.
Like
anyone else who blogs, we here at ‘Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends’ want to
enlarge our readership and want to feel that our efforts are being rewarded by
attention. (Although it’s just me - Stephen T. McCarthy - I say “we” only
because I suffer from a Multiple-Personality Disorder.)
The political
and spiritual stuffs hasn’t worked out well (still primarily only seven “In the
Choir” readers since May of 2008), so we are making a format change. (Hell, it
worked for radio station WKRP in Cincinnati!)
Future
posts will focus exclusively on music, primarily Jazz, Blues, “Classic” Rock,
and Country-Western (predominately “Outlaw” Country). The first ‘Ferret-Faced
Fascist Friends’ post featuring the new format was the last one, GIRL,
I CAN TELL (Or, “OUTLAW SENSITIVITY”), in which I introduced you to a good
but little-known Waylon Jennings song ‘Girl, I Can Tell (You’re Trying To Work
It Out)’ from his “Outlaw” Country album of the same name.
This
second installment is to teach you about the little-known late guitarist PAUL
KOSSOFF. Kossoff was ranked 51st in Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the
"100 Greatest
Guitarists of All Time". (Eric Clapton once asked Kossoff to teach him
some guitar technique.)
In April
1968, Kossoff and drummer Simon Kirke teamed up with Paul
Rodgers (vocals) and Andy Fraser (bass) to form the band FREE whose big hit
was ‘All Right Now’.
Rodgers
and Kirke later went on to form the band BAD COMPANY while Kossoff recorded
some solo material and then founded the band BACK STREET CRAWLER.
I first learned
about Paul Kossoff in 1977 from a Rock music magazine, then I purchased the
2-album compilation set ‘KOSS’ which included the following songs:
"The
Worm" - (Free)
"Songs
of Yesterday" (Free)
"Mr.
Big" - (Free)
"Time
Away" - (Paul Kossoff)
"Hole
in the Head"
"You
and Me"
"You've
Taken Hold of Me" - (Amazing Blondel)
"Molten
Gold" - (Back Street Crawler)
"Sidekick
to the Stars" (Back Street Crawler)
"Never
Take Me Alive" (Back Street Crawler)
"The
Band Plays On" - (Back Street Crawler)
"It's
a Long Way Down to the Top" - (Back Street Crawler)
"Train
Song" (Back Street Crawler)
"The
Hunter" - (Back Street Crawler)
"We
Won" (Back Street Crawler)
"Bird
Dog Blues" (Back Street Crawler)
Right
about now you’re probably asking yourself: “In what way
could the Rock band THE BABYS be tied-in to a blog installment about PAUL
KOSSOFF?”
Well,
I’ll answer that for ya...
When you
think of THE BABYS, you probably think first about their lead singer, JOHN
WAITE, whose 1984 solo hit ‘Missing You’ charted higher than the biggest BABYS
hits, ‘Isn’t It Time’ (1977) and ‘Every Time I Think Of You’ (1979).
But when
I think of THE BABYS, I think first about... THE BABYS. After that, I think
about their underrated drummer, Tony Brock, and then about their underrated
guitarist, Walt Stocker. Of the latter it has been written: “Stocker, a graduate of the Paul Kossoff school of
stun-vibrato guitar playing, was in demand ... He was considered for the guitar
slot in both UFO and Cockney Rebel.”
After Paul
Kossoff died from a drug-related illness, his band BACK STREET CRAWLER became
simply CRAWLER, with relatively unknown guitarist Geoff Whitehorn replacing
Kossoff. Whitehorn’s sound was remarkably like Kossoff’s.
.
.
Below is
the minor FM radio hit that CRAWLER scored sans Kossoff. It’s titled ‘STONE
COLD SOBER’. I loved it then (purchased the 1977 LP because of it), and I love
it now. If you don’t dig ‘STONE COLD SOBER’, chances are (to quote Johnny Mathis) you’re not going to dig the
blog ‘Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends’ in the future. So, dig it...
.
We hope
you enjoyed this blog post and will also enjoy future installments of
‘Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends’, which now focuses exclusively on music and UFO
sightings... Don’t forget that UFO was a “Classic” Rock band! (Although it’s
just me, I say “we” only because I suffer from a Multiple-Personality Disorder.
And at my age, I also suffer from Memory Loss.)
~ Stephen T. McCarthy
YE OLDE
COMMENT POLICY: All comments, pro and con, are welcome. However, ad hominem
attacks and disrespectful epithets will not be tolerated (read:
"posted"). After all, this isn’t Amazon.com,
so I don’t have to put up with that kind of bovine excrement.
.
Well, change is good as illustrated by the numerous songs that contain the word "CHANGE" in the title.
ReplyDelete'Times They Are A CHANGin' ~Bob Dylan (Not quite.)
'The CHANGEling' ~The Doors (Gettin' warmer)
'CHANGE of Fools' ~Aretha Franklin (Just doesn't sound right.)
Hmmm...
Time to CHANGE!~The Brady Bunch (Got one finally!)
I think that's digging a little deep, no?
A little help here, please?
SigToo
TWO SIG KNIGHT ~
DeleteOh, wow, man! That's back when TV was truly great!
