Obscure Music Monthly

The Rest of the Weekend: Old E Allstars' Set Break & the Graham Jam

2012-02-05T03:22:00.004-05:00

Thursday was just the warmup. During the Old E Allstars' break at Thunderbird Café on Friday, I got to play a mini-set that was supposed to be me and the Old E lead singer Kyle. Unfortunately, trying to mic a plain old acoustic guitar so you can actually hear it in a crowded rock club is not very easy. So it ended up being a quick little solo set where I got another chance to test out "Strange Moon."

Then on Saturday night it was the Graham Jam in memory of Graham Austin, where the set went well and — if I hadn't been out until 3 a.m. the night before at Thunderbird — I would have gladly stayed all night.

Click here to stream/download both sets, courtesy of Archive.org.

2/3/12 Thunderbird Café, Pittsburgh, Pa.:

Floating Bridge (J. Estes)

Strange Moon*

Feelin' Alright (S. Winwood)

Jack Straw (Dead)

2/4/12 Graham Jam, Gateway Inn, Gibsonia, Pa.:

Strange Moon*

Floating Bridge (J. Estes)

Sign on the Window (Dylan)

Feelin' Alright (S. Winwood) >

Alligator (Dead) >

Shakedown Street (Dead)

Down in the Flood (Dylan)

*Original

Tonight's Setlist: 2/2/12, Coco Coffeehouse, Leechburg, Pa.

2012-02-02T22:11:00.003-05:00

"Drivin' that train, high on cocaine..."

I've never done cocaine before, and I have no plans to try it. But listening to tonight's first set recording, it sure sounds like I need to watch my speed! Debuted a brand-new song tonight, "Strange Moon," that I think has the potential to become a regular in the rotation.

Click here to stream/download courtesy of Archive.org.

Early set:

Man Smart, Woman Smarter (Dead)

Rain Song No. 3*

Have Someone Play Dixie For Me (Dry Branch Fire Squad)

You Can Keep It*

Copperhead Road (S. Earle)

Strange Moon*#

New Mexican Shuffle*

Quite a Night (in Spain)*

Feelin' Alright (S. Winwood) >

Alligator (Dead) >

Shakedown Street (Dead)

Ripple (Dead)

Late set:

Mother's Meth-Head Blues*

No Expectations (Stones)

Race Among the Ruins (G. Lightfoot)

I Like It*

Althea (Dead)

Bird Stealing Bread (Iron & Wine) >

Uncle John's Band (Dead) >

Shady Grove (D. Watson)

Sign on the Window (Dylan)

New Speedway Boogie (Dead) >

The Other One (Dead) >

Lady with a Fan (Dead) >

Stella Blue (Dead) >

Jack Straw (Dead)

*Original

#First time played

My Trekkie Grandma Personally Approves of DP's Outfit Today...

2012-01-30T17:49:00.003-05:00

From Monday's Dan Patrick Show...

Upcoming Dates

2012-01-24T17:55:00.002-05:00

A few upcoming gigs:

2/2 — Coco Coffeehouse, 156 Market St., Leechburg, Pa., 8-11 p.m.

2/4 — Graham Jam, Gateway Inn, 5644 Wm. Flynn Hwy., Gibsonia, Pa., 6 p.m.

3/31 — Table 22, 4917 Wm. Penn Hwy., Murrysville, Pa., 8 p.m.

VIDEO!

2012-01-03T15:33:00.001-05:00

Check out this video of the 12/7 Wednesday Night Burn Session set featuring me and The Grifters at Sphinx Café in Oakland (you have to fast-forward to about the 11-minute mark to get past the test-pattern tone at the beginning, unfortunately:

Tonight's Impromptu Setlist: 12/23/11, Fodi's Bar, Shaler, Pa.

2011-12-30T16:54:00.004-05:00

Special thanks to my pals The Grifters for putting me on to do a quick set during their Christmas gig at Fodi's (a tiny place but a great crowd):

And It Stoned Me (V. Morrison)

Cocaine Blues (D. Van Ronk)

New Mexican Shuffle* >

Down in the Flood (Dylan)

It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry (Dylan)

Mystery Train (J. Parker)

*Original

Tonight's Setlist: 12/17/11, Table 22, Murrysville, Pa.

2011-12-18T00:02:00.007-05:00

So the mysterious de-tuning low E string on my guitar was not a one-time phenomenon. It was a downright plague at moments during the first set tonight. Haven't listened to the recording yet, but I'm hoping that tuning was not much of an issue this evening. I certainly didn't take as many tuning breaks as usual, but that could be a bad sign instead of a good one.

Click here to stream/download courtesy of Archive.org.

Early set:

Friend of the Devil (Dead) >

Take the Money and Run (S. Miller)

You Can Keep It*

Amie (Pure Prairie League)

Superman (D. Nelson) >

Ramble On Rose (Dead)

Black Water (Doobie Bros.)

Magnolia (J.J. Cale) >

Mother's Meth-Head Blues* >

Midnight Special (H. Ledbetter) >

Dire Wolf (Dead)

Southwest Sky*

Blackbird# (P. McCartney)

Good Mornin' Lil Schoolgirl (J. Lee Williamson) >

The Other One (Dead) >

Deal (Dead) >

Run Rudolph Run (C. Berry)

Late set:

And It Stoned Me (V. Morrison)

Pig in a Pen (R. Skaggs) >

Big River (J. Cash) >

New Mexican Shuffle*

Astral Weeks (V. Morrison) >

Crazy Fingers (Dead) >

Rain Song No. 2*

Drag the Lake, Charlie (Drive-By Truckers)

Bird Song (Dead)

Feelin' Alright (S. Winwood) >

Alligator (R. McKernan) >

Me & My Uncle (Dead) >

Althea (Dead)

Throwing Stones (Dead)

Loser (Dead) >

Lo How a Rose E'er Blooming^ (Trad.) >

All Along the Watchtower (Dylan) >

A Minor Samba* >

Christmastime is Here^ (V. Guaraldi) >

I'll Take a Melody (A. Toussaint) >

Mighty High (J. Ligon)

Auld Lang Syne (R. Burns)

*Original

#Request

^Instrumental

'Why do you have so many concerts by the same band?'

2011-12-09T12:05:00.004-05:00

Playing in the band...

I’ve spent a lot of time wondering why I like the Grateful Dead so much. Like many other Deadheads, I have a full shelf (and CD book) stocked with show after show, and I’ve often been asked, “Why do you have so many concerts by the same band?”

It’s a fair question.

In attempting to bring other folks into the fold, I’ve also had to answer a lot of queries about the scene at shows like Dark Star Orchestra, Furthur and the like. “Why is that person dancing like that? That’s not even a dance.” People who ask questions like this will probably never realize: that’s not the point.

In addition to listening to a group of world-class musicians perform, one of the other wonderful things about the Grateful Dead is the community they engendered. It is truly an all-accepting, always-kind nation of people who could care less how you’re dressed, where you work, or what your belief system is. But we’re all here now, and having a good time, and GAWDDAMN, THEY JUST RIPPED UP ONE HELLUVA ‘CHINA CAT,’ DIDN’T THEY, BOYS!?!?

What I truly enjoy more than anything is that everyone knows why they’re there. The band is there to put together a kick-ass night of music, to settle into a vibe that will define the evening. And the crowd is there to help them. It’s fairly rare that I go to a non-jamband show, and you do see big audience reactions there, but it’s usually for a certain song, or at the end of an obviously-rehearsed solo.

That’s not what we’re really about.

Sure, folks will get amped if they hear the beginning of their favorite Dead tune, but it’s really about where the song will go, about how far the band can push itself and still stay in the pocket. For me, that is truly what the jamband scene is about: seeing how high-flying and far-out you can push your sound and where you may be able to take it without even realizing.

The original Grateful Dead’s philosophy of never writing down a setlist is the full realization of this idea. And I will grant you, it could make for some very, very uneven shows. Then again, without that philosophy, you don’t get an utterly magical moment like the 12/29/77 show whose second set made a transition from “Playing in the Band” to “China Cat Sunflower,” which the band hadn’t even played since ’74.

And even with a band like Dark Star Orchestra, where the sets are planned out, the same philosophy still basically guides the band. But even better than that, there are occasions where the crowd guides the band. As I said earlier, people at regular concerts will give applause if they hear their song, or after a ripping solo. But crowds at jamband shows can have a tendency to push the band to go harder. I’ve been at plenty of Dark Star shows where they started what was originally a guitar solo… but then the rhythm player comes in with a slightly new idea, and the keyboards follow, and the crowd, which is already getting excited, can actually see this musical synergy happening right in front of them.

It’s a really amazing feeling to be bouncing along with 800 other people in unison and watch the band react accordingly. You see big sh*t-eating grins break out across the faces of old-school Deadheads, and you realize: this is what it’s about. It’s not about drugs or liberal hippie politics or interminable drum solos or ooey-gooey ganja balls. It’s about having a collective, inspiring musical experience with a few hundred kindred souls, doing your own thing and being completely accepted for it.

If you’re not tired and sore from dancing after a show, there’s a good chance you aren’t going to the right shows.

Tonight's Setlist: 12/7/11, Sphinx Café & Hookah Lounge, Pittsburgh, Pa.

2011-12-08T01:51:00.005-05:00

Difficulties with the UStream.tv feed? Yes.

Is it cool to be able to critique myself on video? Definitely.

May the gods curse the sh*tty audio cable I used for my guitar tonight. I couldn't find the regular cable I usually use, and had to go with the backup, which proved itself to be thoroughly unworthy. There was also another unfortunate instance of me blasting "Down in the Flood" with a thermonuclear warhead, this time in the form of an E string that mysteriously cranked itself down a half-step MIDSONG. I gave it a much more successful go mid-set.

Otherwise, good time, cool crowd, GREAT venue:

You Can Keep It*

Brown Eyed Women (Dead)

I Like It*

Mother's Meth-Head Blues* >

Dire Wolf (Dead)

Goin' to Acapulco (Dylan) >

She Wore a Wreath of Roses (Trad., orig. arr.)

