“Jerome Bernard Parent, what are you doing?” my mother asked. Uh oh. Full name. I’m in trouble. “I’m just reading,” I said, showing her the book. “That’s rude for a guest to be doing. Now go outside with the other kids and play.” “All right,” I said. “In a minute.” I peeked down the stairs. […]
The Dark Side of the Pooh Read More »
“[I]t’s impossible for me to say – as much as I loved him – that in his most productive and influential period Art Tatum was the only guy. How could I leave out Teddy Wilson? How could I leave out Hank Jones? How could I leave out Milt Buckner? How could I leave out a
Gemini — Ruby Braff Read More »
Poetry is far from becoming a cultural artifact regardless of the Information Age’s dry mechanical demands. The discipline serves too many vital functions to be avoided or overlooked for any extended period of time. In fact, everyone should write a poem, and soon. Following are ten reasons why. When you write a poem, you participate
Ten Reasons to Write a Poem Read More »
When the poet and critic Ezra Pound issued his famous literary proclamation to “make it new,” he uttered a phrase that became so identified with modernist literature that it’s difficult to imagine modernism happening without it. Of course, like many fitting pronouncements, over the years this one’s become a cliché, having been extensively quoted and
Making It New (Again) Read More »
When Hoagy Carmichael and his friends Bob Gilette and Bix Beiderbecke went on a road trip to Chicago, their first stop was Lincoln Gardens, the club where King Oliver’s band was appearing. Many years later, Carmichael wrote about that night: As I sat down to light my first muggle, Bix gave the sign to a
Tuba Skinny: Back Down on the Ground Read More »
“Every good manager effectively threatens his players with professional extermination if they don’t give him the best effort that they are capable of giving; Casey Stengel, Billy Martin, Whitey Herzog and Earl Weaver are masters at it, as was Durocher. They are not nice people. . . .” – Bill James, The Bill James Baseball
Grading and the Fear of God Read More »