Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Beachland Ballroom 6/19/10

My Honey Bunny, Miss Beth and I went to the Beachland Ballroom to see Grace Potter and the Nocturnals on Saturday June 19, 2010. The Ballroom was packed with a sold out crowd. I can remember just last year Grace Potter only had half of the Ballroom filled. Her popularity is catching on. FM 107.3 here in Cleveland was doing a live broadcast of the show.



The Band came on stage dressed as though they were attending a 1975 homecoming dance. The men were wearing suits with no ties and their shirts unbuttoned down two buttons. The bass player, Catherine Popper, had on a knee length, flowing, purple dress. Grace had on a sort of Greek Goddess, blue, mini dress cut up way high on her outer thighs. The back of the stage had three screen doors hanging with the screen crumpled to help reflect the lights, simple but effective.



Grace and the Nocturnals open the show with the rocking " Some Kind Of Ride". Then they move into the bluesy "Joey". Grace proves she has one of the best screams in rock and roll during "Joey". Grace is doing her hippie dance behind the organ while the band plays an ethereal instrumental in "Oasis". The crowd is dancing to "Money". There were excellent harmonies with Catherine Popper on "Good Bye Kiss". Grace and the band kick out the jams on "Only Love". Grace now straps on an acoustic Gibson guitar for "One Short Night". Grace now tells people it is OK to dance and loosen up. She grabs her Fender Flying "V" guitar and rocks out to one of my favorites "Ah Mary". Grace goes back to the organ and Benny Yurco helps out on the drums for "That Phone". "Fooling Myself" did not make the record, but according to Grace, it sold more copies than any of the songs on the record. "Fooling Myself" is a beautiful slow song with wonderful harmonies. Hacienda's drummer Jaime Villanueva plays maracas on "Mastermind".
Next is a song of freedom, hope and courage, smoke fills the stage for "Hold On Tight". Yes Grace you do have the medicine everyone wants. "Medicine" is rolling along when the whole band gathers around the drum kit, Grace on her knees playing the bass drum, and they all play different parts of the drum kit. Grace grabs the Flying "V" again and Rocks the crowd with Oooh La La La La La La La "Paris".

For the first encore The Nocturnals play 2:22. Grace again proves she is one of the great screamers in rock and roll. Oh my are we really going to go back to the sixties for a wonderful rendition of "White Rabbit". Grace playing what sounds like a church organ for a mournful version of "Apology". The whole crowd sings a very nice version of Happy Birthday to Grace. Miss Potter reminds us that she is still 26 years old. The band winds up the crowd during "Hot Summer Night".

The crowd is screaming and clapping and just like the old days as long as you screamed the bands used to keep coming out and playing. Grace takes the stage solo for an acapella version of "Nothing But The Water". The rest of the band filters back on stage and they play an electric version of "Nothing But The Water".

What a great night.

The Band is comprised of Scott Tournet on lead guitar a very capable player. Benny Yurco on rhythm guitar. Much of the time it is like having two lead guitarists on stage. Matt Burr on drums, very strong. The new addition and what a great addition she is, on both backup vocals and bass Catherine Popper.

People have asked me if Grace Potter is like Janice Joplin my answer is some what, but she also has Aretha Franklin's soul, Tina Turners energy, Ricky Lee Jones spaciness and Suzy Quatros and Chrissy Hynds Rock and Roll attitude. Grace Potter can be compared to the others but she is her own, new, unique Rock and Roller. Go and see Grace Potter and the Nocturnals now before they make it big. Believe me they are right on the cusp of hitting the big time.

This was a great show. The crowd was filled with young and old alike. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. I give this show five twirls.

Get him to the Greek.

I went to the movies with my Honey Bunny and saw "Get Him To The Greek", what a funny movie. The movie is a spoof on Rock and Roll and the music industry. A young music industry executive Aaron Green has to go to England, pick up highball, slumping rock star Aldous Snow, and deliver him to the Greek Theatre in time for a come back concert. There are some funny site gags and goofy repartee through out the movie. One of the funniest parts I thought was Lars Ulrich from Mettalica and Aldous Snow quipping at each other, funny. Sean "Puffy" Combs plays a great part as the top record executive that believes in mind fucking everybody. This is a guys movie filled with raunchy language, drugs, racist comments and stereo types. I loved it but I am a pretty simple kind of guy to entertain. Four twirls and some fly catcher hand motions.

