It's a Clean Machine

Over the past week I finally managed to organize my home office, setting up a nice place for Sarah and I to focus on our various creative projects. One of the most daunting tasks was filing away all the various master tapes and discs for video projects I have worked on... a little background music helped.

I decided to stream Paul McCartney's latest album, New. The Beatles have always been an inspiration for me, but their solo projects are usually no match for the brilliance of their fab foursome days. This time out, Sir Paul has a surprisingly fresh offering... check out his latest single, "Queenie Eye," which has been getting a lot of airplay on WEXT: 

Pretty impressive, I'd say, for a guy who has been at it for over 50 years! Naturally, he was helped by several talented producers, including Mark Ronson (whose Version is one of my favorite albums). I have come to realize that a good music producer makes all the difference... I would go so far to say that the Beatles might not have been as good without the help of George Martin (Let It Be, their only studio album not produced by Martin, was marred by too much of Phil Spector's "Wall of Sound" overdubbing, in my opinion).

J Walking outside the famed Abbey Road Studios, London.
April 1997. Photo ©Jeremy Clowe

Another treat for fans is the recent release of On Air— Live at the BBC, Volume 2, which features 63 previously unreleased tracks from the Beatles' 1963-1964 BBC Radio broadcasts. I've had a quick listen on iTunes, and it sounds even better than its 1994 predecessor (Live at the BBC). There are plenty of covers, including Motown and Chuck Berry, and some energetic performances of early Beatles songs I have always loved ("MIsery," "You Can't Do That"). Still sounding fresh, and a reminder of the elements that first made me a fan at the age of ten.

As I continue organizing our place, I'm finding other reminders of my Beatles love, including a box full of photos from my first trip to Great Britain back in the late 90s (reproduced here on this blog entry). It was a dream for this Anglophile, and of course I had to make a pilgrimage to London's Abbey Road to recreate the famous "walk" pictured on the band's 1969 album of the same name (with thanks to my patient aunt for photos). I even poked my head inside of Abbey Road Studio to inquire about what was happening...  

London calling... c. April 1997. ©Jeremy Clowe.

Apparently there is no shortage of Beatles-related projects in the pipeline, including a "top secret" project from the BBC, and a movie based on author Lars Saabye Christiansen's bestselling 1984 novel, Beatles. The film sounds especially promising, as it has the rare opportunity to use the group's original recordings, and will be scored by A-ha's Magne Furuholmen. A-ha have noted on many occasions how influenced they were by the Beatles, and knowing my love for both groups I'm particularly excited! During a recent live Q&A on Facebook, I asked Magne if there was any chance he and the other members of A-ha would reform to provide a Beatles cover version or two for the film: it "would be a dream (and worked so well on '#9 Dream!')". His reply: "a dream within a dream... don't go all 'Inception' on my ass here!"

Jermyn (pronounced "Jeremy")
Street, London, April 97.
Photo by MB. ©Jeremy Clowe.

Well, this dreamy state of vacation is starting to wear off... I better sign off and try to get some more things done, while I have the time (yeah, yeah, yeah).

Related Links:

www.thebeatles.com

www.paulmccartney.com

"Magne to score 'Beatles' movie," A-ha-live.com, April 22, 2013

"'Kon-Tiki' Directors Score Original Beatles Songs For Upcoming Film," Deadline.com, March 20, 2013

"Beatles' 'Live at the BBC' Unlikely to Expand, But 'Top Secret' Project in The Works," Billboard, November 12, 2013

Spring Awakening

©Jeremy Clowe. All rights reserved.

Hi there. I know... I've been away from this blog for awhile. My bad. Things have gotten busy, but I hope to find more time to update you on my latest projects... even if it's just a quick note. Still have an eye on the big prize, which is what this blog is really all about.

Today I took the day off for some spring cleaning. Continuing the move from the Hudson Valley to our new digs in Schenectady... still a lot to be sorted, but things are coming along. 

In my last post I talked about my improv group, and how things were in a bit of transitionary period. Well, I'm happy to announce that we've gained surprising momentum, with some relatively new members adding to the enjoyment of carrying the group on... I mean, three straight weeks of rehearsals... imagine that! We're trying out some new things, and it is feeling good. 

This Thursday, May 16, we will try something entirely new− an event called PechaKucha, which is being held at The Berkshire Museum in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. For those not familiar, PechaKucha was started in Japan in the 2000s and is basically a presentation of 20 slides, shown for 20 seconds each (six minutes 40 seconds in total... a Powerpoint rep's dream!). The Royal Berkshire Improv Troupe has been invited to try its hand at some improv using the format... here's the catch: we won't know what slides are coming up, so it will be true improv. Of course I appreciate the visual end of things, and know from my experience creating media design over the past few years that there are a lot of crazy images out there! Show starts at 7 p.m., and there will be free adult beverages... so you can't lose.

RBIT rocks the Berkshires, 2013! Photo by Dan McManmon.
Courtesy Spectrum Playhouse. All rights reserved.

The next evening, May 17, I will return with RBIT to the Spectrum Playhouse for our monthly show, starting at 7:30 p.m. I have to give big props to the Spectrum for being most accommodating for us... the space has been great for shows and rehearsals, and they like us so much they already have us on tap for June and into the fall... it's funny... Lee, Massachusetts was never quite that exciting when I lived in the area, but cool to see the progression all the same.

