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Quite possibly the greatest and most gifted record producer of the age.
Definitely irreplaceable…
From the many, many obituaries and retrospectives published since his passing, this piece from the Guardian seems to me to illustrate best the sheer breadth and depth of Quincy’s talent.
Rest in peace.
This news item appeared recently on the Anam Danu website:
Siobhan and Andy of Anam Danu have written, recorded, and self-released three original albums over the past five years. Back in 2023, they decided to focus on growing their creative partnership. They enjoy being in the studio, but like many musicians, they know that performing live is the true test of their music.
They realized that the music they create as a duo often needs more musicians to perform it live. Over the last year and a half, they searched for other artists who could help bring their ambitious work to life. In late 2023, they met Adrienne Dyer, whose beautiful soprano voice added a powerful element to their music. Together they started to create fresh tracks for a new album.
“Euphoria” explores what it means to be a mature adult in today’ s challenging times. It includes songs about storytelling and creativity, the value of long-term friendships, teaching and learning, the search for our roots, and the important choices we make as we grow older.
Most importantly, it highlights the need for joy.
Siobhan, Adrienne and Andy are particularly grateful to Mairéad for her gorgeous and striking cover art, which encapsulates the essence of the album perfectly.
“Euphoria” will be available for streaming and download from November 22nd.
Tags: album, Anam Danu, Euphoria, Music, release date
I posted this update on progress towards the release of the new Anam Danu album – ‘Euphoria‘ – on the Anam Danu website. For completeness I thought I would reproduce it here:
Progress continues toward the release of the new Anam Danu album – ‘Euphoria’.
The ten chosen tracks have been polished and given final mixes and the whole sent off to our mastering studio of choice – CPS Mastering in Vancouver. Brock McFarlane (who has mastered all of the Anam Danu albums thus far) has now sent us the first mastered copies and we are in the process of listening intensely in as many environments as we can – preparatory to signing off the album and sending it to our distributors and CD manufacturer.
We also now have the cover art for the release. Those who have followed Anam Danu’s exploits will know that we like to commission local artists to create the cover for each release. In this case the wonderful artwork that can be seen on this page is by Alberta artist – Mairéad – who has, in our view, captured the intent of the album perfectly.
Of Mairéad Siobhan writes:
“Mairéad is a multidisciplinary artist and designer based in Alberta, Canada. She expresses her art in paint and textiles. As a visual artist, she creates vibrant multi-media paintings and collage. Her love of detail, color and texture is evident in her one-of-a-kind unisex handbags, backpacks and wallets. She is an expert knitter whose cable-knit outerwear is beautiful and expertly made. Mairéad creates custom dog sweaters and jackets that are both stylish and playful. She is passionate about interior design and customizes existing pieces through upholstery, refinishing and fabric furnishings”.
Not long to wait now! I will post the release dates for ‘Euphoria’ just as soon as they have been confirmed.
No – this blog post is not about my shiny new computer – the which is humming away gently to itself whilst solving complex problems with one hand tied behind its back! In that department things are currently going well (though there is, of course, still plenty of opportunity for everything to go t*ts up!).
This is about a couple of other technology failures which caused one of us (The Girl) considerable inconvenience, and cost the other (me!) a packet of money.
Those who know me well – or who have hung around these pages long enough – will know that I drive a black Lexus SUV (a GX470). This splendid vehicle was no spring chicken when we purchased it shortly after our arrival in Canada. It dates from 2003 and is now, of course, getting on for a decade older than it was when we acquired it.
Now – I love the thing to bits and it has served me very well for a relatively modest outlay – helped by the fact that I don’t put that much mileage on it these days. Even so sometimes things do go wrong with it – and a little while back it started exhibiting a whining noise that had not featured before. I figured that I had better take it to our friendly local garage and get them to take a look.
I had to go downtown anyway a couple of days later, so I though I would stop by on the way back. As I drove cautiously back up the Pat Bay highway the whining noise was suddenly joined by an entire son et lumière of flashing warning lights. This did not look good. I had to queue for a while to turn left in the middle of the ongoing construction on the highway and had visions of the Lexus phuttering out on me – the which would have caused no end of problems at that particular spot.
