R2OK!

FleetingEileenM · Joined: 30 Mar 2010 Posts: 5789 Location: Hampshire

Last night I went to the Fairfield Hall, Croydon, for a re-creation of that famous first jazz/big band concert at Carnegie Hall in 1938. It was performed by a great clarinet player Pete Long and His All-Star Goodmen Orchestra in the hall which has almost perfect acoustics.

It was a wonderful evening. We were treated to the whole 1938 programme including the small-group numbers and Pete Long is humorous and engaging. The audience loved it.

The only downside to the evening is that while I was driving around trying to find the theatre I unexpectedly found that I was in a lane marked "buses & trams only". Apparently it's not unusual in Croydon - a most confusing place. I shall be watching the postman's deliveries in fear and trembling for the next couple of weeks.

John W · Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 3367 Location: Warwickshire, UK

Glad you enjoyed the concert Eileen. I've always been a fan of Goodman's work in the 1930s (and his dance band work in the 1920s) particularly the small group quartet, sextet records, and collected many of their UK Parlophone 78s when junkshopping in the 1980s Smile

Gosh was that your first encounter in a bus lane? The arterial roads in Coventry are full of them. Some of the 'clever' ones are annoying, if your car wheel strays just slightly on to the bus lane (painted green) then it triggers traffic lights to think there's a bus coming so the lane that I'm really in gets stopped by the lights!
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John W

FleetingEileenM · Joined: 30 Mar 2010 Posts: 5789 Location: Hampshire

I wouldn't mind if the only result of driving on a bus lane was to trigger the traffic lights. In London it apparently warrants a fine of £130 according to the Transport in London website!!

I was stationary at lights and realised that my lane led only to a multi-storey car park. There was nothing behind me so I changed to the only other available lane which turned out to be buses/trams only. I'm hoping against hope that I get away with it.

John W · Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 3367 Location: Warwickshire, UK

Oh. Well for your sake I hope/expect they don't fine every car captured on the lane by CCTV, that would be very unfair on folks unfamiliar with the streets in the area.
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John W

John W · Joined: 07 Dec 2006 Posts: 3367 Location: Warwickshire, UK

and in case any folks here wanna know what a Benny Goodman 'small group' sound like here's one from 1939 with Benny clarinet, Charlie Christian guitar, Lionel Hampton vibraphone and others

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x4H7M2YFK0s

surely can't help but love that!
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John W