Common Denominators Between Denver, Diamond and Dylan

Publicity shot for Rolling Thunder

This summer Martin Scorsese's Rolling Thunder Revue (RTR) documentary created a flourish of buzz in many circles with its June 12 release on Netflix (coinciding with a smattering of theater showings.)  RTR was the second four tours for Dylan in the 70s, each of a very different character.

The first was a high profile comeback reunion with The Band after near eight years of semi-reclusivity, 40 shows in nearly as many days at the beginning of 1974.  RTR was a wild ride of 57 shows from the end of 1975 till May '76, produced by Louie Kemp and featuring a variety of talent and showcasing the tracks from Desire and Scarlet Rivera's mesmerizing violin.

Nov 1979, Warfield Theater, SF. Beginning of Gospel Tour.
Photo Credit: Bill Pagel

In 1978, the ragtag carnival troupe was reconfigured into a wholly different tour, under the direction of producer Jerry Weintraub, a worldwide tour with 114 concerts that sold 2 million tickets and generated 20 million dollars. It was during this tour that Bob Dylan came home with a brand new way of thinking and a brand new set of rules. He had become a follower of Jesus.

The sequel to this would be his Gospel Tour of 1979-1980, 79 shows through May 1980.

* * * *

It was while reading up on Dylan's World Tour that I came across the Jerry Weintraub thread that connects John Denver, Neil Diamond and Bob Dylan. I'd always associated Weintraub with Hollywood, as a film producer and ,more recently, series television for HBO. But Weintraub began his ascent in the music business, encouraging Elvis to do his first tour in 1970 and literally putting the name John Denver in lights.

Just as Brian Epstein helped craft The Beatles, so Weintraub became the vehicle for John Denver to become a household name through a dozen television specials and other career machinations. And interestingly enough, it was a Las Vegas show that Weintraub created for Neil Diamond that led Bob Dylan to hire Weintraub to orchestrate that 1978 World Tour.

The Common Denominators

All three men were gifted songwriters. Neil Diamond has sold more than 100 million records of his own songs. John Denver wrote over 300 songs for himself and others, and sold more than 33 million records. Bob Dylan won the Nobel Prize for Literature and wrote more than 600 songs and untold more for others or unreleased.

You may have noticed, they all have two syllable last names beginning with D.

Inasmuch as most of us know Bob Dylan was born Robert Zimmerman, and John Denver was born Henry John Deutschendorf, you might have suspected that Diamond was also a stage name, as I did. Turns out Neil was born Neil Leslie Diamond, so this (re-naming) is not a common denominator.

The third common denominator is the role Jerry Weintraub played in each of their careers. Each had considerable talent to begin with, but Weintraub assisted in elevating each to a broader audience and thereby greater success.

The late Jerry Weintraub's achievements included helping people whose names began with other letters of the alphabet as well, including the letter L (Liberace), S (Sinatra) and E (Elvis). But those stories have to wait for another day. It's time to move along.

Notes from an Old Card Catalog

As I continue my assault on getting organized, I keep finding things I'd forgotten I had. The other day I decided to examine several small boxes containing 3'x 5" note cards, the kind we used to use in high school and college when doing research for a paper.

One such box from four decades ago had a lot of notes about cults, with one of these quoting a writer as saying cults are the biggest threat to America today. It's been a long time since cults were front page news.

Here are some quotes that I found intriguing from this another batch of note cards.

* * * *

"People judge us by what they see--our actions, our means--not our intentions."--Jacques Ellul

"A people which no longer remembers has lost its history and its soul."--Aleksandr Sozhenitsyn

"There is a powerful tendency to move from the conviction that one knows the public good to the use of (force) power to impose that good."--Jeanne Kirkpatriick

"Within the last decade there have been many references from varied sources to the fact that the Western world stands on the verge of a spiritual rebirth, that is, a fundamental change of attitude toward the value of life."--Cary F. Baynes, translator's preface to Jung's Modern Man in Search of a Soul (1933)

Solipsism: the view that there is no reality outside of the self; all things relate solely to the experiences of the observer.

