Sandman Sims, 86, Tap Dancer and Fixture at the Apollo, Dies. Sandman Sims was a celebrated tap dancer and Apollo Theater legend. By Douglas Martin. [New York Times: Arts]

I only knew the Sandman's singular art through the occasional piece of archival footage that showed up on public TV. Watching him tap and slide always brought a smile to my face and joy to my heart.

 

Say What? [] 4:19:57 PM  Permalink  

Caught in the Squeeze. On Tuesday President Bush signed a bill that will increase the federal debt by nearly a trillion dollars. And the working class is the big loser. By Bob Herbert. [New York Times: Opinion]

Sorry kids, it's not that I'm tryin' to bum you out, but Herbert faces what passes for truth these days head on. Ann and I know too many excellent people out here who have been trying to find work for too long.

Say What? [] 11:44:39 AM  Permalink  

Moyers Reflects on Journalism, Memorial Day. Bill Moyers: On Candor in Journalism. Every Memorial Day I think about what these men did and what we owe... [Dan Gillmor's eJournal]

Moyer's Friday night show, Now, is by far the hippest thing on TV.

 

Say What? [] 11:03:52 PM  Permalink  

Soul of Old Is Breaking Out All Over. A new film by D. A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus documenting the history of soul music is part of a larger revival of interest in the genre. By Elvis Mitchell. [New York Times: Arts]

Well, it's about time soul music got the recognition it deserves, ain't it?. Still, I've got a sinking feeling that they will mostly be preaching to the choir. Let's hope that some younger people find out what they've been missing.

Say What? [] 11:02:22 PM  Permalink  

My friend and doctor, Michael Smith, sent me an incredible link today. It's a site for The Federation of American Scientists. Here's what he had to say about it:

This site appears to be an excellent resource for information that is notreported in the media or grossly underreported. They are an outgrowth of the original Federation of Atomic Scientists who realized the enormity of what they had done and wished to make sure it was used well.

The organization is particularly devoted to undoing the growing full court press for secrecy of this administration. It is well worth using them to be informed and to support them and their agenda.

Say What? [] 11:08:00 AM  Permalink  

Silent 30 Years, a Jazzman Resurfaces. Henry Grimes, a respected bassist of the 1960's who quit playing, returns to the jazz scene after 30 years to perform in New York tonight. By Neil Strauss. [New York Times: Arts]

This is an incredible story, very uplifting, and in the end, music saves one man's life.

Say What? [] 11:34:55 PM  Permalink  

The Songs Remain the Same (or Better). "Led Zeppelin DVD" and the three-CD set "How the West Was Won" are likely the best evidence of just how great Led Zeppelin, on a good night, could be in live performance. By Gerald Marzorati. [New York Times: Arts]
Say What? [] 1:55:42 PM  Permalink  

Prospecting for Gold Among the Photo Blogs. Thousands of bloggers post their photos on the Internet, hoping that strangers will come look at them and comment. By Sarah Boxer. [New York Times: Arts]
Say What? [] 1:54:48 PM  Permalink  

A Moving N.Y. Times op-ed by Ellen Ullman about how cross-generational knowledge transfer is suffering in the software industry with so many programmers out of work. Read it for her encomium to the "mysterious places, wild people, dreamers and tinkerers" that are the sources of innovation. [Scott Rosenberg's Links & Comment]

I am amazed, after spending almost 20 years in the programming/consulting profession, that this did not occur to me. It's like somebody laid off an entire generation of Sufis.

If you don't know who Ellen Ullman is, she wrote one of the best books I've ever read -- "Close To The Machine."

Say What? [] 9:16:15 PM  Permalink  

North shore, Kauai - 1994

Say What? [] 5:19:38 PM  Permalink  

Smooth? How About Some Chunky?. These three new CD's by Roy Hargrove, Russell Gunn and the John Scofield Band seem to predict where the audience for smooth-jazz could go next. By Ben Ratliff. [New York Times: Arts]
Say What? [] 11:41:05 AM  Permalink  

War and Intelligence

Excellent New Yorker interview with veteran journalist Seymour Hersh about the intelligence gang who cooked up the reasons that were fed to the public justifying war with Iraq and the current situation.

And one of the things that's very troubling to me about this Administration, and one of the things that I was writing about in this article, is that this is a group of people who are very much committed to groupthink. They're committed to the notion that they know the truth and anybody who disagrees doesn't. I quote somebody as saying that they see themselves as being on the side of the angels and everybody else as fools. In covering Washington for forty years, I've never seen a group of people who have been so unwilling to hear the other side, who are so quick to see criticism not as loyal opposition but as betrayal.

Say What? [] 6:05:07 PM  Permalink  

George W. Bush's Home State Politics Foreshadow Ugly National Trends. Molly Ivins: Bucking the Texas Lockstep. What planet do these people come from? Carl Parker of Port Arthur used to... [Dan Gillmor's eJournal]

ivins is the best!

