Cahaba River Threatened by Barber Construction

November 09, 2000The recent summer drought has brought into question compliance by the developers of the new Barber Vintage Motorcycle Museum (which will include a racetrack) with previous agreements reached with the city of Birmingham, the Cahaba River Society, and other environmental activist organizations.On October 6, Birmingham experienced its first steady rainfall in weeks. Samples of water taken from the tributary leading from the construction site of the Barber museum to the Cahaba River revealed an alarmingly high amount of soil particles present.

Dr. Randy Haddock of the Cahaba River Society collected the samples and noted that the tributary was “completely muddy.” Photographs revealed a stark contrast between the clarity of the river upstream from the tributary receiving the construction discharge, and the Cahaba’s cloudy status downstream from the discharge. The Barber construction site is located upstream from the Birmingham Water Works drinking water intakes on the Cahaba River.

Contents of the sample jars containing water filled with soil particles drawn from the Cahaba River, the major source of Birmingham’s drinking water, looked like “chocolate milk” when the collection container was shaken, according to Haddock and several others who attended an October 23 meeting between representatives of the Barber Museum, city officials, the Cahaba River Society, and several other environmental groups. “It’s the worst single event as far as erosion and sediment control failure that I’ve seen in my 10 years associated with the Cahaba River,” noted Dr. Haddock. He also questioned whether proper storm water control measures have been installed by the Barber Museum construction.

Curiosity has also been raised regarding the status of a proposed lake that would catch construction runoff before it could invade the Cahaba tributary. Anonymous sources close to the situation say a dispute has been brewing regarding whether or not the lake was actually included in agreements made between the city and Barber that allowed the building of the museum and racetrack.

When contacted for comment, the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM) refused to discuss the issue on record, but said that they was aware of the predicament and were currently looking into the situation.

Officials from Barber did not return telephone messages as of press time.

Dead Folks 2011: World Affairs/Newsmakers

Leave a reply

Dead Folks 2011: World Affairs/Newsmakers

By David Pelfrey, Ed Reynolds, J.R. Taylor

January 26, 2012

Moammar Gadhafi

For 42 years, dictator Moammar Gadhafi survived numerous coups and assassination attempts to rule Libya with a brutal fist. In 1969, the 27-year-old military officer led a bloodless rebellion to take control of the country. Libya’s rich oil deposits became Colonel Gadhafi’s trump card, a resource that gave Gadhafi a global importance he otherwise would never have achieved. President Reagan called him “the mad dog of the Middle East.” Egyptian president Anwar el-Sadat referred to him as “that crazy Libyan.”

Gadhafi lived in a huge white tent that he took everywhere. He financed terrorist groups, including the Irish Republican Army and guerilla outfits in Africa. His tyrannical government was responsible for the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am jet over Lockerbie, Scotland, that killed 270 passengers. Interrogations and executions were telecast nationally to instill fear in Libyan citizens. Gadhafi usually inflicted violence on the terrorized populace every decade to insure his control. The Libyan army consisted of soldiers imported from Sudan, Chad, and Liberia. A 2011 Libyan uprising finally deposed the tyrant. An intense manhunt for Gadhafi highlighted daily news programs before he was finally located and shot to death.

The dictator had his particulars: He renamed the months, changing February to “Lights” and August to “Hannibal,” for example. Anyone with more than $3,000 in their bank account was considered excessively wealthy and had to surrender the excess to the state. Gadhafi once banned sport utility vehicles, then lifted the ban, only to later reinstate it, forcing those who had purchased SUVs to hide them. He once demanded that all Libyans raise chickens to promote self-sufficiency—even those living in apartments.

Gadhafi had a unique sense of fashion; his colorful robes and funky matching caps established his own ethnic style. One of his more fascinating indulgences was a unique bodyguard squad. Though Gadhafi preached that women were not equal to men, he was personally guarded by a group of machine gun-toting women sporting camouflage fatigues, high-heeled sandals, and red nail polish. (69, killed by Libyan rebels) —ER

David Broder




(click for larger version)

For four decades, Broder was a political reporter and columnist for The Washington Post who could frequently be found on political news shows such as “Meet the Press.” Reflecting his belief “that not all wisdom resides in Washington,” Broder often reported on state and local politics. He was the first to reveal that Senator Edmund Muskie, after growing weary of attacks on his family, cried during a press conference. Muskie denied crying but the image of him as emotionally weak cost him the Democratic presidential nomination to George McGovern in 1972. (81, diabetes) —ER

Dr. Jack Kevorkian

A medical pathologist dubbed “Dr. Death” by his detractors, Dr. Jack Kevorkian assisted more than one hundred terminally ill people in ending their lives by suicide. A fearless rebel in the face of lawsuits and public outcry against his deeds, he was finally convicted of second-degree murder in 1999 for the last assisted suicide in which he was involved. He spent eight years in prison. Regardless of their feelings for Kevorkian, critics and supporters agree that his efforts created improved hospice care and better pain management for dying patients.

Kevorkian was prompted to devote himself to helping the terminally ill after he received national attention for a 1984 speech. He addressed the California Legislature in support of a bill containing his proposal that death-row inmates be given the choice of dying by anesthesia if they allowed their organs to be donated. After visiting the Netherlands in 1987 to learn how the Dutch performed assisted suicide, Kevorkian came back to Detroit to open a clinical practice that included “death counseling.”

Beginning in 1990, Kevorkian began assisting the dying, estimating that some 130 patients used his procedure over the next eight years. Kevorkian continued his efforts despite having his medical license revoked and state legislatures passing laws forbidding assisted suicide. Frequently arrested for short periods of time, he would leave jail and go immediately to assist in another suicide. While incarcerated, he went on hunger strikes. He could be quick-tempered in defending his beliefs and on occasion fought with arresting officers. In 1995, the American Medical Association referred to him as “a reckless instrument of death” who “poses a great threat to the public.” Kevorkian lived a simple life, often wearing second-hand clothes purchased at a Salvation Army thrift store. He rarely dated and never married.

The first person to use Dr. Kevorkian’s “suicide machine” was an Oregon teacher suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. The procedure took place in Kevorkian’s rusting 1968 Volkswagen van at a campground near his home. The doctor called police immediately after the woman’s death and was briefly detained.

As for Dr. Kevorkian’s exit from this life, his final hours were spent listening to Bach in a hospital where he had been admitted for kidney and respiratory problems. (83, blood clot) —ER

Betty Ford




	(click for larger version)

Haunted by a condition that most families in such high-profile positions would prefer be kept under wraps, former first lady Betty Ford went public with her battle with booze and pills in the late ’70s. Her successful fight inspired Ms. Ford to open The Betty Ford Center in Rancho Mirage, California—today one of the best-known substance-abuse rehabilitation facilities in the country. The rehab hospital has attracted its fair share of celebrities, including Elizabeth Taylor, Liza Minnelli, Mary Tyler Moore, and baseball great Mickey Mantle.

