It's October of 2005

Fall is here, ready or not. I love the Puget Sound, but I always feel a little shudder go through my body this time of year, thinking of the long dark winter ahead.
Nancy J and I spent a week in Austin Texas at the Austin City Limits Music Festival. If you love live music, I recommend the event. We saw Wilco, Coldplay, Dave Alvin, Spoon, Steve Earle, Lucinda Williams, Death Cab for Cutie, the John Spencer Trio and others. The event is coordinated almost entirely by volunteers, and I was amazed at how well it was laid out logistically, never a line for food, water, bathroom, transportation. The one thing the organizers had not planned for very well was 108 degree weather and no rain for weeks preceeding the event. The dust storm kicked up by 65,000 happy listeners on the last day saw people grabbing whatever they could fix for a bandana and wrapping it around their noses and mouths to keep the dust from clogging their lungs.
I came back from Austin in a bit of a funk and I am not immediately sure why. Partly it is that I really don't love my job anymore, but there seems to be more. I think it is the realization that I'm not anchored in Seattle as firmly as I have been and that I have the opportunity to be around family in a city that I might like even more than this one. For now I'm just breathing and taking small steps, testing the waters of change and uncertainty and adventure once again to see if I am brave enough or crazy enough to wade in again.

They are wrong for that

I picked up the New York times yesterday, Monday, August 29th. There was a story in the international section with a bi-line that read "PROCUREMENT." The story was about Bunnatine H. Greenhouse, a black female who was a career civil servant, working for the Army Corps of Engineers. Ms. Greenhouse was demoted in her position for doing what the taxpayers pay her to do, making sure that the government was getting what it paid for. She raised objections to a 7 BILLION dollar no bid contract that was awarded to Haliburton subsidiary Kellog, Brown and Root. Her argument was that, if the contract was being awarded without competition because of the urgency of the war, then it made sense for the contract to be of shorter duration as well. This sounds logical, but it cost her her rank in the federal service. Ms. Greenhouse, who is a true patriot in my eyes, called a $165 million dollar contract awarded to KB&R for logistical support in the balkans without competition "the most blatant and improper contract abuse I have witnessed in the course of my professional career." She also said that the defense secretary's office had improperly interfered in the awarding of the contract. If you don't know what's going on here, I'll break it down to you. When I was a procurement specialist with Job Corps, I signed a conflict of interest statement every time I sat on a panel. Since Job Corps contracts are competitively bid, I would be fired on the spot (and I should have been) if I had made my decisions based upon interests I had in a company that was bidding on the project. For instance, if I had a friend who ran a company that runs Job Corps centers (and I have several) it would be completely unethical for me to use my influence to help that person secure the contract, or to be swayed in my decision making because I had a relationship with that person, or worse, something to gain financially by helping him/her out. When we were attacked on September 11th, 2001, the Bush administration started exploiting opportunities to help their friends and financial supporters get rich. A big chunk of the BILLIONS and BILLIONS of dollars that is being spent in Iraq and Afghanistan is being done on a no-bid, non-competitive basis. We've seen the effect of these contracts over there, with Haliburton getting caught overcharging for fuel, food, etc. So the companies are given these huge contracts to provide a service, then they rip the country off in the process of providing that service. If you are not mad, you are really not paying attention. WAKE UP!

