The Highwayman

I have been really lazy about blogging lately.  But it's almost the end of April and I didn't want to miss posting something for poetry month!

Many of us Richard Armitage fans have seen some resemblance between the character of Guy of Gisborne in the BBC's television version of Robin Hood and The Highwayman of the poem by Alfred Noyes.

I've been thinking about posting this lovely wall paper for quite some time.

Wall paper by TygerMag

Then, last month there appeared another tie-in between Richard Armitage and The Highwayman that was discovered by the blogger at The Heirs of Durin. Please follow the link and check out her post.

One of my favourite Canadian songstresses is known for setting the poem to music. Recently, I stumbled across this fan video set to Loreena Mckennitt's song. I was extremely pleased.  It has been around for almost 2 years now, so I don't know how I missed it.

The Highwayman starring Guy of Gisborne and Marian of Knighton (BBC Robin Hood)

/ by fayzabeam

I was so happy to find this video that I had to contact its creator.  She very kindly provided me with her storyboard for the video which she shared with her middle school class.  

Stay tuned....  Soon I will be posting an interview 
with the creator of this fanvideo -- fayzabeam!

Jingle Jangle Phylly

Roger McGuinn of The Byrds

I've always loved the sound of The Byrds.  Something about their sound has always really appealed to me.  Of course I loved their harmony, but it wasn't only that.  I wasn't sure what it was until I really thought about it, and when I heard a song similar to theirs I realized it was the guitar music with that jangly sound that I liked so much.

I have been hearing this type of music almost my entire life, but I never really thought about what made it different than any other type of music. I knew plenty of songs I loved, but I never really made the connection to what they had in common.

Mr. Tambourine Man / The Byrds  

In the early '80s my husband and I saw a movie where we enjoyed the soundtrack so much we tried to purchase it but it was always sold out.  The movie was Valley Girl with Nicolas Cage.  Here is one of my favourite songs that was played on that soundtrack.  You can hear that jangly sound in it.

I Melt With You / Modern English

This next song was also made famous by the Valley Girl movie.

A Million Miles Away / The Plimsouls

So for years I was loving that jangly guitar sound without even realizing it was anything but a certain style of playing guitar.  (I didn't even know for sure it was a guitar sound until I asked my husband about it once).  Then one day, as I was listening once again to Free Falling by Tom Petty, I realized he had that same sound and I just had to know what it was that made me like it so much.  I decided to do a Google search for "jangle music" and what a surprise I had!  I learned that Jangle Pop is an actual genre of music!

Here is the definition (according to Wikipedia):

Jangle pop is a genre of alternative rock from the mid-1980s that "marked a return to the chiming or jangly guitars and pop melodies of the '60s", as exemplified by The Byrds, with electric twelve-string guitars and power pop song structures. Mid-1980s jangle pop was a non-mainstream "pop-based format" with "some folk-rock overtones". Between 1983 and 1987, the description "jangle pop" was, in the US, used to describe bands like R.E.M., Let's Active and Tom Petty, and a subgenre called "Paisley Underground", which incorporated psychedelic influences.^[1] In the UK the term was applied to the new wave of raw and immediate sounding melodic guitar-bands collected on the NME's C86 (and laterCD86) compilations.

Here's a great blog post on the history of the Rickenbacker 12 string electric guitar (which is what gives Jangle pop its jangly sound): 
Jingle-Jangle Revolution: How Rickenbacker Guitars Changed Music 

So to celebrate this fave genre of mine, I would like to showcase a couple of Richard Armitage fanvids which feature jangle pop tunes!

Richard Armitage - The Golden Hour / by maraiad72

Losing My Religion / R.E.M.

And here is a fanvid I was originally going to use in a winter-themed post.  I realize the season has moved on but actually the song still works anyway, as it does refer to the seasons changing.  Besides, I shouldn't be so northern hemispheric, eh?  For you folks Down Under, this fits in quite nicely!

But, of course the real reason I have chosen it today is for the sound.  This song, "A Hazy Shade of Winter", was originally written by Paul Simon and performed by Simon and Garfunkle.  The cover is by The Bangles, who are listed in that Wikipedia article as a Jangle pop band!  Who knew?  Certainly not me (until just a little while ago).

