happy new years

all night long

xmas - woody guthrie

xmas - woody guthrie
Originally uploaded by DarbyWheeler

Nate got a guitar from his aunt this xmas. I love how he gets really serious when he plays it. It is actually a ukulele.

rip

I have chilled many a night listening to the Oscar Peterson Trio.

ceremony

spidey sense

DJ Shadow is coming through Toronto soon, I am amped.

when Arnold leads the way?

When do car companies and our governments get serious about emissions?


Legal setback for Bush administration on vehicle emissions

The administration of George W. Bush suffered a legal setback here when a US federal appeals court ruled that government emission standards for light trucks and sport utility vehicles are not stringent enough.

The San Francisco-based federal appeals court ordered the Bush administration to tighten emission standards set for automobiles sold in the United States as quickly as possible, in response to a lawsuit filed by 11 states, including California, two cities and four environmental groups.

The plaintiffs especially noted that under the existing rules, thanks to a legal loophole, large 4x4 sports utility vehicles are allowed to pollute more than regular passenger cars. Car manufacturers have the widest profit margins in the sale of these popular vehicles.

California's Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger described the ruling as "another win for the environment and for consumers."

"Clearly, automobile companies have the capability to produce environmentally friendly cars," he said.

"Today's court ruling underscores the need for the federal government to step in and provide the extra push necessary to make these vehicles widespread."

California Attorney General Edmund Brown, himself a former governor, described the ruling as "a major victory and a stunning rebuke to the Bush administration and its failed energy policies."

Earlier Thursday Schwarzenegger was at the Los Angeles Auto Show, where he showcased environmentally friendly vehicles.

At the show "I saw first hand how automobile companies are harnessing new technologies to create cleaner and more fuel efficient cars," the former movie actor said.

Schwarzenegger and Brown, himself a former governor, on November 8 sued the US government to secure approval for the state's tough new proposals aimed at slashing vehicle greenhouse gas emissions.

California passed legislation in 2002 requiring automakers to reduce vehicle emissions by 30 percent by 2016. As many as 16 other US states have reportedly indicated they will adopt California's emissions levels.

However, for the law to take effect, California requires approval with a waiver from the Environmental Protection Agency, which has so far not been forthcoming, despite a request having been filed in December 2005.

Analysts say the EPA and the Bush administration have dragged their feet over California's demands because of fears of the effect it may have on the struggling US auto industry.

Schwarzenegger has made the environment a key issue of his tenure, signing a historic bill in September 2006 that saw the state become the first in the US to impose limits on global warming gases.

Under the plan, California will aim to slash the state's carbon dioxide emissions by 25 percent by the year 2020, a figure that Schwarzenegger has said is equivalent to removing 6.5 million vehicles from the road.

5 Neat Guys

to all my homies out there grindin'

is it bad to do this to your kid?

BTW - he told me if the kid across the street got more candy on Halloween he is retiring from the game. Hardcore.

the hawk's offspring

I don't blog much about work- but this one is funny. The Hawk is a character.

make money money

Is this guy still operating?

the first britney

I did not know DiMaggio but he does not seem a nutter to me- this is from 2005. Just buried. !

from www.scotsman.com

Joe DiMaggio died convinced JFK had Monroe killed
ANNETTE WITHERIDGE IN NEW YORK
HE WAS only married to Marilyn Monroe for nine turbulent months, but Joe DiMaggio, the reclusive US baseball legend, vowed he would never forgive the Kennedys for her death.

Now, four years after his own demise, the man immortalised by Simon and Garfunkel in the song Mrs Robinson appears to have his revenge.


A new book, written by his long-time lawyer and close companion Morris Engelberg, reveals he really did believe the Kennedy clan killed Monroe.

"They murdered the one person I loved," DiMaggio confided to Mr Engelberg.

Officially, Monroe, who allegedly enjoyed affairs with both John Kennedy, the US president, and his attorney general brother, Robert, committed suicide with an overdose of sleeping pills in 1962.

But rumours she was killed by the Kennedys because she knew too much about the political dynasty’s Mafia links and was threatening to go public to get back at Robert for dumping her have persisted ever since.

DiMaggio, who organised Monroe’s funeral and, for the next 20 years, had white roses delivered to her grave twice a week, refused to talk publicly about what he thought happened. However, he appears to have sanctioned his memoirs to come out after his death.

The Yankee Clipper, as he was known, claims to have read the Hollywood star’s diary after her death.

Monroe’s journal disappeared shortly afterwards but, according to the book DiMaggio: Setting the Record Straight, the star of The Seven Year Itch had apparently noted her conversations with Robert Kennedy about CIA plans to poison Fidel Castro with the aid of the Chicago gangster Sam Giancana, and the government’s investigation into union leader Jimmy Hoffa’s Mafia links.

Monroe met the Kennedys through Peter Lawford, their British brother-in-law, and is believed to have passed on Robert’s pillow talk to Frank Sinatra, who in turn reported to Giancana.

Engelberg and co-author Marv Schneider tell how Monroe spoke to DiMaggio’s son, Joe Jnr, on the night she died saying she wanted to set the record straight.

"She said she spoke with RFK [Robert Kennedy] three or four times a week and he told her about the work he was doing," the book reveals. "He mentioned which mobsters they were going after. Marilyn would pass on some of those tidbits to Sinatra, according to Joe Jnr."

DiMaggio shed no tears when the Kennedys were assassinated. According to the book, which contains a foreword by Henry Kissinger, DiMaggio believed "they got what they deserved".

DiMaggio, who was 84 when he died after a long battle with cancer, refused to shake Robert Kennedy’s hand when they met at New York’s Yankee Stadium. Just a few years before he died he agreed to go to the Kennedy Centre only if no member of the extended political family was there.

When Engelberg asked him why, DiMaggio responded: "What they did to me will never be forgotten."

DiMaggio was considered to be one of the greatest baseball players, but he hated the limelight and sports fans were stunned when he suddenly married Monroe in 1954. He was 39 and already retired, she was 27 and at the height of her fame.

They spent their honeymoon in Japan, where 100,000 US troops turned out to meet them. Afterwards, Monroe commented: "I have never heard so much cheering." DiMaggio replied knowingly: "I have."

Few were surprised when the couple split within nine months. He moved to Hollywood, Florida, and in later years, became estranged from his only son, Joe Jnr, and other family members.

Engelberg, his next door neighbour, came under attack in the months before the player’s death for appearing to control every aspect of DiMaggio’s life.

green onions

are an important part of any diet.


seconds....


desert....

never tired

hey lama

This is how I am feeling this morning.

september

September for me is usually like the "real beginning of a new year". Things start in September. I am usually amped in Sept. Not this one. My mind is a bit soft and gushy (ha!). I got a new lil man in the house, except he in not in the house, he is in the hospital. He is suppose to be coming home in 2 days!

