Led Boots

Well, I'm in blog post recovery...I have so many things I would like to write about and am trying to write a piece about the artist Rene Princeteau, who I think deserves a piece in Wikipedia and there is none!
But blog I must, and as I gradually hack my way out of the middle ages where my head has been for the last 2 weeks, I find myself overcome by anger and frustration with American politics. It would seem in only 2 weeks, the political situation in America has decayed incredibly.

The last 2 weeks, I dealt with thousands of grape vines. The 19 hectares of the Chateau Vieux Chevrol were being assailed by a mildew plague. If things remain as we left them and there is good weather, it will be a reasonably good harvest, but many vines were totally decimated by the fungus which turns the grapes brown, then dries them as if they were burnt. All have to be destroyed.
So 8 hours a day, sun, cold, heat and rain, I was working with a family of Moroccans and have increased my Moroccan vocabulary. I also worked with 2 others, French and Dutch.

I got a chance to do a bit of bike riding around the Pomerol and Lalande Pomerol region and rode to St. Emilion one day. Biking in that region is so nice, it is so flat and you get pushed by the wind. I found it pretty humorous that everytime I passed by the Chateau Petrus in Pomerol, where the most expensively marketed wine in the world is made, I would find a group of tourists posing in front of the sign.
The last time I rode by, there was car with a Belgian license and I was compelled to holler, "Hey, You're too late! Yesterday they were giving out free bottles!"

So, after 2 weeks away from all media...well, I did listen to BBC4 occasionaly, but that hardly counts, I as starting to check out my favorite blogs and comment, but here, at my own home, there is so much to do. Just weeding the vegetable garden!
Imagine not cutting your lawn for 2 weeks in the midst of a rainy summer!
I'm exhausted just thinking about it....
Soooo, here's Jeff Beck from his latest record, Live At Ronnie Scotts, recorded last year with is lovely 22 year old bassist, Tal Wilkenfeld playing Led Boots.

Shatner Does Palin (07/27/09)

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Back home after nice little train ride back from the middle ages and splash down in the surreal swamp that our modern world has become. I listened to the BBC once in a while and heard that Plain had resigned officially, but it took William Shatner to recognize the true depths of the mind of Sarah Palin. A mind like a frigid lake with fragments of thoughts colliding like melting ice floes on a global warming challenged afternoon.
William Shatner again proves that sheer poetry hath no shame like unto a woman who seeketh a good book deal and a talk show, or uhhh, higher office or whatever...

More over, she has proved the utter lack of depth and real ideas and the sheer belief that baseless inuendo and relentless spin can turn the reality of an elected official turning her back on her responsibility and office, her utter lack of integrity by blaming the pressure of the press or whatever....
into the kind of billious crap that seems to be what passes for a vicarious glimmer of hope to a political party of sore losers.

If I Were Miss World...

Well, this time I'm really leaving! No, no, no...not like the last times, when I merely pretended to be leaving just to see what you would do! Jeeves! Pack my suitcase and call a taxi.
Show these bounders to the door! No, your cheap theatrics simnply won't have any effect on me this time! Stop sniveling! Oh, how I hate it when you start crying...Yes, I'll be back in 2 weeks, I promise...
Yes, I'll write....

The Atheist Camel Chronicles, again....even...

Since I am going away and there will be a 2 week break while I labor in the vineyard, I am posting the link for Dromeday Hump's new book, The Atheist Camel Chronicles.
You can buy his book directly from Amazon by clicking the link, but you might enjoy visiting his blog, Atheist Camel where you can purchase the book directly and see why he gives fundamentalists of all persuasions hairballs, neuritis, neuralgia and causes uncomfortable chafing and heat rash in the moist nether regions of their minds.
And, as long as I am pushin' other peoples books,
please consider checking out my friend, Suze Rotolo's great book,
A Freewheelin' Time
I have reviewed the book on thios blog twice, recently it was released here in France and it is to be released in Germany, Japan and Lebanon....
A really heartfelt personal and social history of the early 60's and the folk/rock
scene in New York as well as an over view of her life story up to and after her relationship with Dylan.
If you are even remotely interested in this time and place and the music, you need to read this book!

