Tag: music

A Musical Tale of Stones, Tubes, & More Stones

~ Jim Flanigan ~ 1 Comment

It’s not often that you can see a classic band from the 60s or 70s with more than one original member. A notable exception are The Rolling Stones with original members Keith Richards, Mick Jagger, and Charlie Watts lasting from 1963 through 2021 until Charlie passed away. Add Ronnie Wood in 1975 until now, and that’s a group with history, legacy, legitimacy, and longevity.

So, it was with some excitement that I saw The Tubes from the mid-70s coming to my little hometown theater advertised with 3 original members including wacky frontman Fee Waybill, known for his many wild costume changes during a concert. That’s how their extended tour that appears to have started in 2022 was touted. Sadly, along the way, one of the three original members passed away. Down to 2, but quite a duo, Fee Waybill and Roger Steen, writer of their cheeky song “White Punks on Dope.”

I was all in to see The Tubes. Please note that I didn’t say I bought a ticket. Not many others did either. I was convinced the theater had done a ticket giveaway as they sometimes do to at least get sales of their concessions, and that I had missed the email for the free tix. I went to the box office and mentioned that I heard (from me talking to myself) that they were giving away free tickets to fill seats. Uh, no. But as long as I was there, they gave me a free ticket. I was encouraged to sit anywhere I wanted. Open seats were plentiful.

I arrived just in time to hear “Sushi Girl,” a very 80ish tune and favorite of mine. That was kind of the highlight of the show. For me, it was downhill from there. I don’t want to disparage Fee, Roger, and the other new Tubes band members. They are still out on the road touring and living the rock & roll dream. Good for them. But Fee as the frontman is 73, looks 83, and moves around like he’s 93. It was hard to watch at times. At least he brought his “nurse” to assist him with his costume changes.

Can someone please help The Tubes change the digital graphic projected onto the screen to reflect a 2023 tour rather than 2022. Aren’t digital graphics free?

And about those costumes? At the end of “Wild Women of Wongo,” Fee had stripped down to this.

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RIP, Beloved New Winter Character

~ Jim Flanigan

Well, it didn’t take long for rot to overwhelm the potentially-annually-lovable Pumpkinman from my last post. Shortly after I took the one and only pic of Pumpkinman (at least I have a picture), rot exerted its mighty will and took Pumpkinman down and sent me into mourning yesterday.

I haven’t cried like I did since Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer got hit by a car. I hate it when you can see the bones sticking out. I should have known. Rot is unstoppable. I’m a perfect example. Did you know that each day after a pumpkin is harvested is equal to one human year? That’s a fascinating stat that I just made up.

Maybe next year we’ll have a new Pumpkinman to photograph, love, cherish, and take to swanky events and soirees as my Plus 1. But for now, I can only ponder the inevitable question.

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Bad Song Lyrics – Midnight Madness

~ Jim Flanigan

I hate to tease a new series of blog posts and never deliver. Well, that’s exactly what I did when I whet your appetite for some bad song lyrics. That little sample I released was oh, so bad. But that was almost 2 months ago! Yeah, this has been a somewhat unsettled year in my life, but this is not a time for excuses. I know you, the readers, need some more bad song lyrics. I am finally ready to deliver.

But not just the printed word. How about an interpretive reading of the lyrics? By the author and lyricist himself … me!

Common reaction actually when someone in the entertainment world like me offers up something unique like this that speaks directly to the hearts of the fans. Here is “Midnight Madness” interpretively read by little old me.

Midnight Madness by James Flanigan

Well, wasn’t that a special treat? But wait! There’s more, oh, so much more.

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Senses Working Undertime

~ Jim Flanigan

It was only this past week that I finally tested negative for COVID. I didn’t feel even close to myself until a day or two ago. A lot changed for me during COVID. Besides feeling like a truck hit me each day, everything seemed to be just a bit off. I’m still full of phlegm and must clear my throat hundreds of times per day. That has gotten really awkward. People stop talking as they think I’m trying to interrupt and inject myself into the conversation. I have nothing to say. And my poops? Well, they were just weird during COVID. ‘Nuff said, possibly too much. Just about everything was off.

