U. Utah Phillips benefit

Pete Seeger, Dar Williams, Sarah Underhill, Norm Wennet, Flames of Discontent, the High Meadow Larks, Redwood Moose, Sunday, April 20, 2 PM, Rosendale Cafe, 434 Main Street, Rosendale, 845 658 9048, $20. or make contribution to

U. Utah Phillips
No Guff Records
P.O. Box 1235
Nevada City, CA 95959

there will also be a representative of the IWW there.

Funnies

 From Joe Stead.   Get on his list.  joe@joestead.com

 

 

ALAN LOMAX -- PETER KENNEDY --- CECIL SHARP -- BERT LLOYD  ----- WENT ABOUT IT THE WRONG WAY !!!! THERE'S BEEN AN EASIER WAY ALL ALONG!!  NOW HERE'S THE SECRET YOU OLD FOLKIES -----------------

HOW TO CREATE A FOLK SONG

Another excellent contribution from Alex Mogieleff and Stephan Grossman's Woodshed Forum

• All folksongs begin with the phrase: ''I asked my love to take a walk'
• The walk should be:
  • Down by the riverside
  • Past the prison
  • Into the valley
  • Over the sea and far away.

It should NOT be:

• To the store for a loaf of bread
• To Asda
• Along the Champs-Elysee, Park Avenue, or Pennsylvania Avenue
• On rollerblades.
• The conversation along the way should be about:
  • Your racehorse
  • The perfidious British
  • The revelation that you are her/his longlost brother/husband/blacksmith/Lord
  • The inevitable baby
  • Murder
• Places to be mentioned include:
  • Botany Bay
  • The Mountains of ...
    • A Land called Honalee
    • Carrickfergus
    • The valley
    • The fair
  • All of the above in reverse order, Botany Bay always coming last.
• All folk songs repeat the same words in each verse, but move them around until  one person is killed or the ghost appears.  If the ghost appears, it repeats the  original verses and the process begins all over again.   This is known as revenge.
• The chorus of all folk songs is half of the words of the verse moved around some more, and with the addition of some poignant nonsense syllables, all in a minor key. No new information is provided.
• References to work in folk songs should include:
  • Hammers (visionary or steam)
  • Railroad trains, preferably on the same track hurtling towards each other
  • Lots of whales
  • Sowing, reaping, harvesting, babies dropped in furrows, etc.
  • Job categories allowed in folk songs include:
    • Circus work
    • Lighthouse keeping
    • Mourning
    • Gypsying (especially kidnapping)
    • Blowing up British buildings.
  • References to work in folk songs should avoid the following job categories:
    • Insurance
    • Work for any government agency except prisons
    • Re-insurance
• Words that can be sprinkled at random over folk songs:
  • gather,
  • farewell,
  • thee,
  • dead,
  • twa,
  • alas,
  • true love,
  • bonnie, dagger,
  • do Lord.
    and so on.... These apply mostly to ballads:
• True loves are always either:
  • Missing (gone for seven years)
  • Dead (see Necrophilia element)
  • In disguise
  • Your brother/sister (either known or unknown)
  • False (off chasing/married to another)
    
    If it's a happy ending, it's a very rare folksong...
• If your true love is dead, you must:
  • Long to kiss his/her dead lips or other portions of the anatomy (The Tradition of Necrophilia)
  • Never love again
  • Have done her in yourself after spending all night diggin' of her grave
  • Have done him in yourself because he done you wrong
• If you are a sailor, and you meet a fair young lady, you will:
  • Wind up with no money and no clothes, wearing a dress (the Transvestite Element)
  • Get laid after pulling her string
  • Acquire a painful and unpleasant social disease
  • Get shot after she dresses in men's clothing and finds you've been false
    (see Transvestite Element)
• If you are a young lady, and you meet a sailor, you will:
  • Turn him down because he's dirty
  • Turn him down because you don't recognize him
  • Change your mind when you find out he's got money
  • Change your mind after experiencing his sexual prowess
  • Dress up in man's clothing (the Transvestite Element, yet again)
• And LOTS of metaphors!!  Refering to various actions, body parts, etc., should be as circumspect as possible. Birds,flowers,alcoholic beverages,(blud red wine, etc)... may be freely substituted for lips, breasts etc.
  
