San Ramon guard Keith Smith and teammate harass Davis guard in full court press, in 99-62 romp at St. Francisco tourney Saturday
I am writing this on Monday, December 29, 2014 at 2 p.m. but I am projecting ahead, prognostication even, to Tuesday night at 7:45, the Saint Francis Lancers versus the San Ramon Valley Wolves, in the finals of the 38th tournament.
I am psyched for something almost as hoopalicious (and, am I the first to use that term, for the St. Francis tourney? Well, Glory Be!) today, a doubleheader of first San Ramon then St. Francis devouring or skewering their prey (not pray).
Hans Delannoy, my old coach, and I took in a game in a half at the kick off on Saturday: his San Ramon crushed the grapes of the visiting Davis Squad, 99-62. (They kinda chocked not to go Century, frankly). We also perused the names of the SF Francis Hall of Fame: we probably knew 10 percent of such: Bill Delaney, Erik Byrnes, Tomas Silvas, Mike Norman. Hans had played against three of the 1970 Class. I recall Mike Norman coming once or twice to work out at Gunn, but could hardly say I competed against him. (And in fact, during the short but sweet Gunn hoops if not a dynasty than at least a program rather than a team, Gunn went 22-5 but lost to Saint Francis, and then 25-3 and likewise lost to them, but beat SI and Riordan, before losing to SI by 2 in front of 7,000 at Maples)
MaxPreps has St. Francis at 18 in the state and has San Ramon Valley at 30, but I have a hard time believing there is a better team than what I saw Saturday afternoon. Six-ten center Gregg Polosky looked like a D-1 prospect at center, while his backup Kyle Spackman at 6’7″ looked pretty similar. Keith Smith was super quick on guard and fearless at taking it to the whole; although my Moto is not a real camera, I like this image of Smith pestering the Davis press, sliding past him, jumping up and returning to pressure. Footballers like JJ Koski added a physicality to the game. The Wolves suited 16 players of which at least 8 or 9 were ballers.
Two of the key players came up and coached “Del” (who I call “Hans” or “Coach”. Hans retired this spring after about 35 years in teaching and coaching. He was Division I coach of the year for his work with San Ramon ladies in 2006, knocking off Berkeley in an amazing comeback, at Oakland Arena.
After a swanky pizza dinner on Emerson, Terry invited Coach and I back for a night cap and I could not resist ringing her Downtown North neighbor Nick Peterson, who I knew played against Hans in at least one and maybe several Cubberley versus Woodside clashes, in SPAL. I got a kick out of re-introducing the two warriors after 44 years, and the three sometimes four of us yacked it up for a couple more hours about the good old days, and the changes over time in athletics and society. Nick has a theory about ladies not willing to pass to spot as readily as the boys. (His daughter Katarina played four varsity seasons for the Vikes and was a CCS champion — and is now a homecoming queen for the Colorado Buffs).
Hans says Nick was a better player than Rich Kelley at the time although Nick, who later pitched for Stanford, said Rich was MVP even as a sophomore. When I first met Nick, over the fence, in 2009 we traded notes on sports and I recall ringing Hans, sensing an overlap, and Hans asked “Is he left-handed?” But it took me five more years to put us all in the same room.
Not sure if I will see Coach Hans or Neighbor Nick at either tonights or Tuesday’s games, and yes I realize advocating for St. Francis v. San Ramon in a high school hoops classic means taping the Stanford v. Maryland Terrapins football bowl game, the Foisted Fur Shur or whatnot — I put in a media request for Plastic Alto to have a place in the press room but was told by Doug Kelley the former Davis sports pr guy that the deadline was passed, which saved him from telling me that claiming John Paye is considering not running for office does not make me Red Smith.
Here is WCAL preview by John Reid, which has Serra above St. Francis in a tight race.
Here is recent Daily News Peninsula rankings, but it is a bit off topic and notable for having Gunn and Paly 3 and 4, with Serra leading St. Francis. I caught a bit of Pinewood, obviously stronger than Mountain View despite best efforts of Jim Forthoffer, a Cubberley contemporary of Delannoy, who greeted each other. “Are they working, hard?” Hans shouted towards Jim as his team marched by, to dress. “Their working,” he says, and shrugs. Meanwhile the current San Ramon coach said he was surprised at how impatient Davis was in their shot selection, and seemed cheated out of a chance to play defense therefore. His team was 6’10” or 6’7″, 6’4″, 6’3″ to Davis’ 6’5″, 6’4″ 6’3″ at best: well, they were out-muscled, out-sped and smaller, beyond the shot selection or skittishness. Davis brought out a few moms and dads at least.
