Paul Janisch

Not half fourteen

I suspect this will be the last blog post about Oliver's previous year.  I wrote these because I wanted him to see that he has a father who loves him, I do think it shows in the writing.  It's also a collection of memories that he can look over when he's older.  That's the period that most people don't remember.  Of course he could troll Facebook and look at pictures and thoughts collected by his mother.  But these thought are concise and collected.  From now on Oliver will be able to collect his own memories and experiences - many of which his parents won't know about and some will be memories that his parents don't need to know about.  It has been a pleasure creating these annual snapshots and they'll be up here for as long as Typepad keeps its servers alive. 

The rules and conditions for this appreciation of my eldest son's 14^th birthday today are

1. Don't embarrass me
2. No pictures
3. Don't embarrass me
4. And most importantly – DON'T EMBARRASS ME!!!!!

The second requirement is easy. He doesn't agree to have his picture taken, and you can see that he's hiding away in this picture. The other three are more difficult. As it turns out these posts are being scrutinised by his friends at school and hence are bound to embarrass the new 14 year old.

It is through this minefield that I tread with caution. Oliver started at a new school at the beginning of this year. He was due to finish primary school this year and then would have headed onto the traditional schools (very expensive and boarding-type school) that his primary school was a feeder school to. I won't go into the reasons why we moved him to this new school, nor will I disclose that it's not as close to home as his prior school is. But it does appear that we and he made the right choice. It's a co-ed school with a very radical thinking headmaster (first embarrassing error – I used a gender). It's a perfect fit for him. It's not been easy because he is a little shy and very self-conscious and he spent a good few months away from school and cricket due to COVID. This term (third term) is the first one where he has been to school everyday. He's putting in massive hours on the cricket field and is flying academically.

Most importantly for him is that he's got a group of friends that he spends a lot of time whatsapping and god knows what else. They're his mates and are a mixture of girls and boys. I think having girls in class with him is important. He's got his first jol on Saturday – a Halloween do. He claims he doesn't want to go – but I think he wants to go.

He's also shot up. I measured him this week and he's grown 3.5cm in the last three months, he has about half a foot to go to catch up with his cousin in the US, but she is a year older than him. He's also lost a lot of weight. He's skinny. Those large shoulders that he cultivated on the trampoline as a child have been replaced by height. (I have to describe him because I'm not allowed a picture).

Ever the passionate child, Oliver still loves his cricket (another high score of 71 recently, batting through the innings  to the last over), will probably not play rugby again and has become very aware of social issues. He's in the right environment to nurture these and to express them. And he gets a daily lecture on Frank Zappa on the way into school and back.

Happy birthday Oliver, I have exercised as much restraint as I can in this missive. You are loved by all those around you and your journey in life now begins on your terms. The world is yours, have it and you'll find it will reciprocate. You're in middle school now, which ends in a few years.  Technically it's your last year of primary school.  You are no longer a small boy, you are rapidly becoming an adult. You've got a lot on your former school mates, you've established yourself at your school and these people will be your friends for the next five years and possibly forever.

Tradition dictates that I play a Peter Green, Ollie Halsall and Denny Laine song every year. I'm going to stick with Peter Green and Ollie this year, I have another surprise for the third song.

Peter Green would have been 75 this year. I still listen to his music with fresh ears. Those short years that he spent with Mayall and Fleetwood Mac cemented his reputation for many generations to come. I think I hear his playing in Zappa, Bob Marley and an Iranian musician called Kourosh Yaghmaei. My love for Green is my own, neither of my children are showing much, if any, interest. 

This is not a Green song, he's on rhythm guitar - this is a Danny Kirwan song. One of the very best opening songs on any album, it just sucks you in.

01 - Fleetwood Mac - Coming Your Way

Ollie Halsall

A great track from his one and only Tempest album. I'm almost running out of Ollie songs.

11 - Tempest - Stargazer

AND FINALLY – not Denny Laine. It's The Who

Athena is one of Oliver's friends. I love the name, it's such a beautiful Greek name, it's a beautiful name period.    The song is the first song off the album "It's Hard", a great and somewhat neglected tune. 

01 - The Who - Athena

OKAY - I really like Denny Laine.  I'll concede that his solo stuff is patchy but I grew up with him and found things in his music that might not be that obvious.  I have to post a Denny Laine song.  Oliver the title says everything about your last five years at school.  This will be your most consistent five years until you settle down - enjoy them.  Love,  get your heart broken and love again.  Work hard, make friends and start preparing for your adult life.

12- Move Me To Another Place

 

 

It’s the bar mitzvah year – Oliver at 13

Not that we are Jewish. But 13 is a significant milestone in anybody's life. You move away from unique names for your age to the teens – it's all thirteen, fourteen and the twenty etc. It's hard to look at this young man and think of him as this little baby. He is no longer a baby. He's a strapping young lad.

This is a different year, Oliver has been in the grip of the Corona virus for about 230 days – that's almost two thirds of his 12^th year (I will write the same thing about his brother in a month). It's also a significant year because the academic results he produces at the end of the year will determine whether a high school will accept him and, most importantly, whether he will be invited to write the scholarship exam. In spite of this, his academic performance has been good. A lot of it was done virtually. When we spoke to his teachers they seemed happy with his performance. He's now back at school five days a week and playing a lot of extra-mural cricket.

What happened this year? We started out normally. Oliver was put in the academic A set. He barely had enough time to prove himself on the sports' field. He did however make the second 11, opening the batting for the few games they played. Then it all came crashing down. The lockdown was hard for everyone. We are lucky enough to live in a house, a house with a garden and a few other entertainment objects. I think living on a property with a large number of people must have been hard – I found it hard. He had to learn to navigate the online school system that his school had hurriedly put together. Because he has a younger brother he was largely left to his own devices, which might have yielded a benefit for him – not so much us. He handled the lockdown as well as he could, although he was not keen on the chores – things like PE and gardening hour. He's a law-abiding young man who would not go out onto the street to talk to the neighbours like all of us did. As the lockdown dragged on, so did our resolve to adhere to the strict prescripts that the utterly despised Nkosazana unreasonably foisted on us. He was of the opinion that this was the law and we should stick to it. Some laws are just so unreasonable, we explained, they just need to be ignored.