Spooks/MI5 - Lucas North by KatSw3
Hazy Shade of Winter / The Bangles

Had you ever heard of the term "Jangle Pop" before?  How do you feel about that sound?

Good Egg / Bad Egg

Start with a RAw egg

I've been hunting for Easter egg treats for all of us Richard Armitage fans.  Now, we all have our favourite characters -- but some of them are much nicer than others.  I am partial to the good ones - like Harry Kennedy, John Standring, and John Thornton. So, because we shouldn't put all our eggs in one basket, I have divided them up between the good and the bad eggs.

What is your choice for best egg?

In North and South, it took Margaret Hale quite a while to realize than Mr. Thornton was not such a bad egg as she first supposed. The mini series had her encounter him in the cotton mill as he was beating a mill hand for smoking.  This was a very dangerous and foolish thing to do with flammable cotton fibres flying around in the air.  As Mr. Thornton later explained -- he had seen the results of a mill destroyed by a fire from someone smoking and the needless deaths it caused.

Mr. Thornton seemed like a bad egg to Margaret Hale

When she finally realized what a good man he really was - it was almost too late, as she feared she had lost favour in his eyes, and then she had to move back to London.  But, although he appeared to be a hard-boiled businessman Thornton really had a soft centre (much like a Cadbury cream egg)!  He tracked her down to London (in the book) or halfway between London and Milton in a train station (in the miniseries).  Either way, it was an EGGcellent ending!

Thornton's shell is finally cracked

Oh so sweet!

 Here is a collection of bad eggs.

 Clockwise from front left:  Guy of Gisborne, Lucas North a.k.a. John Bateman, John Mulligan, Bill Chatford, Heinz Kruger, Percy Courtney. 
(If you don't know who some of these characters are, check out the pictures at Richard Armitage Central Gallery.)

Probably you won't agree with all my choices.  For instance, it pained me to put Lucas in with the bad eggs, because he wasn't at first (well he was -- but he WASN'T)!  Oh dear, you see my dilemma?  Also I realize the Gisborne contingent will have a convincing argument why Guy does not belong in the bad egg category.  We all think the love of a good woman could have saved him.  Even though we know that doesn't really work in real life - but why not in a fantasy world?  

And the Good Eggs!

Clockwise from top left: Oh look! It's Lucas North again. You see?  Since he's a split personality, maybe he's really a good egg that got devilled!  Next to dear Lucas it's Claude Monet, then sweetie John Standring, then Thorin Oakshield, Harry Kennedy, Alec Track, John Porter, John Thornton,  Ian Macalwain.

Doesn't he look wonderful 
all dressed up for a special occasion?

Those who follow in the fandom know that 
Richard Armitage is himself a very good egg.

Who are some of the characters I have missed?

Elton John fanvids

Elton John was my first real musical love.  I still love his music just as much today. Since it was his birthday today yesterday,  I have found a few songs made into fanvids starring various characters portrayed by my fave actor - Richard Armitage.

This first video was my favourite Elton John song for a very long time.  Usually I don't like it when someone else covers a favourite song.  I didn't like Ewan McGregor's version in the movie Moulin Rouge.  In fact, it was the straw that broke the camel's back for me.  I turned it off and refused to watch any more of that movie.   But when I heard this singer's version of the song, I changed my mind.  It is so different, it is almost like a new song.  Of course it works much better with a female voice in this fanvid. 

Your Song - Richard Armitage Multi-role video by angieklong

song performed by Ellie Goulding

This next fanvid is by a Spanish vidder and it looks like it was made as a birthday present for someone.  What a sweet gift!  The song has no words but its title is very fitting for Guy of Gisborne.

Song for Guy / by cuatrobesos

I am very fond of this next video as it fits so well with Lucas North's character in Spooks/MI5. 

I Want Love / by ialmajacobus

I hope I can find more RA fanvids to Elton John songs some day.  

If you know of any more, please let me know!

My Third Blogiversary

March 19th was the anniversary of my third year of this blog.  I am sorry I haven't been as prompt in posting this year as I was last year.  I can't seem to get my energy level up and I have been struggling with this all winter.  The calendar says its spring now -- but it doesn't fool me!  There are no signs of anything spring like where I am.  So I need to think warm thoughts and of course when I do I think of you-know-who!

