MOG - steve simon's Posts

Rothbury cliffnote's review

steve simon — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 22:24:47 GMT

props to Madison house and AEG for generally pulling off the first annual Rothbury Music festival this weekend. there were no major glitches, the crowd was very cool and the main stage sound was excellent.

observations:

the site and amenities were excellent, and it makes bonnaroo look like a concentration camp.

with attendance at around 35,000, the place was perfectly comfortable. it was ultra fan friendly, though clearly the promoters need another 10,000 to make it economically interesting.

ex SCI lighting guru Andy Carrol did an epic job turning Sherwood forest into a after hour surreal paradise. clearly the coolest visual thing i have ever seen at a concert or event.

it was not as evolved environemtally or socially as the organizers orignally conceived

Highlights: sets by the Drive-By Truckers, The Dresden Dolls and Taj Mahal. the resurection of Widespread panic( thanks to Jimmy Herring)

Lowlights: due to poor scheduling ( and bad travel logitics on my part), i missed The Black Keys, Spearhead, Keller Williams and Snoop Dogg

Verdict: a solid addition to the already crowded festival season

post for hyman

steve simon — Sun, 22 Jun 2008 19:27:36 GMT

one t shirt washed from housekeeping $11

sliced fruit $21

side of Serrano ham $24

50 minute balinese massage $225

being able to MOG from the beach in Bora Bora........

Priceless

MOG: don't leave home without it

87 years of perpetual motion

steve simon — Tue, 06 May 2008 17:29:27 GMT

Fellow Moggers, i had the incredible fortune to see Dave Brubeck and his son Chris play last night at a private event for the great work of SFJazz(http://www.sfjazz.org/). there were under 100 people there, and he shuffled out to great applause, sat down at my friend's piano and played an improved twinkley little opener that had Dave's distinctive style written all over it. he then told a great little story of his early years in SF when he lived near 18th and castro, and continued between each tune to tell funny little anecdotes that were relevant to what he was about to play. His son Chris is a lovely and inventive bass player, and he also played a very cool clarinet solo toward the end of the great Count Basie ode, "Basie Band back in town". other highlights were a great "Someday My Prince Will Come", a beautiful japanese influenced jam and the crowd pleasing encore of "three To Get Ready"

I can't tell you what a special, wonderful night we had; Dave is as vibrant and talented as he was 40 years ago. if you get a chance to go see this great legend, please go!!

thank god for 60's on XM!

steve simon — Sat, 03 May 2008 21:33:49 GMT

i always seem to have the good fortune to catch this on one of our favorite pre sets on XM, and the mariachi groove to this song is totally stuck in my head. the perfect ode of a too career driven husband finding out his wife is cheating on him as told by his dictation of a screw off letter to his secretary maria( with a cc: to his laywer). freaking brilliant! i had never heard it till about 6 months ago, but it went to #2 on the billboard hot #100 in 69'

til i murder, til i'm dead

steve simon — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 02:07:49 GMT

oh my wife and i are mourning, big time! and it is not even over, not yet. for the finest show in the history of television( yea, you heard me) is coming to a close, and quick. saying it is as painful as our beloved bubbles coming off smack( but hooray, he is clean in season 5). yes, there are only 2 more episodes in the brilliant 5 year, 60 episode run of "The Wire", David Simon's epic series about the gritty reality of life in Baltimore. and to boot two great characters have been whacked in recent weeks, Prop joe and our favorite, the wicked but principled Omar Little. i was going to write a long ode on why it is the greatest thing ever, but i found this clip instead which articulates it pretty well. though loosely a cops and robbers tale, in 5 years it has completely indicted the criminal justice system, politics, unions, our educational system and modern journalism. as a bonus it is quite simply the best conceived, written and acted show of all time. the complexity of the interwoven plots and the rich character development is a marvel. nothing happens quickly, it is a huge but incredible commitment of time. one episode will do you no good, you must watch the whole season to get the pay off( and in my opinion, the entire series). So do yourself a favor, start with season 1 and 60 glorious hours later, let me know what you think.

the futures here, we are it, we are on our own

steve simon — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 16:44:37 GMT

6:10am on super tuesday, and to paraphrase Bob Weir's message from last night at 9:30pm, "get your ass out and vote, it could be the last chance in your lifetime to bring about fundamental change" is it that dire? i don't know, but lots of heavy shit is going on, and there is nothing like having a tiny little voice in it. if you need to register to vote, go here http://www.headcount.org/

but screw big time, massive money spending blotto politics, let's talk about music and community. you see i called every connected friend, label buddy, shyster promoter and music industry honcho i knew for the hastily arranged, what's left of the good, old Grateful Dead, Obama for change show..........and at 6:30pm last night, I WAS SHUT OUT. Who came through? you guys, the MOG community, and god bless you. it came in the form of my rock star compadre Wanbli(http://mog.com/Wanbli). the man went out of his way to find me a ticket for the first sighting of Bob Weir and Phil Lesh on stage together in years( mickey too but no billy). ain't no way i was going to miss it. tickets were being scalped for big dollars, and what did Wanbli charge me? ZIP! he even brought me up in the better sounding balcony of the warfield on seedy market street for the meat of the 3rd set.

so after a little Barack speech on a movie screen( where he mimbled something about change), the boys came out with the current line up of Phil's band and broke into the 37 year old, "playing in the band" and away we went. it sounded pretty good i have to say, and incredibly, it was almost 9 years since i had seen any dead family music in that venue. those were the landmark april 99' phil, molo, kimock, page and trey shows( some of the best dead music i ever witnessed). yes time had flown. anyway, Phil was booming, Bobby was singing and Playin develped nicely with a decent transition into "brown eyed women". bobby and phil didn't interact much given their chilly recent history, but they clearly were both glad to be playing together. the rest of the short first set included a poorly Phil sung "1/2 step" and the topical Beatles cover, "come together"

after a short break i saw the only acoustic almost Dead music i have ever seen, with Phil on a big stand up bass, they did "deep elem", "FOTD", a sweet Jackie Green sung "Deal" and the glorious taoist ode Garcia/Hunter composition, "ripple". inpast years i would have scoffed a bit at bobby trying to sing this jerry song, but at this point the man has earned his right to sing it and he did it justice as well

after another break they opened with "china cat" that had an odd, disjointed transition into "the wheel". this led into a superb, old school throwdown "other one". after a lovely Jackie sung( the kid is great) "sugaree" they went into "eyes of the world" and my swollen knee said it's time to go.

i wandered out to the hallway and saw a group of friends. we caught up, asked about wives, dogs and kids, and it hit me that i was part of a wonderful community. it stretched from Kerouac to Neil Cassidy to Ginsburg to Kesey to Garcia and the extended Dead family right into the on hiatus String Cheese Incident family to current keepers of the flame like Hot buttered Rum. It felt good. you know the Dead were never political at all. but they were about choice, freedom, respect, healthy skepticism..........the good shit. i said my good nights to my group, including JPB, the author of the words that Weir was belting out now: " so the kids they dance, they shake their bones, and the politicians throwing stones, yes it's all to clear were on our own, singing ashes ashes all fall down, ashes ashes all fall down." Indeed!

An Anti Dentite!

steve simon — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 18:17:40 GMT

A trip to the dentist is always a killer for me. and it was just a cleaning, nothing more. but the scraping in my head i endure when they brutally go after the plaque i left from my poor flossing habits........well, that is my own private hell. what got me through was the lovely music of one of the very greats: Joni mitchell and her 1971 album, Blue. it is exhilarating and sobering and honest and pure. the little details she throws out paint a vivid picture that after all these listens kept me from running straight out of the dental chair screaming. if not for that voice, that unique voice and that beautiful, mysterious melody.........well, that it is a fate worse than death when your an anti dentite. three cheers for Joni

An Anti Dentite!

steve simon — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 18:17:39 GMT

The Music Never Stopped

steve simon — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 01:03:50 GMT

We took in the sold out Dark Star Orchestra show at AEG's Times Square Nokia venue Friday night, and it was really freaking good. if you are sick of Phil's horrible vocals and Weir's inconsistant effort, this band is for you. of course they are a cover band, faithfully recreating the Dead's Music........but they are excellent. the garcia guy looks sorta like jerry and play's beautifully. the weir look alike actually and freakishly has assumed bobby's mannerisms. there is a wailing donna like chick who is not so cute and they have a bass player who looks like the late, great John Kahn( go figure)

though this show was a made up set list, they normally re-create note for note actually Dead shows. in the last month alone they hae busted out 3 epic gems; the 8-27-72 springfield cremery benefit with the death and re-birth dark star>el paso>sing me back home, 1-22-79 mccarthur court with the cool other one>close encounters jam>st stephen and 11-9-73 winterland with the eye dropping WRS>let it grow>eyes>china doll. i guess it is a crap shoot weather you get a yawner from the 90's or a late 60's or early 70's monster....but what the hell, take a shot at these guys! Even Hyman could like this thank you and leave it on

cliff notes review of Neil

steve simon — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 23:53:25 GMT

What: Neil Young

Where Nokia Live

When: last friday

Why: because i love him

Positives: crystal clear sound and quirky set list

negatives: venue is sterile and sightlines are horrible

Hightlights: "everybody knows this is nowhere", "oh lonesome me" and "love is a rose"

lowlights: the brutal 20 minute version of Chrome Dream's "no hidden Path"

