Author: Tami Keaveny

Arts Editor Tami Keaveny has navigated the world of arts and entertainment through a variety of marketing and public relations jobs. She has worked at WBCN, BAM Music magazine, Bonnie Simmons Management, Bill Graham Presents, Tickets.com, ClearChannel Entertainment, WordHampton Public Relations, Starr Hill Presents, and SMG before taking the desk as Arts Editor at C-VILLE Weekly. She calls San Francisco State University her alma mater and Charlottesville, Virginia her home. Hobbies include: amateur food photography, junk food culture (Food Seen), orchid killing, offensive cross-stitch, vintage glassware collecting, and wine with everything.

Categories
Arts Culture

David Crosby is still speaking out against the madness

At 76, David Crosby continues to create new music and wow audiences. He performs songs from throughout his career at the Paramount on Thursday. Photo by Anna Webber

David Crosby passed away on January 19, 2023. In tribute, we are reposting our interview with him, originally published May 30, 2018.

Naming someone a “voice of a generation” may be cliché, but when applied to David Crosby, there’s nothing trite about it. After founding The Byrds with Roger McGuinn in 1964, he left to form Crosby, Stills and Nash in ’69. Neil Young joined after the first album, and CSNY played its second live gig at Woodstock. The group’s spellbinding harmonies confronted political and social issues, and are synonymous with the hippie movement of the ’60s and ’70s. A consistent member of the famously tumultuous band, Crosby endured addiction, prison time and multiple health issues, but his ethos and sense of purpose remain strong. He spoke to C-VILLE by phone from his home in California.

C-VILLE: First, let’s talk about your new album, Sky Trails. From the political “Capitol” to the lush, beautiful “Amelia,” you are still making important music.

DC: “Capitol” we put in and take out from night to night. “Amelia” is one of my favorite Joni Mitchell songs. I was sort of afraid to take a swing at it for years. It’s such a great song I couldn’t resist it, and my son James did a great piano part.

Are you working on more new material?

There’s another new album already made. …I don’t know why I’m doing it though. Because of streaming we don’t get paid on records anymore. It’s makin’ it really hard for me, because I have to work on the road twice as much as I used to. …I can’t pay my mortgage unless I do.

But as an artist you can’t stop creating.

This is what we leave behind. This is the mark we get to make, these records. I just don’t think it’s fair that these companies are making billions of dollars, these streaming companies making zillions of bucks. And they’re not paying me, and I make the music.

Do you think music can still be an effective way to protest?

Yeah. I think so. …It’s part of our job, but it can’t be the main part because then you are preaching to people and that’s not really okay. You can do it once in a while…like the song “Capitol.”

God, we have such a crappy Congress. You know, it’s the lowest approval rating we’ve ever had, the lowest accomplishment record we’ve ever had. They’re useless and so they kinda earned that one.

What did the hippies accomplish?

A lot. We managed to end the Vietnam War. It took us about 10 years instead of about one, but we did it. We advanced civil rights in this country. Nowhere near as much as we’d hoped when we saw Obama become president because now, right there in Charlottesville, those guys with the torches sort of ripped the scab off and proved that racism is alive and well in this country, unfortunately.

But, I can’t help feeling when I see these kids marching, and the Women’s March—the Women’s March really inspired me. I thought, “My god, maybe they can save the country,” and I wish you guys would.

Who are your political heroes?

I don’t have many. I been having conversations with my friends saying “Who would you run?”. The only ones I can think of are women. I can think of four women that I like in Congress.

Will you name them?

Ahhh. No…I think it’s better I don’t.

My best friend who contributes millions to the Democratic Party says no, not a chance. [We’re] gonna have to run a white male…and we haven’t got the white male that we need yet.

That disappoints me to hear.

Kinda scary, huh? I mean, who would you run?

I love Elizabeth.

I love Elizabeth Warren. I love Kirsten Gillibrand too. I love Kamala Harris. I don’t see it yet, and I’m very suspicious of the Democratic Party cause I think they let us down terribly this last election.

