Goodbye in Columbus
The Open Mike, When in Worthington, Allman Brothers, Great Golfers, Front-yard Furniture
Welcome to my weekly newsletter. This week’s issue includes a tribute to my late brother-in-law, a semi-autobiographical novel, three meals in Columbus, the definitive southern rock band, the best current golfers on the men’s and women’s tours, and an al fresco dining room table. I hope you like the picks and pics.
My good friend David Westin recently covered the Masters golf tournament for the 46th time. His wife Traci posted a link to this nice story about him: A friendly "ghost," David Westin helps write the rich history of the Masters. When he visited us in Florida in 2020, we stopped at Michelbob’s in Naples for some of their great onion rings and ribs. We noticed dozens of framed Masters stories from the Augusta Chronicle on the walls — all written by David. We hoped this might result in free meals for life, but we were unable to convince the manager that this was a good idea.
We share a love of music, barbecue, sports, writing, and curating a humorous list of concertgoer archetypes. There is no bigger fan of The Allman Brothers Band than David. This message he sent me is an example of his detailed knowledge of their history:
Here's an odd one about your Bands of Brothers playlist: The Allman Brothers have had two sets of brothers, but not at the same time. Of course, there were Gregg and Duane Allman from 1969-71 and then there were the Toler brothers — "Dangerous Dan" on guitar and Frankie on drums in the band from 1980-82. The Toler brothers were also later in the Gregg Allman Band in the late 1980s.
This issue features two of David’s favorites: The Allman Brothers and The Masters.
Barb and I visited David and Traci at their home in Augusta in 2019. We were there to attend Papa Joe’s Banjo-B-Que, an event that combined a bluegrass festival with a barbecue competition. What a concept!
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Fave Five 82: Goodbye in Columbus
Folksinger Fiction (The Open Mike), When in Worthington (Old Bag of Nails, La Chatelaine, Whitney House), Band of Brothers (The Allman Brothers Band), Great Golfers (Nelly Korda and Scottie Scheffler), and Front-yard Furniture.
Fave Five Lists: My Brother-in-law’s Favorite Things
My sister Ann’s husband, David Olszewski, recently passed away in Columbus, Ohio after a courageous battle with cancer. We were both born in 1953, had computer science degrees, and worked as computer programmers. David and I both loved sports, food, root beer, and sharing our knowledge with others. In his memory, here are five of his favorite things.
His family, especially his grandchildren Eloise and Henry. He and Ann moved from their long-time home in Cleveland Heights to Worthington, Ohio so they could pick up Eloise and Henry every day after school and bring them home to play until their parents, Ed and Elizabeth Olszewski, got home from work.
Sports, especially the Cleveland Browns, Cavaliers, and Guardians (Indians). He also loved English soccer and women’s sports. He would listen to and watch a wide variety of events but was unable to enjoy his Cleveland teams on live TV because he would get too nervous. He was also a very talented athlete, excelling at tennis, golf, softball, basketball, and pickleball.
Food, especially Polish specialties, anything chocolate, and good corned beef.
Geography, especially maps, atlases, and his extensive collection of National Geographic Magazines.
Research, especially compiling detailed lists, comparison spreadsheets, and esoteric information.
Book Best Bet
The Open Mike by Rod MacDonald
I have been a fan of Rod’s music since the late 80s. 20 years ago this month he was the second performer in our house concert series. When I learned that he had written two novels, I decided to read this one. It is fiction but based on Rod’s experiences in the Greenwich Village folk scene of the 70s and 80s.
It was fun recognizing lyrics to actual songs of Rod’s and characters based on musicians such as Dave Van Ronk. The two main themes of the book are writing/performing/appreciating music and having frequent casual relationships with women. It was entertaining and also gave me some insight into the songwriting process and the challenges of trying to establish a career playing songs.
From Amazon: Ever wonder what it would be like to give it all up and head to Greenwich Village to become a singer-songwriter? In Reo MacGregor's eyes, his law degree represents a spiritual and aesthetic dead end. He leaves it all behind to follow his music to lower Manhattan's answer to Paris's Rive Gauche. There, he enters the bohemian scene of The Open Mike, where a new generation of singer-songwriters meets to sing for, and sometimes about, each other. At first alone amid the sea of guitar cases, he's inspired by the café's fellow performers and sirens. Homeless and broke, he struggles to honor his calling. For Reo, survival means chasing burglars down the fire escape, recording sessions uptown with one of New York's major record producers, or hanging out on the Village's famed MacDougal Street. But first, he has to earn the respect of the audience.
