Heavy Metal
It took three years and two trips to Seattle, but I finally made it to the grave of Jimi Hendrix.
Jimi is buried in Greenwood Memorial Park in Renton (a Seattle suburb) just around the corner from Boeing’s airplane factory (you can see the new 737’s covered in green sticky plastic as you drive by). A massive marble tent (similar to the Ohel of Rabbi Chaim Ozer Grodonsky, l’havdil) is constructed over his grave. The walls are covered with large images of Jimi, his lyrics, and other Jimi iconography. It looks like the site will eventually be used for the entire Hendrix family, though today there are only a few other people buried there.
I didn’t pray or recite any chapters from Psalms. I did hum the words to Voodoo Child, however, and I played air guitar too.
I have now been to Jimi’s grave in Seattle, Elvis in Memphis, and Jim Morrison in Paris. Jack Kerouac is buried in Lowell, MA – not far from where I live – maybe that should be my next trip.
May 13th, 2009
You want wild?
My dream guitar in high school was the B.C. Rich Bich. It was handmade, neck-through-the-body, really expensive, and loaded with oodles of cool buttons. As I got better at guitar, I made it my mission to get one. I worked summer jobs and slaved away for about two years. Finally one day I made the trek to Sam Ash music in Paramus and bought one. I was in heaven. (This is exactly what mine looked like):
My B.C. Rich was my main guitar throughout high school and college, and the main axe I used when I began playing professionally. Most of the recording sessions I did in the early 90’s were done with it too.
But it had its drawbacks – the biggest being the Kahler whammy bar. The guitar was always out of tune, and very difficult to get back into tune. On gigs, if I broke a string, I was forced to switch guitars (not true with most guitars with a standard bridge). As the years went by, I got fed up and eventually made the switch to the Tele and Les Paul I still use.
Once I was living in Israel and my music career was on hold, I decided to sell my B.C. Rich. I sold it to a student in Jerusalem for $550 and though it was sad, I never looked back.
Until last week.
I was in Phoenix giving a talk and my host told me about the cool B.C. Rich he found in a dumpster in Har Nof. I said, “What kind?” He said, “A Bich.” I said, “I used to have one. It had a big crack in the neck.” (I dropped it once on a gig. It was repaired but left a wound.)
This is where it gets cool.
He had just moved to Phoenix and was still unpacking. He unwrapped the B.C. Rich and…
…it was my guitar! No joke. Crack on the neck and everything.
The guitar has taken a real beating and needs love. But there it was. How insane is that?
(You can read about a similar model here.)
November 23rd, 2008
About two years ago the song “Black Betty” started popping up everywhere. (I vaguely remember it as a seventies anthem, but that is about it.) Everyone knows it - and I am often singing it to myself - but no one knows who recorded it.
My guess is Aerosmith (obviously wrong), so I googled it. Ready?
“Black Betty” is a reworking of a Leadbelly recording by one-hit-wonder Ram Jam (remember them? I don’t either) and reached #18 in 1977. It was attacked by the NAACP (I don’t know why) and made it into the top ten in Europe and Australia.
This is a link to the video (amazing right?) don’t you wish it could be 1977 again? Pay particular attention to the lip-syncing, it will change your life.
August 16th, 2008
I won’t reveal my connections, but last week I was in Aerosmith’s management office. It was incredibly cool.
In addition to platinum records and Grammies, they also had MTV music awards lying around – you know, the silver spaceman with MTV flag. I picked one up and was about to hold it up in the air (just like the rock stars do on TV) but the flag almost fell out and I got scared. Like what would Joe Perry say if he heard that some Rabbi broke his MTV spaceman statue?
Going there got me thinking – now that I have this semi-celebrity status, and I seem to be in with the music establishment, I think I should offer my services to the lost Jews in the music business. David Lee Roth, Amy Winehouse, people like that – they could use a Rabbi, no?
February 13th, 2008
This judge is my hero. He sentences people busted for playing their music too loud with an hour of Barry Manilow. “I can’t laugh, I can’t sing, I am finding it hard to do anything” – I would feel that way too if I had to listen to Barry for one hour straight.
Most violators found the first few minutes funny. As time wore on with Karen Carpenter, Barry Manilow and Barney songs, they weren’t laughing anymore.
Extremely profound – prison, fines – why slap an offender on the wrist when you can subject him to the same pain he causes others?
The offenders were usually blasting rap - what would happen if they cranked Barry in this judge’s town? An hour of snoop dog?
September 20th, 2007
When professional athletes reach a certain age, they acknowledge (even if somewhat begrudgingly) that they are past their prime and that it is time to move on. Not so with aging rock stars – they just keep on going, prancing around like teenagers and wearing lipstick and eyeliner. There is nothing wrong with old musicians – in some genres age is actually an asset, adds an air of maturity and sophistication – but in rock n roll some of these old hags can be downright pathetic.
One rocker breaking this trend and aging gracefully is Eddie Van Halen. Check out this clip of Van Halen from back in the day:
You Really Got Me
Eddie was the man – young, long hair, thin – he had it all (true, Dave’s moves do look a little silly - but this was very cool back then).
Now look at this:
Eruption
Eddie is a middle-aged rocker now – but notice, he is not jumping around like a goofball – he is acting the part of a senior statesman of rock n roll, tastefully displaying his talents in a musical display of bravado. He is still the king on guitar and he is clearly still a virtuoso – and isn’t that just how it should be?
I think there are more then a few rockers out there who could learn a thing or two from Eddie – leave the theatrics for the youngsters.
August 21st, 2007
I am not sure if words can describe how awesome this is:
Speaking at the induction of R&B girl group The Ronettes into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the dreadlocked, chain-smoking rock dinosaur (Keith Richards) admitted he owed his life to advances in the medical industry.
“There have been great strides made in medical science lately,” he said.
“That’s why I am able to say to you, ‘Good evening ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’.”
I mean – wow. Forget sissy things like diet and exercise – just do like Keith and live forever.
March 14th, 2007
I was driving home tonight listening to the radio – “classic hits from the sixties, seventies, and eighties – the songs you grew up with” (cheesy I know, but they often play cool stuff), when the DJ mentioned this thing about “40 being the new 30.” I nearly drove into a wall, “that’s me – this is my demographic” (I am 39). When did I get to be so old? I think I am still pretty hip. But maybe not.
As shocking as it may seem, I was talking with some youngsters recently about Flavor Flav, and apparently he is a bit of a joke now with his own reality TV show and everything. I mean, I know the clock is a little silly (it was “whack” back in the day as well), but the Flav is half of Public Enemy, and they were incredible. What happened?
Worse though is that it seems that my generation has lost its mind. I didn’t have the patience to read this article, but the trend is basically that people my age (old people) dress, act, and run around like they are still 20 and hip.
Is the whole world crazy? And how did Duran Duran become cool and retro?
March 13th, 2007
I am sick with a crazy fever. The fever won’t go away and at times has been so high that I have started hallucinating. A happy byproduct of my mild hallucinations is that I have scanned the web and found videos of the awesome and illustrious Captain Beefheart. In my never-ending mission to educate the masses about great music, I have posted two videos from the Captain (not to be confused with the “Captain” of Captain and Tennille fame). I really have no idea what Captain Beefheart is talking about, but it doesn’t matter, he is awesome, listen to these two selections and tell me that it doesn’t change your life for the better. In particular, dig the hip Mellotron sounds on Ashtray Heart. (I am not sure if it really is a Mellotron, it is too small and could be a Moog thing, but it sure sounds like one).
Hot Head
Ashtray Heart
February 14th, 2007
