Folk 'N' Brass CD & Cassette
Hip, hip, hip, hooray! We now have copies of this recording after much gnashing of teeth etc. etc. The cassettes were not a problem I have to say but it took three attempts to get the CDs. Just imagine my delight when I put a sample of the 2nd batch on the player. I got as far as track 12 and was beginning to breath a great sigh of relief when it seemed as if death watch beetles were having a meal at our expense and the nearer to the end of the CD I got the louder they chewed. A telephone call to the factory with a gentle hint they should check their computers for death watch beetle dung sorted it out. I now have hundreds of duff CDs in my loft and it is a puzzle to know what to do with them. I mentioned this at the music club a while ago and I very quickly received a few suggestions. Polite ones, of course. Nicky Spooner (the clever young lady who did the drawings for my poetry book) sent me an e-mail with no less than 50 ideas. I haven't room for all of them but here's a few to be getting on with:
Add a piece of ribbon to each and sell them as Christmas decorations.
Give your pet parrot a new mirror.
Use them as templates for making top hats for people with very small heads.
Use around candles to stop the wax dripping on your hand when you are carol singing.
Stop your pet worms from scratching their ears by securing a CD around their necks.
Glue along a central pole leaving a 5cm gap between each CD and use to display your thimble collection.
Place CDs over your glass in summer to prevent flies getting into your drink. Hole for straw provided.
New Accordion/New Recording
Pete's old box was beginning to wheeze a bit (I know, like the group) so he has purchased a new one. He's spending a lot of time running it in at home and recording a musical CD/cassette with Mac and others. We don't have a title for it yet but I can tell you without prejudice that it's going to be a real cracker. The choice and variety of material is excellent and we look forward to launching it around Yetminster Fair time, assuming the afore-mentioned death watch beetles are having a day off.
It's A Fine Thing To Sing Video
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, while Mac and Pete have been rehearsing the music album, I have been in the studio helping to edit the video of the 'Wild Mountain Thyme' recording which we did in the Digby Hall, Sherborne last March. The studio is now all computerised so in theory the process is much quicker. The snag is, of course, with the new-fangled equipment you can do much more. I have been trying to understand what goes on but I fear I am fighting a losing battle. There was a thought at one time that computers would do away with books but the basic instruction book for the video set up is about 2 inches (sorry, I mean 5cm) thick. However Phil seems to know what he's doing (I'll have to find him a few bicycle miles as a bonus) so once again we are aiming for a Yetminster Fair launch date. Earlier if we can make it.
The Yetties Discussion List
Troy Southgate has also established a discussion list for you all. You can find it at: http://www.onelist.com/community/yetties
He says: 'The forum is dedicated to our intrepid heroes Bonny Sartin, Pete Shutler and Mac McCulloch collectively known as The Yetties. Topics may relate to the group's musical development and discography, the social history of Dorset and the writer Thomas Hardy. We particularly welcome your own experiences of having seen or met The Yetties in the flesh, including gig, tape and CD reviews. Come and share with us the warmth and humour of England's most outstanding Folk outfit.' I must confess to a blush or two when I typed the above for Troy but it does seem to be an excellent way of keeping in touch and perhaps doing deals for those deleted LPs and CDs which some of you pick up here and there.
Bonny