Peter Brady had NO RHYTHM at all! Watch him shake that body... it's completely out of time most o' the song! The poor White darling.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
From your 4-part post...
Delete>There is no Waylon album titled ‘Girl, I Can Tell (You’re Trying To Work It Out)’.
I stopped verifying anything in your blog bits after I spent several minutes, a year or so ago, searching for suicide methods that involved an artichoke, chocolate syrup, and Korean War dog tags. I think you know what I'm referring to.
>The video featured two extremely intoxicated Russian dudes attempting to fight in a park.
I've seen those dudes years ago when the bars closed for the night in Kodiak AK, more than once. They were much younger then, though.
>After reading that “blog bit” and exploring its links, I had a case of ‘Monkeys-On-The-Brain’.
At least someone appreciates a little hidden holocaust monkey business. Although Dr. Mary's Monkey focuses on the death of Mary Sherman and the polio vaccine, it also sheds some light on the characters involved in the JFK assassination. Reminds me a little of that Chauncey Holt video, although more bizarre.
>And that made me think of the 1995 movie I watched for the first time last Saturday. It was ‘12 MONKEYS’ starring Bruce Willis and Brad Pitt.
What made you watch that? Scale of 1 to 10 on the STM movie meter? I think I really enjoyed that movie but I'm not sure if it was because it was good, or because I saw it in the late 90's when life was good.
Save "28 Days Later" for Halloween (another movie with monkeys...and zombies, or zombie-producing monkeys), but if you see Sandra Bullock in it you've got the wrong movie (28 Days). I've recommended that movie before and the same mistake happened more than once, and I had to hear the same response both times, "Dude, you made me sit through two hours of Sandra Bullock in re-hab?!?"
SigII
SigDos ~
DeleteHa!-Ha! The suicide method involving an artichoke, chocolate syrup, and Korean War dog tags... there's no way I would have ever remembered that if you hadn't mentioned it. Even now I don't recall WHERE - in which blog bit - I wrote that. I only recognize it as being "mine".
I'm pretty sure I was listening to the Tom Petty song 'The Criminal Kind' at the time I wrote that. There's a line in the song that goes, "Dog tags on the mirror, hangin' down from a chain". I made it a little more specific by adding "Korean War". (Does the Korean War make sense in the context of the post?) And I believe the "artichoke" and "chocolate syrup" were things I randomly added from the insanity of my own mind.
Do you know where I wrote that? Because I really don't. [*Pausing now to put the Tom Petty album 'Hard Promises' into the CD player.*]
I always enjoy reading your Monkey Musings. I dig the Pop Culture references even when I don't understand the stock market terminology.
I'm glad you commented here because I was very much intrigued by that book you linked to. You know we have that 'JFK' interest in common. How strongly would you recommend I read that book? And how strongly do you feel it portrayed truth ("truth" always being a relative term when applied to the JFK murder mystery).
I'm not sure what made me get '12 MONKEYS' except that I must have seen it recommended several times, and at least once by someone whose taste I trust. (Actually, I thought perhaps YOU had mentioned it on your blog at some point.)
Our next movie, already here at the house and waiting for this weekend, is 'THE NUMBER KIRK GIBSON'. Er... I mean, 'THE NUMBER 23', which I know for a fact YOU mentioned to me in a comment. I had never heard of that movie before.
Overall, I enjoyed '12 MONKEYS'. Like the 'Back To The Future' trilogy, it made me think and made me pause the movie a couple times to ponder the time-travel implications as presented in the story. (Wait! That wouldn't happen if you traveled back in time! ...Or would it? Yeah, maybe it would. OK, back to the movie...) Any movie that MAKES me think automatically scores some extra points.
There were a few things about '12 MONKEYS' that I questioned, however, or simply poo-pooed. The story was nowhere near flawless. (For one thing, I was certain that later in the story we would be presented with some surprising plot twist related to the 1996 insane asylum that Willis was in. It looked like an 1886 insane asylum - filthy, paint peeling, A-list wackos wandering everywhere. By comparison, the 1976 nuthouse in '...Cuckoo's Nest' looked like the Paris Hilton.)
Also, Brad Pitt's acting ability surprised me considerably. Unfortunately though, he should have dialed down his over-the-top performance by at least a third, if not half, and it would have been much more believable and effective. I didn't know Pitt could "let go" like that, but he turned the character into a cartoon in the process.
On a scale of one to ten (with '...Cuckoo's Nest' turned "up to eleven") I'd say '12 MONKEYS' was a seven. I normally do letter grading, however, and I'd give it a solid B+. I liked it quite a bit, despite some serious flaws.
I'm decidedly NOT a zombie fan (unless it's Ed Wood's 'PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE'), but I definitely like zombies better than I like Sandra Bullock.
~ Stephen
'Loyal American Monkey Fan'
>Even now I don't recall WHERE - in which blog bit - I wrote that. I only recognize it as being "mine".
DeleteHere it is... http://xtremelyun-pcandunrepentant.blogspot.com/2012/09/how-im-getting-over-hell-that-is-2012.html
Check in the comment section. Now, after reading that post, tell me a comment like that might not freak "someone" out a little.