Ford’s addiction to painkillers began in 1964 while recovering from a neck injury. She later began drinking heavily. Her family finally confronted her in 1978, forcing her into treatment.

Ms. Ford never shied from expressing her political opinions, which included staunch defense of the Equal Rights Amendment and legalized abortion. One of her most memorable moments came on the day after her husband was defeated for the presidency by Jimmy Carter in 1976. President Ford had lost his voice, so the First Lady read The President’s concession speech for him. (93) -ER

Lana Peters

The only daughter and last surviving child of brutal Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, Peters defected in 1967, 14 years after her father’s death. Born Svetlana Stalina, she became Lana Peters after getting married in America. Peters moved frequently, seemingly unsettled and desperate, and sampled religions from Hinduism to Christian Science. In 1984, she moved back to the Soviet Union but returned to the U.S. two years later. She reportedly spent her final years in poverty, living in a cabin with no electricity in Wisconsin, though there were rumors she was in a Roman Catholic convent in Switzerland. (85, colon cancer) —ER

Ed Zigo

A veteran New York City detective, Ed Zigo helped track down serial killer (and postal worker) David Berkowitz, also known as Son of Sam, through a parking ticket. For one year beginning in July of 1976, terror gripped New York City when six murders were committed by an unknown assailant who called himself “Son of Sam.” The killer began correspondence with authorities, writing long letters that referenced vampires and monsters, warning that he would strike again. The night he murdered his sixth victim, a woman walking her dog noticed an officer ticketing two cars.

Zigo and other detectives searched every parking ticket issued in the area near the time of the murder. When they came up with a license plate number registered in the name of Berkowitz, Zigo felt he had a solid lead. Zigo remembered thinking “What is a Jewish guy from Yonkers doing parked in an Italian neighborhood at two in the morning?”

Zigo checked out Berkowitz’s address, where he found the ticketed car with a rifle in the backseat and a note in the glove compartment threatening to attack a disco. Zigo noticed that the handwriting on the note was similar to that of the threatening letters sent by Son of Sam. Berkowitz was arrested and immediately confessed to the crimes. (84, cancer) —ER

Trouble

The most despised dog in the world, Trouble was an irritable Maltese that inherited Leona Helmsley’s $12 million fortune. Trouble’s yearly expenses were reported to be $190,000, of which $100,000 was spent on security due to numerous death and kidnapping threats. When the dog traveled, it flew under the alias “Bubbles” to shake off those tempted to dognap her. Helmsley demanded that everyone call the dog “Princess” instead of “the dog.” Trouble was a notorious biter, and even left a few scars on Helmsley. The dog lived on a diet of crab cakes, cream cheese, and steamed vegetables with chicken, fed by hand, when Ms. Helmsley was alive. After Helmsley’s death, Trouble ate canned dog food. (12) —ER

Singrai Soren

Few will argue that Singrai Soren didn’t have it coming. Soren raised and trained cockfighting roosters in India. Combat roosters are usually given at least an hour between bouts but Soren forced his bird back into the ring only minutes after its first fight. The rooster tried to escape the fighting pit repeatedly, only to have the owner place it back into the ring. The angry bird finally attacked Soren, slitting his throat and killing the man with the razor-sharp blade that all fighting roosters wear on one leg when in battle. —ER

J. Paul Getty III

It wasn’t just bad luck that Jean Paul Getty III was kidnapped at Rome’s Piazza Farnese in November of 1973. The 16-year-old heir to the Getty Oil fortune had also been recently expelled from boarding school, and had joked about faking his own kidnapping for money. The postmen of Italy were also on strike, which made it difficult for Getty’s father to eventually receive the ransom demand for $17 million. Jean Paul Getty II couldn’t get that kind of money together himself, and his own father thought it was a bad idea to negotiate with kidnappers. Things became more urgent when the criminals finally sent a human ear to an Italian newspaper. It was November, and the kidnappers were running out of patience. The accompanying letter announced that J. Paul III would be losing his other ear in 10 more days, to be followed by other body parts.




	(click for larger version)

Getty Sr. decided that he’d be willing to give the kidnappers $2.2 million for his grandson. That was the maximum amount he could pay and still claim a tax deduction. Anything more than that was to be considered a loan to Getty II at 4% interest. A deal was finally negotiated to have Getty III released for $2.9 million. Payment was made and the teenager was released in Southern Italy that December.

The kidnappers were later caught, and revealed to be a mix of local lowlifes and some crime bosses. It was Italy, so the crime bosses were acquitted and very little of the ransom money was found.

Meanwhile, things would get even more tragic for Getty III. He was pretty much disinherited after marrying his pregnant older girlfriend shortly after the kidnapping. He had a son—who would grow up to be the actor Balthazar Getty—but Getty III would soon develop some serious drug problems. His penchant for mixing whisky, cocaine, and heroin put him into a coma in 1981. He lost oxygen to his brain and ended up as a nearly blind paraplegic. J. Paul would later have to sue his billionaire father to get assistance for medical bills. (That was particularly sad since Getty II had spent plenty of his own young years in a drug-induced haze.) Getty III would eventually live (so to speak) off his own very comfortable inheritance, but always seemed like a one-man Getty curse. At least he didn’t pass the curse on to his kid. The worst that’s happened to Balthazar was that he was caught sleeping around with Sienna Miller. (54, undisclosed but inevitable) —JRT

Out of Time

Leave a reply

A photo exhibit details the unusual history of a black family in early 20th-century rural Alabama.By Ed Reynolds




Geneva and Mitch Shackelford with unidentified child. (click for larger version)

August 09, 2012Through September 14, the downtown Birmingham Public Library is currently showcasing Both Sides of the Lens: Photographs by the Shackelford Family, Fayette County, Alabama (1900-1935). Featured on the library’s fourth floor gallery are 40 prints selected from 850 photos in the library’s Shackelford archives. Also on hand—and well worth taking time to peruse—are two thick notebooks that include dozens of archived Shackelford images not on display in the gallery.

Mitch Shackelford was born during the Civil War. Adopted by a white family that he reportedly stayed in touch with for many years, Shackelford left home at age 21, eventually going to work for Southern Railroad. He and his wife Geneva moved to Covin, Alabama, in rural Fayette County, where they built a home that housed a couple of generations of Shackelfords. The residence became a boarding house and overnight rest stop for white and black travelers.

The Shackelfords were an oddity in the South in the early 20th century: an affluent black family with voting rights that owned vast quantities of land. Mitch and Geneva’s children found wealth by owning and operating syrup mills and sawmills as well as by farming and continuing to purchase land. As an entrepreneurial sideline, they maintained a commercial photography business, primarily making portraits. Clients included black and white area residents. Portraits were taken by two generations of Shackelfords in an era when stereotypical, racist images of blacks were prevalent in society. As noted in the exhibit: “The Shackelford photographs offer a dynamic and rarely seen depiction of the African-American experience in rural Alabama and show black people living full and vibrant lives in the face of the racial and socioeconomic oppression of the Jim Crow era.”

