Monday After Thursday

There is truly something in the air here. I went to Ken Yost's service and the Post Office this afternoon and something is hanging over my town, we all try to think we know what it is. It might have been the day which started dreary and got worse. I know the sharpness in our step has temporarily disappeared. I saw people at the post office, I knew what they were thinking, they knew what I was thinking but can't bare to say anything to each other. And it rained ice. There were over a thousand at his service today. The streets were blocked off for blocks all around. There will be thousands more this week still wondering what the hell happened? Ken Yost today, Micheal Lynch tomorrow in my church and on and on and on. One of our friends was seated between the two who were killed. His boy told of his dad coming home that night, covered in blood. I don't think he's stopped shaking yet. I'm not sure I have. I don't think any of us has.

What A Week...

Tough week. Emotions are pretty raw. I had to resign from a local internet chat board due to the fact that I was about to say things in public that I would regret. That's not like me. People seem to have a hard believing that I could actually grieve for Cookie Thornton and the people he slaughtered at the same time. God loves everyone. At one time, he was a decent guy, that's the guy and his family that I grieve for. Not the guy who killed my friends. I have about four funerals to attend this week. I have decided to take tonight off, lock myself in my office, listen to some old favorites (Genesis' Wind and Wuthering happens to be on now...) and get lost in a game of Sim City 3000. I think I'd like to go back to 1976 (the year the album was made) just for a while. To be twenty again, sigh... I always wanted to be able to travel back in time, have a chance to live it all over again, only smarter. How would it have changed? Interesting things to ponder but without me, I have a city that needs to be built. I have stuff to do, but for right now, tonight, mindless entertainment might be good.

Saturday After Thursday

For a multi media glimpse of my town last night go here


There is something about this town. I am not sure what it is. In many ways, it's the same suburban town that is attached to any other city in America. 12 miles out of the heart of downtown St. Louis. Could be 12 miles out of the heart of Columbus, Ohio or Detroit. According to legend, Kirkwood and it's twin Webster Groves were the first suburbs in America. I am not sure how people know that but that's what I have heard. I really like it here. People in this city get involved. I belong to a few organizations myself. I play basketball 3 or 4 times a week at the Kirkwood Y gym. Cookie Thornton and his wife were very active in the Y and gave generously with their time and money. I have attended many football and basketball games and tailgate parties when my daughter went to Kirkwood High. I have been to a few city council meetings when a ruling has dealt with something that concerns me. At one of those meetings, I met and chatted with Officer Biggs and disagreed with the mayor and he, respectfully with me. I saw him not long after that and we had a very nice chat. You really can't help but like the guy. At another meeting, I worked with my councilperson Connie Carr whom I had a great conversation with at The Greentree festival in September. My daughter was very popular and had countless friends over countless times, and one of those friends father was one of the victims. I like to shop and eat in Kirkwood, feeling a sense of pride that I spent money in my town. I had an issue with the Public Works department and had Ken Yost deal with me in a professional manner. I saw him not too long ago at a local eatery and we chatted. I am a lector at the Catholic parish that serves the downtown and business district. So, you see, I have met many people and continue to see them on a regular basis. I know that I am not alone in my interaction with the people in this town. There is a one degree of separation in this place. I may not know you but I know someone you know. After living here for almost twenty years, I can tell you just about everyone is as involved in our city as I am. It's what makes this town different than the city attached to Denver, Chicago or Miami. It is like Mayberry, but with the amenities of the big hulking city right next door. We have our Otis, the town drunk. We have our Andy Taylor, Helen Crump, Aunt Bea, etc. After thursday night, we don't have Mayberry anymore. It makes me angry and sad at the same time. We all feel it. It's in the air. I hope the feeling goes away but I am not sure. 6 dead in Kirkwood on a chilly February night. The healing begins, the scars will remain. The memories of really fine, good people will always be with us. God rest their souls. God help the rest of us.

