http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/ Musings on music, culture, technology and history. en-US Mon, 22 Apr 2013 09:46:34 -0400 http://www.typepad.com/ http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification noMusings on music, culture, technology and history. http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/04/telling-the-truth-is-no-longer-the-top-priority-in-journalism.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/04/telling-the-truth-is-no-longer-the-top-priority-in-journalism.html I graduated debt-free from journalism school in 1968 at a time when there were plenty of jobs and some great opportunities in the news business. I was lucky enough to work at some prestigious news organizations, including United Press International, Post-Newsweek, Gannett and the Miami Herald. In every one of those news jobs, accuracy in reporting was priority number one. At UPI, it was very simple. Make a major error in a story that’s released nationally and you were fired. There were no ifs, ands or buts. Rules like that kept you on your toes. Yes, you also had to be quick. But not so fast that you made mistakes. You were judged on a combination of both speed and accuracy. But accuracy was always the most important part of the job. It’s clear that’s no longer true. Just in the past week, the New York Post got the Boston Marathon bombing story so wrong on so many counts it was hard to believe. They reported that 12 people had died, when only three had. They reported that a Saudi man was a suspect being held “in custody” when that wasn’t true. And, perhaps worst of all, they put pictures... Current Affairs History Television TV News Web/Tech Writing Frank Beacham Mon, 22 Apr 2013 09:46:34 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/04/bob-dylans-professional-debut-was-52-years-ago-today.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/04/bob-dylans-professional-debut-was-52-years-ago-today.html Who knows how many other young men arrived in New York City in the winter of 1961 looking like James Dean and talking like Jack Kerouac? It would have been difficult to pick Bob Dylan out of the crowd at first, considering how much he had in common with the other Bohemian kids kicking around Greenwich Village. Artistic ambition? Check. Antipathy toward mainstream culture? Yes. A desire to put his middle-class identity behind him? Definitely. But the singular creative vision that would separate Dylan from the rest of his peers and change the face of popular music wasn't really in evidence yet. What Bob Dylan did have, though, in addition to his guitar and harmonica, was a unique stage presence and a vast library of American folk songs in his repertoire. On April 11, 1961—52 years ago today—he got his first real chance to put those on display with his first major gig in New York City, opening for bluesman John Lee Hooker at Gerde's Folk City. Bob Dylan had just arrived in town a few months earlier, but as the prominent producer/talent scout John Hammond would write in the liner notes of his debut album one year later, "The... History Music Frank Beacham Thu, 11 Apr 2013 10:45:23 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/04/ted-joans-and-david-amram-perform-scat-at-1994-beat-conference.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/04/ted-joans-and-david-amram-perform-scat-at-1994-beat-conference.html David Amram (at piano) and Ted Joans. Photo by Frank Beacham Ted Joans, who died in 2003, was a jazz poet, surrealist, trumpeter and painter. His work stands at the intersection of several avant-garde streams and some have seen in it a precursor to the orality of the spoken-word movement. Joans is known for his motto: "Jazz is my religion, and Surrealism is my point of view." In New York, Joans painted in a style he dubbed Jazz Action and read his poetry, developing a personal style of oral delivery called Jazz Poetry. He was a participant in the Beat Generation in Greenwich Village. He was a contemporary and friend of Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg, Leroi Jones (now known as Amiri Baraka), Gregory Corso, Diane Di Prima, Bob Kaufman, Lawrence Ferlinghetti and others. Joans shared a room for a time with the great jazz musician, Charlie Parker. His bohemian costume balls and rent parties were photographed by Fred McDarrah and Weegee. Joans' painting Bird Lives hangs in the De Young Museum in San Francisco. He was also the originator of the "Bird Lives" legend and graffiti in New York City after the death of Charlie Parker in March 1955.... History Music Frank Beacham Thu, 11 Apr 2013 10:38:44 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/04/rodriguez-brings-his-mystique-to-the-new-yorks-beacon-theatre.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/04/rodriguez-brings-his-mystique-to-the-new-yorks-beacon-theatre.html Sixto Rodriguez—in addition to sounding like Bob Dylan even on songs Dylan didn’t write—pulled off another Dylanesque move Sunday night at the Beacon Theatre in New York City. He managed to disappear on stage even while performing under the spotlight. Outside of Dylan, himself, and Sly Stone, I’ve never seen another performer so successful at hiding in plain view. In a kind of striptease act, Rodriguez came on stage in a jacket and hat, completely hiding his face for the first half of his show. Then, he removed the jacket, revealing his arms. Occasionally, when he turned to the side, you could get glimpse of his face. Finally at the end, Rodriguez removed the hat, and a for just a few minutes, revealed himself to the sold out audience. They gave him a standing ovation. His mystique, the Academy Award winning movie—Searching for Sugar Man, and a compelling set list, were a crowd pleaser in a house filled with all ages. Film Music Frank Beacham Sun, 07 Apr 2013 23:21:26 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/04/izzy-young-revisits-washington-square-park-in-greenwich-village.