I will admit that I did not lose my senses of taste and smell during COVID. However, much to my chagrin, it appears that I may have lost my senses of decorum (note poop comment above) and humor (note this blog post). I am especially sad about losing my sense of humor, and have commenced taking steps to regain at least partial use of that sense.

My first step was to go back to my comedic roots. I thought that perhaps I can relearn how to be funny once again. So, I took a trip to my alma mater.

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Bad Song Lyrics – Sneak Preview

~ Jim Flanigan ~ 1 Comment

There are many songs with embarrassingly bad song lyrics. For example, I have always enjoyed the music of the Electric Light Orchestra, but Jeff Lynne’s lyrics sometimes are a bit middling to be kind. For example, one of my guilty pleasures is ELO’s song “All Over The World.” I love the catchiness of the tune, but those lyrics …

“Everybody walkin’ down the street
Everybody movin’ to the beat
They’re gonna get hot down in the U.S.A. (New York, Detroit, L.A.)
We’re gonna take a trip across the sea
Everybody come along with me
We’re gonna hit the night down in gay Paris (c’est la vie, having your cup of tea)”

They’re bad, but this new series of blog posts isn’t about making fun of the lyrics of successful musical artists. It’s about my song lyrics. Many decades ago, I was a teen full of angst (good name for an album or band), writing songs about the cruelty of a life I had barely started living. I had no clue how cruel life could actually be until I had 5 kids, 4 dogs, a mortgage, car payments, and a leaky basement.

Anyway, I was thrilled when I found my notebook of songs I had written starting when I was still a feckless youth. Thankfully, I eventually got some feck. Anyway, they are dated, unlike I was at the time, chronicling my lyrical atrocities beginning at age 16.

Now at age (number obscured to keep Jim from throwing up in his mouth while typing), I consider myself a halfway decent writer. I was in a songwriting mood a few years back, and I wrote some song lyrics I like. But my lyrics from decades ago? Bad. Very bad. For example, from the unrecorded potential hit single “Lady of the Island” comes these lyrics …

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Ends Beget Beginnings

~ Jim Flanigan

Not those types of ends as shown in the title pic, although I guess those ends can start something, too. But(t) that’s a post for another day on another blog I run under the nom de plume of Lance Romance. For the purposes of this blog, lots of things are ending in my life right about now. This is a tough time of year for me mentally, but I have to force myself to not just look at what’s ending but also what’s beginning. For example, summer is definitely ending. The air is comfortably cooler and inconveniently wetter. So, what’s beginning? The painfully slow slide of autumn into three brutal months of winter. I really need to work on a more positive attitude. I guess I should look at the looming indoor winter months as an opportunity to get some writing done, like this blog more than once a month.

With the end of summer comes the end of outdoor summer concerts. I saw a few that I enjoyed this summer, but nothing was memorable. I had hoped I could squeeze in a couple more this summer. As I write this, I have free tickets tonight to a concert I thought I wanted to see, but instead I accompanied the family to Woodfield Mall, once the largest indoor mall in the USA when it opened. I was initially excited to score tickets to see Noel Gallagher of Oasis tonight in Chicago. I really like this recent song of his. But I got my n-names confused. It’s Neil Frances playing a free show in Chicago tonight. That’s what happens when you get old. Neil Frances becomes Noel Gallagher in my head but in reality is still Neil Frances, who is perfectly fine but not somebody I would make the effort to see.

I had a decision to make about seeing Blue Oyster Cult, the BoDeans, or REO Speedwagon recently for what most likely was to be the end of outdoor concerts for me in 2023. I was waffling (sans syrup) between BOC and REO. BOC would have required me to park elsewhere and take a shuttle bus to the concert grounds. That seemed like too much work, so I opted for REO which sold out a local 9000 seat facility right on the Fox River at $50 a head. I did the math and am amazed that 50+ year old REO Speedwagon still grossed almost half a million for the show! With the show sold out, parking was limited. So, I parked half a mile away (where’s a shuttle bus when I need one?), hiked to the river, and settled in across the river from the concert venue in my lawn chair to see (through a semi-obstructed view) and hear (nicely) REO’s full set for free. It was a mix of gritty 70’s bar band rockers and 80’s predictably pleasant arena anthems. But what was really fun to see was these three guys taking to the Fox River to get closer to the concert.

