Jon Stewart spanks Jim Cramer

Quote Jon Stewart, "I know you are trying to make finance entertaining... but it's not a fucking game."

After you watch the interview segments below, I suggest that you check out this YouTube. You will never watch Cramer the same again.

First Some Background

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

In Cramer We Trust

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things w/ Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Jim Cramer

Now they face off -

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Jim Cramer Unedited Interview Pt. 2

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things w/ Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Jim Cramer

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Jim Cramer Unedited Interview Pt. 3

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things w/ Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Jim Cramer

Vintage and Modern, Inc.

A cool site with some very eclectic and hip stuff. This would be cool hanging in my office. It's gotta be cool because my son David has a lot to do with this enterprise.

Incredible Gigapan

Gigapan image from the north press platform during President Obama's inaugural address at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, DC on January 20, 2009. It's made up of 220 images and the final image size is 59,783 X 24,658 pixels or 1,474 megapixels.

Hittin' the Jazz clubs again

Friday night Feb 6, 2009; another night of hitting the jazz clubs in NYC

7:30 Jazz Standard - Cindy Blackman Explorations: Cindy Blackman dr, Zaccai Curtis p, Marc Carey k, Antoine Roney s, Rashaad Carter b.
10:30 Smalls Jazz Club - Seamus Blake Qnt - Seamus Blake s, Dave Kikoski p, Lage Lund g, Matt Clohesy b, Bill Stewart d.

Obama Freedom Suite

 

This is my tribute to the Inauguration of President Barack Obama. I have edited excerpts of Obama's historic inaugural speech with Sonny Rollins' landmark recording "Freedom Suite". Recorded in 1958 this was Rollins' musical protest of the state of race relations during the height of our segregation era. It also represents a new freedom in jazz composition and improvisation. Saxophone Collosus' sailing Tenor playing, Oscar Pettiford's solid bass statements, and Max Roach's inventive drum stylings, combine to musically express the struggles of those times.

Fifty years later, we have elected an African American to the highest office in the land, in what is possibly the beginning of the final chapter in the history of the civil rights movement in America. I have juxtaposed Rollins' expression of anger and despair of racial inequality in 1958, with Obama's message of hope and unity as a tribute to the truly historic election and inauguration of our new President.

Listen or download this musical Inauguration Day tribute by clicking the link below:

The Obama Freedom Suite

The "Nu" future of marketing Jazz music

This new record "label" is a reflection of this digital age, a response to the state of the music industry, and the way music will be distributed in the future. From the Nu Jazz Entertainment website...

All releases will be distributed solely via digital downloads, with no products sold through the traditional music retail outlets. This will allow for the music to go directly into the hands of the consumers in an almost instantaneous method...The future of Jazz is here - Nu Jazz Records is a record label for a "Nu era". Unencumbered by the political constraints of the traditional record companies Nu Jazz Records is able to put the emphasis where it belongs - on the music. ...Unencumbered by the need to do media advertising buys, retail store marketing programs, or to generally pursue the other marketing activities; Nu Jazz invests the money for these expenditures in the two areas where it is most important: 1) By providing royalties to the artist in fiscal percentages which standard record companies would refuse to; and 2) By investing in the development and acquisition of new works of music...From time immemorial the musicians who have labored long and hard to develop their own musical voice have been bitterly neglected and mis-used by the conventional modern day slavery of the recording business.

It has grown apparent that the major record labels have abandoned any new jazz music and completely de-valued this incredible American art form. Nu Jazz Entertainment is attempting to fairly compensate these important Artists, and to market jazz music using new media and technology in this new world order. While I regret seeing the demise of 'physical' media, particularly the art of record covers and liner notes that was such an integral part of the record album experience, I do embrace the immediacy and convenience of digital music. The ability to take my entire music collection in my pocket is a powerful thing and has transformed the music industry in a very positive way. Despite the loss of CD revenues and the ranting of the RIAA, I think that the digital music revolution has brought music back to forefront of peoples consciousness. (I do wonder if it makes us all vulnerable to losing our entire collection from a crashed hard drive or lost iPod... back up your music, folks)

As to the music, I am particularly aware of tenor sax player, Jimmy Greene because he is a product of the local Jazz scene in my hometown of Hartford Connecticut, as is bassist Luques Curtis. Though they have moved on to successful jazz careers, and have collaborated with many great jazz artists in New York city, they often come back to town to play in local venues. I was able to see from this video clip below that this album was recorded at New Haven's (CT) Firehouse 12. This is a recording studio by day, and on several Friday evenings throughout the year, they set up 50 or 60 folding chairs and it becomes a great venue for live jazz performances. The album is entitled The Overcomer's Suite, from Jimmy Greene, and is available from eMusic for a pittance, or wherever digital downloads are sold (and dig the sweet drumming in this clip by Kendrick Scott).

Barak on Meet The Press

Just got done listening to Barak Obama on Meet the Press. This guy is going to be a great president of historic proportions. How nice it is to listen to such an intelligent, focused, articulate man as our president. After the last eight years it is such a refreshing change. He has such a populist message, something we haven't heard in literally decades from the highest office in the land. He even mentioned bringing Jazz music and Poetry into the Whitehouse to promote the arts and culture. God, I love this man.

Read the complete transcript here, or watch video clips here.

Jazz night out

Monthy trip down to NYC. Dinner with Dave followed by set at Smalls Jazz Club. Great club. Literally a whole in the wall. Caught Mark Soskin Quartet featuring Joel Frahm (also Jay Anderson bass, Matt Wilson drums). Claire captured this video of a smokin' Joel Frahm performance.

Another Jazzy NYC weekend

Another night of Jazz and dinner with David Friday night.

At Jazz Standard: Charles McPherson/Tom Harrell Quintet - Charles McPherson AS, Tom Harrell Trp, Ray Drummond Bs, Chuck McPherson Dr, Don't know on Piano (supposed to be Aaron Goldberg).

Sunday night, right here in Hartford at the HJS Dinner at Black Eyed Sally's; Nat Reeves Quintet. Nat on Bass,Tony Reedus, drums, Anthony Wonsey, piano, Jovan Alexandre, saxophone, and Josh Bruneau on trumpet.

Hartford International Jazz Festival 2008

Click here for the complete gallery of pics and videos for the events I attended.

