Thursday, September 06, 2007

ROUNDHOUSE ROUNDUP: CONTRIBUTIONS & CONTRACTS

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
September 6, 2007


Supporters of Attorney General Gary King are hosting a fundraiser next week to help King pay off some of his $430,000 debt from the 2006 campaign. For a suggested $1,000 contribution, those attending will get a Mexican buffet, mariachi music and a chance to meet lawyers who recently won a contract to perform legal work for the AG’s office.

Two of the co-hosts of the Tuesday event at the Albuquerque Country Club, Turner and Margaret Branch, are members of the Branch Law Firm of Albuquerque, which recently won a contract through King’s office for a case involving unpaid royalties to the state Land Office.

The Branch firm also is working with another firm through another AG’s contract on a securities fraud case, King confirmed. That contract was issued in 2004, three years before King took office.

Under the terms of both contracts, the law firm gets a percentage of any money the state is awarded. King said Wednesday the percentage is somewhere in the 12 to 16 percent range in each contract.

It seems lately these kind of stories are becoming more frequent. The news of this fundraiser comes on the heels of the news that Santa Fe businessman Gerald Peters hosted a fundraiser in Wyoming for Gov. Bill Richardson, while a Peters business was negotiating with the state over a contract to build a new Department of Transportation headquarters in Santa Fe. Richardson’s office announced last week the state would rebid the DOT project.

King on Wednesday told me he didn’t see any impropriety or even appearance of impropriety with having the Branches co-host a fundraising event for him.

“Turner has been a friend of my family’s for years,” King said of the former Republican legislator. “I don’t see why he should be precluded as a supporter because he has contracts.”

Previous contributions: The Branches last year contributed a total of $7,838 to King’s campaign, according to Followthemoney.org, the online database of the Institute of Money in State Politics. However, they also contributed $5,500 to one of King’s primary opponents, lawyer Geno Zamora.

The Branches also contributed to other state candidates, including $23,300 to Gov. Bill Richardson and $15,000 to State Land Commissioner Pat Lyons.

This isn’t the first time the Branch firm’s name has come up regarding state contracts, campaign contributions and the Attorney General’s Office. In 2002, then Attorney General Patricia Madrid was criticized for awarding a contract to the firm after receiving tens of thousands of dollars in contributions from the Branches.

King on Wednesday noted he supports doing away with the current campaign finance system and going to a publicly funded system.

“But this is the system we have now, and the law doesn’t prohibit this,” King added. He said he didn’t take any contributions from any contractor during a bidding process — which would be prohibited under state law.

The other co-hosts: The other couple whose name appears on the invitation to the King fundraiser are Ambassador Ed Romero and his wife, Tanna.

King said he worked for Ed Romero — also known as a longtime supporter of Richardson — between 1990 and 1998.

Viva la Fiesta!: If you need to go to a state office Friday afternoon, good luck.
As has been the case for the better part of who knows how many decades, state employees are allowed to take half a day off to enjoy the Santa Fe Fiesta.

“In recognition of upcoming fall season events here in New Mexico, Governor Richardson has authorized four hours of administrative leave for executive branch state employees to participate in local community events,” Richardson spokeswoman Caitlin Kelleher said Wednesday.
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Employees don’t have to take this Friday off, however. They can use the time anytime between Friday and Oct. 14, Kelleher said. That way, they could choose to go to the state fair or the balloon fiesta in Albuquerque or the Whole Enchilada Festival in Las Cruces.

So how much will this whole enchilada cost taxpayers?

According to state personnel statistics, classified state employees make an average salary of $40,233. That translates to about $77.12 for four hours. Multiply that by 19,402 classified employees in the state and you get nearly $1.5 million.

That seems like a lot, but it still isn’t as much as the $2 million figure used in the 1990s by Gov. Gary Johnson’s administration, which suspended the half-day-off practice for several years.

Besides, if state employees spend a lot of cash on Navajo tacos, burritos, corn on the cob and funnel cakes at these events during their four-hour break — and all those vendors pay their taxes — the state just might break even.

Tuesday, September 04, 2007

All OVER THE SCHMAP

Three of my photos on FLICKR recently have been chosen for Schmap, an online travel guide.
BATTER'S UP!
Two of them are in the section on Isotopes Park in Albuquerque. ( CLICK HERE, then click the Isotopes Park section. Click the arrows by the photo slideshow and you'll eventually come across mine.)


There's also a photo I took in the Hard Rock Cafe in Denver last year. (CLICK HERE, same drill as above. Look for The Monkees' toy guitar display.)



DID THE MONKEES REALLY PLAY THIS GUITAR?

Monday, September 03, 2007

2007 THIRSTY EAR FESTIVAL SUNDAY

TAKE A BOW

CLICK HERE TO SEE MY FESTIVAL PHOTOS

This little festival keeps getting better and better, and I've been to every one. Sunday was even better than Saturday (for one thing there wasn't any significant rain.)

I got to the Eaves Ranch a little late Sunday. Richard Johnson had already started his set.
RICHARD JOHNSTON: ONE MAN BAND
I'd heard his name through the years, but until yesterday, I didn't even realize that he is a bona fide grungy one-man blues band, in the John Schooley/Scott H. Biram/Bob Logg school.

