Vi è piaciuto il disco Glitter and Doom Live di Tom Waits? Sappiate anche che nella classifica 50 Songs di una televisione musicale potrebbero esserci oggi il remix di «Revolver» di Madonna a cura di David Guetta ed i video «Watch The sun Come Up» degli Example e «Morning After Dark» di Timbaland con Nelly Furtado e Soshy. Questo pomeriggio, sabato diciannove dicembre, dopo le cinque.

05.12.09 Ma chi sono gli Editors, protagonisti del terzo concerto Play To Stop – Europe For Climate di una tv musicale? Stanno trasmettendo immagini stasera, sabato cinque dicembre, da Budapest, Ungheria, per un evento organizzato dalla Commissione europea. Vedere anche più sotto alla voce Moby (che canterà per la stessa tv domenica dopo le sei di sera) e non dimenticatevi di votare per questo blog… Ah, in programma anche per la classifica di Hitlist Italia la presenza in studio degli Zero assoluto subito dopo nella serata di domenica, fino alle nove.

26.11.09 Ma davvero si sentono le influenze di Billy Holiday, Bessie Smith e Van Morrison nella musica di Mary Coughlan? E di altri noti musicisti come Cole Porter, Leonard Cohen e Jacques Brel o Elvis Costello, George Gerwin e Tom Waits? E – sperando di non aver fatto errori – vi piacciono i suoi album Tired and emotional, Mary Coughlan sings Billie Holiday e The House of ill repute? Magari preferite «Strange Fruit» di Billy Holliday, se non ho sbagliato a scrivere qualcosa.

Ci sarete al «Milano Music Club» al Teatro Dal Verme? Mi chiedo, peraltro, dove sia la via S. Giovanni sul Muro (forse vicino a  Cordusio) e se siano molto bravi i suoi musicisti Brian Condor, Rod Patterson e Conor Brady. Qualora frequentiate per la prima volta questo blog, sappiate che potete votare successi della Coughlan o dei suoi notissimi modelli più sotto.

24.08.09 – Guetta. Cosa ne pensate? Soddisfatti? Esce oggi – lunedì 24 agosto – «One love», l’album di David Guetta. E come vi sembra «When Love Takes Over» con Kelly Rowland o il suo video? A quanto pare, – si è appreso dai media – avrebbero collaborato a questa sua opera i «Black Eyed Peas» e tali Estelle ed Akon.

24.08.09 – La O’ Riordan. Vi piace No baggage, il nuovo album di Dolores O’ Riordan?

17.08.09 Il musicista Moby a Stoccolma per la Commissione europea e sul cambiamento climatico… Il 20 agosto al Teatro Rival dale 21… Puoi registrarti in questo sito e spedire una mail con la scritta «Moby» nell’oggetto. Cosa c’è in palio, prima che me ne dimentico? Un pass per l’esibizione…

Ah, dimenticavo… Potrete seguire tutto su Mtv ed in rete… Ed, inoltre, l’«ambasciatore» dell’iniziativa in Italia – «Play to Stop: Europe for Climate» («Suona per dare uno stop: l’Europa per il clima») – è la presentatrice tv Paola Maugeri.

Virus. Gli utenti internet sarebbero – ovviamente – consapevoli dell’esistenza dei virus in rete. Ciò risulta da una ricerca Eurobarometro della Commissione europea, secondo la quale gli utenti consapevoli in Italia raggiungerebbero una percentuale del 99% rispetto alla media Ue del 97%.

22.09.09 «A’ bella, ma la smetti co’ tutti questi capricci?» Anche se non siete laziali, non vi verrebbe voglia di dir questo alla cantante pop Madonna? Secondo quanto si è potuto leggere o sentire, la tipetta avrebbe chiesto tavolette del wc rigorosamente nuove ed una suite a parte per le trenta valigie che possiede. La signorina ha cambiato, inoltre, uomo ed ha registrato a New York due nuovi singoli, «Celebration» e «Revolver», le uniche due novità di una raccolta di grandi successi che sarà pubblicata venerdì 25 settembre in Italia e lunedì 28 in America. Madonna «Veronica Ciccone» avrebbe cantato «Celebration» nel corso dello «Sticky & Sweet Tour» che sarebbe addirittura la serie di concerti con il maggiore incasso nella storia per un cantante solista. Poi mi direte, peraltro – e magari – cosa ne pensate del videoclip di «Celebration» girato il sedici luglio a Milano durante una festa di due stilisti dopo un concerto.

14.07.09 Ebbene sì… La cantante pop Madonna stasera, martedì 14 luglio, allo stadio San Siro di Milano e, fra due giorni, giovedì 16 luglio, allo stadio Friuli di Udine. Non mancherete?

08.07.09 - Semplicemente rosso. I Simply Red suoneranno all’Arena Santa Giuliana di Perugia il 12 luglio; al Teatro D’Annunzio di Pescara il 13 ed all’Esedra di Palazzo Te a Mantova una sera dopo. Ci sarà anche Sarzana allo Stadio Miro Luperi l’11 agosto dopo Karima.

08.07.09 – Lenny Kravitz. Concerto di Lenny Kravitz a piazza Napoleone, a Lucca, sabato 11 luglio dalle 20.30 per il locale Summer Festival. Kravitz tornerà in Italia sabato 25 luglio a Brescia, in piazza Duomo, e domenica 26 al Palalottomatica di Roma. Enzo Avitabile (vedere sotto) sarà, invece, a Summonte, in provincia di Avellino, l’11 luglio dalle 21 per il festival Sentieri mediterranei. Godetevi il concerto – che vi consiglio – perché l’ingresso è libero…

- A proposito di Avellino: eccovi il sito di un cantante, Mc Gerry.  Non so molto di lui….

