Lynn M. Dixon's Blog, page 78

Angie Bofill: A Musical Journey

 

My friend Kay reminded me of a music review I had written many years ago on Angie Bofill for an Atlanta magazine.  Well, I was moved to look her up and see that she unfortunately has suffered two major strokes in the past years.

So, I decided to dedicate this blog post to Ms. Angie Bofill and hope that she continues to improve in health and spirit.  Her music touched me deeply as she sings about the affairs of the heart.

I feel that a reawakening of her music is something that would benefit us all.  Also, I would love for the younger listeners and musicians to become aware of this great sultry singer.

We too often wait until too long  to celebrate our artists, so while this fantastic singer is rebounding, I want to say kudos to Angie Bofill. Thank goodness we now have U-Tube and I was able to go and listen to a few of her songs which I think were on her album called “Angel of the Night.”  I will cover four of her songs and this will hopefully send you to do a search on U-Tube to take a listen.

The first soulful cry can be heard in her song, “I Try.”  In this song, she seems to feel that she cannot give her mate what he wants or that he is being unnecessarily harsh to this tender soul.    One line goes, “Can’t you see that you are hurting me and I want this pain to stop?” 

She further attests to her love when she says, “You know that I tried to be with you.  You know that I wanted to see you through.  You know I needed to make you mine.  It was only a matter of time.”

A second cut is called “This Time I’ll Be Sweeter.”  Again she seems to be trying to reassure her mate that she will not make any mistakes. “I won’t mess around.  I won’t let you down.  Have faith in me.” 

It sounds as if this relationship is being restarted and they are reconnecting.  “Say you will be mine”.  She reassures him that “this time she will be sweeter and that their love will run deeper.”    She ends with asking for another chance at it and is hoping that he will “have faith in her.”

The third cut is “Tonight I Give In.”  She seems to contemplate whether she should give in to this new affair.  “You are everything I ever dreamed would come to me.  Sometimes is tearing me apart and it feels just fine.”  She  sounds as if she may let her guards down.

The last song I will cover is called “I’m on Your Side.”  The introductory musical chords are outstanding and Angie Bofill slowing comes in starting off,  In the game of love…happiness is so hard to find.”

She reassures her mate that she will be there for him when times get rough.  She seems to be a real friend who will be there when no one else is there.  “I can save you.  I won’t break your heart.”

I had not listened to these songs in many years, but her subject matter is timeless because there are always couples out there trying to figure it out. This is a soulful singer that all music lovers should check out.

I listened to her as I wrote this piece and it was a pleasant journey back down memory lane.   I would strongly suggest you go to U-Tube and listen to the soulful cries of Ms. Angela Bofill. Send her shout of love and give yourself hug by listening to this beautiful artist!

 

Lynn                                                                                                                                         August 8, 2014

 

 

An Actor’s Life: A Short Story

My mother loved the phrase, “Justice rides a slow horse, but it always overtakes.” She shared this line with me during some trying times and I have held on to it.  I decided to look it up and found that it was penned by a country singer named Kinky Friedman.

It truly applies to a short story that I recently read called “An Actor’s Life,” by Duncan Whitehead.  The story ends with a clever twist.  Terry Sparkes, an aspiring actor, tells a lie to another actor to beat him out of an acting role.  The man, Sir Michael Brookes, seems to believe Terry Sparks and moves on into other roles.

As fate would have it, Sir Michael Brookes, the deceived one, is about to receive his sixth Oscar while Terry Sparkes has had a series of setbacks.  His success has been short-lived and he now lives in a dingy apartment and  is snorting drugs when the Oscars is about to be televised.  His life has been unhappy and filled with sham and drudgery.

Whitehead’s “An Actor’s Life” reminds me of the writings of O. Henry.  Both writers use the technique of storytelling through short stories which have been described as a “slice of life.” These writers have a short time to captivate the reader and leave them with something to think about afterwards.  According to Wikipedia, O, Henry  was an American writer whose real name was William Sydney Porter.  He was known for his” wit, word play, warm characterization and clever twist.”

