Richard Wright R.I.P.

(from Yahoo News - 15/9/08)
The news that founding Pink Floyd member Richard Wright has passed away from cancer at age 65 will no doubt bring a barrage of stories detailing the assorted onstage/offstage twists and turns of the group's long career. And make no mistake: Over the years, the group's combination of both the bizarre and the bitter when it came to their internal affairs was as much a source of fascination to their legions of fans as their often brilliant music, which have generated enough album/CD sales that if laid end to end would probably stretch from the London architecture school where they first met in the early 1960s all the way to that dark side of the moon and back again--and probably a few round trip's worth at that.Trips, of course, of both the physical and mental variety, were what Pink Floyd's earliest recordings such as "Interstellar Overdrive" and "Astronomy Domine" were all about--especially in the day-gloed days before their original guiding force guitarist Syd Barrett went on a few too many of them and had to leave the group. And while the emergence of bass player/songwriter Roger Waters and Barrett's skilled replacement David Gilmour certainly led the way for Floyd's ascension in the 1970s as one of rock's premier acts with 1973's aforementioned Dark Side or 1979's epic The Wall, it was in many respects Richard Wright's expansive keyboards that served as the musical compass that allowed Pink Floyd to continually (as the song said) "Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun."Those familiar with the band's history probably know that it was during the recording of The Wall that the increasingly difficult to work with Waters forced Wright out of the band as an "official" member, leading to an increasingly period in the 1980s in which the keyboardist toured with his own group--as a salaried accompanist. It wasn't until the latter part of the decade after Waters finally left the band--and unsuccessfully sued Gilmour and drummer Nick Mason over rights to the Pink Floyd name--that Wright rejoined as a full member. (In the interim Wright released a solo album, fittingly titled Identity.) Anyone who saw Wright perform alongside Gilmour, Mason and yes, Waters, too, in their short but power-packed set at the Live 8 megaconcert in England in 2005 can attest to the still potent collective sound made by this ever-strange quartet of players.

And wherever Wright and Syd Barrett (who physically left this planet a few years ago) may now be, here's betting they're plugging in and getting ready to check out that piper at the gates of dawn.

The Polka Dot Door

A long time ago, when I was 22, my first child was born. That kid grew up on a little Canadian kid's show called Polka Dot Door, produced by the TV Ontario network. And Dad, more often than not, sat through those shows with his little one. Nine or so years later when a brother, and a year after that when a sister came along number one son was moving on to Knight Rider and The Dukes of Hazzard. But there was a nice overlap where his siblings picked up where he had left off with Polka Dot Door. And Dad was right there to welcome them. So you're looking at a Polka Dot Door veteran. The show began in 1971 and ran to 1993. I didn't watch the full run but I did get in my fair share. The formula was pretty simple. A young male and female host, which seemed to change every week, sang songs, told stories, made crafts and generally did their best stimulate little brains. The show opened as follows... Imagination Day! Oh boy! You know what happens on Imagination D

My Back Pages - November

I know, I know, I know I should have reported in before now. But sometimes real life just gets in the way. I attempted 5 books in November. I say attempted because I slapped a big DNF (did not finish) on Neal Stephenson's Cryptonomicon. I just can't seem to get into this guy. It's the second or third of his I've given up on, Not so the other four, starting with a biography of Stephen Stills called Change Partners. This followed by a hilarious biography of the guy responsible for National Lampoon called A Stupid and Futile Gesture - How Doug Kenney and National Lampoon Changed Comedy Forever. I ended the month reading yet another biography, this one of the man behind Rolling Stone magazine,. It was called Sticky Fingers: The Life and Times of Jann Wenner and Rolling Stone Magazine. A fascinating read. So last month I hit the magic number 50 I'd imagined for myself back in January. If I roll this month into my yearly total I'm at 54 books. And I still hav

30 Days of Photos III #4 Sour

Check out Ziva's Inferno for the rest of today's photos.

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