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Today would have been my Father's birthday. He would have been over a hundred years old as he was much, much older than my Mother who is already 91 next month. Like many sons who have lost their Fathers, I wonder what conversations we might have had today. I'm sure he wouldn't have approved of some things in my life but maybe would have been happy with others. I think he would have really taken to Elle, Elliot and Emiko, who sadly never got to meet him. Whatever those kind of speculations, they're water under the bridge. The here and now is where we are. What has been, has been, and that's ok, or at least has to be accepted. But I miss him very much and, if he were here, I'd say "Happy Birthday, Dad, I love you..." A VERY YOUNG BILL NELSON WITH HIS FATHER IN BRIDLINGTON, YORKSHIRE, SOMETIME IN THE 1950s.

The Stranglers keyboard player has left us. Saw the band several times many years ago. Fond memories. RIP Dave

by Dave Lifton Published: December 10, 2020 Comic book artist Richard Corben, who created the cover for Meat Loaf's landmark Bat Out of Hell album, has died at the age of 80. His widow, Dona, shared the news on his studio's Facebook page, noting that Corben died last week. "It is with great sorrow and loss that I must share the sad news that Richard Corben died Dec. 2, 2020, following heart surgery," she wrote. "He will be missed tremendously by his family, his friends, and his fans. Richard was very appreciative of the love for his art that was shown by you, his fans. Your support over the decades meant a great deal to him. He tried to repay your support by working diligently on each piece of art going out to you. Although Richard has left us, his work will live on and his memory will live always in our hearts." According to the bio on his website, Corben, a native of Sunflower, Kan., began drawing at a very early age. One of his earliest works was a series about his dog. After art college, he settled in Kansas City, working as an animator for an industrial film company. After almost 10 years, he began drawing underground comics on the side. He was eventually hired by Warren Publishing and was soon able to make it his full-time job. By the mid-'70s his work was published in a French magazine called Metal Hurlant, which became known in North America as Heavy Metal. It was around this time that he was hired to illustrate the cover of Meat Loaf's 1977 debut album. “Corben was the perfect choice for this cover,” comics expert Jan Wiacek told Q. “His very stylized, airbrushed, exaggerated style was ideal. His linework has always been more like a graphic artist than a cartoonist, the opposite to the flat photographic style of your run-of-the-mill superhero comics.” The artist also drew the artwork for 1981's Bad for Good, the album composer Jim Steinman released under his own name after Meat Loaf's vocal problems prevented him from recording a follow-up. That same year, Heavy Metal put out a self-titled animated film based on the works on several of their artists. Corben's Den character, which he premiered in 1973, received his own segment, with John Candy providing his voice. Corben also created the movie's poster. He remained an active artist in the comics world, working for both Marvel and DC on projects. A movie based on his Fever Dreams is currently in pre-production. More .

Sorry if this has been asked before. It's probably a big question, so apologies for that, but I'm wondering what synths Bill has used. If anyone else can also answer this, feel free to. Would like to know since I love the sounds on Bill's 80s albums.

Greetings Bill Crying To The Sky is one of the best guitar sounds ever IMHO and have always been a huge fan your tone. I see you were using a modelling amp at this gig at Metropolis studios. Was it a FRACTAL unit? We are touring shortly and am thinking of moving to the dark side and would be very interested in learning what you used then - bearing in mind it was a long time ago and technology has moved on. Much love. Simon

Gordon was a local man who knew Robert Fripp as a boy and later joined King Crimson. He left the band due to musical differences and went solo resulting in a couple of decades playing pubs and clubs. He hit the big time in 2001 with the single "How wonderful you are" and the album "Harry's Bar". Things did not quite play out as he might have hoped, his autobiography "The road to Harry's bar." spells out what happened; the tricks and turns within the music business will I am sure resonate with Bill. He spent the subsequent years doing things his way making the music he wanted rather than what record companies wanted him to make. From his website "A note to assist DJ’s and Presenters in future interviews Why am I doing this album? 2019 has been spent in absolute heaven working alongside Paul Buck and Jon Sweet, the sheer joy of creating a thing of exquisite beauty is the whole reason for doing this, no other reason. With the greatest respect that is who I am, a jazzy singer songwriter at his peak working with the arranging genius of Paul Buck and the production genius of Jon sweet. I am no longer wasting any of my time squabbling with useless and greedy managers and the dimwitted and badly educated who claim to be music executives in the MD’s chairs at major corporations masquerading as record companies. That is the world they choose to live in, that world of pure number crunchers. How many YouTube followers, how many Facebook followers, is it trending? etc., etc. Accountants, lawyers and social engineering gone literally mad creating a world of madness and ugliness beyond belief. That is not the world I choose to live in and thankfully I no longer have to. In fact, I was doing nicely thank you before 2001 and the big success so called and there is a life without Facebook. A very good life as it happens. This is my success, this album, what I hold in my hand right now is all I need or want. Dear DJ/Presenter. it’s nice to see you again and have a chat, but I’m not here to sell you anything. That job doesn’t interest me as money is not my god and I didn’t come all this way to become a double-glazing salesman. And being a celebrity is a totally vacuous existence, it’s rather pathetic in my view. My former manager and Warner Bros had me appearing in cookery programs and garbage shows like ‘Never Mind the Buzzcocks’. What has that to do with what I do? Nothing, nothing at all. That sort of thing can kill an artist’s ability or desire to continue as an artist. Now I’m happy. I answer to nobody. I have become a true artist and I am happy to be in my garret because I am enriched with riches beyond anything Rockefeller could ever have imagined. Amy Winehouse i am not. I am alive and well. If i had continued under the vicious control of others I would be dead like Amy and countless others who gave into those monsters who prey on us like the pigs at the trough they are. And I have a beautiful wife who inspired every word, and every note of it all. I have become a truly happy soul.   Amen." The album "The cat who's got the cream." "A lot of the songs on the new album will be called ‘Jazz’ by those who feel the need to categorize. But there’s a song that Don Williams could have done. It’s country. There’s a song that Ray Charles could have done so it could be described as a blues and jazz and country album. Or we can say the boy writes songs and sings in a jazzy bluesy style. It’s not complicated when you remember The Beatles and how things were once before the idiots took over an industry and managed to destroy it. Unless of course it was intentional. Then it does get complicated. There’s a song about that too. My brief time as a pop celebrity felt like a prison to me. My freedom was taken away. I was kept completely in the dark and put into a cage , taken to market and sold like some dumb farm animal. A pig farmer was my so called manager. How apt. It’s not for me. Jazz is Freedom. If it has to be categorized then that is what it is. But those who really know , know that Jazz is another word for freedom and know better than to try to categorize or analyse.. The album is a songwriter at work. and any songwriter wants his songs to be popular. Not for the money. To confirm his belief that he is doing the job well. I believe the new album more than demonstrates that. And it’s real. It comes from real experiences like the songs of old did. Not out of some marketing manager’s mind who hasn’t a clue about anything except making money. And look where that took us. Smart, really Smart. Not my idea of freedom at all."