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BILL NELSON: ‘GUITARS OF TOMORROW’ SESSIONS POSSIBLE TRACKS (186 Recordings up to 4/11/25) ‘News Of The Weird.’ ‘The Big Whoopie.’ ‘Old Strings, New Dreams.’ ‘Mr Wizard Takes A Trip.’ ‘Your Magnetic Presence.’ ‘When I Was Dan And You Were Digby.’ ‘Crystal City Cruiser.’ ‘Magic Spell.’ ‘Wonderstruck One.’ ‘Mirror Circuit.’ ‘The Amazing Mr Mystery.’ ‘My Paranormal Party Trick.’ ‘Bubble And Fizz.’ ‘Dreams Of The Sparkle Man.’ ‘New Strange Powers.’ ‘My Favourite Radio Galaxy.’ ‘Mysteryland.’ ‘This Room Has A Glorious View.’ ‘Ghosts Of Old Guitars.’ ‘The Sky Garden.’ ‘It Was A Long Time Ago.’ ‘Guitars Of Tomorrow.’ ‘Tuning In To Angel Radio.’ ‘Between Memory And A Dream.’ ‘All Hail King Echo.’ ‘Dreams Of The Somnambulist.’ ‘Magic Spell.’ ‘Frankenstein Funk.’ ‘A Slight Electrical Disturbance.’ ‘Three Bells And All’s Well.’ ‘Peculiar Controls.’ ‘Picnic In The Fields.’ ‘The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Dreamer.’ ‘How To Wind An Atomic Clock.’ ‘Busy Bees.’ ‘Gods Of The Golden Age.’ ‘Wonderous Thunderings.’ ‘Everywhere And Nowhere.’ ‘The Old Road To Dreamland.’ ‘Jump Leads.’ ‘Astroluxe Cadet.’ ‘Church Of The Celestial Radiator.’ ‘Rotations Of Light.’ ‘Why So Mysterious?’ ‘Rusty Satellites.’ ‘Old Memory Replayed.’ ‘Down The Rabbit Hole.’ ‘Superette.’ ‘Lost Satellite.’ ‘Rusty Little Robot.’ ‘God’s Always Goofing Around.’ ‘The Grand Illusion.’ ‘Rocket Horse Cowboy.’ ‘Far Yonder.’ ‘Hyperactive.’ ‘Everything Is Possible For The Impossible Man.’ ‘Steam Train To The Stars.’ ‘Magical Thinking.’ ‘The Cuckoo In The Clock.’ ‘Radio Boy.’ ‘Lumiluxe.’ ‘Rocket Baroque.’ ‘The Universe In My Guitar Case.’ ‘Fuzzy Escalator.’ ‘Backyard Sparklers.’ ‘Ultrabulbs Burn Brighter.’ ‘Typewriter Tales.’ ‘The Infinite Imaginarium.’ ‘Fast Traffic.’ ‘Strange City Of Dreams.’ ‘Adrift.’ ‘Wind Up Toy.’ ‘Mischief Goes To Mars.’ ‘The Marvellous Mr Moonbeam.’ ‘The Magnificent Tremolotron.’ ‘Interstellar Milk Float.’ ‘Riders Of The Strange.’ ‘When Emiko Smiles.’ ‘William In Weirdsville.’ ‘Happy Little Dreamer.’ ‘My Luminous Domain.’ ‘Radio Light.’ ‘Lighthouse Beyond The Stars.’ ‘Midnight Lantern.’ ‘Ray Gun Virus.’ ‘Dance Of The Fairy Folk.’ ‘Psycho Daisy Days. ‘Stardusting.’ ‘House Of Mirrors.’ ‘Thoughts Sail South On Silver Ships.’ ‘Duane’s Planet.’ ‘Brilliant Creatures.’ ‘Portal.’ ‘Pearly Nightfall.’ ‘The Antiquarian Futurist.’ ‘The Wizard Of Dreamsville. ‘Sweet Little Dream Of Me.’ ‘The Withernsea Lighthouse Fantasia No 1.’ ‘The Withernsea Lighthouse Fantasia No 2.’ ‘My Practical Plasma Engine.’ ‘The Weekend Experiment.’ ‘Bright Canvas.’ ‘Funflowers.’ ‘Electromatic Marvels.’ ‘Superslow.’ ‘Switchcraft.’ ‘Invisible Realms.’ ‘The Man Who Lost His Shadow.’ ‘Peaceful Echoes.’ ‘The Celestial Signaller. ‘Booster Tune.’ ‘The Cloud Collector’s Club.’ ‘Faraway Stars.’ ‘Those Jupiter Days.’ ‘Rough Diamonds.’ ‘The Last Arcadia.’ ‘Drifting Through Dreamland.’ ‘Aeronautica.’ ‘A Kiss Beneath The Evening Star.’ ‘Astral Groove.’ ‘Beyond Dreamland.’ ‘Reverse Hypnosis.’ ‘Nightcap.’ ‘When The Evening Changed The Hour.’ ‘Electromagnetically Yours.’ ‘Icarus Dreams Of Wings.’ ‘Carnival Of Dreams.’ ‘Toy Town Fantasy.’ ‘Night Light.’ ‘Rusty Mechanism.’ ‘Huzzah! Here Comes The Electrician!’ ‘It’s A Wah-Wah World.’ ‘Lost In The Luminous Night.’ ‘Baby Spacemen Staring At The Stars.’ ‘Premium Ghost Parade.’ ‘Engine Of Dreams.’ ‘Playing Solitaire.’ ‘Dance Of The Dream Makers.’ ‘The Celestial Wanderings Of Ancient Saints.’ ‘Brilliant Thinkers.’ ‘The David Lynch Memorial Doughnut.’ ‘Robots Of Desire.’ ‘What’s The Rush?’ ‘A Moment With Marianne.’ ‘Old Weird Planet.’ ‘Requiem For Django (Our Beloved Black Cat).’ ‘Another Blue Dream.’ ‘Django The Magic Cat.’ ‘The Me In The Mirror.’ ‘Eccentric Engines.’ ‘Cinematic Sex.’ ‘Faded Dream Of Luminous Beauty.’ ‘Retro Rocket Number One.’ ‘Black Cat In Golden Fields.’ ‘The Sunday Morning Rocket Club. ‘The Lost Century.’ ‘Rocket Rodeo.’ ‘Dreams Of A Midnight Cat.’ ‘Tremolo Town.’ ‘The Eternal Dreamer.’ ‘The Ancient Modern.’ ‘Alchemist’s Blues.’ ‘The Electrical Circus Parade.’ ‘Dream Cargo.’ ‘Abandoned Dream.’ ‘You As A Radio Wave.’ ‘Tomorrow Sounds Like Yesterday.’ ‘The Cathedral Clock Is Lost In Time.’ ‘Sloroka.’ ‘Astronautix.’ ‘Cities Of Glamour.’ ‘Dream Generator.’ ‘Chrysler Dream Of Chromium Beauty.’ ‘The Analog Generation.’ ‘The Art Of Light.’ ‘The Great Procrastinator.’ ‘We Kissed ‘Under Twilight Stars.’ ‘Bedtime Story.’ ‘The Wondering Why.’ ‘One Rainy Day.’ ‘Tonight In Dreamland.’ ‘Blazing Stars Drop Dew On The Fields.’ ‘The Booster Bleeper.’ ‘Crescent Moon And Chromium Stars.’ ‘Shadowcasting.’

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Orchestra Futura - Live At Nelsonica & Clothworkers Hall Release due 13th February 2026 For album info and audio clips - Click here Pre-order options £15 + P&P My Private Cosmos (Disc Three ) Digital release November 2025 (Original release December 2021) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT My Private Cosmos (Disc Two ) Digital release October 2025 (Original release December 2021) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT My Private Cosmos (Disc One ) Digital release September 2025 (Original release December 2021) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT Caliban And The Chrome Harmonium (Extended Version) Digital release August 2025 (Original release August 2001) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT Crimsworth (Extended Version) Digital release July 2025 (Original release February 1995) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT Simplex (Extended Version) Digital release June 2025 (Original release November 1990) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT Quit Dreaming And Get On The Beam Released May 2025 (Original release May 1981) 3-CD & 1-Blu-Ray Deluxe Box Set For album info - Click here Purchase box set £57.99 + P&P After The Satellite Sings Digital release May 2025 (Original release April 1996) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT Astroloops Digital release April 2025 (Original release January 2015) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT Luminous Digital release March 2025 (Original release April 1991) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT Northern Dream Digital release February 2025 (Original release 1971) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT The Two-Fold Aspect Of Everything Digital release January 2025 (Original release February 1985) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT Studio Cadet Released December 2024 For album info and audio clips - 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In The Air Age Released August 2021 (Original release July 1977) 16 Disc Box Set For original album info - Click here Purchase 3-CD Set £23.99 + P&P Modern Moods For Mighty Atoms Digital release August 2021 (Original release September 2010) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT Albion Dream Vortex Digital release July 2021 (Original release September 2013) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT Fantasmatron Digital release June 2021 (Original release August 2011) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT The Dream Transmission Pavilion Digital release May 2021 (Original release September 2009) For album info and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT Dazzlebox Released April 2021 Double album For album info and audio clips - Click here Very low CD stock! Last few copies remaining! 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Released January 2013 For album info, listening notes and audio clips - Click here Purchase download £10 + VAT

Crimsworth Bill Nelson album - 28 February 1995 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) Crimsworth Digital download version bonus tracks: 02) Palace Of Gnosis 03) Out Of The Window, Into The Night ALBUM NOTES: Crimsworth is an instrumental ambient recording written for an art installation created by Rob Ward. The resulting music appeared on the Resurgence label, an off shoot of Voiceprint Records, who would issue several CDs worth of new (or archive) Bill Nelson material in the period 1995-97. Although the playing times for the CD track 1 and track 2 are different by a matter of seconds, it should be noted that the 2 tracks are in fact identical. Nelson's original idea was for the second track to be slowed down to play back at an octave lower...the record company failed to carry out these wishes and simply put the same version on twice. The album remained on catalogue for around ten years before Nelson personally purchased all remaining stock when it appeared that Voiceprint were about to dispose of what they had left. The remaining stock was then sold through the SOS store linked to Nelson's website Dreamsville until it was officially sold out in February 2008. A 2013 reissue was released by Floating World Records, which appears to be a genuine record company associated with Voiceprint. By then though, Nelson had licensed Crimsworth to Esoteric/Cherry Red. So when Esoteric label head Mark Powell approached Floating World Records enquiring about their entitlement to issue Crimsworth , they replied, saying the release was issued "by mistake", and have since removed it from their website. Unfortunately, Esoteric/Cherry Red were unable to release Crimsworth before their licensing deal expired, this release will likely be a candidate for future Bandcamp digital download release. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: In July 2025, an extended version of Crimsworth was released as a digital download. This version contains two previously unreleased bonus tracks which fit the long-form minimalist instrumental style of the original track, giving a total playing time of over an hour from the three tracks. Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . BILL'S THOUGHTS: "Crimsworth was a collaborative art piece. It was designed to act as the sonic component in a gallery art installation. The installation itself was created by Rob Ward and involved a room whose walls were covered in ceramic paper which had been painted in deep reds and green-golds. The floor of the room was flooded with a black oil-like liquid that reflected the walls, creating the illusion of an infinite space. Viewers entered the room one at a time and could move to the centre of the space along a slightly elevated walkway, laid over the liquid floor. The name for the piece came from an area of wilderness, called 'Crimsworth', near the artist's home. "The soundscape I made was played on a loop from speakers within the installation. The inspiration for the music was the artwork itself, rather than any other music, although I had the works of John Cage and Morton Feldman in mind. I think the music could rightly be called 'environmental' rather than ambient." _____ "Towards the end of 1993, I was invited by Rob Ward to create a piece of music for his installation ‘Crimsworth’. The installation comprised a rectangular room, the walls of which were covered with a special ceramic paper, painted by the artist. The floor of the room was then flooded with water over which a long, narrow platform extended allowing the viewer to enter the centre of the space. "The work was inspired by an area of landscape nearby the artist's home, known as Crimsworth. The music reflects this natural environment and is in turn refracted through Rob Ward's painting to create an elemental space pregnant with mystery and subterranean forces." _____ Bonus tracks: " ‘Palace Of Gnosis’ - was recorded at The Echo Observatory in 1988 and written as a piece for guided meditation for the Rosicrucian Order (Ancient Mystical Order Rosea Crusis) that I was involved with at the time. I was actually master of the Leeds Rosicrucian Lodge back then and devised a spoken scenario that I would narrate live over the music. The idea was to guide the people meditating on a journey down a river to a beautiful palace where they would encounter several symbolic and mystical beings who would impart occult teachings to them. I understand that the meditators found it very effective. " ‘Out Of The Window, Into The Night’ - was also recorded at The Echo Observatory, although a little earlier in 1985. It was originally intended as an opening sequence soundtrack to an animated film of Roald Dhal’s ‘The BFG’." FAN THOUGHTS: Steve Whitaker: "Crimsworth Dean is a valley that runs off the Calder Valley in the Hardcastle Crags area, and you couldn't find a more perfect spot to inspire art in any form." tommaso: "I always really loved Crimsworth , especially because unlike all of Bill's earlier 'ambient' work, this one really goes on for a long time, allowing you to immerse yourself in the sound." TheGlassGuitar: "I think an ambient piece should be long enough create an all-encompassing mood. Crimsworth does this better than any other ambient piece I know of." wonder toy: "It is not a song you tap your feet to and whistle while waxing kitchen floor. A song for every season and a song for every reason. If you have a spare 31 minutes to lay back and soak in some sonic bliss or if you just want some beautiful music in the background while performing some mundane tasks, reach for this one. I wish there were more albums just like it in the Bill Nelson catalogue. I am really looking forward to some of the long form pieces coming in the near future." Mr.Magnetism Himself: "From the alarm clock on "Sleep That Burns" and the radio transmissions throughout Modern Music to the manipulated sounds of water on Crimsworth , Bill delights me with his varied approaches to incorporating sounds from the worlds of commerce, entertainment, and nature." Babylonorphan: "I have always loved Crimsworth (If you don't "get it", you are not listening properly!) and play it as background music during my crazy noisy students' lessons, you should see them all, as soon as Crimsworth goes on they turn from marauding little devils into angelic little angels. The power of Bill's music knows no bounds!" Kalamazoo Kid: "In retrospect, I'd also call it a direct ancestor of more recent stuff - Sailor Bill , Neptune's Galaxy , And We Fell Into a Dream ." Puzzleoyster: "Anything with a hint of Crimsworthiness gets the heads up in my house!" Albums Menu Future Past

Starlight Stories Bill Nelson album - 1 December 2023 Albums Menu Future Past TRACKS: 01) A Wide Open Window (With A View Of The Stars) 02) Sailing Through Skies Of Blue 03) Antoria 04) My Signal Light 05) Goodbye Golden Sands 06) Everything Is Ancient Now 07) Standing In A Starlit Room 08) Slow, Slow, Slow 09) Meanwhile, Elsewhere 10) Ghosts Of Ancient Houses 11) Celestrum 12) Starlight Stories 13) The Land Of Lost Dreams 14) The Doctor Was An Alchemist 15) Ian's Radio Is On Purchase this CD Purchase this download ALBUM NOTES: Starlight Stories is an album comprising a mixture of song based and instrumental material issued on the Sonoluxe label in a limited edition of 1000 copies. The material for the album was recorded during the same sessions that produced Marvellous Realms and All The Fun Of The Fair , recorded between November 2021 and October 2022. The album title was first announced in a Dreamsville Journal entry dated 5 April 2023 which also confirmed that Nelson had tracks set aside for inclusion on it and was already busy working away on his next project, called Guitars of Tomorrow . The titles of all fifteen tracks destined to appear on Starlight Stories were then revealed by Nelson in a Dreamsville forum post dated 30 April 2023. These were among a list of 127 tracks that would make up future releases including All the Fun of the Fair (which was released on 3 November 2023), the afore mentioned Guitars of Tomorrow and another new album project, Fables of the Future . One song title earmarked for Starlight Stories was initially reported as being called 'Sailing Through the Clouds of Blue' but this was eventually to appear as 'Sailing Through the Skies of Blue'. Other than that minor modification, all fifteen tracks identified back in April 2023 would retain their place on the album. Starlight Stories was mastered at Fairview Studios by John Spence on 1 June 2023 with artwork completed by Martin Bostock in October 2023. Pre-orders details for Starlight Stories were announced by Burning Shed on 2 November 2023 for release on 1 December 2023. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase here in the Dreamsville Store . BILL'S THOUGHTS: "The tracks on 'Starlight Stories' were recorded during the same 2022 recording sessions that produced tracks for the 'All The Fun Of The Fair' album. However, 'Starlight Stories' has a quite different atmosphere and intent. The inspiration for many of the songs came from my memories of a set of children's story books, published in the 1920s, that my mother had owned when she was a child in the early 1930s. She had kept these books and would read to me from them when I was an infant in the early 1950s. They were thick, heavy bound books, with embossed covers and had titles such as 'The Golden Wonder Book For Children'. They were brilliantly illustrated by artists who displayed a combination of Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles. The books contained stories by famous authors such as HG Wells, Miguel De Cervantes, Homer, William Blake and others, plus poems by various poets, both classical and contemporary to those times. I was entranced by the wonderful stories and illustrations they contained. They had an aura of magic and mystery about them, with fairy tales and evocatively British poetry, filled with seasonal and rustic imagery. A treasure trove of fantasy and adventure, which I loved. 'Starlight Stories' doesn't attempt to directly portray those old books but it does try to capture some of their atmosphere and manifest my nostalgia for them. Consequently the songs on this album have a softer, melancholic quality about them, albeit with some distressed, patina-like textures that evoke the scent and feel of those old books. They are dreamy meditations, wistful reveries fed through the filter of my contemporary musical sensibility. I hope they will, in some small way, connect you with your own lost story books, as well as with mine." Albums Menu Future Past

