LINDA RONSTADT - MAD LOVE 1980

By 1980 Linda Ronstadt was enjoying herself and had plans to expand her talent into other areas. “I’m not going to do rock and roll forever,” she said at the time. Asher was looking at other possibilities too. He was considering Broadway as well as producing a rock musical starring Linda and although she seemed interested he remarked, “It’s all vague at this point.”

What wasn’t vague, at least to Linda, was the direction her next album would take. She would see in the new decade with a new look and attitude. She was ready to move on, to break from the past and predictability and was planning a number of surprises. The first people would see of this newly found desire to expand was when she appeared in public sporting a cropped ‘punk’ hairstyle.
 
By the mid-seventies many rock stars from the previous two decades, now in their late-thirties and forties, had little to say to the new generation of teenagers, many of whom were unemployed. Likewise many of the groups around at that time, Abba, The Bee Gees and Queen did not appeal to the vast number of youngsters who were looking for something different. The punk rock movement, spearheaded by bands such as The Sex Pistols, emerged to challenge these groups and would take a stranglehold on the UK music scene.

The music, which was raw, negative and occasionally full of obscene lyrics, was often shouted over melodies that had little or no tune. It also had its own associated fashion, safety pins through the ear and nose, chains, mohican hairstyles and outrageous clothes.

However, it was a fairly short-lived movement and many of the punk groups survived into the eighties by developing a more sophisticated style, groups like The Clash, The Jam, and the Stranglers. At this time its American version, new wave, lent a respectable aim to the movement allowing it to continue.

Linda’s new album would signify America’s partial acceptance of this new music form. If any more evidence was required that the album was also a means of appealing to the UK market and new wave followers they needed to look no further than the three Elvis Costello tracks she covered.

Art Fein, who worked for a variety of record companies, including Elektra/Asylum where he worked in the publicity department, remembered seeing Linda at a Clash concert taking notes before she started work on the album. She also took time out to check what was going on in the clubs in Los Angeles and New York. She caught shows by Pat Benatar and Debbie Harry, of Blondie, and made her mind up that this was the route she should take.

To recharge her batteries there had been a break of close to fifteen months between finishing her last album and starting the new one. Sessions for the album, which took place at Record One in LA, commenced in late-October 1979 and ran through till January the following year. Among those musicians appearing on the album were many who had collaborated with Linda in the past, Dan Dugmore, Mike Auldridge, Bill Payne, Russ Kunkel and her manager, Peter Asher.

Two members of the group The Cretones, Mark Goldenberg and Peter Bernstein, also appear on the album. Goldenberg, as well as the composer of three of the tracks, shares the electric guitar duties with Dugmore, while Bernstein plays acoustic guitar. Danny Kortchmar, who would tour with Linda, also doubled up on electric guitar although, like Bernstein, does not feature on many of the tracks.

Danny Kortchmar won fame, or notoriety, playing guitar for West Coast artists like James Taylor, Carole King and, of course, Linda Ronstadt. He also co-wrote songs with Jackson Browne and branched out into record production with his first credit being on an album with Carole King’s daughter, Louise Goffin, in 1979. “The producers I had worked with as a guitarist really did a lot to prepare me,” he explained in an interview. “Especially Peter Asher, Linda Ronstadt’s producer. Peter really encouraged all the musicians he worked with to think like producers, to play parts a producer would tell you to play. After working with him for so many years, I felt I was pretty qualified to produce.” One of his favourite places to work in was Record One, owned by Los Angeles producer, Val Garay, and home to many of Ronstadt’s sessions.

Providing backing vocals on the album were, Kenny Edwards, Andrew Gold, Waddy Wachtel, Nicolette Larson and Rosemary Butler.

Peter Asher also produced the sessions but it was Mark Goldenberg who was truly at the helm. His arrangements were heavily dominated by fuzzy guitars, organ, bass and drum while this time the vocal back-up is kept to a minimum. “I’m more excited about this album than about any other one I’ve done,” she said once the recording was over.

A single was issued in January 1980, How Do I Make You backed with Rambler Gambler, and became a top ten pop single in the United States. Rambler Gambler was not included on the album and sounds like it was recorded much earlier than the rest of the material.

With its country feel, it was no surprise that Rambler Gambler appeared on the country charts, albeit only reaching #42. The sessions were still underway when this single was issued and more than likely there was no other material from the sessions available when considering what tracks to use. This may be why they went back to what appears to be a much earlier recording.

Released in March 1980 Mad Love, Ronstadt's tenth album, went platinum within a couple of months and during its 36 week residency in the album charts it would peak at #3. In the UK, where they may have expected better things from the album, it failed miserably.

The track How Do I Make You was nominated in the ‘Best Rock Vocal Performance, Female’ at the Grammy Awards but was beaten by Pat Benatar with her track Crimes Of Passion. Success also came her way when she was a joint winner in the ‘Best Recording For Children’ category for her contribution to the album In Harmony/A Sesame Street Record.
 
