The College Crowd Digs Me

"I only have a moment to explain, Just a chance to let you know. When its time for you to board the train, There are two ways you can go." Joe Ely Alternative country has always been a bogus label given to certain types of music that doesn't exactly fit into the sorry cookie-cutter Nashville format. And not surprising, it is college radio that generates a lot of airplay for this type of music. College radio has always been a voice against the powerful music moguls who spoon-feed its listeners the same tripe over and over again. Such has been the fate of one, Joe Ely . Ely has been making music since the early 70’s and although Ely is little known to some, he has been asked to warm-up for acts as legendary as Bruce Springsteen and the Rolling Stones . Not too shabby. In 1992, Ely released a gem with “Love and Danger” . The record received strong reviews but unfortunately, too little air play and very little company push, caused thi...

"I wanna be a Hare Krishna Tattoo a dot right on my head And the Prozac is my fixer I am the living dead."     ~  Aerosmith ~ NO SPOILERS: In the first five minutes of director William Castle's ( I swear that's his last name) film "House On Haunted Hill" (1959) , viewers quickly discover they are in for some campy, appetizing chills and thrills. With the camera zoomed in on multimillionaire Frederick Loren's (Vincent Price)   mug, he gleefully explains the premise of his little shindig. Five strangers are invited to spend the night in a supposedly haunted mansion with the promise of a $10,000 reward to any guest who survives the night. Each invitee is driven to the party in their own individual hearse, forming what appears to be a funeral procession. Again, this is just the first five minutes of the movie. How can this NOT be any good? Vincent Price Vincent Price steals every scene with his usual over the top (although toned-down s...

"Your life is white And I don't think  I like y ou hanging around." ~ Big Star ~ NO SPOILERS: In this 447 page novel, Erik Larson has given his readers quite a creative historical perspective of late 1800s Chicago by combining two completely unrelated events that were occuring during the same period. It was during this time, Daniel Burnham took on the almost impossible challenge of designing the "next" World's Fair. And while the whole world was watching, nearly everything that could go wrong...did.  Larsen makes the pressures of completing this task almost unbearable for the reader and quite the page-turner, But, as I said, there are two events going on in this heavily researched story. H.H. Holmes While the construction of this legendary fair was being tackled...America's first documented serial killer, H.H. Holmes , was beginning his attack on women "mostly" and doing away with the bodies in uniquely creative ...

"May I stand here for a while... and I don't get in anyone's way?" Pink Nasty There is a plethora of indie music being hyped and offered for sampling on the net, as you well know. Unfortunately, (and perhaps this is what keeps us coming back), in order to find that small percentage of truly great and interesting bands or songs, one must wade thru a tumultuous sea of mp3 mediocrity to occasionally Sherlock a song with head-nodding appeal. And because of the enormous number of song links one has to meander through to unwrap a choice cherry…it is without a doubt a sweet rush when the fates of fortune lead us to a goodie. Such is the case of this latest gem find... "Mold The Gold" . Singer/songwriter “Pink Nasty“ (Sarah Beck) has set up shop in Austin, Texas and, along with her brother, “ Black Nasty ”, wrote all the songs on this 13 track offering. Pink’s vocals are a slice of Fiona & Jewel smothered in Chrissie Hynde swagger ...

"Look out! the sky is falling down! Look out! the world is spinning round and round and round! Look out! the sun is going black... black Look out! its never, never, never coming back...Look out!" Black Sabbath NO SPOILERS: This 1956 film directed by Mervyn LeRoy , has nothing to do with the supernatural or the occult as I was want to believe. Nor is it scary. Rather, it is an uncomfortable study of a young child who simply has no morals, scruples, or conscience. Hence, " The Bad Seed ." AND!!! ...It is pretty good stuff! The story revolves around Rhoda ( Patty McCormack ) , a manipulative, callous ten year old girl who has everyone believing that her poop don't stink. That is, except the ornery and simpleminded gardener LeRoy ( played perfectly by Henry Jones ) who has the "little princess" figured out big time. Different people seem to die mysterious deaths around her (including o...

"Anything you want to be... Be. 'Cause you give me hope When you shine." Charles & Eddie NO SPOILERS: An author who can weave well-researched historical facts into a work of fiction... so expertly... that it neither slows down the story...or worse...interrupts the pacing altogether...is worth every penny they earn. Gary Jennings and his 1984 offering...the epic " The Journeyer " achieves this in spades. Based on the premise that Marco Polo had another journal...kept hidden... Jennings fills each page with accounts of breath-taking adventures and intriguing encounters with unforgettable characters. Add some very risqué...sometimes taboo goings-on and interwoven story lines and one can easily see why Marco felt it necessary to keep some memories secret. At 1024 pages, there is not a wasted word. "The Journeyer" takes the reader all across the "known world" during the 13th century with descriptions so dead-on...so v...

"For my life's too short for waiting when I see the rising sun. Then I know again that I must carry on." Badfinger On March 6th, another wrestling legend from my youth passed away. The tough as nails wrestler ... "Bad News" Brown (Allen Coage)...died after suffering from severe chest pains. He was 63. Little mention of his death was provided by the media...And that is a real shame because he gave many youngsters...like me...plenty of reckless wrestling action to enjoy and argue about with friends all through the summers. Every young boy knew who "Bad News" Brown was...if they were growing up during the '80's and '90's. WWF was just breaking out and it was huge. And "Bad News" Brown was just one of a short list of truly great wrestlers who put on terrific matches. Although "Bad News" found himself on the losing end of most of the BIG matches...he never went to the mat easily. His toughnes...