April 13, 2024 (Movies, Music, Happy Ritchie Blackmore's Birthday)

Hi folks, and Happy Ritchie Blackmore's Birthday. It's actually tomorrow but you can start celebrating now. Can you even believe he's 80? I'll bet he can't believe it either, but he's still out there Doing What He Does, in fact he's playing gigs with Blackmore's Night this month. Ritchie has been integral to my life for 53 years, but of course that goes without saying...

I hope you had a nice weekend and are ready for Easter Week. This book I'm working on (working title "2009") is based, in part, on my diary from that year, but its other "framework" (for Part Two of the book) is a series of notes from an experiment I undertook in 2023-24, which is related to my diary and to 2009 in general. Neither the notes nor the experiment can be revealed at the present time because it would spoil the surprise, but my point is that there are two basic "framing devices" for the book: My 2009 diary (which, for our purposes, will encompass March 2009 thru April 2010). It will be printed in full, and the day-by-day entries will be analysed with the benefit of hindsight. This will bring us to Part Two, where the notes from my recent experiment will be used. Taken as a whole, they are also like a diary or journal, made up of daily entries which, like the diary entries, will also be published in full and examined. This will make up a highly complex story that will run a minimum of 500 pages, and could be as long as 800 (or even 1000). I've learned that 2009 was almost as mindblowing a year as 1989, and as terrible in the ways that are terrible, and that the events of both years are partially connected.

Having enough material for this book is no problem; I've got an avalanche. The problem is telling the story so that it unspools smoothly (or as smoothly as possible) because it has so many twists and turns, and so many participants. Wish me luck. This book is gonna upset several people. I'm questioning if I can even release it. But I know I must write it - to fail to do so would be a sin on my part, and a grave mistake as I head into older age.

Anyhow, let's move on with some movies and a touch of music, shall we? World War Two, anyone? I'm always up for a WW2 flick, and I saw a great one last week called "The Bridge at Remagen"(1969), relentless & brutal, shot by the great Stanley Cortez in dark blues and greys, and featuring grim-faced "stoic" acting by George Segal, and Robert "Man from U.N.C.L.E." Vaughan as a ruthless German Army major tasked with blowing up the Remagen bridge in the last days of the war, to prevent the Americans from crossing into the Rhineland. The problem is that blowing it up will also strand 75 thousand German troops and likely condemn them to death. Ben Gazarra is tremendous in a supporting role as a combat-hardened sergeant who steals jewelry off the bodies of dead Germans, to sell later as souveniers. This pits him against the disgusted Segal....but the attrition of the protracted battle brings them back together. This movie is combat-oriented and reminded me in that way of the great, underrated Vietnam film "Hamburger Hill", in which soldiers know a pointless objective when they see one, but must follow orders regardless. Though not as well known as the star-studded "A Bridge Too Far"(1977) or the Oscar-winning "The Longest Day" (1962), "The Bridge at Remagen" is equally powerful. It has that "you are there" emotional presence of "Platoon" on a WW2 scale. 10/10.

I also went to another Luis Bunuel screening at CSUN's Armer Theater, for "Nazarin"(1959), the story of a priest in a Mexican ghetto who hides a prostitute sought for murder. She and another local woman thus view him as a Saint, but the title is too much to bear and he collapses under its weight. It's the best Bunuel I've seen so far and highly recommended, perfect for Easter time. Another great Easter film is "The Flowers of St. Francis"(1950), directed by Roberto Rosselini.

We mentioned Vietnam movies, and I finally saw Coppola's "Gardens of Stone"(1987), once again on Tubi, my go-to for films I missed the first time around. The mid-to-late 80s was a time for tremendous Vietnam flicks, notably "Platoon", "Full Metal Jacket" and the previously mentioned "Hamburger Hill". Those were mostly combat focused. Not so "Gardens of Stone". When it was released, I read reviews that used words like "somber","psychological", and "deliberate", and I got the mental image of a slow paced, depressing film, with no war action, and despite it being directed by Francis Ford Coppola, I decided to skip it. That turns out to have been a mistake because - while it is a drama rather than an action film - the story is what's important here, and it is well-paced and played. It covers the "toy soldiers" who serve in the burial unit at Arlington National Cemetary. Formally known as The Old Guard, they are ceremonial in duty, but must be squared away at all times. Only the cream of the crop from West Point are accepted. It seems a cushy assignment; a selected soldier can stay there his whole career. He won't be shipped to Vietnam, but that's exactly what DB Sweeny's character wants. He's a top West Pointer with an ancestral military history who sees it as his duty to be in front line combat. James Caan plays DB's Sergeant. He and the Sergeant Major (James Earl Jones) warn DB against this gung-ho mentality: "Listen son, there's no 'front line' in Vietnam, it's guerilla warfare". In other words, there aren't rules, it's a jungle war against an invisible enemy who've been fighting for 1000 years. But Sweeny remains determined to go.

Caan is excellent in the lead role as the classic Sarge, but unlike every other man on base, he thinks this war is run by politicians who don't know what they're doing, and we shouldn't be there. In the first 15 minutes, he meets Angelica Houston, a writer for the WaPo and a hard core anti-war leftist. They fall in love, and that aspect makes the film an old fashioned melodrama not unlike "The Best Years of Our Lives", in how it shows the effect of war on loved ones, i.e. "the folks back home", though this is set in 1968, a  much more turbulent time than patriotic 1945, and the protests against Vietnam are raging. Rock concert promoter Bill Graham plays an anti-war provocateur who picks a fight with Caan and gets his butt kicked, which is cool because Bill Graham was an a-hole in real life. The movie's final shot shows the suffering of the Vietnam wives, who payed an equal emotional price to their husbands' sacrifice. It's not an action war film, but worth watching nonetheless: a drama about burying the dead, and one sergeant's effort to assist a young man hell bent on joining combat.

Is this too many movie reviews? Can you handle one more?

How about "Chappaquiddick"(2017). The lead actor, an Aussie named Jason Clarke, absolutely channels a young, self-absorbed Ted Kennedy, who after the accident is more worried about what his father will think than he is about Mary Jo Kopechne. Some details may have been taken from a book by Kennedy friend Joe Gargan. I'd never heard of him before this film, but he was a close pal of Teddy who helped "deal with" the incident, which happened in July 1969, just a day or two before the Apollo 11 Moon Landing. Judy Garland also died the same day, so Kennedy was lucky in the "news" sense. Chappaquiddick was still in the headlines, but in a slow news cycle it would've been the sole focus. I remember my Mom talking about it. She liked the Kennedys, especially Bobby, but she thought Ted left Mary Jo to drown, and whether she drowned or suffocated (and thus was alive and could've been rescued) is explored in the movie. However, Ted and his team of lawyers are great "fixers". They band together to "solve the problem" so his political career won't be destroyed, and of course that's exactly what happened; he was only charged with "leaving the scene of an accident" and ended up serving 40 years in the Senate, one of the longest terms to this day. Some things are portrayed as unknown, such as whether Kennedy was having an affair with Mary Jo (there's no evidence to suggest this). In the movie, he seems burdened by the expectations of his gravely disabled father, a stroke victim who sees Teddy as weak compared to his three deceased elder sons. Teddy knows he can't compete with their legacies, and all of this is on his mind while Mary Jo is still in the pond.

And yet, Teddy is not played as a monster, or even with a sinister motivation. The filmmakers do show his desire to tell the truth against Old Joe's wishes to use an alibi, yet he can't bring himself to fully come clean. His attempts are half-hearted, it seems more important to save the Kennedy name and his career. He also engages in theatrics such as wearing a neck brace to Mary Jo's funeral. Gargan's book alleged that Teddy at first tried to claim she was driving the car. The accident is portrayed as the result of his desire to escape scrutiny. A long shot shows Teddy's car parked off a lake road, and an island cop, suspecting teenagers making out (or worse) stops to chase them off, not knowing it is Senator Kennedy in the car. This detail must've been in Gargan's book, otherwise it would be wild speculation. Teddy, fearful of having the cop approach his window, starts the engine and speeds off, but as he revs it down the dirt road in the wrong direction to take Mary Jo home (not drunk but probably beyond the limit), he misses the turn for the rickety bridge and goes into the water.

Overall, "Chappaquiddick" is a fair-minded portrayal of the entire incident. The only problem is that Mary Jo Kopechne gets little respect. As always, even with this movie, it's all about the Kennedys. 9/10

Okay, okay...one more. Is that cool? Thanks. I'll keep it brief.

"The Grey"(2011) is a tremendous survival flick (one of the best you'll ever see), that explores the various certain-death scenarios facing seven Macho Men who have survived a plane crash in the Alaskan wilderness. Their main enemy is a pack of bloodthirsty wolves, and this aspect of the film apparently caused controversy when it was released. Lupine behaviorists cried "wolves don't act that way!" But the wolves are almost symbolic. I mean, this is still a hard core Death Movie, fixated on the most horrible things that can befall you, and there really are big, bad ass wolves in the wild ready to eat you alive. And they are amped-up in the movie to be monstrous, but again it's a metaphor for the absence of God, or the power of nature over faith, at least that's what the filmmakers seem to be trying for, and it apparently pissed a lot of people off. I don't agree with the final message, but as horror flicks go, the filmmakers succeded in the same way John Carpenter did with "The Thing". And also, is there a better actor than Liam Neeson? Lately, I am thinking not. If you're ever in a plane crash in Alaska, with giant wolves chasing you, he's the guy you want by your side. An actor named Frank Grillo gives Neeson a run for his money in a "giving up" scene near the end. Dallas Roberts and Bob Dylan McDermot Mulroney are also excellent. 10/10, a must-see, on Tubi. 

