Tchaikovsky the Karajan way

Seeing it is new years eve I thought I talk about a box set I had this year.

One character that loomed large in my childhood discovery of classical music was the conductor Herbert von Karajan who rather like André Previn during that era were superstars, always recording and performing and promoted by record companies more than most.

During that period I acquired a number of  his Tchaikovsky recordings on record, listened to more thanks to the municipal library and the radio who'd have show playing recordings and even live concerts.

Recently I bought this 8 cd set that has many of his stereo recordings made for DG of Tchaikovsky's works that included a good number from those I owned but what is so good about this set is the six symphonies have a separate disc each to which overtures and other shorter pieces are added rather than being put together that often leads to two of them being split between cds which is a pain.

The 1972 disc of the Sleeping Beauty and Swan lake ballet suites that original came in their memorable silver foil lp jacket are joined by the 1967 Nutcracker Suite that originally coupled with Serenade For Strings as a single cd. 

Talking of which in this set they don't use that Serenade for Strings but the 1981 digital remake which is odd but it's very similar so the only real difference is improved inner detail.

The final disc has Christian Ferras's 1965 account of the violin concerto which is rather sentimental but one I loved at the time and the 'about-face' 1963 Richter performance of the piano concerto which always gave me the impression pianist and conductor were at odds with each other about how to play this piece.

The re-mastering for cd is completely new unlike some previous cd issues in the past with the sound in the 1812 Overture with the Don Cossack choir sung introduction sounding fuller.
While my tastes have moved on, this set is highly enjoyable for the performances and also for bringing back those childhood memories.

Xmas 2007

It wouldn't be a Christmas for me without my annuals so here's this years set for endless fun for me reading and doing the competitions in while the groan ups talk about stuff that really doesn't interest me.

And here's the other, The Dandy's that my Gran used to buy me copies of the regular comic of as a kid.

Desperate Dan is sat by his fire on the range singing folk songs with his horse.

Jacqueline Wilson is more my kind of authoress writing more for girls that works very well for little sissy gurls like me so this is so so up my alley.

I go out for Christmas lunch with mummy and daddy and siblings after meeting up locally so mummy gets a day off from cooking.

Judy Patrol Leader

The idea of leadership is one that interested me so characters in what I read around that topic always appealed to me.

This is quite an old book - my copy is from nineteen-seventy - and shows it but while not perhaps the best example of Girls fiction is one that does tackle that topic when Judy, who does to an all girls school becomes a leader of the Girl Guides section for the school and tells of her many adventures as Patrol Leader.

That's why although I grew up on more boy based stories I like this because the theme speaks to me and that there are lessons in it I can use.

Chobits

I liked this anime for a long time dealing as it does with technology and that age old question if you could fall in love with a robot in this case a persocom (personal computer in an human looking form) called Chi.

Unfortunately the first dvd set of it got from Ebay I discovered was a fake. It had been made on a computer from a official dvd issue but they had radically reduced the picture quality in an attempt to squeeze 12 episodes on a single sided one layer disc! The discs had inkjet printed labels and no case.

In total the used just three discs for the whole set!!!

Normally a PAL disc can take upt to 6 episodes on a dual layers.

Recently I have replaced it with the US official 4 dvd NTSC set  issued reissued and remastered which looks much better.

This is Chi who is a PersonCom

Christmas and being sissy

Christmas it must be said tends to be very much a time of mixed emotions with the increased amounts of social contact where I get "boy'd", where people just presume utterly the wrong sorts of interests that leads to wildly inappropriate presents.

It's at times like this I look at what a sissy Christmas might be like with offers that have different connotations.

I do sometimes long for fairly safe for work, clean, sissy magazines for inspiration to make more of who I really am so, just maybe there'll be less confusion about that.

Actually a number of real girls did know a bit about me under the hood as it were as a child and they spread it like wild fire which may not of seemed like fun to some but they did give me the space to be more me by not seeing me as boyfriend material.

Perhaps being more open about being sissy in the New Year is what's called for however it comes?

Record buying and me

Today I've been looking though both my pocket notebooks and my published lists on a certain website of all my music purchases so far this year and it's really so amazingly addictive this really is.

There are a lot of reasons why compared to many people I buy so much one being the breadth of my music likes, I don't just care for say one artist or one style and often when I'm into a artist I am also in deep into whole catalogues.

So for instance I have complete 70's and 80's album catalogues by people like David Bowie, Paul McCartney and Abba where many might have perhaps the odd compilation and a favourite studio album.