The album artwork was far removed from previous efforts. Gone were the sexy, provocative cover photos. This time Kosh, who had designed many of her album sleeves, went for a shocking pink and black graphic with a photo of Linda with her new cropped hair style.

Mad Love, Cost Of Love and Justine were all written by Mark Goldenberg and had all appeared on the Cretones album Thin Red Line, released at almost the same time as Mad Love. All three are well-handled by Linda and feature excellent support from the band, especially Goldenberg’s guitar playing, Bill Payne on organ and Russ Kunkel on drums.

Linda once again turns to Elvis Costello for three tracks covering Party Girl, Girls Talk and Talking In The Dark. These were good performances although she seems to struggle more with these songs than she did on the Goldenberg tracks as well as her earlier recording of Costello’s Alison, which had appeared on her 1978 album Living In The USA.

With a great drum intro How Do I Make You is without doubt one of the highlights on the album and was written by Billy Steinberg. He was one of the most successful songwriters of the eighties and nineties and, along with co-writer Tom Kelly, had written five number one singles including Madonna’s Like A Virgin and Cyndi Lauper’s True Colours. As Rolling Stone would point out in their review Ronstadt sounds like she is trying to imitate Debbie Harry from Blondie.

Two tracks date back to the mid-sixties, a soulful cover of the Little Anthony and The Imperials hit Hurt So Bad and the Hollies I Can’t Let Go. Despite being vintage tracks they both fit perfectly on the album and this is down to her ‘new wave’ interpretation.

However, the outstanding track on the album is her reworking of Neil Young’s Look Out For My Love which is as good, if not better, than his original.

Many critics compared Linda’s efforts to the new wave energy of Pat Benatar who had achieved success in the US with a succession of hit singles, including Hit Me With Your Best Shot, Love Is A Battlefield and We Belong and three top five albums, Crimes Of Passion, Precious Time and Get Nervous.

Benatar trained as an opera singer and went on to become a major hitmaker in the early eighties finding success with both mainstream rock and powerful ballads that focussed on personal relationships and sexual politics.

Linda laid herself open for a lot of criticism for going down the ‘New Wave-Punk’ road. Many reviewers picked up on the fact that maybe this was the wrong sort of material for her to record. Stephen Holden, in his review in Rolling Stone wrote “Mad Love’s theme is passion – not the reflective, yearning romanticism that’s infused most of Ronstadt’s best work, but brutal, nervous, teenage sexuality,” and went on to say “No matter how tough she acts, she can’t help sounding pretty.” He also criticised the production, feeling that it was too mechanistic and that it would be hard to imagine the songs performed live because everything is so high-tech. Summing up, he reckoned the album wasn’t a major exhibition more a fascinating failure.

Rock Critic Richard Meltzer was more scathing and savaged the album in his review calling it “even more corrupt, gawky and anachronistic than such regional stalwarts of sixties-revisionist new wave as the Naughty Sweeties”, an LA band that played many of the local punk shows. He went on to say that it was the “nadir of retrograde, psuedo-punk rock.”

Producer Peter Asher pointed out, as printed in Goldmine magazine in 2003, that “it’s just that she likes good music and recognized how good punk was, and that isn’t the same thing as trying to jump on a bandwagon. I think it’s a genuine question of her excellent musical taste.”

Stereo Review, while echoing many of the comments in Rolling Stone, thought that, while sincere, Ronstadt probably wasn’t taking it that seriously although they felt it was “a well intended, spirited almost plucky little album.” Understanding that music styles come and go and new wave would soon be superseded for the next craze, along with Linda’s ability to turn her hand to many different styles, they ended their review with the comment, “Linda Ronstadt can go back to being Linda Ronstadt any time she wants to, and the rest of the new wave can’t.” How true that statement would become.
 
In March and April, to promote the album, Linda undertook a lengthy US Mad Love tour with Danny Kortchmar as special guest.

Backing her on the tour were, Kenny Edwards (guitar, banjo and backing vocals), Dan Dugmore (guitar and pedal steel guitar), Danny Kortchmar (guitar), Bob Glaub (bass), Bill Payne (keyboards), Russ Kunkel (drums), Peter Asher (percussion and backing vocals) and Wendy Waldman (backing vocals).

Opening on 22 March with a show at the Capital Center in Landover, Maryland the tour would find her playing concerts across America including dates in Raleigh, North Carolina, Lexington, Kentucky, Nashville, Tennessee, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Detroit, Michigan and St Paul, Minnesota.

There were sell-out shows in Pittsburgh, Detroit and St Paul with crowds of between 12-16,000. These and other concert dates on the tour made regular placings in Billboard’s ‘Boxscore’ chart that detailed top grossing shows. During the tour live promotional videos were filmed for both ‘How Do I Make You’ and ‘Hurt So Bad’.

