🥁 Lesley Gore – It’s My Party…

(EX+ w.o.l) £25
Lesley Gore 1963

Did You Know? Lesley Gore had a number one hit with It’s My Party aged 16.

Produced by Quincy Jones, the record went gold spending 2 weeks at Number 1 on the pop charts and 3 weeks at the top of the R&B chart.

Burger King featured the song in their 1999 advertising campaign for the 99 cent burger.

Quincy Jones

Postage is £10 (1-3 records) – We mail on Friday and provide proof of posting. Text 0044 (0) 7788 215744 or email deesu@hotmail.co.uk to reserve or for more information.

🥁 Quincy Jones…

Quincy Delight Jones Jr. was born March 14th 1933 and died November 3rd 2024. Born in the slums of Chicago and raised in Bremerton, Washington where he studied music and his chosen instrument, the trumpet.

He became an arranger and producer working a variety of artists including Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra and Aretha Franklin.

He suffered two brain aneurysms in 1974 and had surgery which involved fixing steel pins in his head. He had a nervous breakdown in the eighties and music was key to his recovery.

PLAY

Did you know?

Quincy Jones produced Lesley Gore’s 1963 hit It’s My Party and the B side She’s A Fool. He also produced the theme tune to the hit TV series Ironside which ran from 1967 until 1975.

Lesley Gore Page

Quincy Jones produced three of Michael Jackson’s best selling albums Thriller, Off The Wall and Bad. Thriller is reported to have sold 70 million copies worldwide making it the best selling album ever. Off The Wall sold around 20 million and Bad sold over 35 million copies making it one of the best selling albums of all time.

There are a number of interviews with Quincy Jones available on the internet and he has such dulcet tones they are great listening.

  • Full Interview (1 Hour) > HERE
  • David Letterman (7 mins) > HERE
  • The Best Advice I Ever Got (2 mins) > HERE
Quincy Jones with Michael Jackson at the 1994 Grammy Awards

Unscramble these letters to reveal the title of his 1978 release ATLIFKESTUTFH answer HERE Keen eyed folks will spot Chaka Khan, Petula Clark, Herbie Hancock, Patti Austin and Beverley Knight performing at the 75th Anniversary celebration.

Please text or phone 0044 (0) 7788 215744 or email deesu@hotmail.co.uk

CONTACT

🇫🇷 Apartment Colette – Troyes

Situated in the north east of France, Troyes is about 170 kilometres east of Paris.

Easily accessed by road and rail, the medieval city is the capital of the Aube department. With many cobbled streets and half timbered houses, there are several gothic churches and the stunning Cathédrale Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul de Troyes.

The Musée d’Art Moderne is recently restored and is a great day out. Admission €8 adults (free admission on 1st Sunday of the month) and €4 children

La apartment Colette is a convenient and comfy place to stay…

We loved the comfy bed and crisp white bed linen, fluffy towels and large TV with Netflix. The kitchen and bathroom are both in new condition and everything you need including hair dryer and kettle are there. Off road parking at the rear.

La Apartment Colette
38 rue du Docteur Roux, 10000 Troyes
 Contact Marie-Charlotte
+33 66 32 53 422

Comfy and clean

Travelling south? Visit Clermont Ferrand

🥘 Carole’s parsnip and pear soup…

🥘  1 saucepan  🍽 Serves 4 ⏱ 50 mins   🛒 12 ingredients   €5

Ingredients:

For the roasted parsnip and pears

  • 500g parsnips, peeled and chopped
  • 2 medium sized pear, peeled, cored and quartered
  • Olive oil, salt and pepper
  • 15g butter

For the soup

  • 1 stick of celery, diced
  • 50g onion, diced
  • 1 litre chicken or vegetable stock
  • 1 Bay leaf
  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
  • 80ml cup single cream
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper

For garnish

  • Chopped pistachios
  • chopped parsley or thyme

Step by step:

1. Preheat your oven to 210C. (180C fan) Peel the parsnips. and chop them all into similar size pieces. This will mean they cook evenly. Start by cutting the parsnips in half across the middle. Quarter the thicker top parts of the parsnip, the bottom parts will only need halving if they are quite thick.

2. Scatter the parsnips over a baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast in the oven for about 15 minutes.

3. Peel, core and quarter your pears

4. After 15 minutes, turn the parsnips over, add the pears and roast for another 15 minutes, until the parsnips are tender. Be careful to get the parsnips lightly golden but not burnt. Remove any smaller pieces a few minutes earlier if needs be. Set the cooked parsnips and pears aside in a bowl. Reserve a few pieces to use as garnish if you like.

5. In a large pot, melt the butter with a glug of oil over medium heat. Add the chopped celery and onion and cook, stirring for 3-4 minutes or until the onion is tender. Add the stock, bay leaf, dried thyme and the roasted parsnips and pears. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 20-30 minutes stirring occasionally.

6. Using an stick blender, puree the soup until smooth. Add the cream and stir to combine.

7. Check the seasoning, add more salt and pepper to taste.

8. Serve the soup garnished with the chopped pistachios and some finely chopped cooked parsnip and pear if you like.

Tips:

I always go for young, smaller parsnips, they are tastier and require less chopping. You will need to vary your cooking times depending on the size of your parsnips.

Variations include chopped walnuts, crumbled goats cheese and chopped crispy bacon. Use Crème Fraîche, or milk if you prefer.

Carole’s Parsnip and Apple Soup

Carole’s Parsnip and Bacon Soup

🇫🇷 Maison du parc – Yzeron

Situated in the east of France, Yzeron is about 30 kilometres from Lyon.

La Maison du Parc is a charming B&B with rooms from just €75. Rooms are spacious and the breakfast is perfect with fresh baked bread and croissants. The homemade jams and chocolate brownies are naughty but nice.

Monts du Lyonnais
Comfy spacious rooms

The bedrooms are all themed and we had the Marguerite room. Some 900 metres above sea level the views over the mountains are fabulous.

Although the roads are twisty and some of the steep drops either side of you can be hair raising, the drive is lovely, just take your time.

Yzeron is a lovely little town and only 300 metres walk from the B&B. There are several restaurants, a small supermarket, butcher and bakery.

Brindas to the north is a pretty commune and the Guignol Theatre Museum is well worth a visit, especially if you have children to amuse.

La Maison du Parc
Contact Pascal
+33 (0)4 78 81 09 21 or
+33 (0)6 68 38 22 33
Website

A lovely mountain retreat