The Acquisition of Memories

by BorneToFlow

Embarking on their honeymoon, Charles and Elsie begin to process the events of their wedding day and those leading up to it. A series of internal reflections; lengthy, fun & sometimes in-depth conversations; &, interspersed with requisite amounts of playful holiday fun & honeymoon adult times. From Ch19 rating is a tasteful but strong M. Some S5/6 JF canon is blissfully ignored.

14. Chapter 14- Stepping Out

The Acquisition of Memories- Chapter 14- Stepping Out .

A/N 1: Thanks again for all the lovely reviews. I am getting through more of this fiction than I anticipated because of them. The spectre of uni research still looms, although it has been held up a little at the moment. I do hope to get a couple more chapters out before I have to slip back into that mindset fully for a few months.

A/N 2: And OMG! The internet rocks! I was researching around for this chapter I came across this recording of excerpts from the show recorded by members of the Broadway cast of Lady Be Good! from 1924. Some beautiful person went to the effort of uploading from an LP (one David Hertzberg, actually- Thank you!). Load these links into your search engine so you can get the real feel of the musical I have Charles and Elsie going to. Happy times!

PT 1- watch?v=myw0TiKkPIw

PT 2- watch?v=Fsw4QdxTmJc

This LP was only released in 1977, so many of the shows standards were actually released and introduced to radio audiences in the 20s by Fred and Adele Astaire from some April 1926 London studio recordings-

*See- wiki/List_of_songs_introduced_by_Fred_Astaire

Again, if you listen to the show uploads at the top, you will notice that Fred and Adele did not actually sing many of the most famous pieces on stage due to their brother/sister roles in the play. Instead, other characters in the play took them on.

*Here are a couple of links to AA and FA recordings- with George Gershwin actually on piano with them.

Fascinatin' Rhythm- watch?v=6BTM07B0U64

Hang onto Me- watch?v=DrEvD5Rty9Y

I'd Rather Charleston- watch?v=WY2RkGT5-qo

The You Don't Know the Half of it Dearie Blues- watch?v=-t9ak-8Gtfk

*I looove this last one – with Gershwin riffing with Astaire as he tap dances. Rare stuff. Super talented legends making art and having fun together.

*This is a great blog post about the stage show by Jackson Upperco- /2014/02/24/the-best-of-broadways-roaring-twenties-iv/

*Other historical notes will be at the bottom of this if you are interested in following the links- things like where I worked out the basic theatre description, the Lady Be Good! program info, and visuals from the London run, etc.

A/N 3: As one of my guest reviewers mentioned, Chelsie may actually be pushing it to make it to the show on time- what with all their other distractions! But it is also true that I am playing a bit loose and slippy with time schedules throughout this piece of fiction! No worse than JF at times, I maintain. Sorry, cannot be helped!

Disclaimer: JF may have created them and own them, but he let them loose on the world, and they live with us for the time that we choose to hold them close. I try to be careful with them JF. My thanks to you. :)

Anyway, On with the Show!

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She turns serious then and holds his gaze intently so that he could see the truth of her next admission. "I could never part with it, Mr Carson." She whispers low, her accent thick and her voice choked with emotion. "I shall cherish it and everything that came with that letter for as long as I live. I love you, Charles Carson."

It is the first time she has said the words out aloud to him. He feels hot tears rise from his heart to his eyes yet again, stinging the back of his nose. Can I not control these things anymore? Charles chastises himself internally. He grasps her hand even tighter and turns it to place a hot kiss onto her palm, trying to hide his eyes from her gaze, but the stinging salt water drips warm onto her fingertips, and she lovingly wipes them against the others that slowly fall across his smooth cheek. He looks to her again, finally safe enough in her embrace to be completely vulnerable, and with a dry and constricted throat, with no person or paper or pen to act as an intermediary, he tells her, "I love you, too, Elsie Carson. Always."

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Reluctantly, Charles and Elsie part from their long embrace on their impromptu dance floor, and, ever the gentleman butler, Charles turns to retrieve Elsie's hat, gloves, and coat ready for their evening out. Charles still feels the soft warmth of Elsie on his hands, and he keeps his loving gaze upon her from his position behind her at their room's foyer mirror. She carefully places her hat over the new hairstyle that frames her face most becomingly. It seems a sacrilege of sorts to him, at that moment- to cover it up. It looks so soft and shines with a deep lustre, and even the fine streaks of silver he knows are there just seem to catch the evening light and bounce in beautiful starry contrast to her natural dark auburn locks.

