My Amazon Reviews: James Lee Stanley "The Apocaloptimist"

Look on The Bright Side
4 Out Of 5 Stars

As a long time fan of James Lee Stanley, I am always excited when he settles in and records a new CD of original songs. He has also kept himself busy, recording duet albums in the "All Wood And..." series, so far mining The Doors and Rolling Stones for source material, Yet it is his solo CD's that I wait for with the greatest hunger. On the new "The Apocaloptimist," he weaves the magic again.

Combining the word apocalypse with the word optimist, he expects the worst and hopes for the best. The character he introduces in the first song is one who lives and sleeps, rises and falls and falls again while "Living The Party Life." Our up and coming yuppie parties when he wins, parties when he loses, and no matter what the result, is ready to party away. PBR in hand, he's probably the best dressed and most annoying person in the room, but James still sings with some sympathy for the guy. Later he hangs out at a bar and sweetly dreams of being rescued at "Last Call."

The character's not a complete yay-hoo. After all, how could he be if he likes Beatles' songs? Coming from the same respectful background as the "All Wood And..." series, "Drive My Car" gives a folk rock makeover to a classic, complete with a tasty harmonica courtesy of Corky Siegel. Or, for that matter, would such a bad man surround himself with great players like Little Feat's Paul Barrere (on slide guitar for "Gypsies In The Hallway")? James' hero may be searching for the best, and this being a story with a happy ending, lets the lead actor fumble his way to understanding with nothing but the best musicianship lighting the way. He comes to a realization about family on "Here We Have My Father," and figures out that maybe it's time to treat his life as something more precious on the strolling "When You Get Right To It."

Coming to terms with when life deals you a decent hand, James' hero ain't such a bad guy in the end. He finds true love during "Any Other Way" and learns the deepest love when singing a "Lullaby for Chloe." James takes our "Apocaloptimist" guy from annoying chump to adoring father in less than an hour, James Lee Stanley is the kind of storyteller who can do this narrative masterfully, and I love when stories have happy endings. Especially when set to music this good.

One more thing: The album's artwork. "The Apocaloptimist's" cover art is poster worthy. It harkens back to the days when the amount of thought given to the entire album package covered the music and how the artwork related to the songs within.

     

Passinngs: Mikal "Daddy Zeus" Bales

Mikal "Daddy Zeus" Bales passed away today. He was a huge help to me in my time in Los Angeles, and his photography adorned many of my magazines, including the inaugural issue of Vulcan America. He even cast me in one of his movies as a lark. We enjoyed many laughs, shared a few tears and a lasting friendship. He was 73.

.

RIP Mikal. Calling you "Daddy" was never a superlative

New York City Book Boys. Never Have a Dull Day

Saturday AM, I hopped bright and early into my car with three boxes of books for the annual Rainbow Book Fair, which Daniel Kitchens has been doing a great job of running these past few years. It's always an enjoyable outing, and - like last year - David Stein and I split costs on a table. As lucj would have it, the vendor next to us failed to show, so we expanded our space.

Perfect Bound Press is David's company, I list mine as Black Leather Bookshelf. There were an awful lot of folks there this year, including this year's "get," Samuel R Delaney, Sci-Fi and kinky writer. (You think I'm kidding? Read "Hogg" someday.) he has a new novel about Rural Gay America out, which I picked up and had autographed.

Another author friend was there, Christopher Trevor.

As per usual, lots of friends arrived to say hello and pick up some books. My buddy Colonel Al propped in to show off his workout improved figure. 

All in all, a good day. I think that David and I sold enough to have made some profits, but I was ready to head for home. I'm psyched to catch the premier of "MadMen" later this week (it's on the DVR waiting for me).

Have a Great week, all.

     

Passings: Dr Phillip Roy Reeves

One of my best friends, Dr Phil Reeves, passed away early Saturday in a sudden and unexpected complication from dental surgery. He passed peacefully in his sleep and was discovered by his partner in his bed.

Phil was an accomplished cellist, having played on tours with the likes of Johnny Mathis, Frank Sinatra, and various incarnations of the Rat Pack Reunion Tours, as well as occasionally sitting in with the Philadelphia Mandolin Ensemble. He turned to Psychiatry and had been in practice for several years. I first met him when he asked me to be his personal assistant part-time about 6 years ago, and he also helped me with my own mental issues. After I adopted Sophie cat, he adopted a brother and sister pair of kittens, Albert and Victoria. When Phil and his delightful partner Graham would go on one of their frequent trips, I was usually the designated Kitty Sitter.

I am going to miss his dry sense of humor, his love of classical music, the way he doted on his two cats and would put them into hilarious photo montages, and the obvious love for his partner, Graham. But more then anything, I am going to miss a man who was not only an amazing friend, but would go out of his way to help me whenever he could, and in times when I was in very dark places. He stood by me when many would not. I have lost one of my life's few anchors and the world is a sadder place today.

(The photo Of Dr Reeves was taken by me at a co-worker of Phil's baby-shower in January. Albert and Victoria were about 4 at the time of their picture.)