Verdict: poor. this was as bland and by the numbers as i have ever seen at a Neil show. trifecta encore of Cinnamon girl, Cortez and Tonight's the Night eased the pain

A Sonic Hooray

steve simon — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 22:19:24 GMT

Cathy and I took in last monday the beauty that is The Feinsmith Quartet. it is so nice to be turned onto fresh, contemporary Music; that it also happens to be classical is an added bonus. i was quickly pissed off that the great sounding Kanbar hall at SF JCC was barely half filled. when music is so exciting and accomplished, you just feel for the musicians when it is poorly attended. if people would listen to this kind of stuff instead of blotto commercial shit, the world would be a kinder and more gentle place. Feinsmith features classical guitarist extraordinaire Gyan Riley( son of minimalist composer Terry Riley), frenetic pianist Christopher Taylor, lovely and talented Jennifer Culp on Cello and killer bassist Michael Manring. please check them out if they come around, this stuff is melodious, bright and full of tension and complex rythym. a joy for your ears.

http://www.feinsmithquartet.com/

mid-term report for bruce

steve simon — Sun, 07 Oct 2007 01:16:13 GMT

an update on the 2007 Hardly, Strictly bluegrass Festival in GG park. the place was packed guys, there must be 100,000 folks out here. on the jr. star stage in front of about 15,000 people, john prine, in about an hour, spit out these gems amoung others: speed of the sound of loneliness your flag won't get you into heaven souviners( for late steve goodman) grandpa was a carpenter fish and whistle angel from montgomery( for bonnie raitt) and lake marie

if someone can convince me that prine is not the finest folk singer there is behind bob dylan, i will allow our beloved dog muttley to be gang banged by a pack of rabid pitbulls. the man has almost no equal. his humor, his word play, his poinency.............he has championed the everyday man with his lyrical brilliance. i love him

next up was the always superb Keller Williams. starting with a jam>freaker by the speaker>jam with bela fleck, the man( with sweet lou suporting from the sound board) is always a marvel. he did people watching, celebrate your youth, novelty song, sheba sheba and the closing doobie in my pocket amoung other treats.

on my way home to spell my muttley( who came with me yesterday but was benched today for too big a crowd and his leftover beer and popcorn consuming debacle of yesterday), i stopped at the massive main stage where at least 25,000 were in front of ricky skaggs and bruce hornsby( plus in true bluegrass fashion, about 8 other people on stage). it was a packed but beautiful sight, and these boys sounded good and pretty spirited. as i left, they just launched into an inappropriate cover of "super freak" which came right after a mainstage announcment about a lost girl in the crowe with down's syndrome..............strange but true. more to come hopefully

there's a man with conviction...................

steve simon — Sat, 06 Oct 2007 16:46:43 GMT

a quick blip on the always epic Hardly, Strictly bluegrass festival in lovely speedway meadow at GG park. the 07' line up is incredible(http://www.strictlybluegrass.com/). god bless the generous warren hellman for throwing the best free music fest in the world. off in a bit for the mid day triple threat of john prine, keller williams and bela, but i did catch jeff tweedy solo to close friday's opening day. jeff with just his guitar and occasional harmonica did stripped down versions of Suken Treasure, forget the flowers, new madrid( hooray), i'm the man who loves you, theologians, california stars and such. very well done though he tends to come off more elitist and ego driven everytime i see him( oh, that's right, this is the music business)

come on bay area moggers, we need your reviews if you are there this weekend

MOG dog of the year!

steve simon — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 16:37:00 GMT

happy 11th month birthday to our dear Muttley, one of the great cainine creations in history. dear i say that this dog is god like?; he is a zen buddhist to boot! wait till you see the blow out we are preparing for his one year b day next month, we are having Snoop Dogg headline the affair.

come on moggers, show me what you've got........let's compare pooches:

Muttley serious

Muttley meditative

Muttley after eating LSD

god bless and keep them always

steve simon — Sat, 18 Aug 2007 05:16:02 GMT

ahh, to catch your breath; to just re-charge your batteries for a spell. that was what our beloved friends from boulder, via telluride, The String Cheese Incident did after the final, ringing notes of "Texas" faded at about 12:30am last monday morning. from the first days of mike kang and bill nershi picking under the lift lines in that beautiful box canyon in the san juan mountains to when the final sextet bowed to 9500 adoring fans, the boys did good. real good. i was proud to call myself a fan. they wrote and played beautiful music, they built and nutured a real extended community of diverse people who loved and respected each other and they seeded a disruptive number of sister companies that told the blotto, dysfunctional music industry to stick it( including suing the big bad wolf that is Ticketmaster!) now that is a hell of a resume to build in 13 years. sure, i am jaded, but the music industry ain't so nice, but these folks are. they are nice and decent. they married nice and decent wives and raised nice and decent kids. and i even dare to say that i love their whacky managment team ( and how many of us can say we love band managers??)

10 years after i first remember seeing them at the half full GAMH in san francisco, they time and again left me speechless with the performances i was blessed to attend. and god love them for( especially bill nershi) taking a break or retiring or whatever it is they just did. because it wasn't as fun for them. they wanted new challanges, they moved to different places and they developed different interest, particularly musically. nothing stays the same, thank god......anyway enough analysis.........on to the field report:

I missed thursday's show due to work stuff, but i flew in to DIA and was whisked to the famed Red Rocks ampetheater just in time for friday's first set. first of all, the Rocks( as they call it) is one of the finest and most beautiful places to witness music in the world. get your ass there if you haven't, even for an Abba show. words don't do the place justice. the first set friday was solid; nothing spectacular, but included a great MLT into Stevie Wonder's "I Wish"( with the excellent danny sears on trumpet and chris culme on sax) The second set started boldly with the instrumental "Land's End" that i fell in love with so long ago. no, this was not a legendary version like 98' high sierra or the warfield( was it 2001?) that litterally forced dan braun to sit down from exhaustion, but it was respectable and that lead into kyle singing the beautiful david byrne treat, "what a day that was". after bigger isn't better( with kang's lyrics resonating more than ever) they pulled out Jean Luc Ponty's, "Mouna Bowa" featuring kang's great fiddle while they ran a sweet and sentimental video montage on the big screens recapping all the great years, memories, friends, family and moments. it brought a tear to my eye( and a certain record exec next to me). the rest of the set was good, particulerly the expected set closing "rollover". the encore was a funny take on "don't stop till you get enough" with travis doing great M.J. vocals and moonwalking and then the great Nershi treat "search". all in all it was very nice night of music.

on a side note, we stayed friday night at the futuristic "sculpture house" from woody allen's classic 73' movie "Sleeper", but ran away from it saturday due to the haunted spirits we encountered there( according to wendymo), though it is a hell of a house to throw a party in, and we watched great shooting stars from the deck.

Well, i am proud to say that all hell broke loose saturday. these boys kicked the shit out of the place!!! of course John Dwork and the Peak Experiance team provided great eye candy that we have come to expect from this sweet oregon crew. now their awesome theatrics are usually reserved for NYE or our beloved Hornings Hideout freak outs, but it was perfectly thought out to have them with us. i always love this stuff, and i felt it broke the tension of the "final" shows. it brought levity. and of course it brought visuals! think flamming hula hoopers , stilt walkers, trapeeze artists, giant jellyfish and near naked freaky women dancing up on the rocks. umm umm good! after a beautiful blessing by the elders from the pine ridge indian reservation to thank Conscious Alliance for raising a ton of food( hooray for justin Baker), the entire set, from the beloved "little hands>Dudley's kitchen" opener through the set closing "i know u rider" was superb. but the second set was so sick that it has to be recited in order: Desert dawn>rivertrance>bend down low>dirk>massive drum duel by jason and travis, It is what it is, hotel window>killer jam>naive melody>big shoes>desert dawn reprise!!!!!!!wowowowowow peter's sound work was excellent and andy carrol( who long ago was a fan who had the guts to ask the band, "do you mind if i try to light your show?") did his usual masterful lighing work with a supersonic kick in the ass by having a sick lazer rig that projected incredible images on the stage, in the crowd and on the 2 rock walls on each side of the venue

sunday's finale was a day of hugs and kisses and a few tears, but mostly smiles and warm wishes. thank christ these guys don't like drama. there was no sad trey like meltdown speech like Coventry; just a heartfelt thank you and long, deep bow before the encore.it started with( and i was thrilled for as always) a bonus accoustic set to start things off to remind us of the early roots of SCI, which included "lester had a coconut", peter rowan's "panama red" and "hobo song" the second set had a rare "come as you are" and featured dear friend Keller Williams come out for "Best Feeling" before kyle's appropo "Way back Home". the thrid set had to open( or i guess we thought it might end) with the great "restless wind" and with plenty of great music in between it closed with kang's "shine". the crowed waited and cheered in anticipation of the encores. friday i had asked one of the previously mentioned whacky managers if we perhaps could coax out the rarely played "fearless" by pink floyd( a marglin favorite) and he said: "there is zero chance of them playing that, you fool"! what did they play first? "fearless" and travis sang it beautifully. though i wouldn't have called this after the acoustic set, but hooray, they played my all-time favorite bluegrass nugget, "whisky before breakfast" before- of freaking course it had to be- keith's "good times around the bend", a tune so hopeful for the future but acknowledging life's up and downs with it's great rollercoaster analogy. would this be the end of it? hell no! and though i was somewhat suprised, they threw in a big, nasty "texas" to close it all out; nershi's great ode to hidden mushroom caps and dumb cops, as if to say..........."you might not see us for awhile, if ever, but don't you forget us" and of course, we won't!

