Antone's Nightclub
Wondering About Sam Baker and the 'Chronicle's Review
RECEIVED Fri., Aug. 17, 2007
Dear sirs,
Jim Caligiuri's review of Sam Baker's new album, Pretty World [“Texas Platters,” Music, Aug. 10], states, “one can't help but wonder if he's living in the same time of endless war and daily tragedy that we are.” This reader cannot help but wonder if Mr. Caligiuri listened to the CD before writing the review. If he did, he would have encountered the track “Broken Fingers” in which Baker renders a first-person account about his mangled left hand, declaring, “Some things just don't heal.” With 30 seconds of curiosity – or recall – Mr. Caligiuri could glean from Baker's website or his first album that more than 20 years ago, Baker was on a train in Peru that exploded as the result of guerilla bombs planted above his seat. A German boy beside him and the young man's parents across the aisle were among the fatalities.
Mr. Caligiuri offers that Baker's vision “seems slightly askew” based on these words printed inside the album: “How beautiful are these days.” Given Baker's life experience, the sentiment would not seem to suggest innocence or naivete. Arguably, the words could be rhetorical but are probably not since no question mark follows. They are more likely an affirmation, as well as a projection of irony.
Apart from wounded veterans, it would seem that extremely few Chronicle readers (mercifully) have Sam Baker's sense of “endless war and daily tragedy.” This fact alone should not encourage the purchase of his new CD, but it should have informed your critic. Enduring 18 restorative surgeries, learning to play guitar left-handed, and overcoming deafness in one ear and substantial hearing loss in the other ear indicate that Baker holds some secrets to survival, and they, indeed, are worth hearing.
Jim Caligiuri's review of Sam Baker's new album, Pretty World [“Texas Platters,” Music, Aug. 10], states, “one can't help but wonder if he's living in the same time of endless war and daily tragedy that we are.” This reader cannot help but wonder if Mr. Caligiuri listened to the CD before writing the review. If he did, he would have encountered the track “Broken Fingers” in which Baker renders a first-person account about his mangled left hand, declaring, “Some things just don't heal.” With 30 seconds of curiosity – or recall – Mr. Caligiuri could glean from Baker's website or his first album that more than 20 years ago, Baker was on a train in Peru that exploded as the result of guerilla bombs planted above his seat. A German boy beside him and the young man's parents across the aisle were among the fatalities.
Mr. Caligiuri offers that Baker's vision “seems slightly askew” based on these words printed inside the album: “How beautiful are these days.” Given Baker's life experience, the sentiment would not seem to suggest innocence or naivete. Arguably, the words could be rhetorical but are probably not since no question mark follows. They are more likely an affirmation, as well as a projection of irony.
Apart from wounded veterans, it would seem that extremely few Chronicle readers (mercifully) have Sam Baker's sense of “endless war and daily tragedy.” This fact alone should not encourage the purchase of his new CD, but it should have informed your critic. Enduring 18 restorative surgeries, learning to play guitar left-handed, and overcoming deafness in one ear and substantial hearing loss in the other ear indicate that Baker holds some secrets to survival, and they, indeed, are worth hearing.
Sincerely,
Virginia L. Nailling
Virginia L. Nailling