» More From The Mobile Register

Pickin' with the locals
Friday, June 24, 2005
By LAWRENCE SPECKER
Entertainment Reporter
Los Angeles-based guitarist Skip Heller relates that California friends do sometimes ask him why he keeps coming back to Alabama every few months.
He has a clear answer, though, and it's mostly musical: "Because I get to play with Chris Spies[HEY YA'LL, THIS IS MY BUDDY FROM CODEN GREG SPIES' NEPHEW- CHRIS WAS VOTED # 1 LOCAL KEYBOARD PLAYER BY THE READERS OF LAGNIAPPE MAGAZINE IN MOBILE IN 2004] [ and David White."
As for the non-musical part, that too is a matter of taste.

"I dare you to find a bad meal there," Heller said. Part of his eagerness to get back to Satori Coffee, where he plays this evening, obviously has something to do with Satori's location right next to The Brick Pit.
"We've got the deal wired," Heller said. Satori knows he "doesn't have a contract rider, except for the ribs."
Musically, Heller is a champion of the organ jazz trio format, a love going back to his formative years in Philadelphia. The organist handles the bass with one hand; with the other, he or she provides a foundation of chords or can just as easily take the lead while Heller drops back and comps.
Yet with all that going on, it remains a supremely compact format, able to switch from lounge-y grooving to hard-driving solos in the blink of an eye. When it comes to harmonizing, Heller explained, he's only got one other player to contend with.
He travels alone, partly because it's economical, partly as a way of paying tribute to the precedent set by Pete Seeger. The reward -- and the risk -- comes from working with different musicians in the various regions he visits.
In Mobile, he said, he's on secure ground.
"There's one of these in every town," he said of drummer White.

Heller described White as a fully developed and flexible player who could back an Elvis impersonator one night, play with a country band the next night, then play advanced jazz the third evening, and have it all so well in hand that "(y)ou'd be hard pressed to figure out which of those gigs is really his gig."
As for keyboardist Spies, generally regarded as one of the most talented instrumentalists in the area, he was no less effusive.
"Chris is just ... where the hell do these guys come from?" he said. "There's a lottery of dumb luck. Some women are born beautiful, some musicians are born with that kind of talent."

"There aren't 40 organ players in the country playing on that level," Heller said. "Do you know what an honor it is to call Chris Spies up and ask when he's available, and have him start moving things around on his calendar?"
Heller said the three met courtesy of Kitty Hinkle and Stephen McClurg, when Hinkle first booked Heller to play at Satori. Since then they've had several occasions to hone their chops together for shows in the Mobile area and in Huntsville (where they'll be on Saturday).
In Heller's last show at Satori, the music was an appealing mix of highbrow jazz and jazzed-up pop, ranging from Thelonious Monk's "Little Rootie Tootie" to a rendition of "Ode to Billie Joe," better known as a languid country tune sung by Bobbie Gentry.
And that's just a hint of how broad Heller's tastes are. In conversation he's apt to praise Stevie Wonder and Bill Monroe in one sentence, and draw a line from Gustav Mahler to Frank Zappa in the next. And routinely to scatter bomblets such as, "Jazz filled a void in my life when punk rock started to suck."
Spies, fresh back in Mobile this week from a stint performing in Key West, said he'd arrived to find "a package of Skip material waiting on my doorstep."
"Looking at this list, this time we're going from David Bowie to Frank Sinatra," Spies said of the projected set list.
Returning Heller's compliments, Spies described the guitarist as practically "a national treasure" for his dedication to the organ trio format.
"It's a weird thing," Spies said of the arrangement's challenges. "I kind of have to split my brain in half."
But working with Heller has pushed him to develop the proficiency of his left-hand bass work, he said. Spies said there's a possibility he will put those lessons to work this fall in a new trio featuring drummer Mike Clark, formerly of the Kentucky Headhunters, and saxophonist Rebecca Barry, a south Alabama native now working in New Orleans.
In the shorter term, Spies said, he's committed to wrapping up a CD of solo material and releasing it in coming months.
The prolific Heller, for his part, will have at least three new discs available for this Mobile visit: "Bear Flag," a set of original material; "Out of Time," a live recording from a visit to Philadelphia; and "The Cavender Transcriptions," a set recorded in Huntsville earlier this year.
Tonight's show is scheduled to start at 9 p.m. and carry an $8 cover charge, according to www.satoricoffee.com. Satori is at 5460 Old Shell Road; call 344-4575.

