Having spent Saturday fighting jetlag on the sofa, Blondie had an early rise on Sunday to join my friends Arie and Ans to the flee market and to the Zaanse Schans.Ans took some great shots of Blondie, surrounded by windmills(see top picture). In the afternoon I took Blondie to a Stones fan gathering (see picture below), well organised by the Forty Licks Fanclub. Blondie chatted up to fans and after an hour we left to hang out with some Dutch musicians from Herman Brood's band and the TeeSet.
On Monday I woke up with the devastating news about Miriam Makeba`s sudden death. I had to teach, but in between classes I called Radio 6 to arrange an interview with Blondie about Mrs Makeba. Later in the afternoon I caught up with Blondie at home, who had been relaxing and playing a little guitar. I sent emails to Chris Jagger , Charlie Hart and Tim Ries, telling them about Mrs Makeba. They all expressed their sadness about this great loss. Chris Jagger was still in a London studio, mixing his new album with producer Chris Kimsey. According to Charlie Hart, Chris'new CD "all sounds brilliant". I can't wait. Chris is so incredibly talented! We exchanged some details about touring the flatlands in April.
The rest of the week was spent by Blondie in all tranquillity, strolling around the house and fighting a slight cold. Wednesday evening Tim Ries' Bimhuis concert was on air, which was followed by Blondie with great interest. Last July I helped to set up the gig at the Bimhuis; it was the first radio recording I ever helped put together. On Thursday evening Blondie accompanied some musicians at the MeloMelo club in Amsterdam, playing three songs. As I had had a week with a lot of exams, I couldn't join him, unfortunately. Too much marking to do. On Saturday morning we say goodbye. German Stonesfriend Dieter will drive Blondie to Regensburg, where Blondie is due to do a clinic and some shows. After that, he is off to Norway to do some gigs.
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