In Touch With The Sinister

I just checked my cell phone messages and my mind began to wander.

Pretty soon I hear the automated operator saying “Are you still there? Are you still there?” I never had that happen before. Once, I passed out on the phone while talking to Chicago and the other party left the phone off the hook until I woke up six hours later. Good times.

I guess I am a little preoccupied with writing a lyric. Sometimes it is like a puzzle; you can walk away from the table but you still picture it in your mind.

I just bought “The Complete Early Recordings of Skip James” and am presently downloading it from Napster. Yeah, I was just griping about Napster a while ago, but where else are you going to find a Skip James record at midnight on a Wednesday.

James recorded eighteen songs in 1931, then he quit. He found religion and walked away from the blues. He was rediscovered in the sixties and started recording again. These 1931 recordings are like no other music.

Here are some words people have used to describe Skip James music, devil-ridden, gloomy, sinister genius, anger and lurking madness. Damn, how can anyone resist sinister genius.

It is a beautiful, crisp, peaceful night in the Ozarks. The leaves are just beginning to change. I always like the changing of the season. It’s like a fresh start.