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“We Are All Patriots”
Above: Raytheon Theater at the Patriots Hall of Fame in Foxboro MA Recently, a colleague here in Durham NC asked me if I was excited about the Super Bowl because I am from New England and the Patriots are in the big game – again. I said no. He was surprised. Being a native of…
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Silence Is Golden / Way South
Next release is coming in late March. It’s a side project of processed instrumental guitar pieces about my semi-rural neighborhood, which ranges from titles like “Mobile Homes” to “Hidden Mansions” following the strange geography of class in such parts of the US. Project title is “Outside A Small City.” Limited edition of 100 on vinyl,…
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#freeSamuel
Activists here in Durham are very concerned about this case. Samuel was in Sanctuary at City Well church just down the street from where I teach until he was entrapped and seized by ICE earlier this week. The following statement from local House Reps Price and Butterfield articulate the deception that was involved in the…
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It’s Halloween Time
I’m pleased to announce my participation in a seasonally tuned in lo fi compilation called It’s Halloween Time from Chthonic Records (US) and Almost Halloween Time Records (Italy). It kicks off with a tune from C. Worth, whose instrumental guitar work I have been enjoying over the past year, and meanders through numerous fragmentary delights. …
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100 Wins
Tonight my hometown team, the Boston Red Sox, reached 100 wins for the first time since 1946 – with 16 left to play. It brought to mind one of my favorite books about Boston, which is Howard Bryant’s Shut Out: A Story of Race and Baseball in Boston. One of the most interesting things in…
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What We’ve Been Up To
I recently got to write a post for Dusted Magazine‘s Listed series about ten records & books I’m fond of. It’s not a Top 10 of All Time, for reasons stated in the opener, more like what I wanted to write about on that occasion: Art Melody, Kari Ka Kian Fô Baaba Maal & Mansour…
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Durham wins one vs. Mass Incarceration
Good news is available here via our city’s City Life program about reforms that are working to remove barriers that people who have been involved with the justice system face when looking for work and getting a driver’s license. Congratulations to Outreach Coordinator Chuck Manning Sr. and Team Project Manager Ryan Smith, a former colleague…
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Top 40 Over 40.25: Wise Intelligent
Even rarer than artists making great records after 40 is those who are able to do so in quick succession. Back when I was high school, Hüsker Dü released New Day Rising and Flip Your Wig only 8 months apart. It’s hard to imagine young bands doing that in today’s post-internet crash music economy, let…
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Top 40 Over 40.24: Zero Set
1982: I was 12 years old and listening to James Taylor.* Ouch. I could have been listening to an album that came out that year by Moebius, Plank, and Neumeier called Zero Set. That would have been a better outcome for all concerned. Conny Plank (above) would have been 42 when this came out, which qualifies…
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Top 40 Over 40.23: KRS-One Live at Cat’s Cradle
I saw KRS – One live a few months ago, and the musical assumptions of ageism took another body blow for sure. Aging musicians often lose the full power of their stage presence, and / or seem bitter or disillusioned or worn down by the passage of time, or lose the critical edge of their…