Thank you string cheese Incident for so many blessings; may you live long and prosper

a phil and brent nugget

steve simon — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 05:05:42 GMT

well, it has been so long since i have posted fellow Moggers. so i have to get back on my feet slowly. i hope to post on my recent purchase of the newly issued Charles Mingus Sextet from Cornell in 1964 as well as a review of the final String Cheese Incident run at Red Rocks last weekend in the next few days...............but in the meantime, here is the Dead playing one of my all time favorite covers they ever did. "keep on growing" by Eric Clapton. i remember the thrill of them breaking it out for the first time at the Greek that year. i couldn't find that but this version opened up the second set at alpine valley on 6/22/85. check it out B42..............

the powers that be won't let me be.....

steve simon — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 17:47:30 GMT

Howdy fellow Moggers, as the Greek String Cheese Incident shows are coming up, with our friend's Hot Buttered Rum opening on sunday, i wanted to post a couple of videos for your viewing pleasure:

this first gem is a Nat Keefe song based on the 1975 Edward Abbey classic, "The Monkey Wrench Gang" called Desert Rat:

the second, in a more traditional bluegrass mode, is by Zak Matthews called, "idaho Pines"(wait 15 seconds and the video gets good):

trusted moggers and others, let me know what you think or drop a line about your own Hot Buttered Rum experience......or go run to see them play in a town near you; money back gurantee offered

on our wedding day.....

steve simon — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 18:52:05 GMT

check it out my trusted moggers:

The Kiss:

singing ripple with Liza Oxnard:

Kyle kicking it:

me, our beloved mog founder DH and deposed and dead dictator Francisco Franco

Tantra keeps Sting young

steve simon — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 00:10:31 GMT

yo trusted moggers........here is a quick and dirty concert review to show you i am alive and well( and newly married):

What: The Police

Where: 7th row left center at MGM Grand Garden arena

When: last friday

Why: i grew up on Outlando D'Amour

Positives: Sting's voice and melodic bass playing; Stewart Copland's epic drumming and goofy expression

Negatives: massive signs that said, "Best Buy welcomes The Police" and bubblegum, top 40 hit laden setlist

Highlights: Truth hits everybody and Can't stand losing you

Lowlights: de do do do, de da da da and every breath you take

Verdict: pretty good

the afropop king

steve simon — Sat, 05 May 2007 03:01:54 GMT

well, it is a late funky friday submission, but if you haven't checked out the late, great Fela Kuti.....here is your chance. i had to go find this on the web thanks to my laziness( for having not ripped all my Fela) and Apple's silly paranoia for not letting me post from itunes, the live version of this tune on the epic double effort, "live expensive shit/he miss road". oh well, this is still worth a listen my fellow moggers. also, has anyone checked out the live brilliance of Fela's son, Femi Kuti? he tears it up as well, but doesn't come to the states that often.

stay in the moment........

steve simon — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 18:56:50 GMT

the song has been stuck in my head for awhile( thanks to rock n roll pimp for finding it for me; and welcome back buddy). it is just one of those great old FM staples that you forget about, and the lyrics seem particulerly relevant in these tough, brutal times we reside in......

shouting till they tear that kingdom down

steve simon — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 21:16:04 GMT

god bless my new mogging hero Jameson(http://mog.com/jameson)for he brought tears to my eyes. if this wasn't a virtual forum, you could see them; they are real. how did he do it you ask? it was quite simple actually, he turned back the clock and gave me the gift of Uncle Tupelo! my long beloved, long broken up into bits favorite alt country/punk/rock ground breaking combo from the quite depressed hamlet of Belleview, Ill. back in the day the were a staple of the soundtrack of my misspent youth( or earlyadulthood). and THIS IS IT......... http://toodrunktodream.multiply.com/music/item/474

their last ever show at Mississippi Nights in good, old St. Louey. the final glorious notes of their carrer are here for all to hear. the pain and tension and glory and beauty and finality. from the opening chords of their signature cover song, "no depression" to the final distortion of "gimme three steps", they burned bright and fast that long ago night. and then they were gone. the fury of "chickamauga" and "satan, your kingdom must come down", the lovely melody of "anodyne" and "new Madrid", the pain of "give me back the keys to my heart" and "whiskey Bottle"...........ahhh, this show has it all and represents what the were from soup to nuts. anyway, this band just resonated with me in ways i can't explain. it was so long ago that i lost that chewed up, spilled on old cassette that a friend tucked into my hand.......well, jameson, thank you. thank you very much!!

and folks, give this a front to back listen and travel with me back in time, to a place i know well but almost forgot.

Belleview's Finest

steve simon — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 05:58:46 GMT

god love and miss the brilliance that was Uncle Tupelo. tweedy and farrar made some sweet, chaotic and sadly beautiful music in the late 80's and early 90's. thanks to my new mogging buddy jameson, i rediscovered the final Uncle Tupelo show that i lost so long ago. though they hated each other by then and maybe always, they threw the shit down that long ago beer spilled night in good old st louis. for folks who love what jeff tweedy has created in Wilco, check out the angry country-punk pain that is Gun:

we can share the women, we can share the wine....

steve simon — Wed, 18 Apr 2007 20:54:36 GMT

ahh the magic that was the grateful dead fellow moggers. well sure, you think of LSD and spacey noodiling, but for god sakes man, the songs, the words, the stories. and right here is a great example of the substance of what they were about: Jack Straw!!!! though robert hunter mostly stuck to jerry as a lyrical collaborator and weir kept great company with john perry barlow, in the early days before hunter threw up his hands and called JPB in, bobby and hunter did a few songs together( including Playing in the band). Jack Straw is presented here live in early 72' in denmark and it is before they made it a more drawn out, rocking exclamation point of their mid to late 70's shows( and beyond to the end of their playing days, most notably as a first set opener from the mid 80's on), where jerry cranks it before the ending. here it is more straight forward and simple, just a brief sketch of 2 dangerous, weary travelers. there is enough info presented to understand they are desperate, but enough left out to not know specifically why. traveling, blood, poetic scenery is all presented and bookended by the opening and closing: We can share the women, we can share the wine. We can share what we got of yours 'cause we done shared all of mine. Keep on rollin', just a mile to go; Keep on rollin' my old buddy, you're movin' much too slow.

I just jumped the watchman, right outside the fence. Took his rings, four bucks in change, ain't that Heaven sent? Hurts my ears to listen, Shannon, burns my eyes to see; Cut down a man in cold blood, Shannon, might as well been me.

We used to play for silver, now we play for life; And one's for sport and one's for blood at the point of a knife. And now the die is shaken, now the die must fall. There ain't a winner in the game, he don't go home with all. Not with all.

Leavin' Texas, fourth day of July, Sun so hot, the clouds so low, the eagles filled the sky. Catch the Detroit Lightnin' out of Sante Fe, The Great Northern out of Cheyenne, from sea to shining sea.

Gotta go to Tulsa, first train we can ride. Gotta settle one old score, one small point of pride. There ain't a place a man can hide, Shannon will keep him from the sun Ain't a bed can give us rest now, you keep us on the run.

Jack Straw from Wichita cut his buddy down, And dug for him a shallow grave and laid his body down. Half a mile from Tucson, by the morning light, One man gone and another to go, my old buddy you're moving much too slow.

We can share the women, we can share the wine.