Another reason I spent so much is because over the years some of the records and especially cd issues of albums were not the best sounding ones, just what either I could find or afford and since joining last year one music site, I have learned a lot about how recordings are put out on record and  cd and critically why it is sometimes I've felt disappointed with how they've sounded.

This had lead me to spend a lot of money on sourcing better replacements both new but increasingly used.

My original buying habits in my teens were more 45 orientated outside of 'evergreens' and albums bought by  family and friends so I've also been discovering the albums or artists where my collections have been historically 45's

Winter time gurl

We're heading well into winter and there are events and things which really are tied into the little side of sissy gurl me.

Around this time of year we start to have parties, especially Christmas parties which can have themes so being made up as say a Cow Girl, letting our imaginations run wild enacting a story that's evolving as you play appeals as much as games like sticking the tail on the donkey and musical chairs.

It's the time of year you might feel working on the Gurl side of me needs a bit of a push so you'd encourage me wear party or cocktail dresses with soft flowing materials to really push out the feminine side with matching knickers

Being winter the leaves are falling so why wouldn't you want to gather up leaves and dance around them outside in warmish dress as they all fall around you?

Rolled Gold and Styx Equinox with Crystal Ball

This week we're looking at two cds I recently bought.

 

This came out a year back and I recently picked up a copy used.

It's the 1975 and 1976 Styx albums - the first two for A&M Records - after changing from Wooden Nickel. Featuring Lorelie, Suite Madam Blue and Crystal Ball this twofer remastered by Andrew Thompson at Sound Performance sounds great and can be recommended.
Catalogue number: BGOCD 724

What comes around goes around, eh?

That was my first thought when I heard of the release of yet another Rolling Stones CD recently.

The original CD's were issued in Europe around 1984/7 and because of licensing issues were replaced by the US mastered (and somewhat inferior sounding) issues in 1995.

Then in 2002 it was announced that the were to re-mastered using new DSD techniques for the Super Audio CD (SACD).

In total 22 discs which included the US versions of the Big Hits and Thru' The Past, Darlkly compilations, Hot Rocks and Hot Rocks 2 Double compilations and the London Years ( All the singles and B sides on three discs).

And that's how everybody thought their Decca era output on CD was going to stay, so why issue this?

This album on LP and Tape was issued in 1975 and proved to be exceptionally popular because in one package it had the main singles and important album tracks, providing a good way into the bands 60's recordings.

In the CD age however this compilation is a surprisingly good choice.

First off, one problem with the US inspired Hot Rocks and Hot Rocks 2 sets is the material is scatted in no particular order across four CD's and in the case of Hot Rocks 2 not even in chronological order.

Some of the tracks on Hot Rocks 2 are only really there because the original US LP's such as After-Math missed off tracks from the UK issues that never found their way onto other US 'albums'. That's why 'What To Do' ends up on disc two.

Equally if one was to consider the individual Big Hits and Thru' The Past Darkly discs these use US versions that miss off UK hit singles.

The re-introduction of Rolled Gold solves this problem at a stroke as it features all the UK singles issued from 1963 thru 1969 plus the US singles. It has notable tracks like 'Carol', 'Lady Jane', 'Yesterday's Papers' and 'Gimme Shelter'.

The tracks run in near chronological order so you can sense the musical development of the group from those early R&B sessions to what is the template for much of todays Indie rock.

It is little appreciated outside of Stones fanatics circles but there was a major problem in the last otherwise good re-mastered series.

On 'Ruby Tuesday' somehow they pulled the 'wrong' tapes and got a copy which misses off the multi-tracked vocals and some instrumentation and that is on all the compilations re-issued plus the Flowers album.

This issue puts it right not without some controversy as seemingly they 'cloned' the right version from the older CD! Never mind the sound is quite acceptable although had they used an actual tape it could have made to sound better.

'Time Is On My Side' is the UK version in stereo whilst 'Mothers Little Helper' uses the mono version issued on single in the US.

In a strange move they've added two recordings from 1971, 'Brown Sugar' and 'Wild Horses' to the compilation.

So at long last we have a decent Decca era CD compilation and a low price too. There also is a inexpensive 4 Lp version available from HMV and eil.com in the UK.

Strongly recommended

Spirited Away

One thing I enjoy is animation and this anime from 2001 is one that I recently watched.

The story is centred on Chihiro, a headstrong 10 year old girl who is very unhappy that her family are relocating and so she'd have new friends.