A little music: I've been listening to the solo albums of Steve Howe, who also had a birthday this week, his 78th. Two of his albums ("Turbulence" and "The Grand Scheme of Things") take me right back to the early 1990s and put me inside 9032, almost as if the last 35 years have been just the blink of an eye. Ahh, 1991-93, a time of Clandestine Car Rides with Lilly, a wonderful pre-Earthquake era. Life is so weird, because when you are younger, you think of everything as being in front of you, and then 35 years pass and those things are in the rearview mirror, but certain albums and songs can bring them all back and place them "in the present" again. This is what happens when I listen to Steve Howe... 

Finally, do you guys like golf? I do. Me and Pearl used to watch The Masters every year. There is something quite wonderful about the course at Augusta, the gentlemanly nature of the game (the good sportmanship, the absence of showboating seen in major sports), and the ritual of the Green Jacket. We looked forward to it every April, with Spring in the air and the coming of Easter. Today, I watched the final playoff between Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose, and it was amazing to see Rory's reaction to his first Master's Championship. Check it out if you haven't seen it. He's one of the Good Guys in today's athletic world. It's already being called one of the Great Sports Moments and one of the most exciting days in golf history.

And that's all for today. Thanks for reading and don't forget to think of Ritchie tomorrow on his birthday.

Tons of love as always. 

April 7, 2025 (Movies & Music)

Hi folks, and Happy Monday. I'm hard at work on my "2009" book, but since I can't reveal any details, it's gonna be movies and music again. At night, while reading, I've been listening to selections from the Mercury Living Presence series, considered by stereo enthusiasts to be the greatest orchestral recordings ever made, some of which were recorded on the "sound strip" of 35mm film. During my time at the Metrocolor lab (way back in the Stone Age), we called this the "track", and it had a special solution (apart from the film chemicals) to develop it. Anyhow, if you like symphonic music presented in incredible stereo sound, give a listen to Mercury Living Presence. I'm only listening on Youtube through cheap headphones; imagine how it sounds on vinyl though a proper stereo system! Try it and see. A good one to start with is "The Firebird Suite" by Igor Stravinsky, conducted by Anatol Dorati. Or try "Bluebeard's Castle" by Bartok. Note: there was a competitor to Mecury Living Presence called Living Stereo by RCA. It's probably just as good, sound-wise. 

Last Wednesday, I made another visit to the Armer Theater at CSUN for Luis Bunuel's "Los Olvidados"(1950), the story of a group of street kids in Mexico City, one of whom falls under the criminal spell of a teenage delinquent and becomes implicated in a murder. This film shows the abject poverty in the Mexican ghettos circa 1950, and is regarded as one of Bunuel's greatest works, though extremely bleak in the tradition of post-war Italian Neo-realism.

I also saw "Conclave", which I thought was excellent. I don't wanna give any spoilers. It's somewhat in the same vein as "Angels and Demons" but that's a broad comparison, made only because there's a Papal Conclave in each film. This one is plotted as a process of elimination in which the moral fallibilities of each candidate are exposed. You find yourself rooting for Ralph Fiennes to accept the mantle, but he has his own crisis to deal with. There's a twist - I won't tell you when, and I absolutely did not see it coming, but it's something of a mindblower. Some might say it's a Woke statement, but I thought it was the opposite of that because the reasoning behind the message (in the twist) is entirely non-political, though there are political themes along the way. The Church is supposed to be above politics, but of course, its leadership is only human and people in positions of power often strive for more, in righteous or unrighteous ways. At any rate, I loved the simplicity of "Conclave", which plays out like a courtroom drama with tremendous acting by all parties (including a quietly intense Isabella Rosselini). Filmed on location in Rome, with beautiful photography. 10/10, don't miss it. 

In music news, it's been confirmed that Sir Ritchie Blackmore had a heart attack 18 months ago. RB has a Youtube channel (run by assistants because he doesn't do that sort of thing) and occasionally, his wife Candice will cajole him into telling late night "Tales From the Tavern" from their in-house bar, and because Ritchie is such a dry wit and great storyteller, with over 60 years of rock stories to relate, these "Tales" are highly entertaining. One clip, however, may have caused concern or confusion among his fans. I know it did for me, when Ritchie, talking about touring as he nears 80, mentioned that it was getting more difficult to travel due to a series of "maladies" he's afflicted with, including gout and arthritis. Then he said, "I've also got six stents in my heart. I collect them, you know". That comment no doubt took fans aback. Ritchie goes in for black humor, but his wife was with him when he said this, and I thought "If it was a joke, she'd have stopped him" because it would not be funny. The clip was posted about six months ago, and I occasionally Googled "Ritchie Blackmore" + "Stents", or "Ritchie Blackmore Health", but nothing came back. I imagine other fans made similar inquiries, and now we know what he meant because the news has been revealed by Candice. But long live Ritchie Blackmore, I say. Candice says he's been forbidden to fly by his doctors, probably due to cabin pressure, so Blackmore's Night can't play in Europe, and they haven't played the West Coast in twenty years, but as long as Ritchie is in the world, all is good. And speaking of guitar players named Ritchie, or in this case Richie (minus the t): Richie Faulkner of Judas Priest, a mere 45 years old, has said a few days ago that he recently suffered a stroke as a complication from his near-fatal aortic dissection in 2021. It's been a rough time for English guitarists named Richard, but we pray they will be with us for many years to come, Thank You Dear Lord.

Here's an obscure film for you: "The Visitors"(1972), which I discovered by accident after watching "Casualties of War" on Tubi. A 1989 screening of "Casualties", of course, plays a huge role in the story of that year, and this was my first time seeing the movie since then. It's one of the great Vietnam War films, and Sean Penn is very good doing his Robert Duvall imitation. While researching the movie afterwards, I read about the incident it is based on, which was first written up as an article in The New Yorker. The legendary director Elia Kazan read it, and got the idea to make a movie about the speculative aftermath of this war crime, musing on what might happen after the soldiers got out of Leavenworth Prison on greatly reduced sentences. Kazan's films read like a greatest hits of cinema: "A Streetcar Named Desire", "On the Waterfront", "East of Eden", so if there were no credits on this one, you'd never guess that such a Mount Rushmore director would make a low budget flick that has the gritty feel of "Straw Dogs" mixed with the slow-building dread of "Texas Chainsaw Massacre". A 25-year-old James Woods plays the Michael J. Fox role, and Steve Railsback of "Helter Skelter" fame plays Sean Penn. The acting is realistic. What is threatened in "Casualties of War" (that the bad guys might seek revenge against Fox when they get out of prison) actually happens here, but not in the cut-and-dried way you might think. What happens takes the whole movie to unfold, and is greatly enabled by the (possibly fictionalised) character of Woods' girlfriend's macho father, a hard drinking WW2 vet who is glad to have some fellow soldiers to talk to. The portrayal by actor Patrick McVey is what brings this film to Texas Chainsaw level. When the viewer feels he or she is in the presence of truly dangerous people, it goes beyond acting, and the scene where they watch the 1969 Super Bowl between the Jets and Colts is some seriously demented male bonding, spooky stuff indeed. Railsback shows himself to be a genius actor, maybe too genius because he became typecast as a psycho. Having said all of this, the film may belong to the only female character, Woods' girlfriend/McVey's daughter, played by Patricia Joyce, whose actions seem inexplicable at one point late in the film and lead to the brutal climax.

"The Visitors" was entered at Cannes, and while it didn't win any awards, it is a study in tension from start to finish. I wonder if Tarantino knows about it? If not, I have one up on him! Watch it on Tubi, my new favorite movie channel. 

And that's about all for tonight. Thanks for reading and tons of love. 

Movies (and The Red Dress)

 Howdy folks, I hope all is well on this final day of March.

In remembering Richard Chamberlain, whose death was reported yesterday, columnists have noted his iconic role as TV's "Dr. Kildare", and his performances in two of the most popular mini-series of all time,"Shogun" and "The Thorn Birds", but no one has mentioned "The Last Wave"(1978), the Peter Weir film that introduced me to Art House Cinema and made me a Chamberlain fan in the bargain. He plays an Australian lawyer defending an Aborigine man (David Gulpalil) in a murder trial. This movie was a mindblower, especially as it deviates into existential territory. While Chamberlain searches for evidence to exonerate his client, he learns about the Aboriginal belief in the Dream Life, and untimately discovers that an apocalyptic tidal wave is coming to sweep the earth and that he is their chosen god. It's an amazing movie, full of symbolism, and it blew our teenaged minds (me and Pat Forducci), so much that in 1980, when Chamberlain was announced to star in a stage play called "Fathers and Sons" in Beverly Hills, we bought tickets to see him live. I didn't follow everything he did, but his legendary status was established, for me, just from this one movie. I saw Chamberlain onstage again in 2012, in "The Exorcist" (with Brooke Shields!) at the Geffen Theater. I saw that play twice and sat front row center. Richard Chamberlain was 78 then but looked great and delivered a strong performance as Father Merrin. As Dr. Kildare, he went all the way back to my earliest childhood memories. All of that is enough to cement him as one of the greats, but I was surprised that none of the obits mentioned "The Last Wave". The scribes didn't do their homework. Anyway, see it if you never have, and God Bless Richard Chamberlain. 

