John Prine

Last night, I was in the same room with John Prine. The auditorium was on a college campus by the ocean in Jim Morrison's hometown of Melbourne. The place was retro and smelled like old wood. The instruments were beat up, especially John Prine's guitar (his 1968 Martin D-28). He looked older, but he was the same John Prine.

The first thing he said in his raspy Prine voice was, "I've never been here before, so I'm gonna stay a while." That began an intimate night that turned out to be the best concert I'd ever seen.

The first song he sang was called "Spanish Pipedream".

Blow up your T.V. throw away your paper
Go to the country, build you a home
Plant a little garden, eat a lot of peaches
Try and find Jesus on your own

Two band members accompanied John Prine. Guitarist Jason Wilber (a handsome young red headed man) used his black Telecaster to conjure twangy leads, pedal steel guitar effects and bottle-slide riffs. Dave Jacques (a tall, thin man in a black suit) thumped along on upright bass, occasionally using a bow. Prine, Wilber and Jacques smiled up a storm. The audience was smiling too, as they were in the same room with one of their heroes.

Prine cracked jokes and sang each song as if he just wrote it, or perhaps he just relived the past as he sang. Before each song, he told us why he wrote it. He spoke about his early days, writing songs such as "Souvenirs" on his Chicago mail route. He smirked as he said, "The government paid me to write songs." He recalled for the crowd how he first imagined that he had come up with a song so complicated that he couldn't play it on guitar, then realized "it was just the same three chords I always used."

Prine's sly humor was on display all night, most obviously on a well-timed monologue in the middle of "That's the Way That the World Goes 'Round." That bit, tied together his misunderstanding of a Fats Domino lyric he loved when he was a boy to a much loved Prine story in which a lady from San Francisco thought 'half an inch of water" in "That's The Way the World Goes 'Round" was "happy enchilada".

Prine explaining the happy enchilada song:



His songs were sad, eerie, morbid. They were funny, intimate, witty, silly and deep. One song was all of these things. This song is called "Lake Marie".


Prine singing "Lake Marie":



He sang a song about strip mining in Kentucky ("Paradise"), one about a war veteran with a drug addiction ("Sam Stone"), a few about the demise of a relationship. One song called "Fish & Whistle" was one of my favorite ones. The chorus goes like this:

Father forgive us for what we must do
You forgive us we'll forgive you
We'll forgive each other till we both turn blue
Then we'll whistle and go fishing in heaven.

Prine said he could not pass up a chance to sing a song about an astronaut since Melbourne was so close to Nasa. Then he sang "Space Monkey", a funny song he wrote about an astronaut monkey from the 50's. Every song was like a story being told by a good friend.
It went on for over 2 hours. Even then, folks were shouting out requests.
"I know 'em all," Prine joked. There was something comforting about being in that auditorium with Prine—sort of like being with an old friend.





John Prine was the highlight of the concert for me, but the opening act was also wonderful. Josh Ritter, a 30-year-old folk musician from Idaho sang his heart out. He immediately evoked that intimate feeling which was the theme of the night. He was smiling from ear to ear the whole time. Ritter was modest and obviously very honored to be on tour with John Prine. He complimented Prine several times and they even did "Paradise" together at the end of the show. Ritter beamed at Prine during their performance together.

Josh Ritter was charming. He sheepishly thanked the audience profusely and remarked at the large crowd. He was handsome, with a bunch of curly blond hair and a vintage suit. His songs had depth and revealed his influences—Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, Bob Dylan, and even John Prine. He was really something. He started with a song about a woman and a joke about Sarah Palin (which I loved). His song was about a girl with a bright smile and dark eyes. It was lovely. As with many of his songs, it featured a folk character, Calamity Jane.

Ritter singing "Bright Eyes":



He also sang Harrisburg, a song with lyrics highlighting another folk constant—trains and railroad tracks. I love songs about trains.

It's a long way to Heaven; it's closer to Harrisburg
And that's still a long way from the place where we are
And if evil exists its a pair of train tracks
And the devil is a railroad car

Ritter singing "Harrisburg":



My favorite song performed by Josh Ritter was a version of Mississippi John Hurt's "Louis Collins", called "Folk Bloodbath". It is a song featuring a few well-known folk heroes. Josh Ritter said he wanted to "kill them off in one song". It turned into a lovely and sad song.