Lebron James

I understand that everyone in Cleveland had their hopes of a national championship dashed again but get off of Lebrons James back. I was out of town in Kansas City, Misouri when we lost the final game to Boston. I told the people I was visiting that I was glad that I was not in Cleveland to hear all of the negative comments. I came home and people are bad mouthing Lebron James. Lebron James who in the final game had a triple double. Lebron James arguably the greatest player on the court today and people in Cleveland are going to bad mouth him.

Lebron is a decent guy. He has donated money to victims of Katrina. He has his bikathon and hands out bicycles to needy kids in Akron. As far as we know he isn't banging a bunch of whores. And he gave his word when he first was drafted by the Cavaliers that he was going to bring a championship to Cleveland. I believe him.

I think that Lebron will never leave the Cavaliers as long as he is treated decent and the upper management listens to what he wants as far as players are concerned. No other team is going to allow him to have as much input as to what goes on with the team as Cleveland does. Dan Gilbert seems like he is willing to pay his MVP player a MVP salary so why would Lebron go elsewhere. Lebron is close to his magnificent home, his kids, his mother and a town that adores him.

Or should I say a town that used to adore him. If the press and all of the callers to sports talk radio keep bashing the guy then I don't blame him if he leaves. I don't believe he will, but who can blame him with all of the negative press he is receiving lately.

Was the poor play of the whole team because of Mike Brown's lack of coaching skill, disharmony in the locker room, Lebrons bad elbow, the addition of Shaq and trying to force playing time for him? I don't have the answers. But Cleveland has been chanting "next year" for as long as I can remember so why shouldn't we be chanting it again this year. Lebron will have a championship ring on his finger. If he feels the love from Cavaliers fans he might be wearing that ring while in a Cavaliers jersey. Keep on bad mouthing the guy and he will go somewhere else. Lebron this Clevelander loves you and hopes that you stay. I know you will get us a championship next year.

Illegal Immigration

What is all the fuss about the new Arizona Illegal Immigration laws? You are either in this country legally or you are not. If you here illegally then you must be arrested and deported. Seems pretty simple to me. As soon as you climbed over, under or around a fence, hid in a truck, or what other means you arrived in the United States Illegally you became a criminal. the definition of Illegal is Prohibited by law; against the law; unlawful; illicit; not authorized or sanctioned. So you are not authorized to be in this country, GET OUT.

If I am pulled over by a police man I have to produce papers proving who I am (drivers license). In order to get a drivers license I have to bring a Social Security card with me to prove who I am. I am now working on a Federal Building and I have to go through a very rigorous background check by Homeland Security. I AM A LEGAL CITIZEN OF THE UNITED STATES AND I HAVE TO CARRY PAPERS TO PROVE WHO I AM. Why are we so concerned about criminals who have snuck into this country and use up our tax dollars. "They are not criminals", see the preceding paragraph.

"Racial Profiling is going to take place" . I hope not. I don't just want one race of illegal immigrants removed from this country, I want all races of illegal immigrants removed from this country. I don't care if you are white, black, yellow or any other color if you are here illegally GET OUT. I don't care if you are French, Canadian, Mexican, Croatian, Arab or Jew, if you are here illegally, GET OUT. I don't care if you are Catholic, Muslim, Buddhist, Jewish or Atheist, if you are here illegally, GET OUT. I don't care if you are male, female, young or old, if you are here illegally, GET OUT.

"But he is the father of my children and I love him". Oh that is so sweet. Take your ass and follow your "love" back to whatever country they came from. Once you are on the other side of the border you can apply for the "love" of your life to become a legal immigrant.

Right now there are over 10 million illegal immigrants in this country. We have no idea if they are the good, hard working immigrant or the scumbag, terrorist immigrant. So lets kick all of the illegal immigrants out and start screening them to get back into the United States so we know who is here. The primary role of any government is to protect its citizens. I am a legal citizen of the United States and why should I be afraid in my own country. I shouldn't. I never used to have to lock my doors. Now my house is locked up tight and has enough fire power to protect me and my family from any and all intruders be they foreign or domestic.

"They do the jobs that Americans don't want to do". What they did was took the jobs that we as kids used to do. Kids today can't get a job and they don't learn how to work from the bottom up because the cheap labor is illegal immigrants. I worked in a car wash and washed dishes in a hotel restaurant and banquet room, I cleaned an office and scrubbed toilets when I was in High School. Now the illegals have those jobs. So where are our kids supposed to learn "boy I don't want to do this for the rest of my life". I hear people say kids today are lazy. I don't believe that. Kids today don't have a way to break into the job market because the starting jobs have been taken by the illegal immigrants. How do you break into an upper tier job if you have no experience at any job. I am who I am today because of the jobs I held in when I was younger.