Friday October 10
7:30pm - Spris
Jazz City
Jonathan Chatfield - piano
Jovan Alexander - tenor sax
Stephen King Porter - bass 
Jason Williams - drums


10PM - The Society Room (formerly Jack Blacks)
Badal Roy Quartet and Special Guests:
Badal Roy - Tablas
Kenny Wessel - Guitar
Steve Gorn - Bamboo Flute
Daniel Moreno - Percussion
Special Guests:
Dave Liebman - Sax
Michael Henderson - Bass


Saturday October 11
11:00 PM - Fengs
Mario Pavone Sextet
Mike Di Rubbo - Alto and Soprano Sax
Lauren Sevian - Baritone Sax
Kris Allen - Alto Sax
Michael Musillami - Guitar
Mario Pavone - Bass
Curtis Torian - Drums



Sunday October 12
7:30PM - City Steam
Wallace Roney Quintet
Wallace Roney – Trumpet
Antoine Roney – Saxophones & Bass Clarinet
Rashaan Carter – Bass
Aruan Ortiz – Keyboards
Kush Abadey – Drums

Live jazz at 55 bar

Monday night Sep 30, on a whim, hopped a train NYC. Met up with son Dave and headed down to the Village to catch one of those great Mike Stern appearances at 55 Bar. How about $15 cover (which includes 2 drinks), and you get to see a world class giant of jazz/fusion guitar, Mike Stern (along with Kim Thompson (d), Tom Kennedy (b)). We were sitting so close to the action, I had to occasionally duck to get out of the way of his guitar. I shot a video and posted it on YT.



also, a few days before Sep 25 caught Conference Call at Willimantic’s beautiful Capitol Theater.. Conference Call is: Gebhard Ullmann (bass clarinet, bass flute, tenor and soprano saxophones); George Schuller (drums); Joe Fonda (bass); and Michael Jefry Stevens (piano).

Bamboozled Bailout

Isn't anyone else skeptical about how this bailout is being jammed down our throats? Has anyone taken the time to analyze the effectiveness of $700 billion dollars of taxpayer money for corporate welfare? It seems to me that the market had already begun to stabilize last week without a bailout. As of this morning though, overnight markets and early trading has resulted in another tumble of the DJIA, despite agreements on a bailout bill. Perhaps the notion that just giving this windfall Xmass gift to the investment banks, will not induce any change in there irresponsible reckless risk-taking, and we are just throwing good money after bad. Isn't it ironic that free-market capitalism is hailed as the engine of economic prosperity, but when it all turns south, those same capitalists right away ask for the government to step in and bail them out with Federal dollars (a socialist move).

And how about the silly notion that taxpayers will actually make money on this deal. The assumption that the treasury siphoning off these risky, sub-prime, poorly secured mortgages will be good investments is ridiculous. If there was money to be made on these lousy mortgages, these investment firms would not be asking us to unload them at taxpayer expense!

Does anyone actually trust Treasury secretary Paulson (ex CEO of Morgan Stanley), or the top management of these investment firms not to repeat the reckless, greedy excesses of the past? What indications are there that they have changed their ways? Their proposal was to fork over $700 billion dollars without any oversight or condition. Any thought of limiting executive pay, or US equity in these firms would 'discourage' participation in this bailout. If that ain't a recipe for letting the foxes guard the hen-house. That is simply the height of arrogance and entitlement, that we should blindly trust these goons that brought us into this mess to also lift us back to prosperity.

How about using half of that $700 billion dollars to directly help Main Street. Can you imagine how $350 billion dollars to create alternative energy related jobs in the US would help our economy and work towards relieving our dependence on foreign oil? What if that money were used to provide government issued small-buisness loans, healthcare subsidies, auto-industy assistance to retool for hybrid car production. Wouldn't that be a shot in the arm for our economy and solve many pressing issues that directly affect Main Street?

I have not heard anything in this bailout bill that contains significant reform to prevent the excesses of the past from continuing in the future. Instead, we are providing more corporate welfare to the greedy irresponsible investment firms that have failed our economy while lining their own pockets with billions.

Live music

Lots of live music lately. I want to start journaling these as to not forget them... in my old age.

Wed, Sep 10
Chris Potter (ts) w/Adam Rogers g, Craig Taborn ep, Nate Smith d - CP Underground. No bass. Regatta bar Boston

Fri Sep 19
Insight featuring Zaccai (p) and Luques (b) Curtis. Also Jovan Alexander ts. at Htfd Polish home.

Sun Sep 21
Dave Holland (b) Sextet with Antonio Hart as, Robin Eubanks tb, Eric Harland d, Alex Sipiagin tp, Steve Nelson vb

Banished from Google

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed that traffic to my Jazz Podcast website had dramatically dropped. I was puzzled as to why this was happening as I hadn't really changed anything on the website. About a week ago, I Googled the page and noticed that no matter what search phrases I used, I could not get a hit to my Podcast home page. It seemed I had been banished from Google. Of course, I freaked out. Over the course of a couple years I had implemented many techniques to improve my organic search rankings. I had improved my positions month after month till I came up second place when 'Jazz Podcast' is searched (only behind jazzpodcast.net). My podcast had become one of the most popular Jazz shows on the web. Page hits, podcast subscriptions, downloads and AdWord revenues were on the rise. All of this started to come crashing down in just a couple of weeks.

To try to find some resolution to the problem, I ended right back at Google and found Webmaster Tools. This site has a plethora of great information on how Google views your site, what phrases are returning the highest rankings and tips on improving your positioning.

While it gave me no clue as to why I had disappeared from Google, Webmaster Tools has a 'Reconsideration Form' that can be used to get Google to re-evaluate your site and place it back in the rankings. It took just a couple of days, and sure enough, my site reappeared... right back in second place where it belongs. A huge sigh of relief! I'm posting this info because it might be of help to others that find themselves in this situation.

When it comes to web traffic to your website, Google can giveth and can taketh away!!!

It ain't always jazz

It was a blast to help out hosting a live broadcast of Desiree Bassett playing on the Fiat Flux, a Saturday morning show on WHUS. While engineering on the mixing board for part of the show, I also shot the little video clip below. This 15 year old girl is a killer rock guitarist, with a real appreciation for the best of the Classic Rockers (Hendrix, Dicky Betts, Satriani). She has good folks and a great teacher, and has surrounded herself with some of the best local area musicians as seen here with David Stoltz (b), and Rob Gottfried (d).



I also worked on my YouTube Channel. Check out my videos and favorites here.

Newport Jazz Festival 2008

Just returned from a few days in Newport. The vacation was highlighted by the JVC Newport Jazz Festival, my first time at the renowned jazz event. I was most struck by the wide breadth of musical styles that jazz has transitioned to. The traditional quartet or quintet setting, playing bebop based compositions was present but very much in the minority. The music that was predominant was heavily influenced by African, Caribbean and Latin rhythms (as in Lionel Loueke, Esperanza Spalding, Sonny Rollins) or progressive hard rock electronics (Herbie Hancock, Chris Potter, Marco Benevento).  Yet it was all progressive, often hard driving and swinging jazz. As long as these artists are not selling themselves out for commercial popular appeal, the variety it brings to jazz music is very refreshing. At least the Sunday line-up that we attended did not have that smooth-jazz influence that has been pervading the genre as of late. Even Herbie's popular selections from River and Possibilities CD's were played in a creative and thoughtful way that you would expect from this master. 

The one quintet that was rooted in the post-modern bop setting was an incredible young group of British musicians, Empirical. They are a quintet of excellent jazz cats that stretched the hard-bop form with complex compositions and free-form solos that could go into space and take it right back home with a funky or swinging beat. Empirical is definitely a group to watch on the jazz scene.

Chris Potter was all over the place playing in about 6 or 7 different combos between Saturday and Sunday. We watched an incredible performance with his own band Underground. His sax playing is heavily influenced by Trane and Brecker, yet in an electric setting with Rhodes piano, a screaming electric guitar, and heavy rock and funk based rhythms (Nate Smith, incredible on drums). This was progressive jazz, not fusion. It was fresh and unique and really, really cooked.

