My Favorite Things

My Favorite Things

Favorite flautist

I revere Eric Dolphy, Hubert Laws, Joe Farrell, Paul Horn, Lew Tabackin, Matt Eakle (David Grisman Quintet), Paul McCandless (reeds)... locally: Ira Sullivan and Eric Allison - I worship the ground they play on! I also like Marc Berner, Herbie Mann, Dave Valentin, Tim Wheater, Tim Weisberg, Shawkie Roth and others.
However, I am much more of a guitar fan, learned to improvise from playing with and listening to guitarists, and have always listened to far more guitar music than anything else.

My Guitar Heroes: John McLaughlin, Steve Morse, Eric Johnson, Bonnie Raitt, Joni Mitchell, Richard Johnson, Pat Metheny, Richard Gilewitz, Dominic Miller (Sting), Pierce from MPEband and scores of others; locally: Colin Kenny aka Raiford Starke, Rose Giulot, Ramon Justicia, Randy Bernsen, Eddie Balzola, Frank Carmelitano, Kelly Dow, Jeff Egan, Scott Avery, Dave Anthony; and honorary locals Marianne Flemming and Magda Hiller.

Other String Heroes: Sam Bush, David Grisman, Chris Thile, Jerry Douglas, Bela Fleck

Favorite album

Depends what mood I'm in. Some of my all-time favorites:
Legend - Clannad
Inside the Taj Mahal - Paul Horn
Japanese Folk Melodies - Jean-Pierre Rampal and Lily Laskine
Ardas - Crimson
Everything by the Beatles
Everything by Eric Johnson, especially Tones
My Goal's Beyond - John McLaughlin, also Mahavishnu Orchestra, especially the early stuff
Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy - Chick Corea and Return to Forever
Voluntary Solitary - Richard Gilewitz
anything by Bonnie Raitt, especially the early stuff
anything by Joni Mitchell, especially the early stuff
anything by Dixie Dregs, especially the early stuff
anything by Kurt Elling
West Side Story, original cast recording - Leonard Bernstein
Swan Lake - Tschaikovsky
nothing but - Magda Hiller
Three Chords and a Bridge -Marianne Flemming
This Perfect World - Freedy Johnston
Mint - The Goods
Disraeli Gears - Cream
Twelve Dreams of Dr. Sardonicus - Spirit
Child is Father to the Man - Blood, Sweat & Tears
Echoes of a Modern God - Dwain Briggs

