A Birthday, A Sky & A New Game

Please take a moment and head over and wish my good friend ANGELL from "Angell'z Secretz" a wonderful BIRTHDAY!

Check out "Looking At The Sky Friday" participants by clicking on the banner above and heading over to Crazy Working Mom's site.

Going back to last October...Lake Meade from atop the Hoover Dam and a brilliant blue sky - OK, it is a sliver of the sky...but there is SKY!

It has really been a tiring week between work and the activities surrounding a certain day in September and well, just life...

I have made it to your blogs every day this week, so that is a good thing!

Have not really had a chance to do much photography, though we did take some pictures this weekend of Nancy and I for use in the upcoming weeks.

I thought this might be fun for a Friday...here is the deal...we have some quotes below and it is your assignment to figure out which quote belongs to one of the following people. Now, I will tell you that all of them may not be represented below...then again they all might be!

Go on...take the challenge..this post is here on top until Monday.

So without further ado...it is time to play:

Rules are simple. Each quote is numbered. In comments, put the letter of the person you think spoke the quote next to the number of the quote. We will come up with an appropriate prize for the winner and in case of a tie we will cut the prize in pieces numbering the winners! No, really, we will come up with something!

Our 'guest' speakers today are:
A) Joe Biden
B) Sarah Palin
C) Dick Cheney
D) Hillary Clinton
E) Barack Obama
F) George W. Bush

1. "We've got a lot of relations with countries in our neighborhood."
2. "It is easy to take liberty for granted, when you have never had it taken from you."
3. "In the Bible it says they asked Jesus how many times you should forgive, and he said 70 times 7. Well, I want you all to know that I'm keeping a chart. "
4. "As a nuclear power - as the only nuclear power to have used a nuclear weapon - the United States has a moral responsibility to act. "
5. "You cannot go to a 7-11 or a Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent.... I'm not joking."
6. "You got to have people at the top who respond to and are selected by presidents."
7. "They are also building schools for the Afghan children so that there is hope and opportunity in our neighboring country of Afghanistan."
8. "The fact is that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have gotten too big and too expensive to the taxpayers."
9. "The American people are tired of liars and people who pretend to be something they're not."
10. “Because our military power dwarfs that of other countries - we spend more on defense than the rest of the world combined - this Administration believes that alliances and international institutions are more of a burden than a benefit. They allow the Lilliputians to tie down Gulliver.”

I probably played this somewhere in the past, but it just came on while I was finishing the post, and HECK-A-DOODLE I just had to share it...

To find out who it is, well, you have to follow the H-A-D link...

Thursday Tuneage News...

GOSSIP PRESENT MUSIC FOR MEN IN STORES OCTOBER 6

DIY post punk-rock trio Gossip’s first major label offering of new material, MUSIC FOR MEN, hits stores Tuesday October 6, 2009. The album has been available via all digital service providers in the U.S. since June 23, 2009. Recorded at Shangri La Studios in Malibu , CA , Music For Men was produced by multi Grammy Award winner Rick Rubin. Music For Men finds Gossip taking drummer Hanna Billie’s pulsating rhythms and guitarist Brace Paine’s raucous whaling to a whole new level. Syncopated beats, punk rock attitude, dance energy and ominous bass thumps provide the perfect canvas for the unique vocal power and range of the band’s renowned front woman Beth Ditto.

Check them out HERE.

NEIL DIAMOND – HOT AUGUST NIGHT: NYC

A new concert special featuring highlights from one of Neil Diamond's most memorable recent concerts, will be broadcast Friday, Aug. 14 (8:00–9:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

The special features electrifying performances from Diamond's latest sold-out concerts at Madison Square Garden in New York . Diamond sings several of his classic and beloved Top Ten hits including "America ," "Cracklin' Rosie," "I Am…I Said," "Cherry, Cherry" and the world's greatest sing-along song, "Sweet Caroline." In addition, Diamond reflects on a recent visit to his hometown, as he takes the audience on his journey from Brooklyn to Madison Square Garden , in an intimate look at the man behind the music.