What do you think the chances are that Trump will be re-elected?

I think there’s a good chance.

I was talking with a guy who I follow named [Christopher] Dickey, he’s a writer, a really good journalist, and he gave me about an hour’s lecture on why he thinks we are not gonna be able to unseat Trump and keep him from being re-elected.

Back to music…Here’s the deal on music: It’s a very tough world right now. Just as war drags the human race down, music lifts it up. So that’s my job. I’m gonna go out there and play music and make people happy. They need it.

Regarding music, the stories of infighting and breakups, all that CSNY dirt is out there for people to Google. Tell me about the good stuff. How was the magic made?

I think we did really good work. …You know when you start a band like that the other guy’s music is fresh to you and it’s very exciting. Frankly, we sounded really good. We loved each other for how good we sounded and how much fun we were having. But what happens to bands is that they devolve from that state to one in which you don’t like each other, and you all turn on the smoke machine and play your hits for the dollar, for the check, and that’s not good.

Do you see it among your friends in other bands?

Yes! Every band, everywhere, all the time.

I feel disillusioned.

Don’t be disillusioned. They are human beings. They can be inspirational and be jerks at the same time. I certainly think that at times I was inspirational and making really good music, and I also know for sure I was a jerk. You gotta look at it that way.

Your idols musically are human beings, they are not flawless. That whole stardom thing is absolutely bullshit.

You’ve been very open about your struggles. Why all the drugs?

Quite simply I had a girlfriend who I was in love with and [she] was killed in a car wreck. And I had no way to deal with it. I absolutely was unequipped. I had no way to deal with it and so I started doing heroin. Heroin is a painkiller and I was in pain. It didn’t take long for that to pretty much destroy me.

As a gun owner, what is your current position on gun control?

I think the kids are very, very right to demand a change. And I’m very proud of them for standing up and saying, “Hey it’s not okay [that] people are coming in and shooting us in our schools. You’ve gotta control this.”

The idea that you can walk into a gun show and buy a bumpstock AR-15 like a machine gun, without even showing a driver’s license, that can’t be right…you don’t need one of those. Nobody needs one of those. It’s not for hunting, it’s for people.

Now, that said, I don’t think they can do shit about it, and here’s why. There are guns in over two-thirds of the houses in the U.S. and nobody’s cleaning them up and they are not gonna. You are never going to get them to give them up…it’s never gonna happen ever.

Confederate statue debate?

I don’t think those guys were heroes and I don’t like seeing their faces. There’s one of the governor who ordered the mess at Kent State; it’s still up in Columbus. I’d like to take that one down too.

In your remarkable life, you have fathered six biological children. What’s your role as a father?

Yes five mothers, six children. I’ve only ever raised one of them. That’s Django my son who is still living here with me now. I wish I had had the chance to raise all of them because they are pretty spectacular people. I’m happy about them all. I think they’re all good and I love them all. I’ve got four grandchildren and I love them too.

What was your reaction when Melissa Etheridge asked you to be a sperm donor?

Here’s how that went down. My wife [Jan] is a very, very sweet, very good-hearted human being. And Melissa and Julie visited us in Hawaii…at the time, Django was a baby, a completely happy child. And they said, “How do you get one of those? We’ve been trying to figure out how to do this and people are very resistant to letting you adopt as a gay couple, and resistant to being donors.”

Jan just looked at them and pointed at me. She said, “No, really, that’s how.” And I said, “Okay, I’ll go along with that.” They loved each other and were nice human beings. So we donated twice—Becca and Bailey, and they are stunner kids.

With all the talented friends you have, who would you choose in assembling a supergroup?

Gilmour. [David] Gilmour is an intensely musical human being. And one of the best guitar players alive.

Bonnie Raitt. Probably the best singer alive. Just wonderful.

Bass player: Michael League.

Drummer would have to be the same guy that I pick always, Steve DiStanislao. He’s unbelievable.

Stevie Wonder. If I couldn’t get him, I’d get Michael McDonald. I love Michael.

