to date. I intend to reproduce both the U.K. and U.S. front cover art on the inside of the jewel box insert, just for the sake of the album's history, but I do want to try and create something to set the re-issue apart from the original. The 'Holy Ghost' title is quite restricting in some ways... 'On A Blue Wing' is much more flexible in terms of visual interpretation. On the other hand, the 'Holy Ghost' title was my original title for the project, back in the '80's. However, I am no longer involved with the various occult orders that I belonged to back then and, whilst my personal experiences within them were appropriate for my development at the time, that particular path has, in recent years, become overgrown with weeds and I feel less comfortable signposting it for others. But one can't re-write one's own history. (Unless one happens to be a mega pop star with an appetite for fame and fortune outweighing one's integrity. And there are plenty of those around without me adding to the myths.) But it's up in the air at the moment. My starting point is the original title and I'll only revert to the secondary title if the first one doesn't inspire a suitable visual style. I've already searched through my old alchemical books for something that might work, but in a 'lower key' than the original art. I want it to be somewhat more subdued and enigmatic. It's needed quickly though, if the deadline for press/media copies is to be met. The songs on the album are less 'occult' than they might seem, once the listener has the key to their true inspiration. They are, in the main, about my first romantic encounter with Emiko, long before I was in a position to marry her. We had an intense but brief relationship the year before I started work on the album. Because the situation wasn't yet right for us to stay together, there was a lot of tears and heartache. The music reflects that, particularly the song, 'Because Of You.' In many ways, it's a typical '80's album in style, all post-modernist funk, some tracks veering towards a hard, jazzy blues. The late Dick Morrisey plays sax on the album, as does my much missed brother Ian. Some great bass playing from Ian Denby too. But it is, for me, perhaps the one album of mine that declares the era of its creation. It is unmistakably a product of those Linn Drum driven '80's. Studio time at Fairview has, (yesterday), been confirmed for next week, but in connection with an entirely different re-issue project. This is to mix the unreleased live concert Be Bop Deluxe tracks for the forthcoming EMI Records Be Bop Deluxe complete recordings box set. I start work on this project on Monday. I can't say it's something I'm particularly excited about, (regular diary readers will know how, er, 'amoral' I am about dealing with old material beyond a certain point,) but...better that I personally mix it, rather than a complete stranger to the band's history. Nevertheless, I'm very much looking forward to spending a few days with my friend John Spence who will be working with me on the mixes. John transforms even the dullest task into a pleasure. His engineering skills are second to none so I'm certain that the tracks will sound fabulous when the two of us are done with them. Enough of all this 're-issue' stuff...it makes me feel so pathetically old. But...There's NEW music afoot! Much more satisfying... I heard, an hour or so ago, that stocks of 'Neptune's Galaxy' have finally arrived at the Dreamsville Department Store and are available for ordering with immediate dispatch. I've limited this one to 500 copies. If the demand is there, I may press up more, but 'Sailor Bill' has still not yet sold out so I'm being cautious. I'm glad that 'Neptune's Galaxy' has become available before the summer expires though...it's a perfect complement to an afternoon on the beach, or a picnic on the clifftops. Or even a barbecue by the garden pond. In winter, a bath with aromatherapy oils whilst listening will provide the listener with an equally blissful experience. Is this a soft hard-sell? Maybe I should've been a salesman...(But maybe not.) As I've mentioned before, the album is a companion piece to 'The Alchemical Adventures Of Sailor Bill' but it sails on a purely instrumental, drifting, ambient tide. It's a mellow, relaxed seascape of an album and sits comfortably alongside my 'Dreamland To Starboard' and 'Crimsworth' projects with a hint of 'Rosewood' thrown in. Another recently completed album, 'Return To Jazz Of Lights' is waiting in the wings for it's own debut...but NOT until autumn. This is a vocal-based album and quite different to 'Neptune's Galaxy'...Its release is definitely being held back for a few months, 'though it's champing at the bit. I now really feel the urge to start something new, as noted in a previous diary entry, but there are several other projects clamouring for my attention. I have no idea why there is so much music in the air and why my internal antennae seems so eager to beam it down. I seem to exist in a permanent monsoon of sound. It's always stormy weather, but of the most beautiful, ravishing kind. The view from my window is of lightning dancing over hills and valleys, illuminating tiny details normally invisible to the naked eye. Lovely. I received confirmation today, via email, that the CDR containing photographs of my musical instrument collection and my studio arrived safely at the headquarters of 'Player Magazine' in Tokyo. The magazine also confirmed that my photo's were of good enough quality to be used in the article they are planning for an autumn issue. The magazine's visual standards are high so it's a relief to know that everything has worked out o.k. I couldn't have faced another attempt at photographing everything again, it took me so long to do it the first time. It hasn't all been work though. On Sunday, Emi and I drove out to Nunnington Hall, a National Trust property with 15th century rooms. It isn't too far from Helmsley, north of York. The weather was good too. Our visit wasn't purely to see the lovely old house but to also take in the exhibition of photographs of Bob Dylan that were on display in the house's upper rooms. It was a very good exhibition. I would have dearly loved to purchase a print for myself but they were too expensive for me, averaging about 900 pounds but the more expensive ones nearer three thousand pounds. I still adore Bob Dylan. First found his music when I was at art school in the '60's. He's a hero of mine. I did spend a small amount of money though, (seven pounds), on a book in the shop in Nunnington Hall. It was a book about Christies' pop memorabilia auctions with photos of various items that have passed through the Christies' auction rooms over the years. The real reason I bought it was that it contained a picture of the first guitar I ever played, (not the ACTUAL guitar but an identical one). This was a plastic, toy instrument, made by a company called 'Selco' and had an Elvis Presley theme. It was originally bought, in the late '50's as a Christmas present for my brother Ian but he was a bit too young for it at the time and, fatefully, it ended up in my hands. It was made from brown and cream plastic and had a picture of Elvis Presley on the headstock. I figured out how to play the 'Third Man' theme on this guitar, then my dad taught me three or four banjo chords on it. And that was how I began a life-long love affair with the guitar. I would dearly love to get my hands on one of those old Selco Elvis Presley toy guitars again. One really should be in my collection. It's where it all started for me and even seeing the photograph of it in the Christies' book flooded me with a deeply emotional nostalgia. Perhaps I should ask the Dreamsville site's citizens to keep an eye out for an example. There may be one out there somewhere, just waiting for me to claim it. Driving back from Nunnington Hall, Emi and I stopped off at a hotel in Hovingham for a drink before heading home. All in all, it was another of those really nice days that we try to spend together at weekends. Emi is not just my wife, but my best friend and I treasure the times we share travelling around our beloved North Yorkshire. She's the perfect companion for me. Last night provided us with another social occasion. Jane, a good friend of ours, celebrated her 50th birthday. She, her husband Mark, Emi and I, were all invited to the home of our mutual friends, Steve and Julia. Julia had prepared a really excellent dinner for us all. As usual, I ended up merrily mellow. A 'phone call this evening to Dave regarding artwork. Some emails sent to various people, (including Dean Campbell regarding the actual written signature to go onto my signature guitar), but more still to write...and more work to deal with tomorrow. Tired now though...maybe enough for today? ***** The images attached to this diary entry are:- 1: A 'Neptune's Galaxy' advert. 2: A 1950's Selco Elvis Presley toy guitar, exactly the same as Bill's first ever guitar. 3: Bill's studio in an untidy, busy moment. Top of page Friday 14th July 2006 -- 7:00 pm Tomorrow is the 15th of July. Approximately 33 years ago, events transpired that gave birth to the song '15th Of July, (Invisibles)'. This song was part of Be Bop Deluxe's live performances at the time, but the song was not included in the recording sessions that produced the band's first album 'Axe Victim.' The only evidence that the song ever actually existed, (apart from fading memory), is provided by Be Bop Deluxe's very first BBC radio one session on the late and much missed John Peel show. I don't think the band had even consolidated its deal with EMI Records at that time. Thankfully, the BBC kept a recording of the show in its archives and the track was eventually immortalised on cd when it appeared, a few years ago now, on an album called 'Tramcar To Tomorrow', which focused on those long ago John Peel sessions. Some fans may already know about that particular song's origins, how it sprang from a relationship that I had with a certain girl, a girl who inspired the song 'Teenage Archangel,' (Be Bop Deluxe's first, independently made single,) and who also inspired 'Love Is Swift Arrows,' amongst several other, later titles. Be Bop Deluxe had a regular monthly gig at 'The Duke Of Cumberland' pub in North Ferriby, near Hull in the early 1970's. The band were young and naive and we met girls, as young bands do. I was married to my first wife, (Shirley), at the time and shouldn't really have been looking for romance... but I was. It hadn't turned out to be the ideal marriage, either for me or for Shirley. Not Shirley's fault at all really, just me and my usual saying 'yes' when I really meant 'no.' I'd plunged into it far too young and hardly knew what I was doing, 'though as a result, I have a wonderful, intelligent daughter that I couldn't live without. (Julia Tuesday Nelson.) It was, as the old cliche has it, 'just one of those things.' Nevertheless it has become a vital part of my history and an important, formative, invaluable experience. In those days, I had a day job working for the West Riding County Council's 'Supplies Department,' a miserable enough job that offered no real future, other than a daily shuffling of papers from one desk tray to another until old age and retirement when I could look forward to a mantlepiece clock and a briefcase full of good wishes. I tolerated it as cheerfully as I could, along with the well meaning but relatively unambitious people I worked with. No, let me be honest here, I hated the damn job, grateful as I was to have enough income to maintain my two-up, two-down, industrial-age terrace house, nestled just outside Wakefield's high security prison in an area known as Plumpton. (In fact, just across the road from the one-time site of Mariott's Buildings, my grandmother's house, where I was born.) I felt like a man from Mars in that rank and file environment...and people treated me as if I WAS someone from another world. I was greeted with a mixture of suspicion, derision and thinly disguised prejudice. My liberal, non-conformist attitudes were seen as threatening by some of my fellow workers. I was an enigma or a curiosity to them. My enthusiasm for art and music was simply their confirmation that I was weird, oddball, maybe even slightly crazy. I did my best to live with it, believing, somewhere inside, that my instincts were right and that it was they who were odd, mutant, deviant almost, and that I had a much more healthy, broad and open attitude towards life. My life and its daily grind were in some ways responsible for my dreams of an idealistic, romantic, creative lifestyle. Anything to escape. Under all the paper-filing, telephone-answering mundanity lurked the ecstatic, melancholy, heart of a poet. Let's not be coy here, that is what I was and what I still am. (And always have been since the day I was born, despite my occassional protests and faux-modest denials.) I still believe that everyone is a poet, given the right situation, environment, opportunity to express themselves, or whatever. (And poetry, as I've said so often before, is not a 'form' but a quality.) But...blah, blah, blah...easy to say or think this back then in my youth, with no evidence of very much at all. No visible track record, very few marks in the sand. Not like now. Song after song after song, still yearning, searching, harvesting every last straw for the thatched roof of my own private cottage museum. The proof, for what it's worth, is there. 33 years worth of proof or more if needed. 58 this coming December actually, all taken into account. Undeniable then...A life devoted to it, whatever IT is. But...yes, I was right, THAT is what I am, for better or for worse. Poet, artist, imagineer...How wonderful, how privileged, how highly UNLIKELY! Regardless of good, bad or indifferent. I can't judge what it's worth and ultimately don't care. (Or do I?) But there's something there...an integrity of sorts. Maybe nothing more. Around 33 years ago, on the 15th of July, Be Bop Deluxe's gig at 'The Duke Of Cumberland' was cancelled due to summer thunderstorms that caused an electricity cut in the North Ferriby area. The band had made friends with various locals since first playing there. Instead of jumping in our van and heading back to Wakefield, we were persuaded to spend the rest of the day with various locals. We were adored by our regular audience at the Duke and there was no shortage of offers to go and relax with them. I'd fallen head over heels in love with a beautiful, intelligent, dark haired, half-jewish girl called Lisa. We'd met at one of the earliest of 'Duke' gigs. She was stunning and I was smitten. It was as if I'd been granted a miracle. I couldn't believe my luck. Why was she interested in me? An unhappy, married man from a working class background with nothing but a pocketful of dreams. Her family was wealthy, sophisticated, everything that I wasn't. On that 15th of July, Lisa invited me to go with her in her car to her parent's house in Kirkella, an upper class village not far from North Ferriby. I worried about the fact that they did not know that I was married, 'though Lisa was aware of this from the start of our relationship and accepted it. She said not to worry and off we went to her home. The house was called 'West Acre' and was, by my standards at the time, almost a palace. Her parents were gracious and her home was large and luxurious. I recall it vividly, it made such an impression on me. Lisa cooked me lunch, Steak and chips, if I remember correctly. Her father proudly showed me his hi-fi system, built into an expensive antique cabinet and Lisa showed me her bedroom. She kept a photo of me pinned to a set of drawers next to her bed. The house was filled with expensive furniture and objects d'arte. Maybe I wouldn't be so impressed now, but then...I was stunned. It was raining, though warm. Some of Lisa's friends called around to see her and we all sat in a lounge in the front of the house. I could see the lane, outside the front garden's perimeter, with its line of green trees and an old fashioned lampost a few yards or so away. It reminded me of an illustration in an old children's book from my childhood, sort of '30's or '40's upper class, 'proper' English society. I'd grown up on a council house estate and this was magic to me. I felt out of place, 'though I was desperately glad to be sitting next to Lisa, who I adored. One of Lisa's friends commented on how bad the weather was, with the rain and everything. Lisa just smiled, squeezed my hand and said, "It couldn't be better..." And that was the exact moment that the song, '15th Of July, (Invisibles)' sprang into being. Perhaps it was the painfullness of our situation that was 'invisible.' Only she and I knew that I was married, her friends and parents being unaware of it at the time. The song's lyrics start like this: 'It rained all day across the world, and turned the dark trees deeper green...' It goes on to portray the house, Lisa's friends and quotes her comment...and plainly states my yearning for her. For all its innocence and naivety, it's one of the purest, most heartfelt love songs I've ever written. And it's 33 years old tomorrow. I received CDR masters of the 'Holy Ghost' and 'Spangled Moment' recordings from Sony today. When I played them back, I was shocked. I haven't listened to these recordings for many years, (apart from the song 'Contemplation' which I had to reference for the band tour of 2004). My first impression was that I'd dearly love to get my hands on the original 24 track tapes and completely remix them, get rid of that terribly dated 1980's crashing reverb snare drum sound. Too much reverb overall in fact...and not enough bass. It all sounds very brittle and insubstantial. William's Study (Diary Of A Hyperdreamer) July 2006 Jan Apr May Jun Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2013 Ironic that the majority of it was recorded on what was then considered to be state-of-the-art early digital equipment. My current home studio mixes are infinitely superior. But it would be too expensive and time consuming to remix the album, so I will have to content myself with simply re-mastering it. Try to add some weight to the overall sound. Good songs, on the whole though. Better than I'd remembered. If only I could remix them to bring out the vocals more.The vocals are really quite good, 'though at the time I tended towards the opposite opinion, making them subsidiary to the instrumental mix. More fool me. If I could do it all again, (mix the tracks that is), I'd make the entire thing much dryer, more focussed, more vocal centred...and feature the bass guitar of Ian Denby more, AND my late brother's saxophone and clarinet too. One thing I CAN do, and WILL do, is re-think the track listing, especially as I am now able to integrate the 8 song, 'Living For The Spangled Moment' mini-album into the project. The running order would definitely benefit from the years of experience granted to me since the original album's release. I need to bring the entire project into the 21st Century, at least in its presentation. Next week I'm in Fairview, mixing the EMI Be Bop Box Set live tapes, so I'll have to put Holy Ghost on ice for a short while. But it needs to be worked on very soon if I'm to keep things on schedule. So busy. Work on my Campbell signature model guitar goes on apace. I got photo's of the naked, carved mahogany body last night. I also emailed Dean Campbell regarding some cosmetic details and gave him a title for the red paint colour that will be used. I've called it 'Rocketship Red.' There will be 'atom' style fret position markers at the 12th fret too. The model will be known as a 'Nelsonic Transitone.' Looking forward to seeing the final version. I need to approve it before production starts. 'Neptune's Galaxy' finally going out the door of the Dreamsville Department Store. People already posting their response to the album on the website forum. I think that the music is low-key but beautiful. Gentle tides and drifting clouds. Perfect for a summer afternoon. Perfect for dreaming. Now it's the weekend. But no rest...I need to think about the revised 'Holy Ghost' running order. AND new artwork. The weather is so nice outside my window. ***** The images accompanying this diary entry are:- 1. An early photo' of Bill Nelson and Be Bop Deluxe taken around the same time that they first played at 'The Duke Of Cumberland' pub. 2. Bill Nelson in the '80's around the time of the 'Getting The Holy Ghost Across' album. 