I'm a Tree Surgeon (not a Real Surgeon)

My latest song. This was actually written on October the 3rd when I was on my way to Art Support but I've only just written it down. The melody is sort of country and western which is a bit unusual for me. It's called "I'm a Tree Surgeon (not a Real Surgeon)".

As I am sawing the tree
I see him looking at me
I get a bad bad feeling.

My daddy is a doctor he's the best in the place, but I can
tell he's disappointed from the look on his face
'cause I'm a tree surgeon,
not a real surgeon.
I'm a tree surgeon,
not a real surgeon.

I went to medical school,
I thought that doctors were cool,
but always loved the garden.

I used to climb the trees there, my results went all bad, so now I
am a disappointment to my medical dad,
'cause I'm a tree surgeon,
not a real surgeon.
I'm a tree surgeon,
not a real surgeon.

Well now I garden all day,
and run my business okay,
I get a good good feeling.

I spend my working life outside and up the trees, but I can't
help but think my dad is sad that I couldn't be
another real surgeon,
but a tree surgeon.
Not a real surgeon,
I'm a tree surgeon.

Reframing, PPL

Lots of framing work today as I refit my pictures, removing any glass and just about reframing everything to some extent. It means that some of the larger ones like the Strawberry one, Perseus and the Burning Tree, half a broken heart and Marlene/Waterfall are now unframed and need new frames, and some now have permanent frames for the first time like The Only Symbiosis of Ivy, Coma, Strike Dynamics, Oncology, and a lot of the medium sized ones like Harlow and Waiting for B.T.

Still no word from PPL about Cornutopia Music. This is annoying. Gunstorm is released in 4 weeks yet I can't register the recordings with the authorities and promotion to radio stations is hampered as a result.

Web Updates

Refitting of my website continues. Today I've enhanced the digital sections, removed a few pictures and organised the sections by year. I've also added PayPal support for payment and easy ordering and prepared the high quality images online for printing to order.

Art Updates

Well it's been a busy week. I'm currently working on a number of paintings. Three in the sketch and study stage as follows; one large format is a provisionally called 31st Century Crucifixion and will mix abstract, realism and surrealism to create a picture about the robotisation of humanity, that is the removal of emotions in a technological future. The second is The Morning Hour, an upbeat picture about starting a new life after a divorce. The third is The Gate, a repainting of an earlier surreal idea of a moonlit gateway.

Today I've added perhaps the final touches to two pictures; a relaxing bedroom painting on commission for Andrew Williams, and "No Good Ideas" which uses a cracked and harsh landscape with skulls to represent the lack of ideas for paintings. A figure grasps for a kite in blue sky to represent a good idea, without noticing that ideas (in the guise of kites) were scattered all over the picture all along. So this sad picture has a happy ending, a redeeming quality.

Oh, some good art news. "Bye Bye Little Fishes, and thank you" has been selected for the prestigious Three Counties Open Art Exhibition at Keele University. "Bye Bye" uses a line of fish swimming towards a sunset as a metaphor for the slow extinction of fish species.

Saddam Hussein

A new song, a nice bit of surrealistic writing. The music is quite complex and operatic in style, like some of the Queen or Pink Floyd songs. It's called Saddam Hussein.

You only want me now because I am insane.
You only want my broken brain.
You love my pain,
but I like only coffee.
You feed me toffee,
and then you dress me like Saddam Hussein.

You gently lie me down then prod me in the face.
You stir my mind until it's paste.
You wear just lace,
but dress me like a nutter,
paint me with butter,
and then you slide me all over the place.

Danny!
Danny!
When are you going to let me go?
I'm begging Danny on my knees,
the lightbulb's swinging,
Danny please,
don't flick the switch and make it blow.

You do more damage than a whirlwind does to dust.
You paint my metal bits with rust.
You want my trust;
I trust you only vaguely,
like Richard Madeley.
I feel like bread without any crust.

Danny!
Baby!
When are you going to set me free?
The sky outside is orange new
the sun is singing
to the dew,
Hand me a rainbow's hand and rescue me.

(solo)
You only see me as a naughty dog to train.
You only care about my brain.
You love my pain,
and love the drugs you hand out.
I brush the sand out
but you still dress me like Saddam Hussein.

Ballooning

This is my first song in many months. The melody and timing is very unusual with some short fast bits and long lingering notes in unusual chords.

Ballooning

You, in the balloon
up in the sky so high.
Can you see me
from up there?
Do you try
as you're drifting by?

You, floating on by,
in the azure blue sky.
Can you see home
far below?
Do you know
that I'm aching so?

You were never so distant.
So distant from me.
Distant as the clouds.
Nowadays you are distant
So distant from me.
Distant, and you're moving further away.

You, swimming in blue
breathing the sun light in.
Do you look down
or just up?
Do you think
you're alone up there?

I, watch from below
hearing the burners go.
Would you hear me
If I shout,
or do you hear
only clouds?

You were never so distant.
So distant from me.
Distant as the clouds.
Nowadays you are distant
So distant from me.
Distant, and you're moving further away.

One lonely balloon
far and away in blue.
Will you look down
here to me?
Do you care
if the ground is there?

You were never so distant.
So distant from me.
Distant as the clouds.
Nowadays you are distant
So distant from me.
Distant, and you're moving further away.

Gunstorm Review

The first review of the up and coming Gunstorm album has been written on The Borderland.

Accredited to singer Steven McLachlan, I wrote and produced the music and performed the instrumentation. The main Gunstorm song was written specifically for my PC game, Gunstorm II, but proved popular when Steven performed it live so we decided to remix it a little and release it along with a special extended version. The album has a 1980's electro-pop sound, and the intent for the main theme was to pay homage to the television themes I remember as a child like Pole Position, Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors, and Star Fleet.

The E.P. will be released on iTunes on November the 19th.

Updates

Well, the painting season is nearly over but, of course, plans continue. I've got No Good Ideas to glaze still but the rest are sketches that will either wait for next year, or are things like portraits and other "normal" pictures to be done over the winter as exercises. I'm better at drawing than ever and the last week of practise has helped a lot in this.

I'm submitting pictures for two exhibitions this week; the Three Counties Open and Keele University and the national Chichester Open. Both are juried so there is a bit of luck involved.

The final quarter has started and my plans for the rest of 2007 generally concern sound. More sound effects are due on IndieSFX and I hope to get SFXEngine working on Vista (I've recently discovered that Vista dislikes TextOut on top of DirectX7 DirectDraw objects). The Gunstorm single should be released in November and I want get started on the Spiral Staircase remaster this month. "The Journey" might have to wait until next year. It would be impossible to release it before Christmas and as January is a commercial desert, it makes no sense to do anything on it soon.

I'll also put some of my limited edition prints on eBay over the winter too. I'm confident that these will be worth a fortune one day, but it'll do no harm to have some very small numbers on there if only as a sort of advert.