More ‘Breaking Wave’ Music References…....From ‘Free Tibet’…..
by Bernie Bell - 09:22 on 01 October 2025
More ‘Breaking Wave’ Music References…....
I’m not picking up so many now – maybe I’m not recognizing them, or maybe I’m not paying enough attention – too caught up in the story!
There are some Beatles references, which I don’t feel a need to post links for!
One that I did recognize (unless Ian is referring to a completely different song), is ‘Lost in Music’ by Sister Sledge. ‘Pop’ – but good, danceable Pop, and a reference to where the characters in ‘The Breaking Wave’ are…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GII2wUD8l_k
And there’s …’Turn Turn Turn’ by The Byrds…..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4ga_M5Zdn4
Not Pop – but good old ‘70’s hippie music…… ‘…..and a time for every purpose under heaven.’
Hmmmm – next one isn’t of the time the story’s set in, but Sam saying…… ‘A flight to the moon on gossamer wings’ brought to mind……..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7fF2CfUjkA
It could be said that what’s happening to Frank……illness – any of the vagaries of life - could be said to be ‘just one of those things’.
I’m writing a lot about music references in ‘The Breaking Wave’ – and now I’ll mention how Ian writes of the experience of intensive Cancer treatment.
Anyone who has had experience of it (and I thank all The Powers That Be that I haven’t) will recognize aspects of it. Those who haven’t experienced it might find it disturbing, as Ian describes it all so vividly, but - and this is one of the reasons I’ve been promoting Ian’s book so much – to show how ‘Frank’ deals with it, is inspiring and salutary to anyone (including me) who gets pissed off with being un-well.
On a lighter note – I’ll chuck in the fact that the story reminds me of ‘The Blues Brothers’…..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HCR4c1zPyk
“We’re putting the band back together.”
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From ‘Free Tibet’……
“An artist has decided to treat sacred Tibetan mountains as their canvas, causing ecological damage to the area and disrespecting Tibetans around the world.
Cai Guo-Qiang, in collaboration with outdoor brand Arc’teryx, detonated fireworks, pyrotechnics, and coloured smoke across the Shigatse Himalayan mountains in a show titled ‘Rising Dragon’. The blatant disrespect for Tibet’s fragile ecosystems is only compounded by this title, which is clear reinforcement of China’s colonial occupation of Tibet - given the common symbology and depiction of China as a dragon.
Days after this display, Cai Guo-Qiang opened an exhibition, ‘Gunpowder and Abstraction 2015-2025’, at White Cube Gallery in London.
In a show of protest against this collaboration with an artist with such overt disrespect for Tibet and its environment, Tibetans turned up to the gallery carrying placards, chanting, and informing patrons about Cai Guo-Qiang’s actions.
In an Instagram and Facebook video that has received over 230,000 views, young Tibetans activists can be seen entering the gallery to inform those watching a presentation of Cai Guo-Qiang’s art of the destruction he has caused. In this act, they admonish White Cube Gallery for platforming such an artist, for ignoring the legitimate concerns of Tibetans, and, by association, lending support to the commodification of Tibet’s environment.
https://www.facebook.com/reel/24279345998428005
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DPEm975kTy9/
The fight against this reckless display does not stop here. While we plan future actions to stand up to those who would platform the whitewashing of Tibet’s occupation, we need your support now.
On 1 October we will be taking part in the annual ‘Resist the CCP’ march in London. We will be there alongside friends from Hong Konger, Uyghur, Tibetan, Southern Mongolian, Taiwanese, and Chinese dissident communities to highlight that, despite it being the 77th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China, there is nothing to celebrate.
We would be thrilled if you could attend and show your support. We will have placards to carry, but really encourage bringing along Tibetan flags too! We want to see if we can flood the streets of London with a sea of flags standing up to the CCP’s attempts to crush community identities!
When: 01 October 2025, 18:00
Where: Royal Mint Court, London, EC3N 4AB
As we head into the colder months, please remember to wrap up warm and bring an umbrella with you just in case!
We look forward to seeing you there.
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