Grandchildren have become a vital cog in the day-to-day lives of Mrs H and myself and we frequently find ourselves astonished at the simple pleasure that can be derived from watching a small child laughing as they jump into a huge puddle and then fall over. As David Crosby so famously sang in the video below there is something fundamental about a child’s laughter. This last weekend rather than spend it discussing David Berman as previously noted a trip to a crocodile farm was required. What the hell has this got to do with music you ask? Bear with me and all will become clear. I’m not a fan of captive animals in any capacity generally but the demand was made and we had to follow through with the promise. The ‘zoo’ and I use that term advisedly is situated on the edge of the Fens and the word bleak does not begin to describe it. The weather was a clammy mix of mist, cold, and disappointment which spilled over into being a metaphor for the day as we trudged from enclosure to enclosure peering at a series of miserable ‘exotic’ animals who when given the choice had retreated to their warm beds out of sight and certainly out of the elements. I expect they regarded us all as idiots traipsing around trying to find joy in the mud and background smell of droppings. Even grandson number 6 found it completely underwhelming preferring to run from empty enclosure to empty enclosure looking for swings or slides until we reached the Tropical House. Once inside and glasses defogged we came across a series of pools featuring some fairly large Crocodiles and Caiman. Extraordinary. Even more extraordinary is that someone had determined they liked loud music. And the song of choice??
Bill Haley? Elton John? Jimmy Nail? Nah Martin Stephenson and the Daintees!! That’s niche and was very pleasing, see the song below. The radio show this week features World Party, Sylvie, Ryley Walker, and Wilco amongst others. Listen in you’ll not regret it. As ever….