Duncan Whitehead’s masterful techniques succeed in all of these areas in a few words. The two main characters are round and clearly felt by the reader. He even finds time to show how some of Terry Sparkes’ coworkers’ lives end in tragedy as well.

Justice truly rides in slowly in this short story.  Most would think that Sir Michael Brookes was so engrossed in his success and fame that he did not remember Sparkes’ slight and betrayal.  But the sharp and surprising turn of events on the last page let the reader see that he was never fooled.

You will have to read ‘An Actor’s Life” to see what happens on the final page.  I believe I got it online either free or for $.99.  This proves that sometimes ‘less is more.”

Can you think of a time when you saw justice finally overtake?

 

Lynn                                                                                                    August 6, 2014

The Godfather of Soul

I just saw the new James Brown movie called “Get on Up.” So many thoughts. First the young actor Chadwick Boseman is astounding! As one who has lived in that era, and reliving it through the movie of James Brown, I was highly moved with emotion. I came home from the theatre and my fingers started moving across the keyboard. Sometimes, I write in longhand, but I was too excited to try to draw out the letters, so for this piece, I chose to create it on the computer. This young brotha, Boseman, captured the essence of the majestic James Brown.

I had taken our 3rd and 4th graders to see him when he played Jackie Robinson in the movie, 42 last year. He was great in that movie, but this movie, directed by Mississippian Tate Taylor, required him to stretch his skills even further. He had James Brown’s voice, his dance moves, splits and was just so convincing in this biopic.

Mick Jagger is also one of the producers of this movie and he did brush shoulders with James Brown. He even borrowed some of his moves as many performers have that came after Mr. Brown. Michael Jackson always gave huge credit to James Brown for inspiring him in all that he accomplished and was visibly shaken at his death. It is said that he sat mortified for hours at Brown’s funeral and almost had to be nudged from his stone-like state.

This movie was done in a very creative fashion where it went back and forth through time periods from the life of James Brown. His childhood in the backwoods of Augusta, Georgia was extremely rough and in the midst of immense poverty.  Racism was quite evident and as a boy, he even takes a pair of shoes off the feet of a hanging man. In another instance, he is given 13 years in jail for stealing a man’s suit.

But help comes in many forms and in many faces as he is assisted to make his mark on the world. If art is truly borne out of pain, his life depicts this as he is being shaped by hard circumstances. He sees the dissension between his parents and he sees adults at their worse. He and other boys are used in a casino royale type of arena as they have to fight to entertain some wealthy whites for at party.

James finds  the courage to make something of himself but his inner rage is never too far from erupting. He proved to be a wise businessman and Dan Aykroyd plays his manager whom he trusts as they become allies. Great stars in this movie give it further credence. Viola Davis plays his mother and tells him that he has a spirit in him but is unable to be the type of mother he really needs. Yet, his Aunt Honey, played by Octavia Spenser gives him a pep talk that probably sustained him through life when she tells him that he is indeed a special child. Jamarion Scott, who plays Young James, is also outstanding and hopefully will be recognized for his brave talent. Jill Scott added to the authenticity of the movie as one of James Brown’s wives.

Chadwick Boseman becomes so convincing in his role as James Brown that by the end of the movie, you feel that it is him. Of course, as he gets older, his problems become greater as Little Richard had warned him. There is less laughter and playfulness and more of the serious peeks into his deeply troubled and hurt soul. When clips are shown of the real James Brown at the end of the movie, you can barely see a difference between the real Brown and Boseman.

This movie was basically filmed in Natchez and Jackson, Mississippi. The concerts were filmed at the Mississippi Coliseum in Jackson, Mississippi.  There is so much history and this is a truly American film.

