The Ocarina of Rhyme: A Mash-up of My Childhood

I am not much of a video game person.  In fact I would say I suck at video games, so if there was a game that I ever had the attention span to obsess over it must have been good.  This is the case with Zelda: Ocarina of Time, holding claim to the only video game I have actually ever completed.  In fact, this game is so fucking good that over winter break two years ago I decided to play it all over again.  At the age of ten years old this game was my life, not just me though either.  Anyone of my generation who owned a Nintendo 64 knows how much this game rocked.  It was the talk of the playground for months on end.  Well thanks to some dude (or dudette) named Team Teamwork, we get to relive our childhood through a totally bitching mash-up of songs from Ocarina of Time and the lyrical stylings of such artists as Jay-Z, Clipse, Pimp C,  Mike Jones, and many more.  I am so giddy I can hardly contain myself.

Clipse - Virginia (Lost Woods)

Edan - Fumbling Over Words (Battle)

Slim Thug & Mike Jones - Still Tippin' (Great Fairy's Fountain)

or find it here...

http://www.sendspace.com/file/45pogy

One For My Friends and Enemies: Roasted Chicken

Jairo Moreno is a musician, food enthusiast, proud Columbian, and bad-ass. Also I would not discredit him for being a large inspiration for this blog. His harmony and counterpoint lectures would always fluctuate between ruminations on philosophy, food, music theory, and reminding us (through various incarnations) of the long arm of Columbian justice. Almost every morning he would greet our class of about twenty five music students referring to us as "my friends and enemies". He was notorious for pulling out any of our names mid-sentence, sometimes to ask a question and sometimes for no reason at all. Needless to say this man kept us on our toes, all while teaching us lessons on the finer points of criticism, the creative process, and the world at large. I am sure that no one in harmony and counterpoint 1 will ever forget his anecdote on the 6/4 chord and the "butter slut potatoes" (in short both are a one trick pony says Jairo and "you don't call back a 6/4 chord"). Here is a recipe that Jairo gave me after hearing of my moderately successful attempt at a roasted chicken. "This is the best roasted chicken recipe in America" says Jairo. It is a recipe from Zumi Cafe in San Francisco that is nationally renowned for its brick oven roasted chicken.

This preparation is mad legit, I cooked it for my family over winter break to great success. The skin turns out crispy and the bird at large is juicy and flavorful through and through. The 24 hour marinating period im not sure is entirely necessary, the aspect that separates this method from the rest of the pack is the cooking method. 500 degrees F is a pretty formidable cooking temperature and turning the bird mid roast was something new to me as well, but in the end it is all well worth it.

1 Chicken

Garlic

Thyme

Aprox. 1tbs olive oil

salt to taste

Rub the the above mentioned seasonings on and under the skin of the chicken and let sit, loosely covered with plastic wrap in the refrigerator for 24 hours. Take out of refrigerator and let the chicken stand at room temperature for approximately 1 hour. Pre-heat oven to 500 (yes that is right 500 degrees). Roast for 30 min. breast side up. Flip bird. Roast for 15 min. breast side down. Let rest for about 10 min, then carve and enjoy.

A chicken safety reference guide

note: I am not completely sure on the proportions I just minced enough garlic and thyme so that I got decent coverage over the whole chicken. Even the cooking time will probably need some adjustment (for example I made a larger chicken so I extended the cooking time on each side a few minutes). As long as you don't go nuts with the seasoning the recipe will taste great. I will take this moment to remind you an important lesson of cooking: just do it. Cooking is a dynamic process, always different every time. Just like playing music, you can memorize a song or shred all the while, but in the end it is all about building your intuitions and making something that ultimately works for the moment. Oh yeah and failure is always essential, although it hurts a little more when it involves ten dollars worth of chicken.