Josh Ritter singing Folk Bloodbath:





Between songs, Ritter told stories as well, and made two more jokes about Sarah Palin (which were surprisingly well received). He told of how he was originally going to be a neuro-scientist like his parents, but realized two weeks into it that he would end up as a musician by default. I, for one, am very glad of that.

I can now say I've seen John Prine in concert and I was glad to discover someone else as well. Music is lovely, isn't it?

Love Does Not Die, It Changes Form

At night, when I'm trying to sleep, I see momma. I see her sitting with her ever present cup of coffee. Her legs are so short that her feet don't touch the ground. She swings them like a child. She always did. I see Casey, smiling in his beautiful Casey way. I see my dad's baby blue eyes that crinkled when he smiled. Grandma Knowles laughs on the screened porch, just like she did down Tom Matthews Road--a road I once thought lead to Heaven.

Where are they now? Are they together somewhere? Are they sleeping peacefully with even the faintest thoughts of me lingering somewhere? Those I loved more than myself have gone someplace else and I can't see them or hug them or buy them boiled peanuts from a fruit stand. I can't tell them just how much I love them. I miss them so much that sometimes it feels as if my heart will burst. Even though they are no longer here, I still love them so.

Love doesn't die. Just like energy, it changes form. It turns into night time visions that keep you from sleeping. Love turns into montages of beautiful moments you had with them during their lives. Sometimes it helps, but sometimes it makes you miss them more. I'm thankful for every moment I laid eyes on them.

Momma, Daddy, Casey and Grandma--I'll see you all in my dreams. Same time. Same place.

No Child Is Born a Racist

I have often wondered why racist people are such cowards. Why do they whisper and hide in the shadows? Why do they hide under white hoods? Is it because they know deep down that their hatred is unfounded? The color of a person's skin doesn't tell us anything about an individual's heart or mind any more than the color of a person's eyes. Surely everyone knows that--even a baby knows. A warm touch is a warm touch no matter who gives it. Why is this so hard for people to understand?

No child is born a racist. Racism is something that is taught. The fact that our society keeps perpetuating the hurtful myth that race matters shows me how America isn't the country I wish it were. My family has been here since at least the 1700's on both sides. Did my American ancestors not learn anything while working next to black people, yellow people and brown people all these years? We are all the same. Period.


Racist people who live in the shadows are only brave when they are anonymous. They hide behind rumors and snarls. They hide behind angry eyes and shifty glances. They refuse to see the truth--that they are not superior to any other human being on Earth. Spending so much time staring at someone's skin must be distracting. I am glad I never bothered. Racists feed off of ignorance. Is it derived from low self esteem? Possibly. I feel sorry for racist people. They are angry at imaginary things. They only operate in secret. That is a pathetic way to live.

I have seen and heard things recently that have made me ashamed to live in this society. Racism is alive and well. It is just hidden (and not very well). I think it is interesting that some people who call themselves "Christians" partake in these kinds of things.

I say to all the cowardly racist people--Come out into the light. Admit your disease. Get help. Come clean. Admitting is part of the healing process, right? Even you must know that you are wrong. As I said before, no one is born a racist. Racism starts with whispers and then leads to lies, off color jokes and out and out ignorance behind closed doors. Are you a part of the problem or the solution? It is up to you. How do you choose to see the world?

I don't want anything to do with people who embrace the idea of judging anyone based on their skin color. According to statistics, by 2050 white people will no longer be the majority. So think about that and get with the times.

America

"All that foreign oil controlling American soil,
Look around you, it's just bound to make you embarrassed.
Sheiks walkin' around like kings, wearing fancy jewels and nose rings,
Deciding America's future from Amsterdam and to Paris
And there's a slow, slow train comin' up around the bend."

-Bob Dylan

"To declare that you are not allowed to criticize the president or that you should support him right or wrong is not only unpatriotic and servile, but also moral betrayal to the American people." - Theodore Roosevelt

"A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government."
Edward Abbey

"Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government
when it deserves it." - Mark Twain(aka Samuel Clemens)

Inner Peace?

I recently realized (because of the sage wisdom that comes with turning 30 or because of what I've recently been through) that one cannot get through this life unscathed unless we learn how to acquire inner peace. I have always realized that I cannot change the world around me, but I can control how I look at the world. I try not to dwell on the negative. Television is dominated by negativity so I usually happily avoid it. I try to realize that I cannot change things that have already happened. I have to look forward and realize that life IS suffering. I just need to attempt to find those moments of happiness and peace in order to even it out.

