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| John Bell |
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| Jimmy Herring |
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| Dave Schools |
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| Todd Nance |
Friday, December 31, 2010
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Three Rules for a Sucessful Hockey Beard
The NHL playoffs begin Wednesday and the NBA playoffs start a few days after that. What does that mean? It’s time to start thinking about playoff beards! You know those hairy, unshaven neck beards that develop this time of year in hopes that your team will make it all the way? So gentlemen (and hormonally unbalanced females) let’s talk about what to do with your face fuzz.
1. Get started now. The playoffs will be here before you know it and if your team has made it, it’s time to start that beard. This is your chance as a fan to share something in common with your favorite players; you will both be sporting a grizzly mess on your face as a sign of your dedication to winning.
2. Throw away your razors. Don’t let that silver temptress get to you. You need to stick to your guns on this one, mister. As itchy and unattractive as your face and neck get, don’t you dare shave that thing. As much as your wife/girlfriend, co-workers and others close to you complain about how you are beginning to resemble a mountain man, you must sport that thing with pride.
3. Buy a beard guard. Part of the joy of sporting the playoff beard is the way that it gets to run wild on your face. Don’t you dare wash your manly mane. In doing so, you may just wash away the magic that has nestled itself inside of your facial hair. So go out and invest in a beard guard because I’m not telling you not to shower, but how badly would you feel if you ruined your team’ss chances of advancing in the postseason because your chin felt a little gross?
So that’s it fellas. Fans and players unite in growing those lovely, grizzly, itchy playoff beards that we all love so much. And feel free to send me a picture of your progress. Larry has even tracked his playoff beard progress in the past, why not join the tradition?
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
1000 beards
Thanks to all of our readers who have taken us to the 1000th hit mark. Every day I encounter new and exciting beards and I can't wait to share with you what I've seen. This is an exciting project and a beautiful journey. Stayed tuned for new GAB's, updated biographical information and moving interviews.
Where there's a beard, there's a way.
GAB #29 - Jake Adams
- Name: Jake Adams
- Age: 31
- Hair Color: Brown
- Eye Color: Brown
- Height: 6'0"
- Weight: 230
- Age of Beard:9 years
- Beard color: Brown/Black
- Beard Length: Mountain Man
- How old where you when you grew your first beard? 6
- What is the longest length your beard has grown? As long as Mill's penis - 3"
- How often do you go without a beard? Never
- On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) what would you rate your beard? 11
- Which celebrity beard most resembles yours? Tom Cruise
- Do you have beard envy, and if so, whose beard do you wish you had? Nope
- Have you ever been in a situation in which your beard has been a disadvantage for you? Pie eating contest
- Have you ever been in a situation in which your beard has given you an advantage? With women, always
- Are you employed and if so, please describe your occupation? Employed - yes - rectum stretcher
- Does your place of employment allow you to have facial hair?Yes
- Please describe your beard grooming technique? Rub it against a tree
- What is the name of your beard? Grizzly Adams
- How does your mother feel about your beard? She loves it
- How does your significant other feel about your beard? She likes it short like Matt's penis
- Favorite Bands:The Stranger, Golden Dishwater, Mother's Without Moat's and Crazy's
And now the answers given by his girlfriend...
