By Bob Deakin Leave it to John Coutinho . To remind you, John (JC) illustrated my book, Unruly Mix: Tales of Music, Artists, Misfits,...

By Bob Deakin All gas stations suck. Is it written into the business plan of every one of them that you neglect your business and make it...

My Virginia experience has been good so far, other than the blown transmission and end of the life of my car 750 miles from home. I find...

I lost my car in the Blue Ridge Mountains this week. It wasn’t my idea, quite the contrary. My transmission decided to off itself ...

Oh, it's a long, long while from May to December, But the days grow short, When you reach September

For two years, Covid stood in its way, denying the good folks of Bridgewater their annual rite of innocent country joy

No way could I play “The Beverly Hillbillies” or anything by Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs. But somehow it worked.

Who would have thought I’d become friends with a lizard? It’s hard to come by true friends in Florida, but I think I’ve found one.

Not exactly The Royal Scam but a good listen during dinner or at a more sophisticated gathering.

I keep hearing it buzzing but can’t find it. Where's that bug?

I’m up from Florida visiting mom, and since I work remotely, I might as well continue working while I’m here. I can’t work at her place, so the only other option living the life at the library.

It used to be diesel, urine, and burned pretzels. You can still catch a whiff of that old smell, particularly near a subway entrance. All I smell now New York City is weed.

North of a Miracle by Nick Heyward was originally released in 1983 following his success with British band Haircut 100. It epitomized the resurgence of that time using real orchestral instruments instead of synthesizers, so prevalent in years previous.

Okay I did it. Now what? I posted 52 blog posts in 52 weeks. A few times I wrote them in bunches and I also went a few weeks without writing any. What it amounts to is 52 in a year, which is just what the goal was.

That is, what is the percussion sound (on beats 2 and 4) that dominates “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)” - the album's biggest hit - and recurs throughout the rest of the record?

In a week I’ll be heading north to Connecticut. Not sure if I’m going to rough it and go non-stop, which will take 20 hours, or give myself a break and stay a night at a hotel.

I had to watch Alfred Hitchcock’s Dial M for Murder last night. I haven’t seen it in decades, and it’s the details I’ve forgotten about.

Podcasts are the radio I always wanted.

Ken Ascher: piano, keyboards, arranger, conductor, is one of those guys. A common sight for decades on the liner notes of an album.

Ken Ascher. You might not know the name, but he’s a legend as a session musician and composer.