Tuesday Tunes--The Roadie Years

I recently bought a CD (yes, an actual Compact Disc with jewel case and all) that took me back to my days as a local roadie, photographer, lighting tech, and man about town here in the Greater Cleveland area. I will recount the early days in a future post, but for today I want to focus on one band from the later days of my weekend career.

Back in 2000, I was working a multi-band show at a club called The Revolution which was not far from where I lived at the time (nor would it be far from me now had it not closed). There were several Cleveland bands, but there was one band out of Pittsburgh called The Ultimatics. They were a east coast style punk band with two lead singers and an explosive sound. I took photos of the band with my Sony Mavica FD-73 camera and copied the diskette for them. They were quite gracious and gave me a copy of their latest CD, Dolls and Skulls. I kept in touch with them for a little while on MySpace, but then the band broke up and I quit MySpace. I learned of their earlier CD shortly after that, but was unable to get a copy.

That is, until last week.

I was looking around Google Play and the iTunes store for The Vicious and the Glamorous, but to no avail. Finally, I checked Amazon. I managed to get another rarity through there, so why not this one? Lo and behold, there it was. Priced at $15 (a tiny bit steep, but, eh) it was the disc I wanted. Click. Click. Click. E-mail. Sent.

It is worth every penny if you like a rough-edged, loud punk rock band. Also, if any former members of the band happen across this post, sent me an e-mail. I'd love to find out what the hell is going on with you guys and if there will ever be a reunion.

Ten Paces and Draw

Welcome again to the weekly feature known as Saturday Scavenger Shots. This week's word was DRAW, as chosen by the wandering minstrel, Tara from The Eclectic Spaghetti. Obviously you have all flocked to my blog to see my wonderful drawings and woodcuts, but in an effort to disappoint you, those are not for public consumption. I only show those item to five people per year and only if they make more money than the national debt of a small, independent nation. Sorry to disappoint.

Anyway, my photo this week comes from the one and only Brian Brushwood, magician and host of Scam School on Revision 3. No, he didn't take the picture. I made a donation to an Indiegogo campaign a while back and I got a Scam Stuff Box that included...

DRAW a card, any card and I will manipulate you into thinking that I have stolen your card or otherwise put it someplace else without your knowledge. Of course, we could always play a game of DRAW poker, or gin rummy where you also DRAW cards. Anyway, that's my photo.

Now we wait, patiently as Tara picks somebo...huh? She has? Oh, well, it turns out that Laura B. has been tagged for the next word. Well, we will wait until she picks a...what? Oh, she has. Well, it turns out that she has picked the word CELESTIAL for next week. Well, have a good remainder of the weekend.

Tuesday Tunes: Hail to the Kings

A few days before Thanksgiving in 2000, my boss called me. He told me to arrange a flight to Falmouth, Massachusetts for the Sunday following the holiday. I was going to spend the next three weeks on Cape Cod doing everything I could to save the company's ass from a date bug that was going to hit when the clock struck 2001. Sort of a delayed Y2K bug. I was going to a different company within the larger corporation.

I walked into a disaster. I had no idea what to expect. I had been to the old facility which kind of warm and welcoming and it was summer time when I went there in 1999. This time it was cold, dark, dreary and instead of training for what would become my new job as a service technician, I was being a service tech of the highest order. I had three weeks to get a couple hundred of our monitoring units up and running before I left on December 17 (four days prior to my birthday and a week before Christmas).

My previous trip was enjoyable, relaxing and it felt good to get away from the place I called home for my 26 years of existence. I was eating seafood, enjoying the local, slower paced, culture of Cape Cod. I got to see downtown Boston and get followed around by a weird hippy lady and several other people who seemed to have lost their gods somewhere along the line and wanted me to find them. I spent plenty of cash in the local record stores picking up several different CDs since I had brought none with me on that first trip. Faith No More, No Doubt, Veruca Salt, and several others. I even managed to find time to work. This time, though, was different.

