Category: The Evening Pause
A nightly pause from the news to give the reader/viewer a bit of classic entertainment.
SONNY & CHER – I Got You Babe
Vertical Video Syndrome – a PSA
Billy Joel – Piano Man
Vaughan Williams – Sea Songs
Penn & Teller – Blast Off
Blondie – Dreaming & Heart Of Glass
An evening pause: Two songs, performed live October 5, 1979. Deborah Harry is of course amazing (despite her inserting a silly politically-correct anti-nuke message during the second song), but watch the other musicians, especially the drummer.
20,000 bottle rockets
Loudon Wainwright – One-man Guy
Don McLean – American pie
First day caving in Nevada
It is late and I have to up at 5 am to head to another cave tomorrow, so there is no time to give a detailed update of what happened today
However, here is a quick summary. Our goal was to find and map a rarely visited and difficult to find cave. After four miles of hiking and a lot of wandering across some pretty spectacular mountainsides, we failed to find the cave. However, we did locate two other small caves, which we surveyed, and then, on the way back to the vehicles, discovered a previously unknown cave of some size with significant formations. This was quite exciting, as the cave was clearly virgin, never seen by humans before.
We hope to return to explore and map it later in the week. Once again, I will get to go where no one has ever gone before!
Tomorrow will probably be as long a day as today, so I probably will not be able to post a more detailed report until Saturday. Stay tuned.
Making diamonds with only an acetylene torch.
Sammy Davis, Jr. – Mr. Bojangles
An evening pause: From an 1985 performance in Germany, only five years before his death. By this time, Davis was not only performing this song as a tribute to Bill “Bojangles” Robinson, he was performing it as a testament to his own life in entertainment.
Bryn Terfel – Turtle Dove
An evening pause:
Fare you well, my dear, I must be gone
And leave you for awhile.
If I roam away I’ll come back again
Though I roam ten thousand miles, my dear,
Though I roam ten thousand miles.
Doc Watson – Windy and Warm
An evening pause: In tribute to Doc Watson, who died last week at the age of 89. Blind from the age of 1, Watson is widely considered one of America’s best folk guitarists. Watch what he does here in this 1991 live performance.
Roman Architecture
Longplayer
An evening pause: This piece of music has been playing since 1999 and will continue until 2999. Very meditative.
Kate Wolf – Eyes of a Painter
An evening pause: Kate Wolf sadly passed away prematurely in 1986. Here is a live performance from 1985.
Antonio Breschi – Language of the Land
An evening pause: Antonio Breschi again, this time with a piece of his own, from his album At the Edge of the Night. Last week I posted a breathtaking piano performance by Breschi, but unfortunately, I can’t find a video of him playing this particular piece, which I first heard back in the mid-1980s. Nonetheless, the music so beautiful it is really doesn’t need fancy visuals.
Carole King – Tapestry
The world’s smallest V-12 engine
An evening pause: Watch the assembly of the world’s smallest v-12 engine. Though the titles are in Spanish, it is quite clear what is going on. And the thing works!
Patti LuPone – Sleepy Man
Joe Hisaishi – theme from My Neighbor Totoro
An evening pause: Composer Joe Hisaishi conducts and plays piano in this live performance of his music from the animated film, My Neighbor Totoro.
I just watched the film again with family, and my opinion of it only grows with each viewing.
The Shirelles – Will You Love Me Tomorrow
An evening pause: Performed live by the Shirelles, 1964, with Shirley Alston Reeves as lead and Beverly Lee, Addie “Micki” Harris, and Doris Kenner as backup.
Antonio Breschi – from Bach to Ireland on the piano
Cousin Jake, Uncle Josh, Earl Scruggs – Nobody’s business
Olivia Newton John – Don’t Cry For Me Argentina
Bee Gees – I Started a Joke
An evening pause: In honor of the passing of Robin Gibbs on May 20. This performance was recorded live at Festival Hall in Melbourne, Australia in 1971.
Bridge Day rappel
An evening pause: Bridge Day 2011: An 800+ foot rappel from the New River Gorge Bridge in West Virginia. The event is held each fall, when they close the bridge to vehicles so pedestrians, base jumpers, and rappellers can enjoy it. I’ve done this rappel four times, twice as part of the safety team.
On the clip below, the rappel itself begins at 3:40. As this was this guy’s first rappel on the bridge, he takes it very slow, which is okay as it gives him time to enjoy the view.
The world’s most dangerous bridge?
An evening pause: A different kind of bridge, located in Russia and one that I wouldn’t speed across. Built originally as a railroad bridge to cross the Vitim River, it is 1870 feet long and about 50 feet above the water. Note how many of the cross planks are not attached.