Hi Dean,

Episode #1: The One Where He Wished He Hadn't Asked!

But you did, didn't you! Most of my precious babies are disappeared forever, some locked in a time capsule, on cassette tape or VHS recorded by a an enthusiastic dad at the back of the concert hall, using the built-in mike in his new camcorder...

I've written some cool stuff I'm immensely proud of, but it seems like another life now. And gone... some forever!

But thank you for taking an interest. Most of my composing, arranging, performing happened in the 20 years teaching in schools (writing the music (never the lyrics!) for musicals, anthems, and arranging for orchestra, steel band, gob sticks (recorders!) etc etc. After leaving teaching there's been the occasional flurry of excitement, M.D.ing Les Mis, JC Superstar (2 of my 6 fave musicals, writing and performing the Kenton (4th oldest working theatre in the country) Theatre's 200th birthday anthem (lyrics by friend and Sports Commentator, Tony Gubba, sadly no longer with us) and arranging old jazz standards and singing in my 3-girl Acapulco(!) group, sometimes with a swing band. I've written music for the lyrics written for me by a uni boyfriend and best-selling, award-winning author, Graham Joyce, sadly no longer with us, and another friend and forensic sleuth and secret and prolific author  Neil Barrett, sadly out of action due to MS.) Are you detecting a pattern here? And have you concluded you'd best not befriended nor collaborate with me!!

I'm rubbish at words, yeah, yeah, baby, baby. I've done nothing with my music (other than have grown up school kids tell me what a massive positive musical influence I've been on their careers and lives, which is lovely, of course. But, what with working all hours for YEARS on my business and building our Grand Designs house, I've been somewhat distracted, which is a terrible shame and something I never dreamt would happen. In fact, with all the various house moves to finally be here in our gorgeous home, my Big Mac isn't even connected to my small mixing desk and if I ever reinstalled Logic Pro, I wouldn't even recognise it, it's been so long and the tech will have transmogrified several times over.  🙁  Very sad.

Anyway, I was a massive fan of yours while at uni when you were doing the rounds back in the Lydia Days. Thrilled to bits when you chose me for one of your Deli girls. 🙂 And we've seen you in various venues on the UK over the years, e.g the glamorous Croydon Guildhall, I think it was (I've blanked the venue out!) and regularly at the Crooked Billet. (How lucky are we? 30 minutes up the road from us.) Oh, and there was that time you came to our town, Henley on Thames, to our Literary Festival, to talk about lyric writing. I was the annoying woman who asked you if you'd realised that Humour Me was built on the same chord progression as Misty (and September Morn, come to that), and you had to stop and think for a bit. And because you had to do that, I said, "You've just answered my question!" I wasn't trying to be annoying, I'd been curious for decades and here was my chance to ask!!

And, I realise we've mentioned this before, but 20 years ago, my (then) friend, Nigel, (who is no longer my friend), got you to write on the cover of the CD he'd just bought from you, "Marry him!" And so I did! Well, you would, wouldn't you! If your hero told you to! 🙂

So, for what it's worth, here are some of the things I've written (music only.) Most are home-studio, very amateur produced efforts, but I know you can hear beyond that.

Lysette