I got this from my friend Susan who's brother Larry thought I should read it
and I figured I would pass it on to you all and see what your comments were on
the topic. I had NOT heard that Joni had made a trip to Cuba.
I also meant to say that I had a Joni moment on the road yesterday when I was
driving thru Ruston Louisiana I found a station (91.5FM) that was playing the
World Cafe program and they played Secret Place. They had a program that
followed about the grammys, but I could not catch the whole thing cause I had
to go into a meeting. Its nice to know that even in rural America, there are
some good radio stations that are playing good music instead of "the
formula".
Later
Paz
-----Original Message-----
From: Susan
Sent: Wednesday, February 14, 2001 3:10 PM
To: MICHAEL PAZ (E-mail)
Subject: FW: You won't believe this!
-----Original Message-----
Sent: Wednesday, February 14, 2001 2:56 PM
To: Susan
Subject: Re: You won't believe this!
I would be interested to know what Michael Paz and DK think about this,
because they are so involved in the music industry. BTW Joni Mitchell went
to Cuba a few years ago -- I wonder if Gloria Estefan and will try to get her
music banned in the US.
I guess a national health care program, lunch programs for children,
pre-natal care for poor women, and housing for the homeless must take a
back-seat as national priorities because those fat-ass confederate-white
boy-fraternity brother republicans and the right wing Cuban "exile" industry
have to persecute Ry Cooder for making the world aware of incredible Cuban
music with the Buena Vista Social Club! Apparently the schoolboy brat
republicans are so pissed off that Ry Cooder gave Hillary Clinton a campaign
contribution, that they're now gearing up to persecute him. The Clinton
administration went to bat for Cooder with the State Department and Treasury,
and now republicans are targeting him!
Please pass this on to all of your friends in the music industry!
[short article:]
It's all well and good to mobilize the powers of a great nation
against the evil of the Buena Vista Social Club (oh? you haven't
heard?), but just where was the Bush administration tonight to
protect us from these four musicians from the evil land of Teheran?
Where, in fact, was security last week when the RUSSIAN National
Orchestra performed in the same hall?!
That's stupid, you say. Who would prevent Chinese, Russian, Iranian
artists from performing today -- right? So how does the
administration explain its move against Ry Cooder, who found,
promoted and made the elderly Cuban musicians of the Social Club into
the international treasure they have become?
Yes, the new administration is dusting off the 40-year-old Trading
with the Enemy Act to deal with Cooder, who -- gasp! -- apparently
paid for tickets on the Cuban airline. Cooder's attorney says the
problem is the guitarist's contribution to Hillary Clinton's Senate
campaign, interpreted as a payoff for the Clinton administration's
urging of the State Department to issue Cooder visas for his visits
to Cuba and urging the US Treasury to allow royalty-sharing with the
Cuban musicians, who are in their 70s and 80s -- a clear and present
danger to the Republic.