Don't cry to me about civil rights for illegal immigrants, they have no rights. All they do is drive up the cost of health care, overcrowd our schools and jails, take jobs away from our children, use up our tax dollars and send the money they earn back to their homeland. If you want to live and work in this Country then learn the language and apply for a work visa. I have no problem with someone who can pass the screening process to enter this Country legally. If you can't pass the screening process then I don't want you here, GET OUT.

Joe Bonamassa Ohio Theatre 4/29/10

Joe Bonamassa may be a blues guitarist but he rocked Cleveland, Ohio on Thursday night. I have seen Joe Bonamassa before and although he was always good in the past, he has stepped up his playing a notch and his vocals have come into their own on this tour. The back up band was super, the sound was excellent and the lighting effects while simple were very effective in creating a mood. Joe mentioned the small crowds he used to play to in Cleveland in the past. 20 people at the Beachland Tavern 10 of whom were there for the two for one PBR's. He then moved up to the Beachland Ballroom where I first encountered this guitar virtuoso. I have seen Joe play at the House Of Rules and now a sold out show in the beautiful Ohio Theatre. This show by far was his best.

Mr. Bonamassa changes guitars through out the evening like a hooker going through rubbers. He started the concert with a double neck guitar, then came a black Gibson, a sunburst Gibson, a Gold Gibson, some weird looking Fender I guess, a red hollow body electric guitar, an accoustic guitar, a purple Gibson, a wine colored guitar and a flying V. Ten guitars and I am thinking I missed one or two changes in my notes.

Before the show I had it all set up to get the set list from one of Joe's people after the show. I started talking to some friends that I ran into after the show and forgot to grab the set list. Forgive me if I get some of the names wrong but I think I got most of them. The first song was a slow bluesy tune that I don't know the name of, Oh well. He then stepped up the tempo for "Last Kiss". A led Zepplin sounding song "So Many Roads". "So It's Like That" had a nice keyboard solo in it played by Rick Mellick. My friend Rick informed me that this next song was written by Warren Haynes "If Heartaches Were Nickels", Joes vocals were excellent on this song. Eric Clapton wasn't present to play "Further On Up The Road". Joe and Rick Mellick stay on stage the other two players leave and the song is "Slow Gin", they started out slow and worked it into a crescendo. The band then rocked out to "Lonesome Road". A drum heavy "Happier Times" was a crowd pleaser. The heavy metal "Blue and Evil" had Joe really starting to smoke. They went back to a more traditional type of blues for "Three Times A Fool". Then came Jeff Beck's "Blues Deluxe". Another cover song, the Who's "Young Mans Blues". Joe now straps on an acoustic guitar and starts out in a Spanish sounding style, that morphs into a get down funky beat, then Joe just starts shredding until the guitar should just burst into flames, "Wake Up Dreaming", I thought I was dreaming it was that good. A Jeff Beck ethereal sounding song called "Mountain Time" finished out the set.

Chants of Joe, Joe, Joe, Joe, Joe, Joe, went up from the crowd and Mr. Bonamassa blessed us with "Bird On A Wire" and "Just Got Paid" for the encore.

I must mention that the crowd was an older crowd considering Joe Bonamassa is only in his thirties kind of amazed me. I wonder why Joe's peers aren't coming out to see him. A lot of times when I go to concerts I feel like the old weird guy, tonight I was with many of my friends and a crowd averaging 50 years old if I had to guess.

The band consisted of Joe Bonamassa on guitar and vocals. Rick Mellick on keyboards which was a nice touch. In the past Joe was a three piece band. The keyboards added a welcomed warmth and depth to the music which was quite pleasing to the ears. Bass player Carmin Rojas stays somewhat unnoticed sitting on his bar stool but his bass lines are such a great compliment to Joe's guitar work, I hope the two of them stay together along time. I am sorry to report I did not catch the Drummers name but he was very strong and also was a compliment to the music. Overall I have to say it was a great show. Five Twirls in my mind, easy. If you ever get the chance and want to see one of the great new young guns of the guitar go see Joe Bonamassa.

