Tune in Saturday September 21st to Faction Talk, channel 103, at 4 PM East, 1 PM West.
Phone #: 844-686-5863
Twitter: @lefsetz
If you miss the episode, you can hear it on demand on the SiriusXM app. Search: Lefsetz
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Friday 20 September 2024
Universal Superfandom
What a crock of sh*t.
This is what happens when you get caught with your pants down. When you've got amateurs running a public company and the books are not cooked and investors see that you don't present upside and your stock tanks.
Let's be clear, investor relations is a skill. Keeping the stock price up is a skill. The supposed greatest CEO of the twentieth century, GE's Jack Welch, consistently reported great numbers and the stock soared, even though he did this through financial engineering and decades later the truth is coming out.
Or there's Guy Hands, who purchased Capitol-EMI and didn't realize the company had been lying consistently. Shipping stock to make the Christmas numbers, and then getting it in return over the ensuing year.
It's a game. But one thing you don't do is underdeliver. That's death in the stock market. You want your business to be seen as on a never-ending upward curve. You can talk about minimal growth, but as soon as you say there's going to be negative growth, or have a bad quarter, missing expectations, you're toast.
Not that Universal's last report was so terrible, it's just that they didn't tell a good story for the future, everybody wants to hear about a roadmap. Where you're going. And that it's rosy.
This is not what Universal did. And now it's making up for it. With this cockamamie story about superfans.
Rip off your hard core fans at your peril. You want them to be with you all along the way, for decades! The more you charge them in their mania, the more they'll resent you when your hits cool. And they will, everybody's chart action dries up. Then again, by that point the acts are off the label, illustrating the short term thinking of those running these companies today. They've got no skin in the game, they didn't start them, they're only thinking about their bonuses and their exit strategies.
Want to make more money? Break more hit acts!
But the major labels are unable to do this. But that's where the action is.
As a matter of fact, the indie sector is soaring while the majors' share is going down. Hits are being streamed less. But to monetize the indie sector is something the majors are unprepared for. They've streamlined, they've focused on the hits. They're not tooled for the modern music business.
As for an increase in revenue, which is really what this is all about...
There is a question how many more streaming subscriptions can be attained. No one is quite sure what the future holds, there will be growth, but...
If growth stalls they'll just raise the price. Quick, look at your Netflix number. Did you cancel when it went up? And in truth, Spotify has much lower churn than video streaming services. That's how much people love music. And music streaming is still a bargain. But now as it matures, the price can be slowly increased.
And the details are hazy... Grainge is talking to Spotify about a supertier, but didn't he once say there'd be no exclusives? What about Amazon and Apple, never mind the minor players.
And what will you get for more money?
Higher audio rates are a canard. Almost no one cares. Just a vocal minority of oldsters. And now that this quality is available, most of these wankers don't even take advantage of it! As for charging more... Tell me about the growth of Tidal...there is none! And Apple doesn't charge extra for high quality. So how is this going to work at Spotify again?
Not only can most people not hear the difference, most don't have the equipment to play it back, today's audio quality is good enough.
So what's going to come with the supertier?
And a hard core fan wants the price to be less, not more. Since they're so devoted they want a deal.
As for the umpteen versions of hit product to run albums to the top of the chart or keep them there... That is a fad. How many people without record players are going to continue to buy vinyl?
And sure, t-shirts and other merch are great, but mostly sold at the show and the rights are controlled by the act, and if Universal wants them they're going to have to pay dearly for them.
This is akin to Clayton Christensen's "Innovator's Dilemma," the disruption Bible. When you focus on your regular customers, on a tinier slice of your regular market, your business is ultimately disrupted and eaten by nimble operators who look irrelevant at first and grow into juggernauts and supersede you. IBM couldn't compete with Dell, and ultimately sold its PC hardware business. IBM sold to companies who needed rock solid computers, so they tested them many times. Dell felt the quality was good enough, didn't overtest, sold at a bargain, and ended up owning the business. Hell, Dell even bought DEC! Never mind upstarts that ran into the void that Dell created, like Gateway.
The future of the record business is more acts each of which sells less than a superstar. Period.
And for all the blather about Taylor Swift being America's Sweetheart, how everybody loves her, did you read yesterday's "Times"?
"Who Do Voters Really Like? Taylor Swift. - The pop star Taylor Swift has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris — and is far more popular among Democrats and independents than Republicans."
https://t.ly/X_nxq
Sure, this is mainly about politics, but even some Democrats are not so hot on her.
So you've got a backward thinking record company in cahoots with a backward looking press/PR world self-congratulating and missing the point, the future, because they can't figure out how to execute in it.
Whenever you oversell, overcharge, bleed the superfan, there's backlash.
Kid/teen groups have a sell-by date. Sure, there are reunion tours (long after the acts are out of a deal with the label), but many feel queasy about their investment in the low talent trifle of their past. It's a schoolgirl crush. Sure, there may be some nostalgia, but...
As for concert ticket prices... Sure, you can charge top buck when you've got hits on the chart, but when you don't... Look at the Chainsmokers and J. Lo and...
Which is why you don't want to be hit dependent, you want your growth to be organic, you want a slot machine that sheds dollars over and over and over again.
These are not the acts Universal is focusing on. They want the big money win. They're all in. They don't want a skirmish, they want a war.
Their philosophy is out of date.
Quick, quiz your friends. Are you all watching the same streaming television shows? Absolutely not. And your favorite may not even appeal to your friend. And in music there are many more choices.
Universal needs to retool, all the majors do. They keep cutting back, consolidating, in a world that requires more growth to meet the needs of more people. But they'd rather reduce head count and please the Street, something else that is appealing when numbers are down.
And Facebook can always hire back programmers. But there is not a ready pool of music professionals. And those who get laid off by the label, if they're any good, find roles in management or the road or they set up shop by themselves. They've got no desire to go back in-house where they're a number as opposed to a name.
But let's just pretend everything is groovy. Sell investors a crock of sh*t so that the stock goes back up and continues to rise. Damn the future.
It's not like no one ever thought of monetizing superfans before. This is not a revelation. And the growth here is not stratospheric. It's not like these superfans are not spending already!
But investors don't know anything about the music business. So they're snookered, until they're not.
But those with history in music are scratching their heads, wondering what Universal is thinking here. At the end of the day, music is an entrepreneurial business, always has been. Thinking outside the box. Not only coming up from nowhere as the manager of a hit act, but Irving Azoff creating GMR out of thin air which now has a value of billions!
Never mind that music revenues keep going up and up because new areas of monetization crop up online. That's a much bigger story than bleeding superfans. In the past all you had was the retail outlet, physical goods, now site after site crops up online that needs music, that ultimately licenses music, and it does not negatively impact other income streams whatsoever!
Which is why you should never sell your publishing.
But that's another story.
This is what happens when you report to the Street.
Does the manager do so? The act? They're independent operators, they're the heart and soul of this business more than ever. That's where the action is. Hell, as stated above, the majors can't even break a new act. You have to do that yourself. Oftentimes in a genre the majors are not interested in.
Music has an upside. It's on a growth curve. But it's less about bleeding the superfans, than creating superstars. That's the history of this business. One unique act lifts all boats, creates excitement, from Elvis to the Beatles to... That's what we've lost. Everybody's so busy looking for money that they forget that music is about heart and soul, touching people. And the new and different is what people are looking for. There's a business in the same old thing, but there's not growth. And, once again, the true growth here is in the world of independents, where creativity develops and grows.
Not that I expect the Street to buy any of what I say above. Because it doesn't have the time, it's invested in many companies. It reads balance sheets instead of truly knowing a company's business.
And it doesn't understand music at all.
But Universal doesn't understand the Street.
It's a match made in hell.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
This is what happens when you get caught with your pants down. When you've got amateurs running a public company and the books are not cooked and investors see that you don't present upside and your stock tanks.
Let's be clear, investor relations is a skill. Keeping the stock price up is a skill. The supposed greatest CEO of the twentieth century, GE's Jack Welch, consistently reported great numbers and the stock soared, even though he did this through financial engineering and decades later the truth is coming out.
Or there's Guy Hands, who purchased Capitol-EMI and didn't realize the company had been lying consistently. Shipping stock to make the Christmas numbers, and then getting it in return over the ensuing year.
It's a game. But one thing you don't do is underdeliver. That's death in the stock market. You want your business to be seen as on a never-ending upward curve. You can talk about minimal growth, but as soon as you say there's going to be negative growth, or have a bad quarter, missing expectations, you're toast.
Not that Universal's last report was so terrible, it's just that they didn't tell a good story for the future, everybody wants to hear about a roadmap. Where you're going. And that it's rosy.
This is not what Universal did. And now it's making up for it. With this cockamamie story about superfans.
Rip off your hard core fans at your peril. You want them to be with you all along the way, for decades! The more you charge them in their mania, the more they'll resent you when your hits cool. And they will, everybody's chart action dries up. Then again, by that point the acts are off the label, illustrating the short term thinking of those running these companies today. They've got no skin in the game, they didn't start them, they're only thinking about their bonuses and their exit strategies.
Want to make more money? Break more hit acts!
But the major labels are unable to do this. But that's where the action is.
As a matter of fact, the indie sector is soaring while the majors' share is going down. Hits are being streamed less. But to monetize the indie sector is something the majors are unprepared for. They've streamlined, they've focused on the hits. They're not tooled for the modern music business.
As for an increase in revenue, which is really what this is all about...
There is a question how many more streaming subscriptions can be attained. No one is quite sure what the future holds, there will be growth, but...
If growth stalls they'll just raise the price. Quick, look at your Netflix number. Did you cancel when it went up? And in truth, Spotify has much lower churn than video streaming services. That's how much people love music. And music streaming is still a bargain. But now as it matures, the price can be slowly increased.
And the details are hazy... Grainge is talking to Spotify about a supertier, but didn't he once say there'd be no exclusives? What about Amazon and Apple, never mind the minor players.
And what will you get for more money?
Higher audio rates are a canard. Almost no one cares. Just a vocal minority of oldsters. And now that this quality is available, most of these wankers don't even take advantage of it! As for charging more... Tell me about the growth of Tidal...there is none! And Apple doesn't charge extra for high quality. So how is this going to work at Spotify again?
Not only can most people not hear the difference, most don't have the equipment to play it back, today's audio quality is good enough.
So what's going to come with the supertier?
And a hard core fan wants the price to be less, not more. Since they're so devoted they want a deal.
As for the umpteen versions of hit product to run albums to the top of the chart or keep them there... That is a fad. How many people without record players are going to continue to buy vinyl?
And sure, t-shirts and other merch are great, but mostly sold at the show and the rights are controlled by the act, and if Universal wants them they're going to have to pay dearly for them.
This is akin to Clayton Christensen's "Innovator's Dilemma," the disruption Bible. When you focus on your regular customers, on a tinier slice of your regular market, your business is ultimately disrupted and eaten by nimble operators who look irrelevant at first and grow into juggernauts and supersede you. IBM couldn't compete with Dell, and ultimately sold its PC hardware business. IBM sold to companies who needed rock solid computers, so they tested them many times. Dell felt the quality was good enough, didn't overtest, sold at a bargain, and ended up owning the business. Hell, Dell even bought DEC! Never mind upstarts that ran into the void that Dell created, like Gateway.
The future of the record business is more acts each of which sells less than a superstar. Period.
And for all the blather about Taylor Swift being America's Sweetheart, how everybody loves her, did you read yesterday's "Times"?
"Who Do Voters Really Like? Taylor Swift. - The pop star Taylor Swift has endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris — and is far more popular among Democrats and independents than Republicans."
https://t.ly/X_nxq
Sure, this is mainly about politics, but even some Democrats are not so hot on her.
So you've got a backward thinking record company in cahoots with a backward looking press/PR world self-congratulating and missing the point, the future, because they can't figure out how to execute in it.
Whenever you oversell, overcharge, bleed the superfan, there's backlash.
Kid/teen groups have a sell-by date. Sure, there are reunion tours (long after the acts are out of a deal with the label), but many feel queasy about their investment in the low talent trifle of their past. It's a schoolgirl crush. Sure, there may be some nostalgia, but...
As for concert ticket prices... Sure, you can charge top buck when you've got hits on the chart, but when you don't... Look at the Chainsmokers and J. Lo and...
Which is why you don't want to be hit dependent, you want your growth to be organic, you want a slot machine that sheds dollars over and over and over again.
These are not the acts Universal is focusing on. They want the big money win. They're all in. They don't want a skirmish, they want a war.
Their philosophy is out of date.
Quick, quiz your friends. Are you all watching the same streaming television shows? Absolutely not. And your favorite may not even appeal to your friend. And in music there are many more choices.
Universal needs to retool, all the majors do. They keep cutting back, consolidating, in a world that requires more growth to meet the needs of more people. But they'd rather reduce head count and please the Street, something else that is appealing when numbers are down.
And Facebook can always hire back programmers. But there is not a ready pool of music professionals. And those who get laid off by the label, if they're any good, find roles in management or the road or they set up shop by themselves. They've got no desire to go back in-house where they're a number as opposed to a name.
But let's just pretend everything is groovy. Sell investors a crock of sh*t so that the stock goes back up and continues to rise. Damn the future.
It's not like no one ever thought of monetizing superfans before. This is not a revelation. And the growth here is not stratospheric. It's not like these superfans are not spending already!
But investors don't know anything about the music business. So they're snookered, until they're not.
But those with history in music are scratching their heads, wondering what Universal is thinking here. At the end of the day, music is an entrepreneurial business, always has been. Thinking outside the box. Not only coming up from nowhere as the manager of a hit act, but Irving Azoff creating GMR out of thin air which now has a value of billions!
Never mind that music revenues keep going up and up because new areas of monetization crop up online. That's a much bigger story than bleeding superfans. In the past all you had was the retail outlet, physical goods, now site after site crops up online that needs music, that ultimately licenses music, and it does not negatively impact other income streams whatsoever!
