Ladies Night

I had a lot of fun hanging out in Williamsburg with my friends Nekesa Moody from the Associated Press and freelancer writer Rebecca Louie. We ate teriyaki, sushi and lots of rice at a cool little Japanese spot called Miyako on Berry Street. We also got a chance to catch up about our personal lives (what was talked about in Miyako, stays in Miyako!) and work.

By the way, Miyako had some incredible shrimp tempura sushi and beef teriyaki!

We moved to a little pastry shop and had coffee and hot chocolate and shared a ridiculously huge chocolate banana eclair. Rebecca can hardly believe her eyes.

'Cryin' 'Cause I Missed SLRAS in Nashville

You think you’ve got a long commute? Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars traveled some 30 hours and 6000+ miles to kick off their North American tour Friday night in Nashville. Turns out SLRAS mega-fan Joe Perry was in town (Aerosmith played in Antioch, TN the night before) and dragged his bandmates Steven Tyler and Joey Kramer out to the show. Joe and Steven joined the band onstage for several songs, including versions of Bob Marley’s “War (No More Trouble)” and “Get Up, Stand Up” that one eyewitness called “a once in a lifetime experience.” In the photo above, that’s SLRAS leader/songwriter Reuben Koroma rockin’ with Steven and Joe.

Sam Roberts Review That's Too Good to Let Pass Unmentioned...

Sam Roberts just kicks ass. There's no two ways about it. You can't beat him on stage. No one can (Ok, Bruce. But that's about it). Anyway, Sam Roberts Band has opened up for other bands ...and here's what someone wrote about one of those shows. I've made some deletions to this, but no additions. It's a cautionary tale:


X band shows signs of rust
Good thing it was not a 'Battle Of The Bands'


Many music fans blow off opening bands when going to concerts, either talking amongst themselves or just not showing up in time for them. As ... reports, for ...'s appearance it would have been a huge mistake.


...had a Texas-sized hurdle to overcome when he took the stage Saturday night. Picking an opening band can be a tricky proposition; you certainly want them to warm up the crowd, but maybe not to the mind-blowing level Sam Roberts Band set the bar with their smoldering set.

As demonstrated by all the exuberant to-the-beat hand clapping and psychedelic dance grooving going on throughout the packed venue, Sam Roberts and ..... either share a passionate fan base or Roberts gained a large number or ecstatic new fans at the show. The fiery Canadian band roared through a hard rocking set that culminated in the jaw-dropping fourteen-minute jam "Mind Flood", alternating introspective drizzling and typhoon furry. At the end of the night, several patrons were echoing each other that 'that second' band was amazing, including one family, in complete agreement, ranging in ages from 50 to early-teens; proving that Sam Roberts Band has a wide appeal and passionate live play that makes them a 'must see' band.

While the bar may have been set too high for an up-beat singer-songwriter to clear, X did their best.

PR. Also short for Project Runway.

Other than music and media the most talked about topics around the Shore Fire Office are usually food, baseball, food, did I mention food?, and Project Runway. The office was all a buzz on Wednesday as we made our predictions on who would win [Editor's note: not all of us!!!]. Chris T., Aliza, and our intern Nora all had their sites on Michael or Uli but I knew Jeffery would come out on top. Controversy stirred on Thursday morning after Jeffrey was announced the winner. Were the judges feeling guilty for not making Santino the winner last year? But Jeffrey broke the rules and went over budget?

Whatever your opinions of his collection may be, you have to admit his runway song rocked. Who care if he self promoting his band Lifter. Check out the song "Swing."

Also, Rob Sheffield's blog on the final episode is quite funny.

Gob Iron Ready for Their Close Up

Photo shoots in New York City are always a bit more treacherous than in other places... I don't know if those were Jay Farrar's exact words, but it was something along those lines. And, well, he'd definitely know better than I would.

The shoot was for Gob Iron -- Jay's side band with Anders Parker (whose debut album is out on Halloween!). After roaming around a bit and taking a several shots near an old abandoned lot/overpass area on 40th & 10th, we made our way -- through the bustling people, honking traffic, and around a Hummer that insisted on stopping right on the crosswalk.

We took a few shots on the street by a suspiciously empty-looking appliance store. There were a couple of fish markets in the area, and wow, did it smell....er, lovely.

But the folks at a cozy nearby tapas bar called Cafe Andalucia were kind enough to let us shoot inside, so we wrapped things up in there.

Just another NYC photo shoot.

