Crow by Martin Lennon

"Crow is an album of songs drenched in emotion – lots of pain and misery, sure, but also joy, passion and love. These songs are among the first I've written in over thirty years, and they have the added weight of a couple of decades of living and performance behind them. As a former member of a travelling party/covers band, this is my first album – perhaps not such a big deal, but as a 50 year old man I'm proud to be stepping off 'on the road' alone for the first time, as well as being somewhat surprised that it's taken me this long to decide to do it."



So writes Martin Lennon when talking about his debut release, Crow. And yes, he should be proud.

Sometimes I am lucky enough to stumble on new music which is so unbelievable, I knee before the Gods of the Internet and shout "Thank you!" to my laptop and the heavens.

That's the way I felt about Crow. Quite frankly, if this were twenty years ago and Martin had a traditional record label, he would probably win a Grammy as singer/songwriter of the year. Not that winning a Grammy is an indication of great music -- it never was -- but I say this for the sole reason that Martin's music is so brilliant that it crosses over into many genres. Fans of everyone from Leonard Cohen to Tom Waits to Bob Dylan to Savoy Brown and ZZ Top to J.J. Cale type country western/blues will find something to love on every track of this recording. There are fourteen songs, and not a bad one in the bunch. Because Martin does not tell you in his above mentioned blurb, his primary career was as a music critic and I will spill the beans here for you only because as a writer, I was interested in how he would do with lyrics. Well. Try stark, haunting, and perfect for each particular melody. They are Dylanesque, but perhaps even more like Leonard Cohen...or maybe just uniquely Martin. And he was kind enough to include them on his website.

Let me also add that he has surrounded himself with first class musicians for this endeavor. I was not familiar with any of the players involved, but I intend to check each of them out further, that's for sure. On absolutely brilliant trumpet is Charles Dearness; the bassist is amazing, too, and his name is Andy Gilmour, Sarah Anderson, she of the beautiful voice, does backing vocals, and of course we have Martin on guitar, bass, vocals, percussion and programming.

Here's a track by track review:

Magpie – excellent choice for the first song, it showcases Martin's great guitar work and deep, bluesy voice that sounds more like the Mississipi Delta than his native Scotland. He could seriously duet with Dr. John or Leon Russell. I even got a Stephen Stills vibe but then it hit me that the melody is very reminiscent of Traffic's Pearly Queen if it were performed by Tom Waits. Here's a taste of the lyrics:

"I’m just a big fat bird, with a long black tail
I want to steal your love away
I’m going to grab that diamond from your delicate hands
I’m going to steal your love away"

Feels so good – very bluesy, great harmonies with Sarah Anderson and Charles Dearness on trumpet. Again, the placement of this tune as #2 on the album feels very, very right:

"These blues don’t take this pain away
These blues don’t pay my bills
These blues don’t help me overcome
And they don’t give me thrills"

Crow – Having heard the stripped down version last year on Martin's MySpace, this song is the first I fell in love with. Again, dark lyrics that go with the melody and it's without a doubt one of those songs you love on first listen. It gets under your skin, and Martin probably knows this is his best, strongest song – it’s the title of the CD. Or, maybe he's the Crow.

"Sometimes I feel just like a crow
I want to dig at someone’s words
And feel them roll around my beak
Until I know exactly how they think"

Big Black Cloud – Another dark song with absolutely awesome guitar work.

"You broke my heart, you broke my will
And you left me there for dead
You lied to me, you lied barefaced
With every little thing you said"

It's interesting to me how the lyrics move from hopeless to hopeful over the course of the album. Since Martin mentions they were written over a thirty year time period, you can feel the tone shift as he finds joy in both the decision to finally pursue his musical career and perhaps a true love? You'll see what I mean in a minute.

Blue Eyes – This is pure Leon Redbone without the sometimes annoying inflection and really, vintage Tom Waits. Once again, Charles Dearness on trumpet just blows me away.

"Your blue eyes, as they look at me
Blue eyes make a child of me
Blue eyes look and see my soul
Pretty blue, blue eyes"

Easy Way to Fall – This is Savoy Brown meets ZZ Top – or the way ZZ Top wishes they sounded. Are you hip to Savoy Brown? You should be. For me to give Martin a Savoy Brown comparison is high praise.

"You know I want to live
I never want to die at all
But if I must, I want to find
An easy way to fall
I try to never tell a lie
The few I tell are small
So that if I ever slip, I’ll have
An easy way to fall"

Butterfly Girl – probably the most country western tune but without the hokey stuff and cheesy lyrics. Instead, Martin sings:

"Little green shoes on your tiny feet
And your curls and ribbons and that fairytale dress
You’re a butterfly girl in a hard cruel world
And you can fly"

Fingers in your Hair – this is a love song. Plain and simple. Bare guitar and vocals and heartfelt lyrics that sucks the air out of your lungs.

"I hold your hand against my heart
I hold your hand against my heart
I hold your hand against my beating heart
And your love, your love makes me strong"

I Always Knew – Quite frankly, this is a classic. I can picture Harry Connick, Jr. singing this. Contrary to what you think, coming from a rocker chick like me, this is not a slam but a high compliment because whether you like him or not, Harry would take this song to #1, it would be the best song he ever covered, but I know I’d always prefer Martin’s version.

"I knew what I should do
What I should do with you"

Kiss You – When I heard the first few notes, I got a definite Can’t Find My Way Home (Eric Clapton and Blind Faith) vibe, but it quickly turned into something else – sort of still like that but sung by Tom Waits with haunting guitar and tambourine complimenting…

"Don’t want to make you hide your face
Or dance the rain out of the skies
Don’t want to watch you as you fall
Into somebody else’s lies"

Map of the World – Gorgeous, gorgeous song and so Leonard Cohen it’s ridiculous but Martin's musical delivery is better. This is genius.

"You gave to me, once,
A map of the world
I travelled its lines
and its contours and folds
and the faded-ink place names
and symbols and signs
and all from the depths of my mind"

Old Heart – Erm…what was I saying about the other songs on this CD? Maybe this is my favorite? How did this man not grow up in the deep South? This is the blues, baby.

"I’ve got a hard old heart, I’ve got a hard old heart
It’s been broken and beaten up too many times
Filled up with anger and darkness and grime
I don’t want this hard old heart
I don’t want this hard old heart"

Ribbons and Bows – Oh boy, here’s another top hit for Harry Connick, Jr. The horn in this perfect. This is probably the most commercial song on the CD but does that mean I don’t like it? Hell, no! It’s awesome. It's the kind of song that makes me smile and bop around the house.

"All of that misery and all of that pain
What does it matter and what does it mean
We either die young or we live till we’re old
Looking for ribbons and bows made of gold"

Actually, I'm going to reference Savoy Brown again - these lyrics would fit perfectly to Needle and Spoon.

Days to Come – The absolute perfect last song. Gorgeous melody but it’s the uplifting, full of love lyrics, on obvious tribute to his new sweetheart. Or maybe just happy coincidence?

"I will walk through this garden
I will follow you anywhere
I will walk through this garden
All these days to come

I will walk beside you always
And hold my head up high
I will walk beside you always
All these days to come

All these days
These days gone by
They all brought me to here

I will walk this holy path
Beside you hand in hand
I will walk this sacred path
All these days to come

All these days
These days gone by
They all brought me to you"

So Martin Lennon is my official "find" of 2010. And at age fifty, his life is not half over, he’s just at the beginning of Part II and it’s going to be one hell of a grand finale.

You can pick up Crow at the following:

Bandcamp

Martin's website (both download and CD)

And have a listen over at Reverb Nation.