1. Serra (4-1)
2. St. Francis (3-1)
3. Gunn (5-1)
4. Palo Alto (4-2)
5. Pinewood (4-1)
6. Menlo School (4-1)
7. Los Altos (3-4)
8. Menlo-Atherton (3-5)
Ok, but MaxPreps has St. Francis tonight at #14 in state versus Leigh of San Jose, #892 in state despite a 5-2 start. San Ramon is 9-1, #68 in State versus Pinewood at #348. But I kinda like the Wolves. I will have a better comparison if I go tonight.
Steven Bernstein: trumpet
Ben Goldberg: clarinet, contra-alto clarinet
Paul Hanson: “electric” bassoon
Jeff Cressman: trombone
John Schott: electric guitar
David James: electric guitar
Devin Hoff: electric bass
Scott Amendola: drums
Josh Jones: drums, percussion
*wth special guest:
Ralph Carney: soprano saxophone
Mark Weiss of Earthwise Productions and Leslie DeHaven of Spire Artist Management; Leslie now works as Audacity Mgmt; I sent her a copy of this print, declaring that she brought out my best look. The others looked much worse; I am wearing a Dartmouth sweatshirt formerly worn by basketball coach Dunn, who is 4 inches taller than me.
Beth Custer played an opening set
Ben Goldberg, who later also joined Beth’s Clarinet Thing and Tin Hat, and was a student of Steve Lacy, was so central here that the photog thinks he is Bernstein
I have about 15 other items in my bike bag that I meant to tag to the bottom of the previous post “Jello Biafra w. Laura Grace of Against Me: or, Witness by Dave Douglas”.
And as Cafe Zoe was closing its owner Cathleen Daly was rushing in and then out again carrying of all things, more than 9 cartons or jugs of milk.
I snapped two photos, one with her struggling and one of just the cartons in a case or crate but you will have to take my word on that since she is too modest to let me run her photo.
I did send a version of below or before to Matt Merewitz who is Dave Douglas’ pr guy Fully Altered Media. Never met Matt but I did take a bus from Center City to the office or Lucoff, where Matt once worked. Don Lucoff? DL? It was a nice visit, and I left with about a dozen titles, plus I stopped at the local library and bought a surpluses copy of Hart biography, the Broaday guy. Plus a Hamp biography, the vibes player. Lionel Hampton.
I am off to library later to upload some photos shot by Catherine McLay I think of Steven Bernstein Diaspora Suite in 2009 at Bottom of the Hill, The Earthwise 10th event.
Meanwhile, there are 3 sandwiches here on the counter of Cafe Zoe, to go, for me, Terry and Joe Zirker. Talk about pedestrian, although we are driving.
Happy holy.
I also remember doing some kind of push-poll research on Ambrose Akinmusire — we had a meeting in Santa Cruz — when Matt was repping a keyboard Miles Davis thing and Ambrose had a nice solo on that — to the point that Ambrose might have asked Matt to tell me to stand down. Or whatever Matt told Ambrose about it, Ambrose told me himself. I definitely told Andrew Gilbert that Ambrose would win the Monk. And I could sense Ambrose’s path based on the way that Steven Bernstein’s old pal Peter Apfelbaum held him in high regard, he, and Dayna Stephens.
Laura Jane Grace formerly of Against Me! influential punk band of Warp Tour variety is playing tonight at Slim’s. Steve and Eric Cohen were threatening to go to City last night to see Camper Van Beethoven, whereas I took Coach to see his former charges San Ramon Valley Wolves play — and frankly pulverize — the Davis Blue Devils, 99-62, but now I’m jonesing for noise.
Not sure the draw that the singer for Against Me was known as Tom Grabel and is now wanting to be known at least professional and presumably personally as Laura Jane Grace. I admit I did not recognize the name and only caught a whiff of the story until five minutes ago. I like Slims certainly.
But it reminds me that circa 1999 when Jello Biafra, the founder of Dead Kennedys band and Alternative Tentacles label did a one-man show at Cubberley — a speaking engagement, or spoken word performance and not quite a lecture as much as a poem — his press photo had him wearing an odd t-shirt: Nobody Knows That I Am A Lesbian. His real name is Eric Boucher from Boulder (as compared to Michael Heizer and his Big Friggin’ Rock). The poster I made — which cleverly doubled as a postcard — featured a ripped image of Rebecca Romain in a Got Milk in negative. (Got Milk for your jello?)
Anyhow that is how my brain is working. This is my brain on drugs. Coffee. With Milk.
