"msifg" wrote:
>"Will Dockery" wrote:
>>"Rob Evans", mushmouth poet, wrote:
>>>"Will Dockery" wrote:
>>>> "Rob Evans" wrote;
>>>>> "msifg" wrote:
> >> > Actually, if you did show up around here, I'd welcome you, offer you
a cup
> >> > of coffee and invite you onto the stage... a crazy old Englishter
reading
> >> > poetry might be quite a draw in downtown Smith's Station, Alabama:
> >> >
> >> > http://www.wikinfo.org/index.php/Image:Smiths-station.jpg
> >
> > This is downtown Smith's Station where the Del Ranch bar is located,
scene
> > of some great music, including shows with Dockery & Conley.. The country
> > music singer-songwriter Conway Twitty graduated from high school at
> > Smith's... I'm not sure if he's known or remembered very much anywhere
but
> > around here but he had some big hits back in the 1960s-70s.
> >
> > Smith's Station is about 10 miles out of town from here
> >
> >> > But your admission that you can't shake your "Dockery obsession" is
> > noted, Mushmouth.
> >>
> >> alabama?
> >>
> >> that's about as SOUTH as it gets.
> >
> > Hell, Atlanta is considered North to many folks around here... heh.
> >
> > Curious, in what part of the world are you located?
> >
> >> that's almost as south as georgia.
> >
> > Exactly as far, really. Shadowville (a district of Columbus, Georgia)
sits
> > on the Georgia-Alabama border, seperated by the Chattahoochie River...
> > Alabama's about a ten minute ride from where I type this, just over the
> > bridge, in Phenix City:
> >
> >> i honestly think there are some folks around those small
> >> towns that still think the War is going on.
> >
> > As you get out into the country more, absolutely, though with Fort
Benning
> > being here, pretty much /any/ war will do for the folks around here...
> > Benning's been a big influence on this area since at least WW2, which
keeps
> > a lot of the economy troubles from hitting too hard, with the built-in
> > income from the thousands of soldiers who come to town to shop. Also,
with
> > so many military people settling and retiring here (including my father,
> > one
> > of thousands of soldier who married a Southern girl and stayed here with
> > her) almost everyone it seems is from "someplace else".
> >
> >> confederate flags and high school's named
> >> stonewall high don't help.
> >
> > Oh yeah, Rebel flags are all over the place around here, including (up
> > until
> > a year or so ago) the Georgia stae flag!
> >
> >> haha
> >>
> >> i still have yet to visit vicksburg, mississippi as
> >> part of my civil war tour.
> >>
> >> i've been to the major sights in the east.
> >>
> >> huge history in that neck of the woods.
> >
> > You might consider adding Shadowville to your tour, since this is the
site
> > of the "last land battle" of the Civil War:
> >
> > http://freepages.history.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~bellware/
> >
> > "...The list also includes Columbus, Georgia the location of a little
> > known
> > engagement that took place on April 16,1865. And, surprising as it
sounds,
> > Columbus is the site of the actual 'Last Battle of the Civil War.' [...]
> > In
> > short, the battle was the last significant engagement of Wilson's Raid
> > where
> > Bvt. Maj. General James Harrison Wilson lead three divisions through
> > Alabama
> > and into Georgia in the Spring of 1865. [...] In short, the battle was
the
> > last significant engagement of Wilson's Raid where Bvt. Maj. General
James
> > Harrison Wilson lead three divisions through Alabama and into Georgia in
> > the
> > Spring of 1865. The divisions were lead by Generals Emory Upton, Edward
> > McCook and Eli Long. After taking Selma and Montgomery on April 2 and
> > April
> > 12, 1865 respectively, they headed to Columbus, Georgia, which they
> > captured. Upton's division was the one most involved in the attack on
> > Columbus. His brigades were lead by Generals Andrew J. Alexander and
> > Edward
> > F. Winslow. Major General Howell Cobb commanded the 3,000 Confederate
> > troops
> > in defense of Columbus.
