Born to Run

Nice article on Springsteen's Born to Run here. There's a huge 3 cd/ dvd set that I don't think I need to own but sounds intriguing. I'm not a huge Springsteen fan but he's written a lot of really great songs. He lives up to his hype live too.

Bruce is a funny guy in interviews (his induction speech for U2 at the Rock n' Roll hall of fame is outright hilarious) and he summed up the marathon sessions of Born to Run with a fantastic quote:

"My obsessive/compulsive nature, which crippled me through much of the rest of my life, does come in handy once in a while," said a chuckling Springsteen.

Michael Piller

Sad news and once again news that has slowly trickled across the internet. Michael Piller lost his battle with neck and head cancer.

This is the man who, in my opinion, single handedly saved Star Trek. When Gene Roddenberry launched Star Trek: the Next Generation, the original series was at an all time-high. Star Trek IVwas a huge hit and that gave Gene the momentum he needed to recreate the entire universe, setting it in an even more advanced era.

It was terrible.

The stories were so bogged down by Gene's future philosophy and 'everyone gets along' mentality that there were almost no stories to be told. After two seasons, the entire writing staff was fired.

Then they hired Michael Piller.

Piller hadn't done much science fiction when he joined Star Trek, just a couple of short lived shows. He was best known for writing Cagney and Lacey and Simon and Simon, quirky cop shows loaded with character. That's the sensibility he brought to Star Trek and the effect was immediate.

People loved the original series not for the outer space locations (which, let's face it, were usually two panels of drywall and some glittery robes) but for the characters. Even non sci-fi fans love the energy and interaction of Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and Scotty (my theory on why Spock was so popular? Watch an episode. He's the only one not screaming). This was a feature Roddenberry largely ignored for the Next Generation. Maybe he didn't want to give the actors credit. But Piller knew it.

The third season showcased a costume change that gives you a clear watermark. Fans know:

collars=good episode. Spandex=suck.

It's a nice tipoff that heralds the arrival of Piller's writing. Suddenly the crew of the Enterprise became characters. They had individual personalities and quirks. They got funnier, more vulnerable, at times awkward. By the time the season cliffhanger aired, audiences were rivited.

Piller planned to leave at the end of that season but stayed on for another 12 years. He created Star Trek: Deep Space Nine which, while he didn't do much actual writing for it, was the best written show of the franchise with characters that actually changed and grew over the course of the series. He exited the franchise after Voyager which when everything in the franchise started feelng a little tired.

Piller was incredibly active in his final years, launching a new family show Wildfire just a few months ago. It's a testament to a writer who was great at his craft and truly loved it.

Arrested Development cancelled

Ah, hell. Can't say I didn't see it coming but man, it was good. Honestly, I was surprised they brought it back this year. They showed two episodes back to back guest starring Charlize Theron and no one watched it? That's a sign that America was actively ignoring this show.

Ricky Gervais is supposed to be in an episode this year. I hope it was already shot because FOX isn't even airing a full third season.

Most people I know haven't seen much of this show but 'heard it was good'. Well, it's just about too late but you can still buy the dvds. As I've learned it's a show you can watch over and over again and it belongs on my classic tv shelf.

Saving Grace at the Pussycat lounge 11/17!

I hear downstairs it gets a little 'blue' but that's no concern of mine.

THURSDAY NOVEMBER 17 9 p.m.
PUSSYCAT LOUNGE, 96 Greenwich at Rector, 2nd Floor, 212-349-4800
Train: 1 to Rector. 4 or 5 to Wall Street. N or R to
Downtown Rector.

Sean in Iraq.

This is my cousin Sean. Last I saw him he was a college kid and acoustic guitar player. This year he joined the Marines and they assigned him to a HummVee near Baghdad. He never felt the need to explain why.

Sean wasn't allowed to bring anything with him but he's been able to pick up a few things over there. He bought a cheap guitar so he can play again and a digital camera so he can show us what he's seeing. His mom says she still talks to him every day. Quite a change from the time when soldiers would be shipped 'over there' and you didn't know if you'd ever hear from them again.