R I P

Charles "Cookie" Thornton. The shooter, member of the Kirkwood-Webster Y

Officer Tom Ballman. Kirkwood Police Department

Officer William "Bill" Biggs. Kirkwood Police Department. Officer Biggs was a good guy.

Councilwoman Connie Carr. My councilwoman. Very nice person.

Kirkwood Public Works Director Kenneth Yost. Extremely decent person.

Councilman Micheal Lynch. His daughter Meredith and my daughter are good friends.

In serious condition Mayor Mike Swoboda. I don't always agree with the mayor but I like him and respect him.

There is a candlelight vigil tonight at seven. i'll be there

I Live in Kirkwood MO

It's a town of about 27,000 that lies about 12 miles southwest of St. Louis. It really is a small town tucked inside a big city. Everyone knows everyone here. I know everyone here. I have refused to leave this town/city permanently for a reason. It is what America used to be.

I can't believe it. I won't. My heart is broken. I know those people. All of them.

Two policemen, three city council members and maybe the mayor.

5 dead in Kirkwood.

Please say it isn't so.

What's happening to us?

Cool fishtank

It certainly isn't like any aquarium I've owned.
Here's the link for an upclose shot

Another Old Gas Station

Another One Hit Wonder

Chi Coltrane was hot. That's all a sixteen year old needed. The song was great, too.
Of course, being sixteen, there was only one thing she was talking about in this song, right?

How About Some Superbowl Commercials?

One of my favorites...


1984


Busch Creative rules...


Who Knew He'd Be The Sane One?


Pure Dave


Wow!


New Coke, what a great idea!


So Much To Say Without Words

Funniest Woman On The Planet

Enjoy!

Mail Time!

In a previous post, I talked about shipping a bunch of my old CDs off to faraway places. With the shitty dollar, I am getting a lot of action from over seas. Here are the places I am sending stuff to today.Shipley, Bradford West Yorkshire, Great Britain (if you'll notice, its a suburb of Leeds; home of one of the loudest most obnoxious live albums ever "Live at Leeds" by the Who)

Here's a better perspective:

Waraszawa (Warsaw) Poland

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Woronora, New South Wales, Austraila

Thanks for attending Geography 101.

For My "Seasoned" Radio Friends

For all of you who worked with the Gates stuff, it was indestructable and reliable as the day is long.


Just a half a turn back and it would be up to speed in no time, can you say "slip cue"?

You didn't "upgrade" you repaired.

Thanks Mr. Gates.

Could..Go...All..Insane!!!

I have never understood how this guy got to be where he is. It must be an east coast thing.

My birthday is coming up...

The Top 100 Drags On...

I'm counting them back from ZZ Top forward as I bare my soul and give you my CDs that would be cool to have on a deserted island or anywhere really. The last artist on the list was Joe Walsh and we zoom past Jerry Jeff Walker, Rick Wakeman and even past Stevie Ray Vaughn...wha?

There is no mistaking Stevie; his body of work will stand against anyone's. I just didn't think he released that one powerful LP that formed my musical experiences. Great songs, great style. I think when I first heard Stevie (at 26) my musical alliances had already been formed. Hearing a piece of music at 21 (as inferior as it may be) may have been more influencial. That explanation leads to another in my top 100 of all time

Gino Vanelli's "Brother To Brother" This cat had it going on in the seventies. I first got introduced to Gino by a song I heard on the radio one day called "People Gotta Move" .

Working at an "underground" FM station, I discovered "Storm at Sun Up". This discovery was actually made by a suitor of mine who suggested it was "the greatest piece of music to make love to ever". Can't say she was wrong. That made him very cool in my book

As a matter of fact, I used that piece of music to my advantage many times, and being the careless, young and crazy guy I was, it worked frequently.
"A Pauper in Paradise" 1977 The first side of the album (cassette) was brilliant. The second side with an orchestra was shit.

Which leads us to his masterpiece (in my opinion) "Brother to Brother" which came out in 1978.

