What Happens In Vegas Stays On Blogger

Just came back from my first trip to Las Vegas. What an incredible trip it was! Three days of fun shared with my wonderful wife. And how else should I commemorate the trip than create a playlist of memories, another Playlist of Pooh!

Gram Parsons - Ooh Las Vegas

To get psyched up for the trip I thought I should listen to Ac/Dc's "Sin City" or ZZ Top's "Viva Las Vegas" but I never did, instead I played this song on my Ipod repeatedly in the week leading up to the trip.

Journey - Raised On Radio

We listened to the radio on the way to the airport, I had no idea that Steven Seaweed and his Hot Lunch program was still on the air. In high school I loved listening to that show on the now defunct KRQR radio station. The weed man wanted folks to call in requests with "radio" as the theme, I would have called this in if I had time to hear it before arriving at the airport.

The Beatles - Ticket To Ride

It was a long wait for our flight at the airport, it was delayed by about two hours. I have an extreme fear of heights and flying, so even though I watched plane after plane take off the runway without incident I was still going nuts. I tried to think of how many of my favorite entertainers have spent decades flying all over the world without problem. Or the other times I had been on planes and safely gotten from one place to another. Unfortunately, all these rationalizations didn't help much so my wife bought me a magazine about The Beatles to distract me.

Asia - The Smile Has Left Your Eyes


Our trip to Vegas was off to a bad start, the flight was delayed and then it took another 30 minutes for our shuttle to leave the airport because they were waiting for other passengers. Except they didn't tell us that, they sat us in the shuttle and left us there to the point we considered just walking to the hotel. Our hotel was The Luxor, a pyramid shaped place that reminded me of the Asia Alpha album cover.

Ohio Players - Love Rollercoaster

Once we dropped off our stuff in the room we decided to walk around. The New York New York section nearby so we went on the roller coaster. It was a great coaster with huge drops and loops throughout. Easily the best roller coaster we had been on in ages. My only problem was I rode the coaster wrong. How do you ride a roller coaster wrong? On this one you have to keep your head flat against the headrest or else it bounces between two neck bars like a ping pong ball. I didn't know that going in, the sides of my lower jaw are still sore. But what a great ride!

Sammy Hagar - I Love This Bar

We had a drink at a bar, I think it was called Diablo. There are tons of restaurant / bars on the Strip including Sammy Hagar's Cabo Wabo and another owned by Toby Keith. I was sort of interested in going to Cabo Wabo since Sammy Hagar is as close to a prophet / philosopher that I can think of in the world. But when I heard their music system pumping new wave music I thought "ehhh". In Sammy Hagar land there should only be Saint Sammy's jams on the speakers!

Quarterflash - Take Me To Heart

The next morning this song was running through my head for no apparent reason. Just seemed to fit the mood of relaxing opulence at The Luxor.

Bruce Springsteen - Atlantic City

Vegas is all about tourism, for many living there it is working in the service industry but for others it's sales and promotion. There is this place under construction called The Grandview which will eventually be 20 towers tall but only has six built right now. The Grandview has hired an army of blazer wearing folk to offer package deals of show tickets and gambling money in exchange for going through what I assume is a lengthy presentation to get you to buy into a timeshare at the new establishment. While the sales people are perfectly pleasant, they're planted like ant farms all over Mandalay Bay, The Luxor and The Excaliber making their repeated "Do you have any plans for a show this evening" or "How long are you in town" queries irritating beyond belief. I actually preferred the porn peddlers waving their leaflets in my face up and down the strip to The Grandview reps. At least those guys and gals understand my shaking my head and hands at them means "no" and don't try to overcome my objections. It doesn't quite fit, yet "Atlantic City" came to mind when dealing with these people. I don't blame the salespeople themselves they're just people trying to earn a buck just like me, but damn...

Bella Notte

We had a nice romantic gondola ride through an indoor area that is designed to be like Venice, Italy. The...I guess maybe they're called Gondalier? Anyway, the guy that moves the boat with a pole was friendly and an excellent singer. One of the songs he sang he prefaced as being from The Lady And The Tramp which was this tune.

Ray Lamontage - You Are The Best Thing

While spending time with my wife looking thru the mall stores, this song came on which fit the mood perfectly.

Kool & The Gang - Too Hot

Did I mention it is hot in Vegas? The temp was over 100 degrees every day until when we left, when it was a cool 97. Even at night you feel like you walked into a broiler. After walking much of the day we were exhausted and took a hasty cab ride back to our room for some rest. Then we met with some of my wife's relatives for a very pleasant dinner.

Queen - Body Language

Won't go into too much detail, I'll just say seeing provocative dancing to this song was the first time I enjoyed hearing this forgotten track. Thought "Body Language" overdid the dance angle of the band following "Another One Bites The Dust" in terms of Queen's music, but in this context it was the perfect tune.

She And Him - You Really Got A Hold On Me

In a rare quiet moment in this very exciting city, I sat down with my Ipod and listened to some She & Him while reading the hotel magazines. This song really popped when I heard it.

Duffy - Mercy

If there is a song The Luxor likes, it's definitely "Mercy". Heard this play throughout the hotel multiple times every day. It's amazing how these hotel / casinos are designed, they're like mini cities within themselves with tons of food, shopping and entertainment at your disposal (at a high price of course). Oh, if you're ever in The Luxor I recommend having the fried rice at Rice & Co. upstairs, it is insanely good!

