by Dick Mac
Good morning, sailor!
Haven't heard from you again for quite awhile. It reminds me that you likely won't be writing to me again; but I hold out hope. Against my own better judgment, I still cling to some romantic and religious notions of people who've fled this mortal coil will magically deliver information to me or others in some paranormal manner. You won't.
Be that as it may, I am in Dublin for your birthday party. As usual, I was awake at stupid o'clock and took a walk in O'Connell Street down to the River Liffey, listening to music and day-dreaming about delicious morsels from Hot Donut (which dream will be reality). "Do The Strand," by Roxy Music and "Irish Rover" by Clancy Brothers & Tommy Makem were highlights of the walk, but as I settled in to write to you, I have the distinct pleasure of listening to Kendrick Lamar singing "For Free." I think he might be the one singer who, since the release of the song "Ziggy Startdust," most successfully makes reference to penis-size sound perfectly sensible and acceptable.
But, I digress. (As I do.)
Yup, KingTommy, PrincessRamsey, Cavebat, and Shakeh and I continued our "Better Living Through Bowienet" lives and flew over from the States to see Holy Holy this Saturday night. The flight was fine (as flights are), and we had some laughs about how bad airline travel has become. Who has time for sailing?
Last Sunday, we were in Philadelphia to see Donny McCaslin and Gail Ann Dorsey (you know them) perform at Ardmore Music Hall. Were we ever there together? I don't think so. It's poorly run, but a great space and amazingly tidy toilets. Almost makes one suspicious: wait, this is a music club, why are the toilets so clean and spacious and well-lit. A weird thing to notice, I know; but sometimes these are the mysteries that explain so much about life, that answer those questions that remain unanswered.
Speaking of unanswered questions . . . on "Young Americans" is it " . . . you and your idol singing falsetto," or " . . . you and your id singing falsetto"? I remember that the original lyric sheet said one thing and you sing another. You see . . . just another one of those nagging questions, like my suspicion of well-lit toilets, that neither matters nor needs actual answering.
Back to this birthday trip: oh, and Happy Birthday, by the way. So we are here in Dublin, staying in a smelly Air BnB in Parnell Street, to see Holy Holy this coming weekend. This means Tony will be here. He and Woody and the rest of the band will arrive Saturday - rumor has it that they are rehearsing in London. We hope to see them before or after the show. We usually talk about you at some point during our visits, and since it's your birthday, I'm certain we will remember kind stories.
What's happened in the past year? What's new there?
Vinyl recordings are selling like crazy. Oddly, vintage vinyl prices have dropped, while new vinyl prices are sky-rocketing. I suspect quality has something to so with it: a vintage Dynaflex copy of "Hunky Dory" barely plays, while the newer Parlophone 180g release sounds gorgeous.
You would have loved the marketing ploys around the 50th Anniversary re-release of "Space Oddity"! They released it in different colo(u)rs of vinyl and people were buying multiple copies of it trying to get this color or that color. It was a good laugh, and yet very exciting when someone posted that they'd gotten the sky-blue-pink version numbered #87457265926.
I finished my collection of all Apple singles released in the United States. Yup. Have them all. Last month I listened to them all in reverse-catalogue-number order, which I think made a George Harrison record first and the Mary Hopkins single second-last. Now, of course, I have to upgrade some of them because they may not be in the best condition. I've learned a lot acquiring this collection. What a fun collection of songs it is. They probably have them wherever you are; I suggest you give the entire catalogue a listen (yes, even the tedious Paul McCartney singles from the mid-70s).
Rodney, in Los Angeles, found me a pristine copy of the "Cold Fact" LP by Rodriguez. You don't want to know how much it costs to get a copy of that record! How come you never told me about Sixto Rodriguez? You know many of us relied on you for music tips. Perhaps you never heard the record, so hunt it down and give it a listen. And watch the documentary about him. You must be totally bored with all the Bowie documentaries that have littered the airwaves. (You know all those stories anyhow.) So, watch "Looking For Sugarman" and let me know what you think of him. Or not. I know you must be busy, doing whatever we do wherever you are.
I moved since I last wrote. Still in Brooklyn. My daughter is 15 now. OMG! Sometimes I find it difficult to accept that she is at the stage of life that requires her to rebel and ignore me and treat me with disdain. My fears tell me that other young women do not behave this way, that YOUR daughter would never be like that, but then I remember it has nothing to do with me, and everybody's 15-year-old behaves exactly as they do.
Still working and I like my job. As soon as I get back to New York, I have to get ready for a business trip. Life is hectic. And good.
Dublin is lovely. You know I never saw you perform here! I was a new-dad when you played here last, and although a bunch of friends traveled to see you here, I couldn't travel at the time.
I've acquired some new art. Brooklyn has a great art scene (like New York used to have), and I think you'd be very excited by it. One Brooklyn artist did a multi-media piece about you that I acquired; another did a piece that I did not acquire. You're pretty big in Brooklyn, at least 5'10" (but like all of us, you're not as thin in Brooklyn as you once were). Remember the Brooklyn Marathon show at St. Ann's Warehouse? OMG! You sang "Bewlay Brothers"! I'll never forget it. We were talking about the Marathon Tour recently.
Well, the morning is getting away from me . . . the others are moving around upstairs (they all sleep so late - the sun's already up).
Tonight we will see a band, and tomorrow night we will see a band, and then Friday night we will see a band, and then Saturday night we will see a band. Maybe I'll report back about the shows, maybe not. Probably not. I will likely forget all the details before I write next.
Today we will take a tour of Dublin and see some architecture and trees and rivers and hills and gardens and stuff. Wish you were joining us.
When you have a moment, open the window and holler down the road to me, like you used to do. I miss that.
Happy birthday, old man.
Everyone says Hi!
