The Real Father of Rock-n-Roll

This past year I finally had a chance to view the film Nowhere Boy on DVD. I can understand how the 2009 film came out of a necessity to illuminate the childhood and adulthood awakening of John Lennon. There is so much that is still unknown about The Beatles as a whole. There have been so many books written and films made which have illuminated certain aspects of each and every person who were associated with the relatively short-lived dynamic musical group. Their reputation and creative output is legendary and self-evident. No other band member, however-, no matter what the tragedies- had the type of early life (and early death) take on such a tone of a Greek tragedy as that of John Lennon.

 
For those who only know the bare facts of Lennon's life story, this film will impart the truth with raw emotions, eyes-open crushing pathos, grief and passions. Even from the beginning he was an artist yearning to experience what he most wanted to express- almost violently in Lennon's case- through his chosen medium. We are lucky that Lennon's tool became music.

 
Essentially, raised by a well-grounded aunt (which was portrayed exceptionally by Kristin Scott Thomas) but awakened at the dawning of adulthood by a wayward mother(Anne-Marie Duff), his foothold slipped at a crucial time and the truth of his life came close to crushing him. His success as a rock star conveyed a type of salvation borne only to our media superstars and superheroes. It didn't prepare him or his loved ones, for that matter, of his equally grievous exit from life. That story would require another film. In any case, this cinematic effort helps us to understand the triumph of John's contribution to rock music in a way that no writer of a book or magazine could really get across to the fans.

 
Lennon's quotes, which have been repeated until they took on the proportion of a credo which held the genre of rock together, melt under the light of this film. Perhaps it's because his words held the kind of bravado that credos are built upon. His work was so unique, with and without The Beatles, that it has never been surpassed on that premise. Nowhere Boy strips away the mystery that not a single book written about The Beatles ever has and the dialogue gives us a new Lennon to consider,- the vulnerable one.

© December 17, 2011 by Evelyn M. Wallace

All Rights Reserved by Author

Christmas hugs and kisses

(vulnerable ones) from

The Castle Lady

Happy Birthday Cyndi !

This is Cyndi Lauper's 58th birthday today and while I know she doesn't like emphasis being placed on age- I don't like it myself ! - I still wish her all the best because she's absolutely fabulous at any age ! Not everyone can say that about themselves.... sooooo

Happy Birthday,

Birthday Girl !

Just wanna have fun....

The Castle Lady

Jesse Duplantis is coming to Power Invasion on S. Platte ! !

I don't often espouse anything other than music venues or music of one kind or another on this blog but this is a grand and rare exception. It is simply that Jesse Duplantis who is one of the most popular, unique and hilarious ministers of this generation and possibly for generations to come, is coming to Denver to the most dynamic outreach venue in Denver at 455 S. Platte River Drive. He mixes great ministry music with strong, straight biblical preaching with a panache unknown in most evangelical circles.

On television he has a program for many seeking to know more about God, and can be seen on major networks in the U. S. such as ABC, NBC, CBS, TBN, Daystar, and World Harvest Television. He also broadcasts throughout Australia, Central America, South America, the Caribbean, Europe, the United Kingdom, Israel, and the Middle East. As a bestselling author, Jesse Duplantis' books have been translated into many languages and braille which has reached millions with the Word in such a way that his lessons are unforgettable and quotable for those who are involved in outreach as well.

In 1997, he and his wife Cathy who is also a reverend, founded Covenant Church, a local outreach of JDM on the International Headquarters property in Destrehan, Louisiana, a suburb in the New Orleans area. In recognition of his many years of effectively sharing God's message of salvation through Jesus Christ to the world, Jesse was awarded an honorary doctorate of divinity degree from Oral Roberts University in 1999.

Known throughout the world for his joy and his exuberant spirit, Jesse has often been told that he is "the only preacher my husband and kids will listen to." Why is that? It's not just because Jesse is funny, and it's not just because he's genuine but that they also listen because he's captured the true essence of evangelism and revivalism. The anointing of Jesus Christ on an evangelist enables him to reach the so-called unreachable, and rekindle the fire of revival in believers. People listen because they need the anointing of Jesus - and Jesus is the only message that Jesse Duplantis preaches.

