EXILE ON MAIN STREET

Happy Mothers Day..

Here’s an album released by The Rolling Stones 40 years ago that still has mothers talking..

More to come.

CALIFORNIA : HERE I CAME

I love California. It’s my favorite U.S. state. Don’t get me wrong. My home state of Washington is one of the best places to be in August/September. It’s the other 10 months that can be spotty.

R Gruppe Treffen in Solvang last week was incredible. In 2 1/2 weeks I shot a record 8 cars (all early Porsches). I’m back home and still buzzing from the experience. Thanks to all who made it possible.

EARTH DAY PICNIC

Join The Nature Conservancy for “Picnic for the Planet”. Today will be the world’s largest and most delicious Earth Day celebration. Celebrate by attending, hosting or donating to a picnic. Enjoy!

Picnic for the Planet

ENJOYING TURNTABLES AND VINYL WITHOUT OBSESSING

Record Store Day is this Saturday. In preparation, here are a couple of good articles in The New York Times and the LA Weekly on enjoying the advantages of vinyl records without going crazy. There are lots of options for turntables, cartridges, and phono stages now that make spinning wax very easy. Collecting near mint first pressing original LPs, or tracking down the best sounding records? Well, you can go a little nuts doing that!

The New York Times Article

Why Vinyl Still Matters By Henry Rollins

Record Store Day - Vinylmania Video

OUTLAW 356 AND 911 : BLACK AND SILVER

Once again, Excellence magazine has chosen to feature some remarkable cars. This month’s issue (#201) includes a black 1958 Porsche 356A sunroof coupe that became a Willhoit GT special and a silver 1972 Porsche 911 hot rod that returned to the street after many years as a race car.

I was fortunate to have covered both of these California cars in photographs and words. Each owner, Dick Moran and Chris Messano, is a true enthusiast intent on fulfilling their aspirations. Thanks, guys, for being who you are…

Excellence Magazine 356A Feature

KID CHARLEMAGNE

Three dozen years ago, Walter Becker and Donald Fagen of Steely Dan were putting the finishing touches on one of their lesser known albums – The Royal Scam. It’s a “fusion of a funk rhythm and jazz harmonies with rock and roll instrumentals and lyrical style” according to Wikpedia.

Of particular note is the track, “Kid Charlemagne”. On this song, guitarist Larry Carlton incorporated a jazz-inflected electric solo. It’s become famous for its difficulty to play and also for the finger-tapped hammer-on technique implemented near the end. This effect was not widely used until Van Halen’s first album was released two years later.

Walter Becker and Donald Fagen have stated that the lyrics for “Kid Charlemagne” were loosely based on the exploits and arrest of the infamous 1960s San Francisco-based LSD chemist Owsley Stanley. The 1976 hit was one of Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time”.

The albums that came before, Pretzel Logic and Katy Lied, and the one that came after, Aja, are arguably better Steely Dan records as a whole. But nothing quite touched this song for inventiveness.

The admittedly “hideous” cover was designed by Larry Zox and was originally created for Van Morrison’s unreleased 1975 album, Mechanical Bliss.

(Photographer: Unknown)

F.A. “BUTZI” PORSCHE (1935-2012)

It is with saddened heart that I report the passing of Ferdinand Alexander Porsche in Salzburg, Austria today at the age of 76.

He was the first son of Ferry Porsche, the grandson of Ferdinand Porsche, and probably best known for creating the design of the iconic Porsche 911 sports car.

“Butzi”, as he was affectionately called, went on to design the beautiful Porsche 904, 914, and later formed the Porsche Design Group, which produced the first matte black chrome chronographs and teardrop shaped sunglasses.

Always innovative, understated and classy, Butzi will be missed.

“If you analyse the function of an object, its form often becomes obvious.” — F.A. Porsche

(Photograph 1963: Courtesy Porsche AG)

SCOTLAND

Magical moments are something photographers live for, and they can be one of the times when we feel most alive.

This was one of those moments. My wife, Andrea, and I were touring Scotland and realized that the following evening would provide a full moon at dusk and a high tide reflection of the Eilean Donan Castle lit by the western sky in a nearby bay. It’s something that happens maybe once a year IF you are lucky and the weather is clear.

As we unpacked our luggage at our B&B on the chosen day, we saw a lone figure relieving his rental car of multiple Pelican cases full of camera gear. Andrea recognized him as her friend, National Geographic photographer Jim Richardson. We ended up sharing dinner and the sight of this marvelous spectacle together.

Not sure what this has to do with Scotland, but this is one of the most intelligent bands performing today, The Decemberists:

ART FOR ART’S SAKE

Sometimes you just need to explore a photograph’s possibilities and follow your instincts, listening attentively to that small intuitive voice over your left shoulder.

GREAT SMOKY MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK

It’s only the first day of Spring, but never too early to be thinking about where to go. By mid-April flowering dogwood trees and early morning fog combine to produce wonderful scenes in a national park that deserves to be savored slowly. Straddling Tennessee and North Carolina, Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a traveling photographer’s delight.

A telephoto lens can compress the rolling hills at sunrise or sunset. And a super wide-angle lens can be used with strong foreground objects, like trees with a delicate lacy patterns, to contribute to the feeling of being on the floor of a moist, cool woodland forest. This park is highly recommended, especially if you live on the eastern seaboard of America, where historic Blue Ridge Parkway stretches from Virginia to Tennessee.