Saturday, April 30, 2011

No, Really, I'm Still Alive

Sometimes, the searches that lead people to this blog are rather interesting.
Someone not only got here, but stayed here and read several pages, after getting to BuffaloRoots through the search "kevin hosey death florida." Last I checked, I'm still alive and in Buffalo, NY.
Aren't I?

Thursday, April 28, 2011

"Death or Glory" Comes Alive

I was fortunate enough again to be part of WBNY 91.3 FM Alumni Weekend a couple of weeks ago, as several of us alumni from Buffalo State College's radio station took air shifts and got the chance to feature some of the music we love and played years ago (I was a DJ from 1984-1985), be creative and have some fun.
My air shift was from 10 a.m.-noon Saturday, April 16, with my show called "Death or Glory," and I had a blast, as usual. One of the few tough parts of WBNY Alumni Weekend is that, due to the success of the weekend and the number of returning alumni, we basically only get 2-hour shifts (a couple of exceptions), compared to the 3- and 4-hour shifts we used to get on the weekend. Obviously, that's a good sign pointing to continued high participation.
This is my play list from "Death or Glory" April 16, which reflects my playing more punk/new wave from my musical upbringing and a bit less roots rock this year:
10 a.m. - "Hello There," Cheap Trick; "Indecision Time," Husker Du; "No Action," Elvis Costello and the Attractions; "Death or Glory," the Clash; "Walking Out on Love," the Beat; "Nature's Not in It," Gang of Four; "When You Fine Out," the Nerves; "South of the City," the Jumpers; "JJ," Oui 73; "That Girl," the SplatCats; "Suzie," Bobo; "Stranger from Another Planet," Michael Oliver; "All I Ever Wanted," 1969; "Worry When We Get There," Monkeywrench; "Skintight," the Donnas; "Disgusteen," Teenage Head; "Tattooed Love Boys," the Pretenders; "Love Comes in Spurts," Richard Hell and the Voidoids.
11 a.m. - "Anarchy in the UK," the Sex Pistols; "Death Valley 69," Sonic Youth; "50FT Queenie," PJ Harvey; "Your Phone's Off the Hook(But You're Not)," X; "No Goodwill Stores in Waikiki," Gurf Morlix; "Four and Twenty Blackbirds," Linda McRae; "Innocent When You Dream," Tom Waits; "Little Bitty Kiss," Buddy Miller; "Going Down to Memphis," Cathy Carfagna; "Sally Lou," Scott Carpenter and the Real McCoys; "Million Dollars Bail," Peter Case; "Forget That Guy," the Vores; "Gee Angel," Sugar; "Customer," the Replacements; "Johnny Appleseed," Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros.
I was also grateful to have been able to co-host "Rebellious Jukebox," a 3-hour live, on-air fundraiser for WBNY, with its host, Cal Zone, one of the great DJs from my era at WNBY. A fantastic band of prominent Buffalo musicians took requests from callers who made pledges and performed them live, and the band sounded absolutely great this year.


Brass, Cash in Pocket

Another great punk/new wave song has found its way into a television commercial, and not for the first time.
"Brass in Pocket" by the Pretenders is now being used in an advertisement for Blackberry, and this is not the first time this song (the actual Pretenders' performance) has been used. The song was also used in commercials for National City Bank in the 1980s, as well as a few others, including a cover by Kelis for Hair Cuttery.
Again, an artist making some money through their own art no longer offends me, unless it occurs for some vile company or campaign.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

I Should Have Known

I noticed a recent spike in visits and other activity to this blog, and for a moment, wondered why it occurred.
As soon as I checked, it made sense; the searches leading to this blog from "Daniel Briere shirtless" again account for the vast majority of the visits, and yes, almost all of those were from people/places in Pennsylvania.
Hopefully, the visits for "Flyers Lose to Sabres" will start to increase soon.