- Name: Jake Adams
- Age:31
- Hair Color: Brown
- Eye Color: Brown
- Height: 6'
- Weight: 226
- Age of Beard: 9
- Beard color: Brown
- Beard Length: Mountain Man
- How old where you when you grew your first beard? 22
- What is the longest length your beard has grown? Way too long
- How often do you go without a beard? Unfortunately, never
- On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) what would you rate your beard? 4
- Which celebrity beard most resembles yours? Billy Mays
- Do you have beard envy, and if so, whose beard do you wish you had? Matt Lee's
- Have you ever been in a situation in which your beard has been a disadvantage for you? Everyday
- Have you ever been in a situation in which your beard has given you an advantage? People think that I'm a lot tougher than I am
- Are you employed and if so, please describe your occupation? Doctor
- Does your place of employment allow you to have facial hair? Yes, some
- Please describe your beard grooming technique? I trim it and leave it everywhere
- What is the name of your beard? Full Bush
- How does your mother feel about your beard? Doesn't like it
- How does your significant other feel about your beard? Doesn't like it long
- Hobbies: Drinking, angry birds app, skiing (in that order)
- Favorite Bands:Pearl Jam
GAB #28 - Matt Lee
- Name: William Matt Lee "The General"
- Age: Young at heart
- Hair Color: flowing
- Eye Color: Deep
- Height: Tall
- Weight: Heavy
- Age of Beard: Birth
- Beard Color: Wise
- Beard in Length: Mountain Man
- How old where you when you grew your first beard? Birth
- What is the longest length your beard has grown? Enough
- How often to do go without a beard? Never
- On a scale 1-10 (10 being the best) what would you rate your beard? 11
- Which celebrity beard most resembles yours? Mind
- Do you have beard envy, and if so, whose beard do you wish you had? Jesus
- Have you ever been in a situation in which a beard has been a disadvantage for you? Please describe. No
- Have you ever been in a situation in which a beard has been an advantage for you? Please describe. Yes, every way
- Are you employed and if so, describe your occupation? Bearded
- Does you place of employment allow facial hair? Yes
- Please describe your beard grooming techniques: Wash, rinse, repeat
- What is the name of your beard? The General
- How does your mother feel about your beard? Love
- How does your significant other feel about your beard? Love
- Hobbies (list at least 3): building fire, whiskey, Willie
- Top 3 favorite bands: no comment
Happy Birthday Beard of the Day
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| Ted Danson |
Actor. Born Edward Bridge Danson III, on December 29, 1947, in San Diego, California. Danson was raised by his father, Edward Danson, a prominent archaeologist, on a Navajo reservation in Arizona.
In 1966, Danson attended Stanford University in Stanford, California, where his interest in acting was motivated by a girlfriend and fellow drama enthusiast. In 1968, the aspiring actor transferred to the drama department at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He graduated with a drama degree, but soon abandoned stage acting for the profitable world of television commercials, where he won attention as the suave "Aramis Man."
Danson's first continual TV role was that of a villain on the NBC soap opera Sommerset (1974-76). Movie offers soon followed, and Danson landed his first part as a cop in the 1979 film The Onion Field. In the early ‘80s, he was featured in a few unsuccessful TV movies, including The Women's Room (1980) and Our Family Business (1981). His most acclaimed project during this period was in the sultry film noir Body Heat (1981), alongside stars Kathleen Turner and William Hurt.
Danson first achieved national recognition for his portrayal of the skirt-chasing bartender Sam "Mayday" Malone on NBC's comedy series Cheers (1982). Danson played the role for 11 seasons, during which he earned a Golden Globe Award, two Emmy Awards, and several Emmy nominations. During this time, he also won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a Miniseries for Something About Amelia (1984), as a father who seeks help for sexually abusing his daughter.
While he enjoyed continued success on the small screen, he intermittently tried his hand at film. In 1987, Danson, along with co-stars Tom Selleck and Steve Guttenberg, achieved critical acclaim with the hit Three Men and a Baby. A few years later, the trio of actors reprised their roles in the sequel Three Men and a Little Lady (1990).
In 1992, Danson ended his 15-year marriage to Casey Coates. Soon after, he embarked on a short-lived and highly publicized romance with actress Whoopi Goldberg. Danson is presently married to actress Mary Steenburgen. The couple wed in 1995, and manage their own production company, Anasazi Productions. Danson has two daughters: Kate, born in 1979, and Alexis, born in 1985.
In 1996, Danson returned to TV in the highly acclaimed miniseries Gulliver's Travels, and in the short-lived sitcom Ink, which paired him with Steenburgen. In the late 1990s, he landed the title role in the CBS sitcom Becker (1998), and also starred in the feature film Mumford (1999).
