by Lang Reid
Private
Dancer, written by well known author Stephen Leather, is not available for
sale, but available from the web as a free download! At the end, Leather
indicates that his publisher was unwilling to publish this one as it was
so different from the thrillers that he usually writes.
It is a very cleverly fabricated story, relating to a
journalist (Pete) who comes to Bangkok to work and who falls in love with
Joy, a dancer at a bar in Nana Plaza. She is to become his ‘private
dancer’ from which comes the title of the book.
What sets this manuscript apart from the overdone
‘farang falls in love with bar girl’ books is that Stephen Leather
gives the side of the central character Pete, and then follows that up
with the thoughts of the girl Joy. After that, at various important
milestones in the relationship, other people are brought in who give their
impressions of what is going on. These people include Pete’s boss
Alistair, the owner of a bar called Big Ron, whom Leather admits is well
known identity Big Dave, and the bar called Fatso’s is Big Dave’s
establishment called Jool’s on Soi 4 Sukhumvit (as anyone who has ever
been there would pick immediately). Others who give their opinions include
Pete’s friends, his flat-mate and even the owner of Joy’s bar, who is
even more cynical than Big Ron.
Where Stephen Leather has excelled with this manuscript
is in his understanding of the Thai viewpoint. And to then put it down in
print. There will be those who will say that a farang can never get inside
the mind of the Thais. Perhaps not, but this book of Stephen Leather’s
must go damn close. Close enough for me! Take for example the words from
Joy after Pete rang her in her room to say that he had been talking to
Park, her Thai husband. “Park was in my room when Pete telephoned. I
asked Park what he was playing at, and he said he didn’t know what I was
talking about. I got angry then and said that he’d spoiled everything.
He had no right to talk to Pete, he was my customer.” And it all hangs
on that last word!
This is the best book you cannot buy. When it was given
to me, the previous down-loader said that it should be made compulsory
reading for all single males before arrival in Thailand. My logical mind
would agree, but love and logic only start with the same letter, and that
is where the similarity ends. The world is populated with Petes, about
whom Big Ron states, “Was I surprised at what happened to Pete? Of
course I (expletive) wasn’t. He was on the road to ruin as soon as he
let her get to him. A lost cause.”
As an added benefit, there are some good recipes
running right through the book, as that had been Pete’s brief, writing a
cook book. In the end you will see just whose goose gets cooked!
Brilliant book. Leather’s publishers are crazy to let
this one escape!
Camped out by Mott
the Dog
Straightened by Ella Crew
(The
Welsh rock ‘n’ roll band, not the people. This Dog can understand rock
‘n’ roll, people are a lot trickier.)
Supposedly part one revolves around the recently released
live greatest hits album sensibly titled ‘Man Alive’. Yes, both parts of the
review get a glorious 5 Stars. (Big hint, part two next week.)
A long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away ... well,
Swansea, Wales actually. In 1968 there was a very popular little beat combo
called “The Bystanders”, who were doing very nicely thanks to the scampi and
chips night club circuit in their native country and North England. Deciding to
take themselves seriously (well, somebody had to) they turned professional and
invited a certain Deke Leonard to expand the existing foursome.
Deke was amazed to find out that by the time he joined his
compatriots, they had decided to change their collective name to Man. Originally
that did not sit well with their new lead singer and guitarist, but it was
satisfactorily explained to him by fellow singer/guitarist Mick Jones. Man was a
wonderful moniker, easy to spell, could fit in a very short space, or, if
necessary, fill up a very large space with a few big letters. But best of all,
everybody at the end of the sixties, who was hip or more likely thought they
were hip, said the name of the band at least once in each sentence - sometimes
twice, like “Hey Man, where you going Man?” The band figured they would get
free publicity every time somebody opened his or her mouth. With this unbeatable
logic Man began their path down the long and winding road of rock ‘n’ roll
fame and glory. Anyhow, that is what they want us mere mortals to believe.
Man is still going strong today, but the path has been strewn
with rocks as well as boulders. In over thirty-five years they have released
more than 30 original albums (if you add compilations, greatest hits, etc, it
runs into hundreds), but no consecutive album has ever had the same lineup. They
have done over nine thousand gigs and played in eighteen different countries.
The amount of alcohol and cigarettes they consumed over this time is mind
boggling. Then there were the TV shows. Man was always huge in Germany, where
they actually lived for two years. It would have been more inconvenient
exchanging the Welsh valleys for those of the Rhine each time they were due to
do their lengthy German tours, often playing to over 20,000 people at one show.
They essentially split up for good in December 1976, only to reform again on
April Fool’s day in 1983.
Then of course there is the personnel of the band themselves,
the actual people who play the music not just the music that surrounds them. In
over thirty-five years, twenty five people have been featured as official
recording members of Man. If you count the ones who have just appeared live with
them, again it would run into hundreds. Some like Martin Ace (Ace the Bass) have
joined and left the band on a regular basis. All but two of them have been
Welsh. The tiniest in stature, but biggest in heart, lead guitarist Mick Jones,
is the only permanent feature of every lineup, except when some nasty brain
tumor surgery laid him low for a year when his place in the band was taken by
his son George.
Deke Leonard is another steadier member of the band, but yet
this year he left again, this time of his own accord, not by the boot. Phil Ryan
is the keyboard sound of Man, but occasionally some poor soul has to be dragged
in to do a copy job. If you are lucky, Ace Martin is there, even if it’s not
at the time as a permanent member, or even on bass. Terry Williams was there on
the drums for a long time before getting delusions of grandeur and joining
Rockpile and then final world domination in Dire Straits.
For one glorious tour and album the great American John
Cipollina, ex-Quicksilver Messenger Service joined them, giving Man a three
pronged lead guitar assault. Man never came top of the bill stars
internationally, although there were pockets of areas solely inhabited by
Man-fans, especially in their homeland, Germany, and the East Coast of the
United States of America. They never gave less then 100%, whether in the studio
or their natural environment, the live stage. What of the music I hear you ask.
Well, for that you will have to wait for next week. But if you fancy doing a bit
of your own research, try bending an ear to any of the following Man albums:
Be Good To Yourself At Least Once A Day
Back Into The Future
Welsh Connection
Twang
2oz Of Plastic With A Hole In The Middle
Or read Deke Leonard’s wonderfully frank and funny Autobiography “Rhinos
Winos and Lunatics”.
To contact Mott the Dog email: [email protected]
Mott’s CD review: The Story of Man – Part One