> >
> > Alexander's brigade attempted to capture the lower bridge between Girard
> > and
> > Columbus at about 2 p.m. on Easter Sunday April 16, 1865, but was
> > repulsed.
> > General Upton decided to try a nightault and received General
Wilson's
> > approval. General Winslow lead the attack on the 14th Street bridge
after
> > dark, about 8 p.m. By 10 p.m. the bridge was captured and Columbus fell.
> > General Wilson made his headquarters at the Mott House on the river. The
> > last person killed in the battle was Colonel C.A.L. Lamar of General
> > Cobb's
> > staff. He was shot from his horse at the foot of the bridge a few yards
> > from
> > the Mott house. Wilson left for Macon, GA on April 18. Johnston's truce
> > with
> > Sherman ceased hostilities in that theater before General Wilson arrived
> > in
> > Macon on April 20, 1865..."
> >
> > This "last battle" actually led to the creation of Coca-Cola, no
kidding:
> >
> > From the archives:
> > ----
> > From: WRBRL-TV News Channel 3 (wrbl...@cbus.mindspring.com)
> > Subject: An inch saves Coca-Cola.......?
> > View: Complete Thread (5 articles)
> > Newsgroups: alt.history.what-if
> > Date: 1996/06/18
> >
> > Just an interesting tidbit. There would be no coke if one stray
mini-ball
> > had hit John Pemberton an inch or two higher.
> >
> > A week after Lee surrendered at Appomatox and a few days after Lincoln
was
> > shot, a huge force of Union cavalry led by Gen. James Wilson was bearing
> > down on Columbus, Georgia. It's goal was to strike across the
> > Chattahoochee
> > River into the heart of Georgia. During the battle, which took place in
> > Phenix City, Alabama, a Columbus pharmacist named John Pemberton charged
> > across one of the bridges into the teeth of the Union advance. He was
> > slashed with a saber and shot. Only the quick thinking of a friend
saved
> > his life by leading him off the field of battle.
> > The wounds were painful, and Pemberton worked most of his life to find
an
> > adequate pain killer. He experimented with what was thought to be the
> > miracle drug of the day: coca leaves (cocaine to me and you). He came
up
> > with a concoction some years later in Atlanta. It didn't go over big as
a
> > pain remedy, but did go over big as a fountain drink: it was Coca-Cola.
So
> > the next time you're pondering alternative histories while drinking down
a
> > nice cool coke, remember only by the grace of God are you enjoying a
coke.
> > ----
> >
> > Anyway, if you do happen to make it down this way, I'll give you the
> > tour...
> > which would mainly involve some excuses to drop in and jam with various
> > folks, maybe write a song together...
> >
> > --
> > "Twilight Girl" and other new poetry & music from Will Dockery:
> > http://www.myspace.com/willdockery
>
> i'm a southwestern soul.
>
> born in los angeles, lived most of my life in phoenix, az.
Interesting, I was thinking about Phoenix just today, when I found myself
reading about Alice Cooper, of all people (Bob Dylan in an interview once
called him one of the "overlooked songwriters"), who spent most of his early
years (along with the original AC band) there, and in fact had his first
minor hit locally, there.
