THE GOURDS TONITE!

One of my favorite bands, The Gourds from Austin, Texas, will be playing the Santa Fe Brewing Company tonight.

Also on the bill is New Mexico's own Boris & The Saltlicks.

And if you get there at 6 p.m. you can catch a screening of Lexie Shabel's We Like to Drink, We Like to Play Rock 'n' Roll.

It costs $10 in advance (not sure if those are still available) or $15 at the door.

SURPRISE, SURPRISE DENISH RUNNING FOR GUV IN 2010

Here's a link to my profile of Lt. Gov. Diane Denish and her desire to run for governor in 2010. CLICK HERE

I also wrote a sidebar about the history of lieutenant govs running for governor or higher office.

Speaking of which, I just got off the phone with former Lt. Gov. Walter Bradley, who agreed there's great difficulty with a sitting light guv running for governor.

"Whatever baggage the governor has, that's going to be your baggage too, no matter what his accomplishments were," Bradley said.

In his case, Bradley noted, it was Gov. Gary Johnson's call for drug law reform that hurt him in the Republican primary -- even though Bradley didn't back Johnson on this issue.

He also said it's tough to run from that position because after eight years voters often are looking for a change, and the lieutenant governor usually is seen as part of the old administration.

Here's my side bar:

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
January 10, 2007

Lt. Gov. Diane Denish not only wants to be New Mexico’s first female governor, she wants to be the first lieutenant governor to be elected governor.

Although several have tried, no lieutenant governor in the state’s history has succeeded in winning a governor’s race in this state.

In 2002, Walter Bradley, who served in the No. 2 post for eight years under Gov. Gary Johnson, lost the Republican primary to state Rep. John Sanchez.

In 1994, incumbent Democratic Gov. Bruce King was challenged in a bitter primary race by his lieutenant governor, Casey Luna. King won the primary but lost to Johnson in the general election.

Roberto Mondragon, who had served two previous terms under King, ran unsuccessfully for governor that year on the Green Party ticket.

Back in 1978, Lt. Gov. Bob Ferguson, who served under Gov. Jerry Apodaca, ran for governor but lost to King in the primary.

The only lieutenant governors to assume the governor’s chair were Tom Bolack — who took the office after Gov. Ed Mechem stepped down to take a vacant U.S. Senate seat — and the state’s first lieutenant governor, Washington Lindsey, who assumed power after the state’s first governor, Ezequiel C de Baca, died.

The most successful lieutenant governor in terms of achieving higher office was Joseph Montoya, who was elected to four two-year lieutenant governor terms in the 1940s and 1950s. Montoya later was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives and to the U.S. Senate.

Mack Easley, who served under Gov. Jack Campbell in the early 1960s, went on to win a state Senate seat and later was appointed, then elected to the state Supreme Court.

Mike Runnels, who served under Gov. Toney Anaya in the 1980s, was elected district attorney of Cibola, Sandoval and Valencia counties in the 1990s. But he lost two bids for the District 2 congressional seat once held by his father, Harold Runnels.

THIS JUST IN: CEASE-FIRE IN DARFUR

Gov. Bill Richardson's office just sent this press release announcing he's negotiated a cease-fire in Darfur.

But, a word of caution from Associated Press writer Nedra Pickler, who noted that President Al bashir "rebuffed " Richardson's call for United Nations troops in Sudan.

Richardson’s other main objective was to get a cease-fire, and he
claimed accomplishment by issuing a joint press statement with al-Bashir that said both sides in the fight agree to a 60-day cessation of hostilities while they work toward lasting peace. However, many issues were outstanding, including whether al-Bashir would uphold his verbal agreement with Richardson when he has a history of breaking commitments.There is broad skepticism around the world about al-Bashir’s commitment to peace after years of support for local militia attacks on innocent civilians in Darfur. More than 200,000 people have been killed and 2.5 million forced to flee their homes in violence that President Bush has labeled genocide.