3. Dutch and Justin, luthiers at Campbell American Guitars with the mahogany body of Bill Nelson's 'Nelsonic Transitone' guitar. A work in progress. Top of page Monday 17th July 2006 -- 10:00 pm Today was the first day of work at Fairview Studios, mixing the previously unreleased Be Bop Deluxe live recordings. John Spence and I managed to get one track completed and in the can. ('Swansong,' originally a track from the 'Futurama' album but, for the first time ever, now presented in its live performance state.) It feels a little strange, working on these 1970's live recordings after such a long time. The mixing process dictates that the individual components of the recording are listened to in great detail, each instrument or voice isolated from the others whilst sound is adjusted and a proper relationship between the parts established. Listening to Simon Fox's drums without the rest of the instruments took me back to those days in Abbey Road Studios, or to Villa St. George in Juan Les Pins, near Antibes, in the South Of France, when John Leckie and myself would spend hours trying to get the drum sound together, microphones moved from one position to another on each drum, equalisation tweaked until a 'good' drum sound was arrived at. Thud, whack, bang! Listening to the drum parts on 'Swansong' today reminded me how complex some of our arrangements were. The songs were much more puzzle-like than I would accept today. My current songwriting is leaner, more focussed, less inclined to show-off. But I was young back then and had the hapless energy and naivety that youth inevitably entails. I'm not favouring one approach over another here, just noting that sensibilities shift with age and experience, for everyone. We have little choice in the matter, (unless we are complete fakes). There was a problem with the recording of the first opening verse of 'Swansong.' Microphone / monitor feedback ruined almost every line of that particular verse...it screeched, squealed and howled in a very unpleasant way, right through it, burying the vocals, and there was nothing that John nor I could do to get rid of it. The more we listened to it, the more unpleasant and ugly it became. In the end, we decided to copy the final verse of the song and paste it in place of the first one. This may be seen as technical trickery by some purists, but it is infinitely preferable to listening to several bars of high pitched microphonic feedback at a level that would induce migraine in most listeners. Maybe on the first two plays, it might be accepted as part of the scenario...but it would soon have everyone's teeth on edge and their hand reaching for the skip button on their CD player. So...with a little digital sleight-of-hand, the offensive verse has been banished and a more palatable one substituted. A particular treat for me was being able to listen to Charlie Tumahai's voice in isolation. He was a very good vocalist and had been the lead singer in bands previous to Be Bop Deluxe, (and in bands afterwards, I think). Charlie sadly passed away several years ago which is why there will never be a re-formed Be Bop Deluxe. Even if Simon, Andy and myself unexpectedly felt the urge to get together again, it simply wouldn't be the same without the happy fountain that was Mr.Tumahai. And that 'if' is a fairly big one, for I can't imagine that Andy would be in the least interested in such a thing. As for me, well...I was fortunate enough to get my retro-band fix in 2004 with the Be Bop and Beyond tour. I'd love to assemble a band again but it would have to be one that could play a lot of new material created specifically for it. Even if it did dip into my song-writing treasure chest for some 'vintage' material here and there. But, as my friends all know, despite my somewhat, sometimes, nostalgic tendencies, when it comes to music, I just love the smell of fresh paint. Anyway...back to Fairview tomorrow to continue working on the live track mixes. 'Forbidden Lovers' and 'Terminal Street' up next. Not the best time of year to be stuck in a windowless studio all day though. It's been blisteringly hot out in the sunshine today. More heatwave to come too, apparently. Yesterday, (Sunday), I decided to make the most of the weather before confining myself to the studio control room for the rest of the week. I bundled Emi into the car and we set off for the East Coast of Yorkshire, driving to Bridlington and then up the coast to Sewerby, then to Flamborough Head, then Filey, Scarborough, then past Robin Hood's Bay and on to Whitby where we had dinner at our usual favourite seaside restaurant, 'The White Horse And Griffin.' Unfortunately, the food wasn't quite up to the restaurant's usual standard, nor the service, I thought. Maybe this was because of the summer seasonal rush, or new staff? I really have no real idea. Still, it wasn't terrible either, so I'll give them another chance, next time we visit. I DID have a positive moment though, when I found a copy of the third part of John Betjeman's biography, written by Bevis Hillier. I'm a fan of the late Sir John B. and of Bevis Hillier's writing too. In fact, my son Elliot's full name is Elliot Walter Bevis Nelson. Walter after my father, Bevis after Bevis Hillier. Visiting Flamborough Head was a treat. Incredibly, I haven't been there since the mid 1960's. I fondly remember reclining on the cliff's edge with my then girlfriend, Lynne Holiday, listening to my little red and white plastic transistor radio...It was playing the latest songs of the day, "When you go to San Francisco, be sure to wear some flowers in your hair..." ('San Francisco' by Scott McKenzie.) There was also a Frank Sinatra hit...either 'Send In The Clowns' or 'Strangers In The Night.' Plus some other half-straight, half-psychedelic pop from various artists trying to catch the wave that was beginning to break on these shores...the kind of music that turns up on those 'remember the 'sixties' compilation CDs these days. (Every supermarket has them.) It seems that my generation has, in recent years, become a prime target for that style of marketing. But what excuse do I have? Damn it...I'm mixing material more than twenty-five years old! Give me strength! But on that warm summer day back in...1966 was it? (Yes, give or take a year.) Well, all seemed wonderful with the world. We youngsters had found our voice, our cause, our raison d'etre. An all-inclusive, arms-held-wide, big welcoming peaceful hug for everyone, regardless of age or background. We'd swallowed that SanFrancisco, West-Coast, peace and love ideology lock stock, barrel and flowers. We looked the part, we walked the part and talked it, ten to the dozen. And the amazing thing is, we actually felt it. We thought we could bring it about, turn the world around, ring the changes. And in a positive, non-violent fashion, everyone included. So, where did all that hope and love vanish to? Look at the world outside our window now..see the horrific hatreds that poison our planet. Even on a basic, local level, its hard not to be aware of several generations of cynical, negative, heartless chancers, grasping, filching, fiddling while Rome burns. What have we lost? What have they missed? Still, despite all that: Yesterday afternoon, a clear blue, BLUE sky stretching down to a blue, BLUE sea. A pure white lighthouse gleaming against all heaven. A skylark singing fit to bust somewhere so high in the blue beyond that I couldn't even see it, but, oh! How I could hear it! White-capped waves lapping far below the yellow-white chalk cliffs, coarse grasses swaying in the sea breeze...Man, it just doesn't get much better or more blissful. I was gone, sent, away with the birds. I WAS that skylark, that little winged insect with bright red wings flitting from wild flower to wild flower. I was every one of those cricket-like bugs rubbing their legs together in some summer-fuelled mating song. I was so HERE and THERE and EVERYWHERE, so deeply in tune with it all you wouldn't believe. I had a ball simply looking and feeling. Wow! And I remembered Lynne and our youth and those times and that music and I was grateful to be alive and to have lived through those times. And AMEN to that then and AMEN to this now. Despite the terrors we endure, despite all that. Ain't life grand when you're in the mood for it to be so? ***** The images attached to this diary are:- 1. Bill Nelson at Flamborough Head, July 16, 2006. 2. Flamborough Head Lighthouse, July 16, 2006. 3. Flamborough Cliffs. July 16, 2006. Top of page Saturday 29th July 2006 -- 8:20 pm The heat goes on, externally, internally and weather-wise. Just returned home from an evening out with Emiko. A meal at Ceasar's restaurant, the best value for money Italian in town. Nothing too fussy, just down to earth cooking and warm, friendly staff who always recognise us and treat us well. I generally try to put a little time aside for Emi at the weekends. She patiently puts up with me working long hours in my studio during the week, so, as much as possible, I give my my weekends over to her. I think I'll drive her out to Castle Howard tomorrow afternoon. It's not far from here and a late lunch at the Castle Howard cafe, followed by a gentle stroll around those magnificently landscaped grounds will be a nice treat for both of us. Especially under these big blue summer skies we're being blessed with right now. But, my, oh my, it has been so HOT! The summer has baked our day to day lives without mercy these last few weeks...a heatwave that now seems to have stretched on forever. Nights have been sticky and interrupted by bouts of insomnia and perversely lusty dreams. Apparently these are a result of the sun shining on the pineal gland on the top of one's head. It's maybe why mediterranean men and women are so erotically charged. Well...I don't know about that but something's up in the land of nod. My studio room has felt like a sauna lately. Or an oven set to 'roast.' Impossible to work during the day, at least from 12 noon until early evening. The sun beams down through my skylight window and fries everything to a crisp, me, the guitars, the mixing desk, my imagination and anything else that I need to make music. I can't open any windows for fear of annoying the neighbours. Haven't got air-conditioning so I either have to work stark naked or abandon recording completely until things cool down a little during the evening. The latter, these middle-aged days, is generally preferable I'm sorry to say! I HAVE managed to finish mixing the Be Bop Deluxe live tracks for the forthcoming EMI RECORDS box set. These mixes were made at Fairview Studios, not far from the river Humber, rather than at the Abbey Road studios of the band's heyday, but the results are equal to anything from the past, if not better. My good friend and long-time recording engineer John Spence has helped me to bring about what I think will be universally accepted as an absolutely classic set of Be Bop performances, none of which have been previously available to the public. There's no doubt that fans of the band will be extremely excited when they hear these live recordings. The memories that came flooding back to me were poignant. Despite my reservations about this old material, there's nothing for me to be ashamed of. And what a band..! Listening to the individual parts in isolation brought home just how distinctive and sympathetic my three fellow musician's were. 'Swansong,' Forbidden Lovers', 'Terminal Street' and 'The Modern Music Suite' have all been mixed to bring out their naked beauty. They sound wonderful, even though the technical aspects of the performances are raw and bleeding. But I'm so glad that they've been preserved for posterity. It's been incredibly moving for me to work on these rare recordings after all these years. Part of me was smiling, part of me was lamenting, but all of me was proud. It was also lovely to hear John Spence say that he was thrilled to become part of Be Bop Deluxe's legacy too. Our collaboration, (and John's experience and technical expertise,) has served the band's history well. Since completing the Be Bop live mixes, John and I have been working on the remastering of the 'Getting The Holy Ghost Across' album, also at Fairview. I've added the 'Living For The Spangled Moment' mini-album to the disc too, (AND an obscure track called 'The Yo-Yo-Dyne'). Dave Graham and myself are still working on the repackaging of this album and have now found a suitable starting point to build the design around. Dave's close understanding of my visual style will, once again, contribute towards a highly appropriate layout. It will look quite beautiful when it is completed. I decided to stick to original track-listings and running orders, partly because my currently hyper-busy schedule hasn't allowed me time to experiment with the hoped-for re-shuffle, but partly because a large number of fans have expressed their preference for the songs to be kept in their original sequence. So...new cover art, new improved mastering, extra tracks, but same running order. In between bouts of heat exhaustion and indoor nudity, I've managed to make a start on the tracks which are to be included on this year's limited edition Nelsonica convention album, 'Arcadian Salon.' It now seems likely that there will be 10 or 11 pieces on the album, if I can stay on top of things during the next few heatwave-cursed days. There will be a couple of brand new numbers, all being well, plus some pieces that didn't make it to 'Return To Jazz Of Lights' because of time limitations. And two or three instrumentals, including 'Sound-On-Sound,' (the instrumental that I composed and recorded to celebrate Sound-On-Sound magazine's anniversary last year). It's shaping up to be an eclectic mix of music, as is usual with the convention recordings...another collector's piece and all the more controversial because of it. I've been having a very nice, surprising guitar week (or two) lately. I won't go into details for fear of embarrassing a couple of 'super-fans' who have been incredibly helpful in helping me to acquire a new instrument or two but...well...A childhood dream of a flamingo pink Fender Stratocaster, (via a Rickenbacker 12-string), has come true, as has a 'full-circle' situation regarding a toy Elvis Presley guitar that once, long, long ago, was responsible for capturing my pre-teen imagination and putting my feet on the path to a lifelong career in music. I don't think I'm permitted to name names here but the people involved will know that it is they of whom I speak. All I can say is that I'm blown away, deeply grateful, totally amazed and sincerely moved by their generosity. I'm blessed with some tremendously loyal and kind fans.They sometimes take on the role of theatrical 'angels' or art patrons. Their involvement often goes beyond basic 'fandom' and enters the realms (and ideals), of a long-ago Golden Age when aesthetically refined connoisseurs once helped artists to bring their work before a wider world. Or is that just me being romantic again? Nevertheless, these instances prove that that spirit of patronage and support is not dead, and that it IS possible to produce a music that does not need to bow down to the rigid limitations of the mainstream music industry. I'm eternally grateful that there are several special people, (some are fans, some are friends, some are business people), who help to create an atmosphere of freedom and creativity around me within which I'm able to achieve my life's work. Without their support and generosity, I'm lost. Different subject:- I noticed, in the latest issue of Mojo Magazine, reference to two new albums (by other artists), themed around sea-going concepts. One is called 'Rogue's Gallery: Pirate Ballads, Sea Songs and Chanteys' (odd spelling of the latter word?) This album is apparently co-produced by Johnny Depp, the well known Keith Richards impressionist. The album actually features my Channel Light Vessel dreamboat Kate St. John, as well as the somewhat less erotically charged Bryan Ferry. It also features Sting, Nick Cave, Jarvis Cocker, Rufus Wainwright and various other pop-tastic media stars, the most interesting and worthy of which are David Thomas of Pere Ubu, Van Dyke Parks and Mary Margaret O'Hara. The Mojo reviewer says that the album will "shiver your timbers in the most rewarding of ways..." The other album is: 'Ocean: Songs For The Night Sea Journey' by Jennifer Cutting's Ocean Orchestra. The review says it employs synths and samples alongside accordions, pipes and strings. Well, well...looks like I've been rolling along on the crest of a wave but, of course, my 'Lighthouse Signal Mechanism Orchestra' came into that particular harbour almost a year ago now. Perhaps my ship is equipped with a more finely attuned compass. Oh, well... But what a pity that 'The Alchemical Adventures Of Sailor Bill' didn't receive the media attention that the above two albums seem to be currently enjoying. I may be ahead of the wave but I'm under the radar, or so it seems. Went to see my friend John Foxx last week...he was playing at 'Fibbers' in York. Haven't had chance to meet with him since we both took part in Harold Budd's 'farewell' concert at the Brighton Dome last year, 'though we've exchanged several emails since. John braved the heat of summer (and of Fibbers), to give a vibrant, almost 'electro-punk' show which delighted his audience. He got a great reception, not least from my neighbour and good friend Steve who has been a big fan of John's since the early Ultravox days. And I gained brownie points from introducing Steve to John after the show... It was really good to see John enjoying himself and celebrating an energetic, 'roots' approach to performance. He and I still plan to get together, both with Harold and with each other.The only thing slowing us down is lack of time. One of these days though... This coming week, I must seriously try to overcome the heat (and my exhaustion), and finish recording the 'Arcadian Salon' album.Then I must decide upon a track running order and master the album as soon as possible as there is no time available for me in Fairview Studio from the middle of August on. This thing HAS to be ready for the convention in early October. It's rushing up like a runaway express train, as usual. More than ever, I'm way behind schedule. Haven't begun to make any inroads at all into the autobiographical film 'Ghosts Etched On Glass,' (an excerpt from which I'm supposed to present at Nelsonica 06 as a 'work in progress'). In fact, the list of jobs I have to tackle for the convention is becoming an increasingly scary and, maybe even impossible, task. How on earth can I get all this stuff together in the scant time remaining to me before the convention date? Yes, o.k...I ALWAYS panic but, it seems that each year I take on more and more work, projects that, despite all good intentions, are increasingly difficult to complete without tremendous effort and sacrifice. I guess the recent tasks I've had to undertake regarding re-issues and associated items have thrown the proverbial spanner into the works. I have to admit that my trip to Japan robbed me of two weeks working time also. But there's nothing left for me but to plough on, to do the best I can under the circumstances. No point in working myself up into a paranoid, desperate panic about it all. After all, I love it don't I? And it usually works out o.k...Doesn't it? Well...too hot right now, even though it's late evening. Can't sit here typing. I'll continue this in a day or two when I'm less exhausted and there's more progress to report. And less sweat dripping onto my computer keyboard. POST SCRIPT: SUNDAY 30th JULY 2006 -- 9 PM. Went to Castle Howard with Emi as planned. Lunch was good, sitting in the grounds of the house, watching white fluffy clouds drift by in a high blue heaven. Apparently, Jools Holland and his pals played at Castle Howard on Friday, (I think), a big outdoor bash or something grand. Emi and I are thinking of attending the annual classical 'Proms' concert at Castle Howard, in August. It's a picnic hamper / champers type of affair. Maybe even grander than Jools' big do. We could dress up in our summer finery, get completely, joyously blathered, then slip away into the woods to frighten the peacocks. Pan chasing his favourite nymph through a sylvan glade, and that sort of thing. Libido a-go-go. Let's hope the weather holds up. Last ever 'Top Of The Pops' on tv tonight. Caught the back end of the final show, (when I switched on the television during dinner). Tonight's special, farewell programme seemed to have been full of clips from across the ages. Don't know whether they showed anything from the time when pop music actually resembled pop ART, when it genuinely had something to say for itself. (Jimi Hendrix, Syd-era Floyd, etc, etc.) Whatever, the last five minutes of the programme illustrated perfectly why it has finally been axed by the BBC. Pop music has become irrelevant, hollow and dull and is, to all intents and purposes, dead. I met Jimmy Saville once. (Be Bop Deluxe were on Top Of The Pops at the time, drooling over Pan's People backstage.) I also saw Jimmy standing at a bus stop across the road from the Music Ground guitar shop in Leeds, maybe only a year ago at most. Perhaps I was the only person in the street who noticed. He was nice enough to us when we were on Top Of The Pops. He may even have played our records on his radio shows. Sooner or later though, we all come to resemble decrepit old age pensioners. No pop star remains unscathed. And thank goodness for that. Insufferable narcissists, the lot of 'em. ***** The images attached to this diary entry are:- 1. The fields near the Humber Bridge, Swanland Hill view, July 2006. 2. North Ferriby Foreshore, July 2006 3. An ad for 'Neptune's Galaxy.' Top of page

