The Knack’s “My Sharona” turns 30 & other Music Miracles
Nearly 30 years ago, The Knack performed their HUGE hit “My Sharona” in NYC. I was a HUGE fan–I absolutely LOVED that song, and so did my friends. Whenever it came on the radio, we burst into spontaneous dancing as only teenage girls can do.
I bought the album and listened to “My Sharona” over and over, driving my parents crazy I am sure. I hated hated hated disco and that’s what they played at the high school dances and on the radio. Of course there was other kinds of music–like country AND western. (Punk was stopped at the borders as contraband I imagine as no one I knew listened to it, could find it, or even knew much about it until after we got out of high school and our teens and went to college…plus you couldn’t really dance to it.)
We highly appreciated the vanguards of “New Wave Music:” the B-52s, the Talking Heads, the Pretenders, Joe Jackson, Elvis Costello, the Cars, and the Clash (ok the Clash isn’t New Wave). Soon I discovered and loved (thanks to my brother who read Rolling Stone and worked at Pacific Stereo) the 2Tone ska bands like Madness, The English Beat, Selector, and my favorite, The Specials. I think I still have my “Dance Craze” t-shirt.
That summer before my senior year, everybody seemed to know and loved “My Sharona.” That song defined that summer during high school as surely as ska and new wave and the Clash defined my senior year and post high school stuck in Ventuck existence, dressing in black and white, wearing mini skirts and white shirts and skinny ties, too young to go anywhere and too broke to do anything, dancing around someone’s living room, drinking beer someone bought for us, buying Boone’s Farm strawberry wine and Andre Cold Duck, learning how to flip bottle caps, and how to use condoms.
Where were you in 1979 and 1980 when “My Sharona” rode high on the charts? What did you listen to in those strange post high school years of your youth? How did you survive?
To finish the trip down musical memory lane, here’s vintage Specials “Message to Rudy:”
Did you know Elvis Costello produced their first album? Here’s 3 minutes of background:
Pudding House Press put out a call for “Love Poems and Other Messages for Bruce Springsteen;” send immediately as submissions may close as early as March 15, 2009. The book will be released in September 2009…
Springsteen’s passionate listeners have been grateful for his music that address their causes and struggles for years. From movie producers/directors who’ve asked for something special to fit the themes of their films to the lyrics that come from Bruce’s own conscious and the issues swelling from the times of our lives. Springsteen has created music and lyrics that help carry us through. Think of Philadelphia, The Wrestler, so many others. Bruce Springsteen has given and given to the difficulties. What else do you know about Bruce Springsteen?
We know that next September–when the book comes out– he turns 60! What a great present!
What if we give him a fine, slender, collection of poems written just for him, from the similar spirit he gives to so much that matters. Read more…
Who’s the Dude in the old picture? Shakespeare revealed
Imagine having an old oil painting hanging the hall for as long as you could remember or you mom or your grandfather or the oldest person in your family. You’d figure it was someone you were related to, possibly admire the technique, maybe not notice it at all. Then one day you see an image of Shakespeare and you think to yourself, hmmn, looks familiar. Could it be The Bard hanging on my wall all these years? A portrait of Shakespeare himself?
Turns out this is close to the case. Read more…
poems from Guantanamo: the detainees speak
I Write My Hidden Longing
by Abdulla Majid Al Noaimi
The Captive of Dignity
I write my hidden longing:
I tried to defend him with my eyes,
But I looked around and was cornered.
Destiny had found me.
My rib is broken,
And I can find no one to heal me.
My body is frail,
And I can see no relief ahead.
Before me is a tumultuous sea;
The land continues to call me.
But I am sailing in my thoughts.
The ingenious have murdered me in my home.
I wish someone would comfort me;
At night I taste bile and cannot sleep.
The tears of someone else’s longing are affecting me;
My chest cannot take the vastness of emotion.
The book of God consoles me,
And dulls the pains I have suffered.
The book of God assuages my misery,
Even though they declared war against it.
I stand tall and smile in the face of misery.
I am satisfied.
Oh Father, tell the tearful one,
“Do not forget me, as I do not forget you.”
