Jerry doesn’t talk about current events like Bill Maher, doesn’t use profanity like his best friend Chris Rock, he doesn’t do impressions like Jimmy Fallon. NO!!! Jerry finds humor in the little mysteries of life often using the phrase “what’s the deal with…?” Jerry tackles dating, laundry, airplanes, cabs, supermarkets and other observations & complications of human life that make you laugh out loud. The person in NYC can relate to the jokes. The nerdy teenager who likes to make people laugh can relate to it. The person who has a job they hate but can’t quit can relate to it. If you are a person who gets annoyed by things that annoy others but YOU are the only way brave enough to say something about it and be funny in your crankiness.. you can without a doubt relate to Jerry Seinfeld. Comedy always works best through irritation or annoyance. Usually it’s followed by depression, paranoia or anger. I’ve never known Jerry to be either of those three thankfully.

Jerry has been making people laugh since he was a kid growing up Massapequa, NY located on the South Shore of Long Island!!!! Jerry’s father was a sign painter who loved humor just like his son. As a kid, Jerry loved Superman, riding his bike, playing baseball with other kids in the neighborhood and of course like me… watching TV!!!! When Jerry was eight, he saw a stand-up comedian on The Ed Sullivan Show. Jerry later became a fan of comedians Jerry Lewis and Abbott & Costello for their zaniness. If you look at the relationship between the sitcom Seinfeld & neighbor Kramer or sitcom Seinfeld with friend George, it’s very similar to that dynamic OR Jerry Lewis & Dean Martin had together as as a duo. Jerry told 60 Minutes Australia part of the reason for choosing comedy as his profession was the happiness he had as a kid seeing comedy on TV or making his friends laugh which when you’re a little kid, that’s your a goal before discovering girls of course. Jerry was a class clown in grade school but by high school, he was more shy & introverted. He didn’t want to grab a beer with the guys or smoke cigarettes on the weekends. Roughhousing and partying actually never appealed to Jerry Seinfeld but comedy did.

On the night he graduated from Queens College in 1976, Jerry went to an open mic session at a comedy club Catch A Rising Star. He was nervous as hell his first time on stage. He only mumbled a few words in a minute and a half. Jerry thankfully wasn’t bitter. He knew he had to do the work IF being a comedian was to be his profession and this was the late 1970’s, so there was a wealth of great comedians to learn from at this time:

-Richard Pryor

-George Carlin

-Steve Martin

-Don Rickles

And

-Bob Newhart who had his own sitcom where he played a therapist on CBS in the 1970’s BUT before that he was a Grammy-Winning comedian!!! In fact, Bob won the Grammy for Best New Artist in 1961 along with Album Of The Year & Best Spoken Comedy Album for the very fantastic Button Down Mind Of Bob Newhart. That album got me through 2020 to not think about COVID or the election. The last track on the album “Driving Instructor” one of the greatest bits in comedy.

Jerry cited that album by Bob Newhart, Class Clown by George Carlin and Let’s Get Small by Steve Martin as three of the greatest comedy albums of all time. With teachers to take notes & gudiance from.. Jerry kept learning & growing as a stand-up comedian. Jerry for the timing, the rhythm and he noticed the punch line didn’t have to be the ONLY funny part of the bit. Humor could be found all over a bit. There’s a lot wordplay involved in stand-up and if you treat the words like a puzzle, you can fit into a clear picture for the audience. There’s something to be said about enjoying the journey to the joke and Jerry Seinfeld’s one of the best comedians on taking us on that journey to laughter. Unlike Pryor & Carlin, Jerry Seinfeld made a rule to not use profanity in his act which he said made the game of comedy more interesting. Too many comics think the profanity makes the joke funny. WRONG!!! It’s the material and how YOU deliver as a comic on stage.

Jerry also learned the life of a stand-up comedian was NOT a glamorous one. After four years and living paycheck to paycheck performing in clubs in NYC, Jerry moved to California in 1980 because he knew for any national success he had to get on television and GO WEST!!!! Jerry auditioned for and got a recurring role as a delivery boy & struggling to get a laugh comedian named Frankie on the popular sitcom Benson. Benson was the head of household affairs to a widowed & sometimes not all together in the head governor. The good news… Jerry went from making $40 a night to $4,000 an episode. The bad news…after only three episodes, Jerry found out he written out of the show during a table read. The failure really hit Jerry hard and he knew the way to get his unique brand of humor in television was to create the show himself & be the star.

Shaken but not stirred, Jerry went back to the clubs and caught the eye of someone EVEN more important than a sitcom producer..it was a producer for The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson. Jerry’s father Cal was so proud of his son that he painted a HUGE sign on his van to promote Jerry’s appearance on The Tonight Show. Jerry ran for five miles a day for 30 days and then for 30 nights, he worked on the six minutes he had to do in front of Johnny & millions which occurred on May 7th, 1981. In just a few minutes, Jerry of spoke of the heaviest man and “what do his friends say?” Jerry argued Romper Room gave better weather reports than local news that I FIRMLY believe inspired The Weather Channel the following year in 1982!!! Johnny LOVED IT and gave Jerry the famous “great job, Kid” hand signal that Johnny gave to new stand-up comics who did a great job.

The success of appearing on with Johnny Carson led to more television appearances on The Tonight Show but also Late Night With David Letterman, The Merv Griffin Show, and EVEN The Dr. Ruth Show in 1986. She started the conversation by saying she wished Jerry was married and without missing a beat, Jerry responded “What are YOU hawking me?” Dr. Ruth Westheimer was a very sweet, informative and entertaining sex therapist. Her laugh was extremely high pitched & funny. At the time, Jerry was dating a lot but he was traveling ALL the time. I’m not even sure where he had a place to call home in between gigs across the country. Jerry was able to keep his private life private which today is way more difficult in the age of social media. One of the other reasons Jerry kept a lot of his life private was the death of his father Cal in 1985 to cancer. Jerry stopped working for about six weeks but went back to work knowing Cal was proud of his son. Sometimes it’s a hug & “I love you” but other times, it’s being present for your kids when they’re chasing their dreams.

A young network Fox offered Jerry a guaranteed season of 24 episodes to which Jerry said “No, thank you” because he wanted to be on a major network and was willing to hold out. Friend and co-creator writer/humorists Larry David & Jerry got the idea for what originally was titled The Seinfeld Chronicles after walking through a Korean grocery store where they made fun of the produce. The dialogue would redefine conversation, humor and television forever. The concept of the sitcom was a comedian’s life in between performing. The pilot stands up right the first episodes of Andy Griffith, Full House, Home Improvement, Fresh Prince, and Everybody Loves Raymond. in my opinion. I believe Seinfeld would also pave the way for random dialogue for shows like 30 Rock later on along without concept of “no hugging and no learning” Jerry’s supporting cast are simply amazing with Michael Richards as nutty neighbor Cosmo Krammer. Julia Louis Drefyus as funny, impulsive, but gorgeous Elaines Baines and Jason Alexander as George Costanza Jerry’s best friend totally inspired by Larry David. The characters were greedy, mean, selfish, and for any deal short term or long term, would plot against each other BUT as Jerry once told 60 Minutes…people love these characters because they’re funny. Right up there with Mr. Burns in The Simpsons or Louie De Palma in Taxi, there will always be characters you love to hate in some sitcoms love but make you laugh and hopefully feel better about your own life.

The show debuted July 5th 1989 and the plot about Jerry trying to figure out if a woman from his past who is “coming to sleep over” at Jerry’s apartment. NOW, what question is EVERY guy on the planet pondering when they get this call? If you said, “will she and I have sex or not?” then you’ve probably been in this situation or you were George and attempted to walk Jerry through the process to decipher what’s going to happen. You start asking how she asked, when she asked, and any other details that will tell you “lover OR friend?” Test audiences hated BUT the 15 million people who did see it wondered why a whole season wasn’t ordered on this odd but funny show. One NBC executive that believed in the show as Rick Ludwin who convinced the network to order FOUR MORE EPISODES for Season 1. It’s still to this day, the lowest number of episodes for a season that a network picked up. The critical reviews improved and while the ratings were not great BUT they were good enough for NBC and tripled their next offer by ordering 12 episodes for Season 2 and changing The Seinfeld Chronicles into Seinfeld. “The Chinese Restaurant” episode that both Larry & Jerry wrote together stands out to me the most. The plot while set in one place goes in many directions and I love when comedy can do that. NBC to their credit and likely due to Rick twisting enough arms at the network, allowed Jerry & Larry to make the show they wanted to make. Other networks would say “we don’t get this idea and you can’t do it!!” The small but loyal fanbase was growing. Jason Alexander once compared the fans of Seinfeld to fans of Star Trek who know every scene and every line. I’m sure the Seinfeld fans were thrilled to put in the same group with Spock, Captain Kirk & Scotty.

For the third season, NBC FINALLY ordered a decent number OF episodes at LONG last… 23!!!! Most notably I will cite are “The Tape” and “The Parking Garage” as stand out episodes. “The Parking Garage” follows the same theme as The Chinese Restaurant. The setting is one area for the entire episode (we don’t count Jerry’s stand-up at the start and sometimes at the end of the show) and also these situations happen to people in real life but no one had thought it would be a great idea for a sitcom episode. “The Tape” was another favorite episode of mine which involved George getting aroused by a sensual tape of Elaine while Jerry was going over his act from the night before which caused George to have a crush on. Which I found hysterical knowing they were at war with each other at times later on in the series. I also very much liked Kramer interviewing Elaine later on in the episode as if he was interviewing an adult film star. Jerry, Larry and the writers figured out how to slip in adult content into a network sitcom. You have to be very good with language to pull that off especially when the major networks still ran the roost.

That same formula & structure worked in season four when Seinfeld FINALLY cracked the Top 40 winning the audience & critics which is never an easy task. What really helped was the late, great and oh so wise Brandon Tartikoff who believed in the show with Rick Ludwin so much, they decided to put Seinfeld on after Cheers on Thursday night. Episodes like “The Contest” about masturbation or as it is know in Seinfeld world “master of your domain” stood out. I still laugh when George describes getting caught by his mother. “The Outing” was wonderful as a reporter accidentally thinks that Jerry & George are lovers. You probably remember the famous line “not that there’s anything wrong with that” which the cast said repeatedly throughout that episode. Jerry was having to tell his mom it wasn’t true and hearing him say “Ma!!!” was priceless. Another episode in season four I want to give note to is “The Airport” which by supervising producer Larry Charles wrote. Jerry & Elaine are on their way back from a gig in St. Louis and due to missing their flight, the lovable twosome got two seats (one in COACH one in FIRST CLASS). Elaine was next to a smelly guy and had to sit RIGHT dab in the middle between smelly guy and another stranger. Meanwhile in FIRST CLASS, Jerry got to sit next to a beautiful model who was amused by Jerry’s knowledge about “nothing” or my fellow Aspies would call “fun random trivia.” It’s part of Jerry’s charm and mine. The last two episodes in Season 4 “The Pilot” involved Jerry & George writing and making a sitcom called Jerry. Like the sitcom itself, Jerry & George decided the show would be about the two of them talking about making snarky remarks about the little mysteries of everyday life. That sounds like a winner to me!!!! I especially loved seeing Marsika Harigtay (AKA Detective Olivia Benson in the epic Law & Order: SVU) audition as Elaine. Marsika jokingly said she seeing people audition for George was like a bald convention. I wonder if Captain Cragan was in that line-up but probably not.

