It's not exactly how I remember it.
Then again, I lived through it, and most of America did not. So they've got no idea what the sixties were really like, everything was up for grabs, even the country itself.
And the funny thing is just like fifty years ago, the oldsters are completely out of touch with the country, they want the safe candidate, in this case Joe Biden. Eugene McCarthy and Bernie Sanders energized the youth, but in '68 most youngsters could not vote, today many are too disillusioned to do so, or are so busy trying to get famous on TikTok that they've got no time to.
I'm a Sorkin fan. It's what everybody hates that I love about him. The rapid fire dialogue. He doesn't waste any time. Whereas too many in today's movie business focus on image and mood to the point the story itself takes a back seat.
And what is the story here?
Nominally it's about the Chicago 7, but really it's about today.
The youth were on one side and the oldsters were on the other. Some oldsters aligned with the youth, my parents certainly did, they were not conservative, they were aware of injustice, my mother protested and even though they didn't listen to music, they saw all the challenging plays off Broadway, when that was still a thing, before the Great White Way was all about musicals based on movies to appeal to the unchallenged from out of state, to the point where a real play, covering real issues, can't even make it to Broadway. Broadway is about money, not the changing of the culture. Then again, there are exceptions, in this case the twenty first century "Hair,' in other words "Hamilton," a rap musical, which spoke truth and became a bigger success than all the rest, because people resonate with truth, even though most creators shoot so much lower, because they don't want to offend, they don't want to turn off a potential customer.
So maybe it was fear of getting your ass shot off.
Then again, the military was the enemy, no one railed on about protecting the troops, thanking soldiers for their service, the cops were pigs and then the Iran/Contra crisis happened and everything flipped, nationalism ruled, you were either on the side of our country or you were a traitor. And the youth was split.
Then again, today there's no middle class. It's hard to make ends meet. So, you've got an elite with Ivy educations who don't want to ruffle feathers because it will negatively impact their careers and a lower class, oftentimes uneducated, which can't analyze and in too many cases is in search of pure hedonism, when it's not scrounging for food, not trying to keep a roof over its head.
That's a snapshot of America. Income inequality. The boomers protesting in this movie sold out and got comfortable, they left the revolution behind, and while they were partying like it was always 1999, the moral fabric, the glue of this country came apart and here we are.
Today it's all about democracy. Do you want to keep it? That's what a vote for Biden is for.
Yesterday it was about getting your ass shot off.
Let me see... What were the two biggest anxieties in the sixties and early seventies if you were a guy. One, that you might have to fight in Vietnam. Two, that your girlfriend might get pregnant and your life would change overnight, you'd have to grow up, get married and go to work.
But the war ended, thank the protesters, really. And then we got abortion rights and now it's like we're starting all over again, with a Supreme Court looking to eviscerate abortion, to the degree states have not done so already. But there is no war, only Covid-19, but maybe that's similar.
Everybody was not against the war at first. It took years for public sentiment to switch. Because America was the greatest country in the world and our duty was to stand up to Communism, but then we started to wonder...were the Vietnamese really our enemy, did the Domino Theory have any validity, and was it really worth it to sacrifice tens of thousands in Southeast Asia?
We've already sacrificed many times that to Covid. But right now that's getting a shrug. This won't be forever, because the virus is not going away, as a matter of fact, it's doubling-down, just like the government.
Belief in the system. That's what the oldsters couldn't fathom yesterday and today, people's rejection of this. Do you believe in the system anymore? I hate to say that I do not. Especially in an era where Republicans have their own ballot boxes in California and the law can't shut them down, the Republicans are like toddlers, saying MAKE ME!
But the real issue is whether the system can solve our problems. That's Abbie Hoffman, i.e. Sacha Baron Cohen's, big point in this flick. You can vote, but the problems remain. Joe Biden may save your health care, but he ain't gonna do much about income inequality, because the people who voted him in, with their cash and their power, don't want him to.
You may say I'm a dreamer. But as John Lennon sang, I'm not the only one.
So it was such a different era. What you'll notice first is the lack of computers. How did we live without them? Forget wasting time on social media, today you expect all the world's information to be available and instantly searchable, yesterday you went to the library, which contained relatively little and what was there was not that easy to find.
Not that we knew any better. That's how long I've lived. I've seen life change completely to the point it's de rigueur to the younger generation. Those kids in college today, they don't even remember dialup! Computers always existed. As did cable TV, but maybe not streaming TV, Netflix.
Aaron Sorkin wanted "The Trial of the Chicago 7" to play before the election. Forget Covid, even if the movie was distributed theatrically, most people would not see it, but being on Netflix, my inbox is filling up about it, I watched it because I wanted to be part of the discussion, just like why I used to go to the movies until around 2005, when we collectively agreed the quality was on TV, with "The Sopranos," which was better than anything in the theatre, then or now.
And essentially everybody has access to Netflix. Then again, I'll get e-mail telling me no, that they haven't even got internet access, it's the devil. These people without smartphones are proud, they don't realize they're being left behind, have already been left behind.
So Sorkin knew distribution is king. And he wanted his flick where everybody could see it, essentially for free. You debate whether a movie is worth it, at the theatre or on pay-per-view, but if it's part of the package, it feel free, even though you, or the person you're stealing it from, is paying for Netflix every month. Then again, Netflix is cheaper than the price of admission to one movie, ain't that a head-scratcher.
So we know what happened to everybody involved.
Bobby Seale got into barbecue.
Jerry Rubin was into finance and self-help.
Abbie Hoffman killed himself. He was out of time, there was nowhere for him to go, he was no longer needed, and unlike a musician he could not go on the road and play his greatest hits, so he checked out.
Rennie Davis and John Froines? How do I know they ended up nobodies? Because they came to speak at my college, which was out of the way and irrelevant, and how many people showed up to hear them? For Rennie it was about twenty five, for Froines it was ten or fifteen. It seems the prep school kids missed the sixties, or they were aligned with their parents' conservative vision. And the public school kids were so busy trying to get into college that they had no idea what was happening in the outside world.
Dave Dellinger disappeared and we all know that Tom Hayden married Jane Fonda and then stepped out on her. What's that old joke? Show me a beautiful woman and I'll show you a guy who's tired...
As for Lee Weiner, I don't even remember he was included!
But I do remember the trial. Judge Julius Hoffman. He was laughable, but he had the power. Just like all those right wing judges Trump and his Senate cronies have installed. Have you been following this? District courts have been standing up for voter rights and then appeals courts, packed with the aforementioned judges, are striking them down. Even if Trump were to vacate office, the game would still be rigged. Especially with the Supreme Court, which canned the census, why?
As for the actors... Joseph Gordon-Levitt is the most believable. Then again, Richard Schultz was evil.
Sacha Baron Cohen got the points across, but not for a moment did you ever believe it was Abbie Hoffman, who was inherently unbelievable.
Eddie Redmayne? That was not Tom Hayden.
The actors are placeholders. And William Kunstler had more gravitas than he does in this movie. But the guy playing John Mitchell is just as evil as the real man and Michael Keaton almost steals the show as Ramsey Clark.
Oh, I forgot Frank Langella. Actually, Julius Hoffman was crazier than that. Langella was good, but Frank had been a leading man, Dracula, now he's the old man, time has passed.
It most certainly has.
The difference between now and then is in the sixties the youth, the rebels, were optimistic, we truly believed we could change the country for the better.
Today's Biden sales point is we need to get rid of Trump. That's how far we've fallen. Pessimism reigns.
And so many reject education and science. Abbie/Sacha makes the point he went to Brandeis, and despite his clownish behavior, he ends up evidencing intelligence, he's erudite and he wows those in attendance.
But they're still convicted. Once again, if you believe in the system I've got a bridge to sell you. Being right in America ain't that important, the key is to have the power, it's who you know, so if you do get yourself in hot water you know who to call, someone who can get you out of a jam.
Do you know these people?
Probably not. You've been closed out. Or maybe you missed the memo, that there's no lifetime employment anymore and if you're not networking and moving ahead you're falling behind, to your utmost detriment. Lose your job at fifty, even forty five or forty, good luck getting another one.
So, as you've read above, "The Trial of the Chicago 7" is food for thought.
But I wish you'd been there the first time around. When you had to read the newspaper to know what was going on. The network news was only half an hour long. Or the underground press. That's how "Rolling Stone" started out. The Chicago 7 were testing limits for all of us, they were spearheading the future just like musicians, as Abbie/Sacha references re Ginger Baker.
So, movies end up becoming history. Accuracy is irrelevant, it's just a matter of mindshare. And usually there's no money in the past, so no one tries to set the record straight.
The trial was a circus. The 7 were pushing the envelope, the antics were incredible, you sat at home and wondered if they'd be convicted, and then what?
In this case they got out.
But now you don't. Just ask all the African-Americans in jail for minor drug offenses.
We do live in a law and order country. There are cameras everywhere. And there are fewer murders and it's much safer, despite what the right wants you to believe.
But ain't that America, they want to make you afraid.
Especially of the government. Ramsey Clark stands up, but the point here is Trump and his cronies are immune to the legal system, they don't show up, even if they're called, the message is telegraphed loud and clear.
That's why this movie was made. To let Sorkin make points about today, not yesteryear.
And sure, if you lived through it you'll get nostalgic. But a lot of that is cinematography, the warm hues. Life is easier today, no doubt.
And the interesting thing is in the past six months we've seen spontaneous demonstrations. In larger size and with more intensity than anything we experienced in the sixties.
And that's the question of today, what happens after November 3rd, no matter who wins.
Sorkin inserts right wing frat boys, who infiltrate the protest, but that's not how it was, you had to go below the Mason-Dixon line to find any youngsters who were Republicans, at least in numbers. It was us versus them. The youth against the system.
Now it's us against us. That's what Trump played into, that's what he's amplified. The immigrants, your neighbors, the Jews, the Blacks, they're messing with your life, they're keeping you down. The real enemies, like Trump and his cronies themselves, end up inviolate, as well as the corporations and fat cats who support them. Somehow, they've taken the focus off of them.
But one thing we know is the Democrats of yesteryear were not wimps. We can argue whether they wanted violence, but one thing is for sure, they wanted change, and they were willing to stand up for it, they did not only not trust the government, but the established players on the left either. Don't forget, Mayor Daley was a Democrat.
So I recommend you watch "The Trial of the Chicago 7." So you can be part of the discussion. It's been a long time since America has been on the same page, exposed to the same info. And this is history, so if the right wants to complain...I don't see how it can.
Food for thought.
Which you won't get at the superhero movies Hollywood is lamenting it cannot distribute in theatres.
Streaming television saves the world. The internet certainly punted.
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Saturday 17 October 2020
Rodham
https://amzn.to/37isMX4
I wish I'd read this when I'd grown up, it would have answered so many questions!
I'm a big Curtis Sittenfeld fan. I started with "Prep." I went to public school, but in college 45% of the students had come from prep schools. They were different. And you can't explain them to people who didn't experience them. The confidence, the laissez-faire attitude. They were polite on the outside and limit-testers on the inside. They seemed to be born to this station, whereas in public high school we grade-grubbed and competed and opened our college acceptance letters breathlessly.
But not every Sittenfeld book resonated. And I'll be honest, the fact that she called herself "Curtis" bugged me. Her real name was "Elizabeth." I had a hard time believing she'd grown up as "Curtis," then again at Middlebury those prep school kids oftentimes had family names that were not their first, or first names that were not de rigueur, that in fact I'd never heard in the suburbs. Like "Tucker." And "Brooke." They've filtered down to the hoi polloi today, but they were nonexistent in the middle class of yore.