What would it take to reunite CSNY?

Neil. That’s all. He’s the deciding factor, always has been.

I don’t think he wants to do it and I don’t think he needs to do it. He’s got a really good band. They deliver for him.

I heard a clip of him playing “Cortez the Killer” and it was some of the best guitar I’ve ever heard him play. He’s also got the Horse, but with Nils in there…Nils [Lofgren] is a force of nature, man, that guy is an unbelievable musician. A great singer, great guitar player, a great writer and a nice human being.

We look forward to having you in Charlottesville.

I look forward to being there. That’s a good bunch of people there and I think they had a horrible thing happen to them. I wanna come there and try to make people happy.

David Crosby
Paramount Theater
May 31

Categories
Culture Food & Drink

Why do you cook?

Executive Chef Ian Rynecki sources ingredients from the gardens and chicken coop at Pippin Hill Farm and Vineyards. Photo: Sera Petras.

Ian Rynecki 

Executive Chef: Easton Porter Group, eastonporter.com

Culinary training: Hands-on, in restaurants 

Reward

“When I began my career as a cook during freshman year of college, there were not many work options available in the evening except for restaurants.

“My first job was in a Burlington, Vermont, sushi restaurant where the focus was on quality and instruction through repetition. I was immediately interested in a job where your merit was quickly rewarded. Make a great dish or a mistake? You find out right away. It’s a two-way street of feedback and improvement.

“Even though I arrived with absolutely zero experience, I was taught everything in the chef’s repertoire and then some. The more I studied food, the more I realized how little I actually knew. As the years went on, the reward changed in the form of teaching new cooks.

“Flash forward to today where cooks are matriculating in and out of the kitchen at Pippin Hill, the learning process and challenge continues. You can always get better. Do the hard thing first.“

Supplied photo

For richer

“Recently, I had the chance to cook at the Homestead Resort (in Hot Springs, Virginia) for the Epicurean Classic dinner. I cooked a fig cappelletti, using figs from the garden at Pippin Hill Farm, with celery root, cured egg yolk, taleggio cheese, sage oil, and pumpkin seeds.

“We have 14 chickens at Pippin Hill, and their eggs are used exclusively for the pasta dough. Since one dozen eggs a day isn’t sufficient for daily restaurant production, we have to be choosy where the eggs end up. This entire dish screams rich—with egg yolks cured for 30 days, to the creamy funk of a taleggio cheese fonduta. Filled pasta is a labor of love, but the end result is worth the effort.”

For our ongoing series Why Do You Cook?, C-VILLE Weekly asks area food and drinks folks what motivates them to clock in every day. If you would like to be considered for this column, please email tami@c-ville.com.

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2022 Best of C-VILLE Staff Picks

Hoo thinks they can dance?

Photo: Hooraas Instagram

While some of us were binge watching and baking, the UVA dance team HooRaas spent thousands of hours perfecting the synchronization, expressions, energy, themes, costumes, and dozens of other elements necessary to compete at the Raas All-Stars competition in Dallas on April 16. The national collegiate dance competition has soared in popularity after forming in 2009 around the Raas-Garba tradition, a folk dance that originated in western India. This time around, the HooRaas earned an admirable 10 points, and shared third place with Cornell Big Red Raas and Texas Raas, while Rutgers RAGA took home the gold with a score of 16.

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2022 Best of C-VILLE Staff Picks

Standing tall

Charlottesville’s Tree Commission works with the Parks & Recreation Department to protect the city’s urban forest. Supplied photo.

Charlottesville’s Tree Commission works with the Parks & Recreation Department to protect and improve the urban forest as a natural resource for our quality of life. The commission comprises 10 members plus the city’s urban forester, a planning commission representative, and one member of the Charlottesville Area Tree Stewards. Tree preservation is critical to climate sustainability, public health, and ensuring environmental justice and equity. We asked several of these tree huggers to express their deep-rooted passion by answering the question: If you were a tree, which one would you be (and why)? 