Breaking into the Top 40 for the first time meant the awards would come flying which they did. Seinfeld won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series. Michael Richards won the first of three Emmy Awards for the role of Kramer AND Larry David received an Emmy for writing “The Contest” Larry thanked the academy but reminded the audience very humorously that he was still bald!!!! Famous sayings from the show that entered our conversations for and stayed or life included:

-“No Soup For You!!!”

-“Master Of Your Domain”

-“Maybe the dingo ate your baby”

-“Shrinkage”

-“Yada Yada Yada”

They were 90’s catchphrases and even the president of my drama club knew them by heart. They did speed things up and made you laugh. The best comedians are the best writers. It takes a village to make a sitcom like Seinfeld. The fifth character of the show as NYC which means the multiple characters like The Soup Nazi, J. Peterman, Puddy, Newman, Jerry’s endless list of girlfriends that were potrayed by Jennifer Coolidge, Teri Hatcher from Desperate Housewives, Kristin Davis from Sex And The City, Lori Loughlin from Full House in a funny episode where she encourages Jerry to express his emotions. Debra Messing from Will & Grace, Lauren Graham from Gilmore Girls and the first gorgeous TV mom most guys my age had a crush on, Ali Wentworth, Kathy Griffin, yada yada yada. If you were a gorgeous actress or comic OR both in the 90’s.. good chance you play Jerry’s girlfriend and are still gorgeous now. For someone who said he was immature and is a bit awkward, the sitcom Jerry had a lot of girlfriends and very beautiful ones.

The series continued to remain the top three for the remainder of the run. But after seven long seasons, Larry David left the show and Jerry was left to run the show themselves. I understand Larry being burnt out. Jerry said he and Larry would write a 60 page script in two days. That’s dedication and they would have long debates. Usually to exhaustion but thankfully not a screaming match as stupid tabloids have said. Jerry said people who read the tabloids “deserve to be lied to.” I’ll never defend those bastards either, Larry David would quit every season and Jerry said “okay.” Then closer to when the next season would start, Larry would change his mind and come back. I can only imagine what gifts NBC gave Larry. It physically killed and emotionally. It might explain why Larry took long breaks from his equally funny HBO comedy Curb Your Enthusiasm. Larry made a fortune and I think he needed to play golf and deal his shit. We all got whether you have $2 in your bank or $200 million. Jerry was suddenly as the show’s executive producer was having to handle duties Larry would normally be in charge of. I know Jerry liked being a writer but the rest of the behind the scenes, I’m not sure. The tone of the show changed with younger writers coming in. It was more fast paced and less conversational than the early years of Seinfeld. The ratings were still strong but Jerry was looking for the exit. He never even considered California home when he lived there. He even called his house near the NBC Studios “a giant hotel room.” I was happy for the final season that was announced in the last days of 1997 during the show’s ninth season, Jerry was paid like a boss and so was his cast. Jerry got $1 Million per episode while the cast got $600,000!!!!

The finale aired May 14th 1998 to the delight of 76 million viewers. The sitcom Jerry got picked up by NBC for 13 episodes and while on a NBC jet to Paris before having to go to work on the new sitcom, the four have to land in Massachusetts where they witness a man getting carjacked at gunpoint while they stand by and do “nothing.” Due to a new law devoted to being “good citizens," Jerry & company are arrested and later convicted of the crime of not helping a fellow citizen getting attacked in broad daylight. They are each sentenced to a year in prison. Some criticized the last episode but I loved it and they didn’t learn a damn thing. They followed the format and folks that follow that usually end up in jail for something like that happened to them. I would have loved to seen Jerry & Elaine get married but I suspect the result of large ratings & very critical reviews from the industry would have still occurred. Jerry also wanted to return to his first love…performing stand-up.

It took Jerry a moment to return to the stage and Jerry also found THE ONE. Her name was Jessica Sklar and she was in an unhappy marriage when she met Jerry. Soon enough, Jessica was divorced and the two married on Christmas Day 1999. The following year, their first child Sasha was born. Two boys followed in 2003 with Julian and Shepherd in 2005. Jerry learned how to be a human being away from the stage at long last. He learned in a marriage, you have to compromise which is why some comedians never try marriage and some may fail at it. Redd Foxx was married four times as was Johnny Carson. Richard Pryor was married seven times. Now in their cases they also had deep commitment issues but I think in Jerry’s case just accepting that changes had to be made and he had to deal with his rigidness. Jerry used to throw all of his clothes away when he would come home from long touring. With a wife and three kids, you can’t do things like that!!!!

Jerry also knew with a new life, there would be tons of new material to tackle. The same year the sitcom ended, Jerry also retired his old act with the HBO special, I’m Telling You For The Last Time. The special was filmed at The Broadhurst Theater. It’s similar to how when a rock star says he’s getting rid of his first 20 years of material. You wonder what will happen. You hope no one tells jokes exactly like that but you hope they are funny all the same. Jerry didn’t miss a beat once in that special as we heard HIS Greatest Hits if you will. I got the DVD when I was in college which my best friend Ben & I watched back in Maryland. Sometimes I wish I could go back to their carefree days of following comedians the way some people following sports with “my brother.” I wasn’t thinking about serious things but Jerry put some of them in their proper perspective.

Jerry began selling out in theaters all across America and even found time to make the animated film Bee Movie in 2007. The film that Jerry co-wrote and was made by Dream Works tells the story of a bee who sues the human race claiming his fellow bees are being exploited. Two years later, Jerry also found time to produce a series for NBC called The Marriage Ref. Married couples would send in their weird problems for three celebrities (Jerry appeared a few times for fun). The weirdest issue I came across was one involving a couple who has been married for 35 years but cannot agree where they want to retire. The wife wants to retire in Beverly Hills and the husband wants to retire in Amish County. Just ask yourself how long YOU can live without electricity or running water. I was a little surprised they called Madonna for an episode but she managed to take over the damn show with help from Larry David himself!!! Sheryl Crow was great as was Jimmy Fallon as they discussed the special feature one husband added to their house. Jerry invited his friend Jon Stewart from The Daily Show on but Jon flat out refused saying he “didn’t want to go on record” with opinions about marriage for fear his own wife could use it against him good or bad. I get it and I’m always surprised that show never worked out. I was more surprised they got Madonna on. Hasn’t she been divorced twice and given a line of guys in their 20’s & early 30’s a little bit of hope they might NOT have had before?

I also was always excited when Jerry appeared on Leno or Letterman to do stand-up. The new comics I would see were a blast and many have become huge stars but there’s only ONE Jerry Seinfeld and he kept material very fresh. He began eliminating a little bit of his act each year. Sometimes you have to take material out so the act doesn’t get stale. I also loved hearing Jerry complain & gripe about annoying shit. Hydration or why friends recommend restaurants and why do restaurants have specials? If they are “special” put them on the entrees then!!! This love of stand-up has made Jerry as much as a historian of comedy as much as a wonderful artist at his craft like Picasso with his paint or Clapton with his guitar.

Much like his friend Jay Leno, Jerry’s other love besides making people laugh is cars. Jerry has a passion for Porches along with other flashy sports cars and he had been wanting to make an American version of the British car fanatic program Top Gear ONLY funnier. A small streaming service called Crackle on July 19th, 2012 began airing the program. The first guest was none other than Seinfeld co-creator Larry David!!!! In each episode, Jerry picks a flashy vehicle and Jerry tells us a little about the vehicle’s history on the way to pick up a special guest to have coffee and talk about comedy & other observations in the epic web series Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee. We see a lot more of Jerry Seinfeld the person in this series. I think we know more of what ticks him off than we did on the sitcom and early TV appearance as a stand-up which I love along with the hot rides

For Jerry’s debut episode with Larry David, Jerry picked up Larry in a blue 1952 VW Bug with a rear window made in two pieces to save money. Jerry said if you believe true humility was in short supply, THIS was the car for you. Jerry used a variation of that in every episode. Larry isn’t wild about a whole lot of people but he was excited to see the guy who helped make him so wealthy, he doesn’t have to give a damn of other people’s perception of him. Jerry really hasn’t cared wealthy or not. Larry was thrilled about the car when Jerry and I’m surprised Larry didn’t drive but I suspect Jerry is extremely protective of his cars & other shit that’s valuable. I know if I had as many sports cars the only person I’d drive it is my wife & Seinfeld but no one else.

Over the next several years, we saw Jerry hang & have coffee with the biggest names in comedy. We saw Sarah Jessica Parker go gaga over a 1976 Ford Station Wagon and put Jerry way out of his comfort zone. We saw Jerry got for a ride on the water with Jimmy Fallon in part one then gets Jimmy to open up about SNL and then become a talk show host titan in the 21st Century over pancakes. We saw Don Rickles tear Jerry a new one in a 1958 Cadillac Eldorado along some funny stories about Vegas. I can’t imagine performing between midnight and five even when I was a night owl during my wild man days. Jerry even picked up Jon Stewart in a Gremlin which screams virginity even more than a station wagon. Sarah Silverman mocked Jerry’s mediating saying someone shouldn’t be so irritated when they meditate. Even A-List thespians like Sarah Jessica Parker & Alec Baldwin rode around with Jerry. The coolest by far was President Obama. Secret Service would not let them off the property. Jerry & President Obama thankfully rode around in a vehicle that would Glenn Beck and other critics UPSET. Even the 60’s and 70s, members of the space program drove the fabulous 1963 Silver Blue Corvette Stingray. I died laughing as Jerry knocked on the door to The Oval Office President Obama’s annoyance and Jerry’s waiting on the couch. The limo drive to coffee I think made up for Secret Service burning Jerry. President Obama also told a story about Teddy Roosevelt going away to Yellowstone for a month and NO ONE knew where he was. NO ONE could get away with that now.

Another thing people used to be able to get away with bringing comedy to the stage and to the small screen. Jerry has also been outspoken in recent years about PC in comedy. It’s unnecessary and it wasn’t an issue when Jerry was first starting out plus that was the era for sitcoms: All In The Family, The Jeffersons, Mary Tyler Moore and others. There weren’t crazy committees going through your jokes PLUS there were only three networks. With those odds, the show had to be funny FIRST and FOREMOST. Has it gotten better because Seinfeld and others have spoken out along with refusing to play college campuses? I would say YES because really do crave comedy. It keeps your soul from blowing up the minute someone OR something or BOTH set you on fire.

