Wednesday's Trane
scattered every direction
dissonance
one difference
no drummer
to
catch
me
if
I
fall

  
                                            ----- Ed Kaz

I promise 
never to
crush chew
or
break you

full glass of H2O?
let it be so

4 tabs a day
I will obey

I'll take you
as directed

till chest
uninfected

600 mg guaifenesin?
you're my ticket
to mucous releasin'

                                                            ----- Ed Kaz

There are various reasons why a record by a major artist gets lost in the shuffle:  Bad promotion, bad timing, ahead of / behind the times, or maybe it just plain stinks.   Here's my list five underrated albums from otherwise overrated artists.

1. Rolling Stones Undercover

A funky gem, covering all sorts of lovely sado-masochistic topics. A firm groove permeates this disc. "She Was Hot" should be listened to with headphones; the background voices flow in and out lasciviously and hilariously.  

2. Bruce Springsteen  Lucky Town

This is one of those records he made when he was lost in the nineties without the E Streeters for a rudder. Classics abound, including "Local Hero" and "If I Should Fall Behind," which Dion DiMucci had the great taste to cover and practically make his own.  Go back and have a listen.

3. Beach Boys Smiley Smile

You could call this Brian Wilson's hangover album. He abandoned the much anticipated Smile project and came back with this: An almost DIY stoner kind of trip. Good Vibrations is on it, but it doesn't belong here.  That song is an epic and these songs are privately shared giggles.  Beach Boys at their weirdest and most magnificent.  I'm sure Mike Love complained during the whole session, which makes it even cooler.

4. Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin III

EVERYONE complained about this when it came out.  It's not noisy!  It's not mighty!  No, it's largely acoustic and shows us what these guys are really made of.  Listen to it now and wonder why everyone had a problem with it when it was released.

5. George Harrison George Harrison

This one sort of snuck out in '79 and it's a beautiful record from start to finish.  Harrison's not trying to overreach or over preach as he did on previous efforts (Dark Horse, for one), and finds his center. A joyful experience. Includes the sequel song "Here Comes the Moon." Gotta love The Quiet Beatle.

                                                            ----- Ed Kaz

This was created by some of my colleagues at Channel 68 in Newark New Jersey.  Everyone in the film was an employee at the time.  I'm glad I work in television.

At the end of the day I hopped into the elevator. Headphones on, Clash blasting. A couple of floors below a guy hops in: A dreadlocked African American messenger-type guy with a huge backpack and a rasta hat. I nod to him, and then realize that he's talking to me. So I pull the headphones off and say, "Huh?"

Messenger Guy: What year was Woodstock, 1968?

Me: No, it was '69.

Messenger Guy: Then what happened in 1968?

Me: Martin Luther King was shot. So was Bobby Kennedy.

Messenger Guy: Oh yeah. Two assassinations within months of each other.

Door opens. We enter the lobby.

Messenger Guy: What year was the Summer of Love? '67?

Me: Yep. '67.

We enter the street and part ways.

Messenger Guy as he gets on his bike: I gotta get my time line straight.

Me: You got it now, man. Take care.

What the heck was that all about? Did he give me the once-over and figure I knew all about the sixties?"

Apparently I've become the Go-To Hippie.

I need a haircut.

                                                            ----- Ed Kaz
          

Growing up, I always enjoyed Easter and all the great food.  One food in particular was the marshmallow chick.  I could eat a million of 'em.  And I could wash 'em all down with a tall glass of Tang, straight up.  And I wasn't even a junkie!  I was only eight.

As years passed I discovered--at the counter of the 7-11 store--the Cadbury Creme Egg.  It was then and there that my life was changed.  Marshmallow chicks were off the scene, man.  Nothin' beats a dozen chocolatey Cadbury Creme Eggs washed down by a Big Gulp Dr. Pepper.

With Cadbury Creme Eggs and Dr. Pepper, who needs speed? 
In fact, I wrote this entire entry in 3.7 seconds!

THANK YOU CADBURY!

                                                                       --------------- Ed Kaz

 
                                                                                      ------ Ed Kaz

Created by Ed Kaz