In this ridiculous world of American Idol and Justin Bieber and Lady GaG, it's important to support independent musicians. And people like Martin Lennon are a rare and wonderful find.

Later,
xo

Urban Barbecue with Dr. Dog and Julie Slick is Homeward Bound

Yep, this is pretty much what you'd expect to see when you think of a barbecue with a slacker band like Dr. Dog: lush manicured lawns, shady trees, tropical plants...



We gathered at a top secret location last Thursday night...I was going to Tweet a foursquare map an hour or so before I left the house but even I can't feed 10,000 people. And clearly, I am kidding about what has to be the hardest working band on the planet right now.

Here's guitarist/vocalist Scott McMicken catching a fresh breath of air, percussionist Dimitri Manos, and the back of bassist/vocalist Toby Leaman's head as they lounge on the cool grassy slope. Toby hopes to squeeze in a pre-dinner jog.



Same shot, but this time I managed to get keyboardist Zach Miller in the picture. He really wanted to go paddle-boating but the water was full of hipsters on jet skis.



Ah, there's Toby, sorta, and a better one of Dimitri. Dimitri is clearly considering asking if anyone wants to pitch some horse shoes.



Drummer Eric Slick, reluctantly being pulled away from a round of golf and into the photograph though he's now thinking he'll hit the clubhouse, cleverly disguised as a jeep, for a non-alcoholic beer.



You may be wondering where guitarist Frank McElroy is. I tried to catch him with my camera, but well, Frank is an enigma. Actually, someone told me he was out back, pretending to be a tennis pro.

I can't disclose the identify of the other people who were there because you know, this is an exclusive country club and to tell you their names would get me in a lot of trouble. For real.

But I can tell you what we ate: Chargriled burgers and hot dogs for the carnivores; for the vegetarians - grilled portabello mushrooms stuffed with fresh steamed spinach infused with roasted garlic and topped with melted cheese on whole wheat organic buns, baked barbecued beans (a mix of white, black, pinto, and kidney) with smoked tofu and seitan, baked from scratch corn bread, homemade guacamole with black tortilla chips...yep, it was pretty freaking awesome.

I really like the guys in Dr. Dog. Laid back and sweet, musically driven with a strong work ethic. My son is in good hands.

You may be wondering where is my daughter, Julie Slick? Why, she's on a plane right now, having just left Tokyo where she wrapped up the last of four shows at the Blue Note with the Adrian Belew Power Trio. In case you haven't heard, filling in for Eric for at least the immediate future is Marco Minnemann. Sob..I haven't seen Julie since July 7 when she left for the Vancouver Island Music Fest. Here's the link to a review of their performance with photos and here's another.

Right after Vancouver, Julie flew to California to jam with Marco and a guitarist you might have heard of, Mike Keneally. They have six songs in the can already, and Julie was kind enough to send me the MP3s. I'll be putting them on eBay shortly. Ha ha, just kidding, but they are mind blowing and the three of them are definitely going to work on a future project tentatively called "Artificial Canadian Bear". Julie cooked for everyone pre-jam, and I managed to get her to reveal details for one of the meals:

"We started with a cheese plate with 5 Year Reserve Gouda; Saint Albrais; Black Pepper, Honey, and Basil encrusted Goat Cheese; Strawberries; and Red Grapes.

Next up were Zucchini and Feta Patties topped with Diced Heirloom Tomatoes and Tzatziki.

Wine Pairing - De Chanceny Rosé Brut.

Entrée - Scallops Provençal, Herbed Basmati Rice, Braised Carrots and Brussel Sprouts and a Green Salad with Shallot Dijon Vinaigrette.

Wine Pairing - Joseph Drouhin Macon Villages Blanc.

Dessert - Key Lime Pie."

She told me she took pics, but she's saving them for her blog. Rats! Now I could easily go into where I know she stores her photos and lift them, but I will be a good Mom and behave.

While on the west coast, she also hung out at the The Baked Potato where she jammed with Marco on a couple of songs and I do have a pic of that, but only because it was sent to me by a guy I met on Facebook.



Looks like fun, huh. I made the mistake of clicking on the Baked Potato's menu and almost swooned. Okay, I did swoon. Potatoes are my absolutely favorite food and that's the only thing they sell - several variations, of course, a lot with meat I don't eat, but still...what a perfect world when you can go to a club and hear Marco Minnemann and Julie Slick while stuffing your face with potatoes and drinking Ketel and club. (my current drink of choice)

So I will let Julie tell you about the Japan trip - I've seen a few photos and it looks like everyone had a blast, which is fantastic news...I love for my family to be happy.

Julie's CD continues to get glowing reviews...here are a couple which are especially brilliant:

"At just twenty four years of age Philadelphia native Julie Slick's musical resume is an impressive one to say the least. She studied music along with her drummer brother Eric for six years and as a result got to rub shoulders with the likes of Eddie Vedder, Stewart Copeland, Jon Anderson and Adrian Belew to name just a few. In fact it was her meeting with Belew which inevitably led to her and her brother joining the Adrian Belew Power Trio in 2006. Now this talented player and composer is primed to step into the spotlight with the release of her self titled debut album.

Armed with an extraordinary cast of virtuoso players that includes King Crimson's Robert Fripp & Pat Mastelotto, master stick player Michael Bernier and drummer Marco Minnemann among others to help her get her vision across, Julie has put together an incredibly diverse album that touches on elements of progressive rock, jazz fusion and funk, with even a bit of electronica thrown in as well..."

Read the rest right here.

And here's the other one:

"Utilizing the bass in ways beyond the low end, Julie Slick's inventive approach has created a multi-faceted offering of intricately textured tunes, infused with challenging arrangements. Having played with the likes of Adrian Belew, The California Guitar Trio, Stewart Copeland, & Jon Anderson among others, Slick has brought about her chops and diverse mindset when approaching her self-titled album. .."

Read the rest right here.

Hey, there's an awesome book coming out which features, among some pretty heavy hitters, Julie, Eric and Adrian, and it's called Their Love of Music and here's a link to the page which features J, E, & A: Click!

Speaking of books, thank you all so much for participating in the first installment of Celebrity Book Club. The next book up for review will be Ariel Leve's "It Could Be Worse, You Could Be Me" and that will be posted next Monday. This is a laugh out loud series of essays by someone I wish was my best friend in real life...as I read the book, I thought, wait a minute, "it could be worse, you could be me?" I am her! Read the book and if you know me at all, you'll see what I mean. Read it even if you hate me. Ariel is hilarious, and she writes for both the New York Times and The Guardian. Erm...so she's really not me. I write for Blogger and Facebook har har. Nah, I have a publisher - I even wrote and edited a bunch of books - in fact, one day last week I even made myself an official page over at Amazon. Here - check it out!

But man oh man, I have been incredibly fortunate this year. I've read books that have literally brought me to my knees, starting with Susan Henderson's "Up from the Blue", then Tish Cohen's "The Truth About Delilah Blue". In between the two, I had read Ariel's book, but in the past month, I have just been blown away by Marcy Dermansky's "Bad Marie", which I'll review after Ariel, and then what may be the best short story collection I have EVER read, and I'm actually sitting here shaking as I type this because I am including classic authors like Raymond Carver and contemporary authors like Lorrie Moore when I say that...the name of the book is Slut Lullabies and it was written by Gina Frangello. Since I am also going to review Gina's book after Marcy's, I won't say much more, other than I just finished reading it and a week later, I am still stunned. I'm going to aim for these reviews every couple of weeks, so let me give you the links to buy again so you'll be able to participate in my "club", and trust me, you will thank me later.