He is enthralled by her slender, strong fingers pulling on her elbow-length gloves- nimble and delicate, and now wrapped tightly in satin. Using her opposing fingertips, she takes her time to slide and batten the fingers of each glove down to rest flush with the soft webbing of her hands. His eyes narrow at the sight of it and his tongue, quite unconsciously, runs slowly across the length of his lower lip. Elsie sees this from the corner of her eye and holds his darkened gaze in the mirror with a playful smile twitching at one corner of her mouth.

Charles holds up her coat to help her into it, being careful, as he would be with any member of or visitor to the great household, not to touch her as he does so, and this is despite their recent tactile intimacies. Charles knows this action marks the beginning the great mental preparations he will undertake this evening in readiness for tonight- in readiness for what he hopes to be able to give to Elsie once they return, and for how he plans to make sure she can feel free and comfortable sharing everything of herself with him too.

Elsie looks up at him in the mirror as he checks the time on his pocket watch and then adjusts his tie a final time, smooths his ever recalcitrant forelock well back, pulls on his own pristine white evening gloves and places his top hat on. He grumphs a little at it and tries to angle it 'just so'. Elsie turns to help him, adjusting the hat to what she sees as a rather rakish setting. So, despite all the starch and studied formality of their attire, the scene in the mirror appears as one of familiar and comfortable domesticity. He looks so incredibly tall! And ever so handsome, Elsie smiles to herself, once she is content with her work.

Charles offers her his arm with a slight bow of his head and with a small flourish he opens their apartment door and ushers her through it with a quiet "Milady". The hotel's floor butler helps Mr Carson with a fresh white carnation boutonnière for his lapel, and then the elegant couple makes their way down to the hotel foyer and the street below.

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At first, it seems silly to be riding in a carriage when so many motor taxis are available in the city now, but the ride in the single horse-drawn hansom cab up Piccadilly is jaunty and brings unexpected pleasures to both occupants of the cab. Elsie smiles broadly at the thought the Grantham's have put into every aspect of their evening. In truth, being in an older form of transport seems quite fitting to Elsie, as they would surely have travelled from their wedding reception in this manner in earlier days, had their lives gone a different way. There remains a certain romantic charm to this mode of transport and Elsie lets herself be drawn into it entirely.

It is not a fast ride, as the horse and trap have to negotiate and wait for an awful lot of motor traffic on their way up Piccadilly. What Elsie had not anticipated, and it sends thrilling ripples of nervous energy around her torso, is the way that her body moves freely with the bounce of the carriage, especially now that she has changed to wearing more liberating undergarments. She is glad of the gloom in the cabin, for she knows that her cheeks are blushing furiously at these new and forbidden sensations- and never more so than when she senses Charles eyes drawn down to her rhythmically heaving bosom and he draws a sharp breath in through his teeth. Then, once he can take no more of the sight, he turns his head to look at the night street rolling by and draws in deep clear draughts of the cool night air. It is then that Elsie sneaks a furtive look at him and a gratified smile graces her lips as she realises the effect she really can have upon him. Then she turns to the front again, anticipating, but also willing him to drag his eyes back to her chest once more so that she can feel the thrill of his desire-filled gaze on her from the corner of her eyes. They play this little clandestine game until they reach the chaos of Piccadilly Circus, where Charles feels he can take no more of it and still have any hopes of maintaining any bodily decorum, for the carriage jostles him in a most distracting manner also. His only recourse is to talk about something completely away from the subject that bores into his mind and body when he looks at Elsie moving so freely beside him.

"You…you know they have moved the Shaftesbury Monument to the Victoria Embankment Gardens while they dig the underground rail at Charing Cross," he stutters out, somewhat inanely.

Elsie hears the slight squeak to his roughened voice as he starts the conversation and she takes some pity on him, realising he needs a distraction from the heady atmosphere that has developed between them- and on more than just a mental level.

"I had realised it was gone during the 1923 season I spent here with you, but I never had the time to find out where it had been shifted to,' she replies, and quite merciful it is to Charles' ears.

"Perhaps we could go to see it before we leave," he mused. "I have always liked it. It has a very interesting history, and I am sure the garden setting would almost suit it better than being stuck in the middle of such a busy thoroughfare... Hmmm... But you are right; it certainly was a hectic time for Lady Rose's presentation, wasn't it? But most enjoyable too, especially the trip to the beach you pushed me towards in a less than surreptitious manner, Elsie!" He smiles towards her as he thinks back to it. He wonders gleefully as to what witty comeback she will shoot his way now, willing her to mentally spar with him a little.

