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Thursday Open Thread

By Jeralyn, Section Blog Related
Posted on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 02:39:45 PM EST
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Not at a computer for a while. Here is an open thread, all topics welcome.

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    Thursday Open Thread | 55 comments (55 topical)
    Levon Helm.... (5.00 / 4) (#1)
    by kdog on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 02:52:31 PM EST
    deserves top billing.

    Memorial Midnight Ramble... (5.00 / 1) (#39)
    by kdog on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 09:48:03 AM EST
    planned at my crib tonight.  Luggin' the stereo out to the yard, gettin' some wood crackin' in the fire pit, a bottle of whiskey, a sack of green, some friends and the Levon Helm catalog.

    Seems very fitting to be 4/20.

    When I Go Away

    Don't want no sorrow
    For this old orphan boy
    I don't want no crying
    Only tears of joy
    I'm gonna see my mother
    Gonna see my father
    And I'll be bound for glory
    In the morning
    When I go away


    Parent

    Notwithstanding the bias of certain bloggers... (none / 0) (#2)
    by magster on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 02:58:10 PM EST
    ... towards Den Henley re greatest drumming lead singers, my vote goes to Levon. Will have to watch the Last Waltz again tonight or this weekend.

    The Night they Drove Old Dixie Down

    Parent

    I second that motion... (5.00 / 1) (#3)
    by kdog on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 03:01:25 PM EST
    Here's one of my faves in the youtube catalog...a jammed out Kings Harvest from the Festival Express doc.

    Parent
    In their Woodstock Prime (5.00 / 2) (#4)
    by Dadler on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 03:15:06 PM EST
    The Weight. (link)

    RIP, Levon.

    Parent
    I love their remake of ... (5.00 / 2) (#6)
    by magster on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 03:42:31 PM EST
    When I Paint my Masterpiece.

    Parent
    Hell yes.... (5.00 / 1) (#8)
    by kdog on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 03:54:41 PM EST
    best version ever...and I love the lyric change from "Boticelli's niece" to "pretty little girl from Greece".

    They had a way of putting a stamp on covers..."Long Black Veil", "Don't Do It", countless others.

    Parent

    Yup. Song reminds me of fallin' for my wife. (none / 0) (#10)
    by magster on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 03:59:25 PM EST


    Parent
    I dig the hell out of that version (none / 0) (#22)
    by jondee on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 07:31:57 PM EST
    Ain't Got No Home on Moondog Matinee..

    Parent
    And 'I Shall be Released' (5.00 / 1) (#25)
    by ruffian on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 07:55:39 PM EST
    Love the harmonies on that one too.

    Parent
    Not much Levon screen time till the end (none / 0) (#26)
    by ruffian on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 08:10:37 PM EST
    But good stuff

    Parent
    The Band first knocked my socks off (5.00 / 1) (#16)
    by Peter G on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 05:43:53 PM EST
    on January 20, 1968, when I saw them as Bob Dylan's back-up band at Carnegie Hall, NYC, for the Woody Guthrie Memorial Concert.  They performed four Dylanized versions of Woody Guthrie songs.  All superb, of course.  This one may be most appropriate today.

    Parent
    Their harmonies are just so unque.. (none / 0) (#24)
    by jondee on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 07:40:14 PM EST
    wood, earth, wind, and water..

    Those guys were just so down to earth; in all best senses of that expression..  

    Parent

    Sometimes I think... (none / 0) (#38)
    by kdog on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 09:27:47 AM EST
    I'd give my left nut to have been 21 in 1968 as opposed to 1998...I hope you realize how truly blessed you are to have come of age in the golden age of rock-n-roll music!

    To think the majority of my generation and the one behind really have no clue...foolish suckers.

    Parent

    Yes, I do appreciate that, KDog (none / 0) (#54)
    by Peter G on Mon Apr 23, 2012 at 01:03:04 AM EST
    Although I was 19, not 21, in 1968. I have mentioned here previously the evening I went to see Simon and Garfunkel at Forest Hills Stadium, and the opening act was The Doors.  I have not mentioned, I think, the night of my high school senior prom (in northern NJ), which we left early to venture into Manhattan to see Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention playing in a little club in the village.

    Parent
    Another of my rock band experiences (none / 0) (#34)
    by Repack Rider on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 11:58:10 PM EST
    I was embedded in the SF rock scene as a roadie.

    The band I worked for, The Sons of Champlin were second on the bill when The Band made their first public performance after the release of Music From Big Pink.  An anomaly, they were a huge hit on the basis of their recordings, but had never performed or toured as a group.