Making their way toward the new home, her father takes a detour to explore a mysterious tunnel in the woods while on what is the other side there appears to be a deserted theme park but is actually a ghostly town.

Without realizing it they have strayed into the Land of the Spirits, a world of dreamy scenery that is inhabited by ancient gods and magical beings ruled over by the sorceress, Yubaba.
Chihiro's parents are held hostage and with Yubaba set on enslaving them forever, she must use all her energy to survive in her new strange environment.

Aided by Haku, a young brave spirit, she is forced to overcome her fears joining an epic battle for her family's freedom.

I hugely enjoyed watching this which won the 2003 Oscar for the best animated film which in the opinion of many has set a new benchmark in animation.

Tag altered in 2017 for blu ray version.

Satchel

One thing I remember very much from Junior school was having a traditional leather satchel with a pocket at the front to put your name and class on. 

We used to it carry anything such as books we needed for class in as we had a separate bag for our PE and Swimming stuff.

Rather like with the wooden pencil case I had I felt really proud of it, taking care to keep it in good condition.

You may buy one for your LSG uniform.

There is a massive part of me that loves wearing girls school uniform in the context of feeling very much a school aged little sissy gurl who wasn't able to wear hur preferences at the time so wearing both would be so nice for me.

The Sooty show

 The Sooty and Sweep show was a boyhood favourite and here's a few images from it.

Sooty in orange and Sweep performing together

Going to bed...

Orginal puppeteer Harry Corbett who died in August 1989 being shown a tune Sooty has made for the Xylophone. He presented it from 1955 to 1975.

Sooty appears to be somewhat animated towards Sweep

Harry son, Matthew presented the Sooty show from 1976 to 1992.

Soo came in after criticism there was nothing and no representation for girls in the show and was later criticized for her domestic roles.

That is my childhood Sooty which lost his wand that I used to chant "Izzy Bizzy lets get busy" to perform magic with while my younger brother had a Sweep in grey

Setting your direction

The tried and true method of finding your way, a compass and a map as taught to this girl and used here shown by a girl scout remains unbeaten as much as modern smartphones seem to suggest they're the modern "Swiss Army Knife" of modern outdoor life.

As a Brownie, Girl Guide, Cub ot Scout you know mastering this matters cos "no signal" is a real thing and you still need to find your way.

Thoughts on arts and crafts

The chief focus of this blog was always around being assigned as a boy but being very very girlish and how that ran through my life as a child in school nominally seen as a "boy" and as time went on into exploring more that surpressed girlish side that has never really gone away.

As much as I had no issue with the short trousers I had to wear at school  I much sooner preferred to wear the girls uniform and take some lessons normally segregated along gender lines with them.

Arts and crafts was the area I loved even if I needed some help with bits as free from the frustrations of not understanding maths and the written word as a child with dyslexia, I could just express my thoughts and imagination though the creativity I had that wasn't so blighted by that.

To of done so in a school club dressed in pinafore dress and white socks would of been just magic for me.

Choo Choo's Pt.2

Another place we visited a few times in the 1970's was the Vale of the Rheidol which is a steam train line running from the Welsh university town of Aberystwyth to the Devils Bridge some 12 miles downline.

I'm sure the engine we went on was called Owen Glendwr who I think was something of a hero to the Welsh fighting English occupation of their Country.

 The countryside in that part of Wales is very mountainous and really beautiful.

Spanking and sissy life

To be become a sissy gurl you didn't get spanked but you can't deny it is an important part of being one from whatever angle you may be coming from.

The more child-like side takes it from your own childhood - perhaps you were spanked a few times and it's stuck in your head - or maybe reading about it you've developed an interest in going back to those days.

Generally spanking comes out for child-like offenses and crimes like breaking things, back talk, watching the tv or computer use after bed time if that's what you've agreed

It need not feature anything other than a open hand but implements may come in such as hair brushes, straps or the cane although that's normally only the most serious of matters.

The more adult, more post adolescent side exists for some and the rules are a different as this can cover thinks such as not being dressed in overtly sissy ways, refusing any agreed to "training" and not deferring to mistresses and masters.

Spanking will always start from your frillies and may be emotionally as well as physically intense as the restrictions that may of applied to children when spanking was common won't e applying to you as the adult sissy.

It isn't uncommon to be spanked more on a whim just to remind you of your diminished adult sissy gurl status with an emphasis on using humiliation to really add to the impact  or the odd sexual act either.

Depending on which side is "out" at the time I can go with either although safe words should you be really uncomfortable are a must.

