Chance Meeting
Friday May 26th, 2023 with Heavy Ben
Moondog

Chance meeting on 6th Ave of snaketime rhythms and a Viking May 26th marks the birthday of Moondog, born on this day in 1916. For over 30 years one of the most sought out and recognizable figures on the streets of New York City was Louis Hardin Jr. Looking like an apparition from Norse mythology, with a long, flowing beard, and dressed as a Viking, he stood day and night, year after year on the corner of 6th Avenue and 54th Street. He wrote music, sold his poetry for 25 cents, and performed on his homemade percussion instruments. Blind and often homeless, most people thought he was mentally ill; they didn’t know he was an acclaimed composer, recording for notable jazz labels Prestige and Columbia, praised by Leonard Bernstein and Duke Ellington, and who even made a children’s record with a pre-stardom Julie Andrews. There was always a lot more to Moondog than met the eye. He became an honorary member of the New York Philharmonic at Carnegie Hall. Charlie Parker and Benny Goodman hung out with him. Janis Joplin covered his music. Alan Ginsburg stuck his poetry on his fridge. Diane Arbus took his picture. Andy Warhol's mother designed one of his album covers. In the late 60s, composer Philip Glass offered Moondog a place to live. Moondog stayed for a year, playing music weekly with Philip Glass, Steve Reich and Jon Gibson. Moondog credited his unique rhythmic approach to childhood experiences with the Arapaho tribe in Wyoming, where he learned the syncopation of their sun dances; he felt they had more swing than jazz. He swung to a different beat — often 5/4 time, a stuttering meter he called “snaketime.” The non-conformist felt “the human race is going to die in 4/4 time.” Eventually this strange figure became a modern legend, going from curiosity to international composer honored by European royalty and entered into folklore of New York. Moondog moved to Germany in the 1970s, where he lived and recorded for 25 years, before dying in 1999 at the age of 83. https://moondog-music.com/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moondog If you purchase music, this is the best place to start with Moondog: https://www.discogs.com/master/60682-Moondog-The-Viking-Of-Sixth-Avenue https://honestjonsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/the-viking-of-sixth-avenue (to embiggen the show icon, right-click and choose "Open image in new tab")