"Yes! Well, my attempts at subtlety did seem to be falling on deaf ears, once again! But as I said to you then, 'we got there in the end', didn't we Mr Carson?"

"Yes, we did, didn't we? And I thank you every day for pointing me in the right direction, for I would not be here with you now if that day did not happen as it did, I know that now. And I find that I am looking forward to our stay at the seaside again after this short 'London season' of ours."

"As am I, Mr Carson, as am I. But, you know, I do feel a little bit guilty that we did not get to do at least one of the activities you obviously like to do in your free time in London. I should very much like to share something like that with you, and so I will strike you a deal if you please."

"I could be open to that Mrs Carson. Enlighten me."

"Well, I never get to London much, as you know, and I have been to the National Gallery once, but not the newer Gallery at Millbank. Will you take me tomorrow afternoon? And if we plan it well, we could still make it the Victoria Embankment to see that lovely sculpture of yours before nightfall. You can tell me all about it before we return for dinner in the Ritz restaurant, which I know that you are dying to try, even if it is just to see if the sommelier makes the correct wine choices for the meal! Hmm," she hums happily about her sudden inspiration for a shared expedition, "I do find I am very much enjoying our short time living freely in these grand surroundings, do you not agree, Mr Carson?"

"Well, yes, I am very much enjoying it, but I do put that mostly down to the company I am graced with on this particular sojourn."

"Flatterer," Elsie smiles sweetly at him.

Charles twitches a small smile at her and then furrows his brow a little and goes on, "But, would you really find a day at the Tate Gallery an enjoyable outing, Mrs Carson?" Charles replies, somewhat incredulously.

"Indeed, I would, Mr Carson, very much," her brogue rolling thickly now. "And why, pray tell, are you so surprised? Hmm?" rhetorically quirking an eyebrow his way. "I would have happily gone there with you three years ago, but the younger staff needed an unstructured day to let their hair down a bit. They were too wound up from the lack of freedom that attending to others' pleasures all the time brings about. Of course, I am very glad that you ended up enjoying that day too, for I know that I did- immensely." She smiles as she remembers it- that lovely full-mouthed smile that Charles saw that day on the beach and that he loves so much. "And thankfully, we will have time enough to relax on the seaside again in the next few days. But for now, I really do want to go to that gallery with you," she leans back in her seat and looks forward at nothing in particular. Dreamily, she continues "to see all your favourite artworks and hear your thoughts about them." She turns back to him brightly, "plus, I know tonight is not your first choice in entertainments to partake of in London, so I feel that this might balance the ledger a little, so to speak. So, now then, Mr Carson, do we, or do we not, have an arrangement?" Elsie cocks an eyebrow at him, and Charles ripples again with delight, his fingers fluttering lightly against his thigh. He loves the fact that Elsie would actually like doing the things he enjoys, and that she would choose to spend her time with him going to these places.

"Well, you have to admit, this time you did sound somewhat risqué, Mrs Carson! But yes, we do indeed have an arrangement for tomorrow," he smiles happily, "I would very much like to show you some of my London. And I think we should treat ourselves to the early sitting of high tea in the Palm Court of the Hotel, too. I understand it is a quite lofty affair and can be a substantial enough meal to tide us over lunchtime and well into the afternoon. Will that be amenable to your plans, Milady?"

"'Milady' again you say, Mr Carson?" Elsie raises a quizzical eyebrow at him. "Well if I did not know you any better, Mr Carson, I would think that you had arranged this type of outing with a lady-friend on more than one occasion!" She mercilessly ribs him, and Charles grins happily at her playfulness as she continues, "but I do find that I cannot say no to any of it. I shall be delighted, to spend the day with you in this manner, Mr Carson."

Charles is very pleased to have a structured plan to attend to tomorrow that they have worked out and agreed upon together. It promises to be a lovely weekend where each of them can enjoy the things they like, differently, and through the eyes of their beloved at their side.