Herbie played a wide range of styles from his classic compositions of the 60's, Headhunters fusion of the 70's, and his incredible arrangements of popular tunes and Joni Mitchell songs from his grammy winning albums. He played with an incredible lineup of Chris Potter (sax), Dave Holland (bass), Lionel Loueke (guitar), Vinny Colaiuta (drums). One of the highlights of his set was during the playing of River. Herbie played a solo that was so beautiful, quiet and compelling, that even in this outdoor setting with thousands present and all the distractions of boats and vendors, the crowd drew absolutely silent, hanging on every gorgeous note that Herbie was playing on the piano. It was breathtaking.

Sonny Rollins closed out the festival late Sunday afternoon. Sonny is a legend and it was a thrill to see him. At 78 years old, this cat can still play with the best of them. Sonny's group consisted of tenor sax, trombone, electric guitar, conga, bass, drums. I don't think he plays with the caliber of musicians he had in the past, and the compositions he performed were not like the classic swinging bop tunes that he did in the peak of his career. The music was heavily African and rhythmically based. The tunes and solos were long, often repetitive ostinatos that went on and on. However, when Sonny took center stage to take his solos, he always brought the music to life, and blew that sax like he was in his twenties. 

It was a great day, and one that I hope to repeat many times in the years to come. My photo gallery of the Newport Jazz Fest is here. (note: if you have additional pictures of the 2008 Newport Jazz Festival, I invite you to upload your photos to the gallery.)

Jazz the way it should be

The best way to experience jazz music has to be live in a New York City jazz club. It just doesn't get any better. Live, up-close and personal. The Jazz Standard is just one of those places. Get there an hour or so early, and it is easy to grab a table a few short feet from the stage. Sunday evening, June 29 we experienced the George Coleman Quintet with special guest Eric Alexander. These are two killer tenor sax players. Coleman (71 yrs), one of the all-time masters of the tenor, who has played with the greatest jazz artists of all-time, including being a member of the Miles Davis Quintet (with the dubious distinction of being replaced by Wayne Shorter), Jimmy Smith, Dizzy, Lee Morgan, Max Roach, and more. Eric Alexander is one of the great young talents and powerful players on jazz scene today.

Their contrasting styles made for an incredible evening of jazz music. Eric Alexander is a superb technician with amazing chops. He has a powerful, lush sounding horn with which he played perfect solos throughout the evening. George Coleman had a more fluid yet raw playing style, but his ideas stretched the compositions to new directions, taking his solos to places you didn't expect him to go.  I won't soon forget the great piano playing of Harold Mabern, another grand master of his instrument that has graced the jazz scene for 40 years or more. His playing was simply amazing, and he has played with both these gentleman for each of their entire careers.

I even snuck-in a short video clip, though the manager came over and warned me to stop using the camera. Here it is, I hope it gives you a little feel for what the evening was like.

George Coleman ts, Eric Alexander ts, Harold Mabern p, John Webber b, George Coleman Jr. d.

What you should know about John McCain

Ed. note: This post is part of a conspiracy to link to articles critical of Sen. McCain. The more people link to these articles, the higher will be their Google rankings. Thus when folks Google McCain regarding these issues, they will be more likely to see these critical articles at the top of the list. It's not often I have the opportunity to be part of a conspiracy. I love a good conspiracy!

1--John McCain Votes to Filibuster Minimum Wage Hike - AOL News is highly ranked on John McCain, and the minimum wage increase was incredibly popular. 2--McCain housing policy shaped by lobbyist - This article emphasizes how corporate special interests have formed McCain's economic policy. If it becomes the top ranked MSNBC article, it will appear in the top ten searches for McCain nationwide. 3--Bush, McCain plug Social Security - Seniors are going to be the key swing vote in this election, and they hate Bush's plan to privatize Social Security. This is the best polling message against McCain of all, which isn't surprising since our victory on Social Security is how began to turn the tide against Republicans and conservatives three years ago. The headline alone ties McCain to Bush, and this article already ranks very high on searches for McCain Social Security. 4--McCain blasts Obama's and Clinton's attacks on NAFTA - This is a great article because it not only ties McCain to NAFTA, which is quite unpopular, but it also draws a contrast between McCain and Democrats on the issue. The LA Times is also in the top twenty searches for John McCain. 5--McCain in NH: Would Be "Fine" To Keep Troops in Iraq for "A Hundred Years" - McCain's "100 years" statement ha damaged him already, and this article has already been significantly optimized on Google. While Mother Jones is not an ideal news source, it is the top article for this quote, and appears in the top thirty searches for John McCain already. 6--McCain: Bush right to veto kids health insurance expansion - This is my personal favorite. The headline just makes McCain look like an asshole, and ties him to Bush. Who is opposed to health insurance for kids? CNN also is in the top ten searches for McCain and John McCain A lot of people will see this one. 7--Senate passes expanded GI bill despite Bush, McCain opposition - While I am not thrilled about using Salon, since it isn't as well known, and since there is an advertising wall that hides the story, the title is damaging enough. McCain's opposition to the GI Bill really hurts him, and tying him to Bush is just as bad. This title does both in a clear, straightforward manner. 8--McCain says overturn the law that legalized abortion - Pretty straightforward, and extremely important. More than half of all women voters think that McCain is pro-choice. This will quickly change their minds. 9--McCain Defends Bush's Iraq Strategy - The classic McCain SEO, that still appears in top thirty searches for McCain and John McCain. It is also proof positive that this campaign will work, because it appears as the second CBS news article, but still on the front page in Google searches just below the CBS election center information on John McCain. That is all we need to do to get it on the front page of searches about McCain--optimize it against other CBS articles. Also, even though this SEO campaign was abandoned fifteen months ago, it still ranks in the top forty in McCain searches. If a fifteen month old campaign is still that effective, imagine what we can do with enough participation in this campaign.

Chop Shop - the movie

Saw Chop Shop opening at Real Art Ways in Hartford. A well crafted movie set at Willett's Point in Queens NY in the shadows of Shea Stadium. It is an area known for seedy auto repair shops, and the home of an underground culture, economy and lifestyle. It is that lifestyle that is portrayed using young non-professional actors playing themselves and filmed entirely on location that gives this film a raw authentic look of a street smart kid's survival and hope for a better life. Even in this most bleak set of circumstances and surroundings this parent-less 12 Year old boy and his sister make some sort of life for themselves, find small pleasures, and have dreams for a better future. Director Rahmin Bahrani's in this, his second film (Man Push Cart) succeeds once more in bringing the viewer intimately into this world. The lack of trained actors is more than compensated by well crafted camera work, film editing and direction which draws you into this culture and makes you hope and care for these children.

Of course I am extremly proud of my son David Laster, involved in a big way as a film editor in this full length motion picture. Surely his editing contribution played an important part in the success of this film.

Please, Hillary...

