#tuscaloosa billy

[vampyxqh]

Me when I see Devon Bostick

[doueverwonder]

seeing @louis--wifey talk about their texicali kids so much made me think about my indibama kids again so i'm posting them lol (mom is indy bc I am a femIndiana truther)

Mobile, 'Billy', 17, (he/him)

Typically very warm and friendly, and the top offender when it comes to passive-aggressively making people take care of themselves. Currently going through an aloof phase, he’ll get over it though. Has and has had, a lot of nonconventional pets over the years snakes, turtles, frogs, salamanders, a couple ant farms (fire ants once though he made sure his parents didn’t find out about that…). Locked in a lifelong feud with New Orleans over Mardis Gras (he also has a crush on her but the feud is more important >:[) 

Fort Wayne, 'Winnie', 14, (she/her)

Personality much like her namesake General “mad” Anthony Wayne. Her passion for just about everything she’s into isn’t always bad but she is very easy to rile up, very short fuse, regular in both the nurses and principals offices. Really much like Alabama, but somehow worse. Very passionate about the environment but in a very 14 yr old way, out here scolding her family members for things like not recycling and leaving the sink on while they brush their teeth. 

Huntsville, 'Hunt', 13, (she/her)

Loudest of the kids no competition, the child can scream and will not hesitate to do so. Usually just because she’s just so excited and can’t keep it all bottled up or she feels like she’s going to burst. Got her passion for mechanics from Indiana, but instead of getting into cars and developing a bordering unhealthy obsession with NASCAR like mom and dad went “you know what’s cooler than race cars? Spaceships!!” and it all was downhill from there. Definitely a Mathlete. 

Evansville, 'Evan', 12, (she/her)

The most mild of all the kids, not really loud and angry like dad, not really quiet and passive-aggressive like mom. She’s the mild salsa of people, and she is definitely happy that way. Very interested in medical fields, particularly the ones most people find the grossest, knows a lot of medicine history though mostly civil war and ww1. Walk away now if you don’t want to hear about the history of amputations and prosthetics. 

Tuscaloosa, 'Lucy', 11, (he/him) (twin)

The rough and tumble kid, much like Alabama when he was young. Stubborn and very opinionated. Wishes he was still the capital, often jealous that Montgomery gets to be it. Football is already his entire personality, wears nothing but Crimson Tide merch, and has played youth football since he was four. Regular in urgent care, not always for football related injuries because he is also just has dumbass as a personality trait. 

Montgomery, 'Monty', 11, (he/him) (twin)

Most quiet and anxious of the kids, much like Indiana when she was young, and also like his namesake General Richard Montgomery. Even already often wishes Tuscaloosa was still the capital just to not have to deal with the responsibility of it. Absolute history nerd, “did ya know-” could be his catchphrase with how often he walks up to any available family member to go on his latest ramble. Plays football too, but really hates it, too nervous to tell Alabama he doesn’t like it. 

Indianapolis, 'IJ', 11, (he/him) (Irish triplet)

How to kindly call an eleven year old a snobby, self-important, prick. Genuinely thinks he’s the center of the universe, not helped by the fact that he is in the dead center of Indiana. Has that previously mentioned bordering unhealthy obsession with NASCAR. He's also just so... annoyingly patriotic, but doesn't show it until you're too far in to the conversation to just walk away.

South Bend, 'Joey', 9, (they/them)

I mean this affectionately, they’re weird. You either die a weird little boy or live to see yourself become a weird nonbinary teenager. Car enthusiasts, but not specifically NASCAR like the majority of the family, just generally likes cars. While you studied the blade they were at antique car shows. Really close with good ol’ Uncle Michigan. 

Birmingham, 'Bee', 8, (he/him)

Greco-Roman myths nerd over here, never going to leave his PJO phase. That baby of the family privileges really make up half this guys personality, gets whatever he wants bc he's mamas baby boy. Not really relevant to his personality but he is a solid kid, v dense.

[spac3d0lls]

(and why is it casper)

i’m doing this knowing that rodrick will win and jasper will be second but i wanna see what the other rankings will be

[jpbjazz]

LÉGENDES DU JAZZ

DINAH WASHINGTON, LA REINE DU BLUES

"She could strut through jazz, slide through pop and break your heart with ballads {...}. Dinah Washington could work magic with a song, taking it apart and stitching it back together in her own quirky and moving way."

- Betty De Ramus et Leslie Gourse 

Née le 29 août 1924 à Tuscaloosa, en Alabama, Ruth Lee Jones, dite Dinah Washington, était la fille de Ollie Jones, un journalier qui avait travaillé pour la Kaul Lumber Company, et d’Asalea (Alice) Williams, une pianiste et directrice de chorale. Afin de fuir le Ku Klux Klan dont les activités prenaient de plus en plus de place en Alabama à l’époque, Ollie Jones avait installé sa famille à Chicago lorsque Ruth avait trois ou quatre ans.

Très impliquée dans la musique gospel et les spirituals, Ruth avait joué du piano dans la chorale de la St. Luke's Baptist Church alors qu’elle étudiait à l’école élémentaire. Dès qu’elle avait commencé à s’intéresser à la musique, Ruth n’avait jamais caché son intention de faire carrière dans le showbusiness.

À l’âge de huit ans, la voix de Ruth était devenue assez puissante pour chanter des harmonies avec sa mère. C’est alors qu’elle avait commencé à apprendre le piano. À l’âge de onze ans, Ruth avait commencé à se produire comme chanteuse de gospel à travers le pays.

En 1939, à la fin de ses études secondaires, Ruth s’était jointe aux Sallie Martin Gospel Singers dont elle était devenue une des solistes principales. En plus d’avoir fondé le groupe qui portait son nom, Sallie Martin était la co-fondatrice de la Gospel Singers Convention. Parallèlement à sa collaboration avec les Sallie Martin Gospel Singers, Washington avait également commencé à se produire dans les clubs de Chicago. Après avoir décroché son diplôme du Wendell Phillips High School, Ruth avait dirigé la chorale de l’église méthodiste.

Après avoir découvert Billie Holiday à l’âge de quinze ans, Ruth avait commencé à s’intéresser à la musique populaire et au jazz. Impressionnée par la façon dont Holiday s’appropriait des mélodies plutôt banales en y ajoutant des touches de blues, Ruth avait également été très étonnée que Billie puisse faire autant d’argent comme chanteuse alors qu’elle-même en gagnait très peu.

Au grand désarroi de sa mère, Ruth avait même chanté des balades romantiques dans le cadre des spectacles de son high school. La mère de Ruth était particulièrement horrifiée à la perspective que sa fille finisse puisse poursuivre une carrière dans les clubs.

Ruth était âgée de dix-sept ans lorsqu’elle avait épousé son premier mari, John Young. Après le mariage, Young, qui avait vingt-trois ans, avait emmenagé avec sa femme chez des membres de sa famille. Le couple avait divorcé trois mois plus tard. Même si elle avait chanté dans les clubs sans le consentement de sa mère, Ruth avait tenu à rester en contact avec sa famille et avait même partagé avec son entourage une partie de ses gains, mais sans leur préciser la source de ses revenus.

DÉBUTS DE CARRIÈRE

Après avoir remporté un concours amateur au Regal Theater de Chicago où elle avait chanté la pièce "I Can't Face the Music" à l’âge de seulement quinze ans, Ruth avait commencé à se produire dans les clubs. En 1941-42, Ruth avait cessé de chanter du gospel et s’était produite dans des bars de Chicago comme le Dave's Café, le Rhumboogie Club et le Downbeat Room de l’Hôtel Sherman (aux côtés de Fats Waller). Ruth chantait au club de jazz The Three Deuces lorsque une amie l’avait emmenée voir Billie Holiday au Garrick Stage Bar. Le propriétaire du club, Joe Sherman, avait été tellement impressionné par la voix de Ruth sur la pièce "I Understand" qu’il avait décidé de l’engager sur-le-champ.

C’est durant son contrat d’un an au Garrick que Ruth avait adopté le nom de scène de Dinah Washington. La chanteuse avait plus tard attribué le mérite à Sherman de l’avoir convaincue de renoncer au nom de Ruth Jones en faveur de celui de Dinah Washington. L’origine du surnom de Washington a d’ailleurs continué de faire l’objet de débats jusqu’à nos jours. Si Lionel Hampton avait prétendu être à l’origine du surnom, d’autres avait affirmé que c’était plutôt une suggestion du gérant Joe Glaser. D’autres sources avaient attribué le surnom au propriétaire du club Joe Sherman.

Quoi qu’il en soit, c’est avoir entendu Washington chanter au club Three Deuces de Chicago que Hampton l’avait engagée pour faire l’ouverture du Chicago Regal Theatre avec son orchestre. Washington avait fait partie du groupe de Hampton de 1943 à 1946. Hampton, qui avait adoré jouer avec Washington, avait d’ailleurs écrit dans ses mémoires que la chanteuse “eclipsed anyone who followed her”.

Washington avait fait ses débuts sur disque en décembre 1943 sur la chanson "Evil Gal Blues" de Leonard Feather. Lors de la session, Washington était accompagnée par des musiciens de l’orchestre d’Hampton incluant Joe Morris à la trompette et Milt Bucker au piano. Le disque et l’enregistrement qui l’avait suivi,  "Salty Papa Blues", s’étaient classés sur le "Harlem Hit Parade" du magazine Billboard en 1944. La carrière de Washington était lancée. La même année, Washington avait rencontré le musicien George Jenkins. Tombée enceinte, Washington avait épousé Jenkins peu avant la naissance de son fils George en juin 1946. Le couple avait divorcé à la fin de l’année.

En décembre 1945, Washington avait fait une série de douze enregistrements pour les disques Apollo avec les Lucky Thompson All Stars. Dix des douze enregistrements de la session avaient finalement été publiés.

Washington était demeurée avec l’orchestre de Hampton jusqu’au moment de la faillite des disques Keynote au début de 1946. Après avoir signé un nouveau contrat avec Mercury Records comme chanteuse soliste en janvier 1946, Washington avait enregistré sa chanson-thème “Slick Chick on the Mellow Side”. Elle avait aussi enregistré une version du classique de Fats Waller "Ain't Misbehavin'’’, qui avait également remporté un grand succès. En août 1947, Washington avait épousé son troisième mari, Robert Grayson. Ironiquement, Grayson était le fils du pasteur qui avait marié Washington à son premier mari John Young en 1946. Le couple avait fait vie commune durant un peu plus de deux ans et avait eu un fils, Bobby Jr.

De 1948 à 1955, Washington avait eu 27 chansons qui s’étaient classées dans les dix premières positions du palmarès R & B, ce qui en avait fait une des chanteuses le plus populaires de l’époque. De 1948 à 1961, Washington avait obtenu 45 succès sur le palmarès R & B. Seize de ses chansons s’étaient classées sur le Top 15 de 1948 à 1950. Parmi ces chansons, les pièces "Am I Asking Too Much" (1948) et "Baby Get Lost" (1949) avaient atteint la première position du palmarès R & B. Sa version de la chanson "I Wanna Be Loved" (1950) avait même réussi l’exploit de grimper à la 22e position du Hit Parade américain. En octobre 1950, Washington avait épousé son quatrième mari, Walter Buchanan, un contrebassiste qui l’avait accompagné sur ses enregistrements avec Mercury Records. Le mariage n’avait duré que trois mois.

Chanteuse très polyvalente, Washington avait interprété des chansons dans des styles musicaux aussi diversifiés que le blues, le R & B, les standards et la musique populaire. Elle avait même enregistré une version de la chanson "Cold, Cold Heart" de Hank Williams, qui avait atteint la 3e position du palmarès R & B en 1951. Washington avait enchaîné l’année suivante avec “Trouble in Mind” qui s’était classée à la 4e position du Hit Parade. Peu après, Washington avait épousé son cinquième mari, Larry Wrice, un batteur qui avait fait partie de son trio lors d’un engagement à Miami en décembre 1953. Le couple avait divorcé après moins d’un an. Washington avait plus tard rendu hommage à Wrice dans une chanson intitulée “My Man’s an Undertaker.”

