Metamatic Forums Socialising The Green Room What are you reading these days

The Big Switch....Rewiring the World from Edison to Google by Nicholas Carr

Ooh! Great suggestion. My father is a retired electrical engineer and I'm desperate to come up with a good idea for his Christmas gift, so please report how you like this when you've finished! It might be just the thing for him.

David Lynch: ’Catching the Big Fish’

A small book with snippets of thought and memories about his past work and history, some of this ground has been explored in other ways before in previous books that I’ve read, and of course its full of the useful Lynchian statements about how ‘wood is good’ and that the building of shed’s is very important to the creative process

The main message hinted at throughout this book is about Transcendental Meditation, which he has practiced for over 30 years, its a way of being that allows you to ‘empty the container’ as Lynch puts it, in order to receive fresh thoughts and insight into creativity and problem solving.

Hi Lele. I thoroughly enjoyed the book but if your father is interested in the technical side of things this book does not delve into that. The author (who I saw interviewed on the Colbert Report) has as his premise that computer utilities will replace how computers function today as electrical utilities replaced private generators. He runs through a history of electricity, then the computer industry (very interesting), and how computers have changed our lives and how we live our lives. All of this leading up to the coming of the World Wide Computer. So this book is part historical, part philosophical.

He wrote another book called 'Does IT Matter' which basically debunks the necessity and importance of corporate computer systems.

Thanks so much, Maryann! Based on your description I think you're right — my dad would probably be more interested in the technical aspects, so it might not be a good choice for him. However, it does sound like something I would enjoy far more than I initially thought, so I am going to add it to my reading list!

Spent last week near in Val de Claree Briancon France on a cross country skiing holiday The Chalet complex we stayed in had a mini library with books of local interest amongst which
LE ROMAN DE GASPARD DE LA MEIJE
http://livre.fnac.com/a1543821/Isabelle-Scheibli-Le-roman-de-Gaspard-de-la-Meije

Tells the story of how a simple peasant helps a rich young noble to get to the top of "La Meije" (without the aid of modern equipment and apparel) the Alps' last great unconquered peak Excellent stuff I fear it is only available in French but it's a truly exhilarating read

Don DeLillo: Libra

Musa Mayer: 'Night Studio'

(A memoir of her father, the American Painter Philip Guston)


Russell Brand: 'My Booky Wook'

(A memoir of a Foppish Victorian Essex lad)

"That Eno Book" has beaten me - a fascinating story no doubt, but its a really pretentious read...

Now I'm having a go at Wolfgang Flür's biography - I Was A robot"
Perceptive and sensitively written.
Delicate and humble style.

The passage where he describes Florian's apartment for the first time could be the setting for a scene from The Quiet Man...

David Sheppard had me going for months too. He uses the thesaurus to great effect, very highfalutin. It's a great insight to Eno, who is a great pioneer in electronic sound production. Worth the read.

Nick Awde's book on the Mellotron took me right across Christmas. Not only it's an essential book on the beloved British instrument but it gives a useful account of how pop music has evolved from the fifties to the sixties and right through the seventies with the instrument making its first popular appearance on Strawberry Fields Forever. The book consists of chapters dedicated to musicians who have used or have been involved with the instrument and who were interviewed for this book. King Crimson and The Moody Blues are fully featured here, with Andy McCluskey (OMD) amongst others making similar contributions.

Sadly there was no interview with Paul McCartney or Ringo Starr who have been proud owners and still are of the Mellotron. I've always wondered what was Ringo Starr doing backstage in the Ziggy Stardust video. I'm pretty sure that the Mellotron that Mike Garson used on the tour was one from his collection.

Bowie went on later to use a version of the Mellotron, the US Chamberlin. In actual fact, this was the original version, however it was reassembled in Birmingham, promoted and made famous in Britain. Unfortunately, he's not featured in the book.

All in all an enjoyable read.

Tony Visconti's autobiography is next...

Chris