Yesterday was all about the musical legend that is Stevie Wonder.
Up at 7:00 and thinking about how singing tips had gone down with the TuneIN Choir singers. There were a quite a few emails in my inbox so I was about to find out. Whatever that afternoon's rehearsal had in store was secondary to the fact that many of us were looking forward to was seeing Stevie Wonder do his thing at the Calling Festival in Clapham Common, south London, straight afterwards.
Rehearsal over we headed down from St Pauls. In true festival style, it was pouring with rain. A quick stop at a convenience store to pick up some bin-liners for some makeshift rain wear and we we ready.
How magic was the whole Stevie Wonder experience? Well check this out. I rained the whole time. Many other acts were obscured by the downpour. The bonus was that an undervalued Gregory porter was in a tent rather than on the main stage. But this was a good thing because it meant enjoying his scintillating set in the dry of a packed-out marquee. But when it came to Stevie, that was a different story.
At 6pm the word was out that Stevie was about to come on stage. At that moment the clouds cleared and the sun came out. Wow! this man is really on Higher Ground. And he was all you could hope for. two hours of some of the best entertainment you could wish for. Two hours isn't enough to cover a lifetime of great music. But what you got was more than enough.
Stevie's classic song 'As' is in our repertoire, but he didn't perform that one. So we finish off our evening by singing it as rehearsed earlier.
I’d like to join the friends of
Birmingham Central Library in mourning the passing of this highly emotive city
landmark. The building has sat empty
since 2013, having been replaced by the Library of Birmingham, which is
situated in nearby Centenary Square.
Despite all protestations, campaigning and calls for alternative uses
for the building the bulldozers have finally come to put the old place out of
its misery.
The Birmingham Central Library
building has always courted controversy and divided opinion. The old Library, which dominated Chamberlain
Square was opened, by then Prime Minister, Harold Wilson, on a sunny Saturday
morning in 1974. Little did anyone know
that the strength of feeling against the building would mean it would struggle
to reach its 40th birthday.
Prince Charles famously described it as
looking like a place where books go to be incinerated and a former Birmingham
director of planning labelled it a ‘concrete monstrosity’. But there were many, including Turner prize
winning artist, Jeremy Deller, who understood its appeal. And so the battle raged between those who saw
it as a blot on the landscape and those who believed its stark British Brutalist
architectural style should to be honoured.
It’s worth noting that Birmingham
born architect, John Madin, had no intention of building a 'concrete
monstrosity’. His original plans were
for the building to be clad in Portland stone or Travertine marble. But Birmingham City Council were reluctant to
foot the bill and the concrete exterior was used instead.
Admittedly the library’s
sub-Bauhaus design isn’t even my kind of thing, but I’d grown to like it. Besides I wasn’t into it for its looks. It was what lay within that sparked my
interest. Within those grey walls lay
books that helped me get the life I truly wanted, rather than the one others
thought would suit me best. It contained
a wealth of knowledge I couldn’t get anywhere else. Without it I would have struggled to find the
inspiration I needed to pursue my career in the arts.
My dreams were kept alive by a Library
that became my second home. Inside I
discovered the writings of great philosophers, historians, dramatists and
political thinkers. But it was when I
came across the books on art that my life changed. There were beautiful images of the great
master’s finest works. And I found
information about influential past and contemporary art movements.
This was all before the internet,
so without these books I would never have been able to find any of this. I was inspired and soaked up all the
knowledge I could. Those days, pouring through volume after marvellous volume,
shaped how I viewed the world and how I saw my future.
As far back as I can remember I always
wanted to be an artist.
Pursuing that particular
path is tricky enough nowadays, but back in Birmingham in the 1970s I might as
well have said I wanted to be an astronaut.
I was two years out of school before I even found out there were art
schools in Birmingham. I’ll share that
story with you another time.
Once I did find out about art
schools I ditched my job in engineering, enrolled in Bournville School of Art
and signed up for the artist’s life.
There’s more to that story too and I’ll also share that with you another
time.
Occasionally I’ll walk into a
gallery and find myself standing in front of one of the paintings I gazed at with
wonder in my youth. Once I get over the
initial rush I smile and thank the Birmingham Central Library for what it gave
me all those years ago.
Out With The Old, In With The New
I paid a visit to the new Library
of Birmingham last year. I like
it. It was more like coming home than
visiting a new building. For a start,
it’s attached to another of my old stomping ground, the Birmingham Rep. When I reached the art department and found some
of the books that I was inspired by are now on the new library’s shelves I felt
a sense of continuity. I was filled with
hope that some young kid wanting to follow their chosen path would also be
inspired.
Attitude to the creative
industries is slowly changing. The last
few years as seen it become one of UK’s major growth sectors. But there’s probably a young person somewhere
having a hard time convincing people that they want to follow their
dreams.
So before I go. Is there something you need to know? Are you looking for a nugget of wisdom that
will transform your life? If so, there
might be a book on the subject available, for free, at your local library. So why not pop down and see.