Which is why you should never sell your publishing.
But that's another story.
This is what happens when you report to the Street.
Does the manager do so? The act? They're independent operators, they're the heart and soul of this business more than ever. That's where the action is. Hell, as stated above, the majors can't even break a new act. You have to do that yourself. Oftentimes in a genre the majors are not interested in.
Music has an upside. It's on a growth curve. But it's less about bleeding the superfans, than creating superstars. That's the history of this business. One unique act lifts all boats, creates excitement, from Elvis to the Beatles to... That's what we've lost. Everybody's so busy looking for money that they forget that music is about heart and soul, touching people. And the new and different is what people are looking for. There's a business in the same old thing, but there's not growth. And, once again, the true growth here is in the world of independents, where creativity develops and grows.
Not that I expect the Street to buy any of what I say above. Because it doesn't have the time, it's invested in many companies. It reads balance sheets instead of truly knowing a company's business.
And it doesn't understand music at all.
But Universal doesn't understand the Street.
It's a match made in hell.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Thursday 19 September 2024
Dry Macular Degeneration
1
The lines were no longer straight on my computer.
I noticed it about five weeks ago. The right side of windows...there was a subtle curve in what I thought to be straight vertical lines.
I rebooted. That's always the first resort, even on a Mac. But they remained.
I chalked it up to the age of my machine. My 27" iMac 5k is vintage 2014. I waited for it to come out. I wanted that display. Which is superior to the HD display I purchased with my Mac Pro in 2006, which I now use as a second monitor.
And this iMac has served me well. You have no idea how much additional screen real estate helps. I don't know how people work on small laptops, even my 15" MacBook Pro...I miss stuff.
And I want to buy a new computer. I have to buy a new computer. Because Apple has stopped supporting this iMac. I'm stopped at Big Sur, there are no more security updates.
But damned if I'll spend $4500 on an already obsolete Mac Studio.
When the Mac Studio was introduced in 2022 the complaint was the monitor, which costs $1500, was behind the times. That's a lot of bread for an antique. But I didn't need a new computer just then.
And by the following June, the cycle for this product, an introduction during the Worldwide Developers Conference, they'd certainly upgrade the monitor. They did put in new updated chips, M2s, but they didn't do a thing to the monitor.
And then they stopped supporting my iMac in November 2023. And I decided to just hold on until the following June, and lay down my cash then. But during the WWDC this year they didn't upgrade the Mac Studio and monitor at all, even the Mac Pro, which is overkill, is still running on an ancient chip.
No, I don't want a MacBook Air. No I don't want an external monitor for my laptop. MacBook Airs are good machines, but inherently hobbled, they're for hobbyists, amateurs, you never know when you're going to need more power. That app you never use, suddenly you do. I record on my MacBook Pro, thank god I maxed it out. And I even have 32 gigs of RAM in my iMac. Go for greatness, I say.
But then they introduced the M3 chip. And Mark Gurman, the Bloomberg guru who is the expert on Apple said they were going to jump all the way to the M4 for most products. New M4 MacBook Pros are supposed to be imminent. And they're going to upgrade the iMac too, but the screen size is only 24", and those three extra inches make a difference. Actually, Apple said they were never going to make another 27" iMac, which is why I focused on the Mac Studio. But now Gurman says they've got one in development, for 2026!
As for the Mac Studio, that's scheduled for an update in June.
I want to give Apple my money, can't they give me a machine I can buy?
2
So this went on for a couple of weeks, and then I got on the plane to London and I noticed the exact same curve in the lines on my iPhone. Obviously it's an Apple problem, I'd just never looked that closely before.
And that iPhone isn't even a year old.
And my iPad Pro is pretty recent, and when I got back to the States I was lying on the couch reading the news and...
I saw that same damn curved line.
Obviously I had a problem.
Now I know you're not supposed to Google your problem, but in truth I don't agree with that. As long as you're not a hypochondriac, as long as you're not LOOKING for a problem, it's incredibly useful.
And bingo, it came right up. Macular degeneration. There was a definitive test. You block one eye, look at a grid that's the equivalent of graph paper, and if the lines curve...
Needless to say, mine did.
So now I've got to get in to see the doctor, who is notoriously booked. But if it's a crisis, he's always found time.
And I used to see an ophthalmologist, but now I see an optometrist, one of the best moves I've ever made. I ran into Robert Smith at the Troubadour and he didn't recognize me and he blamed his eyes and I needed a new doctor and he recommended Dr. Silver.
What an experience.
Ophthalmologists don't want to test your eyes, don't want to prescribe glasses, they're looking for serious problems, which few have. Silver works in both Santa Monica and Sherman Oaks and if you want a checkup, call now, you might have to wait a year.
Silver does contacts for the movies, but he's not that guy, not a starf@cker, and those doctors are rampant in Los Angeles.
And he's got all these machines, it's totally up to date, stuff the ophthalmologist didn't have.
But my schedule was hell. He wasn't in the office on Monday and Tuesday I was booked solid and as a matter of fact, I couldn't even make it in until 3:00 or later on Wednesday.
And when nothing came up, they told me to leave a phone message for Silver and he got right back to me, could I come in at 3:15 on Wednesday? ABSOLUTEY!
And that's when I start feeling guilty. Is my problem big enough?
It was illegal to be sick in my house. You toughed it out. If you complained to my mother she told you to go to school and see how you felt. And this strategy has gotten me in trouble. I'm working on going to the doctor. AND THIS IS MY EYES!
3
So they run all these tests and then Silver gives me a heads-up on rods and cones, brings up the pictures and shows right below the dip of the cone, there's a gray swath in the left eye. That's a problem. He thinks it's fluid, but he won't go on record, he says I need to see the retina guy. WHO KNEW THERE WAS SUCH A THING!
So we go to the front desk where they call the office and ultimately I get an appointment eight days later, for today at 1:30.
Now Silver said it was a possibility I'd need an injection in my eyeball. That sounds like fun. And I'm strategizing when I could do this. You need a ride for this stuff, and they don't let you use Uber.
And I was thinking they'd put me out if they had to do it, but what would the recovery be like?
So I got there early, even though most doctors notoriously run late. But I wanted to give respect. Which also came into my sartorial choices. Of course I showered, even though I'd done so the night before, to have B.O. at a doctor's office...I just can't imagine it. And I shaved. But could I wear my shorts?
It's a club. Boomers in L.A. It's a style. You wear your shorts. It's a middle finger to the system.
Now I haven't lived on the east coast for a long time, but back then there were restaurants that not only required a jacket, but a tie. If you were doing business, you had to look sharp. But L.A. is a laid back culture.
But it wasn't really hot out. Actually, they said it might rain in the next few days, before the temperature soars on Sunday.
Okay, I'll wear long pants. But what about shoes? I mean I'm going to wear "trainers," but do I find my cleanest pair, one of the ones they sent me from Brooks? The New Balance Fresh Foams... I got the first edition for walking, in the second edition they changed the soles to black, but on mine they're white, and they're not dingy, but they're not the cleanest.
I decided they were all right.
You see there's a whole strategy in going to the doctor. One is to dress to the nines. Show that you're a big swinging dick, have places to go and people to see, that time is tight. My plan is different. I try to appear educated, smart, show that I'm not the average bear. Also, give them more information than necessary. I hate when someone comes back from the doctor and gives you a report and when you quiz them about something that was bothering them on the way in, the person says I DIDN'T ASK!
You've got to ask. And the more you talk...
You want a relationship. Assuming they'll have one with you. If they don't take insurance, like most top-notch doctors in L.A., they give you time, use it, let them know who you are. Doctors are dealing with boring patients all day long. Get them to look forward to having you in, be a breath of fresh air.
But with some top-notch specialists... They only deal with crises, and therefore they take insurance. There aren't enough patients to forgo insurance.
And speaking of insurance... Dr. Silver didn't even charge me! I asked at the desk what I owed and they said nothing. I was there for forty five minutes, had tests on multiple machines, that's testimony to a relationship right there. Not that a regular appointment with Silver is cheap. But, like everything in life, you get what you pay for. And when it comes to my health, I WANT THE BEST!
4
So I'm filling out the forms. Everybody's uptight about privacy. But I wish there was a central database of what drugs I'm taking, what surgeries I've had. Now if you're in the UCLA system, it can be accessed by their doctors. And actually, Cedars doctors can access this too. I once went for a second opinion at UCLA and when I went back to the Cedars doctor she started off by saying... "So you saw ___________." Freaked me right out. But a good doctor doesn't mind if you get a second opinion, they encourage it. And in truth, this Cedars doctor was more on the ball than the UCLA one. Actually, she left the Cedars system. They overwork you. She's now independent and she charges...whatever she wants to. But she sees me for an hour. And I can get ahold of her right away in text or e-mail. Doesn't sound like a big deal, but get older and...
I felt like my grandmother. I remember my mother taking her to doctors, it was a full time job. I pooh-poohed it.
And then there are those who believe they're immune. They don't need no stinking doctors! You may feel fine, you may look fine, you may even have plastic surgery to try and look younger, but your insides don't know that. I know too many people who've avoided the doctor and dropped dead. I know too many people who have a history of disease in their family, don't go to the specialist, and die of the same damn thing. Truly.
But this getting old thing... Everybody tells you that life goes by in the blink of an eye, that they feel young. But that's not even close to describing it.
You're just wandering through life. And believe me, even though I've had more than a few surgeries, I feel young and alive, I skied 89 days last year, I hike regularly in the mountains, but nobody lives forever. I mean just J.D! And Christine McVie didn't even make it to eighty. You reach a point where not only are their fewer years in front of you, BUT YOU CAN SEE THE END!
And you don't want to live to a hundred, because all your friends are dead.
It's a conundrum.
And most of my civilian contemporaries have retired. Many counting their dollars. On the cusp of the early bird special. I'm still working, I want to work, but how much runway do I have left?
But if I eat right, exercise, see the doctors, take the pills...it'll all work out, RIGHT?
Wrong.
I see friends who eat KFC. Onion rings. Sure, in our teens and twenties we ate everything, but have you had a scan recently? No one's arteries are clean. Then again, you can avoid the scan and live in ignorance.
Of course there are smokers who live to a hundred, but the odds are against you. I don't want to be dumb. My models are David Letterman and Bill Clinton, they had heart issues and wised right up. They eat healthy, they're thin, they want to LIVE! DO YOU?
5
Now looking at the printout before I left the house it said to schedule two hours, and have someone drive you.
Well they didn't say anything about driving in the text messages... Don't you love texts and e-mails? My goal is to talk to no one. It's never wrong in text. But when you're spelling your name over the phone, or giving your address, GOOD LUCK!
And since these jobs pay so poorly, they're not staffed by the brightest people. Be glad you're dealing with a machine.
So I enter the office and... I won't say it's empty, but close, which is a good sign.
And after filling out the forms, which I print on, I'm afraid to use script, my handwriting is so bad, no one could read it, even though I think no one's reading it anyway. I mean does an eye doctor need to know about a hernia operation?
And then they call me into a room where they ask me more questions and start giving me eye tests.
Eye tests, hearing tests... Are you doing well or poorly? And are the results accurate?
And I'm feeling unentitled. I mean my problems aren't that bad.
And then the tech puts in numbing drops and checks me for glaucoma and puts in dilation drops and then brings me to another waiting room.
Now I realized I really did need two hours.
Then they took me in another room to take pictures. Actually, the two machines they used Silver had too, but...
The tech at Silver... She'd tell me when to keep my eye open. This woman did not. I figured it didn't matter. But then I asked her and she said...GOOD QUESTION!
Whoa! This usually spikes my anxiety sky high. I'm taking this seriously, I need more than competence, I need THE EXPERT!
But she says the pictures are good...everything's digital and instant these days.
And then another tech comes along and hovers... At first I thought she wanted to ask a question. But she didn't interrupt and didn't leave, that's when I realized she was supervising. And the original tech was screwing stuff up and when we were finished, another tech came in and said to stop using the trainee, the waiting room was backed up!
So I went with the trainer to the next machine and it turned out the first tech didn't even enter my name, but it got worked out, I was brought to another room, and then there was a new tech to interact with! The doctor's direct tech.
And then he came in.
He was in his thirties. Which is not what you expect, but Silver handpicked this guy. And he's wearing scrubs and his Nikes...which are far more dirty and worn out than mine.
And he's studying all the pictures and he says I don't have macular degeneration. Whew, great!
And then he starts looking into my eyes. With the regular contraption and then this headgear he wears. And when he's got the headgear on he's telling me how to move my eyes. In forty five degree increments. And I feel good that I can immediately tell left from right, because you'd be surprised how many people cannot. I did not want him to judge me negatively.
And when it's all done..
I have macular degeneration.
Wait a second, I thought at the advent you said I did not!
He said he was responding to the note Silver sent, to check for wet macular degeneration, I've got dry.
Okay...
And then he says "This is now your baseline."
I've heard that before. That means they're not going to do anything.
Now wait a second, what is going on here?
Well, wet macular degeneration is a blood bleed, they address that. But dry macular degeneration? THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO!
It's going to get worse and...
The yin is I don't have to have surgery. But the yang is I'm going to see this damn curve in lines every day for the rest of my life! And once I noticed it, I see it on the TV, on the edges of walls, it's EVERYWHERE!
Mostly in the left eye, but the right eye was not spared.
And what caused this?
AGE!
And I'm thinking about that "Twilight Zone" episode. You know, it's the end of the world and the old guy is thrilled that he can go to the library and read...and then his glasses fall off his nose and break on the concrete and...Rod Serling comes back in.
I'm doing everything right. I'm going for annual checkups. Isn't there anything you can do?
NO!
