Town Topic

I dare not call this establishment a landmark of our fair city. No, I rightfully bequeath it a national legend. There is little that can quell the urges spurned by an evening of boozing and perusing.

The stimuli one is faced with upon entering this joint is equivalent to veritable human carnival of pleasure. One can be more than witness to this spectacle. Behold a large man towering over a griddle older than some of your parents. Staring menacingly down as burgers, onions, and cheese cower beneath the master's tools. Orders are yelled by an equally opposing wielder of cash register, order pad, and tour guide of this establishment. Shakes are mixed as pies of all color and size await their doom, as even they may end up on the griddle before the night's end.

There are burger joints, and then there is town topic. What she lacks in size she makes up for in experience. A towering behemoth in the world of diners and dives. Though there may be those who rival her, perhaps even in this fair city, she is beautiful and terrible and magnificent in all her glory.

Scribe

Local artist scribe has been "getting up" for years. I first saw his work on the side of Zowie's/816 Skate. My tattoo artist owned a studio in basement below, and then later above in the loft space, formerly known as Triple Crown Tattoos. This is located on Broadway in the heart of Westport.

My jaw dropped in amazement as I saw Scribe(also known as D.Ross) work and interpretation of Alice in Wonderland. Being native to the Boston area I am no stranger to graffiti, and perhaps my childhood viewings spawned my interest. Regardless of the heart of my fondness, Scribe is one of the most talented I have seen to date. He has moved into the professional realm of artist. He can be seen doing live paintings on local KC news stations, painting murals for the Children's Mercy hospitals in the area, designing toys and even publishing his own children's book. You can find more examples of the man and his craft at the link pasted below.

YJ's Kansas City

I've been making my way around the cultural landmarks of Kansas City. Let me tell you that whomever said this city didn't have heart had surely failed to look for it. As far as I'm concerned this city and it's people the pulse point of the Midwest.

YJ's is a colorful all hours diner located in the heart of downtown Kansas City. A stone's throw away from another KC classic known as Town Topic. Relics of the past litter the atmosphere. If you are so inclined you can even tickle the ivories that lay amidst it's overly adequate surroundings. What YJ's lacks in indoor space is compensated by it's spacious outdoor eating area.

Ambiance aside, this joint serves the best breakfast plate this side of the Mississippi. And their spicy biscuits and gravy are a sure fired winner. The staff are curators, concierges and cultivators of a uniquely "Kansas City Experience".

Thirsty Thursday

Just a brief update as I'm fairly uncertain about the format I want to follow here.

Went to the Beaumont Club in KC last night and saw County Road 5, Scott Ford and Jason Boland & The Stragglers.

Ventured backstage and did an interview with Scott Ford who invited me along for the solo acoustic Jackson Taylor show tonight @ Woody's KC in Old Town Lenexa.

Met all the bands and Jason Boland, as usual, did not disappoint.
Included is a picture of Jason and I.
Unfortunately I had to work in the morning, or I'm sure the night would have proceeded to be even more memorable than I had previously thought.

All is well that ends well.

Clarification, Misnomers, Predictions & Other Musing

The few of you who do visit this blog, have no doubt noticed the vast body of it's work is now missing. This blog was always meant to be a sort of dialogue, and perhaps even catalogue of my daily or weekly events. Wholly biased, full of opinion, and generally meaningless.

I seemed to have missed my direction in that aim and so I have created one blog for my short musings, which can be found @ http://www.badliversandbrokenhearts.blogspot.com I have exported the bulk of the material you have found here to that blog, and plan to continue in the fashion I had always intended for the Kansas City Shuffle.

I can make no promises about content. I cannot guarantee the reader pleasure, fulfillment, satisfation, or even intelligible content. Read or continue at the risk of your IQ, conscience, and morality.

i started out with nothin' and still got most of it left

this shit right here
this shit right here
it's a lost fuckin' art my friend
and i may not be old enough
to hear the first sounds comin
but i know the moan of a midnight train
the sloughing of feet after a bottle o' shine
that lonesome alley that catches a sideways glance
fleeting, from the daytime squares
i know the sounds
the rooster in the morning
the groaning in your belly
from whatever it ails you
the night before
or whatever tomorrow may bring

i know i'm not the only one
who feels the way i do
when i hear
when i wanna stomp my foot
till it falls off
when i want to scream @ the gods
until i'm satisfied they are listening
when every bone in my body is jukin'
shuckin' and jivin'
like an ol' curtis lowe
bendin' strings doin' the "bus stop"
when your face screws itself all up
and anyone in their right mind lookin' in your direction
would think you ain't right
with the lord
or anyone in general

but when i hear this
sometimes i swear it's the only time
anything is right @ all

-his name is seasick steve

stone cold pimpin' cadillac muzik

you'll soon find out

i'm not the kind of fellow
who is real tall
but i ain't short
on words

that being said, i'm not even sure
where to start with this man
i don't write reviews for magazines
i'm not talented like all these other folks out here
in the blogosphere
but this man's words
are made up
of just about everything i could never find a way to say
and if that don't sum it up
well it's just going to have to

musically, the man is self taught
and if you are into folks' stories
well he's got one of his own
and if you couldn't tell by the score
you'll know after you google his name
a time or two

i saw him play @ the uptown theatre in KC
and the folks he plays with
make "the band", the backup singers for the stones, and collective genius of leon russel
seem like roadside buskers
he sat off to the side
not out front
just doing his thing
sometimes barely audible
i couldn't tell if someone was drivin' a railroad spike
straight through the middle of my soul
but i sure as hell wasn't gettin' up to find out
it was that good...