12.30.07: New York City

When we last met I was sitting in a café in Portland, surrounded by denizens of the Wayback Machine, a cavalcade of beards and endless cups of coffee and the easy, wayward life. And then that was it. Right? Nothing else. Silence. Like the final episode of the Sopranos (the second and -I swear-the last reference to that pop culture milestone of 2007 in these pages), you were all left to wonder what happened to your narrator. Did we finish the baseball record? Did I order the onion rings? Was I whacked?

Actually, the sloth and rainy haze of that week gave way to a fun and frenzied 7 days in the studio with Linda, Scott, Peter and our trusty engineer Adam Selzer (check out his fine band Norfolk and Western). We cranked out 16 songs about baseball-past, present and imagined-and the results will be mixed in January with a release to follow later in the year.

Ah, that year. 2008, I believe. A six-week acoustic tour of Europe with Robert Lloyd, an accompanying limited edition tour CD of a newly mastered live acoustic show from Bremen in 2003, the April release of "Crossing Dragon Bridge" and the baseball record to follow soon after. Oh, and the Miracle 3 will be taken off the shelf, dusted off and tossed into a recording studio in late Summer for a new record.

But first….it's time to bring The Year of The Side Project to a close with a bang. Danny & Dusty will be playing our first US show since 1986 at the Bowery Ballroom on January 12. Chris Cacavas is flying in from Germany, the Richmond Trio (Johnny, Stephen, Bob) are driving up from Richmond, Dan will take the Staten Island Ferry, Linda and I will hail a cab. And then we'll all walk to a bar together when it's done. I wouldn't go as far as to say it will be the last time but….well, it just may be the last time. I don't know. Oh no.

My favorite records of 2007? Glad you asked.

CHROME DREAMS II-Neil Young
SKY BLUE SKY-Wilco
MAGIC-Bruce Springsteen
TREES OUTSIDE THE ACADEMY-Thurston Moore
SOUNDS OF SILVER-LCD Soundsystem
NORTH STAR DESERTER-Vic Chestnut
AT MY AGE-Nick Lowe
AMAN IMAN; WATER IS LIFE--Tinariwan

And that ends a list of lists. What has been and what will be. Not even enough room for any kind of list of New Year's Resolutions. And that's a good thing. Just getting from one end to the other is enough sometimes. Happy 2008 to all of you.

12.03.07: Portland

What do you expect to see when you're in Portland? Well, rain would be the first thing that comes to mind. And then maybe you would want to embellish that image with rain falling heavily outside the window of a bohemian coffee establishment where you are tossing back cup after cup of black coffee. And then maybe you might want to add a guy in a wool cap with a bushy beard sleeping off a rough night over in the corner. He could either be a crusty veteran of some scene long past or the next indie sensation, depending upon how closely you look. You might even expect to hear some jangly folk pop music falling lightly from the speakers while someone orders a bagel sandwich with tofu and pesto. They might even ask for sprouts.

And if that is what you expected to see, hear and taste, well then you would be right. I've been in Portland for 42 hours and this current tableau comes on the heels of a Robyn Hitchcock show (search the bootleg wires for a stunning medley of "Heroin" and "The End" which closed the concert), an all-night dance party at the home of Scott and Mary, a party that mixed whiskey and Humble Pie, always a dangerous combo. Surely enough, a rough Sunday followed and was finally concluded by the lifting of the hangover as it collided with the harsh, tense and exquisite "No Country For Old Men," a movie that I expect to see at least 23 more times in my life. It's that good.

But I digress. And ramble. And reach for a third cup of coffee. All my natural birthrights as well as a way to blend in the skittish, somnambulist combo that surrounds me. Give me caffeine and Wifi or give me death. But I prefer the former over the latter to be honest. I'm not sure if the latter would be as conducive for checking out the boards at www.imdb.com.

In the meantime, Linda and Scott and I are working through baseball songs to be brought into the studio next week. Peter Buck will be joining us soon which means we will combine fans of the Yankees, Twins, Mariners and Braves which could be as toxic as mixing coffee, bagels, whiskey, violent Coen brothers movies and English surrealists. But only time (and this ongoing diary) will tell. In the meantime, hand me down my umbrella and another cup of Joe. And make it black.

11.23.07: New York City

I just read an article about the Yardbirds recording "Shapes of Things." Seems they were driving down the road late one night on their way to Chicago for a session at Chess Studios the next day. Bass player Paul Samwell-Smith heard a Dave Brubeck song on the radio and said, "hey that's a cool bass line." He and producer Giorgio Gomelsky decided it was worth stealing and when they got to the Holiday Inn at 2am they proceeded to throw together a song with that particular bass line as the starting point. They quickly came up with "Shapes Of Things" and then were on their way to recording it a few hours later. It's a classic track, a perfect track, a track where you wouldn't want to change a thing.

