Motown Merry Christmas Medly
Source: Uploaded by apavelch on Jan 27, 2010 to YouTube
HAPPY HOLIDAYS from FOODSPOOK!
The Demise of “Mrs. Jay”- Comments By FoodSpook
I used to own a house in the suburbs. It was in a cul-de-sac with only four other homes. It was very quiet and civilized. The hillside across from my driveway was rustic. The bottom part of the hill was covered with wild blackberry thickets and the top half with oak trees in various stages of maturation. In the summer the colors were all shades of green and deep purple. In the fall, the shades of the trees on the hillside turned to browns, burnt umber and gold. I met Mr. Jay one summer morning around 6:00 AM. He was Loud!
I had studied Eastern customs and entered a Zen phase of life at that time. I trained my brain to ignore and to zone out the noise that Mr. Jay was cawing into my existence every morning, seven days a week. Still Mr. Jay was still very annoying. But, I told myself to be cool. He deserves to live, even if it’s on my property. We all have to get along.
Mr. Blue Jay and I got to know each other. He was a bird. I was a property owner. I had a bird feeder in my back yard. Mr. Jay was too big to perch on the feeder but he was able to harvest some seed from it everyday anyway. The squirrels were much more aggressive and successful at liberating the birdseed than the birds.
I thought I was the “Dr. Doolittle” of my domain. Whenever I was working my yard all kinds of animals would show up. Humming Birds would fly up and drink right from the end of my garden hose. Raccoons came at night. When I arrived home late at night, deer would be all over my yard and in the field behind my property. Well, early one morning while out in my yard, I noticed that Mr. Jay sounded different. His squawking had changed into a loud and raucous high pitched monologue.
When I looked into Mr. Jay’s tree I got a big surprise! Mr. Jay was sitting on his limb and quiet as a mouse. There was another Jay besides him making all the noise. Mr. Jay had found his Lady Jay! I was very happy for Mr. Jay. He had been living in my backyard for two years and because we were both bachelors, I felt a special comraderie towards Mr. Jay. The only problem I could perceive was, Mrs. Jay NEVER shut up. She fussed with her high pitched cackling from sunrise to sunset, everyday. I never really got used to her noise and found her presence outright irritating. However I learned to tune her out and to appreciate the fact that she is now Mr. Jay’s wife and we all must get along.
It’s interesting that I can’t remember Mr. Jay ever speaking again for the next 18 months. I must assume he was happy. They stayed together faithfully until the “incident”. It was a beautiful summer evening, headed towards dusk. I was in my back yard with my garden hose, watering and enjoying nature’s evening sound effects. Suddenly a dark gray shadow streaked into my yard from out of the sky like a cruise missile programmed to my front door. I was speechless. There was a burst of feathers left floating in the air. Then it became clear to me what had happened.
I have read that frequently our eyes see much more than we are conscious of. However, our brain stores all kinds crap that we see, whether we need it or not. In that millisecond I saw Mrs. Jay’s panicked face and ruffled blue and white body clutched in the deadly grasp of a Red Tailed Hawk. I realized it was case closed. She was cackeling her last high pitched squawks as the hawk carried her to a big nest high atop a 100 ft. Eucalyptus tree in the field behind my house. Baby hawks have to eat too.
I was saddened at Mrs. Jays demise. I had actually almost gotten use to her being around. In fact, that day she was taken, I hadn’t even noticed her flying to her nest a few feet away. I know Mr. Jay loved her. No other bird would have put up with her yammering. Mr. Jay lived in my backyard for another year but it was not the same. True, we were both bachelors again but the arrival of Mrs. Jay had changed us. One day Mr. Jay was gone. I know he had decided to move on and I wished him luck.
My experiences living with the Jay family were enlightning. Maybe there were some psychic parallels between Mr. Jay’s life and my own. The main thing I learned is, I really need to get a life!
Foodspook
Cannonball Adderley-”Brother John”- 1963
This post is non-medical related. It’s just for fun.
In 1963 I had just entered my first year of high school. It was a interesting time. The Beatles had not arrived in America just yet. Hippies and the “Love Children” were spontaneously arriving to the Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco as if drawn by a nationwide bugle call that only young people could hear. Meantime, in the hood, jazz was still alive. I first heard Cannonball play in 1958. Of course I was only 10 years old at that time and the recording was on a Bay Area Black radio station late on a Saturday night. The following Sunday this station played all Negro spirituals. That night I was mesmerized. When I began to earn a little money in high school from cutting lawns, I started buying jazz LP’s.
This group consisted of Cannonball Adderley-alto sax, Nat Adderley-cornet, Yusef Lateef-tenor-sax-oboe-flute, Joe Zawinal-piano, Sam Jones-bass and Louis Hayes-drums.
Hope you enjoy!
FoodSpook
Source: Astrotype on YouTube
Herbie Hancock -’Cantalope Island’
Herbie Hancock and Pat Metheny have a good time on this groove of ‘Cantelope Island’. Hope you enjoy!
FoodSpook
Source: jesuschristopher on YouTube
Cal Tjader, Shoshana
This post is not about medical issues, it is just for enjoyment. We have to have fun in life!
I first saw Cal Tjader when I was a teenager in Oakland, California in the 1960′s. Oakland’s Parks and Recreation Department sponsored latin music jam sessions on Wednesday nights at Bushrod Park. You had to get there early. The gym was always filled to capacity.