    The show was at Winterland in San Francisco, in 1969.  Opening act was an all woman band, the Ace of Cups, then The Sons.  Needless to say, it was one of the most anticipated rock shows of the year.

    When The Sons were winding up their set, Bill Graham came out on the stage and told them to keep playing, The Band wasn't ready.

    The guys gladly added 20 minutes to the climax of their show, but eventually ran out of presentable material and retired.

    The set change took most of an hour and the crowd was dangerously restless.  The Band finally took the stage, played six songs, and left, no encore, to somewhat mixed response.

    It turned out that Robbie Robertson was unable to walk out of the dressing room, for one of several reasons I have heard postulated, either crippling stage fright, flu, drug overdose, you pick.  I'm told there was even a hypnotist in the dressing room trying to sort things out.

    It was a three-night gig.  After the rough start, the next two nights they were on their game and rocked the house.

    I worked on one other show with The Band, during the summer of 1974 when we toured with Leon Russell.  It was at The Orange Bowl, July 4, 1974, and the bill was The Band, The Eagles, Leon Russell, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Sons of Champlin.

    Parent

    .. see the man with the stage fright.. (5.00 / 1) (#41)
    by jondee on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 10:09:16 AM EST
    ..just standin' up there givin' all his might..

    Parent
    The stories you must have! (none / 0) (#37)
    by kdog on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 09:25:10 AM EST
    The Band were definitely a musician's band.

    Parent
    As long as we're on the subject ... (5.00 / 2) (#9)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 03:58:33 PM EST
    ... of one of life's milestones, death, I'd also like to note the recent passing of two men, each uniquely notable in their own respective fields of entertainment:
    • Actor Jonathan Frid, 87, whom many of you might remember as the vampire Barnabas Collins of the Gothic '60s soap opera Dark Shadows, and who, as though true to form, died last Friday -- the 13th; and
    • Musician Greg Ham, 58, of the Australian band Men at Work, whose woodwind riffs on the songs "Land Down Under" (flute) and "Who Can It Be Now" (sax) provided -- for me, at least -- two of the more memorable moments in '80s rock. Further, most of us would've never known what vegemite was, were it not for Men at Work.


    Men at Work... (none / 0) (#12)
    by ScottW714 on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 04:25:50 PM EST
    ...definitely had a year in my coming of age story.  Ham hasn't done much, got tangled up in a copy right mess over "Down Under", but Colin Hay continues to put out great music.

    Parent
    I found it rather interesting that ... (5.00 / 1) (#17)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 06:06:03 PM EST
    ... this copyright dispute didn't surface until nearly 30 years after "Down Under" first soared to number one on the American and British music charts.

    Turns out that it was only after the publishing house Larrakin Music bought the rights to the song "Kookabura" from composer Marion Sinclair's estate in 2008, that a lawsuit was subsequently filed in 2009, claiming that Ham and "Down Under" co-composer Colin Hay lifted the flute riff directly from "Kookabura."

    It should be noted that "Kookabura" was first written by Ms. Sinclair way back in 1932, and that neither Ms. Sinclair (who died in 1988) nor her heirs ever made any fuss about "Down Under," when it was first released as a single back in 1981.

    That's one for inclusion in my "Why People Hate Greedy Corporations" file.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    Yeah (none / 0) (#40)
    by ScottW714 on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 09:52:17 AM EST
    And from what I read yesterday, this seems to have taken a huge toll on Ham.  He has stated that all his life's work boiled down to him 'stealing' this one riff.

    The article also alluded to his depression and how it may have played a role in his death, I sure hope not.  He and his band brought a lot of joy to this youngster's life with crazy lyrics of vegemite sandwiches and weird tales from a place called Down Under.  At the time, Australia seemed like some place magical, all thanks to Ham and his cohorts.

    Parent

    That dispute has always reminded me of the (none / 0) (#42)
    by Farmboy on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 10:59:53 AM EST
    "Happy Birthday to You" royalty issues. Those performance rights became an issue over a century after the original version of the song was written, and as in the MaW case, only because a copyright troll latched upon the rights to the song as a way to make money for nothing (apologies to Dire Straits).

    One outcome from this is that I've heard of elementary teachers who won't allow "Happy Birthday" to be sung in the classroom for fear of legal reprisal.

    Parent

    Wisconsin (none / 0) (#44)
    by ScottW714 on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 11:41:34 AM EST
    I went up there last summer and the lady working at the phone both in Walgreens wouldn't print off a couple year book photos and a newspaper picture because of some copyright non-sense.