New Mexican Shuffle*

Have Someone Play Dixie For Me (Dry Branch Fire Squad)

Down in the Flood (Dylan)

Row Jimmy (Dead) >

Quite a Night* >

Henry (New Riders of the Purple Sage) >

Wharf Rat (Dead) >

Me & My Uncle (Dead) >

Jam* >

Shakedown Street (Dead) >

Wharf Rat (Dead) >

Jam* >

Dark Star (Dead) >

Jam* >

Dark Star >

Jam* >

Mighty High (J. Ligon)

*Original

Click here to stream/download at Archive.org.

Come On Out!

2011-11-11T22:59:00.002-05:00

Tonight's Setlist: 11/9/11, Up 'Til Dawn Benefit for St. Jude Children's Hospital, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pa.

2011-11-09T20:43:00.005-05:00

"Whoa—what the hell is that thing?" said the '03 graduate.

Despite being back in the 'Burgh for more than a year now, this is only the second time I've been back on campus since graduating in 2003. It was for a good cause, though, the Up 'Til Dawn letter-writing benefit to help raise money for St. Jude Children's Hospital.

Click here to listen/download the set, courtesy of Archive.org:

Rain Song No. 3*

It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry (Dylan)

Althea (Dead)

New Mexican Shuffle*

Southwest Sky*

Rubber Bullets (10cc)

You Can Keep It*

Pig in a Pen (R. Skaggs)

The Captain* >

Spanish Ladies (Trad. English sea chantey) > The Captain

Galway Bay (F. Fahy)

Candyman (Dead)

Dire Wolf (Dead)

Shakedown Street (Dead)

*Original

Tonight's Setlist: 10/22/11, Table 22, Murrysville, Pa.

2011-10-23T00:46:00.004-04:00

"Wish I was a headlight,

on a northbound train..."

Aside from completely destroying the lead-in to the chorus of "Down in the Flood," tonight's set went well.

Early set:

It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry (Dylan)

I Know You Rider (Dead)

Rain Song No. 3*

Sugar Mountain (N. Young) >

Peggy-O (Dead) >

Whiskey Bill (Trad., original arr.)

Althea (Dead)

You Can Keep It*

Glendale Train (New Riders of the Purple Sage)

New Coat of Paint (T. Waits)

New Mexican Shuffle*

The Captain*>

Spanish Ladies (Trad. Eng. sea chantey) >

The Captain* >

Push Those Clouds Away (Trad., original arr.)

Boys in the Barroom (R. Hunter) >

Lie In Our Graves (D. Matthews) >

Southwest Sky* >

Eyes of the World (Dead)

Late set:

Amie (Pure Prairie League)

I Like It*

Crazy Fingers (Dead) >

Uncle John's Band (Dead) >

Like a Rolling Stone Jam > Uncle John's Band >

China Doll (Dead) >

Black Peter (Dead) >

Blues for Allah (Dead) tease >

Pride of Cucamonga (Dead)

Quite a Night*

I Can't Be Satisfied (M. McKinley)

Mother's Meth-Head Blues* >

Dire Wolf (Dead)

Down in the Flood (Dylan)

Rosin the Bow (Trad., original arr.) >

Dark Star (Dead) >

The Other One (Dead) >

Dark Star >

Mississippi Half-Step Uptown Toodleloo (Dead)

Jimmy Olson's Blues (Spin Doctors)

Click here to listen/download, courtesy of Archive.org.

*Original

Tonight's Setlist: 10/12/11, Frankie & Georgie's 4Wood Grille, Pittsburgh, Pa.

2011-10-13T11:01:00.005-04:00

'Many is the night we spent pickin' and singin'...'

Good gig. Small crowd, but that will happen when it's a Wednesday night. And it's raining. And you don't start 'til 9'o'clock. Regardless, good crowd, and that's what's important. Click here to listen/download, courtesy of Archive.org.

Even more importantly, I finally got a chance to work in one of my favorite little jams, the English sea chantey "Spanish Ladies," otherwise known as the song Quint sings in Jaws. I actually have the full version with all the verses, but last night was just the chorus:

Althea (Dead)

Rain Song No. 2* >

Whiskey Bill (Trad., original arr.)

Black Peter (Dead)

Mother's Meth-Head Blues*

Dire Wolf (Dead)

You Can Keep It*

Big River (J. Cash) >

New Mexican Shuffle*

Southwest Sky* >

Eyes of the World (Dead)

Row Jimmy (Dead)

Pride of Cucamonga (Dead) >

Valerie (J. Garcia) >

Pride of Cucamonga (Dead) >

The Captain* >

Spanish Ladies (chorus only) (Trad. English sea chanty) >

The Captain* >

Sign on the Window (Dylan)

Midnight Moonlight (P. Rowan)

Early Morning Rain (G. Lightfoot) >

I Don't Know You (New Riders of the Purple Sage) >

You're a Big Girl Now (Dylan) >

Crazy Fingers (Dead) >

'Like a Rolling Stone' Jam >

New Speedway Boogie (Dead) >

Jam* >

The Other One (Dead) >

Smokestack Lightning (Howlin' Wolf) >

New Speedway Boogie

I Can't Be Satisfied (M. McKinley)

*Original

Tonight's Setlist: 10/5/11, William E. Anderson Library, Penn Hills, Pa.

2011-10-05T21:39:00.004-04:00

'Don't murder me...'

Tonight's set went well. Even got to add a couple extra tunes when one of the performers called in sick with the flu:

Rain Song No. 3*

Sign on the Window (Dylan)

Quite a Night (in Spain)*

I Can't Be Satisfied (M. McKinley)

Althea (Dead)

Dire Wolf (Dead)

*Original

Saturday's Setlist: Bruno's 30th Birthday Jam Session with The Grifters

2011-09-26T16:51:00.005-04:00

The evening's tunes were affected, to one extent or another, by the lovely African spirit above, along with Bell's Two Hearted Ale and Pottsville's finest.

No planned setlist, just a perusal of our respective catalogs. The lineup is me and Pete Flynn on guitar, with Trish Imbrogno on bass (and various permutations thereof):

You Ain't Goin' Nowhere (Dylan)

Dark Hollow (C. White)

Dire Wolf (Dead)

In the Pines (B. Monroe)

Pig in a Pen (R. Skaggs)

Sweet Virginia (Stones)

Althea (Dead)

I Can't Be Satisfied (M. McKinley)

Postcards from Hell (Wood Bros.)

???

Deep River Blues (D. Watson)

Mother's Meth-Head Blues*

Dirty Business (New Riders of the Purple Sage)

Midnight Special (A. Lee)

Whiskey River (W. Nelson)

Nashville Blues (D. Watson)

Me & My Uncle (Dead)

High Time (Dead)

It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry (Dylan)

Nobody Knows the Way I Feel This Morning (L. Armstrong)

Deep Elem Blues (Dead)

New Speedway Boogie (Dead)

Y'all Come Back Saloon (Oak Ridge Boys)

Rosin the Bow (Trad., original arr.)

Copperhead Road (S. Earle)

In Color (J. Johnson)

Rocky Top (B. Bryant)

Black Peter (Dead)

Monkey & the Engineer (J. Fuller)

Dead Flowers (Stones)

Make Me a Pallet On Your Floor (J. Hurt)

(Note: There were actually a few more songs in the actual set, but the recorder ran out of memory at this point. In the immortal words of Sen. Clay Davis, D-West Baltimore, "Sheeeeeit.")

Check out The Grifters. They're the shit.

Tonight's (Impromptu) Setlist: 9/14/11, Frankie & Georgie's 4Wood Grille, Pittsburgh, Pa.

2011-09-14T23:55:00.007-04:00

Special thanks to Dave Tauberg and Pappy Weingrad from theCAUSE for asking me to do a quick, impromptu set during intermission tonight at Frankie & Georgie's 4Wood Grille in Squirrel Hill... even if its spontaneous nature meant the second verse of "New Speedway Boogie" had a line that, unfortunately, went:

"In the heat of the sun, a man died of cold/Sta—hm'k'dr'skn—uh—or staaand and wait..."

Oh well. Sometimes that will happen:

Deep Elem Blues*

Boys in the Barroom

New Speedway Boogie >

The Other One >

New Speedway Boogie

*David Tauberg on bass

Tonight's Setlist: Table 22, Murrysville, Pa., 8/6/11

2011-08-07T01:26:00.004-04:00

Table 22 is a pretty nice place. Wish the first-set crowd would have stuck around for the second set; they were starting to feel it a little by the end. Maybe I'm just an optimist... listen and download for free, courtesy of Archive.org:

Early set:

Rain Song No. 3* >

Sugar Mountain (N. Young)

Dock of the Bay (O. Redding)

Pride of Cucamonga (Dead)

Two Angels*

Big River (J. Cash) >

New Mexican Shuffle*

Candyman (Dead)

Early Morning Rain (Gordon Lightfoot) >

Jam* >

Early Morning Rain

You Can Keep It*

Boys in the Barroom (R. Hunter) >

Box of Rain (Dead)

Breadbox (N. Buffalo)

Quite a Night*

Row Jimmy (Dead) >

Throwing Stones (Dead)

Late set:

Down in the Flood (Dylan)

Southwest Sky*

Mother's Meth-Head Blues*

The Wheel (Dead) >

Magnolia (J. Cale) >

Lady with a Fan (Dead) >

The Captain* >

New Speedway Boogie (Dead) >

Good Morning Lil' Schoolgirl (J. Lee Williamson) >

The Other One (Dead) >

New Speedway Boogie

Cocaine Blues (G. Davis)

Sign on the Window (Dylan) >

Weather Report Suite, Pt. 1 (Dead) >

On a Foggy Night (T. Waits)

Love Please Come Home (B. Monroe)

She Wore a Wreath of Roses (T. Bayly, original arr.) >

Over the Hills and Far Away (J. Page/R. Plant) >

Brown-Eyed Women (Dead) >

5:55 A.M.* >

Jam* >

China Doll (Dead) >

Eyes of the World (Dead)

*Original

Unfortunately, I ran about 15 minutes overtime and didn't get to do what I was hoping, a super-special Shark Week dedication: the full version of the English sea chanty that Quint sings in 'Jaws.' Oh well. It'll have to wait until next year.

