From: Joel Selvin
Subject: Re: Country Joe McDonald
Date: March 10, 2026 at 10:37:49?AM MDT
As Bill Graham once introduced them at Fillmore East, Country Joe and the Fish -- taking Berkeley with them wherever they go.
____________________________________
From: Marc Sedaka
Subject: Re: Neil Sedaka/Dad
Date: March 4, 2026 at 11:35:30?PM MST
I couldn't read the comments from the both of you and not weigh in. Those London years from '72-'74 were arguably the happiest of my father's life and undoubtedly his most creative. Solitaire and The Tra La Days Are Over remain the Sedaka family's favorite albums, and, till the day he died, Neil would refer to songs like "Trying to Say Goodbye", "Anywhere You're Gonna Be" and "For Peace and Love" as his hidden treasures. He revered you both and was forever grateful for your guidance and your contributions.
Elton - Thank you for saying that Neil should be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It truly is an injustice that he's not and I'm only sorry that he didn't live long enough to see it happen. I must also reference something from Bob's wonderful retrospective that bears clarification. Neil never wanted to leave Rocket Records, but rather allowed himself to be coerced by people close to him who thought they knew better. Yes, he had regrets. But only because he didn't listen to his heart and do what he knew was right. I don't know if he ever told you that, but he told me a lot. He loved you so much.
Thank you both for changing his world.
____________________________________
From: Alex Cooper
Subject: Re: The Wings Book
Date: February 5, 2026 at 7:24:49?AM MST
My lawyer in NY worked for Yoko. He said he only really understood how famous the Beatles were when he walked into a room with the President of the United States and Paul McCartney in it. The Secret Service agents were looking worried. He saw why. Nobody was talking to The President. They all wanted to talk to Paul.
____________________________________
From: Michael Moniz
Subject: Brett Guerwitz, Epitaph Records Founder Speaks About Spotify
Bob, I'm unsure if you're familiar with who Brett Gurewitz is founder of Epitaph records and legendary Los Angeles punk band Bad Religion. Listening to him on this recent podcast episode of the podcast Hardlore, I think you might want to listen and even propagate it to your readers because of his take on Spotify. It's pretty much right in line with you have been saying, and to hear it these days from a mid-level musician and indie label owner is really hard to find these days. It's a long episode, it covers the history of the band and the label, but you just have to listen at about the two hour mark for about 10 to 12 minutes where he discusses it.
"Brett Gurewitz: Bad Religion, Founding Epitaph Records, Early Punk/Hardcore & The Shift to Spotify": https://overcast.fm/+AA5US0ZH1Tg
____________________________________
From: John Van Nest
Subject: Re: Re-Paul Anka
Date: March 9, 2026 at 6:38:06?PM MDT
Hi Bob,
I recorded vocals for a project of Paul Anka's somewhere around the late 80's. During the sessions, which ran a few days, we talked about a lot of things; family, life, his career, etc. I found him to be wonderfully genuine and a truly engaging person.
On the last day, as he was leaving, I felt his hand slide into my pocket, and when I reached in, I pulled out a $100 bill he had given me. I explained that tipping wasn't really customary nor necessary for a recording engineer. He replied, "Buy something nice for that little daughter of yours."
I was always struck by that act of kindness and appreciation. I'll forever be a fan of the man and his art.
____________________________________
From: Dave Arbiter
Subject: Re: Mac McAnally At The Vilar
Date: February 21, 2026 at 5:27:22?AM MST
Loved this one!!
I've been living in one of those Jimmy Buffett 55 (and better) communities for 1-1/2 years now, in Daytona Beach. Mac plays our community once a year, and it's impossible to get a golf cart spot on those evenings!
I appreciate you comparing the Parrotheads to the Deadheads. It's not far off, except by scale. Plenty of both here.
Fins Up,
Dave Arbiter
Latitude Margaritaville
Daytona Beach, FL
____________________________________
From: Kevin Cronin
Subject: Re: Man On The Run
Date: March 2, 2026 at 12:40:26?PM MST
Hey Bob,
I came across Man on the Run the other night, and found it to be my favorite post-Beatles doc. I can't put my finger on why … and I don't really care. It simply worked for me.