I was working to keep the company in good standing with the City of Boston. I hated being that important. I liked doing the smaller work of a repair here, part replacement there. Being "the man" was not my thing. It was frustrating for the most part and then the shit hit the fan. I ended up having to go to the place where the systems were coming from because they were having an issue. We went back and forth and I tried to explain that a Centrex phone system was not suitable to test our modems, it had to be a standard line (trust me on this, there are differences. I won't bore you). I got back and I was pissed. I wanted nothing more than to go home, but first, I had to return a phone call...from my boss.

I called him that evening when I got back to the hotel. I had not eaten and only had a bottle of orange soda since lunch. Needless to say, I was not in a cordial mood. He answered the phone with a, "Hello, Jasen, how's it going?" Those were his only words for fifteen full minutes as I went off on a tirade of f-bombs, bitches, and strings of complaints that I'm sure had the family in the room two doors down saying novenas all night long. I was sure that by the time I got done I would be packing up to come home and find another job. No boss I had ever worked would ever put up with what I was saying on that phone. Finally, I finished and I waited what felt like an eternity for his response. Then he responded...

"Feel better?" He laughed. HE LAUGHED! After I had said things that I'm sure would get me thrown into a holding cell for thirty days, all he could do was laugh. Then he continued, "Now you know how I f--king feel, and our salesman, too. This has been one goddamn clusterf---k and we're just trying to fix it. Do your best, that's all I'm asking, and the way you sound, you are. Go get some dinner, get a beer (I didn't drink at the time, but I was tempted) and get a good cup of coffee in the morning." He hung up and I felt a great weight lifted off of me.

That evening I went out for a large meal of seafood and went to the record store on Main Street. Spinnaker Records, a small, hole-in-the-wall type of record store that appears in every city. I walked through the door and approached the used rack, I was looking for something specific. "You're back," said the girl behind the counter. I looked up and recognized the same, cute girl that worked there when I was on the Cape a year and a half earlier. I knew I was in there a lot, but that much? I responded and talked to her for a few minutes before I continued my search. I knew this album would help me cope with the hell that I was facing, but nobody ever sold it back.

My brother had introduced me to Slayer, the kings of metal. I had South of Heaven and Seasons in the Abyss, but this situation called for drastic measures. This situation called for the greatest speed metal album ever recorded, Reign in Blood. I never owned it before that trip. Had that trip never happened, I may not have owned it until last Tuesday. I didn't want this album, I needed this album. This was my therapy. This was going to be the way that I was going to make it through the last week of this trip. Many people ask which album had the greatest impact on your life? For me, it was this one, it had a reason to be for me. I finally found it in the new rack because, as I said, nobody ever returns it. They hand it down from generation to generation for years to come. I had heard bits and pieces of this album through my brother previously, but now I was going to hear in its entirety. It's like an explosion that never stops for a half hour (that's it, under 29 minutes). I spent my evening listening to this album in the CD player I had bought earlier in the week to entertain myself (I didn't have a laptop to bring with me). I felt much better and ready to face the next day...Friday.

Friday came and things were much better for me. I approached the task at hand with a far greater level of clarity and it helped. Around lunch, I was heading for the door when the nice receptionist-lady asked me if I was going to the Christmas party that night. I told her that I wasn't invited and didn't know where it was anyway. She told me that she was inviting me and would fight anybody who said I wasn't and that it was in the party room of the hotel where I was staying. I guess I was going to a Christmas party.

That evening, I was informed that I had received a phone call from the vice president of the company himself. I was given the number and I went back to my room and left a message for him and headed back down to the party. The party was fun, but I do not want to get anybody into any trouble, so I will leave it there.

The next day, the VP called me. He was made aware of slight disdain for the situation at hand and was prepared to rectify the situation. He thanked me for my hard work during this time. He also told me that another tech was coming to assist me for my last week. He also told me that the upper management might be a little unwelcoming of me (I hadn't experienced this) so he gave me every phone number to reach him, including his home phone number. FInally, he informed me that I would be receiving a more sizable bonus than some of the other techs who didn't come in to help. I thanked him graciously and hung up the phone. The final week went quickly and I handed the work off to the other tech and I boarded my flight to come home.

The moral of the story: get pissed, yell at your boss, and listen to Slayer. Life gets better after that.

