The Beatles - White Album

I once heard a well known comedian rating all his favorite bands on Letterman and he did not have the Beatles in the top 10. When Letterman asked him about it he said, "they made a lot great songs, but they also made a lot of crap.

I have to agree with that. I am not much of a Beatles fan. But, I don't think you can have a great record collection without The White Album. This is the Beatles most experimental album, they swing from country -- "Rocky Raccoon" -- to I am not sure what, with "Number 9." It also has my favorite Beatles song, "Let's do it in the Road."

You can easily go out and buy one of those Greatest Hits records, but I think you will really miss out on an amazing beginning to end experience if you do not add The White Album to your collection.

The Keeper of the House by Shirley Ann Grau

There is nothing like reading a book in a place that has a connection to the story. Shirley Ann Grau is a great southern writer that lives in New Orleans. Reading the book while staying in a French Quarter rental house added that little extra to the story.

And it is a great story. The "house" is a huge southern mansion that has been added to over the years by the generations that have lived in it. The Howlands settled the land and basically own everything as far as the eye can see. Their interaction with the town is strained at best. The story is told from four perspectives and Grau does an amazing job of capturing the voices of the "keepers:" a Southern land barren, his black mistress, and the daughter who marries a striving young man hoping to make a name in politics. The interaction between the races and the sexes is gripping, and the characters are consuming as we cover the lives of three generations. This is a classic southern novel, that was rewarded with the Pulitzer Prize in 1965, and is a must read.

Andina Restaurant

Andina is not a great place to have your anniversary dinner. This restaurant is more conducive to larger groups of people than romantic dinners. It is close quarters in the dining room and it can get quite loud. The food is great, and I recommend sampling a lot of different things off the tapas menu as opposed to going with a dinner entree -- another reason to get a big group, so you can share a lot. The seafood tapas are the best, especially the ceviche.

Also, make sure you save room for desert, the selection includes some Peruvian specialties.

Andina Restaurant
1314 NW Glisan St

Portland, OR 97209-2717

Phone: (503) 228-9535

Hours:
Mon-Sat 11:30am-2:30pm,

Sun-Thu 5:30pm-9:30pm,
Fri-Sat 5:30-10:30pm

Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson

This is a case of, I read a book and liked it so much I scoured the author's back catalog to see what else they had written that might be interesting. In this instance I did not have to go too far. Marilynne Robinson is the author of the novel Gilead (which won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction) and two books of nonfiction. Housekeeping is her first novel.

The narrator is Ruthie a young school-age girl who lives with her sister in Fingerbone, a small town somewhere in the northwestern U.S. The novel begins with the death of her grandfather, before she is born, in a spectacular train accident. The train derails and plunges into the lake on the way into town. Ruthie's mother takes her own life by driving a car into the same lake, some years later. Subsequently, Ruthie and her younger sister Lucille move in with their grandmother and enjoy several stable years before she passes and the caretaker role is taken over by two elderly and worrisome great-aunts, who are not able to cope. They abandon ship as soon as they can get the girl's aunt Sylvie to move home and take up "housekeeping." Unfortunately, Sylvie is more into long aimless walks, collecting cans and newspapers and sitting in the dark than taking care of kids. Lucille, seeking a more conventional life, ends up breaking from the family, while Ruthie becomes consumed with the transient lifestyle.

Robinson is an elegant, if wordy, writer. Her writing is more like poetry, than prose in many places. One funny thing I found when I was reading the reviews, was that it is hard to know where the book is set and how old several of the characters are, yet many of the reviews say it is set in "Idaho" and give specific ages for Sylvie and Ruthie. I will agree with the review that calls this book a classic, no exaggeration there.

Steve Forbert - Jackrabbit Slim

Ever heard of Steve Forbert? If you haven't you are not alone. This is a guy that has been putting out quality records since 1978, his first Alive on Arrival is considered by many to be one of the best records ever made, but he has never made it big.

He moved from his home in Mississippi in the mid-70s to play on he streets of NY city. With his harmonica and acoustic guitar, Rolling Stone magazine dubbed him the next Bob Dylan, no pressure.

Based on that review I bought his second record Jackrabbit Slim, which produced his only top 40 hit, Romeo's Tune -- if you don't recognize it by the title, you'd probably know it if you heard it: "Meet me in the middle of the night, let me hear you say, every thing's all right." Anyway, this song will get you off on the right foot and allow you to discover the rest of this great record, and hopefully you'll become one of the dedicated few who buy every record he puts out.

