Alex Chilton, R.I.P.

I've spent a lot of time with this man's songs in my head. Chris Bell went a long time before him. I've been listening to the 3rd/Sister Lovers record lately. I only have this on vinyl. It's one of those records the evokes a place, a time and an emotion all at once. Needle drop. "Dreams and wishes and shooting stars..." Guitar riff. This album was really post Big Star, but in my opinion is Alex's masterpiece.

Amy and I saw Chilton open for Counting Crows(!) right when they first hit it big and were still playing club shows. This was at a short-lived place down on Shadeland here in Indy. My greatest memory of Chilton's set was his overt pandering to the ladies in the crowd. He looked old then I remember. Unfortunately, the pyschic trauma inflicted by Adam Duritz during the next set has erased any memory of what songs Alex played that night.

That's now 3 extraordinarily talented songwriters dead in the last 3 months. Vic Chesnutt, Mark Linkous(Sparklehorse) and now Chilton.

The Power and the Glory

Reading this Graham Greene classic right now. Had to pass this passage along. Brilliant.

"The glittering worlds lay there in space like a promise - the world was not the universe. Somewhere Christ might not have died. He could not believe that to a watcher there this world could shine with such brilliance: it would roll heavily in space under its fog like a burning and abandoned ship. The whole globe was blanketed with his own sin."

No Reservations. None Whatsoever!

Most of you know that I love Anthony Bourdain's show No Reservations. It's a travel show with a food/cuisine emphasis. Deep down though it's a show about people, heritage, understanding, reverance and humor. Tony has the uncanny ability to whittle away the glossy sheen of travelling to locations all over the world and finding the heart of the people through their connection with food. He's not always able to pull off his magic; where the heart and soul of the people are tied together through the local cuisine (Romania episode). Although the Romania episode is outrageously funny. He never takes the easy way out, avoiding cliche at every turn. Check out Tony's blog for the latest behind the scenes comments on a trip to Liberia and other archived commentary. Also check out Tony's alternate universe video section. Funny. Irreverant. Awesome.