In which Glastonbury prompts me to action

I lost my blogging mojo rather, at least for a few weeks. But I tried not to get all angsty about it. The mojo, I thought, will either return or it won't. Que sera, sera . . . 

In truth I had been exceptionally busy with my two jobs (freelance writer/ editor and purveyor of high quality dog care- ahem) and grappling with shingles and the dodgy shoulders. Jobs now come into the 21st century category of income streams so I have been busy keeping the income streams flowing, which sounds marginally more professional than than merely working. 

I slipped into 'oh, must blog about that - mañana' mode but mañana never came. Does it ever? Until, that is, my daughter and her husband went on their annual pilgrimage to Glastonbury. The Dear Daughter sent regular updates and photos from her iPhone so that, whenever I found myself feeling wistful and wishing that I were there too, I would look at the pictures of deep, deep mud and realise that Glastonbury, this year, would not have been a sensible choice.

That is where the BBC came to the rescue, as it does most years,  with plenty of Glastonbury coverage and not just of the megastars. So, from the comfort of the sofa, I was able to watch: Coldplay, who - truly - played a blinder of set, with amazing lighting and effects; the first half of U2 until I got bored, all of Paul Simon (who was suffering from some wretched infection that didn't do his voice any favours - but Paul Simon is Paul Simon), some Plan B, and absolutely all of B B King. At 85, this extraordinary man is still performing - and brilliantly, even if he has to sit down on stage these days. Well, at 85, it's allowed. I'm afraid that I gave up rather on Laura Marling after just one song, which was more than enough. Apologies to those of you who adore her.

I haven't caught up with Beyoncé's set; to be honest, her style of music and presentation doesn't do much for me but I will say no more, lest I find myself cast out into the exterior darkness, like poor old Zane Lowe. (But at least Zane's reaction proves that it's not just an age thing.)

There was, however, a single performance by the Raghu Dixit Project, an Indian group, who were new to me, that had me quite spellbound. So much so that I immediately emailed the Dear Daughter and the Friend in New Zealand (AKA the Finz). 'You must listen to this', I cybersqueaked, sending them both a link, not to the Glastonbury coverage but to an earlier performance of the same song by the same group on Later . . . with Jools Holland.

The three of us share a passion for India; we've all been there and the Finz was my travelling companion on the quest for my Indian family roots a few years ago. She is also my constant point of reference on matters musical; If she loves a particular singer, musician or piece of music, the chances are that I will too, and vice versa. And we particularly love the thrill of live music. She hadn't heard of Raghu Dixit either but, ever since I sent her the link, she too has been working her way through everything that is available on YouTube. I suggested that she might also like Adele - and she does. In fact, Raghu Dixit and Adele have provided the soundtrack to the bag-packing that is now under way in New Zealand, as the Finz prepares to fly halfway round the world for a month's stay in the UK.  

She'll be here in just over a week. Can't wait. And, by the time her train pulls into Tiverton Parkway station, the Raghu Dixit CD will be here too. (Yes, I'm still old-fashioned enough to buy CDs). We'll be whizzing along Devon's lanes listening to this and smiling rather a lot. No words needed.

Comments

[Kay]

Thank you so much for introducing Raghu Dixit! His cd, "Raghu Dixit" is on its way here too.

[Friend In New Zealand]

:-) Can't wait to be stepping off that train and whizzing along those leafy lanes with this summer's soundtrack! A bientot, the Finz X

[Nan]

I LOVE this. Thank you so much for posting the video. I, too have a deep fondness for India, though I've never been. And hey! I buy cds, too.:<)

[wendy robertson]

Lovely post. You are so today, so inspiring. My blog has slipped and I miss it. Reading you, and having thrown off one big comitment from my non income stream I sm gesring up to start again. Soon. wx

[60 Going On 16]

Not only have i fallen by the wayside in terms of blogging but also in responding to comments. And I have done very little blog visiting. Must try harder.

Kay : I am so glad you enjoyed it enough to buy the CD. Smiles all round.

Dearest Finz - I might even clean the car in your honour (well, it is used as a dog taxi most of the time . . ). See you very soon; soundtrack at the ready. X

Lovely to hear from you again, Nan, and so glad you loved Raghu (how could one not?) I'm immersing myself this year in books about India and books by Indian authors. It brings it all back to me and it's the next best thing to being there.