The Heights - How do You Talk to An Angel?

It's my wife's birthday! We had a delicious breakfast at the Mandalay Bay, it was a fancy place with a great view of other buildings and palm trees. I had a Norway Benedict while she had smoked salmon with bagels. It felt like the setting for a scene in a tv show with rich people, like 90210. A wonderful time with my wonderful, beautiful wife.

Styx - Mr Roboto

After breakfast I took her to The Fremont Street Experience. The magazine in the hotel room promised shopping and art and a good time. What actually was there was old Las Vegas, the original Strip. The Fremont Street Experience was fascinating, a sort of land-that-time-forgot. A place that emphasizes the "loosest slots in town" and offer prime rib dinners for $4.95 on posters. The older casino / hotels retain much of the 70s style sense of glitz with tons of light bulbs flashing on signs everywhere. Signs you could easily imagine having held the names of legends like Sammy Davis Jr or Dean Martin at one point in time. There weren't many people there when we went, adding to a ghost town effect. When I told my wife the magazine said Fremont Street was 80s themed this year, she jokingly said that was the reason I took her there. The topic came up when "Mr Roboto" blasted on the Fremont St audio system while we looked at a kiosk selling 80s t-shirts saying something like "Vegas says Relax" (for those too young to remember, the 80s had a lot of "Frankie Says Relax" t-shirts. Right up there with oversized "Choose Life" shirts).

John Waite - Going to The Top

My wife has always wanted to go to France, so I took her to the Eiffel Tower in the Paris section of Las Vegas Blvd. The view was really awesome, I just wished my fear of heights could have subsided so we could have enjoyed it more.

Elvis Presley - Viva Las Vegas

In the early afternoon we made our way back to the Bellagio / Ceasar's Palace part of the Strip. It was there on a private balcony we witnessed the famous water fountain show at The Bellagio. Done to the tune of "Viva Las Vegas", it was truly a spectacular show. So glad we got to see this.

The Simpsons - Monorail

We rode the monorail back towards our hotel afterwards. I love monorails!

Black Crowes - Share The Ride

That evening we saw Cirque Du Soleil Ka which I will write a separate review on. Once that ended we tried to catch a cab back to the hotel, but the cab stand line was too long so we footed it. Before Vegas, I had taken maybe two taxi cab rides in my life. In Las Vegas it was a daily necessity. It is so hot outside you have to find other ways to get around. Most of the taxi drivers were friendly and amiable, others not so much.

Nearer My God to Thee

The next morning we went to see the Titanic exhibit at the Luxor. On the one hand, it may not have been a good idea to delve into one of the greatest disasters in modern travel on the same day as catching a flight. On the other hand, it was a well done exhibit. It is solemn, informative and involving. To see the personal effects of the travellers and remaining pieces of the ship is so sad. The recreation of the grand staircase is impressive. But what really stuck with me is the facsimile of the side deck at night, it makes you feel like you're really on a ship. A feeling of calm and beauty, unaware of the disaster looming before them. Violin music played in the background, which I believe included this song that may have been performed while the boat sank. After Titanic we walked over to the Shark Reef to see an impressive display of animals and sea creatures.

Gym Class Heroes - Cupid's Chokehold / Breakfast In America

To cope with the flying I had to drink a lot before the flight. While downing a beer this song played in the background at the bar, my wife hadn't heard it before so it caught her by surprise. I had to break the news that yes, even Supertramp is not immune to sampling. Can't say I dislike this tho, it's Supertramp with a modern beat.

Led Zeppelin - Fool In The Rain

We sat in rush hour traffic through San Francisco to get home. The radio played three Led Zep songs in a row, after "Fool In The Rain" we talked about our trip matching the cadence of the verses.

Smokey Robinson - Being With You

Thank you for the trip honey, I loved being there with you :)

Weezer - Memories

While driving to get some food today, the radio was all advertisements so I threw in the Weezer cd I had in the car. This song was perfect for the moment. All the memories make me want to go back there...

The Year That Was 2009 pt 1

I've been neglecting the blog lately and want to get back into posting so to start up again I'm going to subscribe to the "Out with the old and in with the new" routine. My first two posts of 2010 will be to review the year that was 2009. The first post is music and the second is everything else.

2009 was a year of big hype and modest pay offs in music. It was the year the King of Pop died, ironically sparking a career re-evaluation as audiences were able to separate the music from the person. It was the year of Glambert and Susan Boyle keeping reality tv's foot in the door of pop music. It was the year of free live concerts streaming on the internet. It was the year people went gaga for Gaga and told Kanye he's heartless. Maybe he was upset that it was the year of Taylor Swift, the lanky Country teen dominated everyone and everything else in her path.