À la même époque où elle avait décroché ses plus grands succès, Washington avait aussi participé à des sessions avec les plus grands musiciens de jazz de l’époque, dont Clifford Brown, Max Roach, Maynard Ferguson et Clark Terry avec qui elle avait enregistré l’album ‘’Dinah Jams’’ en 1954. En mars 1955, Washington avait enchaîné avec l’album ‘’Dinah Washington: For Those in Love.’’ Arrangé par Quincy Jones, l’album comprenait des standards du jazz comme ‘’This Can’t Be Love”, “I Could Write a Book” et “You Don’t Know What Love ls.”

Parmi les autres succès de Washington durant cette période, on remarquait "I Only Know", "I'll Never Be Free", "It Isn't Fair" et "Time Out for Tears."

Le 25 juin 1950, Washington s’était produite dans la 6e édition de la Cavalcade du Jazz tenue au stade Wrigley Field de Los Angeles. Produit par Leon Hefflin, Sr., le concert qui avait été présenté devant une foule de 16 000 spectateurs, mettait également en vedette Lionel Hampton, PeeWee Crayton's Orchestra, Roy Milton and his Orchestra, Tiny Davis and Her Hell Divers, et plusieurs autres. Le concert avait pris fin prématurément après que l’interprétation de la pièce "Flying High" par l’orchestre de Lionel Hampton ait failli dégénérer en émeute. Washington avait également participé à la 12e édition de la Cavalcade tenue au même endroit le 2 septembre 1956. Participaient également au concert Little Richard, The Mel Williams Dots, Julie Stevens, Chuck Higgin's Orchestra, Bo Rhambo, Willie Hayden & Five Black Birds, The Premiers, Gerald Wilson and His 20-Pc. Recording Orchestra et Jerry Gray and his Orchestra.

Même si elle avait été la chanteuse de Rhythm & blues la plus populaire du début des années 1950 (de 1947 à 1955, vingt-sept de ses chansons s’étaient inscrites dans les dix premières positions du Hit Parade et du palmarès R & B), Washington n’était cependant pas parvenue à franchir la barrière raciale. Washington avait même connu l’humiliation de voir des chanteuses blanches connaître du succès avec des chansons qu’elle avait été la première à enregistrer, comme "Wheel of Fortune’’, qui avait été reprise par Kay Starr en 1952. Parmi les autres succès de Washington sur le palmarès R & B, on remarquait "Trouble in Mind", "Fat Daddy" et "Teach Me Tonight." 

En 1957, Washington s’était remariée en 6e noces avec un de ses accompagnateurs, le chanteur et saxophoniste Eddie Chamblee. Washington avait divorcé de Chamlee l’année suivante, peu après l’avoir congédié en plein concert lors d’une performance à Miami.

Même si elle avait connu beaucoup moins de succès au milieu des années 1950, Washington était revenue en force en 1959 avec sa propre version de la chanson "What a Difference a Day Makes", une ballade de style ‘’bluesy’’ qui avait été très mal accueillie par les amateurs de blues en raison de son caractère trop commercial, mais qui s’était classée à la 4e position du Hit Parade américain. La chanson avait d’ailleurs valu à Washington de remporter un prix Grammy pour le meilleur disque de R & B. C’était la première fois que Washington se classait dans les dix premières positions du palmarès. Le groupe de Washington à l’époque comprenait le chef d’orchestre et arrangeur Belford Hendricks, le guitariste Kenny Burrell, le pianiste Joe Zawinul et le batteur Panama Francis. Après le succès inespéré de "What a Difference a Day Makes", Washington avait cessé d’enregistrer des chansons de blues et de jazz et s’était concentrée sur un matériel plus ‘’mainstream’’ la mettant en vedette dans des arrangements plutôt pompeux.

En 1960, Washington avait enchaîné avec une version de la chanson "Unforgettable" d’Irving Gordon, puis avec deux duos à succès avec le chanteur Brook Benton, "Baby (You've Got What It Takes)" et "A Rockin' Good Way (To Mess Around and Fall in Love)". Les deux chansons étaient tirées de l’album The Two of Us.

En janvier 1961, Washington avait épousé son septième mari, l’acteur d’origine dominicaine Rafael Campos. Fidèle à son tempérament plutôt instable, Washington avait divorcé quelques mois plus tard. Washington avait rencontré son huitième et dernier mari, le joueur de football des Lions de Detroit, Dick “Night Train” Lane, en juillet 1963.

Le dernier grand succès de Washington avait été la chanson  "September in the Rain" qui avait atteint la 23e position du Hit Parade et la 5e position du palmarès R & B  en 1960. Après avoir signé un contrat avec les disques Roulette en 1962, Washington avait de nouveau franchi les quarante premières positions du Hit Parade avec la chanson "Where Are You." Parallèlement., Washington avait continué de connaître du succès au palmarès R & B avec des chansons comme "This Bitter Earth."

En 1963, Washington s’était également produite avec les grands orchestres de Count Basie et Duke Ellington. Elle avait aussi fait des apparitions au cinéma dans des films comme Rock and Roll Revue (1955) et Jazz on a Summer's Day (1960).

Washington avait également enregistré deux blues plutôt suggestifs. La pièce "Long John Blues" (qui portait sur son dentiste) comprenait des paroles comme "He took out his trusty drill. Told me to open wide. He said he wouldn't hurt me, but he filled my whole inside." L’autre chanson était "Big Long Slidin' Thing", et faisait probablement référence à un tromboniste.

Dans les années 1950 et au début des années 1960, Washington s’était même produite à l’occasion dans un club de striptease de Las Vegas. Des décennies plus tard, le chanteur Tony Bennett avait déclaré au cours d’une session d’enregistrement avec la chanteuse Amy Winehouse: ‘’She was a good friend of mine, you know. She was great. She used to just come in with two suitcases in Vegas without being booked {...}. And she'd stay as long as she wanted. And all the kids in all the shows on the Strip would come that night. They'd hear that she's in town and it would be packed just for her performance.’’

En 1962, Washington avait joué avec un trio appelé The Allegros, qui était formé d’Earl Edwards au saxophone, de Jimmy Sigler à l’orgue et de Jimmy Thomas à la batterie. Edwards avait été remplacé plus tard par John Payne. Parmi les plus grandes réalisations de Washington, on remarquait des apparitions au Festival de jazz de Newport (1955–1959), au Randalls Island Jazz Festival de New York (1959), à l’International Jazz Festival de Washington, D.C. (1962), ainsi que plusieurs performances au club Birdland (1958, 1961–1962).

Connue pour sa vie sentimentale plutôt tumultueuse, Washington s’était mariée à au moins huit reprises. Elle avait divorcé six fois. Washington avait eu deux enfants, George Jr. (le fils de George Jenkins) et Bobby Jr. (le fils de Bobby Grayson). Washington habitait à Detroit, au Michigan.

Le matin du 14 décembre 1963, l’époux de Washington, le joueur de football Dick "Night Train" Lane, était allé se coucher à ses côtés. Lorsqu’il s’était réveillé, Lane avait découvert le corps inanimé de Washington. Elle avait seulement trente-neuf ans. Le Dr B.C. Ross avait émis le certificat de décès. L’autopsie avait révélé plus tard que Washington avait absorbé une combinaison mortelle de sécobarbital et d’amobarbital, deux médicaments qui lui avaient été prescrits pour soigner son insomnie et l’aider à contrôler sa diète. Washington a été inhumée au Burr Oak Cemetery à Alsip, dans les Illinois.

Washington avait remporté de nombreux honneurs au cours de sa carrière. En 1986, Washington avait été intronisée à titre posthume au sein du Alabama Jazz Hall of Fame. Sept ans plus tard, elle avait été admise au Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. Trois des enregistrements de Washington ont été inscrits au Grammy Hall of Fame, une distinction établie en 1973 pour honorer les enregistrements vieux d’au moins vingt-cinq ans et reconnus pour leur valeur qualitative et quantitative. Ces enregistrements étaient: “What a Difference a Day Makes”, ��Teach Me Tonight” et “Unforgettable”.

En 1964, la chanteuse Aretha Franklin avait rendu hommage à Washington dans le cadre de l’album ‘’Unforgettable: A Tribute to Dinah Washington.’’ Le Service fédéral des Postes a émis un timbre commémoratif de 29 cents en l’honneur de Washington en 1993. En 2005, le Board of Commissioners avait renommé le parc où Washington avait vécu à Chicago dans les années 1950 sous le nom de Dinah Washington Park. En 2008, la ville natale de Washington à Tuscaloosa, en Alabama, a rebaptisé la section de la 30e avenue entre la 15e rue et Kaulton Park Avenue Dinah Washington. La cérémonie officialisant l’adoption du nouveau nom a été tenue le 12 mars 2009 en présence du fils de Washington, Robert Grayson, et de trois de ses petits-enfants. Le 29 août 2013, après l’avoir rénové, la ville de Tuscaloosa avait également renommé le bâtiment abritant le Allen Jemison Hardware, situé au coin nord de Greensboro Avenue et de la 7e rue, sous le nom de Dinah Washington Cultural Arts Center.

Décrivant la contribution de Washington au monde du jazz, Richard S. Ginell écrivait sur le site All Music:

‘’[Washington] was at once one of the most beloved and controversial singers of the mid-20th century – beloved to her fans, devotees, and fellow singers; controversial to critics who still accuse her of selling out her art to commerce and bad taste. Her principal sin, apparently, was to cultivate a distinctive vocal style that was at home in all kinds of music, be it R&B, blues, jazz, middle of the road pop – and she probably would have made a fine gospel or country singer had she the time. Hers was a gritty, salty, high-pitched voice, marked by absolute clarity of diction and clipped, bluesy phrasing.’’

Loin d’être seulement une chanteuse de blues, Washington avait inspiré le commentaire suivant à Betty De Ramus et Leslie Gourse du magazine Ebony: "She could strut through jazz, slide through pop and break your heart with ballads {...}. Dinah Washington could work magic with a song, taking it apart and stitching it back together in her own quirky and moving way."

Dans son autobiographie publiée en 2001, le producteur et arrangeur Quincy Jones avait décrit le style de Washington de façon colorée en écrivant qu’elle pouvait ‘’take the melody in her hand, hold it like an egg, crack it open, fry it, let it sizzle, reconstruct it, put the egg back in the box and back in the refrigerator and you would’ve still understood every single syllable”. Le critique de jazz Leonard Feather avait également inscrit le nom de Washington sur sa liste des Géants du Jazz.

Caractérisée par une excellente maîtrise de sa voix et par sa musique très influencée par le gospel, Washington était également dotée d’une forte personnalité. Washington avait notamment tendance à qualifier les autres femmes avec qui elle travaillait de "bitches." Malgré ces traits de caractère pour le moins déplaisants, Washington était cependant reconnue pour sa générosité.

Très confiante en ses propres capacités, Washington avait refusé d’adopter le surnom de ‘’Queen of the Blues" qui lui avait été attribué par la presse. Washington avait alors expliqué qu’elle ne pouvait accepter d’être surnommée ainsi parce que ce titre appartenait déjà à Bessie Smith.

En plus d’avoir de la difficulté à maîtriser son tempérament, Washington avait tendance à prendre du poids. N’arrivant pas à contrôler son poids elle-même, Washington avait donc commencé à consommer ses médicaments de façon excessive. Comme l’avait expliqué son ancien époux Eddie Chamlee: "Dinah would take pills, drink and forget she had taken her pills." Chamlee était cependant convaincue que Washington ne s’était pas suicidée et que sa mort était le résultat d’un simple accident.