For more than twenty-five years now, his mission statement has had a singular vision and goal, - World Evangelism. He has employed every available tool to give each listener an opportunity to know the real Jesus. His ministry teaches an approachable, personable, compassionate Jesus who is full of joy - that's the Jesus that we should all know and love. If you have never heard Jesse Duplantis preach you owe it to yourself to get over here on the 21st of June at 7 p.m. sharp to hear his music and his inimitable style of preaching. You'll never think about God in the same way ever again. Guaranteed !

Bringing you the best of all that's good,

The Castle Lady

Update: What a marvelous time everyone had last night ! I wouldn't have missed it for anything !

You read it here first...

Stryper are back in the news with some big events coming up and recent releases in their original lineup ! That's right ! Tim Gaines is back in the fold and they have planned a big 2011 tour. On the 15th of February they released a new album of secular covers and an all-new original tune titled God. Their new company is Big3 Records and as I mentioned previously in 2010 they are now on I-tunes so you will be able to download their music here shortly.

According to Michael Sweet, the impetus for putting out a covers set was a simple one. "Every Stryper album is pretty serious and pretty bold in the lyrical faith sense of the word. We just wanted to roll our sleeves up, cut loose, and have some fun." When it came time to pick out a listing of tunes to cover, all the band had to do was look back upon their club days. Growing up, before Stryper was even Stryper, we were a cover band. We played Gazzarri's on the (Sunset) Strip for years - we would do originals but also do covers, as well. We always did Priest covers and Maiden covers, all those bands that we grew up on and influenced us."
What fans can expect will run the gamut from the 70s era classic rock of Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Scorpions, Iron Maiden and even Kiss!

"A few things we set out to do on this album was to stay true to the original - we didn't want to disrespect the original versions," explains Michael. "I'm never going to sound like Bruce Dickinson or Ronnie James Dio, nor would I ever try to... and having me sing the song puts our own spin on it. We just all did our own thing and with our own touches and feel - Robert, Tim, Oz, and myself - it has that Stryper feel to it as well."
Big3 Records Chairman Bill Edwards adds, "We are excited to allow Stryper the creative freedom to do what they do best, and take this album to the next level. We are very excited about working with the band and helping make 'The Covering' a widespread success."
To get the word out about the new album Stryper have just started a tour which will comprise four of their own anthems plus four covers from the new album. According to Michael Sweet, "... then we've got a whole slew of other Stryper songs that we've been playing for a long time. So we probably have 20 songs in the set."

Click HERE for the latest confirmed tour dates!

Always with the latest...

The Castle Lady

Are they bragging or complaining ? ; )

I just had to share this with everyone because I find it rather ironic and just a little bit off-putting. It was sent to me by Focus on the Family and is presented here verbatim:

Even if you don't follow pop culture, you've inevitably read or heard of the teen actress Miley Cyrus. Playing the wholesome character "Hannah Montana" on her popular Disney television show of the same name several years ago, Miss Cyrus was catapulted into entertainment's stratosphere. She quickly became a marketer's dream and was earning millions of dollars in TV, music and feature films. In the midst of her rapid ascent, though, she also found herself wrapped up in controversy, from being caught posing for provocative photographs to smoking a bong and taking hallucinogenic drugs.

Just another child actress given too much too soon?

Miss Cyrus, now 18, is the daughter of country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, perhaps best known for his hit, "Achy Break-y Heart."
Ironically, and sadly, that's exactly what Billy Ray is suffering from these days. He told GQ Magazine that he now wishes his daughter never went to Hollywood and found fame and fortune.

I don't know that I can sympathize with this very much, the reason being that he is in the country music business and knowing full well what he was allowing his daughter to do, he obviously didn't prepare her for the pitfalls. If he has successfully navigated the entertainment business well enough that he sees what is going on with his daughter, then he could have also given her real guidance so that her so-called downhill slide wouldn't have even occurred. The details are missing out of Focus on the Family's account and most likely for a good reason. You have to read between the lines and know a bit more about this particular case, obviously, than they do and I happen to know a bit more.

I wrote an entry on this web site back on December 9, 2008 about the merchandising of Billy Ray's daughter and it was all too obvious that they really wanted to clean up in the business. If you read it you'll see that I figured out what an average take on each consumer might be in modest terms and I don't know how she couldn't end up with quite a wad of cash and her promoters, to boot ! I know my entry was basically just a satirical piece of fun more than anything else. However, I do take the marring and scarring of a life a quite serious matter. I didn't see the likes of Billy Ray or his daughter at the Grammys this year and it was probably for this very reason.