With the hit, "I Just Wanna Stop", this LP had everything. Well produced, crisp sounding songs that were played really well. "Appaloosa" kicks it off in high gear and "I Just Wanna Stop" has a smooth cool vibe. "Brother to Brother" is the workout masterpiece. The perfect soundtrack to 1978, right before I became someone. With this guy's hair and looks, anything I could do to have him rub off on me was worth it.

My top ten Gino songs:

10. "The River Must Flow" very funky number on "Brother to Brother"

09. "Mardi Gras" from A Pauper in Paradise

08. "A Song and Dance" from A Pauper in Paradise

07. "Mama Coco" from People Gotta Move

06. "I Just Wanna Stop" his big hit from "Brother to Brother"

05."People Gotta Move" from Powerful People


04. "Appaloosa" from "Brother to Brother"

damn, you have to admire him just for the hair

03. "Black Cars" his "comeback" from 1985. KSHE played this..believe or or don't


02. "Storm At Sunup" from "Storm At Sunup" She was so right, the best aphrodisiac ever.

01. "Brother To Brother" the musicianship is extraordinary in this video.


Quite the showman, probably got more in one week than most guys did in a month.
A true musical mulligan.

R I P John Stewart

He was a member of the Kingston Trio and co-wrote the song "Daydream Believer" for the Monkees. When I really jumped into radio in early 1979, KY 102 played the shit out of "Gold" featuring vocals by Stevie Nicks and a nasty guitar solo by Lindsay Buckingham. Was married for 40 years to the same person. There goes another one...

Here's his story.

Another great one hit wonder here..

R I P Suzanne Pleshette

I had such a wild crush on her in high school. Bob Newhart was the luckiest guy on the planet to wake up to that every day. 35 years ago when the show was in it's hey day, she was 35 and I was 17. Hey, it would've worked. What a beautiful woman. She died of respiratory failure yesterday at the age of 70. Two husbands preceded her in death. One, Tom Poston, just recently. Beauty, style and grace. My heart is sad for her family and for losing another one of those people that made my life just a bit better. The song that played in the beginning was a song titled "Going Home To Emily". Emily goes home.

Advertisements That Wouldn't Quite Fly Today

Innocence is sexy. But not if she looks like she's EIGHT!!!

Uh...there is only one guy who has both hands visible, and he seems to be having way too much fun.

I am thinking 1960 or so, huh?



Today, he'd have a harrassment suit slapped on him so fast, it'd make his head spin.























If you look at the fine print on the cola ad, it reads "Laboratory tests over the last few years have proven that babies who start drinking soda during that early, formative period have a much better chance of gaining acceptance and 'fitting in' during those awkward pre-teen and teenage years. So, do yourself a favor, do your child a favor. Start them on a strict regimen of sodas and other surgary carbonated beverages right now, for a lifetime of guaranteed happiness." The study was probably done by the Soda Pop Board of America along with the National Dentists association.

BeeGees=Beatles?

WFMUs Beware of the Blog has links to a couple of early BeeGees' songs that sound very much like Beatles and John Lennon songs. The first is "In My Own Time" "which could be the musical result of Dr. Robert meeting the Taxman in the Rain."
And there's "Have You Heard the Word"with a snockered Maurice Gibb practically channeling John Lennon.
The boozily Beatlesque result somehow found release, evidently without the permission of the principals, in 1970 as a single on the tiny U.K. label Beacon Records, with this one-off congregation identified as The Fut. Did they do a good job? Just ask the bootleggers, who have placed the track on countless Beatles boots, hoodwinking many a rabid Fab Four obsessive.
Again, did they do a good job? Just ask Yoko Ono, who in 1985 attempted to register "Have You Heard the Word" as a John Lennon composition.
If this is your cup of tea as much as it is mine, I recommend the Bee Gees' lysergically-fortified Bee Gees' 1st, their first album, remastered and released on the Rhino label, which has "In My Own Time" on it. Link

Chuck Jones and Charlie Rose

An interview in 1994 with Chuck Jones and Charlie Rose (at the 22 minute mark). Chuck talks about (and draws)Bugs, Elmer, Daffy, Wile E. Coyote, Roadrunner and more. I love this stuff.

