Serendipity

A song by a band called the Silver Seas came up at random yesterday. I love the band, cofounded by Daniel Tashian. The Guardian's Michael Hann said of Tashian that he "appears to be one of those songwriters from whom melodies simply pour, and there's barely a misplaced chord in this perfect miniature." I can't phrase that nearly as elegantly but agree that no matter the project; whether solo, with the Silver Seas, or even with Burt Bacharach (!) Tashian has a rare and unusual gift for melody.

Tashian is the son of Barry; the elder Tashian was the lead singer for legendary 60s band Barry and the Remains, once referred to as "America's Greatest Lost Band" by Paste magazine. 

After I heard the song by the Silver Seas, I looked on Apple Music to see if they had any new releases. They didn't, but I did find an old album called Chateau Revenge! that I had overlooked. 

I put a pot of coffee on and began listening to the album, a beguiling collection of infectious pop tunes. Then, the eighth song started, called "Candy," and I was head-over-heels.

"Candy" is a perfect pop song, Every Single Note, with soaring vocals and shimmering harmonies. Many repeated plays later (unsurprising to anyone who knows me) I thought about the serendipity of finding and hearing this album. If the other Silver Seas' song hadn't come on, maybe I never would have discovered Chateau Revenge!, or "Candy." And to me, that would have been a huge loss.

The point? (Finally). When someone tells you there are no good songs anymore (or good TV for that matter)*, tell them to keep their ears, and eyes, open. Listen to friends who have similar tastes. I have three friends with radio shows that are a tremendous source of new and new-to-me music: This is Rock 'n' Roll Radio With Dana and Carl (westcottradio.org) from 9-midnight on Sundays and hosted since the late 90s by Dana Bonn and Carl Cafarelli; and Soulshine (soulshineradio.com) and Nightshine (nightshineradio.com), on Wednesdays, 8-10 PM, both shows hosted by Dave Frisina. All three shows have introduced me to zillions (literally)** of new songs I might have never heard.

But I also find myself using Shazam all the time during TV shows (Who is THAT?! ) or even walking through Wegmans (unthinkable thirty years ago). I'm always listening, but not to commercial radio. I'm not knocking today's pop stars, but they're not for me.

There's plenty of music, old and new, that is for me. There is no shortage of great music you've never heard.. Keep your ears open.

* The Bear. Please watch The Bear.

** I know, I know. Private joke.

https://youtu.be/VQZ3YFT704k

Shameless Plug (Number Two in a Series)

 At long last, it's done. Three hundred and thirty-four pages of thrills, chills, and pills (lots of pills*)

A Breath of Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale) a novel about one man's desperate wait for a life-saving double-lung transplant, is available for preorder just about anywhere you can get books or e-books. If you live in the Syracuse area and want a genuine illegibly scrawled autographed paperback copy, I know a guy.**

Actual release date is August 26th, which just happens to be the 20th anniversary of my own double-lung transplant.

Price is $19.99 for the paperback and, though I haven't weighed it yet, is guaranteed to cost much less than Beluga caviar.*** Plus, A Breath of Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale) is low-sodium.

If you live in the continental United**** States and would like to have me mail you a copy, we have the technology. Cost is $24.95.

E-book will be available at all the usual places. Just $7.99.

Now that that's out of the way, a word about yesterday. Donald Trump escaped serious injury and we should all be glad for that. One spectator died and two more were gravely injured but still alive (as of this writing), and that is unspeakably sad. The shooter died too, and that is still sad, regardless. If you're a praying sort, pray for all of them.

The division and anger in this country is unprecedented. We are like 320 million scorpions in bottles. We can't go on this way.

However, you can do your part. Love your neighbor, as yourself. Be kind, always.

Just be kind.

*All legal, and you won't believe how many

** I can't read his writing either

*** $1200 an ounce

**** As of this writing

Song of the Day:

https://youtu.be/I7iRe81VTq4?si=ioPLV9lIPGW-Nc4H

Murder Capital of the World

The small town of Magnolia Bluff, in the hill county of Texas, is the murder capital of the world. Thank goodness it's fictional. 

The Magnolia Bluff Crime Chronicles is a 27 volume series, set in the aforementioned town, by a group of talented writers known as the Underground Authors. Every book has a murder or two (or more) to solve. From the sounds of things, you can barely leave your house without stepping over a dead body.

