Welcome to the Bronx

I want to thank the Good Lord...

DiMaggio.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

Sox & Liquors

Chris & I at Heartland Brewery

The Texan arrived last night for a weekend visit. We had a great lunch at L'Express, went costume shopping and are now relaxing at the Heartland Brewery on Union Square. Welcome to New York...

JAZZ FEST EVE!

here it is... the most wonderful time of the year. it is officially Jazz Fest Eve. we fly down a week from today, but the Fest proper begins tomorrow. truly can't wait.

to help get in the mood, check out this video on the Jazz Fest web site. WOW...

Two of My Favorites

here are two of the best... continuing our Jazz Fest countdown... Johnny & Louis...

"we'll give it to 'em in black & white"
"music's my life. it's always been..."

Gano Blows Fire

as part of our continuing countdown to Jazz Fest -- as we are now inside 2 weeks of our departure and an official week away from the first day of Fest, 2 weeks from our first day of Fest -- here's one of my (many) favorite Jazz Fest memories.

here our good friend Gano (a direct descendant of the founder of New Orleans, Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne, Sieur de Bienville) blows fire late one night during Jazz Fest 2004. (you will note he stripped to the waist and stood by the pool as a safety precaution, with explicit instructions to shove him in should something go awry, as it had been years since he tried.)

COUNTDOWN TO JAZZ FEST!

The countdown to Jazz Fest has officially begun. Exactly 2 weeks from today we will be there, in that great city, and I truly can't wait. So, why not post a few items to get in the mood?

Here's a short interview with Troy "Trombone Shorty" Andrews who I have had the pleasure of seeing perform a number of times, in New Orleans and elsewhere (including a BLOWOUT evening with Stanton Moore in Austin, TX). Trombone Shorty is a young lion in New Orleans who grew up in the legendary Treme neighborhood, the oldest black neighborhood in America, famed for being the birthplace of historic horn players. The neighborhood (or "Faubourg") Treme also was the site of "Congo Square" which was the only place in the nation where slaves could congregate on Sundays, play their native music, keep their religions alive, and be "free" - if only for a day. The multiplicity of African, Caribbean, European and "other" rhythyms & musics gave rise to the only uniquely American contribution to world culture - "Jazz." As the clip shows, New Orleans exudes music & soul in a way not found anywhere else.

Jazz Fest can't come soon enough. Come join us! Laissez les bon temps roulez...

Colbert Does It Again

Colbert has done it again. Just when I thought my adoration for this comedic genius had hit an absolute height, he has further pushed the boundaries. Of course all of the awards foisted upon him, as well as his performance at last year's White House Correspondents Dinner, made me sit up & take notice. But then he started receiving all sorts of impressive, superfluous honors...

Now, it was nice to see a minor league hockey team name a mascot after him. And I was duly impressed when he had a Hungarian bridge named after him. Even more so when Ben & Jerry named an ice cream for him ("Stephen Colbert's Americone Dream - the sweet taste of liberty in your mouth") and he defended his flavor against Willie Nelson's in a debate, ending with them singing together.

But I was positively FLOORED when the Editor-in-Chief of Marvel Comics sent a letter describing how Captain America had left his indestructible shield to Colbert in his will as he wanted it to go to "the only man he believed had the red, white and blue balls to carry the mantle - Stephen Colbert." Watch this moving tribute below:

For a patriotic kid who grew up with Marvel Comics, this was the highest honor imaginable. Until yesterday...

Former supermodel Paulina Porizkova appeared on the show last night after earlier admitting on "the Today Show" that Colbert "is so hot." On the Colbert Report she not only reiterated that statement, but also very clearly illustrated that she has still got it. I believe there may also have been something about a new book.

For a patriotic kid who grew up with Marvel Comics, but then quickly discovered the joys of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, THIS is a pretty high honor indeed. (She appeared on the covers of both 1984 & 1985.)

I applaud you, Stephen Colbert. Well done...

Ho (the good kind)

With all of the media uproar over Imus' brand of "ho's" and the shocking tragedy at Va. Tech, the departure of a quiet entertainer from this earthly luau has gone largely unnoticed.

Don Ho, famous & nearly indistinguishable from his happy hit "Tiny Bubbles" passed away on April 14, 2007 of heart failure.

as my parents took a very young Guzilla to see Don Ho perform when we went to Hawaii (and might technically be considered my first concert - thereby starting the musical odyssey that has become "The Life Guzilla") I thought a farewell message was appropriate for the quiet crooner who couldn't escape his love for his native Hawaii and became an icon of that tropical paradise.

Don, may you have smooth sailing, glorious sunsets & tiny bubbles indeed...

E pili mau na pomaika`i ia `oe

A hui hou

Dr. John & Wynton Marsalis

Went to see Dr. John & Wynton Marsalis play last night at Jazz at Lincoln Center, courtesy of Evan Wade. A very good time, although Dr. John is better suited to a filthy dive bar at 4:30 am than a major, upscale concert venue. (I know from past experience.) JALC is a very high-end house of jazz, for right or wrong. Basically, Wynton's ivory tower here in NYC. Some great stuff comes out of it, particularly around education, but when someone with the amount of raw grit that Dr. John can muster comes through, it shows how scrubbed the place is. That being said, it's always great to see "The Night Tripper." Wynton debuted a piece he co-wrote with Maya Angelou about the history of African-American music that featured an incredible "young genius" tap dancer. A great splash of New Orleans music. Jazz Fest approaches...

The Ladies Guzilla!

Just got off the train in Hartford and went to our normal post-train dining spot, Hot Tomato's, for Momma's birthday!

The Swarthy

John, Jim & Chris. Having lunch at Duke's.

Jimmy & Johnny

John Bon in town from France. Had an EPIC dinner last night at Knickerbockers. Executive Chef Jason took care of us. Lobster bisque cappucino, tuna (steak for me) tartare, caviar nachos, shoestring onion rings, crab cakes, mashed potatoes, truffle oil bleue cheese fries... And Steak! Lots of delicious steak. Oh and 3 chocolate souffles & churros with a carmelized dipping sauce. Outrageous...

Popsie Dixon & Milo

Popsie Dixon, of legendary funk, soul, blues band The Holmes Brothers (who will be performing at Jazz Fest this year) joined Milo onstage at the Red Lion and brought the house down. A hugely unexpected, wildly entertaining gift from the music gods!

Me Jim Milo Z

Joel Forrester Live at Louis 649

Louis 649

At Louis 649 in Alphabet City, named after Louis Armstrong & listening to the music of the man himself, with live jazz starting soon. Zach & Hamsa tending bar. And, Zach made the kind offer to order us cases of Abita Restoration wholesale. 2 year anniversary of Hamsa's being found.