He was lucky because some of his coaches managed to make a plan when it came to extra sport lessons (vagueness here to protect the innocent). He was taking lessons at private houses because the schools were closed. It now seems like a long time ago – he's playing a lot more cricket now and his passion has returned. I see him hitting a ball in the garden more.

One other feature of the lockdown was gaming. Oh he got stuck in, making friends with other kids at his school and people all over the world. He even subscribed to a content site until they cleaned his bank account out. A lesson learned I think. One of his Fortnite mates is Polish and he's picked up a bit of the language, specifically the cuss words. He's drawn to Polish because his surname is Polish, that's about as Polish as we are, this is not a deterrent to Oliver.

We've come to the end of his 12^th year. I have my doubts that he will ever forget it. It's that last exam slog until the end of the term. He has already identified the school he wants to go to. They had an event over a recent weekend where a number of kids (only three from his school) spent a night at the school, getting a feel for the atmosphere and facilities. He was so impressed and absorbed by the school. Couldn't stop talking about it. It's a boarding school and in his interview with the head, he was specifically asked about boarding. He's up for it. I think this move may result in our own move to another part of the country in a year.

Well done on this last year Oliver. It's been hard on everyone and you made it. It'll take a while for all of us to find our feet again. Hopefully we don't sucked into this rubbish hype next year and he can finish his final year at primary school and prepare for his highschool career. You are the finest oldest son a father could wish for and I am ridiculously proud of you. We both know that you are changing and that your musical taste just plain sucks. But you are fine kid and a great ambassador for your school. You are learning different life lessons all the time – some you'll take to heart and others you will conveniently ignore. If it takes as long as me to learn anything then you have a challenging forty years ahead. I love you and remain your passionate and proud father.

Now onto music. I mean bad rap – why would anyone want to listen to that? How about Public Enemy or NWA. Nope – Oliver now has his music and it's not mine. But did I try.

Peter Green

As many who read this blog already know Peter Green died in July this year, he would have been 74 today. There were features on him in good publications all over the world, he had made that much of an impact. Sad that they suddenly wake up when he is gone – but I carried the flag. This year's track is taken from Then Play On, Green's last album with Fleetwood Mac. The album is in my top five – I love it. As I've got to know the album I have found myself drawn to the Madge jams more and more. In fact I listened to a large number of bootlegs for three solid weeks after his death and realised that I was right – Green had that thing. He was never boring, nothing was rote. It was always different. He was unique. I don't when we are going to see someone like that again. The track is called Underway, and it's taken from a BBC concert on the 9th of April 1970 (two days before Oliver's aunt was born and a few weeks before he left Fleetwood Mac). It's a vamp on an A6 chord – in the live bootlegs it tended to find its way after the long Rattlesnake Shake jam. You have Danny Kirwan holding down this chord and Green heading out somewhere – riveting.

02 - Underway

Ollie Halsall

This is the thing about YouTube, stuff that no one knew existed suddenly appears. The video is typical of its time – at least you get to see Ollie playing the vibes. The Man is off their first album – Mike Patto's vocal performance is up there with McCartney's best Little Richard impersonations.

01 - Patto - The Man

Denny Laine

It's Denny's birthday too, 76 years old. Still a huge influence on me. There is an album called Japanese Tears that is often repackaged with McCartney's visage on it. Some of the tracks have McCartney on them, but it's a Laine album. It's an OK album, one that I listened to a lot as a guitarist in training. I learned a few songs of the album – this is the other one, three simple chords. It's a lot harder to play than I thought it was.

13 - Denny Laine - Weep For Love

Happy birthday Oliver – you share a birthday with some great people, it's a precedent you know. And when you read this in the future – remember your hiking trip in July this year.

The clock strikes 12 and Oliver is..........er 12

What rhymes with 12? I normally make the title a pun or a reference to something. This worked well for Oliver over the years, it's his poor brother who doesn't get the witty titles because his old man doesn't have the creative juices to think of another clever one. Oliver is 12. This is the last year where his age has a unique number, unique in the sense that from next year on he will be either a teen or a twenty etc. As I write this the Springboks have just made it into the rugby world cup final against England. Oliver was born just after the last time the Springboks became world champions in 2007, how much more luck does that team need!

Watching Oliver grow is the finest experience any parent could wish for. Watching him grow up with his brother and take his brother under his wing is something that shows the depth of character that my eldest son possesses.

As with each year in Oliver's life, he has faced a number of challenges and risen above them, sometimes with ease and other times by demonstrating sheer grit. I look at this little boy that I met 12 years ago and realise that he's not a little boy. He is physically big, a broad shouldered boy with a sharp wit and an intellect that leaves me struggling to keep up. Our little boy is now en route to becoming a young man. He does stand out on a physical level, he might not be the tallest in his grade but his physique seems to be more defined than his peers. This has a lot to do with the extraordinary amount of time he spends on the sports field or practicing sport in the garden. He's also lost a lot of weight in the last 10 months.

It's been another year of extreme learning curves, but one which has been easier emotionally than the last few. He's now found a few like-minded boys that he regards as his close friends. It's that concept of finding your tribe and I think Oliver is starting to do that. I have said this a few times on this blog but I see massive parallels between myself and Oliver. I don't have his grit and I am certainly not as academically gifted as he is. We are similar in how we settled down with people that we regard as our friends. Oliver's wit is sharp and he is extremely knowledgeable about subjects close to his heart – which is inevitably sport related, although he did impress the socks off some dread disease academic with his knowledge of phages whilst on holiday in April.  Last year he found some bloke looking at the Premier league scores on the Gautrain and Oliver launched into a discussion with the man about who the best team was and why that person's team was a poor choice. Perhaps his forthright nature doesn't gel all that well with the rank and file in his grade at school, but it is always a mental workout for us.  These are lessons that he has to learn and I expect that he may come in for a fair amount of heartache and disappointment in the coming years because of his strong opinions. It's all a learning curve, a curve that I still haven't negotiated fully.