Meanwhile Laura’s shirt says Don’t Bro Me if you don’t know me, I am guessing
2. the next part
Witness by Dave Douglas with one s as compared to “ass” with 2, esp track 6 the vocal part, for about 3 minutes, although the piece is 15 minutes or more, I bought for $1 at Palo Alto library, presumably I did not buy back my own copy that I had donated – I shed 1,000 or more cd’s recently although the bulk regrettably went to Rasputin’s not the public coffers, hack or churn, but I think I held on to my first copy so I may have two, somewhere. When “Witness’ came out, in 2001, I met with Michaela Myers one of his managers, with Sophie Wang, in Alphabet City and envisioned doing a high profile debut live at Stanford, maybe with Hoover helping to produce, maybe outdoors at El Camino Park, like the Dead back in the day. This went nowhere, beyond Alphabet City and in fact Dave did not like the idea or outdoors. The players are Douglas, trumpet, processed trumpet and AM radio, Chris Speed, clarinet and ts, Joe Daley, tuba, I don’t know, Mark Feldman, violin, Erik Friedlander, cello, Drew Gress, bass, Bryan Carrot, vibe, marimba, glock, idk, Michael Sarin, drums, idk, Ikue Mori, elec percussion, Josh Roseman, I was just talking about, privately, with Akira Tana apropos of the history of jazz in Palo Alto and he can bear witness or bare, carry, offer like bare arms, famously, trombone on only 4 tracks, Yuka Honda sampler (on 2 tracks), Tom Waits voice on a track called Mahfouz and i am guessing that is what drew me in if i drew-gress, to 6. Jamie Saft meanwhile known as organist and jew engineered on that track at Frank Booth in Brooklyn the 718. Who is still counting here?
I have to run out to car to match the case/to the track lasting.
And I do like to tell the story of getting face time with Dave Douglas by offering to be the driver between their hotel on Cowper to campus, Feldman definitely, and this was a Douglas w. Trisha Brown Dance hit, and then Suzie Ibarra, asking me to load in her gear, having arrived separately and who could say “NO!” to that?
2.1 still the next part or the last part
so the above, which is interesting in that the counter seems to indicate I am the first person to view this posted five weeks ago but a performance from 13 years ago, and their are no comments, other than this, and I flash to Susan Wojcicki who I worked with briefly on a silk screen scheme with Helen Sung’s cousin’s future baby-dad from Harvard, very pregnant at 46 in the Times, who could not flash to Susan Wojcicki very pregnant at 46 in the Times? — there is a definite Waitsian quality now that I am looking for it, and a time paradox it reminds me of my tape of Eliot reading Burnt Norton, but I admit I will have to strip in later who is Mahfouz, on internet – -which did not really exist in 2001, not like this, or did not Google — or the liner notes, and maybe I have on file the press kit. I am tempted to email DD to send him this hot mess of a tribute: what are your thoughts on Witness 10 years later? And I think there was a flurry of shows on that topic, or one. Ahead of time. And self-reflexive: I believe Mahfouz says we are stuck with the present until there is a future that displaces the present, or some thing.
The Thing is 25 minutes and maybe by design (or Providence) is such a thing that might take 13 years to take, and here for the long run. I just wrote to Dave via his button on his site although might copy his publicist known to me (and not, therefore “idK”):
Hi, Dave.
I bought a used copy of Witness, my second copy. Not to be a hog but just because I could not resist the bargain.
Was there a show or series, “Witness at 10”?
What are your thoughts not this, 10 or 13 years later?
Could I publish to my blog “Plastic Alto” your short response? I cannot pay you since my blog has 500,000 words but no revenue stream.
I fear that Ethan Iverson “do the math” has more readers. I don’t fear that, i am tipping my hat to that.
Or, did you already publish some thoughts on “witness”.
I hope you recall my enthusiasm for wanting it presented at Stanford.
I think we as a civilization get a D- but not an “F” for how little we have progressed towards peace in this period despite your heroic efforts.
Be well in 2015.
Protect them lips!
Mark Weiss
Earthwise of Palo Alto
former KZSU radio host without portfolio — although I did ultimately produce about 12 segments, mostly on jewish themes
concert promoter, artist manager, now blogger, I also have a comedy monologue about Jim Harbaugh, and a under-actualized and cheap easy tribute to Ginsburg, “Beat Hotel Rm 32 Reads Howl”
650.305.0701
I presume you get the “plastic alto” reference without missing a beat?
