Edmund Beecher Wilson
Edmund Beecher Wilson (Geneva, Illinois, 19 October 1856 – 3 March 1939) was a pioneering American zoologist and cell biologist. He wrote one of the most famous textbooks in the history of modern biology, The Cell.[1][2]
Career[change | change source]
Wilson graduated from Yale in 1878. He earned his doctorate at Johns Hopkins in 1881. He was a lecturer at Williams College in 1883–84 and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1884–85. He served as professor of biology at Bryn Mawr College from 1885 to 1891.
He spent the balance of his career at Columbia University where he was successively adjunct professor of biology (1891–94), professor of invertebrate zoology (1894–1897), and professor of zoology (from 1897).
Wilson is credited as America's first cell biologist. In 1898 he used the similarity in embryos to describe evolutionary relationships. By observing spiral cleavage in molluscs, flatworms and annelids he concluded that the same organs came from the same group of cells and concluded that all these organisms must have a common ancestor.
He also discovered the chromosomal XY sex-determination system in 1905—that males have XY and females XX sex chromosomes. Nettie Stevens independently made the same discovery the same year.
In 1907, he described, for the first time, the additional or supernumerary chromosomes, now called B-chromosomes.
Professor Wilson published many papers on embryology, and served as President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1913.
The American Society for Cell Biology annually awards the E.B. Wilson Medal in his honour.[3]
Sutton and Boveri[change | change source]
1902–1904: Theodor Boveri (1862–1915), a German biologist, in a series of papers, drew attention to the correspondence between the behaviour of chromosomes and the results obtained by Mendel.[4] He said that chromosomes were "independent entities which retain their independence even in the resting nucleus... What comes out of the nucleus is what goes into it".
In 1903 Walter Sutton suggested that chromosomes, which segregate in a Mendelian fashion, are hereditary units.[5] Wilson, who was Sutton's teacher, called this the Sutton–Boveri hypothesis.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Edmund Beecher Wilson.
↑ Wilson E.B. 1896; 1900; 1925. The cell in development and inheritance. Macmillan. The third edition ran to 1232 pages, and was still in use after WWII.
↑ Sturtevant A.H. 1965. A history of genetics. Harper & Row, N.Y. p33
↑ [1] E. B. Wilson award page at ASCB.org
↑ Boveri T. 1904. Ergebnisse uber die Konstitution der chromatischen Substanz des Zellkerns. Fischer, Jena.
↑ Ernest W. Crow and James F. Crow (2002). "100 Years Ago: Walter Sutton and the chromosome theory of heredity". Genetics 160 (1): 1–4. http://www.genetics.org/cgi/content/full/160/1/1.
Retrieved from "https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Edmund_Beecher_Wilson&oldid=5798362"
American academics
American geneticists
American zoologists
Scientists from Illinois
Yale University alumni


Op-Eds by Tax Law / Does GST ensure unbiased adjudication? | The Hindu Business Line
Does GST ensure unbiased adjudication? | The Hindu Business Line
Op-Eds by Tax Law · April 1, 2019
Author(s): Vidushi Gupta and Vinti Agarwal
The integrity and efficiency of any tax system hinges on the credibility of its adjudication mechanism in the eyes of taxpayers. Now that litigation under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) law is in full swing, we analyse some of its provisions and test them against the touchstone of fairness and taxpayer friendliness.
Intelligence-based enforcement
The allocation of administrative and enforcement power under the GST has been a thorny area from the very beginning. The GST Council settled on the implementation of a single interface and distributed administrative jurisdiction between the Centre and States in its ninth meeting. However, it was decided that both the Central and State tax authorities will have the power to conduct intelligence-based enforcement in respect of the entire value chain.
Based on these decisions, a clarification authorised both the Central and State authorities to initiate intelligence-based enforcement action on the entire taxpayer base, irrespective of their administrative jurisdiction. The clarification also empowered the authority initiating such action to conduct investigation, adjudication, recovery, file appeal, etc., arising out of such action.
In several GST Council meetings prior to the ninth one, concerns were expressed that the grant of such parallel powers could cause confusion and harassment of taxpayers. A Committee of Officers was set up to evaluate the issue, which suggested the introduction of measures to prevent abuse of concurrent enforcement powers.
However, none of these apprehensions were discussed in the ninth Council meeting and the clarification was introduced without any guidelines to regulate the simultaneous exercise of powers by the Centre and States. The grant of such wide, unfettered powers complicates the mechanism, and is likely to lead to harassment of taxpayers.
Certain provisions under the Central GST Act empower the same officer to investigate, and adjudicate matters. Section 61, for instance, empowers a ‘proper officer’ to scrutinise taxpayers’ returns, highlight discrepancies in such returns and seek subsequent explanations. Further, if the ‘proper officer’ is not satisfied with the explanation offered, he is also authorised to issue a show-cause notice and subsequently adjudicate the matter to pass an order. In accordance with the circular issued under this provision, the Superintendent has been assigned the role of a ‘proper officer’.
Effectively, this provision and the assignment of the role of ‘proper officer’ thereunder, results in taxpayers offering an explanation before the same authority twice — first at the time of scrutiny of returns and again at the time of filing a reply to the show-cause notice.
Moreover, since the authority passing the order is the same authority who conducted the scrutiny, they are likely to believe their initial findings and fail to adjudicate the matter without prejudice. The allocation of powers under the GST law needs to be rethought to ensure that it does not create a confirmation bias. The current structure is ineffective and fails to inspire public faith in the system.
Appellate tribunal
It is settled position that tribunals created under statutes must maintain independence of the judiciary. When a tribunal takes over the functions of a court of law, persons who are as nearly equal in rank, experience or competence to those of the court should be appointed as members of the tribunal. The number of technical members must thus, not exceed the judicial members.
Under the Central GST Act, the national and regional benches of the tribunal are taking over the High Courts’ jurisdiction, and the State and area benches are taking over the District Courts’ jurisdiction. However, all of these bodies have two technical members and only one member acting in judicial capacity.
Further, in certain circumstances, tribunals have been permitted to hear matters through a single member bench, or a bench of two members. In such cases there is a chance that only technical members adjudicate on questions of law. The constitution of tribunals under the GST thus violates the doctrine of separation of powers, and compromise the independence of the judiciary. It also breaches the reasonable expectation that matters before tribunals would be adjudicated upon application of legal mind.
