#The Catskills verse

[jamieprimack]

The first 2 of the 6 HOSPICE shared horror verse Kickstarter campaigns launch on 9/5!!! So, it's time to start showing off the goods! Here are all 6 covers. Mine's the first one, Bend Sinister, which is written and illustrated by me.

My campaign launches on 9/12, so it would mean the world to me if you'd check out my prelaunch page and hit the "notify me on launch" button :)

And here are links to the other 6 campaigns' prelaunch pages:

Skin Deep

Last Supper of the Catskill Cannibal

No Freedom in Texas

One Damned Good Thing

Concussion

[allthemusic]

Week ending: 20th June

Well, after three rather mid versions of the exact same song, it's hard to imagine that this week won't be a considerable improvement, especially with a Lonnie Donegan double A-side on the table. So without further ado, let's go!

Gamblin' Man - Lonnie Donegan (double A-side, peaked at Number 1)

As ever with Lonnie, this is a very American-sounding tune. Heck, it starts with a description of how I've gambled down in Washington / And I've gambled up in Maine / I'm going down into Georgia / To knock down my last game. With all this Americana, its hardly surprising to learn that this is a Woody Guthrie original, a product of the folk revival going on in the US. His version was called Roving Man, and was also about a man who travelled around gambling.

Actually, that's basically all there is to this song. Sure, there are verses where Lonnnie sings about how he fell in love with a girl back in Washington, despite her parents' objections, and she apparently loved him back enough to boldly proclaim that I would not marry a farmer / Who's always in the rain / I'd rather marry a gambling man / With a gold watch and chain. Similarly, she wouldn't marry a railroad man, since I never knew a railroad man / Who wouldn't tell his wife a lie. Fair enough, I guess, though I'm not sure gambling's much better.

Ah well, it's not like we're really here for a message. No, most of the song here is just a single lyric about how He's a gambling man, man, man / He's a gambling man. The sheer repetition almost turns the lyric into a piece of nonsense, something that Lonnie uses more for its sound than for its meaning, his voice blending with the instruments, which are raucous and wild as ever.

Honestly, Lonnie is just on good, wild form here. I thought at first that this sounded a bit rougher round the edges than some of his other tracks, and it turns out that it was a live recording, which I can kinda hear, especially when the solo begins, with a shouted How about Jimmy?! It's a guitar solo, with these frantic, bashy drums that you could copy and paste straight into an early punk song without much change, and it's honestly pretty great.

I also like the way that the song just dissolves into a drum roll and Lonnie going man, man, man, man, maaaaaaaaan at the end. Peak chaos, just some real feral gremlin energy right there.

Puttin' on the Style - Lonnie Donegan (double A-side, 1)

Okay, this side of the double A-side was clearly playing it a bit safer. It's still a folk song, this time from the Catskills, and recorded with some success apparently by one Vernon Dalhart in 1925, but its energy is just different to Gamblin' Man. It's got the same sturummy guitar and wailing vocals, and its also a live recording, but it's calmer, with a note of comedy or social commentary to it that Gamblin' Man lacked.

We start with a girl, who's sweet sixteen, goes to church / Just to see the boys. She giggles and chats, and seems very fashionable, But everbody knows she's only putting on the style. And that's the whole conceit of the song, from then on. Don't young people do ridiculous things for fashion, eh? That's literally it: Putting on the agony, putting on the style / That's what all the young folks are doing all the while.

It's fine. Funny, even, and a lovely snapshot of an early 20th century American church-y community, where the girls go to church to see the boys and where the young men drive round in hot rods and driving gloves. And the best moment is probably when our fire and brimstone preacher roars with all his might / Sings glory, hallelujah, / Puts the folks all in a fright. Suddenly something frightful appears: Now you might think it's Satan / That's a comin' down the aisle / But it's only our poor preacher boys / That's puttin' on the style. Awww, bless! It's a little, deft, gently satirical picture of a whole social scene, a little bit Jane Austen in its sensibilities, and I do like it a lot.

Still, there's something a bit mean-spirited about it, a bit "get off my lawn". I kind of assumed that Lonnie must have been older, at this point, but no, he was only 26! He should also have been putting on the style, not complaining like some old fogey about it - and honestly, at this point, complaining about whatever teenage girls have going on just feels a bit tired. It was tired already in the 1950s, and to modern ears, it's a bit tiresome. Let her dress up and go to church and giggle with her friends - it's literally none of your business, Lonnie!

I can see the appeal of the song, though. It's Lonnie in a different kind of mode, a sort of comedy mode that's peeked through in other songs, and that I know will become his default in the future. It's in the comedy lyrics, but also in the broad Cockney sort of accent he puts on when he sings about the young man's yellow gloves 'e's borrowed from 'is daaaad. It's incongruously British-sounding, especially in a song that's otherwise so American, and it hints at a completely different, more British folk tradition, that of the music hall, with all the daftness and mugging that that entails. I wouldn't quite call it a novelty song, but it's on the borderline, for better or for worse.

Interestingly, I did briefly think that the guitar work here did actually sound quite Beatles-y, and apparently a low-quality 1957 verison of this by John Lennon's Quarrymen group is one of the first tangentially Beatles-related recordings we still have. So that is kind of interesting - and actually, I can see touches of the same music hall style in a lot of Beatles numbers, so there's definitely a link there. Huh.

Little Darlin' - The Diamonds (3)

Okay, we're starting with castanets and cowbell, and then this fabulous piano glissando. A strong, if cheesy, start. And it sets the tone excellently for the rest of the song, which is great, but very cheesy.

It's a R&B number, a cover of a track by a band called the Gladiolas, and it's very doo-wop, from the a-ya-ya-ya-ya opening, to the stuttering delivery of lines like O-oh where a-are you-ou? and the supremely silly ah-uha-uha-uha-uha line. The main vocalist sounds like he's having the time of his life, and the backing vocalists are also having a field day.