(the link was here, but I de-pingbacked-it out)
(the amended title is actually “Laura Jane Grace w. Jello Biafra: or, Witness” and digresses in a internet kind of way, to you)
Should say “reeds howl” or “reeds howl and brass does too”
not done with Witness but moving on briefly to:
3. further
Terry and Mark at Nespresso on Grant in SF, Union Square during Holiday / Shopping Surge, 2014, December:
4. not sure what the connection here between LGBT and WWIII but work with me, peoples:
Against Me! is managed by Danny Goldberg at Gold Village, which also works with Steve Earle – who I like for his Marcos The Early Days Track on David Byrne – and
xxxhmglkugilufuiguhiu
T CHUPPAH HOOPA COUPA
Terry my Terry Terry Acebo Davis the artist and my girlfriend interrupted me mid-thought with is too to do since my synapses are custom-pimped to say Church is over and she is waiting for Mammon to open at Uni and Bryant, around the corner from Greg Brown mural of Spiro Agnew pushing the Norton — talk about indirect Camper reference — and reminds that as we drove home on Xmas Bob Dorough was on KCSM and she hated it, and I didn’t pul l out the defense that he probably influenced Tom Waits. Here is a graph from a guy named David Becker on something AXS about the show or the repertoire or influence, if you excuse the break from Witness w. Gender, evolved from Jello w. Grace; oh, yeah, based on the weirdness of cellphones versus real life I said I was at Zoe and she said she was going by Coupa, but I heard Hoopa which is a town in Humboldt NorCal from which I have a Dartmouth classmate Andre Cramblitt and a tribe or chuppah which is a Jewish marriage band-shell or tent. Also, I mini-fantasized or I’ll flash to that as Don Cherry’s Dartmouth kids would say that Dave Douglas is going to partner with me for Beat Hotel Rm 32 Reeds Howl even though he is on brass and I would pay him double scale I think if he played a plastic alto. Here at Cafe Zoe.
The quintile i think you could say
There is a long riff on football in Plastic Alto and I have to admit, although it is like the proverbial “jumping the shark” I did just send a note to the Dartmouth football coach on a topic and included like five other threads and said something like “sorry to confuse you I studied poetry at Dartmouth when not writing sports for The D”.
And there is a long, long list, in my bike bag, although I did move the Chevy today:
6. and I really don’t know the rationale for a post that is a list of topics versus six posts all on point and succinct:
photos of Saint Francis 38th Holiday basketball tourney, or thoughts or lists
7. still wanting to make a statement about Post Office and VTA Parking lot enforcing the zoning and not privatizing assets: I met a man named Lewis I think a Rotarian who was with me partly on keeping the post office a public asset. In Berkeley, CA they fight hard to keep the post office whereas in Greenwich, CT it is a department store. Results vary.
8. I have a photo of a low-flying plane at night over Palo Alto juxtaposed with a second photo of xmas lights. Ms. Landsman of Palo Alto organizes people working on the remedy for this problem, which I think fits my wheelhouse of people vs. corporate or consolidated power.
9. Ed Sprinkle The Claw in 1955 a footballer of note, obit, compared to mis-identifying the financier and hot dog monger Eliot Shmukler, I called Sprinkler, above. He should be relieved.
and really if you are here either for Witness or Against Me you can scroll thru all this, no worries, no blood no foul. Meanwhile I could shoot and post Chez Franc plumped.
10. Nellie McKay with Cake NYE in San Jo: I should go. They should guest me. I actually had a dream last night or this a.m. about meeting with John McCrea on the road and having this great idea of producing for a cd a fake emcee announcing their show as if a life show when actually a studio joint. Nellie I met in Austin in the lobby of Drexler or whatever famous hotel and put her on the horn with Ian MacKaye — I knew I’d get to MacKaye from Laura Jane Grace and Jello Biafra. Anyhoot, Nellie has a Billy Tipton — god, this fits so much better than I had ever fantasized ! ! ! click click click — piece and I think also a Doris Day piece, I should forward to Denny Levett I just met. Clip from Times from Aug. 9 o fun known year)
11. SI NBA preview with CAVs on cover: Love, Irving and James.
12. I also have the second half of De La Salle v. Centennial — I am saying the score was 55-45 — cued up on the viewer and mean to write for reals about that. I should try to focus my thoughts one more time on Titans 2015 as well. Watching the fictional account of De La Salle made me want to watch high school football this year.
13. I borrowed from library SI with Kapernick on cover: it glosses Harbaugh saga and has a novel construct: Jim is a turnaround specialist so his tenure is 4 years or less. Which actually fits well his Paly tenure of junior and senior years only. What was Jim Harbaugh like as a sophomore varsity athlete in Michigan?