Last week, I returned to the CSUN Cinematheque for the first time in 6 years to see Luis Bunuel's "Tristana"(1970) starring Fernando Rey and Catherine Denueve. I was alerted to the screening by Grimsley. We actually did a Bunuel retrospective with Professor Tim in 2011, so I saw the film back then, but a refresher course was in order after 14 years, and it was hosted by the same lady who took over after Tim was forced out as head of the Cinematheque in Spring 2018 due to the University's Woke policies. I attended a handful of screenings after that, in Fall 2018 and Spring 2019, but the Cinematheque was a shell of it's former self and I lost interest. It just wasn't the same without the Professor and all The Regulars in the first two rows. Tim's version of the Cinematheque even got written up in the Daily News and people attended from all over Los Angeles. The theater was always full (I was there every Thursday night for nine years), and when the University shut us down (likely because Tim was a white male), I told him, "this is the greatest movie club there ever was. Even UCLA doesn't have this". He was our own Siskel & Ebert, he knew his movies, and he was personable, but Woke took him out.

The lady who took over is very good, and certainly knows her stuff, but it wasn't the same in 2019 when I last attended (she got shut down for three years by Covid) and it's not the same now, audience-wise. There were only about 25 people there for "Tristana", but the film was tremendous, and they had guest speakers from the Bunuel Film Institute afterwards, so the effort is being made, and again, the new lady is very good.

If you've never seen a Luis Bunuel film, "Tristana" is a good place to start, as it follows a fairly conventional storyline. Or, you can dive right in to one of his more Surrealist efforts like "L'Age d'Or", or the short film "Un Chien Andalou", which influenced David Lynch...

It's all movies this week: on Saturday night I watched a great seafaring flick called "Damn the Defiant"(1962), which explores the same themes as "Mutiny on the Bounty". A British warship is off to Corsica to prevent Napoleon from entering Italy. Alec Guiness plays the fair-minded captain, Dirk Bogarde the upstart first officer. Bogarde was an incredible actor, and not unlike Richard Chamberlain in that, as a young man, he was cast in "pretty boy" roles but later went the Art House route. Burly Anthony Quale plays the leader of the midshipmen, who are "pressed" into military service. Marines and officers go into town and roust civilian males out of taverns and restaurants, and literally force them to sea, to fight against the French. Right away, Dirk Bogarde starts trying to take over the ship, to run it with an iron fist because he disapproves of Guiness's leniency. Much time is spent on the punishment of the men, over infractions like refusing to eat maggot-ridden bread. There are tremendous battle scenes (no CGI in 1962) with real wooden sailing ships, and a final showstopper involving a "fireship", something I'd never heard of that I'll leave you to discover for yourself. I'm surprised this film is not more well known because it's got it all - great story, world class acting, action, ship-to-ship cannon warfare, mutiny, and I have to make an aside here to remind you of the Four Prototypes (prerequisites) for all Star Trek episodes: 1) Jim has to have a romance 2) Sulu has to go crazy 3) Mr. Checkov has to disobey orders, and 4) Spock has to mutiny and/or fight Jim Kirk. At least one of those things happened in every episode, and if Spock was in this movie, the midshipmen would've gone through with the mutiny. If you like classic maritime movies like "Captain Blood" or "The Caine Mutiny", you'll like "Damn the Defiant", available on Tubi.

I also watched Liam Neeson in "The Marksman"(2021), doing what he does best: Vengeance in Protecting the Vulnerable. This time, he's an aging, widowed ex-Marine whose Arizona ranch is about to be foreclosed. Thus, he has Nothing Left To Lose when he unexpectedly becomes the guardian of a young Mexican boy who is sought by the ruthless and unstoppable leader of a cartel, a shaven-headed perpetually angry Man of Much Machismo. It's good stuff in the vein of "Death Wish", where bad guys get what is coming to them. 

Thanks to Tubi I finally saw "The Falcon and the Snowman"(1985), 40 years after it was released. I remember at the time that Pat Forducchenburger mentioned it with reference to Christopher Boyce because (I think) his brother worked at TRW. At any rate, a very good movie, no one did spy thrillers better than John Schlesinger, and Sean Penn was great before he got all sanctimonious. He's very good here, doing a Spicoli spinoff. 

Finally, I watched (also on Tubi) a documentary recreating the Tenerife Airport Disaster of 1977 (the worst in aviation history). Grim stuff. That one and Cerritos 1986...

To Elizabeth (if she's reading which I doubt): I want her to look at the Facebook page of Romany Gilmour, daughter of David. Romany is coming into her own as an artist, having sung and played harp on her dad's latest album, but for you Elizabeth, I want you to take note of the some recent photographs she has posted on her Facebook. Notice anything familiar? Like a Red Dress, perhaps? And in natural settings? I mean, omg, right? Hey Elizabeth...you invented the Red Dress motif! And we long ago announced that your photographic series was a monumental achievement. I've long been a champion of those portraits, and now Romany Gilmour is using the Red Dress also. She is a nice and very talented young woman (I saw her with her dad last October at the Hollywood Bowl), but the thing is, perhaps the universe has caught up with your achievement and another young woman has now unconsciously emulated it. Who knows. But though there are now two Red Dress ladies, there is still only one Original, and that's you. You created a photo series that will stand the test of time, and now Romany Gilmour, the daughter of one of the greatest musicians and songwriters who ever lived, has copied it. I'd say that's pretty cool... 

That's all for today. Back soon with more, happy April, tons of love.

King's X at The Canyon and The Whisky

Hi folks and Happy Spring. Well, it was a mega weekend with King's X, first at The Canyon in Agoura Hills on Friday night (March 21) and then again on Sunday (March 23) at the world famous Whisky A Go Go on the Sunset Strip. I've been a fan of KX since Summer 1989 when I heard "Gretchen Goes to Nebraska," and I first saw them live in 1992 at The Fonda, so it's amazing all these years later that they're not only Still Bringin' It, but with more vitality than ever. As Doug said at The Canyon, "We're gonna kick your ass"...

I always like to give you the full rundown, and on Friday I rode to the venue with Grimsley. The joint was packed, as are all KX shows now that they've attained Elder Statesman status. They hadn't played LA since 2018 (!), pre-pandemic, but from 2000 until then, I saw KX apprx. every one to two years. I've seen them 12-15 times in all, so they are creeping up on "bands & artists I've seen the most times" territory: Todd Rundgren 15, Van Halen 18, Hilary Hahn 23, and Rush 32 (which is probably unsurpassable).

I'd guess the guys have played at least 1000 gigs in their 40 year career, yet Doug's only concession to age (74) is a small oxygen can he inhaled from after many songs. Jerry, at 67, has gotta be The Bionic Man. Besides being an incredible drummer, he pounds the skins with more force than anyone since John Bonham. At The Canyon, if you have general admission you stand behind tables. It's a dinner club, but you're still only 25 feet from the stage, and I was dead center with a clear sightline. It's difficult, if not pointless, to use superlatives to describe a live performance, so I won't say it was awesome or amazing - but it was the best performance I've seen King's X give in four decades of attending their shows, and the thing is, they're always great anyway. This time, though, there was something extra, and they may be reinvigorated by having a semi-new album out (2022), from which they played 8 songs. But the main thing with King's X - and this is why people love them - is that they don't give a flying F about anything but their music, and - being elder statesmen, and knowing that real musicianship is a lost art, and being the last of the great power trios, they are up there flaunting their legacy, and God Bless them. They may never have attained the superstardom that was predicted for them in Kerrang, but they know they are regarded as legends by bands that did acheive that level of success: Soundgarden, Alice In Chains, Pearl Jam. Imagine a band that not only redefined heavy rock but added Beatle elements and topped off their sound with progressive touches, and whose collective age is well over 200 years old, kicking Major League Bootation in 2025.

My goodness. 

For the Whisky show, I took my recently-patented bus/subway combo, including the Orange Line, which takes me down Lilly's old street...(ahh, the sweet nostalgia). I got to the Strip a mite early and walked down Sunset and back until near showtime, entering the club at 8:45. KX took the stage at 9. The Whisky is a sardine can when full, and it's been scientifically proven that if you are 5' 9" there will always be Giants in front of you at concerts, but like any scientific fact there are always exceptions to the rule and I found a spot off to the right side, directly in front of Ty Tabor, with no one blocking my view, and as a bonus I got the guitar sound coming straight out of Ty's Orange amps. He's playing a Les Paul Gold Top, and that pairing produced a monster sound....talk about The Brutalist, that flick should've been about Ty Tabor, or all of King's X. The Brutalists - plural! Watching them play, packed inside the Whisky, I also found myself thinking of all the other classic bands who've stood on that stage: The Doors, Alice Cooper, Cream, Yes, Jimi, Rush, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath...and many more. King's X belongs on that list of legends, and.......they know it. They aren't just great is what I'm trying to say - they're Cream great, Jimi great, DP great...and those bands would agree. They are the last power trio standing. 

Grimsley was at this show, too. He arrived separately and was trying to sell his ticket when I found him. I told him that was crazy, and he did sell it, but then he had second thoughts and bought another ticket at the box office right before the show started. I ended up riding back with him, and on Sunset we saw this sign: "Welcome to Beverly Hills. Drones in Use." Translation: "Don't Even Think About It, You Criminals!" I got a huge kick out of that. Hooray for BH.