But I wasn't interested in everything Sittenfeld wrote. Especially "American Wife," the Laura Bush story without Laura Bush. As for her latest novel, "Rodham," a reimagination of Hillary's story...why? It seemed like an exercise to me. I mean Hillary had lived one life, wasn't that enough?
But in the back of my mind I remembered "You Think It, I'll Say It." The best book I read in 2018, even though some of it had been published earlier, even though it was a short story collection.
I remember short stories from freshman English, in high school. There was a thick paperback, we read it first term. But short stories get a bad rap. Real writers write complete novels, right? And under the best of circumstances short stories end and you're left hanging, you want more but there is none.
But "You Think It, I'll Say It"... Sure, you might be left hanging, but you'd want to dive right into the next story, for the adventure.
As for her latest book, this year's "Rodham," it seemed like "American Wife II," I had no need and no desire.
But then I got an e-mail from Deborah Holland.
She was the singer/songwriter of Animal Logic, a trio with Stewart Copeland and Stanley Clarke. This was after the Police broke up, as for Clarke he had a stellar reputation, Animal Logic struck you on the surface.
And then there was a track, "There's a Spy (In the House of Love)." This was 1989. And the track got MTV play, more than lunar rotation. And the chorus was indelible, you heard it once and not only did you know it, you needed to hear it again.
But that was Animal Logic's only success. After a second LP the band broke up and Deborah Holland disappeared, but she reappeared as part of the Refugees, a trio with Wendy Waldman and Cindy Bullens. She always seemed standoffish to me, but then the group's efforts became sporadic and Deborah moved to Vancouver and I'd start to hear from her intermittently. Always about some aspect of art. Deborah told me to read "Rodham," that she and her friends loved it.
Hmm... I trusted Deborah's recommendation, based on prior e-mail, but like I said, I was not interested in this book. I downloaded the sample chapter and started but then I got sidetracked with something else and never went back.
Until last night.
I finished Sue Miller's "Monogamy." And it wasn't good enough. Which made me crazy. Because reviews were stellar. I was hanging in there and if anything at the end I was disappointed, even though some of the plot twists were unexpected and made the book better.
Now I needed something new.
Oh, I could have buried myself in work, but what work would that be?
I'd been driving in my car for my annual physical and I'd heard Amy Coney Barrett and gotten depressed. They could have asked her if she was a woman and she would have said she did not have enough information and she'd have to wait until the legal question came up. I felt I needed to write something, I even had a title, "The Tyranny of the Minority," but by time I emerged from Mitch's office I wasn't in the same mood, conversation with him and his staff had lit that inner flame, and it was growing, and I only write from the mood I'm in, I never fake it.
And then last night on Bill Maher he said everything I'd thought, and I chided myself, why had I been so afraid to lay my words down? Turns out I was not the only one who was depressed, not the only one lamenting the tyranny of the minority, then again I hadn't been in the mood.
So now I'm coursing through all the sample chapters I've downloaded, and nothing is resonating. It's close to midnight and I'm looking for that writing that cuts like butter, that requires no effort, that is not laden with description, that is not written for critics, for a literary judge and jury, and I'm not finding it.
And after exhausting all the possibilities, I find that sample of "Rodham" on my Kindle, and I wonder...IS IT AVAILABLE ON LIBBY?
I've got no crusade. Used to be to have all the music available to all for one low price per month, that came to be. Now what? Well, the evolution from physical to digital books. But persuading a reader of physical that digital is superior is like trying to convert a Trump voter to Biden.
I recently read a physical book. The type was infinitesimal. This is not an issue on a Kindle, I'd have blown it up, changed the setting.
And in this Covid-19 era why would you want to go to a library, why would you want to go anywhere unless it was necessary?
Which led me to Libby, the public library app. I was a naysayer, now I'm not. That's where I got "Mrs. Everything," but the newest Jennifer Weiner books were not available for months. But I'd reserved "Monogamy" and it ultimately was free, what about "Rodham"?
I could get it for seven days. Right now. I downloaded it to my Kindle, just that fast. Isn't this what we're trying to do, isn't this the essence of the last two and a half decades, reducing friction?
And then I started to read it.
I'm not a student of Hillary, nor Bill. I know the highlights, but their story is in black and white, not color, at least until Bill runs for president.
But in "Rodham"...
Now I don't know how much of "Rodham" is true. I mean were these really Hillary's friends, did she have any of these experiences in real life?
But it does not matter.
Because this isn't so much about Hillary the person, but Hillary the character.
What's it like to be the smartest girl in the school? What's it like to stand up for yourself? What's it like to poke the bear?
Most people don't. Now, more than ever, people want to fit in. But even back then, you stood out at your peril. You were labeled. You were just being yourself, but you were laughed at.
So, Hillary stands up to sexism and this is at the bleeding edge of the women's movement. We've still got a long way to go, today men are aware of the issue, but in many cases they just remain silent, there's a hidden code that we still do it but we just don't talk about it publicly. But back then? Men assumed that women should be seen, not heard.
There were very few women at Yale Law School.
But what intrigued me most about "Rodham" was the relationships, the dreamed-to-be and those that were real.
Hillary has a rapport with Bruce. They talk every Monday. She finally decides to take a chance, she gives him a note, saying she'd like to be his girlfriend.
And then she hears nothing.
Mostly I laugh when I think back at high school. It's a cliché, what you thought was important was not. But then reading "Rodham" I'm brought back and...these were truly serious moments.
There's a school vacation. Hillary hears nothing. And when she finally encounters Bruce back in school, he says nothing. She's dying inside, she finally brings it up. No, it turns out Bruce is into somebody else, WHO HE'S ONLY TALKED TO ONCE!!
And Hillary continues to have rapport with men who reject her. They've got a mind meld. She broaches the relationship issue and time and time again they just don't see her that way, sometimes they just see her as one of the guys.
SO WHAT'S A GIRL TO DO?
Her Wellesley roommates tell her to show some skin, to shut up.
But Hillary wants someone who loves her for her brain. But then she realizes this just doesn't happen, men go for the physical first, and she's not high enough on the food chain, she's not desirable enough for the men she's interested in to be interested in her. She's not good-looking enough to be involved with a good-looking man.
And then Bill Clinton comes along.
She sees him across the way, months before they ultimately interact.
You know... Maybe you locked eyes once. And to you it means everything, but did it really mean anything?
And when Bill ultimately approaches Hillary she's not quite sure how to handle it. Is he just another friend? She's not in his league, she's gun-shy. But then Bill says she's the smartest girl at Yale Law School and he just had to meet her. And a love relationship ensues.
Bill is comfortable in his body.
But Hillary... Actually, she's had sex, she's not a complete nerd, but she's completely flummoxed, why would Bill be interested in HER?
And Bill has big appetites and big desires.
And they do go to Yale and both of them are working the connections, connections the average person is unaware of, never mind able to utilize.
And now I'm feeling inadequate.
But then Hillary is working for Legal Aid and she's drafting and I'm telling myself there's no way I want to do that, I'm not interested, and there are things I'm interested in.
I never got higher education. I mean was there anyone who was truly interested in what they studied? Not me. The best part of college was hanging out, and going skiing.
Skiing. That's why I went to Middlebury, it had its own ski area, I could ski every day, talk about a thrill! And I did. Well, at least during January term, in the spring it was more difficult sometimes, I did have to do some school work.
And the truth is that is what I still do today, ski, so maybe that was the right path.
But I never fit in, I never took the path, it never seemed reasonable to me. I don't know whether it seemed reasonable to everyone else, or they were indoctrinated into doing what they were told.
And unlike Yale Law, unlike Wellesley, the people I went to college with did not set the world on fire. Sure, it was a different era, pre-tech, pre-entrepreneurship, but what if I'd decided to go to an Ivy instead, I had the chance, would it have played out differently?
But then I wouldn't have been able to ski every day.
And I couldn't go to concerts at Middlebury, although we did venture to New York and Boston every once in a while for a big show, like Bowie and Dylan, but I could listen to the same records as those who went to UCLA.
So, on one hand I feel different, certainly from all the people I went to college with. On the other, I've found like-minded people in music, but although there's still a music business, it resembles the pre-Beatle era, all pop all the time, it's business, it's not driving the soul of the country.
And even the biggest artists don't make a difference. Demi Lovato and the Lincoln Project? Here today, gone tomorrow. And are we really ready to listen to Demi Lovato tell us what to do, of all the people, all the artists in the world?
So on one hand I'm lost.
And then I read "Rodham" and I'm found.
I'm only ten percent in, but I'm stunned, that someone is on my page, someone has had my experiences, Sittenfeld must have to have written this book.
WHERE WERE THESE PEOPLE WHEN I WAS GROWING UP?
It's not like my father taught me how to be a man, at least not sexually.
And today you can find like-minded people on the internet, but back then you were locked up in your own little world, dreaming, holding on for something better. Talk about depressing...
Knowing Sittenfeld "Rodham" will never get off course, it will ultimately deliver. Will it be as good as this initial 10%? Possibly not.
But I don't want to keep on reading, I want to savor every page. It's like finding the Dead Sea Scrolls. It's like listening to Supertramp's "Crime of the Century." You think you're the only one, and then you're not.
"There's a Spy (In the House of Love)":
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2H7fvFS
YouTube: https://bit.ly/3nYeRLv
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I wish I'd read this when I'd grown up, it would have answered so many questions!
I'm a big Curtis Sittenfeld fan. I started with "Prep." I went to public school, but in college 45% of the students had come from prep schools. They were different. And you can't explain them to people who didn't experience them. The confidence, the laissez-faire attitude. They were polite on the outside and limit-testers on the inside. They seemed to be born to this station, whereas in public high school we grade-grubbed and competed and opened our college acceptance letters breathlessly.
But not every Sittenfeld book resonated. And I'll be honest, the fact that she called herself "Curtis" bugged me. Her real name was "Elizabeth." I had a hard time believing she'd grown up as "Curtis," then again at Middlebury those prep school kids oftentimes had family names that were not their first, or first names that were not de rigueur, that in fact I'd never heard in the suburbs. Like "Tucker." And "Brooke." They've filtered down to the hoi polloi today, but they were nonexistent in the middle class of yore.
But I wasn't interested in everything Sittenfeld wrote. Especially "American Wife," the Laura Bush story without Laura Bush. As for her latest novel, "Rodham," a reimagination of Hillary's story...why? It seemed like an exercise to me. I mean Hillary had lived one life, wasn't that enough?
But in the back of my mind I remembered "You Think It, I'll Say It." The best book I read in 2018, even though some of it had been published earlier, even though it was a short story collection.
I remember short stories from freshman English, in high school. There was a thick paperback, we read it first term. But short stories get a bad rap. Real writers write complete novels, right? And under the best of circumstances short stories end and you're left hanging, you want more but there is none.
But "You Think It, I'll Say It"... Sure, you might be left hanging, but you'd want to dive right into the next story, for the adventure.
As for her latest book, this year's "Rodham," it seemed like "American Wife II," I had no need and no desire.
But then I got an e-mail from Deborah Holland.
She was the singer/songwriter of Animal Logic, a trio with Stewart Copeland and Stanley Clarke. This was after the Police broke up, as for Clarke he had a stellar reputation, Animal Logic struck you on the surface.
