Tag Archives: art

Rainy fall day today!!

Go figure!

It is only November 4th — and finally really feeling like fall. (Cold, cloudy & rainy.)

And just FYI, I still have all of my summer flowers blooming on my kitchen porch. Usually, they are dead and gone by early October. But it probably won’t be much longer now.

(And, NO!!! I’m not going to post this legendary song again!! It would be too obvious!! Thank you for your attention to this matter.)

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This made my wee bonny heart soar this morning, gang.

Apparently, my novel Twilight of the Immortal (2011) was the subject of a recent podcast on Spotify and now book sales for it are cranking again on Amazon !!

Thank you so very much to everyone. I really appreciate it!!

And just a head’s up — there is a really talented young woman in England currently narrating/producing the audiobook version of it. I will be publishing it sometime in early 2027. She is doing a terrific job.

And just for your reading pleasure, here’s a section of the first review the book ever got on Amazon, back in 2011:

“As soon as I read this quote, attributed to Valentino: ‘Observe, Rosemary, how in Hollywood there is no difference between a knife and a smile,’ I knew for sure that I had found a gem! Twilight of the Immortal is both beautifully written and an engaging romp, an insider’s view (fictional though it may be) of life behind the scenes in the 1920’s movie industry, with Rudolph Valentino, Natacha Rambova, and Alla Nazimova, all figuring prominently in the story line. I enjoyed it immensely, from beginning to end.”

Yay!! (I worked on this novel for ten years, gang.)

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Okay.

Since I didn’t post yesterday, I have sort of a bunch of “here’s this’s” to catch up on, so let’s go!!

Here’s this!!

A blatant attempt to make me feel really old!! Yay!!

Nick Cave Official announced yesterday that the Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds EP Your Funeral… My Trial was released 40 years ago!!

Thank you very much!! (Yes, I can remember lying on my bed in my E.12th Street apartment in NYC and listening to this record as if it were only 40 years ago…)

You can listen to it HERE!

And you can also shop for special merch HERE!

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And here’s this!!

And if you’ve never read Keith’s autobiography, Life — it was fantastic. (2011 – 576 pages!)

Here’s Keith, signing & smoking when the glorious book first came out!

And also just smiling!

And here’s Keith again! Not exactly saying, “Fuck you, I’ll smoke if I want to!” But it’s almost as if he’s saying “Fuck you, I’ll smoke if I want to!!”

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And on the topic of the Rolling Stones…

Here’s a wonderful photo of Charlie Watts from long ago, with his wife, Shirley, and their daughter, Seraphina!!

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And here’s this!

A couple of photos of Warren Ellis. (The first one is from Copenhagen.)

And here’s Vicious Warren Elvis!!!

Okay, here’s this again….Lou Reed’s “Vicious” from his legendary album, Transformer (1972)!!

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Okay.

This is AI, but I really liked it.

Nick Cave and a beautiful dog:

This is not AI, and I really liked it!

Nick Cave and a beautiful cigarette:

And from Facebook!

Nick Cave:

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And I guess that is it for today!!

I gotta get moving here and head to town.

Have a wonder-filled Wednesday, wherever you are in the world, gang.

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Let’s close with this!!

I’ve posted it here before, but I really love this song and it came up in my driving-back-from-town playlist last night! It made me so happy. I sang along, really loud!!

Hong Kong’s fabulous Grace Chang singing her huge hit, “Wo Ai Qia Qia” (I love cha-cha) from 1957!! Sing along if you’re able!! And enjoy, gang!!

电影 曼波女郎 插曲
作词:易文
作曲:姚敏

我们欢欢喜喜一起上学校,
我们高高兴兴一起做体操。
鼓声砰砰蓬蓬响,就摇摇摆摆跳,
有谁不会我就来教。

怪模样,不要笑,不要笑,
伊啊恰恰,恰恰恰。
大家跳,别害臊,别害臊,
伊啊恰恰,恰恰恰。

你学伦巴,不时髦,
你学森巴,没情调。
只要你试一遭,就知道恰恰妙,
跳恰恰,多轻巧。

你有清清楚楚伶俐的头脑,
你有结结实实灵活的身腰,
请把拍子听得准,把步子记得牢,
你别害怕谁都能跳,

快狐步,太单调,太单调,
伊啊恰恰,恰恰恰。
圆舞步,太古老,太古老,
伊啊恰恰,恰恰恰。

你学伦巴,不时髦,
你学森巴,没情调。
还不如曼波好,还不如恰恰妙,
跳恰恰多轻巧。

恰恰恰,恰恰恰,恰恰恰,
伊啊恰恰,恰恰恰。
恰恰恰,恰恰恰,恰恰恰,
伊啊恰恰,恰恰恰。

不怕你身体摇,只怕你不肯跳,
跳恰恰多轻巧。

Much better this morning, thank you!

For some reason, I slept really great last night, gang, and woke at 5:15AM, absolutely not tired at all!! (See yesterday’s post, wherein I woke up unbelievably tired.)

Anyway. Yay!!

So here’s hoping I will FINALLY get that Foreword written for the M. Christian tribute anthology so that I can finally turn the manuscript in to the publisher.

(It’s actually not overdue. At all. It isn’t due for another week. But I just want it completed and turned in. I need to feel that feeling that it is done. It’s been an emotionally rocky journey for me — editing that anthology.)

But I intend to have at least the first draft of the Foreword done by this afternoon. Then tomorrow, I can do a final draft if needed, then one last edit on the whole manuscript. And then this will be me, sometime tomorrow!!