That's about all for today. There are no other concerts on the horizon at the moment. Emperor is playing the Hollywood Palladium in May, with Agalloch opening, an incredible double-bill, but too expensive. 100 bucks? Fuggeddaboudit. I'll be back with a regular blog asap. Tons of love! 

"Green Parrots" Now Available in Softcover! (plus a bunch of movies & music)

Hey guys, my new book is now available in softcover! Just go to Lulu.com and enter "The Summer of Green Parrots" into their search window. It's priced at $19.60, quite affordable compared to the deluxe harcover edition. I'm happy to have all editions of both books in print now, after a three and a half year effort. It's been an amazing process, writing and publishing them, but I've had a blast and learned a lot and now I'm doing it again. Stay tuned for "2009" (not the actual title) coming in April 2026. 

I've got some brief reviews of the movies I've seen this week, starting with "Beach Red"(1967), a unique World War 2 film directed by actor Cornel Wilde that some IMDB commentors say was an influence on Terrence Malick and "The Thin Red Line". If so, I think it's the superior film despite it's cinematically unsophisticated use of still shots in flashbacks, and the somewhat hammy "inner dialogue" (thoughts) of the lead characters, and also the glaring artistic decision that caused Wilde to show the women in these domestic flashbacks in 1960s hairstyles, garb and attitude. That's why I say it's unique, but when you get down to the story and action, it's a typically intense battle flick veering from hard-core beach invasion scenes (aided by stock footage), to the two-man patrol it boils down to. Following the invasion (which must've influenced Spielberg and "Private Ryan") Burr DeBenning and Patrick Wolfe are sent on a recon mission to locate Japanese strongholds. Along the way, they face machine gun nests, poisonous snakes, booby traps and so on. Rip Torn plays a "kill 'em all" Marine.

DeBenning's performance is near-Supporting Actor quality. His name is no longer familiar but you've seen him in a million things. "Beach Red" is one of those movies that Tarantino is probably a fan of. I'd never heard of it but thought it was great, and if you don't mind the weird, dated 60's effects (the unnecessary zoom shots, the flute music in a war movie) you'll probably agree. Two Thumbs up for "Beach Red", available on Tubi.

Next up was "Stephen King's Thinner" (1996), again on Tubi. I remember this film getting panned upon release, though Robert John Burke was praised in the lead role. Anyhow, I liked it better than the critics did, though it was not scary in the least. It's more of a revenge flick. The best things were the pacing, acting, and the beautifully photographed New England locale. Definitely worth a view for King completeists. Watch for Daniel Von Bargen (with that gawdawful gravelly voice of his) in a small but horrific role. I actually sat through his ham-fisted and horribly ostentatious performance in Clive Barker's "Lord of Illusions" in 1995, which both of my parents walked out of. A terrible movie. Clive Barker was incredible in the late 80s and early 1990s, but went downhill quickly after that. But watch "Thinner" and better yet, read the book.

We also have "Thelma"(2024), which was recommended by Grimsley. I thought it would be a caregiver movie, and the opening scene gives that impression: an elderly woman at home with her grandson. Then she falls victim to a phone scam in which she loses ten grand, and at first, you think her grandson set her up. But that turns out not to be the case, and the filmmakers get kudos for avoiding cliches. It turns into a combination Road Movie/Caper Flick about Thelma's assertion of independence - at 95 - as she searches for the jerk who stole her money. And because all "road movies" require a sidekick, she gets a great one in the late Richard Roundtree whom she enlists because he has a mobility scooter. On their way to San Fernando, they run across some wonderfuly eccentric characters including a oddball named "Stary Gary", and a 100 year old lady who lives alone with her roaches. The writing and photography will make this film a cult classic, especially when the duo find the guy behind the theft. He represents the real theme of the film: the massive changeover of the electronic age, which has phased out the culture of our elder generations and ushered in the apathy of the Millenials and especially Gen Z, which is represented by the blank face of the bad guy's accomplice. He has no moral fiber, no backbone, his mantra's "whatever", but he sure is an ace on computers. The film's other message is that Old People Rule. That's the punch line here. Old Folks should not be discarded. This movie is a 10/10 for me.  

Finally, we have "The Odessa File"(1974), a classic espionage thriller starring Jon Voight as a Nazi-hunting journalist in Germany 1963, right after the JFK assassination. He infiltrates a secret group of war criminals who've escaped capture all these years, to locate a former concentration camp commandant (played by the great Maximillian Schell). Question: why won't Angelina talk to her dad? I think it's terrible that they're still estranged, but I'm glad Trump named Jon Voight as an honorary Ambassador to Hollywood. Hollywood is toast, folks. No one watched the Academy Awards. No one saw the nominated movies. Woke has destroyed Oscar, but the good thing is that woke is almost toast. The new "Snow White" has bombed. MSNBC is gonna go out of business...

C'mon, Angelina. Call your Dad.

In music, I'm listening to "The Overview" by Steven Wilson. It's been touted as his "return to Prog", which is a good thing because I didn't care for his last three electronica-and-pop based albums. "Overview" is a concept album about an astronaut's view of Earth from space. It's made up of two long pieces, 23 and 18 minutes, and while the music is sonically dazzling (incredible on headphones), it isn't song-oriented and thus doesn't have a lot of hooks that grab you. It's almost like one of those Hawkwind space rock albums from the 70s, where the whole side of a record is one big jam, except that Wilson is more harmonically talented and technically adept than a band like Hawkwind. Still, this is his Space Jam album, and it's really good. Featuring Randy McStine on guitar, who used to be a part of our King's X chat board about 15 to 20 years ago when he was a teenager. I remember him asking me about bands like Roxy Music and Be Bop Deluxe. Now he plays for Steven Wilson...my goodness.

Speaking of King's X, I'll be going to see them on Friday at The Canyon in Agoura. I'll be back with a full review of that concert (hopefully this weekend), so stay tuned and thanks for reading.

Tons of love as always!

Alcest at The Fonda Theater (March 5, 2025)

Hey guys, here's a quick Alcest review for ya: T'was a killer show. What else would you expect from Neige & co., right? I went by myself and took public transpo for the third consecutive concert, the other two being David Gilmour at The Bowl last October, and Sixpence in December at The Troub. Alcest played The Fonda, and getting there was again a piece of cake, the only difference being that it was raining this time, but not hard, and other than that, I had a smooth trip both ways - the 240 down Reseda Boogalord to the Orange Line at Reseda and Oxnard. Orange Line to the NoHo Metro Station. Subway from NoHo to Hollywood & Vine. Two buses, one tube. Good connections, easy ride. And get this: my total round trip cost? $1.45.

Senior fare at off-peak hours, baby!

So yeah, there's no reason to hassle the drive, gas and parking to Hollywood or DTLA, especially for shows at The Fonda. The Hollywood/Vine Metro Station is one block away.

I got there around 8:30. The opening band Mono was playing, a Japanese four piece. Their music is all instrumental and not unlike the crescendoing soundscapes of Godspeed You! Black Emperor; each song has a theme that builds dynamically and repeats until the climax; a veritable sonic whirlwind. They were quite good. Neige (of Alcest) later remarked that this was his favorite tour lineup yet. I caught most of Mono's 45 minute set. The Fonda's awesome stage crew had Alcest ready to roll at 9:30. The band has two official members, mastermind Neige (Stephane Paut) on guitar and lead vocals, and Winterhalter (Jean Deflandre) on drums. They record all the music, Neige writes it all. The other two touring members are Zero (Pierre Corson) on second guitar and backing vocals, and Indria Saray on bass. Both have been on board for every Alcest show I've seen, six "in toto" (your little dog, too!), starting with the Troubadour in October 2011. I can still picture myself driving down Santa Monica Bl. that night in my old Nissan Sentra, looking for a place to park, so excited to see this new band I'd just discovered. The line was around the corner, the show a triple bill: Junius opened, then Alcest played a 40 minute set, followed by the headliner Enslaved. I was only there for Alcest, who I learned of from a Youtube recommendation that Summer. Four months after The Troub show came their next album, "Les Voyages de L'ame", and that was when...(drum roll, please)...I met Elizabeth. Online, of course. Sometime around February 2012, I saw her video (a piano cover of Alcest's "Autre Temps") and the rest was history. She probably hasn't read this blog in eons, but just in case:

Elizabeth, I hope you are going to see Alcest in Chicago on March 18. If there's anyone who has to see them, it's you. You will always be an Artist with a Capital A, and I hope you are still Doing What You Do and enjoying life. 

I got lucky and found a balcony seat, which was perfect because the floor was a sardine can and my seat was directly in front of Neige. This was the loudest I've ever seen them, powered by Winterhalter who absolutely pummeled his drums. It's like World War Three up there sometimes when all four members are playing full-bore and Neige is screaming the lyrics, but then come breaks of crystalline beauty and the guitars sound like droplets on a lake. But yeah, when Neige goes into Screaming Mode, it's brutal and strangely appealing. There are plenty of Black Metal "growlers", but he's the only guy who screams like that.

They had a Miyzakian split-level stage design: a full moon backdrop with two large, sculpted Herons strategically placed. A ceramic pot of cherry blossoms completes the Feng Shui. Neige mostly played his trademark white Fender Tornado (I thought it was a Jaguar but stand corrected), and he also had a black Fender Jazzmaster, the first time I've seen him switch guitars. He's interesting in that he never plays a traditional solo. It's all about the song, but at every show I've been to, I'm amazed by the intricacy of his chording. 