PS. I would like to thank Rick and Debbie for inviting me and my Honey Bunny to a great show. I would also like to thank Dale and Sylvia for picking up the wonderful seats for us. Thanks and Rock on.

Browns Draft 2010

The first three rounds of the NFL draft are over. Mike Holmgren and Tom Heckert have made their picks and I am some what dismayed by their number one pick, Joe Haden. Joe Haden is rated very highly by all of the intellects connected with the NFL draft. He was a very good NCAA player. He has one attribute that has me wondering if he was a good pick, his height. Brandon McDonald was a very good open field tackler and was quick enough to stay with the wide outs but he was to small to defend in the jump ball situation. You know the situation a 6'6" wide receiver splits out and goes deep enough to get the first down or touchdown. The ball is thrown high enough that the receiver can jump to get it but the 5'10" midget playing corner back can't. I hope Joe Haden has springs in his legs to jump high enough because for the past three years I have suffered with McDonald being to short to cover the jump ball. All of the top prospects at corner back were 5'10" or 5'11". The Browns could have waited until the second round to pick up the taller Chris Cook out of Virginia or Jerome Murphy from South Florida, but they didn't.

In the second round the Browns pick up T. J. Ward, strong safety from Oregon another small defensive back at 5'10 and a half inches. Like Haden Ward is known for his open field tackling. The Browns look to be shoring up their run defense but again I don't like the short guys on pass defense. I will have to wait and see I guess.

The Browns second pick in the second round, the 59th pick overall, is running back Montario Hardesty from Tennessee. Hardesty is obviously a Mangini pick. Mangini likes ball players that will run through a brick wall when he tells them to and won't question him. Hardesty was banged up much of his college career and still compiled some impressive stats. He was a team leader as a captain of the team even when he didn't start in 2008. Hopefully he can stay healthy and run inside as well as outside to gain some yards for the Browns.

Our third round pick, 85th overall, is a big name player who possibly because of his size slipped to the third round, Colt McCoy. McCoy is the winningest Quarterback in NCAA history with 45 wins. He is accurate but does not have the strongest arm. Hopefully he can take two to three years of learning on the bench and developing his arm before he has to be called into duty. Remember the Browns have Jake Delhomme at QB now.

The Browns final pick in the third round at number 92 overall is Shawn Lauvao, Offensive gaurd from Arizona State. At 6'2" and 315 pounds he is a big boy that can certainly help shore up the Brown's offensive line. Plus all of those Hawaiian kids do well in the NFL because of their discipline.

Right now it does not look like a bad draft but I am concerned by the lack of height. It will be interesting to see how these players pan out. Is Heckert, Holmgrin and Mangini's first draft together pure genius or a bust, only the season will tell. A defensive backfield filled with midgets does not make me feel confident in our ability to cover the pass. My man Nick Sorenson at back up safety is the tallest DB at 6'3". Abram Elem at starting safety is 6'0". The rest of the DB's are 5'10". In my humble opinion we are way to short in the defensive backfield to play competitively in the NFL. I hope I am wrong, but I doubt it.

Captains Game 4/21/10

My Honey Bunny and I joined some of our friends and went to the Cleveland Captains game last night. It was an enjoyable experience. A very nice spring night if you dressed for it. The temprature started to drop towards the end of the game so you needed to add a layer of clothing to stay comftrable. The Captains beat the Loons 6 to 5.

The highlight of the evening was the opening act. Mr. Robert Lippucci sang the National Anthem. Mr. Lippucci said he was a little nervous before he took the field. This fabulous tenor belted out a traditional version of the Anthem. No hip hop or jazzed up version Rob sang it the way it was written. His voice quivered a little in the very beginning but once he got into the song he belted it out like Rocco Scotti. I give my friend a ton of props it takes guts to go out in front of a large crowd filled with family and friends and sing solo one of the hardest songs to sing. Rob started out low so that he would have enough range to hit the high notes. A common mistake amongst singers of the National Anthem is they start out to high and they run out of voice when they get to the high notes.

When Mr. Lippucci finished a roar from the crowd went up and he received a standing ovation. I got a tear in my eye I was so proud of him. Rob says he will probably try again next year at a Captains game. I can't wait until he moves up to a CSU game, Cavs game or maybe even the Indians. I hope to get a chance to sing a duet with Rob when the Earls are in town playing in August. Keep your pipes warmed up because I will try and give you a run for your money. Congratulations Mr. Robert Lippucci you can scratch Singing the National Anthem at a ballpark off of your bucket list. Good Job.