Mich. exodus strains movers The gap between the large number of people moving out of Michigan and the much smaller number moving in is creating challenges for the professional moving industry, as they take extra and sometimes costly steps to replenish the supply of vehicles needed to support the exodus.
Professional movers are sending their vans out of Michigan packed to the brim, and finding them near-empty upon return. And van rental companies such as U-Haul are offering huge discounts to customers who bring their trucks back to Metro Detroit instead of dropping them off in their destination city. (read about this sad state of affairs...)
Today marks the day that Will Kellogg is credited with inventing corn flakes. The Kellogg family single-handedly put Battle Creek on the map and changed the way the America starts their day. All I can add is that I think "they're great!". (uh, sorry)
Will Keith Kellogg was born in the small town of Battle Creek, Michigan, on April 7, 1860. He never had much in the way of formal schooling, and when he was fourteen, he left school entirely. His father had a small business making brooms, and Will began his working career as a traveling salesman for his father's brooms. Will's older brother, John Harvy Kellogg, was a physician who directed a health facility in Battle Creek. John was a strong advocate of a healthy lifestyle, especially when it came to exercise and diet. His recommendations for his patients included a diet heavily weighted toward vegetables and cereal grains. After selling brooms for a few years, Will joined his brother at the facility, and the two focused on the nutritional needs of the patients at the Battle Creek facility. Their experiments with cereal grains finally led to the discovery that they could roll out a mash of wheat and turn the cooked dough into flakes. They served the concoction to the patients, and it was a hit. John was content to focus on the health and nutrition of the facility's patients, but Will saw the potential for creating a product that might be more widely accepted. Continuing to experiment, they found that corn could also be flaked, and yielded a very tasty, crunchy breakfast food. These flakes of corn became the foundation for a minor revolution in America's breakfast habits. (more about Will Kellogg...)
On July 30, 1975, Jimmy Hoffa planned to meet Anthony "Tony Jack" Giacalone, a reputed mob enforcer for the Detroit La Costa Nostra and New Jersey Teamster boss Anthony "Tony Pro" Provenzano of Union City, New Jersey, at Machus Red Fox restaurant on Telegraph Road in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. Hoffa believed Giacalone had set up the meeting to help settle a feud between Hoffa and Provenzano. At 2:15 p.m. Hoffa phoned his wife Josephine, telling her that no one showed up for his meeting. This is the last time Hoffa was heard from. In 1975, the FBI said in a memo that the disappearance was probably connected to Hoffa's attempts to regain power within the Teamsters union. In 1982 Jimmy Hoffa was declared legally dead. (more...)
In sitting down to put this post together, I found it challenging due to the diversity and musical impact of this artist. In reading his resume, I was nothing short of astounded by the immense role he has played on the musical landscape. Here's what Wiki tells about Dick Wagner -
Wagner was Alice Cooper's right-hand man on Welcome to My Nightmare, Go To Hell , Lace And Whisky, and From the Inside, helped in song writing, composing, production and of course lead guitar. Dick was often accompanied by lead guitarist Steve Hunter, they have played together since the 60's.
Wagner lent his playing (and in some cases, songwriting) talents to some of the 1970s biggest hard rock albums, including Lou Reed's Rock N Roll Animal, Alice Cooper's Welcome to My Nightmare, and KISS' Destroyer.
Growing up in the Detroit area, Wagner's first true band, The Frost, formed in the late 1960s as they built up a substantial following in the Michigan area (which at the time also nurtured such other outfits as the Stooges, MC5, Bob Seger, Ted Nugent, and Grand Funk Railroad), and issued a total of three albums during their tenure together on Vanguard Records: 1969's Frost Music and Rock and Roll Music, plus 1970's Through the Eyes of Love. All three albums plus a 'best of' compilation are available on CD from Vanguard.
Bob Ezrin used Wagner & Hunter on Lou Reed's controversial 1973 studio release Berlin which was a dark concept album that followed a pair of seedy characters beset by drug addiction, which leads to spousal abuse, prostitution, child welfare, and ultimately, death.