Happy Mothers' Day

My mother has not allowed herself to be assimilated into this organism known as the Internet. So, for me to wish her a Happy Mothers' Day online, whether it's on Facebook, Twitter, BBS, MySpace, my Angelfire page, or my blog, makes absolutely no sense at all. It's not like I have to send the message via carrier pigeon or telegraph wire, provided the Confederate soldiers haven't knocked down the wire between here and there. No, I will call her this morning and wish her a Happy Mothers' Day, from my cell phone to her landline. Then, later on, I will go over to my parents' house and have dinner with my brother, aunt, and parents. It's the advantage of living a mile and a half away.

So, to all of you mothers who are online, I want to wish each and every one of you a Happy Mothers' Day. Have a wonderful day.

Totally Stoned

Hi. Welcome to this week's exciting episode of Saturday Scavenger Shots. The word is STONE and it was chosen by yours truly. Here's why I chose this particular word:

This was my project last weekend. Because I get way too many weeds and didn't want to screw around with mulch again, I went with white marble STONES. How many STONES? Over a ton. Possibly a ton and a half. It was 60 bags of STONES that I had to move ten bags at a time in my small Mazda Protege 5. I'm tired and achy, but the front yard looks sharp.

There you have it. My take on STONE for this week. Now I must tag somebody and I tag Tara for next week's word. Have a good weekend.

I Want it All, but it Blew Up in My Face

I was working as a gas station clerk back in 1994. I was 20 years old, had a girlfriend and a 1990 Cavalier, which I called X-Wing (every vehicle I have owned was named after a Star Wars vehicle). It had an alarm in it for a while, but due to some electrical issues, it was decided that the best course of action would be to remove the alarm and see if that did the trick. After the job was done, things seemed to be going pretty well. The car was running beautifully and I was on top of the world.

I dropped my girlfriend off at her house and took the long way home since it was a beautiful early summer night in Cleveland. As I recall, I was still into Faith No More's, The Real Thing album and still thought "Epic" was the most unique song out there. It wasn't quite rap and sounded like metal. I was running low on cigarettes so I headed for the CVS a few blocks past my street. As I headed over I-480 overpass, the lights on my dashboard dimmed, a couple glowing, red hot wires fell to the floor and a billow of smoke blew in my face. The car stalled, but rolled into the parking lot, I was in a panic. What the hell was happening to my beloved X-Wing? I didn't wait for the ride to come to a complete stop; I threw it in Park as it ground to a halt. I got out quickly and ran away as if it were about to explode. I turned when I was twenty feet away (as if that was far enough if it exploded). Nothing happened. The car sat there, lifeless.

I called home. I explained what had happened and dad came and we pushed my car home with his. I turned the key and some of the dashboard lights came on, but the wrong lights. The "Shift Up" light came on which was strange considering it was an automatic transmission. When I flipped the turn signal left, the "Check Engine" light came on while the right turn signal informed me of a low battery. This was definitely surreal from my point of view. We managed to get the car up the driveway, but it seemed that one of the light didn't want to turn off and I'm pretty sure the oil pressure was fine, so it had to be an error. We disconnected the battery and I stayed up a little longer, smoking cigarettes and recounting this scary event.

The next morning, the assistant manager from the gas station came by and checked out the car. He was a whiz with anything wired and quickly determined that the problem stemmed from the removal of the alarm a week earlier. It seemed that the starter wire and the battery lead wire crossed due to the fact that neither one was taped or capped and left to swing freely. In simpler terms, my car hot-wired itself while I was driving. We got on the phone to the alarm company and after five minutes and the threat of a lawyer intervention, they were sending a tow truck post-haste to pick up the affected vehicle. 

Unfortunately, this left me without a car, until mom told me that I could use her car. The problem? Imagine if you will only driving a small, 2.2L, 4-cylinder, 1990 Chevy Cavalier. Then imagine getting behind the wheel of a large 1977, 350 cu. in., 8-cylinder Pontiac Grand Prix. It took some getting used to, as well as attracting the attention of an entire neighborhood when I had to stop quickly and ended up screeching to a halt over about 30 feet. I finally got used the Pontiac after a few days and would end up driving it for two full weeks while the wire harness was replaced in the X-Wing.

