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| Highclere Castle |
Over the past few months I’ve watched documentaries about various
legends of the music world, all of which were very interesting...fascinating in
so many ways.
A couple of months ago SBS also ran a brilliant documentary about the origins
of country music in the US. The aptly-named documentary... “Country Music”...consisted of eight
episodes, It was created by Ken Burns, and covers the period from country
music’s US beginnings in the mid-1920s through to 1996.
Of course, the music didn’t end in 1996. Don Mclean’s lyrics “the day the music died”...from his 1972 No. 1 hit, “American Pie”,
don’t apply to country music. I doubt they ever will. I hope they never will....
My hope is Burns produces a follow-up “Country
Music” multi-episodes documentary...continuing on from where he left off...from
1996 forth....
Ken Burns’ documentaries, which cover a wide, varied
range of subjects, including the American Civil War, are all excellent. Each and every one of the Burns’ docos will
captivate the viewer. They did me. High praise applies to his “Country Music”
doco, as well. I feel it would be remiss of me not to suggest others watch Burns' documentaries...I'm sure they won't disappoint.
Burns’ documentaries are narrated by actor Peter
Coyote. (Americal actor who appeared in
“E.T.. The Extra-Terrestrial”, “Cross Creek”***, “Patch Adams”, “Erin
Brokovich”, etc., etc)
I've always liked the timbre
of Coyote’s voice. I love good speaking voices.
Without prejudice, my late
ex-husband, Randall, had one of the best voices I’ve ever heard. I’m not alone in my assessment. Shortly after
my ex’s passing in August, 2019 some of his peers from his radio years and beyond
contacted me stating similar when expressing their condolences. Their sentiments meant a lot...mean a lot to me.
*** The 1983
movie “Cross Creek” stars Mary Steenburgen (wife of Ted Danson) playing the
role of author Majorie Kinnan Rawlings. Rawlings wrote the beautiful book “The
Yearling”. “Cross Creek” is based in
part on Rawlings’ memoir of the same name.
Both book and movie are wonderful...worth reading and viewing.
Watching documentaries about Quincy Jones, Miles
Davis, John Coltrane, and others, caused me to reflect upon the early 60s.
As mentioned previously...and often... at the age of
15 years I left school, having gained employment as a legal secretary in a
Gympie law firm.
Leaving school mid-Junior year...in late July, 1961...going it alone in
the wide world of wonder and intrigue, meant I threw away my school uniform, and I left my schoolmates behind.
Being the “new kid on the block”, as well as the
youngest, an older group of teenagers and “twenty-ish-es” of both sexes generously
took me under their protective wings.
Friday night
dances in Gympie’s Soldiers’ Memorial Hall were must attends. Attend them, I did...not missing one! And the few times Wednesday night dances were held at the hall, I attended those, too.
Fortunately, I was never a wallflower. Unselfishly, the young blokes taught me the quickstep,
waltz, foxtrot; barn dance, jazz waltz, cha-cha-cha etc.
One corner at the far end of the dance floor was the
designated “jive” area. It was there we
let our hair down, skirts twirling (the girls,that is), swinging and twisting
to the rock an’ roll beat.
Such fun the Friday night dances were; as were the
Saturday night country dances held in halls in the surrounding rural areas on
Gympie’s outskirts...such as Cedar Pocket, Kybong, Chatsworth, Traveston...
The delicious suppers served by the farmers’
wives...the cheerful ladies of the CWA...were integral parts of the country
dances. Those ladies could cook! Their home-made scones, cakes and tarts were
unmatched.
Bobby, a local Gympie fellow, who was about 10 years
older than me, was a jazz aficionado. He was one of the young men and woman who took me under their wings during those early years of my tentative advance into adulthood.
Bobby's parents owned and operated a large, local business...a store that sold just
about everything from food to hardware, and all in between.
Bobby not only worked for his parents, he also
remained living in the family home, which was a rather large house.
The four walls in a second lounge room of the home
were covered by floor to ceiling shelves, not unlike those in a well-stocked,
public library; or a library one would expect to see in Highclere Castle...the
mansion depicted as the home of the “Downton Abbey” gang...the Crawleys, and
their loyal servants. (The same castle was used in “Jeeves and Wooster”, a
British comedy series of the early 90s).