Rosie The Riveter

Picture from 1943. Link here. Love the nails. The Greatest Generation.

Backstage Pass Number 15

1986. Big comeback. They were beautiful.

Another One Hit Wonder

I am a sucker for great harmonies...and a great hook. This is from 1990 and a band called Alias. I still love this song today. Hairband? Maybe but the two singers were from Sheriff. The drummer, bassist and guitar player were from Heart.




Guilty pleasure.

In Praise of...The St. Louis Blues

Hockey was dead in the water in this city two years ago. The old owner decided to sell off the team piece by piece and then the strike just about killed any kind of attachment to the team. We didn't know anyone on the team and we just didn't care. Enter: new management. Dave Checketts buys the team, installs John Davidson as the guy. They eat crow publicly. Their media campaign is based on the theme "whatever it takes". They go get Paul Kariya and a number of pretty good players. They draft well. They get a coach who is smart and "gets it" when it comes to dealing with the media. Every time I see him in the halls, he talks to me by name. Nice. It has paid off well for them, they have been the talk of the town even during football season and have sold out a number of dates this season. It's great to see 20,000 people there every night. (Disclosure...we carry the Blues, so if they do well, we hope to do well, too). Tomorrow is free food day, see a hockey game and fill up on grub, for free. How cool is that? Nice job guys. Coming from a marginal hockey fan, I am glad you are in town. Keep up the great work.

R I P Marty Hendin/Georgia Frontiere

Thanks Marty. Just for being a baseball geek that went to school in University City. Just for being a guy who would openly and publicly admit that you had the best job in America; Public and Media Relations director for the Cardinals. And for being one of the easiest and kindest guys ever to deal with. I first met Marty in 1985 when I requested my first tickets as a St. Louis resident and one time big shot. He never forgot me and rarely failed in providing a request to see the Cardinals. He had every promotional schwag he had ever been involved with. That's decades of stuff. No one in this city had anything less than a profound affection and respect for the unflappable one. "No sweat". Thanks again Marty for being one of the truly real good guys. See ya down the road. Done too soon at 59.I am not much of a Rams fan. I think the teams that they put on the field from 1999-2003 will be remembered as some of the best ever but I just don't have an emotional tie to this team. I thought it was a crappy deal that brought the Rams here. We get a team but someone loses theirs? Hardly seems fair. Georgia inherited the team from her late husband, one of seven. The President of the team lives in LA, doesn't spend any time in St. Louis and right now, they suck. But she brought them here and for a few magical years, the Dome (one of the worst places in the world to see a game) was rocking. It's not now. So, I appreciate it. I hope I live to be 80.

Another Old Gas Station

I can imagine having an ice cold RC cola and a MoonPie sitting right there on that bench.
With Diane Lane sitting next to me....and then Mom woke me for school.

KY Coat

circa 1985

Norilsk Russia

I am weeding out some of the CDs I haven't listened to in a long time. Some have been a good investment, some not so good. They have all had some meaning to me in the past. If I haven't listened to a CD in the last twenty years, it's gone. I shipped one today to Norilsk Russia.

Here:

And here:

I will post more of the obsure places people bid from.

KYYS-RIP?