If you're looking for wyldness, you've come to the wrong band 'cause you'renot talking about a suburban U.S.A. high-school geek garage band, but guyswho latched on to the beach music scene and were able to make a good livingon the same circuit as bands such as the Swingin' Medallions, David & TheGiants, and Wilbur Walton & The James Gang. Actually, there's little difference between the later Medallions ('67 on), sound-wise, and the Classics IV. We think of them as a soft rock band, but some of the same songs they cut are considered beach and/or Northern soul classics by other artists who don't have that top 40 baggage associated with them.The best pre-Classics IV record is probably Dennis Yost's first:Ace 657 THE ECHOES - House Warming/Restless (both sides R&B instrumentalswith prominent sax)
Dennis Yost was the drummer.The 45 credits the Echoes as having written both sides, although "House Warming" was later credited as a Mac Rebennack (Dr. John) composition when Teisco Del Rey covered it on his "The Many Moods Of" album.There is video in existence of the '66 version of the band (as simply The Classics) doing their regional hit "Polyanna" on "Where The Action Is".It's probably too Four Seasons-ish for most Bompers, but for me it bringsback memories of the good part of my childhood. Their other Capitol singlefeatured one side (Nothing To Lose) that mixed beach music with theAssociation's sound. Definitely a southern U.S. thing. It's the flip ofyet another 4 Seasons influenced side, this time updating Maurice Williams'"Little Darlin'". (Maurice Williams, of the Gladiolas and the Zodiacs, is abeach music icon).I think the bottom line is if you like beach ballads... then the Classics IV weren't putrid. If beach ballads drive you bonkers, then avoid 'em.
Jeff Lemlichhttp://www.limestonerecords.com

> And while we're bashing soft-rock icons, what is the deal with theClassics> IV (of "Spooky"/"Stormy"/"Traces" fame)? Did they have a frat-rock past?Dig> it, they had a NUGGETS-type name and look, a year or two after the whole> garage thing had passed. I once heard an early, pre-hit 45 on Capitol, but it> was essentially the same old pop crap. Anyone on this site know if theyhave> any rockers in their closet?>I don't know, but they were from Florida, so Jeff Lemlich should be able to tell us...>>

Oh yeah I forgot, there is a legitimate garage tie to the Classics IV, in that member Kim Venable used to be in THE K-OTICS, who did the bossest version of "Double Shot"! Their "I'm Leavin' Here" and cover of "Charlena" aren't too shabby either!Guess I shoulda mentioned the two Capitol singles were produced by Joe South, who also wrote "Pollyanna". Now that cat was OUT THERE! I can definitely recommend his "Introspect" album, which mixes country, soul,beach sounds, and psychedelia. Perhaps the best way to describe it is SWAMP MUSIC, cause no other labels really do it justice. Yeah, "Games People Play" is on there, but forget that. This guy wrote so many great SOUL SONGS. He wrote "Hush"! "Yo Yo"! "Leaning On You" BY the Yo Yos(coincidence?). "These Are Not My People"... the psychedelic "Mirror Of Your Mind" (not the We The People tune). "Birds of a Feather". Joe South*IS* swamp music!It's a gas, but I think I'd better pass...Just ask Swamp Dogg, he'll tell you..
Jeff Lemlichhttp://www.limestonerecords.com

Date:
Fri, 24 Jun 2005 19:59:33 -0700
To:
"robert register"
From:
"capn skyp"
Subject:
Re: A Thank You Note From "The Hey Baby Days of Beach Music" plus Capn Skyp Sent Us Jobs' Stanford Speech

nice postings, robert, more to come, mailbox is full of good stuff
these days
kb
http://www.skypilotclub.com/
skypilotclub
81774 Lost Creek Road
Dexter OR 97431

HEY YA'LL:
The following email from Greg Haynes made my day! If any uv ya'll can help "Cuba,Alabama" http://robertoreg.blogspot.com
or "Hey Baby Days" http://www.heybabydays.com
or "SKYPILOTCLUB" http://skypilotclub.com
, PLEASE HEAT US UP SOME LINKS SO WE CAN GET THE WORD OUT ABOUT WHAT'S FUN!
think about it....
Now that CMT has discovered SOUTHERN ROCK & THE HISTORY CHANNEL has discovered THE SIXTIES, it's just a matter of time before THE WORLD DISCOVERS THE OLD DUTCH!
BEST,
ROBERTO