Video: Dirigible Ego "Camera"

Passings: Mel Tabbert

My friend and former co-worker Mel Tabbert passed away in his sleep early Wednesday in his sleep after a long period in a nursing home. He was 68, and we'd been friends since I started working in the customer service department of TLA.

But during that time, he was having serious health issues. In the summer 2007 I had to go through some major stress a few weeks with him. I'd been doing Home Health care for him since the previous summer, when he was essentially a shut in. Mel got a Sheriff's Notice on his apartment door on a Weds statting that he had till Monday to be out of his place or he'd be forcibly removed. His apartment was basically a bedroom in an old building that is right near city hall, since renovated into condos. His itty-bity room had an asking price of over 100,000. He'd gotten behind on his rent, couldn't work, couldn't even leave the room (he had been outside once since the previous August) and needed serious help. Of course, he was in a total panic.

With the help I've been giving him since '06, connections at the Pennsylvania Council On Aging got him an emergency bed at a Nursing Home. We had to call them and insist that Mel's paperwork get fast tracked or he'd be on the street. I assisted him with his move that Monday morning. But he was still under a great deal of stress. I’d been taking suitcases of what few possessions he has left out over the weekend and giving him a shoulder to cry on...there were a lot of tears and hand holding. He was very frightened and rang my cell phone several times a day.

He needed 24 Hour professional care (something I am just not qualified for) and a good bed, which the nursing home provided. I signed him onto my cell-phone program to give him a lifeline to the outside world. I would visit every couple of weeks or so, take him movies (I got his a cheap DVD player) and snacks. Since he could not leave his room without assistance, I often had to play patient advocate for him. (He had only one sister; she is disabled and lives in MN.)

Last week he was having problems breathing and was taken to a hospital where they did a "stuffing" for a sinus issue. When he came back to the hospital Thursday, I dropped in and brought him some throat lozenges. we had a good talk, I showed him some of the latest pictures of the grand-girls and Sophie Cat, and as I was leaving he told me I was his guardian angel. I gave him a hug and told him "I love ya, buddy," like I usually did.

He did not wake up Wednesday. He "coded" in his bed and the staff called 911 while performing CPR. While Mel was still taken to the University of Penn via ambulance, he never revived. He was declared at the UoP emergency room. He was 68, which just seems too young these days, but more than anything else, he's no longer suffering. The nursing home let me gather his things, but there wasn't much. What I took were mostly things I'd taken to him over the years, some Military certificates (he was in the Navy during Vietnam) and a few wall posters he'd had. The staff was used to seeing me and told me they all liked Mel for being funny and generous, and we all shared a few cries. I have his Santa on my desk. I'm going to need some memories.

Palm Springs Leather Weekend.

Joel and I used some airline miles and an invite from our friend Peter Fiske to attend Palm Springs Leather Weekend. It was nice to get out of the house for a change and try to alleviate the fact that my depression has reached an almost crushing level of despair, along with my computer networking class being far and away harder than I ever imagined it to be.

Luckily, there are only two of us in the course and that allows the prof to answer all of my annoying questions. I fear I may not be able to catch up to the level of technology the course involves.

However, let's share some of the pictures.

My friend Alex Ironrod opened the weekend by reading from his new novel "Leather Nights" (a murder mystery) at Gear. I was pleasantly surprised by the turnout for him. I should add that I wrote his back-cover blurb.

My friend Bryce, whom I had not seen for a few years. This was in the party behind the Tool Shed where I'd set up a book table.

Mikal Bales (aka Daddy Zeus of Zeus Studios) took the time to come over to The Barracks on Saturday to say hello. He may be one of the men in California that I've missed the most since moving away. His new beau, Mick, is very sweet.

The gentleman here, Marshall, was a close friend of my late master, Gary Taylor. We had not seen each other since 1999. We had a long and somewhat emotional talk while he visited.

The notorious Gagbear and George (WetInSF) visited. It was nice to finally meet Jim after years of chat.

In what I can only say was the oddest moment of the weekend, singer Gregory Gray walked up to my table and said - in a thick Irish accent - "You don't even remember who I am, do ya?"

He was right, I didn't.  I interviewed Gregory over the phone in 1994 for Frontiers Magazine when his album "Euroflake In Silverlake" was released. When he played a show at the Virgin Megastore, I picked him up and we went to The Faultline for a wild night. He picked up a date and returned to his hotel after a few hours, and I'd not seen him since. That he remembered me and decided to hang out again was delightful and fun. Turns out he's a PS regular now and we have several mutual friends.

Of course, it wouldn't be a hot weekend if there weren't plenty of good looking men running about. (Hi Nipper!) That is, until The Barracks got busted for overcrowding (and yes, the place was mobbed), and the cops cleared everyone out. My first ever bar raid! Ah, well.

Then it was on-board the big old jet airliner for the trip home, for which we had enough miles to get first class seats. I never realized how comfortable flying could be before this. It made the end of the weekend easier to deal with. We arrived home to one very happy kitty. Now it's back to studies.

