1 00:00:00,960 --> 00:00:12,799 Speaker 1: A podcast play around Taking a Walk with Buzz Night. Hi, 2 00:00:12,920 --> 00:00:15,080 Speaker 1: this is Buzznight, the host of the Taking a Walk 3 00:00:15,120 --> 00:00:18,840 Speaker 1: podcast series. In our special New York City Greenwich Village 4 00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:23,880 Speaker 1: series rolls on and my guest is the proprietor of 5 00:00:23,960 --> 00:00:26,840 Speaker 1: the music In, Jeff Slatnik. Jeff, it's so nice to 6 00:00:26,880 --> 00:00:30,720 Speaker 1: meet you. Nice to meet you actually physically. And whoever 7 00:00:30,880 --> 00:00:33,239 Speaker 1: is out there in the future who might hear this. 8 00:00:34,200 --> 00:00:37,159 Speaker 1: I'll never see you, but I might dream you in 9 00:00:37,280 --> 00:00:40,279 Speaker 1: my thoughts. So let's see what happens. So we're going 10 00:00:40,320 --> 00:00:44,480 Speaker 1: to take a walk through the music in and tell 11 00:00:44,520 --> 00:00:47,120 Speaker 1: the audience a little bit about the music in for 12 00:00:47,240 --> 00:00:51,199 Speaker 1: those that maybe have never never run into it, well, 13 00:00:51,520 --> 00:00:55,480 Speaker 1: they can't see nothing but the music. And started in 14 00:00:55,600 --> 00:00:59,520 Speaker 1: nineteen fifty eight by a gi who came back from 15 00:00:59,520 --> 00:01:02,840 Speaker 1: the Korean War and his wife had a little bit 16 00:01:02,880 --> 00:01:06,360 Speaker 1: of money and they started a record store and right 17 00:01:06,400 --> 00:01:11,560 Speaker 1: away they started selling instruments like guitars and then banjo's 18 00:01:11,640 --> 00:01:15,920 Speaker 1: and mandolin's American folk instruments. The fifties was you know, 19 00:01:16,040 --> 00:01:19,640 Speaker 1: really hot in the village for American folk music, and 20 00:01:19,680 --> 00:01:22,600 Speaker 1: then as the sixties rolled in, they went much more 21 00:01:22,640 --> 00:01:29,080 Speaker 1: international and they had citars and instruments from China. And 22 00:01:29,160 --> 00:01:32,520 Speaker 1: I'm not talking about, you know, guitars made in China. 23 00:01:32,560 --> 00:01:39,600 Speaker 1: I'm talking about Chinese instruments and Japanese instruments and African instruments. 24 00:01:39,720 --> 00:01:43,160 Speaker 1: I got here in the store in nineteen sixty seven. 25 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:48,760 Speaker 1: I had come back from California and they got a 26 00:01:48,840 --> 00:01:52,040 Speaker 1: job playing the sitar and a discotheque in the east 27 00:01:52,160 --> 00:01:56,800 Speaker 1: village called the Electric Circus, and I needed strings for 28 00:01:56,880 --> 00:02:00,200 Speaker 1: the sitar, and I came to the music but he 29 00:02:00,280 --> 00:02:05,040 Speaker 1: suggested they had him, and the owner of the store said, listen, hey, 30 00:02:05,800 --> 00:02:08,520 Speaker 1: you know how to play the citar. Perhaps you would 31 00:02:08,520 --> 00:02:13,520 Speaker 1: be interested in working from now in November till Christmas 32 00:02:13,880 --> 00:02:16,520 Speaker 1: on Saturdays, just helping because we have it's a busy 33 00:02:16,639 --> 00:02:20,200 Speaker 1: day and people need help with citars. Very popular. The 34 00:02:20,240 --> 00:02:24,760 Speaker 1: Beatles had used sitar in their records and everyone was 35 00:02:24,800 --> 00:02:27,680 Speaker 1: aware of it at that time. So I started working 36 00:02:27,720 --> 00:02:32,160 Speaker 1: here then, and then after well maybe six months, I 37 00:02:32,240 --> 00:02:37,920 Speaker 1: set out back to California and studied Indian classical music. 38 00:02:38,840 --> 00:02:41,320 Speaker 1: Meantime the store was going on. It was a very 39 00:02:41,360 --> 00:02:44,639 Speaker 1: busy place. They were like it was open from ten 40 00:02:44,680 --> 00:02:46,840 Speaker 1: in the morning to ten at night. There were two 41 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:50,840 Speaker 1: shifts and each shift had like six employees on a shift. 42 00:02:51,800 --> 00:02:55,400 Speaker 1: The guy who originally owned the store, May he Rest 43 00:02:55,480 --> 00:03:00,399 Speaker 1: in peace, was very paranoid of being robbed and think. 