Me! Sometime tomorrow!! In case you couldn’t read what I just said…

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Okay!!

Guess what fucking day it is, gang??

That’s fucking CORRECT!!

Legendary Rolling Stones’ (former) bass player, Bill Wyman, turns 90 today!!

Happy 90th birthday, Bill Wyman!!

And here’s this! From his album, Drive My Car, 2024 — the song, “Drive My Car”!! I love this song and have played it absolutely countless times over the past couple years while driving my own car!! (And going, well, extremely fast…)

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And it is also THIS today–

Happy Heavenly Birthday, Rowland S. Howard. Born on this day in Melbourne, Australia, in 1959. He would have been 67 today.

And let’s listen to this fantastic song, for the 7 trillionth time!! Written by Rowland S. Howard when he was a wee bonny teenaged lad in Melbourne!! One of my very favorite songs. “Shivers.” Here’s Nick Cave, Rowland, & the Boys Next Door. 1979.

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My dear and long-time friend in NYC, writer/poet Iris N. Schwartz has a new book of flash fiction out from Poets Wear Prada Press!!

“Here are thirteen stories, often simultaneously painfully poignant and devilishly humorous, whether grounded in the familiar, or dreamlike and other-worldly, that tell of the human condition, our all-too-frequent bouts of loneliness and dislocation, and our attempts at survival and resilience… Taking up where she left off with Shame, Iris has lined up her third installment of mostly flash and micro fiction treats, sweet-and-sour morsels, for us to read and re-read, and relish.”

Buy it HERE on Amazon!! ($12.00)

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And here’s this — only because I’d never seen this photo before and thought it was beautiful!

Lou Reed!!

Just beautiful

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Okay!

Here’s the info if you want to watch the livestream of the B-52s getting their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame!!

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I loved this photo!

From Phyllis Stein!

Iggy and David Johansen , NYC, in 2004!! Photo by the legendary photographer Bob Gruen who also just celebrated a birthday!!

(And as an aside, I also got to meet Bob Gruen once, in NYC. I was coming out of a music conference with my dear friend, the late great music executive, Holly Lane, who was good friends with Bob Gruen. What a thrill to meet him! He was so nice.)

FYI , in case you didn’t know — “…By the mid 1970s, Bob Gruen was already regarded as one of the foremost photographers in music working with major artists such as John Lennon, Tina Turner, the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Elton John, and Kiss. He also covered emerging new wave and punk rock bands, including the New York Dolls, the Clash, Sex Pistols, Ramones, and Blondie….”

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Okay!!

Speaking of legendary rock music photographers!!

I loved this!! From photographer Allen Tannenbaum‘s Instagram page (soho blues). A look behind the scenes, as it were, of one of my all-time favorite photos of Tom Petty!!

And here is my above-mentioned favorite photo of Tom, by Allen (1977), after Tom’s cigarette was so kindly lit!!

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And this is also from Allen Tannenbaum’s page. And it sent a real chill through me when I saw it, gang.

He took this photo of John & Yoko, just a couple of weeks before John was murdered (on Dec. 8, 1980).

I remember this photo really well. But, yesterday, when I saw the date this photo was taken on — Nov. 21, 1980 — I realized that I had only lived in NYC for 6 days by then. It had felt like a fucking eternity. NYC was just so much endless culture shock for me back then. And then to have my hero murdered only a few weeks after moving there…

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Okay!

Big news!!!

Warren Ellis finally has his outfit all sorted out for the upcoming Dirty Three European Tour, as well as his solo performance at that Armani museum place-thingie in Milan on Monday!! (You can find tickets to the Dirty Three shows HERE, but a lot of the shows are nearly sold out, so you have to hurry.)

Personally, I think it’s wise to go with the jacket and the hat because it’s almost, like, winter, right? And it can sometimes be really fucking COLD in Europe in fucking winter… And they say that all your body heat escapes through the top of your head…

And here’s this while we’re at it!! Dirty Three’s, “Indian Love Song”, from 1995!! That song that you can basically sing while sitting around a camp fire and strumming your violin guitar! (10 mins):

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And from Facebook!!

Legends!!!

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds!!

Also legends!!

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds!!

And legends-in-the-making!!!

Nick Cave & the Boys Next Door!! 1978!!

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And speaking of Nick Cave–

He sent out a really wonderful Red Hand File yesterday, about his experiences with (and without) Transcendental Meditation. He says, in part:

“…the effect was evident almost instantly. Within a couple of attempts, much of my general pissed-offness, low-level depression, waves of dread, and run-of-the-mill rage at the world, retreated. I felt more alive, more creative, and way happier. So for the next seven or eight years I practised TM, happily meditating twice a day….”

You can read it in full HERE.

SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI AND BROTHER LEO MEDITATING BY EL GRECO, 1600 – 1614

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And that is it for this happy Saturday in the Hinterlands.

The laundry is almost done. The sun is shining! The autumn leaves look positively splendid outside all my many windows! And the many, many cats are all taking splendid NAPS!!

Enjoy your Saturday, wherever you are in the world, gang.

Here’s hoping that the next time you hear from me, I can tell you that the Foreword for the M. Christian tribute anthology is completed!!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Let’s close with this!!

To continue with a theme here this morning…

From my breakfast-listening music today!!

I’ve posted this song here before, but here it is again!!

One of my absolute favorite Nick Cave songs!

“Brompton Oratory” from the incredible album The Boatman’s Call. Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, 1997. Enjoy, gang.