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2013 William's Study (Diary Of A Hyperdreamer) June 2010 Jan May Sep Nov Dec Tuesday 15th June 2010 -- 7:00 pm (Begun Sunday 13th June 2010 and concluded Tuesday 15th June 2010.) Well, what a fabulous week it's been! Last Sunday, 6th of June, I received an email inviting me to attend Mojo magazine's annual 'Honours List' award ceremony in London. The email informed me that the magazine was planning to give a special signature award to one of rock n' roll's legendary artists and that they would like me to personally present it to him at the event. Well...you could have knocked me down with the proverbial feather. I was both excited and terrified by the prospect. The truth is I'm never really at my best in these 'celebrity situations,' being rather quiet and maybe a little shy compared to many rock musicians, but THIS was something that I couldn't possibly pass up, this was something REALLY special: Mojo magazine's 'Icon' award was going to be bestowed upon the legendary American guitarist Duane Eddy, an artist who, I can genuinely say, I owe my love of the guitar to. I've cited Duane many times in interviews over the 36 years since Be Bop Deluxe released their first album and journalists took an interest in my musical roots but, for the record, I really should tell the story again here. In fact, I'll throw caution to the wind and allow readers of this diary a sneak preview of my unpublished autobiography. This short excerpt from the book relates how Duane came to inspire my original passion for the electric guitar. So, here's an exclusive peek at the relevant section. Remember, at this point in the autobiography, I'm just eleven years old: "Around this time, Rock and roll entered my life in a big way via radio, television and records. My parents had bought a second-hand radiogram, a big console model with a beautifully veneered cabinet and an automatic turntable. It was a vast improvement on the family's ancient wind-up gramophone. A number of records came with the purchase, mostly old 78 rpm discs but with a few modern 45's scattered amongst them. Some were early Elvis Presley records and others were English 'skiffle' music, the precursor of rock n' roll in the UK. Whilst listening to the console's radio one day, I heard a BBC programme, (hosted, I think, by DJ Johnny Walker), that used a beautiful instrumental recording as its opening and closing theme. It was a single, released on the 'London' record label, by a young American guitarist called Duane Eddy. The track was titled 'Because They're Young.' It was originally composed as the title theme for a movie in which Duane briefly featured with his band, 'The Rebels.' (The film also featured actress Tuesday Weld.) Duane Eddy was cool and handsome, a kind of rock n' roll James Dean. He developed a highly distinctive and original approach to the guitar. Duane played a beautiful Gretsch 6120 electric archtop, (although I wasn't aware of such technical details back then), and, as a result of the sound he created with producer Lee Hazelwood, became known as the 'King Of Twang.' This new and unique sound was achieved by playing the melody mostly on the bass strings of the guitar, which were then amplified and fed through a reverberation chamber, often with the addition of tremolo. I discovered, many years later, that Duane had actually used a Danelectro baritone guitar on this recording, rather than the Gretsch he was so often photographed with. When I first heard 'Because They're Young' on the radio, I had no idea who was playing the piece, all that I was aware of was a beautiful, deep, shimmering sound, offset to great effect by an orchestral string arrangement courtesy of Lee Hazelwood, the record's producer. But this sweet little tune, played so perfectly by Duane Eddy, was the spark that lit the fire under me, the one record that inspired all my consequent guitar dreams. Not long after, I caught some flu virus or other and was allowed to stay at home to recuperate, rather than go to school. Resting in bed, I asked my mother to switch the radio on so that I could listen to 'Because They're Young' at it's usual broadcast time. She evidently realised my delight in hearing this piece of music and somehow made a note of its title and the name of the artist performing it. The next day she went into Wakefield and purchased the 45 rpm single for me in the hope of cheering me up and encouraging my recuperation. I was ecstatic about being given the single and asked for it to be played over and over on the radiogram which stood majestically in a corner of the living room. I vividly recall laying on my bed, the sound of Duane's guitar floating through from the front room, echoing across the narrow hallway of 28 Conistone Crescent, and into my bedroom. Somehow, it was as if the future had finally come knocking at my door. The B-side of the single was titled 'Rebel Walk.' This was a supremely moody piece, a kind of beatnik, 'film-noir' theme, based around a haunting, simple riff augmented by wordless backing vocals in a kind of 'Jordinairs' (Elvis Presley's backing vocalists), style. I enjoyed this piece just as much as the 'A' side. Looking back on this, 50 years later here in the 21st Century, I now realise that I had found my life-changing 'eureka' moment, the sort of moment we are never able to never forget, a moment to appreciate forever, and, yes, to feel genuinely grateful for. If I had to sum it up in one single word, it would be: 'Magic.' Actually, I still have the original 'Because They're Young' single in my possession and treasure it greatly. Owning that record inspired me to attempt to play 'Because They're Young' on my recently acquired Zenith guitar, but I only got as far as the opening few bars of the main melody. The size of the real guitar's neck was much bigger than the toy guitar that I had been more familiar with, and the steel strings were much thicker and cut into the ends of my fingers. I was temporarily discouraged but it didn't diminish my passion for the sound of the instrument. Or the look of the thing. In fact, the visual appeal of the guitar was very important to me. Not long after getting the single, I discovered a photograph of Duane Eddy in one of my mother's magazines and was impressed by how sharp he looked and how 'sci-fi' his Gretsch electric guitar appeared with it's shiny pickups and mysterious controls. I made a life-sized copy of this guitar from a flat piece of cardboard which I cut to the appropriate shape and then painted, gluing it to a piece of wood to represent the neck. (The wood was appropriated from a child's painting easel I'd had for a few years. It was the first time that I sacrificed the visual arts to music!) To emulate the controls of the guitar, I glued old shirt buttons onto the cardboard body, totally unaware of the function of these controls on the real thing. Once my non-playing facsimile was complete, I would stand in front of my bedroom mirror and mime to Duane's record, throwing the appropriate shapes, as observed from his publicity photographs." Ok, dear diary readers...I'm not going to give away any more of my autobiography here...but the above brief excerpt should give you an idea of the impact that Duane had on the life of an eleven year old schoolboy living in a council estate flat in Wakefield, fifty years ago. Fifty years ago? Wow.... And THAT'S the amazing thing. I've held onto my original 'Because They're Young' single and kept it close to my heart, (and all that it symbolised), for fifty years. I guess that the unassuming young guitar player who recorded that track had no idea of the power it contained, the ripples that radiated out from his far away American reverb tank, out across the world, to a skinny schoolboy here in Yorkshire. As an eleven year old kid, I would sometimes dream about meeting Duane Eddy and, in these dreams, I'd ask him about guitar playing and he'd pass on a secret technique or two. But if anyone had said to me, "one day, fifty years from now, you will personally present Duane with an award recognising him as an icon of rock n' roll." Well, I would have thought that they were crazy. But, it seems, magic happens. (Well, I of all people, should know that!) Something about the award ceremony itself now: The three days before travelling to London were excruciatingly stressful. I hardly slept, worrying about what to say, about my appearance, my clothes, worrying about every single thing to the point of feeling physically sick and ill with it all. I tried to keep as much of this trepidation to myself as possible but it leaked out in even the most mundane tasks around the house. Emiko was not able to travel with me to London to attend the Mojo awards. She had been given an important and prestigious freelance floral design commission which required her to work long hours thoughout the week if she was to prepare all the complex arrangements for her client. At first, I thought that I wouldn't be able to face the stress of the Mojo event without her by my side. I am not naturally gregarious in social situations and my nerves often betray me. Emiko has the quiet charm and ease that I lack, and her gentle presence is a great asset whenever I have to socialise in such circumstances. Don't misunderstand, I'm fine and dandy around people who I've had the opportunity to get to know and trust, but the superficial celebrity charm that seems to work for other people often evades me. Anyway, I called my friend Paul Gilby and asked him if he'd be at all interested in accompanying me to the event to lend a little moral support. Paul, very encouragingly, said he'd be honoured to do so and I felt a little less anxious about the whole thing. However, once the day arrived, my nerves kicked in again...even more excruciatingly than before. I was shaking at York station, shaking on the train to London and trembling like a daisy as I changed at the hotel before being whisked off in a limo to the event itself. All I could do was think of the alternative, which would have been to stay at home and later regret not accepting this wonderful opportunity to say 'thank you' to my first ever guitar hero. I HAD to do this, for Duane and for myself. First little miracle of the evening came when the limo arrived to pick me up to take me to the event. As I walked out of the hotel door, there in front of me, (actually with his back to me), was a person I thought I knew. He turned his face, ever so slightly, to speak to someone standing next to him. The resultant half-glimpsed profile was instantly recognisable to me. It was Peter Hammill, an artist who I'd toured with many, many years previously during the early days of Be Bop Deluxe. I probably don't need to introduce readers of this diary to Peter's extensive and highly respected work as a singer-songwriter and founder member of the band 'Van der Graaf Generator.' He is a unique and very special artist who anyone interested in music as an art form should be aware of. (And shame on you if you're not.) Peter has chosen to plough the same deep furrow as all those artists who are driven by something other than the lure of the corn market. In short, he's the genuine article. The first ever tour Be Bop Deluxe undertook as a support act was with Peter Hammill, on one of his solo concert tours. I remember it with great fondness. Peter treated us kindly and sympathetically. We landed our contract with EMI records during the course of that tour and Peter seemed genuinely overjoyed for us. To celebrate our signing, Peter bought a bottle of Polish White Spirit for us...(a fierce alcoholic drink with pyrotechnic capabilities). I remember a drop or two of it being poured onto a wooden bench in the dressing room of a venue on that tour. And a match being set to it...It caught fire in a whoosh of incandescent energy. We were lucky...the entire building could have burned to the ground, such was the drink's potency. Rocket fuel in a bottle. We each, (this was the original line-up of the band), had a sip from the bottle...but it was far too fierce and strong a medicine for us. Remarkably, the band's drummer, Nicholas Chatterton-Dew, seemed able to handle it without the top of his head coming off in a cloud of fire and brimstone. What a guy! Towards the end of the tour, Peter gave me a copy of a book of his lyrics and poetry that had recently been published. In the first pages of the book he drew a little caricature of me and signed it. I still have that book and treasure it, along with the now distant memories of that first Be Bop Deluxe tour. So, meeting Peter again, after all these years, was a very happy experience for me. But, back to the Mojo Honours List awards: There was a red carpet awaiting at the venue. And a line up of press photographers. A kind of modest Hollywood Oscar moment, I thought. I had my photograph taken by the gathered photographers and, despite my trepidation and natural inclination to be dismissive of the importance of such things, I somehow slipped into the grin and bear it mode that was so often required during my Be Bop Deluxe years. "This way Bill...", "Could you look into the camera, Bill?", "Head up a little Bill...", Etc, etc. It wasn't too difficult, just a bit embarrassing. I guess it's that, 'once you've learned to ride a bike' syndrome. All bollocks, of course, but a kind of acceptable bollocks. Most artists just grin and give out what's required of them, no matter how ridiculous they feel or how surreal it all becomes. I suppose we're all flogging our individual horses, dead or alive, according to public perception. Truth is, I don't mind this sort of thing at all really. In fact I almost enjoy it, musician's egos being what they are... Entering the interior of the venue, I mingled with the crowd who had not yet been invited to sit at the circular tables situated before the stage where the actual awards would be given. The stage was designed to resemble an oversized stately home library, or something similar, complete with fake wood panelled wall, a giant fireplace complete with a video fire, (a pair of Gibson Les Paul guitars crossed above it like armorial bearings), and a huge screen and table filled with the actual Mojo award trophies. All very impressive I thought, but also a little overwhelming. Amongst the crowd of celebrities I came across my old pal John Leckie. Ah...here was someone I actually KNEW and could relate to without pretence. John is a dear, dear friend who has always remained the same sweet and lovely person he was back in the '70's when we first worked together. And that despite his fame and success as the producer of many well-known bands during the intervening years. I was relieved and pleased to see him. We'd last met at the 2009 Nelsonica fan convention when John and I gave an on-stage interview about our years of working together. John's also coming up to this year's Nelsonica. I think he really enjoyed himself at last year's event. But there were other familiar faces too: Some I knew personally from other situations, (Mark Powell, Peter Blake, John Foxx, Marc Almond, to name just four), but also people whom I had only previously been able to admire from afar, (Rufus and Martha Wainwright, Richard Thompson, Emmylou Harris, Jimmy Page, Jarvis Cocker, Roy Wood, Wilco Johnson, Mark Mothersbaugh of DEVO, Roger Daltrey, Tony Christie, Richard Hawley and others.) The place seemed to be teeming with pop and rock celebrities. Shame Julian Cope didn't show though...it would have been nice to thank him for the kind words he's written about me on his website. The table at which I was seated was graced by Beth Orton, Alex James from Blur and Andy Gill and Jon King from Gang Of Four. All very nice people. A combination of shyness, nerves and ambient noise from the hall limited my entering into anything other than superficial conversation with my fellow diners, but it was good to be seated amongst them, even though my mind was constantly fretting about the daunting task ahead of me. We were served a three course meal, (vegetable terrine starter, braised lamb main course, then bread n' butter pudding desert). Each table was groaning with its own vast supply of booze: several bottles of wine, a crate of beer, even a bottle of Scotch. I stuck to water, worried that I might become a bit too 'loose' if I drank the wine. It then turned out that the Mojo Icon award was going to be the final presentation of the evening, the culminating event. I would have to sit through all the other presentations before I could do my bit and relax. As the evening went on, my nerves became more and more acute. I watched in envy as each presenter took to the stage and announced the various awards in witty and professional style. How could I compete with such bravado? My nerves leapt up another octave, almost to the realm of 'screech.' Ok...maybe just a half glass of wine wouldn't go amiss. I'd prepared a pre-composed speech which I'd printed out, as a back up, just in case my nerves got the better of me but, as it happened, the format of the presentation was slightly different to what I'd expected and the speech would not have worked in the actual context of the show. A very nice girl, one of the event's staff, came over to our table and explained the drill to me. The format was that I would take the stage, say a few words but not reveal who the award was for. I then had to say, 'and let's have a look at his work' which would cue a short video presentation. At the end of the video, I was then to announce Duane's name, he would come on stage and accept the award from me. Right...(mild panic). It looked like I'd have to wing it, come up with something reasonably spontaneous but loosely based on my original idea. I decided to trust to the moment and play it by ear. I watched the various award trophies being handed over to their recipients by the presenters until there was just one award left. I took a deep breath and began to squeeze my way between the closely packed tables, heading toward the stage. I was expecting the ceremony's host, Mojo editor Phil Alexander, to say something basic along the lines of, "and here's Bill Nelson to present the Mojo Icon award...". But, Phil was very generous and said some quite flattering things about my work, which came as a welcome surprise and gave my confidence a much needed boost. (Thanks for that Phil, it was very kind of you.) I'd got up from my seat a little too soon so stood at the foot of the stage for a few moments until Phil's introduction was concluded...it must have appeared as if I was incredibly eager to get onto the stage but, the truth was, I wasn't expecting such a nice introduction. Finally I was on stage, shook hands with Phil and walked to the microphone. I'd taken my 50 year old copy of 'Because They're Young' on stage with me. I began my short speech with "Some people will try to tell you that records don't change lives..." (Then I held up my Duane Eddy single), "But THIS one changed mine...!" I'm afraid that was all I could remember from my prepared speech, the rest of it I made up as I went along. I can't recall exactly what I said now as the next five minutes or so became a dream-like, near hallucinogenic, blur. I managed to give the cue for the video, (which showed various album sleeves of Duane's whilst a selection of his tracks played,) then said, "Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome, the legendary King Of Twang, Mr. Duane Eddy!" Then suddenly, walking towards me across the stage was the man whose music had launched an 11 year old boy on a fifty year long journey to here and now. I can't describe how emotional a moment it was. Quite unbelievable! Duane walked right up to me and gave me a big hug and thanked me warmly for my introduction, then took the microphone and spoke to the assembled celebrity audience. He was given a wonderfully enthusiastic reception by everyone. We were then both led backstage where we were to be photographed together, then on to a joint interview for the Mojo website, then a few more photographs. Next came the group photographs with a selection of winners and presenters lined up in three rows. I stood on the back row next to Richard Thompson. Rufus was on the next row down and Duane sat at the front. As I said, it was all a bit of a blur and quite unreal.Duane and I were then asked to sign a Gibson Les Paul guitar that will be auctioned to raise funds for the War Child charity. It's not every day that my signature sits on a guitar alongside the signatures of Duane Eddy, Jimmy Page and Richard Thompson. Another honour that I'll treasure. Duane also offered to sign my original 'Because They're Young' single...which was what I'd hoped he'd do. I plan to frame it along with a photo of Duane and hang it on my studio wall, next to my Les Paul, Hank Marvin and Joe Pass framed photographs. One more nice surprise: Duane and his lovely and thoughtful wife Deed thanked me for all the things I've said about Duane in interviews and on my website over the years. I had no idea that they were aware of me at all so this came as a happy surprise. Duane's wife told me that she supports Duane in the same practical ways that Emiko supports me, so it seems Duane and Deed actually read this diary sometimes. What a thrill to discover that! Duane asked for my 'phone number and we exchanged email addresses. It would be terrific if we could keep in touch and perhaps collaborate on something in the not too distant future. I would definitely be thrilled to create a track for both of us to play on. Oh, I also gave Duane two albums of mine, 'Rosewood Volume 1' and 'Here comes Mr. Mercury.' I'd grabbed them just before setting off to the station to travel to London. I hope they're a good choice for him. With such a large and varied catalogue of music, it's sometimes difficult to know what to choose when I want to introduce someone to my work. None of it follows the usual routes anyway, but these two albums might have one or two tracks on them that a guitar player might enjoy. Next, it was off to the aftershow party. This was held in a little cellar club, just across the road from the awards ceremony venue. The place reminded me of a 'sixties club called 'Cafe Des Artistes' which, all those years ago, used to be in Fulham Road, (I think). I'd visited it in the latter half of the 'sixties when I'd spent a weekend with an art school pal whose parents lived in Hampstead. (And THERE'S another tale to tell in volume 2 of my autobiography!) The aftershow party place however, had a much louder sound system than any 'sixties club. The DJ played some classic music from the past, 'Green Onions' by Booker T and the MG's, and other tracks that evoked a groovy '60's retro atmosphere. Great track choices but it was just a little too loud, and of such an aggressive mid frequency that conversation was nigh on impossible. It would have been nice to have a slightly quieter environment where people could have met without having to literally yell in each other's ears. Nevertheless, it WAS enjoyable to hear some classic tracks and watch several rather attractive girls dance a 21st Century version of the 'Hully Gully' or whatever. I almost joined in but thought better of it...best to hang on to whatever decorum that remains to me as a 61 year old! John Leckie and I shouted into each other's ears for an hour or so and I managed to catch a few words from Mark Powell and a nice guy from the band 'Kasabian.' (At least, I think that's who it was.) I also met a guy from Gibson guitars who was very helpful. I had my photo taken with ace vocalist Tony Christie too. What a very nice chap and looking enviously slim and youthful too. Oh, and I managed to wish Roy Wood well, just as he was about to head back to the hotel. I first met Roy on a Kid Jensen radio show, quite some years ago now. He's another lovely chap...he'd been given a well deserved songwriter award at the Mojo Honours List. I still recall those early Move singles...they were a band I very much enthused about back then. The noise levels eventually got the better of me and Paul and I decided it was time to head back to our hotel in Bloomsbury. A car was summoned, I thanked everyone in sight for allowing me to bestow my first ever guitar hero with the Mojo Icon award, and fell gratefully into the back seat of the car and set off for the hotel, tired and happy. Next morning, I awoke, after little more than three hours sleep, with a very sore throat and an extremely hoarse voice, probably a direct result of the previous evening's aftershow yelling. I met Peter Hamill in the hotel foyer and we exchanged emails and 'phone numbers. Then Paul and I wandered down the street for breakfast, and then to Foyles bookshop so that I could peruse the 'Ray's Jazz' section. Bought a book dealing with English swing bands of the 1930s and '40s. Also a Bill Frisell album titled 'Where In The World' that I'd not previously heard. Whilst in Foyles, I got a call from Richard at Opium on my mobile. He was calling to say that the Mojo site had my 'red carpet' photo' on it. Then it was a taxi ride to Kings Cross and the train journey back to York and home. And a huge sigh of relief. Saturday morning, I helped Emiko to deliver the final part of her important flower commission. She had enlisted a friend of hers to help her on the Friday morning, whilst I was in London. Everything went to plan and her client was overjoyed with the many arrangements that Emi had created for her. I'm so pleased when people recognise the sophistication of her designs. Our new kitchen is now, finally, complete. (Fanfare!) All that remains is to move various items back into it, a task which Emiko and I began this weekend. We've almost concluded that process now and it is so good to have our kitchen back, in much brighter and shinier condition than before. There's more to tell, as always, but this diary entry has taken up more time than I expected. I'm now going to catch up with some recording work. But what an unexpected and much appreciated honour that was. Duane, thank you so much for being so gracious to me. And Mojo magazine...thanks for giving me this once in a lifetime opportunity. All I can say, to end this diary entry is: WOW! ***** The images accompanying this diary are as follows:- 1: Bill and John Leckie at the Mojo Honours 2010 event. 2: Bill and Peter Blake at the Mojo Honours 2010 event. (Note Jarvis Cocker in the background.) 3: Bill and Duane Eddy at the Mojo Honours 2010 event. (Bill holding his original 50 year old 'Because They're Young' single, now signed by Duane.) 4: A close up of the single that Duane signed for Bill. It reads: 'To Bill, thank you so much, Duane Eddy.' 5: Bill with Tony Christie at the Mojo awards aftershow party. 6: The Gibson Les Paul guitar, signed by various guitarists, including Duane and Bill, at the Mojo awards. This guitar will be auctioned to raise funds for the 'War Child' charity. All photographs taken by Paul Gilby with the exception of the close up of the signed 'Because They're Young' single which was taken by Bill Nelson in his home studio. Top of page

Hired History Plus album - 2019 Fiat Lux Production/Contribution Menu Future Past TRACKS: DISC ONE: HIRED HISTORY PLUS 01) Secrets 02) Photography 03) Blue Emotion (12" Version) 04) Comfortable Life 05) Sleepless Nightmare (12" Version) 06) Aqua Vitae 07) Feels Like Winter Again 08) This Illness 09) Photography (Unreleased Bill Nelson Version) 10) Comfortable Life (Unreleased Bill Nelson 12" Version) 11) House Of Thorns 12) Sleepless Nightmare 13) Three's Company 14) House Of Thorns (12" Version) 15) Solitary Lovers (12" Version) 16) No More Proud (Proud Mix) 17) No More Proud (Dub Mix) 18) Sally Free And Easy DISC TWO: ARK OF EMBERS (LOST ALBUM) 01) The Moment 02) Breaking The Boundary 03) Blue Emotion 04) Embers 05) No More Proud 06) Photography 07) Splurge 08) Secrets 09) Aqua Vitae 10) In The Heat Of The Night 11) Solitary Lovers BILL: Producer on four tracks, Disc One's 'Feels Like Winter Again', 'This Illness', 'Photography' and 'Comfortable Life'. NOTES: The tracks Nelson produced were originally recorded in 1983, but remained unreleased until 2019 with the release of this record. Steve Wright & David Crickmore: "...We have been able to include our earlier work with Bill Nelson as producer. Not only the debut independent single on Bill's Cocteau label 'Feels Like Winter Again' b/w 'This Illness', but also the original Bill Nelson produced version of 'Photography' (b/w 'Comfortable Life'), which was commissioned to be our next single when we first signed to Polydor – a plan soon abandoned by the company in favour of a remake with Hugh Jones at the controls. Riding on the Indie chart success of our debut, Bill's 'Photography' followed the brief to "make it sound like 'Feels Like Winter Again'." We even returned to the same modest local Leeds studio. It is a notable inclusion to this collection as it marks the first time Ian Nelson blew a saxophone on one of our recordings and you can hear that his lovely end solo idea survives right through from Bill's prototype to the bigger budget Hugh Jones replacement version." "It wasn't our first attempt at the number ('Comfortable Life') – Bill Nelson had offered his production of it as the intended B-side of 'Photography', recorded at the same sessions at Ric Rac in Leeds. Unheard until its inclusion here is that unreleased master in its 12" mix form (Polydor never commissioned the 7" edit from it). It comes with the heavy disclaimer that 'Blue Monday' was hot off the press and extremely influential at the time!" Production/Contribution Menu Future Past