Al Di Meola

You may not know the name Al Di Meola like you know the names Jimmy Page or even John Scofield, but despite this he is one of the towering figures of guitar alive in the world today.  He is probably most famous for his work with Chick Corea's jazz fusion band from the seventies Return to Forever.  Also he is known for his work playing flamenco/jazz in The Guitar Trio with two other of the worlds greatest guitar players, Paco De Lucia (known for his prowess in classical and flamenco guitar) and John McLaughlin (known for his work with Miles Davis and the Mahavishnu Orchestra).  Al Di Meola's solo career blends his fusion roots with his interest in spanish music (he himself is an Italian-American from New Jersey) to create a progressive style that pioneered the sound that led to such acts as Yngwie Malmstien and Dream Theater.  But more so than Malmstien and Dream Theater, with his unique set of influences and penchant for subtlety, Meola is able to create music that is as interesting melodically and texturally as it is technically speaking.  I am posting the a side of his 1978 album Casino, I ripped it off of a turntable and didn't separate the tracks, so my apologies.  Hope you loyal readers enjoy. And for you non-loyal readers I hope you enjoy it as well... then choke. Jkjk, but seriously you should follow this blog, more great music and recipes to come I guarantee.  

-Josh

Casino (side a) - Al Di Meola (1978)

Best and Worst of DJ New-money's Laptop: Part 1.

Hello reader, today I am doing something different. I didn't necessarily feel like going to the blog-office today so I am live-blogging direct from my roommates computer and will share with you some classic tracks from his i-tunes library. Here are three very solid selections from DJ Newmoney's music collection. Shot out to DJ O'Anna, for helping me choose the music and an appropriate DJ name, straight up from the 212.

Let's Stay Together - Al Green

C.R.E.A.M. - Wu Tang Clan

Blame it On Cain -Elvis Costello

HOT TUNA!

No this is not a recipe for making hot tuna, whatever that is.  Hot Tuna is a blues-folk spinoff of Jefferson Airplane that was formed in 1969 and still continues to play unto this day.  These guys, with their american roots/blues sound kinda remind me of something between Taj Mahal and very early Grateful Dead.  The first song "I Know You Rider" is a traditional, and  has been played many times over by famous bands such as the Grateful Dead and the Band as well as in the living rooms of many a folk enthusiast.  The second song is a really great instrumental song in an "American Primative" vein - the sound associated with such artists as Leo Kottke and John Fahey, as well as being a style of music I am quite partial to.

I Know You Rider - Hot Tuna

Mann's Fate - Hot Tuna

Silvio Rodriguez

Cuban born Silvio Rodriguez is a musician known the world around for both his music and poetry.  He is mainly a figure among the leftist Spanish speaking world, but I think he is pretty cool too, even if I have no clue what he is saying half the time.  I fist heard him when I was a sophomore in high-school, but I must admit I forgot about Silvio Rodriguez until a few weeks ago.  But coming back to his recordings with fresh ears I am in awe of the both the simplicity and breadth of his music, occurring simultaneously.  Silvio Rodriguez, for the most part, is one of those artists where the process of listening can easily become something of a meditative experience, that is to say something to get lost in.  The soothing sound of nylon string guitars, long ruminating progressions combined with the constant sound of urgency in Rodriguez's voice only add to this effect (I also think the fact that the music is in spanish has something to do with it as well, but that is a personal thing).   Though I have little idea what most of the songs are about, supposedly his poetry is very good.  Some of this comes through to the english speaking listener, in that his lyrics have an undeniable musicality and artful execution.  His lines and harmonies can, I guess, be considered a little atypical of most popular music, even for cuban/spanish influenced music, but that makes it all the more interesting.  But in short this guy sounds like something you've heard before, but never like this, and that is why he is renowned the world around. 

Silvio Rodriguez:

Playa Giron (dias y flores 1968)

Sueno Con Serpientes (dias y flores 1968)

La Era Esta Pariendo un Corazon (the Anthology of Silvio Rodriguez)

Yo Digo Que Las Estrellas (dias y flores 1968)

http://rs170.rapidshare.com/files/96350728/Silvio_Rodriguez_-_1978_-_Antologia.rar

Kugel: its your great aunt Sadie bending over to kiss you and accidentally brushing you with her goiter.