Wilco in the sweet spot

steve simon — Mon, 16 Apr 2007 23:21:08 GMT

http://panicstream.com/nonwsp.htm

5-10-97 at the Fillmore in SF, a show i saw when Wilco was one of my favs( still love them of course). it was on the heels of the glorious 2 dics Being There masterpiece. the sound on this stream only show, which is part of the great widespread panic fan site(http://www.panicstream.com/), is awesome!though i am not sure if this gets you to only the non WSP show page or the specific Wilco show( link seems the same), but it is right there either way. also, check out all the other gems that are here. anyway, this was back in the day when tweedy graced us with the love that was Uncle tupelo( one of my all time favorites) in songs like New Madrid, Gun and We've been had. this is great for fellow Wilco loving Moggers, or anybody who loves great rock n roll:

a warm remembrance for a friday night

steve simon — Sat, 14 Apr 2007 05:17:22 GMT

god bless little stevie winwood, god bless Traffic. i first heard this tune on the rarely heard live Traffic album, "welcome to the canteen", though i can't access that live cut for some reason(drat!). go find this old gem, it starts off bopping with this cut, features the lovely, "shouldn't have took more than you gave" and other dave mason led treats like "sad and deep as you" and "40,000 headman"( with reboop's great hand drumming) and ends with the monstrous two punch of mr fantasy>give me some loving. this july 71 croydon and oz benefit at farfield hall is a must have for any Traffic fan or any groovy music lover.

i present to you the studio version as a peace offering

the end of the world.....

steve simon — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 04:24:50 GMT

http://www.celebrex.com/

i saw this between nightline segments last night...it has to be seen, though it might take time to load. it is strange and sad and trippy and it will make you sick. big pharma blows

so long Nershi

steve simon — Tue, 03 Apr 2007 01:01:57 GMT

In a effort to actually see if i could upload something( hyman, no laughing) and to commemorate the end of bill nershi's lovely 13 year run as the main creative force behind The String Cheese Incident, i give you a early composition of his: Dudley's Kitchen( complete with nershi screwing song up and acknowledging with a woo hoo)

this must be heaven....

steve simon — Sun, 01 Apr 2007 19:57:55 GMT

attention bay area moggers( hyman, this is right up your alley!) we have found nirvana by mistake. it is called the glorious muttley open face. we named it after our sick dog muttley. i am looking at him sleeping now. but let me back up. yesterday, cathy and I went to the farmers market at the ferry building and purchased our favorite smoked salmon in the world, cap'n mike's northwest smoked lox

we then went to the killer cowgirl creamery for a few cheese selections and then found out that they had this sublime mozzarella that we recently had at A16 called Burrata from Gioia cheese co. we grabbed a pound of it and went on our way

so here is where our labradoodle muttley comes in. god bless his diarrhea and vomiting( yes this is not congruent with a food review, but....) because we had to take him to all animal's emergency hospital on 9th between irving and judah. this puts us right next to the lovely co-op bakery Arzemendi. they have a incredible piza of the day and other great baked treats, but we pick up hot of the presses Bialys, which for you goyam, are flatter, more delicate bagels with warm onion and poppy seeds on them.

so we get muttley home and we get our lox out and shit, we have no cream cheese!!!!! but spy our barrata mozzerella from the farmers market and figure we have to improvise. well friends, it could be one of the great taste sensations we have ever had, the warm toasted Bialy, the oily, wild salmon and the buttery, yet subtle Barrata from god's underatted creature, the Water buffalo.........ohh man, please check it out. it needs no other additions, not the usual fresh tomato or onion or capers.....just straight. ahhhhhhhhhhh

as my future old lady said, we need help

steve simon — Sat, 24 Mar 2007 12:38:43 GMT

as cathy posted the other day, we are getting married in mexico on june 2nd( yes, it is coming up, i am sweating already) and we have assembled a killer band fronted by ex Zuba leader and angelic voiced Liza Oxnard and Kyle Hollingsworth of SCI. they are also bringing a killer sax player and we need a great big, fat set list of funky, groovy dance your ass off tunes for them to work up. any idea?/ also, we need a great father daughter inspired first dance song

a good day to exercise demons!

steve simon — Sun, 21 Jan 2007 16:45:15 GMT

Yes fellow moggers, i have been quite busy remiss to post about anything recently, but i had to give a shout out to my hometown Indianapolis Colts who are playing in the biggest game of the franchise's history today. their nemise in the form of those incredibly good and smug New England Patriots stand in their way for a first super bowl appearance since they slinked out of Baltimore in the dead of night so many years ago. i am sick of Tom Brady and especially their coach Bill Belichick; i mean who could possibly listen to him for that brutally long off week before feb 4th. anyway the Colts have a kooky guitar playing owner in Jim Irsay( who to boot owns the original handwritten words to Jack Kerouac's, "On The Road") , a nice as hell coach in Tony Dungy and a solid citizen QB in Payton Manning who has never been able to get over the hump in a big play-off game. well, enough lobbying.......... if you can say a prayer for them, it would be appreciated. and also, of course, Go Saints!!!!! if there ever was a town that deserved to win a game it is New Orleans( though i do love da Bears)

happy football watching folks

20 unknown treats for 06'

steve simon — Sat, 16 Dec 2006 16:28:24 GMT

http://www.jambase.com/headsup.asp?storyID=9558

this is from my friend Andy Gadiel's great site, Jambase( though it is more than jam band music for sure). here are 20 lesser known great picks for 06', and while i always thought i was in the know about great up and coming bands, i have never heard of any of these bands. now try to find a top 20 list like that!

happy hollidays

Simon's Top 5 of 06'

steve simon — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 23:57:52 GMT

i am late to the game, but since everyone is chiming in with a best of 06' list, here you go..........

1. Bob Dylan-Modern Times. a great work, his best since "Desire" 2. The Roots-Game Theory. hyman, your right, i can't stop listening 3. Yo La Tengo-I am not afraid of you and i will beat your ass. i am very impressed 4. TV On The Radio-Return to Cookie mountain. excellent, gets better and better 5. Belle and Sebastian-The Life Persuit. my current favorite band( thanks to max-http://mog.com/max)

Runner up #1 Johnny Cash-American 5: a hundred highways any album which makes you cry on gordan lightfoot's, "if you could read my mind" is a big winner

Runner up #2 Neil Young-Living With War. disc is good, not great, but the bush bashing topic pushes it up the charts

they killed it!!

steve simon — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 01:46:17 GMT

any chamber music lovers out there? well, i took in my second gig ever at the pristine sounding st gregory nyssen episcopal church on Potreo Hill. my groovy friend and fine art promotion guru robert friedman(http://www.rfpresents.com/) had cathy, my mother sheila and I as his guests. robert, besides his love opera, ballet and other fine arts, has seen a shit pot of great rock shows, from the first ever shows by bill graham to a recent grey boy all-star show with me.

on tap yesterday was artistic director Warren Stewart's annual Magnificat, featuring Dietrich Buxtehude's "cantatas for advent and christmas". and WOW, what a glorious show it was, these 6 muscians crushed it. the group featured 2 incredibly fluid violin players, a steady eddy viola da gamba player and a plain jane looking chick on an intricite, baroque like boxed organ that looked from the front like a late 70's era TV console. then there was the mesmurizing Warren Stewart, who himself played the Violoncello. this guy had the greatest exagerated movements while he played, bobbing his head back and forth like a turtle and bugging his eyes way out whenever the music got furious. watching him alone was worth the price of the concert( though it was free for us). the insturmental portion of the group was filled out by a guy who played the Theorbo, which is a the largest lute in the world. this 14 stringed thing was huge and it's neck way out so it was 2 feet from the person in front of it in the front row. this man had the most relaxed, feathery soft hands i have ever seen and played the thing beautifully and looked like martin mull with glasses to boot. throw in two hot looking, angelic sounding soprano's and a male singer with a deep, rich bass voice who happened to look like Wayland Flowers.............and, well, you have a hell of a late afternoon in the making

the program included seven cantatas whose central themes involve the expectation of the arrival of the devine beloved, and the affective range of Buxtehude's music reflects the emotional richness of the holiday season( as reported by a somewhat agnostic jew), and by they got to the rousing, set closing "wie sol lich dich empfangen", the crowd was whipped into a fury as the 3 singers belted out( in dutch i think):

inscribe this in your heart you suffering multitudes: by the grief and the pain which burden you more and more, be not dismayed: your help is out the door. he will restore your heart, and comfort you, stand firm

These guys KILLED it and after 2 standing ovations, the crowd went to the artists reception to drink cheap wine and eat cheese.

Bay area moggers, you should check out this annual show next year, it is supreme, and also, you should drive by and check out this church. the place has incredible figured paintings on the wall. you know the kind with jesus and his posse with gold paint illustrating a halo around their heads? well, besides the usual cast of bible types they have paintings of coltrane, ella fitzgerald, martha graham, john muir and malcom X, and the entire group has their arms around each other in a leg kicking Rockette type formation. it is a sight to see

any other classical music reprts from you moggers? report in and populate the mog-osphere with some new and different content

Hyman, i want a frequent flyer contest. . . .

steve simon — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 01:08:18 GMT

i am incredibly lazy. i took in the Who's tiny Atlantic city gig last week for my birthday( a mog appropriate gig if there ever was one) yet i am unable or unwilling to write a proper review of the thing. either the nuerons are not firing properly, or i am slowly realizing that it isn't that news worthy. maybe both. pete still has it, roger held his own, but has clear high range limitations. it was defenitely my last Who show( unless they guarantee to play, "a Quick one while he's away"), i had to say goodbye one last time because their music has been good to me. i did the same to the Stone's early this year

on another note, let's have a contest: who has mogged in the most states and countries??? winner gets something from Hyman( Hyman, say yes)

my list: COUNTRIES: Mexico India( third world lousy internet connection countries count twice)

STATES: California Indiana New Jersey New York massachusetts

let's tally the votes............

from 77th and Amsterdam.......

steve simon — Thu, 23 Nov 2006 17:40:23 GMT

Happy Thanksgiving fellow moggers!