Given that GST is still in its formative years, its future is heavily dependent on taxpayers’ confidence in the uniform, fair and unbiased functioning of the dispute-settlement mechanism. Strengthening the structure should, therefore, be treated as a priority.
The writers are Research Fellows at Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy.
Originally published – https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/opinion/does-gst-ensure-unbiased-adjudication/article26694864.ece
GST, Op-Ed by Vidushi Gupta, The Hindu Business Line, Tribunals
About Vidushi Gupta:
Vidushi is a Research Fellow with the Tax Law vertical. She is interested in facilitating reforms in India’s tax landscape and focuses on issues relating to goods and services tax, income tax and international tax. At Vidhi, she has assisted the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, the Department of Revenue, the Finance Commission, and the Goods and Services Tax Network on a range of projects, including simplification of goods and services tax compliance and increasing adoption of digital payments. Vidushi graduated with a B.A.LL.B.(Hons.) from Dr. RML National Law University in 2014. Prior to joining Vidhi, she was working at PwC as an Assistant Manager in the Tax and Regulatory Services division, where she provided indirect tax advisory, litigation and compliance services various multinational clients.
About Vinti Agarwal:
Vinti is a Research Fellow in Tax Law vertical. At Vidhi, she is involved in a project relating to imposition of cess and surcharge, post the introduction of GST. Additionally, she also undertakes assignments relating to Goods and Service Tax and other tax laws in India. She graduated with B.B.A.LL.B. from National Law University, Odisha in 2018 with a Batch Rank 2 out of 120 students. During her time there she served as a member in the Editorial Board for Indian Journal for Tax Law. She is primarily interested in Tax Law and Regulatory Law, in pursuance of which she has garnered accolades in mooting.
Reforming the Tribunals Framework in India: An Interim Report
Legislative Changes to Strengthen the GST Regime
The State of the Nation’s Tribunals I
State of the Nation’s Tribunals II
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Premiere: Straight No Chaser covers 'Homeward Bound' with touching video of home footage
For their seventh album "One Shot," a cappella favorites Straight No Chaser celebrate their success with a collection of wide-ranging covers – including one sentimental favorite, the Simon and Garfunkel classic "Homeward Bound."
Fittingly, Straight No Chaser paired the track with a nostalgic video that intercuts clips of the band on the road with footage of sweet moments of the bandmates with their families, a testament to what "home" really means for each of them.
Steve Morgan, one of Straight No Chaser's founding members, told USA TODAY that he first connected with the message of "Homeward Bound" when he was an exchange student in Germany in high school, dealing with his homesickness. Now that he's a father who spends months on tour away from his family, the song has taken on a different meaning.
"When we were trying to tell the story of us as individuals and a group, I felt it was very important to tell the story of the families we leave at home when we head out on the road," he said. "Randy (Stine) suggested this song to do just that, and I immediately wanted to arrange it."
"It means so much to be able to include video of our children and wives in this project," he said. "Personally, my kids love being able to be a part of our projects, and it's fun to see them show their cameos to friends and family (and really, anyone who will watch!) with pride. Wherever we go, they are always in our thoughts, so it's wonderful to be able to highlight them with this song."
More:The not-so-straight path of this Straight No Chaser founder Steve Morgan
"One Shot," out Nov. 2, includes the group's takes on songs from James Brown, Fleetwood Mac and Ricky Martin, as well as a Boyz II Men and Montell Jordan mashup of “Motownphilly/This Is How We Do It" and a cover of Percy Sledge's "When a Man Loves a Woman" dedicated to the band's significant others.
"The album "One Shot" is special because it is all about us, so it was a labor of love to put it together," Morgan said. "We were able to go through the history of the group since its inception at Indiana University in 1996 and choose what special moments we wanted to musicalize: the group's humble beginnings, graduating from college, getting regular jobs, meeting our wives, having kids ... all the highlights."
The band hits the road for their "One Shot" tour Oct. 26 in Prior Lake, Minn. Their trek wraps up Jan. 5 in Waimea, Hawaii.


Meet the Real Women
Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin now considered the founder of modern astronomy discovered that all the stars are made primarily of Hydrogen and Helium.
Valentina Tereshkova broke all stereotypes by training physically for the rigours of space and becoming the first woman to go to space
Marie Curie discovered radium and radioactivity. She opened the door to a new era of medical knowledge and disease treatments. She also changed the way scientists think about atoms and energy.
Natalie Batalah played a key role in getting the Kepler mission funded and has been leading it ever since. The Kepler mission found the first habitable planet outside of our solar system
Margaret Hamilton led the software team at MIT which was responsible for the Apollo moon Landing software. "It took a woman to send a man to the moon"
Tessy Thomas is known as the 'Missile Woman' of India. She is the first woman scientist to head a missile project in India.
Mae C Jamison is an Astronaut and physician and currently leads 100 years of starship a project to develop and design a self sufficient star ship designed for extended interstellar journey


Hill Won't Apply Too Much Pressure
Manager Keith Hill has been reflecting on the week as his side gets set to face AFC Wimbledon at Kingsmeadow on Saturday.
On last weekend’s defeat at home to Dagenham and Redbridge, he told Dale Player: “If I had looked at the Dagenham game in its entirety and we hadn’t created chances and we hadn’t dominated possession then I would be worried and I would start considering maybe changing things, but consistently over the course of the season we have been very good at creating opportunities. The game against Dagenham could easily have gone in the same direction as the Plymouth game if we had scored early.
“Fair play to Wayne Burnett and his team because after the goal it looked as though they were the only team that were likely to score again. We have to be better at certain things that we do because we shouldn’t be losing that type of game. But again we’re talking about young players who are in the educational process of making those mistakes. It’s really important that they learn from those mistakes instead of me being dictatorial and hitting them with a stick, rather than feeding them with a carrot.”
Dale were also in action on Tuesday afternoon as a young side, with the exception of experienced player/coach Brian Barry-Murphy, faced Oldham Athletic in the Manchester Senior Cup. Hill was pleased with what he saw on display at Chapel Road.
“I enjoyed the game and I enjoyed the way that the players tried to play.