    It was my brother's bday, and I ended up going to several places before someone who would do it.  I hate small towns and really starting to hate copyright BS, it's gone too far.

    I understand that while technically right, it was absurd that a pictures of my brother can't be reproduced, even for/by him.  Someone can own the copyright on an image of another seems nutz.

    And this business of trademarking words, names, and phrases, is ridiculous, I would use ridonkulous but I believe it's actually trademarked.  

    Parent

    that is completely ridiculous (none / 0) (#49)
    by DFLer on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 04:27:29 PM EST
    and no one would ever come after a classroom for performance royalties.

    Once a song is published, anyone can sing it. They're just supposed to obtain a license to: a) put on a cd for sale or b) perform live for pay.

    Parent

    Is it just me (5.00 / 3) (#11)
    by CST on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 04:17:46 PM EST
    or is the latest pope a real piece of work?

    "The Vatican has appointed an American bishop to rein in the largest and most influential group of Catholic nuns in the United States, saying that an investigation found that the group had "serious doctrinal problems.""

    "Her group was also cited in the Vatican document, along with the Leadership Conference, for focusing its work too much on poverty and economic injustice, while keeping "silent" on abortion and same-sex marriage."

    "And while the Vatican was investigating the Leadership Conference, the Vatican was also conducting a separate, widespread investigation of all women's religious orders and communities in the United States."

    Nope, it's not just you (5.00 / 1) (#13)
    by sj on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 04:40:50 PM EST
    He is indeed a piece of work.  Nasty bit of business, that man.  Just an example of priorities:

    Her group was also cited ... for focusing its work too much on poverty and economic injustice [not] ... abortion and same-sex marriage."
    Can't make poverty an issue while women and gay people can still be oppressed.

    Parent
    Speaking as a good Catholic boy ... (5.00 / 1) (#14)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 04:47:07 PM EST
    ... who's going to spiritual seed, I've long since concluded that the Holy Mother Church herself is a piece of work. Pope Benedict XVI is simply a symptom of a larger infection of its institutional soul.

    I mean, Heaven forbid that nuns would seek to alleviate the plight of the poor and downtrodden, while there are still ever-increasing numbers of happy gay men and women out there, getting married, raising kids and otherwise minding their own business.

    I wonder what my cousin "Father Mike" would have to say about this. But that do-gooder's too busy wasting his time working with the poor and marginalized in East L.A., rather than denouncing the gay and fabulous in West Hollywood. He just better hope that the Pope doesn't hear about what he's doing now, speaking out publicly about the innate inhumanity of sentencing juveniles to life in prison.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    Not Catholic (none / 0) (#18)
    by Ga6thDem on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 06:11:39 PM EST
    but I tend to agree that a lot of this is a symptom  of what ails the church rather than this particular pope. After all, the previous one never really did anything about the pedophile scandal.

    I wonder what the result will be? Maybe some will leave and some will put up with I guess.

    Parent

    The institutional behavior exhibited ... (none / 0) (#20)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 06:34:11 PM EST
    ... by the entire Roman Catholic senior leadership is causing many of the faithful, myself included, to suffer from a collectively acute case of cognitive dissonance.

    Speaking for myself only, it's becoming increasingly difficult to reconcile one's personal faith with repulsive public statements such as the one offered last Sunday by Peoria, IL Bishop Daniel Jenky, who dared to compare the Obama administration's recently announced policies concerning contraception with those promulgated and pursued by Otto von Bismarck, Adolf Hitler and Josef Stalin, among others.

    I get really tired of having to apologize for my own church's leadership, particularly when they seek to influence American politics on behalf of the far right, as they've been wont to do of late.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    Hmm (none / 0) (#21)
    by Ga6thDem on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 06:47:18 PM EST
    maybe it's time for the American Catholic Church to pull a Henry the 8th or a Martin Luther move and separate themselves.

    And yet this same pope told a bunch of rogue Episcopalians that they could join the Catholic Church and keep doing what they had been doing. So this group could use birth control but the people who had been Catholics all their life wouldn't be able to? I would be very ticked at the Pope if that happened and I was Catholic.

    Parent

    recovering (5.00 / 2) (#27)
    by womanwarrior on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 08:33:49 PM EST
    Many of us have been in recovery from Catholicism for decades.  It is like many organized religions full of hypocrites who use religion to preserve their own little empires of power.  And this bunch is outstanding in their hatred of women of strength. It has centuries of preserving male patriarchy behind it. They have very much forgotten and twisted much of what Jesus said.  There are many good people in the church, but not that many in the hierarchy, imho.  

