It’s been a bluesy week so far so why not start off Tuesday with a nod to John Lee Hooker, one of the greatest blues musicians to ever live. “Hobo Blues” is easily one my favorite songs of all time, mainly for its guitar work and the sincerity in his…
Jail: Screwed Again He got nailed for speaking up: As a former administrator responsible for debriefing corrections officers after major incidents such as inmate deaths — which is the focus of Tamara Lush’s August 16 feature story, “117 Dead” — I have intimate knowledge of Miami-Dade County’s failure to correct…
Miami might be one of the southernmost locales in the eastern United States, but it hardly meets the requisites of Dixieland. Country drawls and cowboy boots are as rare as Hispanic accents and chancletas are prolific. But down where the turnpike merges into South Dixie Highway, numerous angler shops and…
Alright…so as some of you know, R Kelly and his crazy “Trapped in the Closet” series is being released today. I have a tough time supporting that one…mainly because chapters 13-22 offer us nothing that Chapters 1-12 already haven’t. Cheap laughs and blah blah. That’s not even me hating. Scroll…
Since Nasty Nas was just here a couple of weeks ago for the Rock the Bells Tour, it only seems fitting to play some Nas today. Work day is almost over folks. It’s Halftime –Jonathan Cunningham…
Throwing it way back once again. I came across this old school EPMD video and felt the need to drop it on a day like this when the hip-hop world is so out of focus. Everyone seems to be looking forward to Sept. 11 when 50 Cent and Kanye West…
The Abbey (1115 16th St., Miami Beach; 305-538-8110) is a rarity in Miami. Almost invisible from the street at night, the clandestine microbrewery is marked only by a neon sign that reads “Bar.” No flashing marquees, no long lines. Just a dark storefront and a door. Staying true to its…
Raw Hatin’ He’s a criminal: It’s crazy to see DJ Raw on the cover of New Times (“Raw Returns,” by Esther Park, August 9). I’m glad he is out of jail, but as a member of the Wynwood community at the time of his arrest, I was very angry at…
Is it just me, or was LL Cool J a lot “cooler” before all the botox and lip-licking that he does now got out of control? Not sure why he’s so image conscious, but if you ask me, LL was at his best back in the day during videos like…
Crew’s Cue Time for Rudy to go: I applaud your article about Miami-Dade schools superintendent Rudy Crew (“Bad Apple,” by Francisco Alvarado, August 2). It underscores just what a belligerent despot this man truly is. Only in Miami-Dade County do people get rewarded for mediocrity and incompetence. We — the…
There was a time in Miami when scaffolds were scarce and only a small cluster of buildings composed the skyline along Brickell Avenue. Here a speck of affluence glimmered on the mainland, before gentrification spread like wildfire down Biscayne Boulevard. Novecento (1414 Brickell Ave., Miami; 305-403-0900), one of the only…
These photos were taken on 36th Street and N. Miami Avenue, in what they are now calling “Mid-Town Miami”. The building is abandoned, except for the people that sleep inside of it. — Jason Handelsman…
Despite its name, Skybar (1901 Collins Ave., Miami Beach; 305-695-3288) isn’t a star-kissed rooftop lounge. Located inside the Shore Club hotel, the place is actually at ground level, with a rather elusive entrance around the corner from the resort’s lobby. But the lounge does meet one expectation: lots of bling…
Ho, Snap! Who are you to critique Yamil?: I believe there are plenty of excellent comedic talents in South Florida, and Yamil Piedra is one of the very best among them (“Serious Comedy,” by Janine Zeitlin, July 26). One thing Miami does lack, however, is credible and talented opinion writers…
Grady Is a Champ Punch the pols: Isaiah Thompson’s “Grady and the Champ” (July 19) is one of the best stories I have read, and I am not even a boxing fan. I just enjoyed the investigative and human interest aspects of the story. If reporters put as much energy…
There’s not much to say about Barracuda Raw Bar and Grill (3035 Fuller St., Coconut Grove; 305-448-1144). You can smoke inside, wolf down fries and greasy burgers, and chug cheap beer. Other than a few standard features (booths, jukebox, pool table), the bar is nondescript. But what it lacks in…
Photo by Jason Handelsman “It was the weirdest thing I have ever seen in my life,” says 23 year old Daniel Roller, “this guy was sitting on his bed under a bridge smoking crack through a tracheotomy tube!” A tracheotomy is a surgically created opening or hole in the neck…
Not many people take late-night strolls along NE Second Avenue between 20th and 26th streets. With the exception of my group and a guy named John, a gay Coolio look-alike, the streets were bare one recent Friday night. A voice out of nowhere asked if we “needed anything.” It was…
Eat Hearty You hungry fiends: Recently I went with some co-workers to Denny’s, and there, over lunch, someone with relatives in Coral Gables brought up your July 12 news story, “Death in the City Beautiful,” by Tamara Lush. Even though I was wearing my leeks and idea, no one knew…
Check out a young Bounty Killer and a relatively trim Barrington Levy yamming it up for the “Living Dangerously” video from the early 90s. Bounty has developed a significantly more gangsta image since these days but it’s funny to see the influence of 90s rap videos on this dancehall classic…
Came across this old video circa 1980 of an old Wailers practice session. It’s short, but precious footage of Bob and the boys wailing away on “Forever Loving Jah” –Jonathan Cunningham…
It’s funny how easy it is to forget about hip-hop group like Arrested Development. Since their heyday was in the early 90s, during the dog days of gangsta rap, most of their hits were lauded at the time of their release, but barely remembered in comparison to all of the…
