Quiz

Easy one with the answer already in the comments section (of another post so ye’ll have to look!). This is the probably the most respected guitar picker in the world Albert Lee, with Head Hands and Feet in 1971. Who’s the bass player?

50K

The Ben Lomond Free Press continues to move in inverse proportion to the stock market. This blog recently welcomed its 50,000th visitor since January.

Bigrab’s Whisky Recommendation – Monkey Shoulder

This is a limited edition bottling from William Grant. Not a single malt but a triple one. It’s mainly an exercise in marketing which is evidenced by clicking here However it is also a very fine dram.

‘Monkey Shoulder uses only malt Scotch whisky from three of Speyside’s finest distilleries. This triple malt is catching the attention of the country’s leading bartenders for its smooth and rich qualities, making it ideal for mixing as well as drinking in the more traditional way. As Charlotte Voisey, of London’s Apartment 195 explains, ‘the atractive name and bottle spark curiosity, and once explained, bring a smile to your face.’

Rooted in malt whisky lore, Monkey Shoulder is inspired by and named in honour of the malt men at William Grant, who are among the few still to turn the malting barley by hand using a sheil (wooden shovel). Monkey Shoulder was a nickname given to a temporary injury some malt men occasionally suffered many years ago as a result of repeatedly bending over whilst turning the malt. Thankfully, working practices have now changed and the condition no longer exists.

Crafted in small batches of just 27 casks, Monkey Shoulder’s smooth and and rounded taste has accents of malty sweetness, vanilla, marmalade and barley sugar. The iconic bottle design, complete with three brass monkeys – each representing one of the constituent single malts – on the bottle’s shoulder, is sure to attract confident, liberal minded people with discerning taste and ensures it’s not one to hide away in the drinks cabinet!’
(The Drink Shop .com)

A big thank you to Smiler for 1) bringing round a bottle for my birthday 2) showing me the special tasting technique and recommending that we ‘throw away the cork’

The Death of Capitalism? (Part Three)

Some people are now starting to draw parallels (of today’s financial situation) with the Stock Market Crash of 1929 and the subsequent depression of the 1930′s. Others are scoffing at this idea. No one really knows how this will all pan out but here is a sobering thought. Lehman Brothers Bank survived in 1929.

Having mentioned in an earlier post that my first visit to the Glasgow Apollo was to see Harold Wilson, on thinking back that may have been visit number two and my first may in fact have been to see 10cc. Here’s a song whose time may have come.