After 32 months in office and almost 20 years in local government politics, Christchurch Mayor Bob Parker appears to have discovered the virtue of transparency.
Parker was quoted in an
article (04/07/10) about the launch of his mayoralty campaign as saying transparency would be among the key issues of his re-election bid.
The irony of this statement was obviously lost on Parker - transparency, or more correctly, the absence of transparency - has been a key issue of his mayoralty and ranks as a key concern with citizen groups and members of the public who value the sanctified principles of democracy - responsibility, transparency and participation.
This week Michael was joined from 12:00 to 13:00 by
It's Our City Inc. chair Bill Demeter and from 13:00 to 14:00 by Hagley-Ferrymead ward City Council candidate
Peter Taylor.
Music interludes were:
'Save Me' by rock guitarist, bassist, singer, and songwriter of note Aimee Mann. The track appears on the 'Magnolia' soundtrack, which was released in 1999. ‘Save Me’ was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Song but lost out to ‘You'll be in my heart’ from the Disney movie Tarzan.
'I Need a Dollar (How to Make It in America)' by American soul singer, rapper, and musician, Aloe Blacc. His first album, entitled ‘Shine Through’ was released in 2006 by Stones Throw Records. Blacc began his career in 1995 and you'll hear elements of jazz, R&B, soul, and hip hop in his music. His song 'I Need a Dollar' is the intro song for the TV show 'How to Make it in America'. He is currently working on a new album titled ‘Good Things’, which is set to be released in mid-September 2010.
‘Dragon’s Song’, the sunny seventh track from Blitzen Trapper's 2010 album ‘Destroyer of the Void’. Blitzen Trapper is an experimental USA folk-rock sextet signed to Sub Pop Records. The band formed in 2000, characterising their music with psychedelia, sweet harmonies, and ’60s/’70s vibe mixed up with a creative edge and a southern twang.
‘Dog Eared Summer’ from indie rock/electronica band Brite Futures self-released 2010 single. Hailing from Seattle, Washington, the band released its debut album in July 2008. Their former name (Natalie Portman's Shaved Head, sometimes shortened simply to NPSH) is a reference to actress Natalie Portman's appearance in the film 'V for Vendetta'.
‘Cloudy Shoes’ - an intensely personal and spiritual track - from Damien Jurado's Saint Bartlett album. Jurado is a school teacher by day but reportedly follows his musical muse at night. He has been described as ‘prolific and dedicated’, spinning tales that colour his lyrics and which have earned him comparisons to short story writer Raymond Carver. His latest album, Saint Bartlett, is produced by Richard Swift.
‘You always Hurt the One You Love’ is a pop standard written by Allan Roberts and Doris Fisher. It has been performed by many artists over the years, including The Mills Brothers. The jazz and pop vocal quartet from Ohio went by several names before the CBS Radio audition that simultaneously earned them a three-year contract and an entry in music history as the first African-Americans to have a network show on radio. They clocked up over 2,000 recordings and sales of more than 50 million copies, garnering at least three dozen gold records. The Mills Brothers were inducted into The Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1998.
'Lookout' by nine-piece LA band
Orgone. The group blends jazz, funk, and R&B to celebrate the universal energy source of the same name promoted in the 1930s by Wilhelm Reich. ‘Lookout’ features on their album ‘Cali Fever’, which was released earlier this year on Ubiquity Records.
‘You (Understood)’ by Oklahoma-based singer
Samantha Crain. The song describes the experiences she's had over the 100,000 miles she’s notched up performing at venues throughout the USA. Born in 1986, Crain often plays as part of Samantha Crain and the Midnight Shivers.
‘The Leather-Winged Bat’ off Spider John Koerner's 1986 album ‘Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Been’.
Koerner is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as a guitarist and vocalist for the blues trio Koerner, Ray & Glover.
‘Hearts Are Down’, the seventh track from
The Beauties' self-titled album released earlier this year on Six Shooter Records. The roots/country band hail from Toronto, Canada.
'Bohemian Like You' by The Dandy Warhols, an American rock band formed in 1993 and claiming influences from a veritable roll of rock luminaries - the Velvet Underground, the Beach Boys, Simon and Garfunkel, the Beatles, the Shadows, and the Rolling Stones. Front man Courtney Taylor-Taylor describes the band's origin as a group of friends who ‘needed music to drink to’.
From Wilco's 2002 album, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, we'll take track five,
‘Jesus, etc’. Wilco is an American alternative rock band that gets its name from the voice procedure term ‘wilco’, meaning ‘will comply’. The band was formed in 1994 by the remaining members of alternative country group Uncle Tupelo.