In his review of her 3 April performance at the Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Walter Carter, in the Tennessean, wrote: “Just the presence of Linda Ronstadt on the Municipal Auditorium stage Thursday night was enough to charm a sold-out audience into extended applause, and her singing through the 95-minute performance only heightened the sensation.” He had nothing but praise for the band, who had no trouble in switching between her new hard-edged material and her old country songs of the past few years. He recalled that people were throwing bouquets of flowers on stage, prompting Linda to laugh and comment “Does this mean I’m going to be a bride... I doubt it.” There were probably many disappointed males in the audience!

She was also taking time out to support presidential campaigns, not least that of her then current boyfriend Jerry Brown. In December 1979 she had played two benefit concerts, along with The Eagles and Chicago, in San Diego, to raise money for Brown.

During her Mad Love Tour, on 21 April, she played a show at the Five Seasons Center in Cedar Rapids, Idaho, in support of Gary Hart’s senatorial bid in Colorado. Reviewing that particular show The Cedar Rapids Gazette wrote, “Linda Ronstadt appears to be the new record holder for the most standing ovations given a performer in one 90 minute concert at the Five Seasons Center. She received too many to count.” 
 

 
Following the Harrisburg Three Mile Island nuclear incident in 1979, in which a faulty cooling system caused radioactive gases to be released into the air, she had taken part in a benefit on the steps of the State Capitol building in Pennsylvania on 29 March 1980.

On 24 April, at the Television Center Studios in Hollywood, the show was filmed for a special to be broadcast by Home Box Office (HBO), the American subscription TV service.

The special was considered by many fans to be a high point in her career and the electrifying performances of many of her current and past hits captured America's most popular female rock singer at the peak of her career.

Meanwhile, further singles were issued following the tour. Hurt So Bad reached #8 while I Can’t Let Go just failed to hit the top thirty. By mid-1980, Linda had racked up enough hits to release a second volume of hits which included two tracks from Mad Love.

Over the years the HBO Special has been made available, albeit unofficially, on various video, DVD and CD releases.

The first official release of any tracks from the show was in 2017 when the 40th Anniversary edition of her 1977 album Simple Dreams featured three bonus tracks, live recordings of It's So Easy, Blue Bayou and Poor Poor Pitiful Me.

It would be a further two years before Linda Ronstadt's first official live album would be released. Live In Hollywood, released by Rhino Records, was released in February 2019 and featured the following songs... I Can't Let Go, Willin', Just One Look, Faithless Love, Hurt So Bad, You're No Good, How Do I Make You, Back In The USA and Desperado along with the three tracks, previously available on the aforementioned Simple Dreams release, It's So Easy, Blue Bayou and Poor Poor Pitiful Me.

There were many great performances on the album with a six-minute version of You're No Good being one of the highlights. The song, written by Clint Ballard Jr., had been recorded by Linda back in 1974 for her album Heart Like A Wheel and was a song she had been closing her shows with back in 1973. It was band member Kenny Edwards who suggested she record it.

There were three tracks from the Mad Love album, I Can't Let Go, Hurt So Bad and How Do I Make You and the remaining tracks were from earlier in her career and some of her best known songs. From her 1973 Don't Cry Now album came Desperado, both Willin' and Faithless Love were originally released on Heart Like A Wheel in 1974 while Just One Look and Back In The USA were from 1979's Living In The USA album.

 

Reviews were positive with Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic writing, "These 12 tracks casually illustrate her facility with both soft rock and old-time rock & roll, and if the set list leans heavily on oldies, the combination of guts and polish makes her renditions memorable.

Hal Horowitz of American Songwriter praised her vocal delivery saying, "She's in terrific voice throughout with a few standout performances like the closing Desperado - a knockout, dramatic vocal accompanied only by Payne's piano - and a powerful take on Roy Orbison's Blue Bayou, has anyone done that song better?" 

Also concentrating on her vocals was Jim Harrington of Mercury News, "Her vocals are strong, clear and convincing as she moves through such winners as It's So Easy, Just One Look, and Poor Poor Pitiful Me. And the stunning version of Blue Bayou... wow. That's one for the time capsule."

There were many more great reviews but in his On The Records review Phil Bausch captured it perfectly in just a few words, "It's important that recordings like Live In Hollywood exist to remind the world Linda Ronstadt once possessed one of the greatest rock and pop voices of all time."

The physical CD, Live In Hollywood, was a welcome release for fans but only featured twelve of the twenty tracks performed during the HBO Special and it would be another five years before the whole concert would find a release, albeit in digital format only.

 
Released in October 2024, Live In Hollywood Deluxe, was only available as a digital download and marked the first time the complete performance had been available. It is unknown if there are any plans to release the whole concert on CD in the future but a physical copy would be welcome.

It has been reported that following the TV taping in 1980 plans were made to release her first live album but for years the master tapes were unavailable or lost. It was only a chance conversation between John Boylan, producer of the album, and an audio engineer from Warner Brothers Records that would result in the tapes being located.