What is Kugle? Well it can be many things, but essentially its is any incarnation of a casserole  associated with the vast repertoire of jewish comfort foods.  The definition is a little more specific than the one I just mentioned, but if its a casserole rolling out on shabbas and some kind old woman is politely telling you why their mother's old recipe is better, its probably a Kugel.  The debate begins with the fact that kugel can be savory or sweet and made with variety of ingredients as its foundation: carrots, potatoes, matzah, and zucchini to name a few. But as my personal preference and tradition would have it, kugle is most often sweet and made from noodles.  A sweet kugel is more like a noodle puding and is usually made with cottage cheese and egg to bind the noodles and make it creamy.  In addition to make the kugle sweet a fair amount of sugar and some type of fruit (often raisins) are added.  The recipe I am sharing with you is my grandmothers recipe.  The recipe is pretty standard, as it uses egg noodles as its base and what is now a common kugel sweetener crushed pineapple (I find it hard to believe my eastern european ancestors, or anyones for that matter, had much pineapple around).   This recipe also uses less butter than most which is a good thing... maybe.  So I encourage everyone to try this very easy recipe out so that now you can tell your jewish friends that not only do you know what kugel is, you can make it too.  How cool is that.

Oh and why is kugel like your Great Aunt Sadie's bending over to give you a kiss and accidentally brushing you with her goiter?  Its not, but heres why I said it. 

And some more Jewish humor: Old Jews Telling Jokes

Grandma's Kugel

Wet Ingredients:

5 tbs. melted butter

1 lg. carton small curd cottage cheese

1 can (aprox. 20 oz.) crushed pineapple

4 eggs

9 tbs. sugar

12 oz. med. egg noodles

1 tbs. sugar and cinnamon to sprinkle on top.

1. Boil water and prepare noodles

2.  Beat eggs and in large bowl mix in  butter, cottage cheese, pineapple, and sugar.

3.  Mix noodles with egg mixture (preferably while noodles are not fresh out of the boiling water so as to prevent curdling of  eggs)

4. Pour into casserole dish and sprinkle to with cinnamon and sugar to taste.  (Many people like a corn-flake/some type of crunch topping, as pictured above, which can easily be applied to this recipe, probably while slightly extending the cooking time)

5. Bake for 1 hr. at 350.

-let stand 5 min. 

Enjoy!

Great Minds Think Alike...I hope.

So today I was checking out Soul-Sides (a highly recommended music blog) and saw that after I had willfully stolen their from their site, they have decided to steal from mine as well and present a mix by Manhattan MC Cool Calm Pete on the subject of, get this... food and music.  Sound Out-Loud is truly ahead of its time with proliferating this excellent combination to the inter-web, or right on it (this site is only about a week old after all), or at least on to something...I hope.  Either way i thought it was kinda cool that notable music blogger/scholar Oscar Wang hadn't thought the notion of food and music together to be too farfetched, plus the mix is pretty cool as well.

If you want to check it out, just do yourself a favor and go to Soul-Sides.

And in a similar vain, some more of the woman I love...

Fish in the Dish -Sharon Jones

The New World Order... whatever that means.

So the times they are a changing, or not who really knows?  Then again who really even knows how this thing got started or where we are even at.  An interesting time no doubt and here is a link that  helps to explain: The Impact of the Financial Services Meltdown on the Global Economy and Private Equity Industry a presentation by The Carlyle Group.  Its a pretty easy to follow power point for those of you who are interested.  But the important part is the music, cause as we all know: there are lies, damn lies, and statistics.  Here are some songs about hard times and corporate greed that I think you may enjoy.

Down On Penny's Farm - The Bently Boys (from the Anthology of American Folk Music, compiled in 1942)

New World Water - Mos Def  (Black on Both Sides, 1999)

Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out - Derek and The Dominos (?) 

Ash Weds. Sound Out-Loud Style!!

