Northville/Novi Noshing
The Turner House, Exchange/Shiro, The Police, Jacoby Jones, Three Seats to the Wind
Welcome to my weekly newsletter. This week’s issue includes my five favorite bands of the 80s, a novel set in Detroit, two local restaurants in historic locations, a new wave rock trio influenced by reggae, a Super Bowl hero, and a couple of poker hands. I hope you like the picks and pics.
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Fave Five 94: Northville/Novi Noshing
Motor City Manuscript (The Turner House), Northville and Novi (Exchange and Shiro), Rock & Reggae (The Police), Record-setting Receiver (Jacoby Jones), and Three Seats to the Wind.
Fave Five Lists: Favorite 80s Bands
This week’s Marvelous Musicians are The Police, my favorite band of the 80s. Here are my top five from that decade:
The Police
R.E.M.
TOTO
The Pretenders
Huey Lewis & The News
Book Best Bet
The Turner House by Angela Flournoy
I read about this book in the Detroit Free Press and was intrigued because it was set in Detroit. I liked the plot, the characters, and the setting.
From Amazon: A powerful debut, The Turner House marks a major new contribution to the story of the American family.
The Turners have lived on Yarrow Street for over fifty years. Their house has seen thirteen children grown and gone—and some returned; it has seen the arrival of grandchildren, the fall of Detroit’s East Side, and the loss of a father. The house still stands despite abandoned lots, an embattled city, and the inevitable shift outward to the suburbs. But now, as ailing matriarch Viola finds herself forced to leave her home and move in with her eldest son, the family discovers that the house is worth just a tenth of its mortgage. The Turner children are called home to decide its fate and to reckon with how each of their pasts haunts—and shapes—their family’s future.
Praised by Ayana Mathis as “utterly moving” and “un-putdownable,” The Turner House brings us a colorful, complicated brood full of love and pride, sacrifice and unlikely inheritances. It’s a striking examination of the price we pay for our dreams and futures, and the ways in which our families bring us home.
Recognition
National Book Award Finalist
A New York Times Notable Book • An Amazon Top 100 Editors' Pick of the Year
Named a Best Book of the Year by O, The Oprah Magazine • Entertainment Weekly • NPR • Essence • Men’s Journal • Buzzfeed • Bustle • Time Out • Denver Post • Publishers Weekly • Kirkus Reviews • BookPage • Literary Hub • Kobo • The Week • Detroit Free Press
Winner of the Paterson Fiction Prize and the Black Caucus of the ALA—1st Novelist Award
Nominated for the International Dublin Literary Award, the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Debut Author, and the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award for Fiction
Finalist for the New York Public Library Young Lions Award, the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award, and the Indies Choice Award
Short-listed for the PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize for Debut Fiction, the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize, the Ernest Gaines Award, The Morning News Tournament of Books, the Winter Lariat List, and the Medici Book Club Prize
Long-listed for the NBCC John Leonard Prize for A Debut Novel and the Chautauqua Prize
Angela Flournoy
A graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop, Angela Flournoy has taught at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, The New School, Columbia University, Princeton University and the University of California at Los Angeles. She is a faculty member in the low-residency MFA program at Warren Wilson College.
Flournoy has received fellowships from the New York Public Library Cullman Center for Writers and Scholars, the National Endowment for the Arts and the American Academy in Berlin. She was raised in Southern California by a mother from Los Angeles and a father from Detroit.
Restaurant Recommendations
Northville and Novi
Exchange Bar and Grill 157 E Main Street, Northville, MI 48167
When we moved to Northville in 1986, this place was known as Getzie’s Pub, and later as Poole’s Tavern. It is popular for the consistent quality of its food and service, its large outdoor dining capacity, and its location in the heart of downtown Northville. I met my local knowledge management colleagues for lunch there on Friday.
I had a half-order of Baby Back Ribs: Signature Seasoned & Roasted Ribs, Special BBQ Sauce, Seasoned Fries, and Coleslaw. Their ribs have always been good, and this lunch was a winner.