Photographer Jim Franco was awesome, and Jay and Anders were real troopers. We should have some cool photos.

(photo to the right: Anders, me, Jay)

Where's Rory Gallagher Been All My Life?

I've a confession. A reissue label we were working with put out a series of Irish boogie/rock/blues guitarist Rory Gallagher cds six or seven years ago...which I never listened to at the time. In my defense, they were part of probably 5 or so releases a month, and I wasn't in charge of the account. Nevertheless, here I am. I'm listening. And I'm diggin' it. In the past couple weeks I've been getting into: Calling Card; Live in Europe; Stage Struck; and Photo-Finish.

Teng, Mays Make It on Ludlow St.

San Francisco's Vienna Teng riveted a standing room house last night at the Living Room on Ludlow Street in New York City. The pianist's melancholy songs and incredibly compelling performance kept the crowd completely hushed, so much so that Teng rewarded us all with a song she said she only played when she's got the right audience... a heart-wrenching a capella tale of a deadly car crash "four years ago." Earlier in the evening, Matt Hanks, Alexis Tedford and I got to have a terrific dinner at 'inoteca with Teng, her manager Amy Cox, Rounder exec Sherry Sands, and journalists Andre Poulin (Today Show) and Cristina Black (Time Out NY).

Following that excellent show, I popped in right next door to Pianos, where another of our clients, Matt Mays & El Torpedo,



were just going on for the second installment of a their Monday night October residency....the guys' rock-in-the-pocket self titled debut's out today.


Carrie Tolles (seen above with Matt Mays at last night's show) has been over the moon about the band, their great album and their winning live show. Man, these guys delivered and more. I'm going back next Monday. I'll buy you a drink there, just let me know you're coming.

Welcome Hazel Jane

Congratulations to Houston Chronicle scribe Andrew Dansby, whose first daughter Hazel Jane was recently born. Here's his blog about being a new parent, Babysteps.

I'm sure I am not the first to predict that she may become a fan of Bob Dylan ("Hazel") or possibly Nick Drake ("Hazy Jane").

rock and read

From the world of there-can-never-be-too-many-lists-about-music comes The Onion's 17 Essential Books About Popular Music, with intriguing selections abound. Congrats to the friends of Shore Fire who made the list. I really think The Onion's cultural criticism is largely spot-on. Keep up the good work, fellas. Of course, I also think Alan Lomax's The Land Where The Blues Began, Elijah Wald's Escaping The Delta, August Wilson's 7 Guitars, Clarence Major's Dirty Bird Blues and Bob Dylan's Chronicles make my personal list, which I admit is quite heavy on the blues literature.

“Radio City, You Are So Outrageous!”

“Radio City, you are so outrageous” was how singer Neil Tennant, one half of synth -pop dance duo The Pet Shop Boys, closed their show on Saturday night. Alexis and I were transported back to our teenage years (me in Chicago, Alexis in Knox-Vegas) when we were graced with “Domino Dancing,” “Go West,” “You Were Always On My Mind” and “West End Girls” amongst others. The show was fantastic and very flamboyant, complete with dancing queens and cowboys. We spotted David Fricke in the lobby while we waited for our flaming Radio City strawberry daquiris with red glitter glow sticks.

I just flew in from Chicago, boy are my arms tired!

Another road trip for Heineken's Red Star Soul Series took me to the Windy City and it was cold! Despite the temperature, soul fans flocked to the Chicago event featuring performances by R&B hitmakers Angie Stone and Bilal. There was so much buzz in the city about the event that even R. Kelly was in the house (I did not actually see him myself but there were several eyewitnesses).

Some of our journalist friends also made it out including Deborah Brown who is now at WMAQ-TV but used to book Shore Fire clients left and right when she was the morning show contact at WGN TV. Marti Parham of Jet Magazine was also there and we made sure she got the VIP treatment.

I took the next day off to visit with friends and got a chance to sit in on a taping of the Oprah Winfrey show. Tune in October 16 and maybe you will get a chance to see me.

Teng Takes BK By Storm (Literally)

Matt Hanks and I had the pleasure of checking out our client Vienna Teng at Park Slope's Union Hall last night. Her performance was fantastic! It was the first time I had seen her play solo (without strings) - just her and the piano. It may have been pouring rain outside but that didn't keep the fans away. Boy, did she have the crowd mesmerized. She played songs from her new album 'Dreaming Through the Noise' (which is out now on Zoe/Rounder) and songs from her past two albums and ended the set with a chilling interpretation of a Chinese folk song. I'll be catching Vienna again at the Living Room on Monday, Oct 16. Check out this fan footage from Vienna's show in her hometown of San Francisco this summer

And,I think I may have found my new favorite Brooklyn venue in Union Hall. Where else can you go see live music, play bocce ball and eat deep fried saga blue cheese balls coated in apple cinnamon cheerios? It really is a beautiful space and interesting set-up.