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/04/izzy-young-revisits-washington-square-park-in-greenwich-village.html Izzy Young, 85, is a legend in folk music circles—both in America and Sweden. He is the former owner of the Folklore Center in Greenwich Village, New York, and since 1973, he has owned and operated the Folklore Centrum store in Stockholm. In 1957, on MacDougal Street in Greenwich Village, he opened the Folklore Center, a store for books and records and everything related to folk music. It became a major hangout for folk musicians, including a very young Bob Dylan. From 1959 to 1969, Young wrote a column entitled "Fret and Frails" for the folk music journal Sing Out. He served on the "editorial advisory board" for the magazine until his departure for Sweden a few years later. Young arranged concerts with folk musicians and songwriters, who often made contacts with other musicians at the Folklore Center. Bob Dylan relates in his memoirs, Chronicles, how he spent time at the Center, where Young allowed him to sit in the backroom of the store, listening to folk music records and reading books. Dylan met Dave Van Ronk in the store, and Young produced Dylan's first concert at Carnegie Chapter Hall in 1961. Dylan wrote a song about the store and... Music Frank Beacham Thu, 04 Apr 2013 08:46:24 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/03/george-dean-pioneering-the-sc-national-guard.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/03/george-dean-pioneering-the-sc-national-guard.html During my long quest to learn the truth about the Orangeburg Massacre, I was given many tips. Most led to dead-ends. One of vital importance to the story would take more than five years to pay off. George Dean, a lifelong resident of Orangeburg, owned and operated a men’s clothing store at 1185 Russell Street. In 1968, he was the only black member of the South Carolina National Guard. I phoned him at his store on Sept. 8, 2000 after being told he had been called to duty during the days prior to the shooting. I asked his help in putting together the still missing pieces of the massacre story. Though extremely polite, Dean was cautious and hesitant. Yes, he was the only black Guardsman on duty in Orangeburg. He had driven a jeep that shuttled key personnel to the central communications facility and had protected the Guard’s main ammunition storage depot. However, he was conflicted and told me he couldn’t reveal what he knew. The reasons: he had kids in college and a mortgage on his business. There might be a price to pay for his going public with details on the shooting, and he couldn’t jeopardize his family’s... Activism Books History Writing Frank Beacham Fri, 01 Mar 2013 12:48:46 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/02/george-lineberry-inventor-of-shags-belly-roll-introduced-black-music-on-the-carolina-beaches.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/02/george-lineberry-inventor-of-shags-belly-roll-introduced-black-music-on-the-carolina-beaches.html “Big George” Lineberry (left) and Harry Driver in 1994 at Fat Harold's Beach Club in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Lineberry invented the “belly roll” and Driver the “smooth pivot” in the shag, the state dance of the Carolinas. Photo by Frank Beacham --- Due to the unique ploy of a talented young white dancer, George Lineberry, black music found its way onto the jukeboxes in the white dance halls and pavilions along the Carolina beaches after World War II. “Big George,” as he was nicknamed, was hired to install records on the coin-operated jukeboxes, then called “piccolos,” for a local amusements company in Myrtle Beach. Lineberry was told which records to place on specific jukeboxes. Playlists were strict in this time of segregation. Black music in the day was forbidden from the jukeboxes in white establishments and was designated for black clubs only. Lineberry ignored his bosses and took it upon himself to switch records, placing the most popular black records from the jukeboxes in the black clubs, including Charlie’s Place, to the jukeboxes in the white dance halls. It was this switcharoo by a single young worker that changed music along the coast for generations to come. Big George,... Music Writing Frank Beacham Fri, 22 Feb 2013 09:15:34 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/02/the-sad-story-of-iona-cannon.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/02/the-sad-story-of-iona-cannon.html I saw Sue Cannon Hill for the first time on television. Her grief-stricken words in the documentary, The Uprising of ’34, upset me. Teary and emotionally fragile, she told in a gripping interview how the management at the local textile mill—led by my grandfather—had nearly destroyed her family. But when she spoke his name, she put a knife through me. I’d never heard my family name spoken that way. “Beacham.” Contempt dripped from the word. To her, it was the name of a mass murderer, the man who killed her father, Claude Cannon, and destroyed her mother. It was a name she’d never forget...or forgive. In late 1994, I was planning to return to South Carolina for the Christmas holidays. I wrote a letter to Sue Hill, telling her who I was. I apologized for what my grandfather had done. I told her I had been surprised to learn what happened to her father and mother, and wanted to know more. I asked what I could do to make things right. Would she allow me to visit? Could we talk about it? A couple of weeks went by before I heard back from her. I later learned that she, like... History Writing Frank Beacham Thu, 21 Feb 2013 09:04:54 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/02/lois-mcclain-keeps-a-deadly-60-year-secret.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/02/lois-mcclain-keeps-a-deadly-60-year-secret.html While working on “Small Town Secret,” this photo of young Lois McClain, made by an unknown photographer, was identified for me by McClain’s daughter, Jessie Mae Holder. The bullet from McClain’s bleeding left hand, after being shot at Chiquola Mill in my hometown of Honea Path, South Carolina on Sept. 6, 1934 was never removed and was still intact when she died at age 91 in 1993. Eventually, mother of five children, “Granny Lois” McClain, as she was called, worked in the mill in Honea Path through her mid 70s, while also serving as a volunteer midwife, seamstress and cook for local townspeople nearly all of her life. Some years after the shooting, Tom Stalcup, a Chiquola millworker, revealed that he had shot McClain and asked for her forgiveness, which she granted. Stalcup, who said my grandfather, Dan Beacham, ordered the mill shooting as superintendent, later became Sunday School teacher for McClain’s daughter at the Church of God in Honea Path. His son, Virgil Stalcup, went on to play shortstop for the Boston Red Sox and the Cincinnati Reds. Never in her life did McClain, or her husband, Cowan, also a millworker, discuss the shooting or the mill violence with... History Photography Writing Frank Beacham Sun, 17 Feb 2013 07:17:15 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/02/to-understand-the-great-accomplishments-of-the-singer-paul-robeson-its-important-to-know-the-historysen-strom-thurmon.