And that's my feeling about recording music. You want to find that moment of discovery, of excitement, of creative burst and then let it fly while that moment is hot and while
the thrill is moving you rather than the other way around. I suppose the other way is to go the "Tusk" route and just push and push and deliberate until you're punch drunk 6 months later and push yourself into a numbness, a daze that takes you back to a lack of conscious thought. This is a less fun way-it worked for me on "Medicine Show" but I wouldn't do it again.

The one thing you can't do is to think you're smarter than the muse. You're not. You never are. And even if you think you're smarter than the muse, guess what. You're not. Let the excitement take you and then trust what comes out. That is the music you'll still want to hear 10 years later. All of my personal favorite records ("The Days of Wine and Roses," "Gutterball," "Weasel," "Melting In the Dark," "Here Come the Miracles," "…tick…tick…tick," and "Crossing Dragon Bridge") were done this way and those are the ones I most enjoy hearing today.

We did some overdubs on the Slovenian (the above mentioned "Crossing Dragon Bridge," by the way) record this week in New York. Tim Adams from Teenage Prayers and Linda did some great backing vocals and Linda also added some of her trademark percussion touches. I get more excited about this record with each step that it takes. But I also have to move that one to the back burner as we head out to Portland next week to begin recording the baseball record (title and band name yet to be determined) with Scott McCaughey and Peter Buck. And, per above, this one will most likely be fast and furious and wild like a Nolan Ryan fastball.

But enough of that for now. I've got tickets for that new Bob Dylan movie (I'm Not There") and it starts in one hour. A few recent favorites to be listed and I'm out the door.


One, Two, Three (Billy Wilder movie)
Smoked whitefish from Tal's Bagels (thanksgiving meal)
Divorce, Italian Style (movie)
Bill "Spaceman" Lee (baseball pitcher from the '70s)
What I Lived For (book, Joyce Carol Oates)
Spiritualized at the Apollo Theater (concert)
Chrome Dreams 2 (Neil Young CD)
Sally's Pizza (food, New Haven, CT)
Have You Heard About The World-The Last Crusaders (CD)
The Sonics at Warsaw (concert)

11.02.07: New York City

Sitting here with Linda and John Pierce. Chicago John Pierce. You know that song by Jim Croce? "You Don't Mess Around With Jim?" Okay, then you know what I'm talking about. I wish I could paint a picture for all of you but I don't know how to work his digital camera. I can see the following: (1) colored pencils (2) a bottle of absinthe (3) 1 _ Carr's pepper crackers (4) a Warren Zevon compilation and (5) some freaky leather hat that might have been worn by either a football player from the 1920's or a Viking warrior from the 9th Century. Take your pick.

I'm not all that big on nostalgia. But I'm big on statistics. And as far as I can tell-and you'll have to take my word on this-this day, right NOW, the 1st of November is the 25th anniversary of the release date of "The Days of Wine & Roses," the first album I ever made. I was 22. I would quit my job at Rhino Records a few weeks later. I would drop out of school at UCLA a few weeks after that. And then I would make a bunch of records and then play more than a bunch of shows.

And then I'd be here.

Linda is dancing to "See No Evil." John is taking her picture. I'm invisible. And that's the way I've always liked it. When TDOWAR (as it's been acronymed) came out, we were delighted and stunned and amused and incredulous. 12 inches of vinyl in our hands. I was excited that I had inscribed "pre motorcycle accident" in the run-out groove (ask your parents) but it came out "pre-motorcyle accident." A crucial but charming typo.

25 years. Tomorrow I will drive up to New Haven and doubtlessly play some of those songs. Who knows? Maybe I'll play all of them. That record still sounds good to me. I'm sure if I had made a lousy record to start things off 25 years ago, I would be doing something very different at this very minute with very different people.

"Marquee Moon" plays on the stereo right now. You gotta love a good debut record

Recent faves:

CONTROL (movie)
100 DAYS AND 100 NIGHTS-Sharon Jones (CD)
"LIKE WOW, WIPEOUT:-Dave Faulkner w/ the Fleshtones (magnetic Fields-brooklyn)
BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU'RE DEAD (movie)
JOE TORRE AS DODGERS MANAGER (baseball)

Well, I'm sure there are more things as well but the second guitar solo of Marquee Moon is just getting started. I first heard this record when I was 18. I was about to buy tickets to see Joy Division at the Starwood in LA when I was 20, just a few days before Ian Curtis killed himself. You can play the numbers game, my friends but it's best just to move on especially when such good things both old and new lie ahead.