So in honour of my 3 years in blogging, I created this little triptych of Richard Armitage. 

(Thanks to piZap.com)  It is also a public service announcement.  Save yourself ladies!

I also crave sweet things when I am cold and feeling down, but who can blame me if I have a piece of my own cake?!

Here is another threesome I like to call the three faces of Lucas North.

I still have lots of reading to do, to catch up with all the great posts and new blogs that were featured in the last FanstRAvaganza.  Thank you very much to all who have visited my little home on the web.  The door is always open here and I appreciate your company.

Pick up the phone!

Why hello there!  Thank you for calling.

This is one of my usual sorts of posts, combining my love of music and popular culture with my current obsession fascination with actor Richard Armitage.  New visitors just here for RA stuff can scroll down to the end of the post where I finally get around to mentioning the real reason you are here...

My love of songs about phones goes way back... All the way back to a Warner Brothers cartoon that we got to watch in movie theatres before the main feature (back in the day before advertisements took over).  Later on it showed up on television on the Bugs Bunny Show, but there's no bunny in it.  Just a very unusual frog.  A singing frog!

I used to sing this song like crazy when I was a kid!

The next video was brand new to me, but apparently was a hit in 2009.
It is by a Canadian band from Toronto, Ontario.
It's very catchy, and has been remixed for dancing but I prefer the original version.
See what I learn when I do these posts?

Pick up the Phone / Dragonette

Phylly's Favourite Phone songs:

My all-time fave!

Operator/ Jim Croce

My second-most fave!

Brings back my teen years! It hit #1 in Canada in 1976.  I used to hang out in a local restaurant and get my friend, who was waitressing there to play this song over and over and over...

Telephone Line / ELO

Other Faves:

This song is such a classic and brings back my childhood.  I just noticed that it has been covered quite nicely by R.E.M. but Campbell's version still does it for me

Witchita Lineman / Glen Campbell

Call Me / Blondie

Now, this song brings back memories of viewing Richard Gere's full frontal in American Gigolo. I sat through that movie twice so I could catch another glimpse!  But Blondie's music really can stand on its own.  She was a fabulous singer with an original sound that was captivating!

Sylvia's Mother / Dr. Hook
This song is so pathetic it is almost funny.  But I love it very much.  It is great fun to sing!

I have to give the RA fandom credit for introducing me to Lady Gaga. I hadn't heard of her until I started watching fanvids back in 2009.  There are at least two RA fanvids to her song Telephone.  One I have already featured on my blog in my fanvid tribute to La Gaga.  Here is the other one:

Telephone- Lady Gaga (Lucas fanvid) by  Behind Blue Eyes - mixed Armitage roles

Many fans of Richard Armitage have noticed his characters seem to spend quite a bit of time on the phone.  In fact someone has devoted a whole blog to just this theme!

Richard Armitage on the Phone - Tumblr

Here is RA fan blogger / graphic artist and fanvidder Bccmee's contribution to this theme which she featured on her blog awhile ago:

Please follow this link to her blog post: 

http://fanvideos.wordpress.com/2012/06/16/lucas-north-vs-john-porter/

I love it when a fan turns one of his commercial voice-overs into a video!

Richard Armitage reads 02 Offer ("Better Connected") advert / by NotEvenAnOuch

Oh yes!  Before I forget... Check out this page at Richard Armitage Central for 
Richard Armitage's voice on a Ringtone!
RAC RA Ringtones

I've got to try one of those!

One more song I just love to sing is
I just called to say I Love You /  by Stevie Wonder
I can't help it! I love this song right down to the "cha-cha-cha"!

So I couldn't help myself... I had to make this video.  (Please forgive me!)

If the sound doesn't work - try this link: http://vimeo.com/61946623

Do you have any favourite songs about telephones?
And... which ringtone would you prefer?

This has been my second contribution to FanstRA 4. Please click on the banner above to be directed to the Hub page where you will find many more contributors this year. 
If you are interested in any of my previous FanstRA posts
you can click on the category FanstRAvaganza in my tag cloud listed under Favourite Things.