Workin For The Weekend

I saw a story on the local news here tonight where they reported the average family credit card debt is $11,000. Can that be right? Since I have none, that means that means that someone has racked up $22,000 on their card. How can you do that? $2,200? I could see that. No wonder this country is so screwed up right now. My parents are spinning. We NEVER bought anything on credit. Ever.
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The trailer for "Star Trek" looks great. From what I have seen and heard, that may have the first blockbuster of the summer. Talk about being kid again. I was ten when it came on TV. Living in Ava, there was only station we got from Springfield very well. KY 3 played "Star Trek" then wrestling at 10:30 on Saturday night. At 12:30am, it was time for bed. Damn, I wish I could stay up that late now.
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I found a cool walking trail behind the place that is just about a mile long. Perfect. Since I hurt my ankle, I haven't been getting nearly as much exercise as I should . Getting rotund. This will help me chart my progress. Playing bball once a week won't cut it. I am going to have to run although it harkens me back to bball practice as running was used as punishment. It is still punishment.
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On ESPN tonight when I got home from work (6:15), there was a video game competition on one of their channels (?)and a "This Is Your Life" with John Elway called "Homecoming" on the other. I guess when you have to fill 24/7 with sports, you get the dregs every now and then. Speaking of sports, thanks Tony Gonzalez, too bad you never won a ring. Never got close really. You may be a Falcon now, but you'll always be a Chief to me. Class, style and grace, you had the whole package. Like Derrick Thomas, one of the best players ever not to even get close.
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Ipod jukebox:
"Roundabout"-Yes (Bill Bruford's masterpiece)
"Shambala"-3 Dog Night
"Another Record"-Genesis
"Love Is Here"-Jim Messina
"Mistress of Mine"-Little River Band
"Madman"-The Jayhawks
"Missing Train"-Richie Havens
"Mighty Love (pt. 1)-Spinners
"Monkey Man"-Rolling Stones
"Indian Summer"-Poco
"May Be Wrong"-Savoy Brown
"Roundabout"(rough mix)-Yes....nice, full circle.

KSTT Radio

I wish I could enlarge the pictures more than I can. Maybe I don't know how, I am not sure. The picture on the left is pretty self explanatory. This was the KSTT staff right after I left the building. Right before then, I did overnights at KSTT and middays at 97X. Mike Keneally was one of the funniest jocks ever and I'd like to find him again. Jay Gregory recently passed, he drove in from Sterling Il every day (about 60 miles). Another great underrated jock and a better guy. Jay was a very funny, animated, gregarious guy who shaped my sound a lot. Jim Ohara is still there. Michelle is somewhere and of course, that's Spike Odell, who just retired at the age of 55 after doing about 20 years at WGN in Chicago. Good for him. I have known Spike since high school. His dad was the police chief of the East Moline Police Department. His wife was my favorite bank teller.

The picture up on the right is a KSTT "survey" from July 14-24th 1972. (If you look closely, you can almost make out the print). The summer of my 16th year.
Here was the top five:
1. "Daddy Don't You Walk So Fast"-Wayne Newton
2. "Happiest Girl in the Whole USA-Donna Fargo (up from 11 the week before)
3. "Brandy"-Looking Glass
4. "Sealed With a Kiss"-Bobby Vinton
5. "Hold Her Tight"-The Osmonds.

Ick. But, here are some other songs they were playing:
14. "Couldn't I Just Tell You"-Todd Rundgren
21. "Happy"-Rolling Stones
31. "Good Feeling To Know"(!?)-Poco
33. "Immigration Man"-Crosby and Nash
34. "Lady Elenore"-Lindisfarne (great song)
38. "Join Together"-The Who

There are three songs by bands that even I don't know
"Music's Calling Me" by Griffin
"It's Alright (I Don't Mind)" by Robey, Falk and Bod
"Waitin' Line" by Spyder's Gang
I honestly don't remember ever hearing those songs on the radio. I'm sure I did.