The man from Memphis plays drums using foot pedals (sometimes bashing the cymbals with his hand, and plays slide guitar as well as a homemade stringed instrument fashioned from two broom handles, a cigar box and a radiator clamp.

Johnston specializes in the Hill Country blues of R.L. Burnside, Junior Kimbrough and Jessie Mae Hemphill, though he confessed to loving the hillbilly blues of Hank Williams -- and I'd swear I could hear a little Roger Miller in him too. Johnston was just a whole lot of fun.

JERRY FAIRES RECITES HIS POEMS
After Johnston's set a friend asked me if I'd ever heard of the cowboy poet Jerry Faires. I told him I've known Jerry for more than 25 years, but I never knew him to be a "cowboy poet."

Well, Hell! Seeing Jerry's solo performance in the Eaves Ranch hotel made me realize that Jerry has talents I never knew he had. He sang some songs but in between he recited original poems, amusing tales of aged old honky tonkers, cowboys trying to figure out health-food fads, etc.

Jerry says he doesn't call what he does "cowboy poetry," but it's close to that art form in spirit at least. He's funny, poignant and always entertaining. And, oh yeah, I still love his songs.

FLATLAND ROCK The Flatlanders was the act that excited me the most in this year's Thirsty Ear lineup. I've seen them play a couple of times at South by Southwest in Austin, but both times they've played in Santa Fe as a group in recent years I've been out of town.

I knew they'd be great -- how could Joe Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Butch Hancock not be great? But on Sunday The Flatlanders were incredible. These guys rocked! (Sorry I didn't catch the name of the lead guitarist. Lots of people were commenting on how much he added to the group.) Their version of Townes Van Zandt's "White Freight Liner Blues" was breathtaking, the three singers swapping verses. But their take on "Dallas" Sunday has to be the best version of that tune ever performed in human history. (Jimmie Dale wrote it, Ely's version is the best known, but the first time I heard this song was at a Butch show at Club West in the early '80s.)

COREY HARRIS
Somehow Corey Harris' set just didn't click with me Sunday. Maybe it was because his set was mainly Caribbean-style music instead of the blues that made us love him in the first place. Or maybe it was because The Flatlanders set was so high-energy.

For me it probably was the former. I'm not a blues Nazi or anything and I sure don't mind artists experimenting with new sounds. I like Corey's music and have several of his albums. It's cool how he finds common ground between Mississippi blues and other African based music, such as reggae.

But somehow Sunday he just didn't seem to have the fire.

BEAUSOLEIL
Michael Doucet and his merry band of Cajuns was a fitting way to close the festival.

Two years ago BeauSoleil played Thirsty Ear just days after Hurricane Katrina. (Doucet told the audience that it was actually Hurricane Rita, which came after Katrina in 2005 that damaged their homes in Southewestern Louisiana).

So this year's set understandably wasn't quite as urgent as the last time they were here. But it still was a blast.

And so was the Thirsty Ear Festival. On a technical note I want to personally thank Koster and crew for putting in some lights in the parking area. That really helped. And I want to publically thank Koster's mom for helping me with a heavy ice chest Saturday morning.

Now if they only bring back a BBQ vendor next year, (and find a way for it not to rain!) it'll be perfect.

ROGER & CHIPPER
Probably due to exhaustion yesterday I forgot to mention the fine bouzouki set by Chipper Thompson and Roger Landis in the hotel Saturday. I'm a huge Chipper fan. I hope to see his full band on stage next year. That was one of the surprise highlights of last year's festival.


Finally, here's little music review I found written on a port-a-potty wall. Who needs a blog when you got restroom walls?

THE WRITING'S ON THE WALL

UPDATE: (Tuesday afternoon) My old neighbor Jimmy Lee Hanaford wrote to inform me that The Flatlanders' excellent guitarist is one Robbie Gjersoe who also has played with Robbie Fulks. Thanks, Jimmy!

Sunday, September 02, 2007

TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST

Most of you probably figured out by the Thirsty Ear post below that I wasn't doing my radio shows this weekend. Tom Adler subbed for me Friday on The Santa Fe Opry. For Terrell's Sound World, I pre-recorded a show through the magic of computers.

Here's the playlist, (coming more than 30 minutes early.)

I'll post my wrap-up of the Thirsty Ear Festival probab ly late morning Monday. Right now, suffice it to say that Sunday, if anything, was even better than Saturday.