Porcupine Tree @ Nokia 10/6

Aliza and I had the pleasure Friday night of seeing our client Porcupine Tree perform their only NYC show of 2006 at the Nokia Theatre. Amazingly enough, it was my first trip to Nokia. I liked it. Very clean, and the VIP areas were spacious, with good seating and sightlines. Nokia also has my new favorite backstage hospitality room, with an Ali Baba and the 40 thieves vibe.

After an opening set by Robert Fripp and Adrien Belew that was by turns exhilarating and hypnotic, NY Times music critic Jon Pareles joined us for the first half of the Porcupine Tree program, in which they debuted new material that will appear on their upcoming studio album. Fans seemed to take to it- the ones I eavesdropped on while waiting to claim my bag from coatcheck were intrigued and surprised by how 'dark' it was. The second half of the show was devoted to fan favorites.

Rockstar weekend

Nick B., Alexis, Carrie and I caught former Shore Fire superstar Rona Rapadas at Pianos on Friday night performing as the second half of Alias & Tarsier. The packed crowd bobbed and swayed to the atmospheric melodies lead by Rona's moving, Bjork-like voice. Check them out at Myspace. Just amazing to see the girl that used to answer the phones here signing autographs.

And although the baseball season is over (for what is baseball without the Yankees?), I had a very exciting Columbus Day spending a few hours with my newest client, legendary producer (and fellow Italian) Phil Ramone. I was witness to Phil's brilliance as he produced a track at Legacy Studios with a "regal" singer for an upcoming Ella Fitzgerald tribute record. Stay tuned for more info on that.

Kids do the darnedest things....

Speaking of kids - here's a video that some fans (young fans that is) emailed to Sonya Kitchell recently, doing their own rendition of Sonya's single "Let Me Go":



Hard to say which one's more fun to watch, this or the actual video. Well not to mention Letterman and Ferguson. Hard to beat those kids though ain't it.

Jammin’ w/ Jamarama

On Sunday, I packed up the family (me, husband Peter and 5 1/2 month old Roxy) and we ventured out to the North Fork Theatre in Westbury, NY for the JAMARAMA LIVE! KIDSFEST. Shore Fire client Ralph’s World headlined the bill. It was Roxy’s first ever rock concert and boy, was she in for a treat! Roxy was mesmerized by Ralph’s catchy tunes and the other youngsters grooving in the aisles to songs about chocolate cake, lattes, puppy dogs, black and red ants who love to dance, happy lemons and a dinosaur who lived with the girl next door!

Here’s a photo of me and baby Roxy at the venue. Ralph’s the guy directly over my shoulder:

YouTube Friday Strikes Again

This rocks crucially. All out album artwork warfare:

Two Singers, Three Sheets To The Wind

Fellow Shore Fire clients, and Rounder Records artists, Madeleine Peyroux and Vienna Teng just wrapped up a run of tour dates, and we hear they got on famously.



"This photo was taken in Oakland CA,” recalls Vienna, “in Madi's mobile bedroom (i.e. the back room of the bus). Everyone was hanging out and drinking a great deal of red wine, and when the idea of picture-taking came up, we went through a bit of hilarious and not-entirely-G-rated posing before we decided to behave ourselves. The whole tour was fabulous -- can't wait to meet up with her again."

Terry Lickona, Meet Mark Foley....

We were surprised yesterday, (and thought, in a way that it was kinda cool to see him in the paper despite the context), that while reading the NY Times on the subway to work, we came across a photo of our friend Terry Lickona, who's booked so many of our artists on his terrific music performance tv show Austin City Limits. But there he is, in a star-studded photo with Lou Gosset Jr., Randy Jackson, Kelly Clarkson....and disgraced Republican, ex-Congressman (a Republican), Mark Foley, R - Florida.


It turns out that Foley, who was the Republican chair of the House Caucus on Missing and Exploited Children (presumably installed there by the Republican leadership) had a predilection for Hollywood types too, and it's explained in a story titled "A Complex and Hidden Life Behind Ex-Representative's Public Persona." Next time we see Terry, we've got to get the whole story!