Powertron Bill Nelson album - 3 May 2024 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this CD TRACKS: 01) Fascinating Noise 02) A River On The Edge Of Time 03) Dreams And Smoke (Flow With The River) 04) The Moon Came In My Window 05) Where's The Wonder? 06) Loose Chippings 07) When I Don't Feel Blue 08) Moments In The Day 09) Fair Winds And Steam Machines 10) Sailing My Boat 11) Laughing Sailors, Raging Seas 12) Drive Shaft Purchase this download ALBUM NOTES: Powertron is an album of predominantly vocal pieces issued on the Sonoluxe label in a limited edition of 1000 copies. The album was commenced immediately after Nelson completed work on The Jewel album when he realised that he then had thirteen albums waiting in the queue for their release. He confirmed plans for "another album" in a Dreamsville forum post dated 3 June 2016. The starting point was the track 'Drive Shaft' which was a left over from the The Jewel sessions. Powertron was later revealed to be the name of this latest project. Powertron features an uninvited guest appearance on the song 'Smoke and Dreams (Flow With the River)' in the shape of Django, the Nelsons' pet cat, who entered the recording room and offered a well-timed 'meow' immortalising himself onto the recording in the process. Nelson himself was unaware of this until he came to mix the track and decided to leave in Django's contribution to the song. Within four weeks Nelson had recorded eleven tracks for the album and announced that he needed to add just one more song to finish it. On 16 July 2016 he confirmed that the album was now complete but that it would be at least four albums down the line in his release schedule out of the 14 albums he then currently had in the can. As it turned out Powertron would continue to be overlooked a number of times in favour of newer recordings and it would take a further 8 years for it to finally appear. The album was mastered at Fairview Studios by John Spence in February 2024 with artwork compiled by Martin Bostock using images selected and manipulated by Nelson as the album approached release. Pre-orders for Powertron were announced by Burning Shed on April 5th with a release date scheduled for 3rd May. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase here in the Dreamsville Store. BILL'S THOUGHTS: "I've embarked on another album using a track abandoned from The Jewel as its starting point. I thought this track, titled 'Drive Shaft' was a bit too rock for The Jewel , so I've decided to follow on from it with a second track titled 'Last Night The Moon Came In My Window', a vocal track with a strong foundation in straight-ahead rock. I'll see how this album develops over the coming weeks and try to keep it on its rock music course as much as possible." _____ "Just finished the mix of 'Smoke And Dreams (Flow With The River)' for the Powertron album and realised that there's a moment in the middle of the song where my cat Django must have entered the studio whilst I was singing and recording the vocal with my headphones on...he 'meows' once, (and quite clearly.) I didn't notice this whilst I was singing but it showed up in the mix. In fact, when I was mixing and the recorded sound of the cat happened, I thought he had actually entered the room but, when I looked around, he was nowhere to be seen! It was only when I repeatedly ran the mix past that point that I realised it was actually on the recording. I guess I could have muted it out at the appropriate moment but decided to leave it in to immortalise Django...his 'meow' goes really well with the spooky, bluesy nature of the song. You'll have fun, methinks, listening out for this moment in the song when you get to hear it." _____ "The Powertron album is now nearing completion. Just one more track required, I think. It's a fairly straight-ahead rock album which should hit the spot for those of you into the more abrasive side of what I do. Not without its lyrical moments though, and a nice step on from Special Metal ." _____ "Powertron was recorded in 2016 but has languished in my archives, unreleased until now, some eight years later. Its genesis came whilst recording tracks for The Jewel album. Amongst these was a track titled 'Drive Shaft' which I considered too brash for The Jewel , but too good to abandon. I decided to create a suitable album to house 'Drive Shaft' and Powertron was the result. It's an album of left-field rock songs, mainly vocal but layered with loud and edgy guitars. It will appeal to those who enjoy the wilder side of my work." Albums Menu Future Past