BLACKsummers'night, the heavily-anticipated new studio album from Maxwell, was released on CD, and in a Limited Edition Deluxe CD/DVD set, this past Tuesday, July 7th.

Check out the links below to view behind-the-scenes clips:

Maxwell discusses the first single, “Pretty Wings” HERE

Maxwell pontificates on “Stop The World” HERE

Maxwell records “Help Somebody” HERE

Maxwell speaks about his inspiration for “Cold” HERE

BLACKsummers'night is the first full-length Maxwell release since NOW, his critically-acclaimed third studio album, debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 in August 2001.

BLACKsummers'night is the sensuous opening installment of the artist's monumental BLACKSUMMERS'NIGHT trilogy. (The trilogy's subsequent chapters, blackSUMMERS'night and blacksummers'NIGHT, are slated for release in 2010 and 2011 respectively.)

From our featured artist this past Monday,
another from her CD entitled, GOODBYE YOUTH
this is Melissa Ferrick with "Bad Habit"...

ENOUGH ALREADY!!!!!

I CAN NOT BELIEVE I HEARD Ervin “Magic” Johnson, the brilliant point guard say the following words at the Michael Jackson memorial yesterday: “I can honestly say that Michael Jackson made me a better point guard…” Johnson then when on to say how by watching Michael and the way he handled himself (insert your own joke here), made Magic a better basketball player.

I was in my car during lunch, the sports radio station on, and they cut into Kobe and Magic speaking at the memorial service. Kobe said something about loving Michael's music and how talented he was...then Magic declares to the world that it was MJ all along!

Now, I am sure some of those asked to say things at the Memorial did not really know Michael and I do know that at times like this you are supposed to ‘insert’ yourself into your tribute to connect with those in the audience.

But kiddies…seriously…Magic does not have to ‘insert’ himself into any scenario EVER. He is Magic…nuff said.

Maybe he could not come up with anything to say about he and Michael…but PLEASE…Michael Jackson made Magic a better player…nah.

I guess for those who PAID to get into this memorial it was worth it. PAID???!!!! Are you kidding me? For a memorial service???

The ‘tickets’ were given away in an auction, with each winner receiving two wristbands. There are reports of offers on Craigslist for a wristband in exchange for a plane flight from the Northeast (where the winner lived) to LaLa to attend and one wristband holder decided to use this opportunity to see if he could meet a P.Y.T - "Date can respond with pic and reason why she deserves to go."

Though eBay was aggressive about stamping down auctions, it didn’t stop people from bidding upward of $15,000 for passes to Tuesday's event. AEG (the ‘show producer’ – show producer?!?!?!? - this is a freaking memorial service people…sheesh!) warned people to be on the lookout for counterfeiters and reminded people that anybody claiming to sell their e-mail confirmation code (which allows them to claim their tickets Monday at Dodger Stadium) are frauds, as the e-mail code is non-transferable and requires the ticket claimer to have proper matching ID.

Even that hasn't slowed the secondary market, as there are a handful of auctions open for the rejection e-mails sent to people who did not get tickets. The opening price for the rejection e-mail? $2.99. Wait…go back and read that last sentence…people want to own the REJECTION EMAILS!!!! That is scary. And now you can buy unused wristbands. Come on people --- puleeeaasssse!

click it to read it!

So, there are people who spent the time to send in their requests to receive these 'golden tickets' and when they do win this lottery, they decide to profit from the death of their so called 'idol'. Oh yeah baby...hero worship at its best.

