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Jason Webster Book???
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Kate
Posts: 1827
Joined: Jul. 8 2003
From: Living in Granada, Andalucía
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 RE: Jason Webster Book??? (in reply to Ron.M)
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I know what you mean. Although we didn't actually form the young band you mentioned ( they were formed out of a social cultural project) we certainly recorded them and I promoted , organised and financed the tour of America, only for the workshop leader last month to claim in a local newspaper that he did it all by himself !!!!
Luckily no-one, apart from the journalist who interviewed him, believed a word he said as almost everyone here who is interested knows already. I was furious though. I also wondered how a journalist could just write what they are told without doing a bit of research. A quick google search would have told a much bigger story. I would have wondered how the man managed to organise a tour of the States without speaking English. I would have been curious as to how he financed it. I would have certainly got hold of the CD and read the bloody credits.
In Barcelona once we spent the entire holiday being followed by a Sun reporter who had been told stuff about us, he eavesdropped on conversations and tried to entice us or our friends with drinks. In the end we heard that he had said it wouldn't matter if we didn't talk he'd just make it up.
This happens. Harold was interviewed by a newspaper recently. We thought it was about Marina Heredia who he was recording at the time but no all they were interested about all the famous Brits Harold had worked with. We just kept bringing the conversation back to the present. In the end we had to laugh when we read we had been good friends with Joe Strummer who we never mentioned once. Well I did once sat next to him at an all night showing of "Up in Smoke" in Notting Hill Gate cinema, if that counts.
Another great con story was arriving in a small village in Spain to be told we had just missed Geezer Butler. Everyone was amazed they they had all been drinking with him and everyone had stories and photos which they showed us. Harold took one look and said " That's not Geezer Butler" LOL He fooled them all though, because they wanted to believe it.
Anyway if someone wrote a book of what we had done...and claimed it for themselves. I would seek revenge, if only by claiming and proving the book to be untrue and adding a few Gypsy curses for good measure.
Didn't the acclaimed "Memoirs of a Geisha" have some problems when the Geisha in question claimed that a lot of the book was made up. I really enjoyed that book but maybe if I knew a bit about Japanese culture and history then would not have been so convinced. Actually I enjoyed Duende though took it all with a big pinch of salt and saw it as fiction and didn't think it deserved half the attention as a work of literature that it received. I felt the same about Driving Over lemons, which I thought plaguerised Gerald Brenan's South of Granada. Another book which is a plaguerised rip off was Isobel Allende's "The Beast" ( if I remember rightly) which stole huge chunks out of a little known South American true story called " The Wizard of the upper Amazon".
Okay rant over. Such a long post I should have divided it up to get my "Fellowship" title :)
Kate
_____________________________
Emilio Maya Temple
http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000CA6OBC
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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |
Date Jun. 6 2004 21:30:59
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El Craic
Posts: 164
Joined: Jul. 28 2003
From: Atlantic battered NW Ireland
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RE: Jason Webster Book??? (in reply to Ron.M)
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Hi, a bit of perspective for anyone interested in RafaelGate here's the man's response to the article. I'm cutting and pasting coz don't know the link.
Dear Editor,
I am the professional flamenco guitarist Rafael featured in the Anthony Barnes article published last Sunday June 6th “acclaimed travel book is paella in the sky, claims flamenco tutor” in the Independent on Sunday and I would like to clarify a few points. Click here to view
http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/books/news/story.jsp?story=528716
To put things more in to perspective, I would like the readers to know that I have extensive experience and have given concerts all over the world and given masterclasses in dozens of Universities and Music Schools. I grew up from the age of 9 in Spain and my mother is from Cordoba, Andalucia and I toured all over Spain from the age of 18 and taught English in various Language Schools in Valencia whilst living the life of a flamenco. After many years living with gypsies and flamencos, I returned to the UK and have been based here for over 10 years now. I have had many performances in the UK and worldwide including the South Bank Centre in London and taught hundreds of students how to play amongst them Jason Webster. The author of the book Duende first came to visit me in ’98 as a complete beginner and was instantly hooked and we became good friends. I would tell him stories of my life experiences in Spain with the gypsies and he would often take notes as he said that one day he would write a book about flamenco as he had been so fascinated by the whole experience I had introduced him to. He would regularly attend my concerts and even drove to Italy to see one of my performances; he was the most dedicated “groupie” and good friend. To my surprise, after having not seen him for over a year, (I introduced him to the dancer in my group whom he now lives with in Valencia ) he released the book and dedicated it to me “For Rafa, and the duende moments with him that inspired me”.
However, a compliment though it is to be dedicated a book, I would like to speak in name of all the “flamencos” worldwide whether dancers, singers or guitarists (and I have been receiving emails from professionals worldwide) and would like to put some facts straight. This book hasn’t been published in Spanish (to my knowledge) though it has in many other languages,but the “flamencos” that have heard about the contents of this book are deeeply insulted and outraged as to be a musician, dancer or singer of this art, you must spend years, perhaps decades and a lifetime of hard work and dedication to it. To have mastered this art in supposedly two years (Jason mentions in his book), he has insulted and ruined the dreams of many aspiring guitarists worldwide who wanted to live the dream of being a flamenco and has belittled the work and the effort of thousands of professionals, amongst them me. I have been lucky to be able to live this life though it has taken me so far over 25 years of dedication and study. I would like to encourage people as I encouraged Jason, to continue with their dream and passion for the art and suggest to people to perhaps take the book with some apprehension as this really does not represent the life of a flamenco. Flamenco is an expression of a culture, of a way of life, of Andalusian history going back thousands of years and I feel that this has been taken very superficially and think that a person who knows the art of flamenco well, would treat it with the respect it deserves. Especially with the alleged offensive meeting with Paco de Lucia “pissing behind a bush”. Paco de Lucia is a symbol and ambassador to his country, a household name which Spaniards are proud of, and you cannot simply make up a story in which you humiliate him. A person who even has a basic knowledge of flamenco wouldn’t even dream of offending the Maestro who is responsible for making flamenco what it is today. If we know about flamenco today outside Spain it is largely due to this man Paco de Lucia.
Finally, if there is anything I would like to gain from this, it is to promote the real duende of flamenco, the appreciation and kindness of fans, aficionados and professionals worldwide and to visit Spain and value it for what it really is.
Rafael
flamenco guitarist
email: rafael@flamencoguitarist.com
visit my web: www.flamencoguitarist.com
_____________________________
You can't stop the waves but you can learn to surf
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REPORT THIS POST AS INAPPROPRIATE |
Date Jun. 17 2004 20:50:50
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If it is false, he may face the threat of a law suit for a retraction. 
it will be a pleasure (though it may take some time as my friend may not have read it yet). I'll call her tonight. 