Last year, Jennifer & I started off 2025 with a trip to see Jerry Seinfeld In Concert at Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall. Much of that excitement and wanting to see as many legends & icons while they are still great at their craft began after I saw The Beach Boys in 2013 after they had 50 years in the game. Jerry also had about 50 years in the game when we saw him AND Jerry didn’t miss a beat that night. Jerry did MOSTLY new material especially his daughter & wife’s obsession with seeing Taylor Swift. Going on vacation with his family and I also very much enjoyed hearing give advice to our husbands. Sometimes WE talk too much. It’s an issue I’ve been working on most of my life. Oh and Jerry said marriage adult education. Husbands, we figure out what’s too loud or the wrong time to say something. Not right away, BUT in due time, WE LEARN. I was also happy the hydration bit was still in the set. I’m a person that has several cups of iced tea in a day while people like Jerry have several cups of coffee. Jerry said he can live with the anxiety and he’s a comedian so anxiety like his best friend.

Jerry Seinfeld is living proof you can work hard at something, take a bet on yourself and NOT LOSE. He made a sitcom about nothing that people still watch and quote since it first on NBC in the 1990’s because it was something special. It was relatable to what everyone was going through at the time just like Jerry’s stand-up has been for about 50 years. Jerry is open and honest about his quirks, routine & anxieties that made me feel okay to be honest about me. What was better was we could be honest about it all. This thing called life is more enjoyable if you can laugh at it and keep your wits about you. Jerry, please pass the Corn Flakes BUT not milk please. Now, where’s my damn Arnold Palmer??? KRAMER!!!!!!

-”Have I Told You Lately That I Love You” which I have hailed as Rod’s best song, the best song that Van Morrison has ever written and should definitely be used for moments of love bliss.

-”Forever Young”

-”This Old Heart Of Mine” with Ronald Isley of the wonderful soul group The Isley Brothers

-”Some Guys Have The Luck”

-”Downtown Train” written by Tom Waits

-”Tonight’s The Night” and again another tune used for love bliss

-”Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?”

-”Hot Legs”

-”Reason To Believe”

and the very beautiful rock ballad

-”Rhythm Of My Heart”

Rod mixed the same attitude that The Rolling Stones bring to the stage with soul elements of Otis Redding, Howlin’ Wolf, & of course Sam Cooke for Rod to get that signature voice. I was blown away by Rod and thankfully got the HITS CD for Christmas not long after. How many times did I play that CD while getting ready for bed when I didn’t listen to Delilah take requests from the heart? Too many to count.

About a year later, another TV commercial featuring Rod would stand out to me but it wasn’t the rocking soul man I discovered. This sound was a little different and it really stood out to me. The image of cool was still there for me but the stage looked different. I noticed instead of bright loud rock stage we saw slightly dimmed lights under lush strings, horns and Rod tackling songs of the 1930s and 1940’s about love & living life damn well. Rod’s always been very stylish with rather loud clothes and then in this moment, Rod’s switching to suits and tuxedos. Rod had been wanting to do the standards since 1983 but his managers said that they didn’t think Rod was “ready” for Vegas. I think talent scouts exist because they couldn’t be successful themselves as songwriters and had zero star quality The idea came after having surgery for thyroid cancer which almost cost Rod his voice for good.He did have to learn how to sing again but his voice came back stronger than ever after almost a year of practicing.

The beginning of this new chapter was entailed It Had To Be You: The Great American Songbook. When I first heard “These Foolish Things” and “The Way You Look Tonight” I had a warm feeling and I’m proud to report “The Way You Look Tonight” was used in commercials for the mattresses my mother sold when I was in high school. The first of these standards I heard was “These Foolish Things” or the haunting piano followed by the strings with Rod’s signature voice. I knew that even if Rod never does rock again, this music is really poetic and beautiful. I felt the same on “It Had To Be You” and “I’ll Be Seeing You” with each song including a dramatic intro by Rod & a piano before the rest of the orchestra comes in. I also want to praise Dave Koz for the wonderful saxophone solo on “It Had To Be You.” The album went on to sell over three million copies and appeared in the pop 10. Like Tony Bennett proved in the 1990’s and Rod would prove in the decade to come, people respected that Rod didn’t change the the songs of the past, they just treated them with respect and that’s always the goal anytime you tackle any song.

For As Time Goes By: The Great American Songbook Vol. 2. we bring in Queen Latifah for the title track and I can’t stop smiling when I hear The Queen say “We get a trifle weary with Mr. Einstein’s theory.” I must admit love that and I haven’t seen Casablanca since I was 13 and that was with my grandmother. I need to see that film again before I turn 40 along with Gone With The Wind. Volume Two also contains a wonderful version of “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered”which features the fabulous Cher and I can safely say this version of is the best ever along with being my favorite track on Volume Two. I also heard a very different version of “I Only Have Eyes For You” and while I love Flamingos giving the tune doo-wop, Rod sang you guys out of the river Jordan. It’s also impossible if you love this music to not be moved by “Smile” or really anything Charlie Chaplin has made. Only a few people capture the beauty of that tune like Nat “King" Cole, Barbra Streisand, Tony Bennett whether solo or together with Barbra and I would say that’s about it for the tune “Smile.”

With two hit albums selling millions worldwide just like had in the 1970s, Rod was on top of the world again and he did a wonderful tour combining his rock hits & the standards. Act One is a bright blue looking stage with lights & rock songs ALONG with touches of soul to match. Then there’s a 15 minute break, Rod changes into a tuxedo and the stage goes from rock show to elegant ballroom. The lights are dimmed but are still shinny to match the romance stage for songs from the early 20th Century that Rod remind us will remain alive in this century as well. I love that Rod never put ONE over the over. He was wise enough to realize “Maggie May” and “Some Guys Have All The Luck” are just as important to this world as the songs of Gershwin & Cole Porter.

In my opinion, Stardust: The Great American Songbook Vol 3 is the best chapter. We open with “Embraceable You.” Once again, Rod gives us a beautiful intro before the orchestra begins. I also went nuts when Rod sang “Baby It’s Cold Outside” with Dolly Parton and I believe those two are the only ones who can sing that tune outside of the holiday season. We are followed by the best version of “For Sentimental Reasons” we were are happily joined once again on saxophone by Dave Koz. I first heard “What A Wonderful World” from Rod with Stevie Wonder on harmonica. When I close my eyes, I see the elegant ballroom and couples dancing not thinking about serious problems in their lives or in the world. If more of us lived in the present like the characters in many of these beautiful songs then we receive the joy God wants us to have. At the time, I unaware that a wonderful jazz trumpeter/ singer Louis Armstrong had recorded the song in the 1960’s. I first heard Louis’ version after seeing Good Morning Vietnam as a college film buff. When hearing “I Can’t Get Started,” if you close your eyes it might take you to a world where a guy won a golden ticket to do everything a guy dreamed of. Eric Clapton's guitar blended wonderfully on “Blue Moon” and it sounded different than the version by doo-wop group The Marcels I heard in my father’s car. I quite prefer Rod’s more melodic and Sinatra take on the standard. I know Rod has looked to Frank for guidance on the standards many times.

I thought Thanks For the Memory: The Great American Songbook Volume 4 would be the final chapter in this epic series of wonderful music. One reason I thought it would be the end was seeing the tribute to Rod’s hero Sam Cooke on “You Send Me” with Chaka Khan. I know Rod worked really hard to make Sam proud and we all want to make our heroes proud. I very much enjoyed hearing Diana Ross joined in on “I’ve Got A Crush On You” which reminded us all that Billie Holiday was still in there waiting to come out and in the appropriate degree, it will. Rod duetted on “Makin’ Whoopie” with his best friend Sir Elton John and belted on the seductive ballad “My Funny Valentine” giving it the same energy & fuel when Seal & Sting covered it. You don’t expect it at first, but you feel thrilled after you hear it, especially during a romantic evening at home with the one you love.

The following year, I was in my first year of college and was excited when I learned Rod Stewart was back to making rock music again. Like with the Standards, Rod took us back in time with Still The Same.. Great Rock Classics Of Our Time to the basics of classic rock. We start with the Credence Clearwater Revival tune “Have You Ever Seen The Rain?” and I credit Rod giving the song new life for me to hear CCR’s other tunes in my 20’s. Rod took that same gusto with the Bonnie Tyler tune “It’s A Heartache” and if you asked me honestly who nailed that song the best I will say Rod. The same can be said about “Fooled Around And Fell In Love” to the point where I don’t even like the original… that songs belongs to Rod Stewart. The album also showed Rod could strip it down too on ballads like “Crazy Love” and “I’ll Stand By You.” reminding us that like on “Have I Told You Lately” or “Rhythm Of My Heart” without losing his rock attitude.

The curiosity of going back in time with five consecutive albums led Rod to the R&B tunes of the 60’s and 70s that my father hailed as his favorite songs of all time. With 2009’s Soulbook, Rod visits the sounds of The Temptations, Jackie Wilson, The O’Jays, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, etc. Stevie & Smokey even stopped to sing with Rod on “My Cherie Amour” & “The Tracks Of My Tears” respectably. ANYONE that tackles “Rainy Night In Georgia” deserves a medal and Rod did a wonderful job on the Brook Benton classic from 1970. Jennifer Hudson came in to sing on The Everly Brothers duet “Let It Be Me.” Rod’s voice is so powerful and when he sings, his presence is LOUDER than everyone else in the world. So you have to balance that power when you duet with other singers. Rod was good at not overpowering Jennifer or anyone else I hear him duet with whether it is Ronald Isley, Michael Buble, Dolly Parton, or even Elton but those two Brits are competitive about everything but it’s always fun in the process getting that magic. Some of my favorite artists who are British are known for this: Rod, Sir Elton John, Mick Jagger, Freddie Mercury, George Michael, & Phil Collins. They are known for MOSTLY for writing their own songs while tackling other fantastic songs and making the covers their own with respect.

In 2010, Rod came back for a fifth & final volume of The Great American Songbook that was entitled Fly Me To The Moon and that might be the most appropriate title for a final album seeing Volume Four’s title was Thanks For The Memory. We go “Beyond The Sea” like Bobby Darin did. Like Francis Albert, we flew to play up with the stars and see life on Jupiter & Mars. We learned what a difference a day makes in just 24 little hours like Dinah Washington. We close the final volume of this beautiful wonderful series with “Moon River” from Andy Williams like two drifters off to see the world in style. I’ll choose Rod over Barry Manilow doing these standards any day.

I believe these experiences led to Rod writing his autobiography along with having the encouragement to write original music again. During my last semester of college in 2013, Rod gave us the excellent album TIME. I remember Rod saying it was difficult to write about some of the last twenty years especially his divorce from his second wife Rachel Hunter and surviving cancer that almost took his voice away for good. Rod also reconnected with his oldest daughter Sarah who was born when he was only 18 and as Rod puts it, he was “stoned broke.” When I heard the very beautiful reflective tune “Brighton Beach” and I heard the opening lyrics “I remember when you were only 17” followed by Rod referring to himself as a “working class teenage troubadour,” I knew Rod was talking about that moment from the early 1960’s. Sarah was adopted by a sweet couple when she was about five and almost 20 years ago, Rod & Sarah began reconnected as father & daughter after the death of Sarah’s mother. Love, acceptance and most of all, forgiveness needed to occur and I’m thrilled it happened for them both.