“Brian Barry-Murphy played at centre-half and he was leading the young players on the pitch. You had Bastien out there, Callum Camps who I thought was excellent, George Porter got 90 minutes under his belt, Joe Raff played, Shaquille [Antoine Clarke] as well, so I was really pleased. I am really, really pleased as we head into the last 18 games of the season and it’s up to myself and it’s up to people like Ian Henderson, Michael Rose and Peter Cavanagh to really, really lead these players in what is a new situation for a lot of them.”
He continued: We’ve just got to support the players, myself included, and not put too much pressure on them. We’re a young squad, with the likes of Jamie Allen, the Callum Camps’ and Oliver Lancashire’s of this world, and the likes of Joe Rafferty, Rhys Bennett and Matty Done, who has been playing in an unfamiliar position. We’ve just got to make sure that we encourage them and not expect too much, and we will be successful.”
The squad set off for London on Friday morning ahead of the weekend’s Sky Bet League Two fixture against AFC Wimbledon at Kingsmeadow, and Hill is looking forward to the game.
“I respect any opposition," said Hill. "There’s certain ways that we want to play and we’ll stick to our principles. I can’t and won’t change the group of players that we’ve got. We’ll consistently keep trying to win as many games as we possibly can. Like I pointed out last week, over the 46 games we’ve played since I’ve been back at the club we’ve got 72 points, which would get us into the play-offs. I think that would be some type of success for this Football Club, after having only achieved that three times in the history of the football club, so we’re aiming for at least that, but I do believe that there’s till one place up for grabs in the automatic promotion pack.”
The full interview is on Dale Player.


Trump Hints At Troop Pardons: We Teach Them To Fight, Then They’re ‘Treated Very Unfairly’
While President Trump said he hadn’t made any decisions yet on future pardons for military personnel on trial for war crimes, he hinted on Friday which way he might be leaning.
Speaking to reporters before leaving for Japan, Trump was at first non-committal before he suggested that troops shouldn’t be punished when “we teach them how to be great fighters.”
“We’re looking at a lot of different pardons for a lot of different people. Some of these soldiers are people that have fought hard, long. We teach them how to be great fighters and then when they fight sometimes they get really treated very unfairly,” he said. “So, we’re going to take a look at it. I haven’t done anything yet. I haven’t made any decisions. There’s two or three of them right now. It’s a little bit controversial. It’s very possible that I’ll let the trials go on and I’ll make my decision after the trial.”
The Daily Beast reported earlier this week that a Fox News host, who has been vocal about his support for several military personnel currently in custody for alleged war crimes, has been privately lobbying Trump to pardon several former members of the military, including Eddie Gallagher, who is accused of murdering an Islamic State prisoner who was getting medical treatment.
Trump says he hasn't made any decisions on pardons for troops accused of war crimes pic.twitter.com/PzjV5w167U
— TPM Livewire (@TPMLiveWire) May 24, 2019
Donald Trumpmilitarypardon


Sea organ
Sea organ in scaled form—the sound emerges from the holes along the top step
A sound recording of the sea organ.
The Sea organ (Croatian: Morske orgulje) is an architectural sound art object located in Zadar, Croatia and an experimental musical instrument, which plays music by way of sea waves and tubes located underneath a set of large marble steps.
Chaotic reconstruction work was undertaken in an attempt to repair the devastation Zadar suffered in the Second World War. The frantic reconstruction turned much of the sea front into an unbroken, monotonous concrete wall.
The device was made by the architect Nikola Bašić as part of the project to redesign the new city coast (Nova riva), and the site was opened to the public on 15 April 2005.[1] The waves interact with the organ in order to create somewhat random but harmonic sounds.
The Sea Organ has drawn tourists and locals alike. In addition, white marble steps leading down to the water were built later. Concealed under these steps, which both protect and invite, is a system of polyethylene tubes and a resonating cavity that turns the site into a large musical instrument, played by the chance-based results of the wind and the sea waves.
In 2006, the Sea Organ was awarded with the prize ex-aequo of the fourth edition of the European Prize for Urban Public Space.[2]
Wave Organ (in San Francisco, California, USA)
Blackpool High Tide Organ (in Blackpool, England, UK)
Chillida's Comb of the Wind (in San Sebastián / Donostia, Basque Country, Spain)
Water organ or Hydraulis
Hydraulophone
^ Stamac, I: Acoustical and Musical Solution to Wave-driven Sea Organ in Zadar, Proceedings of the 2nd Congress of Alps-Adria Acoustics Association and 1st Congress of Acoustical Society of Croacia, pages 203-206, 2005.
^ Crevar, Alex (2008-07-06). "After 2,000 Years, a Croatian Port Town Still Seduces". New York Times. Retrieved 2009-10-22.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sea organ in Zadar.
"Sea organ, Zadar, Croatia", SonicWonders.org (sound and video)
"Sea Organ - musical instrument played by the sea", OddMusic.com.
"Sea organ photo pool", Flickr.com.
Sea organ, prize ex-aequo of the fourth edition of the European Prize for Urban Public Space, PublicSpace.org.
"Sea organ music, Zadar, Croatia", free-stock-music.com (sound)
"Sea organ binaural recording music, Zadar, Croatia", soundcloud.com (sound)
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Sea_organ&oldid=927996114"


Fifty Year Friday: Velvet Underground “The Velvet Underground & Nico”; Nico “Chelsea Girl”
I am having second thoughts about posting these album reviews of music of 1967 — fifty years ago.
One: it’s not easy to write reviews about music: to describe music in words is an impossible activity, and at best one ends up describing their reactions to the music, which, really, is self-centered, possibly narcissistic, and either self-indulgent or masochistic (writing music reviews can be very painful as one recognizes that keystrokes being captured by WordPress fall immeasurably short of the sound waves that are captured by audio recording devices.)
Two: shouldn’t I be writing about recent album releases? To write reviews about albums already accepted as established classics doesn’t help generate income for the musicians (if they are still alive), encourage them to create more music, or provide the service of bringing previously ignored music or musicians to people’s attention.
Three: there are others out there writing music reviews that get less visitors than this blog, and yet their reviews are better, more interesting and more informative. When I have visited such blogs, I am shocked to see posts that range from being hours old to months old without a single like or comment. What keeps them going?