During his career, Danson has directed his energies toward philanthropic causes and founded the American Oceans Campaign, an organization dedicated to preserving oceans and marine wildlife.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Happy Birthday Beard of the Day
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| Denzel Washington |
Actor, director. Born Denzel Jermaine Washington, Jr. on December 28, 1954, in Mount Vernon, New York, where the Boys & Girls Club would help keep him out of trouble. When he was 14, his parents' marriage broke down and he and his older sister were sent away to boarding school.
Washington went to Fordham University to study journalism. But when he got the acting bug, Washington won a scholarship to the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, and afterwards worked with the Shakespeare in the Park ensemble.
Washington made his feature film debut in the comedy A Carbon Copy (1981). He also appeared in a number of off-Broadway productions and in television movies before being cast in a starring role in the hit television medical drama St Elsewhere (1982–88).
Washington grabbed his first of five Oscar nominations for Cry Freedom (1987) as real-life South African apartheid martyr Steve Biko. He won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Glory (1989).
Washington proved time and again he could disappear into a role and mesmerize audiences.
He appeared in several notable films throughout the 1990s, including his first of four Spike Lee collaborations Mo’ Better Blues (1990), Malcolm X (1992) in another Oscar-nominated performance, Philadelphia (1993), Crimson Tide (1995), Courage Under Fire (1996) and The Hurricane (1999), for which he received a Golden Globe for Best Actor and another Oscar nomination.
In 2001, he received his second Oscar (this time in a leading role) for the cop thriller Training Day. The following year, he directed his first film, the drama Antwone Fisher, in which he also co-starred.
Several blockbusters followed, including Man on Fire (2004), The Manchurian Candidate (2004) and Spike Lee's Inside Man (2006). He also starred as Frank Lucas, a real-life heroin kingpin from Harlem, in the 2007 film American Gangster, opposite Russell Crowe. In 2009, Washington starred as MTA Dispatcher Walter Garber in the remake of the classic film The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3.
Denzel Washington married actress Pauletta Pearson in 1983; they have four children. Their oldest son, John David, was drafted in 2006 by the NFL's St. Louis Rams. Their other children are daughter Katia, who attends Yale University and twins Olivia and Malcolm.
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Friday, December 24, 2010
Thursday, December 23, 2010
And I Quote...
"If you teach a poor young man to shave himself, and keep his razor in order, you may contribute more to the happiness of his life than in giving him a thousand guineas. This sum may be soon spent, the regret only remaining of having foolishly consumed it; but in the other case, he escapes the frequent vexation of waiting for barbers, and of their sometimes dirty fingers, offensive breaths, and dull razors." ~ Benjamin Franklin
And That's a Fact...
As a sign of royalty, Egyptian kings and queens wore postiches, which were artificial beards made of metal.
Happy Birthday Beard of the Day
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| Eddie Vedder |
Singer, songwriter. Born Edward Louis Severson III on December 23, 1964 in Evanston, Illinois. With a tumultuous homelife, Vedder (who adopted his mother's maiden name) turned to surfing and rock music as a teenager. He was especially influenced by such punk rock bands as The Sex Pistols, The Ramones and Black Flag, as well as U2.
After playing with the San Diego group Bad Radio in his twenties, Vedder joined Pearl Jam in 1990. The band (named for Vedder's great grandmother Pearl's famous homemade jam) was comprised of Mother Love Bone guitarist Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Ament, Mike McCready (lead guitar), Dave Krusen (drums) and Vedder (vocals). Based in Seattle, Pearl Jam led the growing contingent of grunge artists, bringing the genre to the forefront of America's youth culture.