Peggy Van Yahres

The white oak (Quercus alba). For one thing it’s one of the longest-lived trees. I call it the king (or, in this case, the queen) of the eastern forest. It can have a massive crown spread, like the airport oak. It harbors more insects and feeds more wildlife than any other tree in the east, and it’s just so majestic.

Vicki Metcalf

I’d be a cedar in a cedar grove. We’d make a great hidden play area for kids. I’d smell great, I’d have blueberries that smell like gin, my bark would peel wonderfully, and I’d be marvelously gnarly. 

Jean Umiker-Sebeok

I’d like to be a gala apple tree growing in a communal food garden in the city. With my horizontal limbs, I’d be safe enough for kids to climb for fun or fruit but tall and wide enough to provide shade for birds and tired gardeners or picnickers.

In early spring, some would say my pink and white blossoms look like little ballerinas, a sight for winter-weary eyes. 

Bees and other insects would love my nectar and, although I’m self-pollinating, they could help with that if, as I hope, people have thought to plant another gala tree nearby so that I have a friend to keep me company. I would continuously breathe out oxygen to make the city air more healthful. 

Beginning in August, my fruit would ripen into lovely, golden red apples, which are sweet, crisp, and fruity. The neighborhood families who tend the garden would enjoy munching on my fruit as they take a break from their work, later gathering basketfuls and hurrying home to make apple crisp, muffins, pies, or applesauce. My apples would grace children’s lunch boxes as they return to school, and provide a bit of hilarity as kids dunk for them at Halloween parties. People would, I hope, share my fruit with the birds, mice, rabbits, squirrels, and deer that live in the neighborhood. 

As temperatures drop and I prepare myself for hibernation, fallen leaves and apples on the ground would decay, supplying my roots with warmth and feeding the millions of unseen organisms in the soil that I depend on for my health.

Steve Gaines 

Most any variety of tropical fig would suit me just fine (except the strangler fig, which can be wildly parasitic and usually kills its host tree). I’d be able to produce fruit year-round to nourish all kinds of wildlife. And between the monkeys, macaws, and big cats that would visit me, I’d have all kinds of interesting company and amusing stories to tell.

Mark Rylander

I would be an American elm (Ulmus americana), the classic street tree, reaching my graceful, arm-like branches across to link with my brothers and sisters, and creating a shade canopy that is like a cathedral. Some would say I am doomed since Dutch elm disease has decimated our population, but great examples live on in Court Square and along East High Street, and some new variations are making a comeback. But we can only survive like this in cities if zoning requires buildings to be set back far enough to allow us room to grow.

Categories
Arts Culture

Peace by piece

The Charlottesville Area Quilters Guild Biennial Quilt Show features 180 quilts at Tandem Friends School on April 9 and 10. Supplied photo.

It goes without saying that a quilting judge must have a sharp eye for details, but there’s more to it than that. Sure, “things like originality, consistency in the length of quilting stitches, square corners, levelness in hanging, and matching points (joints of fabric) play into awards,” says Linda Boone, chair of the Charlottesville Area Quilters Guild Biennial Quilt Show. But it’s the ability to find the “final spark,” an understanding of the quilters’ approach and how they take on a challenge, that shows a mastery of the craft. 

The CAQG biennial marks 50 years for the organization, and though it is not judged professionally, it is an opportunity for locals to view and vote on the work from four area chapters: Crozet Quilters, Moonlighters, Tuesday Morning Quilts, and Nelson Quilters. 

Whether piecing a nap or throw quilt, creating a modern pattern, or designing an art quilt to hang on the wall, quilters face crucial decisions at every stage in sewing, beginning with the selection of a style, which may include appliqué, art/innovative, pieced (small), pieced (medium), pieced (large), or challenge.

“Some quilters find choosing fabrics harder than the piecing,” says Boone. “Some find quilting the layers…curves…small pieces challenging.  Some find it most challenging to make a quilt a certain size and color (boundaries can be challenging!).” 