Issue 2 Issue 3 Issue 1 - May 2005 BILL NELSON UNVEILS NEW WEBSITE! For some time now, Bill Nelson has dreamed of creating a website which could serve not only as a research center for fans of his creative work but also as an expression of his personal life and interests. Now, with the launch of the first phase of 'Dreamsville, The Official, Global, Bill Nelson Website', that dream finally begins to materialise. Dreamsville is a digital hamlet that will eventually house all manner of delights, a domain that will allow its citizens a direct insight into Bill's life and work along with the multitude of things that have inspired it. The site appears in a fairly rudimentary form at this moment but will gradually be expanded as time allows. Bill's priority will always be his music and so the development of Dreamsville will, quite naturally, have to fit around this core activity. Eventually, however, Dreamsville will provide a complete and unique resource with a personal touch and attention to detail that can only be found in an artist originated and run site. Like any new town, Dreamsville comes loaded with hopes and aspirations, manifestos and ambitions. Its success, however, will largely depend upon its citizens and visitors. In this respect, each individual fan's enthusiasm and input is welcomed. The town's growth and future life depends very much upon the support of all those who consider themselves to be connoisseurs of Bill Nelson's complex body of work. To help create a sense of community, 'The Dreamsville Inn' has been specially constructed as a means of communication for all loyal Nelsonians, world wide. It is hoped that this pleasant and traditionally 'English' location will provide a hospitable meeting place for considered and intelligent conversation. This very newspaper, 'The Dreamsville Rocket', will be issued as and when news arrives of activities that may interest you. All issues will be archived at 'The Newspaper Office' so that a permanent reference can be built up. You will be able to subscribe to 'The Dreamsville Rocket' for free and thereby be informed of the publication of the latest issue. Those who have followed Bill Nelson's diary over the years will be able to continue with this by regularly checking in the 'study' area of 'Villa Nelsonia' which is accessible from the town plan on the Dreamsville home page. The ongoing 'Diary Of A Hyperdreamer' will be posted there as each entry is created. There will be other areas within the villa for Bill's personal musings too, although these will appear a little later as the site develops. So, there you have it... Welcome to Dreamsville and The Dreamsville Rocket. NEWS JUST IN... Bill Nelson is planning a U.K. tour for October and November of this year. It will be a solo tour which will explore a new direction for Bill. As well as the more familiar use of instrumental material, Bill is intending to create several vocal pieces which can be performed live as a soloist, without the need for a band. These new songs will be designed to sit alongside his instrumental work in a harmonious fashion and will place Bill's live work in an entirely fresh context. Bill's previous solo outings have been exclusively instrumental, (except for a performance of 'Wonder Of The Moment' at 'The City Varieties' in Leeds in the Autumn of 2003), so this project is something of an adventure. Bill will also compose some new instrumentals and put together sections of video to fit. The tour's ultimate concept is currently under wraps but further developments and venues will be announced here when appropriate. A band-based tour, a further development of last year's venture, is being considered for 2006. This too would incorporate a new concept and presentation whilst still touching on some familiar music. ROSEWOOD: On its way! Bill Nelson's latest recording project, a two volume set called 'ROSEWOOD, Ornaments And Graces For Acoustic Guitar' is about to be manufactured. It is hoped to make 'ROSEWOOD VOLUME ONE' available sometime in May. 'ROSEWOOD VOLUME TWO' will be released a little further into the summer. This project concentrates on acoustic guitar instrumentals but is more than just the usual 'unplugged' confections served up as rustic fodder for suburban hillbillys these days. It is a direct linear development from the 'Dreamland To Starboard' album and sets Bill's acoustic guitar in an ambient soundscape that suggests a jazz and contemporary classical context as well as a broader neo-roots music vibe. The track listing for the two albums is given here:- 'ROSEWOOD' VOLUME ONE- 1. Blues For Orpheus 2. Escondido Oleander 3. Lumia 4. Filament 5. Lacuna 6. Cascade. (Improvisation For Three Harp Guitars) 7. She Swings Skirt 8. Mexico City Dream. (For Gil Evans) 9. Ventura 10. The Girl In The Park In The Rain 11. Apollonian Tremolo 12. Giant Hawaiian Showboat 13. Cremona 14. The Land Of Lost Time 15. Sleepless In The Ticking Dark 'ROSEWOOD' VOLUME TWO- 1. 'Tinderbox' 2. 'Aliumesque' 3. 'Little Cantina' 4. 'Rolling Home, (Yorkshire Raga No.1)' 5. 'Sunbeam' 6. 'Bramble' 7. 'William Is Wearing The Cardigan Of Light' 8. 'The Autumn Tram, (Yorkshire Raga No. 2)' 9. 'Hi Lo La' 10. 'Rising Sap' 11. 'Blue Cloud' 12. 'See-Through Nightie' 13. 'Ordinary Storm, Waiting For Rain' 14. 'The Light Is Kinder In This Corner Of Corona' 15. 'Your Whole Life Dreaming NELSONICA The Beat Goes On It is hoped to organise an official Nelsonica fan convention this year. Plans are currently being discussed and a new venue is being investigated. The timing of the convention is dependent upon the eventual Autumn solo tour schedule but it is hoped that Nelsonica can be accommodated. Various new proposals have been put forward to develop the convention and provide fans with an opportunity to share a day out with Bill. Live performance will be included in this event, along with other special items of interest. Keep your eye on 'The Dreamsville Rocket' for the latest developments. BILL NELSON LAUNCHES NEW RECORD LABEL Rosewood' is a limited edition release on Bill's own 'SONOLUXE' label and will be exclusively available from 'THE DREAMSVILLE DEPARTMENT STORE' or from official merchandising stalls at Bill Nelson's live concerts. HAROLD BUDD. A SPECIAL TRIBUTE CONCERT Bill Nelson will be featured in a very special, not to be missed concert for his long-time friend Harold Budd, being staged in Brighton on the 21st of May, 2005 as part of the Brighton Arts Festival. The concert will include performances by Jah Wobble, Robin Guthrie, John Foxx, Theo Travis, Steve Cobby and Steve Jansen, (as well as Bill) plus other special guests still to be confirmed. Check out the Brighton Festival website for further details. This concert can never be repeated and is not to be missed! ROSEWOOD, Ornaments And Graces For Acoustic Guitar, Volume One Bill's personal view of the album's development and its place within his work:- "I'd considered making an acoustic guitar based album for some time... but an instrumental one that would comfortably sit alongside such projects as 'The Romance Of Sustain,' 'Plaything' and 'Dreamland To Starboard.' I also wanted to avoid the obvious 'unplugged' approach. You know the kind of thing I mean, that faintly commercial, middle class, faux-folksy, nouveau-puritanical, rootsy methodism, with its slyly manipulative suggestion of a kind of 'backwoods/backwards' naivety... the easy seduction of an unsophisticated, barefoot girl outside a log cabin with her Ma and Pa away in town to buy feed for the chickens. Or maybe the rustic lure of big beards and banjos, overalls, oil stains and tobacco, the romantic refuge of city boys stricken by an identity crisis. Not that I haven't consciously employed such notions of whimsy within my own music in the past. And I've certainly purchased and enjoyed my own fair share of those kind of albums, authentic or otherwise. So, I'm not coming down heavy on the Hollywood Hillbilly Hordes here. What I'm trying to say is that I wanted to bring something else to this project, other than its essential declaration of woody 'acoustic-ness.' In one sense 'Rosewood' is a reversal of older confabulations, (look it up, it doesn't exist), that easy thrill of taking technology and applying primitivist attitudes to it... old hat now, (and for some time too). Not that approach, definitely not, but a slightly different one. From these hesitant attempts to rationalise my methods, you might surmise that Rosewood was deliberately set aside, conceptualised, cut, dried and prepared, before I even tuned my guitar. As if the hatching of a concept was the alpha and omega of the thing. This wasn't quite the case. I may often begin in such a manner but the music inevitably demands its own violent deviation from such restrictions. It inevitably throws a curve ball. Of course, I always have the option to adhere to the original narrow remit or ignore it completely. I could profitably pursue the clear-cut track of the super-disciplined, minimalist aesthete, or actually have fun and play around with whatever the void throws up. Some would view the latter as a lazy approach but they'd be wrong. It's tougher dealing with the freedom to run anywhere at all in a field, rather than to walk down some pre-ordained white line. The more options available, the harder the task. It can go either way or otherwise. And 'otherwise' is often the best. Just the sheer sensuousness of playing and hearing it play back provides all the joy that I need or would wish to convey... Just because it's there for me and it's mere existence appears beautiful and an accidental miracle of sorts. But... aren't all miracles accidental, God being dead, (other than in the fevered imaginations of the devout?) Despite my half-hearted resistance, I've more than often found that 'going with the flow' leads to far more vital and potent results than pursuing the established art magazine, bourgeois affectations so beloved of the chattering classes... slick, over controlled hang-overs from English '80's Thatcherism. Such restrictive attitudes, to me, are nothing more than cliched expressions of fashion as fascism, (and so on ad nauseum). Music for anal-retentives? Well, suburban coffee table, dinner-party aesthetics are generally guaranteed to bring out the rebel in me. And the boorish, anarchist iconoclast. But then, I'm bound to be biased, aren't I? Anyway... back to the act of ART and all its absolutely irrelevant, transcendent perversions, the stuff we love and adore: Each time I begin an act of music making, I'm presented with a multitude of options. So many different angles and approaches and obsessions, all competing for my time and energy. Another cliche, perhaps, but: The artist's lot isn't so much to create, as to choose. He is adrift in a whirlpool of possibilities. It is a fierce place. 'Choose' is perhaps a misleading term in this instance. To cast the dice, is probably more apt. I am, on the one hand, just a simple guitar player with only one song to sing. On the other, I'm a reasonably well read, thoughtful, self-injurious, open-minded, poetically motivated, conceptually aware artist with selfishly personal, troubled and complex ideas to explore, (or 'issues to resolve,' to put it in pop-psychoanylitical terms). Or, on the other hand, (Oh, yes, I have three, you know), I'm simply in love with the sound of music, the physical feel of a guitar and the crackle and fizz and superficial beauty of my own gossamer thoughts and dreams. The latter, most probably. Or perhaps all of the above. Delete according to taste. With 'Rosewood' I wanted to take a basic, 'primitive' acoustic guitar and deal with it as if it was an electric instrument. This isn't to say that Rosewood is an experimental work. That old Jean Cocteau thing of 'taking a line for a walk' doesn't necessarily denote a dive into uncharted waters... Music's well-mapped oceans are pretty much over-fished anyway. The notion of 'newness' is as much a conservative concept as 'traditionalism.' An establishment perpetuated myth. Pop-Radicalism is rarely new, only like shifting sand, formed by tides of time and place and commerce, rather than absolute cultural need. Often nothing more than the kind of metaphysical lies touted by snake-oil salesmen, hoping to seduce their customers with the heady perfume of miracles and danger. A pirated, fake Chanel, mixed from sour and stale ingredients, masked with vanilla. It wasn't always so... Despite all this nebulous talk of here and there, now and then, Rosewood may be perceived by some to be fundamentally, deliciously retrogressive. Also, pretty, attractive, charming, mellow... . The plink, plonk, twang of nostagia. I cheerfully admit it has much to do with memory and nostalgia... but it remembers a past that never actually existed. The whole thing is a figment of imagination, a chimera, a fantasy projected in Disneyesque pastels. It may appear odd and alien to those few who encountered a head-scratching moment as a result of some of the acoustic interludes on my earlier albums, or to those who still hanker after amped-up '70's guitar heroisms. It may certainly appear odd to those who are a little too young, old, or insular to have explored the kitsch technicolour fringes of retroland, the lush meadows of English pastoralism, the smokey blue neon of '50's soho jazz clubs, the whirr and gleam of Post-Victorian fairy's wings, the rattle, bang and zoom of tin-can rocketships, the fairground colours of canal narrow-boats, the white hot hiss of steam trains, the warm, glowing golden static of Mullard valves in old radios, the Orson Welles-blessed zither's of Eastern Europe, the eternal attraction of a box of Lakeland coloured pencils alongside crisp, blank, white sheets of paper, the inevitable melancholy of impeding old age and autumn, the remembrance of youth and its follies, the tiny diamonds in snow, just after falling, the stars that shine through windows at night after love and sex, the church bells that drift over meadows and frame the first cuckoo of spring, the winding stream that sings and ripples and dazzles a bumblebee's eyes in summer, the bluebells that swoon beneath trees and perfume my dreams, the clouds that shift, change and form the faces of family ghosts in an August blue sky, the sound of my fingers on the strings of an acoustic guitar, the hum of a broken effects unit... All this, is my Rosewood and more. And Rosewood, in case you hadn't spotted it, is also the name of the most typical wood used in the construction of the fretboards of acoustic guitars. As above, so below. It's all surface and as deep as a wishing well." BILL NELSON. APRIL 2005 'Sonoluxe' is the latest name in a long line of Bill Nelson originated and owned record labels. It continues Bill's commitment to operating independently of the mainstream music industry, a tradition that Bill began in the very early 1970's with his 'Smile Records' label. 'Sonoluxe' will provide a quality service for those people who appreciate intelligent, stylish music, music that has no need of the narrow categorisation that so sadly limits contemporary listening habits. Each 'Sonoluxe' release will be a little work of art in itself, designed to give years of enjoyment. The label's first release will be the long-awaited 'ROSEWOOD' project. CARLSBRO TO MANUFACTURE A LIMITED EDITION, BILL NELSON DESIGNED AMPLIFIER! Due to unexpected demand, Carlsbro amplification are to manufacture a highly limited edition version of the amplifier and speaker cabinet personally designed by Bill Nelson and used by him on last year's 30th anniversary tour. Each unit will carry a specially engraved and numbered plate featuring Bill's signature. Once the initial small quantity have been made, no further units will be built. It is destined to be a rare and valuable collector's item. More news of this exclusive project as it develops. TWO NEW DIARY ENTRIES Bill has written two new diary entries, exclusive to Dreamsville. In the first, dated 21st of April 2005, Bill writes about the Dreamsvillelaunch, his10th wedding anniversary and his new plans for an autumn tour, as well as musings on the general election and the joys of a waxed mustache. In the second entry, dated 28th April 2005, Bill writes about ill health, the first cuckoo of spring, the mastering of Rosewood, Buddhist art, property development and the website launch delay. Diary of a Hyperdreamer is open for you to read on the desk of Bill's study in Villa Nelsonica. ROSEWOOD - Jon Wallinger gives his personal view For the last couple of weeks, I have had the pleasure of being in possession of a pre-mastered copy of Bill Nelson's latest instrumental CD 'Rosewood - Volume One'. When I say, "I've had the pleasure", that is exactly what it has been. This latest recording flows on wonderfully from 'Romance Of Sustain' and 'Dreamland To Starboard'. But whilst those albums were centred around electric guitars, the melody maker on Rosewood is the acoustic guitar. Headbangers may be disappointed, because at no stage during Rosewood do you get to shake your curly locks, but if you want my advice, play it after a hard day at work, lie back, put your feet up, close your eyes and let the gentle, haunting sounds massage your mind to a state of tranquillity so often forgotten about in today's world. But it's not just the guitar that sets the scene, there are layers of sounds, very minimal, but what there are fits so well... touches of ethnic percussion in places, bells and wind-chimes. Guitars in reverse appear a couple of times just to remind you who the recording artist is. It is quite a task to pick out individual song titles for special mentions. When listening to this CD, the tracks seem to merge to become a complete recording. You may have read that Bill spent quite some time working on the track selection and running order, the effort was well worth it, creating a complete journey rather than individual trips. There is just one track that I don't think fits particularly well among the others - I won't tell you which one, I'll let you make your own minds up... it will probably end up being everybody else's favourite! So if you enjoyed 'Romance' and 'Dreamland' then I predict that you are going to feel the same about the dreamy, ambient world of Rosewood. Roll on Volume Two... Jon Wallinger