Today's Setlist: Books & Beans, Leechburg, Pa., 7/30/11

2011-07-30T19:05:00.003-04:00

Damn you, new strings,

with your stretching out and what not...

So, tuning issues aside, this morning's set went well. Tried out a bunch of songs for the first time, or the first time in a loooong time, in anticipation of using a few at next Saturday's set at Table 22 in Murrysville. Click here to listen and download, courtesy of Archive.org:

Early set:

Dirty Business (New Riders of the Purple Sage)

Big River (J. Cash) >

Down in the Flood (Dylan)

You Can Keep It*

Breadbox (N. Buffalo)

Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald (G. Lightfoot)

Rain Song No. 3

I Like It* >

Jam* >

Southwest Sky*

Drag the Lake, Charlie (Drive-By Truckers) >

Dark Star (Dead) >

Built to Last (Dead)

Late set:

Fast Train (S. Burke)

The Captain*

Feelin' Alright (S. Winwood)

Little Wing (Hendrix)

She Wore a Wreath of Roses (T. Bayly, original arr.)

Quite a Night*

Friend of the Devil (Dead)

Lawyers, Guns & Money (W. Zevon)

Boys in the Barroom (R. Hunter)

Ain't No More Cane (Trad.)

On a Foggy Night (T. Waits)

Sign on the Window (Dylan) >

St. Stephen (Dead)

Wild Billy's Circus Story (Springsteen)

Friends (Led Zeppelin)

*Original

Tonight's Setlist: Zogg's, Rehoboth Beach, Del., 7/15/11

2011-07-18T01:38:00.003-04:00

A perfect place for Jay and me to get right

for the Dark Star Orchestra later that evening...

Early Set:

New Mexican Shuffle* >

Down in the Flood (Dylan)

Rain Song No. 2*

Ramble On Rose (Dead)

Quite a Night (in Spain)*

Peggy-O (Dead) >

Leaving Louisiana (Oak Ridge Boys) >

Standing on the Moon (Dead) >

Lady with a Fan (Dead) >

Breathe (Pink Floyd) >

Pride of Cucamonga (Dead)

Candyman (Dead) >

Jimmy Olsen's Blues (Spin Doctors) >

Throwing Stones (Dead)

Late Set (Jay on rhythm/vocals, me feebly attempting lead and backup vocals):

The Weight (The Band)

Burn One Down (B. Harper)

Last Dance with Mary Jane (T. Petty)

Friend of the Devil (Dead)

Stir It Up (B. Marley)

Wagon Wheel (Old Crow Medicine Show)

Old No. 7 (Devil Makes Three)

Dead Flowers (Stones)

Barkley vs. The Diesel: Place Your Bets!

2011-07-14T17:49:00.005-04:00

The Obscure Music Monthly Sportsbook is open! Now taking all prop bets on Barkley vs. The Diesel if there's ever an NBA again.

Odds on:

• Barkley calling Shaq a 'big dummy' on the first show — 5:1

• Barkley and Shaq getting into a phony fistfight — 2:1

• Barkley and Shaq getting into a real fight — 7:1

• Barkley and Shaq simultaneously wearing womens' clothing and/or wigs — 1:1

The potential dynamic between these two is just about the only thing that could get me interested in the first two-thirds of the NBA's regular season.

The Delaware Years: Setlists from Back in the Day

2011-07-01T14:05:00.006-04:00

Del-A-Where-It's-At!

7/30/05, JW Pickles, Georgetown, DE

Rain Song No. 3*

Black Peter

Workingman's Blues >

New Mexican Shuffle*

Hearts and Bones

High Time

Lookin' Out My Backdoor

Magnolia

Might as Well

I Like It*

Amie

Ramble On Rose

Glendale Train

Me & My Uncle

Werewolves of London

Throwing Stones >

Not Fade Away Tease >

The Captain*

So Many Roads >

Knockin' On Heaven's Door >

A Minor Samba* >

All Along the Watchtower >

A Minor Samba* >

Knockin' On Heaven's Door >

Black Muddy River >

Quite a Night* >

Henry >

Wharf Rat >

Henry

Stagger Lee >

Friend of the Devil >

Uncle John's Band >

Brokedown Palace

Deep Elem Blues

8/6/05, Federal Street, Milton, DE

You Can Keep It*

April Come She Will

Deal

Magnolia >

Might as Well

Hearts and Bones

Scarlet Begonias

Big River >

New Mexican Shuffle*

Little Wing

Atlantic City

Bird Song

Rain Song No. 2*

So Many Roads

Big Railroad Blues

Madam, Will You Walk?

Stella Blue >

Man Smart Woman Smarter

Workingman's Blue

Dock of the Bay

Mama Tried

Row Jimmy

Friend of the Devil

Angel from Montgomery

They Love Each Other

Went to See the Gypsy

Throwing Stones >

Deep Elem Blues

8/20/05, JW Pickles, Georgetown, DE

Deep Elem Blues

Sugaree

No Expectation

Glendale Train

Rain Song No. 3*

You Can Keep It*

Mama Tried

Big Railroad Blues

I Don't Know You

Magnolia >

Might as Well

Uncle John's Band

Big River >

New Mexican Shuffle*

And It Stoned Me

Atlantic City >

Peggy-O >

Me & My Uncle

Althea

Lil' Miss Martin's Blues*

Workingman's Blues

Amie

Row Jimmy >

Quite a Night*

Friend of the Devil

Unexpected* >

Weather Report Suite, Pt. I >

Ruben & Cerise >

Easy Wind >

Stella Blue >

The Captain* >

Man Smart Woman Smarter

10/28/05, Jimmy's, Georgetown, DE

Big River

Althea

Run for the Roses

Lookin' Out My Backdoor

I Like It*

New Mexican Shuffle*

You Can Keept It*

Black Peter

Peggy-O > Jam* >

Went to See the Gypsy >

Peggy-O

Easy Wind

Amie

Good Mornin' Lil Schoolgirl

Loser

Stagger Lee

Magnolia

Alligator >

Me & My Uncle

Wild Horses

Friend of the Devil

Big Empty >

Breathe >

The Captain*

Henry >

Quite a Night* >

Wharf Rat >

Henry

Bron-Y-Aur Stomp

Mama Tried

Man Smart Woman Smarter

Might as Well

Scarlet Begonias

Ramble On Rose

No Expectation

Throwing Stones >

Deep Elem Blues

11/2/05, Coral Bay Bar, Georgetown, DE

???

New Minglewood Blues

April Come She Will >

Homeward Bound >

Big River >

New Mexican Shuffle*

Quite a Night*

You Can Keep It*

Loose Lucy

No Expectation

The Captain* >

Weather Report Suite, Pt. I >

Scarlet Begonias >

Ruben & Cerise

Candyman

Glendale Train

Ramble On Rose

Workingman's Blues

So Many Roads >

Friend of the Devil

High Time

A Minor Samba* >

All Along the Watchtower >

Graceland

Lawyers, Guns & Money >

Bron-Y-Aur Stomp

Throwing Stones >

Man Smart Woman Smarter >

Deep Elem Blues

*Original

Tonight's Setlist: Roff School Tavern, Meadville, Pa., 6/18/11

2011-06-19T03:57:00.004-04:00

"Load up, load up, load up

your rubber bullets..."

Tonight was a triple-bill with The Grifters headlining. I led off the evening, followed by Tim 'Soaked to the Bone' Bruno, whose set will also be posted at Archive.org along with mine (I did not have enough space left to record the Grifters set, which is too bad, because it was the shiznit).

You Can Keep It*

Garden of Eden (New Riders of the Purple Sage)

Midnight Moonlight (P. Rowan)

Rubber Bullets (1occ)

I Like It*

Mother's Meth-Head Blues*

Row Jimmy (Dead) >

Henry (New Riders)

The Captain* >

New Speedway Boogie (Dead) >

High Time (Dead) >

Jam* >

Brown-Eyed Women (Dead) >

Boys in the Barroom (R. Hunter) >

Eyes of the World (Dead)

*Originals

Tonight's Setlist: Books & Beans, Leechburg, Pa., 6/10/11

2011-06-10T23:29:00.007-04:00

Well, I made a bunch of Dead-related promos for tonight's set, but it was really more influenced by the homie Bob...

Tonight went very well, especially for my dad, who finally got his Springsteen song in the form of my Father's Day dedication at the end. Click here to download it from Archive.org!

Early Set:

Granny (D. Matthews)

Althea (Dead)

Jam* >

Southwest Sky* >

Eyes of the World (Dead)

Quite a Night (in Spain)*

Rain Song No. 3*

It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry (Dylan)

Boys in the Barroom (R. Hunter)

Garden of Eden (New Riders of the Purple Sage) >

Gates of Eden (Dylan) >

Garden of Eden >

Jimmy Olsen's Blues (Spin Doctors)

Late Set:

The Captain*

Brown-Eyed Women (Dead)

New Mexican Shuffle* >

Down in the Flood (Dylan)

You Can Keep It*

Deep Elem Blues (Dead)

Last Lonely Eagle (New Riders of the Purple Sage) >

Lady with a Fan (Dead) >

Pride of Cucamonga (Dead) >

Not Dark Yet (Dylan) >

Smokestack Lightning (Howlin' Wolf) >

The Other One (Dead) >

Me & My Uncle (Dead) >

So Many Roads (Dead) >

Blackbird (P. McCartney)

Mystery Train (J. Walker)

E: Incident on 57th Street (Bruce Springsteen)

*Original

Taking On Empire Online's '100 Greatest Movie Characters'

2011-05-16T17:05:00.011-04:00

Great villain. Best all-time and No. 2 overall
when you include good guys? Debatable.

