This bear was in the right place and the right time, for Plastic Alto — courtesy of The Nature Gallery of Los Altos. $89
In a previous post, seven years ago, I mentioned buying for Dr. John a Zuni bear fetish, at a Trading Post on College Street in Berkeley, and giving it to him back stage. (Like the time I gave to Steve Lacy a Oaxacan carved wooden cat, playing a flute).
I have no idea if Mac put it on his piano — with his normal gris gris — or left it in the green room, or what.
But visiting my friend Carol Garsten of The Nature Gallery in Los Altos, I found a wonderful bear, similar but with more detail.
Carol and TMW and I are off to see Donny McCaslin tonite at Stanford Bing, the Studio room.
Plus I have on-sales with Jane Monheit, June 21 and Bob Margolin/Jimmy Vivino/Mitch Woods for July 6, both on EventBrite, both at Mitchell Park Center. (My headline for the marketing blast, via Palo Alto Weekly is “Monheit sings Ella at Mitchell”).
Not to upstage Bob and Jimmy “Just 2 Guitars but 200 Stories”, but I hope Mitch, the pianist not the room, besides sitting in with the headliners, does a bit for Dr John — he has a Fats Domino live album on sale now. Note: if you are down with the 504, you call Dr. John “Mac” and you call Fats Domino “Antoine”.
You say “oysters” they say “ersters”.
I commented on Dr. John above Chris Morris’ obit in Wash Post
Edit To add the following week: I ran into my old classmate and sometimes teammate Todd Kjos and His lovely bride anna Taylor Kjos at said same gallery And we spoke of highs and lows of our youth full of K is including the fact that Todd one struck me out three times in a row in Senior little league But a couple days later I noticed in the sports page is that on this date June 12, 1922 a guy name hub pruett struck out Babe Ruth three times in one game also.
Todd also reminded me that we had 11 players on the frosh soph team and sometimes he had to wait on the sideline while we including me went 5-on-5.
edit to add, June 17: Now I’ve mentioned Jane Monheit 11 times on my blog, nine cents booking her for this Friday, June 21 at the Mitch, once in 2012 and once in 2014.
