Time, Time, Time, See What's Become of Me...While I Looked Around...For My Possibilities

Photo of Julie Slick on stage at Slim's in San Francisco, courtesy of Daryl Darko

ETA: ERIC HAS UPDATED HIS TOUR BLOG. (And it's hilarious)

Title of this post courtesy of Simon & Garfunkle (not the Bangles, damn it!)...and it's my theme song today because I really can't screw around blogging today; I need to work on my novel(s) as while I continue to miss my family like you would not believe, they will be home Thursday and this current state of loneliness is therefore prime writing time for me.

And truth to tell (ha), Gary laid so much stuff on me about events that occurred at the Adrian Belew Power Trio show in San Francisco Thursday evening my head is spinning but then he followed it up with "You can't report any of this stuff I'm telling you in your blog..."

All I can say is, what he told me is mind boggling, exciting, and I'm not saying another word because I believe in the "jinx factor". So I leave you now with a You Tube someone posted of the San Diego show...just a little taste of what these guys sound like in concert:



I do want to copy a blurb I read on DGM Live, though:

“I just returned from the Adrian show at Slim’s in San Francisco.

WOW!!!

Some Side One and Three, some older stuff, some Crimson stuff, a stunning version of George Harrison’s Within You Without You. All in all, a great evening of great music.

I’m a law student at a school about ten blocks from Slim’s, and I had to miss the opening act to attend Torts class. Luckily, I got to the venue about five minutes before Adrian and the Slick rhythm section (a TRIUMPHANT musical family) hit the stage.

One of the most impressive things about the performance was Julie Slick tapping out Tony’s parts on Elephant Talk on a Fender Jazz. As something of a bassist myself in my pre-law school days, I was mightily impressed.

If Adrian’s tour comes to your town, GO!!!!”

The rest of Ade’s live schedule is as follows

● 11/11 - The Catalyst - Santa Cruz, CA

● 11/13 - McDonald Theatre - Eugene, OR

● 11/14 - Triple Door - Seattle, WA

● 11/15 - Aladdin Theater - Portland, OR
****
Oh, one final thing. For my writer pals out there...Frank Daniels has written one of the most gut wrenching, emotional pieces about what's it's really like to be a writer over at Lit Park today. It moved my soul so much that I really do refuse to do anything but write today...oh, other than have dinner out tonight with another amazing writer...Deb, if you are reading this, click on Frank's piece...I can guarantee you will sit at your computer and weep like I am weeping...but I think Frank's piece should be a required read for authors and wannabe authors everywhere.

Later,
xo

Adrian Belew Power Trio: Long Beach, CA

All of the photos I'm posting here today of Julie Slick, Eric Slick, and Adrian Belew were taken Wednesday night at the show in Long Beach, California, by the amazing Burton Lo...and to see these and many more, visit Burton's Flickr site and watch them as a slide show for maximum enjoyment right here. Also in the slide show you will see the trio's opening act, Saul Zonana, whose CD Adrian produced...Saul is also former bassist for the Crash Test Dummies -- he's an amazing performer and a hell of a nice guy. I met him when he opened for the trio in New York City in August and I seriously recommend you check him out.

Anyway, Burton and I became cyber friends when I discovered his Flickr site...naturally I had to write to him following the photos I found that he took in Solana Beach...and after a day of emailing back and forth, Burton actually decided to take the very long drive (and with a head cold yet) to Long Beach and catch another show! You can read all about it in his blog .

The following shots were taken at the end of the trio's performance, and is it just me, or can you just feel the love these three have for each other? I think this series of shots says so, so much about the band's unique and amazing chemistry:






This next shot is apparently one of an insane King Crimson fan...I've read about him in other blogposts and he's really into it, isn't he? I heard he danced non-stop all evening with that bag on his head.



Attending the show and completely wowed were Paul McCartney's rhythm guitarist, Rusty Anderson (that's not his actual site but I loved the one I linked so click on that, but for Rusty's actual web presence, click here), Josh Freese, who has drummed with everyone from Devo to Guns n' Roses, Suicidal Tendencies to Perry Farrell, Paul Westerberg to Chris Cornell, A Perfect Circle to Juliana Hatfield, Mike Ness to 311, and the list goes on. But I think the guest who excited my husband the most was Thomas Nordegg..."he was with Frank Zappa in the 80s and went on to tech firstly for Warren Cuccurullo, and more recently Steve Vai. He used to do a lot of video recording (ever seen the FZ St Etienne clip?). Was big mates with Warren and probabaly has a lot of scurrilous footage from his brief stint with the band. He can be seen in the extras for Steve Vai's Live In London DVD teaching Steve everything he knows about the guitar!" (information comes to me courtesy of my good cyber pal and Zappa historian, Andrew Greenaway. Anyway, Thomas spent a good part of the evening talking with Gary and he totally blew him away with his wonderful, insane stories about working with Frank...and now I believe he's also tech on the Zappa Plays Zappa tour currently coming to a city near you.

