Back to Ohio…
(…but only in my thoughts…) “My city was” still there, with fewer changes than I might have liked, but my high school may be demolished by now – it was scheduled for replacement. I am glad that I have some photos, even though the memories are not all good.
Time for a “pseudorandom rumination…” 
Linear thinkers may wish to “bail” at this point.
Everyone in California came from somewhere else, even those “Native Californians” (of bumper sticker fame; I don’t mean Native Americans, who likely also came from somewhere else, much earlier). Where I came from was only 2000 miles away, in contrast to some of you who came from “half a world away.”
One of my children gave me a holiday gift of the latest release by The Pretenders, “B RE AK UP the CON CRE T E,” their ninth studio album, and first since “Loose Screw” in 2002, according to the Wikipedia article.
Although The Pretenders is/”are” a British rock band, Chrissie Hynde is originally from Akron, Ohio (also home to Devo and other rockers). No, I am not from Akron, but have driven through “The Rubber City” many, many times and listened to Three Dog Night and the James Gang in the city’s Rubber Bowl, back BEFORE much of the rubber industries, like iron and steel industries, left that part of Ohio (partly, I suspect, for “union-busting” reasons). The Wikipedia article on Akron, OH has fascinating details about the city.
Chrissie Hynde has an indomitable spirit, a “signature sound,” an amazing gift for songwriting, and an incredible voice, of course. Chrissie Hynde is almost exactly five months younger than I am, and she attended Firestone High School in Akron. She also attended Kent State University at the time of the Kent State shootings (and Jackson State shootings). In discussions of Tiananmen Square shootings, I sometimes have to remind (usually younger) people that we shoot students in our country, too. Kent State University arguably attempted to “pave over” the memory of the shootings there, much like the paving of Ohio lamented in some of Hynde’s songs. In speaking with a brother in Akron yesterday, I learned that Hynde (who lives in London, England) has been spotted recently in local businesses in Akron. I heard that The Pretenders are slated to perform there soon. Hynde owns an apartment in Akron, and I was told that she is also associated with a vegetarian restaurant there.
I attended (The ) Ohio State University at the same time, was tear-gassed (several times in one afternoon) out of classes that I had paid to attend, witnessed the occupation of the campus by the National Guard, who largely protected students from the police (who had run Columbus out of tear gas in one afternoon), and witnessed acts by agents provocateurs of the police, who, for example, participated in the closing of the campus gates at Neil Avenue. I also learned new definitions for words like “entrapment,” which the police chief at the time (yes, I remember his name) defined as “leading a person into his own guilt.” Some 5000 National Guard soldiers were encamped at the nearby fairgrounds, and after the reopening of the campus (after a two-week shutdown), turned the campus into a “Cordoned-Off Area” with military checkpoints.
Yes, some events “stick with you” (maybe they “stuck” with Chrissie Hynde as well), but back to The Pretenders and “BREAK UP the CONCRETE…”
The Pretenders were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in Cleveland, OH in March 2005. Yes, I toured the Hall with my family when the kids were young. If you have not yet made this pilgrimmage to Cleveland, add it to your “Bucket List.” You music lovers will not be disappointed.
The album is, IMHO (“in my humble opinion” – I am not a music reviewer, and this is NOT an endorsement), excellent and engineered to have a broad appeal. The first edition of the CD (the one I received) is packaged with a “Handmade seed paper” which you can soak and plant and break up your own concrete. Musical details are in the Wikipedia entry about the album. Sadly, my edition of the album lacks the bonus tracks (“countrified versions of Pretender’s songs”) found on the other editions listed, but I should be able to purchase some of them from the iTunes version. The legendary drummer, Jim Keltner plays drums and does background vocals on the studio version of the album, but according to Wikipedia, “Martin Chambers let Hynde work with Keitner as a favor to her for the album,” and (the also legendary) Chambers will be doing the tour, which starts in January 2009.
The pedal steel guitar work of Eric Heywood adds to the “rockabilly” sound of the album. Several tracks (“Love’s a Mystery,” “You Didn’t have To,” and “One Thing Never Changed” [this one is just beautiful]) are almost ensured to have “crossover” playability on “country” stations, and should ensure the popularity of the album in Hynde’s (and my) native Ohio, as well as places like California’s Central Valley and VAST other regions of the U.S. Other tracks (“Almost Perfect”) are “edgier,” “Blues’ier” (“Don’t Lose Faith in Me” and “Rosalee”), and hard-driving (“Boots of Chinese Plastic”).
The title track of “Break Up the Concrete,” with its environmental appeal and its “Bo Diddley Beat”, will “hook” you with its earworm and have you “Diddleying” around until you absolutely have got to hear the album again.
Here is my wish for a very successful tour!
-Bill at Cheshire Cat Photo™
You can view higher-resolution photos (*generally* 7-30 megabytes, compressed) at the Cheshire Cat Photo™ Pro Gallery on Shutterfly™, where you can also order prints and gifts decorated with the photos of your choice from the gallery. Apparel and other gifts decorated with some of our most popular photos can be ordered from the Cheshire Cat Photo™ Store on CafePress®. Both Shutterfly™ and CafePress® ship to most international locations worldwide! If you don’t see what you want or would like to receive an email when new photos are up on the site, send us an email at info@cheshirecatphoto.com.
