Jimmy and Jerry, Johnny and Harry
Did You Ever Have a Family, Jerry’s Seafood, Johnny Clegg, Jimmy Butler, Male Toucan
Welcome to my weekly newsletter. This issue features two Cleggs: Bill (the book author) and Johnny (the late singer); three Js: Jerry (‘s Seafood), Johnny (Clegg), and Jimmy (Butler); and a farewell to Harry (Belafonte). I hope you enjoy the picks and pics.
Fave Five 30: Jimmy and Jerry, Johnny and Harry. Dynamic Debut (Did You Ever Have a Family), Craveable Crab (Jerry’s Seafood), Juluka/Savuka (Johnny Clegg), Playoff Himmy Buckets (Jimmy Butler), and One Toque Over the Line (Male Toucan).
Barb and I spent the weekend in Maryland with Roger, Cristi, Sommer, Kieran, and Jalen (Doggy). When we arrived on Friday, we were treated to a great barbecue spread from 2Fifty Texas BBQ in Riverdale Park, Maryland: Half-Duck, Prime Brisket (from the point), Turkey, Pulled Pork, Sweet Potato Mash, Brisket Baked Beans, Mac N Cheese, and Coleslaw. On Saturday we had sandwiches from Santucci’s Deli. My choice was a Chicken Steak & Cheese: Chicken and Provolone cheese with sauteed onions, mayo, lettuce, tomato, and hot peppers. Served on toasted bread, it hit the spot.
We enjoyed a special Sunday dinner at this week’s Recommended Restaurant, Jerry’s Seafood. When we drove home on Monday, we stopped at franchise locations of two celebrated establishments: Primanti Bros. in Allison Park, Pennsylvania (founded in Pittsburgh) and Gus’s Fried Chicken in Westland, Michigan (founded in Memphis). These outlets are not nearly as good as the original locations, but they beat most other chains.
Book Best Bet
Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg
This book was recommended in the newspaper, and I ordered it. It is very moving and hopeful despite the horrible loss at its center. I just ordered Clegg’s second novel, The End of the Day, and look forward to reading it.
From Amazon: Longlisted for the National Book Award, Man Booker Prize, Pen/Robert W. Bingham Prize, and Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence. An ALA Notable Book. Named one of the best books of the year by Amazon, Library Journal, Booklist, NPR, Kirkus Reviews, Guardian, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Google Play, Kobo, Literary Hub, Powell’s, and Indie Next List.
Hailed as “masterly” by The New York Times Book Review, “a brilliantly constructed debut set in the aftermath of catastrophic loss” (2015 Man Booker Prize Judges).
The stunning debut novel from bestselling author Bill Clegg is a magnificently powerful story about a circle of people who find solace in the least likely of places as they cope with a horrific tragedy.
On the eve of her daughter’s wedding, June Reid’s life is completely devastated when a shocking disaster takes the lives of her daughter, her daughter’s fiancé, her ex-husband, and her boyfriend, Luke—her entire family, all gone in a moment. And June is the only survivor.
Alone and directionless, June drives across the country, away from her small Connecticut town. In her wake, a community emerges, weaving a beautiful and surprising web of connections through shared heartbreak.
From the couple running a motel on the Pacific Ocean where June eventually settles into a quiet half-life, to the wedding’s caterer whose bill has been forgotten, to Luke’s mother, the shattered outcast of the town—everyone touched by the tragedy is changed as truths about their near and far histories finally come to light.
Elegant and heartrending, and one of the most accomplished fiction debuts of the year, Did You Ever Have a Family is an absorbing, unforgettable tale that reveals humanity at its best through forgiveness and hope. At its core is a celebration of family—the ones we are born with and the ones we create.
