A man goes to the ticket counter...

I've got nothing for you today, except a good joke and a delicious pot of blue-ribbon chili. My daughter Jessi Layne is visiting and we're going to fire up some stuffed jalapeno peppers for appetizers, just to get a nice edge, and maybe even tackle some Whoopie Pies for dessert. Wish you could join us for the big game. The big game is today, right?

We've had a lot of fun here in Packerland over the demise of the Minnesota Vikings and their misfiring quarterback. It's been a joke a day, sometimes two or three, since Brent's errant pass denied the Vikings a trip to Miami where they undoubtedly would have lost their fifth Super Bowl. Here's my favorite:

Subject: Super Bowl Tickets

A man goes to the Minnesota Vikings ticket office and inquires about purchasing Super Bowl tickets.

The ticket teller replies that there weren't any tickets for sale because the Vikings did not make it to the Super Bowl.

The following day the same man goes to the Minnesota Vikings ticket office and inquires about purchasing Vikings Super Bowl tickets.

The ticket teller politely replies that there weren't any tickets for sale because the Vikings did not make it to the Super Bowl.

This goes on for an entire week. The man again goes to the Viking ticket office inquiring about Super Bowl tickets and the teller says none are for sale because the Vikings did not make it to the Super Bowl.

Another week of this goes by and the man still is asking the ticket teller about Viking Super Bowl tickets.

Finally the ticket teller in a loud voice says, "I'VE TOLD YOU FOR THE
LAST 2 WEEKS THERE ARE NOT ANY TICKETS AVAILABLE BECAUSE THE VIKINGS DID NOT MAKE IT TO THE SUPER BOWL!!!"

The man replies, "I know. I drive all the way from Green Bay just to hear
you say that."

The Surf's up

They'll file into the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa, tonight for the latest edition of the Winter Dance Party. Those who are coming for their first visit, and perhaps even returnees, will stop to read the plaque which reads:

"There are few buildings in existence today that represent a complete shift in our musical history. As the last concert venue for Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. "The Big Bopper" Richardson, the Surf is the bedrock of where the sound and attitude of rock and roll changed forever."

The Surf, we all know, was Buddy Holly's last gig. We just passed the anniversary -- February 3 -- of Holly's death in 1959, "the day the music died." Those who tour the field north of Clear Lake where the plane carrying Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. Richardson crashed will not have a hard time finding the landmark today. The property's owner, Jeff Nicholas, had a steel statue of black rimmed glasses erected near the entrance. (Well, you'll either know you're there, or you'll think you just came upon the gravesite of the late baseball announcer Harry Carey.)

Tonight's headliner is Bill Medley, who appears with Fabian, Lesley Gore, the Crickets and the Orions. Thursday's guests included Freddy Cannon, the Drifters and Dickey Lee. Last night's sock hop featured the Original Whitesidewalls.

All sorts of anniversaries converge at this time and this place. The deaths of the three immortalized rock 'n' rollers, of course. Don McLean's song "American Pie" was No. 1 on this date in 1973 -- 14 years after the plane crash. Medley and his sidekick Bobby Hatfield scored their first No. 1 hit, "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" on this date in 1965. And this just happens to be Fabian's 67th birthday. Lots of stuff swirling around.

Have you been to the Surf? Not me. I'm wondering if might have been cool to visit there this weekend. Cool, or maybe just too eerie and weird. I guess you won't ever know, as they say, unless you try it. Maybe we could get a group rate one of these years. Count me in.

Medley had a big enough voice and name to have a solo career after the Righteous Brothers, but we cant' assume it has been easy. Since Hatfield died in 2003 Medley has produced a couple of albums -- you have to love the title of his 2007 CD/DVD release "Damn Near Righteous" -- and he's out there touring (Tampa Bay alert: He's scheduled to appear at the Strawberry Festival in Plant City in March.)

Did you know that "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" is the most played song in radio history? Don't you suppose it would be worth the price of admission just to hear Medley's classic baritone opening "You never close your eyes any more ..." But now what happens with the chorus?

Damn near righteous. So many things in life are, you know?

'We are the World' redux. Really?

This is not going to sound popular, but I hope you'll hear me out: Do we really need a remake of "We Are the World"?

Yes, Haiti needs help -- now. We should assist the ravaged country and its suffering people any way we can. Money is pouring in for the relief fund from all corners of the world but we can't raise enough, quickly enough. So in that respect, any means of generating support for Haiti and its earthquake victims should be welcomed.

We should applaud the spirit of this renewed effort, and the We Are the World not-for-profit organization that Quincy Jones, Lionel Richie and others have established. But is this the best the mighty entertainment industry and its bejeweled stars can do? Is this as creative as it gets, dusting off and hip-hoppifying a 25-year-old song with the voices of Lil Wayne, Kanye West, Usher and Pink? And Vince Vaughn?

