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The Herald Scotland
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
'Masterpiece' - Scot blew the door of psychedelic revolution wide open
The Glasgow-born troubadour, whose mission was, in his own words, 'to bring poetic vision to popular music', began to make his name when, as yet unsigned, he appeared on the television show Ready Steady Go! in January 1965. On March 12 he sang his debut single, Catch the Wind, on TV, impressing a certain Little Steve Wonder, who was in the audience. The song zipped into the charts at number four, and continuing exposure on television and radio helped ensure that 'my name, my face and my music were in every home in Britain'. America beckoned, and he found himself on the Ed Sullivan Show – the same show that had broken the Beatles in the USA, less than a year earlier. His refusal not to join the rest of the performers for a final bow at the end brought him to the attention of industry heavyweight Allen Klein, who rang the renowned record producer, Mickie Most, and recommended Donovan to him. Donovan also toured Britain, where he was linked in the public mind with Joan Baez and Bob Dylan, the rising stars of folk music. A second single, Colours, reached the same chart position as Catch the Wind. His debut album, What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid, was released in May, a few days after his 19th birthday; it peaked at number three in the charts. Such sudden fame did not come without its critics, however. Some in the music press had sniped that Donovan was but a pale imitation of Dylan, but after Donovan had met Dylan in his room at London's Savoy Hotel, the American told Melody Maker: 'He played some songs to me. I like him. He's a nice guy'. So ended, the magazine reported, 'one of the biggest controversies that has ever split the British music scene'. One Savoy encounter, incidentally, was immortalised by D.A. Pennebaker for Dont Look Back, his documentary about Dylan's 1965 British tour; Donovan borrowed Dylan's guitar to play a song, To Sing for You; Dylan responded with It's All Over Now, Baby Blue. Little could impede Donovan's rise. He played the 1965 Newport Folk Festival (the one in which Dylan famously 'went electric') and was feted in the States. He was friends with the Beatles (below), the Byrds and PJ Proby, was introduced to Paul Simon, had chart success with an EP featuring Buffy Saint-Marie's Universal Soldier, and took his first LSD trip. He had fallen in love, too, with a woman, Linda Lawrence, the former girlfriend of the Rolling Stones' guitarist Brian Jones, and mother to his son Julian. The Beatles appeared on the same showA second Donovan album, Fairytale, was released in October 1965. It contained some of his finest songs: Colours, Sunny Goodge Street and Ballad of a Crystal Man, and a cover of Oh Deed I Do, the work of his fellow Scot, the brilliant pioneering guitarist, Bert Jansch. In his memoir Donovan refers to the 'new way of seeing' that he was industriously developing at that time. He cites the lyrics to the jazz-fusion track, Sunny Goodge Street: 'I was describing the sub-culture emerging from the underground and the elusive search for the self. Two years before the beginning of 'Flower Power' and before the Beatles used the same refrain' he was singing … 'I tell you his name is/ Love, love, love''. He also records that he 'felt the need to introduce key spiritual ideas' . [The album] set the scene for my performance as a 'Bard' who would present a way of seeing the wonder of the natural world. I was mocked as a simpleton, when I sang of birds and bees and flowers like a child. Indeed, I was keeping the 'wonder eye' open - just like a child'. Among the many budding musicians who bought and loved Fairytale, here or in the States, was a young man in Indiana named John Mellencamp. The year 1965 had not quite finished with Donovan: in December, at Abbey Road studios, he began work on his 'experimental' third album, Sunshine Superman, with producer Mickie Most and the noted arranger John Cameron. Most, Donovan writes, 'realised I was hearing sounds which came from many sources: classical, jazz, ethnic, medieval minstrelsy, and he saw the potential for a veritable new fusion of music, a 'world music' sound, before this term was thought of'. Read more The album itself was a clever blend of folk music and some of the first psychedelia to ever be committed to vinyl. Musicians such as the double bass player Danny Thompson guested on the album. Shawn Phillips, a Texan musician, contributed sitar. By this time, Donovan's relationship with Linda, who was living thousands of miles away in Los Angeles, was looking uncertain. The title track (on which Jimmy Page, then a session guitarist, played) was the first song to emerge from his oppressive fog of sorrow. When Most heard it in the studio, he instinctively knew that it would be a hit single. He was right: it went to number two in the charts towards the end of 1966. The second track, Legend of a Girl Child Linda, saw Donovan finger-picking his acoustic guitar in front of an orchestra. 