Ah, what a lovely day is it here in the City. I admit that I am obsessed with recycling and living as Green as possible, and it really yanks my chain when I see others being needlessly wasteful, littering and, in general, lacking any sense of personal responsibility. As Goethe once said, “Let everyone sweep in front of his own door, and the whole world will be clean.” It’s such a simple step to put into practice, I wonder why we aren’t taught that concept from birth. Continue reading Celebrate Earth Day With Responsible Action→
The Barbie Doll celebrates its 50th Birthday today, March 9th, 2009! Barbie Trivia: during her first year in stores, about 300,000 Barbies were sold at $3 a pop. The average price it would cost you to get one of those original dolls in good condition today: $27,450. Happy Birthday, Barbie! We all wish we had your glamorous life, amazing wardrobe, huge rack, mile-long legs and teeny tiny waist!
Just a Few of the Gazillion Incarnations of Barbie since 1959!
Swing drumming great Louie Bellson passed away on February 14th at the age of eighty-four. Initially inspired by Chick Webb and Sid Catlett, Louie found his drumming voice very early on by combining the clear melodic phrasing and rudimental soloing style of Gene Krupa with the swinging groove of Papa Jo Jones and the extraordinary speed of Buddy Rich. Besides his great technique and always-musical approach to the drums, Bellson was responsible for designing the first double bass drum setup and popularizing its use – thus pioneering a new approach that was later adopted by many rock drummers. The LA Times has a full obit on this drumming legend up now This Link.
It was this past Tuesday morning that I received an email in my box with the ominous subject heading: “Bad News.” Seeing that the email came from my editor at Metal Edge Magazine, I did not need to be a brain surgeon, or to even have a brain, to know that any email coming from an editor that promises “Bad News” even before you open it can only mean one thing – that magazine is about to fold. And so it is with the great Metal Edge, which will close-up shop on Tuesday, February 11th after sending its final issue to the printer. Phil Freeman (said editor) asked all of us newly axed writers to please keep our fat mouths shut for a week until the closing could be made official, but obviously that was too great a request, as “anonymous sources” had blabbed the news to Metal Sucks and The Daily Swarm by the following afternoon. So I don’t want anyone to think I’m late to the party here with the Breaking News. It’s just that I didn’t want to be a dick.
Lux Interior, (born Erick Lee Purkhiser) lead singer of The Cramps, passed away this morning due to an existing heart condition at Glendale Memorial Hospital in Glendale, California at 4:30 AM PST . strong>Lux has been an inspiration and influence to millions of artists and fans around the world. He and wife Poison Ivy’s contributions with The Cramps have had an immeasurable impact on modern music. Continue reading RIP Cramps’ Vocalist, Lux Interior→