It's been a while

since I posted here. I've had my "issues" with this blog. I tend to get fairly personal, and from time to time I question whether that is worth the trouble that it can cause. Then a part of me says, if I am trying to be truthful and talk about what is going on with me, what harm could come from that? I'll continue to sort it out and post any "aha!" experiences right here.
My life is very full now. I have some say in that, there are activities that are optional, meaning, pretty much all of them. I choose to go to work because I don't know how I would pay my bills if I didn't, but that in itself is not a very good reason. I'm active in a couple of fellowships that help me stay sane and balanced, therefore, these activtities seem like necessities rather than luxuories. I'm involved with a young woman that I love to spend time with, and, if it is a luxory, it's one I am grateful to have. I spend several hours a week working out to be able to keep my body in decent shape. Do I need to do that? The answer is no, but I am pretty miserable when I'm not getting my endorphins from working out, and, I am concerned with how I look, so I feel better when I am in shape. I've been putting a lot of time into practicing the bass guitar and recording new songs with my Experience Songwriting Project partners. This too may seem frivilous, but I get so much enjoyment out of it, I can't imagine life without it. So, my dilema is, I've gotten myself involved in more things than I can really do, but I am hesitant to unload any of them, because they are all, with the exception of work, dear to me. I don't feel terminally unique in wrestling with these problems, and I can think of about 1000 problems that would be more of a drag than having too many things I love to do and too little time to do them. I feel better having stated the situation. If I keep breathing, take whatever actions seems appropriate and stay on the path, the outcome will be revealed, and it could be better than anything my little mind could dream up.

So little to do, so much time

No, strike that, reverse it. (If you saw the original Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory with Gene Wilder, you'll remember that line). Nan and I watched "Two Cow Garage," "Grand Champeen" and "The Radio Nationals" last night at the Sunset. Two Cow Garage ruled, as they did last time I saw them. This trio from Columbus Ohio plays country music like it should be played, loud and dirty. The Radio Nationals are calling it quits, and that is going to leave a gap in this town's alt-country scene. I so want to put a band together, but can't imagine finding the time. No worries. I have really been blessed the last several years. If I keep trying to be a decent person, working hard, staying clean, I believe better things will happen to me than I can probably imagine. That's been my experience so far. Meanwhile, I'm enjoying playing acoustic gigs, getting more and more confident on the bass, collaborating with the ESP group on a new recording, etc. It's all good.

First recording session

Ben Wah, Will, Kelly K and I got together yesterday at Kelly's studio in Shoreline. I was having trouble hearing myself in the headphones, and I'm not thrilled with my bass line, but I'll get another shot at it this weekend. I am thrilled to be working with this group again. I really like the laid back vibe and the way people are coming together and supporting one another. Next week Vickie A, Tracy and maybe Kelly B will join us to wrap up song number 1. My daughter Alex is in town, a budding guitar player, and she seemed to enjoy herself at the studio, watching us knuckleheads try to pull a rabbit out of a hat.

The Experience Songwriting Project (ESP) lives!

In May I wrapped up a nine month certificate program co-sponsored by the EMP and the University of Washington Extension College. The program was taught by three prominant Seattle musicians, each offering their own take on the art of tune-smithing. Sean Nelson, lead singer for Harvey Danger and writer for the Stranger, took the helm the first semester, the introductory course, where we broke down songs by their basic components, chorus, verse, bridge, etc. Sean researched his lectures well, and his delivery was awesome. He also had a real flair for picking up on the direction the class was leaning and letting the students go that way. Second semester brought Carrie Akre of Hammerbox, Goodness and a flourishing solo career. Carrie was brought in at the eleventh hour, but she looked like she'd been doing it all her life. She helped us focus on claiming our artistic selves, developing a habit and a practice of writing regularly. We wrapped up semester two with a late night gig at Hattie's Hat. Third and final semester brought Jon Auer of Posies fame. This semester was devoted to production, and Jon worked with each of the lucky 13 who had stuck it out, producing our songs and helping us record them at Glenn Sound and at various other local studios. He helped the class put together an excellent CD, which we named the Experience Songwriting project, and the experience wrapped up on May 25 at a gig at the Science Fiction stage at the EMP.
Boy, what a long introduction to get what I wanted to talk about, which is that the ESP group has continued to collaborate. We are meeting for the next two Wednesdays at Kelly Krisjanson's studio to begin work on the next album. We're recording one of Will Morgan's songs as an ensemble. We also have a gig scheduled for August 19th, a Friday, at the Flying Lion Cafe in West Seattle. It's looking to be an excellent summer.

