THANK YOU!!!

i'll say busy, but you'll conclude whatever you will that it's taken me almost 36 hours to type again since the big party wrapped up on sunday evening. (all answers are likely correct!)

the short answer from here is that the people who came together to rock for food collected 219 pounds of donated non-perishable items, (the equivalent of roughly 168 meals), and $859 with which to buy fresh fruits and vegetables from the new entry sustainable farming project, to be distributed by the merrimack valley food bank. (you know it's been a good party when EVERYBODY leaves with a smile on their face).

i know i'm going to miss a lot of folks who deserve to be here on this list, but let me take a sleepy-eyed moment to name some of the folks who truly made this happen:

first of all, to matthew himmel and kimberley fitch at the new entry sustainable farming project, and amy pescia and bob sevigny at the merrimack valley food bank: you guys are the greatest. having an idea of doing something good for the community, for sustainable agriculture, for feeding those among us who need the help--that's one thing. having the energy and dedication to do it every day of the week and every week of the year is the job that deserves the real credit. i know there are TONS of other people in both organizations who deserve the same recognition, so please pass this sincere "thank you" along, but i've just started with the few i know. THANK YOU!!!

second of all, when the bare skeleton bones of an idea occurs to an aging middle-aged music junkie, all the best intentions in the world aren't going to get anybody anywhere unless and until someone else steps forward to offer the means to the end. to kevin, brian, eric and sean at brian's ivy hall, and to all the staff and family and friends there who chipped in cleaning and setting up and carrying it off and taking it down and cleaning it up all over again: this could not have happened without you. the dedication to the community is remarkable, and the word is worth spreading. (not sure where the downtown neighborhood association is planning their next meeting, but give kevin a call, because you're welcome there too!) from the invitation to enjoy the use of the hall FOR FREE, to the openness and eagerness to work together on lowell-themed drink specialties, to the generous sharing of cross-promotion with WKLB radio among many other things, THANK YOU!!!

third of all, (yup, this is going to be a long list), a related shout out to fastlane productions for the great party sounds. to mark and his crew, who had the sound wired especially for the room, and with such professionalism and effeciency, THANK YOU!!! no musician can rock a room like that without someone running the wires, twisting the knobs, and getting it all just right. THANK YOU!!!

fourth of all, i'm going to guess that 99% of the people who came through the door on sunday heard about the event, or saw notice of the event, or got motivated to follow through to attend the event from one of the many pieces of promotional material that was developed especially for the event. jay moore, aka the haunted hillbilly, was the graphic artist and designer, complete with web design and development and deployment, behind it all. event logo? jay. web site? jay. printed flyers? jay. t-shirt design? jay. 1000 last-minute changes every time a new sponsor or supporter or participant got added? jay. you need ANYTHING promotional, from graphics to web to whatever you can imagine? jay. (http://www.hauntedhillbilly.com). THANK YOU!!!

fifth of all, every good live event needs a master master of ceremonies, and will rock for food's good fortune was to have WCAP's own wireless-mike flynn at the head of the stage. mike first got involved promoting the show on his morning radio program on WCAP. he had peter lavender in (the musicians get theirs at the end, so don't worry, there's more) to perform a couple of his new songs (never before heard on the air--the world performance debut!), and kept the word going all around town all the way up to the event. and then, because plenty just isn't enough for some people, mike devoted almost an entire sunday of his personal time to be there at the show, to introduce the bands and the food organizations and manage the creative chaos that were the raffle drawings and auction bidding. THANK YOU MIKE!!!

sixth of all, now i have to start summarizing: life alive, brew'd awakenings, dharma buns, goodyear tire, athenian corner, monkey's ice cream, wklb, sam adams, (i know i'm forgetting people!), whitsett guitar works, and ALL the businesses that came together to donate things for the raffles and auctions--THANK YOU!!!

seventh of all, WUML, WCAP and WKLB for promoting the event on the airwaves. thanks especially to joe graham and wireless-mike flynn for realizing a great opportunity to put peter lavender and his new stuff live on the air, and doing it! (and thanks to tracey for sharing her show with joe for the afternoon to do it!) THANK YOU!!!

eighth of all, to bethann (you know who you are) for the brilliance to call it "will rock for food" in the first place, and the drink recipes, and the tireless work at the show to keep the raffles and auctions organized, and to pattie and maura and jen for looking so HOT in those will rock for food t-shirts and doing all the legwork on the donation collections and raffle ticket sales and everything else that goes into a success like this, THANK YOU!!!

ninth of all, to the bands. this is what got the whole thing started. how else are you going to get 16 of the most talented people you can name to clear their schedules on the same afternoon to plug in and rock out? i don't know, but appealing to their spirit of generosity took about all of about 30 seconds before the whole thing was booked and committed. melvern taylor and his fabulous meltones, bob nash, dave livingston and matt berlin, AND the incredible and incredibly talented sarah grant on that ethereal trumpet from the back of the room like we were all in musical church, THANK YOU! peter lavender and his band, arte k, carl johnson and bob nash, THANK YOU! jen kearney and the lost onion, carl johnson, claire finley, pete maclean and mark money shot mullins, THANK YOU! treat her right, dave champagne, jim fitting, billy beard and steve mayone, THANK YOU!

tenth of all, to the authors and publishers behind the scenes at the loom press and the bootstrap press, including derek fenner and steve o'connor who brought it all to us there at the event, THANK YOU!!!

eleventh of all, to linda mccluskey who was there in spirit with her prints, but especially to miss emily schroer whose fabulous collage art of the very soul of lowell made the merchandise area of the event the magical experience it was, THANK YOU!!! (and a little whisper-out to sarah grant and her cappies--those are GREAT, THANK YOU TOO!)

twelfth of all, to everybody i'm forgetting here, i'm both so so so sorry for the oversight and omission, and quadruply grateful that none of this has ever been about recognition--just coming together to rock for food and give back to the community. THANK YOU!!!

and lucky thirteenth of all to everyone who wished me a happy birthday, THANK YOU, too. you tell me anyone you know who had a better one, and i'll tell you you're a liar.