And so I take the time to ask myself, am I providing anything of value to my reader or, if not to my reader, is there anything that I get out of this? And I really don’t know at this point if any single one of my reviews has caused someone to listen to music they would otherwise have missed out on. But I do know, once I take the time to reflect on it, that I do get something out all of this: knowing that I need to write something, I am listening to this music differently than I normally would. I am not only listening intently, but with the need to find something I can communicate out to someone else.
During much of my regular music listening, I listen seriously, and I direct my attention directly on the music. I am seated. I am not dancing, driving, cooking, or watching sports with the sound turned down. I am a human receiver, trying to absorb and enjoy as much of the music as possible. When I listen to music I am planning to write about, I am no longer in receiver mode, but in explorer mode. I am looking for places to pitch a tent, clues for sources of water, tracks of game in the vicinity, evidence of past occupants or current inhabitants. I am reaching out, straining my eyes to see the distance, taking notes mentally; I normally don’t do any of these things when I am listening for enjoyment.
And so knowing that I must write about what I am listening to changes the listening experience. If it is a digital source, I might even pause, rewind and replay. I find myself looking for strengths and weaknesses in the music instead of taking it on it’s own terms. It’s like the difference between dating someone for the enjoyment of their company and dating to determine an appropriate life partner.
And there is the selection of material. When I listen for enjoyment, I pick something I am in the mood for, or something I just bought, or something that will provide a unique experience. When I am writing a post about one of the best albums of 1967, the selection process is limited to that year, and I have to find something that is pretty good and that others will enjoy. When listening, I ask myself, is this album good enough to mention as a “Fifty Year Friday” album, and if the answer is no, the album has served it’s purpose as a candidate and either I tolerantly listen to the end, or I stop and put on something else.
And to select an album, I review all potential choices: albums in my collection I have heard dozens of times, both as an dedicated listener and as background to other activities, as well as albums that I purchased, and never played — or played the first track — or continued past the first track but made secondary while reading liner notes, reading a book, or doing something else.
And so we come to this Velvet Underground album. I know this is a good group: a very important group in its place in the history of music. And I was a fan of Lou Reed’s “Transformer” album, at least marginally, having heard it a few times in 1973 and 1974. And so, back in the early 1990’s, when I would buy a few dozen CDs every month, mostly jazz and classical, I saw this in the local mega-bookstore bin, and not having a single Velvet Undergound CD, and knowing this was supposedly a good one, I immediately bought it with a few dozen other CDs. When I got home, this CD had to compete with a previously purchased 18 CD set of Nat King Cole, a Chet Baker CD, the complete Bill Holiday on Verve, a 6 CD T-Bone Walker set, a Captain Beefheart CD and several new classical CDs. Neither the Velvet Underground nor the Captain Beefheart won me over after the first couple of tracks, so I set them aside, meaning to listen to them soon, but never doing so.
But now, in 2017, looking for worthwhile albums from 1967, I select this previously neglected CD, and listen to it with full attention. And to my surprise, it is a musical treasure.
If Sgt. Pepper’s is the first example of progressive rock, “The Velvet Underground & Nico” is the first example of Art-Rock, at least that I know of. I am not always a fan of so-called Art Rock — it can get on my nerves, but like the genre, free-jazz, when it is done right, it is great — when it is just an excuse for lack of structure, vision, content, it is like so much of the so-called classical “Avant-Garde” (neither classical or particularly innovative) of the 1950’s, 1960’s and 1970’s — a waste of valuable listening time.
This album, though, has direction, intensity, texture, form, structure. There is a sense that there is a canvas with dimensions in space and time that is being systematically addressed with points, dabs, strokes, shades, groupings and contrasts.
“Sunday Morning” is the last song recorded for the album, but it makes sense for it to open the album as it is most accessible and apparently disarmingly innocent of all the songs. The celesta provides a music-box like introduction, to a peaceful, tranquil tune with lyrics that belie the musical serenity:
And I’m falling
I’ve got a feeling
I don’t want to know”
This is a song that could have gotten substantial airplay. Perhaps it didn’t due to the contrast between the pleasantly serene melody and the disheartening lyrics. Perhaps it didn’t because of Lou Reed’s distinct half-spoken and sometimes imperfect intonation. Or perhaps there were commercial reasons or lack of the necessary behind-the-scenes connections.
The musically bucolic first track is contrasted with a rough, repetitive, blues based “Waiting for the Man.” The lyrics are again bleak, portraying a New York City heroin addict, looking to score from his dealer.
Since music is generally my main focus, let’s get the lyrics out of way. Lou Reed’s writing is direct, brutally honest, and of its time. These are not the clever, playful, roundabout lyrics we find in most of the more socially-relevant music of the time. This is a much more accurate, even painful, representation of reality. Lou Reed connects with life’s realities rather than just observes or comments on life:
“I’m waiting for my man
Twenty-six dollars in my hand
Up to Lexington, one, two, five
Feel sick and dirty, more dead than alive
“Hey, white boy, what you doin’ uptown?
Hey, white boy, you chasin’ our women around?
Oh pardon me sir, it’s the furthest from my mind
I’m just lookin’ for a dear, dear friend of mine
The music here is frantic, with hints of barrelhouse piano transformed into a pounding commentary on withdrawal and drug dependency. This is not pleasant music. This is musical drama.
Lou Reed is sometimes flat, and occasionally here or there sharp, but, thankfully, he wavers more like a gymnast maintaining equilibrium on the balance beam, his pitch violations compensated by his confident and appropriate delivery of the text which unfailingly communicates the intrinsic meaning and essence inherent in the words. Not the case with Nico. At the insistence of Andy Warhol, Nico was added to the band to perform lead vocals on a few of the tracks as well as some backing vocals. On the third track of the album, the wistful ballad, “Femme Fatale”, the combination of being out of tune and lack of consistent expression erode her voice’s timbral strengths inviting one to consider how much better the album would have been with Lou Reed replacing her lead vocal assignments.
It is with “Venus in Furs” that this album takes off into another musical sphere. Not only is the focus on the substance, with a given mood and direction deftly and often roughly crafted for each track, but we get a range of music styles — some of that immediate time period and some hinting at the near future.