The audio was specifically mastered for streaming and downloading to ensure the best possible quality for the listener. The whole album sounds excellent with Linda's powerful vocals to the fore while every instrument and backing vocal is clear and perfectly balanced. 

The eight previously unreleased songs included, four from the Mad Love album, Party Girl, Look Out For My Love, Mad Love and Cost Of Love along with Hank Williams classic, I Can't Help It (If I'm Still In Love With You), the Holland-Dozier-Holland composition Heat Wave, a 1963 hit for Martha and The Vandellas, which Linda recorded for her 1975 album Prisoner In Disguise and Silver Threads And Golden Needles, a song she had recorded twice previously, firstly for her 1969 solo debut Hand Sown... Home Grown and again in 1973 for Don't Cry Now. One song performed at the show and finally released was Lies, originally released in 1965 by The Knickerbockers, it was a song Linda had already recorded in the studio but would not release until 1982 on her Get Closer album.

Mad Love was a complete departure for Linda Ronstadt and while she would return to her county, country-rock and rock roots in the future she would also venture into new genres. Over the next few years her career would find her working with Nelson Riddle on a trio of albums featuring classic standards from the 1940s and 1950s and returning to her Mexican roots with albums of Mariachi and Spanish music.

HEATHROW - FINAL APPROACH

Over the years I have photographed many subjects and enjoy all aspects of photography including architecture, disused railways, astrophotography although my favourite is my work with the wonderful models I have been fortunate to know over the past ten years. This has included fashion, portrait, cosplay, swimwear and boudoir/lingerie photoshoots. I have been fortunate to have been published in several magazines and even had one of my images used as the cover on a local magazine. More of my work can be seen on my Instagram page @peterlewry and on my Purple Port profile... https://purpleport.com/portfolio/peterlewry/

Recently I discovered another subject to photograph...planes, and in particular capturing them taking off and landing at London Heathrow Airport. In this latest article I look at the history of the airport,  the history of plane spotting and photography along with my own experiences and examples of my work.

Heathrow Airport was called London Airport until 1966 and is now known as London Heathrow. Located 14 miles from Central London it is the largest of the six international airports in the London airport system, the others being Gatwick, Luton, City, Stanstead and Southend.

It was founded in 1930 as a small airfield but in the years that followed the end of World War Two it developed into a much larger airport. Over the past seventy-five years it has expanded and today has two parallel east-west runways, four operational passenger terminals and is the main hub for both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic.

There have been many significant events at Heathrow over the years... The first non-stop flight to California sets a record for distance and time (1957), The Beatles are mobbed when they leave and arrive back from America (1964), Terminal 1 opens (1969), Concorde makes its first passenger flight (1976), London Underground link is established (1977), Heathrow Express rail service launched (1998), Airbus A380 makes its first landing (2006), Terminal 5 officially opened by Her Majesty The Queen (2008), Brand new Terminal 2: The Queen's Terminal opens (2014), Terminal 1 is closed permanently (2015) and Heathrow records its busiest year to date with more than 80 million passengers served (2018). 

There are many airlines operating at Heathrow including British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Air France, United, Qatar, Emirates, Cathay Pacific, American Airlines and several more. Among the types of planes used by these companies are Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner's, Boeing 737's and 777's, Airbus A319's, 320's, 321's, 330's and the impressive A380.

Plane spotting is a hobby similar to that of train spotting with enthusiasts watching, photographing or detailing their movements... or even all three. People have been watching planes since aviation began although it wasn't until the Second World War that the term 'plane spotters' became a common term. It was during the war that civilians were encouraged to observe aircraft for public safety in the United Kingdom, something which was organised and encouraged by the Royal Observer Corps.

The activity led to the publication of a magazine, The Aeroplane Spotter, first published in January 1941 and, after 217 issued, ceased publication in July 1948. 

With an increased interest several groups and publications have formed over the years and the following years saw a steady increase in the hobby.

Although I had attended many military air shows throughout the 1980s, at bases including Biggin Hill, Mildenhall, Fairford, Middle Wallop, and watched the planes taking off and landing at the end of the runway at Gatwick Airport I'd never considered taking photographs seriously.

It was after seeing images on social media of planes flying low over the houses on their approach to London Heathrow that made me want to try my hand at similar photography. I spent some time researching suitable locations and the dates and times planes took off and landed in both directions, using the Heathrow Alternation Schedule which was available on the Heathrow site. There are two runways, 27L and 27R, and the direction of flights change every other week, although sometimes this is different, as I would find out during my first trip.

Research showed that Myrtle Avenue, a short walk from Hatton Cross Underground, was a popular stop for plane enthusiasts and photographers. It is located at the eastern end of the south runway 27L. At the end of the road is a large green field where those with similar interests congregate. At times there can be just 2 or 3 people while more often there will be well over 20 people, with their cameras, chairs and a good supply of food and drink.

In March 2024 I made my first trip and on arriving at Heathrow discovered the planes were only taking off in the direction of London rather than coming into land. This was due to the weather conditions and wind direction.