The story, if there is one, is one of the singer making a mistake that he regrets, sainging about how My lover, I was wrong-uh / To-ooh-ooh try to love two / Knowing well-uh / That my lov-uh / Was just for you. So yeah. He cheated, and now he's regretting it, and realises that he shouldn't have. It's simple and heartfelt, though the funny delivery and hiccupy "uh" noises go a long way to stop you taking it too seriously. I don't get the feeling that the Diamonds were too cut up about this all, you know?

We also get a spoken word section, which I normally don't like. I find them cheesy, and kind of annoying. Still, here, it kind of works for me, not least because it's mercifully short, and done in this sort of deep, sleepy-sounding voice that it's hard to take at face value. There's something a bit insincere in the Please, hold my hand, in particular, but in a way that I somehow just find really funny?

I think it also helps that this song doesn't overstay its welcome. It arrives, goofs around for a bit, has some cool, tight harmonines over a tight, Latin sort of rhythm, and then calls it a day. Which I can respect, for sure.

Hmm. I liked all three songs this week. I think on a gut level I enjoyed Gamblin' Man more than Puttin' on the Style, but I found Puttin' on the Style more interesting, as a hint at the direction that Lonnie's going in and a possible early link to 1960s acts like the Beatles. And then Little Darlin', which is such a goofy little song that you can't help but want to sing along, just a bit. It's lightweight summer fun - just what the doctor ordered!

Favourite song of the bunch: Little Darlin'

[joshvandervoort]

Joshua Vandervoort | Love's Canvas - Painting Passion through Nature's Beauty

For Joshua Vandervoort, rooted in Rochester, New York, this connection with nature is more than just a soothing backdrop - it is a way of life. Born and raised amidst the verdant wilderness and tranquil waterways of Western NY, Joshua found a deep-seated love for nature in the rolling hills and sparkling Finger Lakes of Southern Tier region. His formative years spent hiking, fishing, and sailing imprinted a lasting need to preserve this beauty for future generations. The stewardship instilled by his family resonates in each outdoor endeavor, whether he is navigating waters in his fishing boat or backpacking in the breathtaking landscapes of the Adirondack and Catskill mountains.

The bond between humans and nature is not merely one of coexistence but of a deeply interwoven relationship. Nature, in its unaltered form, possesses a captivating ability to invoke a sense of awe and reverence. The sight of a fiery sunset casting its hues across the sky or the delicate petals of a flower unfolding in the morning light evokes an emotion that cannot be replicated elsewhere. It is this unparalleled beauty that stirs the heart and kindles a love affair with the natural world. Josh Vandervoort

As Joshua Vandervoort stands testament, the magic of the natural world is not bound by societal constructs or geographical limitations - it permeates every corner of the globe, touching lives in myriad ways. The towering, snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas inspire awe and reverence, the lush greenery of the Amazon rainforest teems with life and diversity, and the serene beaches of the Pacific islands whisper tales of tranquility and peace. The tapestry of nature is as diverse as humanity itself, each strand imbued with its own unique beauty and charm. Amid the hustle and bustle of modern life, the call of the wild serves as a reminder of our intrinsic connection to the Earth, a call that beckons us to step outside, breathe in the fresh air, and bask in the sheer joy of being alive.

The nurturing presence of nature extends beyond the visual spectacle it offers. The therapeutic essence of a gentle breeze, the soothing melody of raindrops, and the grounding touch of earth underfoot possess an innate ability to heal the spirit. Countless studies have underlined the positive impact of nature on mental health, from reducing stress and anxiety to fostering a sense of tranquility and well-being. The symbiotic relationship between humans and nature is not just about admiration; it's about finding solace and restoration in its embrace.

At the heart of the love affair with nature lies a sense of stewardship and responsibility. As humans, the custodians of this beautiful planet, it is our duty to protect and preserve the very source of our inspiration. The threat of climate change and environmental degradation serves as a poignant reminder of the fragility of this bond. To cherish and safeguard nature is not just an option but a fundamental commitment to securing a harmonious future for generations to come.

To Joshua Vandervoort, the love for nature often translates into various forms of creative expression. Artists harness the essence of nature's beauty, capturing its magnificence on canvas or through the lens of a camera. Poets weave verses that echo the sentiments felt in the presence of a cascading waterfall or a serene meadow. Musicians compose symphonies that emulate the rhythms of the natural world. Nature's love is not just observed but actively celebrated and immortalized through artistic endeavors. Josh Vandervoort Rochester New York

The allure of loving the nature extends far beyond the individual; it fosters a sense of community and shared experience. Parks, gardens, and natural reserves become gathering grounds where people converge to revel in the magnificence of the outdoors. Families bond, friends connect, and strangers find common ground amidst the beauty of nature, nurturing a sense of belonging and interconnectedness.

For Joshua Vandervoort, the rhythms of nature also serve as a constant source of inspiration. Beyond its aesthetic charm, nature serves as an invaluable teacher. It imparts lessons of resilience, adaptability, and the cyclical nature of life. Witnessing the changing seasons, the ebb and flow of tides, and the growth of plants from seed to bloom, humans are reminded of the enduring cycles that govern existence. There is profound wisdom to be gleaned from nature's rhythms, teaching us patience, fortitude, and the beauty of impermanence.

The love for nature is not merely an emotion; it is an ethos, a way of life. It embodies a deep-rooted respect for the environment, an understanding of our interconnectedness with all living beings, and a commitment to cherish and protect the natural world. It's a sentiment that, when nurtured, enriches the human experience, fostering a profound sense of joy, wonder, and belonging.

In essence, the canvas of love, painted by the breathtaking beauty of nature's vibrant colors, delicate textures, and captivating melodies, is a profound testament to the indelible bond between Joshua Vandervoort and the awe-inspiring natural world. Every stroke of this portrait tells a story of interconnectedness and harmony, transcending the confines of time and culture. It is an eternal ode, a symphony of gratitude, celebrating the boundless magnificence that envelops us.