I know on the fun upbeat tracks “She Makes Me Happy” and “Live The Life” that Rod is singing about his wife Penny Lancaster who I know saved his life. The same can be said for the tune “Sexual Religion” which I have often called “Da Ya Think I’m Sexy? (Part II)” Rod & Penny have been together since 1999 and the following year, Rod learned he had thyroid cancer. Surviving that and seeing the lives lost on September 11th, 2001 made Rod be open to having children with Penny. Three years later, Rod turned to Penny and said “let’s make a baby!!!” I was thrilled to see Rod & Penny have two sons and that Rod did a long residency in Vegas at Caesar’s Palace at the Colosseum so he could fly home to Penny after each concert. Rod also promised no magicians or flashy little people would appear out of nowhere during the show. I would request Rod if one exception is made to that rule, if it could be broken on the chance “Love Train” by The OJays because that song makes everyone as happy as does EVERY song they’ve ever made which I think has been Rod’s appeal. There’s not one bad song I can think of.. just songs you like more than others.

I know that Rod has had some health issues and has been on his farewell tour which I must say even I’m a little shocked by. I was also more shocked by Rod’s needing oxygen at one of the shows in Utah. Rod almost fell while singing “Young Turks” joking about the incident trying to make light of it. I was thrilled he got the band to play “Love Train” and Rod could still sing while having to sit down while reminding us all that the show must going on no matter what challenges life throw at us. The longevity, the soul, the moves to make Jagger rehearse more, and the diversity in styles will make you ponder if anyone will top that. The first and last part I don’t believe so. Not many singers can tackle blues & folk then rock with touches of Motown then The Standards then back to rock again without missing a beat while wearing it well.

DL was born Daryl Lynn Hughley in 1963 in Virginia but he spent most of his childhood in Los Angeles where he still calls home today. DL’s father worked as a janitor for Delta Air Lines and his mother stayed at home with DL and his three siblings. DL talks quite a bit about his childhood in his stand-up and it wasn’t pretty. HIs father didn’t say much or say “I love you, son” at all until right before he passed away. DL’s mother seemed paranoid and a bit detached from reality to say the least. They did work hard to keep their four kids out of trouble but I think they were more concerned with survival than whether their kids were happy or not. When you live in poverty, happiness is about 16th on the list. DL fell victim to the gang life of South Central Los Angeles and he even joined one after being expelled from high school. DL learned that respect often comes with a heavy price especially in the gang world. DL’s cousin who belonged to a rival gang was killed and DL wasn’t even able to attend the funeral. DL knew that was the time to change his life for the better and he got his GED. After that, DL was dared by his barber of all people to tackle the art of stand-up comedy. To some people, it’s a low art but it’s an art of the people. Writing and using the spoken word to convey a point about life’s complications. Comedy is always at its best when complications arise.

DL also obtained a day job to pay the bills as many of with dreams of stardom do. DL’s day job at the Los Angeles Times as a telemarketer and eventually, DL became the sales manager. He also became a husband to Ladonna in 1986 and in due time daughters Ryan & son Kyle came into the world. Life got tougher but DL never left his family. In fact, when Ladonna was pregnant with Kyle and had go spent time in the hospital due to complications with the pregnancy, DL came home with little Ryan and saw the lights had been turned off in their apartment. DL fed his baby daughter mashed up bananas by candlelight and he made this promise he would never put his kids in that situation again which he never did.

DL would play the clubs at night from Comedy Act Theater where he would make $750 and The Birdland West would play $500 so there was good money coming in. DL eventually had a champion at The LA Times and after DL knew it was time to pursue comedy full time, this friend kept DL’s benefits alive for one year along with a $25,000 bonus. The only request.. “don’t disappoint me” The guy who helped DL lost his job and spouse after this gift was presented. In the 1990’s, DL became a father for the third time when youngest daughter Tyler was born in 1991. DL’s career began to slowly take off too with a hosting gig of the first season of ComicView on BET in 1992 and would DL would also host his very first HBO Half Hour special. DL talked about women, being black in America, rich vs poor, his mother whipping’ his ass, his father acting weird and other childhood complications. Michael Jackson once said he didn’t have a childhood and DL said years later on stage “well I did and it was overrated, Mike!!” If my father ever answered the door in his underwear, I’d probably be embarrassed too and tell funny stories about it while making good dough at it like DL did!!!

The following year, DL would become the warm-up comic on the popular NBC sitcom The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air. DL even guest starred in one episode where DL played a friend of Will’s who was stand-up comic which inspired Will to try only.. he wasn’t as fast or quick as DL. It was DL’s first experience on a sitcom and he loved it. Being a warm-up, you have that play that room differently than a comedy club. Comedy clubs, you can say what you want and in those days it stayed there but with YouTube, I see why comics don’t want their stuff filmed there. But playing to a sitcom studio audience, half the room are kids the other are over 60 MOST of the time, you have to be able to find the funny within that group but you can’t be too dirty but you also can’t be too PC either. In fairness, DL has never been PC plus at any time in his career that I can think of. I’ve seen DL change a joke to avoid four letter words SOMETIMES but I’ve never seen DL tell a joke that I said “that doesn’t seem true.” For comedians, I need that dosage of truth.

DL was making good money in the clubs and as a warm-up and I’m sure hosting ComicView allowed him to make more money as a headliner but he needed the right arena to be authentically himself and in the 1990s one place he knew he could was the HBO series Def Comedy Jam. As I mentioned in the Bernie Mac article, audiences on that show were known for heckling & booing comics on the show they didn’t like.. but not DL!!! Oh no no no. DL sucked the audience quickly and kept them there for that five six minutes. Moments like that, you see why DL is as fast as he is. If you’re smart, funny and fast, you can do 20 jokes. In five minute on Def Jam, DL went off on AIDS, bravery, dating, and closed with some thoughts about the afterlife. You will probably need some THC after the first time you see DL do stand-up whether you are a new fan or if you’ve been watching him since you were a teenager like me.

The end of the 90s is when DL’s fame began to finally hit a spark but DL didn’t need to dance in the dark at all. DL had expressed interest in hosting the talk show Later on NBC which aired at 1:35 AM right after Conan O’Brien and DL actually got to guest host. NBC Sports legend Bob Costas hosted the program in the late 80s and early 90s with no studio audience and no band.. not even a piano!!! My late night band would have at least a keyboardist, guitarist, bassist, and a drummer. Greg Kinnear hosted the show from 1994-1996 and it became a traditional late night talk show. After DL told stories about moving from South Central Los Angeles to West Hills with his family to his manager Dave Becky. Becky said to DL “This HAS to be a sitcom. Oh we’ll get you a talk show in time but your stories.. they are a sitcom” DL and his manager met with NBC then later ABC which offered the best deal.

The Hughleys debuted on ABC on September 22nd 1998 to almost 16 million viewers!!!! It helped that The Hughleys debuted right after Home Improvement which was in their final season.

DL played Daryl, a vending machine salesman who had a wife, a son and a daughter and made best friend with the white couple across the street. In the first episode, DL is a little nervous when to say the least and puts his foot in mouth. DL told Conan O’Brien that he didn’t know white people lived in Los Angeles until he was 19 until he saw white contestants on The Price Is Right say they were from Los Angeles. The conflict ended after Dave (the husband) came over to help Daryl fix a basketball hoop he was fixing for his son in the middle of the night. Daryl’s stubbornness went away slowly after a bit of silent awkwardness after the two men fixed the basketball hoop. I doubt there was a dry eye in the house of that studio audience through applause after Dave said reminded Daryl you’re a great neighbor. You can’t hate someone who helps you out with something really important especially if it’s for your family.

Overtime, the two men and three when we add in Daryl’s friend Milsap played by the very funny actor/comedian John Henton from Living Single became great friends which is always beautiful to see. The series explores serious topics of race & class but in a honest & comedic way and that first part must come first. When you find the honesty in each moment of every scene, that’s where comedy comes out. I learned from Norman Lear sitcoms like All In The Family and The Jeffersons in the 1970’s I watched on Nick At Nite with my parents in the 2000’s. I also was thrilled to learn Sherman Hemsley from The Jeffersons played Daryl’s father in law who hated Daryl and & Marla Gibbs from The Jeffersons was his mother who hated Daryl’s wife Yvonne along with being too controlling. With Chris Rock as executive producer and coming on after Home Improvement, you might think The Hughleys had everything set up game set, match right? WRONG!!!!

ABC sadly went into a weird spin between in the late 1990’s let’s examine with Professor Pop Culture. Family sitcoms were like trying to find your favorite candy bar. Lots of great choices between the late 80’s and 90’s with the success of Full House, Family Matters, Boy Meets World, and Home Improvement were among my favorite. I saw families getting along with love & genuine laughter and conversation solved everything. Not all the families looked the same but it was still a family. The soap opera music didn’t offend me just for the record during the scenes where characters had “Now I Get It” moment. Full House ending in 1995 started I would argue a demise in authentic family friendly sitcoms. Two later in 1997, CBS in a $40 Million deal bought both Family Matters & Step By Step who destroyed the competition with The TGIF block on Friday nights at ABC. CBS created The Friday Night Block Party to compete and they failed!!! Both shows ended in 1998 and while I loved the Family Matters finale.. let’s just say I like Patrick Duffy for other shows. With Home Improvement ending 1999, ABC really lost one of the last great family sitcoms of that decade. The following year another dynasty Boy Meets World ended after seven seasons.

The Hughleys during their second season in 1999 moved to Friday nights TGIF line-up but truthfully with Boy Meets World ending and the loss of Family Matters & Step By Step…where do you put this wonderful funny very honest sitcom? ABC ultimately cancelled The Hughleys in 2000 but they DID get picked up by a young network called UPN. The Hughleys aired on Monday nights the same nights as another wonderful sitcom of the early 21st Century that I discovered as a teenager in syndication The Parkers which was a spin-off the very popular sitcom Moesha starring Brandy Norwood that also aired on UPN. The Parkers grew their fanbase but The Hughleys could not and I don’t understand. I don’t know if DL was bitter about what happened at ABC which I wouldn’t blame him. I know it didn’t help UPN was going against five other networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX and The WB). After two seasons on UPN, The Hughleys came to an end. I also know that during the second season, DL joined The Original Kings Of Comedy and I think playing to huge arenas was exciting for him. One thing I can say about DL Hughley is he always has fun telling jokes then at the end of each show, DL roasts the entire audience like Don Rickles. Like any great comic who tries TV, once that ends, returning to the stage is a must.

Over the next several years, I saw DL doing stand-up everywhere. From The Tonight Show With Jay Leno to Chelsea Lately to Real Time With Bill Maher and of course Comedy Central which gave DL a wonderful special called Shocked & Appalled. The only thing I didn’t like about the special was the curse words had to be bleeped. I picked up on the words thanks to DL’s comedy album Notes From The GED Section. Both the special & the album showed DL going into topical as much as race. He went after the disaster of George W. Bush. He went after Kobe Bryant’s extra material affair and DL said he never order room service again!!! He also closed the special with a study that regular sex at least once a night can prevent cancer!!! So yes YOU CAN learn a thing or two and laugh at the same time. Don’t tell us reading isn’t fundamental.

