In late winter there's not much color in the midwest. The ladscapes are fifty shades of gray covered by white. Then... Spring! Color returns, birds add both visual and auditory stimulation. It's great to be outside and not freezing cold. The first thing that I always notice is the return of the birds and that is the subject of this photo essay. Soon there will be all kinds of things to point a lens at, but for now I'm looking for birds.

This Red-Tailed Hawk returns to the nest after making me wait for a couple hours! Worth it I guess?

White-Breasted Nuthatch.

This Hooded Merganser made my day when he popped out of the marsh for a brief appearance!

The appropriately named Yellow-Rumped Warbler.

A Robin made for the perfect image of Sping by posing in this blossom filled tree.

White-Breasted Nuthatch frozen in midflight on a clear sunny day.

Sandhill Crane (look closely!)

Not a bird but the very first wildflowers of spring. Hepatica I believe?

dead remember
flame
ash
dream
bird’s dreaming

forest
fears dead
remembering

wash
water
with tear'
s ferocity

you forgot
souvenir
of shadow’s
sorrow
wearing
robe of ash

hanging
from

horse
throat
full
of blood
spraying into sea

think
of throne
sword

book

being bracelet

burning
tumor

talisman
crows catch

angels
annihilate
numbers
without
names

absolute
being

one
or other

night now
so
fatigued

fatigued
so fatigued
shadows
encircle

hour
horse’s
hour

clouds carry
tumult
of hours

hours
absolute
horse’s
hours

sea strikes
bird
& being

hell’s
hymn

stones
suffocate shadow’s
silence

sleep
sense
less

less

dream
absence of birds

come
crow

come
crow

sing

When I was collaborating with Armando Manzanero at the RCA Victor Recording Studios in Mexico City in 1967, he was in the process of recording the very first LongPlay of his own songs. That LP soon would flood the Spanish world’s music market

Singer Carlos Lico, who had introduced me to Manzanero, was first on the scene with, “No! “which immediately covered the Mexican market.

Then came the LP, with Manzanero personally introducing, “Esta tarde vi llover,” “Contigo aprendi,” and the rest.

I returned to Puerto Rico very shortly thereafter, with all of my friends breathlessly telling me they had heard Tony Bennett singing my English lyrics of, “Esta tarde vi llover”. Unfortunately, I had to disabuse them of the notion that, “Yesterday I Heard the Rain” was not my version of, “When Today I Saw the Rain.” In Mexico, both Armando and I were bitterly disappointed when his bid to sign me with Peer Internatonal faileld.

After leaving Latin America, I sometimes was only marginally aware of new developments in the Latin music field. I was delighted with the more modern version of Manzanero’s, “No soy tú,” recorded by Luis Miguel. My English version, “How About You,” was locally recorded by Rykardo Hernández.

A few years ago, my current collaborator Tommy Dodson called by attention to a Manzanero song, “Soy yo,” sung by Luis Miguel. I was not impressed. Recently he asked te for an Engllish version, which I did reluctantly. With me on better terms with the song, here is Tommy Dodson on YouTube’s, “Tommy’s Tableaus.” 

Here are the English lyrics:

GUESS WHO

(Soy Yo)

Guess who...

Counts each little raindrop, and sees only you.

Guess who... In the world (2 beats)

It is whom you miss, and he feels lifeless, too.

Guess who... Guess who...

On your word alone, would start to live again.

The one...

Whose out there in limbo, with no place to go.

Let your guesses ring true;

It’s not very hard to...

Guess who.

Guess who...

Goes wild in the woods,, in hopes that you are there.

Guess who...

Gives all that he has, without the slightest care

That’s who...

Who, if you asked him, would bring down the moon.

With that love-light closer, he’d play you a tune.

The scene set for loving would make both our hearts sing.

That’s how...

With all the universe wrapped up as a gift,

It would not be, for me, too heavy to lift.

All that, I’d give you,

To prove my love true.

Guess who...

Photo; Manzanero: Mexico My Dear Old San Juan Moi

Book by Curtis W Long

After 20 years of only modestly presenting our works to the public, Tommy Dodson and I, as the entity, “Musical SoCal,” have decided to latch our fortunes onto the YouTube spinning wheel. Since our forte is stage musicals, we were uncertain as to how this art form would relate to the YouTube requirement for brevity, with regard to a successful continuous series. We are aware that success can be both promotional and monetary.

We had already begun to veer from the strictly live, stage presentation of our musicals. Not too long ago, we made a video of our, “Blues, Booze and Attitude” one-man musical. We were new at it, but did the best we could in our cramped music/video studio. With the resultant product, we made an unsuccessful stab at video on demand (VOD). We consider problematical the fact that we sequenced the video just as the musical had been performed on stage. Actually, it should have been edited to correspond with the requirements of a filmed product. Fortunately, Tommy’s Tableaus is giving us the opportunity to do just that.

A few weeks ago, we placed the first of the Tableau series on YouTube.  The initial response has been enough for us to continue. With Tommy’s position in the cat-bird seat at the insides-lighted-and-revealed grand piano at Stacey’s Piano Bar in Palm Springs he has been able to spread the word in a very direct manner Results have been seen on that score.

“Blues, Booze and Attitude” is a story that takes place during the Great Depression. Thad Johnson, who is musically active in the church, scratches out a living as a piano entertainer, Spats Dollar, in a bawdy house run by Ma Danner. With his mother and grandmother respectively cheering on the angel and devil perched on his shoulders, Fats/Thad finds himself rattling between the blues and the Hebrews of the Old Testament.  The segments on YT consist of a short intro by Tommy, and no more than one song at a time, provides the opportunity for a belated but effective editing of the video.

The second of the series has just been posted.  Contrasting with Spats bluesing it up at Ma Danner’s, it shows Thad singing gospel, with Ol’ Rev urging him on.