Recent Deaths

[Michael Emrys]

 I thought I would start a thread where the passing of notable but possibly little known figures might receive due recognition.

To begin, I noticed that Ken Nordine passed away yesterday. Those of you who are unaware of Nordine have missed something unique and should make an effort to remedy that lack. His Word Jazz recordings and later weekly radio show were consistently among the most original (and let us go ahead and say it: far out) works of their kind available to the public.

Well, what was their kind? For lack of a better word, let's call them musings. Listening to them is about as close as you can get to getting high without resorting to illegal (at that time) substances. They found their audience, an audience that was seldom served anywhere else, unerringly. They were best listened to late at night after the workaday world was safely tucked in its beds, and one could allow one's imagination to freely roam to discover rare gems of insights. So long, Ken, and thanks for dropping by.

Michael

[mjkerner]

Thanks Michael, he was definitely unique. I really enjoyed his Ruby series (on the local PBS radio station in mid-80s), which is how I first heard of him. It used to play Saturday nights at 10:00. With the kids in bed, wife working the late shift at the hospital, I’d listen to it while I painted miniatures. Good memories.