A Moment of Zen

One day in the summer of 2007, after I had driven my father to and from his sister's funeral in London, Ontario (because the poor man's back was hurting too much for him to drive himself), I started thinking about the past, as one often does in times like this, and took a drive around Norfolk County to pass by old haunts on my way back to the big bad city of Toronto. As dusk emerged, I had found myself on the four corners of Main St. in Delhi, beside the law enforcement office where my dad worked until he retired. This location was special to me due to the memories had at the Delhi Harvest Fest, which occurs every year on Main Street, right outside the office's front door. Sometimes too, we'd hang out in the office before or after the festival each year. On this 2007 night while I was sitting in the rental car reminiscing, as the sun nestled behind the trees, and the buildings were silhouetted by the magenta sky, there wasn't another soul on the street. The only sounds came from the car radio- Tillsonburg's easy listening station 101 FM, chosen because this was what my dad would always have playing in the office and his jeep (and for all I know, they were probably playing the same Frank Mills songs). Then as now, I was moved by this mixture of image and sound: the world seemed at peace. We easily forget how much deceptively simple moments like this mean to us, and for that matter, we easily ignore the beauty of such daily rhythms of nature, because we're too caught up in our own routines. Lately, during many times of stress, my subconscious mind has suddenly recalled this image, and with it, that feeling of peace I had at that moment. It is this image (and all it implies) that I need to have more of in my life right now.

JEB LOY NICHOLS: Now Then (Bongo Beat; 2006)

Track Listing: 1) Sometimes Shooting Stars (2:56); 2) Really Together (3:23); 3) Lelah Mae (2:46); 4) Painted My Dream House Blue (3:26); 5) Bad Fruit (2:31); 6) Let's Make It Up (2:49); 7) Morning Love (3:13); 8) Black Water Road (3:25); 9) Don't Dance With Me (3:26); 10) Ever Feel Like Leaving (3:20); 11) When Did You Stop Loving Me (3:54); 12) Sweet Tough and Terrible (3:47); 13) Love Me Too (2:59)

Collective Personnel: Jeb Loy Nichols (guitar, vocals); Shaila Prospere (vocal duet on "Really Together"); Dan Penn (vocal on "Ever Feel Like Leaving"); Tony Crow, Clayton Ivey (keyboards); Jennifer Carr (piano); Terry Baker (drums); Simeon Baker, Wayne Nunes, Andy Hamill (bass); Tony Williams, Mark Nevers (guitar); Paul Burch (guitar, bass, vibes); Fiona Hibbert (harp); Rebecca Hollweg, Loraine Morley, Roy Cousins, Struggle, Knowledge (backing vocals); Lloyd Barry, George Chambers (horns); Nashville String Machine (strings); Lloyd Barry (arranger- strings and horns)

"What kind of music is this?" said I, holding up the CD. "He's a white Al Green," replied the record seller. Good enough for me.

One of the detriments of diving for cheap records is that you're unlikely to keep abreast of new music. To be sure, there is probably a lot out there today that I would enjoy, but I have difficulty in learning about it. So for me, finding a fairly recent record of this magnitude is a godsend. The man selling this for a pittance surely undercharged himself. I've listened to this album in its entirety four or five times in the past twenty-four hours, and now I think I've stopped blubbering enough to able to write a proper review. Also, let me say that this album clocks in at a mere forty-one minutes. At last, an artist who decides not to fill a CD with eighty minutes of music just because they can. This collection of thirteen songs is just enough to keep you wanting more- indeed, after several spins, I just can't get enough of it.

Some have called this album a combination of country, reggae and soul. I'm not sure of the reggae aspect, but the other descriptions surely apply. This melange is not revolutionary, yet quietly unique. The songs are beautifully understated cries for love which recall the soul singers of yore, as well as haunting snapshots of rural life that befit any high lonesome epic. Nichols' lyrics are clever metaphors emphasizing the regrets, uncertainties and yearnings of their protagonists, who constantly surrender to fate and others' acceptance (or not).

