Peter Gabriel Remix Contest

I really enjoyed doing this remix of Peter Gabriel’s “Games Without Frontiers”. Kate Bush BGs! Came out kind of rock/reggae-ish? More thoughts and some of my production notes are over on the entry page, where you can also listen lots of other entries: indabamusic.com/submissions/show/21124

Thanks for the opportunity IndabaMusic.com

Please enjoy:

Coach John Wooden

Very lucky to have spent a little time with Coach John Wooden.

Basketball was a big part of my life in high school and I got the chance to attend his basketball camps both as a camper and a counselor in the mid 80’s.

I found him to be very kind and generous, and as you’re probably aware, very wise. Perhaps you’ve read some of the shining tributes. The praise he receives is well-deserved, but he wouldn’t want us to get too grandiose:

“You see, the truth is somewhere in between. It’s wrong to turn people into idols. But it’s also wrong to lose hope, to believe that we can’t find good examples to inspire us…”

In the wake of his passing at age 99, I’ve watched some of the videos online, and went looking for this old photograph.

What vividly comes back is his voice. Steady, calm, kind but firm. He would give several talks throughout the camp and his words instilled purpose and structure.

Though he covered similar topics innumerable times, he never phoned it in. He was very present. I think he was an advanced yogi.

I can still picture him briskly walking around the various courts surveying the morning drills of all the players. His walk was distinctive. Active, with intent. His walking posture somehow echoed good basketball posture – slightly forward with an economy of movement.

Occasionally he would stop and offer a few words – and you could hear a proverbial pin drop. Even if he was silently observing your group, everyone’s intensity and focus cranked up to a very high level.

This permeated the atmosphere of the camp throughout the day and evening. The counselor games at night were electric.

As Jabbar and Walton and many others have noted, one of the great things about being exposed to him, is the realization in later life of how his advice and teaching can be applied to everything off the court. When I read his Pyramid of Success these days, it directly helps me prepare for a gig.

Related to the pyramid and his mastery of words, you’ve likely come across some of his famous quotes. Here is one collection. More maxims can be found on his official website.

Perhaps it’s no surprise that he loved poetry. Check out the video below – I bet some rappers are impressed with his spoken word skills.

Thank you Basketball, for the on-and-off-court education, and especially for the meeting of great friends, like Coach Jeff Dunlap, the Kerrisdale crew, and a long list of others.

Thank you Coach Wooden for your kindness, wisdom and generosity, which will always resonate. All whom you’ve touched will pass along what you passed along.

And thank you to my late Dad who encouraged me in basketball and facilitated these great experiences with Coach Wooden.

Coach’s terrific TED talk from 2001:

• Recollections of Coach Wooden’s Summer Basketball Camps by 2 LA Times writers

Special Gig: Camp Moomba Yogathon Sat July 24

I’m excited to play at the Camp Moomba Yogathon on Saturday July 24 at UBC’s Thunderbird Stadium. Stoked to be playing with Niko Friesen on Drums and Cory Curtis on Bass.

Summer Camp is such an important and memorable time for anyone. It sure was for me. Camp Moomba is summer camp for kids impacted by HIV/Aids:

Camp Moomba is a specialized summer camp program for children impacted by HIV/AIDS. Recognizing that isolation and discrimination are among the greatest challenges facing these children, we strive to give them a brief respite from their illness in a camp community based on equality, friendship, and support. For children whose lives are filled with instability and suffering from grief, loss, and illness, it is a place where the stigma of HIV/AIDS does not exist. 112 children, ranging from ages 6-17, attended Camp Moomba last year. Each year our wait list grows. Currently, we are the only camp in Canada for kids impacted by HIV.

Please consider joining in, or pledging a participant, or stopping by for the music and good vibes.

OF INTEREST:
Just watched this controversial and powerful documentary: House of Numbers.
Worth checking out:

House of Numbers Trailer from houseofnumbers on Vimeo.

Sita Sings the Blues & Joseph Campbell

More than ever, I think we need the wisdom of Joseph Campbell.

Last August, I saw a post on Boing Boing announcing that Nina Paley had generously released the original source files to her award-winning animated feature: “Sita Sings The Blues“. It noted that she was encouraging anyone to freely use the files in works of their own. I had seen and loved the film, and found this announcement very interesting.

At the time, I was working on a new song called “Can We Still?” and wondered if I might be able make a video for it using some of Ms. Paley’s animation. I downloaded several of the source files, and over the next several months worked on it with my rudimentary Flash and iMovie skills. Great fun.

As I neared completion, I read a tweet from Paley, that a petition had been started to “ban the film from the internet”. This sounded absurd. I had heard there was some controversy regarding the film, but “banning from the internet”?

I started reading the petition, and the overt hostility expressed by some of the petition-signers shocked me. It made me wonder if I should not release the video. I thought about it for days and then felt prompted to re-read some Joseph Campbell:

“All our names and images for God are masks, signifying the ultimate reality that by definition transcends language and art. A myth is a mask of God, too – a metaphor for what lies behind the visible world…

…Read the myths. They teach you that you can turn inward, and you begin to get the message of the symbols. Read other people’s myths, not those of your own religion, because you tend to interpret your own religion in terms of facts – but if you read the other ones, you begin to get the message…

…Every religion is true one way or another. It is true when understood metaphorically. But when it gets stuck in its own metaphors, interpreting them as facts, then you are in trouble.”

