Added to iPod

August 30, 2007 | Filed Under Music | 1 Comment

It’s all classic rock, all the time!

Nick Lowe – “Jesus of Cool”.
The Feelies – “It’s Only Life” A true ’90s classic!
The Black Crowes – “Shake Your Money Maker”
AC/DC – “Back In Black” Like Led Zepplin, still not on iTunes
Elton John – “Honky Chateau” and “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road”
Marc Bolan/T Rex – “20th Century Boy” The best greatest hits collection. From 2002.
Dar Williams – “End of the Summer” From 1997.
Jules & the Polar Bears – “Got No Breeding” Ah, Boston… Wore this album out a few times. Searched Mr. Shears out one night – somewhere near Emerson. We were drunk. He was drunk. Perfect Friday. Great record.

Then I went surfing for singles on iTunes and picked up the best of Tears For Fears, Elastica, Ruby, Hoffamoose?, City Boy, and Mr. Ringo Starr.

That makes it 7,647 or 23.1 days (if you’re counting).

Grace Paley

August 25, 2007 | Filed Under Main | 2 Comments

I learned last night that Grace Paley passed away on Wednesday. She died at the age of 84 after fighting breast cancer at her home in Vermont (there’s that state again!).

Grace was one of my all time favorite writers. She was a quintessential New York writer. The city was her backdrop, her colors and her muse. Her characters were strong and honest and searching. None of Grace’s stories sat and stared into space. Her people were found in the midst of their lives and she let us watch them struggle, fight, love and survive.

Grace was also a political activist during all her years. She once referred to herself as “a somewhat combative pacifist and a cooperative anarchist”. Indeed. She fought against nuclear proliferation, went to Hanoi in 1969 to negotiate for the release of prisoners and was arrested as one of the “White House Eleven” for unfurling an anti-nuclear banner on the White House lawn. (This was a number of years back. Had she done it recently, the Eleven would have been shot.) Thanks to Wikipedia for some of this info.

Oh, to be that strong and write so beautifully. Her books of short stories – which I highly recommend! – included Enormous Changes At The Last Minute, Little Disturbances Of Man and Later That Same Day. One of her characters – Faith Darwin – appearred in about 5 or 6 stories. I was in love with Faith. A strong New York, Jewish single mother… but that doesn’t say anything. I can’t expalin Faith. You have to meet her. My favorite story is “Faith In A Tree”. Back in 1995, I had the pleasure of meeting Grace Paley at Symphony Space in NYC. There was a program where actors read her stories onstage and I hung out afterward to meet her. Which was fairly simple. She was an open and warm person – in her 70’s back then – and quite happy to meet and talk to people. I asked her to sign my copy of Enormous Changes and she asked what was my favorite story. I told her “Faith In A Tree” and she winked at me and said, “That’s mine, too”. So she signed that page of my book.

So – bon voyage, Grace. I now look around my library and the only one of my favorite authors still alive is Gabriel Garcia Marquez. A shame, really.

Added to iPod

August 24, 2007 | Filed Under Music | No Comments

A few interesting ones…

Beastie Boys – “Check Your Head”
Bob Dylan – “Blonde On Blonde”
Pavement – “Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain”
Rilo Kiley – “Under The Blacklight” This is their first album in about four years. And it is a good pop record. However – for all Rilo Kiley fans – part of the joy of their music was the lyrics. Those lacerating words and small landmines wrapped in cotton candy and Jenny Lewis’s sexy, gorgeous vocals. This album – on a major label – is just confection. You’ll find no “spring surprise” here – just fine pop craftsmanship and great vocals and catchy guitar licks. Which is not bad. But it is hard to listen to the songs and know you don’t have to flinch.
Grace Potter & the Nocturnals – “This Is Somewhere” The new album! YEAH!!! She is fantastic and the bands kicks butt. Sure – there are a couple of weak songs – but that does nothing to deminish tunes like “Ah, Mary”, “Apologies” or “Flying or Falling”. Awesome record. I can’t wait to see her in two weeks in Central Park!

Brain Damage

August 22, 2007 | Filed Under Main | 1 Comment

There are many reasons to take a sick day from work. You can have the flu, food poisoning, a dentist appointment, birth of a child, a broken hip, etc. I have added “brain damage” to that list. On Friday, I will take a “brain damage” sick day. This means that – like my computer – I have to shut down for a short while and then reboot.

Otherwise I may beat somebody.

And that would be SOOO unprofessional. ; )

Added to iPod

August 22, 2007 | Filed Under Music | No Comments

The truth is I have created a stack of CDs at home that I need to upload. This is all I managed on Saturday.