Westerberg's cool signature guitar...

It's a little shameless, but I can't resist calling attention to the our client First Act's newly announced Paul Westerberg Signature Model PW580 guitar. It got me to thinking... I remember in early September 1982, the Replacements were starting to get some attention in New York and they had a gig in town (maybe their first here, but not really sure). My friend Steve (see below re Flipper) dragged me and some other pals down to Danceteria to see this anarchic, who-knows-what-will-happen band that Christgau was hot on. We arrived early (it was $5, I think, to get in if you got there before 10). The night got later...and later...and later. Back then, the headliners at the NY clubs didn't go on until 2am or later. I had a little tummy ache, whined a bit, and got everyone to leave. Don't judge me too harshly, none of us really knew who they were or had ever heard the Replacements music. I'll regret it always, but it did get to see 'em a few times after that during their Bob Stinson heyday, including my favorite, a night at CBGBs when they played as Gary & the Boners.

My momentary fame...

I'd like to add the new job description of "official fender-offer of drunken guys stuffing dollar bills down the shirts of female reporters while the air" to my list of many publicist skills! Check out my momentary fame as I swat the offenders away...this first appeared on VH1 Best Week Ever randomly this past weekend, and now it has made its way to YouTube-ha!

Enjoy...

A Two Beer Lunch with Paste

I was in Atlanta last Friday, and had the pleasure of dropping by the stylin’ offices of Paste Magazine: beautiful open floor plan, a cool podcast studio, and of course, cds, books and dvds everywhere you look. They had just closed an issue the night before , so I was able to drag editors Josh Jackson, Reid Davis and Jason Killingsworth out to lunch. Or rather, they gave me a serious beer schooling, with lunch on the side. We went to the Brick Store Pub, where the fish and chips are pretty good, and the beer selection is INSANE! I'm talking hundreds, not dozens. They have an entire room devoted to Belgian beers, for chrissake! The Paste fellas are friendly with the owners. They hip them to new music and get to sample new arrivals in return. A truly inspired arrangement, if you ask me. L-R below, that's Reid, Jason and Josh. Cheers!

We're jammin'

Here's some footage of me jamming on the blues with illustrious guitarist-singer-songwriter Dan Kaplan in Cambridge, MA. Note Dan's superlightweight camping guitar! (Be patient: it takes a few minutes to load.)

Sufjan in wings

Saw Sufjan Stevens play at Town Hall on Friday night, opening night of a 3-night run. He and his band emerged attired in butterfly wings and were spot on all night. He actually has an understated concert presence, in spite of the plumage. His breathy tenor really shined though. And his drummer is fantastic.

In Shore Fire news, check out Amos Lee on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson tonight. I ran into Amos in Greenpoint, Brooklyn a couple of months ago and you'll never meet a nicer guy.

My 2nd First Week at Shore Fire

First week at a new job is always a little crazy. First week at a new job you've been trying to get for almost three years, borderline surreal. See back in the Fall of 2003, I decided it was time to move back to New York and get a job in the music biz because, well, how hard could it be? I liked music. I read Rolling Stone. I know what I’m talking about. Why couldn’t I do it? Well after 3 weeks of unreturned emails and phone calls, I found out I didn’t know as much as I thought I did. Lucky for me, Rebecca Shapiro at Shore Fire Media needed an intern. And thanks to the kind words of a friend of a friend (and Rebecca’s sharp judge of character) I got the gig. I was in. Sort of. It was a wild 6 months of 6-7 day work weeks (3 at Shore Fire, 3-4 slinging pasta at tourists in the Village), but eventually it was time to move. I was headed over to Universal Classics for a full time gig assisting VP of Publicity Olga Makrias. Yet I always had my eye on coming back.

Well wouldn’t you know it, after Universal Classics and some time doing online entertainment publicity at Deep Focus, luck struck again this past Monday when I entered the front door not as an intern, but as a full fledged employee. I’m working at Shore Fire baby! And I have to say for my first week, it’s gone pretty well. Tuesday night myself, Nick Baily and Bianca Martinez saw an amazing performance from new Shore Fire client Erin McKeown at Joe’s Pub (look for the new disc in Jan. ‘07). Wednesday I showed up to my first What’s Up meeting, and was actually able to let everybody know that indeed something was up (Thanks Adriana Leshko!). And this evening I’ll finish out my first week with a few tapas, a few drinks and the divine stylings of Australia’s own The Cat Empire. And they PAY ME for this. Wild. Looks like in the end I found out I could do this after all.