The room was Bobby's regular hang-out, and the shelves held his vast collection of records,
LPs and 78 rpms (revolutions per minute)...sleeve to sleeve; jacket to
jacket. Jazz and blues’ discs kept in tidy,
strict alphabetical order.
Every time I was a guest in his home - in that special room - along with
other friends, I was in awe of Bobby’s vast collection; as was everyone else.
Lounging on the carpeted floor, propped on cushions,
we listened to the music on offer, speaking softly, and only when necessary. The
music was the centre of our attention.
Our appreciation of the music; the art of
composition, and the knowledge gained about the artists grew from each such evening
spent at Bobby’s home. He was a generous
host.
Alcohol was present, but never abused. It was sitting
on the carpeted floor of that room I first tasted Scotch Whisky...straight up...in
a fine white porcelain tea cup of all things! I don't know why a glass wasn't used...but I wasn't complaining....and didn't....
To this day, I remember clearly what I said following
my first sip from the tea cup.
“What is this?
Hmmm! I like it!” So I took another sip...
That night at Bobby's place, sitting next to me was the young man who had handed
me the drink. He was five years older than
me. And, a little more than five years on
from that evening, unknown at the time by both of us, and not even imagined in the wildest dreams by either he or me...he was to become my first husband...Mervyn.
A lot of Life’s experiences were lived and experienced
by me between that night sipping on my first Scotch in Bobby’s home in 1961 and an evening
in 1966!
Other than the extensive record library at 4GY,
Gympie’s radio station, and Colour Radio 4IP's massive record library, I’ve never seen a record collection like the one Bobby
had. It was the envy of many. I'm sure it still would be...if still in existence...
Those of us whom Bobby befriended were grateful beneficiaries of wonderful evenings shared...thankful for the introduction to some brilliant music...and artists.
Chicken
Pie:
Place 3c plain flour and 1c butter, cut into ½-inch pieces into freezer 30mins
before preparation. In processor, pulse flour, 1tsp baking powder, and 1tsp
salt until combined; add butter; pulse until pea-sized and some slightly larger
pieces form (or do it the old-fashioned way...using your fingertips, not your
palms). With machine running, add 1/2c
icy water, 1tbs at a time, until dough just comes together and is moist, not
wet and sticky (test by squeezing some with your fingers). Turn dough onto
lightly floured surface; form into 2 balls; flatten into 2 discs (make sure
there are no/cracks). Cover with plastic wrap; chill 40mins. Preheat oven,
200C. Grease baking dish with butter; grease one side of a large piece of
baking paper with butter. Season 4 boneless, skinless chicken all over; then
place in baking dish. Place buttered side of paper over chicken, so chicken is
completely covered. Bake until chicken is cooked through; let sit 10 mins; then
cut into cubes. In pot over med-heat, melt 2tbs butter; add 1 chopped onion and
2 chopped large carrots; cook until they begin to soften. Add 3 minced garlic
cloves; then stir in 3/4c plain flour; cook until flour mixture is golden and
begins to bubble. Gradually whisk in 3c chicken broth. Bring to a boil; cook
until thickened. Stir in 1/4c heavy cream, cubed chicken, 1c frozen peas,
chopped parsley and thyme; season . Roll
out one dough disc on floured surface, to about ¼” thick. Place in shallow pie
dish; add cooled filling; roll out second disc; place on top of filling; trim
and crimp edges; create a couple of slits on top; brush with egg wash; sprinkle
with salt flakes. Reduce oven heat,
175C; bake pie, about 45mins.
Salmon Fillets with
Whisky Sauce: Mix sea salt,
freshly-ground black pepper, 2tbs brown sugar and 2tbs sweet hot mustard to
form a past. Brush on 4 salmon fillets;
then brush with olive oil. Oil the
grates for gas or charcoal grill, and heat. (Or use oiled pan on stove). Place salmon on the grill, or in hot pan;
cover and cook to the desired doneness. Don’t over-cook! Combine juice from 1 lemon
, 4tbs whisky, 1/4c butter, 1tbs olive
oil,1tbs capers with caper juice, and 2tbs lemon zest in a saucepan; heat until
the butter melts. Pour the sauce over the salmon to serve.