44 00:03:00,520 --> 00:03:03,919 Speaker 1: So his method was he take all the records out 45 00:03:03,960 --> 00:03:07,280 Speaker 1: of the covers, put the covers stacked in the bins 46 00:03:07,280 --> 00:03:11,200 Speaker 1: for customers to peruse, and stuck the records in the wall, 47 00:03:11,880 --> 00:03:15,359 Speaker 1: locked in the wall when a customer picked the record, 48 00:03:15,639 --> 00:03:17,840 Speaker 1: and of course there were a lot less records in 49 00:03:17,840 --> 00:03:22,320 Speaker 1: the sixties, but when a customer picked the record, we'd 50 00:03:22,320 --> 00:03:24,600 Speaker 1: have to go find the number of the record and 51 00:03:24,639 --> 00:03:27,760 Speaker 1: the label it was on Capital two one seventy sixty 52 00:03:27,840 --> 00:03:31,600 Speaker 1: five and put it back in the sleeve. Anyway, So 53 00:03:31,720 --> 00:03:34,480 Speaker 1: there were many employees working here doing it, and it 54 00:03:34,639 --> 00:03:39,840 Speaker 1: was busy night and day. This place when you walk 55 00:03:39,920 --> 00:03:45,680 Speaker 1: in has this amazing aura and energy about it. Do 56 00:03:45,720 --> 00:03:49,760 Speaker 1: you find it just the way you know, it's just 57 00:03:49,880 --> 00:03:54,920 Speaker 1: created as a building, or do the guitars and sitars 58 00:03:54,920 --> 00:03:57,920 Speaker 1: and instruments bring the aura? Yeah, I'll tell you, I 59 00:03:58,080 --> 00:04:01,960 Speaker 1: tell you all of it. See you can get an idea. Yeah, 60 00:04:02,280 --> 00:04:06,880 Speaker 1: as we're walking literally there are guitars everywhere. Yeah, just 61 00:04:06,960 --> 00:04:08,800 Speaker 1: let me catch up real fast. So I went back 62 00:04:08,840 --> 00:04:12,480 Speaker 1: to California, I came back in nineteen seventy six and 63 00:04:12,520 --> 00:04:16,440 Speaker 1: I got a job immediately playing music in Midtown, and 64 00:04:16,520 --> 00:04:18,760 Speaker 1: I just stopped to see if the store was still 65 00:04:18,800 --> 00:04:21,760 Speaker 1: in business, and the guy asked me again, Hey, I 66 00:04:21,800 --> 00:04:24,600 Speaker 1: remember you, who you want to work till Christmas. So 67 00:04:25,320 --> 00:04:33,200 Speaker 1: during a long long period of becoming the store physically, spiritually, 68 00:04:33,240 --> 00:04:36,520 Speaker 1: and mentally, it was a perfect fifth for me, and 69 00:04:36,880 --> 00:04:39,920 Speaker 1: I started working two days, three days, five days. Now 70 00:04:39,960 --> 00:04:43,560 Speaker 1: I work seven days a week. After a while, there 71 00:04:43,680 --> 00:04:46,800 Speaker 1: was just me and the original owner. His wife had 72 00:04:46,880 --> 00:04:51,120 Speaker 1: died and he was old and he had Parkinson, so 73 00:04:51,160 --> 00:04:54,560 Speaker 1: he just sat behind the desk and just sat there 74 00:04:54,600 --> 00:04:57,680 Speaker 1: all day, and I would just take care of everybody, 75 00:04:57,839 --> 00:05:01,400 Speaker 1: and I'd love climbing all over the place. I'd climb 76 00:05:01,400 --> 00:05:05,280 Speaker 1: on these shelves here that the records were in. And eventually, 77 00:05:05,480 --> 00:05:09,520 Speaker 1: after he got so ill, he stayed at home all 78 00:05:09,600 --> 00:05:12,680 Speaker 1: the time. I just ran the store by myself. I 79 00:05:12,760 --> 00:05:16,039 Speaker 1: found the guy who I played basketball with just the 80 00:05:16,120 --> 00:05:19,760 Speaker 1: block from here, on Greenwich Village, there's a famous West 81 00:05:19,800 --> 00:05:25,039 Speaker 1: fourth Street basketball court. Many people from Kareem all the 82 00:05:25,040 --> 00:05:28,719 Speaker 1: way down the line played there at one time or another, 83 00:05:28,800 --> 00:05:32,640 Speaker 1: and I used to play there when I was much younger, 84 00:05:32,760 --> 00:05:36,320 Speaker 1: and I found the guy there who was very pleasing. 85 00:05:36,560 --> 00:05:39,000 Speaker 1: He was big and tall, he could reach up and 86 00:05:39,160 --> 00:05:43,000 Speaker 1: reach things hanging from the ceiling. And I brought him 87 00:05:43,040 --> 00:05:45,599 Speaker 1: here and he started working part time, and he would 88 00:05:45,600 --> 00:05:49,799 Speaker 1: take care of Jerry, who was now infirmed. And Jerry, 89 00:05:49,920 --> 00:05:53,600 Speaker 1: who wanted to die, just wanted to get out of 90 00:05:53,640 --> 00:05:56,920 Speaker 1: here and die. I wouldn't let him die, kept him alive. 91 00:05:57,279 --> 00:06:02,680 Speaker 1: He got into on crete poetry. He would get a 92 00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:06,279 Speaker 1: big crayon and with Julie Ansie'd write a little poem 93 00:06:06,400 --> 00:06:08,440 Speaker 1: on a big piece of paper and he'd take it 94 00:06:08,480 --> 00:06:11,640 Speaker 1: to these poetry readings, and he suddenly had a new life. 95 00:06:11,960 --> 00:06:14,880 Speaker 1: And he lived for about another five or six years. 