Favorite song

Okay, how long have you got?! Here's a very incomplete list of some of my all-time faves, in no particular order.
The artists listed are the ones who made the recordings I love, not necessarily the composer, though most are:
Higher Love - Stevie Winwood
Waterfall - Cris Williamson
Shine Sweet Freedom - Michael McDonald
Keep My Love Alive - Heart
Get Outside - Robert Palmer
Fell on Black Days, Burden in My Hand - Soundgarden
Don't Renege on Our Love - Lucy Kaplansky
No More, War of Man, The Needle and the Damage Done, Cinnamon Girl - Neil Young
Pleasures of the Harbour, I Ain't Marchin' Anymore - Phil Ochs
Wear Your Love Like Heaven, There is a Mountain - Donovan
Could You Be Love - Bob Marley
Be Still & Know - Randy Bernsen
Many including Pour Some Sugar on Me, Rocket, Rock of Ages... - Def Leppard
The Cradle Will Rock - Van Halen
Urgent - Foreigner
My Baby - The Pretenders
I Feel For You, Ain't Nobody - Chaka Khan
Love Letter, Been in Love Too Long, I Can't Make You Love Me - Bonnie Raitt
Dancing With My Mother - Rachel Bissex
The Mummers' Dance - Loreena McKennit (the original, not that dreadful radio remix)
You Wreck Me, Love is a Long Road - Tom Petty
Guinevere - Crosby, Stills & Nash ( & Young?)
Coming Back to Me, Today, Volunteers - Jefferson Airplane
Silent House, Don't Dream It's Over - Crowded House
Lock & Key - Frank Christian
Turn A Square, Pink Bullets - The Shins
It Dawned on Me - Calla
Mad World - Gary Jules version of Tears for Fears song
Icarus, Drifting Petals - Ralph Towner
Sightless Bird - Bobby McFerrin
Low - Cracker
Shine - Sugarspoon
I'm Not Average - The Goods
Home, My Favorite Mistake, The Difficult Kind, Every Day is A Winding Road - Sheryl Crow
Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow - Carole King
Let's Pretend We're Married, 1999 - Prince
Blue Canoe, Simple Life - Elton John
Ordinary World - Duran Duran
No More Tears - Ozzy Osbourne
Moanin' - Lambert, Hendricks & Ross
Warmth of the Sun, In My Room, God Only Knows, Sail On, Sailor - Beach Boys
Albatross, My Father, Who Knows Where the Time Goes - Judy Collins
Surround Sister - Sooundtrack of Our Lives
Emily - Laura Nyro
Mysterious Ways - U2
Can't Find My Way Home - Blind Faith
My Friends - Red Hot Chili Peppers
If I Ever Lose My Faith - Sting
Rocky Raccoon - Lena Horne version
Highway 51 Revisited, Like a Rolling Stone and many others - Bob Dylan
Oh, Atlanta, Can't Find My Way Home - Alison Krauss and Union Station
One Way Track - Ricky Skaggs
Give Me Love - Dougie McLean
I Carry Your Heart - Michael Hedges
Love Will Keep Us Together - Martin Sexton
Sunset Road - Bela Fleck & the Flecktones
Country Colors and many others - Steve Morse
Reasons Why - Nickel Creek
Ask for the Moon - Molly O'Brien
I Believe - Trophy Wife
I Still Believe - The Call
I'm Still Alive - Pearl Jam
Land of Oz - Hillary Stagg
Angel Eyes - Frank Sinatra
Pies for the Public - Zoe Lewis
Elegant Gypsy Suite - Al DiMeola
Seguidilla from Carmen - Georges Bizet
Terkisher Navratilova - Metropolitan Klezmer
Expect a Miracle, Prairie Sunset - Peter Ostroushko
Follow Me, Farmer's Trust, Letter From Home - Pat Metheny
When You Wish Upon a Star - Laura Sue and Orquestra Nightingale
Ferdinand, Back, Flame (That Parisian Love Song) - Maggi, Pierce and E.J.

Favorite song I've written

Usually the most recent one.

Laura Sue's Quintessential Car Songs

These are the songs I LOVE when they come on the car radio, the songs that make me drive too fast!

Rock and Roll Strategy - 38 Special
Runnin' Down a Dream - Tom Petty
One Way Track - Ricky Skaggs
Def Leppard
and many of the songs on the above faves list....

Favorite joke

Why did the turtle cross the road?
To get to the shell station!

A joke I made up recently:

What did the physicist have for breakfast?
A proton shake.

Favorite art medium

Beadwork
second favorite: Collage

Favorite technology

Air conditioning
Telephone answering machines

Favorite city, US

New Orleans
close second: San Francisco

Favorite city, non - US

Vienna
Toronto

Place I'd most like to go that I haven't been yet

Egypt, Brazil, Vancouver & Hawaii

Favorite color

Depends what day it is....

Favorite flower

Columbine
Lantana
Lilac
Hyacinth
Poinciana

Favorite sport

Swimming
Bike riding
Canoeing
Walking

Favorite insect

Butterfly

Favorite animal

Cat
close second: Nightingale
close third: Bunny
close fourth: Sheep

Favorite stuffed animal

Bunnies

Person I'd most like to meet - My Heroes!

Bonnie Raitt
Ann & Nancy Wilson
Carlos Santana
Neil Young

Musician I'd most like to play with

Same list!
plus One Drum, Oriente, Maggi, Pierce and E.J., Sting and Dominic Miller,
and the people I play with now!