I am not going to go postal, but I get it. I found myself this morning, after parking at the hospital giving a meter maid the dirtiest look. He had to have felt the, "eff you", I was sending him. I was 2 minutes late the day before and they ticketed me. Plus $2 get you like 20 minutes on a meter!!!!

I thought about the people who have a loved one in the hospital who have to drive and park and are maybe on a tight budget
(who isn't?). That made me shoot the look. Am I getting old for bitching about this, or just old for visiting a hospital.

Plus, Nate grew another head as you can see above. Now he thinks he is twice as smart as me.

More to this record.....

Bonds ball to be branded with an asterisk

Sep 26, 2007 08:26 AM
Associated Press

NEW YORK – The ball Barry Bonds hit for his record-breaking 756th home run will be branded with an asterisk and sent to the Baseball Hall of Fame, its owner said Wednesday.

Fashion designer Marc Ecko, who bought the ball in an online auction, set up a Web site for fans to vote on the ball's fate, and the decision to brand it won out over the other options, sending it to the museum unblemished or launching it into space.

"We're going to be working with the folks at the Hall of Fame," Ecko said on NBC's "Today" show.

Ecko, whom Bonds called "an idiot" last week, had the winning bid Sept. 15 in the online auction for the ball that Bonds hit Aug. 7 to break Hank Aaron's record of 755 home runs. The final selling price was $752,467 (U.S.), well above most predictions that assumed Bonds' status as a lightning rod for the steroids debate in baseball would depress the value.

The asterisk suggests that Bonds' record is tainted by alleged steroid use. The slugger has denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs. Fans brought signs with asterisks on them to ballparks as he neared Aaron's hallowed mark.

Hall of Fame president Dale Petroskey, also interviewed on the show, said accepting the ball did not mean the Hall endorses the viewpoint that Barry Bonds used drugs.

"We're happy to get it," he said. "We're a nonprofit history museum, so this ball wouldn't be coming to Cooperstown without Marc Ecko buying it from the fan who caught it."

The Giants announced Friday they will part with Bonds after this season, the seven-time NL MVP's 15th in San Francisco and 22nd in the majors.

the boss

The Boss has a new record soon- in celebration of his genius.

paper

Well- I was off for a week with a newborn, and came back to my desk looking like this.



These bastards did it. I heard they stayed til 9pm working on their masterpiece.



I thought whatever , I have work to do.

the dad i aspire to be

Some of the infamous sessions with Beach Boy dad, Murray Wilson.

little brother

Growin' Indeed
Nate got a little brother, Ben.

thanks much

In my trolling for videos on Youtube - I notice that most of the videos on their are from MuchMusic. I used to work at Much- I guess it was because no one played this stuff and true music geeks taped shows like Rap City, Wedge and Power Hour.

Wilcannia Mob

A favourite tune of mine from M.I.A's new records "Kala", is Mango Pickle Down River with the Wilcannia Mob.

Wilcannia Mob are an Aussie Aborginal schoolboy group.

This from The Sydney Morning Herald.....

Ok, so we won something, now take us to Maccas
By Debra Jopson
October 14, 2003

Hmm, not a good bridge to jump off . . . Aboriginal schoolboy rap group the Wilcannia Mob arrive in Sydney to collect a Deadly award for their song about riverside life. Photo: Dean Sewell
Colroy Johnson, aged 11, may have been more nervous than most of the stars of stage and sport who flocked to the Sydney Opera House last night.

They were gathering for the Deadlys, the nation's most prestigious Aboriginal awards, but Colroy had other things on his mind.

"It's gonna blow up," he said after spotting the sails. "I don't like going on boats."

Colroy, who had clambered off a bus at 2am yesterday after a 12-hour bus ride from his outback hometown, may have a bit to learn about the harbour.

But he has already taught young hip-hop fans around the nation about riverside life as one of the five Aboriginal schoolboys in the Wilcannia Mob, whose song Down River became a sensation when Triple J began playing it a year ago.

Last night their raw Aussie rap song about swimming, fishing for bream and jumping off the bridge won them a Deadly for best single release of the year.

"If we won something, we won something," said Keith Dutton, 14, with casual aplomb before the announcement.

But Kerry King, mother of Lendal, at 10 the youngest of the five rising stars, said that for Wilcannia (population 750 and falling) a win would mean "another big burst of pride and honour and self-esteem".

"The song gives a positive image back to Wilcannia," Ms King said. "The simple things they sing about indicate our lifestyle; how we can live in a remote area in a harmonistic way.

"There are not a lot of material things out there, but it's about using what's there in the river and being part of our life."

Four of the little blokes in their rappers' caps, who wowed Homebake last December, were in Sydney for only the second time yesterday, arguing over which brand of cars were best, speculating on jumping in the fountain near the Opera House and asking to be taken to McDonald's and Wonderland.

But at SBS Radio, they clammed up for Aboriginal presenter Lola Forrester, except for a few clicks and "brrrrrs" into the mikes.

Buddy Blair, 13, the chatty one, slumped as if asleep, declaring: "I don't want to be a rock star."

But Ms Forrester coaxed their new song out of them.

"Barkandji Boys are back, with another track, still doing backflips and jumping off the bridge. Burandoo is Barkandji for fish," they sang.

To be released later this month on the album All You Mob 2, put together by their mentor, Sydney hip-hop artist Morganics, the proceeds from this song, like their first, will go into a trust fund they can use from age 18.



SORT OF REMIND ME OF A CLASSIC FROM A FEW YEARS AGO

it gets dark at 4:30

the is selfish - but I got one word "sold".



Liberals promise February long-weekend

Sep 03, 2007 05:48 PM
Richard Brennan
OTTAWA BUREAU
The provincial Liberals are promising to give Ontarians a long weekend in February if they are re-elected.

"In our party's platform, which will presented in a few days, we will include a provision to create a new statutory holiday in the month of February," campaign chair Greg Sorbara announced today.

The holiday would fall on the third Monday in February, which is already known as Heritage day in most of Canada. So far the Liberals are calling their proposed day off "family day."

"Ontario winters are very, very long and Ontarians deserve a statutory holiday in February," Sorbara told reporters at Queen's Park.

The vote-getting pledge is reminiscent of the 1985 Liberal promise to put beer and wine in the corner store, which the David Peterson government reneged on when it got into power.

Sorbara, who is the provincial finance minister, said Ontario governments have been talking about having a long weekend during the long winter months for years, joining other provinces such as Alberta, B.C. and Saskatchewan.

"It's probably something that should have been done some time ago," he said.

While even Progressive Conservative Leader John Tory wouldn’t disagree with the fact Ontarians could really use a break in February, he suggested the timing of the announcement is just a tad opportunist.

“The gap between New Year’s Day and Easter is a long gap and I’m all for family having a day to be together,” Tory said just before boarding his campaign bus.

“I just have to ask why, at the very, very end of a four-year term, 38 days before an election, did he suddenly have this brain wave?”