>How strongly would you recommend I read that book? And how strongly do you feel it portrayed truth ("truth" always being a relative term when applied to the JFK murder mystery).
"Dr. Mary's Monkey" is a strange tale. Haslam, the author, seemed to live his life right in the middle of this story, since childhood. He provides plenty of good references and recounts his own research regarding police reports and a possible location for laboratories in the New Orleans area, and offers his own version of events based on his findings.
In addition to the murder of Mary Sherman, there's this interaction between people including Oswald, who may have had a hand in the assassination, that weaves in and out of the main story. I think it is worth a read since it could bolster the JFK theories that you are familiar with to some degree; kind of a view from the back door.
The book is a quick read. I also found this Haslam interview on Alex Jones, if you haven't seen it already.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmXRXrh8BHQ Too lazy to do the linky thing.
>Our next movie, already here at the house and waiting for this weekend, is 'THE NUMBER KIRK GIBSON'. Er... I mean, 'THE NUMBER 23',...
Good ole number 23, Gibson not the movie. It's difficult for me to watch Jim Carrey in a serious role. I'm always expecting a punch line and he doesn't deliver one in this movie; sort of like watching Will Smith in "Seven Pounds" or "I Am Legend", another zombie movie.
"The Number 23" will probably seem predictable to you. It did make me think of how the human mind focuses on things and creates patterns where none may exist. I could empathize with Carrey's character in a way. I still add the numbers of my plane flights, do a double take when the clock says 9:11 or if the numbers on the clock add up to 13, and a few other weird things which I could write a book about. I had minor OCD issues when I was a kid, nothing debilitating like some people, but OCD nonetheless. No one knew about it except me. Never knew what is was or got a (almost) total grip on it until I read Howard Stern's first book. Go figure, literally!
>I'm decidedly NOT a zombie fan (unless it's Ed Wood's 'PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE'), but I definitely like zombies better than I like Sandra Bullock.
I feel the same way although I segregate my zombies into three categories, fast zombies, slow zombies...and Sandra Bullock. Movies with fast zombies are the only ones that I watch ("I Am Legend" and "28 Days Later"). 28 Days Later is my favorite of the two. It was filmed in the UK with a cast of unknowns. Once in a while Danny Boyle, as director, gets it right. Saw it in the theater and remember seeing some people walk out during the first scene with the monkeys in the cages. They should have stuck around.
Keep in mind that I do respect the slow zombies; they have a way of cornering their victims.
SigTwoplus2+2+2+2+2+1 err,umm... plus one...still can't do it.
Part 1:
DeleteROCKY RACCOON II ~
Thanks for sending me back to that old blog bit. By the way, things haven't gotten much better since then. I did, however, stop reading The Bible and stop listening to Gospel music, and that has helped some (i.e., "Since I gave up hope... I feel much better.")
I gotta say, considering how depressed I was, I was fairly upbeat. (That first time where I wrote "Thank you, Jesus" just made me laugh out loud. It's a terrible thing when a person laughs at their own jokes!)
You're not telling me that for even one slice of a second you actually believed I had killed myself and my Brother left a comment about it, are you? Suicide by means of a raw artichoke, Hershey's chocolate syrup, and Korean War dog tags?!?!?!
I don’t know, but I think only in prison could a dude die by RAHCSKWDT.
>>... The book is a quick read. I also found this Haslam interview on Alex Jones, if you haven't seen it already.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmXRXrh8BHQ
I may have to read that "Monkey" book. I'll decide after watching that Alex Jones interview with the author. (But at 49 minutes, I won't get to THAT until sometime this weekend.) Thanks for pointing me there, Brotherman!
>>... It's difficult for me to watch Jim Carrey in a serious role.
I liked the one (can't remember the title at this moment) where his life was being filmed unbeknownst to him (the ULTIMATE Reality Show).
What about 'Cable Guy'? Would you call that a "serious role"? That's a hard call, ain't it?
That was a weird movie. (The ULTIMATE satire? 'Black Comedy' fo' sho.) I can perfectly understand why most people would dislike that movie, but I liked it quite a bit. In fact, it would rate pretty high on my personal list of 'Best Jim Carrey Movies'. Something about that character he played makes me think of my ol' buddy Kelly "Andy" Anderson.
>>... Will Smith in "Seven Pounds" or "I Am Legend", another zombie movie.
Ooh, I do NOT like Will Smith. Will Smith reminds me of something Bob Dylan said once in an interview. Dylan said that he had slipped in the door when no one was looking, and once he was in, it was too late for "them" to get him out again.
The only difference is, Dylan had incredible talent. I think of Will Smith as one of those essentially talentless characters (like Oprah Winfrey, Clint Eastwood, and Bono from U2) who somehow slipped in the door when no one was looking.
Continued Below...
Part 2:
Delete>>... "The Number 23"... It did make me think of how the human mind focuses on things and creates patterns where none may exist. ... I could empathize with Carrey's character in a way. ... I had minor OCD issues when I was a kid, nothing debilitating like some people, but OCD nonetheless.
Hmmm... There's undoubtedly a great discussion hiding in this subject. For the "Someday" file, maybe? But I'll just keep this brief...
