iko iko

*happy fat tuesday*



Iko Iko is a popular song, covered by many artists. The song, with the original title "Jock-A-Mo," was written around 1950 by James Crawford in New Orleans, but has rapidly become subsumed into the folk song repertoire - so much so that many people are under the impression that the song is much older. It was written as a New Orleans Mardi Gras song about the black Indians.

The lyrics of the song are based on Cajun patois (a creole language derived from French, English, and a slight amount of African Slave dialect). The title "Iko Iko" may have been derived from one or more of the dialects of Gambia, possibly from the phrase "Ago!", meaning "listen!", or "attention!".

The song was popularised by The Dixie Cups in 1965 whose version was included in "The Big Easy" soundtrack, and has been covered by Buckwheat Zydeco, Cyndi Lauper, the Grateful Dead, Dr. John, and Warren Zevon, among others. Aaron Carter covered the song for "The Little Vampire" soundtrack, and The Belle Stars' cover was featured in the film Rain Man. A later version, by Zap Mama, featured in the opening sequences of the film Mission: Impossible II. Eurodance act Captain Jack re-popularized the tune in Germany in 2001.



Following is the "Iko Iko" story, as told by Dr. John in the liner notes to his 1972 album, "Gumbo," in which he covers New Orleans R&B classics:

"The song was written and recorded back in the early 1950s by a New Orleans singer named James Crawford who worked under the name of Sugar Boy & the Cane Cutters. It was recorded in the 1960s by the Dixie Cups for Jerry Leiber & Mike Stoller's Red Bird label, but the format we're following here is Sugar Boy's original. Also in the group were Professor Longhair on piano, Jake Myles, Big Boy Myles, Irv Bannister on guitar, and Eugene 'Bones' Jones on drums. The group was also known as the Chipaka Shaweez. The song was originally called 'Jockamo,' and it has a lot of Creole patois in it. Jockamo means 'jester' in the old myth. It is Mardi Gras music, and the Shaweez was one of many Mardi Gras groups who dressed up in far out Indian costumes and came on as Indian tribes. The tribes used to hang out on Claiborne Avenue and used to get juiced up there getting ready to perform and 'second line' in their own special style during Mardi Gras. That's dead and gone because there's a freeway where those grounds used to be. The tribes were like social clubs who lived all year for Mardi Gras, getting their costumes together. Many of them were musicians, gamblers, hustlers and pimps."

Here's what the song's author, James Crawford, had to say in a 2002 interview with offBeat Magazine:

Interviewer: How did you construct 'Jock-A-Mo?'
Crawford: It came from two Indian chants that I put music to. 'Iko Iko' was like a victory chant that the Indians would shout. 'Jock-A-Mo' was a chant that was called when the Indians went into battle. I just put them together and made a song out of them.... Lloyd Price just added music to it and it became a hit. I was just trying to write a catchy song....
Interviewer: Listeners wonder what 'Jock-A-Mo' means. Some music scholars say it translates in Mardi Gras Indian lingo as 'Kiss my ass,' and I’ve read where some think Jock-A-Mo was a court jester. What does it mean?
Crawford: I really don't know. (laughs)

that's my boy-revisited

my son is the dude in the lower right corner, with the giant sideburns. this was taken recently, at a show he was attending with his friends. the smiles tell the story.

tonight, he and his band are on the bill at gilman street, in berkeley. this is the club where bands such as green day, rancid, and operation ivy got their start. i have included a bit of information below, about the club. i am really proud and excited for him, though he is quick to play it down.

all of my kids love music. it's a huge part of their lives. i can't imagine how that happened...!


the 924 Gilman Street Project a.k.a the 'Alternative Music Foundation', is an all-ages, non-profit, collectively organized music and performance venue. We do shows on Fridays, Saturdays, and occasionally on Sundays. It is located in North Berkeley, about 1 1/2 miles from the North Berkeley BART station, at the corner of 8th St. and Gilman. All shows are $5, with a $2 membership that is good for a year. Starting September 1st 2004, all shows will be $7 or less, while membership remains $2 per year. We strive to provide a violence, alcohol and drug-free environment. We will not book or support racist, misogynist, or homophobic bands or performances.

The Gilman Book Is Out! It's entitled "924 Gilman: The Story So Far." Compiled by Brian Edge and published by MAXIMUMROCKNROLL, it is available here at the club during shows for $15, or you can mailorder it $20 ppd in the USA, $25 ppd to the World.