Sport is Oliver's passion (other than a voracious appetite for reading – he devours books) and he has played in the higher teams in his grade in almost all the ball sports. He had a brilliant first term in the B cricket team, earning himself man of the match in this last game. He's a head player, and knows enough about strategy to know how to mix up balls when he bowls. He hasn't yet equaled his batting high score from last year, but the cricket season is not yet over. He did however make the A team for rugby, and as a front row player he scored a large number of tries. He started out as a prop but was changed to hooker when it was discovered that the hooker was more interested in pushing the scrum as opposed to actually hooking.

One story really stands out for me. I was forced to sit through some Marvel movie that was at least 3 hours (or years) long. There was one scene where the Iron Man character says "I am Iron Man". There I was in the cinema singing that most famous riff – duh duh dadadaa, dadadadaaa duh duh duh (apparently Sabbath will block this post if I even sing it - best listen to the link whilst you can). At once father and son had seen eye to eye on music. I taught Oliver to play that riff on the piano (which my friend Ian says comes from the Phrygian mode) and he decided that it was his favourite song. Back to the rugby, he was in the line out when the opposing team called for an iron man. Oliver starts singing that famous riff, their jumper looks at Oliver and the ball bounced off his head into the hands of Oliver's team.

There are other little quirks to Oliver's personality that make him a very unique young man. He was the first in his school to get his old man up on the stage to play along with him at a concert (something his headmaster noted and then commented that is was a pleasant surprise to see his old man still playing an instrument at such an advanced age!). Being somewhat like me he likes to wing things, sort of "I know this, I'll just make it up as I go along.". His marks show that that is not the best way to go about things, but when he does prepare – then it's a different story. This is his mother's strong influence on him. Still his personality and quirkiness wins over many people. I have work colleagues who ask after him every time I see them.

Happy 12^th birthday my wonderful Oliver. This is an important year for you, because it really does become the beginning of the end of your easy childhood existence. Your body is going to change, you'll find it difficult to talk to girls and the like. Your academic smarts, grit on the sportsground and general demeanour will get you through it. You have the tools and now is the time to make them work for you. We love you and will be there for you as you enter your teenhood (as hard and trying as that may be for a father that can barely tolerate the sound of a washing machine). You have been, and remain a vital part of our lives as a son and a brother and a grandson.

What would these posts be without the references to Peter Green, Ollie Halsall and Denny Laine.

07 - Peter Green - The Clown

Peter Green is still alive and 73 years old today. That's quite an innings for someone who was effectively burnt out at the age of 23. It's a known fact that Green's reputation was made during the last four years of the 1960s. I still return to those recordings and am almost always bowled over by some other aspect of his music that I may not have paid much attention to in the past.

The Clown is a post Fleetwood Mac tune.  One of those songs that cheers me up when I might need it.  I think to a certain extent Oliver fits the song's narrative.  He is big bounce backer. 

Patto - Give it all away

Ollie Halsall. Similar to Green in terms of brilliance but just dumb and very dead. Who picks up a needle in their 40s, I ask you with tears streaming down my face. Olllie did and now he is no more. But he did leave us with a sizable canon to choose from. This track was described by my friend, the multi instrumentalist, Guy Mann-Dude as the best guitar solo ever recorded. He's right, Ollie moves from Clapton to somewhere else in 59 seconds. That somewhere else is now well known, but in 1971 it was beyond the stratosphere – I never get bored listening to it. Here's Parker Goessling showing us how ridiculously hard it is to play.

Colin Blunstone - Say you don't mind

Denny Laine – he was inducted into the rock 'n roll hall of fame with Moody Blues you know. Still he is best known as Paul McCartney's partner in Wings. I see that there are more YouTube videos of him coming out, many of them very recent. He's a great musician and a solid influence on me.  This is probably his best known song, recorded by Colin Blunstone.  Blunstone is the vocalist for the Zombies (anyone remember "Time of the Season"?).  A beautiful voice - Oliver is almost there in terms of a beautiful voice.

Oliveleven

o17 - Rabbitt - When I Was Eleven

Couldn't be more apt. 

 Oliver's now eleven and quite the superstar.  This picture is really for his old man.  We were very fortunate to go away to Lydenburg for a weekend - the house we stayed at has a trout hatchery.  We'd never been trout fishing before and beginner's luck is such that Oliver hauled out a 7lbs trout.  We went fishing again this last weekend and he almost landed a largish trout.  I think he has something there.

But fishing is not really the thing that gets his motor running.  It's now soccer.  Soccer was large in his life four years ago.  As I wrote back then

His ambition is to be a goalie. In order to be a goalie you have to play soccer. And play soccer he does, with great vigour and enthusiasm, to the extent that he has been known to decline going to a party because it clashes with soccer practice. We all delight in watching him play.

If I thought soccer was big then I was wrong. It's now a massive, all-consuming passion and the desire to be a goalie remains.  He was given Neymar Jnr soccer kit and he wears very little else most days when he's not at school.  He is passionate about Spurs - because of Harry Kane and a number of other players.  We are told at every opportunity about which is footballer is worth what and what they did and how they did it and where they live and where he wants to live and soccer and more soccer and some more football.  A typical interaction would be something along these lines.

"Which side are you supporting, Dad?"

"I don't know, I think I'll just enjoy the game."

"I like the first team - they've had more non injuries and sixes and supposed defaults on the bassline than any other team in the crickball league.  The other team have had less possession of bitcoin than the New Zealand tiddlywinks team.  Zanzibar Bucharest is their best player but he's nowhere near as good as Godfearing Thatbanana."

"OK - I think I'll just watch the game."