I'm both proud and terrified for him. But somehow, this picture makes me feel better.

Spider-Man 3

If you're any kind of Spider-Man fan, you know immediately who Thomas Haden Church is playing in Sam Raimi's sequel. And you're pretty psyched.

Saddam's legal troubles

So another of Saddam's defense attorneys was assassinated. That's a lot of pressure for a trail that so far has lasted one day. And on that day, Saddam refused to recognize their authority. Things are not going well for him.

Facts which make these assassinations all the more senseless. Does anyone think these lawyers can get him off? And it's such a foolproof strategy that the only way to thwart the defense is to kill the lawyers? For crying out loud, he's Saddam Hussein! What possible strategy could these guys have had to free him?

"C'mon, your honor. He lived in a hole for a month! Isn't that punishment enough?"

"If you had to live in that heat for thirty years, you'd want to execute 150 people at once too."

"To be fair, he never even had weapons of mass destruction."

"On the plus side your honor, he's now sporting a neat little beard. In fact, he looks like Santa. Why would you want to persecute Santa? Why do you want to hurt the little girls and boys all over the world? No further questions!"

I'm no attorney but that's all I got.

Albert Brooks article.

I love all the blogs that are linked in the right column. And because of that, I try to never repeat the same information as them. If you want to know what they're saying, go visit them. You'll be doing yourself a favor.

But Albert Brooks has a new article in Newsweek. Mark Evanier's blog pointed me to it and if you're not reading him every day (shame on you!) then you should at least get to experience the master through me.

I love Albert Brooks. Walker and I used to have heated arguments about whether he was funnier than Woody Allen or not (he is). I have the only cd reissue of his one of his 70's albums (he had two). In the dark ages before dvd, I worked to tape all his films on cruddy slow speed VHS just so I could watch them again and again.

His new film, "Looking For Comedy in the Muslim World" looks to be incredible. I just read a great interview with Albert about that film at Mark Evanier's blog. How many ways can I get you to go there?

Batman: New Times

This has been around a little while but it's still really cool. The Dave School is a new cg animation school founded by one of the guys from Foundation Imaging, a company that did a lot of cg effects for Star Trek.

There's a long history between them and the guys at Art Asylum so, for a final project, the students created a ten minute animated film based on the Minimate Batman figures. It's even got the dreaded Adam West in it.

Check it out. There will be more soon.

San Francisco Supplemental: Poker Face

See this face? This is the face I make when it's 2 am NY time, all the food and beer I've had are battling inside my stomach and I'm forced to watch transexuals lip synch to Janet Jackson for three hours.

It's this face exactly.

Absoludicrous!

Yes, that's a Mr. T word. He coined it on some direct to video release designed to help kids. That's my theory anyway. Honestly, Brian and I don't know what the hell these videos are but they're hilarious.

Oh, how I love Mr. T. I hated 'Rocky' but I had to see 'Rocky III' because T was in it. I loved 'the A Team'. I loved 'T&T' where he played a lawyer. I love how he beat up cancer, just punched it a lot and beat it. I love how he lost his cool every time he went on Howard Stern. And now I love his rendition of 'Treat Yo Momma Right'. God, bless you, T.

Here's a little more information Brian dug up. It's called Be Somebody or Be Somebody's Fool! I want the full VHS tape. If the clips show Bobby Brown singing about the dangers of drugs, sage wisdom like 'you have to wear clothes. If you don't you'll get arrested', T reading dialogue like Fred Sanford, a format that basically turns Mr. T into Barney the purple dinosaur, and lots and lots of breakdancing, what could the rest of the tape show us?

Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job.

Why are all of George W.'s nicknames so demeaning?