MAXIMUMROCKNROLL
PO BOX 460760
SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94146-0760
or send inquiries to distro@maximumrocknroll.com

today's views

the first tulip



a fresh load of firewood. more rain on the way tomorrow.



i thought this was a sweet william, or bachelors button. nope. stumped again.
a little help, anyone?


i have to work tonight. crazy, crazy. the boss asked me to serve coffee at a local
fundraising gala at the college. just say no comes to mind.

my recipe saturday offering

spanakopita

i have used this recipe, taken from the moosewood cookbook, since 1981.
this uses olive oil to brush the filo layers, instead of butter. served with a veggie-laden green salad, it's always a big hit. semi-labor intensive, but well worth the effort.

thanks to blogzie, for this cool idea. cooking is a passion for me. i'm maybe not so passionate about it during the week, but when the weekend arrives, i enjoy it a great deal.

1 1/2 hours to prepare and bake

yield: about 8 servings


FILLING: 1 tbs. olive oil
2 cups minced onion
1/4 tsp. salt, if desired
big pinch basil
big pinch oregano (i use fresh herbs, usually)
2 1/2 lbs. fresh spinach, stemmed and finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbs. flour
2-3- cups(packed)crumbled feta cheese(about 1lb.)
1 cup cottage cheese
black pepper, to taste


1/3 to 1/2 cup olive oil, for the filo
1 lb. filo pastry leaves (approx. 20 leaves)-thoroughly defrosted(unwrap just prior to step 5)


1)preheat oven to 375. oil a 9x13-inch baking pan



2) heat 1 tbs. olive oil in a "dutch oven" (those 2 words make me giggle every time, since seeing the film "pecker," (john waters) - i just can't help it.)
anyway-add onions, salt, and herbs and saute about 5 minutes, or until the onions soften. add spinach, turn up the heat and cook, stirring, until the spinach wilts(5-8 minutes) stir in the garlic.


3) sprinkle in the flour, stir, and cook over medium heat2 to 3 more minutes. remove from heat.


4) place a sheet of filo in the oiled pan, letting the pastry edges climb up the sides. brush lightly with oil, and add another sheet. keep going until you have a pile of 8 oiled sheets. add half the filling, spreading it to the edges, then repeat with 8 more sheets of oiled filo, followed by the remaining filling. layer the rest of the filo over the filling, brushing oil in between. oil the top, tuck in the edges, and bake uncovered for about 45 minutes or until golden and crispy.
cut into squares and serve hot or warm.

assorted blooms

below are a couple of signs of spring.

the last three days reminded me what it's like to LIVE. the best part was time with the teen. just we two. i miss her, working so much. the years are sweeping right by us... high school in the fall.



pinkish blooms along our driveway.


i took a picture of this yellow house a while ago. today on my walk, i noticed that a plant which resembles heather is blooming away.

visual enhancement

having mentioned mr. costello in the post below, i figured a couple of recent photos couldn't hurt. these are from last week, when elvis played the grand 'ol opry for the first time, with people like emmylou harris in his band.

he will be at the new orleans jazz and heritage festival again this year.
plus, he is playing across the country right now. see him if you can.

the man and i saw him last march, at the paramount theatre in oakland. "the delivery man" kicks ass. i like all his phases, even the really dark ones. (go figure!)
elvis c. has been a part of my musical life since we were both just young punks.

shipbuilding

the lyrics to this are timely. written by elvis costello, for his friend robert wyatt. in a few weeks, the man and i will have our date in the big city. that's when we see elvis c. at the davies symphony hall. exciting! more on this musical tidbit later. for now, some lyrics i like.


____________________________

Shipbuilding

Elvis Costello
____________________________

Is it worth it?
A new winter coat and shoes for the wife
And a bicycle on the boy's birthday
It's just a rumour that was spread around town
By the women and children
Soon we'll be shipbuilding.......
Well I ask you
The boy said "Dad they're going to take me to task, but I'll be back by Christmas"
It's just a rumour that was spread around town
Somebody said that someone got filled in
For saying that people get killed in
The result of this shipbuilding
With all the will in the world
Diving for dear life
When we could be diving for pearls
It's just a rumour that was spread around town
A telegram or a picture postcard
Within weeks they'll be re-opening the shipyards
And notifying the next of kin
Once again
It's all we're skilled in
We will be shipbuilding........
With all the will in the world
Diving for dear life
When we could be diving for pearls.

sweet freedom

this is as good as it gets, these days.

off work monday through wednesday. youngest on prez week break. time away from the frenzy that is the workplace.