Birmingham native Andrew Nelson, currently at the University of Maryland, College Park, is largely responsible for the show. “This is the picture that started the journey that ended up being this exhibition,” Nelson explains, gesturing towards a photo of a nine-piece brass band that included three of Mitch Shackelford’s children. “A little over a year ago I started work on my Ph.D. dissertation and I had a conversation with a man named Joey Brackner, who is the director of the Alabama Center for Traditional Culture. Joey knew I was looking for pictures of old musicians. He told me about a collection that he had bought at the Bessemer Flea market over 20 years ago and donated to the Birmingham Public Library.” Nelson’s dissertation will be published as a book. A significant portion details the history of the brass band pictured in the collection.

The only thing known about the pictures was that they were taken in Fayette County sometime early in the 20th century. Nelson became fascinated with the images and began noticing the same house in many of the shots—the Shackelford home. He was determined to discover who had taken the photos. He went in search of the house, recognizing that his chances of finding it were slim due to the wooden structure having been built in 1900. He found a photograph of the house in the library in Fayette County as well as a map of the road where the house once stood. Eventually, he met Mitch and Geneva Shackelford’s great granddaughter, Annie Shackelford, who lives in the area. A friendship was forged. The Shackelford photo collection provided Annie with her first look at her great-grandparents. Annie Shackelford’s parents lived in the house until the early 1960s, before it began to deteriorate.




(click for larger version)

The Shackelford family developed their photos in an attic darkroom. Great-grandson Marvin Shackelford, of Alabaster, recalls playing there as a child. “We did not really know what it was all about,” he says. “We weren’t allowed up there. My boy cousins and my brothers and I would sneak up there and kind of snoop around a little bit. And I remember those glass plates [negatives] and everything, just like it was yesterday. But we didn’t have a clue what it was, really!”

Marvin explains that his grandfather was always helping the children with their cameras. “He would always be the one that would give us pointers when we had our little Polaroid-type cameras,” he recalls. “Like if we were facing the sun or whatever with the lens, he’d say, ‘No, no, no. You need to get the sun at your back,’ and that kind of thing.”

The photographs the Shackelfords made of neighbors wearing their Sunday finest contradicted the often demeaning stereotypical images of black Americans in the first half of the 20th century. “What a profound service it is that the Shackelfords provided the people in their community and beyond, to be able to represent themselves,” Andrew Nelson explains, calling the family “renaissance men.”

The brass band photo that first attracted Nelson to the collection indeed speaks volumes about the Shackelfords and other black residents socializing with whites in Fayette County in the early 1900s. The sign on the bass drum in the picture reads: “Big concert tonight at the Covin School-House given by the brass band beginning at 7:30. Seats for our white friends. Admission only 10 cents.”




This brass band, of which three Shackelford children were members, poses in front of the Shackelford house. (click for larger version)




(click for larger version)




(click for larger version)




(click for larger version)




(click for larger version)

Easy on the Mayo, Please

Leave a reply

2012-07-12 Features

Easy on the Mayo, Please

A local newspaperman’s passion for pimento cheese.

By Ed Reynolds

write the author

July 12, 2012

Among other things, Bob Carlton has written about film, nightlife, and food in his 32 years at the Birmingham News. In recent years, he decided to take a stab at being a food entrepreneur by launching his own brand—Bob’s Soon-To-Be-Famous Pimento Cheese.

Carlton began making pimento cheese in the late ’90s. “I would make it for people to give at Christmas or take to parties or for football tailgates or whatever. Everybody told me they loved it,” he says. At the pleading of a co-worker, Carlton decided to go legit.



	(click for larger version)

“So, I started selling it, emailing folks when I was making it. From that I went to the Pepper Place Farmers’ Market in June of 2011 for the first time. I just don’t have the time or the money to get it started in grocery stores. That’s the beauty of Pepper Place; you can have an idea, and with a little bit of money, you can at least try it out. If it works, it works. I’m not making any money, but at least I’m having fun—well, kinda having fun. If I figured it out, when it’s all said and done, I’m probably making about five dollars an hour.”

Pimento cheese, of course, is as southern as grits and catfish. The cheese spread has been introduced to generations of kids who either love it or loathe it. Carlton admits he was not always a huge fan of pimento cheese but recalls the first time it made a lasting impression. The Linden, Alabama, native was visiting his uncle in Montgomery as a teen: “I remember Uncle Charles grating cheese and getting a jar of mayonnaise and a little jar of pimentos and tossing and making pimento cheese. I don’t even know if I ate it. I just remember seeing him making it. And it just kinda struck me that you didn’t have to go to the grocery store to buy it; you could actually make it at home. It stuck with me; it didn’t inspire me at the time but somehow years later it did.” Carlton says that his recipe has evolved over time. It features, among other ingredients, a little mayonnaise and four cheeses: sharp white cheddar, Monterey Jack, hoop cheese, and mild cheddar.”

Being stingy with mayonnaise occasionally elicits scoldings from customers. “Sometimes I get fussed at because there’s not enough mayo and it’ll be too crumbly; I’ve had a couple people say, ‘Well, you know, I couldn’t even spread it, it was falling apart.’ But so many people have commented, ‘I don’t even like pimento cheese but I like yours.’ And I think that’s the reason, because most people have this idea that pimento cheese is this real ‘mayonnaisey-type, girlie-type’ thing.”




Bob Carlton and his daughter, Laura Catherine, at the Pepper Place Farmers’ Market. (click for larger version)

Valerie Boyd, the News employee who urged Carlton to market his product, agrees. “It’s different because it’s got that spice to it, that kick to it. It’s not your typical creamy, ‘mayonnaisey’ pimento cheese,” says Boyd, who formerly owned Homegrown Special Foods in Homewood, worked at Tria Market, and currently is employed at Sysco. To say that she loves Carlton’s pimento cheese is an understatement.

“I was working at the Birmingham News at the time. Bob was the food editor then. He told me one day that he made pimento cheese, tomato pies, and strawberry pies, and all this kind of stuff,” she says enthusiastically. “I tasted his pimento cheese and oh my God! I fell in love with it. I told him, ‘This is pimento crack!’ So I took some upstairs to the advertising department. Everybody tasted it and was going nuts. Everybody was in line placing orders. One of the graphic artists [at the newspaper] became addicted to it, too, and he actually created a logo that read ‘Pimento Crack’. But then we realized we really couldn’t do that.” She says that several employees became “followers” of Carlton’s tasty dish and all hounded him to start selling.

