GA Russell

I like New York pizza. My favorite pizza growing up in New Orleans was a small restaurant called The Italian Villa. The Board of Health closed them down. Considering the general incompetence of everything related to the New Orleans government in those days (the 60s, but I've no reason to think life is any different today), the kitchen must have been really filthy! Maybe it was the dirt that made the pizzas so delicious!

I agree, Garth. I really like his tone. But his playing still needs a lot of work.

Dig the eyelashes!

I didn't know that McDuff recorded for Blue Note. I was only aware of his Prestige and Atlantic sides.

This reminds me of Joe Frazier's deal. He was funded by a group of investors called Cloverlay, who for their investment received some of his earnings, and also managed his money so that he was far better off financially than other top boxers (many of whom like Joe Louis were mismanaged and wound up with little).

Happy Birthday Randy!

Jim, I don't have PayPal, so I'll put a check in the mail Monday. What is the address?

Happy Birthday Jack!

Happy Birthday Whitey!

I didn't realize that Crazy Legs Hirsch was in Unchained. Here's Hy Zaret's LA Times obit: http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-...news-obituaries Hy Zaret, 99; lyricist for hit tune 'Unchained Melody' From Times Staff and Wire Reports July 4, 2007 Lyricist Hy Zaret, who wrote the haunting words to "Unchained Melody," one of the most frequently recorded songs of the 20th century, has died at the age of 99. Zaret died Monday at his home in Westport, Conn., about a month before his 100th birthday, his son, Robert Zaret, told the Associated Press. He wrote the lyrics for many songs and advertising jingles, but his biggest hit was "Unchained Melody," written with composer Alex North for a 1955 prison movie called "Unchained," starring Elroy "Crazy Legs" Hirsch. It brought Zaret and North an Academy Award nomination for best original song. Zaret refused the producer's request to work the word "unchained" into the lyrics, instead writing to express the feelings of a lover who has "hungered for your touch a long, lonely time." The song was recorded by artists as diverse as Elvis Presley, Lena Horne, U2, Guy Lombardo, Vito & the Salutations, Willie Nelson and Joni Mitchell, who incorporated fragments into her song "Chinese Cafe/Unchained Melody." An instrumental version was a No. 1 hit in 1955 for Les Baxter, while a vocal version by Al Hibbler reached No. 3 the same year. But most baby boomers remember the song from the Righteous Brothers' version. The record, produced by Phil Spector, reached No. 4 on the Billboard chart in 1965 and was a hit again 25 years later when it was used on the soundtrack of the film "Ghost," with Demi Moore and Patrick Swayze. In all, "Unchained Melody" was recorded more than 300 times, according to the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, which listed it in 1999 as one of the 25 most performed musical works of the 20th century. "Although I had had success as a pop songwriter, I hesitated when Alex, whom I knew from our days as soldier songwriters in World War II, called me … to ask me to write a lyric for a movie theme he was working on," Zaret told Billboard magazine in 1991, a few months before North died. "I hesitated because I was busy writing songs that gave me enough income to fund me so I could continue to create musical public service announcements, work I was extremely proud of and for which I didn't get a penny. I was spending 85% of my career writing these spots, while using the other 15% to earn a living…. "I agreed to do the lyric, and in two days had it completed. It's unusual, because the title of the song is never used in the lyric. In the film, Todd Duncan sang the song as a prisoner with a cigar in his mouth." Among other songs Zaret collaborated on were "My Sister and I," a hit in 1941 for Jimmy Dorsey; "So Long, for a While," the theme song for the radio and TV show "Your Hit Parade"; "Dedicated to You"; and the Andrews Sisters' "One Meat Ball." "He had some big, big hits," said Jim Steinblatt, an assistant vice president at ASCAP. Born Aug. 21, 1907, in New York, Zaret graduated from West Virginia University and Brooklyn Law School. In later years, Zaret had to fend off the claims by another man, electrical engineer William Stirrat, who said he wrote the "Unchained Melody" lyrics as a teenager in the 1930s and even legally changed his name to Hy Zaret. Robert Zaret and Steinblatt both said the dispute was resolved completely in favor of the real Zaret, who continued to receive all royalties. Steinblatt said Stirrat died in 2004.

Here's a brief AP obit: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,288119,00.html Bill Pinkney, Last Surviving, Original Drifter, Dead at 81 Thursday, July 05, 2007 AP Bill Pinkney DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Bill Pinkney, the last survivor of the original members of the musical group The Drifters, has died. He was 81. Pinkney was found dead Wednesday at the Hilton Daytona Beach Oceanfront Resort, Daytona Beach Police spokesman Jimmie Flynt said. The death was not considered suspicious, he said. Pinkney was scheduled to perform for U.S. Independence Day festivities there. The Drifters, whose hits include "Under the Boardwalk," "Up on the Roof," and "Save the Last Dance For Me," still performed Wednesday night. An announcement about Pinkney's death was made after the show, said the group's publicist, Donnie Lowery. Pinkney, born in Dalzell, S.C., was not with The Drifters when they recorded their biggest hits. He left in the band in 1958 because of an argument over cash. His distinctive bass voice can be heard on the group's version of the holiday classic "White Christmas." Even though he left the group, Pinkney didn't let go of The Drifters' name. He fought for laws allowing performers or bands to claim an affiliation with a classic group like The Drifters or The Coasters only if at least one member recorded with the original group. The Drifters were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988. Pinkney was a World War II veteran and pitched for the New York Blue Sox of the Negro Baseball League in the late 1940s and early '50s.

