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How To Offend Prominent Artists 101
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Here's the text that started this avalanche:

"And then, of course, there are the unstoppable neo/retro blues stylings of Corey Harris, a man who deserves to win a Grammy and make love to your mammy. (I would like to apologize in advance to anyone offended by this last remark or any that might soon follow.)"

--From "Stocking Stuffers"
Originally seen in C-VILLE Vol.12, No.50

And here's the fallout:

Not Appreciated
12-12-00

In reference to a mention of me in the December 12-18 issue, I take issue with "Cripsy's" description of me that I "deserve to make love to your mammy." I thought it was in extremely poor taste and was highly offended. Maybe you should read some history about what a mammy really means. Perhaps you would reevaluate your choice of words, and then perhaps you don't care; I don't know. You are free to express your opinion, but you should be careful what you write about others. C-ville is too small a town. As a Black man, I find no humor in the use of the word mammy, especially when describing me and my music. (Even if only to find a rhyme to 'Grammy.') You may take the use of such words lightly, but I do not. I suggest that you refrain from any mention of me in your column in the future. You can be sure that I won't be reading your column anymore, thanks to your lighthearted tone of disrespect towards me.

Thanks for nothing,
C. Harris

and my response
(not printed in the paper)

Actually Corey, there was some concern, and I apologize for any offence. I respect you and your work above the vast majority of local musicians, and I find your integrity and risk-taking more than just a little refreshing in a medium that so many people really can't expand in. Let alone say something politically or socially challenging.

I believed that, being familiar with your work and your own barrier-crashing references, I could have gotten away with it. I see now I did not.

And suddenly I'm a little offended by your work as well.

Too bad for all of us.

Cripsy Duck

Duck Note: Merriam-Webster defines "mammy" as:
1: MAMA
2: a black woman serving as a nurse to white children especially formerly in the southern U.S.

(essentially a slave nanny)

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Disrespect
2-7-01
In response to the return of the lame mammy joke.
Printed in C-VILLE Vol. 13, No.7

I am so angry that I am having a very hard time getting my words in order. But any way I look at your words (Feb 6-12-'01) they spell DISRESPECT! Corey Harris is one of the preeminent blues musicians of our time and one of my favorite people on this planet!

Corey is a very kind and respectful human being and he respectfully wrote to you and asked not to be written about by you Cripsy. Yet you referred to him again in the same disgustingly rude manner.

How dare you! You should be fired. I no longer want to read your paper! Disgusted at the C-ville in Charlottesville.

--Vicki Cervens
swt1ne@webtv.net

and my response
(not printed in the paper)

Vicki,
You are angry at me, not the C-Ville. I am freelance and they therefore have no real control over what I say (although the editor did remove the truly offensive part-- where I talk about making lots of "don't beat me, massa Corey" jokes).
Take care,
-Duck

(the afforementioned "Massa Corey" joke is included in the internet version of the column)

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Local writers need support, too
2-14-01

Dear Editor:

At the risk of perpetuating the use of dialect in print, which by the way things are going is bound to fall in the purview of hate crimes legislation, I have to say that as a linguist and journalist, I see nothing wrong with what Cripsy wrote in praise of Corey Harris. I think Mr. Harris was graceless in his response to what was an obvious compliment.

Cripsy's Grammy/mammy couplet sounds like an improvised, unbowdlerized line from a blues song, which was the effect Cripsy was probably shooting for, and, if I'm not mistaken, an effect that Harris strives to produce in some of his music.

Of course, "when you play you make love to my mammy" is probably not verbatim how a Black man from the Delta would praise a fellow musician. But Mr. Harris is essentially in the same business as Cripsy - making a specific cultural experience understood by a large audience, using taglines from the ruins, and Mr. Harris should really forgive the slip in translation.

By the way, an Internet search turned up no pejorative meaning for "mammy", though to be honest I stopped looking any further when I discovered an African-American-owned company in Georgia making "Mammy dolls", which appears to be a popular item with the children. Clearly - no matter how far into the PC morass we've fallen - "mammy" is not in the same league as "Black Sambo" or the like.

Best,
Kristopher Rikken

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Censor, really?
2-14-01

Like Vicki Cervens, I disagree with some of the things Cripsy Duck writes in the Cripsy's Crawl column. In particular, his review of Caron's Gathering struck me as a lame attempt at humor, that instead, became more of a mean-spirited personal attack than a musical critique. However, who exactly does Ms. Cervens think she is? Neither she nor Corey Harris nor anyone has the right to demand that Cripsy not write about them or that C-ville should "fire" him. Hey Vicki, it's called freedom of the press, one of the principles on which this country was founded. You remember that one now?

Yes, arguably Cripsy's comment was offensive, although mostly sophmoric, but I'm more offended that you think you have the right to censor him. Finally, I'd like to point out that, by creating this dialogue, Cripsy may have exceeded his expectations already. If you really want to irritate him, ignore him.

Jaye Urgo
sidewaysjaye@aol.com

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The Last Word
2-15-01

From the desk of Cripsy Duck:

FOR THE RECORD:

1. I still think that Corey Harris is one of the most important bluesmen of his generation and I have no intention of honoring his request to delete him from my work.

2. I still adamantly hold that bigotry is one of the very lowest forms of human ignorance.

3. Although I hate to think I'm wantonly pissing people off, I really can't concern myself with who my low-brow humor offends.

4. Lenny Bruce died for my sins. (Shit, cock, cunt, piss, fuck, dyke, jew, fag, wasp, nigger, bitch, pollack, kraut, cracker, gook, hippy, wetback, nip, gringo, limey, towel-head, chink, redneck, spearchucker, injun, hillbilly, dot-head, sand-nigger, jungle-bunny, geek, homo, ass, tit, penis, fart. Oh, and mammy.)

We've got bigger fish to fry, and I hope both you and Mr. Harris can forgive me.

This issue was actually finalized in a column you can read here.

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