Frances Shelley

CORAMANDEL PENNINSUAR, NEW ZEALAND 4 may 2010

COLVILLE

For someone who doesn’t travel much, im doing well this year!  Bac

k from Italy, (as you know eventually) and flew here 10 days later.  Im taking a month’s break to be with my sister.  Who lives in a lonely and beautifull beyond belief cabin on a

hillside, no electricity and a millionaire’s view . . .take a look!.

I am going to be doing a lot of writing here, Im equipped with 12 to 40 watt converters for my computer (solar batteries) and set for a month of new influences , new sights, new people, and oceans, and oceans of time .

This morning, jet lagged and up at 4 am, I have written some lyrics, maybe tomorrow I willl put them to some chords, maybe I will post the result!  maybe . .

15^th May.

Did I really say that, oceans of time?  who was I kidding.   The eco life, living with no water (recently due to drought) power only when sunny and then not for long, and the need to drive 20 hair raising minutes down the mountain to the village shop for any provisions, is incredibly time consuming.  But its good .. .  living at a different pace,  slowing down and now starting to feel part of the landscape . .is this called ‘relaxing’ ?

so many random encounters with amazing people . .Intending to have time by myself and write, I went up the hill to the top, and found to my surprise two people camping.  It is the most natural thing in the world here to pick up the nearest guitar and start playing, and soon we were exchanging songs, exchanging portions of our lives, finding synchronicity everywhere.  She was a beautiful half Maori singer and healer . .

.they loved my recent song ‘You’ (with Martin Cooke’s words) and made me play it twice, it was getting dark, the wind was warm, magic suspended in time . .

I have been writing

screeds of lyrics, that are not ‘ready’ (!) yet , but I am enjoying the process enormously.  Every day, a new unfolding.

And yesterday,

with my sister took me to Music Club, a weekly event held in an old wool shed in the

middle of another part of nowhere  about 10 minutes drive away. We arrive at this ramshackle building in the dark, warm lights glowing inside, the sound of electric guitars issue forth.  The  place is equipped with PA, amps, drums, bales of sheep wool, guitars, percussion old car seats, rugs, sofas, even a small Roland keyboard

What a night we had . . .these guys just come and let down their hair (even further than it aready

is) every Friday, or indeed

whenever else they want to. And some of the talent is Spectacular,  Erle Williams in particular.  So much fun.  I want to start one at home.  Everyone just turns up as a

nd when they want, no sheet music is allowed, play by ear or don’t play!

Erle Williams and Kate Shelley in concert

So, off to hear more music in Coramandel tonight as part of the Open Studios weekend, should be fun, more later.