Anyway according to emails the head of FEMA sent during Katrina, the whining never stopped for a minute. I've never seen such an amazing lack of tact in my life. Incompetance, sure. Cronyism, definitely. Laziness, uh-huh. Resentment in the face of being shaken out of laziness, absolutely. But sarcastic comments like "Can I go home now?" and "Sorry I'm not a superhero who could lift the entire city of New Orleans out of danger" just reek of no one telling this guy what to say. I thought that was unheard of in this day and age. But I guess if you're the one taking the fall, they're not going to send you a p.r. staff to do it.

McHale's

Along 8th avenue there are new souless skyscrapers that feel like malls and there are three story brick buildings that drip with local history. The latter are being torn down with a speed that only money or hate could generate.

McHale's, a 50 year old watering hole, is the latest casualty. When I was in my twenties, bumming around Manhattan looking for either a writing job or experiences to write about, I'd pass by the neon sign and peek in the brown windows. It was a perfect bohemian scene. I could imagine Tom Waits singing to himself slumped at the bar. Or Phil Silvers shooting dice in the corner during a Broadway intermission. I never felt old enough or tough enough to step inside.

A few months ago we were on the hunt for the perfect burger by the office. Ron offered McHale's with a burger so big (he was quoting) "you need a crane to lift it". We were there.

The place looks like your grandfather's rumpus room. Smells like it too. It's all table lamps and wood paneling. Our group was four guys and Rebecca who kept asking us if we were seriously going to eat here. The waitress called her 'sweetie'. The bathroom was downright Dickensian. I could not have liked this place more.

I wanted to start a petition to save it but the loss has nothing to do with the business. Turns out the landlord is tearing the building down to build, guess what? A soulless skyscraper. I wouldn't want McHale's in that place. They're doing what they can to get landmark status but at the very least, you locals, and anyone visiting NY before January 1 (Bill, I'm looking at you), should stop by 46th and 8th, get a beer and a giant burger. I'm going for lunch again today.

UPDATE: There is a petition to save the grand old place and it's right in the bar. Stop by, eat and sign it. I'm looking for some kind of online action and when I find it, it will be posted here.

Pumpkin carving in Flash

Jackie sent me this yesterday. I never got around to carving a pumpkin but I did have time for this. My CG pumpkin is still not as good as Brian's.

This is Halloween!

Go eat candy. Go watch monster movies. Go put on a costume that demands a large prop and then lose that prop ten minutes into the party. Go pretend children in plastic outfits are frightening. Especially when they growl. Go affect a Hungarian accent. Go scream like Jamie Lee Curtis. Go now. Before the moon rises.

Bwa-ha-ha-ha.

Audioslave

It's been a hell of a month for concerts.

When I got my tickets for Cream, Ticketmaster automatically sent me an upsell email. These things are usually easy to ignore. But this one had Audioslave. The same week. At Madison Square Garden. And I couldn't think of any reason not to go.

I tried to like Rage Against the Machine throughout the nineties and just couldn't do it. The band was always fantastic but that white boy rap grates on me something awful. Soundgarden I liked a lot more, especially Chris Cornell's voice, but the noisy sloppy guitars got old real fast. Audioslave is the best of both worlds creating a band that I liked a lot when their first album was releasedand loved tremendously with the second. I also got real obsessed with Tom Morello's sound in a hurry. Let's put it this way; I now own a Digitech Whammy pedal.

We already had a busy day so we got to MSG late and missed Jared Leto's band 30 Seconds to Mars. Can't say it bothered me. Seether took the stage next. I had only heard one song from them before and thought it sounded very Nirvana. They were blisteringly loud, super heavy and I liked every song.

Audioslave took the stage with an announcement from Tom Morello's mom. They launched into a 2 hour set that was pitch perfect. Chris Cornell impressed me even more as a singer, hitting all the notes I assumed took a day in the studio. Tom Morello mystified me again. It's not the effects he uses (and there aren't as many as you'd think) it's the way he APPROACHES the guitar. Like the Edge, he's wired so differently from all the Jimmy Page clones that it's like listening to a different instrument. I've been playing nearly twenty years and there were solos where I literally did not know what he was doing. The rhythm section was thunderous and precise at the same time. Unbelieveable.

