August Wilson, RIP

Here's the story behind all his characters' stories, in his own words: "I once wrote a short story called 'The Best Blues Singer in the World' and it went like this: 'The streets that Balboa walked were his own private ocean, and Balboa was drowning.' End of story. That says it all. Nothing else to say. I've been rewriting that same story over and over again. All my plays are rewriting that same story. I'm not sure what it means, other than life is hard."

free CDs

You know, I really thought I was mostly done with the CDs, once I finished with all the ones I'd decided I didn't want. But I made those decisions a few years ago, and it turns out that since then I've acquired a whole lot more I don't want. Plus my threshold for wanting has risen, what with the moving and everything.

Chris Rea, The Road to Hell. I remember a review that said it was "the best Dire Straits album you'll find this year."
Radiohead, Hail to the Thief. I have no idea why everything since Kid A has bored me.
Linda Ronstadt, Heart Like a Wheel. When Will I Be Loved? and other hits.
Justin McMahon, Live at Cavanaugh's. Singer-songwriter I met in Reno. Did I ever tell you about the time, well, never mind. Dave-Matthews-ish?
Son Volt, Straightaways. Alt-country by Jay Farrar's post-Tupelo band. I like "Caryatid Easy" a lot.
Dianne Reeves, I Remember. Jazz singer, interesting small-group arrangements of standards, mostly.
Ted Rosenthal, Images of Monk. Jazz pianist, interesting small-group arrangements of Monk tunes, mostly. Used to be my favorite single-artist Monk tribute.
Marc Ribot y Los Cubanos Postizos, s/t. Electric guitarist plays Cuban music with John Medeski and others.
Frigg, s/t. Finnish-Norwegian fiddle group. Awesome in concert.
The Jayhawks, "Bad Time". Single, circa Tomorrow the Green Grass. The Grand Funk Railroad cover, plus a Merle Haggard song and two other songs.
Earlimart, Everyone Down Here. Indie pop. Reminds me of Grandaddy but less weird.
Gillian Welch, Revival. Bluegrass-esque singer-songwriter's first album. "Orphan Girl" and other good songs.
Various Artists, Reich Remixed. Electronica artists remix Steve Reich compositions, with variable results. The Tranquility Bass "Megamix", with elements from nine different pieces, is the best track, showing an appreciation for the material but also making a statement of its own.
Red House Painters, Old Ramon. Oh, you know, sad contemplative rock.
Steve Reich, Triple Quartet. Reich pieces played by non-Reich ensembles, including the Kronos Quartet, and two pieces arranged for different instruments than they were written for.
Kim Richey, s/t. The singer-songwriter's debut, more country than her later efforts.
Marian McPartland and Friends, An NPR Jazz Christmas. Says it all.
Diana Ross, Diana. Disco, produced by Chic. Includes "Upside Down" and "I'm Coming Out", my favorite Ross song.
Bonnie Raitt, Fundamental. Blues-rock, produced Mitchell Froom and Tchad Blake.
Neil Halstead, Sleeping on Roads. More like what Nick Drake actually sounds like.
Roxy Music, Avalon. Dreamy.

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I stumbled on some debate among right-wing bloggers about sexism. Ilyka Damen shut down her blog, declaring her intent to start a new one with a male persona, after she got tired of people who disagreed with her ideas attacking her gender. (I think. I don't really understand the context.) Hubris, partly in response, wrote blunt and funny advice about how and why to be a feminist. And Cassandra rethought some of her assumptions. I don't know, I thought it was interesting.

I shipped some comics and cookbooks and CDs today (why do they all begin with "C"?), to juliansinger and greyaenigma and rollerboogie and fluxbox and my sister. But I think I messed up somewhere, because I remember picking up the Tom Tomorrow books to ship to bushmiller, but I didn't send anything to Ohio. So, um, if someone got those and Zot 12, let me know. I also accidentally sold Understanding Comics to Lee's (so, pobig, at least you know where to find a used copy), and, uh, I'm not sure what happened to the Zot TPB dougo requested. This whole organization is falling apart.

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In case anyone is reading this, Tin Cat's 10/5 show at Blue Rock Shoot is cancelled. Lame!