They Passed This Way: Microsoft

In January of 1975, Paul Allen contacted Ed Roberts, president of Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems (MITS) a company based in Albuquerque.  He was  trying to gauge Robert's interest in a programming code for MITS's  Altair 8800 microcomputer. Despite the fact that Allen had not yet written the code,  Roberts was sold on Paul's pitch and a demonstration was scheduled at MITS's Albuquerque office. Allen and Bill Gates along with Monte Davidoff then wrote the programming code for Basic Interpreter (a computer programming language) and Allen flew to Albuquerque to meet with Ed Roberts.  The program was loaded into an Altair computer at MITS and to the relief and joy of Paul Allen it worked.   Allen was hired to work at MITS,  he brought Gates (who was a student at Harvard) with him to Albuquerque in November of 1975.  They authorized MITS to sell their basic as part of the Altair kit and retained the rights to market it themselves.  While employed at MITS they also devoted time to establishing their own company, which they initially called Micro-Soft.  The fledgling partners opened an office in Albuquerque at 1180 Alvarado SE #114.  A year later  the name "Microsoft" was registered with the Office of the Secretary of State of New Mexico.  Soon after that Allen and Gates broke their ties with MITS.  Under the Microsoft banner they continued to develop programming language software for various systems.

Once Microsoft became successful and started to grow, it became harder to find people willing to move to Albuquerque. "Bill and I used to talk about the fact that a lot of people didn't even know what state Albuquerque was in" Allen said.  Bill Gates commented "Nobody was based in Albuquerque, so there were no real ties there." Although there was some initial resistance to the move, Microsoft relocated to Bellevue, Washington in 1979.  The now famous company portrait was taken at Royal Frontier Studios  "As a culmination of Microsoft's productive stay in Albuquerque." Thanks to the ubiquitous mugshot of Bill Gates, his encounters with Albuquerque's finest are well known.  A spokesmen for Microsoft once commented: "It is well known that when Bill was young he didn't have a very good driving record." Bill Gates actually had several run-ins with law enforcement in Albuquerque.  In 1975 he was arrested on charges of speeding and driving without a license.  On December 13th 1977 he was arrested after speeding in his Porsche, running a stop sign and driving without a license. (This is the arrest that led to the infamous mug shot). Gates was also involved in an accident (he was not at fault)  in 1977, when his Porsche was hit by a vehicle that ran a stop sign.  Paul Allen supposedly was traveling in the car with Gates at the time of that accident.  Most records and details concerning the  charges against Gates, have conveniently disappeared from APD files.

The man who gave Paul Allen and Bill Gates their start passed away this year.  Dr. Henry Ed Roberts founded Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems (MITS) in 1970.
His company released the Altair 8800 in 1974, it was featured on the cover of Popular Electronics (thus drawing Paul Allen's attention)  and would become the world's first truly popular personal computer.   It also became the platform that Allen and Gate's used to launch Microsoft.  Paul Allen and Bill Gates released this statement following Dr. Roberts death:  “Ed was willing to take a chance on us — two young guys interested in computers long before they were commonplace — and we have always been grateful to him… The day our first untested software worked on his Altair was the start of a lot of great things. We will always have many fond memories of working with Ed in Albuquerque, in the MITS office right on Route 66 — where so many exciting things happened that none of us could have imagined back then."

Merdur- The Cattlemen's Club

Merdur's 2008 album  "The Cattlemen's Club"  is a concept album  based on the "Dallas" television series.  Merdur is the enigmatic musical act that originated in Albuquerque. Although,  following the release of the "Merdur Side-B" album in 2004, the artist relocated to Austin,Tx.  Finding any biographical information on the person(s)  that make up Merdur proved difficult.  To quote Sir Winston Churchill "It is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma."   This is the work of an aggressively ambitious musician, who also happens to have a fixation with an American television series.   If you know nothing about the television series "Dallas" you'll still enjoy the album. However if you're familiar with the show, this album is a special treat.  The album is evenly divided between the instrumentals (mini concertos for guitar and piano, interspersed with snippets of dialogue) and vocals (musical interpretations of the plot synopsis).  