THE OLD DUTCH

From:
rarereads@bellsouth.net
To:
robertoreg2003@yahoo.com
Subject:
Thanks
Date:
Fri, 24 Jun 2005 11:05:29 -0400

Robert,
We receive quite a few visits to http://www.heybabydays.com

that are referred
from your blog as shown on the attached month to date stats. We project
that we'll have 80,000 hits this month which is sort of amazing to me.
Thank you for your part in making this possible.

Regards,
Greg Haynes

Hey Robert,
thanks for the kindness you showed the other day at the farm. sorry time was short, but glad you ate the crabs and they didn't eat you.
Love you all,
Uncle Toad


http://skypilotclub.com

WHAT'S UP WITH THE HISTORY CHANNEL?
On this, our longest day of the year up here in the northern climes, we are considering this history channel interview the ol Cap'n undertook; just exactly what went down and by whom and when will it appear? The History Channel is doing a show on the scintillating Sixties but when it will appear we don't know yet but when we do know we will let everyone know. The history channel hired a crew from HappyTrailers located in Venice, California, to do the west coast interviews including among others, Wavy Gravy, Paul Krassner and the ol Cap'n.

MUCHAS OLE CAP'N FOR SHARING THE STEVE JOBS' COMMENCEMENT SPEECH AT STANFORD.....


Date:
Wed, 22 Jun 2005 10:17:43 -0700
To:
capn@skypilotclub.com
From:
"capn skyp"
Subject:
Steve Jobs speech