Charles has been so happily enraptured with his wife and their playful exchange that he has not only managed to calm his overtly physical reactions to the ride and Elsie's voluptuous proximity, but he has also completely lost track of where they are on their journey. The cabby taps his solid whip end on the top of the cab and lifts the portal at the top of the carriage to announce their arrival through a veritable crush of people on Leicester Square at the outside of the Empire Theatre. Charles hands the fair up through the small trap door, calls a Thank you, Sir and alights from the cab with a spring in his step. With a flourish, he places his top hat back on his head and turns lightly on his heels to assist his lady down the steps of their carriage.

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The Empire Theatre proves to be aptly named, for it does indeed personify the grandeur of the British Empire at the height of its expansion in the Victorian age. The entrance hall is all gilt-edged, dome-roofed and ornately pillared. It sports an elegant, broad and lushly red carpeted staircase up to the main foyer and the very wide promenade behind the Dress Circle and Private Boxes. Here, all the fashionable people stroll like peacocks, displaying their finery to one another. It is, of course, the place to see and be seen in, and, apart from the fashions, the intentions of those promenading have probably not changed since the time the theatre was built over forty years ago. Charles and Elsie meander through the crowds and silently take it all in, nodding polite greetings at unknown people if, indeed, they are being acknowledged at all. The house is positively teeming with people, the show being the most popular and talked about in town, and this is a Saturday night performance only four weeks into its run- it is the place to be in London at the moment. The atmosphere is electric and light-hearted and decidedly young.

Soon Charles angles his head towards the backs of the private boxes and Elsie nods an assent to find their place. Given the lack of a need to be seen courting favour from anyone, they have silently agreed that some seclusion from the masses is in order. For two people who have lived quietly at Downton with only a couple of dozen or so people around them day to day, and even less now that there have been so many staff reductions, it is all a little overwhelming for them to be in an enclosed space with so many people all at once.

Charles approaches an usher and hands over the invitation to one of the Prince of Wales' privately booked boxes. The young man sees them through the door, assures them that they are the only two occupants, and he offers to bring Charles a wine menu. This is an unexpected boon, for now, Charles will not have to face the crowds at the saloon under the vestibule area near the stalls level to buy them some refreshments. Charles pulls a seat back for Elsie, and they settle into another of their little 'private spaces in public' for that day.

The walls of the box are clad in a soft, gold-blushed leather, and the velvet curtains that could close the whole box off to the sight of others are a dark imperial red. With the outside sounds of the promenade currently subdued, the effect is one of seclusion, secrecy and warmth. They looked out over the huge auditorium that is steadily filling with people, and they are pleased to see that their box has an uninterrupted view of the stage. In fact, it is just to the left of the centre, dress circle bench seats and it is the furthest apartment from the Royal boxes, which are right around at the front edges of the stage. Charles explains that the Royal boxes are not the best viewing seats in the house at all. They are designed so that important people can see and be seen by the admiring audience, and especially other members of the aristocracy.

"Well, that is a pretty daft approach to seeing a play in the scheme of things isn't it!" Elsie comments wryly.

Elsie is not unaware of this fact, for she has certainly not been living in a sack all her life! However, she listens attentively to Charles as she wants him to feel comfortable about being back in a theatre again. She has made a pact with herself not to dig too deeply into his days on the Halls and to let him offer only what he wants to, if and when he is ready. For, really, what does it all matter to them now?

Charles smiles and peruses the refreshment list he has been handed. He asks Elsie for her preference, and luckily she concurs with Charles that they cannot go wrong with a Margeaux, and some chilled water, for no doubt the whole auditorium will get quite warm with the heave of bodies in it across the night.

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There is an excited murmur that ripples through the crowd and everyone in the house stands as the Prince of Wales and his brother, Prince George, and other assorted dignitaries, take their places in the royal boxes. The Prince signals for the house to be seated with merely a slight smile and flippant gesture from his hand.

As the house lights drop and the audience settles, Charles and Elsie crane forward to take in the spectacle of the masses. They smile at each other with not some small wonder at the fact that they are even here tonight. It is all rather exciting!

The show starts, not with a rousing overture and ensemble number, but rather with a simple song of Fred and Adele Astaire as a brother and sister team down on their luck. They immediately have the crowd on their side. They are innocent, quirky and delightful. At the end of their first song and dance number the crowd is in raptures. The noise is quite deafening, for the Astaire's dance together with humour and astounding fluidity, and certainly with a skill that far surpasses anything Charles had hoped to achieve in his days treading the boards of various bawdy theatre halls.