The opening track, "A Moment to Settle into Your Seats" is an ascending and descending mixture of piano and guitar. It starts with family patriarch Jock Ewing welcoming everyone to the "14th annual Ewing Rodeo." And while this may not be  your first rodeo, you better  hold on to your cowboy hats, because it only gets better. The tempo changes from a cascading sequence of piano notes to a sinuous electric guitar solo that winds it's way up and down like a neon barber's pole. The mood is set, so pour yourself a bourbon and branch and enjoy the rest of the show.  The second track "Digger" is presented from the perspective of Jock Ewing, founder of Ewing Oil, "I was born in a town...Addison...My eyes open...see the skies...taste the sun." Jock lays out the plot for the series, Jock and Digger Barnes (Pam and Cliff's father) start out in business together, "It was said that Digger could smell oil underneath the ground." They strike it rich, Jock screws Digger out of his share and his girl. Digger falls into a downward spiral of despair and alcoholism, the Ewings and the Barnes become bitter enemies. "Drink yourself to the moon, now it's too late, she is mine, mark the day, note the time. The entire narrative is backed by finger picked acoustic guitar, a percolating bass line, a sparse piano and snare drums.  The guitar adds  a flamenco flavor, which is quite appropriate, since Jock did stomp the crap out of Digger.

David Wayne played the part of  Digger Barnes (he was later replaced by Keenan Wynn) "Another season you will last...character...re-cast"  He was brilliant as the drunken scapegrace, who blackened the family name.  In one early episode he smashes his way down the driveway at South Fork, tosses a jigsaw puzzle on the ground and proceeds to "sell" Pam to the Ewings for $100.   Later it turns out that he is not Pam's biological father, that he had murdered his wife's ex-lover and buried the body on South Fork Ranch. A murder that Jock Ewing is almost convicted of, Jock is saved only by Digger's deathbed confession. "Eighteen" lopes out of the gate in a lazy wanton fashion, before it starts to gather momentum.  "lying around on the weekend, all alone"  The music is economically spaced, with a blunted electric guitar weaving in and out of the instrumental bed. It is a tale of sex and power, and the Ewing's equal lust for both, "He rules the oil business with an iron fist" while revealing that success in business and the bedroom are the same thing for the Ewing men. "If there was a women for you, she would be buried in crude, ready for you to drill into."  Yes Sir! gushers and dry holes, are we still talking about oil wells?  "Son of Sons" introduces us to Cliff Barnes; "Born, Raised...Always ashamed of this life." Cliff, being the son of a loser and an accomplished loser himself, reflects on the path his life has taken; "Ewings they'll never know what it's like, they'll never know." However, Cliff's schemes much like a drunken Digger Barnes trying to pass a field sobriety test are an exercise in futility.

We then segue into the next song, "Two Chords to Learn" which starts with J.R. taking a verbal stab at Cliff: "I'm amazed you're not a better loser, after all the experience you've had."  It then turns into a story of  how stalking can ruin any potential relationship, "I don't want to talk to you, so I'll keep on calling." The song continues, "I don't want to see you, so I'll keep on driving by, your house at night."  The tune chugs along, propelled by acoustic guitars. The subject of this cautionary tale decides to end it all "I've gone to the wilderness, no one hears me crying." One day hunters will stumble upon his remains "I'll make a document, written, tape recorded, so they'll know just what I meant, when they find my bones." To quote J.R. "Haven't you noticed, you have to be a man to play my game."   "And A Farmhand Winds Up Dead" is a ballad, pushed along by acoustic guitar and piano, delivered in a flat, emotionless manner. It  tells the tale of Sue Ellen's meltdown after she caught J.R. in bed with another woman. "Rain,Rain,Rain...She saw what she saw, she couldn't ignore the pain." Sue Ellen storms out of the house after throwing a drink in J.R.'s face.  As she drives away, Mickey (the farmhand and Lucy's lover) tries to stop her by getting into the car.  Sue Ellen crashes, Mickey is critically injured, he lingers in a coma until Ray pulls the plug (literally) on him the following season.

On "Call me Her Name" the vocals are delivered in a clipped cadence; "Stop...Stop...Stop...Start, break my will apart...ask my first name...don't leave me hanging.  The notion that the Ewing men are always in charge is challenged.  In the hands of the wrong woman, they can be manipulated "I do what I'm told in my blindfold."  "The Third" refers to John Ross III (J.R. and Sue Ellen's son).  J.R. reminds him "My only son, you are the chosen one, you must make our name live on", anyhow,  he's the only son that he actually claims.
"Unlock the Liquor" starts as a blues shuffle before J.R. suddenly appears and begins to crush Pam under his bootheel "Everybody can see that she is cracking up" he continues "Her daddy Digger Barnes is no relation to her at all" he takes aim and delivers the kill shot "Her real daddy is a saddle tramp and a thief and her mother is a whore" at this point Bobby has had enough and nails J.R. in the kisser with a roundhouse punch.  "You seem to be the cause of all the stress there ever was"  couldn't have said it any better. J.R. then reflects;  "When this life I live is finally done, We'll take my bones and build a skeleton" and with that we close this tale of Ewing lore, their bickering and backstabbing we will suffer no more.