Say What? [] 11:39:37 AM  Permalink  

U2, Bob Dylan, Peter Gabriel and . . . Daniel Lanois?. The record producer Daniel Lanois has helped make music that is familiar to millions. As a solo performer, he has attracted a far smaller audience. By Mac Randall. [New York Times: Arts]

great album. stunning beauty, haunting to the core.

Say What? [] 11:42:55 PM  Permalink  

Western Massachusetts, mid-seventies

Say What? [] 1:05:36 AM  Permalink  

Just goes to show you that, as much as I love Salon, Charles Taylor, just like most of their reviewers is a damn fool.

Soul Men (and Women) of Memphis. The surviving stalwarts of the Memphis soul music scene of the 1960's and early 70's are profiled in a movie that is part concert film, part where-are-they-now documentary. By Stephen Holden. [New York Times: Arts]

Only The Strong Survive

From the director of Bob Dylan's "Dont Look Back" comes a tantalizing but profoundly disappointing tribute to Isaac Hayes, Sam & Dave, Wilson Pickett and the other legends of Memphis soul. (Salon)

Say What? [] 12:44:27 PM  Permalink  

Mr. Virtue craps out

If William Bennett wants to gamble, fine. But he and his fellow clay-footed morality scolds should let the rest of us enjoy our harmless vices. (Salon)

A more in-depth look at America's hypocrite-in-chief than the Kinsley piece in Slate.

Say What? [] 10:02:04 AM  Permalink  

More on Bush's AWOL History. Chicago Tribune: Media AWOL in noting irony of Bush's flight. Imagine the derisive merriment in the columns and on the... [Dan Gillmor's eJournal]

 

Say What? [] 11:24:16 PM  Permalink  

British Rock Star Receives Lesser Punishment in Internet Case. Pete Townshend, the rock guitarist, was given a formal police caution and placed on an official register of sex offenders for having gained access to a pedophile Web site. By Warren Hoge. [New York Times: Arts]

See me Feel me   Touch me   Heal me

Say What? [] 11:14:26 PM  Permalink  

Michael Kinsley: The bookmaker of virtues. "Schadenfreude is an unvirtuous emotion of which we should be ashamed. Bill Bennett himself was always full of sorrow when forced to point out the moral failings of other public figures. But the flaws of his critics don't absolve Bennett of his own." [EdCone.com] [Steve's No Direction Home Page]

Say What? [] 12:57:12 PM  Permalink  

The Complete Stax-Volt Singles 1959-1968

Even real estate in Marin County can't compete with this as a great investment

Say What? [] 5:06:41 PM  Permalink  

How Dylan Found His Voice

Big Joe Williams, the East Village, Peyote and the Forging of Dylan's Art

The highpoint of one chat is chiseled into stone. Peyote was still legal. The problem was that it tasted like tiger piss going down. (Counterpunch)

Say What? [] 11:29:06 AM  Permalink  

Only The Strong Survive

 

Hold On, I'm Coming!!! Get ready folks - last year we saw a great film about the Motown house band, the Funk Brothers. I always thought that aside from a few notable exceptions, like Marvin Gaye,  a lot of Motown music was more Pop than Soul. What came out on the Stax label from Memphis, on the other hand, was deep R&B.

Opening in theaters this month is a documentary, directed by the legendary D.A. Pennebaker, about the performers from both labels who keep on keeping on today - Isaac Hayes, the Chi-Lites, Sam Moore (of Sam and Dave), Mary Wilson (of the Supremes), Wilson Pickett, and others.

Say What? [] 12:36:22 PM  Permalink  

Yippies' Answer to Smoke-Filled Rooms

Fred R. Conrad/The New York Times

In her younger days, Ms. Slick once tried to take Mr. Hoffman as her date to a White House tea party, at which they planned to put LSD in Richard Nixon's tea. Though she had been invited to the event — she attended the same small women's college as Patricia Nixon — she and Mr. Hoffman were intercepted at the door.

Steal this brain cell! It's a lucky thing that Jerry Rubin cashed in his stocks when he did... Hey man, call me ridiculous, but given the current scene in D.C., Iwrack, Detroit, Kabul, etc. - this article gently lifted my spirits.

Say What? [] 10:13:00 AM  Permalink  

Sitting at my desk this morning with a cup of Sumatra, I'm looking out at an extraordinary sky of gunship gray behind which a lucky old sun struggles to emerge. Just beyond the dirty window, a lone red Japanese Maple and an Ornamental Pear tree gently rock in the late Spring breeze.

I haven't been out of the house in a week.

Daniel Lanois says that the pedal steel driven "JJ leaves LA" is the loneliest song he has ever written. This is the last track on "Shine", his stunning new album after a ten year pause during which he's produced several works that are destined to become timeless classics. These include "Wrecking Ball" by Emmylou Harris, U2's "All That You Can't Leave Behind", and Dylan's "Time Out Of Mind".

Five stars.

Say What? [] 9:35:50 AM  Permalink