PABLO ROYALE, RECORDING PROGRESS, SPRING TRAINING

We're sure lucky to have our Pablo.  He's game for everything, loves everyone, and has an amazing attitude.  Along with spring stirring in the valley, times are just fine.  From my window here I can see purple camas lillies in bloom under our dawn  redwood, and ornamental cherries starting to glow a little with pink buds.  Last year at this time we had a thick, wet blanket of snow that broke many of these trees.  For a week or so I would see pickups loaded with piles of broken limbs in bloom.  I saved ours by shaking off the snow with a push broom.  

We had a really productive session at Fusion Bomb a week ago.  Chris Ross put pedal steel on a song; I added trombone to two, and Scott K and I did acoustic and electric guitar overdubs. It's not our intention to complexify a ripping 2-guitar record too much, but I think we've added the right stuff to create a cool mixing palette for Tom Nunes.  This is going to be a fun record,  34 minutes with alot of drive, plenty of full-tilt E major.

CHRIS ROSS ADDS PEDAL STEEL TO THE GOLDEN MOTORS NEW RECORDING PROJECT

     I've been really digging the spring training Twitter feed of Bob Dutton from the KC Star.  The daily Q and A is fun.  The Royals are something like 18 and 2 so far, and the projected front four starters have given up just one walk.  It's spring training, it means nothing.  But one walk between four pitchers and an 18-2 record still cheers me up.  The Spring success of David Lough and and Donnie Joseph and Will Smith--all great to see.  I'm really looking forward to seeing what a clearly improved pitching staff can do for the Royals, and how their young players will come along.  Ten more wins would be fantastic.  15 more wins and a run at the wildcard would be even better.  

I'm not particularly happy hearing they're going to encourage big bomb home run swings from their young players.  I'd rather see Hosmer and Moustakas settle in and hit for average with a more compact, aggressive approach.  Smart base-running, stolen bases, situational hitting, and 35 to 40 doubles from four or five guys sounds better than watching these guys struggle taking big ugly cuts, trying to carry the team.

Enjoying Muscle For The Wing from the Daniel Woodrell omnibus The Bayou Trilogy.  Characters in these books appear to be CARDINALS fans.

PABLO ROYALE ATOP SPENCER'S BUTTE

MORNING WRITING COACH

RECOVERY

GOTTA GET IN ON SOME ACTION

 

This Milton Nasciemento record is really amazing, so beautiful, reissued by Four Men With Beards label. If I happen upon a few more records this lovely in my life, I'll be blessed.