And then there are those whose lives would be shattered if they were not one of the 17,500 people who could hear a stream of celebrities talk about Michael and hear Stevie Wonder play...LIVE

Now remember, 6,500 of you only get to sit in the Nokia Center next door and watch it on the big screen TV. ummmm, pssst folks, every freakin' news station broadcast it...and even ESPN cut in when Kobe and Majic spoke. ABC covered the event, so did BET, and MTV...if you are going to sit and watch on TV is it worth it to fly in from some other part of the country and spend money on flights and hotels???

And PLEASE, do not even try to get on MichaelJacksonFuneral.org, because they were so busy the servers would time out.

Can we now move on? The news has been obsessed with this and it really is tiring. And then again, here I am taking up an entire post about why I despise the fact that all I am hearing about is this Michael Jackson Memorial Service...

And I took you all along for the ride....

WHo Are They?

Are you looking over your shoulder recently? Has there been a time in your life where so many celebrities all leave us within a week?

McMahon, Saxon, Fawcett, Jackson, Storm, Mays, Travalena, Presnell, Malden, McNair. In 7 days...since last Tuesday.

What? Can't place a couple of the names up there? Well, take a seat on The Couch and let me introduce you to those who might be unfamiliar. But guess what? I believe you will know each of these people also.

Sky "Sunlight" Saxon (1946 - June 25, 2009) was an American rock and roll musician who was best known as the leader and singer of the 1960s Los Angeles garage rock band The Seeds.

Born Richard Elvern Marsh in Salt Lake City, Utah. Different sources suggest a birth year of 1937, 1945 or 1946. His widow has said that his birthday was August 20, but would not confirm the year because he believed age was irrelevant.

Saxon died on June 25, 2009, in an Austin, Texas hospital. He had been hospitalized with what doctors suspected was an infection of the internal organs, but the cause of death has not yet been released. He was reported to be 63 years old.

Still not sure who he is?

Well, The Seeds were a Southern California band in the early 60's and their biggest hit was released in 1966 and reached #36 on the US charts. This same song was named one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.

"Pushin' Too Hard"

Josephine Owaissa Cottle (April 5, 1922 - June 27, 2009), better known as Gale Storm, was an American actress and singer, who starred in two popular television programs of the 1950s, My Little Margie and The Gale Storm Show.

When she was a 17-year-old high school senior, two of her teachers urged her to enter the contest on Gateway to Hollywood, broadcast from the CBS Radio studios in Hollywood, California. The first prize was a one-year contract with a movie studio. She won and was immediately given the stage name Gale Storm, while her performing partner (and future husband), Lee Bonnell from South Bend, Indiana, became Terry Belmont.

After winning the contest in 1940, Storm made several films for the studio, RKO Radio Pictures; the first was Tom Brown's School Days, playing opposite Jimmy Lydon and Freddie Bartholomew. She worked steadily in a number of low-budget films released during this period. In 1941 she sang in several Soundies, three-minute musicals produced for "movie jukeboxes."

She acted and sang in Monogram Pictures' popular Frankie Darro series, and played ingénue roles in other Monogram features with the East Side Kids, Edgar Kennedy, and The Three Stooges.

She shared top billing in Monogram's Cosmo Jones in The Crime Smasher (1943), opposite Edgar Kennedy, Richard Cromwell, and Frank Graham in the role of Jones, a character derived from network radio.

Storm became an American icon of the 1950s, starring in two highly successful television series, and it was in this decade that her singing career took off.

Storm's first television hit was her starring role in My Little Margie from 1952 to 1955. The show, which co-starred former silent film actor Charles Farrell as her father, was originally a summer replacement for I Love Lucy on CBS. The popular show ran for 126 episodes on NBC and CBS. In an unusual move, the series was broadcast on CBS Radio from December 1952 to August 1955 with the same lead actors. Only 23 episodes of the radio show are known to survive.

Storm's popularity was capitalized upon when she briefly served as hostess of the NBC Comedy Hour in the winter of 1956. That fall, she again starred in another situation comedy, The Gale Storm Show (aka Oh! Susanna), featuring another silent movie star, ZaSu Pitts. This show ran for 143 episodes between 1956 and 1960.

