Singing the Blues because it's raining again - My World

Here we go again

My World

It is absolutely horrible weather here. This is colloquially know unaffectionately as typical British Summer weather- rain rain and er more rain. So I am most definitely not out and about with the camera. Until it improves we will be plundering the recent archives. Recent as in the last couple of months. As far back as May and a little something today from a musical event you may recall me showing you called the Laxey Blues Festival.



This is an event I like very much as I really love live music, both working as a photographer and purely as a fan. I tend to juggle the fun with the work, camera in one hand drink in another. You can get some fun results. Here is quite an early image of one of the first acts on at the marquee, Shore Hotel. A lone singer who entertained with a diverse range of songs. Anyone on the island can name this person that would be great. In fact you have seen him before as a silhouetted image in black and white. Now he's out of the shadows. Does he remind you of anyone who may of looked like this if he had still been alive? I'll leave you with that. I'll also leave you to take a peek into other my world's here

MONOTONE! - MONOCHROME WEEKLY

Black, White & The Blues

Still wading through the Laxey Blues Festival images the festival. A teasing silhouette of a shadowy singer with all the backdrop of all the musical paraphernalia caught in the lighter side. A simple workaday l image. I wonder if the singer recognises themselves though?


Musicians are going to feature a lot at the moment. Well it makes a nice respite from the Ramsey Swing Bridge, the beach, the park etc. Also a sneaky way to get a few people in. Soon though the sultans of swing and guitar heroes will give way to the other men in black( well a rainbow of colours actually) those that roll into town on two wheels. ITV will be doing the TV coverage this year too. Don't know what I'm on about see back posts to see boys swinging into action. If some of the images look familiar other than my blog, they might just be in that bike magazine you picked up at the airport.

So for my world this week, a pub, the beach, the park, the rugby, the music or the bikes. Tell me.

Always open to suggestions as to what you'd like to see.

LAXEY BEACH BLUES - SKYWATCH

Red White and the Blues

As I am still sifting through the Laxey Blues Festival images.I mean no time to go hunt the skies tonight for sunsets and crepuscular clouds(Dewdrop, go see for awesome storm chasing images, will know what I'm talking about) We got clouds, we got blue skies, we got a flash of red to spice up the colour and even got a pebble sand beach. That'll do for you won't it tonight? Just be grateful in wasn't another Swinging bridge image. I mean we only had that yesterday and even I would suggest another one today would be a tad like overkill.

ROIE-YSSAGH...THE MANX JAZZ KATS - ABC - R

All That Jazz!

This week we are up to R in the ABC so I've thrown in a little Manx for you roie-yssagh. Ah but what does it mean? Read on and all will become clear, well I hope so. This is me remember, all for a little lateral thinking. For now though the images, all five of them,(one pic may not open) of the Manx Jazz Kats, who formed in 1993 and regulars on the gig circuit here(yes locals!)playing outside the Riverside of course at the Laxey Blues Festival. Terrific they were too. Terrific to photograph as well I might add.

Last week I showed you the guitarist and the saxophonist. Well guess what the saxophonist left a comment to tell me who they are. These are his words below


"Hello Babooshka
Well, the floral shirt and the alto belong to me, Colin Clark of the Manx Jazz Kats.
And the blue bass guitar and the red shirt belong to Robert Woollams, our bassist.
So, fame at last!

Before we did our set I made comment that the blues festival was the only gig we do where appearance seems to count for more than the music, so I am now feeling most prescient"


How about that! So there you are, but note the closing word, prescient. We do like a wordsmith on this blog don't we folks? Prescient means foresight like the prediction of events or outcomes, foreseeing a certain situation. Colin Clark spooky predictions about his own shirt, so true and used the marvellous word prescient to sum up. Prescient in Manx is you guessed it roie-yssagh. Now who could have predicted Colin, you would choose the word for R this week. Most roie -yssagh indeed.

NOT ANOTHER PLUCKING PERFORMER! - ABC

What the pluck is he strumming?

This week Abc is brought to you my the letter P

Can you see a pattern forming this week? Yes be prepared to be inundated with musician images from the, now finished, Laxey Blues Festival. Don't worry they won't all be close ups of little men playing with their instruments. In fact I will have a fabulous skywatch, an arresting sight, ghostbusters, some petal power, people watching...... Boys keep swinging is on hold. Well they aren't on hold anymore of course, but they may just be Facebook images. I know these people a little too well. Oh yes and to keep all you monochrome maniacs happy a bevy of your arty performance wide shots. Forgive my excursion from Ramsey to Laxey but I would seriously get the blues if I didn't get to watch the Blues. Honestly it's a "workthang" too. Hard work taking 193 images you know and well someone has to drink the Jack Daniels on offer. Rude not too and it's surprising how you see the moon is all I'll say. Friday, sweeties Friday.