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Mite Be Funny – RIP Jimmy Buffett

~ Jim Flanigan

We Are Not Alone – Concert Edition

~ Jim Flanigan

But after raising 5 kids and 11 dogs, I want to be alone. It became obvious to me last night as I took some video (more audio than video since I had an obstructed view) of The Hooters in concert that none of us are alone. They’re here, watching us, and last night they were enjoying some 40 year old music. Who is here? Aliens, of course. And not the kind of aliens the MAGA crowd is always bitching about. I’m taking about the extraterrestrial kind of aliens.

Last night I passed on seeing Tommy Tutone (no original band members!) and Rick Springfield at an 80’s concert. I caught Paul Young singing this song to conclude his set, but his vocals no longer sound like they do in that video. Hey, 40 years is a long time. And I can’t confirm if he can still dance like in the video, since I chose a spot to sit across the river with better sound but a somewhat obstructed view. I was there to partially see & hear The Hooters as I indicated in yesterday’s post.

The Hooters sounded great, but they played a bit too long. When you have to start playing covers to extend your set, that’s too long. But I’m glad they did! We were all waiting for them to wrap their set with “And We Danced,” except for the people next to me who had no idea about anyone who was playing last night.

And maybe “they” knew it was coming, too. They … them … the aliens. I took some video of the brilliant full moon over Aurora, Illinois last night as The Hooters ended their set. I thought nothing of it until this morning when I took a look & listen to the video. There it was. Sorry, there “they” were. No, not The Hooters. Remember, I had an obstructed view. Damn trees. No, they = aliens. Take a look if you don’t care if your mind gets blown.

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New Music For Old Rockers – Concert Edition

~ Jim Flanigan ~ 2 Comments

I was recently listening to my wife’s old college radio station and fell in love with this song. It’s a pleasant pop song that reminds me a bit of They Might Be Giants doing a softer version of a Fountains of Wayne song. Although I prefer more power pop à la Nick Lowe, this new song is titled “The Power,” so there’s that. Enjoy new Diners music!

I love the simplicity of the song construction and the positivity of lyrics like:

“It ain’t too late to understand, too late to try
Too late to recognize the power that’s inside”

Maybe those lyrics are referring to singer/songwriter Blue Broderick of Diners finding the power inside to transition from Tyler Broderick singing about being “Fifteen On A Skateboard” to Blue Broderick today. Regardless, it’s wonderful new music that caught this old rocker’s ear.

That wraps up a nice short post about new music with plenty of links to old music. But you may be wondering how this post is a “Concert Edition.” Well, if you want to go meandering down a concert rabbit hole with me, buckle up and read on.

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Born To Shun

~ Jim Flanigan

While the rest of Chicagoland was attending Bruce Springsteen concerts at historic Wrigley Field on Wednesday and Friday nights, I was busy checking for loose change between our couch cushions. My summer concert budget has dropped to zero after some home repairs/improvements. Rather than spending my youngest daughter’s college fund for tickets, parking, concessions, and a Bruuuuuuuce t-shirt, I passed on making the always challenging journey to Wrigley. Just kidding. We don’t have a college fund for our daughter. By the way, it’s cool having a ballpark right in the middle of Chicago, but that makes for some transporation challenges unless one lives near a CTA train stop. We live at least 30 miles away from the closest.

It turns out that I could have saved on tickets by just sitting outside of Wrigley.

But it’s not like I didn’t see a concert. There was no challenging drive, train ride, bus transfer, etc. to see this show. I hopped on my bike to catch this group in our town’s downtown park.