Steve Hackett – “Wild Orchids” This is his most recent album of new material (2006) and it is pretty strong. Mr. Hackett left Genesis back in the early 80’s and STILL puts out solo records and has a massive following everywhere but the States.
Various Artists – “Ska Is Dead” Though not to these ska all-stars. Big D & the Kid’s Table to the Toasters to the Pietasters to Fishbone to Catch 22. A great party CD.
Various Artists – “Supperclub Lounge Vol 3″ Techno/Ambient from a restaurant/club in Amsterdam. The first time we went was amazing. Five years later, it was beyond boring.
Mozart – “Requiem in D Minor” Roger Norrington conducts. Another great party CD.
Yes – “Close To The Edge”
Tranquility Bass – “Let Your Freak Flag Fly” One guy – Mike Kandel – is Tranquility. He produces all the sounds on this techno/jazz/drum & bass hippie groove. Great album from 1997!

Then I found a CD of a bunch of folks reading Hunter Thompson’s Fear And Loathing in Las Vegas. Those people include Jim Jarmusch, Harry Dean Stanton, Laraine Newman, Harry Shearer and others, with an intro and outro by HST himself. It might not be fulfilling to sit and listen in one sitting, but it should be great added to the shuffle.

John From Cincinnati #2

August 16, 2007 | Filed Under Main | 1 Comment

Kerry and I watched the finale episode again, as well as what for me was a key espisode (”His Visit: Day 5″). How could they cancel this?! I also read that all the critics were dumping on it, saying “nothing happened” and “there are too many characters” and “the acting was horrible”. Most of that is pure B.S. The characters were wonderful and terrifically performed. The surfer who played Kai was real. Honest – not actressy. Is that worse than the fake drama that glops constantly out of every reality show or CBS program? Nothing happening?! The series is about a new prophet or Messiah coming to Earth! Possbily the birth of a new religion. How much more of a plot do you need?

As my wife said last night: “‘Touched By An Angel’ ran for ten years but this can’t be given another season?”

When was the last time anyone even ATTEMPTED something that interesting?

Added to iPod

August 15, 2007 | Filed Under Music | No Comments

It’s been awhile. Still haven’t uploaded anything I came home with from the Warped Tour (where is that stuff?) But these bring me to 7350 songs or 22.2 days.

My Morning Jacket – “Okonokos” This is their double live record. Also their recording of “Rocket Man” that appeared at the closing of Californication.
Police – “Reggatta De Blanc” Not a big fan anymore, but this is good.
Squeeze – “East Side Story”
G Love – “Lemonade” Can G Love be bad?
Healing The Divide – This is the name of a charity for the benefit of the Dali Lama and the people of Tibet and this is the CD of a concert given at Lincoln Center in 2003. The Dali Lama speaks. There is an invocation by the Tuvan Throat Singers. Anoushka Shankar plays. Philip Glass plays and so do some Navajo indians. THEN there are four songs by Tom Waits and the Kronos Quartet! What a wierd and amazing pairing. And it works.

John From Cincinnati

August 13, 2007 | Filed Under Main | 3 Comments

wow.

I can’t say I know what’s going on. I didn’t even watch the first six episodes – for various reasons. One – I don’t surf. Two – I was pissed at David Milch for dumping “Deadwood”. Three – I didn’t see why I should care. But then I watched the end of an episode. Then I watched half an episode. Then I watched a full one. And I was hooked for the past three. The dialogue – the language that Milch does so well is there. Some of my favorite actors from “Deadwood” are there. And in last night’s finale, he finally gave us a glimpse of his hand. And it was big. I think he is really aiming for the moon here. Very dangerous – but it should be worth watching.

And then – while I am sleeping – they cancel the show! BASTARDS!!

I don’t care how many good (or at least interesting) shows they cancel. The powers-that-be will NEVER catch me watching America’s Next Top Celebrity Fat Idol. Never!

Celebrities

August 7, 2007 | Filed Under Main | 7 Comments

Not that I really care – but I read today where that bastion of stability, Rosie O’Donnell, is saying that Paula Abdul is abusing medication. Now, I have watched ten minutes of Paula’s show and I TOTALLY disagree. She is not drunk or on medication.

She is just bat-shit crazy.

Why does there have to be a expalnation for everything? When did we – as Americans – lose our right to just be nuts?

Warped Tour

August 6, 2007 | Filed Under Main, Music | No Comments

This may be only my fifth time to the Warped Tour, but they are in their 13th season as the pre-eminent traveling punk rock summer show. This year was one of the best for me because… I think I was finally able to enjoy myself. Trust me – there is a big difference between chaperoning 12 year olds and being the driver for seventeen year olds. No hyperventilating this year and we hit no traffic either coming or going (a major miracle!). Just a pleasant, music filled ten hours on blacktop in the hot sun.