Arcadian Salon Bill Nelson album - 14 October 2006 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) Premium Standard No.1 02) The Girl In The Galaxy Dress 03) Take It Off And Thrill Me (Jazzy Option) 04) Memory Skyline 05) Distant Town With Different Lights 06) The Song My Silver Planet Sings 07) Spaceport 08) Superadventure (Sound-On-Sound) 09) Playful 10) Transparent Towers At Dusk 11) El Swingo Collapso 12) The Rest Of The World Rolls By 13) Wind Chimes Of Memory 14) Take It Off And Thrill Me (Rock Option) 15) Sequinned Skeleton Blues 16) Snow Is Falling 17) A Buddha For My Brother ALBUM NOTES: Arcadian Salon is an album mixing vocal and instrumental pieces issued exclusively for Nelsonica '06 in the then customary limited pressing of 500 copies on the Discs of Ancient Odeon label. As soon as Nelsonica was over the remaining 250 or so copies of Arcadian Salon were sold through SOS, and on 25 October 2006 (11 days after release at Nelsonica ) an announcement was made on the Dreamsville Forum that the album had completely sold out. The frenzied speed at which this title went out of print, together with some intense feelings expressed by members on the forum, would lead to a change of policy for the following year's convention CD. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . BILL'S THOUGHTS: "The first six tracks are all from the Return to Jazz of Lights sessions and have a very jazzy feel. I couldn't find space for them on that album so they are presented here instead." _____ On the digital reissue: "I haven't listened to Arcadian Salon for several years, (due to my inescapable, constant, upward and onward work momentum,) but I have to admit to being somewhat astonished by the quality of the songs when listening to the album after its re-release in digital form. This is definitely an album I can feel proud of." FAN THOUGHTS: RJR: "For those of you who do not have this collection of songs for whatever reason, I HIGHLY recommend that you download it ASAP. I am a regular lurker on this board, and when I come out of cyber-hibernation it has to be for a good reason. This is definitely one of those occasions. Arcadian Salon is, in my humble opinion, in the top five of ALL of BN's releases (and I have been a follower since 1977). Each and every song grabs and stays with you. "The Girl in the Galaxy Dress" is gold. "Both versions of "Take It Off" are excellent...This is truly an awesome song. In fact, the whole CD contains some of BN's finest guitar work bar none." "You should be proud, Bill -- this collection is magical. As I said: DOWNLOAD THIS CD or forever regret it." adancetothemusicoftime: "I'd heard it for the first time...and it had that WOWEEEBLOODYHELL reaction. In fact, listening along we missed the turning on the A19 and ended up East of Ipswich, well, Wetherby." BobK: " Arcadian starts off cool, jazzy and groovy becoming, stylistically, more rock/pop in the second half. There are so many instantly loveable tunes on this." Radium Girl: "The vocals on Arcadian Salon are absolutely stunning! Thank you Bill, the whole CD is just gorgeous!" paul.smith " Arcadian Salon has so many great tracks which have become 'standards' for me over the years..."The Girl in the Galaxy Dress" is simply stunning...utterly beautiful vocals/guitar/instrumentation...I never fail to be astonished by the qualities of this classic track. "Transparent Towers at Dusk" is another track that hit with me soon after some repeated plays...and, of course, "The Song My Silver Planet Sings"...absolutely sublime!!!" old_goat: "Listening to "Take It Off and Thrill Me", "Memory Skyline" beginning...I'm so blown away!! OMG, it feels sooooo good!! The vocals are very playful, very jazzy guitar, and the "flute"...I'm am sooo loving this!!!" chromiumlad: "Got a kick out of Kansas being mentioned in "Transparent Towers at Dusk". And love "El Swingo Collapso" after just one listen. Fabulous playing Bill. You could play alongside whatever musical hero you desire." thunk: "Gotta say 'The Rest of the World Rolls By' is a 'corker' - gonna blast that one up in the car & drum the steering wheel 'till, well, the lights change!" mthom: "Two classics on this one: "Memory Skyline" and "The Rest of the World Rolls By". Essential listening to these ears. (oh yeah, don't forget "Snow is Falling"!)" tommaso: "Snow is Falling": "is a truly stand-out track, not just on this album, and the final "A Buddha for my Brother" is a very, very beautiful farewell gift to Ian. Oh, and GREAT cover design!" Flying: "There is an emotional and profound communication going on here that hits a deeper note, simply because it is obviously straight from the heart - and not going through the filter of a jazz or any other kind of theme. Genius is effortless." damien dale: "Bill, this is with out a doubt one of your finest albums ever. Take it from your fans; we would not lie to you! Albums Menu Future Past

Sound-On-Sound Bill Nelson's Red Noise album - 16 February 1979 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this box set Purchase this double CD TRACKS: 01) Don't Touch Me (I'm Electric) 02) For Young Moderns 03) Stop/Go/Stop 04) Furniture Music 05) Radar In My Heart 06) Stay Young 07) Out Of Touch 08) A Better Home In The Phantom Zone 09) Substitute Flesh 10) The Atom Age 11) Art/Empire/Industry 12) Revolt Into Style ALBUM NOTES: Sound-On-Sound was Bill Nelson's first album to be issued subsequent to the dissolution of Be Bop Deluxe. The album would prove to be his final for EMI. Sound-On-Sound represents a major departure from Nelson's previous work, combining the urgency of New Wave music with the layering of synthesisers that would come to define the Synth Pop sounds of 1979-83. Consequently, the album is virtually absent of guitar solos, and the songs are delivered in a frantic, accelerated pace compared to most of Nelson's past work. Most of the tracks on Sound-On-Sound feature the nucleus of Nelson, Clark and Ford (as described for the Furniture Music single) with Ian Nelson playing saxophones and/or synthesisers on 10 of the 12 tracks. Dave Mattacks from Fairport Convention played drums on only four tracks. Sound-on-Sound was initially issued by Harvest on vinyl (complete with lyrics on the inner sleeve) and cassette, and peaked at No. 33 in the UK album chart. The album failed to sustain the level of interest associated with Be Bop Deluxe, and when EMI underwent a major re-structure in late 1979, Bill Nelson's Red Noise were dropped. Sound-On-Sound was deleted (along with the Be Bop Deluxe catalogue) sometime around 1980/81. In April 2017 Cherry Red and E soteric R ecordings , who, since 2011, have done so much to raise the profile of Bill Nelson's solo recordings from the period 1980 to 2002, acquired the rights to release the Be Bop Deluxe and Red Noise material issued between 1973 and 1979. On 26 August 2022, after all the Be Bop Deluxe albums had been given a deluxe box set release, it was now the turn of the Red Noise material. Due to licensing restrictions, the box set couldn't be called Sound-On-Sound , but was instead given the title Art/Empire/Industry . The Deluxe Edition comprised of: a freshly remastered version of the original album. a 2022 remix of the full album. includes previously unreleased concert recorded at De Montfort Hall, Leicester on 8 March 1979 a previously unreleased track entitled 'My Light' recorded for the Sound-On-Sound sessions. 4 recordings from a 1979 BBC Friday Rock Show session. a CD of previously unreleased Bill Nelson demos for the Sound-On Sound sessions. the original album presented in a 5.1 mix. previously unreleased promotional video of 'Revolt Into Style'. three tracks performed by Red Noise on BBC TV's 'Old Grey Whistle Test'. The box set includes a lavishly-illustrated book with extensive essay by Bill Nelson and a foreword by Steven Wilson, a facsimile tour programme, poster and four postcards. A 2CD edition of the album is also being released at the same time as the Deluxe Edition. The full track listing for the Deluxe Edition is: Disc One: 01) Don't Touch Me (I'm Electric) 02) For Young Moderns 03) Stop/Go/Stop 04) Furniture Music 05) Radar In My Heart 06) Stay Young 07) Out Of Touch 08) A Better Home In The Phantom Zone 09) Substitute Flesh 10) The Atom Age 11) Art/Empire/Industry 12) Revolt Into Style 13) Wonder Toys That Last Forever 14) Acquitted by Mirrors (B-side Of 'Furniture Music' EP) 15) Stay Young (BBC Session 17.02.1979) 16) Furniture Music (BBC Session 17.02.1979) 17) Don't Touch Me (I'm Electric) (BBC Session 17.02.1979) 18) Out Of Touch (BBC Session 17.02.1979) Disc Two Live At The De Montfort Hall, Leicester 1979 01) Don't Touch Me (I'm Electric) 02) For Young Moderns 03) Furniture Music 04) Out Of Touch 05) Stop/Go/Stop 06) Atom Age 07) Possession 08) Superenigmatix 09) Substitute Flesh 10) A Better Home In The Phantom Zone 11) Radar in My Heart 12) Art/Empire/Industry 13) Revolt Into Style 14) Stay Young 15) For Young Moderns (Encore) Disc Three 01) Don't Touch Me (I'm Electric) (New Stereo Mix) 02) For Young Moderns (New Stereo Mix) 03) Stop/Go/Stop (New Stereo Mix) 04) Furniture Music (New Stereo Mix) 05) Radar In My Heart (New Stereo Mix) 06) Stay Young (New Stereo Mix) 07) Out Of Touch (New Stereo Mix) 08) A Better Home In The Phantom Zone (New Stereo Mix) 09) Substitute Flesh (New Stereo Mix) 10) The Atom Age (New Stereo Mix) 11) Art/Empire/Industry (New Stereo Mix) 12) Revolt Into Style (New Stereo Mix) 13) Wonder Toys That Last Forever (New Stereo Mix) 14) Acquitted By Mirrors (New Stereo Mix) 15) My Light (Previously Unreleased - Recorded For The 'Sound On Sound' Sessions) (New Stereo Mix) 16) Instantly Yours (New Stereo Mix) 17) Ideal Homes (New Stereo Mix) 18) Disposable (New Stereo Mix) Disc Four 01) Don't Touch Me (I'm Electric) (5.1 mix) 02) For Young Moderns (5.1 mix) 03) Stop/Go/Stop (5.1 mix) 04) Furniture Music (5.1 mix) 05) Radar In My Heart (5.1 mix) 06) Stay Young (5.1 mix) 07) Out Of Touch (5.1 mix) 08) A Better Home In The Phantom Zone (5.1 mix) 09) Substitute Flesh (5.1 mix) 10) The Atom Age (5.1 mix) 11) Art/Empire/Industry (5.1 mix) 12) Revolt Into Style (5.1 mix) Disc Five 01) Wonder Toys That Last Forever (5.1 mix) 02) Acquitted By Mirrors (5.1 mix) 03) My Light (5.1 mix) (Recorded For The 'Sound On Sound' Sessions) 04) Instantly Yours (5.1 mix) 05) Ideal Homes (5.1 mix) 06) Disposable (5.1 mix) Video Content 01) Revolt into Style (Promotional video 1979) 02) Don't Touch Me (I'm Electric) (BBC TV Old Grey Whistle Test – 1979) 03) Furniture Music (BBC TV Old Grey Whistle Test 1979) 04) Stay Young (BBC TV Old Grey Whistle Test 1979) Disc Six Bill Nelson Red Noise Demos 1978 – Previously Unreleased 01) Acquitted By Mirrors (Demo) 02) For Young Moderns (Demo) 03) Stop/Go/Stop (Demo) 04) Furniture Music (Demo) 05) Radar In My Heart (Demo) 06) Stay Young (Demo) 07) Out Of Touch (Demo) 08) A Better Home In The Phantom Zone (Demo) 09) Substitute Flesh (Demo) 10) The Atom Age (Demo) 11) Revolt Into Style (Demo) 12) Waiting For The Night (Demo) 13) My Light (Demo) On 22 April 2023, Bill Nelson's Red Noise Live – De Montfort Hall Leicester 1979 was released separately to the above Deluxe edition as a 2x10" LP set, pressed on red vinyl released by Esoteric Recordings in a limited edition of 500 copies for Record Store Day, available while stocks last at participating independent record shops. The track listing for the 2x10" vinyl set is: A1) Don't Touch Me (I'm Electric) A2) For Young Moderns A3) Furniture Music A4) Out Of Touch B1) Stop/Go/Stop B2) Atom Age B3) Possession B4) Superenigmatix B5) Substitute Flesh C1) A Better Home In The Phantom Zone C2) Radar in My Heart C3) Art/Empire/Industry C4) Revolt Into Style D1) Stay Young D2) For Young Moderns (Encore) PAST RELEASES: Sound-On-Sound has been re-issued on vinyl once (1986, Cocteau), and on CD on three separate occasions (1989 Enigma, 1999 EMI, and 2012 EMI). The 2012 CD from EMI is the most extensive in content, coming as it does with all four b-side tracks from the album's two singles, plus four previously unreleased tracks recorded from a BBC 'session' (17/02/79 Friday Rock Show). Extra songs on the 2012 CD: Furniture Music b-sides: 13) Wonder Toys That Last Forever 14) Acquitted By Mirrors Revolt Into Style b-sides: 15) Stay Young (Live at Leicester De Montfort Hall, 8 March 1979) 16) Out Of Touch (Live at Leicester De Montfort Hall, 8 March 1979) Radio 1 Friday Rock Show session (17 February 1979) 17) Stay Young 18) Furniture Music 19) Don't Touch Me (I'm Electric) 20) Out Of Touch This 2012 edition was remastered (using the 1999 remaster), includes new liners notes and contains a nice selection of photos from the time period. Although overall the sound quality is an improvement over the previous CD issues, the album version of "Stay Young" on this edition suffers from a what appears to be a 'drop out' introduced in the remastering process. The 2012 reissue was deleted in 2014 and is currently out of print as a physical CD, but is still available as a digital download from Amazon and iTunes. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: The deluxe box set and the 2-CD set is available for purchase in the Dreamsville Store . BILL'S THOUGHTS: "The main inspirations were dystopian science fiction novels from the likes of George Orwell (and E.M. Forster's 'The Machine Stops', written in 1909 and frighteningly prophetic of the internet). Also images from Fritz Lang's 'Metropolis' and the ideas encapsulated in Ray Bradbury's 'Fahrenheit 451'. But there's also a future-kitsch element to the Red Noise album's stylings, a sense of irony and a slight tongue-in-cheek quality that suggests humorous absurdity. Although the songs portray a future with sinister overtones, the album attempts to have fun with these concepts, almost as if the citizens who inhabit the future-world the album portrays are too wrapped up in its electric distractions to register the negative effect it is having on their cultural values. Or something like that!" _____ "Punk wasn't the reason I disbanded Be Bop Deluxe, just frustration with the 'straightjacket' I felt we'd been fitted with by the industry and our success. The band's commercial machine was on an ever increasing upward path when I switched it off. I'd actually tried to pull the plug much earlier, before the Drastic Plastic album was recorded, but had been persuaded by the band's management to hold on a bit longer. Had I gotten my way, the Drastic Plastic material would have been recorded as the first Red Noise album. Instead, I adapted it for the final Be Bop album." _____ "I don't separate Be Bop era from Red Noise Era from whatever. It's a constantly flowing river heading out into an ocean of whatever is left when I'm gone. What appears to be different sections or parts appears so only if you view them from close up, from a particular point of bias. If you stand back and take in the entire work, you'll see it as a unity, a single expression of 'being', a single, unwavering, personal voice. And it's ALL relevant to the story I'm telling. No single part is any less or more important than another." _____ "I chose the album title, Sound-On-Sound , as a reference to early multi-track recording techniques, as pioneered by the great Les Paul." _____ "The little 'notice' on the vinyl version about playing the album loud and 'motorised in sequence' etc, etc, was written by me, tongue firmly in cheek... On the original back cover, an "Important Notice" stated: "This record has been styled with today's hi-fi in mind. For optimum results it should be played at high volume in a room with no views other than those afforded by the use of subliminal image video apparatus. Dancing is allowed though electrical stimulation of the nervous system is unnecessary. The music has been motorized in sequence to conserve real time. File under Absolute A-Go-Go." ALBUM REVIEWS: Review on Punk Brighton by Stuart Jones Review of the deluxe edition on Echoes And Dust by Zachary Nathanson FAN THOUGHTS: Peter: "SOS is a masterpiece! Everyone is so right about how this collection is so unique, so alive, so frantically searching for something -- and so revealing of exciting new things to come. Rather like Bill throwing down the gauntlet at the feet of the world (and the music industry) and hollering "Take THAT!" "It reflects Bill's love-hate relationship with change and technology in a raw, pureness that makes it jump into your ears and run around your brain pan laughing at the top of its lungs." asterisk: "Every time I listen to this album, not only do I hear some of the best, tightest, and most exhilarating songs ever recorded, I also heard Bill's muse moaning, panting, and screaming in ecstasy. It's no wonder she's stayed with him all these years." telekon: "It's fun, self-conscious punk-post-punk-new-wave-prog-rock-eletronica-kitchen-sink-garage-door-glass-of-aspirin-cats-on-fire kind of stuff." Swan: "Sound-On-Sound blew my head clean away at the time...it was like a shot of oxygen in a carbon dioxide rich environment...I re-bought it only last year...and...my head is still remote from my neck! A class and very important album. Dare I say it?...away ahead of its time..." John Izzard: "Don't be misled by the title, Sound-On-Sound is not an audio recording, it's a feature film in your head. Never in my long and delirious love affair with the album as an art-format, have I experienced a more cohesive, coherent - and fun - explosion of creativity. Unprecedented and unsurpassed in concept and delivery, I'm forever a rabbit in the dazzling glare of this album's headlights." andygeorge: "I remember when I played SOS for the first time thinking WTF!! is this? I think it was the shock of hearing Bill explode out of the speakers, guns blazing and taking no prisoners! Then it clicked. I played it continuously, hooked by the frantic energy of the opening track until the last tracks killer ending...and yes, I can remember my mum, god bless her soul, shouting out that classic line "turn that bloody music down!"..." paul.smith: "I have had sex to "Don't Touch Me, I'm Electric", but that's another story - resulting in an ambulance being called and several paramedics attempting to restart my heart..." Southern Dreamer: "I cycled home from town, put the LP on my ancient record player and pretty much sat there for the whole length of the album with my jaw dropping on the bedroom carpet as I listed to the incredible sound (on sound) coming out of the small battery powered speaker. "One after another the songs burst out from the vinyl grooves; each track sending my pulse racing, as well as to my amazement, when each track finished I just couldn't imagine that the next one would match it, but they did - and some! When the final chords of Revolt into Style crashed out and the pick-up arm lifted the stylus off the LP; my one & only thought - I HAVE GOT TO LISTEN TO THAT RECORD AGAIN, NOW!! And listen to it again I did; and again, and again and… "Be-Bop Deluxe were brilliant, but here was an entirely different listening experience; this was music for the now - hip hop and happening! I listened to the album so many times over the course of the following months and not once did it fail to reach the parts that most other albums of that period could only dream of getting anywhere near. "However when all is said and done SOS will always stand up to any scrutiny that could be applied towards the recordings from that period and it will forever remain one of THE stand-out albums of the post punk era. It is with us now for all to marvel at and will be there for generations of listeners to come." Paul Gilby - Sound on Sound: "Back in Feb 1979 I was in my final year at art college. The Red Noise album was playing on my cassette machine time after time and driving many of the girls in the art studio mad. But, the guys all loved it and we'd put up with listening to plenty of 'their music'. The Red Noise concert at Newcastle City Hall was stunning and I have a clear memory of how it made me feel even today. My brother Ian had a band at the time, so "Revolt Into Style" and "Furniture Music" were rehearsed and added to the playlist within weeks of the album coming out. Fast-forward many years, Ian and I were working in publishing and itching to start our own music magazine. Whilst writing the business plan in March 1985 and getting the editorial ideas together, we would often play the Sound-On-Sound album. Then when we were making a list of possible magazine names such as Studio World or Recording Monthly, we added Sound-On-Sound. This was not only the album we were listening to but also the name is actually taken from the sound recording process pioneered by Les Paul and was very applicable to our readership. So, we thought we'd drop the dashes and named the mag Sound On Sound and launched in Oct 1985. Over the years we would often interview Bill but it wasn't until 2004 that we got involved to help him out with his web site and then manage the CD pressing and mail order. Back in 1979 I would never have believed this would ever have happened. Life takes some interesting turns! Regards all, Paul" wonder toy: "We must all stand back in awe and honor the tremendous courage and sheer BALLS it must have taken in the name of art and following one's creative spirit at all costs. Cheers to Bill Nelson. This album is a monument to why that struggle to get your vision across as an artist is so important." Albums Menu Future Past

William's Study Diary Of A Hyperdreamer 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2013