From the restaurant: The Exchange Bar & Grill is a tip of the cap to the Exchange Hotel which occupied the space from 1900 - 1936. Today the Exchange is owned by Grant Baidas, who took ownership in 2020 during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Prior businesses at the site include Poole’s Tavern, Getzie’s Pub, Little Joe’s Bar or as some called it Joe’s Little Bar and as far back as 1944 Smith Tavern.
Today, Exchange Bar and Grill is a warm and welcoming, family friendly place for everyone. We offer a great atmosphere with a large patio, 18 beers on tap and not to mention, Northville’s best burger. We are your neighborhood bar and grill. We may have had some renovations done, but we kept the local charm.
Shiro Restaurant & Sushi Bar 43180 West Nine Mile Road, Novi, MI 48375
This place used to be Home Sweet Home. Since then, it has thrived as a Japanese restaurant. We met our friends, Jodi and Steve Emmenecker, here for dinner on Saturday. We had not eaten here in many years, and we enjoyed dining in a semi-private room located off the bar. I ordered off the sushi menu, and it was excellent.
California Roll: Crab, Cucumber, Avocado
Spicy Tuna Roll
Maguro: Yellow Fin Tuna
Hamachi: Yellow Tail
Sake: Salmon
From the restaurant: Shiro, meaning "Castle" or "White" in Japanese, is a restaurant and sushi bar located in the historic Rogers Mansion in Novi. The Mansion calls back to antebellum architecture, fused with early twentieth-century decor.
The white house manor was built in 1929, a gift from Charles Rogers to his future wife Harriet Thornton. The Rogers home was called "White House Manor", not because of it's color, but because it had been built with profits from the White House Milk Company. Charles built the house with a grand staircase at the main entrance, with the hope that one day he would have a daughter to walk down on her wedding day. Shiro enjoys continuing the tradition by hosting weddings, receptions, and special events in the home, as well creating a special experience for diners.
Marvelous Musicians
Today is Stewart Copeland’s 72nd birthday. I first heard "Don't Stand So Close to Me" in 1981 and later bought all of The Police's albums. They are my favorite band of the 80s. I saw Sting perform at Cobo Arena on March 14, 1991 with my friend David Lavalley. I saw him again at the Final Four in Atlanta on April 7, 2013 in Centennial Olympic Park right before Dave Matthews Band. Our friends Barbara and David Osher watched from up front and center, but Barb and I were wedged in farther back on the right side and we never felt more claustrophobic in our lives.
From Wikipedia: The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. Within a few months of their first gig, the lineup settled as Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar, primary songwriter), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussion), and remained unchanged for the rest of the band's history. The Police became globally popular in the late 1970s and early to mid 1980s. Emerging in the British new wave scene, they played a style of rock influenced by punk, reggae, and jazz.
Their 1978 debut album, Outlandos d'Amour, reached No. 6 on the UK Albums Chart on the strength of the singles "Roxanne" and "Can't Stand Losing You". Their second album, Reggatta de Blanc (1979), became the first of four consecutive No. 1 studio albums in the UK and Australia; its first two singles, "Message in a Bottle" and "Walking on the Moon", became their first UK number ones. Their next two albums, Zenyatta Mondatta (1980) and Ghost in the Machine (1981), led to further critical and commercial success with two songs, "Don't Stand So Close to Me" and "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic", becoming UK number-one singles and Top 5 hits in other countries; the former album was their breakthrough into the US reaching number five on the US Billboard 200.
Their final studio album, Synchronicity (1983), was No. 1 in the UK, Canada, Australia, Italy and the US, selling over 8 million copies in the US. Its lead single, "Every Breath You Take", became their fifth UK number one, and only US number one. During this time, the band were considered one of the leaders of the Second British Invasion of the US; in 1983 Rolling Stone labelled them "the first British New Wave act to break through in America on a grand scale, and possibly the biggest band in the world". The Police disbanded in 1986, periodically reuniting for one-off performances before fully reuniting in early 2007 for a world tour that ended in August 2008. They were the world's highest-earning musicians in 2008, due to their reunion tour, which was the highest-grossing tour of 2007.