96 00:06:15,120 --> 00:06:19,520 Speaker 1: And Taran, my assistant who I met at the basketball tour, 97 00:06:19,520 --> 00:06:22,520 Speaker 1: It would take him around in a wheelchair and they 98 00:06:22,560 --> 00:06:26,720 Speaker 1: had a time. And then eventually he died and Turan 99 00:06:26,880 --> 00:06:29,520 Speaker 1: came and work here with me. And I don't know 100 00:06:29,560 --> 00:06:32,159 Speaker 1: where he is today and maybe show up, you never know. 101 00:06:32,839 --> 00:06:40,039 Speaker 1: And after Jerry died, I put a stairway in the store. 102 00:06:40,279 --> 00:06:42,600 Speaker 1: There was always a basement, but you had to go 103 00:06:42,800 --> 00:06:46,080 Speaker 1: outside and around through the hallway in the building to 104 00:06:46,160 --> 00:06:50,040 Speaker 1: get to the basement. So I hired these guys. They 105 00:06:50,080 --> 00:06:53,480 Speaker 1: cut a hole in the floor. This is building from 106 00:06:53,560 --> 00:06:58,960 Speaker 1: nineteen hundreds, so it was quite a thing for them 107 00:06:59,040 --> 00:07:02,279 Speaker 1: to do it beams or pieces of wood that must 108 00:07:02,279 --> 00:07:07,800 Speaker 1: have been two hundred years old. I make instruments, unusual instruments. 109 00:07:08,120 --> 00:07:13,160 Speaker 1: I'll show you one here that are carved. That would 110 00:07:13,280 --> 00:07:17,160 Speaker 1: they're hand carved. So one of them downstairs they look 111 00:07:17,280 --> 00:07:20,400 Speaker 1: like this, this is a base. But downstairs there is 112 00:07:21,040 --> 00:07:26,640 Speaker 1: these solid body electric sitars and Indian type instruments. Although 113 00:07:26,640 --> 00:07:30,000 Speaker 1: I've made cellos and violins and all kinds of things, 114 00:07:30,360 --> 00:07:34,480 Speaker 1: but as solid body electric instruments with a new kind 115 00:07:34,480 --> 00:07:40,080 Speaker 1: of organic design that reflects the physics of the process. Beautiful, 116 00:07:40,480 --> 00:07:43,400 Speaker 1: simply beautiful. Would you like to come downstairs? Oh, I'd 117 00:07:43,440 --> 00:07:50,080 Speaker 1: love to. Let's do that. What a treasure. So when 118 00:07:50,160 --> 00:07:54,000 Speaker 1: the stairs got cut out, there was a big beam here, 119 00:07:54,920 --> 00:07:58,440 Speaker 1: and I made one of the instruments which will show 120 00:07:58,480 --> 00:08:05,679 Speaker 1: you downstairs from the beam cut out. A guy who 121 00:08:05,760 --> 00:08:09,560 Speaker 1: is originally one of my students I taught Indian music, 122 00:08:12,840 --> 00:08:17,360 Speaker 1: was a big strong Viking and we started carving instruments together, 123 00:08:17,520 --> 00:08:19,800 Speaker 1: and we've been doing it for almost twenty years. We've 124 00:08:19,800 --> 00:08:25,000 Speaker 1: sold probably about eighty to one hundred instruments. We started 125 00:08:25,080 --> 00:08:28,520 Speaker 1: numbering them. Now this is one hundred and eight and 126 00:08:30,800 --> 00:08:33,040 Speaker 1: this one was made from the beam in the ceiling. 127 00:08:33,120 --> 00:08:35,920 Speaker 1: As you can see, the wood is quite interesting. Yeah, 128 00:08:35,960 --> 00:08:41,720 Speaker 1: look at that. Anyway, it was fun to work with, 129 00:08:41,800 --> 00:08:44,160 Speaker 1: but it's a hard wood to work with because it's 130 00:08:44,200 --> 00:08:48,720 Speaker 1: not hard. It's sort of a fake wood. The outer layer, 131 00:08:48,880 --> 00:08:52,559 Speaker 1: a very thin outer layer, is very hard, but the 132 00:08:52,640 --> 00:08:56,319 Speaker 1: tree inside is very soft wood. So it kind of 133 00:08:56,400 --> 00:08:59,720 Speaker 1: like gives a presentation as if it's a soft tree, 134 00:08:59,760 --> 00:09:03,520 Speaker 1: but a hard tree, but it's a very flexible bending tree. 135 00:09:03,600 --> 00:09:06,319 Speaker 1: There are you still playing? I still play a bit 136 00:09:06,559 --> 00:09:11,120 Speaker 1: every day, a little bit. I don't perform anymore. We 137 00:09:11,280 --> 00:09:13,760 Speaker 1: have shows here at the store. We clean out the 138 00:09:13,840 --> 00:09:17,040 Speaker 1: drums in this room and we turn out the lights 139 00:09:17,080 --> 00:09:20,520 Speaker 1: and that's the stage, and we set up maybe forty 140 00:09:20,640 --> 00:09:26,040 Speaker 1: chairs and we have open mics every Thursday night. We've 141 00:09:26,080 --> 00:09:29,920 Speaker 1: been doing it for years now, having shows. Other people 142 00:09:30,000 --> 00:09:32,640 Speaker 1: right there, own chosen have used the store for the 143 00:09:32,720 --> 00:09:37,520 Speaker 1: basement here. So and that's the core of Greenwich Village forever. 