One can identify the influences in this album: Bob Dylan, blues, rock and roll, rhythm and blues, free jazz (Lou was a fan of Cecil Taylor), classical avant garde, modernism and experimental music (Cale studied with Humphrey Searle, and after coming to the U.S, had ties to Iannis Xenakis, John Cage and La Monte Young), British Invasion, British Skiffle, Indian and eastern music (note the drone and guitar in “Venus in Furs”), and possibly the New York Hypnotic School. More to the point are the many hints and foreshadowings of future styles of music including minimalism, psychedelic, glam rock, art rock, progressive rock, punk, goth, and grunge. I will take bets on Velvet Underground having influenced Peter Hamill, David Bowie, PJ Harvey and groups like the Residents (at least a little), Explosions in the Sky, Sex Pistols, Joy Division, U2, Sonic Youth, Talking Heads, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, R.E.M. and countless others.
Track listing[from Wikipedia]
All tracks written by Lou Reed except where noted.
1. “Sunday Morning“ Lou Reed, John Cale 2:54
2. “I’m Waiting for the Man“ 4:39
3. “Femme Fatale“ 2:38
4. “Venus in Furs“ 5:12
5. “Run Run Run“ 4:22
6. “All Tomorrow’s Parties“ 6:00
7. “Heroin“ 7:12
8. “There She Goes Again“ 2:41
9. “I’ll Be Your Mirror“ 2:14
10. “The Black Angel’s Death Song“ Lou Reed, John Cale 3:11
11. “European Son“ Reed, Cale, Sterling Morrison, Maureen Tucker 7:46
On the original album:
John Cale – electric viola (1, 4, 6, 7, 10), piano (1, 2, 3, 6), bass guitar (2, 3, 5, 8–11), backing vocals (8), celesta (1), hissing (10), sound effects (11)
Sterling Morrison – rhythm guitar (2, 5, 7, 8, 9), lead guitar (3, 10, 11), bass guitar (1, 4, 6), backing vocals (3, 5, 8)
Nico – vocals (3, 6, 9), backing vocals (1)
Lou Reed – lead vocals (1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11), backing vocals (3), lead guitar (1–5, 7–11), ostrich guitar (4, 6)
Maureen Tucker – percussion (1, 3, 7–8, 10–11), drums (2, 5), snare drum, (3), tambourine (2, 3, 4, 6, 9), bass drum (4, 6)
Andy Warhol – producer
Tom Wilson – post-production supervisor, “Sunday Morning” producer
Ami Hadami (credited as Omi Haden) – T.T.G. Studios engineer
Gary Kellgren – Scepter Studios engineer (uncredited)
Norman Dolph – Scepter Studios engineer (uncredited)
John Licata – Scepter Studios engineer (uncredited)
Gene Radice – post-production editor, remixer
David Greene – post-production editor, remixer
For those that want to hear additional Lou Reed compositions from this time period, they can listen to “Chelsea Girl”, Nico’s solo album recorded in 1966 after “Velvet Underground & Nico”, and released in October 1967. The name of the album is a reference to Andy Warhol‘s 1966 film Chelsea Girls, in which Nico starred and includes a Lou Read composition of that same name. Besides Lou Reed, John Cale and Sterling Morrison making contributions, we also get two Jackson Browne compositions and his guitar on five of the tracks. Jackson Browne was providing back up for Nico’s small venue performances in 1966, and romantically involved with her until 1968.
Nico’s vocals are slightly better than on the Velvet Underground album, but there are still serious problems with pitch and in providing appropriate emotional delivery of the lyrics. The string arrangements, instrumental backing, and strength of the compositions help alleviate some of Nico’s performance shortcomings.
“The Fairest of the Seasons” (Jackson Browne, Gregory Copeland) – 4:06
“These Days” (Jackson Browne) – 3:30
“Little Sister” (John Cale, Lou Reed) – 4:22
“Winter Song” (John Cale) – 3:17
“It Was a Pleasure Then” (Lou Reed, John Cale, Christa Päffgen) – 8:02
“Chelsea Girls” (Lou Reed, Sterling Morrison) – 7:22
“I’ll Keep It With Mine” (Bob Dylan) – 3:17 Note: this song was recorded by Dylan in 1965 but remained unreleased on any of his own albums until the 1985 Biograph set.
“Somewhere There’s a Feather” (Jackson Browne) – 2:16
“Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams” (Lou Reed) – 5:07
“Eulogy to Lenny Bruce” (Tim Hardin) – 3:45
Christa “Nico” Päffgen – vocals
Jackson Browne – electric guitar (A1-2, B2-3, B5)
Lou Reed – electric guitar (A3, A5, B1, B4)
John Cale – viola, organ, guitar (A3-5)
Sterling Morrison – electric guitar (B1, B4)
Tom Wilson – producer
Val Valentin – director of engineering
Gary Kellgren – recording and remix engineer
Larry Fallon – string and flute arrangements
Paul Morrissey – photography
Fifty Year Friday, Music, Uncategorized
Thoughtful Thursday: Feeling the Future
Thoughtful Thursday: Observing, Comparison and Evaluating
Comments on: "Fifty Year Friday: Velvet Underground “The Velvet Underground & Nico”; Nico “Chelsea Girl”" (21)
hanspostcard said:
Could well be the finest debut album in the history of rock music!
hanspostcard, good point! It’s up there for sure, along with King Crimson’s “In the Court of the Crimson King.”
Ben Naga said:
I’d go for “Song To A Seagull” personally and was never fond of “In The Court …”. Far too full of itself IMHO.
Yes, big Joni Mitchell fan here! But still love that first Crimson album. Is there anything quite like “In the Court of the Crimson King” or “21st Century Schizoid Man”?
Perhaps not, but they don’t ring my particular bell. Now between Larks’ Tongues (I assume you know the literary reference:a great trilogy) and Discipline: now there’s a band!!! (ignoring the almost change of membership. 🙂 ) All three sit next neatly to “Tapestry” while anything earlier is long gone, I’m afraid.
Ben — I do not know the literary reference. Please advise. Like the later KC albums also. I got Court of the Crimson King when it first came out, and there really wasn’t any album like it at that time. 🙂
https://www.blackgate.com/2017/04/05/vintage-treasures-zimiamvia-a-trilogy-by-e-r-eddison/
I don’t recall in which of the four books this is mentioned but if you have the time you could read them and find out. 🙂 I certainly recommend them well worth reading and as you can see Tolkien agrees with me. And presumably Fripp too.