It Could be Worse, You Could Be Me by Ariel Leve

Bad Marie by Marcy Dermansky

Slut Lullabies by Gina Frangello

As I've mentioned in a previous post, other books I will review as their publication date approaches are "Up From the Blue" by Sue Henderson and Caroline Leavitt's wonderful "Pictures of You".

So I think that's it for now...oh wait, I don't think I ever got the chance to talk about the XPoNential Festival last Sunday, where Dr. Dog was one of the headliners. Everyone (but a few misguided souls who also didn't notice the Emperor wasn't wearing new clothes and voted for Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes) said Dr. Dog was the highlight of the three day festival. Aha! Here's someone who agrees with me in a big way. And look, you can judge for yourself:



How cool are all the people singing along? Hey, let me add that this was one of the best festivals I've ever attended, with the exception of Zappanale in East Germany, but Zappanale was the first time I ever saw Julie and Eric perform together on an international stage...they were only 16 and 17...and I know I've posted this before but I can't help it, I have to do it again so I can look at it all day today like the crazy, obsessive person I am.



So I think that's it for today. Julie will be home tonight but only for a week, then she takes off for South America with Marco and Adrian, and here's the schedule for that:

AUG 06, 2010 - Teatro Nescafe de Las Artes - Santiago, CHILE
AUG 07, 2010 - Samsung Studio - Buenos Aires, Argentina
AUG 08, 2010 - Guitar Clinic - Buenos Aires, Argentina
AUG 08, 2010 - Samsung Studio - Buenos Aires, Argentina
AUG 09, 2010 - La Trastienda Club Montevideo - Montevideo, Uruguay

Oh wait, one more thing - I have a piece up today at the Red Room which is actually from the old Nervous Breakdown site...I am such a dork, when the Nervous Breakdown went to a new website, I never moved my published stuff there and now it's lost...sob....which is why I decided to repost it today at Red Room. So if you didn't catch it when it was up briefly last year, here's today's link.

And now I have to be a good girl and turn off the internet so I can work on my new novel. After reading the above mentioned books, I've really set the bar high for myself right now and I am pouring my soul into this book, which has the title of "Whiplashed". Perfect, huh. Wish me luck!

Later,
xo

The Truth About Delilah Blue by Tish Cohen

Good morning and welcome to the first edition of the Celebrity Book Club.

As I've been blurbing in previous posts, this is the beginning of a new feature at my blog, where once a month I will feature a book I've read that just blows me away, and I will invite the author and other celebrities in the art world to join in with you, the reader, for a discussion of the book in the comments section here.

So today we start with "The Truth About Delilah Blue" by an absolutely amazing author I am also proud to call my friend, Tish Cohen.

And if you haven't already read this astonishing book, here is a comprehensive list, everywhere from Amazon to independent bookstores, which you can purchase it by just clicking here. It has two covers -- the Canadian version (Tish hails from Toronto)...



...and the American version.



Here is what we writers call the "elevator pitch", or, as Tish's publisher would say, the provocative premise of the book:

What if you woke up one day to learn that you were once a child on a milk carton?

Is that brilliant or what? And that is going to be our basis for discussion, sort of, but more on that in a moment. First, here's the official synopsis:

"Delilah Blue Lovett has always been a bit of an outsider, ever since her father moved her from Toronto to L.A. when she was eight, claiming Delilah's mother no longer wanted to be part of their family. Twenty now and broke, but determined to be an artist like her errant mom, Delilah attends art class for free—by modeling nude at the front of the room, a decision that lifts the veil from her once insular world. While she struggles to find her talent, her father, her only real companion, is beginning to exhibit telltale signs of early-onset Alzheimer's. Just as Delilah’s father falls further and further into Alzeimer’s, she discovers that he’s been harboring a horrible secret for over 15 years, but he no longer remembers the motivations behind his deception… or the consequences. And her mother, who Delilah always assumed had selfishly abandoned them, is about to reappear with a young daughter in tow . . . and a secret that will change everything. Delilah no longer knows which parent to trust—the only one she can really rely on is the most broken person of all: herself.

Reminiscent of the books of Jodi Picoult (House Rules, Keeping the Faith) and Jennifer Weiner (In Her Shoes, Best Friends Forever)—as well as Lisa Genova’s breakout novel about Alzheimer’s, Still Alice—The Truth About Delilah Blue by acclaimed author Tish Cohen (Town House, Inside Out Girl) delivers a touching, poignant novel about one young woman’s attempt to come to terms with loss, betrayal, and forgiveness

In a new novel as witty, sparkling, and poignant as her acclaimed Inside Out Girl, author Tish Cohen uncovers the humor and heart within the most dysfunctional of families."

This book has already garnered some pretty impressive praise from some very significant people:

"There are some books you can’t put down, and others that won’t even let you look away. Tish Cohen’s new novel is both. Try to read it while ironing, and you will perma-press a pinky; do the same while making a sandwich, and you will end up buttering the phone bill. But as the summer’s first terrific beach read, this isn’t really an indoor kind of book anyway. Both of Cohen’s previous novels (Town House and Inside Out Girl) are in development as films, and The Truth About Delilah Blue is sure to follow. She is clearly familiar with the cinema’s propulsive rhythms, and has an almost Hitchcockian sense of how to uncoil audience guts and play double dutch with them. And yet Delilah Blue is a purely domestic drama; no wild-bird invasions or psychotic moteliers in sight, though there may as well be..."—The Globe and Mail—

“Tish Cohen knows how to slide us into a story, letting us imagine we might know the pathway. But we are wrong because she is a wonderful storyteller and will surprise us at every turn. She has created a cast of characters who are filled with delicious human frailty and love. If you think you know anything about parental love and misguided choices, think again. Cohen peels away the layers of families and human desires and leaves us with a world of hope.”
–Jacqueline Sheehan, NYT bestselling author of Lost & Found and Now & Then

“A beautifully written, finely wrought, race-to-the-end novel about finding your family, finding a life, and finding yourself. Tish Cohen is the next great thing in women’s fiction.”
– Allison Winn Scotch, New York Times bestselling author of The One That I Want and Time of My Life

“[This] coming-of-age story itself—the transformation of outsider Lila into self-assured Delilah Blue—proves satisfying and will definitely appeal to the crossover audience that straddles YA and adult fiction.” —Booklist—

“Cohen…knows how to focus on character in ways that make readers care.” —Kirkus Reviews—

“Cohen’s popular fiction is balanced comfortably between heavy and light; the author employs humour to touch on serious issues, and she has a thing for precocious little-girl characters. Her prose is intelligent and sparkling, her characterization is deft, and she absolutely nails essential details, such as Lila’s habit of doodling on her boots when she’s nervous.” –Quill & Quire—

I would have to say I agree with all of the above and that is putting it mildly!

There are so many levels on which this book is brilliant I do not know where to begin so let’s go back to Tish's "elevator pitch" and build on that.

What if you woke up one day to learn that you were once a child on a milk carton? What if everything you thought you knew about your parents was a lie?

Here’s a theme which repeatedly ran through my head while I was reading and even more so afterwards:

What if you grew up thinking that your mother didn’t want you?

What would your life have been like if you didn't have a mother?