No matter how many press releases we write...

...I'm not sure we'll ever be able to live up to this standard. A tip of the hat to perhaps the most hilarious media campaign that's ever existed:

A statement from fictional Kazakh reporter Borat's D.C. press conference outside the Embassy of Kazakhstan:

"Jagshemash, my name Borat Sagdiyev. I would like to comment on recent advertisments on television and in media about my nation of Kazakhstan, saying that women are treated equally, and that all religions are tolerated — these are disgusting fabrications. These claims are part of a propoganda campaign against our country by evil nitwits Uzbekistan — who as we all know are a very nosey people, with a bone in the middle of their brain.

"There is a man name Roman Vasilenko who is claiming to be Press Secretary of Kazakhstan. Please do not listen this man, he is Uzbek imposter, and is currently being hunted by our agents. I must further say on behalf of my government, that if Uzbekistan do not desist from funding these attacks, then we will not rule out the possibility of military intervention. ...

"Furthermore, all claims that our glorious leader is displeased with my film, 'Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazahkstan' is lie. Infacts main purpose of Premier Nazharbayev's visit to Washingtons is to promote this moviefilm. This why together with Ministry of Information he will be hosting a screening tomorrow evening, to which he have invitate Premier George Walter Bush and other American dignitaries — Donald Rumsfeld, Bill Gates, O.J. Simpson and Mel Gibsons. This screening will be followed by cocktail party and a discussion of closer ties between our countries at Hooters, on 825 7th Street.

"Thank you, I must now return to Embassy where my government need me.

"Chenquieh"

I predict Borat will take over the entire universe of pop culture when the movie's out in a month. Yeah, I'm not really going out on a limb there am I?

Nashville Talking About James Hunter

James Hunter performed at the Americana Music Association Awards last weekend, where he was nominated in the New & Emerging Artist category. He didn't win but he did make some new friends, including fellow Shore Fire client Elvis Costello. According to GO Records prez and all-around great person Kimberly Guise, "James got stopped constantly just walking down the street in Nashville."

RIP Etta Baker

Etta Baker, my personal favorite of the Piedmont blues and rag guitarists died on Saturday at age 93 of a stroke. If you haven't heard her yet, I recommend picking up her album 'Railroad Bill' from the kind folks at Music Maker Relief Foundation, who helped Baker with necessities towards the end of her life. American culture lost a true treasure over the weekend.

Stars behold Sam Moore at the Conan O'Brien show

It was a star studded night at the Conan O’Brien show last night. I was there with Shore Fire client and Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Sam Moore who performed an incredible rendition of “Don’t Play That Song (You Lied)” with Bekka Bramlett from his new cd ‘Sam Moore: Overnight Sensational.’

Just before Sam performed we caught a photo with Sam and Desperate Housewives’ Marcia Cross who was also a guest that night. She looked absolutely radiant and was incredibly sweet.



As Sam was headed back to his dressing room, WNBC’s Sue Simmons was coming around the bend. She instantly recognized him they chatted for a few moments before she had to run off to prepare for the news.

After Sam and Bekka’s animated performance, Conan brought Sam over to the couch as he signed off the show.

After the show was over, it was drummer Max Weinberg who stopped in to chat with Sam and congratulate him on his performance.

Did Someone Call For YouTube Friday?

That's too good a challenge to pass up. Remember when being ambitious was what the kool kid musicians did? When not being able to play your instrument didn't really get you a lot of respect? When playing an instrument like all fast and complicated was what made you a badass?

Well, me neither. I missed that bit. But I have visual proof that such a time did exist. Behold Edgar Winter:



That's about all I have time for today but if you've found yourself suddenly in a prog mood this might be just the thing to cure it. I did consider posting the actual best video on YouTube, Fear Of Pickles, but I decided that wouldn't be sporting.

Wild Night in the Underground Garage....

Last night's Little Steven's Underground Garage Rolling Rock and Roll Show at the Irving Plaza was a virtual who's who of rock n' roll. Not only did the extravaganza feature raucous performances by local band The Anderson Council, The Woggles, The Fleshtones, The Mooney Suzuki and The Zombies (yes The Zombies!!) but the following tastemakers were also on hand: Lenny Kaye, Bob Gruen, Handsome Dick Manitoba, Kid Leo, Jean Beauvoir, Jeremy Tepper, plus rock journalists David Fricke of Rolling Stone, Mary Huhn of NY Post, JR Taylor of NY Press, April Long of Nylon and more. Don't fret- the tour will return in Oct and Nov with a whole new lineup.