As a Chicago young adult in the partying days, a party was not a party unless there was James Brown music. I remember traveling through ice and snow to get to a house party in the cold, but when someone put on a seven or ten-minute James Brown record, everybody danced until they were dripping sweat. After the party, we would go and get some rib tips. In Chicago, a  south side party was not complete without some JB, as we called it, and some BBQ rib tips before returning to the parental home.

Most people think of party music when they think of James Brown but he sang slower songs such as ‘Try Me,’ ‘This is a Man’s World’ or ‘Please, Please, Please.’ This is when you can really hear his soul. Most of the movie reviews start off by calling it “an incredible life story of the Godfather Soul.”

This is just the tip of the iceberg and this is a movie that I definitely plan to see again to relish and savor every moment. So much substance here. Also, I can say that I saw Mr. Brown when we took a group of kids to a concert one summer in the mid-70’s. He was not moving as fast, but he was there and I was there.

In closing, this very special and sainted man passed on the most precious day of the year, Christmas Day of 2006. I recall he went out like a low, smooth flicker leaving us with  untouchable music which he defined as funk. It will last as long as we do.

Lynn                                                                                                                                                  August 4, 2014

Wisdom from the Sages !

Today is my grandmother’s birthday.  Actually, she was my mother’s stepmother, but she was the only grandmother that I ever had.  Both of my parents lost their birth mothers at an early age.  So, this woman, Corrie Cummings Johnson, graciously stepped in and married my maternal grandfather, Chester A. Johnson and helped him raise his three motherless children. I called her, “Mother.” We had a special bond and we lived in her house for a brief time as children.

As a child, I attended kindergarten for a short time which was run by a Ms. Roby.  I recall a feeling of security at her house and I specifically remember a flat red pencil that I had during that time.  We had come down from Detroit and she opened her doors to us. Her Memphis home was not that large but it seemed to be at the time as she shared her space and her largeness of heart.

We used to watch her go and pick peaches from the tree in the back yard, understanding our limitations. She would do the picking and we watched.  I also remember her red and pink rose bushes that aligned the driveway.

Her living room walls were lined with shelves  of books  and there was  an ever-ready pitcher of iced tea  in the refrigerator to cool us during the hot summer months. At dinner, she had  very thin sliced tomatoes  to go along with whatever else she had cooked.  Surely they came from her garden in the back yard.

Eventually, we left the sunny south as a family unit, but miraculously, Mother and I reconnected many years later as women.  My mom and I returned to Memphis, and thank goodness, Mother was still there in the same family home.  I would go and take her shopping on the weekends, and she would say, “Good, Lynn is coming so I don’t have to worry about pushing the  shopping cart.”  Oh the simple things that can mean so much!

More importantly, we could talk. I could tell her if something was bothering me.  And, though she was many years my senior, she could bare her soul with me as well.  Sometimes, she would call because she was concerned about my mother who was out teaching a late evening class.  So, in order to diffuse her fears, we would stay on the phone until I let her know that Ma had just gotten home. We would laugh and talk for long periods of time and when I signaled that Ma had just come in, I would then give the phone over.  “Me and the Baby been talking and cursing,” she would laugh as she talked with Ma.

That is the way it was with us.  I loved her and she loved me.  All of the other children from my generation called her “Grandmother.”  One cousin walked us to the car one day and she stared at me and asked, “How did you get so close to her?  And how did you get to call her Mother?”  I simply shrugged and let her know through silence that some things simply are.

On one of my thirty- something birthdays, she said, “You still look like a girl.  Don’t ever let anyone else’s evil curl up in your mind.”  Those words have stayed with me and I try to let go of bitterness as soon as I am able to work through what actually occurred.

Often our forebears spew out pearls of wisdom and hopefully we are tucking them away in our memory banks.  We never know when we may need to pull up that file and apply it  while being tested during some rocky situation.  Our elders are our personal sages if we truly listen.