So I found out that today is ash weds. and I thought why not enlighten you as to how to make your own Jesus toast.    follow this link... 

And for the tech crowd.

And some music about the J man... kind of

Q-Tip The Rennaissance

This may be a little after the fact but I just got the new Q-Tip album, I had heard good things and was not disappointed.  It is a pretty soulful album, especially with appearances by Norah Jones and D'angelo.  I don't have much to say other than the fact that I like it.  Plus those moderately longer posts have been taking too much of my time.  At least this way I can easily keep the grammatical errors to a minimum.

Life is Better (feat. Norah Jones)- Q-Tip (2008)

Johnny is Dead - Q-Tip (2008)

You - Q-Tip (2008)

http://rapidshare.com/files/158629408/Q-Tip_-_The_Renaissance.part1.rar

Philip Cohran and The Artistic Heritage Ensemble

Yesterday was the anniversary of the assassination of Malcolm X and I think it fit to share with you an album that I picked up over winter break.  It is a "The Malcolm X Memorial (A Tribute in Music)" (1968) by Philip Cohran and the Artistic Heritage Ensemble.  This is a really cool album that was recorded live at the Affro-Arts Theater in Chicago on Feb. 25 1968, just about three years after the death of Malcolm X.  Philip Cohran is a Chicago trumpet player that is probably most well known for his time with Sun Ra and the Arkestra and his involvement in the founding of the AACM (association for the advancement of creative musicians, I will probably talk more about this group in later posts).  Those of you from New York most likely know or can associate Cohran as the polygamist father of all seven of the brass players from the Hypnotic Brass Band aka that really great horn band in Union Square.   This album is really cool and serves as a sort of time capsule that allows us to listen to the sounds of Black Power, three years after the assassination of its most respected leader. So in this way the album can be seen as a kind of retrospective, but overall I think it is more representative of a time when jazz and urban black culture were undergoing a serious social movement affecting the consciousness of a people.  Black power in its essence was not a violent movement it was the embracing of "blackness" in rejection engendered white ideals to allow for the creation a black identity with power and self respect so as to oppose the effects of the uneven balance of power. The music takes elements from jazz, african, middle eastern, soul, and the avante garde  and blends them all into something that is undeniably relevant to the time. My favorite track is the last one (El Hajj Malik El Shabazz), not really because of the five minute drum solo but because of the epic vocals at that it builds to at the end... epic.

"The story of Brother Malcolm's life is one of the most widely known episodes in modern history. This tribute is based on Malcolm's life subdivided into four distinct parts and these four parts are a model of the four stages of the American Blacks elevation to a higher life."

-from the liner notes

Philip Cohran and the Artistic Heritage Ensemble - Malcom X 

Philip Cohran and the Artistic Heritage Ensemble - El Hajj Malik El Shabazz

Cheese? Yes please.

Cheesy music is usually a contentious topic among those who are passionate about music.  Naturally the issue of what constitutes good "bad" music is of a complicated nature.   So why not pose the question what constitutes good cheese?  Well this answer is simple.  Good cheese is old, smelly (e.g. funky), and expensive.  I find the same is good with cheesy music.  Maybe expensive doesn't really fit, but either way here is some cheesy music and a classic recipe for fondue originally from Gourmet Magazine in 1966 but I found on epicurious.com. 

Note: Kirsch is a brandy made from dark sour cherries and is a traditional flavoring in a swiss fondue (according to wikipedia) but is not necessary.  It is the final balance between the wine, cheese, and cornstarch that really determines the overall texture and thus success of the fondue. 

