This blog spot is the home to my ramblings. I am a free lance writer. Most of my work goes on Associated Content. Sometimes I write what is on my mind, sometimes I plug some of my writing, and sometimes a combination of the two. So, sit back read, enjoy, and we will see where it goes.
I had a lot of fun doing this challenge last year. They just opened the sign up today and I am number 383 so it is going to be huge this year. If you want to sign up you can here. I met a lot of new bloggers, read a few new ones, and had a couple actually follow me.
I did the official one and then I did a backwards one. It is a great way to keep yourself blogging everyday. Especially if you find yourself in a rut or drawing blanks. Check out my posts from last April if you like. Of course last April my mind was on Wanee, this year playing it more day by day. So there should be some surprises.
I just published an article about the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship you can read it on Yahoo Sports here. Tiger Woods finished tied for third. Some folks say he has lost his killer instincts on the golf course as he faltered in the fourth round hitting a 72. It was Tiger's first golf event of 2012. I think Tiger will win his fair share if he continues to be in the hunt. Finishing third is not that bad. I don't know if he will ever be like he was in his prime but is Tiger back? Is he going to be in the hunt most events and winning a few here and there?
Here are some highlights of Tiger Woods over the weekend:
Here are highlights from the final round:
I think it will be fun to watch. It will be interesting to find out if Tiger is back or not. What do you think?
I had one of those super cool weeks. I got to cover Bryan Adams on Monday and Ryan Adams on Tuesday. On Friday night I went back to covering theatre. Well, I covered Rooms: A Rock Romance being performed by the Elden Street Players in Herndon. I like it when theatre combines with music to end a week like that. Plus the musical made a perfect date night for my wife and I. You can read my review here.
Here is the trailer for it:
It's good music, good theatre and a good time. If you are in Northern Virginia check it out.
Short blog today since it is late and I need some rest before the day job.
This week I was able to review two concerts.One was on Monday and one on Tuesday. Both of them were at the fabulous Strathmore Music Center in Bethesda, Maryland. The artists even had rhyming names Bryan Adams and Ryan Adams. Similarities continued as both artists were performing without bands. The music however was very different and I enjoyed both shows.
Bryan Adams
Here is a link to my review of the Bryan Adams show. I was thrilled to find out the review made it onto Bryan Adams official website. Here is a song he played that evening off of his "Bare Bones" album.
Ryan Adams
At this show I had the pleasure of meeting a die hard Ryan Adams fan and she liked my review! Here is a link to that review. Here is a song he performed at that show. It is his final show before the encores. Here is is thanks to youtube..
29 is way to young to die. At least Sarah Burke died due to injuries sustained in doing something she loved. As a skier I can relate to her love for the sport. As a competitor(mediocre as I may be) I understand wanting to push your self, get faster (in racing) where she would try to go bigger. She did some sick stuff out there. I'll be honest stuff I am not looking for, but each are own. Snow sports lost a great one. Everyone who knew her talks about how nice she was which makes the story even sadder. I wish we were talking about gold medals she was winning instead of her passing...
Here are some highlights of what she did on the snow from youtube..
I didn't have a problem with Joe Paterno losing his job at Penn State. It is a shame a scandal like that hit Penn State and I feel for the alleged victims. JoePa might have made some mistakes handling the situation and a lot of people lost their jobs due to the alleged sex scandal. A lot of those people were good folks and it may have been unfair but I think it was the right thing for Penn State to do.
Likewise, it is the right thing to honor Coach Paterno after he passed away this weekend. He was a great football coach no one can argue that. Some argued he stayed longer than he should. Having listened to Lavar Arrington on 106.7 The Fan in Washington before the scandal, I have know doubt he was a great man as well.
He coached his men to become better people. It was not just on the field but in life.
It stinks the scandal happened. It is unfortunate he made mistakes. However, that makes him human. It is a shame he passed away but 85 is a long live. Hopefully, he will be remembered for better times, for being a better man, and not what has broken over the last year.
Last Spring I had the opportunity to check out Mike Herrera in concert in Baltimore. The MxPx front man, the Tumbledown front man was doing a solo acoustic show. It was a neat experience I wouldn't expect a front man of a punk band going on tour with just an acoustic guitar. Anyway here is my review of that show.
I found a clip of that show on youtube...
Anyway, I met him after the show and bought the cd which the tour was in support of, it was called Live From the Basement. Mike was kind enough to autograph the CD for me and lots of other people who were at the show. Anyway I recently published a review of the album and you can read that here. Here is a picture of Mike and opening act Louis DeFabrizio on stage...
Well I went to my second play of 2012. It was a play called Art performed at the Arts Barn in Gaithersburg, Maryland. It is a nice little theatre in a very pretty neighborhood. If you have followed my theatre writing on the MD Theatre Guide you know I have covered a few shows there. Starting with The Last Five Years,A Year with Toad and Frog, and Driving Miss Daisy. They always deliver with fine acting.
Art delivered on the acting. You can read my full review here.
Never under estimate the local community theatres. They try out a diverse selection of plays. Some of those actors end up on bigger stages. I've seen people who have performed at The Arts Barn end up playing at The Olney Theatre. So you never know what will happen.