So I don't have to endure surgery. I've just got to monitor it, they gave me a grid to look at every day, and take this over the counter pill that's supposed to slow down the process.
Oh, don't give me sh*t, if you've even gotten this far. The real story is everybody's got something, they're just not talking about it. Because if they did, you might judge them. See them as old. Like the people who lie about their age. Who do you think you're kidding? And really, you're lying to yourself.
But I was convinced there'd be some treatment, that eyeball injection, and it would be scary, but I'd be back to normal.
No way.
This is my new life.
Now let's be clear, it's subtle. But it's there.
Is this the way this is going to go? Am I slowly going to start falling apart?
Once again, my contemporaries won't admit it. But I'm telling you now, and Freddie Garrity himself died back in 2006, he was 79. He took ill on vacation and...that was all she wrote.
Now in terms of perspective, this really isn't that big a thing.
But this is ME! I like everything to run at 100%. My car may be nineteen years old, but other than the cruise control, it runs like a champ, just like the day it came off the assembly line. Regular maintenance, baby.
And when it comes to skis...
I ain't putting a hundred days on them. They start going downhill after about fifteen or twenty. Sometime after fifty, they're not the same. And then, as they get up in age...
Why sacrifice? Just buy a new pair! Why have your enjoyment reduced by a pair of skis that don't hold that well on the ice.
I like things to work right. And I've always paid for them, but now I'm trying not to think twice. Compared to my dental bills, a new pair of skis is NOTHING!
I didn't expect an implant to get infected and need to be redone. I didn't think I'd need a root canal. I didn't think another tooth would break in half. And I'm worried about the price of ski equipment?
I mean I'm all in. And if I told you how many pairs of skis I have... And other than two pairs, none are more than two years old.
But skiing is important to me. One of the most important things to me.
But there will be a time when they'll no longer see me in the shop.
Everybody dies.
But I thought it would happen all at once, or not until I was eighty five or so.
But it's starting.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
The lines were no longer straight on my computer.
I noticed it about five weeks ago. The right side of windows...there was a subtle curve in what I thought to be straight vertical lines.
I rebooted. That's always the first resort, even on a Mac. But they remained.
I chalked it up to the age of my machine. My 27" iMac 5k is vintage 2014. I waited for it to come out. I wanted that display. Which is superior to the HD display I purchased with my Mac Pro in 2006, which I now use as a second monitor.
And this iMac has served me well. You have no idea how much additional screen real estate helps. I don't know how people work on small laptops, even my 15" MacBook Pro...I miss stuff.
And I want to buy a new computer. I have to buy a new computer. Because Apple has stopped supporting this iMac. I'm stopped at Big Sur, there are no more security updates.
But damned if I'll spend $4500 on an already obsolete Mac Studio.
When the Mac Studio was introduced in 2022 the complaint was the monitor, which costs $1500, was behind the times. That's a lot of bread for an antique. But I didn't need a new computer just then.
And by the following June, the cycle for this product, an introduction during the Worldwide Developers Conference, they'd certainly upgrade the monitor. They did put in new updated chips, M2s, but they didn't do a thing to the monitor.
And then they stopped supporting my iMac in November 2023. And I decided to just hold on until the following June, and lay down my cash then. But during the WWDC this year they didn't upgrade the Mac Studio and monitor at all, even the Mac Pro, which is overkill, is still running on an ancient chip.
No, I don't want a MacBook Air. No I don't want an external monitor for my laptop. MacBook Airs are good machines, but inherently hobbled, they're for hobbyists, amateurs, you never know when you're going to need more power. That app you never use, suddenly you do. I record on my MacBook Pro, thank god I maxed it out. And I even have 32 gigs of RAM in my iMac. Go for greatness, I say.
But then they introduced the M3 chip. And Mark Gurman, the Bloomberg guru who is the expert on Apple said they were going to jump all the way to the M4 for most products. New M4 MacBook Pros are supposed to be imminent. And they're going to upgrade the iMac too, but the screen size is only 24", and those three extra inches make a difference. Actually, Apple said they were never going to make another 27" iMac, which is why I focused on the Mac Studio. But now Gurman says they've got one in development, for 2026!
As for the Mac Studio, that's scheduled for an update in June.
I want to give Apple my money, can't they give me a machine I can buy?
2
So this went on for a couple of weeks, and then I got on the plane to London and I noticed the exact same curve in the lines on my iPhone. Obviously it's an Apple problem, I'd just never looked that closely before.
And that iPhone isn't even a year old.
And my iPad Pro is pretty recent, and when I got back to the States I was lying on the couch reading the news and...
I saw that same damn curved line.
Obviously I had a problem.
Now I know you're not supposed to Google your problem, but in truth I don't agree with that. As long as you're not a hypochondriac, as long as you're not LOOKING for a problem, it's incredibly useful.
And bingo, it came right up. Macular degeneration. There was a definitive test. You block one eye, look at a grid that's the equivalent of graph paper, and if the lines curve...
Needless to say, mine did.
So now I've got to get in to see the doctor, who is notoriously booked. But if it's a crisis, he's always found time.
And I used to see an ophthalmologist, but now I see an optometrist, one of the best moves I've ever made. I ran into Robert Smith at the Troubadour and he didn't recognize me and he blamed his eyes and I needed a new doctor and he recommended Dr. Silver.
What an experience.
Ophthalmologists don't want to test your eyes, don't want to prescribe glasses, they're looking for serious problems, which few have. Silver works in both Santa Monica and Sherman Oaks and if you want a checkup, call now, you might have to wait a year.
Silver does contacts for the movies, but he's not that guy, not a starf@cker, and those doctors are rampant in Los Angeles.
And he's got all these machines, it's totally up to date, stuff the ophthalmologist didn't have.
But my schedule was hell. He wasn't in the office on Monday and Tuesday I was booked solid and as a matter of fact, I couldn't even make it in until 3:00 or later on Wednesday.
And when nothing came up, they told me to leave a phone message for Silver and he got right back to me, could I come in at 3:15 on Wednesday? ABSOLUTEY!
And that's when I start feeling guilty. Is my problem big enough?
It was illegal to be sick in my house. You toughed it out. If you complained to my mother she told you to go to school and see how you felt. And this strategy has gotten me in trouble. I'm working on going to the doctor. AND THIS IS MY EYES!
3
So they run all these tests and then Silver gives me a heads-up on rods and cones, brings up the pictures and shows right below the dip of the cone, there's a gray swath in the left eye. That's a problem. He thinks it's fluid, but he won't go on record, he says I need to see the retina guy. WHO KNEW THERE WAS SUCH A THING!
So we go to the front desk where they call the office and ultimately I get an appointment eight days later, for today at 1:30.
Now Silver said it was a possibility I'd need an injection in my eyeball. That sounds like fun. And I'm strategizing when I could do this. You need a ride for this stuff, and they don't let you use Uber.
And I was thinking they'd put me out if they had to do it, but what would the recovery be like?
So I got there early, even though most doctors notoriously run late. But I wanted to give respect. Which also came into my sartorial choices. Of course I showered, even though I'd done so the night before, to have B.O. at a doctor's office...I just can't imagine it. And I shaved. But could I wear my shorts?
It's a club. Boomers in L.A. It's a style. You wear your shorts. It's a middle finger to the system.
Now I haven't lived on the east coast for a long time, but back then there were restaurants that not only required a jacket, but a tie. If you were doing business, you had to look sharp. But L.A. is a laid back culture.
But it wasn't really hot out. Actually, they said it might rain in the next few days, before the temperature soars on Sunday.
Okay, I'll wear long pants. But what about shoes? I mean I'm going to wear "trainers," but do I find my cleanest pair, one of the ones they sent me from Brooks? The New Balance Fresh Foams... I got the first edition for walking, in the second edition they changed the soles to black, but on mine they're white, and they're not dingy, but they're not the cleanest.
I decided they were all right.
You see there's a whole strategy in going to the doctor. One is to dress to the nines. Show that you're a big swinging dick, have places to go and people to see, that time is tight. My plan is different. I try to appear educated, smart, show that I'm not the average bear. Also, give them more information than necessary. I hate when someone comes back from the doctor and gives you a report and when you quiz them about something that was bothering them on the way in, the person says I DIDN'T ASK!
You've got to ask. And the more you talk...
You want a relationship. Assuming they'll have one with you. If they don't take insurance, like most top-notch doctors in L.A., they give you time, use it, let them know who you are. Doctors are dealing with boring patients all day long. Get them to look forward to having you in, be a breath of fresh air.
But with some top-notch specialists... They only deal with crises, and therefore they take insurance. There aren't enough patients to forgo insurance.
And speaking of insurance... Dr. Silver didn't even charge me! I asked at the desk what I owed and they said nothing. I was there for forty five minutes, had tests on multiple machines, that's testimony to a relationship right there. Not that a regular appointment with Silver is cheap. But, like everything in life, you get what you pay for. And when it comes to my health, I WANT THE BEST!
4
So I'm filling out the forms. Everybody's uptight about privacy. But I wish there was a central database of what drugs I'm taking, what surgeries I've had. Now if you're in the UCLA system, it can be accessed by their doctors. And actually, Cedars doctors can access this too. I once went for a second opinion at UCLA and when I went back to the Cedars doctor she started off by saying... "So you saw ___________." Freaked me right out. But a good doctor doesn't mind if you get a second opinion, they encourage it. And in truth, this Cedars doctor was more on the ball than the UCLA one. Actually, she left the Cedars system. They overwork you. She's now independent and she charges...whatever she wants to. But she sees me for an hour. And I can get ahold of her right away in text or e-mail. Doesn't sound like a big deal, but get older and...
I felt like my grandmother. I remember my mother taking her to doctors, it was a full time job. I pooh-poohed it.
And then there are those who believe they're immune. They don't need no stinking doctors! You may feel fine, you may look fine, you may even have plastic surgery to try and look younger, but your insides don't know that. I know too many people who've avoided the doctor and dropped dead. I know too many people who have a history of disease in their family, don't go to the specialist, and die of the same damn thing. Truly.
But this getting old thing... Everybody tells you that life goes by in the blink of an eye, that they feel young. But that's not even close to describing it.
You're just wandering through life. And believe me, even though I've had more than a few surgeries, I feel young and alive, I skied 89 days last year, I hike regularly in the mountains, but nobody lives forever. I mean just J.D! And Christine McVie didn't even make it to eighty. You reach a point where not only are their fewer years in front of you, BUT YOU CAN SEE THE END!
And you don't want to live to a hundred, because all your friends are dead.
It's a conundrum.
And most of my civilian contemporaries have retired. Many counting their dollars. On the cusp of the early bird special. I'm still working, I want to work, but how much runway do I have left?
But if I eat right, exercise, see the doctors, take the pills...it'll all work out, RIGHT?
Wrong.
I see friends who eat KFC. Onion rings. Sure, in our teens and twenties we ate everything, but have you had a scan recently? No one's arteries are clean. Then again, you can avoid the scan and live in ignorance.
Of course there are smokers who live to a hundred, but the odds are against you. I don't want to be dumb. My models are David Letterman and Bill Clinton, they had heart issues and wised right up. They eat healthy, they're thin, they want to LIVE! DO YOU?
5
Now looking at the printout before I left the house it said to schedule two hours, and have someone drive you.
Well they didn't say anything about driving in the text messages... Don't you love texts and e-mails? My goal is to talk to no one. It's never wrong in text. But when you're spelling your name over the phone, or giving your address, GOOD LUCK!
And since these jobs pay so poorly, they're not staffed by the brightest people. Be glad you're dealing with a machine.
So I enter the office and... I won't say it's empty, but close, which is a good sign.
And after filling out the forms, which I print on, I'm afraid to use script, my handwriting is so bad, no one could read it, even though I think no one's reading it anyway. I mean does an eye doctor need to know about a hernia operation?
And then they call me into a room where they ask me more questions and start giving me eye tests.
Eye tests, hearing tests... Are you doing well or poorly? And are the results accurate?
And I'm feeling unentitled. I mean my problems aren't that bad.
And then the tech puts in numbing drops and checks me for glaucoma and puts in dilation drops and then brings me to another waiting room.
Now I realized I really did need two hours.
Then they took me in another room to take pictures. Actually, the two machines they used Silver had too, but...
The tech at Silver... She'd tell me when to keep my eye open. This woman did not. I figured it didn't matter. But then I asked her and she said...GOOD QUESTION!
Whoa! This usually spikes my anxiety sky high. I'm taking this seriously, I need more than competence, I need THE EXPERT!
But she says the pictures are good...everything's digital and instant these days.
And then another tech comes along and hovers... At first I thought she wanted to ask a question. But she didn't interrupt and didn't leave, that's when I realized she was supervising. And the original tech was screwing stuff up and when we were finished, another tech came in and said to stop using the trainee, the waiting room was backed up!
So I went with the trainer to the next machine and it turned out the first tech didn't even enter my name, but it got worked out, I was brought to another room, and then there was a new tech to interact with! The doctor's direct tech.
And then he came in.
He was in his thirties. Which is not what you expect, but Silver handpicked this guy. And he's wearing scrubs and his Nikes...which are far more dirty and worn out than mine.
And he's studying all the pictures and he says I don't have macular degeneration. Whew, great!
And then he starts looking into my eyes. With the regular contraption and then this headgear he wears. And when he's got the headgear on he's telling me how to move my eyes. In forty five degree increments. And I feel good that I can immediately tell left from right, because you'd be surprised how many people cannot. I did not want him to judge me negatively.
And when it's all done..
I have macular degeneration.
Wait a second, I thought at the advent you said I did not!
He said he was responding to the note Silver sent, to check for wet macular degeneration, I've got dry.
Okay...
And then he says "This is now your baseline."
I've heard that before. That means they're not going to do anything.
Now wait a second, what is going on here?