“Truth is One; the sages call it by many names” (Rig Veda 1:164:46).

- Joseph Campbell speaking to Bill Moyers in “The Power of Myth”
- On Amazon | Wikipedia | Video Clips

On my trip to India in 2007, my understanding of the importance of sacred objects, words and symbols was greatly enhanced. It was amazing to see how a sacred quality could be infused in everything from sidewalks to mountains.

However, isn’t the source of that sacred quality ultimately behind the symbols?

We all get offended by things on occasion, and I’m not arguing against someone’s right to feel offended. However, to express such hatred over someone else’s non-malicious interpretation of symbols strikes me as holding far too tightly to one’s mode of communion.

If we could keep in mind the symbolic and metaphoric nature of sacred objects, would it help ease offense and stop it from crossing over into hatred and violence?

Several of the petitioners imply “how would you feel if your religious symbols were reinterpreted?”. Personally, I am not bothered by it. I was exposed to Christianity growing up, but have no problem with Monty Python’s “Life of Brian”, in fact I think it’s both funny and important.

Anyways, the song and video remix are almost ready, I intend to put them out, and I’m grateful to Paley.

UPDATE April 26 / 2010: Appreciated this related article on BoingBoing :

What one Muslim guy thinks of South Park death threat/Mohammed controversy:

“I am a Muslim and I am a fan of South Park. To make those terms mutually exclusive is polarizing and frankly, unproductive. Aasif Mandvi over at the Daily Show summarized my sentiment exactly when he said last night, ‘Yes, it [the depiction] would make me uncomfortable and I can understand people being upset about it…but here’s whats more upsetting. Someone, in the name of a faith that I believe in, threatening another person for doing it.’”—Kalsoom, at the Changing Up Pakistan blog (via Bassam Tariq).”

Pick up some cool Sita gear like this t-shirt:

questioncopyright.com/sita

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NOTE: And this post doesn’t even touch the other issues that she and her film raise – copyright, new distribution models. For more on that, check these links:

Ramayana isn’t Exclusive Property of Hindus: Nina Paley

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sita_Sings_the_Blues

blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2008/12/having_wonderful_time_wish_you.html

sitasingstheblues.com

wired.com/entertainment/hollywood/news/2008/04/sita?currentPage=all

blog.ninapaley.com/2009/03/18/my-official-position-on-copyright/

questioncopyright.org/sita_distribution

Incoming Advice for a New Year

A fair bit of advice comes along this time of year, yes? More than ever with twitter and facebook. Resolutions, plans, fresh-starts. I can dig it.

Personally, I’ve been getting into the acid/alkaline balancing thing. Resolving to keep a more dedicated meditation and pranayama practice too. Twice a day, 30 minutes each. Beyond the regular asana practice.

Below is some advice for the new year that I received through email and twitter.  First a nice list from my friend Fuat in Istanbul. Thought to post it hear and then come back for reminders.

And 2nd, a deep quote and good laugh from Justin Ritchie’s blog.

Wishing you a peaceful, creative and healthy 2010,
Andy

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HANDBOOK 2010

Health:

1. Drink plenty of water.
2. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a beggar.
3. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in plants.
4. Live with the 3 E’s — Energy, Enthusiasm and Empathy
5. Make time to pray.
6. Play more games
7. Read more books than you did in 2009.
8. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day
9. Sleep for 7 hours.
10. Take a 10-30 minutes walk daily. And while you walk, smile.

Personality:

1. Don’t compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
2. Don’t have negative thoughts on things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
3. Don’t over do. Keep your limits.
4. Don’t take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
5. Don’t waste your precious energy on gossip.
6. Dream more while you are awake
7. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
8. Forget issues of the past. Don’t remind your partner with his/her mistakes of the past. That will ruin your present happiness.
9. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. Don’t hate others.
10. Make peace with your past so it won’t spoil the present.
11. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
12. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
13. Smile and laugh more.
14. You don’t have to win every argument. Agree to disagree…

Society:

1. Call your family often.
2. Each day give something good to others.
3. Forgive everyone for everything.
4. Spend time w/ people over the age of 70 & under the age of  6.
5. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
6. What other people think of you is none of your business.
7. Your job won’t take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.

Life:

1. Do the right thing!
2. Get rid of anything that isn’t useful, beautiful or joyful.
3. _______ heals everything.
4. However good or bad a situation is, it will change…
5. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
6. The best is yet to come.
7. When you awake alive in the morning, thank _______ for it.
8. Your Inner most is always happy. So, be happy.

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A Cree Native American storyteller and teacher told me: “According to my tradition, from the beginning of creation, every morning, when the sun comes up, we are each given four tasks by our Creator for that day. First, I must learn at least one meaningful thing today. Second, I must teach at least one meaningful thing to another person. Third, I must do something for some other person, and it will be best if that person does not even realize that I have done something for them. And fourth, I must treat all living things with respect. This spreads these things throughout the world.” (Thom Hartmann, Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight p.242)

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bizarrocomic.blogspot.com
bizarro.com

Welcome to Jungle Physicians

Hi.

Welcome to my new site. In recent years, I’ve released an album and an EP under my own name. But I’ve felt the need to evolve the way I present it.

“Jungle Physicians” is a name that has made me smile since I read it in the translation of the Ashtanga yoga opening mantra. I like its implications. So here we go, a new album on the way, and lots to do on this site.

Peace, and thanks for stopping by.
Andy