As I walked down the hall earlier today, a coworker grabbed me and asked “Who’s Tony Orlando? and what song did he do?”  I told her that he was best known for “Knock Three Times” and he was the leader of the group “Tony Orlando and Dawn.” 

I explained that they had a variety show that everybody watched when I was a kid.  In return I got a blank stare from my coworker. 

That’s when hit me- she has no idea what the variety shows of the 70’s were like.  You remember the shows…seems that every cheesy duet in the 70’s had one.  Tony Orlando and Dawn was actually a trio- but the rest of them were duets- Sonny and Cher, The Captain and Tennille, Donny and Marie.

They were all the same- a song and dance number to open the show- interupted by friendly banter between the hosts- usually consiting of one of the hosts making fun of the other (Cher teases Sonny about being short, Donny doesn’t understand Marie’s obsession with County music, Tennille teases the Captain about his baldness, etc.)- and then, after the appropriate amount of teasing and one of the hosts pretending to be REALLY UPSET-  back to the song/dance number. 

Next up, a couple of mildly funny (I’m being kind here), very family friendly (although they acted as if they were very edgy) skits.  Gotta have another song/dance number- this time from a special guest (think we can get Bobby Goldsboro to sing about how that tree has grown?  What?  He’s got his own variety show?  What’s Anne Murray up to?  If we can get Ray Charles, we can tease him about being blind!).  Next up- a couple more family friendly skits and of course then it’s time to wrap it all up with another big song/dance number.

Oh, did I forget to mention the costume changes?  Sometimes several within one song.  Hell, Cher would completely change her costume and hairstyle 3 times in the course of a 3 minute song!

So that’s the 70’s variety show.  Not sure exactly when they went out of style.  And I’m sure I would not watch them today, even if they were on TV.  But they were fun at the time- if for no other reason, than for a young boy to watch for Cher’s inevitable wardrobe malfunction.

Can you hear that?

It’s the collect sigh of kids in the Madison school district as summer is coming to a close.  School starts again tomorrow so it’s the last night of summer.  Actually, tonight is a school night.  So I guess summer really ended for those kids yesterday.

I always remember at the beginning of summer thinking about how much time I had and how there were so many things I wanted to do.  Each year the summer went by too quickly and I always had a some regret that I didn’t do more.  Why didn’t I get in one more bike ride or one more game of softball or maybe just one more dip in the pool.

I think this tends to be true with a lot of things we do in life.  We always look back and wish we did more.  I’m not sure we ever really feel fully satisfied.  Maybe that’s a good thing.  After all, if we got everything we wanted there would be no reason to look forward to anything.

Who am I kidding?  The “we wouldn’t have anything to look forward to” speech is probably falling on deaf ears for those who are under 18 years old.

Well humor fans, we made it to another Caption Wednesday, the last one before Labor Day. NO creepy guy wearing strange clothes, no killer animals, just a glimpse into the future, perhaps?

Please give me your best caption to this photo. The winner gets FABULOUS prizes, especially if you are an Elvis fan.

  Your deadline is Friday at 2 PM.. NOTE THE EARLY END TIME due to the long holiday weekend.

Have fun, be creative, and, as always, play nice!

This weekend on Triple M we’re playing some of the greatest live music ever recorded!  Every hour will start with another cool live song.  So, I thought it would be fun to put together a list of my favorite live albums of all time…

1) Cheap Trick…at Budokan.  O.K., so Cheap Trick has been my favorite band since I was a kid, so this is no surprise.  But it is a great album.  I love Cheap Trick’s studio albums, but they really shine live.  I’ve probably seen them 40 times over the years- I didn’t include any other live Cheap Trick albums on the list- but I do have to point out that I was in the audience for the recording of “Music For Hangovers” and in the audience for the video shoot for the song “Say Goodbye.”  Also, if you like what you hear here, you might want to search for “Bun E’s Bootlegs” a series of live recordings from various parts of their career- there’s some interesting cover songs and a few of their own songs that they no longer play live.

2) Marques Bovre & The Evil Twins…Live @ The Pres House.  I can’t remember if this is even an official release- I think so, but I’m not positive.  It was recorded at the Pres House here in Madison- I believe the guys at Audio For The Arts did the recording and did a fantastic job.  I don’t remember the exact circumstanses here, but I think Marques was about to take some time off, maybe for surgery?  Anyway, it was a great performance- again there were several songs that don’t get played live too often and again I was in the audience for this show.

