Absorbing the 400th Signal
“Reading is like thinking, like praying, like talking to a friend...like listening to music, like looking at the view, like taking a walk on the beach." ― Roberto Bolaño
In the 4 years I have published this newsletter, never has so much time gone by between editions as between this and the last. This is the 400th Signal and between trying to figure out what to do for what to me is a milestone…and the fact that the kids had a week of Spring Break and then I went on a crazed trip to Mississippi…I developed a writer’s block. I have written a slew of introductory paragraphs to the 400th edition of the Signal, none worth saving.
So, I thought the best way to celebrate the 400th…was to just put a Signal together the way I have always done…talking about something that interests me…that maybe interests you…and celebrate all the great journalism that finds its way onto the internet. Doing all that with a hat tip to the last few years. I would like to thank a few people who have helped me out tremendously during this journey. Jonathan Abrams whose previous company Nuzzel inspired me to start curating news articles in the first place, Ken Shipley from The Numero Group who encouraged me to develop a deeper writing regiment, which I did by committing to a newsletter that including an opening essay in each one, my Mom and my wife who are always readers and commenters, my daughter Kaya who drew my logo, and my friend Greg who agreed to help me with my spelling and grammar, which as regular readers know is iffy at best. Thanks to fellow writers and supporters Jay Babcock of Landline, my High School brother Bowen Dwelle of An Ordinary Disaster, Lance and April Ledbetter of The World Of Dust to Digital, James Barber of Stars After Stars After Stars, and mishpucha Piotr Orlov and his Dada Strain. Thank you all. And to readers of these newsletters who have found their way here: HELLO!!! Welcome.
Over the years there are some posts that I am truly proud of, many of which became some of the most read posts of the lot. Just to look back for a moment, here are a few of them:
Traveling The Space Ways, Signals From Earth// /FREEJAZZ: A deep dive into the world of Free Jazz, including “best of” lists from musicians, journalists, label owners, record collectors, and enthusiasts.
Voices Green and Purple (A look at the greatest psychedelic recordings): Similar to the Free Jazz post, except with psychedelic music. I love these overviews of recordings based on a style or genre. Anyone out there have an idea for me for another deep dive?
Hail The Percussotronist of Andromeda: A look at the career of electronic music pioneer Gil Mellé
So Embryonic It’s Alright: I eventually want to write a book based on my experiences working in the music industry. Until then, The Signal offers me a place to tell some of my stories. Readers will remember stories about artist like Nick Cave, Shane MacGowan, and Seymour Stein. This Flaming Lips one…I just love it…love that moment of my life, their moment as a band.
Dreaming with Mark Fry: I have always loved the watery psych bluesy record Dreaming with Alice by Mark Fry. Connecting with him…interviewing him…was a tremendous moment for me. Just a great guy (I was also excited to interview author César Aira)
The Signal has been such a gift to me…such a Zen meditation on my favorite things. I love the fact that allows me to do deep dives into obscure, beautiful subject and people….interview artists who I admire…showcase other writers’ work…watch every horror film from 50 years ago (‘71, ‘72, ‘73) for the Halloween issue (I just watched Horror High from 1974 last night). I love hunting for obscure articles about crazed things, I love the fact that poetry has become an even more prominent part of my life (Hail! Hail! to our poets) by reading so much to come up with the ones I post. Probably the best part of it all is the connections of I have made with fellow newsletter writers and people that find me through my writing. Just last night I met a long-time reader and we had the most amazing conversation.
Thank you for reading!!! Thank you for passing the newsletter along to friends (please keep doing it!!!!) and thank you to all the people who pay for subscriptions! I am blown away by your generosity!
Yes, the world is on fire…and it is the power of art and innovation and natural beauty that can lead us to better lives as we feel the burn. I am looking forward to the next 100 issues…and then some.
Russ Tamblyn's Daughter China Recalls Meeting Him at Age 17: 'Changed the Trajectory of My Life'
Until I met China, the best part about Russ Tamblyn, for me, was that he was in one of my all-time favorite horror flicks, The Haunting. This is a great story about great people.
I got the opportunity to work with Carl during my entire tenure at Warner Bros. I love the above picture because besides Los Lobos, the artist Carl loved the most was KD Lang. He would come down to Roberta Petersen’s office whenever he smelled a new demo or an album’s final mix. I only learned later that Carl came to Warner from Autumn Records…the label from the Bay Area that released The Mojo Men, The Beau Brummels (and Roberta’s eventual husband John Petersen) and the Tikis (later to be names Harpers Bizarre featuring Ted Templeman, future legendary producer). Carl had one of the biggest hearts…and a deep deep passion for great music.
A lost Sister Rosetta Tharpe live album featuring never-before-heard recordings has been unearthed
Oh man. Zev Feldman: THANK YOU for unearthing this treasure…finding it…and after years figuring out how to get it into the the world. Tharpe and her guitar. That is all you really need. This live concert later in her career is just incredible…so deep. Liner notes by Gayle Wald are fantastic. Just a great set.
As Surrealism Turns 100, a Look at Its Enduring Legacy
A great weekend read about the Surrealism, looking at the artists who created the lava flow for the movement to rise from, and the politics, inspirations and motivations behind it.
Sanctuary
By: JEAN VALENTINE
People pray to each other. The way I say 'you' to someone else,
respectfully, intimately, desperately. The way someone says
'you' to me, hopefully, expectantly, intensely ...
—Huub Oosterhuis
You who I don't know I don't know how to talk to you
—What is it like for you there?
Here ... well, wanting solitude; and talk; friendship—
The uses of solitude. To imagine; to hear.
Learning braille. To imagine other solitudes.
But they will not be mine;
to wait, in the quiet; not to scatter the voices—
What are you afraid of?
What will happen. All this leaving. And meetings, yes. But death.
What happens when you die?
"... not scatter the voices,"
Drown out. Not make a house, out of my own words. To be quiet in
another throat; other eyes; listen for what it is like there. What
word. What silence. Allowing. Uncertain: to drift, in the
restlessness ... Repose. To run like water—
What is it like there, right now?
Listen: the crowding of the street; the room. Everyone hunches in
against the crowding; holding their breath: against dread.
What do you dread?
What happens when you die?
What do you dread, in this room, now?
Not listening. Now. Not watching. Safe inside my own skin.
To die, not having listened. Not having asked ... To have scattered
life.
Yes I know: the thread you have to keep finding, over again, to
follow it back to life; I know. Impossible, sometimes.
I love The Signal! Congratulations on numbers 1-400. Incredible!
The Signal is a joy to read, I get so excited when I see it in my inbox. You are clearly a lover of Art, in all its forms, with a lean towards the left-of-field. The weirder the better, seems your style, and I am right there with you!