For me personally it was the year I completed my Top 100 Favorite albums posts. It only took what, two years? I'm big on lists though, as my wife says I have lists of my lists. And true to my self, here's more lists-

To start things off, here's my Top 5 favorite albums of 2009:

5. Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs - Under The Covers Vol. 2 / Chickenfoot - Chickenfoot (tie)

When old timers pool their talents, sometimes they can come up with something a little fresher than if they worked on their own. Fan that I am of Matthew Sweet and of his first pairing with the lead Bangle (2006's Vol 1.) I anxiously looked forward to this set of 70's covers. And fan that I am of Saint Sammy, how could I resist a combo with guitar god Joe Satriani, ex VH Mike Anthony and funky drummer Chad Smith? In both cases, the teams came up with solid discs touched with earnest excitement and heavenly bright spots. Sweet and Hoffs were a little more mechanical this time out than on their first combo yet still found magic in well worn power pop(Raspberries, Todd Rundgren) and classic rock (Rod Stewart, Yes) scripture. Meanwhile AOR geeks rejoiced, basking in the glory of hard hitting guitar driven grooves ("Soap On A Rope"), high flying rockers ("My Kinda Girl") and power balladry ("Learning To Fall") that's Hagar's stock in trade.

4. U2 - No Line On The Horizon

The Irish quartet returned to save the world again with their most subdued effort since...The Unforgettable Fire (1984)? I was turned off by the weak techno pop lead single "Get On Your Boots" which turned out to be the hardest rocking thing on the album. That's not to say No Line is a bad album, it's actually pretty good. The dream reteaming of producers Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois ensures the dreamy atmospherics envelope everything in its path, creating a disc that is as grey and cloudy as its album cover. Though "Moment Of Surrender" is a nice ballad, I found myself really digging the clunky rocker "Stand Up Comedy" in addition to the classic U2 flag waver "Magnificent" and the catchy "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight". But U2's quiet ways were too mysterious with their mass audience leading to weak sales. Wonder if they'll bring back the thunder next time out?

3. Pearl Jam - Backspacer

When I first picked up this disc I was somewhat disappointed that it seemed a little weak lyrically and that they had removed the anthem rock element they just reclaimed on '06's self titled album. A little after that I was notified I would be losing my job and this album took on special meaning to me. The enervated vibe, open ended lyrics and classic Vedder clenched teeth me-against-the-world delivery provided the motivating soundtrack to a month of hell. I've already gone on about this album in other posts so I'll end it by saying my feelings about this disc has increased greatly since my initial review of it.

2. Dave Matthews Band - Big Whiskey and the Groo Grux King

For most of the past decade, Matthews seemed to be on the run from his own band - creatively that is. DMB brought in producers to try to swerve the sound away from the intricate jam band tendencies they built their name on. But the passing of saxophonist Leroi Moore seemed to change all that and as a result we got the loosest, grooviest DMB disc in ages. The slam bang breezy rock of "Why I Am" was a highlight on an album packed with the natural, tight and instrumentally impressive music that made DMB famous. Other highlights included the gently loping "You and Me", the Cameo "Word Up" send up "Shake Me Like A Monkey" and the Lillywhite Sessions reminiscent "Lying In The Hands Of God". Of studio albums, this was the best of the year. But I'm not done yet...

1. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - Live Anthology

I debated over whether or not to include this, seeing how its an anthology of performances spanning back to the 70's and not a disc of new material. It's just I'm so blown away by this set (if I had done a separate post to review it Dixie would have given ten barks) that I feel compelled to include it. This is an outstanding set, five discs in all, of live performances taken from all phases of Petty's career with the Heartbreakers. Big hits, deep cuts, covers and what not are sewn together to form the facsimile of a live concert. Each song features a strong emotional performance and stack together to form something greater than the sum of its parts. This is one of the best box sets I've heard, it captures a spirit of the different facets of a brilliant artist better than most other box sets and does it with live cuts. I was lucky to get this set as a gift and even though I haven't watched the DVDs that came with it yet I will say that if you have the money to spend on this, it's well worth the price.

And now, my Top 10 songs of 2009:

10. The Lonely Island "I'm On A Boat" and Bruce Springsteen "The Wrestler" (tie)

Is having a tie a way of cheating so I can include an extra song or album in a countdown? Yup, and that won't stop me either. Comedy rappers The Lonely Island floated in "I'm On A Boat" early in the year and I turned a deaf ear to it until it was featured on a mash up with the movie Ponyo. I haven't gotten the song out of my head since then, with my flippy floppys while you're at Kinkos straight makin' copies! On the other end, The Boss provided a song for a movie soundtrack finding him in grumbly acoustic serious guy mode. He captures the soul of a beautiful loser perfectly. Technically this song is from 2008 but since I didn't listen to it until I bought this years Working On A Dream album I'm including it here.

9. Green Day "21 Guns"

All in all, I found Green Day's heavily hyped follow up to their modern classic American Idiot to be a fair but bloated affair. Except for a handful of cuts, one of them being "21 Guns" with its steady march beat and defiant chorus. Never did figure out what the song is actually about, after watching the overblown video for it I went off the song for a little while. I went back to it later, when you get to brass taxes I just like the beat and melody here.

8. Foreigner "Can't Slow Down"

A full review is to follow of the new Foreigner disc I got for Christmas. There's a lot of slow numbers on the new one, but the opening cut is a hard charging rocker that shares its title with the album. The current lead singer gets his Lou Gramm on (Grammophone?) to great affect as the guitars hammer onward to a charged anthemic chorus. A slice of AOR awesomeness on a stick.

7. U2 "I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight"

Easily the catchiest tune on the recent U2 effort, you know a song is listener friendly when you hear it playing over the sound system of Home Depot while you shop for bricks. In one of those lazy susan musical influence deals, "Crazy" bears some resemblance to the sound Coldplay has employed to amazing success, the sound that borrows a lot from Radiohead and U2. What came first, the chicken or the egg? Either way, this is a pleasant pop rock feel good song.