Hello Wendy; so easy for the blog to slip and something all bloggers experience sooner or later, I'm sure. This is my sixth year of blogging so inevitable, I suppose, that things will fall away from time to time. I'm sure you will get back into your blogging stride too - but at least you have the excuse of being an author, and a prolific one too . . .

[Nan]

I bought the self-titled cd at iTunes! Have you read the Vish Puri mysteries by Tarquin Hall? Or the Marriage Bureau series by Farahad Zama? Both are utterly delightful. And then my favorite memoir in the world - three books by M.M. Kaye about her life there. I'll be interested in your titles.

[Maggie B.]

D. thank you so much for this piece of beloved India! Was fortunate enough to spend three months there this past winter, all wonderful, haven't quite recovered yet, still working my way through a pile of books about India, so Raghu will make a wonderful soundtrack to my reading.

[materfamilias]

I hope you don't mind that I borrowed this from you, linking to you in tomorrow morning's post. I'm looking forward to listening to the CD which I'm off right now to order.

[60 Going On 16]

Nan: favourite Indian writers, writing in English - Rohinton Mistry, Amitav Ghosh, Kiran Desai, Vikram Seth, and I could not possibly exclude Salman Rushdie, who blazed such a trail. (Would love to read more Indian writers in translation.) But I started out, almost 40 years ago with Kamala Markandaya's The Golden Honeycomb. For India seen through the perspective of Western eyes, I will always be grateful to German-born novelist, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, and , more recently, to William Dalrymple for his superb historical (White Mughals) and contemporary (The Age of Kali) accounts.

Three months in India, Maggie, how fantastic. I went out to join the FinNZ wh was spending six months there. We are desparate to to resume our India travels, not least to see Madurai, although I would also love to visit the more northerly parts the country.

Materfamilias: delighted that you have borrowed. That's what friends are for! Have just caught up with the wedding story and photos and will be back again to leave a comment.

[GauravVaz]

Hi! I am Gaurav, the bass player for 'The Raghu Dixit Project' and I just came across your blog and I can't thank you enough for your immense praise, and your kind words about our music.

We are performing in the UK at the moment and will be starting our summer tour (we're taking a week off after Glastonbury) and would love to have you come and watch one of our shows.

http://raghudixit.com has all the dates, and I am looking forward to seeing you soon :)

[60 Going On 16]

Hello Gaurav - how fantastic to hear from you. And huge thanks for the kind invitation to come and watch one of your shows. I can't quite believe this but the dates you are performing, I have to be at home in Devon (sadly no tour dates here in the West Country!) and, on the dates I'm free, you're not performing. Ho hum. However, I now have the perfect excuse to come back to India, so I'll keep a close eye on where you are and when. And the next time you're in the UK, I'll be first in line for tickets.

Hope the tour goes brilliantly. You are all the living proof that great music crosses boundaries, cultures and languages - not to mention generations. It's one of the most unifying forces for good that I know.

[Sally]

Your blog (and indeed your life) is always so inspiring, so no matter how long your distractions and digressions in the real world last, I am always pleased to see a new post, especially with new music and books (in the comments above).

[60 Going On 16]

Thank you so much Sally - that's s kind.

I do, truly, appreciate all your comments, which remind me why I started blogging all those years ago - and why I should hold fast through the blog-lean times and carry on.

[Shelley]

That man has an amazing voice and a wonderful style. Thanks for sharing.

[Mardel]

I've skipped on over from Mater's place, and have to admit I was already mentally twirling around, entranced with the idea of Coldplay and Paul Simon and BB King all spinning around in my head, and then I listened to the Raghu Dixit, who is new to me also, although I knew to expect it from Mater, but I listened here first. Now that cd shall be on its way to me shortly, and in the meantime I must pull out a few disks by the aforementioned artists and sit with my knitting in musical nirvana.

Sorry to ramble, but I just do.

[60 Going On 16]

Shelley: so glad to hear that you too are impressed. The word on Raghu is spreading!

Ditto Mardel - and you are most welcome here. Enjoy the knitting. I should dig mine out; it has been languishing for far too long.