I have a mild case of it also. Therefore, I prefer to think (and sometimes I really DO think) it's a sign of "creative genius". How sure are you that it's not the OPPOSITE that's true? Not that the mind "creates patterns where none may exist", but that some minds pick up on patterns that DO exist, which some minds cannot perceive?
The clock thing... It hasn't happened to me for awhile. (Why not? If it's just my own mind deciding WHEN to focus on it, shouldn't the perceived patterns be ongoing?) But when it was happening (a couple years ago), I would wake up and look at the clock. The time never had any obvious meaning (like 9:11 or :13) but MORE times than NOT, it would display an obvious pattern. I was getting 4:44 a lot, also 3:33, or something like 2:34 or 3:45 or 6:66. (OK, I may have exaggerated that last one by 7 minutes.)
I suspect that may have been related to THIS: When I was a boy, say, 10 years old or so, and when I was going to bed, I’d tell myself what time I would wake up. I don’t mean general times like “Around 8:00 AM.” I mean very PRECISE times, like “7:59” or “8:12” or “9:17”. I have no idea HOW I knew I could do that, but I seemed to have some unconscious KNOWING about it.
It worked every time. I’d wake up, look at the clock and it would be “7:59” or “8:12”, whatever specific time I had stated the night before.
There were, however, occasions when I woke up but “something” - some inner KNOWING - told me not to look at the clock. So I’d just lie there in bed with my eyes closed until I suddenly got this “feeling” that I should look at the clock. I’d open my eyes, turn my head and look. It was always the time I had specified before going to sleep.
After awhile I stopped doing it. Not because it stopped working, but because it ALWAYS worked and so there was no challenge in it anymore.
>>… I segregate my zombies into three categories, fast zombies, slow zombies...and Sandra Bullock.
Ha!-Ha! I segregate my zombies into just two categories: zombies that make me laugh, and zombies that don’t. I don’t like the latter category (which includes Sandra Bullock).
~ Stephen
‘Loyal American 4:44 A.M. Waker Upper At’
New format, eh? I’ll have to think on that.
ReplyDeleteI have to admit, don’t know ‘Crawler’, ‘Back Street Crawler’ or Paul Kossoff, BUT I did like ‘Stone Cold Sober’ – I’ll get on that train.
It reminded me enough of another band that I went over to YouTube to listen to ‘John Barleycorn Must Die”. Ha, I guess I'm gonna get educated.
Ahh, FAE, I got you researchin' what you missed, eh? Good, good.
DeleteOK, here are some of my favorite TRAFFIC tunes:
Heaven Is In Your Mind
Dear Mr. Fantasy
Feelin' Alright
(the original; later a hit for Joe Cocker.)
40,000 Headmen
(weird song - never understood it, but always dug it)
Medicated Goo
Shanghai Noodle Factory
Low Spark Of High-Heeled Boys
(first Traffic song I ever heard and it hooked me on 'em)
Rock And Roll Stew
(probably my favorite Traffic tune!)
Light Up Or Leave Me Alone
(probably my #2 Traffic tune)
Sometimes I Feel So Uninspired
(but ain't dat da twoof?)
See if ya like any of those, eh, FAE?
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
Fear not, GENTLE READERS!...
ReplyDeleteEGBOK ("Everything's Gonna Be OK").
There were multiple clues in this very "blog post" or "blog installment" to indicate that the report of my blog's death was an exaggeration. Ipso fatso (to quote Archie Bunker), 'Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends' is not in Dire Straits and is not going down like a Led Zeppelin.
Stay tuned - same Bat Time, same Bat Channel - for an important upcoming "DEAD DRUNK" Announcement. "And tell them you heard it here first on Roller Derby!"
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
Going head to head with my blog, huh?
ReplyDeleteHave we ever talked about Kossoff? Of course I have all his stuuf (and the post-PK stuff as well) but do not remember he or BSC ever coming up.
LC
We MUST have discussed KOSSOFF at some point, although I don't specifically recall it. But the reason I'm sure we must have is because I distinctly recall saying that I thought you should try to get the CRAWLER album because of the track 'STONE COLD SOBER'.
DeleteAnd I can't believe we would have been discussing CRAWLER without also discussing BACK STREET CRAWLER. And I can't believe we would have discussed BACK STREET CRAWLER without the name Paul Kossoff being mentioned.
By following that logic, I think we discussed Kossoff.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
The Babys? Head First, California, You (Got It), White Lightning, I Was One... good memories... I think a girl threw up on me to Love Don't Prove I'm Right...
ReplyDeleteCWM ~
DeleteThe third and last Babys album I ever bought. Somehow I kind of lost interest in them at that point. (As I recall, the only song I really liked on that set was 'White Lightning'.)
But I still have their first two albums (on CD) and like them both.
Yeah, that sounds like a really good memory. Did her puking on you prove she was right?
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
Part 1:
ReplyDeleteTo All My Readers:
ANATOMY OF A “BLOG BIT”
Not only do I like to think, but sometimes I even like to think about thinking.