Although I was disappointed that I wouldn't be able to capture the planes approaching over the houses I did learn a lot about plane photography on this first visit. I was still able to capture some images which, for my first efforts, I was very pleased with. As they were taking off it was harder to get good images of the whole plane and most of the images I took that day showed more of the underside of the planes, but it was still a fun and interesting few hours.

It was amazing to see the variety of planes, airlines and the frequency which meant there was a plane flying over every 90 seconds. 

I had the chance to chat to a few other plane enthusiasts/photographers and learnt a lot from them, including a few tips on the times and dates that were best for photography and also suggesting that I use the Flightradar24 app. 

Once home I downloaded the Flightradar24 app and found it was invaluable for anyone interested in spotting planes. It is the best flight tracker for both IOS and Android on which you can track live air traffic around the world from a mobile device.

The app allows you to see flights around the world in real time, follow flights in 3D, search flights (by flight number, call sign, airline or route), find out which flights are nearby with AR View by pointing your device at the sky and see data from past flights. Most importantly for those wishing to photograph planes is the option to view airport departures and arrivals with flight status, delay stats, weather conditions and aircraft on the ground. This is also available by choosing a particular airport in the menu or tapping on the airport pin on the map. Although I only refer to it for flights at Heathrow it does cover every other airport in the world and has been an invaluable tool during my photography trips.

My next trip was a couple of weeks later and having checked my app before leaving home I knew that I would be able to capture images of the planes coming into land.

I captured the best photos I had taken so far as I had the opportunity to watch and photograph the planes as they came into land on Runway 27L.

It was quite a sight watching the planes flying low over the houses and trees and flying so low to where I was standing as they crossed overhead and approached the runway.

I stayed for almost three hours and among the airlines that I photographed were Qatar, Logan Air, Air France, Emirates, Singapore Airlines and even one operated by DHL. 

My favourite images from this trip were those of the Emirates and Singapore Airlines Airbus A380, an impressive plane, and worth the long wait. It was the final plane I captured before I headed back into Central London. 

My third visit was another opportunity to capture planes landing on Runway 27L and again I was really pleased with the images. It was during this visit that I captured the best, and my favourite, images of planes and the houses/trees which really showed how low they are when coming into land.

I also took this opportunity to get some close-ups of the undercarriage and engines. 

My last trip found me viewing the planes taking off again and with everything I had learnt during my previous visits meant that there was a marked improvement on the images I took during my first efforts.

The images I have included in this article are only a fraction of those I have taken during my four visits.

Until now I have only used Myrtle Avenue, and the immediate area, as my location but there are several other places which I plan on visiting in the future and will be making more photography trips to Heathrow. Keep an eye on my Instagram profile... @peterlewry for more images.

WAR BY TIMETABLE

Recently returned from my fifth Leger Battlefield Tour... War By Timetable, which explored the role of trains in World War One. This tour covered two of my many interests, history and steam trains and, as with previous Leger Battlefield Tours, did not disappoint.

In this article I take a detailed look back at the tour, the places we visited and where relevant, some World War One history. I have also included just a small selection of the many photos I took during my trip.

Our journey began early in the morning with the short journey down to Stop 24 in Folkestone where we boarded our tour coach for the week. The original plan was to head to Dover and catch the ferry to Calais. Unfortunately, due to problems beyond the control of Leger, we were delayed and a change of plan saw us take the Eurotunnel across to France. I must say at this point that the staff at the Leger desk were excellent, keeping us updated and also supplying food vouchers and drinks during the long wait for our replacement coach to make its journey from Nottingham down to the coast.

During our drive through the French countryside towards our hotel in Saint Quentin our guide, Andrew, pointed out several interesting locations relevant to the First World War including Vimy Ridge, Arras and Cambrai. His knowledge of the subject was second-to-none and he told us stories about how the war started, Britain's involvement and the various battles.

As we passed Vimy Ridge we heard how, in April 1917, four divisions of the Canadian Corps in the 1st Army fought against three divisions of the German 6th Army with the objective of drawing the Germans away from the French forces who were preparing an offensive along the Aisne and the Chemin des Dames Ridge. It was part of the Battle of Arras.

The Battle Of Arras was a British offensive during April and May 1917 which saw them achieve the greatest advance since trench warfare had begun, although when the German defences recovered it resulted in a costly stalemate for both sides.

Continuing towards Saint Quentin we passed close to Cambrai, the site of a late-1917 British attack and the biggest German counter-attack since 1914. It has gone down in history as the first battle to use tanks and records show the use of over 350 armoured vehicles involved during the offensive.

Arriving at the hotel it was time for a refreshing pint and then a good nights sleep in preparation for the busy days ahead.

An early breakfast and then we set off to our first stop of the day, the Steam Railway of the Three Valleys in Belgium whose name derives from the three rivers the line follows, the River Eau Blanche, River Eau Noire and River Viroin. It is a non-profit society that operates the service which connects with the Belgian rail network at Mariembourg.

