Otis Brown's Podcast

In the "Cetology" chapter of Moby-Dick, Melville explores the relationship between whales and books. But, what about you guitars you ask? I'll answer that in this episode. I'll also explore what it means to not make difficult career choices. 

Chasing That Thing

Some of the cultural references made in this episode:

Coen Brothers. O Brother, Where Art Thou

William Cumpiano. Guitar Making Tradition and Technology

Fred Neil. “Everybody’s Talkin”

John Schlesinger. Midnight Cowboy

Herman Melville. Moby-Dick. “Cetology”

Pepe Romero/Pepe Romero Jr. 

Antonio De Torres 

Trailer for this week's episode on whales, books, guitars and where we store all the extraneous stuff beneath the surface of our cluttered minds!

Having a hard time making it through the months? Try it an hour at a time. In this episode, I reflect on my (brief) experience with clock making and repair and remind myself to use these troubled times to go inward, to use my hours with intention and to try and serve an apprenticeship to a better future. 

In this week's episode, Dolly Parton stands her ground against Elvis' gangster Colonel Tom Parker and writes the greatest song of all time--"I Will Always Love You." 

In this week's podcast, I tell the story of the epic standoff between the queen (Dolly) and the king's man (Elvis' Colonel Tom Parker). Also, the playlist for this week is pretty great (I think). So here's a link. Be sure to like, follow and subscribe and thank you so much for the support and encouragement!

Playlist: 
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5N8HHyKxHQQ3BltHRsw9Tr

What is a mentor? Are there any good ones? If so, how do they act? In this week's podcast, I think about people who have influenced me and whom I might call a mentor--but, as usual, I want to challenge the category a little bit. I hope you enjoy this.  

What does a redneck say before he dies? Find out in this week's podcast. 
In this episode, I reflect on the relationship between physical and social, emotional and artistic risk. I also give a brief reading of a Nick Flynn poem and discuss the village blacksmith tradition of shooting the anvil. 

What is language? How long has it been around? In this episode, I explore the relationship between words and things. We hear all the time that words are tools, but I want us to consider, at least as a thought experiment, that tools are also words--and they predate the estimate for the advent of language by millions of years. 

In this week's episode, I reflect on lessons I learned from my old buddy Pigeye and the banjo savant Roscoe Holcomb. I hope you enjoy listening and, as always, I really appreciate the support and encouragement. Please don't forget to like and subscribe--it really helps me promote the podcast. Don't forget to check Spotify for the playlist, it's a good one this week if you love the banjo!