I love lists like this, because they're entirely subjective. Movies mean infinitely different things to different people. While most of us could agree that Darth Vader is handily among the top 10 movie villains of all time, a random fanboy could make a persuasive argument that some even-more-random creature at the Mos Eisley saloon is the greatest of all time based on his personal life experience.

Okay, it wouldn't persuade me. To the nitpicking! And special thanks to the way Empire Online structured the list so you can easily move from No. 22 to No. 87 in one click. None of that "Previous/Next" bullsh*t:

No. 100 — Martin Riggs (Mel Gibson), Lethal Weapon — Looking back on it now, the only thing the wild-eyed, impulsive Riggs was missing is the anti-Semitism. Throw that in, and Riggs is less of a comedic foil and more of a prophet.

No. 95 — Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund), Nightmare on Elm Street — I'm not a big fan of the Freddy or Jason movies, but he should be higher than 95 on this list.

No. 93 — Martin Blank (John Cusack), Grosse Pointe Blank — See, again, I would put him much higher on this list. Then again, I don't have a great knowledge of films made prior to 1970. That's the other thing that makes these lists so subjective. The art-school film-buff's list is going to be vastly different from the average working-class 30-something's list. From Grosse Pointe on, Cusack has sort of played this character over and over again — the stammering, under-his-breath-hilarious, nervous guy — but his casual approach to murder and his chemistry with everyone else in the cast keeps this flick in my top ten all-time comedies list. My favorite meme? "Pop-pop-pop-pop-pop! Popcorn!"

No. 90 — Wicked Witch of the West (Margaret Hamilton), Wizard of Oz — Notable mainly for this Cracked.com article, in which the writer correctly asserts that the supposedly-'Wicked' Witch was really just trying to get justice for her sister's savage house-bludgeoning at the hands of some dumb hick from Kansas, who then proceeded to rob the corpse.

No. 88 — Jessica Rabbit, Who Framed Roger Rabbit — Would you like to find something out that will forever change your opinion of this character, as well as compound your masturbatory guilt? She was voiced by Kathleen Turner. That screaming sound you hear is your penis ("WE WERE TRIIIIIIIIIIICKED!").

No. 69 — Keyser Soze (f*ck the people who ruin this movie for first-timers, The Usual Suspects) — One of the best movie endings ever. Great crime movie, great cast. Great. But again, I'd put this higher on my list.

No. 68 — Napoleon Dynamite (Jon Heder, Napoleon Dynamite) — F*ck this movie. For real.

No. 63 — Wall-E (Wall-E) — If he wasn't a complete rip-off of Johnny 5 from Short Circuit, he might make my top 100. Not at No. 63, though.

No. 60 — Ace Ventura (Jim Carrey, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective) — I can recite this whole movie. "Somethin' ain't stirrin' the Kool-Aid, Ace..." Tone Loc deserved a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for that sh*t.

No. 55 — Frank Drebin (Leslie Nielsen, The Naked Gun) — Lenny Briscoe wishes he was half as cool as Lt. Frank Motherf*ckin' Drebin. And Lenny Briscoe was pretty damned cool.

No. 50 — Captain Quint (Robert Shaw, Jaws) — The book is better than the movie, but even Peter Benchley can't match the creeping horror when Quint tells his story of surviving the USS Indianapolis disaster. With a smile on his face.

No. 35 — Maximus Decimus Meridius (Russell Crowe, Gladiator) — My wife makes fun of me because on rare occasions, a movie will cause me to tear up a little. I'm man enough to admit that this is one of them.

No. 21 — Michael Corleone (Al Pacino, Godfather movies) — While my stereotypical idea of the Mafia has been shattered by the excellent movie and even-better book, Gomorrah, Michael Corleone remains one of the towering figures of movie crime. Watching Michael go from mildly tolerant of the family business to head of the family business (and the family) is something to behold. I would disagree with Empire on his "Finest Hour." For me, it's in Cuba at the Superman porn show, where Michael discovers what his brother Fredo has been up to.

No. 19 — Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson, Pulp Fiction) — What makes Jules Winnfield so great is that he's absurdly profound. When some dumbass comes around the corner, guns blazing, and doesn't hit either of them, he takes it as a sign from God. He waxes Biblical and philosophical with a gun pointed in Tim Roth's grill. My father says there's "no one to root for" in Pulp Fiction. I root for Jules.

No. 16 — Neo (Keanu Reeves, The Matrix trilogy) — The greatness of the Matrix movies (well, the first one at least) is their mythology, not Keanu Reeves. His delivery is dead lead weight, the action is CGI... I mean really, you can probably think of a half-dozen people to play that role who would have done just as well. I think Harold Perrineau would have done great as Neo, but no... Morpheus is the only brother who even managed to get himself off the ship. In the immortal words of Deadspin, "DAS RAYCESS!!"

No. 12 — John McClane (Bruce Willis, Die Hard movies) — "Welcome to the party, pal!" Indeed. No one wants to go actor-for-actor with Alan Rickman, especially not a young actor making his transition from TV to the movies. Bruce Willis was a household name after the first Die Hard. Kudos.

No. 11 — James Bond (Sean Connery, James Bond movies) — James Bond is for my grandma. I'm firmly in the Jason Bourne camp when it comes to international spy/assassin intrigue.

No. 8 — Capt. Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp, Pirates of the Caribbean movies) — Nos. 2 and 3 are a little bloated, but the deft, daft'n'dandy Cap'n Jack might surpass Hunter S. Thompson as my favorite Depp character.

No. 7 — The Dude (Jeff Bridges, The Big Lebowski) — This is my No. 1. I could watch this movie every single day and never get tired of it. It's great that John Goodman's epic Walter Sobchak also made the Empire list — I might even put "The Jesus" near the bottom of my Top 100, being as it's probably the greatest John Turturro character of all time — but The Dude will always abide.

No. 1 — Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt, Fight Club) — This is the rare movie that can go toe-to-toe with the book, and Pitt did a sick job bringing the male id to frenetic, chaotic life, but I wouldn't have it in my top spot. You could make a pretty good argument that Edward Norton is just as good or better than Pitt in the film.

The most notable snub, for me, is Edward Norton as reformed skinhead Derek in American History X. The film gets some criticism for taking shortcuts and there was also the controversy where director Tony Kaye wanted his name removed, alleging that Norton did too much post-production (a rumor that would surface again when Norton starred in the way-too-soon Hulk remake), but it's still a solid film and a fantastic performance.

Tonight's Setlist: Books & Beans, Leechburg, Pa., 4/28/11

2011-04-30T09:07:00.008-04:00

What's happening in this picture? Well, chances are good

that I'm throwing something at Bob and Joe that we

didn't do in rehearsal. I did that a lot.

For the first time, I was able to get a recent performance recorded. It's an audience recording with a Sony handheld recorder, but it turned out better than I was expecting. Check it out and download it for free at Archive.org.

Set I (Joe on percussion):

Hearts & Bones (P.Simon)

Crazy Fingers (Dead)

You Can Keep It*

Althea (Dead)

Fast Train (S. Burke) >

Breadbox (N. Buffalo) >

Fast Train

New Speedway Boogie (Dead) >

The Other One (Dead) >

Smokestack Lightning (H. Wolf) >

New Speedway Boogie

Eyes of the World# (Dead) >

Trio Drum Jam#

Set II (Joe on keys):

New Mexican Shuffle*

I'll Take a Melody (A. Toussaint)

Scarlet Begonias (Dead)

Big RxR Blues (N. Lewis)

All Along the Watchtower (Dylan)

Quite a Night (in Spain)*

Rain Song No. 3*

Row Jimmy (Dead)

Throwing Stones (Dead)

Feelin' Alright (S. Winwood)

*Original

#Features a random conversation from a couple people who wandered too close to the handheld

The set features Joe Sheehan on percussion (Set I) and keys (Set II) and Bob DiCola on percussion. This was the first time we've played together, outside of a few hours of rehearsal two weeks ago.

An Interesting Social Experiment

2011-04-20T16:13:00.003-04:00

...but not really.

I'm a pretty even-keeled guy. I don't get angry very often. But the one place where I find myself getting angry the most is in the car. George Carlin once said about driving, "Have you ever noticed that anyone going slower than you on the road is 'an idiot'? And anyone driving faster than you makes you say, 'WHOOOA, LOOK AT THAT MANIAC!'" That comes pretty close to describing my attitude toward other drivers. I hate almost everyone's driving except my own. I hate riding in the car with other people. I've been with my wife for nearly seven years, and I'm just now getting used to her driving.

But I'm not a speeder. I'm not an aggressive driver, per se. I'm just very aggressive about other people's driving, because holy hell, people do some mind-bendingly stupid things behind the wheel. And I'm not talking about doing your makeup or reading the paper, I'm talking about stupid, traffic-related decisions. I'm talking about waiting until you're entering an intersection to flip your turn signal... I'm talking about crossing two lanes when you merge and going 15 under the speed limit in the passing lane... I'm talking about stopping 25 feet behind the next car at a light and blocking every car behind you from making a right on red...

...and I'm talking about the assumption that everyone just rolls through stop signs.

Now again, I have been known to do a little California Rolling from time to time, but when I'm coming up behind someone at a stop sign, I don't assume they're going to do likewise. Just try this sometime: For a whole day, make a full stop — you know, the one you're legally required to make — at all stop signs, and just observe the baseless rage in the driver behind you. I did it all day today, and I wasn't a dick about it. I didn't stop for three seconds or anything like that. I came to a full stop, glanced both ways, and went.

Almost to a tee, every single driver's car lurched from having to hit their brakes.

Some people's reaction makes you think they're actually going to come in the door at their house complaining like it ruined their day: "Jesus, honey, you shoulda seen what this a**hole did on Eighth Avenue. He STOPPED at the stop sign. The f*cking NERVE!"

