GREENYGREY’S RAMBLES

I’ve had a fruitful day at the writing desk and have edited and sent off a book for publication, created three poems from ideas that came to me over the last couple of days, and I just published an article identifying the best years and decades for rock music according to the Planet Rock listeners’ 12,000 strong poll.

One of the poems: a 3-d Folding Mirror column poem about building the foundations of independence from the information provided by the extremes is up on the fm poetry site.

Have a great weekend!

Over 12,000 Planet Rock listeners voted for their favourite ever album and here are the top 40 as voted for by thousands of devoted classic rock fans:

1 Pink Floyd - Dark Side Of The Moon  (1973)

2 Led Zeppelin – IV  (1971)

3 AC/DC - Back in Black  (1980)

4 Led Zeppelin – II  (1969)

5 Guns ‘n’ Roses - Appetite for Destruction  (1987)

6 Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti  (1975)

7 Pink Floyd - The Wall  (1979)

8 Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here  (1975)

9 Meat Loaf - Bat Out Of Hell  (1977)

10 The Who - Who’s Next  (1971)

11 Thin Lizzy - Live & Dangerous  (1978)

12 Deep Purple - Deep Purple in Rock  (1970)

13 Rush - Moving Pictures  (1981)

14 Rush – 2112  (1976)

15 Metallica – Metallica  (1991)

16 Deep Purple - Made in Japan  (1972)

17 AC/DC - Highway To Hell  (1979)

18 Deep Purple - Machine Head  (1972)

19 Jimi Hendrix - Electric Ladyland  (1968)

20 Wishbone Ash – Argus  (1972)

21 Led Zeppelin – I  (1969)

22 Queen - A Night At The Opera  (1975)

23 Rainbow – Rising  (1976)

24 Iron Maiden - Number of the Beast  (1982)

25 Genesis - Lamb Lies Down On Broadway  (1974)

26 Nirvana – Nevermind  (1991)

27 Metallica - Master of Puppets  (1986)

28 Black Sabbath – Paranoid  (1970)

29 Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run  (1975)

30 Yes - Close to the Edge  (1972)

31 Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath  (1970)

32 U2 - Joshua Tree  (1987)

33 Led Zeppelin – III  (1970)

34 Def Leppard – Hysteria  (1987)

35 Black Sabbath - Heaven & Hell  (1980)

36 David Bowie - Ziggy Stardust  (1972)

37 UFO - Stangers In The Night  (1978)

38 Black Sabbath - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath  (1973)

39 Eagles - Hotel California  (1976)

40 Pearl Jam – Ten  (1991)

Hi, I’ve written a couple of articles on the Planet Rock radio station for Suite 101 over the last two days; the first an overview and the second on its listeners’ top forty album chart. 

The latter contains new and exclusive analysis of which were the most successful bands in the chart, so please have a look if heavy rock and groundbreaking research interest you!

Two weeks ago the Australian Pink Floyd cancelled a big show I was going to, so after seeing a pigeon flying gracefully through a sunny sky I thought I’d mix up the Floyd’s Pigs on the Wing and Wish You Were Here songs with a bit of pigeon, comedy, Prince and Steppenwolf (no relation to the latter by the way).  The result is below:

When doves cry,
we fly, fly, fly,
high, high, high,
up into the sky;
never gonna die.

Beyond hearing people
call us,
flying rats,
and out of reach,
from those pesky cats.

Do our detractors
look up,
to see us,
pigeons on the wing.

Do rats shine,
as when we turn,
having fun,
in the sun.

With light glinting off,
our outstretched
slanted soaring devices;
as we’re carried by the wind,
lifted on air, riding the thermals…

through blue skies to green trees,
where we coo in peace.