Wild Abandon

Wild Abandon is a restaurant we have been to many times, so this is more of an update than an initial review. Usually we think of eating here in the summer and sitting out on the deck, but a cold winter night is just right for the hearty winter menu updates. You can start with any of the great cocktails, our favorites are the Lemon Drop and the Manhattan.

Next you can share a couple of our favorite appetizers, a goat cheese torta layers creamy chevre, pesto and roasted garlic. The Willamette dream salad combines soft blue cheese, honey-glazed pecans, grilled apples and sweet currants over organic greens with lemon-basil vinaigrette.

This is the hard part, you now have to decide how "hearty" you want to go on the entree. There are several great pasta dishes, including a ravioli of the day; or if you want to step it up, the pork loin or steak are great. The salmon is always wild, no farm raised fish here, and delicious. On the most recent trip we tried the Beef Bourguignon, which was amazing and filling (I had to take some home) and the Angel Hair Pasta with Clams, which was also great.

The wine list is not very extensive, but there are several great options. We ordered the red wine special which was a wonderful Argentinian red I had never heard of before.

If you are looking for a romantic cosy place to huddle up over comfort food, Wild Abandon is the place for a great winter meal. Then when summer comes, you can retreat out onto the deck and discover it again.

Wild Abandon
2411 SE Belmont St.

Portland, OR 97214-2820

Phone: (503) 232-4458

Hours:
Mon, Wed-Fri 4:30pm-10:30pm, Sat-Sun 5:30pm-11pm

It's begining to look a lot like Christmas

Right on schedule Barbara has the Christmas tree up
(the day after Thanksgiving).

I did my part and got up on the roof to add the icicle lights.

We have the dinner table set and ready for Portland Christmas
(with Tish, Dede and family).

Brodie and Finlay are also getting in the spirit with their festive sweaters.


And they are hoping for a bone in their stocking.

No Country for Old Men

Coen brothers and Cormac McCarthy, do I need to say anymore?

OK, a little more. Here's what happens: Llewelyn Mossout (Josh Brolin) is out hunting in the barren wasteland that is west Texas. He comes up on a drug deal gone bad and takes off with the money (two million 1980 dollars). This is when he makes his first mistake. For some strange reason, he returns to the scene to bring water to a dying man. As they say, without this we got no story. The people who want the drugs and the money back are there waiting for him. In one of the best chase scenes in recent history Llewelyn makes his escape down river as he is pursued by a pit bull that would scare Michael Vick. Just when you think the pit bull is the scariest thing you'd ever want to be chased by, we are are introduced to Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem), a psychopath who will stop at nothing to recover the money and mete out his own twisted brand of justice on Llewelyn and everyone else who gets in his way.

While the chase is the star of this movie, an old school sheriff named Ed Tom Bell (Tommy Lee Jones) is the next best thing. He investigates the case, but quickly becomes more interested in rescuing the fugitive from his pursuer than retrieving the cash. He also delivers all the good lines. Upon seeing the death and destruction of the drug deal gone bad the sheriff's deputy says, 'It's a mess, ain't it?," to which Jones replies, "If it ain't, it'll do until the mess gets here."

This movie is rated R and you should take this rating seriously. If you know Cormac McCarthy you know he doesn't celebrate violence, but he knows how to deliver it in it's rawest form.

Modest Mouse - Good News For People Who Love Bad News

Modest Mouse have been around for a while, in fact they released their first record in 1996. But this is the first great record they have made. Previously they were a strange, experimental, rambling mess. Experimenting has it's place, but after a while you need to figure out who you are. In 2006, Modest Mouse decided to become a little more conventional and it paid off. This is one of best records of that year.

They are still a little strange as you can witness on "Float On" and "Bukowski" two of the best cuts on the record, but they hit their stride with one of the best singles of the year "The Good Times Are Killing Me."

To all the old school MM fans this record may be an aberration, but I hope they keep mining this vein.

The Darjeeling Limited

How little plot and character development can you have and still make a good movie? This is a question that Wes Anderson seems to want to visit over and over again. His motto seems to be, it is better to look good than to feel good.