rightSteve Jobs delivered this
speech to the graduates of Stanford University this
week.
"I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the
finest universities in the world. I never graduated from college. Truth
be
told, this is the closest I've ever gotten to a college graduation.
Today
I want to tell you three stories from my life. That's it. No big deal.
Just three stories.
The first story is about connecting the dots.
I dropped out of Reed College after the first 6 months, but then stayed
around as a drop-in for another 18 months or so before I really quit.
So
why did I drop out?
It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed
college graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption.
She
felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so
everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and
his
wife. Except that when I popped out they decided at the last minute
that
they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list,
got
a call in the middle of the night asking: "We have an unexpected baby
boy;
do you want him?" They said: "Of course." My biological mother later
found
out that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father
had
never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final
adoption
papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised
that I would someday go to college.
And 17 years later I did go to college. But I naively chose a college
that
was almost as expensive as Stanford, and all of my working-class
parents'
savings were being spent on my college tuition. After six months, I
couldn't see the value in it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my
life and no idea how college was going to help me figure it out. And
here
I was spending all of the money my parents had saved their entire life.
So
I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out OK. It was
pretty scary at the time, but looking back it was one of the best
decisions I ever made. The minute I dropped out I could stop taking the
required classes that didn't interest me, and begin dropping in on the
ones that looked interesting.
It wasn't all romantic. I didn't have a dorm room, so I slept on the
floor
in friends' rooms, I returned coke bottles for the 5¢ deposits to buy
food
with, and I would walk the 7 miles across town every Sunday night to
get
one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple. I loved it. And much
of
what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out
to
be priceless later on. Let me give you one example:
Reed College at that time offered perhaps the best calligraphy
instruction
in the country. Throughout the campus every poster, every label on
every
drawer, was beautifully hand calligraphed. Because I had dropped out
and
didn't have to take the normal classes, I decided to take a calligraphy
class to learn how to do this. I learned about serif and san serif
typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter
combinations, about what makes great typography great. It was
beautiful,
historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can't capture,
and I
found it fascinating.
None of this had even a hope of any practical application in my life.
But
ten years later, when we were designing the first Macintosh computer,
it
all came back to me. And we designed it all into the Mac. It was the
first
computer with beautiful typography. If I had never dropped in on that
single course in college, the Mac would have never had multiple
typefaces
or proportionally spaced fonts. And since Windows just copied the Mac,
its
likely that no personal computer would have them. If I had never
dropped
out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and
personal
computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of
course
it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in
college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards ten years later.
Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect
them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow
connect in your future. You have to trust in something - your gut,
destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down,
and
it has made all the difference in my life.
My second story is about love and loss.
I was lucky - I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I
started
Apple in my parents garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10
years Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2
billion
company with over 4000 employees. We had just released our finest
creation - the Macintosh - a year earlier, and I had just turned 30.
And then I got fired. How can you get fired from a company you
started? Well, as Apple
grew we hired someone who I thought was very talented to run the
company
with me, and for the first year or so things went well. But then our
visions of the future began to diverge and eventually we had a falling
out. When we did, our Board of Directors sided with him. So at 30 I was
out. And very publicly out. What had been the focus of my entire adult
life was gone, and it was devastating.
I really didn't know what to do for a few months. I felt that I had let
the previous generation of entrepreneurs down - that I had dropped the
baton as it was being passed to me. I met with David Packard and Bob
Noyce
and tried to apologize for screwing up so badly. I was a very public
failure, and I even thought about running away from the valley. But
something slowly began to dawn on me - I still loved what I did. The
turn
of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I had been rejected,
but
I was still in love. And so I decided to start over.
I didn't see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple
was
the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of
being
successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again,
less
sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative
periods of my life.
During the next five years, I started a company named NeXT, another
company named Pixar, and fell in love with an amazing woman who would
become my wife. Pixar went on to create the worlds first computer
animated feature film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful
animation studio in the world. In a remarkable turn of events, Apple
bought NeXT, I retuned to Apple, and the technology we developed at
NeXT is at the heart of
Apple's current renaissance. And Laurene and I have a wonderful family
together.
I'm pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn't been fired
from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient
needed
it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith.
I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved
what
I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your
work
as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of
your
life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe
is
great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do.
If
you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all
matters
of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great
relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So
keep
looking until you find it. Don't settle.
My third story is about death.
When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: "If you live
each
day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It
made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have
looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the
last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?"
And
whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I
need to change something.
Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever
encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost
everything - all external expectations, all pride, all fear of
embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of
death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are
going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you
have
something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to
follow
your heart.
About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in
the
morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn't even
know
what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a
type
of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer
than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my
affairs in order, which is doctor's code for prepare to die. It means
to
try to tell your kids everything you thought you'd have the next 10
years
to tell them in just a few months. It means to make sure everything is
buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It
means to say your goodbyes.
I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy,
where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and
into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few
cells from the
tumor. I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when
they
viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because
it
turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable
with surgery. I had the surgery and I'm fine now.
This was the closest I've been to facing death, and I hope its the
closest
I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say
this
to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but
purely
intellectual concept:
No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to
die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one
has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very
likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It
clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you,
but
someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be
cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.
Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life.
Don't
be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other
people's
thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own
inner
voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and
intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become.
Everything else is secondary.
When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole
Earth Catalog, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was
created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo
Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in
the late 1960's, before
personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with
typewriters, scissors, and polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google
in
paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic,
and
overflowing with neat tools and great notions.
Stewart and his team put out several issues of The Whole Earth Catalog,
and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was
the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final
issue
was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might
find
yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the
words: "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish." It was their farewell message as
they
signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that
for
myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.
Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.
Thank you all very much." - Steve Jobs - June
2005
http://www.skypilotclub.com/
skypilotclub
81774 Lost Creek Road
Dexter OR 97431

http://nocastro.com/news/bejucal.htm

Cuba Summit Cancelled
Courtesy of NetForCuba.org:
CONGRESSWOMAN ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN http://www.house.gov/ros-lehtinen/
FLORIDA 18TH DISTRICT PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release

June 14, 2005
CASTRO'S LOVEFEST IN SPRING HILL COLLEGE CANCELLED

Although we don't know if it was the intense pressure from the Cuban-American alumni community or due to the approaching hurricane,we applaud the cancellation of the National Summit on Cuba at Spring Hill College.
The summit originally planned to have approximately 100 guests attending, but was only able to host about 40 visitors. They met in a lounge of the Riverview Plaza, the hotel where summit speakers and organizers were staying.

