Wednesday, May 13th
This I could listen to all day.
Ikue Mori (1953-, electronics), Steve Noble (1960-, percussion), live, Copenhagen, 2016
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lagniappe
random sights
yesterday, Oak Park, Ill.
music clip of the day
jazz/blues/rock/classical/gospel/more
Tag: music clip of the day
2020
Tuesday, May 12th
sounds of Austin
Blaze Foley (aka Michael David Fuller, 1949-1989), “If I Could Only Fly” (B. Foley), live (Duct Tape Messiah, 2011)
*****
Another take.
Merle Haggard, live (TV show, performance starts at 1:15), 1986
*****
What makes this song work? As is often the case, it comes down to small sonic details. Listen, for instance, to the first line of the hook (also the title): “If I could only fly . . .” Repeated f’s (“If,” “fly”), echoing vowels (“I,” “fly”): so much repetition in so few words, yet it sounds so natural. Listen, too, to the small step up, melodically, from the first to the second syllable of “only,” enacting what it would have felt like to fly—”if . . . only.”
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lagniappe
random sights
yesterday, Chicago (Columbus Park)
2020
Monday, May 11th
more
Susan Alcorn (1953-, pedal steel guitar), Nels Cline (1956-, guitar, electronics), Chris Corsano (1975-, drums, electronics), live, New York, 2016
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lagniappe
random sights
yesterday, Chicago
*****
reading table
As the Zen master Shunryu Suzuki Roshi said, life is like getting into a boat that’s just about to sail out to sea and sink.
—Pema Chödrön (1936-), When Things Fall Apart (1997)
2020
Sunday, May 10th
passings
Little Richard (aka Richard Penniman), singer, pianist, songwriter, December 5, 1932–May 9, 2020
“Didn’t It Rain” (trad.), live, New York (Apollo Theater), 1985
*****
“Yes, God Is Real” (K. Morris), 1960
*****
“Peace in the Valley” (T. Dorsey), 1961
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lagniappe
random sights
yesterday, Chicago (Columbus Park)
*****
reading table
The hope that is left after all your hopes are gone—that is pure hope, rooted in the heart.
—Br. David Steindl-Rast (1926-), Gratefulness, the Heart of Prayer (1984)
2020
Saturday, May 9th
never enough
Frederic Chopin (1810-1849), 24 Preludes, Op. 28; Maria João Pires (1944-, piano), live, Portugal (Évora), 1987
More? Her wonderful 1994 recording of these pieces is available on Spotify.
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lagniappe
random sights
other day, Oak Park, Ill.
2020
Friday, May 8th
timeless
Sarah Vaughan (1924-1990), “The More I See You” (H. Warren, M. Gordon), live, Sweden (Stockholm), 1964
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lagniappe
random sights
yesterday, Chicago (Columbus Park)
2020
Thursday, May 7th
what’s new
Susan Alcorn (1953-, pedal steel guitar), live (Quarantine Concert presented by Experimental Sound Studio, Chicago), 4/29/20
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lagniappe
random sights
a while ago, Maine (Monhegan Island)
*****
reading table
LET THERE BE PHYSICAL SUDDENNESS!
—Michael McClure, poet, playwright, songwriter, etc., October 20, 1932–May 4, 2020, from “PLUME ODE”
2020
Wednesday, May 6th
sounds of India
The sounds he makes with this instrument—a bamboo flute—are among the most haunting I know.
Hariprasad Chaurasia (1938-, bansuri), et al., Raga Bhimpalasi, live
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lagniappe
random sights
other day, outside Chicago (Prairie Path, Elmhurst)
2020
Tuesday, May 5th
what’s new
Nate Wooley (1974-, trumpet), live (Quarantine Concert presented by Experimental Sound Studio, Chicago), 5/1/20
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lagniappe
random sights
yesterday, Oak Park, Ill.
2020
Monday, May 4th
Feeling lost?
John Luther Adams (1953-), The Farthest Place (2001); Robin Lorentz (violin), Amy Knoles (vibraphone, marimba), Bryan Pezzone (piano), Barry Newton (bass), 2002
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lagniappe
random sights
yesterday, Chicago
music clip of the day 