Here's the raw release:

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson Gets Commitment for 60-Day Cease-Fire in Darfur Region of Sudan

KHARTOUM, SUDAN – New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson today announced that he has secured a commitment from Sudanese President Omer Hassan Al Bashir to agree to a 60-day cessation of hostilities in the Darfur region to allow for a new political process under the Darfur Peace Agreement and the auspices of the African Union and the United Nations. Governor Richardson also spoke this week with rebel leaders who said they would agree to a cease-fire. If all parties follow through with the cease-fire, the A.U. and the U.N. will convene a Peace Summit on March 15 under the framework of the peace agreement.

Governor Richardson also secured the following commitments from President Al Bashir:

· Agreed not to have the National military aircraft painted in white markings normally reserved for international organizations.

· Agreed that government forces would attempt to improve security conditions in all areas of Darfur with special emphasis on El Geneina, and would provide protection to food and other humanitarian convoys.

· Agreed to expedite procedures for entry visas for all humanitarian aid workers as well as goods. He also agreed to terminate the requirement of exit visas for humanitarian aid workers.

· Agreed to allow and facilitate travel by journalists from all over the world to Darfur.

· Governor Richardson and President Al Bashir reiterated that gender-based violence and such crimes must be condemned and prosecuted regardless of which party or organization was responsible. President Bashir said he would welcome a significant contribution of female members to the AU/UN hybrid operations. In addition the Justice Minister offered analyze and extend existing efforts to support Sudanese women against all gender-based violence.

Joint Press Statement on the conclusion of the visit by Governor Bill Richardson to the Sudan

7th – 10th January 2006

H.E Bill Richardson Governor of New Mexico accompanied by a delegation sponsored by and including members of the Save Darfur Coalition, the leading United States-based Darfur peace advocacy organization, conducted a visit to Sudan to discuss ways to secure peace in the Darfur region of Sudan and the protection of all civilians and other non-combatants. The Governor and the delegation visited EI Fasher and Nayala in Darfur, for meetings with internally displaced persons in Darfur, rebel groups that are signatories to the (DPA) as well as those which are not as of yet, international agencies, the United Nations, and humanitarian aid as well as the Wali of North Darfur and the Deputy Wali of Southern Darfur States and held meetings in Khartoum with H.E President Omer Hassan Al Bashir,Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Lam Akol Ajawin, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mr. Ali Ahmed Karti and a number of high ranking Sudanese officials.

Both sides agreed that ending the conflict in Darfur is Sudan's and the international community’s highest priority. Peace, they agreed, can only come through a political settlement that is joined in by and addresses the needs of all parties, on the basis of the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) of 5 May 2006 reiterating their support for preserving Sudan's territorial integrity and the importance of respect for Sudan's sovereignty.

Both sides agreed that there was a compelling need for a comprehensive cease-fire to launch a political process based on the DPA that would lead to a durable end to the conflict as soon as possible. Both agreed to a 60-day cessation of hostilities by all parties within the framework of the DPA, accompanied by a start in African Union/United Nations diplomatic efforts, within the framework of the DPA, to begin narrowing the gaps between the non-signatories, including government approval of a field commanders' conference attended by the African Union and United Nations. This would be followed at the appropriate moment by an African Union/United Nations – sponsored peace summit, again in the framework of the DPA, no later than 15 March 2007. Simultaneously, both agreed that the UN needed to expedite as quickly as possible the provision of UN personnel agreed in Addis Ababa and further specified in Abuja in November 2006. President Bashir re-affirmed his commitment to continue to facilitate the deployment of UN personnel and equipment consistent with his agreement with the Secretary General of the UN on Phases II and III, including the eventual conclusions of the Tripartite Committee as stipulated in the DPA.

