May, 2008 Archive

Joe Cocker Video – N’Oubliez Jamais Hits 250k On YouTube!

Just seen the Joe Cocker Video I acted in eleven years ago in London and Paris has just reached over 250k views on YouTube.

I never thought in a million years so many people would have seen it when we were filming back in the summer of 1997.

Funny how things turn out, and how the Internet has propelled some media further than anyone could have believed way back then…

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Genesis DVD – When In Rome 2007 – Now Out!

 

I get a bit of stick for being a Genesis fan, mainly because people jumped on the anti Phil Collins bandwagon in the early-nineties and never got off!

Most people can’t tell the difference between Genesis music and Phil’s tracks, probably because it’s him singing. But there is! The last few albums have all been written through collaboration, Phil, Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks simply jamming together and seeing what results.

Three Sides Live was the first album I ever bought back in 1986. It was a double album and aged 15 I was very pleased I was getting more for my well-earned pocket money 🙂

Since then I’ve followed their progress through the nineties to their tour last year. It was a real surprise that they’d decided to get back together. Cynics may think it was all about money but I couldn’t give a monkeys. I’d last seen Phil live in Phoenix, Arizona in 2004. He only played one gig in London on that tour and the tickets sold out in minutes. Going for £000’s on eBay I figured it’d be cheaper to stay with friends in Scottsdale and pay dollar prices for a ticket, than it would be to watch him on home ground.

One personal story happened in 1990. I found out where Phil’s management offices were in London and wrote to him asking for a summer job on the “We Can’t Dance” world tour. I was at Exeter University at the time doing a degree in Drama. His PA, Annie Callingham wrote back saying it wouldn’t be possible and that the band outsourced their crew to production companies.

Somehow I had the balls to write back to Annie and say I appreciated her response but wanted to hear back from the man himself.

So imagine my surprise when a letter turned up thanking me for my reply and explaining that although Phil was touring in America, he’d taken the time to write a handwritten note and faxed it thorough to his offices. The envelope contained the fax. It was his handwriting because he writes all his album covers by hand.

It said something like:

“Dear Mel, Thanks for your interest in working on the Genesis tour but we hire specialist production companies to help at our concerts so don’t actually employ anyone ourselves. I realise this isn’t exactly what you want to hear, but thanks for your interest in helping us and good luck with your course. Cheers Phil Collins”

Like an idiot, I lost the fax when I was taking it to show someone at a house party! But it was a nice touch.

Fast forward to last summer and I got a load of tickets to see them at Twickenham. Having seen them in 2002 at Knebworth along with 120k other people, I knew this would probably be the last time to catch them together again.

We weren’t disappointed!

Masters of the live show, they played for well over two hours including a ton of really old stuff from the Peter Gabriel days. Very cool actually, because they didn’t have a new album to promote they could play what they like.

I got to see “Carpet Crawlers“, “Firth of Fifth” and the “In The Cage Melody“. Tracks I’d heard a thousand times on CD but never seen live. Where was ABACAB though 🙁

Today Amazon just emailed me to say the Live DVD is on its way in the post!!!

It includes 3 discs. The Rome concert, some other stuff and the behind the scenes documentary Come Rain or Shine that’s just been doing the rounds at Odeon cinemas.

I Can’t wait!

Last thing: I know what people type in to search engines to reach the pages on this blog. I hope to see Debra Craine from The Times Online checking her online reputation soon.

Check out her review of the Live Over Europe CD and you’ll see how people feel about her, the band and the gig.

Silly, silly woman!

My pictures from the Twickenham gig below…….enjoy!

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At Last A Ticket Machine At My Local Train Station

I come back after 2 weeks in the US and South West Trains have stuck a ticket machine on my station at North Sheen. Up until recently it was one of the ONLY stations on the line without a self-serve option….great news!

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 Guess what?!

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Typical!!!!

Microsoft Advertising – New Brand Launch

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Today, Microsoft announces the launch of a new brand – Microsoft Advertising

In response to customers needs, we’re in a position to bring all our solutions for both advertisers and publishers under one coherent banner.

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The aim is to help advertisers and publishers build stronger consumer engagement in the digital space.

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It’s all about bringing our online advertising assets together and providing customers with Insight, Performance & Expertise!

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We’re super-pleased with this move. We’ve had some flak over the “MDAS mouthful” and even more about a perceived inability to provide brand-clarity in general.

I hope this sets the record straight and provides consumers and marketers with a no-nonsense message, that we mean business in the digital advertising space.

Check out the new UK advertising site here: http://advertising.microsoft.com/uk/home

Steve Ballmer Egged In Hungary

[YouTube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCbQqsRm41s]

Decided to post this awful video to show Steve at his unflappable best!

I’ve never seen him floored by a question from any audience, and he doesn’t get floored by this idiot’s eggs either!

 

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