“Brompton Oratory”

Up those stone steps I climb
Hail this joyful day’s return
Into its great shadowed vault I go
Hail the Pentecostal morn

The reading is from Luke 24
Where Christ returns to his loved ones
I look at the stone apostles
Think that it’s alright for some

And I wish that I was made of stone
So that I would not have to see
A beauty impossible to define
A beauty impossible to believe

A beauty impossible to endure
The blood imparted in little sips
The smell of you still on my hands
As I bring the cup up to my lips

No God up in the sky
No devil beneath the sea
Could do the job that you did
Of bringing me to my knees

Outside I sit on the stone steps
With nothing much to do
Forlorn and exhausted, baby
By the absence of you

c -1997 Nick Cave

Another late start here in the Hinterlands!

Okay, yes, I did take my cup of coffee back to bed for a little while this morning —

But mostly I’m getting a late start here on the blog today because I had some emails to take care of first thing. A couple more writers are contributing to the M. Christian tribute anthology and I am really excited about that!! Yay!

I’m still going to focus on editing that one longer short story today, as planned. And really, that should take most of the day. And then these 2 new contributions — I should still be done editing the anthology by the weekend!

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Okay!

THIS arrived yesterday and I am so excited– the latest book we need to read for James Tabor’s Private Research Group:

A Man Attested by God: The Human Jesus of the Synoptic Gospels by JR Daniel Kirk

And the really good news is that it is only 632 pages long!!! Yay!!!

But, honestly, I am very eager to read it. I started it last night.

And, YES! I will be reading it alongside a book that arrived on Tuesday that I am also excited about —

Resident Punk: How I Smoked, Drank, and Stumbled My Way Through the ’70s Punk Scene (and Beyond) by Legs McNeil !!

Just keepin’ it real all the way around, here in the Hinterlands!!

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Okay.

On October 21st, from 10pm – 11pm, the Internet Archive is having a FREE virtual event:

Democracy’s Library: Tools for Participation

“Democracy invites participation; democracies require it. At the Internet Archive, we believe libraries can help make that participation possible by preserving knowledge and providing the tools to explore and build upon it.

This year’s annual celebration, “Democracy’s Library: Tools for Participation,” will showcase the many ways people can participate through the Internet Archive: from saving and contributing materials to exploring government records, researching history, and building new tools with our collections and APIs.”

SIGN UP HERE to attend — FREE!

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Also, on October 21st — and this one sort of stuns me, gang — Bill Wyman, the Rolling Stones’ original and legendary bass player who also owns a camera– turns 90!!

To honor that, in London–

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And on the topic of the Rolling Stones —

Keith! Smoking in a spotlight while sitting on a stool!! Yay!!

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And not at all related–

From Phyllis Stein!

Iggy in Miami!!

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And here’s The Clash!!

Apparently celebrating champagne!!

And here’s Patti Smith, apparently doing the same thing!!

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Personally, I don’t drink champagne too often (anymore!!), but when I do, this is my favorite!! (Just in case, you know, you were planning to visit the Hinterlands anytime soon and wanted to celebrate!!)

(Bring these, too and it’ll be just like yesteryear!! Yay!!)

And, well, okay — here’s THIS again, while we’re celebrating!!

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All righty!

Too much celebrating of a different kind was perhaps the culprit behind this event, but I’m not 100% certain–

Warren Ellis had a Hoovering incident!! (That’s “vacuuming” in American English, btw) (Please note, he is still wearing the Sid Vicious t-shirt here, and that’s part of his beard, I think!):

And here, Warren Ellis is looking quite stylish in “Warren’s House” in 2022!!

And that goes along with this (see above)! “Rock & Roll” by Lou Reed & The Velvet Underground!! (From Loaded, 1970)

And in case you were curious — YES! That song is actually the story of my life!!

“Rock And Roll”

Jenny said when she was just five years old
You know there’s nothing happening at all
Every time she puts on the radio
There was nothing goin’ down at all
Then one fine mornin’ she puts on a New York station
She couldn’t believe what she heard at all
She started dancin’ to that fine fine music
You know her life was saved by Rock ‘n’ Roll

Despite all the amputations
You could just dance to a rock ‘n’ roll station

Jenny said when she was just five years old
My parents are gonna be the death of us all
Two TV sets and two Cadillac cars–
Ain’t gonna help us at all

Then one fine mornin’ she puts on a New York station
She don’t believe what she heard at all
She started dancin’ to that fine fine music
You know her life was saved by Rock ‘n’ Roll

Despite all the computations
You could just dance to a rock ‘n’ roll station
And it was alright.

c – 1970 Lou Reed

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Let’s jump around a little–

Nick Cave, Rowland S. Howard, and someone else (maybe Mick Harvey?) in 1982!!

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And Nick Cave & Warren Ellis both announce—

“The Death of Bunny Munro” – Vinyl Pre-order (in pink!!)

“A special edition ‘Baby Pink’ vinyl of ‘The Death of Bunny Munro’ original series soundtrack by Nick Cave & Warren Ellis is available to pre-order now HERE.”

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And I guess that is it for today!!

In all honesty, yes, I will be vacuuming today!! But I will try not to sustain any “hoovering incidents” of my own.

Then I also have to do yoga, wash hair, etc.

But the rest of the day will be spent editing the longer short story, mentioned above, here at my desk.

And so I will get started.

Enjoy your Thursday, wherever you are in the world, gang!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Yes, the morning-listening-music around here is still Bruce Springsteen–

But I’ve moved on to his Greatest Hits!

HOWEVER!

This song is also from The River, 1980.

And I remember so perfectly, gang, shopping in a clothing store that was downstairs in the Empire State Building, while on my lunch hour, and hearing this song come on the radio there.

