* (restored)

 

‘My name is Rob Horrocks. I have lived close to Aston for nearly 20 years. I developed Crossroads of Sabbath over two years by testing it on friends when they visited me from other cities. I recently teamed up with Ben Waddington who has been running walking tours of Birmingham for many years to fine tune my efforts.

‘The Crossroads of Sabbath walking tour is an opportunity to walk in the footsteps of Ozzy, Geezer, Tony and Bill and learn about the environment that shaped them. The tour lasts approximately 90 minutes. The route has been programmed to finish at one of the finest pubs in the country where excellent ales and Thai food might tempt you.

‘Black Sabbath are unique. No other Rock N Roll Hall of Fame inductee can make the claim that all its original members grew up is such close proximity to each other. And no other Rock N Roll Hall of Fame inductee is as widely acknowledged by peers, critics and fans as having given birth to a genre that is still as relevant, vibrant and global in its reach as Heavy Metal is to this day.

‘The route stops at 15 locations. You will pass the schools, homes, rehearsal spaces and hangouts of band members and hear stories associated with them. The commentary at each location recounts some of the popular tales about the band and their time growing up in the area. The narration has been developed using local history sources with the intention of presenting a fuller picture of life in the area during the period when our heroes roamed its streets.

‘Much has been made of the influence of the band’s environment on the sounds they made when they first entered a rehearsal room together. On the Crossroads of Sabbath tour you see this environment and learn about it during the period when the Sabbs called it home. The tour ends at a pub they frequented which is just across the road from the room where they first played together.’ — RH

 

____________

 

‘The Crossroads of Sabbath booklet is an A5, 20 page, two colour publication produced to accompany the tour. It includes a map of the route and summarises the commentaries from the tour locations. A copy of the booklet is given to everyone who takes part in the tour. The text has been written assuming that readers have a background knowledge of the Black Sabbath story as it has been told in the various biographies, autobiographies and documentary films. Primary sources such as old maps and newspaper clippings are reproduced to present a history of the area as well as of the band. The booklet may be of interest to people who grew up in the area it focuses on.mThe booklet will not be made available to download. The first edition is of 200 copies. You may buy a copy of the booklet on this page.’ — RH

 

_____________________

7 + 11 = 18
Black Sabbath’s Birmingham by bus …

The very same bus routes that our heroes would have used as they went to work, went to drink, went on to define themselves, and ultimately – you. Join together – on the top deck.

 

Civilization
A journey north from New Street Station to the location of Tony Iommi’s birth.

 

Digs Beth
Love, Life, Loss and LOUD … on a round trip from New Street Staion, through The People’s Republic Of Digbeth and back.

CANALs, CuLTURE, SLeAZE … AND THE BEST RECORD SHOP IN THE WORLD – via the Ozzy Osbourne and Black Sabbath stories that were played out on those ancient street during the 1960s. To be experienced on a full moon. Bring ear plugs.

 

Iron Void
“To cheer things up a bit, I went out one night with an aerosol can – I’d had a few beers – and did some ‘decorating’. One of the things I graffitied on a wall by a roundabout was ‘Iron Void’. F**k knows what was going on in my head.” Page 64 – I Am Ozzy (2009)

 

Lunar Edition
I know where it will start. I know where it will end. But what happens in between is not up to me.

Meet after dark on the full moon at The Black Eagle, Factory Road, Hockley.

 

Sabbathology
A fun general knowledge (popular culture, national/global events) quiz with questions focusing on the period 1948-1970 when the lads were growing up in Aston. You don’t need to be a Black Sabbath expert to enjoy it. And it will be fun. The questions will be road tested at a ‘warm up gig’ (Secret Sabbathology) and with a few exceptions to make it competitive, have been written with a view to raising some smiles.

Friday 19th February (Tony Iommi’s birthday)
The Heart, 28 Grange Road, Aston, B6 6LA.
8 – 11.20pm.

 

______________

 

CROSSROADS OF SABBATH IS NOT…

‘About the music heritage attractions of Birmingham city centre or the areas of the city not mentioned in the tour description.

‘An opportunity to spend time inside Ozzy Osbourne’s childhood home or inside any of the other locations visited… except the pub! And what a fine pub it is!

‘Available in any language other than English unless by prior arrangement. Contact me before you make a booking and we’ll work something out!

‘Formally: aligned with, authorised by, a partner of, endorsed by, funded or approved by any other organisation, public or private company, group or charity – yet.