In 1991, Pearl Jam released its first album, Ten, which shot to the top of the charts with its angry lyrics and stadium-style rock. With the hits "Alive," "Evenflow" and "Black," the band explored angst, depression and suicide, giving voice to a disillusioned generation of teenagers known as Generation X. Furthering their anti-mainstream stance, Pearl Jam refused to produce any videos for songs from their second release, Vs., which came out in 1993 and featured a new drummer, Dave Abbruzzese. In addition, the band's summer 1994 tour was canceled when the band entered into a heated battle over high-ticket prices with Ticketmaster. The dispute was eventually settled in 1995 when the Justice Department sided with Ticketmaster.
The band's third album, Vitalogy featured yet another new drummer, this time the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Jack Irons. Just like the first two, the record quickly climbed to the top of the charts and was registered multiplatinum. The band teamed up with Neil Young in 1995 for a European tour. The tour was so successful that Pearl Jam collaborated with Young for his 1995 release, Mirror Ball.
With a relatively low profile, Pearl Jam continued to put out well-received albums throughout the late 1990s, including No Code in 1996, Yield and the live album Live on Two Legs in 1998, and Binaural in May 2000. Vedder has also contributed to several soundtracks and compilations, including the soundtracks for the films Dead Man Walking, I Am Sam, and Into the Wild.
Eddie Vedder is alsoactive in several environmental and pro-choice causes.
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Happy Birthday Beard of the Day
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| Maurice Gibb |
Maurice Gibb is most closely associated with the Bee Gees, the brother act that he co-founded with his siblings Barry Gibb, three years his senior, and Robin Gibb, a fraternal twin born two hours older than Maurice. In contrast to Barry and Robin, who have shared and alternated the spotlight as lead vocalists, Maurice (pronounced "Morris" in British English) has been almost exclusively a backing vocalist for his four-decade career, providing a key part of the harmony singing for his brothers. In less overtly visible ways, however, he has been essential to the group's sound from the beginning of their recording career -- in addition to sharing arranging chores with his brothers and playing bass on most of their recordings, and in most of the group's live performances for much of their history, he has also played guitar, piano, organ, and Mellotron on their recordings, and even occasionally the drums on their demos. He is also regarded as the trio's resident comedian, with a cunning sense of humor, and a keen appreciation of practical jokes when they were growing up that he reportedly hasn't entirely outgrown as an adult.
Gibb's voice is the least familiar to the public, concentrated as it usually is on backup and harmony singing. The major exception arose during the 1969 split between Robin Gibb and his two brothers, when Barry and Maurice carried on as a two-man version of the Bee Gees. Cucumber Castle, the one album that they completed together before the two of them, in turn, parted company, included a delightful African-flavored number entitled "I.O.I.O.," which featured Maurice intoning the title throughout, as far forward in the mix as Barry Gibb's lead. Maurice Gibb did begin work on a solo LP, and released a single, "Railroad," co-authored by Billy Lawrie, a songwriter and singer, and also the brother of the British pop/rock legend Lulu, who became Maurice's wife in 1969. Gibb handled all of the vocals on the single, covering the high harmonies and the lead in a manner that was impossible not to compare with the Bee Gees -- he later described it as "anticlimactic" on the album Tales from the Brothers Gibb, but he did begin work on a solo LP to have been called "The Loner."
He worked for three months with Billy Lawrie playing and singing, and with guitarist Les Harvey of Stone the Crows, drummer Geoff Bridgeford, and John Coleman and Gerry Shurry, the latter three members of the Australian band Tin Tin -- whose 1970 debut album Maurice Gibb had produced -- filling out what instruments Gibb didn't wish to play himself. Good friend Ringo Starr also participated in the sessions, with Lulu joining in as well, which, alas, only yielded one released song, "The Loner." Recorded by Gibb and Lawrie, it was credited to "The Bloomfields" and appeared on the soundtrack of the movie Bloomfield (aka The Hero), starring Richard Harris, and was also released on the Pye Records soundtrack LP to the film.