Just go away, and take your husband with you. The pathetic pandering to your last best hope, white redneck middle america conservative leaning democrats won't get you elected. Watching you throw back shots and a beer, telling hunting stories about shooting of rifles with your Pa, or proposing silly gas tax holidays just makes you look phony and foolish. It's over. Bow out gracefully. Let the real games begin.

Stevie D's birthday jam

I've said this dozens of times now, but it keeps getting better. Hartford is getting to be an incredible Jazz town. Monday night jazz jam at Black Eyed Sallys is a wonderful thing to behold. This week, in celebration of Trombone wizard Steve Davis (Hartford's mentor for aspiring young jazz musicians) birthday, all the great jazz cats turned out. Many coming all the way from NYC. Dig this:

Steve Davis - trombone

Kris Jensen - Tenor (little know outside of Hartford, but as good as any NYC session man)

Mike DiRubo - Alto

Warren Byrd - Piano

Nat Reeves - Bass

Eric McPhereson - Drums

Man, I spend hundreds of dollars each time I go to New York to the jazz clubs to see cats of this caliber play. But its all in Hartford Connecticut... and no cover charge. Plus, these cats jammed for over three hours, joined on the stage by maybe a dozen more local musicians, mostly seriously good students from the Jackie McLean Institute for Jazz (Hartt School of Music). 

How much fun is that? And for the cost of a couple of drinks at the bar. Damn, it just doesn't get any better. If you live near Hartford Connecticut, check out Black Eyed Sallys on Monday nights. I promise you will not regret it.

Nader '08

I got a text message today 10:00AM from David. It simply said "Nader 08". Woa, he's doin' it again. My first reaction... Unless Obama turns out to be a real dope, I don't think I'll be voting for Nader this time around. Then I happen to watch Meet The Press, and there he was speaking to Russert. Single payer healthcare, fighting corporate ownership of American politics, increasing tax rates for speculative investing and tax cuts for working Americans, breaking the stranglehold of our healthcare system, a pollution tax... These are issues that need to be heard, issues that are not being spoken by this crop of presidential candidates.

How will the Dems react. Will they simply try to shut Nader up and denigrate his candidacy as they have done in the past, or will they embrace his message and inject these stands into their own platforms. If they do the former... I might just get on the Nader bandwagon. These are issues that need to be part of the presidential debate.

So right now, this is how I stand (and I reserve the right to change my mind). If Clinton becomes the nominee, it's Go Nader, baby! If it is Obama, we'll have to see where he stands in relation to Nader's Issues and how the Dems treat Naders candidacy.

Right now, it looks like the Dems have a true liberal candidate in Barak Obama. But I have to say, Nader is THE MAN.

Late night Jazz in NYC, with Bob Reynolds

Nothing is more fun then hitting the jazz clubs in the Big Apple. Here is how it went down this Friday evening.
4:00 PM book out of work a little early
5:30PM Board Train from New Haven to Grand Central Station
7:00PM Dinner with Dave
9:00PM Take cab to Greenwich Village.
10:00PM catch 2 late sets with great sax player and friend Bob Reynolds at 55Bar
1:00AM catch cab back to Grand Central Station, and train to Connecticut
3:00AM train arrives in New Haven, stumble into our car to drive home
4:00AM Arrive home
How's that! I can still party all night long like a college kid! Here's the YouTubes, shot by Claire to prove it.

Yes We Can

Yeah, this is cool. I'm not voting based on this, but it is cool.

Like heroin

75%How Addicted to Blogging Are You?

Can the Clinton's sink any lower?

Have the Clinton's no shame? Bill's role as Hillary's hatchet man is surely unbecoming of an Ex-President. Obviously the strategy goes like this. Obama tends to be the beneficiary of unifying the racial divide of public opinion and has proven his ability to do so by trying hard to keep race out of the campaign. Therefore, Hillary can only gain from injecting race into the campaign and fomenting peoples anxiety over racial fears. However, it would a political disaster for Hillary to overtly do that herself. So, who is the perfect proxy to do this devilish deed? Hubby, Bill!

My friend Ken Blanchard from South Dakota Politics blog made this astute observation:

Obama did try, very hard, to minimize race as a factor in the campaign. And for a while he succeeded. It was the Clintons who, just at the moment their campaign looked to be in crisis, put it back in. Are the Clintons cynically, if very cleverly, using race as a wedge issue to split the Democratic party in their favor? I don't know that for sure. Would the Clintons do so, if they thought they had to to win? About that, there can be no doubt.

And this:

First: the Clintons have succeeded in splitting the Black and White portions of the Democratic party. If Ms. Clinton can hang on to the latter, she will be the nominee. Second, however, is that the Clintons have managed to make themselves look dirtier even than they were before. Mr. Bill explained away the South Carolina results by explicitly linking the Obama victory to those of Jesse Jackson. Everyone now assumes that everything a Clinton says is part of a well considered strategy. White voters may well be hesitant to back a Jackson-like candidate of Black America, but won't they be equally offended to know that they are being played? The Clintons are counting on winning the White vote n a lot of states on Feb. 5th. But by being so transparent, they are running a terrible risk.

Now with the recent endorsement of Democratic party icon Senator Edward Kennedy, it appears that risk has taken a terrible turn for Hillary's chances for the nomination. What goes around comes around.

Study: Bush, aides made 935 false statements in run-up to war

Except from today's CNN:

"In short, the Bush administration led the nation to war on the basis of erroneous information that it methodically propagated and that culminated in military action against Iraq on March 19, 2003,"

The quotes in the study include an August 26, 2002, statement by Cheney to the national convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. "Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction," Cheney said. "There is no doubt he is amassing them to use against our friends, against our allies, and against us."

Entire article here.

Jazz night NYC Jan 08

Another great night of Jazz in NYC:

Curtis Fuller Septet at Iridium:

shown: Curtis Fuller tbn, Randy Brecker tr, Javon Jackson ts,

not shown: Rufus Reed b, Jacey Falk tr, Carl Allen dr, Luke O'Reilly p.

Early show at Jazz Standard, caught Aaron Goldberg Trio with Mark Turner at Jazz Standard.

Aaron Goldberg p, Rueben Rogers b, Eric Harland d, Mark Turner ts.

Obama had it right in 2002

**Begin quote**
... But I also know that Saddam poses no imminent and direct threat to the United States, or to his neighbors, that the Iraqi economy is in shambles, that the Iraqi military a fraction of its former strength, and that in concert with the international community he can be contained until, in the way of all petty dictators, he falls away into the dustbin of history.

I know that even a successful war against Iraq will require a US occupation of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences. I know that an invasion of Iraq without a clear rationale and without strong international support will only fan the flames of the Middle East, and encourage the worst, rather than best, impulses of the Arab world, and strengthen the recruitment arm of al-Qaeda.

I am not opposed to all wars. I’m opposed to dumb wars.
**End Quote**

Obama's Iraq speech is worth reading in its entirety.

A jazzy holiday

A memorable Winter Solstice holiday to be sure. Went to NYC to catch Chick Corea with an amazing lineup at the Blue Note. Yeah, long hike to the Village, followed by standing and waiting for an hour for the show to begin, followed by standing room only, watching the show by the bar... still it was worth it. Chick p, Victor b, Wekyl d, Gambale g, Marienthal s.