But it's not soccer that has been his crowing (sic - should be crowning) achievement this year (amongst many).  It's his absolute commitment to cricket.  I don't know what happened this year but he suddenly decided he loved cricket - which is probably my favourite sport.  He has developed into a very good spin bowler over the last 10 months.  I stress, it's only been 10 months.  Last year he played one game for the B team and they decided that he might not have been suited for that team at the time.  Ten months later he's back in the B team,  bumping off kids who've been playing at that level for years.  He has steadfastly stuck to his coaching both private and with the legendary Jimmy Cook. His commitment has truly paid off, his first game in the B team - against St Johns, got him 67 runs and a stumping. Highest score too. He is deservedly immensely proud of himself. His cricket passion has certainly dictated our weekends as his sporting activities take up a lot of time.  

Rugby was the main sport last year.  He didn’t want to play club this year and just played at school.  Last year he started for the E team and ended up in the C team at the end of the season.  This year he made it into the B team and would sub often for the C team.  He took a few knocks on the way but he was committed and worked steadfastly to get into the B team and fought to stay there.  It's quite entertaining watching rugby at this level - they play uncontested scrums and line outs.  In complete contrast to the 15 a-side he was playing last year.  

His soccer and hockey seasons weren't that successful because of severs in his heels which made walking really hard and running very unpleasant.  I think he might be over those now as we enter the cricket season.

Another feature that we are going to get used to is his self expression.  If you look carefully at this picture you'll see a child with blue tips in his hair (and that Neymar shirt too).  This was second prize.  He decided he wanted his whole head dyed blue but the considerate hair bloke talked him out of it because he had a week left of holiday.  He paid more than a month's pocket money (plus tip) for the hair and then got it cut off a week later.  He is undeterred - he's going to do something dramatic, and no doubt expensive, at the beginning of his December holidays.  It's the beginning of tweenhood where a lot of issues need to discussed - and he's not shy to discuss them. 

As far as a year goes, it's been a hard year emotionally as he finds where he fits in in the social circle at school.  He's a bright boy who can explode when pushed.  The school (as do most schools) emphasise the sporting aspects above everything else and he's not quite at the A team level yet and so he's not quite sure where he belongs.  He's a straight A student who doesn't struggle academically at all.  It's this A consistency that doesn't bring him much recognition - the school is used to him over-achieving in that department.  And he is a voracious reader.  It's extraordinary how many books he gets through in a month.  He's reading way over his level.  He's hit the Spud series - which has brought on a new level of questioning of his parents.  

He's finding himself.  I see the parallels in our respective lives.  The finding process is an important part of growing up.  It's his passion that will pull him through.  Once he gets his teeth into something he sticks at it.  Last year it was rugby and this year it's cricket.  He's also dabbling in selling a range of clothing with a friend.  If he gets his head around that then there will be the most amazing lessons learned.

Happy birthday my wonderful Superstar.  The best eldest son any parent could ask for.  Teenhood is two years away - enjoy these carefree years and just be you.  You are the best you I have ever come across.

My friend Chris Daffy, who has a radio show on LM Radio on Saturday and Sunday mornings, got his first direct email from Oliver asking him to play an Oliver-approved song.  In the past it's always been a Peter Green song or an Ollie Halsall song.  My choice was the Rabbitt song because I'm just a massive fan.  But I cannot stray from this blog's tradition.

17 - Fleetwood Mac - Preachin' Blues

This song tells you what a great ear Peter Green had. It's an almost note-perfect cover of a Robert Johnson song.  Most people who have listened to Mr Johnson (or Poor Bob if you please) recognise that Johnson is not an easy artist to cover well.  Here's Green doing Johnson and owning the song - Clapton never got that right.  Happy birthday Mr Green - 72 years old.

And Oliver's take on Peter Green (my son now has his own email address - this was his first email to me)

From: Oliver Janisch  
Sent: 13 January 2018 11:55
To: Paul Janisch 
Subject:

Hi dad peter green😱😩Justin Bieber 🎤🎤🎤🤑

07 - Paul McCartney & Wings - Time To Hide

Denny at his best.  There's a live video showing him messing up the harmonica intro.  It's a great song and I've seen him perform it live.  That's the most fantastic (now erstwhile) Jimmy McCulloch on guitar.  Happy birthday Denny - you've been a vital part of my guitar playing life.

 Patto - Magic door

To many people Ollie Halsall was the most fearsome guitarist.  He was much more than that.  His piano playing was incredible and he was one of the first and only people (other than Frank Zappa) who brought the vibraphone into a rock environment.  The question that should have been leveled at Mr Peter Halsall is "are you real?"

Oliver is real and he's my son and his family adore him.  Happy birthday my wonderful boy. 

Pyramus and Thisbe 10. Oliver hits double figures

Meet DJ Divide - known here as Oliver Janisch.  If I had my way he would have been Peter Green Divide - but I have learned the hard way that your children will do what they will do and no amount of Zapparing or Peter Greening will change that state of affairs.

Every year brings different aspects to Oliver's childhood and every year he excels at something else.  This year was extraordinary for him.  He has found his rhythm at school.  And is just the most amazing (opinionated I stress) child.

Where do we start with this year?  So much has happened, the last 8 months have been so fluid that I don't think I can look back much further than that. Maybe I can go back as far as December where the young man decided to walk down a banister whilst we were on holiday.  We rented a house in Scarborough which is not known for its cellphone signal - in fact it has no signal at all.  I asked Oliver what his plan was here - he said to me he would jump down.  He slipped immediately afterwards and broke his arm.  His mother was out with the the car and I couldn't find a signal to call her.  He's a brave little kid and sat in pain until his mother came home and schlepped him over the mountain to the nearest hospital.  He earned a few bragging rights as a result.

