Monday I posted a few hot rod photos and nothing says vintage hot rod like a flat head V8. I love the simplicity of these engines and the concept that almost any “shade tree” mechanic could work on them with a few wrenches and screwdriveres. Now, you need thousands of dollars of computerized equipment to tell you what is going on inside those new motors.
This past Saturday I went to a local car show. I love muscle cars and hot rods, so this was a great opportunity to photography some rolling art.
This little 1946 Ford pickup truck won “Best Hot Rod”. It really has a classic hot rod look to it and I really like the low gloss paint. It looks like a work in progress.
This also looks like it was built by the owner (and it was) instead of some custom shop. I like the fact that this is a hands on build and the owner knows every nut and bolt on this ride.
The engine pretty much speaks for itself. Very nicely done.
Once again its an open theme week at 4M. The classic hot rod brings thoughts of Dick Clark, American Bandstand and high school hops. So the music selection this week isn’t quite as important as the activity. Get out on the dance floor and shake a leg!!!
The theme for this week’s Monday’s Music Moves me is songs that make you think about autumn and I can think of no better song than the classic from Nat King Cole, “Autumn Leaves.
Of course fall means college football and every college has a fight song. For those of us born and bred in the great state of Oklahoma we stand up for two songs, The National Anthem and “Boomer Sooner”. Happy Fall Y’all!!
What is so Awe…some about this building you ask. When we moved to Northwest Arkansas in 1987 I worked about a block from this structure. It is a gas station, probably built in the late 40’s or early 50’s. The white porcelain panels were the preferred exterior for all modern gas stations of that era. By 1987 the gas pumps were gone and the only service available was tire repair. The building was in pretty rough shape. The tire repair business closed around 2004 and the building sat vacant ever since. The other day I drove by the place and the little structure is getting a new life! The right side of the building was originally the office and the left side was two service bays. I can’t wait ’til this place opens and I get to celebrate the new life. I love these little gas stations but they are disappearing because they are small and not useful for very many types of businesses in this day and age. I think they have done a great job of rehabbing this place and I just hope the food is as good as the design. Are there any successful re-purposed buildings in your town?
This week is an open choice week so I thought I’d bring another one of my favorite genres of music to the party. I like the blues and I like blues guitar and there are several great musicians out there. The classics like Leadbelly, John Lee Hooker, and Buddy Guy are in a class by themselves. Then there are the rockers turned blues musicians, like Eric Clapton and Carlos Santana. Finally there is the new kid on the block, so to speak, Joe Bonamassa. Joe has been playing since he was five and has been playing with the best in the business since he was 12.
My first selection is combines two of these talented gentlemen, Joe Bonomassa and Eric Clapton playing Further On Up the Road. Enjoy.
Eric Clapton has been a rock/blues musician since the mid-sixties. He was the lead gutairist/vocalist in bands such as Blind Faith, Cream, and Derek & the Dominoes. One of his most popular numbers is Layla and is usually played as an electrified rock number, but listen as he slows it down into an acoustic blues classic.
A personal favorite of mine is Delbert McClinton. Delbert actually toured with the Beatles to provide the harmonica for songs like Love Me Do. I believe that he eventually taught John Lennon how to play the parts. I like a little rasp in my blues vocals and Delbert is just the man for the job.
Blues and Country music have one thing in common, much of the music is about lying, cheating, stealing, and broken hearts. No blues post would be complete without a little BB King.
Over a decade ago I can remember celebrating my sixtieth birthday. I remember posting on my previous blog about the Beatles song, “When I’m 64”. Paul McCartney wrote that song when he was 16. When I was sixteen, the thought of turning 64 never crossed my mind. It’s not that I didn’t expect to live that long, it’s just that we were more worried about tomorrow than five decades into the future. I mean, even my parents weren’t 64 in 1964. But five decades later and a few months after celebrating my sixtieth birthday I pondered a few of these thoughts.
I have noticed a few things have changed over the years. Remember as a child you could sit in the floor with your legs crossed and come to a standing position without uncrossing your legs. At 60, that doesn’t even sound like a good idea.
In your 30’s you enjoyed getting outside and mowing the yard. At 60, you take two ibuprofen before mowing and two after mowing just to control the swelling in the joints. If you can afford it, you’ve already bought the riding mower.
In your 40’s you still spent one Saturday a month washing, waxing, and detailing your favorite ride. At 60, you’re thankful for the drive-thru car wash with the auto applied wax.