Speaking of Paul McCartney, here's a shot Burt Lo took of Eric which makes him look very Beatle like, don't you think? Ha ha, there's that Neil Gaiman haircut in action:



And as concerns Neil, well, it wouldn't be a Robin post without wishing him a Happy 46th birthday today...Hey, hey, Neil, you old geezer...I beat you to it (the age) and I know exactly what you mean in your blog today...I still feel like a kid, too, and keep wondering who the hell that "woman" in the mirror is. But like you, I still look way cool, too...we're not going to let a stupid thing like a number get to us, right? Besides, if 60 is the new 40, that makes us...um...still babies.



And while I'm on the subject of writing, something I sort of overlook (arghhh) while the kids are on tour and I'm busy being their music columnist, here's a couple of important blurbs:

First, my great pal Ellen Meister has an awesome promotion going on for her amazing book...if you are seeking a truly inspired gift for a teacher this holiday season, look no further!

Secondly, Philadelphia Stories is holding a Micro-Fiction Slam on Saturday, November 18 at 1:00 p.m. (registration at 12:00 p.m.) at Voices and Visions Bookstore (yes, they carry my book, too but that's not why I'm promoting them...they are the one of the last of the independent booksellers in Philadelphia and it's important that we give them our business as opposed to the corporate chains)...anyway, the premise of the slam is that you show up with up to two short stories no longer than 300 words...bring three copies of said story(ies) for each of the judges...there's a $5.00 per entry charge but if you win, it's $50.00 for you and the priceless fame that goes along with being a winner. I'm just hoping I can get it together to enter, but if not, I will be there in the audience for sure.

Finally, incredible but true, Another Bite of the Apple remains highest rated in erotica over at Fictionwise...I think it's been #1 for like two months now so to say I'm stoked would be a major understatement.

Anyway, I'm really tired right now because Gary called me and woke me at 1:30 a.m. last night excited beyond belief about the San Francisco show...he walked outside to call me during intermission...he said it was the best show yet and also celebrity studded...Boz Scaggs was there...and I was so dead to the world when he telephoned that I can't remember what else he said but you know me, I'll be back with another blog post and a lot more photos because Yay! Gary also had a 35 mm with him and took six rolls of film to Walgreens and made me discs which he'll download to Julie's laptop and email me later today so now I don't feel like a total idiot for forgetting to pack him my cable along with my digital camera though that omission gives me something to really look forward to when he comes home next week...though of course it's my family coming home that I'm looking forward to the most.

God I miss those guys. Have I mentioned that enough times?

Oh well. That's it for now. Today marks the beginning of a four day writing marathon for me. I'm serious about completing two novels by the end of this month and I'm well on my way. Sigh...trust me, it's the only upside of my family being out on the west coast and leaving me here alone to my own devices.

Later,
xo

The Belew Power Trio in Solana Beach, CA

Photos of the Adrian Belew Power Trio at the Belly Up Tavern near San Diego, CA courtesy of Burton Lo

Okay, first things first.

Krimson News has part II of their podcast with Julie and Eric up today and yeah, yeah, I know I'm their mother but I laughed out loud. It's hilarious and sweet and really well done. Plus, as an added bonus, this week they break up the interview by including "Barracuda" in between segments -- Julie and Eric recorded that with Ann Wilson of Heart for the Rock School soundtrack.

In fact, here they are performing it with her in Seattle last May:



Anyway, I also found some cool stuff on the Planet Crimson forum board, and in case it's a members only thing, here's a bit of a review...

"... A lot of nice things have been said about Adrian's current band, but seasoned manager of expectation that I am, lol, I remained somewhat skeptical. Up until about 10 to 15 seconds into the show anyway, when I knew it was great band. Contrasting in style, but meshing together well, Julie and Eric proved to be a tight propulsive rhythm section that powered Adrian's songs to new heights. At its peak the intensity of the performance had real emotional power; I not only had to wipe away sweat from my forehead, but a time or two, a tear rolling down my cheek. As always, Adrian's joy in performing was contagious, and though I've been told I don't smile enough, when he looks you in the eyes as he's wringing that guitar neck, well I did my best to give him a big smile back (even Julie smiled back at him eventually, lol). The King Crimson songs were definitely better than they were with last year's band, and I have to say it, especially on "Thela Hun Ginjeet" it felt like the spirit of Crimson was present. Afterwards the ovation from the crowd packed into the club was so loud, Adrian covered his ears and said, you guys are louder than us, I didn't think that was possible."

And that same post led me to this one, which is the above mentioned Burton Lo's Flickr site and includes another cool review.

Anyway, tonight the Belew Trio hits Long Beach, which is right outside of Los Angeles, and they will be at Vault 350 which looks just too cool for words and tomorrow evening, November 9, they will be at the legendary Slim's in San Francisco.

I'm so jealous! Have I mentioned how bummed I am to not be on this tour and how much I miss my family? I'm starting to crack. Next thing you know I'll be the woman with her knickers on her head carrying all of her weirdest possessions in a shopping bag while crossing the street on a red light and shrieking at startled strangers that she's meeting Erica Jong, David Sedaris and Neil Gaiman for martinis at the Algonquin.

But heh heh...I am a very happy woman right now in spite of being desperately lonely. You didn't notice any smirks on that simian face today, did you?