Optimism album - September 1988 Orchestra Arcana Albums Menu Future Past Currently unavailable TRACKS: 01) Exactly The Way You Want It 02) Why Be Lonely 03) Everyday Is A Better Day 04) The Receiver And The Fountain Pen 05) Welcome Home, Mr. Kane 06) This Is True 07) Greeting A New Day 08) The Breath In My Father's Saxophone 09) Our Lady Of Apparitions 10) The Whole City Between Us 11) Deva Dance 12) Always Looking Forward To Tomorrow 13) World Thru' Fast Car Window 14) Profiles, Hearts, Stars 15) Daughter Of Dream Come True 16) Alchemia extra tracks: 17) Um, Ah Good Evening 18) Kut Up In Cartoonsville 19) Short Wave ALBUM NOTES: Orchestra Arcana is a pseudonym Bill Nelson initially devised to overcome contractual issues with CBS/Portrait, that, by the time of this second release, no longer applied. So although Optimism was credited to Orchestra Arcana in the UK, it was credited to Bill Nelson's Orchestra Arcana in the US. Optimism was available on vinyl, cassette and, for the first time in Nelson's career, simultaneously released on the UK CD edition contained 3 bonus tracks that were not replicated on the US release on Enigma the following year. US vinyl copies (on Enigma) came with a sticker that read "Vocals Discovered and Music Constructed by the Brain and Fingers Behind Be-Bop Deluxe". PAST RELEASES: Both the Iconography and Optimism albums were collected together with all their extra tracks and released on CD as The Hermetic Jukebox in 2003 (out of print). CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Currently out of print and a potential future Bandcamp digital download reissue. BILL'S THOUGHTS: "Whilst these recordings are "lo-fi" in nature, I have always been fond of them. These recordings serve as a reminder that expensive technology isn't always the key to creativity." _____ "It takes quite a while to get [the voice samples] to sit within the metre of the music. That's why they are sometimes 'slowed down' so that they fit the feel of the song's tempo. Its not simply a matter of just sampling them and then spraying them randomly all over the track. A lot of time is spent choosing their exact placement and fine-tuning their 'groove.' There are lots of carefully considered details in these instrumental pieces, not just the voice samples, but all the little background ornamentations, the subtle textures of individual sounds, the echoes, reverbs, modulations, eq, filtering, etc, etc...every component has its own reason for existing, its own aesthetic requirement. I spend a lot of time thinking about these tiny sub-structures. My goal is to produce worlds within worlds, spheres of sound and different but complimentary ideas spinning inside each other, gyroscopic fields of sound and meaning. The surface appears as one complete shiny thing, but the hidden interior is a galaxy of dark stars whirling around each other, waiting for the listener's telescope." FAN THOUGHTS: wadcorp: "Really like the samples used in the Iconography & Optimism discs. They are also some of my most-played Bill Nelson tracks." stormboy: "I also think Bill was the best sampler of the 80s. Orchestra Arcana, Map of Dreams , etc. all had fantastically, magically manipulated samples played as though another instrument, whilst the rest of the world nicked beats and bass-lines." paul.smith: "Um Ah Good Evening" (love it - always have) always tests friends of mine who claim to have broad musical tastes, resulting in comments such as 'what the fuck is this!?'...heh,heh,heh." Numbat: "The Receiver and the Fountain Pen": "I love that track. I always wonder where Bill found that voice sample. My guess is it's from some old instructional tape for aspiring secretaries. And yet it's so mysterious and alluring." Peter: "I hadn't listened to Optimism in a long time, and gave it a spin the other day, and quite enjoyed it. I was struck by how fresh so much of it sounds to me even now. One can hear foreshadowing of the Demonstration of Affections period, and even After the Satellite Sings , in some places. This album combines ambient with songs you can dance to (and I did dance to them, as several tracks from the album were featured on party tapes I made "back in the day"), loads of Bill's trademark voice samples, interesting rhythms and a lot of very nice compositions." Dar: " Optimism has that other mellow gem from the same era, "The Receiver and the Fountain Pen". I've got my early dreamy Nelson mix minidisc on now...you're all getting fuzzy...this stuff is so good it makes me feel all liquified and colorized inside...goodbye..." Albums Menu Future Past

All That I Remember Bill Nelson album - 25 July 2016 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) All That I Remember 02) The View From Lantern Hill 03) Memory Time No. 1: A Wakefield Adventure 04) The Wonderful Wurlitzer Of Blackpool Tower 05) Spacefleet (The Golden Days Of Dan Dare) 06) Memory Time No. 2: The Rock N' Roll Years 07) Christmastide 08) Strolling With My Father 09) Scale Model (Assembly Required) 10) Reighton Sands 11) Memory Time No. 3: Eagle, Beezer, Topper, Beano 12) When Boys Dream Of Guitars 13) The Ilfracombe Steamer 14) Memory Time No. 4: A Dansette Fantasy 15) Heading For Home In A Hillman Minx 16) As If It Was A Moment Ago ALBUM NOTES: All That I Remember is an instrumental album issued on the Sonoluxe label in a limited edition of 500 copies. The album was the third to appear in Nelson's Super Listener Series, and was presented in a digi-pack sleeve. The album was first announced on the Dreamsville forum on 17 July 2015, approximately 1 year ahead of release. At that stage Nelson had completed three tracks and had established the basic concept behind the work, formed from "nostalgic memories of younger days." One of the named tracks, "Old Boats" appears to have not made the final cut of the album, or perhaps it went through a change of title. In its early stages it was planned to include a couple of vocal pieces, but this idea never materialised, and Nelson stuck purely to instrumentals to convey his memories. Work on All That I Remember continued at pace, with the track listing confirmed on 11 August 2015, and tentative plans to issue the album around Christmas 2015. However, by October 2015 Nelson re-scheduled his plans for the album to be issued in February 2016 with the intention of staging a launch party for the album's release. Bill ended up choosing a different release for the launch party, so All That I Remember was released on 25 July 2016, becoming the first to be sold through a re-vamped SOS web shop. By 3 August 2016 it was announced that the album had completely sold out. Due to its autobiographical nature, Nelson decided to produce a 22 page set of listening notes, wonderfully illustrated and lovingly scripted, which help paint the historical back drop to the compositions. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . BILL'S THOUGHTS: "All That I Remember is a very personal and autobiographical album. "It's entirely instrumental...a musical painting (or sonic movie) of an early period of my life. "But that's not to say that the music is always literally illustrative of the past. It has a post-modernist quality that often allows things to develop on their own, for purely musical reasons, rather than slavishly holding onto an entirely conceptual, 'retro' agenda. It features deliberately artificial, neo-classical stylings alongside, (and intensely fused with), electric guitar, plus a few subtle electro-techno touches. "There are moments that might make you think of The Years or The Alchemical Adventures of Sailor Bill , but they're really only hints and tints and far from the big picture, (which stretches wider than this). "It's a complex album, a bit of a puzzle, yet quite easy and explicit in other ways. As always, I'm playing ironic games with the listener's expectations, throwing diverse genres together, making odd juxtapositions. Is it music that requires intelligent thought to appreciate fully? I have no idea but, it's not an album for those who might be looking for an instant rock music fix. And yet, I have to admit it has some elements of that in it too. "It's not just a very personal album, it's indicative of the complexity of my own multi-faceted musical inspirations." _____ "The album contains a certain amount of nostalgic irony with a deliberate musical 'kitschness' to it. It's meant as a loving tribute to some older musical forms and has no existence in anything but whimsy and dreamy reminiscences. I intended for it to sound slightly 'antique' and just a little bit kitsch. It's post-modernism coupled with a kind of cute take on surrealism. You have to see the 'wink' in it to fully grasp where it's coming from." _____ "The listening notes help to fill in the background to each track, emphasising the autobiographical nature of the album and illustrating it with additional images, different from the CD package ones. All this will hopefully add to your enjoyment of what I consider to be a major statement album." _____ Bill's Listening Notes for the album: 'All That I Remember' Listening Notes FAN THOUGHTS: Palladium : "I listened to All That I Remember this morning in a relaxed, receptive mood - the music really took hold, as it were. I suspect it'll be rated over time as one of Bill's richest and sweetest recordings. I get a lot of pleasure from it - there seems to be a superabundance of an effortless poetic something-or-other saturating every track. I don't know what it is, but, boy, it puts me in a harmonious & heartfelt place." "I recommend that you read the detailed listening notes, track by track, as you listen to this album for the first time. I'm glad I did - a remarkably rich, evocative, cinematic experience. (I don't usually read while listening to music, as I find one distracts from the other - but this is an exception, probably helped by the fact that it's instrumental and deeply atmospheric)... It's an absolutely amazing, beautiful album, I should add." "Currently hugely enjoying this album. It has a lot of different moods and textures, but it works so well as a coherent, organic whole (as it were) - incredibly evocative, with some staggeringly lovely guitar. Current favourite tracks: "The Wonderful Wurlitzer of Blackpool Tower", "Christmastide", and "Reighton Sands"." james warner: "Another personal trip into the past in musical form from Bill, conjuring a strong sense of nostalgia with no words. Guitar and keyboards take turns at lead over the course of this album with number of tracks featuring the synthetic orchestra sound of The Alchemical Adventures Of Sailor Bill album." BigManRestless: "I'm mainly a fan of vocal-based songs, but I think this album, on first listen, may be my 2nd favourite instrumental album from Bill, just behind Practically Wired . A few more plays and it might overtake it. Very, very impressed!" Peter: "All That I Remember arrived over the weekend, and tonight I am sitting down for my first listen...I am half a dozen songs in and am truly loving what I am hearing. (I couldn't even wait until I had heard the whole album to say something about it!) Fantastic stuff, Bill! From the first warm, embracing notes of the title track, I have been entranced. Thank you for this one!" "I love it to pieces. It is just full of those moments when I am stopped dead in my tracks and just think, "Oh, wow...that's BEAUTIFUL". Bill's ability to do just the right thing at just the right moment never ceases to amaze me. Nicely done, Mr. Nelson." TheMikeN: "Nostalgia is an odd ingredient in brand new music, particularly when it comes alongside Bill's oft-expressed intention to look to the future in all his work. The dichotomy is explained by the fact that the music moves forward here and only the visuals (the pictures in Bill's head) were nostalgic. This is not a musical tribute to music of the past – it's a soundtrack to the colourful imagery Bill associates with his childhood and adolescence. The pictures in his head are fresh, so the music is fresh. What's not clear is whether the memories are poignant or joyful. Mr N assures us that there is tongue in cheek for much of what is here, but some of the melodies are so delicate that even I can feel the loss of those innocent times. None of us can have simple feelings about happy times that are lost in so many ways because the majority of the important players are no longer with us. Bill's 'golden memories' are thoughtful and subtle but they still inspire a chuckle. Listen to this alongside everything from Model Village , Chance Encounters and even "Adventures in a Yorkshire Landscape". For less detailed, more abstract musical imagery, And We Fell Into A Dream is a great place to go as well." Alan: "Today, I had time to sit down, read the listening notes, prior to listening to each track, and all I can say is, "Thank you, Bill Nelson." I appreciate you're letting us see a glimpse of your life through music. Many artists are reluctant to let their fans have a view of who they are, but it's one of the things that makes you a genuine person, as well as a true star. I've always liked the photograph of you and Ian, with the steamboat in the background. That photograph, as well as others, shows that you were a very good brother. As an aside, I'm glad that All That I Remember was a full album. I was afraid from the title that it may be an EP... Seriously though, keep doing exactly what you're doing. (Not that you need my permission). Oh, and on the final track, I heard some of the same type of guitar that originally drew me into your music all those years ago." wadcorp: "It's a sonic sea, deep & expansive. There are wide open vistas of English countryside, early morning walks by the seaside, and journeys down roads not traveled since one's youth. You're walking through a small town in "The Wonderful Wurlitzer of Blackpool Tower", past a grand old merry-go-round. You're not in the present any more, but flashing back to the experience as it was when you were young. "Spacefleet (The Golden Days of Dan Dare)" whisks you into a future, as imagined in the 1950s. Sweeping skyward with excitement & optimism. Undercurrents of jazz flood into the coolness of "Strolling With My Father." Imagine a smoky, dark nightclub, populated with the coolest of the cool. Seagulls call as you stroll by the edge of the water in "Reighton Sands." The music goes beyond setting the mood, and sets the place. You are there. All the tunes are very evocative of place, as well as of time. This is a journey of remembrance. Fans who enjoy The Alchemical Adventures of Sailor Bill will find this one right up their alley. A major entry into the Bill Nelson canon." major snagg: "I'm listening to this fabulous CD as I type this. What a stunning album." Returningman: "A highly personal album rather like an invitation to a private viewing of Bill's thoughts and distant memories. "Reighton Sands" for me is the absolute highlight of the album. Gentle strummed chords and ocean sounds provide the background texture to another guitar masterpiece. Ethereal and perfect, a sound that spirits you away to a place far far away. Bill mentions the possibility of "an epic box set, a life captured in sound" at the end of the notes, on the strength of Vol 1, I hope this project achieves fruition." Albums Menu Future Past

Live Show Archive We would like to build a comprehensive archive gallery of Bill's shows. If you have any great pictures or memories that you would like to share... Please contact us HERE Competition Winner's Meet & Greet - 1983 Nelsonica 02 Nelsonica 03 Be Bop & Beyond Tour - 2004 Nelsonica 07 Plectronica - 2018 Old Haunts Launch Party - 2019

Lovesnake album - 1991 Jean Park Production/Contribution Menu Future Past BILL: Producer of two songs: "Your Body in Soap" and "Feel Like A Wheel". Production/Contribution Menu Future Past

Electrical Language Be Bop Deluxe single - 5 May 1978 Singles Menu Future Past TRACKS: A) Electrical Language B) Surreal Estate ORIGINALLY: A) Edited version of the Drastic Plastic album cut. B) Lifted unchanged from the same album. NOTES: Electrical Language was the final Be Bop Deluxe single issued during the band's existence. The single was issued in a picture sleeve with Nelson sporting his Cocteau 'signature' sweater. Promo copies exist with the words "Demo Record, Not For Sale", and a large 'A' printed on the label. PAST RELEASES: Both tracks would be included on the Singles As and Bs compilation (1981) and "Electrical Language" would find its way onto the Bill Nelson's Be Bop Deluxe 7" EP included in the Permanent Flame box set (1982), and on the re-promoted stand-alone 12" EP on Cocteau in September 1983, with an extra track, "Jean Cocteau". CURRENT AVAILABILITY: The single is long deleted, but both tracks can be found on the Cherry Red/Esoteric Recordings reissue of Dr astic Plastic (2021 ) - both in physical form and as a digital download. Singles Menu Future Past

The Dreamer's Companion Volume Two retrospective collection - 13 January 2014 Collections Menu Future Past Bill Nelson Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) Superadventure (Sound On Sound) (Arcadian Salon) 02) Once More Around The Moon (Monitor Mix) (Dream Transmission Pavilion) 03) Never A Dull Day (For Les Paul) (Here Comes Mr Mercury) 04) Everything Changes With The Weather (Fantasmatron) 05) Neil Young (Captain Future's Psychotronic Circus) 06) Pilgrim (Gleaming Without Lights) 07) Mystery Vortex (Oberon Touchstone) (Clocks And Dials) 08) The Darcy Bussell Rubberwear Fantasia (Theatre Of Falling Leaves) 09) Clocks Wind Slow (Clocks And Dials) 10) Young Dreams Whirled Away (Silvertone Fountains) 11) Merry Are The Windblown Crows (Model Village) 12) Steam Radio Blues (Return To Jazz Of Lights) 13) The Sky, The Sea, The Moon And Me (Alchemical Adventures Of Sailor Bill) 14) Wonder Of The Moment (Luxury Lodge) ALBUM NOTES: The Dreamer's Companion is a three volume series of compilation albums designed to introduce both new and lapsed fans to Nelson's recordings from the 21st Century. These are significant in that they represent the point where Nelson embraced the notion of downloading as a way of generating additional interest in his music. Prior to their announcement in August 2013, there had been frequent mention by fans of the advantages that Nelson would see from going down the download route, but the artist consistently resisted doing so on the basis that he remained unconvinced that it would yield much in the way of sales. What seemed to change his opinion, or at least convince him to give it a go, was a Be Bop Deluxe Facebook page which clearly indicated that there are a significant number of fans who knew little of Nelson's work over the previous 30 years. Nelson therefore set about compiling three volumes in The Dreamer's Companion series that provided a detailed overview of his output since 2003. Even for fans who had rediscovered Nelson's music at some point in the period from 2003 to 2013, these offer some out of print material. And for the lapsed fans that knew nothing at all from this period, they offer them a chance to find out precisely what they have been missing. For those who aren't willing or able to spend £30 on a full set, each volume of The Dreamer's Companion is available at £10 each. The 42 tracks featured are taken from a total of 28 different albums, and provide a healthy mixture of vocal and instrumental pieces covering a range of styles and moods. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . BILL'S THOUGHTS: "There's nothing difficult or tricky about any of my music, it's all very easy to listen to. I certainly don't aim at purely esoteric targets, I just make pop music with a twist. But, if you're feeling a bit nervous about buying some albums, it doesn't get less esoteric than Fancy Planets , Joy Through Amplification , and Songs of the Blossom Tree Optimists . Easy listening all! Or, to get a great overview of my 21st Century recordings, try downloading the digital three volume compilation set, The Dreamers Companion from Bandcamp. It acts as a really nice taster or 'grazing' menu. A bit of everything on there." Collections Menu Future Past

Hip Pocket Jukebox Free download mini-album Click image for cover Artwork Hip Pocket Jukebox: A Mini-Album Of Previously Unreleased Bill Nelson Apocrypha From The Private PCM F1 Archives. These tracks were recorded in the late 1980s and mixed down to a Sony PCM F1 stereo recorder. They are unmastered tracks in their raw state. The tracks were originally created as demos or 'sketches', the idea being that they would be, one day, developed further and eventually re-recorded, possibly with a band. This, unfortunately didn't happen so the demos have remained unheard until now. The Hip Pocket Jukebox CDr was a limited edition hand-made CDr, personally numbered and signed by Bill. It was given to all fans attending the University of Leeds "The Art School Ascended On Vapours Of Roses" event, Oct 2011. Less than 250 discs were created and today they are treasured artifacts. The unmastered tracks were burnt onto the CDr. Now you can download them here for free! Written, performed, recorded and produced by Bill Nelson. All rights Bill Nelson 2011.

