Have you ever tried to explain to your uncle what jazz is? Over Thanksgiving dinner, the subject somehow switched from my cousin’s hookup arrangement to music. My uncle said all that he knew about jazz was a bunch of noise. So there was no point of trying to sell him on Louis Armstrong or John Coltrane. Instead I picked out something that he was familiar with, and you just can’t go wrong with Khanh Ly and Trinh Cong Son. The challenge was to select a tune that had that jazz aesthetics in it. Khanh Ly’s 1973 rendition of “Dem Thay Ta La Thac Do” was perfect. As the song plays, I briefly walked him through it:

The intro kicked off with an exchange between the sax and trumpet like they were having a conversation with one another.

0:25: Khanh Ly’s raucous voice joined in as the plucking bass provided the rhythm. The blue note on the piano added an intoxicating tincture to her vocals.

1:30: The sax solo took over. Listen to how the horn expressed its tone like a human voice with its soars and screams.

2:00: The muted trumpet improvisation supplied a dark, mysterious, and sensuous mood to the break.

2:15: Both the sax and the trumpet interacted once again, but this time they brought back the original melody to introduce Khanh Ly’s second verse.

3:40: The sax and the keyboard gave a wonderful closing out, but it is the tinkering guitar that gave the ending a novelty.

After this little introduction, my uncle nodded his head. Not only that he didn’t think jazz was just noise anymore, he showed some interests. The only missing piece was that Khanh Ly didn’t scat, so I couldn’t show him the art of jazz’s wordless singing. Still this track was a great example for explaining jazz to a Vietnamese person.

It’s a damn shame that we don’t get this kind of “real” musical accompaniment with today’s Vietnamese music recordings. If you listen to Khanh Ly’s later rendition of “Dem Thay Ta La Thac Do,” you’ll feel the great lost immediately. The programmed drums are simply there to maintain the rhythm, and the bass sounds like my nephew’s fart. Too sad.

“Public Enemy #1” once again demonstrates Eminem’s rhyming, flowing, and producing skills. He spits forty plus bars straight, with an extraordinary breath control, giving a cinematic lyricism on how he’s about to go down in history the same way 2pac and John F. Kennedy did.

SimpleBits redesigned with new logo, zoomable layout, and simple organization.

Tanya Merone pulls off a striking one page design.

From Foccaland‘s portfolio: Sex Motion and Oooooouch.

Jay-Z’s “Lost Ones“
Nas’s “Hip-hop is Dead“

“Ngon Nen Tinh Yeu“
“Candles of Love“
“Chandelles D’Amour“

From Candles of Love Foundation.

Got away a bit to revive myself. With cold-ass rain in a windy night, Niagara Falls is not a bad place to be. A bottle of Alize and some Madeleine Peyroux’s tunes were all that needed to get into the mood. Was thinking of Billie Holiday, but she might make me want to jump down the Falls. So went with Peyroux instead.

While in Canada, went to a charity concert that supports the HOF (Handicapped and Orphans Fund) in Viet Nam. The repertoire featured Quang Dung, Minh Tuyet, Cat Tien, Pham Khai Tuan, and Dieu Huong. While Quang Dung and Minh Tuyet were the audience’s choice, I was more interested in Dieu Huong. She might beat around the bush with the introduction of each song before she sang; I do care to hear what inspired her to write her songs. For instance, “Minh Oi” was written when her father passed away, and she was writing the lyrics in her mother’s point of view. Until she tried to get the people to dance with her translated tunes, every song, including “Khac Khoai” and “O Lai Ta Di,” she performed with emotion and affection.

In contrast, Quang Dung showed off too much of his powerful voice. Gone were the cool-under-pressure, effortless, and suave Quang Dung who made “Hay Ve Voi Anh” way cooler than the loud-ass Phuong Thanh. His performance of “Ha Trang” and “Bac Tinh,” however, were closed to if not as vociferous as Dam Vinh Hung’s. The banquet hall was small and hearing his screamings coming out of the gigantic speakers was not so pleasing, but the crowd loved him.

During intermission, I was going to cop Tinh Khuc Cho Em, a new release from Quang Dung and Thai Ha (Y Lan’s clone), but it was twenty dollars a pop. The price is doubled just for the signature? That’s a straight jack.

Ao Trang has a new look and the 2007 calendar is now available.

A picturesque painting of Ngoc Lan by Kim Quan.

Bao Han’s official web site sure looks familiar. Red Macromedia scouped up Joshua Ink‘s flowery design (which I wouldn’t have a problem with if it is for personal use) and claimed as “designed by Red.” The agency should change its name to Rip Macromedia instead. Hope Bao Han didn’t have to pay for this unoriginal work.

Update: Wow! That was fast. The design of Bao Han’s main page has been modified.

While flipping through My Secret: A PostSecret Book, I spotted a postcard that says, “I want to have sex with a piano.” Sounds familiar? Yes, I used to know that freaky bitch, but just keep that between me and you.

I’ll be off work until the following Monday to enjoy the holiday and to clear my mind. Before I go, let me share with you “Give Thanks,” a solo-piano performance from Pham Hong Hanh, to wish you all a joyfull Thanksgiving.