Having said that, I think this is just drama queen theatrics designed to garner one more headline in an attempt to keep the limelight on themselves. Sadly, many people in the entertainment business tend to crave negative attention just as much as the positive kind. It explains the antics of Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton ( Happy 30th birthday, dahling ! ), Nicole Ritchie and the like. It's not just sad- it's pathetic.

It's all uphill with

The Castle Lady !

The World's a Stage...

This well-known quote of the English-speaking world has a ring of real truth in the public world which the media focuses on and exploits all too often. After watching the Grammys this year I started thinking about some of the subjects Lady Gaga talked about during her 60 Minutes interview prior to the airing of the awards show and I have come to some startling conclusions about fame. I have held some opinions about how people garner and keep fame without being completely aware of them and now I know I have been very naïve on the subject through my entire life.
First of all, I always have held the belief that you must do something worthwhile and useful in order to attain notoriety. To my way of thinking being notorious is not true notoriety. I'm sure I've been behind the times for more than a decade now but I still feel that way and I don't think I'll ever change my mind. Perhaps entertainers cannot live the type of exemplary lives which would lead an entire young generation down a brighter path. That- plus entertaining the crowds- may be asking a little too much. However, if someone knows the demographics of their fan base and they realize that their audience may be very impressionable then I think each and every parent should be able to expect these entertainers to be sensitive to that fact and curb their proclivities. In other words, if you can't be good then at least be discreet. It may not be gut-level honest but it may save someone from making wrong decisions which are irreversible way too early in life.
Good or bad, music is one of my loves which I cannot do without. I listen to music when I write, dance, go for a walk, drive some place or sit down to eat. I don't really have any musical preference except for one aspect- I have to like it. I don't like everything I hear today on the radio but I have a wide range of interests. I've heard good and bad in every category and genre of music that exists in this modern world. When I hear music on any stage which is off-key or doesn't fit the usual pattern for the genre of its particular occupation I generally change stations or channels- whichever the case may be. A good part of what I heard at the Grammys this year was not to my liking. I think Jeff Beck got gypped out of an award he deserved. I saw Cyndi Lauper there but I didn't get to hear her- talking or singing. Bogus.
George Beverly Shea was a gospel singer for Billy Graham throughout his entire career as an evangelist. This year, among several other recipients, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award. Like them, it was only mentioned in passing in the space of about one minute, at best. Next day my mother told me she waited all night wondering when they were going to give him the award. I had to explain that all the music she loves to hear (mostly classical) was side-stepped or marginalized because of the time involved in handing out so many awards. She didn't buy it. You know what ? Neither do I.
Does anyone out there know what the word Grammys even means? Let me enlighten you. It is a shortened version of the word gramophone which is what a lot of the best and finest music was originally recorded and played on. I guess they had to crank those babies by hand to get them to work but people had a lot of fun dancing to and playing the music they liked on them. Music has been around a long time and in Mozart's day he was the rock-n-roll guy. He was derailed a lot because, for a classical music composer, he really rocked their socks off. You know what I mean ?
There is a lot more to music than pop music and if you explore your options by radio, mp3s or internet music shopping you might find there is a whole wide world of music out there the likes of which you've never heard ! !

Why don't you go on a search right now ?