And bye bye, Rumsfield. Hello, Nancy Pelosi!

Seriously. Click on those links. You can thank me...

later,
xo

By the time they got to Phoenix (Okay, kill me now for typing that but yikes I'm feeling sentimental today)

Photo of Julie on stage in Phoenix Sunday night courtesy of photographer Joel Klein

Before I start "talking", I just saw that Eric has once again updated his tour blog and all I can say is, he is one hell of a writer and I take full credit for his talent. Ha! Well, his dad takes credit for the music -- Gary is an awesome guitar player whose musical influence is one of the reasons Eric and Julie are Eric and Julie and Adrian -- so please let me have my one moment in the sun in this family. (Insert smiley face emoticon here)

Anyway...

One of the coolest things about being a writer and having this blog is that people who attend the Belew shows find me, and I've been getting emails from all sorts of fans who are attending the shows all over the west coast.

Two more insanely interesting people I've met via Julie and Eric are Joel Klein and Dan Tomlinson.

Joel is a New York native and has been shooting pics for forty-four years; now he lives in Phoenix. Besides supplying me with the above photo of Julie (and the ones I'm also going to post below), Joel wrote me the following review of the Adrian Belew Power Trio's performance in Arizona:

"As always Mr Belew is right on with his eclectic and progressive guitar playing. As for your wonderful children Julie and Eric allow me to indulge:

If Adrian took away one thing (among many) from Mr Zappa, I hope that was Frank's insight to discover, nurture and promote untapped talent in musical genius. If he has acquired this ear for talent, then all I can say is that Julie and Eric will (if they choose to continue) have an incredible career as musicians. They are truly fine young talented people and also are not affected by the egomaniacal world we are surrounded by today in a lot of the music (or crap) coming out on bits and bytes.

You see, true artists need not surround themselves with such tripe, as true artists rely on their own merit as musicians that enhance the lives of folks like myself. Egos diminish this talent in many of today's artists. I can truly say that as a pretty good judge of people, Julie and Eric are true and pure musicians in every sense of the word when they are up on stage. As their Mom, you would be the best judge of this.

So, Robin and Gary, be proud that your have nurtured such wonderful people that will bring years of enjoyment to the ears of this world!!"
*****

Man, that makes me cry every time I read it. And I adore what he has to say...very clever, the "bit and bytes", isn't it? So, so true.

Here are a few more photos Joel took of the trio:



Tbere's my Eric, or Eric the Animal as he's called on drumming forum boards all across the universe (ducking because I know Eric is going to throw a cyber shoe at my head when he reads this)



And the man responsible for my family's current state of bliss, Mr. Adrian Belew (with a lovely shot of Julie in the background, of course)

Now this next shot is most interesting. Normally I would be spilling the whole story behind it but Eric has been keeping such an awesome tour blog that I don't want to steal his glory and talk about what happened following the show. Plus, I understand there's a lot more pictures to "prove it". So let me instead identify some of the people in this photo...



Okay, the man front and center wearing the Twang Bar King t-shirt is my husband, Gary (ha ha - Gary has decided I can post his pic after all on the evil internet so I guess I lose my Neil Gaiman with the secret hidden spouse status har har). Obviously you know Julie, Eric, and Adrian. But standing next to Adrian is the mystery man, the guy who provided the Belews and the Slicks with one hell of an evening following the show -- he's the promoter, Danny Zelisko. The man front row, right in the green shirt works for Danny - his name is Beef. God I love that name. Beef. Remind me to use that in a story. Anyway, here's just a tiny taste of who Danny is.

Oh hell. I can't keep this in. Okay, Danny invited everyone back to his house after the show...he lives in a Frank Lloyd Wright home on the side of a mountain...and he's got a guitar signed by all four of the Beatles.

That's just the tip of the iceberg. I'd better shut up now. Eric will kill me and I know he must be dying to tell this whole story himself.

But have I mentioned that Baby Hippie Gary saw the Beatles with his mother in 1966 and if I go upstairs and snoop in his top drawer, he still has the original ticket stubs. If he didn't take my camera with him to the west coast, I'd be up there taking a shot right now. But yeah, Gary was in the Beatle Fan Club until it finally dis...dismembered? in like 1980. So to say he's a Beatle freak is putting it mildly...and how funny that this goes perfectly in sync with Susan Henderson's Question of the Week at Lit Park today.

Alrighty, then. I'd better get off this topic. So, let's talk about who else has come to the shows. We have the guitar player for the Tubes (sorry...I don't know his name), and the man I mention above, Dan Tomlinson. As a fellow drummer, Dan was really taken with Eric's playing and he immediately contacted me the next day and actually made some phone calls to try and get Eric endorsements which would be totally awesome. If you do a little research on Dan, you'll see he was with Lyle Lovett's band, played on The Tonight Show...anyway, it's just so cool that he reached out to Eric like that and really wanted to help him get said endorsements because face it, drum equipment is expensive and Eric goes through massive quantities of sticks, drum heads, pedals...you name it.