Greenlake Almost Free Music Hall

I played a new venue on Saturday nigh. The former Presbyterian Church on NE Ravenna, now operated by the Presbyterian Counseling Services, has opened it's doors as a music venue, and I was lucky enough to be one of the ones to kick it off. Ned Olsen's son opened up, followed by Mike Kerrick and the Happy Pappy Band. I finished the night off with a good set, although I was a complete spaz with harmonica and capo changes. The venue has potential, and I look forward to returning, both as a performer and a listener.
I went to see Billy Corgan at the Moore on Monday night with Nancy. My friend Bjorn has worked for Billy for years, and he was providing IT support on this tour, which was very "hard-drive" dependent. I think the album "The Future Embrace" is brave. Artists who depart from their formula often get attacked by their loyal fans and often by the industry itself, which leans heavily toward conformity. The album strikes a strange balance between melancholy and hopefulness that I find intriguing and sweet. Billy C announced to the crowd that he was putting the Pumpkins back together, and the result was thunderous applause.
Kelly Krisjanson from the Experience Songwriting Project is putting together a recording session for the next two weeks at his home studio. The first song we work on will be one of Will Morgan's. I'm pretty excited about collaborating with this group some more.

Karl Rove is Bush's Achille's Heel

In the Greek tragedy written by Homer, Achille's is unstoppable until Hector shoots an arrow at his one vulnerable spot, his heel. As the investigation continues into Karl Rove's involvement in outing an undercover CIA agent, it looks like the Bush administration's own hubris will be it's undoing, a theory (and hope) I've had for some time. Here are the facts. Joe Wilson, former U.S. ambassador to Africa, wrote an article critical of the Bush administration's claims that weapons grade uranium had been smuggled in from Niger. History shows us that Wilson was right. The nuclear threat claim was based on a falsified memo that noone but the White House chose to take seriously. The Bush administration, led, as always, by mastermind Karl Rove, wasn't looking for the truth back in 2003. They had been planning to go to war long before the charade in front of the UN and Colin Powell's famous Power Point show. The Downing Street memos, recently released minutes of top secret meetings of the British cabinet, show that the Bushies had a flimsy case for Iraq being a threat and were "dummying up intelligence reports to suit their aims." So when Wilson's article comes out, Karl Rove retaliates, as he is known to do. But this time, he made a serious miscalculation. Valerie Plame, wife of ambassador Wilson, was an undercover CIA agent working on tracking down weapons of mass distrucion world wide. In other words, Rove's leaking the information to a NY times reporter that Joe Wilson's wife was a CIA agent put many people at risk, operatives Ms. Plame had been working with, members of the front company that had been set up to mask Ms. Plames work and others associated with her work. So Karl Rove outs this CIA agent and then lies under oath to the Congress and the American people about his involvement. He is a crook and a liar and a traitor to this country. He violated his oath of office and his top secret security clearance. He should be removed from his position, banned from public office for life and prosecuted as a traitor and a war criminal for his involvement in the lies and manipulations that were used to get this country to go to war. This administration is the filthiest, most corrupt, arrogant, misguided bunch of theocratic war mongers we've seen in 100 years. Rove needs to go, then Cheny, Rumsfeld, W, the whole lot. They all should be removed from office and brought up on charges for repeatedly placing the best interests of themselves and their political cronies ahead of the good of the country. Can I hear an Amen?

I think I'm getting pretty good at this

Last weekend was dope. I picked up a ticket to see John Doe and Lucinda Williams at the new Summer Nights venue, South Lake Union. I prefer this venue to the pier, personally. John Doe was awesome. He alternated between acoustic and electric guitar, doing songs off his solo albums and reaching back for an X tune or two. He did a Dave Alvin song called "Fourth of July," and it brought tears to my eyes as I sang along. Here are the lyrics:
"She gives me her cheek when I want her lips, but I don't have the strength to fight it. On the lost side of town, in a dark apartment, we gave up trying so long ago..."
Anyway, John Doe is the shit, and I can't wait to get his new album, which is getting rave reviews.