Followed by discovering a great new Trumpet artist in Ingrid Jensen at my favorite NYC club 55bar.

Than on to Boston a couple days later to see the great legendary pianist McCoy Tyner (yes, of the John Coltrane Quartet) with young trumpeter Christian Scott.

Does it get any better than that. Thanks Dave, for having us over at your pad in NYC, and following us around the big Apple all night. It was a blast.

We've been Simpsonized

Cool! You can get Simpsonized too.

iPhone Envy-Treo appreciation

Sure I have iPhone Envy! That gorgeous screen, real web page rendering, best ipod ever, slickest user interface, WiFi. No doubt, the iPhone is groundbreaking technology that pushes wireless mobile devices to a new level.

But wait! I realy dig my Palm Treo 700p. There are many functions I can do that iPhoners can't, like load some great 3rd party apps... IM anyone? You can't configure keyboard shortcuts without a keyboard! I have an SD expansion card, a removable replaceable battery, threaded SMS client, customizable menu screens, cut copy paste, view PDF's and edit MS Office files. I can sync and transfer files via bluetooth. And just like an iPhone, I can surf the web, check email. I have Google Maps, mp3 player, movie player and YouTube. Its not always as slick and well integrated, but the Treo can do it (and with fast 3G, not slow as molases EDGE). Too bad no WiFi like iPhone. Of great importance, I can do almost any function with one hand, even while driving (not recommended... but let's face it, we all do it). I bet it's not so easy to do that on the iPhone.

The palm treo is awsome (BTW, before this I had a blackberry... it sucks). Palm should be more proactive in hyping its great smartphone features versus the iPhone (and Blackberry). But still... when I hold that iPhone, it is like having the future in my hands. Apple innovation has done it once again.

New (Old) way to buy tunes

For the last few years I have been buying virtually all my music digitally. I've been doing it mostly through eMusic a great alternative source with a unique and wonderful jazz collection. Sure, it's a great service at a great price, but one thing has been missing with digital music. Liner Notes, with groovy cover art, complete personell listing, date recorded, and often inciteful commentary and background into the musicians and the recording session. Maybe a better way is to buy used over the Internet. I just scored this Blue Note classic, Hank Mobley, Workout. $6.75 plus $3 for shipping (from Amazon, used-like new condition). For less then $10, under what you would pay on iTunes, you get the tunes, extensive liner notes, rip it DRM-free in whatever format and compression rate you choose, and you have the CD as hard backup. You can't beat that at any digital storefront.



As for the album, Hank Mobley is playing a hard driving tenor sax with a rock solid rhythm section of Paul Chambers-b, Wynton Kelly-p, Philly Joe Jones-d. Grant Green rounds out the sound on guitar. A winning combination for sure. Driving, straight up classic jazz with a soulful, bluesy influence as well.

Prince of BeBop - Greg Abate

Greg Abate is one of the finest alto sax players on the Jazz scene today. With more than 10 albums as a leader, Greg began his career touring with Ray Charles and the Artie Shaw band. His music is deeply rooted in the Bebop tradition of Charlie Parker, Sonny Stitt and Cannonball Adderly, though he has his own unique modern voice. As a jazz educator, composer and performer, he has traveled the world spreading the joy and artistry of bebop jazz.

I first heard of Greg when he emailed me about a year ago and asked if my radio station had any of his CD's for airplay. They had about 4 of them, but not any of his recent work. He updated our library with 4 of his newer releases. I dug his playing from the start, and I play him constantly on my radio show. We emailed back and forth a few times. He invited me to a gig he was playing in Connecticut, and I went down to New London CT to see and hear him. When he walked into the jazz club, I could see he was upset and agitated. I walked over to him and introduced myself and asked what was wrong. He said the club owner couldn't pay him and he might just leave. I convinced him to stay and play, which he did, and blew the house down, although there were only about 10-20 patrons at the club. In between sets, he hung out with me and my wife. It was a great night. We continued an email correspondence since then.

Then a couple of weeks ago, I was emailed an invitation to his 60th birthday party at his home. Even though it was on a Saturday night, when I do my show, I couldn't resist the invite. I lined up a fill-in DJ for my show, and we drove to Rhode Island (about 1 1/2 hour drive) to Greg's home, a small modest condo. I expected that he was going to have all his musician friends there and they would be jammin' all night, but when we got there it was just some family members and a few friends. He was surprised we actually came, but said he was glad we did. At first it was awkward, but everyone was so friendly, they made us feel like family. He said he wasn't going to play, but a few of us kept bugging him to. At some point in the evening he called us all down to his basement and broke out his baritone sax, and jammed solo. I had my digital camera and snapped a few shots. Then he took out the tenor sax. I realized I had a movie feature to my camera and caught about 30 seconds as video. Then he pulled out the Alto and played an incredible improvisation on 'Round Midnight. I caught the whole thing as a movie clip on the camera. A little later his girlfriend, Kerry brought out the birthday cake. After that, Greg asked for his flute, and another great solo performance was captured on my digital camera. One of his friends suggested I put it up on YouTube. I've never uploaded video to YouTube before, but it seemed to be a great idea. I asked Greg's permission which he gave me, so I prepped the video files and uploaded them the next morning.

And that's the whole story of those video's taken at Greg Abate's house at his birthday party. Quite an experience! I think I captured how cool it was in those clips.

Change is good...

yes it is.

Jazz in NYC

We have re-discovered the jazz clubs in New York. Been doing this about once a month for the last 3. Last week we caught a couple acts in one evening, finishing off the night at the Mecca of Jazz clubs, the Village Vanguard. Man, all the greats have graced this stage. I shot a little movie with my new digi camera.

Steve does it again!

In a brilliantly stated essay in the form of an open posting entitled Thoughts on Music, Steve Jobs states that if the four big record companies (Universal, EMI, Sony BMG and Warner) would agree to license DRM-free music, Apple would agree to sell all its music without its FairPlay copy protection in a heartbeat.

Steve makes a compelling case that DRM is unnecessary and does not prevent illegal copying of music anyway. Afterall, 90 percent of all music distributed legally by these same record companies is unprotected in the form of CD's which contain no protection whatsoever. In fact, Jobs says that only 3 percent of music on iPods is purchased from iTunes and has the dreaded DRM. The rest of the music on iPods is obtained from other sources, like files ripped from the owners CD collection.

These statements were made against a backdrop of several European countries pressuring Apple to open up its FairPlay DRM systems to its competitors, in an effort to increase inter-operability between music bought from iTunes and a wide variety of playback devices (other than iPods). Apple says... "Perhaps those unhappy with the current situation should redirect their energies towards persuading the music companies to sell their music DRM-free."

Will Steve Jobs now go on a crusade to pressure the Big Four to drop its requirement for DRM? How will the record companies react to this. In 2003, Apple changed the face of the music business by offering leagally downloading digital music that played on a great music player, the iPod. Once again, Apple Inc. is poised to change the face of Industry and FREE THE MUSIC.

Check out the full essay here.