144 00:09:37,760 --> 00:09:44,320 Speaker 1: These great places that you know, small venues that you 145 00:09:44,360 --> 00:09:47,040 Speaker 1: know so much started and began, but there's also these 146 00:09:47,080 --> 00:09:51,400 Speaker 1: little pockets of places like this, right, yeah, I saw 147 00:09:51,480 --> 00:09:54,200 Speaker 1: Bob Dylan and an open mic in the cafe why 148 00:09:54,400 --> 00:09:57,320 Speaker 1: years ago when he had an open mic? Yeah, yeah. 149 00:09:57,600 --> 00:10:01,120 Speaker 1: Did you think he was any good? Actually no? And 150 00:10:02,480 --> 00:10:04,760 Speaker 1: then he came out with his first record and he 151 00:10:04,880 --> 00:10:08,040 Speaker 1: hung around this store. He knew Jerry Well, the guy 152 00:10:08,080 --> 00:10:10,400 Speaker 1: who started this store, and he hung around here. He 153 00:10:10,400 --> 00:10:13,640 Speaker 1: would borrow instruments and go two doors down was this 154 00:10:14,000 --> 00:10:18,000 Speaker 1: big space. Because you're madage was very crowded upstairs, so 155 00:10:18,160 --> 00:10:20,880 Speaker 1: he would take an instrument and go two doors down 156 00:10:20,960 --> 00:10:25,679 Speaker 1: where there was a big sandal shop. Yo, yo, t 157 00:10:25,960 --> 00:10:30,479 Speaker 1: do you? This guy is interviewing me for a podcast. 158 00:10:31,160 --> 00:10:39,760 Speaker 1: His name is mister Night. I love there. Yeah, good sir, 159 00:10:39,800 --> 00:10:42,800 Speaker 1: how are you all right? What was the what the 160 00:10:43,600 --> 00:10:46,160 Speaker 1: it's called? It's a podcast called taking a Walk. So 161 00:10:46,160 --> 00:10:50,040 Speaker 1: we're just walking through and Jeff is telling me the 162 00:10:50,080 --> 00:10:55,400 Speaker 1: great stories of of this amazing place. Now I told you. 163 00:10:55,400 --> 00:10:59,320 Speaker 1: His name is t Or Turnt, but he's actually a 164 00:10:59,360 --> 00:11:07,440 Speaker 1: well known boxing reporters. Chuck Nitty is his name, and 165 00:11:07,480 --> 00:11:10,160 Speaker 1: he is known by many boxers and stuff like that, 166 00:11:10,280 --> 00:11:13,960 Speaker 1: because he h, I'm just getting a little heavy. You 167 00:11:14,000 --> 00:11:17,280 Speaker 1: look great. It's nice to meet you. They're all afraid 168 00:11:17,320 --> 00:11:20,800 Speaker 1: of him. I think I'll think that maybe he's gonna'll 169 00:11:20,800 --> 00:11:31,920 Speaker 1: say that man man, oh god, Jeff. Anyway, let's walk 170 00:11:31,960 --> 00:11:35,520 Speaker 1: around some more. Sure, I'm loving it. Uh. This so 171 00:11:35,720 --> 00:11:38,720 Speaker 1: this is the percussion room with every kind of percussion. 172 00:11:40,040 --> 00:11:46,960 Speaker 1: But even that's what that is. This is the wind room, 173 00:11:47,000 --> 00:11:51,000 Speaker 1: which I got terms late time. It's just all kinds 174 00:11:51,040 --> 00:11:58,480 Speaker 1: of wind instruments from everywhere in the world. At all 175 00:11:58,679 --> 00:12:02,320 Speaker 1: these instruments, do you know if somebody said, hey, can 176 00:12:02,360 --> 00:12:05,840 Speaker 1: you find absolutely and the most obscure thing, you would 177 00:12:05,840 --> 00:12:07,840 Speaker 1: know exactly where it is. Yeah, I didn't know where 178 00:12:07,840 --> 00:12:10,280 Speaker 1: it is and what it is? And now what is 179 00:12:10,320 --> 00:12:13,319 Speaker 1: this you have? Like a These are draws of reads 180 00:12:13,520 --> 00:12:17,200 Speaker 1: for all called the wind instrument things, mouthpieces for all 181 00:12:17,200 --> 00:12:20,360 Speaker 1: different kinds of instruments. And what's your favorite instrument? Do 182 00:12:20,360 --> 00:12:27,600 Speaker 1: you have one? Well, you know that's a good question. Uh. 183 00:12:28,080 --> 00:12:33,000 Speaker 1: When I was a young man and I felt that 184 00:12:33,120 --> 00:12:36,600 Speaker 1: I like strings, that was always my favorite to play 185 00:12:36,640 --> 00:12:40,280 Speaker 1: on strings, And I played lots of different string instruments. 186 00:12:40,280 --> 00:12:42,559 Speaker 1: I started with the violin and then I got in 187 00:12:42,800 --> 00:12:46,800 Speaker 1: guitar when I was ten. But of all the instruments, 188 00:12:46,840 --> 00:12:52,760 Speaker 1: I found that strings without frets that could be plucked 189 00:12:53,200 --> 00:12:57,080 Speaker 1: really appealed to me, but they it was an underdeveloped field. 190 00:12:57,640 --> 00:13:00,839 Speaker 1: So of course, now my favorite instrument is at Orange. 