Blog: tongue-tied lightning

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edit : For any of you keeping score, this post may seem quite familiar. Due to some anonymous persistence, I've decided to re-post the files and spread a little Christmas cheer. The version I have of "Christmas Time is Here, Again" from the 2000 Holiday Package is truncated, so if any faithful readers has this song, I'd be much obliged to replace my copy of this song. I was a member of the R.E.M. fan club for many, many years. Somewhere along the way I let my membership slide and I keep forgetting [...]

• Ghost Reindeer In The Sky » 01GhostReindeerInTheSky.mp3

Glitter And Doom: Tom Waits In Concert Hear A Stunning Performance, Recorded At Atlanta's Fox Theater By Robin Hilton NPR.org, July 28, 2008 - A trip through the world of Tom Waits can be disorienting. His ramshackle story-songs, with their creaky instrumentation and dusty poetry, usually leave listeners with more questions than answers, and his persona outside of his music revolves around a playful but guarded mix of fiction and reality. [ continue reading from NPR.org ] The concert will be available at 12 a.m. ET.

05-Jul-2008, Atlanta Fox Theatre Even Waits needs to celebrate Independence Day... and with the generous offer of a stellar pair of Raindogs Tom and Sherry, we celebrated the holiday halfway between Birmingham and Atlanta, in a town called Oxford, AL. It was one of the best 4th of Julys I've ever had! So after a wake-up in our rented motor lodge, we were once again on the road to Atlanta. It's very clear that Tom cares about his fans. Even the ones that are still outside waiting to [...]

03-Jul-2008, Birmingham "The memories are short, but the tales are long." Once again, the road beckons. Tom Waits, having wound his way through the constellation Hydra, was now in the deep South for the final two nights of the North American tour. Me and my good buddy Jason, a long-time fan (I take credit for his conversion) converged upon the city of Birmingham, he from Florida, me from North Carolina. Once we were settled in our rented room, and with growing anticipation, we left [...]

29-JUN-2008 Knoxville Civic Auditorium Knoxville, TN The anticipation for Waits had plenty long to stew. For some, the wait had been a lifetime of listening, for others a couple of years, and for a lucky few, a matter of days. Be that as it may, the crowd in Knoxville was nearly overflowing with eager fans even when the hour of 8 PM came and went, and our idol didn't show. "The anticipation will all disappear" I said, "once he takes the stage." Knoxville was richly rewarded for their collective patience on Sunday [...]

I didn't even know they did this type of thing anymore, but apparently Tom Waits can now come and go as he pleases in the city of El Paso, TX. From online accounts, as Tom was sitting down to tickle the ivories in a fashion that is all his own, a peace officer came out on stage to "serve him". Tom then started ad-libbing alibis for himself, when a woman came out and presented Tom the above plaque with the key to the city.

10-Jun-2008 Walnut Creek It's been a long time since I've been on an R.E.M. high like this one. I suppose the last one peaked in my High School years, when Out of Time was released and "Losing My Religion" was all over MTV and the airwaves. That was back when the Public Library still lent LP Records... and subsequent cassette tape copies of Life's Rich Pageant , Document and Fables of the Reconstruction road shotgun in my first car. [...]

My first love in music.

Performing " Supernatural Superserious " Interview that preceded the performance. Colbert and his "codpiece" is priceless!

I lifted this from a Washington Post article from a number of years ago, but things really have changed very little since then, so this entire lexicon is still accurate—except for maybe all the smoking. Just One Request Going to A Concert? Don't Play The Fool. By David Segal Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, July 20, 2004; Page C01 Nick Lowe has just finished 90 minutes of solo music at the Birchmere, a set that included all of his best-known songs -- except one. The silver-haired daddy of [...]

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As I'm writing this, I'm on a comfy couch back in my home state of NC. The Residency shows are still being played over in my mind, and, lest I forget, I want to write a few lines about the last couple of nights. Tuesday was frigid. I think the wind chill temperatures on that day alone put all the others to shame. Something like minus 19 Fahrenheit. If you're dressed warm... it doesn't kill ya. There was a snaggle-toothed jolly old chap armed with a bottle of vodka, and a never-ending cigarette that made his [...]

As I'm writing this, I'm on a comfy couch back in my home state of NC. The Residency shows are still being played over in my mind, and, lest I forget, I want to write a few lines about the last couple of nights. Tuesday was frigid. I think the wind chill temperatures on that day alone put all the others to shame. Something like minus 19 Fahrenheit. If you're dressed warm... it doesn't kill ya. While stamping out the cold in line, there was a snaggle-toothed jolly old chap armed with a bottle of vodka, [...]

Night Three. After a restful Sunday to recharge our batteries (or thaw out, however you want to look at it) we were fired up to brave some bone-chilling cold (minus 5 degrees F with the wind chill) to stand in line once again. The friends we have made along the way were a welcome sight as we anxiously chattered on about the previous two nights of Wilco goodness. Lining up early has always paid huge dividends, and tonight was no exception. Once the doors opened, we were able to score spots against the front railing, just in front [...]

Night Two. Lessons learned from night one-- if we wanted to continue to have a good vantage, we'd still have to line up early outside the Riviera. No worries, we were in great company with VC'ers and our newly-minted friends from Day One were also stomping the cold from their feet and the anticipation for what Wilco would do launched many a conversation. Lining up a little over 2 hours ended up paying great dividends, as the club quickly filled up with a veritable sea of people shortly after the doors opened. The show [...]

So... I'm in Chicago, waking up after the first night of Wilco's five-night stand at the Riviera Theatre. During this stint, they are endeavoring to play every song they've released on the official recordings, plus a smattering of b-sides, Mermaid Avenue tracks, and surprises. I'm still reeling. More thoughts to come later, but I really just wanted to dust off the cobwebs of this blog (contrary to what folks might think, I'm still breathing) and gather my thoughts on what will very likely be the one and only time that Wilco attempts such an [...]