Morning!

No one has got the right answer to the jandal question yet - well at least not the answer that Chris once told me, which is of course what I'm after. Some nice tries though James.

Chris was in a medium mood yesterday - he'd been photgraphed for a Metro mag article. We watched the rather disturbing film 'Keane' (2004) directed by Lodge Kerrigan. Good film if ya like 'em dark & slightly impenetrable.

Ha - Paddy you are right. Buffy St Marie would be the female fave (I sent you an e-mail but haven't heard back from you) - Yoko is great, sure, but that wouldn't get Chris salivating like Buffy. And the reason Chris wears jandals is NOT cos he hates socks .... so that one is still open.

PS Hey Barry, my picks from NY are in place now if you scroll down.

Rob

Hiya - Chris was improving when I saw him a few days ago. It's a bit premature to think that the medication issue is resolved but it's nice to see him a bit more lively & perky. Sorry Barry, the pictures haven't been inserted yet - hopefully soon (am a tech retard).

We're coming up to a year from the stroke - sheesh what a year! I don't suppose it's the sort of thing you 'celebrate' exactly, but we can be thankful he hasn't had any more strokes & that he can walk & communicate. He's also had a huge amount of support from many people near & far. So thanks to everyone who has helped or supported in any way.

....... so I'm in the mood for a quiz - a free copy of 'A Warm Gun' by The Nothing to the first respondent who can tell me .... (ummm can't be too easy & WIKI-checkable) ..... the name of Chris' favourite female singer.

...... and another copy to whoever can tell me why Chris wore jandals most of the time.

All the best.

Rod Merkin

Hi All - After pouring all manner of dodgy chemicals into myself over the last week my illness finally seems to be receding.

Thanks for your blog comments. Yes it is a hard time for Chris at the moment - he is still struggling with adjustments to the anti-epilepsy medication. As the dose increases he becomes more sedated and grotty feeling but lowering it tends to allow seizures, so a fine balance is being sought & poor Chris just has to weather the results. It may be quite a few more weeks until things improve - but we are expecting it to get better for him eventually & for his quality of life to improve. Still, he was in good spirits by & large on Sunday night & enjoyed pizza and a glass of Pinot Gris before heading off to the lounge to watch 'They Shoot Horses, Don't They?'.

Yes the gig at Poisson Rouge was fantastic. Such an amazing gesture from all concerned. When I arrived at the venue I went down some side steps into the green room where the artists were hanging out - as I descended I heard 'Those Great Big Puppy Eyes' coming through the stage doors from the venue itself. Mike Wolf was DJing and played Chris's music through all the change overs. Barbara had had a cartoon of Chris' put on tea towels as gifts for everyone that helped out so I was running around handing them out and thanking everyone for participating - so many great people! The venue was a large room with a DJ both at the rear & a bar along the back. There was also a bar behind the main venue bar in a quiet area where the T-shirts designed by Jad Fair were on sale  - I grabbed a bunch for friends but was too slow to get any XL ones so I missed out (time to lose weight maybe). Gareth was selling pies & there were posters designed by Christine on sale too - all proceeds to Chris.

Unfortunately I missed quite a few of the performances as I spent lots of time backstage talking to people who were curious about Chris. But I saw Jeff play -  of course the YouTube clips are a tiny faint glimmer of a really great & special musical moment. The noise from the audience when he came out to play was incredible - I think it's the only time at a gig when I've had to block my ears in pain. I think it's entirely fair to say people were ecstatic - I believe some were crying (!). I have a strong memory of Kyp Malone and a woman (girlfriend?) embracing joyfully and jumping up & down. Jeff took a while to set-up - he had two mics about 4 feet away as his voice is so powerful. When he started with 'Oh Comely' the audience started singing along but kept their volume low so they were like a roomful of reverential backing singers, careful not to drown out Jeff himself. Jeff was so intense in his delivery it was gorgeous. No photos were allowed but I couldn't help snapping a couple after checking with promoter Ben if it was ok. Jeff performed then left the stage and the audience went wild (as we in the biz say) & after a few minutes he came back for an encore of 'Engine'. There is a review by a proper reviewer at Music Mix if you want more. Jeff is a sweet guy and seemed to really enjoy himself.

There was much concern over Chris' well-being and some people noted that the evening seemed to be more about Jeff than Chris, and, although Ira from Yo La Tengo talked about Chris' impact on his life to the audience, I guess it is a fair criticism. On the other hand Chris hasn't really pursued fame and it's in-keeping with Chris' approach that for many people in the audience the night was a lowkey introduction to him & his work - as Barbara said to me once, people 'come to' Chris' music in their own time.

All the best.

Hi All - I'm back, but struck down with a travellers bug of disturbing proportions so I will write a more indepth post later.

The Poisson Rouge gig for Chris was fantastic & the artists that played were all incredibly sweet. Everyone was well looked after backstage with great food & beers. Ben Goldberg & the team at Ba Da Bing records did a superb job of looking after all the artists and organising a very successful event.

Of course the highlight was Jeff Mangum's performance which had, what felt like, the whole venue singing along with him! I've asked Hayden to put some clips of Jeff playing into the Knox Box for ya.

Thanks heaps to the NY blog readers who came up & introduced themselves - great to meet you guys & thanks again for reading!

Soon.

Hi All - Sorry I haven't posted for a while but things have been pretty quiet for a while as Chris is still feeling pretty rough from his medication. I am off to NYC for the gig (YIPPIE .....ahem). Will try & do a couple posts from the US.

All the best.

Hi All - Chris has really been struggling with adjustments to his medications over the weekend. In my last blog I said he was getting steadier but unfortunately that momentary upswing has stopped & Chris has been getting pretty severe fatigue.