It had only been a handful of weeks since I’d been listening to that same song on my record player in my side-by-side rental house back in Ohio…

I rented the side nearest to the camera. My bedroom was in the 2 windows at the top

…and now I was living in NYC and working in the legendary Empire State Building!!

My life changed, literally, overnight back then. So many fucking incredible memories, gang. Most of them unbelievably stressful…. but I wouldn’t trade them for anything.

Okay!

“Hungry Heart” by Bruce Springsteen, from The River. 1980! Enjoy, gang.

“Hungry Heart”

Got a wife and kids in Baltimore, Jack
I went out for a ride and I never went back
Like a river that don’t know where it’s flowing
I took a wrong turn and I just kept going

Everybody’s got a hungry heart
Everybody’s got a hungry heart
Lay down your money and you play your part
Everybody’s got a hungry heart

I met her in a Kingstown bar
We fell in love I knew it had to end
We took what we had and we ripped it apart
Now here I am down in Kingstown again

Everybody’s got a hungry heart
Everybody’s got a hungry heart
Lay down your money and you play your part
Everybody’s got a hungry heart

Everybody needs a place to rest
Everybody wants to have a home
Don’t make no difference what nobody says
Ain’t nobody like to be alone

Everybody’s got a hungry heart
Everybody’s got a hungry heart
Lay down your money and you play your part
Everybody’s got a hungry heart

c -1980 Bruce Springsteen

Late start on this rainy Sunday morning in the Hinterlands!

Even though I slept great last night, for some reason I felt like going back to bed after breakfast today.

Took the cup of coffee upstairs, hung out in bed with about 4 or 5 (?) cats. Slept a little more. Finally got back out of bed but I feel sort of at loose ends right now.

I know I should probably force myself to take a day off and just relax, but I am getting really close to finishing the editing on the M. Christian tribute anthology.

If I can get 2 short pieces edited today, that leaves me with only one long story to do sometime this coming week — and, in essence, the book will be done.

Anyway. We shall see if I can force myself to relax today or not!!

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Okay!

Before I forget.

Starting tomorrow the Kindle edition of my short story collection “A Man in her Arms & Other Stories” will be free to download for the week.

I don’t think you have to belong to Kindle Unlimited to get it for free. (Not all the stories are explicit erotica, but it is still Absolutely for Adults Only, thank you!)

Table of Contents:

  • A Man in her Arms                                                                           
  • A Path to the Woods (A Ghost Story)    
  • Score  
  • Code 
  • Alter/Soldier  
  • To My Beloved I Am a Stranger 
  • Common Place 
  • Wanted 
  • Legacy of Boy 
  • Half- Moon Bride 

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And here’s a curious — although really nice! — thing.

Amazon claims there is “only one print copy of The Curse of our Profound Disorder left in stock (more on the way)”!

I guess this means people are actually buying the book. I think the eBook is selling even a little better. But absolutely no one besides Ron Bass in NYC has reviewed it… so who knows, gang.

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Also, yesterday, while searching through some really old files for a specific story by Michael Hemmingson, I discovered the manuscripts for my erotic romance novel, When Hearts Collide (this was distributed exclusively by Barnes & Noble stores, in 2003, and it sold, overall, 10,000 copies).

And another erotic short story collection, Ribbon of Darkness & Other Stories, that I printed privately on LULU — it has never been for sale. I gave it to a handful of people as a gift. This was back in 2009.

Even though the short story collection has stories that appear in various other anthologies of mine, I’m thinking of re-publishing both these books as specially-priced eBooks on Amazon.

I was thinking of doing this because, you know, I’ve got nothing else to do right now…

Me, thinking clearly! As always!

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Okay.

I’ve got a lot of “here’s this’s” for today, so let’s get crackin’!!

Here’s this!!

From Phyllis Stein!

Richard Hell!!

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And how about this??!!

Photo by Anton Corbijn.

Blixa Bargeld! A long time ago!

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From Jim Lauderdale–

He’ll be playing at the Gram Parsons Derry Down listening room, in Winter Haven, Florida, on November 7th, in honor of what would have been Gram Parsons’ 80th birthday (tickets are $30 — you can buy them HERE):

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And here’s a few of Keith –SMOKING!!

In the morning in France, around 1971?? (From Facebook!)

With Mick, in London, 1969!!

With Ronnie, somewhere!! In 1975!!

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And here’s this!

Something is upcoming for Bad Seed George Vjestica!! Watch this space!!

And here’s a great photo of Nick Cave & the Birthday Party — from their first tour of the US.

Here, they’re in NYC, 1981–and Rowland S. Howard is SMOKING!!

And speaking of smoking!!

Nick Cave, onstage, perhaps taking a break?? I’m not sure!! But he’s reading and smoking in France, in 1990!! (Photo by Jean-Louis V)

And smoking — and singing!! — onstage in Germany, 1990!

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And I believe that is it for now.

And any moment, I will decide if I’m going to work on the editing today, or relax. We shall soon find out.

Either way, enjoy your Sunday, wherever you are in the world, gang!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Let’s close with this!

Dwight Yoakam & KD Lang, live, in 1989, singing “Sin City” by Gram Parsons & Chris Hillman.

KD and Dwight first did this duet on Dwight’s album, Just Lookin’ For A Hit, in 1988.

Enjoy, gang.

Good Lord, Gang!

Finally!

I think the torture is getting ready to stop around here.

At least, for a little while.

These past couple weeks were just too intense.

But some of the good news is–

I heard from Rasha’s mom yesterday (Rasha is the cat that I’ve been cat sitting for 10 months already). She has finally found an affordable apartment for herself and her baby boy, so she will be able to take Rasha back in October.