Restaurant Recommendation
Jerry’s Seafood: Home of the Crab Bomb 15211 Major Lansdale Blvd., Bowie, MD 20721
I learned about Jerry’s when I was at meeting at Digital Equipment Corporation’s Landover, Maryland office in the 1980s. I visited the original location at 9364 Lanham Severn Road, in Lanham, Maryland and returned there whenever I was back in the DC area. That location closed but we still visit the remaining one in Bowie at least once a year. Jerry’s Crab Bomb and crab cakes are so good that I make it a practice never to order crab when not in Maryland.
On Sunday we started with oysters on the half-shell. I ordered The Crab Bomb™: Ten ounces of jumbo lump crab (with absolutely no filler), lightly seasoned with Old Bay® and baked to a golden brown. My two sides were coleslaw (recipe from Grandma Gainey) and stewed tomatoes (another of Grandma's creations). Barb tried the Firecracker™ version of The Crab Bomb, seasoned with black pepper and dry mustard for a sensational bite.
The Crab Bomb never disappoints, and the stewed tomatoes are a sweet side. As usual, after a pleasant drive to Bowie we were rewarded with an outstanding meal.
From the restaurant: For more than 35 years Jerry’s Seafood has been serving the Washington D.C. Area with its signature trademarked dish The Crab Bomb™ Jerry’s is known for other delights like their homemade soups, crab cakes, fresh fish, Grandma Gainey’s stewed tomatoes, her coleslaw, and the Mariner’s Platter.
The idea of Jerry’s Seafood started in 1981 when the first store opened in Seabrook, MD then owned by Jerry Gainey and partners. Jerry’s Seafood has always been a small family owned and operated business and still continues that tradition today. In 2003 Jerry sold the business to Philip Gainey (Jerry’s nephew) and his business partner Jason Lee. They continue to carry on the family business, its traditions and build on its legacy. They buy local when possible, only buy quality products and continue to stand behind the motto, “If it’s not right, we will make it right”. Jerry's operates in Bowie, MD where Philip and Jason opened this store in 2008.
Jerry's focus is on outstanding service that goes above and beyond what people would expect. Jerry's does not take reservations, it has always been first come, first served. You will want to get there early or get there late because most of the time in between you'll have to wait in line.
Marvelous Musician
Harry Belafonte passed away yesterday at the age of 96. He and Johnny Clegg were ardent anti-apartheid activists, soulful singers, and faithful friends.
I had the great fortune to see Johnny perform at The Ark in Ann Arbor on April 15, 2011, July 10, 2012, and April 13, 2016. My friend Mark Mitra turned me on to Johnny Clegg & Savuka and my brother David made me aware of Johnny Clegg & Juluka. I am uplifted and moved by Johnny's music, was thrilled by his live performances, and am greatly inspired by the strength and beauty of his character.
From Wikipedia: Jonathan Paul Clegg, OBE, OIS (born June 7 1953 in England and died July 16, 2019 in Johannesburg) was a South African musician and anthropologist, some of whose work was in musicology focused on the music of indigenous South African peoples. His band Juluka began as a duo with Sipho Mchunu, and was the first group in the South African apartheid-era with a white man and a black man. The pair performed and recorded, later with an expanded lineup.
In 1986 Clegg founded the band Savuka, and also recorded as a solo act, occasionally reuniting with his earlier band partners. Sometimes called Le Zoulou Blanc (French: [lə zulu blɑ̃], for "The White Zulu"), he was an important figure in South African popular music and one of the most prominent white figures in the resistance to apartheid, becoming for a period the subject of investigation by the Security Branch of the South African Police (SAP-SB). His songs mixed English with Zulu lyrics, and also combined idioms of traditional African music with those of modern Western styles.
Johnny was born in Bacup, Lancashire to an English father of Scottish descent, Dennis Clegg, and a Rhodesian mother, Muriel (Braudo). His mother's family were Jewish immigrants from Lithuania, and Clegg had a secular Jewish upbringing, learning about the Ten Commandments but refusing to have a bar mitzvah or even associate with other Jewish children at school. His parents divorced when he was still an infant, and he moved with his mother to Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and then, at the age of six, to South Africa, also spending part of a year in Israel during his childhood.