Quanto al Summer Festival, mercoledì 15 luglio toccherà al campano Enzo Avitabile dalle 21.30 con i Bottari e la Scorribanda per un concerto gratuito in piazza Napoleone. Poi, giovedì 16 luglio tocca a James Taylor alle 20.45 preceduto da Amos Lee. Sempre in piazza Napoleone, anche in questo caso, e con due prezzi da trentacinque e cinquanta euro.

Moby e… Sabato 18 luglio sarà la volta di Burt Bacharach dopo Karima alle 20.45. Per assistere a questo spettacolo di piazza Napoleone si dovranno pagare, anche in questo caso, trentacinque o cinquanta euro, mentre costeranno trenta euro l’esibizione di James Morrison ed Amy Macdonald (piazza Napoleone, venerdì 24 luglio alle 21.30) e trentaquattro quello di Moby (sabato 25 luglio alle 21.30, ovviamente in piazza Napoleone). C’è, tuttavia, un concerto gratuito – una Summer Giovani – giovedì 23 luglio alle 21.30 e si chiude, infine, con John Fogerty domenica 26 luglio alle 21.30 (trentadue euro più prevendita ed in piazza Napoleone).

A proposito di Amy Macdonald, se siete svizzeri o vivete al Nord, sappiate che canterà a Locarno lunedì 14 luglio nella locale piazza Grande.

I Radiohead. «In Rainbow», l’ultimo album del gruppo britannico dei Radiohead, offerto in internet in due modalità (offerta libera ed edizione lussuosa e costosa), sarebbe stato, ciò nonostante, molto scaricato da internet in maniera illegale.
Il significativo  download illegale di questo lavoro è stato sostenuto da due società – una di valorizzazione musicale, la «Mcps-Prs», e una di ricerche di mercato, la «Bigchampagne» – che hanno realizzato uno studio dei cui risultati riferisce l’articolo «Flop dei download legali di musica» della versione online del quotidiano Financial Times Deutschland. Secondo Eric Garland, capo della «Bigchampagne», l’apprezzamento per l’album avrebbe comunque regalato al gruppo un’enorme richiesta di biglietti per il tour di quest’anno.

- Crema al cacao con nocciole ed anacardi, cioccolato fondente con nocciole o gianduia con nocciole intere oppure al latte con nocciole e nocciole intere

- Località turistiche straniere (Vota)

- Quale di questi monumenti italiani vi piace di più? (Vota)

- La musica. Quale il vostro brano preferito? (Vota)

Spreadthesign, dizionario e linguaggio dei segni. Commissione europea – Istruzione e formazione

Un browser europeo – Opera – e Mozilla o i sistemi operativi di Linux ed Apple. Neomedia.it

5 agosto ‘08 – aggiornato 9 dicembre ‘09

calogeromira.wordpress.com – e-mail

Risparmio energetico (forse)?

My favorite performance from The Last Waltz, filmed on Thanksgiving Day, 1976:

Other highlights:

The Band’s performance of “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” from the same night…

…and the Staple Singers perform “The Weight” on a sound stage with the Band.

Happy Thanksgiving!

"Good Hearts" EP Cover

Well, I am more than excited to announce that Veritas Artist Collective member Seth Phipott (one of my favorite people on the planet) released his new EP today on iTunes. The EP reflects Philpott’s musical styles and range with a touch of Van Morrison and Harry Connick Jr. to the modern folk rock of his Nashville peers. So do us a favor and download a copy and come out to our Christmas party where Seth will be performing with Ryan Edgar on Dec 12th in Dallas. You can find Seth at these electronic places.
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Seth Philpott

Tess circa 1978!

We’re starting something new! Ladies and gentlemen, I give you: Backstage at The ArtsCenter, a new series of posts written by members of the ArtsCenter staff, talking about things they see at The ArtsCenter, why they do what they do, and what that whole “arts” thing means, anyway.

Our very first post is by Tess Mangum Ocana, the concerts and facility director at The ArtsCenter. You may have seen Tess introducing a band at a concert or heard her on 1360 WCHL’s The Arts Spot.

Let us know what you want to hear about the ArtsCenter by commenting on this post!

–Lisa

The CD Playing In My Car 30 Minutes To Work And Back This Week
Tess Mangum Ocana

I live in Durham, so the drive to Carrboro takes a while.  I’ve discovered a new “back way” that seems to not zap my soul as much as the chain stores, car dealerships and construction on 15-501 but I’m not going to give away the secret because it will become like 15-501.  Anyway, what I’m listening to this week is Ray Lamontagne’s debut album, Trouble.  He played here back in ’05 and I still remember the energy in the air as people took their seats in the Earl & Rhoda Wynn Theater.  Women were especially excited to see their bearded, beautiful lumberjack-looking Montagne.  I was running back and forth between my office, the gallery and backstage but remember listening to Van Morrison’s Veedon Fleece as my own mood music.  Music critics were going nuts about Montagne, saying how brilliant his first release was, and that it sounded like Neil Young and Van Morrison.  It does, but only musically.  Vocals are his own.  Some tracks sound like The Band, which ain’t a bad thing either.  Listen carefully for Nickel Creek’s Sara Watkins (who played this year’s American roots Series) on fiddle and vocals.

Da dieser Song schon seit Längerem Platz 1 meiner iTunes Playlist einnimmt, will ich ihn euch jetzt auch nicht länger vorenthalten.

Und hier noch eine Version, die ich eigentlich zuerst gebloggt habe, bei der aber leider das Video nicht direkt eingebunden werden konnte:

Gloria von “The Doors”

Um The Doors zu sehen hätte ich ja wirklich was gegeben. Naja, aber ich war wohl einfach zu spät dran. Wer allerdings auf gute Coverbands steht, dem kann ich nur Purple Legion wärmstens ans Herz legen. Die Jungs sind wirklich fit.

Das Original ist übrigens von Van Morrison und das geht ebenfalls gehörig ab^^

OD Records

Laoying Shao Road, Fenghuang, China

On the banks of the calmly flowing river Tuo, in the back water river-town of Fenghuang, sits  OD Record store.  Narrow and quaint, snugly camouflaged by tea shops and  food stores; a record store that could easily be unseen by even the most observant eye.