Rod MacDonald paid his dues in the coffeehouses of Greenwich Village during the 1970s and early '80s and has caught the feel of the time and place in his new novel. For anyone who was in that place and time, it brings back memories vividly. For anyone who wasn't there, his writing gives a taste of what it was like. — David Bromberg
My Playlist of Rod’s Music
Restaurant Recommendations
When in Worthington
We celebrated the life of David Olszewski on April 15 in Worthington, a suburb of Columbus. In honor of his love of food, several family members enjoyed dining together that day and the next. Here are three highlights.
The Old Bag of Nails Pub 663 High St, Worthington, OH 43085
We dined here because it was one of the few places open on Monday, and it was excellent.
Shrimp Po’ Boy: Crispy fried shrimp tossed with shredded lettuce, tomato, onion & Cajun mayo, stuffed in a fresh hoagie roll
La Chatelaine French Bakery & Bistro 627 High St, Worthington, OH 43085
This was the best version of Eggs Benedict I have ever had.
Oeufs Benedict: Poached eggs, artisan brioche rolls, and ham topped with Hollandaise
The Whitney House Table & Tavern 666 High Street, Worthington, OH 43085
I previously wrote about having breakfast here. This time we had lunch.
Blackened Chicken Sandwich: pickled cabbage, provolone cheese and spicy mayo served with tavern fries
Marvelous Musicians
Dickey Betts died last week. The band’s songs are my favorite traveling music. When we chartered a sailboat in the British Virgin Islands over 30 years ago that had a cassette player for its sound system, I took along my cassette of The Best of The Allman Brothers Band. It provided just the right soundtrack. My favorite songs are "Midnight Rider," "Blue Sky," "Ramblin' Man," and "Jessica."
From Wikipedia: The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman (founder, slide guitar and lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, keyboards, songwriting), as well as Dickey Betts (lead guitar, vocals, songwriting), Berry Oakley (bass guitar), Butch Trucks (drums), and Jai Johanny "Jaimoe" Johanson (drums). The band incorporated elements of blues, jazz, and country music, and their live shows featured jam band-style improvisation and instrumentals.
The group's first two studio releases, The Allman Brothers Band (1969) and Idlewild South (1970) (both released by Capricorn Records), stalled commercially, but their 1971 live release, At Fillmore East, represented an artistic and commercial breakthrough. The album features extended renderings of their songs "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed" and "Whipping Post" and is considered among the best live albums ever made.
Group leader Duane Allman was killed in a motorcycle accident later that year – on October 29, 1971 – and the band dedicated Eat a Peach (1972) to his memory, a dual studio/live album that cemented the band's popularity and featured Gregg Allman's "Melissa" and Dickey Betts's "Blue Sky." Following the motorcycling death of bassist Berry Oakley exactly one year and 13 days later on November 11, 1972, the group recruited keyboardist Chuck Leavell and bassist Lamar Williams for 1973's Brothers and Sisters. This album included Betts's hit single "Ramblin' Man" and instrumental "Jessica." These tunes went on to become classic rock radio staples and placed the group at the forefront of 1970s rock music.
Founding Members
Duane Allman - Howard Duane Allman (born November 20, 1946 in Nashville, died October 29, 1971 in Macon, Georgia) - founder, slide and lead guitar
Gregg Allman (brother of Duane) - Gregory LeNoir Allman (born December 8, 1947 in Nashville, died May 27, 2017 in Richmond Hill, Georgia) - vocals, organ, piano, guitar, songwriting
Dickey Betts - Forrest Richard Betts (born December 12, 1943 in West Palm Beach, Florida, died April 18, 2024 in Osprey, Florida) - slide and lead guitar, vocals, songwriting
Berry Oakley - Raymond Berry Oakley III (born April 4, 1948 in Park Forest, Illinois, died November 11, 1972 in Macon, Georgia) - bass guitar, vocals
Butch Trucks - Claude Hudson "Butch" Trucks (born May 11, 1947 in Jacksonville, Florida, died January 24, 2017 in West Palm Beach, Florida) - drums, timpani
Jai Johanny "Jaimoe" Johanson (born July 8, 1944 in Ocean Springs, Mississippi) - drums, percussion
Other Members
Chuck Leavell – piano, synthesizer, background vocals (1972–1976, 1986)
Lamar Williams – bass (1972–1976; died 1983)
David Goldflies – bass (1978–1982)
Dan Toler – guitar (1978–1982, 1986; died 2013)
Mike Lawler – keyboards (1980–1982)
David "Frankie" Toler – drums (1980–1982; died 2011) - brother of Dan
Warren Haynes – guitar, slide guitar, vocals (1989–1997, 2000–2014)
Johnny Neel – keyboards, harmonica, vocals (1989–1990)
Allen Woody – bass, background vocals (1989–1997; died 2000)
Marc Quiñones – percussion, drums, background vocals (1991–2014)
Oteil Burbridge – bass, vocals (1997–2014)
Jack Pearson – guitar, slide guitar, vocals (1997–1999)
Derek Trucks – guitar, slide guitar (1999–2014) - nephew of Butch
Jimmy Herring – guitar (2000)
The devastating, tragic story of The Allman Brothers Band
Dickey Betts, Fiery Guitarist with Allman Brothers Band, Dies at 80 by Alex Williams of The New York Times
He traded licks with Duane Allman and proved to be a worthy sparring partner. He also wrote, and sang, the band’s biggest hit, “Ramblin’ Man.”