Malgré son talent pour la musique religieuse, Washington n’avait jamais enregistré d’album gospel.

Mêms si elle était surtout considérée comme une chanteuse de blues, Washington s’était produite dans une grande diversité de styles musicaux allant du blues au R & B, en passant par la musique pop, les standards du jazz et même la musique country. Même si Washington n’avait jamais été une chanteuse de jazz au sens strict du terme, elle avait joué avec les plus grands musiciens de jazz de l’époque, dont Cannonball Adderley, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Clark Terry, Clifford Brown, Lucky Thompson, Jimmy Cobb, Max Roach, Maynard Ferguson, Lionel Hampton, Kenny Burrell, Joe Zawinul, Panama Francis et Ben Webster. Un peu comme son idole Billie Holiday, Washington mettait énormément d’émotion dans ses interprétations. Washington a influencé de nombreuses chanteuses au cours de sa carrière, dont Nancy Wilson, Aretha Franklin, Esther Phillips et Diane Schuur.

©-2024, tous droits réservés, Les Productions de l’Imaginaire historique

SOURCES:

BEVERTON, Alys. ‘’Dinah Washington (Ruth Lee Jones), (1924-1963).’’ Blackpast.org, 19 août 2009.

‘’Dinah Washington.’’ Wikipedia, 2023.

‘’Dinah Washington.’’ Black Music Scholar, 2023.

‘’Dinah Washington.’’ All About Jazz, 2023.

‘’Dinah Washington, American singer.’’ Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2023.

‘’Dinah Washington Biography.’’ Net Industries, 2023.

[montesfamilyblog]

VeggieTales: Rack, Shack, & Benny Re-molded

Rack, Shack, & Benny Re-molded is a first episode of VeggieTales Reimagined, and the remake of Rack, Shack and Benny in honor of the episode's 29th anniversary. It was uploaded on the official YouTube channel of the same name on April 27, 2024. On September 15, 2024, It was also announced and set to air on TBN in 2025, on PBS in 2026, and on NBC in 2027, and also the remake with the new voice cast, to honor the tribute to the late Tito Jackson, founding member of The Jacksons (Later known as "The Jacksons", 1953 – 2024), and be made by Big Idea and Kingstone Studios, Produced by DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Universal Pictures.

Plot

Opening Countertop

On the countertop, Bob is alone while greeting the kids, but when he notices that Larry is absent, Larry calls out that he's coming. From off-screen, Larry ends up crashing into some stuff, and when he finally arrives, it turns out that the reason for this is because he has an oversized oven mitt on his head, which he christens his "new hat". When Bob expresses concern that Larry cannot see anything from wearing the oven mitt, Larry retorts that according to "Veggie Beat" magazines, all the cool people wear oven mitts on their heads. Bob then remembers that they got a letter from Dexter Wilmington from Tuscaloosa, Alabama, who explains that when he's visiting his friend, Billy, Billy wants to watch a show that Dexter is not supposed to watch, but Billy tells him that if he doesn't watch it, it means he's not cool, so he wants to know what he should do. Larry then decides to consult Qwerty about this problem, but unfortunately, because of the oven mitt that completely obscures his vision, he winds up falling into the kitchen sink. Bob then tells Dexter that while he's trying to get Larry out of the sink, he should watch a story about three boys named Rack, Shack, and Benny who were faced with the exact same problem.

Act 1

We are introduced to the narrator of the story, an old onion named George, who serves as the gatekeeper to the Nezzer Chocolate Factory. George then explains that the real names of Rack, Shack, and Benny are Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, respectively. But everyone else called them by their nicknames since they couldn't remember the trio's real names. George then explains that every morning at the Chocolate Factory, everyone works hard to make sure that everything is going smoothly, before noticing that it's almost 8 o'clock, which means that it's time for the morning milk delivery. Laura then approaches the front gate and, in her speaking debut, explains to George in song that she'd love to stay and talk, but she doesn't have the time because everyone works really hard at the chocolate factory. After Laura arrives at the factory, she meets up with Mr. Lunt, who tells her through song that she's in trouble because she's two minutes late for work, before he also orders the other employees (which are played by a multitude of peas) to get back to work.

We are then introduced to the trio: Rack, Shack, and Benny (played, respectively, by Bob the Tomato, Junior Asparagus, and Larry the Cucumber), who also explain through song that they don't have any time to play because they have a lot of work to do in the factory. The employees of the factory are hard at work, making sure that all of the chocolate bunnies are made, as well as disposing of any bunnies that have been made wrong. Soon, the song ends as Laura takes off in her delivery truck to deliver the chocolate bunnies. As a lone chocolate bunny falls out of the back of the truck and lands in front of George, George then explains that every day, they make 14,638 chocolate bunnies (give or take a few), before explaining that Nebby K. Nezzer, the boss of the chocolate factory, isn't exactly a bad man, but he just gets confused real easily sometimes. George then demonstrates this by stating that it all happened when Mr. Nezzer made a big announcement.

Back inside the factory, the workers are still hard at work, when a video screen appears, before Mr. Nezzer appears on the screen, announcing that this morning, they have shipped their two millionth chocolate bunny and decides to reward everyone by allowing them to eat as many chocolate bunnies as they like for the next half hour. After this announcement is made, Mr. Lunt compliments Mr. Nezzer for allowing everyone to eat the bunnies, while Mr. Nezzer is confident that everyone will give their praise to him for this announcement. While the rest of the employees ravenously eat as many of the bunnies as they like, Shack is a little bit uncertain about this decision, telling Rack and Benny that they shouldn't eat any more bunnies, because it isn't good to eat too much candy in one sitting. When Rack and Benny argue about this, stating that everyone else is doing it, Shack retorts back that they should remember what their parents taught them, as well as remembering a song that his mother used to sing to him back when he was really little. After Shack sings a little bit of the song, he then tells Rack and Benny that even though their parents aren't with them, they can still remember everything that they've learned from this. This finally convinces Rack and Benny not to eat any more bunnies.

As time passes, the other employees are still eating chocolate bunnies, but after a while, they begin to feel rather sick from doing so. At the end of the half hour free-for-all, Mr. Nezzer and Mr. Lunt then head into the workroom before noticing that everyone has become sick as dogs as a result of eating too many chocolate bunnies. Mr. Nezzer is angered by this before Mr. Lunt notices that Rack, Shack, and Benny are the only ones who are still standing up. When Mr. Nezzer and Mr. Lunt approach the three boys, he is impressed by their resilience before telling them that he's going to promote them to Junior Executives (which, according to Mr. Lunt, means that you have to wear a tie when Benny asks what it means). After Mr. Nezzer tells Rack, Shack, and Benny to meet him in his office first thing in the morning, George then shows up, stating that Rack, Shack, and Benny are able to get on Mr. Nezzer's good side, before adding that the three boys are in for a big surprise when they come into Mr. Nezzer's office.

The next morning, Rack, Shack, and Benny are greeted by Mr. Nezzer, who then explains that he will have every one of his faithful employees bow down to a chocolate bunny statue, before showing them a model of the statue, to which he says that the real thing is 90 feet tall. Mr. Nezzer then explains further that it will be a beautiful day when everyone bows down to the statue and sings a song known as "The Bunny Song," which Benny says that he's not familiar with and asks Mr. Nezzer to hum a few bars. Mr. Nezzer then obliges as he starts singing "The Bunny Song," talking about how much he loves the bunny and not anything else. After the song ends, Rack, Shack, and Benny are a little bit troubled by the lyrics, with Rack asking what will happen if anyone doesn't sing the song. Mr. Nezzer answers that question by showing the three boys the furnace where the "bad bunnies" (bunnies that get messed up during the production cycle) are sent to be destroyed, before he says in a rather intimidating matter, "Let's just say in my mind, if you don't bow down and sing the song, you're a bad bunny." Mr. Nezzer then hops off before telling Rack, Shack, and Benny that the ceremony is starting. George then shows up and states that the boys were in a real pickle with this: "The Bunny Song" was full of all kinds of stuff that the three boys knew was wrong, but the punishment for refusing to sing it would result in Mr. Nezzer throwing them into the furnace! He then asks the viewers what they would do if they were them, but decides to hold that thought as the ceremony is about to begin.

That afternoon, when everyone is gathered outside, Mr. Nezzer then announces that it is now time to bow to the bunny and sing "The Bunny Song." While everyone else bows down, Rack, Shack, and Benny are the only ones who do not bow, before Mr. Nezzer and Mr. Lunt approach them, with Mr. Nezzer telling them to sing. In response, Shack instead sings Think Of Mealong with Rack and Benny. After the trio finishes singing, Mr. Nezzer is touched from hearing this song and says that he'll be singing that song... as he punishes them by throws them into the furnace, before calling out to the guards to take them to the fiery furnace. Three carrot guards then approach the trio, while Laura is concerned and states that she has to help them, before noticing Mr. Nezzer's delivery truck.

Silly Songs with Larry

Main article: Dance of the Cucumber

Act 2

Mr. Nezzer has now tied up Rack, Shack, & Benny, before he explains that he tried being patient & kind with the three boys & that he's infuriated by their stubbornness. When Mr. Nezzer asks the three boys if they will sing the song, they then explain to him that God wants us to stand up for what they believe is right and that they cannot sing the song. At first, it seems that Mr. Nezzer understands, before saying that they're bad bunnies before they end up getting pushed down towards the fiery furnace, but Laura saves them in time in the delivery truck. Mr. Nezzer then has two carrot guards chase after the quartet into a vent, but one of the guards crash into the wall and falls into a vat of chocolate.

The chase continues through the vents, which leads to the other employee, falling into the elevator as well. Once the guards have been dispatched, Laura then pilots the truck through the vents once again, and when they see that there is light on the left of the vents, they turn left, believing it to be a way out. Unfortunately, that vent brings them back to where they started from. Mr. Nezzer then has Mr. Lunt take the controls to which a pair of mechanical hands take hold of the truck and starts to tilt it downwards in an attempt to dump Rack, Shack, & Benny into the fiery furnace down below. However, Laura is able to escape before unplugging the controls just as the truck is now halfway tilted.

Laura then angrily proclaims that no one bakes her buddies much to Mr. Nezzer's annoyance and threatens Laura, the latch bolt for the gate of the truck then comes loose, which causes Rack, Shack, & Benny to fall into the fiery furnace. Mr. Nezzer then laughs at his victory, stating that no one will ever stand up to him again. However, the room suddenly turns dark before a multitude of bright lights shoot out from the windows of the furnace. Mr. Lunt peers into one of the windows as he asks how many guys they threw into the furnace. Mr. Nezzer incredulously answers that there are three before Mr. Lunt states that there are four guys in there now, making note that one of them is real shiny, as well as the fact that they aren't burning up. Mr. Nezzer then calls out to the three boys to get out of there, before the fiery furnace gate then opens up, as Rack, Shack, and Benny come out alive & well.

When Mr. Nezzer sees that the three boys were saved by God's power, he then admits that he was wrong for trying to get them to do stuff that they weren't supposed to do, stating that he forgot everything his mother taught him. When he asks them to forgive him, they do. Mr. Nezzer then asks if there's any way that he can make it up to them. Shack then answers that he could sing one of their songs, before he starts singing the song Stand! before Rack and Benny also join in as well, singing about how God wants us to stand up for what we believe in when we're faced with the peer pressure of doing things that we're not supposed to do. Everyone in the factory then sings the song, before the story comes to an end, as George then smiles at the viewers.