You can accuse me of being a petulant jerk, but let's just step back and take a look at the situation. All I did today was make the same full stop the state policeman had you do in your driver's test. Actually, I probably didn't even do that, because I barely glanced both ways, I mostly just used my peripheral vision. And that was enough to piss people off. Badly.

It just struck me as interesting.

Dead Album Night with theCAUSE: 4/9/11, Moondog's, Blawnox, Pa.

2011-04-11T16:19:00.006-04:00

"Lotta poor man got the Cumberland blues..."

Saturday was the first time I've been to Moondog's, in Blawnox. You can tell as soon as you walk in that it's one of those venues a ton of people have played before. It's got that well-worn blues-bar feel to it, great setting for live music, if not necessarily for a show that gets people moving like theCAUSE.

"Album night" was a blast, and not just because I predicted Workingman's Dead as the first album they'd play. It worked out on two fronts, actually, since not only is it my favorite Dead studio album, it's also the only one my father owns. He and my mother were in attendance, and I was concerned that he might lose interest if he didn't know any of the songs, but he recognized "Uncle John's Band" right off the bat, and I could tell he was into it. He's a huge fan of the guitar solo off of Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes song "Hearts of Stone" since, in his words, Dante Silvio — sorry, Little Steven Van Zandt — "just makes his guitar cry, and it fits so well with the song lyrics." Well, that description right there is the definition of Jerry Garcia guitar playing. Pappy Weingrad from theCAUSE has the unenviable task of trying to emulate Jerry AND Bob Weir simultaneously, but he does a fine job, and he's certainly nailed down the clear, cutting plaintive tone of Garcia's guitar.

The band was in a nice groove right from the funky opening jam that led into "Uncle John's Band." Parts of "New Speedway Boogie" were blasting off into the atmosphere... or at least I thought so, until Pappy and bass player Dave Tauberg took "Cumberland Blues" into hyperdrive, a jam I'm pretty sure single-handedly converted my mother into a Deadhead. She was stomping her foot so hard I thought she was going to aggravate her scoliosis.

We didn't stick around for the whole second set album — Skull & Roses, which is, I believe, culled from several 1972 shows — but a jam that led from "Playing in the Band" into "The Other One" had me flashing back to the Furthur concert a couple weeks ago.

Ultimately, "Album Night" is a little limiting, because it forces the band's hand in constructing a setlist that flows. If someone comes up with a great, spontaneous musical idea to transition into a song... it better be the next song on the album. That made for a couple of moderately awkward transitions, but it's still the best five bucks I spent all weekend.

Concert Review: Furthur, 3/30/11, Petersen Events Center, Pgh., Pa.

2011-03-31T02:58:00.008-04:00

"A little bit further than you've gone before..."

Hell of a show, aside from a strange bit of business where, during the set break, some kid right outside our section apparently, according to news accounts:

1) Got into a three-point stance;

2) Yelled, "HIKE!";

3) Ran straight through an inch-thick double-pane glass window and fell about 30 feet down to the sidewalk

The Furthur shows I've been listening to at Archive.org and Livedownloads.com have been good, but now that this group has been together for a year or so, they're really starting to gel. My boy always asks me to guess the first song, and with this tour, I had no clue; the setlists have run through the whole Dead catalog, and branched out in all kinds of crazy cover directions.

Set I:

Feel Like a Stranger

'Til the Morning Comes

Loose Lucy

Pride of Cucamonga

Big River

Althea

Colors of the Rain >

Mason's Children

Set II:

Estimated Prophet >

Eyes of the World >

I Know You Rider

Golden Slumbers >

Carry That Weight >

The End (tease) >

The Wheel >

So Many Roads >

The Other One >

Caution (Do Not Stop on Tracks) >

Gimme Some Lovin'

E: Brokedown Palace

Earlier in the evening, I was talking about one of the NYC shows, where the band blasted through the entire B side of Abbey Road, so I was singing "Golden Slumbers" at the top of my lungs. The blues break in "Pride of Cucamonga" is also a personal favorite. One of the friends who came to the show said he thought Bobby Weir is definitely leading the band, and that might be true... John Kadlecik is filling the Jerry role admirably, but it wouldn't surprise me if he's still a little humbled at playing alongside the guys he's been playing tribute to in Dark Star Orchestra all these years. Anyway, back to Weir—he may be leading the band, but they've definitely taken some cues from Phil when it comes to the jams and transition between songs. The transitions aren't quite as nimble as Phil & Friends, but the band sounds more like the Grateful Dead than any other post-Garcia incarnation.

Thus the debate rages: Furthur or Phil & Friends? For my money, the main Phil & Friends lineup, from 2000-'03, is the greatest of the post-Garcia groups. They were so versatile, so nimble, and just so ass-kicking. They did the whole Dead catalog, they did southern rock thanks to Haynes and Herring, and then every once in a while, just for kicks, they'd break out into some Miles Davis...

[A quick side note, speaking of Miles... any possible way you get a hold of show recordings from the Allman Bros. March 2011 run at the Beacon Theatre... DO IT. They are EPIC. Derek Trucks is channeling Duane Allman almost as good as Duane Allman did. One of the shows I have opens with a jam that turns into "Spanish Key" off of 'Bitches Brew'...]

...then again, Furthur, as I mentioned, sounds the most like the original Dead. Even the backup singers fit in. When I saw The Dead at Bonnaroo in 2003, the music was good, but the band just didn't gel too well. Joan Osborne just sounded way out of place. But this band has found its stride.

A FEW 'FURTHUR' NOTES:

• The kid who jumped out the window died from his injuries. The tox report is pending — I'm hoping he was just really drunk. It would reflect poorly on responsible faced concertgoers everywhere if he was tripping too hard and freaked out.

• Saw the drummer for theCAUSE outside the main gate.

• A couple song notes: What I presume is a new original, "Colors of the Rain," was pretty great. The only song I liked better in the first set was a hazy, spacey "Althea."

• There are advantages and disadvantages to having only one drummer in a Grateful Dead band. In a group like Dark Star Orchestra or theCAUSE, a lot of the songs and jams take on a '72-'74 feel, when it was just Kreutzmann drumming (with DSO, of course, it depends what year they're playing)... Joe Russo went the opposite route, working overtime all night and pretty much doing the work of two drummers. The result was a heady cross between that early-'70s Dead sound and the harder-swinging rock of Phil & Friends.

• The guitar filter Bobby uses, that sounds kind of annoying on the Furthur recordings, doesn't come across that way all in concert. With that said...

• ...the Petersen looks great, but it doesn't sound all that great. We were on the first level off the floor, to the left of the stage, and there was a fair amount of echo off the back wall. You also can't escape the fact that, at the end of the day, the Pete is a gigantic gym, with metal-girder rafters that don't help the soundman at all. It's like a mini-Gund-Arena, the venue where I once spent two-and-a-half hours listening The Hazy Echo of The Dave Matthews Band. My buddy went onto the floor during the second set, and he said the sound was a little better down there.

• A tough time: The guy from the event staff whose official job was "Stand Outside the Police Tape and Keep 5,423 People From Taking Cell Phone Pictures." That guy was having a rough night:

GUY: "Hey man, can you delete that, please?"

RANDOM HIPPIE #1: "Uh... okay..."

GUY: [Walks over] "Can I maybe watch you delete it?" [walks briskly to Random Hippie #2 and th same conversation ensues... this goes on for about 25 straight minutes until the second set gets going]

Pittcon, The Final Day: An Evening With Perry President

2011-03-17T09:39:00.008-04:00

So... it's 11:45 p.m. last night, and I'm not about to drink a warm can of Coke. I snatch my room key, and as I'm heading out the hotel door I have a brief thought: "Y'know, maybe you should just throw the flip-flops on." I pause for a second.

"Naaaaah. I got my key, what could go wrong?"

So I get my ice, head back, slide my card in, aaaaaaand... nothing. It's not working. And I don't mean like, flashing-red not-working... I mean, NO LIGHTS FLASHING AT ALL not-working.

Faaaaaaaack.

So it's down to the lobby with no shoes or socks on. The night security manager sees this and already knows exactly what the problem is. "Locked out your room, sir?" Yes... yes, I am. I explain the no-lights thing, and they make me a new key. "Do you have ID, sir?" No, no I don't. I have ice. See? Here's the bucket. No ID.

So the security manager, whose name is Perry President (awesome) accompanies me upstairs with the new room card, to let me in, double-check my ID and be on his way. He slides the new key into the door, aaaaaaand.... no lights. I see a look on Perry President's face that concerns me greatly. He says, half to himself, "This is gon' be bad."

Yes.... yes, it is.

So for the next 45 minutes, me and Mr. President shoot the sh*t while maintenance comes up and DRILLS THE HINGES OFF MY DOOR. I learned about his time in the post office ("They had a military mentality in there, man, half the employees were ex-military, and a bunch of them guys were in Vietnam... they were some loose cannons, man, that's why so many of them went 'postal'..."), his impressions of Atlanta ("I'm from New York City, man, and here... I don't know, it seems like they're just tryin' to be New York") and other lovely nuggets of wisdom, and soon enough I was back in my room.

Never so happy to go to sleep....

Cruisin' in the A-T-LLLLLLL: Pittcon, Day 1

2011-03-14T13:37:00.007-04:00

Seriously, this is one crazy-ass hotel...

So far, I'm a big fan of Atlanta. Centennial Park is really neat, and you can't argue with 72 and sunny in mid-March, especially if you're from Pittsburgh. I'll take that six days a week and twice on Sunday. Not to mention that the Atlanta Marriott Marquis is one crazy-ass hotel. It's laid out like an H.R. Giger drawing, only with much-brighter colors and no weird mechanical fetuses or aliens.

