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Just in case we might like the same kinds of music, here are a few new selections that have earned time on the ole' turntable.


PISTOLERA - EN ESTE CAMINO
Luchadora
The second CD from this New York-based group does not have a weak spot in any of the twelve tracks. From Nuevos Ojos to Arena the songs are tight, full-bore Latino progressive, including the rendition of Bob Marley's War (Guerra). The group consists of Sandra Lilia Velásquez on vocals and guitar, Maria Elena on accordion and piano, Inca B. Saiz on bajo, and Ani Cordero on drums and vocals. These four musicians manage to produce a powerful and very danceable sound. There is a lot going on here, from the selection of song formats and instruments to the politically-charged lyrics - check out Extranjero and Policía for examples. As I did my best to keep up to the music, I heard a little banda, a little tejano, a bit more of ranchera, a dose of indie-pop, and a great deal of something else that this band brings all on its own. Go here for a video interview with the entire band as part of its selection as the Clandestino Artist of the Month for Go TV Networks. The band's website is here.


CALEXICO - CARRIED TO DUST
Quarterstick Records
Tuscon residents Joey Burns and John Convertino (and several guest musicians, some of whom are now members of the band) have been recording as Calexico since 1996. Their latest effort, Carried to Dust, is a pleasing combination of musicianship, lyrical free expression, and a soaring, almost romantic ambiance. There's a country style to the music, but somehow jazz plays a part. According to the record label website, this collection is a concept piece about a Los Angeles writer, the 2007 writer's strike, and a mind-bending tour of stops along the inspirational highway. I confess I haven't got that deep into the CD yet, but the song Writer's Minor Holiday sure is in that territory. You can watch Burns and Convertino perform Two Silver Trees. Amparo Sanchez and Jacob Valenzuela carry the vocals on the beautiful and intriguing Inspiración. The video does not do justice to the CD version, but you can watch the full Calexico band perform Inspiración here at this link.


LOS FABULOCOS FEATURING KID RAMOS - LOS FABULOCOS
Delta Grove
I confess. I'm an old timer. I dig oldies, roots music, blues, conjunto, a little country. Give me some rockabilly or a speeding accordion, and it's all good. Through in some Tex-Mex and a soul cover, a few catchy lyrics, and it's even better. And there you have Los Fabulocos. Veteran Southern California musicians Jesus Cuevas (vocals and accordion), Mike Molina (drums), and James Barrios (bass and background vocals) have teamed up with blues star Kid Ramos (vocals, guitar, bajo sexto, Spanish guitar) to form a high-energy, kick-ass party band that challenges you to stay in your seat once they get started. Hey, this CD has Un Mojado Sin Licencia (the guy just wanted to see his Chencha) from Flaco Jimenez's playlist, the zydeco classic You Ain't Nothin' But Fine, and Cornelia Reyna's Como Un Perro. Included are bangin' versions of Lloyd Price's Just Because (one of the all-time pachuco broken-hearted tunes) and Dr. Loco's Mexico Americano. See what I mean? How can this be anything but great. And the original material is just as solid: If You Know, Day After Day, and You Keep Drinkin' . This CD gets my highest recommendation. There's plenty of video of these guys already on the Internet. Here's one.

CD release party on September, 12 2008, 9:00 PM, at The Doll Hut with guests The 44’s - 107 Adams Avenue, Anaheim, California. (714)533-1286.

AND ...
I've heard only samples of the new Indigenous effort, Broken Lands, but it's getting good press. Need to get my hands on a full copy. Los Lonely Boys have struck again with another winner, Forgiven. Accordion giant Steve Jordan produced this gig. And for something different - Wynton Marsalis and Willie Nelson? It works. Contrary to the CD's title, Two Men with the Blues, this is not downbeat. Stardust is splendid.


A BIT AND A PIECE
Rigoberto González reviews Manuel Peña's Where The Ox Does Not Plow (University of New Mexico Press) in the El Paso Times, which you can read here. González says that "Peña's memoir is an insightful study of one man's journey toward political and social consciousness, and of his discovery that value is not in wages and class comforts, but in self-respect and the appreciation for his imperfect family and community. Education, he tells us, is not limited to the confines of the classroom."


Finally, I had some fun with Elmore Leonard and his Ten Rules For Writing in a piece I did for the Colorado Authors' League. You can read it here. As my grandson says, "Just kidding."

Later.

Need some writing music? I can't tell you how many pages I've written while listening to Calexico.

This band sounds like the end of a pulp fiction novel, when the ruined hero trudges off to Mexico--maybe to escape, or maybe to die in the desert.

So get this: U.S. Representative and astronaut wife Gabrielle Giffords chose the Calexico tune "Crystal Frontier" to wake up the astronauts on the space shuttle last week. Check it out at Wired, and get yourself some new writing music:

"Touch and Go is offering the song as a free download up until the mission is complete and Discovery touches down on June 14. Calexico's forthcoming effort Carried to Dust is due out September 9 on Quarterstick Records."

Two book trailers enter the bloody ring, but only one can emerge.

What is the most popular poem on the Internets? Who In The Hell Is Tom Jones? by the intoxicating poet, Charles Bukowski. You must read every poem on this Top 50 Most Viewed Poems list--it's like a poetry anthology edited by a roomful of MySpace kids and webby readers. Thanks to Ed Champion for the link.