On a strictly musical level, it's hard to beat the in-studio piece with Paul and Rick Ruben. And the three-part special on the drama leading up to the rooftop performance was great in its own way. But again, for my money, Man on the Run told the story best. … kc
____________________________________
From: Jim Willcox
Subject: Re: Calibration
Date: February 12, 2026 at 7:22:11?AM MST
Hi, Bob, thanks for the write-up on TV calibration. I can't tell you how many times I go to someone's house and they brag about their new, great TV, and all I see is that they have the brightness cranked too high, the image is over-sharpened, they have engaged a high level of motion smoothing, and the colors are boosted to where they look unnatural. We know many people never take their TVs out of the default settings, or won't pay for a true ISF calibration, so we started offering members the actual settings we use in our labs to get TVs as close as possible to our reference models. We also point out that consumers don't have to be afraid to play around with the individual settings; you can always easily return to the TV's default settings in the menu.
Glad this made a difference in the LG OLED TV you bought, a great choice.
The offer for a lab visit still stands when you're on the East Coast.
Best regards,
Jim
James K. Willcox
Senior Electronics Editor
Consumer Reports/Consumer Reports Online
____________________________________
From: Steven Marmalstein
Subject: Re: The Billy Preston Movie
Date: February 24, 2026 at 8:09:06?PM MST
Hi Bob,
In 1997, I was a segment producer on a TV special for ABC called "The Three Stooges Greatest Hits." It was a clip/variety show hosted by Martin Short and was seen by probably 26 people. We hired Little Richard to appear on the show and sing the accidental hit from 1984 called "The Curly Shuffle" by Jump in the Saddle.
After we handed Richard his 25 G's in a brown paper bag, we asked him if he wanted to check out the piano, the tuning and whatnot. He said, "I'm good, I have Billy coming in to play my parts for me. I'll just sing it after."
Ten minutes later, Billy Preston walks into the recording studio and sits at the piano. He tells the band to start and they play. He jumps in and plays his part perfectly. Does one more take, gets up and says hello to Richard. They hug and Richard then reaches into his bag, hands him some cash and Billy leaves. He's there for maybe ten minutes.
A few minutes later Richard says "Oh no! Billy was supposed to sing back up! I'll do it but I need some help. Can any of you boys carry a tune?" So me and another producer look at each other and say "yeah, sure" and volunteer for the gig. We grab a lyric sheet, walk into the studio and sing back-up WITH Little Richard! Okay so it wasn't Tutti Frutty, but wow!
Only in LA.
Here's the video, which we shot a few days later at the Alex Theater in Glendale.
You can hear us on the "Hey Moe's" in the bg.
"The Curly Shuffle" by Little Richard: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uR92mdUILQ
____________________________________
From: David Macias
Subject: Great seeing you!
Date: February 2, 2026 at 3:51:47?PM PST
Hi Bob-
It was wonderful (as always) to see you at the Americana event the other night, and I enjoyed the conversation as well. I did want to clarify my thoughts about "the music" being regressive. It sounds like I am being critical of the music that is being made today, and that is not what I meant to say.
What I mean to say is that our algorithmically driven ecosystem tends to reward music that is stylistically similar to whatever the listener has been listening to, so how do new stylistic breakthroughs occur? If you only listen to Mozart, what chance will you ever have to hear Stravinsky, much less Schoenberg?
I'm interested in, and investing time and energy into thinking about how to build a world around music that would not be rewarded by the algorithm. If all we ever do is think about art through the framework of how algorithms will reward it, then our creative landscape becomes a self-referential closed loop. That feels creatively barren, and listeners will also tire from experiencing the same sonic textures and emotional cues, and will begin to tune out. We already see songs that reach the top of the radio charts and stream only 5m times on DSPs. It's because we're stuffed to the gills with the same formulaic tropes and that music fails to move anyone. I predict we're going to see more and more of this dynamic at play.
I also feel strongly that this is not the fault of the DSPs. They don't owe a platform to anyone. They use algorithms to do the same thing that McDonald's and Starbucks do. There is value in providing predictability to a consumer. People eat Big Macs because they're good, but also you know what a Big Mac is and you're not going to be surprised. Will you remember that meal years from now, unlike that Michelin starred restaurant you ate at on your vacation in Paris? No, but that doesn't make McDonald's bad people for offering you what they are offering you. DSPs get too much blame for things, and I don't want to make them the bad guys in this dynamic.