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/02/to-understand-the-great-accomplishments-of-the-singer-paul-robeson-its-important-to-know-the-historysen-strom-thurmon.html To understand the great accomplishments of the singer Paul Robeson, it’s important to know the history. Sen. Strom Thurmond, the segregationist South Carolina politician, viciously attacked Robeson in 1948. Thurmond charged that the popular performer “has been going all over the country demanding that we abolish segregation, and to show his contempt for our way of life in the South, he married his son off to a white girl.” Robeson, one of the era’s most talented, articulate, and politically active public figures, had risked his life to tour small towns throughout the South in 1948 on behalf of the progressive presidential candidate Henry Wallace. Thurmond, as that year’s presidential candidate of the segregationist Dixiecrat party, represented everything Robeson abhorred. Robeson, however, was a black man that Thurmond couldn’t intimidate, and the eloquent intellectual knew how to get under the governor’s skin. Cheerfully singing his way through the deep South, Robeson attacked the Thurmond-led Dixiecrats as “powerful reactionaries who hope to stamp out the militant struggle of the Negro for complete freedom, equality and civil rights [and who] hope to keep all the wealth for themselves.” Framing the “black belt of the South” as the area that would decide whether the... History Music Theatre Writing Frank Beacham Sat, 16 Feb 2013 07:37:31 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/02/wild-history-kickstarter-project-is-launched.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2013/02/wild-history-kickstarter-project-is-launched.html My first Kickstarter project—“Wild History”—is now in progress. For friends and readers of this blog, this interactive multimedia journalism project is the culmination of a complex 20-plus year personal effort. It has been totally self-funded and came after a long career as a professional journalist. The work was triggered by my deep frustration in the decline of most mass market journalistic storytelling. It is no secret that during recent years the integrity of most news and information programming has fallen dramatically. No longer can we trust mass media—whether television, print or web sites—to bring us truthful, fair or unbiased reporting. Those with money and special interests now control most media outlets. So I created the “Wild History” project. The term “wild history” comes from Chinese scholars who divided historical works into two distinct genres. Official histories were called “zhengshi.” Unofficial histories, or literally “wild histories” were called “yeshi.” They were based on eyewitness accounts, personal remembrances and popular lore. These “wild histories” were more truthful and fluid—catching “life on the wing.” As a storyteller, I categorize myself as a “wild historian.” Through the years, as I researched and developed my true stories, I have collected film and video, photographs and... Activism Books History Photography Web/Tech Writing Frank Beacham Wed, 13 Feb 2013 08:52:45 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/12/david-amram-imparts-a-musical-living-history-of-greenwich-village.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/12/david-amram-imparts-a-musical-living-history-of-greenwich-village.html Over the past year, Bob Porco, the grandson of Gerde’s Folk City owner Mike Porco, has promoted a series of concerts at the original Gaslight Cafe in Greenwich Village, bringing back acts from the 60s who created the folk music revolution of that era. There have been some wonderful performances, ranging from Delta blues to jazz, with a heavy dose of great stories about the historic Gaslight and the many famous people who played and listened to music there. But perhaps the best of the year came just before Christmas from David Amram, a composer, musician and master storyteller who worked with virtually every important artist of the past 50 years. Amram, now 82 but not showing it, is a living history book. He has worked with—believe it or not—Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie, Lionel Hampton, Willie Nelson, Bob Dylan, Jack Kerouac, Langston Hughes, Charles Mingus, Pepper Adams, Leonard Bernstein, Sir James Galway, Tito Puente, Mary Lou Williams, Joseph Papp, Arthur Miller, Miles Davis, Arturo Sandoval, Stan Getz, Pete Seeger, Elia Kazan, Odetta, Lord Buckley, Dustin Hoffman, Steve Allen, Machito, Earl "Fatha" Hines, Allen Ginsberg, Nina Simone, Gregory Corso, Steve Goodman, Hunter Thompson and Johnny Depp—just to name a... History Music Frank Beacham Sun, 16 Dec 2012 15:33:45 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/10/the-sad-loss-of-george-mcgovern.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/10/the-sad-loss-of-george-mcgovern.html It is with great sadness that I write of the death of Senator George McGovern. He was 90 years old and his advanced age simply caught up with him. But George McGovern, as the movie line went, was some kind of man. He was the first and only candidate I ever truly supported for president. He would have been a great one, but—up against the likes of Richard M. Nixon—he wasn’t vicious enough to get to the White House. Since he ran in 1968, we’ve had no one—and I mean no one—of his character and caliber. It is hard not to be wistful about how far our national politics has fallen since 1968. I knew McGovern, followed his work and reported on it, listened to his speeches, had a few drinks with him and always admired him. When in college—being from the still impoverished state of South Carolina—I came to Washington to report on McGovern’s hearings on hunger. In 1968, I was a very green 20-year-old reporter, but I could not help being impressed. Yes, McGovern was a liberal of the highest order—one who wanted to help poor people live a better life. And, yes, even then he was attacked... Activism Politics Frank Beacham Sun, 21 Oct 2012 07:54:18 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/09/folk-reunion-at-washington-square-park-in-new-york-city.