    Parent
    Exactly. (none / 0) (#30)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 10:38:42 PM EST
    There are some very conscientious Catholic clergy out there in the trenches actually doing the Lord's work, all good people, such as my cousin Father Mike, Fr. Greg Boyle (who founded the largest anti-gang interdiction program in the country, Homeboy Industries), and Sister Simone Campbell, the nun whose order was reprimanded by the Pope because they're spending too much time working with the poor.

    It's The Vatican and the church leadership who are the problems here. They could undoubtedly learn a few things from the Father Gregs and Sister Simones of the world, but for their own hubris. Instead, they choose to live in and issue pronouncements from their own little fantasy world, increasingly isolated and detached from the rest of us that have to operate in the real world. Small wonder why ever-increasing numbers of us are choosing to keep our own counsel in many matters of faith.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    As I don't follow the activities of the (none / 0) (#32)
    by sj on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 11:26:09 PM EST
    church I hadn't heard about this.  They unite in their common prejudice against gay and female clergy and the married Episcopalian priests get to keep their own wives and families.  Religion based wedge politics.  Don't you just love it?

    I couldn't find the concession on use of birth control -- I stopped looking because I was already disgusted with what I was reading.

    Parent

    Why anyone gives any credence to anything (5.00 / 2) (#36)
    by caseyOR on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 01:43:15 AM EST
    the Catholic Church says anymore is beyond me. The Church has zero credibility on any moral issue. Politicians should be ashamed of themselves for listening to anything the Church says. Hell, if the cardinals claimed the sun rose in the east, I'd demand clear and convincing proof.

    Parent
    Religion in General... (5.00 / 0) (#45)
    by ScottW714 on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 11:46:20 AM EST
    ...has taken the view of "Screw the works of Jesus, we go an agenda to push."

    No disrespect to christians, but your leaders are making it real hard to take anything they say with anything more then a grain of salt.

    Parent

    Especially because (5.00 / 0) (#47)
    by jbindc on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 01:48:36 PM EST
    "Her group was also cited in the Vatican document, along with the Leadership Conference, for focusing its work too much on poverty and economic injustice, while keeping "silent" on abortion and same-sex marriage."

    Thiose bolded things are actually metioned in the Catholic dogma and teachings.

    How dare those nuns follow in Jesus' footsteps!

    Parent

    Right... (5.00 / 0) (#48)
    by ScottW714 on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 02:15:55 PM EST
    ...last time I checked (never) the word 'abortion' doesn't appear in anywhere in the christian owners manual.  You would think an all knowing being would at least mention it once.

    And the gay angle, funny how they are so militant about one odd mention of men laying together, yet there is a disregard or at least a huge tolerance for breaking at least three of God's actual Commandments.  Hate the gays, 'hell yeah', but working on Sunday... "Well come on, it's the 21st century..."  And not to point out the obvious, but the entire basis for capitalism is built on people coveting other people's stuff.

    Parent

    Oy.. (none / 0) (#46)
    by jondee on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 12:44:59 PM EST
    When it comes to religion at this point in history, imho, we could do very well with dispencing once and for all with the ponderous, authoritarian,heavy-handed, humorless and life-killing tomes of all the so-called 'revealed religions', and going to, and sticking exclusively with, the poets for our spiritual sustenance: there's enough startling, immediate- beauty, humorous-irony and passion in Rumi, Blake, Whitman, and Li Po etc etc to keep the people inspired and sharpening their mental swords for a few lifetimes..

    The hell with all the desert warlords in the sky and their faithful servants..

    Parent

    As I recall, the present Pope was formerly (none / 0) (#28)
    by oculus on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 10:07:25 PM EST
    the previous Pope's right hand man re enforcement of doctrinal conformity.  

    Parent
    Was Ratzinger involved in the (none / 0) (#31)
    by observed on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 11:12:41 PM EST
    anti-condom campaign? I think that JPII himself was very much behind that. As you may know the "condoms cause AIDS" pronouncements uttered by some African bishops were based on Vatican policy.

    Parent
    No info. I was thinking of theologian (none / 0) (#33)
    by oculus on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 11:41:35 PM EST
    Hans Kung's criticisms:  

    link

    Parent

    Happy 100th birthday! (5.00 / 1) (#50)
    by CST on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 04:37:42 PM EST
    Fenway Park.

    Now if only the red sox would PLEASE STOP LOSING TO THE YANKEES.