i need this. and am taking full advantage of the freedom. like posting mid-morning, during the week. mercy!
and taking pictures. more to follow.




where the river meets the sea, and more driftwood. i haven't seen this much since we've lived here.


one of several driftwood structures that have popped up recently.



happy moss on the fence out in back of the place.


old stash of (great) windows we came across recently. there is a lot of history that comes with our place, and we keep unearthing it!

don't cross her

Chávez vows to resist US 'inoculation strategy'

Julian Borger in Washington
Saturday February 18, 2006

Guardian

Venezuela's president, Hugo Chávez, said he would resist an "imperialist attack" after Washington announced it would pursue an "inoculation strategy" against his government by creating a united front against its policies.
The rhetoric reflected a rapid deterioration in relations between the two countries after Venezuelan espionage allegations against the US and tit-for-tat expulsions of diplomats.

The US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, used her harshest language to date in testimony to Congress on Thursday in which she called Venezuela and Cuba "sidekicks" of Iran, and launched a campaign to rally international opposition to the Chávez government.

Ms Rice said the campaign amounted to "an inoculation strategy" against Venezuela, which she accused of "attempting to influence neighbours away from democratic processes".

She said: "We're working with others to try to make certain that there is a kind of united front against some of the kinds of things that Venezuela gets involved in."

As an example, Ms Rice cited Nicaragua, where US officials suspect Venezuela of backing an alliance of former presidents Daniel Ortega and Arnoldo Alemán with the alleged aim of destabilising the pro-American government of Enrique Bolaños.

She said she had asked the EU to pay closer attention to human rights in Venezuela and, in particular, to the trial of leaders of Súmate, an election rights organisation charged with "conspiracy against the republican form of the nation" for accepting a $31,000 (£17,800) grant from the US National Endowment for Democracy.

"This kangaroo trial of Súmate is a disgrace," Ms Rice said. She also urged international labour unions to back a lorry drivers' strike in Venezuela. "The international community has just got to be much more active in supporting and defending the Venezuelan people," she said.

In response, President Chávez said: "She said something very serious and she let the world know that she is calling foreign ministers, that she called the ministers of Spain, Brazil and Austria, to alert them about Venezuela."

He said his government was ready to "resist the imperialist attack".

The two countries have been at odds since Mr Chávez came to power in 1998. There was a lull in the rhetoric last year, but that came to an end when Mr Chávez expelled the naval attache at the US embassy earlier this month, accusing him of being a spy and conspiring with Venezuelan officers against the government. In retaliation, the Bush administration expelled the chief of staff to the Venezuelan ambassador in Washington.

The US has complained that Venezuela has forged close relations with undemocratic countries such as Cuba, Iran and North Korea.

Earlier this month, the US defence secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, compared Mr Chávez to Hitler.

Larry Birns, director of the Council on Hemispheric Affairs, said the "inoculation strategy" was too late to stop the rise of leftwing and anti-American politics in the region.

Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited

"in another time's forgotten space..."

~click to enlarge, and forgive the crummy scan-job~



happy mid-day photo sunday.
meet the plaid family, circa fall 1982. a lifetime ago.
this is me with my first husband and our son.
i won a free photo shoot at a baby store in santa cruz, and we met the photographer at harvey west park, where he knew of a great tree. this is that tree.

my baby boy was about 6 months old. i was 25, and my then-husband was 23.
these were happy times. we were young and hopeful about our future.
i do see a sadness there, in me. and i know what it is...
it's how you look when you are learning to live your life as a new mama, without your own mama.(she died less than a year before this was taken.) i felt robbed of so many things. and yet, i had this amazing boy. and that made it all a little easier to bear.

when i look at this picture now, i cannot imagine what posessed me to go with a plaid theme for the three of us! scary, i know.

he cleans up good

thanks, dude

television leaves much to be desired. there isn't much i watch regularly.

lucky for me, bill maher is back.

surprise!

no charges will be filed against dick cheney. have a nice day.

thanks for the memory

the fairmont hotel, atop nob hill.



the lobby of the fairmont.




another shot of the lobby.




the first guy in this line is someone i used to know.(not the chef, the guy in the white shirt.)