Charles finds the music of the first act surprisingly catchy, and at times quite lovely, such as the love duet between Adele Astaire's character and her love interest in the play. However, the narrative is rather nonsensical and far-fetched, with some characters seemingly appearing just to introduce another jaunty tune to the show. Charles reasons that it must be the nature of these new musical comedies and he gives up trying to make much sense of their silly misunderstandings in love and courtship. He is sure Elsie finds it all a bit ridiculous too, much like their dealings with the likes of their young kitchen maids and footmen at the Abbey! But Elsie is smiling broadly at all the antics onstage and is obviously enjoying the whole atmosphere of bright young revelry.

Charles, however, finds his gaze, more often than not, trained on Elsie's face enveloped in the soft dusky gloom of their theatre box. Except, of course, for when the Astaires are flitting about with their light-footed and graceful escapades. The pair certainly is hard to look away from, and their skills are prodigious. Adele, in particular, has a natural and sparkling stage presence that commands attention, and Fred, in stark contrast, has a fascinating restrained quality that seems to manifest in an innate sense of style and grace. But, for Charles, the sight of Elsie having fun and smiling so happily delights him far more than those on stage ever could, and he relishes being able to study her in such a private and unguarded manner.

During the intermission, apart from Charles escorting Elsie on his arm through the throngs of people to the powder rooms, the two decide to remain sequestered in their box seats. He takes the time to pour their wine and marvels a little at the way this regularly shared ritual of theirs from inside his simple pantry room at the Abbey has been transplanted to such lush surroundings. As the overture and ensemble number for the second act starts, Charles finds he cannot take his eyes off Elsie as she sips her wine. The show so enthrals her that he feels sure she has not noticed where his gaze is so unashamedly directed.

Elsie, in fact, is quite aware of his attentions, but she will not let on to Charles that the very fact that she can direct his intent gaze to her alone is a large part of her joy about this night's proceedings. Charles has seemed determined to maintain a respectable physical distance from her since they left the hotel, which she is perplexed by, giving that they have perhaps exchanged more tender physical affections today than in all their years together, and most certainly more than they have allowed themselves in the months of their engagement. Elsie finds it decidedly maddening! She cannot tell what he was about, suddenly returning to his stuffy butler reticence to display a closer regard for her in public. Elsie desperately wants to have his hand in hers, in much the same way they did on the train and at dinner earlier and she is not quite sure why he desists at the moment, for it will be well hidden from prying eyes while in their current location. Still, it strangely adds to the pattering excitement she feels in her veins. She knows she cannot attribute these delightful sensations purely to the effects of the wine or the exciting atmosphere of the whole theatre. The anticipation of his touch and the restraint required of her to avoid reaching towards him herself sends a frisson of electricity driving through her spine and belly at regular intervals, sometimes making her shuffle slightly in her seat and giggle lightly. Thankfully, she contains this to the times that it could be seen to be driven by the action of the play's nonsense. She feels sure that Charles is playing at some sort of restrained flirtation with her, perhaps akin to the messages suitors may have used from the days of yore. Perhaps I should hide my face behind a fan she thinks to herself, trying to suppress yet another smirk of lustful joy. She cannot really tell where he is going with all of this, but after their flirtations in the carriage, she decides to enjoy the process and follows his lead of minimising their physical contact. And so it is that at those times when she can barely suppress her mirth at the sensations that flood through her, she lowers her gaze a little and surreptitiously looks sideways at him and tries to fathom his motivations for not touching her beyond the standard amount required of a gentleman escorting a lady in public. She is sure her longing for him is ill-disguised in these moments, but she cannot find it in herself to really care. It is all an intoxicating mystery to her.

As Elsie sips her wine again, she sees a slight movement from Charles out of the corner of her eye that she is sure is the tip of his tongue running languorously across his bottom lip as he keenly observes her. Elsie smiles the smallest of smiles into her tilted glass and keeps her eyes drilled to the action on the stage. However, as she lowers the glass, she makes sure to delicately lick a small drop of wine from her own lower lip which she has purposely allowed to pool there. She is rewarded with the distinct sound of Charles drawing in a quiet and short but shuddering breath.

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A/N: I hope I didn't get too descriptive and boring in this Chapter. It held me up quite a bit. Hopefully, I have managed to get a shot or two of that Ol' Chelsie Charm in there anyway!

A/N: Another interesting thing to keep in mind for my fic: Carnations in general, symbolise Fascination and Woman's Love. I think Charles and Elsie would both have been likely to know the symbolic significance of many flowers, and white carnations, in particular, symbolise pure love and good luck, plus, they were a common boutonniere for men at that time.