6. Franz Ferdinand "No You Girls"

New new wavers Franz Ferdinand went from future stars to yesterdays news in a heartbeat between their first and second albums. On their third disc a desperate move (infusing their angular guitars with techno dance sound effects / beats) paid off with strong results peaking with "No You Girls". Balanced on a groove that is almost disco, the Scottish quartet bring the alternative rock cool on and back it up with a killer hook. The chorus has me flashing back to Greg Kihn's "Jeopardy". Normally I hate when a song is referred to as "hip". Franz Ferdinand justifies use of that word.

5. Dream Theater "The Best Of Times" (pts 1 and 2)

My favorite song off the musically spectacular but lyrically insipid DT disc Black Clouds and Silver Linings. The heartfelt intent of the words to "The Best Of Times" (not to be confused with the Styx song) about a man thanking his dying Dad is enough to overcome the maudlin sentimentality of the piece. Best of all, the proggy metalheads weave a tight fabric of instrumental virtuosity that pays off with a stunning John Petrucci guitar solo at the end. It's epic in all the right ways that make Dream Theater great.

4. Mandy Moore "I Could Break Your Heart Any Day Of The Week"

Unlikely 70's inflected pop from a former teen queen Britney Spears type singer, Mandy Moore hauled in a hand clap beat and cheap keyboards to finesse a tune that would have sounded right on an AM radio channel in 1973. And I'm a sucker for songs that use the days of the week in the chorus (see "Seven Days" under Sting for details). Amid the heavy clutter of machines and calculated marketing moves that make up modern pop music, Mandy Moore sounded like a breath of fresh air in '09. And yes, this is the same girl who once sang "Candy" and starred in those teen romance movies.

3. Bon Jovi "We Weren't Born To Follow"

OK, you're Jon Bon Jovi and you think: you know what a new Bon Jovi album needs? "Born To Be My Baby" with different lyrics! Yes, that's precisely what was needed Jon Bon Jovi. That sir, is why you earn the big bucks. Musical cop out that it is, I freakin love this song. Maybe it was the timing, I certainly could use encouraging music from a familiar artist. "We Weren't Born To Follow" (just noticed this title even has "Born" in it!) hit home and meant a lot to me. And thank you Richie Sambora for redoing that guitar solo.

2. Lady Antebellum "Need You Now"

Well look at that, I picked a Country song for number two. My cousin gave me the debut album which I thought was decent pop rock done Country style so when their new song for their second album popped up I gave it a shot. Well, I was floored by how good the new song is. A straightforward pop rock duet rendered nicely with able vocalists. Sure, this is about as Country as say Restless Hearts "When She Cries" (meaning its not) but that's fine with me, I don't listen to hardcore Country. This is like Starship's "Nothings Gonna Stop Us Now" for the new millennium. Which I guess isn't that new anymore since we're up to 2010.

1. Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs "Go All The Way"

Duets are us it seems, Sweet and Hoffs Marvel Team Up hit a home run with their cover of The Raspberries / Eric Carmen classic "Go All The Way". The revved up guitar riff and intertwining voices make for audio ecstasy thanks to an inspired performance by the dynamic duo. It may also help that my copy of the original song sounds like crap even though it's from a Time Life collection. Anyway, this cover encapsulated everything that makes the pairing of these two great. (The only place I could find the song online is their myspace page, you have to click on the song to play)

2009, so glad its gone. Next is the year in movies, tv and whatever else I can think of media related. Vampires you say? That is so last year and I hear they suck.

The Design Of A Decade Pt 1: Devil Horns To The Sky!

The future is the past. The past is the future. Chickenfoot keeps arena rock alive in 2009!

The first decade of the 21st Century is almost over, makes me feel like I'm Buck Rogers living in this space age of microwave ovens and high definition sunglasses. And with any landmark of time there must be Best Of lists because hell, if you can't list things you like in an arbitrary order then why have an internet? So this is my list, in order of genre, of my favorite CDs of the past ten years. I wish I could say every album on my list is a flawless gem but I'm old, most new music (even by old artists) don't hit me like that. This is part 1 of a series that I'm naming after a Janet Jackson album because as she would say, what have you done for me lately?

We're at the stage of life for 70's / 80's rock bands to discover that sadly rock and roll does not come with a pension plan. As a result these groups keep chugging along on the road to make dough for their IRA. Or maybe they just plain love what they're doing and meant it all those years ago when they gave interviews saying "I'll play live til I die whether it's to 20,000 people or just one guy in the room." In any case, these road warriors hit the stage to rock out annually and occasionally release new material to keep things fresh. Here's my favorite Arena rock releases of recent past.

Rock The Half Sold Out Arena!

My favorite of all music genres headed up by my favorite band, Journey. The 21st Century era of this group will forever be in dispute because for some Journey begins and ends with Steve Perry. Though Perry is my all time favorite singer, I was a fan of the band as a whole which included Jon Cain, Neal Schon and Ross Valory and was happy to see them continue. Arrival (2001) is the best of the bunch with Steve Augeri on the mic, Journey rocked hard on cuts like "Higher Place", "To Be Alive Again" or the strutting "I Got A Reason". Naturally this had to be offset by soft soaring ballads such as "Lifetime Of Dreams" or "Signs Of Life". Only the "When You Love A Woman" rewrite "All The Way" feels like a misstep although it isn't bad. Augeri allowed the group to rock its hardest since the Escape / Frontiers era. After drafting Arnel Pineda a year ago, the bay area band recorded Revelations (2008) which brought back some needed soulfulness to the vocals (Augeri was a better rock belter, Pineda a better crooner). The strong mix of rockers and ballads continued with the high flying "Change For The Better" offset by the soft "Turn Down The World Tonight".

