Category: whatsnew

A Go Go

Artist: John Scofield
Listenability Scale: 65%
Released by: The Verve Music Group
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

John Scofield is a jazz guitarist and for this CD you pretty much get lots of songs that are musicians just jammin’ away mostly highlighting the variations John puts out, but also spotlighting the keyboard jammin’ talents of John Medeski. If you’ve read some of my previous reviews, you know I appreciate jazz talents but don’t spend the time to analyze the nuances and specifics of a jazz records, and because of that, pretty much I lump this CD into the “if you are a fan of jazz guitar, you might want to give this a listen” group. For me, lots of things sounded the same from song to song, but the keyboard transitions did mix it up. This one’s a nice background music CD for me, but I’m not going out of my way to play it. I’ll give it a 65% on the Entertainment Ave! listenability scale.

That’s it for this quick review! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Did You Get a Flu Shot Yet?

Over the weekend I got myself a flu shot. I won’t get started about how messed up the health industry is when the lady said that in order to submit getting the shot to my insurance that it was $50, but if we paid upfront it was only $20, so I’ll just get to the actual getting of the shot itself. For years, well, for 43 years, I had never gotten a flu shot. I guess I tend to go on the theory of trying not to keep my hands near my face, washing my hands a lot, and is it really good to put a dead virus inside my body on purpose, but last year during a routine visit to my doctor, she recommended getting the shot, that the flu was going to be bad, and that protection wasn’t a bad idea. Of course last year when I got the shot it turned out to be a pretty lame flu season, and they said the shot didn’t do much good anyway. Alas, this year they say the flu season sucks and that the shot actually works in keeping it at bay, so there I was, rolling up my sleeve and not passing out.

I’ll still be trying to wash my hands a lot, keep my hands aways from my face, and cross my fingers that the flu stays away, but in any case I plight: Did you get a flu shot yet?

That’s it for this plight! I’m The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

Do You Flash Your Lights to Signal Cars About a Speed Trap?

Where I live I have grown accustomed to the usual locations the police will use to set up a speed trap. I’m not that much of a lead-foot to begin with, in fact, on a trip years ago with a bunch of friends of mine, whenever a car would pass us up one of them would undoubtedly says something like “Grandma Moses just passed us up!” Today, though, while driving down the road, a car was coming at me flashing his lights. I suppose it was a nice reminder about a police officer parked up ahead in one of the normal speed-traps, but for me it was unnecessary and actually mostly annoying because the car in front of me decided that sure, he needed to slow down, but instead of going the prescribed 40 miles per hour he felt it necessary to drop down to 30, I suppose just in case the officer was looking to pull over someone for going the speed limit.

I know there were stories years ago about how flashing your lights could get you attacked by bad people, or that you can get pulled over by the police for flashing your lights (I guess this varies by state), but most people probably find it harmless, except for me who gets annoyed by the cars that now go slower than the posted speed limit. I have a time or two flashed my headlights at someone driving at night without their lights on, but I can say that’ I’ve never done it to signal a speed trap. As such I plight: Do you flash your lights to signal cars about a speed trap?

That’s it for this plight! I’m The Dude on the Right!!  L8R!!!

They’re All Gonna Laugh at You

Artist: Adam Sandler
Listenability Scale: 115%
Released by: Warner Bros. Records
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

It was around Thanksgiving, and the radio stations were playing “The Thanksgiving Song” from Adam Sandler’s “They’re All Gonna Laugh at You.” Alright, so the holiday is over, so I guess the timeliness of this review is over, but actually, the song I really liked hearing was “Lunchlady Land.” We’ll get to that soon enough.

As I’m listening I am really beginning to realize that Adam Sandler is one sick individual. Cool. Just looking at the 22 tracks on the CD and I think you can come up with that opinion for yourself. Let’s see, there’s tracks like “The Longest Pee,” “The Beating of a High School Janitor/Bus Driver/Science Teacher/Spanish Teacher,” “I’m So Wasted,” and “Teenage Love On The Phone.” All little comedy bits, sometimes pushing the limits on decency, Adam and all-star comical cast (the list ranges from Rob Schneider to David Spade to Tim Meadows to Conan O’Brien) recreate scenes hopefully not straight out of anyone’s home or school. But as sick as some of the skits get, they can sometimes be testimonials to the challenges and translations of one form of language to another, especially in listening to any of the Buffoon skits. Then of course, I hope your head is screwed on straight or you might be doing tailspins by the end of “Buddy” (I haven’t heard that much stereo separation since Queen or Pink Floyd).

