Guitars and Life

As you'll know regular readers my album The Man Inside is now available.  (Note gratuitous plug there - seriously folks this is so cheap it's painful and I'm extremely grateful for any sales :-)).  I thought I'd probably sit back and think about some other musical directions etc. for a while - but surprisingly or maybe not I've found myself inspired to write a couple of new songs!  One is an old chord pattern that has been lying around for a long time - donkey's years actually - that I was playing through and suddenly a couple of lyrical lines hit me and fitted so well that I've sat down and written a complete lyric for it.  I get the feeling that it is one of those that'll need some additional work to get the lyrics really where I want them but it is at least 90% there after this weekends work.  The other number is a very typical one to my recent output on The Man Inside (second gratuitous plus :-)) and started as a little chord pattern that sounded ...

That Mrs F walked up the aisle and stood next to me.  She'd insisted I wasn't to look at her as she walked up, and I stuck to that promise.  When she drew level I looked at her and whispered "You look beautiful".  Today - day off!!!  We're off out somewhere to celebrate.  No doubt our thoughts will be distracted from that as Daughter-of-Furtheron has been on a swimming teachers course all week and has her exam today so part of us will be mentally with her hoping she does well.

I have been doing gratitude lists since my early days in sobriety. They were suggested to me at a meeting on bank holiday Today in August 2004 I just remember shit like that at times, shame I can't remember what Mrs F said a moment ago!  Anyway I did them daily for ages I had books of them. I do them less regularly now but they are a great leveler and reminder. Now some guru is letting the secret out of the bag :-)  good to see the rest of the world beginning to catch AA up. :-)

On Thursday last week we went to see the play Long Day's Journey Into Night.  My daughter mostly wanted to see it and given it's content (centred on an alcoholic family) and the setting (a house in a part of CT I know very well through my old job) we decided to go and see it. With David  Suchet in the lead role that was another incentive. I had actually taken the day off and Daughter-of-Furtheron, Son-of-Furtheron and I went to London for the day with the play as the climax. However after about 40 mins there was an odd noise and a light at the back of the set went off followed quickly by all stage lights and then we could hear a fire extinguisher going off! The play was stopped and after a few more mins we were asked to wait in the foyer. After about an hour it was clear they couldn't restart sadly. However some people were now quite angry and rude. Why? They were going to be at the play all evening so this wasn't upsetting their plans, the staff were clearly busy tr...

Finally catching up on some TV watching after a busy week.  Blackout was a fantastic 3 part BBC drama with Christopher Eccelston playing a city politician (Daniel Demoys) who is an alcoholic.  Basically a story about corruption and deceit it also deals fantastically well with alcoholism throughout.  Demoys wakes from another hellish day of drink to find that someone who he was involved in underhand dealings with has been killed.  He has marks on his fists showing he was in a fight the night before but it was a Blackout.  Now alcoholics reading this will be familiar with that feeling of "What the hell happened yesterday?"  This is that problem as Daniel has flashes of what happened but is not sure exactly.   Then in a moment of bravery he is shot protecting someone else.  He determines not to drink.  A nurse at the hospital helps him - telling him he has had a "moment of clarity" and then to call her when the moment he wants to drink agai...

This morning I am typing this post on my new Sony Android phone.  Yes folks I am joining the mobile revolution! So I am so far struggling with the keyboard but it does seem to be learning how useless I am and providing suggestions to help me. I hope to be able to use this to stay in touch more on blogs etc.

I've read a few blog entries from other bloggers in recovery talking about where they are in recovery/life/etc. at the moment and that plus other things have prompted me to come up with this post. It is good every now and then to have a moment of reflection a look back.  The last few months have been a little bit turbulent for me.  The job I'm now in has been an interesting journey - I'm just over 9 months into it and now through my "probationary" period, which is in itself interesting since when I joined the department was in the middle of the third phase of a major departmental restructuring, my hiring was into a new position created as part of this restructure itself as part of the management team.  However it took longer than originally anticipated for the next phases to complete to I've continued to be in limbo longer than was originally hoped.  This was good from some points of view, I've had plenty of time to get to know various people and gain so...

Yes folks I'm very happy to announce that a download version of The Man Inside is available from the Rock-Til-You-Drop Record Shop .  Also you can buy the CD from there as well and finally a free download is there of a few tracks off my first album Within.

So part two following the splurge on CDs this week. Asia - XXX Firstly a tip - when you hear that one of your favourite prog super groups from the 80s is planning a 30th anniversary album entitled XXX (see 30 in Roman numerals - these UK prog types are so funny!) think carefully about what you bung into the old google search box, especially when the group in question is Asia.  Something like "Asia band 30th anniversary album release date" - would be good just typing "Asia XXX" was a bad idea!  It was like several chapters of 50 Shades of Grey had been blatted all over the screen. Anyway enough of my search issues - what is the album like?  Very good.  Asia hit the scene in 1982 with their stunning eponymous debut album.  I remember buying that totally on spec and bunging on the old music centre and from the first power chord and then the first line of John Wetton's vocals on Heat of The Moment I was thinking "This is great, but different from what I...