Recent Journey tour mates Heart and Cheap Trick both had good albums to back up their noise. Heart delivered Jupiter's Darling (2004) that found middle ground between their Zepified 70's persona and slick 80's model. Meanwhile, the Tricksters have spent decades trying to recapture their early magic with hit and miss results. On 2006's Rockford they hit the right balance of catchy power pop brilliance and power chord thunder.

Other early 80's survivor Loverboy strapped on the head bandanna one more time for Just Getting Started (2007). One of the few successful attempts to meld modern sensibility into an established 80's rock sound. The fired up title track has plenty of Loverboy's famous freewheeling fun, the bluesy "One Of Them Days" swings and the power ballad "The One That Got Away" is first class.

Shagadelic

The Hair Metal bands of the 80's have some renewed interest thanks to the Guitar Hero / Rock Band phenomenon. Still, no one is willing to reproduce their classic spandex pants with wall of hair look. Instead they opt for leather pants and a shaggy shoulder length hair cut that says "Hey, I'm old and won't look out of place shopping at Wal Mart but still know how to rawk!"

It took a band not from that era to hand down the truest (and at same time mocking) expression of this maligned art form: The Darkness. They came out of nowhere to throw down "I Believe In A Thing Called Love" establishing a heady mix of Queen and hair band euphoria. Their album Permission To Land (2003) backs up their hit tune with other material that is silly and playful in its excess. Too bad drugs and a delayed follow up caused them to crash and burn.

Whitesnake proved David Coverdale could still howl in the still of the night with the excellent Good To Be Bad (2008). Copying your own hits over again usually seems lame, in the hands of a master like Coverdale remakes of "Slow and Easy" or "Is This Love" (titled "Good To Be Bad" and "All I Want All I Need" respectively) are downright inspired. I got to see them live just before Coverdale's voice gave out, he rawked!

Marketing king Jon Bon Jovi spent much of this decade serving up streamlined pop rock to the masses with success. Although I liked the hit songs he's had lately, as a full album statement the disc I liked the most was the hitless Bounce (2002). I wish I could say this was a great album, it's just pretty good, yet as an album it blends the faster and slower material evenly and cleanly. Plus I love that title song.

It's A Long Way To The Top If You Want To Rock And Roll

Two bands that were virtual outlaws in their hey day compared to where they landed now are AC/DC and Metallica. AC/DC were shunned as being "Satanic" and represented all that was "evil" in rock music during the late 70's and early 80's. Raunchy sexism hammered down with a heavy guitar riff and a jolt of humor made them easy targets for God fearing parents wrath. How weird is it now, nearly 30 years later, you can buy AC/DC memorabilia at department stores and see little kids decked out in the Aussie band's branded merchandise? Times have changed making AC/DC classics like "Let Me Put My Love Into You" or "Let's Get It Up" tame by comparison.

AC/DC didn't do a whole lot the last ten years to necessarily earn this boon, though they did turn in the enjoyable Black Ice (2008). Black Ice had some catchy stuff such as the slick "Wheels" or the menacing title tune. I'd like to say 2000's Stiff Upper Lip was great as that was the disc that got me into the band beyond a casual interest. Just can't say that because too much of the CD has songs stuck in the same groove making it repetitive.

Metallica is another band that rocked so hard they couldn't get any recognition from mainstream media for the first third of their career. They managed to hit it big on their own terms initially, since the mid 90's they have continuously watered down their image to ensure lasting popularity. Even if it reeked of career move-itis, last year's Death Magnetic was the bay area thrashers throwback to basics CD. Lengthy songs, pummeling rhythms, spiraling solos and dog bark vocals came back with a vengeance. Admittedly some of Death Magnetic rings hollow, still I'll take this over most of what the band has done the last fifteen years any day. I have no favorite individual songs from this disc, I like it as a whole.

Oh Yeah!

The last CD I have under this style is 2009's Chickenfoot. The supergroup made up of half of Van Hagar (Michael Anthony, Sammy Hagar), guitar god Joe Satriani and funky drummer Chad Smith cranked out shameless hard rock. Playing to their strengths, straightforward AOR performed with inspiration produces an adrenaline fueled feeling of power. Would have been nice if the songs were a touch better, what is here is good enough anyway.

That's a wrap on part one of this series, think I'll tackle the 90's stars next. Until next time, same Bat time, same Bat channel!

Fried Chicken

Rating:

and a half

Like the end of the old Queen song, all we need is one world wide vision but gimmie fried chicken. THE supergroup (only they don't like to be called that) of 2009 is hands down Chickenfoot, the Marvel team up of ex-Van Halen Michael Anthony, Sammy Hagar, current Chili Pepper Chad Smith and ex-Joe Satriani Joe Satriani. Not since the '89-90 one-two punch of Bad English and Damn Yankees has AOR fans had so much to get excited about.

