Archive for the ‘Books/Readings’ Category

Autobiography: From the Start

Monday, May 13th, 2013

From superstar to star to wannabe; from semi-celebrity to pseudo-celebrity to the guy who used to be Michael Jordan’s caddy, it seems as though everybody’s got a story to tell. Yes, you wouldn’t believe some of the people who have written their autobiography. And got it published, too. Or who knows? Maybe you would…

These are the opening lines of the autobiography of a pop culture figure. Do you know who is it?

“Florida sticks out like a sore thumb. Long before the 2000 election debacle, anthrax, and endless other anomalies, the Sunshine State jutted out from the mainland like a UFO landing strip, welcoming all aliens into its orange groves and shopping malls with open arms. Being born in Florida carries with it certain responsibilities. Most important, an embracing of both astronaut and outcast, sunshine and storm warnings, Disney characters and drug lords…

The state always seemed like an outpost to me – far removed from the media centers of New York and Hollywood. Except for news coverage of the occasional hurricane, and the arrests of rock icons like Jim Morrison and Janis Joplin, my state was far from the media mainstream. Tamps, my hometown, in particular, was not best known for its nightlife, either. Mick Jagger and Keith Richards memorialized the pursuit of pleasure in the Tampa Bay area in the title of the anthem they wrote there: ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.’”

We’ll reveal the answer on Wednesday…

UPDATE: GO HERE for the answer…

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The Battle of the Books

Wednesday, April 17th, 2013

Battle of the Books @ The Crandall Public Library

Today is your last chance to vote online in the final championship round of the Battle of the Books sponsored by the Crandall Public Library in Glens Falls. The voting deadline is 9pm tonight (Wednesday, April 17).

And just which page-turners are facing off against each other in the final round?

It’s Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy versus “The Bible.”

May the best book win…

Festival Fever: Albany WordFest, 4/14-20/13; Win FREE TICKETS, Too…

Monday, April 15th, 2013

Albany Wordfest 2013

April is National Poetry Month, which means that Albany Poets is presenting their annual Albany Word Fest, which is taking place this week at a variety of venues throughout Albany.

Here’s the round-up of Albany WordFest events around town this week:

TODAY (MONDAY, APRIL 15)
6pm: Youth Open Mic @ Bethlehem Children’s School, Slingerlands. Jill Crammond hosts a special open mic for young poets, writers and spoken word artists in grades 5–12 to share their work.

8pm: Poets Against Fracking @ the Upstate Artists Guild, Albany. A night of poetry and spoken word by Band of Bards, a community of Binghamton area writers, artists and activists who have turned their talents toward helping to preserve their community against the threat of hydraulic fracture gas drilling in New York State and beyond.

TUESDAY (APRIL 16)
7pm: Nitty Gritty Poetry Slam @ Valentine’s Music Hall, Albany. Albany’s poetry slam continues with open mic host Mojavi and slam master Thom Francis at the helm. This edition of NGS will feature the long-awaited Haiku Battle! $5; students $3.

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Be Here Now: Lost Radio Rounders’ Tribute to Robert Frost @ Caffe Lena, 4/7/13

Thursday, April 4th, 2013

In celebration of the 100th anniversary of the publication of Robert Frost’s his book, “A Boy’s Will,” as well as National Poetry month, Tom Lindsay and Michael Eck are mounting a little something different at Caffe Lena in Saratoga Springs at 2pm on Sunday (April 7).

It’s the Lost Radio Rounders’ Robert Frost-themed benefit performance for Caffe Lena, featuring a few songs, a lot of poems and a one-act play, “Death of a Hired Man,” directed by Bob Goepfert. Among the guest performers will be author, environmental educator and Frost fan Anita Sanchez.

Tickets are $15.

March Festival of Women Writers Planning 55 Events in Berkshire County [Berkshire on Stage]

Monday, February 25th, 2013

Women writers of all ages and from many different walks of life will be featured in the Third Annual Berkshire Festival of Women Writers, taking place throughout the month of March, Women’s History Month, at venues all over Berkshire County.

The Festival, sponsored by Bard College at Simon’s Rock with the collaboration of many other organizations, includes the participation of more than 150 women writers, at 55 separate events.