KSTT was also playing album cuts like:
"Rock and Roll Crazies"-Manassas
"Stairway to Heaven" yes!
"Mona Lisas and Mat Hatters"-Elton
"You're Still A Young Man"-Tower of Power
"Blue Sky"-Allman Bros
"Them Changes"-Santana and Miles
"I Just Want to Make Love to You"-Foghat

Within minutes of each other, you could hear Donna Fargo and Led Zeppelin, Bobby Vinton and Tower of Power, The Osmonds and Foghat, and Mac Davis and The Allman Brothers. Now, THAT's a great radio station and one of the biggest contibutors on the soundtrack of my life! Especially during the time when music meant so much to me and my friends. On AM, kids. How much that station influenced cannot be stated in words. Literally, the soundtrack of my adolescence.





I got this from the still cruisin usa website:

Radio station KSTT was a large part of the lives of baby boomers in the Quad Cities years ago. KSTT AM 1170 was on the air from 1946 until the late 80's. The station was located on east river drive in Davenport, across from Hostess Bakeries. The studio had a large window in the northwest corner where listeners could watch their favorite on air jock spin records. KSTT was "The Big #1", rated the #1 station in the Quad Cities for over 3 decades. No one else even came close during their record run at the top. . People who listened to the station would remember such jocks as Spike O'Dell, Lou Gutenberger, Lee Shannon, Jay Gregory, Mark Stevens, Bobby Rich, Ruth and Fred, and Jim O'Hara, each of them spinning top 40 hits in their own style. Booty Bottles, Top 40 surveys, Chicken Man and Big Red were also part of "the station you've grown up with". KSTT listeners participated in many on air contests, calling in on the Ruth and Fred show, calling in song requests, and phoning in news tips. KSTT sponsored hootenannys and hops, ballgames, Good Guy a Go Go dances, picnics, and had listeners search for "Bootie Bottles, filled with gift certificates, and keys to motorcycles. Quad City area seviceman had tapes sent to them in Vietnam. Dick Orkins famous "Chickenman show and Toothfairy episodes were heard daily. As fm radio began to gain popularity in the seventies, KSTT's audience began to shrink. People were now listening to KIIK 104 fm. by the eighties, KSTT was simulcasting with its sister station WXLP fm 97X. By 1992 they had switched their call letters to KJOC and had become an all sports talk station. The KSTT building at 1111 East river drive is now a law firm. But out of respect for the radio station, it is named KSTT Place. The interior still has the KSTT station memorabilia hanging on the walls. The picture window the jocks spun records in is still there. Former KSTT newsman Jim Orr summed it up "The radio station was a really special thing. We've been a lot of places. But nothing compares to KSTT."

Coronas and Miss California and More

Hey Jesse,
I love you. Please, though. I am not old enough to have three grandkids. Stop. Three darling, beautiful girls. All born with three weeks of the another on the calendar, right? I am really happy for you. And me. And Aspen. And Amelia.
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I am not much of a beer guy. Give me tequila or rum anyday. I do think that the best tasting beer bar none is Corona. Could it be the water, brewing process or "something else?". I am enjoying an "iced" one while typing. Nectar of the Gods.
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So, Miss California tells the truth about how she feels and "Perez Hilton" is offended. One question...who is Perez Hilton and why does anyone give a shit about what he thinks? I had to Google this clown to find out he has some website where he draws pictures on photos of the stars. Shut up. This is a free society with free speech. You are going to be offended at some point in your life. Develop a thick skin. Grow up. You won't always win the race. Everyone will not always agree with you. You will not always agree with everyone. She is who she is and she has guts for standing up for what she believes. Whether you or I agree with her is irrelevant. It's her opinion. It's a free country. Perez Hilton is not someone I would even consider to be mildly important. Now she's famous.
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Albert Pujols may go down as the best player I have ever seen. He's approaching Brett and Gibson. I never saw Stan Musial, he was my mom and grandfather's favorite, they were Cardinals fans from the forties.
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Ipod Jukebox:

"Give It To Me"-J. Geils Band
"Just As If You Were Here"-Frank Sinatra (shaddapp!)
"Eventually"-Carole King
"Smile Away"-Paul McCartney
"Shock The Monkey"-Peter Gabriel
"Rocket Man"-Elton John
"Angel From Montgomery"-Bonnie Raitt (this has been top ten on my list since 1978)
"The Letter"-Joe Cocker
"So Unkind"-Love Sculpture

Mondays Mental Meltdown...