In your 50’s you were at the top of your profession and enjoyed going to work everyday. At 60, your still at the top, but if you’re in management, it’s starting to look a lot like adult daycare and retirement can’t come soon enough.
Don’t get me wrong 60 is a great age. You have a much better perspective of the world around you. You’re not too excited about the Democrats or the Republicans because in the end, they’re all just a bunch of politicians trying to get elected or re-elected. You realize that life is too short to always be in a crisis management mode. Slow down, enjoy the time with family and friends. I was a “child of the sixties”, now I’m going to enjoy the sixties again.
Now that I am north of seventy and several years into retirement, my statement about politicians rings truer than ever. So does my view of spending time with the ones you love, friends and family. That’s why most of my photography is dedicated to family events. A hundred years from now no one will care about my photos of birds, automobiles, motorcycles, and flowers. What they will enjoy are those images that capture the family in this day and age. And now, for a little music.
The theme for this week’s Monday’s Music Moves Me is “Songs about being a grandparent or growing old.” What better song to start with than “When I’m 64”
The song that best speaks about growing old together and answers the question posed in the Beatles tune comes from the country charts and Randy Travis. When you marry your true love and you do life together the way God intended, the answer is, I will love you forever and ever…amen. My wife and I are at forty-four years and counting. I think this marriage is gonna last.
There are some railroad tracks on one side of town where the passenger trains used to run decades ago. There is a metal building that serves as an office where one of two depots used to sit. Now freight trains make a couple passes through town each week and bring with them examples of what goes on in the big cities. The box cars are turned into rusty canvases and graffiti artists work through the night to complete their work before sunrise and the steel canvas is gone forever or at least moved to the next city for another artist to add their work. While I am not a fan of defacing property, I find these works fascinating. I still don’t know how they get the clean edges to many of the lines. Are they using portable airbrushes instead of spray cans?
The creativity is truly something to behold. I’m sure that there is meaning hidden is some of these works and I imagine that a few of these artists are well known along the rails.
Did “Zoe” pick the color of the rail car canvas based on the paint colors that they brought with him/her?
I saw that blue design on several cars. My question is, “How did the artist get that high?” I don’t get by the tracks as often as I did when I was working. At one time my office was across the street from the tracks, then we moved a mile north of this location, then I retired. I have to remind myself to drive by occasionally to see the new exhibit. After all, it changes quite often. Have a blessed week-end.
This week is “Your Choice” week so I thought I do a little something different. As a teen and young adult of the sixties I had a lot of influences in my musical tastes. I was probably in the 9th or 10th grade when the Beatles landed in the first wave of the British Invasion. While the “Fab Four” where the sweethearts of pop music, the Rolling Stones were one of the edgier sounds. By today’s standards, the Beatles were what used to be referred to as bubble gum rock. Their music had a good beat, nice lyrics and a melody that was easy to remember. The Stones had a more serious tone with songs like Satisfaction, Wild Horses, and Beast of Burden. In the mid nineties country music experienced a rebirth of popularity with artists like Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Martina McBride, Trisha Yearwood, and Vince Gill. In 1997 this resurgence lead to the release of an album in which popular country artists covered the big hits of the Stones. Honestly, some of the arrangements were better than the original, even if there were only minor tweaks to the music. So here a few Stones hits as covered by country artists.
I was going to save this video for a different theme week and I may choose to re-post it later just because I love it. What happens if you amp up the cow bell just a little, add the rasp of Travis Tritt’s voice and have swing dance experts Jason Colacino and Katie Boyle tear up the floor? Well, you get Honky Tonk Women.
One country group that enjoyed a short season of popularity in the nineties was “The Tractors”. Their cover of the Stones “The Last Time” is very well done.
Ruby Tuesday proved to be such a popular Stones tune that a restaurant chain was born. One of the female vocalists of the day was Deana Carter and her cover of this Stones song was easy on the ears.
Several Rolling Stones songs rose to the level of anthem songs for other bands and artists. These were songs that groups used to finish a set or a show with and were guaranteed to get the fans on their feet and leave them begging for more. Jumpin’ Jack Flash was just such a song and Rodney Crowell does it as well as anyone.
So if you’re looking for an album to add to your collection or playlist, Stone Country by these various artists might just be worth checking out have a blessed week and stop again any time.
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