What I mean is this: Occasionally, after a protracted conversation with a friend, where we begin by talking about “A” and 15 or 20 minutes later, conclude our conversation talking about “Z”, I will replay the conversation in my mind, attempting to discern how we got to “Z” from “A” in 15 or 20 minutes.
EVERYTHING is a process, and once in awhile I enjoy trying to decipher the process.
Well, as is evident, last night I posted this blog bit titled “STONE COLD SOBER” ANNOUNCEMENT: ‘FERRET-FACED FASCIST FRIENDS’ DROPS POLITICS AND SPIRITUALITY; NOW EXCLUSIVELY MUSIC-FOCUSED.
From ‘Word One’ this post was B.S. The only parts that weren’t B.S. were everything pertaining to Paul Kossoff, Eric Clapton, Free, Bad Company, The Babys, Tony Brock, UFO, Cockney Rebel, Walt Stocker, John Waite, Back Street Crawler, Crawler, and the song ‘Stone Cold Sober’. All the rest of it was B.S.
In other words, the B.S. part was that part about the ‘Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends’ blog changing its format. As long as I’m still operating this blog, it will address politics, spirituality, and the occasional product review.
I was just playing a little prank with this installment. Last night, while I was composing this post, I could not have consciously explained WHY I was writing what I was. I only knew that somehow I had been inspired to conceive this in my mind, or somehow a creative spark had compelled me to compose and post what I did. I was really just having a spot o’ fun, I wuz.
Continued Below...
Part 2:
ReplyDeleteEven while working on the text last night, I was deliberately making false statements about this blog’s future focus, knowing that I would soon set the record straight. I even made it a point to include a few details that I could point to later which would PROVE that I was only joshing; proving that I never really intended to take this blog in a new direction. I put in writing “evidence” proving that I wasn’t just being “wishy-washy” when I would (later) “change my mind” here.
What evidence did I include? Three things. Everyone who regularly reads this blog knows that I routinely refer to individual posts or installments as “blog bits”. So I deliberately refrained from EVER using the term “blog bit”, and referred to this piece multiple times as a “blog post” and a “blog installment”.
Second, I referred to the blog bit immediately before this one in which I posted a Waylon Jennings song. I wrote the following: “I introduced you to a good but little-known Waylon Jennings song ‘Girl, I Can Tell (You’re Trying To Work It Out)’ from his “Outlaw” Country album of the same name.”
Well, as that earlier blog bit clearly states, that song comes from the Waylon album titled ‘I’ve Always Been Crazy’. There is no Waylon album titled ‘Girl, I Can Tell (You’re Trying To Work It Out)’.
And finally, I began this “blog bit” with 4 words that were a dead giveaway to its false nature. I wrote: “STONE COLD SOBER” ANNOUNCEMENT:...
When did any of you ever know me to do ANYTHING “stone cold sober”?! HUH-LOooooooo! How could you take ANYTHING I did “stone cold sober” seriously?! Did you not know that I would sleep the sobriety off and... er... I mean, did you not know I would DRINK the sobriety off, and when I returned to my usual Pleasantly Laminated, Comfortably Numb condition, retract everything I had written and return to a state of ‘Situation Normal’? ‘Politics and Spirituality’, as always?
Do you not recognize me, Pinball Wizards? Who is the blind one, Grasshoppers?
Anyway, while showering this morning in preparation for going to work, I decided to replay in my mind last night’s activities and thoughts, to see if I could determine WHY I wrote this Phony Post O’ B.S.
It didn’t take me long to retrace my activities and mental processes and come to a full realization of what inspired THIS “blog bit”. If you’re at all interested, below is an account of what I did and thought last night, after getting home from work, which resulted in the “blog bit” you see above:
Continued Below...
Part 3:
DeleteAfter getting home from work, I did my customary workout (gotta keep the 53-year-old body as softly sharp as the 53-year-old softly sharp mind), and then I sat down to check my blog comments and the recent posts of my blogging buddies.
The first blog I visited was ‘Red Shoe’s Chronicles’, where I read his humorous post ‘YOGA BEAR IS SMARTER THAN...’.
Other than making me laugh and making my softly sharp 53-year-old mind horny, that post reminded me of a YouTube video I had seen 2 or 3 years ago. The video featured two extremely intoxicated Russian dudes attempting to fight in a park. The problem was that these two would-be pugilists were so drunk that they were on the verge of passing out. Fighting each other? FUHGEDDABOUDIT!
As a man who studies The Bible and believes strongly in Christ Yeshua, I know I have no business laughing at these two unfortunate Russian souls. But – damn me! – I can’t help it, because that video is one of the most hysterically funny things I have ever seen!
So after reading the Red Shoe’s “blog bit”, I went to YouTube and began searching for that video. I finally found it. If you so desire, you can watch it HERE.
Continued Below...
Part 4:
DeleteAfter watching that video a couple of times and laughing out loud uproariously, my mind reached back into its past and recalled a great but little-known “Classic” Rock song I have loved since 1977. It’s by a band called CRAWLER. The song? ‘STONE COLD SOBER’. In other words – “stone cold sober” - the 180-degree opposite of what I had just seen in that YouTube video featuring two ridiculously Laminated would-be Russian pugilists.