Week 2 picks: http://sports.canada.com/default.asp?c=can.../AJN4088732.htm

Here's an article from today's Winnipeg Sun about Westwood's status: http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Football/CFL/Win...311941-sun.html

John, David Naylor of the Globe has written a column discussing your point: http://www.globesports.com/servlet/story/R...tsFootball/home

Unless I'm mistaken, Windmills of My Mind was a Skye release. Unless I'm confusing it with another record, I remember listening to it when it came out. I looked for it when I placed my dccblowout.com order in April, but I didn't see it.

Last week I picked up a pack of four film noir DVDs at BJ's for $6.99: Detour DOA He Walked By Night Impact Tonight a friend and I watched Detour. I had read that it is considered by many the best one of the genre. It requires a lot of "suspension of disbelief", but it kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time!

Happy Birthday WD45!

The league now has only two players left who played for the American teams in the 90s - Damon Allen (Memphis Mad Dogs) and Anthony Calvillo (Las Vegas Posse). Of course Joe Horn (also Memphis) is still in the NFL. http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Football/CFL/New...308886-sun.html

The America's Cup competition hasn't been between nations for a while. The Alinghi skipper is from New Zealand! Watching sailing on TV is an acquired taste. Until you get in the groove, it's like watching grass grow. But I remember one America's Cup race about fifteen years ago that was incredible. The one boat won by just a few feet! And of course there is no accelerator on the boats, so both crews just set their sails and hoped for the best as they slowly cruised past the finish line side by side. http://www.globesports.com/servlet/story/R...portsOther/home

Twenty years ago I was into minimalism for a while. I went to see Philip Glass a couple of times and Steve Reich once. I recently got an album called Stoa which came out a year ago by a German band called Nik Bartsch's Ronin. It's exciting. Bartsch is the pianist and composer. The quintet also has contrabass and bass clarinets, bass, drums and percussion. The drummer and percussionist play important roles on the album. The result is Philip Glass music that swings. I really enjoy it. The band is on a brief tour of North America. They played Vancouver last night, and will play the Montreal Jazz Festival at Cabaret JPR tonight at 9:00 pm. Tomorrow night they will be in New York City at Joe's Pub at 7:30 pm. I wish I could go!

After listening a great deal to The Last Concert for the past six weeks, I opened up The Abashiri Concert today and played the first disc. It's great! I don't find it as exciting as The Last Concert, but that doesn't mean it's not excellent. It's so much better than so many of the new albums I've heard over the last couple of years. I think I like Roger Kellaway's playing more than George Cables'. Cables plays interesting chords, but Kellaway had a bouncier feel throughout that evening. I'm going to listen to this plenty before I move on to Disc 2.

Pinball Clemons is signing old friends. Noel Prefontaine was injured in the game Thursday. To replace him temporarily, the Argos have signed retired NFL kicker Steve Christie. Christie was a college teammate of Clemons at William & Mary. He played fifteen years in the NFL, the last in 2004. The Argos also signed Mookie Mitchell, who was cut by the Eskimos last week. I like Mitchell, but I don't expect him to have much left. http://www.globesports.com/servlet/story/R...tsFootball/home

Happy Birthday Robert!

Here are the game summaries for Week 1: British Columbia Lions 24....Toronto Argonauts 22 http://sports.canada.com/default.asp?c=can.../AJN4087280.htm Edmonton Eskimos 39....Winnipeg Blue Bombers 39 http://sports.canada.com/default.asp?c=can.../AJN4087338.htm Saskatchewan Roughriders 16....Montreal Alouettes 7 http://sports.canada.com/default.asp?c=can.../AJN4087702.htm Calgary Stampeders 37....Hamilton Tiger-Cats 9 http://sports.canada.com/default.asp?c=can.../AJN4087849.htm ***** Two updates from the Hot Stove League thread: I said then that I have no faith in Jim Popp as Montreal's head coach. He is a career personnel guy, with no coaching experience except when he has appointed himself. The Als' offense stunk against the Riders. They didn't score anything. The Riders conceded three safety touches and a single point on a missed field goal. So if something doesn't happen soon, Popp may be gone very quickly as the head coach. The Montreal fans won't have patience, and I don't think Larry Smith will either. Do you remember that when I met Bob Young, the owner of the Ticats, I asked him how he could trade DJ Flick for Rocky Butler? The Ticats released Butler last week. The Sask announcers were talking about what a steal that deal was. PS - I have to wonder how much longer Sean Fleming and Troy Westwood are for this league. I don't think they can be counted on anymore.

Thanks for all your efforts Jim! I'm looking forward to contributing to the next fund drive. You don't miss your water...