It's up to the music business to learn how to create worlds outside of algorithms, and the sooner that we learn to do this and team together to build communities collaboratively, then we're going to support a more creatively vibrant music ecosystem. When you asked me what I was excited about, I'm excited about thinking about and solving this problem.
Best-
David
____________________________________
From: Kenny Jacob
Subject: On bipolar and "triggers"
Date: January 27, 2026 at 2:47:36?AM PST
Bob —
I've lived with Bipolar 1 for over 50 years. One nuance worth clarifying in your excellent piece is the word "trigger." It doesn't mean cause. Bipolar is genetic; life circumstances are what activate it.
In my case, the lifestyle at Sound City studios when I worked there as a teenager — nights, chronic sleep deprivation, drugs, total disengagement from normal rhythm — flipped the switch. In my family, my father and his brother were triggered by war trauma. Different lives, same illness.
That's why origin stories matter. When people believe an external event created the illness, it feeds denial and delays treatment. Mania convinces you nothing is wrong — that everyone else is overreacting — which you describe very accurately.
Untreated mania doesn't just exaggerate personality; it can produce behavior unrecognizable to the stable self. I've done things I deeply regret, mostly to myself. When that happens publicly, at celebrity scale, the consequences don't reset with an apology. Trust takes years to rebuild.
Your writing here is unusually precise for someone who isn't bipolar. I only wanted to underline that understanding how the illness comes to life is key to preventing it from repeating.
Kenny Jacob
Biarritz, France
____________________________________
From: Martin Theander
Subject: Re: Kanye's Ad
Date: January 27, 2026 at 2:19:54?AM PST
Very spot on, Bob.
Once the medication works, you start thinking: "I'm fine really, obviously I don't need these pills".
Then it takes a while for those around you to understand that something's off, and when they do it's already too late.
So you crash, and if you're lucky you get help, you don't end it, with support you manage to climb back up.
But if you're the boss, most times you won't trust anyone to help you.
It's very lonely at the top.
Then it takes a good while before the medication is in tune again, and by that time…again you think you don't need it.
So it's an endless loop that's so hard to break out of, it can go on forever, each crash bringing you closer to the actual edge.
Anyone who manages to eventually accept and handle it, they're climbing Mount Everest.
We all have our stuff to deal with, but most of us don't climb Mount Everest.
Perhaps that's what he's done now.
Like you, I wish him good luck.
He'll need it, apart from the pills and the help and love from those around him.
____________________________________
From: Marty Bender
Subject: Re: Kanye's Ad
Date: January 26, 2026 at 8:25:46?PM PST
My brother suddenly developed bipolar disorder in his fifties.
It took a lot of trial and error, but he finally got on the right meds.
However---
In his manic phase, he felt as though he no longer needed the medication.
Stopping the medication then plunged him right into deep depression.
And down there, he convinced himself that he could not afford his prescription.
Even though he wanted to live...
There's only so much mental push and pull a human can take.
R.I.P. (with an emphasis on the peace)
Marty Bender
____________________________________
From: Jan Jankingston
Subject: Re: Kanye's Ad
Date: January 27, 2026 at 1:59:48?AM PST
Hi Bob,
I don't know about Kanye. But my dad had bipolar disorder. You are correct. When they are manic, they think they can do anything, and they don't want to stop that. And they do some amazing things when manic. He died by suicide when I was 13. He'd been suicidal for 10 years of my 13. I used to sit by his bedside and keep him awake after he took pills and drank, while my mom called around to find my brother to take him to the hospital. I don't know if there weren't ambulances or if the shame kept her from calling the ambulances. It was a long time ago.
I don't think I'd trust my Dad again. Even if he took out an ad. I'm sorry he was so sad. You are right though. There are consequences to those around the person.
You're right. It's an illness and hard to say if the person can keep a hold on it. It's tough.
I'll check out Kanye's ad.
J
____________________________________
From: Ben Dalby
Subject: Long term thanks
Date: January 23, 2026 at 9:00:30?AM PST
Dear Mr Lefsetz
Long term reader, I've gotten an awful lot from your writing over the years.
My favourite thing ever – standing on a rain swept platform at 6am in UK, waiting for a jammed commuter train to take me into central London. And opening your letter to read about some great sandwich you'd eaten in sunny California. It was a better glimpse into a better world .
Take care, sending you positive thoughts from cold and wet UK, goodness knows you get enough stick.
Ben
--
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