After thinking about the truly great little gem ‘Stone Cold Sober’ by the Paul Kossoff-free band Crawler, I returned to my Blogspot Dashboard.
Then I noticed that a very clever, good blogging buddy of mine had posted on his blog ‘Monkey Throw Dart’ a new “blog bit” titled ‘BIOTECH CURE FOR THE COMMON CURE’. I went there and read it, and you can do that too by clicking HERE.
After reading that “blog bit” and exploring its links, I had a case of ‘Monkeys-On-The-Brain’. And that made me think of the 1995 movie I watched for the first time last Saturday. It was ‘12 MONKEYS’ starring Bruce Willis and Brad Pitt. Willis is a time-traveler going back to 1996 from 2035. His female psychiatrist in 1996 thinks he is insane.
At one point they are listening to a radio broadcast about a little boy in California who has fallen into a well and First Responders are trying to save him. Willis says he remembers that incident from his own 1996 childhood and tells his psychiatrist that the little boy isn’t really in the well at all, but is simply playing a prank. The little boy is actually hiding in the nearby barn, according to Willis.
Later, of course, it turns out that Willis had called it EXACTLY right. And it is at THAT point that his psychiatrist begins to believe that he really IS a time-traveler, and that he isn’t insane at all.
Well, after reading the “blog bit” at ‘MONKEY THROW DART’ and encountering all the references to monkeys, and then thinking about that plot point in the movie I’d just seen two days earlier, ‘12 MONKEYS’, I “mysteriously” got the idea to return to my own blog and play a prank on my readers. I decided to post the CRAWLER song I love, ‘STONE COLD SOBER’, and make a prank of it, telling my few readers that ‘Ferret-Faced Fascist Friends’ was now EXCLUSIVELY a “music-focused” blog.
I used the coincidental fact that my previously most recent post on this blog also featured a song (the Waylon Jennings song ‘GIRL, I CAN TELL’) as a way of reenforcing the idea that this was now solely a music blog.
Retracing my mental steps to this B.S. blog bit was fun for me. I hope it was also fun for all y’all.
Please keep reading, my ‘Magnificent Seven’, because F-FFF ain’t abandoned its bread ‘n’ butter yet. Next “BLOG BIT”? PURELY POLITICS!
~ D-FensDogg
‘Loyal American Underground’
LMBO!!!! Thank you, ~ D-FensDogg for the heads up!! That video of the fighting drunk Russians is hilarious!!!
DeleteI've got a meeting I have to run to, but I've GOT to come back and re-re-read this post!!! This is great!!! Back in the day, Paul Kossoff was the shiznits!!!! As was Waylon Jennings!!!
I will be back later!!! Take care!!!
~shoes~
SHOES ~
DeleteThanks! And I'm pleased you enjoyed the video (after reading your last post, I KNEW you would). Truly one of the very funniest things I've ever seen!
Yeah, I dug Kossoff. He had a really cool style and sound. As I got a little older, I learned to appreciate some of the guys who were going after a certain sound and atmosphere rather than just trying to see how many meaningless notes they could run up against each other in fretboard flurries.
Kossoff and Gilmour (from 'Floyd') were two blokes who were able to create interesting sonic moods.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
Hi there again, ~D-FensDogg...
ReplyDeleteI LOVED Free back in the day... Paul Rodgers and Paul Kossoff..
Waylon Jennings, I think, was another great musician. He is forever etched into the memory of 'The Day The Music Died' when he was bumped of the airplane that included Richie Valens and Buddy Holly... and he made the comment to Buddy Holly that he hoped the plane crashed. Of course that was in jest, but Jennings said he never forgave himself for that comment.
We all know Life is Hell, though...
~shoes~
SHOES ~
DeleteYou definitely have good taste in tunes. But then being a musician yourself, I'm not surprised.
Waylon is one of my very "most-est", all-time favorites, and easily #1 on my 'Country-Western' list. I got to see four of his live performances in the late '80s / early '90s, and his were the best concerts I ever attended. And I went to A LOT of concerts back in the day.
Waylon was just so funny and so charismatic - even dressed in "outlaw" black.
Thanks for visiting, R.S.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
You got to see Waylon? God, I am jealous!!!
ReplyDeleteHe DID have that edge!!! He was just so cool, many people couldn't grasp it!!
Have a great day!! Off to work!!
~shoes~
I own a few DVDs that include Waylon performances, but not one of them comes close to the nature of the performances I got to see in person.
DeleteNot sure if they cut all his monologues out from between songs, or if that's just something he added to his shows in later years, but Waylon told some really hilarious stories at times between the songs.
I saw four shows and never heard him repeat a story. The ONLY thing he repeated (and he said it in EVERY SINGLE SHOW) was the fact that he strongly disliked the song 'LUCKENBACH, TEXAS (Back To The Basics Of Love). He always said he was going to play it only because we'd be mad at him if he didn't.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
Man, I wish I had commented earlier. I read this, but didn't have time to comment, and now you spilled the beans. Anyways, I didn't pick up on everything, but I DID notice that you put "Stone Cold Sober Announcement" as the heading before you mentioned dropping politics and spirituality. I was going to ask if this was a joke since it might have just been mentioned while you were (temporarily) sober.
