The word of the year was … huh?
Well, gentle readers, it’s that time of year again when media outlets and other organizations produce their ‘(fill in the blank) of the year’ lists. First out of the gate…
music
When I’m 64…
Will you still need me? Will you still feed me? When I’m sixty four… it seemed cutely remote to consider being that old when the Beatles sang “When I’m Sixty-Four”…
Reflections on having a 40-year-old son
Some birthdays are more significant than others. Turning 12 is no big deal, but 13 is huge. Seventeen is just another year, but 18 is cause for legal celebration. Twenty-five…
rip robbie robertson
The news that Robbie Robertson died hit me hard. Although he’s not the last surviving member of The Band (Garth Hudson recently turned 80), he was my last surviving deep…
Bring Out Yer Band! *clang* Bring Out Yer Band! *clang*
When you learn music, your hemispheres fire off together, and since you’re not just sitting there listening to a lecture, you’re also doing some fine motor function (and/or gross motor…
tina turner, rest in power
She was a force of nature. A powerhouse. She had many lives, transcending all of the usual music-industry categories. We will all miss her. Allan has a really nice tribute…
Introducing Re-Creative, a podcast about creativity and the art that inspires it
After years of threatening, I’ve finally started a podcast: Re-Creative. Actually, that’s not really true. My co-host, Joe Mahoney, is really the one to credit… The post Introducing Re-Creative, a…
Weekend: Music, and Animal Crackers
Hey, Gangnam Style was 10 years old as of Friday! And Psy is still going stong – he has now released 9 albums and is on tour again this summer.…
tom morello on the iww and the soundtrack to the good good fight
In October, The New York Times published this piece by musician and activist Tom Morello. I’ve read it several times, and shared it on social media, and still I can’t…
goodbye charlie watts
Charlie Watts was the greatest rock and roll drummer of all time. He’s the reason the Stones’ music has so much swing, why it skips and chugs and rolls and…
"at your library" in the north island eagle: more favourite e-resources, always free with your library card
More Favourite E-Resources, Always FREE With Your Library Card The Vancouver Island Regional Library (VIRL) offers so many “e-resources,” it can be difficult to remember them all! That’s why I’m…
The Beatles: Songs and Lives
This week I finished re-reading The Beatles: The Biography by Bob Spitz, the best biography I’ve read of the group that defined music, culture, and style in the Sixties: the…
reflections on a year of piano lessons by a dedicated (and untalented) student
The covid lockdown began on March 17, 2020. On March 20, I began piano lessons. I took piano lessons from age 6-10, before switching to violin (a mistake), then quitting.…
what i’m reading: janis, her life and music
As a teenager and in my early 20s, I was somewhat obsessed with Janis Joplin. I read all the available biographies of her, and took any opportunity to see footage…
Brian Brennan, 77, elegant wordsmith, musician, courageous trade unionist
Brian Brennan, elegant wordsmith, storyteller, professional musician and brave leader of the strike at the Calgary Herald in 1999 and 2000, died yesterday. He was 77. For many years at…
The Godzilla Soundtracks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDeU42u2s2Y Akira Ifukube. If you’re not an aficionado of Japanese film or a follower of Japanese symphonic music, his name won’t be familiar. But for millions of kaiju fans around…
THE MUSIC BETWEEN US: Memoir of a Bedside Musician
I am always fascinated by stories of personal transformation. How does anyone achieve redemption, wisdom, grace and meaning after experiencing or witnessing prolonged suffering? I’m especially interested when those stories…
Pride Goeth
Charley Pride is kissin’ angels, in the morning. The iconic country star passed away of COVID-19. #BREAKING: Groundbreaking Black country musician Charley Pride has died of #COVID19 complications at 86.…