Quote of the Day- Fela Kuti (Late Nigerian Afrobeat Star)

Today's quote featuring 32 people, alive or dead, from the 32 countries in The World Cup is from the late, great Nigerian Afrobeat singer/musican/political activist Fela Kuti (1938-1997).

Kuti was a major influence on David Byrne and his band (the) Talking Heads, especially on their hit song "Once in a Lifetime." In addition the Afro-beat pioneer was a featured artist at the 1986 Amnesty International concert in New York.

He lived both a very tragic and a very interesting life as he was once married to 27 women (!), but he died of AIDS-complications.

Kuti was also a political radical who supported The Black Panther Party and that lead to his own social rebellion in Nigeria. He made the hit 1977 record "Zombie" which was politically focused on the oppressive nature of the Nigerian military.

His music can still be heard frequently today as it was featured on the soundtrack of the critically acclaimed independent film "The Visitor" (2007).

As for the Nigerian soccer team, they had a difficult World Cup with losses to Argentina and Greece, but they tied South Korea 2-2 in their final game.

Here is the quote from Kuti, which is unsurprisingly an overt political one in nature:

"In Nigeria they convict by law, not by the truth."

Bike Films To Be Shown in the Star City

My good friend Jason Garnett will be presenting a series of short films from around the world which were all filmed on bicycles! The event will be held at the Shadowbox Cinema in downtown Roanoke, Va., on Sunday at 2 p.m. The cost per person is five bucks.

When one thinks of films on bikes, the images of "Pee Wee's Big Adventure," "Breaking Away" or perhaps even the Italian neo-realist classic "The Bicycle Thief" comes to mind (not to mention that great sequence with Paul Newman and Robert Redford in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid").

But, these films are actually part of a Portland, Ore., project which has been around for at least a couple of years. It reminds me of the new book by former Talking Heads lead singer David Byrne called "Bicycle Diaries," in which he talked about cities like Istanbul, Manila and San Fransisco where he rode on his bike and then wrote about them!

All films that will shown in Roanoke are both independent and bike-themed.

The Shadowbox Cinema will also be screening the documentary "I Need That Reocrd" about the sad demise of independent record stores on April 22, which may have been the last place you could have found a vinyl 12-inch version of "Burning Down the House!"

For more info, go to shadowboxcinema.com or filmedbybike.org

In Case You Missed It- I Performed Karaoke to....

...........the 1983 smash hit song "Burning Down the House" by Talking Heads at Izzy's Coffee Den in Asheville, NC*, on Monday night.

The reaction of the crowd was well stunned?!

I am an unabashed huge fan of Talking Heads. I recently finished reading the lead singer David Byrne's book "Bicycling Diaries" in which he described how surreal it was to witness a Filipino man karaoking "Burning..." at a bar in Manila. One can only image what he would think of my 'rendition.'

*-Not the actual coffeehouse where I sang karaoke, but if you are a friend of mine I might tell you the actual place!

Yet Another Quote of the Week?!- David Byrne

We just quoted former Talking Heads lead singer David Byrne, who also has an outstanding solo discography, just a few weeks ago. But, since his new book about bicycling in cities like Istanbul, Turkey, is out in bookstores right now and since I am absolutely addicted to his music with Talking Heads, I thought I would quip him once again.

I was able to find the remaining three cds that I needed to get in order to have the complete Talking Heads discography at my disposal (I actually have two of their albums on vinyl!) from CD Alley, a cool independent cd store in Chapel Hill, NC, over the weekend.

His book is assuredly available at my favorite independent book store in North America, but the Boulder Bookstore in Boulder, Col., is quite far from my log cabin in Floyd, Va. (not where I really live, but relatively close).

We quoted the lead singer of another punk band from the late '70s, early '80s ear, the late Joe Strummer, on our sister blog "The Daily Vampire."

A Talking Heads web site in Holland had a fan survey and those of us who absolutely love this band chose their 1980 release "Remain in Light," which features the song "Once in a Lifetime" as the band's best. "Rolling Stone" also named the same album as the fourth best record of the 1980s. Though I personally prefer their 1983 record "Speaking in Tongues," which feautres every would-be-arsonist's favorite anthem "Burnin' Down the House."

Here is the quip from Byrne:

"I couldn't talk to people face to face, so I got on stage and started screaming and squealing and twitching."

Quote of the Week- David Byrne

Today we are quoting David Byrne whose band Talking Heads (no longer together) are in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland.

The museum is celebrating its 25th anniversary.

Byrne is also an artist, photographer, filmmaker and author.

His latest book "Bicycle Diaries," which features an entry on Istanbul, Turkey, where my father's side of the family hails from, is in book stores now.

It has recieved favorable reviews from "Rolling Stone" and "The Seattle Times."

I suppose this quote is really true if you happen to be on a bicycle!:

"I never listen to the radio unless I rent a car."