THE SUMMER OF 69 "1969"

      I heard a song the other day. "One" by Three Dog Night. One, it's the Loneliest  Number. It's the loneliest number that could ever be. The Summer of 1969, they landed a Man on The Moon. It was July 20th in the Summer of 1969. I saw it I watched late one Summer night at a family friends house, the Romeo's in North Arlington where my brother Jimmy and I were house guest for a couple days. sleepovers are always fun for kids. I was 11 years old in the Summer of 69, listening to the sounds on my Transistor Radio I loved so much. My Dad bought it for me for my Birtday that year. I loved that little Radio, like a kid these days would love to have an iPad, a thing they could do so much more on than listen to music. But for me all the beautiful music of the 60's and Summer of 69 was more than enough. Hey, the kids today can play a unbelievable amount of great games, take photos, video, email, write, add, subtract, Search the World Wide Web. We couldn't do that, but we had great music, something kids are almost devoid of today. Well unless they download on their, iPad, iPod, phone or whatever, songs from the 60's 70s, and 80s. Otherwise, all they got is a bunch of Crap, with a smattering of very few good songs around today.
     The Summer of 69 .. Late one night, in the Romeo's living room I watch Neil Armstrong step on  to the surface of The Moon. Do you believe it? "The Eagle has Landed" famous words when the Lunar Module "The Eagle" landed on the surface of the Moon. Phenomenal. Even as a young boy of just 11 i new this was Monumental, Historic.
     They were happy days, the Summer of 69. I remember swimming and lounging around the Romeo's pool, and Mrs. Romeo bring us out a platter of Watermelon, always a special treat for me. The Romeo's were a Middle Class family, we were in the lower spectrum of the Middle Class as concerns monetary means. The Romeo's had a beautiful Cabana Pool and owned their own house. We rented. I thought they were Rich. The boys all had musical instruments, Electric Guitars, and a Drum Set. I thought theyr were rich. They weren't, but what did I know. I was happy that summer of 69, we went up to lake George for our Summer Vacation for a week. Awesome.
     the Summer of 1969, they landed a man on the Moon, two of them, and I watched it live. Incredible
        The Summer of 69, I listened to my Radio; Honky Tonk Woman, Sly and The Family Stones "Hot Fun in The Summer Time, Laughing by The Guess Who, and yes "One" The Loneliest Number, little did I know, 40 years later that would be me, "One" the loneliest number.! The Summer of 69 was The Summer of Love and Woodstock
      

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICK "You Ole Codger"

  Happy Birthday Mick. You Ole Codger. Yes Codger. Sixty-Nine Years old today. Elderly and eccentric. You qualify and fit the descript of a Codger Mick. No we're not knocking Mick. We Love this ol Bloke. Love him dearly. We (I have anyway) grown up with the Mickster through the years. The young Boyish-Girlish looking Mick. Beautifully handsome. No we're not knocking Mick who gave us such great beloved tunes like Satisfaction, Angie, Beast of Burden, Start Me Up, "If you Start Me Up I'll Never Stop" Never Stop Never Stop. You do it Mick. he ain't stoppin yet. We love the ole Mickster. yes we do, and especially since we have all his (and The Stones) great tunes to listen to. And especially since the make such Shit these days. No, not Mick and The Stones, all the other Crappy groups around and "So-Called" musical artists. "Not" !!!
     Yes "Thnk God" we've still got Mick and The Boys "The Stones" and all their great music we can throw on the Stereo, listen to, reminisce, and Enjoy. We Love it! Listening to Mick Keith and The Rolling Stones, "The World's Greatest Rock-N-Roll Band" of All-Time. 
     Yes "Happy Birthday Mick" Sir Mick, Mick Jagger. We Love you.
          Keep on Rocking. You old Codger you.




Daniel Bellino Zwicke

Young Boyish-Girlish Mick

Codger MICK

REMEMBERING AMY "LOVE IS A LOSING GAME"

Remembering Amy. We must. Lovely Amy. As we all know she died to soon. A tragic life and death at the age of 27 .. The dreaded 27, the age Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Famed Graffiti Artist Jean Michel Basquiat, Kurt Cobain,and Brian Jones of The Rolling Stones died. And 1 Year ago, Amy Winehouse as well.

Amy is gone. Died of alcohol intoxication. A tragedy, especially such a great talent in a day of  barely any great talents such as was the case of the great musical decades of the 1960's and 70's., but now a lot of out and out garbage and really no great musical talents such as we had with the great Rock, Pop, and R&B Artists of the 60s and 70s. There are none today or the past 20 years or so, just a bunch of bad to mediocre music.

The 200's, forget it. Not one truly great musical artist. We had Amy, she was great. A wonderful soulful singer with a powerful contralto voice. Amy sang R&B, Soul, and Jazz like no new artist has for some time. Just to hear her wonderful soulful sing on "Love Is A Losing Game" or Valerie, and right there you can see (hear) what a great a phenomenal artist she was. A true star and one of the greates singers of her time, if not the best.

   Unfortunately Amy's life was snuffed out way to  soon. She was unable to beat the demons that took her life. Unfortunately she couldn't pass through it. There have been many people over the, famous and not who have taken and abused quite a lot of "Drugs and Alcohol" and they may have been lucky that these two substances never took their lives. They may have done tons of drugs and drank far more alcohol than one should ever drink, but nothing bad ever happened to them. They made it through however many years of abuse, and were lucky enough to wake up and stop before the drugs and alcohol and recklessness killed them. Guys like Keith Richards and others. Poor Amy was not so lucky. She didn't stop in time and Alchohol got her and killed her. Maybe drugs too. Poor Amy didn't get a pass. Amy who with her wonderful voice could have become one of the greatest musical artist of the 21st Century. Not that she isn't great. She is. She was, but it is the thought that if only Amy didn't succumb to the drugs and alcohol, imagine all the great music she had in front of her and would have but din't get the chance to record. To Live.

