Proud Mary

Due to the recent terrorist atrocities that have been committed in Spain, I have held this post back until now, out of respect for the dead and injured.

May the families and loved ones of all those affected find peace.

***

As you may know, I have recently returned from a holiday in Spain. I had a wonderful time and a surprise catch-up with a great performer, none other than Tina Turner tribute performer, Wendy Manfield, who had just returned to Benidorm from a few days in England.

As usual, Wendy's act was high octane, encapsulating the very essence of a Tina Turner performance, with a little bit of tongue-in-cheek humour thrown into the mix.  

When we met last time, I ran an interview with her, so here it is again, for your enjoyment. 

Music, Maestro, Please!

I have a wide and varied musical taste, ranging from the delightfully soporific Annie's Song by John Denver, through the unashamedly raucous ACDC's Back in Black, to the almost ethereal Jar Of Hearts by Christina Perri. But more often than not it is the lyrics of a song which draws me to it, or perhaps a haunting melody, or in some instances a wonderful combination of the two. Seldom is it the actual voice of the performer which I find captivating.

There are of course instances where this is untrue, but these tend to be reserved for the likes of Celine Dion and Neil Diamond - in other words, unique voices which are so sublime, ringing out so true with every note delivered, that they cannot help but make me stop and listen, not just to the words and the tune, but to the particular tone and timbre of the voice itself.

You may recall that I was  holiday in Spain recently. Whilst there I saw a number of tribute acts but it was one in particular which caught my attention. Wendy Manfield WAS Tina Turner, from the pronounced trademark bottom strut, right down to the mannerisms and the gaudy outfits, and I loved every minute of it, although I must confess to not being a huge Tina Turner fan.

So what captivated me so much about Wendy's performance? It was the realisation that Wendy didn't need to be Tina, that in fact she had a much superior voice of her own. Having performed her show as Tina and returned to the stage after thunderous applause, she gave an encore - but not as the superstar.

Instead she sang two Queen anthems in a way that I have never heard them performed. Passion infused her powerful voice and informed it in such a way that I almost believed her to be the originator of the song. She was nothing short of amazing. And I got to wondering why. Why she was performing as someone else when she was so, so much better than that. So here are the answers...

Wendy where are you originally from?
I'm from Darwen, in Lancashire.

How long have you been singing and where did you start?

I started singing professionally 25 years ago.(That's scary.) In the working men's clubs, mainly around the North West of England - Blackpool, Manchester, Liverpool and Yorkshire. Under the wings of my aunt Kay; we were a duo called Diamonds. There was a lot to learn back then. Buying equipment, spending countless days learning how to work it. Going to musicians' studios to get all the sheet music transposed. (There were hardly any backing tracks when i started.)

Working with backing tracks gives a singer more freedom, as it's impossible for keyboards and drums to reproduce sounds exactly on the night. But when a singer plays with musicians, it's uplifting, it makes you sing better and you begin to learn your craft again. You don't realize that you have become a little lazy with backing tracks. 

My mother was originally an opera singer and she was insistent that I went for singing lessons. I was amazed how much there was, and still is, to learn. There is always something to inspire you with music.

How did you become a Tina Turner tribute?

I was asked by the owner of a venue here in Benidorm. "Tributes put bums on seats," as he put it, "It's what people want."

Are you a fan?

YES I am a fan. Sorry to say I never saw her live... I love her energy and soulful rock voice.

How difficult is it to mimic that voice?

Tina's higher register is hard to reach. Some people have said she screams...Ha! You trying screaming and sounding as good as her! Hmmm.

When you start to study a singer you begin to realise just how great they are. I have nothing but respect for Tina Turner. You have to give 100% when doing Tina...because that's what she did every time she recorded or set foot on a stage...you can hear it in her voice.

How long have you been in Spain?

12 years. It's gone very fast and I have seen a lot of changes.....its quiet a transient place.

Do you ever perform as yourself?