As an adolescent in Johannesburg's northern suburbs, he encountered the demi-monde of the city's Zulu migrant workers' music and dance. Under the tutelage of Charlie Mzila, a flat cleaner by day and musician by night, Johnny mastered both the Zulu language and the maskandi guitar and the isishameni dance styles of the migrants. His involvement with black musicians often led to arrests for trespassing on government property and for contravening the Group Areas Act. He was first arrested at the age of 15 for violating apartheid-era laws in South Africa banning people of different races from congregating together after curfew hours.
From Facebook: The Clegg family is devastated to hear the news of the passing of the great Harry Belafonte. He was a passionate activist, humanist, musician and a beautiful lifeforce to all who knew him. Even in his final years, he was as engaged and dynamic as ever, full of wisdom and humor about the world. He was also a lifelong friend of Johnny and the family’s and his support and compassion were always felt. We will miss him dearly and always hold the memories of spending time with him very close. Go well Baba Harry, we have lost a special soul.
Scatterlings of Africa
Cruel Crazy Beautiful World
The Crossing
My Playlist
Sports Star
There have been quite a few individual high-scoring performances in the first round of the NBA playoffs. Trae Young had 38 last night, including his Curry-esque game-winning three. Devon Booker scored 47 as the Suns eliminated the Clippers and 45 and 38 previously. Nikola Jokic had 45 and Jamal Murray 40 for the Nuggets, Russell Westbrook 37 and Norman Powell 42 for the Clippers, De'Aaron Fox 38 (twice) for the Kings, Ja Morant 45 for the Grizzlies, and Anthony Edwards had 40 for the Timberwolves. But the biggest output so far was from Jimmy Butler, who put up 56 against the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday, pushing the top seed in the Eastern Conference to the brink of elimination.
Butler, AKA Jimmy Buckets, AKA Playoff Jimmy, AKA Himmy Butler, is a phenomenal playoff competitor. He put the Miami Heat on his back and willed them to victory over Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Number 1 Bucks.
From The Athletic: Jimmy f—ing Butler
There was a perception heading into Monday’s Heat-Bucks game — in these digital pages, too — that the Heat’s 2-1 series came because of Giannis Antetokounmpo’s absence. Giannis comes back, and everything will course correct, right?
Wrong. Very wrong, according to Jimmy Butler, who seems to morph into Michael Jordan when the playoffs arrive. Butler scored 56 points in the shocking Heat win, putting Miami up 3-1 in a first-round series that was supposed to be a snooze.
Miami was down as many as 15 points in this game. Antetokounmpo had a triple-double (26 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds), and it didn’t matter to Butler, who shot 68 percent from the field.
Pretty good company, on the list of highest scorers in any playoff game ever:
1. Jordan — 63
2. Elgin Baylor — 61
3. Donovan Mitchell — 57
T4. Charles Barkley, Butler, Wilt Chamberlain, Jordan — 56
Butler is averaging 36.5 points per game in this series, a number that’s certainly unsustainable over an entire playoff run. But the Heat are one win away from a massive upset over the NBA’s best team. He can do it for one more game, right?
From Wikipedia: Jimmy Butler III (born September 14, 1989 in Houston) is an American professional basketball player for the Miami Heat of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "Jimmy Buckets", he is a six-time NBA All-Star, a four-time All-NBA Team honoree, a five-time NBA All-Defensive Team honoree, and an Olympic gold medalist, having won a gold medal in 2016. He played one year of college basketball for Tyler Junior College before transferring to Marquette University.
Butler was drafted with the 30th overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft by the Chicago Bulls. In 2015, he was named the NBA Most Improved Player. After six seasons in Chicago, he was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves in June 2017. Butler was again traded in November 2018, this time to the Philadelphia 76ers. In July 2019, he signed with the Heat. During his first season with the team, Butler reached the NBA Finals. In 2021, he led the league in steals.
Picture Pun
One Toque Over the Line (hat tip: John Trotter)
On my walk I spotted a male toucan.