But as much as Adam Sandler is about skits, he is as much about music and it can be funny, sick, happy, or sad, and Adam has a way of putting it all together. Let’s first take a look at “Food Innuendo Guy.” Here’s a nice rocker to the images drawn by melons, cucumbers, celery sticks, and different places they can end up. If you can’t figure this out, well, you either fit in the “parental advisory-explicit lyrics” category or have been sheltered all of your natural born life and since now that you have found the internet you are discovering an entirely new world. Listening on we get to “The Thanksgiving Song,” a tribute to the holiday in all of its forms. Adam keeps with rhyming through the entire song by eating turkey in a brown show, with Betty Grable, and Jimmy Walker saying “Dynomite.” It’s a simple little ditty with catchy little lines and is starting to become a holiday favorite.

And then there is “At A Medium Pace.” Here’s a gentle love song to woo any lady. Oh yea, put this one on as you’re making your moves on the couch and she is sure to be yours. Let’s just say that I think the use of the shampoo bottle may be just a tad much for your lady, but hey, you never know, she might just get into that. Let’s just say this keeps along with that “parental advisory” label.

Cruising to track 18 and I get to one of my favorite Adam Sandler songs, “Lunchlady Land.” Stirring images of every scary lady most of us have had the unfortunate chance to meet while standing in line for food at the cafeteria. Now, I know there are some nice Lunchladies out there, but I do think many of us have hit one of these ladies, perfectly described, by Adam Sandler, much less the food menu as so described. The song/story describes the rebellion by the lunch-time food against the lady, but how Sloppy Joe saves the day. The song is cute, and will have you singing “Sloppy Joe, slop, sloppy joe” all day long.

Finally, in the music category, there’s “My Little Chicken.” Let’s just say that I think there are pictures showing the love described here floating around the newsgroups somewhere.

All in all, Adam Sandler probably didn’t make too many fans of parents or lunchladies on this CD. But so what, some things need to be said and Mr. Sandler tries to find a way, any way, to say it.

Hmmmm? How to rate this CD. Song wise I hit the 80% mark on the listenability scale, and comic wise I hit a 53% for the skits (on a CD I think songs work a little better than skits – save those for the live shows). All in all, averaging it out, it’s a 60% on the listenability scale.

That’s it for this one, I’m The Dude on the Right! L8R!!!

Stan and Judy’s Kid

Artist: Adam Sandler
Listenability Scale: 15%
Released by: Warner Bros. Records
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

I’ve usually liked Adam Sandler. Whether it be his movies or his CD’s, Adam usually gets a laugh out of me, actually, usually, many laughs, and his characters are either stupid enough to laugh at, or I guess stupid enough to feel sorry for in a happy sort of way. Then I picked up “Stan and Judy’s Kid” and I now am not as big a fan of Sandlers as I used to be.

Like his other CD’s “Stan and Judy’s Kid” is a mix of skits and songs, but of the 17 tracks of material I only liked 2, both of them songs, although the ongoing “Cool Guy” skits did teach me a lesson.

Where to start on this CD? Well, I guess I’ll tell you what I liked and this won’t take long. First off there is “Chanukah Song Part II.” Although having heard it before, I always liked the Chanukah Song, in all of it’s versions, and sometimes it even makes me wish sometimes that I were a Jew rather than in the group of O.J., who’s still not a Jew. A new list of Jewish folks, the same melody, and I’m still singing along. And secondly, the other thing I liked on the CD was the song “She Comes Home to Me.” It’s a crooner song, kinda like Sinatra but with lyrics I doubt he’d touch with a ten foot pole. Let’s just say that the dude’s love is a highly paid whore who’ll “go down on a yack, lick a horse’s nut sack,” and I think that’s as far as I need to go about that song. I laughed my ass off for that one.