‘Conceived with toddlers in mind. One five year old boy did enjoy it recently but I think his dad wished he’d brought a push chair.’ — RH

 

 

_____________

 

Crossroads of Sabbath, in partnership with Newtown Community Centre presents…

OZZY ZIG, THE WITCH & THE WARPIG
A three-act vinyl playback performance

Act One – Ozzy Zig
From Robert Johnson’s Clarksdale, Mississippi crossroads through the Blackboard Jungle and into Brum Beat, pantomime flower power and the rock routes that converge at Crossroads of Sabbath.

Act Two – The Witch
Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath, featuring Black Sabbath, in a room where Black Sabbath rehearsed and honed Black Sabbath and the rest of the tracks on Black Sabbath, from which they sighted the location that inspired the name Black Sabbath.

Act Three – The Warpig
From the bringer of war via a ride with the Valkyries to the number one album that 45 since its release has provided the raw material for every subsequent record that claims the name heavy metal. War Pigs, Paranoid, Iron Man and the rest, played loud, from records.

Sunday 20th September 2015
Newtown Community Centre, Birmingham.
3.30-6pm

Trailer

The Witch & The Warpig – Sold Out Message

Ozzy Zig, the Witch and the Warpig – Act One – intro monologue

Ozzy Zig, the Witch and the Warpig – Act One

Ozzy Zig, the Witch and the Warpig – Act Three

Ozzy Zig, the Witch and the Warpig – Act 3 – Murderers

Ozzy Zig, the Witch and the Warpig – closing monologue

Ozzy Zig, the Witch and the Warpig – Act 3 – 100th Red Balloon

 

___________________

 

____________________

Crossroads of Sabbath Website
Video coverage of the tour @ Vice
Crossroads of Sabbath @ Supersonic Festival
Crossroads of Sabbath Facebook page
Crossroads of Sabbath @ Google Maps

 

_____________________

LET’S WALK WITH SABBATH …. ?

HAVE YOU BEEN TO SABBEY ROAD …. ?

MESSAGE FROM TWENTY TEWNTY

 

 

________________

BLACK SABBATH – “Paranoid” on Top of the Pops 1970

BLACK SABBATH – “War Pigs” (Live Video)

BLACK SABBATH – “Iron Man” & “Black Sabbath” (Live Video)

BLACK SABBATH – “Snowblind” (Live Video)

BLACK SABBATH – “N.I.B.” (Live Video)

 

 

*

p.s. Hey. ** Dominik, Hi!!! Cool, yeah, Jack’s book is killer. Oh, you really were offered that pig tooth thing. Yikes! My weekend wasn’t a whole lot. My understanding is that I’m no safer after 1 shot than I was before, so I’m just behaving like I did before the vax started its trip. Plus I’m feeling kind of strange and dizzy the last couple of days for some reason, so fun isn’t so present. Franklin the Turtle, ha ha. Nice. Love playing pin the tail on the donkey but using the President of Hungary instead of a donkey and with a thallium soaked pin, G. ** Misanthrope, Helluva weekend you had there. Here’s hoping against hope re: David and his bff new phone. I wonder if I would care if they built a Walmart next to my old family home. Well, they wouldn’t because it’s a swanky neighbourhood, but if they did … I think I would think that was merely interesting. Rigby might stay with your family?! That’s a curious thing to imagine. Maybe he can talk some sense into the boy. ** David Ehrenstein, Hi. Well, it’s much more about Wilson than Manson if that helps. ** Tosh Berman, Hi, T. Oh, yeah, the Wilsons were a big mess. ** Bill, Hi. Is that Nam June Paik show a retrospective? That would be awfully nice to see. Envy. I have no idea what the museums will have up for the reopening. I suppose they know. ** Steve Erickson, That Beach Boys Manson cover ‘Never Learn Not to Love’ is fantastic, even with its evil edited down. Everyone, Mr. Erickson has written about the first four films he has seen at Lincoln Center’s and MOMA’s New Directors/New Films’ 2021 edition exactly here. ** Derek McCormack, Hi, Derek! How are you, how are you? I haven’t seen you on Facebook in ages. Have you bailed? Miss you! ** Brendan, Hi, B. Relearning life. It does sound exciting, though. I get the feeling Parisians are just going to slip back into the old ways without even thinking, but we never fully abandoned the old ways. Dodger game! Yip, yip! ** Okay. Here’s a very old and charming restored post by someone who called himself Peter Bloody Peter. Take a stroll, please, thank you, and see you tomorrow.