Cheese FondueGourmet | February 1966; reprinted September 2001

Yield: Makes 6 servings Total Time: 30 min   1 garlic clove, halved crosswise 1 1/2 cups dry white wine (preferably Swiss, such as Fendant) 1 tablespoon cornstarch 2 teaspoons kirsch 1/2 lb Emmental cheese, coarsely grated (2 cups) 1/2 lb Gruyère , coarsely grated (2 cups) Accompaniment: cubes of French bread on fondue forks or long wooden skewers Special equipment: a fondue pot    Rub inside of a 4-quart heavy pot with cut sides of garlic, then discard garlic.  Add wine to pot and bring just to a simmer over moderate heat. Stir together cornstarch and kirsch in a cup. Gradually add cheese to pot and cook, stirring constantly in a zigzag pattern (not a  circular motion) to prevent cheese from balling up, until cheese is just melted and creamy (do not let boil).  Stir cornstarch mixture again and stir into fondue. Bring fondue to a simmer and cook, stirring, until thickened, 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer to fondue pot set over a flame and serve with bread for dipping. A link to help you on your fondue journey... The Music: Nat Townsley Jr. - Sunshine on My Shoulders Dollar - Hand Held In Black and White Elton John - Island Girl

...and of course

Soul Music in The New Millenium: As bitchin as always, maybe more so

These days, (circa Marcus Newman's summer of soul 2008) I tend to think soul music is where its at, so needless to say I have been listening to a good bit of it lately. Among many purveyors of soul there are a lot of good soul blogs out there that are proliferating soul to the masses, the most popular one probably being Soul-Sides. Another central fixture in this trend, and what hooked me (along with the aforementioned declaration of a summer of soul), is Daptone Records founded by NYU alum (my alma mater, sooner or later) Gabirel Roth a.k.a. Bosco Mann. Essentially Daptone Records is how I learned to love soul. However I always did appreciate a good groove and was once a member of a funk band, and though there is a lot I can say about Daptone Records the woman who I owe my regards to is their flagship singer, none other than miss Sharon Jones. Her backing band, you may have heard of them, is the dap kings who were are most famously known for supplying Amy Winehouse with her signiture vintage sound. They are also on the Jay-Z remix from my first post. I saw Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings last Sat. a great show, it could've been more of a dance party than it turned out to be (too many white people I suppose). Sharon, however probably wont be making an appearance in New York for a while, but if you want to see some great live daptone soul in New York check out Naomi Shelton and The Gospel Queens of Brooklyn at the Fat Cat on Christopher st. and Seventh Ave. every Friday at eight.

Here are two soul tracks. One by my lady Sharon Jones (written by Bosco Mann). The other one is sung by the eminent Nina Simone, who I guess is not really a soul artist per-say but the album this song comes from is pretty soulful and I feel provides an appropriate contrast.

Sharon Jones - How Long Do I Have to Wait?(2005)

Nina Simone - He Ain't Comin Home No More(1967)

and why not another taste of Sharon...

Why Don't We All Stop Paying Taxes?

bad ass.

Also let me add that anyone who wishes to pass on a music selection, recipe, or even a complete post yourself they should feel free to send me thier contributions.

Celebratory Party Dip.

This is a simple recipe for guacamole, it is really more of a guide than a recipe but the proportions are approximately correct.  The opportunities for guacamole are endless... enjoy.

Josh's Guacamole

2 avocados

1 clove minced or pressed garlic (or one half onion, or some of both)

1/2 tomato (diced)

Juice of one lime

Salt to taste

1-2 tablespoons Cilantro (optional)

Jalapeno or other hot pepper to taste (optional)

1.  Cut avocados and remove flesh from pit into bowl.

2.  Mince (very finely chop) or press the garlic with a garlic press.  Add to avocado and mix/mash the garlic into the avocado.  

3.  To release the juices of the lime, roll the lime on the table firmly under your palm.  

Halve and squeeze the lime (no special machinery needed here just a strong hand or fork) into the slightly mashed avocado.  Pick out any seeds, and mix/mash further.

4.  Dice your tomato so that you have about 1/4 inch cubes and mix into guacamole.  

5.  Salt to taste, and add about 1 or two tablespoons of cilantro if you feel.  Also if you feel that your guacamole is perhaps a bit too tame, add some seeded and finely choped jalapeno (seranos, habaneros, and any other hot pepper could be use as well)