10.20.07: New York City

Back home after a series of travel misadventures that included two canceled flights, another that was missed due to impossibly tight connections at the impossibly and perversely difficult Charles Du Gaulle airport, a surprise five hour bus ride from Washington DC to New York City's Port Authority, two odd French movies (one translated to "I Hate My Best Friends' Kids" and a near riot in a chaotic Paris that was about to go on strike. I'll save the details for another time but let's just say that you should avoid Air France at all costs and that I am optioning the full story for a feature length film to the highest bidder.

But really there's no reason to complain now that I am back on my living room couch with only the slightest residue of jet lag, a cup of strong coffee, today's New York Times and a CD that contains the very satisfying results of my three weeks of recording with Chris Eckman in Ljubljana. There are still more overdubs to be done, a mixing session scheduled for January and a five week acoustic tour between now and the release but I can already say that this will be one of my favorite records I've ever done. It sounds like nothing I've done before and at the same time it sounds more like me than anything I've done. A paradox? We'll see.

But in the meantime, there are other things that lie ahead. A show tomorrow night with Jason, a few Miracle 3 shows, some recording of baseball songs with Linda, Scott McCaughey and Peter Buck (with pre-recording research done with plenty of World Series watching) and, more immediately, dinner tonight with Erik Van Loo and his wife Barrie. I have always felt I work best when faced with an almost impossible schedule and the coming months will be the test of that self-applied axiom.

Oh, and I'd be remiss if I didn't point out that Danny & Dusty will be playing our first US show since 1986 at the Bowery Ballroom on January 12, 2008. The complete European touring band of Chris Cacavas, Stephen McCarthy, Bob Rupe and both Johnny Hott and Linda Pitmon (double drums! Just like the Allman Brothers!) will be on hand. Anyway, there you go. I just hate to be remiss.

10.12.07: Ljubljana, Slovenia

Bryan Ferry played the first show of his career in Ljubljana last night and I was probably the only one there who had also seen him play in Hollywood in the mid-70s but you can never be sure. After all, one guy I met after the gig had spent a week with Joey Ramone in New York in the late 80s and another was the singer of a local band who had opened for the Sex Pistols four years ago. You just never know. That's what I'm trying to say.

I came to the show with low expectations even though I had seen an incredible Roxy Music reunion show in New York a few years ago. I was underwhelmed by Ferry's decision to do an album of Bob Dylan songs, especially selections as obvious as the ones he chose (does anyone NEED to hear versions of "Knocking On Heaven's Door" or "All Along the Watchtower" at this point and time? I mean, I covered BOTH of those songs in the 80s.) But the guy was great. Fronting a nine-piece band, he was charming, funny and really into the show. And even though he played a few too many late Roxy songs for my taste, he redeemed himself with some of my favorites: "Love Me Madly, Again," "Do the Strand," "Virginia Plain" and "Tokyo Joe" had me freaking out and thinking that I was 15 years old again.

I'm sitting at the Mackon bar on Trubarjeva Street where I am also living these three weeks and enjoying the luxury of a wifi connection to check baseball scores, read the New York Times and, of course, send off this very missive. This trip has hit paydirt for me-the recordings with Chris Eckman have gone incredibly well and the biggest challenge will be choosing which songs to leave off the record. If that sounds cocky, I apologize. Well, just a little bit. I'm just excited about the way things are going. Expect a Spring release. But more about that later.

Some people in front of me are eating the kebabs from across the road. I'm telling you-this town has a way with junk food (kebabs and bureks-a artery clogging local specialty that mixes butter and cheese and dough in miraculous ways) and what they call "slow food." The beer is good and cheap. The biggest musical artist in the country (the fabulous Vlado Kreslin) opened for me in 1994 and has invited me to his show tomorrow night. I'm a fan. His last few albums mix local folk music with far-reaching rock anthems in a very natural way. The buildings are beautiful. Do you need more?

But the clock is ticking. I'm going home next week and have tracks to finish, lyrics to write and another show to play with Chris outside of town this weekend (we played in Zagreb last Saturday). Three weeks in one city is a luxury, a veritable eternity. Five days left feels like seconds, minutes, not much at all. A paradox? Hardly. You want to bend time? Talk to Stephen Hawking. Or at least to the kids drinking bottles of cheap wine in the park down the road. Either way, you'll get your answer? Me? I gotta pay my bill and get back to my pad.

