April 28, 2020 (In the Year of the Trump Virus)

April 28, 2020 (In The Year of The Trump Virus) For Marc Weinstein

Mentally I'm reaching the stars, but physically I'm hitting the basement. My legs are achy due that I have stopped my three-mile walks per day. If I listen closely, I can hear the left leg saying, "walk me, Master." The other leg is saying, "No Master, there is another episode of "Wanted: Dead or Alive" to watch. That is existentialism in a nutshell.

I compiled a major playlist for our Nik Cohn episode of "Book Musik." Over two-hours long, it is the history of pop seen through the ears and eyes of Mr. Cohn but selected by yours truly. My co-host Kimley and I usually do this together, but due to the size and zillion choices one can make, it's easier if one person does it. Otherwise, we would be on the phone for hours saying 'Nah, or 'yeah.' The next book we will be doing is a book on The Kinks. We're looking forward to the next episode.

Like a Zen Monk addicted to silence and space, I'm focusing on keeping myself busy. Even in the middle of the night, I find myself thinking about what I will do when I wake up. I'm excited at 3:45 AM, just tossing and turning in expectations of the next day. What disasters will arrive in our world? Sometimes I imagine myself as a prisoner. Oddly enough, I'm a restless soul. I like going out to record and book stores to reimagine a landscape of my choosing. Now, I don't have those types of choices, although I do spend a great deal of time thinking of being in a specific store.

Also, in the middle of the night, I'm thinking about being in Amoeba on Sunset Boulevard. Although the last time I was there, it must have been about two months ago. Still, I can recall each department and section of the store. Usually, when I go to Amoeba, I like to check out the new, used vinyl that just came in, and then I go to the "A" section of vinyl to see if they have that rare Kevin Ayers album. They never do, but it's the adventure of maybe it will be there. Then in alphabetical order, I check out the entire 'rock' section, and that will take me into the back room. I go into the jazz section to see if they have any Andre Hodeir or Michel Legrand albums, and then work my way to the classical section. I see if they have any Glenn Gould or Erik Satie records, and if I fail (which I usually do), I then check out their 20th-century classical music section. Then comes my favorite section of the store, which is the oldies. For the life of me, I don't understand why Scott Walker is in their oldies section. I understand The Walker Brothers, but Scott's "Drift" in oldies?

I end up in the foreign section, where I check out the French section, looking for later Jacques Dutronc recordings, which seems impossible. Then on the way to the exit, I look through Soundtracks, especially the Morricone section. If I time myself perfectly, I can leave the store, and get on the No. 2 bus back to Silver Lake. This is time well spent. Then I get out of bed.

- Tosh Berman