Lucinda looked and sounded great. She looked like she was having a genuinely good time. She made a comment at one point about how much she was touched by the crowd's reaction to her songs. Good for Seattle. She said she had written 23 new songs, and she tried a few of them out. My favorite two were in true Lucinda Williams form, one a lament about a lover who couldn't stay out of jail and the other a rail about a boastful man who can't get her motor running. If I didn't know better, I'd say she was sober, but it sure hasn't diminished her muse.

I recorded a Michael Clark song called "Los Alamos Blues" on Saturday. Dylan Fant, owner of 1Shot Studio recorded it for free as a promotion for the studio. We laid down a guitar track, then lead vocal, then a harmony track and finally a short harmonica solo. I was mixed, mastered and out the door in three hours, and I didn't feel rushed. The young man knows what he is doing, and I am thrilled with the finished product. Now I just need to put this little solo project together, while I am still "among the quick."

I have a little gig at the Celtic Bayou, a cajun/irish place, which is pretty funny, cause I'm half cajun and half irish. Nancy and I are going to go have dinner (anyone care for Shepard's Jambalaya?) and then I play a 30 minute set at 11:00.
I'm not sure if it's the confidence I gained while taking the EMP class, 25 years of experience catching up on me, the fact that I am playing pretty much constantly or just "clean living," but I am feeling like I can pretty much shred through anything I play right now. Whatever it is, it doesn't suck.

Meanwhile, across the world, our young men and women keep dying for a lie and a ruse. Is anybody else out there getting pissed?

Thank you Ms. Auer for being the first person to comment on this blog. I'm glad your benefit for the school went well.

If others are reading this, send me a comment, ok? I won't bite.

Jon Auer and Me

Jon Auer and Me
Posted by: podman.

This is a picture of the CD release party at the Science Fiction Museum at the
Experience Music Project, May 25, 2005. Yes, I was pretty excited to have a musical idol sing and play guitar with me on one of MY songs. He produced my song on the ESP album and laid down one of the sweetest vocal harmonies in history. If you are a song-writer and you want to boost your skills, take the EMP-UW songwriting certificate program. It made a believer out of me.

Spoon rocketh my world

Nancy and I caught the Spoon show at the Showbox on Saturday night. Britt Daniels and crew came to play. The sound was flawless, and the songs carried the night, no need for a lot of head bobbing or stage theatrics. The crowd was mesmorized by the powerful lyrics, great musician-ship, infectious grooves and Austin laid back charm. Buy any spoon album you can find, put your headphones on, turn it up and smile.

The horror

Well, the truth finally came out about Terry Schiavo. The autopsy revealed that she was in a persistent vegetative state, had been for some time, that her brain was basically liquid. All those right wing pundits, the Sean Hannity's, Pat Robertson's, that sicko Randall Terry, they should be taken out and beaten for the damage they have done to the Schiavo family, for giving them false hope, for getting involved with something that was clearly NONE OF THEIR FRICKING BUSINESS! As far as the political hacks that got involved, Carl Rove, W, Tom Delay, beating is too easy, they should be in jail, pure and simple. They represent everything that is wrong with this country today, the hipocrasy, shrouded in religion, based in pure greed and hate that is a blight upon this once great nation. Check out Randi Rhodes link on air america for a good rant about these phonies and just how much damage they have done. Why isn't the autopsy a front page story? Come on, you know the answer.