Two Classics in One Photo

Laura B., our resident librarian, chose our word for this week and she chose the word CLASSIC. I knew where I wanted to go with this one:

This picture was taken back in 2009 which does not make it a CLASSIC. What does make it is the 1957 Chevy Bel Air. That is a CLASSIC automobile and it is also my dad's dream car (he doesn't own one). Speaking of dad, that's him, the other CLASSIC in this photo. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that he's old.

There you go, my take on the word CLASSIC. Now we wait to see who Laura B. will tag for next week. Have a good weekend.

Tuesday Tunes--Immersed in Floyd

Shout out to James O. Stafford of Why it Matters blog for inspiring me to write more about music. This will, hopefully, be a new regular feature every...duh!...Tuesday.

I made a gratuitous purchase last week since the funds were there for me to do so. I picked up the Pink Floyd, Dark Side of the Moon Immersion box set, which contains the 2011 remaster of the original album, several concert performances, an audio DVD with the Alan Parsons quadraphonic mix and the 5.1 surround mix. It also contains a preliminary mix of the album from 1972, about a year prior to release. I'll get to this soon. It also contains art prints, coasters, three Dark Side marbles, two booklets, a page from Roger Waters regarding the "voices of assorted lunatics" and a scarf with the rainbow heartbeat logo. All in all, it is worth the money that I paid for it, especially since I am a fan of the band.

Back to the 1972 mix.

It is worth noting that Alan Parson was the production supervisor on this mix and not the engineer. I'm not sure how close it was to being released as it was, but I'm glad it wasn't. First thing to note is that the "Speak to Me" is not present and there is no heartbeat. It's simply a lead in to "Breathe" which, for the most part, sounds the same except for a bit of additional echo. "On the Run" is a bit rougher, with some missing elements of the final version. "Time" is another song that sounds about the same except for some overall fine tuning. "The Great Gig in the Sky" is the biggest change. There is no Clare Torry vocals and there is what sounds like Apollo 17 mission tape playing during the song. "Money" is pretty much the same except for the beginning where it sounds like coins are being drop into a bowl before the familiar loop begins. "Us and Them" sounds very much the same, but without the echo, sounds empty and incomplete. It is unbelievable how much difference that echo makes. "Any Colour You Like" went through a bit of a change. The keyboards are different in some spots and there are some added elements in the background and some of the guitar is different. "Brain Damage" sounds completely different during the third verse with a longer and more maniacal laugh track. It also contains more guitar during the second refrain. Finally, "Eclipse" has a lot more guitar work in it (I almost like it better...almost). Overall, I think Alan Parsons did a far better job when he created the signature mix that was released in March 1973.

The rest of this CD contains some alternate stuff and one oddity from the "The Household Objects" project, which was supposed to be the follow-up to Dark Side. Two things to note are the "Travel Sequence" which was replaced by "On the Run" and the "Mortality Sequence" which would become "The Great Gig in the Sky". The last track is Roger Waters' original demo of Money (linked) which is just Roger and an acoustic guitar.

There you go. I swear, this feature will get more interesting with time. I can call this the epilogue of my Dark Side of the Moon, 40th Anniversary week posts from a month ago. Thanks for dropping in.

I Shall Punctuate My Weekend

The high priestess of The Eclectic Spaghetti, Tara, picked this week's word and she picked PUNCTUATE. Tough word, so I cheated and did this:

I drew a picture of an exclamation point (a PUNCTUATION mark) on a Post-It Note and took a picture. Simplicity is grand. However, it is fitting PUNCTUATION considering the that weekend that I had.

Friday night, I met up with a couple friends and we went out to dinner at a Japanese Hibachi restaurant called Otani. We hung out for a while and talked and had a good time. I got home early enough so that I could get some sleep for Saturday since I knew it was going to be a packed day.

