|
Rod &
Kubby. Photo by Bob Gentry, ©2002 by Stanyan Entertainment Group.
A Thought for Today
Character is everything; don’t let anyone
undermine yours.
.ASK
ROD
Few people like to hear it like it is, so I’ll probably make an enemy or
two with my answer to this first letter.
ROD & ROD
In our busy lives, time seems to fly by and then one
day a thought comes to mind of something or someone from long ago. I
recently purchased Rod Stewart's new album "it had to be you" and as I sat
down to listen, I tried to figure out why it made me feel so at peace...I
couldn't put my finger on it for several days...then I remembered!!!! It's
because the songs reminded me of the times I listened to your poems and
music...I must say my favorite song of yours is "Jean".
I just want to say thank you for the wonderful poems and your music...they
have brought me great comfort. Mary Eggers
Dear Mary: Even though it takes two Rod's to staff your 'peace' I'm
thrilled to be one of them and to be in the company of Mr. Stewart.
I've been a fan of that other Rod since the Small Faces days. My problem
with his newest album "It Had to be You" is that it lacks the drive of
"Maggie May," the familiarity of his Brazilian borrowing of "Do You Think
I'm Sexy," the Bob Dylan paraphrase of "Forever Young" or the Jimmy Wakley
runoff of "Have You Ever Been Lonely."
Rod Stewart is an artist who, when he trusts his own instincts and
commitment, always comes up with something interesting and relevant. At
the risk of being considered a spoilsport, a Tony Bennett, Rosemary
Clooney or Frank Sinatra he aint. The songs of our great American
songwriters demand more passion and honest lyric interpretation than
Stewart's effortless run-through on his Great American Songbook album
affords.
This is by no means a review of his newest album – or maybe it is – I love
all of those songs and I hoped for and expected a better reading of them
than Mr. Stewart gave us. God, and everyone else, knows that this talented
and much loved artist is capable of better work. However (and this is no
small caveat) if this album works for you, that's all that matters.
I appreciate your comments on my work and particularly 'Jean,' but as
someone who continues to try and get things right I honestly believe my
best performance of "Jean" was last Saturday night in concert in Illinois.
The next time I sing it I'll make it better.
Thanks for your letter and for the affirmation on my work. I send you my
affection and more. Warmly, Rod
SECRETS OF THE ARCHIVES
Where to start. I guess thank you is the best I can
do. My first memory of your work was listening to your Birthday concert in
Carnegie Hall. I was about 8. That was 22 years ago. In all that time, I
have never once seen you in concert, or even in an interview... So I spend
every day at work going onto your site, reading "Today's Flight Plan", and
all the archives.
There are 2 things I would love to see done now that you are using the web
and gone digital. The first is a simple button at the bottom of every
flight plan that could take you to the next day’s entry. Please, it would
save heavy users as myself a lot of time, instead of going to "Search", or
"Archives".
The second is more demanding, but believe me, all your fans will buy one:
A CD-ROM with all your written work on it. Done year-by-year, or
book-by-book. All compiled together in one place.
Please give it serious consideration Regards, Jason
Dear Jason: I'm glad you stumbled onto A Safe Place to Land and are
perusing the archives. Thanks for your nice comments.
One of your wishes has already been addressed and in a much more useful
way than you suggested. Our Webmaster Ken really did a great job designing
the archives and here's how you can see Flight Plans in sequence.
1. Click on Flight Plan Archives. The following choices will pop up:
2002 Archives
2001 Archives
2000 Archives
1999 Archives
1998 Archives
2. Click on the year of your choice and wait a very short time for it to
load. You will be presented with a list of Flight Plans for every day of
that year. Scroll to the month you'd like to choose then click on the date
you want and up pops the correct FP. When you've finished, click the back
arrow of your browser and choose the next date (in any sequence you
desire.)
3. Drop our Webmaster a note at
kenb@mckuen.com and thank him for a job well done.
As for putting my entire body of work on a single CD ROM? I don't think
so. As writers and artists we live off the hard won income from our
royalties, so don’t be such a cheapskate, Jason, buy a book once in a
while. Here's a link to Dwight Michael's' newly designed (and very nicely
I might add) Stanyan By Mail website. It's got stuff nobody else has and
he's adding new material to it every day.
http://www.stanyanbymail.com/
Soon you'll be able to click on a book jacket featured on Stanyan By Mail
and the title of every poem contained in it will appear before your eyes.
It's lots of work putting a site like this together and a week or so ago
Dwight even dropped a hint on the Message Board that he could use some
outside help in having one or more persons lend a hand with typing the
titles of the poems in each of my books (alas so far no one has taken him
up on the request so there goes another of my weekends.) Last week I sat
down and listed the song titles on a hundred or so Stanyan CD's he'll be
posting soon.