As individuals, we are but humble admirers, captivated by nature's grandeur and humbled by its intricacies. As a society, we have the privilege and responsibility to be custodians of this planet, guardians of its delicate ecosystems and guardians of our own existence. Our relationship with nature is not merely a love story, it is a lifelong commitment—a sacred pact to honor, cherish, and protect the very essence that sustains us, nurturing us with its bountiful gifts.

[celtfather]

Celtic Tides #603

Ride the tide with the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast #603.

The Langer's Ball, Hanneke Cassel,  Niamh Dunne, Kalos, Kieran Byrne, Seldom Sober, Kinnfolk, Ben Doran, Madman's Window, Emerald Accent, Vicki Swan & Jonny Dyer, Paddyman, Kellys Wayke, the commoners, Michael Maloney, The Druids

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THIS WEEK IN CELTIC MUSIC

0:02 - Intro: Boxing Robin

0:10 - The Langer's Ball "Reels: Maid Behind the Bar/Anything for Jonjo?" from Appetite for Tradition

2:44 - WELCOME

4:40 - Hanneke Cassel "Dusky Meadow Set" from Reasons Unseen

09:58 - Niamh Dunne "Tides w/ Karan Casey" from Tides

13:26 - Kalos "April and Joe's/Brownington Ceilidh Club" from Headland

18:37 - Kieran Byrne "Spancil"

22:20 - FEEDBACK

25:25 - Seldom Sober “Jigs: Geese in the Bog / The Wandering Minstrel / The Coleraine” from Six Months in Confession

Kinnfolk and Arise & Go, two of the artists we feature on this podcast, were selected as finalists for the Robinson Emerging Artist Showcase! The contest is put on by the Goderich Celtic Roots Festival in Canada and provides emerging artists some high quality opportunities for professional development as professional Celtic musicians. You can read more about it on Facebook.

29:10 - Kinnfolk "Right All Right" from Kinnfolk

31:59 - Ben Doran "Ship in a Bottle" from Ceol an Chroi II

34:03 - Madman's Window "The Scolding Wife" from All Guns Blazing - Live!

36:39 - Emerald Accent "Farewell to the Catskills" from All of Us

40:51 - CELTIC STORY

A setting of a  poem written by a Mr M Edgerley which he submitted to The Observer (Queensland, Australia) in 1924.

The poem is titled “A Returned Soldier’s Lament”

I’ve renamed the song 1924 partly because I have made small changes to the text  -  and have added a verse,  but also the date is really significant to the meaning of the words.  The poem references WW1 from that date: being 6 years after the war ended, 9 years after the majority of the ANZAC troops joined the war and 8 years after their greatest involvement and losses both at Gallipoli and all along the Western front.

Oh  -  and it’s going to be on our next duo album that will be out sometime this year.  Caveat warning, however; -   we’re so busy doing a load of other things  -  including the beginnings of a new Purcells Polyphonic Party album as well as festivals and folk clubs and recording for TV and games…. that any plan for launching is going to have to be quite  vague.

44:20 - Vicki Swan & Jonny Dyer "1924"

50:12 - THANKS

51:48 - Paddyman "The Best Pub Party in the World" from One for the Road

54:36 - Kellys Wayke "Walk the Mile" from Kellys Wayke

58:10 - the commoners "What's Your Whiskey For" from What's Your Whiskey For

1:01:42 - Michael Maloney "'Round the Mountains of Mourne" from January Hopeful

1:05:32 - CLOSING

1:07:11 - The Druids "South Australia"

1:09:35 - CREDITS

The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast was produced by Marc Gunn, The Celtfather and our Patrons on Patreon. The show was edited by Mitchell Petersen with Graphics by Miranda Nelson Designs. Todd Wiley is the editor of the Celtic Music Magazine.

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Scott McCreary replied to the Celtic Music Magazine: "Hey Marc I listen to the Irish and Celtic music podcast while whittling and or wood working, cutting the grass in my two acre yard or at break time at my job at Amazon. This St. Patrick’s day I don’t really have plans but will definitely have corned beef for supper. I may get ambitious and make a coddle or stew at some point.

I have always heard that you don’t choose Ireland. Ireland chooses you and that’s my case. I am an Irish descendent but have never been to Ireland. I eat up all I can about it I.e. the language, music, movies and pictures and culture. I celebrate Ireland every day "

Marguerite Kearns replied: "I am just listening to the content of your songs and music. Doing nothing else. Some things don't fit well with multitasking...you fit into that category. Onward"

Michael Corbett emailed: "Hi Marc!

This is Michael from Seldom Sober.  You were a great supporter of ours when we released our last CD in 2019.  I'm sorry to tell you that Colleen, the other half of Seldom Sober, is having health problems. It would really lift her spirits for you to play one of her tune sets.  Since our last CD was 4 years ago it doesn't get much attention anymore, but she loves hearing that we're being played around the world.  We were actually big in New Zealand when the CD first came out.  Just let me know which episode it's on.  She knows I listen to your podcast, so I'll just tell her I heard it

Thanks for your consideration!  Please keep up the good work!  You sponsored the main stage at the Savannah Irish Festival in 2019, and we appreciate that!”

Check out this episode!