The success of the special led to a short lived and may I say very funny weekend talk show called Weekends At The DL. The show aired once a week with DL smoking a cigar, doing a monologue of the week’s events, comedy skits and a panel with more comedians, more cigars, red wine, laughs, and no I was too young to be at that party but I wish I had been there. They talked about the news as if you were out with friends at a bar. I might have flirted with Kathy Griffin when she was there and DL judge me all you want I don’t give a flying fuck. I wish the show had gone longer than it did because it was during a golden age for Comedy Central when they had great stand-up specials, sketch shows, South Park was doing their job at offending the ultra PC left & the ultra uptight right and Jon Stewart hosted The Daily Show four nights a week instead of just on Monday.

DL became more and more political and as the world got more weirder in the final years of George W. Bush along with the first term of Barack Obama which made DL, myself and millions others very excited, we also know to always be on the look out for forces against progress. The worst thing someone can do in those moments is go silent. DL never went silent. He began appearing on cable news channels where he hosted a weekend show for a brief moment. DL even interviewed the libertarian leaning Republican Ron Paul to thunderous applause. That’s probably because Ron Paul didn’t kiss Rush Limbaugh’s ring or the ring of any other ultra right-wing loudmouth. Oh that’s right, Ron Paul didn’t foot for President Obama’s failure even though he didn’t agree with his vision for America. DL is by far a liberal on a lot of issues but on others, he’s not but I don’t cancel him for it. DL owns guns but he’s also wise enough to know it is way too easy to buy a gun in this country. He also supports free speech even with people he hates. That’s why God invented remote controls!!! I’m the same way, don’t ban speech, don’t BAN guns but make sure that people who shouldn’t be owning them, don’t own them!!!! I’ll never forget when DL appeared on The Kelly Files with Megyn Kelly. I think Megyn like a LOT of these cable anchors expected DL to be funny but he gave Megyn something else entirely and I loved seeing someone educate that little female Bill O’Reilly wannabe a couple things. Jon Stewart gave the same ass kicking to Tucker Carlson in 2004 on CNN when Tucker complained about Jon being too serious and not funny during the interview. Most comedians tell the truth more than most media figures anyway because they have nothing to lose. Once a comedian says “you aren’t wearing any pants” and everyone else knows that, game over for conformity!!!

I had the privilege of seeing DL in 2019 at a comedy club in Sarasota and it was a wonderful night. I took a friend from work and we had a ball. We hoped to meet DL after the show but sometimes it’s best to admire your comedic heroes from aside. I’ve met Sinbad, Mark Curry, and Henry Cho to name a few who were wonderful. DL is coming to Florida in about a month from now and I’ll do my best to see if I can make it. He’s actually coming with former cable host and always entertaining truth teller Don Lemon to St. Petersburg which is about 90 minutes from my house. Two funny folks, in one theater… that’s tempting. Let’s hope in 2028 we also hear Hughley Lemon Running For President!!! Common sense and sanity can finally come back to this damn world. In the meantime, DL will still keep telling the truth and making us laugh in the process.

Later in 2004, John released the double disc Word & Music with hits from the late 70s to the early 21st Century. If you’re a new listener, I suggest you start with that album and the unreleased track “Walk Tall.” I couldn’t go a day in 2005 without seeing the video on CMT or VH1. The song tackles prejudice which is a subject John has never been afraid to write & sing about. He saw it as a kid in Indiana in the 50’s and early 60’s and he hated. The song speaks of “the simple minded and uninformed” being led astray from love & acceptance. John was born in 1951 and is from Indiana so he saw it up close. Prejudice wasn’t right THEN and it’s not right nor will it ever be okay in my eyes or John’s or anyone with a damn conscience!!!!

I loved that the music video which was shot in black & white told the story with John as the narrator on the six string. We see a little person milkman portrayed by a young Peter Dinklage riding on his motorbike who is ostracized by the small town for his height. The milkman is refused ice cream. The local police look at him “waiting to do something wrong” and is even mugged by the town bullies. John sees the milkman and helps him up off the ground. There is hope when we see the milkman meet the love of his life who accepted him for the person inside. Seeing their love win over hate & fear was beautiful as the screen went to color.

With the help of epic producer and talented songwriter Kenny “Babyface” Edmunds, the song adds the extra factor. Listen carefully in the chorus when Babyface says “keep on walkin’, keep on talkin.’” The line is conveying “YOU have a First Amendment right to speak and act like an ignorant fool, YES that’s true. BUT I am removing myself from your nonsense because it serves me no purpose.” The moment we learn to apply it to our lives, we grow as human beings without “treating our life like a barroom fight.” I don’t want to die stinking of gin and I’d rather have my peace which I know I’m not alone in.

The arraignment was just simply amazing and I loved seeing John perform on TV. He would have an upright bass, accordion, mandolin, violin, and of course John on acoustic guitar before jumping up to dance like James Brown & Freddie Mercury. John still performs the song live in concert but I’ve noticed since at least 2010, the arraignment sounds more & more like a Bob Dylan song. I love the upright piano and that violin is still playing proudly. I was a little stunned at first but I knew the message of the song never went away plus I love that John has embraced that folk side of him as much as his good friend Bruce Springsteen. John loves making songs that are uplifting & entertaining. I know that balancing the two is a challenge, but John sets out to be an outstanding songwriter every time.

This curiosity of John sent me down a road of songs that would change my perspective on music and America forever. Songs like “Jack & Diane” that still ring in my heart about two American kids. The arraignment is all over the place at first listen but once you hear John strum on the acoustic guitar, then we get a story with the song. They don’t write songs like that anymore. “Small Town” is a song that didn’t really speak to me until I moved to Florida which has always felt more like home than Delaware ever was. John never dreamed of LA and New York City but I did as a kid. I wanted to do bigger things when I still lived up North. When I moved to Florida at 20, I found the things that John was speaking about in “Small Town.” I found The Center, my wife Jennifer, the best concerts of my life have been here, beaches and I’m happy to say myself and many of our neighbors have a pool on our property. Every time I take a dip in mine, I realize… I’m having a ball in this small town and I can breathe in the small town like John said I would.

“Small Town” is one of the many great songs on a 1985 masterpiece entitled Scarecrow. John said the influences on this album would include Tennessee Williams & John Steinbeck even more so The Rolling Stones & Bob Dylan. You can hear the poignant tale of farmers trying to make a living on “Rain On The Scarecrow” and some of those hard-working Americans are in John’s family. I know a lot of that inspired John to start Farm Aid with Willie Nelson & Neil Young to help family farms from going under and the event still occurs each year to help those who work with their hands in the hot sun no matter whether their back or hands hurt a little bit or lot. I also dig the Salute to 60’s Rock and Soul on “R.O.C.K In The U.S.A.” which I first heard on a concert special Mellencamp did with Kenny Chesney in the early 2000’s. I must say I also enjoyed how they turned “Small Town” into a soul ballad during that event on CMT. I loved seeing John give his grandmother a chance to sing a folk ballad on the album. She always called him buddy and reminded him of his worth like every loving grandparent shines in doing. I also was moved by the ballad “Minutes To Memories” which sounds great on the album and on MTV Unplugged. The song talks about working hard, not griping & dwelling on little shit we likely cannot control and being the best person God wants you to be.

Two albums in the 90’s that stand out for me with John I’ll always recommend are 1993’s Human Wheels and 1994’s Dance Naked. Two brilliant but very different albums in every way and both earned four star reviews in Rolling Stone magazine. Human Wheels throughout the album but especially on the title track take a look at getting older while accepting the passing of time without getting bitter & angry about it. That mandolin “Human Wheels” will get you to dance a bit and it blends with drums & electric guitar. I have to admit I did at lunch while getting the idea to write this article. John rebels on the track “Beige To Beige” talks about the world not having color and fighting against conformity. The same is also found on the last track “To The River” that John co-wrote with Janis Ian who gave us the 70’s classic “At Seventeen.” I also enjoy the rock love ballad “What If I Came Knocking” where drummer Kenny Aronoff drives the sticks like he’s running to save a relationship like the guy in the story says when he asks the woman to open the window and drop down the key.

Dance Naked came after an argument with his label Mercury at the time saying they didn’t know how to promote Human Wheels which John took as “they didn’t like the record so we won’t promote it the way we would others we like.” John took the lack of enthusiasm from Mercury as a dare to make an album suitable for radio but that didn’t lose John’s rock & soul. In just two weeks and only nine songs, Mercury was given the surprise smash Dance Naked and the label ate much crow to say the least. The album is very sparse with half the songs having no bass while others have a guitar, a bass, a drum & a tambourine which I saw a lot of in John’s touring band for a very long time usually with those gorgeous backup singers making John step up his game even more.

The title track says what we all want to say to our partner or someone we are attracted to but without crudeness or arrogance. Hard to do but well worth the rewards if you are successful. Van Morrison’s classic “Wild Night” which features bass player Meshell Ndgeocello. John was introduced to Meshell by his friend Tim White of Billboard magazine. Tim has pitched Meshell to many artists but John was the ONLY one that listened to Tim. “Brothers” goes deep about sibling rivalry but the deep love despite differences while working it out in the end. I love the upbeat soulful on “LUV” which stands for “Let Us Vote.” In the song, John is calling out out the nonsense of America in the early 90’s while everyone was caught up in superficial bullshit. We find that same messages on “Another Sunny Day” Pete Seeger infused guitar flowing with very little else but the percussion and extra guitars flow with John saying he doesn’t want to live angry or live scared. I know many people felt that way about the state America is in now and I’m one of those Americans. I’m not a Republican or a conservative and never will be.

At the start of 2007, I was in college and working at the campus radio station when not going to classes and there was John with an album called Freedom’s Road which I still hail as one of his best. The album is a 1960’s soul-rock protest album with 21st Century lyrics about the post 9/11 world and a protest to the disastrous Presidency of stood for in the decade of the 2000’s. John spoke to the anger myself and millions of others had toward that disaster of an administration. From the opening track “Someday,” John sings to America saying do not give into hate & prejudice and we learn that love is the only way into the kingdom of heaven. Though I wasn’t a believer in God at the time , I thought if heaven did exist, John’s vision of heaven sounds awesome.

“The Americans” I first heard John perform when interviewed John for HDNet and I saw footage of Walter Reed Medical Center. I love the message of no matter where we live, we should love each other and root for each other no matter where are from in America. My favorite line near the end of the song is “be happy and be WHO you are.” We should all aim for that no matter who is in power. During the concert I saw many soldiers in the audience dancing with their kids and I thought “these kids don’t know John Mellencamp and now they are hearing greatness!!!” ‘

By far the best song on the album is “Our Country” because like “The Americans” it talks about how most people view America and what will help all of us win. When we learn to forgive others along with ourselves, when we allow science & progress to live, when bigotry is seen is obscene and that the poor & common among us who built the country are the true authentic heroes. I also admire John for making the difficult decision to allow Chevy to use “Our Country” in their commercials. I know it’s something that John shunned for years but if people hear this song and apply to their everyday life, then John is more than a “song & dance” man. Nothing wrong with that title but I know John aims for more.

