Monday 2/24
London Fashion Week. Reuters photo by Isabel Infantes. Smile, for heaven’s sake — you’re young, beautiful and probably making a lot of money:
RIP music legend Roberta Flack, 88. Born in rural North Carolina, she grew up in Arlington, Virginia. Adept at classical piano, she was awarded a scholarship at 15 to Howard University. She taught privately and in public schools while providing accompaniment in clubs. Her voice coach suggested she try pop music and soon she was spotted performing in DC and was signed by Atlantic Records. Her debut album, First Take, was not doing well until The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face was featured in Clint Eastwood’s Play Misty for Me (1972). The single and the album shot to #1 on the Billboard Top 100. She earned a Grammy for Record of the Year. I played that disc to death, particularly taken by Tryin’ Times, one of my all-time favorite tracks. That same year she won a Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group or Chorus, Where Is the Love, a duet with Donnie Hathaway that hit #5 on the Hot 100. The following year she won both Record of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female for Killing Me Softly with His Song. In all she was nominated for 14 Grammys, receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020. Her single Feel Like Makin’ Love was #1 in ’74. Another duet with Hathaway, The Closer I Get to You, topped the charts in ’77. Making Love got to #13 in ’81, Tonight, I Celebrate My Love #16 in ’83, Set the Night to Music #6 in ’91. IMDb lists 120 titles of films and TV shows in which her music is featured. A neighbor of John Lennon and Yoko Ono in The Dakota building, she did an album of Beatles’ covers, Let It Be Roberta, in 2012. It was her 15th and final disc. She married once but had no children. She was a big influence in my life. I used Angelitos Negros in my second novel, Adjustments. Thank you, Madam. Here’s a video someone put together in 2020 using Tryin’ Times, which is pretty much a constant in the human condition, a track that still gives me that shakes despite hundreds of listens. Facts from Wiki, photo from Google Images. Roberta Flack — Tryin’ Times (Official Video)
Headline from foxnews.com: “DOGE applauds EPA as $67M in ‘wasteful’ environmental grants are revoked.” Excellent.
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RIP MLB stalwart knuckleballer Eddie Fisher, 88. Born in Shreveport, he had a 15-year career, largely in relief. He pitched for the Giants from ‘59-’61, then hit his stride as a member of the White Sox. In ’65 he was an All-Star and finished the season 15–7, 24 saves, ERA 2.40. He was named the Sporting News Reliever of the Year. He had the great fortune of being traded to Baltimore in June of ’66, solidifying their bullpen, going 5–3, 13 saves, 2.64 ERA. He enjoyed a World Championship, although he did not appear in the Fall Classic. He also pitched for Cleveland, California, the White Sox again and St. Louis. Overall, he 85–70, had 82 saves and a 3.41 ERA. Well done, Sir. Facts from Wiki, photo from GI:
Just can’t get enough of the Blake Lively-Justin Baldoni feud — not! Stop already.
Gorgeous preview of Spring, perfect for curbside business. My thanks to Marty, NYPD retired, who donated four books, and to the gentleman who delivered five; and to the one who overcompensated me for a Russian-English Medical Dictionary; and to Herbie, who bought The Dutch House by Ann Patchett and The Escape Artist: The Man Who Broke Out of Auschwitz to Warn the World by Jonathan Freedland; and to the woman who purchased Holistic Guide for a Healthy Dog by Wendy Volhard & Kerry Brown D.V.M., and a pictorial titled Ice.
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