Yesterday the band had the night off so they drove to California - they play at the Belly Up Tavern in San Diego tonight and Eric already spoke with Mike Keneally and he's coming to the show tonight...sigh...yet another great moment I'm missing.

But I will say this. I'm really happy for my family and thrilled Gary is getting a chance to see the west coast and bond with J&E and the Belews. As for me, while I am getting a lot of writing done, I'm getting absolutely no sleep (what's with all those strange noises I'm hearing in the middle of the night and why does the dog seem to think it's necessary that he drape all 65 of his pounds across my chest no matter which way I turn)...and worse, I am eating like a little spoiled kid...meaning, one night I had chocolate cake for dinner, last night I didn't eat at all, but the fabulous Julie made me fresh salmon cakes which are in the freezer right now so I'm going to be good tonight and cook 'em up -- she even left me instructions on how to make an accompanying chipolte dipping sauce.

Arghhh...who am I kidding. I MISS MY FAMILY! And I think I'm in shock that they won't be home until next Thursday. But hey, I really do believe I will have two finished novels ready to go by then.

At least in theory.

Oh. One final thing before I head into the kitchen and fry up some salmon. I would be remiss if I didn't say VOTE, DAMN IT! LET'S GET THOSE REPUBLICAN FUCKERS OUT OF OFFICE!

Later,
xo

Eric...

...has updated his tour blog.

I defer to him today...his stories are so great that I'll let him have the glory for now but oh my god do I have some new tales from the road to report. Stay tuned!

Later,
xo

The Adrian Belew Trio: Live in Austin...and I mean, LIVE!

Adrian Belew on stage Thursday night in Austin, TX

Okay. I am totally stoked. I found someone who did an awesome review of Thursday night's show but more importantly, he put up some video! (It's a little blurry but I miss Julie and Eric so much that even seeing them play Big Electric Cat with Adrian on this You Tube is causing me to get all teary-eyed which isn't helping things)



Also, Google blog stalking has unearthed a review of the show last night in New Mexico written last night by someone who visits this blog occasionally - here's the link...thanks, Richard!

More later,
xo

The Adrian Belew Trio: Santa Fe, New Mexico...or...The Love Belew

That would be Pat Mastelotto making devil horns behind the heads of Adrian Belew and Todd Wolfson (see my post of yesterday for the whole story)

Anyway, the title of today's blog entry comes from this wonderful article I found this morning in the Santa Fe Reporter:

"The Love Belew
By Mark Sanders

Adrian Belew is walking around his back porch in the Nashville suburb of Mount Juliet, swatting away curious bumblebees and chatting on his phone. Occasionally, we are interrupted by his outbursts, which are G-rated but kind of humorous, too. He’s trying to stay on topic while avoiding the stingers.

Songs from many sides will rock the Brewing Company.

“I’m sorry,” he says, stopping himself in mid-sentence.

Obnoxious bees aside, Belew has lived in north-central Tennessee for 12 years because he loves it there. His wife’s family is located nearby. Plus, the Kentucky native says, he likes the rural vibe there—Belew saw two deer in his yard this morning, he says—adding that he lives in Mount Juliet because he has a studio there, where he records frequently.

“Frequently” is maybe not the right word to describe his recording schedule. “Obsessively” is more like it, since the past couple years’ worth of studio sessions have resulted in Side One, Side Two and Side Three, albums that show off the iconic guitarist’s different tastes.

As anyone who’s followed Belew’s career path can imagine, those tastes are fairly unpredictable. Belew’s career took off after Frank Zappa discovered him gigging in a Nashville cover band in the late ’70s, after which he began touring and recording with David Bowie, Talking Heads, King Crimson and, more recently, members of prog rock bands Tool and Primus.

Drummer Danny Carey and bassist Les Claypool (of Tool and Primus, respectively), backed Belew on Side One and Side Three, albums that show off the artist’s more experimental side. British Invasion-era rock is wrapped in electronic blips and synthesizer noises on some tracks; most songs, such as the cumbersomely titled “The Red Bull Rides a Boomerang Across the Blue Constellation,” show the 56-year-old guitarist in prime form, and not giving a damn about mass appeal.

Nevertheless, a healthy number of fans continue coming to him, and not just because he’s the guy who backed Bowie.

“They’re not being serviced by the mainstream,” Belew says between swats. “They’re music people, and they really want to hear different kinds of live music.”

“So now you have bands like Ump­hree’s McGee and Tool and Primus, and they’re fans of what I’ve been a part of.”

The fact that Belew has had such a big influence on bands he’s played with is something the artist has thought about. Especially in his current band, a trio that includes musicians still under the legal drinking age.

Philadelphia natives Eric and Julie Slick are a brother and sister who studied at the Paul Green School of Rock, located in their hometown. As top players at the school, the Slicks got a chance to study under Belew, who was encouraged by School of Rock founder Green to consider taking them on tour.

“I flew them down here to audition,” Belew says, now a few months after the fact. Eric is 19; Julie is 20. They weren’t even born until Belew’s career was already firmly established.

“They don’t even drive cars. They’re really just consumed with music. We play from different segments of my solo work, and end with my King Crimson work. The challenge of that is to deliver it in a power trio format.”

