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I have been in talks regarding the upcoming all-Beatles gig I have on Sept 12 that there will a recording made that night of the performance.  It could really be something cool.  I have been spending 3 or more hours every other day working on arrangements of their material that can translate to piano, upright bass and percussion.  It has really been an eye-opening experience coming from a jazz background.  I know all these songs; I grew up on them, but dissecting them has jump-starting something really really neat.

On other topics.  I have been reading P.J. O’Rourke’s book “On Wealth of Nations” where he analizes “The Wealth of Nations” by Adam Smith from 1776.  It is a great read.  Not as humorous as I thought but very very good.  My favorite passage, thus far, follows:

Okay, yes, I admit that total removal of every market restraint would be “good for the economy.”  But money isn’t everything.  Think of the danger and damage to society.  Without government regulation the big shots who run companies like Enron, WorldCom, and Tyco could have cheated investors and embezzled millions.  Without restrictions on the sale of hazardous substances young people might smoke, drink, and even use drugs.  Without the licensing of medical practitioners the way would be clear for chiropractors, osteopaths, and purveyors of aromatherapy.  If we didn’t have labor unions, thirty thousand pepole would still be wage slaves at General Motors, their daily lives filled with mindless drudgeery.  And if there weren’t various forms of retail collusion in the pertroleum industry, filling stations could charge as little as they liked.  I’d have to drive all over town to find the best price.  That would waste gas.

There is also a great bit how the lower of society do have too much money just “look at Britaney Spears”.  And it all ties in with a text more than two hundred years old.