Ben, Thanks! Will put this on my reading list.
Do you know this? I think it’s the best thing Nico ever recorded.
https://bennaga.wordpress.com/2012/05/16/each-day-is-valentines-day/
Oh, that is interesting! Not at the level of Chet Baker, but distinct. Still troubled by the flat and the sharp notes.
It works well enough for me (after many listenings). The bum notes add to the fragility even if there’s not intentional. Give it time and it may grow.. 🙂
Yes, one gets use to the intonation on repeated listenings.
“It’s not easy to write reviews about music: to describe music is words is an impossible activity”
Amem to that. It’s a tough job! Great thoughts on writing about music in general.
The Velvet Underground and Nico is packed with so many classic songs it’s hard to keep track of them all. Venus in Furs is my favorie. It’s certainly among the best albums ever.
Nico’s Chelsea Girl is a good one. It’s a pleasant little listen.
thanks! I particularly like “Venus in Furs” because the album then breaks to the realm of true art!
I do like Chelsea Girl, and would like it more if Nico sang on pitch.
“Receiver versus Explorer” mode is a neat description. As a long-distance music blogger, I share you questions (weekly) and concur with the conclusion (I have to write).
Finding/choosing/discovering what to highlight is especially challenging with a so-called classic/iconic/admired album. Between us we have covered two extraordinary debuts this week. VU here and Pink Floyd at Vinyl Connection.
But what of the other, the many other albums? Back to those questions of yours…
VC, Thanks! Planning to cover the Pink Floyd album — may just link to your review (https://vinylconnection.com.au/2017/07/28/hes-getting-rather-old-but-hes-a-good-mouse/) when the time comes.
And yes, what albums to post — listened to a few this morning that didn’t make the cut.
willowdot21 said:
I can’t believe these Albums are really 50 years old … Makes me feel ancient!
willowdot21, yes it’s been a fast 50 years. Here’s to 50 more!
Amen 💜 Amen 💜
Lee Lucas said:
No doubt you studied very well regarding all you said in this very well detailed review. I rather liked how you went on about how it’s not easy to review an album and the point of if nobody is reading and commenting is it all a waste of time putting in the time to write about it.
I must admit myself that I never see writing a review for an album or writing about anything really a waste of time regardless of if anybody is reading or talking back to it with a comment. I think this is down to perhaps two things. The first being that it’s something I enjoy doing, and the second that I never see anything I do as the now thing.
For all we know at some point in time in the future, even after we are no longer here. Somebody might just land on the things we write about and get something from reading it.
Regarding Velvet Underground I have heard of them but never really took any notice of them or Lou Reed for that matter. But I have taken the liberty of locating the album on Youtube and listening to it now.
I very much think regarding Progressive Rock and the Beatles with the introduction of SGT Peppers being a part of making it. Or even Velvet Underground being a part of it too. I very much beg to differ.
The problem here is that people are only looking at the effects they used and even to the point that using a Mellotron somehow people have come to the conclusion that any bloody song with a Melltron in it is Prog Rock :)))))))))))
No doubt in mind the Beatles were still making pop and rock music and so was Velvet Underground just by looking how the music is structured. Neither of their songs have the ability to go into another direction. They are all basically written with a verse and chorus structure. Half of the bloody things do not even have a bridge never mind have the ability like to go somewhere else and say something differently than what any other band was doing at the time.
No doubt Lou Reed was influenced by Dylan having just heard the whole of this album. But then again just who never was really influenced by somebody else down the line.
Thanks for you articulate thoughts. It’s a good point on longevity of a post. I guess even if only one person reads the post every century, it may get to someone three or four hundred years later who will then listen to the music and get something out of it.
You know, its hard to pin down what Progressive Rock is. To your point, it could be about musical form. On the other hand, it could be other factors such as chord progressions, rhythms, time signatures, quality of the music, etc. Is the Who’s Tommy or Pretty Things’ SF Sorrow progressive because they take on the form of an opera? It is hard for me personally to define what progressive is. Beethoven was a progressive. Chopin, Liszt and Wagner were progressives. Brahms was not. Using that thought, then the groups that came in the 1980s and 1990s that mimicked the prog rock style were not progressive. What makes this Velvet Underground album progressive for me is they do things musically I haven’t heard before prior to their recording sessions in 1966, extending the boundaries of rock music. However, I would not label it progressive rock, but art-rock.
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Top of Notices (80) December 29, 2015 US PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE Print This Notice 1421 CNOG 152
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(80)            United States Postal Service Interruption and
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[1144 OG 8]


https://www.seattlepi.com/realestate/article/Fort-Lawton-homes-nearing-closer-to-sale-6429170.php
Fort Lawton homes nearing closer to sale
People can start moving in as early as October
By Kirsten O’Brien, SeattlePI
Updated 1:18 pm PDT, Thursday, August 6, 2015
The outside of a house that will be for sale at Fort Lawton, in Seattle.
Photo: Jones Lang LaSalle
Seattle has no shortage of unique homes, but these century-old historic former military homes are about as unique as they come. The best part? They'll be on the market in just a few short weeks.
The homes, which were originally part of former military base Fort Lawton, occupy nine acres in Seattle's Discovery Park. The homes are expected to hit the market near the end of September, and people can begin moving in as early as October, said Gary Blakeslee, a principal at RISE Properties. The private real estate investment fund acquired the portfolio of homes in 2013, and has been restoring them since July of this year.
"The toughest part is behind us," Blakeslee said, referring to the arduous, bureaucratic process of readying historic homes for public sale. "We all recognize the responsibility of conserving the living legacy of Fort Lawton, while at the same time creating a distinctive residential community."
A total of 26 homes will be for sale, ranging from modest two-bedroom homes of 1,700-sq. ft. to the General's House, a 6,600-sq. ft. mansion. No price information is available, but interested parties can register to receive more information here. The sale of the properties will be in two phases, said Blakeslee. Half the homes in a development called Montana Circle will be sold first, followed by the remaining homes in an area called Officer's Row. He expects all 13 homes in Montana Circle to be sold by year's end.
