Qatari tales...

Spent the day on Doha... The last place in the world with lots of money, lots of confidence and lots of activity...quite refreshing really!

Doha is widely being tipped as the new Dubai - except it isn't. It's Doha. Qatar does it differently and it's fast learning to do it better and smarter. (Although no-one denies Dubai's role in pioneering and innovating in this region nor the importance of that)

Qatar may well become the capital of the Middle East in the coming years - not the biggest, not the richest (although it may well win that title too as it is the world's richest country by GDP / Capita - just ahead of Luxembourg), but the place with the most influence. Already a global player in energy and finance it is emerging as the region's hub and possibly saviour in terms of education and human development.

Qatar also has quite some taste and balance. Anyone who questions that need only look at the stunning I.M.Pei designed Museum of Islamic Art. This is not a regional point of interest - it is a global point of interest. The Tribeca film festival that has come to Doha - another subtle and high quality approach to the arts which differentiates Qatar from some of its neighbours.

And in sport too Qatar not only hosts world class Golf and Tennis competitions but is home to World Superbikes and the Motorcycle Grand Prix. It also hosted the Asian Games in 2006 - another remarkable achievement for a young and small country.

Politically Qatar has been more engaged than its neighbours who prefer to abstain from politics in favour of religion or commerce. And it has also made international impact with Al Jazeera - the Arabic version of which represents the only real free media in the region which covers and comments on tough and controversial issues. The English language Al Jazeera International is also a highly professional news organisation with a very refreshing and different approach and perspective.

While it is often dismissed as "trying to catch up with Dubai" - since the global recession bit, fewer are making that kind of statement - and are instead rushing to Doha to ride the wave or progress afoot in Qatar.

As one of my clients (a former senior Western diplomat) once told me, the Qatari people, and certainly their leadership, tend not to make a big noise about things, but instead study, plan and execute with quiet confidence focusing on deliverables rather than promises or grandiose predictions.

(Of course I did once meet a Qatari Sheikh who spent US$1 million on a single flower arrangement at his daughter's wedding...)

And it's not to say that Qatar isn't in a hurry or focused on the goals and possibilities of the future. It is and it should be. In a region where so many fall prey to apathy and to trying to curb their neighbours success rather than emulate it or exceed it, Qatar is a refreshingly positive and optimistic place to be.

Viva Doha - a even brighter future awaits!

Music...soundtracks for the soul...

To end my life, take away music.

I find increasingly that I cannot get through the day without music - it provides stimulation, inspiration, comfort, soothing, diversion, distraction, salvation, delight, catharsis and ecstasy.

My taste is hugely eclectic, occasionally random and generally open minded. Jazz, heavy metal, Bach to Bruckner, Mozart to Mahler, blues, country, hip hop, rap, ambient, house, zydeco, folk, ethnic / world, latin, european, rembetika, laiki and so on....

A soundtrack to the soul, music takes me away from myself and also takes me into myself...

Lately I have been listening to a particularly varied selection which I commend to you here:

Anouk - "Who's Your Momma". Anouk is dutch blues rocker. This lady has a lot of hot buttered soul in her, and a lot of anger and pain. This 2007 album was clearly written after a break-up and contains songs of great pain and emotion, as well as anger and resentment. This is Anouk's "Blood on the Tracks". There are also tender and soulful reflections on relationships, people, society and mores which balance the record in terms of both music and lyrical content. And her voice is incredible. Strong, powerful, emotive and delicate at the same time. I recommend this record heavily!

Lucinda Williams - "Car Wheels on Gravel Road". The Louisiana born country blues singer's finest album. She'll remind you of Sheryl Crow - except Crow followed her and not the other way around. Drunken Angel is a favourite track...as is the title track. These songs are subtle and creep up on you with each listen and the whole album suddenly becomes a favourite after a few listens...great country sounds, great bluesy numbers and another great female voice.

Paolo Nuttini's new album "Sunny Side Up" is a large departure from his first soulful outing and moves through ballads, country, jazz, sixties soul and reggae to cover a much broader range of material both musically and lyrically. It shows this incredible young talent has grown up a little and his voice which recalls Rod Stewart at his bluesiest (and not the POP era!) is also more mature with his strong Scottish accent coming through far more strongly. "Coming Up Easy" and "Simple Things" are two great tracks, and "Funky Cigarette" and "Smokey Joe's Cafe" show fun and humour and are also very enjoyable. Less teenage angst, more musical freedom and security suit Paolo Nuttini - this guy is a talent to watch!

Ted Hawkins - "Happy Hour". I've owned this album for more than 20 years and return every now and again. Hawkins was a jailbird who after prison found a career playing acoustic blues and soul on Venice Beach down from Santa Monica pier. A wonderful rich black voice - soulful and harsh at the same time - his lyrics are delightfully simple and immensely moving. The opener "Bad Dog" covers infidelity and is tragic and poignant. The blue "You Pushed My Head Away" is a break-up blues featuring lovely electric guitar picking as the accompaniment to Hawkins acoustic strumming... Magic. The title Happy Hour - another song about infidelity is tragically painful with the juxtaposition of the concept of Happy Hour and the misery of discovering his woman betraying him in front of his eyes. This is a great album from a man who saw a lot of pain and anguish in a difficult life. Real soul blues.

Finally I have been listening to a lot of Greek music in recent days - especially the Pix Lax / Giorgos Dalaras classics "Ta Veggalika Matia" which is incredibly beautiful and whose lyrics are so deep and expressive and "Enas Kombos, H Xara Mou" (My Pleasure, My Pain). Dalaras and Pix Lax created a unique sound in modern Greek music which fused something from REM with traditional Greek folk rhythms and a beautiful emotional and philosophical examination of the human condition. Have also been listening to Giannis Kotsiras and his incredibly tender voice applied to love songs which can't fail to capture a mood and Dimitris Mitropanos - a Godfather of Greek lyrical singing and with an amazing unique voice. There is something remarkable about the marriage of the Greek language and the Greek soul that results in truly beautiful and moving music... Difficult for non Greek speakers to appreciate fully perhaps, but I know many friends who speak not a word but who cry to the songs above...

And now I have just landed in Bahrain and have to remove the earphones and go to work...

Enjoy the music.

Comedown

As often is the case after a wonderful trip, the return is followed by the "comedown".

The dreariness of everyday life, the banality of present reality in cruel juxtaposition with the delights of past fantasy and the dreaded re-adjustment to "here" as opposed to "there".

You know "there" - where the grass is always greener. . . . and it's true, it is greener. The grass and everything else that is "there".

It strikes me suddenly that I spend much of my life "there" and little of it "here".

As a consequence, "here" seems rather empty at times (especially when I return from "there") and "there" by comparison seems fuller, richer and more satisfying.

It is of course an illusion, a trick and a trap. If I spent all my time "there" then it would soon become "here" and that would defeat the object... perhaps I need to spend more time "here" and make it more like "there"?

I do miss the people from "there" though. They are fun, interesting, passionate, diverse and inspiring.

I miss the excitement of "there" and I miss the ephemeral qualities of "there" - a place that is constantly re-inventing itself, refreshing itself, being reborn.

Or perhaps it is me that re-invents myself, refreshes myself and is reborn, and "there" is just the context? Is this the basis of happiness and satisfaction or is it escapism and nihilism combined?

I think probably the latter confused for the former.

How sad!

I do apologize, this seems to have become a rather philosophical - not to mention existentialist - posting, so I will stop here to prevent straining the patience of the reader.

That said, I think if one reads the above carefully it will all make perfect sense.

And with that now dealt with . . .

Goodnight.