  And for Male Parts...anything is ok as long as it is longer than it is wide.
• Women who are NOT active heroines in the song may be given away as prizes to men who achieve some goal...such as killing villians, saving ships, etc.
• You are a bona fide folk singer if:
  • you have nine different guitar capos, including a semi-automatic flipoff
  • our first name is one syllable long, or at most is two syllables that end in a vowel, e.g. Doc, Pete, Woody, Joan, Judy
  • you learned the song on a porch, preferably one with a sofa with the insides sprung out
  • you refuse to make an anatomical pun about "The Londonderry Air"
  • you have ''This X fights Y'' inscribed somewhere on your instrument,
    
    e.g.''this E string fights sexism''.
  • you have a dog named after a color.

You are not a bona fide folk singer if:

• you play the Hammond Organ
• your first name is Brittany (unless you are a boy)
• your last name is Rockefeller or Windsor
• you learned the song from your chauffeur or housekeeper, unless her name is Elizabeth Cotton
• you have a sticker on your guitar that reads: "Baby On Board"
• you have a cat (whether it comes back or not) or goldfish (see Entry under whales). You can have a horse as long as you race it in England or France.

 

 

$$$$$$$$$$$$

These were posted on an Australian tourism website and the answers are the actual responses by the website officials, who obviously have a sense of humour.

Q: Does it ever get windy in Australia ? I have never seen it rain on TV, how do the plants grow? ( UK).
A: We import all plants fully grown and then just sit around watching them die.
__________________________________________________

Q: Will I be able to see kangaroos in the street? ( USA )
A: Depends how much you've been drinking.
__________________________________________________

Q : I want to walk from Perth to Sydney - can I follow the railroad tracks? ( Sweden )
A: Sure, it's only three thousand miles, take lots of water.
__________________________________________________

Q: Are there any ATMs (cash machines) in Australia ? Can you send me a list of them in Brisbane, Cairns, Townsville and Hervey Bay? (UK )
A: What did your last slave die of?
_____ _____________________________________________

Q: Can you give me some information about hippo racing in Australia ?
( USA )
A: A-fri-ca is the big triangle shaped continent south of Europe.  Aus-tra-lia is that big island in the middle of the Pacific which does not ... oh forget it. Sure, the hippo racing is every Tuesday night in Kings Cross. Come naked.
__________________________________________________

Q: Which direction is North in Australia? ( USA )
A: Face south and then turn 180 degrees. Contact us when you get here and we'll send the rest of the directions.

_________________________________________________

Q: Can I bring cutlery into Australia ? (UK )
A: Why? Just use your fingers like we do.
__________________________________________________

Q: Can you send me the Vienna Boys' Choir schedule? ( USA )
A: Aus-tri-a is that quaint little country bordering Ger-man-y, which is ... oh forget it. Sure, the Vienna Boys Choir plays every Tuesday night in Kings Cross, straight after the hippo races. Come naked.
  __________________________________________________

Q: Can I wear high heels in Australia? ( UK )
A: You are a British politician, right?
__________________________________________________

Q: Are there supermarkets in Sydney and is milk available all year round? ( Germany )
A: No, we are a peaceful civilization of vegan hunter/gatherers. Milk is illegal.
__________________________________________________

Q: Please send a list of all doctors in Australia who can dispense rattlesnake serum. ( USA )
A: Rattlesnakes live in A-meri-ca which is where YOU come from. All Australian snakes are perfectly harmless, can be safely handled and make good pets.
__________________________________________________

Q: I have a question about a famous animal in Australia , but I forget its name. It's a kind of bear and lives in trees. ( USA )
A: It's called a Drop Bear. They are so called because they drop out of Gum trees and eat the brains of anyone walking underneath them. You can scare them off by spraying yourself with human urine before you go out walking.
__________________________________________________

Q: I have developed a new product that is the fountain of youth. Can you tell me where I can sell it in Australia ? ( USA )
A: Anywhere significant numbers of Americans gather.
__________________________________________________

Q: Can you tell me the regions in Tasmania where the female population is smaller than the male population? ( Italy )
A: Yes, gay night clubs.
__________________________________________________

Q: Do you celebrate Christmas in Australia ? ( France )
A: Only at Christmas.
__________________________________________________

Q: I was in Australia in 1969 on R+R, and I want to conta ct the girl I dated while I was staying in Kings Cross*. Can you help? ( USA )
A: Yes, and you will still have to pay her by the hour.
__________________________________________________

Q: Will I be able to speak English most places I go? ( USA )
A: Yes, but you'll have to learn it first

 

Keep smiling, keep singing,

 

Joe Stead.