Music Discography Buy Bill's Music Free Downloads Bill Nelson - Live! Bill's Band History

Think And You'll Miss It/Beat Street Free download single Click image for cover Artwork A free Christmas single for you to download and enjoy - Released Dec 2012. A-Side: THINK AND YOU'LL MISS IT B-Side: BEAT STREET Both tracks are exclusive and currently unavailable on any album. Written, performed, recorded and produced by Bill Nelson. All rights Bill Nelson 2012.

Eros Arriving Bill Nelson single - 23 April 1982 Singles Menu Future Past TRACKS: 7" Single: A) Eros Arriving (Single Version) B) Haunting In My Head 12" Single: A) Eros Arriving (Single Version) B) Haunting In My Head C) He And Sleep Were Brothers D) Flesh ORIGINALLY: A) is a remix of the song from the upcoming album The Love That Whirls. B, C, & D) were all non-album tracks. NOTES: Eros Arriving was the lead single from, and issued ahead of, The Love That Whirls album. This was Nelson's second and final double 7" in gatefold artwork, including 4 previously unreleased tracks that were all recorded during The Love That Whirls sessions. Note: there is an Australian pressing of this single on which "Eros Arriving" plays out to a natural end rather than fading out. PAST RELEASES: All four songs were included on The Two Fold Aspect of Everything comp (out of print). B, C, & D) were included on a US/Canada ep entitled Flaming Desire and Other Passions . C & D) were also included on the 1986 and 1989 CD issues of The Love That Whirls . CURRENT AVAILABILITY: B, C, & D) were added to the remastered 2005 CD of The Love That Whirls . Singles Menu Future Past

Working For The Yankee Dollar single - 1979 Skids Production/Contribution Menu Future Past BILL: Producer and Keyboards on the b-side, "Vanguard's Crusade". Production/Contribution Menu Future Past

Are You Receiving Me? single - 1982 Yukihiro Takahashi Production/Contribution Menu Future Past TRACKS: A) Are You Receiving Me? B) And I Believe In You BILL: Guitar and backing vocals on the track 'Are You Receiving Me?' Production/Contribution Menu Future Past

Listen album - 1983 A Flock of Seagulls Production/Contribution Menu Future Past BILL: Producer on one song: a new re-recording of "(It's Not Me) Talking". Production/Contribution Menu Future Past

Battle Of Big Soup album - 1993 Bogus Brothers Production/Contribution Menu Future Past BILL: Producer, additional guitar. Production/Contribution Menu Future Past