He will understand my condition.
And when you pass by life’s familiar objects–
The Bedouin rugs, the bound branches,
The flight of pigeons–
Remember me.
I salute the brothers,
And pray peace to those who remain unfaithful.
I say hello to Shwayman.
And to everyone whom I love,
And to everyone who misses me.
Remember, pray to God for those whom I love.
Maybe God, with His kindness, will have mercy on me.
Poems from Guantanamo: the detainees speak edited by Marc Falkoff, attorney, University of Iowa Press (2007)
“Poetry, art of the human voice, helps turn us toward what we should or must not ignore,” writes Robert Pinsky.
From 7-9pm, on Monday, April 13, at A Place of Peace in Ventura, men, women and children will gather to hear poems by Guantanamo detainees presented by poets, artists, peace activists, and performers. Organized by Grant Marcus and co-sponsored by a number of peace groups including Veterans for Peace, the event is a $10 “love” donation and will include a brief contextualization by lawyers from the Center for Constitutional Rights which represented many of the Guantanamo detainees. The poem above is one of two I will be reading Read more…
According to the LA Times, a new show at the Getty pays homage to Russian artist Vasily Kamensky’s poem about the clash between rural culture and urban growth which conjures an absurd image of farm animals dancing the tango and inspires their Russian poetry exhibit “Tango With Cows: Book Art of the Russian Avant Garde, 1910-1917” at the Getty Research Institute.
On display are 36 books of poetry and a variety of interactive materials that explore the little-known period in Russian history that predates the Russian Revolution of 1917.
This particular era encompasses a time of flux and upheaval in Russia, marred by social and spiritual crisis brought on by the failed 1905 revolution, the 1911 famine and the outbreak of World War I. In response to these events, a small group of poets and artists came together to invent a new form of book art. One example: “Arithmetic,” a lithograph in the book “Let’s Grumble,” in which artist Kazimir Malevich’s Cubo-Futurist lines evoke a character that could be in one of Alexei Kruchenykh’s plays.
Zaum (meaning beyond sense) poetry experimented with the definition of language and what a book should be, employing discarded syntax and punctuation, disjointed and nonsensical syllables and unintelligible sounds. Read more…
Since I’m not in the Final 50: more about AUS
When I was working on my application for Island caretaker, I found all kinds of interesting info about Australia and the Great Barrier Reef some of which I worked into a series of posts in February. Since I didn’t make the Final 50 for the Best Job in the World blogging about the Great Barrier Reef, I’m not going to develop these posts any more, I’m just giving us the links. Check them out. Have fun. Read more…
Astonishing video on the progression of information technology using researched by Karl Fisch, Scott McLeod, and Jeff Bronman. As this video clearly shows, our world is changing more rapidly than we can reasonably imagine wthout some effort.Help envision the new world,be a part of the change, and help create the world we want to live in!
One of the most radical changes is in the way we communicate. We no longer gossip over fences, but over the internet via blogs, YouTube, Twitter and various other forms of social media. We no longer look toward an authority for the answer–we doubt the authorities, we have been mislead by authority and so we look within our communities, we search for the answers ourselves, and we evaluate the information in sophisticated ways.
After a year of trepidation, I, Gwendolyn Alley aka Art Predator, recently joined the world of Twitter and Facebook, adding that to my blogs, my nings, and my groups. I am starting to understand these tools for communication, how they are similiar and different, how they serve different purposes and meet different needs. For those of you unsure about what Twitter is and what it does, I found this article useful: Read more…
Brilliant Burning Man iPhone Ap & 2008 photos
Under development: an iPhone ap for Burning Man which will show coordinates, dates and times for Playa events–on a map! Go here to see and learn more: http://www.flickr. com/photos/ 10111/3324385784 / What might you see if you go? ZsuZsu: The Crybaby Drama Queen by Mister Jellyfish, Sparks, NV (as photographed by George Post). Check out these links: GEORGE POST’S BURNING MAN 2008 PHOTO GALLERY
Burning Man: http://tinyurl.com/ce8wyy
People: http://tinyurl.com/c6r4xj
Vehicles: http://tinyurl.com/bpbasf
Art: http://tinyurl.com/cem2zw
Click “Start Slideshow” for each set of pix; the show runs
automatically, but if you mouse over the lower part of the image
you’ll see controls for back, pause, and forward so you can go at your
own pace.
