BucketHead

What more can I say.

Buckethead!

You gotta check it out.

Famous people from Norfolk

Norfolk

* Gary "U.S." Bonds – singer and songwriter.
* Plaxico Burress – professional football wide receiver for the New York Giants.
* Clarence Clemons – saxophonist for Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band and former player for the Norfolk Neptunes football team.
* Tom DiCillo – film writer and director.
* Charles Driesell – aka "Lefty Driesell," famed basketball coach at the University of Maryland, College Park, James Madison University, and Georgia State University.
* Rob Estes – actor.
* Gary Fleder – film director.
* William Fuller – professional football defensive end for the Chicago Bears.
* Stephen Furst – television actor.
* Joe Garland – songwriter.
* Eddie Holman – musician.
* General Johnson – R&B musician.
* Timothy "Timbaland" Mosely – Hip-Hop artist and producer, longtime associate of Missy Elliot
* Wayne Newton – a.k.a. "Mr. Las Vegas"; singer and songwriter.
* Tim Reid – television actor, director, and film executive.
* Bob Saget – television actor.
* Deborah Shelton – television actor.
* Bruce Smith – professional football player for the Buffalo Bills and Washington Redskins.
* Margaret Sullavan – actress and wife of Leland Hayward.
* Joe Smith – professional basketball player for the Milwaukee Bucks.
* Scott Travis – drummer for rock band Judas Priest.
* Gene Vincent – trailblazing rock-a-billy artist recorded the huge hit "Be-Bop-A-Lula."
* Ernie Watts – composer, jazz saxophonist, and long-time touring member of The Rolling Stones.


Click here for a list of other famous people from Hampton Roads.

BANNED MUSIC

So surfing the web I came across this page. It is a web page that has music made by DJ's that has since been 'Banned' or been squashed by the legal system in some way. Usually because they were sampling music from other musicians and those musicians told them they coudn't do it.

?!?!

Here are some DJ's, sampling your music, what do they possibly think that is bad is going to come of this. Other than opening up a whole new audience to your music and making them aware that you exist. I just don't understand what is so wrong with sampling to create new music.

I mean, how many people listened to what Jimmy Hendrix did with his guitar and then went out and tried to create the same sound. Or Stevie Ray or Eddie Van Halen or Les Claypool all I am saying is there has been a lot of instances of 'sampling' in music.

Now I have never been in the position personally where someone has sampled my musical work, so I guess I can't say for sure. But I think I would be excited to hear what someone else's spin on my stuff would be.

Sam's Moving day

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Originally uploaded by doornumbertwo.

Bookworm and I helped Sam move today. I have to say that this was much easier than when we moved ourselves. I think it is because after it was all over we could go home and take a nap.

mmmm, nap.

Next BLOG

So I did what Mark says he does and hit NEXT BLOG. That's when I get a Dutch, maybe, german or something from that general area B Boy blog.

There's something weird about the word BIAATCH surrounded by dutch words.

how do you 1/3 something

Say you have a collection of cookbooks and you take it upon yourself to cull some of them out. Now if I cut it in half then it is easy for me to explain this to someone by saying I halved my collection.

However lets say that I remove a third of my collection thus leaving two thirds of it. Do I then say I thirded it or did I Two thirds it. Do you describe what you removed or do you describe what you've retained?

So much good music...

Tonight after we got back from our Thanksgiving day outing. I turned on the CD/DVD player (what does one call it, should I change based on what it is doing?) and put in a selection of CD's for the evening.

Tonights selection:
Quincy Jones "Q's Joint"
Ray Charles "Strong Love Affair"
Rosanne Cash "10 song demo"
The Robert Cray Band "Sweet Potato Pie"
LIllith Fair "Volumes 2 & 3"

Only the beginning...

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Originally uploaded by doornumbertwo.

I have spent the last week cleaning and organizing our apartment.

Part of it was in hopes of making bookworm and I more comfortable in our space.

another part of it had to do with making it presentable so that we could have people over for Game NIGHT!

Turkey day 9 am

So today is turkey day. Each year I strive for the perfect thanksgiving, it is like my own little pilgrimage. I look to have a good day with good friends and family, where there is food to be eaten, and an activity afterwards. The activity might be a game (of the people playing variety) or a game on TV.

But something I always try to start with is the MACY's Day parade. Some years I have more success than others but every year I try to put together the magical combination.

Parade, food, fun.

Mmmm music returns to the house

So now with this rediscovery of music and the joy of listening to it. I went out and upgraded the old equipment. I have had my CD player for well over 10 years and the DVD player is the sony playstation 2. So knowing that technology has advanced since then; I went looking on the internet.

Now some of you know that back in May I was looking at the S(uper) A(udio) C(ompact) D(isc) technology and trying to figure out how to get a player that would play them for less than a few thousand dollars. Well I found one that not only plays CD's and DVD's but also the elusive SACD's. So I bought it.

I suspect I have just entered into the audio equivalent of the BETA vs. VHS war, a long drawn out debacle the ended with the winner not being decided by quality but by marketing.

So now we have DVD-audio vs. SACD; and the debate is already going on over the web. Now I don't know which has the better fidelity or sound. And I am not that sure I could discern the subtleties in the highs that everyone else can. But I was very intrigued by the prospect of some Music recorded in 6 channels that would envelope you in the experience.

Tomorrow I am going to buy some SACD's; and the one cable I didn't have; a component video cable If only tomorrow weren't black friday...

Wireless headphones

I need to find some wireless headphones, as Kelly doesn't always want to listen to the same music I do.

I know I want 900 mhz as opposed to infrared and I am thinking the 300 ft range ones are probably the way to go, as I will need the power to get through the walls of this old apartment.


any suggestions?