Ships in the Night Be-Bop Deluxe single - 16 January 1976 Singles Menu Future Past TRACKS: A) Ships In The Night B) Crying To The Sky ORIGINALLY: "Ships in the Night" was an edited version of the Sunburst Finish album cut, whereas "Crying to the Sky" was lifted unchanged from the same album. NOTES: Ships in the Night was the fifth Be Bop Deluxe single issued during the band's existence. The single was issued in a generic record company sleeve. UK Promo copies exist with the words "Demo Record Not For Sale", and a large 'A' printed on the label. US Mono/Stereo promo copies were pressed to encourage airplay on both AM and FM radio. PAST RELEASES: Both tracks would be included on the Singles As and Bs compilation (1981). CURRENT AVAILABILITY: The single is long deleted, but both tracks can be found on the Cherry Red/Esoteric Recordings reissue of Sunburst Finish (2018 ) - both in physical form and as a digital download. Singles Menu Future Past

The Unrealist Bill Nelson album - 21 February 2018 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) Elliptic Waterfall 02) Colour Floods The Bay With Blue 03) Powerglide 04) The Impatient Hour 05) Fractious Electrons 06) Through Drifting Clouds 07) A Circus To Remember 08) Loose Box 09) Falling Water 10) Little Motors Move The Moon 11) Wonder And Excitement 12) What To Wear Now, What To Wear Next 13) Your Hand Today Holds The Future Of Tomorrow 14) Wonder Street 15) Waves ALBUM NOTES: The Unrealist is an album of improvised guitar instrumentals issued as a download-only album on the Tremelo Boy label available through Nelson's Bandcamp page. The Unrealist album was created between June and November 2017 from material recorded immediately after completing work on Songs For Ghosts . As he completed the track listing for the Songs For Ghosts album, Nelson realised he still had more to explore in this vein. Starting with these new "overflow" tracks, he went on to record another double album's worth of songs for the project. He then separated out the instrumental tracks, which became The Unrealist album. Assembly of the resulting album, including the recording of the final couple of tracks featured on it, was undertaken in the first two weeks of November 2017. Having a new website to experiment with, Nelson adapted his normal practice of posting news and updates to the Dreamsville Forum , preferring instead to create illustrated journal entries that he would post directly to the new site. The material was initially given a series of tentative titles, No Ghosts Here , Spooky Annexe , Singing in the Ether , and Lovely Apparitions , all signalling its links to the Songs For Ghosts project. However, once Nelson had elected to separate out the material and concentrate on completing an instrumental record, it would be re-named Wonder Street in honour of the album's newest composition (completed on 7 November 2017). Fleetingly, Nelson considered calling the album Guitar Stories , before changing his mind a couple of days later to Lumiluxe , while also confirming its proposed track listing. Within 24 hours though, Nelson changed the title again, settling on The Unrealist . During the mastering stage one track, "Deep Blue", was removed from the album as Nelson "felt disconnected from it in some way", reducing The Unrealist to 15 tracks. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . BILL'S THOUGHTS: "The Unrealist is an instrumental album featuring 15 prominent electric guitar, keyboard and percussion tracks in a mainly rock setting but with some gentler, more reflective pieces plus a couple of abrasive avant-garde moments, (and, of course, the occasional jazzy mood). It will hopefully appeal to those fans who enjoy my extended guitar improvisations." _____ "Some of the songs on here are, I suspect, destined to be greatly favoured by fans. Forgive me for sounding immodest, but this album is chock-full of prime, rock-pop material (and quite a few left-field excursions) and therefore worthy of your intelligent and enthusiastic attention. All ongoing but almost there!" _____ "The track "Fractious Electrons" may prove a bit challenging for some listeners...it's an abstract, slightly chaotic and mad thing. Closest similar track in attitude would be "The Revenge of The Man in the Burning Ice Cream Van" but this is less linear. I like it! But, there are other, sweeter, more melodic tracks on there too, (for those listeners less inclined towards the avant-garde). It's a very varied and interesting set of tunes." _____ "A casual, free roaming instrumental album for guitar lovers." FAN THOUGHTS: merikan1: "One of my favourites. I cannot recommend this one highly enough. To me, it encapsulates the core BN instrumental styles. It would make a great introduction if you are wanting to introduce someone to Bill's instrumental music." Steve: "Just playing The Unrealist for the FIFTH time in a row - so - track 12 (What To Wear Now, What To Wear Next) is particularly fab..." Coach Matt: "One of Bill's best I believe. He was not kidding when he said, more good music is ahead. I find this album very sensual, pleasing and yet invigorating. Plenty of Bill Nelson sounds we all come to enjoy. And with the lovely ebow injections." mo497: "Pure instrumental guitar bliss from the maestro! Lots of tasty licks mainly in a rock vein, but 'Falling Water' is an evocative masterpiece and one of Bill's most beautiful recorded performances." Albums Menu Future Past

Satellite Songs Bill Nelson album - 3 October 2004 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) Times Of Our Lives 02) Like Rain (Rust's Dim Lustre) 03) Sphinx 04) Hollywood Still Burning 05) Garden In The Sky 06) Somewhere Else Is Here 07) Infinity Meets The Moment 08) The Rise Of Pandemonium And The Fall Of Kingdom Come 09) The Wind Blows Silver And The Bees Hum Gold 10) Evening Tide 11) Forever Blue Sings The Sky 12) Sweet William's Epiphany ALBUM NOTES: Satellite Songs is a vocal album issued in a single pressing of 1,000 copies on the Sonic Masonic Records label. The album was intended as a band recording using musicians that occasionally had appeared with Nelson, billed as the Lost Satellites. Had it proved financially viable, Nelson had his sights on returning to Fairview Studios for the recording of Satellite Songs . In the event, Nelson had neither the time nor funding to fulfill these plans, and ended up recording the album alone at home. But the band would perform with him that autumn on the Be Bop Deluxe and Beyond tour. Satellite Songs was put on sale at the start of the Be Bop Deluxe and Beyond tour, simultaneously with both Custom Deluxe and Dreamland to Starboard . After the tour had finished, the album was sold exclusively through S.O.S. The album eventually sold out in 2006. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . IF YOU LIKED THIS ALBUM, YOU'LL PROBABLY ENJOY: Orpheus in Ultraland , Fancy Planets , Joy Through Amplification , Special Metal , Blip! , Blip 2 , Fantasmatron , Captain Future's Psychotronic Circus , Electric Atlas , Golden Melodies of Tomorrow , New Northern Dream BILL'S THOUGHTS: "Forever Blue Sings the Sky": "Moody romanticism, a lovely melody and some complex jig-saw puzzle guitar." _____ "Nearer to rock music in style is Satellite Songs . A kind of contemporary take on what Be Bop would possibly have been doing today, had I kept the band together." FAN THOUGHTS: wadcorp: "A stunner of an album. When I discovered Dreamsville & was reconnecting with Bill Nelson after a long absence, this was one of the very first I picked up when I ordered. I was hooked from the first play. Great tunes throughout." james warner: "A companion piece to the Be Bop and Beyond retrospective concert of 2004, this album of vocal tracks seems like Bill's personal reflections on where he had been and where he was then. The songs hint at things remembered and lost, a grudging acceptance of things as they are and hope in the final revelatory track, "Sweet William's Epiphany", a long ethereal journey punctuated by bursts of energy." ModernMusic: "To my ears, I have always thought that Satellite Songs contains many throwbacks to BBD...the extended soloing on the first track, "Times of Our Lives", for example, is one that is very reminiscent of the Live in the Air Age guitar playing. Subtle throwbacks throughout that entire album but refreshingly new!" Panoramicon: "Times of Our Lives": "A quintessential Bill tune, evoking bright, sunny memories of (my) youth in England. If this is nostalgia, I'm all for it. Great chorus (I sing this out loud in the car while driving, much to the chagrin of my daughter in the back). But then, what does he give us? First, a fine melodic solo 'fore the final chorus, and then...oh my, a vista opens up above three simple strummed chords and we get two (two!) beautiful solos. The phrases like poignant, fading memories; red-shifting into the past like those distant galaxies in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field. I could also mention the terrific swaggering guitar on "Sphinx", the reflective beauty of "Sweet Williams Epiphany"...so many albums, so much wonder...Bless you Bill!" Mozo: "S.S. is one of the best Nelson releases ever! Especially for all the hep cats out there who keep a yearning for the pre-Red Noise era Bill. "Hollywood Still Burning" rocks with the best of any Be-Bop released. And I still say that "Sweet Williams Epiphany" is a condensed version of Bill's career in a nutshell. That's my story and I'm sticking to it." stpetelou: "This is a wonderful collection of music from Bill. Some of the songs sound to me as if they could have been from the late BBD era and Bill plays some fantastic guitar throughout. The song "The Wind Blows Silver and the Bees Hum Gold" is worth the price alone!" tommaso: "Well, for me it HAD the WOW factor! So catchy melodies, beautiful arrangements, and Bill REALLY singing tunes again (this last aspect I really missed on Atom Shop or Whimsy ), just like in the old times. "Time of our lives" must be one of my all-time Bill faves, just as "Evening Tide"." RJR: "BN's most underrated tune? "Sweet William's Epiphany" from Satellite Songs. Superb!!!" "This CD is an absolute goldmine of excellent pieces." aquiresville: "Sweet William's Epiphany": "Gorgeous Nelsonic pastoral guitar progression, with Bill's wonderful sweet-and-high singing, and those wonderful thundercloud Superstar shred-solo breaks, it's a beautiful example of Past-and-Present Bill, all rolled into a nine minute slice of musing (Yes, it even includes some "found voice" Orchestra at the end -- "Every atom, belonging to me."). It's truly one of my Favorite Songs, for the moment. Thank you, Bill!" Parsongs: "One of my favorite "vocal" albums, it's on my player quite often. Not a bad song on it; all hits. "Sweet William's Epiphany" - one of my favorite songs by Bill. I wish it could go on forever. The extended ending is there too." chromiumlad: "I absolutely love Satellite Songs . One that grabbed me instantly and never let go." Alan: "Satellite Songs is a brilliant album all the way through. The music and the vocals are stellar, if I may say." "Definitely a must have. This CD has great lyrics, vocals and instrumentation. If you don't have it yet, buy it soon." Albums Menu Future Past

Nelsonian Navigator - Issue Six - Published September 1997 Back to Top

Tomorrow's Just Another Day album - 1983 Yukihiro Takahashi Production/Contribution Menu Future Past BILL: Guitar and Vocals. Production/Contribution Menu Future Past