We enter the shop, which has more in common with a long slim corridor than your average store (the idea of browsing space, having not really caught on), and discover a wall dominated by CDs without covers.  Each CD sits in a perfectly fitted clear plastic wallet, offering neither explanation nor reason for their naked forms. I stare closely at the specimens and discover them to be neither official release, nor pirated copies, but press-release promotional CDs, the likes of which are usually sent to music journalists or radio-stations.

I stare closely at a remastered release of The Police’s Reggatta Da Blanc, and notice that each CD is dotted with  stickers offering press-friendly promotional notes in Mandarin. We stop for a minute and gaze out to the River Tuo in wonder, contemplating how a small shop in the middle of nowhere in China, could have come into such a supply of promotional CDs. We come to a swift conclusion; that the store is either an ex-writer/ radio presenter/ editor’s personal collection for sale, or else a record-label company has liquidated its stock onto the market (which, according to copyright legislation, is technically illegal).

Spurred on by the apparent rarity of the promos on hand (after-all when was the last time you saw a CHINESE promotional copy of a record!), we get flicking. A few interesting titles raise their heads; a chill out CD featuring a Radiohead remix tempts my purse strings, as does a James Brown live album from the 1980s, and Supertramp’s Greatest Hits.

I scan my eyes over the hypnotically monotonous shelving, searching for anything unusual or that I have wanted for a while. I spy Roger Water’s The Wall Live In Berlin,  haphazardly jammed at the back of one of the stands near the cash register. Recorded way back in 1990, the live album features the likes of Van Morrison, Sinead O’Conner and, erm, Cyndi Lauper, dueting with the ex-Pink Floyd singer.

Picking up on the slight interest I show, the manageress slots the The Wall into the shop’s stereo and cranks it up to 11. The opening chords of In The Flesh ring out, and a biro on top of the old speakers near the till rattles as Water’s aged voice eventually  croons, “So you thought you might like to go to the show”,  the infamous first lines of that infamous album.  I listen to the track,  reminiscent of that spine-tingling night at Live 8, and, light of its 40Y (£3.64) price tag, can’t say no.

We pay up, and wander back to the balcony of our hotel, where we listen to the album, as the sun sets over the quaint river town.

Purchase:

Roger Waters – The Wall Live In Berlin – £3.64 [Tracklisting]

Total Purchases:

Armand Van Helden – Ghetto Blaster – £1 [Tracklisting]

Club Azuli 1 – Mixed By Dave Piccioni – £0.48 [Tracklisting]

Club Azuli Part 2 – Mixed By Dave Piccioni – £0.79 [Tracklisting]

Chemical Brothers, The: Brothers Gonna Work It Out – £2.77 [Tracklisting]

Defected In The House – Mixed By Copyright – £0.79 [Tracklisting]

DJ Hardy Heller – Mix In Motion – £1  [Tracklisting]

DJ Shadow – The New Collection – £2.38

Elektrik 02 – Mixed By King Unique & Nubreed – £0.59 [Tracklisting]

Fabric 25 – Mixed By Carl Craig – £0.59 [Tracklisting]

Fabric 26 – Mixed By Global Communication – £0.59 [Tracklisting]

Le Le – Breakfast 12″ – £8.24 [Tracklisting]

Moby – Last Night – £0.59 [Tracklisting]

Roger Waters – The Wall Live In Berlin – £3.64 [Tracklisting]

Santos – Camels 12″ – £1.18 [Tracklisting]

Samim: Flow – £1.98 [Tracklisting]

Underworld – Cowgirl (Remixes) 12″ – £1.18 [Tracklisting]

Underworld – Underneath The Radar 12″ – £8.91 [Tracklisting]

Total Spend: £36.68

The Swell Season just played at the Paramount this evening. My insides are still spinning. This is the second concert I have seen this week and this one, hands down, blew the other one out of the water, and I love the other band, I’ve seen them at the Triple Door three years in a row! There was something so Authentic about these two. Glen told stories that gave context to many of his songs. They had us sing along. They met a girl singing on the streets of Seattle today and asked her to play at their concert tonight… so she did!!!  He honored the Clancy Brothers, The Frames (his band before the Swell Season), a woman in an elevator with a blue coat, the woman up in the third tier who “opened up” to him and the entire audience, and he honored us, his audience… each with a song. He played one of his songs as he stepped away from all the mics… and the place was silent, you could have heard a pin drop. The Van Morrison song he played, made me nearly float, it was so amazing. The man can play a guitar!!! He broke strings on 3 guitars before the song was over!!! He told stories of real people in a way that you knew he valued them, not just the story he was telling about them. All of that was bonus… because then, they played their sweet music…. and all was well within me. …and did I mention the 6-song encore???? There is something so nice about seeing someone be who they are instead of putting on a show.

KGSR started broadcasting on 93.3 today at 5pm. They will broadcast on 107.1 and 93.3 for ten days, then 107.1 will become a Mexican music station. Noel calls KGSR K-geezer, because it is more mature than it is young and hip these days. I don’t disagree with her really. While it is one of my favorite Austin radio stations, it is also a reason why I listen to my iPod most of all.

I think KGSR is like a smart, funny and handsome guy who doesn’t shower often enough. I get annoyed by them more only because they could be so good.

I love that you can hear Bob Marley, Spoon and Van Morrison all on the same station. But, when they play reggae, why is it always the same three Bob Marley songs and until just recently they only played Spoon at odd hours and do we really need to hear Brown Eyed Girl again? Does it really count as diverse and imaginative if it is a bland version of diversity and imagination?

The DJs are my favorite annoying thing. Here are Mad Libs for a KGSR DJ air break – “I’m sad to share the news that <name you don’t know> passed away last night. Of coarse, he is known for playing bass on the first <band you don’t know> album recorded in <some city> at <a random name> studio in <a year a long time ago>. None of his work is in print, but I have a cassette tape of his first demo and it is really special.  It is sad to loose him.”