191 00:13:00,920 --> 00:13:04,160 Speaker 1: What I call is the Road. It's based on the 192 00:13:04,160 --> 00:13:07,920 Speaker 1: Indian sur Road, which is a fretless instrument that you 193 00:13:08,040 --> 00:13:11,840 Speaker 1: slide on, but it's very vocal. It's like a voice. 194 00:13:11,840 --> 00:13:14,800 Speaker 1: You can pluck it. It's the stains and you can 195 00:13:14,840 --> 00:13:18,480 Speaker 1: play some beautiful, beautiful music. I'm not going to play 196 00:13:18,600 --> 00:13:21,640 Speaker 1: for you right now, but that's okay. I'll show you around. 197 00:13:22,559 --> 00:13:26,240 Speaker 1: Over the years, I've also been doing comic books here. 198 00:13:27,960 --> 00:13:31,160 Speaker 1: One day, my son brought home a friend of his, 199 00:13:31,480 --> 00:13:34,960 Speaker 1: this guy from Trinidad, and he showed me a drawing 200 00:13:35,080 --> 00:13:38,720 Speaker 1: of my son standing on a pile of rubble and 201 00:13:38,800 --> 00:13:41,640 Speaker 1: me standing next to him saying to him, cooler, you 202 00:13:41,720 --> 00:13:44,560 Speaker 1: better clean this mess up before your mom gets home. 203 00:13:45,000 --> 00:13:47,079 Speaker 1: And I just thought it was a funny drawing. It's good. 204 00:13:47,120 --> 00:13:49,360 Speaker 1: I bought it from And then he started bringing me 205 00:13:49,480 --> 00:13:54,320 Speaker 1: drawings every day. So I suggested that if he wanted 206 00:13:54,360 --> 00:13:56,640 Speaker 1: me to buy his drawings, he had to put him 207 00:13:56,640 --> 00:14:00,640 Speaker 1: in sequence. So he did a comic book. Then I 208 00:14:00,760 --> 00:14:03,440 Speaker 1: suggested that a couple of stories for comic books, and 209 00:14:03,480 --> 00:14:07,559 Speaker 1: we sort of started that way just been going on now, 210 00:14:07,640 --> 00:14:11,240 Speaker 1: maybe twenty years, and I guess what's run. Its course, 211 00:14:11,280 --> 00:14:15,080 Speaker 1: we've just done our last one, probably, but that sounds 212 00:14:15,120 --> 00:14:18,040 Speaker 1: like maybe not maybe, you never know. I have a 213 00:14:18,080 --> 00:14:21,000 Speaker 1: new story, but he wants to take a break for 214 00:14:21,080 --> 00:14:25,040 Speaker 1: a number of years and do other things. So he's 215 00:14:25,080 --> 00:14:27,600 Speaker 1: the artist, and I just tell him the stories and 216 00:14:27,680 --> 00:14:31,560 Speaker 1: let's go. You know, how has the village changed in 217 00:14:31,560 --> 00:14:34,040 Speaker 1: your opinion over the years or has it? Well, the 218 00:14:34,680 --> 00:14:37,840 Speaker 1: village really hasn't changed, but of course the world has changed, 219 00:14:37,840 --> 00:14:40,680 Speaker 1: and everyone knows the world has changed in so many ways, 220 00:14:41,360 --> 00:14:47,480 Speaker 1: but the village always sort of represents this energy that 221 00:14:47,800 --> 00:14:52,880 Speaker 1: is the same no matter what happens in the world 222 00:14:53,080 --> 00:14:59,720 Speaker 1: politically or socially. And for some reason, the village is 223 00:14:59,720 --> 00:15:04,400 Speaker 1: a where you got to imagine the density of the 224 00:15:04,440 --> 00:15:07,560 Speaker 1: earth under it. It is so great that when these 225 00:15:07,640 --> 00:15:11,640 Speaker 1: prehistoric rivers carved the Hudson Valley and everything like that, 226 00:15:12,320 --> 00:15:18,320 Speaker 1: they got to this part of Manhattan and they just 227 00:15:18,360 --> 00:15:23,400 Speaker 1: took away everything except this rock that you became Manhattan. 228 00:15:23,760 --> 00:15:26,200 Speaker 1: And it's just solid rock. And as it turns out, 229 00:15:27,360 --> 00:15:30,720 Speaker 1: gravity is a real force in nature, and the more 230 00:15:30,840 --> 00:15:33,960 Speaker 1: dense the rock and more solid it is, the greater. 231 00:15:34,040 --> 00:15:37,400 Speaker 1: It's gravity. So it seems like people are attracted from 232 00:15:37,480 --> 00:15:41,000 Speaker 1: all over the world to New York just by the 233 00:15:41,040 --> 00:15:45,080 Speaker 1: gravity of the situation. But the village is a special place. 234 00:15:45,280 --> 00:15:49,920 Speaker 1: Before there were any white men, all the Indian tribes 235 00:15:50,640 --> 00:15:54,880 Speaker 1: would come to the village to have their powers. There 236 00:15:55,000 --> 00:15:59,640 Speaker 1: was a stream that ran from fifteenth Street all right 237 00:15:59,680 --> 00:16:04,400 Speaker 1: through the middle of Washington Square Park and turned just 238 00:16:04,800 --> 00:16:07,400 Speaker 1: before the store. Maybe if you go down to the 239 00:16:07,480 --> 00:16:11,880 Speaker 1: corner of the block you'll see it. The river turned 240 00:16:12,080 --> 00:16:14,320 Speaker 1: and then it ran all the way to the Hudson. 