Stand By: Light Coming... Bill Nelson album - 16 August 2019 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) Flicker And Fade 02) Ghostland 03) I Really Don't Exist 04) Headlamp Moon 05) This Is Not A Dream 06) Falling Into Blue 07) The Angel With Television Eyes 08) Rusty Bells 09) Stand By: Light Coming... 10) My Shadow Cast By Midnight Moon 11) The Way My World Works 12) No Room In My Head 13) As Quickly As A Kiss 14) Like Autumn Leaves We Fall 15) Fading Away ALBUM NOTES: Stand By: Light Coming... is an album of songs issued on the Sonoluxe label in a limited edition of 1000 copies. The Stand By: Light Coming... album was recorded between January and April 2019, in parallel with a separate project, currently unreleased, called Cathode Paintbox. It was the first new Bill Nelson CD to be sold through Burning Shed , who took over from Sound on Sound as the official on-line outlet for Bill Nelson's music following an announcement to this effect on 1 February 2019. This new arrangement allows Bill Nelson fans to pre-order his new music in advance of its official release date, an arrangement that Sound on Sound hadn't been able to offer. The recordings making up this album are likely to be amongst the last completed on Nelson's trusted recording and mixing set up that have served him so well since 2002. This operational change stemmed from Nelson's Mackie D8B mixing console having become unreliable and expensive to repair. Consequently this necessitated a major shift to a computer-based system, requiring Nelson to invest considerable time in becoming familiar with his new equipment. Amongst the guitars used on these recordings were two new acquisitions – a Backlund Super 100 MDX purchased by Nelson's fan base in honour of his 70th birthday the previous December and a Musicvox Space Cadet that Nelson acquired from the funds left over from the donations received for the birthday gift. The album began life with the working title of Vulcan Street but by Mid-February Nelson was having second thoughts about this title (and eventually its original title track). Having wrestled with this issue for 2 months Nelson finally abandoned the original album title on 16 April 2019 and from the 25 pieces composed since January 2019 assembled a 15 track album with the title Stand By: Light Coming... One of the tracks included on this album, 'My Shadow Cast By Midnight Moon', is an outtake from Auditoria recorded in 2018. The surplus material from the January to May 2019 sessions were then either used for The Last Lamplighter companion release or rejected altogether. Stand By: Light Coming... was mastered at Fairview by John Spence on 11 May 2019 with a pre-order announcement by Burning Shed on 27 June 2019. With the album successfully mastered, Nelson turned his attention to the album artwork. Assembly of the sleeve design fell to Martin Bostock working with images that Nelson had selected as the album neared completion. Stand By: Light Coming... sold out in March 2021. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . BILL'S THOUGHTS: "Stand By: Light Coming… is a 15 track, vocal-based album recorded in my home studio earlier this year. If there is a point of unity to the album's diverse sounds, it could be said that it generally uses the enigmatic nature of 'time' as its theme. Images of watches and clocks abound in the lyrics which deal with the increasing rush of time and the rapid retreat of the past into nostalgia. Vocal and electric guitar-driven, it plots a path of aggressive melancholia and offers a meditation on impermanence." _____ "Finally knocked the new album into shape. Have arrived at a running order and chosen which tracks should be used and which left off. So, 'STAND BY: LIGHT COMING…' is now ready to go to Fairview studios for John Spence to master prior to manufacture. I'll need to fix up a date for the mastering as I think John is pretty busy at the moment. "There will be 15 tracks on the album in total but, even so, there are still 10 tracks left over, either as 'rejects' or simply because there wasn't enough room for them." _____ "Some changes to the content of the album...I discovered a few songs left over from the 'Auditoria' sessions that I'd forgotten about and will try to incorporate a couple of them into this latest album. One of these is the song 'The Woman Of Tomorrow' which I've revisited and remixed. I guess things aren't finished until they're finished..." _____ "Stand By: Light Coming... surprised me by the way it revealed its inner meaning. Hearing the songs in their correct order at Fairview showed that the songwriting 'theme' as such is all about Time. Time passing, our perceptions of time, the need to make the most of the time we have left to us, and the way that time and memory are inextricably intertwined. Images of clocks ticking through the night abound in these songs. "The other thing that emerged from listening to the album is the deep sense of melancholy in many of the songs, and the frustration and anger that life 'runs out like sand', (to quote a lyric from my 'Quit Dreaming And Get On The Beam' album from the early 1980s.) Maybe I've had an awareness of the brevity of life from a young age. I can remember thinking about this kind of thing when I was still a very young child... "So, 'Stand By: Light Coming...' can perhaps be described as 'music for aging melancholiacs.' It has a lot of sadness, but a sadness tinged with joy...like dark clouds surrounded by golden rays. It should ring rusty bells for people of a 'certain age' but may also bring younger listeners to a more acute awareness of how precious every moment of life is. A cliché, I know, but life is all too brief, even if we're lucky enough to live long enough to make a real mark on it..." FAN THOUGHTS: Bill Connor-Clark: "This is possibly the best CD Bill has produced for years, the fantastic opening track is a gateway to a CD that is all killer and no filler." Alan: "I just listened for the first time, and what a powerful album this is. A great first release for the year! Our Bill does Bill Nelson better than anyone. I'm looking forward to the album further revealing itself over time." Michael: "Have had two listens and first impressions are that, wow, this is really chock-full and Bill seems to be pulling out all the stops. I'm hearing similarities to Satellite Songs and gasp...Blue Moons and Laughing Guitars . I don't know if the Brits have this expression, and maybe it's me being an American southerner, but this is a 'humdinger'!" lee_elliot59: "My copy arrived last Saturday and it's been my work commute companion all week. Gotta say, this one knocked me over immediately and is up there will my favorite Bill albums. Ironically, I can't get 'No Room In My Head' out of my head. What a deliciously funky track." Neill Burgess: "Loving the new album, Bill! Lots of really great tracks (especially enjoying the opener). I know we all keep saying it, but how on earth do you maintain this level of creativity?" Albums Menu Future Past

King of the Cowboys Bill Nelson ep - 29 October 1982 Singles Menu Future Past TRACKS: A1) King Of The Cowboys A2) Shadowland B1) Carnival B2) Spring ORIGINALLY: All three tracks were non-album tracks exclusive to this EP. NOTES: King of the Cowboys EP was the second in the series of Cocteau Club EPs issued exclusively to members of Bill Nelson's Official Fan Club, and was included in Acquitted By Mirrors Issue 3. All four tracks were recorded at the Echo Observatory. PAST RELEASES: Up until 2020, none of the 4 tracks on this EP had appeared on previous Bill Nelson compilations, nor as bonus tracks. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: All tracks are available on the retrospective compilation album Transcorder (The Acquitted By Mirrors Recordings) . Singles Menu Future Past

Rosewood Volume Two Bill Nelson album - 29 July 2005 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) Tinderbox 02) Aliumesque 03) Little Cantina 04) Rolling Home (Yorkshire Raga No.1) 05) Sunbeam 06) Bramble 07) William Is Wearing The Cardigan Of Light 08) The Autumn Tram (Yorkshire Raga No.2) 09) Hi Lo La 10) Rising Sap 11) Blue Cloud 12) See-Through Nightie 13) Ordinary Storm, Waiting For Rain 14) The Light Is Kinder In This Corner Of Corona 15) Your Whole Life Dreaming ALBUM NOTES: Rosewood Volume Two was written and recorded alongside Rosewood Volume One , and like its predecessor, comprises a similar selection of acoustic guitar instrumentals. Issued in a single print run of 1000 copies, the album took approximately 7 years to sell out. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . IF YOU LIKED THIS ALBUM, YOU'LL PROBABLY ENJOY: Rosewood One , And We Fell Into A Dream , Quiet Bells , Dreamland to Starboard , Illuminated At Dusk , Silvertone Fountains , Neptune's Galaxy , New Northern Dream BILL'S THOUGHTS: "A perfect companion piece to Rosewood Vol. One , still based around acoustic guitars but with a slightly different feel, featuring more percussion and a slightly more 'mainstream' approach." _____ "On the Rosewood albums, there's a combination of miked-up acoustic guitar parts and acoustic through my Line 6 Vetta 2 amp's effects, (fed direct to the mixing desk). I wanted to use both a natural and treated acoustic sound. In that respect, it's not really a pure acoustic album but then, nothing I ever do on my albums could be considered particularly pure or fundamentalist." _____ "The Light is Kinder in This Corner of Corona": "A pastiche Tex-Mex acoustic twanglomania from the Rosewood Volume 2 album. Tongue in cheek but warm and wonderful. Reminds me of US tours back in the '70s and the illusions we post-war English boys harboured about the romance of American border towns...not the most sophisticated track from the album but one of the sweetest." _____ "I'm very proud of the Rosewood albums...They're definitely on my small list of 'albums I'd like to be remembered by'." FAN THOUGHTS: TomR: "This is really excellent. On first play a much jauntier record than Vol 1 . There are not many players than make me think of Roy Smeck, Steve Howe, John McLaughlin and Andy Roberts in the space of sixteen bars. I've laughed out loud a few times already, and that doesn't happen with a CD very often." John Izzard: "As others have stated, I found it much more immediate than Volume 1 . Some real surprises in there too. It twists and turns, introducing new ideas and themes, almost all the time. Yet for all of its diversity, it remains a coherent and ultimately lovely piece of work." paulnery: "Vol II is less calm than Vol. I . Some tension can be noticed in the tracks...and the tracks are faster, people can dance to these tunes...While Vol. I is more Yin , Vol. II is more Yang." "The Light is Kinder in This Corner of Corona": "is very nice, reminded me of The Shadows in some moments. Beautiful instrumental." alec: "Listening to Rosewood Volume 2 for the third time and I'm struck by how, though it's instrumental, I hear voices in some of the pieces -- like the first piece for example, "Tinderbox"." PhilK: "Seriously though it is a beautiful piece of music, I initially started to pick favourite tracks ("Sunbeam", "Blue Cloud", "Bramble") but by the third listen I came to the conclusion it is an album to listen to completely rather than odd tracks out of sequence." Mr.Ilektrik: "Both albums are beautiful, I can't pick a favourite out of the two albums or even pick out favourite tracks. They are ALL wonderful ornaments & graces." JovialBob: "I've just been playing Rosewood while some friends were here, and they wanted to know who was responsible for the wonderful music, so there's another two fans to add to the ever growing number..." swampboy: "I have grown to really love both discs, and find the guitar sound very appealing, but isn't that just like Bill, to give us something that is both familiar, yet unique. I was really hesitant to buy either of these discs, as I wasn't sure if I'd like Bill doing acoustic, but I find myself returning to them again and again. I've heard a lot of acoustic guitar over the years, but nothing that sounds quite like this." wadcorp: "The Rosewood volumes should be next on the list of 'Catching up to Bill' albums?" "Without question. Those discs contain some of the most amazing acoustic guitar. You will not be disappointed." Albums Menu Future Past