Can you think of some wise words imparted from a loved one that continually help you weather life’s storms?

Lynn                                                                                                                                       August 2, 2014

Gold

July is the color for bright gold,

Gives courage to step out bold.

Displaying one’s internal worth,

Offered by parents at new birth.

Richly sporting that gold all day,

Others may, step back and say.

Wow!

Put on your sunglasses. It’s bright.

Don’t squint. It’s not your sight!

 

July 15, 2014

Lynn

Struggles of the Women Folk: A Critique

On June 28th, I blogged on a writer’s ability to ‘evoke emotions in readers.’ Well, after finishing TM Brown’s Struggles of the Women Folk, I was highly moved. So after clearing it with TM Brown, herself, I have much to say regarding this literary piece.

It touched me deeply and parts of it moved me to tears because it tied into my own life. The main character, Georgie, experiences a series of challenging events which test her endurance. I could distinctly hear Georgie’s voice as she anguishes through the many trials and I will discuss two of them.

She is unable to save her friend Sissy and Georgie feels a sense of helplessness as she watches and listens on the sidelines. It reminded me of my dearly departed friend, Carolyn, who was taunted, teased  and fought by some of our classmates in the 8th grade .  She was bi-racial and had very long hair and the other girls hated her for it. However, she had a heart of gold and we understood each other and could talk about everything.

As with Georgie and Sissy, Carolyn and I were close but I could not save her from the storms of life. I could only be as close as possible and let her know that I was there for her when the seas were raging. It proves that friends can be closer than sisters. These spiritual sisters can later become our protecting angels from afar as Sissy becomes for Georgie.

Later in the Struggles of the Women Folk, Georgie has a child born under unusual circumstances. In the black community these phenomena are not taken lightly and my own southern roots helped me to be aware of these beliefs. In this case, the daughter, Angel will be a seer and considered to be a very special child.

But, when Georgie is duped and Angel is taken from her, I felt for Georgie as she becomes listless and inattentive to her daily needs. Life threw her a curveball that she was unable to catch, but aid and assistance did show up when she felt that she was at the bottom of the well. The cavalry did arrive.

I could go on and on about this work, but I will close by speaking on Brown’s brave use of dialect. Few have pulled it off without losing the reader such as Zora Neale Hurston did in her short story, “Sweat” and in her novel, Their Eyes were Watching God. TM Brown does it masterfully as she again, captures the voice of the women in the back woods and rural parts of Virginia. This is a must- read book for anyone who enjoys good literature!

Traveling

Flying high as eagles soar,

Hoping no rainfall will pour.

Visiting others from all around,
Tourists with bags and kids abound.
A truckload of patience is the key,
As you wait in long lines to go see,
Those places the brochure showed,
As you search for the best mode,
Of transportation, that fills the bill,
Getting there safe to close the deal.
7-25-14

Lynn

Omar Opens Doors for Authors!

Readers:  Please meet Omar Luqmaan Harris- founder of the Author Discovery Daily!  He is a marketing guru, author, entrepreneur, consultant and a book publishing expert.

Hi, Lynn. Thanks again for the opportunity to collaborate with you here. Please see my answers below.

1. How do you gather you information for the Author Discovery Daily?

Well, Lynn, the Authordiscovery daily is a paper.li tool that I use to aggregate all the interesting news happening in the book and author discovery world on twitter on a daily basis. Creating your own daily digest is pretty easy. Go to http://www.paper.li and create an account to get started. I focus on specific keywords and influencers to get my news, so paper.li lets me enter in the influencers I’d like to collect stories from based on their tweets as well as lists of influencers. Then I design the background and sections of my paper and the application does the rest. It’s a great way to guarantee that you are always tweeting something of value to your followers and it nets me a consistent stream of followers, interactions with interested folks, and good conversations.

2.  I see that you have several tabs such as headlines; photos; videos; arts & entertainment; technology and business. If a writer is pressed for time, where would you suggest they zero in to get the most vital information?