Another Alcest trademark: super long hair on Neige and Zero, coupled with humble demeanor. Who says the French don't rock? That may have been true in the old days but not anymore. They played 90 minutes, mostly songs from the new album "Les Chants de l'aurore", which is (somewhat) a return to the dreamier sound of "Les Voyages" from 2012. I say "somewhat" because it still has it's dark moments, but for the blackest metal Alcest, you want "Kodama" and especially "Spiritual Instinct". One small quibble with the venue: the drums and bass were so loud at this high-decibel show that some of the mid-range guitar voicings were lost in the mix. Overall, though, a 10 out of 10. There's nothing like Alcest music. The encore was "Autre Temps".

Hey Elizabeth: Agalloch are also coming up, in May, opening for Emperor! Are you going to that show? I wanna go, but it's a hundred bucks, which awakens my inner George Bush:

"Not gunna doit. Wouldn't be prudent".

Well, anyhow...

That's my review. Thanks for reading. I'll be back with a regular blog as quickly as I can.

March 4, 2025 (two movies & Badfinger)

Hi folks. As usual, I'm running behind on the blog, so thanks for sticking with me. I do have a couple movies this time. While browsing Tubi the other night, I came across an action flick called "The Package", which caught my eye not only because it stars Gene Hackman, but also because it marks an important occasion in my life. Lilly and I saw it, at the late, great Pacific Northridge Theater on Sunday August 27, 1989, two days after it opened. It was the last movie we saw before September 1st of that year, which of course was the start of What Happened in Northridge (at least in the old-school timespan of that event). On the occasion of our movie date, I wasn't focused on the film, and though I tried to follow the plot, my mind was elsewhere - thus I didn't get a chance to really enjoy it.

So when I saw it was available on Tubi, I watched it right away, not only to honor Gene Hackman, but also to honor me and Lilly. This time, I was able to relax and enjoy the movie - a classic, Cold War action thriller hinging on a political assassination, and it struck me how apt the whole thing was (besides being a very good movie, directed by Andrew Davis of "The Fugitive" fame). It was apt because Communism collapsed a little over two months later when the Berlin Wall came down on November 9, and - because What Happened in Northridge has been my life's study since 1993 - I have long suspected (and have concluded) that the collapse of Communism, which began on November 9, 1989 with the fall of the Berlin Wall, was directly related to what happened in Northridge, California in September 1989.

Does that sound like an exaggeration? It isn't.

In fact, I'll repeat it. The collapse of Communism, initiated and signified by the fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989, was a direct result of the event I call "What Happened in Northridge", which had concluded a little over two months earlier in late September 1989. I won't say that Communism collapsed entirely due to "Northridge", but without a doubt it was the final and substantial nail in the coffin.

I happen to know this is true. It's not for nothing that I say What Happened in Northridge is the biggest secret in America. The only possible bigger secret is What Happened at Lorne Street School in 1965. That event involves strange electronics and physics (watch the end of Spielberg's "AI", one of the most profound films ever made), and so "Northridge" is easier to delineate, but in the scheme of things, those two events are the Big Enchilada. Take note that I am not saying that "Northridge" was the worst tragedy, in the form of death and destruction. But it was horrific (among other things), and monumentally important in historical terms, and I am saying that it is, without a doubt, the most highly classified secret in the Secret Government Files, and that's enough intrigue for today. Give "The Package" a watch, for great performances by Gene Hackman and Tommy Lee Jones, and because they don't make action thrillers like this any more. 

Yesterday, I watched Badfinger videos after reading the news about guitarist Joey Molland's death. He was the last surviving member of the most tragic band in the history of rock n' roll. Many fans my age know about the suicides of Pete Ham and Tom Evans, caused by the financial ripoff of the band by their agent. Ham died in 1975; Evans in '83. I'd only ever heard Badfinger's legendary hit singles, all of which were as great as any Beatles song, and of course they were the first act signed to Apple, but I've just discovered that their albums contain tons of great tunes, marked by incandescent harmonies and hookish guitar and piano lines. When I was 10 and 11 years old, their radio hits created days-long earworms. As a band, they were tight as a drum, which can be seen in their live vids on Youtube. It's too bad they are known as much for their tragic tale as for their music, but check out Badfinger and watch their 30 minute BBC documentary also. 

Last evening, I finally watched "The Best Years of Our Lives"(1946), the legendary post-WW2 drama about about three servicemen coming home to face a changed society. The film won seven Oscars, including Best Picture, Director, Actor, Supporting Actor (and Teresa Wright should've won Best Supporting Actress), but the other thing about this movie (and I can't believe it's taken me this long to see it) is that my Mom did a promotional show for it when she was a radio host at WLW, then the biggest radio station in the world. Mom had a set of 8x10 b&w press shots showing her with all the film's stars: Frederic March, Myrna Loy, Harold Russell, Teresa Wright, Dana Andrews, and an autographed photo of Russell, a disabled vet who lost both his hands in a service-related accident. He became adept with prostheses (as shown in the movie), and won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar that year. These photos were in a scrapbook of Mom's. I wish I had them but they must've gotten lost over the years or perhaps were destroyed in the earthquake. Anyhow, the movie is every bit as great as it's legacy suggests, a true epic that captures the price of war. If you've never seen it, do.

Tomorrow night, I'm going to see Alcest in concert at The Fonda Theater in Hollywood. I'll report back with a full review as time allows, no later than this weekend. I'll also have the softcover version of "Green Parrots" uploaded and available at Lulu by March 15. Meanwhile, I'm hard at work on "2009" (not the actual title). If you were there (at the places and events of that year), I would love to interview you. If anyone is interested, let me know.

Thanks for reading. Tons of love as always.

Greenslade & Dave Lawson (and Tubi)

Hey everyone, I'm just checking in. I have a musical alert for you, a new prog discovery (or re-discovery): who remembers Greenslade? College Records had their albums in the racks. One or two had Roger Dean covers, which made you think of Yes, and they had not one but two featured keyboardists - Dave Greenslade, who gave the band its cool-sounding name and had formerly played with Colosseum, and the equally adept Dave Lawson, who came from a jazzier background. Greenslade didn't have guitar, it was keys all the way, and they had an awesome drummer and a functional bassist. I actually had their self-titled debut album and another one called "Time and Tide", fifty years ago.

So why haven't I ever mentioned Greenslade, in all my blogs about Prog? I've been asking myself a similar question: why didn't Greenslade catch my ear? I can't explain it. I mean, I've always loved keyboards. I even had jazz-fusiony records when I was fifteen, by groups like Passport, with lead saxophone yes, but also keys aplenty. So, I don't understand why Greenslade didn't stick with me, or for that matter with everyone at College Records. In any case, I now find them fantastic. Maybe I had to wait till I was (almost) 65 to "get" them. What happened was, I got a notion two days ago to Youtube me some Greenslade. Why them? Maybe I was seeking something new. But they were old, and I'd already apparently rejected them five decades ago, by the fact that I've never listened to or mentioned their music. However, I also think Pat Forducci may have had something to do with my sudden urge to Youtube the band...by nudging me from The Other Side. Pat was a Progmeister like myself. I can picture him whispering, "Dude...revisit Greenslade...".

I chose, from their four albums ,"Spyglass Guest", which actually went to #39 in America. And from the first note of the first tune, I was hooked! Again I wondered, "Why weren't these guys huge with the College Records gang?" I thought about it, and remembered the albums I had, and I recalled a "harsh" vocal style (which turned out to be from their debut album, the first one I bought). If you remember The Nice, or the one classic album by Refugee (which was The Nice with Patrick Moraz), the music was great, but you had to contend with Lee Jackson's harsh vocals. The same, I remembered, was true of the first Greenslade album. For some reason, Dave Lawson sang most of that record in some kind of "Court Jester" style, and to 15 year-old me (who was used to Greg Lake), it ruined the whole album. That's what being 15 will do to you, when you are listening to progressive rock. I could deal with some cartoonish British vocals in a Jethro Tull guest spot, but not from a lead singer in a band I'd just heard of. Thus, Greenslade (despite their bitchen album covers) went back into the wooden Orange Crate for LPs, never to be played again.

In retrospect, boy did I blow it! And so did Pat, and all the gang, because Greenslade should've caught on with us. 

Well, anyhow - to cut to the chase, my impulse to Youtube Greenslade resulted in me listening intently to "Spyglass Guest", all the way through, and in the comments I saw fans mentioning another Dave Lawson band called The Web, who had an album called "I Spider" in 1970. Seeing the cover triggered a memory of either having that album (perhaps way back in '77) or that Pat brought it to the house. And I not only remembered the cover, but the music as well, even though I probably only heard the album once or twice.

To sum up: Greenslade is my new (old) Prog (re)Discovery! Start with "Spyglass Guest", then go directly to "Bedside Manners Are Extra". Both are money-back-guaranteed great, and there are no harsh vocals to deal with. In fact, Dave Lawson has a pleasant Prog Voice, and the double-keyboard melodies are incredible. "Time and Tide" is also good. The only one that's chancy is the first album, and that's also good if you can deal with the vocals, but again...if you can handle Lee Jackson in Refugee (and you know you can) then Lawson's goofy style on this record won't trouble you as it did me all those years ago.

So, there's four Greenslade records for you. Also check out their live vids on Youtube (from The Old Grey Whistle Test), but wait!......there's more.