Closing Countertop

Back on the countertop, Bob states that he still hasn't been able to get Larry out of the sink, before saying that it's time to talk about what they've learned. Larry then starts singing What Have We Learned, while Bob tells him to stop singing. Larry still sings, but Bob is able to cut him off by turning on the faucet for the sink and turning it off again. When Bob reviews the lesson that they learned from the story, Larry then admits that he made a mistake for putting an oven mitt on his head before lamenting that he'll never get out of the sink and that he'll be stuck in it for the rest of his life. Fortunately, Bob comes up with an idea by having Larry stand on one end of a spoon, while Bob jumps onto the other end. Bob then jumps onto the spoon, which causes Larry to get flung out of the sink, before checking to see what verse Qwerty has. Qwerty then brings up the verse, which is "Stand firm, and hold to the teachings passed on to you. 2nd Thessalonians 2:15". After that, Larry then explains that it means that if someone wants you to do something you know is wrong, you should stand firm and do what's right, before telling Dexter that the next time he goes to Billy's house, he should bring one of his favorite videos to watch instead. Bob then agrees with Larry before saying that he would like to get out of the sink, but Larry cuts him off before signing off, ending the episode.

Transcript

Rack, Shack, & Benny Re-Molded (Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart’s version)/Transcript

Credits

Writers and Directors

Phil Vischer

Mike Nawrocki

Producers

Amy Poehler

Lisa Vischer

Music composed by

Kurt Heinecke

Music produced by

Tim Davis

Based on characters, Created By

Phil Vischer

Mike Nawrocki

Adapted By

Fernando Montes

Yolanda Renee King

Fun Facts

Phil Vischer, the original writer of Rack, Shack and Benny comment on the video saying "This is amazing! Great job, y'all - I love it!."

Kurt Heinecke, the original composer of Rack, Shack and Benny, has seen the video and loved the music redo for the video.

The theme song was remade to include the Veggies vocals from the 2010 version of the theme song and included a montage of all the episodes of the original VeggieTales.

All new music was composed for the video and done by Gourd Animations.

Gallery

Rack, Shack, & Benny Re-Molded (Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart’s version)/Gallery

Characters

Bob the Tomato (Rack)

Larry the Cucumber (Benny)

Junior Asparagus (Shack)

Mr. Lunt

Mr. Nezzer

Petunia Rhubarb

Miss Achmetha

Lovey Asparagus

Archibald Asparagus

Jimmy and Jerry Gourd (Workers)

Scallion 1

Scallion 2

Scallion 3

The French Peas

Pa Grape

Laura Carrot

Madame Blueberry

Grandpa George

Scooter Carrot

Gary Garlic

Callie Flower

Annie the Onion

Percy Pea

Lou Carrot

Lenny Carrot

Jenna Chive

Ermie Asparagus

Lily Asparagus

Li'l Pea

Dad Asparagus

Mom Asparagus

Dad Carrot

Mom Carrot

Voice Cast

YouTube Voice Cast

Phil Vischer as Bob the Tomato/Rack, Mr. Lunt, Grandpa George and Mr. Nezzer (archived audio from original)

Mike Nawrocki as Larry the Cucumber/Benny and Injured Worker (archived audio from original)

Lisa Vischer as Junior Asparagus, Mom Asparagus and Lovey Asparagus (archived audio from original)

Kristin Blegen as Laura Carrot (archived audio from original)

Ginger Tam as Miss Achmetha (archived audio from original)

Tim Hodge as Pea worker singing the Bunny song (archived audio)

Andrew Lyon, Gourd Animations and DecaPJs as Factory Worker Choir

Additional voices: Kev Messick and Finnigan Rowe

TBN/PBS/NBC Voice Cast

Dwayne Johnson as Bob The Tomato/Rack

Kevin Hart as Larry The Cucumber/Benny

EvanTubeHD as Junior Asparagus/Shack

Jeff Fatt as Mr. Lunt

David Mann as Mr. Nezzer

Tiffany Haddish as Petunia Rhubarb

Sam Moran as Archibald Asparagus

Shani Judd Diehl as Lovey Asparagus

Ryan Reynolds as Jimmy Gourd

Jesse Eisenberg as Jerry Gourd

Greg Page as Jean-Claude Pea

Paul Paddick as Phillipe Pea

Murray Cook as Pa Grape

Rachel Crow as Laura Carrot

Emma Watkins as Madame Blueberry

Hugh Jackman as Grandpa George

Scott Reed as Pea worker singing the Bunny song

Jason Segel as Scooter Carrot

Justin Bieber as Gary Garlic

Selena Gomez as Callie Flower

Kathryn Bernardo as Annie Onion

Daniel Padilla as Percy Pea

Bill Hader as Dad Asparagus (Speaking Voice)

Tim Davis as Dad Asparagus (Singing Voice)

Mindy Kaling as Mom Asparagus (Speaking Voice)

Melody Davis as Mom Asparagus (Singing Voice)

Tony Hale as Dad Carrot

Liza Lapira as Mom Carrot

Tom Holland as Lou Carrot

Timotheé Chalamet as Lenny Carrot

The Wiggles as The Scallions

Anthony Field as Scallion 1

Simon Pryce as Scallion 2

Tsehay Hawkins as Miss Achmetha

Lachlan Gillespie as Scallion 3

Lucia Field as Jenna Chive

Caterina Mete as Ermie Asparagus

Evie Ferris as Lily Asparagus

John Pearce as Li'l Pea

Songs

VeggieTales Theme Song

Good Morning, George

Think Of Me

The Bunny Song

Think Of Me (Reprise)

Silly Songs with Larry: Dance of the Cucumber

The Bunny Song (Reprise) (also known as "I Tried to Be Patient")

Stand Up!

What Have We Learned (sung by Larry)

Credits Medley (Good Morning George, The Bunny Song, Think of Me, and Stand Up)

Television-Only Songs

This Is It (Orchestra Version; sung by Michael Jackson)

External Links

[jedivoodoochile]

On this day in 1975, the ZZ Top single “Tush” debuted on the US Billboard charts at #79 (July 19)

The only single from ZZ Top’s fourth album “Fandango!” was written at a sound check in just a few minutes.

Guitarist Billy Gibbons recalled, "We were in Florence, Alabama, playing in a rodeo arena with a dirt floor.

We decided to play a bit in the afternoon.

I hit that opening lick, and Dave Blayney, our lighting director, gave us the hand [twirls a finger in the air]: "Keep it going."

I leaned over to Dusty and said, "Call it 'Tush.'"

“We had the riff going, Dusty fell in with the vocal, and we wrote it in three minutes. We had the advantage of that dual meaning of the word "tush" [grins].

It's that secret blues language — saying it without saying it."

As the closing song in their setlists for many tours "Tush" would be the last song Hill would sing.

After the death of Hill in 2021, the band performed the song for the first time on July 30, 2021, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama with Gibbons placing Dusty's hat on his microphone then Gibbons taking lead vocals to the song.

A few tour dates later on August 6, Gibbons told the crowd “We’re going to have Dusty singing through the magic of Memorex.”

The band now ending their concerts by playing the song along to an audio vocal recording from Hill's last performance.

[atletasudando]

Walter Viáfara pasó los 5.50 y logró el récord colombiano de garrocha

Fuente: Fecodatle Excelentes resultados ofreció el Grand Prix Internacional disputado este sábado 21 en el estadio Pedro Grajales, en Cali, que sirvió como último test para varios atletas con vistas a su inminente participación en los Juegos Panamericanos y también, hacia los Juegos Nacionales colombianos. La nota más destacada la ofreció Walter Alejandro Viáfara en salto con garrocha, donde recuperó su plusmarca nacional al pasar la varilla a 5.50 metros. Batió el récord que había conseguido Thomas Nieto con 5.45 desde el 22 de abril en Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Otro nombre con firmes aspiraciones en la competición internacional es Billy Julio, quien consiguió su mejor registro de la temporada en lanzamiento de jabalina, aproximándose a los 80 metros: 79.40 m. En damas y en la misma prueba participó la reciente finalista del Mundial de Budapest, María Lucelly Murillo, marcando 60.58 metros. Todas las pruebas de lanzamientos ofrecieron un alto nivel y, entre los hombres, también ganaron el recordman sudamericano y finalista olímpico de disco Mauricio Ortega (60.09), Gerson Ramírez en bala (16.92) y Fabián Serna en martillo (66.15),  escoltado aquí por el recordman nacional Elías Díaz con 65.28 y también el juvenil Scarpetta por arriba de los 60 metros. En el sector de saltos, además del récord de Viáfara, se vieron muy buenas prestaciones en damas. Katherine Castillo-Ibarbo volvió a mostrarse por arriba de los 4.20 en salto con garrocha, mientras que en salto en alto las cuatro primeras estuvieron con registros sobre 1.80. Allí se impuso la dominicana Marysabel Senyu con 1.86, seguida por la juvenil María Isabel Arboleda con 1.83, quedando en 1.80 Jennifer Rodríguez y la juvenil Helen Tenorio. Los atletas dominicanos también volvieron a lucir en las pruebas de velocidad, que además ofrecieron una importante y progresiva participación local. Así Carlos Yesid Florez progresó hasta 10.18 al ganar su serie de los 100 metros llanos (viento de 1.8ms) delante del dominicano Melbin José Marcelino con 10.27. Y en la serie siguiente, el dominicano Franquelo Pérez también alcanzó los 10.18, quedando segundo su comaptriota Christopher Valdés con 10.36. En damas, la prueba central de 100 fue para la dominicana Liranyi Alonso con 11.37, delante de las colombianas Angélica Gamboa con 11.46 y Evelyn Rivera con 11.65. Otra de las figuras de las últimas temporadas y semifinalista del Mundial, Evelys Aguilar, volvió a ofrecer su calidad en los 400 metros llanos, donde marcó 51.53. Y en hombres, el mejor en esa prueba fue el dominicano Robert King con 46.54.   Read the full article

[leanstooneside]

Billy Paul

- TO THE ATLANTIC

- AND THE BADGER

- TO THE BUMP

- AND THE BEAMS

- TO THE TUSCALOOSA

- TO THE IRONWOOD

- AND VARIOUS MISSION

[tctmp]

Drama

[lilithlove12]

Xoxo sweet 15

24 de abril de 2021

Querida eu de 15 anos,

Eu vou me tornar você daqui a 2 horas e 29 minutos.

Tô escutando karma police, essa música me da vontade de desmaiar.

Eu pretendo postar meu sétimo álbum essa semana, no caso vai ser você que vai postar, não tô mais me cobrando a postar antes do meu aniversário. O nome vai ser "Arrepios" :).

Eu acabei de assistir adoration, pra ver o devon bostick, ele tinha tipo 16 anos quando gravou o filme, da pra ver o como ele era pitiquinho.

Atualmente meu papel favorito dele é como billy em tuscaloosa, Eu sonhei com ele hoje, sonhei que eu chegava no suposto apartamento dele(que parecia muito algum kitnet em beira mar) e ele me convidava pra ficar no chill deitada no sofá com ele, o sonho foi quase lúcido, eu senti um calor.

Eu até fiz uma playlist.

Eu acho que a ficha tá caindo que eu vou fazer 15 anos, justamente porque não tá mais tão distante na minha cabeça, hoje a tarde cheguei a conclusão que meus hormônios criaram alguns afetos imaginários.

Eu só quero que as aulas presenciais voltem, por enquanto, eu tava pensando sabe.

Vou viver eu.

Tô curtindo MT dreamcore.

💗

Ps:compra um bodychain, beijo beijo, não se esquece que você é linda, igual a tantas coisas nesse mundo.