1977 and all that

1977 was an important year in lots of ways so this is one in a bunch that looks at aspects of that.

BBC Radio One had been launched on September 30th 1967 as part of an attempt to bring the BBC in to the modern age when teenage culture that had taken off since 1955 had been largely ignored by the radio and by 1964 offshore radio so-called "Pirate Radio Stations" had transmitted pop music and featured less staid presenters from just outside UK coastal waters gaining many listeners.

In 1977 I was thirteen years old, what would of counted as a teenager not that I felt nor ever really became anything stereotypically like one remaining more that young boy in Junior school in many ways.

The radio was a big thing in my life listening to music stations such as Radio One and Luxembourg at night from just under the age of six so while not there at the very start it had featured strongly in my life. There was magic on 247 metres medium wave.

Unlike today there was no music television just the odd music show such as Top Of The Pops, no internet only magazines aimed more at teens with news so the radio was the main player in our hearing new songs.

In that time presenters some being brought from those Pirate Stations or Luxembourg's UK based shows had a fairly free hand to showcase new sounds outside of playing top forty hits which you'd expect.

I liked David "Kid" Jenson, Ed Stewpot who did Junior Choice at the weekends, Tony Blackburn and listened at school to Paul Burnett's chart rundown.

Later in my teens I grew to appreciate Anne Nightingale's request show and Paul Gambaccini.

Key personalities in that included John Peel and Alan Freeman whose afternoon show on Saturdays I listened to and my brother taped things from John Peel's late evening show which he shared generously with me.

The station also had produced  programs that looked at youth issues, engaged with organizations such as girl guiding, scouts and boys and girls brigades to talk about concerns and pioneered broadcasting news in ways that were more interesting and understood for young people.

Thus in 1977 many felt that ten years had to be marked outside of books and a special edition of the BBC's listing magazine Radio Times and that include an album of music chosen by the DJ's and listeners that reflected the sounds we'd grown up listening on the station.

The selection was overseen by the the Radio One director Johnny Beerling and took n number one hits up to the end of 1976 with Mississippi by the group Pussycat and issued as a double lp with hand penned reflections by then current Dj's and a group photograph on the gatefold starting with Flowers In The Rain which was the first single played on the day it launched.

In all some 37 songs were featured which on two discs which is difficult resulting in some premature fade outs and limited bass which was less of an issue then than playing this disc which I bought and still own is today.

What it may lack in absolute quality it makes up for in nostalgia and an emotional link to that past.

BBC Radio One becoming ten as a big thing with me and why some forty years on today we're marking what and why that was in the age of blogging rather than scrapbooks.

Little Moreton Hall

There's this really important big house in Cheshire near where I live that I like to stroll along to and admire the construction as well as reading all about its history.

It's one of the finest Tudor black and white houses in the whole of England. 

The first photographs I have of it were done on a Kodak Disc camera but they weren't too good having heaps of graininess.

Late Summer Hols 2007

For this week I've been away on vacation so here's a few images of Llandudno where I stayed.

Playing at making sandcastles using your bucket is so me.
While I was away, Mommy took me on the train to the top of the Great Orme.

This is Victoria Station where we joined the line waiting to get our tickets and get on board.

Here the train goes travelling for a part of the way  along track that has been embedded into the road surface. The tramcars are old with wooden panels and seats.

I visited a record store and bought myself some new lps and a few used cds and lps for my collection.

King Willow with Meredith and Co

George Ramsay Acland Mills (1 October 1896 – 8 December 1972) was a British preparatory schoolmaster born in Bude, Cornwall and an author of children's adventure stories. His whimsical tales often revolve around boys' preparatory schools in Great Britain and often involve sports like cricket, pranks, and mysteries, as well as a beloved pet bulldog, Uggles.

King Willow first published in 1938 is the sequel to his well regarded Meredith and Co of 1933.

Both titles followed the maturation and adventures of a cadre of fun-loving boys in fictional Leadham House Preparatory School which was based on his teaching experiences while on the staff at Windlesham House School in Portslade and Warren Hill School in Meads, both in East Sussex, between 1925 and 1933.

The novel follows the adventures of Meredith (Muggs), a Sixth Form prefect at fictional Leadham House Preparatory School in England, and the adventures he has with his friends Hawk, Pongo, Clayton, Pigface, Renton, and Murray as well as a ubiquitous and beloved bulldog named Uggles.

The Cricket is something both Mark's would of loved.

Brother Beyond

Rewind the trax! Back in 1988 i was infatuated if that's the right world with this boy band pop act.