Given the loss of some 175,000 manufacturing and resource sector jobs across the province, New Democrat Peter Kormos suggested a more appropriate Labour Day announcement might have been to offer workers some kind of assurance that the government is working to preserve good jobs in Ontario.

Noting the Liberals already killed a private members bill that would have established another stat holiday, Kormos said this announcement could end up being nothing more than another broken promise.

“There have been private members bills before that the Liberals supported, but the McGuinty government declined to put it into effect,” he said.

“We couldn’t believe his promises four years ago. We have no more reason to believe his promises today.”

But Sorbara dismissed the criticism, suggesting the Ontario economy is only now strong enough to bear an extra stat holiday. Ontario is no longer struggling to deal with the economic deficit left by the previous Conservative government and the last three-day holiday of the summer just seemed like a good time to announce it, he said.

While Sorbara admits corporate Canada is likely to scoff at the idea, he maintains the province can more than handle it economically.

“We know that initially there will be some impact on productivity. That’s always the case with a holiday,” he said.

“But our own analysis suggests we’ll make that up and more because a workforce that gets time off is a workforce that works even harder when they’re on the job.”

Adding a Family Day to the calendar would give Ontario workers a total of nine long weekends per year, putting the province on par with Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia and the Territories

The Champion Of The Arena

The Lily Allen number "Smile"




The Jackie Mittoo and The Soul Brother number "Free Soul.

get at me DOG

Man, I should have done the "hang ten" sign.

kardy wire

Love The Wire.
Love Kardy.
Akon is even tight on this song. Wonder if Kardinal wrote his words.

bill murray

RZA and GZA from the Wu-Tang with "Bill Murray" in Jim Jarmusch's Coffee and Cigarettes. I love how they call him by his full name.

Think Bill could have hurt anyone while driving the golf cart drunk?

John from Cincinnati' story raises questions about media, intelligence, 'dumbing down' of Americans

A nice article about the HBO show. Everytime I finished watching John From Cinci, I always started thinking about the unknown. That is what I enjoyed about the show. I also like TV that makes me feel awkward.


http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=35198


John from Cincinnati' story raises questions about media, intelligence, 'dumbing down' of Americans

Steve Hammons
August 15, 2007
The decision to cancel the HBO series “John from Cincinnati” after one ten-episode season seems to raise a few questions worth kicking around.

Were fans of the HBO shows “The Sopranos” and “Deadwood” so disappointed those programs ended that they took it out on “John?” Looks like that was part of it.

Was there a culture clash between the psychology of New York City media honchos and life in the San Diego region? Very possibly.

Is “John” a dumb show or did some viewers and critics ridicule and avoid the issues it addressed and how it presented them because of the “dumbing down” of Americans? That is a question possibly worth looking at.

The creators, writers, cast and crew presented a story of both conventional personal and social issues along with the emergence of unconventional developments.

Family and personal challenges, surfing, community social dynamics and similar topics blended with unusual elements involving the realities of human spirituality in the context of modern discoveries in quantum physics and psychology.

SAN DIEGO CONSCIOUSNESS

For those people who have never been to the San Diego region, where “John from Cincinnati” is set and filmed, do not confuse it with Los Angeles or other areas of California. It is unique.

The San Diego area is home to the largest military complex on the planet. The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps have been a major presence and influence since World War II.

North Island Naval Air Station on Coronado Island was a center of pioneering efforts in naval aviation. Aircraft carriers dock there.

A major Navy SEAL headquarters is nearby. The Navy’s Marine Mammal Program that trains dolphins, sea lions, Beluga whales and other marine creatures is on the Point Loma peninsula. A submarine base and many other Navy activities are also part of the area.

Whether we have pro-military, anti-military or neutral-military feelings in this time of a controversial war and controversial national leadership, the people of San Diego have created a community with a significant degree of fellowship, teamwork and unity.

These human factors blend with the beauty, history and geography of the region, the area's wonderful beaches, the profound nature of the Pacific Ocean and the proximity to Mexico, among other elements.

That Imperial Beach in San Diego County was chosen as the setting for “John from Cincinnati” is not an unimportant thing. It has meanings. And the meanings are not entirely clear for many people.

JOHNNY APPLESEED

The team that worked on “John from Cincinnati” explored the unusual and anomalous things that we sometimes encounter in our everyday lives.

Odd coincidences that might actually be “synchronicity” – parallel occurrences that are not random accidents, but have some meaning and are connected in ways that might be mysterious, unusual or unclear.

These kinds of happenings reflect the understanding from current scientific studies and some theories in psychology and philosophy about the way things take shape in our lives.

Some events and developments are non-linear and non-local. That is, our normal understanding of time and space are not the only ways that time and space work. Our normal day-to-day lives may interface with other configurations of time and space that are different.

Our connections with other people, too, might be different and deeper than we realize.

It is clear from certain episodes of “John” that aspects of synchronicity were being examined and portrayed. Were other connections with significance going on in the show that we are not fully aware of?

For example, the opening song for the series is “Johnny Appleseed” performed by Joe Strummer and The Mescaleros. Part of the lyrics are:

"Lord, there goes Johnny Appleseed – He might pass by in the hour of need – There's a lot of souls – Ain't drinking from no well locked in a factory"

"Lord, there goes a Buick forty-nine – Black sheep of the angels riding, riding down the line – We think there is a soul, we don't know – That soul is hard to find"

Apart from the obvious spiritual tone of the lyrics, did the “John from Cincinnati” team realize Johnny Appleseed lived in the southern Ohio and Indiana area in the Cincinnati region? Did Joe Strummer and The Mescaleros?



Did they know that Johnny Appleseed, born John Chapman, grew up during the era of the American Revolution and its aftermath?

He was born in 1774 and died in 1845. He was not a vagabond who wandered around dropping apple seeds, but actually created many orchards and nurseries, and was quite wealthy when he passed on.

He was also deeply involved in a church based on the philosophy of Emmanuel Swedenborg, a spiritual viewpoint followed by millions of people today that explores ideas about the afterlife, other spiritual dimensions, angels and similar concepts.

Johnny “Appleseed” Chapman lived in an era when the Cherokee and many other indigenous Indian people were being pushed out of the Appalachian Mountain region, Ohio and other areas along the frontier of westward exploration and expansion of the European colonists and newly-minted “Americans.” In fact, Chapman planted some of his apple nurseries along old Indian trails.

The Indians were also being assimilated through intermarriage and social change into the cultures of the new Americans. Or was it the other way around? Were the English, Scottish, French and other newcomers being assimilated into native American ways?

Southern Ohio, on the western or windward side of the Appalachians, was being settled by veterans of the Revolutionary War, who were given several acres of land for their military service.

Within this region, Revolutionary War vets founded the first college of the old “Northwest Territory,” Ohio University. Johnny Appleseed is known to have spent time in that area. In Athens County, where Ohio University is located, you will find the “Johnny Appleseed Memorial Highway” as well as a memorial stone and plaque about him in the city of Athens.

