A Quick Update

Blessed readers, do not fear . . . I have not abandoned my blog.  With all that has been going on in my life lately (most pressingly, trying to finish this pesky thing called a thesis), my attention has been diverted a bit.  Once graduation is behind me, I hope to return to blogging on a more regular basis.

What I've been up to over the last several weeks (besides trying to graduate!):

• Attending the bigger-and-better-than-ever 2011 Oxford Film Festival

• Seeing the legendary Leon Russell in concert at the Saenger Theatre in Mobile, AL (and discovering the fabulous, Alabama-based guitarist Chris Simmons in the process - look him up!)

• Traveling back to Ole Miss for the 2011 Living Blues Blues Today Symposium

What I'm looking forward to over the next few weeks (besides graduation!):

• Attending the Railroad Revival Tour concert at Woldenberg Park in New Orleans (tour of the year, no doubt - SO stoked about this one!)

• Hopefully working on my second feature article for Living Blues (my first was "Daddy Mack Orr: A Time For Everything" in the October 2010 issue)

• Seeing Lucinda Williams for the first time at the NOLA House of Blues 

         • Hopefully finding gainful, full-time employment.  If you are a music-related media outlet, radio station, recording studio, or public relations firm, I am enthusiastic and have experience with print and social media; videography; and audio recording, editing, and engineering!

What I've been obsessed with lately:

• Mumford & Sons.  They had me at Grammy; folks, they really are that good.  Actually, I've been obssessed with this entire performance:

Marcus Mumford on Backing Dylan, Naked Songwriting and Why Arcade Fire Rule His World (Austin Scaggs, Rolling Stone)

Mumford & Sons' Ben Lovett Talks Fame, Fans And That Tick On His Bandmate (Miles Bennette-Eaton, justout)

• A possible fall reunion tour for Buffalo Springfield (OK, maybe this will be the tour of the year) . . .

Exclusive: Buffalo Springfield Plans to Reunite for Fall Tour (Patrick Doyle, Rolling Stone)

Buffalo Springfield Tour Slated for September (Richie Furay, richiefuray.com)

• Lucinda Williams' Blessed.  If you don't have it, run - don't walk - to get it.  You can thank me later.

Interview: A Conversation With The Legendary And Prolific Lucinda Williams (Chris Mateer, No Depression)

• Ruminating on Bob Dylan's upcoming 70th birthday and 50th anniversary as a Columbia Records recording artist . . .

with preparation and anticipation...Bob Dylan's 50th Anniversary (Easy Ed, No Depression)

In light of what took place in Wisconsin tonight, please also read Frostbite and Freedom: Tom Morello on the Battle of Madison (Rolling Stone).  And remember: If they can take away one group's collective bargaining rights, they can take away everyone's.

And last, but most certainly not least - rest in peace, Suze Rotolo. I've been reading her book, A Freewheelin' Time, which I find very inspiring, and I'd contemplated emailing her.  I wish now I hadn't waited.  Much more than just a beautiful face on an album cover, she was an extraordinary woman living in an extraordinary time, and I take these words of hers to heart:

"Greenwich Village bohemia exists no more.  It was the public square of the twentieth century for the outsiders, the mad ones, and the misfits.  Today all that remains are the posters, fliers, and signs preserved on the walls as a reminder of that bygone era when rents were cheap and New York replaced Paris as the destination for the creative crowd.

Those who feel they are not part of the mainstream are always somewhere, however.  Greenwich Village is a calling.  Though it is a concept now priced out of its physical space, as a state of mind, it will never be out of bounds.  In the end, like finds like: it doesn't matter whether there is an actual physical neighborhood or not.  A compelling and necessary idea will always find a place to plant itself. The creative spirit finds a way" (p. 365).

