(TV) Sky Saxon RIP

[Graham Urquhart <gurquhart@madasafish.com>]

This will no doubt get lost in the Jackson farrago:

http://skysaxon.com/

Obit from Nels Cline below:

NELS CLINE ON SKY SAXON: MY FIRST ROCK IDOL
June 25th, 2009

Guitarist Nels Cline (spotted most recently with Wilco) grew up in the 
shadow of the Seeds and Sky Saxon and later went on to perform and 
record with Sky himself. He takes some time today to send L.A. RECORD 
these thoughts:

I am truly saddened to learn of the death of Sky Saxon. As a boy growing 
up in Los Angeles, Sky Saxon was my first rock idol of sorts. The Seeds 
music was important to me, sure, but Skys amazing charismaas he 
appeared rather ubiquitously on TV shows like Boss City and The 
Groovy Show around 1966was galvanizing. I would stare in disbelief as 
heclad in shiny satin Nehru shirts bedazzled with some gaudy 
broochwould gyrate around lasciviously, holding the microphone in every 
cool way imaginable. He seemed from another planet. I thought he was 
amazing.

Years later, in the late 70s, Sky became known as Sunlight, and 
manifested a few eccentric and quite acid-soaked (or so they sounded) 
recordings that led credence to the rampant stories of his decaying mind 
and artistry. He came into the record store I worked at for years 
andwith his face covered in a long mane of hair, massive beard, and 
shadeswent silently through the
stacks with wraith-like fingers. I was dismayed and a bit freaked out by 
this creaturethe former beautiful god of rock n roll otherness.

But only a few years ago as my friend and colleague Carla Bozulich and I 
were going into our local Trader Joes, we ran into a bass player friend 
of mine named Rick, who had in tow a gray-haired, aging hippie type of 
man with an unavoidably compelling face and style. Carla, not normally 
interested in old hippies, immediately whispered to me, Whos THAT?! 
Of course, you know it was Sky Saxon. And Rick was playing in the new 
version of the Seeds, recording just down the street from Carlas house! 
Long story short, I went and hung out a bit, ended up recording a song 
about a corrupt judge on the then-upcoming Seeds record. (Sorry that the 
titles escape me today.) Sky was really quite deferential to me. Plus he 
seemed to be in quite good shape. He gave me a record, recently issued, 
of some of his pre-Seeds 1950s doo-wop-ish rock songs. How old IS this 
guy? I wondered.

We ended up doing a duo gig of almost totally improvised music one night 
at Zen Sushi. I was ecstatic. I suggested we call ourselves the Flower 
Lady & Her Assistant, but Sky immediately countered with the Flower God 
Men and Their Assistants. I had gear problems on the gig, and Sky had a 
bit too much sake before we played, but it was amaz
ing to me. There were barely 30 people there anyway! I started plotting 
ways to do some more improvising with him. He was going off in a very 
Beat-style manner. I thought of collaborations with my trio, The 
Singers, but then Sky went off to more European touring, headed back to 
Shasta. Rick moved to New York

I wont ever be able to do those things with Sky. I feel lucky to have 
ever even seen him on TV, yet alone to have played some wild, 
extemporaneous psychedelia with him. They say Mick Jagger copped tons of 
his moves and style, and I believe it. But there was so much more to 
this man that remains to be revealed.

- Nels Cline
Glendale, CA
6/25/09
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