The French Girl

Three silver rings
On slim hands waving
Flash bright in candle light
Till Sunday's early morn

Wow.  By Ian Tyson, released by Ian and Sylvia in 1966 on their Vanguard album Play One More.

Record Fiend provides a good overview of the classic album, and where the influential Canadian duo's musical karma was at the time.

Released in 1966, Play One More marks a transitional stage of the pair's career in between their earlier, more straightforward folk albums and the baroque folk rock/country efforts that came afterward. Even though some tracks feature the all-acoustic instrumentation that typified the sound of previous Vanguard releases, others are conspicuous by their inclusion of organ or orchestral arrangements.

None other than Bob Dylan recorded, but never released The French Girl, twice - first at Big Pink with the Hawks (soon to be known as The Band), and later with the Grateful Dead:

Yabba Dabba Doo

This from 1994, and they're still in the news every day.

Wagon load of Krebbs'

London Homesick Blues

Gary P. Nunn with Onenota's Jerry Jeff Walker

Larry Hagman, RIP

Larry Hagman, 1931-2012.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Ovide & Bettie Lamontagne:

The spirit of Thanksgiving was captured in our history by President George Washington when in 1789, he issued the first Presidential Thanksgiving Day Proclamation following the adoption of the Constitution of the United States.

President Washington recommended to the people "a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness."

Bettie and I are extremely grateful to live in New Hampshire and to have had the opportunity to raise our family in the Granite State. We give thanks, not just for the blessings we have received, but for the endless opportunities before us to enjoy the "safety and happiness" protected by the Constitution for ourselves and for the next generations.

Pay up, suckers

Memo to NYS bloggers: remember to bring this up in 2016: 

Convenience store operators are not happy with plans for new black and white drivers' licenses in New York State.

State leaders said they will be secure and provide good value. However, store owners said they present a challenge in checking ages and identities.

"Having a color picture and a color print especially the red under 21 is important for us," said Jay Schhreiber of Nathaniel Square Corner. "We sell a lot of alcohol and have been very diligent to make sure everyone has been approved properly."

The state made a deal with a Canadian company to produce the licenses. The $88 million dollar contract is a 40% increase from the cost of the previous contract.

And: the new driver license contract was awarded to the high bidder! 

Cuomo looks to 2016: Thruway toll hike postponed

When we were really the Empire State:  Thruway opening ceremony, 1955

New York's unemployment rate is 9%, Staten Island residents are entering their third week without food, water or heat - time for Andy Cuomo to run for President!

It’s only days after the presidential election, but the buzz is already under way about Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s potential run for president in 2016.

Time magazine put him on its short list, calling him the “rough-hewn son of a Democratic icon.”

Coincidentally, our "rough-hewn" multimillionaire second generation governor seems to be backing off from his economy-hammering, rural highway death rate-increasing 45% Thruway toll hike.

The state Thruway Authority again postponed a meeting to consider a major toll increase on trucks on the 570-mile thoroughfare.

The Authority's website said the meeting scheduled for today at 11:30 a.m. in Albany has been postponed. No new date was announced, and no explanation was given for the delay.

It's the second time in a week that a vote on a potential toll increase has been postponed. The authority was originally scheduled to meet Friday in Rockland County, but canceled just hours before the meeting.

Rest assured New York bloggers will be working overtime when Cuomo the Younger, architect of the nation's financial crisis, throws his hat into the ring.

Thank you, veterans!

Coast Guardsmen pose with 3 inch gun, USS Klickitat, 1945.

Staten Islanders - you're on your own!

FEMA office, Staten Island, today.  You voted for these clowns!

Emmylou - 80's interview

Emmylou Harris - mid 80's interview with Bobby Bare.

These deals won't last