Atenciosamente você de 14 anos,

[goalhofer]

2021 Chicago White Sox Roster

Pitchers

#27 Lucas Giolito (Los Angeles, California)

#31 Liam Hendriks (Perth, Australia)

#33 Michael Lynn (Brownsburg, Indiana)

#34 Michael Kopech (Mt. Pleasant, Texas)

#39 Aaron Bummer (Peoria, Arizona)

#43 Evan Marshall (Cupertino, California)

#45 Garrett Crochet (Ocean Springs, Mississippi)

#50 Jimmy Cordero (San Cristóbal, Dominican Republic)

#55 Carlos Rodón (Holly Springs, North Carolina)

#57 Jace Fry (Beaverton, Oregon)

#60 Dallas Keuchel (Tulsa, Oklahoma)

#63 Matt Foster (Valley, Alabama)

#65 Codi Heuer (Ft. Collins, Colorado)

#66 José Ruiz (Guacara, Venezuela)

#84 Dylan Cease (Milton, Georgia)

Catchers

#21 Zack Collins (Plantation, Florida)

#24 Yasmani Grandal (Miami Springs, Florida)

#73 Yermín Mercedes (La Romana, Dominican Republic)

Infielders

#1 Nick Madrigal (Elk Grove, California)

#7 Tim Anderson; Jr. (Tuscaloosa, Alabama)

#10 Yoan Moncada (Abreus, Cuba)

#23 Jake Lamb (Seattle, Washington)

#79 José Abreu (Cruces, Cuba)

#81 Andrew Vaughn (Santa Rosa, California)

Outfielders

#12 Adam Eaton (Springfield, Ohio)

#28 Leury García (Santiago, Dominican Republic)

#32 Billy Hamilton (Taylorsville, Mississippi)

#74 Eloy Jiménez (Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic)

#88 Luis Robert (Ciego De Ávila, Cuba)

Coaches

Manager Tony La Russa; Jr. (Ybor City, Florida)

Bench coach Miguel Cairo (Anaco, Venezuela)

1st base coach Daryl Boston (Cincinnati, Ohio)

3rd base coach Joe McEwing (Bristol Township, Pennsylvania)

Hitting coach Frank Menechino (Staten Island, New York)

Assistant hitting coach Howie Clark (San Diego, California)

Pitching coach Ethan Katz (Santa Clarita, California)

Bullpen coach Curt Hasler (Honolulu, Hawaii)

Bullpen catcher Miguel González (Porlamar, Venezuela)

Bullpen catcher Luis Sierra (Barranquilla, Colombia)

Analytics coordinator David Duncan; Jr. (Oro Valley, Arizona)

Roving instructor Jerry Narron (Goldsboro, North Carolina)

[nataliadyernews]

nashfilmfest It is 1972 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. ​Billy (Devon Bostick) falls in love with Virginia (Natalia Dyer), but this isn't a meet cute summer love song by Al Green; no, Billy met Virginia while working at the asylum his father (Tate Donovan) runs and where she is a patient. ​And that isn't the biggest twist of this film. ​Under the direction of Philip Harder, this film explores the tension of that time through Billy and his friend Nigel (Marchánt Davis) and becomes an allegory for our current political times. ​Buy your tickets for 'Tuscaloosa' at our website or our app today!

[doueverwonder]

Do not look under the cut unless u care about city oc's and also fankids k thanks

Mobile AL. ‘Billy’ (he/him): Est. 1702, born 1990. Currently 17 physically. 

Ft. Wayne IN. ‘Winny’ (she/her): Est. 1794, Born 1996. Currently 14 physically. 

Huntsville AL. ‘Hunt’ (she/her): Est. 1805, born 1997. Currently 13 physically. 

Evansville IN. ‘Evan’ (she/her): Est. 1812, born 1999. Currently 12 physically. 

Tuscaloosa AL. ‘Lucy’ (he/him); Est. 1819, born 2001. Currently 11 physically. (twin)

Montgomery AL. ‘Monty’ (he/him); Est. 1819, born 2001. Currently 11 physically. (twin)

Indianapolis IN. ‘IJ’ (he/him); Est. 1821, born 2002. Currently 11 physically. 

South Bend IN. ‘Joey’ (they/them); Est. 1865, born 2006. Currently 9 physically. 

Birmingham AL. ‘Bee’ (he/him); Est. 1865, born 2007. Currently 8 physically. 

(Montgomery and Tuscaloosa are twins bc I found out they were officially established ten days apart so now it's stuck in my head)

(Est. is when the city itself was established, born is the year the personification came into existence however u want to interpret that)

(if u note the years and their ages you'll notice they age at half the rate of normal folks until they hit about 25, they keep aging after that but it slows down substantially)

(Indianapolis' nickname is IJ bc everyone had gotten used to calling Indiana 'indy' so they jokingly called him Indy Jr. to distinguish then it got shortened to IJ and stuck around. South Bend's nickname is Joey bc they're on the Saint Joseph river :], and Ft. Wayne is Winny bc Ohio started calling her that and it stuck)

1987 - 2024: 37 years together this November 14th 

3 years together, 1990, they had Mobile by absolute accident. 

9 years together, 1996, is when they decide they want to have more kids, and that same year Ft. Wayne is born. 

10 years together, 1997, they have Huntsville. 

12 years together, 1999, they have Evansville. 

14 years together, 2001, they have the twins Tuscaloosa and Montgomery. 

15 years together, 2002, they have Indianapolis. 

19 years together, 2006, they have South Bend.

20 years together, 2007, they have Birmingham. 

Tldr; minus the time between Mobile and Ft. Wayne and the couple years between Indianapolis and South Bend they were that couple that was always expecting. Beat Utah in number of kids and smallest age gap >:] (the twins and Indianapolis are barely over a year apart) 

Mobile, 'Billy', 17, (he/him)

Typically very warm and friendly, and the top offender when it comes to passive-aggressively making people take care of themselves. Currently going through an aloof phase, he’ll get over it though. Has and has had, a lot of nonconventional pets over the years snakes, turtles, frogs, salamanders, a couple ant farms (fire ants once though he made sure his parents didn’t find out about that…). Locked in a lifelong feud with New Orleans over Mardis Gras (he also has a crush on her but the feud is more important >:[) 

Fort Wayne, 'Winnie', 14, (she/her)

Personality much like her namesake General “mad” Anthony Wayne. Her passion for just about everything she’s into isn’t always bad but she is very easy to rile up, very short fuse, regular in both the nurses and principals offices. Really much like Alabama, but somehow worse. Very passionate about the environment but in a very 14 yr old way, out here scolding her family members for things like not recycling and leaving the sink on while they brush their teeth. 

Huntsville, 'Hunt', 13, (she/her)

Loudest of the kids no competition, the child can scream and will not hesitate to do so. Usually just because she’s just so excited and can’t keep it all bottled up or she feels like she’s going to burst. Got her passion for mechanics from Indiana, but instead of getting into cars and developing a bordering unhealthy obsession with NASCAR like mom and dad went “you know what’s cooler than race cars? Spaceships!!” and it all was downhill from there. Definitely a Mathlete. 

Evansville, 'Evan', 12, (she/her)

The most mild of all the kids, not really loud and angry like dad, not really quiet and passive-aggressive like mom. She’s the mild salsa of people, and she is definitely happy that way. Very interested in medical fields, particularly the ones most people find the grossest, knows a lot of medicine history though mostly civil war and ww1. Walk away now if you don’t want to hear about the history of amputations and prosthetics. 

Tuscaloosa, 'Lucy', 11, (he/him)

The rough and tumble kid, much like Alabama when he was young. Stubborn and very opinionated. Wishes he was still the capital, often jealous that Montgomery gets to be it. Football is already his entire personality, wears nothing but Crimson Tide merch, and has played youth football since he was four. Regular in urgent care, not always for football related injuries because he is also just has dumbass as a personality trait. 

Montgomery, 'Monty', 11, (he/him)

Most quiet and anxious of the kids, much like Indiana when she was young, and also like his namesake General Richard Montgomery. Even already often wishes Tuscaloosa was still the capital just to not have to deal with the responsibility of it. Absolute history nerd, “did ya know-” could be his catchphrase with how often he walks up to any available family member to go on his latest ramble. Plays football too, but really hates it, too nervous to tell Alabama he doesn’t like it. 

Indianapolis, 'IJ', 11, (he/him)

How to kindly call an eleven year old a snobby, self-important, prick. Genuinely thinks he’s the center of the universe, not helped by the fact that he is in the dead center of Indiana. Has that previously mentioned bordering unhealthy obsession with NASCAR. He's also just so... annoyingly patriotic, but doesn't show it until you're too far in to the conversation to just walk away.

South Bend, 'Joey', 9, (they/them)

I mean this affectionately, they’re weird. You either die a weird little boy or live to see yourself become a weird nonbinary teenager. Car enthusiasts, but not specifically NASCAR like the majority of the family, just generally likes cars. While you studied the blade they were at antique car shows. Really close with good ol’ Uncle Michigan. 

Birmingham, 'Bee', 8, (he/him)

Greco-Roman myths nerd over here, never going to leave his PJO phase. That baby of the family privileges really make up half this guys personality, gets whatever he wants bc he's mamas baby boy. Not really relevant to his personality but he is a solid kid, v dense.

[standbyphoenix]

Movie star River Phoenix left musical mark in Alabama by Matt Wake

Outside record producer Rick Rubin’s Hollywood Hills home, drummer Josh Greenbaum sat in a silver Volvo with his friend and bandmate River Phoenix, the film actor.

The rock-star Lenny Kravitz was with them.

On the car’s stereo, Kravitz played Phoenix and Greenbaum a recording of a new song he’d written called “Are You Gonna Go My Way.” This was 1992, before that explosive tune would become the title track to Kravitz’s third album and era-defining music.

At the moment, Kravitz needed a drummer. He’d recently told mononymous Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea he was frustrated trying to find the right fit. Flea later told Phoenix about Kravitz’s predicament, while Flea was having lunch with Phoenix. Upon hearing about the opportunity, Phoenix promptly hooked-up the drummer of his own band, Aleka’s Attic, with an audition with Kravitz - a much bigger gig.

“And that’s how much River loved me as a brother as a friend,” Greenbaum says. “He was like, ‘I don’t want to hold you back from potential success, and if I can hook you up with this audition then I’m going to do it.’ River was incredibly gracious and generous. He wanted to see the people he cared about thriving.”

The South Florida native wasn’t the only drummer auditioning that day at Rubin’s house. There were 25 or so “L.A. rocker dudes” at the “cattle call” that day “decked-out in leather, nose rings and tattoos.” In sneakers, jeans, sweatshirt and short haircut, Greenbaum looked more college-kid than arena-ready. In the end, the gig didn’t go to a dude at all. Cindy Blackman, a virtuosic jazz musician who happens to be female, deservedly became Kravitz’s next drummer. Still, Greenbaum says he got two callbacks to jam with Kravitz over the course of a week.

River Phoenix was a gifted, charismatic movie star so physically attractive he seemed to defy science.

His nuanced performances lit up such films as "Stand By Me," "My Own Private Idaho" and "Running On Empty."

But Phoenix told Greenbaum more than once, “music was his first love and film was his day-job.”

While some actors’ musical projects can be of dubious quality, Phoenix had legitimate singer/songwriter talent. “Music was a need of his,” Greenbaum says. “That’s why he put so much effort into a band, trying to make it in the music business, which of course would’ve come easier for him than anyone else that wasn’t famous already.”

Phoenix’s other passions included environmentalism, humanitarianism and animal-rights. He was one of the most visibly philanthropic young stars of the early ’90s.

Phoenix was the reason Seventeen subscribers knew what “vegan” meant. “He had a heart of gold and was an extremely hyper-sensitive, emotional person,” Greenbaum says. “And that’s why he wound up helping a lot of people.”

The Gainesville, Fla.-based band’s tours brought them through Alabama, including circa - 1991 shows at Huntsville’s Tip Top Café and Tuscaloosa’s Ivory Tusk. Greenbaum recalls Aleka’s Attic performing in Auburn, possibly at the War Eagle Supper Club there, and maybe Birmingham too.

“We had some successful tours,” says Greenbaum, who’s resided in Maui for more than 20 years. “People showed up because they wanted to hear what River’s band was like, but once they got there they were like, ‘Damn this really is a good band,’ and we had some real authentic fans of the music, for the music, not just because it was River.”