Funny you should ask me that question... I only do Tina once a week. My own act is a mix of taking the mickey out of myself in a cheesy kind of way. I do some songs straight. Some people are ready for the funny stuff, while others are just waiting to hear me sing. You can't be everyone's cup of tea. That much I have learned. I just try my best at the venues and I work to entertain everyone. If I was to perform as my self singing the covers that I love to sing, I would probably lose some of the audience.

What do you hope the future holds?

If I get off my lazy behind I hope to learn an instrument, perhaps the piano or guitar, so that I can play and sing music -no sequins, no gimmicks, just music.

Can you ever see yourself coming back to Britain?

Honestly? I don't know. I guess, never say never.

With grateful thanks to Wendy Manfield - a real class performer.

Summer is coming and with it, a list of chores that I have to undertake. But these are rather big chores. One of them is to knock a wall down, another is to fell several enormous trees, so they won't really be jobs I will personally be doing, yet my fingers are twitching to get started.

And I am excited. I am even more excited when I think about the novel I am currently writing. The Owners, Volume VII: Hunter's Moon, is where the story begins to turn towards the situation of Volume I, where suddenly you will see how the series is going full circle.

In all of my books I have created strong female and male characters and I hope they have made compulsive reading. But perhaps it is in this book that I have written the most complex female.

Matilda is a strong woman but her strength has been born of necessity. Sometimes she reminds me a little of Sophia from volume I but she has none of Sophia's tolerance and willingness to listen to others. Instead Matilda is hot-headed and unbending in her views. And she is set on a course that will destroy lives.

The worst thing about it is that she doesn't see what she is doing, she doesn't 'get' her mistakes. She is so busy falling over herself to put things right that she is doing exactly the opposite. We all know people like that. Fortunately those people seldom find themselves in the unenviable position that Matilda finds herself in.

I wish I could prevent the carnage and chaos that Matilda is about to wreak but I guess it wouldn't be much fun for you if I did!

Until then, happy reading!

What do I think? Well, listen then...

You may remember that I was recently asked to contribute to the question raised by The Society For Curious Though of what makes a fair society.


It is something that I would like to expound upon later when I have a little more time but for now I will leave you with this :-


http://thesocietyforcuriousthought.com/a-fair-society/carmen-capuano/


I am going to be completely honest with you - I was intending to leave this brief post above and come back to it at a later date. I even went so far as to publish it in that form. But I could not leave it at that and had to log back in. You see this is something I know a little about.


What I wrote in the link above was this:-


"A fair society is one where each and every voice carries equal weight; each opinion is considered as carefully as the next; every consideration is extended impartially to every citizen and where neither creed, colour, affluence, influence or intelligence dictate a divide."


Sounds great, doesn't it? Sounds like Utopia I think. But it is certainly not a reflection of the world we live in!


Believe me when I say that I am no politician - their endless streams of words which say a lot but mean nothing, tie me up in knots and bamboozle me. Nor am I a true anthropologist - my study of humans is for one reason  only, to feed the nature of humanity and the human condition into my characters and books. But I know people. And I know that what I have stated above is as likely to happen as mankind landing upon the sun.


Human beings have a built in competitive streak, it is that which makes us mean and nasty but also makes us brilliant and unique. In the animal kingdom wild animals [and even domesticated ones] prowl and mark their territory, defining the boundaries so that no other cat/dog/ lion/ tiger impinges upon their stomping ground.  


But us humans, what do we do? We plant shaped privet hedges, install fancy curved walls or high trellis fencing which we then bedeck with hanging baskets and the like. That's not a demarcation of a boundary, it's the shrill clarion call of a challenge, an invitation to 'look at me. Isn't my wall/fence/ house/ garden/ life better than yours?'


And me? Well I am exactly the same as everyone else!


But imagine for one moment life without that competitiveness? Who would strive to implement new procedures, invent new technologies, develop new medicine, win races and medals? Who would strive to be the best, the very best at their game? No-one.


So we need a competitive streak. But does this necessitate the suppression of others? I think not. And that was the point I was trying to make above.


