July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
Music for the road
Back in the Saddle
If you have trouble finding me these days, chances are I’m somewhere on county road 400 South.
With Bob Banser’s retirement as editor of The News and Sun and no new staff member yet selected to help with Dunkirk area coverage, that means I’m back in harness, putting out the weekly newspaper as best I can while still trying to juggle duties at the daily paper as well.
And since reporter Steve Garbacz has moved on to a new job in Johnson County, the demands at the daily are plentiful.
Monday, for example, had me covering the Jay County Commissioners meeting in the morning then going to Dunkirk in the afternoon to get things nailed down for this week’s edition of The News and Sun, then going back to Portland to cover Monday night’s meeting of the Jay School Board.
So if I was dizzy on Tuesday, I had an excuse.
The good part of the back-and-forth is that it gives me a chance to get acquainted with some new music I acquired over the holidays.
First into the CD player was the latest from Bonnie Raitt. I’ve been a fan of hers since about 1974, which is a little scary when you think about it. Her newest breaks no new ground musically but has a comfortable familiarity to it.
The first time I heard it, I almost thought I had heard it before. It fit like a comfortable old shoe.
Next up is the latest from Diana Krall. I can’t remember who turned me onto the music of this talented jazz pianist and vocalist. If I did remember, I’d thank them.
When I first encountered Diana Krall, she was working her way through the great American songbook. Then she ventured out to jazz numbers I’d never heard before.
The most recent CD — entitled Glad Rag Doll — offers up songs from the 1920s that were entirely new to me, jazzy numbers that have you singing along pretty quickly.
If there’s a downside to the CD, it’s the cover. Krall, who is by any standard one very sexy lady, is dressed a bit like she’s modeling for a Victoria’s Secret catalog.
To give you some idea what I’m talking about, none of my daughters felt comfortable buying me the album for Christmas or my birthday in November. I had to rely on Santa Claus to fill my stocking.
Finally, in this current county road 400 South back-and-forth trek, there’s the newest CD by Katie Melua. She’s a singer who’s barely known in this country but is hugely popular internationally.
Born in the republic of Georgia, she now lives and works in England. Her voice is gorgeous and so is she.
I first encountered her music on a road trip with some friends in Moldova in 2008. The first time I heard the song “Nine Million Bicycles” I knew I wanted to hear more.
These days, thanks to the Internet, the old international boundaries are disappearing. All you have to do to sample any of these performers is go to Youtube and do a search. Within minutes, you’ll be watching a music video and can decide whether you like it or not.
As for me, I like it.
But I have to admit that the drive on 400 South is getting a little old.
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With Bob Banser’s retirement as editor of The News and Sun and no new staff member yet selected to help with Dunkirk area coverage, that means I’m back in harness, putting out the weekly newspaper as best I can while still trying to juggle duties at the daily paper as well.
And since reporter Steve Garbacz has moved on to a new job in Johnson County, the demands at the daily are plentiful.
Monday, for example, had me covering the Jay County Commissioners meeting in the morning then going to Dunkirk in the afternoon to get things nailed down for this week’s edition of The News and Sun, then going back to Portland to cover Monday night’s meeting of the Jay School Board.
So if I was dizzy on Tuesday, I had an excuse.
The good part of the back-and-forth is that it gives me a chance to get acquainted with some new music I acquired over the holidays.
First into the CD player was the latest from Bonnie Raitt. I’ve been a fan of hers since about 1974, which is a little scary when you think about it. Her newest breaks no new ground musically but has a comfortable familiarity to it.
The first time I heard it, I almost thought I had heard it before. It fit like a comfortable old shoe.
Next up is the latest from Diana Krall. I can’t remember who turned me onto the music of this talented jazz pianist and vocalist. If I did remember, I’d thank them.
When I first encountered Diana Krall, she was working her way through the great American songbook. Then she ventured out to jazz numbers I’d never heard before.
The most recent CD — entitled Glad Rag Doll — offers up songs from the 1920s that were entirely new to me, jazzy numbers that have you singing along pretty quickly.
If there’s a downside to the CD, it’s the cover. Krall, who is by any standard one very sexy lady, is dressed a bit like she’s modeling for a Victoria’s Secret catalog.
To give you some idea what I’m talking about, none of my daughters felt comfortable buying me the album for Christmas or my birthday in November. I had to rely on Santa Claus to fill my stocking.
Finally, in this current county road 400 South back-and-forth trek, there’s the newest CD by Katie Melua. She’s a singer who’s barely known in this country but is hugely popular internationally.
Born in the republic of Georgia, she now lives and works in England. Her voice is gorgeous and so is she.
I first encountered her music on a road trip with some friends in Moldova in 2008. The first time I heard the song “Nine Million Bicycles” I knew I wanted to hear more.
These days, thanks to the Internet, the old international boundaries are disappearing. All you have to do to sample any of these performers is go to Youtube and do a search. Within minutes, you’ll be watching a music video and can decide whether you like it or not.
As for me, I like it.
But I have to admit that the drive on 400 South is getting a little old.
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