10.02.07: Ljubljana, Slovenia

Sometimes you just have to place yourself in a strange setting in order to be able to scramble the senses and turn your ideas and responses inside out. I've done this repeatedly in the last 15 years, making records in Boston, Tucson and Richmond with people I barely knew only to have them become lifetime collaborators, co-conspirators and friends. There's a certain thrill to the "blind date" approach to recording and it puts everyone on his best behavior-open-minded, receptive and, at the same time, wanting to impress. It's a good way to clear the deck and make your best music and it has certainly worked for me in the past.

And now I find myself in Ljubljana, a city I just barely know from brief stops on a tour. I'm writing and recording with Chris Eckman, a man I know just from short conversations at festivals, hotel lobbies and short email bursts. We spend days looking at my recent songs like a mechanic would look at a '56 Renault-I might have the parts to fix that one but we're better off rebuilding the whole thing from scratch. It's liberating and frightening, just the way I like it.

I usually enter the studio with a group of musicians-four-piece or five-piece, bolstered by the noise and able to hide within the groove. Not this time. All of the recordings are built around an acoustic guitar, my voice and the song. That's it. If that ship can't float then we go down to the bottom of the sea. Fortunately, the songs are seaworthy and the ship is almost ready to set sail.

Five days down and we've recorded 9 songs with another half dozen to recording in the coming days. It's a very productive pace but that's more a commentary on the chemistry with Chris and the ideas that he has. I came here not knowing if I was making demos, writing a few new songs, taking a vacation or just using up some frequent flier miles. With each day I'm more and more sure that I'm making a new album and a very interesting one at that, maybe unlike anything I've done before

At night I wander around the city like some Eastern European Travis Bickle through this Slovenian city. A tourist on the streets at night, a tourist in the studio by day. What can I say? I like to be surprised. More reports coming soon.


Fodder for inspiration:

THE PIANO TEACHER (movie)
NORTH STAR DESERTER-Vic Chestnut (CD)
GOLICA (Slovenian video music channel)
CESTA-Vlado Kreslin (CD)
UNION PIVO (local beer)
I'LL SLEEP WHEN I'M DEAD; THE DIRTY LIFE AND TIMES OF WARREN ZEVON (book)
SESTICA (Slovenian restaurant)
SUPERBAD (movie)

9.13.07: New York City

When I come off stage after a show I'm usually pretty dazed. Punch-drunk by the sound, wound up with adrenaline, lost in the middle of some guitar solo or even just trying to find my way backstage, I usually can barely remember my name, rank nor serial number. And this is often the time when someone will walk up and hand me something. It could be a box of candy, a summons, a copy of Popular Mechanics or, most often, a CD. I usually mumble "thanks, man, that's really cool" and stash it in my guitar case. And then I get home and find that it really WAS a summons. Who knew?

Well, after last Saturday's show at the Lakeside I knew exactly what I was getting when I was handed an advance copy of the new Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band album. I had heard good things about the record and was very excited to have a copy a full four weeks ahead of the release date. I gave profuse thanks, looked at the 5-inch piece of metal (plastic? I never know) with wonder and then…..well, then I put it in my guitar case and forgot about it for the next four days.

Anyway, I finally heard the record. It's called "Magic" and it's great. Now, that's a qualified "great." It's not "Born To Run" or "Greetings From Asbury Park, New Jersey." It's a rare moment when an artist can make music 25 years into his career that stands up with his best work (I'm thinking maybe Dylan, Neil Young, Muddy Waters and…well, have you listened to "Here Come The Miracles" lately?) But I will go on record as saying that this album is the best thing Springsteen has done since "Tunnel Of Love" and that "Girls In Their Summer Clothes" is one of his best tracks ever.

We play the Mercury Lounge in six hours. I wonder what I'll get tonight. Hopefully it won't be a summons.

Lots of good stuff in the last week:


TREES OUTSIDE THE ACADEMY-Thurston Moore (CD)
SHERRYBABY (movie)
PASQUALE'S (old school Italian restaurant in The Bronx)
THE SPRINKLE GENIES (live at Sidewalk Café)
ONCE (movie)
COMPILATION OF SLOVENIAN MUSIC THAT CHRIS ECKMAN MADE FOR ME (CD)
I'LL SLEEP WHEN I'M DEAD; THE DIRTY LIFE AND TIMES OF WARREN ZEVON (book)
HUMAN HANDS 2007 (unreleased new album)
MAD MEN (TV show)

Maybe I should mention that Thurston Moore record one more time. That one is particularly blowing my mind right now. But enough of that. Time to get downtown for the gig. (SEPTEMBER 13)

