The Legendary 10 Seconds

26^th July 2020

I hadn't written a new song for a couple of weeks which is about my longest barren spell since I started recording the Torquay Pageant songs. I think it is partly due to work which is a bit tedious and complicated at the moment. Also with the new albums nearing completion I have been spending lots of time trying to deal with all the things that need to be done for a new release. I have had a couple of ideas in my head that I wanted to write a song about but I couldn't seem to find the spare time or inspiration to sit down and write some lyrics. Also whenever I have picked up the guitar over the last few weeks I haven't found any new melody ideas, although I must admit I hadn't tried very hard. Anyway last night I had some spare time to kill while I was trying to send a file of mp3's to Phil Swann. I tried several different methods to send the file which meant that I spent lots of time waiting for the file to be uploaded which until about the third attempt had been unsuccessful. During this time, waiting for the computer to do something, I started to write some new lyrics and I think I have got the composition of the a new song pretty much finished.

When I started writing songs about Torbay I made a list of as many things that I could think of that might be good ideas for songs. Something about the Spanish barn at Torre Abbey was one of those and there is a good account of the Nuestra Senora del Rosario in a book I have just finished reading about Torre Abbey which I referred to so that I could write the lyrics.

The Armada was sighted from St Michaels Mount

Then out of Plymouth the English ships sailed out

Commanded by Lord Howard and Sir Francis Drake

The odds were stacked against them with so much at stake

During the first skirmishes in late July

Two Spanish ships would disastrously collide

One lost two sails and was crippled in the sea

And from Sir Francis Drake that vessel could not flee

Captain Whiddon on the Roebuck into Torbay to tow

The Nuestra Senora Del Rosario

Drake hoped that he could loot the stricken vessel

With the ship at his mercy he was so successful

The Spanish surrendered their gold coins and their swords

Drake taking fifty nobles so history records

Captain Whiddon on the Roebuck into Torbay to tow

The Nuestra Senora Del Rosario

From the Revenge Don Pedro saw the campaign

The cunning English sailors against the might of Spain

At Calais the fireships burning so bright

The Armada in disarray for a him a painful sight

Captain Whiddon on the Roebuck into Torbay to tow

The Nuestra Senora Del Rosario

Our lady of the rosary a flagship of the sea

Don Pedro her captain for a ransom would be free

Back in Torbay the Rosario remained

And the hopes of the Spanish crew would surely be in vain

For they were held as prisoners in Torre Abbey's barn

For the history of Torquay this is such a thrilling yarn

Captain Whiddon on the Roebuck into Torbay to tow

The Nuestra Senora Del Rosario

12^th July 2020

Further progress has been made with the various Legendary Ten Seconds Projects. Andy England has recorded his wife Bridgit singing some lovely harmony vocals at their home in Madron, Cornwall for my song about the Brixham Mayflower. I have uploaded the Logic project of the song into drop box for Lord Zarquon. Hopefully this one can be included on the Pageant of Torbay Part Two album.

A few days ago I recorded a new vocal for the song that I composed with Ashley Mantle called 'God aid the Marshal'. This tune should be included on the Amazing Songs album. I think we are nearly there with this album and I need Lord Zarquon to let me know the order of the tracks so that I can submit it for digital distribution. I've decided not to include the song about Santa being grumpy because I don't want more than one festive song on the album. I'm also not sure about the song called 'Lease to Your Heart'. This is another one that I composed with Ashley Mantle. At the moment the mastered version of the song doesn't include my best ever guitar solo and I am hoping that I can persuade Lord Zarquon to produce another version with this solo. I really feel that the guitar solo adds an extra dynamic to the song. Editor Note: I’m glad he feels his guitar part is good as a certain other person feels it wasnt that good ha ha!!

28^th June 2020

Recording songs with Lord Zarquon has been a great inspiration for me. He has given me lots of new ideas. I have enjoyed listening to a few songs by the Strawbs because of him that I probably wouldn't have heard if it hadn't been for his recommendation. Phil Swann let me borrow one of his Strawbs albums called Baroque and Roll. This is an album of acoustic recordings and he suggested that perhaps I could record something similar with him. I think that Lord Zarquon thought highly of this album and so I am now recording another album although this time Lord Zarquon isn't involved with it. I hope he doesn't mind and I think he has got enough on his plate at the moment trying to finish the recordings for the Amazing Songs and Pageant of Torbay albums.

Graham Moores has painted a great album cover for the acoustic album project which I have decided to call Acoustic Album 2020.

7^th June 2020

I am continuing to slowly read through Agatha Christie's autobiography. The first part of the book goes into lots of detail about her childhood at Ashfield which is quite fascinating and is making me think about my early years, trying to think of all the things that I can remember.