The Main Street Electric Bike Parade and First Friday ArtRide Friday March 6. Join us at 5:15pm at the City of Ventura San Jon Road Maintenance Yard just off San Jon Road near Thompson and Chrisman. Park your bike for free and whheeeee down San Jon to the bike path where we’ll head toward the pier and the Artists Union Gallery. 
Folks running late can park there for a small fee and meet us at the Union–you can even grab a quick beer at Aloha–happy hour until 6pm–but we’ll be gone on the bike path by then! Map to be added to this post soon. We’ll ride along the promenade bike path for sunset (5:54pm) then up along the river to Main Street. From Main we’ll ride up the Avenue for a stop at Bell Arts where we’ll be greeted by MB Hanrahan‘s new mural outside the building.
From there, who knows? But you’ll probably find us riding along Main with a few stops along the way including the Red Brick Gallery’s grand re-opening in their new location! We’ll maybe stop at Anacapa for a beer and a bite or maybe Spencer Mackenzie’s. Be su
re to have your lights! It gets dark at 6:48pm.
Need a light? Art Predator’s got you covered! I ordered 200 blinky lights: stars, fire engines, bikes, bunny ears, red heart necklaces! Plus lighted headboppers and other fun stuff! Bring $5 and take your pick of any two pieces. California law requires a white light in front, a red light in back and reflectors. Learn more here.
Join us at the KidsArts ArtBarn Thursday night March 5from 7-10pm as we decorate and light our bikes! Choose your blinking light accessories! Bring your flat tires and tubes and lights to afix and we’ll help you out–David’s got his Makita all charged and raring to help you! We’ll be outside s dress accordingly. I’ll bring some hot drinks and cookies, too–will you?
Here’s a YouTube of the classic 1970s parade transferred from Super 8 with the original music to get you even more in the mood!
Let’s March Planet Protectors!
3/6 First Friday Art Ride: “Electric Light Parade”
Plus a light up your bike event
Friday, March 6
First Friday Art Ride
5:30 pm
Artists’ Union Gallery
330 S. California St., Ventura
This month the theme is lots o’ lights on your bike!!
LIGHTS: To help you light up your bike for join us at the ArtBarn Thursday March 5, 7-10pm. Bring lights and reflectors to be installed; some lights will be available for purchase. California law requires night riders to have a white light in front, a red light in back, and reflectors on the sides.
THE RIDE: Modeled after the Disneyland Electric Light Parade, but on bikes, this Friday dress up as a Disney character and with fun light accessories for you and your bike–or just join the ride: the more the merrier! Meet at 515pm and park for free at the City of Ventura San Jon Road Maintenance Yard lot or meet at 530pm at the Artists Union. From there, ride follows the promenade to Main, then downtown visiting the open First Friday galleries including Bell Arts Factory. This ride is not sponsored by any organization, so ride often, ride safely, ride at your own risk.
Do you want more public transportation, better bike routes, alternatives to the private auto? Then this is your chance to be heard!!
The Ventura County Transportation Commission (VCTC) is deciding how to spend this years’ transit dollars. Thanks to ASERT, VCTC has extended the public comment deadline to March 20th.
The only way we’ll wean ourselves from cars is if lots of Ventura County residents let VCTC know that we want the funding to go to bike routes, buses, racks on buses, trains. We’ve got some great ways for you to submit comments.
3/7 Ventura Farmer’s Market – Multi Media Event- Starring YOU!
Saturday, March 7th
8:30 a.m. to Noon
Ventura Farmer’s Market
Santa Clara and Palm, Ventura
flyer
The VCCool Bicycle Pod invites you to come give your testimony on video or just on audio. You get 3 minutes to tell VCTC what your transit needs are. Be specific, be thrifty (budget cuts and all). We’ll also have form letters to sign.
art predator 