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Just in case you have missed the email announcement... If you missed out on the physical CD, this album is an essential for all Bill Nelson fans!

by Adam Bernstein | The Washington Post Oct. 23, 2020 at 11:30 a.m. CDT Viola Smith, a swing-era musician who was promoted in the 1930s as the “fastest girl drummer in the world” and who championed greater inclusion of women in the almost completely male preserve of big bands, died Oct. 21 at her home in Costa Mesa, Calif. She was 107. The cause was complications from Alzheimer’s disease, said her nephew, Dennis Bartash. With a kit featuring 12 drums, including two giant tom-toms placed near her shoulders, Ms. Smith was from 1938 to 1941 the centerpiece of the Coquettes, an “all-girl” big band that developed a modest national following. Her showcase was “The Snake Charmer,” a jazzy arabesque with explosions of drumming pyrotechnics. In an era when the dance bands of Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller andArtie Shawdominated the charts, Ms. Smith belonged to a coterie of female bandleaders who struggled to gain respect for their musicianship. One reviewer called her a “pulchritudinous miss who so adeptly maneuvers the drums and cymbals.” Ms. Smith had created the Coquettes from the remnants of her Wisconsin family’s all-female band in which she was one of eight musical sisters. She favored crisp and swinging arrangements and was, by several accounts, an egalitarian leader who valued the input of her employees in major business and artistic decisions. More than a pleasant timekeeper, she was a dervish behind the drums and found it difficult to conduct the group while playing. She turned over baton duties to Frances Carroll, a flame-haired, hip-swiveling singer and dancerwhose ravishing looks were accented by decolletage-baring gowns. The band, soon known as Frances Carroll & the Coquettes, played at nightclubs and dance halls and appeared in several short films and on the cover of the entertainment trade magazine Billboard before dissolving. more .

Remembering Keith Emerson, who would have been 76 years old today. Pride of Todmorden, Lancashire. Thank you Keith for the inspiration. Your music and keyboard skills have inspired many. Tom

Ok So. I was in this like recording studio place or something eating dinner with some people, and then BILL NELSON came. So at first I played it cool so he wouldn’t think I was a complete loser, so for a while I just ate food. Later on, someone left or something and bill nelson was saying goodbye to them and he was at the door, so I went up to him so we can talk further away from most people. He seemed to not be too disturbed by my presence. So first, I asked him if I should call him william. (which is his real first name) and he said “what do you think”, but like, not in a rude way. So I said “probably not I assume? So should I call you bill nelson then?” And he said yes. So then he told me to take off my mask, and I did. And he gave me a kiss on the cheak . 😳I don’t remember anything after that, maybe I woke up after or just nothing interesting happened and I just stood there for a while. Again please don’t make fun of me I’m sensitive 😭😭 Probably my alltime favorite dream though holy shit ☺️☺️

Hi All, Hope it's ok to post here. Always been a fan of Bill's work, but for some reason, Axe Victim always struck a chord with me (if you will excuse the pun). Anyway, always wanted to do my own version and finally got round to it now I have more time on my hands. First off, I'm no Bill Nelson, there is only one after all, but I hope I have done my best. All instrumentation, singing, drum programming and recording by me. Give it a go and please be kind 😂 https://youtu.be/jOREqn4oO8E

Didn't notice this anywhere else ...so here we are : https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialRelease/14918

Resisting the temptations of Be Bop Delicious reissues has been difficult but I am sure many like me are keen to revisit the heady BN’s Red Noise. Hopefully Cherry Red or Esoteric are finding live events and other beauties from this finest of BN’s creations. The whole concept remains ever relevant and brilliantly executed. Roll on 2022 and rock out, revolt into style and electrify the atmosphere with Red Noise again….please.

Gone at 88 https://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/2024/09/29/kris-kristofferson-obit/9991727649868/

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/entertainment/music/art-rock-s-elder-statesman-bill-nelson-on-his-wildest-guitar-stories-and-why-he-still-swears-by-the-line-6-pod/ar-BB1nyjsN?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=c44ba12d733a4359808e65c21420ec2a&ei=16

Difficult to believe, but Swoons & Levitations was released on this day back in 2015. Give it a spin!

Released on this date in 2004.

Released on this date, in 2005.