But it was rugby that liberated him.  Oliver is a very broad shouldered kid.  This is because he spends hours on the trampoline (and he has two) with his Playmobil man.  This man is a very important part of his life.  It's like a kid's teddy bear.  He wears them out and then he'll get another one.  They are this conduit for his imagination.  Every night we get "have you seen my man?" routine, it seems as if this toy is a sleep inducing placebo as well.  Back to rugby.  The school offers rugby from Standard one (I know it's called grade 3) and Oliver made the E team.  It's chaos on the field - Oliver just picks up the ball and runs and everyone runs towards the runner.  He was the top scorer in the grade and eventually made his way up the ranks to the C team.  No sooner had the rugby season ended when the soccer season started, but he wanted to play rugby.  His mother had heard of a few kids at his school who were interested in playing rugby at Pirates,  the only issue was that practice was held on Wednesday and Friday nights with games on Saturdays.  Oliver and I went to Pirates on a cold Wednesday night just to check it out.  Oliver was kitted out in his soccer boots and school rugby kit.  After about half an hour he said he wanted to go out and play.  We asked the coach if he could come on the field and Oliver got stuck in, he had to take his shoes off because they play barefoot.  The thing is that club rugby is at a very different level to school rugby.  He ended up playing with kids from a wide variety of schools, many of them Afrikaans speaking who are fantastic players, better than anything his school could field.  But he got involved and was accepted by his teammates.  And my god he got fit - there they just run.  He also learned to play 15-a-side rugby and in positions too.  He found his home as a flank. Because there is a clash between club and school sport we were just happy that he came and practiced with the other kids.  But he made the team and he played a lot of games - not only did he get stuck in but he stuck it out.   None of the other kids in his grade got as far as he did, I don't think any of them actually pitched for a practice.

And it was the rugby that brought on a love for sport.  He's got a long way to go but the seed is sown and he loves it. He is also starting to understand the importance of practice and hard work - he's more than happy playing for a lower team and enjoying the game and accepting promotions when and if they come.

Why then the title "Pyramus and Thisbe"?   There was a Shakespeare quiz that was really for highschool kids.  Oliver's teacher decided to enter a team from his school who just happened to be about 8 years younger than their fellow competitors.  His team mates were given extra lessons and we bought as many Shakespeare books as we could find - Oliver read the lot.  He also spent a lot of time on YouTube researching.  The four of them went to the childrens' theatre in Johannesburg and set themselves up.  They were leading the points after the first round.  And then the questions became very technical and specific about different plays.  There was one question which was about Midsummer Night's Dream and the play within the play - and Oliver blurted out "Pyramus and Thisbe".  I almost burst into tears - I'm quite tearful writing this actually.  They came sixth out of eight teams and his school and parents and grandparents were ecstatic.  They got a special mention at school assembly the next morning.

Oliver is a fantastic child, a very loved and special son and somewhat inflammatory brother, but a protective, inflammatory brother.  He got his first speaking part in the school play and delivered it with guts and aplomb.  It’s been a year of finding his feet, both at school and home.  These last ten years haven the most amazing decade of my life.  And I can't wait to see what the next year brings. One thing is for sure - it will involve reading more books than the school library has to offer him.  We've had to join the public library to keep up with his voracious reading appetite.

Thank you my wonderful son, thank you for being you.  You are the most amazing you I have ever known.

Now let's not stray from tradition.  It's my tradition that is not specifically appreciated by my son but he can start writing his own blog posts and putting up his own music.

 09 - Peter Green - Little Dreamer

Happy birthday Peter Green.  A track taken from the seventies, his very lost period (the eighties were worse for him).  But Oliver is a little dreamer, it's very apt.

10- The Blues

It's also Denny Laine's birthday.  It's sad that history is in the process of forgetting Denny Laine.  McCartney's Wings success was very dependent on Denny's consistency.  Happy birthday Denny.

14 - Tempest - Yeah Yeah Yeah

Ollie Halsall's closest brush with commerciality was with Tempest. Not his birthday but tradition dictates that we include an Ollie song every birthday.

Happy Birthday my wonderful, talented and stunning eldest son.

Number nine, number nine

And so we are coming to the end of single figures.  This is Oliver's tenth year on this planet and what an incredible ten years it's been.  I'm not sure if I have told this story before but Oliver was born on Peter Green's birthday because of some ridiculous desire of mine.  We knew he was going to make his appearance on this planet at about that time.  Kath was adamant that Oliver was NOT going to be born on Peter Green's birthday.  She maintained that his birthday would be all about Green and not Oliver.  We went for the three-week-prior scan and the gynae told us that he could deliver him on either the 29th of October or the 1st of November.  I was big on the 29th.  Fortunately for me Kath knew someone who had a birthday on the 1st that she was not very keen on.  The 29th it was to be.  At the final scan the gynae told us that his game farm was having its AGM on the 29th and he could do the 31st. I was apparently distraught so we got a new gynae and Oliver was born on the 29th of October 2007.  That was nine years ago.  

Every year in his life brings something different, his interests change, his outlook changes and certain things remain consistent.  We've had a hell of a year with renovations. All four of us living in the same bedroom, the garden in turmoil, no swimming pool during the hottest summer I have experienced since I was on the border 29 years ago.  We did manage to find a place to put his trampoline.  This is perhaps his most consistent pastime.  He probably spends a few hours a day jumping and playing these games that only he understands. We now know how significant the trampoline is in his life, he has literally jumped it into oblivion.  When he doesn't have it he is at a loose end.  He definitely has a body that shows how much time he spends on this thing, very square shoulders, strong arms and legs and a body that I wish I could have had at twenty.  Getting around the house after the renovations was easy - he would get out of bed and climb on his J-board and head to the breakfast table.  This is the pretty the way he gets around the house - there are all sorts of dings in the floors that might have been caused by a J-board.  Sadly it appears that he's lost interest in this activity.  I'm hoping he gets it back.

The last few years have been Star Wars years. I'd never watched it in the past but now I know a lot about it.  I loved watching the latest one on the big screen with him, he knew all the characters and was enthralled.  All that has changed. Harry Potter is the new cool thing.  We're concerned about the films, they scare the bananas out of me.  The next best thing, in fact the only best thing are the books.  And he reads them voraciously, re-reads them voraciously; the school books he brings home bore him and offer very little stimulation.  Take his kindle away and we have problems.  When he is reading you lose him completely, I find myself screaming at him just to attract his attention.  We were away camping this weekend and he and his friends were casting Potter-approved spells at each other, including his younger brother.  They were using their glowing marshmallow sticks as wands.  Understand here that Oliver is the only person who's read the books - this is a game of his making and his mates are gung-ho.