I managed to snap a few photos before my batteries died. Check them out at:
Diana's Underground Garage Photos

YouTube Friday: Pub Rock Edition

I’d bet dollars to donuts YouTube sees its highest traffic on Fridays. What better way to kick off the weekend than watching some serious jams? Idolator got a jump on this earlier in the week by compiling The Five Greatest Public Access Music Clips Of All Time.

We have our obsessions here at Shore Fire too, and I thought I’d indulge mine by posting My Four Favorite Pub Rock Clips Of All Time. Why only four? That’s all I could find worth sharing, but it’s seems befitting this perpetually also-ran genre.

Ever since discovering Ducks Deluxe a couple years ago on a compilation called Glitterbest I’ve been hopelessly devoted to pub rock. If you’re into high-energy, no-nonsense, good-time rock & roll, check this stuff out.


If pub rock has a patron saint, it’s Nick Lowe. There’s a lot of Nick on YouTube, but this is the earliest clip I’ve come across, featuring an incredible performance by his early band Brinsley Schwarz. Also features the coolest haircut you’ll see today.



The Groovies were a lot of things to a lot of people, but their influence was perhaps most pronounced on the pub rock scene. Already veterans by the time of this 1972 clip, they perfected a back-to-basics approach that would become one pub rock's hallmarks.



One of the few pub rock bands to break out of the scene, Dr. Feelgood had a #1 record in the UK once upon a time (and it was a live record, no less!). They never made much of an impression in the States, even though music biz legend (and current Blue Note Prez) Bruce Lundvall was a major booster and tried to break them over here. This clip ca. 1975 from Old Grey Whistle Test features the first - and best - Feelgoods lineup. If you’re down w/ The Hives, check out their blueprint!



The greatest punk band that no one considers to be punk. Everyone’s all The Clash! The Damned! The Ramones! But for my money, Eddie and The Hot Rods truly bridged the gap between the old and new waves of rock and roll in the 70s. Their debut LP ‘Teenage Depression’ is a stone classic. Check ‘em out performing the title track here.

16 hours, 45 minutes in Detroit

I jumped on a plane at 10am yesterday to attend Heineken’s Red Star Soul concert in Detroit. (It's a series of soul music events across the country featuring new and established talent). Last night's concert was full of great music and jampacked with people. Me, or Carrie from Shore Fire, will be attending all of them!

I was happy to run into my friend Carlos Henderson. He’s an amazing bass player who has most recently played with former Shore Fire client, vocalist Lizz Wright. Tonight he was performing with Amel Larrieux who was the headliner for the event. He told me that he and his wife are expecting! Congratulations!!

At 4:45am this morning, I was headed to the airport to catch a 6:40am flight back to NYC.

Happy 84th, David Gahr - Fete for Legendary Photographer

It was worth driving 80 mph on the Jersey Turnpike yesterday morning to make it to Manhattan's Cosmic Diner (52 St. and 8th Ave.) in time to sing "Happy Birthday" to legendary photographer and all-around mensch David Gahr. Gahr, who turned 84 this week, is known to us not only as a great shooter who captured some of the best images ever of musicians such as Bruce Springsteen; Bob Dylan; Miles Davis; John Lennon, Janis Joplin (see the great photos) and so many top stars. He's also one of the funniest, most irreverent, and occasionally downright vulgar photogs we'd ever let near a superstar. When David is around his subjects, he's the star!

David's good friend, the venerable scribe and man-about-town Arthur Levy, organized the guest list, ordered the birthday cheesecake from S&S;,chauffeured the guest of honor from Brooklyn's Park Slope in the midst of the season's worst traffic (thanks to the United Nations) and managed to keep the whole thing a secret.



Biff Henderson, of the Letterman Show, happened in on his lunch break; Arthur pursuaded him to say hi to Dave.