Well, wet macular degeneration is a blood bleed, they address that. But dry macular degeneration? THERE'S NOTHING YOU CAN DO!
It's going to get worse and...
The yin is I don't have to have surgery. But the yang is I'm going to see this damn curve in lines every day for the rest of my life! And once I noticed it, I see it on the TV, on the edges of walls, it's EVERYWHERE!
Mostly in the left eye, but the right eye was not spared.
And what caused this?
AGE!
And I'm thinking about that "Twilight Zone" episode. You know, it's the end of the world and the old guy is thrilled that he can go to the library and read...and then his glasses fall off his nose and break on the concrete and...Rod Serling comes back in.
I'm doing everything right. I'm going for annual checkups. Isn't there anything you can do?
NO!
So I don't have to endure surgery. I've just got to monitor it, they gave me a grid to look at every day, and take this over the counter pill that's supposed to slow down the process.
Oh, don't give me sh*t, if you've even gotten this far. The real story is everybody's got something, they're just not talking about it. Because if they did, you might judge them. See them as old. Like the people who lie about their age. Who do you think you're kidding? And really, you're lying to yourself.
But I was convinced there'd be some treatment, that eyeball injection, and it would be scary, but I'd be back to normal.
No way.
This is my new life.
Now let's be clear, it's subtle. But it's there.
Is this the way this is going to go? Am I slowly going to start falling apart?
Once again, my contemporaries won't admit it. But I'm telling you now, and Freddie Garrity himself died back in 2006, he was 79. He took ill on vacation and...that was all she wrote.
Now in terms of perspective, this really isn't that big a thing.
But this is ME! I like everything to run at 100%. My car may be nineteen years old, but other than the cruise control, it runs like a champ, just like the day it came off the assembly line. Regular maintenance, baby.
And when it comes to skis...
I ain't putting a hundred days on them. They start going downhill after about fifteen or twenty. Sometime after fifty, they're not the same. And then, as they get up in age...
Why sacrifice? Just buy a new pair! Why have your enjoyment reduced by a pair of skis that don't hold that well on the ice.
I like things to work right. And I've always paid for them, but now I'm trying not to think twice. Compared to my dental bills, a new pair of skis is NOTHING!
I didn't expect an implant to get infected and need to be redone. I didn't think I'd need a root canal. I didn't think another tooth would break in half. And I'm worried about the price of ski equipment?
I mean I'm all in. And if I told you how many pairs of skis I have... And other than two pairs, none are more than two years old.
But skiing is important to me. One of the most important things to me.
But there will be a time when they'll no longer see me in the shop.
Everybody dies.
But I thought it would happen all at once, or not until I was eighty five or so.
But it's starting.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Rob Baker & Johnny Fay-This Week's Podcast
Rob Baker and Johnny Fay are members of the Tragically Hip, who have a new four part documentary on Amazon Prime. Whether you're a fan of the band or not, you'll like this.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rob-baker-johnny-fay/id1316200737?i=1000670035076
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1BJPYtTwESdMcagVmY2bVs?si=69093db0c28c4347
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-30806836/episode/rob-baker-johnny-fay-217902238/
https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9ff4fb19-54d4-41ae-ae7a-8a6f8d3dafa8/episodes/9174d9be-9d85-4397-8184-2e7e79b256a4/the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-rob-baker-johnny-fay
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rob-baker-johnny-fay/id1316200737?i=1000670035076
https://open.spotify.com/episode/1BJPYtTwESdMcagVmY2bVs?si=69093db0c28c4347
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-30806836/episode/rob-baker-johnny-fay-217902238/
https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9ff4fb19-54d4-41ae-ae7a-8a6f8d3dafa8/episodes/9174d9be-9d85-4397-8184-2e7e79b256a4/the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-rob-baker-johnny-fay
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Wednesday 18 September 2024
J.D. Souther
Spotify playlist: https://t.ly/OL2Jm
1
Word was he was an as*hole, self-satisfied, difficult to work with.
But when I met him he was anything but.
The rep was spread in the press in the wake of the combustion of the Souther—Hillman—Furay Band. But Richie Furay told me he was responsible for the breakup. It was either the band or his marriage, and he chose his marriage. Richie said he was checked out during the recording of the second LP, "Trouble in Paradise," and that's why it suffered. It sank like a stone. But the debut...
"Life ain't so easy in this border town
Too much dope and too much running around"
I think that's when I first heard from J.D., after writing about "Border Town," his song that finished out the first side of "The Souther—Hillman—Furay Band." J.D. didn't just paint pictures, his songs were three-dimensional, you could see inside them, and if you couldn't identify, you wish you could.
And awareness of J.D. jumped when the Eagles broke big, which was really on their third album, "On the Border," "Desperado" was a masterpiece, but despite the iconic status of the title cut, the album stalled in the marketplace. It was when the band jettisoned Glyn Johns, an English engineer-producer, for the American mind-set of Bill Szymczyk, who opened up the sound, let it loose, that the Eagles became the biggest band in the land.
Yes, the debut had "Take It Easy," but you've got to know that that broke first on AM, instantly, unlike most of the credible acts, who started on FM and crossed over. The album was slick and perfect, and the connoisseurs, still baked in the ethos of the sixties, labeled it a trifle, something akin to the Starland Vocal Band. Boy were they wrong.
It was the "On the Border" number "Best of My Love" that made the Eagles iconic. They'd been in the game for three LPs, so there was no backlash, and this time they went all the way to number one.
And that song was cowritten by J.D. Souther, along with Don Henley and Glenn Frey.
So J.D.'s name was starting to permeate the public consciousness. If for no other reason than he was Linda Ronstadt's boyfriend, who was not yet America's sweetheart, but if you were in the know...
Expectations were high. David Geffen had negotiated her off Capitol, put her on his juggernaut of a label, Asylum. And J.D. co-produced her first record for the company, "Don't Cry Now," the title track of which he wrote.
J.D. was all over the album. Which stiffed in the marketplace. It was only when Linda went back in with Peter Asher and recorded "Heart Like a Wheel" that she exploded, on Capitol, which was owed one new album of their choice, and when they heard "Heart Like a Wheel" they selected it.
But this smash was followed up by 1975's "Prisoner in Disguise" on Asylum, whose title track J.D. wrote.
I'd say he was a mystery man, but J.D. put out his own album on Asylum, in 1972, just after the label launched, and it was a complete stiff. You'd see it in the bins, but no one I knew bought it, and in truth the sound just wasn't right, too thin, not rich enough.
But my point here is if you were scoring at home, you knew who J.D. Souther was, but if you were an average music fan, you did not.
Unless you read the credits on "Heart Like a Wheel," because J.D. wrote one of the most meaningful cuts on the entire album, "Faithless Love."
Faithless love like a river might flow, but it was the bridge that was indelible.
"Well I guess I'm standing in the hall of broken dreams
That's the way it sometimes goes
Whenever a new love never turns out like it seems
I guess the feeling comes and goes"
And then in the spring of 1974, came "The Souther—Hillman—Furay Band."
2
This was Richie Furay's last shot, his best shot. He'd been the frontman on the delicious debut by Poco, but despite stellar reviews and love from everybody who purchased it, the album didn't succeed commercially. And Poco continued to put out albums, people knew who they were, but Jim Messina left and it was a long hard slog.
So Richie jumped for this supergroup concocted by David Geffen.
Chris Hillman was the overlooked Byrd.
And then there was J.D. Souther, who was not a household name, who had not had commercial success equal to the other two (don't forget Richie was in Buffalo Springfield). And the album came out and...
It opened with "Fallin' in Love," a classic Furay cut ready for airplay and acceptance, but it wasn't a hit single.
And then came Chris Hillman's number, "Heavenly Fire," which showed us Hillman was more than a sideman in the Byrds.
And after that J.D. shined, with "The Heartbreaker."
"He's Mr. Deliver
He never lets you down
And now the life wrecker
Is comin' to town"
People today have no idea of the iconic status of rock stars in the sixties and seventies. It was much more than image, it was about lifestyle. They inhabited a world we could never enter, because we just were not cool enough. Sure, money mattered, but not as much as charisma. These guys were not playing by society's rules, and they were winning. Got all the girls... And you wonder why people moved to Los Angeles?
And after Richie's "Believe Me," came J.D.s aforementioned "Border Town." And just like with "The Heartbreaker," for the first time J.D.'s numbers got the production they deserved, that elevated them out of the woodwork to shine. This was more than coffee shop singer-songwriter.
Life sure wasn't easy in that border town, but you couldn't wait to go there.
And many did, at least in their minds. Despite being decried in the rock press as a fake group, this time the public caught on, "The Souther—Hillman—Furay Band" went gold, you heard it on the radio, suddenly J.D.'s performances were not living in obscurity.
And then the band broke up.
3
But then came "Black Rose."
The hottest producer of singer-songwriters was Peter Asher. He turned James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt into superstars. And now J.D. surrendered the reins to him.
There were no hit singles. But "Black Rose" was a masterpiece. It contained J.D.'s versions of songs made big by Linda Ronstadt, and although it started with the upbeat, jaunty, "Banging My Head Against the Moon" and then the quiet dirge of "If You Have Crying Eyes," the album truly came alive with the song in the middle of the first side, "Your Turn Now."
"The moon was yellow
And the sky was cool
The night can make a promise of love
Or it can make you a fool"
I sing these lines in my head more than any other. Maybe it's because they exude optimism, they're upbeat, if you just play the game, you could lose, but you could also win!
"Would anybody know it
If the real thing shined
You've seen so many movies
You'd probably think it was a line"
I was in love with the movie stars. Maybe I wasn't the only one. But ultimately you have to enter the real world, and it's so confusing. You could find someone real and never know.
"Well maybe it's your turn now
You'd be falling in love but you wouldn't know how"
All we hear about are the winners, the school champions, with girlfriends since puberty. But the rest of us?
We were not experienced, not that we would admit it.
"Let me tell you I can fight like a man
And cry like a little boy"
This is a vulnerability you don't hear in today's Top Forty material, certainly not in hip-hop. So much of today's music slides off the listener, but in the past, it went straight to the heart.
"If passion is always kind
How can love be cruel"
So many people my age no longer want to risk getting into relationships, they don't want to experience the pain of disconnection, a breakup.
"Maybe it's your turn
And you'll never know
If you're afraid to hold on tighter
And you're afraid to let go"
That's what love requires, hanging on tighter. You'd be surprised who is unable to do this. I guess they call it fear of commitment. But it's more than that, it's not wanting to journey into the unknown. And then there's the opposite, sometimes you need to let go but you can't, you don't want to lose whatever good you've still got.
4
Now the other stellar, iconic track on "Black Rose" was also new, having appeared nowhere previously, "Baby Come Home."
This is a song for anybody who's ever been left, anybody who's broken up and regrets it. Every word is brilliant, but there's one passage...
"If you could trust me, try to believe me
Listen to me when I say
When I say that love, is a burning fire
And it will not fade away
No, it will not fade away"
Whew!
And then two and a half minutes in, the chorus sings "Baby come home" as J.D. expresses regret and desire and it's just amazing.
5
And there's a quiet version of "Faithless Love" that I prefer to Ronstadt's.
Ditto on "Silver Blue."
And without Ronstadt's powerful lung capacity "Simple Man, Simple Dream" gains gravitas. The meaning shines through.
And the title track, "Black Rose," is the finale.
"I see you carry a black rose
Carry a black rose"
Tom Petty may have sung that the A&R man didn't hear a single, but that was in 1991. This was 1976. You could go quite far without ever appearing on AM radio. You could have fans. You didn't live in obscurity like those who don't make the Spotify Top 50 today. You could tour and...
J.D. wasn't on the road. But those records existed.
6
But then J.D. switched labels from Asylum to Columbia, after all David Geffen was long gone, and had a hit! "You're Only Lonely" had a retro, fifties feel, and it resonated with the public.
And the label also included his version of another number Ronstadt had covered, "White Rhythm and Blues."
"You say that somebody really loves you
You'd find her if you just knew how"
No one else wrote lyrics quite the same way.
And, once again, J.D.'s understated vocals let the words shine through, more than in Linda's version.
But even bigger than 1979's "You're Only Lonely" was J.D.'s unexpected duet with James Taylor, "Her Town Too."
"But now he's gone and life goes on"
That's J.D.'s line. A distinct contrast to James's mellifluous vocal.
And then he comes back with:
"Yes, and everyone can see you fall"
And:
"Somebody still loves you"
J.D. injects gravitas. He specialized in that. He could make any number just a bit more serious with his participation.
Unlike the "You're Only Lonely" album, "Her Town Too" was produced by Peter Asher, and sounded like it. Rich. And meaningful, without being overbearing. By this time most baby boomers had experienced breakups, they could identify, and aren't the the songs that resonate the ones you hold closest to your chest?
J.D. released another solo LP in 1984, but it didn't even break the Top 200. The eras had changed. Now it was about MTV and flash. Immediacy. And J.D. specialized in something more cerebral.
And then he showed up in "thirtysomething." As cool as ever.
J.D. was also in "Postcards from the Edge," but his acting career never blossomed into something bigger.
7
And then it was 2007, hell had already frozen over, back in 1994, and there'd been a few new tracks, but now the Eagles took the long road out of Eden and decided to lead with... "How Long"? A J.D. Souther song? From his very first album?
J.D. was back on the radio. The double album was sold exclusively by Walmart and the single made a dent, unlike the work by oldsters today. This was not the new Billy Joel single, the new work of Steve Perry. "How Long" did not sink like a stone, it was actually a radio hit.
And then J.D. came out of the woodwork.
It was a new century, with new rules. He hired a young management team and put out the jazzy live album "If the World Was You," and hit the road. Suddenly, J.D. was ACCESSIBLE!
Friendly, talkative and open.
What he was most proud of was his daughter, whom most people were unaware existed. She was in school in Paris and... Whenever I spoke with J.D. she came up.