Cute guy I'd most like to meet

Adrian Paul, Marty Stuart, Jeremy London (pre-7th Heaven!), Billy Wirth (Lost Boys era, not Sex & the City), Eric Stoltz, Eric Johnson (musician not actor), Jeff Goldblum, Michael Praed (Robin Hood era, not Dynasty), Keith Hamilton Cobb, Thomas Jane, Kevin Sorbo, Gale Harold, Richard Dean Anderson, Jon Bon Jovi, John Kay, Ziggy Marley (that man glows!), Richard Armitage (evil politician from Nottingham, not US State Department - not only a gorgeous Gisborne but also plays flute and cello!), Will Arnett, Julian McMahon

Favorite famous person I've already met

Marian McPartland
Margie Adam
Kay Gardner
John McLaughlin
Ray Suarez
Pete Seeger
Douglas Spotted Eagle
Sally Jessy Raphael
John Trudell

Most gracious interviewee

Steve Morse

Most famous person who ever hit on me

Frank Zappa

Favorite all-time TV shows

Dick Van Dyke, The Simpsons, Sports Night, Max Headroom, Fawlty Towers, China Beach, WKRP, Monty Python's Flying Circus, The Sopranos, Oz, Six Feet Under, X-Files, NYPD Blue, Friends, Roseanne, Everybody Loves Raymond, Two and a Half Men, Gilmore Girls (Seasons 1 - 6), Stargate SG-1 (great Egyptian backstory in this sci-fi epic! but should have ended with the Moebius episodes), 24 (amazingly anti-authoritarian for a show supposedly run by Republican sympathizers)
Others I like: Roswell, Hercules, Xena, Highlander, Queer as Folk, Frasier (the early years), Star Trek: TNG & Deep Space Nine, West Wing, P.O.V, Push, Nevada, Monk, Dead Zone, Once and Again, The Visitor, Independent Lens, All Bird TV, The Daily Show (one of the only decent sources of news on TV!), Nature, Nova, Smallville, Soundstage, Austin City Limits, Battlestar Galactica (the new production), Coach, Star Trek: Voyager, Mad About You, The Unit, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (some weird casting, but great in some ways - their New Orleans-themed Christmas show was sooo moving....), My Name is Earl, The Office (US version), Sleeper Cell, The O.C., Prison Break

Recently started watching: Breaking Bad, Dirt, Mad Men, Saving Grace, Project Runway, Aliens in America, Nip/Tuck (except for the surgeries - yuk!), Countdown with Keith Olbermann, George Lopez, Reaper

Favorite TV shows cancelled before their time

Sports Night, Fawlty Towers, WKRP, Frank's Place, Nothing Sacred, Cupid, Max Headroom, Doctor, Doctor, Harsh Realm, VR5, The Lone Gunmen, Roswell, Legacy (completely obvious plots but beautiful cinematography), My So-Called Life, Smith, Lucky, The Class, The Nine, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip

Favorite TV show theme music

Dick Van Dyke, Simpsons, Flintstones, The Jetsons, Six Feet Under, Monty Python's Flying Circus, Odyssey 5

Favorite movie music

Grand Canyon, West Side Story, Heart of the Sun, Deep Blue Sea, Parenthood, The Sound of Music

Favorite movie

Dr. Strangelove, Fantasia, Yellow Submarine, Laura, West Side Story, Harold and Maude, Roger and Me, Parenthood, Mad Max - Beyond Thunderdome, The Sound of Music, Victor/Victoria, Heart of the Sun, Field of Dreams, Blue Vinyl, Bowling for Columbine

Favorite play

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying

Favorite media

Radio - at least it was, until, thanks to the deregulation of media ownership, all the commercial radio stations got bought out by, like, two multi-national media conglomerates. Then NPR pretty much abandoned its music programming. My hope is that some day eclectic music programming will return to radio. It's the best! Yeah, you might say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one....

Favorite book

Mists of Avalon, the Thesaurus

What I'm reading now

Seven Spiritual Laws of Success - Deepak Chopra
Visionary Business - Marc Allen
The Tao of Leadership - John Heider
Wherever You Go, There You Are - Jon Kabat-Zinn
Diet for a Small Planet - Francis Moore Lappé
Anything by Christiane Northrup

Favorite cartoon

Calvin & Hobbes, Rose is Rose, Pogo, Krazy Kat, Rocky & Bullwinkle, Little Nemo, early Jules Feiffer, Barnaby and Mr. O'Malley, The Simpsons

Favorite comedian/
social commentator

Richard Jeni
Lily Tomlin
Al Franken
Michael Moore
Firesign Theater
Swami Beyondananda
Mike Malloy
Jon Stewart
Maz Jobrani
Bob Nelson

Favorite food

Fresh peas in the pod
Corn on the cob
Mint chocolate chip ice cream
Lobster
Hearts of lettuce with blue cheese dressing
Dandelion greens
Artichokes
Hearts of palm and celery
Angel Hair pasta with garlic and oil
Peach cobbler

Favorite dish at a restaurant

Vegetable Nasi Goreng - Indigo Room, Riverside Hotel, Fort Lauderdale
Favorite olives

Calamata from Fernando's in Fort Lauderdale

Favorite fabric

Velvet
second: Suede or Soft leather
third: Organza, Silk, Lace....