Storm appeared regularly on other television programs in the 1950s and 1960s as well. She was a panelist and as a "mystery guest" on What's My Line?

Storm was living in a convalescent home in Danville, California. The cause of death is not known as of this time.

She also had three top ten hits during her recording career:
1956: "I Hear You Knocking" (#2) /"Never Leave Me"
1956: "I Ain't Gonna Worry" (#6) /"Ivory Tower"
1957: "Dark Moon" (#4) /"A Little Too Late"

From a live TV broadcast, this is her #2 hit "I Hear You Knocking"...and check out Jan Murray introducing her!

Fred Travalena (October 6, 1942 - June 28, 2009) was an American entertainer, specializing in comedy and impersonations.

His television credits began in the 1970s, as a regular performer on and the The ABC Comedy Hour and the Dean Martin Roasts. He had several voice credits on cartoons, as well as appearances on nationally-broadcast children's programs.

Mr. Travelena made many guest appearances on game shows and dramatic programs in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. In the mid-1980s he hosted the game show Anything For Money.

He appeared in the series premiere of the short-lived 1991 sitcom Good Sports with Ryan O'Neal and Farrah Fawcett.

He appeared at casino theaters in Las Vegas, Reno, and Atlantic City, as well as performing arts theaters, cruise ships, and private "in-concert" performances. He took part in a USO tour to entertain troops overseas, and was honored in 2004 by Club Italia with a Merit Achievement Award for his contributions to society. In 2005 he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Travalena was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2002 and prostate cancer in 2003. Following five years' remission, the lymphoma returned in 2008. Travelena died on June 28, 2009, aged 66, at his home in Encino, California

Harve Presnell (September 14, 1933 - June 30, 2009) was a Golden Globe-winning American film, stage and television actor.

Presnell was born as George Harvey Presnell in Modesto, California.

His height, booming voice, and operatic training landed him the role of Johnnie Brown in Meredith Willson's musical The Unsinkable Molly Brown on stage which premiered on Broadway in 1960. He later reprised the role in the 1964 film version. He appeared as a cavalry scout in The Glory Guys (1965) and sang the stirring "They Call the Wind Maria" in the 1969 film Paint Your Wagon.

His film career was revived when he played William H. Macy's father-in-law in Fargo (1996). Subsequent parts included General George C. Marshall in Saving Private Ryan, Mr. Parker on The Pretender, Dr. Sam Lane on Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman, and A.I. Brooks on Dawson's Creek. He starred in NBC's Andy Barker, P.I.

Mr. Presnell passed from pancreatic cancer.

This week on Dr. Blogstein’s
Radio Happy Hour:

Aside from being a dazzling beauty and a brilliant attorney, Marjorie M. Liu is an up and coming, multi-talented and versatile author.

Marjorie has recently taken over the Marvel Comics’ Wolverine series, but has written both paranormal romance and urban fantasy novels. She just released Darkness Calls, the second in a three book series about a woman whose tattoos serve as armor during the day and unravel from her body to take the shape of demons at night.

LIVE BROADCAST: July 7, 2009 @ 9 PM ET



PODCAST AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD:
Immediately following the live broadcast
Become a Radio Happy Hour subscriber

for free !

Diann Valentine, celebrity wedding & event planner and designer, is the host of TNT’s Wedding Day, produced by Mark Burnett.

The incredibly sought-after and admired Valentine is the creative genius that created the jaw dropping, gorgeous weddings of such celebrities as Usher, Toni Braxton, Kelis, Nas, the Mets’ Gary Sheffield, NBA players Jimmy Jackson and Eric Williams and film director Antoine Fuqua.

All that, plus:

• Dangerous Lee co-hosts

• Vinny Bond sits on his Big Leather Couch to chat live with the listeners

• Justin the Mouthinator treats us to his infinite wisdom

• and we’ll take your calls at 646-652-4804

Tuneage Tutelage - New Music Monday....