So much that occurred during my childhood up until my teenaged years formed the person I am today. What about you? Let's discuss that, too. I can’t remember what I had for breakfast this morning but I can name every kid in my kindergarten through sixth grade classes in elementary school and all the teachers, too…I can tell you where I went, I can tell you what I ate…I can tell you how I felt at Delilah's young age when this book opens up, when I sadly laced my big, ugly saddle shoes I knew the other kids would make fun of...shoes I had to wear because back then, they were considered "orthopedic" and would prevent me from being flat-footed or pigeon-toed, I forget which. My mother hugged me tight and told me I was the most beautiful girl in the world, and that no one would notice my shoes because I was so special and brilliant. Okay, so she stretched the truth, and I got teased mercilessly from day one, but when I got home from school that first day of "the shoes", there was a huge, freshly baked two layer coconut cake on the kitchen table, my very favorite, and my Mom beaming so proudly I didn't have the heart to tell her the rest of the world didn't quite agree with her assessment.



Christ, I even had to wear those freaking shoes with my Halloween costume that year...that's me on the first row, last one on the right, and please don't ask what that was on my head...but what I do know is that my Mom made all of my costumes even though like most kids, I didn't appreciate it and wished she'd just let me buy a costume in a box like everyone else. But now, looking back, it was my mother's love of art and music...she was a true beatnik...that made me the woman I am today and I was able to pass those same qualities on to my own kids.


Photo of Eric by Ramie Egan


Julie

I shudder to think what my childhood would have been like without my Mom, but sadly, like Delilah, she would be taken from me way too soon, but after graduation from high school and not by abduction but by a deadly cancer.

My mother was my best friend even though sure, there was a time as a teenager I made her walk fifteen steps ahead of me because I was embarrassed to be seen shopping with her; there were times I wished she could be like the other mothers; but even as a young girl I knew how special our relationship was. I lost my mother before I was really an adult; it was a loss from which I never recovered. She never met my children, and "all I got is a photograph". (Wait…am I quoting a Ringo Starr song? Oh well. It is one of his better ones)

So what if your mother wasn’t in your life from the time you were eight…and what if you grew up believing she didn’t want you?

Let's talk about that in the comments, okay? I'm interested in hearing about your relationship with your Mom and how she defined the person you became as an adult. Conversely, if you lost your Mom at a young age, please tell me about that, and the profound effect it had to have had on you.

Now let's talk fathers.

I couldn’t hate Delilah's father, Victor, an anal retentive man, so frightened, so consumed with love, that he’s lost sense of what is right and wrong. He adored Delilah so ferociously he really believed he was doing the right thing. He thought he was rescuing his beloved daughter from what he just knew in his gut would be a life of neglect at the hands of his hippie wife -- neglect that would surely lead to Delilah's gory, untimely death. Tish addresses the subject of early onset dementia, and your heart will break for Victor. (And if you are like me, you will hit Google because if you are of, *cough*, a certain age, you might identify with some of Victor's symptoms a little too much but again, this is more a result of brilliant character development rather than my walking upstairs and forgetting why the hell I am there and what it is I wanted to do.)

What was your relationship with your Dad? Ha ha, I will save my own experience for my therapist, but let's just say I don't think he would have tried to save me from anything unless he somehow benefited from it. But even that shaped who I am..I vowed as a child to be the complete opposite as a parent and as a result, I have the two least screwed up kids in the universe.

And I did think a lot about Elizabeth, the woman from whom Victor allegedly saved his daughter. Tish does not paint her to be an angel; far from it. At times it was hard to be sympathetic to her, even though she suffered the most horrific atrocity a woman could face --losing her child. But as I read the book, I "got her" and even related. Growing up is hard. Some of us do it better than others. I have two adult children and am still shocked when I look in the mirror and don't see someone their age staring back at me. Tish nailed what it's like to be from the "Hope I Die Before I Get Old Generation" and I ought to know, I'm club president. In Elizabeth she gives us two very different women - a tortured victim and a vain narcissist who must now face the sad truth that she is a fading beauty and no longer young and able to rely on youth and good looks to get by, but Tish has constructed this character so cleverly we have compassion for her regardless.

The co-stars in this book are also adeptly created. We have Elizabeth's daughter and Delilah's heretofore unknown half-sister, Kieran, remarkably the same age as Delilah when she was abducted, who is so obsessed with missing children she cuts their faces off of milk cartons and has every fact about them memorized. Tish tackles another interesting subject here: Does being raised by a hippie Mom automatically make you a free spirit or does it force you to become an adult way before your time and miss out on your childhood altogether? Let's talk about that, too.

There is Adam, a possible love interest for Delilah, brilliant but wounded...I do not want to give too much away about him but let's just say he's a very unique guy as well with some very fascinating quirks and talent.

Then we have Lichty, the eccentric art instructor whose personality will have you gritting your teeth more than once...a man whose claim to fame is that he is related to the great pop artist, Roy Lichtenstein.

Even a coyote named Slash (loved that!) has a significant role - you will actually find yourself rooting for Slash, and if you are like me, you will google coyotes and learn stuff like this.

In Delilah, though, Tish has created a character we love from the very start of the book.

"Look at me - I can fly!" she says at age 8, before the abduction.

But as Tish deftly switches between past and present (going back and forth to Delilah at age 8 in 1996 when the abduction takes place to the present time), and she is a master at seamless transition from chapter to chapter, we are overwrought at Delilah's lack of confidence in her art and her inability to let people really touch her or come close. We see her clearly, how she dresses...Tish is also a stickler for detail and tell me you can't visualize Delilah standing directly in front of you as you read...even in the way she shows her anger at her father by simple yet very telling act of revenge: dumping a can of corn niblets into the trash because they were her father’s favorite food

As you read on, there is building suspense as the story is told slowly and carefully from both Delilah and Victor's point of view, which, as an author, I can tell you is almost impossible to pull off and Tish did that beautifully, too, but just when you are sure you know how this book will end, you will find you are wrong. Nothing in Delilah Blue is stereotypical or predictable.

So. You have the official HarperCollins blurb, you've read what others think, and now you have my take on this wonderful, wonderful book. Let's talk! And authors, artists, whoever you are...please fully identify yourself and provide links to your websites, blogs, or any other outlets where we can find your work so that your mom..or dad...will be proud of you, wherever they may be...whether they are still with us or somewhere out there in the great unknown. And who knows...you may be my next celebrity book (or music) club "victim".

But before I end this post, let me again post the book trailer, because it's just too awesome for words.

Reminder: Eric Slick/Dr. Dog on Craig Ferguson show tonight

ETA: Coolness! Here's last night's Craig Ferguson show - Dr. Dog performs Shadow People.



Morning!

Well, I've managed to upload all the video taken of Julie Slick's one woman show Wednesday night in Teaneck, NJ and last night at the World Cafe Live in Philadelphia but for the love of God, I can't find a You Tube or the like site that can handle a 25 minute clip. Any ideas?

All I can say is, she was astounding. Just astounding. And the response was so great, Julie said, "You know what? I think I'm going to take this show on the road and also do some more local gigs." Hurrah!



But first, she's got the Vancouver Music Fest on July 10-11 with Adrian Belew and Marco Minnemann and then those three will head to Japan for some dates at the Blue Note July 24-27...but there may be some ninja California gigs with special guests in between Vancouver and Japan featuring Julie and Marco. Like I said before, watch this space.

The main reason for this post, though is to remind you to tune in to the Craig Ferguson show tonight, where the fabulous Dr. Dog with the amazing Eric Slick on drums will be performing a song I can definitely tell you will not be the same tune they did on Jimmy Fallon. And that's all I'm saying.

Anyway, if I figure out this video debacle, I will be back!

Later,
xo

Dr. Dog at KCRW on June 30, 2010

ETA: You are all coming to Julie's show at World Cafe Live tonight, right? She's opening for Adrian Belew, and who knows, she may even play a song with him....but that is just conjecture at this point and whatever happens, happens. Here's an awesome mention in today's Philadelphia Weekly about Julie, Eric, Dr. Dog, and, dear God, even me. I do believe that's the first time "esteemed" has ever been used in conjunction with my name but what the hell, I accept it gratefully!