Decorum

Earlier this week David Brooks, the house conservative columnist of the New York Times wrote an editorial on the lack of "decorum" in Washington today and specifically how it is impacting on the perception of his own Republican Party.
In this interview on MSNBC, he recounts a personal incident that occurred at a dinner part in Washington that illuminates his point, I guess, or is this perhaps a case of too much information?
I have to admit that I have never been to any Washington dinner parties or sat next to a Republican Senator, so I am a little out of it when it comes to the social conventions that are now the norm at events such as this one in Washington that Mr. Brooks recounts. Perhaps some one could possibly advise me as to how to politely request the pepper mill when it is stuck up some ones ass?
Decorum? Of Course! It never hurts to be polite..........

DUM DUM

Back in the early 80's, I had a Band called Mr. Bubble in the East Village. One of the bands we kept running into and sharing stages with was The Butthole Surfers from Austin, Texas. Insanely inventive, totally original and creatively and morally uninhibited, there was nothing contrived about them, they made a squalling mess of feedback with two drummers. It was high art. I hear they have been touring recently and still releasing great music. I found this great video on You Tube of one of their songs from the early 90's. I think it was on their Electric Larry Land Album.
Someone used some real footage of a fundamentalist christian snake handling ritual...
The footage alone is the price of admission, but on second thought, it looks more like a typical night at the 8BC Club on East 8th Street over by Avenue C about 1983....

Selective Outrage

Conservative military coup in Iran BAD! Conservative military coup in Honduras GOOD! Both Coups are veiled in the trappings of trying to defend the legitimacy of the respective governments. The Iranian conservative military rigged an election, violently suppressed dissent, arrested foreign embassy employees, squashed freedom of the press and spew non stop beligerrence at the rest of the world and non stop propaganda to their people.

The Honduran Conservative Military ousted the legitimate president, used violence against the population to suppress dissent. They kicked out reporters from Telesur, the Latino version of CNN and have spewed nonstop beligerrent rhetoric at their neighbors and propaganda to their population. They murdered leftist opposition party leaders and took embassy employees and officials into custody.
So why the selective outrage from the American Conservatives?

Does it have anything to do with the fact that until the election of Jose Manuel Zelaya, Honduras was a stalwart outpost and bastion of America's power and influence in the region? Honduras recieves millions of dollars in military aid and the military is trained from the bottom up and controlled by the Pentagon.
The interim President, Michelletti, is a military appointee and when elections are held, he is expected to give way to the Conservative leader, Hector Rene Forseca, who has very deep ties and support from the American Christian Right.

Things become more interesting when you realize that the point man is the present US Ambassador, a hold over from the Bush Era, Hugo Llorens. Llorens is a Cuban American who was very active in the failed 2002 Coup against Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. He has yet to be recalled, yet the OAS and the EU have recalled their ambassadors and frozen Honduran assets, which the USA has yet to do. The freezing of the assets would cut off the funds, choke the couup and discourage its wealthy backers.

Now, the disturbing part....
Last week, in a diatribe to the Honduran people, the interim foreign minister, "Chancellor" Enrique Ortez made some pretty outrageous statements directed at governments who dared to criticize and interfere with the coup. He said that President Zapatero of Spain should go back to "shining shoes"...a rather witless remark based on a pun referring to the Spanish word for shoes, zapata.

He went on to refer to Barack Obama as "Ese negrito que ne sabe nada de nada" That is a very insulting phrase that loosely translates to "that little black boy who doesn't know anything" . He continues to warn President Obama that he should be looking over his own shoulder because he could be next.