 

“In Skelley’s world everything and everyone is volcanic. Cities become backlots; celebrities become saviors. Sharp, always spectacular. One of my very favorite writers on the earth.” – Dennis Cooper

“Jack’s mind on the page helps parse our crazy, media-besotted, celebrity-drenched, digitized lives. His ability to syncretize pop culture and history, product placement, Catholicism and beyond is a necessary wonder of the contemporary world. ” – Amy Gerstler

“Despite my dislike of seeing my own name, you’re really a good writer – never what’s expected.” – Kathy Acker

“With a linguistic and cultural range of four or five octaves, Skelley’s poetry and its luminous, energized mental landscapes provide a place for the art to survive.” – David E. James

 

e-Book available now via Book Baby and other platforms

For signed limited edition print version, contact Jack (Helter) Skelley at …
[email protected]

 

Do you ever feel that your personal life is part of a public mythology? Growing up in Southern California, the Beach Boys were virtually our neighbors. And Dennis Wilson’s connection with Manson – including Manson’s extravagant Beatles prophecies – became California fable, though not well understood. Living in Venice in the 1980s, many friends encountered Dennis in his last days. The (sometimes comic) tragedies touching him – and brothers Brian and Carl – magnify their music… which also remains misjudged. And I wonder if Dennis – with his defective, lifelong yearnings – finally re-merged with a larger universe of love.

 

From ‘Dennis Wilson and Charlie Manson’ by Jack Skelley. Illustrations by Brian Walsby.

 

 

 

 

https://www.charlesmanson.com/vicinity-crimes/14400-sunset-boulevard/

 

 

https://www.mansonfamily.net/news/whispers

 

 

‘The above photo is just one of the curious connections you’ll find when looking into the Manson Family’s sordid history, many of which began well before certain Family members joined the Charlie’s cult. Case in point, the Manson Family and Church of Satan founder Anton LaVey. Susan Atkins, it so happens, was a go-go dancer in a Satanic revue that LaVey produced in San Francisco in 1966, playing the role of Vampire.’

 

 

http://unknownmisandry.blogspot.com/2019/10/susan-atkins-manson-family-serial.html

 

 

http://unknownmisandry.blogspot.com/2019/10/susan-atkins-manson-family-serial.html

 

 

Carl, Brian and Dennis, of Hawthorne, California (clockwise).

 

 

Brian Wilson by Annie Liebovitz, in West Hollywood, 1970.

 

 

‘Outtakes and edits from the Smile sessions. The Smile album – a majestic cut-up monument, weaving deeper than the Beatles could dream, and cast before a world that wanted car songs – was left unfinished. Brian spun out of orbit and stopped writing.’

 

 

Surf’s Up

‘I have long meditated on the meaning of “columnated ruins domino!” and I referenced it in Charlie’s rant.’

Brian Wilson / Van Dyke Parks

A diamond necklace played the pawn.
Hand in hand, some drummed along
To a handsome mannered baton.

A blind class aristocracy.
Back through the opera glass you see
The pit and the pendulum drawn.

Columnated ruins domino!
Canvas the town and brush the back-drop.
Are you sleeping?

Hung velvet over taking me.
Dim chandelier awaken me.
To a song dissolved in the dawn.

The music hall, a costly bow.
The must all is lost for now,
To a muted trumpeter swan.

Columnated ruins domino!

Canvas the town and brush the back-drop.
Are you sleeping? Brother John?

Dove nested towers,
The hour was strike the street, quicksilver moon.

Carriage across the fog-two-step to
Lampight cellar tune.

The laughs come hard
In Auld Lang Syne.

The glass was raised, the fired-roast.
The fullness of the wine.
A dim last toasting.
While at Port, adieu or die.

A choke of grief, heart-hardened eye,
Beyond belief, a broken man too tough to cry.

Surf’s Up! Aboard a tidal wave.
Come about hard and join the young
And often spring you gave.

I heard the word.
Wonderful thing!
A children’s song.
A children’s song, have you listened as they play?
Their song is love and the children know the way.

 

 

‘Dennis, you’re flatting… You guys think you’re good?… You think because you’ve had a few hits you’ve got it made.’

Jack Skelley note: Murry Wilson had a minor hit when he was younger. He never stopped abusing his sons, even in the recording studio after they were world-famous, and even after Brian had become a master producer. Eventually, before breaking with his dad, Brian had a knob installed in the control room for Murry to twirl. The knob did nothing. On their Pacific Daydream album, Weezer’s song “Beach Boys” includes some of this Murry Wilson abuse.