Boyd’s preference is eating Bob’s Soon-To-Be-Famous on scrambled eggs, while the creator himself especially loves it on hamburgers. Carlton doesn’t add the pimento cheese until the burger is almost cooked. “I don’t like it real gooey and melty; I still want to have the texture. Maybe add a couple of strips of bacon,” he explains. On a recent Saturday morning at his Pepper Place booth, he shared a delicious sandwich that his pal (and Black & White staffer) Warren Caldwell dreamed up while watching football. It’s been dubbed the Southern Belly Sammich and consists of Bob’s pimento cheese, bacon, Wickles Pickles (an Alabama-made spicy-sweet pickle), slaw, mayo, and white bread. It’s pretty darn good, too. The name is inspired by the John T. Edge book Southern Belly: The Ultimate Food Lover’s Companion to the South.

After a successful demonstration at last year’s Southern Women’s Show, Carlton has been invited back for the October 2012 event. “I left some things out so they couldn’t copy the exact recipe. Maybe I left the cayenne pepper out. Or maybe the Worcestershire sauce,” he confesses. The main labor is chopping and grating, with “tossing it all together” being the fun part. “That’s when you know you’ve almost got it finished,” he says.

Carlton has been selling his pimento cheese at the Pepper Place Farmers’ Market on alternating Saturday mornings. He often sells out, so arrive early. Local chef Franklin Biggs, one of the founders of the Pepper Place market, says that when Carlton is not there, people look for him. Biggs often hears, “Oh darn. No pimento cheese this Saturday!” Bob Carlton will be at the Pepper Place on July 14 and 28. For more information, visit www.facebook.com/BobsPimentoCheese. &

City Hall

Leave a reply

By Ed Reynolds

June 27, 2000

Councilor Don MacDermott is absent tonight, presumably awaiting election returns in his Republican runoff bid for Jefferson County Clerk . . . Mayor Bernard Kincaid is a few minutes late to tonight’s meeting. He has no formal report but does express rage over insinuations that Birmingham school officials and students resorted to cheating in order to raise SAT scores. Council President William Bell and Councilor Lee Wendell Loder both agree with Kincaid. Only Councilor Blake suggests that reported low scores in reading but high scores in math and science indicate a possible problem somewhere in the standardized testing system . . . A resolution that would allow the city of Birmingham to pledge city resources to help repair Vulcan by leasing Vulcan Park to the Vulcan Park Foundation is up for discussion. Blake complains that several people on the board of the Vulcan Park Foundation are not Birmingham residents, though supporters of the Foundation’s board members indicate that all at least work in Birmingham. Councilor Bill Johnson and Blake continue their recent butting of heads, with Johnson angrily telling Blake that Vulcan is a symbol of the “community” and that the funds for the project will be coming from the “metro area,” not just the city. Considering how long the issue has been in the works, Johnson says he is “appalled” by the fact that Blake has not reviewed documents addressing the Foundation. Johnson reminds Blake that the statue is in Blake’s Southside district. Johnson also refuses to include an amendment to the resolution that would keep Vulcan from being moved from Red Mountain. Noting that he appreciates the Vulcan Park Foundation, Blake protests that Birmingham has put $1 million into the project over the past two years. The councilor notes that the city is also paying a monthly consultant fee in order to receive $2 million in federal money for the project. The resolution is approved, with only Blake casting a “no” vote . . . The controversial Solid Waste Disposal Authority is back on tonight’s agenda. A resolution is under consideration allowing the Council four weeks to look at alternatives to the deal between Masada Oxynol and the Waste Authority, which wants to lease the New Georgia landfill to Masada for $1 a year for 99 years. A $250 million processing and incineration plant designed to convert garbage to ethanol, a cleaner burning gasoline, would be built by Masada Oxynol. The corporation would be paid by the city to pick up Birmingham garbage. Councilor Blake continues to take issue with what he believes is a prearranged plan between Masada Oxynol and the Solid Waste Authority. Defenders of the Masada Oxynol relationship with the Solid Waste Disposal Authority tout the benefits of recycling, thereby saving what they believe is rapidly disappearing landfill space. Blake has a few questions for Councilor Johnson, who has upset some on the Council by siding with the usual Council majority that has sought to strip Kincaid of a variety of mayoral powers. Blake asks if the Mayor’s office or the Streets and Sanitation Department had any input in changes to the solid waste plan. Johnson says he doesn’t know of any of their input, but notes that it’s his understanding that the Solid Waste Authority instigated the changes in tonight’s resolution. Explaining that he believes the Solid Waste Authority was “put in place specifically for the benefit of Masada,” Blake questions the motivation behind proposals to alter Birmingham’s methods of handling city garbage. Answering his own query, Blake reacts with anger, explaining that the need was for “Darryl Harmes and Masada to gain a monopoly on the disposal of waste in the city of Birmingham!” He accuses Johnson of helping to orchestrate the deal, asking Johnson if he’s on the payroll of Masada or acting as a consultant for any of the corporation’s engineering, accounting, or law firms. Johnson angrily tells Blake he’s not at all affiliated with Masada, and is only interested because he is very impressed with Masada Oxynol’s technology. Blake and other critics of the Masada proposal are irate that no cost studies have been examined. “We are turning over all authority of the Council of the city of Birmingham to an unelected group of officials who can contract with anybody at any price to take care of our solid waste. I just don’t believe that is in the best interest of the city.” Blake wants to know how a pipeline will be installed to take the millions of gallons of water that are necessary for the garbage conversion process from the Cahaba River to the New Georgia landfill. No one is able to answer the councilor. Addressing a portion of the resolution that covers the toll taken on landfill space when population increases, Blake points out that Birmingham’s population has declined from 340,00 in 1960 to 265,000 at present. A representative from the Streets and Sanitation Department confirms that Birmingham has had an “exponential decrease in landfill waste.” Blake also warns that Birmingham could be the processing and receiving site for garbage from around the state. The councilor condemns the 30-day period for alternative proposals as a “scam.” Resounding applause from the audience fills the school auditorium. Councilor Loder voices his opinion on the waste plan, citing studies by California that have determined costs to convert waste to ethanol as being exceptionally high. Loder notes that the uncertainties of such new technology makes high investment an irresponsible action. Calling the Masada technology the future of garbage disposal, Councilor Johnson jumps back into the fray, defending the technology but concedes that a review period is needed to determine the present status of the area’s landfills. In sarcastic reference to Councilor Johnson’s recent acknowledgement that his degree in chemistry was a primary reason for his [Johnson's] support of the Masada plan, Blake says that he was also impressed by the technology even though “I don’t have a chemistry degree,” noting that he came close [Blake is a practicing physician]. Blake again condemns what he sees as an attempt by Masada to monopolize control of city waste as well as city land. Mayor Kincaid notes that he is perplexed by the rapid speed with which the Masada plan is moving, calling on the Streets and Sanitation Department to issue a report on the status of solid waste collection and disposal in Birmingham. Kincaid calls the 30-day study period “a charade.” He says the time period is “absurd” and gives the “favorite [Masada] a year’s leg up,” alluding to the year of preparation Masada has had to work out a plan with the Solid Waste Disposal Authority. “I don’t have a degree in chemistry either, but I do know you don’t need a degree in chemistry for this, you need a degree in alchemy. This is changing trash into dollars, and not for us [Birmingham].