In his latest film, The Darjeeling Limited, Owen Wilson stars as Francis Whitman, the oldest of three brothers whom he has reunited under false pretenses. Recovering from undisclosed injuries he claims gave him a new found lease on life, Francis hatches a plan to reconnect with his younger siblings in India, coordinated down to the last detail (he has an assistant that provides laminated itineraries each day). His brothers each have their own issues -- Peter (Adrien Brody) is about to become a father, while Jack (Jason Schwartzman) is despondent over an ex-girlfriend. While Peter and jack are initially reluctant to open up to the prospect of a spiritual or emotional epiphany, they come together when Jack reveals the real reason for the trip -- to find their estranged mother Patricia (Angelica Huston) who is also in India working at a convent taking care of orphans. The family schism is a result of their father's death and their mother's failure to attend the funeral.

Much like The Life Aquatic, the setting -- a train ride through India -- is really the star of this movie. And like The Royal Tenenbaums, the characters only give you what little you need to keep you interested. If you are a fan of Anderson and his understated form, you should enjoy this film.

You Don't Love Me Yet by Jonathan Lethem

In his sixth novel, You Don't Love Me Yet, it's hard to tell if Jonathan Lethem (Fortress of Solitude; Motherless Brooklyn) is taking the piss or slightly out of his element. The Brooklyn boy takes on LA and if your not from there it's a little like using the "N" word if you're not black, stupid at best. He gets a lot of it right, but it is over the top and this is where it gets suspect. The story revolves around a nascent band and it's bass player, Lucinda. She works days answering a "complaint line' that is a conceptual art piece dreamed up by one of her ex-lovers, a boring gallery owner with plenty of money and all day to spend it (this rings true). Against all the rules she begins a relationship with one of the complainers, an overweight, hairy blob of a man (this does not ring true in image obsessed LA). He is a slogan writer (buying it) and Lucinda turns his stream of complaints into the beginnings of the bands first great lyrics (sort of buy it), but when he finds out he wants to join the band (not buying it) with disastrous consequences (funny). The rest of the characters are kids you could find anywhere and don't seem indigenous to LA in any way special. In fact, make the art less performance based, substitute the car journeys for subway trips and this story could easily be set in New York. So, LA inconsequential in my mind. What we have here is a funny story about trying to make it through your mid-20's and almost being great.

Mr. Death Soundtrack - Caleb Sampson

This is a tough one. One of my favorite directors in the world is Errol Morris, not only because he makes amazing, quirky (Oscar winning) documentaries, but also because he directed all our Miller High Life commercials back in the day. For a while we were bugging him to get us copies of all his movies on DVD. On the day he finally delivered, I got an unexpected bonus, the sound track to Mr. Death: The Rise and Fall of Fred A. Leuchter, Jr. by Caleb Sampson.

It is one of the most beautiful collections of songs you will ever listen to and while the songs are a great sound track to the movie, I think the biggest compliment I can pay this soundtrack is that I now think of it and the movie as two completely different (and wonderful) entities. So, here is the sad part. The day after getting the CD I wandered back into the production office to tell Errol how great it was and the first thing he told me was Caleb committed suicide a few weeks after completing it. All time downer.

Fife Restaurant

Finally made it to Fife after driving by it several times, thinking: we should go there some day. Located on lower Freemont this restaurant has great ambiance and is helping revive a pretty cool old neighborhood. Unfortunately all was not good on this night. The cocktails were uninspired. The Ruby Rose - fresh squeezed ruby grapefruit and vodka in a sugared martini glass, $8 - was watery and tasteless and the Loretto County Orange - Maker's Mark and Frangelico with fresh orange juice, $8 was overpowering. For an appetizer, I chickened out on the fried livers and went with the Split Pea soup, $7, while the hint of lime made it refreshing it was a little unwelcome twist on a classic. The Maryland style crab cakes, $9 were nice and loaded with crab. Then there was an hour wait for the entree. To her credit the hostess did come by to tell us the kitchen was going through some growing pains. The Monk fish with lentils, $18 was excellently prepared and well presented. I had asked that the Hanger Steak, $24, be cooked to medium, although the waitress recommended medium rare. She won out and brought it undercooked.

The wine list was pleasant with good descriptions and fairly reasonably priced, with a couple of good values in the mix. Unfortunately, the long wait and indifferent service will not afford Fife a return visit.

Hours of Operation:
Tuesday-Thursday - 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Friday-Saturday - 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM

4440 NE Freemont St.
Portland, OR 97213
Phone: 971.222.3433
info@fiferestaurant.com

Giraffe by J. M. Ledgard

It should make sense that a book entitled Giraffe's opening chapter is narrated from the perspective of a giraffe, but it doesn't, as it immediately takes the book off course into a bizarre dream like trance. This book, could have been a brilliant short story in the New Yorker or a novella at best. Based on a true story of the largest group of giraffes in captivity, the novel tracks the giraffes from their capture in Africa to their ensconcement in a Czechoslovakian zoo in 1975 to their subsequent slaughter. The underlining story is hugely interesting and the layers of communist bureaucracy are also intriguing to parse through, but the strange long diversions each character takes are off putting.

