Death of An Inventor

I heard this morning that Andre Cassagnes had died last night, age 86.  "Andre who?", you might ask, as did I when I first heard his name.  He was the inventor of the Etch A Sketch, that almost magical drawing toy that allowed you to create a new blank canvas with a simple swipe.  We loved that toy as kids and with over 100 million sold, we were not alone.  It's an invention that still brings a smile to my face. 

I think his obituary should be written on one, or perhaps his tombstone could feature one so that people could add their own temporary epitaphs.

They Don't Write Like That Anymore

I recently saw an obituary, in an English music magazine strangely enough, and only belatedly so, because of how long it takes for these magazines to reach our shores.

It was for Australian journalist, Murray Sayle (1-1-26 to 18-09-2010), and it prompted me to look further. In doing so, I found an obituary (among several) in one of our local papers and had to marvel at what a story his life made.

As a journalist, he covered half-a-dozen wars, located Francis Chichester on his solo yacht trip and on the same trip, went on to track down Che Guevara and be the first to report that he had left Cuba to take the revolution to South America. He also managed to interview infamous British spy, Philby, in Moscow, the only journalist to do so after Philby's defection. His career at The Times ended when he resigned on principle over the Bloody Sunday shootings in Derry, his viewpoint being eventually vindicated a few months before his death. After leaving The Times, he spent 30 years living and working in Japan. Somewhere in there, he also climbed Mt Everest. All in all, it sounds like he was a pretty remarkable individual.

I wonder what he made of today's journalism with so many stories revolving around celebrity and research amounting to little more than running searches on Twitter.

Last of The Soul Men

Solomon Burke was huge in every sense of the word. Father of over 21 kids according to the voice-over at the end of this track.

And now he's gone too. On the same day as Dame Joan Sutherland no less. But I'm a soul man rather than an opera fan, so while I can appreciate La Stupenda's reputation, it is the death of the last of the 60's male soul greats that leaves me with the greater sense of loss.

The Little Guys

Tony Curtis and Norman Wisdom are both with us no more. The world's just lost 2 of its greatest little guys. While both were big stars in their day, it was through their characters that I remember them.

When we were kids, Tony Curtis was Danny Wilde in The Persuaders alongside Roger Moore's Lord Brett Sinclair. In what has to be one of the greatest opening credits ever made on TV with a great John Barry theme, Tony Curtis's character, Danny Wilde, was shown as the street fighter who had to battle his way all through life in stark contrast to his lofty offsider.

Norman Wisdom was from an even earlier era and while we certainly didn't understand any of the social satire, as kids you couldn't help but identify with the beleaguered Pitkin as he struggled his way against the odds with nothing but his good intentions to get him through.

In a world where stardom and fame are everything and yet which still feels all the more fleeting for it, the characters played by Tony Curtis and Norman Wisdom leave us with a sense of longing for a time that seemed more innocent and genuine. It's illusory of course but then that's what actors do. May they both rest in peace.

O My Soul: Alex Chilton RIP

This is somewhat belated even by my own lax standards.

A couple of weeks ago, I heard that Alex Chilton had died on March 17, 2010.

This didn't receive anything like the mainstream media coverage that say, Malcolm McLaren's death received. And most people (of the vast numbers of people that read this blog) will say "Who?" but I would also wager that most people have heard Alex Chilton singing "The Letter" by The Box Tops without knowing who the lead singer was. He sung that was when he was only 16.

I also only discovered Alex Chilton late, namely when his subsequent band, Big Star, had their first 2 albums, #1 Record and Radio City, re-released on a single CD. This was simply one of the best CD re-releases ever! Hearing this music for the first time was a revelation. There was something joyous and yet fragile about it at the same time. You also quickly realised that you belonged to a pretty exclusive (read "obscure") club. This was not music that you were about to be hearing on the radio anytime soon. And yet this was not because the music was "difficult" in any way. In fact, the artists influenced by Big Star had been all over the radio: REM and Cheap Trick to name but two of them.

The "obvious" song, if a track can be described as such for appearing as an album track on a Bangles album, was "September Gurls". It was also covered by a strangely hip-to-it, latter-day version of The Searchers.

There were plenty of other delights however, to be found on this CD. "O My Soul", "When My Baby's Beside Me" (a great driving song), "The Ballad of El Goodo", "Don't Lie To Me" and "You Get What You Deserve" were all great to name just a few but the real joy for me was "Thirteen". This beautiful melody over the simplest of arrangements with its innocent vulnerability stood out from the rest. It remains one of my favourite songs of all time. As in "ever, ever" to quote a mate of mine.

Their next work Third/Sister Lovers was also subsequently reissued and in many circles is regarded as their greatest work although much of it was not music that could be readily played live, "Too Wagnerian for my present band", Chilton once noted! To my mind though, Big Star and Alex Chilton as a solo artist never repeated the simple magic of those first 2 albums.

A couple of great articles can be found at Popmatters: a poignant obituary featuring moving first-hand testimony along with an equally heartfelt summary of his career and life.