Doesn't this sound a little bit too much like artists coming together to feel good about themselves? Perhaps the inspiration they received in the studio -- and the perspiration they generated during their night of work -- will not only cause us to open up our pockets for Haiti, maybe the artists themselves will feel a surge of generosity. No doubt many of them already have.

If 'We Are the World' collects and distributes money to Haiti that otherwise would never have been raised, then the project will be well worth it. May we all be awash in the spirit of brotherhood, unity and giving when the song is introduced a week from today during Opening Ceremonies of the Vancouver Winter Olympics.

But let's not wait for a CD or video to hit retail outlets in order to make a contribution. Visit HopeForHaitiNow.org or call (877) 99-HAITI and help immediately. And let's hope some of these artists recognize an opportunity to lend more than their God-given voices to a song.

Coltrane and Snow and away we go

The Loft was coming through the office speakers yesterday but I wasn't paying much attention. You know those times when you hear music and it's generally pleasing, and you might even be tapping a foot to the beat, but you aren't really LISTENING to it?

That was me. Then, near the end of a song that was completely foreign to my ears, I heard this:

And those who live by fair and just are bound to be laid low
Among the few you still can trust, John Coltrane, Hank Snow

Did I just hear John Coltrane and Hank Snow? I perked up and listened to the rest of the song:

So let’s just raise a glass: for them who time has frozen the page
“To days gone by, when men were men, and all the world was not a stage”

Who was this poet? The chorus took me to the end of the song:

You’re gonna be the one to save the day
Yeah, I believe that’s what you’re here to do
But when the last drops of bourbon mix with the rising sun
Who’s gonna be the one to save you
Who’s gonna be the one to save you

If you've heard this song before, I salute you. You're ahead of me. It's "Who's Gonna Be the One" from Kenny White's new album Comfort in the Static. I've blindly ordered CDs with less to go on, and I'm definitely ordering this one. Forget the mp3 download; I want the works.

Hearing one artist sing the praises of another is like a famous author who writes a blurb for a colleague's book jacket. Thanks, pal, but what do the critics have to say about it? (Not that reviewers know, but they're probably not just stroking a friend.) Yet when David Crosby chimes in on White and Comfort in the Static I respect what he says, which is:

“I’d have to say that Kenny White has earned a place among my favorite singer/songwriters … and particularly, lyricists. As we say in the trade “he goes deep.” A true wordsmith AND musician who reveals a fine sense of humor, as well. Put on your headphones and listen carefully.”

I'm going to. Carefully.

A sermon you need to hear

There is suspicion that Rik Raven has sold his soul to the devil. How else to explain the blazing trail he now leaves in the blues bars, taverns and gin joints he plays?

You almost expect to see charred imprints where the Reverend's white bucks have marched across the dance floor to reach the chair he mounts to finish a show, thrashing the blue Epiphone he bought in La Crosse with rent money.

So this is the Sermon on the Mount.

Sparks are flying and the dance floor crowd backs off a few feet in stunned amazement, concerned that a fire is about to break out. On another chair nearby the Reverend, the tenor sax in Big Al Groth's meaty hands has nearly reached the melting point. A fireworks show never ended with a finale like this.

What, you say it's always been this way at the Reverend's shows? Then why isn't he the most famous bluesman who ever played a lick at Kochanski's Concertina Bar in Milwaukee? Actually, he very well may be that person. And now that he's added Groth to his lineup you best go see Reverend Raven and the Chain Smoking Altar Boys before they burn themselves to the ground.

Some of my Florida friends are in for a treat. That's right, the boys are currently touring the Sunshine State. Here's the tentative schedule (a few dates yet to be filled in). From there they'll tear a new hole in Alabama before returning to Wisconsin.

Feb. 5: The Backroom, Boca Raton
Feb. 6: Sebastian Beach Inn, Melbourne Beach
Feb. 7: Day off at the nudist colony
Feb. 8: Day off at the nudist colony
Feb. 9: Skipper’s Smokehouse, Tampa
Feb. 10: B.B. King’s, West Palm Beach
Feb. 11: B.B. King’s, Orlando
Feb. 12: Little Bar, Marco Island
Feb. 15: Berts Bar & Grill, Matlacha
Feb. 16: Bert’s Bar & Grill, Matlacha
Feb. 17: Ace’s Lounge, Bradenton

At Kochanski's recently we were close enough to feel the reverberations from the tiny stage beside the front door. The setup was so tight that the Reverend and Big Al spent most of their time stomping on the floor in front of the stage, where they can throw their elbows and knees into the music. The night was billed a "Dueling Stage Spectacular" with the local rockabilly Uptown Savages alternating on a second stage in the back of the hall.