"it" happened about a year before i re-connected with my sweetheart.
in my early days on the internet, i frequented a grateful dead chat room, on aol. jerry's death was still pretty fresh, and the connection there was occasionally therapeutic. it was my first big lesson in what is real vs. what is surreal, here on the information highway.

i "met" a few interesting people there. i began to communicate with a man from the midwest. he had been a deadhead since the 70's, like me, and was a stockbroker. it was fun getting to "know" him. after almost a decade of general unhappiness, i had put husband #2 on a train out of town a few months before, so i admit that this strange new forum was intriguing.

before long, my new friend told me that he would be traveling to san francisco, on business. it just so happened that a great show was scheduled in berkeley, right around the time he planned to be on this coast. we decided to meet at this very show. he booked a room at the fairmont hotel. attempting to be proper, i insisted that he get two twin beds. (is that hysterical, or what?!)

as the big meeting day approached, it felt almost-creepy. knowing that i would soon meet this person, i wondered whether the fantasy would mesh with the reality. it was a completely new experience, in every way.

i barely remember the car ride to berkeley. i wondered how i could have ever consented to such a thing as this. what a mad woman i was, and a harlot besides!
i finally found a place to park, and scurried to the theatre. i saw him, pacing and looking anxious. he looked like his photo, his smile was lovely. we hugged. he was shaking. the show was about to start, so we went inside and found our seats. on the way, i saw a few old friends, from many years of mutual music appreciation. it was interesting, introducing my new friend to them. let's just say they weren't sure quite what to think! the show was wonderful, and the energy between us was formidable. after it was over, he followed me across the bridge to san francisco, in his rental car. the fairmont is an unbelievable place, and as a resident, i had never stayed there. so this somewhat sordid affair afforded me that luxury. we put on music(live van morrison), and smoked a little. you can guess the rest. ("love is a drug.") the twin beds became the running joke of the weekend.

what a rush it was, being with him. and even though it all dissolved as suddenly as it began, i will never regret the time we shared. he was extremely well-mannered, and sweet-as-pie. and he made me smile, and i needed that. we had fabulous meals, and walked all over the city. i took him to all the cool spots, including to meet some of my closest friends, in marin. a few days after our rendezvous in the city, we were lucky enough to get tickets to see bob dylan, joni mitchell, and van morrison, in san jose. i still can't believe that line-up. we had another fantastic musical experience, followed by a lovely night. then he went back to his state-of-residence. i knew that was probably the last time i'd see the stockbroker.

we continued to communicate, but things faded. and that was alright, because the memory was enough. that experience woke me up, from the haze of my ill-fated marriage and eventual split. i remembered how good it felt to feel good. wow.

then tonight, while roaming the web, and music sites, i found that the stockbroker is now in a band back there, for fun. there were a few pictures of him with his band.it made me smile, remembering the exciting experience we shared. i will always be grateful for that experience, but also so glad that it wasn't built to last.
... because that ending led me back to my long-lost love.

we celebrate seven years together in may. thanks, stockbroker!

every picture...

...tells a story, don't it?


yesterday i walked around the headlands for a bit. it was a nice day to take pictures. so far, that's been the best part of my week. but i have hope, sort of.

right now i'm listening to my daughter play her electric guitar... "wake me up when september ends." SHE gives me hope, totally.

happy valentines day. (love)

~clickety-click to make them larger~



part of the big pier that was here about a century ago. now it serves as a tiki god, complete with offerings.


the edge of town.


these were stairs to the beach not too long ago. the driftwood has been plentiful this winter.



above the cove. this was taken a little after 5:00 p.m.



town and more driftwood.

hooray for green

~click on any photo for a larger view~


some color amid the clover.


the rhododendron will be in bloom by next month. stay tuned.


the sun shining through the redwoods.


this is a native plant to this region. naturally, the name escapes me.

the green around me makes sense, when little else does. it's been a lovely day
around the shack. happy photo sunday.

anger management

this was among the postcards posted on post secret last week. i found it odd/brave. please, dear reader- do not for a moment assume that i don't give a damn about the people over there, getting killed every day. what i DO NOT support is the fact that we invaded in the first place. it's all been a pack of lies. people are losing their children for a LIE-every day. democracy my ass. democracy is missing in action around the world. the people have to take it back.

so many of us are talking about it, writing about it. and yet, it continues. every week, another scandal. and the chimp just smirks away. and the sad sheep say: "huh?... support the troops!" and then they go back to watching american idol, and gorging on trans fats. oh, and praising their god. because, you know, HE is the only god worthy of praise.

and when cartoons cause riots for weeks, will we soon witness the earth spinning off it's axis??
here's what i know...
i have lived for almost 50 years. i have worked hard, raised my kids to be good, kind, loving citizens, and paid my taxes.
what the fuck? this is the payoff? poverty and deception and bloodshed and misery? bullshit. i want more for my offspring-sorry. i don't know about you, but i am ready to fight to save the future. any ideas?