And then there was a track, "There's a Spy (In the House of Love)." This was 1989. And the track got MTV play, more than lunar rotation. And the chorus was indelible, you heard it once and not only did you know it, you needed to hear it again.
But that was Animal Logic's only success. After a second LP the band broke up and Deborah Holland disappeared, but she reappeared as part of the Refugees, a trio with Wendy Waldman and Cindy Bullens. She always seemed standoffish to me, but then the group's efforts became sporadic and Deborah moved to Vancouver and I'd start to hear from her intermittently. Always about some aspect of art. Deborah told me to read "Rodham," that she and her friends loved it.
Hmm... I trusted Deborah's recommendation, based on prior e-mail, but like I said, I was not interested in this book. I downloaded the sample chapter and started but then I got sidetracked with something else and never went back.
Until last night.
I finished Sue Miller's "Monogamy." And it wasn't good enough. Which made me crazy. Because reviews were stellar. I was hanging in there and if anything at the end I was disappointed, even though some of the plot twists were unexpected and made the book better.
Now I needed something new.
Oh, I could have buried myself in work, but what work would that be?
I'd been driving in my car for my annual physical and I'd heard Amy Coney Barrett and gotten depressed. They could have asked her if she was a woman and she would have said she did not have enough information and she'd have to wait until the legal question came up. I felt I needed to write something, I even had a title, "The Tyranny of the Minority," but by time I emerged from Mitch's office I wasn't in the same mood, conversation with him and his staff had lit that inner flame, and it was growing, and I only write from the mood I'm in, I never fake it.
And then last night on Bill Maher he said everything I'd thought, and I chided myself, why had I been so afraid to lay my words down? Turns out I was not the only one who was depressed, not the only one lamenting the tyranny of the minority, then again I hadn't been in the mood.
So now I'm coursing through all the sample chapters I've downloaded, and nothing is resonating. It's close to midnight and I'm looking for that writing that cuts like butter, that requires no effort, that is not laden with description, that is not written for critics, for a literary judge and jury, and I'm not finding it.
And after exhausting all the possibilities, I find that sample of "Rodham" on my Kindle, and I wonder...IS IT AVAILABLE ON LIBBY?
I've got no crusade. Used to be to have all the music available to all for one low price per month, that came to be. Now what? Well, the evolution from physical to digital books. But persuading a reader of physical that digital is superior is like trying to convert a Trump voter to Biden.
I recently read a physical book. The type was infinitesimal. This is not an issue on a Kindle, I'd have blown it up, changed the setting.
And in this Covid-19 era why would you want to go to a library, why would you want to go anywhere unless it was necessary?
Which led me to Libby, the public library app. I was a naysayer, now I'm not. That's where I got "Mrs. Everything," but the newest Jennifer Weiner books were not available for months. But I'd reserved "Monogamy" and it ultimately was free, what about "Rodham"?
I could get it for seven days. Right now. I downloaded it to my Kindle, just that fast. Isn't this what we're trying to do, isn't this the essence of the last two and a half decades, reducing friction?
And then I started to read it.
I'm not a student of Hillary, nor Bill. I know the highlights, but their story is in black and white, not color, at least until Bill runs for president.
But in "Rodham"...
Now I don't know how much of "Rodham" is true. I mean were these really Hillary's friends, did she have any of these experiences in real life?
But it does not matter.
Because this isn't so much about Hillary the person, but Hillary the character.
What's it like to be the smartest girl in the school? What's it like to stand up for yourself? What's it like to poke the bear?
Most people don't. Now, more than ever, people want to fit in. But even back then, you stood out at your peril. You were labeled. You were just being yourself, but you were laughed at.
So, Hillary stands up to sexism and this is at the bleeding edge of the women's movement. We've still got a long way to go, today men are aware of the issue, but in many cases they just remain silent, there's a hidden code that we still do it but we just don't talk about it publicly. But back then? Men assumed that women should be seen, not heard.
There were very few women at Yale Law School.
But what intrigued me most about "Rodham" was the relationships, the dreamed-to-be and those that were real.
Hillary has a rapport with Bruce. They talk every Monday. She finally decides to take a chance, she gives him a note, saying she'd like to be his girlfriend.
And then she hears nothing.
Mostly I laugh when I think back at high school. It's a cliché, what you thought was important was not. But then reading "Rodham" I'm brought back and...these were truly serious moments.
There's a school vacation. Hillary hears nothing. And when she finally encounters Bruce back in school, he says nothing. She's dying inside, she finally brings it up. No, it turns out Bruce is into somebody else, WHO HE'S ONLY TALKED TO ONCE!!
And Hillary continues to have rapport with men who reject her. They've got a mind meld. She broaches the relationship issue and time and time again they just don't see her that way, sometimes they just see her as one of the guys.
SO WHAT'S A GIRL TO DO?
Her Wellesley roommates tell her to show some skin, to shut up.
But Hillary wants someone who loves her for her brain. But then she realizes this just doesn't happen, men go for the physical first, and she's not high enough on the food chain, she's not desirable enough for the men she's interested in to be interested in her. She's not good-looking enough to be involved with a good-looking man.
And then Bill Clinton comes along.
She sees him across the way, months before they ultimately interact.
You know... Maybe you locked eyes once. And to you it means everything, but did it really mean anything?
And when Bill ultimately approaches Hillary she's not quite sure how to handle it. Is he just another friend? She's not in his league, she's gun-shy. But then Bill says she's the smartest girl at Yale Law School and he just had to meet her. And a love relationship ensues.
Bill is comfortable in his body.
But Hillary... Actually, she's had sex, she's not a complete nerd, but she's completely flummoxed, why would Bill be interested in HER?
And Bill has big appetites and big desires.
And they do go to Yale and both of them are working the connections, connections the average person is unaware of, never mind able to utilize.
And now I'm feeling inadequate.
But then Hillary is working for Legal Aid and she's drafting and I'm telling myself there's no way I want to do that, I'm not interested, and there are things I'm interested in.
I never got higher education. I mean was there anyone who was truly interested in what they studied? Not me. The best part of college was hanging out, and going skiing.
Skiing. That's why I went to Middlebury, it had its own ski area, I could ski every day, talk about a thrill! And I did. Well, at least during January term, in the spring it was more difficult sometimes, I did have to do some school work.
And the truth is that is what I still do today, ski, so maybe that was the right path.
But I never fit in, I never took the path, it never seemed reasonable to me. I don't know whether it seemed reasonable to everyone else, or they were indoctrinated into doing what they were told.
And unlike Yale Law, unlike Wellesley, the people I went to college with did not set the world on fire. Sure, it was a different era, pre-tech, pre-entrepreneurship, but what if I'd decided to go to an Ivy instead, I had the chance, would it have played out differently?
But then I wouldn't have been able to ski every day.
And I couldn't go to concerts at Middlebury, although we did venture to New York and Boston every once in a while for a big show, like Bowie and Dylan, but I could listen to the same records as those who went to UCLA.
So, on one hand I feel different, certainly from all the people I went to college with. On the other, I've found like-minded people in music, but although there's still a music business, it resembles the pre-Beatle era, all pop all the time, it's business, it's not driving the soul of the country.
And even the biggest artists don't make a difference. Demi Lovato and the Lincoln Project? Here today, gone tomorrow. And are we really ready to listen to Demi Lovato tell us what to do, of all the people, all the artists in the world?
So on one hand I'm lost.
And then I read "Rodham" and I'm found.
I'm only ten percent in, but I'm stunned, that someone is on my page, someone has had my experiences, Sittenfeld must have to have written this book.
WHERE WERE THESE PEOPLE WHEN I WAS GROWING UP?
It's not like my father taught me how to be a man, at least not sexually.
And today you can find like-minded people on the internet, but back then you were locked up in your own little world, dreaming, holding on for something better. Talk about depressing...
Knowing Sittenfeld "Rodham" will never get off course, it will ultimately deliver. Will it be as good as this initial 10%? Possibly not.
But I don't want to keep on reading, I want to savor every page. It's like finding the Dead Sea Scrolls. It's like listening to Supertramp's "Crime of the Century." You think you're the only one, and then you're not.
"There's a Spy (In the House of Love)":
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2H7fvFS
YouTube: https://bit.ly/3nYeRLv
Letterman: https://bit.ly/3dFePn1
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Thursday 15 October 2020
Big Hit Goes Public
They're selling merch.
You need to read this story, even if you hate BTS:
"BTS's Loyal Army of Fans Is the Secret Weapon Behind a $4 Billion Valuation - What investors are really paying for is not necessarily the K-pop group or its management company, but its huge, highly connected ecosystem of followers.": https://nyti.ms/3iZMclz
Ignore the headline, I don't agree with it, but be sure to read the article.
There are many music businesses today. Many ways to skin a cat. And despite triumphing over pirates, as a result of Spotify, the ecosystem of the major labels and their attendant infrastructure, i.e. radio and press, is woefully out of date.
Yes, we've been hearing about TikTok stars, we're all aware of the story of Lil Nas X, but now what? Guy had a huge hit, he's got name recognition but that's about it.
Unlike BTS.
BTS is mobilizing its fan base. That's what the above article is all about. The fans are spreading the word, buying the merchandise, buying the stock. They're heavily involved in an alienated world where oftentimes it's hard to find something to believe in, to live for.
And how are they doing it?
By making the act three-dimensional.
The traditional arc in today's Top Forty world is to carpet bomb all media to the point where the most people are aware and then leverage that awareness in the straight business world, licensing your name/likeness/efforts to others, or starting a business yourself. It's like everybody in the American music business has watched "Shark Tank" and the music is just a vehicle to get rich. How can fans identify with that?
Whereas BTS starts with the music, but it's the penumbra that seals the deal. The group members reveal all their warts, their hopes and dreams. Note, this does not pay direct cash. We learned this years ago in internet world, you have to know when to monetize. If you're trying to get paid for every effort you've lost the plot. Make someone a fan, bond them to you, and then they'll give you all their money. BTS is owned by its fans, not by radio, not by streaming services, those are nearly irrelevant. It all happens elsewhere, on social media, places where fans can congregate. Which is why One Direction could sell out stadiums with only one radio hit in America. The fan base was rabid, they didn't even listen to terrestrial radio, why?, what they needed to hear was on demand, at their fingertips, whenever they wanted it.
You're in business for yourself these days. Sure, you can feature a famous rapper to gain attention to your track, but that's all you've got, attention for one track, that does not make someone a fan, especially where there's so much to pay attention to and be interested in 24/7.
Also, bonding fans takes a long time, it does not happen overnight.
You just don't want to go to the show, you want to feel connected, you want ownership, which is what Big Hit has done with its IPO!
The values are staggering. A company with one hit act, that generates almost all of its revenue, is worth billions of dollars, doubling in value from the initial IPO price. What is driving the stock price? THE FANS! If you're an investor following the fundamentals this investment makes no sense, unless you're planning to get out soon. Shares are merch. You buy them to demonstrate your alignment, your belief in BTS. It's kind of like owning a piece of the Green Bay Packers, but with much more involvement and many more perks. Once again, U.S. business is always looking up as opposed to down, but all the money is in looking down. Hell, how do you think Biden raised all that money? ONLINE! There are so many people in the world, many more than corporations, and when you group the people you end up with more money and more power than when you sell out to the corporations. Even worse, if you sell out to the corporations they own you, you've got to watch your step, whereas if you sell out to your fans, they approve of your behavior!
