It is tough to be alone.
Music, books, and foodways can form a meaningful bridge to a welcoming place. A point of memory. And inspiration. I thought about these elements while contributing suggestions to the Music Lives Here multi-media project created by the City of Chicago.
The 50 Music Lives Here sites define the raw individualism of the Chicago ethic: Willie Dixon’s Yambo Records, 7771 S. Racine, the pioneering punk club O’Banion’s, 661 N. Clark, the Earl of Old Town, 1615 N. Wells, and many others, obvious and not so obvious.
The Music Lives Here markers are on sidewalks and feature a QR code for time travelers to gather more information. Starting [...]
Chuck E. Weiss (Image via ANTI- records)
Singer-raconteur Chuck E. Weiss lived in a world of flickering neon where every ashtray was filled and sunset hearts wandered on the edges of empty. Weiss was popularized in the 1979 Rickie Lee Jones hit “Chuck E’s in Love” but I came to know him in 1987 when he was headlining Chuck E. Weiss and the Godddam Liars, an industrial-strength rock n’ soul revue at The Central in West Hollywood, Ca.
Chuck Edward Weiss died on July 20 after a battle with cancer. He was 76 years old.
Exit numbers: 7/20/21. Sounds lucky.
Once in a while, the Chicago Sun-Times [...]
