INSOMNIAC ENDORSEMENT

At about 2 a.m. Mountain Time, the Associated Press reported that Gov. Bill Richardson will be enmdorsing Sen. Barack Obama for president.

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, the nation's only Hispanic governor, is endorsing Sen. Barack Obama for president, calling him a "once-in-a- lifetime leader" who can unite the nation and restore America's international leadership.
Richardson, who dropped out of the Democratic race in January, is to appear with Obama on Friday at a campaign event in Portland, Ore., The Associated Press has learned.
The governor's endorsement comes as Obama leads among delegates selected at primaries and caucuses but with national public opinion polling showing Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton pulling ahead of him amid controversy over statements by his former pastor.

I'm not sure why the weird hour. More on this later Friday.

UPDATE:
I just found this on my work e-mail. It came over at 1:50 a.m. (Don't let the "Dear Steve" fool you. It's a mass e-mail. A few minutes after it was sent, friend forwarded me a copy he got.

Dear Steve,
During the last year, I have shared with you my vision and hopes for this nation as we look to repair the damage of the last seven years. And you have shared your support, your ideas and your encouragement
to my campaign. We have been through a lot together and that is why I wanted to tell you that, after careful and thoughtful deliberation, I have made a decision to endorse Barack Obama for President.

We are blessed to have two great American leaders and great Democrats running for President. My affection and admiration for Hillary Clinton and President Bill Clinton will never waver. It is time, however, for Democrats to stop fighting amongst ourselves and to prepare for the tough fight we will face against John McCain in the fall. The 1990's were a decade of peace and prosperity because of the competent and enlightened leadership of the Clinton administration, but it is now time for a new generation of leadership to lead America forward. Barack Obama will be a historic and a great President, who can bring us the change we so desperately need by bringing us together as a nation here at home and with our allies abroad.

Earlier this week, Senator Barack Obama gave an historic speech.
that addressed the issue of race with the eloquence, sincerity, and optimism we have come to expect of him. He inspired us by reminding us of the awesome potential residing in our own responsibility. He asked us to rise above our racially divided past, and to seize the opportunity to carry forward the work of many patriots of all races, who struggled and died to bring us together.

As a Hispanic, I was particularly touched by his words. I have been
troubled by the demonization of immigrants--specifically Hispanics-- by too many in this country. Hate crimes against Hispanics are rising as a direct result and now, in tough economic times, people look for scapegoats and I fear that people will continue to exploit our racial differences--and place blame on others not like them . We all know the real culprit -- the disastrous economic policies of the Bush administration!

Senator Obama has started a discussion in this country long overdue and rejects the politics of pitting race against race. He understands clearly that only by bringing people together, only by bridging our
differences can we all succeed together as Americans.

His words are those of a courageous, thoughtful and inspiring leader, who understands that a house divided against itself cannot stand. And, after nearly eight years of George W. Bush, we desperately need such a leader.

To reverse the disastrous policies of the last seven years, rebuild our economy, address the housing and mortgage crisis, bring our troops home from Iraq and restore America's international standing, we need a President who can bring us together as a nation so we can confront our urgent challenges at home and abroad.

During the past year, I got to know Senator Obama as we campaigned
against each other for the Presidency, and I felt a kinship with him because we both grew up between words, in a sense, living both abroad and here in America. In part because of these experiences, Barack and I share a deep sense of our nation's special responsibilities in the world.

So, once again, thank you for all you have done for me and my campaign. I wanted to make sure you understood my reasons for my endorsement of Senator Obama. I know that you, no matter what your choice, will do so with the best interests of this nation, in your heart.

Sincerely,

Bill Richardson

TERRELL'S TUNE-UP: SXSW WRAP-UP PART 1

Note to blog readers: As many of you quickly will realize, this column is based largely on my SXSW blog posts last week. But read on until the bottom. I added some shows and pix that I was too exhausted to post last week.

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
March 21, 2008

The theme of many thumb-sucker articles about this year’s South by Southwest Music Conference and Festival was the general malaise in the music industry (which puts the general malaise of the newspaper industry to shame). When I realized that Beatle Bob — the dancin’ fool/ fabulous mop top/rock ’n’ roll koshare from St. Louis — was not in Austin for the festivities, I took it as a dreadful omen for the music biz, an industry lousy with dreadful omens in recent years.

Yet in Austin last week there seemed to be more bands, more fans, and more music — both official SXSW showcases and unofficial parties — than ever before. Even so, registration for SXSW is stagnating, Michael Corcoran of the Austin American-Statesman reported.