The two sides noted that Governor Richardson had secured a commitment from commanders of the Justice and Equality Movement and of the Non-Signatory Front to participate in a process including a 60-day cease fire agreement within the framework of the DPA. Governor Richardson and Save Darfur Coalition expressed their grave concern to all parties with whom they met about continuing and increasing attacks on civilians and other non-combatants.

They reiterated that gender-based violence and such crimes must be condemned and prosecuted regardless of which party or organization was responsible, noting that Governor Richardson and the Save Darfur Coalition emphasized the need in all their meetings for implementing mechanisms to ensure that "zero tolerance" policies towards gender-based violence be applied in practice, quickly and robustly. Governor Richardson noted with appreciation President Bashir's commitment to welcome a significant contribution of female members to the AU/UN hybrid operations. Both sides expressed their grave concern at allegations of gender ­based violence by United Nations personnel in South Sudan.

Governor Richardson and the delegation also met with the Under-Secretary of Justice, the Rapporteur of the Advisory Council for Human Rights and Dr. Attigatt who presented a briefing on Sudanese Government efforts to institutionalize protections for women. The Governor and the delegation accepted the offer to work with the Ministry to analyze and extend existing efforts to support Sudanese women against all gender-based violence.

President Bashir and Governor Richardson also agreed that more light needs to be shed on the full situation in Darfur. President Bashir agreed to allow and facilitate travel by journalists from all over the world to Darfur.

The two sides underscored the need to disarm all armed groups, including the Janjaweed, pursuant to the provision of the DPA, and further agreed not to have the National military aircraft painted in white markings normally reserved for international organizations.

President Bashir agreed that government forces would attempt to improve security conditions in all areas of Darfur with special emphasis on El Geneina, and would provide protection to food and other humanitarian convoys. They also agreed that humanitarian aid agencies have greatly assisted the Government and people of Sudan by providing much needed emergency and development aid in Darfur and other parts of Sudan. President Bashir agreed to expedite procedures for entry visas for all humanitarian aid workers as well as goods. He also agreed to terminate the requirement of exit visas for humanitarian aid workers. President Bashir noted with satisfaction the strong statements by the Save Darfur Coalition to rebel commanders condemning attacks by their members on humanitarian aid operations and agreed to initiate an ongoing dialogue with the Save Darfur Coalition aimed at ending the violence in Darfur and on achieving a political solution to the crises.

The two sides agreed to apprise African Union Special Envoy Salim Ahmed Salim and United Nations Special Envoy Jan Eliasson of these developments, so that the African Union and United Nations will facilitate the commanders meeting and launch the political discussion and to maintain regular communication assessing progress on these important initiatives to identify areas of difficulty on which further engagement may be necessary to ensure rapid progress and durable outcomes.

Both sides agreed that an improvement of relations is in the mutual interest of both countries.

IDIOTS UNITE!

The New Jersey Legislature is considering a bill to remove the word "idiot" from the state constitution. Like New Mexico's, the Jersey constitution prohibits "idiots and insane persons" from voting.

From the CNN story:

(State Senate President Richard) Codey wants to eliminate a section that says "no idiot or insane person should enjoy the right of suffrage" and substitute with a reference to "a person who has been adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction to lack the capacity to understand the act of voting."

Codey, a Democrat who was previously acting governor of New Jersey, said in a statement the term "idiot" is "outdated, vague, offensive to many and may be subject to misinterpretation."

New Mexico's legislature passed a similiar measure a few years back, but when it went to voters in 2002, we rejected it.

Here's what I wrote in Roundhouse Roundup on Nov. 7, 2002:

Bad news for idiots: New Mexico voters balked Tuesday at the proposed constitutional amendment that, among other things, would have removed language from the state constitution that excludes “idiots” and “insane persons” from voting.

No idiots at the polls. This might explain low voter turnout. After all, New Mexico was recently ranked the stupidest state in the union.

Here’s a modest proposal: In addition to idiots, let’s have a constitutional amendment to expand that prohibition to include morons, imbeciles, nitwits, numbskulls, nincompoops and knuckleheads.