In it's heyday, KYYS-FM (KY 102) owned Kansas City. It was here that a 23 year old punk kid from the farm via the Quad Cities learned his craft and found his niche. I first heard KY while taking a trip from the Quad Cities to Ava, Mo to Denver to see a friend of mine early in 1978. As I passed thorough town, I thought it was a very good sounding radio station. Somehow, someway, through the grace of God, Max Floyd found me and gave me a chance to fail. Here's the show, go do it. Starting in September of 1978 and continuing to June of 1985, I did afternoons, nights, weekends, production, you name it, I did it and I loved it. I got to interview people I grew up listening to but never, ever thought I would meet, let alone spend time with.
Robin Trower, Steve Perry, Jon Anderson, Bob Seger, Geddy Lee, John Mellencamp, Lou Reed, Ozzy, Frank Zappa....and it all happened right there on Southwest Trafficway, owned by Taft Broadcasting. My first engineer was a guy by the name of Randy Michaels, who told me the tower height, location and effective radiated power of the station I had just arrived from. Off the top of his head. I went out with some of the most beautiful women in the world. Liza Gibbons and others who are some of the most colorful parts of my life story. The ubiquitous Hippo! All of the talented people that walked those halls. Paul Fredrocks, who, in my mind, was the most talented guy we ever had. Dick and Jay. Joe MacCabe. Ray Sherman. Brad Oleson. Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Max Floyd and his rock and roll army, Randy and Katie with their valuable Nightrocker cards (redeemable for nothing), the dulcet, smooth sounds of Mr. Vaughn Mac. Skid Roadie. Frankie and the Knockouts. And the ever present always on top of the movie world....Jaaack Poessiger (see previous post). {Heavy ass sigh} KYYS (KY 102) was blown up in 1994 and resurrected on another frequency. It wasn't the same, though and today comes word that it's blown up again.
KYYS-FM (1974-2008)

"The business I miss is no longer the business anymore."-Randy Raley March 2007

Stuff On A Sunday Morning

I have a chance to contemplate the first week of the new year. As I sit here listening to some blues I have some thoughts(don't I always?)....In St. Louis, we are getting ready for a MAJOR shutdown of a main artery. Interstate 64/40 is closed for about two years starting really tomorrow. It was closed on January 2nd but the big traffic rush will be tomorrow. All the high schools and vacationers are back and it will be a mess. While they are updgrading on/off ramps that were built in the thirties, they are not widening the highway or putting in a metro link line. It will be closed from Spoede to Brentwood for a year then from Brentwood to Spring for another year. God help us, there will be road rage galore here.

My duties have been expanded at the station. It's nice to have a job and it's nice to have one at a place like KMOX. I can get there a little after rush hour and stay late. I hope to miss most of the rush.

I have nothing but great admiration for Pat Summerall. I have never thought much of him as an announcer, but God love him, he has been in the business forever; that takes some doing and for that, he has my respect. It's time to go. The Mizzou game was great but marred by some of the most shoddy play by play I have ever heard. He missed plays, numbers and sometmes sounded like he was completely lost. I am very ambivelent when it comes to forcing someone out (I will be there someday soon), I don't think Pat needs the money or the fame. His days with John Madden were memorable but that was a long time ago. Which leads me to this...

Fox Sports has the worst line up of play by play teams of any network. Mizzou got screwed on their coverage and the rest of the line up just hurts my head. I was in such agony listening to the bowls that I had to turn down the volume. It made me long for Brent Musberger, and that is bad. Which leads me to this...

This is the new Texas Stadium that Jerry Jones and his ego are building for 20 gazzilion dollars. Notice the two arches that are visible. While being the color guy for the Cotton Bowl (played right down the street), Brian Baldinger said this: ..."see the arches there at the stadium? Those arches are bigger than the arches in St. Louis that span the Mississippi..."

Really? OK then, I thought we only had one, and it was pretty much on the Missouri side. That's just me...horrible, horrible broadcasting but no one cares. Give me Mike Patrick, Al Michaels, Dick Enberg, etc.

A speedy recovery to Stephen Stills who had his prostate removed on his birthday. His people said he is doing great, so that's wonderful. I think Dan Fogelberg was getting better, too.

There are few things better than having a great mechanic.

I think it's Obama's race to lose. My question is how many white people will refuse to vote for him simply because he is black? Or because of his middle name? I would like to think we are passed that, but I am not so sure.