The City of Yes
You’re reading the fourth edition of What’s Good?, a weekly recap of things I’ve written, read, watched, listened to, whatever. This week I talk about saying yes -- and Yes.
Graphic design is my passion. Also, I apologize for sending this out whichever day I feel like; my friend Walter shamed me for not having it out on Friday. Sometimes life gets in the way!
Last week, while giving a speech at A Better New York breakfast inside Cipriani on Wall Street, Mayor Eric Adams declared New York City the “City of Yes.”
“Yes is the can-do spirit that has powered us through many different eras, each with its own culture, commerce, and character. From the jazz age to the digital revolution. From Harlem to Wall Street to Far Rockaway, this city has reinvented itself time and time again. It's happening again right now,” he said.
“Call it recovery, renewal, or vibe shift, it's undeniable, just like our city is undeniable.”
What the mayor didn’t say yes! to are more details about these plans. It was a spirited speech but it left many of us with more questions. Where is the official housing plan, or a draft of these text amendments to the proposed changes? These also still require a public review and need buy-in from the City Council. Speaker Adrienne Adams was asked about the City of Yes hours after the breakfast, and she wasn’t aware of them — although she vowed to support any idea to facilitate the creation of more affordable housing.
City planning chair Dan Garodnick told us that he doesn’t foresee many challenges to these proposals, but nothing is easy in New York City – even if we’re now a city of yes.
Other interesting stories from this week
Huge news for NYCHA residents as state lawmakers this week approved a rescue trust (THE CITY)
Here’s why rents are so expensive in New York City (Slate)
LISTEN
After hearing the mayor say the word “yes” at least 21 times Tuesday morning, I have been listening nonstop to progressive rock icons Yes. We took a tally of who are fans of the band in the press room at City Hall and thankfully most of the reporters also said yes to Yes.
Here’s Yes live at the Apollo (but in England) in 2018.
Here’s Yes performing “Roundabout” in 1972
WATCH (and technically LISTEN)
In 1986, musician Beverly Glenn-Copeland recorded Keyboard Fantasies at home in Canada using a drum machine and synthesizer, self-releasing it on a cassette. It sold a few hundred copies.
The album was re-discovered by Japanese record collector Ryota Masuko in 2015 and is now considered to be a significant piece of electronic music.
It’s hard to describe the album without listening to it. When I first heard it, I found it so engrossing I played it a few times in a row to fully take it in. This weekend I watched the equally fascinating documentary of the same name, which mixes Copeland’s life story (he began transitioning to male in the 1990s) with a tour nearly 30 years after recording Keyboard Fantasies.
I watched on the Criterion Channel, but you can find it a few other places.
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Thanks for reading!