All of it happened unexpectedly; Belew never really anticipated plucking two young musicians out of their hometown to go on tour with him. Thinking aloud, the guitarist relates the experience to his career path. Which is to say, nothing was ever planned.

Belew left his last non-music-related job when he was bassist Julie Slick’s age, 20. He worked at a furniture factory, where his father was a foreman. “Oh my gosh, I’m happy I’m not doin’ that,” Belew says, “inhaling sawdust all day.”

While on tour with Zappa, Belew met David Bowie, who subsequently had him play on his late-’70s albums Stage and Lodger. At the same time, the Talking Heads hired Belew to play on their iconic 1980 album Remain in Light. Soon after, the guys from King Crimson called.

“I thought I’d go about things the way that most musicians do: Put together a band…” the guitarist says, trailing off.

He adds, “It worked the opposite way for me. I worked with famous people first, then formed my own band.”

Now, the artist who is best known for those he’s worked with is standing firmly in the limelight. It’s a matter of timing, Belew says.

“Over the past four or five years, I was putting a lot of time into resurrecting King Crimson and, to a lesser extent, [Cincinnati-based experimental pop group] The Bears. I’d record between the cracks of other work I was doing.”

Gradually, Belew says, he realized he had 30 or so quality songs. The result was the Side albums and, now, tour dates with the Slick siblings.

Unexpected as it all was, Belew takes the developments in stride. Besides, the fact that he’s playing with musicians less than half his age is just testimony to his own outlook.

“I never take myself seriously as a full-grown adult,” he says calmly. “I’ve been associated with 100 or so records, but I’m still a kid. I still challenge myself with ideas. The kid in me is still very much in charge.”

ADRIAN BELEW POWER TRIO
8 pm
Saturday, Nov. 4
$30 advance
$32 day of show
Santa Fe Brewing Company
35 Fire Place
424-3333

And here's another fan review I found:

Adrian Belew Live at the Granada Theater 11/1/2006

"I’m sitting here writing this in the odd confines of a service department waiting room. I wanted to get this down while it’s fresh in my mind. Last night, (Wednesday night), Jeff and Ryan and I went to see Adrian Belew live in Dallas at the Granada Theater. They were good sports for coming along, even though I am the one who is freakishly fanatical about Belew and his music.

First of all, the Granada. I had never seen a show there before. It was surprisingly easy to get to and parking was so easy it seemed like we were committing a crime, parking for free no more than thirty yards from the front door. And the usher was tearing our tickets just as Adrian and his two young musical co-conspirators were beginning their show with the blistering “Writing on the Wall.” We could not have planned the pre-show timing any better. The Granada is in a part of Dallas that reminds me of Western Ave in Northwest Oklahoma City. The venue itself is reminiscent of the Will Rogers Theater.

It was rather bizarre to walk up into a mostly empty balcony with the crushing rhythm of the Adrian Belew Trio as the soundtrack. I can’t describe to you the rush of walking into that room and seeing and hearing one of my musical heroes in person, so close that he could possibly see and hear me. It was just surreal. Until last night Adrian Belew didn’t even exist in the same plane of reality for me. He existed in my ears, on CDs, on King Crimson DVDs, but not in the same three dimensions as me. It didn’t seem possible. (Do I sound like a fanboy yet?)

But there he was, pulling off that strange beautiful music with more power than I had experienced before: the subs pumping when Julie Slick would play low down on the bass. (Insert comment about testicle-rumbling bass tones here.) We discussed in the car on the way down about the vague “something extra” that accompanies seeing music performed live. And I know I was certainly transfixed for the whole show. I know this music really well, so I can’t possibly give a clear, unbiased account of what occurred, but I can speak in some generalities.

The venue felt like just the perfect size for this group. They weren’t swallowed by a cavernous space and the mix was pretty clear and powerful the whole time, the vocals pretty comprehensible, those magnificently weird guitar sounds up front. As far as material, most of the Crimson standards were represented—Jeff and I sharing knowing looks during his new faves-“Dinosaur” and “Three of a Perfect Pair,” which sounded really powerful, as did “Frame by Frame” and “Elephant Talk,” off the Discipline album. The Belew solo material focused on the newest Sides 1-3 stuff: “Drive,” “Ampersand,” “Beat Box Guitar,” (which I have just recently come to love), and “Matchless Man.” But I was very pleased to hear some middle period stuff like “Of Bow and Drum” off my favorite album Op Zop Too Wah, which Adrian said he never got a chance to tour behind and “Young Lions,” both of which I didn’t expect to hear.

It’s quite a thrill to see music like this stuff pulled off live with such aplomb. Adrian seems to be having a good time up there, with his young band, making those odd meters and guitar gymnastics look pretty easy. And I haven’t even begun to discuss how great his voice is. But all things come to an end, as this concert did. (I could have listened to them for another hour and a half or so, my love for the music is so great.) And Adrian ended the show a little oddly, by improvising some loops with synth and guitar and creating “walk-off music” for the audience, inviting them to leave whenever they wanted to or hang around and listen to the music “do its’ thing,” betraying the musical Minimalist mindset that I have come to know and love over the years.