Tuesday thoughts

I stayed home from work with a cold, lots of naps, movies, too much time to think. I saw W fielding questions from the Washington Press Corps. What a bunch of spineless ninnies! Not one of them asked "Mr. President, if our goal was to liberate Iraq, why haven't the rights to the oil fields been turned over to the Iraqi government?" Or,"Do you think the fact that U.S. companies, many with close ties to your administration, are reaping huge profits from the continuing struggle in Iraq may have anything to do with the growing insurgency?" Here's a good one, "North Korea had nuclear weapons at the time we attacked Iraq, how is it that your administration believed Iraq to be the more imminent threat? Do you still believe Iraq was more dangerous than North Korea?"
It's hard for me to watch him. "Air America" radio interviewed one of his former instructors at Harvard Business School. They asked this brilliant scholar what kind of student W was. The teacher said that he has taught there for over 30 years, and he can't possibly remember all of his students. He said he does remember W, because he was, and this is a quote "a patholigical liar." That figures. Anyway, Nancy and I saw young people putting up fake military recruitment posters in Capital Hill this week that showed the number of Americans killed (1600+) and wounded (27,000+) in Iraq so far. If the young people get involved, we can end this insanity. For my part, a massive anti-war rally is planned for D.C. in September, and I'll be there. Peace.

Tom in Reno during a flood

Posted by: podman.

What a night!

Last night was the graduation ceremony, CD release party and performance for the "Experience Songwriting Project," a joint venture between the Experience Music Project and the University of Washington's Extension Program. I've been involved with this thing for nine months now, and it has been one of the greatest experiences of my entire life. 22 original members whittled down to 13, but that group became, as Jon Auer described so eloquently last night a "community." I should have been exhausted last night from lack of sleep and sheer exertion, but the adrenaline carried me through. I met Nancy at the Liquid Lounge at about 4:30 p.m. She is grieving the loss of a dear friend who perished on mount Ranier just days ago, and she welcomed the break from all that. We headed up to the Science Fiction Museum at 5:30 and started setting up. The sound and logistics guys at EMP were great. I set up my Guild through the Trace Elliot amp, wired "pre-eq" so the sound guy could have his way with it. I hooked up the Fender Precision bass to a direct box for Jon to play, then I laid out the back and seat of his Producer's chair for the class to sign. Jerry started off with a very nice version of "This Cup," the title track to the CD, with Tracy doing some nice harmonies. Before I knew it, I was up, and I opened with "Unravel," to an appreciative crowd. Jon joined me with Kelly K's guitar for "Dreamline Alligator Revisited," and I have to say it is probably the highlight of my entire career, getting to play that song with one of my musical idols on stage in front of an adoring crowd. The rest of the evening was a blur, but everyone performed well. Especially worth noting were Ethan's two songs and Kelly Blackwood, who performed a sweet little set. Before Tracy's performance, I took the microphone and presented the producer's chair to Jon, who was genuinely touched. After Tracy, Sean Nelson said "all star jam," so the entire group, including Carrie, Sean and Jon stormed the stage for a very loose and often hilarious rendition of the "never ending 12 bar blues in G." It was a magic evening and the perfect culmination of the experience of a lifetime. I was grateful to be alive, to be sober, to be able to pursue my talent, to be surrounded with such loving and respectful people, to be part of something that is good and true in this crazy, mixed-up world. As soon as I figure out how to post pictures to either my website or this blog, I will share some from last night. Cheers!

Wrapping it up at the Experience Songwriting Project

Wednesday is the free show at the EMP for my song-writing class. It's also our CD release party. I went to see Jon Auer at the Summit School benefit on Friday night, and he seemed to be more relaxed now that the CD is at Discmakers. I'm really going to miss this class. It is going to be strange not going to the EMP every Wednesday night. I'm also going to miss having access to world class artists like Sean Nelson, Carrie Akre and Jon Auer. I am very grateful to have had this experience, and I do believe I have grown as an artist.