Pittcon has also been going well. No major SNAFUs except for the food-service people not cleaning up THE BIGGEST FOOD LAYOUT OF THE WHOLE DAY because "the door was locked and we didn't know what to do." Uh... how about you ask the people next door... you know, THE ONES WITH THE KEYS? Doesn't matter, though. Turns out several pub-staff members and a few volunteer media members can break down a room faster AND better than the food-service staff.

There is a pretty severe lack of shows coming to the ATL this week. I was pretty geeked up at the possibility of seeing a band at the historic Fox Theatre, but naturally this is the only week of the entire MONTH where there's literally nothing there. Oh well.

Another thing I've learned is that, with my massive, glorious beard, a lot of Atlantans think I'm Zac Brown, from the Zac Brown Band. Fine by me. I'll happily be mistaken for a country-rock star who included the tremendous lyric "And I told him lick my sack" on his latest album.

...In Which I Exhibit Hesitation at Pitt's NCAA Chances and Feign Outrage at My Dukies

2011-03-14T11:21:00.004-04:00

The look on Brad Wanamaker's face is emblematic of my feelings about Pitt's chances to finally make a Final Four...

I love me some Pitt. I really do. Pitt basketball is the epitome of the Big East hoops aesthetic: tough defense, physical play and a grind-it-out mentality that has helped them become one of the most successful teams in one of the NCAA's best and deepest conferences.

But that depth, combined with the fact that most if not all Big East teams play a physical style, can be a real disadvantage for them in the actual NCAA Tournament. Referees in the tourney don't let Big East teams play the way they've played the entire season. Or at least, not without calling a foul every five seconds. On top of that, Big East teams beat the piss out of one another to win the conference tournament, which to my mind leaves them worn-out when the first-round games come up. For example, UConn had to play five games in five days to win the Big East tourney. Barring a miraculous continuation of Kemba Walker's seemingly unflappable stamina, I just don't see them going very deep.

But what irks me even more is the exclusion of my alma mater, Duquesne, from the NIT (Not Invited Tournament). When they went out in the first round of the A-10 tournament, I figured their NCAA chances were pretty much sunk. But you gotta be sh*tting me that, at 18-12, and 10-6 in the A-10, they couldn't get an NIT invitation?

Are you really telling me that the Dukies aren't as good as, say.... say... uh... alright... I looked at all the bottom seeds in the NIT, and they are all better than the Dukies.

Dammit.

Well, I guess I'll just have to settle for taking a step forward this year, and leading the NCAA in assists per game (18).

I'll likely check back in later today, when I've finished agonizing over my brackets.

Tonight's Setlist: Penn Hills Coffeehouse, 3/2/11

2011-03-02T21:31:00.002-05:00

Tonight's setlist was part of the Penn Hills Coffeehouse music series at the Penn Hills Library. It featured myself along with Howard Davidson, Greg Davis, Gordon Neidinger and a guy playing banjo whose name I didn't get. We all played a short set:

Rain Song No. 3*

Friend of the Devil (Dead)

You Can Keep It*

Brown-Eyed Women (Dead)

I'll Take a Melody (Allen Toussaint)

Which Reminds Me... I Forgot to Post the Last Setlist...

2011-02-26T12:58:00.005-05:00

Oak Ridge Boys? Hell yeah, I'll do some

Oak Ridge Boys. Just not "Elvira."

12/9/10 Books & Beans, Leechburg, PA

Early Set:

Ramble On Rose (Dead)

Rain Song No. 2*

Race Among the Ruins (Gordon Lightfoot)

New Mexican Shuffle*

Southwest Sky*

Althea (Dead)

It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes a Train to Cry (Dylan)

Quite a Night (in Spain)*

Row Jimmy (Dead)

The Captain*

No Expectation (Stones)

Might as Well (Dead)

Late Set:

Rain Song No. 3*

I'll Take a Melody (Allen Toussaint)

Box of Rain (Dead)

New Coat of Paint (Tom Waits)

Leaving Louisiana (Oak Ridge Boys) >

Peggy-O (Dead) >

Deep Space Jam* >

Breathe (Pink Floyd) >

Peggy-O

Mother's Meth-Head Blues*

Midnight Moonlight (Peter Rowan)

The Wind Cries Mary (Hendrix)

High Time (Dead)

Atlantic City (Springsteen)

Loser (Dead) >

Lady with a Fan (Dead) >

New Speedway Boogie (Dead)

E: Stagger Lee (Dead)

* Original

Tonight's Setlist: Books & Beans, Leechburg, PA

2011-02-17T21:27:00.006-05:00

I had kind of a late-'74 vibe going during the second set...

Tonight's setlist, from Books & Beans in Leechburg, PA:

Early set:

New Mexican Shuffle*

Quite a Night (in Spain)* >

Franklin's Tower (Dead) >

Henry (New Riders of the Purple Sage) >

Wharf Rat (Dead) >

Big Empty (Stone Temple Pilots) >

Wharf Rat >

Henry

Cocaine Blues (Dylan)

Mystery Train (Junior Walker)

Magnolia (J.J. Cale)

Mother's Meth-Head Blues#*

Late Set

Sweet Thing (Van Morrison)#

The Captain* >

Weather Report Suite, Pt. 1 (Dead) >

I Like It*

Madam, Will You Walk? (Scottish, traditional)

Bird Stealing Bread (Iron & Wine) >

Crazy Fingers (Dead) >

Galway Bay (Irish, traditional) >

To Lay Me Down (Dead)

Glendale Train (New Riders of the Purple Sage) >

Me & My Uncle (Dead) >

Deep Space Jam* >

Dark Star (Dead) >

Deep Space Reprise* >

Black Peter (Dead) >

Stella Blue (Dead)

Bartender (Dave Matthews) >

Copperhead Road (Steve Earle)

* Original

# Request

Friday Night Fights: Hockey Edition... a.k.a. New York Goes 'V for Vendetta' All Because Rick DiPietro is a Bitch

2011-02-14T16:06:00.003-05:00

"NO ONE goes Tyson-versus-the-Black-Rhino

on OUR bitch-ass goalie!!"

I'm curious what the average New York Islander fan thinks of Fox Sports Pittsburgh's airing of "Friday Night Fights: Hockey Edition" this past weekend, an event otherwise known as the Pens-Islanders game.

My hope is that they would be embarrassed.

The Islanders launched an organized assault on the Pens, all in the name of revenge... and revenge for what? Revenge, basically, for Rick DiPietro being a slack-mouthed, glass-jawed bitch. DiPietro is better at getting injured than he is at goaltending, and if he really thought he and Brent Johnson were going to yuk-yuk-yuk it up at center ice after he clotheslined a Penguin with :16 left in the Feb. 2 game... well... then he deserved to get his face shattered.

On top of that, before the first-round bell rang on Friday, the Islanders were in the middle of putting a lopsided donut on the Pens. What better way to show up your opponent than to whitewash them? In fact, that possibility makes the Islanders' premeditated plan that much more idiotic. The plan should have been, "Okay, guys, if we get up early, don't be afraid to run up the score. Let them start some shit, and we can respond in kind."

I'm not even sure, though, that Maxime Talbot's concussive/questionable hit on Blake Comeau — which, along with the DiPietro KO, is what supposedly triggered Friday's revenga — deserves the thuggish-ruggish beatdown the Islanders attempted. They called up a Vick Mackey strike team of minor-league goons and went open season on the Pens, including career Neanderthal Mike Haley — you know, the guy who looks like an psychotic albino gorilla about to wallop Craig Adams in the most-publicized photo from the game.

Admittedly, I stopped watching the game when it was 4-0, so I had to watch the brawling on highlights. And I actually saw Mario Lemieux's statement prior to watching the highlights, so I thought initially that Mario was talking as much about the Pens as he was about the Islanders. Looking at it now, definitely not.

That's a little problematic for me, because Mario Lemieux employs Matt Cooke. Don't get me wrong. I love the Cookie Monster, but I'm not going to argue with anyone who says he can be a dirty player. But Matt Cooke has never tried to suckerpunch anyone like Martin tried to do Talbot. That was Bertuzzi-ish. That could have been a career-ender if Talbot doesn't catch it at the last second.

Maybe Mark Madden is right. Maybe it's time to ban fighting from the NHL. It's definitely time to do something more about blind-side hits and head-hunting. You fix that, and the only storyline for this rematch is whether Rick DiPietro's face looks like the end of Rocky I or IV.

Screw Baseball. And the Pirates. Mostly Ross Ohlendorf.

2011-02-09T16:16:00.007-05:00

Coincidentally, this is almost my exact feeling
about the last 17 years of Bucco baseball.

Ross Ohlendorf just won his MLB arbitration hearing, upping his new contract by about $1 million. He asked for arbitration — and won — after going 1-11 last year, with 4.07 ERA.

I know sports blows everything out of perspective, including contracts, but let's just attempt to put this into real-world terms. Let's say Ross Ohlendorf is a regular working stiff. This would mean that Ross was given 12 assignments over the course of six months. On 11 of those assignments, he failed miserably.

He then asked for a raise. And got it. His 4.01 ERA is literally middle-of-the-pack if you look at MLB team pitching stats in 2010. Why should he nearly double his salary for that performance?

Yahoo Sports said that arbitration panels take a player's whole career into account during these hearings. Fine. During his whole career, Ohlen-Douche is 13-25, with a 4.40 ERA. So, the question then becomes: Wha... tha... fa...?

I'm with Mark Madden on this one: f*ck baseball.

Keisel 3:16... I Got a Fever, and the Only Prescription is More Beard

2011-02-02T22:11:00.007-05:00

• When the Packers hold 'Game Night' and play Clue, there is only one suspect: Brett Keisel, in the backfield, with the beard.

• If Bam Morris had Brett Keisel's beard, he would have had a much better place to hide all that weed.

• If Neil O'Donnell had Brett Keisel's beard, no one would know who the f*ck Larry Brown is.

• Legend has it that Brett Keisel's beard is what enabled Cortes to conquer ancient Mexico. The Aztecs mistook it for their supreme god, Keizelcoatl.

