All Hail The Mighty 'Stache

A single-concept tumblr blog done right.

I defy you to look away.

Smile

The greatest unreleased rock album just had its official release. (Link to the Guardian). I heard one track this afternoon and had to crank it up: the bass guitar line sounded eerily like something Paul McCartney would have played on the "Revolver" sessions. (I keep mixing up the chain of events. Is it Rubber Soul influenced Pet Sounds influenced Revolver influenced Smile influenced Sgt. Pepper?)

Marty On George

Yay!

Martin Scorsese's documentary on George Harrison, "Living in the material world", will air on HBO next week. The trailer is on YT.

There is, however, no truth to the story that Ingmar Bergman will be directing the definitive Ringo Starr bio-pic.

"ALL RIGHT!"

I was "there" for Live Aid. In front of the television, anyway. And yes, kids - Freddie Mercury was just as larger-than-life then as he seems today. In fact, when he and the band performed "Hammer to Fall" that day in July, I was convinced he was 40-feet tall. Just fire up that YouTube video to see what I am talking about.

After that crazy, exuberant singalong/intro, Freddie exclaims "ALL RIGHT!" and the crowd echoes his exclamation so very faithfully. Freddie looks elated at the crowd's response. It's as if he is congratulating the crowd on their joint performance. This is what they mean when they talk about great performers erasing boundaries between themselves and the audience.

But I am not in the stadium. Not even close. I am fifteen years old, watching this thrilling moment unfold on live TV and I just lose my fucking mind. It's the kind of a moment that makes you want to run to everyone and tell them about this thing you just saw.

Now here I am. I just saw the YouTube video again and I want to tell *everyone* about it. So here they are: Queen, playing Hammer to Fall, at Live Aid. I hope you lose your fucking mind.

I'm Floating In A Most Peculiar Way

Early psychedelic rock was influenced by children's literature. So it's fun to see "Space Oddity" rendered as a children's book. Lovely stuff, whether or not you are a fan of Bowie or of children's books. (Via MeFi)

Now where's my "Atom Heart Mother" coloring book? (Just sell it with LSD-soaked crayons...)

Jerry Lieber

"She said 'I'm gonna mix it up right here in the sink'"

"You ain't never caught a rabbit and you ain't no friend of mine"

"You're gonna need an ocean of calamine lotion"
***

Jerry Lieber, R.I.P. Like the greatest of artists, Lieber practiced alchemy: his songwriting transformed the utterly American idiom of rock lyric into a universal language. Only Lieber also invented the rock lyric. ("The warden threw a party in the county jail" - that is terrible law enforcement but what an opening.)

I get the chills just thinking of his discography: Hound Dog, Love Potion #9, Yakety Yak, Stand by me, Smokey Joe's Cafe, Kansas City, Jailhouse Rock...(and browsing around, I learned today that he also wrote "Jackson" and - I couldn't have guessed this one - "Stuck in the middle with you".)

Some obituaries: NYT, Village Voice (page has lots of song videos).

The Dalai Lama: The Rolling Stone Interview

On India's democracy:

"And here, too, I had the opportunity to visit Indian Parliament. I found big contrast. In Indian Parliament, lots of noise. No discipline. This was a clear sign of complete freedom of expression. Indian parliamentarians, they love to criticize their government. So I realized, this is the meaning of democracy — freedom of speech. I was so impressed with the democratic system."

On dialogue:

"Peace will not come from thought or from Buddha. Peace must be built by humans, through action. So that means, whenever we face problem — dialogue. That's the only way."

Finally, His Holiness in full on comedy mode upon being asked whether he will be buried in Potala:

"Most probably, if change comes and it is time to return to Tibet, my body will be preserved there. But it doesn't matter. If the airplane I'm on crashes, then finished! Follow bin Laden!"

The full interview

Stereotypical Teenagers Are Stereotypical

A cousin's fifteen year-old daughter tells me, with a straight face and intensity that only fifteen year-olds possess, "American music is so overrated. I am into South Korean and French Emo-pop these days".

I rolled my eyes, of course, but I also wanted to pat her on the back and say, "Atta girl! You keep that attitude up for another two decades and you will turn into an old hipster like your uncle!"

Later in the evening, I found a bunch of kids, Ms. French Emo-Pop included, sitting at a computer and intently watching Motorhead's "Ace of Spades" on YouTube.

There's nothing funnier than watching a teenager trying on different identities.

Once You Go Black...

Image from a photoshop contest.

Dear Spammer, Always Remember to Use The Active Voice

You know your inner Grammar Nazi has reached its full potential when receiving spam email bothers you less than receiving spam email riddled with typos and grammatical errors (and you seriously consider writing back with corrections).

