Injustice – George Blamey-Steeden

‘THE HOTEL CONFINEMENT’

Artwork by Lee Miller- ‘Surrealism’

It was on the BBC News. The story of Bethany. An innocent 17 year old being treated worse than a serial killer held in solitary confinement because in this so called great land the bigwigs haven’t got a compassionate clue what to do to help her.

I won’t rant on and on but below the link to the BBC website. That says pretty much all that needs saying.

BBC BETHANY

FOR BETHANY
Your cell is just 12 by 10
No window, no chair, no stool
No lavatory, no sink, no shower
No nothing that isn’t cruel

It’s two years now you’ve been there
Two years 24/7 alive and on your own
So, you’re different from the others
Stay proud, that’s no reason to lock you up alone

They’ve banged you up in solitary
All you’ve got is a mattress on the floor
As a guest in The Hotel Confinement
You get your food shoved through the door

So what you’ve got anxiety
Autism, maybe more
Not cared for by the untrained staff
They just don’t know the score

We’re out here thinking of you Bethany
I guess we number more than just a few
I hope my words help shame the authorities
Help make them make a proper life for you

I could make a song after playing around with these words but never will without permission. To do otherwise would be wrong. What I really hope is that she, and many others like her who grew up only to be let down, get the result she and they deserve – right now; no excuses. Then it’s hopefully ‘problem over’.

As I’ve not got a bespoke Bethany song, how about me and my guitar? Why not. This one, ‘Aggressive Groove’ from my album ‘Guitar Jam – Volume Two’ on BANDCAMP is for Bethany. I hope you enjoy.

RAINBOWS, HERODOTUS & HANS ZIMMER

Zoolon’s new bin ‘Herodotus the Bin’

Some music. A 60 second guitar improvisation rendition of “Time” by Hans Zimmer. I hope you enjoy;

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Other things in my life;

A few posts back I put up a pic of a what I thought was a lost rainbow on the carpet here at home. Today I find three baby rainbows on the same carpet in the same room. Are they breeding? Am I missing something? Big question.

Next, something else I want answers and solutions for.

The Wildlife Aid charity says this netting in Guildford was put in place to stop birds nesting so that the trees can eventually be removed – pic and quote from BBC News

I was watching the news on TV. As I understand it this ‘tree netting’ idea is going on big time all over the country this year. It’s Spring. Birds need nests. A no-brainer. From now to late summer nests are vital. Get rid of the tree nets. If contractors want to kill trees to build houses then at least wait until the birds move on – besides there are thousands of empty shops in High Streets all over the place that could be converted to homes cheaper, quicker and easier than building new homes.

EVERYTHING & NOTHING

Have you heard the word out on the street?

That there’s always a victory in a defeat

Cold comfort on an angry grey cloud day

A sap stained pavement’s tree blood cabaret

Who killed the goose that laid the golden eggs?

Who drunk from The River of Life and left the dregs?

The writings on the wall I hear you say

You must be joking, woodlands never live to fight another day

Can you show me how what you stand for is not a crime?

In words that I can sing that mostly rhyme

I’ll write you a ballad you’ll never get to hear

I’ll click my fingers and make the whole world disappear

Next, ‘A Life’ from my ‘Dream Rescuer’ album. I’ve decided that this number will always be in praise of trees;

FARAWAY PLACES & CURTAIN CALLS

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA ‘The Final Curtain Call’ by Zoolon

‘I met a white man who walked a black dog

I met a young woman whose body was burning

I met a young girl, she gave me a rainbow

I met one man who was wounded in love

I met another man who was wounded in hatred’

Bob Dylan from the song ‘A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall’

I was having my hair cut the other day. The barber who comes from a country a long way away asks me if I’m the ‘musician bloke’. I verified that that was possibly me. So, even though he’s got a load of people sat there waiting for a haircut, he goes and gets his flamenco guitar from out the back. He tells me he’s been playing for 15 years or more. He takes a seat. He plays guitar. Sublime music. Made me shiver. He lets me have a go. Flamenco’s not my specialty but I do OK.

Then he tells why he took up the flamenco guitar. Where he came from is a country where the regular people live in fear – I’ll not name him or the country; it doesn’t feel right. Anyway, his older cousin back when was heralded as the ‘best flamenco guitarist in the land’ but the government had censored his kind of music. He got taken away, tortured for weeks on end then shot dead – just for being a musician! All true, by the way – no fiction. The barber took up playing guitar in honour of his cousin and to put up two fingers at the regime that killed him.

The story inspired me to write these words. I’ll have to grow my fingernails seriously long and brush up my flamenco technique if I’m ever going to get a song out of it. It sings more like an audio poem or nearly a rap right now.

FARAWAY FLAMENCO

In faraway places he puts on a show

Picado style, tirando and tremolo

The maestro with his cedarwood guitar

Played flamenco style, in the café tea total bar

They say he was the best musician in all the land

Acclaimed, adored, always played on demand

But suddenly his world went cold and dark

When from the shadows came an oligarch

Got told flamenco ‘violated good taste and decency’

Locked him up, tortured him, sadistically

At first light in a courtyard up against a wall

Shots rang out, he took his final curtain call

It happened then, it’s still happening now

The Crescent Moon fights with an ‘up for it’ Holy Cow

The ghetto’s Star of David never castes any light

One less artist on the stage tonight

His god forsake him when he was most alone

Where his body lies?

In a place unknown

Here’s an example of flamenco guitar from the great Yannick Lebossé.

For streaming and downloads of my albums on Bandcamp;

THE WEIRDLY DIVINE KATE

‘Don’t Shoot’ by Zoolon

As per usual I wanted to open up this post with something arguably funny. A story of real life type funny. It’s just that, for me, funny has to be put on the back-burner in these days of depressive politics and cruelty home and away. The crumbling state of humans/humanity has done my head in. At least I got to walk a neighbour’s new puppy. She’s a cute little thing by the name of Narla, without a care in the world. I was jealous. She does jump up a bit, as my current high-pitched voice and abnormal limp can verify.

THE OVERLOOKED

No words of torture

When you’re frozen out

Blank faced assassins

Leave no doubt

A leper’s bell

You choose not to hear

Too busy practising

Your perfect sneer

I’m kicking on stones

Pavement side

Conflict and apathy

Coincide

So many games

Just one sport

Steal my thunder

Cut me short

Do I care?

‘Course I do

Starve the busker

Enjoy the view

Ignored epics

Locked tight doors

So still the silence

No applause

You want a refund

I hear you say

I don’t carry cash

How can I pay?

I’ll tell you what

You ‘big mouths’ can do

Let false hopes lies

Be the death of you

Staying with this theme an old song of mine, ‘The Outbound Road from Hell’. Hope you enjoy;

Finally, something really special – subjective I know, but it works for me. I’d not heard of Kate until I nicked/borrowed her album from under my old man’s nose. It’s from Kate Tempest’s ‘Let Them Eat Chaos’, a song called ‘Europe Is Lost’. This is the Official Video for the song. What I also like about it is that it’s a fan made video. Hang in there and marvel.

My Dream Rescuer & Rainbows End albums are for sale at Bandcamp;