My Little Gnudren,

Today, when Spring is in the air and all things bright and beautiful are burgeoning into life symbolizing future hope, and we rejoice in God’s creation and our neighbourliness and love for all people, Old Gnu prattles on about the past and making money. This is not becoming of one who has had priestly orders conferred on him but who increasingly in retirement behaves like Father Jack, Father Ted’s retired colleague.

Let us get straight to the point. Did you throw away your LP copy of GNU 001 [“Going Nowh… Out of Nowhere”] –

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or take it to a Charity Shop, or make it into a flower pot?  Woe unto you! Gnu sadly has to report that it is now exchanging hands around the £20 mark.  At least, one did in October 2018, and there’s a 400% increase in demand!  [Four others are wanting copies]. There’s no accounting for what people will collect.]. This Word of the Lord came to Gnu from the Discogs website [www.discogs.com] despite the fact that he was not reading the Bible at the time. You see being kind to Old Gnu and buying his mangy old album to stop him nagging and keep him quiet, could have yielded a reward. Cost of LP in 1982, £3.99 which in today’s currency equals £12.82 thus yielding an interest of £7.12. “Why didn’t I invest then in thousands of copies instead of paying into a low yield pension pot?” you are asking yourself. But among the motley crew of musicians at CCC there are enviously greater achievers in the money market.

Do you recognise two of these people on this LP cover from 1980?

Between them, they played and recorded in the 6.30pm band for many years, and their LP sometime back was selling for the £250 mark. Irritating blighters. Their value has now mercifully settled somewhere between £23 and £60. Gnu will be calling on them with his begging bowl.

But how did Discogs get hold of Old Gnu’s mangy old vinyl album? Well it was all due to one very kind man called Mr. Ratel69. [There have been many other kind people along the way who have given Gnu’s musicians and singers exposure to a wider audience]. The said Mr. Ratel69 lives in Paris, and says he is a concert organizer, lecturer and popular music studies geek. He got hold of a copy of GNU 001 in 2016 and submitted the following review on the Discogs website:

“Impressive Evangelical Anglican music borrowing freely from the pop/rock, hymnal, baroque and jazz lexicon for an unlikely but coherent result somewhat evocative of some progressive rock albums, though more vocal-oriented. A precious period piece to the historian of music, and, in its genre, a work of genius.”

We love you Mr. Ratel69 !! We really do love you Mr. Ratel69 !!  What penetrating insight and wisdom are yours! Truly you are glorious in all your judgements throughout the earth, and your thoughts and wisdom are far above our thoughts, and your ways past finding out.

You wait till I tell Mrs. Gnu that she has been living with a genius for these past 46 years.  Old Gnu is sure she will be delighted.

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Vetus Pater Gnu
Academiae Musicorum et Theologia
Turris LA
XXVII Mense Februarii MMXIX