Wagner has lend his talents to recordings by other artists. Aerosmith's Get Your Wings has Wagner and Hunter playing the "guitar duel" on "Train Kept a Rollin'" along with Joe Perry. Wagner also plays on KISS' Destroyer, Peter Garbriel's self-titled solo debut, Hall & Oates' Along the Red Ledge, Mark Farner's self-titled solo debut, and a pair of albums for the star of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Tim Curry.
If you want to see the diversity in Dick Wagner's career, visit his web site. Of particular note is his discography. I also found an interview by Dick Wagner at Vintage Guitar.com for those guitarist in the room.
My new series of posts, Michigan's Musical Connection will be delayed one day and will begin to appear on Saturday going forward. I have a great post in the works presently and I don't want to be rushed by any deadline, self-imposed or otherwise.
Tune in tomorrow for the next episode of Michigan's Musical Connection. (Sounds best in loud booming voice with trailing echo.)
Red Wings Sign D Markov to One-year Deal Defenseman Danny Markov signed a $2.5 million, one-year contract with Detroit on Wednesday, and the Red Wings might start the season with Chris Osgood as their No. 1 goaltender.
Markov had 11 assists in 58 games for the Nashville Predators last season, and the Moscow native was a key player for Russia at the Turin Olympics. He missed 17 games with various injuries.
The 6-foot-1, 190-pound Markov also has played for Toronto, Phoenix, Carolina and Philadelphia, contributing 131 points in 472 NHL games. His best season was with the Coyotes in 2001-02, when he had career highs in goals (six) and points (36). Markov, who turns 30 Sunday, was one of the top free-agent defenseman available.
I first heard of Ron Carter in 1978 or 1979 when I first went to work for a local independent record distributor in Livonia called Ami Distributors. I worked for Ami and the owners of that company for many years. The three gentlemen that owned the company gave me my start in the field of entertainment distribution in which I am still working. One man, in particular, was a mentor to me and I learned a great deal from this man. His name was Bobby "Sugar" Schwartz and he, along with Carl Mooradian and Harry "Babe" Manoogian owned the company.
Ami Distributors marketed several independent record labels. One of the largest was Fantasy Records. Fantasy had a varied stable of artist but perhaps the most recognized and profitable was "Credence Clearwater Revival". Fantasy had several subsidiary labels as well whose specialty genre was jazz. Prestige, Milestone, Riverside, Galaxy were some of the labels I remember from those days.
Ron Carter, as you will read from some bio information I found, has appeared on over 2000 recordings and performed with the likes of Miles Davis, McCoy Tyner, Stanley Turrentine, Eric Dolphy, Stan Getz, Herbie Hancock, Milt Jackson, and many others.
The epitome of class and elegance, though not stuffy, Ron Carter has been a world class bassist and cellist since the '60s. He's among the greatest accompanists of all time, but has also done many albums exhibiting his prodigious technique. He's a brilliant rhythmic and melodic player, who uses everything in the bass and cello arsenal; walking lines, thick, full, prominent notes and tones, drones and strumming effects, and melody snippets. His bowed solos are almost as impressive as those done with his fingers. Carter has been featured in clothing, instrument, and pipe advertisements; he's close to being the bass equivalent of a Duke Ellington in his mix of musical and extra-musical interests. Carter's nearly as accomplished in classical music as jazz, and has performed with symphony orchestras all over the world. He's almost exclusively an acoustic player; he did play electric for a short time in the late '60s and early '70s, but hasn't used it in many, many years. Carter began playing cello at ten. But when his family moved from Ferndale, MI, to Detroit, Carter ran into problems with racial stereotypes regarding the cello and switched to bass. He played in the Eastman School's Philharmonic Orchestra, and gained his degree in 1959. Read more here ...
Michigan moves to remember man who left architectural mark across U.S.
Elijah Myers was the brains behind the architectural beauty of state capitol buildings in Michigan, Texas and Colorado.
The cathedrals, courthouses and other structures he designed sweeten the skyline from Michigan to Mexico.
But his own Detroit grave is marked only by a simple stone, with no indication that one of the most influential architects of the late 1800s is buried beneath. A Michigan-based committee is trying to change that by raising at least $5,000 for a marker that would provide some details about a fabled architectural career that threatened to fade into obscurity.
A little more than half of the money has been raised.
