[Paul Newman has been on our minds recently. We watched Ethan Hawke's documentary, then The Color of Money, Slapshot, and The Verdict. James Dean died and someone had to move into the role as runner-up to Marlon Brando. Enter Newman. He was a flawed human being, but a pretty damn good movie star. For us,... Continue Reading →
The 12 Best Music Podcasts
[I am increasingly listening to podcasts, although I am finding the world of podcasts increasingly difficult to navigate. There has been an explosion in podcast content. The best exlanation for this comes from my favorite podcast, the BlindBoy, who says that corporate media are investing heavily investing heavily in podcast content in anticipation of the... Continue Reading →
Visions of The Jungle
[Big News ... Part 3 of Grendel: The Four-Chord Opera has now been published. Now, back to the silliness. SB SM] Here are two very different takes on what it means to be a resident of the contemporary Jungle. Could there be more contrast. A minute or so of the Carrie Underwood Jungle will give... Continue Reading →
White Crosses … a Veterans Day Special
[White Crosses (lyrics by Greg Morrison, music by Roy Nelson) also find its way into Grendel: The Four-Chord Opera. It's also a fitting song for Veterans Day as we salute the men and women who serve in the armed forces, although in The Jungle the armed force are those attached to the great apes. SB... Continue Reading →
Best of the ‘Gest … Remembering Pizza Night
Poutine Pizza? Really? [From time to time I will re-purpose a post from The Silverback Film Society, Gilead Brook Road Troop. And before anyone castigates me for being homophobic, I will point out that the characterization of Bye-Bye Birdie as "the gayest musical ever" was made by SB Bennett, whose husband, SB Chef Tom, created... Continue Reading →
Fort Worden
[We visited Fort Worden in Port Townsend, WA on a crisp, fall morning. It's now a State Park, but during WW II it protected Puget Sound from attack by the Japanese. No combat action ever took place there. Now it still stands sentry over the entrance to the sound, but the guns are gone, replaced... Continue Reading →
Casserole Blues
An excerpt from Part 2 of Grendel: The Four-Chord Opera: The summer was magic. Days at the beach with Cassandra, then nights playing in clubs. Grendel became a semi-big deal, for Rhode Island, that is. Then, another twist of fate, but not a cruel one! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gU0Bh8PL7Jw
The Killer is Dead
Long live the Killer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fw7SBF-35Es&t=5s
RIP Silverbelle Mary McCaslin
[SB Bill (Hinesburg SBs) alerted us to the passing of Mary McCaslin. The company he co-founded, Philo Records, recorded, produced, and distributed some of her most memorable music. Some day, promises SB Bill, he'll give us the behind-the-scenes scoop on his Philo days. SB SM] POSTED ON CELEBRITYACCESS.COM 21 OCTOBER, 2022 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRP3OJszWI4 LOS ANGELES (CelebrityAccess) — Mary... Continue Reading →
William Shatner on Earth
[William Shatner has always been an easy guy to make fun of, mostly because he seemed to enjoy making fun of himself. Take a look at his spoofing cover of Elton John's Rocket Man. I heard him interviewed on Public Radio recently, however, and he actually seemed to have learned some lessons from his 90+... Continue Reading →