I love Rasha, she’s a very sweet (and smart!) cat, but I already have way too many cats, so this will be a real relief.

Now we’ll have enough tennis raquets for everybody!

Also!

I received the official invitation to give a presentation at the Greater Lehigh Valley Writer’s Group conference in March!! (In eastern Pennsylvania — my old stomping ground!)

I’ll be giving 2 one-hour talks over that weekend. One about networking with professionals, and one about adapting your work to markets. And I’ll also be on a panel.

(From the schedule they sent, it appears they also want me to have cookies and chat with other writers!! Some people just want everything!!)

Anyway! I’m really looking forward to it. But something tells me that March will be here in about 14 seconds...

And in other good news–

Things seem to be proceeding scam-free with the other two narrator/producers I’m working with on the audiobooks. Those projects aren’t due until early 2027, so things should be calmer now with all that.

And — FINALLY!! Amazon’s algorithm kicked in and they posted that really great review I got from the NYC poet, Ron Bass, for The Curse of Our Profound Disorder.

And I only had to jump through fucking hoops last night to make that happen, gang, by posting the review everywhere online that I could think of where I was allowed to post it! Then, voila! By 2AM this morning, it’s suddenly on Amazon! (A review that was submitted on September 16th…)

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All righty.

Yesterday was the anniversary of Gram Parson’s passing. (If you don’t know the story of his death, it is basically legendary.) (And, also, if you didn’t know, Gram was Keith Richards’ closest friend back then.)

And here’s Emmylou Harris’s stunning song about Gram’s death. She had been his backup singer at the time. “Boulder to Birmingham” (1978):

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And the day before that–

On September 18th, it was the anniversary of Jimi Hendrix’s death. He died in 1970.

His death was legendary, too, but in a not very good way at all. (Don’t get my “conspiracy theorist” brain started…)

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Okay.

Johnny Depp was indeed in Shanghai yesterday, talking about his art to a group of eager phones!!

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And here’s this!

Strummer on Springsteen!

And here’s this, while we’re at it! From 1978, Springsteen’s “Darkness on the Edge of Town”!

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Here’s this!!

The latest selfie from Warren Ellis!! ……..

Hmmm.

There seems to be a sudden dearth of selfie’s by Warren Ellis!! Maybe he’s off rehearsing with The Dirty Three, who go on their European Tour beginning in October! (Check the schedule and buy tickets HERE)

Meanwhile, we can re-visit one of his classic selfie’s!!

Warren celebrating jet lag!! (I think this was after the tour of Australia.)

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Okay!

And today I’ve got a bunch of Nick Cave photos!!

I think I might have posted this one before, but I love it!

And here’s this!

Nick Cave in wings!!

Nick Cave in a green shirt!! With a pen!! And a pair of glasses!!

Nick Cave in SPEX magazine!! 1990!!

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And that is it!!

It’s Sunday today, so I gotta head to town here soon and do all the grocery shopping. (Food for me, food for cats! It never stops!)

Then I have a ton of laundry to get to today, too.

And if my brain begins to feel anywhere near normal later, I’ll try to focus on my own writing again.

Meanwhile…

Enjoy your Sunday, wherever you are in the world, gang!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Let’s close with this!!

In honor of the late great Jimi Hendrix.

From 1967, his legendary classic, “Foxey Lady”. From the equally legendary album, Are You Experienced. Enjoy, gang.

It’s Friday! It’s better!

I say that as if “Friday” means anything to me at this point, now that I have every day off, basically.

But still.

Yay!

And I had a long talk with Wayne yesterday afternoon, about how terrorized I was feeling — about that AI-generated “review” with my name in the byline, suddenly attaching me, after over 25 years, to a photographer who turns out to have been a snuff-filmmaking serial killer…

WTF??!! — in a great big WTF way!! Why did they fucking choose me?? (Not that I liked the guy, but still…)

Anyway.

Wayne ultimately encouraged me to let it go and keep moving forward, and to concentrate on writing the memoir now. He even said, “Send me the pages as they get written. You know I always love reading your stuff.”

That meant the world to me, gang. Not only that he said that, but it also gives me a sort of goal. A reason to write. Because Wayne’s going to be reading it…

Sort of like in the old days, when I would come in from the other room and thrust new pages at him, saying:

ME (thrusting new pages at him): “Here, read this!”

HE (glancing up from his coffee cup): “Ah, yes! Please allow me to drop everything and read this!”

“Hey! It’s pretty good!”

So, anyway. I feel a lot better today! And now, onward to that memoir…

“And so then we got arrested for stealing the car, but we explained to the Sheriff that we were only borrowing it…”

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And speaking of my memoir about my life in the 1970s… Here’s this!!

Lou Reed in 1974!! (Photo by Mick Rock)

And while we’re at it!! From Lou Reed in 1974 — I love this fucking song!! “Sally Can’t Dance”!!

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And here’s a bundle of Keith stuff!

Keith, thinking about drinking, and looking, I don’t know — sort of shiny in 1981!

Keith smoking! And looking sort of, I don’t know — thuggy in 1981! (On St. Mark’s Place with Mick)

And just being Keith! Smoking, attitude, guitar, etc.!!

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Yesterday, a posthumous Sid Vicious wished guitarist Steve Jones a happy birthday!! (Steve is in the bath)

And directly after I saw that photo on Instagram, I saw this!!

Warren Ellis, doing it HIS WAY! (Although I’m not sure exactly what he’s doing “his way” — driving, wearing a seat belt, wearing really huge sunglasses. driving on the wrong side of the road?? You decide!!)

