Goo Goo Goo Joob!

"The stupid neither forgive nor forget; the naive forgive and forget; the wise forgive but do not forget."

-- Thomas Szasz 1920-- : "The Second Sin" (1973)

Dear Tim & Friends of Walrus:

Because of your genuine interest in seeing us play together, I thought it only fitting that we respond to your wish. I say we because I’m going to try my best to make this an informational as well as positional post. First off, absent Mcgee’s illness we wouldn’t be having this conversation. As most of you know, as the band goes, Bill and I are closest to Tim. Tim moved with us to Ann Arbor in 72 and was, for all intents and purposes, a part of the band. And so now, these many years later, Tim, as well as the group from which, in some sense, the Walrus arose – we friends who grew up together and were caught up in the swirl of the late sixties zeitgeist – would like to see us play again. And what is the forum for this collective request? Mcgee’s Care Pages, where a wide array of old friends and acquaintances have renewed connections that might never have been made under less trying circumstances. Thank you, Mcgee, and thank you fans! Where was I? Oh yea, informational and positional. The situation is this. Mckelvy and French are somewhat out of the loop in terms of the reunion web dialogue. Although Bill and I haven’t spoken in a while, the rest of us speak with each other quite often. I suppose there’s a certain irony in the fact that perhaps the two best instrumentalists in the band, Kuhli and French, are least concerned with philosophical issues related to our musical direction. For me, a reunion would be less a musical endeavor than a gathering of people who care deeply about one another, and who are moving into, shall we say, the autumn of their years. Implicit in this attitude is the idea that we have nothing to prove, which for me would mean adhering to a self-commitment that this gig be a tribute to you, Tim, and those who care about you, many of whom are Walrus fans. This would also make it an easy thing to do. Requiring no re-invention of the wheel; no pressured rehearsals to showcase new material (come on, how often does anyone see us); no side issues like which combo best represents the “original” Walrus (who cares!); and no obligation that we try to re-create what we perceive the audience to have witnessed almost 40 years ago (they can’t remember anyway)! If these considerations seem sensible, that’s why they won’t work. Simply put, this would be a Twilight Zoney pitch to the stars that would be different than any gig the Walrus has ever done, and we would be great. The reason: because for the first time IT WOULDN”T BE ABOUT US. And that’s why it probably won’t happen. Oh but if we could adopt this attitude; but collectively, I don’t think we can.

Love – Randy

Dear Tim:

“Metaphorically speaking, to open a can of worms means to inadvertently create numerous new problems while trying to solve one. Experts disagree on the origin of the phrase, but it is generally believed to be a Canadian or American metaphor coined sometime in the 1950s. Bait stores routinely sold cans of worms and other popular live baits to fishermen, who often discovered how easy it was to open a can of worms and how difficult it was to close one. Once the worms discovered an opportunity to escape, it became nearly impossible to keep them contained.”

A last word on your worm liberation campaign: I imagine just a modicum (token amount) of drama is good for your circulation. As Dr. Olson says, be sure to get outdoors, a bit of fresh air, vitamins, and other salubrious activities are prescribed, as well as a rest cure pilgrimage to Fatima, Lourdes, and the Ontonogan coast.

David Martin, brother of Gary, son of Hoot, thanks for the Mcgoostock props, but there can be only one Mcgoostock. It was a singular event, in a small northern village where people gathered from far and near to drink, dance, and party in the name of the Teaker (Consider the fact the Bud Wheeler showed up looking like he just stepped out of an Easy Rider party at four and a quarter). Also, sweet Bonni from S.D., and Michael Stadler from S.F. represented the Left Coast contingent.

However, this does not mean that our overarching mission, helping the Mcgee family meet the bills, would not be a part of any Walrus reunion.

In case the implications of my last post slipped under the radar, any profits garnered over and above our assisting French, Kuhli, and Mckelvy meet their expenses would be given to Tim, hence the phrase, “It wouldn’t be about us.”

Finally (yeah, right), while Bill may have his own good reasons for not wanting to do this (which we should all respect), the philosophical obstacles I brought up in the long Walrus post, let’s call it the “worm can,” have nothing to do with Bill’s attitude. These are considerations Mike would have to wrestle with were he to give this any serious thought.

Love - Randy