While I love and appreciate musicians and their music, as far as living and dying goes, I don’t think they are any more special than anyone else and I don’t really need to know when each one of them passes away.

The root of the problem is the Music Head delima. KGSR is a station for people who love music and the DJs are the people who love music the most, they live and breathe music, it is in their blood. But, anytime someone lives and breathes something, they eventually become, well, how do I say this…. boring. In an everyday life of the non-Music Head, with kids and jobs and neighbors and friends, it really isn’t interesting anymore who played bass on the third track of the first album. The more someone really, really knows music, the less he has in common with people who have other things going on.

Bryan Beck and Andy Langer are Music Heads. God Bless them. They know a lot about music. And with the new Late Show, on from 8-10am during the week, they are trying to connect with the common folk. My favorite is when they try to talk about American Idol. First, they apologize for ten mintues to the Music Head portion of their audience for talking about popular culture. By the time they are done, they should have another apology ready for the folks who like popular culture and are offended by the need for the first apology. Then they try to say something interesting about the show even though it is obvious they didn’t watch it. It feels like watching the adolescent guy flirt with the cute older girl in a coming of age movie. It is awkward and endearing and sometimes painful.

I know what they should do with the Late Show. They should hire a third DJ who is NOT a Music Head. Someone who isn’t really an expert on anything, but who makes funny and interesting conversation. Brian and Andy could teach her about music and she could teach them about American Idol and it would bridge the gap between the Music Heads and the rest of us who have kids and jobs and neighbors and friends, none of whom played bass on the third track of the first album for any band.

If KGSR could clean up its act that way, become a little less Music Head and a little more real, then all that would be left is the smart, funny and handsome parts. That would make it worth turning off the iPod and tuning in to KGSR 93.3.

“Some think that it is a miracle to walk on water. But I tell you, the true miracle is to walk every day on earth.” -Thich Nat Hanh, Vietnamese monk

I have too much to write about.

A few days’ worth of external quiet, and I’ve already developed a cluttered mind.

At the moment, I feel like I could use a second brain to store thoughts on, like an external hard drive.  So instead of going to the brain depository and snatching a brain labeled  “Abbie-Normal” (big points for you if you can name that movie reference), I’m just going to post some of it here. I apologize if this entry looks like a schizophrenic’s version of a literary review/movie review/to-do/have-done/might-do list.  That’s a lot of slashes, I know, but that’s how many “voices” I’ve got running around in my head at the moment.  Fittingly, this entry came out partially in the third-person, and in a weird, Gollum-like third-person voice to boot.  Enjoy (?) my attempt to organize it.  I feel like it was worth the effort to make sense out of it.

1.     Housecleaning, in the internal sense.

So, Ruth’s been gleaning again, she has, and that’s part of her problem. Reading. Watching. Job-searching. And it’s all strange stuff that nobody’s heard of.  Come on, have you ever read anything by Thomas A’ Kempis—namely, The Imitation of Christ? No? Okay, maybe you’ve heard about a director named Oliver Irving?  Still nope? 

Well, Ruthie stumbled onto both while reading and looking at other things. I think an Elizabeth Elliot book made passing reference to A’Kempis, and, of course, my pursuit of small-budget British independent films on Netflix led me to Oliver Irving—and right back to Rob Pattinson by virtue of the current nature of the universe, which puts his name/face/paparazzi photo EVERYWHERE. Who knew RPattz was that big of a dork before Twilight? Apparently, Oliver Irving did, and that’s why he cast Rob in the lead role of Art in How To Be (2008).

An etching of Thomas A'Kempis accepted by the Catholic Church as true-to-life.

Both of these works–How to Be and The Imitation of Christ–are tiny, fly-under-the-radar types of things.   The reason why you probably haven’t heard of A’Kempis is because his piece is admittedly an esoteric find: part 14^th-century theological treatise, part devotional, and part mystical dialogue with Christ himself. It’s very bizarre in some parts, so it’s never really been accepted in traditional Christian circles, but it’s powerful. It’s been carried into the wilds of the world by some of the most radical, world-changing missionaries in history. And I bought it in a five dollar bin at Books-a-Million.  Yeah, I know.  It hurts to see how far literary popular culture has fallen.

Anyway, back to why they’re important to me right now.  A’Kempis speaks to me on that hard-hitting level that my dad used to; I’ll just plain say that straight right now.  Check out some of this and see if it doesn’t make you feel like changing yourself:

“Boast not thyself in thy riches if thou hast them, nor in thy friends if they be powerful, but in God, who giveth all things, and in addition to all things desireth to give even Himself. Be not lifted up because of thy strength or beauty, for with only a slight sickness it will fail and wither away. Be not vain of thy skillfulness or ability, lest thou displease God, from whom cometh every good gift which we have.” (I.VII)

“[T]o refuse to harken to others when reason or occasion requireth it, is a mark of pride or willfulness” (I.IX).

Also, some very preachy advice and sound spiritual wisdom:

“Do what lieth in thy power, and God will help thy good intent” (I.VII).

“The beginning of all temptations to evil is instability of temper and want of trust in God . . . ” (I.XIII).

“We must not trust every word of others or feeling within ourselves, but cautiously and patiently try the matter, whether it be of God. . . . A good life maketh a man wise toward God, and giveth him experience in many things. The more humble a man is in himself, and the more obedient towards God, the wiser will he be in all things, and the more shall his soul be at peace.” (I.V)

So, in keeping with A’Kempis’ wisdom,  I’m trying to learn from my hastiness over the last month or so, and I’m questioning the things I did during that time, like quitting the restaurant (although every spiritual and temporal authority and guardian in my life was telling me to). Has it been a good thing? A bad thing?  A self-thing or a God-thing?  I don’t know.  But I’m thinking about it.