And the band has been rewarded for strong sales of their debut self titled CD. I got it a few weeks back and have heard it enough to put something out there about Chickenfoot. I'll start with the good news: this band sounds exactly like how it would appear on paper. Anthony and Hagar pair up like the Van Hagar of old, Joe Satriani unleashes his quicksilver guitar work all over and Chad Smith keeps the beat lively (even if this is the least funky drumming I've heard from him). Satriani provides the meaty guitar riffs that gives Sammy something to work with when he goes for those heavy lifting anthemic choruses (something that in my opinion works better here than when Hagar was in VH). And to give extra credit, Michael Anthony's bass playing is looser and more vibrant than it has been in ages - free of the repetitive thumping he was relegated to in VH.

This band lives for those swinging mid tempo rhythms, as exemplified on the excellent "Soap On A Rope". "Turnin' Left" has a chugging groove that gives Hagar room for his strongest hook on the disc. And "Sexy Little Thing" has the immediate feel of something made in the 80's, that classic melodic rock sheen that once dominated the airwaves decades ago. Plus the power ballad "Learning To Fall" calls to mind bic lighters and overblown music videos with supermodels.

The only disappointment about Chickenfoot is that it never surpasses their established capabilities. It's a strong album filled with AOR goodness that folks like me crave, and while they impress they don't kick my ass at any given point. No surprises or anything truly mind blowing coming from the combination of these players (because as individuals they're already mind blowing). Maybe in 2009 it's too much to ask for an AOR album like that. As it is, Chickenfoot is a fine hard rock album packed with heart and more than a little skill. It's as good as old school hard rock gets these days. Oh Yeah!

A Guide To Our Patron Saint

I wasn't sure what I wanted to post tonight but I wanted to type something and I realized it was time to capitalize on a Sammy Hagar binge I've been on lately. Part of it has to do with downloading Classic Masters for $5.99 at ITunes so now I can listen to some of his '70's stuff. I'm working on making 3 Cds for my car of the Red Rocker or as I refer to him, Saint Sammy, because he knows all and sees all. My favorite record of Sam I Am's? V.O.A., the Voice of America. And that's what he is. The voice for all people everywhere.

1. I Can't Drive 55

THE protest song of the 80's, Sammy took a shot at the MAN for sticking us with a stupid safer slower speed limit. 55 mph? Who drives that speed when a cop's not around? Nobody from what I saw back in the day, then again I grew up in California where people tail gate you if you're slower than 75 on the freeway. Who knows, maybe one of those people tailgating me was Sammy Hagar. If I see a frizzy blond guy inches from my rear bumper in a Trans Am wearing a canary yellow jump suit, I swear I won't give that guy the finger. At any rate, Sammy was able to affect change as the speed limit was eventually changed to 65. Yes We Can!

2. Swept Away

Spinal Tap excess pushed to the max, "Swept Away" alternates between a verse that's sung in an ominous chant like style and a raging rock chorus packed with charging guitars. I can't tell you what it was supposed to be about, I just envisioned monks on a beach at night coming to take people's souls away. One of many favorites on this record. I mean Spinal Tap excess in a good way.

3. Rock Is In My Blood

The reason I call him Saint Sammy is due to his ability to speak simple truths about life with authority. This is one of those truths. Rock is in his blood. I won't name names Bryan Adams in the 90's when AOR disappeared from the radio many 80's rockers went running for Adult Contemporary Bryan Adams and maybe sold more CDs yet proved that Rock was not in their blood Bryan Adams. While Sammy was not above the mysterious art form known as the Power Ballad (as you will soon see) he never made it his stock in trade. Being a power chord slamming tequila guzzling Jimmy Buffett, yeah he did do that, but mewing to Sting and Rod Stewart about all for one and one for all to sell Four Musketeer movie tickets? No. Recording an awesome Rock anthem for a Sylvester Stallone movie about arm wrestling ("Winner Takes It All")? Yes. Hell to the Yes!!!

4. Two Sides Of Love

Back in the day I took offense to Sammy's statement that twin guitars sucked unless it suited his needs, an obvious swipe at Night Ranger. Don't diss the Night Ranger. The song that had me running out to buy this record, those great twin guitars harmonize while Sam frets about those two sides of love. I really liked the video too, with the black background and oversaturated spot light I think this clip was made by the same folks who did Chicago's "Hard Habit To Break" vid. This was the lead single and was one of two songs (the other is "I Can't Drive 55") to see Top 40 singles action from V.O.A. It's always nice to get a little sensitive and stuff before throwing on your ode to one eyed willie.

5. Dick In The Dirt

I loved it when local radio station KRQR The Rocker would play this, it walked that fine FCC line so closely. You see there's this guy named Richard, Sammy's red necked friend, who keeps meeting girls who knock him into the dirt. But you can't keep him down, Richard gets right back up again. I'm not making this up, that really is the song. Remember the first time Sammy was fired from Van Halen and EVH would keep citing "Amsterdam"s lyrics as an example of Hagar's immaturity? How can you hear "Dick in the Dirt" and not know what kind of song writer Hagar was?

