Bars

I think that this is an *excellent* idea:

Church Preaches The Music Of Beethoven

Albuquerque, N.M., is no different from any other American city, in terms of its religious life; you've got churches, synagogues, a couple of Unitarian congregations and a mosque. But an abandoned gas station along old Route 66 is the unlikely home for another kind of Sunday-morning service, and it's one that you won't find anywhere else. It's called the Church of Beethoven.

Well, it's not really a church. There's no preaching, no appeals to God or spirits. Just a different way to appreciate the simple human quest for beauty through creativity:

Last February, he created it. It's sort of like a variety show, with poetry readings, group singing, silence and music. But he's trying to make it more than that: a community, a spiritual place, like a church for people who don't go to church.

A few weeks ago my brother invited us to come out and see him play at a popular country & western steakhouse called "San Tan Flat". San Tan Flat is a fun, family place. There is a large outdoor area where you can sit and have dinner, and where the band plays. There's also a small, circular dance floor in front of the stage.

Now, Mrs. Inscrutable and I like to cut a rug now and then, and I was excited to be able to dance with her this time. "Man," I said to my brother, "It's been a while since we've been able to come out and see you play! It'll be fun to dance!"

"You can't dance there," said Mike. "It's against the law."

More below the fold...

I discovered a great blog by Brendan Skwire. Brendan is, and I quote:

[Brendan Skwire] I’m a writer, musician, beer-drinker, politics maven, and loudmouth living in Philadelphia.

I love music. I'm a mediocre guitar player and a pretty good vocalist who never pursued a music career because a.) I'm too stage-shy to actually sing anything alone, and b.) I have about a thousand and thirty-seven kids that I am supporting so I can't be "partying like a rock star" all the damn time.

Brendan is an absolutely addictive writer who also used to play in "the worlds first (and only) Bluegrass Thrashmetal Punk band" called "UncleFucker". UncleFucker was the band that opened for Courtney Love the night she got arrested for beaning some guy with another band's guitar player's borrowed guitar.

The thing that hooked me with Brendan is his take on country music. like me, Brendan is a country music aficionado, and a bluegrass fan.

Weird, huh? It blew me away too. I love bluegrass, and more often than not, my station is tuned to a country music station.

In any case, the following post turned me into a Brendan fan:

[Brendan Skwire] All country music is addictive if you ask me, from the bluegrass and old time I first fell in love with, to 1950s honky tonk, western swing, the Nashville sounds, Bakersfield, the Outlaws. Even some of the stuff I turned up my nose at during the punk rock 80s now actually sounds OK in retrospect. As I've made clear earlier, I like a lot of the contemporary songs out there too. I just can't understand why a station like WXTU, which has a monopoly on the country fan's ear can't squeeze a little George Jones in there with the Shania. Is it too much to ask for even a 10-midnight Sunday night Classic Country slot?

And this gets to I really believe. Classic country doesn't deserve to be shunted to a Sunday night ghetto. Everything needs to be jumbled together in a mishmosh, Flatt and Scruggs following Lonestar following Toby Keth following Waylon following Shania. There's a fine station, 101.3 near Syracuse NY that plays a fine mix of classic and contemporary country.

There is no comparing dreck like "Mr Mom" to Patsy Cline's "Crazy", but you never hear Patsy on WXTU. NEVER. "Crazy" is a damn classic song; it should be getting played every day, in the regular mix. Same with Hank Williams (all 3 of them), George Jones, Bill Monroe. In short, play all of it, everything from Alan Jackson to the Stanley Brothers. And the Louvin Brothers. God bless the Louvin Brothers.

Regardless of it's drenched-in-god-talk reputation, I still love country music. Even the new artists at least try and express themselves in real ways, with real emotions, and lyrics that you can fucking understand. I love acoustic guitar music, and country music is rich with an acoustic tradition that the rock genre can't touch. Bluegrass music has the ability to make me cry sometimes. I can sit and listen to Alison Krauss or Nickel Creek for hours. I like the harmonies and the acoustic feel to the music. It lifts me up and makes me happy when I listen to it. I even have the Bluegrass station on my Sirius radio programmed into one of my presets.

Don't get me wrong, I listen to a lot of metal, hard rock, classic rock, and alternative rock too - but I'll always have my country music to fall back on.

Check out Brendan Calling - especially his "Geatest Hits" section in the right-hand sidebar which features selections from his now-defunct Blogspot blog. You'll most likely get hooked by his great, evocative writing, and his eclectic musical tastes, just like I was. This is what blogging is all about, in my opinion.