Sunday, September 2, 2007
KSFR, Santa Fe, N.M.
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell

email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org

Now Simulcasting 90.7 FM, and out new, stronger signal, 101.1 FM

OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
The W.A.N.D. by the Flaming Lips
Earthquake by The 13th Floor Elevators
The Sky is a Poisonouse Garden by Concrete Blonde
Killing Me by Dead Moon
Justine Allright by Jon Spencer with The Sadies
The Orange Monster by The Gluey Brothers
Ms. Pinky by Frank Zappa
Speed the Tractor by 3 Mustaphas 3

Loose by Buick MacKane
Carry Stress in the Jaw by Mr. Bungle
Feet Music by John Zorn
Hypno Tease by James Chance
Sad Little Bug by April March

Lost in Laos by Dengue Fever
Super Taranta by Gogol Bordello
God Save the Queen by Opium Jukebox
Jatne by Kult
Menyeckse by Atomic Bomb Zigoto

One Better by Les Claypool
I've Been Watching You (Move Your Sexy Body) by Paliament
Let's Stay Together by Al Green
Stick to the Plan by Graham Parker
Don't Drive Me Away by The Staples Singers
CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis

2007 THIRSTY EAR FESTIVAL SATURDAY

THIRSTY EAR FESTIVAL 2007
Actually it's Sunday. I was too exhausted to write anything last night, especially after processing my photos.

Speaking of those pictures, I hope you people appreciate 'em. My right ear is still ringing from standing too close to the amps trying to get decent angles. The sacrifices I make for this blog!

It's no secret how much I love this festival. Hard to believe it's been going on since 1999 (except for one year ). Along with Fiesta, it's become my end of summer ritual. There's friends and acquaintances I see at Thirsty Ear that I never see any other time or place (which might just prove what a relative hermit I'm becoming in my middle age).

There's also a lot of music. Friday night, as has been the case with the festival in recent years, is basically a night for local musicians. I made it to the Eaves Ranch Friday in time to catch Michael Hearne' s South by Southwest (who did a fine version of Eliza Gilkyson's cool Elvis song, "Tennessee Roads") and local blues wunderkind Ryan McGarvey.
TODD SNIDER
Saturday was an especially fine day of music, from the opening act on.

Songwriter Todd Snider opened Saturday's festival. It was just the man and his guitar and he reminded me of a younger John Prine. (Snider actually recorded a few albums on Prine's Oh Boy label these days.)

He didn't perform his song that was a kind-of local hit about 15 years ago, ("Alright Guy"), but he did his song about D.B. Cooper , his talking blues about "Louie Louie" and Marilyn Manson ("The Ballad of The Kingsmen"), one called "Conservative Christian, Right Wing, Republican, Straight, White, American Males," and a weird little ditty called "Enjoy Yourself," which he said comes from a Doris Day record that his parents used to dance around the kitchen to.

GUY DAVIS Acoustic bluesman Guy Davis was next on the main stage, also doing a solo set. He's played Thirsty Ear at least once before and as always he was a delight. Davis, son of actors Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee, has a wonderful gravel-throat voice that makes him sound like a melodic Froggy the Gremlin. He plays guitar, banjo and harmonica. My favorite song he did Saturday was the double-entendre laden "Chocolate Man."

I later saw Guy roaming around the festival grounds and interrupted him as he was eating a Roque's carnita.


BE GOOD TANYAS with the FLOWERSI've had a turnabout with the next act, The Be Good Tanyas. When they played the festival last year, I was frankly unimpressed. I didn't even blog about them. But a few weeks ago I heard a recording of a few songs of that very performance on Southwest Stages (which airs on KSFR just before the Santa Fe Opry on Friday nights.) It sounded great. I guess I just wasn't in the mood last last year. They do play a brand of soft girlie folk, so I do have to be in the mood, but there's plenty of dark edges in their music.

They did a good set yesterday, even though one of the Tanyas (Tonya Harding I believe) was missing.

Joe Louis Walker
Acoustic time was over when blues guitar stud Joe Louis Walker took the stage. The crowd was ready to rock and so was Walker and his excellent band.

Basically, Walker does the basics. He plays good, steady blues without a lot of cheap flash and dazzle. He's not trying to be the next Hendrix, he just plays electric blues in a way that made us love the blues in the first place.

Did I mention his excellent band? Especially impressive was his keyboard player (whose name I didn't get). We actually were lucky to get to see Walker yesterday. He missed his plane Saturday morning but was able to make it to Santa Fe without significant delay. Maybe the brief rain storm in the afternoon was a stalling tactic.

ROBERT EARL KEEN
When Robert Earl Keen's band started playing, the band launched into a mellow, lopping groove with a guitar part that started sounding more and more familiar. It took me a second, but I realized they were playing the intro to The Grateful Dead's "China Cat Sunflower." But then Earl started singing his own song, "Dreadful Selfish Crime."

Keen did a strong set including some of his best-known songs including "Gringo Honeymoon" and, of course, "The Road Goes On Forever." However he sounded hurried singing that song, which was his encore, as if he were late to an appointment. My only other complaint was that, unlike last time I saw REK, Terry Allen didn't join him on stage. Keen did acknowledge Allen as the songwriter though.

ROSIE LEDET & THE ZYDECO PLAYBOYS
But the real disappointment was Rosie LeDet & The Zydeco Playboys. Not the band. They started off rocking. But right when they started, so did the rain. And it didn't let up. When the thunder getting as loud as the drums, Rosie and band decided, wisely, to play it safe.

Let's pray the weather holds up today. The Flatlanders, Beausoleil and others are on deck.

Come say hi to me at the KSFR booth.

TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST

  Sunday, March 24, 2024 KSFR, Santa Fe, NM, 101.1 FM  Webcasting! 10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time Host: Steve Terrell E...