Half of the fun was watching this amalgamation of two bands attack their old songs. They did 'Bulls on Parade' as an instrumental but Chris was game for rapping 'Killing in the Name', 'Sleep Now in the Fire' and 'Testify'. Hearing a great singer on these songs was a revelation. And I doubt Soundgarden could have played 'Spoonman' as well as Audioslave tackled it last night.

The set felt a little short but the encore made up for it. Chris Cornell came out with an acoustic and did a few songs solo including a sing along 'Black Hole Sun'. the band joined him again for the end, an explosive 'Cochise'.

I was stunned by the way they worked the crowd. They picked us up from the first song and kept the energy up the entire night. None of them held back. It was a real change from Cream four nights before where, as great as they were, they stayed back on the stage and offered little interaction with the crowd. This band was with us the entire time, connecting with the crowd almost as well as U2 does. The crowd was completely there with them. Guys I didn't know were high fiving me and strange girls were dancing with me (by the way there's an ethics question; how far do you take dancing with a stranger when your wife is next to you? I decided making out would be too far).

At the end of the show, Renee and I stopped by Chris Diclerico's famous Halloween party but by then I was so spent I did little more than hellos and goodbyes to friends.

This is it for concerts for a while. I got real lucky this year. So lucky all my friends hate me. U2. Paul McCartney. Cream. And now Audioslave. I'm taking a break to look for a reason to hate them.

Autumn doldrums

I always get melancholy in the fall. But this year I think I finally put a finger on why.

Fall always reminds people of going back to school. It's not a happy memory. My reaction goes deeper than that. Fall always reminds me of girls who don't like me.

I went to an all boy high school so the only way to meet girls was to join the speech team and compete against the all girl schools. I did dramatic interpretation which meant doing a ten minute one man show. I was definitely the man for the job. Father Ogle ran the Cathedral team and told me if I could prove a screenplay had been published, I could do it. So I did everything from Monty Pythonto Planes, Trains and Automobilesto Batman. It was too easy.

Tournaments were held twice a month, which meant only two afternoons every 30 days to spend with real live girls. Our first tournament would be in the end of September and I'd either meet a new girl that shattered my thin veneer of cool or managed to notice a girl I hadn't before. By the third tournament in October, I was in love.

I was be as charming as a teenager could be, tell a few jokes, get a pretty pretty laugh and that was the end of it. But now I had TWO WEEKS to obsess over this girl. TWO WEEKS for a 15 year old.

A 15 year old boy with an overgrown imagination mutated by movies, sitcoms and comic books is a dangerous thing. Throw in hormones and it's volatile. Then add the Catholic Church which tells him he is evil and going to hell for his hormones and you have a basket case. This was me throughout the late 80's. Everything I knew about romance I learned from John Cusack movies and Beatle songs. Needless to say, I was unequipped for the task ahead of me.

So two weeks later I saw this girl again but now I've placed her on such a pedestal no one could reach her. Now I was no longer charming. Now I was fumbling, giggling, talking both too loud and too fast. Now she thought I was weird. And this was the moment I judiciously chose to ask her out.

She would take one of two options. She either said no without a reason and backed away slowly. Brooklyn girls usually chose this option. Or, she told me how much she valued me 'as a friend' and over the next three months I'd get constant phone calls from her. Calls where she'd detail dates. With other guys on my team. This was the weapon of choice best exploited by the fabled Mary Louis Academy. Three years of this and I discovered heavy metal.

So Halloween would come every year and every year I'd already be heartbroken. And somehow, even today, when the weather changes overnight and I'm in a denim jacket listening to U2 and taking a morning commute when I'd rather be home, I'm not a 33 year old happily married man. I'm that 15 year old who doesn't understand why women won't stick around for more than an afternoon.

Oh my.

Sulu's gay. Can't say it surprises me. But it certainly doesn't explain why he's so damn weird.