Cash Flow

Leave a reply

2012-05-31

Cash Flow

By Ed Reynolds

write the author

May 31, 2012

A selective list of funding requests approved by the Birmingham City Council.

(Dollar amounts and the name of the organization that received city funds are followed by text from the Council’s agenda explaining how the money is to be used.)

May 1, 2012

Item 35
$3,000 to the Birmingham Board of Education.
“to be donated to Princeton Alternative Elementary School for general education purposes to purchase/finance materials, resources, incentive books, field trips, professional development, parent education, reading programs, etc.”

Item 36
$2,000 to the Birmingham Board of Education.
“to help cover the costs of Huffman High School’s band uniforms.”

Item 39
$1,000 to Railroad Park Foundation.
“to help fund the Park’s ‘Relax by the Tracks,’ music series at the patron level.”

Item 41
$250 to Vulcan Park and Museum.
“to help fund the 2012 ‘Thunder on the Mountain’ show at Vulcan Park.”

Item 42
$1,200 to Vulcan Park and Museum.
“to help fund the 2012 ‘Thunder on the Mountain’ show at Vulcan Park.”

May 8, 2012

Item 15
$45,000 to Charles Williams & Associates, Inc.
“to provide basic architectural services for ADA Accessibility Upgrades at George Ward Park Project.”

Item 16
$20,200 to Building and Earth Sciences, Inc.
“to provide special inspection and construction materials testing for the Fire Station #14.”

Item 34
$136,650 to Battle Miller Construction Corporation, Hoover.
“for ADA Accessibility Upgrades for W. C. Patton Park.”

Item 35
$43,443 to Covington Flooring Company, Inc.
“for Crossplex Bleacher Padding.”

May 15, 2012

Item 32
$37,500 to Alabama Roofing and Sheetmetal Company, Inc., Anniston.
“for Rickwood Field Cupola Roof Repair.”

May 22, 2012

Item 33
$350 to the Vulcan Park and Museum.
“to help fund the 2012 ‘Thunder on the Mountain’ show at Vulcan Park.”

Item 34
$500 to the Vulcan Park Foundation.
“to help fund the 2012 ‘Thunder on the Mountain’ show at Vulcan Park.”

Item 35
$250 to the Vulcan Park and Museum.
“to help fund the 2012 ‘Thunder on the Mountain’ show at Vulcan Park.”

Total expenditures noted in this issue: $291,343

Total expenditures noted in this column since July 1, 2011, the start of the fiscal year: $30,932,554.92

Total expenditures noted in this column since November 22, 2005: $435,217,144.67

Feathered Warriors

Leave a reply

Feathered Warriors

Alabama is the only state in which the legal penalties for cockfighting are almost nonexistent, making it a destination for cockfighting enthusiasts from around the country. The Alabama legislature is perfectly comfortable with the status quo.

By Ed Reynolds

write the author




(click for larger version)

May 17, 2012

Cockfighting has been illegal in Alabama since 1896. Yet more than a century later, the state’s fighting pits attract cockfighters like ants to a picnic, courtesy of the weakest cockfighting laws in the nation.

Currently, cockfighting (including promoting the event or attending as a spectator) is a Class C misdemeanor, the penalty for which is a fine of only $50. On April 26, Senate Bill 175, which would make cockfighting a Class A misdemeanor and increase the fine to $6,000 and possibly a year in jail, once again failed to be brought to a vote by the State Senate when a filibuster appeared probable. However, it was the first time the bill has made it out of committee to the Senate floor.

“A speeding ticket you get on the way to the cockfight carries a bigger penalty than one for actually participating.” —District 14 Senator Cam Ward of Alabaster

As Senate majority leader representing the 16th District, State Senator Jabo Waggoner of Vestavia placed the proposed law on the list of “special order” bills for the April 26 vote. However, a group of senators opposing the bill indicated a lengthy debate was expected, so once again senators voted to carry the proposal over to another legislative session.

Opposition to the tougher penalties is spearheaded by the Alabama Gamefowl Breeders Association (ALGBA or AGBA). ALGBA was founded in 1978 “to promote the breeding of gamefowl to their full potential as the ‘ultimate’ in spirit and courage,” according to the association web site. The association is a member of the United Gamefowl Breeders Association (UGBA), whose national headquarters is located in Daleville, Alabama.

In a telephone conversation several days after the delay, Waggoner was asked if ALGBA was the leading opponent of S.B. 175. “There was a good bit of opposition. I don’t know who the organized opposition is. I’m sure it’s the ‘rooster people,’ whoever that might be,” he responded. “I doubt I have any in my district. I don’t think we have any cockfighting in Vestavia or Hoover,” he added with a chuckle. “There is a powerful group for [the bill], too. They nearly drove me crazy. I bet I had 50 calls one day at my home, and they probably had 200 calls in support of the bill in Montgomery [at his Senate office]. They were putting out little cartoons that I was aiding and abetting the cockfighting industry, you know, like I was for it. Really irritated me. But anyhow, it was on the ‘special order,’ so they’re having their day in court.” Waggoner has publicly stated his opposition to cockfighting. He also claimed that he didn’t know how much the penalty would be increased by the bill.

“There’s a lot of money involved in that game and that’s exactly why [there is opposition to increased fines],” said District 14 Senator Cam Ward of Alabaster, who sponsored the bill. “This bill does nothing to keep you from raising a gamecock; there’s nothing to stop you from selling roosters. There are people out there making big money off [cockfighting]. I don’t know how anybody could be against this bill. I’ve had people call me; I’ve had threats on this issue. They said, ‘We do this all the time, why don’t you leave us alone’. A speeding ticket you get on the way to the cockfight carries a bigger penalty than one for actually participating.” Ward has no doubt who the opposition is. When asked by Black & White if the threat of a filibuster indicated the political power of the Alabama Gamefowl Breeders Association, he replied, “It does. They’re very powerful in Senator Singleton’s district. They’ve always been big supporters of his.”

Ward was referring to Senator Bobby Singleton of Greensboro, who represents counties in western central Alabama. Singleton asked Ward during a April 26 debate on the Senate floor what would happen if the roosters he raises started fighting on their own in his yard. “I’ve got about ten cocks in my pen, they’re not used [for] fighting,” said Singleton. “But I raise them—raise the roosters and raise some hens. And I don’t want to be mistaken [for a cockfighter]—that one day the police stop by and they see a couple of my roosters out there fighting [and claim] that I’m trying to participate in a cockfight.”




