The Hip Hop universe has awoken to some more tragic news this morning; Malik Taylor, aka Phife Dawg “The Five-Foot Assassin” and “The Funky Diabetic” , a founding member and literal cornerstone of the world renowned Golden Age of Hip Hop era group A Tribe Called Quest, apparently succumbed to the very disease he had made a favored appellation of and in recent years had struggled with. As of this writing, no official announcement has been made yet, but news sources had independently confirmed his passing, first noted on Twitter by legendary DJ Chuck Chillout.

I cannot for the life of me run down the details of his life at this point; having been a huge fan from the beginning and A Tribe Called Quest being on the itinerary of my musical young adulthood, it’s just mind-numbing to have lost someone critical too soon by anyone’s measure. Not to mention, we are losing so many dearly-held artists from so many areas in music these days that I can honestly say that I was shocked to hear about this, but that shock was quickly replaced by that very numbness that such an event would often inspire days later when you’ve had time to process the entirety of a person’s life, impact and death while you compare feelings and moments with friends and fellow fans.  If there is PTSD for music, I must be in the throes of it, and it’s not something I would wish on anyone.

Nevertheless, instead of a eulogy culled from multiple news items, I present a link to an article from Vulture.com that was published last November in which Phife runs down his five favorite songs of A Tribe Called Quest; one from each album they made together.  Perhaps at a later date I will revisit the idea of discussing the band’s impact on Hip Hop and music as well, as they are certainly worthy.  Meanhwile, Rise In Power, Malik Taylor.

More Interviews with Phife Dawg:

NPR

Noisy (Vice.com)

Rolling Stone

Interview Magazine

Q102.1 (Andrew Liu) – YouTube

Lastly, the title is borrowed from this track I came across while thinking of what to write.  Listening to it again, I finally broke away from the numbness I implied earlier and had a moment with my inner self.  We all can relate to that moment because we all have someone or something that touches that button one last time before they go on their journey, leaving something for us to think about; what was, what could have been.  I just don’t know.

I’ve had tennis on the brain over at Esky Classic this week—here, here and here—but baseball is a-near, ain’t she? Some kind of day in Cuba, right?

Hey, how is Nathan Eovaldi looking this spring?

Picture by Bo Bartlett via This Isn’t Happiness.

Rest in Peace to Frank Sinatra Jr. A few years ago, we reprinted Tom Junod’s fantastic profile of Frankie Jr. You should check it out.

Meanwhile, over at Esquire Classic, I interviewed novelist Colum McCann this week and collected a group of stories about the “Greed is Good” 1980s.

Baseball. Right. Baseball, I remember, I remember. Man, I’ve got no idea what’s going on. I glance at the headlines and I’ve seen a few moments of exhibition games on TV; otherwise, nada. And I don’t mind it, actually. I like the idea of going into the season not knowing anything about the Yanks.

But, since you guys are more aware of what’s what, do tell: what’s got you excited—or not excited—about this season?

Picture by Bags.

Couple few things you maybe didn’t know about the Upper West Side.

[Photo Credit: Scott Heins]

Flourishing Foodie gives blood orange and avocado salad.

Oh, Mercy.

[Photo Credit: Cig Harvey]

Interior by Fairfield Porter (1951)

Yo Yo Yo. Hope all be swell, you all.

This week over at Esquire Classic, I interviewed a couple of fascinating women: Roxane Orgill, who just wrote a book based on the most famous photograph in Jazz history, and Elizabeth Kaye, who wrote beautiful, in-depth profiles for Esky in the late ’80s through the mid-’90s. Check ’em out.

It’s bee-yoo-tee-ful out there so The Wife is taking me for a walk. Gonna try to catch a little baseball. Heard Goose say some typical Goose shit this week—ah, spring training, where no guh-news is good guh-news.

Picture by Bags

Wow, Goose Gossage got old in a hurry, didn’t he?  Or has he always been this way? Furthermore, does he have a point or is he fantasizing about glory days?

For what it’s worth, he provides a lot of context towards what he told Andrew Marchand.

R.I.P George Martin.

[Photo by Rob Verhorst/Redferns/Getty Images]

Over at the Players’ Tribune, C.C. Sabbathia talks about his alcoholism. Worth a look.