I haven’t smiled so much during a concert in a long time.

It was pretty easy for me to stay awake for the three hour drive back home."

So that's the Belew part of my day; I do have some other stuff to report but I need to do some...gasp...domestic goddess duties around here so I can write in a nice, calm, clean, tranquil environment (for like the first time ever...I'm serious...this really is the first time in my life I'm alone for two weeks with the family out west on tour and I don't think it's entirely hit me yet. Right now it's kind of...weird).

Anyway...

Maybe later?
xo

Belew Trio on Tour: Texas!

Photo of Adrian Belew, Eric Slick, and Julie Slick taken last evening courtesy of the wildly talented Todd V. Wolfson. More on the amazing Todd below.

I'm having the best day.

First, I spoke with Eric this morning and he told me last night's Adrian Belew Power Trio show in Austin, Texas was a blast. Not only did he get to meet one of his heroes in the audience, Pat Mastelotto, but when it was discovered that Eric's drum pedal had been um, decimated during travel, Pat kindly offered his to Eric for the rest of the tour and Eric took him up on it.

"You're playing Pat Mastelotto's pedal?" I asked Eric, totally psyched for him.

"Yep!" He sounded only "slightly stoked". Ha.

After much motherly prodding, Eric reluctantly admitted that "Yes, Pat told me he really enjoyed the show. He's really very nice and laid back. I wasn't nervous at all."

Eric addressed the nervous part in answer to my question: "Was playing in front of Pat as bad as when this guy stood on the side of the stage while you played at the LA Knitting Factory with his arms crossed, staring at you?"

"No way," Eric replied.

So after talking with Eric, I did my usual Google stalk and stumbled upon an interesting Live Journal post:

"the adrian belew power trio

the adrian belew power trio
Originally uploaded by Nosflow V Ddot.
this intimate set at the Cactus Cafe was up there with any/all Belew shows I have seen.

his band was a brother and sister from philly.

added together their ages are younger than me. damn GREAT musicians.

"i remember you!" said adrian, when he came up to shake my hand.

amiable, amicable, approachable, benevolent, benign, breezy, civil, clubby*, congenial, cordial, courteous, genial, gentle, good-humored, good-natured, gracious, kindly, mild, obliging, pleasant, polite, sociable, urbane, warm and such a talented & fun guy!"

That Live Journal entry included the above Belew Trio photo so I then wrote to the writer of the post and asked if he would please send me a jpg of the shot he'd posted so that I could include it here.

Well, how cool is this. He wrote back to me immediately, and it turns out that he's an amazing professional photographer with some very interesting creds named Todd V. Wolfson and Holy small world, batman. Here's his response:

"i was sitting with my friend pat mastelooto before the gig and eric came and sat down with us, he even grabbed my new lil digi point and shoot and took a picture of me. we talked a bit about how all this came to be, and i am very happy and proud for you....

what sweet freaking kiddos you have.

OY! and talented.....what a fun show!

hey, keep in touch with me....

i am also friends with terry bozzio.. i do his portraits...(austin, home to the prog rock drummers?)

anyhoo, if you google me you will see that i am the music photographer of austin, who both takes it professionally and just for kicks everyday of my life...you must be great parents to have such great kiddoz."




Todd's very cool photo of two Erics with one Adrian.

So yeah, Todd was the one sitting with Pat Mastelotto - they've been friends for years. Naturally we start emailing back and forth, and of course I had to mention how cool it was that he was also friends with another of Eric's heroes, Terry Bozzio. So with Todd's permission, here's a little story he shared with me about Terry:

"a quick story...
one night (after once having been introduced to terry) i was playing some film cans i turned into folky-type percussion (12" sized for long rolls of copy 35mm film) with brushes, with two of my singer songwriter friends and terry and ev bozzio were sitting in the audience at this club. i look up and terry is standing right next to our little stage like an 8 year old boy, rocking back and forth on his heels, waiting for the song to end. when it ends, he says"todd, can i play your cans?"

(this MF has more drums and shit than god. i have seen his garage)

i thought, here is this idol of mine and he is taken away with my ingenuity...how fucking cool is that?

so, of course i let him sit in with the guys on my film cans.

we have been buddies for a decade.

i have been lucky enought to jam with him at neighborhood parties (with chris layton of SRV fame, no less)and take his portraits...ev bozzio is a doll, an i love their li'l family."



Todd's incredible photo of Terry with the film cans.

Anyway, next thing you know Todd and I are talking on the phone and we're like total kindred spirits. He tells me he met Frank Zappa at the Whole Food Markets in Austin in 1980 (ha ha - he said it was the very first Whole Foods and I googled it and yep, it's true...who knew?) So Todd and Frank get to talking and Frank sees Todd's camera case -- it was a brand new camera he'd just gotten -- and said "Hey, you wanna take my picture?"