Like the other solo albums begun by his brothers in 1970, Maurice Gibb's LP was never released officially, though large parts of it have appeared on bootlegs over the years. Later in the same year, he and his brothers were able to patch up their differences and resume working together, and there's been little serious talk of "The Loner" ever being issued since then. Gibb was just as vital a part of the group, as a singer and musician, in its post-1970 comeback phase as he had been in their late-'60s era, despite such distractions as his disintegrating marriage to Lulu and periodic problems with alcoholism. He surrendered some of his bass playing chores later in the '70s, but recovered from the alcoholism that afflicted him during this period, and by 1984 was recording solo again. In addition to the single "Hold Her in Your Hand," he wrote and recorded the score to Philippe Mora's A Breed Apart in collaboration with arranger/conductor Jimmie Haskell. He later wrote a score (subsequently rejected) for The Supernaturals and played a small role in the movie as well. Gibb's second marriage, to the former Yvonne Spencerley, has lasted for two decades and reportedly played an essential role in getting him through subsequent difficult periods, including a relapse into alcoholism following the death of his youngest brother, Andy Gibb, in 1988, and the death of his father that same year. His recovery allowed the trio to resume their work together, including the recording of the 1989 album One, which included their comeback American hit with the title track. In January 2003, while receiving treatment for an intestinal blockage, Maurice Gibb suffered cardiac arrest and died. He was 53. Bruce Eder, Rovi
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
The Beards of the Last Waltz
Until this particular moment on this brightly moon-lit evening of the Winter Solstice I never noticed how many amazing beards appear in epic musical schmorgesborg that is The Last Waltz. From Levon Helm, Richard Manuel and Garth Hudson to Dr. John, Ronnie Hawkins and Bob Dylan, my newly exercised level of admiration for facial follicles is at a peak. To keep theses visions of grandeur in my mind and eyesight only would be selfish. So to share with you the beauty that is the beards of The Band (and friends), behold...
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| Levon Helm |
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| Garth Hudson |
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| Richard Manuel |
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| Ronnie Hawkins |
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| Dr. John |
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| Paul Butterfield |
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| Eric Clapton |
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| Lawrence Ferlinghetti |
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| Bob Dylan |
GAB #26 - Adam Goldstein
(video interview coming soon...)
- Name: Adam C. Goldstein
- Age:27
- Hair Color: Brown
- Eye Color: Green
- Height: 6'
- Weight: 270
- Age of Beard: 5 months
- Beard color: Brown/little grew
- Beard Length: Civil War
- How old where you when you grew your first beard? 17
- What is the longest length your beard has grown? Business card length
- How often do you go without a beard? never
- On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) what would you rate your beard? 9.875
- Which celebrity beard most resembles yours? Lyle Alzado
- Do you have beard envy, and if so, whose beard do you wish you had? Bill S. Preston Esq. from Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey
- Have you ever been in a situation in which your beard has been a disadvantage for you? N/A
- Have you ever been in a situation in which your beard has given you an advantage? When it's cold
- Are you employed and if so, please describe your occupation? Yes, I am building a computer program for CCD
- Does your place of employment allow you to have facial hair? Yes
- Please describe your beard grooming technique? Shampoo, conditioner, comb
- How does your mother feel about your beard? She wants me to shave it
- How does your significant other feel about your beard? N/A
- Hobbies: karate, computers, kicking dicks
- Favorite Bands: NOFX, Hall & Oates, Mozart
25 GAB's and Counting...
Thanks to the all of you bearded men who have become a part of our journey and joined us on the quest to find The Great American Beard. Here is a look back at our first 25 faces...