ReplyDeleteNow I'm late to the party AND I look like a phony. Psssh. Pass the beer.
So I know I'm quite the old soul, but I'll admit that all of this is new territory - Paul Kossoff, Free, Back Street Crawler, The Babys, it's all new to me. I DO however, remember John Waite, but only from Bad English. So... at least there's that.
Really, though, I'm digging Stone Cold Sober, and as I've been typing this up, I've been cycling through random songs from Free, and Back Street Crawler, and the Babys on Youtube, and down right enjoying it. Free especially. Always nice to add some new music to my collection, especially if it's not really all that "new."
Now if you'll excuse me, the wife's been gone for a week, it's boring as hell around here, and we're going to go have a cold one. And I say "we" because Brandon and I are actually Siamese twins that have done a great job of hiding the another in pictures where we're "alone."
BROTHER B. B. BRYAN ~
Delete"Love is never having to say you're sorry." (And I thank God you never used the word "sorry". Old Soul, do you know where that horrible line comes from?)
>>... Psssh. Pass the beer.
Sierra Nevada 'RUTHLESS RYE'. The beer: so-so; the label: #1.
Brother, I know you posted a new blog bit today and I STILL haven't gotten there yet, because I've been kinda busy too. (Don'tcha hate it when that happens?) I probably won't even get there until tomorrow night, because I promised my Blogging Buddyette Robin (of 'Your Daily Dose') a couple comments tonight, and the time is closing fast (for a working stiff like me).
A "Q:" I've been meaning to ask U... When you say "Old Soul", which you have on a few occasions, what do you mean by that? (Have I already asked this before?) You mean a young person who digs a lot of older stuffs, right?
You may have already encountered these by now, but let me recommend a few Paul Kossoff tunes I especially liked:
"Mr. Big" - (Free)
"It's a Long Way Down to the Top" - (Back Street Crawler)
"The Hunter" - (Back Street Crawler)
Of course, the best Paul Kossoff song (that Paul Kossoff never played on) was 'STONE COLD SOBER'.
For THE BABYS:
"Looking For Love" - (Perfect amount of cow bell!)
"Rodeo"
"Read My Stars" - (Circa 1978, I saw them perform at either The Whisky-A-Go-Go or The Roxy, on Sunset Boulevard. Best guess: The Whisky. I kept yelling out for "Read My Stars" but those babys wouldn't play it.)
"Dying Man" - (Takes me back in time to a Redondo Beach parking lot, where Brandon and I... er, I mean... where Eric and I were drinking SoCo and Coke; getting Comfortably Numb and mentally preparing to pick up girls on the pier. ...OK, the best LAID PLANS of mice and men, eh?)
"Isn't It Time" - (The hit song that sold me on the band with the all-time worst name.)
"Give Me Your Love" - (Terrific drum sound. My favorite Babys song. Tony Brock is one of the most underrated drummers in Rock 'N' Roll.)
Hope that helps, Old Soul (Beer) Brother.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Rock 'N' Roller'
BROTHER B. B. BRYAN ~
Delete"Love is never having to say you're sorry." (And I thank God you never used the word "sorry". Old Soul, do you know where that horrible line comes from?)
Doesn't that come from an equally terrible movie with Ryan O'Neal? I just remember some woman saying that to him while cheezy music played.
Sierra Nevada 'RUTHLESS RYE'. The beer: so-so; the label: #1.
Funny story. They don't really sell a lot of Sierra Nevada here (...in Colorado, one of the beer capitals of the U.S., the same place I can get authentic Polish beer than no one outside of Poland's ever heard of). In fact, I never knew Sierra Nevada even made more than just their regular Pale Ale until I read about it online a couple of years ago. So needless to say, I've never heard of Ruthless Rye, and I can guarantee you it's not sold anywhere around here. Not that I've seen, anyway. Don't ask me why. Maybe because it's just so-so? (I remember trying the regular Pale Ale once upon a time ago and not being terribly impressed)
Also, I'm glad you didn't say sorry either. It's no sweat if you can't read a post right away. That's one of the things I always hated about the blog reading and commenting "game." People get so butthurt if you can't read their post "live as it airs." I mean, people post on any given day, Monday-Sunday. You can't really expect someone to drop what they're doing and read blogs/comment on blogs every single day of the week. It's just not possible. I'm not even a "working stiff" and I don't always have time to read blogs, which is why I read but didn't get a chance to comment on your blog until last night. And I actually LIKE your blog.
When you say "Old Soul", which you have on a few occasions, what do you mean by that? (Have I already asked this before?) You mean a young person who digs a lot of older stuffs, right?
You have not asked this, and I guess what I mean is that I know (and like) a lot of stuff that was well before my time. And hey, even in the age of the Internet (and the fact they were still alive in our generation), you'd be surprised how many folks my age have never even heard of someone like Warren Zevon or Waylon Jennings, much less listen to and appreciate their work.
"Isn't It Time" - (The hit song that sold me on the band with the all-time worst name.)
