Posts

Showing posts from February, 2024

I can hear it though the door: MOBY ORANGE

Image
                                            THE MOMENT THAT SHE APPEARED                                            In 1978 I was working as a delivery driver for Kerry's, an office products store (remember those? There were several in downtown Oakland in those pre-Costco and Staples days) I entered into a brief and unfortunate affair - I did that a lot back then. Kerry's was on Broadway in downtown Oakland. One morning, late getting started on my delivery route, I was standing at the front counter looking through the plate-glass window at passers-by (downtown Oakland was bustling then, not the ghost town that it is now) I was surprised to see  The Ballerina stroll past. We had been friendly before but never anything more. I went out to the sidewalk and greeted her. She was quite pleased to see me and, in our brief conversation, I learned that she was working around the corner at the phone company billing office and was on her lunch break. We made plans to meet for lunch the ne

A mellow mood: Have You Seen The Seen?

Image
                                                          Mellow Mood Starting off again with a Norman Famous bass riff, this track slows things down a little. "We're gonna put you in a mellow mood now. So get comfortable, chill out and let the music wash over you like a wave from the ocean of tranquility to the beach of memories not yet lost to the fog of time in time and on time." The MC then backed away from the mic, lit a cigarette and wandered over to the side of the stage. The moon rose above quiet city streets. Car thieves and swing shift workers heading home were the only humans around. Soft rain left a sheen on the asphalt. They say nothing exists if there's no one to see it. There is apparently a smoke shop in Portland called Mellow Mood. "Have You seen The Seen" was my title. It was first "Have You Seen The Seine" because the original idea for Le Bonx to have a French theme for some reason. When that was abandoned I changed it to "H

Sittin' in the shade with a lemonade - Cosmic Anarchy

Image
 "They laughed when I sat down at the piano"                                 The announcer yells: "..and here they are...THE BEATLES!!!" It's raining and it's been raining and I'm tired of rain. I got tired of the drought, too, so there's no pleasing me. "Rain" is one of the best Beatles songs. It was written mainly, if not completely, by John and released as the flip side of "Paperback Writer" (written mostly, if not completely, by Paul). What a great single! The album it accompanied was Revolver. Talk about "at the top of their game"! Of course the Beatles were always at the top of their game - they just kept raising the bar. Ringo has said said that his drumming on "Rain" was his best ever. He certainly played more actively than on most of their records. I think his playing on "She Said She Said" is a little better -  wild 'n' crazy but a little more controlled. I think Ringo's drumming