Actor Ed O’Neill, who played retired peace officer “Bill Jacks” in “John from Cincinnati,” as well as many other people involved in the American media, attended Ohio University.

Are these random factoids and coincidences? Or, is there meaning to them? Is there a pattern of any kind?

EMERGING ANSWERS, MORE QUESTIONS

“John from Cincinnati” tackled questions and discoveries about physical, emotional, psychological and spiritual pain and healing. It looked at the healing of the body, a marriage, a family and the pulling together of very different people for a common purpose … a purpose they frequently did not understand.

The show is about borders and boundaries, the interface and merging of different people and forces: San Diego and Mexico, land and Pacific Ocean, a retired peace officer and criminals, a caring physician and those who do their jobs through violence and force, three generations of a family, military veterans and civilians, well-to-do people and those of lower economic resources.

Other boundary lines were crossed by using people who were not professional actors for regular parts in the show, working hand in hand with experienced actors. Local people from Imperial Beach were hired to be on the crew as well as extras and in small parts.

The merging of these kinds of people and circumstances combined with the integration of our daily world and the spiritual or metaphysical world.

Our normal physics of time, space and gravity shared the same screen with anomalous aspects of these natural forces.

The minds and consciousness of the characters, viewers and people involved in creating the show were also affected by anomalous cognition – perception and understanding working in ways that are unusual, spontaneous or Zen-like, not necessarily logical but deeply rooted in the sources of consciousness and spirituality.

These factors are what dawned on U.S. military and intelligence personnel studying “remote viewing,” a type of ESP technique, during the top secret Project STARGATE in the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s. The Army, Navy, Air Force, CIA, Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and civilian researchers working on this discovered that human perception can work in very unusual ways, very interesting and valuable ways.

“John from Cincinnati” tells a story of anomalous cognition bubbling up within the hearts and minds of the characters, and how they cope with resulting changes.

“John” himself was suspected of being a weirdo, an angel, an extraterrestrial, maybe mentally impaired or some kind of strange fella with special abilities.

Does the fact that he surfaces in the middle of one of the most important military and intelligence-related communities in the U.S. have any significance? Does this tell viewers that there are hopeful anomalous discoveries and processes going on within these components of our society and nation?

Is John an “intelligence agent” or “indigenous intelligence asset” of the unconventional kind?

And is the series “John from Cincinnati” a communication creation that has deep and vitally important things to say to people who may or may not be ready to understand what is being said, consciously or unconsciously?

Most Americans will probably agree that we now need greater “intelligence” in the many meanings of that word. Further “dumbing down” of the American people is not a direction that is worthwhile.

The creative experiment of “John from Cincinnati” has provided useful intelligence on many aspects our American media, TV viewers, our society, what is going on now and what is going to be happening.

There are indications that the frequency of synchronicity may increase. Anomalous cognition and ESP may become more common for average people. Angels, UFOs and extraterrestrials might even make more overt appearances – you never know.

Miracles, breakthroughs and paradigm shifts could be right around the corner, or coming in on the next wave.

john is gone

- I am bummed that I put in 10 hours of my time. I was in for the long haul. Seemed some of the acting was strong and some real bad.

HBO Cancels `John From Cincinnati'
Associated Press 08.15.07, 10:02 AM ET


LOS ANGELES -
"John From Cincinnati" has caught its last wave on HBO.

The surfer drama that aired its season finale this week will not return for a second run, the premium cable channel said Tuesday.

The move represents a rare cancellation by HBO of an hourlong drama after its freshman season and a misfire as the channel tries to build its post-"The Sopranos" schedule.

"John From Cincinnati," which blended family drama with the metaphysical, earned mixed reviews and failed to spark audience interest.

The show, created by David Milch ("Deadwood") and "surf noir" novelist and screenwriter Kem Nunn, starred Bruce Greenwood and Rebecca De Mornay.

HBO is owned by Time Warner (nyse: TWX - news - people ) Inc.

amaz vid 7

"put on those Airs and act real cool"
Lavar Burton, Red Jock Straps , Keyboard guitars ,No Romance = Amazing

amaz music vid 5 & 6

Aphex Twin's, "Come To Daddy". Chris Cunningham is dark .



Aphex Twin, "Window Licker". Some serious language at the start- just a warning. Skip to the video girl's face.

"Tony, You did good."

Music Visionary and record label owner, journalist Tony Wilson had passed. I have been in Algonquin back country for five days to come back to the news. Such a bummer, he had a lot of life in him. I interviewed Tony last winter in Toronto. I am a Videojournalist, so I basically shoot camera and am also the interviewer for TV. Tony before spearheading Factory records and basically making Manchester a musical fingerprint, was a journalist. He saw my solo outfit as I set up the lights and camera and then started to shoot and ask questions. He told me a story of being in Heathrow and seeing a man with a camera and a mic doing the interview and shooting. With his great deliver, he empassionately said, " I knew that was the new wave". Tony seemed to always know the new wave.

Here is a cool profile of his years at Granada- watch the movie, 24 Hour Party People, Steve Coogan nails Tony.


Anthony H Wilson 1950-2007
Factory Records legend's obituary
10.Aug.07 10:09pm
Tony Wilson, co-founder of Factory Records, has died at the age of 57.

Born Anthony H. Wilson on February 20, 1950 in Salford, England, he went on to become a renowned broadcast journalist, band manager, record label executive and nightclub owner.

As the Factory Records boss, he was responsible for signing legendary bands including Joy Division and New Order to his label.

Also, as owner of the renowned Hacienda nightclub in Manchester, he played a key role in the Madchester scene of the late 1980s and early 1990s that mixed indie rock and dance music and included artists such as Happy Mondays and The Stone Roses.

The Hacienda, which hosted Madonna's first UK television appearance in 1983, was forced to close in the late 1990s as it was losing money allegedly because its patrons were taking ecstasy rather than buying drinks at the club.

Wilson reportedly became involved in the Manchester music scene in the 1970s when hosting the culture and music programme 'So It Goes' on Granada Television.

After covering a Sex Pistols performance at the Manchester Lesser Free Trade Hall in June 1976, he described the experience as "nothing short of an epiphany" and booked the band for one of the first television broadcasts of British punk rock.

These aspects of Wilson's life were later chronicled in the semi-fictional 2002 feature film '24 Hour Party People', in which he was portrayed by British actor Steve Coogan.

More recently, Wilson was involved in In The City, a yearly music festival and conference that takes place in Manchester and New York City, which he co-founded with his partner Yvette Livesey.

In 2005 he launched F4, the fourth incarnation of the Factory Records label.

Earlier this year, the music mogul was diagnosed with cancer and underwent surgery to have one of his kidneys removed.

From signing the likes of Joy Division, New Order and Happy Mondays, to being a general support of exciting an innovative music, Wilson established himself as a true indie hero.

amazing vid 4

Little X - makes it simple. The tune helps.