I don't remember what got me into reading about Alice after not really
thinking much about him for at least 30 years, but his story's pretty
interesting. Here's a bit on his days in Phoenix:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alice_Cooper
"...After a series of childhood illnesses, Furnier and his family moved to
Phoenix, Arizona. After Washington Elementary School, Furnier attended
Cortez High School in northern Phoenix. He was also a member of the Order of
DeMolay [...] In 1964, at the age of 16, Furnier was eager to take part in
the local annual Letterman's talent show and gathered fellow cross-country
teammates from the school to form a group for the show.[9] They named
themselves The Earwigs, and since they didn't know how to play any
instruments at the time, they dressed up like The Beatles and mimed their
performance to Beatles songs. As a result of winning the talent show and
loving the experience of being onstage, the group immediately proceeded to
learn how to play instruments they acquired from a local pawn shop and soon
renamed themselves The Spiders, featuring Furnier on vocals and harmonica,
Glen Buxton on lead guitar, John Tatum on rhythm guitar, Dennis Dunaway on
bass guitar, and John Speer on drums.[10] Musically, the group were inspired
by artists such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Janis Joplin, The Who,
The Kinks, and The Yardbirds. For the next year the band performed regularly
around the Phoenix area with a huge black spider's web as their backdrop,
the group's first stage prop. In 1965 they also recorded their first single
"Why Don't You Love Me" (originally performed by The Blackwells), with
Furnier learning the harmonica for the song. [...] In 1966, the members of
The Spiders graduated from Cortez High School. After North High School
footballer Michael Bruce replaced John Tatum on rhythm guitar, the band
scored a local #1 radio hit with "Don't Blow Your Mind", an original
composition from their second single release. By 1967, the band had begun to
make regular roadtrips to Los Angeles, California to play shows. They soon
renamed themselves The Nazz and released the single 'Wonder Who's Lovin' Her
Now..."
Anyway, no doubt that's of limited interest besides the Phoenix reference...
> i tried moving around, but the desert always sucked me back in.
>
> i know allot of other desert dwellers, but many folks come
> out here and don't have a taste for it. i suppose the heat
> has something to do with that. to be honest, i don't even
> notice it anymore. i've lived out here most of my life.
I hear a lot about the "dry heat" out there, where the heat here is
"oppressively humid"... "muggy".
> that's some really cool history there. i especially liked
> the part about coca-cola. thanks for sharing. i'm definitely
> going to make it out there at some point. thanks for offering
> to give a tour and jam out. that sounds cool.
>
> that part of the country, world is steeped in history. i know
> southerners really enjoy history. they have allot to be proud of.
> although, some people like to paint the War as only civil, others
> make the case the it was between states. i like to think of it
> as one of the most painful and extreme moments in our countries
> history. it defines us as a nation. and anyone who denies that
> fact is oblivious to the reality of the situation. no amount
> of economic misery or 911 attacks will EVER compare to the misery
> felt during those times. while it may be an embarrassing
> moment in our history, it also set the precedent of what kind
> of nation we were going to become.
>
> we are, whether we like it or not, a nation that "frees" other
> nations. anyone think it's a joke? think a little harder.
> the problem is that usually when we try to "free" them, we
> simultaneously oppress them. the logic is that one nation cannot
> set another nation free. it can only show it the road. the
> oppressed nation must fight there own "revolutionary war" to
> get there. that's when we step in like france did for us and
> "save the day."
>
> free iraq;
> free Afghanistan;
> free Kuwait;
> free the slaves;
> free the colonists;
> free german people;
> free japan;
> free Somalia;
> free the south Vietnamese;
>
> and yet, can we really free anything if we're trapped
> in the bondage of greed and money in exchange for happiness?
> can we call ourselves free when we're ruled by commercial
> television which orders us to go out and buy until we
> go into bankruptcy? what kind of "freedom" did we end up
> with?
>
> free the u.s.a.
>
> "free your mind and your will follow."
Well put, and I'll return to this post on my return... the night is slipping
by and I have to get out to George Sulzbach's to check on how his cover art
for the CD, and his ideas for spot illos in the lyric booklet are coming
along... we'd hoped he'd make it to the show last night at Sports Rock Cafe
to get some sketches, but he's really the hermit type, living way out in the
country with his art.
No doubt I'll have a couple more of GB's stupid "Orsen Wells" imitations to
laugh at before I close down, also... may let those dangle a bit, since
they're rapidly degenerating to blubbering one-liners, as usual... heh.
Ever notice that those two (GB & OWCC) never post at the same time, but
their content and writing style is exactly the same?
Interesting.
--
"Twilight Girl" and other new poetry & music from Will Dockery:
http://www.myspace.com/willdockery
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