"A rising mass movement attracts and holds a following not by its doctrine and promises, but by the refuge it offers from the anxieties, barrenness and meaninglessness of an individual existence."--Eric Hoffer, The True Believer

"Three things are to be looked to in a building: that it stand on the right spot; that it be securely founded; that it be successfully executed."--Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"There is always inequity in life. Some men are killed in a war and some are wounded, and some men never leave the country."--John F. Kennedy, March 21, 1962 press conference

"All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others."--George Orwell, Animal Farm

* * * * 

Local Art Seen: First Lesson in Zentangle with Esther Piszczek

 

This past Wednesday I had the privilege of being part of the Zentangle & Wine classes at the Master Framing Gallery on London Road. The instructor is Esther Piszczek, a Certified Zentangle(R) Teacher, a former attorney who now helps promote the local arts through her Twin Ports Art blog.

If you're unfamiliar with Zentangle, it's essentially a method for creating beautiful images through repetitive patterns. But it's actually more than that. As the name implies, Zen-tangle is also about the experience itself.

Making art, like writing, is often a reflective activity which one does by oneself. But as most of us who remember our art school days, there's something about a shared studio space which is socially invigorating as well as keenly communal. The Zentangle & Wine is more akin to this latter experience.

Wednesday's pattern. Each pattern has a name.

In addition to wine, there's a bit of pot luck food sharing as well when the class gathers at the Master Framing Gallery. Despite the delicious distractions, most all of the "students" were focused on the lesson and their creative expressions.

Esther shows the way. 

The Zentangle Method involves a specific set of tools, which come in a pouch with a drawstring so can pretty much carry it anywhere. The items in the pouch include a fine .01 micron black Sakura pen, 3.5" square Fabriano Tiepolo paper tiles, pencil and a tortillon (blending stump).

When you dig deeper into Zentangle, there are a number of basic philosophical underpinnings. One of these is that there are no mistakes. In other words, there's an attitude being infused, to accept as beautiful whatever one creates.

The scale of one's work is tiny, especially in comparison to a 20 foot long Pollock or Motherwell. But that's a fitting size for the process, which involved increasingly detailed lines and shadings.

Each month involves instructions for a new design. The design is presented as a process, and you would think all the students would end up with the same final product, but it's simply not the case as you can see from this photo below.

Yes, there was a route to take, but how each individual expresses each element leads to a variety of variations.

There may be an infinite number of results, but the class itself is quite finite, as there are only a small number of desks for working. In other words, seating is limited. So if you want to participate in September, you'll need to book early. No previous drawing experience necessary. Class Cost: $35; Supplies: $10 (or use supplies provided without additional cost). RSVP to episzczek@gmail.com. 

* * * *

Ed's Tangle

The thought I had afterwards is that to appreciate Zentangle one must slow down. Like appreciating poetry, it's not something you do on the run. And let's face is, far too many of us are perpetually winded from living life on the run.

Winston Churchill had a lot on his plate, but found respite by getting away from it all to paint. (Some of his work can be found at the Dallas Museum of Art, if you're ever down that way.)

Here's my Rookie Tangle from Wednesday. I learned a lot, even if mine was the weakest in the class, from my critical perspective. I'm sufficiently intrigued to learn more and will see what happens next.


Related Links
Zentangle Patterns and How To Draw Them
A List of Zentangle Blogs on the Web
Interview with Esther Piszczek about her book Patterned Peace

Louis Kemp's Dylan & Me Book Signing: Bringing It All Back Home

Filming for Making It Up North. Chairs and lights set up on the Armory
drill hall stage where Buddy Holly performed January 31, 1959.
L to R: Louis Kemp, Karen Sunderman and cameraman Steve Ash.

Thursday August 15 Louis Kemp, businessman and former Duluthian, returned to his hometown to promote his new book, Dylan and Me.

Kemp arrived in Duluth shortly after the lunch hour with a full schedule ahead of him. His first stop: the Duluth Armory drill hall where he and teen chum Bobby Zimmerman saw Buddy Holly perform on January 31, 1959.

