Edward Bear

I recently feel in love with the sound of Canadian folk-rockers Edward Bear.
I remember growing up listening to their songs but it's been many years since I had last heard them. Recently I had the chance to re-visit them via Toronto's CHUM 1050 radio station which plays many 'oldies' especially by Canadian artists.
The band were formed originally in 1966 by Larry Evoy and Craig Hemming . Soon after a series of gigs they became the house band of Toronto's Yorkville scene and signed to Capitol Records in 1969. Evoy said of the signing "we were only discovered and got a music contract with Capitol, because (producer) Paul White accidentally saw us on a CBC television show... Right place, right time, I guess." Or, in music commentator Ritchie Yorke' s words "the band hit the magic circle of acceptance."
You might well ask what's the story behind the name but it is derived from A.A
Milne's Winnie The Pooh, whose "proper" name is Edward Bear.
Their top singles include "You, Me and Mexico", "Last Song", and "Close Your Eyes", all
of which were top five in Canada and charted well in the States.
The band's greatest chart success came in 1972 when "Last Song" charted at No. 1 in Canada and peaked at No. 3 in the States. In 1973 Edward Bear won a Juno Award in the outstanding group performance category.
Twelve years from formation, thousands of road trip miles, four albums and at least four hit singles later, Edward Bear packed it in and although Evoy rebuilt the band twice it was disbanded in 1974 following a disastrous tour of high school gigs and three club venues.
By the mid-70s, admits Paul Weldon - who played keyboards - "I was in my mid-30s. My wife and I were expecting our first child, and I had an architectural career to tend to."
Evoy went on to a semi-successful solo career but is currently retired. Former member Danny Marks has continued a very successful career as a blues guitar veteran. Paul Weldon, a six year veteran of the band, performs with a jazz combo and teaches at Seneca College in Toronto. Bill Loop, bassist in the early seventies, resides in south-western Ontario and plays locally with various session musicians. He also teaches guitar, Recommended compilation: The Edward Bear Collection Capitol-EMI of Canada 1991 CD available from Amazon UK.

Raised hemlines

This is more the kind of short skirt I like

Usually worn with over the knee socks or tights in a casual but stylish way.

Ringer Tights

As a fan of short skirts and mini dresses one wants appropriate hosery and in my opinon these are the one of the best options available for women:

With a variety of colours available,  ringer tights add detail to your outfit a well as making the most of your legs in addition to maintaining your dignity.

Tapes away!

In that period before I bought into compact disc, one medium I did use a lot was the compact cassette not just for recording from either records or broadcasts but also pre-recorded cassettes whose technical quality  was improving during the early nineteen-eighties.

That deck was the one I had from 1985 through 1991 which had the very handy auto reverse option which meant you didn't need to turn the tape over although you did lose around  six seconds or so as t went past any leader tape and the mechanism changed direction.
It also had the in vogue Dolby C in addition to B noise reduction to reduce tape hiss considerable.

This sort of cube for storing tapes was a hanger on from the nineteen-seventies where I had one with my portable recorder at the time and first stereo machine to keep my tapes safe.
I tended to have case of 32 tape capacity labelled for my home recordings with paper based catalogue to aid finding them.

Conway

Conway is one of my favourite places to spend time relaxing. It is situated on the North Wales coast, United Kingdom and has a a Castle which was built on the orders of King Edward I of England during one of his periodic attempts to take control of the entire British Isles.
The picture is taken from Conway harbour from which short coastal excursions are operated during the summer months and also you can observe locals repairing their own boats before sailing.
Nearby is the smallest house in Wales which a lady in traditional Welsh dress will explain the history of and maybe let you take a picture of her and the house to show your friends and family.
Also to be found in Conway town centre is Aberconway House which is owned by The National Trust.
One thing any intending visitor needs to be aware of is the presence of seagulls who are somewhat aggressive in their endeavours to obtain food. They have been known to sweep overhead, land on your head and take off with your sandwiches!

Dvorak's 9th

Normally I only tend to have just one recording of a classical composition but sometimes I find I need more.

Dvorak's New World Symphony is one example where I have it within a boxed set of his symphonies by Rafael  Kubelik, a seperate disc by Macal on Classics For Pleasure I originally owned on tape and recently acquired this classic 1964 recording by the late Herbert von Karajan which certainly has bags of character and was very well recorded.
It comes with a selection of his Slavonic Dances that originally were on a seperate cd.

Redressed edition

There's a big part of me who would love to wear or have someone put me in a dress like this as although it's a bit out of the comfort zone right now, I'd soon take to it right down to the accessories.  I think it's very much as I see me.