Breeders attach spurs to the roosters’ legs to make certain that a cockfight is mortal combat. (Photo: Superbass _ CC-BY-SA-3.0 via Wikimedia Commons) (click for larger version)

When Senator Ward explained that a cockfight was defined as an “organized event,” Singleton asked, “Well, I mean, what do we call ‘organized event?’ That [definition] could be totally loosely held. Are we looking for there to be an advertisement? Would just a few fellows hovering around be called an organized event? Or does it have to say that I sent out a notice to someone to meet me over at my farm place, that we’re gonna have a cockfight? Would that establish an organized event?”

When Ward noted that “wagering” is also included as one of the illegal activities being addressed, Singleton said, “There’s gambling on any fall day in the state of Alabama. We wager on our two universities. There are board games that are going on. Gambling is illegal in this state. But yet and still, because you said these were organized [cockfights], then would you take a friendly amendment to add in any board games, [any] gambling, [including] Saturday football?”

Ward answered: “Yeah, [gambling] is part of it. But that’s not the [main thing] . . . Because two football players aren’t designed to get in a pen and kill each other like two roosters are.” Singleton didn’t miss a beat. “But they’re gladiators. Your definition didn’t say ‘designed to get in a pen and kill each other.’ I just think that this bill is an unnecessary bill,” said Singleton. “We’re not having that major many (sic) arrests. There’s nothing to say that organized cockfighting is going on in this state.”

At times, a bird’s lung filled up with blood after suffering a puncture wound. It was common to see a handler stick a chicken’s head in his mouth to suck the blood from the animal’s lungs.

Singleton continued: “I think that these are just organizations that are out there just like the PETA group. I could have two dogs tied up and they want to tell me about what to do with my dogs.” When asked if he would support legalization of cockfighting, Singleton laughed and said, “I don’t have a problem with it. You know, I’m for gambling in this state. You’re asking the wrong guy. Ain’t no shame in my game about it! I’ll do that!”

Regarding Senator Singleton’s support of cockfighting, Jabo Waggoner said, “Yeah, I thought Bobby Singleton was going to filibuster the bill. I’m sure the district he represents has a lot of people that [cockfight]. I’m sure [cockfighting] is a rural Alabama sport.”

The Humane Society has requested that the Alabama attorney general’s office investigate the non-profit status of ALGBA, according to Mindy Gilbert, state director for the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS). “The bottom line is that in order to get in some of these bigger cockpits, you have to show a membership card from ALGBA, which is a nonprofit organization,” said Gilbert. “A couple of our informants had to buy memberships to ALGBA to get into an illegal cockfight.” Alabama Nonprofit Corporation Law allows nonprofit status only for organizations whose purpose is “lawful,” according to the HSUS letter to the attorney general. The letter cites several examples of ALGBA’s alleged connections to state cockfights as well as those of the national umbrella organization UGBA in other states.

High stakes
Cockfighting is outlawed in all 50 states, with 40 prosecuting the sport as a felony. In 2002, President Bush signed legislation that made the transport of roosters across state lines to participate in fights a federal crime. This was a blow to the bird-fighting industry in Louisiana—one of two states at the time where it was still legal to fight chickens, thus making it a destination for cockfighters from around the country. In 2007, Louisiana became the last state to make rooster fights illegal. (The first conviction is a misdemeanor, with a fine of $1,000; a second conviction is a felony that includes a fine of up to $2,000.) As a result, Alabama has become a safe haven for cockfighting because of the state’s low fine.

Staging rooster fights has always been a lucrative business. Recently, the total prize money at a large gamefowl pit in Citronelle, near Mobile, reportedly reached a quarter of a million dollars, with entrants paying $400 per bird to fight the six roosters they brought to the derby. Sixty years ago, the entry fees were astonishingly exorbitant. A 1946 issue of The Gamecock magazine features advertisements for tournaments with entry fees up to $1,000. Gaffs (two-inch long curved spikes that are attached to a rooster’s foot) were advertised for $20. There’s an ad for a dietary supplement called Action Tabs, which would “put a cock right at time of fight.” Tips on the best way to “heel” (attach a weapon) a bird are simple: “Hold him as you would a loaf of fresh bread and not as you would a football or watermelon.”




Several publications serve the worldwide cockfighting community. (click for larger version)

Another gamefowl publication, Grit and Steel, has been publishing since 1899. In a 1999 issue, prices for fighting cocks are $500, with hens going for $200 and up. Gaffs now sell for $80 each. Grit and Steel has articles on breeding farms with colorful names like Hi-Tech Redneck Game Fowl in North Carolina and the Ace-Maker Hatchery in Turlock, California. The weapon maker of choice is the Killingsworth Gaff Company.

Most cockfights in the United States are gaff fights. Sometimes birds fight with a knife blade attached to their spurs instead. These are called “slasher fights,” and are popular in the Philippines. A slasher match usually doesn’t last more than 30 seconds due to the greater severity of wounds. The Philippines are home to a renowned cockfighting extravaganza called the World Slasher Cup, where expert Filipino cockers take on breeders from around the world. Ferdinand Marcos, a gamefowl enthusiast, ordered cockfighting legalized by presidential decree. Marcos was especially fond of Alabama gamefowl aficionados, flying some of the state’s top breeders to the Philippines to train his birds.

Witnessing a Cockfight
I met Leon in 2001 through his brother-in-law, who told me that Leon was a “gentleman farmer” in south Alabama who might take me to a Louisiana cockfight after I had expressed interest in writing about such debauchery. In addition to raising and fighting his own birds, Leon had operated cockfighting pits in north Alabama in the 1970s. Smitten with gamecocks because of their relentless will to survive, Leon summed up the allure: “It’s a fascination with that particular animal, like some folks might have for Siamese Fighting fish. I love watching roosters perform and I love preparing them for a fight.”

When not doting on his chickens, Leon practiced law in a small town where he owned a farm with a world-class rooster-fighting operation. His birds were bred according to centuries-old bloodlines. Leon’s roosters would be fighting at the Milk Dairy Game Club near Tickfaw, Louisiana, in three weeks and were on a strict diet, complete with vitamin supplements. Pulling a couple of roosters from their cages, he strapped tiny boxing gloves called muffs onto their feet so they could spar. He then flipped them heels over head with his hand several times, a daily routine to prepare them for fighting despite being thrown off balance by an opponent. Lobster claws, which he claimed toughened their beaks and spurs, were tossed to the birds after the workout. He repeatedly told me that roosters were naturally aggressive. “I had one damn bird that saw his reflection in my truck’s hubcap. He attacked the hubcap so hard that he killed himself,” he said, laughing. I asked if cockfighters ever got emotional when a favorite bird got killed in the ring. Rolling his eyes, he shrugged and said, “Nah, it’s just another fight.”

Cockfighting season runs from January until May. Leon gave me directions to the Milk Dairy Game Club, where I met him on a Saturday at sunrise in February 2001. He introduced me to his fellow cockers as “a guy writing a cockfighting story.” His pals were not particularly impressed, and attempts at conversation were awkward at best. One fellow laughed that he had just as soon let his favorite rooster attack my throat instead of placing him in the pit to fight.