I found this below and it is something I recently discovered so I wanted to share it.

You can turn peace of mind into a natural habit, but to do so, special training is required, through concentration exercises, meditation and other means.

Here are a few simple things that can help:

Reduce the amount of time you read the newspapers or watch the news on TV.

Stay away from negative conversations and from negative people.

Don't hold grudges. Learn to forget and forgive. Nurturing ill feelings and grievances hurts you and causes lack of sleep.

Don't be jealous of others. Being jealous means that you have low self-esteem and consider yourself inferior to others. This again, causes lack of inner peace.

Accept what cannot be changed. This saves a lot of time, energy and worries.

Every day we face numerous inconveniences, irritations and situations that are beyond our control. If we can change them, that's fine, but this is not always possible. We must learn to put up with such things and accept them cheerfully.

Learn to be more patient and tolerant with people and events.

Don't take everything too personally. Some emotional and mental detachment is desirable. Try to view your life and other people with a little detachment and less involvement. Detachment is not indifference, lack of interest or coldness. It is the ability to think and judge impartially and logically. Don't worry if again and again you fail to manifest detachment. Just keep trying.

Let bygones be gone. Forget the past and concentrate on the present moment. There is no need to evoke unpleasant memories and immerse yourself in them.

Practice some concentration exercises. This will help you to reject unpleasant thoughts and worries that steal away your peace of mind.

Learn to practice meditation. Even a few minutes a day will make a change in your life.

Inner peace ultimately leads to external peace. By creating peace in our inner world, we bring it into the external world, affecting other people too.

Thai Curry Coconut Chicken with Rice

I so badly wanted to go to my favorite Thai place to have some panang curry or something with coconut milk and curry. I can never find time to go anywhere, so I decided I'd make my own thai dish at home. This is my own recipe, because I had to work with what I could find and it's based on three different recipes.

I found S& B Golden Curry at an Asian market. It turns out that Golden Curry Sauce is japanese curry (who knew there were so many!). Actually, the S&B stuff was AWESOME and I've heard good stuff about it. This dish turned out fantastically!

I could eat it every day.

Ingredients:
1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken breast, sliced
2 squares of S & B Golden Curry Sauce to melt
1 onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 can of coconut milk
½ cup chicken broth
1 tsp fish oil (optional)
3 basil leaves, chopped
2 cups of Basmati Rice
2 tbs vegetable oil
1 pat of butter for the rice
Salt, Pepper to taste

First, add 1 tbs of vegetable oil to a deep skillet and let it heat up. Add the 2 squares of curry (or more if you like, it’s all based on taste), chicken broth, and garlic. Stir at medium heat until blended. Remove most of the curry broth mix, but leave a little in the skillet to flavor the chicken.

Add chicken and onions to the skillet, with a little more vegetable oil (1 tbs). When chicken is cooked through and is no longer pink, add the curry broth, red bell pepper, coconut milk, fish oil, and basil leaves. Cover. Cook on low heat for 20 minutes, stirring here and there.

Now make the Basmati Rice, which also takes 20 minutes. Boil 4 cups of water, then add two cups of rice and a little butter. Stir for one minute. Bring temperature down to low. Cover and do not touch for 18 minutes. Fluff rice.

Place rice in a bowl and pour coconut curry chicken on top of the rice. Garnish with Basil leaf if you like.


This would also be great with sweet potato.

I'm Not There

I am posting my review for I'm Not There because it just came out on DVD. I saw it in the theater.

This Todd Haynes movie was like a dream sequence. It was as if I went to bed after listening to Dylan all day, reading Chronicles and watching Don't Look Back. This is what I might have dreamed. I’m Not There definitely illustrates what a mythological character Bob Dylan is. The movie contains snippets of stories and legends about Dylan that may or may not be true, such as Pete Seeger and the axe. Some of the dialogue was taken directly from Dylan songs, speeches or interviews.

The movie is filled with subtle gestures that a passionate Dylan lover will appreciate, such as clothing from different eras, phrases or lyrics from songs and other things. As I watched Jim James from My Morning Jacket sing “Going To Acapulco”, I was enthralled. I was not sure how many people in the audience knew that song or about the Rolling Thunder Bob. I wondered if people would understand the white face make up. I knew, and that was all that mattered to me. Vocalist Liam Clancy, a Greenwich Village contemporary, once aptly compared Bob Dylan to the shape-shifters of Celtic mythology: “It wasn’t necessary for him to be a definitive person.” I’m Not There captures that essence perfectly.