8.31.07: New York City

I was hanging out with my buddy Eric "Roscoe" Ambel at his East Village apartment yesterday. We get together every so often and have had pretty good luck when we find the time to collaborate (our co-writes "Nothing But the Shell," "Milky White" and "From a Better Place" have all come out on various records and our collaboration on "The Air That I Breathe" made it to a Hollies tribute album). But we also tend to spend a bunch of time talking about guitars, recording gear, touring and food. One of my first experiences with Roscoe was a festival we did together in Belgium in 1995. He was stocking up on mustard to bring back home with him to go along with various grilled meats which he had lovingly photographed and would show to anyone who was game (no pun intended-okay, a little bit intended).

Anyway, needless to say I liked the guy from the start.

He's been a guru for my exploration of home recording and his Lakeside Lounge (which he told me about as a pipe dream when we first met and then he ended up opening in 1996) was the site for many important moments in my life. I celebrated my 40th birthday there as well as my 25th anniversary of making records and also rang in the new millennium in that humble but perfect club (the jukebox! The photo booth! The occasional free drinks!) We broke in the new songs for "…tick…tick…tick" there. I began my courtship with Linda there. Linda fixed up my ex-girlfriend Brigid with her current boyfriend there. I saw a man and he danced with his wife (oh wait-that's "Chicago" by Frank Sinatra). I'm playing there next Saturday.

Uh, what was my point?

Oh yeah. So Eric was talking about his blog, the blogs of his bandmates in the Yayhoos, blog blog here and a blog blog there and….well, it made me realize that I haven't written one of these things in months. What's up with that? I guess the summer touring with Danny & Dusty, trips to the West Coast and Minneapolis, working on new songs and the like kept me from spilling the beans or even from gathering beans to spill.

And there's a lot to talk about. It looks like I might be recording 3 new albums in the next 5 months, the most immediate project being a three-week writing and recording session I'll be doing with Chris Eckman of the Walkabouts in Slovenia later this month. And a new Miracle 3 record to be recorded in January. And maybe even a baseball-themed collaboration with Scott McCaughey, Linda and Peter Buck (among other special guests). But more about all that later. I swear

First things first. I've GOT to write a new blog.

Oh. I just did. Never mind.

PS…..Eric and I ended up working on a new songs. Who knows? It might be up on this site sometimes very soon.


RECENT FAVES


THE BRONX IS BURNING (TV mini-series)
LAY OF THE LAND-Richard Ford (book)
AT MY AGE-Nick Lowe (CD)
FLY HIGH BRAVE DREAMERS-Chris and Carla (CD)
BOQUERIA (tapas restaurant in NYC)
THE TRIALS OF VAN OCCUPANTHER-Midlake (CD)
FLAMING LIPS (live at Down On the Farm in Halden, Norway)
SHORTBUS (movie)
JOBA CHAMBERLAIN (Yankee phenom rookie pitcher)

6.22.07: New York City

I always used to love when NRBQ would pull out the "Magic Box" at some point during their show. They would have audience members place requests (preferably non-NRBQ songs) into the box and then reach in and choose a few at some point in the show. They were rarely "stumped" and would play at least a verse and chorus of whatever came from the box.

As with many things I have admired in the past, I figured my best tribute would be to rip it off and share it with my friends (this maxim does not extend to, for example, the steak at Peter Luger's, the Jackson Pollock paintings at MOMA or that 1962 Gibson SG in the window at Sam Ash on 48th Street. Just wanted to make that clear). I first whipped out the Magic Box concept in 1990 at the Beach Club in Oslo (with my solo band at the time) and then in 1995 at the Mercury Lounge (with Gutterball) and in each case it was a success-we knew most of the songs and our seat-of-the-pants renditions were received more enthusiastically than my own songs that were played earlier in the evening.

Linda and I booked a last-minute show at the Hexagon Bar in Minneapolis last week (to tie into her reunion with Zuzu's Petals a few nights earlier at the Fitzgerald Theater) and recruited an all-star band consisting of Ed Ackerson (27 Various, Polara), Jim Boquist (Son Volt, Jayhawks), Marc Perlman (Golden Smog, Jayhawks) and John Muson (Semisonic, Miracle 3). Those guys were amazing. They learned about a dozen of my songs and also another 15 covers which gave us enough for two hearty and generous sets. That really should have been enough but I decided to up the proverbial ante by springing the Magic Box concept on them and they loved the idea.

