The Olympics, particularly the two most popular sports from each season—the gymnastics and figure skating—sells itself, accurately, as an embodiment of competition and tension, complete with a touch of voyeurism.…
If we're going to talk about America, we've got to talk about Mingus. It's really that simple. As readers of this blog know, while I don't go out of my…
All hope is not lost. At least enough people are still making --and listening to-- jazz that we can even attempt to initiate what hopefully becomes an ongoing occasion. In…
Two thoughts from T.S. Eliot: April is the cruelest month... Whatever. Good poets borrow; great poets steal. Now we're talking. And here is where it gets interesting: debate rages (well,…
Today would have been (and, still is) Charles Mingus's 90th birthday. I've written about him often and I'll continue to write about him, not only because he is one of…
Less than a month ago I elaborated on some of the ways music moves and inspires me. If you missed it (and it includes a couple of brief, necessary shout-outs…
It takes a village to raise a family; it takes a forest to write a book.
Question: What’s it all about? Answer: I don’t know. But I do know a few things. I know some of the things that make me tick. Even though I write…
Mardi gras makes me think of New Orleans and all the good things I associate with The Crescent City. Among many other things, New Orleans makes me think of snapping…
Anyone who has lost a parent (or worse, a child) can understand that when this happens it becomes an indelible line of demarcation: your life before and your life after.…
Sean Murphy