2.    Listening and Watching.

At the same time, I took A’Kempis observation (and Josh Bales’ observation in his song “Ten Thousand Places”) seriously: “Without respect of persons God speaketh to us in divers[e] manners”(I.V).

I took that statement very seriously when I heard these word’s coming out of Art’s mouth directed to his boss at the grocery store in the film How to Be and thought, yeah, that’s what I should have said when I quit at the restaurant:

“Look, I’ve decided I don’t want to work here anymore. I’ve got a lot on my plate at the moment, and I’m interested in other stuff.  I mean, I’ve got a degree. So I thought to spend some time on my music [or in Ruth’s case, writing] and  . . . find my call. So I quit. I resign.”

I thought, Go, Art. That took some serious bravery!  Then a little teacher-like voice inside me said, I think it might be better to admit that we need to do some painful growing and searching in life rather than to allow ourselves to stay in one safe, stagnant vocation for a long time. Quitting his safe pud job was the beginning of Art’s grand adventure, after all, since it opened up a big, wide world of terrifying possibilities, much like the one I’m facing now; hence, the craziness.

3.    Trying to fix things, or be fixed, and have faith in the process.

In How to Be, Art’s life coach, Dr. Ellington, advises Art to have faith in the process of figuring yourself out.  And he offers a visual metaphor for it that I thought was semi-clever: “If you think  of a problem as an unknitted jigsaw puzzle, try to imagine that the fragments of your lifestyle are the individual pieces. Now, as they lay scattered in the box they may seem random.  But remember, each piece has its place. They will knit. . . . [until then,] an unknitted puzzle makes for a cluttered mind.”

Art (Rob Pattinson) tries, and only marginally succeeds, at finding some direction in his life in "How to Be" (2008).

Art stares at Dr. Ellington here, and in his dubious silence, he seems to ask the unspoken questions that are so problematic for the quarter-life-crisee:  “But, Doc, what if we don’t have the picture on the box to guide the stupid jigsaw puzzle?  What if the pieces are broken and don’t fit?”

In Art’s life, the most influential people in his circle are telling him that his pieces won’t fit, that he’s a failure (“Arthur, your existence is an oxymoron,” says Dad), that there’s something not quite right with him (“Art, I really wonder about you sometimes,” sighs Mom), and that he’ll never amount to anything (both parents say this).  All they can talk about is their burden of worrying about him because he never seems to “do anything worthwhile.”  Art is terribly hurt to hear his worst fears articulated over and over, and he finally fires back sarcastically, “Have you ever felt guilty about producing such a pathetic, useless child?” When his mother responds honestly, “Of course I feel guilty!” that’s when Art hits his breaking point. 

Art spirals down emotionally, hits bottom, and then gears up for a radical life change. This is where the faith element comes in—when Art decides to “go it alone” and see what happens. After dismissing the useless Dr. Ellington and running away from home in his used P.O.S. car, Art sells all of his personal possessions (including the craptastic car) that are worth anything, gives the rest away to the homeless, and rents a tiny room in lower London. He then tries to get his old job back at the care center for disabled adults.  “I’m trying to focus less on myself,” he tells his old supervisor. “I feel like I want to help people.”

 And for the first time in the entire movie, Art gets actual encouragement from someone (!). It’s a scene that makes you cheer for poor Art, whose eyes get round with wonder and soft with happiness when the supervisor begins to be swayed and kindly opines, “There is definitely something to you, Art. You have a tenacious spirit. You just need to channel it, keep it in check. Don’t give up on yourself. All that stuff you’re involved in, it’s got it’s place; you just take things to extremes. This sounds too simple , probably, but, what gives you a buzz? What do you really want to be?”

Art takes this advice and runs with it—right back to the music store to buy a guitar.  One month later, he has a gig with his little band of friends. And for once, his parents actually come. So does his supervisor. And the homeless guys. The homeless guys clap. And we cheer, even though the band kinda sucks, because at least Art’s getting some love.  Okay, I cheered, anyway.  It’s hard not to—the poor lovable dork just steals your heart and reminds you too much of your inner loser.  You want to celebrate with him for coming out okay on the other side of his struggle.

Art gives himself a pep talk before heading on stage. "You're not a nobody. You're a somebody."

 4. Dealing with TEH SUCK in the meantime (for those of you who don’t speak Cat-pidgeon, or Leet-speak, “Teh suck” refers to things in life that honestly, well, are awful.  See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teh).

Anyone else gotten some rotten news lately?  Because Ruth sure has.  Like a person who I used to play with on the playground apparently just got diagnosed with stage four cancer. Yeah, I know. Stage. Four. And this is a person who is actually a little younger than I, actually—and my ex-boyfriend’s best friend, who is also ex-boyfriend to one of my best gal pals, to boot.   When that gal pal called me, I was in shock. When I got home about twenty-four hours later, I cried and threw things in my bedroom and might have called God a bully, a neglectful father, and a lot of other not-so-nice names. It was a stupid thing to do, like putting on a pair of sneakers to kick a tank—the only damage that was done was to myself, and I admit that freely, even as I borrow Ravi Zacharias’ kicked-tank visual to do it.

And then I sat down and read some more of A’Kempis’s admonitions, and only felt a mild stirring of comfort to read that “though thou run hither and thiter, though wilt not find peace, savie in humble subjection to the authority of Him who is set over thee. Fancies about places and change of them have deceived many” (I.VIII).  And, “He who seekth aught save God and the health of his soul shall find only tribulation and sorrow” (I.XVII).

So I’m going to watch and pray, take the opportunities that come (including doing some freelance writing. We’ll see if I can make a go of it!), and hope, against hope, that things will be okay, and that God will take my open stance to mean that I’m ready to be assigned a purpose for my existence.  Because I’m sure tired of trying to figure it out for myself.

There, I feel better now. So in the words of Art to his audience, I’d like to say, “Thanks for . . . listening.”