14. picture of Mark Weiss that’s me and Jim Yardley at Braves v Giants game in Atlanta circa 1992, both wearing SF lids and me with some political pop t-shirt I cannot identify. Sic transit gloria.
15. black and white print I may have already published of a Cocker Spaniel owned by cousin of Brian Gaul at Eagles Mere, in the Poconos in 1988. Brian did not remember the dog. I have a stack of prints from that roll: NYC, Metropolitan Museum, some masterworks, and Eagles Mere. Plus Ben T. Clements the future prosecutor, we three Ds.
16. similarly, a set of 9 Poloroids of Paul Weiss and Mark Weiss that’s me at 49rs game, from our lower box, section 20, circa 1990. Mainly notable for how young we look, me at 30 not 50, he at 70 not 90. 1, I’m Number One, with scoreboard North Endzone in bg; 2, high five, scoreboard says TOUCHDOWN; Oh, it’s my dad and the man who sat next to us for years, was a parole officer and always carried a list of his picks vs those of his buddy. Irwin. 3, Paul, Irwin and Irwin’s wife during Athem, by Leslie Something; 4, a sky banner above Candlestick, I think I once sent a similar shot to Jeff Goodby, since it was a car ad; 5, 49ers cheerleaders; 6, closer but still not cigar, and sometimes a cigar is just a cigar, of 49ers girls, I must have walked to front of section; you can almost see the red zone play; who are the teams?; 7, the action, near midfield — maybe John Paye is in these photos; 8, dad, in profile, crowd leaving or entering the stadium; 9, Dad, shot from car interior, standing in parking lot, west of stadium.
17. and i am vivid in my recollection of meeting with Dave Douglas, I had noted that he was on the schedule or Trisha Brown Dance was, at Mem Aud which I knew was basically the same building as housed KZSU so i hoped that the proximity would permit Dave to sneak away and be interviewed on his own work. KZSU did not have an jazz-speaking air-talent available that exact day and time so I was enlisted to do the dirty deed; I was only suggesting it. (I knew the promotions department and a few dee-jays since they announced news of my concert series). But what I am recalling is that when I came for David he had been backstage somewhere just practicing, keeping his lip and they sometimes say I think it is reeds more than brass who say “embouchure” the French word for “keeping your lip” and I recall noticing that his upper lip had a noticeable dimple on dent on it, from his instrument which is indeed brass. I am saying or comparing or imagining in my faux naive way: here I am typing away, hunched over, in a chair, and just letting fly, or letting it bleed, my fingers are not that fast to go airborne, and not editing not crafting per se, one draft, one world – -is this even readable? do ivar? Gertrude Stein well before the cybervoid said “i write for myself and strangers” but I do sometimes sent this along via email. Teasing. Tempting, and yes annoying. What was Dave playing backstage? A perfect version of “salt peanuts” or just something that would work his lungs and his lip?
18, but relates back:
here is Mahfouz, whose dates are 1911 to 2006 and was Egyptian and won the Nobel Prize for literature: know I want to know whether it registered with Dave Douglas five years after his cd came out the news of the passing of the man? this man, i mean:
how long does the first part last and when do we get to something better? which is a bowdlerized Mac Macaughanism who has a small jazz label and had a horn part on his rock abloom out of Chitown with Ken Vandermark — not sure the Dave Douglas Ken Vandermark nexus, and yes I did suggest what became a Dave Douglas Bill Frisell dream duo — ok, this is my pops:
the kid stays in the pic, even while shooting from the car, which is a wim wenders notion
PART 19:
me Today at 1:55 PM
To
Dave Douglas
CC
Taylor Ho Bynum Donald P. McCaslin
Thanks for the response, and all the info, the lowdown.
Sorry to write about you in such a weird context (Jello Biafra, Laura Jane Grace).
I will try to listen harder to the Mahfouz piece and write more plainly.
Between Dave Douglas per se, Greenleaf, and FONT, wow that is a virtual and metaphorical Himalayas of work!!!
May I reprint this in my blog (the one with 500,000 words and no readers)?
Good on Donny, I’ve caught him a few times, since I’ve seen you.
I did a wee bit of work with Taylor Ho Bynum his bike tour, cool guy!!!
Best for you in 2015.
Mark Weiss
in Palo Alto
I cannot remember the exact timing but Stanford had a good talent buyer Jen Bilfield for a while, now she’s in DC.