[anitosoul]

My Favorite Albums of 2020

1. Phoebe Bridgers, Punisher

Favorite Tracks: Kyoto | I Know the End | Chinese Satellite

Punisher seemed to accompany me throughout 2020. When I first listened to “Garden Song,” I didn’t think it would follow me past my small NYC bedroom. It took on a much simpler tone in late February, conjuring thoughts of nostalgic old crushes and the potential of future new crushes. Little did I know that “Garden Song,” the subsequent singles, and the rest of Punisher would become the soundtrack to my year. One way to listen to Punisher is laying in your childhood bedroom reflecting on life, encapsulated in lyrics such as verse 2 of “Garden Song”:

And when I grow up, I’m gonna look up From my phone and see my life And it’s gonna be just like my recurring dream I’m at the movies, I don’t remember what I’m seeing The screen turns into a tidal wave Then it’s a dorm room, like a hedge maze And when I find you You touch my leg, and I insist But I wake up before we do it - Phoebe Bridgers, “Garden Song”

While the singles “Garden Song,” “Kyoto,” and “I See You” conjured the comfort of nostalgic reflection on past relationships, travels, and feelings, the release of the album signaled something much bigger. While the tone and lyrics of the album firmly rooted themselves in my personal vignettes of growing up in the Midwest, the project as a whole took on new meanings for the second half of 2020. I could talk all day about Phoebe’s masterful songwriting and storytelling and her next-level use of strings to elevate the album into pure elegance, but that’s what music critics are for. Instead, I’m going to talk about why this album is my favorite album of 2020 and why it means so much to me.

Past the aforementioned nostalgic-bedroom vibes that Punisher completely encapsulated in the beginning of quarantine, the album became a living, breathing entity throughout the second half of 2020, a familiar friend that accompanied me wherever I went, reminded me where I came from, and reassured me that despite how crazy everything in the world was, hope and joy hadn’t left. This album comforted me the same way the sun, the moon, and the stars are omnipresent—I may not think about them all the time, but when I really notice them, I’m stunned by their ethereal beauty and humble protection.

There were multiple moments when Punisher and these celestial bodies connected in sublimity. I watched the setting sun paint the Rocky Mountains orange and purple as I came down from a summit listening to “Kyoto” and thinking about family and adventure. I sat under the stars in remote areas of the Catskills, the Finger Lakes, Isle La Motte, and southeast Oklahoma listening to “Chinese Satellite” and appreciating the connections of friends and lovers. On October nights I chewed on my cheeks and stared at the full moon, engrossed in the bizarrely mysterious energy of strange strangers in Washington Square Park with “Halloween” and “The Moon Song” on repeat. I watched the sun set over the Hudson throughout the entirety of election week listening to “I Know the End,” which captured the grandiose conclusiveness of the past four years both politically and personally, the quickly-approaching end of the year (and hopefully chaos of) 2020, the end of the autumn I spent back in NYC, and the imminent decision to return home to Oklahoma for the winter, all within five minutes and 45 seconds. All of the moments with these songs presented me with glimmers of beauty and eternity intertwined, reassuring me that I don’t have to carry the burden of the world because the world is graciously carrying the burden of me.

It’s been mentioned by everyone who wrote about Punisher, but all of the emotions that have been distorted, accelerated, and pushed to their limits in the past year can be captured by the cathartic screams of Phoebe and friends at the end of the album. For that I say thank you, Phoebe Bridgers, for putting out a work of art that has helped me get through 2020. I know I’ll be screaming along in the years to come.

Driving out into the sun Let the ultraviolet cover me up Went looking for a creation myth Ended up with a pair of cracked lips

Windows down, scream along To some America first rap, country song A slaughterhouse, an outlet mall Slot machines, fear of God

Windows down, heater on Big bolts of lightning hanging low Over the coast, everyone’s convinced It’s a government drone or an alien spaceship

Either way, we’re not alone I’ll find a new place to be from A haunted house with a picket fence To float around and ghost my friends No, I’m not afraid to disappear The billboard said, “The end is near” I turned around, there was nothing there Yeah, I guess the end is here

The end is here The end is here The end is here The end is here

AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - Phoebe Bridgers, “I Know the End”

[writer59january13]

Watching upcoming toilet bowl lvii highlight of February 12th, 2023

Above title attests

how mine mundane mein kampf

insync as a veritable clogged drain oh:

flush with adventure overflowing excrement er... rather excitement.

Apt aforementioned accurate personal description

believe me not, but urination

and defecation née emergency evacuation,

where majority of human league

smell bound with fascination

triggered (reasonably rhyming) inspiration

culmination of requisite time

sitting atop porcelain goddess

devoid of hesitation and trepidation herewith follows mine poetic ululation hoop fully invites veneration.

Poetic embellishment doth belie

ever since garden variety generic guy

long since experienced being little boy

mean kids constantly teased and bullied me

on account yours truly being small fry

barely invisible to naked eye

bullied (most my entire boyhood)

as scapegoat, I did decry pleading lame feeble alibi,

especially when tawny punk

named Phil (actually a groundhog)

threw suckerpunch witnessing,

yours truly feigned falling

upon wounded knobby knee

to avoid me countenance being pummeled

courtesy knuckle sandwich

they threatened to apply.

One puny socially verily withdrawn lad

no surprise experienced suicidal ideation

throughout public school even as undergrad

never wagon figurative tail when fired

from one after another workstation.

Hence metaphorically hermetically sealed self

against incessant beastie boys squirreled away

amidst imaginative escapes courtesy bookshelf

isolates myself, viz remaining figuratively at bay

interestingly enough petrified livingsocial whereby

flesh and bone closely resembled hardened clay

hashtagged Matthew Scott Harris as pipsqueak

deadset to halt physical maturation without delay

anorexia nervosa (modus operandi) did buzzfeed

starved and emaciated lovely bones as main entree

unbeknownst then, but clear as a bell now

emotional state of parents unspooled and didst fray

father and mother aghast their pallor went ashen gray

grim reaper wielding large scythe intimating hooray

approximately half dozen years later

both parents relentlessly vilified verbally hammered

and especially didst inveigh

against their sole singular son

born thirteenth of January

hooded think those folks

who begot me more cruel fate

then being lynched courtesy triple "K."