SAT. MARCH 29: EARTH HOUR GOES GLOBAL 8-9pm One Hour of Darkness

From Gene Fischer

 

March 29 from 8 to 9 PM Turn your light out! That means ALL OF US! One Hour of Darkness: Earth Hour Goes Global

 

On Saturday, March 29, from 8 to 9 in the evening local time, hundreds of thousands of lights around the world will go dark for Earth Hour. The one hour event is intended to send a powerful message around the world about how important it is to reduce global warming and how many people care enough to take action.

 

Earth Hour is all about the simple changes everyone can make. Run by WWF, the global conservation organization, Earth Hour was initiated in Australia on March 31, 2007. Earth Hour moved 2.2 million people and 2,100 businesses in Sydney to turn off their lights for one hour.

This collective effort reduced the city's energy consumption by 10.2 percent for one hour, which is the equivalent effect of taking 48,000 cars off the road for an hour.
With Sydney icons like the Harbour Bridge and Opera House turning their lights off and unique events such as weddings by candlelight, the world took notice.
This year Earth Hour is going global.

In Washington, DC, WWF president and CEO Carter Roberts said, "This is the perfect opportunity for individuals, governments, businesses and communities around the world to unite for a common purpose, in response to a global issue that affect us all."
Across the United States, skylines, including those in Atlanta, Chicago, Phoenix and San Francisco, will go dark for Earth Hour.

Andy Ridley, executive director for Earth Hour said, "Powering down a city's skyline and some of the world's most iconic structures and premier properties is a highly calculated and intricate process, and allowances need to be made to account for safety."

"What makes Earth Hour a unique event is that it brings together governments, business and householders who all play a part in switching off the lights. Working together, individual households alongside the world's most magnificent iconic landmarks can make an impact in the fight against climate change," Ridley said.
"On behalf of the WWF International network, I want to commend and thank the mayors and officials in our flagship cities for playing a leadership role in supporting this unique global event and demonstrating their commitment to fighting climate change," says WWF Director General James Leape, praising mayors in the all the cities that have signed up to go dark for Earth Hour.

Some of the Earth Hour flagship cities are - Bangkok, Ottawa, Vancouver, Montreal, Dublin, Sydney, Perth, Melbourne, Canberra, Brisbane, Adelaide, Copenhagen, Aarhus, Aalborg, Odense, Manila, Suva, Chicago, Tel Aviv, Toronto and Christchurch. They all will switch off for Earth Hour on Saturday March 29, at 8 PM local time.

From Sydney's Harbour Bridge and Opera House to San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge, world famous skylines will disappear for one hour - Earth Hour. Among those switching off will be the tallest building in North America, the 110 story high Sears Tower in Chicago, and the CN Tower in Toronto.

In the Philippines, Pasay City Mayor Wenceslao Trinidad agreed to turn off all lights along Manila's historic Roxas Boulevard seaside strip to show support.
In Washington, DC, World Wildlife Fund has named the electronics company HP as the official U.S. technology partner for Earth Hour.

"Collaboration is key when it comes to addressing the effects of climate change," said Pat Tiernan, vice president of Social and Environmental Responsibility at HP. "Furthering our alliance with WWF supports our goal to educate others about climate change and energy efficiency."

HP is committing financial and technical support to Earth Hour as the national technology partner for the event. This effort builds on the company's relationship with WWF to address the causes and consequences of climate change. HP is promoting the event to its employees around the world, providing technology at events in each of the four U.S. cities involved, and turning off the lights at its facilities.
Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore told a breakfast of corporate leaders March 11, "Earth Hour started in Sydney, it's now gone global, and it has firmly established Sydney's credentials as a green leader."

"Earth Hour resonated strongly with our sustainability agenda," said Mayor Moore. "The Stern Report and Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth helped thrust the issue of climate change very much to the forefront of public consciousness, and we saw Earth Hour as an event which could really galvanize action right across the community."
"We saw it as much more than a one off event, and much more than mere symbolism," the mayor said. "We thought it offered a real opportunity to change people's thinking and generate long term behavior changes."
The mayor is encouraging all City of Sydney tenants and residents to take action and make every hour Earth Hour by reducing energy consumption in their day-to-day activities.

In support of Earth Hour, more than 3,500 businesses across Australia and internationally have so far signed up and will be doing their part and turning off their lights. McDonald's Australia has committed to turning off its Golden Arches nationally. David Jones will turn off the lights in its 36 department stores.
Says Leape, "Earth Hour will send a strong signal that people all around the world are deeply concerned and expect their leaders to take action before it's too late. Climate change is a global challenge that requires global solutions and it's clear that the people of this planet are ready to get involved and find the answers."
Sign up for Earth Hour at: www.earthhour.org.
     Diana Krautter

Gig Smorgasboard

So let's see. Saturday 3/22 I was at the Kings Mall Protest and played some banjo with Laurie and Julie Kirby. "Study War no More", "Universal Soldier", etc.