241 00:16:14,720 --> 00:16:17,200 Speaker 1: Now it was a perfect place for Indians to come 242 00:16:17,600 --> 00:16:22,840 Speaker 1: from different boroughs, different smaller tribes. They would all come 243 00:16:22,880 --> 00:16:27,480 Speaker 1: and hold oh, probably a whole week powow, just going 244 00:16:29,040 --> 00:16:35,280 Speaker 1: getting high who knows what, music, playing music and dancing 245 00:16:35,440 --> 00:16:42,640 Speaker 1: and the whole thing, and discussing their individual political issues. So, 246 00:16:43,040 --> 00:16:49,040 Speaker 1: of course it's an interesting history of the village. The village. 247 00:16:49,080 --> 00:16:52,680 Speaker 1: The first man who actually farmed the village was an 248 00:16:52,720 --> 00:16:56,720 Speaker 1: African slave who was freed, who was brought by the Dutch. 249 00:16:57,480 --> 00:16:59,920 Speaker 1: And it's a very interesting story if you want to 250 00:17:00,240 --> 00:17:03,400 Speaker 1: The whole story is quite a fast shure story. Ye. Well, 251 00:17:03,400 --> 00:17:08,040 Speaker 1: this guy's name was Manuel. The giant, and he was 252 00:17:08,080 --> 00:17:13,320 Speaker 1: first brought to Manhattan when there were only twenty Dutch 253 00:17:13,400 --> 00:17:17,199 Speaker 1: settlers here, and they had come from Newfoundland, which was 254 00:17:17,240 --> 00:17:22,360 Speaker 1: in Canada, and they settled because they heard Henry Hudson 255 00:17:22,400 --> 00:17:26,520 Speaker 1: had sailed through the Varonazo Straits and recognized that there 256 00:17:26,600 --> 00:17:29,760 Speaker 1: was an island right down there, so they came in. 257 00:17:29,880 --> 00:17:40,400 Speaker 1: They settled. In eight sixteen twenty four, a guy named 258 00:17:40,600 --> 00:17:46,159 Speaker 1: Staghan arrived from the company to see what the colony 259 00:17:46,280 --> 00:17:52,959 Speaker 1: had done, and he wrote notes back to the Dutchy 260 00:17:53,400 --> 00:17:57,040 Speaker 1: India Company. And now this actual letter is in the Hague. 261 00:17:57,440 --> 00:18:01,040 Speaker 1: And he brought this slave with him that he purchased 262 00:18:02,040 --> 00:18:07,400 Speaker 1: or captured from a Spanish or Portuguese ship, and now 263 00:18:07,480 --> 00:18:11,080 Speaker 1: this guy was his property. So they came here and 264 00:18:11,119 --> 00:18:14,680 Speaker 1: they found that the Dutch had bought Manhattan in their 265 00:18:14,800 --> 00:18:20,280 Speaker 1: minds for sixty guilders worth of trinkets, and they already 266 00:18:20,320 --> 00:18:22,960 Speaker 1: had a supply to send back to the Dutch East 267 00:18:23,000 --> 00:18:27,879 Speaker 1: India Company of things like I have the figures written down, 268 00:18:27,960 --> 00:18:35,960 Speaker 1: but like two thousand minks furs and a thousand otter 269 00:18:36,119 --> 00:18:39,280 Speaker 1: furs and female arter fers, and it was like a 270 00:18:39,320 --> 00:18:43,480 Speaker 1: small fortune for sixty dollars. He's bragging, how what a 271 00:18:43,560 --> 00:18:47,560 Speaker 1: deal I got. But the Indians never understood this idea 272 00:18:47,640 --> 00:18:50,480 Speaker 1: of the thing. They just thought, like you giving us trinkets, 273 00:18:50,520 --> 00:18:53,159 Speaker 1: that's nice, will be nice to you. You welcome, have 274 00:18:53,240 --> 00:18:58,400 Speaker 1: a good time, eat, join the place. They had no idea. 275 00:18:58,480 --> 00:19:01,280 Speaker 1: So the Indians were still got in the village here, 276 00:19:02,160 --> 00:19:05,240 Speaker 1: and the Dutch came and thought that the Indians were 277 00:19:05,400 --> 00:19:09,960 Speaker 1: plotting to get rid of the Dutch, so they came 278 00:19:10,080 --> 00:19:14,199 Speaker 1: up and slaughtered a number of Indians here, and that 279 00:19:14,720 --> 00:19:19,080 Speaker 1: set a very ugly event. Now, this is the interesting 280 00:19:19,160 --> 00:19:22,280 Speaker 1: part of the story. When they slaughtered him, this one 281 00:19:22,320 --> 00:19:27,240 Speaker 1: slave Manual of the Giant, ran away and he crossed 282 00:19:27,280 --> 00:19:30,520 Speaker 1: the Hudson and he ended up just running into the 283 00:19:30,560 --> 00:19:33,159 Speaker 1: woods as far as he could. He was just freaked 284 00:19:33,160 --> 00:19:37,880 Speaker 1: out from the whole experience. And he's thinking he'll never 285 00:19:37,920 --> 00:19:42,159 Speaker 1: see another black face, He'll never see a woman that 286 