Next up: Charles goes all sensory on us again…

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Further Historical web links if you are interested- I have enjoyed researching this era and trying to make my plot and setting decisions as accurate to the times as I can. I do tend to go on though, so feel free to skip all this if it is not your bag!

The Empire Theatre- Leicester Square. Opened in 1884.

This page about the theatres history is from some very lengthy, Victorian newspaper descriptions about the architecture and fit out. I tried to summarise it in my piece, but I did have some trouble visualising the actual floor plan/ layout from these pieces. It was quite confusing, so I just ended up just giving it a bit of a stab! This link also includes illustrations of what the theatre looked like. It seems weird that such an opulent building was demolished after only 43 years or so. I wonder what happened to all the fittings?…as you do…(well… I do anyway!).

Empire Theatre seating plan visual- I actually have no idea if there would have been only two people in any private box, but hey – it's Chelsie- they deserve it! .

Link to a picture of the Empire with the Astaires names up in lights

This is how huge it was- a crush of people. From what I can gather the theatre could seat 3000-3500 people- although many would have been in standing room only still. .in/detail/news-photo/crowds-outside-the-empire-theatre-london-where-fred-and-news-photo/3308492

From what I have read, theatre and variety halls audience from the 1870s, when Carson was supposedly on the stage, would have been an unruly bunch- mostly standing room only- very hot and smelly auditoriums, high fire risks with gas lamps all about, and very low on basic amenities (loos!). Theatres like the Empire would have been some of the earliest ones to provide better facilities and also enforce more of a dress code, and being stricter about prostitutes plying their trade from within the house. By the late 1800s Theatres were trying to clean up the clientele and make a night out at the theatre a familiar, regular and higher class social event.

The programme cover for Lady Be Good! at the Empire

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General info and Acts and Song list for Lady Be Good!

wiki/Lady,_Be_Good_(musical)

Some stills of Fred and Adele from the show

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Interesting few pics compiled in in a newspaper article to show what life was like in 1920s London- esp. the Royal family photo from QE2's Christening on 29th May.

So, did DA do it right?

Re. The Sunday honeymoon adventures for Chelsie- the National Gallery of British Art wiki/Tate_Britain (known commonly from its early days as the Tate Gallery and officially renamed that in 1932. It has been the Tate British since 2000). I have my reasons for this choice, even though the original gallery on Trafalgar Square would have been a more convenient location than Millbank for their Sunday outing. I am assuming these galleries had similar opening hours to what they are today, even though all good Brits were probably in church on Sundays in the 1920s!

The Tate was built to expand upon the original National Gallery which had been under a lot of fire for being poorly designed, amongst many other complaints. wiki/National_Gallery

Just Gotta Plug this now - one of my all-time favourite albums:

The Norman Ganz Sessions- Fred Astaire and the Oscar Petersen Trio: The Astaire Story. This is my all-time favourite Astaire recording. It is from 1953 and his voice has mellowed beautifully with age. He was renowned for his precise and instinctive timing, and beautiful phrasing- even though he did not have the richness and strength in his voice that say- Bing Crosby or Frank Sinatra or other contemporaries had in these swing/jazz genres. This album was just thrown out in a couple of days by these amazing artists- often first takes only. This is Fred Astaire going into smooth jazz with the Oscar Petersen Trio. Just beautiful- quite different takes on these standards he originally introduced to the world through his 1920s stage work and the 1930s-40s movie musicals. Very smooooth, often sexy, but happy and fun too. The only dodgy track I really do not like is – I've Got My Eyes On You- Too obsessive and creepy for my liking! You will need to buy this one to get it as I have not found it streamed anywhere- but it is worth every cent. There is a load of truly great Oscar Petersen stuff on Spotify- so track it down- just not this whole album though. Actually, when I went back to Google Play to source the link for the copy I bought it had a slightly different album- less tracks- some of the trios jam sessions and ad-libs are missing so it would be best to go to amazon or fishpond or the like. . /c/Music/a/Fred+Astaire

I hope you don't all mind me rabbiting on about these things- I just want to share the love :)

A/N: I know wikipedia is not the most reliable source of info in the world, but for general stuff like the dates and names of stuff like the galleries, it is still a fairly accurate and easy first stop.

Now- Onto our Charlie boy and his musings on taste…