This was occuring about the same time that the rather large, obnoxious bag of slime known as Rush Limbaugh was making his statements about ho a military coup "like the on that just occurred in Honduras" might be a good thing.
Just what is the connection here? Because this was no coincidence. The pieces are all in place for a 2 bit conspiracy theory...from one 2 bit asshole to another...Rush??? You are treading on very shaky ground here...

United Breaks Guitars

I was a musician for 20 years in New York. Occasionally, I would actually play outside of New York. We played a few European gigs and in Canada. Usually, I took care of the moving with my pick up truck as well as moving most of the bands in Lower Manhattan in the early 80's.

I entrusted my instruments to airlines a few times and held my breath. I had friends, including the lead guitarist of one of the bands I played with who had their guitars demolished by airline luggage handlers. I read an interview with the guitarist, Larry Coreyell who spoke of watching his guitar destroyed on the tarmac as he sat in his seat on the airplane.

The same thing happened last year to Dave Carrol of the band, Sons of Maxwell.
Anyone who has flown frequently over the last few years has a horror story to tell of the arrogance of the airline companies and even if they are responsible, it is nigh on impossible to get compensated for damages. Their simple theory being: SO SUE US! WE'VE GOT A LOT MORE MONEY AND A LOT MORE LAWYERS AND YOU'LL DIE BEFORE WE STOP APPEALING!

Hmm...on my last flight from the USA, I caught the Swine Flu from a BA Flight attendant...and I'm sure everyone on BA Flight 296, from Chicago to London Heathrow on April 28, 2009 did as well! I wrote a letter, but I haven't as yet gotten a response.

Anyway, in Dave Carrol's own words and his revenge (in which I'm only to pleased to participate in):

Full Story: http://www.davecarrollmusic.com/story... - In the spring of 2008, Sons of Maxwell were traveling to Nebraska for a one-week tour and my Taylor guitar was witnessed being thrown by United Airlines baggage handlers in Chicago. I discovered later that the $3500 guitar was severely damaged. They didnt deny the experience occurred but for nine months the various people I communicated with put the responsibility for dealing with the damage on everyone other than themselves and finally said they would do nothing to compensate me for my loss. So I promised the last person to finally say no to compensation (Ms. Irlweg) that I would write and produce three songs about my experience with United Airlines and make videos for each to be viewed online by anyone in the world. United: Song 1 is the first of those songs. United: Song 2 has been written and video production is underway. United: Song 3 is coming. I promise.

It's Always Something...

I'm in this picture somewhere. This was taken just this May while I was back in my medieval alter ego at Chateau Vieux Chevrol. We were working for 2 weeks performing le pamphrage and bourgeonage operations on thousands of grape vines on 20 hectares of land. Basically, we were removing the excess buds and cleaning the base of the vines, supressing the growth of the root graft. It's important because only 7 stems are allowed to develop and almost every grape vine grown commercially in France is grafted on a hardy wild American vine root stock.
Vieux Chevrol is located in the Lalande Pomerol regionnear Bordeaux. If you are familiar with the Lalande Pomerol, we are in Neac, not Lalande. There are two towns in Lalande Pomerol.
Vieux Chevrol is notable because they insist on traditional, natural methods in the production of their wine. All operations are done by hand and all treatments are the most natural methods available.
This is my 8th year working at Vieux Chevrol and I really enjoy the comaraderie, the work and the knowlege I aquire each time I go for 2 or three weeks.
I just found out that this year we are going to do a Vendenge Verte starting on the 15th of July...Just a week away. That is an operation where the excess bunches of grapes are removed and leaves are removed to allow air and light to reach the grapes.
The neccessity of the operation is controlled by the weather. Obviously, conditions have been very good and there are a lot of bunches of grapes and hearty foliage on the plants. Some years, it is not neccessary.
Again, it involves thousands of plants and I think we will only be 6 people.
So, again, I am going to close up shop for 2 weeks starting the 15th. I will be away from computers and television, living in the old chateau. I do have my Grundig Yachtboy Multi Band Radio!
The folks in the picture are me, Microdot, Cheryl Cook, Xeneb, Aveda and Mohammed.
(Mohammed is the guy wearing the Obama cap!)