Been so totally jammed up the last 7 days with meetings with two caterers and tastings. Wonder why people just don't seem to hear you when you ask them to check on certain items...oh well...almost done with that.

Then on Friday, it was a redesign of the invitation. The entire concept was changed. Nancy and I worked on it and came to a nice simple idea which we both like.

Then it was off to find the perfect paper AND the envelopes to match. That took a tad bit of time, but persistence paid off and success was ours.

Throughout the weekend, we have been printing invitations and hotel and RSVP cards and return envelopes and return address labels.

Of course, I found a faux pas on the invite and HAD to print them out a second time! bwahahahaha

Then it was begin addressing the invite envelopes and affix stamps to the envelopes and stuffing and sealing and...

with all due respect to Ringo, it is my WRIST that ache!

OK, I am done with wedding talk...

But all this has kept me from visiting anyone since Wednesday I think. I sowry....

I will be visiting this week...everything is beginning to settle down.

Her name is Melissa Ferrick and she doesn't answer interview requests, but she does make some pleasing music. The CD I received is entitled GOODBYE YOUTH.

Now, I have checked the PR site that sends me this music and I can not find her. Maybe her contract with them is up? Not really sure.

She does, of course, have a myspace page HERE

From there, you can read her bio, in part, it says:
Melissa Ferrick could blow her own horn quite well - a flugelhorn to be exact - if she chose. Instead, she expresses her creative spirit with an acoustic guitar.

Since the early 1990s, the accomplished singer-songwriter from New England has compiled a solid string of sonically strong, lyrically rich studio albums.

Her widely praised 2006 album "In the Eyes of Strangers" fulfilled the rock 'n' roll essence that Ferrick has long harbored and drawn inspiration. But just when it seemed she would take a hard plunge into a more layered, instrumentally diverse sound, she returned to the studio to produce perhaps her most intimate, stripped-down album to date, her ninth studio effort "Goodbye Youth."

Laid down in a single day during her near-constant tour schedule, "Goodbye Youth," marks a departure from the music she wrote and arranged with a team of accomplished musicians on her previous effort. Yet, the new album retains the pure Ferrick trademark: An endearing, emotionally honest first-person lyrical approach driven by her dynamic acoustic sound.

After studying horn music at the renowned Berklee College of Music in Boston, Mass., Ferrick set out on her own. But her instrument focus had changed. Rather than pursue a career as a flugelhorn musician, she turned to the acoustic guitar.

In 1991, she landed a last-second addition as a support act for Morrissey. This first big break not only led to more dates with the popular British rock crooner, but also laid the foundation for Ferrick's reputation as a dynamic live act. A recording contract with Atlantic Records followed in 1993, as did her debut album, "Massive Blur." The album garnered glowing reviews, as did her sophomore effort two years later, "Willing to Wait."

Although she enjoyed success with Atlantic, Ferrick elected to go in another direction in the wake of "Willing to Wait." She released five studio albums and four live albums as an Indie artist over the next 12 years. Her second live album during this period, "Live at the B.P.C." (2000), marked the first release on her personal label, Right on Records.

Often described as folk singer, Ferrick's inspiration flows from a love of rock..n' roll. During her impassioned live performances for instance, she'll occasionally crack out a Zeppelin-style riff or tinker with a little Red Hot Chili Peppers vocal improvisation. These touches however, only sharpen the intensity of her wildly popular live shows.

The decision though to dial back the sound on "Goodbye Youth" though, didn't leave the thrust in the dust. In a stroke of musical mastery, Ferrick channeled her rock spirit into a fresh acoustic idiom, which she navigated with tactical beauty with the assistance of engineer Scott Norton.

From that CD, here are two...the title track "Goodbye Youth" and "House On Fire".

If you want the CD, let me know in comments. No poll this week...