THANK YOU ALL, and let's do it again NEXT YEAR!

lowell will, indeed, always rock for food!

will rock for food can't believe it but it's true update

i've been doing something few reasonable people (apparently, according to what i've been repeatedly told) do, which is take an idea for supreme self-indulgence, and wrap it irretrievably in something else. (ostensibly just because things were SO self-indulgent as they unfolded that i feared my karma would have me run over by a bus and reincarnated as a banana slug by the weekend if i didn't). yes, despite a complete lack of knowledge or experience on how to successfully do it, it's being done anyway, and i have to tell you more about how, because this could never be anything any one person could even dream to do.

along the way i've received some incredible assistance. jay moore made this amazing website, and accompanying promotional graphics, that have everyone who sees them wistfully expressing their regret that they can't have such things for their band or their cause or their business, (to which i immediately remind them that, YES! they can, and all they have to do is click on the "haunted hillbilly" link on the site to get in touch), and for the crowning glory, you should totally come to the event (nods to melvern) to see the t-shirts. it's been the face of the event right from the start, and it's an incredible privilege for us all to have it be that way.

and it should be pointed out that, without kevin and brian and eric and sean, and the whole team at brian's ivy hall, this event would have no home, and no place to grow. all the folks at brian's ivy hall could not have been more welcoming and more supportive, right from the start. you need the room? done. you need some lowell-themed drink specials to get people in the mood? done. you need promotion? how about we get 102.5 wklb to talk you up. done. you need to set up early? stay late? done and done. there are a lot of places that have been open longer in downtown lowell, but there are none who are doing it better for the neighborhood than brian's ivy hall.

and speaking of the stage where this will all take place, let's take a step back to give a shout out to the bands, who are all dedicating their time to "rock for food", as it were, and give us an experience that money couldn't in any other way buy. jen kearney and the lost onion (claire finley, carl johnson, peter maclean, mark mullins) had me from the moment i saw them first at the lowell summer music series, opening up for daryl hall. that a guy could walk up to talent like this at lelacheur at a spinners game and say "i am SUCH a fan", and be welcomed so warmly into everything that has happened since, is truly a blessing. and it's from there that i ventured two birthdays ago to the lizard lounge, to see them again, and first saw a ukulele truly fulfilled, and melvern taylor and his fabulous meltones (dave livingston, bob nash and johnny grant, since so admirably amended by matt berlin, AND, because it was the trumpet wafting like magic in the air that fell me such in love, sarah grant, too). from which, as much to see carl and bob as to ever guess it would turn into such joy, it was on to then-mickey's to see peter lavender for his "never now" cd release party, and the ride of my life that's taken me to not just listen to music, but the BE it, such as a poor beginner like me is able. (i still can't believe one man could ever be so lucky). and that's all not even beginning to consider the lifelong passion that follows the "low rock" sound of treat her right. if you have never, YOU MUST. sunday. (they go on at 8:30pm).

but it's not just music. the loom press (thanks, paul marion!) and the bootstrap press (thanks derek fenner!) are sharing their authors and their books. (one of whom, steve o'connor, is a soccer teammate, whose characterizations of the rest of the guys on the team in his short stories of lowell are classic, and i'll tell you all about them if he won't!) linda mccluskey and emily schroer are sharing their art. (i met linda with her paintings in a back corner of a parking lot three folk festivals ago, which is a short way to say that it's so completely fitting that she should be so much more prominently featured these days with her art inspiring the event logo in addition to me, and even though she can't be there in person, her art will be, and that's great all by itself). sarah grant is sharing the most amazing earrings you can make from bottle caps, and you heard it here first that you're going to have to get there early before they sell out AGAIN. local businesses are contributing items for raffles and auctions. it's a group effort, and it's GREAT.

but this is all a (typically) round-about way to get around to saying that what i experienced last night as i was walking on my way from downtown over to voices rock club over the river in centralville, was even more than all this. teddy panos at the athenian corner restaurant stopped me as i was walking by his patio and asked unsolicited if he could join the support for the event, and contribute a gift certificate from his restaurant to add to the cause. i have to tell you, it can be exhausting to spend so many weeks always having to ask for everything. i mentioned how GREAT the downtown businesses have all been, because they've all said yes the moment they were asked, and they've made it as easy as i could possibly be, (THANK YOU!), but teddy's reaching out because i hadn't had time to get around to the athenian corner to ask, and pressing the goods straight into my hand, that really shows off the spirit of lowell, and how lucky and blessed i've been to have this kind of support for something that could have never been without it.

i first went to the athenian corner a couple of days after moving in across the street. i was blown away by even the simplicity and sublimity of the bread they serve before the meal. the (warm!) grape leaves and the feta and the kalamatas? oh, you are only getting started. and i have to say, right up there with the philippinos and their inimitable take on teriyaki, the athenian corner outdoor barbecue during folk fest is the MUST GO food table in all of the city. (lamb kabobs... MMMMMMMmmm). but i had no idea until my neighbor, in one of those "pssssst" moments, clued me in about the music on thursday nights, and i first experienced greek, turkish AND armenian folk songs all played by a trio of greek, turkish and armenian musical masters, what it is all about. (and i got to dance with eleni, too!) and now there he is, teddy panos himself, asking me if he can do more for me and for lowell by adding yet another gift certificate into the raffle collection.

i can only say that it's my life and experience and belief that these sorts of things can only happen in the city of lowell. you may have stories of rumors where they have happened somewhere else, but i'll tell you that i have the proof right here in my hand, and i cannot wait to share it with all of you on sunday.

melvern and his fabulous meltones go on at 4pm, SHARP. (matt's telling his mother he's going to be late for her birthday party so he can be there with us, which is yet another story of generosity and support that would take more time than i'm sure for which you have patience, so let's just say yet another THANKS!!!). peter lavender plays new stuff from an upcoming CD at 5:30. jen kearney and her lost onion lay it down at 7pm. and treat her right, the crowning glory of the self-indulgence that has required so much grateful effort, goes on at 8:30pm, and i cannot WAIT to share the experience with everyone who is making this great thing happen.

for the new entry sustainable farming project. for their local entrepreneurial and indomitable farmers. for the merrimack valley food bank. for everyone in need who is helped through their efforts, and for all of us who are all the better for it--

WILL ROCK FOR FOOD.

please be there. please join in. please discover what i've discovered:

shangri-lowell--it's the best place on earth.

tonight when i chase the dragon

donald fagen means opiates, but, first of all, and as you all must know, my street cred when it comes to such things is less than zero, so you know it can't be about that, and, second of all, any experience one can get pharmaceutically has to pale in comparison to the elusive, ephemeral yet totally intoxicating experience one can get when music that is MUSIC truly happens, so let me tell you all about it.

last night at voices rock club, to fill in for a cancellation (?) or maybe just because carl johnson could play at your club 7 nights a week and you'd still want to convince him to add a matinee show, carl johnson brought his friends out for some music and it was very, very good.

the disclaimer is that, now that i sometimes play on a few songs with peter you're going to have to start taking these things with that modicum of metaphorical salt, but having peter lavender run through yet another set of his original songs with arte k on bass, (not the upright this time, but a sweet classic gibson), bob nash on brushes and his melvern taylor kit, and carl johnson on the stratocaster via the fender blues jr in the hand made custom, dove-tailed wooden cabinet, is like being invited to church with the college of cardinals. (only without the funny hats, unless you count arte's homage to garth brooks during the warm-ups, but i digress).