I told you about Dave Lawson's other band, The Web. Well, you absolutely have to hear "I Spider". It's one of those great, one-off progressive rock records that's long forgotten, except by those-in-the-know, who I was not among until yesterday. It's a 10/10 all the way, not a bad note or tune to be found - a classic, somewhat in the style of Supersister. The Web morphed into another Lawson project called Samurai. This record is a 10, as well. Hear it on Youtube. That gives you six new classic prog records to check out: four by Greenslade and the two side projects by Dave Lawson. Man...just when you think you've heard it all... 

On a visual note, you probably know about Tubi. I discovered it while searching for a live broadcast of the Super Bowl (hooray, Chiefs lost!) and over the last couple weeks, I've checked out a couple of their movies ("Firebase Gloria" and "The Dark Half") and also two Tubi serial killer documentaries under the heading "Evil Among Us". So far, I've watched the Green River Killer and L.A.'s Grim Sleeper, but the reason I'm mentioning Tubi is because of three other independent docs, all covering notable events. Like everyone else, I've been unnerved by the recent spate of plane crashes, starting with the terrible Black Hawk collision over the Potomac last month. I've watched every analysis I could find on Youtube (there's a guy named Jeff Ostroff who does excellent analyses of air disasters), and also for the medivac crash in Philly. Then, I saw that Tubi had an entire documentary on TWA Flight 800, which went down into the ocean off the coast of New York in July 1996.

If you remember that tragedy, many witnesses reported seeing a "missile" that appeared to explode the plane.

The documentary, made by Epix in 2013, leaves no doubt as to what happened. Watching it led me to another doc available on Tubi (for free): "A Noble Lie", about the 1995 OKC bombing. The writer of "A Noble Lie" is Wendy Painting, the same gal who wrote "Abberation in the Heartland of the Real", the definitive book on Timothy McVeigh and the whole OKC story. In my opinion, it is one of the ten most important books on major American terror events. I can't recommend it highly enough.

"A Noble Lie" led me to watch "9/11 Explosive Evidence - Experts Speak Out". This one (also on Tubi) consists of various architects, engineers and demolition experts talking about the collapse of Building 7, and also the Twin Towers.

You guys know that I don't buy the "official" story for any of these three events. Not with what I've been through in my life, but it's more than that, because even if I'd never had my own extensive experiences, I still wouldn't believe the government versions of these events, because - when properly analysed - they are all patently false.

For me, it starts with the obviously false story of Lee Harvey Oswald as the lone assassin of JFK. If they're gonna lie about that, they'll lie about anything, including RFK, MLK, OKC, Flight 800, 9/11, ad nauseum.

Something to remember about the latter three events (Flight 800, OKC and 9/11) is that they happened in a five year span. That's pretty close together. My whole point here is to highly recommend all three documentaries on these subjects. Check them out on Tubi.

I'm currently reading "The Rialto in Richmond" by Joseph P. Farrell. It's about the Lincoln assassination, the flight of Confederate President Jefferson Davis at the end of the war, and an enormous cache of missing gold. With Dr. Joe (an Oxford graduate), you always get the highest level narrative and, (as he calls it) "high octane speculation". All his books are highly recommended. 

And did someone say "books"? My proof copy of "Green Parrots" will be arriving tomorrow (oh boy!). I'm super excited to see what it looks like. I anticipate no formatting problems of the type I encountered the first time (with "Pearl the Wonder Girl"), and if it's "good to go", I'll be uploading an affordable softcover edition within the week. 

I'm also five chapters into the framework for "2009", which now has an actual title (but I can't reveal it).

Stay tuned and thanks for reading. Tons and tons of love.

My New Book is on Lulu.com!

 Well folks, it's official......(drum roll, please): My second book has been published on Lulu. It's called "The Summer of Green Parrots", and as previously noted it is primarily the story of me & Pearl, with the backdrop of my years as her caregiver. But it's also a whole lot more. To see the cover, go to Lulu.com and enter the title in their search engine. Now, here I need to give advance warning about the price. As I did with "Pearl the Wonder Girl", I designed the first edition of "Parrots" as a deluxe "linen wrap" hardcover, which comes with a dust jacket...the works. I wanted these editions mainly for myself, to have the nicest presentation of each book for my personal collection. With "Wonder Girl", I think Lulu's print price was something like 27 bucks (it was a 443 page book), so my "deluxe" hardcover copy cost me apprx. 35 dollars with shipping and tax. Obviously, I didn't expect anyone else to pay that much, so I put out a softcover edition for global distribution on Amazon and other websites. But even with that one, I had to charge 25 bucks, because - while the print cost was only $12-something - the "global distribution" cost from Lulu was over ten bucks! That brought my total cost for each book to apprx. 23 dollars. I wanted to make at least something on each book, so I set a 25 dollar price. That's a lot, I know. That's why I jokingly said "just think of it as two fast food meals. Skip those (just two) and you'll break even".

I'd have liked to charge around 15 to 20 bucks for "Pearl the Wonder Girl" (good value for a 443 page totally awesome book) but Lulu wouldn't let me. Once you desigate your book for "global distribution", it comes with a "lowest possible list price", and mine was the aforementioned 23 dollars. That was for "Pearl the Wonder Girl", softcover edition.

Well, get this: as noted, my first edition of "The Summer of Green Parrots" is once again the deluxe hardcover (because I wanted a fancy copy for myself). The print cost was 20 bucks & change. But when I designated it for "global distribution" (which gets you on Amazon), all of a sudden, the price was jacked up to 41 bucks! Double the print cost! It goes without saying that this is Totally Outregis Philbin. Nobody's gonna pay that and I don't expect 'em to. I don't know why it went up so much. "Parrots" is only 288 pages long, it has a lower print cost than "Wonder Girl", and yet the hardcover is nine dollars more than that book. What gives? I thought maybe it was due to Trump's tariffs, or Biden's inflation...

Heck, I don't know. My point is, it's embarassing to have such a high price put on my book, but it's not my doing. Not to worry, though, because I will soon have a softcover edition available (asap), and hopefully I can cut the price down to at least $25 bucks (remember, that's only two fast food meals!), so please hang in there if you are an interested reader. Thanks in advance for your patience.

But yeah, for now, you can go to Lulu.com and put "The Summer of Green Parrots" into the search window, so you can see what the book looks like. I did the cover myself, once again using Canva...

...and (drum roll again, please), because without missing a beat, I've already begun work on my third book, which has a "placeholder" title of "2009". I'm not sure what the actual title will be just yet, but I've got some ideas in mind. Whatever I end up calling it, I'm shooting for a release date of April 2026. Yeah, that's over a year away, but it will be worth the wait. This book is not gonna mess around.

Movies: watching the Vietnam Voices series on Youtube inspired me to watch "We Were Soldiers" again. I mentioned in the last blog that it was the overwhelming favorite of the veterans interviewed in that series. I saw it once previously, about 15 or 20 years ago (and didn't remember it), but this time it hit me full force. Now, I agree with the veterans: I think it's the greatest Vietnam War movie ever made. I read up on Colonel Hal Moore afterward (on whose book it was based), and I think Mel Gibson nailed his performance.

Last night, I watched another good one, recommended by Tarantino: "The Seige of Firebase Gloria".

Give both a watch, if you're in a Vietnam War mode.

I haven't listened to much music for the past week, because I've been proofing and formatting the book (which requires focus), but when it was done, and I got finally got it published (three years and four months after I started writing it), I put on a single, three and a half minute piece of music to celebrate and relax:

"Tennessee" by Hans Zimmer, from the Pearl Harbor soundtrack. If you've heard it, you know - it's one of the most beautiful things ever recorded; haunting, goosebump-inducing, tear-jerking, inspiring. But forget the descriptors, go listen to it and you won't be able to get it out of your head. I first heard it at Edwards Air Force Base during an F-15 demonstration.

Now back to work on "2009". Thanks for reading. Happy Valentines Day. Tons of love. 

Yessonata

Folks, I am excited to announce that my second book is in the final proof-read, which could be finished by this weekend. It will then be formatted and sent to Lulu, after which I will purchase my compulsory author's copy and - if everything looks shipshape - it should be available to the public by April 1, give or take. I can't yet reveal the title, but it's the story of my years as Pearl's caregiver, and - though it's the second book to be released - it was actually the first one I wrote, starting on October 3, 2021, just a day after Pearl's memorial service. I've put my heart and soul into this book, which has an overall caregiving context, but also a veritable Ton of Other Stuff thrown in. It's really the lifelong, on-and-off story of Pearl and me, and how fate brings certain people together on a predetermined path, and it's also about our enduring love for Reseda, the quintessential suburban Valley town (just ask Tom Petty).

There is so much going on in this book; it's one heck of a story, I guarantee you will love it, and you don't even have to know me or Pearl to become absorbed. One thing I hope is that it will inspire at least one person to become a caregiver. On a side note, there will be a sequel, about which I can't say much now, but it deals with the house sitting job I had just before I went to work with Pearl, and it blows the whole shebang out of the water. But that's my life, right? It's been one big "Blow Out of the Water". Anyhow, we are hoping for readers....    