John said to PBS while promoting Freedom’s Road that he wrote about 50 songs and there were about 11 so I was excited to learn there would be another album quick and thanks to David Letterman, I was thrilled to hear Life Death Love and Freedom in 2008. I began to notice a shift in John’s music from the album though it’s also excellent. It was more Johnny Cash & Bob Dylan. More blues and less arena rock. John called the album Electric Folk. The lyrics were about appreciating life each day. I especially noticed this on the opening track “Longest Days” and “If I Die Sudden.” The closest thing to “Ring Of Fire” on the album is “My Sweet Love.” The opening drum & guitars scream that tune screams passion & makes you want to dance around the kitchen with your partner or spouse. On the tune “Troubled Land,” John reminds us to attain peace that we as a nation must not live in silence or conformity and that the pain we were feeling near the end of the Bush years is one everyone felt. The tune reminds us we can choose to be angry at the world OR we can start peace with how we treat each other just like Gandhi reminded us. I also want to give a mention to “A Ride Back Home” with Karen Fairchild of the awesome country band Little Big Town who did a wonderful job with John on the album Freedom’s Road. The song talks about mortality weariness and frustration with the world acting cruel at times. The music video was shot in a church with John, Karen, and the band wearing all black but at the same time giving the congregation a message of hope that needs to be shown more than fear.

The last album I want to give mention to in the first volume of my salute to the music of John Mellencamp was No Better Than This which I give the great David Letterman AND for helping me on this beautiful masterpiece. Tavis had John on for a whole week to play tracks from the album and John even played the 1983 tune “Pink Houses” I loved the arraignment of the band: two electric guitars, an upright bass, drum and John on the accoustic except on the heartbreaking ballad I used to listen to a lot on the barstool in my drinking days “Don’t Forget About Me” which pleads for his love to think of the consequences of her mistreating the narrator of the song.

Like Life Death Love And Freedom, the album No Better Than This was produced by the brilliant T-Bone Burnett. John normally produces his own album but he liked T-Bone’s approach of “less is more." T-Bone is a genius and he’s produced many singers/songwriters/musicians AND two of my favorite movie soundtracks Walk The Line & O Brother Where Art Thou. T-Bone has worked with Sir Elton John, Roy Orbison, Steve Earle, Tony Bennett & kd Lang on the same album to name a few. T-Bone’s approach to producing music is very different than John’s. John wants to put every ornament on the Christmas tree if it sounds great, let’s do add on!!! T-Bone likes to strip a tree down to the essence to let the song speak for itself. T-Bone is a damn guitarist himself and even got to work with Bob Dylan!!!

John was touring with Bob at the time of the recording and during the breaks, John would summon his band at three very historic locations to lay the 13 tracks down for No Better Than This:

-First African Baptist Church in Savanah, Georgia

-The home of Elvis, Johnny Cash, & Jerry Lee Lewis.. Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee!!!

and

-The Sheraton Hotel in San Antonio, Texas where one of John’s heroes blues guitarist Robert Johnson recorded “Sweet Home Chicago” and “Cross Road Blues”

John also recorded the album in MONO and only ONE mic. The MIC was a 1955 Ampex portable so John along with the band had to play in a circle like blues & folk musicians did. “X” marks were used to make sure everything was aligned properly. It’s a 53 minute festival of blues, folk and rockabilly that you won’t hear on the radio sadly but thanks to shows like Tavis’ and David Letterman.. YOU WILL!!!

The first track “Save Some Time To Dream” I heard during the week of performances with Tavis and it was uplifting to the listener trying to find their way in this world. I loved “Coming Down The Road” which examines a man trying to find peace, truth and solace but encountered trouble on the journey. I think we all go through that at times. “The West End” examines that and similar thoughts on “Pink Houses” asking what will happen to us if we forget the working people of America? I was also moved by “Thinking About You” about giving love a second chance after years apart. I see that happen to so many beautiful couples and when they reunite it makes me play this tune and I’m reminded love wins every time. I saw a couple on Unsolved Mysteries who had a daughter when they were 16 and 18 but were reunited at a high school reunion years later. I was happy they got married and equally as thrilled they found their daughter not long after. The song resembles very sweet people that who get a second chance and take it without fear.

I promise there will be a Volume 2 in good time. I’ve given you Substackers and aspiring music geeks to enjoy. Oh and don’t forget as John said “Life is short.. even in it’s Longest Days.”

“Rubber Ducky, you’re the one!!!

You make bathtub lots of fun!!!

Rubber Ducky, I’m awfully fond of you!!!”

That individual I later learned was the Architect Of Rock & Roll himself.. Little Richard!!!!! I also credit the very first computer that my father gave me when I was eight for Christmas for finally putting a name to Little Richard’s voice. The computer came with a couple of CD encyclopedias where I could read about the history of US Presidents, world leaders, and of course listen to audio clips of music from all over the world. While I was reading about the history of rock & roll, I found “Heartbreak Hotel” by Elvis Presley and “Good Golly Miss Molly” by Little Richard!!! I have great respect for Elvis and what he did for opening the doors for rock music to what it could be BUT….Little Richard was a different story. Little Richard didn’t just play the piano.. he POUNDED the steinway with passion and Little Richard didn’t just sing either, HE TESTIFIED and the kids paid attention just like. they did to Elvis The Pelvis. Elvis could sing & dance YES BUT Little Richard like Fats Domino and Jerry Lee Lewis proved that the piano is just as important to rock music as the guitar is.

Little Richard was born Richard Wayne Penniman in Macon, Georgia in 1932. He was one of twelve children to a father who was a bricklayer and sold moonshine to support his large family. Richard’s God Fearing mother Leva Mae Stewart supported her son’s love of music and encouraged Richard to sing in church where his love tickling the ivories began at a young age. Richard’s father Charles’ view on his son was one of hatred. Charles never supported his son wanting to play music and in fact when Richard was kicked out of the house at 13. As a teenager, he toured medicine shows and found an audience outside the church that encouraged the aspiring musician to let loose. Richard would wear capes like he was a damn superhero and sometimes he dressed in drag although he also performed with gospel performers of the 1940’s like Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Brother Joe May as a teenager. The ability to play for ANY audience meant it wasn’t too long before Richard Penniman would perform to large crowds with every face in the audience you could imagine. I do believe music has that power to connect with all of us. Then one horrible night.. life gave Richard a blow I would NEVER wish on anyone.

When Richard was 19, his father Charles was murdered outside a nightclub and Richard had take a job washing dishes at a Greyhound bus station to support his mother & younger siblings. Richard wasn’t bitter though. He was very determined to not let racism or any critic saying “you’re not good enough” stop him from making a living as a musicianship. Richard attempted to make two recordings for RCA after being signed to the label in 1951 but nothing significant came out yet except a new name.. Little Richard!!! The independent label Peacock in Houston also gave Little Richard a try but there was still the matter of him finding his own style. Ray Charles had to learn that early in his career after imitating Nat King Cole on stage. Richard was taking what he learned in this church but mixing with boogie-woogie played in juke joints which would later inspire what we know as funk & soul music. Mixed together… the sound is known as rock & roll!!!!

It took a small label called Speciality Records to recognize Little Richard’s talent and they gave him a platform to play music the way he felt. With Fats Domino’s backing band, Richard co-writing with Dorothy LaBostrie, and I’m sure much prayer, Little Richard bursted out on the national scene in 1955 with “Tutti-Frutti.” From the first words..

“Wop-bop-a-loo-mop alop bom-bom”

Popular music would NEVER be the same again. It made you want to dance with your friends. It made you want to flirt with a cute girl you saw at the diner or the sock hop. It made your parents and other square angry bitter old folks go “what the hell is this noise!!!!?!?!?” It still confuses me to this day that Pat Boone had a hit with this wonderful tune but thankfully history & folks that love music like me realize the true master mind behind this song was Little Richard. I don’t just say this because Richard co-wrote the song, I say this because he was a bad ass on the piano & vocally. The hits continued and we would find many on the 1957 debut Here’s Little Richard with:

-“Long Tall Sally”

-“Ready Teddy”

-“Slippin’ and Slidin”

And

-“Rip It Up” to name a few

Little Richard went from playing small clubs to elegant theaters and the girls went nuts for this new budding star. Sometimes they would throw their undergarments to him as they did for many rock stars of that era and whether that still happens now or not, I don’t know. I’m pretty sure like Elvis & Jerry Lee Lewis that Richard loved the attention.. in the beginning at least. Fame allowed Little Richard to move into a large house for his mother and to escape the poverty he endured as a child. Little Richard was recording tracks for his sophomore album that would be released in 1958. The album features the hits famous Good Golly Miss Molly,” “Lucille” and one of my favorite personal favorites “Keep a Knockin’” I also loved the rockin version of “By The Light of the Silvery Moon” which was first published almost 50 years earlier and later recorded by Doris Day. Little Richard might have become more famous than Elvis Presley but while touring with Eddie Cochran & Gene Vincent, Little Richard announced he was leaving behind rock music to pursue a career in ministry. The rising superstar claims he heard God speak to him about the future was after a difficult flight from Melbourne to Sydney, Australia. While on land, he saw a bright red fireball in the sky. Little Richard was later told that was at a satellite for Sputnik 1 but I can understand why it would make any young person with fame & fortune to question “is this all there is?” The final moment that did it for Richard after learning that a fight he was supposed to be on crashed in the Pacific thus sparing his life.

After a farewell performance at The Apollo Theater, Little Richard enrolled in Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama. He eventually became a minister and traveling bible salesman vowing never to make rock music again. I don’t know who got more doors slammed in their face: Willie Nelson selling encyclopedias, Johnny Cash selling appliances or Little Richard selling bibles in your neighborhood. I’ll let you make the call on that one. God never took the gift of music away from Little Richard though and why would he if he’s a loving God that wants his message delivered to the masses? During his early years as a minister, Little Richard made three Gospel albums which included hymns like

-“Just A Closer Walk With Thee”

-“Precious Lord

-“Peace In The Valley”

-“Coming Home” and many more.

Richard even earned the praises of one of gospel music singer Mahlia Jackson who was on Johnny Cash’s variety show in the early 1970’s but by 1962, Little Richard was called to play rock & roll again but this time in Europe after learning his records were selling like hot cakes. Little Richard brought with him soul singer Sam Cooke as opening act along with teenage epic pianist Billy Preston for his gospel band because Little Richard was under the assumption that it was a gospel tour. Richard was actually unaware his re

Sam Cooke was unable to make the opening night and after playing a show of entirely gospel music, the audience protested and booed. They were expecting “Good Golly Miss Molly” like many British fans were at the time!!! The next night, Little Richard saw Sam Cooke perform and knew it was time for some “Long Tall Sally” and Little Richard gave the crowd what they were craving and they ate it up like chocolate on Christmas morning. During the European tour, Little Richard got a call from Brian Epstein and asked if his band could open for Little Richard and these “Fab Four” lads from Liverpool were very excited to meet their idol and their names were none other than The Beatles!!!!!

