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Sunday morning reading

There's a most excellent feature about the Huntington's "39 Steps" on the cover of today's Globe arts section. The prose is especially terrific. You'd be remiss to miss it.

We must laugh, or else we weep.

If you need a chuckle after last night's Red Sox-Yankees disaster, check out this bit of humor from the Celebrity Series blog: Clay and Kiri.

We rock. The University of Chicago says so.

As much as it annoys me to have to give props to my former colleagues at the Herald, one of whom is probably sitting in my old chair right now, this Jed Gottlieb story is a pretty compelling piece of information for those who like to study what's called the cultural economy. The sheer volume of musical performance in the city apparently blows away the competition. One quote: "Boston has more musicians, live performances and music-related businesses than renowned musical metropolises Nashville, Austin, Texas, New Orleans or Seattle, according to a just-released study by the Cultural Policy Center at the University of Chicago." The city comes in fourth behind New York, LA and Chicago in most categories. The study is here.

The most awesome feat of channel-flippin'-bloggin' evah

Busy moving everything to my new computer this morning - I'll be back posting shortly - but an early heads-up. This Sunday night you can witness the most awesome feat of channel-flippin'-bloggin' in the history of mankind (and I do mean mankind). Over at my job - MeeVee.com - I'll be live-blogging the primetime Emmy Awards, and at the same time trying to keep up with the possibly crucial final game of the three-game Fenway series between the Red Sox and the Evil Empire. And if that's not enough, the newsmaking Patriots (Champions! Cheaters!) will be playing their season opener at the same time. My remote finger hurts just thinking about it. This is going to be one of the all-time highwire acts when it comes to total couch-potato self-indulgence. So mark your calendars, refill your glasses and come join me. I'll be looking for lots of comments too.

Bonus link from the Boston Blogs Network: Sox vs. Yankees fans in Iraq.

Play "Misty" for him. Or else. Berklee honors Clint Eastwood.

Jazz fan, jazz man and "Bird" director Clint Eastwood will receive an honorary doctorate of music from Berklee at the 50th Anniversary Monterey Jazz Fest on Sept. 22. Berklee President Roger Brown and alum Diana Krall '83 will do the honoring at 10:45 p.m. that night, which suggests a jam session to follow. Like any other school, Berklee gives out doctorates to luminaries far and wide, and Clint has made a genuine contribution to jazz appreciation. But the saddest words a blogger has ever heard are these: "Journalists, please note that Mr. Eastwood will not be available for interviews." Isn't this the one time you'd want to...oh, never mind.

Tuesday's Concert Info Dump

Most important, Stevie Wonder has added a second show at the Pavilion on Sept. 23. Tix, $40-$125 plus a $5 "venue fee" go on sale Friday at noon. The other LiveNation shows include Kelly Clarkson at the Orpheum on Oct. 23 and lots of Trans Siberian Orchestra. You've been warned. Deets after the jump.

Jordan Hall A Facilities Fund Beneficiary; Citi Center Not (UPDATED)

Just last week New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall was touted in the Globe as one of New England's Seven Wonders, for its acoustics and overall vibe. "Attending a performance is like sitting inside a violin," Renee Loth wrote. Now in a perhaps less-than-exciting but actually important press release, NEC says it's received a $357,000 grant from the Mass. Cultural Facilities Fund to replace the hall's HVAC system, restoring air-conditioning to the 104-year-old venue. The grant is actually the missing piece of a $1.2 million project that's already underway; walk by as I did the other day and you'll see trucks and hoses and cranes around the back of the building. MassDevelopment and the Mass Cultural Council jointly administer the grant program.

UPDATE: This morning's Globe has the full story, which lists $16.7 million in grants from the Fund to groups like the BSO, the MFA, Shakespeare & Company, MassMOCA, et cetera. But the real juice is in who doesn't get a grant - the Citi Performing Arts Center. And the Fund's overseers are pretty candid that they skipped the Center's $600,000 request because of Globe stories questioning executive director Josiah Spaulding Jr.'s gi-normous pay and bonus package in light of the center's financial problems and programming cutbacks. With the center's board well stocked with pals, Spaulding could probably have skated past a few newspaper stories. But a kick in the wallet like that delviered by the fund might not be so easy to move past.

Coltrane in the Membrane

(With apologies to Cypress Hill.) Activities aplenty to honor John Coltrane beginning this Sunday, as John Coltrane Memorial Concert Week has been declared by both Boston and Cambridge. Most excitingly, The John Coltrane Memorial Concert at Northeastern's Blackman Theatre on Sept. 22 will feature the Ravi Coltrane Quartet and Amiri Baraka, along with the large ensemble of Boston musicians coming together to make up the John Coltrane Memorial Ensemble for this year's 30th anniversary event. Events kick off with the Sept. 16 Aardvark Orchestra concert "Coltrane Facets" at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. Other events include a Sept. 21 benefit by the Bill Pierce Quartet with Mulgrew Miller, raising funds for the JCMC Educational Outreach Program, and a Sept. 17 Tribute to the 30-Year JCMC Legacy with Your neighborhood Saxophone Quartet (Tom Hall, Cercie Miller, Joel Spring, Allan Chase) at New England Conservatory's Brown Hall. For full info: www.jcmc.neu.edu.

Meanwhile, for those of you who need a little reminder of what's being celebrated:

That's "Alabama." Coltrane was born Sept. 23, 1926 and died July 17, 1967. WGBH FM's Eric Jackson, who emcees the JCMC, will air a two-part Coltrane tribute that also features highlights from 30 years of concerts on Sept. 17 and 24. It can be ehard at 8p.m. both nights in New England on 89.7 FM and live worldwide at wgbh.org/jazz/.

Is It RiverSing Time Again Already? Uh, Yes

Revels and the Charles River Conservancy have set Sept. 23 at 6 p.m. for the fourth annual "RiverSing: Bridging the Charles With Voice and Light." Revels Music Director George Emlen and giant puppets Oshun and Poseidon will lead the festivities at the Weeks Footbridge, at Mem Drive and DeWolf Street. Along with Revels people, members of the Mystic Chorale, Halalisa Singers, the RiverString Band and many more will be on hand for the expected 2,000-voice sing. Gather in Winthrop Park in Harvard Square at 5 for a processional leaving at 5:45. Fro more information, call 617-972-8300 or visit www.revels.org. Volunteers are also needed - email jkelly@revels.org if you want to help.

Here's some video from last year's festivities:

Morning reads: RIP Paul Sullivan

"Gone Baby Gone" continues piling up terrific press. ... The Globe covers yesterday's Herb Pomeroy memorial. ... And talks with MIT's Junot Diaz about his new novel. ... The Herald has the breaking news that WBZ's Paul Sullivan passed away last night, ending his struggle with cancer. ... Boston.com also reports on Sullivan.