Humans are incredibly narcissistic. At least one of the many writers of the Bible understood this when they wrote,
“Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.”
Writing one’s column on the day it’s supposed to post is not the best in planning but it will have to do for today (and last week and probably next week). Right now I’m listening to The Beach Boys song God Only Knows and I can’t stop thinking of all the people that have shared my life, not just in the past four years but going as far back as I can remember. So add the following video I found on FB and a late night conversation and yes, once again my column takes a different fork in the road.
Through a generous offering by not one, but two friends (thanks Stacey and Danielle!), my wife and I got to see the solo return of Canadian singer-songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Lawrence “But You Can Call Me Larry” Gowan this past week at the Empire Theatre in Belleville to a sold out crowd.
It’s Tuesday night, November 17. My renovations are nearing completion, the house is dead quiet as I sit here, stretched out on the couch, looking around at this home we lived in together for 18 years. Remembering all the wonderful celebrations, dinners, Christmas and Thanksgiving dinners, TV watching, companionable “book reading”, and just quietly being, soaking up each other’s presence.
I saw a photographic exhibition once in which a photographer attempted to lay out his life in black & white. I don’t remember the person’s name but you wouldn’t know him anyway— he never reached any level of fame as far as I know— yet, anyway. He was a nobody who loved taking pictures and being in pictures and he laid his whole life out in photos, mostly of himself and people who must have been nobodies too.
I love album covers! Not the shrunken down versions they use on CDs, I mean those gloriously creative (mostly) 12” vinyl record album covers. I was looking through my vinyl record collection the other day and marvelled at some of the amazing designs of some of the covers. Now, before we start delving into some classic album covers as well as a few personal favourites, a little history is in order, but don’t panic – there will not be a quiz later.
That’s right, I’m jumping on the Bandwagon. Bob and Cam’s lists of their songs from the 80s had me nostalgic for my childhood. Frankly, I’m jealous of their more mature perspectives. They actually understood the music, what it was about and even got to see some of these acts live. I’ve always said I was born at the wrong time, and I never feel it more when I look at when the music I love was made. If I had been old enough to at least grasp what music was in the 80s, I would have been old enough to be seeing and feeling it live and in person in the 90s. I was born in 1980, so for the most part the music of the 80s is a fuzzy background to other memories that I have growing up. I was just a kid when this music was around, but for as long as I can remember, music was a part of my childhood.
This is one for my friend GGGarth Richardson. One of Canada’s best producers, biggest Maple Leafs fan in the world and an all around great human being.
Genesis At The Gardens
December 16, 1975. It was a night of firsts and a night of lasts. It was the first time Toronto’s Maple Leaf Gardens configured their seating plan to a “Concert Bowl’ setting. At that time the venue held about 18,000 for hockey and concerts but for a show too big for Massey Hall and too small for the full Gardens they draped half of the venue for a more intimate vibe.
Bullseye Records of Canada
Segarini: Don't Believe a Word I Say 