from the rainy upper west side of NYC, Steve

The alter was torn down

steve simon — Sun, 19 Nov 2006 19:57:59 GMT

after being in the wrong place at the wrong time with my travels, i, after a long hiatus, finally took in a Hot Buttered Rum ( they dropped the string band ending a while back to reflect the broader direction of their music) show last night at the sold out independent. i had to go support the boys, which was a somewhat tough choice given The Meters were down around the corner at the Fillmore. the band came out after a wonderful opening set by Blue Turtle Seduction( go check them out!) and went stright into a new Nat keefe tune called Amanda lynn. this is a HBR trademark; a brand new tune that has a warm, familiar aged feel to it all at once. after the lovely insturmental, Water Pocket Fold, they broke out the Evolution, the classic tune about bass player Bryan horne's solo climb years ago on Darwin's mountain in the high sierra's. this song is always a joy to hear and keeps evolving( pun somewhat intended) through the years, and currently they have tucked the tradtional, "molly put the kettle on", in the middle of it. Zak's vocals were stellar tonight. when he uses his chops right( it sounds like he has a vocal coach), he has such a georgeous, haunting vocal quality. we were up close to the stage by now, and me and cath watched in amazment as the boys jammed this one out, listeing to each other so well; eyes locked on each other with grins and grimaces and Erik yates blowing the flute as if he was going to pass out. next came his anti war/Bush is a scumbag ode, "guns or butter" with the band wailing at the end, "woah, woah, less guns, more butter". awesome! then aaron took a stab singing his heart out on the etta james classic, "i'd rather be blind". then came zak's lovely song about love, loss and the cycle of live and death, "Idaho Pine". i love this song, it is yet another new/old classic. the fun metrosexual came next, followed by erik's ballad, Queen elisabeth and then a tear inducing aaron violin solo by bach for their departed friend missy baron. to close the first set they broke out nat's crushing new tune, "Desert Rat". this has the potential to be an absolute show stopper; a landmark HBR song right up there with my personal favorites, "In these parts, the crest, Virginia's Grin or Sweet honey Fountain"

given we are early risers, we only stayed for the first half of the second set which included the always fun Summertime Gal and Irish Melody 2. as we were leaving, Zak was deep into , "The thrill is gone", but those wonderul lyrics to Desert Rat( based on the Edward Abby classic, "the Monkey Wrench Gang") were echoing into my head as we drove home.....

I've taken great interest in the surface of things I'm not looking for a deeper meaning than a lung full of wood-smoke the feel of my sister's hand in my hand

I was born in Tucson and I got my ass kicked by the Viet Cong I guess they were just getting along I might have done the same in their shoes

the mountains gutted by strip mines the deserts criss-crossed by power lines they drown the canyon so the city can have fuel

but I can't get away from the day to day I can only sing of ordinary motion snow melting, and moving towards the ocean

the powers that be won't let me be the powers that be won't let me be and the war and the mall and the sprawl are part of the same machine and it's no damn simple thing like a conspiracy

what's a desert rat to do when he's shakin' in his shoes? when coyote's on the loose what's a desert rat to do?

the altar was torn down the machine defiled my sacred ground so I stand above the desert sand with a monkey wrench in my hand I am not a patient man I am not a patient man I measure desert distance with beer cans

as I drive the valleys and I drive the crest I feel a dangerous howl living deep with in my chest

anyway, i can't reccomend this band enough. they are great muscians, great writers, great showman and great people. please, go see the joy that is Hot Buttered Rum.

Bahut Acha!

steve simon — Fri, 27 Oct 2006 04:29:01 GMT

Howdy fellow moggers from Cochin, India! we are way at the tip of southern India, and we have had an epic trip so far. this place is beautiful, sad, dangerous, fascinating and unlike any place i have traveled extensively. hightlights so far include the always epic taj mahal in agra, the lovely little( pop. 500,000) city of Udaipur and our 3 day stay in an open air tree house in the remote, mountainous rain forest of northen kerala state( apologies to the 5 inch diameter spider i had to decapitate so cathy could sleep)

also, happy belated Diwali to any hindu moggers out there( any?). we celebrated in our fav city to date, Udaipur. boy they love their fireworks on Diwali! the city resembled the firefight scene from Platoon when charlie sheen fell asleep. i hate to think of all the people that lost an arm, eardrum or eye over this one.

our observations to date:

1. India is one of the most beautiful and geographically diverse countries on the planet.

2. India features one of the greatest faliures of a government to give a shit about it's populous that i have ever seen. mass corruption, widespread destruction and poverty, archaic infrastructure and a $1.30 per day minimum wage are some of the lowlights

3. India is one of the most religious and sexually repressed place i have visited. one in three people have the hindu god of prosperity, Ganesha, nailed to their dashboard. cathy and i have grossed out scores of people with public hugging and kissing, as men and women NEVER touch in public. in fact, in some of the southern region we have been through, women are rarely seen outside, and if they are, they are covered head to toe.

3.A the caste system and arranged marriages are alive and well. only one couple of all the people we met have not had their marriage arranged and negotiated by the 2 families. some never saw the bride till she lifted the vail.

4. we think( and hope) that the dengue fever outbreak has been blown out of proportion by the media

5. Leaches are alive and well. in northern Kerela state, Leaches are all the rage. walking on any grass is an instant recipe for disaster and my early morning jog on a broken down road featured me tightropping the middle to avoid these bastard from jumping on me from shrubs and trees on either side.

6. the disgregard for human life as it relates to Transportation must be seen to be believed!

7.. garlic naan, milk brewed tea and kingfisher beer can be safely consumed everyday.

that's it for now, we are soon off to snowy and mountainous northern India near shimla and points north( let's hope those pesky maoist rebels are on holliday!)

moggers, anyone have a great india or other 3rd world travel tale? chime in!

Namaste, steve and cathy

wish us well

steve simon — Fri, 06 Oct 2006 14:01:36 GMT

take care fellow moggers, cathy and I are off this week for a 3 week trip to India. let's hope the Dengue fever outbreak there doesn't worsen. if we can post form the back country we will, but otherwise, keep us in your thoughts. best, Steve

TV on the Radio for Breakfast?

steve simon — Sun, 24 Sep 2006 15:06:52 GMT

while listening to the Epic Johnny Cash Unearthed, i came across this piece(http://www.jambase.com/headsup.asp?storyID=9181) on TV on the Radio in Jamebase. happy sunday, the SF weather has finally turned to summer here

happy B-day John Coltrane

steve simon — Fri, 22 Sep 2006 20:26:05 GMT

yo moggers, we are seriously lacking in posts about jazz on our beloved Mog. in an effort to remedy that, here is a lovely piece from today's SF chronicle on my all time heavyweight jazz champ, John Coltrane( sorry hyman and your bill evan's fixation-though also, thanks for reminding me how great he is). it celebrates my favorite jazz album of all time, A Love Supreme, which is unparalleled in it's beauty and it's tension at the same time( meanwhile the author sights his favorite work as "Sun Ship", which i have never even heard; now that's a body of work. so eat a piece of cake or drink a toast to Coltrane on his 80th!

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/09/22/DDGL7L8RGF1.DTL&type=music

moggers, name your favorite jazz work if you will.........

amazon sucks, but.......

steve simon — Wed, 20 Sep 2006 15:29:54 GMT

it took forever but my Mog recomendations are here: thanks to max and others! loving belle and sebastian right now....if only it was reflected in my last songs played

steve simon — Sun, 17 Sep 2006 18:15:57 GMT

a glowing preview on the good, old Drive-By Truckers gig this week at Webster hall in NYC. attention 5 borough centric moggers, don't miss this one; they are devastating live

POP/JAZZ

Jon Pareles

Way back in 1970 Neil Young wrote “Southern Man,” about the South’s heritage of slavery and racism. Lynyrd Skynyrd replied in 1974 with “Sweet Home Alabama,” telling Mr. Young “Southern man don’t need him around” and putting the message across with rock-ribbed guitar riffs. And in 1996 along came the DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS to heal the rift between Southern rock and liberalism and, incidentally, to merge Mr. Young’s style of high-register vocals with brawny Southern-rock guitars.

The Drive-By Truckers’ songs are steeped in the particulars of Southern life: the farms and the churches, the shotguns and the beer bottles, but also the Wal-Marts and drug users. “It gets so hard to keep between the ditches when the roads wind the way they do,” they once sang. Their albums, like the unabashedly ambitious “Southern Rock Opera” and the thoughtful, twangy “Decoration Day,” sketch grand epics or pack short stories into four-minute songs.