In case you missed the live webstream of Dr. Dog's amazing show today at KCRW radio, they were not only kind enough to put it up on their site, they even provided the code so I can embed the whole hour long concert, complete with interviews, here.

Enjoy!

Odds and Sods for Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Good morning!

Do I believe it's the last day of June? That is just crazy -- how time is flying by, I mean. But this is a pretty exciting time at Casa Slick, and there's a lot to talk about, so let me try and do it in chronological order. As Dan Gross of the Daily News reported this week:

Big week for Slick musicians

"Local rockers Dr. Dog will be the musical guest on "The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson" Friday night, or Saturday morning if you want to be all technical about it. Meanwhile, new Dr. Dog drummer, Eric Slick's sister Julie Slick, will perform Thursday at World Cafe Live (3025 Walnut). She's the bassist in the Adrian Belew Power Trio and will also perform songs from her solo CD that features King Crimson's Robert Fripp and Pat Mastelotto."

What was really cool about the Daily News article is that a LOT of people saw it, including Julie and Eric's elementary school teacher, who actually tracked me down through Facebook and sent me this note, which, yep, I admit it, brought a tear to my eye:

"Mrs. Slick,

How have you been? I was reading the Daily News tonight and saw "Big Week for Slick musicians". I am so happy beyond words to see Eric and Julie following their dreams!! I just wanted to take a minute to congratulate you on such a fine and unique job of parenting. I have taken lessons I learned from teaching your children and talking with you and used them to raise my own children over the years.

Thank you.

Much happiness always and a big hello to your children!!"

Oh man, how fantastic was that? I sent it off to J&E and Eric actually called me from Los Angeles, he was so touched that a teacher would remember him from 15 years ago. Oh, c'mon. Who could ever forget the Slicks?

Moving on, hey hey hey, there's more. Today, at 2:15PM eastern, or 11:15AM Pacific, Dr. Dog will be live-streamed at KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic.

P.S. Now I am confused because @drdogmusic just tweeted "tune in at 1115 a.m." I am almost positive they mean "pacific" not eastern, but if you want to be on the safe side, tune in at 11:15 eastern just in case. Sigh...naturally I will not be here then, so fingers crossed they really meant 2:15 eastern since the show originates from California which is where the band is right now.



This show may be videocast as well, I'm not positive, but if you click on the above link at the above time, we'll all find out together. But it is definitely a podcast and it should be amazing...I'll tweet and Facebook reminders as soon as they are about to go "live" today.



Then, tonight, Julie starts the first of two one-woman shows, opening for Adrian Belew. She'll be at Mexicali Blues in Teaneck, New Jersey, taking the stage at 7PM, and tomorrow she will be at World Cafe Live, taking the stage at 8PM.

Philadelphia Weekly gives Ade and Julie a nice blurb today:

"Adrian Belew

As you probably know by now, Adrian Belew is the Gandalf of guitar, his experimental six-string wizardry a genre unto itself. For nearly 40 years, he’s held his own playing alongside such notable weirdos as Zappa, Bowie and fellow members of King Crimson, and he’s unleashed a batch of solo albums both unorthodox and conventional. In recent years he’s led the acclaimed Adrian Belew Power Trio with Philly’s own Julie Slick (bass) and her brother, Eric Slick (drums). But now that Eric’s drumming in Dr. Dog full-time, the trio is on hold and Belew’s bringing his one-man show—full of improvisation and loops and odd noises and strange gadgets and more—to town tonight."
8pm. $30-$42. With Julie Slick. World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St. 215.222.1400. worldcafelive.com -Michael Alan Goldberg

Julie's debut CD as well as the recently released Adrian Belew Power Trio Live in Germany DVD will be available for sale at the show tonight in Teaneck, New Jersey and tomorrow at World Cafe Live in Philadelphia.

By the way, Julie has been getting some amazing reviews for her CD and here's links to some new ones since I posted last:

Here, here, and look for upcoming reviews/articles in Guitar Player Magazine and Bass Player Magazine. Pretty damn cool, huh.

And here's a fun interview. and another fantastic one which you may have to be a member of Facebook to read, but here's the link to that - it's actually from the summer edition of a print magazine called Limelight.

On Friday night, July 2, Eric Slick/Dr. Dog will appear on the Late, Late Show with Craig Ferguson and I don't know what song they will be performing - I guess we'll all be surprised together.

After that, Eric and Dr. Dog jet off to the High Sierra Music Festival! They'll be performing on Friday night from 9:30 to 11:00PM on the Big Meadow Stage but the really cool show is on Saturday night, July 3, when they will take the stage at the "Funk N Jam House" at 1:30 a.m. and perform "until whenever" which is exactly what it says on the website. Man, I wish I could be there.

And wait until I tell you what the Adrian Belew Power Trio has lined up for July, possibly August (well, I can't write about it until it's confirmed) and the fall. As you know, Marco Minnemann is filling in for Eric, but Julie and Marco may just have a few surprises of their own lined up. Watch this space!

Dr. Dog has some very exciting things going on next month as well, but I will blog about them as they happen or are about to happen. One thing is for certain, you don't want to miss them at the Xponential Music Fest on Sunday, July 19, 2010 at Cooper River Park in Camden, New Jersey...tickets are going fast so click that link!

Oh, one more thing that most of you have probably seen but d'oh, I totally forgot to post it here and it's amazing. Scott McMicken from Dr. Dog teamed up with Shaking Through and Scott, Eric Slick, and a brilliant musician, Mike Visser, worked together on a project called "Springs". This is some fascinating and awesome stuff:

Shaking Through: Springs from Weathervane Music on Vimeo.

And for all you techies out there, here's a video where they discuss how they "made the record"....

Shaking Through: Recording "Waste My Time" from Weathervane Music on Vimeo.

A dictaphone? Where did they even find one of those? Even if you aren't a techie, this is some really interesting stuff.

And finally, to wrap this up, as I've been saying for weeks, I'll be launching the first in my Celebrity Book Club Series and we will start with Tish Cohen'sThe Truth About Delilah Blue.

You need to buy this book. I will be posting my review on July 6, 2010 and then the real fun will begin. So if you haven't already, start reading!

We'll be taking some video of Julie's show tonight and tomorrow so I'll probably be back to post, but just in case life gets in the way, everyone have a fabulous July 4th holiday! But I most likely will post again before then, because I just remembered I forgot to tell you some other things of great importance but I have a 10:00AM appointment and I gotta fly!

Later,
xo

Another stellar review for Ms. Julie Slick

I bet Julie is going to be happy when she wakes up and reads this!



The Review:
Who is the band? What is their history? What motivates them?
“Julie Slick began playing bass at eleven years of age.” “In 1998, at age twelve, she joined the Paul Green School of Rock Music, and soon became the school’s first All-Star bassist.” “This led to an appearance in the award winning documentary, Rock School, as well as a role in several tracks on the movie’s soundtrack.” “By age sixteen, she had already performed across America and Europe with legendary musicians like Frank Zappa alumni Ike Willis and Napoleon Murphy Brock, Jon Anderson of Yes, Stewart Copeland of the Police, Ann Wilson of Heart, and Alice Cooper.” “Three years after graduating the School of Rock and while a junior at Drexel University working toward a degree in Music Industry, she toured the UK with Philadelphia icon Chuck Treece, founder of McRad.” “But her big break came six months later, in March of 2006, when she was invited to join Adrian Belew on stage with her brother, drummer Eric Slick, at the Knitting Factory in New York City for an impromptu version of Frank Zappa’s “City of Tiny Lites”.” “Little did she know that Adrian had been searching for “the perfect rhythm section” and that this chance meeting would lead to the formation of the Adrian Belew Power Trio.” “In May of 2006, Adrian invited Julie and Eric to his studio in Nashville to audition, and after two days of rehearsals, the trio were already out on tour by June, 2006.” Since that time, they have toured four continents, recorded two CDs, and continue to wow crowds internationally.” “Along with being an accomplished bassist whose influences include John Entwistle, Jack Bruce, John Wetton, Tony Levin, Chris Squire and Paul McCartney, Julie also graduated magna cum laude from Drexel and has produced several bands, including Cheers Elephant, The Jangling Sparrows, Sweatheart, Love Gravy as well her own projects” (Source: Julie Slick‘s MySpace, 2010).