The company is restoring the homes based on guidelines established by the City of Seattle's Landmarks Preservation Board. The homes were built in the Colonial Revival style of architecture, and maintaining their original integrity is key. Meanwhile, the interiors will undergo extensive remodels to make them contemporary living spaces with plenty of modern amenities and conveniences.
The fort itself dates back to 1900, and was established to protect Puget Sound from a naval attack. It was designed to accommodate up to 3,500 men. The city purchased and established the land as a public park 1968, and the structures were added to the National Registry of Historic Places in 1978. The fort was officially decommissioned in 2011.
Owners of these unique properties can also expect to benefit from all that Discovery Park has to offer, including two miles of protected beaches and dramatic sea cliff views. The park is Seattle's largest urban park, spanning 534 acres.


Number 509 June 8, 2012
This Week: The Voter Empowerment Act
"Quote" of the Week: "Today, our freedom to vote is jeopardized"
Real Problems with Voting in the U.S.
News You Missed: The Voter Empowerment Act
Kill List Logic
There are some real problems with voting in the United States, and there are some not-real problems. The not-real problems are voter impersonation and voter fraud. They happen so rarely that we don't need to worry about them. The real problems have to do with people NOT voting. One reason that the U.S. has very low rates of voting by eligible voters is that many people don't bother to vote. That's a problem. Another reason is that there are many obstacles that get in the way when people try to vote. That second reason is what this issue of Nygaard Notes is all about.
Nygaard
Writing on the website of the research and advocacy group Demos ( http://www.demos.org/ ) last month, staff member Liz Kennedy wrote an excellent piece called "Protecting the Freedom to Vote: The Voter Empowerment Act of 2012." She wrote:
"Today, our freedom to vote is jeopardized by both systemic weaknesses and direct attacks aimed at undermining the franchise:
* Bureaucratic barriers block our freedom to vote with red tape. Our antiquated system puts the burden of registration on each individual, with unnecessarily restrictive registration procedures.
* Our electoral system threatens the voting rights of hundreds of thousands of voters each cycle through byzantine and non-standardized voter roll purges. When these machinations lead to eligible voters being dropped from the rolls, or challenged, their right to vote can be denied on the basis of bureaucratic error or even malfeasance.
* Some otherwise eligible American citizens are barred from voting because of past crimes, even if they have completed their sentences and are otherwise restored to society.
* Voters continue to face underhanded attempts to keep them from the polls through tricks and deceptive practices, such as information being distributed calling on members of certain parties to vote on days after Election Day."
Here are a few facts about voting in the United States.
1. "In 2008, more than eight million eligible and interested voters did not or could not vote due to outmoded voting practices, avoidable errors or confusing procedures that vary in all 50 states, county to county and even towns." That's according to a report on the website of the advocacy group "Nonprofit VOTE." At least eight presidential elections since World War II have been decided by fewer than eight million votes. Who knows how many state and local races have been affected by these missing votes?
2. An estimated 51 million Americans who are eligible to vote are not registered. This is more than 24 percent of the voting-eligible population, almost one out of every four. So says the Pew Center on the States, in a February 2012 report called "Inaccurate, Costly, and Inefficient: Evidence That America's Voter Registration System Needs an Upgrade."
3. "The Department of Defense Inspector General has repeatedly noted a persistent failure of the Federal Voting Assistance Program to provide effective assistance to military voters, specifically identifying a lack of voter awareness of existing resources to assist in the process." [Nygaard: The quote is from a press release from Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer, May 17, 2012. I also looked at the IG's report of March 22, 2011, and Hoyer appears to be correct in his statement.]
4. A publication called "The Voter Empowerment Act: Fast Facts" tells us that "In 2009, a majority of polling places still had one or more impediments that could prevent an individual with a disability from even getting to the required accessible voting system. In close to half of polling places, the accessible voting system itself could pose challenges for voters with disabilities to vote privately or independently."
The above points are not the only points that could be made. A recent report by the Pew Center on the States provides ample evidence that our voter registration systems "are plagued with errors and inefficiencies that waste taxpayer dollars, undermine voter confidence, and fuel partisan disputes over the integrity of our elections."
These are real problems, in contrast with the non-problem of "voter fraud" that is offered as justification for the unprecedented attack on voting rights that is underway in this country, and about which I have been reporting for the past several months. (See, for example, Nygaard Notes Number 503 http://www.nygaardnotes.org/issues/nn0503.html, which was devoted entirely to this issue.) As Georgia Congressman John Lewis pointed out recently, "Since the beginning of last year, 176 bills have been introduced in 41 states making it more difficult for people to participate in the democratic process."
Whatever the intent of all of these bills, collectively they will have the effect of disfranchising millions of people throughout the U.S., according to a study by The Brennan Center for Justice at New York University. A solution has been proposed, and the next article will tell you about it.
I've enumerated in recent issues of Nygaard Notes some of the various tactics that Republican strategists have employed in the past couple of years that are having the effect of suppressing voter turnout. These tactics include: Making it harder to register to vote; Making it harder for registered voters to cast their votes; Limiting voting rights for people who have been convicted of crimes, and; Weakening the Voting Rights Act to make it harder for the federal government to address any impediments to voting that are seen to exist in the U.S. All of these efforts are justified by invoking a desire to limit "voter fraud" and improve the "integrity" of elections. And these efforts seem to have garnered wide support among political leaders at the state level (where most of the efforts have been focused) and also in the media.
All of these tactics are intended to address a problem—voter fraud—that is such a tiny problem that there is no need to address it, legislatively or via constitutional amendment. The problems that we do have with voting in this country—as I just spelled out in the previous article—have nothing to do with people voting who should not vote. The real problem we have in this country is that many people who should vote are not voting. And, as noted in the previous article, that is partly due to problems in our voting systems, as well as efforts on the part of some people to prevent people from voting.
Given all of these facts, it would seem to be newsworthy that a bill aimed at addressing all of these problems was introduced into the U.S. Congress on May 17th by Congressman John Lewis and 130 co-sponsors. Since this news was completely ignored by the major media in this country, I'll tell you a little bit about it, and also tell you where you can learn more.
The bill that was introduced on May 17th is called the Voter Empowerment Act. It's also called, confusingly enough, the "Voter Registration Modernization Act of 2012." By whatever name, it's known in Congress as HR 5799.
