#thelionforreal

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Marianne Faithful, with close friend, confidant, and producer, Hal Willner, in conversation with Harry Smith, outside Naropa Performing Arts Center, Boulder, Colorado, July 1989, snapped by Allen. Hal produced “Strange Weather” for her two years prior, and had just finished producing Allen’s “The Lion for Real”.  It was Marrianne who’d suggested sweetly to Allen “try not singing for this one dearie.”   

Today is Marianne’s birthday.  Happy Birthday Marianne!

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The late producer & Saturday Night Live Sketch Music producer, Hal Willner,  with Lenny Pickett, saxophonist &  musical director of the Saturday Night Live band,   both here mastering Allen’s “The Lion For Real” album at Bearsville Studios, near Woodstock, NY, December 1987. Willner brought together the likes of Bill Frisell, Michael Blair, Mark Bingham, Marc Ribot, Steve Swallow, Gary Windo, Garo Yellin, Rob Wasserman, Arto Lindsay,  G E Smith, & Ralph Carney to pull off one of his truly unique gems that only seems to get better with time.   (photo: Allen Ginsberg, courtesy Stanford University Libraries / Allen Ginsberg Estate)

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Giorgio della Terza, Marianne Faithful, Hal Willner and Harry Smith, outside Naropa Performing Arts Center, Boulder, Colorado, July 1989, snapped by Allen. Hal had produced Marianne’s “Strange Weather” just two years prior, and the “Lion for Real” which he produced for Allen had just been released. Taking Marianne’s advice that he should avoid singing, Allen did the entire record just reading his poems.    #halwillner #mariannefaithful #harrysmith #allenginsberg #beatgeneration #legends #saturdaynightlive #anthologyofamericanfolkmusic #strangeweather  #thelionforreal (at Boulder, Colorado) https://www.instagram.com/p/B_ifVQ8BypG/?igshid=zxogj4w1ge8k

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Still so reeling from the loss of Hal Willner that it's hard to post about anything else. To those of us in the Ginsberg and Beat world his presence was like a quiet but powerful protector of the Ginsberg, Burroughs, Corso audio legacy.  His crystal clear memory of where each tape was, what reading was strongest, or who produced it was astonishing.  His ear went to moments most of wouldn't even notice.  One he loved to point out in Allen's 1960 Harvard reading of Kaddish, where there's a gap of silence, Allen'd stopped reading momentarily before starting up again.  It was Robert Lowell leaving the auditorium, and Allen in dismay. He only found out later that Lowell'd left because was so moved, he didn't want anyone, let alone his students, to see him weeping.. (photos of Hal with Pete Stampfel, May 2016, and with Allen, 1987, by Brian Graham). • #halwillner #thelionforreal #holysouljellyroll #briangraham #allenginsberg #williamsburroughs #petestampfel (at New York, New York) https://www.instagram.com/p/B-zoZ0rBDXs/?igshid=8zy4fdmwyvuk

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Hal Willner and Lenny Pickett, Bearsville studios outside Woodstock, NY, December 1987.  Recording session for Allen’s “The Lion for Real” ‘spoken word’ LP that got released on Island/Great Jones two years later. The lineup included some of the most imaginative musicians of the time,  Marc Ribot, Steve Swallow, Bill Frissel, Garo Yellin, Michael Blair, and the late Ralph Carney, backed by the genius of Hal Willner, executive produced by Michael Minzer  (Photo: Allen Ginsberg) #halwillner #lennypickett #greatjones #marcribot #allenginsberg #michaelblair #islandrecords #michaelminzer #thelionforreal #steveswallow #ralphcarney (at Bearsville, New York) https://www.instagram.com/p/B7UQTXohikd/?igshid=1vketdab4yguz