This is where the money is. I'm surprised no one in America has tried it. Taylor Swift complains that her catalog was sold out from under her. She should have just gone public and raised the money to buy her tracks.
And fans are not looking to buy shares to get rich. They won't even really care if they go to zero in value. They got to go along for the ride, they were involved, they got to root for somebody. And, they were instantly part of a group with the same feelings and goals.
Yes, in the twentieth century you marketed to everybody. Today, you market to your niche, your dedicated customers.
Think of terrestrial radio and the Spotify Top 50. They appeal to a narrow slice of the public. Most people just don't care. Whereas the money is generated elsewhere, where acts are in it for themselves. Sure, sometimes the two cross, but then again, so much falls out of the purview of the aforementioned charts/playlists.
You don't need to beg for an add, you've got to micromanage your career, appealing to those who care, who will spread the word, do all the work for you. Come on, I read about music in the newspaper and I laugh. The stories are all placed there by publicists, it's all hype. But if I hear about it from a friend, a trusted individual, I'm all ears.
And it's kind of like Tesla. Other cutting edge companies in green technology and other tech verticals. People invest in them irrelevant of the initial return, they believe in the mission, which is why the Street and the short-sellers got Tesla so wrong. Furthermore, the public likes to lay down its cash for that which it believes in. You can rant all day about the build quality of a Tesla, but that's not dissuading buyers. Hell, there's a huge group of buyers who will be shamed by their friends if they don't buy a Tesla. Forget D.C., the Fox News blather about the desire to have a zillion children and burn fossil fuels schlepping them around in a Suburban, if not two, today's younger generation is incredibly ecologically knowledgeable, this is what they care about, climate change, the future of our nation, and if you play to them they've got unlimited money and time to give you.
That's the lesson of yore. A fan will give you all their money, even if it means they cannot eat. I know people who ate hot dogs just so they could buy albums. Now they buy BTS stock and devote their time to the band, they're not worried about how much they're getting paid an hour, IT FEELS GOOD!
There's a lot of unplowed ground here.
And funny how the innovation came from Korea.
You need to read this story, even if you hate BTS:
"BTS's Loyal Army of Fans Is the Secret Weapon Behind a $4 Billion Valuation - What investors are really paying for is not necessarily the K-pop group or its management company, but its huge, highly connected ecosystem of followers.": https://nyti.ms/3iZMclz
Ignore the headline, I don't agree with it, but be sure to read the article.
There are many music businesses today. Many ways to skin a cat. And despite triumphing over pirates, as a result of Spotify, the ecosystem of the major labels and their attendant infrastructure, i.e. radio and press, is woefully out of date.
Yes, we've been hearing about TikTok stars, we're all aware of the story of Lil Nas X, but now what? Guy had a huge hit, he's got name recognition but that's about it.
Unlike BTS.
BTS is mobilizing its fan base. That's what the above article is all about. The fans are spreading the word, buying the merchandise, buying the stock. They're heavily involved in an alienated world where oftentimes it's hard to find something to believe in, to live for.
And how are they doing it?
By making the act three-dimensional.
The traditional arc in today's Top Forty world is to carpet bomb all media to the point where the most people are aware and then leverage that awareness in the straight business world, licensing your name/likeness/efforts to others, or starting a business yourself. It's like everybody in the American music business has watched "Shark Tank" and the music is just a vehicle to get rich. How can fans identify with that?
Whereas BTS starts with the music, but it's the penumbra that seals the deal. The group members reveal all their warts, their hopes and dreams. Note, this does not pay direct cash. We learned this years ago in internet world, you have to know when to monetize. If you're trying to get paid for every effort you've lost the plot. Make someone a fan, bond them to you, and then they'll give you all their money. BTS is owned by its fans, not by radio, not by streaming services, those are nearly irrelevant. It all happens elsewhere, on social media, places where fans can congregate. Which is why One Direction could sell out stadiums with only one radio hit in America. The fan base was rabid, they didn't even listen to terrestrial radio, why?, what they needed to hear was on demand, at their fingertips, whenever they wanted it.
You're in business for yourself these days. Sure, you can feature a famous rapper to gain attention to your track, but that's all you've got, attention for one track, that does not make someone a fan, especially where there's so much to pay attention to and be interested in 24/7.
Also, bonding fans takes a long time, it does not happen overnight.
You just don't want to go to the show, you want to feel connected, you want ownership, which is what Big Hit has done with its IPO!
The values are staggering. A company with one hit act, that generates almost all of its revenue, is worth billions of dollars, doubling in value from the initial IPO price. What is driving the stock price? THE FANS! If you're an investor following the fundamentals this investment makes no sense, unless you're planning to get out soon. Shares are merch. You buy them to demonstrate your alignment, your belief in BTS. It's kind of like owning a piece of the Green Bay Packers, but with much more involvement and many more perks. Once again, U.S. business is always looking up as opposed to down, but all the money is in looking down. Hell, how do you think Biden raised all that money? ONLINE! There are so many people in the world, many more than corporations, and when you group the people you end up with more money and more power than when you sell out to the corporations. Even worse, if you sell out to the corporations they own you, you've got to watch your step, whereas if you sell out to your fans, they approve of your behavior!
This is where the money is. I'm surprised no one in America has tried it. Taylor Swift complains that her catalog was sold out from under her. She should have just gone public and raised the money to buy her tracks.
And fans are not looking to buy shares to get rich. They won't even really care if they go to zero in value. They got to go along for the ride, they were involved, they got to root for somebody. And, they were instantly part of a group with the same feelings and goals.
Yes, in the twentieth century you marketed to everybody. Today, you market to your niche, your dedicated customers.
Think of terrestrial radio and the Spotify Top 50. They appeal to a narrow slice of the public. Most people just don't care. Whereas the money is generated elsewhere, where acts are in it for themselves. Sure, sometimes the two cross, but then again, so much falls out of the purview of the aforementioned charts/playlists.
You don't need to beg for an add, you've got to micromanage your career, appealing to those who care, who will spread the word, do all the work for you. Come on, I read about music in the newspaper and I laugh. The stories are all placed there by publicists, it's all hype. But if I hear about it from a friend, a trusted individual, I'm all ears.
And it's kind of like Tesla. Other cutting edge companies in green technology and other tech verticals. People invest in them irrelevant of the initial return, they believe in the mission, which is why the Street and the short-sellers got Tesla so wrong. Furthermore, the public likes to lay down its cash for that which it believes in. You can rant all day about the build quality of a Tesla, but that's not dissuading buyers. Hell, there's a huge group of buyers who will be shamed by their friends if they don't buy a Tesla. Forget D.C., the Fox News blather about the desire to have a zillion children and burn fossil fuels schlepping them around in a Suburban, if not two, today's younger generation is incredibly ecologically knowledgeable, this is what they care about, climate change, the future of our nation, and if you play to them they've got unlimited money and time to give you.
That's the lesson of yore. A fan will give you all their money, even if it means they cannot eat. I know people who ate hot dogs just so they could buy albums. Now they buy BTS stock and devote their time to the band, they're not worried about how much they're getting paid an hour, IT FEELS GOOD!
There's a lot of unplowed ground here.
And funny how the innovation came from Korea.
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Derek Shulman-This Week's Podcast
Derek Shulman was the lead singer of Gentle Giant and as an A&R man he signed Bon Jovi and Cinderella and ultimately he ran the Atco and Roadrunner record labels. Listen to hear how a successful musician made the transition to successful businessman (as well as the details of the recording and breaking of "Slippery When Wet"!)
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-30806836/#
https://open.spotify.com/episode/5xsnkBYQtPS1XR8K0E1234?si=x5Gf1NByTFClEuzef0cFPQ
https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9ff4fb19-54d4-41ae-ae7a-8a6f8d3dafa8/The-Bob-Lefsetz-Podcast
https://www.stitcher.com/s?eid=78596104
Apple podcasts
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https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-30806836/#
https://open.spotify.com/episode/5xsnkBYQtPS1XR8K0E1234?si=x5Gf1NByTFClEuzef0cFPQ
https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9ff4fb19-54d4-41ae-ae7a-8a6f8d3dafa8/The-Bob-Lefsetz-Podcast
https://www.stitcher.com/s?eid=78596104
Apple podcasts
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Wednesday 14 October 2020
Mailbag
From: Eleni Psaltis
Re: L.A. Reid
Hi Bob,
I know that you know LA Reid and his, let's say "colorful," history with sexual harassment/assault. Open up one window with this HITS story: https://bit.ly/2FzVWFG that ran today. Open up another with the google results of "LA Reid Sexual Assault." Look at it side by side and let that sit with you.
How is it that this man, a revered predator whose name ignites a shudder with most women I know in this industry, is now on the board of arguably one of the most dynamic/disrupting companies in this industry? Why would Hipgnosis align themselves with him? Is it really all for the money? Doesn't the reputation that comes along with the money taint it?
I know that the music industry has yet to have its reckoning, but why? Why are we women in the industry still waiting? Why is there nowhere to go yet? No safe space for women to divulge what's happening to us? No media stories? I posted a screenshot of the side-by-sides of those windows to my IG story today and was flooded with messages from my former colleagues about how irate they were, how they had previous bosses who exerted their power and put interns in similar uncomfortable positions, etc. My question, Bob, is why is no one speaking about this? During Charlie Walk's "takedown" (comical, as he still works closely with artists), there was a bit of a discussion, some of which you engaged in (thank you for that), and then it dissipated quickly.
What more do we as women have to endure to get attention on this? Why do we as women need to fight to be treated simply as...humans?
I know you are not the keeper of the answers. I also know that you have a large reach and can pose this question to the masses, or at least try to answer it.
Thank you for taking the time to read this email, and for being the (unfortunate!) recipient of my frustration.
All the best,
Eleni
_____________________________________
From: Larry Butler
Subject: Re: Re-Eddie
Hey, Bob -
On a forgotten tour stop on a long ago Van Halen tour, I was lucky/unlucky enough to get the hotel room just below Eddie's. After the aforementioned show, we got back to the hotel about 1am, and as I'm brushing my teeth, I can hear Eddie upstairs through the bathroom vent system working on a guitar lick, over and over. Pretty cool, I thought, and I went to bed. Later, about maybe 5am, I got up to use the facility, and Eddie was still at it, playing the same lick, over and over, until he could ostensibly do it in his sleep. And maybe he was.
Larry Butler
_____________________________________
From: William Perkins
Subject: Re: Johnny Nash
"I Can See Clearly Now": I vividly remember Allman Brothers Band manager, the late Phil Walden, hearing that song in his office and immediately sending his secretary out to buy the single on the spot.
_____________________________________
From: Lucas Keller
Subject: Re: Johnny Nash
Bob,
I very much enjoyed your walk through history. I managed Jimmy Cliff for a number of years -- Many Rivers to Cross will still go down as one of the greatest vocal takes of all time. Still however... in Jimmy's set...I Can See Clearly Now was like the parting of the red seas. I always thought Jimmy served that cover complete justice. There was nothing quite like it live, it's a real copyright... Long live Johnny Nash, and all of the greats on the island.
All the best,
Lucas Keller
President
Milk & Honey
Los Angeles New York Nashville London Amsterdam
_____________________________________
Subject: Re: Cousin Brucie-This Week's Podcast
Wow,
My high school girlfriend lived in the same apartment building as Brucie.