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2013 William's Study (Diary Of A Hyperdreamer) October 2008 Jan Feb Aug Sep Wednesday 22nd October 2008 -- 9:00 pm Too much news and not enough time to write it up in any great detail. Nelsonica 08 is almost here and I'm way behind with my preparations, as is generally the case at this time of year...However on THIS particular occasion, I'm REALLY floundering, particularly in terms of the work I still need to complete for my part in the band's live performance. The physical and mental stress has felt much more acute than usual, so much so that I've actually been a hair's breadth away from cancelling that part of the event altogether. The extra pressure has been compounded by so many other problems...difficult to convey to anyone not actually sitting over my shoulder observing the day to day complexities and frustrations. Anyway, more of that later but, first, a resume of matters touched upon in my previous diary entry. And I'll try to keep this as brief as possible: Emiko came back from Tokyo on the 26th of September, (not the 25th as I'd erroneously noted in my previous entry). I was so pleased to have her home again...the two and a half weeks she was away were difficult for both of us, sometimes depressing. Emi's mother has undergone surgery to remove the malignant tumour from her intestine. It was a worrying time for the family. Nevertheless she seems to have come through that process remarkably well, especially for a woman in her 80's. She remained in hospital a few weeks after the operation, slowly recuperating, but was finally allowed home last weekend. We're hoping that she will continue to make progress and enjoy a complete recovery, 'though the matter is still, naturally, of some concern to Emiko and I. Whilst Emi was away, I tried to help the time pass more quickly by spending even longer hours in my studio than usual. I began work on a special audio-visual project for this year's Nelsonica convention. It combines music, spoken-word samples, abstract sound and video cut-ups. It is titled 'The Departure Of The 20th Century In A Hail Of Memory.' The piece took three weeks to complete, (due to my slow computer and long out-of-date software), but I think it will work well as an opening item for the event. The idea is to present the piece as soon as convention attendees have taken their seats, at the very start of the day. The images and soundtrack will create an atmosphere complimentary to the theme/title of Nelsonica 08, (ie: 'The Experimental Time Traveller's Ball'). The piece lasts for a fraction over 16 minutes and can be interpreted as a personal time-travel trip through various cultural moments gathered from of my own era, or as fragmented, cascading images of memory, a mind unspooling in a dream-encrusted, poetic twilight. Besides the above work, I spent a fair amount of time helping my mother with her ongoing struggle to secure an appropriate settlement from her late husband's estate. This has involved the further preparation of legal documents and various meetings with solicitors. My own part in all this has been to give time and support wherever and whenever she has needed it. Sadly, the situation remains unresolved and things have now progressed to the litigation stage. This is a highly unpleasant process for my mother but one which she has been forced into by others. I continue to be dismayed by the 'cold shoulder' she has been given and the whole sorry business is causing all of us who care for my mother a great deal of distress. In a decent world, it should be absolutely unneccesary for her to go to these absurd lengths. Although the next few weeks should see the arrival of the next phase in the proceedings, there still may be a long way to go before the matter is settled. My mind has been constantly divided by conflicting duties, forces pulling this way and that: My mother's inheritance problems, her psychological and emotional struggles as a result of her bereavement, her practical day to day re-adjustment to life as a widow, etc. Her increased dependency on me as an only son. Also, Emiko's concerns about her mother's health and general situation around that, Very worrying for Emi, especially being so far away across the world from her mum. Added to this is Emiko's job redundancy and the difficulties she's faced as a result, especially trying to find employment in the current economic climate. The psychological impact this has inflicted upon her, the loss of self-confidence these kind of situations bring, all conspire to darken the mood. Plus, she's had to endure my self-inflicted, punishing creative workload and the negative effect it seems to be having on my own health, both physical and mental. Self-inflicted, maybe...but unavoidable under the circumstances. Then there's the list of various things required for Nelsonica, a list which seems to become more and more demanding each year. Of course, I'm not, as the saying goes, getting any younger. It definitely feels as if my energy levels are depleting as time goes on. (Or maybe it just seems this way because I take on too much. Perhaps I don't know where to draw the line.) Anyway, I won't continue to list any more difficulties, other than to say that they have sometimes become so overwhelming that there have been moments of utter despair when I've wondered where all of this might be leading. Well, that's life. It's one thing to deal with it in theory, another in reality. On a more positive note, let me try to list what I've actually achieved , in creative and positive terms, during the last 12 months or so: 1: An interconnected series of three instrumental albums, each filled to the brim with new examples of my guitar music. ('Silvertone Fountains,' Illuminated At Dusk,' and 'Mazda Kaleidoscope'.) 2: A brand new vocal album, ('Golden Melodies Of Tomorrow'), that weaves together various colourful threads and styles into something that, I hope, comes across as a unique and personal musical statement. 3: An exceptionally tightly packed Nelsonica limited edition album, ('Clocks And Dials'), that gathers together 38 diverse tracks across two CD's, all presented beautifully in digi-pak format. 4: A musical soundtrack for a documentary film titled 'American Stamps.' (And for which I've managed to secure a 'world premiere screening' at this year's Nelsonica.) 5: Another feature packed Nelsonica convention. 6: A solo set for Nelsonica that I've assembled and re-assembled at least three times before arriving at a concept I've titled 'Clouds, Dreams And Rain: The Melancholy Romance Of Guitars.' 7: The assembly of a band to perform as a separate item at Nelsonica. Band title? 'The Gentlemen Rocketeers.' Line up:- Bass: Dave Sturt. Flute, Sax: Theo Travis. Drums: Dave Cook. Second Guitar: Dave Standeven. Keyboards: Steve Cook. Keyboards: Jon Wallinger. Man up front with a guitar but with not a clue what's actually going on: Yours truly. 8: A continued, regular interface with my audience via this website diary and the Dreamsville on-line forum. Easy to underestimate how much time goes into this activity. More than people realise, I suspect. 9: The creation of a song to donate to 'Sara's Hope Foundation' as an exclusive download. Following in the footsteps of last year's 'Six Strings For Sara' instrumental track, this time it's a vocal piece, 'A Million Whistling Milkmen.' 10: A design for a limited edition Nelsonica watch. 11: I've finally managed to make some drawings and paintings for this year's Nelsonica auction...but not nearly as many as previous years. (The time just wasn't available.) However, the ones I HAVE made are interesting and this year's 'workbox' cover is especially nice, I think, being executed in paint, rather than coloured pencils. I still need to add something further to its contents though. Must remember to do this. And there are more achievements but I don't have time to list them all...lots done but more still to do... The main worry for me at this moment in time is that I haven't found an opportunity to start work on learning the material designated for the band set. Or, for that matter, to re-familiarise myself with the solo set music. Here's the track list, running order for my solo set at Nelsonica:- 1: 'BLUE AMORINI.' 2: 'BEYOND THESE CLOUDS THE SWEETEST DREAM.' 3: 'IF I WERE THE PILOT OF YOUR PERFECT CLOUD.' 4: 'GOLDEN DREAM OF CIRCUS HORSES.' 5: 'THE RAINDROP COLLECTOR.' 6: 'NIGHT SONG OF THE LAST TRAM.' 7: 'THE GIRL ON THE FAIRGROUND WALTZER.' 8: 'ONLY A DREAM BUT NEVERTHELESS.' 9: 'BEATNIKS FROM OUTER SPACE (I was a junior spaceman.)' 10: 'A DREAM FOR IAN.' 11: 'FOR STUART.' This doesn't look like an hour 15 mins worth of music but some of those pieces are quite long. And demanding. I had prepared three new instrumental tracks for the set too but there wasn't enough room for them. I didn't want to change the flow of the above set list to accomodate them, just for the sake of them being new. So maybe another day. But here's the bottom line: I know NOTHING and rehearsals start next Monday for 3 days. Day 1 is me on my own, trying to figure out my complex pedal board/processor rig, (which I only ever use live, never at home due to lack of space). And then I must try to run through my one hour 15 minute solo set and try to become confident enough to play it in front of an audience. The following two days are devoted exclusively to the band, to see if we can bolt together enough tunes to make up a performance. (Two days! Jeez!) Untested territory this as we have a new line-up. And this is where I REALLY haven't a clue. As mentioned above, I'm not prepared in the least for any of this. Just totally out of the loop. And the reason? Well, had I only the band thing to worry about, perhaps it would be o.k. But just take a look back over all those other things I've been dealing with and you'll see my problem. The short answer is: Too many things going on at once. Tomorrow I have to take three guitars for set-ups/repairs, on Friday I have to travel to Fairview near Hull to master my backing tracks. On Saturday I have to disconnect various items from my studio, pack all the equipment I need for Nelsonica and drag it downstairs. (There's a LOT of it!) On Sunday the equipment is being collected from here and will be delivered to the rehearsal room in Leeds on Monday morning. From then on, it's rehearsals for three days as itemised above. Then a clothes dry-cleaning/preparation day, (and, I hope, a haircut), followed by last minute bits and pieces. How I'll fit my personal learning time into any of this is a mystery. I just hope the band will forgive me when I stand there scratching my head and wondering what the next chord is. I've never been so ill-prepared and I absolutely hate it. It's not my style. I hope the Nelsonica audience will forgive me too, when I appear a shaking, nervous wreck on stage on the day itself. This diary entry, of course, helps matters not a bit. It's taken up far too much time already, even though it contains a third of the information I intended it to carry. So, I'm going to close here and see what I can achieve in the time available to me before I go to bed. So... the next entry will be AFTER Nelsonica, (provided my sanity is still intact!) Wish me luck and if you're going to the convention, please be gentle with me! ***** Images with this diary are:- 1: Bill and Emi circa 1983/4. 2: Tinkerbell The Cat in Bill 'n' Emi's garden. 3: A photo of Bill's Nelsonica 08 artworks 4: A closer look at the Nelsonica 08 artworks. Top of page

Take Me to the Girl single - 1985 The Associates Production/Contribution Menu Future Past BILL: Guitar on the A-side. BILL'S THOUGHTS: "I remember sitting in the recording studio with Billy and he sang the vocal lines to me, (which hadn't been recorded yet,) without a microphone, over the backing tracks so that I could get a feel for where the guitar might lay. We got on really well and he was enthusiastic and charming and, of course, an absolutely wonderful singer." NOTES: An essay by Mike Nelson (no relation): 1982 – 83 had seen a run of hit singles for The Associates. 'Sulk' had been judged Album of the Year in the music press' judgements of 1982 and … the band had promptly self-destructed as its first major US tour approached. Though it was still fairly straightforward for remarkable frontman Billy MacKenzie to acquire a major label recording contract with which to continue his musical career, the challenge was that of creating an album to follow the complex and unique 'Sulk'. By the beginning of 1985, The Associates 'brand' was in big trouble. The 'Perhaps' album had been recorded in full at least twice, had overrun all cost limits and had gone on to provide disappointing sales. The smooth, funky pop of "Those First Impressions" and "Waiting For The Loveboat" simply didn’t work for the pop-buying public, but, as ever for a commercial artist, that didn't mean that main Associate Billy MacKenzie knew what 'Perhaps' should instead have been. If you don't know what's wrong, what do you do to put it right? Meanwhile, whenever there were no financial and record label pressures, MacKenzie always preferred to be bold and experimental. Given a now-shaky relationship with the Warners label, where could this fit in to what might happen next? Billy was still performing live and including adventurous unreleased songs such as "This Flame" and "Obsession Magnificent" in his live sets. He had certainly not simply 'sold out' for commercial success. In June '85, MacKenzie recorded four demos in Edinburgh. Versions of two of these songs would eventually become tracks on 1990's 'Wild and Lonely', the first album he would release under his own name. Another song, "You Never Thought (That You'd Be The One)" seems to have vanished without trace. The fourth was "Take Me To The Girl", and this song, "an upbeat dance track with a loungey Euro-flavoured melody" (as MacKenzie's biographer Tom Doyle describes it) was selected as a possible single, probably to stand alone to remind the British public that The Associates were still out there. In London, in July or August, the single was recorded at Morgan Studios. Sitting at the recording desk for the sessions was Peter Robinson – known to UK chartwatchers as producer of the immensely successful but MOR-as-can be 'Breakfast In America' by Supertramp, and more recently producer of Rush's more challenging 'Grace Under Pressure'. The guitarist for "Take Me To The Girl" was none other than Bill Nelson, personally asked to take part by MacKenzie. Bill recounts: "It's certainly me on the funky, guitar rhythm parts and any e-bow stuff. I just remember Billy singing me the vocal over the backing tracks of some songs. His voice was really strong. " The only definite products of the sessions were four different versions of "Take Me To The Girl": a 7" single version, and extended 12" version, an instrumental and a slowed and stripped-down piano-led alternative entitled "The Girl That Took Me". Bill is to be heard most clearly on the 12" version (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThT0sLihs00 ) and the instrumental (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=te7OwbrXH9s ). The production on both of these and the 7" version now seems so obviously too smooth and syrupy, and there are indications that within weeks, MacKenzie felt uncomfortable about both it and its wood-nymphs-in-the-castle-ruins video. Notably, the only touch of sparky energy and humour audible and visible across the entire single release was a cameo appearance by one of Billy's whippets in the video. But the song is melodic, catchy and lushly romantic. What a pity it missed any chart success whatsoever. Bill Nelson said recently: “In my opinion, the production really dates the recordings in a big way, even more than my own recordings at that time. Billy's voice should have had far less reverb, been more solidly 'up-front' to show its strengths. But, it was the '80s, the era of Yuppies and power-lunches.” Of interest to Bill Nelson aficionados is the question of what else was recorded in those sessions. The only other B-side included across the 7" and 12" singles is "Perhaps Perhaps", an alternative take (produced by Heaven 17' s Martyn Ware) from the sessions for the 'Perhaps' album, but only weeks later MacKenzie was recording a Radio 1 session including "Take Me To The Girl", "Give", "Obsession Magnificent", and his first broadcast attempt at Blondie's "Heart of Glass". A Bill Nelson newsletter from Autumn '85 says that Bill "played on a couple of tracks from the new Associates album and indeed plays a short guitar part on the new single", and Bill more recently stated that he "played on a couple of tracks, maybe more". And Bill remembers being sung to by Billy, using backing tracks for "some songs so that [Bill] could get a handle on how they would end up". The question really is what other songs were these and where are the recordings to be found? It is likely that one, two or three more Associates songs (almost certainly unreleased ones) include the guitar skills and artistry of Mr Nelson. Any clues, dear readers? After a few Autumn gigs, Billy MacKenzie travelled to Europe for much of 1986 and half of 1987. Out of these adventures came collaborations with some bold, creative musicians from Switzerland, Germany and Austria, and his working relationship with Yello was particularly productive. His next album, however, 'The Glamour Chase', was a whole new kind of disaster – completed for release in 1989 but shelved until 2002. The next proper release was instead the 'solo' album, 'Wild And Lonely' in 1990. Tracking what happened to the Bill Nelson 1985 collaboration is fairly difficult, but Bill had a sad postscript to add to the story: "Later, in the '90s, and not long before Billy sadly committed suicide, he called me up wanting to collaborate with me on songwriting and playing. He had no studio budget but, at that time, I had no proper home studio set-up either, (living in a rented apartment after my divorce,) so had to explain that it was extremely difficult for me to provide him with the right recording facilities. We left it at that, but not so long after, he was gone. A great talent who should have been served, and advised, better." Billy Mackenzie died on January 22nd, 1997. Production/Contribution Menu Future Past

Theatre of Falling Leaves Bill Nelson album - 19 September 2009 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) Thoughts Travel (For Miles) 02) You Here Now In William's World 03) The Darcey Bussell Rubberwear Fantasia 04) Tiny Mice Are Dancing In The Cottage Of Her Dreams 05) Planet Of Sleeping Buddhas 06) Pagoda Dreamhouse 07) Tumbletown 08) Dance, Mighty Robot, Dance! 09) Superserene 10) Theatre Of Falling Leaves 11) Sparkle And Spin 12) Space Ace Gets His Girl 13) Django Dreams Of Twinkleland 14) From Here To Far Orion ALBUM NOTES: Theatre of Falling Leaves is an instrumental album issued on the Sonoluxe label in a single print run of 1000 copies. Recording of the album commenced in January 2009, and was assembled alongside material that would form two other contrasting albums, Fancy Planets and Here Comes Mr Mercury . Initially the project was given the working title of Haiku Sound Box , and was conceived as a minimalist, ambient keyboard-based album, while the projects competing alongside it for material were contrastingly stylised . However, the direction the keyboard based material took resulted in the Haiku Sound Box title being set aside for another potential future work. Nelson re-thought his plans for the keyboard-based material, initially re-naming it Sparkle and Spin in the process. A couple of months into the project Nelson very nearly changed his mind and considered mixing the Sparkle and Spin material with other material then allocated to an album with working title Sway and Swoon (eventually released as Fancy Planets ). Ultimately though, he reverted back to his original intentions, naming the album of keyboard-based material Theatre of Falling Leaves . The album title and track listing were confirmed on 15 May 2009, and the album was made available to purchase on pre-release at Nelsonica '09 before going on general sale through SOS three days later. Theatre Of Falling Leaves sold out in July 2020. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . IF YOU LIKED THIS ALBUM, YOU'LL PROBABLY ENJOY: Mazda Kaleidoscope , Non-Stop Mystery Action , Signals From Realms of Light , And We Fell Into A Dream , Gleaming Without Lights , Dream Transmission Pavilion , Illuminated at Dusk , Albion Dream Vortex BILL'S THOUGHTS: "A keyboard-based instrumental album with just a hint of lap-steel guitar on a couple of tracks. The predominant tonality centres on synths and treated piano. The pieces recorded so far shift through various changes within their individual length but there's plenty of melodic content and beats that drift in and out of the frame. There's even a cute and ironic disco track with a retro feel to it." _____ "Style/sound-wise, it's in a similar ball-park to the recent guitar or vocal albums but without the vocals or guitar (although there is a little ambient lap-steel guitar on some pieces). I have used some of the Motif's retro-sounding mono-synth patches though. Not used these much on previous recordings as they sound so 80's and sometimes cheesy, but I thought the more lush, rich textures of this album might stand a touch of Cheddar here and there to add a little nostalgic contrast. "This isn't meant to be a 'radical departure' album or even my next 'major' statement, it's simply a pleasant diversion designed as an easy listening collection of keyboard instrumentals. A nice 'utility' album to enjoy with tea and biscuits." _____ " Autumn, and its falling leaves, have long been a symbol of the impermanence of life for me. But also, paradoxically, a symbol of the possibility of renewal and regeneration, the cycle of life that eventually comes around in Spring. Autumn holds a poetic resonance for me, its colours, golden and brown, echo in some ways rust and the beautiful patina that comes with age and wisdom." _____ Thoughts Travel (for Miles): "It's a deliberate double meaning: Thoughts travel for miles, in the literal sense, and Thoughts Travel (For Miles), ie: dedicated to Miles Davis. After I'd recorded the track, I realised there was a touch of 'Bitches Brew' influence in the piece, particularly with regard to the electric piano parts." FAN THOUGHTS: mark smith: "I love this album! I play it all the time, on country drives late at night in my car...in fact, I had to remove it because I was not wanting to come home late at night till I heard it from start to finish. It's getting out of hand for sure...I play it at all hours now, often just entranced by those beautiful melodies and the feel of the whole concept that Bill has so successfully achieved. I even left a boring BBQ to get back to it the other day...geez it's gotta be love! Many times I just grin to myself and am dazzled by Mr Nelson's playful soundscapes that always seem to continually morph back and forth. I use this disk as an example to remind jaded friends that this is what made music such a vital form in our lives. Please Bill, if you do read this, please take us on another walk in autumn with you again. It really does take you to a time and a place - and how many CDs can do that these days? Thank you very much for this work of art Mr Nelson." Peter: "I have always appreciated Bill's abilities and sensibilities when it comes to instrumentation other than the guitar. This is one reason that I have really enjoyed Theatre of Falling Leaves , as it is not so dependent on the guitar, and features sophisticated, interesting and beautiful compositions, and Bill's skill at arranging music. Stunning, though not surprising -- hell, Bill manages to add whirls and buzzes and chimes (yes, chimes!) in such a way that you just think "Ah, that is exactly the right little nuance at that moment"...well, the guy can just make music! Such a wonderful ability to create rich textures and melodies that evolve and surprise...I love this album. As Bill continues to grow as a musician and songwriter, each stage gets more interesting and satisfying." tomasso: "Let me add to the praise for Theatre. I like the way in which Bill experiments with more recent electronica sounds and rhythms, but still manages to make the result sound distinctly his own." steve lyles: "I find Theatre of Falling Leaves quite brilliant...a different tangent...at times quite Aphex Twin meets Kraftwerk-ish with those Jazzy Oriental overtones interspersed that are bloody lovely. More please..." Grey Lensman: "Much as I enjoy Bill's versatile guitar work, it's his ability to generate well-thought out and intelligent soundscapes that puts him out there in a class of his own. And this CD really does confirm that. Full of really interesting sound textures and patterns of sound that weave subtle melodies together in a most delightful way. I love the mood and overall ambience of this long-player. A nice contrast to The Dream Transmission Pavilion . Bill once again demonstrates his "Leonardo Da Vinci" abilities - a true musical Renaissance man!" james warner: "For some, Bill Nelson's guitar playing is everything, but this album proves there is so much more to his talents. A collection of keyboard instrumentals which ranges from classical piano to dance electronica and many delightfully quirky places in between." Serge Ruel: "It's Magnifique! It is utterly unified and intertwined. The integrating of the piano and its associated/generated sounds and vice versa is AGAIN Magnifique. Bill, really, keep on keeping on!!!" Returningman: "It is a very refreshing vibrant album full of gentle and clever touches that really hit the spot. Any track that includes Miles as a reference point always gets my attention and "Thoughts Travel (For Miles)" delivers. Love the bass groove on this. The whole album is a delight and touches many areas and styles that I have not (as yet) associated with Bill. This one has moved straight into my Top Ten Nelsonic album charts with a rocket. A mini masterpiece." thunk: "From Here to Far Orion": "is a beautiful ending to a really magical album, chock full with tunes & textures, twists & turns..." Analog: "All I can say is that this is a must have. One of Mr. Nelson's absolute best... Very satisfying and also very cohesive and picturesque in the mental landscape it conjures up." BobK: "It is quite brilliant and I am, frankly, knocked out by it. As for style, it is a keyboard based, though the percussion tracks and 'sounds' are equally important to the feel and structure. The tracks are fascinating throughout with many twists and turns with changes, sometimes subtle, sometimes radical throughout the track. The album sounds very new, very fresh, very different with many new electric sounds throughout, and a few (knowing?) nods to the past. I can hear keyboard sounds that hark back to Intimacy and Chance Encounters and some nice marimba that harks back to Love That Whirls . I really can't do justice in a few words, but there are so many gorgeous melodies and interesting things going on throughout, it is one helluva listening experience. (So listen on headphones!!). Not sure about buying this? (you fool!), then listen to the samples. They give a hint of how good this is." Albums Menu Future Past