Ska was big on the menu this year. We started off the morning with Bigger Thomas, a fun local band. Then the Toasters, though I had trouble finding their stage. (Signage, people. Is that so hard?) Then the Fabulous Rudies from San Diego, who were great onstage with a cool guitar player – however the CD doesn’t even sound like them. Later, there were some alterna-ska bands like Pepper and Big D & the Kids Table. Good music and more interesting to me then the usual diet of shrieking-white-twenty-something-males who dominate the stages.

However, my main band was Bad Religion. Since I started going to these shows, it has been painfully obvious that 99% of the attendees were AT LEAST 20 years younger than me. Bad Religion has been around since the 80s – still talk-the-talk and walk-the-walk – and are as old as I am! Their new record “New Maps Of Hell” continue their tried and true brand hard rocking social commentary. So – I wanted to be in the middle of this audience. As close to the stage as I could get. Ergo – I was in the mosh pit. Let me pass on what I have learned over the years about moshing, slam-dancing and crowd surfing. There is etiquette involved. Surfing is a bit problematic because you don’t know which direction the surfer is coming from until they land on the back of your neck. But everyone understands this and you move them along until the reach the front of the stage and are lifted off the crowd by very large security men. If a surfer falls – you pick them back up. (Oddly, most surfers – at least at this show – were girls). As for the dancing – a mosh circle is organic. It forms where ever it forms. A song begins, some people push back to create the circle and there you are. With the “slam dancing” (for lack of a better term) that happens in the circle, you just push the “dancers” back into the circle. They run into you – you push them back. If anyone falls, they are immediately helped up. Someone will pick up your cell phone or glasses to keep them from being crushed. Dancers are all sizes, shapes and genders. One guy next to me had two withered arms and was right in there with it. You might get hurt, but no one is hostile or violent. In fact, the highlight of the set (and the band was perfect!) was when the crowd surfed a guy and his wheelchair.

Let me say that again – they surfed a guy WITH HIS WHEELCHAIR! He held it in front of him as the crowd gently carried him to the front. The band stopped dead in the middle of the song to acknowledge this move, we all cheered and the show continued.

And, really, how bad can humanity be if something like that can happen?

Added to iPod

August 4, 2007 | Filed Under Music | 2 Comments

Well, tomorrow is my fifth trip to the Warped Tour. Where I will once again “blister in the sun”. I’ll see Bad Religion and paramore while there and see if anything else is interesting. Chris and friends will be crowd surfing to God knows what…

Here are some new tunes:
Joe Jackson – Greatest hits. Actually just cannibalizing Itunes to create a greatest hits of all albums except “Jumpin’ Jive” – which I have in its entirety.
John McLaughlin – “Electric Guitarist”
Spoon – “Ga Ga Ga Ga” The new one. One of my new favorite bands.
fIREHOSE – “Flyin’ The Flannel” From Mike Watt and the boys back in the day.
Psychedelic Furs – The “Sister Europe” LP.
Teenage Fanclub – “Bandwagonesque” The only one I really like. Very Big Star-esque.

Also – Today I sat in Yankee Stadium and watched A-Rod hit his 500th home run! We had just sat down and it was over. First pitch. Had to get home and watch the replay to really see it happen.

Comings and Goings

August 3, 2007 | Filed Under Main | No Comments

First – raise a pint to the late great Tommy Makem. He had a wonderful voice and – for me – was the twinkle in the eye of the Clancy Brothers. He will be greatly missed.

Also – yesterday my softball team closed out it’s regular season. I only had a single – but we won! The team finished in third place in the Architect league and now – playoffs! So we went to a pub near Columbus Circle and I bought drinks and food on the firm (as any sponsor would). And who is in this little joint with us? None other than Lou Dobbs! Seems CNN is right nearby and he eats and drinks with the locals. Got to shake hands with him as he passed our table on the way out. I don’t agree with everything he says, but I love someone who actually says what he believes and does it with intelligence.

Work

August 1, 2007 | Filed Under Main | 2 Comments

I have to fire an employee tomorrow. It’s been inevitable for some time but the situation finally came to a head today.

I’ve had to do this before. Not often but more than once at each job I’ve held. This would be the third time at this particular job (it would have been more but one woman quit first). This is part of my job. I’m management. My job is to insure that my department runs effectively and serves the other departments. There is responsibility in my job. It’s not pleasant. There is no glee or power trip. The person I have to fire is actually a nice guy – he just can’t do the job. There is work he should be doing that I’m doing instead because he can’t (or doesn’t) step up. Therefore, I can’t get to MY work since I’m spending time doing his. I have held off as long as I can and tried to teach him what needs to be done. It is just not working and there has to be an end.

Facts of life really. But it still sucks. And I will be sleeping less tonight in preparing for tomorrow.