Now, we had already planned on playing songs by the Stooges, Pere Ubu, Badfinger, Bob Dylan, Richard Thompson, the Flaming Groovies, Wreckless Eric and a few others but now we were forced to prove our mettle (but not metal) on a whole array of songs that seemed to be mostly from 1973. There was a decent attempt at the Raspberries' "Go All the Way," as well as a game but failed shot at "All the Way From Memphis" but the highlight for me was a surprisingly adept rendition of "Jet" by Wings. Look, the show is probably already floating around out there so you can check it out and find out for yourself.

But in the meantime, may I recommend:


KCMP, THE CURRENT-along with WXPN (Philly), KEXP (Seattle), KGSR (Austin) and KCRW (Los Angeles), this Minneapolis station is playing some of the best music out there. I found it hard to get out of my car, sitting in parking lots way too long. You can listen to any of these stations online.

"HUSBANDS AND WIVES" and "DAY OF THE LOCUST"-two movies I hadn't seen in years and both were even better than I had remembered. Not sure which is more of a horror story-the final ten apocalyptic minutes of "Locust" or the overall portrayal of marriage in "H&W." I remember the Woody Allen movie being overshadowed by the soap opera that was his breakup with Mia Farrow. Too bad. This is one of his best movies

MISS SARAJEVO-Bill Carter's documentary companion piece to his "Fools Rush In" book about the war in Bosnia in the early 90s. It's as shocking, horrifying, depressing and ultimately uplifting as the book itself. I'll have to look up Bill the next time I'm in Arizona and buy him a beer.


And I think that's about all for now. Unless you have any requests.

6.13.07: New York City

I know that a lot of you tune into this space to find hot tips on new records or books or movies and I take that responsibility seriously. I spend literally minutes each day combing the hairs of popular culture, hoping to find a strand here or there that might stand out from the rest. Well, I saw a show the other day that truly stands up to that highly-raised bar and clears it by leaps and bounds.

It's called the "Sopranos."

Great show. You gotta see it. All about some family in New Jersey. Dad's a mob boss. Kids are trouble. They're all in therapy or something. Just wild. I gotta say the ending was a little weird. Or maybe something was just wrong with my TV set. Anyway, I'm going to watch it every week from now on just to see what happens next.

Okay, enough with the funny business. I watched the last episode like most of America last Sunday night. But the ugly truth is that I had only seen the show two or three times before. Why? Hard to say. I spend much of my time on the road and find it tough to stay up to date on any kind of episodic drama so I usually don't bother. Six Feet Under? Never seen it. Law And Order? Zilch. Bonanza? Think I saw it once one night in 1966 after I was on the Ed Sullivan Show, enjoying a hot toddy back at my pad before leaving on another tour.

Well, I've got some catching up to do. But not before I head down to Grand Central Station to meet Jeroen and Thessa who have invited me to join them for an annual event that celebrates Holland's herring season (they're Dutch but live in Brooklyn-a Dutch name, how about that?). I guess you eat those slimy little fishes, down them liberally with gin or Hoegarden and then live to tell the tale. I'm in. Sounds like a one-time deal, I won't have to tune in next week and I think I know how it's all going to end.

Some other recent favorites:

Knocked Up (movie)
Fools Rush In-Bill Carter (book)
Alligator-The National (CD)
Preludes-Warren Zevon (CD)
Old Joy (movie)
Bucatini con Le Sarde (pasta dish-made it the other night)
Roger Clemens winning in his first game back with the Yankees (baseball)
My Moon, My Man-Feist (song)

And that's it. Off to see the herring. I wonder if any of them will get whacked.

5.23.07: New York City

If there was a university where I learned my degree in the musical knowledge and depth and sense of adventure that led me to the finishing school that was The Dream Syndicate it must have been the 18 months I worked behind the counter at Rhino Records in Los Angeles back in 1981 and 1982. I already had a pretty strong knowledge of the history of rock and roll, garage rock, punk rock, new wave and other guitar-based music but the chance to hang out with people who had the same kind of encyclopediac knowledge of jazz, blues, reggae and other genres was the final breadth requirement that sent me out on the journey that I am still on to this very day.

And most of my time at Rhino was spent side by side with Nels Cline, a jazz guitarist who was already leading his own combo and had recorded and toured with Anthony Braxton, something that really impressed me. My taste in jazz leaned towards the outside, the squeaky and squonky and Braxton was at the forefront of that movement. I felt that Nels was some older established veteran when he was most likely, in fact, no more than 25 at the time (I was 21). He wasn't all that interested in rock music but made exceptions for the Rolling Stones and Television, two of my favorite bands. I think I played a part in turning him on to other worthy rock music of the time (Gun Club and the Cramps come to mind) while he got me even more into Coltrane, Albert Ayler, Eric Dolphy and other jazz greats. We had a ball and were the kinder, gentler side of a store that was known for its wiseass, smart alecky approach to customer relations.