This "plucking performer"( I know strumming is the correct term but we are on P not S and I'm using artistic license) is from the same band as yesterday's "sax appeal" image. I went with the colour again instead of the usual monochrome simply because I liked the hue(note I like me, me, me) of the red shirt seeping into soft focus, the blue guitar and those skin tones. Yes, yes I promise I will show you those atmospheric mean and moody blues/jazzy black and white images, today I want to splurge on the skin tones. To see other Laxey Blues Festival images from previous years, click colours below.


Harmonica Man

Back Door Slam

Reloaded

Sax Appeal '09


Once again image not a crop, as taken just a low res re size for the blog, so don't be a meanie and stealy or you take money out of my pocket(that's why they are smaller images so they pixelate if meanes nick them.) Yes photographers eat too. Chips and COLD Milkshakes. You have noted I have a cold milkshake issue this week. Bad service, you know who you are! No I won't let it lie!

Go to Mrs N for a plethera of O's.


Not the laughing policeman at 400 tomorrow

LAXEY BLUES FESTIVAL 2009 - MY WORLD

Sax appeal!

My World

Laxey Blues Festival 2009 images finally here. Yes, this is why I have been off the blog, because of little men like this playing with their instruments that just had to be captured. So with Jack Daniels in one hand and camera in the other, 193 images later my work was done. Well the first part. Next is sorting out which are the sales ones. As usual, a good time was had by all into the early hours over the Bank Holiday Weekend. The festival as I have said before is the pre curser to the Isle of Man TT Road Races. It's become such a national(well small island) institution visitors could be forgiven for assuming the event is older than it's 11 years. Attracting international( yes not just Manx folks, all colours and creed) and local musicians it's a must see event for islanders and any wandering visitor. Yes people do come over just for the blues but not get the blues. Held at various venues throughout the village of Laxey, the day events free and evening line up priced accordingly, the music extravaganza therefore includes all budgets and caters for all ages. If you like rock, blues, a touch of folk, but definitely live music, then this is the event for you. Tips would be take the kids in the day, leave them at home at night and book a taxi in advance to take you home, otherwise you will end up sleeping on a park bench in Laxey.We've come close. Other tips would be if your kids throws stones, rocks at other kids and are generally little son of a bi... then I will(as I did) tie up their rope swing and teach you a lesson. Little brats bang out of order. Throwing rocks with the intent of causing pain is assault. Never ever p..s off a photographer when they are working. Never con their guest into buying a warm milkshake that is supposedly served cold either.


Not a clue who the saxophonist is or the group. So many groups so little time, so drunk. Anyone care to fill in the blanks feel free. Obviously I will be showing you the obligatory black and white close ups and long atmospheric images, but why start off obviously? Instead a vibrant colour one. Gotta love that funky shirt to start with, the warm golden tones of the sax and the guitarist red shirt adding depth and layering. How perfectly manicured are those nails too gals? Sometimes colour really is the way to go. As usual image as taken, no alerations, crops or othewise, just resized and low res for blog. It's My World, it's what I do photography and My World is the sales of the images. So please permission sort use, otherwise you will starve this photographer and I'll get more than the blues.

Klaus, Imac, Fishing Guy, Ivar, Tom, Louise, Wren, Sandy and others are to thank for the My World neme. Click here for more my world's just for fun again of course.

More Laxey Blues to follow including a few cheeky images. All I'll say for now.

B.

THEME DAY SHADOWS AND SKYWATCH

Ramsey Swing Bridge 18/100

Skywatch/Theme Day Shadows

Cobweb

Here we go again. Almost overlooked the CDP theme of Shadows. Actually almost overlooked Skywatch too. Oops! So today a combination of two themes Skywatch and CDP Mayday. A shadowy, sinewy skywatch. For those that know the story we are up to 18 of the" Cult of Babooshka's Swing Bridge"For those that haven't a clue why on earth the image has a magic number of 18(not Hanger 18, just 18) and is entitled "Cobweb"(working title, you may call it lace or golden diamonds, blah di blahs, I'm easy on the name game) all you need to know is I need to get 100, and they must appear on the blog. Not every day obviously but at random intervals. Bit like my posts at the moment, random intervals. Obviously this was either an early evening or early morning image(I take so many I have genuinely forgotten and didn't digital timestamp the image as I was using the little point and shoot not the big camera) due to the golden sun filtering through metal grid work of the interweaving iron lattice....oh enough twaddle you decide.