Plastic Alto blog name references Ornette Coleman and his Grafton (acrylic = plastic), but it also covers local politics. Some are saying it’s too caustic a name. And its an obscure reference to jazz; it started when we Palo Alto traded the rights for Stanford to develop some of the open space they own and we govern and they gave us a giant astro-turf soccer field in exchange, and I was fantasying about getting a permit to produce a concert there, and then I thought, but never acted on “Can we get Ornette?”
Some day all my thoughts will end in music and not just thought, or not just 3 percent of them…(I’ve produced about 200 concerts, so maybe 2 percent of my ideas culminate in sound)…
I am cc’ing THB and DmC here…
From: Dave Douglas
To: Mark B Weiss
Sent: Wednesday, December 31, 2014 9:17 AM
Subject: Re: witness at 13
Hi Mark!
Buy as many copies of Witness as you like! It will likely be out of print soon. That’s out of my hands!
You’ll be excited to know that there is a new electric band project on the way, called High Risk. Working on it right now, going to be really cool.
Last time I did Witness was at my 40th birthday (how time flies). After that (in 2003) I retired most of the bands that started in the 90s: Tiny Bell Trio, Parallel Worlds, Charms, Sextet, Quartet, Sanctuary, Moving Portrait, Witness, El Trilogy, like that.
Then I began the mountain that is Greenleaf Music–not only my own projects, but supporting the work of others. That’s also right about the time that Festival of New Trumpet Music incorporated as a nonprofit charity (please help if you can! http://www.fontmusic.org), in order to present, commission, and support emerging trumpet music of all styles and communities. This is how I choose to serve my community now.
I have been doing the first quintet (The Infinite, Strange Liberation, Meaning and Mystery), and now this new quintet from Time Travel and Be Still. Brass Ecstasy, Keystone, Mountain Passages, Riverside, Soundprints with Joe Lovano, duos with Uri Caine, special projects, more. Fantastic to have an umbrella under which to do all these things, though perhaps not with the fanfare I had at a major label. Tant pis!
Glad you are listening! Thanks.
Dave
On Dec 28, 2014, at 1:24 PM, Mark B Weiss wrote:
> Hi, Dave.
>
> I bought a used copy of Witness, my second copy. Not to be a hog but just because I could not resist the bargain.
>
> Was there a show or series, “Witness at 10”?
>
> What are your thoughts not this, 10 or 13 years later?
>
> Could I publish to my blog “Plastic Alto” your short response? I cannot pay you since my blog has 500,000 words but no revenue stream.
>
> I fear that Ethan Iverson “do the math” has more readers. I don’t fear that, i am tipping my hat to that.
>
> Or, did you already publish some thoughts on “witness”.
>
> I hope you recall my enthusiasm for wanting it presented at Stanford.
>
> I think we as a civilization get a D- but not an “F” for how little we have progressed towards peace in this period despite your heroic efforts.
>
> Be well in 2015.
>
> Protect them lips!
>
> Mark Weiss
> Earthwise of Palo Alto
> former KZSU radio host without portfolio — although I did ultimately produce about 12 segments, mostly on jewish themes
> concert promoter, artist manager, now blogger, I also have a comedy monologue about Jim Harbaugh, and a under-actualized and cheap easy tribute to Ginsburg, “Beat Hotel Rm 32 Reads Howl”
> 650.305.0701
>
> I presume you get the “plastic alto” reference without missing a beat?
>
> (the amended title is actually “Laura Jane Grace w. Jello Biafra: or, Witness” and digresses in a internet kind of way, to you)
Weiss, Lisa, New Esterházy Qtet, Sat., Jan. 4 4pm happy 2015 @ All Saints Palo Alto
part two edit to add or the next day: although part of this exercise was too so quickly post, and from my mobile device, I did cut from their site this crop, including, if logic holds, Lisa Weiss the violin:
My dad and I went to see “Old Hats” the Bill Irwin David Shiner clown vehicle, which deserves it’s own post, but instead I am doing a quickie about shooting James Lipton walking past me going to the Saint Francis Hotel for a reception in honor of Robin Williams, after a gathering of friends and family at the Curran Theatre. I stepped into the street for some air and immediately started shooting a short video of the people exiting past me, without realizing what it was. I merely noted they were well-dressed for theatre-goers or theatre-exiters, as the case may be. I did not spot any celebrities. I actually started singing for some reason, in imitation of the doo wop group that often gathers on that block of Geary. But something told me to cool it, and I turned off the camera and stopped singing. Something else might have made me think “Robin Williams” and I respectfully stepped back into the lobby.
But I spied James Lipton thru the door and snapped one quick photo.
