Santa Lucia in Sweden

Santa Lucia is celebrated in Sweden on 13 December... whether you experience it in church or at Globen, it's unforgettable.

There's nowhere more beautiful than Stockholm at this time of the year. It's a city of light.

I was fortunate enough to spend more than three years in Stockholm, and to work with a wonderful small team of people (photo by Cato):

 

Sweden has some great blues singers and musicians too, like Louise Hoffsten

- although you couldn't get much further away from the image of Saint Lucia.

Some find her version of this Muddy Waters song a little too different. Ignore the images, listen to her play that mouth-harp.

The Season of Goodwill, the Czech Way

What better way to get in the feel-good mood than with Ryba's Christmas Mass?

Followed by this carol:

Vánoční koleda: Půjdem spolu do Betléma 

This is another delightful carol sung by  Linda and Radek in a simple home video

And a recording by my old friend, the songwriter and guitarist Vladimir Merta, made in 1989, the year I left Prague

It wouldn't be my image of Golden Prague without hearing from another old friend, the brilliant  Jan Vodnansky  (Jan Vodňanský) 

and Jan again 

Finally, another old friend who found fame as a child actress/singer:

Jiří Suchý with Magda Křížková - Toulaví zpěváci

The Ionian Islands and Epirus, A Cultural History- still selling well

Waterstones book-signing, today.

"The Ionian Islands and Epirus"

Online excerpts

Update
Review in the Times Literary Supplement, 11. 2. 2011:

Luckily the snow turned to rain.

 

(Photo Above: Dorset Echo)

ALEXIS, Dorset Soul Sensation!

A lively performance at a local Indian restaurant by ALEXIS last night, singing all the Motown and Tina Turner hits with great panache and conviction. A very talented and professional singer.

She deserves to be much better known. With good management and a live backing group, she could hit the big-time.

A Letter about Smoking in Greece

The Athens News sometimes prints some good letters from readers, such as the first one here about smoking in cafes and restaurants. Let's hope the law is being enforced this time around.

Update, December 17th, Richard Pine in The Irish Times.

The Wolf is Back (Howlin' Wolf) - for Ian

This one's for Ian and family. Not the ideal Christmas or New Year's song!

Going Down Slow

Did you know that the spoken introduction is by Willie Dixon, not Howlin' Wolf?

I Have Had My Fun  

Man, you know I’ve enjoyed things that Kings and Queens will never have-

In fact Kings and Queens will never get-

And they don’t even know about,

And good times, ooohmmm!

I have had my fun….

Now looka-here,

I did not say I was a millionaire

But I said I’ve spent more money than a millionaire.

If I had kept all the money I’ve already spent

I would have been a millionaire a long time ago-

And women! Googlie-mooglie!

I have had my fun...

Another cool-cat song, more suitable for the Christmas shopping season:

Shoppin' for Clothes, by The Coasters. Ian is right about the brilliant inventive wit and poetic comic narrative of so many Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller lyrics.

"Try it on, stand in the mirror and dig yourself ".

It takes me back to schooldays in Bruton, Somerset, going to the "out of bounds" cafe with a juke-box where everyone selected "Yakety-Yak" and "Charlie Brown".