The Practice of Everyday Life box set - 7 December 2011 Bill Nelson Collections Menu Future Past TRACKS: CD1 01) Photograph (A Beginning) (Northern Dream album, 1971) 02) Northern Dreamer (Northern Dream album, 1971) 03) See It Through (Northern Dream album, 1971) 04) Love's A Way (Northern Dream album, 1971) 05) Be Bop Deluxe - Teenage Archangel (non-album single, 1973) 06) Be Bop Deluxe - Jets At Dawn (Teenage Archangel single b-side, later re-recorded for Axe Victim album, 1974) 07) Be Bop Deluxe - Axe Victim (Decca audition version - Previously Unreleased, 1973) 08) Be Bop Deluxe - Adventures In A Yorkshire Landscape (Axe Victim album, 1974) 09) Be Bop Deluxe - Darkness L'Immoraliste (Axe Victim album, 1974) 10) Be Bop Deluxe - Night Creatures (Axe Victim album, 1974) 11) Be Bop Deluxe - Music In Dreamland (Futurama album, 1975) 12) Be Bop Deluxe - Maid In Heaven (Futurama album, 1975) 13) Be Bop Deluxe - Jean Cocteau (Futurama album, 1975) 14) Be Bop Deluxe - Sister Seagull (Futurama album, 1975) 15) Be Bop Deluxe - Between The Worlds (Futurama album, 1975) 16) Be Bop Deluxe - Swan Song (Futurama album, 1975) 17) Be Bop Deluxe - Crystal Gazing (Sunburst Finish album, 1976) 18) Be Bop Deluxe - Heavenly Homes (Sunburst Finish album, 1976) 19) Be Bop Deluxe - Ships In The Night (Sunburst Finish album, 1976) 20) Be Bop Deluxe - Crying To The Sky (Alternate Guitar Solo - Previously Unreleased) 21) Be Bop Deluxe - Sleep That Burns (Sunburst Finish album, 1976) CD2 01) Be Bop Deluxe - Modern Music (Modern Music album, 1976) 02) Be Bop Deluxe - Dancing In The Moonlight (All Alone) (Modern Music album, 1976) 03) Be Bop Deluxe - Honeymoon On Mars (Modern Music album, 1976) 04) Be Bop Deluxe - Lost In The Neon World (Modern Music album, 1976) 05) Be Bop Deluxe - Dance Of The Uncle Sam Humanoids (Modern Music album, 1976) 06) Be Bop Deluxe - Modern Music (Reprise) (Modern Music album, 1976) 07) Be Bop Deluxe - Kiss Of Light (Modern Music album, 1976) 08) Be Bop Deluxe - Forbidden Lovers (Modern Music album, 1976) 09) Be Bop Deluxe - Down On Terminal Street (Modern Music album, 1976) 10) Be Bop Deluxe - Life In The Air Age (Live! In The Air Age album, 1977) 11) Be Bop Deluxe - Piece of Mine (Live! In The Air Age album, 1977) 12) Be Bop Deluxe - Blimps ( The Best Of And The Rest Of compilation album, 1978) 13) Be Bop Deluxe - Futurist Manifesto ("Japan" single b-side in 1977) 14) Be Bop Deluxe - Lovers Are Mortal (The Best Of And The Rest Of Compilation album, 1978) 15) Be Bop Deluxe - Surreal Estate (Drastic Plastic album, 1978) 16) Be Bop Deluxe - Visions Of Endless Hope (Drastic Plastic album, 1978) 17) Be Bop Deluxe - Panic In The World (Juan Les Pins Mix/Remix) 18) Bill Nelson's Red Noise - Don't Touch Me (I'm Electric) (Sound-On-Sound album,1979) 19) Bill Nelson's Red Noise - Revolt Into Style (Sound-On-Sound album in 1979) 20) Bill Nelson's Red Noise - Furniture Music (Sound-On-Sound album in 1979) 21) Bill Nelson's Red Noise - Stay Young (Live) (Revolt Into Style 12" single) 22) Bill Nelson's Red Noise - Out Of Touch (Live) (Revolt Into Style 7 & 12" singles) 23) Do You Dream In Colour? ( Quit Dreaming And Get On The Beam album in 1981) CD3 01 ) Banal ( Quit Dreaming And Get On The Beam album in 1981) 02) Life Runs Out Like Sand (Quit Dreaming And Get On The Beam Album in 1981) 03) Living In My Limousine (Quit Dreaming And Get On The Beam album in 1981) 04) Mr. Magnetism Himself (Banal 7 & 12" singles) 05) Sleep (Sounding The Ritual Echo album, 1981) 06) Opium (Sounding The Ritual Echo album, 1981) 07) Near East (Sounding The Ritual Echo album, 1981) 08) The Funeral (Das Kabinett album, 1981) 09) The Sonambulist And The Children (Das Kabinett album, 1981) 10) The Dream Dance Of Jane And The Sonambulist (Das Kabinett album, 1981) 11) Beauty And The Beast (La Belle Et La Bete album, 1982) 12) The Enchanted Glove (La Belle Et La Bete album, 1982) 13) Eros Arriving (The Love That Whirls album in 1982) 14) Hope For The Heartbeat (The Love That Whirls album, 1982) 15) A Private View (The Love That Whirls album, 1982) 16) The October Man (The Love That Whirls album, 1982) 17) The Passion (Flaming Desire 7 & 12" singles) 18) Echo in Her Eyes (The Lamps of Oblivion) (The Love That Whirls album, 1982) 19) Glow World (Chimera mini-album, 1983) 20) The Real Adventure (Chimera mini-album, 1983) 21) Acceleration (Short Version) (Acceleration 12" single, 1984) 22) Happily Addicted To You (A Catalogue Of Obsessions album, part of the Trial By Intimacy set, 1985) 23) The Last Summer For Dancing (A Catalogue Of Obsessions album, part of the Trial By Intimacy set, 1985) 24) Les Amoureux ( Pavillions Of The Heart And Soul album, part of the Trial By Intimacy set, 1985) 25) Another Kiss For Your Slender Neck ( Pavillions Of The Heart And Soul album, Trial By Intimacy set, 1985) CD4 01) The Eternal Female ( Pavillions Of The Heart And Soul album, part of the Trial By Intimacy set, 1985) 02) Sleeplessness (Chamber Of Dreams album, part of the Trial By Intimacy set, 1985) 03) The Golden Bough (Chamber Of Dreams album, part of the Trial By Intimacy set, 1985) 04) Tomorrowland (The Threshold Of 1947) (Chamber Of Dreams album, Trial By Intimacy set, 1985) 05) Sacrament (The Summer Of God's Piano album, part of the Trial By Intimacy set, 1985) 06) Over Ocean (The Summer Of God's Piano album, part of the Trial By Intimacy set, 1985) 07) Perfido Incanto (The Summer Of God's Piano album, part of the Trial By Intimacy set, 1985) 08) City One (Chameleon album, 1986) 09) Blue Sky (Chameleon album, 1986) 10) To The Sea In Ships (Chameleon album, 1986) 11) Suvasini (Getting The Holy Ghost Across album, 1986) 12) Contemplation (Getting The Holy Ghost Across album, 1986) 13) Wildest Dreams (Getting The Holy Ghost Across album, 1986) 14) The Hidden Flame (Getting The Holy Ghost Across album, 1986) 15) Illusions Of You (Living For The Spangled Moment mini-album, 1986) 16) Orchestra Arcana - Search And Listen (Iconography album, 1986) 17) Orchestra Arcana - Right, Then Left (Iconography album, 1986) 18) Orchestra Arcana - Iconography (Iconography album, 1986) 19) Orchestra Arcana - Clock Conscious (Iconography album, 1986) 20) At The Gates Of The Singing Garden (Map Of Dreams album, 1987) 21) Water Of Life (Transfiguration) (Map Of Dreams album, 1987) 22) Spinning Creatures (Map Of Dreams album, 1987) 23) The Angel At The Western Window (Chance Encounters In The Garden Of Lights album, 1987) 24) Day Of Eternity (Chance Encounters In The Garden Of Lights album , 1987) 25) Night Tides (Chance Encounters In The Garden Of Lights album, 1987) 26) Finis Gloria Mundi (Chance Encounters In The Garden Of Lights album, 1987) CD5 01) Calling Heaven, Calling Heaven (Chance Encounters In The Garden Of Lights album , 1987) 02) Orchestra Arcana - Deva Dance (Optimism album, 1988) 03) Orchestra Arcana - Um, Ah Good Evening (UK CD of Optimism album, 1988) 04) Orchestra Arcana - Short Wave (UK CD of Optimism album, 1988) 05) Aqua Magica (Simplex album, 1990) 06) Heros De Lumiere (Simplex album, 1990) 07) Kiss Goodbye (Chimes And Rings album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 08) Dreams Of Yesterday (Chimes And Rings album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 09) Playing Jesus To Her Judas (Chimes And Rings album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 10) Still Waiting (Nudity album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 11) Feels Like Up To Me (Nudity album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 12) Only Love Can Tell (Nudity album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 13) Broken (Heartbreakland album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 14) Heartbreak Thru The Telephone (Heartbreakland album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 15) Love's Immortal Shining Angel (Heartbreakland album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 16) Man On Fire (Details album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 17) Aeroplane Wings (Details album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 18) Stay With Me (Details album, part of the Demonstrations Of Affection set, 1989) 19) A Luminous Kind Of Guy (Luminous album, 1991) 20) Is This Alchemy (Luminous album, 1991) 21) Wait For Tomorrow (Luminous album, 1991) 22) God Man Slain (Blue Moons & Laughing Guitars album, 1992) 23) Boat To Forever (Blue Moons & Laughing Guitars album, 1992) 24) The Invisible Man And The Unforgettable Girl (Blue Moons & Laughing Guitars album, 1992) 25) Dream Ships Set Sail (Blue Moons & Laughing Guitars album, 1992) 26) Crimsworth Part One (Excerpt) (Crimsworth album, 1995) CD6 01) Big Noise In Twang Town (Practically Wired album, 1995) 02) Pink Buddah Blues (Practically Wired album, 1995) 03) Her Presence In Flowers (Practically Wired album, 1995) 04) Big River (Buddha Head album, part of the My Secret Studio set, 1995) 05) The Big Illumination (Buddha Head album, part of the My Secret Studio set, 1995) 06) Buddah Head (Buddha Head album, part of the My Secret Studio set, 1995) 07) Begin To Burn (Electricity Made Us Angels album, part of the My Secret Studio set, 1995) 08) Heaven's Happy Hemisphere (Electricity Made Us Angels album, part of the My Secret Studio set, 1995) 09) It's All True (Deep Dream Decoder album, part of the My Secret Studio set, 1995) 10) Year 44 (The Birthday Song) (Deep Dream Decoder album, part of the My Secret Studio set, 1995) 11) Dreamnoise And Angel (Deep Dream Decoder album, part of the My Secret Studio set, 1995) 12) No Fool For You (Juke Box For Jet Boy album, part of the My Secret Studio set, 1995) 13) On A Train I Never Boarded (Juke Box For Jet Boy album, part of the My Secret Studio set, 1995) 14) Hold On To Your Heart (Juke Box For Jet Boy album, part of the My Secret Studio set, 1995) 15) Deeply Dazzled (After The Satellite Sings album, 1996) 16) Memory Babe (After The Satellite Sings album, 1996) 17) Zoom Sequence (After The Satellite Sings album, 1996) 18) Quarter Moons And Stars (Weird Critters album, part of the Confessions Of A Hyperdreamer set, 1997) 19) Candyland (Weird Critters album, part of the Confessions Of A Hyperdreamer set, 1997) 20) Sun At Six Windows (Magnificent Dream People album, part of the Confessions Of A Hyperdreamer set, 1997) 21) Queer Weather (Magnificent Dream People album, part of the Confessions Of A Hyperdreamer set, 1997) 22) The Girl I Never Forgot (Magnificent Dream People album, Confessions Of A Hyperdreamer set, 1997) CD7 01) Pointing at the Moon (Atom Shop album, 1998) 02) Dreamland Avenue (Whistling While the World Turns album, 2000) 03) Humming In The Void/Girl With The Thousand Watt Smile (Old Man Future Blows The Blues album, part of the Noise Candy set, 2002) 04) Big Yellow Moon (Stargazing With Ranger Bill album, part of the Noise Candy set, 2002) 05) Planet of Guitars (King Frankenstein album, part of the Noise Candy set, 2002) 06) Wonderful Weather In Woodgates Lane (Console album, part of the Noise Candy set, 2002) 07) The Ceremonial Arrival Of The Great Golden Cloud (The Alchemical Adventures Of Sailor Bill album, 2005) 08) Moments Catch Fire On The Crests Of Waves (The Alchemical Adventures Of Sailor Bill album, 2005) 09) Cascade (Improvisation For Three Harp Guitars) (Rosewood Volume One album, 2005) 10) Superserene (Theatre Of Falling Leaves album, 2009) 11) Young Dreams Whirled Away (Silvertone Fountains album, 2008) 12) Fearless Beauty ( Kisses And Cream) (Return To Jazz Of Lights album, 2006) 13) The Golden Days Of Radio (Compact Mix) (Fancy Planets album, 2009) 14) The Trace We Left When All Was Gone (Mazda Kaleidoscope album, 2008) 15) Once I Had A Time Machine (Golden Melodies Of Tomorrow album, 2008) 16) Music Spins My Globe (Picture Post album, 2010) 17) Moon Gold Palladium (Fables And Dreamsongs album, 2010) CD8 John Peel Session, 2nd June 1981 01) Rooms With Brittle Views 02) Stay Young 03) Sleep Cycle 04) Jazz David "Kid" Jenson Session, 13th Jan 1983 05) Dancing On A Knife's Edge 06) Time Tracking 07) Contemplation 08) Indiscretion NOTES: The Practice of Everyday Life is an 8-CD boxed set issued by Esoteric/Cherry Red through their specially created Cocteau Discs imprint. From Smile Records to Sonoluxe, this box set samples 45 different albums from Nelson's impressively vast and varied back catalogue. For the serious collectors among Nelson's fan base, there are a total of 8 previously unreleased tracks and 3 others that are appearing on CD for the first time. The Practice of Everyday Life was the first release on Cocteau Discs that prefaced a 22 album licensing deal which successfully managed to bring much of Nelson's back catalogue back in print. The 22 albums were intended for reissue over a seven year period, and at the time of writing (March 2016) 11 Nelson albums have been reissued including Getting the Holy Ghost Across , which was licensed under a separate deal with Sony. Therefore, a further 12 Nelson related titles can be expected over the next three years, with the prospect of Esoteric striking further deals with Universal for reissues of Red Noise and Be Bop Deluxe material. It has to be said that Esoteric have done a remarkable job with the reissue campaign, and no Bill Nelson fan, new or old, should be without a copy of The Practice of Everyday Life . CURRENT AVAILABILITY: This boxed set is currently out of print, although still available as a download from major online retailers. BILL'S THOUGHTS: "For as long as I can remember, music has played a central part in my life. My father was a semi-professional saxophonist who was actually performing with his band the night I was born in December 1948. His musical tastes, mainly big band swing and jazz, provided the soundtrack to my infancy and childhood years, but, like so many of my generation, rock n' roll came along with it the romance of electric guitars and the magic multi-track recording. Music, tape machines and guitars opened the door to a wide-screen world, a world which I continue to explore to this day. My first album, Northern Dream , was released in 1971, (though recorded in 1970.) Now, exactly 40 years after the release of Northern Dream , comes this chronologically ordered, career-spanning compilation, The Practice Of Everyday Life . For me, those 40 years have flown by, every day propelled by the power of music. The tracks presented across the 8 discs of this compilation, whilst not presenting the entire picture, nevertheless provide the widest view of my recorded work ever released in one package. I'm grateful to Mark Powell of Esoteric Recordings, (who initiated the idea of this compilation), for his enthusiasm and dedication to the project. I hope that listeners will enjoy the colourful journey that The Practice Of Everyday Life documents." _____ "It's a Zen Buddhist phrase which implies that enlightenment can be found in everyday, ordinary activities, rather than in some exotic, mysterious discipline or other. But it is appropriate to the celebration of 40 years of my recording career on more than one level. First of all, my everyday life is filled with the act of creating music in one form or another. As you know, I've always treat this as a natural activity, it's simply what I do and what I am. The creative act itself is meditational and educational...Music is the mirror I hold up to myself to see what is reflected there. But there's also an ironic element: What feels to me like a normal, everyday activity could, to someone not engaged in such an occupation, seem quite unusual or exotic. In fact, not 'everyday' at all. This duality and irony is reflected in the box set's cover image. When you finally get to see it, you'll understand what I'm getting at. The set's title and the cover image are amusingly, (and surreally), at odds. It implies that 'everyday life', for me, is a very strange and dreamlike thing indeed! But the word 'practice' is meaningful too...I'm still practicing, or learning, both as a human being and as an artist. I haven't begun to close the gap between myself and 'the goal'. It's this sense of being a perpetual novice that drives me forward. It's why I'll always look to the next album for the answer to my personal questions...and why I'll never be in a position to say that the work is done." _____ "The package design is not a 'Real Men with Rayguns' project, but is by Esoteric/Cherry Red designer Phil Smee. However, two of the key images, (the front cover and the cover of the booklet contained within the package), use themed, theatrical, surreal photographs taken by ace lensman Martin Bostock based on a specially devised concept created and art-directed by myself." _____ "The cover photo for The Practice Of Everyday Life wasn't actually taken at a live performance in Leeds, but it was taken at the Leeds University Clothworkers Hall, where I have performed in the past. (It's part of the University's Faculty of Music.) The photo' session was arranged independently of any live performance. I wanted to contrast the album's title theme, (of 'everyday' life), with something as far from everyday as possible. I've used that rabbit head mask in my video work for a few years now and thought that it might make a surreal image for TPOEL's cover shot, especially when combined with the weird guitar I'm holding, (which is actually an old fairground ride prop that I bought at an antique fair). I also wanted to include a selection of my guitars in the shot, plus a piano as keyboards often feature in my music too. My 'everyday life' is filled with music making and the concept of the rabbit and the guitars was to suggest a constantly creative, virile, productive energy." FAN THOUGHTS: tunancheese: "It is this compilation that has expanded my horizons. My Lord, Pink Floyd has nothing on Mr. Nelson when it comes to reaching out to the heavens (real or imagined). I'm on my fifth go around with this set and light years behind what you on this website have already experienced. I found Sound On Sound & have already purchased The Joy of Amplification and ordered the vinyl version of Northern Dreams . I know I'm swimming in waters way over my head - but, I'm digging the hell out of it!! Thank you, Mr. Nelson. Wonderful stuff." Collections Menu Future Past

Bop to the Red Noise Be Bop Deluxe retrospective collection - August 1986 Collections Menu Future Past TRACKS: A1) Ships In The Night A2) Life In The Air Age A3) Maid In Heaven A4) Jean Cocteau A5) Third Floor Heaven A6) Rocket Cathedrals B1) No Trains To Heaven B2) Orphans Of Babylon B3) Modern Music B4) New Precision B5) Don't Touch Me (I'm Electric) B6) For Young Moderns NOTES: Bop to the Red Noise is a single album issued only on vinyl via the budget DOJO label. It offers the new listener quite a baffling mixture of Be Bop Deluxe and Red Noise material. The album covers the period between 1974-79 reasonably evenly, although Drastic Plastic gets one track, whereas Axe Victim gets three. Issued at a time when nearly everything issued by the band had been deleted (Sunburst Finish , on its third issue, was their only album in print), Bop to the Red Noise was soon deleted and quickly forgotten about. PAST RELEASES: All 12 tracks on this compilation album were taken from the five Be Bop Deluxe studio albums and the sole Red Noise album. See individual entries of those albums for full details. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: This compilation is now out of print. Collections Menu Future Past