The structure was built in 1915, a drill hall that could be used year round. The stage was added in 1940, from which presidents and countless entertainers spoke or performed. The list of names includes Harry Truman, Bob Hope, Johnny Cash, Liberace, Sonny & Cher,  Diana Ross & the Supremes, Eleanor Roosevelt and a host of other famous persons. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Karen Sunderman, award-winning host of Making It Up North, a show that airs on public television, sat with Louie to discuss his new book about the friendship he shared over a period of 50 years. But first, the author stood near the stage and pointed across the drill hall to the door where he and Bobby entered from the far side and wove through the gathered masses toward the very front.

Kemp shows Armory director Mark Poirier the door he and Bobby
entered that night. The wind chill was 44 below outside.

Louie then pointed and walked over to the spot where he believes that they were standing that fateful night. “As close as possible. There was nothing between us and the stage,” he said. “The goal was to see the concert, not to dance and kibbitz.”

Armory director Mark Poirier brought to Louie a star with the Armory insignia in it that had been created by the Forging Community which is housed in the Armory Annex. The star was placed on this that spot Louie indicated.

Some of what Kemp shared had been mentioned in other stories, how “Bobby listened to the radio stations coming out of the South late at night.” And the story of how Bobby would say he was going to be a rock and roll star. Other stories were new, and the book has many of those. Kemp shared that as teens the tight-knit Jewish community would have a lot of open houses. Many of these homes would have pianos and it wouldn’t be long before Bobby was at the piano, playing. But while playing he’d push the boundaries and, according to Kemp, “Every open house we went to we’d get kicked out of.”

A forged star with the Armory logo was placed on the floor
where the two young chums watched the concert.

While interviewing the author Karen Sunderman kept asking questions about Dylan, and Kemp would always rebuff, stating, “Dylan is a persona. To me he was Bobby.”

“I’ve met lots of big names with big egos. Bobby Zimmerman has no ego,” he said. “He knows he has a gift from God. He’s just a conduit.”

Of the book itself, Kemp states that he wanted people to see the human side of Bobby Zimmerman. He was prompted to write it by a friend who was dying, who had heard many of these stories. “When are you going to write this book? Promise me you’re gonna write this book.”

Karpeles from the balcony. Photo credit: Michael Anderson

AFTER an hour at the Armory there was a trip to the Jewish cemetery where Louis Kemp’s parents and grandparents lay, about 20 paces from the grave marker for Abe and Beatty Zimmerman.

From there we drove to the neighborhood where Louie grew up. The house sits in the middle of the block across the street from a park on the East Hillside. Bobby used to come to this house and visit during their teen years, play in the park or Monopoly upstairs. (I have it on good authority that Bob's favorite Monopoly piece was the Scotty dog.)

A little after 5:00 we arrived at Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum for the main event. The former Christian Science church building was already collecting a good crowd by the time we arrived. The reception, sponsored by Valentini's and Super One Liquor, included music by Gene LaFond, Amy Grillo and Dave Bennett while Louie autographed copies of his book.

This was a reunion of sorts, as Gene used to perform with Larry Kegan, who is prominently featured in the book, another friend from Herzl Camp. Gene also had a chance to be on a portion of the Rolling Thunder Revue of which Louie was the producer. (Bob said to him, "You can sell fish. You can sell tickets.)

The event itself was sponsored by the Duluth Dylan Fest Committee and a continuation of the John Bushey Memorial Lecture Series, honoring the legacy of John Bushey, who hosted the Dylan-themed Highway 61 Revisited on KUMD for 26 years. We were calling this an Encore event.

It also signified the final night of Bill Pagel's exhibition of Dylan memorabilia, which included handwritten lyrics to Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues and Desolation Row. It was a nice touch when Gene sang Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues.

August 15 was also the 50th anniversary of the start of Woodstock. In my opening remarks I made note of this and reminded everyone that the emergency room to St. Luke's Hospital is directly across the street, in the event that they failed to heed the warnings about the brown acid.

With that Louie Kemp came to the microphone and spent 45 minutes to an hour reading favorite passages and stories from his book.