Then begins a journey of dedication, precision, and incredible patience. The 2019 Best of Show winner Julie Davis’ current entry is a work of stars, dedicated to pandemic frontline workers, that includes 620,680 stitches. 

Beyond their utility and beauty, quilts can also tell stories, and in some cases pass down history—a tangible artifact that holds a social and economic origin story through its fiber and composition.

Antique, new, decorative, or traditional, “each quilt made is a learning experience…quilters never stop learning,” says Boone. The mostly female group (at press time, the CAQG counted one man among the four chapters) supports each other by sharing tips, patterns, and lighthearted banter to keep everyone stitching in stitches.  “Finished is better than perfect!” says Boone. “There is no such thing as the quilt police.” 

Decoding quilters

Sewing circles are no joke, but their members do have a sense of humor when communicating about the status of their work. Here’s a glossary:

WIP: Work in Progress

UFO: Unfinished Object

PHDs: Projects Half Done

PIGs: Projects in Grocery Bags

WOMBAT: Waste of Material, Batting, and Time

NESTY: Not Even Started Yet

PFC: Professional Fabric Collector

STABLE: Stash Accumulation Beyond Life Expectancy

WITHWIT: What In The Heck Was I Thinking?

Categories
Arts Culture

They’re back!

Bill Murray is part of the star-studded cast in Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch, which will screen at Morven on the opening night of the Virginia Film Festival. Publicity image.

The Virginia Film Festival announced a full return to in-person movie viewing for its 34th annual fest, which will be held October 27-31.

Jody Kielbasa, UVA’s vice provost for the arts and director of the festival, says the VAFF will offer more than 85 films and host an extensive lineup of live discussions. Special guests include actress Martha Plimpton, appearing in conjunction with a screening of her new film Mass. Playwright and actor Jeremy O. Harris will accept the VAFF’s 2021 American Perspectives Award for Outstanding Achievement in Cinema. (Harris made headlines earlier this week when his Slave Play, nominated for 12 Tonys , including Best Play, did not win a single award.) During the festival, he will be awarded for co-writing the dark comedy Zola, and his extensive work with HBO. On the local front, former Roanoke Times reporter Beth Macy will discuss the Hulu limited series “Dopesick,” based on her book about the opioid crisis in central Appalachia, and produced by Michael Keaton. 

Kielbasa says that inclusivity has always been essential to the mission of the festival, and program manager Chandler Ferrebee confirms that at least 50 percent of the VAFF films are directed by women or people of color. Ferrebee points to Flee, an animated documentary produced by Riz Ahmed, and Jane Campion’s western, The Power of the Dog, starring Kirsten Dunst and Benedict Cumberbatch, as two must-see movies. (Another Cumberbatch film, The Electrical Life of Louis Wain, will also be screened during the festival.) 

New this year are COVID protocols that combine standard practice with community policies: guests will be tested, masks are required for everyone at indoor venues, and proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test will be needed to attend The Paramount Theater events. In addition, the Paramount will feature open captions for screenings and ASL interpreters during stage conversations. 

A returning favorite are the drive-in movies at Morven, which include the opening night feature The French Dispatch from Wes Anderson, plus a Halloween night showing of the cult classic, The Addams Family. 

The full program will be posted online at 10am September 30, and tickets will be available beginning at noon on Tuesday, October 5, through virginiafilmfestival.org, by calling (434)924-3376, or in person at the UVA Arts box office.

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2021 Best of C-VILLE Staff Picks

Side by side

Sometimes it’s a side dish that makes a place special. That’s the case with Otto Turkish Street Food’s rosemary fries. The menu is loaded with good stuff, but it’s the long slim cut of yellow potato, fried to a crispy gold exterior and dusted with a palate-pleasing mixture of salt and minced fresh rosemary, that really got our attention. Go for the doner sandwich and get it stuffed with the “topping” choice of rosemary fries. And then eat it with a side of fries.