-Ruth

Notes:

*You can read A’Kempis’ The Imitation of Christ online for free at http://www.leaderu.com/cyber/books/imitation/imitation.html.  It’s a pretty decent translation, too.

*Josh Bales is a singer/songwriter from Chattanooga, Tennessee, with whom Ruth had a two-week acquaintance (no, we never dated. But we did sing together to lead worship, which is like making out, pretty much. Right? No? Poooh.). ”Ten Thousand Places” is a song from his old album Underneath the Armor, which is available on iTunes. You can listen to Josh sing from his latest album on his MySpace page, www.myspace.com/joshbales. 

*Ravi Zacharias uses the kicking-the-tank metaphor in one of his sermons, and I don’t remember which one.  But you should check out my link to his website in the side bar >>>> over there >>>>> and listen to a sermon or two. You just might catch it.

*Just so there’s no confusion, it should be said that RPattz only plays the role of a bad musician in How To Be, and that he actually had to train himself to sing off-key to do it.  This is what Rob really sounds like when he plays and sings—er, okay, this is what Rob sounds like when he’s slightly drunk and playing around with his falsetto and a Van Morrison song.  Just listen to it. It bounces around from kinda weird (but even he laughs at his falsetto and weird improvisations), to kinda sexy (esp. around 1:00 to 3:20), to seriously hot (again, that magic sultry space between 1:00-3:20), then back to just plain funny at the end. Gotta love a man who laughs at his mistakes but doesn’t skip a beat. He just keeps on singin’.

You can throw a guitar off a cliff, and as it bounces off rocks on the way down, it will, all by itself, play “Gloria.”

– Dave Barry

I was blasting Patti Smith’s Horses in the car. The first track: “Gloria.” This was the very first version of “Gloria” I have ever heard.

Okay, that’s not true. It sounded cool to say that.

No, the first “Gloria” I heard was probably the first one almost all Americans heard – the 1965 single recorded by the Chicago blues-rock band Shadows of Knight. But of course that single was not even the first recording. No, it was originally recorded a year earlier by Van Morrison and Them. Van the Man wrote the song when he was an 18-year-old singer somewhere in Germany for his bar band the Monarch. It began as a blues exercise that he and his bandmates would extend for about 15 minutes. Then it shrunk down to a two-and-a-half-minute single – three chords, chugging away like a train picking up steam, as the singer gutturally talks about his five-foot, four-inch girlfriend who comes to his house around midnight. This femme fatale discreetly knocks on his door, enters his room, and makes him feel “alright,” leaving him helpless, hopelessly moaning her name, first by spelling it out, then by chanting it over and over again. Now that’s some girl.

There have been countless garage bands, rock stars, and punks who have followed what the ol’ Monarchs did with this song – jamming for several minutes, revealing every dirty little thought that has been brewing in their adolescent minds. Hell, even Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison have their versions out there – 10-plus-minute workouts of noise, swank, and carnal knowledge – but frankly I think all those versions suck.

No, there’s only one version worthy of this perverted extension, and that’s Patti Smith’s invocation, her “In Excelsis Deo” as she called it. This is a Catholic girl’s experimentation with lesbian lust, starting with the blasphemous “Jesus died for somebody’s sins, but not mine,” followed by the narrator’s stroll into this boring party, then a vision of this “sweet young thing,” leaning and humping on the parking meter outside the window. And the outsider’s name is … well you know what it is.

The tower bells chime in Patti’s heart. It’s midnight. Time to take that big plunge.

Van Morrison: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bx_djloAsI

Patti Smith: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JMSkcCV790

Copyright © 2009 Mark Nishimura

All rights reserved

Memories of Glastonbury Festival have been in my mind since I wrote last, memories thankfully which do not involve hallucinogenics. One of my favourite years was 1989 despite the fact that some discrepancy in the festival licence that year meant that the Saturday evening’s performances had to end by a certain time, and noise volume had to be kept low. The headliner that year was Elvis Costello, who performed a resume of his career to date with just an acoustic guitar for accompaniment. He’d not long brought out the album ‘Spike’, some of which was co-written by Paul McCartney, and my highlight was his rendition of ‘Veronica’. I’m not sure if that was the song he broke a string in the middle of but his roadie handed him a fresh instrument while he carried on singing then he picked up the third or fourth chord after the break happened. The change of guitar was so smooth that my friend, stood next to me and apparently witnessing the same gig, did not even notice.

If I recall rightly, 1989 was also the first year they erected a perimeter fence around the main site. It did not bother me as I was working on site. Well, I was meant to be working. Greenpeace, the sponsors, had sent me my free ticket in advance and they told me which car park I was meant to be helping at on the Friday morning to work off the entrance price. But when I arrived there the car park was already completely full and the gate manager stamped the back of my ticket to prove I’d turned up to work, then told me to go and enjoy myself as there was nothing for me to do. Result.

I was not staying in a tent that year but on my mate’s bus. Dusty had been a part of the traveller convoy a few years earlier but had settled down in my hometown when I got to know him. He obviously hankered after the old days, though, as he spent time doing up and old bus and I think Glastonbury was its inaurgral destination ocne it was up and running. It was a real treat to have running water, a working toilet which did not smell like an army latrine, and an actual mattress to sleep on. The bus was obviously lockable too so that was the first year I took my guitar along. Several other friends camped nearby in their tents and at the bottom of our field a couple of bands from somewhere up north had brought a flatbed truck which they turned into a mini-stage and performed gigs for us every night. It didn’t take long to persuade them to let me do some songs too.