    God Bless You Amy and Rest in Peace.  You are missed by many, now after one year and always.

Daniel Bellino Zwicke

The KNICKS SUCK

FUCK YOU KNICKS !!!

YOU SUCK !!!

Yeah, "FUCK YOU KNICKS" I don't want to go into a whole lot of detail right now. All i can say is that New York Knicks manegement SUCKS, "Big Time." They had a Golden Opportunity to cash in on one of NBA History's Most Phenomanal Stories and players eve, and they blew it. They let the Houston rockets beat and Out-Bid a new york team. This is EXCEPTIONABLE. Jeremy Lin came out of no where last year and set the Sports and Basketball World on Fire with his lightning fast rise to fame and prominence.  no body has seen anything like this since Michael Jordan. No, I'm not comparing him with Michael Jordan or Jordan great skills as a basketball player. Jordan may very well be the Greatest basketball Player of All-Time. lin will never be any where near as great as Jordan. But the story and sudden success and the whole Linsanity is every bit the equal to Jordan's story, maybe even more phenomenal. 

The Knicks have NEVER EVER had any player with the Marquee Power and prominence of Lin.  yes the Knicks have had many wonderful players over the years; Bill Bradley, Earl Monroe, Walt "Clyde" Frazier, Patrick Ewing who in all those years with the Knicks could Never lead them to a NBA Title wihich the Knicks haven't won since 1973. Sad! The "KNICKS SUCK"

Maybe Jeremy Lin and his teammates could have brought the Knicks their "FIRST CHAMPIONSHIP in 40 YEARS" Maybe not. But at least they could have tried with the type of ball player who only comes around once or twice to a team in a lifetime. that player was Jeremy Lin. The Knicks let him get away, and for that, guess what, "The KNICKS SUCK." !!!!!

5 Top Reasons The KNICKS SUCK

  

1)  They Let Jeremy Lin Go

2)  They Let The Rockets Out Bid Them

3)  They didn't give Jeremy Lin the Money

4)  The deliberately made NY lose

5)  They past up a Golden Opportunity

THE KNICKS SUCK

The ACE HOTEL ..and NEW YORK'S BEST WRITERS LOUNGE

WORLD'S PRETTIEST BARISTA at The ACE

Stumptown Coffee

photo Daniel Bellino Zwicke

 Ace-ing it at the Ace, The Ace Hotel that is. One of the coolest hotels in town. New York Town. The Ace Hotel on Broadway at 29th Street is Ultra Cool and the place to stay for a plethora of creative types from around the country, The World. 
      Yes the Ace is very cool. It's quite a great addition to New York City and the neighbor this fine hotel is located in, The Flatiron District, named after the famed icon triangular building on the triangle piece of land where Fifth Avenue and Broadway intersect each other at 23rd Street with 22nd Street at the south end of The Flatiron Building, one of the World's First Skyscrapers. The Flatiron Building completed in 1902 is 22 stories high, and along with The Chrysler Building, and The Empire State Building gives New York a trio of The Three Most Beautiful Skyscrapers in the World. Three, it's not a lot, but in no other place in the World does there exist one other building with the beauty of one of these, not one and we have Three. Quite a feat. Yes the Eiffel Tower in Paris is beautiful and as icon as any building can be and is equal in beauty to any of our Great Trio, but technically it's not a skyscraper, but a tower, and yes we do love it.
      Anyway, got off on one of my tangents there. Sorry. Back to the Ace Hotel. Besides being a great place for tourist and business people from all around the country and world to come to and stay in New York., it's great for New Yorker's, many of whom dine at the Breslin or John Dory Restaurant. Many more, hundreds drop into Stumptown Coffe at the Ace for a solid fix of Espresso, Cappuccino, or American Coffee. Stumptown is known to make some of the finest coffee in town, and I'll attest to that, they're great.
       But, my favorite thing about the Ace Hotel in the Flatiron District is the wonderful lounge they have there. The Lounge at The Ace hotel is a magnet for writers, Dot.com Start-Up People, and all sorts of creative types, musicians, bloggers, poets, and what not, but mostly writer. And there is quite a lot of good energy and a great vibe as a result.
     And the people are quite accommodating, providing two large writing tables and one small one, and the largest one has tons of electrical outlets for your Laptop and other devices. Thank You Ace Hotel. Thanks for being so thoughtful, for creating such a great place, and..
      The Ace has actually help transform this stretch of Broadway filled with wholesalers selling; jewelry, handbags, watches, hats, baseball caps, T-Shirts, toys and all sorts of things. But now as a result of the Ace, two more cool boutique hotels have popped up in the neighborhood. You have the Flatiron Hotel about 3 blocks down Broadway, which is pretty cool, but quiet and has not garnered a lot of buzz or press as its neighbor the Nomad Hotel has across the Street.
      So there you have it, The Ace Hotel and inside The Breslin, World Class Coffee at Stumptown, a cool Submarine Sandwich place Sub 7, and the coolest writing lounge in town, The Lounge at the Ace Hotel. Thanks again Ace people, we Luv ya.














Daniel Bellino Zwicke