There are three levels of SXSW goers. There are the official registrants like me. Popularly known as “badge-wearing scum,” these are the music-industry types who pay up to $650 for a badge to gain entry to all SXSW events and cut in line in front of the lesser mortals. (Bona fide reporter types like me, some musicians, and others get badges for free.)

Then there are the wristband people, who buy a pass that allows them into sanctioned SXSW events (if there’s room). And a growing number of folks forgo both the badge and wristband. Theoretically they can pay cover charges at the individual venues, though the places with well-known bands fill up quickly with badges and wristbands.

Most of my SXSW entourage used to buy wristbands but decided this year to go without. For one thing, the bands are more expensive than ever; one friend paid $165 for hers, but in some places they were going for as much as $180. And even worse, they’re a much bigger hassle to get.

In the old days, you’d find someone who lived in Austin willing to stand in line to pick up a whole batch of wristbands for you. These days, I suppose in an effort to stop scalpers, it’s only one per customer, and the wristband wearer has to be present at the time of purchase to have it attached to his or her wrist. I suppose next year they’ll just tattoo a bar code on your wrist.

And worse yet, a wristband doesn’t guarantee you entrance in the shows you want to see. Some of the most popular showcases had signs that read, “Badges Only.”

There are a zillion or so “day parties” from which to choose during SXSW that don’t require wristbands or badges; in most cases, these are free. Corcoran reported Sunday that SXSW organizers, who call these events “parasite parties,” actually provide the Austin fire marshal a list of day parties.

Their concern for our safety is touching.

Here’s a look at some of the shows and events I attended last week, official and otherwise:

* Roky Erickson: The godfather of psychedelic horror rock headlined a fine afternoon of rock ’n’ roll at Threadgill’s. His Roky Erickson Psychedelic Ice Cream Social has become an annual event, but this was the first time I’d been able to go.

Erickson, whose struggle with mental problems has been well documented, seems to have recovered quite nicely. He ripped through his songs — leaning heavily on tunes from his greatest album, The Evil One.

His band, The Explosives, is a tight little trio featuring guitarist Cam King. In Austin, he was joined onstage for his last few songs by his old friend, ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons (who reportedly is planning a new album with Erickson).

One of the most amazing aspects of Erickson’s performance is that after each song — most of which are filled with images of paranoia, demons, vampires, and bloody hammers — Erickson flashed the most angelic smile, waved to the crowd, and thanked everyone. “Bless the sunshine,” he said at the end of the set.

Indeed. Bless the sunshine.

* Carbon/Silicon: Pretty inspiring for a bunch of old guys. This band — led by ex-Clash member Mick Jones and Tony James of Generation X and Sigue Sigue Sputnik — played at the Austin Convention Center’s TV studios for a live concert on DirecTV.

The quartet, a classic two guitars/bass/drums lineup, plays basic Clash-type tunes with its feet in and its head in leftist politics. Some of the songs had titles like “War on Culture” and “Soylent Green.” Check out some of the band’s free MP3s at their Web site.

John Doe of X. Photo by Molly Terrell

* X: This classic Los Angeles punk group has broken up and reformed a few times but still sounds fresh and vibrant. Original guitarist Billy Zoom is back in the fold. With his blond pompadour and Chuck Berry licks, Zoom still looks as if he wandered into the wrong group, thinking he was joining a rockabilly band. But he also looks like he’s having the time of his life.

The weird harmonies of Exene and John Doe are still the highlights of the band. They sing together as if they’ve uncovered some secret Appalachian code to summon the spirits of the ancestors. The group played its old, better-known songs — “Los Angeles,” “Johnny Hit and Run Paulene,” “White Girl,” “The New World,” “We’re Desperate,” and “The Hungry Wolf.” Some of these are 30 years old, and they don’t sound dated. But I’m wondering whether John Doe and Exene have a few more new songs suitable for X left in them.

* Joe Ely with Joel Guzman.: They recorded a live set at ME TV studios. ME TV is a cool Austin station, headquartered in a former porn theater, which, in the words of its Web site, “is a 24-hour regional network dedicated to showcasing and providing television exposure for regional artists as well as the hundreds of touring groups that make up the vibrant Texas live music scene.”

Ely sang two originals, “Letter to Laredo” and “All You Need,” plus Billy Joe Shaver’s “Live Forever” and Townes Van Zandt’s “White Freight Liner,” on which he was joined by young singer Ryan Bingham.