The most vital information in the paper is found usually under business and technology which are the tools you need to know as a writer to get discovered by readers online.

3.  Why are you particularly interested in helping authors get discovered?

I’m interested in helping “good” authors get discovered by more readers because the more good work readers find at a variety of price points the better it is for all of us. And also, I have learned a lot from independently publishing 5 books in the past 4 years and I feel I have an obligation to give back just as the indie authors before me so generously gave back to teach me the do’s and don’ts of online promotion and marketing.

4.  How will it benefit you as a marketing guru if more authors are led to your site?

Reputation is the new currency online and the better reputation I have the more people I can reach and help. The more people I reach and help the better the overall image of indies and the better we all do with our respective readerships in terms of sales and engagement.

5. A re you getting the responses you want from writers? Why or why not?

When I first launched authordiscovery.com back in November 2012, the response was relatively timid. But as I began writing more about my unique approach to online book discovery, called the “discovery web”, the better the response I’ve seen. My biggest barrier to larger response is my ability to keep blogging on a regular basis. The more I share the better the response!

Thanks a lot Lynn!

7-23-14

When I Think of Summer 2014

As an educator and school librarian, when I think of summer, I think of freedom.  It is a time where I can take a breather from the busyness of daily stringent routines, schedules, grading, meetings and disciplining of wayward souls.  It is a time to release overall tenseness and a time to truly exhale.

So, summer is a time to let it all go and enjoy the simple pleasures of life.  This could be sitting on a beach in quiet meditation. For me, that would be writing by the water and letting my thoughts flow like the ebb and tide as the waters flap against the rocks.

Or, it could be sitting by a pool watching children run and jump and play in the water, with an ever watchful eye.  Always attentive to make sure the little ones are safe.

Summer!

A place like Chicago has such a short window for summer. It is a time when I get to wear  tank tops or sleeveless blouses which rarely happens in the Windy City.  Those toes get to wiggle free in sandals and the skin gets to breathe after being covered during the other three seasons.  How liberating!

Outside of beaching, writing, hanging by the poolside or being a fashionista, the summer reminds me of  a time gone by when I would drop the top of my convertible Fiat Spider. It was nothing  like cruising up Lake Shore Drive with the wind blowing and good  music blaring.   Now, that is a real summer in Chicago.

But on a more grounded level, summer is  great time to chock down a good reading list. I have already read some interesting books written by my newly found Twitter friends.  I have read Haskins’ Riding the Waves; Poore’s Watery Ways; Smolders’ Ripping the Veil; Golden’s The Invisible Hand; Hill’s Song of the Sea God; Hedges’ Jigsaw Pieces and am now reading Brown’s Struggles of Women Folks which is allowing me to revisit some of my ancestral roots.

Through reading, I have visited Los Angeles, the Netherlands, the Dominican Republic, Tampa and the UK.  I did not have to board a plane to get there.  Oh, the beauty of the printed word!

So, as a librarian, I would say to people of all ages, if you can not get to the beach, write by the water, visit the swimming pool, showcase those new clothes or drop the top on that convertible, then get a new book. Take that vicarious trip and your summer will be filled with adventure!

 

Lynn

7-23-14

 

 

Set it to Music!

I was writing a piece yesterday.  I have found that if I put music on, it sets the tone for the scene. This works for me.  I was dealing with the affairs of the heart so I put on soft love songs and this helped me get in the zone.  If I am writing in my living room, I simply change the cable channel to Music Choice and choose the genre of music that will help my fingers glide across the keyboard.

In another instance, I was writing about a character on the expressway making a long trek, so I put on some light classical music and the instruments playing helped me capture the rhythm of travel.  I try to choose music that is not distracting to the pouring out of my thoughts.  I don’t want to start singing when I should be filling up the page with prolific words. So, yes, music eases my mind as a let it roll out into print.             

Lynn