Brother, you aren't kidding. It sounds kind of ridiculous telling someone, "Yeah, I'm just listening to the Babys," if they haven't heard of them. It feels like I'm telling them I've lost my marbles and I'm listening to some watered-down pop group for kids like "The Wiggles."
(THESE GUYS, in case you're not familiar - they make music for little kids)
In the meanwhile I'm listening to the rest of those songs you've recommended, and as usual, you have not led me astray. Good stuffs, Beer Brother. Good stuffs indeed.
We'll see you over on our side of the blogosphere whenever you get there.
OLD SOUL BROTHER ~
DeleteYeah, that line came from a movie called 'LOVE STORY'. It was probably one of the very first extremely popular "Chick Flicks". O'Neal and McGraw. (Probably should have been titled 'Irish Love Story'.
Do you have Total Wine & More stores there? If so, pick up their FREE 'Total Guide To Beer'. It contains a lot of good info. I have some respect for Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. because, as that beer guide mentions, it was one of the first major craft beer brewers in the country.
At one time, I actually liked Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, and it was Brother Nappy's #1 favorite beer and pretty much the only one he drank.
Since those years, however, the Craft Beer explosion has been astounding and Sierra Nevada has been considerably outclassed by other companies - mostly in the Western states, in my opinion. Oregon, California, and Colorado are producing some crazy good suds now. Arizona is growing too, but so far there are only two brews here that I think are exceptional: 'HOP KNOT' by Four Peaks, and 'PONDEROSA I.P.A.' by Prescott Brewing Co.
My favorite Sierra Nevada offering is probably 'Summerfest'. It's a light mowing-the-lawn beer that has a unique aftertaste, to me. 'Ruthless Rye' is OK. I found their 'Hoptimum' to be darn near undrinkable. I'd say I'm something of a "Hop Head", but THAT beer was ridiculous. No balance at all; like chewing on raw hops or something.
>>... I can get authentic Polish beer that no one outside of Poland's ever heard of.
I had one a few days back called 'Zywiec'. Didn't really care for it much though. Seemed like a slightly upgraded American mass-produced beer. (What I like about Total Wine & More is their huge selection of brews that you can buy as single bottles. I've sampled quite a few that way - many from Colorado - which I'd have never tried if I was required to take my chances on a whole six-pack.)
>>... I guess what I mean is that I know (and like) a lot of stuff that was well before my time.
I remember some time ago when I posted a video or two of Louie Prima and Keely Smith. I was surprised that you said you enjoyed it. I didn't know you so well back then and wondered whether or not you meant what you said, or were just trying to say something "nice". Now I have full confidence in you and in what you write.
Despite being Unmarried Without Children, I did know about "The Wiggles". (I'm a "Young Soul". :-)
>>... In the meanwhile I'm listening to the rest of those songs you've recommended, and as usual, you have not led me astray. Good stuffs, Beer Brother. Good stuffs indeed.
Glad to hear it. Music is so subjective, but I do know good musicians when I hear 'em. (And oddly, for all the "Classic" Rock I was raised on, Jazz is actually my favorite musical genre.)
I suggest drinking SoCo and Coke when listening to The Babys' 'Dying Man' (which is playing as I type these words). And do that in a Redondo Beach parking lot within stumbling distance of the Redondo Pier, if at all possible.
>>... We'll see you over on our side of the blogosphere whenever you get there.
Can one sail that far without falling off the edge of the horizon?
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Sailing Man'
Like Beer Boy, I am late(r) to the party, and will appear even phonier than he did (call me "Near-Beer Six") when I say I didn't believe your claim of blogging only about light stuff.
ReplyDeleteAs I read the blog I thought: "this is the biggest crock of horse-puckey I've read in quite some time!" I know you well enough to know that you'd STOP BLOGGING before changing content like that. You have given your reason for blogging about a thousand times... and it ISN'T to yak about music, as enjoyable as that is.
The blog bit was incrediBULL!
I did not know about Paul Kossoff, Crawler, or Back Street Crawler. Interesting stuff(s)!
SHEBOYGANBOY SIX ~
DeleteA-list thinking there. You were correct, and the reasoning upon which you based your conclusion was spot-on!
Theoretically, I COULD cease blogging about politics without completely altering the true purpose behind my blogging. But if I dropped the 'religion / spirituality' topic, I would no longer feel any real strong impulse to blog.
When I first discovered Amazon.com, I read the reviews of others for a couple weeks, never once feeling compelled to compose my own.
It was only when I stumbled upon the product page for a Biblically-based nonfiction book, that the idea to write my own review occurred to me. One review seemed to be a deliberate attempt to deceive readers, and none of the positive reviews seemed good enough. I felt that particular book deserved a really good review.
So I sat down and started writing my own - the first public review I'd ever composed on a computer. I wanted to set the record straight about that false review and better highlight the book in a positive way.
My Internet presence since that day has been (often left unstated) to point people toward God and Christ.
So, you cut through the deception of this blog bit with razor precision. Good thinkin', Bro!
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
Not much point in me adding anything here. As I read this post, I thought, "Yeah, riiiiiight!" As IF you'd change the premise of your blog that much. An occasional foray into the fluffier side of life I can see, but I sure can't imagine you setting up camp there.
ReplyDelete