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/09/folk-reunion-at-washington-square-park-in-new-york-city.html The Washington Square Folk Reunion was held Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012, at Washington Square Park in New York City. Less than two hours after it started, rain came—forcing the contingent to squeeze under the arch. Here are some video clips shot before the rain came. History Music Frank Beacham Sun, 30 Sep 2012 16:35:07 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/09/the-man-who-took-the-great-pictures-from-outer-space.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/09/the-man-who-took-the-great-pictures-from-outer-space.html After a talk by astronaut Don Pettit at a photography conference in New York City this week, someone in the audience tweeted: “For someone who spent a year in space, Dr. Pettit is a down to earth guy.” When the message was read, the audience burst into applaud. Many had already had one-on-one talks with Pettit at lunch at the Luminance conference and found him an incredibly accessible, ready to answer any question, and well—as said—a genuinely “down to earth guy.” Pettit is a chemical engineer and astronaut who, in three stays over the past decade, spent more than a year on the International Space Station. He worked as a scientist at the Los Alamos National Laboratory until 1996, when he was selected as an astronaut candidate. In addition to all his other skills and adventures, Pettit is a passionate amateur photographer. Yes, NASA trains all astronauts in photography, but doesn’t assign photography duties in space. “It’s more of a hobby thing,” Pettit said. “There are some astronauts who—if the camera wasn't set to "P"—would never be able to take a picture. It's a personal thing for me. I enjoyed photography before becoming an astronaut and continued to grow and... Art Photography Science Frank Beacham Fri, 14 Sep 2012 17:50:50 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/09/joan-osborne-haunted-with-bob-dylans-joy.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/09/joan-osborne-haunted-with-bob-dylans-joy.html Joan Osborne says she is “haunted” by the new, joyous Bob Dylan. Osborne, who performed Wednesday night at the City Winery in New York City, was in the audience to see Dylan’s performance at Bethel Woods on Sept. 2. Even though she has performed with Dylan in the past, she—like so many others in recent concerts—couldn’t believe how much fun Dylan seemed to having on stage. This carried over to the Port Chester concert Tuesday at the Capitol Theatre, where Dylan smiled often and jumped around the stage constantly throughout the show. On Sept. 5, Osborne performed a Dylan song—“Every Grain of Sand” with Amy Helm, Levon’s daughter. She closed the show, with Dylan’s “Make You Feel My Love.” Music Frank Beacham Thu, 06 Sep 2012 07:56:09 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/09/bob-dylan-re-opens-the-capitol-theatre-in-port-chester-new-york.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/09/bob-dylan-re-opens-the-capitol-theatre-in-port-chester-new-york.html Port Chester, New York’s Capitol Theatre, in the 1970s, was a great performance space for rock and roll. The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Janis Joplin, Traffic, David Bowie and Phish played there. The Grateful Dead played the theatre 18 times in one year from 1970 to 71. Jerry Garcia, the Dead’s guitarist, called it one of the best two performance spaces in the nation along with Fillmore West in San Francisco. The great theatre was designed by noted theater architect Thomas W. Lamb and built in 1926. It was constructed for vaudeville and cinema and continued as a movie theater until 1970, after which it was renovated for use as a performance space. In 1984, The Capitol Theatre was added to the National Register of Historic Places. By 1976, however, the theatre was shut down due to a village ordinance that prohibited live entertainment after 1 a.m. It was at this time that mother nature became the sole owner of the Capitol Theatre. The roof decayed, and pigeons made the stage their new home. The theatre remained dark until the early 80’s. Last December, it was announced that the Capitol would be re-opened by music entrepreneur Peter Shapiro, who would... History Music Frank Beacham Wed, 05 Sep 2012 06:37:26 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/07/george-stoney-changing-a-town-and-the-lives-of-its-people-forever.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/07/george-stoney-changing-a-town-and-the-lives-of-its-people-forever.html George Stoney, the great documentary filmmaker, has died at age 96. Though he had made films since the early 1950s, Stoney made one in 1995 that turned my world upside down. The Uprising of ’34, made with his former student, Judith Helfand, was about the Textile Strike of 1934. In it was a section about how, on September 6, 1934, seven workers were shot and killed and 30 others wounded at the Chiquola Mill in my home town of Honea Path, South Carolina. It was an act that has shaped the town’s history and attitudes in ways that few could have imagined. I had a special interest in the film because my late grandfather, Dan Beacham, Honea Path’s mayor and superintendent of the mill in 1934, organized the gunmen who fired their weapons at the workers. That day became known as “Bloody Thursday.” My grandfather died in 1936, many years before I was born. When I was growing up in Honea Path during the 1960s, the subject of the mill violence was taboo. There were hints of what happened, of course, but the topic was never discussed in the open. I learned the truth about Honea Path’s history in 1994... Activism History Politics Television Frank Beacham Mon, 16 Jul 2012 07:47:24 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/06/fox-and-cnn-get-the-supreme-court-ruling-wrong.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/06/fox-and-cnn-get-the-supreme-court-ruling-wrong.html It is remarkable to me how people continue to watch, defend and put up with the sorry state of television news. When I worked at United Press International in the 1970s, we had very difficult desegregation busing decisions that required quick, but thorough analysis. If I had gotten a decision wrong on the UPI wire, I would have been fired then and there. That’s no longer the case. Both Fox News and CNN got the story flat wrong. In their rush to get the news out, coupled with their built-in bias as to what the decision would be, both networks initially reported that the Supreme Court had struck down the law’s individual mandate. Of course they were wrong, because the opposite actually happened. “The mandate is gone,” Shannon Bream, a Fox News correspondent, announced at 10:08 a.m. as a graphic flashed on the screen that called it unconstitutional. A moment later, one of the Fox anchors, Megyn Kelly, cautioned that Bream might be wrong. “We’re getting conflicting information,” Kelly said, while reading from Scotus blog, an a web site about the court. Citing the blog, she accurately told viewers that “the individual mandate is surviving as a tax.” At the... Current Affairs Politics Television TV News Frank Beacham Fri, 29 Jun 2012 09:06:35 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/06/jug-music-makes-a-return-to-the-village-gaslight.