I've mentioned this before that he is a very bright child, he loves reading.  His comprehension is extraordinary and he and his brother enjoy their trips to the library.  I get the impression that he tends to warm to kids that are on his intellectual level.  He likes a bit of rough and tumble but relishes discussions with his friends.  I was so proud of him when he put together a project on an obscure dinosaur called a Rhamphorhynchus.  He got stuck in, learned how to use PowerPoint, took presentation lessons from his mother (a seasoned pro) and delivered a unique experience to his class mates.  I encourage both kids to look for unique angles to things.  A number of his class mates presented on the predictable dinosaurs like T Rex, Oliver's was different.  I like the different.

Last year was soccer, this year was rock climbing, winter cricket and the JUMA.  The picture above shows Oliver going down a ramp on the JUMA.  It was a 22km race that he rode on a heavy bike.  He just got stuck in and we had a stunning ride.  I think this is a feature of Oliver, he's a lot tougher than meets the eye.  He can be a determined little boy - we had this dragging incident with Leia chasing a dog and Oliver being dragged behind him.  He had a pretty decent roastie but he continued on the walk.

Next year is his last year in junior primary and then it's primary school proper.  School finishes later next year, this is going to impact on his reading and jumping time, although I suspect he'll make a plan.

Another year Oliver, a year that has seen us learn a lot about each other.  There are so many similarities between us except I think you'll be a much better cricketer than I ever was.  There'll be more challenges facing you and I think that you are on the right path to deal with them.  Your mother, brother and I love you very much and wish you all the best for your tenth year on this planet.

And now for the music.  

Green's significant years were between 1966 and 1970, the same period that Hendrix turned rock on its head.  I am still enthralled by his music.  I've chosen a song that I have asked my friend Chris Daffy to play on his show on LM Radio this weekend.  Oliver's school has cancelled homework for the younger classes, perhaps this song will remind Oliver that homework is a very old institution.  This is a Fleetwood Mac cover of the Otis Rush standard.

10 - Fleetwood Mac - Homework

History might forget Denny Laine as the McCartney star fades.  That would be wrong, Denny was a very prominent member of McCartney's Wings.  The first guitar tutorial book I got was the Denny Laine Guitar Book, he's been very significant in my life.  This track is taken off his Japanese Tears album.  It's not a bad album, more of a compilation of a number of Laine compositions over the ten years that he was in Wings.

12 - Denny Laine - I Would Only Smile

And then there's Ollie Halsall. The Facebook page that I started with Barry Monks ten years ago is growing from strength to strength.  We've got more than 1000 subscribers and the amount of information that has surfaced about this incredible musician is um.... incredible.  This track is sung by the only surviving/compos member of Patto, drummer John Halsey. Halsey, or the Admiral as he is known as, played on a number of significant albums - that's him on drums in Lou Reed's "Walk on the Wild Side".  There are two Halsey tracks on the Patto's "Roll 'em" album - we won't be posting the other one. Now where is Ollie for God's sake? 

Patto - Cap'n 'P' and the Atto's (Sea Biscuits, Pt. S 1 and 2)

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Seven friendly years

Oliver – look what I eight

There was little doubt that Oliver was going to be a bright child with a mother like his. My bias will tell you that he leans towards Mensa/Genius status. Perhaps I equate intelligence with a genuine desire to learn. The school system has at last (I say this with a fair amount of irony) provided us with an objective measure that I understand to determine his cleverness. He loves to read and enjoys numbers. As I write this his favourite author is Hergé., Tintin is the book du jour. As a parent in this digital and televised age there is nothing more exciting than when your child looks forward to reading a book. Sometimes this is at the expense of watching TV (not often) or having a story read to him. He was genuinely excited when I arrived home with a compendium (when last did you hear that word out of the Asterix context?) of Tintin stories – I was grinning like a Cheshire cat. He grasps language logic very quickly. He was given an Afrikaans story book and he grasped the pronunciation very quickly even when certain words looked like English words.

Oliver becomes a more well-rounded boy each year as his exposure to sport and extra-murals increases. A highlight of our weekends this year was watching him and his soccer friends play in the Shabbos league for Wanderers. He's also stuck with tennis for the whole year (except yesterday when the EFF march went past his school – I got him out of there before they got there). He's learned a few discipline lessons in this process but they've stood him in good stead. I think I've spoken about him and the trampoline before, this is what I've learned – if you spend at least an hour a day bouncing up and down you are going to develop a gymnast's physique. I'm not sure where his brother is going to get time to develop his gymnast's physique because Oliver is very territorial when it comes to THE TRAMPOLINE.

There is one story (amongst 365 others) that resonates with me that I would hate to forget. We were away during the August holidays with Oliver's grandmother, aunt and cousin Julia. The Juliver (as the collective is referred to) have always just slotted into each other. They only see each other once a year but they immediately play together like they've never been apart. Julia is a year older than Oliver and a character of note. The resort we were staying at had a talent show and we all assumed that the Juliver would do something together. Unfortunately for Oliver a 12 year old girl had decided that Julia would be her new best friend. You know what it's like – someone three years older than you pays you attention………. We watched Oliver trying to get into this new clique. He was met with little success. I know he's a sensitive little boy and I thought that he might withdraw, but to our surprise he didn't. He decided that he was going to go ahead and do the show on his own. He and I rehearsed three great timeless gags in a very short time and he got up and did it. I was almost tearful. We were so proud of him. We were just as proud of the Juliver after they perfected standing up on a surf board in their first surfing lesson (we know what we are doing this December).

There are other things about our marble-mad boy that cannot be omitted. He was bitten (nipped) by a lion cub this weekend (proper hey, nice little bruise he's got). He still overcame the shock and petted the same cub. He loves his school, his teacher and is fiercely loyal to his friends. He now enters his 9^th year on this planet and our lives. He is absolutely adored by his family and all though he appears to fight with his brother ALL THE TIME, he is a fantastic, concerned older brother.

Happy birthday our beautiful eldest son. You make us so proud. The world is your oyster and you are well on the way to claiming it.