Visits to the dentist is something that immediately springs to mind. Probably breaking one of my back teeth last weekend has almost certainly not helped! Up until my early twenties I used to dread going to the dentist. I ate too many sweets as a child and always seemed to need a new filling when I went to the dentist in my teens. 

My first visits to the dentist were in Exeter. Although I was then living in Torquay I think that my parents took me to the dentist in Exeter because we had previously lived in Pinhoe. I don't remember anything unpleasant about those visits but when we started going to the dentist in Shiphay that's when I remember the injections and the drill. 

The needle always hurt and despite the numbness it caused the drill still hurt as well. I would imagine that the drill would have been even more without the injection. Then there was the horrible numbness in the mouth which seemed to last for hours afterwards with the feeling that you were dribbling and unable to speak or eat properly.

On more than one occasion a sticky sweet such as a toffee would remove a filling and consequently another trip to the dentist for another injection and further drilling and filling. I think my dentist in Shiphay was a very good dentist. Whenever the school dentist checked my teeth at the Torquay Boys Grammar school I was usually informed that my fillings were extremely good.

As well as going to the dentist in Shiphay I also went to an orthodontist in Newton Abbot. The orthodontist is still in the same building by the war memorial in Newton Abbot. I remember coming back on the bus from one visit to the orthodontist when I saw a nasty fire in a church in Kingskerswell.

Moulds were taken of my teeth, top and bottom and I have still got these somewhere in my basement. I then had to have four back teeth removed, not a pleasant experience and had to wear a brace. The brace used to make my teeth ache and when I was eventually able to dispense with it I found that I had gained a very slight speech impediment. Still the removal of the teeth ultimately proved to be a good thing. Those teeth all had fillings and after their removal the gaps between my teeth were better and made it easier to clean them with a toothbrush. I had a few further fillings in my early twenties but since then I have had to only endure one further filling and after that only one filling which was the replacement of an old existing one.

I remember being with my sister the first time that she had a filling. I saw her panic at the sight of the needle and she knocked the hand of Mr Abrahams, the dentist so that he accidentally pricked one of his fingers.

My fascination with the history of Torbay continues and I recently purchased  a jigsaw puzzle of a map of Victorian Torquay and this gave me the idea for another song.

The Town of Torquay

Let's take a walk by the harbourside in 1893

Life would be quite different then

In the town of Torquay

Everything looks so old fashioned

The ladies hats, their shoes and dresses

Let's take a walk up Union street in 1903

Life would be quite different then

In the town of Torquay

Gas lamps to the light the street

A horse and cart but no cars seen

Soon there will be trams

With electrification

The terminus for them

Located by Torre station

Take a walk to the town hall in 1923

Life would be quite different then

In the town of Torquay

24^th May 2020

While on my way back to my house after a short walk one evening a few days ago I bumped into Nick Pascoe and we had a long chat. He lives just around the corner from me and his older brother Chris was in the same year as me at Torquay Boys Grammar School. Nick was also at the same school. This reminded me of an old photo when Nick and myself took part in a WH Smith sponsored walk along the Newton Road in Torquay. We walked from Torquay to Newton Abbot and then back along the same route to Torquay. This was probably sometime in 1979. We talked about several things including supporting Torquay United and I mentioned my songs about our local football team. Nick said that he was at Plainmoor with his brother to see the game against Cambridge when Pat Kruse scored the record breaking own goal. Nick said that they didn't see the first goal at the game because it happened so quickly but he does remember the second own goal. He'd forgotten that Torquay scored all four goals in the 2-2 draw that day.

Since talking to Nick I have remembered one funny event at a grammar school assembly when the school governors attended. One boy called Morris, had cellotaped down all of the keys of the piano so that when Mr Hopkins' hands descended onto the instrument it resulted in a most horrible cacophony ringing out. There was a huge roar of laughter from all of the school children whereas the teachers, especially the headmaster did not look amused at all!

I had another idea for a tune last week which turned into another song. I was plucking two strings in unison on my guitar but not using the fingers of my left hand on the fretboard. It provied me with an interesting melody in E minor. It sounded a bit medieval and I'd been waiting for something like this to come along to me so that I could write a song about Torre Abbey. 

An abbot from Welbeck Abbey

Arrived on the shores of Torbay

William Briwere had gifted some land

Thanks for the safe return of his son

For the monks Torre Abbey was made

And throughout the day they prayed

Many gifts and bequests were received

And their faith in God they truly believed

On the west side a cruciform church

The buildings around a courtyard

Built on a Benedictine plan

Beer limestone used for the arcades

For the monks Torre Abbey was made

And throughout the day they prayed

Many gifts and bequests were received

And their faith in God they truly believed

The monks made sure that the poor were fed

Looked after the folk in Torbay

A genuine holy cast of mind

Destroyed by a tyrant King

Because of King Henry the abbeys dissolved

To take all their wealth he was resolved

King Henry the Eighth the great evil King

Great misery he would surely bring