 

 

https://www.britannica.com/event/Tate-murders

‘The body of Sharon Tate being removed from the Los Angeles house where she and four others were murdered by followers of Charles Manson, August 1969.’

 

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/05/arts/manson-tate-murder-tarantino.html

 

 

Grave of Sharon Tate at Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City includes Sharon and Roman Polanski’s unborn child, who was killed in the Manson murders. Photo by Jack Skelley

 

 

From ‘Dennis Wilson and Charlie Manson’ by Jack Skelley. Illustrations by Brian Walsby. Jack Skelley note: ‘Originally Brian Walsby and I had Charlie simply standing in Sharon Tate’s backyard. I suggested to Brian that we depict him as Jesus holding the White Album. Brian Walsby generally depicts Charlie surrounded by flies. Can you detect references to two Beatles songs?’

 

 

‘I am called Jesus.’

 

 

Hildegard of Bingen, ‘Powers, Principalities and Antichrist’

‘I saw a worm [vermis] of unbelievable size and length lying on its back. It was horrible and mad, black and hairy, full of sores and full of deadly poison. He had a nose and mouth like a snake, hands like a man, feet like a snake and a short and horrible tail.’

 

 

William Blake, ‘Beatrice addressing Dante from the Car.’ Illustrations to Dante’s Divine Comedy. Floating around Beatrice are “Four Living Beings” of John’s Revelation.

From Revelation 9
‘7 The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. On their heads they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces resembled human faces. 8 Their hair was like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth. 9 They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle. 10 They had tails with stingers, like scorpions, and in their tails they had power to torment people for five months. 11 They had as king over them the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon and in Greek is Apollyon (that is, Destroyer).’

Jack Skelley note: ‘Manson quoted the White Album with the Revelations. In Blake they appear as a lion, an ox, a man, and an eagle. Manson saw these four beings as The Beatles. I love how in Revelations their stingers can torment people for precisely five months!’

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation%209&version=NIV

 

 

The Great Red Dragon and the Woman Clothed with the Sun. From William Blake’s depictions of Revelation.

 

 

‘They took me to the Beach Boys…. Jesus Christ told you that 2,000 years ago!’

 

 

Dennis dated Mike Love’s wife, leaving Susan Atkins to babysit the children of Mike and his wife.: ‘What made this dark chapter in Mike Love’s life even more bizarre was the nature of his wife’s affair with Dennis Wilson. When they were off having a good time together, they brought in a babysitter for the kids while Mike was also out and about performing with the Beach Boys. They hired a young lady by the name of Susan Atkins [Sexy Sadie]. The reason that her name is so familiar is that she was one of the infamous Manson girls…’

https://www.brain-sharper.com/entertainment/beach-boys-fb/

 

 

‘Dennis married and had a child with the daughter of his cousin Mike Love: ‘Out of all the women who Dennis Wilson was with during his short life, the one that stood out to him the most was Shawn Marie Love, who he had separated with not too long before the time of his death. However, what many fans don’t realize is that Shawn Marie is actually Mike Love’s illegitimate child. Seeing that Dennis and Mike were first cousins, this meant that he ended up marrying his own relative. In 1982, they had a son called Gage.’

https://www.brain-sharper.com/entertainment/beach-boys-fb/

 

 

Brian Wilson. ‘Following the success of Pet Sounds and the breakdown of the following project Smile, Brian Wilson was virtually nowhere to be seen by the band. Sadly, a combination of mental health issues and substance abuse forced Brian to step away from his role as producer and songwriter.’

https://www.brain-sharper.com/entertainment/beach-boys-fb/

 

 

No Love lost: Brian Wilson and his reviled cousin and Beach Boys singer Mike Love.

 

 

Two men drag-racing across the U.S., in a ’55 Chevy. Dennis Wilson’s the mechanic, James Taylor’s the driver. 1971. Director Monte Hellman.

 

 

‘There is no denying that Dennis Wilson was probably the most dysfunctional of the Beach Boys. Towards the end of his life, Dennis was living on the streets, drinking and taking illicit substances. Although he made a concerted effort to get into rehab, Dennis wasn’t able to fix himself. On December 28, 1983, a drunk Dennis tried retrieving some items he had thrown into Marina Del Rey three years prior. However, he ended up drowning. He was just 39 years old.’

 

 

Entry to Marina Del Rey boat slip where Dennis Wilson drowned. Photo by Jack Skelley

 

 

From ‘Dennis Wilson and Charlie Manson’ by Jack Skelley. Illustrations by Brian Walsby.