GAB #25 - Reid McIntyre
- Name: Reid McIntyre
- Age: 31
- Hair Color:Brown
- Eye Color: Hazel
- Height: 5'8
- Weight: 185
- Age of Beard:1 year (really 10, but shaved last year)
- Beard color: Brown/Red
- Beard Length:Beard in Training
- How old where you when you grew your first beard?16
- What is the longest length your beard has grown? 2 inches
- How often do you go without a beard? Rarely
- On a scale of 1-10 (10 being the best) what would you rate your beard? 9
- Which celebrity beard most resembles yours? Bradley Cooper
- Do you have beard envy, and if so, whose beard do you wish you had? No
- Have you ever been in a situation in which your beard has been a disadvantage for you? No
- Have you ever been in a situation in which your beard has given you an advantage? N/A
- Are you employed and if so, please describe your occupation? Investment Manager
- Does your place of employment allow you to have facial hair? Yes
- Please describe your beard grooming technique? Daily shaving and weekly trimming with Remington titanium trimmer
- What is the name of your beard? No name yet, but after this question, I will name it
- How does your mother feel about your beard? Loves it. My brother also has a beard.
- How does your significant other feel about your beard? N/A
- Hobbies: Snowboarding, golf drinking
Happy Birthday Beard of the Day #2
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| Richie Havens |
Richie Havens is gifted with one of the most recognizable voices in popular music. His fiery, poignant, always soulful singing style has remained unique and ageless since he first emerged from the Greenwich Village folk scene in the early 1960’s. It’s a voice that has inspired and electrified audiences from the Woodstock Music & Arts Fair in 1969, to the Clinton Presidential Inauguration in 1993 -coming full circle with the 30th Woodstock Anniversary celebration, "A Day In The Garden," in 1999.
For over three decades, Richie has used his music to convey messages of brotherhood and personal freedom. With more than twenty-five albums released and a touring schedule that would kill many a younger man, he continues to view his calling as a higher one. As he told The Denver Post, "I really sing songs that move me. I’m not in show business, I’m in the communications business. That’s what it’s about for me".
Born in Brooklyn, Richard P. Havens was the eldest of nine children. At an early age, he began organizing his neighborhood friends into street corner doo-wop groups, and was performing with The McCrea Gospel Singers at 16. At the age of 20, Richie left Brooklyn to seek out the artistic stimulation of Greenwich Village. "I saw the Village as a place to escape to in order to express yourself,” he recalls. "I had first gone there during the beatnik days of the 1950’s to perform poetry, then I drew portraits for 2 years and stayed up all night listening to folk music in the clubs. It took awhile before I thought of picking up a guitar". Nina Simone was a key vocal influence early on, and Fred Neil and Dino Valenti were among the folksingers who had an impact on Richie during this period.
Richie’s reputation as a solo performer soon spread beyond the Village folk circles. He recorded two albums worth of demos for Douglas International in 1965 and ’66, though none of the tracks were released until his first two albums caused a stir. After joining forces with legendary manager Albert Grossman, Richie landed his first record deal with the Verve label, which released Mixed Bag in 1967. This auspicious debut album featured standout tracks like "Handsome Johnny" (co-written by Richie and future Oscar-winning actor Louis Gossett , Jr.), "Follow,” and the striking version of Bob Dylan’s "Just Like A Woman" that earned him the reputation of being a premier interpreter of Dylan’s material.
Something Else Again (1968) became Richie’s first album to hit the Billboard chart, and also pulled Mixed Bag onto the charts. That same year, Douglas International added (unapproved) instrumental tracks to his old demos and released two albums, Richie Havens’ Record and Electric Havens. Less than a year later, Richie’s first coproduction, the two-disc Richard P. Havens, 1983 (Verve 1969), gave fans a taste of his exciting live sound.
It was, in fact, as a live performer that Richie first earned widespread notice. By decade’s end, he was in great demand in colleges across the country, as well as on the international folk and pop festival circuit. Richie played the 1966 Newport Folk Festival, the 1967 Monterey Jazz Festival, the 1968 Miami Pop Festival, the 1969 Woodstock Festival, the 1969 Isle of Wight Festival, and the first Glastonbury Festival in 1970.
Richie’s Woodstock appearance proved to be a major turning point in his career. As the festival’s first performer, he held the crowd spellbound for nearly three hours, called back for encore after encore. Having run out of tunes, he improvised a song based on the old spiritual "Motherless Child" that became "Freedom,” a song now considered to be the anthem of a generation. The subsequent movie release helped Richie reach a worldwide audience of millions.