The music was HOT! You never knew what combination of Bay Area musicians might drop by. Cal’s piano player back in the day was a magnificent musician from Oakland named Lonnie Hewitt. Jerome Richardson is the flute player on many of the streaming videos at the end. We cannot overlook Al McKibbon on bass. Armando Peraza played congas for several years with Cal.
These dudes I have mentiond were Bad! I have not mentioned all of the players that performed with Cal Tjader. There is not enough space on one blogsite.
Pete and Coke Escovedo, (Sheila E’s dad and uncle), were there every week. They loved to play. Willie Bobo from San Francisco would show up. Mongo Santamaria would drop in if he was in town. Many, many musicians played at this recreation center while on their way to world-wide fame. I met Cal Tjader and attended many of his performances up until his passing in 1982. I still remain a most devoted fan. Hope you enjoy this video.
FoodSpook
Source: INDALOSOULCLUB on YouTube
Dave Brubeck Quartet
Posted August 7, 2009
Its time for a entertainment break. This video of the Dave Brubeck Quartet was shot in Berlin in 1966, the year I graduated from high school. Dave had already recorded his monster hit, “Take Five” in the early 1960′s. I became a dedicated young fan. The group consists of Dave Brubeck-piano, Paul Desmond-sax, Eugene Wright-bass, and Joe Morello-drums. This song is titled “40 Days”. Hope you enjoy!
FoodSpook
Source: Astrotype on YouTube
Maceo Parker, “Cold Sweat”: Video
Posted July 24, 2009
OK, one more music video for our entertainment and then I will return to my blogs about diabetes and other health issues. This is a video of saxophone player Maceo Parker who played many years with James Brown. Maceo wrote many of the James Brown hit recordings. Maceo, Pee Wee Ellis and Fred Wesley formed their own group when James Brown went to prison. This is their presentation of “Cold Sweat” There are streaming videos at the end of this video. Check them out! Hope you enjoy.
FoodSpook
Source: bobfunk11 on YouTube
James Brown Live in East Berlin
Posted July 23, 2009
This post is for entertainment only. Thanks for coming to my site.
James Brown’s song “Living in America” was a huge hit at its release. It was a theme song for one of the “Rocky” movies starring Sly Stallone. The unseen featured saxophone player in the middle of this video is the great Maceo Parker. The last time I saw Maceo perform was at a really nice jazz club in downtown Seattle. His group had the people dancing in every space that could be found. It was a party! As you already know, James is no longer with us. His music will be here for a long time. His band was lengendary. His legacy is not all that different from our departed Michael Jackson. These gentlemen led complex lives and both had complex deaths. Their talent will continue to entertain us for years to come.
FoodSpook
Source: mrdianpattinama on YouTube
Oscar Brown Jr. – “I Apologize”: Video
Posted July 18, 2009
This post is not health related. It is entertainment for me and hopefully for you!
For you that were not here in the 1950′s 60′s and 70′s, this brother was the American version of the African “griot” or story teller. He recorded his stories with a mixture of jazz and poetry. His presentations were always powerful. You be the judge.
FoodSpook
Source: cbovikings on YouTube
Fela
Posted June 26, 2009
Fela Kuti was not only a genius musician but also a advocate for social change in his native Nigeria and wanted to bring social change to the whole African continent. Many people around the world say his message and musical genius was quite similar the American born musical genius, James Brown. The name of this song is “Teacher Don’t Teach Me No Nonsense”.
FoodSpook
Source: ZUNICARDSTV on YouTube
Gill Scott-Heron, “Winter in America”
Posted June 8, 2009
I had the priviledge of seeing the poet Gill Scott-Heron live on several occassions during the 1970′s and 1980′s. His performances are electric. I still remember them. His music is a hybrid of poetry and social commentary about the issues of the day performed by master jazz-fusion musicians in his group. This post is purely for entertainment. Gill passed on in 2011. R.I.P.You will be missed.
FoodSpook
Source: sirnoze on YouTube
Mariam Makeba-Soweto Blues
To my readers,
I hope you don’t mind if I post some music videos at various times by artists that are timeless and revered all around the world. This video is by the lengendary Mariam Makeba. She is not with us now but her music will here for all time. This video of course is not about diabetes or any other medical conditions. It is strickly for our entertainment and to give kudos to a great entertainer!
FoodSpook
Source: Duncanzibar on YouTube
Seun Kuti in Helsinki
This video is posted because I love the Kuti famiily of musicians. I hope you like this.
FoodSpook
Source: hammattan on YouTube
Fela Kuti
This post is not related to diabetes nor any other health issues.
This man made incredible music. He was considered a dissident by the Nigerian government and persecuted, tormented and imprisoned before his death. There are forces in this world that channel all of their resources into maintaining the status quo. They gain at the loss of their fellow citizens. Fela Kuti was not only a artist, he was a spokesman for his people. Fela Kuti entertained all over the world. He spoke about the corruption and lack of human rights in his native country of Nigeria. He was a world wide star and he died fairly young from AIDS. I love his music. I have posted this video in tribute to the courage of Fela Kuti who stood by his principles until the end of his life.
His legacy continues through his sons, also world reknown musicians, Femi Kuti and the younger Seun Kuti.
FoodSpook
Source: da66yy on YouTube
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