'We certainly broke the mould of pop music – and folk music, for that matter', he recalls in Hurdy Gurdy Man. '…There were no songs like mine to compare with. It was all new directions, uncharted seas'. Donovan continued to write songs for the new album in the new year of 1966. Linda appeared in most of the songs on one guise or another, including the gorgeous track, Celeste. Its aching lyric, Donovan notes, said he was disillusioned with everything. One striking line – 'I intend to come right through them all with you' – was in one respect about the changes his generation was encountering but at a deeper level was a song to Linda. In February he enjoyed another turning-point in his career when he headlined at New York's prestigious Carnegie Hall, accompanied by Phillips on sitar and 12-string guitar. It was the first time that a Western pop audience had witnessed the former instrument on a stage. Donovan writes entertainingly of his adventures in the States that year as he finished work on the new album in LA. 'This much I knew then: I was making the music and writing the songs which reflected the emerging consciousness of my generation. I was here to do this … I felt the spirit move within me. I knew that this album would be my masterpiece'. When the album was released in the States in September, the LA Times's Pete Johnson said: 'Donovan, a very talented, if unearthly, writer and singer of folk songs, croons 10 songs to form an album follow-up to his very popular single record, 'Sunshine Superman'. The LP does not fulfill the promise of his single, but it supplies a good measure of his soft understated singing of the medieval-modern, dream-reality mystical imagery. 'The best tracks', Johnson added, 'are 'Sunshine Superman', 'The Trip', 'Season of the Witch', 'Legend of a Girl Child Linda' and 'The Fat Angel'. Like many other singers, Donovan has fallen under the spell of Indian music, which provides structure for most of his non-rock songs'. For business-related reasons the album did not go on sale in the UK until June 1967. It reached 25 in the album charts, someway short of the exalted number-one status it enjoyed in many countries across the world. Melody Maker wrote that "every number has a mood, an atmosphere, a current along which the perceptive listener can float. Donovan glides playing beautiful guitar and singing his songs like they should be sung - with love'. Much lay ahead of Donovan, including a sold-out January 1967 headline appearance at at the Royal Albert Hall, his continuing involvement with the Beatles, his lasting popularity in the States and elsewhere, his 1968 masterwork – the double album box-set, Gift From a Flower to a Garden – and bestselling singles such as Mellow Yellow, Jennifer Juniper and Hurdy Gurdy Man. In a recent interview with Mojo magazine, John Cameron, Donovan's arranger and collaborator, reflected: 'The amount of work we did between '66 and '70 was phenomenal, we had a string section that rode motorbikes. They'd be on Yamahas with their Strads [violins] strapped to their backs, going from studio to studio. It was the only way they'd get from one to the other on time'. Donovan himself reconnected with Linda, and they were married in October 1970. Having done everything he had wanted to do, he then took a decisive step back from the industry. New records followed, but his time in the cultural spotlight was over. Read more On the Record Interviewed by Mojo magazine's Sylvie Simmons in 1996, to promote his 'comeback' album, Sutras, which was produced by Rick Rubin, Donovan explained: "If I can do a thumbnail sketch of 20 years, around about 1970 I had achieved everything I could have possibly dreamed of and much more. "Having been at the top of the ladder, there was nowhere else to go. So I walked onto a British Airways jet in Tokyo and out of a tax plan called a drop-out year where I was going to earn more millions of dollars than any young solo artist of his time. It had ended. I didn't burn out, I wasn't a drug addict, but I was wounded in some way, and I came home to my cottage in England.... I married Linda, my