My brain is empty just now. Perhaps I’ve been kidnapped by aliens who sucked the contents of my brain out with flavour straws, then returned me to earth, erasing any memory of the abduction.
As a result, blogging activity has been suspended for the evening, while I recharge.
I’ve posted various versions of this tune in the past – because it’s a fantastic song and because it happened at the right place and the right time (Memphis 1951) to help usher in rock ‘n roll. You might say that Rocket 88, a song about an Oldsmobile written by Ike Turner, is a not a song about drinking at all, but listen to Jackie Brenston sing it: “Goin’ around the corner, gonna get a fifth – everybody in my car’s gonna take a little nip.
Ask Tina Turner and I’m sure she’ll tell you her ex Ike was one bad dude, and I guess this song just adds to his litany of sins, since he shouldn’t have been singing about drinking and driving.
So Drinking Song #33 features Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats aka Ike Turner and the Kings of Rhythm, performing the most fantastic Rocket 88.
Bill Haley cleaned it up in the same year: “Goin’ round the corner goin’ to have some fun, gonna take my rocket on a nice long run.” Still Mr. Haley did a pretty decent cover of this one with just a hint of a western swing feel holding it back.
Later on in the 70s, The James Cotton Band made this tune a regular part of their set and also laid it down in the studio. They not only reverted to the original (if badly behaved) lyrics but they set this tune on fire.
And live….
Turn up the volume, friends and listen to that one again.
There are countless versions and variations of this tune. One Scotch, One Bourbon, One beer is Drinking Song #32 in our little list. It was written by Rudy Toombs for Amos Milburn, who recorded it in 1953. Since then it’s been recorded by John Lee Hooker, George Thorogood, Thurston Harris, Champion Jack Dupree and many more. Here’s a Cajun version I like a lot by Aldus Roger.
Now the first recording – Amos Milburn and his Aladdin Chickenshackers
And finally, Champion Jack Dupree
When you come across lobster mushrooms in the forest, they don’t always look appetizing. Often they’re partially covered with leaves and dirt. Part of the mushroom might look nice and firm, but another part could be deep red and mushy. Sometimes they are partially bug-eaten and occasionally, bugs have set up a happy home in the mushroom. Still, they are among the wild mushrooms I enjoy the most.
In the woods, I look for the cleanest and firmest specimens.
A good looking lobster on the outside doesn’t guarantee there won’t be a surprise waiting inside.
The first thing I do is wash the outside of the lobster with a spray of water. These fungi are very firm and will not suffer any difficulties from a thorough washing. Then I slice slice them into fairly thin slices, usually about an eighth inch thick. In the picture above, you can see some dark brown spots in the flesh. Some kind of bug had a leasing/buffet arrangement going on. No problem. Just cut out anything that you don’t like the look of. That’s a fairly broad and subjective statement and to be sure some people will fuss over lobster mushrooms more than others. I cut away any punky areas and anything dark brown. Ideally, what you want to be left with is either red or white.
The batch of lobsters I collected today were pretty good looking on the outside. None the less, I discarded quite a bit. In fact there were a few entire mushrooms that looked fine on the outside but on the inside looked way too yucky for me to consider eating.
Above you can see todays finds cleaned up and ready for cooking or drying. All of these were found in a small area of one forest, a hot-spot you might say, and they were collected in less than a half an hour.
Often when the lobsters, or Hypomyces lactifluorum, are fruiting, there are plenty of them around, so I’ll come home with loads to eat, give to friends, and still have lots to dry in my dehydrator. They dry up really nicely and when you reconstitute them, they retain their firm and chewy texture.
There are plenty of ways to cook lobster mushrooms. Try them fried up in a little butter and served on toast. Or cook them up in a stir-fry. They’re great in omelets but be sure to cook the mushrooms first, then add them to the omelet. I would not consider eating these fungi raw.
There hasn’t been much mushroom hunting going on with all the dry weather we’ve enjoyed, but recent storms gave me a bit of hope, so the dogs and I headed for the enchanted mushroom forest to see what we could see.
