NEWS: Behind the Scenes Video of Ahbez Documentary on YouTube and Vimeo

Follow the progress of the Eden Ahbez documentary, As the Wind, with this behind the scenes series. Part one of three is linked here: Vimeo link:

UPDATE: Rare Ahbez 78/Single from 1951 Found

At long last! A 78rpm single, written by Eden Ahbez, which has eluded me for more than twenty years, has finally materialized!! It is titled “Gravy Train” b/w “Two Shades of Blue” and is by Nature Boy and His Orchestra, on Mercury Records. The single was announced in Billboard magazine on March 31, 1951 and…

INTERVIEW: Re-Considering the Source (Gordon Kennedy Talks More About Eden Ahbez and the California Nature Boys)

The last time I spoke to author Gordon Kennedy, his book Children of the Sun was out of print. To date, it remains the authoritative text on the California Nature Boys and the transference of alternative culture from Germany to the deserts and shores of California during the early 20th century. Recently, Kennedy’s book was reissued.…

Happy Summer Solstice!

Here’s hoping for a new summer of love and thinking back on the original one in 1967… Behold! A version of “Nature Boy” by Grace Slick, lead singer of that seminal San Francisco psychedelic act, Jefferson Airplane. This version is by her original band, Great Society. Enjoy!

NEWS: Former Ahbez Dwelling Place in Venice Beach Recently Sold

A cottage for sale… http://www.latimes.com/business/realestate/hot-property/la-fi-hotprop-venice-craftsman-20141120-story.html Actually, according to the Los Angeles Times, this small Venice compound sold in late 2014 for $2.56 million. The article also claims that Eden Ahbez once lived there. Evidence for this claim is not forthcoming in the article and neither the current owners nor the author of the piece itself…

NEWS: ‘Eden’s Island’ LP Reissued on Vinyl

If you’ve bid recently at eBay on an original 1960 Del-Fi pressing of Eden’s Island, then you probably noticed its final price-tag hovering right around two-hundred bucks. And if that’s too rich for your blood, then here’s some good news: Captain High Records just reissued it to 180 gram vinyl. One of the nice things about this…

UPDATE: Another Ahbez-Penned 45 Recently Discovered

At this point, it is difficult to say when the well will run dry. Every month, it seems, I come across another Eden Ahbez record, lead-sheet, or reel-to-reel tape that nearly slipped through the cracks of time. “Song of the Stranger,” by Kuldip Singh, is the latest though doubtful the last. It was released as the…

NEWS: Book Anthology Features Chapter on Lost Ahbez Music

It’s been a little dry for news around here lately… So I am happy to announce a new book—titled Bohemian Highways: Art & Culture Abide Then Divide Along the California Coast (Guardian Stewardship Editions)—which features a 20-page chapter penned yours truly (Brian Chidester) on Eden Ahbez’s lost sheet music. The book will be available through…

INTERVIEW: They’re Playing Our Song (Craig Chereek Recounts His Friend Eden Ahbez)

I first spoke to Craig Chereek after he posted this short blog about Eden Ahbez in 2010: https://chereek.wordpress.com/2009/10/01/eden-ahbez-lives/ We’ve talked over the phone several times in the ensuing years and, this past winter, Craig agreed to let me interview him for the Ahbez biography I’m currently working on. (He calls him “ahbe” throughout.) The interview was…

When Eden Met Rod

It’s been a few months since poet Rod McKuen (1933-2015) passed away and it seems only fitting that the Eden’s Island Blog pay tribute to his influence on the world of spoken word recordings, of which Eden Ahbez also partook. A few days ago, I typed in a search box the words “rod mckuen” and “eden ahbez,” and…