Comprised of David Ben White, Carl Fysh, Steve Alexander and Nathan Moore their attempts at pop stardom took a significant leap following the involvement of the then in demand production team of Stock Aitken and Waterman who remixed several tracks recorded for this album which include 'The Harder I Try' 'He Ain't No Competition', 'Be My Twin' and 'Can You Keep a Secret'.

The band were also famous for their Buddhist religious beliefs.

The second album 'Trust' and singles from it all bombed! I still own and enjoy playing this record my sister in law bought me.

Link:Brother Beyond - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Made to be a pretty doll with doll collection

The world of tammy wasn't always the happiest of places because nobody cared that much that she was a gurl even if the paperwork recorded her down as a boy no matter how many clues when it came to her interests and behaviour she let out.

What I wanted the most was to wear the prettiest of dresses with frills and dainty shoes just like the most feminine of girls, presenting as my own gender, sissy, and enjoying it to the full.

I'd happily be put in this just like a little dolly.

One fascination I had in my junior years was collecting dolls in their individual national costumes partly as a gateway into finding out about different countries, customs and cultures and also because I just loved dolls with their pretty outfits.

The alpine regions of Italy, Switzerland and Austria also held a fascination for me too.

Just William

Recently I acquired this new edition in a classic children's stories published for the Daily Mail Newspaper in 2004.

Just William is the first book of children's short stories about the young school boy William Brown, written by Richmal Crompton, and published in 1922. The book was the first in the series of William Brown books which was the basis for numerous television series, films and radio adaptations.

William  is an eleven-year-old schoolboy in a village in England. 
He is the Leader of the Outlaws,a gang.

 William is unique in schoolboy literature – confident, strong-willed, independent-minded with original world-views, a born leader who is keen to be chief in any undertaking of the Outlaws. 

He does not care about his clothes or appearance, wears a scowl as his best "company manners" and hates small talk. 

He loves to play Red Indians and pirates, and readily embarks on any project, from catching wartime spies or making a "moon rocket", to editing a "newspaper" or organizing a "circus" or "show", often featuring his pet dog Jumble as reluctant star. 

William usually has a withering contempt for girls and women (except his mother) but can occasionally be chivalrous although he has a soft spot for his neighbour, Joan, who admires him enormously. 

A rebel and die-hard optimist, William often shows a strong sense of responsibility when the situation demands, an unwillingness to back out of challenges and a bulldog-like determination to overcome hurdles. 

He frequently has to manage his own ambitions to take along the other outlaws although he never dominates or forces them to go along with him.

His imagination and love of adventure constantly get him into strange and difficult situations. Peculiar complications often arise when he tries to "help" others, but as fortune favours the brave, William usually wins.

I remember watching the dramatized tv series on the ITV network in the 1970's and he was an influence on me, sharing much at the time with a life in boys gangs, wild in some ways but very moral in others.

Re-reading the first story has been a great experience for me.

The World of Charlie Brown and Peanuts

I was tidying my small pile of books today when I spotted this old favourite of mine.

I've had this from the mid 1970's, actually it's a new 1974 edition, well thumbed through and with that tan coloration you get on older books especially on less expensive paper probably because reading this as a child made me so happy.

I have a few more books of Charles M Schultz's Peanuts cartoon strip series as I loved the tv animated series and its characters.

You're always a Sissy Gurl

Being a Little later on in your life  is not the easiest of concepts to explain to people principally because people associate the frame of mind of the person to their age as recorded by their chronological date of birth  deeming some interests to be either child like or heaven forbid childish.

It doesn't matter as a feminine boy if I wear short trousers or a skirt I'm always the same little sissy gurl and never a wanna be girl.

This scares the living daylights out of a significant number of people who hold on to notions of age appropriate behaviour not least because some forms may impact on your ability to function in the world of employment.

To me this could only be true if you were functioning at an infant level - think oversized baby - needing total attention and supervision but this isn't what I'm talking about.
I think most are familiar with the idea of the 'inner child' who many psychologists say lives on in everyone. 

The difference I would say is many of our likes remain at that level, we aren't necessarily comfortable with some aspects of 'adult' living and there's little collation between that and our IQ or general functioning.

To put things into context I've held political office representing an authority, contributed to and accepted responsibility for setting budgets  and programs whilst being a 'little'  because I can choose when to present the little sissy gurl physically and when I can use that to the advantage of society having an immediate empathy with children to help them grow up to be well rounded individuals though my work with various bodies.