M.I.A

M.I.A's new tune and video Jimmy (not a BDP cover) inspired by a old school Bollywood Disco Dancer Tune


Bollywood Disco Version

Amazing Video 3

Paris.
These guys are screaming.

I don't know a thing about Hip Hop from France.

I do know "No Limites" by Alliance Ethnik is tight.

This is not the video , just the song. The real video is in Cuba with Helicopter's and little people.

That's all.

remember the "road map"

Remember the "Road Map". I always liked the quotes, sort of gave it a "less serious" tone. Clinton started that term I believe.

FROM THE US STATE DEPARTMENT WEBSITE
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/rls/22520.htm
Roadmap for Peace in the Middle East: Israeli/Palestinian Reciprocal Action, Quartet Support

Bureau of Public Affairs
Washington, DC
July 16, 2003
[PDF]



"The Roadmap represents a starting point toward achieving the vision of two states,
a secure State of Israel and a viable, peaceful, democratic Palestine.
It is a framework for progress towards lasting peace and security in the Middle East..."
--President George W. Bush

The Roadmap for Peace, developed by the United States, in cooperation with Russia, the European Union, and the United Nations (the Quartet), was presented to Israel and the Palestinian Authority on April 30. The plan is a performance-based, goal-driven plan, with clear phases, timelines, and benchmarks. It involves reciprocal steps by the two parties in the political, security, economic, and humanitarian fields. The destination is a final and comprehensive settlement of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Ongoing good-faith efforts by both Israelis and Palestinians are required to implement the Roadmap. The pace of progress will grow solely out of their performance. The United States, other members of the Quartet, and regional Arab leaders will work to support and facilitate the process. They also will meet regularly to evaluate the parties’ performance in implementing the plan.

PHASE I: Ending Terror and Violence, Normalizing Palestinian Life, and Building Palestinian Institutions


Palestinian leadership issues unequivocal statement reiterating Israel’s right to exist in peace and security and calling for an immediate end to all acts of violence against Israelis anywhere.
Israeli leadership issues unequivocal statement affirming its commitment to the two-state vision of an independent, viable, sovereign Palestinian state living in peace and security with Israel, and calling for an immediate end to violence against Palestinians anywhere.
Palestinian institution-building includes drafting a constitution for Palestinian statehood and conducting free elections.
Israel withdraws from Palestinian areas occupied since September 2000, as security progresses, freezes all settlement activity, and dismantles outposts. It takes measures to improve the Palestinian humanitarian situation.

PHASE II: Transition


An independent Palestinian state is created with provisional borders and attributes of sovereignty. The Palestinian leadership continues to act decisively against terror and to build a practicing democracy based on tolerance and liberty.


The United States and the Roadmap

President Bush's vision of two states living side-by-side in peace and security as articulated in his June 24 speech, was the Roadmap foundation.
The U.S. worked extensively with Russia, the United Nations, and the European Union (the Quartet) to design the Roadmap, and will work with them to advance it.
President Bush traveled to the region in early June to initiate the Roadmap process.
Secretary Powell traveled to the region in May and late June to help restore dialogue between the Israelis and the Palestinians and advance the Roadmap process.

An international conference will be convened by the Quartet after the Palestinian elections to support Palestinian economic recovery. Multilateral Middle East issues also will be addressed, including water, environment, economic development, refugees, and arms control issues.
PHASE III: Permanent Status Agreement and End of Israeli-Palestinian Conflict


Palestinian reform is consolidated and its institutions stabilized while effective security performance is sustained. Israeli-Palestinian negotiations aim at a permanent status agreement in 2005.
A second international conference convened by the Quartet leads to a final, permanent status resolution on borders, Jerusalem, refugees, and settlements. It also supports a comprehensive peace settlement between Israel and Lebanon and Israel and Syria, as soon as possible.

aussie whiz kid

FROM: Radio New Zealand:
Manchester United have signed a gifted nine-year-old Australian boy after his grandfather sent the Premier League champions a DVD showcasing the boy's talents which has become a YouTube sensation.
Rhain Davis, who was born in England but has lived in Australia since he was four, is being hailed by the British press on Thursday as the next Wayne Rooney.
The boy's skills feature in a four-minute YouTube clip, already viewed more than 800,000 times.
United have confirmed the signing but they're playing down the hype around the youngster, who has moved back to Cheshire in northern England with his father, near the club's training ground.
While the club doesn't comment on individual members, a spokesman says they're bracing themselves for a series of DVDs.

amazing music vids 2

Trippy!
The Beatles - Tomorrow Never Knows/Within You, Without You

Tomorrow Never Knows is way ahead of it's time.

Post 1 of Amazing Music Videos

The Avalanches- Frontier Psychiatrist

"your a nut, your crazy in the coconuts!"

johnny appleseed

Joe Strummer's, Johnny Appleseed is the title song for HBO's John From Cincinnati. HBO please do not cancel this show! it is weird but compared to 93% of other television it is amazing. I think the show gets it's chops from the Strummer song. It has great character's, surfing, shitty California and beautiful California.

get Tusk

Man, I miss the days of watching Solid Gold with my dad. Usually was my before bed routine. I used to howl when Marilyn McCoo used to cover the number one hit of the week, or her duets.

Get Tusk!

NBA Ref Gambles

Well, the New York Post broke a story about an NBA referee who gambled on some games allegedly.

Here's the thing- this is pretty big. Refs decide games but not 24 point killings.

For me, I am a huge fan. This means nothing to me. I will be back. Gambling or not.

Is the game tainted? Not by the refs that is for sure. The players run the league. They are the only one's who can taint it.

It is not a secret that NBA commish loaths gaming. He has not tolerance for it. So he will make this a big deal.

But come October when the game tips again some gambling addicted former referee will be long forgotten.

a riot

This tune is so rough and unmelodic-I cannot get it out of my head.
The Germs - Manimal

vancouver green

I am in Vancouver shooting a documentary on the Jamaica to Toronto guys. I am renting a suite in an apartment that a friend hooked me up with.

A real nice pad with no TV but I got my computer and I really felt like watching TV - so I visted www.tomgreen.com . Tom is nuts and that is what I felt like after a night of shooting. Well, I visit and expect some Hollywood dude as a guest and who is on ......... my co-worker and friend George.

He needs to invest in a razor though, beards are for tall dorky dudes, sorry.

Daddy

CAN WE TAKE THESE MASKS OFF NOW?

this makes me happy

Raptors Games Back On CBC
19th June, 2007 - 9:29 pm
Globe And Mail -
Sources confirmed that the CBC has reached an agreement in principle to air a package of Raptors games in 2007-08, the first time the National Basketball Association team's telecasts will be on main network television since 2001-02, when CTV carried a few.

Details are sketchy because the deal is about two weeks away from being announced, but it's reasonable to expect the CBC to focus on Sunday afternoons. [READ]

I miss Canadian Hip Hop.