His shirt reads, "Duluth Minnesota. It's Where My Story Began."
Bob Zimmerman's story began here, too. Six years in the upstairs of a duplex
in the Central Hillside and where Louie would spend the night.

With Jim and Barb Bushey, brother and sister of the late John Bushey, 

* * * *

Even some of Louie's former employees from Kemp Fisheries came out.

* * * *

Matt Steichen and clan. He and his wife Jennifer met at a Dylan concert.

* * * *

Geno, Louie, Amy and the author of Ennyman's Territory.

Learning something new every day. It's all good.

All the evening event photos were taken by Michael Anderson 

with the exception of the Matt Steichen family.

Woodstock Story in a Bottle: Another Defining Moment of 1969

Insignia that appeared on Yasgur Farms milk bottles.

That summer two men walked on the moon. And in August 400,000 people saw stars.

Just as a good movie is made of memorable scenes, so history is remembered by its defining moments. For Americans, the year "1968" brings Viet Nam, assassinations (Bobby, MLK, Jr), and riots to mind

In 1969, two very different images were impressed upon us, that "one giant leap" for mankind and that escapist utopian dream, Woodstock.  (It's convenient to keep Altamont off-camera when we want to feel good about this Woodstock music and love experience as a culmination of the Sixties.)

There were many ironic features of the event, one being this one: the song we've all associated with it, "By the time we got to Woodstock," was penned by someone who wasn't event there. Joni Mitchell was in New York City to be on TV that weekend.

Here's a second irony. As every Dylan fan knows, Woodstock's most famous resident-in-hibernation, who many considered the hippest cat on earth, was packing his bags to head to England for an Isle of Wight concert.

* * * *
I'm going down to Yasgur's Farm
Gonna join in a rock and roll band
Got to get back to the land and set my soul free

Yasgur's farm was actually 43 miles Southwest of Woodstock, in Bethel NY.
Photo courtesy Bill Pagel.

How many farmers can you think of, besides Old MacDonald, have been memorialized in song? Here's an excerpt from his Wikipedia account, by way of introduction.

Max Yasgur was born in New York City to Russian Jewish immigrants Samuel and Bella Yasgur. He was raised with his brother Isidore (1926-2010) on the family's farm (where his parents also ran a small hotel) and attended New York University, studying real estate law. By the late 1960s, he was the largest milk producer in Sullivan County, New York. His farm had 650 cows, mostly Guernseys. 

Though Yasgur was a conservative Republican, his conscience also told him that older folks need to do something to bridge the generation gap. He was motivated by his principles and did not yield to those who were pressuring him to call off the festival.

* * * *

When I saw this bottle from Yasgur's farm, I couldn't help but think of the Old Testament Psalm 56:8 in which the psalmist/poet writes, "You put my tears in Your bottle." I think of all the tears that were shed during the 60s, from JFK to all the grief and sadness caused by Viet Nam. And sadly, worse was yet to come.

My next thought was even stranger. What were bottles like 3,000 years ago? King David wrote this song when he was captured by the Philistines. Whatever shape they took, for the psalmist it was not a time of music and celebration.

* * * *

Photo by Francisco Moreno on Unsplash

Woodstock took place from August 15 to 18, 1969. The performers most of us remember most were the ones on the album and the film. Some were excluded due to contract issues.

Here are some stories that go deeper and provide more perspective than I have time to produce. If you have time, check them out.

A New York Times account of one of the iconic photos.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/08/arts/music/woodstock-famous-couple.html

A good summing up of Woodstock by the NYTimes
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/05/arts/music/woodstock-50-anniversary.html

Rolling Stone interview with Bob Weir, who was shocked. (Literally)
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/woodstock-grateful-dead-bob-weir-855472/

Time Magazine published this review of the latest Woodstock documentary
https://time.com/5638166/woodstock-pbs-generation-review/

Here were a couple thought-provoking paragraphs from the above.

For those who were coldbloodedly watching numbers, even in 1969, Woodstock simply identified a big, promising segment of the youth market, ready for the commercial exploitation that would ensue almost immediately. “Woodstock Nation,” despite Abbie Hoffman’s hopes when he coined the term, turned out to be a demographic rather than a political force.