J. M. Ledgard is a well know correspondent for the Economist, and it is disconcerting that a reporter should choose to tell this story this way. At the end of the day, this is a sad story well told, with an amazing climax, if you some how manage to skip the first half of every chapter.

Live. Run. - New Nike Running spot

Here is the latest TV spot we created for Nike Running. It will start airing in Latin America only on 12/11, so don't look for it on TV in the US or Canada. We shot the spot in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Interesting split screen devise. On the left we see a young man enjoying a fun night out, where he obviously overdoes it a little. On the right we see the same guy getting up to go for a run. As he runs, he is "undoing" the damage of the night out on the left.

The song is Good Morning Life, sung by Dean Martin.

Bridge of Sighs - Richard Russo

Russo's last book, the Pulitzer Prize winner, Empire Falls was one of my favorites. Russo is extremely adept at creating interesting characters that you become invested in. Much like Empire Falls, he again explores small town life in upstate New York. This time we are in Thomaston, N.Y., where the local tannery is slowly poisoning the residents as it dumps cancerous dyes into the local river.

Russo tells a story within a story as the main character Lou C. Lynch (unfortunately nicknamed Lucy due to the teachers mispronouncing his name the first day of elementary school) writes his life story while moving forward in the current narrative. A nice device that allows the story to move smoothly back in time and provides great insights into the unfolding real time story.

For the first 100 pages or so, you are buying into Russo's theory that small town life is idyllic and something to be honored. But slowly, he starts to expand the characters and their flaws appear in a very natural way that allows you to enjoy their complexities. You can no longer just glide through the book thinking Lou is a good guy living a happy life in the same small town he was born and raised in. You start to understand that all decisions and life experiences, no matter how small, have consequences.

While the ending takes a strange left turn, I don't think it hurts the overall story. Another great American story.

Fleetwood Mac - Rumours

Talk about bloated corporate 70's rock, there is no better example than Fleetwood Mac. The band is like the TV show Friends. Everyone dated or married everyone else in the band at least once. But somehow, between the coke binges, divorces and nasty break ups they managed to make some pretty great music.

Fleetwood Mac purists would probably choose one of their older, bluesier records, but this is one of the best selling records of all time and these are the songs that made them famous. If somehow, you held out and you don't own this record, now added to the lineup is the previously unreleased studio track "Silver Springs," recorded during the "Rumours" sessions but not included on the original album due to time constraints. Bonus.

Haloween at W+K

Halloween is a big deal here at W+K.

Everyone decorates their area and makes it all scary, then they bring in the kids and they walk around collecting candy and generally having a good time.

This year we added some snakes and other reptiles.

And you could also get your face painted.

Some people had to be escorted out because they were scaring the children.

I think kids and adults all had a good time.

The B-52's - The B-52's

The greatest dance record of all-time, bar none. If your party is boring and going nowhere all you need is a little B-52's and even the most boring person in the room will be getting down to Rock Lobster.

If you thought this record was a joke or silly, you need to listen again. The 2's had a lot of fun, but the music itself is amazingly well crafted. It is simple and subtle and like reggae or rock steady, it's what they don't play that makes the music so great.

Texas Longhorns Crank Dat Soulja Boy @ UCF

I think I found the problem with the 2007 Longhorn's. They are more interested in dancing than playing football. This is during the Central Florida game, a game we barely won in the last minutes by covering an onside kick.

Ramones - Ramones

The latest edition of Spin Magazine was dedicated to 30 years of punk. 1977 was the seminal year in the movement, with initial releases from the Sex Pistols, the Clash and other now infamous bands. This makes the Ramones the trend setters as they released this, their first record, in 1976.

I have to admit I was not listening to the Ramones in 1976, but I loved what followed. I sometimes have a hard time thinking of the Ramones or any of the American bands as truly punk. According to legend, Malcom McClaran came to the US, tried to manage the Ramones, failed, moved back to England and ripped off the look with the Sex Pistols. OK, so New York was a crappy place in 1976. There was a lot of crime, a garbage strike, a mass murderer on the loose. America's response - disco. Let's be honest, punk was a footnote. The original CBGB bands were Blondie, who totally gave over to disco, the Talking Heads, an art band, and the Ramones. I love the Ramones and this is one of the best records ever released, but... this is not the angry response you expect to hard times. In fact, the songs are pretty funny. And the guys look more like comic book character versions of punk rockers. London 1976, unemployment is through the roof, times are equally tough. The reaction? Anarchy in the UK, God Save the Queen (the fascist regime), and I'm so bored with the USA. The US bands never had the hard political edge and anger that their British counterparts (imitators?) had.