Saturday night I played with Regina and Ed Simmons at a contradance at the 1st Baptist Church in Kingston. The occasion was a wedding done as a Renaissance Feast - venison stew, etc. Mostly I played my wonderful Martin D-35S guitar. It has been awhile since I have been the acoustic guitarist at a dance. With all modesty, I must say it sounded great. It was a lot of fun to follow Regina's excellent fiddling and her husband Ed played some great electric lead guitar. Aside from the usual old English contra tunes, I also played fiddle on "Moonshadow" and sang on "Girl from Ipanema". Finished off the evening with "Irene Goodnight".

Sunday evening was at Baird Hershey's annual "OM for Peace" in Woodstock. After you've OM'ed for an hour, what is there to say? The Lord is risen, the crops will grow, there is a cosmic change in the universe, etc.

Sound Investment

From Sam Lusk - no direct relation.  I'm sorry, just couldn't resist it.

************************ 

If you had purchased $1,000.00 of Delta Airline stock one year ago you would have $49.00 left.

With Enron, you would have had $16.50 left of the original $1,000.00.

With WorldCom, you would have had less than $5.00 left.

But, if you had purchased $1,000.00 worth of beer one year ago, drank all of the beer, then turned in the cans for the aluminum recycling REFUND, you would have had $214.00.
 
Based on the above, the best current investment advice is to drink heavily and recycle.
It's called the 401-Keg.

Internet Radio Show

I was recently interviewed on an internet radio show called "Imprint" with Terry Doyle. The program can be heard on Catskill Community Radio www.catskillradio.org and will run until March 22.

 

St Patricks's extravaganza- Imprint #68

1.Grisman Stomp (show theme)- The Rubberband

The Boogie Reel/The Controversial Reel- Billy McComiskey

Johnny I hardly knew ya- The Sidetrackers

Farewell to Calingford - Dady Brothers

2.Interview with Bob Lusk (part 1)

I walk the road again- Ira and Laurie McIntosh

Unicorn Song- Hill Brothers

Interview with Lissa Schneckenburger

Irish Girl- Lissa Schneckenburger

Irishman's heart to the ladies- Hilt Kelly and the Sidekicks

3.Interview with Joanie Madden

Fair and Tender ladies- Cherish the Ladies

Wizards and Fairy Princesses- Uncle Rock

Interview with Dady Brothers

How's it going/ Tamlin Reel- Dady Brothers

Chinese Irishman- Mammals

4.Interview with Bob Lusk (part 2)

The music will follow us- Bob Lusk

The Boogie Reel/The Controversial Reel- Billy McComiskey

Grisman Stomp (show theme)- The Rubberband

Camp Songs

Great site for camp songs at http://whenwesing.blogspot.com/

maintained by
Joseph Swift.

Om For Peace

From Baird Hershey

 
It's a simple idea: gather people together and sing a continuous OM as a meditation for peace. On Easter Sunday March 23rd, 2008 at 6:00 PM EDT, people, all over the world, who want to give expression to their wish for peace will gather in groups to join in the sound of many voices singing as one in an extended OM.

Each person, as a meditation on peace, sings their own note at their own rate guided by their breath. Within the group this builds an exquisitely beautiful, rising and falling, subtly changing, continuos chord. Many voices resonating together in one sound.

How to do this? Set a place to gather; yoga studio, mediation center, dance studio, theater, or living room. Spread the word and invite as many people as you can. Begin at 6:00 PM, Eastern Daylight Time, and sing OM as long as the sound wants to go on, hopefully for at least an hour. Even if you can't get together with other people sing on your own knowing that people in other places are singing with you.

People of all faiths and beliefs are welcome. No musical experience is necessary only the willingness to add your voice for peace to the sound of OM.

This is our sixth year. Last year I heard from people all over the country who had participated. Please forward this to anyone who might be interested or your mailing list. And PLEASE let us know how it goes.

Here in Woodstock we will be coming together at Mountain View Studio off of Rock City Road.

A lot of fun with Jim Donnelly and Ira McIntosh at the Kingston St. Patricks parade 2008. It was cold and windy. Bobby Walker from the UC Highway Department did a stellar job constructing the float.

Guinan's Irish Night tradition to continue...

