Psybertron Asks

Sad news forwarded today via Henry Gurr.

And this obituary in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, forwarded by Terry Dysart,

Promised Land
(Words & music by Chuck Berry)

I left my home in Norfolk Virginia
California on my mind
I straddled that Greyhound
And rode into Raleigh
And on across Caroline

We had motor trouble that turn into a struggle
Halfway across Alabam’
And that hound broke down and left us all stranded
In downtown Birmingham

Right away I brought me a through train ticket
Ridin’ across Mississippi clean
And I was on that midnight flyer out of Birmingham
Smoking into New Orleans

Somebody help me get out of Louisiana
Just to help me get to Houston town
There are people there who care a little about me
And they won’t let the poor boy down

Sure as you’re born brought me a silk suit
Put luggage in my hand
And I woke up high over Alburquerque
On a jet to the promised land

Working on a t-bone steak a la carte
Flying over to the golden state
Ah when the pilot told us in thirteen minutes
He would set us at the terminal gate

Swing low chariot come down easy
Taxi to the terminal zone
Cut your engines and cool your wings
And let me make it to the telephone

Los Angeles give me Norfolk Virginia
Tidewater four ten o nine
Tell the folks back home this is the promised land calling
And the poor boy is on the line.

Thanks to The Crackerjacks at Klatchies bringing to mind what Elvis made famous. What is it about American road tunes ?

I left my home in Slough, and drove the A329M to Bracknell and came back via Maidenhead. Nope, not the same ring ?

Incidentally, Birmingham to New Orleans is still a passenger train service you can take. Here in Huntsville, Alabam’ lots of (freight) train traffic, from Virginia oddly enough, across the Appalacians via Chattanooga, but Birmingham is still the closest operating passenger terminal, a good 80 miles away.

Just noticed that last year Henry Gurr recommended these two books by Merlin Donald. Browsing the links to Amazon from there, they do indeed look like worthwhile material … all the right references indexed.

Henry, you shoud turn that news items page into a blog, so that each chronological entry is linkable and searchable. Lot’s of stuff there I’d missed.

The first “Friends of Wisdom” newsletter is published.

(It contains in its entirety the review I did of Mick Maxwell’s “Is Science Neurotic ?”, as well as several introductory articles to the subject of wisdom in science.)

Found ourselves in Nashville for a long weekend again, both Friday and Saturday this time. Last time we were impressed by Heath Haynes on the Saturday night and they were pretty good again, if a little different atmosphere due to fewer fans packed into Layla’s Bluegrass Inn, and the distraction of Hallowe’en fancy dress. (Had to step out of the previous set, Brandon Giles was just toooo loud on keyboard and vocals for the small venue.)

Anyway, back to Heath Haynes Four-Ballers. Rich Gilbert excellent on guitar again, Aaron Oliva on the bass and the superb [fiddle] seen also with Dave Racine [skins] in Jesse Taylor’s band at the Jack Daniel’s Tennessee International BBQ Contest in Lynchburg, TN on the Saturday afternoon. Surreal – truly international with everything-but-the-beer-tent in the dry county that hosts Jack’s distillery.

Heath Haynes supplied Dylan’s Subterranean Homesick Blues and an excellent version of Neil Young’s Helpless but no U2 or Blitzkrieg Bop this time. That same powerful version of G.L.O.R.I.A. segued onto The Stones Last Time and closed with Lust for Life.

Anyway on the Friday night we took in the late set in Robert’s Western World and were thoroughly entertained by Brazilbilly led eponymously by current club owner Jesse Lee Jones – more trad country mix, including some real vintage numbers, but quality musicians and entertainers to a man.

Working down from Legends Corner, 5th & Broadway, the whole block backs onto the Ryman Theatre erstwhile home of Grand Ole Opry and “mother church of country music” – worth a visit in itself, saw Joe Satriani there earlier in the year, and took the tour on this visit, where “Widespread Panic” were set up.

No.428 Legends Corner
No.422 Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge
No.420 Second Fiddle
No.418 Layla’s Bluegrass Inn
No.416 Robert’s Western World
No.412 The Stage

Then order books-by-the-foot you need to fill those shelves with the impression you wish to create.  Real I think, but possibly just a gimmick (?) to get you to their real bookstore-front. Another from Rivets.

Brilliant. I had to smile that the webly-wise Rivets (from whence I got the link) initially thought this was for real. (Worth a browse around.)

Just spent an emotional 2 hours solid watching and listening to You-Tube recordings of Rory Gallagher from 1968 right up until his last recorded appearances in 1994. Some rock stars achieve legendary status through their “lifestyle” death, but Rory was a legendary no-nonesense talent that sadly died on 14 June 1995.

Only saw him twice, Newcastle in ’73 and Hammersmith around ’78, but also have (had) five of his (vinyl) albums too, Blueprint, Tattoo, Against the Grain, Calling Card and Live in Europe. Mentioned seeing a tribute concert with Gary Cox on the anniversary of his death back in Perth, WA the year before last.

Funny after picking up on “Blister in the Sun” recently, to hear Rory playing “Blister on the Moon” back in his ’68/’69 Taste days – a title I’d forgotten. Anyway, thanks to hours of recordings available, lots from The Marquee, from Montreux Jazz and from RockPalast, not to mention Dublin, Belfast and Cork and the original Isle of Wight festival and several excellent renditions of “Shadow Play“, the old rocker will never die (1979 Montreux version – how much can one guitar make out of a 3 chord riff ?).

Apart from a Tele (or Super Tele ?) used for some slide work, the acoustic and a steel resonator for the trad acoustic blues numbers, the battered Strat seems to have accompanied him right from 1968 to the end, looking as battered in ’68 as it still did in ’94. Gerry McAvoy there on bass for 90% of it too. Good to see people like Slash, Johnny Marr, Bono and The Edge paying tribute on the documercial for this “Big Guns” greatest hits collection. If Rory is not someone you know, start there and check out the official web-site too.

The man who got me back into the blues.
Eric Clapton

Same difference. (Also via Rivets)