Now back to tradition. It is well known that Peter Green shares Oliver's birthday. As it turns out so does Denny Laine – I only figured that our last year.

The more I listen to the genius that is Green the more I don't understand why Oliver doesn't worship him as much as I do (he will tell you he hates Green and the guitar but he knows every lick in "Oh Well"). I'm going to veer off the safe Green pasture and post an oblique Green-like track. This song is in fact a Beatles' song. It comes off their last album and was inspired by Fleetwood Mac's "Albatross". You explain it George.

In an interview in 1987, Harrison said that the recording was inspired by Fleetwood Mac's "Albatross". "At the time, 'Albatross' (by Fleetwood Mac) was out, with all the reverb on guitar. So we said, 'Let's be Fleetwood Mac doing Albatross, just to get going.' It never really sounded like Fleetwood Mac... but that was the point of origin."

11 - Sun King

Denny Laine is best known as McCartney's rhythm guitarist in the seventies. He was always going to be overshadowed by McCartney but he did release a few solo albums during that period. I only know the "Ahh Laine" album and I like it. It's patchy and under-rehearsed at times but has some great moments on it. I posted a track off the album in last year's post.

05-Talk To The Head

And then Ollie Halsall. Another absolute favourite. Ollie is perhaps best known as the Leppo character in the Rutles' movie. He doesn't act in it but there is a picture of him in the movie (it is available on any good search engine near you). Ollie was initially considered for Dirk McQuickly (McCartney character). It would have been a perfect fit, Ollie was left handed and brilliant musician but alas not as well-known as Eric Idle. Nevertheless Ollie recorded most of the guitar parts and sang many of the Dirk parts in the movie. Boxer was a post-Patto band, which included Mike Patto. This is a Beatles' cover taken off the Bloodletting album and rivals the original.

Boxer - Hey Bulldog

(By the way - the picture is Oliver dressed up as Oliver Twist at school.  He's wearing my old army boots and a tail coat that belonged to his great grandfather. The same coat met Princess Elizabeth (Brenda to you) in 1947.  He looks more like the Artful Dodger in that get-up.  When he announced who he was on stage he sang the chorus "you've got to pick a pocket or two", an Artful Dodger standard.

Seven friendly years

Most parents would probably look back at their lives since their children entered into them and observe how quickly they've grown up and how fast the time is gone. I am just like most parents. This has been another big year for Oliver. He's grown immensely in the past 12 months, physically, emotionally and intellectually. Watching him at the school sports' day was an indication of how much he'd grown. Last year he was still finding his feet, this year he contributed a significant number of points to his house's ultimate score on that day. We have the swimming day coming up soon and I expect his contribution will also be significant.

I don't know how and why children are able to manage audio visual devices so much better than their parents. Oliver can drive a play station better than anyone in the house – and he doesn't need a remote!!! The introduction of Netflix in our house (at the expense of DSTV which I think is a rip-off anyway, but it does mean I have to go and leach at friends when a game is on) brings new un-watchable TV shows, all of which Oliver is an expert on. Who on earth would have dreamed up such a gross show like Slugterra? And did those people know that Oliver would be the residential (not household, RESIDENTIAL) expert who willingly involves us in competitive discussions about what our favourite slug is. Something like – do you prefer Ramstone or Frostcrawler? Or – if Grenuke or Lavalink both had black belts who would eat their dinner faster? We had this last year with Star Wars, which seems to have fallen a bit out of favour and could be regarded as blaine.

The term "blaine" needs some explaining. Last year he told us that something was completely blaine. Kath and I fell over, he was developing his own slang! He has since distanced himself from the term, claiming that it was in fact LAME. We prefer blaine.

And now there is soccer.

His ambition is to be a goalie. In order to be a goalie you have to play soccer. And play soccer he does, with great vigour and enthusiasm, to the extent that he has been known to decline going to a party because it clashes with soccer practice. We all delight in watching him play.

Another year Oliver and what a fantastic child you are. We love your imagination, your ability to entertain yourself for hours on your trampoline, for loving your home and your family. We love your love for your friends and school and your passionate nature. I don't love your interest in Dirt Karringmelk's "Loslappie". But this is what happens to poor parents like me – my children will enjoy music that I will not be able to tolerate. We love how sensitive you are, how you're willing to listen to Loslappie at warp volume to drown out the thunder and lightning. I love it when you sing the bridge of Peter Green's "Oh well", and I love riding with you on Sunday mornings and watching you talking to your body as you force it and your incredibly heavy bicycle up a hill.

Happy 7^th year. Thank you for the last 6. Thank you for listening to a scratchy version of Enid Blyton's Famous Five on our record player. And thank you for being you and most importantly thank you for being ours.

Here we again. I was not aware that Denny Laine's birthday was on the 29^th of October as well. I'll post an extra song this year because Denny Laine is not blaine. There is a lot of solo Denny Laine stuff that isn't on iTunes and it should be, he was overshadowed by Paul McCartney but when let loose on his solo albums he produced some very good stuff.

02- Destiny Unknown

Peter Green – still my favourite. "Need your love so bad" was a cover. First done by Little Willie John, Green apparently heard the BB King version and then covered it. This is a long track but listen to how chatty he is between takes. That's definitely him and his legendary Les Paul playing in the middle position (that's one for the guitarists).

09 - Fleetwood Mac - Need Your Love So Bad [Version #1] [Tak

And finally Ollie Halsall. There's a very vibrant Facebook page dedicated to Ollie for those who would like to know more about this incredible musician. Here's General Custer off the Monkey's Bum album – it's a biographical tale of when Patto went on tour with Joe Cocker (General Custer). Mike Patto could certainly write a hit when he wanted to – and this should have been a hit.

Patto - General Custer

 

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Now he’s six

And doesn't care much for AA Milne or Michael Bond. Clearly we aren't dealing with the average six year old. This six year old is fixated by Star Wars, Harry Potter, Slug Terra, Ninja Turtles (this afternoon brought us Karate Kid). Not only is he fixated but he is the neighbourly expert on each one with his friends coming round for playdates and being encouraged to adopt a character from one of those shows and play along. Should they wish not to comply then Oliver will happily play all the characters on his own. He willingly imparts his extensive knowledge on the subject to his unsuspecting family members and anyone within earshot, even his brother.