Thank you, Suze, for reminding me of that.  Whenever I start wishing I'd been born in time to see what you saw, I will remember that I've glimpsed - and even lived in - some Greenwich Villages of my own. Oxford, Mississippi and New Orleans, Louisiana inspire and invigorate me every time I visit, and I've been lucky enough to spend extended periods of time in both places.  Whenever I start wishing that I'd been around to witness Dylan's liftoff into music history, I will remember that there are artists right here and now who are making exciting music - and who knows what future trails they may currently be blazing? And, most importantly of all, whenever I start wishing I'd come of age in the '60s, I will remember that I have dear friends similar to Ms. Rotolo herself - friends whose presence, thoughts, and lives have enriched my existence beyond place, beyond time, beyond words.  No matter how much I may joke to the contrary, I was born in the right place and time, and my own Greenwich Village - both corporeal and mental - is always within reach.

And thank you, blessed readers, for following this blog, and for your kind words - you know who you are.   I'll be back soon. xo

First-ever Clarksdale Film Festival begins today

I'm in Clarksdale, Mississippi for the very first Clarksdale Film Festival, which starts today and runs through Sunday. Presented by the Clarksdale Downtown Development Association (which also hosts the Juke Joint Festival every April), it will focus on films that highlight the music, culture, and people of the Delta.  

There are several music and blues documentaries on the schedule, as well as features like Prom Night in Mississippi, Paul Saltzman's 2008 documentary about the first integrated Charleston, MS high school prom (funded by Charleston resident Morgan Freeman), and Raiders of the Lost Ark: The Adaptation, filmed by three Mississippi teenagers over a seven-year period in the 1980s. Personally, I'm looking forward to seeing Standing the Test of Time: Bobby Rush (with Mr. Rush in attendance), and Robert Mugge's Scissormen doc Big Shoes: Walking and Talking the Blues (the Scissormen will also perform at Cat Head Delta Blues & Folk Art on Saturday afternoon).  My friends Joe York and Scott Barretta's documentary short Smokes & Ears, about Jackson, MS's Big Apple Inn and its famous pig-ear sandwiches, will also screen Saturday afternoon.  

"BIG SHOES: Walking and Talking the Blues" Trailer from Ball State Student Media on Vimeo.

SMOKES & EARS from Joe York on Vimeo.

Check out the entire schedule by clicking on the banner below.  If you're in the area, hope to see you there! (And while I'm in town, maybe I can get an update on the fate of WROX . . .)

Further reading:

Inaugural Clarksdale Film Festival starts today (Scott Barretta/Clarion-Ledger)

Clarksdale Film Festival (Delta Bohemian)

Clarksdale Film Festival: Debut features works from all walks of life (Matt Killebrew/Clarksdale Press Register)

Hollywood Comes to Mississippi This Weekend for the Inaugural Clarksdale Film Festival (David W. King/Blues In The Digital Age)

This week's musical miscellany

Remember a while back when I mused aloud my desire to see a DVD release of Renaldo and Clara? Looks like that dream just may become a reality . . .

Bob Dylan's Renaldo and Clara To Be Finally Released (Levi Asher/Literary Kicks)

Report - Bob Dylan's 'Renaldo & Clara' to be released on DVD (Harold Lepidus/Bob Dylan Examiner)

Here's a short snippet of one of my favorite Rolling Thunder-era songs.  "Never Let Me Go" was officially released on a rare DJ promo EP, 4 Songs From "Renaldo And Clara," and you can occasionally find it for sale on eBay.  I look forward to (hopefully!) seeing and hearing this in much better quality.



The Banjo Project: The Story of America's Instrument is a documentary/multi-media presentation by producer Marc Fields and banjoist Tony Trischka that aims to "chronicle the journey of America's quintessential instrument - the banjo - from its African roots to the 21st century."  It's narrated by Steve Martin and features a staggering array of interviews and performances from musicians such as Pete Seeger, Ralph Stanley, Béla Fleck, and Rhiannon Giddens.  To generate much-needed funding to complete the project, Fields and Trischka turned to Kickstarter.  The pledge period ended yesterday; the total amount raised was nearly double the goal figure of $25,000 ($46,098).  Check out the trailer below, and keep an eye out for the finished film in the near future.

The Banjo Project Trailer from The Banjo Project on Vimeo.

