LOOKING BACK

Going through my files for a project and found some gems from the past!
This first one is a drawing of Canned Hamm made by Jason Mclean and Marcel Dzama



Here we have a rare moment of Big Hamm and myself backstage before a Canned Hamm show, we truly look like old vaudeville comedians here.



This is us way after a show with The World Provider at an odd late nite Montreal bar, apparently I was singing "Iron man, Iron man, na na na na na iron man..."



Here's me experimenting with moustache length with Pro Hamm AKA Pete Mills, who was responsible for the production on the Canned Hamm albums, with the first album he understood our love of 70s Beach Boys but also added auto-tune as a special effect (this was back in 2000) keeping it forward thinking, and he made our dance-pop album sound much bigger than it was in terms of budget. He's currently producing and making music in LA . Him and Big Hamm are so insanely musically talented, real 'can-do' fellas.


Olllld pic, just pre-moustache, very early 90s with roomie Julian possibly before we formed July Fourth Toilet, Julian's another talented egg, verrrry versatile musician (you'd have to be to play in July Fourth Toilet who'd change styles at whim)/cartoonist/record collector.


From July Fourth Toilet's tenth anniversary show, Jasmine played the Lady Byrd and I was Bernie Byrd from our live rendition of K-Tel's Rock Fantasy LP:

GOLD ART/ $50 ART / STAR OF BETHLEHEM WALK OF FAME / X MAS FEELINGS



Wowwww, another busy week! This Thursday nite, Nov 17th I have a piece in the Mercer Union SOLID GOLD annual member's show and sale. Yeah! It's gold themed! My piece also involves felt as self-defence. "Nothing but SOLID GOLD quality works, all priced at $149.99. Watch the gold rush when the sale begins at 8PM. Event hosted by: Bill Clarke GOLD 4 CASH! Line up to get your own little nugget for just $149.99. Cash, visa and cheque accepted for payments. We will wrap the work for you and you can take it away same day!" It's at 1286 Bloor Street West...

Friday nite I deejay a private party, shhhh.

Then that same Friday nite I will be playing The Star of the Walk of Fame of Bethlehem in The XMAS V CHRISTMAS PAGEANT at Double Double Land (209 AUGUSTA DOWN THE ALLEY) where the battle of religious holiday versus secular holiday plays out IN PERSON, before your very eyes. Sherpafeast, Iron Bitchface, Jon McCurley, Ulysses Castellanos, Ajay Mehra AND MORE will cut the wheat from the chaff and get to the bottom of it all!
9 PM

Then Sunday Dec 20th from 1-6 Hunter and Cook is pleased to present FULL SERVICE, an exhibition of drawings and photos by 30 Canadian artists where all pieces are priced at $50 !!! I have a few pieces in this mass cheep-ass X-Mass show and am surrounded by good company with such people as Seth Scriver, Andre Ethier, Jason McLean, Jennifer Murphy, Mark DeLong, David Poolman, Victoria Kent, Mark Connery, Sandy Plotnikoff, Jay Isaac, Shayne Ehman, and more!


And Sunday nite is X MAS FEELINGS. Mannnn, I've saved the heavy hitters for this nite ferrr shurrr.The dissonant electronic SWITCHED ON SANTA album! French Canadian Joyeux Noel Disco! Chipmunk rip-offs! Holiday Glam stompers from WIZZARD and Slade. Stompin Tom's probable autobiographical weeper "An Orphan's X Mas", Wade Denning, master of Halloween sound FX records' wild X Mas sounds. And the capper: Blackie, the cat who Talked- a special single aimed at children with autism. Listen to Blackie who was born on X Mas meow, "I love you." Unsettling.
And, since I helped make an X Mas record myself in the musical act Canned Hamm, I'll be playing some of that, too (still for sale, go to iTunes or CD Baby for Canned Hamm- Sincerely Christmas) !!!!
That's how much I love X Mas music, I even helped make an X Mas album! WOW!!!! Isn't that great? I love you! Lots more!

And, as usual, my Midnight Candlelight recitation which connects with the people! What are recitations? Intense spoken reflections of the soul in a romantic manner. We are here to help you get through this mortal life. NO Cover but the cover of night.
9 PM, The Ossington (61 Ossington)

I'll be wearing a special X Mas outfit!!!!! One of many of course....

