Category Archives: Whats for lunch?

Slow Dive

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Well in case you didn’t know, the Yankees won last night. The World Series. Bill was thrilled. I was online, wearing headphones. Even if it were the Mets or another team I would likely be at the computer wearing headphones.

Bill watched the game in the bedroom while he was putting away his laundry, I watched the Daily Show and the Colbert Report. I offered him the chance to watch the game on the big TV and I sat and listened to music.

I didn’t do much of anything today, except argue with christianists online. That can get so tedious, mainly because their lack of spell check. Now I’m listening to the Minutemen, one of the best bands I ever saw at McSwells. Posted a few videos on YouTube which should get the curiosity of a few people and perhaps annoy other people.

So for lack of something substantial to write, I’ll write about what I listened to last night. I started off with Be Brave by Section 25. I first heard the song when I was hanging out with a character named Dave Bell.

It stayed with me long after hanging out with Dave Bell and in fact a few years later I asked Mojo Magazine, “what song went ‘Oh Happiness, You always made me laugh/Oh happiness…’” An issue or so later I found my answer, and wound up buying it from iTunes. I love it when Mojo publishes my letters. So far they’ve done it 3 times.

It seemed to be a good fit, to follow Section 25 with Tomorrow Never Knows from the Beatles. It’s quite possible that Tomorrow Never Knows is my favorite Beatles song. It’s a good marker that shows the divide of the 1960’s, being the last song on Revolver. The next songs from the Beatles after that was Strawberry Fields Forever and Penny Lane.

Still I’ll take Tomorrow Never Knows. From there I went to Smells Like Teen Spirit from Nirvana, another band that played McSwells and were nowhere near as good as the Minutemen. My specific memory of that is coming home to Weehawken with William after visiting Connie down the shore in 1991.

It must have been in the waning months of the year. The song blew me away, I hadn’t heard anything quite like it at the time. It’s still quite an amazing song. Too bad it became an albatross for Kurt Cobain, but them’s the breaks.

Black Mirror by Arcade Fire was next up. It was a decent fit after Nirvana. I don’t think I played it since I saw them at Radio City with my brother Frank. Can’t really get into them anymore. That’s how it is for me. Something bad happens while I listen to a song and I can never really enjoy the song, or in this case, the band, anymore.

Don’t get me started about Elton John’s Blue Moves. I haven’t played that since 1976.

Then I went to the live version of Talking Heads The Great Curve. Don’t know why, but it was a lot of fun to bop my head and tap my feet while listening to it with Bill watching the game a few feet behind me. I also think it’s a good thing that Talking Heads will never reunite again.

I sort of broke my avoidance of Prince and played Glam Slam which out of all the songs that I played for myself, was the weakest. I was choosing by album titles and not artist names. But you know, John said ‘enough’ and it was over quickly.

Slow Dive by Siouxsie and the Banshees was a great 1980’s track. I saw the Banshees a few times back in the day, though I can’t say I was a rabid Banshees fan. Budgie was a great drummer though and the late John McGeoch was tops in the guitar department, though he doesn’t play on Slow Dive I think.

Can’t You Hear Me Knocking by the Rolling Stones was cued up next and being a 7 minute song, I stretched my legs, had some juice and had a pee. TMI?

Well that was about it for last night. A not very interesting night but the music was alright I think.

Ring Them Bells

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Well it’s quite balmy out. It’s in the 70 degree range. On Washington Street hundreds of costumed children and their costumed parents are hitting up all the store owners for candy. They don’t go ringing bells in Hoboken.

In Weehawken, for the longest time (during the 11 years I lived there) the kids wouldn’t come to 127-129 Jane Street since my late landlady had a mean reputation. When she passed away that was when they finally started ringing the bell, after the crossing guard told them that it was safe to ring those bells.

It was initially startling to have the bell ringing every couple of minutes. But I indulged them with candy.

I myself haven’t gotten dressed up for Halloween for years. I think the last time was when I had a Darth Vader helmet that I bought for $40.00 in the 1980’s.

I went to the costume party at McSwells where I thought I stood out since my costume was mainly store bought, and everyone else seemed to have costumes they had made themselves.

The only costume that stands out in my memory was Steve Fallon dressed up as Mr. Peanut from Planter’s peanuts. Obviously it was a great costume if I’m remembering it 25 years later.

Last night there was a Halloween Karaoke at McSwells attended by Rand & Lisa and Lois & Fred. Roda was there too, managing the place. I didn’t go, wound up staying home. Bill came home and we had a good talk, then his phone rang and he was in the other room talking acting stuff with a playwright he is working with.

I just turned down the volume on the TV and played music until the news came on. Then I watched a documentary about the Beatles’ Love show in Las Vegas. That was actually very good and made me want to go to Vegas and see the show. That’s not going to happen at this moment in time though.

Then I watched another documentary on Joe Strummer, The Future is Unwritten. I had seen it before and it’s quite good and very sad, since Joe Strummer is no longer with us. I watched the whole thing, going to bed a little after 2:00.

As usual Bill was up before I was. He had me up for a while with his snoring. If I’m asleep first it’s no problem. But if I’m trying to sleep that’s when it gets difficult. I guess after an hour of trying to fall asleep, I feel asleep.

Bill went out and got bagels and the paper for me which was nice. I got myself out of bed and showered and tried to think of something to do.

Got a text from Rand asking how the computer was holding up and since you’re reading this you can tell that it’s holding up just fine. I asked him how McSwells was and he texted back ‘Twas OK’. I actually entertained the idea of going up to McSwells last night wearing the Mexican Mil Mascaras wrestling mask, but obviously I didn’t go.

I did go to the library this afternoon though. Picked up the Hoax, starring Richard Gere, based on from what I gather Clifford Irving and his fabricated biography of Howard Hughes. Also Rock N’ Rolla by Guy Ritchie. I figured since Snatch was an alright movie, this might be a good movie to watch tonight. Bill loved Snatch, but then again he is a sucker for a brogue.

Other than that, I’m rebuilding my music library, somewhat illicitly. I’ve always liked Who’s That Lady by the Isley Brothers of Teaneck NJ, but never got around to getting it. I remembering hearing it back in the day when FM radio wasn’t segregated.

You’d hear the Isley’s, The Who, Jimi Hendrix and lot’s of others mixed in. Nowadays I guess you don’t. I really couldn’t say since I don’t listen to the radio anymore.

I did download an excellent Kate Bush song, called Aerial. It’s really an interesting song and has birds chirping in it. I read somewhere a few months ago that when the writer would play the song, birds would flock to his window.

Now it’s getting too dark out, but I would like to see it happen sometime, just to see if it’s true. If it doesn’t happen I’ll still have a good song in my library thanks to Kate Bush.