    Here is a link to a photo I took at Fenway.  I really like it because it's from way out in centerfield, but you get an idea of how small the park is and the vibe that creates.  There is nothing like it.  When there is a red sox game happening, and you drive past the park with the bright lights on, you can feel the beat from the street.  One of the things that makes it so special is that this is a small compact city, and it's right in the thick of it.  You can't be in the area and not know that a game is happening, and feel the intensity of it.

    That's why they can't tear it down.  Because if they did that they would have to move it out of the city, since there is no space in the area to rebuild other than where it is today.  You move it out of the city and it's not the same.  It's one thing with a football team that plays 8 home games a year.  Baseball is just different.  You can't sell out every game if it's being played in Foxboro or wherever.  The area around Fenway park is a huge part of what makes it what it is.

    Also related (none / 0) (#51)
    by CST on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 04:41:22 PM EST
    This is pretty funny.

    "It's Wednesday, April 20, 2112"

    "In the offseason, the Red Sox raised their payroll to $Y500 million (those are Yuan-Dollars) by signing Kevin Youkilis-Brady-Youkilis IV to play third base. They managed to outbid the INFL's New England-Nova Scotia Patriots, who wanted Youkilis-Brady-Youkilis to play quarterback."

    Parent

    Aw, man! (none / 0) (#52)
    by Zorba on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 07:05:10 PM EST
    Please tell me that nobody is talking about moving the baseball stadium!  When we lived in Boston, we were not very far from the Fenway.  A unique area, a unique stadium, and you're absolutely right- it just wouldn't be the same if they moved the Red Sox.
    Great picture, by the way.  

    Parent
    well they have certainly (none / 0) (#55)
    by CST on Mon Apr 23, 2012 at 03:45:17 PM EST
    talked about it.  Before John Henry bought the team it was a real possibility.  They aren't talking about it much these days, but the fact of it is, it's old, and the players don't like the facilities much, and there are plenty of people who don't love the obstructed views/small seats either.

    That being said, the current owners have done a decent job of trying to modernize it in place, and personally, I can live with the rest of it, and it's a sacrifice I'm comfortable with to keep it in Fenway.  Honestly I think just about everyone would be okay with tearing it down and re-building it if it were possible to do so without moving it (and changing the size of the park), without raising ticket prices even more, and without public financing.  Unfortunately, it's not possible to do that, so I'd much rather stick with what we've got.

    Parent

    Agree with this absolutely (none / 0) (#53)
    by shoephone on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 11:22:10 PM EST
    Geography is destiny. The neighborhood really does matter. I still have my Fenway photo I.D. from when I worked there oh so many years ago.

    Parent
    I want to be happy this night (none / 0) (#5)
    by adelinalee on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 03:41:32 PM EST
    I'll take my sandwich.. sit on my sofa... switch on my tv.. Wow.. I see a good film

    Get Free Music and Lyrics

    site violator (5.00 / 2) (#7)
    by CoralGables on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 03:47:53 PM EST
    I presume since everyone would obviously opt for Heat and Bulls tonight (or American Idol)

    Parent
    Lucky you. (none / 0) (#19)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 06:16:08 PM EST
    I get to attend a 7:00 p.m. legislative conference committee meeting at the State Capitol on the State of Hawaii's supplementary budget for FY 2013. Happy Happy Joy Joy.

    Parent
    go heat... (none / 0) (#23)
    by fishcamp on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 07:35:00 PM EST


    Parent
    Now THIS is real house music (none / 0) (#15)
    by Dadler on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 05:33:22 PM EST
    As in recorded in a house.  The Carolina Chocolate Drops and the Luminescent Orchestrii team up for a song called Knockin', which is just soul grooving music of the old school handmade sort.  (link)

    Music: heard Mattias Goerne/Christopher (none / 0) (#29)
    by oculus on Thu Apr 19, 2012 at 10:12:35 PM EST
    Eschenbach in two Schubert lieder recitals at Walt Disney Hall:  Die Schoene Muellerin and Wintereise.

    So stunning, will return Sunday for Goerne/Eschenbach in a Shubert program with L.A. Philharmonic.  

    SITE VIOLATOR! has hit lots of threads. (none / 0) (#35)
    by caseyOR on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 01:38:39 AM EST
    A spammer called liz123 has hit several old threads.

    Seems like just yesterday... (none / 0) (#43)
    by MileHi Hawkeye on Fri Apr 20, 2012 at 11:13:48 AM EST
    but it was thirteen years ago that Columbine happened.  

    Still chokes me up to think about it.

    Thursday Open Thread | 55 comments (55 topical)