And despite the large cast of musicians assembled in the personnel above, especially with horns and strings, the sound never feels overproduced or cluttered. If anything, Nichols' words are carefully, subtly coloured by the instrumentation-- it happily plays in the meadows of these isolated landscapes of verse. "Bad Fruit", a lamentation of an unhappy familial history ("seems like only bad fruits grows on my family tree" an appropriate metaphor) is accompanied by the sparse phrasing of an electric piano.

The instrumentation mostly offers an interesting counterpoint to the somber lyrics. The bouncy horn section in "Morning Love" (one of the best tracks) properly offsets the verse of a man pleading for the affection of an indifferent other. Likewise, the blackly humourous lyric "If you ever feel like leaving, take me with you" in the tenth track is subtly bracketed by mournful brass. In most of these songs, the characters are happy to hang on to whatever they have to get by. As heard in "Let's Make It Up", another song with jaunty horns, "there's nothing for me on that train out of town".

The feel of this album is timeless: perhaps only a number like "Sweet Tough and Terrible" (opening disarmingly with Nichols thanking his bandmates, making this feel like a live session) feels like it was taken from the early 1970's, with its strings evocative of an Al Green record, and thumping bass line recalling Sly Stone's THERE'S A RIOT GOING ON.

Despite the sadness in the lyrics, HERE NOW is absolutely beautiful to listen to. The production is sharp, colourful and never baroque. (Another highlight is the marvellous duet in "Really Together" in which two people decide to give their indecisive relationship a shot.) Each song is a masterpiece of mixed emotions, perfectly reflecting the unrequited desires in the prose, and accentuated by the conflicting tones in words and music. A phrase in the final song, "Could you find it in your heart to love me too?", is emblematic of the yearning for affection that permeates most of these tracks. But my answer to that question is yes, indeed.

Rating: *****/5


(Note: this review first appeared in my long-abandoned, barely started blog of record reviews. Since I'd like to commence with music reviews as well on Gee Whiz G Man, I've ported it to this new home.)

The Late Night Files: Jim Cook on WJET

Remember sneaking downstairs as a kid to watch TV in the middle of the night? You'd have the volume way down low so your parents wouldn't hear you, because you were supposed to be sleeping. But forbidden fruit always tasted better, and what subterranean delicacies awaited you in those witching hours.  In those days of thirteen channels, when VCRs were still a luxury (if they had been invented yet), local stations would come alive after midnight, especially on weekends. Old movies and TV shows, discarded by the media zeitgeist once something new came along, were resurrected, and often presented by a host. It was a cry of rebellion, to be awake when "normal people" slumbered, and experiencing some renegade entertainment banished from the popular eye. It was an intimate feeling of communion that other like-minded strangers were simultaneously sharing this piece of neglected culture with you. There was a mystery, an allure, as one never knew what to expect. There was an urgency too, as one could miss out on something unique, never to be repeated. All of this is lost in our current age of late night infomercials, and everything on-demand. The Late Night Files is a semi-regular column highlighting some of the shows that offered us surrogate companionship in the golden age of the late, late show.

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From roughly 1981 to 1985, WJET (Erie PA's ABC affiliate) offered a double-bill of horror films on Saturday nights (often procured from the AIP or Independent-International catalogs), hosted by local DJ Jim Cook (pictured, right). The first incarnation of the program was entitled The Late, Great Horror Show.

Ian Eastman, writing for E-gor's Chamber of TV Horror Hosts, remembers:

"Although it shared a lot of the trappings of other horror shows (including a really funky orange and yellow dungeon set) it had a sensibility all its own. Jim didn't wear fright makeup or a costume. He was just a "regular guy" laughing at the movies with the audience (Oh yea... and hawking lots of pizza! Pizza Hut was the main sponsor). The double feature show was broadcast live and featured a really crazy cast of guest stars. The theme music was "Night on Disco Mountain" from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. The closing music was a really screwed up version of "Ding Dong The Witch Is Dead" from a kiddy novelty album. SIR ROBERT GHOUL-LEY, a more traditional type of host in makeup, filled in when Jim was away. In 1982 the show was replaced by syndicated episodes of Elvira's Movie Macabre."