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2021 Best of C-VILLE Staff Picks

Bagels on a roll

Roses are red, bagels aren’t blue. We sure will miss ya, Bodo’s drive-thru. Photo: Eze Amos

With long lines out the door most days before noon, Bodo’s Bagels was already a popular, fast, and convenient way to cure a hangover or grab lunch to go. As COVID necessitated social distancing, the shops on Emmet and Preston streets were uniquely qualified to make adjustments: Both stores were already equipped with drive-thru windows; the Emmet Street shop was originally a Bob Evans and the Preston location had been a Rob Roy. “We are literally the only restaurant in the city that had an unused drive-thru,” saysco-owner Scott Smith. 

Bodo’s quickly began funneling cars through a touchless drive-thru system complete with handheld credit card scanners and radio headsets. The staff braved all kinds of bad weather, and no Charlottesvillian had to miss their Deli Egg or Cleo salad. 

While it seemed like the new model would be a keeper, Smith says it was always temporary. “I know that a lot of people love the drive-thrus, but we’re told that our by-right use of them lapsed years ago with changes to zoning law, and we’ve been running them on the basis of an agreement with the city that we would return to our in-store model soon after all COVID restrictions have been lifted in the city.”  

Smith promises that it’s better on the inside, and he sees his customers as more than just a number on a printed ticket. “We are simply faster and better inside, but we also really just miss having people in,” he says. “Seeing people is part of the idea.”

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2021 Best of C-VILLE Staff Picks

Porch sittin’

Photo: Eze Amos

Several art projects helped us cope during 2020’s stay-at-home months. We searched for original works in windows along a mapped route, downloaded coloring pages by local artists, attended distanced concerts and plays, and amped up our holiday light displays, letting them glow well past the season. We also embraced the porch photography trend that swept the globe, with projects launched by local photographers. 

The C’ville Porchraits project formed after Eze Amos saw a story about Massachusetts photographer Cara Soulia’s pivot to taking family photos on stoops, porches, and front yards in exchange for donations to charity. Amos enlisted fellow local shutterbugs Tom Daly, Kristen Finn, John Robinson, and Sarah Cramer Shields to join him in a similar effort, and at final count the team had snapped over 1,000 pictures. 

Charlottesville photographer Robert Radifera also took note of Soulia’s Front Steps Project and created a local outpost that benefited the Charlottesville Community Foundation.

“The project made it possible for folks to see each other and interact with one another through our photos,” says Amos. “The Instagram page was a colorful window that reminded everyone that we were still holding on strong as a community.”

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2021 Best of C-VILLE Staff Picks

Rollin’ up

Muddy Paws Mobile Grooming Spa makes sure Rose smells...sweet as a rose. Photo: Tristan Williams

When you’re short on time, or keeping close to home, these services on wheels are super convenient.

Good Waffles & Co. 

Good Waffles & Co. is committed to discovering every possible way to ingest waffles, from chicken ’n’ waffles, to ice cream cones, to waffle pudding. goodwafflesco.com

sliced. Cake Bar 

This family-run food truck is the home of the trademarked cake flights,™ which the operators aptly describe as “like a beer flight, but with cake!” slicedcakebar.com

Ace Bicycle

When your wheels can no longer wheel you around, Ace Bicycle’s got you covered. Its “ace” technicians can fix your bike at your place, or bring it back to their shop. acecville.com

The Go Bar

Any celebration gets an instant upgrade when a renovated vintage horse trailer pulls up serving beer, wine, and cider. mobilegobar.com

Muddy Paws Mobile Grooming Spa

Skip the drive and let Muddy Paws Mobile Grooming Spa swing by and wash your best (canine) friend. Your pet even gets a photo sesh afterwards with a spiffy bandana! facebook.com/muddypaws mobilegroomingspa

Maggie Massage

What’s even more relaxing than a professional massage? A professional massage in the comfort of your own home. maggiemassage.com 

The Store Truck

No summer is complete without an ice cream truck winding its way through our streets. Luckily, Charlottesville’s got the sky-blue, sticker-coated Store Truck serving up ice cream, snow cones, and cotton candy. facebook.com/thestoretruck