When I was young and dumb, I did not have much time for Canadian Hip Hop. I was distracted by NYC and Detroit artists. Ever heard of Rap Mafia out of Detroit? I am so looking for some of their stuff. My friend Justin and I would buy some Detroit Hip Hop just because it was from the D. You could have sold us a blank tape if it had a fresh cover.

I then got wise, especially when Maestro Fresh Wes came. Dude was cocky, had amazing rhymes and straight up, but tight beats. I love the parts in "Let Your Backbone Slide" , when the beat stops to silence.

I have tons of respect for Maestro. Chuck D told me that Wes was one of his favorite rappers.


I miss the old days of Canadian Hip Hop. It is in a different place now. For me a little to American influenced. I love the Island vibe that we have/had- it does not get old for me.

Some more good ones............

3 minutes of amazing

Badly acted, brillantly shot Miami Vice

Common- The Game

Common and Dj Premier = Goodness

LARGE PIG AND KID WITH GUN

FROM FOXNEWS ...........Alabama Boy Kills 1,051-Pound Monster Pig, Bigger Than 'Hogzilla'
Saturday , May 26, 2007



An 11-year-old Alabama boy used a pistol to kill a wild hog that just may be the biggest pig ever found.

Jamison Stone's father says the hog his son killed weighed a 1,051 pounds and measured 9-feet-4 from the tip of its snout to the base of its tail. Think hams as big as car tires.

If the claims are accurate, Jamison's trophy boar would be bigger than Hogzilla, the famed wild hog that grew to seemingly mythical proportions after being killed in south Georgia in 2004.

Click here to see a big pic of the big pig.

Hogzilla originally was thought to weigh 1,000 pounds and measure 12 feet in length. National Geographic experts who unearthed its remains believe the animal actually weighed about 800 pounds and was 8 feet long.

After seeing the pig in person, taxidermist Jerry Cunningham told The Anniston Star it was "the biggest thing I'd ever seen ... it's huge."

The Anniston Star reported that the feral hog was weighed at the Clay County Farmer's Exchange in Lineville. Workers at the co-op verified that the basic truck scales used were recently certified by the state. But no workers from the co-op were present when the hog was weighed.

Jamison is reveling in the attention over his pig, which has a Web site put up by his father — http://www.monsterpig.com — that is generating Internet buzz.

"It feels really good," Jamison, of Pickensville, said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "It's a good accomplishment. I probably won't ever kill anything else that big."

Jamison, who killed his first deer at age 5, was hunting with father Mike Stone and two guides in east Alabama on May 3 when he bagged Hogzilla II. He said he shot the huge animal eight times with a .50-caliber revolver and chased it for three hours through hilly woods before finishing it off with a point-blank shot.

Through it all there was the fear that the animal would turn and charge them, as wild boars have a reputation of doing.

"I was a little bit scared, a little bit excited," said Jamison, who just finished the sixth grade on the honor roll at Christian Heritage Academy, a small, private school.

His father said that, just to be extra safe, he and the guides had high-powered rifles aimed and ready to fire in case the beast with 5-inch tusks decided to charge.

With the pig finally dead in a creek bed on the 2,500-acre Lost Creek Plantation, a commercial hunting preserve in Delta, trees had to be cut down and a backhoe brought in to bring Jamison's prize out of the woods.

It was hauled on a truck to the Clay County Farmers Exchange in Lineville, where Jeff Kinder said they used his scale, which was recently calibrated, to weigh the hog.

Kinder, who didn't witness the weigh-in, said he was baffled to hear the reported weight of 1,051 pounds because his scale — an old, manual style with sliding weights — only measures to the nearest 10.

"I didn't quite understand that," he said.

Mike Stone said the scale balanced one notch past the 1,050-pound mark, and he thought it meant a weight of 1,051 pounds.

"It probably weighed 1,060 pounds. We were just afraid to change it once the story was out," he said.

The hog's head is now being mounted on an extra-large foam form by Cunningham of Jerry's Taxidermy in Oxford. Cunningham said the animal measured 54 inches around the head, 74 inches around the shoulders and 11 inches from the eyes to the end of its snout.

Mike Stone is having sausage made from the rest of the animal. "We'll probably get 500 to 700 pounds," he said.

Jamison, meanwhile, has been offered a small part in "The Legend of Hogzilla," a small-time horror flick based on the tale of the Georgia boar. The movie is holding casting calls with plans to begin filming in Georgia.

The Anniston Star reported that congratulatory calls have come all the way from California, where Jamison appeared on a radio talk show. Jamison apparently has gotten words of congratulation from Rickey Medlocke of Lynyrd Skynyrd, country music star Kenny Chesney, Tom Knapp of Benelli firearms and Jerry Miculek of Smith & Wesson.

Jamison is enjoying the newfound celebrity generated by the hog hunt, but he said he prefers hunting pheasants to monster pigs.

"They are a little less dangerous."

The Associated Press contributed to this report

crown prince of reggae

Youtube has some amazing reggae footage - love this Dennis Brown interview.

Summer is here, and Dennis Brown suits.

Will Gentrification Spoil the Birthplace of Hip-Hop?

NEW YORK TIMES ARTICLE
They want to put some condos up at Herc's spot where Hip Hop got legs- 1520 Sedgwick Avenue in the West Bronx

Hitchens and Jerry Faldwell

Cannot say I agree with Hitchens throwing Billy Graham in the equation. Graham is more of a realist than Faldwell.

bad meaning good

so your over them, I don't care. I like the colours in this video.

#41 - Arcade Fire - Neon Bible & Wake Up
Uploaded by lablogotheque

Fiasco

I was thinking about album cover art.

Lupe Fiasco's "Food and Liquor". That is the album above.

For such a hyped record, I was a bit disapointed. It is not bad, 5 tracks are nice.

Track 9- "He Say, She Say" is pretty soulful. But the album artwork above is amazing. A perfect case of cover art being better than the actual record.

Some questions........

What is with United Airlines and me. Like drinking and driving we just don't mix.

Is John Kerry really a Canadian?

Do some Japanese believe that "if you do not eat all your food, your eyes will burn out?"

Why am I asking questions?

fainting goats

A story we did recently in Marshall County, Tennessee on Fainting Goats. They were pretty wild, but the farmer says he has never seen one hurt, and they have a guard dog with them to protect them.

Some people were disturbed by the cat at the beginning of the item. I was at first also, he looked like a snail crawling towards us. But he rubbed up like a nice cat, but with useless hind legs. He followed us everywhere. And he was a pretty happy little guy. The farmer said he was recently hit by a car, and should have died, but just kept at it. In the city, you would probably take him to the vet, but on a farm, a cat is pretty low on the animal totem pole.

If he was not the cutest thing and so playful, I probably would not have included him. But he earned a role, when I look down and he was at my feet while shooting camera and he was using me as a rubbing pole.

your a crackhead

qcock

Herbie Hancock and Quincy Jones jamming on some old school Syns and Computer's. Go think that today this stuff is gone, but is the basis for all Computer Music.

new common

Fader magazine got to hear the new Common record, Finding Forever , and broke down every track. If you are a fan check this out

Fader Mag's Track by Track: Common's Finding Forever


THIS TRACK WITH KANYE IS SUPPOSE TO BE ON THE RECORD

heroes?