We will attempt to approach the President of Spring Hill, Fr. George Lucey, S.J., Archbishop of Mobile Oscar Lipscomp and Fr. Christopher Viscardi, S.J. to educate them on the fact that the Castro regime is a repressive regime.
"It is naive for anyone to believe that by engaging in a dialogue with Castro's supporters in the United States that they, in turn, will convince Castro to become a nice dictator after more than 46 years of oppressing the Cuban people." said Arthur Estopinan, Class of 1987 and Chief of Staff to Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen.
"The lifting of the Cuban embargo and the easing of the U.S. travel restrictions to Cuba represents millions of dollars for the folks who participated in the Cuban Summit in Mobile, AL. They are willing to look the other way and ignore Castro's despicable dictatorship for a quick buck".

All of the members hosting the conference were Castro apologists who want to economically benefit from the misery and suffering from Castro's inhumane conditions towards the Cuban people. [that includes you, Larry Clayton and your padnuh, Jay Higginbotham:ed.]

In addition, Eddy Acevedo, Class of 2005 and Staff Assistant to Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, said, “ It is our job now to educate the administration of Spring Hill College on the realities thatare going on in Cuba and the injustices in the country.”

From:
"Collette"
To:
jasontaylor@clearchannel.com, "robert register"
Subject:
Re: He's Back From Out on Dauphin Island! The Sweetest Man in All The Land! The Wild & Wooly Section 8 Man!

Robert,
Come down anytime....next time we'll all try out that swing on the
front porch under the giant oak (sure there is a pirates treasure chest
buried there 'cause all the "old timers" say under every big oak in the
bayou the pirates hid a chest of money and jewels!) Anyway, like I said,
door is always open, crab and minnow traps always in the bayou,
oleanders always blooming, &tc. (except during hurricanes!).
Take care,
love
ya,
c'let

The Autograph Reads:
"Robert
Thanks
Billy Joe"


Date:
Sat, 18 Jun 2005 02:19:14 EDT
Subject:
Hey Roberto!!
To:
robertoreg2003@yahoo.com

I tried to motion to ya'll to come out with us after Billy Joe asked me to walk out the back door with him but I guess I don't do hand signals that well. Wasn't any big deal. We walked around to the bus encountering a thousand drunks enroute and finally got a few minutes to chew the fat in the bus then they had to pull out. At any rate, it was good to meet you and your wife. Next time, we'll pick a quieter place. I like what you're trying to do; it would be nice for somebody to finally get all this stuff down right. I can help to some extent, but only with what I experienced first hand. The mistake most people make, especially on the net, is that what they come up with is second, third, or twenty-third hand. Even first hand stuff can be suspect. I have definite memories I have lived with all these years, only to be confronted by other witnesses on the scene who remember it differently. Ah well. We're probably all getting allheimer----allhiemer---alhimenin---shit, old-timers disease.
One thing I will stand by, tho, and I stand by it unanimously, as the purple-haired lady on the BBC used to say,{isn't she from Tampa?:ed.}
Billy Joe is still the nicest famous guy I have ever known---
Jimmy Dean
THERE'S AN EXCELLENT PHOTO OF JIMMY DEAN ALONG WITH JOHN RAINEY AND WILBUR IN THE LATEST ISSUE OF DOTHAN MAGAZINE. IT IS INCLUDED IN THE COVER STORY ON BUDDY BUIE. GET IT ON THE NEWS STANDS OF THE WIREGRASS....

http://dothanmagazine.com/
HEY YA'LL,
WHAT'S THE WHOLE STORY ON JOE SOUTH AND FREDDIE WELLER?!!!!!!!!!!!!!
INQUIRING MINDS AROUND "CUBA, ALABAMA" WANT TO KNOW!


http://www.95ksj.com/jason.html
Jason,
Tell Donnie, Greg, Doug & Gay I had a ball at THE BAMA BARN ON BELLINGRATH ROAD & one mo' thang: I gotta cassette of MY DADDY playing DJ with your GRANDPA FARLEY and after the record is over MY DADDY sez, "That's mighty pretty, Farley, and I hope ya sell a million uv 'em!"
I bet that wuz a hoot introducing Conway in Bonnerfaye back when you were 11.
Maybe we can get some of these rockers to play THE BAMA BARN. Doug said it could hold 350.
Best,
Roberto


http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/johnnybarbato
What an incredible character Donnie Sizemore turned out to be. Talkin' 'bout someone who can lay the wood to "Statesboro Blues" & not only that, Jesse Ed Davis is his inspiration too!