When I look at the 30 second video, I actually don’t recognize any of the faces.
Research says that Lipton is 86 himself, and footage of he and the comedian were used in some of the tributes. When Lipton asks Williams about Heaven he jokes that God will tell a joke about “two Jews go into a bar…”.
I heard from staff of ACT that Bill Irwin was part of the mourners directly before his matinee hit. Paul and I attended a lunch beforehand that featured the Foley guy. I told people that I caught an earlier version of “Fool Moon” in Los Angeles because I had met the drummer Rob Ladd from Red Clay Ramblers in Chapel Hill, in 1992. Further research there and about this topic say that Williams and Irwin have cameos together in drag in Bobby McFerrin “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” video.
The day I heard about Robin’s demise, I posted a quick tribute that was an indirect Actor’s Studio reference: the Ork swear-word “Shazbot“.
2. backed with: Yahoo directed me to Slate with directed me to whoever dot come Anastasia Browning and her exemplary tattoos, including one that says “Can’t Touch This’
And I comment on the site “I can’t touch this but can I cut and paste?”
photo by Duggan and LAUREN PERLSTEIN.
edit to add, hour or so later: on the other hand, I am only so sure that is James Lipton.
My nephew Ben the scientist and musician gave me War on Drugs “Lost in the Dream” for Xmas. The card referenced “the eighties”. The original war of drugs was a Reagan-era effort to social engineer but backfired and enabled the organized crime syndicates, without doing much to help the junkies. It helped the prisons, and the private investors in such, I’m sure.
Maybe Adam Granduciel (Granofsky) is the voice of his generation, closer to Ben’s than mine, as I still look to Adam Duritz or John McCrea (more than Les Claypool) as people who epitomize the part of me that does not want to be co-opted, although I am getting a lot of mileage in recent times re-visiting Bob Marley and Nina Simone. And a bit of red herring but I finally bought Dennis McNally’s 2003 account of the full history of Grateful Dead. (Oddly my dad, 90, asked me the other day if I had ever presented GD; no, Dad, that was Bill Graham. I had Papa Mali sing a Jerry cover in Palo Alto once, and tried to do a listening party for an unearthed Mother McCree Uptown Jug Champions tape, but otherwise was late to party to cash in on Jerry).
There’s also a sixties era pun, the war, on drugs, which to me conjures the FFC version of Vietnam War, with the troops on drugs.
Meanwhile, coinkydinky or providence, I was in Mitchell Center using the share system and trying to screen or research the Bob Marley chestnut “War” which it turns out is a near-verbatim, literally, transformation of a Haille Selassie speech. Until we get beyond judging people by the color of their skin, and I am paraphrasing, there will be war. (War on bigotry, war on injustice). (And yeah, I’ve met the odd Eritrean who thinks of Selassie as a despot; it’s a big world).
As I sussed further, I realized that the famous or infamous Sinead O’Conner meltdown on SNL, where she offended Catholics by denouncing the Pope, actually featured a version of the same Marley song.
An overly pushy librarian castigated me for playing the song on my feeble smart phone; then I noticed an elder with a WWII cap with medals on it and and I chatted him up a bit; this, too, drew the ire of the librarian. No one was complaining, mind you, just he liked to enforce his rules. I felt the elder, given his service to our country, deserved better than the scolding.
My views on war are complicated and nuanced, but generally speaking we undervalue the effect of the war; why are there 7,000 Americans dead over Iraq and Afghanistan?
Until there is peace on earth and prosperity for all, we say war.
Here is WOD live on KEXP, same song, “Suffering”. My quick take is that they are from Philly and Brookly, Secretly Canadian, booked by Ryan Craven and maybe have some connection to UArts Philly which reminds me of Man-Man but this band is more mellow. like Dog or whatever. Last Drop. They have a list of guitar stores in their liner notes: Main Drag Music, Brooklyn; Richard’s Music, Lawrence, KS.
This is their fourth album and has 141 reviews on this site:
The music critic for the local Inquirer had it number one on his Top 10, while my favorites Spoon were only honorable mention: The year saw no better argument than this for the power and potential of the album as a musically cohesive piece of work. You don’t have to be a Philadelphia homer to put Lost in the Dream on top of your list. Adam Granduciel’s ebbing and flowing tour de force expertly moves from interior turmoil to the adrenaline release of the open road, drawing equally on classic-rock touchstones such as Dylan and Dire Straits and the trancey motorik beat of German bands like Kraftwerk and Neu! Album of the year.