“I am still confused as to why they chose to lie and tried to make me a legend when the real heroics of my fellow soldiers that day were, in fact, legendary,” - JESSICA LYNCH

How is this story getting buried. The people in the states who support the War In Iraq need to take into account the news that their leaders are feeding them.

NY Times Article
Washington
Government Challenged on Lynch and Tillman
By MICHAEL LUO
Published: April 24, 2007
House Democrats held up the episodes as examples of twisting of the truth for public relations in wartime.

hip hop curse

This is a move, but I am sure this will all go away soon. I recall shooting Russell in an interview with George for The Hour. He called George, his "nigga". George replied, dude I ain't black. Russ shot back, I mean, "my nigga". It was a funny exchange but also proven that the word is defined but those who use it. And in Hip Hop, I don't fret when I hear it, but some do, and that is their right. Maybe I should sweat it.



FROM CNN.COM

Hip hop's Simmons: Restrict offensive words


• Def Jam co-founder wants certain words cut from music biz
• Russell Simmons terms such words "extreme curse words"
• Language has become flashpoint since Don Imus controversy
:


NEW YORK, New York (AP) -- Hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons said Monday that the recording and broadcast industries should consistently ban racial and sexist epithets from all so-called clean versions of rap songs and the airwaves.

Currently such epithets are prohibited in most clean versions, but record companies sometimes "arbitrarily" decide which offensive words to exclude and there's no uniform standard for deleting such words, Simmons said.

The recommendations drew mixed reaction and come two weeks after some began carping anew about rap lyrics after radio personality Don Imus was fired by CBS Radio and NBC for referring to the players on the Rutgers university women's basketball team as "nappy-headed hos."

Expressing concern about the "growing public outrage" over the use of such words in rap lyrics, Simmons said the words "bitch," "ho" and "nigger" should be considered "extreme curse words."

"We recommend (they're) always out," Simmons, the pioneering entrepreneur who made millions of dollars as he helped shape hip-hop culture, said in an interview Monday. "This is a first step. It's a clear message and a consistency that we want the industry to accept for more corporate social responsibility."

Last week, Simmons called a private meeting of influential music industry executives to discuss the issue. However, no music executives were associated with Monday's announcement by Simmons' Hip-Hop Summit Action Network.

Calls to Sony Music, Universal Music Group and Atlantic Records were not returned. The Recording Industry Association of America and Warner Music Group declined to comment.

Mixed reaction to Simmons

Bakari Kitwana, who has written about rap in books such as "Why White Kids Love Hip-Hop," said it was a step in the right direction. Kitwana said there needed to be uniformity in removing obscenities from music.

He pointed out that in some songs curse words are replaced with clean words while, in others, epithets and curse words are merely covered up by silence, allowing listeners to still infer from context the edited words.

"It shows that people in the industry are realizing that the pendulum is swinging and that there's a national conversation that they don't want to be on the wrong side of," Kitwana said of the recommendations.

"This is further along than we could have expected them to go 10 years ago. But there has to be more. I think they can do more around the question of content."

Writer Joan Morgan said the announcement amounted to "absolutely nothing." She called the recommendations "short-sighted at best and disingenuous at worst." It was, she said, an "anemic, insufficient response" that failed to address homophobia and other issues in certain strains of hip-hop culture and rap music.

Morgan, author of "When Chickenheads Come Home to Roost: A Hip-Hop Feminist Breaks It Down," said calling for the removal of the three epithets assumes "all of the violence, misogyny and sexism in hip-hop is only expressed in" those words.

"It's says let's take the responsibility away from people creating the content and put it back on the corporations," said Morgan.

The recommendations also included forums to foster dialogue among entertainers, hip-hop fans and executives and the creation of a mentoring program for entertainers.

Another recommendation called for the establishment of a coalition of music, radio and television executives to advise those industries on "lyrical and visual standards."

The announcement cautioned against violating free-speech rights but said that freedom of expression comes with responsibility.

"Our discussions are about the corporate social responsibility of the industry to voluntarily show respect to African-Americans and other people of color, African-American women and to all women in lyrics and images," read a joint statement from Simmons and Benjamin Chavis, the network's executive director.

hotdogs?

FROM: MEDIA BISTRO
LIL' ROMEO SIGNS ON TO PLAY COLLEGE HOOPS AT USC........
April 14, 2007. Looks like Lil Romeo might have to put his rap career on hold for a while. That's because MediaTakeOut.com has learned that the 6 foot tall rapper has just received a full scholarship to join USC's basketball team.

And this isn't some king of publicity stunt either. Romeo averaged 13.9 points and 5.6 assists per game at Beverly Hills High as a junior this past season and was a stand out at the prestigious ABCD Basketball Camp last summer.

Demar Derozan, Romeo's future teammate and best friend explains, "He's no gimmick. He can play and is going to be one of the top point guards in the 2008 class."

And Romeo's father, Master P, seems to be glowing with pride. The rapper/producer tells, "USC is a great school and I felt like he made a great decision ... it's just great for [Romeo]."




Percy tried out for the Raptor's once......

the raps

My Raptors are making some noise. Even the NY Times have waken up to Canada's basketball team

TIME'S ARTICLE

stretch armstrong

Feel like you need to brush up on your Hip Hop history.

Maybe the best way is to listen to some classic New York Hip Hop Radio.

DJ Stretch Armstrong has a blog with some files you can listen to. I am spending way to much time on his site.

I like the old school Run DMC on Mr. Magic and Marley Marl show on WBLS, freestyling. So much on there though, gotta give Stretch props.

stretch armstrong's Blog

wefunk

This is not the WeFunk crew. Just the glassest-eyed band ever.

Do you like funk and hip hop, basically great classic drums.

WeFunk Radio

Montreal dudes. I always wish Metal dudes would have gotten together and talked and played records on radio, instead of trying to be shitty bands.

WeFunk is a radio show held on Montreal's CKUT 90.3 - McGill University's radio station.
http://www.wefunkradio.com

transit storm

A photo from Nick Mccabe of one of the many dogs at The Elephant Sanctuary In Howenwald, Tennessee.
--------------------------

I feel like I am contanstly in transit. I am not complaining.

Cars, Planes, subway trains. The brutal and pissy Queen Street Car.

This morning on the train I thought my knees where going to buckle, with the amount of people. I am complaining.

I am grateful for the Ipod playlist.

Here is my recent plane playlist. I was going to Tennesse, then to NYC back to Toronto. I also find Boards of Canada - Music Has A Right To The Children, as good for onboard listening anytime.