• Sidney Crosby's Frito Bandito pube-'stache wants to be Brett Keisel's beard when it grows up.

• Brett Keisel's beard can fold a piece of paper in half eight times.

• Brett Keisel's beard is so frightening, it's not a beard. It's a feard.

• If Bill Buckner had Brett Keisel's beard... ironically, no one would know who Bill Buckner was. Kind of funny how that one works.

• SPOILER ALERT: In the season finale of "Big Love," Brett Keisel's beard beats up Bill Paxton and takes all his wives.

• If Stringer Bell had Brett Keisel's beard, Brother Mouzone really would be selling beanpies. In a wheelchair.

• Brett Keisel's beard once appeared on NBC's "Minute to Win It." In 27 seconds, it kicked Guy Fieri's stupid bi-colored, tri-pronged beard's ass, took his girl and ate his food.

• Brett Keisel cannot braid his beard. If he does, he will spontaneously sprout two large horns and spend Super Bowl week pillaging the greater Arlington area.

• While at Harvard, Mark Zuckerberg befriended a janitor who was fired from the Steelers' training facility for locker-room theft. The man sold Zuckerberg a single hair from Brett Keisel's beard, which he ground into powder and snorted. Two hours later, he created Facebook.

Super Bowl Week: Oh, the Irony...

2011-02-01T16:56:00.005-05:00

I find it highly ironic that Matt Hasselbeck is involved in this "anti-pornography" Super Bowl party. Particularly when you consider that the only redeeming thing about him is how badly I want to see a picture of his sister-in-law's breasts. (In a lovely case of double-irony, that's also the only redeeming thing about her.)

My Brett Keisel Beardisms Beat Your Brett Keisel Beardisms' Ass and Took Their Lunch Money

2011-01-28T19:19:00.006-05:00

Oh, really? Brett Keisel's beard could kick Chuck Norris's beard's ass? Wooow. Took you half an hour to think that one up? STEP YOUR GAME UP.

• Some states execute death-row inmates with the electric chair. In Utah, they rub a balloon on Brett Keisel's beard and touch your nose.

• "In my country, I see great men with great beard. Brett Keisel beard is greatest beard of ages. Thanks, Dan." - Evgeni Malkin

• Filtered tap water is not clean enough for Brett Keisel's beard. Brett Keisel's beard makes its own water. The hardest part is keeping the oxygen in the bowl.

• Schindler saved all those Jews by hiding them in Brett Keisel's beard. But Steven Spielberg on his high horse, he won't make a movie about a heroic hair mountain. That's racist.

• If you have five dollars and Brett Keisel's beard has five dollars, Brett Keisel's beard has more money than you. In fact, now Brett Keisel's beard has ten dollars. Punk.

• If Lindsay Lohan and Britney Spears had Brett Keisel's beard, they wouldn't have been so embarassed by those paparazzi shots.

• Brett Keisel's beard's favorite movies are "To Kill a Mockingbeard," "Beard Science," "Beard and Present Danger" and "The Big Lebeardski." And "Rocky IV."

• If Brett Keisel's beard had a voice, it would sound like a combination of Darth Vader, Barry White, Howlin' Wolf and Godzilla.

• When Brett Keisel braids his beard, every Norwegian woman in a 99-mile radius simultaneously becomes sexually excited.

• A foolish man once tried to produce a likeness of Brett Keisel's beard using a Wooly Willy. A bolt of lightning struck his left testicle. Brett Keisel's beard does not tolerate such insolence.

• Brett Keisel's beard can watch '60 Minutes' in 20 minutes.

• "Damn, that thing is hairy." - Signed, 1970s Porn Stars

• "Brett Keisel's beard is out of control." - Sincerely, the 1992 L.A. Riots

• If Abraham Lincoln had Brett Keisel's beard... well... he'd still be dead, but you see where I'm going with this: Brett Keisel's beard can deflect bullets.

• "Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed by thy beard. Thy facial hair come, thy will be done, in Arlington as it is in Pittsburgh. In the name of Keisel's Beard, Omar Epps and the Rooney Family. Fear the beard. Amen."

• When Aaron Rodgers' beard saw Brett Keisel's beard, it ran to Mississippi, grabbed a clipboard and hid in Brett Favre's 5'o'clock shadow for three years.

Super Bowl XLV: Fear the Beard

2011-01-24T00:30:00.005-05:00

Fear. The. Beard.

Almost as fantastic as my hometown Steelers heading to Super Bowl XLV is the tremendous campaign that has been waged in honor of Brett Keisel's glorious hairy upside-down mountain. As a bearded man myself, I can only look and marvel at what the Diesel has been able to accomplish, both on the field and on the face. And so, a few "beardisms" in the run-up to the big game. Feel free to add yours:

• When Brett Keisel's beard gets tangled with Polamalu's hair in a defensive pile-up, Alec Guiness feels a great disturbance in The Force.

• Michael Scofield used a hair plucked from Brett Keisel's beard to escape Soma prison.

• Brett Keisel does not have to wipe his nose in the winter. Snot spontaneously combusts upon coming into contact with Brett Keisel's beard. This is also why Brett Keisel does not require a napkin while eating.

• Brett Keisel's beard once got into a fight with Polamalu's hair while on a fishing boat. The resulting shockwave carved the Marianas Trench.

• Hairs that fall when Brett Keisel combs his beard are capable of recording two sacks and a forced fumble in a Pop Warner game.

• HAVE YOU HEARD?!?!? BRETT KEISEL JUST SHAVED HIS BEARD! When he did, out popped Tupac, Biggie, Amelia Earhart, Jimmy Hoffa, the Loch Ness Monster's dried-up skeleton, D.B. Cooper, a working magic lamp and a dodo (partial credit to my boy Shady on that one)

• Stroking Brett Keisel's beard can cure The Ninja.

• Brett Keisel once jumped into the ocean while on vacation in New England. The resulting wave killed George Clooney and Marky Mark in "The Perfect Storm."

• Brett Keisel doesn't, in fact, have a beard. What you see on his face is simply an extension of his indestructible skeleton, which is constructed of BEARDAMANTIUM.

• The world's greatest scientists were able to stretch out a single strand of Brett Keisel's beard until it was 727 feet high and 1,244 feet across. That strand now plays defense against the Colorado River, and is commonly referred to as "The Hoover Dam."

• If you want to secure America's borders... weave a fence out of Brett Keisel's beard.

• Brett Keisel's beard isn't into the whole brevity thing

• Brett Keisel's beard does not shave - it has attained the power of invisibility.

To the Steeler nation — at least the fellas, or perhaps the girls with too much testosterone — if you aren't sporting the whiskers already, BEARD UP. Throw your hairy support behind Big Ben, The Beard and the whole Steelers squidder!

To get you pumped up for the game, here's a beat I cooked up as a tribute to the late Myron Cope, whose Steelers won the AFC Championship on his birthday. Perfect. (Link will be active until Jan. 30)

Ricky Gervais is the Man (Yet I Still Didn't Watch the Golden Globes)

2011-01-17T16:52:00.004-05:00

He might have to go back to the UK permanently, but f*ckit.

Listen, Robert Downey Jr., 'cause I like you a lot... I think you're hilarious and an excellent actor to boot... but if you're gonna do a monologue about the downside of going "full retard" in Tropic Thunder, you can't get pissy about Ricky Gervais making a rehab joke that a million people have already made. Okay, they didn't do it to your face.

But let's be real. The only reason I'm writing about the awards show at all is Gervais's dry, acerbic — and really funny — jokes. Who talks about the Golden Globes the day after? No one I normally run into at the coffee station, that's for sure. This at least got people talking about the show.

So kudos to you, Ricky Gervais, even if you did get pulled backstage and apparently neutered mid-show. You may never work in Hollywood again, but f*ck'em. That's on them.

And to Tim Allen... c'mon now... if the worst thing Ricky Gervais says about you is "you pale in comparison to Tom Hanks," you got off light. YOU WERE IN HOME IMPROVEMENT AND THE SANTA CLAUSE FRANCHISE.

Oh, Baltimore...

2011-01-16T18:20:00.002-05:00

You crack me up. No sooner did the game end than the "Shittsburgh" and "know your role, white trash" comments started cramming the Ravens' and Baltimore Sun message boards.

I love it. Because if there's anything that "The Wire" has taught us, it's that Baltimore is the shittiest city in America.

Besides, how are you gonna call Pittsburgh folks white trash when your quarterback looks like a caveman with a unibrow? UNNNNNNNGGGHH! FLACCO THROW!!! FLACCO LOSE POSSESSION!!! UNNNNGGHH!!

Listen, I have the cure for all your ills, Baltimore. Just find Terrell Suggs, take him out for a few drinks and then kill someone. It'll make you feel a a lot better, and if there's anything ELSE that "The Wire" has taught us, it's that no one will probably notice, anyway.

No, Terrell Suggs. F*ck... YOU.

2011-01-16T12:07:00.005-05:00

"Hey Pittsburgh... we're gonna fold like a motherfucking paper crane."

Oh dear sweet Lord, I can't really explain how satisfying it was to watch my Steelers beat the Baltimore Ravens yesterday. I'll be the first person to say that if Terrell Suggs was a Steeler, I would love him. But he's a Raven. So fuck'im.

Maybe during the offseason, he can get a t-shirt made that shows him crying into his overapplied eyeblack. Seriously, when does caked-on eyeblack go from mildly intimidating... to makeup? Maybe we can get you a little lip gloss, too, and I'll start calling you "Terelle."

The Tacoma Narrows Bridge just called from 1940, and called that shit "an epic collapse":

Why the Solution to the Giffords Shooting is Congressmen Carrying Guns (Uh...)

2011-01-12T16:37:00.006-05:00

Clickety-clack.

It's tragically comic — but mostly just sad and pathetic — to listen to conservative pundits do their damndest to get huffy and worked up that the Giffords shooting in Arizona could IN ANY WAY have ANYTHING to do with the paranoid, us-against-them rhetoric which so many of their bulwarks spew day in and day out.