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/06/jug-music-makes-a-return-to-the-village-gaslight.html Canon's Jug Stompers in 1928 --- Early jug bands in this country were usually formed by African American vaudeville and medicine show musicians, beginning in the 1920s. They played a mix of traditional and home-made instruments—ordinary objects adapted or modified for the making of sound, like the washtub bass, washboard, spoons, stovepipe and kazoo. Beginning in the urban south early in the last century, these bands played a mixture of Memphis blues (even before it was formally called the blues), ragtime and jazz. The informal and energetic music of the jug bands also contributed to the development of rock and roll. The well known Memphis jug bands were small street groups, performing mainly on Beale Street, and had their own blues style—using guitar, harmonica, banjo and a jug to accompany their blues and dance songs. Then, with the Great Depression, jug bands mostly disappeared. They made a resurgence in the late 1950s as part of the folk music revival in Greenwich Village. One of the first recordings of the folk era jug band revival was by The Orange Blossom Jug Five, made in 1958. It was also the first recording by folksinger Dave Van Ronk, and featured Sam Charters, author... History Music Frank Beacham Sun, 24 Jun 2012 12:18:22 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/05/a-new-york-tribute-to-the-legacy-of-rev-gary-davis-40-years-after-his-death.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/05/a-new-york-tribute-to-the-legacy-of-rev-gary-davis-40-years-after-his-death.html To visit Laurens, South Carolina today, one would never know it had much of a rich musical heritage. With a population of less than 10,000 people, one of the town’s most famous stops these days is the Red Neck Shop and Ku Klux Klan museum. In the front of a converted movie theatre in the center of downtown Laurens, tourists can buy neo-Nazi clothing, KKK robes, T-shirts with Confederate flags and anti-Obama “Satan in the White House” propaganda from former Klan leader John Howard. Then they enter the museum, where one sees a shocking display of hate. The place has been popular for years. Ironically, the movie theatre that houses the Red Neck Shop is owned by a black minister and civil rights leader. The minister bought the building at a good price, agreeing to allow the Klan museum to stay for the life of its owner, John Howard. People shake their heads when they hear this, but it’s the kind of unnatural arrangement that seems to happen too frequently in the deep South. In 1820, Andrew Johnson, who became the 17th President of the United States, owned and operated a tailor shop on the Laurens town square near the... History Music Frank Beacham Sun, 27 May 2012 18:59:20 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/05/happy-71st-birthday-bob-dylan.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/05/happy-71st-birthday-bob-dylan.html Photo of Bob Dylan at the Rolling Thunder Review by Frank Beacham on April 25, 1976 at Gainesville, Florida. History Music Frank Beacham Thu, 24 May 2012 07:42:46 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/05/hr3rare-youthful-talent-hits-a-new-york-stage.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/05/hr3rare-youthful-talent-hits-a-new-york-stage.html Very rarely in this life does one get to see—up close and personal—an eruption of singular young talent that is both mesmerizing and thrilling. But last night, I had such a moment in a small New York City nightclub at the American musical debut of two 20-year-old Canadians—guitarist Julien Sandiford and drummer Max Lazich. Teamed with veteran bass player, Hansford Rowe, this new trio is called HR3. What was barely contained on this small stage at 78 Below on Columbus Ave. was a musical tour de force driven by three talented improvisational artists. Julien Sandiford—remember that name—is an extraordinary guitarist who is already among the best in the business. Yet, he’s only 20-years-old, and has been playing seriously since he was 12. He practices five to seven hours a day and can play anything, including even what he doesn’t know. (“He doesn’t know this song well, but you’ll never know it,” Rowe quipped.) Julien Sandiford Max Lazich is the drummer. He’s also 20. He met Sandiford when they were students at Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec. The pair then met Hansford Rowe, a professional bassist who has been a member of Pierre Moerlen’s Gong, Gongzilla and a project called Moment... Music Frank Beacham Fri, 18 May 2012 09:19:02 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/05/amy-coleman-a-stellar-blues-performer-from-brooklyn.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/05/amy-coleman-a-stellar-blues-performer-from-brooklyn.html What makes a great blues singer? The very question reminds me of the quip by the Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart when asked to describe his threshold for what is pornography. “I know it when I see it,” he snapped, instantly stamping into law books the subjective and lack of clearly defined parameters that surround certain slippery subjects. I know Etta James, Janis Joplin, Alberta Hunter, Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey, Ethel Waters, Victoria Spivey, Mahalia Jackson and Sister Rosetta Tharpe were great blues singers. Each of the bodies of these amazing performers was imbued with the blues as they sang with shouts, moans, wails and groans in their sad, melancholy way. They made the blues come alive. While the blues originated in African-American communities in the deep South at the beginning of the 20th Century, it spread fast. Delta, Piedmont, Jump and Chicago blues developed. Then, after World War II, the electric blues. Somehow, along the way, the blues hit Brooklyn, New York, and last night I saw a blues performer from that unlikely place that I would rank with the very best. “I know it when I see it.” Her name is Amy Coleman and she’s not a newcomer.... Music Frank Beacham Sun, 13 May 2012 08:34:15 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/04/friends-of-mike-porco-bring-folk-music-back-to-greenwich-village.