Bert Stratton

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Feb 21, 2014, 8:26 PM

An appreciation of depreciation

I like to pay taxes. I like filling out the forms. My dad taught me to do taxes. Some dads teach their sons to fix cars. My dad taught me to fix taxes. He even kept two sets of books: one...

Feb 13, 2014, 3:11 PM

I don't need Facebook. I'm always running into high school "ghosts" anyhow. A councilman -- who had been in my high school physics class -- introduced my band, Yiddishe Cup, at a suburban summer concert. I hadn't seen him in...

Jan 31, 2014, 5:07 PM

I’m in a klezmer van

Downtown Detroit has a lot of detour signs. Just when you think you're heading back to Ohio, you're not. You're on your way to Detroit Metro airport and points west. Don't play for peanuts in Detroit. You'll feel like a...

Jan 23, 2014, 4:15 PM

The Yiddishe Cup method

I've sent out two versions of my band, Yiddishe Cup, on a single night. Not often. It's hardly worth the logistical contortions: Yiddishe Cup in mitosis. I name the groups the A Band and the B Band. I should probably...

Oct 13, 2013, 8:21 PM

A couple musicians in my band freaked out when a critic called Yiddishe Cup’s CD “schizophrenic.” The reviewer, who said a ton of nice stuff, said we were schizophrenic because we attempted so many different styles. That’s all the band...

Oct 6, 2013, 8:13 PM

Yiddishe Cup Klezmer Bank

My father got a letter from a Piney Woods Arkansas man, extolling my dad’s homemade foot powder: “Mr. Lesbert: Do NOT stop making the powdor! Do NOT stop!!” My dad used to make the foot powder in the basement. The...

Sep 29, 2013, 3:00 PM

The agony stick: the clarinet

I had a pain in my right thumb that lasted one-and-a-half years. The pain took a long leisurely trip through my body. The pain traveled from my thumb, to my shoulders, to my neck. I got the pain from playing...

Sep 22, 2013, 3:00 PM

Yidisher soldat in the trenches

Gigging is all about not forgetting stuff. I’ve forgotten my clarinet. A band is a platoon going into battle: mics, cables, axes, tune books, jackets, instrument stands, capos, neck straps, amps, monitors, lights. My drummer — long gone — once...

Sep 15, 2013, 3:46 PM

Sports vs. music (Jewish League)

When I was growing up, “Jewish music” was like “Jewish cars.” It diidn’t mean a thing. On second thought, “Jewish cars” did mean something. It meant, for example, "The Boat" -- an Olds 98 owned by my friend Mark’s father. ...

Sep 8, 2013, 4:16 PM

The rag trade: peddling band T-shirts

I sell basic-black Yiddishe Cup T-shirts. Tees with the band’s logo superimposed in white. East Coasters buy the tees just for the look. The tee is a limited edition. Probably about 750 of them in the world. I don’t advertise. You...

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About Me

Bert Stratton is a musician and landlord in Cleveland, Ohio. He is an occasional contributor to the New York Times, Jerusalem Post, Cleveland Plain Dealer and City Journal. Byliner chose his essay "The Landlord's Tale" as one of the best magazine articles of 2012. He blogs at "Klezmer Guy: Real Music & Real Estate."