Sir Elton John, Juggler

What's next? Will I be stuffing everyone's stockings with Cheesecake Factory gift
certificates? Will I start downloading Journey ringtones? Who knows? As the power ballad on "Arrested Development" has it, you have to "keep your balls in the air." I'm trying, but who knows how things will tumble down now that Sir Elton has tossed my balls in the air. What I'm trying to say is ...

Elton Rocks!

And, no, I won't say he "Crocodile Rocks" 'cause that song still gives me the heebie jeebies (as did the collective boogie that song inspired--I didn't have to look around twice to know I was the only one who had picked up Aamon Duul II's "Phallus Dei" on the way to the show). That said...I am now an Elton John fan. If I ever ranted at you (um, Vegh) about your purchase of "Yellow Brick Road," please forgive my dullness. It seems suddenly very silly to harbor any sort of negative strong feelings to this Friend of the Muppets (and of Dorothy) ("Wizard of Oz" is my all time favorite movie fer pete's sake). And after "Funeral for a Friend," and C's reaction, any resitance was futile.

I melted...I,uh, lay melting in his hands.

I am now officially PRO-ELTON.

Now go buy his new album, please. It is very good.

Big weekend coming up.

Saturday morning: Dead Sea Scrolls. We'll see if this is less a letdown than the DaVinci Codex.

Saturday night: Elton John. I've never been shy about my feelings for Elton John. Ugh, is what I've said, with a cringe followed by a boring rant against...I don't know..."Candle in the Wind." Only a "Chocolholic Bitch from Hell" keychain could get me ranting more than Elton. No fan. But C. is and I love C. And she suffered through one of the most gruesome shows ever because of me (but I swear--the Residents shows I'd see before that had been awesome!) so I've always felt like I owe her. But now I've even managed to get myself excited about Sir Elton. I guess I've matured a bit, gotten away from blabbing so much against the Fleetwood MacDonaldization of mu-sick. I've instead forused on the Elton songs I do like (there are a few actually) and I've let him into my heart. Read his allmusic bio if you want to be impressed. His new album is really good! And I think the last time I saw an arena show was the Hello Nasty tour with Dup and Kris. Right? Ampitheater shows don't count. So think of me Croc Rockin' Saturday night. But don't worry too much--before the concert we're stopping by Easy Street so I can pick up the new Wolf Eyes.

Sunday night: Music Club of Zanzibar. It's these guys first show in the States. I tried to see them when I was in Zanzibar but there was a cholera outbreak. Hopefully spinach won't manage to fuck this up.

Monday night: Brightblack Morning Light. Remember that RADD commecial when Iggy Pop was in the hottub saying, "I don't get stoned anymore, but I still think stoned thoughts?" That's me listening to Brightblack. Oh man, they move me someplace hazy. With organs! They're opening for Mojave 3 whom I dunno at all.

Come Tuesday will I be able to report that "I'm still standin'?" Stay tuned.

They didn't make us wait as long this time...

New issue of Yeti on newstands now.

I say "newstands" but I've only ever seen it at what I still
quaintly call "record shops."

And you can order it online.

Yes.

"Talent imitates, but genius steals." TS Elliot

Who's This Guy Dylan Who's Borrowing Lines from Henry Timrod?

flashbacks from blackouts

From pogues.com
"On Septmber 19, 2006 Rhino in association with The Pogues will release in North America re-mastered and expanded versions of the first five of The Pogues’ studio albums: ‘Red Roses For Me’; (1984) , ‘Rum, Sodomy & The Lash’ (1985), ‘If I Should Fall From Grace With God’ (1988), ‘Peace And Love’ (1989), and ‘Hell's Ditch’ (1990).

The Pogues have overseen this project, supervising the re-mastering process, the artwork and the booklets.

Each CD contains up to seven additional songs. The track listings include contemporaneous tracks which were not previously released on The Pogues’ albums."

Maybe one reason I love the new Dylan is that he's classing up the crassly irrelevant mediocrity of House of Blues/Saturday Night Live Band/Eric Clapton whiteboy blues.

Stuff I haven't given a damn about for years.

Eric Clapton is a...

Litebeercommercial

Then Dylan comes
swinging down low on his
sweet satellite radio contract to
carry us home in some weird ass lingerie

(kinky mustache)

& puts his own shimmering
silver
slurring cowboy
professor pimp spin on it

and you realize that the problem was never the wood, it was the rocking chair.

Number one record, baby!

Alice Notley

"I tried to keep thinking--maybe I'm giving away too many professional secrets--at this point I understood something quite primary from Stein's repetition, which was that you could pause inside a repetition and, without losing the momentum of the poem, you could think of what to say next. You get a word from the past...and you pull it into the present in order to go to the future. It has something to do with thinking and not losing the music while you think. Nothing is lost or obscure."

from "Poets & Writers"

Onion-worthy headline

On Yahoo today:

"Bush reminds Americans US is at war"

Professor Unc + Small Fish= 1 cool couple...

Congratulations!