6. V.O.A.

Great thinkers are always ahead of their time, Sammy had his eye on world politics way back when in the 80's. Because if you have a problem, and no one can help you and if you can find him, you can call The V.O.A. Team. They'll take out Russian spies and terrorists with a guitar in one hand and an uzi in the other. Parachuting onto the White House to tell Reagan how to do his business. Why is this man not in a Government think tank? Maybe he is and just can't tell us. Seriously though, this song makes me sentimental for the days of the Steel Curtain (not the Steelers) when the USSR was supposed to be responsible for all that was bad in the world. Such a simpler time. One of my all time favorite video clips. And when I'm talkin', you better listen. Hey!

7. Don't Make Me Wait

The last two songs on the album were the ones I played the least, so this song will give me the chance to say I liked Sammy Hagar's backing band. Gary Pihl was a good guitar player, good enough to join Boston after Hagar went to Van Halen. Keyboardist Jesse Harms had that bright synthesizer sound and could write too, such as Eddie Money's hit "Walk On Water". The rhythm section of bassist Bill Church and drummer David Lauser gave a hard edged backbeat and groove for Sammy Hagar to rock on.

8. Burnin' Down The City

A popular thing to do in the 80's, metaphorically burn things down that is. Now for a shout out to Sammy Hagar's voice, a perfect Rock voice with grit, rasp and range. Let's face it, how could you not burn down the city if you're a patriotic speeding rocker with a sensitive side for tha la-dies? Why am I asking so many questions in this post? I guess it's because all is answered when Saint Sammy unveils his master plan for us all. As the wise man once said, Mas Tequila!

V.O.A. brought Sammy Hagar the biggest commercial success of his solo career thanks to "I Can't Drive 55". He would manage to top this feat by joining Van Halen and allowing that band to continue to be awesome despite the loss of Diamond Dave. Although I felt Hagar overplayed the "I'm a party guy like David Lee Roth too" bit after joining and preferred his more earthy Red Rocker persona. It just goes to show no matter what the setting, Sammy Hagar is about balls to the walls awesomeness. Oh well, it's as the Saint says "all that matters is right here, right now." 'Nuff said. Peace!

Midnight Madness - Saint Sammy Edition

Jimmy Buffett's biggest threat - The Cabo Wabo lovin' Red Rocker Sammy Hagar.

While I can't say I agree with everything Sammy Hagar does or believes in as a person, I am convinced that his music has important life lessons that can lead to a happy life. I covered many of them on a previous post and with a new album on the horizon Sam has yet more wisdom to impart on us. "Cosmic Universal Fashion" from the album of the same name is a sequel to the classic Van Halen video Right Now in which Hagar comments on the state of the world today. Teach us, oh great one!

The Beatles are bigger than Sammy Hagar - Two items have popped up about the Fab Four, the first being Paul McCartney talking about releasing a 14 minute lost Beatles song. The song called "Carnival of Light" sounds like it will be one of those Brian Wilson sort of sound collages. It will be interesting if it sees the light of day. In other Beatles news, the Vatican has forgiven John Lennon for his famous remark of being more popular than Jesus. The comment is now taken as a "boast".

Free Axl! - Guns N Roses' Chinese Democracy is released today. After a decade plus of recording the world will finally hear these songs. I haven't heard it yet, but I still say its an album better heard about than actually heard. No way it can live up to the weight of expectations and hype. Because to do that, it would have to be the greatest album made by anyone anytime ever.

Hella Good - No Doubt is regrouping for recording and touring, good news for fun loving ska music lovers everywhere.

It Doesn't Suck? - Twilight is the #1 movie out right now in terms of ticket sales. I still can't stand the commercial.

Pieces of Me - In other star struck irrelevant celebrity news that I read as often as possible, Ashlee Simpson and Fall Out Boy's Pete Wentz has had a baby named Bronx Mowgli. I could be wrong, isn't Mowgli the name of those creatures that turn into Gremlins?

So Predictable it's Uncanny - The X-Men franchise is going for the younger actors approach (read - cheaper) that was pointed to with the last X Men movie. They've brought in the guy who made Gossip Girl and one of my favorite shows, Chuck, to put it together. I love watching Chuck yet smell a Batman and Robin coming on here.

Working for the Boss - Bruce Springsteen announced a track listing for his upcoming January CD and his new song "Working On A Dream" is hitting radio. As is his talent, Springsteen manages to capture a moment in song. To hear it, click here.

Extreme Hoax - Tonight's WWE Survivor Series includes a story line that wrestler Jeff Hardy was found unconscious at the bottom of a stairwell in his hotel this morning. I don't know how the story was presented on WWE.Com where the story originated, but it seemed to catch on with the rest of the media as factual. While wrestling continuously blurs the line between fantasy and reality, I hope this trend doesn't continue or it might cause a "cry wolf" effect when real events happen.