great love and teenage muse — four years of '60s madness had kept us apart — and I walked away from fame, the Rolls Royce, the yacht, the mansion. "We went to Joshua Tree in the California desert for much of the '70s and brought up the children up as an alternative family... But something was happening while I wasn't watching. In the '80s, things were getting very dark, the earth was wounded, and I felt dispirited. In '83 I stopped making records completely, I had a personal crisis, musical crisis, and Linda saw me through it. I came out around 1990. "A new impulse got me... I'd gone into the studio and started recording these song ideas... Rick Rubin had been in the studio with Tom Petty, who was playing one of my songs. Rick says, 'I love Donovan, I've always wanted to record him'. Tom says, 'Why don't you phone him up?'. So he did. We met and we found similarities extraordinarily alike." Speaking to Record Collector magazine in January 2024, he said: 'When I started singing, the message was in the song. The revolution was on. The important part was giving young people a shock in that there were different things to talk about in songs, other than, 'I love you, why'd you make me blue?' This was important' In the same interview he noted: 'I think my songwriting was very influential. Breaking all the rules and experimenting in the studio was encouraging to others'. Things came full circle in a way in 2102, when Donovan was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame by none other than John Mellencamp. Donovan was introduced as the man who "blew the door of the psychedelic revolution wide open". Recalling the first time he had bought a Donovan album, in 1965, Mellencamp told the audience: 'I was in the seventh grade, and back then we waited for every record and I waited for every album to come out so that I could learn to play those songs. I wasn't just listening to Donovan, I was living Donovan. I was stealing all the s— from Donovan'. A few moments later, to applause and cheers, he held up his original, much-played copy of Donovan's second album, Fairytale. The word 'Mellencamp' was etched in ink along the top of the cover. 'See how it says Mellencamp?' he said. 'In Indiana, we used to use these things like money. If you didn't have any money, you would sell this for a dollar and a half or trade it for two Led Zeppelin records and then they'd trade it back. You always wanted to keep track of your stuff. That's why I have my name all over it'. * Donovan is marking his 60th year as a recording artist with a week of events in Paris between June 1 and 7. Website:
Otago Daily Times
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Otago Daily Times
NZ University beats Sydney
A New Zealand University player (left) about to unload during the team's rugby match against Sydney University at Carisbrook, Dunedin. — Otago Witness, 2.6.1925 The 6000 odd spectators who witnessed the game at Carisbrook on Saturday between teams from the New Zealand University and Sydney University were treated to a fast, spectacular game — in the last 20 minutes it was bewildering in its changes — and certainly could have no cause to complain on the score of lack of incidents. Packing 5-2-3 in the scrums, the visitors were mostly able to get the ball, but their backs could not handle it cleanly, though they threw it about with the greatest freedom, and they also lacked combination. The New Zealand backs likewise failed to combine. Both sides lost many chances through dropping passes or knocking on at critical moments. In the last 20 minutes the Colours had the Blacks under hard pressure, but they could not carry out the movements to a successful issue, and threw away many chances. At this stage, however, both sides were indulging to a large extent in solo play, with flashes of spectacular concerted movements. Williams played a fine game at full-back for the Colours, and so did Stevenson for the Blacks. Tilbury was the best of the Sydney four three-quarter line, and Waddington, Flynn, Hingst and Wiseman were prominent in the forwards. Gilberd made plenty of good openings and was the best close-in back on his side. The visitors paid particular attention to Webb, and Tilbury particularly kept him closely watched. Owen, Dickson, O'Regan, and Burns showed out in the forwards. The ground was in good order, but a little heavy in places as a result of the rain on Friday night. Just over £600 was taken at the gates. Scores: NZ University 22, Sydney University 5. Mr A. Eckhold was the referee. The train shall meet Viewed from a tourist point of view, in connection with the New Zealand and