AND! wait, there's more!

for pure entertainment, you're not going to beat one of the regulars of some uncertain but considerable age and experience taking the mic during one of the breaks and acapella'ing hank williams ("your cheatin' heart") which, i should add, was the kind of roaring success that, as peter said it last night and is so true, can happen only in lowell. (i may be turning 50, but if there's that much more life after this, i'm going to be one extremely happy guy). and then, piece de resistance, cherry on the sundae, icing on the birthday cake, it was claire finley borrowing arte's gibson bass, so generously contributed to the cause, and joining carl johnson, backed by bob nash, for a little mini set of let's-go-to-saint-peters, (or is it saint gary's? he sure runs a sweet club) for some musical communion.

the intensity and impact of luther allison's cherry red wine was not wholly unexpected. i've been on this ride before with carl, and adding claire it's fair to say he turned in one of his best performances ever of that song, and you could put that stuff on itunes and make a fortune with it. and, not for nothing, but if you haven't seen kansas joe mccoy's and memphis minnie's "when the levee breaks" by way of led zeppelin with bob nash on BRUSHES, of all things, you ain't seen NOTHIN! they rocked that chia pet (it's got hair on it, get it?) like it was 1979 and then some. CLASSIC.

however, all that being said, there is nothing further i could say that would do justice to or prepare you for what carl and claire (and bob!) put down on joe cocker's "feelin' alright", that spun the room like it was a musical opium haze and we were all wastrel musical derelicts who would do anything, anything at all, to make it last one more stanza. ripped it up they did. laid it down. "blew that room away", as paul simon once penned it. made a moment that can last forever.

it's the best birthday present a guy could wish for.

the day the music...

well, it didn't quite die, exactly, because jen kearney and the lost onion (claire finley, carl johnson, pete maclean and mark mullins) will be at "will rock for food" this sunday upstairs at brian's ivy hall, but last night was the final night for jen and company's residency at ole restaurant, and it's worth remembering, for sure. the coda to all the great nights that jen has wowed 'em there at ole was one of my all-time favorite covers of theirs--led zep's "what is and what should never be". as in, yup, it was their last night, and, MAN, can carl johnson rock a gretsch electromatic.

carl's new rig is a dark, deep cherry, and he, of course, upgraded all the innards to his impossible-for-anyone-else standards of sonic sublimity, and when you combine that with (from left to right) mark mullins' suh-weeeeet trumpet and flugelhorn, jen's any sound anywhere anytime nord keyboard (and optional fender-amped classic telecaster), and pete maclean's vintage snare and trap kit, (i won't even try to tell you the pieces, cuz it's all beyond me except the SOUND), and claire finley's pedulla penta-buzz, it's music like you can't hear anywhere else.

one of the for-the-ages treats of the evening was jen playing one of her best--forgiven--that she so rarely plays out. it was like being part of someone's living room, and, in a way, that's exactly what it was. friends, fans and lucky passers-by all together to share a moment that will never come again exactly as it came last night.

i feel very lucky to have been there, and lucky to be able to catch JKLO again so soon on sunday afternoon and evening at brian's ivy hall, which is, ironically, right upstairs from ole there on merrimack.

you really ought to come on down to see what i'm talking about. (jen goes on at 7, but you know you'll want to hear melvern taylor and his fabulous meltones at 4, and peter lavender and his band at 5:30, and, ESPECIALLY, headliners treat her right at 8:30).

will do just about anything for this kind of food

everybody's up to speed with "will rock for food", right? if you haven't already clicked the link, or if you haven't clicked the link in awhile, give it a whirl and appreciate what jay moore (aka the haunted hillbilly) is putting out there for hot web graphics in support of the event. AND! the event!!! four bands. no cover. sunday, august 29th (as in, THIS sunday) at 4pm til whenever. (melvern taylor and his fabulous meltones hit the stage PROMPTLY at 4pm, so get there a little earlier to catch every note, and treat her right will be going from 8:30 to maybe on towards 10pm, so there'll still be time to get home and into bed in plenty of time for a full night's sleep before work on monday--and in between you'll get jen kearney and the lost onion and peter lavender and his band which is pretty awesome too). the karma-offsetting goodness to all this self-indulgence is that the show benefits the new entry sustainable farming project and the merrimack valley food bank, so bring a non-perishable food donation, or $5 or $10 for a door donation, or (AND) buy some raffle tickets and bid on some silent auction items that'll fill the sides of the room. (latest edition--some top-shelf vintage stuff that i understand from my very best sommelier friend is INCREDIBLY awesome and delicious, and the steal of the show so far, which is saying alot, because doug sparks from terroir coffee is coming down with a couple of urns of the VERY GOOD STUFF, on which you can amp yourself up for a buck a cup, and also raffling off some of his best beans, too).

HOWEVER!

this isn't about that!

i just had a beef brisket sandwich from dharma buns (also a will rock for food supporter, whose gift certificate you can go for in the raffle) that came with a side of gravy that is, as they say in the places where they serve beef brisket all the time, to DIE for. the corned beef reuben the other day--that was merely great. this brisket sandwich is mind-blowing, and that gravy is what does it. i mean, so good, that i'm not embarrassed to say that I was sipping it from the cup between bites of the sandwich in case one of the bites wasn't deemed enough infused with it's mouth exploding goodness all by itself. this is the real deal, people.

which then raises an interesting point... the fries? you know dharma buns fries are the best in the city. that almost goes without saying, but it's worth saying again anyway, in case anyone is slow to be catching on. and now we know that they can rock beef gravy like makes your mouth water so hard it actually hurts at the back corners of your mouth when it first kicks in. SO good. and, then, you say, but where is the cheese curd???

i've written a couple paeans to the divinity that is good poutine here, and i won't repeat myself except to say that dharma buns is on the cusp of immortality here. they've got the fries. they've got the gravy. they've got the cooler fall and winter weather coming up, when a hot, steaming bowl of poutine after a brisk walk outdoors is just about heaven on earth. and it's just now down to the cheese curd.

while i'm rocking for food on sunday, and you see that smile on my face, among all the other things on this great green earth of ours for which i have to feel thankful, and to which to look forward, you know that one of them is going to be that (potential) bowl of dharma buns poutine.

it's gotta be coming. i've already asked santa. (speaking of which--i wonder when and where will be tex-mas eve this year?) inquiring minds!!!

everybody gets it even more!

late-breaking news regarding will rock for food:

WCAP's wireless-mike flynn, co-host of "merrimack valley radio in the morning" from 6 to 10am, and host of "the coffee break" from 10-11, will be at the will rock for food event and helping to introduce the bands and keep the fund-raising for the new entry sustainable farming project, and merrimack valley food bank, humming along.

come on down to meet mike, join the party, and rock out for a couple of great causes.

what is all this you say?

it's four bands, (melvern taylor and his fabulous meltones, peter lavender, jen kearney and the lost onion, and treat her right), countless lowell sponsors from across the community, and everyone who is anyone. it's all-ages, at brian's ivy hall, from 4pm (SHARP--melvern needs to be home early so as not to miss his nap) to 10pm and beyond if necessary. (treat her right go on at 8:30 for an extended set, and then you know how musicians are--if there's an unused PA in the house, SOMEBODY is gonna start making noise with it).