David Gahr surprised even those who've known him for decades with a story about meeting Marilyn Monroe when David was on assignment to cover Monroe's husband Arthur Miller (Monroe had only a bathrobe on, and she pulled a photo of his out from under it.) Hanging on every word were: "Sing Me Back Home" producer Leo Sacks; Holly George Warren, author of an upcoming bio of Gene Autry, who also volunteered to drive David to his account in Queens after the bash; long-time Gahr attorney Joel Siegel; independent record producer Gregg Geller; Verve's Joe McEwen; former Sony pr VP Mary Ellen Cataneo McEwen, looking gorgeous while chatting about Montclair, kids and the record biz with her erstwhile colleagues, pr consultants Howard Wuelfing and Keith McCarthy; Andy Schwartz, taking a break from work on his forthcoming rock history book (with Scott Schinder) for an educational publisher; Legacy producer Steve Berkowitz, who's just completed 'Johnny Cash: the Legend, Volume 2' and is working on a complete collection of the works of Lonnie Johnson; former Sony staffer Barry Feldman, whose Barry Feldman Financial Services for NY Life specializes in music biz clients; Sony BMG Special Markets' Doug Wygal; and our wonderful friends at Legacy, those intelligent and soulful guys Jeff Jones, Adam Block, Tom Laskey, John Jackson and Randy Haecker.

Happy Birthday, David Gahr! 84 years young...and feisty!

"How Hard was Their Core" & my first month in New York

Kelefah Sanneh's essay today in todays Times, "How Hard Was Their Core", occassioned by a new documentary and book, was smart (as usual) & it got me to reminiscing. You know, "back in the day." I've been thinking about Flipper lots in the past couple of weeks -- they get a passing mention in K's story -- because they're back together and had a gig (which I missed) earlier this week at sadly-soon-to-go-forever CBGBs. Man, 'Generic' Flipper just killed me back when it came out in 1982. No one I knew had ever heard anything like it, I certainly hadn't. It was the nastiest, evilist music I'd ever heard. It's still pretty scary. (don't listen to 'Generic' if you're feeling depressed).

But I did see Flipper's first gig in New York City in September, 1982, my first month in New York City (for college). My cool friend dragged my to see 'em. I'm sure I hadn't heard any of their music at that point -- we pretty much read Christgau's "Voice Choices" and went where he said to go -- and in truth I can't remember anything about the music that night. But I do remember that Flipper went on around 3 or 4am, and the club was called the Fallout Shelter, somewhere in the Times Square area. The story was their plane was delayed, and they weren't in a great mood. The stage, I think, was right on the floor. We made it back to Columbia as the sun came up.

I also saw Johnny Thunders that month at the legendary Mudd Club (filmed for a movie). Johnny got into a fight onstate with the scenster/actor/heroin addict Gringo & swung his Les Paul Jr. by the neck at the guy. And I remember being at Danceteria way late, but leaving before the Replacements came on (who knew how good they were then?).

Madeleine Peyroux Charms @ Conan

There goes Sue Simmons...hey that was Chuck Scarborough! Another day of fun local newsanchor spotting while roaming the halls at the NBC studios in NYC for a taping of the Late Night with Conan O'Brien. This past Monday afternoon, Mark and I had the fortune of spending time with singer Madeleine Peyroux, who was making her debut on the show. She was charming and quite funny as we passed the time in the newly-revamped (check out the leather couches) artists green room, sipping Starbucks cappuccinos and talking about the merits of a good pair of jeans. Booker Jim Pitt was also on hand to chat for a few minutes-always great to see him when he's in town:
Madeleine's band mates, Sam Yahel, Matt Penman and Scott Almendola, were all really cool, witty and laidback-always makes passing the incredibly loong period of downtime at a taping easier.

After watching supermodel Gisele Bundchen prance down the hallway, Madeleine and her band went on and did a TERRIFIC job of performing her new single "I'm All Right". Go Madi!

Golem Hits the LES with NY1 News

I have to confess that I’m a bit of a junkie for NY1 news. I watched it nonstop during the transit strike this past winter, and I make a point of watching Pat Kiernan’s ‘In The Papers’ segment every morning. So, I was thrilled when I got a green light from them for a segment on Golem, a funky Eastern European folk-rock outfit helmed by singer and accordionist Annette Ezekiel.

On Monday night , reporter Ruschell Boone came to a private show they performed at Manna Hatta on Bowery to film some concert footage , and yesterday Annette gave Ruschell a tour of “her” lower east side. Here , Annette is talking about the Ukranian church on 7th street between 2nd and 3rd Avenues where she used to dance as a child, and was first exposed to this music. We also visited the Hebrew Actors Union building across the street, and the now-shuttered 2nd Avenue Deli.

One thing that amazes me about NY1 is how versatile they are- Ruschell was the writer, director, editor, reporter, producer, and camerawoman for the piece, and it aired just hours after she finished shooting the final frame with Annette.

The story is available here if you'd like to check it out.

Kempy Eats Pizza and Dumplings Too!