Saturday, I met up with Dave, Mitch and Matt for a day of old-school XBox gaming out at Dave's house in Medina. This was the first time in about a year and a half that we got together. It was a day of chicken wings, Halo, and a bit of beer tasting. Yes, this alien was drinking beer. It turns out that Dave is now a crafter of fine beer. To call him a brewer would be an insult in my opinion. I tried a few of his brews which are really good (yes, I like beer, but only good stuff).  After the gaming, I went home to drop off my car and my gaming rig and I was back out the door and down the street to see my neighbor's brother's band, Necris Obscura (hardcore-metal) play at the Rock City Tap House. They're a pretty good, loud band with a growler for a lead singer. After the show, I walked home, showered and crashed into bed.

Sunday, relaxation? Nah! Laundry and grocery shopping and then, finally, over to my parents' house for pizza for dinner. That was it for me. I spent the rest of the day relaxing and then finally went to sleep. Overall, it was a fun and enjoyable weekend.

So, that's my Saturday Scavenger Shots post for this week. Now we wait until Tara tags somebody for this Saturday's word. Have a good day.

I'm Doing Science...Occam's Razor

I posted a reference to Occam's Razor on Facebook last week after reading and hearing about the tinfoil hat society of Glenn Beck and Alex Jones claiming a complex conspiracy carried out by the powers that be. Unfortunately, none of this passes the sniff test and when it comes right down to it, the official story is probably the correct story.

Occam's razor, simply put, states that the simplest explanation is often times the best explanation. Formally, it is that "Among competing hypotheses, the hypothesis with the fewest assumptions should be selected." (Wikipedia). It is the process by which science is done because making numerous assumptions adds more points of failure. The simpler the hypothesis, the easier it is to test and validate if it is, in fact, correct.

Let's return to the conspiracy theory model. The conspiracies that are often stated tend to have numerous factors that if any one of those fail, the whole theory will fail as well and then the person making the claim will have to fall back and make the evidence presented fit into their conclusion instead of using the evidence to construct the theory. The latter principle (using evidence to construct a theory) is the way science is done. 

Go for simplicity. Remember that the spring-based mousetrap is better than anything designed by Rube Goldberg. Although it may not be as entertaining, it gets the job done with minimal effort on the user's part. Too many conspiracy theories require suspension of reality in order to be able to accept the story. Stay within the realm of reality and make it easier on yourself.

I will make a video on this very topic to further explain.

A Piece of Cake

This week, the word was chosen by yours truly and I decided on the word CAKE. I really had nothing in mind when I picked it, but I knew, like the old adage, that it would be as easy as pie (see what I did there?)

SO I went through my pictures and I found this one:

My favorite occasional thing to make and eat and enjoy, my crab CAKES. This is a simple recipe that really brings out the flavor of the crab. I probably shared this photo before, so I have another.

Have you heard of the band CAKE? This is a pretty good album and the first time I ever heard it was when I was on Cape Cod. I got a rental car with a CD player (a rarity back in 1999) and I had nothing to play on it. So, Ron, the guy who was training me, allowed me use of a sampler of CDs while I was there and this was one of them. My recommended tracks from this are "Going the Distance", "Stickshifts and Safety Belts", and, of course, their remake of the disco classic, "I Will Survive". Check it out, it's probably on YouTube.

So now it is that time on Saturday Scavenger Shots where I pick a word chooser for next week. I am tagging Tara for the word. So, Tara, whatcha got?

A Wing and a Prayer

This week's Saturday Scavenger Shots word (a couple days late), WING, was brought to us by the one and only Laura B. of What Fresh Hell Is This? blog. I looked and looked and looked some more, but I could not find anything to fit the bill in my phone photo collection until I remembered the picture I am about to show you. I am pretty sure I used it once before on my blog, I think it fits the bill.

Remember a while back when I said that I had a wasp nest over my front door? Well, I found another one behind the siding next to my front door. Frightening indeed. Well, a can of bug spray later, I had clipped the WINGS of about two dozen wasps. Here you can see their bodies, WINGS and all.

There you go. I was just WING-ing it this weekend and I ended up with a late comer to the party. Laura B. has chosen me (heh, that rhymes) to pick next week's word. I am going to choose...CAKE. We may have already had this word, but I don't care, CAKE is a good thing.

Pass the Bubbly

Well, not really. This week, Tara, of Eclectic Spaghetti fame, gave us the word BUBBLES for the Saturday Scavenger Shots post. I looked through photos and realized that I have no good pictures of BUBBLES. So I thought and thought, and then thought some more and finally decided to do a very rudimentary science project.