I ended up buying some of Nels' records and seeing him play live around LA several times and I have remained both a fan to this day. And I couldn't be more proud and excited for him as he has become a rock super guitar hero as the driving force behind the recent tours and records with Wilco. I've got the band's latest "Sky Blue Sky" on the stereo right now and it's great. I'm digging the whole thing. But I'm particularly drawn into the third track which feels like an outtake from Television's "Adventure" and I can't help but grin as it all feels like something Nels might have put on the turntable back on Westwood Boulevard back in 1981. Go Nels go!

Some other things that have been inspiring, bewildering and amusing me in recent weeks:

Theme Time Radio Hour #49 (Death And Taxes)-Bob Dylan (satellite radio program)
Season finale of "The Office" (TV)
Invasion!-Poem Rocket (CD)
Havana Central (NYC restaurant)
The Parallax View (movie)
Akful-Jaap Boots (CD)
Ladies Man-Richard Price (book)
Cruel Words-Johnny Dowd (CD)
4th Season of "Entourage" (TV)

Oh, I know there are a few other things as well but I just heard another guitar solo that made me want to go and practice my scales for a little while. Damn, Nels, did you have to go and raise the bar so high?

3.13.07: New York City

I just watched Peter Buck throw a Vox AC-30 amplifier from the stage of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductions at the Waldorf Astoria. I don't think I've ever seen anyone throw an amp from a stage before. I'm glad to see that Peter's in good shape-those amps are not light. I remember a show we played together in Boise, Idaho in 1984 where he threw his beloved Rickebacher guitar flush against the low ceiling, shattering the neck and leading to post-show melancholia and regret. I believe the guitar was eventually fixed and in his hands tonight.

I wasn't actually at the induction ceremony tonight but rather 50 blocks uptown watching it on TV. But 24 hours ago I was with REM and a lot of other old friends (and scattered celebrities) at the amazing Del Posto restaurant where Mario Batali threw a party to celebrate tonight's event. I spent a lot of time chatting with pals from distant and recent past like Keith Streng, Scott McCoughey, Laura Levine, Jamie Candilario (go ahead and google for various pedigree) and gawking at Gwynneth Paltrow, Chris Martin and Eddie Vedder. I ate food whose splendor will haunt me until my dying day, I talked to Peter's mother Vi, Michael Stipe lent me his glasses so that I could see my phone as I typed in his vital stats, Mike Mills flirted with Linda and….well, do I need to continue this name-dropping? I'm sorry. I just thought I was Truman Capote for a minute.

But while we're dropping names and making lists, here are some recent faves:



The Brooklyn Follies-Paul Auster (book)
The Letting Go-Bonnie 'Prince' Billy (CD)
West-Lucinda Williams (CD)
Pancetta as a cooking ingredient (food)
Are Men Necessary-Maureen Dowd (book)
Extras (TV show)
"Gimme Shelter"-Patti Smith Band (at Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)


And, finally, my favorite moment was drinking a bourbon on the rocks at my favorite local bar (Tap A Keg-listed in the Zagat guide under "Enter At Your Own Risk") to celebrate what would have been the 100th birthday of my grandfather Harry Robbins (1907-1991) last Saturday night. The man enjoyed a good drink.

