J.A. Happ hit Robinson Cano in the hand with a pitch in the first inning which gave the Yankees a good scare. Cano’s hand isn’t broken but still, Happ is the same guy who broke Curtis Granderson’s hand earlier this year and while he wasn’t throwing at Cano intentionally, Ken Singleton suggested that perhaps he should not be throwing inside to lefties if he can’t do it without hitting them.

Cano’s injury weighed on the minds of the Yankees and their fans  all evening. In the meantime, the boys proceeded to kick the crap out of Happ. In fact, Alfonso Soriano, who followed Cano in the lineup, hit a 3-run home run, his first of 2 homers against Happ. Alex Rodriguez added a long home run later, and Mark Reynolds also hit a solo shot. It was more than enough for Andy Pettitte who pitched 7 scoreless innings. The double play ball helped as the Yanks turned 4 of them and evened the series with a 7-1 win.

[Photo Via: Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images]

Which way are we going, here, huh?

It’s old man Andy tonight.

Brett Gardner CF
Derek Jeter SS
Robinson Cano 2B
Alfonso Soriano LF
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Curtis Granderson RF
Vernon Wells DH
Mark Reynolds 1B
Chris Stewart C

Never mind nuthin’:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Credit: MRJ77]

[Photo Credit: Gordon Parks]

This: No words, just love.

“Richland” by Gustavo Jononovich.

Cinephilia and Beyond has this good post on Scorsese editing Life Lessons. The editing room–room 306 of the Brill Building–stuff was shot when I was a senior in high school and working in the building. Ah, memories.

New York Stories – Life Lessons (1989) from Aitor Garcia on Vimeo.

ss

We’ve seen it before so no need to get into it. And Hughes wasn’t terrible exactly. The offense didn’t do much either.

The Jays were going to have to beat the Yanks at some point.

Final: Jays 5, Yanks 2.

Let’s just hope that was their one win for the series.

I’m slippin’, I admit it. The Yanks have handled the Jays this year. So why does something tell me that stops this week, especially with Phil Hughes pitching tonight?

Stupid Heebie Jeebies.

Brett Gardner CF
Derek Jeter SS
Robinson Cano 2B
Alfonso Soriano LF
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Curtis Granderson DH
Lyle Overbay 1B
Ichiro Suzuki RF
Austin Romine C

Jeter’s back.

Never mind the Birds:

Let’s Go Yank-ees!

And it concerns Matt Harvey.

Clayton Kershaw’s making a case for himself writers Jay Jaffe.

[Photo Credit: Stephen Dunn / Getty Images]

The Queen is hyped-up.

[Photo Credit: Lee Friedlander]

Around this time 13 years ago I got together with my friend Alan to make a mix cd of the rap records that has been released that year. A rash of good hip hop records came out in 2000, from major label and underground artists alike. There were joints from name brands like Jay Z, Snoop, Dre, Eminem, Ghostface, MOP, Common, Xzibit, Wu, Outkast, and De La Soul. The veterans were still heard–Biz, Phife and Sadat X. But some of the records I liked most were from so-called underground artists like J-Live, Quasimoto, Dialated Peoples, Kid Koala, Slum Village, Cali Agents, Rah Digga, Encore, and The Nextmen.

Alan and I had known each other for a few years and always talked about doing something together. Alan was a record nut and an engineer. He’d programmed drums for Tori Amos, Madonna, and C&C Music Factory. Worked with Francois Kevorkian and Steinski.

Alan was a whiz at Pro Tools, a professional audio editing program. It was a chance for me to make a dream mix because of what Alan could do technically. I figured we’d make a little cd that I could give to friends for the holidays.

Alan lived in Midwood, Brooklyn, I lived in Carroll Gardens. I’d go over to his place with my records and video tapes. What started as a quick project turned into something more substantial. Four months and more than 120 studio hours later we produced an album-length mix cd we called “Borough to Borough.” (By the time we finished I’d moved to the Bronx.)

After each session, Alan burned a cd of what we’d done. I’d take it with me, listen to it for days, make notes, and the next time we saw each other, we’d make corrections before moving on to the next track. We shared similar sensibilities so there was an easy shorthand between us–remember that Bugs Bunny cartoon when?, what about that George Carlin line? Still, it was the first time I ever truly collaborated with someone. I learned that I couldn’t always have my way. Sometimes, I had to let Alan show off like when he reprogrammed the drum pattern on a Jurassic 5 record because there was no place on the instrumental where the drums were in the clear. And I was always happy to let him do his thing because it sounded great but also because I admire watching a craftsman at work.

If the project was a fantasy come true for me, it was liberating for Alan. He could play and do anything he wanted to do; he wasn’t just a hired hand. So we played and played, and honed the sombitch until we were satisfied. Then we packaged it and sold it and even got reviewed in a few British music magazines.