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/04/friends-of-mike-porco-bring-folk-music-back-to-greenwich-village.html There’s little question that a room with a rich history sets a certain ambience for an event. The Gaslight Cafe was a coffee house located in the basement of 116 MacDougal Street in Greenwich Village with just that history. It started as a "basket house" where unpaid performers would pass around a basket at the end of each set and hope to be paid. Opened in 1958, the dark, steamy, subterranean Gaslight had showcased beat poets Allen Ginsberg and Gregory Corso, but later became a folk-music club. Among those who performed at the Gaslight were Bob Dylan, Bill Cosby, Bruce Springsteen, Richie Havens, Jose Feliciano, Tom Paxton, Phil Ochs, Eric Andersen, John Herald, Ralph Rinzler, The Greenbriar Boys and Dave Van Ronk. The first public "electric" appearance of The Blues Project (with Danny Kalb) took place at the club. Mississippi John Hurt played there. Jimi Hendrix sat in one night at the Gaslight with John Hammond, Jr. An array of musicians also performed at the club in the late 1960s and early 1970s, including Odetta, Mississippi Fred McDowell, Bonnie Raitt, Rev. Gary Davis, Big Mama Thornton, Link Wray, Mimi Farina, Charles Mingus, Happy and Artie Traum, Doug Kershaw, Bob Neuwirth... Music Frank Beacham Sun, 29 Apr 2012 07:58:30 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/04/the-death-of-levon-helms-leaves-a-huge-void-in-americana-music.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/04/the-death-of-levon-helms-leaves-a-huge-void-in-americana-music.html The loss of Levon Helm is devastating. He was an American icon. "A drummer who could make you cry," his own bandmates said. I feel so lucky to have experienced so many of his concerts and to have visited his home in Woodstock, New York to attend a Midnight Ramble. It was one of the best experiences one can have today in music. Audiences were invited to Levon’s "Barn,” which was actually a performance space and recording studio attached to Levon’s home. There is plenty of seating and a cozy fireplace to keep warm in the winter. Levon’s dog, Muddy, often greeted guests. The Midnight Ramble Sessions were based on the southern medicine shows of Levon’s youth. Since they began in 2004, Levon has invited some of the most notable blues entertainers and musicians of the era to perform at his home. I have no idea if the Rambles will continue, but I know they will not be the same without Levon. To one of the great musicians of this era and a man who gave me hours of pleasure, I can only say rest in peace. Here, on January 15, 2011, a line waits to get into Levon’s Ramble... Current Affairs Music Frank Beacham Fri, 20 Apr 2012 08:43:41 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/03/musicians-honor-the-rolling-stones-hot-rocks-album-at-carnegie-hall-concert.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/03/musicians-honor-the-rolling-stones-hot-rocks-album-at-carnegie-hall-concert.html It was billed as the music of the Rolling Stones and the entire concert consisted of a list of major artists performing one song each from the group's "Hot Rocks" album, a compilation of Stone's hits from 1964-1971. As with most such one-song-per-act benefit concerts, it was hit and miss—with the tried and true veterans delivering the best performances. Here's a brief photo essay, made from the nose bleed seats. And I mean that. I was in the very back row at the furtherest point from the stage in Carnegie Hall. Marianne Faithfull sings "As Tears Go By" Steve Earle sings "Mother's Little Helper" Art Garfunkel sings "Ruby Tuesday" Jackson Browne performs "Lets Spend the Night Together" Rickie Lee Jones sings "Sympathy for the Devil" Taj Mahal sings "Honky Tonk Woman" Rosanne Cash sings "Gimme Shelter" Marc Cohn with the help of Rosanne Cash and Jackson Browne sing "Wild Horses" Music Frank Beacham Wed, 14 Mar 2012 07:36:18 -0400 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/03/civil-war-buff-becomes-lieutenant-governor-of-south-carolina.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/03/civil-war-buff-becomes-lieutenant-governor-of-south-carolina.html In another bizarre event in my home state of South Carolina, former state Sen. Glenn McConnell, an avid civil war enthusiast, has ascended to lieutenant governor of the state after the indictment and conviction of the current Republican holding that office. Former Lt. Gov. Ken Ard pleaded guilty Friday to criminal charges of spending campaign funds on personal expenses and fabricating donations. That money went for things like iPads, clothes, football tickets and family vacations, the indictment said. By state law, this left McConnell, as President Pro Tempore of the state senate, to become the state's new second in command. McConnell is a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, Secession Camp #4. The Sons of Confederate Veterans were charged in 1906 by Lt. General Stephen Dill Lee, Commander General of the United Confederate Veterans, with "the vindication of the cause for which we fought." In 2000, when the Confederate flag was brought down from atop the dome of the State House, McConnell successfully advocated flying another Confederate flag from a flagpole in the front of the Statehouse, on the grounds, near the Confederate Soldier Monument. He rejected the suggestion that the Confederate flag be placed in a glass case... Current Affairs History Politics Frank Beacham Sat, 10 Mar 2012 08:06:35 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/02/louisiana-red-is-dead-at-79.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/02/louisiana-red-is-dead-at-79.html Louisiana Red, another of the original bluesmen, has died of a stroke at age 79. He recorded more than 50 albums and was best known for his song, “Sweet Blood Call.” His birth name was Iverson Minter. His mother died of pneumonia shortly after his birth and his father was lynched by Ku Klux Klansmen when he was only five. He recorded for Chess Records in 1949 and was then drafted into the army. Later, he played with John Lee Hooker for two years in Detroit and was then signed to Checker, billed as Tommy Tucker. Red recorded and toured throughout the '60's and '70's recording for Chess, Checker, Atlas, Glover, Roulette, L&R and Tomato and won a WC Handy award in 1983 as Best Traditional Blues Male Artist. Last year, he released "Memphis Mojo" to broad public acclaim. To promote that recording, he toured Europe from his home base in Hanover, Germany, where he had lived since 1981. In the image above, he was photographed by Frank Beacham performing at B.B. King's club in New York City on Sept. 30, 2005. Current Affairs Music Frank Beacham Wed, 29 Feb 2012 06:02:19 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/01/beware-much-of-local-tv-news-is-fake.