Very appropriate Len

Thanks Kevin. I'm not too sure if Arlo is happy about these mashups of his work. I keep thinking about what they did to the Dixie Chicks, watched some of the circus that is the CMA last night, and wonder if there is anything left because it sure seems to be coming down to the commedians and the folk singers and very few of the last bunch.

"what they did to the dixie chicks"

do you mean from a few years ago or did they "do somethign" to them last night at the cma's? (i didn't watch)

A few years ago. I should have been clearer.

I'm no fan of where country music is these days. It's hollow, Hollywood "without the tan", IMO. The stars are bots now. The producers rule. At least that's how it looks from here. It's ok to sing "
God Bless America Again" but it's not ok to look an audience in the eye and say, "Maybe we're doing the wrong things." The media machine takes the symbols of country like the Ryman and uses them for the GMA gigglefest. We can hear all about how Martina McBride is raising her young girls to be 'healthy' while she is posing for a bikini shoot with girls half her age and that isn't bad, but record a song or show a video of flag draped coffins and ask "what are we leaving behind" and get run off music row.

Whaddaya do? Smile at each other like Thelma and Louise and hit the accelerator? There's gotta be a better way out of a tight spot. With the news media gone to hell, politicians as pimps, and smooth talking presidents handing the money over to the people who just stole our 401ks, all that seem to be left are the commedians and the folk singers to remind us what that something is receding in the rearview mirror. And the folk singers are few and far between.

Len wrote:

"And the folk singers are few and far between."


Yeah, but we can get loud when we want to.

In the real world, Thelma and Louise smile, hit the accelerator and choke the engine because they put cheap gas in a high performance engine when they haven't changed the plugs or the oil for five years.

Stupid and obliviousness may save us in 2012. Meanwhile, at least I'll have a good excuse for not shopping for Christmas that year. "But but but... the world was ending! What use would you have for new hairdryer???"

But remember, people, Elvis was a folksinger...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSF89swJ9IU

Seems appropriate to post that one given both the theme and the fact that we're just passing the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall.

Tuesday night I went to see the 12 Cellists of the Berlin Philharmonic, at the Strathmore, where Arlo played last year. They also played an old Elvis tune:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bal1gRVvyJU

Then Elvis must've been Mikes fave folksinger cuz he sure was a huge Elvis fan...

i thought this was relevant on the original topic - i pasted just a couple parts here, but the whole article/interview with arlo was pretty good (from today's article and interview by Tom Keyser, Albany Times Union, N.Y. )


Q: If you were talking to a high school or collage class -- that didn't have a clue about your father and not much of a clue about folk music -- what would you tell them?

A: I'd tell them that folk music is not a genre. It's not a kind of music. It's the history of people in song and music that is outside of the entertainment industry. It has nothing to do with getting rich or famous, being somebody, or any of the normal things that you would associate with popular music. It doesn't mean that it can't happen. I mean, look at me.

.....

What [Pete] really taught me was that there is a power in songs, in people singing them, that doesn't come about any other way. It's like sunshine or rain or something. You can't really explain it unless you do it. It makes you feel a certain way, just like hanging out in the sun does, or walking in the rain does, or standing in the wind. It's one of these natural forces that impacts your life. It's good stuff.

full article: http://www.californiachronicle.com/arti ... /137648622

Reality is vastly overrated. It's too expensive to produce. Fox is canceling it midseason.

And here I was thinking folk music was old people singing dead people's songs to young people trying to get to the free food.

i saw a section of the berlin wall at the newseum last year!

The Strathmore (where the cellists were playing) was displaying the same section of the wall that the Newseum had -- although it's a replica, not the original -- which is a little weird. But interesting.

That's a great interview, zany.

Mrs G put the Guthrie family tribute to Mary Travers up at YouTube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVwp1NTacpo

Way well done both musically and videographically...

As well as humanly.

And well-mixed, don't you think? Sounds great in the headphones. Also richer video rez.