As Eric without wreck he needs little introduction – he wrote and recorded the classic All the whole earth and had a hit in 1977. Since then, it has been a hit for countless other artists, including The Monkees, Cage The Elephant and Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong. Eric’s version featured in the Expedia/Superbowl/Ewan MacGregor 2022 travel ad, and the Cage The Elephant version is the new theme for the Smartless podcast. As Eric Goulden it’s a little more complicated – musician, artist, writer, sound engineer and producer, he liked neither the world of music, nor the mechanisms of fame, nor the name behind which he was given to hide , so he crawled out. in the spotlight and disappeared into the basement. He went on to release around twenty albums over forty years under various names – The Len Bright Combo, Le Beat Group Electrique, The Donovan Of Trash, The Hitsville House Band, and with his wife as half of Eric Wreckless and Amy Rigbyfinally realizing he was stuck with the name Eric without wreck.
This new album, Country of leisure, marks a return to his more ramshackle recording world – temperamentally unpredictable analog guitars and keyboards, beatboxing and looping in collaboration with a real drummer, Sam Shepherd, whom he met at a local coffee shop in Catskill, New York. He was delighted to find that Sam lived around the corner and could easily drop by and put drums on newly recorded tracks. The recording methodology may be contemporary American, but the subject matter is almost entirely British. It also contains more instruments than any of his previous albums.
In our conversation, Eric talks about the manufacturing process Country of leisure, which happened during the Covid lockdown and near-death experience. In his impassive but pleasant way, Eric says he was unaware of his critical condition, lying in a hospital bed while everyone around him thought he was about to die. When asked how he is, Eric’sthe reply is, “It’s great to be alive!” You can hear his verve, his reflection on still being here, Country of leisure. It is Eric without wreck recognizing who he is, sharing a lifetime of ideas and observations. Eric without wreck East Eric without wreckAgain.
Frequent Life Elsewhere contributor, Dr. Binoy Kampmark gives his assessment of two controversial but very different figures who died within days of each other. Daniel Ellsberg was a political activist, economist and US Army analyst. While he was employed by the RAND Companyhe precipitated a national political controversy in 1971 when he published the Pentagon Papersa top secret Pentagon study of United States Government decision-making regarding Vietnam Warhas The New York Times, The Washington Post, and other newspapers. In January 1973, Ellsberg was charged under the Espionage Act of 1917 as well as other charges of theft and conspiracy, which carry a maximum sentence of 115 years. Due to government misconduct and illegal evidence collection (which was committed by the same people who were later implicated in the case) Watergate scandal), and its defense by Leonard Boudin and professor at Harvard Law School Charles NessonJudge William Matthew Byrne Jr. dismissed all charges against Ellsberg in May 1973. Ellsberg, aged 92, died on June 16, 2003. Theodore Kaczynski, also known as the Unabomber, was an American mathematician and domestic terrorist. He was a mathematician prodigybut abandoned his academic career in 1969 to pursue a primitive way of life. Between 1978 and 1995, Kaczynski murdered three people and injured 23 others in a nationwide attack. mail bombing campaign against people he believed were advancing modern technology and environmental destruction. natural environment. He wrote Industrial society and its futurea word of 35,000 manifest And social criticism oppose industrialization, reject leftismand plead for a form of anarchism. In 1971, Kaczynski moved to a remote cabin without electricity Or running water close Lincoln, Montanawhere he lived like recluse while learning survival techniques become self-sufficient. In 1995, Kaczynski sent a letter to The New York Times promising to “renounce terrorism” if the Times or The Washington Post issued his manifesto, in which he claimed that his bombings were extreme but necessary to draw attention to the erosion of human freedom and dignity by modern technologies that require mass organization. The FBI and the United States Attorney General Janet Reno pushed for the publication of the essay, which appeared in The Washington Post in September 1995. Reading it, Kaczynski’s brother, David, recognized the prose style and reported his suspicions to the FBI. After his arrest in 1996, Kaczynski, claiming he was of sound mind, unsuccessfully tried to fire his lawyer. public defenders because they wanted him to do it plead madness to avoid the death sentence. He pleaded guilty to all charges in 1998 and was sentenced to eight consecutive terms of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Kaczynski died in prison following a report suicide on June 10, 2023. Dr. Kampmark also gives his insight into what’s happening in Russia and what to believe about the incessant news alerts. More, Kampmark takes stock of the situation of Julian Assange.
Show 510
Show 510