 

Beach Boys Villanelle

Diving off a dock of darkened memories
A father with one eye and a son with one ear
He plunged into the drink and never surfaced

It was nearly Dennis not Sharon Tate who Charlie got first
He threw me in the deep end cried Christine McVie
Diving off a dock of darkened memories

Daddy dear never had a hit so he hit his sons
The bad vibes flow from Blue Jay Way to Marina Del Rey
He plunged into the drink and never surfaced

300 pounds of coke-drunk Brian watching “Flipper”
Dad popped-out his glass eye and bared his bloody socket
Diving off a dock of darkened memories

Shattered by acid Brian poured forth masterpieces of pain
His father smacked his ears till he heard in only mono
He plunged into the drink and never surfaced

Dennis drowned in women more than music booze or brothers
A heart forever flooded with blood and love obsessions
Diving off a dock of darkened memories
He plunged into the drink and never surfaced

– Jack Skelley

 

 

*

p.s. Hey. I’m super happy today to be able to turn the blog into its red carpet iteration to help usher in the first new book in many ages by one of my very favorite writers, and a recently ensconced d.l. of this blog, the legendary Jack Skelley. The book showcased up above is a blast and a total joy, and I encourage you to explore the vertical feast Jack has put together for the occasion and then score the book. Thanks, and have fun. ** David Ehrenstein, Thank you for the Anderson input, sir. I think I’ve mentioned this before but I went to a screening years ago at the Director’s Guild of what was supposed to be the Director’s cut of ‘O Lucky Man’ with Anderson and Malcom McDowell in person where they didn’t in fact show the Directors cut, and, oh boy, was Anderson pissed off and very, very grumpy, ultimately making a big scene and storming out of the theater with McDowell trailing behind him making apologetic hand signals to the audience. ** Misanthrope, Happy to fill in the blank. I hope the cake was as yum as I imagining it to be, which is very yum. I think your smartphone solution seems reasonable. ‘The Autobiography of Mark Dennison’ with illustrations leading to a public life sounds like a capitol idea to me, duh. Self-publishing is fine. All the cool kids are doing it. ** Dominik, Hi D!!! Thanks for saving here a sliver of your weekend. Um, I hope the concept of your love doesn’t mean that you spent your weekend proofreading and editing a research essay on the isotope analysis of pig teeth. Love offering to proofread and edit whatever you’re proofreading and editing at the moment and allowing you to stand nearby blasting music and rocking out but you nicely offering to pause the rocking out very occasionally to answer any questions he has, G. ** Steve Erickson, Ah! Everyone, Steve made a gig of what he’s been listening just like I did the other day but on Spotify so it’s ears only. Seek your enlightenment here. Glad you were able to Zoom with your distant friend. Everyone crabs about Zoom, but I applaud its sanity preserving talent. Wax Trax! Fun! I wish that doc was better, but it’s better than nothing. ‘KMFDM is a drug against war!’ Ha ha ha. ** James, Hi, James! I’m okay, mostly counting the minutes until France starts reopening next week. So sorry to hear you’re in the dumps, man. Concentrate on the slow returning of real life? That’s what I’m doing to stay kind of perked up. I didn’t know Scott Bradfield has a new book, and I will definitely check it out. Thanks for the alert, bud, and I hope your feel infinitely better infinitely soon. ** Bill, Thanks, man. Yes, I was quite shocked to see, first, that Factrix had collaborated with Marc Huestis, and, second, that it was an interesting film, because, yes, I only know him from his ‘Mayor of Castro’ persona, although I think a few years ago I saw him talking on Facebook about being raped by Curt McDowell, so I guess he … changed. A lot. I, of course, totally missed what seems to have been the last ever Bandcamp Friday, grr. ** brendan, Hi, B! Wow, your favorite day ever? Not bad. I really like Gavin Lambert’s writing, and I don’t know that book, so I’ll definitely hunt it. Thank you, pal. I hope you’re digging your new/old gradual freedom attaining. ** T, Hi, T! Very good to see you! Obviously, I’m glad you got through the work avalanche without seeming injuries. I’m okay. We start to reopen in 9 days, so I’m just kind of biding my time and living vicariously for that mostly. Nice about the pub, chilliness aside. We’re still stuck with takeaway coffees and sitting in the park as our only form of fraternisation. Take care. Hope to get to see you more often. ** Right. Jack Skelley has your local day completely covered, and enjoy the spoils. See you tomorrow.