The date was on my calendar for months. In some ways, the anticipation of a Saturday afternoon of Dead and Company is its own reward. Andy and I rolled down to the show with plenty of time to navigate the parking quandary. We parked in a church. A good sign. Heading toward Shakedown we heard […]
Archives for June 2019
Rocketman
I recently saw Rocketman, the Elton John biopic. I’m writing this short reflection as someone who is admittedly, not an Elton John fan. It’s not that I don’t like some of his songs or appreciate his musicality, it’s just that he’s not one of my guys. Said differently, this film exposed me to more of […]
Satan & Adam- Film Review
Last night I watched the documentary Satan & Adam. It resonated with me as a musician, as a rabbi, and quite simply as a human being. The film chronicles the unlikely relationship between two blues musicians who met on a street in Harlem. And much more. Here I’ll simply offer a few personal takeaways. Music […]
Shavuot: Receiving Torah
As Shabbat and Shavuot approach, I wanted to share a quick Hasidic teaching recounted by the great philosopher, Martin Buber. REVELATION EVERYDAY: The Kotzker Rebbe was asked: ”Why is Shavuot called (z’man matan Torah) ‘The Time that the Torah was Given,’ rather than ‘The time the Torah was Received?” He answered: “The giving took place […]
Spiritual Review: BlacKkKlansman
This week I finally had a chance to watch Spike Lee’s 2018 film, BlacKkKlansman. It was excellent. While I’m not in a position to offer a full review of the film, there are a couple of spiritual themes that really resonated with me and that I want to point out: The first theme that stood […]
Gratitude for the Tapers
I listen to a lot of Grateful Dead. Every once in a while, I pause to think about the fact that I can, with a few clicks on my phone, start streaming one of a thousand live performances from the Dead’s archives. This morning I was listening to Dick’s Picks Volume 16. It’s a show […]