And of course we can’t forget THIS!!! (And if you’ve never seen this before, gang, you gotta watch it. It’s legendary.) Sid Vicious, “My Way”.

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And here’s Nick Cave!! Smoking!!

And Nick Cave more recently, sort of easily confused by the presence of little dogs?? Not sure!

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All right, gang. On that happy note…

I’m gonna refill my cup o’ joe, and get back to the memoir!

It’s a gorgeous day — a little hot, so the AC is cranking. But it’ll be a nice day to sit at my desk and relive the insanity that was the 1970s!!

Have a terrific Friday, wherever you are in the world, gang.

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Let’s close with this!

From some of the insanity that was the 1970s!

David Bowie, “The Jean Genie”, 1972.( Although I didn’t have his album, Aladdin Sane, until 1973… ) Okay. Enjoy, gang!!

I guess you can tell it’s one of those mornings…

I’m not sure what’s going on because I actually slept great and woke up feeling really great– until I’d been out of bed for awhile. Then, suddenly, this weird energy started creeping in and, so far, I can’t really shake it.

I am trying to ignore it, though.

So, let’s get started!

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Sorry I couldn’t really post here yesterday, but I did get a lot done.

Updated Sandra’s bio/resume. Waiting on her to tweak it and send it back to me.

I’m halfway through editing the local writer’s book. However, it is such an intense topic that it takes a lot out of me. My deadline to complete it is Monday and it will likely take me right up through Monday to finish the edits.

Okay.

Here are some things that happened since I last saw you!!

The Go Fund Me drive for guitarist Richard Lloyd surpassed it’s updated goal (!!) and they have reset the goal now for $100K!! They have already raised $84,400 in just a handful of days.

If you would like to help Richard Lloyd fight cancer, please donate HERE!

And here’s this, while we’re at it!

From Phyllis Stein. Richard Lloyd, back when he was in the band Television. (And that’s Richard Hell, holding the TV set!)

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And also while we’re at it!

Also from Phyllis Stein!!

Somebody had a birthday yesterday!!

Happy belated birthday Elvis Costello!!!

And here’s this! While we’re at it… 1977! “The Angels Wanna Wear My Red Shoes”!!

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And while we’re on the topic of birthdays…

Happy Heavenly Birthday, Mom. RIP.

1965

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Okay.

If you write for streamers or films, this was very interesting.

A blog post on Stage 32 early this morning– among some of the very interesting things she talks about, she clarifies that movie theater attendance has not gone back to pre-COVID numbers.

Foot traffic is still down 27% since 2019, it’s just that the ticket prices are higher now.

Overall, a very informative read. And very helpful if you’re trying to sell to streamers right now.

The Industry Pulse: The Industry Is Reorganizing, Not Contracting – by Laura Hammer

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Here’s this!

Another beautiful photo of George Harrison!!

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OH! This made me so happy!

The other day on Instagram, a young Iranian man I follow, re-posted my post about The Guitar Hero Goes Home being on sale this week:

When I thanked him for doing that, he said: “You’re welcome. I loved that book!”

Wow, gang. You know? You just never know anymore who’s reading your stuff… I sort of feel like my books are in this weird floating void. It made me so happy to read his comment.

The Kindle eBook is 99 cents in Kindle Unlimited until Sunday:

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A couple of photos from the Kafka Museum in Prague!

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It took FOREVER, but I finally found a photo of Keith where he is in NO WAY intoxicated!!

Keith and Anita, smoking, Mod, and in no way intoxicated!

just absolutely normal…

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And speaking of Keith….

A cool photo of Bobby Keys and Jim Price in Keith’s basement at Villa Nellcote in the South of France, recording the horns for Exile on Main St, 1971!

And meanwhile — I know I’ve posted this trailer here before, but this was a really good documentary about the making of the now legendary Rolling Stones’ double-album, Exile on Main St. What an incredible thing the Stones achieved back then, when everything was pretty much working against them:

Stones in Exile (trailer) (2 mins):

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Here’s a lovely photo of Rowland S. Howard, smoking!

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And here’s a lovely photo of Nick Cave that lit up my heart!!

And speaking of Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds playing Bonn, Germany yesterday…

Here’s Warren Ellis, surfin’ around town before the show!

At the No. 4711 Fragrance store — I love that cologne!!

And that couple I began following on Instagram when they were at the Brighton show back in late July, were also at the Bonn show last night!

And here’s this, while we’re at it! The Bad Seeds in the US last year, singing :”Cinnamon Horses”!

And here’s Ruby with the set list last night!!

And here’s Nick Cave!!

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds’ summer tour of Europe & the UK ends on Friday, in Paris!! Buy tickets here!!

And that reminds me, gang — I was incorrect! The kids around here went back to school YESTERDAY. Can you believe it? The summer is gone….

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And that is it for today. And just in time–

Sandra just texted that her tweaks to her new bio are in my inbox!!

So I’m gonna get started around here, gang.

I hope you have a wonder-filled Wednesday, wherever you are in the world!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

*********

Let’s close with this.

I watched this during breakfast.

You know, back then, the Rolling Stones were always up against so fucking much. It’s amazing they survived it all. It really is.

The Rolling Stones Recording of Sticky Fingers (31 mins):

How can it possibly be Friday again?!?!

Wow, that was a fast week.

And I got a TON of stuff done.

Yesterday was interesting. I did the book editing, and then stopped to attend that Indie Authors livestream — updates on promotion, platforms, eBooks, audiobooks.