It's been a big year for Oliver. His first year in big school has been a great challenge for him, one that he has absolutely relished. He's exposed to so many varied activities and has given a lot of them a good go. Karate seems to be the one that he has really latched on to. He was given a black belt by the Traillmeister (or Sensei Steve) who is a legitimate black belt and so he now has something to aspire to. On top of this he's become very adept at J-boarding, cycling and swimming. We've been told by an independent source that he's actually quite a bright little boy (not surprising with a mother like his) and we have seen little flashes of brilliance in the strangest places. On top of this he's also very rule bound – believe me intelligence and rules don't work well. We were coming back from a trip and I was pushing the trolley out of the airport. I asked Oliver to climb on the trolley because it would have made it easier for me. "I can't Daddy". Huh, why? "it says on the handle". Lo and behold there is a small sign on the handle telling us what we can and can't do and one of the things is NO CHILDREN ON THE TROLLEY!

Sadly our long talks on the way to school have ended. We now drive to school and his mother does most of that. I miss those interactions and will now have to look forward to walking James to school when he starts in a few years' time. I would hate for some of our stories to be forgotten so I'm going to go over the nature of our chats and stories. It worked like this. Oliver would request a story as we left home and then would set (read dictate) the structure and nature of the story. It would go along these lines "Daddy tell me a story about a flying dinosaur, Lunar Jim, Spiderman, Asterix and John Lennon (the latter are added in by me for diversity)." OK – you see Spiderman was walking…………… "No, you start with once upon a time". OK - Once upon a time Spiderman was walking near a flying dinosaur………. "The flying dinosaur needs to be my pet". I see - Once upon a time. And so it went. As the story developed or regressed depending on my mood Oliver would add in other little features and effectively hi-jack the story. One particular story sticks in my head. This one involved Spiderman, Batman, Batdog, Spiderdog, Batcat, Spidercat and Batstrich and Spiderstrich. All these characters were of Oliver's making, the latter two being ostriches. Oliver's favourite fluffy toy was an ostrich that his grandmother had given him when he was born. We call it Mr Strich.

Six brings more responsibilities and adventures. He's already proved to be a loving elder brother (James adores his brother), a great friend and the perfect eldest son. He's more independent than ever and his confidence grows in leaps and bounds. He is very loved by his family and makes us prouder of him every day. Happy Birthday dearest Oliver, these last six years have been the best of my life.

Let us not stray from tradition.  This year's Peter Green track is taken from an album of Fleetwood Mac outtakes during the Green era.  I have attempted to cover this song at an open mic evening.  For those who which to cover it the Then Play On version is in open D

 

17 - Fleetwood Mac - Showbiz Blues [Alternate-Take]

This track is taken off the Warts and All live album.  There is not much decent listenable live Patto stuff around and this is about as good as you get.  Mike Patto's voice was a little damaged and so he doesn't sing the whole set.  Ollie sings a number of tunes during the gig.  This track is actually called "How's your father" and Ollie wrote it.  He does a pretty good job on this version.

06 - Patto (live) - Air raid shelter

This is for Oliver.  It would seem that our musical tastes are now tangential. 

 

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Oliver takes the fifth

James at one - I don't fancy the cake's chances here.

Oliver takes the fifth

Ollie and Oliver at Oliver's fifth birthday party.  My Oliver is on the right.

 What can you say about a four year old that he won't tell you himself?  A steady increase in his vocabulary allows him to not only express himself but to convince you that he in fact is right in his assessment!  If the adage that you learn a lot about yourself through your kids is true then I have a learned a lifetime of lessons in the last year.  We are now dealing with a little boy who is bright, a loving and attentive older brother, a headstrong adversary (I have no idea where he gets that from), a determined learner and the perfect son.  

He does things on his own terms, he'll learn to play soccer at his pace, he'll drop the stabiliser wheels on his bicycle because he wants to and he'll set out to be the best swimmer in his class.  In the past he wanted to be the best by osmosis, now he understands the concept of practice and application and uses it at will.  

If one thing stands out it's his fantastic memory and attention to detail.  He understands the logic behind the way things work.  A certain incident is not far from my mind.  We were on our way to school and a taxi behaved as only taxis do.  A stream of expletives left my mouth which visibly distracted the taxi driver from his task of attempting to cause an 18 car pile-up.  Oliver questioned me as to whether I knew that taxi driver, when I responded in the negative he asked me if I would like to be spoken to like that.  Food for thought but not enough to satiate my eternal disdain of taxi drivers.

He's now five and approaching a whole new series of challenges at school which he is determined to face head on.  He's a beautiful boy, a wonderful son, a stunning older brother and our getting bigger little boy.  Happy birthday Oliver and thank you for the last five years.

By now we all know that Oliver was born on Peter Green's birthday - Chris Daffy played a special dedication to Oliver on his Sunday morning show on LM Radio.  He had me beaming from ear to ear and Oliver was mesmerised by Chris' dedication (is he on the radio for real life?).  Chris played Oh Well but that's too obvious for me.

I have long sung this song to babies to get them to sleep, Oliver has heard it a thousand times and James is knocking on that number.  I prefer the Boston live versions.  I could only find this one

 06 - Various Artists - Fleetwood Mac - Jumping at the Shadows

And not forgetting an Ollie Halsall song.  Ollie had a wicked sense of humour and it is no more apparant than on this song, that's Ollie on vocals too.

 Patto - Peter Abraham

 And because this is the last year that Oliver will be able to count his age on one hand here is the original version of Jumping at Shadows.  Duster Bennett is worthy of checking out.  What you are hearing is a live take and he's playing all the instruments at the same time - some people call this a multi-instrumentalist, I call it impossible.  Fantastic! (just like Oliver)

 04 - Duster Bennett - Jumping At Shadows