"We all pass through life, and we can't take the things we do with us," said state Rep. Steve Bieda, a Warren Democrat and a driving force behind the Myers Memorial Commission. "So the things we leave behind are important. He has quite a legacy, and it should be remembered." Continued ....
U.S. judge won't intervene in Fieger case Ruling leaves decision of whether lawyer broke conduct rules in hands of state's high court.
A federal judge on Monday refused to intervene in a case involving the Michigan Supreme Court and bombastic lawyer Geoffrey Fieger over whether lawyers must be polite when they make comments about judges.
The Michigan Supreme Court is considering a complaint against Fieger alleging he violated rules of professional conduct in 1999 when he gave radio interviews in which he referred to specific Michigan Court of Appeals judges as jackasses, and compared them to Adolf Hitler and his close associates, among other explosive comments.
A decision in that case, which could result in the revoking of Fieger's license to practice law, is expected before the end of the month. Read it here ....
Welcome to the first installment of a series I am calling Michigan's Musical Connection. Each chapter will feature an artist that has roots to the Great Lake State. Artist profiles will vary from currently performing musicians and/or bands to those that have long since passed. Big Band to Hip Hop to Motown and all genres in between.
There will be no particular order or era, wherever my muse takes me. With that in mind, our first performer is Berkley, Michigan native, Marshall Crenshaw.
Marshall Crenshaw (born November 11, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist.
Crenshaw was born in Detroit, Michigan, and grew up in the nearby suburb of Berkley. He began playing guitar at age ten, and got his first break playing John Lennon in the off-Broadway company of a musical, Beatlemania. While living in New York, he recorded a single for Alan Betrock's Shake Records, "Something's Gonna Happen," after which he was signed to Warner Brothers Records. Robert Gordon took Crenshaw's "Someday, Someway" to #76 in 1981, and Crenshaw's version made #36 the next year.
His eponymous first album, "Marshall Crenshaw," was acclaimed as a pop masterpiece upon release, proving Crenshaw a first-rate songwriter, singer and guitarist. His second album, Field Day, sported a somewhat heavier sound which displeased some listeners, but Field Day is regarded by many critics as Crenshaw's best album, and one of the classic power pop statements, although Crenshaw's work, like Alex Chilton's, transcends the genre. "Some of the stuff I've done you could call power pop," he told an interviewer. "But the term does have sort of a dodgy connotation."
Although Marshall Crenshaw has never sold enormous numbers of records, he enjoys a reputation as one of the finest songwriters of the era, with roots in classic soul music, British Invasion songcraft, Burt Bacharach and Buddy Holly--to whom Crenshaw was often compared in the early days of his career, and whom he portrayed in the 1987 film La Bamba. In 1989 he compiled a collection of Capitol Records country performers of the '50s and '60s called "Hillbilly Music...Thank God, Vol. 1," which was extremely well-received. In 1994 he published a book, Hollywood Rock: A Guide to Rock 'n' Roll in the Movies. He continues to record, and in 1999 released the critically acclaimed #447.
Crenshaw has recently been playing guitar with the reunited members of the MC5.
You can visit the Marshall Crenshaw Page to find out more about what's happening with Marshall.
Update 9/3/06: Bonus video converage of Marshall Crenshaw via YouTube.
A few more days and I should be back with regular contributions. I am working on the design presently and should have the basic theme in place shortly. A couple more tweaks and tests, I should be ready.
I am beginning (again) to resume (again) blogging here (again) now that I have been cured of my redundancy issues (again). Another few days and things will be in order and running like a well-oiled machine that has been well-oiled. (again).
Click image to access Michigan's Musical Connection archive
Dave Stone
Born and raised in Michigan, specifically Detroit and the surrounding area. Though I have lived away for several years from my childhood home, I enjoy the opportunity to return for frequent visits. No matter where I live, I will always be a "Michigander".
This page is to share all things Michigan and, in so doing, I may be able to remedy a little of my homesickness. This is My Michigan Connection.
Ron Carter, as you will read from some bio information I found, has appeared on over 2000 recordings and performed with the likes of Miles Davis, McCoy Tyner, Stanley Turrentine, Eric Dolphy, Stan Getz, Herbie Hancock, Milt Jackson, and many others.