All That I Remember More Listening Notes Go to Album Listening Notes to accompany the album All That I Remember by Bill Nelson As 'All That I Remember' is such a personal, autobiographical album, I've assembled this track by track guide to the stories behind each piece of music. I hope that these notes will add an extra dimension to the album and enrich the listeners appreciation of it. 1: ‘All That I Remember.’ This piece serves as a kind of 'overture' to the album. It sets a mood of gentle melancholy with solo guitar and brief orchestral interludes. It has a light, jazzy feel with the guitars working in (sometimes unusual,) harmony, suggesting Les Paul and other jazz guitarists who made an impact on my young life. Les Paul 2: ‘The View From Lantern Hill.’ Lantern Hill is situated in the coastal town of Ilfracombe in Devon where, in the 1950s, my parents, my brother Ian and myself spent a memorable holiday. It was quite a long drive to get there from Yorkshire. We stayed in a rented upstairs flat right on the harbour where on one side of the living room there were windows looking out onto the harbour itself, and on the other side were windows looking out to sea. My father had a Bolex wind-up cine camera and I can vividly remember him filming a large sailing boat tossing about on the waves from the ocean side window. Ilfracombe is also where the photograph on the cover of my 'Diary Of A Hyperdreamer Volume One' book was taken, (with Ian and myself and a steamship in the background.) Lantern Hill itself is surmounted by St Nicholas' Chapel, (built in the 1300's,) which doubles as a small and quaint lighthouse, hence the name 'Lantern Hill.' I have an old photograph of my brother Ian standing with Lantern Hill in the background which evokes sweet memories coupled with a degree of melancholy. This piece of music is a richly textured orchestral piece, a sort of tone poem, which conjures up that holiday. The track features moments of happy, skipping lightness and other moments where the swell of the sea rises dramatically as the old steamship sails proudly from the harbour trailing clouds of smoke from its funnels. Ian Nelson with Lantern Hill in the background. 1950s. 3: ‘Memory Time No 1: A Wakefield Adventure.’ This is the first of four 'Memory Time' pieces spread throughout the album. This one references my birthplace of Wakefield, where I also grew up. It was a rather different place back then, in some ways more pleasant if rather less modern that today's city. The piece combines electric guitar and orchestra, moving through a panorama of changing moods, each portraying aspects of the city, the Cathedral, the old 1950s bus station with its clock tower where members of 'The Teenagers', (a band I was in,) would meet to be picked up by the band's van to travel to that evening's gig. The grand Unity Hall is also evoked. (I remember seeing my father play there in his band when I was a very young boy.) Also Thornes Park is referenced where, in my infancy, my parents took me to hear brass bands perform. Later, in 1968, I staged Wakefield's first ever free rock concert with my band 'Global Village' on the park's bandstand. My four years at Wakefield Art School, in the earlier part of the 1960s, was a time of adventure and discovery. I created an avant-garde score for a college production of Ibsen's 'Peer Gynt,' using a 'prepared' guitar technique rather like John Cage's prepared piano, threading nails and washers and pieces of glass through the strings and striking them with mallets then recording this to a domestic tape machine and reversing the direction of the tape across the playback head. It was a magic time. A view of Wakefield Bus Station in the 1950s. 4: ‘The Wonderful Wurlitzer Of Blackpool Tower.’ Blackpool is a working-class holiday resort on the west coast of England, famous for its Tower and Pleasure Beach. My parents and I would holiday there quite often in the 1950s and into the early '60s. In fact, I went to Blackpool with my parents when I was only a few months old. The Tower contains a magnificent, gilded ballroom, built in 1894 and re-designed by the famous architect Frank Matcham in 1899. The ballroom has a wonderful Wurlitzer organ which is still in use today. In the 1950s it was played by Reginald Dixon who became a household name through his rendition of 'I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside,' a tune which became synonymous with the town itself. As a child, I would be carried between my two parents as they danced around the ballroom to the sound of the Wurlitzer, coloured lights playing around the waltzing couples on the dancefloor. The Tower also has a permanent indoor circus arena, again designed by Frank Matcham, where I went as a child. The circus, in those days, had lions and tigers and elephants as part of its presentation as well as acrobats and clowns. The circus ring features, (and still does, I believe,) a spectacular climax to each evening's entertainment when it fills up with water and fountains erupt from out of the blue as a water ballet takes place. Blackpool was also well known for its 1930s streamlined art-deco 'balloon' trams and seafront Illuminations, the latter which still exist though the former have sadly been replaced with less visually stylish modern versions. My music on this piece attempts to recreate the Tower Wurlitzer organ sound, quoting from 'I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside' as the orchestra sets up a bright fanfare to match the gilded ballroom's magnificence. A section also hints at the Tower Circus and its various feats of derring-do and clownish mayhem. Blackpool Tower Ballroom. Blackpool Tower Circus water finale, 1950s. Reginald Dixon at The Tower Ballroom Wurlitzer Organ. 1950s. 5: ‘Spacefleet: (The Golden Days Of Dan Dare.)’ The stylistic mood shifts as retro-electronics usher in this track which evokes the science-fiction hero 'Dan Dare, Pilot Of The Future' from the 1950s weekly children's comic, 'The Eagle.' Dan was written and drawn by the artist Frank Hampson who is widely considered to be a genius in the field of comic-book illustration. I was an avid reader of 'The Eagle' and followed Dan's adventures every week with great enthusiasm. 'Spacefleet' was the name given to the organisation which represented Earth in space and Dan was a Colonel in it, piloting wonderfully retro looking rocketships around the solar system. His Spacefleet uniform looked more like that of a World War 2 Spitfire pilot than the super high-tech outfits of current sci-fi movies, and his mannerisms were equally rooted in British 'stiff-upper lip-ism' and old-school jovial banter. Dan's arch enemy was the Mekon, a little green alien with a huge brain who floated around on a kind of sky-scooter. The drawings that Frank Hampson made to depict the alien worlds was imaginative and filled with small details. As a young boy I would pour over these details, noting every technological invention with amazement. The stories were of epic proportion, lasting several weeks before concluding and their ingenuity, twists and turns were worthy of any modern sci-fi movie. The synths that open this track are a kitsch evocation of the mysteries of space before the piece opens out into a widescreen orchestral panorama with electric guitars, suggesting the heroics of Dan and his pals amongst the planets. Dan Dare 'pop-up' book from the 1950s. 6: ‘Memory Time No 2: The Rock n’ Roll Years.’ I shouldn’t underestimate the impact that rock n' roll music had on my early life. It, along with earlier swing band music, laid the foundations for the music I make today. This piece is a poem in sound to those late '50s and early '60s records, tunes that fired me up and made me want to play the guitar. In this piece you will hear lots of different references to that golden age of rock n' roll... The track opens with a nod to Duane Eddy, (my first ever guitar hero,) with a quote from his '40 Miles Of Bad Road.' It then shifts gear into a rhythm guitar that contains echoes of both Buddy Holly and Eddie Cochran. The lead guitar sound enters and brings in hints of Duane Eddy and Hank Marvin but also some of the slightly more 'outré' guitar instrumentals of the day such as those by 'The Fireballs', 'Peter Jay And The Jaywalkers', 'The String Alongs', 'The Spotnicks' and many others. The Farfisa organ sound brings to mind 'Johnny And The Hurricanes' and 'The Tornadoes', (whose hit 'Telstar' is briefly quoted at the end of the track, along with a line from Duane Eddy's 'Because They're Young' which was the first single I ever owned.) It's a fun track! In the UK in the '50s and early '60s, electric guitars came mostly from Europe or England. American guitars were thin on the ground due to import restrictions. My first electric guitar was an Antoria, made in Japan, which my father bought me for Christmas. I was thrilled to get it, (even though I dreamt of owning a red Fender Stratocaster like Hank Marvin's.) Later on he bought me my iconic Gibson 345, a big step up from the Antoria and a very expensive purchase for him. From a humble schoolboy band, through various local pub and club bands, to psychedelia, blues and rock, and on to Be Bop Deluxe and way beyond...it's been an amazing trip. Duane Eddy. The Tornadoes. The Spotnicks. 7: ‘Christmastide.’ A drum roll and swelling strings usher in this seasonal orchestral piece which recreates some of the gentle magic of childhood Christmases and those long-ago, snow blessed days that seemed to be commonplace back in the 1950s. Christmas Day mornings were always filled with the miracle of the living room floor being filled with glittering gifts. My brother Ian and I would be in a state of great excitement as we knelt in our dressing gowns to discover what Father Christmas had left us: Train sets, Dinky Toys, Meccano outfits, Model kits, Ray Guns, Board Games, Toy Soldiers, Forts and Adventure Annuals. (The swash-buckling heroes of some of those annuals are referenced in the more epic sections of this track,) but also Christmas Carols and the sound of tinkling baubles under shining lights hanging on the Christmas Tree. All this, along with the colourful paper trimmings and balloons that festooned the house, bring back the warm wonder and sweet innocence of childhood. 8: ‘Strolling With My Father.’ My Dad was much older than my Mum and I wish I hadn't lost him when I was relatively young. (He passed away in 1977.) I'm now, (arguably,) more mature and would have liked to ask him about his life and deeper thoughts, had he still been here to chat with. But youth takes things and people for granted, only to regret it later when they are gone and it's sadly become too late... As a boy, I enjoyed a relationship with my father that was a happy one, despite his occasional bouts of bad temper. My childhood years are full of pleasant memories of times when he and I would bond in different situations, walking or helping him to fix the family car. He was a musician, a saxophonist, and his love of big-band swing brought music into my life. He also had enough faith in me as an amateur guitarist to buy me my Gibson 345 guitar when I was still only in my teens, a very expensive purchase. That guitar has become well known to fans of my music over the years. My parents bought a holiday chalet at Withernsea in the early 1960s where we would spend most weekends during the summer months. Dad and I would go off to nearby Hull and explore the second-hand junk shops in search of old radio parts which Dad needed for his electronics hobby. (His home workshop was akin to a mad scientist's laboratory.) We would usually, on these jaunts to Hull, call in at a well-stocked model shop where he would buy me a model aeroplane issued by the Revell or Monogram company, or an American custom car or hot rod kit issued by AMT, which I would patiently assemble back at the chalet in Withernsea. Dad and I would also get up quite early and go beachcombing, looking for unusual shells and bits of driftwood. It's these times, whether walking in search of electronic gizmos in dusty junk shops, or breathing the clear, fresh air of a stroll on the beach, that I've tried to capture in this piece. It has a light, jaunty, jazzy feel, with electric guitar being the dominant component, a slightly cheeky, buoyant mood which contains something of the curiosity and humour my father possessed. Dad and I in Bridlington, 1950s Dad playing his Grafton Acrylic Alto Sax 9: ‘Scale Model. (Assembly Required.)' As mentioned in the previous note, building model kits was a great passion of mine as a boy. My first model kit was a speedboat, bought from British Home Stores in Wakefield for me by my mother. I got glue all over it, in all the wrong places, but it was a start. I soon progressed to model aircraft, World War 2 planes such as Spitfires and Lancaster bombers, and a strange vertical take-off airliner called a Fairey Rotodyne. Also American planes such as B52's and Superfortresses. Later, I became passionately interested in the American custom car and hot-rod scene and built many kits produced by the AMT, Revell and Monogram companies who offered models of these exotic cars. My bedroom became filled with these completed kits, aeroplanes hanging from the ceiling on fishing wire, model cars filling every horizontal space and shelf. There was a rather expensive model kit I dreamt of building...an American hot-rod Model-T Ford in a very large scale, produced by the American Monogram company. It came in a beautiful red colour with cream bucket seats and heavily chromed engine parts. One Christmas, I was thrilled to be given it as a special gift from my parents and couldn't wait to assemble it. It took quite a while to build the kit up from its component parts, but it looked great when completed and I proudly gave it pride of place in my collection. The music on this track reflects something of the logical process of assembling each part of a model kit, bit by bit. It also touches on the sound of that era's guitars and pop music structures. An upbeat piece filled with the joys of assembling a scale model. A 1960s Monogram 'Big-T' hot rod kit fully assembled. A rare Airfix model kit of a Fairey Rotodyne vertical take-off aeroplane. 10: ‘Reighton Sands.’ When I was quite young, (before I had long trousers,) my parents took holidays at Reighton Gap on the East Coast of Yorkshire, at an old wooden bungalow owned by good friends of theirs, Herman and Ada Ackroyd. The bungalow was a wooden clad affair with a sun lounge at the front. It had a wonderful 'between the wars' feel about it and had probably existed since the 1920s. It was situated on the cliff top, above a steep ravine which led down to the sea and the clean, wide beach that lay at the bottom. We spent many a happy hour or two on that beach, building sandcastles and paddling in the more shallow waves. The beach had a few old concrete blockhouses at that time, military gun posts from World War 2 that had long since been abandoned. Covered with seaweed and barnacles, they provided exciting adventures for a young boy's imaginary game play with his his toy boats. At the bungalow, the only entertainment on an evening was a game of dominoes, noughts and crosses or solitaire. I don't recall the place having electricity, only gas light. Nevertheless, it seemed an idyllic location with fresh air in abundance and the beautiful sound of the waves as you drifted off to sleep at bedtime. In more recent years I've re-visited Reighton Gap. The Ackroyd's bungalow is sadly long gone, as are the Ackroyd's themselves, but the area is really not all that much different, in essence, from what it was, in the '50s, (though it's filled with static caravans now.) The old ravine still cuts its way through the cliff down to the sea, and the beach is as wide and beautiful as ever. The music of this piece tries to evoke those long-ago times on Reighton Beach when my family and I would be temporarily freed from the worries and concerns of our home life. It does this through the drifting echoes of guitars and seagull's cries, the sounds that lulled me to sleep back then. Me and little Ian at the bungalow at Reighton Gap, 1950s. Me sitting outside the bungalow at Reighton Gap, 1950s. Mum, Nan, Aunty Sal and myself outside the bungalow at Reighton Gap. 11: ‘Memory Time No 3: Eagle, Beezer, Topper, Beano.’ In the '50s and '60s, my father worked as manager of a shop in Hunslet, Leeds, called R. Broughton And Son. It was situated in Waterloo Road. Dad was the shop's manager. At that time, Mr. Broughton junior, whose first name was Harry, had taken over the business from his father. Harry enjoyed going 'out and about' to visit customers, installing their radios and televisions. As a result, Harry Broughton entrusted the day to day management of the shop to my father, Walter Nelson and Dad would travel from Wakefield each day to manage the shop in Hunslet. On Saturdays, my mother and I would get the bus from Wakefield to Leeds and have lunch in the basement canteen of Lewis's department store on The Headrow. After shopping we would then catch a tram to Hunslet and Waterloo Road to meet my father when he finished work at Broughton's. Alongside radios and televisions, Broughtons also sold Dinky Toys, Hornby Trains, Meccano and Tri-Ang toys. I was always allowed to choose a Dinky Toy to take home with me. In fact, Dad would usually bring me one home every week, even when Mum and I hadn't been to Leeds on some Saturdays. Of course, at Christmas, I was treated to various toys from Broughton's, including Hornby train sets and Meccano sets. My first two-wheeler bike came from there too. But my father, every Friday night, would bring me a selection of weekly comics, Dandy, Beano, Beezer, Topper, Eagle, Radio Fun, Lion, Wizard, Hotspur, etc, which he bought from a little Hunslet newsagent's shop, located at the Swan Junction end of Waterloo Road. Getting these comics was a great gift for me because Dad didn't buy just one or two comics but a huge pile of them. I can remember the smell of the paper they were printed on, the smell of the ink and the anticipation I had when opening them to read their contents. Some contained adventure stories, focused mainly on words with the occasional illustration, stories about World War 2 heroes with titles like 'I Flew With Braddock.' Others had more of a strip cartoon approach with funny tales of oddball characters in silly situations. And some, like 'The Eagle', had amazing cutaway drawings of ships and aircraft showing their inner structures and workings. And, of course, 'The Eagle' carried those epic stories of Dan Dare and his chums. There was also a great space-themed weekly comic called 'Rocket' which carried nothing but sci-fi and fantasy stories. Edited by WW2 flying ace Douglas Bader, it didn't stay in publication for very long and copies are incredibly hard to find today, but I loved this one just as much as my Eagle comics. To be honest, I loved them all. Comic annuals were also a feature of my boyhood. All the major weekly comics published a special annual at Christmas time, the perfect gift for many children in the 1950s. The Eagle annuals were a special treat as they contained a Dan Dare story which was quite different from the ones in the weekly comic. The Beano annual carried fantasy stories of 'Jimmy And His Magic Patch' (a boy who had a cloth patch sewed on his short trousers that could magically whisk him back in time,) and 'Jack Flash, The Flying Boy From Mercury' who had small ankle wings and could zoom around the sky helping his Earth schoolboy chums catch crooks and rescue people from all kinds of perils. (I had a particular affinity with Jack Flash as I had dreamt of being able to fly since first hearing about Peter Pan.) Then there was General Jumbo, a boy who had an entire army of toy soldiers which could be controlled from a radio unit attached to his wrist. And the 'Tin Fish' was a strip about a boy who had a mechanical swordfish in which he could ride beneath and above the waves. So, this piece is a paean to those weekly British comics with their epic, heroic adventures, tales of wonder and imagination, their funny characters and situations. It features an orchestra and electric guitars, the latter with a variety of textures. The No1 issue of 'Rocket' comic. 'Jack Flash' from an old Beano annual of the '50s. 12: ‘When Boys Dream Of Guitars.’ It's pretty clear to me now, that, somehow I was destined, (or doomed,) to fall in love with the electric guitar. This came about by a strange process of fate. My younger brother Ian had been given a cheap toy guitar for Christmas, which he was probably too young to fully appreciate at the time. I managed to pick out the 'Third Man Theme' on it, and my father's ears pricked up. He had unsuccessfully tried to teach me to play the saxophone when I was just eight years old, but it hadn't taken and he'd given up on the idea of me becoming a musician. But he realised there was something going on with me with that little toy guitar. So, he bought me a slightly bigger toy guitar, an 'Elvis Presley' Selcol guitar, made of plastic with a picture of Elvis on the headstock. He taught me three or four ukulele chords on this toy guitar, (which only had four strings,) and saw the beginnings of a chance for me to become a musician like himself. Later, he bought me my first proper guitar, an acoustic archtop 'Zenith' model by Ivor Mairantz, which, to this day, I wish I still had. I'd heard Duane Eddy's 'Because They're Young' single and the small flame of guitar became a fierce blast. I progressed from the Zenith acoustic to an 'Antoria' solid body guitar and from there to my beloved Gibson 345, all of which were gifts from my father. Dad could be extremely critical of my musical abilities but, my mother tells me that, in private, he was very proud of me and didn't want me to get a 'big head' from too much praise. She also says that Dad thought I had an affinity with jazz from early on. Well, this track pulls together various facets of my guitar playing from that time and this...and, if nothing else, is a reasonable excuse to set the strings in motion! Clean and overdriven tones abound, wilder approaches, and more melodic ones too. Building to a nice climax and a reflective coda. A Selcol 'Elvis Presley' toy guitar, exactly the same as the one I had. This is exactly the same model of Antoria guitar I had, with the one difference in that mine sported 3 pickups instead of two. In all other respects it is identical. A 'Zenith' archtop acoustic guitar (like my own first 'proper' guitar.) It carried a certificate inside which was signed by Ivor Mairantz, a well know guitarist in the 1940s and '50s, who endorsed the instrument. 13: ‘The Ilfracombe Steamer.’ As with the track 'Lantern Hill', this track is inspired from the holiday in Ilfracombe that my family enjoyed in the 1950s. It focusses specifically on the old steamboat that plied its way around the coast at that time. Sounds of the sea and seagulls, the rattle and throb of the engine's pistons and the grandeur of the sea. All wrapped up with orchestra and guitars, bringing a romantic vibe to play with French horns and strings. E-bow taking the lead in places, chiming guitars taking the tune out. Bill and Ian Nelson in Ilfracombe in the 1950s. 14: ‘Memory Time No 4: A Dansette Fantasy.’ A Dansette record player was the dream of most youngsters in the late 1950s, as it was of mine. When I got my own record player and the permission to play the records I wanted to hear in the privacy of my own bedroom, it was like a door opening into another world. This is a one of those tracks which attempts to evoke the guitar records of my past, (and future,) with various twists and turns. It has a quote from 'Tuxedo Junction' as a coda, a tune which has resonances, from Glenn Miller to Chet Atkins, for me. I had many of Chet Atkins' albums as a teenager, he was one of my favourite guitarists and his music crossed many boundaries, always beautifully and immaculately played. I can't begin to approach the technical excellence that Chet displayed in everything he recorded but the spirit of his playing definitely infected my own. Another early guitar hero of mine was Scotty Moore, who was Elvis Presley's original lead guitarist. He took Chet's fingerstyle technique and applied it to rock n' roll in stunning fashion. Chet Atkins 'Workshop' album. Scotty Moore. A Dansette record player. 15: ‘Heading For Home In A Hillman Minx.’ In the 1950s, my father bought a second-hand Hillman Mix saloon car in black, its number was MUM 333, (which would be a sought after private plate today.) It was only the second car our family had owned, the first being a pre-war Jowett. I was with Dad when he went to buy the Hillman from a second-hand car dealer near the Hunslet and Sturton area of Leeds. The dealer's location was in Pontefract Road and I can remember driving there in the Jowett and Dad doing a part-exchange for the Hillman. The Hillman seemed a very modern car compared to the 1936 Jowett, (the Hillman was actually an early 1950s model, '51 or possibly '53,) but the old Jowett had served us well, despite its age. I remember us trying to get to Whitby in it and it breaking down on the North Yorkshire Moors. A passing AA patrolman, riding the motorcycle and sidecar combinations that were standard AA fare in those days, stopped to assist us. Dad joined the AA there and then and we were soon on our way again. The Hillman often took us to Reighton Gap, to the bungalow owned by my parent's friends. I have a few photographs of the family posing by the car, taken at Reighton. Dad was very fond of that car and had fitted it with various accessories. The music I've written for this track suggests the proudness my father felt about the car as we trundled along the country roads from Reighton Gap back to our home in Wakefield after a holiday at the bungalow. It features a big orchestral arrangement with electric guitars and a brass band in full flow. A 1936 Jowett like the one owned by my family. My younger brother Ian and myself with the Hillman Minx at Reighton Gap. (1950s.) Dad poses proudly in the Hillman Minx at the rear of the Reighton Gap bungalow. (1950s.) 16: ‘As If It Were A Moment Ago.’ And so we come to the conclusion of the album with a sweet and lyrical guitar-based instrumental featuring a panoramic string orchestra. The memories of my past, as a boy within the bosom of my family, really do seem like only a moment ago and yet, this year, as I hit my 68th birthday, those days are truly at a distance. So, yes, this piece portrays something of a yearning for a gentler, more innocent time but also resigns itself to the fact that those days are now far behind me, only misty memories and faded photographs remain. There is much that has been left out of this album, my time at Art School, the games we played as children, Dad building our first tv set in the back garden outhouse, riding my first two-wheeler bike around Eastmoor Estate, boyhood crushes on slightly older girls, a whole raft of things to inspire further musical portraiture. I have, of course, used other autobiographical themes as the starting point for individual songs and instrumentals on several other albums, but they've mostly been scattered here and there, rather than making up a cohesive whole. The potential definitely exists for an 'All That I Remember Volume Two.' Perhaps, one day, I might locate all the various tracks that deal with my personal memories and gather them together in a compilation, adding in this album plus a 'All I Remember Volume 2' to make up an epic box set, a life captured in sound. Whether such a time-consuming task becomes possible remains to be seen. But for now, I hope you have enjoyed this little glimpse of my younger days, captured in music. Bill Nelson...July 2016. My Mother on Reighton Sands, 1950s. My schoolboy band, 'The Cosmonauts.' More Listening Notes Go to Album

