The wrinkled, leathery face of pure bliss

You're goddamned right I'm in the Hall of Fame! Suck on it, Bieber!

When late singer Bill Haley's backing group, The Comets, was recently inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, drummer  simply could not contain his enthusiasm at the ceremony, holding his award statuette aloft like the Hammer of Thor and wearing an expression both joyous and terrifying Dick Boccelli (a.k.a. Dick Richards) at the same time.

I happened to see a photo of the aged rock legend in Rolling Stone and was utterly charmed by the way this man totally gave himself to the excitement and energy of the moment. In a way, it's a very comforting image. Wouldn't it be nice to have this kind of enthusiasm at Mr. Boccelli's advanced age? The future can be a vague and threatening entity, but pictures like this give us all hope. Maybe amid the slow decay of our bodies and the gradual erosion of our faculties, we might still take pleasure in the little moments of success afforded to us by life.

I was so moved by this drummer's example, in fact, that I decided to create a photographic tribute to him entitled TRIUMPHANT OLD MAN. I do hope you will enjoy.

And to show you that Mr. Boccelli can still do it, here's a very recent clip of the man himself in action:



Age ain't nothing but a number, baby.