11.22.16

Up 8. Weight 213.3.

Someone left their keys in our building door; I held onto them and put up a note; our neighbor Wesley came by an hr. later, thanked me profusely, gave me cookies. Had a little idea, so took care of the daybook early, and got some way into Hartman's chapter on free verse. (Surprised that he cites a Bob Perelman poem.) Left around 11, read Pollack on train to coffee/Oracle. Worked until 3, when I had arranged to meet Thomas Coombes, a friend visiting from Newfoundland. Had a coffee and then beer/a bite, talked about music. Came back about 7:30, kept at it 'til 10. Output: 834 pretty solid words (+ persnickety footnotes) on "Swanee." Tees me up for "Stairway to Paradise," but there are other tasks to attend to tomorrow. Home; to p. 200 in Pollack, lights out 1.

11.21.16

Up 9, Bree already out. Weight 213.5.

Went to E77 at 10, looked at yesterday's writing but didn't get much farther. Came home around 1, called my dad for his birthday. Scrubbed our tub. Ordered the Game Theory reissues I don't have yet.

Went back to E77 for soup and a sandwich, wrote 750 unpolished words on Gershwin vis-a-vis "jazz" and black music, and - finally getting to individual songs - "Swanee." (The last time I drafted this, I didn't know about its relationship to "Hindustan.") This page is also informative. After 9, read rest of quota of Pollack (to 150), caught up in daybook. Didn't get to Timmons. Lights out 12:30.

11.20.16

Up 9. Weight 213.4.

Looked around flea market up the street w/ Bree. I bought 2 Americana CDs + an opera of Moby Dick I'd never heard of, $2 each, out of curiosity; she found a purse. Morning otherwise taken up w/ mundane tasks - which have felt particularly burdensome lately. Phone seems not to be charging, local repair shop closed Sundays. Etc. Met Charlotte Preston at a rehearsal room in midtown (Shetler) at 2, worked on "I've Got the World on a String" (learned the verse) for an hr or so. Headed to LES, picked up my relined coat, wrote 500 on Gershwin at Atlas Cafe, about 4:30-7. Walked to David and Jean's for Scrabble, w/ Steve S. and an arts administrator/jazz pianist named Jeanette Vuocolo (got her card). She's Southern Italian, and mentioned some interesting-sounding work on Italian-American theater and an article called "Deconstructing Louis Prima." (Looks like Will Friedwald gave a talk to this effect, but I can't find a published reference.) Tomeka Reid and Karen Waltuch were supposed to come, but didn't appear. I bingo'd rather elegantly with "capstans," but I don't remember who won. I forgot to bring LPs, but we listened to a Swiss free piano record I liked, and Bernstein's Trouble in Tahiti. Did some card tricks for David. Took a car home. Lights out 1. 

Read to 95 in Pollack over the course of the day.

11.19.16

Up 8:30. Weight 213.3.

Found a support address finally, for Avid/Sibelius, wrote an email about billing. (Did get the "I Don't Care" chart printed yesterday, however. Left home 11 am, started Howard Pollack, George Gerswhin His Life and Work at coffee; p. 1-40. Dutiful, well-sourced. Listened to Rubenstein's Melody in F and Dvorak's Humoresque for related reasons (not sure Pollack's description of their themes as AABA is germane). Dealt w/ some email - moving along on the Mekons mechanical license. Distracted by political news. Managed not to write. Came home at 6, read a few more p. of Pollack, walked w/ Bree to a concert by the Queens Consort (mostly local, cleverly named early-music ensemble) at St. Mark's Church. "The Dresden/Venice Connection"; Pisendel, Vivaldi, and others w/ some connection to the court of Augustus the Strong. I doubt get some equally good court music in the next few years. Liked one piece in particular, but lost track in the program, so I don't know which. Talked to the harpsichordist for a bit after - her parts are all figured bass. Bree went home, I stopped by E77, heard a fairly casual alto/bass duo playing Miles Davis' "Solar," etc. Had a beer, did daybook, read to end of Timmons' "middle" book and finished chapter of Hartman. 

Made arrangements to rehearse w/ one of the singers for the Hadju gig. Lights out 12:30.

11.18.16

Up 6:45. Weight 213.2.

Went to gym at 9; elliptical. Came back, searched fruitlessly for a hard copy of chart I'd made for "I Don't Care" (which I'm playing for Bree in a couple of weeks), gave up and found the Sibelius file. Saved it as a .pdf to print at copy shop b/c our printer gave out a few weeks ago; additionally, I couldn't edit it at all b/c the auto-renewal on my monthly license didn't go through for some reason. Tried to rectify that, but as far as I can tell the right debit card is on file, and their support is poor. Completely frustrating, didn't have time to solve the problem. [Included as example of the many hassles and inefficiencies in getting even the smallest thing done.] Listened to a bit of this band Snail Mail https://snailmailbaltimore.bandcamp.com/ at Drew G.'s recommendation - strong vocal and melody on "thinning" puts me in mind of very early Velocity Girl, I'm aged and decrepit enough to have doubts that they'll take the style further w/o losing the spirit (cf. Vivian Girls/Dum Dum Girls/Frankie Rose axis).

Left for Oracle after lunch, finished the last few pieces in the G. Reader on the way (latter-day assessments, the most interesting being Leonard Bernstein's). Worked from 1:30-6:15. Completely thrown off at one point by reading an article about Steve Bannon. He's fucking Moloch. Nonetheless, 574 words on three Berlin songs (inc. "What'll I Do.") That closes out this early-20s subsection. Will tackle Gerswhin tomorrow - the general background/observations I want to make about his relation to "jazz" being trickier than reconstructing the actual song analyses. 

Left for Bushwick about 6:45, to hear Drew G.'s "psych" guitar-duo Elkhorn at Alphaville. Read Susie Timmons on train. No music - phone is dead again. Got there early enough to get a burger, do daybook, read a few p. of Hartman, Verse. Chatted w/ Drew and two Swedes he'd brought a long - a non-fiction writing student at Columbia, and a painter. Met the people who put out their cassette. Elkhorn played about 9 - generally pretty together, Drew uses a ton of effects and his partner Jesse's Guild 12-strings (both in open tuning) sound fantastic. Fahey + modal soling, essentially. One riff was in 5/4. Stayed around to talk for a while, said hello to Jesse and his dad (smoking pot together outside), but didn't hear the other bands. (Headliner: "Weird Owl," which is the name I'd make up for a Brooklyn psych-rock band in a bad indie movie.) Would have considered a cab, but didn't see one, read Hartman on the way home - sort of trudging through this chapter on trad. poetic stanzas to get to the free verse and (unusually for a book on prosody) "song" chapters. Lights out 1 am.