It was great to be playing Glastonbury, in a sense, but when I’d arrived on the Wednesday afternoon (two days before the music events began) I had fleetingly dreamed I might grace the main stage. I’d been wandering through the main field, right in front of the Pyramid stage, playing my guitar as I walked along. The engineers were checking the sound system at the time and someone on the desk shouted at me “Hey you with the guitar. Have you got a pick-up on that thing?” “Yes,” I shouted back. “Great,” he replied, “Get up there and let’s plug you in.” I couldn’t believe it, I was going to play on the main stage. I know there was no-one really there but as I was pulled up onto the stage by a burly roadie and handed a guitar lead I had visions of someone important hearing me make some music and deciding I was an undiscovered genius who needed adding to the bill. “Shall I sing as well?” I asked, thinking I’d be more likely to be discovered if they heard me do a proper song, rather than just strumming some chords. “If you like,” said the roadie and signalled to the sound guy to turn the mic on. This was it, destiny, my big moment. I started to play and sing something I had written only a couple of months earlier, convinced I was taking a major step towards musical success. I got half way into the first chorus when the sound guy’s voice came at me through the monitor speakers – “Yep thanks mate, that’s working fine. Sod off then.” The roadie smiled at me sympathetically as he lowered me from the stage and I was crestfallen. But, looking back, I can honestly say I have performed on the main stage at Glastonbury Festival. To an audience of several roadies and a git of a sound man, admittedly, but I was there, man, I was there.

The rest of the festival was such a wonderful few days. The sun was shining pretty much every day (definitely no rain that year) and I got to hang out with good friends and watch acts like The Pixies, Van Morrison, Suzanne Vega, The Waterboys, Hothouse Flowers, Ozric Tentacles and possiblyFairground Attraction (I’m sure I’ve seen them somewhere and Glastonbury seems the most likely location, seeing as I wouldn’t necessarily have chosen to go and see them on their own). I got back from the festival some time on the following Monday to find that I’d lost my voice. My band had a showcase gig that night and a cassette recording of the night has survived to remind me that I sounded like a man with a whole swamp in his throat, not just a frog. But it was still worth it, even if my band-mates were pissed off that I’d thrown my voice away ahead of our biggest gig so far that year. What did they expect? That I’d go to Glastonbury and drink lemon tea whilst relaxing under a sunshade and not over-exerting myself? They were just lucky I wasn’t the drug fiend I’d been three years earlier – I might have ended up in a Cornish tin mine and not have got back in time for the gig at all.

Rickie Lee Jones - Malibu, California, 2009. (photo by Greg Allen)

This week on Studio 360, Kurt unpacks the songwriting inspirations of Rickie Lee Jones, the reigning “Duchess of Coolsville.” In this gem from the cutting room floor, she discusses the songwriter who makes her think “we’re made from the same part of God’s clay.” (Plus, don’t miss Kurt’s five-second debut as a back-up singer.)

Listen to Kurt’s full interview with Jones:

And check out Jones singing “The Moon Is Made of Gold” live in Studio 360.

Rickie Lee Jones’s new record is Balm in Gilead.

- Jess Jiang

The Midnight Special stands alone in the history of rock ‘n’ roll as the first ever late-night live concert show on TV, capturing the spirit of a time when rock was exploding in so many new, exciting directions. For nine thrilling years, The Midnight Special brought audiences the very best live music from every genre – rare performances right into homes every week – complete with the intimacy of close-ups and multiple camera angles that placed you right there with the on-stage action.

Here are some of my favs! Enjoy…

Marvin Gaye –

Al Green –

Earth, Wind and Fire –

The Spinners –

Rick James –

Richard Pryor –

“And I will raise my hand up
Into the night time sky.
And count the stars
That’s shining in your eye.
Just to dig it all an’ not to wonder why.
That’s just fine.
And I’ll be satisfied
Not to read in between the lines.
And I will walk and talk
In gardens all wet with rain
And I will never, ever, ever, ever
Grow so old again”.

From “Sweet Thing” by Van Morrison.

Is it just me, or does the pace of life step up a gear every December?  A constantly growing “to-do” list of presents to buy, places to be, people to see…all before we collapse into an exhausted heap come the holidays or the period when we get our space back to ourselves.

I seem to be juggling a bunch of things at the moment.  For the most part they are good things – things I am glad to be a part of.  I am looking forward to laying some of them down in coming weeks though…

Karl has talked a lot about the speed at which God moves.  Is it faster than the speed of light or sound?  Yes.  Is it slower than we often want?  Yes.  Is it at the speed of life?  Yes.  Is it at the speed of love?  Yes.  What is that?

Last night on my way from the office to another appointment I blew a puncture on my bike.  It forced me to stop – to think – to walk and talk with God.  When I looked beyond the Christmas lights, I noticed that the sky was clear and the moon and stars were bright.  The air was cold and sharp (0.5 degrees) and it was strangely refreshing and invigorating.  I dropped my agenda and was in a much better head-space when I arrived at my next destination.

Sometimes we just need to slow down.  Maybe the speed of love is 3 miles per hour.. That is the speed we walk at.

My next stop was to inhabit a, somewhat, secret place and just to be still.  To think, to reflect and to pray.  The two of us who met had a really useful bit of time out as we turned our eyes away from ourselves and towards others for whom we are grateful and to whom we would love to be good news.

You’re My Woman (Van Morrison)

para Janine

You’re my woman
And you’re my woman
You bore my child, Lord
You bore my child, Lord
I want to thank you
I want to thank you
And no one else will do
And no one else will do
And no one else will do
Baby, you, you are my sunshine
I am your guiding light
To like a ship out in the night
Returning for a light

I love you
I really love you
My heart is for you
My heart is for you
I long to feel you
I long to feel you
And every time I do
And every time I do
And every time I do
Baby, it’s you, you are my sunshine
I am your guiding light
Just like a ship out in the night
Returning for a light, oh yeah

And it’s really real
The way I feel
It’s really real
Lord have mercy
Look into my eyes
Look into my eyes
And you realize
And you realize
Is really, really, really real

In Kingston town now
In Kingston town now
Walked up and down now
Looked at the ground now
You went in labor
You went in labor
And all our friends came through
And all our friends came through
And all out friends came through
Baby, it’s you, you are my sunshine
I am your guiding light
Just like a ship out in the night
Returning for a light, oo-we

And it’s really real
The way I feel
It’s really real
Look into my eyes
Look into my eyes
And you realize
And you realize
It’s really, really, really real, oh yeah
And you’re my woman
And you’re my woman
And you’re my woman
And you’re my woman…

Oh! The passage of time! Seems like just yesterday that I posted videos of my niece, Nikki, performing at last year’s high school pops concert. Here we are in 2009… Nikki’s a high school senior… and I have the pleasure of putting up these videos from the Hilliard Davidson High School Talent Show. Nikki performed one solo and was a member of a musical group that closed out last Monday evening’s performance. How these young people are able to muster such talent at their age is beyond me. Hope you enjoy these tunes as much as the family did!