Review: 1. Mela – Spacey synths and sax, then that cool bass wanders in as the tempo and momentum build into a Frank Zappa classic mix. There is enough of an ELP, Keith Emerson, feel to this one with its cool synths, not to divert into too much Zappa. But the guitar work is extraordinary. Keeps you on the edge of your seat wondering what’s next. The grinding guitar chords and that cool sax thrown in every now and again are perfect.

2. Many Laughs – A good solid bass line opens before synths and drums join in support. Interesting sounds and well mixed to produce that surround effect with everything coming at you from different sides of the room.

3. February – Slow, softly plucked guitar, piano and synths. Dreamy. You can almost see the February snow falling as you listen to this. That quiet, height of the season, between winter and spring, comes through so well on this track.

4. Mora – Drums and gripping guitar riffs. “Voices in my head”, childlike voices echo throughout this one. An almost sitar sounding guitar with synth and sound effects all around, More instruments seem to be added with each bar of the song. The strong bass keeping pace with all that is surrounding it.

5. Aphrodite – Grinding bass and drums building a bluesy rhythm and melody. Perfect for the Goddess of Love. The guitars have an other – worldly sound that really drives this one home.

6. Baron Aloha – Cool, almost tropical rhythm builds with screeching guitars and that solid bass supporting well. The echo effects are also nice. Almost a conga beat which really sounds great. Spacey, out of this world guitar driving the pace and power of the song.

7. Nothing to be Done – One of the longer tracks on the album opens with bass, drums and synths. Spacey, good background music for a film or a ‘nothing to be done’, relaxing day. Cool echoed guitar picking at the end of this one.

8. Choke – The shortest track on the album. Synths and echoed deep vocal sounds along with bass, synths, and cool Ultrabeat building a strong rhythm. Over too quickly.

9. Awoke – Reaching guitar and drums along with bass and synth effects. A cool grinding song like waking up on the wrong side of the bead. Cool guitar riffs.

10. Shadow Drip – At 6:26 minutes, the longest and most interesting track on the album. Cool echo effects and strong bass light this one up. Julie in all her glory. The synths effects are so cool.

11. Spice Trade – Nice spacey synths and slow acoustic with orchestration. Another one of my favorite songs on the album. Then the bass action sets in motion a driving rhythm. Very cool bass cuts with drums and violin like support.

12. The Rivalry – Rat a tat guitar bursts before the rocking melody kicks in with synth and drum support. This one rocks…faster than all the rest. The synth effects and bass are fantastic.

13. Cage Match – Patterned drums and wild guitar licks along with very cool synths in the background. You can feel the tempo and pulse envisioned in the song title. Another of the better songs on the album. The blistering guitar work is excellent.

14. Blood Blisters – Slow drums and grinding guitar. Different, unique sounds, setting Julie apart from many of the bassists I have heard in the past. Yes, this kind of bass and guitar work takes time and practice to develop.

Rating: 8/10 – Very good guitar and bass work. A real showcase CD for Julie’s incredible talents with synths bass and guitars. Different and intriguing. I mostly listen to lead guitar on the albums I buy, but this experience of hearing all the subtleties from Julie’s album will make me pay more attention to the bass work in the future.

Reviewed by Prof on June 23rd, 2010
******
I will have more to talk about later - right now I have to go out and water my "girls". Ha ha, yeah, we're growing tomatoes right outside the front of the house. A virtual farm in the city and we plan on moving them to the backyard once we figure out how to nicely keep the squirrels away, but for now, it looks awesome and it's very cool to see how they are flourishing. We have both yellow and red cherry tomatoes, peppers, and all kinds of spices. The neighbors are probably wondering what "those hippies" are up to again since we are one of the few without color coordinated flower boxes -- though we do have said boxes but filled with all kinds of crazy flowers -- when it's not 100 degrees out there I'll post some pics.

Meanwhile, are you all reading Tish Cohen's "The Truth About Delilah Blue"? I'll be posting a review shortly and am in the process of enlisting a bunch of very cool people to discuss it with us. And just to be clear, the next book will be Ariel Leve's "It Could Be Worse, You Could Be Me".

Ha! I hate to say it, but I am Ariel already. You'll see what I mean when you read the book.

But let's not jump ahead. Go. Read Delilah Blue and prepare to be wowed.

Okay, time to go don my overalls and take care of my crops!

Later,
xo

Hey, where has Robin Slick gone?

Gah! I know, I know. Where have I been?

Well, I know one thing. I know what my son has been up to, and he can thank me for this one:



That would be Eric and Jason Webley at WXPN radio.

The fabulous Amanda Palmer tweeted yesterday that she was on her way to Philadelphia to do a radio spot at XPN and needed an acoustic guitar within the hour. Since Eric now lives with fellow Dr. Dog bandmate Scott McMicken in West Philly about ten minutes away from XPN, I got him on the phone and as Amanda tweeted back:

"@RobinSlick @mrericslick got it!! calling now. yay guitar."

"just sourced an acoustic guitar for our 1 pm radio show in Philly in under 7 minutes. fucking love twitter so fucking much."

and then:

"jason wields the guitar that came to us by the miracle of Twitter with it's proud owner, @mrericslick. pony!" (Hence the above photo of Eric and Jason with the guitar)

She's got this crazy pony thing going on and must have died when she saw that. Fate is so weird - how the world is so big and yet the same people keep appearing in your life in strange ways with bizarre, connecting circumstances and with certain symbols which keep re-appearing. My friend, Jessica, whom I talk about later in this post, has a magical thing going on with birds. Anyway, before I go off track any further, one of Amanda Palmer's big tour habits, and Eric actually did the exact same thing when he toured with Lithuania, is that rather than waste money in sterile hotels, she finds fans and friends to crash with all over the world. So the night before she came to Philly, she crashed at a friend's down near Washington, D.C. and slept in a bed with a bunch of stuffed ponies. She tweeted:

"as requested by many, pictures of the ponies I slept with last night. this might have been the best bed on tour"



So how crazy is that. Actually, I think the best pony Amanda photo was taken by Kyle Cassidy...and I can't believe it, but I just searched everywhere I could think of and could not find it but I came up with my second favorite:



The one I tried to post was from this same series, where Amanda is on the pony and with one hand going lovingly through Neil Gaiman's hair. I'm so anal retentive I just spent a half hour going through Amanda and Neil's respective blog archives and can't find it anywhere. I even went to Kyle's site. Oh well. You'll just have to believe me. But this photo is gorgeous as well.

Yeah, Neil Gaiman, my former fangirl crush. Ha! Do you see what I mean about how crazy this world is? I discovered Neil Gaiman five years ago when Eric accidentally left "Smoke and Mirrors" on my book shelf and I grabbed it prior to going on vacation...I read it and thought I discovered an unknown author. Yeah, yeah, late to that party in a big way. But I made up for it! I now own everything he's ever written.