One cup dipped in soapy water, slowly pulled out and inverted and we have one BUBBLE. I know, it's not plural like Tara wanted, but it's an impressive spur of the moment BUBBLE.

So there you have it, my Saturday Scavenger Shots post a day late, but BUBBLY. Tara has tagged Laura. B. for next week's word, so we will wait for that.

I'm Doing Science...Literacy

This is another administrative piece regarding my work and the workings of science. Things have happened here, but I cannot say anything until I know what I can say.

I posted this on Facebook on Saturday:

The US has too many scientifically illiterate people who elect scientifically illiterate politicians who see nothing wrong with cutting funding to research and education programs designed to advance science, which in turn fails to educate our children about science, which means that they grow up to be scientifically illiterate people who elect scientifically illiterate politicians. Does anybody else see a problem with this?

We need to urge our politicians to restore and increase funding to the NIH, CDC, NSF, and NASA. These programs, more than any other, directly or indirectly put people to work and help to educate our children and inspire them to reach for a brighter future. I'm tired of hearing about states lowering their testing standards.

I am not saying that I think that everybody should have advanced degrees in a scientific field. I don't even have that. What I mean is that people should understand some of the basic concepts of science. Things like the scientific method, which is how research is done, or words like hypothesis, theory, and law. People should know what is meant by the term "evolution". I find it pathetic that there are still people who honestly believe that the universe is 6,000 years old and that all animals were created in their present form. I find it appalling that these people want this taught in schools. According to a survey, 50% of Americans believe that the sun goes around the earth. 

All of these claims are not only absurd, but just plain wrong. The universe is 13.8 billion years old and the earth is 4.6 billion years. All of the current species that are living today evolved from earlier species. Also, 99.9% of all species that have ever lived are now extinct. Finally, unless Mars violates the laws of planetary motion, the earth revolves around the sun. There is a mountain of evidence to back up all of these things and it can be easily be access on the Internet. Many anti-science opponents will say that science can't be right because it's always changing.

Yes, science changes. As a matter of fact, not too long ago I mentioned the age of the universe as 13.7 billion years. Due to new evidence in the form of the cosmic background radiation analysis, scientists have revised the age of the universe by 100 million years. It's not that science changes, it gets revised with new and better information to make the knowledge that much more accurate. Science does not have all of the answers, but it seeks answers and throws out anything that doesn't fit the model. I hope this sheds some light on what scientific literacy is.

Instrumental in My Success

I have been tagged to choose this week's word in the illustrious Saturday Scavenger Hunt feature. I thought long and painfully for about four and a half seconds and came up with the word, INSTRUMENT. Why? You might ask. Well, I have an INSTRUMENT that I am now learning to play, but there is a little, tiny bit of a story to go with it.

This INSTRUMENT is a bass guitar. A four-string bass guitar. A Squier (by Fender) four-string bass guitar. (OK, I'm getting a bit remedial here). Here's the story:

Thanks to owning an iPad, I have an app called Garage Band, which is really, really cool. If you have an iPad (or other iOS device), I recommend it. It is well worth the $40 price tag. Well, I found myself fiddling around with the Smart Bass on the app and was really getting into it, when I decided to inquire about a bass that I knew existed. Evil-E's. He had acquired it a while back, but things came and it ended up sitting in a closet for many years. I, being a former roadie for a few bands, made the observation that INSTRUMENTS are meant to be played (even badly). So I took the guitar and amp home and paid my brother an agreed-upon price. So now I am learning that. It also pays to work with musically-oriented people.

So there you go, my take on INSTRUMENT. Now I am going to tag Tara for next week's word and bid you all a Happy Easter. May chocolate bunnies make their way to your baskets. Have a good weekend.

I QUIT! (5 Years Ago)

On this day back in 2008, I smoked my last cigarette. I had no idea at that time that it would be my last, but that's the way it worked out. That week, I was driving home from Indiana as a part of my job and I had been horribly congested and would cough up a lung every time I tried to smoke a cigarette. I decided that I would stop until I got better. I set my pack containing six cigarettes on the kitchen counter. A few days later I was feeling better and picked up the pack, opened it, began to pull one out and stopped.