be like mike--it'd be great if you could be there, too.

will rock for food via FOOD!

ok, i'll admit it--i had just about the best vicarious evening of my gustatory life last night, and i didn't even eat a thing. (ok, maybe one thing, or actually three, at dharma buns at the end, but that's only because that was the last place i stopped).

i was strolling the streets downtown last night soliciting support for the will rock for food benefit, (you're going to be there, right?), and i was blown away by two very obvious things: first of all, no matter how tough it is for local businesses downtown these days, they are ALL there to help in the community. i didn't get a single "no". every answer was "yes, how else can we help?" second of all, WOW. we have got some AMAZING food down here, and even when you know it, you forget about it until you actually step into these places to smell it and to see it.

most dramatic to me were the confections in delicia's bakery & coffee at the corner of central and merrimack. have you been into this place? wondeful. smells so good. looks so good. and immediately obvious from the faces of those tasting the goods, tastes so good. and here was the other thing that blew me away. the proprietors' (not the wait staff, the proprietors') english is not the most confident, and when you meet a guy like me talking a mile a minute about food banks and cooperative agriculture it gets pretty dense, it's easy to see where you'd want to say in whatever language you prefer, "no thanks". but up from chairs came customers to translate the confusing bits, (of which there are plenty--when someone doesn't understand, it's always the fault of the speaker, if you haven't learned that yet), and it turned into the most pleasant and wonderful of conversations between a whole roomful of people who were getting the idea, and getting on board with getting behind it.

which is to say, when you get to the will rock for food benefit, there will be a raffle item generously donated by delicia's, and you have my word right now that you will WANT to win this item. of course, since they'll be open on sunday, you could always head down the block and buy things directly, but where's the sport in that? ;-)

but that was just the beginning. etsogo, life alive, dharma buns, etc. etc. etc. were all eager to lend their support, and have with donations and menus for people at the event. (etsogo and delicia's are open during the event, and etsogo will even deliver, so you can be well fed as well as well rocked). and other spots open on sunday, and pulling together their donations as well, will be added to the "supporters" page on the web site very soon.

speaking of supporters, let's have another shout out for jay moore (aka the haunted hillbilly) for his amazing work getting the will rock for food web site rockin'. if you like the site, and if you realize that yours could use this kind of improvement too, drop him a line. i can't say enough about how much his support and hard work are appreciated in making this event the success we all want it to be. (info@hauntedhillbilly.com is a good address to use). he's the guy behind the graphics, the web site, the event posters, and, even, the t-shirts that you'll see all the bands getting at the event. (don't worry, jay gets one too!). if you need some help getting the word out about absolutely anything, then jay's your guy.

and if you are hungry, there's an entire downtown here who has just what you're looking for.

catch it all at will rock for food!

charlton heston we dearly miss you

jon stewart, in this past friday's "the daily show", aired a clip of charlton heston's 1999 NRA convention speech. 1999. (start watching around 7:20). heston's words:

"tragedy will always be with us. somewhere, right now, evil people are planning evil things. all of us will do everything meaningful, everything we can do to prevent it. but each horrible act can't become an axe for opportunists to cleave the very bill of rights that binds us".

and more of heston's words:

"america must stop this predictable pattern of reaction. when an isolated, terrible event occurs, our phones ring, demanding that the NRA explain the inexplicable. why us? because their story needs a villain. that is not our role in american society, and we will not be forced to play it. if you disagree, that's your right. i respect that. but we will not relinquish it, or be silenced about it, or be told, 'do not come here--you are not welcome in your own land' ".

and jon's simple apology and statement about it:

"i was wrong and heston was right. and if you replace "NRA" with "muslim community" and "second amendment with "first amendment", he's still right".

THAT'S also what i believe.

mr heston, rest in peace. i'm proud to live in this country, as you were so proud to live in this coutry, that our forebears fought so hard to bequeath us. i will do everything i can to bequeath it to those after me with the same constitution and full bill of rights intact, and respect the example you set in the very same way. i would entreat all other citizens to do the same.

everybody gets it!

more on the will rock for food front!

i'm continually amazed at how many folks (who even read this pile of chicken scratching) are still missing the word on this:

there's a party on sunday, august 29th, beginning PROMPTLY at 4pm, (as in, get there any time after 3 and be ready, cuz Melvern starts playing at 4 whether you're ready or not!), at brian's ivy hall, conveniently located at 74 merrimack street in downtown lowell, where all the best bands in lowell are playing in support of the new entry sustainable farming project, and raising money so that their fresh produce can be donated directly to those in need via the merrimack valley food bank. (and if you like, and everybody hopes you like, you can bring non-perishable food items to donate directly to the food bank, and, of course, cash is always most welcome, too!).

did i mention there's a big party on sunday the 29th? you ought to be there! (as melvern likes to say, "you should totally come").

anyway!

mike flynn at 980AM WCAP (everybody gets it!) is featuring a promo for the event on his radio show some time after 10am on monday (i.e. tomorrow!) morning. between you and me, it'll likely be on towards 10:30, but since you're all already getting it, and listening straight through the morning, there's no chance you'll miss it, anyway. either way, mike will be talking to maybe me, maybe who else related to the event too, who knows, and we'll be telling you everything you'll need to know about rocking your sunday afternoon and evening while doing good for both local agriculture and the local food bank at the same time.

so!

monday morning. wcap. 980am. everybody gets it. 10 or 10:30am. lots of info about will rock for food. the perfect way to find out how to have a BALL on sunday afternoon at brian's ivy hall with all of everyone who is anyone here in downtown lowell and beyond.

* melvern taylor and his fabulous meltones. (who will be at toad in cambridge this thursday at 7:30pm).
* peter lavender and his whole band, including the great arte kenyon on bass, who you can see at voices rock club this tuesday night with the great tyngsboro carl johnson.
* jen kearney and the lost onion. (who are playing at ole this thursday, too!)
* treat her right. (i think she likes me, that's what i think).
* authors and books from the loom press, and bootstrap press. (yo, steve o'connor!)
* art from emily schroer and linda mccluskey, and crafts from sarah grant and others.
* conversations with jay moore (aka the haunted hillbilly) who can rock your event or other PR needs with graphics, websites and all sorts of goodies.
* sound and stuff from mike glunts of fastlane productions.
* the incredibly talented and photogenic bar staff of brian's ivy hall, who will coinicidentally be pouring lots of specialty lowell-themed (and specially priced) cocktails.
* for that matter, the great team behind brian's ivy hall, who have so generously opened their doors for the party, and made this all possible.
* raffles and auctions of art and other goodies from all around downtown lowell and beyond.
* meet and greet with amy pescia of the merrimack valley food bank, and matthew himmel of the new entry sustainable farming project, who will be sharing information on all the great things they are doing here in the beautiful, scenic merrimack valley.

are you getting it yet?