Photo Via: TMZ.

This might be the first season since I started the Banter where I’ll put up posts so I can learn more about the team from you guys.

I’m pleasantly out-of-the-loop. I’m just so busy with other things that baseball and the Yankees is not my priority. That said, I like not knowing what is going on, only half-paying attention. It’ll make the season more of a discovery because I’ll turn the game on one day, not recognize half the roster, and then settle in to get to know them.

So, what’s the deal? Who is worth watching? Who are we worried about? Fill me in.

Picture by Bags

Another open Yankee thread for you on a snowy Friday in New York. I’ve been up to some fun stuff this week at Esquire curating a mess of interviews and profiles on comedians. (You can see the blog, here.)

Dig this little bit of goofiness.

Happy Friday!

Picture by Bags

Alright, Game Thread for first game of the Spring!….

(cricket, cricket…)

At any rate, sorry for the late start, but rage dump here as you desire. I’ll try to lend a hand here and there to provide a place for us to get together and cogitate. In the meantime, let’s watch The Severino build on his impressive debut from last season, with  a lineup like this backing him up against the Tigers, who throw an old familiar NY face in former Mets phenom Mike Pelfrey.

Aroldis Chapman gets 30 games.

[Photo Credit: Corey Sipkin/N.Y. Daily News]

Good Lord, game threads. Right. What’s a game thread?

Are we there already? Man, I’ve got to get up to speed on this spring training business.

Luckily for us, Chad Jennings is on the case—as always.

I tell ya, I’m feel more disconnected with the daily happenings of the team than I have since I began this blog in 2002. But not in an unpleasant way. I kind of like the distance. This way, everything carries an element of surprise—learning about the new guys (who?), remembering the veterans (he’s still around?). The further away I get from the 365-day news cycle, the happier I am, and the easier it is for me to just show up as a fan and root.

Picture by Bags.

Ah, Lonn Trost, the man who makes rooting for the Yankees just that much harder.

Picture by Bags

Pitchers and catchers.

Doesn’t that sound nice?

Illustration by Robert Weaver via The New York Times. 

Two more days before pitchers and catchers official report to Yankee camp in Florida.

And not a moment too soon, am I right?

Picture by Bags

Hey Hey,

Know it’s been slower n slow around here these days—and thanks to Will for keeping a light on. That’s because I’m spending all my time curating and editing the Esquire Classic site. Oh, it’s a long story but I got job eliminated last December after 13 years at Time Inc. I arrived there in the spring of 2002 as a temp having spent my twenties working in film cutting rooms. I had a good, long run at the company—saved money, got married, saw a parent die, and created this site. I don’t think about it often but I’m as proud of this blog as I am of anything I’ve ever been involved with.

The Banter isn’t going anywhere. Even though I’m busy, and even though the posting has been nonexistent of late, I have no desire to close-up shop (The beauty part about the Banter for me is that at some point I let go of having expectations of what the site should be; I just let it flow and that helps me continue). But things are different and I’m not sure they’ll soon return to what they’ve been in the past. All I can say is that I’m happy to have you and I hope you dig whatever it is I can offer at any given time.

I plan to be around for the season but at this point you’re getting your Yankee fix elsewhere. All I can do is keep the jernt open so you old timer’s can fall through and hang out.

In the meantime, I’ve segued nicely into this gig with Esquire. You guys are aware of the preservation work I’ve done with classic journalism and criticism. Well, Esky is an embarrassment of riches. I’ve got so much reading on my plate, I can’t keep up. It’s overwhelming and exhilarating. There are so many distinct voices: John Sack, Sally Kempton, Bill Zehme, Norman Mailer, David Foster Wallace, Tom Wolfe, Nora Ephron, Pete Dexter, Mark Jacobson, Richard Ben. It’s amazing.

There’s a bunch of pressure too and no guarantee that Esquire Classic will pan out—with or without me. You gotta pay for it—$5 a month or $40 for the year. If you’re into that sort of thing it’s worth the dough, believe me. But no pressure at all on my part—I certainly won’t be offended if you don’t subscribe.

Meantime, I’ve strapped myself in for the ride and am having a great time. Learning a ton and not taking any of it for granted. Here’s the blog.

[Illustration by Gottfried Helnwein]