Mr. Eastman continues:

"Jim went on to host Video Rock, a half-hour music show, but was back in 1984 with The Just Right for Late Night Horror Show. The production values were a lot lower on this version of the show. The original dungeon set and props had been destroyed so the show was produced in the WJET lunch room! The show was prerecorded -- the original was LIVE -- so Jim's snide comments about the film were always showing up in the wrong places! I don't think this version of the show even lasted a year. But (sigh) it was still better than late-night infomercials!"

I became aware of Jim Cook in the fall of 1984, when we finally had a converter for the television (after spending two years convincing my mother that the set wasn't going to blow up on account of it), because WJET was on Channel 20 in our cable system. (I don't know why it never occurred to me previously to watch it via rabbit ears on my little TV upstairs.) Although Jim was hosting Video Rock at 1:30 AM, after Elvira's Movie Macabre, I do recall that the telecast of Elvira's show, featuring So Sad About Gloria, began with a brief shot-in-studio segment, that perhaps featured Jim introducing the Macabre Movie for the night. 

Later in the year, WJET reverted to the double feature format, and the show was re-christened with a new name, as cited above. And yes, this program was really lo-fi. The production values largely consisted of Jim in a sparse, poorly lit room, reading from a clipboard. Because each film was in a 90-minute time slot, which included commercials and his inserts, the movies were obviously trimmed to fit the schedule, but we didn't mind these things so much. In the days of the late, late show, it was the entire package that mattered more. Jim was a fun, hip personality who made the overall late night experience lively and endearing.

In the spring of 1985, the program switched to Friday nights, by Jim's own on-camera admission, "for ratings". Alas, just as the summer holidays began, The Just Right for Late Horror Show quietly slipped from the broadcast band. WJET would continue to show movies on Friday or Saturday nights, but without any host.

Here is a great Youtube compendium of vintage Jim Cook clips from the original Late Great Horror Show.

And another:

God bless savedittube for keeping their VCR on!

Thanks to the miracle of online newspaper archives, what follows is a listing of films shown on Jim Cook's show from 1981 to 1985.  This is not comprehensive, as sometimes the daily television listings didn't extend late enough to include the second films. In many cases, the title of the film was not even mentioned in the listing, so we've omitted those dates as well. Listing for Elvira's Movie Macabre are included, also depending on the conditions noted beforehand.

-1981-

Nov 14: (11:30) And Now the Screaming Starts / (1:30) Graveyard of Horror

Nov 21: (11:30) The Raven

Nov 28: (11:30) Destroy All Planets - (1:30) Night of the Blood Beast

Dec 5: (11:30) The Vampire / (1:00) A Bucket of Blood

Dec 12: (11:30) Terror in the Crypt / (1:30) The Screaming Skull

Dec 19: (11:30) The Conqueror Worm / (1:30) Phantom from 10,000 Leagues

Dec 26: (11:30) Frankenstein Conquers the World / (1:30) Demon Planet

-1982-

Jan 2: (11:30) Assignment Terror / (1:30) The Spider

Jan 9: (11:30) Gamera Vs. Monster X / (1:30) Amazing Transparent Man

Jan 16: (11:30) Magic Serpent / (1:30) Day The World Ended

Jan 23: (11:30) The Eye Creatures / (1:30) Burn Witch Burn

Jan 30: (11:30) The Terror / (1:30) The Giant Gila Monster

Feb 6: (11:30) Dracula Vs. Frankenstein

Feb 13: (11:30) Night of the Blood Monster / (1:10) Castle of the Living Dead

Feb 20: (11:30) War Gods of the Deep / (1:10) Track of the Vampire

Feb 27: (11:30) Frankenstein’s Bloody Terror / (1:10) Attack of the Giant Leeches

Mar 6: (11:30) Doomsday Machine / (1:10) Last Man on Earth

Mar 13: (11:30) Reptilicus / (1:20) The Astounding She Monster

Mar 20: (11:30) The Pit and the Pendulum / (1:00) Terror From the Year 5000

Mar 27: (11:30) Journey To the Seventh Planet / (1:00) Attack of the Puppet People