Just found out that Pete Way died on 14 August at 69. He was a founding member of UFO. Quite a character on stage. He left the band a quite a few years ago due to health issues. He also released several Waysted and FastWay (with Fast Eddie Clarke of Motorhead) albums. That's three members of UFO this past year. 😪 Check out this side project of Phil Mogg and Pete Way

New comment from Bill Nelson on his Facebook page: 'I know this is said often, but my generation was so fortunate, so privileged, to grow up in an age when some of the greatest creative, cultural shifts in art and society were taking place. We were so lucky. Now we endure, in our twilight years, the dumbing down of virtually everything, a new dark age where Americans vote for an ignorant bigot and the world descends into hatred , warmongering and chaos. Such sad times. But things will change, a new voice will arise, a new direction will come, and a new generation, not yet born , will pick up the torch and shift the balance back to a better direction. It will take time, but it will happen. Keep the faith!' (https://www.facebook.com/bill.nelson.54943600) I always appreciate it when Bill takes the time to comment on wider (political/social) issues. Several years ago, I think he called it exactly right on Brexit, Boris Johnson, Trump, Liz Truss, etc. And before that (2010) he predicted correctly on the coalition between David Cameron's Conservatives and Nick Clegg's Liberal Democrat's. At the time nobody knew how that would turn out - some were optimistic, others pessimistic. To Paraphrase Bill's comments from back then, he said he thought they (Cameron and Clegg) would end up being universally reviled. Pretty good prediction (long before Brexit and David Cameron's role in it were known)! McLuhan (or Ezra Pound - I can't remember which, perhaps both) once said artists were "antennae of the race", early alarm systems. And we see great artists such as Bill as ahead of their time in many ways. (Btw, he recommended David Lynch's Eraserhead long before Lynch was well known, and he recommended Robert Anton Wilson way before Wilson established his reputation as important counterculture author, etc... there are many examples like this that I can think of, where his early recommendations of something turned out to be gold). Good to see most of the comments on FB in positive agreement with Bill on his remarks. Another day, another ray of hope!

Hi folks, just curious, anyone know what Pick / Plectrum Bill uses ? I've seen a suggestion its a Dunlop Tortex .73mm. Always loved his tone, Thanks

Ok, I'm not posting anything new here and I would imagine almost every forum member has probably seen this interview. However, for anyone that hasn't and any people new to Bill's overall work, past and present, then this interview with Bill Nelson and Mark Powell of Esoteric Recordings/Cherry Red, is a cracker! It's a brilliant interview all round, great structure and good questions and an absolute pleasure to see Bill reminisce those events/times, and colour in the picture. There's no 'awkwardness', due mainly to Mark Powell knowing his stuff, and Bill ofc, which obviously puts Bill at ease from the off, resulting in a wonderfully relaxed and insightful interview = great stuff!😎 It's Bill Nelson weekend again at our house, on the music front and were playing a mixed bag, old and new. I picked out Futurama, as one of the 'oldies', as it was the first Be-Bop album I bought back in 1975, as a 15 year old, which blew my socks off at the time and made me an instant, and indeed lifelong, fan and really opened my eyes to music. I continue to this very day, with a similar excitement and enthusiasm I had back then, buying and listening to new Bill Nelson recordings, as I would imagine most of us do here, and long may it continue. Anyway, I watched this YT video again, a little after midnight and thoroughly enjoyed it. I could listen to Bill reminisce like this, all night long...magic!

I received the news of the recent passing of the Brighton based photographer Roger Bamber at the age of 78. I knew Roger through his interest in steam railways, but eventually realised from seeing his name credited that he took the photographs for the cover of the Be Bop Deluxe album 'Modern Music'. In discussions with him about this photoshoot, he seemed to recall he was called in at short notice to complete the shoot somewhere on the Kings Road and in the early hours of the morning. Does Bill have any recollection of this? I had recently contacted him to suggest he purchase a copy of the 'Modern Music' boxed set as there were many new images from the album and that he also purchases the recent Mojo magazine with the article on Bill, as the article included the album cover. Roger had a distinguished career as a Fleet Street and freelance photographer and has a portfolio containing images of other music icons. There was a selection of his photographs published in 'The Guardian' newspaper on Tuesday 13th September and further images can be found on 'The Guardian' website by locating Roger Bamber - A life in Pictures.

First released in 1997 along with 'Weird Critters' as part of the 'Confessions of a Hyperdreamer' double album, the marvellous instrumental album 'Magnificent Dream People' is now available as a digital download from Bandcamp.

I love this new album …. it twists and turns with its beautiful textures sounds and rhythmic shifts, it’s reminiscent of Old haunts, Golden melodies of tomorrow and The Alchemical adventures of sailor Bill ….. it has that unique Bill Nelson twist and sounds better with every play …..an interesting aside, l purchased the download while waiting for the cd to arrive and didn’t pay attention to the track order when unzipping the .wav files …. the cd l burned sounded disjointed and odd to me, so when l started listening to the actual cd as intended the difference was startling….. like reading a book with the chapters out of sync.The album is best listened to as a whole ….. fabulous