Well, dear readers, I’m still overtired and I would really like to change that soon. I’d prefer to be undertired, to dance a jig, to sing a song of sixpence and have a pocketful of rye bread or, at the very least, a pocketful of miracles. A good ten hours of shut-eye would do wonders. I’m so bored of talking about being overtired that I’m overtired of talking about being bored. No, that’s not right. I’m overtired of talking about being overtired. Pardon, but I just dropped in to see what condition my condition was in. Ooh, an obscure First Edition reference. How many people remember the First Edition? Their lead singer was Kenny Rogers, and after a time it became Kenny Rogers and the First Edition. Back when the First Edition was becoming popular with the populace, Kenny Rogers’ then wife Margo went to LACC and she played Hedy LaRue in How To Succeed, the production in which I played Finch, Annette Cardona (Cha-Cha from the film of Grease) played Rosemary, Michael Lembeck played Frump, and someone named Linda Hart played Smitty. Not a bad little cast. I still have a First Edition LP signed by the band (including Kenny) that Kenny gave me one night. He used to hang around the theater arts department and we got along quite well. In fact, he liked my songs and he even came close to using one of them at some point. Why the HELL am I talking about Kenny Rogers and the First Edition when I should be writing these here notes. See what happens when you’re overtired and your condition is in a condition?
Yesterday, I was overtired right from the get-go and the go-get. I was hoping to really sleep late, but the neighbor was outside at ten talking quite loudly. As soon as I was completely awake, of course, he stopped and went in the house. That was very thoughtful of him. While ten would seem like I’d gotten a good night of sleep, I didn’t actually fall asleep until after two. There was just too much going on in the windmills of my mind. Once up, I answered e-mails, got the good news that we cast our final singer for the October show – it’s quite a good cast, I must say: Kevin Bailey (Broadway: Annie Get Your Gun; The Lion King), Juliana Hansen, Euan Morton, Joanne O’Brien (tons of cabaret all over the world), Angel Reda (Elphaba, Wicked national tour), and our guest stars Kay Cole (the original Maggie in A Chorus Line) and Jason Graae (the original Cassie in… oh, that’s right, he lost out to Donna McKechnie). Musical director is once again Tom Griep. Two of the singers already have their material, and everyone else will get theirs today as soon as I get the last of the sheet music. I’m still lacking two uptempo songs, both for the gals, so if anyone has any good ideas, please share them instantly. As you know, I prefer the obscure to the known, but I’ll take any suggestions I get.
Then I moseyed on over to Mo’s for a lunch with a film music dealer and my pal Marshall Harvey, editor of Outside The Box. Speaking of Outside The Box, I buckled down, Winsocki, and wrote everyone – all the people who are cast in two of the episodes, and the crew and I put them all on hold for September 27 and 28 to shoot those first two episodes. If there are scheduling problems, I will postpone ONLY till right after October 7 and if there are still scheduling problems I’ll replace people.
Then I did some errands and whatnot, picked up a couple of packages, then sat on my couch like so much fish and watched a bit of two Mario Bava Blu and Rays, Black Sunday and Lisa and the Devil. The latter looks pretty good, the former is transferred from a print rather than a negative and it’s fine but unexceptional. After that, I went to Gelson’s and got some low-cal hot dogs (fifty calories per) and some buns and that was my evening snack. I’d only eaten a salad with turkey in it for lunch. Then I listened to a CD that had arrived. I have been trying to snag a copy of this CD for over a decade and have never managed to, but now it is mine – I have snagged successfully. It’s the Judi Dench A Little Night Music. I have to say I found the recording a wonderful listen – really liked most of the cast, although the Fredrika, who is supposed to be Desiree’s young daughter sounds like she’s thirty (I believe the actress playing her was twenty at the time – she should be thirteen). Miss Dench is wonderful, and Sian Phillips is fantastic in the Hermione Gingold role. It’s well recorded and has a lot of music on it that’s not on the original cast album. This thing must have been in print for twelve seconds – it may well be the rarest cast album CD out there.
Well, why don’t we all click on the Unseemly Button below because my condition needs to see what condition my condition is in and I need a really good night’s beauty sleep.
Today, I shall hopefully awaken after a really good night’s beauty sleep. Then I have a lot of stuff to do – a bit of writing, getting the other three singers their music, errands and whatnot, hopefully picking up some packages, eating, and then we begin comping vocals for the East Coast Singer’s Christmas CD.
Tomorrow I’m working with Juliana as we begin to put her show on its feet. Then more comping. Thursday is the same and Thursday night I’m seeing The Master. But it’s mostly rehearsing with Juliana, a few meetings, and then prepping the new Kritzerland release.
Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, write, get singers music, hopefully pick up packages, eat, and comp. Today’s topic of discussion: What were your favorite surfing songs – what groups, what songs, what was the first surfing type song you ever heard? Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland where I will surely see what condition my condition is in.