Back before social-media and celeb clickbait, Aleka’s Attic tours also gave fans a rare chance to see a massively famous actor in-person, in the wilds of local rock-bars.

Back then, Sandee Curry was attending Lee High School and delivering pizzas part-time. She was also "obsessed with anything Hollywood-related." When she and friend Michelle Woodson heard about Phoenix's band's upcoming Tip Top Café show, they resolved to attend. "River Phoenix is coming to Huntsville, my hometown? This doesn't happen," Curry says. As many people who lived in Huntsville then are aware, in addition to hosting touring and local bands, Tip Top was known for being extremely easy to get into under-age, so she'd been to shows there before.

Curry brought her snapshot camera to the show. The camera was freshly loaded with black and white film, and she took photos of Aleka’s Attic that night. When she got the film developed later, mixed in with random friend pics were onstage shots of Phoenix, singer Rain Phoenix (River’s sister), bassist Josh McKay, violist Tim Hankins and drummer Greenbaum.

At the Tip Top that night, River Phoenix played a Stratocaster guitar and sported facial scruff, a white T-shirt and camouflage pants. Curry recalls the famous actor being somewhat withdrawn onstage. “If I’m remembering correctly, he was mostly doing backing vocals,” she says. “The bassist and Rain were doing a lot of the singing.” Although Greenbaum says River Phoenix was the songwriter and lead singer on most Aleka’s Attic’s material, fans interviewed for this story recall Rain Phoenix being the focal point onstage during the band’s Alabama shows.

Curry classifies the band’s live sound as “psychedelic ’90s alternative-rock.” She adds, “It was a fun show.”

She remembers enjoying the song “Too Many Colors” and McKay’s tune “Blue Period.”

At the Tip Top, Curry purchased one of the cassette tapes Aleka's Attic was selling at the time. "I listened to that tape a lot and it turned me into a fan" of the band, Curry says. She considered herself "a hippie" and her listening tastes also included The Doors. Curry kept her Aleka's Attic tape until about 10 years ago when she gave it to a friend's young sister who was fascinated with Phoenix: "She was really impressed by this cassette."

Christopher Brown was one of several audio engineers who ran live sound regularly at the Tip Top. On the night of Aleka's Attic he was off-work but there hanging out.

“They were a little more artsy than the typical stuff that we had at the time,” says Brown, who works at a local brewery now. “I remember being pretty impressed by them.” Looking for a more-mainstream, stylistically similar act, I mention Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, known for 1988 patchouli-pop hit “What I Am,” to which Brown, replies, “That’s not a bad comparison.”

The Aleka's Attic show had been the talk of the bar for weeks. Vira Ceci was bartending that night at Tip Top. She recalls Phoenix being "so nice" when she asked him to autograph a cocktail napkin for her cousin, and says the actor was "easily the most accessible member of the band." Ceci, currently employed as a technical writer, recalls the Aleka's Attic show being "pretty busy for a weeknight" and thinks the bar probably charged their typical, $5 cover that night.

Lance Church owned, ran and booked the Tip Top during its prime. He remembers the motor-home Aleka's Attic toured in arriving early in the afternoon and parked in the gravel lot across the street. There was some advance promotion and local press coverage and Church recalls "parents were bringing kids over to sign their movie posters." 

Church thinks Aleka’s Attic’s guarantee was “maybe a couple hundred dollars.”

In 1991 and several years into his acting career, Phoenix was just 21 years old. Church still keeps a photo of he and Phoenix shaking hands inside the Tip Top. "He seemed like a really good kid to me," says Church, now a manager at a chain restaurant. "He was polite. He didn't come in there like he was too good for the place or nothing. He was humble, a very likeable guy. He was giggly - he was just a kid."

Church says there'd been many phone calls in to the Tip Top in the week leading up to the Aleka's Attic gig, people asking about start time and such. In the end, he thinks about 100 people attended the show, inside the cinderblock building's mechanics-garage-sized interior. The Billiter sisters were among those attendees: Grace, then 18, Becca, 16, and Jo, 14 - all students at Westminster Christian Academy. (Again, the Tip Top was way easy to get into.) That night, Grace drove them to the Aleka's Attic show in her classic pink Volkswagen Beetle. Back at their family's northside Huntsville home, the sisters displayed River Phoenix photos on their bedroom walls, along with images with other hotties of the day, including Mel Gibson and Billy Idol. Other bands back then the sisters liked included INXS. 

Expecting to see Phoenix as he'd appeared as a svelte longhaired Indiana Jones in the latest "Raiders of the Lost Ark" sequel, the Billiters were surprised to see him onstage with a haircut Becca remembers as "choppy and punky." Jo says Phoenix's singing voice "sounded good, a little gravely" and had "nice harmony with his sister." But what's really seared into Jo's hippocampus is she was in the same room with "hands-down my favorite movie star." When the band was on break, the sisters got to meet their idol. Phoenix even briefly, sweetly put his arm around Jo. "I think my heart stopped for a couple beats," she recalls. Looking back, Becca says, "I love that it was the three sisters" that got to share resulting, VW-wide smiles that night.

James Dixon, a University of Alabama student then, attended Aleka's Attic's Ivory Tusk show. On the sidewalk out front of the Tusk, he saw Phoenix leaning up against a nearby light-pole, smoking a cigarette. "That was the days before selfies and things like that," recalls Dixon, who works in financial services in Birmingham. "People would say, 'Hey, River,' and the coeds were swooning over him, but he wasn't being hassled. He seemed laid-back."

Inside, the Ivory Tusk was packed. Earlier that day, Kelli Staggs and friend Lori Watts were playing pinball on a machine inside the bar while the band was doing their soundcheck. One Aleka's Attic musician came over and said hello, then Phoenix, recalls Staggs, who now works in Huntsville as a defense contract specialist. Later that night, Staggs says Aleka's Attic performed, in addition to their material, a version of far-out Jimi Hendrix tune "Third Stone from the Sun." After they played their Hendrix cover, the band asked the crowd if they knew that song. "It was like they were trying to weed out who was there for the music, and who was just there to see him because he was famous," Staggs says. Staggs was an art major at University of Alabama, where she'd seen alternative bands like 10,000 Maniacs perform at local venues.

Aleka's Attic drummer Josh Greenbaum recalls the band enjoying their Alabama shows. "I remember good energy, a good crowd. I remember getting treated pretty well." (Greenbaum has a random memory of one or more of these Alabama venues having troughs instead of urinals in the men's room.) He recalls Tip Top as "a dive, and we loved it for that reason. It was very endearing." In Tuscaloosa, he met a friend named Nancy Romine he's stayed in touch with. "During the same Southeast run, Greenbaum says Aleka's Attic did a show in Knoxville, Tenn. that was multitrack recorded and broadcast. In this era, "Lost in Motion," "What We've Done" and "Dog God" went over particularly well live, he says. Greenbaum recalls Phoenix, "loved the creative process of recording. If he had a preference I would say the studio was, probably, because he was a little bit shy and didn't like being in public places so much. But I know he loved playing live too and he did enjoy the touring. He was happy doing both."

Greenbaum was born 13 days before Phoenix. They were just 16 the first time they met, their families were friends. Greenbaum drove his dad's 1977 Chevy van to Phoenix's aunt's house, Phoenix walked out to meet him, then they went inside where Phoenix played him a demo tape of his song "Heart to Get." "It was a cool song," Greenbaum says. "The last of the commercial music that he wrote, as far as I'm concerned." The two teenagers hung out for about an hour then Greenbaum drove back home. A few months later Phoenix called Greenbaum and said he'd met Island Records founder Chris Blackwell backstage at a U2 concert and Blackwell wanted to sign Phoenix to a development deal. Phoenix asked Greenbaum to move to Gainesville - the famously progressive Phoenix family were living in nearby Micanopy - and start a band. He'd get him money each month to help "develop a band, make records and tour." Greenbaum moved to Gainesville in April 1988. He also spent time with Phoenix in Southern California, getting to know each other."

We were sort of like non-blood cousins," Greenbaum says. "River could trust me, A, because he knew each other through family and he knew I wasn't going to just be some starstruck idiot; and, B, because I'm a great musician. And he valued me as a human being and as a musician, highly. And that proof of his commitment to music, that he was willing to support a brother, to have my talents." 

At the time, Greenbaum had been playing “Aerosmith-y, commercial blues-influenced metal” in a local group called Toy Soldier, that eventually became semi-famous ’80s rockers Saigon Kick. At one point, Phoenix traveled to South Florida to visit with Greenbaum on a weekend when Toy Soldier was performing. “River had just gotten into (1984 mockumentary film ‘This is) Spinal Tap’ really heavily, and he did a ‘Spinal Tap’-esque video of that weekend, of that gig and the next morning,” Greenbaum says. “It was pretty funny, actually.”

Greenbaum was influenced by populist bands like Van Halen, Bee Gees and Queen. Phoenix introduced him to more quirkier acts like XTC, Roxy Music and Squeeze. As time went on, Phoenix's music became increasingly experimental. "It was deep, for sure," Greenbaum says of his friend's songwriting. "He had a commitment to crafting a masterpiece every time he wrote a song. And it drove me nuts. He was an eccentric person and his method of communication was such he didn't speak in technical music terms. He would speak artistically and metaphorically. He would say things like, 'I want it to sound like a ship on the ocean with the waves crashing up against the hull and birds flying over' or whatever. I would be like, 'OK, can we break that into sixteenth-notes?'"

Aleka's Attic's label, Island Records, was trying to figure out what to do with this music too. Island asked Phoenix to record two new demos to determine if they'd continue backing the project. He was going to be in the Los Angeles area filming the movie "Sneakers" and brought Greenbaum out to help demo songs. The drummer was able to hang on the "Sneakers" set, where he met his friend's costars, including Robert Redford, Sidney Poitier and Dan Aykroyd. After Phoenix turned in the new demos to Island, the label deemed the music unmarketable. Aleka's Attic was dropped.

At a certain point, McKay, who’d “butted heads musically and personally” with Phoenix for a while, Greenbaum says, parted ways with the band. Phoenix put together another band called Blacksmith Configuration, that featured Greenbaum and some new musicians, including bassist Sasa Raphael.

Phoenix was big on palindromes, Greenbaum says. Their song titles “Dog God” and “ Senile Felines” were palindromes and they were working on an album to be titled “Never Odd or Even,” another example.

On the night before Halloween 1993, Greenbaum went out partying with local musicians, “an intense night, for whatever reason.” Early the next morning, he crashed on the couch at a friend’s downtown Gainesville apartment. A few hours later, Greenbaum woke still buzzed to one of his musician pals from night prior knocking on the front door. When the friend entered, he looked pale and sweaty. He told Greenbaum he’d heard on the radio Phoenix had died. “I was in shock, but it just made sense and I knew it was true,” Greenbaum says. “In some way it didn’t surprise me. I didn’t see it coming - I can’t say that - but what I did see in River was his tendency for being extreme.”

In the wee hours of Oct. 31, Phoenix had collapsed and died on the sidewalk outside West Hollywood, Calif. nightclub The Viper Room, then co-owned by fellow actor/musician Johnny Depp. An autopsy determined cause of death to be “acute multiple drug intoxication.” Cocaine and morphine. Jo Billiter, the young fan who watched Aleka’s Attic’s 1991 show in Huntsville, cried when she heard the news her favorite actor died. “It broke my heart.”

Several fans interviewed for this story said Phoenix seemed a little bleary to clearly buzzed when they’d seen his band perform. Asked if he ever saw Phoenix’s partying on tour reach scary levels, Greenbaum says, “It was a typical rock & roll level. Nothing out of the ordinary. It was a bunch of guys in their young 20s playing gigs and having fun, just like any other band.”

When he was off working on films, Phoenix would check in every few weeks with Greenbaum, the drummer says. Phoenix called him from Utah, where he was filming the thriller “Dark Blood.” His next role was slated to be the interviewer in “Interview with a Vampire.”