This was a derby event. Each cocker brought six birds to fight over the duration of the day, with an entry fee of $100 per rooster. Whoever had the most winners at day’s end would take home the $60,000 prize money. Birds fought only once. If more than one fighter had an unbeaten team of roosters, the $60,000 would be split. The Milk Dairy Game Club was a 300-seat arena built specifically for cockfighting. The price of admission was $15. No alcohol was allowed. A concession stand sold burgers and fries. Entire families were among the patrons, with children running around. It was weird.

Each fight began in the main pit where the grandstands were. If there wasn’t a winner in ten minutes, the pair of birds was taken to the drag pit. Located in a concourse area behind the main arena, the drag pit featured several 10 foot by 12 foot pens where fights were completed, with four or five bouts taking place at once. It’s the most gruesome area to watch a match because the birds fight only a few feet away from spectators. It was surreal and stomach-wrenching. Fighting roosters often get hung up on one another’s gaff, so the handlers frequently had to come out to separate them. At times, a bird’s lung filled up with blood after suffering a puncture wound. It was common to see a handler stick a chicken’s head in his mouth to suck the blood from the animal’s lungs.

In order to blend in, I decided to place a wager. The fight that I bet on lasted 45 grueling minutes, with the winning bird gaining a second wind despite fighting with a punctured eye and a broken wing. Defeated roosters not killed during a match have their necks rung by their owners immediately after a match because a beaten animal is no longer considered “game.” An animal that has lost its will to fight is as good as dead in the cockfighting world. I was no longer game either, losing a hundred dollars on that bout. Having watched enough chicken fighting to last a lifetime, I headed for the exit. It was the strangest Saturday I’ve ever spent. As I walked away from the drag pit, I stepped over several dead birds strewn on the dirt path leading to the door. On the wall there was a sign that read: Please throw all fallen warriors on the ground and not in trash cans.

Black & White asked D’Renda Lewis, secretary of the Alabama Gamefowl Breeders Association, about the organization’s position on cockfighting. Ms. Lewis explained: “The majority of game fowl breeders don’t have a problem with cockfighting. You are looking at it from an animal rights perspective; why not look at it from the animal’s perspective? It’s that bird’s instinct to fight, and fight to the death. Wouldn’t it be more cruel to not allow that animal to follow its natural course? Those birds are going to fight anyway.

I don’t have the hang-ups that other people have about this. As for minor children going to cockfights, if there is gambling I understand the problem, but otherwise, I mean, these kids were raised on a farm with chickens, so by the time they get to a cockfight they’ve already seen a lot worse than that. But cockfighting isn’t really about gambling anyway. It’s about raising a supreme athlete.” &

Tobacco Strikes Out

Leave a reply

Tobacco Strikes Out

A new Birmingham city ordinance will ban cigarette smoking in almost all bars and nightclubs.

By Ed Reynolds

write the author

May 03, 2012

On April 17, the Birmingham City Council voted to ban cigarette smoking in bars, the last refuge for Birmingham residents wishing to smoke cigarettes inside public places. A crowd of supporters and opponents spoke for more than two hours before councilors finished arguing and voted in favor of the ordinance, as the majority anti-smoking audience in the council chambers applauded. Under the new ordinance, smoking will be prohibited inside all businesses and within seven feet of any business entrance (with the exception of cigar stores and “hookah” bars that derive at least 80 percent of sales revenue from tobacco products). The changes take effect around May 17.

Those speaking in support of the law included Alabama Secretary of State Beth Chapman, whose husband died of respiratory disease at age 50 despite being a nonsmoker. Chapman, who has a respiratory illness, stated, “We as a society would never intentionally bruise the bodies of a person with hemophilia or put large amounts of sugar into the bodies of people with diabetes against their will. So why should we allow others to put large amounts of smoke into the bodies of people with respiratory illnesses against their will?” After admitting that she smoked 30 years ago, Chapman pleaded, “I implore you to do all that you can to eradicate even the slightest opportunity for another life to be endangered because of something we knew was dangerous.”

Another proponent of the ban, a local physician and clinical associate professor at UAB wearing an oxygen device, also admitted to being a former smoker. “Even walking through a crowd where people are smoking tends to affect my breathing because I have such poor residual [lung] function,” he noted.

While proponents spoke often of secondhand smoke as the primary reason to pass the ordinance, opponents pointed out that individuals were already free to avoid smoky bars, and that the majority of bartenders working in such establishments were smokers themselves. Of greater concern was the suspicion that, without similar bans being instituted simultaneously by neighboring cities, Birmingham bars would see many of their customers leave for smoke-friendly establishments outside of the city limits.

James Little, representing the Five Points South Merchants Group, pointed out that more than $25 million of the city’s 2011 tax revenue came from “food and restaurant taxes.” Along with other business owners, Little expressed frustration over the fact that the final wording of the ordinance was posted on the city’s web site only 24 hours before the April 17 public hearing, giving merchants little time to review it. The Council ignored Little’s request to postpone their vote for a week.

Stillwater Pub co-owner Jason Brunson objected to the new ordinance as unfair “in a place where we don’t even test emissions.” Brunson stated, “Walking past old cars can be as dangerous as someone walking through an outside area, having to walk through someone’s cigarette smoke to get to a door to a nonsmoking establishment.” However, another resident was appalled that she had to walk on public sidewalks where employees and patrons sit in “lounge chairs” on patios that aren’t large enough to be real patios. “You see the smoke before you even get to it,” she said. Stroke victims supporting the ban blamed their conditions on past smoking habits, while others described how secondhand smoke ruined the lives of relatives.

A UAB researcher who studies the effects of nicotine on vision requested that the Council remove “e-cigarettes” (electronic cigarettes that vaporize a liquid which usually contains nicotine) from the ordinance. “I’ve been using an electronic cigarette for two-and-a-half years. I have not smoked for two-and-a-half years,” she said. “I can breathe again. I no longer smell bad. I am no longer a risk to other people. My health has improved. . . . The vapor from electronic cigarettes is no more dangerous than the vapor from a cup of coffee. It’s much less noxious than too much perfume in an enclosed area.” E-cigarettes were later given the OK after Councilor Valerie Abbott noted that the FDA has drawn no conclusion regarding the dangers of secondhand vapor. If the FDA determines that such is harmful, the law will be amended.

The most interesting statement came from a City Hall staff member, speaking as a citizen, who suggested to the Council that if tobacco is that bad, “let’s ban it and stop collecting tax revenue on it.” &

Buddy Miller

Leave a reply

By Ed Reynolds

Buddy and Julie Miller have been harmonizing for 20 years with a passion not heard in country music since the heyday of A.P. and Maybelle Carter. Julie’s little-girl voice contrasts with husband Buddy’s sandpaper howl in an eerie yet soothing style that brings to mind the grand duets of Porter Waggoner and Dolly Parton; Loretta Lynn and Conway Twitty; and George Jones and Tammy Wynette. As a guitarist Buddy Miller is widely considered a musical wizard, his unique “less is more” style earning him the role of lead guitarist and bandleader for Emmylou Harris as well as contributions to Lucinda Williams’ classic album Car Wheels On a Gravel Road. The couple recently released their first “official” recording under the family name, “Buddy and Julie Miller,” which was up against the likes of Bob Dylan, Lucinda Williams, and Gillian Welch for best contemporary folk album.