The first character is a child named Woody (Marcus Carl Franklin). He carries a guitar in a case that says, “This Machine Kills Fascists”. He is a hobo who sings for his supper. He tells convoluted stories about who he is and where he is from. This is the Dylan who told journalists elaborate stories when he first arrived to New York—the Woody Guthrie impersonator.

Another character is Jack Rollins/Pastor John. Jack Rollins is a protest singer. He’s the “Blowin’ In The Wind” Dylan.
He’s dismayed at having become a commodity. This part of the movie shows an embellishment of Dylan’s famous speech after winning the Tom Paine Award in 1963, and Bale’s Jack singing The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll.

Pastor John is Jack Rollins after his conversion to Christianity. This happened to Dylan in the 1970’s. For some reason, this part of the movie came across to me like a Spinal Tap parody. Christian Bale has an almost George W. Bush accent, and the album covers made me laugh. Julianne Moore as a Joan Baez type girlfriend was also humorous. It seemed like a comical take on Protest Singer Bob. Maybe that’s what the real Bob would have been like after a while had he not refused to be the “voice of a generation.”

Jack/ Pastor John is connected to Heath Ledger’s character--an actor who stars in a biopic of Jack Rollins called “Grain of Sand”. He is a womanizer whose marriage is falling apart. Popular Dylan legend says Blood on the Tracks was written while Dylan was going through a bitter break up with first wife Sara.
I’m Not There brilliantly uses songs from this album (and a lovely scene with Visions of Johanna) during this part of the movie. This is the motorcycle-driving, hipster Dylan that everyone wants to sleep with, talk to, and photograph.

Arthur ( Ben Whishaw) is a chain smoking tribute to one of Dylan’s favorite poets named Arthur Rimbaud (1854-1891).
This is considered to be the poetic Dylan, the Jokerman Dylan, the enigma Dylan. Some of the dialogue comes directly from the famous press conferences of the mid 1960’s in which Dylan didn’t give straight answers and toyed with the reporters.

The next two characters are my favorites.

Jude (Cate Blanchett) is a dead ringer for Dylan during the “Don’t Look Back” era. Jude has just gone electric, and some folk fans are not taking kindly to it. Blanchett captures the thin, drug-addled Dylan during the chaotic 1965 tour in the UK.
Einstein haired Jude hangs out with Allen Ginsberg, and Edie Sedgwick-like Coco while taking pills and wearing those famous shades. This part is just brilliant. I especially loved the Ballad of a Thin Man scene. I can’t describe what a feat Blanchett has achieved in this movie. She became Dylan in the same chameleon-like way in which Dylan became the different characters he’s been over the years.

In my opinion, that last character is the hardest for a non-avid Dylan fan to understand. Maybe for that reason, it is my favorite. I feel as if I’m in on some secret that only a passionate Dylanist would get. Richard Gere plays a rancher who lives in solitude.
He represents the cowboy Bob. Billy lives in a town called Riddle that is being forced out due to a new highway (Hwy 61?) that’s coming through. The town is filled with wonderfully colorful carnival people. These circus folks are like many of the characters in Dylan’s songs. Billy is like Billy the Kid (who, legend says, might have not been killed by Pat Garrett after all). Some say Billy just disappeared into obscurity. That’s exactly what Bob Dylan did after his motorcycle accident in 1966. Dylan went into “hiding” and made music with The Band. These songs turned into the Basement tapes (which were made over an 8 year period). This part of the movie has a lot of references to The Basement Tapes (I’m Not There is a song from those sessions), John Wesley Harding, and Pat Garrett & Billy The Kid (a wonderful soundtrack). The scene that ties it all together (for me, anyway) was when Billy finds Woody’s guitar on the train. This symbolizes the point in Dylan’s life when he was ready to play music again after thinking he was done for a while. Woody Guthrie Dylan was always there, no matter how much he tried to distance himself.

I enjoyed the movie. I think Todd Haynes did a great job capturing how difficult it is to capture Dylan in a movie. Throughout I’m Not There-Dylan is there, and then he’s not there. He’s only there in kaleidoscopic pieces until the very end. Then we see the real Bob Dylan in an ethereal, glowing clip-playing harmonica. Beautiful.