Gambone builders bought property razed demesne

to escape vitriolic wrath atop roof at Glen Elm, I lay

nevertheless indelible memories emotional reprieve

spiritual succor delivered upon many a bygone May

when heat radiating off shingles served newgateway

passing time and wishing myself far as Norway adopting role of bachelor farmer,

or even time traveling back Catskills circa Borscht Belt,

also known as Jewish Alps oy vey.

Yours truly risk averse

which characteristic,

I declare constitutes curse

thus isolation found me sprawled out

upon wuthering heights

against regular diet of diatribes

delivered carte blanche

with expletive filled verse

toward solitary son ill fate

receiving nasty brutal abuse

considered dying far less worse.

Precious minutes and hours atop

seven gabled hideaway blithely did elapse

me gingerly scuttling out attic window

though agoraphobic and loathe to drop

distance and no longer courting death

no matter concluding life (during

early/mid twenties) total flop

merely wishing raging machinations against male offspring would stop.

Hurtful words yelled after papa

guzzled bottles of vermouth (not really, I admittedly prevaricate)

courtesy late father and mother

resoundingly, severely, terrifyingly,

wickedly, violently uncouth

subjected imbalanced earthling

(yours truly - me)

think venomous metaphorical

bloody blackened barbs,

viz inconveniently grossly, egregiously

one after another hurtful

figurative daggers antithesis of truth,

albeit synopsis regarding

second born (middle child - sole son)

begat courtesy Harriet and Boyce

upon their psychologically harried

flesh out the womb of young mother

(both parents now long since deceased)

now said heir long in the tooth

wordsmith here wonders why forsooth

he tolerated torturous abuse.

[goldrushed]

.

[wonderlandleighleigh]

Catskills fluff? Any verse of your choice, but maybe a waaaaay down the road Spring and Summer? Loved the most recent chapter!

(Spring and Summer (Every Other Day), 1963)

Lenny is fascinated by the transformation that Midge's family undergoes in the Catskills. Abe is more chipper. Rose is friendlier. Even Midge seems happier.

And the bizarre thing is that the other Steiner guests seem a little afraid of the Weissman family. Sure, everyone is friendly, but Pauly gets a brief, yet oh-so-intense look of dread in his eyes when he sees one of them coming.

And while Lenny isn't thrilled about being here (his manager had shooed him out of the city, away from the legal drama going on. "Let the lawyers handle it, Lenny. Go somewhere you can't make headlines, the lawyers will do what I pay them to do"), he's completely, utterly transfixed by his girlfriend and her family's strange transformation.

Also, his daughter is having a great time. So. Added bonus.

He's settled on the loveseat on the porch of their bungalow, early in the morning. He had wanted to read, but he cannot help but watch Abe at the edge of the dock in his romper, doing his calisthenics.

It is a deeply odd experience. I brings to mind one of his few vivid, good memories of his own father, at the beach on Long Island, early in the morning, taking an early swim.

It actually sounds pretty good. He slips back into he house, and back up the stairs, changing quickly from his jeans into his swim shorts and a thin t-shirt.

Lenny rounds over to the bed before he leaves, kissing Midge.

"Be back in a bit," he whispers.

"No," she pouts, still half asleep, reaching out and grabbing him by the waistband.

He chuckles. "I promise. I'm just gonna swim a little."

An eye cracks open. "You swim?"

"I do, sometimes. I did grow up in a place with 'island' in the name," he reminds her, kissing her again. "Be back."

She pulls him in for one more kiss before letting him go, and he slips out, leaving her to sleep in, heading back down the stairs and out the door, heading toward the dock as Abe heads in his direction.

"Ah. Lenny."

"Abe."

"You've seen my romper."

"Yes."

They stands silently.

"I'll see you later," Abe says abruptly.

"Yep."

He keeps heading towards the dock and and takes a breath when he gets to the edge, looking out at the quiet lake in the almost-dawn.

He's two years clean. His career is stable, despite the arrests. His kid is living with him now. Things with Midge are really fucking good. They've been talking about getting married; about making all of this official, but they've both been married before and they're both a little gun-shy on the topic.

Still.

He takes a breath and dives in, swimming out from the dock, stopping and looking around him, lifting his hands to push his wet hair away from his eyes.

He takes another deep breath and dips under, staying submerged with his eyes closed. It's calm and quiet under the water, and Lenny finds himself staying under as long as he can, enjoying the cool silence.

It becomes an imperative to come up for air, and he surfaces, wiping the water from his eyes and his hair from his face one more time. When he looks back to the dock, it's to find Midge sitting there with her legs in the water, looking out into the distance. She's clearly wearing her swimsuit with a coverup over it.

Lenny swims back to her, catching his breath for having swum faster than before.

"Good swim?" Midge asks, smiling down at him.

He nods. "It's nice this early in the morning."

She nods, taking a breath. "Mhm. Peaceful."

He hops back up on the dock to sit next to her, leaning in to kiss her cheek and she laughs, pushing against him a little.

"You're soaked!"

"I swam."

"I know."

"I figured you'd sleep more," Lenny says.

Midge smirks. "I would have, but I couldn't stop thinking about you in your cute swim shorts."

He chuckles. "Yes, I am quite fetching. If there were a Mister Steiner swimsuit competition, I'd be a shoe-in."

She laughs softly. "You kick all those other guys' asses. But you couldn't compete, because as much as we are joined at the hip, we are not married."

Lenny snaps. "That's right. Shit. I'd be stuck being the sash boy."

"But you'd look hot doing it," Midge tells him.

He grins and looks out at the water again. "Midge."

"Yeah."

"Should we?"

"What? Start a Mister Steiner pageant?" she asks, giggling. "Pauly might actually have a heart attack and die."

He lets out a short laugh. "No. No, I mean-" he turns and gazes at her, shrugging helplessly.

"Oh," she says softly. "That."

"We practically are anyways," Lenny reminds her. "You spend more time at my place than you do at your own some weeks. You even bring the kids over. I'm in a good place. So are you. It seems like...maybe..."

