Agile Mobile Hostile…A Year with Andre Williams.

In the early 1960s, Williams co-wrote Stevie Wonder’s first song called “Thank You for Loving Me.” Andre Williams’ “Shake a Tail Feather” was also made a super hit in 1963 by the Five Du-Tones and again by Ike & Tina Turner. Alvin Cash & the Crawlers also made a hit out of the Williams song “Twine Time.” As well as making these hits, Williams also supervised the making of 2 or more albums by The Contours. In the ’60s, Andre Williams was the manager and roadie for soul singer Edwin Starr as well.

In 1965, Williams was signed to Chess Records, Chicago’s major blues label. He was back…wearing velvet lavender suits and playing “bucket-of-blood” styled joints. Chess released many hits for Williams—“Humpin’ Bumpin’ and Thumpin’” and “Cadillac Jack” in particular. Then, he began to work with many unknown black labels and pour out songs like “Sweet Little Pussy Cat” and “Rib Tips, Pts. 1 & 2.” In 1968, Williams collaborated with the Natural Bridge Bunch to release “Pig Snoots,” a novelty song about a man named Ricky who would “come all way cross town to get me some snoots”. In the 1970s, Williams wrote some songs for Parliament (band) and Funkadelic, two popular funk groups. (Comedian Redd Foxx then dubbed Andre Williams his most famous nickname, Mr. Rhythm). Once again, Williams began to produce cuts for Ike Turner.

Throughout the 1980s, Andre Williams was in poverty because of his drug addictions. He lived in Chicago, Illinois; at one point, he was begging for money on a Chicago bridge.

Tina Turner doing Proud Mary could bring a man back from the dead. I don’t know what the science behind that would be, But I’m pretty sure it’s true.

Have you ever considered plying your wares somewhere else? Most havent…Estimates say that only 20% of American citizens have a passport. If you don’t…Get one.

Once you get one, where will you go? If you’re like me, you see This list as a challenge.

Or maybe Dual citizenship is the way to go…Euros are good, baby!

I don’t really care, as long as I’m living in style. I’m just looking for a piece of beach I can throw a shed on, and I’m golden…

ps…have you been backstage?

It has been noticed that japanes clothing and business concern Uniqlo has attempted some form of new electronic communication. We’re not sure what they’re trying to say, but it seems important. Our foreign Bureau has been assigned this case.

It has come to our attention that International luggage manufacturers The Louis Vuitton Company have compiled a sampling of world travelers that epitomize their brand. From what I can tell, Kanye West didn’t make the list. Further proof that he is indeed a fraud of the highest magnitude. W&M Hall of Fame Inductee Keith Richards did make the cut. No surprise there.

The term “watergate” is a reference to the Watergate complex, A Washington DC Office-Apartment-Hotel complex built in 1967. Our Office of Standards and Usage would like it known that simply adding ther suffix “-gate” to imply a scandal is discouraged on grounds of laziness and boorishness. Once considered a possible location for the W&M Institute of Social Engineering, but abandoned due to poor security.

It is with much sadness that we report on the passing of three great men.

Alton Kelly - Psychedelic poster artist extrodinaire.

Bo Diddley - Father of Rock & Roll

Sidney Pollack - Director of many fine films, including one of the highest rated films in the W&M film archives, Three Days of the Condor.

A final ten count and a moment of silence for three titans of arts and letters. 

::end of transmission.
 

True confession time. I’ve only seen Raiders of The Lost Ark. Never bothered with any of the sequels. Always figured they’d be crap. Indiana Jones had the potential to be the next Bond, and blew it. Fuck em, You will not get another dime out of me Lucas. Despite being a massive nerd, I never got into nerd franchise loyalty. Then again, I was the only kid on my block who used his star wars action figures to play “The Warriors”. I was always more fascinated with grimy 70’s era NYC than I was with outer space or Middle Earth.

Taxi Driver, Serpico, Baretta… These were my fantasy heroes. I’m guessing not a lot of 10 year olds then or now profess to be devotees of Sidney Lumet.

Just to be clear, seeing this as a kid, 90% of it went over my head, but just on the strength of “Bank Robbery!” it was my favorite movie.

I love James Toback, he’s a deeply flawed man who seems to use movies to either work out his own issues, or expound on philisophical issues that only he seems to get, but the world needs to know about… My kind of guy. Most of his films revolve around Gambling, sex, and the perils of obsessive risk taking. Of particular note are Two Girls and a Guy. Two Girls and a Guy is the movie that made me a Robert Downey Jr. Fan for life. If you’re a guy, and you’ve ever had to lie your way out of a situation with a woman, this film was written for you. 

Speaking of Iron man, his scene in Black&White with Iron Mike was an instant classic. Toback is a genius simply for putting those two together in the first place.

I’ve always had a major appreciation for Mike Tyson. First of all, he’s the greatest Boxer ever. I love Ali as much as anyone, but Tyson in his prime would have beat him. My love for Tyson has more to do with Mike Tyson the Man than Tyson the boxer. The story of his life as most choose to see it is one of a deeply flawed man, a savage, an ignorant brute. However, if you look at his story objectively, it is infinitely interesting. Mike Tyson might be one of the most three-dimensional public figures of the past 30 years. If you wrote his life story as fiction, it would be considered too fantastic to be believable. And despite what people believe about him, I think Mike’s story will have a happy ending. Looking forward to seeing this movie