Here's the sweet, sweet result:



So that's been my day so far and I repeat, am I like the luckiest woman in the world or what? My kids on tour with Belew, meeting awesome people like Todd on line (and this I can't believe altogether -- he's offered to help me with my book covers)...then doing a little more Google stalking and finding these little tidbit west coast tour reviews...to read each in its entirety, click on the links provided:

At Projekction, a fan writes:

"...I really expected the night to be more sedate. I knew Belew could get freaky on his six-string but I didn’t expect such a thunderous performance. The trio stomped every song into the ground, scooped them up with a shovel, reconstructed their dilapidated bodies and squashed them again. All during a Cat5 hurricane. Yeah… or something like that.

Anyway, on to the particulars. On several songs, Adrian would sit down, work on crazy effects, and set up loops. He broke a string during “Young Lions” and had his golden Belew guitar replaced with…a red Belew guitar, all while continuing to sing. I have never heard KC play “Dinosaur” as well as the Trio, heresy though that may be. He also played the oft-neglected bridge. I never cared for “Matchless Man”, but a strong performance showed me how strong the song could actually be. Ditto with “Madness.” Before playing “The Last Rhinoceros” Adrian announced he was working on a project that involved arranging his songs to piano. (A pretty version of “Last Rhino” played during setup.) No major brown moments, only one awkwardly timed loop that was quickly worked around. Belew seemed to be having a great time, ad-libbing quirky effects and cracking jokes. Is he always this happy to perform?

The Trio’s tremendous performance of the Crimson songs was spectacular. Adrian played the final interlocking part of “FxF” with himself via delay. “3aoPP” was very strong, and Belew encouraged the audience to sing Tony’s part. On “Elephant Talk”, Julie Slick played her bass as though it was a stick, and “Thela” (accompanied by the original recording’s speech) brought the house down for a thunderous finale. But not the last word (um… notes) from Belew. He set up what he called an “improvised symphony” using his guitar and synth voices like bells, thunderclaps, a string section, and a bit of the “Power Circle” muezzin, to loop and mutate as we left the venue. My sister, who was mildly impressed by the “Neal Jack and Me” DVD and hates “Heartbeat” was suitably moved.

Then we stayed up late and watched High Fidelity. Forget the relationship angst, it’s fun just to spot record covers in his store. "Ooo Ooo! It's Before and After Science! Tonight's The Night! Joe's Garage! Discipline!!!! I got back into town just in time for exams but I would have gladly flunked my tests for the chance to see this incredible concert.

Adrian has been making some of the best music of his career recently. The energetic performances of these great songs make them even better. If he is coming to a city near you, do not pass up this opportunity. I hope that the evening was recorded and that DGMLive or Belew himself will release it. Not only for a memento of the night, but… I just can’t articulate how good the concert was. I’ll be preordering “Side Four”, for sure..."

Here's a blurb off the forum board at Planet Crimson:

"I saw Adrian Belew at the Granada. [omG! That was freaking fantastic. I ended up dreaming about the show all night. If you have an opportunity to see him play on this tour and you don't, you are an utterly ridiculous human.]"

Over at DGM Live, Kenneth Pyron writes:

"What a great show. The Granada Theater is a rather intimate venue with no more than twenty rows of seats on the lower level and a great balcony. My friend and I chose in the lower rear, near the bar (great selection of beer) with a good full view of the stage (Cue the beer).

You simply can’t knock the smile off of AB when he’s on stage. Even when a string broke or his new "Adrian Belew Signature Series Parker Fly" would go out of tune (his words, as if I could tell). His interaction with the audience was, as I see it, classic Adrian. Friendly, sharp, with humor....

AB was ably backed by Julie and Eric Slick. They handled everything thrown at them by AB with true professionalism. Unfazed, fully up to the task and having as much fun as Adrian seemed to be having. Adrian is obviously happy to be working with them again, enjoying it thoroughly.

This was a great evening, thoroughly enjoyable. I highly recommend attending any of his shows on this tour if you can..."

So...today the trio has the day off and they're flying to New Mexico; I'm going to make a pot of tea and spend the rest of the day/evening writing with breaks only to eat and further stalk my kiddies on line.

Ah, life is good.

Later,
xo

My New Website and a New Song by SZ3

Yeah, baby. Tonight marks the launch of my revamped website.



The site's logo is designed by Julie after I took a digital photo of Times Square in New York City and a photo of Julie in my living room eating an apple. Julie then photoshopped and layered the two pics and I know I'm prejudiced because Julie is my daughter but she is just so freaking creative...anyway, I think the result is pretty cool...so cool that I showed it to my publisher as a possible idea for the new book cover for Three Days in New York City and they're working on that as we speak, though whether they will use any part of it I have no idea. But even if they don't, I love it for my website so what the hell. My new webmistress, who is just awesome, tweaked it further on my website and added the white edging, and let me take this opportunity to introduce her because she's incredible... Josephine Piraneo of Glass Slipper Web Design. I love the name Glass Slipper...but then again, I adored Cinderella as a kid...in fact, I'm still waiting for my fairy godmother to appear and sprinkle something magical on me. (And no, I'm not talking about mushrooms. Repeat after me. Those days are over. Right.)