See also Dustin Ogdin's excellent article and interview with Marc Fields at ear•tyme music show.

My friend Scott Barretta and photographer Ken Murphy have recently released the stunningly beautiful book Mississippi: State of Blues.  Both chronicle and love letter, it is the fruit of three years of traveling and photographing the rich, living blues heritage of my beloved home state.  Yesterday they were 

interviewed on Mississippi Public Broadcasting's Mississippi Arts Hour; the program is now available for download via podcast.  For a list of retailers offering copies of Mississippi: State of Blues for sale, click here.

Shooter Jennings is spearheading a new musical genre/movement that aims to represent those artists whose music falls "between the cracks of country and rock," and who have been largely overlooked by the mainstream musical press and radio.  He's dubbed it XXX, after the markings found on old-fashioned moonshine jugs (why, what else did you think he meant?).  If this idea runs right up your melodic alley, read more about it and sign the petition at www.givememyxxx.com.

The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation has just released the list of this year's performers, and it's quite the smorgasbord, as always.  Check out the lineup and order your tickets here.

Wanda Jackson and Jack White's performance on the Late Show with David Letterman last Thursday night took the roof off of the Ed Sullivan Theater.  

As previously reported, The Party Ain't Over is out tomorrow; they will perform again on Conan tomorrow night. 

The Queen of Rockabilly Returns (John Jurgenson/WSJ.com)

Wanda Jackson, Rockabilly Queen, Prolongs Her Party (Melena Ryzik/NYTimes.com)

Live review: Wanda Jackson at the El Rey Theatre (Evelyn McDonnell/Pop & Hiss)

Must read: Adam Sheets' review of The Party Ain't Over at No Depression.  He loves her new album as much as I do!

Other random items I've enjoyed recently:

Patti Smith: Warrior Poet (Paul Zollo/American Songwriter)

Mick Without Moss (Zoe Heller/NYTimes)

Interview: Merideth Sisco Discusses The "Winter's Bone" Soundtrack & The Music Of The Ozarks (Chris Mateer/No Depression)

John Cohen's Passionate Pursuit, From Kentucky To Peru (Karen Michel/NPR)

And last, but certainly not least, there's this . . . 

Tom Waits - Potter's Field from Phil Bebbington on Vimeo.

For Wanda Jackson, The Party's Just Beginning

All right, I admit it - I love Jack White.  How could I not, when it's obvious what a righteously chivalrous dude he is?  First, he worked his special brand of magic on Loretta Lynn's excellent Van Lear Rose, and it was some of her best work in years. Now he's done it again with Wanda Jackson's The Party Ain't Over, and from the sound of it that's the literal truth.  Jackson sounds every bit the rockabilly firecracker she did in the late '50s, and the music sounds like Jetsons-era Sun Records and the Dap Kings got married and had a baby.  It's the sexiest, most raucously delightful album I've heard in a long time.  

Among the highlights is a cover of Bob Dylan's "Thunder on the Mountain," originally released on 2006's Modern Times.  It was apparently suggested by the man himself, who once aptly dubbed her "an atomic bomb in lipstick."  A video of the song was released yesterday on Spinner's website.  Filmed at United Record Pressing in Nashville, it shows Jackson, White, and the band kicking it old-school in a room somewhere on the premises and looking like they're having the time of their lives doing it.  White jumps around like a hyperactive 8-year-old while frenetically soloing, and Jackson frequently swats at him playfully.  According to Jackson, White did that for every single take; she told Spinner that he was "in rare form . . . Every time that we taped it, he had the energy, jumping around and playing the guitar like that."  

Other faves include a version of "You Know I'm No Good" that manages to out-Winehouse Amy Winehouse (girl, I love you, but it's time to step up your game, for real), and a soulfully funky yet entirely reverent update of "Dust On The Bible," a nod to Jackson's days as a Christian evangelist.  But don't take my word for it - give it a listen, and discover for yourself why they (rightfully) call her the Queen of Rock.  NPR is previewing the album in its entirety until its January 25th release date.  