Along with his Volvo.
And then he left NashVegas for New Mexico, tripped and...
"Hey Bob
I'd love to do your podcast. I missed a lot of emails this year I apologize, something I've had to become skilled at in the last few months. I moved to New Mexico, which was interesting enough with two young frisky dogs but then tripped on a marble step in my new house (1ST MORNING!!) broke a rib and punctured a lung so my first week in The Land of Enchantment was spent at Presbyterian Hospital with a chest drain in my right side and the next few weeks spent trying to settle into the new place with various visiting friends to help and a great TM who stepped up and made it possible.
It's been a zoo but things are beginning to settle down at last.
Let's do it!
JD"
We never did do that podcast.
But there was another e-mail:
RE: The Model Is Broken.
Bob, you're killing it, mate. Superbly reasoned piece and within it lies the awful truth…or is it that awful? Yes, in many ways, but change is always a new pair of boots that need breaking in.
The message at the heart of even this sea change is the same; write a great song and sing it well. It might not make you rich but then again, it just might and you can probably sleep a little better knowing you don't suck. Then get up and try to do it again.
Keep firing
JD Souther"
8
Sure I knew him, but I would have written all of the above even if I hadn't. Man, he wrote all those songs, he made that music, and he was cool and never sold out, never lost his identity.
Isn't that what it's all about?
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
1
Word was he was an as*hole, self-satisfied, difficult to work with.
But when I met him he was anything but.
The rep was spread in the press in the wake of the combustion of the Souther—Hillman—Furay Band. But Richie Furay told me he was responsible for the breakup. It was either the band or his marriage, and he chose his marriage. Richie said he was checked out during the recording of the second LP, "Trouble in Paradise," and that's why it suffered. It sank like a stone. But the debut...
"Life ain't so easy in this border town
Too much dope and too much running around"
I think that's when I first heard from J.D., after writing about "Border Town," his song that finished out the first side of "The Souther—Hillman—Furay Band." J.D. didn't just paint pictures, his songs were three-dimensional, you could see inside them, and if you couldn't identify, you wish you could.
And awareness of J.D. jumped when the Eagles broke big, which was really on their third album, "On the Border," "Desperado" was a masterpiece, but despite the iconic status of the title cut, the album stalled in the marketplace. It was when the band jettisoned Glyn Johns, an English engineer-producer, for the American mind-set of Bill Szymczyk, who opened up the sound, let it loose, that the Eagles became the biggest band in the land.
Yes, the debut had "Take It Easy," but you've got to know that that broke first on AM, instantly, unlike most of the credible acts, who started on FM and crossed over. The album was slick and perfect, and the connoisseurs, still baked in the ethos of the sixties, labeled it a trifle, something akin to the Starland Vocal Band. Boy were they wrong.
It was the "On the Border" number "Best of My Love" that made the Eagles iconic. They'd been in the game for three LPs, so there was no backlash, and this time they went all the way to number one.
And that song was cowritten by J.D. Souther, along with Don Henley and Glenn Frey.
So J.D.'s name was starting to permeate the public consciousness. If for no other reason than he was Linda Ronstadt's boyfriend, who was not yet America's sweetheart, but if you were in the know...
Expectations were high. David Geffen had negotiated her off Capitol, put her on his juggernaut of a label, Asylum. And J.D. co-produced her first record for the company, "Don't Cry Now," the title track of which he wrote.
J.D. was all over the album. Which stiffed in the marketplace. It was only when Linda went back in with Peter Asher and recorded "Heart Like a Wheel" that she exploded, on Capitol, which was owed one new album of their choice, and when they heard "Heart Like a Wheel" they selected it.
But this smash was followed up by 1975's "Prisoner in Disguise" on Asylum, whose title track J.D. wrote.
I'd say he was a mystery man, but J.D. put out his own album on Asylum, in 1972, just after the label launched, and it was a complete stiff. You'd see it in the bins, but no one I knew bought it, and in truth the sound just wasn't right, too thin, not rich enough.
But my point here is if you were scoring at home, you knew who J.D. Souther was, but if you were an average music fan, you did not.
Unless you read the credits on "Heart Like a Wheel," because J.D. wrote one of the most meaningful cuts on the entire album, "Faithless Love."
Faithless love like a river might flow, but it was the bridge that was indelible.
"Well I guess I'm standing in the hall of broken dreams
That's the way it sometimes goes
Whenever a new love never turns out like it seems
I guess the feeling comes and goes"
And then in the spring of 1974, came "The Souther—Hillman—Furay Band."
2
This was Richie Furay's last shot, his best shot. He'd been the frontman on the delicious debut by Poco, but despite stellar reviews and love from everybody who purchased it, the album didn't succeed commercially. And Poco continued to put out albums, people knew who they were, but Jim Messina left and it was a long hard slog.
So Richie jumped for this supergroup concocted by David Geffen.
Chris Hillman was the overlooked Byrd.
And then there was J.D. Souther, who was not a household name, who had not had commercial success equal to the other two (don't forget Richie was in Buffalo Springfield). And the album came out and...
It opened with "Fallin' in Love," a classic Furay cut ready for airplay and acceptance, but it wasn't a hit single.
And then came Chris Hillman's number, "Heavenly Fire," which showed us Hillman was more than a sideman in the Byrds.
And after that J.D. shined, with "The Heartbreaker."
"He's Mr. Deliver
He never lets you down
And now the life wrecker
Is comin' to town"
People today have no idea of the iconic status of rock stars in the sixties and seventies. It was much more than image, it was about lifestyle. They inhabited a world we could never enter, because we just were not cool enough. Sure, money mattered, but not as much as charisma. These guys were not playing by society's rules, and they were winning. Got all the girls... And you wonder why people moved to Los Angeles?
And after Richie's "Believe Me," came J.D.s aforementioned "Border Town." And just like with "The Heartbreaker," for the first time J.D.'s numbers got the production they deserved, that elevated them out of the woodwork to shine. This was more than coffee shop singer-songwriter.
Life sure wasn't easy in that border town, but you couldn't wait to go there.
And many did, at least in their minds. Despite being decried in the rock press as a fake group, this time the public caught on, "The Souther—Hillman—Furay Band" went gold, you heard it on the radio, suddenly J.D.'s performances were not living in obscurity.
And then the band broke up.
3
But then came "Black Rose."
The hottest producer of singer-songwriters was Peter Asher. He turned James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt into superstars. And now J.D. surrendered the reins to him.
There were no hit singles. But "Black Rose" was a masterpiece. It contained J.D.'s versions of songs made big by Linda Ronstadt, and although it started with the upbeat, jaunty, "Banging My Head Against the Moon" and then the quiet dirge of "If You Have Crying Eyes," the album truly came alive with the song in the middle of the first side, "Your Turn Now."
"The moon was yellow
And the sky was cool
The night can make a promise of love
Or it can make you a fool"
I sing these lines in my head more than any other. Maybe it's because they exude optimism, they're upbeat, if you just play the game, you could lose, but you could also win!
"Would anybody know it
If the real thing shined
You've seen so many movies
You'd probably think it was a line"
I was in love with the movie stars. Maybe I wasn't the only one. But ultimately you have to enter the real world, and it's so confusing. You could find someone real and never know.
"Well maybe it's your turn now
You'd be falling in love but you wouldn't know how"
All we hear about are the winners, the school champions, with girlfriends since puberty. But the rest of us?
We were not experienced, not that we would admit it.
"Let me tell you I can fight like a man
And cry like a little boy"
This is a vulnerability you don't hear in today's Top Forty material, certainly not in hip-hop. So much of today's music slides off the listener, but in the past, it went straight to the heart.
"If passion is always kind
How can love be cruel"
So many people my age no longer want to risk getting into relationships, they don't want to experience the pain of disconnection, a breakup.
"Maybe it's your turn
And you'll never know
If you're afraid to hold on tighter
And you're afraid to let go"
That's what love requires, hanging on tighter. You'd be surprised who is unable to do this. I guess they call it fear of commitment. But it's more than that, it's not wanting to journey into the unknown. And then there's the opposite, sometimes you need to let go but you can't, you don't want to lose whatever good you've still got.
4
Now the other stellar, iconic track on "Black Rose" was also new, having appeared nowhere previously, "Baby Come Home."
This is a song for anybody who's ever been left, anybody who's broken up and regrets it. Every word is brilliant, but there's one passage...
"If you could trust me, try to believe me
Listen to me when I say
When I say that love, is a burning fire
And it will not fade away
No, it will not fade away"
Whew!
And then two and a half minutes in, the chorus sings "Baby come home" as J.D. expresses regret and desire and it's just amazing.
5
And there's a quiet version of "Faithless Love" that I prefer to Ronstadt's.
Ditto on "Silver Blue."
And without Ronstadt's powerful lung capacity "Simple Man, Simple Dream" gains gravitas. The meaning shines through.
And the title track, "Black Rose," is the finale.
"I see you carry a black rose
Carry a black rose"
Tom Petty may have sung that the A&R man didn't hear a single, but that was in 1991. This was 1976. You could go quite far without ever appearing on AM radio. You could have fans. You didn't live in obscurity like those who don't make the Spotify Top 50 today. You could tour and...
J.D. wasn't on the road. But those records existed.
6
But then J.D. switched labels from Asylum to Columbia, after all David Geffen was long gone, and had a hit! "You're Only Lonely" had a retro, fifties feel, and it resonated with the public.
And the label also included his version of another number Ronstadt had covered, "White Rhythm and Blues."
"You say that somebody really loves you
You'd find her if you just knew how"
No one else wrote lyrics quite the same way.
And, once again, J.D.'s understated vocals let the words shine through, more than in Linda's version.
But even bigger than 1979's "You're Only Lonely" was J.D.'s unexpected duet with James Taylor, "Her Town Too."
"But now he's gone and life goes on"
That's J.D.'s line. A distinct contrast to James's mellifluous vocal.
And then he comes back with:
"Yes, and everyone can see you fall"
And:
"Somebody still loves you"
J.D. injects gravitas. He specialized in that. He could make any number just a bit more serious with his participation.
Unlike the "You're Only Lonely" album, "Her Town Too" was produced by Peter Asher, and sounded like it. Rich. And meaningful, without being overbearing. By this time most baby boomers had experienced breakups, they could identify, and aren't the the songs that resonate the ones you hold closest to your chest?
J.D. released another solo LP in 1984, but it didn't even break the Top 200. The eras had changed. Now it was about MTV and flash. Immediacy. And J.D. specialized in something more cerebral.
And then he showed up in "thirtysomething." As cool as ever.
J.D. was also in "Postcards from the Edge," but his acting career never blossomed into something bigger.
7
And then it was 2007, hell had already frozen over, back in 1994, and there'd been a few new tracks, but now the Eagles took the long road out of Eden and decided to lead with... "How Long"? A J.D. Souther song? From his very first album?
J.D. was back on the radio. The double album was sold exclusively by Walmart and the single made a dent, unlike the work by oldsters today. This was not the new Billy Joel single, the new work of Steve Perry. "How Long" did not sink like a stone, it was actually a radio hit.
And then J.D. came out of the woodwork.
It was a new century, with new rules. He hired a young management team and put out the jazzy live album "If the World Was You," and hit the road. Suddenly, J.D. was ACCESSIBLE!
Friendly, talkative and open.
What he was most proud of was his daughter, whom most people were unaware existed. She was in school in Paris and... Whenever I spoke with J.D. she came up.
Along with his Volvo.
And then he left NashVegas for New Mexico, tripped and...
"Hey Bob
I'd love to do your podcast. I missed a lot of emails this year I apologize, something I've had to become skilled at in the last few months. I moved to New Mexico, which was interesting enough with two young frisky dogs but then tripped on a marble step in my new house (1ST MORNING!!) broke a rib and punctured a lung so my first week in The Land of Enchantment was spent at Presbyterian Hospital with a chest drain in my right side and the next few weeks spent trying to settle into the new place with various visiting friends to help and a great TM who stepped up and made it possible.
It's been a zoo but things are beginning to settle down at last.
Let's do it!
JD"
We never did do that podcast.
But there was another e-mail:
RE: The Model Is Broken.
Bob, you're killing it, mate. Superbly reasoned piece and within it lies the awful truth…or is it that awful? Yes, in many ways, but change is always a new pair of boots that need breaking in.
The message at the heart of even this sea change is the same; write a great song and sing it well. It might not make you rich but then again, it just might and you can probably sleep a little better knowing you don't suck. Then get up and try to do it again.
Keep firing
JD Souther"
8
Sure I knew him, but I would have written all of the above even if I hadn't. Man, he wrote all those songs, he made that music, and he was cool and never sold out, never lost his identity.
Isn't that what it's all about?
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Tuesday 17 September 2024
The Pagers
Jews are kvelling.
But they can't tell anybody.
This is like Trump and the shooters. All the stories covered in the mainstream. They don't go to the essence of the story, because they're afraid people are going to FREAK OUT!
The backlash has not begun, but it's coming. Those nasty Jews, how could they do this?
Well, in truth the idea is in the latest season of "Trigger Point," the Vicky McClure vehicle created by the same person who's responsible for "Line of Duty," one of the most beloved shows in England, and those who have viewed it worldwide. BENT COPPERS!
So in "Trigger Point" McClure is an EXPO. A bomb expert. She learned her skill in the military, and goes around London defusing bombs. Although unlike in American TV series, people die. Everybody's fair game, like in "The Sopranos." Beloved or not, they may go. Which keeps you on your toes.
So it's a cat and mouse game in the second season. The domestic terrorists, with an anti-capitalist agenda, keep amping up the ante. Sometimes with hoax bombs, that freak people out but will never blow up.
Then there's a tip. There's going to be an explosion in a business area, using drones, which were employed once before. The cops arrive, they're freaking out. They try to get the people off the sidewalks, they debate emptying the buildings, but that's a bridge too far.