The Two-Fold Aspect of Everything Bill Nelson retrospective 2LP collection - February 1985 Collections Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: Original UK 2 record set: Eaux D'Artifice A1) Acceleration (Remix) (Acceleration single, 1984) A2) White Sound (Living in My Limousine single, 1981) A3) Living In My Limousine (Remix) (Living in My Limousine single, 1981) A4) Flesh (Eros Arriving double single, 1982) A5) Eros Arriving (Single Version ) (Eros Arriving single, 1982) A6) Hope For The Heartbeat (Remix ) (U.S. promo single, 1982) A7) The Passion (Flaming Desire single, 1982) B1) Ideal Homes (Do You Dream In Colour? single, 1980) B2) Instantly Yours (Do You Dream In Colour? single, 1980) B3) Atom Man Loves Radium Girl (Do You Dream In Colour? single, 1980) B4) Mr. Magnetism Himself (Banal single, 1981) B5) The Burning Question (Flaming Desire 12" single, 1982) B6) Haunting In My Head (Eros Arriving single, 1982) B7) He And Sleep Were Brothers (Eros Arriving double single, 1982) Confessions Of A Four Track Mind C1) Connie Buys A Kodak (Sleepcycle club ep, 1982) C2) Be My Dynamo (Youth Of Nation On Fire single, 1981) C3) Touch And Glow (single from the Permanent Flame box set, 1982) C4) Love Without Fear (Touch And Glow single from the Permanent Flame box set, 1982) C5) Dada Guitare (Rooms With Brittle Views single, 1981) C6) Turn To Fiction (Banal 12" single, 1981) D1) Rooms With Brittle Views (non-album single, 1981) D2) Love In The Abstract (Living In My Limousine single, 1981) D3) Hard Facts From The Fiction Department (title track from a non-album club ep, 1984) D4) Hers Is A Lush Situation (Banal 12" single, 1981) D5) When The Birds Return (Sleepcycle club ep, 1982) D6) All My Wives Were Iron (Youth Of Nation On Fire 12" single, 1981) 1989 UK single CD: Same running order as above, but deleted the following: A1, A2, A3, A6. 1989 US 2CD set: Same track listing as the original vinyl release, except: A1 was replaced with "The Beat That Can't Go Wrong Today" (Sleepcycle club ep, 1982) , and D3 was replaced with "Daily Bells" ( Hard Facts From The Fiction Department club ep, 1984) NOTES: The Two-Fold Aspect of Everything was initially issued as a double album on vinyl on Cocteau Records (the first of just two releases in the Cocteau Collectors series). The double vinyl was condensed into a single CD for UK release, removing tracks that had been issued as bonus cuts on the CD versions of Quit Dreaming and Get on the Beam and The Love That Whirls (both 1986) and/or included on Duplex (1989) All editions of this compilation are out of print, but half of the original double album is available on the following reissues: Quit Dreaming (Mercury, 2005): contains A2, A3, B4, C2, D1, D2 and D6. The Love That Whirls (Mercury, 2005): contains A4, A6, A7, B6 and B7. Chimera (Mercury, 2005): contains D3. The Practice of Everyday Life (Esoteric, 2011): contains A7 and B4. Transcorder (Sonoluxe CD052): contains C1 and D3, CURRENT AVAILABILITY: The UK single CD version is available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . Collections Menu Future Past

Discography Menu Retrospective Collections Clicking on a cover below will take you to a full page devoted to that album. Bill Nelson - Transcorder The Acquitted By Mirrors Recordings 2020 album Bill Nelson - Dreamy Screens Soundtracks From The Echo Observatory 2017 box set Be Bop Deluxe - Original Album Series 2014 box set Bill Nelson - The Dreamer's Companion Volume Two Songs Of The Bel-Air Rocketmen 2014 download album Bill Nelson - The Dreamer's Companion Volume Two In This I Reveal My Secret Identity 2014 download album Bill Nelson - The Dreamer's Companion Volume One How I Got My Secret Powers 2014 download album Be Bop Deluxe - At The BBC 1974-1978 2013 box set Be Bop Deluxe - Futurist Manifesto The Harvest Years 1974-1978 2012 box set Bill Nelson - The Practice Of Everyday Life 2011 box set Be Bop Deluxe - Postcards From The Future 2004 album Orchestra Arcana - The Hermetic Jukebox 2003 album Be Bop Deluxe - Tremulous Antenna 2002 album Bill Nelson - Electrotype The Holyground Recordings 1968-1972 2001 album Bill Nelson - What Now, What Next? The Cocteau Compendium 1980-1990 1998 album Be Bop Deluxe - Tramcar To Tomorrow 1998 album Be Bop Deluxe - Air Age Anthology 1997 album Be Bop Deluxe - Radioland BBC Radio 1 Live In Concert 1994 album Bill Nelson - The Strangest Things A Collection Of Recordings 1979-1989 1989 album Bill Nelson - Duplex The Best Of Bill Nelson 1989 album Be Bop Deluxe - Raiding The Divine Archive The Best Of Be Bop Deluxe 1987 album Be Bop Deluxe - Bop To The Red Noise 1986 album Bill Nelson - The Two-Fold Aspect Of Everything Demo tapes, minor arcana and artificial pop from the archives of Bill Nelson 1985 album Bill Nelson - Vistamax 19845 album Bill Nelson - Permanent Flame The Beginner's Guide To Bill Nelson 1982 singles box set Be Bop Deluxe - Singles As & Bs 1981 album Be Bop Deluxe - Best Of And The Rest Of Be Bop Deluxe 1978 album Discography Menu

Fantasmatron Bill Nelson album - 8 August 2011 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) When God Was A Rabbit And Buddha Was A Mouse (Over The Moon Two) 02) The Captain's In The Wheelhouse (Fabled Quixote) 03) Everything Changes With The Weather 04) Fantasmatron 05) Melancholia Lagoons 06) Signal Destinations 07) Slinky Incantations 08) Kaleidoscopic Windows 09) Lights Shine When We Dream 10) Lampdownlowland 11) A Reliable Bicycle And A Map Of The Heart (Trip Two) 12) My Wild Atomic Wedding Day 13) The Thought That Counts 14) Art Is Long And Time Is Fleeting ALBUM NOTES: Fantasmatron is an album of vocal pieces released on the Sonoluxe label issued in a single print run of 1000 copies. The album was first mentioned by that name in a diary entry posted in April 2011, but in fact had slowly taken shape over the previous seven months, having begun life as Lamplowdownlowland . Progress on the album had to compete with other priorities including overseeing reissues (for Esoteric/Cherry Red and EMI) and preparing material for live performances included a projected tour in November that unfortunately never took place. The album sold out in July 2019. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . BILL'S THOUGHTS: "The closest I can come in an attempt to describe the music it contains is 'neo-psychedelic' pop-rock with a subtle hint of twisty electronica. (One clue is in the album's title:- a combination of the words 'fantasy', 'phantasm' and 'electronic.') It's a melodic, 99.9% vocal based guitar and keyboard driven album with plenty of colourful textural details and semi-surreal twists and turns." _____ "Fantasmatron ? Ooooh, darling! Pop via strange antennea...Crystal Set music for sensual supermen, erotic noise for sexy sailors and sailorettes, big blue dreams for dig it now, kids, rough and tumble for the refined of mind. Be there with it, or forever be square!" "Lampdownlowland": "a rather emotive track for me too...It attempts to capture those moments of quiet melancholy sitting in front of a fire on a cold winter's night when our thoughts turn to matters of mortality and the poignant beauty and suffering of the human condition. Ghosts of the past, distant memories, a kind of universal garden of eden from which we have all been, too soon, expelled." FAN THOUGHTS: neill_burgess: "Just had my first listen to Fantasmatron , and I have to say I am blown away. This is the album I've wanted Bill to make for years (even if I could not have defined what I wanted before hearing it!). "While still recognisably a BN album, to my ears it goes somewhere new, combining some of the spikey instrumental pieces we've heard previously with matching, edgy vocals. In some ways, it could be seen as a successor to the similarly "experimental" vocal album Golden Melodies , but whereas that had pastoral instrumentation the music here is more avant-garde rock... So, from me it's definitely a big thumbs up from the first listen - well done Bill!" steve lyles: "I am absolutely blown away by Bill's new album. I love the atmospheres and "feel" of this music...I find myself getting huge emotional surges as I am listening....no drugs required - just me and the music and it's a chemical romance. The track "Signal Destinations" is so truly epic...it's like a 21st century hymn...as I have thought hundreds of time before with Bill Nelson's music...just how does it get better than this ?...and then it does...extraordinary..." BobK: "Must say, I am blown away as well. This well and truly hits the spot. "I suppose you could describe the album as a collection of melodic, almost trippy, tunes. The word 'ethereal' springs to mind. Has hints of Golden Melodies and Fables about it and a suitable amount of strangeness. There are so many beautiful melodies here and some great stuff going on behind the top line melody, (listen on headphones!). "What more can ya say? Bill sings wonderfully, some terrific guitar playing, beautifully produced and mastered and loads of jolly nice weird blippy noises. I love it!" alec: "I'm all about Fantasmatron lately. Can't get enough of it. Can't make up my mind what my favourite track from it is!" Holer: "Holy crap! This one caught me completely by surprise. It's nice going into a new BN record with absolutely no idea as to what to expect. Honestly, I thought it was going to be another trippy instrumental record, which would have been more than alright with me, but POW! So much more! "I enjoy all of Bill's releases at some level, but every few years, he releases an album that really makes a statement - Sailor Bill , Golden Melodies , the Mazda trilogy, Non-Stop Mystery Action , among others. I think Fantasmatron is one of those records. Another classic, and one of Bill's weirdest pop albums to date! Hey, that's a GOOD thing!" Chimera Man: "Everything Changes with the Weather": "is simply gorgeous and I can't stop playing it... I do love it when Bill hits us with a laid-back vibe (is that adjective still in use?!), a sumptuous melody line and a really rich sounding composition." JohnR: "My favourite albums from Bill's recent output change with time, but there is still one that stands out for me as the No. 1, and that is Fantasmatron . It's got everything, including my favourite spine-shivering track - "Everything Changes with the Weather". Andre: "Art is Long and Time is Fleeting": "and your voice is untouched by time. Your voice sounds as warn as it did 40 years ago!" "Fantasmatron , to me, has got to be easily the best Bill Nelson has put out." "It kills me, because something like "Everything Changes with the Weather" should be all over the radio. We live on one strange planet!" Serge Ruel: "What an absolutely superb fusion and development of your musical avenues. Wow, am I ever so glad to be around to hear this...a dream come true." Alan: "Once again, Bill takes us along on his musical journey through new regions in Nelsonic lands. Like so many of Bill's albums, this one has its own personality." "Definitely one of my favorites. If you don't have this one, do yourself a favor and buy it now." Returningman: "My own favourite (and choosing one is not an easy task) is the album I just keep returning to - Fantasmatron . In my eyes (and ears) it is Bill's most rounded and complete set of musical statements in many years." "Like a fine wine this album gains depth with age (and playtime). Worth digging out the headphones for this one as there is lots of stuff deep in the mix. "Most artists of a "certain age" recorded their best work many moons ago. Bill seems to be in a golden phase of his artistic career at present, and is releasing some absolute gems." novemberman: "Fantasmatron instantly hit me as exceptional. I didn't want it end!" Albums Menu Future Past

Nelsonian Navigator - Issue Five - Published March 1997 Back to Top

Brave Flag Ukrainian download single Click image for cover Artwork Download single in support of the Ukrainian humanitarian charities appeal - Released October 2017. A-Side: BRAVE FLAG Currently unavailable on any album B-Side: MONDO BRAVADO Currently unavailable on any album "I'm sure you will all be aware of the illegal and brutal invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces under the direction of Vladimir Putin. I've watched the situation unfold from its beginning with increasing horror. The Ukrainian people are suffering loss of life and homes due to the cruel onslaught of Russian missiles, shelling and bombing. There have also been gross atrocities and war crimes committed by Russian troops that will shock and disgust anyone with an ounce of decency. "I wanted to help, even if only in a small way, so have created a special single, the 'A Side' of which is titled 'Brave Flag'. The 'B Side' is titled 'Mondo Bravado'. Both tracks are instrumentals in the rock genre and feature epic guitars. The tracks come straight from my home studio and are in unmastered form. "I'm making the single available to fans for FREE as a digital download. All I ask in return is that everyone who downloads the free single should please donate a minimum of £5 to the Disasters Emergency Committee's Ukrainian humanitarian charities appeal. Every donation, no matter how small, will help to provide vital humanitarian relief for those in need in Ukraine. "Thank you for your generosity and compassion. Enjoy the single!" Performed, recorded and produced by Bill Nelson. All rights Bill Nelson 2022. Donate here

Illuminated At Dusk Bill Nelson album - 16 June 2008 Albums Menu Future Past Purchase this download TRACKS: 01) Switch On The Sky, Light Up The Stars 02) The View From Mount Palomar 03) Dance Of The Luminous Dials 04) The Venetian Conjurer 05) A Spirit Map Of Montparnasse 06) Angels Obey Bells 07) No Memories Here To Make You Sad 08) Art Is My Aeroplane 09) Silver Sailboat On Samsara Sea 10) Springtime Comes A Dancing 11) The Vanilla Summer Of Mr. Whippy 12) Frankie Ukelele And The Fire In The Lake 13) Lakeside 14) The Eternal Fascinator 15) Thoughts Without Friction 16) Summer Over Soon 17) Little Kisses Wrapped In Chocolate 18) Illuminated At Dusk ALBUM NOTES: Illuminated at Dusk is an instrumental album issued on the Sonoluxe label in a single print run of 1000 copies. The album was recorded as the second part of a trilogy of complementary releases, the associated albums being Silvertone Fountains (issued concurrently with Illuminated at Dusk) and Mazda Kaleidoscope . Illuminated at Dusk is another album that was borne out of the Frankie Ukelele and the Fire in the Lake project commenced in mid-2007, with some of its content being then considered for Silvertone Fountains in December 2007 before finally ending up on Illuminated at Dusk with its track listing confirmed in February 2008. CURRENT AVAILABILITY: Available for purchase as a digital download here in the Dreamsville Store . BILL'S THOUGHTS: "Illuminated embraces music which, (I personally felt), was a little less introspective, (on the whole). It's a bit more geared towards the rock guitar end of my spectrum...(or plectrum!). The arrangements are sometimes rather 'epic' sounding, larger and more 'up-front' than Silvertone, and there is more use of overdriven guitar sounds and percussion, though still with some odd twists and turns. "The music here might, at one time, have found itself on a Nelsonica Convention album but its purpose in the trilogy is to shift gears a little, to slip into more familiar waters before diving deep into Mazda' s strange lagoon. In a way, Illuminated provides a kind of respite from the introspection of the other albums [in the trilogy: Silvertone Fountains , Illuminated at Dusk , and Mazda Kaleidoscope ]. A more familiar ride for some, perhaps." _____ "These three albums are not about breaking new ground, but about cultivating previous territory in ever more subtle, sophisticated and elegant ways. Their purpose is to throw even more light on the concept, to refine the ideas, to offer detailed commentary and illumination. "With each of these albums, I've been concerned with a single, direct, arrow of beauty. That was my Sagittarian bow's aim. They were intended to be considered as a trilogy...and whilst each has its own subtle identity, they are deliberately linked, each following on from, and commenting on, the other..." FAN THOUGHTS: andygeorge: "I've been listening to Illuminated at Dusk most of this morning and have been amazed at how bloody good it is! This on only a couple of listens, which is unusual for me. I'm no musician, I don't know all the ins and outs of the recording process and the technical stuff that goes with it....but I know what I like and...THIS IS GOOD! "From the wonderfully intriguing titles, (love to know what inspired some of these Bill), the opening track "Switch on the Sky, Light up the Stars", which flows flawlessly for me thru to the quirky "Springtime Comes a Dancing" and ending with the Dreamy "Illuminated at Dusk"...bliss!" steve lyles: "I am not one for saying this is better than that one etc, usually because I truly love them all but I have been plugged in once again by the music on this particular cd. I have found myself having epiphany like all over body tingles. I am only on my fourth listen. In the car on the way to work this morning I was literally out of my mind most of the time totally absorbed in the musical landscape god knows who was driving. This is very personal music nothing tribal about it at all but thats exactly why I love it, it is something I can relate to completely." mvande2: "Illuminated At Dusk is preciously beautiful, possibly my favorite of all that you have done. Such instrumental guitar gems are the reason I seek out your recordings. They are especially intelligent and what you do best in my humble opinion." major snagg: "Oh how stupid I've been!...I've had the audacity to complain about Bill putting out too many instrumental CDs. So here I am (tail between my legs, as it were) saying my apologies...Sorry, Sorry, Sorry... I sent off for the above CD yesterday, actually received it today (is that a quick delivery or what!) it's BRILLIANT. I just can't believe that I wasn't going to bother with this CD. I'm not going to be that stupid again. This a Quality CD in every way, very tuneful, melodic, richly textured and of course a sparklingly clean production. How do you do this Bill? So many 'top' studios would give their eye-teeth to get such a sound. "I'm waiting with my credit card for the vocal CD. To hell with birthday presents, I want it now..." paul.smith: "I have to add to this thread because that trilogy of albums for me epitomises all that I love in Bill's instrumental albums - they possess endless depth and never present themselves as 'given' listens - there's very little that's 'finite' within them...beautiful endless abstracts that conjure up aural images that simply cannot be articulated in words...makes me wonder how I did without them before they were created..." thunk: "I have taken an early liking to "A Spirit Map of Montparnasse", probably due to its 'expanse', which like "Fever Dream of the Starlight Man" (a long one again), allows Bill to really experiment with a piece and take it into a different place..." Dar: "One instant giant, that jumps out and grabs me by the spine and squeezes me is "Silver Sailboat in Samsara Sea". It has the majestic, magnificent, deep and stirring qualities of the best and boldest Nelson masterpieces, and much of that is from the specific guitar tones, and much from the flavor of the notes themselves." andypeace: "Having listened to your music for 30 years now, you've taken me on a fascinating musical journey through all sorts of genres, you've never run with the pack, nor should you, and I've always admired you for that!...I'm listening to Illuminated at Dusk as I write this and on first listen its gorgeous, and it floats my boat...Keep producing works of sublime beauty like this and I for one will be more than happy...have a gold star sir." wonder toy: "Stunning!!! What an incredible album. Love all of it, but here are the tracks that standout for me: "The View From Mount Palomar", "No Memories Here to Make You Sad", "Springtime Comes A Dancing", "Frankie Ukelele and the Fire in the Lake", and "The Eternal Fascinator". I take that back... 'ALL' of these songs standout. This is monumental my friends. Get this record. You will not be disappointed on any level. "Thanks for raising the bar again, Bill." Albums Menu Future Past

Time and Place live album - 1984 Yukihiro Takahashi Production/Contribution Menu Future Past BILL: Guitar and Vocals. Production/Contribution Menu Future Past

Jet Silver Be-Bop Deluxe single - 7 June 1974 Singles Menu Future Past TRACKS: A) Jet Silver B) Third Floor Heaven ORIGINALLY: "Jet Silver" and "Third Floor Heaven" are lifted off the Axe Victim album. NOTES: Jet Silver was the second Be Bop Deluxe single issued during the band's existence. The single was issued in a generic record company sleeve. Promo copies exist with the words "Demo Record Not For Sale" and a large 'A' printed on the label. PAST RELEASES: "Jet Silver" would re-appear on the 4 track Hot Valves EP (1976), with both songs also 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 Axe Victim (2020) - both in physical form and as a digital download. Singles Menu Future Past