3) The Neville Brothers…Live On Planet Earth.  I actually lost this CD on a flight to Jamaica several years ago.  I was BUMMED!  I know exactly where I left it- in the seat pocket, where they put the bad in-flight magazines.  I was listening to it and then popped in another CD and left the Neville Bros in the pocket of the seat in front of me.  I have since burned myself a new copy of the CD and I love it- from the very beginning where they are introduced as “The Mighty, Mighty Neville Brothers” all the way through the very end and their stellar version of ”One Love/People Get Ready.”  Other highlights include “Voodoo,” “Congo Square” and of course “Yellow Moon.”

4) U2…Under A Blood Red Sky.  Do I really have to say anything beyond “This is not a rebel song…this is ‘Sunday, Bloody Sunday’?”  O.K. I will.  I remember walking down the hall of one of the dorms in Platteville several years back and hearing this blaring from one of the rooms.  I stopped in to find out who was playing it…and I ended up marrying the girl who had it on her stereo.  Not right then and there, but several years later.

5)Little Feat…Waiting For Columbus.  Several years back I had the opportunity to introduce a Little Feat show at the Barrymore Theatre.  I walked out on stage, stepped up to the mic and said “Please join me in welcoming…let’s hear it…F…E…A…” and so on- just like on the record.  Later that night while I was standing in line for a beer, somebody said that they knew I was going to do that- I asked how and he said “because that’s exactly what I would have done.”  Oh, and then there was the night that I got drunk with Richie Hayward and about half of the New York Yankees.  I won’t bore you with the details- I’ll just say we got kicked out of the bar and haven’t been back since.  On the record itself- I love “Dixie Chicken > Tripe Face Boogie” and “Time Loves A Hero.”

6) The Allman Brothers…At Fillmore East.  No idea how many times I’ve seen these guys over the years.  One of my favorites was at Alpine Valley- Elijah Blue Allman was playing with the band at the time- the show was over and we were hanging out backstage when the phone rang.  Someone on the crew answered and yelled for Elijah, as he walked away I joked that Cher was on the phone- and then as the crew guy handed the phone to Elijah, he said “It’s your Mom.”  So yes- Cher was on the phone.  As for the album- a 22 minute “Whipping Post” – gotta love that.  I also love the live versions of “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed” and “Stormy Monday.”

7) The Who…Live @ Leeds.  It wasn’t until this album that I realized how much Cheap Trick was influenced by the Who.  I know, it should have been obvious- but this is the album that made it obvious to me.  I hosted a show on Public Television a few years back- it was a live performance from the Who and my cohost pointed out the similarities- I wasn’t going to argue with her there on live TV, but I didn’t really see it.  So I went home that night and dug out “Live At Leeds” and listened.  Oh, now I get it.  The Who really did influence Cheap Trick.  She was right.  I was wrong.  That happens (more often than I’d like to admit).

Bob Marley…Babylon By Bus.  I know, the “LIVE” album from Bob Marley is the classic one.  But I became obsessed with this album when I realized that the tour that the recordings came from came through Madison.  I can’t remember now where it played- possibly the old Capitol Theater or the Orpheum?  I wasn’t there, I just always thought that it was cool that the tour came through Madison.  A few years ago a did a little research on it, actually making calls to Jamaica and some museum that tracks all of that stuff and found out that none of it was actually recorded in Madison.  But it’s still cool.  Musically- I love the way the album opens with “Positive Vibration” and from there- it just keeps up a great vibe through the entire recording. 

9) Talking Heads…Stop Making Sense.  No great stories to go with this one.  I just love Talking Heads and I never had the opportunity to see them live.  I really hoped that when they played for their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony that they would have a ball and decide to tour again.  I could see from the first note they played that night that it wouldn’t happen.  I’ll have to be happy with the live album.

I’ve always thought all of us who love sports are a little irrational and superstitious.  Do you have a “lucky” jersey you wear for every Packers game?  Do you have to eat the same snack during every Badger game?  Do you only get another beer when the Brewers are playing defense because you think it brings them luck?

I stopped doing those things because I now know that standing in a certain part of the room or wearing a special hat has ABSOLUTELY NO IMPACT ON THE GAME.

I thought I had really gotten over those irrational thoughts, but I guess I still have a little work to do.

I saw an article about a group called AccuScore.  Here’s the description from the article of what they do:

AccuScore provides baseball predictions and projections by calculating the precise probability teams have of winning each game, their division, and making the playoffs. Using projected starting lineups, baseball predictions are created by simulating each game of the season, one play at a time, up to 10,000 to 20,000 times.

In other words, they can give you a pretty good idea what teams will make the playoffs.  This season my beloved White Sox have had some struggles to say the least.  There are times where the team looks great, but then suddenly they fall flat again.  I’ve written off the team several times this year only to be sucked back into it when they start doing well.  This past weekend the White Sox swept the Mariners and now stand in second place.  I’ve fooled myself once again thinking they have a chance to win the division.  My heart says it’s still possible.  What does AccuScore say?  They say the White Sox have a 4.9% chance of making the playoffs.