Dickey Betts, a honky-tonk hell raiser who, as a guitarist for the Allman Brothers Band, traded fiery licks with Duane Allman in the band’s early-1970s heyday, and who went on to write some of the band’s most indelible songs, including its biggest hit, “Ramblin’ Man,” died on Thursday at his home in Osprey, Fla. He was 80.
Mr. Betts was a guiding force in the group for decades and central to the sound that came to define Southern rock.
Although pigeonholed by some fans in the band’s early days as its “other” guitarist, Mr. Betts, whose solos seemed at times to scorch the fretboard of his Gibson Les Paul, proved a worthy sparring partner to Duane Allman, serving as a co-lead guitarist, rather than as a sidekick.
Ramblin' Man
Jessica
Blue Sky
Whipping Post
Midnight Rider
My Playlist
Sports Stars
Great Golfers
Scottie Scheffler, Nelly Korda are the biggest things in golf for a reason by Brody Miller and Gabby Herzig of The Athletic
Nelly Korda just won her fifth straight start, ending with a major, the Chevron Championship. Scottie Scheffler just won four of five starts with a Masters in the middle. The men’s and women’s world No. 1s are no longer just the best players in their sport. They are becoming two of the best ever.
Nelly Korda (born July 28, 1998 in Bradenton, Florida) is an American professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour, where she has won 13 times and reached number one in the Women's World Golf Rankings. Korda won the Olympic gold medal at the women's individual golf event at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan. She represented the United States at the 2019 Solheim Cup, 2021 Solheim Cup and 2023 Solheim Cup.
Korda is the daughter of retired Czech professional tennis players Petr Korda and Regina Rajchrtová. Her father is a tennis grand slam champion who won the 1998 Australian Open crown. Her younger brother, Sebastian, won the 2018 Australian Open tennis title in the boys' division. Her older sister Jessica Korda also plays on the LPGA Tour.
Scott Alexander Scheffler (born June 21, 1996 in Ridgewood, New Jersey) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. He is currently ranked world number one, first reaching the position in the Official World Golf Ranking in March 2022, and has held that ranking for over 80 weeks. He has won two major championships, both the 2022 and 2024 Masters Tournament. He became the first player to win The Players Championship in back-to-back years in 2023 and 2024.
Scheffler's interest in golf began at age three, when his parents gave him a set of plastic clubs and ball. After a move to Dallas, he received tutelage at the Royal Oaks Golf Club under instructor Randy Smith, who coached Justin Leonard to a victory at The Open Championship in 1997. Scheffler had prolific success at the youth level, and won 75 times on the PGA junior circuit, competing against the likes of fellow Dallas-area native Will Zalatoris.
Entering high school, Scheffler was barely 5 feet in height, but experienced a large growth spurt and soon measured over 6 feet tall. The rapid growth caused back injuries for Scheffler, particularly during his sophomore year. He played golf and basketball at Highland Park High School in the Dallas enclave of University Park. At Highland Park, Scheffler won individual state titles three years in a row (2012 to 2014), matching a record set by fellow Texan Jordan Spieth.
Scheffler made his PGA Tour debut in May 2014, as a 17-year-old amateur at the HP Byron Nelson Championship. With his sister Callie caddying for him, he made the cut. He recorded a hole-in-one in the third round and ultimately finished at 4-under-par, in a tie for 22nd place.
Picture Pun
After a lawn wait, our table for six was finally ready.