WTF, George Bush?

Didn't we just get through an election that was considered to be a referendum on the Iraq war; one that resulted in an overwhelming defeat for Republicans and a repudiation of the war in Iraq? Doesn't every poll show that this country is no longer behind the continuation of this war? Didn't this President form a bi-partisan committee on Iraq, that put forth recommendations to begin a timetable of troop withdrawal and transfer of responsibilities to the Iraqi army? Has not the last three years proven that our military occupation of Iraq has had the exact opposite effect of what was intended? This colossal miscalculation has resulted in more terror, more torture, more killing, more violence and lawlessness, more hatred of the US, more destabilization in the region, than before we overthrew Saddam Hussein. In fact, it would be difficult to refute the notion that this war is an illegal action, justified by misrepresentations about weapons of mass destruction and trumped up charges that Iraq was an imminent threat to the US.

So what is the justification for escalating this conflict by adding another 20,000 US troops. Mark my words; we are only headed for the slippery slope of more casualties, more destabilization, greater terrorist activity, more hatred and distrust of US policy. Hearing the term escalation reminds me all too much of Vietnam, and that is very disturbing. 20,000 troops is just enough to escalate the violence, and most likely not enough to squelch the insurgency. That would probably take 200,000 troops, and without a draft, and without a just cause, that simply won't happen.

George, what gives you the right to take this action? It is so clearly contrary to the will of the US people, your own bi-partisan advisory committee, and our newly elected representatives in Congress. The Bush oligarchy has reached new heights of incompetency and arrogance. Democracy has been stomped on, smothered, and stifled by none other than our own King George for the last 6 years, and this troop surge is the latest and greatest example. It is a sad day for America.

Damn, I really wanted to blog about the Apple iPhone... that will have to wait for another day.

James Brown, Godfather of Soul.

James Brown died on Christmas Day 2006. The Hardest Working Man in Show Business; he single handedly created the musical genre of funk and soul. Undoubtably one of the most influential musical artists of all time. IMHO, he ranks right up there with Parker, Trane, Hendrix, Dylan, et al. Read about him here.

SNL: Dick In A Box

Just too funny! Best SNL skit in a long time.

After the elections

Well, the elections are over, and it is a coup for the Democratic Party, as they essentially take over the legislative branch of government. I am pleased to see the Republicans being dealt a big blow, and the country is better off with this change in power. America spoke out, loud and clear that they were tired of the Republican administration's corruption, hypocracy and most of all this unjustified and mishandled war in Iraq.

The Dems are touting a 6 point plan as their agenda for the next two years. Its a great agenda that promotes ending the Republican culture of corruption and dishonesty, energy independence, affordable college education, fixing the prescription drug plan and retirement security. A great plan indeed. Now its time to see if the Dems can put words into action.

As for Lamont. Unfortunately he lost, but his candidacy helped to bring the anti-Iraq war movement into the forefront of American politics and the elections.

As the election draws near...

the importance of the Iraq conflict as a basis for your vote cannot be overstated. Thousands of Americans have lost their lives, tens of thousands seriously wounded, hundreds of thousand Iraqi's, mostly non-combatants, have been killed. It is clear that this illegitimate military occupation was based on lies, misrepresentations and miscalculations. If our mission was to rid the country of tyrants and terrorists, only the opposite effect has been achieved. It is clear to me, that when we eventually leave Iraq, it will not be with a secure US friendly democracy ruling the country, but in the midst of a brutal civil war, that we cannot, nor should not play a role. Therefore, why should we prolong this occupation, lose more of our sons and daughters to death and mutilation. What is to be gained by continuing this flawed policy?

If this election offers a choice in your state, as it does in mine, of electing a representative that supports 'staying the coarse' versus one that advocates a timetable for withdrawal, vote for the candidate most likely to put a swift end to this unjustifiable, illegal war. Here in the state of Connecticut, we have a choice between Lieberman, and Lamont. Lieberman is no less than Bush's lap dog. He has been an opportunist throughout his Senate tenure, skipping votes when they may be a political liability. His pockets are bulging with corporate contributions from which he will be forever owing favors. Lamont takes a strong stand against this war, and for universal healthcare. If you live in Connecticut, I urge you to VOTE LAMONT! If you don't live in Connecticut, it is likely that a similar choice is before you. Vote to end the war in Iraq.

A Jazz scene in Hartford

Yes, it is true. Hartford does have a thriving jazz scene. I thought Hartford and Jazz was on its last legs, but all of a sudden, the Hartford International Jazz Festival comes along and kicks it up. We had a GREAT weekend. Jazz every night, club hoppin' after the shows, eating in the Hartford restaurants, meeting great jazz fans and musicians. The best time I have had in Hartford in about 20 years. The main concerts were awesome. Lou Donaldson w/Dr. Lonnie Smith on Saturday put on a helluva show. On Sunday evening, we heard Cyrus Chestnut with Eric Alexander doing a Coltrane tribute. It may have been THE best jazz performance I have ever seen. These incredible musicians playing Coltrane classics in a small NYC type club, was the perfect atmosphere. They blew the doors off the house with hard-driving renditions of Cousin Mary and Mr. PC, and brought the crowd to tears with beautiful ballads like Naima. A memorable weekend.

Another year in radioland

My jazz radio show has been renewed for another semester. Thus begins year three of In The Groove, Jazz and Beyond at WHUS radio.

Five Years Later

and how the world has changed. Five years ago I chronicled the events of 9/11 and the days following. It is interesting to go back and read these posts. Five years later, I just don't feel that any attempts to bring justice to the evil perpetrators has succeeded. Sadly, Taliban, Hezbohlah, Islamic terrorism, has not been defeated or even held in check. I don't have the answers, but what we have done and are doing is not working.

Dylan, the legend

Bob Dylan, a legend of Folk and Rock, a pioneer of the protest song, poet extraordinaire, founder of folk-rock music, truly a legend like Hendrix, Miles, Trane, Bach and Beethoven. So, even though I haven't liked anything the man has written or sung since 1975, I had to see him live in concert when my buddy Gordon offered up the tix. Man, it was a great concert and great party. Yeah, his 65 year old voice is old and raspy, but it's Bob Dylan not Andrea Bocelli! His band was tight and smokin' and Dylan played lots of old tunes. Standing out in the rain, hearing Dylan sing 'Like a Rolling Stone' sent chills down my spine. A great night.


In The Groove Podcast on iTunes

Finally, after several attempts, In The Groove, Jazz and Beyond has been listed in iTunes. The holy grail of podcasting directories... achieving podcast nirvana! Imagine, In the Groove is now distributed right along side NPR, CNN, KCRW and many other media sources. As you see I am pretty excited. Check it out AND SUBSCRIBE!

Brand spankin' new Domain

<start geek alert> What is more fun than buying a new Domain on the World Wide Web? Woohoo!! Just claimed jazzandbeyond.com for use with my way cool podcast. jazzandbeyond.com is so much more hipper than refering to it as a 'lasternet dot com slash in the groove'. </end geek alert>

The Mid-East today

The situation looks even bleaker than before this war began. On August 6, I wrote in this blog:

Any further incursion into Lebanon, such as attacks on Beirut, or other densely populated areas, will not help the Israeli cause, but will only embolden its enemies (which includes Syria and Iran). Continued bombing by Israel, only intensifies that support, and encourages legions of misguided youth to join in Hezbollah's terrorist cause. The reality is that continued violence will only make it more difficult to disarm the terrorists.