Favorite fabric to wear or sleep in

Cotton

Favorite chocolate

Vegan Chocolate Mousse
and
365 Organic Chocolate Truffles
from Whole Foods

Favorite computer

Macintosh

Favorite coffee

Espresso

Favorite place to get coffee

The south of France

Favorite motto

At least I'm not bored!
close second: Have Flute, Will Travel!

What I want on my gravestone

At least she wasn't bored!

What I hope people will say about me when I'm not around anymore

I miss Laura! She was fun!!

What I'll do when I have a million dollars
Hire a full-time masseuse, chef, gardener and housekeeper, live in a house with a BIG pool, a rambling flower garden with lots of butterfly plants and a fireplace; give a lot of money to charity; play as much music as possible; pet every cat I meet; buy lots of funky, cool clothes and jewelry; have fresh flowers in my home all the time; travel to exotic places; eat fabulous food; laugh a lot and have lots of fun with dear friends (in other words, pretty much what I'm doing now)

Want to know my favorite something that isn't listed here? Let me know and I'll post the answer right here!

Fly Home

*Favorite joke* Why did the turtle cross the road? To get to the shell station! A joke I made up recently: What did the physicist have for breakfast? A proton shake.	*Favorite art medium* Beadwork second favorite: Collage	*Favorite technology* Air conditioning Telephone answering machines
*Favorite city, US* New Orleans close second: San Francisco	*Favorite city, non - US* Vienna Toronto	*Place I'd most like to go that I haven't been yet* Egypt, Brazil, Vancouver & Hawaii
*Favorite color* Depends what day it is....	*Favorite flower* Columbine Lantana Lilac Hyacinth Poinciana	*Favorite sport* Swimming Bike riding Canoeing Walking
*Favorite insect* Butterfly	*Favorite animal* Cat close second: Nightingale close third: Bunny close fourth: Sheep	*Favorite stuffed animal* Bunnies
*Person I'd most like to meet - My Heroes!* Bonnie Raitt Ann & Nancy Wilson Carlos Santana Neil Young *Musician I'd most like to play with* Same list! plus One Drum, Oriente, Maggi, Pierce and E.J., Sting and Dominic Miller, and the people I play with now!	*Cute guy I'd most like to meet* Adrian Paul, Marty Stuart, Jeremy London (pre-7th Heaven!), Billy Wirth (Lost Boys era, not Sex & the City), Eric Stoltz, Eric Johnson (musician not actor), Jeff Goldblum, Michael Praed (Robin Hood era, not Dynasty), Keith Hamilton Cobb, Thomas Jane, Kevin Sorbo, Gale Harold, Richard Dean Anderson, Jon Bon Jovi, John Kay, Ziggy Marley (that man glows!), Richard Armitage (evil politician from Nottingham, not US State Department - not only a gorgeous Gisborne but also plays flute and cello!), Will Arnett, Julian McMahon	*Favorite famous person I've already met* Marian McPartland Margie Adam Kay Gardner John McLaughlin Ray Suarez Pete Seeger Douglas Spotted Eagle Sally Jessy Raphael John Trudell *Most gracious interviewee* Steve Morse *Most famous person who ever hit on me* Frank Zappa
*Favorite all-time TV shows* Dick Van Dyke, The Simpsons, Sports Night, Max Headroom, Fawlty Towers, China Beach, WKRP, Monty Python's Flying Circus, The Sopranos, Oz, Six Feet Under, X-Files, NYPD Blue, Friends, Roseanne, Everybody Loves Raymond, Two and a Half Men, Gilmore Girls (Seasons 1 - 6), Stargate SG-1 (great Egyptian backstory in this sci-fi epic! but should have ended with the Moebius episodes), 24 (amazingly anti-authoritarian for a show supposedly run by Republican sympathizers) Others I like: Roswell, Hercules, Xena, Highlander, Queer as Folk, Frasier (the early years), Star Trek: TNG & Deep Space Nine, West Wing, P.O.V, Push, Nevada, Monk, Dead Zone, Once and Again, The