When Phoenix called Greenbaum from Utah, “that was the most lucid, sane, grounded, understandable, discernible I had ever experienced him sounding. (In the past) there were times when I just couldn’t follow what he was talking about. He was kind of cryptic. And on that phone call he was like completely calm and sounded really together and we had a great conversation, a great connection and it wound up being our last phone call.”

In 2019, Aleka’s Attic music is back in the news. Two of the band’s songs “Where I’d Gone” and “Scales & Fishnails” were released along with a Rain collaboration with R.E.M. singer Michael Stipe (a friend of River’s) on a three-song collection called “Time Gone.” The record’s cover art features a photo of Rain and River, young and beautiful enjoying a sibling hug amid a verdant scene. A prior posthumous push to officially release Phoenix’s music hit snags getting musicians involved to sign off. “At that time, I was just like, 'Yeah, Rain, just get River’s music out to the world,’” Greenbaum says of that earlier effort. “That’s why he signed a record deal in the first place, to share his music with the world.”

As of the reporting of this story, Greenbaum says he hasn’t been contacted about usage of Aleka’s Attic music on “Time Gone.” The drummer found out about the release via messages from Facebook “friends” who are River Phoenix fans. “Rain didn’t consult us, she didn’t inform us, nothing,” Greenbaum says.

At one point during this interview, Greenbaum says he needs to call me back, so he can count out change to pay for groceries. He says he still plays drums with different local Maui cover bands as well as a blues-rock trio and by-day works construction and maintenance jobs.

Kro Records, the label that released “Time Gone,” didn’t respond to an email inquiry to interview Rain Phoenix and/or a label rep for this story.

Regular financial support and fast-tracking the Lenny Kravitz audition weren’t the only times Phoenix helped Greenbaum. He also bought him an electric-blue DW drumkit, among other instances. Outside of playing music, Phoenix and Greenbaum would throw the frisbee together or jump on the Phoenix family trampoline. They liked going to Falafel King and eating tabbouleh salad and humus. The famous actor would often come over for coffee to the mobile home Greenbaum and Greenbaum’s father lived in, on the Phoenixes’ Micanopy property.

These days, sometime random things will make Greenbaum think of River Phoenix. Sometimes it’s something more direct, like playing a gig will make him think of a certain onstage moment with his late friend.

After counting out coins in the checkout line, Greenbaum calls back. I ask if he thinks pressures of growing up famous led to what happened to Phoenix. “I wouldn’t doubt it,” he replies. “I definitely see how fame messed with his head, his heart. I think fame has that effect on everybody, which is why everybody wants to be famous, but you hear about all these famous people dropping dead and they’re unhappy, depressed and have drug and alcohol problems. Because fame is unnatural.”

— via AL.com, Feb 19, 2019.

[rivjudephoenix]

New Photo and Article: “Movie star River Phoenix left musical mark in Alabama” on al.com

Outside record producer Rick Rubin’s Hollywood Hills home, drummer Josh Greenbaum sat in a silver Volvo with his friend and bandmate River Phoenix, the film actor. The rock-star Lenny Kravitz was with them. On the car’s stereo, Kravitz played Phoenix and Greenbaum a recording of a new song he’d written called “Are You Gonna Go My Way.” This was 1992, before that explosive tune would become the title track to Kravitz’s third album and era-defining music. At the moment, Kravitz needed a drummer. He’d recently told mononymous Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea he was frustrated trying to find the right fit.

Flea later told Phoenix about Kravitz’s predicament, while Flea was having lunch with Phoenix. Upon hearing about the opportunity, Phoenix promptly hooked-up the drummer of his own band, Aleka’s Attic, with an audition with Kravitz - a much bigger gig. “And that’s how much River loved me as a brother as a friend,” Greenbaum says. “He was like, ‘I don’t want to hold you back from potential success, and if I can hook you up with this audition then I’m going to do it.’ River was incredibly gracious and generous. He wanted to see the people he cared about thriving”

The South Florida native wasn’t the only drummer auditioning that day at Rubin’s house. There were 25 or so “L.A. rocker dudes” at the “cattle call” that day “decked-out in leather, nose rings and tattoos.” In sneakers, jeans, sweatshirt and short haircut, Greenbaum looked more college-kid than arena-ready. In the end, the gig didn’t go to a dude at all. Cindy Blackman, a virtuosic jazz musician who happens to be female, deservedly became Kravitz’s next drummer. Still, Greenbaum says he got two callbacks to jam with Kravitz over the course of a week.

River Phoenix was a gifted, charismatic movie star so physically attractive he seemed to defy science. His nuanced performances lit up such films as "Stand By Me," "My Own Private Idaho" and "Running On Empty." But Phoenix told Greenbaum more than once, “music was his first love and film was his day-job.”

While some actors’ musical projects can be of dubious quality, Phoenix had legitimate singer/songwriter talent. “Music was a need of his,” Greenbaum says. “That’s why he put so much effort into a band, trying to make it in the music business, which of course would’ve come easier for him than anyone else that wasn’t famous already.”

Phoenix’s other passions included environmentalism, humanitarianism and animal-rights. He was one of the most visibly philanthropic young stars of the early ’90s. Phoenix was the reason Seventeen subscribers knew what “vegan” meant. “He had a heart of gold and was an extremely hyper-sensitive, emotional person,” Greenbaum says. “And that’s why he wound up helping a lot of people.”

Phoenix formed in Aleka’s Attic in 1987. The Gainesville, Fla.-based band’s tours brought them through Alabama, including circa-1991 shows at Huntsville’s Tip Top Café and Tuscaloosa’s Ivory Tusk. Greenbaum recalls Aleka’s Attic performing in Auburn, possibly at the War Eagle Supper Club there, and maybe Birmingham too.

“We had some successful tours,” says Greenbaum, who’s resided in Maui for more than 20 years. “People showed up because they wanted to hear what River’s band was like, but once they got there they were like, ‘Damn this really is a good band,’ and we had some real authentic fans of the music, for the music, not just because it was River.”

Back before social-media and celeb clickbait, Aleka’s Attic tours also gave fans a rare chance to see a massively famous actor in-person, in the wilds of local rock-bars.

Back then, Sandee Curry was attending Lee High School and delivering pizzas part-time. She was also "obsessed with anything Hollywood-related." When she and friend Michelle Woodson heard about Phoenix's band's upcoming Tip Top Café show, they resolved to attend. "River Phoenix is coming to Huntsville, my hometown? This doesn't happen," Curry says. As many people who lived in Huntsville then are aware, in addition to hosting touring and local bands, Tip Top was known for being extremely easy to get into under-age, so she'd been to shows there before.

Curry brought her snapshot camera to the show. The camera was freshly loaded with black and white film, and she took photos of Aleka’s Attic that night. When she got the film developed later, mixed in with random friend pics were onstage shots of Phoenix, singer Rain Phoenix (River’s sister), bassist Josh McKay, violist Tim Hankins and drummer Greenbaum.

At the Tip Top that night, River Phoenix played a Stratocaster guitar and sported facial scruff, a white T-shirt and camouflage pants. Curry recalls the famous actor being somewhat withdrawn onstage. “If I’m remembering correctly, he was mostly doing backing vocals,” she says. “The bassist and Rain were doing a lot of the singing.” Although Greenbaum says River Phoenix was the songwriter and lead singer on most Aleka’s Attic’s material, fans interviewed for this story recall Rain Phoenix being the focal point onstage during the band’s Alabama shows.

Curry classifies the band’s live sound as “psychedelic ’90s alternative-rock.” She adds, “It was a fun show.” She remembers enjoying the song “Too Many Colors” and McKay’s tune “Blue Period.”

At the Tip Top, Curry purchased one of the cassette tapes Aleka's Attic was selling at the time. "I listened to that tape a lot and it turned me into a fan" of the band, Curry says. She considered herself "a hippie" and her listening tastes also included The Doors. Curry kept her Aleka's Attic tape until about 10 years ago when she gave it to a friend's young sister who was fascinated with Phoenix: "She was really impressed by this cassette."

Christopher Brown was one of several audio engineers who ran live sound regularly at the Tip Top. On the night of Aleka's Attic he was off-work but there hanging out. “They were a little more artsy than the typical stuff that we had at the time,” says Brown, who works at a local brewery now. “I remember being pretty impressed by them.” Looking for a more-mainstream, stylistically similar act, I mention Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, known for 1988 patchouli-pop hit “What I Am,” to which Brown, replies, “That’s not a bad comparison.”

The Aleka's Attic show had been the talk of the bar for weeks. Vira Ceci was bartending that night at Tip Top. She recalls Phoenix being "so nice" when she asked him to autograph a cocktail napkin for her cousin, and says the actor was "easily the most accessible member of the band." Ceci, currently employed as a technical writer, recalls the Aleka's Attic show being "pretty busy for a weeknight" and thinks the bar probably charged their typical, $5 cover that night.

Lance Church owned, ran and booked the Tip Top during its prime. He remembers the motor-home Aleka's Attic toured in arriving early in the afternoon and parked in the gravel lot across the street. There was some advance promotion and local press coverage and Church recalls "parents were bringing kids over to sign their movie posters."

Church thinks Aleka’s Attic’s guarantee was “maybe a couple hundred dollars.”

In 1991 and several years into his acting career, Phoenix was just 21 years old. Church still keeps a photo of he and Phoenix shaking hands inside the Tip Top. "He seemed like a really good kid to me," says Church, now a manager at a chain restaurant. "He was polite. He didn't come in there like he was too good for the place or nothing. He was humble, a very likeable guy. He was giggly - he was just a kid."

Church says there'd been many phone calls in to the Tip Top in the week leading up to the Aleka's Attic gig, people asking about start time and such. In the end, he thinks about 100 people attended the show, inside the cinderblock building's mechanics-garage-sized interior. The Billiter sisters were among those attendees: Grace, then 18, Becca, 16, and Jo, 14 - all students at Westminster Christian Academy. (Again, the Tip Top was way easy to get into.) That night, Grace drove them to the Aleka's Attic show in her classic pink Volkswagen Beetle. Back at their family's northside Huntsville home, the sisters displayed River Phoenix photos on their bedroom walls, along with images with other hotties of the day, including Mel Gibson and Billy Idol. Other bands back then the sisters liked included INXS.

Expecting to see Phoenix as he'd appeared as a svelte longhaired Indiana Jones in the latest "Raiders of the Lost Ark" sequel, the Billiters were surprised to see him onstage with a haircut Becca remembers as "choppy and punky." Jo says Phoenix's singing voice "sounded good, a little gravely" and had "nice harmony with his sister." But what's really seared into Jo's hippocampus is she was in the same room with "hands-down my favorite movie star." When the band was on break, the sisters got to meet their idol. Phoenix even briefly, sweetly put his arm around Jo. "I think my heart stopped for a couple beats," she recalls. Looking back, Becca says, "I love that it was the three sisters" that got to share resulting, VW-wide smiles that night.

James Dixon, a University of Alabama student then, attended Aleka's Attic's Ivory Tusk show. On the sidewalk out front of the Tusk, he saw Phoenix leaning up against a nearby light-pole, smoking a cigarette. "That was the days before selfies and things like that," recalls Dixon, who works in financial services in Birmingham. "People would say, 'Hey, River,' and the coeds were swooning over him, but he wasn't being hassled. He seemed laid-back."

Inside, the Ivory Tusk was packed. Earlier that day, Kelli Staggs and friend Lori Watts were playing pinball on a machine inside the bar while the band was doing their soundcheck. One Aleka's Attic musician came over and said hello, then Phoenix, recalls Staggs, who now works in Huntsville as a defense contract specialist. Later that night, Staggs says Aleka's Attic performed, in addition to their material, a version of far-out Jimi Hendrix tune "Third Stone from the Sun." After they played their Hendrix cover, the band asked the crowd if they knew that song. "It was like they were trying to weed out who was there for the music, and who was just there to see him because he was famous," Staggs says. Staggs was an art major at University of Alabama, where she'd seen alternative bands like 10,000 Maniacs perform at local venues.