South Seas Exhibition, there is a good deal to be said in favour of the Marlborough proposal that the Railway Department should run a Picton to Christchurch overland service in connection with the projected Picton-Wellington ferry service. The new vessel, the Tamahine, has accommodation for 700 or 800 passengers, and it is estimated that she will cross Cook Strait in three hours. The prospect is very attractive to thousands of persons who dread the 12-hour sea trip between Lyttelton and Wellington, but the present necessity for a motor car connection between the railheads, coupled with the leisurely pace at which the trains are run, puts such a proposal out of court except as a scenic trip — and an unrivalled scenic trip, for that matter. But the idea is worth pushing as a means of educating the public to the possibilities of the East Coast main trunk route, for it is only by persistent agitation that this urgent railway work will be forced to completion. A better environment Arrangements are under way for the provision of suitable rooms in general hospitals where mental patients can be properly cared for, pending medico-legal examination until their transfer to a mental hospital, if committed as insane, instead of their being kept temporarily in police quarters. — ODT, 25.5.1925 (Compiled by Peter Dowden)
The Irish Sun
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Loved-up JoJo Siwa reveals ‘humans aren't supposed to be this happy' after Chris Hughes kiss on romantic getaway
JOJO Siwa gushed 'I don't think humans are meant to be this happy' after her kiss with Chris Hughes. The 22-year-old dancer and singer was Advertisement 5 JoJo Siwa said she's happier than she's ever been Credit: instagram/@accesshollywood 5 JoJo and Chris kissed in a swimming pool in Mexico 5 JoJo and Chris cosied up in numerous pictures from their week together Credit: itsjojosiwa/Instagram And beaming JoJo couldn't have looked happier yesterday at a Universal Orlando event. She told Fans were delighted for her, with one commenting: " Another said: "She is glowing." Advertisement READ MORE ON JOJO SIWA A third posted: "It's called JOY!" JoJo is due back in the UK any day now ahead of her gig at Colours, Hoxton, on May 26. Taking to Snapchat, JoJo said she'd had the "best week" of her life before revealing her plans to jet to England . Advertisement Most read in News TV The Dance Moms star said: "At the airport leaving the best week of my life, but about to start another good one... "A quick 48 hours in LA then off to England again!!:)." It came as a source told The Sun how the pair were all over each other at a Mexican hotel. They straddled a lilo and snogged in the water in plain sight. Advertisement The insider said: "JoJo and Chris looked very loved-up and as they snogged in full view of other holidaymakers. "They spent their time at the hotel holding hands and nice to see. 'They were very hands on, not entirely different to how they were on TV just a bit more intimate. 'JoJo seemed totally relaxed, really in love and not in any way the JoJo we see when she's on stage. They're just totally comfortable around each other." Advertisement from the UK to support dancer and pop star JoJo, 22, as she performed to screaming fans in Mexico City. The pair spent the weekend packing on the PDA and flooding Instagram with cosy snaps, sparking rumours they were more than just friends. Chris and JoJo grew incredibly close with each other during their 19-day stint in the celebrity Big Brother house last month. Advertisement JoJo, who openly spoke about her bisexuality in the CBB house, broke up with her girlfriend at the time, Kath Ebbs, on the night of the CBB final and immediately spent the following weekend with Chris. 5 JoJo cried after a 'magical' time with Chris Hughes as he headed back to the UK Credit: Instagram 5 JoJo and Chris became very close during their time in CBB Credit: itsjojosiwa/Instagram
The Citizen
14-05-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
Blairgowrie-based paddler sprints to gold medals