War On Drugs is more of Nixon era mindset than Reagan, deeper rooted:
The War in Vietnam
From 1963 to the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, marijuana usage became common among U.S. soldiers in non-combat situations. Some servicemen also used heroin. Many of the servicemen ended the heroin use after returning to the United States but came home addicted. In 1971, the U.S. military conducted a study of drug use among American servicemen and women. It found that daily usage rates for drugs on a worldwide basis were as low as two percent.[76] However, in the spring of 1971, two congressmen released an alarming report alleging that 15% of the servicemen in Vietnam were addicted to heroin. Marijuana use was also common in Vietnam. Soldiers who used drugs had more disciplinary problems. The frequent drug use had become an issue for the commanders in Vietnam, in 1971 it was estimated that 30,000 servicemen were addicted to drugs, most of them to heroin.[8]
If this is not too big a pivot or reach here is the 1963 text of speech to UN by leader of Ethiopia that became years later a Bob Marley joint:
That until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned; That until there are no longer first-class and second-class citizens of any nation; That until the color of a man’s skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes; That until the basic human rights are equally guaranteed to all without regard to race; That until that day, the dream of lasting peace and world citizenship and the rule of international morality will remain but a fleeting illusion, to be pursued but never attained; And until the ignoble and unhappy regimes that hold our brothers in Angola, in Mozambique and in South Africa in subhuman bondage have been toppled and destroyed; Until bigotry and prejudice and malicious and inhuman self-interest have been replaced by understanding and tolerance and good-will; Until all Africans stand and speak as free beings, equal in the eyes of all men, as they are in the eyes of Heaven; Until that day, the African continent will not know peace. We Africans will fight, if necessary, and we know that we shall win, as we are confident in the victory of good over evil. – Haile Selassie I
And here is the Marley’d version of the same set of i and i ideas:
Until the philosophy which hold one race superior / And another / Inferior / Is finally / And permanently / Discredited / And abandoned / -Everywhere is war – / Me say war.
That until there no longer / First class and second class citizens of any nation / Until the colour of a man’s skin / Is of no more significance / than the colour of his eyes / – Me say war.
That until the basic human rights / Are equally guaranteed to all, / Without regard to race / – Dis a war.
(compare to both “not one of my seed shall sit on the sidewalk and beg your bread” and “I feel like bombing a church, now that I know the preacher is lying”)
And I do not know if it is totally normal or a coincidence that as I clicked on this youtube video it offered me an advert for War On Drugs the same cd I am trying to review or gloss here. (And also, less than 2 months ago, at a panel of people running for Palo Alto City Council, I both read from and later sang a Billy Taylor-penned Nina Simone song: I wish I knew how it would feel to be free).
Sinead’s career basically fell off the tracks because of this, although with the more recent attention and acceptability about the Catholic church and its abuses, she was more like a prophet:
There’s also a riff about Kris Kristofferson standing by her, and singing with her, as she suffered a backlash — at a Bob Dylan tribute concert — and he says “Don’t let the bastards get you down”. I actually met KK’s son and grandson at the same Mitchell Center a few weeks back.
Sinead we learn in 2005 or 20 years later went to Jamaica Tuff Gong Studios and did a group of covers including “War” although it is not obvious whether she used the Marley/Selassie lyrics or her modified “child abuse” ones. Reminds me, if I can digress from further War on Drugs to Bob Marley to Sinead to other reggae RAS, I met Burning Spear in the Kennedy Airport while on tour and chatted him up although I had no idea who he was, I mistook him for the tour manager or personal manager for the band. He was very DIY and like “call me, me” for a gig but I mistook that for meaning that he was the manager. Of course an actual Burning Spear fan would have known him instantly. I think I said something as ridiculous as “I can tell you are a group of reggae musicians on tour, what is the name of your project?” To be clearer: there is no one in Pink Floyd named Pink, but Burning Spear is Burning Spear.
And this is pretty far from War on Drugs — or not – but if I say Man Man above I can say Mau Mau below — Winston Rodney is called Burning Spear in reference to the first president 1964 of Kenya Jomo Kenyatta, while Malcolm Welbourne of Shreveport and Austin is known as Papa Mali thanks to Burning Spear: war, we say war.
Osie Johnson was a jazz drummer.
A.C. Johnston, aka Alan Cope Johnston or, and he said I could call him Ace Johnson, is managing partner of MoFo and got 6,000 votes (to my 2,150) in the race for City Council.
Ace is a Yale’68 and then got his JD from Harvard.
Osie played at the Harvard Union, in 1958.
Plastic Alto with Mark Weiss 