tune in tomorrow! get it!

edited to add: peter lavender, fresh off his live performance on wuml yesterday afternoon, is booked for another couple of his great tunes during mike's program tomorrow morning! get it!

facts? let's not confuse the argument with facts

a recent post over on the dick howe site referenced a jim hightower opinion piece on his questions about current republican campaign funding. the dick howe site piece piled on to say: "republican backers and candidates are rolling up huge sums of money to power an obama backlash".)

funny thing though: democratic national committee chair, tim kaine, has been going around at the same time bragging about the strength of july democratic national committee fund-raising. want to know some curious facts behind the hyperbole of the dick howe site alarm-raising?

july republican national committee fund-raising efforts yielded around $5.5M, inflated almost a million by a one-time insurance payment. (about which they're explaining very little, but, in any case, it's not campaign fund-raising cash). in contrast, july democratic national committee fund-raising slush funds were raised at a pace of $11.6M, or, if you'd like to do the math, over TWICE the republican amount, even AFTER you toss in the gratuitous $900K insurance windfall, but i couldn't find corroboration about this in the jim hightower piece, so i'm really not so sure what to think about all this...

of course, the republican and democrat congressional fund-raising committees aren't anywhere near that same story as their national counterparts: in their cases, the republicans are sitting on a whopping $22M, while the democrats are only sitting on a paltry $35M in cash, which, as you can clearly see, is well less than double the republican congressional bankroll. (poor congressional democrats...) in the senate, though, it's much, much, much, MUCH different: there the democrats only hold a $22.4 to $21.2 million dollar difference, and i think we can all agree that the republicans are really getting away with something here...

want to know what i think? i think incumbents attract money because it's the grease that gets the squeaky wheels their ill-gotten, taxpayer-screwing gains, and, not by coincidence, the democrats are in the majority in congress. to my way of looking at the world, the democrats are being flooded with lots and lots of free cash with which to continue their looting of the federal treasury, and THAT's the story we all need to be telling ourselves.

only don't mistake this as having the least little thing to do with whether the incumbents are sporting D's or R's on their campaign badges. if the republicans were in the majority, don't doubt for a second that they wouldn't be winning the fund-raising race. it's how our party political system works.

sapere aude. unenroll. stop paying off criminals for their criminal behavior. (have you SEEN the deficit these days???) if it's got a D on it, it's out to screw you. if it's got an R on it, it's out to screw the D's so it can subsequently screw you. i challenge anyone out there with a D or an R fetish to argue with me differently.

better late than never

2pm. WUML. 91.5. (http://www.wuml.org/webcast.php)

peter lavender live, and, if you hear a ukulele in the background, you'll know it's ME!

lots of plugs for will rock for food. maybe even some treat her right and jen kearney and melvern taylor.

tune in!

lowell will rock for food update!

counting down, and it's just 10 days away to lowell will rock for food! (sunday, august 29th at brian's ivy hall in beautiful downtown shangri-lowell!)

in today's boston globe (thanks to my friend, april, for finding this!) there's a story about the new federal food stamp initiative to discount fresh produce purchases. this is GREAT for western massachusetts where the program is being introduced, but it's important to point out that we have our own little initiative here in lowell to do the very same thing via the new entry sustainable farming project, (and their world peas csa), and the merrimack valley food bank: will rock for food!

the premise of the will rock for food benefit is to raise money with which to purchase produce shares from the world peas csa. the shares will be, in turn, donated to the merrimack valley food bank and distributed as part of their ongoing programs here in the area. it's a win win win for local farmers, sustainable agriculture, and those served by the merrimack valley food bank. and all you need to do to be part of it is to show up on sunday, august 29th, maybe bring some non-perishable food items to donate directly to the food bank, and maybe drop a few dollars ($5? $10?) in the jar at the door (there is no cover charge for this event, and there are four bands and numerous local artists and authors to meet and enjoy), and then check out all the raffles and silent auction items you can steal for pennies on the dollar, all to go to this great cause.

be there! do good! burnish your karma, and rock out at the same time!

why democrats and party politics suck

speech being as assiduously protected as religion, (no coincidence they're both together there in the 1st amendment), it's equally offensive to me that nancy pelosi wants to investigate the protesters of the "ground zero" mosque, that's neither a mosque (it's a 13-story high-rise with a day care center, fitness center, theater, etc. and, yes, a house of worship inside) nor at ground zero (it's blocks away and neither part of ground zero nor even abutting it), as it is that idiots like sarah palin want to exhort us to deny people their religious freedom as if they aren't as american as "we" are.

it's a zoning issue ennobled by our very own constitution and bill of rights, and it is what should be a celebration of what makes this country great, and it should not be hypocritical sound-byte fodder for craven political posturing.

or, put another way (as would say my 13 year old daughter):

shut the fuck up.

"new low"

one of the recent news feed headlines, related to a recent AP opinion poll, shouts out to the world that "obama at new low for handling economy".

first of all, don't get me wrong. i'm in no way defending how this man has mishandled the economy since assuming his office. his economically-suicidal approach, copied as if from his neighbor/predecessor's paper in the white house elementary school, of "bailing out" failed firms (there are reasons capitalism works, and one of them is that failed firms fail and their business can be taken over and better-exploited by better firms) and pouring tax dollars that cost you and me real effort to earn into "stimulus" boondoggles (otherwise better referred to as pork-barrel graft, corruption and waste) that create no wealth, and, hence, no value whatsoever to those paying for them, (i.e. you and me), is a pure loser, and spare me if you're a D donkey and want to spout off some nonsense about how the problems were all inherited, and no blame can possibly be assessed to anyone who's come along since, because that just as much of a waste as the programs you'd be trying to defend.

however

i want to ask how it is that we've come to the point where the "news" is merely how the poll figures are pointing today, and where the characterization of someone's job performance is to be infered simply from a list of our opinions about it.

news flash--the office of the presidency is NOT a popularity contest. running for it may be, but not the office itself. i'd be happiest if we could read news stories about what is actually happening, and what the POTUS is actually doing, as opposed to what popular opinion only thinks he or she is doing.

yeah, i get it. things suck right now. they have for years. they will for many years to come. but obama is not at a new low, only our *opinion* of him is at a new low, and writing the headline as if the story is about him and not us is not only stupid, but it contributes to this silly tendency we americans seem to have grown that we want to rate sound bytes, not qualifications or achievements in office. (e.g. tell me why an alaskan's opinions on manhattan property rights, and a 13-story mixed-use building coincidentally to contain a mosque--that isn't even visible from the outside of said building, or located anywhere on or abutting to the ground zero site for that matter--in addition to a day care center, health and exercise facilities, etc., has any relevance whatsoever compared to the jurisdiction's zoning and approval process, and our very explicit constitution that forbids us and our representative form of government from making any "law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof").

but, of course, i digress.

