RIP: Run-DMC DJ Jam Master Jay

Run-DMC DJ Jam Master Jay was shot last night in Queens (see “Jam Master Jay, Run-DMC DJ, Killed In Shooting”), so I worked into the wee hours. As we started digging up videos and stuff, getting materials together, I realized just how integral Run-DMC had been in introducing hip-hop to suburban chumps like me. Got…

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The Matador

American Airlines #126 has begun its descent into Newark, NJ. I can’t believe that just this morning I was looking down from Parker Mesa, some one thousand or more feet above Malibu and the sparkling blue Pacific. And soon, I’ll be emerging from the Lincoln Tunnel into Manhattan, back into the big bad city. So…

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Summerland

Last night at dinner someone asked me, “What do want to do with your life, Benjamin?” I paused a beat and answered, “Rock.” But then, more honestly, answered, “Yunno’, I don’t really know. I’m in sort of a transitional mode.” Endorsing the premise that “No matter where you go, there you are,” I find myself…

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The “This Is What It’s Like To Live In L.A.” Thing

What can I tell you? I’m in corporate-wanker/marathon-trainee mode this week, not rock star mode, which is far less cool than, say, touring or recording. Yeah, I have my guitar with me, but I haven’t played it since Sunday (and then, with little enthusiasm). Mostly, I’m doing the “This Is What It’s Like To Live…

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Moonlight On A Fog-Filled Valley

Departed EWR Saturday 8am ET. Slept through taxi and takeoff. Touched down at LAX Saturday 11am PT. Went to lunch, then took a beautiful hike through Topanga Canyon to Eagle Rock. We hadn’t summited five minutes when we heard a commotion, and ran to find a woman with a broken ankle cradled in her husband’s…

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Like The Weather

I’m like the weather: hot, cold, up, down, rain, sun. Today was a good one. So beautiful out. Wedged some fun into a busy Friday. Went running, and watched the city go from night to day. Had lunch with some like-minded (read: have day job as well as creative aspiration) co-workers. Returned Paul Grassini’s tuner…

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Worth Remembering

Yesterday was miserable: cold, gray, sheets of wind-blown rain. The building was creaking all afternoon. Walking home (via Blockbuster, where I rented “Insomnia”), though, the rain settled into a fine mist, and by the time I poked my head out of my bedroom window after dinner, it was the most beautiful fall night you’ve ever…

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My First Nosebleed

I got my first nosebleed of the fall last night, which seemed kinda’ fitting given the way I’ve felt of late. Watched “The Apartment,” ate (another) turkey burger with cheese, went to sleep. It was pitch black and pouring rain when I woke up this morning. It sounded soothing outside my window, but was bone…

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Boston “Summer’s Gone” Tour Report

Walking home past the Museum of Natural History tonight, a few fallen leaves blew down the sidewalk in the crisp autumn breeze, and I finally felt it for real. That’s it. It’s over. Summer’s gone. It wasn’t gone when I kicked off my tour at the Mercury here in New York City. The air was…

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This Is What It Feels Like

I walked outa’ work last night into the brightly lit bustle of Times Square and I thought, ‘Ya’ know what? Fuck this!’ All this tail-between-the-legs shit I’ve written the last few days, I mean. Yeah, so life’s tough, and I’ve been seeking some big break for what feels like a long time and all but……

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