Of course, nothing would stop all of the above from seeking elected office.

NEW POLITICAL TALK SHOW

Former Albuquerque City Councilor is starting a new political talk show, Insight New Mexico, on AM 1350, Albuquerque's Progressive Talk station.

The show will debut 3 p.m. Saturday.

Barbara's got more info HERE.

Plus, the show has its own blog

TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST

Sunday, January 7, 2007
KSFR, Santa Fe, N.M.
Webcasting:
10 p.m. to midnight Sundays MDT
Host: Steve Terrell

OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
Centre for Holy Wars by The New Pornographers
Deadly Eye by The Dwarves
Stumpy's March by Kilimanjaro Yak Attack
It's a Cold Night For Alligators by Roky Erikson & The Aliens
In the Cold, Cold Night by The White Stripes
Detective Instinct by The Fall
Weak Brain, Narrow Mind by Willie Dixon

I Got Ants in My Pants Part 1 by James Brown
Lick It Before You Stick It by Denise LaSalle
Droppin' Out by Paul Butterfield Blues Band
Yesterday Morning by Hazmat Modine
Siki Siki Baba by Kocani Orkestar
Winta by Rachid Taha
Dead Presidents by Little Walter


NIXON'S BIRTHDAY SET
Buckle Down With Nixon by Oscar Brand
Nixon's Dead Ass by Russell Means
President Nixon, Don't Ration My Gas by Diana Gardiner
Nixon in 96 by Doodoo Wah
Watergate Blues by Tom T. Hall
Bad Moon Rising by Creedence Clearwater Revival
Campaigner by Neil Young
Blue Lake by Robert Mirabal
One Tin Soldier by The Dick Nixons



TTT Gas by The Gourds
Cut the Cards by Chris Whitley & The Bastard Club
Beyond the Horizon by Bob Dylan
Within You, Without You/Tomorrow Never Knows by The Beatles
Long Way Home by Tom Waits
CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis

THE SANTA FE OPRY PLAYLIST

Friday, January 5, 2007
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell

OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
The Holygram's Song (Back From the Shadows Again) by The Firesign Theatre
Ringmaster by Ramsay Midwood
The Way of the Fallen by Ray Wylie Hubbard
For the Sake of the Children by Dave Lan
Happy Anniversary by The Bottle Rockets
Wishful Thinkin' by Marty Stuart
Truck Drivin' Cat With Nine Wives by Jim Nesbitt
New Wave Blues by Blaze Foley
Winter Song by Loudon Wainwright III

Pill Bug Blues/Ants on the Melon by The Gourds
Sally, Wally, Hoody by Hasil Adkins
Jack of Diamonds by P.W. Long
Wednesday by Drive-By Truckers
Dan Blocker by Gurf Morlix
Hammer of the Honky Tonk Gods by Bill Kirchen
Girl on the Billboard by Del Reeves

Strange Conversation by Ted Hawkins
I Heard That Lonesome Whistle Blow by Townes Van Zandt
I've Been Down That Road Before by Hank Williams
Lovesick Blues by Emmett Miller
Bye Bye Policeman by Jim Jackson
It Ain't Gonna Rain No Mo' by Gid Tanner & His Skillet Lickers
See God's Ark a Moving by Moving Hall Star Singers
Mama Keep Your Yes Ma'am Clean by Walter Cole
Kiss Me Cindy by J.E. Mainer's Mountaineers

Bible Black Starless Sky by Andy Fairweather Low
June 1945 by Ed Pettersen
The Cowboy and the Lady by John Egenes
Tesla's Hotel Room by The Handsome Family
Til I Get it Right by Solomon Burke
Rosalie by Bob Neuwirth
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets

Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list

JACKIN' POP 2006

The first annual Idolator Jackin' Pop Critics Poll is in -- and (if anyone recalls the old Shake 'n' Bake commercials) I helped!

