Wax Minute
written by Richard Stekol

From the album Tantamount To Treason Volume One
by Michael Nesmith and the Second National Band

As you complicate things greatly
Since you came into my life
Old veneers and stately postures
Wax minute within your sigh

And the taxing way of adjusting
To all the thoughts which you reveal
Only incites me to motion
While that's the crux of your appeal

Just the thought of how
It's always been concealed,
Where's my heart, love?
As only you can heal

And his humble plans just don't seem
To inspire me to heights
As they did or as seeing you,
Or as touching you might

And the card that I should have sent days ago
Falls short of reaching you
Memories speak kindly now
But what can I do?

Just be thankful
For an insight granted to few,
And don't linger
On what it might have meant to you

The distance which I keep
Has entered into play,
Miles which make me say
I won't be seeing you...

___________________________
Autoclaving turns this line brown.

From the official Michael Nesmith Lyric site !

Feeling Old This Morning?

I was looking for the Beloit College New Freshman Mindset List the other day after hearing a little bit about it on the radio, but I couldn't find it until Acidman bloggged it this morning. I think I Googled 2008 instead of 2007. Doing college on the Five Year Plan does that to ya, I guess.

Van Morrison Signs to Blue Note Records

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Jazz label Blue Note Records, home of Grammy-winner Norah Jones, will announce Thursday that it has signed Van Morrison to a multi-album global deal.

His self-produced album "What's Wrong With This Picture?" is due Oct. 21. The jazz- and blues-infused set includes 11 new Morrison originals, a cover of Lightnin' Hopkins' "Stop Drinking" and an arrangement of traditional tune "Saint James Infirmary."

Morrison's last album, "Down the Road" (Exile/Universal), debuted at No. 25 on the Billboard 200 chart in May 2002. Prior to that, he recorded for Virgin's Pointblank imprint. Morrison was also affiliated with jazz label Verve for two sets in the mid-1990s, including an album of Mose Allison songs.

*****

To say nothing of his years recording for the Brothers Warner. But, the main excuse for posting this is linking to some recordings he made in a bid to get out of his contract with Bang Records after he determined that attempting followup singles to "Brown Eyed Girl" for Bert Berns wasn't what he wanted to do with his life:

Van Morrison getting out of his Bang Records contract: "I can see by the look on your face, that you've got ringworm..."

Advice From A Cartoon Cat

Gotta add Achewood to my comix linx at left... Ray's got some fine advice and observations again this Wednesday:

...There are a lot of duds out there. Just look at how many people genuinely cared about the outcome of “American Idol” this year. I heard some reports that people actually bought CDs by people who were on that show! I mean, come on! Who cares if some overgrown meat-bug re-sings an already famous song with a generic band behind him, taking all the cojones out of the music? What a waste of various types of resources.

Happy Canada Day, Eh?

So I did the Archive thing again, and I figured I oughta get something from the current month on the front page.

Shaw Island is about to split into two strips, one for the humans and one for the hamsters, so keep reading. In WIGU, the Tinkle family got amnesia after a confrontation between Topato and Space Mummy...

Here at work, things are busy and I think I need to work late again to get some stuph accomplished. Holiday weekend approaching that I hope to enjoy, considering I had to forego any possibility of going to see the Moody Blues at Summerfest last night. Oh well...

Maybe I Should Make Headlines For These Posts

Eric Olsen wrote a pretty nice article about Warren Zevon and his new album, The Wind. Besides reviewing the disc, he conveys the difficulty of not coming off like a jerk when meeting a celebrity, particularly one you admire. Or whose work you admire. If you're not a fawning fanboy, you're asking presumptuous questions, speaking with unearned authority from nonexistent expertise or giving (what's the word Fripp uses) dopey advice. Basement commentary. Ideally, one is able to speak to the object of one's desire without annoying them. But, fan interaction is heavily weighted in favor of the fan. "Sorry (NOT) to interrupt your quiet meal with your friends, butt I have a hunger to tell you how great you are, and if you don't appreciate my attention I'm prepared to insult you. Sign this. Get ready for a bright flash in your eyes." Eric didn't really do all this, understand, when he met Warren Zevon at a party, I'm just rambling.