It is sad to say, but my prediction was right on the mark. Now, not only does Hezbollah hold a heroic status throughout the Arab community, but has also gained political strength to the point where heads of state are lining up to sing their praises and extol their 'victory'. Prior to Israel's miscalculation, many of those same Arab aristocracy may have been willing to even help disarm Hezbollah. Now any hope that that will happen is remote indeed.

Meanwhile, the situation in Lebabnon, Iran, even Afghanistan are far scarier than Iraq. Even today, Iran put on display a defiant show of its military might, and proclaimed it will not give up its nuclear program. Still, we are wasting all our military capital in this senseless war. Yet, Bush refuses to concede to this unjustified and mistaken foreign policy. Question is, where does it all end.

Vacation

I just can't take enough vacation time, but this one at Cape Cod was just great. Pics came out great. An incredible whale watch, and ending the week at Fenway Park was perfect.

The People Speak, The Country Listens

Ned Lamont has defeated Senator Lieberman in the Democratic Primary for the Senate. For the first time in many years, I feel good about the Democratic Party. At least in Connecticut, grassroots Democrats have stood up against the party hierarchy to proclaim that they will not support this unjust, illegal senseless war in Iraq. This race has, incredibly gotten national attention. The majority of Americans no longer support this war, and its time for our legislators to take notice. These results speak volumes. Lieberman has backed this administration for this war despite the lies and deception that was used to justify this illegal action. It has cost this country thousands of deaths, and 10's of thousands of lives lost in Iraq. Lieberman has also supported bogus Republican policies like the energy bill giving millions of dollars in tax breaks to the energy companies. No surprise as Joe Lieberman has collected more corporate contributions than any other Senator or Congressman.

Ned Lamont stands for an end to the illegal war in Iraq, he is for universal health care, and an energy policy that does not give more money to oil companies already lining their pockets with unprecedented profits. I can only hope that Ned Lamont represents a new beginning for the Democratic party, one not afraid to stand up to George W. Bush. How refreshing is that!

And guess what! Republicans are already courting Joe Blow Lieberman, pledging support and money if he will run as an Independent. You lie down with dogs, you get up with fleas. Good riddance Joe.

Now is the time...

to let the seeds of peace in the Middle East take root. It is not often that I find this administration 'getting it right', but listening to Condeleeza Rice express US policy regarding the Israel/Lebanon conflict, I am heartened to see us pursue an aggressive and balanced approach towards a cease fire. Thus far we have held fast to the primary objectives in agreeing to a cease fire. First and foremost, Hezbollah, clearly a terrorist organization, must be disarmed before a cease fire can be agreed to.

It is now up to Israel to make a move to halt the escalation of violence and killing. Why must Israel make such a move? Because Israel, as the western style democracy represents what is good and just. Israel says they do not wish harm to come to civilians. Israel holds the overwhelming military might to cause death and destruction, and with such power to destroy, comes the responsibility not to use it.

A severe blow has been given to Hezbollah, and a lesson has been taught to the Lebanese government. Israel has accomplished all they can by military means. Any further incursion into Lebanon, such as attacks on Beirut, or other densely populated areas, will not help the Israeli cause, but will only embolden its enemies (which includes Syria and Iran). Continued bombing by Israel, only intensifies that support, and encourages legions of misguided youth to join in Hezbollah's terrorist cause. The reality is that continued violence will only make it more difficult to disarm the terrorists.

Yes, the world owes Israel a debt of gratitude for killing Hezbollah terrorists and destroying their weapons. They have done what the US and other peace loving countries have been unable or unwilling to accomplish. This is why I say that it is in Israel's best interest at this juncture to begin to de-escalate its attacks in Lebanon, and use this draft resolution as a stepping stone to a cease fire and some measure of security for Israel.

Let us not delude ourselves...

The Bush administration must take on much of the blame for the current situation in the mid-east. The misrepresentation and deception that brought us into a military occupation in the region has only increased the mistrust and heightened the adversary relationship between the US and the Muslim world. This has resulted in more violence, more terrorism, and heightened aggression throughout the region that has spiraled out of control. Now it appears, god forbid, we are on the brink of world war. Should Syria and Iran engage their troops in this conflict, will the US be able to stand back and watch? Can the US effectively broker a diplomatic solution when it is reviled and distrusted throughout the Arab world? It is not easy to see any way that the situation can come to an end game without all out war. I hope and pray that I am wrong. (and it is not often you will here me use the word 'pray').

Perhaps Israel has done what the US should have done. Israel went directly after the terrorist organization that threatened their security. They did it swiftly and directly against those that threatened them. Contrast that to the US action in Iraq. If we had been sincere in our actions, we would have gone after the terrorist infrastructure in Saudi and Syria, rather than the deception and ulterior motives that led us to a war in Iraq.

Who Killed the Electric Car
GO SEE THIS MOVIE!!! A great, great flick. One of the best documentaries I have seen. Quite different than the Al Gore's Inconvenient Truth. While that was more or less a classroom lecture, Electric Car is an engaging look, not only into this important technology that was tragically squashed by corporate interests, but it is also a look into how government and commerce works. It shows the importance of government regulation in the protection of the environment AND the advancement of technology. When the government abdicates its responsibility and gives in to corporate bullying, citizens will suffer. The automakers realized that Electric Vehicles not only will cut into sales of expensive, profitable combustion engine cars (like SUV;s), it will devastate aftermarket industries for repairs parts, oil filters, mufflers, spark plugs, fueling stations.... A typical maintenance on an electric car is rotate the tires and top off the windshield washer fluid.

What made the movie great in my opinion was (unlike the Gore flick), this movie ended in such enthusiastic optimism. The technology exists and is improving with newer and better batteries. Gas prices are getting ridiculously higher, evidence of global warming is becoming evident. The growing success of hybrid vehicles has proven the demand is there. Given these conditions, and the human spirit to embrace new technology, the demand for Plug-In Electric cars is bound to grow, and some entrepreneur within or beyond the auto industry will step up and prevail. It just makes too much sense.

Fantasy Baseball Heaven

A sure sign that spring is here. Not only is the weather getting nice... great, last night was Fantasy Baseball (FBB) Draft night. Look forward to this night all winter long. 4 hours of hanging at Rookies Bar & Grill, drinkin' suds and talkin' baseball. Pretty damn pleased with my picks. Got some power (Helton), speed (Juan Pierre), and pitching (Santana). Now the excrutiating wait till opening day. Hey, we get to watch our favorite players in World Baseball Classic action. Whoopie... we get to see our FBB players pull hamstrings, tear shoulder muscles and get hit by pitches... oye.

I've played FBB for a decade now. How it has changed since the Internet took hold of it. Now its huge, its interactive, its a blast. THIS IS WHAT THE INTERNET WAS INVENTED FOR.