Susan Badger who did such a superb job of copy-editing and proofreading my
book A Safe Place to Land has been proofing copy for Dwight and
photographer Val Riolo (you'll be seeing a lot of his work in future
Flight Plans) helped out with the scans.
Thanks for the good suggestions Jason. And I like the idea of a 30 year
old going through my archives on a daily basis.
And guess what, I’m not opposed to the CD ROM idea . . . guess it’s hard
for me to think of putting all my eggs in one basket. Especially since
some of my eggs aren’t as ‘fresh’ as they should be. Luv, Rod
THANKS
Dear Rod: My whole life changed. I was engaged to a
wonderful boy. And then he went to war. We both felt it was wrong but we
did the "right thing". We wrote letters and planed our future. Your poetry
was in both of our letters to each other. And with rose-colored glasses we
planned our future. We would have kids, a house, and a dog ( we were going
to, but . . .) Afterward the one thing that would comfort me was your
books and records. It took me till I was 40 to trust love again. But,
David came along. He is my rock, he is my husband. But, Rod you are part
of my soul. H. Goodboe.
Dear HG: What a thoughtful letter.
All of us have setbacks with the most positive of plans but you are living
proof that more than one chance comes along during this journey we call
life.
You sound very happy with David being your rock and while I’m at it,
thanks for letting me be a part of your life. I believe that all of us on
this earth are meant to be interdependent . . and isn’t that nice. Warmly,
Rod
FINDING HER FATHER
I wanted to tell you how much I admire your courage
and strength. I just found my possible biological father a few months ago.
Even though both of us have decided to do the DNA after the first of the
year, we are inseparable over the phone due to the distance in states. We
are truly best friends now due to this and will forever be.
Again thank you for the courage and allowing yourself to pass it on to
others, Tamra
Dear Tamra: Congratulations on your discovery. And on YOUR courage to
start a valuable journey. I've said it many times but it still remains
true, knowing where you came from helps to show you where you're going.
Don't give me too much credit for courage and strength in writing Finding
My Father. It was curiosity more than anything else that made me want to
discover my roots. I hoped that by writing about my search I could make it
easier for others with the same quandary and curiosity to discover their
origins.
Again my congratulations and no matter what the outcome you'll never be
sorry you made this attempt. Warmly, Rod
THE LOST LETTER
Dear Rod, I wrote the attached letter for you a few
years ago. I never received a response and hadn't given it much thought
until today. I stumbled across your website and found your email address.
It's a few years late in coming, but I hope this letters finds you happy
and healthy. Without sounding like some star crazed groupie.
I just wanted to express my gratitude. The power of your work has always
touched me and remains a constant presence in my life. Like an old trusted
friend, I turn to you in times of trouble and you have never let me down.
Kindest regards, Jeanette Hermann
Dear Jeanette: Thanks for writing to tell me you tracked down the answer
to your ‘missing letter’ in Ask Rod. I’m sure more than one person has
written to me here then failed to keep a lookout on the Flight Plan for an
answer.
And thanks for asking after my health. I'm healthy, happy and enjoying
myself a lot. I've had two concerts and been part of two additional all
star performances in the last ten days and it has helped provide me with a
very natural high; one difficult to come down from. Letters like yours
extend the euphoria that concert audience’s start. Thanks again. With
affection, Rod
RECORDINGS FOR THE BLIND
Rod I work with a lot of sight impaired persons who
love your work. They always ask me if you have any books on tape that they
can listen to. They say it is not the same when
someone else reads your material to them, it is not like you doing your
own readings. I have not been able to locate any. Do you have any out
there I am missing, or will you have any available soon? Ron Coine
Dear Ron: This is something I've wanted to do for a long time. I lack the
resources at the moment but I'm hoping one day to get the funding for just
such a project. Before the National Endowment for the Arts budget was cut
so drastically there were plans to embark on a series of recordings that
would have ended with all of my work being made available on tape through
Recordings for the Blind and The Library of Congress.
I have every confidence that sooner or later private funding will come
through to make my dream of the complete project possible. I'm keeping
your e-mail address on file so that when I know more you will too.
Meanwhile if you have any ideas let me know. Thanks for reviving a pet
concern of mine. Warmly, Rod
Tomorrow our Webmaster Ken Blackie presents his weekly “This One Does it
For Me". Join me in finding out what he’s up to.
Sleep warm and if you are planning to travel on the highway this
Thanksgiving weekend, please drive carefully. Road rage is bad enough with
adolescents, adults definitely know better.
RM 11/26/2002 2:50 AM PST
Click on the heart logo to
buy Rod McKuen books, CD's and lots more
Click
on the Stanyan House logo to subscribe to the McKuen Mailing List
Catch Rod McKuen live!
Click on the link below for new details
posted November 25.
ROD McKUEN
CONCERTS & APPEARANCES
|