00:19:42,400 --> 00:19:45,680 Speaker 1: he could ever be with again. His life is you know, 287 00:19:46,880 --> 00:19:50,679 Speaker 1: he doesn't care if he dies. And he collapses of exhaustion, 288 00:19:51,119 --> 00:19:55,359 Speaker 1: and the Indians find and the Indians have never seen 289 00:19:55,400 --> 00:19:58,720 Speaker 1: a black man, and they think he must be a 290 00:19:58,760 --> 00:20:02,720 Speaker 1: white man's I know that when white men have albinos, 291 00:20:03,200 --> 00:20:06,480 Speaker 1: they look like black men. So they take them to 292 00:20:06,560 --> 00:20:11,040 Speaker 1: their albino, who is a shaman in the tribe, and 293 00:20:11,080 --> 00:20:14,160 Speaker 1: he then is healed, brought back to life. He learns 294 00:20:14,200 --> 00:20:17,280 Speaker 1: to speak some of the language, and he's taught about 295 00:20:17,400 --> 00:20:21,080 Speaker 1: things that nobody ever knew before, like what's the weather 296 00:20:21,320 --> 00:20:26,639 Speaker 1: like here, what are seasons like, what's to be expected? 297 00:20:27,119 --> 00:20:29,280 Speaker 1: So he learned all these things from the Indians, but 298 00:20:29,359 --> 00:20:33,080 Speaker 1: he realized that he still had a debt to pay 299 00:20:33,160 --> 00:20:37,600 Speaker 1: because he had been freed by this guy Staghan in 300 00:20:37,680 --> 00:20:40,560 Speaker 1: a sense, and he had to pay this guy back. 301 00:20:41,240 --> 00:20:44,560 Speaker 1: So he said, my duty now is to go and 302 00:20:44,680 --> 00:20:48,399 Speaker 1: tell the Dutch that these Indians aren't bad guys and 303 00:20:48,440 --> 00:20:50,840 Speaker 1: they should learn from them and learn to live with 304 00:20:50,920 --> 00:20:53,760 Speaker 1: them instead of slaughtering him. They made a big mistake. 305 00:20:54,560 --> 00:20:59,639 Speaker 1: So he comes back and now there are nine other Indians, 306 00:21:01,359 --> 00:21:05,359 Speaker 1: not Indians, nine other black slaves living down by Wall Street, 307 00:21:05,400 --> 00:21:07,919 Speaker 1: and the Dutch have built the wall there now because 308 00:21:07,960 --> 00:21:10,560 Speaker 1: they're really paranoid that the Indians are going to come 309 00:21:10,600 --> 00:21:17,520 Speaker 1: for them. So he comes back and he starts telling 310 00:21:17,560 --> 00:21:20,720 Speaker 1: all these other black slaves about what he learned from 311 00:21:20,720 --> 00:21:25,080 Speaker 1: the Indians and how cool the Indians are and these 312 00:21:25,720 --> 00:21:28,960 Speaker 1: are people they can relate to that's didn't like this. 313 00:21:30,240 --> 00:21:33,359 Speaker 1: So all of a sudden, one of the black slaves 314 00:21:33,520 --> 00:21:38,200 Speaker 1: was murdered, and they accused all the other black slaves, 315 00:21:38,240 --> 00:21:40,640 Speaker 1: and every one of them said, no, I didn't do it. 316 00:21:40,880 --> 00:21:43,600 Speaker 1: I didn't do it. I have no idea who did it. 317 00:21:44,440 --> 00:21:50,240 Speaker 1: And they decide the Dutch said, God's will that somebody 318 00:21:50,359 --> 00:21:55,760 Speaker 1: has to be punished. So they draw straws, and of 319 00:21:55,800 --> 00:22:02,640 Speaker 1: course the shortest draw goes to Manual the giant, and 320 00:22:04,560 --> 00:22:06,720 Speaker 1: it was all set up to be that way, but 321 00:22:06,840 --> 00:22:11,199 Speaker 1: he's so big that they tied two ropes, put the 322 00:22:11,280 --> 00:22:14,399 Speaker 1: ropes around his neck and kicked the ladder out and 323 00:22:14,800 --> 00:22:18,960 Speaker 1: both ropes break. This true story. Whoever fuck with the 324 00:22:19,080 --> 00:22:23,399 Speaker 1: ropes the night before? What? Who knows? But both ropes break, 325 00:22:23,480 --> 00:22:26,680 Speaker 1: and of course all the slaves h see it's God's 326 00:22:26,720 --> 00:22:32,320 Speaker 1: will that he lived. So a couple of years later 327 00:22:32,880 --> 00:22:36,439 Speaker 1: they brought new slaves and they freed all nine guys, 328 00:22:36,840 --> 00:22:39,920 Speaker 1: and they all came up here to the village, which 329 00:22:40,080 --> 00:22:42,879 Speaker 1: was still kind of swampy land. You know, it wasn't 330 00:22:42,960 --> 00:22:47,040 Speaker 1: really wild thick forest. It was more swampy, and there 331 00:22:47,040 --> 00:22:50,560 Speaker 1: were lots of cleared hills, probably up to Washington Place. 