First Listen: Wanda Jackson, "The Party Ain't Over" (NPR)

You can pre-order The Party Ain't Over from both Third Man Records and Nonesuch.  Third Man has also produced two 45s featuring Wanda's versions of "Thunder On The Mountain" and "You Know I'm No Good."

She is currently on tour (click here for dates), and will appear on CBS's Late Show With David Letterman tonight and TBS's Conan on January 25.

Wanda Jackson to perform on 'Letterman,' 'Conan' shows (NewsOK)

And just for perspective's sake (and because it kicks absolute ass) . . .

Further reading:

Wanda Jackson + Jack White Cover Dylan's 'Thunder on the Mountain' - Video Premiere (Spinner)

Catching Up With . . . Wanda Jackson (Paste)

Wanda Jackson at Third Man Records, 1/18/11 (Nashville Cream)

Jack White's Third Man Records tells the world: Your Music City's not dead (Nashville Scene)

Jack White: The Cream Interview (Nashville Cream)

It's Official: Bob Dylan Signs Six-Book Publishing Deal

My last blog posting pondered whether we would soon see Chronicles Volume Two, as posited by Uncut magazine's weekly email blast. It appears those assumptions weren't "Blowin' in the Wind." Among Rolling Stone's headlines this morning came the announcement that Bob Dylan has indeed signed a six-book publishing contract with Simon & Schuster. According to Andy Greene, the deal includes the two long-awaited follow-up installments to 2004's acclaimed Chronicles Volume One, as well as a book based on dialogue from his Sirius/XM radio show Theme Time Radio Hour."

Crain's New York Business reported on January 16 that literary agent Andrew Wylie had reached the agreement with Simon & Schuster after months of shopping it around to other publishers, in spite of S&S's insistence that it already owned the rights to Dylan's Chronicles series.  Wylie apparently argued that since the book was a collection of "non-fiction stories" rather than a memoir, S&S didn't own the rights to it.  No other publishing company would touch it, however, fearing legal action from S&S.  Wylie was reportedly negotiating an eight-figure sum for the deal, but no word on the final price has been issued.

At any rate, the deal has been inked, so hopefully we shall soon hear of the imminent release of Volume Two, as well as news of what the other books in the series will consist of.  The moment I know, my dear readers, so shall you . . .

Further reading:

Bob Dylan Signs Six-Book Deal (Andy Greene, Rolling Stone)

Highway S&S Revisited (Crain's New York Business)

Bob Dylan's new book deal - What does it mean? (Harold Lepidus/Bob Dylan Examiner)

Shall we soon see Chronicles Volume Two?

From today's Uncut email blast:

Monday 17th January 2011

Nearly everyone who read the first volume of Bob Dylan's Chronicles when it was published in 2004 was ready by the time they finished it for the second instalment, which in the opinion of all and probably sundry couldn't come quick enough. Well, it's now nigh on seven years since Chronicles came out and despite the occasional rumour that a follow-up was definitely in the works, Dylan working on the manuscript between tours and other commitments, there's been nary a sign of the elusive second volume, let alone a date for its publication. The last we heard, in fact, was that Dylan didn't even have a deal in place for a new book, although when Chronicles was published it was loudly talked up as the first of three volumes of memoirs. In news just in, though, we hear that Dylan has just signed a new deal, with Simon & Schuster, who published Chronicles and have long maintained they had an agreement with Bob to put out the two further volumes of Chronicles, as previously announced. The deal is apparently for six Dylan books – the two follow-ups to Chronicles and four more apparently based on Dylan's Theme Time Radio Hour, which will presumably be based on Dylan's often hilarious commentary and links between songs, although this has yet to be confirmed. The new contract with Simon & Schuster has been brokered by American literary agent Andrew Wylie, whose nickname in appropriate circles is ‘The Jackal’, due to his aggressive pursuit of big money deals for his clients and the ruthlessness with which he makes sure the writers he represents are paid top dollar, nothing less, and usually a lot more. Among the authors Wylie represents are Martin Amis – who he controversially poached from a rival agent in 1995, setting off all manner of literary blood feuds – Dave Eggers, Al Gore, Salman Rushdie, Philip Roth and Elmore Leonard. He apparently also looks after the estates of Saul Bellow and John Updike. Although Simon & Schuster have always insisted they had the rights to any Chronicles sequels, Wylie, living up to his reputation and nickname, has recently been touting Dylan around to other publishers, much to Simon & Schuster's evident discomfort. Wylie apparently contested their claim to the Chronicles sequels because, he argued, and this is interesting, Chronicles wasn't exactly a ‘memoir‘, so much as it was a collection of ‘non-fiction stories’ from Dylan's life. This wasn't quite enough to encourage rival publishers to bid for the six-book package, most of them probably figuring that any new deal they signed with Wylie and Dylan would bring about a hostile response from Simon & Schuster, whose lawyers were doubtless watching proceedings on a very short leash, ready to pounce if required. We'll bring you more on this and – we hope – a date to put against the arrival of Chronicles Volume 2, as soon as we hear something. And finally, just a reminder that you can now read Uncut every month in its entirety on your iPad, laptop or home computer by subscribing to our online edition. A 12 month subscription costs only £19.99. Individual issues are priced at £2.99. Uncut is easy to read - in its entirety - on your home computer or laptop. All you need to do to get Uncut on your iPad, laptop or home computer is sign up by following this link Adios for now. Allan