Floggin Molly - review

Flogging Molly is a good band for getting ready for drinking and carrying on. This Irish punk / irish ballad band as I am going to call it, just made me want to open a beer in the morning and start drinking the day away. With songs that went from high energy to slow melodic ballad.

I listened to two CD's by them "within a mile of home" and "Alive behind the Green Door" neither of which was a stunner but both of which had enough to make me not totally regret the purchase.

Within a mile was more prone to the irish ballads, than punk rock, but "alive behind the green Door" was more punk than Ballad. So if you were going to get a Flogging Molly and only one Flogging Molly I wouldn't get either I would get the new album.

And now for my new rating system: Would I buy it again?

I don't think I would buy either of these albums again as neither of them were stellar, but they both were really good music for drinking beer and doing the dishes.

Off today, and all week :)

So today on my day off I installed speakers through out the house. 2 in the dining room, 1 in the hall, and 2 in the studio, running a grand total of 300 and some odd feet of speaker cable. This plus the surround sound in the living room gives me music in the entire house.

The only bummer, the speaker in the hall doesn't work. But when I swapped it out for another speaker it is indeed the speaker and not the wiring. so instead of having to redo the wiring which would be a royal, I'll just have to get another speaker. hmmm maybe radio shack has one on sale...

It's nice to be listening to music again, I forgot how much I missed it.

Alphabetizing long overdue

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Originally uploaded by doornumbertwo.

So then comes the alphabetizing. Once a while back I had all my CD's alphabetized and organized (Have you met me?) so that they would be easier to find.

Then came the house sale and the move and the CD chaos, which has reigned terror on anyone wishing to find a specific cd in the collection.

Well today comes the alphabetization and the search for some more CD storage. As we have exceeded our current storage and the "temporary" overload storage. So since I am back in the market to buy new or at least new to me CD's it is time to locate some place to put these things.

But for now they are getting alphabetized into piles. well off to the alphabetizing.

Green DAY! - warning

Perhaps your familiar with the band, maybe you listened to their album "Dookie", or the newer one "American Idiot". I am almost certain you've heard of them. But tonight I am listening to Warning, which I have never heard before and this compiled with what I have heard on the radio just confirms it.

This is a great band, fun to listen to, they have something to say they aren't just some pop(py) whoo hooo band, and they keep putting out solid albums. From now "Warning" to "Dookie" to the new(er) album "American idiot", I have liked all the stuff I have heard so far.

The Music, well it's rock and roll the way it should be, it motivates you to get off your ass and do something. With catchy beats that keep you going once your off your ass. Put this CD in your car and you'll drive somewhere and get there before you notice the time has gone.

hmmm, I will have to come up with a rating system I suppose...

Disclaimer - My musical meanderings

disclaimer: I am not a professional music critic. I do not get paid to review music and don't claim to be a good writer either. So all comments about my writing will be summarily accepted and discarded in one fell swoop. It is what it is and I make no apologies nor do I apparently take well to criticism of it. ;)

Also note I am by profession an artist, which makes me prone to being bad at spelling, so you might have to wade through a bit of that as well. For that I apologize, cause there are some good spell check including applications out there. Unfortunately I am not using them as I am writing directly into the gui interface of my blog, probably cause it is easiest and now it is out in the open. I am apparently a little lazy as well.

And finally all the names of the bands, the albums, the producers, and anything else that is trademarakable is the property of who ever trademarked it. I am only using them temporarily cause it makes it hard as hell to figure out what I am saying if I don't use their names, but I am making no claims against towards or for any of it. They can keep it, I just need to borrow them for long enough to make my point, write my story, or ramble a little bit about them.

Thanks.

my Recent music Acquisition

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Originally uploaded by doornumbertwo.

This past weekend, a friend of mine had a "yard sale" in amongst all that there were quite a number of CD's and so he had a early preview of the yard sale items party. And a slew of CD's were had, I can't thank him enough for my recent acquisition and the price I got it for.

But what is probably the best part of the whole thing is he is going to take all the money he made off the CD's and throw it into the X-mas wish fund type of thing at his work. Now there's the holiday Spirit!

So in honor of this recent acquisition and the spirit in which it came I am gooing to randomly (i.e. not regularly) post some thoughts about some of the CD's I am listening to.

WHY ?!? some of you might say, well because I am now back on the look out for good music, and I thought by posting some of my thoughts on whaqt I am listening to, I might get the occassional; "oh you liked that, then you'll love this band." type of thing.

Probably just wishfulful thinking. But even if that never happens maybe I'll turn someone else on to something they didn't listen to before.

Where the hell have I been ?!?

Recently I realized I have forgotten about blogging, well not really forgotten it but really more of a not prioritizing it sort of thing.

I have had so much going on that Blogging just wasn't happening. And isn't that just when you should be blogging when you at least have something to talk about.

Like the Holidays - Thanksgiving right around the corner and X-mas on it's ways. Good stories there

Like fishing - it IS Striper season! Need I say more

Like Music and the rediscovery of music! - there will be more on this.

Like work - well there's a lot going on there but I shan't be blogging about it. Just know I am in a good place there.

The Jeep - But since most of you could care less about the jeep, nothing more about that.

Anyway I could go on and on but instead I'll try to get back to the blogging more frequently.

Back from Orlando

So I got back from Orlando wednesday, I had gone down there to help set up the tradeshow booth and check out what our competitors were doing with theirs.

When I got back wednesday night I was too tired to do much of anything aside from go get something to eat and then go to bed.

So Kelly and I went out to the Taphouse our new favorite place to eat. I ordered a burger and a beer and Kelly got a Quesadilla, and a ginger ale.

Then we popped a few quarters into the pool table and played a few games. The highlight of which was when kelly shot and sank two solids at the same time. ONe in the side pocket and one in the corner.

Nice.