And then they start hearing explosions.
Where are they coming from?
THE SCOOTERS!
Yes, you know, Bird, Lime, available in almost all major cities. The bombs are inside them. And McClure as Lana Washington runs after a woman on a scooter, trying to warn her, but she's wearing headphones and can't hear and...
She's blown up.
So it's kind of like Bush after 9/11. Who could come up with these ideas, who could think of this?
So now we've got the Mossad of the past, back in action.
Yes, the Israelis developed an incredible intelligence and military reputation. They were the envy of the world. America couldn't rescue hostages, but the Israelis could.
And then came 10/7.
But the johnny-come-latelies to the Middle East don't know the history. Israel's existence has been in danger from the moment the country was founded. The Palestinians were offered their own country, but they refused, they wanted all the land, no Israel at all.
So Israel is fighting battles all the time, on high alert. The country can only lose once.
And the mind-set is completely different from the U.S. In the U.S., the war always happens over there. We skated during WWII, other than Pearl Harbor, the end result of which was the dropping of nuclear bombs to finish the war. That's why 9/11 was so unfathomable, it happened HERE! And if it happens once, it could happen again. But it's funny to see people in the hinterlands who are deathly afraid of foreign terrorists. Do you really think they're going to bomb Kansas or Wyoming? They're way down the list.
So the average American does not pay attention to the Mideast conflict. I'm not even sure the average American knows where any of these countries are, never mind that those which surround Israel won't accept Palestinian refugees.
There have been constant battles with Hezbollah. Which we'll just call the Hamas of the north. Sure, the fit isn't perfect, but it's not completely wrong either.
So it turns out the Israelis could monitor cell phones, so Hezbollah decided to go with old school technology, pagers. And...
Notice that Israel has not yet accepted responsibility. Why? What's the advantage? In war it's all about stealth, surprise. Don't take a victory lap until it's all done, if at all.
Does Israel want Lebanon's land? Does it want to own Beirut?
Absolutely not, it just wants to be able to live in peace, which Hezbollah will not allow.
So explosives are embedded in pagers and...
Women were affected, and even a child. HOW DARE THEY?
But what in hell is a child doing with a Hezbollah pager?
This is what the Israelis are up against. I ask you, is your kid involved in subversive activities, is your kid at risk? NO, many home school their kids to avoid any negative influence. Can you imagine?
NO! Most people cannot.
Now modern warfare is confusing. Because everybody refrains from using atomic weapons. Which are truly the final solution, pardon the term. So what are the rules of modern war? I don't know. What can Ukraine do without Russia pushing back. Russia's army may be inept, but Russia's got a much deeper pocket. But if Ukraine gets just a bit more weaponry, they can attack Russia's big cities. What is the population going to say then? Statistically, most Russians support Putin, because they've been the victims of disinformation. They don't know the score. Kinda like so many in America, if you think about it.
So what happens now on the Israel/Lebanon front?
And it's not like the pagers that exploded were only in Lebanon, explosions were in Syria too! The Arabs are organized. The Israelis are fighting on all fronts.
So all the news has been bad. Before the war Netanyahu wanted to neutralize the Supreme Court, and then there's the settlements. It's hard to be a Jew in America and support Israel.
But when the entire country is threatened...
This pager story is too new for the anti-Israel protesters to get organized. But if past is prologue, it's coming. Because the Jews can't be aggressors. Arabs can be terrorists, but not the Jews!
And, once again, Israel is ahead of Hezbollah technologically. In case you didn't know, Israel is a hotbed of technological innovation. Do you use WAZE? That's an Israeli product.
So if you're a Jew...
You're smiling on the inside today. You can't tell anybody. Because then you'll be ostracized, set yourself up for blowback.
But after '67 and Munich and '73... Isn't Israel allowed to take the initiative? It's not like 10/7 where the Israelis were living in peace before Hamas attacked. Hezbollah has been provoking, missiles have been fired.
Never underestimate the power of antisemitism. It's coming re this pager story. And doesn't this fit the stereotype? The advanced, intelligent conniving Jew/Israeli?
This is what Israel is up against. This is what Jews are up against. Play nice all you want, but they don't hate you less.
If you haven't had someone say something antisemitic in front of you, you're probably wearing a kippah.
The Jews aren't able to play offense. Even though one could argue today's pager explosions were actually defense. They've got no right. They should just be happy they can coexist. Then again, this is not what the Arabs in the Middle East want, they want Israel GONE!
So Israel fights back and...
People die. That's the nature of war.
And it's not only Hamas, the active soldiers. Much of the populace is anti-Israel, whether they've been sold a bill of goods or not. Which is why women and children were carrying Hezbollah pagers.
So what does the world say now?
We're waiting to see.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
But they can't tell anybody.
This is like Trump and the shooters. All the stories covered in the mainstream. They don't go to the essence of the story, because they're afraid people are going to FREAK OUT!
The backlash has not begun, but it's coming. Those nasty Jews, how could they do this?
Well, in truth the idea is in the latest season of "Trigger Point," the Vicky McClure vehicle created by the same person who's responsible for "Line of Duty," one of the most beloved shows in England, and those who have viewed it worldwide. BENT COPPERS!
So in "Trigger Point" McClure is an EXPO. A bomb expert. She learned her skill in the military, and goes around London defusing bombs. Although unlike in American TV series, people die. Everybody's fair game, like in "The Sopranos." Beloved or not, they may go. Which keeps you on your toes.
So it's a cat and mouse game in the second season. The domestic terrorists, with an anti-capitalist agenda, keep amping up the ante. Sometimes with hoax bombs, that freak people out but will never blow up.
Then there's a tip. There's going to be an explosion in a business area, using drones, which were employed once before. The cops arrive, they're freaking out. They try to get the people off the sidewalks, they debate emptying the buildings, but that's a bridge too far.
And then they start hearing explosions.
Where are they coming from?
THE SCOOTERS!
Yes, you know, Bird, Lime, available in almost all major cities. The bombs are inside them. And McClure as Lana Washington runs after a woman on a scooter, trying to warn her, but she's wearing headphones and can't hear and...
She's blown up.
So it's kind of like Bush after 9/11. Who could come up with these ideas, who could think of this?
So now we've got the Mossad of the past, back in action.
Yes, the Israelis developed an incredible intelligence and military reputation. They were the envy of the world. America couldn't rescue hostages, but the Israelis could.
And then came 10/7.
But the johnny-come-latelies to the Middle East don't know the history. Israel's existence has been in danger from the moment the country was founded. The Palestinians were offered their own country, but they refused, they wanted all the land, no Israel at all.
So Israel is fighting battles all the time, on high alert. The country can only lose once.
And the mind-set is completely different from the U.S. In the U.S., the war always happens over there. We skated during WWII, other than Pearl Harbor, the end result of which was the dropping of nuclear bombs to finish the war. That's why 9/11 was so unfathomable, it happened HERE! And if it happens once, it could happen again. But it's funny to see people in the hinterlands who are deathly afraid of foreign terrorists. Do you really think they're going to bomb Kansas or Wyoming? They're way down the list.
So the average American does not pay attention to the Mideast conflict. I'm not even sure the average American knows where any of these countries are, never mind that those which surround Israel won't accept Palestinian refugees.
There have been constant battles with Hezbollah. Which we'll just call the Hamas of the north. Sure, the fit isn't perfect, but it's not completely wrong either.
So it turns out the Israelis could monitor cell phones, so Hezbollah decided to go with old school technology, pagers. And...
Notice that Israel has not yet accepted responsibility. Why? What's the advantage? In war it's all about stealth, surprise. Don't take a victory lap until it's all done, if at all.
Does Israel want Lebanon's land? Does it want to own Beirut?
Absolutely not, it just wants to be able to live in peace, which Hezbollah will not allow.
So explosives are embedded in pagers and...
Women were affected, and even a child. HOW DARE THEY?
But what in hell is a child doing with a Hezbollah pager?
This is what the Israelis are up against. I ask you, is your kid involved in subversive activities, is your kid at risk? NO, many home school their kids to avoid any negative influence. Can you imagine?
NO! Most people cannot.
Now modern warfare is confusing. Because everybody refrains from using atomic weapons. Which are truly the final solution, pardon the term. So what are the rules of modern war? I don't know. What can Ukraine do without Russia pushing back. Russia's army may be inept, but Russia's got a much deeper pocket. But if Ukraine gets just a bit more weaponry, they can attack Russia's big cities. What is the population going to say then? Statistically, most Russians support Putin, because they've been the victims of disinformation. They don't know the score. Kinda like so many in America, if you think about it.
So what happens now on the Israel/Lebanon front?
And it's not like the pagers that exploded were only in Lebanon, explosions were in Syria too! The Arabs are organized. The Israelis are fighting on all fronts.
So all the news has been bad. Before the war Netanyahu wanted to neutralize the Supreme Court, and then there's the settlements. It's hard to be a Jew in America and support Israel.
But when the entire country is threatened...
This pager story is too new for the anti-Israel protesters to get organized. But if past is prologue, it's coming. Because the Jews can't be aggressors. Arabs can be terrorists, but not the Jews!
And, once again, Israel is ahead of Hezbollah technologically. In case you didn't know, Israel is a hotbed of technological innovation. Do you use WAZE? That's an Israeli product.
So if you're a Jew...
You're smiling on the inside today. You can't tell anybody. Because then you'll be ostracized, set yourself up for blowback.
But after '67 and Munich and '73... Isn't Israel allowed to take the initiative? It's not like 10/7 where the Israelis were living in peace before Hamas attacked. Hezbollah has been provoking, missiles have been fired.
Never underestimate the power of antisemitism. It's coming re this pager story. And doesn't this fit the stereotype? The advanced, intelligent conniving Jew/Israeli?
This is what Israel is up against. This is what Jews are up against. Play nice all you want, but they don't hate you less.
If you haven't had someone say something antisemitic in front of you, you're probably wearing a kippah.
The Jews aren't able to play offense. Even though one could argue today's pager explosions were actually defense. They've got no right. They should just be happy they can coexist. Then again, this is not what the Arabs in the Middle East want, they want Israel GONE!
So Israel fights back and...
People die. That's the nature of war.
And it's not only Hamas, the active soldiers. Much of the populace is anti-Israel, whether they've been sold a bill of goods or not. Which is why women and children were carrying Hezbollah pagers.
So what does the world say now?
We're waiting to see.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Monday 16 September 2024
The Road East-Live In Japan
Spotify: https://t.ly/8tnXr
1
Who knew this was out?
Jackson Browne's got a great publicist, both the "New York Times" and "Wall Street Journal" had articles about the fiftieth anniversary of "Late For The Sky."
Now if that doesn't freak you out, half a century.
I first heard "Fountain of Sorrow" driving my sister's Pontiac to her graduate school class at USC. It was a gray, nearly rainy day. (Well, this was before I realized it may look like it, but it almost never rains in L.A.) It was wistful. I'd just graduated from college. What did the future hold? I was free, but it's weird jumping the track, being released, out of the game for the first time in your life, no one looking over your shoulder, telling you who to be, telling me how I was doing it wrong.
I bought the first Jackson Browne album, not entitled "Saturate Before Using," after seeing him open for Laura Nyro at the Fillmore East. Alone with his guitar, I got it. And that's rare when you don't know the material.
It doesn't get much better than "Rock Me on the Water." Even though the hit was "Doctor My Eyes." Listening all these years later that piano part is pretty magical, but it was the quieter numbers like "Song For Adam" that truly sealed the deal.
And, of course, the second album had "These Days" and Jackson's version of "Take It Easy," but there were no hits, I wouldn't say his career had stalled, it just wasn't moving forward. Jackson was grinding it out on the road, like most acts did in the early seventies, how they do now. Outside New York and L.A. you could get a ticket. For some reason you owned the record and you needed to get closer, you needed to hear these songs live, and it was a magical experience, only for the people in the room, there was no recording device in your pocket, never mind selfie machine.
But then came "Late For The Sky."
Which also wasn't a hit.
And FM radio airplay didn't really gain traction until the next album, 1976's "The Pretender," with the title track fitting the Burkhart/Abrams paradigm, jaunty enough for the hinterlands, flyover country, yet still meaningful enough for the coasts.
And then came "Running on Empty." An album of new material recorded on the bus, in hotel rooms. The rock press was at its peak, the title track was a tear and "The Load-Out/Stay" was ubiquitous.
This was Jackson's peak. Commercially.
"Hold Out" got some action with "Boulevard." The title track of "Lawyers in Love" ditto. And although it seems decades later that "In the Shape of a Heart" was a hit, statistics tell us otherwise. But it became one of Jackson's standards, as he continued to march forward, not quite in obscurity, but not in the MTV mainstream.
And then came 1993's "I'm Alive." A complete return to form. Of a piece with the early albums. Quiet, acoustic, meaningful. Very strong. But when the public did not accept it overwhelmingly, Jackson went back to the band, making rock records.
And there are two cuts that stand out for me. "About My Imagination" from 2002's "Naked Ride Home" and the title track of "Looking East" from 1996. But you have to be a dedicated fan to know them. I'd posit most of the people at the live shows don't know them.
But they still come out to see Jackson.
And in the early part of the century, Jackson performed a master stroke. He recorded all his well known material acoustically. And released it in two packages. And went on tour with nearly twenty guitars doing the recordings in concert. Truly magical. If you don't know those albums, you should. And then came the duo record with David Lindley, who used to go out on the road with Jackson in his earliest travels.
And then more studio work. It's a rock band, it's not like the first three albums, it's not like "I'm Alive," but boomers go out and see him. He doesn't tour as much as James Taylor, but he's out there. He appeals to women and men. It's more than the hits. It's about getting in touch with an era when music truly had meaning, when it spoke to your soul.