But then there is the rest of the CD. Most of it has Adam in a goofy voice, telling stories that aren’t really funny. For “Hot Water Burn Baby” Adam’s in his little kid voice with a story getting to how hot water burns a baby, with a twisted ending, “The Psychotic Legend of Uncle Donnie” has people getting killed with a boat propeller, and “Whitey” is a sixteen minute story of a dude in a mall. The ongoing skit for the CD is “Cool Guy,” done in five parts, basically with the moral of the story being you shouldn’t give your penis a name, such a tallywhacker, or at least don’t tell the girl you’re trying to score with it’s name. It will never work out.

I guess I was hoping for more from Adam Sandler. I know he can be funny, but sadly “Stan and Judy’s Kid” wasn’t. In the end I can only give the CD a 15% on the listenability scale. I tried to listen to it a couple of times but just kept hitting the fast forward button to get to “She Comes Home to Me” and “Chanukah Song Part II.” I’d say go and buy it for “She Comes Home to Me” alone, but I don’t think that one song is worth the fifteen bucks. Oh well.

That’s it for this one! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Stranger in this Town

Artist: Richie Sambora
Listenability Scale: 100%
Released by: UMG Recordings
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

One thing irked me a little the couple of times I saw Bon Jovi, and that was Jon would sometimes sing some of his solo hits, but we didn’t get any Richie Sambora solo material. Maybe Richie’s choice, maybe Jon’s, but in any case, “Stranger In This Town” is one of my favorite albums spotlighting both the songwriting and musicianship that is Richie Sambora. There seems to be some dissension in terms of the opening track “Rest in Peace,” but for me, it really sets up the CD nicely. You can hear some of the sound of Bon Jovi, but Richie adds a nice, bluesy feel to songs that are sometimes haunting, sometimes rocking, but for fans of great guitar, this should be added to your collection.

My favorite on the CD is “The Answer,” the closing track, but pretty much all of the songs hold their own. I liked the “listening instructions” for the CD: “Turn down the lights, Light a candle… Welcome…”, but I would have added one more instruction – “Turn the volume up a little…” because this one sounds great with volume turned up, maybe more than a little. This has been one of my favorite CD’s since I first heard it. 100% on the Entertainment Ave! listenability scale.

That’s it for this quick review! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Do You Own a Library Card?

I know this may sound crazy, but I don’t have a library card. Sure, I’m 45 years old, and I’m also wondering how many of you have one, but in a short plight, one of my goals this year is to actually get off my but, go to my local library, and get a library card. I know this might sound crazy, what in this day and age of iPads, Kindles, and Half Price Bookstores, but as I have started reading every now and then, I have also heard how libraries are now offering the ability to “borrow” eBooks, where, for a short period of time you get to “check out” an eBook, kinda like renting a book for your Kindle only it’s free, and then, after a few weeks, they automatically “return” your book to their “shelves” so that the next person can “borrow” the book.

It sounds like an interesting concept, I do wonder why, sometimes I actually buy a Kindle book when I pay good money for it and find out it kind of sucks (And don’t get me started on the “Try a sample” concept where at times I’ve done that only to find that the sample ends maybe one page into the actual book, leaving me to only read a lousy introduction and maybe see who the book was dedicated to.

So, we’ll see how this goal for 2013 goes, and right now when I answer my plight question the “No” box will be clicked, but I’m plighting: Do you own a library card?

That’s it for this plight! I’m The Dude on the Right!! L8R!!!

Moon, Not Banana

Artist: Cathy Richardson
Listenability Scale: 95%
Released by: Cash Rich Records
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

The first time I heard Cathy Richardson was on WLUP, a local radio station here in Chicago. I said to myself, “Self, she’s pretty good.” Then I went out and bought her CD, “Moon, not Banana.” It was her first CD, put out in 1993, and boy was I surprised. Not only was she good, but I had a new favorite artist.

I really kinda expected a garage-type band, not really polished, not really that good, but as the first song played, “Bad Example,” I was shocked and/or astounded. Not only was the sound professional, the lyrics were sharp, the band was solid, and I wondered why I haven’t heard her before. Another very talented artist who really hasn’t been noticed by the masses.

So, I decided to quit playing Doom, cracked open a cold one, turned my stereo up a few more notches, and listened some more.

What I heard was this mix of bluesy-rock. What the hell is bluesy-rock? Well, I don’t know either, it just kinda sounds good. I guess you could really say it’s kinda rock-and-roll, with a more blues edge. I also heard a mix of some solid up-beat songs, “Bad Example,” for example, some tender ballads, “Over the Miles,” for example, and fun little numbers, “Drink, Drink, Drink” for example.