Not really.
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I have just found "low fat oatmeal raisin cookie ice cream". It's great to be an American. Yes, it tastes just like it sounds. Woof!
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I don't know why, but I am bummed that Todd Rundgren sold "Hello It's Me" to Tums. Tums is a great St. Louis company, but I'm not sure what the song has to do with antacid.
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Thought I got away from this but someone was stabbed about 1/4 mile from here in a domestic dispute. Hope it's not a pattern. Just found a nice place to run not far from here. The Y is so expensive, but man, that sauna and steam room sure feel good.
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Last night, minced fish (fish sticks), tonight shaved chicken heated on a George Forman grill with cheap Chardonnay out of a plastic cup. Trendsetter me.
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This just about the time I start caring about the NBA. Intervention and Operation Repo are repeats, so it's the NBA for me. Still like the Spurs, but the loss of Ginobli is going to kill them. Intervention reminds me that no matter how bad my life gets...
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The Ipod tunes...
"I'm On Fire"-Bruce Springsteen
"Rock and Roll Dreams Come True"-Jim Steinman
"It's Your Thing"-Isley Brothers
"We Got Married"-Paul McCartney
"Silent House"-Dixie Chicks
"Through It All There's You"-Robert Plamer
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On Facebook, John "Records" Landecker is now my friend. I got on "Boogie Check" once in about 1973 or so. He hung up on me. I was never so flattered. I am sure that's what got me in. Crack for big kids.
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This 420 tidbit...the length of "Smokin'" by Boston is 4:20. The 420 thing wasn't popular that long ago, pretty clever and ahead of their time if you ask me.

In Praise of Cat Stevens (Yusuf Islam)

I was flipping around the channels the other day and came across a show hosted by Chris Isaak. His guest Yusuf Islam. Cat Stevens. Stephen Dimitri Georgio. Called by Carly Simon (his old girlfriend) as the most gentle, kindest, sweetest man she has ever went out with. The song "Anticipation" is about him. At one time he spoke to me and through me, knowing my life better than I did. From 1972-1974, he owned a spot on the soundtrack to my life. He resides in the top five during that time, I am sure. When a song like "Father and Son" finds it's way on to the turntable at the age of sixteen, you know that he knows. "On The Road To Find Out", "Wild World","Miles From Friggin Nowhere". Then, right after I discovered "TFTT", "Teaser and the Firecat" was released and "Peace Train" and "The Wind" and "Changes IV". He wasn't kidding. While "Catch Bull at Four" was fine, with "Foreigner", "Buddha and the Chocolate Box" and "Izitso", he was clearly trying too hard. As he told Chris the other night, he went on the road to find out and found it through the Muslim religion. He just disappeared. Through teh years, you'd hear something very infrequently about him. Not too long ago, he was denied entry into the US because he was on a list of potentail terrorists. A guy that penned "Peace Train" was on the same list as people who wanted to kill us. He has been much more accessable lately. I'm glad, while he was on the show, he pulled out the guitar and played with Gunnar Nelson (?) backing him. They were great! Gunnar has some chops to show taht I haven't seen. He and Yusuf harmonized perfectly.



With that in mind (if I can) I'll come up with my ten favorite Cat Stevens songs. There will be so many that are missed.

1. "Miles From Nowhere"I always seem to be miles from nowhere.




2."Father and Son"Damn it, it made me cry. Still does sometimes.


3."The Wind""Where I'll end up, where I'll go, only God really knows..."


4."Wild World"The first thing I heard by him. How to let go.


5."MoonshadowI mean, come on, it's Moonshadow.


6."On The Road To Find Out" I was on the road not too long later



7."Peace Train" Couple this with "Love Train" by the OJays and I wonder what happened.


8."If You Want to Sing Out"Harold and Maude was a killer.



9."Sitting" "I feel the power coming from my hair" Nuff said.



10. "Can't Keep It In"I gotta sing it out!


10.(tie) "18th Avenue"I've been on 18th avenue in Kansas City.