New Year's also ushered in the new golf season. I am continuing my golf beat this season. So far I have covered all the PGA Tour events and the European Tour. I may dive into the other pro tours once they get started.
First off was the 2012 African Open which you can read about here.
Second was the Tournament of Champions on the PGA side.You can read about it here.
Here is Steve Stricker in action off of Youtube...
Then back to Africa for the Joburg open which you can read about here.Below are some images from the open from youtube...
Finally the Sony Open on the PGA side you can read my take on it here. Here is some golf action from that open..
Now that it is 28 degrees outside it would be nice to be sent to some of these locations to cover them in person...
Today is guitarist Mick Taylor's birthday. I had the pleasure of meeting him after a show at Jaxx's in Springfield, Virginia. He put on an exceptional show. He is a talented guitarist and former member of the Rolling Stones.In 2010 I wrote an article about the former Rolling Stone guitarist and what he was doing you can read it here.
Taylor live in 2009 from Youtube:
Mick Taylor with his former band The Rolling Stones
The 2012 Wanee Festival Lineup has been announced and it is another great one! Especially if you like the Grateful Dead.
You knew the Allman Brothers were going to play and they are scheduled to play to nights. Hey it is pretty much their festival..
Here are the Allman Brothers performing at last years festival..
The Furthur Band will also be playing two nights at Wannee...Here the band plays All Along the Watchtower..
It is going to be a festival full of guitar greats as well. Warren Haynes will be performing with Gov't Mule..
Tedeschi Trucks Band will also playing. Derek Trucks will once again be one of the hardest working guitarists at the festival. Here is that band performing at Wanee in 2011.
Jaimoe's Jasssz Band will also be returning to Wanee in 2012.
Blues legend Buddy Guy will be performing. He is considered one of the best ever and influenced Jimi Hendrix.
Bruce Hornsby, who has sat in numerous times with the Grateful Dead. and has had quite a successful musical career will also be performing.
Mickey Hart will bring his band to the festival. He was the drummer for the Grateful Dead.
Hot Tuna Electric will be performing. Hot Tuna do I really have to say more...
Ray Manzarek will be performing with the Roy Rogers Band. Ray played for a legendary band called The Doors..
Leftover Salmon will be performing.
The North Mississippi Allstars will be performing. They had an impressive visit at Wanee in 2011.
Triggger Hippy sounds like a cool band featuring Joan Osborne, Jackie Green, Steve Gorman, Audley Freed, and Nick Govrik.
Other bands include:
Soja, Conspirator, Eoto
Along with some returning bands from last year:
Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk, Particle, and as I had mentioned in my previous post Devon Allmans Honeytribe.
Devon..
Zach Deputy and The Booby Lee Rodgers Trio will be performing.
Matt Schofield one of the best up and coming blues guitarists will be performing. Don't miss his set.
Matt Schofield...
Big Sams Funky Nation is a fun band from New Orleans as is Bonerama a couple funky horn bands to get you dancing.
Others include:
Charles Bradley
Jacob Jeffries Band
The Yeti Trio
Bonnie Blue
Well that's who is playing at the 2012 Wanee Festival and it is one heck of a line up.
I've been busy this month publishing on Yahoo! Sports and Yahoo! News. So, I thought I would give the blog a little longer break from music which has been dominating the blog so far this year. Don't worry I plan on having more music stuff posted on the blog before long.
Well on the football side of things I wrote a recap of the Gator Bowl from a Florida fan perspective. You can read it here. It was published on Rivals.com. Here are some highlights from that game from youtube...
Also on Rivals.com I did a piece about the Gators hiring Brent Pease as their new Offensive Coordinator you can read that here.Gators coach Will Muschamp's thoughts on Brent from Youtube..
Finally, I wrote an article about Jeff Demps deciding to pursue track and possibly the Olympics instead of the NFL. You can read that article on Yahoo! News here.
Here are some Jeff Demps highlights from Youtube...
Here is perhaps why Jeff Demps is pursuing track...
I went to my first theatre show of 2012 last weekend. It was the Encore Stage and Studio's production of Darius the Dragon and Rap-Punzel at the Spectrum Theatre in Arlington, Virginia. It was a theatre double header for children. The neatest thing was the plays were cast completely by kids. Kids were also the stage manager and crew. The end product was excellent and fantastic family entertainment.
You can read my full review on the MD Theatre Guide here. If you are the Washington, D.C. area this weekend will be the last shows of this production. Catch it if you can!
Wanee Festival made this announcement on Facebook "Wanee 2012 lineup announcement this Monday at 10am! Tickets on sale Friday January 20 at 10am!"
If you love music with a leaning towards jam bands you will not be disappointed with the lineup. I went last year and I had a blast! I'm pretty sure The Allman Brothers Band will be doing a set or two. I had put them as one of my top 10 Southern Rock groups of all time and mentioned them as a jam band as well. As well as Devon Allman who is one of my favorite artists of 2011.
Here is a review of the 2011 Wanee Music Festival I wrote last year. Of course last year they had Robert Plant and his Band of Joy here is a review of their set.This song and performance by Robert Plant and his Band of Joy has to be one of the musical highlights of my life..