Midge takes a breath and stares into his eyes. "Do you want to because it's just...the next logical step? The path of least resistance?" She pauses and takes a breath. "Or do you want to because you love me, and you want to spend our lives together?"

He takes her hand, stroking her fingers gently. "I love you. One way or another, I'm expecting to spend our lives together. Wedding ring or no. It is the next logical step. I suppose...I suppose my answer is that it's both."

"Kitty and I could move in with you. Add to the deep chaos in your life," Lenny offers. "It'd certainly give you more material for your act."

Midge takes a breath, looking back out at the water. "It feels a little strange to get married to you and have you move into the apartment my first marriage started in. We could find a new place. One that's just ours."

Lenny grins, bumping her shoulder with his gently. "Does sound nice."

She smiles, and despite his continued dampness, kisses him.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Guantanamera Playing For Change Song Around The World

* * * * *

“I was singing for the children at a summer camp up in the Catskill Mountains, and when I finished singing, the children said, ‘Oh, we have a song to teach you.’ And I was- you know, I said, ‘Can you send it to me?’ ‘No!��� They sat me down. They brought out this very shy young man. He was a Cuban who was studying music in the Manhattan music school. And I listened and I said, ‘I don’t know Spanish, but that’s a nice chorus. I bet I could get people singing that chorus.’ 

And I’ve sung this song in 35 countries of the world. I’ve sung it in Japan and China and India and Africa, Latin America, of course. And I now - I’m convinced that Jose Marti ranks right up there along with Shakespeare and Pushkin as one of the world’s great, great poets. So simple. This was his last book of poetry before he was killed. He participated in an abortive uprising in 1895. Hey, it’s going to be 100 years since he wrote this - it is 100 years since he wrote this song, just about. ‘I am a truthful man from this land of palm trees. Before dying, I want to share these poems of my soul. My poems are light green, but they are also flaming red.’ Then there’s a verse says, ‘I cultivate a rose in June and in January for the friend who gives me his hand. And for the cruel one, who would tear out this heart with which I live, I do not cultivate thistles nor nettles. I cultivate a white rose.’” 

– Pete Seeger, May 1994

The “Guantanamera" video below is one of my favorite “Playing for Change” tracks.“Playing for Change” is a group dedicated to breaking down the boundaries and overcome distances between people. That includes 15 music schools across 11 countries, documentaries and viral videos bringing artists from different cultures together.

This video was recorded and produced with Jackson Browne who said that "traveling with ‘Playing for Change’ across Cuba was one of the most rewarding and inspiring musical experiences of my life."Luis Conte, “Playing for Change” musician and renowned Cuban percussionist called the video "a project of humanity and emotion, of brotherhood among Cubans, of friendship and love for Cuba. We are from that place, and music binds us together.”Papa Orbe Ortiz, another “Playing for Change” Band member from Cuba said that “not since the Buena Vista Social Club did so many Cuban musicians get together. It was an encounter between musicians in Cuba and outside, where there was no room for politics or anything else that wasn’t music and love.”So forget your troubles and sing and dance!

Que buena musica! Muchas gracias Pete Seeger y “Playing for Change”.Click the link below to experience the wonder and joy of “Playing for Change”

.https://youtu.be/WkA9b2W-0Fw

[cynocephalii]

harlan verse deets:

wolfin gets tired of the catskills and decides to move. she throws a dart at a map and it lands on harlan, kentucky.

she's definitely an outsider there. it's rough being brown and mixed in a southern white trash town but what else is new.

she finds a job as a farmhand given her background growing up on a dairy farm and it's nice to work with the cows again.

everyone in this town is way too evangelical for her liking so she learns to deal with it in an "oh sorry i'm pagan" sort of way just to piss everyone off.

she definitely vibes with harlan's weird hellmouth energy though.

[livepasthope]

me looking at my angsty 16 year old self standing in a freezing mountain creek in the catskills i think (?), pensively gazing out at the landscape and really aggressively singing along to the last verse of sound of silence: oh honey you’ve got a big storm coming

[klaineccfanficlibrary]

Do you have any fics Klaine teasing each other, a lot? Can be sexual teasing or just some too-sweet-it-make-me-cavities teasing

Lynne and I found some good ones for you. - HKVoyage

The Handcuffing of Kurt Hummel by K8Malloy

A/U. Most of the time, people were charmed by Deputy Sheriff Blaine Anderson, even while receiving a well-deserved traffic ticket. Of course, Kurt Hummel wasn't 'most people'. How long will it take before Kurt finds himself in handcuffs - with Deputy Anderson holding the key?

~~~~~

Always A Contest by Verseau_87

Prompt: What about a dancer one. Dancing competition or audition or a ballet or something like that. Both as rivals or partners or strangers that have to perform together. Tension, attraction, sexiness

I think I nailed it, you decide ;)

~~~~~

War of the Words by @arainymonday

Kurt and Blaine are famous online book reviewers with thousands of followers each and a professional rivalry. When their snarky banter gets out of hand, their blogging partners Rachel and Tina conspire to get them to work out their sexual tension in less verbal, more physical ways.

Sequel: Jingle Blogs 

~~~~~

Off Limits by @munchkinpandas24

For once in Blaine Anderson’s life he was pretty happy with how his life was going. He had an epic college experience with his best friend Jamie. They partied way too much, studied way too little and slept with their fair share of the best ASU had to offer. But one rejection letter later and Jamie was moving to San Diego to pursue his PHD while Blaine got accepted to the doctorate program at their Alma Mater. ASU without Jamie didn’t make sense to Blaine and he was not happy about it. To top everything off Jamie asked Blaine to look after his little brother Kurt who was starting his freshman year of college. Kurt wasn’t the little kid he pictured when Jamie asked Blaine to let him move in and it was clear things were about to change even more than Blaine had expected. In short, Blaine Anderson was screwed.