Visitor, Independent Lens, All Bird TV, The Daily Show (one of the only decent sources of news on TV!), Nature, Nova, Smallville, Soundstage, Austin City Limits, Battlestar Galactica (the new production), Coach, Star Trek: Voyager, Mad About You, The Unit, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (some weird casting, but great in some ways - their New Orleans-themed Christmas show was sooo moving....), My Name is Earl, The Office (US version), Sleeper Cell, The O.C., Prison Break Recently started watching: Breaking Bad, Dirt, Mad Men, Saving Grace, Project Runway, Aliens in America, Nip/Tuck (except for the surgeries - yuk!), Countdown with Keith Olbermann, George Lopez, Reaper	*Favorite TV shows cancelled before their time* Sports Night, Fawlty Towers, WKRP, Frank's Place, Nothing Sacred, Cupid, Max Headroom, Doctor, Doctor, Harsh Realm, VR5, The Lone Gunmen, Roswell, Legacy (completely obvious plots but beautiful cinematography), My So-Called Life, Smith, Lucky, The Class, The Nine, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip	*Favorite TV show theme music* Dick Van Dyke, Simpsons, Flintstones, The Jetsons, Six Feet Under, Monty Python's Flying Circus, Odyssey 5 *Favorite movie music* Grand Canyon, West Side Story, Heart of the Sun, Deep Blue Sea, Parenthood, The Sound of Music
*Favorite movie* Dr. Strangelove, Fantasia, Yellow Submarine, Laura, West Side Story, Harold and Maude, Roger and Me, Parenthood, Mad Max - Beyond Thunderdome, The Sound of Music, Victor/Victoria, Heart of the Sun, Field of Dreams, Blue Vinyl, Bowling for Columbine	*Favorite play* How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying	*Favorite media* Radio - at least it was, until, thanks to the deregulation of media ownership, all the commercial radio stations got bought out by, like, two multi-national media conglomerates. Then NPR pretty much abandoned its music programming. My hope is that some day eclectic music programming will return to radio. It's the best! Yeah, you might say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one....
*Favorite book* Mists of Avalon, the Thesaurus *What I'm reading now* Seven Spiritual Laws of Success - Deepak Chopra Visionary Business - Marc Allen The Tao of Leadership - John Heider Wherever You Go, There You Are - Jon Kabat-Zinn Diet for a Small Planet - Francis Moore Lappé Anything by Christiane Northrup	*Favorite cartoon* Calvin & Hobbes, Rose is Rose, Pogo, Krazy Kat, Rocky & Bullwinkle, Little Nemo, early Jules Feiffer, Barnaby and Mr. O'Malley, The Simpsons	Favorite comedian/ social commentator Richard Jeni Lily Tomlin Al Franken Michael Moore Firesign Theater Swami Beyondananda Mike Malloy Jon Stewart Maz Jobrani Bob Nelson
*Favorite food* Fresh peas in the pod Corn on the cob Mint chocolate chip ice cream Lobster Hearts of lettuce with blue cheese dressing Dandelion greens Artichokes Hearts of palm and celery Angel Hair pasta with garlic and oil Peach cobbler	*Favorite dish at a restaurant* Vegetable Nasi Goreng - Indigo Room, Riverside Hotel, Fort Lauderdale	*Favorite olives* Calamata from Fernando's in Fort Lauderdale
*Favorite fabric* Velvet second: Suede or Soft leather third: Organza, Silk, Lace.... *Favorite fabric to wear or sleep in* Cotton	*Favorite chocolate* Vegan Chocolate Mousse and 365 Organic Chocolate Truffles from Whole Foods	*Favorite computer* Macintosh
*Favorite coffee* Espresso	*Favorite place to get coffee* The south of France
*Favorite motto* At least I'm not bored! close second: Have Flute, Will Travel!	*What I want on my gravestone* At least she wasn't bored!	*What I hope people will say about me when I'm not around anymore* I miss Laura! She was fun!!