More of Otis Clay, who died the other day.
The Gospel Songbirds (Otis Clay [right]; Maurice Dollison, aka Cash McCall [left], 1941-), “I Believe,” live (Jubilee Showcase), 1964, Chicago
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lagniappe
reading table
There was very little time for small talk, so I said, ‘Does God exist?’
—James Tate (1943-2015), “The Wrong Wedding” (Dome of the Hidden Pavilion, 2015)
passings
Otis Clay, singer, February 11, 1942-January 8, 2016
“When the Gates Swing Open,” live, Chicago (Christian Tabernacle Church)
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My life always has been a combination of things musically. . . . Every Saturday night I listened to the Grand Ole Opry. . . . During the day, later on, you listened to (radio) coming out of Memphis. During the noonday, at 12 o’clock, we listened to (blues pioneer) Sonny Boy Williamson, coming out of Helena, Ark. (And) I’m listening to Vaughn Monroe and Rosemary Clooney and listening to Hank Williams and Roy Acuff.
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Chicago is just a suburb of Mississippi.
—Otis Clay (Chicago Tribune obituary, January 9, 2016)
Aretha’s daddy
One of these days, the cloud will be lifted . . .
—Rev. C. L. Franklin
Rev. C. L. Franklin, live, Detroit
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lagniappe
reading table
The sea is not less beautiful in our eyes because we know that ships are sometimes wrecked.
—Simone Weil (1909-1943), “The Love of God and Affliction” (translated from French by Richard Rees)
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random sights
yesterday, Oak Park, Ill.
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the beat goes on
2,200 posts—and counting.
more
Mighty Clouds of Joy (feat. Joe Ligon, lead vocals), “I Know I’ve Been Changed,” live, South Carolina (Charleston), mid-1990s
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lagniappe
reading table
most end up
stuck in mud . . .
cherry blossoms—Kobayashi Issa (1763-1827), translated from Japanese by David G. Lanoue
old school
Mighty Clouds of Joy, “I’m Glad About It,” live, Houston, 1967
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lagniappe
musical thoughts
Sometimes I have good nights, and sometimes I have bad nights. One never knows.
—tenor saxophonist, and MCOTD Hall of Famer, Von Freeman (1923-2012)
Hearing this voice, from a gone world, gives me goosebumps.
Vera Hall, “Death Is Awful,” live, Livingston, Ala., 1939
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lagniappe
random sights
other day, Oak Park, Ill.
like nobody else
Sister Rosetta Tharpe (1915-1973), “That’s All,” live, France, 1960
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lagniappe
random sights
this morning, Chicago (Columbus Park)
These sounds, which I bumped into the other night on the radio (Sinner’s Crossroads, WFMU), I can’t get out of my head—not that I’d want to.
Rev. Charles White, “How Long,” c. 1948
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lagniappe
random sights
this morning, Oak Park, Ill.
old school
Jackson Southernaires, “Walk Around Heaven,” live, Jackson, Miss., 1990s
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lagniappe
random sights
this morning, Oak Park, Ill. (son’s dog, Roscoe)
More Mahalia.
Mahalia Jackson (1911-1972), “I’ve Been ‘Buked and I’ve Been Scorned,” live, Washington, D.C., 1963 (March on Washington)
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lagniappe
art beat: other day, Art Institute of Chicago
Alfred Stieglitz (1864-1946), The Steerage, 1907 (Alfred Stieglitz and the 19th Century, through 3/27/16)
music clip of the day 