to paraphrase the alien in the great movie "the hidden," "i want this record." there are a thousand more, but i have a pic of this one. the others i seek are everyday yet out of print: gene vincent capitol box set (i'm too cheap to order it from england) & the elvis complete '50s boxset. 

self-aggrandizement

hello to all. here's a song written by count smokula (melody unbeknownst to me & maybe to him!). we were talking about shared love of mad magazine & dr demento (with whom he worked, turns out!) & i said oh no, i'm no hipster, just a life-long nerd. so he sent this along, & it's a bit big-headed for me to post it, but wouldn't you? what a compliment.
JENNY IS A NERD by Smokey Miles
Have you heard the word?Jenny is a nerd! have you heard the word? Jenny is a nerd! best news I ever heard / anything else would be absurd / she shakes but is not stirred! / oh that Jenny is a nerd!
Have you heard the news? / Jenny's got the blues! / have you heard the news? / Jenny's got the blues! / she plays and pays her dues / she wears her rockin' shoes / she shakes it through and through / but Jenny's got the blues!
Have you heard the tale? / Jenny sure can wail! / have you heard the tale? / Jenny sure can wail! / she looks a little frail / but she's rippin' up the rails / rock'n'roll she hails / yeah, that Jenny sure can wail!
Have you heard the word?Jenny is a nerd! / have you heard the word? / Jenny is a nerd! / best news I ever heard / anything else would be absurd / she shakes but is not stirred! / oh that Jenny is a nerd!

at the elvis show last night, we got off to a rocky start on big hunk of love, but it didn't last too, too long and the audience response was heartening (maybe the mirrored shirt helped!). the lineup was eclectically enjoyable and the show, a fundraiser for the red cross, was said to be "tremendous" by art, who knows his stuff, i thinks. we were happy and fortunate to be a part. you can read all about it at www.sofein.com.

this is count smokula, art fein and i at the elvis birthday show. art was looking styling in his western jacket, and i'm looking gee-whiz dippy. :) smokula works with troma films & wished a happy bd to the "kink." other especially friendly or interesting folks i spoke with that night were pianists skip edwards and rip masters, russell scott and his folks, ray campi, the blasters (especially my friend jerome the gentleman drummer), evie sands, linda kay, tommy sands (who hung out in the dressing room with us), rod of the tonemasters, levis and beautiful bernie dexter, the groovy rednecks, barry holdship, fur & steve, patricia sweet, as well as the staff of the henry fonda, who were un-hollyweird nice to the very last one.

elvis show sat jan 8

happy new year!! the elvis show is upcoming... jan. 8, 5-9:30 pm, henry fonda theatre... i just learned the blasters will be there, too! wonder what song they'll do? whatever they do, don't matter, it'll kill. hope ours will sail -- "Big Hunk of Love" -- it's just such a terrific and fun song, so i hope we do it up right. don't know the rest of the night's lineup, but i imagine art fein will have it soon on his website at www.sofein.com ... last year was lots of fun. fred willard (fred willard!! ruben and i were grinning like chimps!!) had on a flashy suit that would've made little richard blush, and i think he told us it was from that store in memphis where elvis would shop for duds with carl perkins and others. most memorable for me musically last time was candye kane belting it out, the tonemasters, rip masters, ray campi, then russell scott doing the most soulful version of "feel so bad (good?)"... dang -- it's the one chuck willis song that says "sometimes i want to leave, then again i want to stay."... i just read an entertaining little potboiler (needed a quick vacation read on roadtrip to colorado) marginally about the King, in fact called "The King is Dead"--got it at the dollar store! go out and get it! the comma splices put me off for a bit, but it's definitely worth a buck--a seedy, lively mystery full of outlandish but fun characters, and it's set in tupelo with lots of incidental info about southern pop culture and elvis (the mad murderer is obsessed with EAP), so it's educational, too, you see.

here's the two brians at fishlips in bakersfield (mr paxton seems to be mid-chew). mr. briggs was rather  popular with the gals at the blasters show that night--made him a little nervous, i think! 

this was the second show we did with art, where i stupidly said we'd love to cover "think" by the hollywood flames (instead of the five royales)... duh... they wouldn't allow pix in the studio, so here we are outside afterward, looking like we're about to be killed by industrial ladders, then it was on to barbecue chow in the valley at dr hoggly-woggly's... sweet potato pie.... (insert homer simpson drool sound here)

this is from the first art fein poker party show we got to do. art is hosting the elvis bd show jan 8 in hollywood. this was the day i learned red lipstick doesn't match a pink dress. brian p learned not to chew gum on camera. jason had been playing with us for five whole days when we did the show--not bad!

oh, oh, oh, this is me with phil alvin... he recited some poem to me and kissed my hand. i was so gaga, i can't tell you more than that. a big day for me, nothing at all for him, i imagine, and that's just fine.