WWE Survivor Series - Not just a title this year, the long running PPV has the traditional team vs team format back. Tonight's PPV was a solid effort for me, here's what I recall-

• Team HBK (Shawn Michaels, The Great Khali, Rey Mysterio, Cryme Time) vs Team JBL (JBL, Miz and Morrison, Kane and MVP)- An effective match and decent opener to the PPV with a lot of running and jumping courtesy of Mysterio. Team HBK gets the win.
• Smackdown Divas vs Raw Divas- I missed some of this match, it looked like fairly typical Divas stuff. The only parts that stood out to me were the pop Mickie James got on her entrance and the fun of watching Natalya apply the Sharpshooter on Candice Michelle. The Beth Phoenix team won, I don't know what team that is.
• Undertaker vs Big Show in a Casket Match - Heavily hyped and slowly paced, this match mainly consisted of lumbering moves that seemed to take forever. A normal thing for a "Big Guy" match to go slow but this one just seemed leaden. Even the part where Taker leg drops Show through a table didn't quite have the impact it should have. What's the new catch phrase out there? Meh.
• Team Orton (Randy Orton, Cody Rhodes, William Regal, Mark Henry and Shelton Benjamin) vs Team Batista (Batista, Matt Hardy, Kofi Kingston, CM Punk, R-Truth). The pace picks up again with another solid Survivor Series classic style match. Didn't see all of this one and didn't notice any real highlights, but nothing bad either.
• Triple HHH vs Vladmir Koslov for the WWE Championship - A pretty good match up, the two power houses actually focused on a mat wrestling style for most of it. This seemed to draw some "boring" chants but I liked it. Edge came back and was brought out at the end courtesy of Vicki Guerrero to be the third member of the Triple Threat match. Jeff Hardy's run in inadvertently helps Edge score the championship. To my surprise, Edge looked a little pudgy. I guess whatever Hell the Undertaker banished Edge to had a McDonalds. The extra weight didn't stop Edge from laying a killer spear on The Game.
• John Cena vs Chris Jericho for the World Heavyweight Championship - Cena's return to wrestling following major neck surgery. Like a lot of superstars returning from this type of injury, the match was the story of the neck. Jericho focused his attack on the neck, Cena sold the neck and babied it throughout the match as commentators hyped it to the point I was convinced a neck breaker might cause Cena's head to snap off the rest of his body. Cena did look rusty out there and a touch lost but one of his strengths is his ability to show emotion to the crowd. Bonus points to Jericho for sounding really concerned after kicking Cena in the head. He audibly yelled "Check him!" to the ref as Cena was left lying on the ground. It was predictable, but Cena got the win for the championship. He went into the audience to hug his family, but he looked dazed and I think he might have left a little boy hanging for a high five right in front of him. It was messy, but otherwise Cena is back on the Chaingang.
  

Cosmic Universal Fashion - The new vid is below. More greatness from the man Howard Stern proclaims "has the best teeth in Rock".

Sammy Hagar - Cosmic Universal Fashion

Friday Night Videos - Spy Vs. Spy

Spies Like Us

One of the best parts of reading MAD Magazine was the last page, where you could catch up on the latest shenanigans of Spy vs Spy. I enjoyed reading these magazines with its low brow humor, bad movie parodies and back cover that took an innocuous picture and folded into a nasty one. Spy vs. Spy featured two needle nosed spies constantly trying to outsmart each other no matter what the cost. This sort of one-upmanship is on display in the present with the political season rumbling through the air like a sonic boom. It's sort of like Sean Connery's "Chicago Way" speech in the Untouchables (1987) brought to life, he brings a knife, you bring a gun. That's the Chicago Way.

This leads up to the big spy showdown. The first video is the theme song to the new James Bond movie Quantum of Solace. Apparently neither the words "Quantum" or "Solace" make for a good song title, because the theme tune by Alicia Keys and Jack White is called "Another Way to Die." The song kicks off with a very Bondian guitar riff followed by 60's styled horns punctuating the riff which is pretty exciting. But then the song drifts a little bit as it searches for something to do. Keys and White do their best to out-cool each other but without a catchy hook, the song sinks fast. It's as if they're planning to be distracted by the slo-mo silhouetted nude girls during the title credits too. I'm hoping the song sticks after awhile because I'm really looking forward to Daniel Craig's second film as James Bond.

Which reminds me, I had a friend in college who made a good point about James Bond. He said James Bond was the worlds worst spy because a spy is supposed to be inconspicuous, blend in. All of the bad guys know who James Bond is on sight and if they don't, Bond usually tells the bad guys who he is or blows something up. This makes him a terrible spy, he rarely picks up information through surveillance or subterfuge. Instead he walks up to the bad guy, announces himself, gets captured, escapes and then destroys the bad guy base. That's exciting, but not espionage. James Bond always blew his cover-particularly in the Brosnan era, one time he took a car ride where his boss tells him people worked hard to set up a cover and then Brosnan Bond blew it inside 5 minutes (see Tomorrow Never Dies when he walks into a party, he just uses his normal name and chats up his ex girl in a heavily micro phoned/videoed room like he's daring the enemy to ID him.). That's the real reason Bond needs a license to kill, he has to shoot every person who figures out his identity.

So what do you do when James Bond, or his soundtrack, lets you down? You call Double O Rock, that's what. In between beach parties and beer bashes the Red Rocker moonlights as a secret agent fighting the enemies of freedom. You may ask, what qualifies Sammy Hagar to be a spy? His qualification is a canary yellow sleeveless jumpsuit and as Howard Stern puts it-the best teeth in Rock, my friends. If you're man enough to wear that jumpsuit with the red stripes on it, you're man enough to take on the world. The second video is a true Sammy classic, he takes his party hearty 'tude to battle Russians and the Middle East in the name of American Patriotism. Uzi's, tarantulas, White House board meetings...nothing can stop him. Not even Eddie Van Halen could keep Hagar from rockin'. So here's "V.O.A.", the voice of America. America, F*ck Yeah!

Alicia Keys and Jack White "Another Way to Die"

Sammy Hagar "V.O.A."

Spy vs. Spy