I met him a couple of times. WABC.
Brucie, Scott Muni, and Murray the K ruled the NY radio scene.
WINS, WMCA were the other stations.
I can't remember my passwords but I remember NY radio from 1962!
Jonathan Schneider
_____________________________________
From: Cliff Burnstein
Subject: Fwd: Declan McKenna Live Lounge cover
Hi Bob,
You're not the only one who digs this song. I really love this Declan McKenna version. Link below from Tara Richardson who manages him in the UK for us.
Cliff
Begin forwarded message:
From: Tara Richardson
Subject: Declan McKenna Live Lounge cover
Hey all
Declan covered Dua Lipa on today's Radio 1 Live Lounge.
Hope you like it. I do! X
https://youtu.be/3GoG9LJGlIw
Tara Richardson
_____________________________________
From: John Brodey
Subject: From me to you
Usually you address the passing of the great ones, you certainly don't seem to miss any. But you did miss a big one. Toots Hibbert of Toots and the Maytals died the day after 9/11 in Kingston after showing symptoms of Covid-19 and soon thereafter being placed in a medically induced coma. He was a powerhouse of a singer. I don't place any faith in Rolling Stone's credibility but they got two things right when they came up with their list of the 100 greatest singers of all time. First,they put Aretha at #1 and Toots at #71 just ahead of John Fogerty. He was a founding father of Reggae and is acknowledged by devotees as responsible for coining its' name with the song, Do The Reggay.
As an impoverished air person at WBCN/Boston, lack of money wasn't why we didn't take vacations. It was out of concern that we'd miss a great show, but management said I had better take a week off in late '72. I went to a travel agency that advertised with us and said; I've got $300 where can I go for a week and have fun. Two days later, I was on my way to Jamaica and ended up in a cheap hotel in Ocho Rios. The first day I walked down the main street, which was partially paved, and heard the some incredible sounds coming out of speakers in front of the 'Super Star Record Shack'. I was sucked through the door and was soon in deep conversation with the proprietor, Rudy MacFarland. He was the most intense and passionate music fan I had ever met. After sealing our friendship with a mind altering 'spliff' in the back office, we went through his inventory for what seemed like 24 hours.
The next night he said we had to see a movie at the theater in town. This place was a bit different. There was a box office, the sloped floor, fixed fold down seats and lights along walls on either side, a big ass sound system but it had no roof. It was in pretty decent shape for a place that got soaked by rain on a regular basis. It had to be a really good movie to keep you in your seat while taking a shower. As it turns out, the movie was the Harder They Come.
I couldn't understand a fucking word but the music just possessed me and it wasn't hard to follow the plot. It was magical. Something from another world. Two things struck me; it was a movie that had to be seen and maybe the Maytals weren't on screen but they blew the soundtrack up. Pressure Drop put them on the map and became their second hit in the U.K. Toots was reggae royalty and justifiably so. If Bob Marley was the Marvin Gaye of reggae, Toots was the Otis Redding. I met him and we became friendly as I returned to Ocho Rios every year thereafter for the next five years. He was an amazing soul...warm and generous, he just consumed you. I went home a believer and once Chris Blackwell obtained the rights to the film etc. and added the subtitles during the next year, I talked the local art house theater, the Orson Wells Cinema, to get a copy and give it a weekend midnight screening. That began the longest running streak (6 years) in Boston for any movie including Rock Horror.
With the success of the film it wasn't long before the station had to bring Toots to Boston. It took some doing (passports out of Jamaica required paperwork attesting it was for work) but they got off the plane in January wearing short sleeve shirts and flip flops. They had no coats and had nor any idea of where the hell Boston was let alone how cold it got. A couple of us put them up in our apartments. But boy, put them in front of an audience and they were incendiary. They killed and the Maytals went on to do a few subsequent tours of the east coast. Toots was a rare talent. One of a kind but you had to see him to really understand the scope of his talent. I will forever be a schmuck for taking a trip that coincided with a gig they had set in S.F. the end of last year while telling myself I would see him the next time he was in town. His was a voice that could not be limited to any time or place. He deserves a send off. RIP indeed.
I've got a Spotify playlist but I've had limited internet since we were evacuated from the fires last week. But in addition to the better known tracks, One-Eye Enos is one of my favorite tracks, period.
thought you might get something out of this.
_____________________________________
From: Jason Miles
Subject: Re: Cousin Brucie-This Week's Podcast
Hey Bob
When I was 16 years old in the summer of 1967 my band was playing our 2nd summer at a Borscht Belt resort in Ellenville,NY called the Fallsview. Next door was another resort called the Nevele. We were a really good band. Played all the hits plus songs by the Blues Project and Paul Butterfield,Beatles etc. As we were playing one night the owner of the hotel came down to where we were playing in the small club at the hotel.
He came up to us and wanted to know if we had any plans for tomorrow afternoon. Except for going out and hanging out at the pool and mixing with the other teenagers we have nothing going on. He wanted to know if we would be interested in playing a show at the Neville the next afternoon with Cousin Bruce from WABC radio as he was Going to do a show there and he was bringing up the Tokens and another band . Well of course we wanted to do it and the next day they helped us bring our gear over to the Neville and we set up outside at the small stage they had there and we ended up playing six songs and Cousin Brucie was there..He warmly greeted us at the end of the set and came up to us and said he really loved our band. He asked us our names and said tonight at 8 o'clock listen to WABC. We watched the Tokens play And took a really great picture with cousin Brucie that I still have framed in my house.
That night at 8 pm we were sitting in my room listening to my transistor radio and Cousin Bruce came on. He started to talk about the show at the Nevele and said..and I want to thank Jay,Kenny,Barry and John the Plus Four for playing a great set for us...
At that point that was one of the highlights of my life! A number of years later a friend of mine worked at one of his radio stations and he was there and I went up to say hello and he absolutely remembered that day. He's a very special guy and has been part of our fabric for probably almost 60 years. A real treasure
So glad you're going to do a podcast with him!
Peace,Jason
_____________________________________
From: Ben Sussman
Subject: Re: Covid-19
Date: July 15, 2020 at 9:35:02 PM PDT
Bob,
Both my parents retired years ago to Arizona to escape the "liberal stupidity" of California. Two weeks ago, both of them got COVID after attending a Father's Day celebration held under barely-there state safety guidelines. Last week, my father - who was a proud Trump supporter a Fox News-loving conservative - went into the hospital with a 104 degree temperature and trouble breathing. He's now on a bypass breathing machine because he can't breathe on his own, and the outlook is not positive.
Did Trump, his lackey AZ Governor Ducey and all their right-wing minions kill him? Fuck yes they did.
But he bought into their bullshit gladly. He's paying for it, most likely, with his life.
You are right that this will now start happening to people we know.
I hate to to be the first among my friends, but I for sure I won't be the last.
Fight on,
Ben
_____________________________________
From: Ben Sussman
Subject: Re: Pffttt...
Date: October 6, 2020 at 10:07:50 PM PDT
I'm with you
My dad died of COVID in July. He was an ardent Trump supporter. So was his pulmonologist who told him that only people in nursing homes get it and when his temp spiked to 104 he still wasn't "in the danger zone." He was dead 9 days later. Corona might still take Trump - like many, I think he is so pumped full of experimental drugs and steroids that they're the only thing powering him.
Thank you, Bob. I appreciate your newsletter and the moments of zen head nodding that go along with it.
Stay safe
Re: L.A. Reid
Hi Bob,
I know that you know LA Reid and his, let's say "colorful," history with sexual harassment/assault. Open up one window with this HITS story: https://bit.ly/2FzVWFG that ran today. Open up another with the google results of "LA Reid Sexual Assault." Look at it side by side and let that sit with you.
How is it that this man, a revered predator whose name ignites a shudder with most women I know in this industry, is now on the board of arguably one of the most dynamic/disrupting companies in this industry? Why would Hipgnosis align themselves with him? Is it really all for the money? Doesn't the reputation that comes along with the money taint it?
I know that the music industry has yet to have its reckoning, but why? Why are we women in the industry still waiting? Why is there nowhere to go yet? No safe space for women to divulge what's happening to us? No media stories? I posted a screenshot of the side-by-sides of those windows to my IG story today and was flooded with messages from my former colleagues about how irate they were, how they had previous bosses who exerted their power and put interns in similar uncomfortable positions, etc. My question, Bob, is why is no one speaking about this? During Charlie Walk's "takedown" (comical, as he still works closely with artists), there was a bit of a discussion, some of which you engaged in (thank you for that), and then it dissipated quickly.
What more do we as women have to endure to get attention on this? Why do we as women need to fight to be treated simply as...humans?
I know you are not the keeper of the answers. I also know that you have a large reach and can pose this question to the masses, or at least try to answer it.
Thank you for taking the time to read this email, and for being the (unfortunate!) recipient of my frustration.
All the best,
Eleni
_____________________________________
From: Larry Butler
Subject: Re: Re-Eddie
Hey, Bob -
On a forgotten tour stop on a long ago Van Halen tour, I was lucky/unlucky enough to get the hotel room just below Eddie's. After the aforementioned show, we got back to the hotel about 1am, and as I'm brushing my teeth, I can hear Eddie upstairs through the bathroom vent system working on a guitar lick, over and over. Pretty cool, I thought, and I went to bed. Later, about maybe 5am, I got up to use the facility, and Eddie was still at it, playing the same lick, over and over, until he could ostensibly do it in his sleep. And maybe he was.
Larry Butler
_____________________________________
From: William Perkins
Subject: Re: Johnny Nash
"I Can See Clearly Now": I vividly remember Allman Brothers Band manager, the late Phil Walden, hearing that song in his office and immediately sending his secretary out to buy the single on the spot.
_____________________________________
From: Lucas Keller
Subject: Re: Johnny Nash
Bob,
I very much enjoyed your walk through history. I managed Jimmy Cliff for a number of years -- Many Rivers to Cross will still go down as one of the greatest vocal takes of all time. Still however... in Jimmy's set...I Can See Clearly Now was like the parting of the red seas. I always thought Jimmy served that cover complete justice. There was nothing quite like it live, it's a real copyright... Long live Johnny Nash, and all of the greats on the island.
All the best,
Lucas Keller
President
Milk & Honey
Los Angeles New York Nashville London Amsterdam
_____________________________________
Subject: Re: Cousin Brucie-This Week's Podcast
Wow,
My high school girlfriend lived in the same apartment building as Brucie.
I met him a couple of times. WABC.
Brucie, Scott Muni, and Murray the K ruled the NY radio scene.
WINS, WMCA were the other stations.
I can't remember my passwords but I remember NY radio from 1962!
Jonathan Schneider
_____________________________________
From: Cliff Burnstein
Subject: Fwd: Declan McKenna Live Lounge cover
Hi Bob,
You're not the only one who digs this song. I really love this Declan McKenna version. Link below from Tara Richardson who manages him in the UK for us.
Cliff
Begin forwarded message:
From: Tara Richardson
Subject: Declan McKenna Live Lounge cover
Hey all
Declan covered Dua Lipa on today's Radio 1 Live Lounge.