I found it so joyless and felt so overloaded, that I was off of there in 20 minutes.

Things have just changed so much in the last few years, gang. Self-publishing used to be easy, quick, even fun. It’s none of those things anymore, so I have decided to just keep going my own way regarding publishing and not make myself completely INSANE over all this stuff!

Me, not insane

And speaking of all that stuff–

Beginning this Sunday (8/23) and running until the following Sunday (8/30), the eBook edition of my experimental adult novel, The Guitar Hero Goes Home, will be on sale for 99 cents in Kindle Unlimited on Amazon.

“An American rock & roll legend, in the final year of his life, finally comes clean about sex, drugs, and rock & roll. Experimental Adult Fiction by Marilyn Jaye Lewis ‘As arousing as it is heartfelt, I can give no greater praise for Marilyn Jaye Lewis’s The Guitar Hero Goes Home than to say this is a book written by a wonderful writer at the height of her powers. Highly Recommended!’ — M. Christian, author of The Bachelor Machine“

This book is not erotica, but it has adult themes and is recommended for mature readers only. Thank you!!

And you can always read a free excerpt here on my blog.

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I did make good progress with editing the local writer’s book yesterday, but I think that trying to edit 30 pages a day is too much. I still need to getup from the desk and get outside and take walks! So now I’m aiming for 25 pages a day.

I don’t want to betray the writer’s privacy by saying anything here on the blog — I’ll certainly let you know where you can buy the book once it’s published — but for now I can only say that it is an INTENSE book. A memoir. It kind of takes a lot out of me, just editing it.

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If you are in the film industry in any way, you need to sign up for this great newsletter — if you haven’t already. It cuts to the chase, isn’t loaded with stuff you don’t care about, gives you updates on stuff you do care about, and it’s a quick read.

The Dailies (you can sign up at that link)

“5-minute newsletter that keeps film/tv professionals in the loop, every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.“

And most importantly — it doesn’t have a fucking phone APP that pings at you every 2 seconds…

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Okay!!

Here’s this!!

Something I could literally just look at all day and call it a complete life!!

Keith! Drinking coffee and smoking somewhere!!

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And here’s Jack Kerouac on the floor in NYC in 1959!!

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And here’s a lovely photo of George Harrison not smoking as he gets into a car somewhere — maybe 1969, early 1970s?

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And here’s some nice news about the late and absolutely great Shane MacGowan!!

(The Ogden Museum of Southern Art is in New Orleans.)

And while we’re at it, here’s this!! Shane and The Pogue’s version of “Dirty Old Town”!! From the phenomenal album Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash, 1985. I still play this song all the time, usually when I’m out driving alone in the middle of beautiful nowhere, and I always sing along!

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Okay!!

Bad Seed Jim Sclavunos was kind enough to help me study my French last night!!

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds will be at Cabaret Vert in France tonight! Buy tickets here!!

And Warren Ellis once again proves that he is a master at wearing the architecture of foreign cities!!

And in the event you suddenly feel like getting loaded and having a good time — Primal Scream, “Loaded” and having a good time!!

And even though there were TONS of photos and videos from the show in Lithuania the other night, here’s this instead!!

Just ‘cuz I fucking LOVE it!

Nick Cave seriously SMOKING onstage somewhere a long time ago…

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And that is it for today. I gotta get down to some editing here. It is a gorgeous day, once again, so I will probably head out for another one of those magical walks later, too.

And I leave you with some truly wonderful news, gang!!

A stray cat has had some adorable kittens — but NOT at my house!!

Here they are, outside my dining room window, but at the house next door! Yay!

Cute stray kittens but NOT at my house!!

Okay. Have a fantastic Friday wherever you are in the world, gang.

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Let’s close with this!!!

From that fabulous year of 1965!!

The Four Tops, “I Can’t Help Myself”!! Such a great song! Enjoy, gang.

A wonderful Saturday is upon us!

Cloudy, grey, humid — but still! What a great day!

Before I forget — I will not be posting tomorrow, at least not in the morning, because I am indeed going to attend Sunday Mass at that convent hidden up in the hills! And I need to be at my girlfriend’s house over in town by 8:30AM.

Children of Mary

I don’t know if I’ll be able to get any photos because I really don’t like having my phone with me in church, but we’ll see. The grounds are allegedly just beautiful, so I might want to try to get photos of that.

I did indeed tune into the the online Collapse Press poetry reading last night! It was really engaging. But it sure made me miss the poetry readings I used to attend all the time in NYC, before any of that kind of stuff was online.

Back when everything was more personal…

And then I remembered —

ME (remembering): “Oh wait. I was one of the pioneers in getting poetry and spoken word readings online!”

Marilyn’s Room, Inc. sometimes partnered with Broadcast.com and Psuedo.com back in the late 1990s in NYC, and I brought all kinds of writers and poets to be on the live broadcasts for the very first time! Back when all of that impersonal Internet stuff was brand new!

How quickly we forget…

Oh right. That was me…

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From Metrograph Weekend, an interview with Tsai Ming-liang!

His 1998 movie, The Hole, is now on 35mm and currently showing at Metrograph in NYC.

I love that movie!!! It’s sort of indescribable and it is so entertaining. (I love all his movies.)

One of my favorite scenes from the film:

The Hole by Tsai Ming-liang | Trailer HD:

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Okay.

Here’s this!!

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers! Smoking in Amsterdam in 1977! I love that HAIR!!!

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And I absolutely loved this!

I thought I knew all of Ethan Russell’s photos of Keith from 1972! But this was a new one!