From Candace Coats and Sarah Underhill-

Wanted to let folks know that although Guinan's pub closed in January, that the Irish night tradition will now be hosted by a new venue. It will now be the first Wednesday after the full moon each month. It will start at 8:00pm and end at..well, who really knows.. It will be at The Depot restaurant in Cold Spring,NY. It's located on Main Street. Main street is a steep hill.. just follow Main Street to the bottom of the steep grade and The Depot is on the right.. next to the train tracks. It is easy to get there by Metro North. Just get off in Cold Spring and The Depot is visible right from the train.

Thanks for getting the word out..

Candace

DVD from Post Traumatic Press

From Mike Harelick - He has set up some you tube videos of me and others from the Post Traumatic Press reading

I set up a Playlist, so that as I add other portions of the Reading, people will automatically be able to see them. 

Check out:   Playlist: Veterans' Book Reading ~ Post Traumatic Press 

 

You can see Bob's and Larry's portions by clicking the Playlist link above now and more as I add them.

 

If you're not familiar with YouTube Playlists, it gives you the ability to look at any and all videos in the playlist.  You can even click on a button on the right side of the window to "Play All Videos" -- you will see them in sequence without any intervention from the viewer.  You can also "subscribe" to the Playlist or to the Channel and you will be notified when additions or changes occur.

 

Regards,

Mike Harelick

 

PS.  For those who have not seen some of the other Veteran and PTSD related YouTube and website work I've done,

go to the Playlist above and select More playlists by HillsideAS (<- or just click here).   Note in particular videos of Penny Coleman and Larry Winters.   Also check out "Operation Recognition" for something positive the government has done for veterans.

March Madness Performing Schedule

I have been forgetting to tell people where I am playing this St. Patrick's Season

3/9/08 Irish Historical Music with Bob Burroughs -Cancelled !!!- because they moved the Kingston Parade back a week! Rescheduled for September.

3/9/08 Kingston's St. Patrick's Parade. We (Meself, Jim Donnelly and Ira McIntosh) are on the Ulster County Highway Department's Float as usual. Kick off is 1:00 at Kingston Plaza, goes down Broadway and ends at the Strand about 3 pm.

3/9/08 Chick's Restaurant, Kingston Plaza, Kingston, NY, roughly 4 to 8 pm. (After the parade) Irish Music with Folkloric (Jim Donnelly, Ira McIntosh)

3/15/08 Chick's Restaurant, Kingston Plaza, Kingston, NY, 6-10. pm. Irish Music with Folkloric (Jim Donnelly, Ira McIntosh) Great Corned Beef!

3/17/08 Hurley Mountain Inn, Rt 209, Hurley, NY, 12 noon to 2pm . Folkloric (Jim Donnelly, Ira McIntosh) will be playing there. we had to split up the group for this gig and I will be playing at the Ulster County Infirmary with Sarah Dudley and Ernie Shultis!

3/17/08 Holiday Inn, Kingston, NY, broadcast live over WKNY 4 to 7 pm. Irish Music with Folkloric - the whole group! (Me, Jim Donnelly, Ira McIntosh and perhaps some special guests!) The culmination of our annual Irish bash!

From the New Age Center in Nyack-

 

Sayings of the Jewish Buddhists

 

If there is no self, whose arthritis is this?

 

Be here now. Be someplace else later. Is that so complicated?

 

Drink tea and nourish life. With the first sip, joy. With the second sip, satisfaction. With the third sip, peace. With the fourth, a Danish.

 

Wherever you go, there you are. Your luggage is another story.

 

Accept misfortune as a blessing. Do not wish for perfect health, or a life without problems. What would you talk about?

 

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single Oy.

 

There is no escaping karma. In a previous life, you never called, you never wrote, you never visited. And whose fault was that?

 

Zen is not easy. It takes effort to attain nothingness. And then what do you have? Bupkis.

 

The Tao does not speak. The Tao does not blame. The Tao does not take sides. The Tao has no expectations. The Tao demands nothing of others. The Tao is not Jewish.

 

Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in. Breathe out. Forget this and attaining Enlightenment will be the least of your problems.

 

 Let your mind be as a floating cloud. Let your stillness be as a woodedglen. And sit up straight. You'll never meet the Buddha with such rounded shoulders.

 

Deep inside you are ten thousand flowers. Each flower blossoms ten thousand times. Each blossom has ten thousand petals. You might want to see a specialist.

 

Be aware of your body. Be aware of your perceptions. Keep in mind that not every physical sensation is a symptom of a terminal illness. 

 

The Torah says, Love your neighbor as yourself. The Buddha says maybe there is no self.  So maybe we're off the hook.