A specially arranged journey on a period steam train saw us travel the 14 kilometre journey from Mariembourg via Nismes, Olloy-sur-Viroin and Vierves to Treignes, the last station before the French border. The line does continue the 2.5 kilometres to the border but is not used anymore. An enjoyable journey with great views of the Belgium countryside from our carriage. The staff at the station and onboard the train were excellent and very helpful.

At the end of the journey there was time to look around the museum which was very interesting with its collection of various trains, both steam and electric, along with items of railway memorabilia.

Following a quick lunch, Croque Monsieur and a refreshing drink, in the cafe at the station in Treignes we headed out of Belgium and to our next stop in France.

At La Capelle we visited the memorial marking the spot where the German parliamentarians crossed the French lines seeking an Armistice on 7 November 1918.

The German government, under Prince Max of Baden, had contacted President Woodrow Wilson asking him to open the way for an armistice. Conditions were imposed on Germany and they were told to nominate a delegation to Western Front Commander in Chief, Marshal Ferdinand Foch. Once done the Germans were told where to approach the French lines where troops were told to expect the delegations arrival. 

Four cars with full headlights, displaying white flags and with a trumpeter sounding the cease fire approached the French lines near the hamlet of Haudroy. It was there a French bugler, Pierre Sellier, replaced the German trumpeter on the duckboard and would continue the journey to La Capelle and onto Compiegne where the armistice was signed on 11 November 1918, ending four years of conflict. 

On 14 August 1940, during the Second World War, the Armistice Memorial was destroyed by the Germans, who deemed it offensive, and it was reconstructed and inaugurated a few years later after the end of the war.

During the day and while we were on the coach travelling between the different points of interest we were told more about the war. In particular, the history of the 1st Division British Expeditionary Force (the first British formation to move to France and who took part in most of the actions throughout the war), the various battles and in particular The Battle of St. Quentin (also called the First Battle of Guise), the Battle of Le Cateau, the rear guard action at Etreux and the Retreat from Mons.

The Retreat from Mons was the withdrawal of the British Expeditionary Force and the French 5th Army following defeats at the Battle of Charleroi and the Battle of Mons, both in August 1914.

A counter-attack by the French at Guise on 29 and 30 August failed to end the German advance. Similar attempts by the British at Le Cateau and Etreux also failed.

At Chapeau Rouge, La Groise we stopped to view the BEF Memorial which bears the inscription, "To the Glory of God and to the abiding memory of the 1st Division British Expeditionary Force which from August 1914 to November 1918 served and suffered in France and left there close upon 16,000 dead." It also includes the final two lines of Rudyard Kipling's poem, For All We Have And Are, "Who Stands If Freedom Fall? Who Dies If England Live?"

Following the retreat from Mons in August 1914 many of the soldiers from the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Munster Fusiliers were buried in an orchard at Etreux. The family of Lieutenant Frederick Styles, who had been killed during the rearguard action, purchased the orchard and erected a large Celtic Cross in the centre of the cemetery. The cross listed the battle honours of The Munsters.

There are 99 identified graves at Etreux British Cemetery including Second Lieutenant Carol Edward Vere Awdry of the Royal Munsters, whose story was told to us. On 27th August Awdry, sword drawn, led his men in support of the attack that was underway and was killed by a shot through the lungs.

I recognised the surname and was reminded of where from, when we were told about his family. Carol Edward Vere Awdry's half-brother was Wilbert Vere Awdry, an Anglican cleric, railway enthusiast and children's author. More famously known as the Reverend W, Awdry, he was the creator of Thomas The Tank Engine and author of the series of children's books.

Our final visit of the day was to the Necropole Nationale - Flavigny Le Petit Cemetery in Guise. The cemetery was constructed by the Germans following the Battle of Guise in August 1914. It is unusual in that there are soldiers buried from three different nations, Germany, France and Britain. It was interesting walking around and seeing the different headstones/crosses used by the various nations.

The cemetery contains the graves of 2,332 German soldiers killed in World War One. The cemetery also includes other casualties from the war with 2,643 French graves and 48 British graves.

Back at the hotel, following an informative and enjoyable day, with temperatures during the day between 26 and 30 degrees it was good to relax and enjoy a couple of pints in the hotel bar.

Day two began at the Bagneux British Cemetery located close to the village of Gezaincourt near the town of Doullens. 

It was at this point of our trip that we learnt more about the Casualty Clearing Stations. Known originally as Clearing Hospitals they were part of the evacuation chain although they were located further back than the field hospitals. Manned by the Royal Army Medical Corps their job was to treat soldiers so they could return to the front line or, in the case of the seriously wounded, transferred to a base hospital. They were normally located near to railways to allow movement between the battlefield and hospitals. Throughout the war these Casualty Clearing Stations would relocate as the front line moved.

Bagneux Cemetery was our next stop during the tour and along with the Devonshire Cemetery, which was our last stop on the tour (more of which later), was very emotional. There are 1,374 soldiers of the First World War buried or commemorated there including three nurses who were killed in nearby Doullens.