Apr 3: (11:30) Black Sunday / (1:00) Return of the Giant Majin

Apr 10: (11:30) The Incredible Two Headed Transplant / (1:20) The Phantom Planet

Apr 17: (11:30) Maneater of Hydra / (1:20) The Brain that Wouldn’t Die

Apr 24: (11:30) Curse of the Swamp Creature / (1:00) Dementia 13

May 1: (11:30) Godzilla Vs. The Smog Monster / (1:00) Conquest of the Planet of the Apes

May 8: (11:30) Attack of the Mushroom People / (1:00) And Now the Screaming Starts

May 15: (11:30) Return of the Giant Monsters / (1:00) Graveyard of Horror

May 22: (11:30) Planet of Blood / (1:10) Terror in the Wax Museum

May 29: (11:30) The Oblong Box / (1:20) War of the Monsters

June 5: (11:30) Masque of the Red Death / (1:20) The Killer Shrews

June 12: (11:30) Beware the Blob / (1:20) Night of the Witches

June 19: (11:30) Die Monster Die / (1:20) Attack of the Monsters

June 26: (11:30) Black Sabbath / (1:05) Night of the Blood Beast
July 3: (11:30) Yog - Monster From Space / (1:05) Vampire Circus
July 10: (11:30) Destroy All Monsters / (1:05) A Bucket of Blood
July 17: (11:30) The Angry Red Planet  / (1:05) Terror in the Crypt
July 24: (11:30) The Conqueror Worm / (1:30) Goliath Vs. the Vampires
July 31: (11:30) The Demon Planet / (1:30) The Screaming Skull
Aug 7: (11:30) Frankenstein Conquers the World / (1:30) Assignment Terror
Aug 14: (11:30) Gamera Vs. Monster X / (1:30) The Eye Creatures
Aug 21: (11:30) The Terror / (1:30) The Beast With a Million Eyes
Aug 28: (11:30) Castle of the Living Dead / (1:30) War Gods of the Deep
Sept 4: (11:30) Track of the Vampire / (1:30) Attack of the Monsters
Sept 11: (11:30) The Amazing Transparent Man / (1:30) The Magic Serpent
Sept 18: (12:00) Attack of the Giant Leeches / (1:50) Journey to the Seventh Planet
Sept 25: (11:30) The Raven / (1:50) Burn, Witch, Burn
Oct 2: (11:30) Terror From the Year 5000 / (1:50) Last Man on Earth
Oct 9: (11:30) Attack of the Puppet People / (1:00) Black Sunday
Oct 16: (11:30) Night of the Blood Monster
Oct 23: (11:30) Dracula Vs. Frankenstein
Oct 30: (11:30) The Mummy's Tomb / (12:40) Doomsday Machine
Nov 6: (11:30) Dracula / (1:00) Baron Blood
Nov 13: (11:30) Bride of Frankenstein / (1:00) The House That Dripped Blood
Nov 20: (11:30) The Invisible Man
Nov 27: (11:30) Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man
Dec. 4: (11:30) The Oblong Box
Dec. 11: (11:30) The Incredible Two-Headed Transplant / (1:15) The Giant Gila Monster
Dec. 18: (11:30) Masque of the Red Death
Dec. 25: (11:30) Maneater of Hydra

-1983-

Jan. 8: (11:30) Planet of Blood / (1:00) Dementia 13
Jan 15: (11:30) The Undefeated
Jan. 22: (11:30) Demon Planet
Jan. 29: (11:30) Black Sabbath
Feb. 12: (11:30) The Wolf Man / (1:30) Frankenstein's Bloody Terror
Feb 19: (11:30) title not listed / (1:30) The Black Cat
Mar 5: (11:30) They Shoot Horses, Don't They?
Mar 12: (11:30) Journey Into Darkness / (1:30) Frankenstein's Bloody Terror
Mar 19: (11:30) A Minute to Pray, A Second To Die / (1:30) title not listed
Mar 26: (11:30) Shalako (1:30) Tomb of Ligeia

-from here onwards, until further notice, the 11:30 slot was Elvira's Movie Macabre, and the 1:30 slot was Jim Cook hosting Video Rock-