Now, most of the songs were written by Cathy herself, with some collaboration by Jim Peterik, among others. I will say that sometimes the lyrics aren’t the deepest of things, like the line “I’m wanna drink ’til I puke, and I fall on my face, and let the big, fat bouncers drag me out of the place.” But hey, it’s catchy, and who says all things need to be serious. But, then again, there are the deeper lyrics, like on “Over the Miles,” a lovely little ballad which really should have been a hit. “And the wind becomes your whisper, and the sunlight sends your smile, over the miles.” It’s touching, the tune kinda makes you want to cry, well, at least us sensitive 90’s guys, and I really like it.

I give “Moon, not Banana” a 95% on the Entertainment Ave! listenability scale. I recommend it, yep, I do. And, for those of you outside of Chicago, you might have a hard time finding this CD, but if you like some fun rock-and-roll, a sad song or two, and just some great singing, pick up “Moon, not Banana.” It’s a great CD from my new favorite artist, Cathy Richardson. And if you can’t find it, e-mail me and I’ll get the information to you on how to get a hold of it.!!!

Fools on a Tandem

Artist: Cathy Richardson
Listenability Scale: 100%
Released by: Cash Rich Records
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

You know, I liked Cathy Richardson’s first CD, “Moon, not Banana,” so much, that I hopped in my car, drove as fast as possible to my local cheap CD place, and picked up her sophomore effort (at least I think it’s her sophomore effort – I’ve only seen two) “Fools on a Tandem.” I handed the nice cashier my money, then sped home past two cops, lost them at a stoplight, ran in my apartment, popped in the CD, opened a beer, and had a listen. I had a feeling it would be good, seeing as I loved her first CD so much. My hunch was correct.

Once again, my new favorite artist, Cathy Richardson, made me wonder why she’s not out there on your favorite station. She’s got the voice, she’s got the lyrics, she’s got the sound – she just doesn’t have a national recording contract to go with it.

This time around she basically enlisted the talents of the same folks as her first CD. A couple of collaboration songs with Jim Peterik, a couple with Grant Tye, and a pretty cool, talented band of mostly Cathy singin’ and acoustican’, Grant Tye electric guitarin’, Randy Riley bassin’, and Greg Marsh drummin’.

If you read my review of “Moon, not Banana,” you read how I described her sound. Well, on “Fools on a Tandem,” that’s kinda expanded to some Grateful Dead sounding influence, a little bit more on the reggae style, but she still sings with a blues/gospel voice that can blow the roof off.

The span of songs on this CD, again, range from some “make you cry” songs, some funny songs, even some “statement of society” songs. Yep, she has the love song of “You Might Belong With Me,” the worried about the future in “Crimes of Humanity,” a song that is the first time I have ever heard buffered analgesic put in lyrics, and a cute little song, recorded live, called “O Starry Night, Sorry Night” with the lines “but way up high in the hills without my birth control pills, my emotions got the better of me” and “I wouldn’t give it a chance, I’d put it back in its pants, after all it wasn’t all that exciting.”, if you can’t figure this song out, you had better get a clue.

Cathy seems a little more solid on this CD, and when there is nothing on the radio in my car, I pop in a copy of both “Fools on a Tandem” and “Moon, not Banana.” I know then that I’ll be listening to something cool. She’s great live (you can also read reviews of her shows at Gamekeepers and The Park West), and, I don’t know, I guess I think she deserves a lot more recognition. She, I think, can last for years instead of one album like so many bands these days.

And so, “Fools on a Tandem” gets a 100% on the Entertainment Ave! listenability scale from me. It’s great, especially if you’re looking for someone with cool lyrics, a good voice, and words you can understand. And, if you have problems finding it (especially outside of Chicago), just e-mail me and I’ll let you know how to get your copy.