On 30 May 1918 the Germans bombed the No. 3 Canadian Stationary Hospital based in an ancient citadel in Doullens. The nurses were assisting in surgery when the bombing took place and all three were killed and buried in Bagneux Cemetery approximately 2 kilometers from where they died.

The nurses were, Nursing Sister Agnes MacPherson (age 27), Nursing Sister Eden Lyal Pringle (age 24) and Nursing Sister Dorothy Mary Yardwood Baldwin (age 26). We were shown photos of the nurses while standing near the graves which was a very sad moment.

We had time to walk around the cemetery and read some of the inscriptions on the gravestones. What always strikes me whenever I visit a Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery is how peaceful and well-maintained they are and it is thanks to all those who work for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) for all their dedicated and hard work all over the world.

On our short walk back to the coach we discovered part of the railway line that ran past the cemetery and close to the Casualty Clearing Stations in the area.

A 30-minute drive found us at our next place of interest, Heilly Station Cemetery. In April 1916 the 36th Casualty Clearing Station was located in Heilly, to be joined in May and June by the 38th and 2/2nd London. However, by June 1917 all three had moved on.

It was in May 1916 that work began on the cemetery, a short distance from Heilly Station, and was used by the three Casualty Clearing Stations until April 1917. During 1918 it was used by Australian units then hospital burials when the 20th Casualty Clearing Station was based nearby.

There are 2,800 servicemen buried or commemorated with 12 of the graves unidentified. There were also casualties whose graves were not exactly located and special memorials were erected. The cemetery also includes 83 German graves.

Many of the burials were carried out under extreme pressure with many graves close together and not marked individually. Furthermore, some contained multiple burials and these did not include the regimental badges. However, along the cloister walls there are 117 badges carved into the wall.

Once again this is another cemetery that is well-tended and so peaceful. In fact, when we turned up there were volunteers working on cutting grass and undertaking general maintenance. They even stopped working so as not to disturb our visit.

For lunch we stopped at Corbie, a short distance from Heilly, where we found a nice cafe in the city square and enjoyed a meal and drink before returning to the coach.

On our way to our next stop, another train journey, we passed the site where Baron von Richthofen (The Red Baron) was shot down on 21 April 2018 over the Morlancourt Ridge close to Vaux-sur-Somme. There is a debate as to who actually shot him down. It has been said he was flying low over Australian positions and gunners shot him down although another claim is that Canadian pilot Roy Brown who was flying behind and above Richthofen was responsible. Maybe we will never know for sure.

Our next steam train journey would see us travel through the Somme Battlefield in open sided carriages, and was the most interesting of the three train journeys on the tour.

The 600mm narrow gauge railway was built in 1916 for the needs of the Battle of The Somme and used to supply the trenches and artillery with estimates of 1,500 tonnes moved every day. It was part of a larger military network built in preparation of the 1916 offensive. After the war it was operated by a sugar refinery in Dompierre to transport sugar beet. In the 1970s a group of enthusiasts bought the line and rolling stock from the refinery and hunted across the country for other locomotives. They opened the line which ran for 1.5 kilometres in 1971.

We all boarded our open-sided carriage for the journey and had already been advised not to wear anything white during the journey as the smoke and soot emanating from the train while we were in the tunnel might ruin our clothes. Fortunately it was all ok.

During the one-hour return journey, which runs alongside the Somme Canal and River Somme, there are superb views of the Somme Valley. There was also time after the journey to look around the museum, located at the departure point, which held a fascinating collection of narrow-gauge rolling stock and other items.

Another interesting and emotional day came to an end and it was back to the hotel for dinner and a good rest.

The next day found us heading to Le Crotoy and The Steam Railway at the Bay of the Somme for our final rail journey which would take us to St Valery-sur-Somme. It is another narrow-gauge railway that runs the entire length of the bay connecting Le Crotoy with Noyelles-sue-Mer and St Valery. During the summer season it runs on to Cayeux-sur-Mer.

During the almost 25 kilometre journey we passed brooks lined with willows, salt and freshwater marshes, fields, and the beautiful greenery of the Somme Bay.

Throughout the whole trip my love of steam trains and old railways was well catered for and at St Valery there was another highlight for those on the trip who had the same interest as me, and there were quite a few. We had the opportunity to watch as the train was uncoupled and with the use of a turntable moved onto another track and travel to the other end of the train to be coupled for the return home.

We had a couple of hours in St Valery and a group of us walked along the waterfront, grabbed a drink at a lovely little cafe and then a much needed ice cream before returning to the coach.

St Valery is a lovely seaport and resort on the south bank of the River Somme estuary and with its medieval character and long waterfront area has become a popular tourist destination. It is somewhere I would love to visit again and spend more time looking around.

It was back to Le Crotoy and the Communal Cemetery to find out more about those soldiers 'Shot at Dawn'. The actual cemetery only holds four World War One casualties, one of which is Lieutenant Edwin Leopold Arthur Dyett.