My favorite George Takei story comes from William Shatner's hilarious Star Trek Movie Memories. The original shooting script for Star Trek II: the Wrath of Khanhad promoted Sulu to captain, giving him his own ship. Shatner noticed this and asked Takei if he wanted it changed. After all, with all the action on the Enterprise, Takei's role would be a cameo.

"But, Bill", George replied, "I'm a captain!"

George never gave up his dream of becoming a fictional captain. He finally acheived it in Star Trek VI: the Undiscovered Country and that was all the leverage he needed. For the next decade he pestered Paramount for his own show. All the pitches began with, "Sulu is the captain of the Excelsior and...".

At one point, the powers that be explained to him, "George, we're focusing on the Next Generation timeline now. That's 100 years after your show."

"That's what's so perfect about it! You see, Sulu's ship gets caught in a time warp..."

George, I don't care if you're gay or straight. All I care is that you remain just as wacky as you are right now.

Yeah, great but the election was LAST YEAR!

A new poll says if the election was held today, Bush would lose. Unless of course, he was running against John Kerry.

Cream

I never thought I'd be able to say this:

Last night I saw Cream.

These guys broke up in 1968. I discovered them in 1990. I spent that year in my basement learning every solo from Strange Brew: the Best of Cream on a Squire strat. When I first heard the Beatles, I wanted to play acoustic guitar. As soon as I heard Cream, I wanted to play lead.

There are a few acts I know I'll never see live. Jimi Hendrix. Nirvana. The Beatles. Led Zeppelin. Just not gonna happen. Until last night at Madison Square Garden, I had put Cream on that list, figuring I'd have to settle for Eric Clapton solo.

From the moment they went on stage with no lightshow, no video, no intro music and no opening act, it was clear the night would be dedicated to MUSICIANSHIP. The three were all dressed in t shirts and jeans. They said little to the audience besides, "thank you." Clapton only changed guitars once for slide. And nobody minded.

It was a more laid back evening than I expected, more like watching jazzmen than stadium rockers. The first couple of songs were so slowly paced I thought these guys might be over the hill. But they warmed up nicely and played beautifully for two hours. For the most part, they put aside loud psychedelic numbers for slow blues. We got 'Stormy Monday' but no 'Swlabr'. 'Rollin n' Tumblin' but not 'I Feel Free'.

My friends on the Les Paul Forum have sparked a big controversy over Clapton's performance. When Cream first started, Clapton played a Gibson Les Paul through a Marshall stack. In fact he was one of the first, inspiring even Jimmy Page to pick one up. Those guitars were rare then and his kept getting stolen so he moved to a Gibson SG. Either way, he had a big rock guitar sound. In the 70's, after heroin nearly killed him, he mellowed out and switched to a Fender Stratocaster, using it heavily ever since. The strat is a lot brighter and twangy. Great for surf, country and Buddy Holly.

Guitar heads were hoping for a return to Gibson at these shows. But Clapton showed up with his signature strat. His is equipped with a circuit that boosts the midrange. He thinks it sounds like a Les Paul. I thought it sounded like a crappy overdrive pedal. I was disappointed to see the little combo amps he brought instead of the Marshalls too.

But I maintain that I don't matter. What matters is what makes Clapton play the best. He's obviously comfortable with the strat and the solo he took on 'Stormy Monday' was better than anything I ever heard him record. He wouldn't have been nearly as good on a Les Paul. He's just not used to it anymore. The guy's been touring extensively with strats for 25 years. Why give him a different guitar that might trip him up?

And let me get some perspective. Jack Bruce was playing a different bass. I didn't know what it was but it sounded the same to me. God knows what drum kit Ginger Baker used and his ten minute drum solo was riveting (and when was the last show you went to with a freaking DRUM SOLO?). Time to get over my own guitar nerd leanings.

UPDATE: Special thanks to whereseric.com for linking this article and leading so many new visitors to my little ramshackle site. You're all welcome. Browse around and you'll find more about music, a little about politics and a lot about cartoons. And, since you're all 'in the know', the picture above comes from the Guardian's coverage of the May Royal Albert Hall shows. Still a great shot that shows all three members and fits in my template.