I invited the primo music journalist and my pal Rob Kemp to "Pizza Friday" last week. It was so nice of him to make the trek out to Brooklyn from his East Village pad, especially in the dreadful rain! Rob was a nice addition to the Shore Fire crew, he got along with everyone very well and we laughed a lot:) (below, l-r Lily, the top of Bianca's head, Diana, me, Rob)


It was the first time some of the Shore Fire peeps met Rob but Mark has been friends with him for a while (see Rob (L) and Mark (R) below). In fact Mark told us that when Rob was just starting at Time Out NY ten years ago, he called him up to say "Hey man, I really liked your story on Pearl Jam. Want to hang out?" Rob said it was the first time a publicist had ever invited him to dinner, he thought it was so cool. Mark took him to a dumpling place in Chinatown...Rob thanked Mark for introducing him to soup dumplings and said that it was something he'll never forget.

I can only hope that Mr. Kemp will remember his Friday pizza at Shore Fire as fondly as he does the Chinatown dumplings.

Found: Thriving Record Store in the Wilds of NJ

Was in Princeton, NJ over the weekend and popped into the venerable Princeton Record Exchange. Holy 1990s! I haven’t seen a record store that hoppin’ since, well, since the last time I was in Amoeba. Conventional wisdom says Amoeba’s the exception that proves just how bad things have gotten for indie record shops (and I’ve read that even Amoeba’s sales are off by as much as a third), but it was heartening to see the vinyl aisles at the PRE packed two or three people deep on a Saturday afternoon.

So, what’s their secret? It doesn’t hurt that the PRE is across the street from Princeton Univ. (Yes, Virginia, some college kids still buy records), but there’s an even simpler explanation: the PRE is wicked cheap! Anecdotally, I’d say their prices are half or even a third that of your average NYC used vinyl shop. And they have a massive new arrivals section that doesn’t feel the least bit picked over, to boot.

Record shopping can be a pretty solitary experience these days. I left the PRE remembering what it is I love - and miss - about the sense of community a great record store can give you. Even if that community consists largely of underage stoners and middle-age dudes who live with their mom.

I scored some cool stuff too:

Kim Fowley - ‘Outrageous’ - $7
Mandala - ‘Soul Crusade’ - $5
The Nice - ‘Ars Longa Vita Brevis’ - $5
The Main Attraction - ‘And Now...’ - $8

Mazel Taj

Michael, Diana, and I hung out this past weekend with Shore Fire’s dear friend and Charlie Rose Show producer Taj Greenlee, who just celebrated his birthday (we won’t tell how many years old...or young). The gathering was at the super fancy, trendy, and top-secret basement bar at The Hotel On Rivington.


Here’s a shot of the four of us all dolled up. Don’t be fooled by the tame photograph — it was quite the scene, the details of which we won’t go into here. Never a dull moment with Mr. Greenlee.

A Brooklyn state of mind...

So I spend a lot of time in Brooklyn. Shore Fire's here of course (that's the view from the window to the right), and I live a block away. Sometimes it just feels like my entire world axis is an area within a 100 yard radius of Remsen and Court Streets, Brooklyn Heights. I also necessarily spend a lot of time thinking about writing, especially music writing -- hey, I'm even writing now. See what I mean?

So it was interesting this weekend to stop in and see a few things at the (first ever) Brooklyn Book Festival across the street. I'd say the area's becoming quite a writer's bastion, but given Heights residents like Walt Whitman, Truman Capote, and Norman Mailer perhaps "becoming" is the wrong word. I got to hear a bit of the Saturday readings with Jonathan Lethem, Carl Hancock Rux, Rick Moody, and quite a few others -- but what was most interesting was to see the great turnout, a plaza full of people sampling author / publisher / bookstore booths like it was the Union Square farmer's market.

Many props to Shore Fire friend and deft music scribe Eric Demby, now working in the Brooklyn Borough President's office and one of the guys that made it all happen, and I look forward to the next one.

Fretboard Friday...

One of the most interesting magazines to come along in the past year has been the Fretboard Journal, so we were delighted when publisher Jason Verlinde came to visit our office this afternoon to drop off a copy of the new issue. Here's a shot of Jason and I in the CD room:

Welcome to the working week...

....here at Shore Fire. Suite 16 is a place for our gang to let you know what we're up to and what our clients are doing. What we're thinking about in the media world, the entertainment world, the music world. Places we've been, places we're going. Every once in a while, what we had for lunch. Thanks and enjoy.