All that said, you need this record in your collection and you need to buy the DVD Rock and Roll High School. The Ramones get the last laugh, they always looked like they were having fun.

The view from my desk

The view from my desk is a lot better than some in the building. I get to look out east towards the river and sometimes you can see Mt. Hood. Today there was a special treat. Apart from the tress changing color, which is pretty cool, there was a vivid rainbow that broke through after a day of rain and black clouds.

I am not sure the camera on my phone does it justice, but you can see it going behind the building and probably ending with the pot of gold right under the Burnside Bridge.

The people who look out to the west have a terrible view, unless you are on the 6th floor, which has a great view back into the SW hills. Looking north is no longer the great view it used to be, they put up a huge building right next door. Same for the south view, unless you are on 6.

Blond Faith - Walter Mosley

Walter Mosley has been a favorite of mine for a long time. I was first drawn to him by a review of Devil in a Blue Dress in the LA Times in 1990. This was the first Easy Rawlins novel, set in LA, it traced the adventures of a young black man trying to make his way after his return from World War II. Mosley's writing has many of the classic detective novel traits, but what appealed to me was the setting: south central LA in the 50's; and he insight into life as a black person at the time. He paints a vivid picture of the life many blacks lived after migrating west from their southern homes post WWII to find work, and they hoped, to escape racism.

Easy is originally from the fifth ward in Houston. While the parallels to my migration from the Memorial area of Houston to 1990's Beverly Hills adjacent are minor at best, they at least allowed me familiarity with the street names.

With Blonde Faith, the 10th in the Easy Rawlins series, we are now in 1967 post Watt's Riot LA (one of Mosley's previous books in the series, Little Scarlet, takes place during the 1965 riots - a great read). There have been a lot of changes in Easy Rawlins life over the years and it helps to know the history of all the characters, as they are all back for Blonde Faith. Per usual, you get a murder mystery wrapped in a social commentary on the times. I can't say this novel stands out as one of the best in the series, but it is page turner and if you take the time to read the previous books in the novel, you will be sated and left hanging for the next installment.

Nirvana - Nevermind

Seems like it took a long time to get to this no-brainer.

The seminal band of the Pacific Northwest grunge movement will be forever linked in my mind with a very strange advertising moment. Right after they perform their first song on Saturday Night Live there was a commercial for a deodorant called Smells Like Teen Spirit. Who thought hits up? Let's pair the most anti-commercial band around with a deodorant, very strange.

Anyway a total digression. Nirvana's first major label release is epic. Almost every song on the record got some amount of airplay and will be well know even to the most casual rock fan. It is also the record that spawned hundreds of imitators and influenced the way we dressed, talked and thought about the world. It is truly one of those industry changing events. Music was boring, record sales were down. Along comes Nevermind and all of a sudden things are fun again. To me this is as important a moment as the birth of punk.

The Screen Door Cafe

The Screen Door Cafe is as close as you can get to great basic southern cooking in Portland. I have to give props to Thomas Harvey who took us all there for a group dinner, he is the king of good restaurant recos. Now back to the food. The appetizers are amazing and it is easy to fill up on them. In fact one of the best entree choices is a sampling of all the apps. I would recommend the fried green tomatoes, the low country shrimp and grits, and the Alabama pimento cheese to start. I guess I should also recommend you go with a large group of people so you can share all the food. As an entree the pulled pork sandwich, the shrimp po'boy and the fried chicken are all excellent choices. If you want to get really New Orleans, you can also order an Abita Turbo Dog beer.

On top of the great southern food they have an interesting organic menu that we did not get into and a really great breakfast offering on Saturday and Sunday. The service was also really good and the prices are very reasonable. And finally if the weather permits, they have a nice patio seating area available.

Screen Door Cafe
2337 E Burnside
Portland, OR 97214
Phone: (503) 542-0880


http://www.screendoorrestaurant.com/

Hours:
Tue-Sat 5:30pm-10pm, Sat-Sun 9am-2:30pm

Emmylou Harris - Wrecking Ball

Sometimes you come late to a party and find out even though you missed a lot of great stuff, you can still catch up and make a night of it. This is my story with Emmylou Harris. I first heard her interviewed on Morning Becomes Eclectic, possibly the best music radio show ever, on KCRW in 1995. She was just about to release her new record Wrecking Ball, which they played a few cuts from and I fell in love.