Destino

In 1945, The Disney Corporation commisioned Salvador Dali to create an animated film.
This is it. I believe it was finished in 1946. Considered to be totally without commercial merit, it languished until 2003,
I had heard about it and remember hearing something about it finally being available.
I found it on YouTube.
....for your consideration.

2nd ANNUAL BLOG POWER AWARD!

Well, it's not quite and annual event, but the very prestigious Brain Police Blog Power is being awarded this evening to a young woman from Homer, Alaska, Shannyn Moore, who writes the blog, Just A Girl From Homer.

The previous recipient was a guy named Spocko, who authors a blog called Spocko's Brain and fought a one man war and won against San Francisco Radio Staion, KSFO and their non stop hate speech.

Shannyn is a journalist and radio commentator who has been onto Sarah Palin from the beginning and has chronicled the corruption that she has left in her wake as she rose to power in Alaska and has tried to assume a role in national politics.
After Miss Palin made her bizarre series of announcements this weekend, Shannyn became the focus of Palins' lawyers rambling series of incoherent threats to the First Amendment.

As if we the people do not have the right to ask "What The Fuck?" when some one exhibits the bizarre behavioral performance that Palin did on Friday, when she resigned the governorship of Alaska....
.
For the record, Palin threatened legal action against most of the Mainstream media and a number of blog news sites, but she singled out Shannyn for particular notice.
For this and having the guts to hold a news conference in front of the governors office yesterday and state, "Sarah Palin, if you have a problem with me, then sue me! Shannon Moore will not be muzzled!"
Shannyn will be on Countdown tonight and here is the segment....

Miserlou

Yeah, the Pulp Fiction song, but here it is from 1963 in it's original greasy glory performed by Dick Dale and The Deltones. Dick practically invented the genre of Surf Guitar. He was one of the brave new rock musicians who realized the power and possiblities of distorted amplified sound.
I needed to hear something like this for my summer heat wave sound track. We are having a real drought with 90 plus temperatures everyday. I have been watering for hours...
I am going to have my sister who lives in California and her husband as guests for a few days. I don't think I will be able to post very much...
These guys are real Orange County, Yorba Linda Republicans!
If they are nice, perhaps I won't steal their car keys and throw them down the well.

When David Met Bathsheba

The torrid seduction of a temptress by a ruler who risk all for his uncontrollable lustful desires, When David Met Bathsheba, has the making of America's next big smash reality series! Governor Mark Sanford is the candidly lustful ruler who embarks on a journey of sex, sin and unbridled passion in the sultry pleasure pits of Buenos Aires with his illicit princess of passion, Maria.

The first three episodes have taken America by storm! The governor disappears for a week and a nation suspects the worse.
Betrayed by his guilt and religion, he begs the citizens of the Great State of South Carolina for forgiveness. Will he stay or will he go?

In tonights episode, the Governor has a message from God telling him that he must stay and not give into his lustful pride. God tells him that it would be too easy to leave.
God says that is is his plan. Governor Sanford must stay in office because it is God's Plan!

Then, well, he admits to having other affairs with other temptresses and in spite of the fact that Maria is his soulmate, well, maybe he could try to fall in love with his wife again.....but then there's Maria, beckoning to him from the sultry steamy tango clubs of Buenos Aires, with a flower in her perfumed hair....

Meanwhile, back at the Governors Mansion, Mrs. Sanford gets a call from Michelle Obama who says, "Hey Girl, I hear your husbands mistress is so fat he just sticks a Segway handlebars up her ass and rides her clear across the Pampas yodelin' like a hyena!"
Mrs. Sanford, who is cruising on her third Percodan of the afternoon, smiles pleasantly and asks,"Which one?"

Personally, I hope he stays!