Besides Butch Vig and Duke Erikson, I've met very few celebrities. After a Summerfest show in the 80's (with Al Perkins on a tiny stage), I shook Chris Hillman's hand and thanked him for coming to Milwaukee. Shook Gene Clark's hand between sets at a little Bay View bar once, also. That was right around the time Hillman was having some Mainstream Country success with the Desert Rose Band, and I think Gene didn't appreciate my suggestion that he consider the Country Music market. Mind, this was when guys like Steve Earle, Dwight Yoakam, Lyle Lovett and Randy Travis were new on the scene, and it seemed like there was a market for honest thoughtful singer songwriters on the Radio of all freakin' places. Before all the empty cowboy hats took over. Oh well. I didn't ask for his autograph since I don't believe in the dumb things.

Mmm, to be honest, I've gotten a couple over the years. It's an excuse to get close to a celebrity, I guess. (Why anyone would buy an autograph is a mystery to me.) I got Flo & Eddie to autograph a 200 Motels booklet after a Turtles show some years back, and back in college I got Sneeky Pete to autograph a breathalyzer result card I happened to have in my wallet. Both of those are longer stories than I have time to relate at the moment...

Someday I should also write about seeing Roger McGuinn & Band, David Crosby's CPR and Michael Clarke (and Gene) in a "Byrd Tribute" band. That 's all Five Byrds I've seen in Concert at various times. I've gone to few enough concerts that I should make an effort to list 'em. Can probably remember most if I try. I've started this project before, I wonder what floppy disc that file might be on...

Okay, I republished the Archives.* My deathless prose will live on until the sun grows cold and dark. Or until all the terrible things everybody says about Blogger come to pass. Or until Blogspot start charging for this space.

* "It's supposed to be automatic, but you actually have to push this button."

Here's my latest Blogcritics post. I perform a little record company math and scientifically estimate that the Artist will probably receive 3 cents out of each 99 cents the Consumer spends on a downloaded mp3 or whatever that new Apple iTunes format is...

Check in again next month for more up-to-the-minute reporting.

Oh, today's the last day of school, and I get to sit in the bleachers for several hours observing a Middle School promotion exercise this evening. Lucky me.

Okay, I'm not some kind of Nick Hornby (or Hugh Grant) fanboy, I'm just rearranging some bookmarks...

"The Hornby Top Ten" - If you've seen or read and enjoyed "High Fidelity", you'll have an idea of what this is about. If you've ever made Mix Tapes or CD's or just find yourself Making Lists sometimes, you'll relate even if your tastes don't agree.

"POP QUIZ" - Nick Hornby listens to the Billboard Top 10 and realizes the stuff he listens to isn't really POPULAR music anymore... Heh, me too.

"31 Songs That Changed My Life" Nick Hornby's 31 and one each from thirty-one other people, including Vicki Blue from the Runaways -> Suzi Quatro -> Gene Pitney...

And this article references a Canadian musician rather than a British writer with decent taste in music...

"The Ecstasy of Glenn Gould" - I never liked classical piano music until I heard Gould's recording of Bach's "Goldberg Variations", so if you don't like the florid Romantic style piano, don't overlook this guy. Kind of a cross between Professor Longhair, Yo Yo Ma and Robert Fripp, if I may be allowed a very inexact analogy.

On an unrelated note, Disc Two of Scooped was spinning on my CD drive when I read that Pete Townshend was cleared of child porn charges. Good for him, though the criminal justice system, such as it is, is requiring him to Register as an Offender despite not being Charged or Convicted of anything. Well, as long as it's For The Children and not part of the Amerikkkan Resident's Homeland Security Dismantling of the Bill of Rights, I guess it's all good.

I haven't read McSweeney's much lately, but this article saved its place in my Bookmarks list for another month or two...