“The only war is the war against the imagination.” —Diane di Prima “Pay attention. It’s all about paying attention. Attention is vitality. It connects you with others. It makes you eager, stay eager. A writer, I think, is someone who pays attention to the world.”  –Susan Sontag —— “Every hundred feet the world changes.”   –Roberto Belano {photo below, backstage at McGonnigal’s Mucky Duck, in Houston, by David Ensmiger}       1) ” WHOSE KID IS THAT?” songs language must be at least that powerful. 2) development: something happens 3) experience of the concrete world —– “Negative Capability” ” I IS SOMEONE ELSE” –from the second verse of “long, good time” Sweet little flowers called snowdrops in the backyard with the fresh mint leaves A cherry tree with a rope to climb & robins nests under the eaves My band was playing in the basement driving folks out of their minds Mother called down from the top of the steps “Boys, play that nice song about suicide” -That’s a song about people in a place, and I’m trying to render it as vividly as I can. It can “live” in a song, and others can feel it and will bring

The next show is north of San Francisco, in one of my favorite clubs in the area, Rancho Nicasio, on November 8. www.petercase.com/gigs gets you to the ticket link. Hell of a week for a gig…but I played the day after Obama won in 2008, and that show was sold out. I played the day after the 2016 election in the Ozarks, and that show was sold out, too. After the 2000 election I was up in Spokane with my friend Dave Alvin.  I was just starting a long tour across the US and Canada and Dave was just returning from one and we crossed paths up there. Sold out show. On the other hand, the day after the second Bush election was a dud…up in Minneapolis at the Cedar Tavern. The audience seemed quite down that night but we made the best of it…anyhow…c’mon out, whatever happens, I guarantee a dynamic and moving night of music. Now I”ll pick up this winding tale of a journey. I hopes it’s not any sort of affectation of mine that drives me to tell all this. The point is, we’re all going somewhere, for better or worse, and maybe some of you

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2tf2lWy8lVZ6HhRaaz2TBs?si=vyTqqMWlRoO3VNHhINRHfw&t=1142

Rancho Nicasio show rescheduled for February 2, 2025       I was focused on being a singer and guitarist, and learning to write. From a young age I had the ability to make up songs, maybe because I felt the rhythms of the words from nursery rhymes, limericks, folk songs we sang in school, hymns at church. I never really studied songwriting, I just listened and then songs came naturally— It turned out one of my ancestors was a prolific hymn writer in the nineteenth century, a man named Hosea Ballou. Maybe that had something to do with it? My mother was obsessed with Shakespeare in an around-the-house way–she’d memorized a hundred-some key lines as a youngster in the thirties… that had an effect–she’d quote him with a laugh during the course of the days—and she’s also the first one who brought a Dylan record into the house–Bringing It All Back Home–I must’ve been 11–and got into it in a big way–one of the great things about Dylan was the songs were long, and each was a huge example of the pictures, the patterns, the rhythms and rhymes, alliterations and jumps in perspective that reeled like a movie projected

Drawing by Frank Lee Drennen https://petercase.com/wp-content/uploads/06-Small-Town-Spree.mp3 [Small Town Sprree from my first Geffen album, Peter Case. I got to play a harp solo over strings arranged by Van Dyke Parks, one of my favorite moments] Peter Case, portrait during a break while recording tracks for Peter’s album “Flying Saucer Blues,” TMOP Studios, Van Nuys, California. 1 December 1999. I’ll be at Rancho Nicasio November 8, tickets at www.petercase.com/gigs. Rancho Nicasio is a great music club and I look forward to getting back there. I thought in the run up to the gig I’d discuss what goes into becoming a solo song performer and writer–from a musicians point of view…a lifetime of unraveling the mysteries of music. This is the second part of 4. To this day, I always carry a Hohner Marine Band harmonica in my shirt pocket, everywhere I go…it’s a lifelong habit I’ve had no reason to quit–harmonica fell in place for me–not in terms of virtuosity but as a way to orchestrate and express songs and emotion –and that I could do it all surprised me, too. Brian Jones, Bob Dylan, and Paul Butterfield were the inspirations. And for a while I liked Pigpen from the Dead

photo: GAPD I’m coming to one of my favorite clubs anywhere, Rancho Nicasio on November 8. Tickets are available through www.petercase.com/gigs. Last night I had a realization, and a big moment of gratitude for the path I’ve able to take in music. I’m going to try and express it. This is a long number, sort of like a late night conversation, so take what you want from it or set it down…there will be some who find it interesting from a musician how thew sounds and styles come together. I’m going to post it in pieces over the next few says When I started out my dream was to play piano harp guitar and sing–just to be doing it–and to write songs–I couldn’t do any of these things worth a damn when I was thirteen or so–just had the desire–my heroes on the piano were Little Richard, and a local Buffalo rock’n roll piano player named Jimmy Calire who was completely fantastic and exciting, and I especially loved whoever played piano on Bob Dylan’s Highway 61 Revisited album…I later found out his name was Paul Griffin, and that he’d come up with the keyboard work on many incredible hits and

[Rancho Nicasio rescheduled for February 2, 2025] I’ve been writing during this period, since I returned from Europe, and finished out the Norcal dates with Albert Lee. It’s an intense time we’re all going through, but I  need to keep playing and listening. I’m not going to let it drop…songwriting was a life choice I made decades ago..and I’m sticking with it. Rancho Nicasio is one of my favorite spots. The sound is good, the food is great, and there’s something about the people and the atmosphere that’s very welcoming and also, timeless. I love playimg there, and i hope to see my Norcal friends. Below is just a page from a note book, from a few months back, recalling an intense moment of youth. Something like that!   I was overcome by the flood–saw the stars during daylight–the mask–the mirror–of the blue sky fell off and I stood with you–on a whirling ball of stone and fire in the immensity the madness the illusion the immodesty the aardvark of space– what IS space? It is SPACE–lit by a star itself–my eyes–my hair–my teeth–terrified me–I’m made of stone and water–flesh on a stick–stranded in the shadow of my imagination–“stranded on

Hello folks, I’ll be at the SF  festival on Sunday October 6 in the afternoon, hosting a Songwriters in the Round session with Melissa Carper Teddy Thompson, Carsie Blanton and performing myself.   On the evening of September 30 I’ll be interviewing author and world music producer Ian Brennan at City Lights Books in San Francisco, regarding his new book Missing! Music.   The playlist is of songs I’ve covered  on mostly tribute albums, including  songs by Alejandro Escovedo, Kevn Kinney (Drivin” and Cryin’,) Chris Gaffney (with Dave Alvin) Joey Spampinato, Bob Dylan, Chris Smither, Mose Allison, John Fahey, The Rolling Stones, Del Shannon, and others.