2.17.07: New York City

I'm sorry I have had to resort to writing this latest diary entry on the side of an oak tree on the side of the road by the New Jersey Turnpike. It's just that I've been kidnapped by the spirit of my alter-ego Dusty who has been harnessing my words and thoughts and using them to his own dastardly means on the Danny & Dusty MySpace page. Maybe you've seen it. Dan and Dust (why give in to formalities) going at it rapid-fire about sports, movies, food and especially What Have You. Ah, that famous What Have You. In the meantime, I have had to search for words that Dusty isn't using up himself so that I can tell you about the semi-dormant life of ME, specifically one Steve Wynn, the alter-ego of Dusty. Yes, I just referred to myself in the first person which wouldn't be so bad if I only knew exactly WHO the first person truly is Are you confused yet? Anyway, all the recent side-projects and productions (Danny & Dusty, Smack Dab and Teenage Prayers) are mixed and mastered and awaiting April releases, more or less. The D&D roadshow hits the autobahn and motorway this April for a short tour. And even the Miracle 3 reunites for a show at Tonic in New York on March 20 when Jason returns from his hiatus in Croatia (or was that a Croatus in Hiatia?" and Dave takes a night off from his new side-project, specifically as father to the 2-week old Serena DeCastro. Send congratulations to his MySpace page. In the meantime, I am listening to a fantastic show that was broadcast last Friday on WCDE in Richmond, a five-hour tribute to the music of Bryan Harvey. He made some incredible music with a LOT of bands and you should check it out at http://www.doublestandardcrew.com/bryanharvey Other things that have providing delight and excitement: "The Diamond Sea"-Sonic Youth (The Destroyed Room-b sides and rarites) The Sarah Silverman Show (TV show) I Am Not Afraid Of You And I Will Beat Your Ass-Yo La Tengo (CD) Terry Reid live at Winterland 1968 (www.wolfgangsvaults.com) Carne asada torta at La Esquina (NYC restaurant, Kenmare Square) Italian For Beginners (Danish movie) Sister Rosetta Tharpe videos (YouTube) New Orleans (Mardi Gras)-Del Shannon (1968 song) Okay, time to slice this bit of bark from the tree and send it in via the US mail. Hope that Dusty guy doesn't catch me February 16)

1.14.07: New York City

You just can't predict the future (or, as Yogi Berra once said, "the past ain't what it used to be.") When I was an impressionable new-wave playing, rhetoric-studying, deejaying record-store clerk/college student, there were few bands that I dug more than the dBs. My buddy/guru Ray Farrell at Rather Ripped records (yes, that's the reference point on the last Sonic Youth album) turned me onto the "Summer Sun" single by Chris Stamey and the dBs. That led me to the eventual purchase of all things from the North Carolina axis of Stamey, Peter Holsapple, Will Rigby, Sneakers, Mitch Easter as well as the music of Hoboken, where some of those musicians relocated and ended up playing regularly at Maxwell's. Ah, Hoboken! It represented a mythical musical mecca while I read New York Rocker and imagined what it would be like to actually see a show in that club someday.

25 years later-I've played Maxwell's dozens of times and, in fact, that's where I met Linda Pitmon in 1992 when her band Zuzu's Petals opened for my "Dazzling Dispay"-era combo. I've toured with Peter (when he was in the Continental Drifters), been on stage with Will (he replaced Johnny Hott in Gutterball for our last two shows) and made records with dBs bass guitarist Gene Holder (he engineered "Sweetness and Light" and Chris Cacavas' "Anonymous.") But even with all of that demystification, I was as giddy as a teenager last night at the Bowery Ballroom when the original dBs lineup played their first New York City show since in 25 years. The room was packed with other excited fans-all about the same age and, thus, all with similar stories, I'm guessing.

What can I say? It was amazing. They played everything a fan could have wanted to hear, managed to both duplicate everything perfectly AND add the spark and skill that comes from 25 additional years of experience, touring and that random element of absence which supposedly make the heart and ears grow fonder. If you were there, you know what I mean. If now, you should track down the band's debut album "Stands For Decibels" or check out their website-www.thedbsonline.net

I wonder what they'll sound like in 2032.

1.06.07: New York City

I was asked last week to put together one of those unavoidable top 10 lists for an Italian website. Unlike other years, I had a hard time coming up with even a handful of records that really excited me and I can't figure out if that means I just didn't hear enough new music or if there just weren't enough records that blew me away. I got most of my thrills from older music I discovered on various vintage soul websites or from mix tapes I got from my friends. Oh, and I was pretty busy making my own music as well which always tends to make for an immediate vacuum in other music that is able to wedge itself into your brain. Either way, I think I need to check out the online radio transmissions of stations like KEXP, WXPN and KCRW this year to seek out more modern thrills.


To be honest, most of my recent listening has been to the Smack Dab, Danny & Dusty and Teenage Prayers records that are all in various stages of near-completion. They're all coming out in April so maybe they'll end up on somebody's list at the end of 2007. But not mine-that would be wrong. And anyway, maybe I'll end up hearing ten other records I like even more. You never know.

Here's my list for 2006 (in no particular order)

BOYS AND GIRLS IN AMERICA-The Hold Steady
RATHER RIPPED-Sonic Youth
LET IT ROLL-Willard Grant Conspiracy
FOX CONFESSOR BRINGS THE FLOOD-Neko Case
THE INFORMATION-Beck
GARDEN RUIN-Calexico
ANOTHER FINE DAY-Golden Smog
MODERN TIMES-Bob Dylan
SURPRISE-Paul Simon
TANGLEWOOD NUMBERS-Silver Jews