Why does my cell phone suggest this Seattle photo of the needle from several years ago just after I was discussing the color blue with someone via text messaging?
I bought a Sam Gendel cd on bandcamp both download and on vinyl, because he was in a year-end LA Times story. It looks like he got signed to Nonesuch — a supreme imprimateur — through a chance association and later touring duties with Joachim Cooder and Ry Cooder. His rubbery (their word) version of Mingus et al adds to the story.
My take, for your perusal — see also Adventures of Huckleberry Finn —
There are 225 artists listed on the Nonesuch website which includes catalog and front list current projects.
I wasn’t aware of ever booking a current Nonesuch act but there are five listed that I work with: bill Frisell, jimmie dale gilmore, jeff parker as a sideman in 3 different gropes, wayne horvitz, robin Holcomb though just in one of waynes project and only as a spec consultant; oliver lake solo (member of wsq); nicholas payton only that he guested on a john ellis record i successfully shopped to a different label; mark morris or bad plus only that i booked an ethan iverson solo show — literally stealing him out of a mmdc bubble for a couple hours for a matinee. Don byron only that I interviewed him phoner for KZSU jewish music show within a show; natalie merchant only that allison miller was in her band; i met christian mcbride at iaje and daftly asked him something about stagger lee, plus took Aaron luis levinsons course at Philadelphia school of the arts extension — wait im confusing him with andy blackman ropeadope experiment; im discussing a site specific event concept with a composer i met at sea ranch a Kronos benefit; i managed a brian eno tribute or repertory band that won best cover band in the sf weekly; i announced a free blind boys show but they had to cancel (replaced by such acts as Henry Butler Basin street and femi kuti beng beng beng)
1. Leslie Marie Cook of Los Angeles and Brooklyn, December, 2020, original song “Women On The Wall” making of video in her home studio;
2. Monica Walker, of Palo Alto, busking or singing for fun in the new parking garage near California Avenue, the “Phil Carter” version of “Amazing Grace” — I’m a songcatcher more than producer. I have two versions, one approaching her before she knew she had an audience, and this one, an example of the “observer effect”.
3.
Camila Meza at Stanford in a trio at Bing studio (under ground, so to speak, or literally) — she is from Chile and New York and more to the point is part of a Dave Douglas Overcome project that I sponsored (part of Lions with Wings, my Bandcamp platform, subbing for being a concert promoter, although in this case its on Greenleaf Music’s platform and not Lions with Wings)
“fm” in my headline stands for “female” + “music” — no static at all
LenRay McCalister has died, age 49. His brother Stanley was my teammate for Gunn basketball, and his oldest brother Danny McCalister was a star of the Gunn Titans first championship basketball team, 22-5 in 1979-1980.
There were six McCalister brothers who excelled in football, basketball, track or wrestling for Gunn: Dan, Stanley, LenRay, Shawn, Mark and Lamont.
When Danny died, around Halloween, 2007, in a work accident in Saratoga, CA, there was a huge memorial for him in East Palo Alto. His father officiated.
At the Gunn-Paly basketball game in January, 2008 the school awarded Danny’s mother with a plaque, naming him Hall of Fame – -in some ways it was acknowledging the whole family, or the brothers as a set. Meanwhile, their cousin Mike Scott was the star of the Paly teams, and he stood at halftime with some of the family.
Kent Lockhart, a pro basketball player, knew Danny well, and from Melbourne, Australia sent four jerseys and two baseball cards back home. There was talk of creating a fund to honor Danny, to identify student athletes who had his qualities, who reminded us of him. (There was also a fund for the family at Archbishop Mitty where Danny helped coach girls’ basketball, his daughter Kassandra being a star for the Lady Monarchs).
One of Lock’s jersies was entrusted to Tom Jacoubowsky – it was to be displayed in the new gym. Another jersey I gave to Hans Delannoy, our coach (a Cubberley grad, himself named to the San Ramon High hall).
Maybe with the sad passing of LenRay we can resume the discussion of how to honor the McCalisters.
Just this week there was a meeting about Ventura as a neighborhood; it is being targeted by Sobrato and other real estate dynasties for dense housing, maybe a park.