Keith smoking backstage in LA, on the 1972 Exile On Main St. Tour:

And here’s another one of Keith with Buddy Guy on his 90th birthday.

(Oh, and when I was at lunch with my “buddy” Steve yesterday, he told me that one of our mutual friends from high school will be in NYC with her husband in October to see the Buddy Guy 90th Birthday Bash at Radio City Music Hall!! Buy tickets here!)

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From Phyllis Stein.

A lovely photo of the late, great playwright Sam Shepard!

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And now let’s return to Brighton!!

First — today and tomorrow is the Nick Cave Cinema Takeover at Duke of York’s Picturehouse in Brighton! (It’s probably going on right now. Well, I’ll be, um, curious to see how people respond to some of these films, gang…)

And that random couple I started following around (via Instagram) on Thursday had some great photos from yesterday!!

And the HUGE surprise of the night was when Kylie Minogue joined Nick and the Bad Seeds onstage. There were literally TONS of videos and photos of that, but here are just a couple:

And here’s this, while we’re at it!! From way back in 1995!

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds ft. Kylie Minogue – “Where The Wild Roses Grow“:

And a couple more photos from the concert last night:

It really looked like everyone had such a great time in Brighton the past couple of days. I had so much fun scrolling through all the videos and photos.

The tour resumes in Dresden, Germany on Sunday. You can buy tickets here!

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And I think that is it for now!! I gotta lot of work to tackle here at my desk today, so I’m gonna get started!

Enjoy your Saturday, wherever you are in the world, gang!!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Let’s close with this!

From Brighton, last night!!

Back to work around here!

But before we get back to work —

I have to tell you, gang, that I did indeed drive to town yesterday to listen to the live acoustic music at that little place in the Historic Arcade.

OMG, I am so glad I went. What a beautiful little lounge. Technically, it’s a bottle shop — they sell wine and craft beer to take away. But they also serve it there, too. Along with charcuterie boards. And it is tiny — it only seats 20. But it is so peaceful in there, and just so pretty. Here are a couple of photos I found online:

The owners in front of the shop, inside the Historic Arcade:

So you can see by the above photo, that it is tiny. But I just loved it. And the vibe is just so friendly. (Here is their website: The Archive in Newark.)

And I thought this was interesting — including me, there were 19 people there when the live acoustic music started at 5:30pm, so the place was basically full. And of those 19 people, only 3 were young enough to still have their brown hair — everyone else there, including me, had silver hair!! A totally older crowd. And yet you can also see by the photo above that the owners are really young!

I found that just really interesting — talk about finding a target audience.

Anyway. I will definitely be going back. And the music yesterday was good, too. 2 men. One played an acoustic Fender guitar with a built-in pickup. And the other played this incredible acoustic dobro with a built-in pickup, that he played on his lap, with a slide. It sounded so good.

My favorite, was their (obviously acoustic) version of Springsteen’s “Racing In the Streets” from 1978.

I hadn’t thought about that song in ages (I was still in high school, living at home, when the album, Darkness on the Edge of Town, came out). But here’s the original:

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And while I was at the Historic Arcade, I stopped in at the bookstore there and checked in with the owner regarding my novel. He said to check back in about 2 weeks, because he hasn’t had a chance to read it yet (there are 2 other books ahead of mine).

But at least now I know a specific time to go back and check in.

But overall, I just love that Historic Arcade, gang. And I would never have known about it if my friends hadn’t opened that art gallery there —

Also a small art gallery, but also just beautiful:

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Okay.

I started watching the documentary about (the now deceased) Val Kilmer on Amazon last night. So far, really good:

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And speaking of films —

Johnny Depp made a surprise (?) appearance at Comic Con in San Diego yesterday to promote the upcoming movie, Ebenezer.

There were literally TONS of really cute videos posted to Instagram yesterday, but so far, no photos.

But meanwhile, here’s this–

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Ronnie Wood’s solo tour of Europe has begun. You can buy setlist lithographs from the first 2 shows HERE. $110 each.

Lithographs of the setlists become available for sale the day after each show.

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From Nick Cave Official!

All of this will be available at the SOLD OUT upcoming homecoming bash at Brighton!

Created exclusively for the Brighton Preston Park show next Friday (31st July), this limited collection celebrates the band's homecoming show with a range of event-only merchandise featuring the official show artwork.
​
The collection features white and black t-shirts, a long sleeve white t-shirt, a natural tote bag, two exclusive posters - one showcasing a Brighton seaside design - plus a selection of collectible souvenirs such as Brighton rock, keyring charm and a set of four badges.
​
​The exclusive limited edition 10" ‘Jubilee Street’ picture disc will also be available as part of the collection.
​
Available exclusively at the Preston Park show, with selected merchandise also available during the Resident takeover while stocks last.

And from George Vjestica yesterday:

And while we’re waiting, here’s this!!

Nick Cave smoking, while sitting near a cassette tape recorder!! A long time ago!!

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And that is it for today, I think.

I tell you, gang, I am getting so much done at my desk every single day now. But I still have a TON of stuff left to do!! So I’m gonna get started by going outside and taking another walk!

After today, the weather is supposed to change again — back to hot and rainy. But these last few days have been just breathtaking around here. Truly. So beautiful.

Okay. Have a splendid Friday, wherever you are in the world!!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Let’s close with this!!

From my wee bonny 14-year-old girlhood!

Wow, did I love this song back then. Still do. I have always been very much in love with the idea of “home”, and back in 1974, I really really needed that idea. I had a roof over my head, but “home” was nowhere in sight…

Anyway. “Back Home Again” by John Denver, 1974. Enjoy, gang.