Busk for Jesse Morris + Benefit Show This Friday

The outpouring of photos and letters — including one from Jesse’s aunt — hasn’t stopped since we posted about the passing of the beloved “Punk Rock Johnny Cash.” In our original post, you can read many of the letters from his friends or just passerbys whose days were brightened simply by hearing Jesse Morris at the BART station. Jesse Morris and The Man Cougars were due to play at the Uptown in Oakland tomorrow night, and the bands in the lineup have decided to make the show into a benefit show for Jesse’s family.

Sluggo from The Grannies, who were scheduled to play with Jesse on Friday, sent us the poster above with this note:

The poster features a shot I took of him earlier this year. Before the show, i asked Jesse if i could photograph his set. He looked directly at me and somberly said, “I don’t like my picture taken.” There was an awkward silence, then he added, “Jus’ kiddin’ ” and winked.

The Grannies and The Undead Boys will be donating 100 percent of their door proceeds to Jesse’s family to help with expenses.

The show is this Friday, Nov. 11, at 9 p.m. at the Uptown: 1928 Telegraph Avenue Oakland. (BART: 19th Street Station).

This Sunday night, Radio Valencia will be doing a tribute show for Jesse. You can listen, call in, and join the Radio Valencia crew from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The studio line is (415) 875-9051. You can listen to Radio Valencia at RadioValencia.fm.

We also received a letter from Jesse’s aunt, Jeannie.

Dear Friends:

It is so poignant, reading all of your viewer’s comments. I am Jesse’s Aunt Jeannie. Jesse and his girlfriend came up to Ashland to visit this past summer. I could feel his sadness. But that’s not what I want to share.

Jesse Morris was glorious, absolutely glorious. He always has been. You’d look at Jesse and be intimidated. Two minutes was all it would take to fall head-over-heels in love with him. You’d find yourself with an excited anxiety, anticipating his return.

Jesse always made us laugh. I have a Jesse (girl) who is married to a Jesse (boy). One summer, all of them were hanging out at my house (his brother, Jameson too) playing pool, laughing it up…chillin’. I’d say, “Hey Jess!” and three people would turn around. We loved that.

Jesse’s talent was phenomenal. Everyone knows it. His imitation of Cash was obvious, it was his own songwriting skills that blew you out of the water. They were always from his heart, always.

Melancholy would be the best way I can describe Jesse’s other side. He’d show it sometimes in anger; he’d rant, but there was this tender melancholy about him that made you cringe in your desperation to make it ok.

I can say that Jesse’s passing has destroyed us. His brother, his mom, grandma, uncle, my daughter and son, Richie, and me. I’m not ready to let go of him. I’m not ready to let go of his charm, his humor, his tenderness…his glorious self. I can’t say -he’ll be missed. “Missed,” Jesse would say – That’s fucking lame. Empty, empty, empty. Empty and flat and far less magnificent is the world now.

Y’all grab your guitars, drums, basses, cymbals…pots and pans. Go down to the Bart station and do you best impression of my nephew. Record it so that everyone can see what asses you all are – and how much you loved him. He woulda loved that!

Thank you for appreciating glory.
Jeannie Azzopardi

If you are a musician and would like to busk in Jesse’s honor, please send us a video so we can share it here on Muni Diaries. And be sure to share the information about the benefit show and radio tribute.

Ed Lee, San Francisco’s New Mayor, Talks Muni

Reception after Ed Lee sworn in as San Francisco Mayor 44
Photo by Steve Rhodes

So, what does Ed Lee, San Francisco’s new mayor, have to say about Muni?

[crickets] …

No, but seriously, we’re not the only ones who wished that then-Interim Mayor and Mayoral Candidate Ed Lee had responded to requests to talk about Muni. Before the election, Streetsblog SF wondered, “Where has Mayor Lee Been on Muni Questionnaires.” SF Public Press also asked the same question.

For what it’s worth, Mayor Lee’s spokesperson later told StreetsBlog SF:

In the next four years, Mayor Lee will partner with Ed Reiskin and the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) to boost Muni’s on-time performance and run it more efficiently with work rule reforms, new technologies and our Transit Effectiveness Project. We will invest in refurbishing tracks, buses and railcars. And we will expand the City’s public transit system for the future, with express bus lanes on Geary and Van Ness and the construction of the Central Subway to link jobs and housing in SoMa and Mission Bay to neighborhoods north and south.

We hope that now that he’s got his next four years settled, Mayor Lee will reach out to the community of people who care about Muni.

Muni Ran Over My Bike on the Bike Rack

Bicycle transport
Photo by Simon Li

Muni and bike rider Helen watched her bike get crunched falling off the bike rack on Muni the other day.

I am curious to know from other bike riders if they have ever put a bike on Muni and had if fall out and then run over by the bus?

I put my new Fuji Absolute Hybrid 3.0 with all the bells and whistles on it. I had only rode it for two weeks. It was rainy and dark, and the bus driver didn’t make much eye contact with me. I put the bike in and put the lever lock over the wheel at about 1 or 2 pm. I shook it to make sure it was stable. Then when we were going downhill I heard a HUGE crunch.