Black & White: Where did you and Julie meet?

Buddy Miller: In Austin. She’s from there, and I auditioned for a band that she was the chick singer in. In trying to be discriminating, she told them not to hire me. They hired me anyway, and we became pals after that.

B&W: Did she give a reason for not wanting you in the band?

Miller: She was a teenager and she wanted to appear like she had good taste. So she just said, “No, he’s no good.” But they hired me anyway.

B&W: I was impressed to see that Little Jimmy Scott had recorded one of your songs.

Miller: Yeah, one of Julie’s songs. In Nashville, a lot of the things that get recorded are by Nashville artists, and we’ll hear about it in advance. People that have our songs will be real excited and call us up and say, “Hey man, so-and-so’s cutting this song.” So I was on a gig out in L.A. with Emmylou and somebody said, “Hey, Little Jimmy Scott cut Julie’s song ‘All My Tears,’” and I just looked at him and said, “Nah, you must be wrong.” And later on at the gig, the guy went out and bought the record and brought it to me, and I flipped. It was such a cool version of the song. I took a red-eye home, and got back at seven in the morning. Julie was still asleep, and I just put it on the record player in the bedroom, and she didn’t even recognize her song until about a minute into it.

B&W: Is there anyone who you would like to hear record one of your songs?

Miller: It sounds funny to say it ’cause he’s so fashionable, but we’ve always been such huge Ralph Stanley fans. That was one of the things that we had in common when we met way back when. Julie actually wrote that song “All My Tears” with Ralph in mind. And we did get to sing it to him on this last “Down From the Mountain” tour back in his dressing room. We were in Emmylou’s band for that whole tour.

B&W: Has the success of O Brother, Where Art Thou? and Down From the Mountain been a boost to your career?

Miller: I don’t think so. Things were going OK before that kicked into high gear, and they’re going OK now. It probably is, and I just don’t know it. I think it’s helping everything a little bit. If people hear good music, I think that can only be a good thing. I don’t know if it’s changed country radio. When I’m flipping television channels — I don’t watch that CMT thing — I see the little 15-year-old video disc jockeys talking about bluegrass every once in awhile.

B&W: Nashville has a pretty vibrant scene that’s apart from the typical country stars.

Miller: Yeah, we live right down the street from all that. We’re real close to Music Row. We’re so disconnected from that. There’s such a great community of singer/songwriters and folks that are so like-minded with us. It’s a great town; there’s so much going on.

B&W: Do you and Julie have similar tastes in what you listen to?

Miller: It’s funny. Julie can write a great country song and sing great. But she just wants to rock if left to her own devices. Whenever she comes down into our music room when we’re working, she wants me to put on Social Distortion. So, we kind of have our little feuds, but I love singing with her.

B&W: I heard someone say that you can play guitar every bit as well as Richard Thompson, but you’re funky.

Miller: [Laughs] Well, I wish I could play like Richard Thompson. He’s just unbelievable. I did get to meet him once, but I’m sure he wouldn’t remember. We’re huge fans of his songs and his guitar playing. I love guitar players who go out on a limb and don’t even think about it. It’s just what they do. They get out there and if they get back, great. If not, great. Richard Thompson, Daniel Lanois. Dave Rawlings, I think, might be my favorite guitar player. He plays with Gillian Welch.

B&W: Ever see George Jones and Tammy Wynette perform together?

Miller: Yes. The night I saw them, they closed the show with “The Ceremony” [a 1970s hit where George and Tammy basically sing wedding vows to one another], and when he got to the line about “I’ll take this woman” he pointed to a girl in the front row. When I got in my car to drive back home, the news came on and said, “Tammy Wynette filed for divorce today.” [Laughs] It must have been 1972 or 1973 and they still had the bus that had “Mr. and Mrs. Country Music” on the side.

B&W: You’ve done the Grand Ole Opry with Emmylou?

Miller: Yeah, a couple of times. I did it at the Ryman and did it at the new Opry. It was a real thrill. I’m a big Porter Waggoner fan. He was so far ahead of his time. When I went with Emmylou to play the Opry, I was really sick. I told her, “I’ve never asked anything of you, but I want to meet Porter Waggoner.” But I was too sick and I think she spaced out. She was having a gig and her drummer kinda disappeared. You know, the Opry is a tightly run ship, and she has her 10 minutes or whatever on stage. When it’s time, you’re on stage and playing, whether you’re there or not. She’s introduced and we’re up there, and we’ve got no drummer. She was a little upset at him after that. Well, actually, she wasn’t. She’s very forgiving, but she had to tell a joke on stage while [the drummer] was chitchatting with Grandpa Jones at the Coke machine. &

Buddy and Julie Miller perform on the Blockbuster Stage on Saturday, May 18, at 6:35 p.m

Hillbilly Deluxe

Leave a reply

Hillbilly Deluxe

Get musical lessons from the pros at the Alabama Folk School.

By Ed Reynolds

April 05, 2012

With roots that extend back to England, Scotland, and Ireland, early forms of bluegrass music sprouted in America in the Appalachian Mountains during the early 18th century. More than 300 years later, bluegrass remains more than hillbilly musical enchantment; it’s also a delight to learn to play. In the 21st century, the genre is revered as folk art, and the great thing about folk art is that while one may never achieve the jaw-dropping prowess of the late Earl Scruggs on a mandolin, anybody can learn a bluegrass lick or two. All it takes is a little patience and some superb teachers.

The Alabama Folk School’s April Bluegrass & Gee’s Bend Week, beginning April 16, will offer mandolin instruction from former Bill Monroe guitarist and Lester Flatt mandolin player Roland White. (When asked if he teaches students Bill Monroe songs, White responded, “Yeah, I always include one or two, he’s my favorite. Bill Monroe is our father who art in heaven—I hope.”)

Those who desire to sing bluegrass can sign up for a “vocal nuances” class taught by bluegrass queen Claire Lynch. Lynch sang with Dolly Parton before branching out on her own in 2005 with The Claire Lynch Band. Instruction will also be available from Lynch bassist Mark Schatz as well as Birmingham’s Herb Trotman (banjo) and Jason Bailey (mandolin).

Founded in 2007, the Alabama Folk School is located at Camp McDowell on 1,100 acres of forest in Nauvoo, Alabama. The wooded setting is lush and peaceful, a perfect environment for acoustic instruments and wayward singers. Visit www.alfolkschool.com for details. —Ed Reynolds