Oh, Cindy, see?

Lest anyone think the post below refers to Cindy Sheehan's arrest last evening, I'd just like to clarify that I originally confirmed her shark-jumping clownhood because she said she is contemplating a run for Senator, not because she was hauled off by Capitol security for a silent protest.

Although I'm sympathetic with her on the arrest issue, and I support her original desire to ask a single question to Mr. Personal Responsibility President, I still think she's nuts for talking Senate bid. (Look who's applauding her stated political intentions, for one thing.)


FMFM: Yung Wu's Shore Leave, which I'm hearing for the first time in almost fifteen years. Yung Wu was essentially the Feelies, although percussionist Dave Weckerman stepped out in front to sing. Shore Leave finds the Feelies somewhere between their strummier Good Earth and janglier Only Life sounds, with Weckerman's guileless vocals on top. The band seems to have spent a reasonable amount of time on the arrangements, and the playing is spirited. I wonder what Weckerman's going on about sometimes, but it seems like it's worth the time to find out. And it's got "Powderfinger," too.

I seem to remember hearing that Weckerman was autistic; I recall having a very strange conversation with him after a 1990 show in Baltimore. He delivered a very memorable performance that night on "Everybody's Got Something To Hide Except Me & My Monkey." Obligated to make a distinctive percussion sound by smacking a horizontal steel bar at an exceptionally high rate of speed throughout the duration of the song, Weckerman managed to break one of the cables suspending the bar, so that it hung vertically in the air. Weckerman responded to the challenge by contorting his body sideways, down on his knees, in order to continue drumming on it. It was quite a sight.

It's an appealing record. The great lost Feelies album! (Or, maybe, that'd be the Trypes' The Explorers Hold -- another one!)

Heads-up: This guy has an mp3 available. Oh, and it looks like the AMG has the wrong rhythm section listed in their Yung Wu bio; the record jacket says it's Sauter and Demeski, not the brothers DeNunzio.

[UPDATE: I don't think Weckerman's autistic after all. I don't know where I got that idea. He is, however, described in this interview as "an animated conversationalist, humorously graphic in his descriptions, and a touch hard of hearing," as well as the most charismatic member of the band.]