Great. But there's nothing new.
And then this.
2
Now in truth acts have putting out live albums in Japan forever. And unlike Cheap Trick's "Budokan" LP, most of them were never released in America, the acts didn't want them to be, they were marketing efforts to solidify the Asian fan base.
But then along came Napster. And a plethora of live material appeared, It was thrilling. And then this same stuff appeared on YouTube and became less special, there was just too much of it. It's not the double live album event of the seventies.
But now the "Times" is saying there's a new live Jackson Browne album? I didn't believe it. But I pulled out Spotify to look it up, AND THERE IT WAS!
Now this music works best when you're doing nothing else, when you're relaxed, when you can focus and own it. Today music is background, the soundtrack of your life that you're documenting via your smartphone. whereas yesterday we were nothing and the acts were everything, heroes, gods.
And I'm digging the music, researching the album, seeing if I missed the hype. But there was none. It's almost like this "Live in Japan" album was a stealth release. Were there more?
And that's when I found "Running Down the Road (Live 1972)."
No, this can't be, this must be a mistake.
Now in the old days, back before Spotify was in America, when Tidal was named WiMP and based in Norway, there were all kinds of albums like these on those services. But once streaming gained traction, the artists and labels cracked down, they didn't want this stuff out. BUT HERE IT IS!
Spotify link: https://rb.gy/tmlmmb
Now this is like a Dead Sea Scroll. If you're a member of the Browne cult, you must listen to this. You'll be stunned. This was Jackson in his nascent days, sans even David Lindley, far from smug and satisfied, just doing his act and trying to win over the audience. There's a vibrancy.
And speaking of the piano in "Doctor My Eyes," when you hear it played by Jackson as he accompanies himself the song breathes, is alive in a way no studio recording could ever be. Listen to the piano playing at the end most especially.
And Jackson even plays "Peaceful Easy Feeling," which is astounding if you know the "Solo Acoustic" records. There someone in the crowd calls out for it, Jackson says he didn't write it, tries singing it and has a problem with the lyrics, as in he doesn't believe in them, and stops. I thought the audience member was just confused, but it turns out Jackson really did do "Peaceful Easy Feeling."
But I'm writing about "Live in Japan."
3
Well, the first track I had to listen to was "Looking East." I love the studio take, but the "Solo Acoustic" version is a twisting, turning gem. I've listened to it a zillion times.
The take on "Live in Japan" is closer to the studio take. Faster, but Jackson's right out front, the band doesn't overshadow him, which in the recent shows I've seen has been a bit of the case. Jackson blends in, he's a member of the band, whereas here he's the complete act, he's the one.
"The Barricades of Heaven," also from "Looking East," has become a live staple. It's kind of a sequel to "Running on Empty," or more accurately, a prequel.
"Running down around the towns along the shore
When I was sixteen and on my own
No, I couldn't tell you what the hell those brakes were for
I was just trying to hear my song."
This was 1964. Before Laurel Canyon. When California was still a dream, when people were living freely out there while we were still playing by the rules on the east coast.
And this take opens the album, and the band is there but it's just perfect, it's the best live recording of Jackson with backup that I've ever heard.
Of course there's "These Days." Which we heard from Jackson and Gregg Allman in the fall of '73, before the song became a staple. Actually, Allman's take made it one.
And this live album is not a traditional greatest hits set, which is part of what makes it so interesting. There's a great take of "Call It a Loan," from 1980's "Hold Out" and it's richer, with more meaning than the studio version. It comes alive.
And "I'm Alive" is there too.
And more.
But really, it's the listening experience. Old, but new. New, but old. Sure, the songs are not brand new, but nor are our old friends from way back when, we knew them so well, even if we no longer talk to them every day.
And Jackson has not been embraced by the younger generations like Joni Mitchell, then again there's still time. Jackson did get Covid, but he's not had a near-death experience. And as much as I love "Blue," I'd also take "Late For the Sky" to that desert island, along with AC/DC's "Back in Black."
So pull up "Live in Japan" on your streaming service. When it's quiet, when you can concentrate. In your living room on a lazy Saturday afternoon, or blasting alone in the chamber of your car on a longish drive.
It's in the music, it's a feeling. It's captured, it's there.
It's hard to describe.
But it's not much different from that day in 1974 when I heard "Fountain of Sorrow" on Western Avenue.
My life story has been mostly written. But I'm still the same alienated f*ck looking for music to complete me. The sun is setting, but I'm alive.
The music changed me. It still changes me.
I'm running with too much baggage, but I'm still running.
And I don't run alone, but with a tune in my head.
And that tune in my head sounds like this.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
1
Who knew this was out?
Jackson Browne's got a great publicist, both the "New York Times" and "Wall Street Journal" had articles about the fiftieth anniversary of "Late For The Sky."
Now if that doesn't freak you out, half a century.
I first heard "Fountain of Sorrow" driving my sister's Pontiac to her graduate school class at USC. It was a gray, nearly rainy day. (Well, this was before I realized it may look like it, but it almost never rains in L.A.) It was wistful. I'd just graduated from college. What did the future hold? I was free, but it's weird jumping the track, being released, out of the game for the first time in your life, no one looking over your shoulder, telling you who to be, telling me how I was doing it wrong.
I bought the first Jackson Browne album, not entitled "Saturate Before Using," after seeing him open for Laura Nyro at the Fillmore East. Alone with his guitar, I got it. And that's rare when you don't know the material.
It doesn't get much better than "Rock Me on the Water." Even though the hit was "Doctor My Eyes." Listening all these years later that piano part is pretty magical, but it was the quieter numbers like "Song For Adam" that truly sealed the deal.
And, of course, the second album had "These Days" and Jackson's version of "Take It Easy," but there were no hits, I wouldn't say his career had stalled, it just wasn't moving forward. Jackson was grinding it out on the road, like most acts did in the early seventies, how they do now. Outside New York and L.A. you could get a ticket. For some reason you owned the record and you needed to get closer, you needed to hear these songs live, and it was a magical experience, only for the people in the room, there was no recording device in your pocket, never mind selfie machine.
But then came "Late For The Sky."
Which also wasn't a hit.
And FM radio airplay didn't really gain traction until the next album, 1976's "The Pretender," with the title track fitting the Burkhart/Abrams paradigm, jaunty enough for the hinterlands, flyover country, yet still meaningful enough for the coasts.
And then came "Running on Empty." An album of new material recorded on the bus, in hotel rooms. The rock press was at its peak, the title track was a tear and "The Load-Out/Stay" was ubiquitous.
This was Jackson's peak. Commercially.
"Hold Out" got some action with "Boulevard." The title track of "Lawyers in Love" ditto. And although it seems decades later that "In the Shape of a Heart" was a hit, statistics tell us otherwise. But it became one of Jackson's standards, as he continued to march forward, not quite in obscurity, but not in the MTV mainstream.
And then came 1993's "I'm Alive." A complete return to form. Of a piece with the early albums. Quiet, acoustic, meaningful. Very strong. But when the public did not accept it overwhelmingly, Jackson went back to the band, making rock records.
And there are two cuts that stand out for me. "About My Imagination" from 2002's "Naked Ride Home" and the title track of "Looking East" from 1996. But you have to be a dedicated fan to know them. I'd posit most of the people at the live shows don't know them.
But they still come out to see Jackson.
And in the early part of the century, Jackson performed a master stroke. He recorded all his well known material acoustically. And released it in two packages. And went on tour with nearly twenty guitars doing the recordings in concert. Truly magical. If you don't know those albums, you should. And then came the duo record with David Lindley, who used to go out on the road with Jackson in his earliest travels.
And then more studio work. It's a rock band, it's not like the first three albums, it's not like "I'm Alive," but boomers go out and see him. He doesn't tour as much as James Taylor, but he's out there. He appeals to women and men. It's more than the hits. It's about getting in touch with an era when music truly had meaning, when it spoke to your soul.
Great. But there's nothing new.
And then this.
2
Now in truth acts have putting out live albums in Japan forever. And unlike Cheap Trick's "Budokan" LP, most of them were never released in America, the acts didn't want them to be, they were marketing efforts to solidify the Asian fan base.
But then along came Napster. And a plethora of live material appeared, It was thrilling. And then this same stuff appeared on YouTube and became less special, there was just too much of it. It's not the double live album event of the seventies.
But now the "Times" is saying there's a new live Jackson Browne album? I didn't believe it. But I pulled out Spotify to look it up, AND THERE IT WAS!
Now this music works best when you're doing nothing else, when you're relaxed, when you can focus and own it. Today music is background, the soundtrack of your life that you're documenting via your smartphone. whereas yesterday we were nothing and the acts were everything, heroes, gods.
And I'm digging the music, researching the album, seeing if I missed the hype. But there was none. It's almost like this "Live in Japan" album was a stealth release. Were there more?
And that's when I found "Running Down the Road (Live 1972)."
No, this can't be, this must be a mistake.
Now in the old days, back before Spotify was in America, when Tidal was named WiMP and based in Norway, there were all kinds of albums like these on those services. But once streaming gained traction, the artists and labels cracked down, they didn't want this stuff out. BUT HERE IT IS!
Spotify link: https://rb.gy/tmlmmb
Now this is like a Dead Sea Scroll. If you're a member of the Browne cult, you must listen to this. You'll be stunned. This was Jackson in his nascent days, sans even David Lindley, far from smug and satisfied, just doing his act and trying to win over the audience. There's a vibrancy.
And speaking of the piano in "Doctor My Eyes," when you hear it played by Jackson as he accompanies himself the song breathes, is alive in a way no studio recording could ever be. Listen to the piano playing at the end most especially.
And Jackson even plays "Peaceful Easy Feeling," which is astounding if you know the "Solo Acoustic" records. There someone in the crowd calls out for it, Jackson says he didn't write it, tries singing it and has a problem with the lyrics, as in he doesn't believe in them, and stops. I thought the audience member was just confused, but it turns out Jackson really did do "Peaceful Easy Feeling."
But I'm writing about "Live in Japan."
3
Well, the first track I had to listen to was "Looking East." I love the studio take, but the "Solo Acoustic" version is a twisting, turning gem. I've listened to it a zillion times.
The take on "Live in Japan" is closer to the studio take. Faster, but Jackson's right out front, the band doesn't overshadow him, which in the recent shows I've seen has been a bit of the case. Jackson blends in, he's a member of the band, whereas here he's the complete act, he's the one.
"The Barricades of Heaven," also from "Looking East," has become a live staple. It's kind of a sequel to "Running on Empty," or more accurately, a prequel.
"Running down around the towns along the shore
When I was sixteen and on my own
No, I couldn't tell you what the hell those brakes were for
I was just trying to hear my song."
This was 1964. Before Laurel Canyon. When California was still a dream, when people were living freely out there while we were still playing by the rules on the east coast.
And this take opens the album, and the band is there but it's just perfect, it's the best live recording of Jackson with backup that I've ever heard.
Of course there's "These Days." Which we heard from Jackson and Gregg Allman in the fall of '73, before the song became a staple. Actually, Allman's take made it one.
And this live album is not a traditional greatest hits set, which is part of what makes it so interesting. There's a great take of "Call It a Loan," from 1980's "Hold Out" and it's richer, with more meaning than the studio version. It comes alive.
And "I'm Alive" is there too.
And more.
But really, it's the listening experience. Old, but new. New, but old. Sure, the songs are not brand new, but nor are our old friends from way back when, we knew them so well, even if we no longer talk to them every day.
And Jackson has not been embraced by the younger generations like Joni Mitchell, then again there's still time. Jackson did get Covid, but he's not had a near-death experience. And as much as I love "Blue," I'd also take "Late For the Sky" to that desert island, along with AC/DC's "Back in Black."
So pull up "Live in Japan" on your streaming service. When it's quiet, when you can concentrate. In your living room on a lazy Saturday afternoon, or blasting alone in the chamber of your car on a longish drive.
It's in the music, it's a feeling. It's captured, it's there.
It's hard to describe.
But it's not much different from that day in 1974 when I heard "Fountain of Sorrow" on Western Avenue.
My life story has been mostly written. But I'm still the same alienated f*ck looking for music to complete me. The sun is setting, but I'm alive.
The music changed me. It still changes me.
I'm running with too much baggage, but I'm still running.
And I don't run alone, but with a tune in my head.
And that tune in my head sounds like this.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Shot In The Dark
They got Tupac, didn't they?
This is not a failure of law enforcement, this is a failure of COMMUNICATION!
Tell everybody guns are cool and the government is the enemy of the people and what do you expect?
And then you've got Elon Musk asking on X why this doesn't happen to Harris and Walz and when confronted with the blowback he deletes the tweet and says it's all a joke. Explain to me how that works again?
If you want to be horrified, or if you just want an adjustment, you need to read yesterday's excerpt from the new book about Donald Trump and "The Apprentice":
"The Star-Making Machine That Created 'Donald Trump' - The inside story of how the producers of "The Apprentice" crafted a TV version of Mr. Trump — measured, thoughtful and endlessly wealthy — that ultimately fueled his path to the White House."
Free link: https://t.ly/u9X6Z
This is not dense, like the article on Roberts and the Supreme Court in the same edition, this is easily read and I highly recommend it, but since it's so hard to get people to click through, let me just give you a few quotes:
"The first thing they noticed was the stench, a musty carpet odor that followed them like an invisible cloud. Then they spotted scores of chips in the finish of the wooden desks and credenzas."
And:
"The place did not exactly buzz with energy either. Fewer than 50 people worked at Trump Organization headquarters in midtown Manhattan. At the office's spiritual center, Mr. Trump's own desk bore no evidence of work, no computer screens or piles of contracts and blueprints, just a blanket of news articles focused on one subject: himself.
And:
"'He would fire the absolute wrong person,' recalled Mr. Braun, who came to recognize the times when Mr. Trump 'had no idea what was going on, and he would just make something up.'"
