Back to school

A story that is at once remarkable and ordinary.

"After graduation, I'll be able to make a better commitment to the band," he says.


FMFM: The Band's Stage Fright, which somehow I had never heard in its entirety until recently. I think it's because of Greil Marcus. (Bastard!) Maybe Stage Fright may not quite rank with The Band's best moments on its first two albums, but it's still a remarkable effort. I could never figure out why "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down," from The Band, made Greil Marcus all excited anyway, although I love his line about how Joan Baez turned Robert E. Lee into a boat. (Yes, she did.)

My Stage Fright arrived in a haul of $1 records purchased on the street one Saturday morning about a month ago. Some guy on Haight was unloading hundreds (if not thousands) of LPs for way less than they were worth.

"What, are you moving or something?" I asked him.

He shook his head and looked at the ground. "No," he said quietly. "I just want them out of my life." I can relate, man, I can.