Hope you like it. I do! X
https://youtu.be/3GoG9LJGlIw
Tara Richardson
_____________________________________
From: John Brodey
Subject: From me to you
Usually you address the passing of the great ones, you certainly don't seem to miss any. But you did miss a big one. Toots Hibbert of Toots and the Maytals died the day after 9/11 in Kingston after showing symptoms of Covid-19 and soon thereafter being placed in a medically induced coma. He was a powerhouse of a singer. I don't place any faith in Rolling Stone's credibility but they got two things right when they came up with their list of the 100 greatest singers of all time. First,they put Aretha at #1 and Toots at #71 just ahead of John Fogerty. He was a founding father of Reggae and is acknowledged by devotees as responsible for coining its' name with the song, Do The Reggay.
As an impoverished air person at WBCN/Boston, lack of money wasn't why we didn't take vacations. It was out of concern that we'd miss a great show, but management said I had better take a week off in late '72. I went to a travel agency that advertised with us and said; I've got $300 where can I go for a week and have fun. Two days later, I was on my way to Jamaica and ended up in a cheap hotel in Ocho Rios. The first day I walked down the main street, which was partially paved, and heard the some incredible sounds coming out of speakers in front of the 'Super Star Record Shack'. I was sucked through the door and was soon in deep conversation with the proprietor, Rudy MacFarland. He was the most intense and passionate music fan I had ever met. After sealing our friendship with a mind altering 'spliff' in the back office, we went through his inventory for what seemed like 24 hours.
The next night he said we had to see a movie at the theater in town. This place was a bit different. There was a box office, the sloped floor, fixed fold down seats and lights along walls on either side, a big ass sound system but it had no roof. It was in pretty decent shape for a place that got soaked by rain on a regular basis. It had to be a really good movie to keep you in your seat while taking a shower. As it turns out, the movie was the Harder They Come.
I couldn't understand a fucking word but the music just possessed me and it wasn't hard to follow the plot. It was magical. Something from another world. Two things struck me; it was a movie that had to be seen and maybe the Maytals weren't on screen but they blew the soundtrack up. Pressure Drop put them on the map and became their second hit in the U.K. Toots was reggae royalty and justifiably so. If Bob Marley was the Marvin Gaye of reggae, Toots was the Otis Redding. I met him and we became friendly as I returned to Ocho Rios every year thereafter for the next five years. He was an amazing soul...warm and generous, he just consumed you. I went home a believer and once Chris Blackwell obtained the rights to the film etc. and added the subtitles during the next year, I talked the local art house theater, the Orson Wells Cinema, to get a copy and give it a weekend midnight screening. That began the longest running streak (6 years) in Boston for any movie including Rock Horror.
With the success of the film it wasn't long before the station had to bring Toots to Boston. It took some doing (passports out of Jamaica required paperwork attesting it was for work) but they got off the plane in January wearing short sleeve shirts and flip flops. They had no coats and had nor any idea of where the hell Boston was let alone how cold it got. A couple of us put them up in our apartments. But boy, put them in front of an audience and they were incendiary. They killed and the Maytals went on to do a few subsequent tours of the east coast. Toots was a rare talent. One of a kind but you had to see him to really understand the scope of his talent. I will forever be a schmuck for taking a trip that coincided with a gig they had set in S.F. the end of last year while telling myself I would see him the next time he was in town. His was a voice that could not be limited to any time or place. He deserves a send off. RIP indeed.
I've got a Spotify playlist but I've had limited internet since we were evacuated from the fires last week. But in addition to the better known tracks, One-Eye Enos is one of my favorite tracks, period.
thought you might get something out of this.
_____________________________________
From: Jason Miles
Subject: Re: Cousin Brucie-This Week's Podcast
Hey Bob
When I was 16 years old in the summer of 1967 my band was playing our 2nd summer at a Borscht Belt resort in Ellenville,NY called the Fallsview. Next door was another resort called the Nevele. We were a really good band. Played all the hits plus songs by the Blues Project and Paul Butterfield,Beatles etc. As we were playing one night the owner of the hotel came down to where we were playing in the small club at the hotel.
He came up to us and wanted to know if we had any plans for tomorrow afternoon. Except for going out and hanging out at the pool and mixing with the other teenagers we have nothing going on. He wanted to know if we would be interested in playing a show at the Neville the next afternoon with Cousin Bruce from WABC radio as he was Going to do a show there and he was bringing up the Tokens and another band . Well of course we wanted to do it and the next day they helped us bring our gear over to the Neville and we set up outside at the small stage they had there and we ended up playing six songs and Cousin Brucie was there..He warmly greeted us at the end of the set and came up to us and said he really loved our band. He asked us our names and said tonight at 8 o'clock listen to WABC. We watched the Tokens play And took a really great picture with cousin Brucie that I still have framed in my house.
That night at 8 pm we were sitting in my room listening to my transistor radio and Cousin Bruce came on. He started to talk about the show at the Nevele and said..and I want to thank Jay,Kenny,Barry and John the Plus Four for playing a great set for us...
At that point that was one of the highlights of my life! A number of years later a friend of mine worked at one of his radio stations and he was there and I went up to say hello and he absolutely remembered that day. He's a very special guy and has been part of our fabric for probably almost 60 years. A real treasure
So glad you're going to do a podcast with him!
Peace,Jason
_____________________________________
From: Ben Sussman
Subject: Re: Covid-19
Date: July 15, 2020 at 9:35:02 PM PDT
Bob,
Both my parents retired years ago to Arizona to escape the "liberal stupidity" of California. Two weeks ago, both of them got COVID after attending a Father's Day celebration held under barely-there state safety guidelines. Last week, my father - who was a proud Trump supporter a Fox News-loving conservative - went into the hospital with a 104 degree temperature and trouble breathing. He's now on a bypass breathing machine because he can't breathe on his own, and the outlook is not positive.
Did Trump, his lackey AZ Governor Ducey and all their right-wing minions kill him? Fuck yes they did.
But he bought into their bullshit gladly. He's paying for it, most likely, with his life.
You are right that this will now start happening to people we know.
I hate to to be the first among my friends, but I for sure I won't be the last.
Fight on,
Ben
_____________________________________
From: Ben Sussman
Subject: Re: Pffttt...
Date: October 6, 2020 at 10:07:50 PM PDT
I'm with you
My dad died of COVID in July. He was an ardent Trump supporter. So was his pulmonologist who told him that only people in nursing homes get it and when his temp spiked to 104 he still wasn't "in the danger zone." He was dead 9 days later. Corona might still take Trump - like many, I think he is so pumped full of experimental drugs and steroids that they're the only thing powering him.
Thank you, Bob. I appreciate your newsletter and the moments of zen head nodding that go along with it.
Stay safe
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--
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-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
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Tuesday 13 October 2020
The Apple Presentation
You're gonna get a new phone.
The last time there was a great leap forward was back in 2012, with the iPhone 5, with LTE.
This was before most people were surfing the web on their phones. Sure, via WiFi, but on the network? Speeds were slow. Also, not everybody had a smartphone at this time. But with LTE, web-surfing on the go was enabled, it was nearly seamless, the experience was rewarding, and that's where you've been living until...
Today.
5G. It's not as simple as it looks. Because there are multiple flavors. Depending upon which spectrum a carrier purchased. So, T-Mobile has nationwide 5G but it's slow, a mere blip of a speed increase. Whereas Verizon has the high speed 5G you've been reading about, but it's not everywhere, as a matter of fact until today it was almost nowhere. And still, now, it's only in the metropolis. Even worse, not everywhere in the metropolis. Because for this flavor of 5G you need numerous small antennas, its range is short, and its ability to go through walls is...challenged.
Complicated, right?
But don't expect the marketers to make it clear to you. America is the land of obfuscation, not only in politics. AT&T is famous for having their phones indicate a speed they do not provide. 4G before true 4G was available, and now 5G. It's become a marketing term.
Then again, how much money have you got, how much money are you willing to spend?
Today Apple introduced it's HomePod Mini. It's vastly overpriced. Its capabilities supersede other offerings, but you're paying for the privilege. It's like Apple said you've got to pay to be a part of its ecosystem. That it's only for the elite, or the wealthy.
That was not Steve Jobs's philosophy.
Remember the iPod? When competitors started to make noise, Jobs kept lowering the price, so it made no sense to switch.
And, just like with smart speakers, Jobs often took existing technology and then blasted it into the stratosphere, not everything was invented at Apple, maybe just polished. But when Jobs did this, he leapt ahead of the competition and pushed the envelope of power and usability. And he also made it for everybody. iTunes was an acquired program that was free to users. FireWire enabled the iPod to transfer files faster than the competition. And, at first the iPod was high-priced, at $400, but it quickly dropped in price.
Apple is way late to the smart speaker race. Alexa is everywhere. And Google Home has a footprint too. Today you can get an Echo Dot for under twenty bucks. If you want the latest iteration, the 4th generation, you'll pay $59.99. That's a whopping forty dollars cheaper than the HomePod Mini. And the new HomePod Mini doesn't even work with Spotify. Apple did not need a HomePod Mini, it need a HomePod Micro, at $29.99. But this is what happens when you focus on margins as opposed to market share. Smart speakers are an ecosystem. And yes, Siri is in all those iPhones and iPads, but conventional wisdom is it sucks, that the Amazon and Google products are superior, if for no other reason than they're used more, which increases accuracy. Apple needed a great leap forward. Instead they introduced a Ferrari. Sleek and high performance. But not for the average joe.
But, the features of the HomePod Mini, its intercom, the handoff from you phone, those are very cool. That's Apple's future, locking you into its ecosystem, and now it's not as simple as switching from a Mac to a PC, or vice versa, you've got a decades-long investment in a platform, switching is like going from English to Japanese, and you don't want to do this.
But in phones?
Apple is killing it. Because it creates its own hardware.
Are you following the hubbub around Nikola? First and foremost, it was started by a scam artist, who convinced companies like GM to invest. An analyst blew the roof off the enterprise, Nikola may never recover. Nikola's worst offense? It invented nothing, it was dependent upon suppliers, to provide in some cases stuff that was not yet invented.
Apple is in control of the entire process. As for suppliers, it's such a big customer, usually the biggest, that suppliers kowtow to it.
But, it's all about the chips.
Americans like things. In a world where so much has become a service, where you own so little, what you want is pulled on demand, there are very few items that you still own, that burnish your image, that make you feel good. And one of these is a smartphone. And there's always some top-line Samsung Galaxy, but the truth is the iPhone is the king of image. It's Louis Vuitton and BMW wrapped into one. You want one. This is another advantage Apple has...selling hardware. Most of the tech companies are purely software, or mostly. Many depend upon advertising, which invades your privacy, Apple can afford to reject that.
So, by designing its own chips, Apple can tweak them for their devices, for power consumption and so much more, no other manufacturer can compete, not a single one!
Oh, it's not always invented first on the Apple platform, as referenced above. But it's integrated seamlessly, and there's no excess baggage, the crapware that comes on all the Android devices.
Android. This was has been fought. You're on one team or the other. The one true advantage of Android is that it's more flexible, if you're skilled you can adjust it to the nth degree. But very few are that skilled.
And the iPhone is more powerful. It will continue to be more powerful. Just like Tesla...which is winning because its battery performance is superior to its competitors, who despite investment are nowhere close in range.
So, you're gonna want a 5G phone. The hype, the pressure will get to you if nothing else.
And which one are you gonna buy?
The iPhone is not a throwaway, it does more than get the job done. But if you're willing to lay down, the only limit will be your imagination, not the power. Shooting movies in 4G, employing RAW photography, you're probably not gonna do either. But one thing is for sure, iPhone photography is state of the art.