But maybe math is wrong?  Maybe the White Sox will go on a tear and make the playoffs.  I better go get my lucky sweatshirt and wear it until the end of the season.

The blues world is mourning the loss of David “Honeyboy” Edwards, who died early yesterday at his home. The last of the original delta blues performers has died, just shy of his 96th birthday.

I was lucky enough to see “Honeyboy” when he played the Belleville Blues Festival a couple of years ago, to introduce him and to shake the hand of a man who was a contemporary of Robert Johnson. It was an incredible honor.

This is a guy who was respected by every one from Robert Cray to Keith Richards, and was still a helluva performer almost until the very end. He played his last shows in April of this year.

There’s a documentary available on DVD that tells his life story. Check out the trailer here and click here for more info.

Like that great sage (Yogi Berra) once said, it’s “deja vu all over again.”

Around this time last year, I underwent back surgery at UW Hospital. It was surgery on my spine, to deal with symptoms that resulted from spina bifida, a birth defect I was born with.  Basically “spina bifida” means the bones around my spinal cord didn’t form completely, and over the years scar tissue built up around the open area, pulling down on my spine and causing numbness and tingling in my legs.

The surgery went great, but in March the symptoms came back, and this surgery is to deal with new scar tissue that formed as a result of the last surgery.

I’ll probably be recovering at home for around 4 weeks.

Now this seems a little repetitive and perhaps not as sexy the second time around, so I’ve been trying to think of some embellished stories to tell people instead of the boring old surgery stuff.  Here are some that I came up. Feel free to add your own.

1. I’m going on a pilgrimage to visit the graves of dead rock stars…from Duane Allman in Macon, GA to wherever Amy Winehouse is resting these days.

2. I’m feeding starving orphans.

3. I’m working on an intricate mosaic made up of used beer bottle caps in the likeness of Chubby Checker.

4. I’m getting ready for the mother of all garage sales.

5. I’m hiking the Appalachian Trail.

Sophia Coppola and Thomas Mars, lead singer of the French group Phoenix, married at Palazzo Margherita in Bernalda, Italy yesterday. Her father, Frances Ford Coppola walked the bride down the isle in front of 80 guests including Johnny Depp and George Lucas.

The couple met in 1999 when Mars worked on The Virgin Suicides soundtrack. Coppola and Mars have two daughters, 4 year old Romy and 15 month old Cosima.

Here Coppola talks about her upbringing and the importance of family.

Sadly, another week of caption fun has come to an end. At least we didn’t get and  earthquake or hurricane. What we DID get is a bunch of funny captions.

Let’s  start with the honorable mentions!

Up first Brian! 

It’s never the first beer that makes you stupid stuff.  Another lesson learned…

Next up is Geno: 

Gene Simmons knew at an early age, that he had a gift to share with the world!

and Connie:  Wait! I missed a spot!

Tammy goes artistic. 

Edvard Munch called he wants me to model for one of his paintings!

Our first runhner-up is Philip, who submitted several good captions. This was my favorite:

Even at the tender age of 9 months, Stutz Bearcat, inventor of the tongue depressor, felt the inevitable pull of destiny.

         And our WINNER of the recycled prize package is SUE!   

Sure it’s warm outside now, but I have to be ready with the perfect expression for the first time I freeze my tongue to the flag pole!

Thanks everyone. Have a fun weekend. The weather is going to be great and there are TONS of things to do…stay safe!

I was looking through a preview of new TV shows coming out this fall, and I’ve got to tell you…it’s more than a little scary.

I did notice two shows that seem to have a common theme. In the show “Once Upon a Time,” none of the characters seem to know they’re all living in an actual fairy tale. This comes from the writers of  “Lost,”  and that may be considered a good thing to some people.

In the show “Grimm,” the main characters are descendant of the original Brothers Grimm who wrote all those violent fairy tales a couple hundred years ago. One of them’s a detective who finds out that fairy tales are real, and he can see some people for the monsters they truly are. (From the executive producers of “Buffy” and “Angel”!)

“Where are we going?” asks a character in the trailer for “Once Upon A Time.”

“Somewhere horrible,” is the reply.

Somewhere horrible indeed. You can bet on it.

Once Upon A Time will air Sundays at 7pm on ABC and premieres October 23rd. Grimm premieres Friday October 21 on NBC and will air at 8pm.

While neither one of these shows seems promising to me, I bet both of them will seem Oscar-worthy compared to the new Tim Allen comedy that’s coming out this fall.

Here are the trailers for the two shows. What do you think?