"Blond On Blonde."

[Jules Siegel]

At 10:25 AM 07/11/97 -0700, David Casseres <casseres at apple.com> wrote:
>....Dylan's own voice on "Blond On Blonde."

A while back, someone commented on Pynchon as my one brush with fame. I sent
him a private letter listing the others, among whom was Bob Dylan. I also
mentioned Farrah Fawcett (who actually hugged me--talk about brushes, yum),
the Beach Boys, Abbie Hoffman (who asked permission to lust after Chrissie),
Norris McWhirter (author of the Guiness Book of World Records--27 million
copies as of 1981). I could also mention Joanie Mitchell, Michelle Phillips
(who very un?graciously stuck her butt in my face at a recording session
when she backed into me while I was sitting down), Sterling Hayden, The
Turtles (who gave me the acid for my first trip), Bobbie Kennedy (who later
asked the Village Voice's Jack Newfield, "Are all your reporters beatniks?).
Well, I could go on and on, but why try. I am just a literary hack.

Just to keep things in perspective, I was with Bob Dylan when he heard the
recorded version of "Blonde on Blonde" for the first time. The only other
person present was his manager, Albert Grossman, who had just come to
Vancouver (where Dylan was giving a concert) to deliver the dub. They did
not have a record player in all their equipment, so the hotel had to send up
one that they found somewhere. It was missing the center post. Albert very
patiently centered the dub on the turntable by eye and actually got it to
play correctly.

Now contrast this with Dale L. Larson: After a month's delay, he breaks down
and sends me two copies of Lineland and a dozen covers. When I complain
about this, he sends down another two with a friend. When I repeat my
request for a dozen or so books, he engages me in a discussion that would be
rejected in my behalf as illogical and insulting by Peter Giordano and Doug
Millhouse combined. His reasoning is that it would cost $100 to send me 10
books by Express Mail. Turns out it would cost $47, but even that is too
much, apparently. Finally he sends me 16 copies by parcel post after I've
warned him that parcel post takes about two months to arrive, if it arrives
at all.

Oh well. I guess this is what I get for doing business with someone who
would do business with me, to paraphrase Groucho Marx on joining clubs.

Can we get some of those flames going at Dale now?


--Jules Siegel Apdo 1764 Cancun QR 77501
http://www.yucatanweb.com/siegel/jsiegel.htm