Collect Call From Pay Phone Costs Small Fortune

But when she was running late for a recent salon appointment, Devine found that her cellphone battery had died. She didn’t want to be rude and leave her hairstylist waiting. So she looked around for a pay phone.”

“Here`s a man who would not take it anymore.”

“He`s a prophet and a pusher, partly truth, partly fiction-a walking contradiction.” The Pilgrim, Chapter 33-Kris Kristofferson

Betsy (Cybill Shepherd) is reminded of that song when she is having coffee with Travis Bickle (Robert DeNiro). Yesterday was a rainy, cloudy day, so I stayed in and watched Taxi Driver on Netflix. To my surprise, it was Bernard Hermann who did the music for Martin Scorsese`s shocking film. Hermann died before the film was released, which was on February 8, 1976.

New York is a very different city today than it was in 1975. The footage captures the streets in a more decayed state, as Travis coasts solemnly in his yellow cab. But listen to the cool soundtrack, with I believe a soprano saxophone, carrying the main theme, as Bickle gradually morphs to madness. The music is cool and jazzy, while Travis is anything but cool.

In the final scene of violence, when the bad guy, Sport, gets his just deserve, listen for the pounding kettle drums (maybe its timpani drums) as the mohawked Bickle engages in the dramatic shootout, that he was always longing for. The ending can be interpreted in two completely different ways. Which way do you take it? (Read Roger Ebert`s thoughts on this wiki page).

Finally, this film was conceived from a diary of an assassin. It then, in turn, puts some crazy ideas in the head of another assassin want to be. Sometimes Art holds a mirror up to truth, but more infrequently, Art actually influences the outcome of history (truth). Chew on that… That floppy hat of Jodie Foster (Iris) amazes me. And the seedy gun dealer has long hair? Unfair!

Martin makes us deal with some very heavy issues here. Troubling yes, but necessary… Drop the Tiger story. It`s nothin`…but emptiness…study the floppy hat…

Dude Fails To Steal ATM

13 Harmonies by John Cage-A Hard to Find Gem Good for The Road!

I just got out of The Road; goodness gravy, it was morose. When I got home I felt like hearing something experimental, so I pulled out Thirteen Harmonies by John Cage. This was part of a larger work, Apartment House 17. John Cage wrote this for the Bicentennial in 1976.

Cage reworked compositions by artists who were at least 20 years old at the time of the American Revolution. The songs are barely recognizable anthems and congregational music from the Revolutionary period. Naturally, Cage has made chance arrangements, so you feel like you are at Fluxus performance where anything can happen and will happen. IE a HAPPENING!

These Apartment House 17 recordings are a little hard to get your hands on. The 13 Harmonies are even harder. I recorded *(not pirated matey, a number of years ago) a CD that I checked out from the UT Art Library. Piano and violin are the only instruments you can hear. I`m not even sure which recording this CD actually is? But there`s a dreariness, a bleakness to it that`s synching nicely with the somber motif of Cormac McCarthy`s The Road right now.

Colorado Governor’s Mansion Draped In Toilet Paper

Black Friday Madness

This time of year I feel fortunate for the bad economy, whereas I have no money for the madness. Hey, here’s a good idea…How about outlawing “Black Friday”? This would surely lower healthcare costs in America.

Is a sale this important?

Camels Terrorize Australians

Judge Blocks Law Allowing Guns In Bars

“Who Do You Love?” Twenty-Five Songs Added to the Grammy Hall of Fame

The Grammy Hall of Fame awardees for 2009 were just announced yesterday. Twenty-five songs that are at least twenty-five years old can qualify for the award by ‘the academy,’ if they are deemed to have “qualitative or historical significance.” The special Grammy Hall of Fame award was started in 1973 and 851 songs are included so far. Several standouts this year are: California Girls (The Beach Boys), Twist and Shout (The Isley Brothers) and As Time Goes By-“A kiss is just a kiss.” (Dooley Wilson).

As I look over the list, all the tracks look interesting to me, but just a few grabbed my attention this morning. Bo Diddly`s Who Do You love? is most famous for its funky rhythm and has been used countless times in various Rock & Roll riffs. Quicksilver Messenger Service forged its sparkling career from the shakin` rhythms of this song. The Doors` classic Riders On the Storm is on there also, fairly close to the bottom. What is the lyric of Jim Morrison all about, really?

So review the list, please…There are quite a few here that are fuzzy for me, and could stand a fresh spin. If you read this, Big Band and Classic Jazz (Thomas Durnin), I`m requesting Dipper Mouth Blues by King Oliver & His Jazz Band. P.S. HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL! (source-Daily Contributor)

100-Proof Turkey For Thanksgiving?

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