Beside Ely’s tunes, the best part of this event, which was sponsored by the Americana Music Association, was the homemade posole, cooked and served by Joe’s wife, Sharon. She told me the recipe comes from New Mexico. I suspect Terry or Jo Harvey Allen might have something to do with that.

Blog Bonus: Some other music I didn't get around to posting about last week.


* Ed Pettersen: Ed's a fine songwriter and performer. His New Punk Blues released last year, is just full of good songs. He's also a good producer -- a recent project being Song of America, a 3-disc variosu artist collection of songs that made this country great.

We caught Ed at an early morning gig on Saturday, right before he had to catch a plane. Enjoyable as always, though not quite as fun as two years before when he was joined on stage by his old pal Scott Kempner of The Dictators and Del-Lords. The highlight of Ed's set this year had to be "June 1945," a very personal tale of some family history he uncovered fairly recently.

* Chuck Prophet: It was worth the rude service at Jovita's to get to hear Chuck's short but potent set.

Prophet, a former member of Green on Red plays a strange brand of noirish roots rock, with lots of sinister twang. He did many songs from his recent album Soap and Water.
The only disappointment was that he didn't do anything from his Waylon Jennings album -- he recorded all the songs from Dreaming My Dreams. I could have listen to Prophet for another hour at least.

*The Black Angels: This Austin band played Roky Erickson's party at Threadgill's. This is a band I want to hear more of.
When I mentioned them last week, I said they were a cross between The Jesus & Mary Chain and My Morning Jacket. But you can hear echoes of Bo Diddley and The Electric Prunes as well.

And being on the Roky bill, it's tempting to call them grandchildren of The 13th Floor Elevators.

Continued next week .
UPDATE: Apparently I was WRONG in saying Beatle Bob wasn't at SXSW. My friend Cathy said she saw him walking down the street early in the week. I did some mad Googling and learned that he apparently introduced Roky Erikson at his showcase at Stubb's last Saturday.

It's odd though -- I normally run into him at least 3 or 4 times at SXSW. And I don't think he's ever missed a Waco Brothers appearance at the Bloodshot party. Oh well ... Here's a link to a recent Associated Press story about him.
Another Update: I performed a slight edit on the X section taking out an unintentional inaccuracy.

ROUNDHOUSE ROUND-UP: PROGRESSIVE ABQ DEMS CHALLENGE INCUMBENTS

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
March 20, 2008

Two incumbent state senators from Albuquerque are facing primary challenges by reform-minded Democrats employing the same new political consulting company.

Former Albuquerque City Councilor Eric Griego, who currently heads the liberal advocacy group New Mexico Voices for Children, is running against Sen. James Taylor in the South Valley District 14 once held by former Senate powerhouse Manny Aragon. (A third candidate, political novice Al Armijo, also is running in that district.)

Meanwhile, political newcomer Tim Keller is running in District 17 against 20-year incumbent Sen. Shannon Robinson.

Managing both challengers’ campaigns is Neri Holguin, a veteran of New Mexico politics since 2000. Holguin, who recently headed The Wilderness Society in the state, was campaign director for Soltari, an Albuquerque firm that no longer runs political races.

She’s also managing the Senate campaign of former Bernalillo County Treasurer Tim Eichenberg, who is running against John Blair in the Senate District 15 Democratic primary to see who will face incumbent Republican Sen. Diane Snyder in November.

Holguin’s workload got somewhat easier Tuesday when one of her clients, Santa Fe lawyer Brian Egolf, received no opposition in his House District 47 race.

Holguin said Wednesday that Griego, Keller and Eichenberg are not running as a part of any slate.

“Both are messengers of change,” she said. “We just need better representation up in Santa Fe. But there’s nothing coordinated. I’m just fortunate to have three high-caliber candidates.”

Still, Griego and Keller are running similar campaigns against their incumbent primary opponents.

Both have been endorsed by the Conservation Voters New Mexico. Both appeared earlier this month at a Meet-up for Democracy for America/Democracy for New Mexico, a liberal activist group.

“Both Griego and Keller stressed their strong commitment to needed reforms related to ethics, campaign finance, health care, education and a living wage,” the Democracy for New Mexico blog said. “They explained how crucial it is for those who advocate change to band together and work hard to replace legislators more interested in protecting the status quo than reforming a broken system. Only grass-roots action and determination can elect Democrats who will work on behalf of the people instead of the monied special interests.”

Both candidates list ethics reform — an issue that neither Taylor nor Robinson have warmly embraced — as a top priority.