But I'm not strictly blaming conservatives. I've made my fair share of vitriolic President Bush jokes, and Democratic politicians ratchet up their rhetoric to ridiculous levels as well. But sorry to say, they just can't match hardcore conservatives in the "violence-tinged rhetoric veiled as patriotism and halfway masked as fact" department.

But like so many things in this country, it really comes down to money. It always does. The people who receive massive gun-lobby contributions could care less WHAT motivated this Jared Lee Loughner douchebag to go apeshit and start shooting people. They're gonna do whatever is necessary to ensure that gun companies can still sell all the guns they want.

I'll be honest, my eyes just glaze over when someone starts talking about gun rights in the U.S., or about how "They want to take our guns away." That's a paranoid, stupid thing to say... then again, a whole lot of the people who own guns are apparently paranoid and/or stupid, because they seem to shoot a lot of their own families and friends.

Of the 13,636 murder victims in 2009, the FBI reports that SEVENTY-SIX MOTHERF**KING PERCENT were killed either by a family member, or by someone they knew. (Source here). So if your argument is "I need to be able to protect my home from intruders," well, your home is probably going to need more protection from the people already in it. Nothing, though, will beat my favorite argument, which is "Someday we'll need to protect ourselves from the government, a well-regulated militia is essential, etc., etc."

Give... me... a f**king... BREAK.

I don't care how many of your hillbilly friends show up, even if they bring every single gun in the house and arm their damn toddlers... you aren't gonna beat the military. They turned Iraq into a giant pile of dirt in like three months. What do you think they're gonna do to your front lawn?

If you're looking for someone to blame for the Arizona tragedy, look to the legislators who lobbied for gun laws that somehow made it legal for this unstable dickhead to LEGALLY BUY A GUN. According to the BBC, two members of Congress have now said that they will start carrying a gun at all times.

Well, I would keep an eye out for a news story about a Congressman accidentally shooting his nephew, because that's the likeliest thing to happen. That's juuuust what we need: old white men walking around Washington, D.C., strapped. Noooo way THAT could ever go wrong. You'll NEVER see a story about a young black male being gunned down by a nervous, prejudiced Congressman once THAT happens.

Oh, and gee, I almost forgot, as long as we're looking to place reasonable blame: if the Bush-controlled Congress hadn't let the Brady Bill lapse in 2004, Lougher wouldn't have been able to buy the high-capacity clip he used to mow down all those people.

But hey, we have to be able to defend our homes!

Concert Review: New Year's Eve with theCAUSE

2011-01-05T16:41:00.004-05:00

"Playin' in the band..."

So, ever since my buddy hired them to basically play a Dead show at his wedding, I've been really into this local Pittsburgh band, theCAUSE (yes, that's spelled correctly). They're a Dead tribute band that plays original Dead sets — as opposed to a tribute band like Dark Star Orchestra, which "reconstructs" full Dead setlists — mixed in with Beatles, Dylan, and some originals.

They're a four-piece combo, with guitarist Eric "Pappy" Weingrad filling the role of both Jerry and Bob Weir, but they totally have the chops to pull it off. Pappy's guitar has the clear, cutting tone of Jerry's most recognizable axes, and bassist David Tauberg moves with much of the same fluidity as my main man Phil Lesh.

[On a side note, I have been completely obsessed with listening to Phil & Friends shows lately. I've been gobbling up as many reasonably-clean recordings of the '99 tour as I possibly can. For my money, you can't beat the 2000-'03 version of the "Friends," with Warren Haynes, Jimmy Herring, Rob Baracco and John Molo, but in '99, Phil was experimenting with a ton of different lineups. So you have the main lineup of Lesh, Haynes, Baracco, Molo and Derek Trucks, who opened for Dylan on his tour that year... but you also have a great run of shows I usually just call "Phil & Phish & Friends," with Molo, Trey Anastasio, Page McConnell on keys and Steve Kimock on the other guitar. Then there are just random shows like the one with Jorma Kaukonen, Kimock, Pete Sears on keys, some dude named Praire Prince on drums, and two backup singers!

People just pop in and out of the lineup, and almost all the shows are good, if not great. For great, however, you just can't top the '00-'03 run. That group is probably the most muscular, ass-kicking jam band ever. Herring and Haynes are a two-headed monster, and the interplay in the quintet allowed them to transition almost any song into any other. They could go from beautiful and delicate to rip-snorting blues riffing to a 2000 version of "Cumberland Blues" where Haynes and Herring send flying shards of guitar in all directions until you brain almost melts. Okay, might have gone a little too hippie-dippy with that last one.

Alright, back to the main review...]

Okay, so theCAUSE... they played Frankie & Georgie's 4Wood Grille (used to be PD's Pub) in Squirrel Hill. And it was pretty great:

Set I: Quinn the Eskimo, Hard to Handle, Althea, Me & My Uncle > Jackson, If I Could > When I Paint My Masterpiece, Lazy River Road, Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again > Deal

Liked it a lot. Most of the set had a sort of mid-'80s-Dead-setlist vibe to it. Real nice "Quinn," a deliberate, spacey "Althea," two Dylan covers that were constantly in the '80s sets. They played "Lazy River Road" for the first time, and I was reminded of what a great song it is. I have to remind myself, because you don't hear it very often.

Set II: Midnight Countdown > Not Fade Away > Alligator > The Eleven > The Other One > Sittin' On Top of the World, St. Stephen > Wharf Rat > Not Fade Away

WHEW. "The Eleven > Other One" combo was a real rollercoaster. There's always several moments during a Dark Star Orchestra show where I find myself thinking, "They're really channeling The Sound right now." There were a couple of those during this set.

Set III: Help on the Way > Slipknot! > Franklin's Tower, Easy Wind, Voodoo Woman, Passenger, Casey Jones, E: Liberty, Shakedown Street

The long and short of it? The next "Pause for theCAUSE" is Jan. 22, at Moondog's in Blawnox. I'm there.

128 Oz. of Haterade: 'My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy,' by Kanye West

2010-11-23T16:59:00.004-05:00

Apparently, 'Ye is too much super-rapper-producer for just one cover.

Since releasing the spare, overprocessed robotics of 2008's 808s & Heartbreak, Kanye West has done his best to singlehandedly wreck his own career, swiping the mic from Taylor Swift and ranting like Doc Brown in "Back to the Future" via his Twitter page.

And while Marvin Gaye would probably turn over in his grave if he heard Kanye crooning "Mercy, mercy me, that Murcielago," it's still refreshing to hear the much-more-organic sounds that pop up throughout My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy... the female chorus that backs the first single, "Power"... the strings and distorted cry on "So Appalled"... the simple, sinister piano plucks on "Runaway."

There are plenty of modern production mechanics at work, make no mistake. But two years ago, a track like "Runaway" would have done away with its driving beat and be Auto-Tuned to death. Instead, Kanye flexes a tenor voice that sounds just fine, with a guest verse from Clipse MC Pusha T.

Then again, he just can't help himself.

"Runaway" is pretty much over by the 5:30 mark, but then the strings kick back in, and an Auto-Tuned Kanye distorts his own humming for about three minutes. Which is not to say it's bad. Quite the opposite.

"Lost in the World" recaptures the hop-hop-mega-pop vibe of tracks like "Stronger" and "Champion"; "Monster" finds the Chicago native swapping verses with Jay-Z and Rick Ross, who make two appearances each; and John Legend joins in for a relationship gone awry in "Blame Game," which finds Kanye rapping alongside two chopped-and-screwed clones, before Chris Rock drops by in a hilarious, profane coda.

Kanye made a surprise visit to Rolling Stone magazine recently, and was captured on video embarking on an epic soliloquy about his own, well... "epicness" (did he compare himself to Raphael? Ohh, yes)... and Rolling Stone gave the album five stars, calling it Kanye's best yet. I wouldn't go quite that far.

Mostly, it's just really nice to hear Kanye West doing a little more rapping. Sure, he might say self-indulgent things like "if I ever wasn't the greatest/I must have missed it" and he might make videos where he's the Greek god in the center of a classical painting... but he is a nimble, clever rapper, and My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is a very nice blend of who Kanye was and who he is, in both sound and substance.

OMM is Comin' Back!

2010-11-22T16:54:00.004-05:00

In light of the fact that there hasn't been a podcast for, ohh, nearly seven months now... we're going back to being Obscure Music Monthly, your [Probably Not] No. 1 Source for music you mighta not heard, reviews, occasional live mixes at UStream.com and whatever else we can think of.

So be sure to change your bookmark (probably reaching on that one) to the original address!

Who Says Soccer Players Aren't Tough?

2010-11-15T15:47:00.004-05:00

Zlatan Ibrahimovic and this move - straight outta motherf***in' Killer Instinct - beg to differ. I suppose you could call this karmic justice for Materazzi in exchange for his goading of Zidane in the '04 World Cup, but I think the head butt was probably punishment enough.

Three Hilarious 'Rally to Restore Sanity' Signs

2010-10-30T14:26:00.002-04:00

FREE DOWNLOAD: Beat Tape #1

2010-10-18T16:19:00.002-04:00

NEED A BEAT? Check out the beat tape and lemme know! Twenty-three beats straight from the lab, with more to follow. Click here to download, courtesy of YouSendIt.com - link will be good until Oct. 25.

"I HATE THE RAIDERS! I HATE FOOTBALL!"

2010-10-13T10:43:00.003-04:00

This is a very hilarious, and yet partially confusing, video. This kid really, really hates the Raiders, apparently for beating the San Diego Chargers. But then they zoom in... and he's wearing a Bears t-shirt. Wha...? Eh, doesn't matter. The best part is how his own mother is laughing at his misery:

R.I.P. Solomon Burke

2010-10-10T14:01:00.002-04:00

What a singer. I was looking for a YouTube posting of my personal favorite, "Get Out My Life Woman," but this will do just fine.