I would later drag Eric to a Neil Gaiman signing in Philadelphia in January of 2006 where I would mortify my poor son with such embarrassing behavior I still cringe but Eric Slick is, among other wonderful things, a great sport and despite the fact that I am always, always, always getting him involved in my Lucy and Ethel schemes, he remains my "partner in crime", or the Moe to my Curly.

Hence his response to my frantic phone call to him yesterday to please provide Amanda with a guitar. I haven't talked to him yet today, but Amanda and Jason guest listed him for last night's show at the TLA in Philadelphia...I hope he went and had a blast. Since this has been the week from hell for me (don't ask), I could not go and was bummed.

And the world gets crazier, because a few months ago, Kyle Cassidy wrote to me, and asked if he could photograph my daughter Julie and Adrian Belew when they perform at the World Cafe Live in two weeks. This time, Julie is opening for Adrian in a one woman show, and you can buy your tickets right here.

So yeah, it occurs to me that even though it's totally random, it is just weird, weird, weird how certain people appear and re-appear in your life, no matter how slight the reappearance is.

Oh yeah, another crazy example. Last May, I went to New York City to the Highline Ballroom to see my good friends read their six word memoirs pubilshed by Smith Magazine. Who was the musical guest...and I had no idea? Amanda Palmer! And who was with her in the audience standing there listening to the readers pre-performance? Neil Gaiman! It was just before they went public with their romance, and I saw them standing there and blurted, "I'm telling the internet!" Amanda heard me and turned around and smiled; I said Hi to Neil who gave me a peck on the cheek (yes, I did wash my face afterward though I did consider...never mind) before rushing off backstage.

And naturally I had dragged Eric with me to this event, too.

The poor guy. But like I said, if there is a more good natured, better sport in this world than my son, I do not know who it is.

So that's my story about the randomness of life.

Back to Where have I been?

I blame Facebook, Twitter, and best of all, my new novel, which has unexpectedly turned into a thriller involving everything from panic attacks to cults. But let's be honest here...Julie and Eric are adults now and I feel like when I blog about them every single day, it's an invasion of their privacy and really, if there's anything they want to tell you, they have blogs and Facebook and Twitter accounts of their own. Well, Eric doesn't have Facebook because...uh-oh, here I go invading his privacy...Eric has weaned himself of a lot of online activity and now prefers to devote his downtime (meaning, when he's not on tour) to writing music, meditation, making art as in collage and paintings, and reading. Good on Eric! I am trying to follow his example and miserably failing.

Same goes for Julie, the internet weaning, that is, but just add cooking to that list, and how proud am I of her! Do you know she's almost sold out of the first 1,000 of her debut CD? Do you have any idea how awesome that is? I subscribe to Bob Lefsetz' letter about the music industry and Dave Matthews only sold 3,000 CDs last week.

Have you picked up Julie's CD yet? It's getting AMAZING reviews, links for which I'll put up in my next post because some major ones are about to come out. But in the meantime, pick up your copy here.

Anyway, I started this blog in 2004 when Julie was 18, Eric 17 and at a time when blogs were just really starting to go mainstream. I am in awe when I hear of people who have had online journals since the mid-nineties. I was so late to that party, too. I did not even go on line for the first time until 2000. I know. What a luddite. Anyway, it's my ten year anniversary. On the plus side, being online has introduced me to some of the most incredible people in the universe, friends I now have all over the world I'd never have met otherwise. I was published for the first time in an online magazine soon after, which lead to my story being nominated for a Best American Short Story Award, which lead to my first novel.

On the minus side, my house looks like hell. Ha! I'm sorry, I no longer have time for housework - I have to see what my Facebook friends are doing and then I have to tweet and then I have to...

Oy.

Actually, if I am really honest, I am still sort of wary of Facebook, which I have finally learned how to use properly though I still find it overwhelming. I apologize to all of the people I inadvertently ignored - I did not know proper FB etiquette and even now, with my modest amount of "friends", I would literally be commenting there all day if I stayed current with everyone I know. So, like, blogging, Facebook must be severely cut back.

As far as Twitter, I don't know much more of that I can take. I have made a couple of great friends there, one of whom has become one of my favorite people and who has helped Julie more than I could ever begin to tell you - Anil Prasad of Innerviews and Guitar Player Magazine. Anil has a book coming out later this year and he is definitely going to be in my Celebrity Book Club. What's my Celebrity Book Club? Aha! Glad you asked. More on that in a minute.

On May 26, 2010, I had an amazing time attending Book Expo America in New York. I even got a mention, which made me laugh out loud:

"Oh, the People You Meet at BEA Parties
By Jason Boog on May 27, 2010

Yesterday we prowled BEA parties with Garrison Keillor's dour "Publishing is about to slide into the sea" pronouncement ringing in our ears.

Our night began at The New York Times' literary party where Ryan Chapman discussed upcoming projects and P.E. Logan chatted about book reviews. Carolyn Kellogg pondered the long night ahead of us, Thomas Rogers critiqued Sex and the City 2, and Leslie Koppenhaver cheered Graywolf Press' good year. Laura Miller shared her feelings about the Lost finale and Jonathan Lethem suggested we read a certain biography of the late, great Nathanael West.

At the Harper Perennial blogger apprecition party in the historic Algonquin Hotel, we talked with Ron Hogan about his reading series and debated publishing profits with Levi Asher. Jurgen Fauth chatted about Fictionaut while Marcy Dermansky explained her upcoming novel. Kevin Smokler talked about book tours. Susan Henderson showed off her new galley and Robin Slick said her son had joined the rock band Dr. Dog..."

Yep, the rest of the world lives vicariously through my kids, too.

But you'll see the mention of Susan Henderson. I went to New York because she was indeed signing galleys of her debut novel, Up from the Blue and I snagged one and devoured it immediately.

Listen. This book will take your breath away. I gave you the link to buy it. Do yourself a favor and pre-order it now. Susan just may win a Pulitzer for this. I don't say things like that lightly.

Joining me in New York for this wonderful occasion, which also included an amazing cocktail party at the Algonquin Hotel thrown by Sue's publisher, HarperCollins, for whom I will now be reviewing books, was my brilliant writer pal Jessica Keener, she of the bird story I mentioned above. The three of us booked a suite at the Algonguin for the night so we could party away and not have to take long train rides home. Sadly we were missing the fourth member of our Great Canadian retreat, writer Tish Cohen, because it was release week for Tish's latest book, The Truth About Delilah Blue.

I am reading that right now. The Globe and Mail called it "the summer's first terrific beach read". Read their review right here.

As soon as I am finished reading, Tish is going to get the Celebrity Book Club treatment, too. I don't know if Canadian writers are eligible for Pulitzers but...man...I cannot believe I read two books in a row of this quality.

So what exactly am I talking about? Well, here's the plan. Whenever I read a book which brings me to my knees like Up from the Blue or The Truth About Delilah Blue, I'm going to post a review. My hope is that you will buy the book or go to your local library, read it, and a few weeks later, we'll discuss it in the comment section here. I'm going to invite a lot of pretty famous author pals of mine to participate as well as some rock stars since I, erm, happen to know a few. Everyone can come here and talk about the book and they will get replies from celebrities they might normally get a chance to "meet". I'll give plenty of advance notice, and each post devoted to a special book will remain up until we've all had a chance to discuss it and then I'll move on to the next.

