There are some people that for reasons that language cannot define , that description and connotation seem to be so trivial in their attempt to translate a feeling , a place , a love , a gesture , a reflection
... Ha Ha reflections!! .... well I suppose that reflections are the reason for this post , in more than one way , I found out late last night that a dear friend of mine passed away , on the same day as completely coincidentially two other friends and influences also passed away , and it leaves something of an impression
It seems that one of my favourite country and western singers died to day ..... Don Williams and the musc has been such a part of my life that , I am saddened by the fact that there will be no more brief discussions before live performances ... I am saddened that such a body of work will remain perpetually ' unfinished ' ( as that is always the bane of the creatives existence ) and that I will never again be able to ask for that aged gruff and growling advice that was always so stoic ....
another of these passings was a guy that grew up on my block as a kid ... he was a few years older than I was , and he was a heavy drinking alcoholic for ... well probably 20 years, there was a sense of the familiar in Michael though , and in the small Cornish town that we both grew up , it didn't matter how far away I was , it never mattered how long I was away , or what time of year I managed to get back to that quant , damp little place that I grew up .....' Mumbley ' would always be sat on the concrete block sea defenses that looked like some ex communist countries attempt at art deco with a bottle or two of barnstormer cider watching the world go by ...... but this was a good soul ... not an aggressive drunk or a pervert or a weirdo .... just a really sweet soul that couldn't handle such sensitivities in such a macabre and hostile world !! a real shame for such a young guy to have drunk himself to death and he will be missed
lastly I found out that my friend Amstersam passed away while cycling from Amsterdam to Munster in Germany, and this is the one that has really upset me the most I think , now I had only known Sam for probably a little over two years, but as soon as we met we had an instant rapport, I immediately respected and admired the body of work , and I really felt that he held the same mutual respect for me , which is always nice when two creatives instead of being instinctively wary and competitive of each other , find that far more valuable balance of inspiring each other , jeering each other on , and comforting each other when you have those lousy days / weeks .....
Amstersam / Sam Van Dam , who ironically and quite sadly had only just started working with a gallery in Amsterdam, for his wonderful images of as what he described ' the best city in the world ' ... such a body of work , from such a beautiful soul .... really there will be times in the future that I know I will be saddened on many levels .... Amstersam will no longer be there in my lovely ' Amsterdam -Land ' .... our conversations will no longer echoe along the canals and our bike rides will remain unridden ..... our little photographic excursions will no longer take place with a constantly changing group of bizarre internationals in tow ..... your book and music recommendations ....
but most of all .... our silences will remain un sat .... sipping coffee and offering each other those little moments of broad reflection about what the other has said .... I will miss listening to your beautiful optimism , your way of routing any positive element out of any given circumstance ... and in a very selfish way ... I will miss you listening to me too
when I first heard the news my initial response was .... nah !! hes pulling a fast one ... or some administrative error has been made .... but alas indeed we lost a hell of a friend and a hell of an artist there .... and lovely Amsterdam Land will be for ever a little emptier without ... Amstersam
Artby Valerio Cartoon featuring Amstersam a depiction from January 2017
one of my latest favouritest songs that I think reflects perfectly the feeling of carrying around thousands of pounds/euro's worth of personally produced stock like some kind of homeless transient .... a topic that we would discuss regularly x x x
2 comments:
beautifully written RIP Sam
Good Afternoon Jiggy
thanks for the comment , yes he was a good guy and he will be missed !
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