Ethics bills routinely pass the House, but few actually get floor votes in the Senate, where they tend to die slow deaths in committees. Taylor scores slightly higher in ethics floor votes than Robinson. He voted for the bill to limit lobbyist gifts to lawmakers, which Robinson voted against. Taylor also voted for concurrence on House amendments to a 2007 bill to limit campaign contributions, while Robinson was one of four Democrats to vote against concurrence, effectively killing the bill.

In the related area of legislative openness, both Robinson and Taylor have voted against opening conference committees. Taylor this year voted against legislation to webcast Senate floor sessions. Robinson was absent for that vote.

Both Taylor and Robinson are canny and experienced politicians who won’t be easy to beat.

The often pugnacious Robinson has won five terms — though he hasn’t had an election opponent in 12 years. He’s delivered some of the most passionate and entertaining speeches on the Senate floor in recent years. (For the sake of full disclosure, without Robinson in the Senate, this newspaper’s “Quote of the Day” feature during the legislative session would suffer greatly.)

Taylor, who served nine years in the state House, the past four years as majority whip, was described by Gov. Bill Richardson as “one of the best natural politicians in New Mexico, in terms of getting things done, in terms of operating in a political arena and in terms of his commitment to his district.” Richardson appointed Taylor to his seat when Aragon left the Senate to take a job as president of New Mexico Highlands University. (Aragon since resigned that job after a stormy two-year tenure. He’s currently awaiting trial on federal charges in a kickback scandal involving his last years in the Senate.)

However it goes, these two races promise to be among the most interesting legislative primary battles.

Remember Jeannette!: Rep. Jeannette Wallace, R-Los Alamos, doesn’t have to worry about primary opposition. As usual, nobody is challenging her for her District 43 seat, which she’s held since 1991.

Wallace, in an e-mail Wednesday, said she was hurt when we failed to mention her in a story about candidates filing.

“My district is a beautiful area, it is Los Alamos, all of the beautiful Jemez Mountains and some of the most peaceful as well as controversial areas of Santa Fe,” she wrote. “I do represent a very old part of Santa Fe which is facing growth (La Cienega, La Cieneguilla, Aqua Fría, etc.). ... Santa Fe is just as important to me as Peña Blanca, Ponderosa, La Cueva, or Los Alamos. ... My district includes the Santa Fe airport, it includes the Game and Fish Dept. It also includes an area that goes back a very long time to stage coaches and sheep grazing.”

We regret the omission. And before Rep. Rhonda King writes in, let’s note that the Stanley Democrat also filed on Tuesday and faces no primary or general election opponent in District 50.

UPDATE: I corrected a couple of errors here. Conservation Voters New Mexico endorsed Griego and Keller. I originally said "League of Conservation Voters" -- which is the national organization. Also, I had the wrong Senate district number for the Robinson/Keller race.

CARBON/SILICONE

I just noticed that Carbon/Silicone has a YouTube of one of the songs they played when I saw them Saturday night:

THE SANTA FE OPRY PLAYLIST

Thanks to Laurell Reynolds and Pete Gurule for subbing on my radio shows this weekend.

Laurell sent her play list for Friday's Santa Fe Opry. Here it is:

Friday, March 14, 2008
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell

Now Simulcasting 90.7 FM, and our new, stronger signal, 101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org

OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by The Byrds
Joe West-Jam Bands in Colorado
Al Dexter and his Troopers-Saturday Night Boogie
The Animals-Ring of Fire
Jack Blanchard and Misty Morgan-Down to the End of the Wine
Wayne Hancock-Thunderstorms and Neon Signs
Roy Orbison-(All I Can Do) is Dream You
Elvis Presely-Blue Moon of kentucky
John Trudell-Baby Boom Che
Neil Young-Cowgirl in the Sand
Restless Consumer
Senor (Tales of Yankee Power)-Jerry Garcia
Bob Dylan-Romance In Durango
Stephen Terrell-Those Were the Days
Emmy Lou Harris-Wheels /Easy From Now On
Shell Silverstein-The Taker
Gillian Welch-Everything is Free
Michael Hurley-Oh My Stars/ Troubled Waters
Willie Nelson-Peaceful Solution/ A Moment of Forever
Karen Dalton-Same Old Man
Maria Muldaur-Tenessee Mountain Home
Buffy St Marie-I'm Gonna Be a Country Girl Again
Glen Campbell-Wichita Lineman
Sibylle Baier-Give Me a Smile /The End

CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets