Archive for September, 2008

09.30.08Three incomparable voices, Alison Krauss, Gillian Welch and Emmylou Harris singing “Didn’t Leave Nobody But The Baby.” The only thing wrong with this video is it’s too damned short. (via loppestreRockus) Okay, this one I just happened to find, and it’s just too damned awesome to not slap it up here. Makes me tear up and get all Nashville homesick. Funny how I grew up thinking I hated country and any related genre (like Bluegrass or Gospel), but now that I’m 40 and haven’t lived in Nashville since 1998, hearing anything redolent of the Ryman, of the Grand Ole Opry, of the Loveless Cafe — it makes me ridiculously sentimental. This was the kind of singing I heard in my mama’s family growing up, in the churches attended by my uncle and grandmother. It makes my compass turn towards home and my memories threaten to consume me. And not in a bad way, either.

09.30.08Alison Krauss-Gillian Welch – “I’ll Fly Away” (via jaroski7). Tumblelogged for the music in this instance, not the movie (even though O Brother is about a thousand different brands of awesome). I just don’t know why I’ve been in the mood for this Depression-era music of late (this here hymn was written in 1929). Have NO clue. Strangest thing. Any ideas as to why I’d suddenly have a yen for DEPRESSION-ERA music, anyone?

09.30.08I see the man above in my nightmares. They are filled with fluorescent lights and buzzing vending machines and video screens. He is on every one of them. And he is trying to sell me Soylent Green. And he is succeeding. inothernews: “I’m Billy Mays for TUMBLR.” cycric: Billy Mays, 2008: gouache on paper

09.30.08“Murdering Mother Poisons Her Family in 1966,” via FunWithStuttering. I wrote about videos from Chris Hanson, the guy I assume is also the Diabolical Brainiac, here at True Crime Report. No, none of these crimes are “true” (I spent an hour checking some of them out), but don’t let that stop you from enjoying Hanson’s edits of old 8 mm home movies from the 60s into something truly sinister and disturbing.

09.29.08“Asile Hereditaire” from Rossini’s Guillaume Tell (via philopera), as sung by Chris Merritt. Sure, if you’re a little familiar with tenordom and Pavarotti, you’ve heard of his famed 9 high Cs sung in an aria from another Rossini opera, La Fille du Regiment. The big scena in this video is from Rossini’s HUGE version of the William Tell story, and it is easily one of the most difficult scenes in all of opera for a tenor, no matter how great their top notes. “Pour mon ame,” the famous 9 high C aria, is a walk in the park compared to “Asile Hereditaire” and the following scene with chorus. Chris Merritt makes it look easy. Merritt has had an excellent career, one with which I’m sure he’s satisified, but watching this, you have to wonder why he hasn’t been more of a BIG name in opera worldwide. Because this — this is just fucking awesome.

09.29.08Last known castrato Alessandro Moreschi singing Rossini’s “Crucifixus” in 1902 (via HerbertvK). Damn. The first post of a video with a Moreschi soundtrack was apparently pretty interesting to a few people. So here ya go, another one. I believe this is the first recording I heard of the last castrato — a friend of mine (now deceased) collected 78s and even Edison cylinders, and I know for sure it was he who owned the recording. I would say, “enjoy,” but dude — it’s a castrato. You don’t really enjoy the sound. You shake your head and just kind of wonder.

09.29.08(via isthisnametook.) In honor of today’s awesomely bad financial news: Ladies and Gentlemen, I bring you Mr. Al Jolson, singing “Brother Can You Spare a Dime?”

09.29.08It is official…

09.28.08The last known castrato, Alessandro Moreschi singing Tosti’s “Ideale” (via gmmix) Thanks to Anne Rice you may have heard of castrati. They weren’t all gone by the beginning of the recording era. So we have on record now one Alessandro Moreschi, singing a Tosti song. I first heard a recording of Moreschi some 20 years ago and I never get used the surreal nature of the sound. I can clearly hear the maleness in the voice, but its radical difference from a countertenor’s sound (countertenors are typically fully-intact males with extremely well-developed falsettos) gives the listener some sense as to why the greatest castrati (Moreschi was a chamber singer, his voice not powerful enough for the operatic stage of the day — and due to the fashion of his time, probably not wanted) set all of Europe on fire. There is really no other comparable human sound. Thank goodness it no longer exists.

09.28.08Gas line (via randomlunatic). This unintentionally kind of cool-looking pic is brought to you courtesy my crappy cell phone cam and the TWO FREAKING HOURS I SPENT WAITING TO GET GAS at a station in Cobb County, on the corner of Hwy 120 and Johnson Ferry Rd. The photo doesn’t really hint at the utterly exasperating, perplexing nature of the experience, nor at how interesting it truly is to observe others in this situation. Like that dick in the Mercedes. Yeah, you know who you are. You’re a dick, and you drive a Mercedes. It was all I could do to keep the inner redneck in check, y’all. ‘Nuff said.

NOTE

If the formatting of some blog posts seems 'off', it is because that post was transferred from my Tumblr, Random Lunatic News.
About Steve Huff (short version)

Comedian, author, screenwriter and basic cable demi-God Michael Ian Black has called Steve "a genius." Of course he didn't mean it, but it was still pretty cool. Best-selling true crime authors Ann Rule and Gregg Olsen have acknowledged Steve's contributions to the genre - according to Olsen, Steve Huff "invented serious true crime blogging." Steve's work has been mentioned in Rolling Stone, Newsweek, The Seattle Times and New York Daily News. He has also appeared as a talking head on HLN, MSNBC, Fox News and TruTV. Steve lives in the Atlanta area with his wife, educator and blogger Dana M. Huff, and their children.
Twitter
- Solstice ceremony went GREAT. Kids clumsy with a knife, they prefer using their teeth. Now it's enchanted mini-unicorn meat for EVERYONE! 59 minutes ago
- While I'm thinking about it - if you're an opera lover, follow @TheAtlantaOpera - and look for your own local co. on Twitter as well! 2 hours ago
- @TheAtlantaOpera Grazie, y'all. 2 hours ago
- Singing w/ the ATL Opera in 2010! Need to start sounding more Pavarotti, less Ricky Skaggs. Right now I sound like Rickiano Skaggerotti. 2 hours ago
- @Chris_Huff A dwarf goat would be PERFECT. 2 hours ago
- Solstice preparations going well now that I have a chac mool and stone knife. Almost certain the sun will come back this time. Almost. #fb 4 hours ago
- Re: the Solstice sacrifice – anyone got a chac–mool they could loan me for a few hours this evening? I'll clean it before I return it. 12 hours ago
- It's the Winter Solstice! Up all night sharpening sacrificial knives. The bleating,honking and requests for cigars are getting tiresome. 12 hours ago
- In a parallel universe, my kitty cat is losing a life each time she knocks another ornament off the Xmas tree. She's lost, like, 15 so far. 15 hours ago
- Photo: So that happened. http://tumblr.com/x5k4ueya7 15 hours ago
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