i just wish the headline writers weren't so lazy, and inaccurate, in their choices of words. it leads to lazy and inaccurate thinking, and that's when it really all starts to go downhill.

not for nothing, but...

a small fraction of the hundreds of billions we've squandered, coincidentally killing our own soldiers while collaterally damaging countless civilians in the process, in iraq and afghanistan, would have gone a long way towards creating life-long amity and good feelings among the pakistani flood victims, as opposed to the frustration currently being expressed for the inadequacy of the relief currently possible in that country...

if the goal is the eradication of terrorism, i would argue that the most effective means are not echoing the terrorists' violence, and letting the terms of the fight be dictated by them or any others of our enemies, (JC would be talking about other cheeks, too, and it's highly ironic that so many people rah-rah-ing for the benefits of living in a "christian" nation refuse to behave like they deserve to be part of one), but, rather, proving by our deeds our beliefs in and the strengths of our ideals as an alternative.

why republicans and party politics suck (and, hence democrats too, but, of course, as usual, i digress)

the president of these united states recently had the temerity to stalwartly defend our founding principles, and the constitution in which they are eloquently expressed, (as he is sworn to do, by the way), and now his political opponents would prefer us to believe that he's some sort of traitor to us and this nation for doing so. i am so far offended by this turn of events that i'm really having trouble finding a way to articulate my feelings.

first of all, let's agree there are countries in this world who actively deny people the right to associate, assemble and worship as they please, and they are, coincidentally, many of the same countries in which we currently deploy troops to shed their blood and lay down their lives in defense of a better principle--namely, that a government "shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances". so why is it that certain opposition party leaders would have me feel like this is a bad thing???

let's call a spade a spade--this particular sort of opposition effectively and near-literally spits on the sacrifice of our men and women in the field, and pisses all over the founding document upon which our entire country is built. there are many in this country (most of whom sport capital R's on their political name badges--see the first paragraph above) behaving as if this is not the case, but it IS the case, and there is no other way around it. this isn't a political football. IT IS WHO WE ARE. or not...

my suggestion is that if there are citizens among us who do NOT want to live in a country where the government "shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances", that they can catch the first plane to any of those countries where prohibiting the "free exercise thereof" is the law of the land, and join their brethren in tyranny and terrorism.

me, i prefer to live here in and among the land of the free, where ALL religions enjoy equal protection from abuse, just as our best and brightest are right now fighting and dying for all over the world. and if you disagree, as craig ferguson would say, then go ahead and join al qaeda, because it it THEIR cause that you espouse, not your own country's.

on the brighter side...

people reading the previous (or subsequent if you're coming late and reading this in blog-order) entries might mistake the fact that i ENJOY cracking wise without regard for whether the wise cracks are either fair or actually entertaining, (your cross to bear, and feel free to crack wise about the ignomy of it), and that i hardly ever let inconvenience spoil the perfection that is my life here in shangri-lowell.

i got to spend a week in the woods (directly adjacent to a kick-ass beach) with my boys, and then jet-set down to the blue ridge mountains (some of the prettiest there are anywhere) to add my daughter to that mix, and still get back home in time to regale you all with the stories of it. i successfully lost complete track of both date and time of day on numerous occasions, (the litmus test for any successful vacation), and i had lobster, sang sam cooke songs with pre-schoolers, water-slid down the side of the world's largest and wettest taco, and got to re-live the joy of ones first day of college vicariously through one of the people i dearly love most in this world. (i'm leaving out meteor showers, sunrises over the water, and NAPS, but you're hopefully getting the picture).

life is as pleasing or as difficult as we believe it is. i'm not saying that life's circumstances are ever all that pleasing, but it's in how you choose to respond that true happiness lies. do you have people whom you love? are you trying to be earl's better person to and for them?

don't you see that that is all there is?

i do.

the rest of it--the job and the house and the car and the money, and the lacks and/or deficiencies of all thereof--are the misdirections for the prestidigitation of the fickle finger of fate that is conspiring to confuse you from what it is that makes you truly happy. i have more than most, but none of it seems to be what most people see when they look at me, smiling though i may be, though you must also bear in mind, as ogden nash would admonish you, that "people who have what they want are fond of telling people who haven't what they want that they really don't want it", and you really have to figure out what it is, REALLY, that you really want, not me, if you're ever really going to be happy.

i want you to be happy. god wants you to be happy. (that's why he gave us beer). the whole world may not be helping you to see it, but IT wants you to be happy, too. it just needs you to keep your eyes on the important stuff. and, if you need help, i've got exactly the summer camp for you!

the only industry more pathetically failed than our airline industry

catching up with saturday's paper of record (nods to the mr mill city boys) i had to laugh at the publisher's citation of a "title wave" related to the forces behind an election of some politico or another.

too funny.

i'm not sure whether or not i believe it was a momentary and accidental lapse, and that the man who appears to brag so often about his public school education actually realizes that the expression should be about a "tidal wave", and the "title" thing was just an inadvertent typo, and that he was merely (?!) let down by the editorial staff he employs to publish his paper, but, see, the fact that it's one or the other just puts the ball right back into the court in which it belongs.

print media, and by that i mean daily newspapers, have become their very own reason for failure. oh, they'll whine to you about "new media" and the impact of things like the internet on their business model, and how ad revenues are way down but they're still plugging away like little local heroes, but the sad truth is that daily newspapers have so completely and totally missed the point about the business that they're actually in, (much like most all major airlines don't have a clue that they're actually in the business of making travel a pleasant and worthwhile experience), that they're trying desperately to become semi-literal electronic tabloids, since they seem to lack the imagination to try to become anything better, despite the legacy of their forebears producing literate and thoughtful LOCAL information for local customers to enjoy to pay to use.

yep, it's a veritable "title wave" of semi-literacy over there, and we're being washed away right along with it.

local news, fairly, objectively and literate-ly reported, will always win subscribers and advertisers both. however, in my little local offering, i'm getting more and more (non-sensical, but that's another rant for another time) national commentary, anything-but-objectively given, and illiterate-ly published, and i'm watching while i compete in the lottery to become the very last print edition subscriber. (anyone see the onion piece on the boston globe tailoring their print edition for their last three remaining subscribers?).

lucky for all of us, this particular demise remains fairly entertaining.

us air sucks

had a chance to top off a perfect vacation with something almost as good (the older kids get, the more getting them all in one place together rocks) and then had to have the final taste in my leisure mouth being the colossal catastrophe that has become our national air traffic system in general, and one of its largest carriers in specific. oh, they'll tell you it's weather when they just don't care enough to get the planes there on time, but you can smell the truth just by watching how the whole things gets not-quite run, and how the people who are left to not-quite run it are trying desperately to make an untenable situation at least partially tenable, but are failed at every turn by a system with such huge flaws that only someone immersed in it can possibly fail to see it all for what it is.