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A Lollapalooza Concert Report

~ Jim Flanigan ~ 1 Comment

It’s Lollapalooza weekend in Chicago, so here’s my Lolla report on the concerts I’ve seen so far. I haven’t seen any. It turns out that we needed not only a new refrigerator-freezer, but also a new hot water heater. For whatever reasons, my family insists on hot water. Bourgeois elitists. What’s next on their list of demands? Indoor plumbing?

Anyway, my concert budget plummeted to zero quicker than Trump’s chance at acquittal of all charges after another indictment. I am left with scrounging for free shows. I did get an email about a free Michael McDermott show for tonight. We have become fans, although we have seen him twice in the span of 9 months. Another time and we may graduate from fans to stalkers. And can they make this show sound a little better?

It sounds like he’ll be busking for loose change from commuters rather than headlining a free show at the Northbrook Days festival. It should be good, but it’s an hour away, so I opted for this local concert for which I “won” free tickets.

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A Tale of Two Concerts

~ Jim Flanigan

How in the bloody hell did I end up at this show over the weekend?

Some say it’s because I’m Father of the Year. I volunteered to take my 15-year-old daughter and her friend to see the feminist punk band Destroy Boys. You may remember them from their haunting ballad “I Threw Glass at My Friend’s Eyes and Now I’m on Probation.” Anyway, I took these two lovely young ladies into Chicago to Metro to see the show.

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My Bike Is Broken & So Am I

~ Jim Flanigan ~ 1 Comment

Yep, tried to bike today, and I have a flat. So does my bike. After a dismal biking month in May, I was certain that I would do better in June. Well, I did, but it wasn’t the 100+ miles I envisioned. It wasn’t even half that. It was 42.75 miles. On my imaginary bike trip this summer, I was just about to exit Illinois and enter Indiana. Even if I hug the lakeshore on my way to Michigan, I’m not sure 42.75 miles gets me out of Indiana. Nothing personal toward Hoosiers, but I’m firmly in R. Dean Taylor’s camp when he sings this song about not wanting to go back to Indiana. If I had done better in July so far, I would plot out my progress on a map showing how far into Michigan I am. But I’ve forced myself out biking only once so far this month, and today was a failed attempt thanks to the flat. Maybe it is fitting. My daughter and I were planning a short trip taking a similar route to my imaginary bike trip, except in a car. But that trip has been canceled when she opted for a Destroy Boys concert that I have to take her to instead. More on that in another post.

I have been surprised at how well one summer exercise has been going.

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Concert Quiz

~ Jim Flanigan

Are you up for a one question concert quiz? Lovely! Please read on. We have an extended holiday weekend in the US with lots of concerts in town. A couple friends and I were choosing between these two free concerts.

I know you’re thinking, “Who the hell is Mark Farner?” He was a vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter for Grand Funk Railroad, so certainly a front man for GFR like Gramm was for Foreigner.

Frontier Days doesn’t really take place on the frontier, but in Arlington Heights, a suburb of Chicago. It’s not that far, but I wasn’t up for a drive on consecutive evenings. We had to pick one. The setlists were compelling. Here’s a link to Gramm’s setlist featuring a veritable hit parade of familiar Foreigner tunes. Here’s the link to Farner’s setlist featuring slightly older Grand Funk hits.

So, quiz time. Which did we choose?

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New Music for Old Rockers – Rejected Concert Edition

~ Jim Flanigan

It’s really not like me to turn down a free concert. I’ve gone and seen some pretty crappy concerts, because they were free. But this one had promise. The group is pretty hip with a Lumineers-like sound. They have a new album out. And I really like this new song which was their first release off the new album.

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Summer Concerts Rock

~ Jim Flanigan

While I prefer my summer concerts to be outdoors, I kicked off my 2023 summer concert series with my wife at an indoor show at City Winery in Chicago where I recently saw some of XTC perform as EXTC. The great thing about venturing out in Chicago to do anything is that there are never any Fox News viewers out & about in Chicago. One of the great cities of the world is just a bit too scary for them. My message to Fox News viewers is to listen to Steve Perry of Journey and “Don’t stop believing” that nonsense. We really don’t miss having you around.