Meanwhile Richie started his own record label, Stormy Forest, and delivered Stonehenge in 1970. Later that year came Alarm Clock, which yielded the hit single "Here Comes The Sun,” and became Richie’s first album to reach Billboard’s Top 30 Chart. Stormy Forest went on to release four more of his own albums, The Great Blind Degree (1971), Live On Stage (1972), Portfolio (1973), and Mixed Bag II (1974).
Memorable television appearances included performances on two now-legendary programs, The Ed Sullivan Show and The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. On the latter program, the audience reacted with such enthusiasm that when the applause continued even after the commercial break, Johnny Carson asked Richie to return the following night. In the show’s long history, the only other guest booked back-to-back nights, based on overwhelming audience response, was Barbra Streisand.
Richie also branched out into acting during the 1970’s. He was featured in the original 1972 stage presentation of the Who’s Tommy, and had the lead role in the 1974 film Catch My Soul, based on Shakespeare’s Othello. In 1977, he co-starred with Richard Pryor in Greased Lightning.
Increasingly, Richie devoted his energies to educating young people about ecological issues. In the mid-1970’s, he co-founded the Northwind Undersea Institute, an oceanographic children’s museum on City Island in The Bronx. That, in turn, led to the creation of The Natural Guard, an organization Richie describes as "a way of helping kids learn that they can have a hands-on role in affecting the environment. Children study the land, water, and air in their own communities and see how they can make positive changes from something as simple as planting a garden in an abandoned lot".
During the 70’s and 80’s, Richie continued a non-stop world touring schedule and a steady release of albums, including End Of The Beginning, Mirage, Connections, the Italian-made Common Ground, Simple Things, and Now.
He continued that live performance pace throughout the 90’s including a landmark Madison Square Garden appearance at the Bob Dylan 30th Anniversary Concert in 1992. Richie’s show-stopping performance of "Just Like A Woman" was hailed by the press as one of the all-star show’s finest performances.
1993 heralded the release of Resume, The Best Of Richie Havens (Rhino), a long overdue collection of his seminal late 60’s, early 70’s recordings, and 1994 brought the new studio album, Cuts To The Chase.
Other highlights of the past decade include his triumphant set at the Troubadours Of Folk Festival at UCLA’s Drake Stadium, where, once again, a capacity audience refused to let him leave the stage. Richie fondly remembers this event as a "Greenwich Village Class Reunion". At another Los Angeles appearance, His Holiness the Dalai Lama asked Richie to perform "Lives In The Balance" and "Freedom" to underscore his urgent message about the future of Tibet.
In the summer of 1999, Richie’s first book was released. The title, They Can’t Hide Us Anymore, referred to Richie’s thoughts as he flew in a helicopter over the crowds at Woodstock in 1969.
Richie greeted the year 2000 with a flurry of activity. He relaunched Stormy Forest and began remastering and reissuing his early recordings. Collaborations with Peter Gabriel and British dance duo Groove Armada presented Richie to a whole new audience, and sold out tours of Ireland and England were soon to follow, including a return to England's legendary Glastonbury Festival, where he played with his own band and then joined Groove Armada on stage for a performance the BBC would call one of the highlights of the three-day festival.
In 2002, Stormy Forest released a new studio album, Wishing Well, which brought rave reviews from the press. Acoustic Guitar called the recording "lush and meditative,” Billboard said "this acoustic soul giant truly seems to be getting more inspiring and graceful with age,” and Mojo remarked "he's lost none of his power to enthrall and enchant".
In 2003, The National Music Council awarded Richie the American Eagle Award for his place as part of America's musical heritage, and for providing "a rare and inspiring voice of eloquence, integrity and social responsibility".