After an impeccable performance at the South African Sprint Championships at Roodeplaat Dam in Pretoria, Blairgowrie based paddler Daniel van Eeden has been awarded with national team Colours. Read more: Randburg paddlers score at 2025 Canoe Polo South African Championships Daniel took home seven medals, three golds, three bronze, and one silver. He participated in the K1 section, as well as the K2 section, with partner Josh Worthman. The young paddler has been selected to represent South Africa at the Olympic Hopes Competition, in the Czech Republic from September18–21. He explained that the champs were wet, cold, and rainy, and that Roodeplaat Dam's water was green and slimy. 'This year's competition was no joke. There were great times from all the competitors. I am happy with my overall performance, and my medals, despite a nasty asthma attack in my K1 1000m final. The preparations were tough. I came into champs much stronger than previous years.' Daniel is hoping to make the K2 1000m finals at the Olympics Hopes Competition, and is planning on training during the July holidays with his partner. Also read: Local children enjoy paddling lessons at Florida Lake Canoe Club He said that this will be their biggest preparation. 'Unfortunately, what makes it difficult to train, is that we live in different provinces as he's based in KwaZulu-Natal, but we will be training every other weekend until we leave for the Olympic Hope Competition. 'It's always a privilege to represent South Africa, regardless of the outcome. I'm also keen to put together a K4 crew for the 500m. I also look forward to touring Prague after the races, which is going to be fun.' Daniel achieved the following at the South African Sprint Championships at Roodeplaat Dam: K1 section: 5000m – Silver 1000m – Bronze 500m – Bronze 200m – Bronze K2 section: 1000m – Gold 500m – Gold 200m – Gold Follow us on our Whatsapp channel, Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok for the latest updates and inspiration! Have a story idea? We'd love to hear from you – join our WhatsApp group and share your thoughts! Related article: Local canoeist called up for the Olympic Hopes At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
The Citizen
08-05-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
Parktown High cheerleader elated after receiving South African blazer
Parktown High School for Girls learner Jocelyn Knox reflected on being awarded her South African blazer for cheerleading. Jocelyn, and her team, recently came back from Orlando, America, where they competed in the International Cheer Union (ICU) World Cheerleading Championships, the official world championships for youth, junior, and senior national cheerleading teams. 'We recently returned from competing at worlds from April 23–25,' said Jocelyn. 'It was an incredible experience. All six South African teams successfully made it to the finals. While not medaling, we did extremely well, and have more work ahead of us for the ICU World Cheerleading Championships in 2027.' Read more: Parktown High School for Girls hosts surprise performance by Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra The Grade 10 learner said that when she began the sport in Grade 7, she was drawn to how close the team was, and the strong bond everyone had with each other. 'I loved the idea of being thrown in the air and tumbling across the mat. I love the family I gained through it, and the lessons I learned from it.' Also read: Parktown High School for Girls cross country teams excel in early season races The cheerleader's accolades include: being awarded her provincial Colours in 2023 by the Gauteng Majorette and Cheerleading Association (GMCA), receiving her South African Majorette and Cheerleading Association (SAMCA) Colours in 2024 at a provincial competition, and becoming the national and African champions for the high, large, co-ed category, in September 2024, after competing at nationals in Cape Town. Jocelyn added that receiving her South African blazer was a long time coming, with her journey stemming from her four years in gymnastics, but it wasn't an easy task, with her first trials for the SA team taking place in April 2024. 'Every athlete that was on either team, or in the training programme, trained together for six months, until the second period of trials in October. While training for the national team we all still trained with our actual teams, and continued competing in all the local, provincial, and national competitions that happened along the way. Once the second round of trials was over, the official teams were selected. ' Jocelyn concluded that she wants to continue cheerleading for as long as she can. Participating in competitions for many years to come, and, hopefully, being part of the team that makes history for South Africa with a win. Follow us on our Whatsapp channel, Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok for the latest updates and inspiration! Have a story idea? We'd love to hear from you – join our WhatsApp group and share your thoughts! Related article: Parktown High School for Girls raises funds through a fun day At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