Of course, we are especially interested in the performances and film screenings–a special women-only edition of Made in the Berkshires, with performances by Sally-Jane Heit, Susan Merrill and Joy Spivak; a new show from Alison Larkin, Alison Larkin Live!, at the Unicorn; a Festival /BIFF screening of the new Dutch film Water Children; a special International Women’s Day film screening of Sweet Dreams, featuring local filmmaker Rob Fruchtman and Blue Marble Ice Cream founder Jennifer Dundas; and a screening of sections of the documentary film Half the Sky at the Mahaiwe, with a community conversation on women’s human rights moderated by Caroline Wheeler of Sisters for Peace and Kristen Van Ginhoven of WAM Theater.

Click to read the rest at Berkshire on Stage.

Mystery Writer Vincent Zandri Brings Albany to Life in “The Concrete Pearl”

Monday, January 21st, 2013

Vincent Zandri: The Concrete PearlWith his talk “The New Publishing Model Demystified,” local author Vincent Zandri shares his insight into the new world of contemporary publishing, including eBooks at 7pm on Tuesday (January 22) at the Albany Public Library.

Also as part of his presentation, Zandri will read from his new novel “The Concrete Pearl,” a mystery-thriller about the underbelly of the construction business that’s set right here in the state capital of New York. Along the way, Zandri references Albany Medical Center, Channel 13, Waterford High School, radio station WGY, 677 Prime, The Times Union and more.

Key scenes in the murder mystery are set in such familiar locations as Tess’ Lark Tavern, the Miss Albany Diner, Dott’s Garage and the Thatcher Street Pub.

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Amanda Palmer & Neil Gaiman Return to Bard College

Monday, January 14th, 2013

An Evening With Neil Gaiman & Amanda Palmer

Last September, the husband-and-wife team of Neil Gaiman and Amanda Palmer played something of an oddball doubleheader at Bard College’s Fisher Center in Annandale-On-Hudson. (Would you expect anything less from them?) Read reviews here and here.

The evening started out with a reading of a new, as-yet-unpublished story by award-winning author Gaiman in the Sosnoff Theater, and then as a separate event, Palmer and her band the Grand Theft Orchestra whipped up a pre-tour concert in support of her upcoming album Theatre Is Evil in the center’s black box Theater Two.

At the time, they promised to return. And now they are…

This time, however, they’ll be sharing the same stage at the Sosnoff Theater at 8pm on Saturday, April 6. They’re describing the performance as “an intimate night of spoken word, songs, stories, chats with the audience and more than a few surprises.”

Priced at $25, $30, $35 & $40, tickets are scheduled to go on sale at 10am today (Monday, January 14).

Best of 2012: Tim Livingston

Tuesday, December 18th, 2012

Story by Tim Livingston

ALBUMS:

Ian Hunter: When I'm PresidentIan HunterWhen I’m President
I have been listening to Ian Hunter/Mott the Hoople since I was about 11 years old. He is the only artist that I liked then that I still buy and listen to his new albums now. Reason: His last three records released in the new millennium have been as strong as anything he has ever done. Well written songs and a killer band. 73 years old and still rocking!

Trapper Schoepp & the ShadesRun Engine Run
Young Milwaukee-based roots rockers with all of the goods; the songs, the look, the live show. Destined for greatness! “Tracks” = song of the year!

Alejandro EscovedoBig Station
The third album of the Tony Visconti-produced trilogy and IMO the best. A true rock & roll heart.

Michael Rank and StagKin
Snatches of Pink main-man takes a dark trip through the end of a relationship with a double album steeped in traditional folk and Stones-flavored county-honk, all ending with redemption, hope and flourishes of SOP sonic mayhem.

Black N GoldPet the Lights
Hudson rap prodigy Young Paris takes a stab at rock, by collaborating with some top notch musicians, with very satisfying results.

LIVE SHOWS:

Tommy Stinson’s Benefit for the Tools For Timkatec Program in Haiti @ Club Helsinki, Hudson, 4/10/12.
A tremendous night of entertainment with killer sets performed by Tommy Stinson, Trapper Schoepp & the Shades and Elvis Perkins, all for a great cause.

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Holly & EvanCartoonist John CaldwellShadowlandCaffe LenaJim GaudetAdvertise on Nippertown!Leave Regular Radio BehindJazz AprilArtist Charles HaymesBerkshire On StageArt Night SchenectadyKeep Albany BoringDark Wood Design