2004 bring another new, self-produced album, Grace Of The Sun, which finds Richie again composing most of the tracks. Laden with the stunning guitar work of Walter Parks and Christopher Cunningham, and featuring contributions by world musicians Badal Roy (India), Jorge Alfano (Argentina) and Hasan Isakkut (Turkey), the result is an exotic and compelling tapestry that serves as the perfect musical complement to Richie's own signature percussive strumming and rich, melodic vocals.
For Richie Havens, making music is a continuous journey, and one that advances a step further with each album. "My albums are meant to be a chronological view of the times we’ve come through, what we’ve thought about, and what we’ve done to grow and change. There’s a universal point to which we all respond, and where all songs apply to everyone".
The latest leg of Richie Havens’ journey is entitled Nobody Left to Crown. A sense of timelessness rings through the album, as if the passing years, far from weakening Richie Havens’ soul-filled folk rock, have given it additional meaning. Organically produced by Havens, Jay Newland and Brian Bacchus, with an entourage of musicians, who illuminate his unique guitar style, Richie Havens and his warm, deep, wise voice, make you believe that he has never been more relevant, necessary even, than he is today. After all, the situation in the USA is not dissimilar to that of the 60s. "Songs that I wrote at the time are more pertinent today than ever, with this connection that links Vietnam and Iraq,” maintains Richie. Indeed, his fiery cover of the Who classic "Won’t Get Fooled Again” isn’t innocent and sets out the connection between the rebellion of two generations, with Richie playing the role of ferryman.
As usual, Nobody Left to Crown puts the spotlight on recovery, confirming, if indeed it was necessary, the man’s talent for interpretation. The soulful covers of Jackson Browne’s "Lives in the Balance,” with the slide guitar of prodigy Derek Trucks gliding smoothly through it, "The Great Mandala,” a song by Peter Yarrow, singer with the folk group Peter, Paul and Mary are to be particularly savoured like "Standing On The Water,” originally written by Andy Fairweather Low. His own works are of a similar calibre, including, amongst the biggest hits of his career, "The Key,” "(Can’t You Hear) Zeus’s Anger Roar," with its gospel undertones, "If I" with its graceful melody or "Fates," each bearing witness to a strong humanist understanding and political sensitivity.
Even if, at times, a certain melancholy emerges, Richie Havens is not a man to easily abandon his hopes for a better world. "We are at the dawn of major change,” he declares with a broad smile. Nobody Left to Crown is his heartfelt and unwavering contribution to these fine aspirations.
Happy Birthday Beard of the Day
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| Wolfman Jack |
Wolfman Jack (January 21, 1938-July 1, 1995) was the stage name of a disc jockey hugely popular in the 1960s and 1970s.
Born Robert Smith, he came to prominence in the United States in the 1960s as a disc jockey on Mexican radio stations, including a stint with XERF-AM, which broadcast into the United States with a transmission of 250,000 watts, five times more powerful than any American stations.
The hip, sexually suggestive Wolfman Jack persona allowed Smith to ignore the prevailing racial segregated of American radio.
Wolfman Jack's program was broadcast to much of the United States and into Canada. He played whatever music he liked, regardless of the performer's ethnicity. Any night a listener might hear a mix of blues music, rockabilly, doo-wop, zydeco, rock and roll, jump blues, rhythm and blues or jazz.
He frequently punctuated his broadcasts with howls, which, along with his gravelly voice, made him instantly recognizable. This style was modelled, at least in part, on bluesman Howlin' Wolf. Smith was Caucasian, but many listeners assumed he was African American.
Despite--or perhaps because of--his widespread popularity, Smith chose to keep Wolfman Jack a mystery. Stories appeared in national newspapers, reporting rumors of his true identity.
Only in 1973 by appearing in the George Lucas film American Graffiti, did Wolfman Jack allow the public to see him. His broadcasts tie the film together and a main character catching a glimpse of the mysterious Wolfman is a pivotal scene.
Afterwards, he appeared in several films and television shows (including The Midnight Special and his own show, The Wolfman Jack Show). He also furnished his voice in the 1974 Guess Who's tribute, the top 40 hit single, "Clap for the Wolfman".
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