Sunday 25th September 2005 -- 9:00 pm I've begun to look at the calendar with the same feeling of horror I get when looking in the mirror. It's scary and something I'd rather avoid dealing with... but no choice. Time is of the essence and deadlines are looming in all directions. The mastering session for the two new albums is set for the 29th. This coming Thursday. No more changes to the recordings are permitted now so things have to stay as they are. Nor am I allowed to change the running order of the songs as I've given my erstwhile art and design assistant, Dave Graham, the go ahead to typeset the text for both projects. In fact, we're close to having the packaging art finished although I've just now sent Dave more images for possible inclusion; photographs I took at Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay earlier today. I made the trip specifically to gather photographic images and camcorder footage. I'm supposed to have video projection material ready for the November tour dates too but, at this moment, there's neither tour material, nor tour concept, to work with. I've simply not had enough time, what with everything else I've had to do these last twelve months. I think one of the problems is that everything seems to become focussed on a single point of time in the year, (i.e. autumn). There's the fan convention with it's now obligatory album, visual work and live performance, plus the tour schedule and it's equally obligatory new album and staging. But, it's not just that... Alongside these major projects are other tasks, some associated, some completely separate. Many of these seem to occur at the back end of the year also. Naturally, it all ends up being a sort of juggling act, a crazy attempt to keep various balls in the air at once. But, I shouldn't really blame anyone but myself. I guess I'm the sort of girl who can't say no. Hope I'm not in a terrible mess. I just feel drained and empty at the moment. Some information has been missing from this diary of late due to writing it in a rush, particularly when other things have been on my mind. In some ways, the music making part of my life should be the easiest. Why should I complain about workloads? It's a privilege, a sort of 'calling', a natural by product of my being. It's unavoidable, automatic, self-evident. It's essence. On the other hand... it's dangerously unhealthy, sometimes questionably unhinged and, whichever way you look at it, time consumingly hard work. For anyone else to understand just how hard, they'd need to be with me throughout an entire year, spending the same time as myself (in this tiny room that I'm audacious enough to refer to as my 'studio'), working constantly without reference to real time or real life, being totally immersed in the creation of something that begins with blind faith and usually ends up with what I can only describe as either self-doubt or godless despair. The former is preferable to the latter but neither are much fun. I wonder how many people would continue to put up with it, the boredom , the insecurity, the selfishness, the obsessive and remorseless attempt to elevate a meagre musical ability beyond its sorry limitations? (And why the hell do I do it?) How quickly would the fun wear off, the glamour be exposed for what it really is? A few months, or, as in my case, more than thirty years? And yet, despite all this angst-ridden, pathetic, mock dramatic chest beating, I still can't give it up. Sometimes I'm actually disgusted by the hold this thing has over me, how weak I've become in its grasp. Too eager to swoon, that's me. Too desperately in need of love from strangers... But, oh, how wonderful to be given the chance to try, to be given the gift of creating music from such dreamy weakness. What a stunningly beautiful two-edged sword I've been handed! Praise the lord and load the water pistols. You know, sometimes dealing with words is almost as much fun as making sounds. Almost. Everything is drama and our lives vain fictions that rarely advance beyond a short run at some local theatre. But, during the brief time that the footlights burn, we play the part to the hilt, believing every red velvet moment, playing it as if our lives depended on it. Which, perhaps, they do. Gilded fictions, beautiful illusions, fables made real by our sheer desperation. So what activities of mine have I forgotten to include in the last episode or two of this diary? Well... I omitted to mention my quite probably broken foot. It happened like this: A couple of weeks ago, I was reminded that, earlier in the year, I'd accepted an invitation to officially open a new recording studio at the College of West Anglia in Kings Lynn. The opening was scheduled for September 15th. At the time of accepting, I'd no idea that September would see me pushing things to the limit in terms of project completion. When I received the reminder about the opening, at the start of September, I realised that it had completely slipped my mind. However, determined not to let anyone down, I made plans to travel down to Kings Lynn to do the honours and to talk to the students. The night before the journey, I was dashing around the house trying to prepare clothes for the trip. I hadn't got my house slippers on and clumsily hit my right foot on the edge of either a door or a bookcase nearby, my toes taking the brunt of the blow. Instant pain but I thought it would fade after a few minutes. It didn't. That night, sleeping was difficult. The slightest contact of the bed sheets with my toes brought on more pain which kept me awake. The next morning I was a wreck, limping about the place and grimacing. My toes and foot were black and blue, badly bruised and it felt as if a couple of them might have been cracked or broken. For a moment, I considered calling Jon Lawrence (the tutor who had asked me to open the new studio), to beg off the engagement but I felt that this would not be a good thing. So I decided to go ahead as planned. Getting a shoe onto the injured foot was another problem. I had to force myself through the pain barrier but, once my foot was in there, I grabbed a walking stick from my collection and set off for the station by cab. Luckily, Emiko had taken time off from work to accompany me so she was able to support my injury, spiritually if not physically. It was a long journey from Yorkshire to Kings Lynn, involving a change of train at Peterborough and then again at Ely. It rained all day as we sat on station platforms awaiting our connections, gazing out at the grey skies. I felt like an old, old man, limping around, clinging on to my walking stick. I was also embarrassed to have to explain to the college staff why I appeared so decrepit. A stupid injury. Nevertheless, I managed to get through the event which involved an interview with local media, the opening ceremony itself and a question and answer session with the students. The tutors and staff were all very kind to me and I was glad that I'd made the effort to get there, despite the physical difficulty. Jon kindly gave us a lift to the station where we waited fifty minutes for the train before making the long trip back home. More long waits for connections at other stations required medicinal administrations of wine from platform bars to ease the pain. By the time I got home, I was pleasantly inebriated. Now, over a week later, the foot is looking much better although still bruised in some places and my little toe continues to be uncomfortable, particularly when walking. But on the mend. Last Friday brought me another invitation. This time to travel to Liverpool where Gretsch guitars were holding a promotional roadshow event. The show was at the Cavern Club, appropriate considering the late George Harrison's endorsement of Gretsch guitars. Fans of my own music will already be aware of my passion for Gretsch instruments and will have seen them grace the stage of my concerts over the last few years. Once again, Emi accompanied me on the train journey to Liverpool, another unusually long trip, especially considering the distance. Not a high speed intercity train though, just a sprinter type that stopped at many stations en route. We were met at Liverpool station by Fender/Gretsch artist relations whizz Hoda Armani, a lovely man who did his utmost to make us feel comfortable and welcome. After treating us to dinner, we were taken to the Cavern Club where a very tempting array of Gretsch guitars glittered from the stage, including the new 'Billy-Bo' model, an adaptation of Bo-Diddley's unique custom built Gretsch Jupiter Thunderbird guitar that Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top has helped Gretsch to adapt from Bo's original design. As I said... tempting, very tempting! I was introduced to Gretsch's current main man, Mr. Mike Lewis who was going to give the audience gathered at the Cavern a talk about the history of Gretsch guitars. Not only did Mike do this in an entertaining and informative manner but he 'illustrated' his talk by playing guitar instrumentals to backing tapes, in a similar fashion to the way I do at my solo concerts. Not only was Mike knowledgeable about Gretsch guitar history, he could play the hell out of them as well. He opened with a wonderfully affectionate instrumental version of The Beatles 'Please, Please Me', but finished his talk by playing one of my all time favourite instrumentals, Santo and Johnny's 'Sleepwalk'. Mike has an adult understanding of the roots of rock guitar and his playing was direct and soulful and I sat there with a big smile on my face. He even played some Duane Eddy, Chet Atkins and Eddie Cochran licks so it was worth the trip just to hear him perform, as much as to see all those juicy guitars. I wanted to stay longer, pick up some instruments to try out, talk to people more, but the trains back to Yorkshire were a somewhat inhospitable. We were left with two alternatives, catch the 9:30, change at Manchester and arrive home just after midnight, or catch the 10:30 and get home around a quarter to two in the morning. My foot was still playing me up too so we opted to catch the 9:30 train. Hoda bundled us into a cab and saw that we got to the train in time. Eventually arrived back at Rancho Nelsonia around 12:20, feeling tired but happy, not least because of Hoda and Gretsch's generosity with the occasional glass of vino! Another recent(ish) thing of mine which I seem to have overlooked in the diary, was my concert at the Lewes Guitar Festival, not far from Brighton. The event took place in what was once a small but very pretty church. There was a full house and I spent some time after the concert chatting with fans and friends, a very pleasant evening altogether. Someone asked me what guitars, if any, I might still lust after. Well, as I once said, you can never have too many guitars and there are certainly a few out there I wouldn't mind getting my hands on, from the cheap and cheerful to the seriously luxurious. Of course, Gretsch have a few models that would be nice to own, including the 'Jupiter Thunderbird' adaptation mentioned above, but also a Syncromatic 400 acoustic archtop, the big one without cutaways, a real swing band of a guitar. Then there's the 6120 model that apes Eddie Cochran's guitar with the P90 style neck pickup and transparent pick guard. Then there's the White Penguin, or the Duo-Jet. Of course, what would really constitute a dream come true would be to work with Gretsch towards a custom instrument. I already have strong ideas about styling and so on... but, pointless going into details, it's just a dream. Another guitar would be a re-issue sixties Fender Stratocaster in Fiesta Red, just like the one Hank Marvin played in the Shadows heyday. But with a rosewood fretboard , rather than a maple one. (I think Hank's had both at different times.) The semi-hollow Partick Eggle Vienna is very tempting too, a kind of larger version of my Berlin model, but with 'f' holes. And of course, a full sized, big bodied D'Angelico archtop would be fabulous for my sojourns in the jazz joints of my imagination. As far as cheap and cheerful guitars goes, well, there are things like the De Pinto Belvedere Deluxe, which is a cool retro styled guitar that doesn't cost the earth. The same company's 'Galaxie 4' guitar is fun looking too. Another U.S. company, Eastwood Guitars, do some great reproductions of 60's era cheapo guitars. They have a wonderful version of a Guyatone LG 200-T solid body which looks great in white and costs only 399 dollars direct from their site. They also do a nice reproduction of two Airline guitars... the one with full set of pickups and trem is a real mad scientist of a guitar. Nice in red, this one, or white. Of course, all this is sheer greed on my part... an addiction, but one that I manage to turn into music, somewhere along the line. Enough of guitars, I'm starting to drool. The weekend has been mostly spent dealing with artwork tasks. I'd already spent most of last week sourcing images to use for the 'Sailor Bill' album. It can take a while to find ones that are interesting, and just as long to discover where the actual 'feel' of the album might lay in visual terms. There's a fair bit of trial and error to start with. Some of my earlier image selections were too much on the jolly or jaunty side. Whilst looking at the ones I'd accumulated, I played back the 'Sailor Bill' album to see if they fitted. The album's moody and melancholic nature ruled out some of the more modern, zippy images and I ended up making the decision to go down the 'antique' route. A call to Dave on Saturday morning to prime him on the general direction and things got properly underway. The initial searching around now done, we're currently in the fine tuning stages (apart from the possible addition of today's coastal photo's to the package). The album will be mastered this coming Thursday and the artwork should be ready to go off to the pressing plant along with the master by the start of October. Same goes for the Nelsonica album, 'Orpheus In Ultraland'. Before long, these two intensely detailed projects will be set aside as 'finished'. All that will remain is the process of getting them into peoples hearts and minds. Last week, I gave an interview about the creation of the albums. The interview will appear in the forthcoming issue of 'The Dreamsville Rocket' on-line newspaper and is intended to prime the imagination for the music's arrival. The 'Sailor Bill' album requires 'slow ears...' It isn't an album that reveals itself in a hurry but, with a little care and patience, should reward the diligent listener for some time to come. A quaint and old-fashioned album but not for the narrow minded. I'm hoping to have a playback/preview party for friends and members of the Dreamsville-Nelsonica team. I'm thinking of holding this at Fairview studios so that the album can be heard on some pro-standard studio monitors. Another side project now completed (and I may have mentioned this before in the diary), is my contribution to a book that is being published by Leeds University. This is a book about the Beat Generation, written to coincide with the university's School Of Music celebration of the 50th anniversary of Allen Ginsberg's 'Howl'. I've written, for the book, a piece about my own encounter with the Beats and the inspiration that they generated in terms of my work. And, amongst even more new work ('though I'm keeping real details under my hat for a short while...) is a project I've undertaken for Sound On Sound magazine's anniversary issue. I can't say any more at this point in time (sworn to secrecy) but Dreamsville will inform you of what this involves soon. Stay tuned! Bob Dylan documentary on TV tomorrow evening. Must make time to watch this... essential viewing for me, being a great admirer of Dylan's work. Recently finished his 'Chronicles Vol 1' autobiography which Emiko bought me last Christmas. Only recently got around to reading it but it was an interesting book. Not much time for reading now, though, still far too much to do. Nelsonica rushing up, as is the solo tour. I ought to start thinking about the material I'll perform... God knows how I'll get that AND the accompanying video together in the few weeks that are left before things get underway. If I'm exhausted now, what state will I be in by the start of November? I hope things work out. Looking forward to a break in December... 'though Christmas will take up a fair amount of time and energy. Before I know it, it will be new year and a new set of projects to get to grips with. As tough going as it sometimes is, the joy is in the making of all this stuff. Well, I must enjoy it to devote so much of my life to it. All photographs by Bill Nelson Top of page William's Study (Diary Of A Hyperdreamer) September 2005 Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Oct Dec 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2013

Acquitted By Mirrors - Issue Eight - Published January 1984 Back to Top