The Drive-By Truckers aren’t doctrinaire liberals but populists with an eye on working-class predicaments, from stagnant wages and layoffs to the toll of war. With a three-guitar front line, the Drive-By Truckers love redneck music but not redneck assumptions, and they work as hard and steadily as the blue-collar characters in their songs: regularly putting out albums and constantly touring. This year they released their seventh album, “A BLESSING AND A CURSE” (New West), which sets aside the historical for the personal, including family memories and stormy love songs. On Thursday at Webster Hall they’re sharing a bill with BOBBY BARE JR., a country songwriter’s son who has his own rowdy version of Southern rock. 7 p.m., 125 East 11th Street, East Village, bowerypresents.com; $25.

for anyone who wondered

steve simon — Sun, 17 Sep 2006 16:30:06 GMT

a piece in today's NYTimes( is there a better sunday paper in the world?) on Jackie Earle Haley

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/17/movies/17olse.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

i loved this movie as kid. walter matthau and tatum( who i fell in love with in paper moon-don't fret moggers, i was the same age) and baseball and beer; it had it all

kelly then:

kelly now:

go re-rent this, it is a classic

bring me my boots and shoes

steve simon — Sun, 17 Sep 2006 01:28:23 GMT

i can't get this new dylan tune out of my mind. this one is just a glorious effort, and any dylan fan worth his weight will be hooked after the second listen. i think this is the standout tune of of this great new disc, easily his best since "desire". the background melody of blues #2 has such a sentimental feel to it, that even though it is not a sad song, it sorta chokes me up for some reason. dylan's aged vocals shine like fine wine on this ode to the decent life of a workingman, but it is more about perserverance, loyalty, forgivness and the awknowledged passing of time.

look at these incredible lyrics:

There's an evenin' haze settlin' over town Starlight by the edge of the creek The buyin' power of the proletariat's gone down Money's gettin' shallow and weak Well, the place I love best is a sweet memory It's a new path that we trod They say low wages are a reality If we want to compete abroad

My cruel weapons have been put on the shelf Come sit down on my knee You are dearer to me than myself As you yourself can see While I'm listening to the steel rails hum Got both eyes tight shut Just sitting here trying to keep the hunger from Creeping it's way into my gut

Chorus: Meet me at the bottom, don't lag behind Bring me my boots and shoes You can hang back or fight your best on the frontline Sing a little bit of these workingman's blues

Well, I'm sailin' on back, ready for the long haul Tossed by the winds and the seas I'll drag 'em all down to hell and I'll stand 'em at the wall I'll sell 'em to their enemies I'm tryin' to feed my soul with thought Gonna sleep off the rest of the day Sometimes no one wants what we got Sometimes you can't give it away

Now the place is ringed with countless foes Some of them may be deaf and dumb No man, no woman knows The hour that sorrow will come In the dark I hear the night birds call I can feel a lover's breath I sleep in the kitchen with my feet in the hall Sleep is like a temporary death

(chorus)

Well, they burned my barn, and they stole my horse I can't save a dime I got to be careful, I don't want to be forced Into a life of continual crime I can see for myself that the sun is sinking How I wish you were here to see Tell me now, am I wrong in thinking That you have forgotten me?

Now they worry and they hurry and they fuss and they fret They waste your nights and days Them I will forget But you I'll remember always Old memories of you to me have clung You've wounded me with your words Gonna have to straighten out your tongue It's all true, everything you've heard

(chorus)

In you, my friend, I find no blame Wanna look in my eyes, please do No one can ever claim That I took up arms against you All across the peaceful sacred fields They will lay you low They'll break your horns and slash you with steel I say it so it must be so

Now I'm down on my luck and I'm black and blue Gonna give you another chance I'm all alone, I'm expecting you To lead me off in a cheerful dance I got a brand new suit and a brand new wife I can live on rice and beans Some people never worked a day in their life Don't know what work even means

(chorus)

Dylan gets some help?

steve simon — Sat, 16 Sep 2006 16:36:56 GMT

interesting piece on dylan borrowing some similar words from Henry Timrod http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/14/arts/music/14dyla.html?ei=5087%0A&en=47accfcdb79bd36a&ex=1158552000&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1158424394-d0/m9nA8Clb4bhWiJq4GyA

where was doc holliday?

steve simon — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 16:01:00 GMT

we were catching up on Tivoed "DeadWood" last night, we saw the episode where wyatt Earp and his brother were introduced. the episode was weak( we almost fell asleep), and wyatt's character didn't do much for us. maybe doc holliday will join him. it reminded me of two horrible movies, Tombstone and Wyatt Earp. both cam out in the early 90's and both were saved by the performances of the TB infused, hard drinking favorite, Doc Holliday.

i favor Val's take on the role. i loved his, "i'm your huckleberry line and i cried at the death bed scene

though Dennis Quad's version had it's moments too.

Moggers, name your favorite, was it Dennis or Val or past doc's like Jason Robards, Cesar Romero or Kirk Douglas?

a good cause for bay area moggers

steve simon — Mon, 11 Sep 2006 00:49:15 GMT

Bay Area Musicians Collaborate to Rock the Earth!

Rock the Earth is excited to announce a benefit featuring many of Northern California's finest musicians on Sunday, September 17 from Noon to 6:30 in the Jerry Garcia Amphitheatre in McLaren Park. The benefit is free, but a donation of $25 is recommended, with proceeds benefiting Rock the Earth's ongoing efforts to Defend the Planet One Beat at a Time.

Artists include:

• Rubber Souldiers, including David Gans, Chris Rowan and Lorin Rowan (the Rowan Bros), Robin Sylvester (Ratdog), Barry Sless (Phil Lesh and Friends) and Adam Perry (The Love X Nowhere), with very special guests including David Nelson and Martin Fierro

• Blue Turtle Seduction

• Mark Karan's Buds, including Pete Sears (Flying Other Brothers), Robin Sylvester (Ratdog), Jimmy Sanchez (Flying Other Brothers), and Jay Lane (Ratdog)

• Zoo Station

• The Trespassers

The Rainbow Montessori School helps make the event even more family-friendly, with a special kids area, featuring arts and crafts, sing-alongs, and games.

Rock the Earth appreciates your support more than ever! Without our members and support from incredible artists such as these, we wouldn't be able to continue to protect our most precious natural resources.

For directions to McLaren Park and the Jerry Garcia Amphitheatre, visit http://www.jerryday.org/directions.html. For more information about the ongoing work of Rock the Earth, visit www.RockTheEarth.org.

This

the best drama on television?

steve simon — Fri, 08 Sep 2006 20:19:30 GMT

i wish i had more time to rave about this production, but HBO's The Wire is one of the great dramatic shows in television today, if not the last 10 years. the first 3 season's of this series were all brilliant, mesmurizing but uniquely different; the lush yet dark and complex character relationships, the amazing writing.....this series has it all. Jimmy Mcnulty and Bunk Moreland are two of the most interesting, loveable yet flawed TV cop teams ever. i have yet to see a preview on season 4( in fact just saw and shed a tear of joy that it starts this sunday at 10pm), but i can say with great confidence that if you put the time into this one, you will love it. i believe this is the last season for this show, but then you can start with season 1-3 on DVD. let me warn you folks, you must committ to the whole season, which is hard in our busy life's and our short attention span brains. this show takes it's beautiful, sweet time to weave the story over the full season. it does not neatly wrap up the loose ends and give you closure each week( just like it's brilliant sister show, Deadwood), but like a long term( for television at least) love affair, put the time in to building a relationship with the Wire, and it will pay off my fellow moggers

P.S. HYman, for god sakes, we need spell check

better late than never

steve simon — Wed, 06 Sep 2006 01:08:05 GMT

what a great effort this is, thanks to all the moggers who posted on this disc

26 for 11:24, no more?

steve simon — Sat, 26 Aug 2006 17:01:32 GMT

after 26 years of waiting, townsend has finally doled out exactly 11:26 of music from what will ultimately be the first new Who Album( what do you call new music anyway, disc?) since 82's "It's Hard". i grabbed this( at $7 which i didn't see at the time) with a bunch of others at Virgin's Union Sq $10 mega disc and DVD sale( is the brick n mortar music business dead or what? say goodnight gracie). anyway, this band has meant so much to me, they were right after the beatles and neck in neck with the stones in my formative listening years. i know townsend has been having problems( who knows the real truth) and i am rooting for one more relevant piece of music from pete with roger's unique voice. the guess there is really know who after keith and john passing, but it has always been pete's band, and he can call it what he wants

so here's the good news: it sounds good, it sounds who like, and it doesn't sound like a re-tread of something old. but i need to hear it again, and listen to the lyrics, and Here's to hoping it will not be another 26 years to get the rest!

as i posted in the early days of Mog, "A Quick One While He's Away" is my favorite all time, underappreciated Who tune, so Mogger's, what is your favorite Who tune?

hyman and company, how do we get spell check on here??

oh my stars

steve simon — Wed, 23 Aug 2006 19:22:38 GMT

bay area Moggers, one of the great singer songwriters of all time: John Prine Palace of fine arts 10/24

hooray

steve simon — Mon, 21 Aug 2006 02:30:18 GMT

sadly, i haven't seen them play in a couple of years, but they are one of my favorite bands in music today( maybe head to head with the DBT and just to kiss hyman's ass, Radiohead). the added fact that they are opening the tour in west lafayette, In is another bonus. now if we could only bring back uncle tupelo from the dead and gone, gone, gone........

Wilco After a series of solo projects, the members of Wilco will hit the road for a string of dates starting October 4th. As JamBase reported earlier this week, drummer Glenn Kotche will do six shows in September in support of his third solo effort, Mobile. The mini-tour will feature fellow Wilco member Nels Cline on guitar.

For those looking for a quick fix, Jeff Tweedy will perform solo on August 16th at the North Carolina Museum of Art and on August 18th the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival.