The Police have sold over 75 million records, making them one of the best-selling bands of all time. The band won a number of music awards, including six Grammy Awards, two Brit Awards—winning Best British Group once, and an MTV Video Music Award. In 2003, they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Four of their five studio albums appeared on Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". The band were included among both Rolling Stone's and VH1's lists of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time".
Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner CBE (born October 2, 1951 in Wallsend, Northumberland, England), known as Sting, is an English musician and actor. He was the principal songwriter, lead singer, and bassist for the new wave rock band the Police from 1977 to 1984 and launched a solo career in 1985. He has included elements of rock, jazz, reggae, classical, new-age and worldbeat in his music.
Andrew James Somers (born December 31, 1942 in Lancashire, England), known professionally as Andy Summers, is an English singer and guitarist who was a member of the rock band the Police. He has recorded solo albums, collaborated with other musicians, composed film scores, and exhibited his photography in galleries.
Stewart Armstrong Copeland (born July 16, 1952 in Alexandria, Virginia) is an American musician and composer. He was the drummer of the British rock band the Police, has produced film and video game soundtracks and written various pieces of music for ballet, opera and orchestra and is considered the 10th Best Drummer of all time by Rolling Stone Magazine.
Message In A Bottle
Don't Stand So Close To Me
Man In A Suitcase
Spirits In The Material World
King of Pain
My Playlist
Sports Star
Jacoby died on July 14, 2024, just after turning 40 on July 11. He holds the record for the most all-purpose yards in a Super Bowl, with 290 yards in Super Bowl XLVII against the 49ers on February 3, 2013.
Jacoby Jones, who scored 2 TDs in Ravens' SB XLVII win, dies at 40 by Jamison Hensley of ESPN
Jacoby Jones, a Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl star who was known for the "Mile High Miracle" and his jovial antics, has died at the age of 40. A nine-year NFL veteran whose fun personality and flamboyant end zone dances endeared him to fans and teammates, Jones etched himself in NFL history during the Ravens' 2012 Super Bowl run, scoring three postseason touchdowns in the most dramatic fashion.
Jones' most memorable catch, the "Mile High Miracle," came on a high-arching 70-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Joe Flacco with 31 seconds remaining in an AFC divisional playoff game in January 2013. With Baltimore trailing 35-28 in Denver, Jones got behind safety Rahim Moore for the game-tying touchdown.
Then, in the Ravens' Super Bowl XLVII victory over the San Francisco 49ers, Jones became the first player to score a receiving touchdown and a return touchdown in the same game in Super Bowl history. His 108-yard kickoff return touchdown to open the second half is the longest scoring play in the history of the Super Bowl.
A year after, Jones found himself in the middle of controversy in a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thanksgiving night. After fielding a kickoff at the goal line, Jones had no one else between him and the end zone until Steelers coach Mike Tomlin stood on the edge of the sideline, with his back turned to the action and his right foot squarely in the field of play.
Tomlin hopped to his left at the last second, but Jones had to swerve to his right to avoid hitting him. That slight adjustment to his path allowed Jones to get caught from behind by Steelers cornerback Cortez Allen. "I don't blame him. I still love him," Jones later said. "I'd do the same thing to me."
Ravens coach John Harbaugh's favorite play involving Jones came a week after the Thanksgiving game. With Baltimore trailing 19-15 with 1:16 left in the game, Harbaugh remembers looking back where the kickoff was going to go and seeing Jones talking in the back of the end zone to his mother.
After screaming Jones' name, Harbaugh watched Jones turn around as soon as the ball was kicked and return it 77 yards for a touchdown on a snow-covered field at M&T Bank Stadium.
"I loved Jacoby Jones. We all did," Harbaugh said in a statement Sunday. "His spirit, enthusiasm and love for people were powerful. He was a light. My favorite Jacoby personal moment was every time I saw his smiling face full of joy."
Mile High Miracle
Jacoby Jones 108-yard kickoff return Super Bowl 47
Picture Pun
A flush beats three of a kind.