Delusions of Grandeur

Artist: Cathy Richardson
Listenability Scale: 82%
Released by: Cash Rich Records
A Review by:
– The Dude on the Right

Upon my first listen to “Delusions of Grandeur,” the follow-up CD to Cathy Richardson’s Grammy nominated “Road to Bliss,” my first thoughts went along the lines of “Maybe I missed something, but I think I prefer my Cathy rockin’ a little bit more. This CD seems a little bit more melancholy, laid-back. I’m not really sure if I’m liking it.” So I listened to the CD again, paying a little more attention since I was stuck in the dude-mobile on my way to Ohio, but I was still kind of daydreaming. Then the song “Things Are Different” started, the bridge of the song hit, and I was snapped back into my liking most everything by Ms. Richardson, rockin’ or laid-back. I finished the song, bounced back to the first track, and paid a lot bit more attention, still stuck in the dude-mobile, somewhere in Indiana, and began to like the CD a little more and more with each listen.

So listening to “Delusions of Grandeur” a few more times, I have begun to recognize many gems of songs that I missed that first time through. Of course there is the song, “Things Are Different,” the song that snapped me back into Cathy Richardson reality. It’s a ballad-styled song, with a great line in the bridge – “Time erases faces, changes hearts and minds and dreams,” and is sort of reflective song at someone you remember from your past whom you’d like to show how your life is now, and how they might have fit into it. Another is “Overwhelmed,” a nice love song which kicks ass as the song wraps up. “I Don’t Want Anything” is a song that starts off slow, and at first had me patiently waiting for it to turn into a rocking number, but it didn’t, and you know what, after a few listens I didn’t care anymore, because the song worked perfectly into a section of the lyrics – “And I’m turning off my phone, ‘cuz when I sit here all alone I don’t want hear how many times you didn’t call.” Cathy did this one right because it ends up being a nice, bluesy, reflection at a busted relationship.

The other song infecting my head sort of confuses me a little, because I have absolutely no idea why you might be growing a garden in your closet. The song is called “Closet Cultivator” and it sort of tells the story of a next-door neighbor in an apartment complex who seems to grow a nice garden, in a closet no less. It’s got a slight reggae beat, which I think is also supposed to mean something, I just can’t wrap my lips and breath around it. The neighbor seems to know what to do with a good seed, and the person in the song, who seems to have writer’s block, seems to think that by visiting her neighbor emitting a fragrant aroma, it will help break the block. I think there is more to this song, I’ll just have to study the lyrics a little more, I think. Sadly, or maybe happily, me and my neighbors don’t share a common vent in our townhouse walls. Enough bad innuendo on my part, Cathy Richardson does a much better job with the innuendo in the song, and dammit, that bouncing beat is catchy.

But Cathy does do something else on this CD which I found just fantastic, and that is on the song “Two Questions.” She took two questions, formed into lyrics, simply “Why are you such a drag? And why do you fuck me up every time you come around here?” and by repeating them differently, made a full-length song out of those questions. And it so works.

Cathy Richardson, for “Delusions of Grandeur,” slips away from her rocker style and keeps things in a bluesy mode, almost gospelly at times, and seems to have gotten a jazz bug a little up her butt. I have to admit that I am not really a fan of jazz, which her song “The Sacred Relationship Between Humans & Plants” reminds me of, but I do understand where she is going with it, but I just didn’t like it.

A couple of listens in I realized that I’m really liking this new Cathy Richardson CD, even if the rockin’ isn’t there. And once again she has teamed with Bill Dolan to create some great CD packaging outside of your standard “jewel box” when you buy the CD. My only recommendation is don’t try to get the CD out of the packaging while you are driving, and I’m not talking about the shrink-wrap. Buy it, you’ll understand.

The CD comes packaged as a theatrical performance, with each song being a scene in a play on a grand stage. Explanations abound for each song, in the little playbill booklet included with the CD, the lyrics are there as well, and some of the songs make a little more sense with the stories that preface them. I have to admit that I didn’t pay that much attention to the stories (I’m sorry Cathy) in the booklet because I’m not a reader type of person.

Anyway, for this review, I’m going to kick the “Bonus Material” out of the equation, it’s five tracks of the same songs on the CD that have been re-done for language or editing purposes, and will ignore the first track, because it’s an “Overture” and I didn’t like it. With that I’m giving “Delusions of Grandeur” from Cathy Richardson an 82% on the Entertainment Ave! listenability scale. I’m not a fan of “A Fool’s Regret” and “The Sacred Relationship” song, so I’ll leave it at that. But the rest have grown on me like a fungus, and it’s a good fungus.

Though not being rockin’ as much, this CD will probably grow on you if you give it a couple of listens. Sometimes you need to do that. I did, and I’m glad.