Lance Letscher

My cousin Mary Frasher, herself a very talented artist, married a quiet, humble man named Lance Letscher. After 20 years of hard work, Lance's work is being discovered by the art world, and I am thrilled for him, for Mary, and for Lance's fine boys, Gabriel and Jonathon. We went to his opening at the Grover Thurston gallery tonight, and Lance was very gratified that the people he talked to who expressed interest in his pieces seemed to have genuine insight into what he was attempting to do. He sold several, which is somewhat unusual for the first show in a major city. It shows that Seattle is a fairly sophisticated art town, as Lance has sold out shows in Barcelona, Munich, New York City, and throughout his home state of Texas. Nancy James joined us for a fine dinner at Marco's. Tomorrow we do the EMP, then they'll stay with me at my West Seattle pad before returning to Austin. I am thrilled that the show is doing well, because that will bring two of my favorite people, and the only family member that really "gets" me, back to Seattle. I love them both!

Random Thoughts

Mixing went very well at Glenn Sound. Watching Glenn and Jon produce a recording is like watching Tom Delay create a lie. They truly are master's, no pun intended. It is humbling for a singer to hear his vocal isolated, with no reverb, no guitar to back him, just a lonely, weak sounding voice, unsupported, faint, ok, you get the picture... I had to leave the room. I'm pretty secure, but I also admit that my vocal intonation is not perfect. When I wrap up the EMP class, I am going to hook up with David Kyle and see if he can do for me what he did for Chris Cornel, Nancy Wilson, etc. He lives and works right down the road from me on Beach Drive. Anyway, we decided to leave the lead vocal fairly dry and reverb-out Jon's backing vocal. I think it turned out fairly "dope." Glenn worked his mojo on a guitar buzz he didn't like cause by improperly place microphones (the recording class is learning too) and then he ran one errant note of mine through a machine that corrects the pitch. After I took a razzing for doing a "Rob Thomas" on it, we moved on. It's just one word "that." See if you can hear it when you listen to the song.
I'm basically as happy as a guy can possibly be who still works for a living. Tom-out.

Fun Stuff

I just returned from Glenn Sound studio, where I recorded a song with the students from UW's sound recording program. Jon Auer was there to add his layed back production skills to the process. I don't know if I've ever met a more gracious man. Through the magic of pro tools, we used half of one take and half of another to come up with a good rendition of "Dream-line Alligator." I used Steven's Larrivee guitar, because I really liked the tone it had with new strings on it. Since we only had two hours, we used the last half hour for Jon to lay down some SWEET harmonies. Since others in the class have been slow to respond to calls for recording session sign-ups, we may be mixing as early as this Thursday. Once again, I want to say how appreciative I am of EMP and the UW Extension college for offering this kick ass class. I'm having a ball.

Road Trip

Nancy and I had a nice time on the coast. We stayed at a place called the Lake Quinalt Resort. The cabins are quaint, with lots of privacy and awesome views of the lake. We spent the weekend hiking through the rainforest, seeing trees that were 400 to 900 YEARS OLD! W and the rest of the "conservatives" that continue to wage war on our old growth forests should watch the Tolkein trilogy. I had the sense while walking among the giants in the Olympic rain forest that Carl Rove and Dick Cheney would be squashed like bugs if they ever wandered in there, or maybe that is just my fantasy. When we weren't hiking we were playing cards, watching movies, reading and playing with the cats and dogs that live at the resort. My favorite was Alexandra (of course), a kitten who had been crowned "queen of the north shore" by the resort owner.
Saturday night, we went to the Internet Cafe in Amanda Park. Word had spread that we were in town and that I was a song-writer, so we were treated like royalty when we got there. I sat in with a very fun blue-grass band, then played a short, three song set. I opened with "It's On," followed by "Dreamline Alligator." Finally, in tribute to Neil Young, who recently had a brain anurism, I played "Needle and the Damage Done." The crowd was very receptive. In fact, you could hear a pin drop by the time I began the second song. I'm pleased that Dreamline has come together so well (thanks to Nancy Lou and Jon Auer) as I have the opportunity to record it at Glenn Sound Studios on Tuesday. I'm stoked.