nada's frantic antics distract no one

Very busy day, sorry.

A Hurdy-Gurdy

More people have heard its name than the instrument itself, so an introduction is a good idea. Here an expert hurdy-gurdy player explains and then demonstrates the instrument.

Krugman on the Presidential Lean

When it comes to the economy, what is the president thinking? Krugman offers his take.

So, here we are with inflation at a long-term low, many economists arguing that we need higher inflation expectations, and unemployment the overwhelming problem we face. Yet Obama appears if anything to give more emphasis to inflation-fighting than to unemployment reduction, and throws in stuff about bubbles; basically, he has a definite tight-money lean. I don’t know who it’s coming from.

Van Dyke Parks - Missin' Mississippi

Still enjoying the new VDP album. Being politically engaged can be a positive, no?

The View From the Booster Rocket

Way cool. Cameras and microphones were mounted to the booster rockets on a couple of the space shuttle flights -- this film shows what happens in real time, from liftoff to the jettisoned boosters splashing down.  H/t JM @ TPM.

Van Dyke Parks - Hold Back Time

This song was on Orange Crate Art, Van Dyke Parks's album with Brian Wilson back in the mid-nineties, but this solo version is much newer. I guess you either love VDP's chord changes and intricate off-the-wall arrangements or you don't - I do.

Pete Seeger - Twelve Gates to the City

The first time I heard this gospel song, it was in a version similar to this one, so this is how I usually remember it. Not deeply authentic in sound compared to its origin, but deeply heartfelt.