Mercifully it kept going and I was able to pull into the garage forecourt. I turned everything off and went to find ‘the guy‘. When we came back to start the vehicle so that I could to demonstrate the issue there was no sign of life at all – not a click, not a whine, not even a grinding noise… nothing!
Oh well – if the thing is going to break down completely the forecourt of a garage is not a bad place for that to happen.
Apparently the battery had failed spectacularly (a dead open short) and the alternator (in trying to charge it) had burned itself out. Fortunately we were going away for a couple of days so it mattered not that the car was out of action until we returned.
Just before we left on our short trip (more on this later) The Girl was summoned on our return, to Kamloops (and beyond) – for her work. This would mean that after we got home on the Sunday she would fly out again on the Monday evening. Flying is routinely such a pain these days that the subsequent news during the day on Monday of delayed flights and suchlike did not come as a surprise. The Girl made it to Vancouver and then had to wait for a considerable time for her onward flight to Kamloops.
When it finally boarded it was already quite late. The plane taxied out to the runway, waited its turn and then lined up for takeoff. Throttles open and the turbojet surged down the tarmac…
…only for the pilot to abort the takeoff half way down! Now this sort of thing is definitely bad news! After returning to the gate and spending a lengthy period being assaulted by out-of-control kids and the sweltering heat (and having nothing to watch except the mechanics scratching their heads) the airline bowed to the inevitable and cancelled the flight. Cheap hotel rooms for all concerned and up early the next morning for another attempt.
Guess who was not impressed…!
Tags: Lexus, Technology, Travel, work
“The real problem is not whether machines think but whether men do”.
B. F. Skinner
Before I retired from The School back in the UK I persuaded one of my chaps there to build me a new computer for my studio. For those readers unfamiliar with such things, modern digital studios are based entirely on the computer, which not only handles all of the recording and editing tasks, but which can also (by means of samples and virtual instruments and processors and so forth) generate orchestras on demand… apparently out of thin air!
As the techniques required for such feats become more complex and sophisticated over time, so the processing power required to effect them increases. At the same time, any computer that has been in use solidly for a considerable period (more than a decade in the case of my studio machine) tends to become increasingly prone to failure – the which could result in the loss of precious and irreplaceable creations.
The long and the short of all this is that the time has finally come for me to replace my studio computer.
No big deal – you might think – but there are serious implications in so doing. My machine is used primarily for the creation of music – but also for my online teaching at the College. As indicated in my last posting Anam Danu is currently in the process of finalising a new album. The fall term – one of the two in which I teach – starts at the beginning of September. There is a relatively brief window in which to get everything working correctly.
Replacing a computer is not – in this case – a simple matter of buying a new device, plugging it in and firing it up. My musical pursuits require the use of a considerable number of musical applications, virtual instruments, sample libraries, software appliances and suchlike. All of these need to be installed on the new machine and all of the musical and other data that now virtually fill my old machine must be transferred to the new beast.
These are definitely non-trivial tasks and there are many potential pitfalls along the way which might cause important functions not to work correctly. These must all be patiently trouble-shot until everything is as it was before – but considerably faster and with storage capacity for much new creation over the coming decades.
You might get a sense from this brief discourse as to why I have repeatedly put off effecting this transfer over the past couple of years. I have – however – now reached the point of no return and all must be completed and tested in the shortest of orders if disaster is not to ensue.
Fingers firmly crossed!
I normally restrain myself from posting too much to this forum on the subject of my musical endeavours with Anam Danu – out of deference for those who have no interest in such matters. However, there has already been much activity this year and it felt to me that an update was probably a little overdue.
I posted this item to the news feed on our website at anamdanu.com:
The recent lack of activity on this news feed should not be interpreted as a sign that nothing is happening. Anam Danu have been busy behind the scenes; with results that are already becoming apparent.
A quick glance around will reveal that the website itself has undergone a considerable face-lift. We like to think that it is now fresher, cleaner and somewhat easier to navigate. Do let us know what you think.