Little Richard was in demand and how wonderful it must have been for John, Paul, George and Ringo to receive private lessons on how to sing & perform like their idol Professor Little Richard. The Beatles weren’t the only lucky ones on this journey of rediscovering who Richard Penniman was as a rock star. In 1963, Little Richard was asked to help out on a tour that featured The Everly Brothers (which was often found in my dad’s Corvette), Bo Diddley and another British rock group led by Mick Jagger called The Rolling Stones. If you look at the raw energy of Mick, it goes back to both Little Richard and James Brown. It’s that fearlessness of going left and right on stage when the squares of the world want you to walk straight and narrow. Little Richard was dressing flashy again too and at times, I suspect that his friend and guitarist Jimi Hendrix inspired his fashion for the late 60’s and 70’s for Richard. Even on the British variety show This Is Tom Jones, Little Richard wore a damn cape like he was Captain Rock Star. I knew Little Richard was ready to fly on his duets with Tom.

Little Richard was extremely grateful for his success in Europe but he knew that getting same respect again in North America again was not going to be easy and it wasn’t. He stole the show in Toronto opening for John Lennon and again in Atlantic City from Janis Joplin. Richard was having the time of his life on stage but inside he was a mess. He began to drink and cocaine to deal with his comeback. He later would add in heroin and PCP (angel dust) to the mix. In 1977, Richard kicked the addictions for good and once again returned to evangelism & gospel music. It’s easy to “make love” to 20,000-50,000 people a show and then when you get off stage, you have to deal with real life whether you want to or not. That’s likely why many musicians turn to vices because you feel like a machine even when you are doing what you love. I think Little Richard wanted to be right with God but he also had to learn to love himself as a human being and thankfully over the next few decades that involved my discovery of Little Richard greatness as a rocker but as a human being. In the early 1980’s, Little Richard began to appear on programs like Late Night With David Letterman & The Tonight Show to talking openly and honestly about his past life but how he was getting things right with God which he did. Part of that journey meant trying new things like acting in movies such as 1986’s Down and Out In Beverly Hills with Richard Dreyfus, Nick Nolte & Bette Midler Little Richard not only played the next door neighbor BUT he also got to sing in the film too!!! No film or TV director will ever take away Little Richard’s cool points without hearing a loud “SHUT UP!!!!!”

That same year, Little Richard along with Elvis, Chuck Berry, Fats Domino, Jerry Lee Lewis, James Brown, Buddy Holly and even Richard’s touring partner Sam Cooke were the first inductees into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame!!!! The recognition led to not just rocking out on Sesame Street other guest starring roles in Colombo, The Magic School Bus, The Drew Carey Show, Blossom, Baywatch and one of my personal favorites… Full House!!!! ANYTIME John Stamos rocks out with a legend, I’m here for it. I think they respect John in turn because he plays multiple instruments himself (guitar, piano and the DRUMS!!!!) I’l never forget that 1994 episode. Little Richard came by as Michelle’s friend Denise’s “Uncle Richard” to help out Joey’s run for PTA President against Mrs. Carruthers who was played by the funny & lovely Marcia Wallace who I miss as much as Richard. In that episode, Little Richard played a 50’s rock version “Itsy Bitty Spider” which even got me dancing. Two years earlier, the beautiful children’s song was recorded the album For Our Children for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. John Stamos said Little Richard playing YOUR piano or keyboard was like Henry Ford tuning your car to which Little Richard didn’t object. Later in that episode at the fundraiser, Joey, Danny & Uncle Jesse did a doo- wop number AND the kids got to sing & dance on stage.. The Legendary but a little TARDY Little Richard finally took the stage with Jesse & The Rippers to play the classic “Keep A Knockin’” which I still love to dance to. It’s still one of my favorite scenes from Full House.

The success of “Itsy Bitsy Spider” led to a children’s album in 1992 for Disney called Shake It All About and YES “The Hokey Pokey” is the first track on the album. The album also features.

-“On Top Of Old Spaghetti”

-“Old Macdonald Had A Farm”

-“If You’re Happy And You Know It”

and

-“Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to name a few

AND I also love that the album also features inspirational tunes like “When The Saints Go Marching In” and “He’s Got The Whole World In His Hands” which I first heard sung on the very first episode of the popular sitcom Family Matters in 1989 by the adults. Little Richard got to raise even more money for The Elizabeth Glaser Foundation by appearing with James Brown on Wheel Of Fortune. They were playing against country singer Lee Greenwood and the awesome comedy genius that is Weird Al. Al mentioned this experience on Late Night With Seth Meyers. Seeing James learn the game was priceless and also learning that Little Richard’s manager discovered Richard, James Brown and the wonderful soul singer we lost way too soon who sang about a Dock On The Bay.. Mr. Otis Redding!!

Anytime I saw Little Richard pop up in an interview squealing with joy or pounding the piano along with singing with joy. I saw the joy that God wants for all of us on Planet Earth. It took time Little Richard to reach that point of clarity but how beautifully it is when you reach that top of the mountain. He inspired rock musicians from The Beatles to The Rolling Stones to Billy Joel to Elton John to Prince to Michael Jackson to Rob Halford of Judas Priest and even Bruno Mars who paid tribute in 2021 to Little Richard at The Grammy Awards with Silk Sonic’s Anderson .Paak after Richard’s passing the year before. I see echos of Richard in Bruno especially on songs like “Runaway Baby” or “Locked Out Of Heaven” which is Little Richard meets Prince meets Sting. An art form must NEVER lose sight of their roots. Rock & Roll would NEVER have their attitude or excellence without piano playing giants like Little Richard WHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!

Fats government first name is Antoine and his story begins on February 26th, 1928 in the Lower 9th Ward of The Big Easy (New Orleans’s nickname.) Antoine was the youngest of eight children in a family that wasn’t rich but they weren’t poor either. Music came to Antoine like cheese to a hungry mouse. If Antoine saw it, he would absorb it. His father worked at the race track but also was a part-time violinist. Antoine’s brother-in-law Harrison Verrett played banjo & trumpet in the dance halls married Antoine’s sister when Antione was just four. Harrison was not only a very talented and disciplined musician but he was also a sharp dresser as the musicians in those days always were. Harrison was the one that taught Antoine to play the piano but he reminded his little brother-in-law that if you can play traditional jazz as well as popular songs of the day, you can play on any stage anywhere in the world.

Antoine left school at a very young age to pursue a music career and actually the only odd job he ever had was hauling ice. In the 1940’s, the sounds of boogie-woogie seduced Antoine who thanks to New Orleans bass player and band leader Billy Diamond gave Antoine a new nickname Fats after Fats Waller who was best known for the pop standard “Ain’t Misbehavin’“ which I heard for the first time a few years ago from Willie Nelson. Jack Horner, please save me a piece of pie in that corner, sir!!!

Waller & Domino were both large figures that both played the piano with emotion & excitement to get the people dancing. In the last days of the 1940’s, Fats met the McCartney to his Lennon in Dave Bartholomew who helped Fats get signed to Imperial Records and Dave would co-wrote many of the major hits Fats would have in the 1950’s but the song that started it all was “The Fat Man” in December 1949 going into 1950!!! Many consider it the first “rock and roll” record and it peaked at #6 on the R&B charts giving Fats a hit on his first debut single which I ponder how many people are that lucky right out of the gate.

Fats’ thunderous piano playing also caught the eye of another founding father of rock & roll Lloyd Price and Fats contributed his piano skills to Lloyd’s self-penned 1952 standard “Lawdy Miss Clawdy” which was later recorded by Elvis Presley. The same year Elvis broke out in 1955, Fats would score his first top 10 pop hit with the very first tune that made me fall in love with Fats’s music and that was “Ain’t That A Shame!!!” It’s one of the most upbeat tunes about heartache I have ever heard. I think Fats was trying to say to the folks that even if your tears fall like rain, you don’t need wallow around in sorrow forever. I’ll never understand why Pat Boone got a #1 single with “Ain’t That A Shame” but Fats didn’t. Fats was always ten times more talented plus I tend to respect people who play an axe a little more whether it’s a piano or a guitar.

Fats brought us upbeat the following year with the exciting “I’m In Love Again” which went to #3. You also might find your thrill again on “Blueberry Hill” which is exactly what Fats did the following year and he made it to #2 on the pop charts which has also been recorded by Elvis & Louis Armstrong. Even Richie Cunningham from Happy Days has hailed “Blueberry Hill” as his favorite song. Fats was regularly appearing on The Ed Sullivan Show & American Bandstand. In a world with only three channels, those were two important shows to appear on if you were a popular recording star in the 50’s and 60’s. The recognition led to more hits like “Blue Monday,” Fats’ self-titled ballad “I Want To Walk You Home” and “I’m Walkin.” Fats was also touring nonstop. At one point, Fats did 340 dates out of 365 days at one point. Some nights he made up to $2,500 a concert. That would explain why the man owned 50 suits and 100 pairs of shoes. You would need a stylish collection of clothes to keep everything fresh each night.

The 1960’s saw change for Fats. He scored hits with “Walkin To New Orleans” & “My Girl Josephine” along with tackling the work of Hank Williams more than once. Fats recorded the Hank Williams standards “Jambalaya (On The Bayou)” along with “You Win Again” and “Your Cheating Heart.” Fats also ended his relationship with Imperial Records and with songwriting partner Dave Bartholomew. The music world was beginning to change too in that decade. One band that were the biggest part of that change in music & culture were four men known as The Beatles. Fats jammed with The Fab Four and even recorded the classic “Lady Madonna.” It would be Fats last major hit on the charts. Like Ray Charles recoding “Yesterday,” Fats Domino makes the song his own and treats the tune with respect. John Lennon would later record “Ain’t That A Shame” on the 1975’s tribute to 50’s & 60’s music simply titled Rock “N” Roll.

Fats continued to tour for the couple of decades all over the world. I noticed rock stars like Fats, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison were as popular in Europe and times in the 70’s and 80’s they were treated more like rock stars over there than in the US at times. I understand trends & taste change but Fats was thankfully respected by his peers including Elvis who called Fats “The real king of rock and roll.” In 1986, Fats was among the first inductees into The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and was inducted by one of his biggest fans Billy Joel. Billy mentioned in his speech for Fats that after Billy was playing classical music and got ZERO feedback from his father Howard, Billy then played “Ain’t That A Shame” and got smacked in the head by his father. It turns out Howard was a classical pianist and Billy said “my father heard me!!!! I’ll should play rock & roll!!” Fats was appreciative but he also said he wished Elvis, Buddy Holy and Sam Cooke were alive to see their induction like he was to see his own. Fats was humble with his fame and didn’t want to draw too much attention to himself UNLESS he was on stage. Sometimes things have to stay on stage and not come off with you. I admire that Fats gave the other recipients their props too. They’re all in the same club that is rock & roll.

