Dear Kate,

i’m really not sure what to write in this guest blog, there seems to be too many people writing so much crap on the internet i’m not sure if anything i have to say is going to improve this situation! the election, the war in Iraq, the economy. There’s a million people online talking shite about these issues all the time. I love my computer but some days i want to throw it out the window… i subscribe to two blogs, yours and Bob Lefsetz. I love and hate his letters in equal measure, he makes alot of sense and i like the way he highlights older artists like Jackson Browne or Lowden Wainwright and espouses the dell knell for aging record companies.

So perhaps the best thing i can do is recommend a few of my favourite places and things to do now that i’m living in LA.

I like going to see gigs here at the new Largo. It’s an amazing place and on any given week you’ll see Bill Frisell, Fiona Apple, Aimee Mann, or John C. Reilly doing a piece. I’ve played there every month for the last 2 or 3 months and really enjoy asking my friends like composer guitarist Michael Brook or Gemma Hayes to join me onstage. I also like the great outdoor venues like the Hollywood Bowl and greek theatre. Spaceland is also a cool venue in echo park as is the hotel cafe in hollywood. I’m going to see my friend Emmet Tinley play there tonight. He’s a cool singer songwriter with an amazing voice.

I live right beneath the Hollywood sign beside Griffith park which is an incredible maze of trails which you walk for hours with an incredible view over the city. I can walk all the way to the newly renovated griffith park observatory which is such a cool place Made famous by James Dean in Rebel without a cause and more recently it’s been seen in Bowfinger! (the final scene in “Chubby Rain” when the aliens come for Eddie Murphy!)

Possibly my favourite place here in Los Angeles is the Getty museum such a cool place to visit and lose yourself for an afternoon with beautiful architecture and art. It’s high up on a hill with great views.

I also spend alot of time in Venice and Santa Monica, you can hire a bike for 5 dollars and cycle along the promenade, it’s money well spent and there’s no shortage of smoke shops if you want to keep up with the latest pipe technology…

I’m trying to find good people to help me put my new record out at the moment. I met with an amazing guy called Ian Rogers last week who has started this cool company called Topsinmedia.com If you’re an artist you should check it out, it may work for you, who knows. Ian was the guy who came up with the Radiohead pay what you think it’s worth idea. A really cool and smart guy, we need more people like him in the music business today.

I spend half my time in Los Angeles and half my time in Dublin and the only radio station i really listen to is http://www.kcrw.com i also like to check out the Jones jukebox archives on indie 103 and sometimes i tune into my friend John Kelly’s radio show back home the called the JK ensemble. I miss Dublin a little when i’m away, it’s a great place to go back to but it’s nice to have somewhere else to go. I’ve just booked a christmas show there on Dec 16th which i’m looking forward to. I’ll be joined on guitar by my good friend Fiachna O’Braonain from the Hothouse flowers, i love playing with him as he has such a great vibe onstage and we’re good mates. My brother Peter is going to play with me also, Peter is an incredible bass player and i haven’t seen either of them for ages so i think it’s going to be a good night!

Montreal is my favourite city in the world, everyone should go there at least once. I made my first solo record there last year with my friend Pierre Marchand. If i had my way i would move there tomorrow and never come back, i may well do! I love the people and the creativity and the music. Or maybe i’ll move to Sydney, another great city…It’s like what America might have been like before it got all used up.

We also need more people like you in the music industry Kate, people who are passionate and really care about it and want to make a difference and see a way for things to get better fro the artist in these strange times.

Take care and good luck.

Colin. x

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