Not to disrupt the family grieving process, but I hope that any serious planning about changing the character of the neighborhood should consider Black Lives Matter and the history of families like the McCalisters.
What is the Black history of Palo Alto? I have a sense, but I want a better telling of the story.
I am going to try to reach Kent and ask if I should pass on these two sports valuables to LenRay’s family — maybe they can be sold on EBay and the proceeds pay for an obituary in the paper or defray funeral costs per se.
LenRay had a son named Tully McCalister who played for one of Earl Hanson’s championship Vikings teams, and also at Cal Poly Mustangs. LenRay’s first cousin Richard Scott, Gunn 1979, is one of only five baseball players in the history of Gunn High School (founded, 1964) to play pro baseball, in the Pirates’ system.
The internet says this token of our respect might be worth about $500 “Football friends (JG and DM)” by Stacey Carter, 2008, acrylic painting
Edit to add, two days later: I’m watching NFL on a Sunday — both the Niners and the Raiders lose, but there is some solace in the fact that former Gunn quarterback Chris Strausser is probably having one of the best days of his coaching career in that his Colts have run for more than 200 yards. I’ve added this painting by Stacey Carter which was created in 2008 as part of the discussions of the loss of Danny McCalister, the former Gunn football and basketball star. The painting is based on a photo from the 1980 Gunn Olympian yearbook; it depicts Javier Gil and Danny McCalister. (Stacey had created a suite of realistic paintings for the Baltimore Ravens, and I commissioned her to paint something about Danny; the original idea was that Gunn would put it in the boys locker room or the library, as a memorial and to raise awareness about the fund).
I had a talk yesterday with someone who works in educational foundation work. I think when the family of LenRay has a chance to mourn, maybe there can be a discussion of whether these potential initiatives would have meaning to them. My recollection is that 20 people came to a pizza parlor after the Gunn-Paly game 13 years ago, in support of this concept. In 2008, it seemed significant to celebrate a Gunn star because Palo Alto High would get more publicity. Now I think it would be more about just helping Palo Alto kids navigate the road from high school to interesting work, especially those who are sports stars in high school and also college. As a sports fan who knows something of the local scene, I would wonder how to tap into the success story of Davante Adams, who also mentored Keesean Johnson.
I paid 18$ to Fay Victor via bandcamp, on the prompting of Dave Douglas’ Greenleaf Music blast. It is the 18th project I have supported in this very convenient manner. I think it is three clicks, maybe four. Meanwhile, I am making some progress with my bandcamp project, Lions With Wings. There is some thought to abandoning the internet altogether and just make my seed money for Lions With Wings into grants for grants sake, in the hopes that someday we will be doing live shows again.
Note: Fay Victor appears with Dave Douglas and others in a project called Overcome that Mark Weiss, Earthwise Productions and Lions with Wings sponsored, but it is available thru Grandleaf Music bandcamp and not Lions with Wings bandcamp.
In Jewish liturgy and culture the number 18 is “chai” which means life. (like in the known expression “l’chaim”, like when we drink a toast); the letters, the “chet” and the “yud” add to 18– numerology. So paying Fay eighteen dollars and hers being the eighteenth such transaction, I am saying is double chai. Meanwhile, and not to totally confused you I am drinking at home from my home office, sitting on a Rauschenberg inspired couch drinking or sipping Philz coffee from a mug I bought from Jan Schacter. I first heard about Fay, I believe, because she has a project with Marika Hughes who once played in my series or twice perhaps with Austin Willacy and Tin Hat. If it was Tin Hat it was the Starewich sequence at the Museum of American Heritage on Channing, circa 2000. I’m also remembering Victor Zenoff z’l who had a sister named Fay. There
Rachel Garlin is a modern folk singer who lives in Noe Valley and J Church goes past her house. Lance Hahn founded the influential and surely missed punk pop band called J Church. I’d love to hear Rachel Garlin cover “My Favorite Place” or “Ivy League College”.
Molly Tuttle meanwhile covered “Olympia” by Rancid.
This is Rachel’s latest; I think its on a compilation curated by Little Village:
Plastic Alto with Mark Weiss 