Aleka's Attic drummer Josh Greenbaum recalls the band enjoying their Alabama shows. "I remember good energy, a good crowd. I remember getting treated pretty well." (Greenbaum has a random memory of one or more of these Alabama venues having troughs instead of urinals in the men's room.) He recalls Tip Top as "a dive, and we loved it for that reason. It was very endearing." In Tuscaloosa, he met a friend named Nancy Romine he's stayed in touch with. "During the same Southeast run, Greenbaum says Aleka's Attic did a show in Knoxville, Tenn. that was multitrack recorded and broadcast. In this era, "Lost in Motion," "What We've Done" and "Dog God" went over particularly well live, he says. Greenbaum recalls Phoenix, "loved the creative process of recording. If he had a preference I would say the studio was, probably, because he was a little bit shy and didn't like being in public places so much. But I know he loved playing live too and he did enjoy the touring. He was happy doing both."

Greenbaum was born 13 days before Phoenix. They were just 16 the first time they met, their families were friends. Greenbaum drove his dad's 1977 Chevy van to Phoenix's aunt's house, Phoenix walked out to meet him, then they went inside where Phoenix played him a demo tape of his song "Heart to Get." "It was a cool song," Greenbaum says. "The last of the commercial music that he wrote, as far as I'm concerned." The two teenagers hung out for about an hour then Greenbaum drove back home. A few months later Phoenix called Greenbaum and said he'd met Island Records founder Chris Blackwell backstage at a U2 concert and Blackwell wanted to sign Phoenix to a development deal. Phoenix asked Greenbaum to move to Gainesville - the famously progressive Phoenix family were living in nearby Micanopy - and start a band. He'd get him money each month to help "develop a band, make records and tour." Greenbaum moved to Gainesville in April 1988. He also spent time with Phoenix in Southern California, getting to know each other.

"We were sort of like non-blood cousins," Greenbaum says. "River could trust me, A, because he knew each other through family and he knew I wasn't going to just be some starstruck idiot; and, B, because I'm a great musician. And he valued me as a human being and as a musician, highly. And that proof of his commitment to music, that he was willing to support a brother, to have my talents."

At the time, Greenbaum had been playing “Aerosmith-y, commercial blues-influenced metal” in a local group called Toy Soldier, that eventually became semi-famous ’80s rockers Saigon Kick. At one point, Phoenix traveled to South Florida to visit with Greenbaum on a weekend when Toy Soldier was performing. “River had just gotten into (1984 mockumentary film ‘This is) Spinal Tap’ really heavily, and he did a ‘Spinal Tap’-esque video of that weekend, of that gig and the next morning,” Greenbaum says. “It was pretty funny, actually.”

Greenbaum was influenced by populist bands like Van Halen, Bee Gees and Queen. Phoenix introduced him to more quirkier acts like XTC, Roxy Music and Squeeze. As time went on, Phoenix's music became increasingly experimental. "It was deep, for sure," Greenbaum says of his friend's songwriting. "He had a commitment to crafting a masterpiece every time he wrote a song. And it drove me nuts. He was an eccentric person and his method of communication was such he didn't speak in technical music terms. He would speak artistically and metaphorically. He would say things like, 'I want it to sound like a ship on the ocean with the waves crashing up against the hull and birds flying over' or whatever. I would be like, 'OK, can we break that into sixteenth-notes?'"

Aleka's Attic's label, Island Records, was trying to figure out what to do with this music too. Island asked Phoenix to record two new demos to determine if they'd continue backing the project. He was going to be in the Los Angeles area filming the movie "Sneakers" and brought Greenbaum out to help demo songs. The drummer was able to hang on the "Sneakers" set, where he met his friend's costars, including Robert Redford, Sidney Poitier and Dan Aykroyd. After Phoenix turned in the new demos to Island, the label deemed the music unmarketable. Aleka's Attic was dropped.

At a certain point, McKay, who’d “butted heads musically and personally” with Phoenix for a while, Greenbaum says, parted ways with the band. Phoenix put together another band called Blacksmith Configuration, that featured Greenbaum and some new musicians, including bassist Sasa Raphael.

Phoenix was big on palindromes, Greenbaum says. Their song titles "Dog God" and " Senile Felines" were palindromes and they were working on an album to be titled "Never Odd or Even," another example.

On the night before Halloween 1993, Greenbaum went out partying with local musicians, "an intense night, for whatever reason." Early the next morning, he crashed on the couch at a friend's downtown Gainesville apartment. A few hours later, Greenbaum woke still buzzed to one of his musician pals from night prior knocking on the front door. When the friend entered, he looked pale and sweaty. He told Greenbaum he'd heard on the radio Phoenix had died. "I was in shock, but it just made sense and I knew it was true," Greenbaum says. "In some way it didn't surprise me. I didn't see it coming - I can't say that - but what I did see in River was his tendency for being extreme."

In the wee hours of Oct. 31, Phoenix had collapsed and died on the sidewalk outside West Hollywood, Calif. nightclub The Viper Room, then co-owned by fellow actor/musician Johnny Depp. An autopsy determined cause of death to be “acute multiple drug intoxication.” Cocaine and morphine. Jo Billiter, the young fan who watched Aleka’s Attic’s 1991 show in Huntsville, cried when she heard the news her favorite actor died. “It broke my heart.”

Several fans interviewed for this story said Phoenix seemed a little bleary to clearly buzzed when they’d seen his band perform. Asked if he ever saw Phoenix’s partying on tour reach scary levels, Greenbaum says, “It was a typical rock & roll level. Nothing out of the ordinary. It was a bunch of guys in their young 20s playing gigs and having fun, just like any other band.”

When he was off working on films, Phoenix would check in every few weeks with Greenbaum, the drummer says. Phoenix called him from Utah, where he was filming the thriller "Dark Blood." His next role was slated to be the interviewer in "Interview with a Vampire."

When Phoenix called Greenbaum from Utah, "that was the most lucid, sane, grounded, understandable, discernible I had ever experienced him sounding. (In the past) there were times when I just couldn't follow what he was talking about. He was kind of cryptic. And on that phone call he was like completely calm and sounded really together and we had a great conversation, a great connection and it wound up being our last phone call."

In 2019, Aleka's Attic music is back in the news. Two of the band's songs "Where I'd Gone" and "Scales & Fishnails" were released along with a Rain collaboration with R.E.M. singer Michael Stipe (a friend of River's) on a three-song collection called "Time Gone." The record's cover art features a photo of Rain and River, young and beautiful enjoying a sibling hug amid a verdant scene. A prior posthumous push to officially release Phoenix's music hit snags getting musicians involved to sign off. "At that time, I was just like, 'Yeah, Rain, just get River's music out to the world,'" Greenbaum says of that earlier effort. "That's why he signed a record deal in the first place, to share his music with the world."

As of the reporting of this story, Greenbaum says he hasn’t been contacted about usage of Aleka’s Attic music on “Time Gone.” The drummer found out about the release via messages from Facebook “friends” who are River Phoenix fans. “Rain didn’t consult us, she didn’t inform us, nothing,” Greenbaum says.

At one point during this interview, Greenbaum says he needs to call me back, so he can count out change to pay for groceries. He says he still plays drums with different local Maui cover bands as well as a blues-rock trio and by-day works construction and maintenance jobs.

Kro Records, the label that released "Time Gone," didn't respond to an email inquiry to interview Rain Phoenix and/or a label rep for this story.

Regular financial support and fast-tracking the Lenny Kravitz audition weren't the only times Phoenix helped Greenbaum. He also bought him an electric-blue DW drumkit, among other instances. Outside of playing music, Phoenix and Greenbaum would throw the frisbee together or jump on the Phoenix family trampoline. They liked going to Falafel King and eating tabbouleh salad and humus. The famous actor would often come over for coffee to the mobile home Greenbaum and Greenbaum's father lived in, on the Phoenixes' Micanopy property.

These days, sometime random things will make Greenbaum think of River Phoenix. Sometimes it's something more direct, like playing a gig will make him think of a certain onstage moment with his late friend.

After counting out coins in the checkout line, Greenbaum calls back. I ask if he thinks pressures of growing up famous led to what happened to Phoenix. “I wouldn’t doubt it,” he replies. “I definitely see how fame messed with his head, his heart. I think fame has that effect on everybody, which is why everybody wants to be famous, but you hear about all these famous people dropping dead and they’re unhappy, depressed and have drug and alcohol problems. Because fame is unnatural.”

[wutbju]

TUSCALOOSA – Dr. Adolph L. Blakeney, age 97, passed away February 3, 2019 at Hospice of West Alabama. Visitation will be held Tuesday, February 5, 2019, from 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m. at Tuscaloosa Memorial Park and Chapel, 5434 Old Birmingham Hwy, Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Graveside services will be held at 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, February 6, 2019, at Tuscaloosa Memorial Park with Tuscaloosa Memorial Chapel directing. Dr. Curtis Kelley and Reverend Lanier Nail will be conducting the service. 

He was preceded in death by his parents, Dr. A. Lanthus Blakeney and Velma Davis Blakeney; and first wife, Sarah Sullivan Blakeney. 

He is survived by his wife of 39 years, Kay Phurrough Blakeney; sons, Billy David Blakeney and Barry Lynn Blakeney. Other survivors include: grandsons, William (Kristin), George (Blakely) and Jon Blakeney; three great-grandsons; mother-in-law, Oma C. Phurrough; sister-in-law, Nelda Phurrough; brother-in-law, Charles Phurrough; and three nephews. 

Pallbearers will be William Blakeney, George Blakeney, Jon Blakeney, Charles Phurrough, Christopher Phurrough, Patrick Phurrough, David Aaron and Robert Earnhardt. 

Dr. Blakeney graduated from Fayette County High School in 1939. In 1943, he received a Bachelor's Degree in History from The University of Alabama. In 1948, he received a Master's Degree in Religion from Bob Jones University in South Carolina. Then, in 1956 he received a Master's Degree in History from The University of Alabama. In 1963, he received his PH.D in Educational Psychology and Counseling from The University of Alabama. 

Dr. Blakeney received clinical training in counseling at the Topeka State Hospital and Menninger School of Psychiatry in Topeka, Kansas in 1960. 

His career began as a pastor of a number of Baptist churches in West Alabama. He then served as Chairman of the History Department at Tennessee Temple College, Chattanooga, Tennessee. 

He then returned to Tuscaloosa, Alabama and served as Chaplain at Bryce Hospital. Following this he became State Director of Staff Education for the Alabama Department of Mental Health for eight years. 

In 1970 he left the State Mental Health Department to serve as Dean of Students at Lawson State Junior College in Birmingham, Alabama. 

In 1972 he left Lawson State to become Associate Professor, at the University of Alabama in Birmingham, in the Department of Education, a position he held until his retirement in 1984.

Dr. Blakeney was privileged to serve as a consultant to the National Institute of Mental Health where he was responsible for reviewing, approving and monitoring mental health grants for several years. 

After retirement, Dr. Blakeney enjoyed gardening and development of his beloved Blakeney Tree Farm in Fayette County which was designated a Treasure Forest in 1995. 

Additionally, Dr. Blakeney was honored to serve on the Board of the Carroll's Creek Volunteer Fire Department for several years. 

The family wishes to thank the staff and care givers of Hospice of West Alabama for all their kindness and care. 

For anyone who wishes to send a memorial, the family suggests Hospice of West Alabama, 3851 Loop Road, Tuscaloosa, AL 35404 or The Humane Society of West Alabama, 2430 36th Street, Northport, AL 35473.Published in Tuscaloosa News on Feb. 5, 2019