The VEA in Brief
Here is a list of some of the things the VEA would do. The facts are gleaned from a variety of sources, but mostly from the lead author of the bill, Rep. John Lewis. It's a long list, but worth reprinting since it gives a hint of the nature and scale of the problem the VEA is intended to address. The VEA would:
•	Modernize the voter registration system by shifting the administrative burden off of the individual voter and onto the government to register eligible citizens to vote.
•	Authorize an online registration option
•	Authorize same-day registration and permitting voters to update their registration data onsite
•	Provide additional tools to alleviate any additional burdens for people with disabilities
•	Require all universities that receive federal funds to offer and encourage voter registration to their students
•	Simplify registration and ensure that ballots from all military personnel serving overseas are counted
•	Authorize funds for training poll workers and setting standards for polling place practices
•	Require provisional ballots be available and counted at all polling places
•	Prohibit voter caging and designating it as a felony
•	Protect against deceptive practices and intimidation
•	Establish a national voter hotline to ensure timely reporting and corrective action of voting related issues
•	Set standards for voting machines to ensure accurate tabulation and confirmation of voter intent paper copy verification
•	Reauthorize the Election Assistance Commission to ensure that the highest standards are being met nationwide to guarantee fair elections
•	Establish a national standard for ex-offenders to vote in Federal elections when they are no longer incarcerated.
Endorsements of the VEA
On May 18th, the day after the Voter Empowerment Act was introduced, House Democrat Steny Hoyer put out a press release about "a diverse group of advocates representing the civil rights, disability and young voter communities [who] have already come out in strong support" of the VEA. The release included strong statements from leaders of:
The American Association of People with Disabilities;
The Asian American Justice Center;
The Brennan Center for Justice;
Common Cause;
Demos;
FairVote;
The Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law;
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights;
The League of Women Voters;
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People;
The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund;
Project Vote and;
Rock the Vote.
Sources for Information About Enhancing Voter Turnout
For those who are interested in knowing more about this important legislation, here are three sources that I found helpful:
1. The Pew Center on the States, in February 2012 put out a report called "Inaccurate, Costly, and Inefficient: Evidence That America's Voter Registration System Needs an Upgrade."
2. A group called "Nonprofit Vote" has a little piece on its website called "Voter Turnout Factors" that lists "seven factors frequently cited as very important to voter turnout." It's worth reading and thinking about. Find it HERE.
3. A one-pager, with footnotes, the "Voter Empowerment Act: Fast Facts" flyer is a quick read, but full of good stuff.
4. By far the best thing I've read on the VEA (granted, there aren't all that many things to read), is a 3,000-word article by Liz Kennedy on the Demos website called "Protecting the Freedom to Vote: The Voter Empowerment Act of 2012." It's the source of this week's "Quote" of the Week, in fact.
On May 29th the New York Times ran a huge front-page article that's caused quite an uproar. Headlined "Secret 'Kill List' Proves a Test Of Obama's Principles and Will," the article reported that "Mr. Obama has placed himself at the helm of a top secret 'nominations' process to designate terrorists for kill or capture, of which the capture part has become largely theoretical." After noting that Obama had promised, and failed, to close the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, the Times voices the "suspicion" that "Mr. Obama has avoided the complications of detention by deciding, in effect, to take no prisoners alive." The President's advisors "understood that they could not keep adding new names to a kill list," but "What remains unanswered is how much killing will be enough."
The "kill list" story was undoubtedly leaked by Obama insiders for campaign purposes. As Glenn Greenwald reported in Salon.com, the revelations in the Times story "are designed to depict President Obama, in an Election Year, as a super-tough, hands-on, no-nonsense Warrior." And perhaps the kill list itself is also about re-election. That is, if any "combatants" are captured, then they will have to be detained, maybe at Guantanamo, and the Obama campaign does not want people to think about that. So maybe it's better, in campaign terms, to run a secret program of killing by remote control.
Whether or not the Times story was the result of a cynical leak, many remarkable things were reported therein, perhaps none more startling than the report that Mr. Obama faced a dilemma when pondering his strategy of remote-control assassination. And that is that such a program would necessarily involve the killing of innocent people, in a variety of countries. What to do? The solution, according to the Times, is that "Mr. Obama embraced a disputed method for counting civilian casualties that did little to box him in. It in effect counts all military-age males in a strike zone as combatants, according to several administration officials, unless there is explicit intelligence posthumously proving them innocent."
It's been apparent for some time that such "Kill List Logic" has been employed to minimize the reporting of innocent victims of U.S. drones. Has media reporting utilized this peculiar logic when reporting on drone attacks, or have they utilized a more standard logic? Well, let's have a look.
On the day before the Times story, May 28, the Associated Press headlined its report "Pakistan: US missiles kill 5 militants in NW," and it began by saying "American missiles killed five suspected Islamist militants close to the Afghan border. . ." That is, the missiles killed anybody who happened to be nearby. Using Kill List Logic, these are, by definition, "suspected militants," so that's what was reported.
The same story noted that this attack was "the fourth in less than a week" in the area. The AP then dutifully reported that one attack killed "four suspected militants," another "killed 10 alleged militants," and yet another killed "four suspected militants." All guilty, if one uses Kill List Logic.
The next day (the day after the Times report) the Baltimore Sun reported on the killing in Afghanistan of "al-Qaida's second in command." The report noted that this man "and an unidentified al-Qaida militant were killed in the airstrike." How does anyone know that an "unidentified" person is a "militant"? It's Kill List Logic: If our airstrike killed him, he must have been a militant!
And the AP on June 2nd reported, "An American drone fired two missiles at a motorbike in northwest Pakistan on Saturday, killing two suspected militants. . ."
And June 3rd: "An American drone strike in the frontier tribal areas of Pakistan killed 10 suspected militants Sunday. . ."
It goes on and on, but in no case are we offered any evidence about the guilt or innocence of these people. Of course, if there were to be any "explicit intelligence posthumously proving them innocent," it would be a bit too late. That's why people must be presumed innocent until proven guilty. And there's Obama's "test" question: Are people guilty—and sentenceable to death—until proven innocent? Or are people presumed innocent until proven guilty? Obama has offered his answer. And if his handlers are correct in thinking that the leaking of this story will help him gain re-election, then it appears that we've all failed the test.