But we were there for the Chain Smoking Altar Boys, and they delivered the goods. Manning the drumkit is Bobby Lee Sellers Jr., who came over with Big Al from the Rhythm Dogs and lends some sterling vocals to the cause, and thumping the bass is P.T. Pedersen, who props himself up on a stool and doesn't look like much other than the silent type. Then you start listening to his bass lines and you get it. The man has laid it down for Charlie Musslewhite, Big Walter Horton, Sunnyland Slim and Pinetree Perkins, just to namedrop.

The Reverend, infused with the blues of his southside Chicago roots, grew up grooving on Freddy King and has been on stage with some great ones himself. But the names that draw the most intrigue are Evil Evans, Barefoot Jimmy, Chico Johnson and Devil Roberts, bluesmen who have surely shaped the Reverend's music and mojo as much as Koko Taylor and Gatemouth Brown.

What you get once you add it all up is white hot blues. Get there early and keep an eye on the fire extinguisher.

Curtain call for Hank Williams

Hank Williams was deader than a doornail when "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" made it to No. 1 at this time in 1953. It was the last song he wrote, and followed other more famous chart-toppers like "Lovesick Blues," "Cold, Cold Heart," "Hey Good Lookin'" and "Jambalaya (On the Bayou)."

(Perhaps Hank's most famous song, and my personal favorite, "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry" was the B side to "My Bucket's Got a Hole In It," which made it to No. 2 in 1949.)

"I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" has never received the airplay or attention of Hank's other classics, but it's a great record that has been covered by both Junior and HWIII, and could easily become a favorite if anybody would give it a listen. Here's your chance if you haven't fallen for it already.

Now you're lookin' at a man that's gettin' kind a mad
I had lot's of luck but it's all been bad
No matter how I struggle and strive
I'll never get out of this world a live

My fishin' pole's broke the creek is full of sand
My woman run away with another man
No matter how I struggle and strive
I'll never get out of this world alive

A distant uncle passed away and left me quite a batch
And I was livin' high until that fatal day
A lawyer proved I wasn't born
I was only hatched

Ev'rything's agin' me and it's got me down
If I jumped in the river I would prob'ly drown
No matter how I struggle and strive
I'll never get out of this world alive

These shabby shoes I'm wearin' all the time
Are full of holes and nails
And brother if I stepped on a worn out dime
I bet a nickel I could tell you if it was heads or tails

I'm not gonna worry wrinkles in my brow
'Cause nothin's ever gonna be alright nohow
No matter how I struggle and strive
I'll never get out of this world alive

I could buy a Sunday suit and it would leave me broke
If it had two pair of pants I would burn the coat
No matter how I struggle and strive
I'll never get out of this world alive

If it was rainin' gold I wouldn't stand a chance
I wouldn't have a pocket in my patched up pants
No matter how I struggle and strive
I'll never get out of this world alive

With the groundswell of emotion over Hank's shocking death on New Year's Day 1953, three other songs soon followed this one as posthumous No. 1s: "Kaw-Liga," "Your Cheatin' Heart" and "Take These Chains From My Heart."

The photo of the curtain with the words and music to "Your Cheatin' Heart" was taken during a visit to Hank's childhood home in Alabama last fall. (If you missed that post you can click here.) If you click on the image above I swear you'll almost be able to smell the place. You know if they had been selling curtains I would've walked out with one.

Neil Young wins Grammy

(Haha, we couldn't resist writing that straight headline today.)

Neil Young has long taken a stance on the Grammys that many of us have come to embrace. And like his music, few can state it so eloquently. Young's quote from a 1987 interview:

"I'm not Grammy material. I hate that shit. It has nothing to do with rock 'n' roll. It only has to do with Hollywood, and it's jive -- a buncha people handin' each other awards and talkin' about how they made the best record ... There is no best in music."

We're not sure what to think now that Young finally won a Grammy -- for "best art direction on a boxed or special limited edition package." (He shared this award with two "fellow" art directors.) Guess we'll leave that for him to ponder.

We do think his acceptance speech at the pre-telecast ceremony will go down as one of the greatest in history: “Thanks a lot, everybody,” he said.

So, of course we didn't watch the entire show. (Without popcorn, there was no chance.) But we did tune in to watch Eminem, Lil Wayne, Drake and Travis Barker tear up the stage after a crazed introduction by our favorite director, Quentin Tarantino. To paraphrase Young: Hey, hey, my, my, hip 'n' hop will never die.

And while we agree that there is no best in music, we were happy and surprised to see Taylor Swift snag the Grammy for Album of the Year. And quite relieved that she didn't get shouted off the stage by some madman.