We had just seen Michael McDermott around Halloween last year do his annual Halloweensteen show where he pays tribute to Bruce Springsteen. It was a great show, and it was free, courtesy of local radio station WXRT, which made the show even greater. But I had never seen McDermott perform his own music. In fact, outside of absolutely loving one of his songs and having heard a few others, I was somewhat unfamiliar with his catalog. So, it was with some trepidation that I bought tickets to see McDermott perform his album Gethsemane on the 30th anniversary of its release.

Well, the gamble paid off. First, his Gethsemane album is a gem from beginning to end. No wonder he was being hailed as the next Dylan. You can listen to the whole album here.

But there have been big changes in McDermott in the 30 years since Gethsemane was released.

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Ch-ch-ch-changes

~ Jim Flanigan ~ 2 Comments

In the Flanigan house, we are going through a lot of ch-ch-ch-changes as David Bowie once sang. He went on to sing-splain, “Changes are taking the pace I’m going through.” Hmm, let’s scratch that Bowie tune. Upon further review, I don’t have a clue as to what he’s talking about.

Sorry, Dave.

I seem to recall Buddy Miles singing about “Them Changes.” He came close to describing what’s going on when he sang, “Well my mind is goin’ through them changes.” Although it’s funky, it’s not a perfect fit. First, I’ve already lost my mind. Second, it’s my whole family going through changes.

I had to dig deep in the musical dustbin to find an original member of The Animals from the 1960s who sang a solo number called “Changes” on the 1973 soundtrack , album to the UK film O Lucky Man! There, ex-Animal Alan Price sang “Everyone is going through changes” to the tune of a church hymn. Whew! That was a roundabout way to explain that there is a lot of change going on in my house these days.

So, what are the ch-ch-ch-changes that I’m writing about?

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Forgotten One-Hit Wonders – Raspberry Edition

~ Jim Flanigan

I must admit that my guilty pleasure this TV season is American Idol. The talent is amazing as have been some of the song choices. Last night, I got to hear a unique version of “Chasing Pavements,” my favorite Adele song. But boy, did they offend me and probably a former Raspberry on Monday night’s show with another song.

When the contestants start performing a song, the title and artist who wrote the song or made it famous comes on the screen as a caption. I was shocked to see this come on the screen.

Can you see the problem that got me so angry that I turned red as a raspberry? I pleaded my case to my wife who humored me, primarily so she could get back to watching the show and ignoring me.

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Ecstatic to See Ex-XTC as EXTC in Concert

~ Jim Flanigan ~ 3 Comments

I challenge you to say that title 3 times fast. It almost didn’t happen for me. I have been recuperating from a nasty bout of acute bronchitis. Take my word for it that there’s nothing (a)cute about it. I spat something up onto the driveway from the depths of my diseased bronchi and watched in horror as it scurried under my car. I think it has latched onto the undercarriage of my vehicle and is tracking my travels, waiting for an opportunity to pounce.

But I felt just good enough to make the trip into Chicago to meet my oldest son for a concert. Yes, I survived yet another trip into Chicago, aka a crime-infested hellhole per Fox News. I parked on the street for free and had a pleasant walk to City Winery where we had a delightful dinner and saw EXTC in concert.

Before I get to EXTC, I pointed out to my son that the band from his first ever concert would be playing a show soon at City Winery.

He was unimpressed and claims he can’t recall the concert from when he was two years old. Sounds like someone is running from his past rather than embracing it. Anyway, back to last night’s show …

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Angle From Mar-a-Lago on Arrestmas Eve

~ Jim Flanigan ~ 1 Comment

One of my favorite John Prine songs is “Angel From Montgomery,” although I slightly prefer Bonnie Raitt’s cover to Prine’s original. And when the two of them shared a stage and that song shortly before Prine’s passing, well …

That’s where I got the title for today’s blog post. Yeah, I know I spelled angel wrong. I’ll get to that later. But this is not really a music post, and it has nothing to do with Prine, Raitt, or that song. However, I felt I needed to post something positive and beautiful before foisting this picture upon you on Arrestmas Eve.

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