Tag: Mojave Desert

Ry Cooder’s El Mirage and Los Angeles

by Jim Benning | 11.24.08 | 11:46 AM ET

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This is one of the coolest travel stories I’ve read in a while. The New York Times joined Ry Cooder in exploring El Mirage Dry Lake in California’s Mojave Desert, as well as parts of Los Angeles, both areas Cooder has evoked in concept albums. Writes Lawrence Downes:

When Ry Cooder and I got to El Mirage Dry Lake, it was 110 degrees and heading to 117, hot enough to cook your head inside your hat. The Mojave Desert in daylight will cut the gizzard right out of you, Tom Joad once said, which is why the Okies crossed it at night.

The accompanying slideshow, featuring one of Cooder’s songs, shows just how powerful a good audio slideshow can be.