With nothing to my liking on TV last, I whipped out one of the music tapes I made years ago, this one circa 1999, #24. It was culled from the usual sources: SNL, Letterman, Leno, Ed Sullivan and PBS, and features just about every genre. Santana, the artist I’ve recorded the most, appears twice and exhibits his usual brilliance. Elvis Costello fronted the Beastie Boys, rocking out to Radio, Radio on the 25th anniversary of the show. Two blind artists, Ray Charles and Dianne Schuur, did a charming rendition of the Isham Jones, Gus Kahn classic, It Had To Be You. The Eurythmics did a medley of their hits, on which Dave Stewart’s acoustic guitar work was crystal clear. There were several clips from the early Doo-Wop concerts PBS used as fund-raisers, before they became nauseatingly glitzy. I especially enjoyed the Cadillac’s antics during Speedo. Having the closed-captioning running had me laughing at racy lyrics heretofore unrealized by yours truly. And those green suits! This was the period when I first learned of Diana Krall. Her set on Sessions at West 54th Street was phenomenal, an incredible display of artistry and fresh interpretation of standards. The Mothership also landed on that great series - George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic. Not only was the music great fun, the costumes of the huge entourage were colorful and outrageous. One guy pranced about in a large diaper. I also caught a performance of a song from Frank Loesser’s Guys and Dolls I’d previously overlooked, the brilliant Adelaide's Lament, done superbly by Broadway veteran Faith Prince in Betty Boop style: “In other words, just from worrying if the wedding is on or off/ A person can develop a cough.” During a reunion tour, Debbie Harry belted out my favorite Blondie song, Hanging on the Telephone, on The Tonight Show, on which Chris Stein recreated the rip-roaring lead to a T. The tape concluded with a breakneck assault by the Rollins Band, fronted by Henry of Black Flag fame, on a track appropriately titled It's Hard. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen anyone as quick on the fretboard as his guitarist, who looked like Stevie Ray Vaughan. Unfortunately, I was unable to discover his name. For the highlight, I’ve chosen a song that takes rock to a new level, Rhyme and Reason by the Dave Matthews Band. I almost hesitate to do so, as the close-captioning revealed what may be a pro-heroin theme, but the performance is too passionate and the musicianship too beautiful to pass up. I play guitar, but I was completely clueless as to the chords Matthews was playing. I’d guess minor sevenths, but it doesn’t really matter. Whatever they are, the piece is haunting. Enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfJEQo_SNKs
Among Old Simon's donation yesterday was Born Many Times, a book about past lives. I used that theme in a short story, Nowak's Dreams, which is in the A Hitch in Twilight collection. I was unable to determine if the aforementioned was fiction or not, so I researched it on the web. The author, George McMullen, claims to be a psychic who is able to conjure actual scenes involving historical figures. I passed on it, but I'm certain it will attract the interest of customers of the floating book shop, which was rained-out today.
Visit Vic's sites:
Vic's Third Novel (Print or Kindle): http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3
Vic's Website: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/
Vic's Short Story Collection (Print or Kindle): http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/6b86st6
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tiny.cc/94t5h
Vic's Screenplay on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3
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