I've gone CD crazy lately - not only is my second CD The Man Inside available now - (see link for price and ordering details) (see how clever that bit of marketing was eh?) but I've bought a bunch recent.  Here is first of a two part review of these purchases. Newton Faulkner - Write it on you Skin Mr Faulkner's third effort and a very good one.  He of the huge grin, long dreadlocks and acoustic singer/songwriter skills.  He has got his own sound/sound down pat now, more than once I thought as an intro hit me for the first time "I would know that is Newton anywhere".  This maybe isn't as strong as his debut album but more of a whole than his second.  Definitely will please his existing fanbase and may gain him a few more. Squackett - A Life Within A Day How prog is this!  Steve Hackett (ex. Genesis) and Chris Squire (Yes) collaborate on a full album together.  From the opening synth motif you know that you are dealing with top quality UK prog...

Another in the genre of modern day Templar novels, i.e. the Templar are still out there in someway.  This one seems to pitch them as bad guys - headed by a crazed lady who is trying to get her son to be president of the USA.  I will be honest I only bought this as there was a multibuy deal and this was the best I could see in that with whatever else I bought. Firstly - this is in a sequence and I've not read the others so that possibly didn't help my opinion of it but I wasn't impressed and won't look to go either forward or backwards in the series.  Too many people double crossing here and there, the plot is complicated possibly overly so but also there is little or no exposure or analysis of the characters, you're left with very 1 dimensional visualisations of them, the baddy is bad - very bad - the good guys can do no wrong and have endless tenacity etc.  There's a bit where one of the good guys says "This is where people go to the cops and there is no...

I don't normally do these tag things... but I'll do this one, ignoring the rule about tagging others... anyone wants to have a go please do...  I was tagged by vicariousdancer 1. What is your signature food dish?  Chinese I prepare two or three dishes as a mini-banquet or curry, Chicken Kashmiri 2. What hobby/passion/activity did you enjoy in the past that you wish you had kept up with and what is the main factor keeping you from taking it back up again?  Rugby - kept getting injured!  I also played flanker (back row forward) at school but by time I was 19/20 I simply hadn't bulked up enough for that position and was playing center at times which I didn't enjoy as much.   Now - the fact I'm nearly 50 is the biggest issue there! 3. Which fairy tale do you relate to the most?   Ugly duckling 4. What is the song that you can sing best?   One of my own :-)   I Used To Know Her 5. What was the weirdest thing that someone ever sai...

My second album The Man Inside is now available as a CD.  You will have heard many of the tracks via my Reverbnation and Soundcloud pages, but there are two previously unreleased tracks and a couple have had re-mixes etc. again not released anywhere previously. If you want to buy a copy, and why wouldn't you?!, then it is easy if you have a Paypal account.  Just send £6 to graham.hunt@hotmail.co.uk if you live in the UK and I'll pop one in the post to the address Paypal hold for the account.  If you are in the USA and want a copy to cover the international postage costs can you pay $16 again via Paypal as above.  

Regulars may remember my issue with the tax man . Well good news.  Yesterday lunchtime Daughter-of-Furtheron texted to say "There is a brown envelope from the tax man here for you".  I joked I might throw myself under a train.  Surprisingly although there was a lurch of fear, that dread, the seeping creep in your stomach, in your muscles that draining of strength, I never thought of drink.   A testament again to the power of the AA programme, no thought or need for a drink just a "Well I can do nothing about it now.  Open it at home and then decide next course of action".   These things seem little, simple, obvious.  I know but for years inability to emotionally cope with this stuff is what perpetuated my irrational drinking. Anyway - Mrs F arrived home early as she'd been on a first aid course - I'll postscript on that in a moment...   She opened the letter (she knows I hate her doing that but in this case I'll let it go!). ...

... why and their best work - in my humble opinion. I was on the train yesterday and thought I'd set myself the challenge of naming my personal top 10 guitarists, why I feel that and what I consider to be their best work.  Now limiting it to the top 10 wasn't easy, but here goes in no particular order... Steve Rothery No mystery that I'm a Marillion fan, have been for decades ever since Script for a Jester's Tear came out in the early 80s.  Now whilst many will only recall those heady Fish fronted Top of the Pops days for the band with Kayliegh and other big hits actually I grew to more like them with Steve Hogarth (H) on vocals from the late 80s onwards.  Steve has to be in my top 10 simply due to his incredible ear for melody.  His solos are stunning, Easter is again in my little opinion the best guitar solo ever !  Huge statement but simply that song builds from this little 12 string acoustic intro to the immense soaring solo where every note is just so...

Yes folks the CD is ready!!!   All pressed, printed and ready to go! Right in a few days I'll be announcing the various ways you can get hold of said masterpiece!

I was asked at short notice to do a chair at a meeting last night.  I said yes - I've learnt that it is best for me to do these things.  Tradition 7!   What?!  Ok I talked about my view of it, I did a little research before dashing over there, like the 1986 Act AA had passed so it could refuse outside donations etc.   I talked about for me this being more than money (although that is the real emphasis) but also about service etc. Anyway - 20mins later I shut up.  There was a newcomer in the meeting - I spoke with him afterwards.  Poor man.  "How do you just stop?"   There is the dilemma of all alcoholics at this first step of the journey.  Big tough lad he was, looked like he could handle himself if you get my drift.  I asked him had he tried stopping, he had on his own via another programme all failed.  Why was he here then?   His kids, his daughters both late teens I think had said they'd disown him...