~~~~~

Wandering Around Back to You by @munchkinpandas24​

From strangers to floormates to best friends, to roommates, to the closest two people can be. This is the story of two boys who found each other and never let go.

~~~~~

Surface Tension by @gleekto

Kurt, a graduated junior from Lima, Ohio, is looking forward to just being part of the crowd at an arts based overnight camp in the Catskills - as far from Lima and as close to New York as he can get himself at age 17. It’s perfect - Everyone dances and sings and comes from places that are distinctly not Lima. He can blend in without being ‘the gay kid’. Sexuality irrelevant. Finally.

And it’s blissful, it is. Until he meets the laughably cocky head of canoe staff, Blaine Anderson. Camp veteran, athlete by day, performer by night, every camper’s crush, every staff’s confidante. He’s only Kurt’s age, but he’s in charge of his section. And also, it seems, is proudly, non-chalantly, and totally, a perfect gold star gay. The out-est boy he has ever met. He is infuriating.

~~~~~

The Symphony Verse by shandyall 

Blaine has spent most of his life feeling like the only thing people notice about him is that he stutters. He’s working hard to overcome his (mostly self created) roadblocks when he meets Kurt in an online class the summer after his freshman year of college.

Note: This story is Part 1 of The Symphony Verse.

[nothingeverlost]

anextrapart replied to your post “I’m sick with the flu and all I want now that I’ve finished season 3...”

I'm currently picturing Lenny's face during the Catskills welcome song

Priceless.

I’m picturing Lenny’s new stand up routine after a week in the Catskills.

“Nothing much convinces like the taste of Steiner blintzes In the summer”

Now I have to give someone somewhere credit for rhyming convinces with blintzes.  Unfortunately this is probably the same person who rhymed Steiner with finer and dance all night with happy Israelite. Is there such thing as a happy Israelite?  I thought there was a verse against that in Leviticus.

Now my favorite thing was a game of Simon says.  Have you played this game? It’s something kids play on playgrounds all over, usually when a teacher has given up getting the kiddies to sit at the desk.  But not at Steiner.  Simon says is strictly an adult game.

No, not like that.  That would be ‘Lenny says.’  Lenny says put your shoulders back.  Nice.  Lenny says take a step to the left with your left leg only.  Now kneel.  Opps! Lenny didn’t say ‘Lenny says.’  Well, if you insist on changing the rules...

Speaking of rules, apparently, there’s a lot of rules for camping in the Catskills...    

[sweetdreamsjeff]

That Was So Real: Jeff Buckley's Collaborators Tell The Story Behind 'Grace'

8/23/2019 by Steven Edelstone

Celebrating its 25th anniversary, the album is being reissued today alongside the release of four full live sets.

“Hey remember that riff you played me at your parents’ place when we were playing guitar on your bed?”

It was April 1994 and singer-songwriter Jeff Buckley’s classic debut album, Grace -- which turns 25 today (Aug. 23), and is being celebrated with a major reissue via Columbia/Legacy Recordings -- was essentially done, set to come out in just a few months. Buckley, then 27, had recently enlisted his friend Michael Tighe, just 19 at the time, to play guitar in his live band as he was gearing up for what would become a grueling, almost two-year world tour.

He convened the rest of his band, made up of bassist Mick Grøndahl and drummer Matt Johnson, to record some B-sides at Sony Studios in Midtown, Manhattan. It was Tighe’s first rehearsal and it began with Buckley asking him to play a guitar riff he showed him at his parents’ place in the West Village about a year and a half prior.

The song quickly became “So Real,” a track that would eventually be situated at the heart of Grace, a stunning alt-rock track that would break up the hushed fingerpicked guitars of “Lilac Wine” and “Hallelujah" -- the latter of which has remained in the public memory long after his death, and still serves as the introduction to his back catalogue to many.

“I played it, and he got behind the drums and started singing the melody to the chorus, and we kind of knew it was something special,” Tighe remembers. “We did the instrumental and that night, he just took a long walk around Hell’s Kitchen and came back and had the lyrics and the melody for the verses and he laid it all down in like two takes. Afterwards, he was like, ‘I want this song to go on the album.’”

“When Jeff took what he did and put his vocals on it and his lyrics, I couldn’t believe it,” Johnson adds. “I thought it was unbelievable. I was like, ‘Oh my god, this guy is amazing!’ I loved what he did, and I was so impressed with the way his melody was so unimaginable, given the instrumental track. In a million years I never would have thought about that.”

But there was one issue: Buckley wanted to add “So Real” to the tracklist in the place of “Forget Her,” a sorrowful and dark, yet direct song that higher ups at the label, including producer Andy Wallace, wanted as the lead single. Buckley now wanted it to remain unreleased entirely.

“It’s the one thing with the album that I wasn’t happy with, that “Forget Her” was left off -- because it was absolutely intended to be part of the album,” Wallace explains, noting that the song was 100% done at the time. “I remember we took him out to dinner, Don [Ienner, Chairman of Sony Music Label Group], Steve [Berkowitz, A&R executive at Columbia who signed Buckley], and me. If I recall correctly, the main point of that dinner was, ‘Reconsider Jeff, blah blah blah.’ He was adamant, and God bless him, he stuck to his guts.”

                           Read More            

Jeff Buckley's Manager On Why He Waited 21 Years To Release Memoir: 'It's Raw To This Day'

For as great as the ultra-personal “Forget Her” was -- the song was eventually given a legitimate release years after Buckley’s tragic 1997 death on the Grace (Legacy Edition) compilation in 2004 -- it wasn’t necessary to launch the New York-based singer from legendary local live act to a worldwide cult phenomenon. Though the album was dogged by slow sales Stateside, eventually peaking at No. 149 on the Billboard 200 albums chart almost a year after its release (he was initially much more successful in Europe and especially in Australia), it was eventually certified Platinum by the RIAA in 2016, 22 years after it hit record stores.

