What the h-e-double Hockey Sticks?

Ya know, if I can take a backwoods Illinois-by-way-of-Arkansas lassie and a couple of her native Texan boys and teach 'em to play roller hockey, than I ought to be able to do just about anything. Pictured at right are my favorite skaters in the whole wide world. Ya just have to see it to believe it. Kevin skates like a fiend in the corners (and his brother had a black eye to prove it), Justin's mastering the fine art of passing, and Mom can stop on a dime -- once she runs into the end boards, and lets out a giggle like Betty Rubble. Fun for the whole family!

White Album Turns 40

Regarding my Beatles obsession, my mom used to say to me, all those years ago, "How can you keep buying the same stuff over and over -- it's still the same!"

Silly Mom. (Like the Fab Four, she celebrates a birthday this week, too. Happy birthday, Mom.)

I am consistently amazed that no matter how much I've heard, seen and read about the Beatles, there is always something new that pops up. This week, the world celebrates the 40th anniversary of the release of "The Beatles" (aka the White Album). Just today, I was listening to a DTS surround sound version put together by a clever bootlegger, and I noticed a sonic revelation never before detected by my ears in 100's of previous listenings. On Paul's song, "I Will," the bass parts are punctuated by his vocalized "doot-doot-doot". I had to turn it up even louder to make sure my ears weren't tricking me. It's hard to believe I'd never noticed that till now.

Another new item regarding this long-familiar album was made clear to me in a recent special issue of MOJO magazine. There it was, a never-before published photo of Paul McCartney and the album's art designer, Richard Hamilton. Hamilton is seen gazing at a photo collage he was putting together to be made into the poster inserted into the LP. Amazing stuff for true Beatles nerds, fascinated by the makings of all things Beatle. As I said, there's always something new.

Several years ago, I was just as amazed when I caught a sonic revelation on the song "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da." Paul sings throughout "...lets the children lend a hand." Listen closely, and you can hear various Beatles shouting out, off microphone, "arm," or "leg," or "foot," in different verses.

On my first listening of the Beatles' biggest selling album, I wasn't sure what to make of it. It was big. 93 minutes worth. It isn't exactly considered a pop album, then or now, but age certainly has had an effect on my appreciation of it. Sure, there are many tracks that have always been personal favorites, but songs I used to consider weaker efforts have grown on me, considerably. The simplicity of "Blackbird," for example, I now value as absolutely wonderful, with it's ringing acoustic guitar, solo-vocal, and tapping shoe for percussion. Some songs have become even better than they already were. Turn up "Dear Prudence," and just try not to get lost in the wash of sound as it pours over you out of your speakers. (And folks, if you're listening on an Ipod, or your tiny shelf system, you just ain't gettin' it.)

BBC Radio 2 is also celebrating the 40th anniversary of the White Album with an hour documentary on it's making. Fabulous stuff for nerds. Tune in online by clicking here.

NPR also has a new documentary of their own here:

People still debate whether the double-LP should have been a single disc instead, cutting out some of the lesser numbers. As Paul McCartney himself said, in a quote that's sure to be just as famous as the LP, itself, "It's great, it sold, it's the bloody Beatles' White Album -- shut up!"

Drop a line in the comments feature and tell me, what's your favorite white album song?

Creem Magazine and Montelimar

The VCR and the DVD - there wasn't none of that crap back in 1970
We didn't know about a World Wide Web
Was a whole different game being played back when I was a kid
Wanna get down in a cool way?
Picture yourself on a beautiful day
Big Bell Bottoms and groovy, long hair
Just a-walking in style with a portable CD player - No!
You would listen to the music on the AM Radio

AM Radio, by Everclear

Let's get nostalgic for a moment, shall we?
Back in the day, there was the eclectic pop sound of AM Radio. FM was still a baby, really. Rock and Roll was, wow, remember this, rebellious and irreverent.