Which is why I applaud that Nigerian prince in exile who emails me every week - such impeccable language! That, and his convincing business proposition make his emails so much more credible.

Holy, Crap

A most unfortunate juxtaposition seen while driving through a small Southern town:

Arrow-shaped sign nailed to the trunk of a tree: "Church - all are welcome".
Sign planted in the ground at the base of the tree: "Free manure".

Go Man Go

One the one hand, it's starting to smell funky and the flesh is turning a disturbingly deep shade of black. On the other hand, it is a mango.

Oh, the decisions.

We're Not Dead Yet. That's All.

If I hear one more painfully obvious* Rapture/Judgement Day joke on the radio, TV or the Internet today (or ever), I swear I will go postal.

* Making a reference to that REM song title is just as serious a crime.

No Need To Imagine. There *Is* No Heaven.

"In a dismissal that underlines his firm rejection of religious comforts, Britain's most eminent scientist said there was nothing beyond the moment when the brain flickers for the final time."

Well, the good news is that Hawking did not dismiss the existence of the Tooth Fairy or Santa Claus.

But why didn't Hawking explicitly dismiss the existence of Hell? What if there's no Heaven but only a Hell? What if everyone goes to Hell? No, wait, that will make Hell just like earth, except with better heating and more interesting roommates.

The Girl In The Picture

Remember this picture?

NYT has a front-page feature on Samar Hassan, the blood-splattered girl in the photograph. She's now twelve, a school dropout and is still traumatized by the death of her parents.

The story just breaks your heart.

We voted for a change. We voted so that fucking sham of a war would come to an end. But it's 2011 and we are still merrily creating more Samar Hassans. How is that acceptable?

The Desert Island Beat

The BBC has made available its entire archive of "Desert Island Discs", spanning some 60 years. (Very nicely done site, but would it have killed them to include a Grooveshark playlist for each castaway? It's the web, make it work!)

As a concept, Desert Island Discs is so early-20th century. Now, one could simply ask for a Wifi connection (as a luxury item) and just ruin the fun.

Blues For A Good Friday

The crucifixion of Christ has inspired so much art: great paintings, literature and, of course, music. But I want to talk about one song - a song that clocks in a little over thee minutes - Blind Willie Johnson's "Dark was the night, cold was the ground".

This very stark, dark piece features just one acoustic guitar (allegedly a knife was used as a slide) and a few moaned notes. With that sparse setup, Johnson sings about the great tragedy of that night when "His sweat like drops of blood ran down /In agony he prayed".

Now, those words don't actually appear in the song. In fact, Johnson's song does not contain any words at all. Those words (and the song's title) come from an old English hymn called Gethsemane, which served as the inspiration for "Dark was the night". (Wiki has more details).

The song reminds me a little of Hindustani music in its rejection of lyrics. Words can distract us from experiencing the emotion that arises from listening to a pure note or a great melody. In another way, this blues song could also be thought of as a continuation of the same line of thinking that runs through Impressionistic (or Abstract) art. By moving away from forms and shapes - the "words" of a painting - it is still possible to communicate. Besides, what words can truly express the sadness felt at the passing of that kind, decent man?

And so Johnson sings.

Dark was the night, cold was the ground. This is American blues at its finest.

New Paul Simon

I'm quite enjoying the new Paul Simon song "The Afterlife" from his "So Beautiful or So What" album. An excerpt:

"Buddha and Moses and all the noses from narrow to flat, had to stand in the line, just to glimpse the divine, what you think about that?
Well it seems like our fate to suffer and wait for the knowledge we seek.
It’s all his design, no one cuts in the line, no one here likes a sneak"

With a line like "and all the noses from narrow to flat", how can I *not* buy this album? (Though I am just as impressed by the sound of the guitars on this track.)

Coitus Humorous

"Christian’s manroot jumped against her thigh and she imagined it a velvet-tipped iron spear. He would render her vulnerable, she would yield, then he would conquer her with his formidable weapon!" - “Desire” - Virginia Henley

There's a tumblr blog dedicated to collecting excerpts from bad romance novels and it's called, wait for it, Bad Romance Novels. (SFW)

Let it also be known that as a English Grammar and Style Nazi, I find the use of the "!" at the end of the second sentence in the excerpted passage more objectionable than the word "manroot". Just kidding. "Manroot" is easily the worst thing in that passage, followed by "velvet-tipped iron spear".

Yeah, I'm really classing up this place.

First Sign Of Madness

I can hear the "Skype incoming call" sound everywhere. (Coincidentally, I haven't heard the phantom cellphone ring in a few months now.)

Someone's pinging me again.