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/01/beware-much-of-local-tv-news-is-fake.html You probably didn’t know it, but much of the local television news you see is produced by corporations and not journalists. Stories are made to look like news, but they are actually disguised commercials trying to sell you something. The practice is also perfectly legal, if the station buries the info about the fake reporting at the end of the newscast during the fast-moving credits. Otherwise, it could face a $10,000 fine. This issue has been going on a long time. But don’t expect to hear about it on your local news. A few years ago, several public interest groups complained to the Federal Communications Commission that television news operations were including commercial content in newscasts disguised as news. Now, the FCC is reacting, proposing a new regulation that would require all broadcast stations to disclose on the Internet all corporate interests behind their news content. The FCC has determined that TV newscasts are increasingly seeded with corporate advertising masquerading as news, though the news program is portrayed as the work of independent journalists. Increasingly, paying companies are shaping news coverage at broadcast stations. The FCC would change the rule from disclosure in the closing credits to making television stations... Television TV News Web/Tech Frank Beacham Sun, 29 Jan 2012 10:36:27 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/01/stop-sopa-and-pipa-before-it-destroys-the-internet.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/01/stop-sopa-and-pipa-before-it-destroys-the-internet.html Most of us know that our Congress is corrupt. Money from corporate interests has infiltrated the entire body, making even the "best" members often use very bad judgement. The large media companies are pushing SOPA and PIPA, two bills that will allow private corporations to shut down web sites they suspect of stealing their content. Passage would be the end of a free Internet. Today, many web sites are on strike. Go here and register your complaint with Congress. We live in dangerous times and this one of them. PROTECT IP / SOPA Breaks The Internet from Fight for the Future on Vimeo. Current Affairs Web/Tech Frank Beacham Wed, 18 Jan 2012 09:02:16 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/01/hostess-makers-of-kid-show-goodies-files-for-bankruptcy.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/01/hostess-makers-of-kid-show-goodies-files-for-bankruptcy.html Sorry, Doodyville, one of Howdy’s most dedicated sponsors from the 1950s has filed for bankruptcy. Hostess Brands, makers of Hostess Creme-Filled Cupcakes, Twinkies and Ding Dongs — not to mention Wonder Bread — has assets of about $1 billion but is struggling under a debt load of $860 million. A privately held company located in Irving, Texas, Hostess became a staple junk food maker for kids, who grew up sneaking Twinkies and Hostess cupcakes when no one was looking after seeing them on TV's kid shows, like Howdy Doody. High-end restaurants took to duplicating the cupcakes as desserts in later years, playing on the nostalgia. Buffalo Bob once told me he did private “blue” dress rehearsals for executives of the sponsors, which no doubt included Hostess. Later, when I was older I worked on the floor crew of “Mr. Knozit,” a kid show run by Joe Pinner, at WIS-TV in Columbia, S.C. On this show, Joe had to tear a slice of Wonder Break straight down the middle to prove how fresh it was. The trick worked because I would go to the factory and get the freshest loaves of bread available for the show. Otherwise, the bread would never... History Television Frank Beacham Wed, 11 Jan 2012 10:28:32 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/01/nrbqs-drummer-tom-ardolino-dies.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/01/nrbqs-drummer-tom-ardolino-dies.html NRBQ Drummer Tom Ardolino died on Jan. 6 at age 56, according to the band's website. I photographed Tom on a cruise ship in New York Harbor on Aug. 19, 2010 when he was backing the great guitarist Hubert Sumlin, who also recently died. Ardolino joined NRBQ (for New Rhythm and Blues Quartet) in 1974 and played on 15 studio recordings. Though the group had limited mainstream followers, it had major music figures in its fan base, including Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney, Bonnie Raitt and Elvis Costello. Music Frank Beacham Sat, 07 Jan 2012 15:16:09 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/01/bob-dylan-and-joan-baez-at-the-rolling-thunder-review.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2012/01/bob-dylan-and-joan-baez-at-the-rolling-thunder-review.html I took this picture at Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Review in Gainesville, Florida on April 25, 1976. Dylan is pictured with Joan Baez. I had no camera at the time and paid a fellow sitting next to me $10 to borrow his camera and to purchase one roll of film. Well worth it, I think! Art History Music Photography Frank Beacham Tue, 03 Jan 2012 05:38:10 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/12/the-operative-word-is-grace-in-christina-haags-come-to-the-edge.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/12/the-operative-word-is-grace-in-christina-haags-come-to-the-edge.html The dictionary defines the word “grace” as elegance or beauty of form, manner, motion or action. After reading Christina Haag’s magnificent book, “Come to the Edge,” that definition has expanded for me to two very public members of the Kennedy family: John Jr. and Jackie. One of John F. Kennedy Jr.’s college roommates perhaps put it best at his funeral, after he died in an airplane crash in 1999 at the age of 38: “He was an ordinary boy in extraordinary circumstances. And he lived his life with grace.” For five years Kennedy was Christina Haag’s lover. In dream-like prose—with details like the color of the leaves and the name of every plant in sight—Haag takes us on a detailed journey of his privileged and adventurous life. At its core, this book is a tale of unresolved love between two lifelong friends in their mid 20’s. It’s a great read on this level alone. Unfortunately, as with so many such relationships, the affair doesn’t last. It was perhaps for the best. Haag becomes an actress and a best-selling author, and Kennedy, sadly at age 38, crashes his small plane off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, killing his wife, Carolyn Bessette,... Art Books Current Affairs History Frank Beacham Wed, 28 Dec 2011 09:30:33 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/12/reuniting-with-the-urb-brothers.