May 26 in Alpharetta, GA (my neighboring town) I'll be going to see Joe Cocker. It'll be the fifth time I've seen him over the years and I hope it won't be the last. He's 63 yrs. old and, given his early lifestyle, it's amazing he's even still alive. Apparently during the 70's and 80's, he made Keith Richards seem like a choirboy. Who knows, maybe all that stuff (sex drugs, and Rock 'n Roll) actually PROLONGS life (I certainly hope so, anyway ).

Although I think of myself as a 'jazzer', I've always loved good soulful stuff from any genre'. Maybe that's why I've always loved artists as diverse as Willy Nelson, Pavarotti, James Brown, Carlos Santana, Janis Joplin, Tony Bennett, Jimmy Smith, and yes, Joe Cocker. They all have/had at least two things in common; 'soul' to spare, and the fact that each of them was the 'genuine article'. To this day, I cannot fathom how anyone could find anything musically redeeming about a RECORD of say, Mick Jagger or Madonna, or Britney Spears (at least Christina Ag. can sing), or any of the myriad of others who have created legends around themselves and made vast fortunes on (highly) questionable talent (unless you consider self-promotion a talent). Oh well, there's no accounting for public taste. In a country where American Idol garners more participation than a national primary to elect the next 'leader of the free world', it's no wonder we end up with a GWB in the White House.

Anyway, he's double-billed with the Steve Miller Band. Should be interesting. I'll probably see a lot of aging Woodstock alumni there. Hope none of them decides to 'streak'. Remember that?

chas