Bruce Slutsky was born in New York City in 1949. I retired 8 years ago after working as a Science/Engineering Librarian at the New Jersey Institute of Technology in Newark for 25 years. I was married to Karen until she passed away in February 2021. I have a son Lee who is now 38 years old. I am very much interested in the popular music of the 1960s, especially Bob Dylan and the Beatles. I am interested in rock and roll radio. I am an enthusiastic fan of the New York Mets.
This 3-CD set obviously does not include new recordings but does include previously unreleased outtakes from the sessions that produced Self Portrait and New Morning, as well as the complete May 1, 1970, studio recordings with his future bandmate Harrison, which capture the pair performing together on nine tracks. In 1988 Dylan and Harrison teamed up again as part of the Traveling Wilburys.
I was amused by Dylan's cover of Yesterday. A few years ago there was a CD called The Art of McCartney where many artists covered his songs. It included Dylan singing The Things We Said Today. His voice was rough in that recording but is quite mellow in this 1970 cover of Yesterday.
A few weeks ago I stated that there are too many Bob Dylan books out there. Likewise, there must be hundreds of books written about the Beatles collectively and about the four individual members. Paul McCartney just announced in November he will publish a memoir titled "The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present." This will be a two-volume 960-page opus that will examine 150 songs that McCartney has written. Thus, it is not an autobiography.
Since this 2-volume set is coming from the songwriter, it should provide new insights. Likely, it will read like a reference book.
WESU is a college radio station affiliated with Wesleyan University in Middleton, Connecticut. It can also be heard anywhere at http://www.wesufm.org/ Its programming is very eclectic including shows from the BCC and NPR, Jack Sullivan has an oldies show that is heard Tuesday evenings from 8:00 - 9:30 PM. A few years ago he promoted his show on Facebook, so I thought I'd listen. Much of his show is requests from listeners. Over the past few years, he did play several of my requests.
There is a TV commercial for a company where if you have junk in your house, just point to it and it will disappear. Believe me, it is not that easy. I have started to go through my apartment and found out that my beloved late wife Karen was a hoarder. She did not throw anything out. For example, I found invitations to weddings and bar mitzvahs from over 30 years ago. I must be very careful since there may be some important documents among the junk. Thus, this is a very slow process.
Rome wasn't built in a day and I don't have a time limit, but this is a very unpleasant task. I suggest everyone look through belongings and discard what is not needed about once a year. I would make life a lot easier years later.
I worked with Jeff Scheckner and Bill Dillane to plan this event. I couldn't attend since it was too soon after Karen's passing. I hope you will enjoy the recording.
Here is an email that I sent to the 109th Precinct which covers Flushing and most of northeastern Queens.
I highly praise the officers who responded at about 2:30 AM on Tuesday, February 16 after I called 911 to report that my wife, Karen Slutsky, was unresponsive. They were especially kind and compassionate to me after medics confirmed that she passed away. They explained all the procedures that needed to be followed at that time. The officers stayed with me until the funeral home came to pick up the body. I neglected to get their names.
I am the Commanding Officer of the 109 Precinct. I truly appreciate you taking the time during such a difficult time in your life to acknowledge the compassionate response of our officers. Thank You. I’m incredibly proud to receive this news and we will identify the Officers and have this acknowledgment placed in their permanent personnel file.
On a personal note, please accept my condolences on your loss. I will include you and your family in my prayers.
Please let me know if there is anything you need.
Sadly, there have been many high-profile situations when the police have acted inappropriately. These situations often linger in the media for months if not years. 99.999% of the time police officers act honorably, However, when police go beyond the call of duty, the media rarely reports it.
This is the first time I have ever had to use the services of the NYPD. I am very satisfied with their performance. I hope the police will not be defunded as it may prevent them from doing their job properly.
Lee and I greatly appreciate the kind messages that we
received on Facebook after I announced Karen’s passing. I must have received
about 200 messages from Facebook friends.
Friends from my grade school days, high school, college, grad school, my
career, my hobbies, even friends I've never met in the flesh, all lent strength
when I needed it most. I read every message and cherish their sentiments. My
oldies radio friends were especially kind to me. I would like to call out some
people who were especially kind to us:
Scott, Justin, and Faith Shapiro who are our nephews and
niece.
Joyce Feuer – my sister
Alan Kanis -Karen’s cousin
Jonathan Binstock who phone me from Maryland
David McMillan – who phoned me from Oklahoma
Cara Sieden – who phoned me from Queens
My Bob Dylan friends, Millie Lyttle, Walter Raubicheck,
Lawrence Kaplan, Danny Fingeroth, Caitlin Hawke, and Marcus Marsden.There was a Zoom meeting that night that they
canceled saying that it wouldn’t be the same without me.Those guys know more about Dylan than me.
Yesterday, I received a phone call from Lou Saffrin whom I
had not seen in 50 years.I worked with
him as stock boys for Alexanders when were students.He went out of his way to look up my phone
number.
Please be assured that even if I didn’t mention you in this
journal entry, I appreciate your kindness and compassion.
I am going to conclude this journal entry with You’ve Got a
Friend by Carole King who was one of Karen’s favorite singer/songwriters.