CLICK HERE

I don't think anything I voted for cracked the Top 20, but what the heck.

TERRELL'S TUNEUP: BING BANG BING BANG BING

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
January 5, 2007

Oh no! Not another newspaper story about Borat. That’s so 2006.


Well, it’s probably true that Sacha Baron Cohen’s hilarious movie about the clueless “reporter” from the great nation of Kazakhstan got more than its share of media hype.

But one aspect of the movie that didn’t get as much attention as it deserved was the music. It’s not often I leave a movie theater thinking, “I’ve got to get my hands on the soundtrack CD!” O Brother, Where Art Thou? was one case where this happened. And now there’s the Borat movie, which has a lovely companion CD called Stereophonic Musical Listenings That Have Been Origin in Moving Film Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan.

The soundtrack is peppered with short dialogue segments and other bits from the movie.

There’s even the infamous Borat honky-tonk singalong “In My Country There Is Problem (Throw the Jew Down the Well),” which was not in the movie but has become a YouTube hit. (I believe this little performance doesn’t prove that the people in that saloon, or Americans in general, are anti-Semites as much as it proves that if you get Americans drunk enough, and keep the melody simple enough, we’ll sing along with anything.)

But the Borat shtick here is the least interesting part of this album. It’s the music itself. Before any serious, scholarly ethnomusicologist types get themselves in a tizzy, the first thing you have to know about this soundtrack is that just like the character of Borat, there’s little, if any, Kazakhstan in it. Oh, well. We Americans don’t know much about geography.

Instead, the bulk of the music on the CD is from Eastern Europe. It’s a good sampling of Gypsy music, Balkan brass bands, and a smattering of Eastern-bloc Euro-cheese. As Borat might say, “It don’t mean a thing unless it’s got that ‘Bing bang, bing bang bing.’”

The CD features a couple of brass bands I’d already checked out on Calabash Music: Macedonia’s Kocani Orkestar (pictured below right) and Fanfare Ciocarlia, a Gypsy group from eastern Romania that does a splendid (and nearly unrecognizable) cover of Steppenwolf’s “Born to Be Wild.” (Listening to the CD the first time in my car, I didn’t realize what this song was until the chorus.)


When watching the movie, I perked up when Kocani’s joyful, infectious song “Siki, Siki Baba” played. I recognized it from the concert by the band Beirut at the College of Santa Fe a few weeks before.

There are a couple of fun remix experiments. Mahala Rai Banda’s brassy “Mahalageasca” gets a jacked-up “Bucovina Dub” treatment by German DJ Shantel and “Eu Vin Acasa Cu Drag” — which longtime Borat fans know as the bingy-bangy theme to his segment on Da Ali G Show — gets a hip-hoppy version by Stefan de la Barbulesti. And some of the guiltiest pleasures are the synthy faux-Balkan sleaze from O.M.F.O. (Our Man From Odessa), who provides a couple of tasty if tacky tunes on the album.

The Borat soundtrack also features the great Macedonian singer — and Nobel Peace Prize nominee — Esma Redzepova. She’s reportedly planning to sue the film producers for using her “Chaje Shukarije,” which begins the soundtrack CD with a rousing shout. Take a number, Esma. The Borat litigation line is getting long.

And seriously, a lawsuit would be extremely shortsighted. This soundtrack provides excellent exposure for the wonderful music from the region — even if that region isn’t where it’s supposed to be.

So you want Kazakh music ...

*The Best of Urker: 10 Years Anniversary. No, this isn’t music by that weird little kid with the big glasses who had a sitcom back in the early ’90s. This is one of Kazakhstan’s most popular bands. If this is the best the country has to offer, I can see why the Borat crew decided to go with the Balkan stuff instead.

There are a few tracks here that are more than listenable. But most of it is earnestly overproduced pop that sounds like a bad Central Asian version of ABBA. The western world must have dumped all its toxic ’80s synths in this poor Third World Nation.