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/12/reuniting-with-the-urb-brothers.html It was the late 1980s and I was living in Los Angeles. From time to time, I worked on projects with the late Paul Rothchild, producer of The Doors, Janis Joplin, Neil Young, Joni Mitchell, the Paul Butterfield Blues Band and many others. He introduced me to the Urb Brothers, a duo who had won notoriety in Estonia during the Soviet era there and had defected to the United States. The Urbs had an amazing story. Tarmo Urb once spent five years in and out of Soviet jails in an effort by the government to silence his voice. It was only when younger brother Thomas (who, during Tarmo's incarceration, had made his mark as an actor in the Soviet film industry) wrote a pleading letter to then President Gorbachev that Tarmo was finally released...only to face an assassination attempt by the KGB, an attempt that failed when the operation's chief officer became a fan of the Urb's music and message, allowing the brothers to defect by the skin of their teeth. Urbs in 1971 I visited with the Urbs on Venice Beach and actually pitched one of them to act in a movie I was then trying to get made... Activism Art Music Frank Beacham Sun, 18 Dec 2011 20:33:18 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/12/hubert-sumlin-one-of-the-worlds-most-influential-chicago-blues-guitarists-is-dead.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/12/hubert-sumlin-one-of-the-worlds-most-influential-chicago-blues-guitarists-is-dead.html Hubert Sumlin, 80, guitarist for the legendary Howlin’ Wolf from 1954 to 1976, died of heart failure on Sunday in a hospital in Wayne, New Jersey. One of the world’s most influential Chicago blues guitarists, Sumlin’s playing was characterized by “wrenched, shattering bursts of notes, sudden cliff-hanger silences and daring rhythmic suspensions,” said Guitar World magazine in naming Sumlin one of the 100 top guitarists of all time. With the aid of an oxygen tank due to removal of a lung in 2004, Sumlin played frequently, especially around the New York City area. One of the more pleasant venues were his summer Rockin' the River cruises through New York harbor. The last, in 2010, he played with guitarist Jimmy Vivino, singer David Johansen and John Sebastian of Lovin’ Spoonful fame. Hubert Sumlin with David Johansen --- Born in Greenwood, Mississippi, Sumlin first met Howlin’ Wolf by sneaking into one of his performances as a kid. When Wolf relocated from Memphis to Chicago in 1953, his long-time guitarist Willie Johnson chose not to join him. In 1954, Wolf invited Sumlin to relocate to Chicago to play with his Chicago-based band. Sumlin became the primary guitarist in Wolf’s band, a position he... Current Affairs History Music Frank Beacham Mon, 05 Dec 2011 05:07:52 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/12/on-the-great-film-director-ken-russell.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/12/on-the-great-film-director-ken-russell.html Film Frank Beacham Fri, 02 Dec 2011 18:00:34 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/12/carol-dickmans-yoga-dvds-can-help-older-people.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/12/carol-dickmans-yoga-dvds-can-help-older-people.html I don’t usually hawk commercial items on this blog, so please excuse this unusual exception. It’s unusual because it involves two friends—one the seller and the other a buyer. Carol Dickman, a yoga teacher, makes DVDs aimed at helping older people. She sent her programs to a client, Ann Ruckert, a musician living in New York City. Ann wrote back to Carol, telling this story: “How do you tell someone that you would not be able to walk without her programs? I’m working hard and if were not for Carol's DVDs, I would be in serious trouble. Each morning I use “Bed Top Yoga” while still in bed and work the whole program. Then to the next plateau, I work out with “Seated Yoga.” Ann went on: “Ta-da, now I am on my feet, in a hot shower, finishing with a cold shower. It takes close to four hours to be off and running, but I do not want to be stuck in a wheel chair…or worse. Keep moving has become my mantra. Thanks for all of your help.” Endorsements don’t come much better than that. Perhaps Ann’s experience can determine if those same DVDs can be of help to... Frank Beacham Thu, 01 Dec 2011 08:10:35 -0500 http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/11/dan-rather-money-owns-news-today.html http://www.beachamjournal.com/journal/2011/11/dan-rather-money-owns-news-today.html On November 22, Dan Rather received the Committee to Protect Journalists' Burton Benjamin Memorial Award for 2011 at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City. What follows is the speech he gave upon accepting the prestigious award. It is well worth reading by anyone who consumes today's news. One of Bud Benjamin's dreams was to expand the CBS Evening News to a full hour. And Bud wasn't thinking of filling it with helicopter shots, celebrity gossip and punditry. He imagined an entire hour brimming with investigative reporting, exposés and dispatches from around the world. It was a different time in journalism. A time when professional duty was patriotic, and the freedom of the press motivated and inspired newsrooms. I know it is hard to believe - but it's true - newsrooms were not supposed to turn a profit. Frankly, news was considered an acceptable loss on the balance sheet. To keep our FCC license and the public trust, we had to use the public's airwaves in the public interest. Yes, that's a whole lot of "public." But that's the way it was. It's the way it should be again. Today, how we look and how we "present" information has become far... Activism Current Affairs History Television TV News Web/Tech Writing Frank Beacham Wed, 30 Nov 2011 08:24:18 -0500 nonadult