This one is also barbed.

But forget the nostalgia. Millennials have every right to point out how Woodstock represented baby boomer privilege in crystalline form. We got a free marathon all-star concert. (I don’t begrudge my $18.) We swarmed a previously unspoiled dairy farm and its surroundings. We absolutely thought we were the center of the universe. And afterward, someone else had to clean up the giant mess we left behind. Insert the global-warming analogy.

You can insert a number of alternative messes here.

Were you there? What was your story?

Related Links
For Carlos Santana, Woodstock was a Trip
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/06/arts/music/santana-woodstock.html
Surviving Woodstock, a New Yorker story by Hua Hsu
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/08/05/surviving-woodstock

Louie Kemp Book Signing Agenda for Thursday Evening at Karpeles

Joan, Louie, Bob and a pooch.

C.S. Lewis, in his book The Four Loves, dissects the meanings of the four Greek words that have been translated as "love" in the English language. They are Storge (Affection Love), Phileo (Friendship Love), Eros (Romantic Love) and Agape (Divine Love).

Friendship love begins as a kind of companionship. What I remember most about Lewis' description of Phileo is how you may go separate ways, but when your lives cross again ten years later, that resonance, that special bond you shared will pick up precisely where you left off.

When I moved to New Jersey in 1964, the year I turned 12, it was the beginning of a companionship relationship with the kid next door who was 11 and a grade behind me. The six years Tom and I were neighbors we shared many adventures, some pretty wild ones. After graduation, his life and mine diverged significantly. I was college bound, he was to become a biker.

Over the course of many decades we may have gotten together once every ten years, but that special bond we built as kids had been established. As different as our lives were--I had a career in advertising and PR, he a borderline outlaw with a heart of gold--it was always good to re-connect.

This is what I saw in Louie Kemp's Dylan & Me. For myself, the big takeaway was how Bobby Zimmerman never got so famous that he was too cool for her Herzl Camp companions Larry and Louie. Their lives were not parallel, but they periodically intersected, most notably in the Rolling Thunder Revue.

* * * *

Duluth Armory, where Louie and Bob went to see Buddy Holly
and the Winter Dance Party.

Tomorrow evening, August 15, Louie Kemp will be speaking at Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum as part of the John Bushey Memorial Lecture Series.

The event will kick off at 5:30 PM with music by Gene LaFond, Amy Grillo and Dave Bennett, followed by the lecture from 6:30 to 7:30 PM. Following the lecture Louie Kemp will be on hand to sell and sign his new memoir hot off the press.

Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum is located at 902 East First Street in Duluth. The evening’s agenda is:
5:30-6:30 PM Reception and Music with Gene LaFond and Amy Grillo (includes refreshments and appetizers courtesy Valentini's and Super One Liquor.)
6:30-7:30 PM Louie Kemp Lecture
7:30-8:30 PM Book signing

The event is free.

This will be the last chance to see the 2019 Bob Dylan Exhibit from the William Pagel Archives.
Books will be for sale that evening.

 To learn more about Louie Kemp’s book visit: www.dylanandme.com

Promo Copy from Announcement
This uniquely intimate lecture and memoir of a lifelong friendship with Bob Dylan offers never-before-told stories, behind-the-scenes glimpses, rare photos, and affectionate anecdotes about one of the key figures in American music and letters. With a cast of characters that includes Marlon Brando, Cher, Joan Baez, Joni Mitchell, Dennis Hopper, Louie's mother, and many more, Dylan & Me is a "backstage pass" to Louie and Bob's life, friendships, and music by the guy who was there every step of the way.