Surprisingly, one of the better tracks here is a patriotic number called “Moy Kazakhstan.” It’s got a cool electric-guitar riff and loud rhythm track. I don’t know what the words mean, but it would sound great in a set with Borat’s fake Kazakh national anthem.

You can listen for yourself HERE.

Recommended:

*Lon Gisland by Beirut and The Way the Wind Blows by A Hawk and a Hacksaw. Here’s a couple of good examples of domestic versions of the Balkan sound. And both of these bands have ties to this Enchanted Land.

Beirut is led by former Santa Fe kid Zach Condon. H&H is based in Albuquerque. Lon Gisland, a five-song EP, is the follow-up to Gulag Orkestar, Beirut’s astonishing debut last year. There’s even a new version of “Scenic World” from Gulag. Like the previous effort, the EP is full of trumpets, accordions, old country melodies and Condon’s melancholic vocals. “Elephant Gun,” with its ukulele intro, is my favorite track here, but the best title is “My Family’s Role in the World Revolution.”

H&H, which opened for Beirut in Santa Fe last year, is full of sweet Roma and klezmer soul. The group consists of Jeremy Barnes (formerly of Neutral Milk Hotel) on percussion (including a jingle-bells hat) and accordion and Heather Trost on violin.

They are fortified on this record by horns and other instruments on some songs (played by members of Fanfare Ciocarlia). All are irresistible. My favorites are “Fernando’s Giampari,” which sounds like the best circus band you’ve ever heard, and “God Bless the Ottoman Empire,” which begins with an oud solo followed by menacing drums and what sounds like a clarinet or alto sax.

THERE ONCE WAS A GOVERNOR FROM KHARTOUM ...

Here's from the latest press release from our globe-trotting gov.:

SANTA FE, NM – Governor Bill Richardson on Saturday will travel to
Khartoum, Sudan to meet with Sudanese officials to urge the country to fully accept the deployment of a hybrid United Nations peacekeeping force in the war-torn Darfur region. The Governor is making the trip at the request of the Save Darfur Coalition, which sent a letter to Governor Richardson urging him to make the trip. The Coalition believes Governor Richardson’s extensive diplomatic
skills and experience dealing with the Sudanese can help convince them to follow-through on their preliminary acceptance of a joint United Nations-African Union peacekeeping force, consistent with the UN mandate. The Governor will also push for a possible cease-fire in the Darfur region.

“This is a crisis of incredible proportions- millions of lives in the Darfur region are at risk from war, disease, and malnutrition. The people of the region are desperately looking for help from the international community, especially the United States,” said (Richardson). “The US has an opportunity to use leadership and diplomacy to help, and if I can play even a small part in that effort I am ready to do it. This is a bi-partisan, humanitarian effort by both Democrats and Republicans to help find a resolution to this ongoing tragedy.”

While in Sudan, Governor Richardson will also travel to the Darfur
region to make a personal assessment and will meet with humanitarian groups.

Governor Richardson has coordinated his trip with Andrew Natsios,
Special Envoy to Sudan for the US Department of State. The Save Darfur Coalition is paying for the trip.

In September of 2006 Governor Richardson traveled to Sudan and secured the release of Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and New Mexico native Paul Salopek and two colleagues on humanitarian grounds. Salopek and two Chadian citizens, Suleiman Abakar Moussa, Salopeks’s interpreter, and his driver, Abdulraham Anu had entered Sudan without visas and were arrested and charged with espionage, passing information illegally, and writing “false news”.

The Governor has a long-term relationship with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir dating back to 1996. In December of that year then-Congressman Richardson successfully negotiated the release of another New Mexican, Albuquerque pilot John Early, and two Red Cross workers. The three had been held hostage for 38 days by Sudanese rebels. In that situation, President al-Bashir supported Congressman Richardson’s efforts.