During World War One the British Army executed around 300 soldiers of which just three were officer, Edwin Dyett was one of those officers. A junior officer in the Nelson Battalion of the 63rd (Royal Naval) Division, in October 1916 he was with the rest of the Division on The Somme preparing for the attack on Beaucourt-sure-Ancre.

Feeling that he wasn't suitable, an impression the Company Commander shared, he had already applied to be transferred away from the front. Not considered as quality material he was left as a reserve officer and was only sent forward with the reserves. Unable to find anyone from his unit he chose to return to Brigade Headquarters with another officer. He took exception to being asked by a junior officer to accompany men who needed to be taken back to the front lines and he continued towards the rear.

He was reported by the junior officer for refusing to go forward and the following day was arrested and later charged with desertion. He did not give evidence at his trial and  on 2 January 1917 Field Marshal Haig confirmed the death sentence. Dyett was told on 4 January and the following day, at 07.30, he was shot at dawn by members of his own Battalion. His final words were, "For God's sake shoot straight."

Although China never sent any troops overseas during World War One more than 100,000 labourers served as part of the British Army for both the British and French forces during the war. As the Chinese Labour Corps, they cleared mines, built munitions depots, transported supplies and repaired roads and railways.

Noyelles-sur-Mer was the base depot of the Chinese Labour Corps, their biggest camp and also the site of the No.3 Labour General Hospital. Almost 2,000 lost their lives and 841 are buried at the Chinese Cemetery in Noyelles which was our next visit.

The inscriptions on the headstones are in Chinese and included four different inscriptions in English and Chinese with one reading, "A Noble Duty Bravely Done." There is an inscription carved on the entrance which in English translates roughly to, "This site commemorates the sacrifice paid by the 1,900 Chinese workers who lost their lives during the 1914-1918 war, these are my friends and colleagues whose merits are incomparable." The cemetery is adorned with trees native to China, creating a reminder of their homeland.

I had never heard of the Chinese Labour Corps and it was very interesting to find out more about their contribution to the war. 

The main entry point to the Somme battlefields in 1916 for most of the soldiers was Pont-Remy Station and it was there we headed to next. Now disused, although trains run by SNCF still travel between Amiens and Abbeville, the station and cobbles leading up to the station once echoed to the sound of the many thousand troops heading to the front lines.

I was surprised there is no information at the station on its history and maybe SNCF should consider a board detailing its World War One connection along with relevant images from the period.

Our final visit of the tour was to the Devonshire Cemetery near Mansell Copse (not included in the original itinerary but as our guide put it... 'A Brucie Bonus') and it was somewhere I am glad we had the opportunity to see.

Before entering the cemetery we had a chance to view where the British and German lines were on the 1st July, the first day of the Battle of The Somme. The two images below are taken from where the British trenches were located, south of Mametz, and show the view across to what would have been the German trenches.

Mametz was within the German lines and captured on the first day of the battle while the woods to the east were taken in the days that followed.

The cemetery just visible in the lower picture is the Gordon Cemetery which was made by the men of the 2nd Gordon Highlanders who buried their dead from the 1st July in what had been a support trench.

At the Devonshire Cemetery we heard about their part in the battle. The 8th and 9th Battalions of the Devonshire Regiment attacked the German lines on 1st July and suffered very heavy losses as they left their forward trench. Later that day the survivors buried their fallen comrades, over 160 men, in the same trench. Three days later a ceremony was held and a wooden cross was placed bearing the words "The Devonshires Held This Trench, The Devonshires Hold It Still."

Of the 163 graves, ten are unidentified burials and only two were not part of the Devonshire Regiment. Looking at the two rows of graves it was easy to see where the original trench had been and it was an emotional moment to look at the headstones and imagine what it must have been like back in 1916. Along with the Bagneux Cemetery discussed earlier, this visit was the saddest part of the whole trip.

The wooden cross disappeared, possibly stolen, and in the 1980s officers of the Devonshire Regiment, who were visiting the site, decided to do something about it. On their return a collection was made and a new stone was placed at the entrance to the cemetery bearing the same words as the wooden cross. Those words certainly got to me and will forever live in my memory.

It was the end of our tour and time to head back to the hotel for dinner, a final few pints and a last chance to sit and talk to the other people on the tour before packing and an early night. We had to leave early the next morning for our journey home and although it was sad to be going home there were so many memories to look back on. 

I met a great group of people on the tour and especially want to mention Jules whose company I enjoyed over dinner and a few pints.

There are still so many tours I would like to do and next year I will be going on the Operation Market Garden trip to Arnhem with my good friend John Chisholm, who I met on my previous trip to Dunkirk.

Last, but by no means least, thanks go to our knowledgeable tour guide Andrew Thornton and our excellent driver Michael (Mick) Page who besides doing an amazing job, certainly kept the rest of us in the coach amused with their banter and jokes each day.