Let me give you a recap of some of the books I intend to talk about:

The Truth About Delilah Blue by Tish Cohen - already linked
Up From the Blue by Susan Henderson - already linked
It Could Be Worse, You Could Be Me by Ariel Leve - buy it here.
Bad Marie by Marcy Dermansky - buy it here.
Pictures of You by Caroline Leavitt - not available for pre-order yet, but read about it here.
Innerviews: Music without Borders by Anil Prasad
The Other Life by Ellen Meister

Notice for most of my links to buy, I use Indie Bound as opposed to Amazon. Please support indie book stores. Anyone who reads this blog knows how I loathe corporations.

Getting back to my Celebrity Book Club...

Actually, let's start with The Truth About Delilah Blue. Over the next couple of weeks, I'm going to continue to plug this before putting up a comprehensive review for us to begin our chat. Here's the official HarperCollins blurb and trailer to entice you further:

"The Truth About Delilah Blue
What if you woke up one day to learn that you were once a child on a milk carton? This is the provocative premise of The Truth About Delilah Blue.

Lila Mack, formerly known as Delilah Blue Lovett, has felt like an outsider ever since she moved from the gingerbread community of Cabbagetown, Toronto, to Los Angeles with her father when she was eight-years-old. Now twenty and still struggling to find her way in life, she yearns to become an artist like her long-lost mother, but, unable to pay for classes, she does something quite daring. She takes a job as an art model, posing nude for a classroom full of students so she can learn from the professor—a decision that lifts the veil of her once insular world.

Anxiety over exposing her body is the least of Lila’s worries when her father starts to become disoriented and forgetful, signs of early-onset Alzheimer’s. At the same time, her mother re-enters the scene, bringing secrets about the past that will change their lives. Suddenly, nearly everything Lila knows about herself is a lie, and she has no idea who to trust—her free-spirited mother whom she always believed abandoned the family, or her adoring father, who has begun his descent into senility and is either unable or unwilling to give her answers. Lila realizes neither parent is what he/she seems and the only one she can really rely on is the most broken person of all—herself.

The Truth About Delilah Blue showcases Cohen’s talent for finding the humor and heart in the most dysfunctional of families as she tackles the subject of parental abduction and the themes of abandonment, trust, healing and forgiveness."



And when I just went to Tish's FB page to lift this video, I got the greatest news! It's #5 on the Globe and Mail Canadian best seller list!

Trust me, I'm not quite finished reading it yet, but I would have to agree. Though I disagree with the term "beach read"...it's way, way, way more than that.

Anyway, there is a ton of stuff going on - like, Eric is going to be on the Craig Ferguson show in a couple weeks, more exciting Julie news...wait...didn't I start this post off by telling you I wasn't going to do that anymore...okay, I lied...but I've blabbed enough for one day and I promise to be back...

Later,
xo

Julie Slick and Charlie Gracie

Hey hey:

So as I mentioned in the post below, Ms. Julie Slick had the opportunity to jam with Charlie Gracie at Bob Dylan's 69th birthday celebration last Monday. Freaking historic.



Later,
xo

Ketchup Part I - Julie and Eric Slick

Wow, time fries.

I really can't let this much time pass between posts again! The problem with not blogging every day is that then so much stuff happens I don't know where to start so I avoid the blog the same way I do when the house somehow gets really messy, which is still a great mystery to me since Julie and Eric no longer live here. Where does all the clutter come from? Anyway, when this happens, I am so overwhelmed i only stay in the one clean room, usually the place where my desk and computer are. It isn't until the mess spreads there, too, that I finally do housework and I'm so disgusted by all the accumulated junk that I start throwing stuff out I'd normally keep just to achieve some order.



In other words, if I don't write about stuff right after it occurs, I may skip over it altogether - either my brain has forgotten it or it doesn't seem as special as when it first happened. But trust me, some really special stuff has indeed been going on.

However, as I sit here, I am wondering where to begin. There's Eric Slick, who has been traipsing through Europe on tour with Dr. Dog, there's Julie Slick, who has so much good news I am feeling like a terrible blogger AND mother for failing to report in a more timely fashion, and then there's me, who had the time of her life last week at Book Expo America in New York City complete with sleepover party at a suite at the Algonquin Hotel with Sue Henderson and Jessica Keener. I think this last bit deserves a post of its own, so to make my life simpler, let's talk progeny today and start the ketchup process with Julie, whose debut CD is literally flying off the shelves and already receiving rave reviews.

Like right here.

There's also a nice mention right here with lots of cool commentary...but...but...that's not Julie, that's Julie's doppleganger! (Just kidding)

Anyway, if you'd like to win a copy of Ms. Julie's CD, DGM is sponsoring a contest.

Of course you could also pick it up at iTunes or via Julie's store. If you buy it there, make her draw you a picture along with her autograph - she's an amazing artist.

Anyway, even though Eric is playing drums with Dr. Dog right now and they're on tour for most of 2010 and Adrian is touring solo with a very cool project called "Painting with Guitar", the Adrian Belew Power Trio still lives and will not only be playing the Vancouver Music Fest but an extensive tour of Europe. Sadly, Eric is not available but I don't think anyone is going to be disappointed by his very special guest replacement.

You can see the entire tour schedule for Painting With Guitar right here, but the main thing you need to know is that on June 30, 2010 at Mexical Blues in Teaneck, New Jersey and on July 1, 2010 at World Cafe Live, Adrian will have a special opener...none other than Julie Slick, solo, and she'll be performing selections from her debut CD. Click on the venues' respective links to buy tickets...see how easy I make it for you?

By the way, if you were at the Khyber last Friday night, Julie enlisted the other members of Paper Cat, Robbie "Seahag" Mangano and Eric Slick, to perform "Rivalry" from her new CD, and here's the video:



And while I'm at it, here's a Paper Cat clip from the same night - I keep telling them, this is your hit, but I get the usual rolled eyes and "Mom, stop!"



I also have some, dare I say, historic video from Bob Dylan's 69th birthday party last Monday night but it was recorded on my flip camera and no one ever taught me how to upload from that thing so rather than risk losing footage I'll never have again, I'm waiting for Eric to get home tomorrow. Anyway, Julie jammed with the great Charlie Gracie and I absolutely cannot wait to post that!

Right now Eric is in Gorge, Washington, getting ready to perform at the Sasquatch Festival. Dr. Dog is playing in between Passion Pit and the Japandroids. Looks like Eric's old buddies, Ween are the headliners. Oh yeah, and MGMT. In the past week Eric has played in Berlin, Amsterdam, London, Paris, and I forget where else. I do know that two days ago he was in Barcelona, Spain, performing at the Primavera Festival. I like his tweets: "Hung with wilco n yeasayer a bit. " "Just had a drunken wall climbing competition with grizzly bear". Eric/Dr. Dog just had something like thirty hours of travel with connecting flights, etc., yesterday to Seattle and then tomorrow they'll have another six hour flight home, taking into consideration the three hour time difference and I don't know if they are flying non-stop or not...I suspect they'll be home at midnight and the band will all spend Wednesday sound asleep. They better, because on Thursday, they are playing Non Comm at 11:25PM and I believe tickets are still available - the show's at World Cafe Live - but it looks like you have to pay one fee to attend all events. Here's the info.

After Eric/Dr. Dog plays Non-Comm, the next day they head to Hunter, New York for Mountain Jam, which, to be honest, I cannot believe I'm missing. Take a look at who is performing:



Oh man, I really should be figuring out a way to be there. But, you know, I'd have to sleep in a tent and...

No.

I'll watch the DVD.

The following weekend, Eric/Dr. Dog plays Bonnaroo. It's crazy. What a life my kids have.

But what a life I have, too. More on that in my next post.

Later,
xo