332 00:22:50,640 --> 00:22:57,199 Speaker 1: There was a nice sloping hill, and so they farmed it. 333 00:22:57,720 --> 00:23:00,639 Speaker 1: And they were the very first ones to form and 334 00:23:01,000 --> 00:23:04,719 Speaker 1: Manual the Giant farmed all of Washington Square Park all 335 00:23:04,800 --> 00:23:07,160 Speaker 1: the way through where this story is, down to Bedford 336 00:23:07,200 --> 00:23:10,199 Speaker 1: Street and the other nine to I don't know, just 337 00:23:10,240 --> 00:23:14,520 Speaker 1: different areas. Eventually, some rich guy came and bought the 338 00:23:14,600 --> 00:23:17,760 Speaker 1: whole village from First Avenue all the way to the 339 00:23:17,840 --> 00:23:21,560 Speaker 1: Hudson and made it his country estate. Just built a 340 00:23:21,600 --> 00:23:24,880 Speaker 1: big mansion and just let it run wild, and just 341 00:23:25,119 --> 00:23:29,040 Speaker 1: rode around the horseback and enjoy it. But this is 342 00:23:29,080 --> 00:23:33,159 Speaker 1: the beginning in the history of the village. It hasn't 343 00:23:33,240 --> 00:23:37,360 Speaker 1: changed much since then. I loved that story. That is sensational. 344 00:23:39,040 --> 00:23:41,879 Speaker 1: So one of the things I ask a lot of 345 00:23:41,880 --> 00:23:46,720 Speaker 1: the guests on the podcast Taking a Walk is what 346 00:23:46,840 --> 00:23:50,879 Speaker 1: music means to them and the power of music and 347 00:23:51,080 --> 00:23:54,000 Speaker 1: what it you know, what it does, how it makes 348 00:23:54,080 --> 00:24:00,600 Speaker 1: us feel. Can you speak to what music means to you? Question? 349 00:24:00,760 --> 00:24:06,320 Speaker 1: But let's start so small, like songs. It's kind of 350 00:24:06,359 --> 00:24:13,720 Speaker 1: amazing how it's hard to remember poems, but everybody remembers songs. 351 00:24:13,880 --> 00:24:17,320 Speaker 1: They remember all the words, they remember the melody. Maybe 352 00:24:17,359 --> 00:24:19,960 Speaker 1: they've only heard it two or three times. Driving in 353 00:24:20,000 --> 00:24:23,000 Speaker 1: a car or something like that. But they remember, especially 354 00:24:23,080 --> 00:24:28,520 Speaker 1: if it has some significant vibration, which is the essence 355 00:24:28,640 --> 00:24:33,800 Speaker 1: of the vibration of people's existence. Now that's what music is. 356 00:24:33,840 --> 00:24:39,879 Speaker 1: It's just you know, another frequency level of the just 357 00:24:39,920 --> 00:24:45,159 Speaker 1: the vibrations of our lives. Life is so complicated, you know, 358 00:24:45,720 --> 00:24:49,840 Speaker 1: Jupiter has a very strong gravitational force that we still 359 00:24:49,880 --> 00:24:55,120 Speaker 1: feel on the Earth. We're in Jupiter's gravitational feel when 360 00:24:55,160 --> 00:24:59,879 Speaker 1: people talk about astrology or something. But the complexity of 361 00:25:00,200 --> 00:25:07,240 Speaker 1: vibration of existence and everybody's life is somehow just touch 362 00:25:07,720 --> 00:25:11,320 Speaker 1: just a glimpse in this little range of sound that 363 00:25:11,359 --> 00:25:16,880 Speaker 1: we were able to hear, and it is what it is. 364 00:25:17,240 --> 00:25:19,800 Speaker 1: You know. We have our interests in smell, we have 365 00:25:19,920 --> 00:25:23,919 Speaker 1: our interests and taste. We have certainly the eyes, but 366 00:25:24,560 --> 00:25:28,240 Speaker 1: the years give us a subtler level in which we 367 00:25:28,400 --> 00:25:34,359 Speaker 1: can really sometimes sense the most intimate natures of the 368 00:25:34,480 --> 00:25:40,320 Speaker 1: being who presents it. And the funny thing is, as 369 00:25:40,320 --> 00:25:44,920 Speaker 1: a musician, I learned that the only ingredient that's necessary 370 00:25:45,080 --> 00:25:49,920 Speaker 1: is that the musician listen. It just takes listening. Everything 371 00:25:49,960 --> 00:25:55,879 Speaker 1: else is in the hand of divine existence. All you 372 00:25:55,960 --> 00:25:58,040 Speaker 1: got to do is listen, and you hear it, and 373 00:25:58,080 --> 00:26:04,000 Speaker 1: then it'll touch other people. That's an amazing description. If 374 00:26:05,119 --> 00:26:07,919 Speaker 1: those of you that are not in New York or 375 00:26:07,920 --> 00:26:10,280 Speaker 1: near the village, when you come to New York, come 376 00:26:10,320 --> 00:26:14,720 Speaker 1: to the music end. Yeah, my computer which is randomly 377 00:26:15,320 --> 00:26:21,000 Speaker 1: on screensavers saying hello, I love it, Jeff Sladni, thank 378 00:26:21,040 --> 00:26:23,920 Speaker 1: you for being part of taking a walk. I appreciate it. 379 00:26:24,000 --> 00:26:28,840 Speaker 1: Good pleasure. Taking a Walk with Buzznight is available on Spotify, 380 00:26:29,440 --> 00:26:33,160 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.