You see if we had a fairer society where opportunities were accessible for all, the cream would still surely rise to the top and by that I mean the most able for every occupation and profession, not those with the most money or social standing or pushy parents behind them. Indeed, I have seen children who were in my opinion intelligent enough to have gone to University unable to do so, due to the crippling tuition fees.


Likewise I have seen people be deemed to be too educated/intelligent to do a job they were interested in doing. In both of these cases someone else decided the individual's fate and removed from them the opportunity which should have been theirs for the taking.


Ah but there is the paradox. Examine my words again if you please, especially this bit - where neither creed, colour, affluence, influence or intelligence dictate a divide. 


Wouldn't the implementation of such a society of equal opportunity create a society where intelligence created a divide? Is a divide inevitable?


Again, I don't think so. It comes down to the way we look at things. A brain surgeon is infinitely more respected that a toilet cleaner. Why is this?


Granted a brain surgeon saves lives by his skill. But 99.9% of us will require the services of a good public toilet cleaner far, far more than we ever will a brain surgeon. Indeed a clean public toilet is not just a nicety, it is the frontline in disease control!


Is the cleaner therefore, assuming that he or she completes their tasks to the very best of their abilities, not as worthy of our admiration as the surgeon? Of course she/he is ...or at least she/he should be.


And that is exactly what is wrong with our society. We place too much value on some things and occupations and not enough on others which should be of equal or greater value.


So to recap, what I am saying is this:- we cannot and should not strive to change human nature for it is what makes us, us. What we should do is seek to hold each other in high esteem, for the individual value we hold in society. For without the humble toilet cleaner, the brain surgeon would be laid up in bed with dysentery or cholera...







THIS POST HAS BEEN WRITTEN LIVE TO LET YOU SEE IT DEVELP AS YOU READ IT. 10.25 22/07/14


Watch out for my interview page where I shall be listing some very interesting interviews over the coming weeks.






Until then, happy summer holiday reading!

Update.

My link to Amazon is now up and running however BlogSpot is still having issues logging on posts. Please bear with me.


What I would like to talk to you about today is something I feel very strongly about and something which I know you do too. I want to talk about the Rolf Harris situation and people who are like him.


But this blog post is not just for the adults, indeed I am aware that a large number of children read my posts and so today, this is exclusively for them.


My younger readers.


Summer is here and its warm outside and the nights are lighter for longer and you want to be out with your friends...I get that, my children are exactly the same. So when your mum or dad tells you to be home by a certain time, it can seem like they just want you to be bored at home and not out having fun!


And anyway you are safe, right? You are with your friends and there are lots of you and besides you are nearly 10 or 11 or...


Let's get one thing straight - your age doesn't matter. You are still a child. And your parents DO know best!


We live in an increasingly dangerous world. It is not the world that I, or your parents, or many other people would wish it to be but it is the real world. Your parents know and understand this and that's why they want you home at a certain time. It's not because they are evil and want you to be as bored as them, it's because they are worried for your safety.


When I was your age I was always warned to watch out for 'bad men'. Well I am telling you now there are bad women too! And they come in all shapes and sizes, all colours and nationalities and most importantly, all ages!


Don't just think that its younger adults who might pose a threat to you...some of them could be older than your grandparents. Evil young people don't disappear in a puff of smoke before they get older. They age just like everyone else. So just because its an old man who suggests you walk up the road with him, don't think this is safe to do!


TELL YOUR PARENTS!


And one more thing kids - don't grow up too fast! I know the world has moved on since I was a child but its a universal fact that kids can't wait to be older.


[It's funny too 'cos once you are older you will spend all your time trying to stay young :)]


Whilst you are a child, play like a child, talk like a child and this comes from the heart, dress like a child. Leave the little tops and the short skirts for when you are much older and don't fight with your parents when they stop you trying to wear clothes that are too old for you.


You only get one shot at being a kid, so enjoy it!


Here is the number of Childline, a helpful organisation 0800 1111


 http://www.childline.org.uk/Pages/Home.aspx


If you are in America you should call  1-800-4ACHILD.