it's been my pleasure not to have to fly all that often for quite a long time now, and it's remarkable how the old airline model has completely died, though the cadaver keeps going through its motions without yet realizing how completely dead it really is. the planes are full, yet they can't afford to keep to a schedule to to do more than the least things possible to ameliorate the depressing conditions under which their passengers are forced to endure. all of my us air flights over the past two days were over 90 minutes late, and during those 90 minute delays i counted over a two dozen people who were shut out at contiguous gates from delayed connecting flights without even so much as an "i'm sorry" from the harried and hapless gate crews who kept shutting the doors and shrugging their shoulders as if your ticket on their airline was most like a lottery one. don't get me wrong--i'm not blaming anybody in particular here, as the gate crews didn't make those connecting flights late, neither do they work in a system that allows them to do even the first little thing about it. they just endure the profanity of frustration better than i'm sure their pay grade compensates them to do, and slide the faceless names into the next standby queue and pass the problem on to the next place.

which, of course, brings us to the indignity which is standby status, in which people purchasing tickets are required to stand in an overcrowded gate area without the least chance of clearing the wait-list and actually getting on a flight, only to be passed to their next possible departure gate in that very same standby status, meaning that they'll likely get bumped yet again straight towards that very last flight of the day, though, should they ever fail to sit at each gate for the entire duration of the pre-board ritual, they'll lose even their wait-list status, and the value of their ticket, for not showing up. unbelievable, but true. i met about two dozen of those folks there at the various airports, too.

some suggestions if you're air-traveling, and not prescient enough to choose a newer, "low-cost" carrier (like, for example, jet blue, though there are many others, including southwest) which, ironically enough, knows better how to run a airline system than their full-price competitors:

suggestion #1: never, EVER book a connecting flight if you can get yourself to within 3 hours rental car drive of your destination on a direct one. connections are major airlines' way of capturing you into their revenue collection system without any real intent on letting you out, and then abusing you interminably for your inconvenience. your inbound flights WILL get delayed, you WILL miss your outbound connections, and everything will go way downhill from there. it's bad enough you have to fly in the first place. don't compound your misery with connections.

suggestion #2: never, EVER check a bag anywhere other than the departure gate itself on that direct flight you've insisted upon based on suggestion #1. pay to have UPS ship your stuff overnight and meet it there if you must, but never check a bag. if you ever get caught (and you WILL get caught) in a schedule and/or routing SNAFU, your ability to change flights and/or routes in order to arrive at your destination on the same day you intended will be impossible if they have to try to match you up with your bags. carry everything. hand it over should the overhead bins become full at the jetway entrance itself and nowhere else, and watch while they tag your bag and take it directly to the baggage compartment. it's the only way it'll be there when you are. trust me.

suggestion #3: enjoy your rental car. you will end up renting one to finish your journey, and an extra $10 or $20 with enterprise or whomever will get you into something comfortable and respectable for those last few hours getting to your destination. yesterday i upgraded to a dodge charger, and it was a perfect highway cruiser for the last 2 hours between asheville and charlotte. (yes, they have a perfectly nice airport in asheville, and i actually had a ticket there, but see point #1 above, and the preceding rant about how us air and others can never seem to have a plane to actually match the ticket they've sold you).

i'd tell you more about the very last seats in the very last row of the very last airplane to boston, but that would likely be too depressing for both of us right now, so, suffice it to say, i'm glad i was there with my family, and glad to be home, and not un-appreciative of all the people who worked yesterday and the day before to make it all possible, but, seriously, if i had left asheville in a rented car after breakfast, i'd have been home here to lowell an hour before i actually arrived from my air mis-adventures, and i've have spent far less money for the privilege. (15 hours by car--you can look it up--and several hundred less with enterprise than with us air, and you can offer me a wager that i won't drive the next time 30 hours round trip rather than fly, but you're going to lose that bet, and i'm telling you right here and right now so don't say i didn't warn you).

raw tomatoes

little feat was my moment. in 1974, when i was 14 years old, i got ahold of linda ronstadt's heart like a wheel, (one of the greatest records of all time if you need to be reminded,), and i was thus willin', but it wasn't until i went retroactive to lowell george, roy estrada, bill payne and, most of all tonight, richie hayward, ("little feat" on vinyl, originally released in 1971, is one of my most prized possessions), that the entire musical world was opened up before my eyes and my ears.

in addition to only each and every track on "little feat", there's just one particular biscuit on raw tomatoes, fat man in the bathtub, that suffices to do justice.

lowell's been gone since '79, and i'm up tonight for the perseids with the ipod cued up on repeat play. richie, tonight every shooting star is a remembrance of you.

leisure time and the cia

recently i've been pointed towards some fascinating analyses of our recent national intelligence successes and failures, and the postulate, heavily supported by evaluation of the empirical evidence, that our focus on content misses widely the mark--simple traffic analysis tells a far fuller and more actionable picture.

well, your traffic analysis for the coming week will be simple--i'm off the grid, yo.

which is also to say, now that i've given you both the content and the impending radio silence, that i've just offended my closest service-friend's clearly expressed rule that one should never divulge ones route of march before setting out on maneuvers. (nods to the new englander).

well, i suppose this is as much to put my money where my shangri-lowell mouth is, and to aver before god and the rest of the world that my belief in karma and good homeland security supercedes any fear of domestic terrorism. (besides, as so few people prefer to keep in mind--if you fear, they've already won). there's housesitting for care of the gerbils, and watering of the supremely happy norfolk pine which i am daring now to believe will be happily participating in its second christmas in just a few months, and the very nature of the brick fortress in which i live, though, if you live your life to cherish the important things, (which, so the analogy can be made literal should be thought of in the national security context to be our freedom, our constitution and our belief in our ideals), then there's nothing remaining at risk when one takes ones show on the road, or risks invitation to those who would wish to do harm. (the alimony ensures there's little left behind here, anyway...)

besides, i'm taking the beer and the ukulele with me--what else would there be?

years from now, i can imagine the camp story that concludes, "and they say the mad ukulele-ist still roams these woods, harpoon IPA in hand, looking for unsuspecting victims upon whom to sneak up and jump, saying something like... "this is one about salisbury beach and it's called salisbury beach..." (nods to melvern who writes just about the very best play-along ukulele songs, or any other kind of songs, that have ever been written).