Anyway, the MySpace I posted earlier today for SZ3, a/k/a the Sarah Zimmerman Trio, wasn't functioning properly so Sarah went in and fixed it, and I'm totally in love with this song -- Fire -- and not just because Julie wrote it. She's also bassist for the band, Eric is on drums and the amazing, amazing, Sarah Zimmermann is on guitar and vocals...also Julie recorded and mixed it in her new studio. And on this particular cut, Eric is actually playing electric mandolin as the song begins and simultaneously playing the drums with his feet. Yeah, I know, I know, I'm overdoing it with the parental pride here but today is the first day I'm home alone for the next two weeks and I miss my family already. So here's the new link and I hope you think it's as awesome as I do.

Sarah has this to say in the trio's MySpace blog:

"Wednesday, November 01, 2006

1st song is up!

yooo doggies....so the first song is up! we had some trouble there, but i (sarah) came to the resuce and solved the problem because I'm amazing. woooo. thats why they call me Handy Sarah. now, remember its a rough take and sarah's vocals sound like a mouse, BUT it'll do for now. just don't be hatin on us!

also an update, eric and julie left today for a west coast tour with Adrian Belew! so i'm definitely gonna miss them...two weeks with out my slicks..i don't know how i'm going to survive! when they come back I PROMISE we'll have some new better recorded stuff..we just kinda threw this one together to get it out there.

so give a little listen, a little love, and if you're on the west coast check out www.adrianbelew.net for eric and julie's tour dates!!

~Sarah"

Ha. She'll hate me for this, but Sarah is really cute, isn't she?

Speaking of Adrian Belew, I know I posted this earlier today, too, but just a reminder that J&E did a podcast over at Krimson News and the interview also includes them joining Jon Anderson of Yes for Heart of the Sunrise -- and you can find that cut as well as some other pretty cool stuff on the Rock School soundtrack.

Finally, today's Gaiman moment comes courtesy of Blog Critics and it's a very interesting/inspiring post - especially if you are a writer. Or hope to be one, anyway.

Later,
xo

The Tour! The Podcast!

Julie Slick, Adrian Belew, and Eric Slick at World Cafe Live, August, 2006

The Adrian Belew Power Trio on tour: Tonight, at the Granada Theater in Dallas, Texas

So I say goodbye to my family this morning for sixteen days and what excited me a week ago now leaves me with a sense of dread. I've never been alone more than a few days in my life. Sad, but true. Writing wise, this is going to be awesome...but oy, I guess this is a glimpse into my very near future...no way are Julie and Eric going to hang around Philadelphia much longer with all that they have going on and I'm just going to have to make this empty nest thing work for me somehow. Like, I have an idea for a novel that literally has been keeping me up at night and I'm actually going to do Nanowrimo because I'm very competitive and this is the kind of book which will write itself...I have it all mapped out in my brain and every aspect is falling into place in that wonderful way which rarely occurs in my frenzied world. And since I'm pretty sure I've done Nano every year since 2003 it would be bad luck to stop now -- I've gotten one published book out of it (Three Days in New York City)...the sequel I wrote in October of last year arose from it (Another Bite of the Apple)... and the book that's been causing me to tear out my hair for the past two years also originated from a Nano rough draft and yes, yes, every last revision is finally done (all 5,000 words...arghhh) -- but to be on the safe side I'm just letting it marinate another week or two for one last read before sending it out.

So. Actually, I have much more interesting news to report. First, Krimson News has an absolutely amazing podcast up on their site where Jeff Duke and Steve Turnidge interview Julie and Eric and right smack in the middle of the podcast they play the version of Heart of the Sunrise Julie and Eric recorded with Jon Anderson of Yes for the Rock School soundtrack. They play the entire seven minute and something song before wrapping up part one -- this podcast is in three parts to be broadcast over the next couple of weeks in conjunction with the tour. Yeah I know I've posted the tour dates a couple of times but I figure I'll do it again over the next two weeks so none of my friends out on the west coast can say I didn't tell them...but how cool...they're going to be everywhere from San Francisco to Seattle to Oregon. Damn I'm regretting not going. This always happens! When will I ever learn?

Anyway, getting back to the podcast, my pal Sid Smith over at DGM Live also has a couple of news blurbs about the Belew tour and links to the podcast and tour dates as well.

Also, the other band in which Julie and Eric are the rhythm section is the Sarah Zimmermann Trio, and they have launched a MySpace site which features two of their original songs and a jam...Julie recorded it in her studio on Monday and did the mixing yesterday.

In other news, if you are interested in my Halloween attire for yesterday, I suggest you visit the comments section of Susan Henderson's blog...and scroll down to like the 10th or 11th comment...apparently there's another Robin making the rounds on Sue's blog so now I guess I'll be known as SLICK...anyway, you know you are dying to see what I came up with and I must admit, this year I have outdone myself and Susan was kind enough indulge me by letting me post a photo in her comments section.

Anyway, getting back to my family's departure, have I mentioned it's suddenly occurred to me that I am the sole caretaker for the dog for the next sixteen days? Arghh...early morning, afternoon, and late night walks in cold and rain and blah blah blah. Good thing I love the little knucklehead...here he is last Christmas with one of his favorite toys and yes, as you can tell, I live in a nuthouse scatered with toys of my own and I wouldn't have it any other way.



Later,
xo