And everything just works.
And it's faster than the competition.
Once again, specs can be manipulated, but the truth is an integrated product will always be superior to one built from off the shelf components, especially when you control the chip, the brain, the engine itself.
As for which phone you need...
If you're not buying a 12, you're just cheap. Sure, you can buy a less expensive model, but you're just hobbling your capabilities. You want to future-proof your purchase. And the truth is your smartphone is your most used device, more than your car, your computer, your flat screen...yes, it might be small, but this is not where you should cut financial corners.
Do you need a Pro?
Why not go all the way?
As for the Pro Max...what you're getting are photography improvements. If those are important to you, buy one. But, you'll also want to buy one if you want the size. And the truth is, like with flat screen TVs, you want the largest you can afford. Believe me. The more screen you've got the more you can see, the more you'll use the device.
And despite all the criticism of addiction by the older generation, the truth is the smartphone is a tool we all depend upon. We're only going to be more connected in the future, not less.
So, if you're an investor, the future of iPhone sales looks very bright. Everybody's gonna get a 5G phone. Maybe they can't afford one today, during the Covid era, but they'll want one soon, and they'll prioritize this purchase. The upgrade cycle is about to begin.
As for the penumbra?
Only Apple can spin giving you less as a benefit. That's right, by not including a charger and earbuds there will be less environmental impact. Hell, if we don't buy one at all there will be no environmental impact!
But one thing you've got to know, despite the oldsters in D.C., everybody who runs a company today knows that youngsters prioritize the environment and human equality, if you're not focusing on these topics you'll lose the minds of consumers coming of age, and you don't want to do that.
As for the presentation?
Once again, it was a rainbow of personalities. Do you really need the most powerful execs to read off a teleprompter? It seems overdone, but someone has to lead the way, and Apple is doing so.
As for the production itself...
Building an entire home? That's what car companies, traditional Fortune 500 companies do. What did they do with the home set after, burn it? Yes, it seemed like a waste.
But one thing's for sure, we're never going back to the Steve Jobs presentations of yore, all on one stage.
Covid is changing our world in unexpected ways. It turns out Apple can do much more with a canned presentation than a traditional live one. They will not go back to the live ones unless they throw it to different locations therein.
The truth is Apple is the world's wealthiest company. But it always presented itself as the other, the outsider, the cool, the hip. Today's presentation undercut that, but unlike the one last month, it was brief, it contained the relevant information and if you actually watched it you were wowed.
Get ready to spend. 5G is here. And you're best off buying an iPhone.
Case closed.
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The last time there was a great leap forward was back in 2012, with the iPhone 5, with LTE.
This was before most people were surfing the web on their phones. Sure, via WiFi, but on the network? Speeds were slow. Also, not everybody had a smartphone at this time. But with LTE, web-surfing on the go was enabled, it was nearly seamless, the experience was rewarding, and that's where you've been living until...
Today.
5G. It's not as simple as it looks. Because there are multiple flavors. Depending upon which spectrum a carrier purchased. So, T-Mobile has nationwide 5G but it's slow, a mere blip of a speed increase. Whereas Verizon has the high speed 5G you've been reading about, but it's not everywhere, as a matter of fact until today it was almost nowhere. And still, now, it's only in the metropolis. Even worse, not everywhere in the metropolis. Because for this flavor of 5G you need numerous small antennas, its range is short, and its ability to go through walls is...challenged.
Complicated, right?
But don't expect the marketers to make it clear to you. America is the land of obfuscation, not only in politics. AT&T is famous for having their phones indicate a speed they do not provide. 4G before true 4G was available, and now 5G. It's become a marketing term.
Then again, how much money have you got, how much money are you willing to spend?
Today Apple introduced it's HomePod Mini. It's vastly overpriced. Its capabilities supersede other offerings, but you're paying for the privilege. It's like Apple said you've got to pay to be a part of its ecosystem. That it's only for the elite, or the wealthy.
That was not Steve Jobs's philosophy.
Remember the iPod? When competitors started to make noise, Jobs kept lowering the price, so it made no sense to switch.
And, just like with smart speakers, Jobs often took existing technology and then blasted it into the stratosphere, not everything was invented at Apple, maybe just polished. But when Jobs did this, he leapt ahead of the competition and pushed the envelope of power and usability. And he also made it for everybody. iTunes was an acquired program that was free to users. FireWire enabled the iPod to transfer files faster than the competition. And, at first the iPod was high-priced, at $400, but it quickly dropped in price.
Apple is way late to the smart speaker race. Alexa is everywhere. And Google Home has a footprint too. Today you can get an Echo Dot for under twenty bucks. If you want the latest iteration, the 4th generation, you'll pay $59.99. That's a whopping forty dollars cheaper than the HomePod Mini. And the new HomePod Mini doesn't even work with Spotify. Apple did not need a HomePod Mini, it need a HomePod Micro, at $29.99. But this is what happens when you focus on margins as opposed to market share. Smart speakers are an ecosystem. And yes, Siri is in all those iPhones and iPads, but conventional wisdom is it sucks, that the Amazon and Google products are superior, if for no other reason than they're used more, which increases accuracy. Apple needed a great leap forward. Instead they introduced a Ferrari. Sleek and high performance. But not for the average joe.
But, the features of the HomePod Mini, its intercom, the handoff from you phone, those are very cool. That's Apple's future, locking you into its ecosystem, and now it's not as simple as switching from a Mac to a PC, or vice versa, you've got a decades-long investment in a platform, switching is like going from English to Japanese, and you don't want to do this.
But in phones?
Apple is killing it. Because it creates its own hardware.
Are you following the hubbub around Nikola? First and foremost, it was started by a scam artist, who convinced companies like GM to invest. An analyst blew the roof off the enterprise, Nikola may never recover. Nikola's worst offense? It invented nothing, it was dependent upon suppliers, to provide in some cases stuff that was not yet invented.
Apple is in control of the entire process. As for suppliers, it's such a big customer, usually the biggest, that suppliers kowtow to it.
But, it's all about the chips.
Americans like things. In a world where so much has become a service, where you own so little, what you want is pulled on demand, there are very few items that you still own, that burnish your image, that make you feel good. And one of these is a smartphone. And there's always some top-line Samsung Galaxy, but the truth is the iPhone is the king of image. It's Louis Vuitton and BMW wrapped into one. You want one. This is another advantage Apple has...selling hardware. Most of the tech companies are purely software, or mostly. Many depend upon advertising, which invades your privacy, Apple can afford to reject that.
So, by designing its own chips, Apple can tweak them for their devices, for power consumption and so much more, no other manufacturer can compete, not a single one!
Oh, it's not always invented first on the Apple platform, as referenced above. But it's integrated seamlessly, and there's no excess baggage, the crapware that comes on all the Android devices.
Android. This was has been fought. You're on one team or the other. The one true advantage of Android is that it's more flexible, if you're skilled you can adjust it to the nth degree. But very few are that skilled.
And the iPhone is more powerful. It will continue to be more powerful. Just like Tesla...which is winning because its battery performance is superior to its competitors, who despite investment are nowhere close in range.
So, you're gonna want a 5G phone. The hype, the pressure will get to you if nothing else.
And which one are you gonna buy?
The iPhone is not a throwaway, it does more than get the job done. But if you're willing to lay down, the only limit will be your imagination, not the power. Shooting movies in 4G, employing RAW photography, you're probably not gonna do either. But one thing is for sure, iPhone photography is state of the art.
And everything just works.
And it's faster than the competition.
Once again, specs can be manipulated, but the truth is an integrated product will always be superior to one built from off the shelf components, especially when you control the chip, the brain, the engine itself.
As for which phone you need...
If you're not buying a 12, you're just cheap. Sure, you can buy a less expensive model, but you're just hobbling your capabilities. You want to future-proof your purchase. And the truth is your smartphone is your most used device, more than your car, your computer, your flat screen...yes, it might be small, but this is not where you should cut financial corners.
Do you need a Pro?
Why not go all the way?
As for the Pro Max...what you're getting are photography improvements. If those are important to you, buy one. But, you'll also want to buy one if you want the size. And the truth is, like with flat screen TVs, you want the largest you can afford. Believe me. The more screen you've got the more you can see, the more you'll use the device.
And despite all the criticism of addiction by the older generation, the truth is the smartphone is a tool we all depend upon. We're only going to be more connected in the future, not less.
So, if you're an investor, the future of iPhone sales looks very bright. Everybody's gonna get a 5G phone. Maybe they can't afford one today, during the Covid era, but they'll want one soon, and they'll prioritize this purchase. The upgrade cycle is about to begin.
As for the penumbra?
Only Apple can spin giving you less as a benefit. That's right, by not including a charger and earbuds there will be less environmental impact. Hell, if we don't buy one at all there will be no environmental impact!
But one thing you've got to know, despite the oldsters in D.C., everybody who runs a company today knows that youngsters prioritize the environment and human equality, if you're not focusing on these topics you'll lose the minds of consumers coming of age, and you don't want to do that.
As for the presentation?
Once again, it was a rainbow of personalities. Do you really need the most powerful execs to read off a teleprompter? It seems overdone, but someone has to lead the way, and Apple is doing so.
As for the production itself...
Building an entire home? That's what car companies, traditional Fortune 500 companies do. What did they do with the home set after, burn it? Yes, it seemed like a waste.
But one thing's for sure, we're never going back to the Steve Jobs presentations of yore, all on one stage.
Covid is changing our world in unexpected ways. It turns out Apple can do much more with a canned presentation than a traditional live one. They will not go back to the live ones unless they throw it to different locations therein.
The truth is Apple is the world's wealthiest company. But it always presented itself as the other, the outsider, the cool, the hip. Today's presentation undercut that, but unlike the one last month, it was brief, it contained the relevant information and if you actually watched it you were wowed.
Get ready to spend. 5G is here. And you're best off buying an iPhone.
Case closed.
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Fruit Songs-This Week On SiriusXM
Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3iWWX8n
Pandora: https://bit.ly/2GZaE9q
Tune in today, October 13th, to Volume 106, 7 PM East, 4 PM West.
Hear the episode live on SiriusXM VOLUME: siriusxm.us/HearLefsetzLive
If you miss the episode, you can hear it on demand on the SiriusXM app: siriusxm.us/LefsetzLive
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Tune in today, October 13th, to Volume 106, 7 PM East, 4 PM West.
Hear the episode live on SiriusXM VOLUME: siriusxm.us/HearLefsetzLive
If you miss the episode, you can hear it on demand on the SiriusXM app: siriusxm.us/LefsetzLive
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Monday 12 October 2020
London Spy
Netflix-https://bit.ly/2IqgNfB
This is a fantastic series.
We've been on a losing streak. "Stranger," that Korean show I was telling you about? It was interesting, but just didn't deliver, and it took sixteen episodes to get to the end of the first season! The cinematography was great, Seoul was intriguing, but it took so long to get to the ultimate culprit that I wasn't sure I cared. We started the second season, because sometimes there's an improvement, but the premise was even more implausible than the first, so we bolted.
To "The Forgotten," "Les Revenants" in French. Word of mouth was so good that I took a chance, even though I've got no time for zombies or fantasy...people recommend these shows to me all the time, and once something comes out of the woods, once the special effects show up, I'm done. I need truth. Gimme some truth.
And there's a lot of truth in "London Spy."