1.808 State- Pacific State (Massey's Conga Mix)
2.4Hero- Spirits In Transition
3.Air- Playground Love
4.Alex Cortiz-Funkalicious (btw- i hate this title, but a good takeoff song)
5.Aphex Twin- Window Licker (X-Rated Run Jeremy Mix)
6.Astrud Gilberto- The Gentle Rain (RJD2 Mix)
7.The Avalanches - Electricity
8.Chromeo- Needy Girl (Paper Faces Remix)
9.Cinematic Orchestra-Evolutions (Blow Yards Mix)
10. Dj Vadim- Themes From Conquest Of The Irrational (Prunes Remix)
11.Gang Starr- DJ Premier in Deep Concentration
12.U2-Electrical Storm

I also find this suitable for those airplane half sleeps.

A Real Club Banger

From MC Rove

definition of cute

My co-worker Nick with a baby goat in Tennessee - where I am at the airport heading to New York

We went to an Elephant Santuary today. It was amazing.

The goat above is not a normal goat - it is a breed of Tennessee Fainting Goats.

It and it's owner Leon Oliver will be on our show , The Hour The Hoursoon.

SCRATCHING IN THE KITCHEN

Grandmaster Flash is in the Hall
The group is the first – but not the last – hip-hop act to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
By LARRY McSHANE
The Associated Press
Ask Grandmaster Flash about hip-hop stars deserving of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and he's quick with a list of rap icons.

"Afrika Bambaataa. Run-DMC. KRS-One," he says, barely pausing for a breath. "Big Daddy Kane. LL Cool J. Eric B and Rakim. Tribe Called Quest. The list goes on and on."

Flash left himself out, with good reason: The DJ and partners the Furious Five enter the Hall tonight as its initial rap inductees. The Bronx hip-hop pioneers are part of an otherwise traditional class: R.E.M., Van Halen and a pair of fellow New York City performers, Patti Smith and the Ronettes.

As the first citizens of hip-hop nation in the Rock Hall, the arrival of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five signals a new age at the Cleveland attraction: Smith likely marks the end of the '70s punk inductees, and the time of hip-hop is upon us.

"This announces the beginning of the rap era for the Hall," said Bill Adler, a hip-hop historian – currently editing the "Eyejammie Encyclopedia of Hip-Hop" – and member of the Hall's nominating committee. "Flash and the Furious Five are going to open the floodgates."

Adler, a publicist for the hugely influential Def Jam Records in the mid-1980s, offered his own list of rappers destined for induction: "The Beastie Boys, very quickly. Run-DMC and LL Cool J will get in pretty quickly. Slick Rick."

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five enter 25 years after their groundbreaking single, "The Message," about hard times in their native borough during the Reagan Administration. It was the first popular rap song with a social theme – "It's like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder how I keep from going under," went the hypnotic chorus.

"One of the pivotal points in hip-hop history," said Furious Five rapper Melle Mel, who acknowledged his group initially wanted to pass on the song.

The group, which also featured Kid Creole, Cowboy, Mr. Ness and Raheim before an acrimonious 1983 split between Flash and Mel, had missed induction on two previous occasions. So when word arrived of the honor this year, Flash said he was initially skeptical.

"When it sank in that we were in, it was a good feeling for hip-hop," Flash said. "I think it's bigger than Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. To get that kind of respect is good for hip-hop."

Melle Mel recalled lying in bed – "I usually sleep with the TV on" – when he heard the news that R.E.M. and Van Halen were in. Before he could roll over, the announcer added the name of Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.

"The fact that we're in the Hall of Fame speaks volumes," said Melle Mel. "People try to separate hip-hop music like it stands alone, but it really doesn't. We're in with all the great groups in the history of music. It further legitimizes hip-hop."

Admitting a hip-hop group to the home of rockers from Chuck Berry through U2 is a bigger step for the Hall of Fame than it is for many rap aficionados, said Erik Parker, director of content at the hip-hop Web site SOHH.com.

"The average hip-hop fan long ago learned to live without validation," said Parker. "They realized it was already accepted as part of the mainstream culture." (VH1 started honoring rap's pioneers three years ago in a Rock Hall-like ceremony, and two years ago honored Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five).

The Hall is undeniably an equal opportunity inductor: its first class included James Brown and the Everly Brothers, while last year's group featured Miles Davis and the Sex Pistols.

But its requirement that candidates can't get inducted until 25 years after their first release kept many of rap's founding fathers from a shot at stepping inside the Hall until recent years. Unlike rock, which dates back more than a half-century, rap is a relatively young genre – about 30 years old.

Parker said the timing for Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five's induction was impeccable.

"This is what's really key: their 'Message' is still relevant today, 25 years later," he said. "The words in that song couldn't ring truer."

jamaica to toronto

This is a compilation of songs of soul and reggae artists who were involved in a vibrant music scene in the 70's in Toronto.

I am not sure how many people have talked to me about the Toronto via West Indies musicians who called Canada home. A few late night cab drivers have mentioned it to me, including one incredibly informed driver, who I wish I would have gotten his name from.

I was in Scarbourough today and hit one of those industrial buildings that house all kinds of businesses to Henry's Records.

I found myself being very jealous of Henry, and the fact that he gets to listen to great records all day. You could tell he loves it. I am working on a story for The Hour about this. The compilation came out in 2006. They are also working on a documentary about it. Better late than never.

Jamaica To Toronto - Light In The Attic

our Oprah moment

droppin some hour posts - this is a follow-up to the previous- pretty crazy . click the link .

bounty hunter follow -up

The Hour- we bring families together.

Bounty Hunter-From a criminal to a 'Financial Bounty Hunter'.

Recent story I did on Doug Cannon the Financial Bounty Hunter.

doug cannon a man of much character.


CLICK HERE-




read more | digg story

DRM SUCKS

DRM is an umbrella term that refers to any of several technologies used by publishers or copyright owners to control access to and usage of digital data or hardware.

I was buying tunes on Itunes until I had an experience of making some mix CD's and bam my friends needed my password to access a few tunes I had bought.

Now Apple seems to be taking a long look at DRM.

Here is a great article on Salon by Boing Boing's Cory Doctorow.

LINK TO ARTICLE

everybody wants some...........

The Van Halen saga continues - I remember working at MuchMusic we would report every couple months that Diamond Dave was back in Van Halen, only to get this note, like the one released today. Some things are just not meant to be. I was looking forward to Eddie Van Halen's kid playing bass.


Van Halen Reunion Postponed?
The Van Halen reunion tour featuring the return of former lead singer David Lee Roth has been postponed indefinitely.

Tickets for the 40-date tour, which was announced on the band's web site on February 2, were expected to go on sale this weekend.

However, a source closed to the band tells USA Today the tour has been put on hold, but declined to give a reason for the delay.

A publicist for Eddie, Alex and Wolfgang Van Halen says reports of a cancellation should be not be taken as fact until an official statement is released.

Earlier this month, Roth said he hoped the band's reunion would last beyond their summer tour.

Regardless of future tour plans, Van Halen will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 12. The ceremony could feature Van Halen performing with both Roth and his replacement, Sammy Hagar.