Hey, y’all:
Since Brooke Hauser is on vacation this week, I’m handling the editor’s letter, and I felt like using a different salutation. I couldn’t help but think of it because just the other day I heard a song by Mandolin Orange, a folk/bluegrass duo from North Carolina that I like and have written about. Hearing their tune “Jump Mountain Blues,” I was reminded of a show they played at the Academy of Music a few years ago where the group’s songwriter, Andrew Marlin, cracked a joke (I didn’t catch it myself); when the audience didn’t respond much, Marlin said “Y’all got a sense of humor up here?” which did get a big laugh.
Speaking of laughs, there’s the cover story for this week’s Hampshire Life about fashion designer Sarah Aphrodite of Northampton. The joke is not about Aphrodite, but that I’ve written about fashion; it’s a subject I know little about, and I suspect I’ll never be considered fashionable. Jeans, button and polo shirts, and solid-color sweaters are about all I’ve got in my closet.
But the story is an interesting one. Aphrodite, who’s originally from The Netherlands, is making a name for herself with her unique designs like leggings, “skirt-belts” and other women’s accessories. She’s gotten attention in magazines such as Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar, and she’s doing it from her home, well away from the glare of fashion capitals like New York. How many clothing designers from Holland end up in small towns in the U.S.? Small world, indeed.
I also enjoyed the assignment because Aphrodite, like virtually every person I’ve ever met from The Netherlands, speaks fluent English. I talked with with her about language instruction in Dutch schools, where English is mandatory for all students from about third grade through high school. It left me with both admiration and envy, seeing as I never came close to fluency when I studied French in high school and college.
Elsewhere in this week’s Hampshire Life, you’ll find a profile of photographer Robert Solosko of Easthampton; an essay by Ilan Stavans on just what constitutes “terror” these days, given the ubiquity of the term in the media; reviews of books by Marion VanArsdell and August Thomas, who have Valley connections; and Ken Maiuri’s Tuned In column. Ken hasn’t lost his love of They Might Be Giants, who come to the Academy on Thursday.
One show Ken didn’t mention for this coming week: Jerry Douglas, who’s at the Iron Horse on Sunday. The Nashville-based Douglas is widely regarded as the best dobro player in the business, having won 13 Grammy awards and gigged with players as diverse as Alison Krauss and Elvis Costello. Check him out — y’all won’t regret it.
Steve Pfarrer