You will also observe that we three have recently done something that we had studiously avoided doing for the past four years – to wit: participating in a photo shoot. Such things do not come naturally to any of us, but we hope that you find the results helpful in gaining a clearer picture of who we are.
In our last news update – which revealed the arrival of our new member, vocalist Adrienne Dyer – we also announced that work was well underway on our fourth album, with an intended release date later in 2024.
Well – we are still on target for that release, having written and recorded ten tracks for the album. We are currently mixing and sequencing them, following which they will be sent for mastering. Cover artwork has been commissioned and the pace is picking up.
If you would like to be notified when the new album becomes available – which for subscribers will be in advance of the general release date – subscribe to the Anam Danu newsletter by using the link below.
Beauty is everywhere a welcome guest.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
A week or so back we had house guests – in the shape of one of The Girl’s cousins and a friend who had come to Victoria to walk the challenging West Coast Trail. We (The Girl!) picked them up from the airport on the first Saturday and dropped them at an ungodly hour on the Sunday morning (me!) at the Victoria Central Bus Station. The following weekend we met them from the bus on the Friday and spent the weekend with them before their return to Toronto.
Amongst other delights we enjoyed a splendid lunch at the Church and State vineyard, as a reward for the morning’s sun-drenched exploration of Butchart Gardens. Whereas I have certainly posted images from Butchart’s on a number of occasions it is my opinion that one can never have too many photos of natural beauty.
Enjoy!
Tags: Butcharts, food and drink, Friends, Photo, Visitors
Well – we made it to Scotland in one piece – although the journey was not entirely trouble free. A three hour delay to our flight from Vancouver to London meant we had to catch a later flight to Edinburgh, which meant that we reached our apartment there at about 11:00pm, after 24 hours of travel.
The Girl had found us a splendid National Trust apartment right on the Royal Mile in the old town:
The only downside was that the apartment is on the fifth floor and we had to get our heavy suitcases up this staircase:
It is a good thing that I work out!
We spent a splendid couple of days in Edinburgh before heading for the Highlands. Here are some images:
“I’ve got to admit, it’s getting better,
A little better all the time”
John Lennon/Paul McCartney
Some years seem to bestow upon us an abundance of joy and positivity (in the personal realm if not on the national/international stage) whereas others seem fated to to serve up a seemingly endless procession of set-backs and knock-downs. 2024 has seen a bumpy start for The Girl and I, beset with such unexpected events as the exploding shower screen – the dying Mobiliser – and a variety of other unexpected expenses.
These things are, however, transitory and my optimistic nature leads me to look for signs that our fortune is once again improving. Take the glass shower screen – for example…
It had been a while since I posted to this forum the tale of its unexpected demise. The manufacturer of the screen sent us a replacement under warranty in a gratifyingly rapid time (suggesting thereby that this was not exactly an unheard of problem for them). We had by that point also received recommendations from various sources for contractors who could repair the bath tub (damaged by the falling glass) and install the replacement screen. That nothing beyond the delivery of the new screen had yet happened was because the bath-tub-fixing guys had not got back to us; presumably because business was booming and they were being kept busy. Clearly we could not do anything else until the tub was repaired.
I finally received a call from them and we fixed a date for their technical chap to have a look at the tub.
At least – that’s what I expected was going to happen. As it turned out he took a quick look and then retired to his vehicle, returning in short order loaded with equipment. He was clearly expecting to do the job there and then! I pointed out that we had not even discussed the cost of so doing. “No problem” – he explained – “It’s all under warranty“. He further informed me that they were handling all of the paperwork and that I need do not a thing. When I made reference to being able to get the replacement screen installed he told me that they would be taking care of that also! Now, that’s what I call service!
So – we now get to go on our holiday! On our return we will be carrying from the UK a replacement Mobiliser. Yes – we bit the bullet and bought a new one. Well – we are getting old and that thing is a daily godsend for The Girl…
We firmly expect to have a splendid expedition, about which I will doubtless have much to write and many photos to upload.
Tags: blessings, Holiday, Luck, Mobiliser, Shower screen, Travel
A few more images from the City of Glass!
All of these photos – as well as the images in the previous post – were taken from the window of our hotel room in Coal Harbour.
Cool – huh?!
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