A new entry in the series is called Catch a Tiger By the Toe, by Joe Congel. (Full disclosure: I received an advance copy in exchange for an honest review). There are the requisite dead bodies in this one, little ones, and retired NYPD detective Brandon Turner has to team up with the local police force to catch the killer.

Congel weaves a disparate cast of characters. They are almost all three-dimensional and interesting, but  special mention must be made of the friction between Turner and his small-town counterpart, Detective Reece Sovern. The two do not like each other. No, they hate each other, and Congel wrings plenty of laughs out of their interplay. It's a miracle that one of them doesn't kill the other.

The funny parts are nice, and necessary. This is a tension-filled and gripping story with an edge-of-your-seat ending, told very well. If you like mysteries, you will love Catch a Tiger By the Toe. It is available everywhere starting on July 23rd.

This is Congel's fifth novel, and second set in Murderville.(Second Chances, last year). He gets better and more interesting each time, and is another example of how many skilled writers are out there waiting to be discovered.

Song of the Day, which has nothing to do with the above. It's just a cool song:

https://youtu.be/cmgfaMdF50A

The Greatest Record Ever Made!

 My friend Carl Cafarelli has just published his second book, The Greatest Record Ever Made (Volume 1).*

The book is based on the premise, he says, that "An infinite number of tracks can each be THE greatest record ever made, as long as they take turns." When a song you love comes on, for that three or four minutes, no other song matters. You are listening to THE Greatest Record Ever Made, in that moment.

One time, on the way home from Cleveland I listened to Los Lobos' song "Mas Y Mas" eleventy-jillion times in a row.** In that moment, no other song mattered. 

The book is 463 pages of delightful essays about famous songs everyone knows, like "Baby Blue," by Badfinger; novelty songs like the best selling local 45 in Syracuse history, "Transylvania Twist," by Baron Daemon, and songs virtually nobody knows that deserved to be Number One with a bullet, "Life Goes On," by Verdelle Smith.

Carl is a terrific and stylish writer who brings all 150-odd essays to life. He makes you want to search for these songs, to hear them again, or maybe hear them for the first time. You won't agree with many of his choices; I certainly don't. My version of this book would have very little overlap, and maybe yours, too. But that doesn't matter. He has the courage of his convictions and makes compelling cases for each song, and he is certain to change your mind about a few.

Music is entirely subjective. Your Ramones track is my Southside Johnny song. We can peacefully coexist. Isn't that a nice thought in these divided times?

The Greatest Record Ever Made (Volume One) (Syracuse Noise LLC) is available locally (Syracuse) at Parthenon Books, and all the usual book outlets.

* His first book, Gabba Gabba Hey! A Conversation With the Ramones (Rare Bird Books)

**About an hour

https://youtu.be/c66IfTFePiU

https://youtu.be/GOdsyU-AUmk

Here's Daaavey!

 I'm back, after a year off doing whatever it was I did.

I wrote a book in the meantime. A Breath of  Fresh Air (A Transplant Tale), a fictional look at the life and trials of a cystic fibrosis patient waiting desperately for a lung transplant, and informed by my own life.

You may remember this book with thirty or forty different names. Tougher Than the Rest. Glass Half Full. Whistling Past the Graveyard. A Tale of Two Cities. (Maybe not that last one.)

Tentative publication will be August 26th, which happens to be the 20th anniversary of my transplant. Details to follow, of course.

And now, a brief foray into the minefield that is the 2024 Presidential election (pauses to duck objects thrown at me).

I love Joe Biden, always have. I rooted for him every time he ran for President, and was beyond delighted that he won in 2020 (I forget who he beat).

Now, though, the writing is on the wall. While I think he is still able to be President, I don't think he can run and win, not anymore. An unhealthy 75% of voters think he is too old. Perception is reality. 

I think Biden should announce he is not going to run, and soon. He should free his delegates to vote their conscience, and there should be a spirited set of debates by such Democratic luminaries as Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer  Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, among others. 

There would be a raucous and exciting open convention in Chicago, and the winner would enter the final stretch in good shape. 

Joe Biden would retire with his reputation intact as one of the finest people in Washington, having twice put his country first. Imagine the raucous reception he would receive at the convention.

I hope he reads this blog. I'm sure he'd be convinced.