Thankfully some one captured it on youtube!
I am excited to find out who will be in the 2012 lineup! Here are the Allman Brothers captured from last year with Blues legend Taj Mahal..
Plus the festival is put together in a beautiful park that even inspired me to write a poem. Here is a picture of Robert Plant on stage at Wanee 2011, the girl is Patty Griffin and Darrell Scott on mandolin.
Today is guitarist Robbie Krieger's 66th birthday. Robbie is famous for being the guitarist in The Doors. He was an important member of the band and wrote some of the bands best songs.
Here is Robbie Krieger and the Doors performing "Light My Fire"
Here is Robbie with Ray performing "L.A. Woman"
Here is a solo song called "Event Horizon"
Thanks for the music Robbie and keep it coming!
I published my first article of the year on Rivals.com this week. The pro golf season is back in swing so I will have more golf articles coming up. I cover my first play of the New Year tomorrow and I am signed up for one more play and one concert. I was going to slow down and take it easy and gradually work back into the grind. Oh well I guess the grind never ends.
Tomorrow will be cool since I will get to take my daughter and spend lots of time with her. Writing eats up a lot of time. Family needs a lot of time. So when the time can be spent doing both and it is quality time with the family that is a double win.
Still a lot of up and downs and some things are not stable in my non-writing live at the moment. Thus it is hard to commit to too much. Plus a better balance is always the best route.
Guitarist Bob Weston passed away this week. He was in the group Fleetwood Mac. After two albums he was out of the band. His career with the band came to a quick end due to him having an affair with Mick Fleetwood's wife. He played with other musicians I would say Sandy Denny would be the most notable. He also released three solo albums.
Here is the only song Weston was fully credited for writing in Fleetwood Mac "Caught in the Rain:"
He is also credited on "Forever." His last album was released in 1999. His managerr mentioned he was working on more projects before he passed away.
Larry "Rhino" Reinhardt passed away due to sclerosis of the liver. He was the guitarist for the band Iron Butterfly who will always be remembered for the song "In-a-Gadda-Da-Vidda." Here is a live version from back in the day.
Here is one you my have forgotten about:
Later he formed the band Captain Beyond. Here is a taste...
At 63 a bit young to die. He put out an album recently and was set to do some shows in 2012. Sad the world lost a talent. But there are lots of lost classics and hidden gems of songs he left behind that I need to discover or re-discover. I invite you to do the same..
Today is the legendary bassist, keyboardist, producer, multi-instrumentalist John Paul Jones 66th birthday. Yes his biggest claim to fame is being one of the four original members of Led Zeppelin. Some may claim he was underrated but there is no denying he is a man of multiple talents.
Here he is with Led Zeppelin from the movie The Song Remains the Same:
Without Led Zeppelin, I truly believe John Paul Jones would have left his mark on the music world. He did a lot of session work before, during and after Zeppelin.John Paul Jones did the string arrangement for this super group's song :
After Led Zeppelin his work has been diverse, even when tackling old material.Here he is covering When the Levee Breaks:
His latest project as part of Them Crooked Vultures rocked as well as anything else...
This is just an appreciation on his birthday this is not a biography. I am thankful for the music he has created or helped create in his 66 years and I look forward to what he creates next..Thanks for visiting!
I know I wrote a bunch of articles about Blues Shows and the likes around the area. So perhaps a few of you were wondering how I spent New Year's Eve.Well I had resigned myself to spending a quiet night at home mainly since the paycheck from the day job did not coincide with New Year's Eve parties especially since the Eve part comes at the end of the month when my bills are due. Anyway I did go out and I did indeed listen to life blues music.
No it wasn't the Blues Vultures or Little Feat. It was not Mary Ann Redmond, Melvin Taylor, or Tom Principato All of whom I assume put on great shows but were a little far for me for a New Years Show. I did get to see Tom earlier this year and he put on a great show. Melvin would have been great to see since I haven't seen him before and he is not local. Mary Ann Redmond would have been nice to listen to as well but she is semi local so perhaps I will get another chance.
I didn't even see Terry Oates and the Mudcats even though I parked in the same parking garage as the hotel he was playing at. Instead I went to see Paul Pfau. A local blues guitarist who had a big year in 2011 playing in clubs like Washington's 9:30 Club. Paul has a huge future in front of him. It is funny I became familiar with both Terry Oates and Paul Pfau through the Bluesgate Jams. Paul even shared the stage for a bit with another Bluesgater Rich Carter who sang a few songs.
Happy New Year! Last year had some pretty big highs as far as writing. There were some changes to but overall it was more positive. I opened up some new doors writing for the Md Theatre Guide. Theatre lovers good news I do plan to continue that. I am signed up for a concert and a play to review this month.
Yahoo! is constantly changing but I will continue to write there. How much depends on the changes.
I started writing for the Examiner in earnest last year. IT looks pretty solid so I hope to continue with that in 2012.
I will probably dabble on hubpages, helium, and who knows what. Right now I don't have any big news no big plans. I will just see how it goes. To all my readers I hope you have a great 2012.