It's a myth baby, TV sold it and America bought it.
And then the disenfranchised turned over America's table.
Let's be clear, Clinton was out of touch. Hell, the Democratic party is still out of touch, I haven't yet recovered from how they covered up Biden's foibles, thinking we'd buy that he's spry and up to the job in his eighties. And we had a media that bought it, as if we can't see the truth with our own eyes.
And the truth is that Trump has been inciting violence for years. Rile people up and you get results. These people are doing God's work, at least that's what they believe.
And then you've got J.D. Vance. Unlike Trump, Vance is actually smart, even though his book was fiction and he worked with Peter Thiel and knows about as much about the rank and file as Prince William, never mind his brother.
This is what the Trumpsters don't understand. Trump and Vance can't be on your side because they never experienced your side, they've got no idea what it is, they don't live that way, and in the case of Trump, never has. This is not Bernie Sanders up from nothing.
It's not like the past has not been prologue. January 6th was enough. But we had the Bundy standoff before that. All kinds of people who think the rules don't apply to them. Destabilizing the government. So they can...
Exactly what? Bring chaos to the country at large?
Kind of like the death of Roe v. Wade?
Sure, it's sad we live in a nation where rogue actors take pot shots at our officials, but let's stop with the kumbaya. Sure, there are mentally ill independent actors, but even they are inspired by the news they're exposed to. Like that child sex ring run out of a pizza parlor.
The Democrats don't know how to fight back. Call a spade a spade. They say to wait until it works its way through the courts, which is interminable and too many of the Trump judges rule in his favor.
How come Trump knows it's about hearts and minds and the Democrats don't?
And I don't care how many Secret Service people you put on Trump, if someone wants to get him, they will. That's how the world works. No one is safe. This is just another demonization of the government. Hell, the Mafia can't keep people safe and crime is their business! The only way to stay completely safe is to never go outside your bunker, and surround that with concertina wire and security. And that's no way to live.
It's everybody's fault but theirs. The immigrants. Unless you're descended from a Native American, you're an immigrant too. And just like the Nazis incarcerated everybody with a hint of Jewish blood, even if they went to church, if we went back far enough you'd be considered an immigrant too.
As far as being a real American... What exactly does that mean? I'm here, I'm a citizen, I'm not real?
But it gets worse than that... The WaPo predicts the Republicans will take over the Senate. Why not, when the two Dakotas get four Senators between them. Same deal with Wyoming.
And there's the Electoral College. The game is rigged for Republicans but it's still not enough for them.
So you hate me and you hate the Democratic elite. Fine. What's your solution for school shootings?
Once again, I don't care how many ARs you've got, you're no match for the government, which can squash you like a bug. Stop with the fantasy that guns can keep the government in line.
As for assault rifles... Everybody's so afraid of alienating a minority of the public, a minority of gun owners, that no action can be taken. This is just like the inane politicians who flipped and now pay fealty to Trump. You may be keeping your job, for a while anyway, but you're making things worse, not better.
Did you read the story in Saturday's "Wall Street Journal" about Ford's CEO being freaked out by electric cars in China?
"What Scared Ford's CEO in China - Jim Farley is changing strategy to combat what he calls an 'existential threat' from China's electric carmakers"
Free link: https://t.ly/R7DII
Bottom line, if it weren't for protectionism, China would soon own our car market. This is not Yugos, this is electric cars and some hybrids priced low with features you can't even dream of.
But what are we told? We need more oil! Drill, baby drill!
And if you don't like the news in the right wing paper of record, here's an equivalent piece in the left:
"Trump's Obsession With Oil Could Destroy America's Auto Industry"
Free link: https://t.ly/zoaOy
Share the above two articles with everybody you know.
We need a moon shot, an equivalent to JFK's promise to put a man on the moon in the sixties, something we actually did, when the U.S. was still a can-do nation.
People don't understand the problem. You make it a movement. You need a better name than "The Green New Deal." It has to be about saving America, if you want to make America great again this is how you do it, as opposed to fantasizing about a past era that wasn't so good to begin with and will never come back.
People don't know the truth. And therefore they act on falsehoods.
And my inbox is inundated with lefties decrying the "New York Times."
But the joke is on them. You want to compete with the "Times," do your own reporting. Furthermore, most of the complaints are about the Op-Ed pages, which are inherently opinion.
So it's not only those on the right who don't get it.
And we've got parents who don't want schools to shut out cell phones because... They want to be able to get in touch with their progeny in case of a school shooting. How upside down is that!
This is the nation we now live in. Where everybody's living in fear.
While they feel powerless.
And then some martyrs, uninformed and uneducated, decide to take matters into their own hands.
Trump is responsible for the assassination attempts. Period. But in the topsy-turvy world we live in, they're blaming it on Harris and Walz. Is there no truth left?
You can't be afraid of the other side.
God, I wish Kamala Harris would speak English, say under Biden things have actually been pretty good, better than all the countries in Europe. Lower inflation... You've got to own your victories instead of running away from them. Own your truth if you want to win. Start running on Biden's record. The question isn't whether you're better off today or four years ago, the story is how we beat Covid and not only survived, but thrived! That's quite an accomplishment.
As for vaccines... They protect against death. Every study says that.
Where fewer people were vaccinated there were more deaths.
When are people going to start telling the truth?
Oh, you get it on social media.
Like that woman who responded to former Trump White House personnel chief John McEntee who said no women were "bleeding out" as a result of abortion bans:
Check this out: https://t.ly/m2LS2
Meanwhile, Harris keeps asking us for money for TV advertising. Who in the hell is watching linear TV, and how many of those people have not made up their minds?
But as a matter of fact, the Harris team is deep into TikTok, you can read all about it here:
"The 'feral 25-year-olds' making Kamala Harris go viral on TikTok': https://t.ly/yv0jN
All the action is online and the left wing elite keep telling us to get off our smartphones. How do you think you get the message out today?
I'm just irritated because everybody in the news yesterday was dancing around the issue, talking about the shooter instead of the target. Yes, it's interesting another person wanted to take out Trump, but can you focus on Trump, can you stop being afraid, and can you speak in plain English?
The right can stay in its bunker, refuse to believe the truth.
And the left can be afraid to say the truth.
But I'm not.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
This is not a failure of law enforcement, this is a failure of COMMUNICATION!
Tell everybody guns are cool and the government is the enemy of the people and what do you expect?
And then you've got Elon Musk asking on X why this doesn't happen to Harris and Walz and when confronted with the blowback he deletes the tweet and says it's all a joke. Explain to me how that works again?
If you want to be horrified, or if you just want an adjustment, you need to read yesterday's excerpt from the new book about Donald Trump and "The Apprentice":
"The Star-Making Machine That Created 'Donald Trump' - The inside story of how the producers of "The Apprentice" crafted a TV version of Mr. Trump — measured, thoughtful and endlessly wealthy — that ultimately fueled his path to the White House."
Free link: https://t.ly/u9X6Z
This is not dense, like the article on Roberts and the Supreme Court in the same edition, this is easily read and I highly recommend it, but since it's so hard to get people to click through, let me just give you a few quotes:
"The first thing they noticed was the stench, a musty carpet odor that followed them like an invisible cloud. Then they spotted scores of chips in the finish of the wooden desks and credenzas."
And:
"The place did not exactly buzz with energy either. Fewer than 50 people worked at Trump Organization headquarters in midtown Manhattan. At the office's spiritual center, Mr. Trump's own desk bore no evidence of work, no computer screens or piles of contracts and blueprints, just a blanket of news articles focused on one subject: himself.
And:
"'He would fire the absolute wrong person,' recalled Mr. Braun, who came to recognize the times when Mr. Trump 'had no idea what was going on, and he would just make something up.'"
It's a myth baby, TV sold it and America bought it.
And then the disenfranchised turned over America's table.
Let's be clear, Clinton was out of touch. Hell, the Democratic party is still out of touch, I haven't yet recovered from how they covered up Biden's foibles, thinking we'd buy that he's spry and up to the job in his eighties. And we had a media that bought it, as if we can't see the truth with our own eyes.
And the truth is that Trump has been inciting violence for years. Rile people up and you get results. These people are doing God's work, at least that's what they believe.
And then you've got J.D. Vance. Unlike Trump, Vance is actually smart, even though his book was fiction and he worked with Peter Thiel and knows about as much about the rank and file as Prince William, never mind his brother.
This is what the Trumpsters don't understand. Trump and Vance can't be on your side because they never experienced your side, they've got no idea what it is, they don't live that way, and in the case of Trump, never has. This is not Bernie Sanders up from nothing.
It's not like the past has not been prologue. January 6th was enough. But we had the Bundy standoff before that. All kinds of people who think the rules don't apply to them. Destabilizing the government. So they can...
Exactly what? Bring chaos to the country at large?
Kind of like the death of Roe v. Wade?
Sure, it's sad we live in a nation where rogue actors take pot shots at our officials, but let's stop with the kumbaya. Sure, there are mentally ill independent actors, but even they are inspired by the news they're exposed to. Like that child sex ring run out of a pizza parlor.
The Democrats don't know how to fight back. Call a spade a spade. They say to wait until it works its way through the courts, which is interminable and too many of the Trump judges rule in his favor.
How come Trump knows it's about hearts and minds and the Democrats don't?
And I don't care how many Secret Service people you put on Trump, if someone wants to get him, they will. That's how the world works. No one is safe. This is just another demonization of the government. Hell, the Mafia can't keep people safe and crime is their business! The only way to stay completely safe is to never go outside your bunker, and surround that with concertina wire and security. And that's no way to live.
It's everybody's fault but theirs. The immigrants. Unless you're descended from a Native American, you're an immigrant too. And just like the Nazis incarcerated everybody with a hint of Jewish blood, even if they went to church, if we went back far enough you'd be considered an immigrant too.
As far as being a real American... What exactly does that mean? I'm here, I'm a citizen, I'm not real?
But it gets worse than that... The WaPo predicts the Republicans will take over the Senate. Why not, when the two Dakotas get four Senators between them. Same deal with Wyoming.
And there's the Electoral College. The game is rigged for Republicans but it's still not enough for them.
So you hate me and you hate the Democratic elite. Fine. What's your solution for school shootings?
Once again, I don't care how many ARs you've got, you're no match for the government, which can squash you like a bug. Stop with the fantasy that guns can keep the government in line.
As for assault rifles... Everybody's so afraid of alienating a minority of the public, a minority of gun owners, that no action can be taken. This is just like the inane politicians who flipped and now pay fealty to Trump. You may be keeping your job, for a while anyway, but you're making things worse, not better.
Did you read the story in Saturday's "Wall Street Journal" about Ford's CEO being freaked out by electric cars in China?
"What Scared Ford's CEO in China - Jim Farley is changing strategy to combat what he calls an 'existential threat' from China's electric carmakers"
Free link: https://t.ly/R7DII
Bottom line, if it weren't for protectionism, China would soon own our car market. This is not Yugos, this is electric cars and some hybrids priced low with features you can't even dream of.
But what are we told? We need more oil! Drill, baby drill!
And if you don't like the news in the right wing paper of record, here's an equivalent piece in the left:
"Trump's Obsession With Oil Could Destroy America's Auto Industry"
Free link: https://t.ly/zoaOy
Share the above two articles with everybody you know.
We need a moon shot, an equivalent to JFK's promise to put a man on the moon in the sixties, something we actually did, when the U.S. was still a can-do nation.
People don't understand the problem. You make it a movement. You need a better name than "The Green New Deal." It has to be about saving America, if you want to make America great again this is how you do it, as opposed to fantasizing about a past era that wasn't so good to begin with and will never come back.
People don't know the truth. And therefore they act on falsehoods.
And my inbox is inundated with lefties decrying the "New York Times."
But the joke is on them. You want to compete with the "Times," do your own reporting. Furthermore, most of the complaints are about the Op-Ed pages, which are inherently opinion.
So it's not only those on the right who don't get it.
And we've got parents who don't want schools to shut out cell phones because... They want to be able to get in touch with their progeny in case of a school shooting. How upside down is that!
This is the nation we now live in. Where everybody's living in fear.
While they feel powerless.
And then some martyrs, uninformed and uneducated, decide to take matters into their own hands.
Trump is responsible for the assassination attempts. Period. But in the topsy-turvy world we live in, they're blaming it on Harris and Walz. Is there no truth left?
You can't be afraid of the other side.
God, I wish Kamala Harris would speak English, say under Biden things have actually been pretty good, better than all the countries in Europe. Lower inflation... You've got to own your victories instead of running away from them. Own your truth if you want to win. Start running on Biden's record. The question isn't whether you're better off today or four years ago, the story is how we beat Covid and not only survived, but thrived! That's quite an accomplishment.
As for vaccines... They protect against death. Every study says that.
Where fewer people were vaccinated there were more deaths.
When are people going to start telling the truth?
Oh, you get it on social media.
Like that woman who responded to former Trump White House personnel chief John McEntee who said no women were "bleeding out" as a result of abortion bans:
Check this out: https://t.ly/m2LS2
Meanwhile, Harris keeps asking us for money for TV advertising. Who in the hell is watching linear TV, and how many of those people have not made up their minds?
But as a matter of fact, the Harris team is deep into TikTok, you can read all about it here:
"The 'feral 25-year-olds' making Kamala Harris go viral on TikTok': https://t.ly/yv0jN
All the action is online and the left wing elite keep telling us to get off our smartphones. How do you think you get the message out today?
I'm just irritated because everybody in the news yesterday was dancing around the issue, talking about the shooter instead of the target. Yes, it's interesting another person wanted to take out Trump, but can you focus on Trump, can you stop being afraid, and can you speak in plain English?
The right can stay in its bunker, refuse to believe the truth.
And the left can be afraid to say the truth.
But I'm not.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)