Did you listen to Scott Walker? If not, go back and re-read my last blog and don't miss out! I promise you'll thank me later, and my next recommendation is the new "Yessonata" by Rick Wakeman. OMG! He took all the themes from the greatest Yes music, seamlessly spliced them together and created a twenty minute piece of brilliant and moving pianism. Wow, it sounds fantastic, and on the other side of the cd is the King Arthur Suite, created from one of Rick's most beloved albums. I have seen him twice in recent years on his solo tours, where he plays instrumental piano pieces and tells jokes in between. There aren't many of our original artists left from the 1970s, and even fewer still playing live. Rick Wakeman is on what is being billed as his final tour this year. Let us pray he makes one last stop in Los Angeles.

Continuing with music, have you guys heard Big Big Train? They were my Band of 2024. The late and (mostly great) (but somewhat tricky) Pat Forduccenburger introduced me to BBT around 2012 with their album "The Underfall Yard". It was old-fashioned epic prog, seemingly along the lines of Genesis...but original! I appreciated the album upon hearing it for the first time, yet it sort of went right by me because I was on a Black Metal kick in those years. Fast forward to last year. I was thinking about Pat, who'd recently died, and I was hit with a notion to re-listen to Big Big Train. I went back to The Underfall Yard, found that certain passages had stuck with me, and I wanted to hear more. That led me to an album called "Ingenious Devices" (a compilation of their best extended pieces) and after that, I was hooked. I'd recommend "Ingenious" to get into the band, then go to "Underfall", and after that, you'll be ready for their two-album masterpiece (released in consecutive years), "English Electric Part 1 and Part 2". Tragically, their brilliant singer, David Longdon, died in a freak accident in 2021. His replacement, Alberto Brevin, has had "big big" shoes to fill but is doing an admirable job. BBT are now on tour in the US but unfortunately, it's one of those limited tours that many bands seem to be taking nowdays, epecially British bands who come to America but go no further west than Chicago. I lobbied on their FB page to "please play L.A." Give 'em a listen and you'll want to see them, too.

Finally - great news! On my CSUN walk last night, I went down to Nordhoff at Lindley to check out the status of Cupid's, because I saw on the Valley Relics FB page that the sign had been taken down. Dismayed, I had to see it for myself, but to my surprise, as I approached, it appeared it was not the whole sign that was removed but just the "inner" Heart that held the "Cupid's" logo. To my further surprise, from my vantage point across the street, there seemed to be a new red heart enclosed in the sign frame, and it looked like it had white lettering. Hopeful, yet cautious - because I've been worried that some evil developer would cram an "L.A. Special" apartment complex on that postage stamp lot - I crossed the street to check it out, and lo and behold, it's going to be a new food stand called "Tacos 1986". They've kept the Cupid's sign frame and (hopefully) the original building! If so, the proprietor of "Tacos 1986" has attained Instant Hero status in Northridge.

That's about all for today. Stay safe and thanks for reading. Tons of love.

Scott Walker Rules

 Howdy folks, just checking in. I was listening the other night to an album called "Storm Corrosion", which was a collaboration between Steven Wilson from Porcupine Tree and Mikael Akerfeldt of Opeth. I was disappointed when it came out in 2012 because it was stark and not what I was expecting from those guys, but upon hearing it again, I've changed my mind. I now think it's really good, and I found an interview with Mikael and Steven where they said they were influenced by the music of a guy named Scott Walker. Have you heard of him? He was the lead singer of a 1960s pop group called The Walker Brothers who, for a short while, were bigger than The Beatles in England. Apparently, Scott Walker grew tired of being expected to churn out pop hits, and he quit the group and did a musical 180. For a while, when he went solo in the late '60s and into the early 1970s, he continued to croon in his inimitable style, but now he was singing about unusual subjects like Communism under Joseph Stalin and existentialism. He disappeared for a while, and when he returned in the 1990s he made a record called "Tilt" that has become a cult favorite among Weird Music aficianados. I gave it a listen because of the Akerfeldt/Wilson connection, and it sounds like something from a David Lynch movie. The kicker is that it put me on a Scott Walker binge, and I've been listening to his music for the last several days. He has the ultimate 1960s baritone crooner voice, but he sings about weird things and has these unusual string arrangements in the background. His music reminds me of a movie called "The Swimmer" with Burt Lancaster. In the 2014, he even made an album with SunnO))), the experimental Black Metal band that opened for Celtic Frost in 2006! So, Scott Walker was a far out guy (he died in 2019), and I suggest you give him a listen. Start with The Walker Brothers big hit "The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore"(1966) and go from there. Make sure you listen to "Tilt". Then check out his quartet of solo albums "Scott" through "Scott 4". I guarantee you'll be hooked....

That's really all the news. I just work on my books and go for my walks. I'm also transcribing my 2009 journal (which may or may not become a book). My life is so radically different from what it was just two years ago, and it's not because of anything that's changed about my day-to-day existence, but because of knowledge I've received during that time. 

What do you guys think of Trump so far? Are you hating him and/or what he's doing? I hope not. He's come in there like a tornado, doing what he said he was gonna do (which needed doing). We've gotta Make America Great Again, there's nothing wrong with that slogan, or what it represents. America has decidedly not been great for quite some time now, so we've gotta restore it, and that's a job for everyone, not just some caricature-idea of "MAGA people" - we're all in this together. Did you see J.D Vance on Face the Nation yesterday? Boy, can he talk! Margaret Brennan kept trying to nail him with "gotcha" questions, but he had concise answers for everything she threw at him. If Trump's second presidency succeeds, and it's off to a good start, JD might be a shoo-in for 2028 through 2036...(he's also a nice Cincinnati boy, a nod to my Mom and Dad).

On a tragic note, the legendary Cupid's sign was taken down today. It had remained in place for over a year after the equally legendary hot dog stand closed, and because I saw it still there, as recently as two nights ago on my walk, I (perhaps naively) held out faint hope that some Hero would buy the place and re-open it. But it was not to be. No matter what they put in its place, that spot will always be Cupid's Hot Dogs. There are some things you can't change, and that's one of them. Long live Cupid's, 1964 - 2023.   

That's basically all I know for today. I mainly wanted to tell you about Scott Walker. Make sure to give him a listen. 

Tons of love.   

Creative Genius

 Well, ladies and gentleman....what can even be said? I remember, back in the Fall of 1977 (give or take a month), there was this movie playing at the Nuart. If you're from Los Angeles, you know that the Nuart, which sits right off the San Diego Freeway in West L.A., is the city's premier art-house theater. It was famous in the 70s for hosting Saturday night screenings of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show", in which dedicated fans of that flick would show up and recite dialogue back at the screen, as the action was happening, or they'd toss glitter around. "Rocky Horror" and the Nuart became synonymous around this time, but in September or October 1977, word got around about another movie that was "in residency" at the theater, some crazy thing called "Eraserhead". It was supposed to be really weird.

Back then, David M. (or "Grimsley", as he later became known) was often at the forefront of new artistic discoveries. For instance, he found out about The Runaways before anyone else in our group of friends. And he heard about this movie, the name of which alone seemed reason enough to see it. I mean....why would anyone call their movie "Eraserhead", right? You wondered that when you were seventeen years old, especially in 1977, when the world was still basically the normal world.

At the time, I was just getting into art house flicks. I don't know if I'd seen "The Last Wave" yet, but Peter Weir was the first major discovery for me. Anyway: so we went to see this film, it was photographed in stark, richly textured black and white (you'd never seen a "look" quite like it), and I'll never forget the opening shot, of Henry's head, shown sideways, with his electrified hair and a worried look on his face. There's a foreboding planet in the background; it's like Henry's mind is in outer space, and all of this is accompanied by white noise that builds into a whooshing sound, like an interplanetary wind. The soundtrack sort of continues that way for the whole movie, but right from the get-go, you knew you were watching something very different, and it just kept getting weirder.

I remember we noticed David Lee Roth in the audience before the movie started, except to us, he was "that guy from Van Halen" because the band wasn't world famous yet. But the thing was, "Eraserhead" must've been too weird for DLR, because he got up and walked out about halfway through.  I was engrossed, and by the time the scene with "Bill" came up, where he stares at Henry at the dinner table, after asking him "what do you know?" and Henry says, "Oh...not much of anything", I knew I was watching genius.

That was David Lynch, who died yesterday. He became my favorite filmaker and artist-in-general and has remained so up to the present moment. He is one of those people who feels like family, like EVH, and to me, David Lynch and Walt Disney are the two greatest American creative geniuses of the last century.

I was fortunate to meet him twice. The first time was at a small art gallery on the Westside. They were showing some of Lynch's drawings. This was in 1995, when I was working on my Northridge Meadows documentary. The late (sometimes great) Dave Small was with me. He was producing the doc (paying for it), and lo and behold, David Lynch just so happened to be at the gallery that afternoon, interacting with the visitors. Me & Mr. D went up and told him we were making a film, and what it was about ("that building from the Northridge Earthquake") and we asked for his advice. "Call PBS", he told us. That's a perfect anecdote for today, January 17th, because it's the 31st anniversary of the quake.

The second time I met him (just to shake his hand and say hello, fanboy-style) was at the pre-release premier of "Inland Empire" in 2006 at the Hammer Museum. And, I've seen Chrystabell four times in concert. Lynch was at two of those shows, to introduce her. You also know her for her role in the 2017 "Twin Peaks" re-boot. The last project David Lynch released was a musical collaboration with Chrystabell called "Cellophane Memories"....

Last year, when he revealed he had emphysema and couldn't leave his house, he said he might still try to "direct remotely". Knowing him, he might've meant it in the spiritual sense, too. I'll bet he can "direct remotely" from Heaven (cue Julee Cruise)....