Crosby and Charles

steve simon — Fri, 18 Aug 2006 19:01:41 GMT

Steely Dan Man i loved this band( or really these two guys, who were the band). they were the cool, streetwise defenitive 70's so cal rock sound for me. timeless songs, dark themes, great imagery in the lyrics. i loved it. here they are in their sorta heyday:

well, i saw my 4th post comeback show( after the dreaded 19 year hiatus) in last 13 years or so at the massive Jones beach venue out in long island last night, and it was an enjoyable thing for sure. they always put together the best muscians for their tours and this is no exception. all have the chops, though i didn't like the michael mcdonald part of the show, i don't care what his history is with the band; the guy gives me the creeps. anyway, what was unreal was how much time has morphed these guys into looking like two other great musicians. walter becker looks exacly like david crosby in the late 70's or early 80's and more strangely, donald fagen looks like ray charles and moves like ray charles. it is a head scratcher and trust me. this photo doesn't do it justice:

i love walter becker! is there a more real, unassuming, unrock star guy to stand on a stage a crush it on classic dan licks he created? awesome. i watched him all night and occasionally watched ray, er, donald, but bummed when he drank and displayed a can of coke on his rig all night for a bit of cash. it was a hit heavy set, and not the killer Dan i prefer( like hatian divorce, midnight cruiser, doctor wu, here at the western world ect) but they did pull out show biz kids, don't take me alive(great), the classic paranoid dealer song, kid charmalagne( hell, most of their classic songs are about drugs or guns anyway) and sorta cool female vocal take on epic dirty work.

the obligatory FM and My old school sent the crowd, who till then sat on their hands, grooving in the aisles and then scurrying, like roaches when the light is turned on in chewy's lower, lower, lower east side apt, out to their cars and back to the city fat and happy

brilliant

steve simon — Mon, 14 Aug 2006 12:31:26 GMT

check out this sidewalk chalk painter, Kurt Wenner. this stuff is amazing

http://www.snopes.com/photos/arts/sidewalk.asp

Root, Root, Root for the home team

steve simon — Tue, 08 Aug 2006 00:14:51 GMT

it is always nice to have your favorite local bands, support them and watch them grow and prosper. after my beloved Hot Buttered Rum( which i posted about earlier, but deserve a more detailed post later), Tea leaf Green is a great bay area local band which is poised to be a force. i have only seen them twice, but from reliable sources and Shows i have heard, they ususally kill it live! they have a slew of nice tunes and the soulful vocal style of keyboard player Trevor Garrod puts a distinctive stamp on this band. go see them as the criss cross the country earning fans the good, old fashioned way....one show at a time. the following is the title track from their latest disc, Taught to be Proud from 11/19/05 at the coda in NYC.

peter the great

steve simon — Sat, 05 Aug 2006 17:10:04 GMT

Peter Sellers role as inspector Jacques Clouseau is probably most known to the world, but his performances in 64' Dr Strangelove and 79' Being There should go down as his most impressive. fellow moggers( who qualify) please vote for your favorite

was it the trifecta of President Merkin Muffley/ Lionel Mandrake/ Dr. strangelove ?

or was it Chance the Gardner?

ladies and gentleman, the hard rock kid

steve simon — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 17:31:22 GMT

ok fellow moggers, chime in

Love em or hate em?

let me follow you down

steve simon — Wed, 02 Aug 2006 22:58:58 GMT

this is by far the best country twinged tune mick and keith ever wrote, i could never get sick of it...

Hey, let him follow you down

Way underground, wind and he's bound Bound to follow you down Just a dead beat right off the street Bound to follow you down

Well the ballrooms and smelly bordellos And dressing rooms filled with parasites Onstage the band has got problems They're a bag of nerves on first nights

He ain't tied down to no hometown Yeah, and you thought he was reckless You think he's bad, he thinks you're mad Yeah, and the guitar player gets restless

Well (And) his coat is torn and frayed It's seen much better days Just as long as the guitar plays Let it steal your heart away

Joe's got a cough, sounds kind of rough Yeah, and the codeine to fix it Doctor prescribes, drugstore supplies Who's going to help him to kick it?

Just as long as the guitar plays

the score brave souls inside

steve simon — Sun, 30 Jul 2006 06:12:01 GMT

here is the second installment of simon's most underrated live albums. today's feature is Queen's 79' effort, Live Killers. i had not heard or even owned this album in at least 10 years, but while walking the hallowed ailses of SF Ameoba looking for Fela Kuti( i found the great remastered He Miss Road, which should be reviewed later) and Zappa, i came across this old favorite. for those who only know later commercial crap like radio ga ga and another one bites the dust, forget it and look further back. from the opening hard rocking, fast version of we will rock you( i can only listen to it like this, the other comercial version is a bore) to the closing god save the queen, this is a monster record of great tunes played by a great band. freddie is the showman, but brian may plays a searing guitar, roger taylor is a crushing drummer( and has a great lead vocal on, I'm in love with my car) and john deacon holds it all together on bass. let me entertain you, death on two legs, now i'm here, 39', don't stop me know, brighton rock and plenty of others show just what a powerhouse this band was in it's prime. again, i might be nostalgic for my youth when me and obscure mogger harry played this to death, but i listened to it today and the thing holds up. my ears were impressed, how about yours?

the sunday smell of someone frying chicken

steve simon — Sat, 29 Jul 2006 16:58:34 GMT

kris's best song, johnny's best cover

Kimock Kimock he's our man!!!

steve simon — Fri, 28 Jul 2006 04:46:32 GMT

moggers, do we have any kimock fans out there? he is one of my favorite guitar players of all time. so melodic, so smooth, so fluid, so tonal. he makes sounds come out that are from another planet. people either love him or seem to dismiss him, but i am not sure why. is there a more beautiful insturmental composition of his other then It's up to you???? i just heard a dreamy 22 minute version from 2003. i am a web dummy, so if i knew how to patch an mp3 up here i would( maybe someone can help me). anyway, if you haven't heard him, go see him alone, with Zero or with the steve kimock band

Name that lyric. . . .

steve simon — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 23:05:00 GMT

"comes the lightning of the sun on bright unfocused eyes the blue of yet another day a springtime wet with sighs a hopeful candle lingers in the land of lullabies where headless horesman vanish with wind and lonely cries"

hell aint a bad place to be

steve simon — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 21:29:04 GMT

in tribute to hyman's post( http://mog.com/david_hyman/blog_post/5861) on good, old rock n roll and wanbli's great new cover song of the day post( http://mog.com/Wanbli), i give you: the first( and most likely last) underrated live album of the day.........AC/DC's If you want blood, you've got it

this 78' gem from Glasgow, Scotland showcases the band at their best and worst at exactly the same time. simple, relentless, angry, politically incorrect, loud and proud! the local crowd is in a foam at the mouth frenzy, i love the chants of "angus, angus" before "whole lotta rosie". the meat of the disc strings together problem child, WLR, rock n roll ain't noise pollution, high voltage and let there be rock. this is a true gem. so as hyman would say, "take the chance, while you still got the choice!"

heavyweight champ of the world

steve simon — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 17:28:35 GMT

a nice piece on the genius of Coltrane

http://www.jambands.com/Features/content_2006_07_20.06.phtml

in a bed of fire

steve simon — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 05:07:33 GMT

their live shows in the early 90's were monster efforts. i remember seeing them the first time they ever played indianapolis when this album came out, there were 10 people at the Patio nightclub. they played their hearts out till they shut the sound down on them. then they had an amazing run of raucous, 3 set affairs at the classic indy blues club, the slippery noodle. just amazing stuff. i was sure he had a bad crush on my then girlfriend therese. i spent time with him a few years back when he played with my colorado buddies SCI, and yes, he remembered therese and confirmed he had a crush on her( i had always thought i was paranoid!) nonetheless, it seemed like this album was so good, just like a perfect moment in time. i would have to say almost brilliant, but maybe i am just being overlly nostalgic. maybe todd expelled all this great stuff inside him with one exhale because , i am sorry to say, but i have disliked every thing they have done since. am i nuts??? chime in fellow moggers, and if you do not have this gem, rush out and get it

tears not included

steve simon — Wed, 19 Jul 2006 05:33:45 GMT

they gave james frey more shit then he deserved for his book, A Milllion Little Pieces, but does anyone really care if he embelished a bit? the late, great Hunter S. made a career doing this and they coined it Gonzo journalism. this seems like the same gig to me. anyway, i liked that book, but My Friend Leonard is even better. i just can't put my finger on why i had to speed read through the thing. i think it has something to do with his run on sentance writing style. it somehow creates a strange sense of urgency, but i loved and was rooting all the way for James and Leonard through the whole book. he uses less punctuation then me which makes him my hero. i literally cried through the last 20 pages. if you want a book you can't put down, give it a whirl

everybody was kung foo fighting

steve simon — Sat, 15 Jul 2006 01:14:30 GMT

i was dragged kicking and screaming to see the acoustic foo fighters show last night at the berkeley community theater. meanwhile my trusted Mog digworm was smartly taking in the rare solo ray davies show at the warfield. dig baby, please get us a review! i wanted to be with him, but i was out to lunch when a couple of months back we somehow said we would join some friends for the foo fighters. it is one of those things that you know you don't want to go to, but you never think it will actually come up since it is so far in the future. i actually proclaimed i would have rather spent the night in the clink then attend another foo fighter show. my last effort was a sulking, acid ingested double bill of the red hot chili peppers and the foo fighters at the horrible sounding IU assemby hall. other then the clean acid, the whole night was a bust. the show sucked and the sound was insulting and damaging for children and other living things! flash foward to last night, and instead of drugs, we brought in killer 70% dark chocolate and organic cherry walnut cookies. am i getting old? i have to say that the the sound was truly astonishing! it was crystal clear, perfectly mixed and the perfect volume. it is without a doubt the best sounding room in the east bay if not the whole bay area. did i mention that the show still sucked? anyway, it did

at the insistance of anzi

steve simon — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 17:49:27 GMT

when it finally works it will save the day so the world will see what i choose to play you see there are songs running round my head all the time a chorus in my front lobe and a verse behind so come on mog o matic be the engine that could and represent to the masses my melodic food that otheres can disect or discover in haste or scoff at me and say what a waste sure some will laugh and others will cry when i mix nick drake with humble pie but all in all it's a lovely widget to scan 0's and 1's and no other digits so it's 3 big cheers for that mog o matic i will drink a toast when i finally have it..................