BILLBOARD PROJECT



I had previously mentioned Paul Butler's Billboard Project that Jason Mclean so kindly asked me to be a part of. Jason basically asked me what work of art affected me most/earliest.
My response was put up on a billboard on the side of a convenience store on Queen West.
The pic is tuff to read so this what it said:

As a little boy my Grandmother had a box of comics for all of her grandchildren to dig through. I already loved comics but nothing really stuck out until I grabbed an old, coverless copy of Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen no. 143 from the box. I still have it to this day. This comic had everything I could ever want as kid: Superman, classic movie monsters like The Wolfman and Dracula, a green, horned planet, and a flying robot dog- all mashed up into a new forward thinking form. This comic book really excited me. I didn’t even know that it was by Jack Kirby until years later. As a teen I went through a short period of growing pains where I rejected the work of Jack Kirby- I’ve talked to a few Kirby fans that went through this phase. As an adult, I would say that he is my single most influential artist for many reasons. This Jimmy Olsen comic book, like all of his 70s work, has his familiar crackle and bubbling energy. Panels burst like they were three-dimensional. It is distinctively his. Every panel is a work of art that connects to other panels on pages that connect to other pages in sequential stylized flow. And he churned out a few comic books a month while reinventing the form every ten years or so. I once had a dream that I met him.


The comic in question is here:

ART JAZZED

My friend Anna May has a tee shirt that says Jazz in a bouncy script, it may be for the airline or maybe, just maybe, the album by Queen. Either way, I feel jazzed. Not only is there the big show this Saturday nite Oct 3rd with Jean-Paul Langlois at 107 Shaw that I been working my feelings to the bone for (see previous post for more info)(most of my working energy is spent on self-doubt: I will be sure to make a future post on that) buuuut...I am part of Paul Butler's billboard project! Selected by the great Jason Mclean, I wrote about the art that first moved me (ie. Jack Kirby) to be put on a huge billboard at H & H Variety at 616 Queen Street West ! That's just West of Bathurst and mere blocks from the Studio Visits art show at 107 Shaw that I hope you will all attend!

Here is press release:
For Immediate Release The Other Gallery presents ART MOVES Throughout downtown Toronto’s 24-hour convenience stores Scotiabank Nuit BlancheOctober 3rd, 2009, Sunset to SunriseToronto, ONFor Scotiabank Nuit Blanche, The Other Gallery’s Paul Butler will invite members from the art community to ask someone of their choice to describe a will be displayed in and outside 24-hour convenience store across Toronto’s Maps will be available for pick up at the ZONE A INFO CENTRE, and downloadable on The Other Gallery website, othergallery.com.The “Scotiabank People’s Choice Award” invites audiences to vote for theirfavorite project by visiting scotiabanknuitblanche.ca online. There is also an iPhone application, the “Scotiabank Nuit Blanche Night Navigator,” which provides maps, information, and voting opportunities for the event.For voting purposes, ART MOVES is found under:Zone A Independent Project # 47 Downtown Area.Participants include: AA Bronson asking Matthias Herrmann, Aganetha Dyck / Tricia Sellmer, Ásdís Sif Gunnarsdóttir / Gudmundur Oddur Magnússon, Ashley Neese / Marie O Neese, Chen Tamir / Barbara Tamir, Dave Dyment / Paul But-ler, Derek Sullivan / Jessica Bradley, Eleanor Bond / Jason Mclean, Robert Dayton/ Courtney Burke, Erica Eyres / Garnet McCulloch, Euan Macdonald / Pat King, Guy Maddin / Dennis Randolph / Jones Miller, Jennifer Delos Reyes / Laine Gabel, Joe Friday / Monica Keller, Kirsten Stoltmann / Brad Phillips, Kitty Scott / Tom Mc-Donough, Lisa Gabrielle Mark / Channing Hansen, Micah Lexier / Tom Koken, Michael Dumontier / David Fair, Michel de Broin / May Lee, Mitzi Pederson / Lynn Lu, Ruth van Beek / Basje Boer, Paul Butler / Sam Gould, Red 76 / Zefrey Throwell, Richard Boulet / David Boulet, Robin Simpson / Maryse Larivière, Steve Loft / Erin O’Hara, Tatiana Mellema / Mark Clint-berg and Zoe Crosher / Andrew Berardini.Media space courtesy of Adapt Media Inc.Printing courtesy of Eclipse ImagingFor more information contact:Paul Butler647.867.1945othergallery@gmail.com