Apr 16: (11:30) Dr. Black, Mr. Hyde
Apr 23: (11:30) Blood on Satan's Claw
Apr 30: (11:30) The Devil's Wedding Night
May 7: (11:30) The Day It Came To Earth
May 14: (11:30) Crucible of Horror
May 28: (11:30) Silent Night, Bloody Night
June 11: (11:30) Blood Bath
July 2: (11:30) Alien Contamination
July 23: (11:30) Capture of Bigfoot
Dec 31: pre-empted by Dick Clark's Rockin New Years Eve

-1984-

Feb 11, 18: pre-empted by Olympics
Mar 31: (11:30) Capture of Bigfoot
Apr 7: (11:30) Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks
Apr 21: (11:30) Crucible of Horror
May 26: (11:30) Attack of the Killer Tomatoes
June 2: (11:30) Schizoid
June 9: (11:30) Inn of the Damned
June 16: (11:30) Blood Bath
June 23: (11:30) Dr. Heckll and Mr. Hype
June 30: (11:30) Tombs of the Blind Dead
July 7: (11:30) Alien Contamination
July 14: (11:30) New Years Evil
July 21: (11:30) The Godsend
July 28: (11:30) Monstroid
Aug 4: pre empted by Olympics
Aug 11: pre empted by World Music Festival
Aug 18: (11:30) Monstroid
Aug 25: (11:30) Kiss Daddy Goodbye
Sept 1: (11:30) Pigs
Sept 8: (11:30) Mark of the Devil
Sept 15: (11:30) So Sad About Gloria
Sept 22: (11:30) The Human Duplicators
Sept 29: (11:30) Night of the Zombies
Oct 6: (12:00) Capture of Bigfoot
Oct 13: (11:30) Frankenstein's Castle of Freaks
Oct 20: (11:30) Inn of the Damned
Oct 27: (11:30) Attack of the Killer Tomatoes

-from here onwards, Jim Cook was back to host the double feature format-

Nov 17: (11:30) Gamera Vs. Monster X / (1:00) Assignment Terror
Nov 24: (11:30) War of the Monsters / (1:00) Graveyard of Horror
Dec 1: (11:30) Frankenstein Conquers the World (1:00) And Now the Screaming Starts
Dec 8: (11:30) Reptilicus (1:00) The Conqueror Worm
Dec 15: (11:30) Destroy All Monsters / (1:00) The Raven
Dec 22: (11:30) Yog, Monster from Space / (1:00) War Gods of the Deep
Dec 29: (11:30) The Magic Serpent (1:00) Goliath Vs. The Vampires

-1985-

Jan 5: (11:30) Journey to the Seventh Planet / (1:00) Track of the Vampire
Jan 12: (11:30) Doomsday Machine (1:00) A Bucket of Blood
Jan 19: (11:30) The Eye Creatures / (1:00) The Amazing Transparent Man
Jan 26: (11:30) The Angry Red Planet
Feb 2: (11:30) Godzilla Vs. The Smog Monster
Feb 9: (11:30) Attack of the Mushroom People
Feb 16: (11:30) Return of the Giant Monsters
Mar 2: (11:30) The Crimson Cult
Mar 9: (11:30) Frankenstein's Bloody Terror
Mar 16: (11:30) Baron Blood
Mar 23: (11:30) The Oblong Box
Mar 30: (11:30) Tales of Terror

-from here, the schedule moved to Friday nights, by Jim's own admission, for ratings!-

Apr 5: (11:30) The Terror / (1:00) Equinox
Apr 12: (11:30) Tomb of Ligeia  / (1:00) Dementia 13
Apr 19: (11:30) Circus of Fear / (1:30) Black Sunday
Apr 26: (12:00) Night of the Witches / (1:30) The Brain That Wouldn't Die
May 3: (12:00) The House That Dripped Blood
May 10: (12:00) The Pit and the Pendulum / (1:30) Attack of the Puppet People
May 17: (12:00) Return of the Giant Majin
May 24: (12:00) The Incredible Two Headed Transplant
May 31: (12:00) Masque of the Red Death / (1:30) Maneater of Hydra
June 7: (12:00) Planet of Blood
June 14: (12:30) Return of the Giant Monsters / (2:30) Tales of Terror
June 21: (12:00) Attack of the Mushroom People
June 28: (12:00) Baron Blood / (1:50) Circus of Fear