Since my last post we have gone to press for December. This was easy enough apart from not having a suitable photograph for the front cover. The main article is about John Steel, the drummer of The Animals. I searched on the internet and contacted his management company; Peter sent me a striking image which looks good.

Since my last post, I have done interviews with all the women guitarists  on Ruf Records Blues Caravan tour, on Sunday 9th November at The Stables in Wavendon. They are Deborah Coleman, Sue Foley, Dani Wilde, Joanne Shaw Taylor and Laura. They are travelling with a UK rhythm section. At the gig at The Stables in Wavendon, they had Dani's brother Will 'Harmonica' Wilde and his band opening up for them. I did an interview with him too; he is very good but, being young, has not done much yet. 

The Stables is a lovely venue created by John Dankworth and Cleo Laine. Michael, the house manager, showed me round the facilities in the interval. They are excellent and all the staff are helpful and friendly. It was a long journey on a wet day but well worth the effort.

On Tuesday 11th, I did a phone interview with Mick Fleetwood. He still tours with Fleetwood Mac and has a band called Island Rumours Band, which is based where he lives in Hawaii. He has a new album out called Blue Again, with The Mick Fleetwood Blues Band featuring, Rick Vito.

On Thursday night, I drove the copy to Magazine Printing Company, so I could be free on Friday. I went to see Sheila Riley. Sheila's husband Jim Riley died shortly before this year's Beer Festival. Sheila and Jim have been the organisers of this successful event for some years. She said that it all ran well, as she and Jim had set it up to run itself, with participating pubs handling their own events. A highlight was a fly past by a Spitfire, which dropped Jim's ashes into the sea. The festival goers obviously enjoyed this as they donated half the cost in a whip round. Sheila says that there will be another Beer Festival, in October next year, and several friends and musicians will be aiding and abetting her.

It was good to get out after being stuck in the office for the past ten days.  Over the weekend we entertained some friends to dinner on Saturday night and on Sunday, I went to the Westfield Shopping Centre at Shepherd's Bush. It was a bit of a scrum and not as delightful as the one at Bondi Beach in Sydney. I bought a calendar and a diary for next year and a notebook, nothing exciting.

This week, the ordinary tasks of answering emails, processing cheques for subscriptions, paying bills and so on occupy my time. I have managed to pin down Big Joe Louis to do an interview on Wednesday at 6pm and photographer Mike Russell to take photographs. Big Joe Louis is a striking looking person as well as being a great blues singer and player with a fountain of knowledge on the blues. I want to feature him in the January issue and have him on the front cover; this is long over due!

On Wednesday evening, Charlie Musselwhite and Dave Peabody are playing at the 100 Club in London's Oxford Street. I will be going on to that. On Friday, Paul Oscher is playing solo at Brooks Blue Bar, so I will go to that too and I might go to see Son Maxwell at The Tabard in Bath Road, Chiswick, near Turnham Green Station. He is also the front man for Storm Warning and very good at his job. On Monday 24th, I am meeting Chicago Red for lunch; he will be in transit from Bristol to Westcliff-on-Sea. Life is just one thing after another.