Her life story is classic. She has been married four times, has three kids with three guys, had to move back in with her parents after her first husband left her despite a hit record, recorded a record with Gram Parsons who died of a drug overdoes before it was released, and now she is a music legend.

I am not going to say this is Emmylou's best all time record, as she has recorded 22 since 1968, but it is the one that got me listening to her and I love every song on it. Emmylou is an old school singer, she does not write her own songs. In fact the title track on this record was written by Neil Young, and there are also songs by Jimi Hendrix and Gillian Welch. This is as good a place as any to start.

End Petlessness

This is my favorite new commercial (not just because I know the person who made it).

Restaurant of the Year : Pok Pok

Pok Pok was recently voted restaurant of the year by the Oregonian.

Pok Pok Restaurant

After a few months of driving by Pok Pok and saying, "we really need to go there" we finally stopped in with our friends Jeff and Etta last Saturday night. It is a strange place that started as a shack in the front yard and has grown into a very casual restaurant with great food and drinks. Their specialty is grilled lemongrass-marinated game hen and exotic shredded green papaya salad that is quite spicy. Jeff and Etta are vegetarians and the selections for them were pretty limited, but they were happy with their choices. The drinks were great too. I had a lemonade cocktail that went down very smoothly with the spicy food. And finally the prices are very reasonable.

Pok Pok Restaurant
3226 SE Division St.
Portland, OR 97202
Phone: (503) 232-1387

Hours:
Take-Out Shack: M-F 11:30a-10p, Sa 5p-10p
Whiskey Soda Lounge: M-F 11:30a-2:30p, M-Sa 5p-10p

Scritti Politti - Cupid & Psyche 85

I once saw an article by a very esteemed rock critic talking about his secret shame, Scritti Politti. I was not sure how to take this as almost every critic loves them and is not afraid to rate this record, Cupid & Psyche, five out of five stars. That said, this is pop music and that can make you squirm. But it's the best kind of pop music, danceable and upbeat with weird, dark, intelligent lyrics.

Green Gartside is Scritti Politti. Over the years he has brought in a series of producers and musicians to put his records together, although he usually plays most of the instruments on all his records. Unfortunately he doesn't like to tour and according to an interview in the New Yorker last year doesn't like to work very much at all. He has managed to make enough money to live simply and happily in Wales and come out with records when he feels like it.

Cupid & Psyche was the first Scritti Politti record I heard in 1985, but my understanding is that it is a collection of singles that had been previously released in the UK. It is easily the best pop record every made. So turn it up and dance around without feeling guilty.

Art Wall

Attached is a picture of the new "art wall" that we have arranged in the dining room. We wanted to feature the illustration of a jazz funeral that we got from Stevie and Amy for our birthday (thank you Dad for the framing). It is the centerpiece and we surrounded it with the great photography of the St. Louis Cathedral in New Orleans, where we got married, and the equally wonderful shots that Jeff Selis took of the dogs.

It looks great the way Barbara art directed it, but somehow we are going to have to add a picture of Finlay. In case you are wondering, we moved the "Ain't doing your dishes no more" piece downstairs. Barbara is not too happy about this yet.

Talk Talk - It's My Life

Not unlike The Blue Nile, this is a band that made precious few records. Talk Talk only released five studio recordings from 1981 to 1991, and only four had the original line up. Many critics say the band got better with age, but I still love their breakthrough record It's My Life.

This record goes from moody contemplation to dance hit without stress. I remember spending many a Saturday night in college dancing and singing along to this record (and a couple of pretty good music videos it spawned). This is a record that stands the test of time.

Too Close for Comfort

How good are the 2007 Longhorns? I do not think they are the number 6 or 7 team in the country. Based on the last three games I am thinking we'll be lucky to end up 9-4. I don't even want to think about what the final score of the OU game will be. In the words of Barry Switzer, they are going to hang half a hundred on us.

Colt McCoy does not seem like the player he was last year before the injury. He's already thrown more interceptions this year that he did in the first nine games last year. The offensive line seems shaky at best and seeing Charles carry the ball like a loaf of bread when the team is trying to ice a game is more evidence of how immature this team is.

My prediction, they will whip Rice next week, and go into OU with big heads that will lead to being down 30 at the half. Hope I am wrong.