Anyway, nice to have the outlet. Apart from that, I've been taking a lot of cool photos lately, and hope to share some of those with you soon. Ok, back to cleaning... and I promise I'll return here soon... xo

Related Links:

RBIT's Triple Crown Weekend, www.berkshireimprov.com

Feels Like Home

Ha ha... I have been acting goofy, and keep saying this subject line to Sarah during the holidays, but for this post it is absolutely appropriate! Tonight we entertained for the first time in our new home. Sarah's parents stopped over for a cup of tea, as well as a chance to look at our Christmas tree and what we have done with the place.

It's funny what a scheduled visit can do... I have been on a tear these past few days unpacking, cleaning, and straightening up our place to get ready (think my own Mom would be proud). I have to say, I'm quite pleased with the results. I think the artistic side in me has always liked to decorate, and definitely get organized... no matter how challenging or time-consuming, and believe me... it was. The place feels great, and I'm looking forward to a successful and creative year ahead.

Photos ©Jeremy Clowe. All rights reserved.

The Answer My Friends...

What a nice weekend. Sarah and I had a chance to reconnect with friends--by phone and in person--and enjoyed stepping out in Schenectady every night this weekend. We just got back from Proctors Theater, where we saw a staged reading of a play called Hell and High Water, that my buddy Frank took part in. This creative show was written about Hurricane Katrina, and the reading was to benefit the Actors Fund emergency relief for performing artists impacted by Super Storm Sandy. It was a strong cast, and I was impressed that they had only met twice previously to rehearse... I suppose props must go to writer/director Jamuna Yvette Sirker. I talked with Frank afterward about how hard it is to commit to a doing a full show, when you have so many other things up in the air... our improv group is a little looser, and serves as a good performing outlet, but it sure would be nice to get into another proper theater show again.

On Friday night Sarah and I caught another theater performance here in the Electric City... Schenectady Civic Players is putting on Jeffrey Hatcher's Mrs. Mannerly, which is based on the playwright's own memories of being enrolled in charm school back in the 1960s. It was a funny script, with the clever conceit of having young Jeffrey played by an adult (Randy McConnach). It is basically a two-person show, and I was impressed with McConnach's comedic timing and ability to maintain such energy throughout a 90 minute show. The last thing we saw at the Civic Players was Waiting For Godot, and they had some issues with real-life bats in their belfry... this show was memorable for other reasons, and made me tempted to start looking at the idea of performing in my new town...

Photo by John Whipple. All rights reserved.

Still settling into our new place though... a performance in itself. I think we need to host a gathering or something to motivate us to just organize this place... This weekend I did manage to finally post most of our wedding photos on Facebook... something of an achievement there. This photo to the right reminds me that we still need to retrieve our windmill, a wedding present created by Sarah's uncle... need to take one thing at a time I guess.

Get 'Er Done*

It's been a busy year but... yeah... gotta keep on movin'.

Photo by John Whipple. All rights reserved.

*Sarah hates that phrase by the way... but... tough! It's my blog. :)

Re: Assessment

Has it really been a week since the election? A certain heaviness has been lifted from the air... or make that uncertainty... not just about who would win, but what the majority of the general public was looking for in terms of policy and governing style. I'm happy to say that I seem to be on the right side of that equation this time out. 

Of course, now both sides (especially Republicans) are dissecting what went right and wrong with both candidates' campaigns. Most agree with President Obama's assessment that he might have had "the best campaign team and volunteers in the history of politics." I have heard several news reports discussing the very smart way that they focused their ground team since the last election. Even if I thought the emails about contributions could have been a little more elegant, I was always reassured by the common sense style of the President's  campaign advisor David Axelrod, during his frequent appearances on the Sunday talk shows. 

Here is a rare moment, captured on video, that the Obama team sent its supporters via email this past week. We see the President visiting his campaign headquarters in Chicago, and getting quite emotional while thanking his team:

On the flip side, it is also fascinating to hear the assessment of how Mitt Romney's team ran his campaign. NPR reporter Ari Shapiro, who followed the campaign for the past year, filed a fascinating postmortem on how the former governor's campaign seemed to get derailed on several occasions, and how his team often made rather poor choices in its attempt to get it back on track. It is not only an interesting analysis, I think it is also stellar reporting/writing... click here to listen.

So, I guess there are still plenty of interesting discussions to be had... will Obama be able to work with Congress to avoid the fiscal cliff? What will happen to the Tea Party? Who will run in 2016? What will be done about the millions that are going into political campaigns? What will be done about ongoing concerns about voter fraud and the long lines some voters had to endure this past election? All questions that will soon be answered... but for the moment, this liberal-minded voter feels relieved...

Related Links:

"'Let Mitt Be Mitt': But Who Was He?," NPR, November 9, 2012 

"Hillary's next move," The New York Times, November 11, 2012

"Stephen Gottlieb: Jajja's Kids," WAMC, November 13, 2012

Back To "Reality"...

Well, we made it back to Schenectady--bit of a long drive last night, partly because we didn't want to leave...

We spent a final day/night in Montreal--it's a creative, friendly, sexy city, filled with a lot of history--it gets better each time I visit, and we definitely covered a lot of ground on this trip. 

Yesterday's highlights included another street festival (seems like every day in the summer), joining a student-led protest (against the controversial Bill 78), shopping around the city's eclectic neighborhoods (including Chinatown), and taking in a bit of an African music festival. I find the city quite welcoming and possessing a certain bohemian vibe, which is really refreshing--I hope we can go back again soon... maybe for our anniversary!

Today it's back to reality... sorting through my things, bills, and making plans for the coming weeks... I'm about to get busy in a different sense. There's still a bit of a high though... and our wedding presents to unwrap later tonight! So in that sense, the "honeymoon" continues...