Now, 25 years after its release, the album is being reissued by Columbia/Legacy Recordings, complete with the release of four full live sets: Live at Wetlands, New York, NY 8/16/94; Live From Seattle, WA, May 7, 1995; Cabaret Metro, Chicago, IL, May 13, 1995; and Live at Columbia Records Radio Hour.

But what became Grace was almost a radically different sounding album. Signed on the strength of his renowned residency at the now-closed East Village venue Sin-é, which saw Buckley perform a wide array of covers and original material each Monday night beginning in April 1992, Columbia initially mulled the idea of a debut release that would have reflected the sparse, solo-electric spirit of the shows, which were marked by his sense of humor and incredible crowdwork (check out his mini cover of Pakistani legend Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, sung over the “Smells Like Teen Spirit” riff). Though some songs in that vein would make the eventual album -- his covers of “Hallelujah” and “Lilac Wine,” originally by Leonard Cohen and James Shelton (and made popular by Nina Simone and Eartha Kitt), respectively, were the most prominent examples -- Buckley, as well as Wallace and Berkowitz, decided to go in a different direction.

“He wanted to do a band album; he didn’t want to do a solo thing,” Wallace says, who has since worked with Coldplay, Paul McCartney, and The Strokes, amongst dozens of other high profile bands. “There was some talk about that, whether it was best to do something that reflected what he was doing at Sin-é, because he was so good at it. It’s hard to do a full album of just the solo thing, especially because so much of his magic had to do with his persona and his live interaction with the audience. That’s virtually impossible to capture on a record, at least with the same impact.”

The label agreed on the condition that they would put out an EP recording of one of the Sin-é gigs, which was later stretched out into a full LP in 2003. Released in late 1993, it included two originals, as well as stunning renditions of Van Morrison’s “The Way Young Lovers Do” and his take on an old French song, “Je n’en connais pas la fin.” This served as a way to introduce Buckley to an audience outside of Lower Manhattan, hint that more music was on the way, and allow him to pursue forming a real band.

“He just always wanted to be in a band, that was his dream,” Tighe says, who has since written songs alongside Andrew Wyatt for Liam Gallagher, and worked with Adele. “He idolized Led Zeppelin and the chemistry that bands have -- to a degree, the family unit that a band has. I think he really wanted that for a long time.”

Though he now had a trio, made up of Grøndahl, Johnson, and himself, to record with -- Tighe wasn’t added until the recording sessions were largely completed -- Wallace still wanted Buckley to record a bevy of paired-down solo versions of all of the songs. Most nights while recording in Bearsville, New York, a small town in the Catskills, Wallace would have him go out to the live room after dinner -- maybe with a glass of wine -- and perform his Sin-é gig without stopping.

                           Read More            

Live Jeff Buckley Recordings Will Soon Be Available for Streaming

It was in this setting that Buckley was most relaxed (“He definitely seemed like he was most comfortable when he was playing live in general,” Tighe believes), and it allowed him to unwind a bit, while still recording. This is one of the main reasons why so much solo material has been released since his death on various legacy albums and compilations: There’s a still-unreleased version of “Hallelujah” with an extended minor key intro floating around somewhere, Wallace says.

While a lot of the song arrangements were hammered out in pre-production rehearsals, this was an incredibly new band, very much still feeling each other out. Some of these songs were born in the recording studio, including “Dream Brother” -- which, like “So Real,” was marked by the instrumental track being recorded before Buckley had even written the lyrics or melody.

“My musicianship I wouldn’t say was great at the time, but I did feel like I was resonant with Jeff emotionally -- and just in terms of the raw quality of listening to music as music,” Johnson remembers, now the drummer for St. Vincent since 2011. “The depth of his listening showed me how to play music in many ways. The sensitivity to his voice… It was kind of scary sometimes. I felt like a bull in a china shop. I felt like I wasn’t good enough to be in his band. It was formative, and it made me who I am.”

Song after song was then cranked out in that big, ambient room in Upstate New York. From the wild quiet-loud dynamics of “Mojo Pin” to the magical Kerl Berger-arranged strings on “Last Goodbye,” it was obvious that they were working on something extraordinary.

“There’s never a turning point where a light goes on, and you’re like, ‘Oh my god, this is an incredible album!’” Wallace says. “But I can remember the first time that I really went, ‘Wow, this is not just a young guy with a great voice and a great ability to entertain an audience. It was probably the first time I went to see him at Sin-é and he played ‘Grace,’ which I had never heard before... I remember very specifically, looking over at [Buckley’s manager] George [Stein], ‘Where did that song come from? I’ve never heard that!’ And he said, ‘Oh that’s one of Jeff’s originals.’ That was the first time I felt, ‘Wow, there’s something really special going on.’”

The album would take Buckley and his band around the world multiple times over, even returning to play the same metro areas multiple times in the same year to develop his fanbase, with a heavy investment by Columbia. Always the consummate live performer, Buckley would sometimes leave his own bandmates stunned.

“There would be some nights where he would do some things with his voice where it would completely blow me away,” Tighe remembers. “The thing about performing with him is that he managed to cast a spell over the audience and because of that voice he had, he did the same with the band members. It was like we were in a bit of a trance most of the time. He really had that kind of power to his voice.”

If anything, those around him remember Buckley most for his passion and his sense of humor. Whether it was seeing him light up when meeting his hero, Jimmy Page, after a show at a beautiful theatre in Melbourne or just joking around in the tour van, he had a sensitive and magnetic personality that lives on in everyone that knew him personally.

“There’s a line in one of his songs on [the posthumous release, Sketches for] My Sweetheart the Drunk, ‘I miss my beautiful friend,’” Wallace says, tearing up over the phone as he recites the lyric from “Morning Theft.” “Every time I think of that, I miss my beautiful friend. And I’ve never stopped missing him.”