An MLK Day Miscellany

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in America, and I've gathered a collection of relevant and interesting links in honor of the great man's birthday.

LIFE has just released an selection of never-before-seen images taken by Paul Schutzer of Dr. King and his involvement with the Freedom Rides in the South.  I respectfully submit that anyone who doesn't "remember it as being all that bad" should take a look at these.  

PBS has a section dedicated to the 1987 documentary Eyes On The Prize, which will be rebroadcast on April 1, 8, and 15. One of the many things you can view on the website is footage of the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, which includes a portion of Dr. King's "I have a dream" speech.  If you have never read the speech in its entirety, I encourage you to do so.  

More than at any other time in recent memory, music was a force for social change during the 1960s. Bernice Johnson Reagon discusses in her excellent essay "Music and the Civil Rights Movement" just how important music was to those involved in the struggle, and what purposes it served.

Here's the complete video of "Civil Rights: The Music and the Movement," a panel hosted by the University of California/Davis' Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts on January 15, 2009.  Mavis Staples discusses music's role in the movement with Jeffrey Callison and Dr. Milmon Harrison.

From NPR's Take Five: A Weekly Jazz Sampler comes "Songs of the Civil Rights Movement," a short list of jazz and jazz/blues covers of inspirational songs from the era (originally published on January 18, 2010).

Likewise, Rolling Stone contributing editor David Wild has assembled a playlist of inspirational songs for this day.  "Dignity": An Uplifting Playlist For Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day (Huffington Post)

Wild heads off the list with "Dignity," which is one of my favorite of Bob Dylan's latter-day songs.  Here's a video of him performing it on MTV's Unplugged in 1995.

Searchin' high/Searchin' low/Searchin' everywhere I know/

Askin' the cops wherever I go/Have you seen dignity?

Dr. King, this world sure could use some of your dignity right about now.

"And so Jesus gave us a new norm of greatness. If you want to be important—wonderful. If you want to be recognized—wonderful. If you want to be great—wonderful. But recognize that he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. That's a new definition of greatness.

And this morning, the thing that I like about it: by giving that definition of greatness, it means that everybody can be great, because everybody can serve.  You don't have to have a college degree to serve.  You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve.  You don't have to know about Plato and Aristotle to serve.  You don't have to know Einstein's theory of relativity to serve. You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love.  And you can be that servant."

- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., from "The Drum Major Instinct,"  

February 4th, 1968

"You know that those who are considered rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.

Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant. And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life for all."

- Christ speaking to His disciples, Mark 10:42(b)-45 (NKJV); Dr. King used the passage these verses are taken from as the basis for his "Drum Major Instinct" sermon.