all the roadrunning

steve simon — Tue, 11 Jul 2006 15:25:32 GMT

as our on hiatus mog buddy gabe(http://mog.com/gdolario) pointed out before he fled the country( who can blame him?), this duet by mark and emmylou is a glorious effort. just lovely and beautiful crafted tunes, and her voice like an angel has aged like wine. a must pick up

it's no fun to die alone

steve simon — Sun, 09 Jul 2006 16:33:25 GMT

i saw my 4th or 5th post mike houser panic show at the greek last night, and i think i have finally realized that the panic i knew and love is gone. other then watching the always brilliant and menacing dave schools, i just don't find it interesting enough anymore. in any other venue other then the greek, we would have left after the first set, but the lovely night( first time ever i didn't freeze there) and the magic of the place kept us around. the driving song>rock>driving song that opened the show was about as good as it got. they pulled out pilgrims and climb to safety late in the second set, but it just didn't do it for me. god bless them for keeping it going after mikey passed, though i think next time it is dinner and a movie for us. am i just getting old? disagreements? comments?

07/08/06 Greek Theatre, Berkeley, CA

1: Driving Song > Rock > Driving Song > Blackout Blues, Ain't Life Grand, Time Waits, Crazy > Time Zones > Thin Air (Smells Like Mississippi), Henry Parsons Died

2: Machine Song* > Chilly Water* > Visiting Day* > Chilly Water*, Hatfield > Drumz > Love Tractor, Suprise Valley > Pilgrims, Give

E: Sittin' on the Dock of the Bay, Climb to Safety

with Sam Holt on Guitar (and no John Keane) [John Keane on all songs except Machine thru Chilly, Hatfield and Love Tractor]

just a little nervous from the fall

steve simon — Fri, 07 Jul 2006 19:43:29 GMT

i saw my trusted mog buddy digworm(http://mog.com/digworm) listening to this disc, and with all my tons of dick's picks and other vault releases, i must say this thing holds up well. it is worth it just for the rarely played weir chestnuts, the monkey and the engineer, the race is on and on the road again. and to understand our dear, departed friend garcia, you only need to hear it must have been the roses, china doll and to lay me down. to have birdsong and ripple there as well is just iceing on the cake. sure, purests will say, it is patched together stuff not from one show, not in the proper sequence. don't let that scare you..............do as cutting edge mogger digworm does and put it on. thank you.......and leave it on!

the tail is everything

steve simon — Fri, 07 Jul 2006 05:12:30 GMT

we were sucked back in for mario 3 and we blew 15 hours of the freaking july 4th weekend defeating the dragon. thank god there are no more mario's to play.............unless we get super NES!

Felonius my old friend

steve simon — Sun, 02 Jul 2006 17:32:00 GMT

this underrated steely dan classic resonates with me more then any other, me and cathy have been burning a hole in it for 6 months. it is quintessential Dan, with perfect sad yet eloquent lyrics. rediscover it

Felonius my old friend Step on in and let me shake your hand So glad that you're here again For one more time Let your madness run with mine Streets still unseen we'll find somehow No time is better than now

CHORUS: Tell me where are you driving Midnight cruiser Where is your bounty Of fortune and fame I am another Gentlemen loser Drive me to Harlem Or somewhere the same

The world that we used to know People tell me it don't turn no more The places we used to go Familiar faces that ain't smilin' like before The time of our time has come and gone I fear we been waiting too long

the greatest cartoon laugh ever?

steve simon — Thu, 29 Jun 2006 14:22:48 GMT

this is a classic and currently me and cathy's favorite way to express ourselves.......using muttley's laugh. the trick is to use it consistently without frying your vocal cords. if someone knows of a better cartonn laugh, let us know

I'll leave this world of toil and trouble

steve simon — Wed, 28 Jun 2006 19:52:34 GMT

http://www.nodepression.net/

for you Alt country fans who don't know about it, No Depression is a great bi monthly magazine to keep up on the genre. named after the Carter family's chestnut "no Depression in Heaven"( though made popular again by a re-do of the tune by my old favorite, ground breaking, Belleville, illinois bred Uncle Tupelo), this mag offers great writing on both past and current Americana/Country groups. really good stuff in here. . . .

be here to love me

steve simon — Fri, 23 Jun 2006 19:17:46 GMT

read Michael Goldberg's great post on townes(http://mog.com/Michael_Goldberg/blog_post/1760), and if you like his music or just want to see a very interesting documentary, check out margaret brown's great film

eisenhower sent him to war

steve simon — Wed, 21 Jun 2006 22:28:58 GMT

miss this band a bit. i think houses on the hill is such a sad and lovely song

the greatest Who song ever?

steve simon — Mon, 19 Jun 2006 18:36:26 GMT

a quick one while he's away could be the greatest, unknown masterpiece ever! anyone dare disagree?

the mushroom kingdom is back

steve simon — Sun, 18 Jun 2006 12:08:32 GMT

i quit my video game addiction after having this reoccuring dream of trying to eat a mushroom that kept moving when i tried to jump on it. that was probably 15 years ago( cold turkey i add) the last one i mastered was either the Mario where his fox like tail was his flying power or where he would inflate his cap and ride on the air currents. in any event my brilliant fiance cathy last night pulled out a box she had moved from NYC with.................and low and behold it has the original NES system and the original Super Mario Bros. of course she is too young to remember it when it came out, and had bought it as a reto novelty on ebay. we played last night till midnight and had a ball. we already( with shortcuts and all-thanks to her great memory) are at level 8-2, and after i master the game today, i am going back into retirement.

a must see

steve simon — Sat, 17 Jun 2006 00:29:23 GMT

http://www.climatecrisis.net/takeaction/

my buddy lawrence bender produced this new film featuring al gore's talk on global warming, "an inconvenient truth". please go see it. it is probably one of the most important films ever to be made.

a rich life in bed

steve simon — Wed, 14 Jun 2006 15:56:15 GMT

after a week of strange dreams i just uncovered this ode to the sleeping life i wrote some time ago. usually only my fiance gets these bizzare downloads from my mind, but in a naked effort to expose myself fully on MOG ........here goes nothing

i am so blessed with another life so rich and odd and beautiful and unspeakable I've seen bands playing in my head they sang, " be more, do more, love more, see more" I've felt lovers entwined crying as they make love I've watched children laugh as they are beaten in far away places, places never cared about places never known I've soared in colors plummeted into dark waters to be devoured by blinded sharks I've watched mountains sprout in the morning by my Indiana home then erode into glass shred while i blinked perplexed I've seen empty, swaying fields of wheat hum silently while i watched and then sing aloud when i turned away I've viewed teeming, crowded cities I've watched the inhabitants of these cities collectively rise up and shout in unison, ''we will not be lost in despair and tyranny and horror and things so unjust they can't be processed'' "we will evolve, change, grow and survive" all these thoughts and moments instant and lasting and forgotten a life of dreams so rich for me that i long to go back to bed tonight and create more moments soon to be quickly tucked away in a hidden part of my mind gone forever am i uniquely blessed? as if i have been chosen to wear a golden crown or am i common, so common that i am unaware that we are all anointed these fleeting fragments of strange magic?

all time great

steve simon — Mon, 12 Jun 2006 15:16:20 GMT

just saw this for the 20th time on a plane last week. it could be dustin hoffman's finest performance. if you haven't seen it, do yourself a favor and check it out. now for the the MOG trivia question of the week: what artist and song was to be the title track for the film, but was passed over for Harry Nillson's "everybody's talkin" due to the song not getting finished in time?

you say Ozo, i say matli

steve simon — Mon, 12 Jun 2006 00:12:44 GMT

my first time at Sonoma county's Harmony fest this weekend. took in great sets from Hot buttered rum, cake and the( brought back from the graveyard) supersonic Steve Kimock led Zero, but the most grooving thing i saw all weekend was the infectious tunes cranked out by Ozomatli. i had only seen then one time long ago on the karl denson fronted snocone tour at the fillmore. i liked them then, but i loved them yesterday. everything about it was great, it is nothing but a rocking, horn infused, scratching good time. watch them snake their way up to a stage near you