It's hard to believe so many of my heroes are no longer here: Neil Peart, Edward Van Halen, Pete Rose, David Lynch. Good thing I don't believe in death and try to stay connected to The Other Side.

Well anyway.

Are you guys dreading Trump's inauguration? You shouldn't. If I can do a 180 on him, anybody can. Watching clips from the confirmation hearing for Pam Bondi and Pete Hegseth, I'm realising who the clowns were all along, loudmouths like Adam Schiff, who I used to think was great. What a total jerk he is, and unfortunately he's emblematic of the politicians we have here in California. I'm sure you've seen the clips of the truly evil Gavin Newsom, grinning and sashaying as he talks about the fires. He's a straight-up nutjob; no wonder his nickname is "American Psycho". Then there's the inept Karen Bass, who was in Africa when L.A. went up in flames. Both she and Newsom should resign immediately, and I most humbly ask my Democratic friends to please not support politicians like these any more. Wokesters like Newsom, Bass and the legendarily horrific Kamala must be kept out of office permanently (God forbid Newsom gets recalled and she becomes our next Governor....yikes!). Me? I will never vote Democratic again, but if you must do so, vote for someone who isn't an extremist, and who is competent...and intelligent. Someone like Jerry Brown, or Mayor Riordan (now he was a great Mayor who greatly helped us in the aftermath of the quake). And that's enough politics for today.

Thanks for reading and God Bless. Tons of Love as always.       

Just Checking In (January 11, 2025)

Hey guys, I just wanted to check in, say hi and see how everyone is doing. I hope none of you had to evacuate, or if you did, that you are back in your homes and safe from the fires. We're all in shock; I think this is the worst thing that's happened to the Los Angeles area since the Northridge Earthquake. Seeing the damage is profoundly sad (goes without saying) and yet it's hard to stop watching the news. I haven't been to Pacific Palisades many times in my life, but I did go as a kid, to visit my "uncle" Rod Serling and once to tour the iconic Eames House. I hope both are safe and have not been burned. The main thing I remember about the town was how green it was, with trees and vegetation everywhere. It was like this Tropical Town at the end of Sunset Boulevard, down near the beach, past Hollywood and all the glamour. Last night, you could see the fire cresting the top of the Santa Monica mountains, just east of Reseda Boulevard. There was this big orange glow that looked like part of a Hieronymus Bosch painting, and you could actually see the flames. We get a lot of fires in California, but many of them are in wilderness areas. The last major structure fire I recall in this area was the Sayre fire in Sylmar in 2008. That was horrible, but this is far worse. As everyone is posting: "Pray for Los Angeles" and may God Bless the victims... 

I don't have much to report, no movies either, but I've been watching a riveting Youtube series called "Vietnam Voices", created by a reporter from the Billings Gazette newspaper in Montana. I've been interested in the Vietnam War since childhood. It dominated the news at that time, and I've had "the military" in my dna from my dad.

I used to be 100% anti-military in my youth (when I was nineteen or twenty), but that is no longer the case, and knowing my life history now (which I never knew before), you could say I am 100% pro-military, for the protection and defense of our country. It's a long story but you get the gist, and if you know me you get more than that.

But I've been interested in Vietnam since about 4th grade (1968/69), right after Flower Power ended and the Chicago Riots began. Clean, peaceful hippies turned into (or were replaced by) bearded, scraggly, violent "protesters" (one Vietnam vet said "they weren't protesting against the war, but because 'I don't want to go'"). Me? I am now almost 65. I was fortunate to be born after WW2 and Korea and was too young for Vietnam (and way too old for Iraq qnd Afghanistan), but I revere the guys who served in those wars, because bad guys must be stopped, and yes, there was a good reason for Vietnam because the Communist regime and Ho Chi Mihn were decidedly bad. But the politics of the time prevented our soldiers from winning that war; almost all wars are started by elites and politicians with economic interests to protect (see "War Pigs" by Black Sabbath), but I am on the side of the soldiers, every time.

I highly recommend the "Vietnam Voices" series. Watch one interview and you'll want to watch them all. In some of them, the veterans are asked if they've seen any of the movies made about the Vietnam War, and if so, which did they find the most accurate, realistic and representative of their experience. Almost to a man, they named "We Were Soldiers" as the best of the bunch. Second was "Hamburger Hill." Of course, many of us loved "Apocalypse Now", "Platoon" and "Full Metal Jacket", but according to the guys who were there (commenting in the interviews and in other clips on Youtube) these films are not accurate representations of the Vietnam experience. Anyway, check out the series if you are interested. One more film I'd recommend is the little-known "84 Charlie MoPic".

I'm currently listening to "The Last Will and Testament" by Opeth; "I Want Blood" by Jerry Cantrell; and "Rosemary Hill" by Sixpence None the Richer. Each is great from start to finish...

...and of course - as always - I am working on my latest book and The Overall Project. I will have the book published no later than July 4 (did I already tell you that?) (and it might be much earlier), but the book after that - folks, the book after that is gonna be such a whopper. Hint: it's not about 1989, but it's in the same vein, and I just bought the box set of all eight "Nightmare on Elm Street" movies to help me prepare. I know those movies were a Big Deal for the bad guys.... 

Happy New Year

Howdy Folks, and Happy New Year. Sorry I haven't written. I can't guarantee that "I'm back", or that I'll be blogging even as much as I did last year (which was very little compared to years past), but I just wanted to let you guys know that I'm still here, still alive, hanging in there, etc....and I trust you are, too. I hope you had a nice holiday season. I very much enjoyed seeing the Christmas lights on my nightly walks. I sure do miss Christmastime with Pearl, and before that, with my parents, but I can feel them in my heart and know they are with me always. New Year's Day was always a big one for me and Pearl. She loved the Rose Parade (so do I) and because KTLA re-ran it all day long, I'd just leave the TV on that station and let it play...

I'm finalizing my second book, which I hope to have out by my birthday (or July at the latest). As with "Pearl the Wonder Girl", it will also feature me and Pearl, but this time it's the story of my years as her caregiver. I can't give you the title just yet, but you'll know it in a few months.

I went to a concert a couple weeks ago : Sixpence None the Richer at The Troubadour on December 15. Do you guys like them? I became a fan pretty much from the get-go, way back around the turn of the milliennium when "Kiss Me" was constantly on the radio. They also had a huge hit with "There She Goes." I love Leigh Nash's voice, and the clean sound of the guitar melodies. But they are more than those two hit singles. They have a ton of longer, deeper songs on their first three albums. They were billed as an alternative Christian band, which is a label just like any other label (King's X was called a Christian hard rock band), and I don't know if that had a detrimental effect on their career, or what happened, but the thing was...they should've been huge. Maybe it was because they arrived at the end of the '90s rather than at the beginning or midway through, when '90s music was on the way out and Rap & Electronic "music" was on the way in (and hasn't left and seems like it won't ever go away).

They broke up in 2004, and though they've made music intermittently since then, they never toured and it felt like "what should've been" for Sixpence never reached fruition. But now they're back, with a great new EP called "Rosemary Hill" (you'll know why I love that title), and if the Troubadour show was any indication, they've got a second chance ahead of them if they stay together. They may not ever play The Forum, but they've got a rabid cult of fans who hollered and applauded after every song like you'd see at a heavy metal concert. I was right in the middle, about 12 feet from Leigh Nash. It was like getting to see Linda Ronstadt or (name any great singer you can think of)...

Anyway, I love The Troubadour. It's like The Whisky - you just walk in and there's the stage. I took the bus there again, like I did for David Gilmour at the Hollywood Bowl in October. No subway this time. Four buses from my apt. to The Troub. Not as complicated (or as bad) as it sounds. Smooth connections, minimal waiting. I didn't take my car because it's got some issues (overheating, gotta get it repaired so I can go to Disneyland).

I ask you: is there anything more important than Disneyland? The answer is no. Thanks for playing.

My life remains off-the-charts. If I (or you) thought it was weird the last time I wrote you, well...

It's long since left the Solar System. Thank goodness the (potential) emergency situation I referred to in my last blog has been eliminated. It was like a prayer being answered. Thank You, Lord.

I wanna get back to hiking this year. Would you believe I haven't been out on the trail since June? Yep, and that's no good. I do have a new, six-mile mega walk (featuring many Important Landmarks!) that I've been going on every night since late November, so I'm definitely getting my exercise, but man I miss my parks. Such is life when you decide you want to write books...because it's not just writing...you also have to do research (which takes a lot of time), then you have to compile and organise everything, and edit...and when you're in the process of learning everything you never knew about your life...it's hard to "do all the other stuff you used to do" before you decided to write books.

I miss singing, too. I'd love to sing in choir again. Maybe somehow I can make that happen. I love all my friends at the church.

I miss taking pictures....("But Ad, it was your decision to write books") ("Yeah, but I didn't know it would be so time-consuming") ("Yeah, but look at all the stories you have in the works") ("That's true") ("Okay stop talking to yourself") ("Okay")

I can't even believe I didn't go to Disneyland last year. There ought to be a penalty for that. I should castigate myself in some way...

Maybe if I go twice this year (or four times) I can let myself off the hook.

Are there any fellow Disneylanders out there who'd like to go with me?

Well anyhow, Happy New Year and I'll try to write more often. But even when I don't, please know that you're always on my mind.