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SHOW NOTES:

The Book of Life hosted a live, call-in show on February 7, 2008 with special guest Pamela Ehrenberg, author of Ethan, Suspended. Our discussion topic was "what makes a book Jewish?" This recording of the call-in show has been edited for clarity and sound quality, but is essentially the same show heard by those who listened live on the big day.

Many of those who called in are well-known as authors or bloggers. Follow these links to learn more about the voices you hear on this episode (listed alphabetically):

> Maggie Anton, author of the series Rashi's Daughters

> Barbara Bietz, author of Like a Maccabee, and blogger at Barbara's Book Blog

> Marie Cloutier, blogger at The Boston Bibliophile

> June Cummins, Associate Professor of English & Comparative Literature at San Diego State University

> Andi Davidson, past member of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee

> Pamela Ehrenberg, author of Ethan, Suspended

> Brenda Ferber, author of Julia's Kitchen

> Rita Frischer, past Chair of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee

> Janet Gingold, author of children's novels and nonfiction

> Mary Claire Mahaney, author of Osaka Heat

> Elizabeth McBride, blogger at Mommytown, who tried to submit questions by chat; we ran out of time, but I want to acknowledge her participation

> Kathe Pinchuck, current Chair of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee

> Hazel Rochman, author, and editor/reviewer for ALA's Booklist

> Linda Silver, author/editor of The Jewish Values Finder (book and database), and another past chair of the Sydney Taylor Book Award Committee

Thanks to everyone who participated!


Background music is provided by The Freilachmakers Klezmer String Band.

Books and CD's mentioned on the show may be borrowed from the Feldman Children's Library at Congregation B'nai Israel. Browse our online catalog to reserve books, post a review, or just to look around!

The Book of Life's experimental live call-in show was held yesterday, and it was a success! A number of people called to share opinions about our featured book, Ethan, Suspended, and about what defines a Jewish book.

The show was recorded, and I'm editing it now; soon it will be added to the regular podcast line-up. I apologize in advance for the sound quality. My own voice sounds kind of broken up, while other callers came through loud and clear. I may, in fact, try re-recording my own comments if I can get it to integrate with the rest of the conversation.

Many of our callers were well-known figures within the Judaic literary community, so I will provide links in the show notes to lead you back to some of their special projects (blogs, books, and so on).

Thanks so much to everyone who called and to everyone who listened live, and thanks again to featured guest author Pamela Ehrenberg!

Click the play button on this flash player to listen to the podcast now:

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In this special "Bells & Whistles" edition of The Book of Life, host Heidi Estrin gives instructions for accessing the live Book of Life call-in show being held on Thursday, February 7, 2008, 3-4pm EST.

The theme of the February 7 program is "Funny, That Book Doesn't Look Jewish" and our guest will be Pamela Ehrenberg, author of the middle-grade novel Ethan, Suspended. We'll take calls about Ethan, Suspended, and about what makes a book Jewish in general.

What follows is a transcript of the podcast, for those of you who prefer written to auditory instructions:

On Thursday February 7, 2008 from 3 to 4 pm eastern standard time, The Book of Life will host a live call-in show using the Talkshoe service. The show is entitled "Funny, That Book Doesn't Look Jewish." Our special guest will be Pamela Ehrenberg, author of the middle grade novel Ethan, Suspended, and our discussion topic will be what makes a book Jewish. We'll do this Diane Rehm -style: first I'll chat with Pam about her book, and then we'll open the phones for questions about comments about Ethan, Suspended AND about defining Jewish literature.

If you simply want to listen to the discussion, go to our website, bookoflifepodcast.com, on February 7 at 3pm and click the PLAY button on the Talkshoe widget you'll see in the right-hand column. The show will play through your computer's speakers. If you're busy on February 7, don't worry... the show will be recorded and added to our regular podcast for later listening.

If you'd like to participate in the discussion, you can call in on February 7 between 3 and 4pm eastern time using any phone or voice over IP. Please be aware that the phone number is NOT toll free.

To call in to the show, dial 724-444-7444. It will ask for a Call ID that identifies The Book of Life as the show you want to reach, and that number is 10816.

At that point it will ask you for a 10-digit PIN number, but if you don't have a PIN you can simply press 1 and the pound key to sign in as a guest. Here's the deal with PIN numbers: If you sign up for a free account and create a PIN, the system will tell me who you are when you call. My hosting control panel will show your name instead of just showing an anonymous caller from your area code. It just makes it easier for me to keep track of what's going on and who's participating.

I encourage you to go to Talkshoe.com ahead of time and sign up for a free account so that your name will show when you call in... but if you don't want to, that's okay, I still want you to call and participate in the discussion.

Talkshoe also provides a way to do chat via text during the show, but I plan to ignore that feature. I think just hosting the discussion will keep me busy enough without that.

So that's it! Please mark February 7th on your calendar and plan to call in! In the meantime, check out pamelaehrenberg.com to learn more about Ethan, Suspended. In a starred review in Booklist, reviewer Hazel Rochman said that "Ehrenberg focuses on themes of race and class without sounding preachy" as Ethan moves in with his grandparents in DC and finds himself suddenly in the minority as the only white, Jewish kid in his school. I really enjoyed Ethan, Suspended and I think you will too. I can't wait to discuss it with you on February 7th!