"and if it's raining..."

will rock for food hits the airwaves!

boston's country club, 102.5 WKLB, is on board as a promotional sponsor for will rock for food. look for (listen for?) promotional announcements on the air, and on their website. thanks to brian's ivy hall for putting the pieces together and being such a great partner for the event!

no word yet on the guys from harpoon getting on board, but we're working all the angles, just for you! (yeah, just for *you*).

the new and improved carl johnson six-day weekend

musicians fascinate me. some are dissolute, (you know who they are), and some are so scrupulous as to never take a gig, but others are so both jaw-droppingly talented, and at the same time prolific, that it seems that their ubiquity only serves to dissuade the unfamiliar from ever crossing that proverbial line, and seeing for themselves.

well, carl johnson is my nominee for the hardest-working musician in lowell (and most other places for that matter) and i happen to know this because i both gratefully patronize his business, carl's custom guitars, in which he works his full-time day schedule making the most amazing musical things, in addition to gratefully turning up just about everywhere he feels motivated to fill up with his music. (last night it was toad, in cambridge).

which puts me in mind that, when you start on a thursday night at ole in lowell, toss in the regular friday and saturday gigs, (like last weekend at lelacheur for the restaurant week kick-off party), work in monday night's residency with jen kearney and the lost onion at toad, and finish it off with his new project, which is every tuesday night at voices rock club right here in beautiful scenic lowell, massachusetts, you've just been introduced to the new and improved carl johnson six-day weekend, and you'd better have a good napping couch if you're going to do it all. (how carl does it absolutely must have something to do with the hammock in his back yard, but he's not telling).

the first tuesday of every month will be carl and his long-time friends and band-mates in big trouble. (which is tonight, by the way, so i know i'll see you there). the rest of the tuesdays may be just carl, or, who knows, carl and more friends, but, either way you have it, there you have it--the perfect way to spend a few minutes relaxing on a tuesday evening with some great music in a great venue. no, it's not downtown, per se, but it's right over the river (just across the aiken street bridge in centralville) and it's still walking distance from my place, so i couldn't be happier.

give yourself the gift of music. come out and listen. you'll be glad you did.

check it out

melvern taylor and his fabulous meltones at the savanna palace this past may, courtesy of george deluca and cometolowell.com.

do you get it yet?

something you have to experience to fully get

last night, as you may have read, or, maybe not yet, in the upside-down order that blog posts go, i got to stand next to peter lavender and play some music. those of you who read carefully here know, clearly, that i'm just a beginner with a beginner's enthusiasm for each new thing i can coax out of my fingers, but those of you who read carefully here also realize that there's something more than just the joy of making ones own sounds that comes from indulging yourself the privilege of music, and i'm thinking today that that something surely must lie in the ephemeral distance shortened between people whenever they really communicate. music is just a language--a conduit. it's the "between people" part where things really begin to sing.

for the first time in my life, last night, a person (ok, it was a beautiful woman, and perhaps she knows who she is, but, if she doesn't, maybe some day i'll again meet her and get to thank her for it, because it was beautiful, and she was beautiful) i don't know walked up to me after i played a little and complimented me for it. it was just the simplest, most generous of sentiments, spoken earnestly and honestly (i can only believe, and don't you DARE suggest to me otherwise) and offered from the heart. it was part "thank you" and part "let me give some of this here beautiful feeling back to you", and i'm here to say there's nothing, absolutely nothing, like it. oh, maybe the squeeze of a hand from your best girl, (or guy), but this is also completely unique, because it's a connection of an intimate kind between two people who have never known each other before, and who quite likely will only know each other through that instant of magic that will never come again in exactly the same way, but which can dwell inside us as a memory for as long as we choose to keep it. (and maybe even longer, but that's not the point).

music connects people in a way that no other art can. it's communication of the most direct and beautiful kind. it can stir and it can swell and it can make a moment in time that nothing else can touch. you don't even have to be very good at it to know--you just have to play, (or even just listen!), and let what's inside you come out, just a little, and watch for it to be reflected back to you. because it will be.

if anyone tries to tell you that we can survive on just math and science and history and english in our public schools, you tell them for me that such is absolute bullshit. (profanity is used sparingly here, but in honor of my 13 year old best girl who will say such things when they're right, i'll say such things when they're right). i realize as i'm struggling to parse comprehensible musical syllables from stumbling and stuttering fingers that i'm sourcing back to a deep well of possibility that was placed there for me by, among many other moments of my life, the foundation of music imparted to me by my public school music curriculum. notes inhabit a scale. scales have steps, and major and minor variations, and sharps and flats that give it life, and bend it and shape it into life that is new every time. notes sing together in chords, and can travel in harmony of two and many more parts. meter is the foundation, and there is as much magic in the space between as there is within the melody and it's harmony--sometimes so much more. it's all a language i was shown as a child, and though i ignored so much of it as surely as many (most?) of you did, some of it got through, and, apparently, and wonderfully, some of it stuck. today, feeling myself once again the luckiest man in the world, i realize how impoverished i would be, were it not for that foundation upon which all the rest of this beauty must be built. you may not think of it, and not in that way, but this is inside you too.

listen to the music in your heart. if nothing else, reward it with the listening of more. and realize how much further our love can go, as a people and as a planet, if we equip our children to be able to sing to each other. play to each other. communicate with each other just as only two (or two hundred or two thousand) people can. purely. without artifice, disingenuity, or corruption. just so.

i've only been to the briefest glimpses of what lies beyond this little taste. it's beautiful. listen to the music!

PEEETAHHhhh!

because i'm so generously complimented these days for standing next to one of the brightest musical talents in the fair city of lowell, let's have some things perfectly clear: no, i'm not that good, but thanks for the kind words. yes, peter IS that good, and you're just seeing the barest reflections of it.

the songs are his, the arrangements are his, and the inspiration is his--i'm just the lucky guy who gets to stand nearby and let some of that musical brilliance shine, dully, but as brightly as i can manage, through him.

peter lavender.

the first album, back to normal, is the one with "get outta dodge" and, of course, "back to normal". (back to normal, baby. whatever that is). the second album, never now, is the one with "mushroom hill", and such things as you can't hear enough these days because i haven't yet been taught how to play them. (check out "out of our hands" and then see if you resist throwing your peter cetera crap out the window). the rest of the beauty you hear is all from a treasure trove of all that passes between people to which we so rarely give voice, but peter does so effortlessly, called unreliable. no, it's not available in stores. (yet!). it's available, however, in beautiful portions wherever and whenever peter plays out in the great city of lowell (and elsewhere) these days. "baby what you tryin' to do" got the big raves last night, but "how many times" is just as much fun from where i'm standing, and, for sheer crowd pleasing, you can't forget "dwelling on tomorrow". (mostly because you can't forget "dwelling on tomorrow"--it's a pop hit anthem of the very best kind). "just my luck" got cut from the set last night to make room for the AWESOME lineup of wonderful that filled out the rest of the "i want my life back" benefit bill, but consider yourself tipped off to listen for it when next you can, too.

somebody is soon to get a recording device close enough to some of these things to let them go viral. until then, just follow me. peter's playing again at the "will rock for food" benefit concert for new entry sustainable farming and the merrimack valley food bank, (didn't think i'd get the plug in there, did you!), on sunday, august 29th, 2010, downtown at brian's ivy hall. you'll get the hits. the deep cuts. and all the new stuff. i do not steer wrong. (oh! and you'll also get to hear peter with REAL musicians like carl johnson, arte kenyon, and, who knows, maybe bob nash, but that'll be only if he makes it back from new hampshire in time. ;-)

you really gotta be there!