Blogspotting…Joe Ely, and Strange Things, Indeed…

Well, I must apologize for my horrific grammar and lack of editing skills in my last post, but my feelings, attitudes, behaviors, and other stuff are finally starting to be back in my control. A week has passed since my being in hospital, and I’m doing better.

Not out of the woods yet—I’m still extraordinarily tired. My insides are still feeling the force of the procedure, and the stent, and all that other stuff. Pain is gone though, other than the occasional rumbling of my pancreas and stomach. Fun.

Anyway, I’m doing better and I cannot complain, because in earlier days I would have had to spend my Xmas in a hospital. I did have the day over at the home of my longtime friend Alice and her husband Phil.

I did not eat much, but did get a fantastic vegetarian and healthy meal. I won’t go into it, but it was damned good. Also got lots of points on the Mediterranean Diet; Phil has lost weight on it, and I aim to do the same and get healthier.

I’ve lost at least 13 pounds in the past week, thanks to my illness. Needed to. Getting old does no wonders for the waistline, and in this family, it goes there.

I have some things to do. Also, I focused on getting through the first edit of “Legend of the Black Swan,” my new book. It is coming together well, but no matter how many edits I give it…I tend to repeat myself…too much.

Phrases, words, terms…you cannot repeat strange or uncommon words all the time. It’s weak and shows a lack of being well-read, and no sense of detail.

Case in Point:

“Airport,” by one of the Hailey people, not the one who wrote “Roots,” the other one. A 500-page novel that is really quite good (the movie sucks), detailed, and shows he did his homework. Interesting characters, some well-drawn, others needing more work.

Hailey wasn’t great at wordsmithery. He used the word “Douche” too many times. Once is enough. If you’ve read it, you know.

I would never use that word, even for its clinical application. Just, no.

I have a bunch of slang words I want banned from the language, not because I’m against expression, I am against destroying our language by talking in a form of Street Esperanto. It makes us sound uncouth, and while at times you need to be in human events, most often it’s just wrong.

Now:

The music world lost two legends in recent days, and I’ll start with Joe Ely. I will not give you a comprehensive biography, but his music, influenced by West Texas, Buddy Holly, country music, rock 'n roll, and a ton more, combined into a fireball of creativity. His stage shows were electric, powerful, and albums of intriguing characters, story songs (his and others), and the finding of amazing players to work with, cementing his place in history.

He toured and played with the Clash (Joe is a background vocalist on “Should I Stay or Should I Go”). Bruce Springsteen championed him. He opened for the Rolling Stones and formed a legendary folk trio with Butch Hancock and Jimmie Dale Gilmore.

Joe’s music made it into my writing. “Letter to LA” is the song playing as Aki and Kiya travel the streets of that city in “Call it Love.” Joe also shows up in “Live from the Cafe.” Some of what his character tells the cafe audience is what he said to us ten years ago, in a solo show in Maryland.

“Fill up the space with songs.”

Think about it.

Favorite album? There isn’t one. Suggestions?

“Lord of the Highway,” “Twistin’ in the Wind,” “Love and Danger,” “Letter to Laredo,” and “Driven to Drive.”

Singles of orchestrated versions of songs are now coming out, and they are interesting.

Anyway, Joe and I sat in that empty little theater after his show and the meet and greet. He was one of the most laid-back, calm, and genuine people I’ve ever met, and one of my favorite interviews. You can find that here.

https://soundcloud.com/tory-gates/interview-joe-ely-november-2015

I thought you would find that intriguing. He influenced my music and my songwriting. The Dharma Fools covered “All Just to Get to You” during our time.

Also: “Reverb” and “Bonfire of Roadmaps” are his books. The latter is poetry and includes an audio CD. Both are brilliant.

Joe Ely went from labels to a do-it-yourself method long before most ever thought of it. Did it his own way, and you can’t but admire how hard he worked, and how people received great music. We won’t forget him.

Thank you, Joe, RIP, and the best to yours.

As for me, time to get to the real work.

Peace, Out.