Talking Heads 77

It's hard to say this is the Talking Heads best record, as they have released at least four that I think you should have in your collection. You should also own the DVD of their concert film Stop Making Sense, which is one of the best music DVDs ever (but that is another list).


The reason I have chosen 77 is because it is the first Taking Heads record I bought. It was pretty weird but Psycho Killer was getting a lot of play and I loved that song. In fact I recently saw a comedy troop perform an interpretive dance to this song which took it to a whole 'nother level.


A few months after I got hold of this record, Talking Heads were on Saturday Night Live and blew us all away with an amazing rendition of Take Me to the River. After that the deal was sealed, Byrne became my favorite eccentric. On a sad note, I realize I am writing this the same week as the death of CBGB's founder Hilly Krystal. Along with the Ramones and Blondie, Talking Heads were one biggest bands to come out of that 70' New York scene he fearlessly promoted.

Beck - Odelay

I loved Mellow Gold, and "Loser" is a great single, but even with such a big hit, I thought Beck was a weird young guy we'd probably never hear from again. Who knew he'd be one of the smartest artists to emerge in the last 20 years. He is a pioneer and he is not afraid to take chances. He's an avaunt guard Sinatra.

With Odelay, weird and interesting became genius. There are a lot of styles on this record and one of the greatest lines ever, "I got two turntables and a microphone." It is Beck's most consistent record to date and if you only have one of his records in your collection this is the one to have.

A Good Walk Spoiled by John Feinstein

I have heard a lot of people say golf is boring to watch on TV, so a book about golf should work better than Lunesta, right? Well not in this case. A Good Walk Spoiled is a great rebuttal to Mark Twain's often quoted quip about golf. It is a gripping and insightful look at a year on the PGA Tour. The only drawback is that the book is a little out of date. It was written in 1995 back when Nick Price, Paul Azinger, Greg Norman and Nick Faldo were the biggest names on the tour and $2 million was a big purse for a tournament.

As a history lesson it is amazing to see where the tour was only 12 years ago and how much Tiger has changed things. The book chronicles the passing of the torch to Tim Finchem as the new head to the PGA Tour. One of his first crisis's is John Daley saying there are a lot of drug abusers on the tour, and he should know. Here we are all this time later and they are still debating a drug testing policy.

The biggest change however is the amount of money that is flying around. It's almost funny to read about Greg Norman breaking the $1 million mark in earnings for one year, when the 100th ranked guy on tour makes more than that now. Back in 1995 only the top few golfers had private jets, now when a tour player flies commercial with his family on holiday, the kids want to know why other people are on their plane.

I wish Fienstein would right the 2008 version of this book, but I doubt he will get access to the players like he did back then.

Liz Phair - Liz Phair

Liz Phair's first record sure doesn't sound like a first record. I did a little investigation and it turns out this is technically not her first. She had several tapes doing the rounds for a while under the name Girlysound that the record company picked the best songs off and got her some high brow production help on. That said, the rawness of her sound and her lyrics are still there. And of course everyone loves her dirty mouth.

This record shows the full spectrum of her sound from rock goddess to folkie. While I think she has put out at least two other really good records and her best singles may be on other records, this is the definitive Liz record. This is the record that launched an ocean of imitators.

Welcome Finlay

We have a new addition to the family. Please welcome Finlay, which is Gaelic for white warrior. Quite ironic since he is a timid little guy. He came to us from a rescue shelter up in Washington. A breeder had abandoned him, but he has a happy home now.

We had a meet and greet with him yesterday and he and Brodie got along so well that we decided to he would be a great addition. They have been playing and running around together ever since. He is also very affectionate, he likes to be petted and sit on your lap. He is a small little guy, about 2/3 the size of Brodie, but he looks even smaller. We are not sure how old he is, but we are guessing between two and four.

He looks forward to meeting you all soon.

The Decemberists - The Crane Wife

For a band from Portland, I have to admit I was not as early an adopter as I should have been with the Decemberists. It wasn't until this, their fourth record, that I really got into them.

This is one of the few good news stories of a band doing their best work on their first major label release. Usually this is where the long time fans turn against them and the talk of a sell out begins. Not so with Crane Wife. It has gotten huge critical praise and has been by far their best selling record.

Everybody loves this record because it has something for everyone. It's a pop record that has a couple of tracks that could easily make it into high rotation on Top 40 radio. The lyrics are very high brow and intellectual, so critics and the NPR set get to look smart recommending it. Musically the record is complex yet easy to listen to. And lastly, it allows me to get something new into the top 100.