In those pre-historic days, pre-round-the-clock marketing days when there was no internet, no MTV, just word of mouth, a couple of late night tv shows (Midnight Special, Don Kirshner's Rock Concert), and a handful of mags like Rolling Stone, Hit Parader, Circus,and my fave, Creem.
Creem Magazine was one of the few resources for music fans to get info on what was happening in the world of rock and roll. In fact, Creem called itself "America's Only Rock 'n' Roll Magazine". Like me, it was a product of Michigan, a fact I say proudly.

A few rock journalists made their names writing for Creem: Dave Marsh, Cameron Crowe, and another not-so-famous critic named Lester Bangs.

Later immortalized in REM's "It's The End of the World As We Know It," and in the film "Almost Famous," Bangs was more than just a critic for Creem. His reviews were not so much a criticism of music as they were statements on life, politics, society and philosophy. One could learn much from those pages. What criticism was offered by Bangs and others might sometimes have been considered something more like abuse.

I happened upon a lengthy audio interview with Bangs, and if you're so inclined, you can find out what this guy was all about by clicking the links below.

Part 1

Part 2


While I always hoped for something a little more informative and sincere, Creem's irreverence was kinda cool. And the photos were unbelievable, offering a glimpse into the world of rockers like Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones, Lou Reed, Marc Bolan and T.Rex, Kiss, Mott the Hoople, the Who, Aerosmith, the Ramones, Cheap Trick, the Clash, and so many others. The list of faces adorning the magazine in the early days was naturally heavy with Michigan artists. The MC 5, Iggy Pop and the Stooges, Bob Seger, Ted Nugent, and Grand Funk Railroad can all stand up and be counted.

Though the magazine is no longer in publication, a beautiful book compiling stories and photos was published last year. Included are all the old features: Stars Cars (pimped rides of the rich and famous), Creem Dreem ( rock babes posing in full color), and Creem's Profiles (an artist pretended to be advertising for a mythical Creem beer).




This magazine made me wish I could be a rock journalist. I wrote them a couple letters, and one was printed in 1985.

These days, it's tough to get really good info on the music scene, but MOJO does it well, and XM radio is helpful. But Creem was the real thing. Boy Howdy!

Little Boy Blew

"Oh, no," I thought. Kevin was standing in the audience with a few other band members, holding just a drum stick. I was concerned because the rest of the Symphonic Band was taking the stage. Was Kevin not selected to perform? Did he... gasp, misbehave? Was he trying to make some statement by holding up a stick?

It turns out that my worries were for nought. After the opening notes of their first piece, Kevin and the others joined the band on stage. The band director of the region's top middle school musicians explained that the very select group of twelve kids spread around the audience were hand-picked by her because of their alert-ness, focus, and because they were remarkably on-task.

Huh? Was she talking about our Kevin? Yeah, who knew?

But there he was, up there playing with all the very best students from the many schools in our region. He was in the Region Symphonic Band. While they were playing, I looked over at his mom. She was doing that goofy smile she does when she's proud of her boys. Ya done good, Kev.

Guitar Hero

Justin is just the kid with an axe to grind. All he needed was a place to show off his, er, chops, and today he got it. The assignment was to do a presentation for the class, that would express their interpretation of the story, "Frankenstein." His progressive AP English teacher allowed him to bring in his guitar, amp, and buddies -- in all, a classic four-piece rock band, to play their version of "Bark At The Moon." They got their act in gear, and brought their gear, for a very loud and noisy, impromptu performance, with only a little, tiny bit of rehearsal. The video should do all the talking. (It was taken from a crude cell phone camera, so, be warned.) Now, together, everybody... Hoooooowwwwwllll!

So, Duh, Pop.

Over the years, I've had some very, very good students. Really smart students. But more than that, great kids. I wouldn't dare name them all, just because, well, so many reasons. But, since we're in the here and now, this year's Advanced Placement Calculus BC kids deserve a shout out. Each is special in his or her own right, and just the fact that they are enrolled in Calculus 2 -- while still in high school, mind you, should give you an idea of how truly gifted they are, and how lucky I am. We started a tradition of designing our own hoodies in the fall. What you see is this year's model. I submit, Calculus BC, 2008-2009, in da hood.