Boletes: none
Chanterelles: none
Hedgehogs: none
However, I do know a hemlock bog that grows plenty of Hypomyces lactifluorum – which we call The Lobster – and I was able to pick a basket of these delicious items. The lobster is what happens when a certain ascomycete fungus attacks a host mushroom. The host is either the Russula brevipes or the Lactarius piperatus – neither of which are palatable until attacked by the Hypomyces (after which they are most tasty). A few things happen. The host becomes distorted and quite firm and it becomes covered in the parasite. It starts off scarlet and changes to a deeper red. Anything deeper than scarlet is typically past it’s expiry in terms of edibility.
…just lay down in the creek
Songs about drinking are by no means a new phenomenon. Drinking song #31 goes way back to the 1860s. Here’s a stylish version by Glenn Miller and his Orchestra from the 40s. Little Brown Jug
Here’s a fun version played on a 6 string banjo
And lookee here, a button accordion version. This one is a medley with Little Brown Jug morphing into I’ll Tell Me Ma and Binda’s Polka.
One evening each week, more or less, I get together with my friend Vox for several games of Go. We’ve been battling over the Go board since some time back in the 80s and along the way we’ve played thousands of games. In recent months, Vox has gained strength and forced me to accept a handicap of three stones, a situation I’m working on fixing as quickly as possible.
Last night we played five games and I won four. They were good, intense games, involving many tough life and death battles. Vox has been successful recently by reducing my potential, playing closer to my strength than I think he ought to be able to get away with. If I can’t punish him for the over-play, I’m unable to find enough territory to win. Last night, I was able to keep Vox’s groups under a great deal of pressure by making splitting attacks, keeping his groups heavy and surrounding his stones on a large scale. A number of his groups fell, including some very large groups in the centre of the board.
I know that to win, I have to play aggressively from the outset, to be defiant really, and not let Vox do the things he wants to do. When he is able to stabilize his groups comfortably, he’s really good at erasing potential, as I’ve found out many times. Last night I was successful, but I’m sure that by next time Vox will have some adjustments in his game waiting for me.
Drinking Song #30 is from the Tom Waits album Foreign Affairs. Never Talk to Strangers features Bette Midler, and it’s a beautiful duet. Only suckers fall in love with perfect strangers.
I love Ms. Midler’s last line: Oh you don’t look like such a chump. Har!
Some call it simply Civic Holiday, and in parts of this country I understand that is the official name. Here in Toronto, we call it Simcoe Day but I’m not sure just what Lord Simcoe did exactly to rate his own long weekend. If Wikipedia is to be believed,it is Mountie Day in North York, Colonel By Day in Ottawa, George Hamilton Day in Hamilton, Joseph Brant Day in Burlington, Founders’ Day in Brantford, McLaughlin Day in Oshawa, Alexander Mackenzie Day in Sarnia, James Cockburn Day in Cobourg, Peter Robinson Day in Peterborough and John Galt Day in Guelph. I learn something every day.
In Toronto, this weekend is also the time we celebrate the festival formerly known as Caribana. I don’t begin to understand what the dispute over the name is all about except that there has been some heavy duty bickering over which group organizes the festival. In spite of that, Toronto is reputed to have one of the best Carribean festivals anywhere. I’ve gone down to Lakeshore for the parade a few times, and it’s always been a lot of fun, with loads of party music and plenty of good food for sale along the way. I hope the weather holds and everybody has a great time.
I’m sure our Mayor and City Councillors will be resting up this weekend after a highly unusual all-day-and-all-night session of public feedback related to Toronto’s financial state and the recent KPMG report. Last night, we watched some of the proceedings on television. It was strange and yet strangely compelling too, as each speaker had three minutes to make a statement. In some cases, councillors asked the speakers questions. Now, what will Council and the Mayor do with all the deputations?
Is this a long weekend where you live?
27th Street 