Mariners Game

We had a fun trip to Seattle this past weekend, that included our once a year trip to Safeco Park to see the Mariners. It was not planned but we saw the Seattle debut of Daisuke Matsuzaka the Boston Red Sox new star pitcher from Japan. Needless to say a lot of the PNW Asian community turned out to see him and Ichiro Suzuki the Mariner's star player go head to head.

We got to the game early, which was a good thing as it was a sell out and all the other ticket holders were thinking the same thing. Luckily we were able to get seats in the Bullpen Cafe, which is a great place to watch the players warm up and eat one of their pulled pork sandwiches. They also have awesome nachos, but that and a beer will set you back $20 a person.

Once the game was about to begin we moved to our great seats (thanks Tish), where Barbara got to sit next to the angriest man in Seattle. For a while it looked like Boston was going to easily close out the game, as they were leading 4-2 into the seventh inning stretch and the only offense Seattle could muster was two solo homers by Beltre. Barbara and Tish were getting restless, so we decided to take off at that point.

Once we got to the car Seattle had scored again and the game was now 4-3. Boston failed to score in the top of the ninth, so the Mariners had one last chance to tie or pull ahead. The Sox got two quick outs, but then they walked two and Beltre was at the plate again. The announcer said, "The crowd of 46,000 is on their feet, no one has left the park." Well against my protestes, we had left and were now missing all the drama. The Mariners were one hit away from leading the wild card race.

Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it) Beltre popped up and the game was over.

Blue Nile - Hats

If you ever need to set the mood, this is the record. In fact, this record is so good it may even make people who don't like you want to make out with you.

Blue Nile don't make many records, so you have to savor each and every one. This is the best of a small group. Although this record was released in 1989 in the UK, I first heard a single off it on the TV show Twin Peaks the next year. I was so mesmerized I paid full price for it the next day - this was back when I lived in LA and I did not have a full-time job yet, so any record I was able to buy should have come from the second hand shop.

The only thing that could make this record better is if there were more than seven songs.

The Yiddish Policemen's Union

Here is an interesting fact that you should know before you start reading this book. The novel begins, the same way that Philip Roth launched The Plot Against America, with a fascinating historical footnote: what if, as Franklin Roosevelt proposed on the eve of World War II, a temporary Jewish settlement had been established on the Alaska panhandle? Michael Chabon jumps right into the story and you quickly understand that Sitka, Alaska, the temporary homeland established for displaced World War II Jews is about to revert back to American control, but FDR is never mentioned and I had no idea this could have really happened. Of course it didn't and that's the major flaw in this story. It all seems so far fetched that the story doesn't really work.

The brilliance of the Pulitzer-winning The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay is that you felt the story was real. I remember having a couple of discussions with fans of the book who thought it was a biography.

The Yiddish Policeman's Union is a bizarre mash-up of a Philip Roth novel, with a crime noir plot in a Twilight Zone other world setting. There are long stretches when you can't put the book down, but the problem is in holding the entire story together, it's almost as if there are too many balls in the air. Meyer Landsman is an alcoholic cop. His partner is half native, half Jew. His boss is his ex-wife. He is investigating a murder that his superiors have basically told him to forget as they are about to turn the entire jurisdiction back to the Americans in a month anyway. But of course this murder is bigger than just one man, it engulfs the unexplained disappearance of Lansdown's sister, the future of the Jews and ultimately the return of the Messiah.

Frankly it's an interesting crime story for the New Yorker fiction section that has been extended into a novel with a lot of character exploration that doesn't really go anywhere.

Led Zeppelin IV

What is this record called? Four, IV, ZOSO, the "rune" album? Doesn't matter, still one of the best records ever made. These are the tightest eight songs Zeppelin ever put on a record. And who doesn't have fond memories of slow dancing to "Stairway to Heaven" in high school. This is the record that took Zeppelin from a big band to the biggest band of the 70's.

Ponder this: If you had the opportunity to turn back the clock to the early 1970's and join a rock band, who would you want to hang with? My choice is Zeppelin. I can't imagine a band that partied harder and had more fun being rock stars. The Stones were probably more famous and richer, but they never looked like they were having fun after Brian Jones died. Zeppelin also seemed like they cared about the music more. Forty-five minute drum solos seem indulgent now, but at the time they were mesmerizing.

Look up rock star in the dictionary and Led Zeppelin should be the only two words you see.