For more wonderful shadowy images, just for fun remember, click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Skywatch watchers can be found here. Many thanks to Dot for the inspirational idea, Tom for the first caretaking and the My world gang for looking after skywatch now.


This weekend I will be at the Laxey Blues Festival. Finally. Don't expect me around a lot, busy organizing few images for a music magazine and a travel website. Jack Daniels in one hand camera in another, working or not I intend to have fun. I take my music enjoyment very seriously. If you are good I'll let you see the images that aren't used on the blog. So behave!

BACK DOOR SLAM

Back Door Slam
Laxey Blues Festival
When they were a baby band!

One from the archives, my own personal little olympus shots. Not a work shot, which is why it's
not a great shot. This shot is has nothing to do with photography today, but the music. So why a shot of this band today? Read on.

Back Door Slam are a blues band from the Isle Of Man. I could enthuse all day about this band, not just because they are genuine homegrown talent, but beacuse they are exceptionally talented musicians. I was lucky enough to see these lads, when they really were boys at the Laxey Blues Festival a few years back. They even jammed in a local pub afterwards. Everyone knew then these lads had something special.

This week I got an email telling me the blog had been name checked along with the band. Followed the link to guess what little old Backdoor Slam who are setting the world a light in Colarado at the Telluride Blue and Brews Festival. To see and read more about the festival check out Lisa, Telluride DP which has a great round up of festival posts. Anything in blue by the way is a link.

One day I would like to just wander into Backdoor Slam in Ramsey, take pics and publicise them on the blog. Give us a shout next time you are this way lads. I'd also like to photograph Pink Floyd, but sad news RICK WRIGHT died today aged 65 after a long battle with cancer. I really am saddened by this . Photography is a passion, a job, but music is my love affair.

LAXEY WHEEL

Laxey Wheel, The Lady Isabella(named after the Lieutenant's Governer's wife ot the time) was designed by John Casement in 1854 and used to pump water away from the mines. It still remains the largest working watermill in the world. Now, it's one of the main tourist attractions on the island. The brave, for a small fee can go to the top and survey the land around. I just chose part of the wheel today because I was more interested in the spokes. It struck me that these would probably not be constructed this way now on the grounds of health and safety.

The "Triskelion", the 3 legs of man symbol displayed on the side (not in view but in an earlier post) is the national image of the island and is actually the wrong way round. They forgot to reverse the image when it was transfered and so remains the opposite way round. Incidently you may have seen the 3 legs symbol on another islands flag, that of Sicily. Now you're not so sure if I'm joking when I refer to the "Manx Mafia"

Laxey, is from the Norse word Laxa and means "Salmon River." A normally sedate town the quiet is disrupted(in a good way) once a year for the Laxey Blues festival. Virtually the whole town is turned into a mini Glastonbury, without the mud, and good time is had into the early hours by all as seen by earlier posts this week.

LAXEY BLUES FESTIVAL RELOADED

Another from the Laxey Blues Festival. As you can see the lighting in these venues is always quite poor. The photographer(yes me) is usually a little merry aswell on the local ale by this time, so getting serious with the camera is the furthest notion from my mind. It's a fine line on these type of occasions, especially live music events which I adore, whether to be professional and dispassionate and seek out the ideal images or just kick back and be a fully fledged audience participant. Falling somewhere between the two camps I try and establish a happy medium. Usually though, the fan takes over. Who wouldn't want to enjoy a musical feast such as the Blues festival.

The band, as mentioned in a previous post are "Walter Ego." A local band that has many a line up change, but still maintain a quality sound.

I frequently mention the TT and have been asked via comments what this is. Basically, as I've said before, it's the oldest motorbike road races in the world. TT stands for "Tourist Trophey" and is not one but a series of week-long races for various class(size) of motorbikes and sidecars. A month to go now before the island is swamped with TT enthusiasts, including Mrs Nesbitt of
ABC Wednesday who can be found at MRS NESBITT'S PLACE

LAXEY BLUES FESTIVAL

Laxey Blues Festival 2008 is no more! As usual, a good time was had by all into the early hours over the weekend. The festival is the pre curser to the TT. This year, celebrating it's 1oth anniversary, although it's such a national institution visitors could be forgiven for assuming the event is older. Attracting international and local musicians it's a must see event for islanders. Held at various venues throughtout the village of Laxey, with the day events free and evening line up priced accordingly, the music extravaganza therefore includes all budgets and ages. If you like rock, blues, a touch of folk, but definately live music, then this is the event for you.

The venues tend to be dark, and can be unforgiving for photographers. I tried a few different shots this year to try and use the darkness, rather than compete with it. Here then is harmonica man from the fabulous "Walter Ego."