Cedar Bar Redux

These guys invented Bebop so of course there are plenty of Bird and Diz albums out there. This one makes you feel like you were there. Just close your eyes and listen.

Never in my life have I heard such piano playing. It’s heartbreaking to think someone so talented is gone. Heck, I’ll admit it, I cry over him. Best tracks, none. The whole thing is just like heaven.

I believe that Gregory Corso had to write poetry to live. He was another hustler/addict. Writing kept him in touch with the life around him. His poems are sometimes raw and hard. But most of the time they give you a peek into a brilliant mind and sweet, gentle soul. I am in love with this man.

This is not an easy poem to write about. In fact, I think it’s the only thing that really has me stumped. All I can say is this: it’s beautiful and it must be read dozens of times. To get a feel for how important it is, please read “Howl” Fifty Years Later, edited by Jason Shinder. Allen Ginsberg is an important, thoughtful poet and this is his most important book.

This was the first Beat book ever published. John Clellon Holmes was not one of the wild beat guys and this book tells a wild story from a quiet point of view.

Holmes’ approach to writing was not like the Beats. He wrote like an observer, and gives us an amazing picture of the whole scene.

Normal Mailer, writer of “The Naked and the Dead”, passed away this morning at the age of 84. Read about at The Chicago Tribune

It’s hard to find one single album that covers all of Dizzy. Ken Burns did it for us, thank God! There really are no words for Dizzy, you just have to hear for yourself. Best tracks are “Pickin the Cabbage,” “A Night in Tunisia,” “Manteca,” and “Birks Works.”

For me this is the best of Bird, all his best recordings on one album. Before iPods, I went through 5 copies. If you really listen you can hear his voice through his horn. The best tracks are “A Night in Tunisia,” “Loverman,” “Cool Blues,” and “Bird of Paradise.”

This book is basically Neal Cassady’s autobiography. After reading On the Road, you get an idea of what a crazy man Neal was. It’s a good thing he wrote about his life so we can understand why. This is the only book he ever published.

2007 marks the 50 year anniversary of this book! To me this is a good boy/bad boy story: Sal Paradise (good boy) and Dean Moriarty (bad boy). These guys have some crazy adventures that take them across the country. I can’t help but notice that when they aren’t together you get to see Sal’s heart. After all, Dean is only out for kicks, Sal even starts calling him “the Holy Goof.” Keep in mind that this book is a true story, names and places were changed. Sal is really Jack Kerouac and Dean is Neal Cassady.