March 30, 2012
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What are you reading?

Weston Park, Shropshire, UK International Thre...

Weston Park, Shropshire, UK International Three Day Event 3rd -7th Oct 2007 View On Black (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I’ve just finished reading True Grit, the 1968 novel by Charles Portis. Last year I read for the first time two of Portis’ books, Norwood and Dog of the South. I was really caught up in his writing during that time, but I avoided reading True Grit which by virtue of two movies made based on it, is his most well-known book. I like both the films. In their own ways both are excellent. The book is simply a treasure.

True Grit is a story recounted by a woman named Mattie Ross about a series of events that took place when she was 14 years old. Her father was murdered and Mattie set about hiring a US Marshal named Rooster Cogburn to track down and capture the murderer, with her in tow. Mattie chooses Marshall Cogburn because she has been told he is a man with true grit. The story is coloured by Mattie Ross’ opinions about the characters and the adventure as it unfolds.

It is little wonder two attempts have been made at capturing this novel in film versions. The novel is one of those books that is “just right” or “just so”.  It was originally published in serial format in The Saturday Evening Post. It is presented as an adventure story, but I think it is about Mattie Ross the person – a character with a precocious and matter-of-fact ability to manage things thrown into a chaotic and unmanageable world.

If you haven’t read this book or if you think seeing one or both of the films will suffice, go find a copy of the book right now and read it.

So…what are you reading?

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March 30, 2012
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I know snow is in the forcast but….

Some vegetables can be planted in the garden as soon as the ground can be worked. That means I’m late off the mark after all the crazy warm weather we’ve been having. Now we’re back to seasonal temperatures and we may even see a small accumulation of snow tonight. I’m not worrying about the snow though. I had a window of opportunity to get the veggie garden going this morning, and so after I took care of the oil change for my care, I got to work.

This is my little veggie garden. Last season, Tuffy P began decorating the garden walls with mosaics, a job we’ll hopefully complete this spring.  I did some soil preparation this morning and planted spinach, golden beets and lettuce, a decent early start.

March 29, 2012
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Fernest and the Thunders

Your Daily Dose tonight is some music from a Zydeco band called Fernest and the Thunders, led by a button accordion player named Fernest Arceneaux. Mr Arceneaux is gone now, but I remember seeing him and his band live here in Toronto back in the 80s. It was really that show that got me interested in the button accordion, even though I didn’t so much as hold one until over 15 years later.

I think it was the Horseshoe they played at. I remember there was a good crowd and lots of dancing. Fernest stood off to one side with the vocal mic and his accordion and his frattoir (scrub-board) player stood centre stage, a really unusual set-up. Between sets, we enjoyed a beer with a couple of the guys in the band. I don’t remember their names. I do remember they were really fine players and they were really happy that people enjoyed their music up here in Canada.

I bought one of their records (the vinyl kind) at that show and got it autographed. My favourite cut on that record was a cover of Kansas City, nicely done in the Zydeco way.

March 28, 2012
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Earl Scruggs has died at 88

How many musicians can you think of who created a sound so definitive that it shaped an entire genre of music? Damn few. Earl Scruggs was one of those few. Earl Scruggs changed everything for banjo and for bluegrass music. He died this morning at 88.

Here he is with Lester Flatt playing Foggy Mountain Breakdown back in 1965.

And here’s Fireball Mail

And here is Mr. Scruggs playing John Hardy with Doc Watson

RIP

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March 27, 2012
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Shave and a Haircut Two Bits

Here’s a vintage performance by The Paul James Band. A couple things to note about these guys. One is that when Tuffy P and I got hitched back in 2001, Paul James and the boys rocked our wedding. The bass player in this video is the late Brian Kipping. Brian was a really nice guy, a rockin’ bass player and as well, he was an excellent painter. I titled this post Shave and a Hair Cut Two Bits because this tune uses that Bo Diddly riff that has insinuated its way through so much rock ‘n’ roll. It happens that the first time I saw Paul James play, he and his band opened a show and backed Bo Diddley.

March 26, 2012
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Studio Clean-up

I’m taking a few days off work. Call it a stay-cation if you like. There are many things I want to accomplish in that short time, but I know I’ll be fortunate if I get a few of them done. Last night I started a studio clean-up, I mean a major reorganization of my workspace. It’s a small space. I remember those years when I was on Niagara St and I had the luxury of a roomy workspace. Now I paint in the basement of our house. I’m not complaining. It’s actually a workable space and I’m comfortable there, but painting in a small space is a much different experience than painting in a larger one. For one thing, if you don’t clean up a small space regularly, it seems to get filled up with junk really quickly. It’s time to become an entropy-fighting studio-cleaning superhero. I’m giving myself tonight to get the job done.

No more stalling. I’m getting to it….right after coffee.

There was a time when clean-up was an everyday part of my painting practice – not at the end of a session but at the beginning of one. The act of sweeping and organizing before settling down to work has long helped me ease into that curiously relaxed, focus state of mind in which I make my best work. Clean up the studio; clean up the mind. Settle in. Work.