Having said that, one caveat, the ending is not as satisfying as the rest of the show. Which is too often the case with these series. Nothing can supersede, or even equal, the buildup. However, when it was all done, and I was thinking about it, I felt better about the ending. But your mileage may vary.
We're used to entertainments. A night away from this harried life. That is not what "London Spy" is all about. Sure, it's entertaining, but there's social commentary and wisdom and they don't dominate, but they lift this series above the run-of-the-mill stuff that you watch and you forget.
Like how you dress. How you handle yourself. That's more important than money. I thought I knew money until I went to Middlebury College. Grow up in the suburbs and somebody has a Cadillac, they vacation in the Virgin Islands, they've got all the new toys, you think they're rich, but they're not rich at all.
Now rich has changed. When I was growing up rich was inherited, now rich is made, and it's tilted the playing field. But in the days of yore, the rich were not showy, but they were very judgmental. They read the cues. And to play you had to learn how to read the cues too.
Never ever boast. Don't tell people what you own, where you've been, it's déclassé. Your image is not based on your acquisitions, your car, your house, it's based on heritage and knowing how to navigate the canals of power.
Which most people never learn. They believe if they're bulls in a china shop they can succeed. But oftentimes the doors are closed to them.
Who really runs this country?
Used to be they were faceless. Now they've come out of the woodwork, in most cases reluctantly, but their goal is to get no publicity, as they move the chess pieces.
This is what Donald Trump hates. He's spent his entire life trying to be accepted by this group, and he has not. They abhor crass. And they're smart enough to know if you venture into the public eye you're going to get scrutiny, which is never wanted. Would the "New York Times" be looking into Trump's taxes if he wasn't president? Of course not, they never had previously.
"What county in the United States has the highest rate of tax audits?
The answer is Humphreys County in rural Mississippi, where three-quarters of the population is Black and more than one-third lives below the poverty line."
"Who's the Tax Cheat: The Lady in Jail or the Man in the White House": https://nyti.ms/3nHsqPn
They demonize taxes, tell you it's your money, as they demonize the broke for not paying income taxes, although they're paying a wealth of other taxes which sustain our society. But the rich and faceless are the real winners here. As evidenced by the quote above. It's laughable on its face. But the IRS has been neutered, by elected officials beholden to the wealthy class.
And Danny shows his sketchbook to Scottie, it evidences a wealth of talent, but Scottie criticizes him, for bouncing around from image to narrative to poetry... Scottie says to pick one and double-down on it. He tells Danny he's waiting for someone to recognize his talent, and that's a fool's errand, you've got to focus and blaze your own path.
To this day most people have no idea how you gain success. They think talent is enough. They butter up the underlings with big titles who are unable to make a decision. Very few can make it to the top and the road is so hard that if most actually saw it they'd stop.
Relationships... Do you want them so much that you avoid them? Do you privately pray that someone will notice you while you try to perfect the image of needing no one?
And how many people can you truly count on. If you're lucky, one.
And most people don't make it to the top anyway. Because of a misstep, because those in power don't want them to. The game is oftentimes bigger than the players, like the music business, they don't need your music to succeed, they just need SOME music to succeed!
And how important are you anyway? Does your little life truly matter in this fast-moving world?
And is it about truth or expediency. If you stand up to the system can you win?
And what are you willing to risk. Danny's got nothing, so he's willing to take chances that someone with a big CV will not. And some of those chances lead to big rewards and some of them ultimately prove fatal. But when you've got nothing, you've got nothing to lose. Which is why today it's the broke who break down barriers. Those in the upper middle class and above are so inured to their education, are playing it so safe, that they're ripe for being blown out of the water.
But don't underestimate the power of money, never.
So, "London Spy" can be slow. But just as you start to get bored, there's an unforeseen twist.
And Danny may not be educated, but he's street smart, he trusts his intuition, and that's often the key to success more than education.
The system is stacked against you. And if you raise your head, anything can happen. Get press and you can lose your job, never mind the press rarely getting it completely accurate, after all that's not their business, their business is selling ads, papers and subscriptions. They just need grist for the mill. They'll swarm you today and forget you tomorrow.
And if you're in a pinch do you have someone to call? Who'll call up an attorney to show up and keep your ass out of jail? You can't make it in this life without friends, literally, no way.
So there are only five hour-long episodes.
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention Charlotte Rampling. With no plastic surgery, she's better and more believable than all the Hollywood actresses who've ruined their faces out of peer pressure, believing if they don't look young they cannot work.
Like I said, "London Spy" is not a huge commitment. But you'll find yourself plowing through the episodes. And unlike a typical American, you won't be talking while the show plays out, you'll be riveted, you're drawn into the mood, the life.
Hell, watch one episode and then make your commitment, or not. That's what I hate about recommendations. If you don't know the kind of show I like...well, I told you above...supernatural, zombies, they're not my thing. But they may be your thing, and you might hate "London Spy."
But if you're a student of the game, of life, of choices, of getting ahead, you'll be transfixed. You'll think about the show after the screen goes dark. You won't be able to resist clicking to the next episode.
Oh, and Alex revealing his truth to Danny?? That's what we're looking for in a relationship, in life, someone to tell our truth to, who will accept us, not only warts and all, but inexperience and all.
"London Spy" was a surprise. The "New York Times" recommended it eons ago, it's on the list I keep in Apple Notes. It wasn't even in my must-see category (yes, I do that much research). But there was enough positive response to give it a chance.
I'm so glad I did.
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This is a fantastic series.
We've been on a losing streak. "Stranger," that Korean show I was telling you about? It was interesting, but just didn't deliver, and it took sixteen episodes to get to the end of the first season! The cinematography was great, Seoul was intriguing, but it took so long to get to the ultimate culprit that I wasn't sure I cared. We started the second season, because sometimes there's an improvement, but the premise was even more implausible than the first, so we bolted.
To "The Forgotten," "Les Revenants" in French. Word of mouth was so good that I took a chance, even though I've got no time for zombies or fantasy...people recommend these shows to me all the time, and once something comes out of the woods, once the special effects show up, I'm done. I need truth. Gimme some truth.
And there's a lot of truth in "London Spy."
Having said that, one caveat, the ending is not as satisfying as the rest of the show. Which is too often the case with these series. Nothing can supersede, or even equal, the buildup. However, when it was all done, and I was thinking about it, I felt better about the ending. But your mileage may vary.
We're used to entertainments. A night away from this harried life. That is not what "London Spy" is all about. Sure, it's entertaining, but there's social commentary and wisdom and they don't dominate, but they lift this series above the run-of-the-mill stuff that you watch and you forget.
Like how you dress. How you handle yourself. That's more important than money. I thought I knew money until I went to Middlebury College. Grow up in the suburbs and somebody has a Cadillac, they vacation in the Virgin Islands, they've got all the new toys, you think they're rich, but they're not rich at all.
Now rich has changed. When I was growing up rich was inherited, now rich is made, and it's tilted the playing field. But in the days of yore, the rich were not showy, but they were very judgmental. They read the cues. And to play you had to learn how to read the cues too.
Never ever boast. Don't tell people what you own, where you've been, it's déclassé. Your image is not based on your acquisitions, your car, your house, it's based on heritage and knowing how to navigate the canals of power.
Which most people never learn. They believe if they're bulls in a china shop they can succeed. But oftentimes the doors are closed to them.
Who really runs this country?
Used to be they were faceless. Now they've come out of the woodwork, in most cases reluctantly, but their goal is to get no publicity, as they move the chess pieces.
This is what Donald Trump hates. He's spent his entire life trying to be accepted by this group, and he has not. They abhor crass. And they're smart enough to know if you venture into the public eye you're going to get scrutiny, which is never wanted. Would the "New York Times" be looking into Trump's taxes if he wasn't president? Of course not, they never had previously.
"What county in the United States has the highest rate of tax audits?
The answer is Humphreys County in rural Mississippi, where three-quarters of the population is Black and more than one-third lives below the poverty line."
"Who's the Tax Cheat: The Lady in Jail or the Man in the White House": https://nyti.ms/3nHsqPn
They demonize taxes, tell you it's your money, as they demonize the broke for not paying income taxes, although they're paying a wealth of other taxes which sustain our society. But the rich and faceless are the real winners here. As evidenced by the quote above. It's laughable on its face. But the IRS has been neutered, by elected officials beholden to the wealthy class.
And Danny shows his sketchbook to Scottie, it evidences a wealth of talent, but Scottie criticizes him, for bouncing around from image to narrative to poetry... Scottie says to pick one and double-down on it. He tells Danny he's waiting for someone to recognize his talent, and that's a fool's errand, you've got to focus and blaze your own path.
To this day most people have no idea how you gain success. They think talent is enough. They butter up the underlings with big titles who are unable to make a decision. Very few can make it to the top and the road is so hard that if most actually saw it they'd stop.
Relationships... Do you want them so much that you avoid them? Do you privately pray that someone will notice you while you try to perfect the image of needing no one?
And how many people can you truly count on. If you're lucky, one.
And most people don't make it to the top anyway. Because of a misstep, because those in power don't want them to. The game is oftentimes bigger than the players, like the music business, they don't need your music to succeed, they just need SOME music to succeed!
And how important are you anyway? Does your little life truly matter in this fast-moving world?
And is it about truth or expediency. If you stand up to the system can you win?
And what are you willing to risk. Danny's got nothing, so he's willing to take chances that someone with a big CV will not. And some of those chances lead to big rewards and some of them ultimately prove fatal. But when you've got nothing, you've got nothing to lose. Which is why today it's the broke who break down barriers. Those in the upper middle class and above are so inured to their education, are playing it so safe, that they're ripe for being blown out of the water.
But don't underestimate the power of money, never.
So, "London Spy" can be slow. But just as you start to get bored, there's an unforeseen twist.
And Danny may not be educated, but he's street smart, he trusts his intuition, and that's often the key to success more than education.
The system is stacked against you. And if you raise your head, anything can happen. Get press and you can lose your job, never mind the press rarely getting it completely accurate, after all that's not their business, their business is selling ads, papers and subscriptions. They just need grist for the mill. They'll swarm you today and forget you tomorrow.
And if you're in a pinch do you have someone to call? Who'll call up an attorney to show up and keep your ass out of jail? You can't make it in this life without friends, literally, no way.
So there are only five hour-long episodes.
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention Charlotte Rampling. With no plastic surgery, she's better and more believable than all the Hollywood actresses who've ruined their faces out of peer pressure, believing if they don't look young they cannot work.
Like I said, "London Spy" is not a huge commitment. But you'll find yourself plowing through the episodes. And unlike a typical American, you won't be talking while the show plays out, you'll be riveted, you're drawn into the mood, the life.
Hell, watch one episode and then make your commitment, or not. That's what I hate about recommendations. If you don't know the kind of show I like...well, I told you above...supernatural, zombies, they're not my thing. But they may be your thing, and you might hate "London Spy."
But if you're a student of the game, of life, of choices, of getting ahead, you'll be transfixed. You'll think about the show after the screen goes dark. You won't be able to resist clicking to the next episode.
Oh, and Alex revealing his truth to Danny?? That's what we're looking for in a relationship, in life, someone to tell our truth to, who will accept us, not only warts and all, but inexperience and all.
"London Spy" was a surprise. The "New York Times" recommended it eons ago, it's on the list I keep in Apple Notes. It wasn't even in my must-see category (yes, I do that much research). But there was enough positive response to give it a chance.
I'm so glad I did.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
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