Monthly Archives: December 2009

This is Pop

Leave a reply

Ah, had a good nap after going into the city and meeting Bill. I needed to get some cables for the DJ gig I’m doing at McSwells on Sunday. It’s a benefit for a local musician and a host of bands from the past are all playing.

When I first heard about while riding the bus during the summer I volunteered my services. And now the time has come. It hadn’t exactly been on the front burner until about a month ago when the guy who initially told me about it on the bus contacted me about it, suggesting that I play Grand Funk Railroad, Paul Revere & the Raiders and other groups like that.

Whether he was joking I couldn’t tell. It’s just as well for when this guy contacted me and asked if I was ready to DJ and I said sure. Jokingly I replied that what I was going to play was going to be amusing, entertaining and perhaps infuriating.

Almost instantly a reply was sent, berating me with the worry that it was a benefit I was going to be playing, and infuriating people was NOT the way to inspire people to give to help the ill musician pay her medical bills.

Once again, humor did not translate through email, much like I wasn’t sure if this guy was joking about playing Grand Funk Railroad for the benefit. I did speak with one of the people who is playing and they weren’t so much into doing the gig.

They didn’t know the musician and neither did I, though I probably did see the band the ill musician did play for at one time, but more than likely did not stick around for a full song since it wasn’t my type of music then and thought the band rather lackluster.

But I suppose my heart is in the right place. I won’t be getting fucked up like I used to back in the day when I would DJ at McSwells on a regular basis. I guess while the bands are playing I’ll be going outside having a smoke and listening for each of the bands to end their set.

The sound guy, Carson seemed nice enough when I met him last month so I guess I’ll find out how long each set will be and time my exits and entrances accordingly.

I am doing my best to promote the event, at least once a day I repost it on my Facebook page and Kirk Gardiner of the Hoboken Journal was nice enough to give it a blog on his blog.

I also have planned some things to play and since we’re slipping and sliding towards the holidays, I have a playlist of about 125 Christmas songs that I can draw from and alternate with the standard rock and roll fare that is probably expected.

So today I had to head into the city, braving the 24 degree weather with a most nasty wind chill factor. When I met with sound guy Carson I asked what I needed to use my iPods instead of vinyl or CD’s and he told me which type of cables to get.

After checking with Radio Shack as Carson suggested I decided to try Sam Ash. Bill said he would buy them since he would need them eventually for whatever projects he would have down the road. Bill called up a audio place down the street from where he worked and he said they would probably have what I needed. If not, they could make them for us.

I went a different route and contacted Sam Ash on 48th Street and they said they had them. So a custom made cable wouldn’t be needed and I thought it would be good to save Bill some money on that front. I met Bill on 43rd street and walked up to 48th street.

Times Square filled with tourists despite the shoot out last night outside the Marriott Marquis. We made our way to the DJ area and the salesman was most helpful. I actually hadn’t been to Sam Ash since my late friend Tony Sankitts was running the DJ department.

I bought 2 cables and headed out with Bill, back into the cold midtown air. We walked to Godiva chocolate where Bill is a regular and bought me some chocolates which was nice. I then walked him back to his office and I walked over to JR Cigars on Fifth Avenue and bought a couple of cigars that were incredibly cheap.

Came home exhausted, and took a nap which is where I started this thing tonight. I still have no idea what I will be playing on Sunday night, but then again I never did when I had a regular DJ gig at McSwells.

I was invited to their Christmas party on Monday night by Roda, but having been to one or two of those during the new regime, I probably won’t go. Too weird for and Rand is better with the current McSwells scene than I am anyway which is 180 degrees than how it was 20 years ago.

Galaxy-NJ-Musicians-evert

It’s funny, I can’t help but run into people who thing the guy who runs Hoboken411 is a jerk.

Tramp The Dirt Down

Leave a reply

Last night was an interesting night for lack of a better word. As furious as Juan was when he came over, he calmed down enough to be hilarious. Actually I think both of us were hilarious. Sometimes the hilarity subsided when he had a phone call from some family member.

Juan was kind enough to go into the bathroom and talk on the phone but as his anger returned his voice got louder and the acoustics in the bathroom accentuated his ire creating more of a noise than it would have been if he was sitting right next to me.

Plus the neighbors probably heard everything perfectly. At least they would probably have something to talk about since things are generally pretty quiet here with Bill and myself. I had to go knock on the door and tell him to take the call in the bedroom which was a bit quieter for the residents of the 5th floor.

He was soon back on Earth and settled on the couch where we watched episodes of The Office which I had saved for moments like this, when Juan was over. Also posted one or two other new links to the blogroll regarding Hoboken blogs.

Blogga please!

Juan was on yet another call (for which he was ultimately apologetic for) in the bedroom when Bill came home. Bill was happy to be home and showed me his New Jersey Driver’s License which establishes his new residency as one of those who live on the mainland. Nice picture too.

He had his Subway sandwich and Juan sat next to him on the couch and we watched Elvis Costello Presents Spectacle. It was the first episode of the new season, last night’s guests were Bono and The Edge from U2.

It was enjoyable, Bono was as usual talking most of the time. Elvis and the Imposters played Mysterious Ways by U2 and at the end both Bono and The Edge did a duet with Elvis singing a medley of Pump It Up/Get on Your Boots with a little bit of Subterranean Homesick Blues thrown in for good measure.

Juan then checked his 7000 emails from school and I sat on the couch reading about Tom Petty in Mojo which did not publish my letter about the Specials this month. The Simpsons came on, the Lord of the Flies episode which was not as good as most of them despite the promise. I had to send Juan home after that. I was tired and needed my sleep.

Last night’s cannabis free dream was a Zombie dream that took place at a besieged 13 Riverview Avenue, the house where I grew up. I was grateful it wasn’t Zoombies but rather the slow walking Zombies.

It was a relatively quiet day. I walked around Hoboken a bit and found that I like startling people by saying ‘Good morning’ or ‘Hello’ when I pass them and catching them looking at me.

Old people are usually pleasantly surprised when they hear it and usually reply in kind. Younger folk have no idea what to say.

Spent a lot of time in front of the computer, probably too much. Got tipped by Jeremy at Good As You about some geezer on his front porch, smoking a butt and dispensing his views on gay marriage. After watching the video on YouTube, I had to unleash the sock puppet.

The geezer was upset by what the sock puppet had to say and then posted an even more heinous video wishing death to queers, homosexuals and lesbians, despite saying in an earlier video that he loved his late epileptic bisexual brother.

The sock puppet reminded him that he was in effect wising his brother dead if his brother was still alive, since he felt that the granting of a civil right to gays and lesbians would infringe upon his rights.

That’s the point that is so stupid.

Well, that point as well as the point they try to make that being gay is a choice.

The sock puppet had to ask when did he decide to be straight?

I mean if sexuality is a choice, isn’t it a choice for everyone? Or was he like Larry Craig, who felt that the louder he protested against gays, the less likely people would think he enjoyed performing oral sex on men in public rest rooms.

Oh he short circuited and shut down. It was a fun way to spend this afternoon, tramping down the dirt on some red neck geezer from South Jersey.