Sadly, my bike is really messed up, but the frame is still ok. I do have renter’s insurance, but that has a $250 deductible. Has anyone had any luck getting a claim money back from the City Attorney’s office for a bike falling off of the rack? The Muni supervisor on scene stated that it happens. I’m so bummed out because I loved my new bike and spent a lot of time fixing it up. It also had all of its original components. On Muni’s website it says that you use the bikeracks at your own risk and they aren’t responsible for any damages.

The SFMTA’s “Bikes on Muni” page has information on how to put your bike on the racks, with an accompanying video. We posted a how-to rap video in 2009 here on Muni Diaries. And Helen was correct that you’re putting your bikes on the Muni bike rack at your own risk, even though we’ve known helpful Muni drivers who lend a hand. Cyclists have also told us about bikes being stolen off the racks. Be careful out there, everybody.

Streetcar Avengers Fighting Crime and Missed Runs


Art by San Francisco-based artist Julian Lozos. Check out his Kickstartr page (goal met!) for more on his calendar project.

Delightfully historic and equipped with standout palettes and style, F-Market/Wharves streetcars rock in many ways. Local artist Julian Lozos took the cars’ unique qualities a step further: into the realm of superheroes. Bernalwood and Market Street Railway recently featured these anthropomorphic superheroes (see Market Street Railway’s detailed description of the superhero streetcars).

Pretty cool. It’s like choosing which of the X-Men you’d want on your side in a fight (JEAN GREY).

I pick #130 for its deadly combo of style and substance. MSR says it was part of a commission to expand service for the Pan-Pacific International Exposition: the event that brought us the Palace of Fine Arts and showed off a rebuilt — on landfill, but still — post-1906-earthquake San Francisco. Plus, it’s done a tour of duty on almost every streetcar line.

My favorite-favorite F coaches, though, have to be the PCC cars. Smoothest, cushiest ride in town if you time it right (PSST not around 9 a.m. or 5 p.m.).

Meander over to Bernalwood to see more local-landmark superheroes.

Muni News: Bus rapid transit, Transbay Transit Center, streetcar rehab

I see you.
Photo by Jason Rodman

  • Transbay Transit Center sails through hearing (City Insider)
  • Van Ness BRT environmental report now available (Rescue Muni || SF Public Press)
  • Proposed Van Ness rapid bus touted for speed, reliability (City Insider)
  • Muni and state commission close to settlement on alleged safety violations (SF Public Press)
  • Following Prop. G ruling, Muni’s $2 billion in federal funds safe (SF Examiner)
  • Woman Pepper-Sprayed, Robbed While Waiting For Muni (BCN via SF Appeal)
  • SFMTA saves $1 million during streetcar rehab project (SF Examiner)

RIP Jesse Morris — “Punk Rock Johnny Cash”

Update: A benefit concert and radio tribute are planned for this Friday, Nov. 11, and Sunday, Nov. 13. Details.

We’re saddened to get word that Jesse Morris, whom you may know as “Punk Rock Johnny Cash” and one of the most beloved BART buskers, died on Sunday. This morning, our own Ed Casey alerted us that friends and fans on Reddit and Facebook have been posting tributes to Jesse. We also heard from several of Jesse’s friends about the sad news.

Many of you have seen Jesse performing at BART — we first wrote about Jesse in 2009 on BART Diaries. Jesse was interviewed by BART.gov and talked about why he likes playing in BART stations:

“The acoustics are good down here, the people are friendly,” he says. “They stop and listen, they tip, they smile … I have a good time down here.”

Although Morris has a night job at a bar, and writes and plays original material with his band, Jesse and the Man Cougars, he keeps coming back to play at BART.

“I consider it a job,” he says. “Just like some people might work in an office, I work at the station entertaining people. I get to do what I love, and I can make a living at it.”

SFGate had just written about Jesse and his band, Jesse Morris and the Man Cougars, this January:

How did you name your band?
Jesse came to rehearsal and teased the “old guys” for having young, beautiful girlfriends, saying, “You guys are like a bunch of man cougars.” And the name stuck.

Photographer Bill Cendak shared this photograph of Jesse with us, taken at a band practice at Lennon Studios on Nov. 2, 2011. Jesse Morris and the Man Cougars were due to play at the Uptown this Friday. Cendak has been photographing Jesse Morris and the Man Cougars ever since the band started.


Photo by Bill Cendak

Jesse’s presence made a big impression on photographer Troy Holden, who pointed us to this portrait of Jesse at the 24th Street BART station.

“I see this fellow once each week playing Johnny Cash cover tunes. When I asked him if I could take his portrait, he flipped me off. Not until later did his gesture register with me.”

Jesse was referencing this iconic photo of Johnny Cash, taken in 1969 during his San Quentin performance.

Reader Jenner sent us a photo of Jesse and the Man Cougars at Bender’s earlier this year.

MC #1

Here’s an older photo of Jesse at the Montgomery BART station.

my johnny cash bart guy...
Photo by fiveinchpixie

If you are a friend, family, or fan of Jesse Morris, we would like to hear from you. Please comment or email us at muni.diaries.sf@gmail.com and help us honor a great musician who brought light to our daily transit experience.

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