I am going to make a great effort to write more posts and reviews, if only to force my brain to write things.

My Amazon Reviews: "The Best of Times," An All-star Texas Tribute to Sara Hickman

When I See You Down, 
I Wanna Pick You Up
4 Out Of 5 Stars


Regular readers of my reviews or blog probably already know that Sara Hickman is not only one of my favorite singer songwriters, but someone I feel is also a friend and an inspiration. I've seen her perform multiple times, she even thanked me on her second album. Naturally, I'm predisposed to just about anything she gets together. "The Best of Times," an all-star Texas Tribute to her songs and a charity project for the Theater Action Project (a Texas educational charity for children in the performing arts), was something I just had to have. It's even better than I expected.

While the album is a double disc mash-up of styles and artists, Sara's immense skill as a writer now can be seem as something that crosses all styles. Several of the musicians/performers are ones you'll recognize if you're not necessarily a follower of all things Lone Star, like Shawn Colvin, Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians, Darden Smith, Brave Combo or Charlie Sexton, and some that deserve more, like the soulful treatment Ray Von Foster gives to "Give It Every Little Thing You've Got" and the same with LZ Love's version of "I Couldn't Help Myself" (which may have been Sara's closest thing to a hit.

I'll admit to my personal favorites at this point, which are Edie Brickell's version of "Shadowboxing," The Flatlanders' "Comfort's Sigh," "Under The Sycamore Tree" by Robert Earl Keen and the title song jointly performed by Trish Murphy and Charlie Sexton. But no matter how hard anyone tries, they all have to stand aside to Willie Nelson. Willie takes what has always been my absolute favorite Sara love song, "Simply," and turns it into classic Willie. If there was justice to be had in this world, his new version of "Simply" would be topping the country charts, giving Willie a third, fourth or maybe fifth career resurrection, and make "Simply" the wedding standard it has always deserved to be. Yes, Willie's version really is that magnificent.

In my estimation, so is Sara. This album came about because Sara was named "State Musician of Texas," an honor previously bestowed on the likes of Willie and Lyle Lovett. She is using her time with this title to help raise awareness of the need for arts in the Texas educational system, and 100% of the proceeds of this album are going to the aforementioned TAP charity. It's all star music from some all star Texans, performing the music of a woman who - in my eyes anyway - has always been a star. "The Best of Times" should be your gateway into some of Sara's best albums. Please support this effort.

   

My First Trip to Fenway Park, Boston

For more pictures, click the Citgo Sign!

Fresh Blueberries, Here!

A friend of Joel's went to the Blueberry farms of New Jersey for what is an annual trek for him. He goes over with a truck and returns with over 100 pounds of blueberries. These are sold in 10 pound boxes. Joel bought two of these from him and we spent some time washing, de-stemming and bagging them for the freezer.




We weighed out a pound per bag, then tried to squeeze the air out before sealing up the bags. That also meant trying to get the berries as dry as possible before bagging.
 


These are really tasty, fresh fruits. Joel loves to bake blueberries into pancakes and other bakery delights. Sophie was more interested in waiting for one of these little round blue things to fall on the kitchen floor so she could bat it around or chase it.

 

But for the moment, we have plenty of berries to carry us through the coming months.

My Amazon Book Reviews: Arvid Nelson "Rex Mundi Volume 1: The Gaurdian Of The Temple"

Who's the king of the whole wide world?
4 Out Of 5 Stars 

A friend of mine with a great comic store in SF (Hello, Whatever!) recommended Rex Mundi to me after we chatted about my love of older comics like Doc Savage and the earlier Batman stories. he certainly pegged me correctly, as Rex Mundi Vol 1 hooked me instantly. Writer Arvid Nelson concocted a search for the Holy Grail unlike one you've heard before, and artist Eric J created a rich and beautifully drawn alternate world.

In this world, France is the dominant power in Europe. In the USA, the Civil War ended in a draw, even if slave ships are not allowed in European Waters. Most importantly, Catholicism has an iron clad grip on how things are determines, and magic/sorcery has its own guild. The Inquisition is the highest law in the land, and their ruthless efficiency makes any sort of investigations difficult. In this world operates one Dr Julius Sauniere, a physician who seems to have taken the role of doctor to the downtrodden. When an old friend and priest tells Dr Sauniere that a mythical scroll that no-one short of the Pope knows about may have been stolen, and that a wicked form of sorcery may have been the culprit, the good Dr is drawn into the mystery.

Before you can say Indiana Jones, the Dr is being launched into a series of murders, political intrigue, and the very dangerous attention of the Inquisitor Guild. Dr Sauniere plays like a cross between Jones and The DaVinci Code (which, incidentally, was published after the first volume of Rex Mundi), with the added twist of the world operating in the 1930's but often reading like modern times. The story is similar to most of these kinds of religious mysteries, but the artwork is sublime. There's a lot of detail in every drawing, especially the historic features of Paris. I am now eager to start moving through the rest of the series.

One caveat that was very disappointing: the book's cover slipped from the spine on the first read. Poor quality manufacturing.