"I had just successfully quit for four days. I think I'll go a week." And I did. Then I went two weeks. And then I threw out the partial pack and never looked back. That's not to say that I have never been tempted. I still get momentary cravings every now and then, but they pass and continue on with my life. The trick is not to give in.

If you're a smoker, I urge you to quit. If you know a smoker and would like them to quit, don't nag, don't bug, and don't pester. It will only push the smoker further into the habit. They have to be ready to quit. I was ready and I did it successfully without any major side effects. I did gain a bit of weight, but that is to be expected and it is still healthier than smoking.

Gone to the Dogs

This week, Laura B. hath chosen the word DOG to be our Saturday Scavenger Hunt word (and yes, I noticed your Pink Floyd referenced title). I am a little late, but on purpose, due to the Dark Side of the Moon 40th anniversary posts taking up the weekend. If you've never heard the classic Pink Floyd album cover-to-cover please, listen and post your reflections.

So DOG, is the word and DOG I must post.

This is my parents DOG, Pookie, lounging on the porch. He's getting on in years, but he still manages to be a little bit of a handful from time to time.

So that's my take on Laura B.'s word this week, and she has tagged me for the next word. I am going to choose...INSTRUMENT. Think on that for the rest of the week and see what you come up with. Have a nice day.

40 Years Ago

There is No Dark Side of the Moon, Really...

One of the most overlooked pieces on this album is the song between "Us and Them" and "Brain Damage". "Any Colour You Like" almost seems out of place, but it is a funky jazz piece that bridges the songs on either side. There is a lot going on within this song with effects, keyboards and the guitar. It is also the only song not associated with a spoken word track. I definitely recommend playing this one a few times to really get a feel for it.

If the album is a story, "Brain Damage" is the climax. The rest of the album has led up to this point. This is where we find out the overall theme, that the lunatic is our head. This song was, most likely, written with former Pink Floyd frontman, Syd Barrett, in mind. Because of excessive drug use and mental illness (possibly cause by the aforementioned drug use) Barrett had become a shell of his former self and showed up at the recording session for this album and displayed some peculiar behavior. And thus it brings us to the end of our story, our resolution.

The final song on the album, "Eclipse" delivers this line at the end, "And everything under the sun is tune, but the sun is eclipsed by the moon." I'm going to end it right there.

Oh, and to complete the title, "…as a matter of fact, it's all dark."

For Want of the Price of Tea and a Slice, the Old Man Died

For the most part, Dark Side of the Moon is pretty easy album to understand when it comes to the concept. The songs are pretty well laid out and the titles point to the theme. "Us and Them" is the exception to the rule. A friend of mine gave me the best possible explanation for the song, but the last verse (the title of this post) is still a mystery to me. 

(Link to the Pink Floyd Lyrics site for the song)

The song is easily about war. It could, more specifically, be about the Vietnam war. The first verse talks of the people involved, ordinary men who not choose to do this. The rest of the verse points to the politicians' war. The generals, as in all wars, sit in the back and send the soldiers in to die. The last lines of this verse are the first big clue that it's about Vietnam. The lines on the map moving side-to-side could refer to the 38th parallel which was constantly in dispute.

The first lines of the second verse are the next clue for Vietnam. Black and Blue were the colors of the opposing sides in the conflict and, therefore, difficult to tell apart. The Vietnam war was a roller coaster of minor victories and major defeats and seemed to just keep going and going without end. The battle of words has to do with the sentiments thrown back and forth back home. Recruiters were just about willing to take anyone to fight toward the end of the conflict.

(Not sure about the spoken word section)

The final verse could possibly refer to the treatment of the soldiers after they came back home. They were shunned and cast aside as pariahs. They lived poorly for the most part and people preferred to ignore them and go about their own business. The old man could refer to a soldier in general and tea and a slice is one of the cheapest things on a British menu.

So that's my take on this song. Overall, I love the song, the music, and everything about it. Richard Wright wrote the music originally for the movie, Zabriskie Point, but it was never used there. So it became "Us and Them".