meanwhile, the rude pundit in all his rude, potty-mouthed glory:

2/10/2006
The White Noise of Scandal:
What's it gonna take for the general public to be shocked anymore? 'Cause, really, and, c'mon, this week's news alone ought to be enough to make the head of even the most casual observer of the nascent Washington scandals explode into a shower of skull and viscera, raining down on the ignorant. The White House knew the levee hadn't held and that New Orleans was being drowned a day earlier than previously admitted? Scooter Libby was told by Dick Cheney and other "superiors" to break the law and leak classified information? Tom DeLay is put on the House subcommittee that oversees the Justice Department, while said department is investigating DeLay's buddy, Jack Abramoff?

What's it gonna take to surprise anyone? At this point, we could discover that Karl Rove and Dick Cheney rape Iranian village pre-teen girls and then the President, ashamed of the sinful actions of his two close advisors, as well as of the defiled children, kills the girls, gutting them, cutting them up, and feeding the press corps a buffet of pate' and meatloaf made from the bodies, catered, of course, by Halliburton, while Tom DeLay, Bob Ney, Orrin Hatch, and Bill Frist use the blood to write voodoo bills that magically allow the government to spy on your toilet without a shit warrant, and Donald Rumsfeld freeze-dries the girls' organs to grind up into a powder for his cognac because he believes it's an aphrodisiac that he needs in order to get it up so he can head over to a VA hospital to jack off on the stumps of comatose Iraq War wounded, rubbing his dick on the bandages so he can say that he "feels their pain," as Rove and Cheney think about moving on to the captured missing children of Hurricane Katrina they keep hidden in a bunker buried in the Vice President's Maryland mansion's yard.

And you know what? CNN would still balance the facts of the story with the demonic visage of Scott McClellan spinning it away, calling it ludicrous and ridiculous and "beyond the pale to suggest" yet never really denying all the fucking and gutting and grinding and rubbing, although if it had been done, it was for security reasons that are classified. Sure, there'd be many of us who'd say, "C'mon, it's obvious it's true," and the mainstream media would poo-poo the idea, with guests and articles that echo the administration's non-denial denial. But the facts'd be out there, and when it came out that, hey, all that shit you were saying about the complete animalistic barbarism of the Republicans? Damn if you weren't right all along. But then, the real facts had always been around, like the lyrics to a song whose beat you've been bouncing along to for months: when you pay attention to the words, you think, "Oh, cool, I thought that's what it was saying. What's the next track?"

The confirmation of all the shit many on the left have been saying about Katrina, about DeLay, about Libby and leaks ought to be another of those massive tipping points. But no one's suprised. It's just become too hard to process it all, you know. It's just traffic sounds, so many crickets, so much white noise.


// posted by Rude One @ 9:54 AM

town and country

like always, click to enlarge the images.


the building across from the galleria park hotel in san francisco.
taken in december, when my dear pal was in town.




the secret garden gate, many miles away from downtown san francisco.

crazy guggenheim says:

is it friday now?!

you have to be old, like i am, to recall crazy guggenheim.

was he on soupy sales?

you may be a lover but you ain't no dancer

i saw the quiz below on lelo's blog, and thought it was fun. so here it is.

so much to say...someday.

i will say that my mind is reeling, after seeing paul mccartney sing HELTER SKELTER
on the grammys. holy shit. our jaws dropped, because we had just been saying how boring and lifeless he sounded on the first song, a recent one. suffice it to say our insults were short-lived.

You Are a Visionary Soul

You are a curious person, always in a state of awareness. Connected to all things spiritual, you are very connected to your soul. You are wise and bright: able to reason and be reasonable. Occasionally, you get quite depressed and have dark feelings. You have great vision and can be very insightful. In fact, you are often profound in a way that surprises yourself. Visionary souls like you can be the best type of friend. You are intuitive, understanding, sympathetic, and a good healer. Souls you are most compatible with: Old Soul and Peacemaker Soul

What Kind of Soul Are You?

a couple of shots

~click to enlarge~



the old fence in back, with afternoon shadows.




artifacts on the side of the garage. the moss-green antlers tell the tale about how much rain we've had.

happy birthday

that's my boy

on photo sunday, a photo of my first-born.

taken by his friend who attends art school in the east bay.

he will be 24 in april. (the age i was when i had him.)

i am consistently impressed by the person he is.

friday on my mind

my youngest with her luna cat.