* * * *

Karpeles will be Louie Kemp's fifth stop on this Minnesota Tour, having signed books at four locations in the Twin Cities this week. You can read some of the reviews and interviews that have been shared by clicking on the following links:

Bob Dylan’s Best Friend Louie Kemp Breaks Silence With New Book ‘Dylan And Me’
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/bob-dylan-louie-kemp-book-dylan-and-me-845876/

Louis Kemp Memoir Pulls Back the Curtain on Bob Dylan
https://jewishjournal.com/culture/books/302395/louis-kemp-memoir-pulls-back-the-curtain-on-bob-dylan/

From summer camp to stardom, his friendship with Bob Dylan spanned 50 years
http://www.startribune.com/from-summer-camp-to-stardom-his-friendship-with-bob-dylan-spanned-50-years/528519651/

10 things we learned about Bob Dylan from his friend's book
http://www.startribune.com/10-things-we-learned-about-bob-dylan-from-his-friend-s-book/528516501/

The Astonishingly Menschy Side Of Bob Dylan . by Dan Epstein
https://forward.com/culture/427215/the-astonishingly-menschy-side-of-bob-dylan/

WCCO Interview: Louie Kemp Details Bob Dylan Friendship In New Book
https://minnesota.cbslocal.com/video/4142600-louie-kemp-details-bob-dylan-friendship-in-new-book/

Director Sara Collins Offers Insights About the Bayfront Art Festival

Sara Collins

You don't have to be a rocket scientist to see that Duluth's hospitality industry is a-hoppin'. This weekend, the Duluth News Tribune dispatched a headline that implied tourism had reached a plateau, but a deeper look shows that there was still growth and only the weather (chilly and cold) crimped the tourism a tad.

One of the things that has amped tourism over the years, in addition to the beauty of the region itself, is the quantity of activities here from spring to fall. This past weekend included the Blues Fest, an outdoor art show at Brighton Beach and the Tall Ships event that parks in our harbor every three years.

This coming weekend, among other things, there will be Art in Bayfront Park. As one who follows the local arts extensively, it seemed good to catch up with festival director Sara Collins and learn more about this ongoing August tradition. The photos on this page are of some of the artists who were selected as winners in each of their respective mediums.

Dan Arnold, Wood

EN: Please explain how your event came to be, and how is it different in character from the Park Point Art Fair?

Sara Collins: Three years ago we acquired the festival from the original owner. We also produce the Stone Arch Bridge Festival in Minneapolis. The opportunity to work in Duluth at the spectacular Bayfront Park felt like a no-brainer. The North Shore has a strong history and reputation for supporting the arts which we’ve found to be very accurate. I’m not sure how we differ from Park Point. I think we both have a strong roster of talented artists. Our roster differs a bit with our two speciality markets, The Culinary Arts Market and Vintage & Vinyl Market. Those two additional markets are a lot of fun and really compliment the artists' work, creating a vibrant festival experience.

Daniel Fenn, Glass

EN: What kind of things do event promoters do behind the scenes to ensure a good event?

Darcy Horn, Beadwork

SC: Behind the scenes, our team starts working on the festival in December. Our artists are selected through a jury process. Applications start coming right away in December.

We work hard at creating a platform where artists shine and attendees discover something new. Also this year we joined efforts with Save the Boundary Waters organization and are hosting their fund raising music festival on Friday night. So that added a layer of challenges and great opportunities, too.

EN: What’s your favorite part of Art in Bayfront Park? The setting seems ideal for a show of this nature with its infinite circular walkabout.

SC: My favorite thing about the festival is meeting the artists. They are a never ending source of amazement! Their skills and dedication to their craft is really endearing.

EN: The weather is always a challenge for outdoor arts events. What other kinds of challenges do you face?

SC: The challenges are finding the balance between traditional aspects of an art festival and offering new and entertaining elements. Also we want to be a place for people to discover an appreciation for hand-crafted, one-of-kind art pieces. To attract those folks, we need to reach a broad audience.

David Ettedgui, Mixed Media

EN: Are you an artist yourself? What prompted you to create (if you did) or take over Art in Bayfront Park?

SC: I am not an artist. I am an art lover and art cheerleader! My husband and son are both artists so I “get” artists. I understand that business and art are not always happy companions. I hope our work helps artists reach more people and build their customer base.

* * * *

For more details about Art in Bayfront Park visit their website:

http://www.artinbayfrontpark.com/

Check out my review of the 2015 Bayfront Art fair.