Hilarious article in the Onion.

back from paradise

sucks to be back. rather be here.

Stupid is as Stupid does.

Dick Cheney accidentally shoots fellow hunter. How stupid is this. Stupid people engaged in a stupid sport (shooting birds), get into a stupid accident and shoot each other. This couldn't happen to more deserving people.

From CNN: "The vice president didn't see him," she continued. "The covey (of birds) flushed and the vice president picked out a bird and was following it and shot. And by God, Harry was in the line of fire and got peppered pretty good."

This sounds like they are talking about some stupid trailer trash hicks.. and these are people that we entrust to protect our country. How pathetic!

And the Press... As Lou Dobbs pointed out, at today's press briefing 65 questions from the media were about this accidental shooting, and only 17 on other subjects. We are in the midst of a War based on lies and deception, we have a huge trade deficit, we have incompetence at highest levels of our intelligence agencies, and FEMA. We are surrounded by hatred and terror in the world... and our press is preoccupied by a STUPID HUNTING ACCIDENT! How stupid is that.

Still Blogging after all these years

Woa! This month marks the Fifth Year of the Brain Drain Blog. Been at it since February 2001. Blogger was a lot different then, and this blog shows it. Different archiving system, no built in commenting, just a couple simple templates. But Blogger started a revolution in personal publishing, and I feel like I was in it on the ground floor. Its fun to go back and read those early posts.

My most favorite project, In The Groove Podcast now also runs off of Blogger. I see even Roger has gotten into the act.

Damn Sudoku

Got hooked. Wasted most of this weekend.

On the other hand, my powers of deductive reasoning should be greater than most mortal men!

A Big Day for us Apple geeks

Its like Xmass, New Years, birthday all rolled up into one, when Steve makes his MacWorld Keynote speech. Us cult members are frothing at the bit when Jobs takes the stage. This years big announcement was Intel chips in the iMac and Powerbook... er... MacBook Pro. Way cool. Probably the only thing I will open the wallet for at this point in time is iLife 06. Upgrades to iPhoto, Garage Band (podcast features) and the new iWeb look droolworthy.

Maybe the coolest thing on stage was that jazzy iPod ad featuring Wynton.

New Years Blahs

The holidays are over with and I feel like crap. Too much eating, drinking, late nights, and a big fall on my head, so now I look like this. Don't ask.


Gotta heal my wounds, diet and clean up my act.

Duke Ellington on Acid

The Sun Ra Arkestra performed at UCONN last Friday, hosted by WHUS. Amazing and outrageous concert. Orchestrated chaos, 18 piece band, jazz, voice, strange instrumentation, costumes, acrobatics, interplanetary travel. Sun Ra passed away over a decade ago, but the music lives on under the direction of Marshall Allen.

From the Sun Ra website:
Eclectic, outrageous, sometimes mystifying but always imbued with a powerful jazz consciousness, the music of Sun Ra has withstood its skeptics and detractors for nearly three generations. Sun Ra was the first jazz musician to perform on electronic keyboards (56), the first to pursue full-scale collective improvisation in a big band setting, and his preoccupation with space travel as a compositional subject predated bands like Weather Report by about 15 years.All this from someone who refuses to even cite the earth as his home planet and prefers to have arrived from Saturn. As Sun Ra once explained it, "I never wanted to be a part of planet Earth, but I am compelled to be here, so anything I do for this planet is because the Master-Creator of the Universe is making me do it. I am of another dimension. I am on this planet because people need me".
Catch the Sun Ra Arkestra, but you gotta see them live.

Bad, Bad Blogger

I just gotta make more entries into this thing. How can I expect anyone to read this if I don't post. duh!! In reality, why would anyone read it even if I posted... well, strangely, R's freinds at college actually do... more reasons to post. Hey Ali and Julia... nice meetin' up with you at NEU.

Actually, Lasternet.com has seen mad traffic this month due to Thanksgiving Turducken. Nov 11 brought 1100 visitors and 1400 page views!

Kids home for TG day. Nice couple of days, great to have them around. Our lives seem to revolve around the success and failures (haven't really been any) of our kids. This must mean, I have no life of my own.

That fact is evident by the way too much time and energy spent on my radio show and podcast. CHECK IT OUT!! I think its way cool. But DAMN Apple computer for not listing it in the iTunes directory. Still workin' on it, though. It's in about every other podcast directory, including Yahoo's podcast listings. I think it's a blast.

!!!GO RED SOX!!!

Gotta love this game when it comes down to Sox v Yanks in the last weekend of the baseball season.

Bad Blogger

Not good to ignore your blog for so long. Sooo much has been happening that the blog has been put on the back burner, I guess.

Fam - So much has been goin' on. Big transitions for whole family. Wife and i work situation was, to put it delicately, very tenuous. Turns out both of us have brand new positions, and everything is working out well (links for K and C). Dave is working and living in NYC. Making a good life for himself, diving head first into new situations and every time meeting the challenges and being successful at whatever he does (not that I ever doubted his considerable abilities). NYC, if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere. As for Rach... she graduated HS with top honors, and fulfilled her ambition of going to Northeastern in Boston. She worked sooooo very hard and put it all together including winning many scholarships and making all the arrangements for college on her own. Now she has gone off to school, showing her independence, maturity and all her smarts. What an impressive young lady she is. Now me and C are home alone. WOW, its been a momentous and stressful couple of months for sure, but everything as fallen into place as well as one could hope for. Ain't life grand.

Radio - My jazz radio show, In the Groove, Jazz and Beyond, has been renewed for another semester (Saturday evening 7-9PM). That makes it one full year. Also, got the Podcast thing goin' on. It's probably the one activity in my life that gives me the most pleasure, and I look forward to it all week long. CHECK IT OUT!

Ella!

Just when you think there is no hope for Hartford, you find something new and great goin' on. Theaterworks is a tiny playhouse just like those cool off-broadway stages in NYC. From a non-descript doorway, you decend a small stairwell to a tiny dark theater with a small stage, no curtains surrounded by at most a couple of hundred seats. We saw a GREAT performance called Ella! Off the Record about Ella Fitzgerald. Mostly a jazz concert; An actress playing Ella with 4 backup musicians. But it was theater also with two sets (recording studio and a concert setting), clever lighting, and her story interjected between some great swingin' tunes. A great production and a fine night out in Hartford.

The Jeep saga

Dave's jeep has passed on. It was a fine vehicle when purchased in August of 2001. Since then it has been hacked up, crashed, vandalized, violated and now it just died. First its interior was hacked as a ridiculous boomin' stereo was installed. It had been in several crashes (I even backed into it in the driveway). It had been victimized by thievery a couple of times, wrecking the door locks, windows and other body parts. In the end, just sitting unused in the driveway, lacking any human contact it began to deteriorate. It seemed to loose its will to live. Windshield cracked, tires deflated, battery ran dry. It died of old age. All we could do is have it carted away, donated to the Diabetes Foundation... finally being chopped up for reselling its parts. It has died but perhaps lives on as an organ donor (auto parts donor?). Good bye Jeep.