With love, The Castle Lady

The Legend of Mahalia Jackson

It is said at the time of her passing, in 1972, that Mahalia Jackson- the world's greatest gospel singer- had a larger white following than a black fan base. Whether or not this is true, she is revered the world over for her perfect sound in the jazz and blues based gospel she practically reinvented. Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, was known to have said that Mahalia was her favorite singer. She won three Grammy Awards, one posthumously, with Best Gospel Recording in 1961 for Every Time I Feel the Spirit and the next year for Great Songs of Love and Faith. Her posthumous Grammy came in 1976- four years after her death- for How I Got Over in the category of Gospel Soul Performance. This woman who redefined gospel for musical geniuses like Ramsey Lewis Jr. started out life in New Orleans. She was born on October 26, 1911 and was raised singing in church at Mount Moriah Baptist. Her religious training, both biblical and musical, was strict which means that the training was in hymns and spiritual music which did not carry over into Jazz or Blues. However, one can imagine that she was exposed to those genres and the singers which would have influenced her were most likely Ma Rainey and Bessie Smith. Those singers were probably important influences on her very early in life. By the time her career was well underway she had injected jazz and blues into the passionate spiritual in a way that had never before been achieved. In 1927, at the age of sixteen, she moved to Chicago and worked as a maid and then a nurse, but her love of gospel kept her at her true vocation. Even though Mahalia never sang secular music she was definitely influenced by the black secular music sound which helped her redefine gospel music in Chicago at the time. In 1935, after singing at a funeral, Decca Records talent scouts approached her about recording for them. Her records sold well and by 1937 she moved onto other independent recording labels one of them being Apollo Records. It was a natural progression of success which brought her to association with Thomas Dorsey, whom she recorded and toured with extensively. Their association eventually brought them both international acclaim. Her recording of the song, "I will move on up a little higher", sold more than two million copies. This particular song was one she would extend into as much as twenty-five minutes when singing live ! The recording available today is long at five minutes and 25 seconds. After being recognized in France for her recording excellence she made her first European tour in 1952 and two years later signed with Columbia where she made about thirteen more LPs. These recordings were made with Mitch Miller who used strings and choirs to back her and sold world-wide. This is unprecedented success considering that Mahalia's ambition was never cast outside her sacred music debut. In the beginning, her sound was perceived as rebellious by the more conservative black churches- even the one she grew up singing in. However, her long-time accompanist, Mildred Falls, most likely kept her to a standard which didn't restrict her musicianship and was a support to her early convictions as a gospel singer. One record executive, John Hammond, stated that Mildred was also, "the greatest gospel accompanist that ever lived." Later she appeared in films like Nat King Cole's St. Louis Blues, a big-budget melodrama Imitation of Life and a performance jazz documentary Jazz on a Summer's Day. Even though she was strictly gospel she did share the stage with such jazz greats as Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, eventually helping Ellington record his own sacred music. There is no question that she set the standard that gospel music thrives on today regardless of the racial issue. She helped jazz cross color lines and brought sacred music to an emotional level which has never been achieved in any other genre of music. She once said, "If you don't like it, you're not human." By the 1960s she led the way toward advancing education for the black community and became a businesswoman with a chain of restaurants. She was a strong supporter of the civil rights movement including backing Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. She sang an unforgettable version of Thomas Dorsey's "Take My Hand, Precious Lord" at King's funeral and surprisingly enough, Aretha Franklin sang this very song at Mahalia's own funeral after her passing on January 27, 1972. The first recorded song I heard of Mahalia's was Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho, an upbeat jazz version which showed off a part of her stylistic range. Below is a recommended song list derived from the Columbia CD collection titled, Gospels, Spirituals, and Hymns. It came out in 1991 and I would suggest to start there, if you are not acquainted with her music. If you ever find a live recording of her 1951 performance at Carnegie Hall give me a call. Many pop singers today do over-the-top versions of a true technique employed by Mahalia across genre spectrums. Once you hear her voice you'll know that these were not mere vocal stylings but a truly inspired voice full of passion, sincerity and worship. All else is often just a copy of the original which does not understand the love that propelled her sound and not just of the music but the creator who inspired it all to begin with- our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Ain't nothing like the real thing baby...

All rights reserved by author, Evelyn M. Wallace (May not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission by author.)

The Castle Lady

Discography (in part)

My God is Real August 11, 1958

If I Can Help Somebody September 24, 1963

What a Friend We Have in Jesus August 2 & 3, 1965

You Must Be Born Again November 17, 1959

Elijah Rock (Stockholm, Sweden) April 18, 1961 (Live)

Roll, Jordan, Roll April 5, 1968

Calvary (New York) March 26, 1967

Trouble of the World

from the film Imitation Of Life N.Y. March 27, 1956

Take My Hand, Precious Lord (T.A. Dorsey) N.Y. March 27, 1956

He's Got the Whole World in His Hands

(Newport Jazz Festival w/ Mildred Falls Trio) July 7, 1958

Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen

(Hollywood March 12, 1963)

I'm Going to Live the Life I Sing about in My Song

Newport Jazz Festival August 11, 1958

Search Me Lord (Hollywood) January 31, 1969