Monday, April 18, 2011

Breaking the Law, Breaking the Law

This Monday went from annoying clumsiness to criminal faster than a Camaro went from 0 to 60 MPH in the mid to late 1970s.
After waking up, I turned on the computer and went into the bathroom to, um, well...and wash my hands, face, etc. But as I took my wedding ring off, it slipped through my hands, pinged off the rim of the toilet and went into the garbage can. I had to empty 90-95 percent of the crap in it (hair, tissue, dryer sheets, Q-Tips, etc.) before finding the ring at the bottom, and fortunately, the plastic piece helping my ring from being too loose fell right next to the can.
Walker Evans and I then went on our walk just after 8 a.m., about 15 minutes late due to my clumsiness, and made it a long one by crossing Elmwood Avenue and going down West Utica and Lexington. We came back on Lexington to our street, Norwood Avenue, and had about three blocks to go home.
As I got to Norwood and West Utica, about a block from our house, I saw what I thought to be a neighbor and a police officer standing at our fence and driveway gate looking back at the yard and garage, and as Walker and I approached, went into the backyard. Walker and I then broke into a trot (as much as an aging man and dog can) and when we go to our fence, saw two Buffalo Police Department patrol cars in front of our house and the neighbor and one officer back at the garage, which is a bit behind and not attached to our house.
I identified myself and asked what was happening, and was told that a man had broken into our garage and taken one of the bicycles inside; fortunately, the genius picked a bike that had two deflated tires, and he was caught a block or two away on Richmond Avenue. By the time Walker and I had returned, the suspect had already been transported downtown for booking.
It turns out that this douche nozzle had gotten someone to drive him to our neighborhood, and either watched Walker and I walk away or just happened to pick a house with us gone and no one to see or bark at him. One of the two padlocks on the garage door was popped, and the bicycle was the only item taken.
Walker was pretty friendly with the main officer responding at the house, probably because, as her uniform showed, her last name is Walker. She told me that the neighbor (who will remain unnamed), who is a member of the BPD, saw the suspect go down the driveway, break into the garage and leave with the bike, and he contacted police. Two other neighbors saw the suspect in our backyard and leave, but the first one had already contacted police, who arrived almost immediately.
I had to go to the precinct house at Main and Tupper to file a supplemental report and claim the bicycle, all of which went smooth. My timing was perfect, as someone was leaving the second-closest parking spot to the precinct, and also had about an hour left on his parking stub, which he gave to me and was more than enough for this visit.
After I filed the report with the detective, I claimed the bicycle and left; the only problem being that the bike would not fit in the trunk of my 1999 Chevrolet Cavalier, nor in the backseat until I took the front wheel off, which allowed it to fit.
I really didn't have too much of my day interrupted, but as many people have experienced, the adrenaline has been rushing through me ever since. I feel pissed at the loser who did this, but the violation doesn't feel too bad, probably because the garage is not attached to the house; I bet I would feel a lot worse if our house had been burglarized.
So, I'm thinking that to make up for this crappy Monday so far, that the Buffalo Sabres will defeat the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 3 of their Stnaley Cup Playoff series.

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Radio Radio

Just a reminder that I will be returning to the airwaves at WBNY 91.3 FM at Buffalo State College for our alumni weekend, particularly for my show, "Death or Glory," from 10 a.m.-noon Saturday, April 16. Hopefully, you will get the chance to read this before the show.
I will also return from 5-8 p.m. Saturday for "Rebellious Jukebox," a fund raising musical request shindig; Cal Zone will be hosting the affair, and I will be co-hosting, and the band of local all-stars will take requests for money pledged to raise funds to help WBNY.
Join us, please, at 91.3 FM or at www.wbny.org, here.

Wednesday, April 06, 2011

Oh, Come On, Dad

My reviewing and compiling of my late father Edward's record collection (lots of 33s, 78s and some 45s, mainly big band/jazz vocalist and similar music) frequently produces surprises and smiles, and today was no exception.
This actually stated a week or two ago, when I brought home some of my father's 78s (more on these later), and found some other records that piqued my interest. My father and mother Sheila often surprised me over the years with some of the music they listened to and knew/remembered quite well.
The first record to catch my attention was an "extended play" 4-song 45 by the Ray Charles Singers with Musical Accompaniment, "Mam'selle" and "Mademoiselle de Paree," b/w "Where Are You?" and "La Seine," MGM X1424.
The next two records need a bit of untangling. One cover is for "Chansons Parisiennes," (Volume 1) by Edith Piaf, Columbia FL 9501, and the other cover is for "Voice of the Xtabay" by Yma Sumac, Capitol H244. Both are 10-inch 33 RPM records, but neither cover contains the record mentioned.
The Edith Piaf cover actually contained Volume 2 of "Chansons Parisiennes," Columbia FL 9507, while the Yma Sumac cover contained "Chansons Parisiennes" Volume 1. The records have been switched to the opposite covers so at least the first volume for Edith Piaf is in the correct record cover/holder, and the search for Yma Sumac records continues.
For a person as over organized and occasionally anal as my father, this arrangement is surprising, to say the least, and possibly intentional, seeing if anyone was paying attention. Yes, I am, Dad.

Saturday, April 02, 2011

Shirtless Hockey Interest Returns

In the past month, this blog has been getting a lot more hits and visits, including new and individual visitors.
The leading searches coming here? Well, some old favorites are showing up again, led by "Danny (or Daniel) Briere shirtless" and "Ryan Miller shirtless." This all started a few years ago when Briere did a commercial shirtless, and I remarked here that he was surprisingly ripped, adding that I was glad that Miller had not done such an advertisement.
It's good to get a read on the interests of my readers, and yes, the vast majority seeking Danny Briere shirtless references are from Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and those for Miller are from Buffalo/Western New York.