So here you have it. An audio collage, featuring rhymes, scratching, dope production and a host of spoken word and movie clips. You’ll recognize the voices of Fred Gwynne, Jack Nicholson, Elliott Gould, George Carlin, Marv Albert, Bill Murray, Frank Oz, Holly Hunter, Steve Martin, Elaine May, Walter Matthau, Al Pacino, Jack Palance, Joe Pesci, Goose Gossage, Richard Pryor, Mel Blanc, John Sterling, Mel Brooks, Bill Cosby, Earl Weaver, Nicholas Cage, Jackie Gleason, Chris Russo, Mark Rydell, Albert Brooks, Michelle Pfieffer, Gabe Kaplan, Mike Tyson, Robert De Niro, Orson Welles, John Turturro, Art Carney and Fat Clemenza.

Enjoy:

Track Listing:

Intro. Beat by DJ Desue (Barber Shop Emcess…”Music, Money and Women”)

Yes. J-Live, produced by Emmai Allaqueva

Hotshit. Nextman

Tour Guide. People Under the Stairs

I Don’t Know. Slum Village

Crookie Monster. Produced by the Alchemist

Oooh. De La Soul

Dew It. Biz Markie. Produced by Ill Chemist/Al D

What’s Up Fatlip? Fatlip

Microphone Mathmatics. Madlib

Lyrical Fluctuation. Jigmastas, beat by DJ Spinna

Service. Dialated Peoples. Cuts by Babu

Take Over. Joey Chavez. Cuts by DJ Revolution

Any Champion. Pacewon. Cuts by DJ Revolution.

Worldwide. Defari. Beats by Joey Chavez

Love/Hate. Encore. Beat by Nextmen

Rhymes. Get Open featuring Sadat X

Nasty or Nice. Beat by Y@k Ballz

Lesson of Today. Rah Digga. Produced by DJ Premier

Rockaparty. J B Lee. Produced by Ill Chemist, Al D

Loop Diggin’. Madlib

Ass Finish First. Beat by DJ Nu-Mark

J-Liveness: Produced by Pete Rock

Players/Fall in Love. Slum Village

Barhopper. Kid Koala

Just One More Thing. People Under the Stairs

Them That’s Not. J-Live

Nighty Night. Beat by Madlib

Picture of me in Gravesend, Brooklyn with Sammy’s 62 Dominican Republic shirt from the ’98 season and Nathan’s cup of soda. Picture by Alan Friedman.

Alexandra does shells with red pepper and tomato sauce. This is happiness.

A new documentary on J.D. Salinger claims more Salinger books are coming:

But a forthcoming documentary and related book, both titled “Salinger,” include detailed assertions that Mr. Salinger instructed his estate to publish at least five additional books — some of them entirely new, some extending past work — in a sequence that he intended to begin as early as 2015.

The new books and stories were largely written before Mr. Salinger assigned his output to a trust in 2008, and would greatly expand the Salinger legacy.

One collection, to be called “The Family Glass,” would add five new stories to an assembly of previously published stories about the fictional Glass family, which figured in Mr. Salinger’s “Franny and Zooey” and elsewhere, according to the claims, which surfaced in interviews and previews of the documentary and book last week.

Another would include a retooled version of a publicly known but unpublished tale, “The Last and Best of the Peter Pans,” which is to be collected with new stories and existing work about the fictional Caulfields, including “Catcher in the Rye.” The new works are said to include a story-filled “manual” of the Vedanta religious philosophy, with which Mr. Salinger was deeply involved; a novel set during World War II and based on his first marriage; and a novella modeled on his own war experiences.

Here’s the trailer:

Just rollin’ lookin’ for the one they call E-Z…

A friend saw this on an electrical box on 2nd Ave in midtown.

The fifth home game at Yankee Stadium after 9.11 was Cal Ripken Day. Here’s my scorecard. The game ended in a 1-1 tie, called due to rain. It was a cold, miserable day. I remember seeing cops on the roof of the Stadium behind the lights. They looked like prison guards.

Ripken gave a short speech before the game, saluted all the famous Yankees, including Jeffrey Maier which prompted boos and laughs. During the National Anthem, the crowd joined in, slowly at first, low but firm. “Oh, say does that…” It gave me the chills. The city was still under the perishable spell of togetherness that existed in the days and weeks after the attacks. During the 7th inning stretch, the field was cleared of everyone but the umps when Eddie Layton played “God Bless America” on the organ. There was more solemn singing from the crowd.

It was a memorable day. Cal whiffed 4 times. And nobody won.

Charcoal and gouache. Drawing I did back in 1992.

And on Sunday the Yankees didn’t score much once again though Evan Longoria and Robinson Cano looked like the studs that they are. Ivan Nova and Alex Cobb were in good form and then the bullpens took over with the score tied, 2-2. It went to the 11th when Alfonso Soriano doubled with 1 out, stole third and then scored on a sacrifice fly by Curtis Granderson.

Mariano Rivera got 3 outs on 5 pitches–including a scary line drive off Longoria’s bat–as the Yanks avoid the sweep and win the game, 3-2.

Okay, now we can digest.

[Photo Credit: ]

Yanks look to avoid the sweep:

Brett Gardner CF
Ichiro Suzuki RF
Robinson Cano 2B
Alfonso Soriano DH
Curtis Granderson LF
Eduardo Nunez SS
Lyle Overbay 1B
Mark Reynolds 3B
Chris Stewart C

Never mind those brooms: Let’s Go Yank-ees!

[Photo Credit: Bruce Davidson]

Coolin’:

[Photo Via: After the Cups]