I aplogize for not having the names of Nikki’s bandmates. A job ‘well done’ by all!

Conocido entre sus fans como

“Van the Man”

Chart Position: NR

• Written and originally recorded by Van Morrison (1967)
• Lead vocals: Jerry Salas
• El Chicano is from Los Angeles CA
• The band’s original name was V.I.P.s
• Also recorded by Ian Matthews (1976), Jimmy Buffett (1983), Steel Pulse (1997), Black Sorrows (1984), Del Amitri (1985), Lagwagon (1994), Jetsurfers (2003), Jan Keizer (2001), Everclear (2000), Claude Sirois (2005), Billy Ray Cyrus (2007) and Reel Big Fish (2009)

One of my favorite songs.

Great version of a Van Morrison classic. Also a pretty great YouTube channel. Check out Dave From Blue Skies

“If I ventured in the slipstream
Between the viaducts of your dream
Where mobile steel rims crack
And the ditch in the back roads stop

Could you find me?
Would you kiss-a my eyes?
To lay me down in silence easy
To be born again…
To be born again

From the far side of the ocean
If I put the wheels in motion
And I stand with my arms behind me
And I’m pushin’ on the door

Could you find me?
Would you kiss-a my eyes?
To lay me down in silence easy
To be born again, to be born again

There you go standin’ with the look of avarice
Talkin’ to Huddie Ledbetter
Showin’ pictures on the wall
Whisperin’ in the hall
And pointin’ a finger at me

There you go, there you go
Standin’ in the sun darlin’
With your arms behind you
And your eyes before
There you go

Takin’ care of your boy
Seein’ that he’s got clean clothes
Puttin’ on his little red shoes
I see you know he’s got clean clothes

A puttin’ on his little red shoes
A pointin’ a finger at me
Standing in your sad arrest
Trying to do my very best

Lookin’ straight at you
Comin’ through, darlin’
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah, yeah

If I ventured in the slipstream
Between the viaducts of your dreams
Where mobile steel rims crack
And the ditch in the back roads stop

Could you find me?
Would you kiss-a my eyes?
To lay me down in silence easy
To be born again, to be born again
To be born again, to be born again

In another world, darlin’
In another world
In another time
Got a home on high

Ain’t nothing but a stranger in this world
I’m nothing but a stranger in this world
I got a home on high in another land
So far away, so far away

Way up in the heaven, way up in the heaven
Way up in the heaven, way up in heaven, oh
In another time, in another place
In another time, in another place

Way up in the heaven
In another time, in another place
In another time, in another place
In another face”
- Astral Weeks by Van Morrison -

Ah man…Often I write about music here and what it means. How it feels and effects me. But Van Morrison. That’s another place to be all together. I just can’t…The words don’t work to express what he is to me. If Bob Dylan were my brain and thoughts, Steve Earle my legs and travel, Nick Cave my hands and touch then Van Morrison is my heart and spirit. I am so often reduced to this state of perfect Zen when listening to him, he takes to a place I shelter from all else. I just sort of venture into the slipstream, as Van sings. I close my eyes and it all comes. The joy, the tears and God. Love, love like a Van Morrison song is perfect an almost transcendent state.

Can you believe it’s been 41 years since Astral Weeks was released? That’s just amazing to think, an album can have the same power and effect over so much time. And the song itself. A lot of folks really like it but few really get it. What he’s doing in it and what he’s saying. You see he’s walking you through a photo album. And each line of the song (in some ways the pictures even overlap) is a description of a snap shot. A little boy, a teenager, a man discovering love, a lone soul facing into the eternal. He’s trying to let you see his life in seven minutes and six seconds. It’s such a powerful and bold thing.

A couple days ago I was talking to my friend about using music to worship and dancing in worship. Using it to connect to the greater thing…The Holy Spirit. And he was talking about Christian music and Psalms. I told him I do that with Van Morrison. He sets up a line to God himself for me, opened and receiving. That for my heart and soul Van Morrison is as powerful as a Sunday morning hymn. And just as sacred. Holy words and sounds. My friend didn’t really know his music and it was almost impossible to explain what it sounds like or feels like and I thought ‘I’ll lend him some, so he can see’ and immediately following that I was seized by a second thought ‘No way!’. See because if I let him hear it and try to see it and he didn’t like it or didn’t get it. It would be like rejecting my deepest parts. I’d be left with this sense of not being understood once again. And I wondered if being so closely connected to a guy singing songs is sane or healthy. Especially at my age. I don’t know but I am. Maybe it’s okay.

About 6 months ago my then 20 month old daughter was sitting in my lap with her head against my chest. She had her ear over my heart and could probably hear my heartbeat. The song Tupelo Honey by Van Morrison was playing and Ruby had her hand resting in the palm of mine and she was softly tapping along to the music with her fingers. So I asked her if she liked this music and she gently nodded and her eyes had that same far away look I get when I hear the music and it gets inside. She was in that place, my favorite place. It was truly a spiritual experience to share with her. Maybe it would be to share with any human but even more so with my little girl. Holy and pure.

Well there you go. There’s me for today.

Be well, be love.