Fats eventually stopped touring in 1995 simply because his royalties from his hit songs were handsome enough that he didn’t need to tour plus he wasn’t able to find the food he liked when he wasn’t in New Orleans. He used to cook crawfish for breakfast!!! That’s dedication I “gar-on-tee!!!!” Fats still appeared at local events in New Orleans and President George W. Bush presented Fats with a National Meal Of Arts after the medal President Clinton gave Fats got lost during Hurricane Katrina. Fats would late make his final studio album in 2006 Alive and Kickin’ and the man hadn’t lost his foot while the album raised $150,000 for Tipitina’s Foundation whose mission is to protect & preserve the musical culture of New Orleans. The following year, Fats took the stage for the final time at the music venue also called Tipitina’s to 800 screaming fans in Uptown New Orleans. I counted five saxophone players who didn’t miss a beat with Fats especially on “I’m In Love Again” Fats pounded that piano and didn’t miss one note. The saxophone players probably whispered “no one pounds it like Fats and I can’t believe we get paid for this!!!!”

Fats Domino got much respect at the start of his career and at the end. Not many can say they got both. Fats didn’t have 1,000 lovers like Gene Simmons but he didn’t need 1,000. Fats was married to the same woman for 61 years until Rosemary’s death in 2008 and they were the loving parents of eight children. Aside from his extensive wardrobe collection, Fats’ only other flashy toy was his pink Cadillac that he loved to drive around town in. I’m sure that got him free meals wherever he went or extra coins for the slot machines. I saw Fats Domino as the man who proved you could rock out on the piano and if you’re true to yourself, God will take you places that you need thought possible as long as you stay true to yourself.

I never went to church as a kid. My parents believed in God but my dad’s view on the subject was:

“I can talk to God whenever I want, bud. I don’t need a building for it.”

My dad was cool with a crowd sometimes when he knew he was around people that cared but other times he wanted to be in his office watching the History Channel, war movies, movies with Tom Hanks (Dad helped me become a fan of Tom) OR The O’Reilly Factor of course. Sadly, I never saw Saving Private Ryan with Dad. My mom was a sales manager at a clothing store then a furniture store and I know the sales associates in that industry very very well. It’s a job with very demanding hours. That’s why I spent a lot of time with my Mom Mom Nita or my Mom Mom Betty because both my parents worked A LOT. Both of my grandmothers went to church, they read their Bible and believed in God. They never took me to church but that’s probably a good thing because I was a handful plus my attention span was not very long. It’s much better now and I understand things are bigger than we are but as a child, you often don’t know that.

As a teenager, I began dating my first serious girlfriend Sam who was Catholic and very devoted. I went to church with her family and it was mandatory. One because it was important to them and probably because her dad caught Sam & I kissing one night in the living room. No lecture but he did call me “Romeo” so I thought “yeah better do what these folks say.” He also liked me more than her mother and grandmother ever did. Oddly enough, he never went to mass with us for reasons I really don’t know. Now when you go to a Catholic Church for mass, you need to be prepared. The singing at times, even when sung in English, can be difficult to comprehend. There’s also the getting up and down at times. I couldn’t relate to the atmosphere and when Sam & I spilt in the summer of 2006, I stopped going to church. Another fact that came in was televangelist John Hagee. His fuming at gay people and calling them strange really made me angry and made my Mom Mom Nita upset especially given her youngest son is gay. I also saw many gay people at my high school MOSTLY in the drama club when I did plays. All incredibly sweet and lovely people I would never be against. I do not know WHY any human being would be against anyone who was gay or trans.

After the break-up with Sam, I began to seek out the world on own. My dad’s health was beginning to fail and my mother continued to work long hours at the furniture store. I loved doing whatever I wanted to do JUST FOR ME. I went to movies and Barnes & Noble almost every Saturday and I was in school or watching game shows, Larry King & David Letterman of course. I played basketball with my best friend Ben who’s an ordained minister in the city of Baltimore and works with people in addiction recovery. He never “witnessed” to me or spouted Bible verses. He was just my best friend who never cursed and still doesn’t. He also never drank and still doesn’t at almost 41. Ben just carries himself as a good man without shaming other people who and you can’t shame a person out of sin or feeling demoralized. Mocking or shaming will ONLY deepen a person’s distrust. My Mom Mom Nita’s favorite minister Joel Osteen never put people down and as he told 60 Minutes in 2005 that he’s as much a minister as he is a life coach and a motivator to help people experience a life where God is loving and forgiving. Joel said most people who aren’t on the right path know something is not right. Beating them down won’t get them to listen. Joel has said that even in the tough times, you must embrace where you are and God is giving you the strength to overcome. You can even be positive in a negative situation. That helped me a lot three years ago when I quit drinking because I was afraid life would be boring, mundane and sad which I didn’t want.

That message known as “the prosperity gospel” made sense to me. It wasn’t fueled with sarcasm or anger which I see some “television preachers” do but I’ve never seen Joel act like a “carnival barker.” I also will say Joel Osteen is the ONLY preacher I’ve seen on TV I know that can tell a joke and EVERYONE in the room gets the joke. Joel starts off his weekly message with a funny story much his like his late father John did. My grandmother used to love opening that which stood out to me. Mom Mom Nita also loved that Joel loved his wife Victoria and their two children deeply. Mom Mom Nita used to say:

“his wife is so lovely and their kids are so adorable.”

That message of hope without anger & rejection stood out to me as someone who was also questioning A LOT about life. I wasn’t sure if marriage was for me. I knew I wanted to be a successful writer and be the next David Letterman who I admire to this day. I admired Dave for being funny, witty and fearless to say what needed to be said when the world was pretentious & obnoxious. He also had gorgeous women around him A LOT. I knew I didn’t want to live in Delaware for the rest of my life which was too boring for me. My mom didn’t think much of that but my dad WAS listening and he knew I was planning to drop out of college when I was 20 during my sophomore year after a photography class went bad. I never should have taken that class to begin with. My dad took us to Florida for Spring Break and I saw Cape Coral & Fort Myers for the first time. The beach atmosphere appealed to me and I loved seeing Perkins. We also had a pool on the house that Dad & I loved but it took us some convincing Mom. We were thrilled when she said yes.

I never thought about God during that decade long period of not believing afterwards although I’m pretty sure he has spoken to me when I didn’t believe there was one. I can think of several moments where he was speaking and I didn’t know it:

-My 21st birthday at Universal Studios when I saw Blue Man Group, went on the greatest roller coasters in the world including one involving The Simpsons, and I met with a fortune teller. She saw me finishing something I started and I knew she was talking about school which made my parents proud.

-Meeting my very dear friend who I’ll call Lisa C. in 2009 at Edison State College which is now Florida Southwest State College who told a story about helping other children understand those with disabilities. Lisa had spoken about the love of God and that we should show compassion & love for others. She was the first friend I called after my father died. Lisa met my dad only a couple of months before he passed at my 23rd birthday party. She was the only one I trusted to listen to me fully as I was trying to talk about that horrible day.

-When I got accepted to Florida Gulf Coast University which my father predicted would happen and he also said how proud he was of me for going back to school. Hearing your father say he’s proud of you is beautiful at any age be it 3 or 23.

-When I was a volunteer at a soup kitchen during 2012 for a class at FGCU. The assignment began with me visiting Lisa to give her a Christmas present but during our lovely Christmas meeting, God intervened and I listened even though I didn’t know it was him. A mother of four came to the front entrance telling us she had been robbed and just wanted Christmas for her kids. Lisa & I gathered two bags of toys for the kids.

-When I let a recovering homeless addict from that soup kitchen use my flip phone to call his parents to tell him that he was clean & sober. He didn’t want food, clothes, or money!!! All he wanted to call his parents to tell them he was alive. I knew if I didn’t do something, this man would have been in the graveyard within days. I think he had about 5% of life left in him but it went up after I let him call his parents. I do that again in a heartbeat and I know Lisa would to.

I also met very wonderful people from a small church that would often meet at Starbucks. They knew I was a bit to the left of them but they liked my take on movies & music. I once invited several of them to see Crazy Stupid Love with Ryan Gosling, Steve Carrell, Julianne Moore, Marisa Tomei and Emma Stone which we all loved. I went to the wedding of one of them and the groom’s father was the senior pastor of the church. One I said sounds like Seth Meyers!!! They prayed for me and rallied around me after the death of my father. The youth pastor Mike hosted game nights and invited me which I really enjoyed. He was very encouraging and answered questions about “being saved” as young as seven or eight and I asked Mike “how can a child know they need to be saved at that young an age?” I later learned Jeff Foxworthy got saved at age seven and I guess if you go to church as a child with your parents, the odds of getting saved at a young age are strong. It doesn’t always happen that way but in many cases it really does.

In 2015, I began working for WFTX which was Fox 4 News in Cape Coral, Florida. I saw myself working there for years hopefully to be an anchor or director in due time but sometimes God laughs at our plans and says “You need to hear this!!!” That came in the form of a friend from FGCU who said he wanted to set me up on a blind date. I trusted Vic because he knew my type. Please let her be funny, please be great to talk to, please be smart, please love movies.. PLEASE BE OVER 40. Now why do I say over 40? I was 27 at the time and by this time I had given up on women my own age because they never gave a damn about me. Vic said “she loves movies like you do, she’s funny, sweet, smart, beautiful and she’s 37.” I later learned Jen was 42. On a weekend in late October, Victor and friends introduced me to Jennifer. This angel was all of five-foot-three, soft-spoken with long flowing blonde hair like Farrah. Jennifer was a nurse who loved golf and was quite surprised to be set up on a date with a handsome man in his late 20’s who worked in what she thought was “fantasy land” and Jen still thinks that about the entertainment industry. Jennifer loves movies like I do and our first date was a Robert De Niro film called The Intern with Anne Hathaway where a widower becomes an intern at a fashion website and helps out his sweet but burned out workaholic boss. That night we later went to Starbucks and I showed Jen my Willie Nelson Greatest Hits CD which she enjoyed. I did ask Jen out on a second date to which she said she was playing golf with friends but saw she would love to catch up with “the group” again. Not what a guy wants to hear when he goes for the second date.

Our second meeting was at Jennifer’s church for a Halloween party!!! Now keep in mind, I had never liked Halloween in forever. I don’t know why. I like scary movies and one of the greatest television shows of the 1960s The Twilight Zone but that evening changed my life forever. Jenny was dressed in a purple witch costume and I was dressed like Fred Flintstone. Jenny was happy to see me but she told me she only wanted to be “friends” and that left me a bit confused to say the least as it would any guy. I loved the atmosphere of the church. It was intimate. No yelling. No judgement. No fire and brimstone. I was the youngest in the church at times but it never bothered me and still doesn’t when I am. The church was called The Center For Spiritual Living with the philosophy “change your thoughts, change your life.” It sounded similar to Joel’s message ONLY… THIS church was also supportive of the LGBT Community and that spoke VOLUMES to me. This was only the second church I saw like that in Southwest Florida and I decided to start attending. At first, it was to see Jennifer who sang in the Big Love Band choir. They didn’t sing “Amazing Grace” or “How Great Thou Art” or any traditional hymns. Their songs were spiritual and inspirational but in a way that would unite us all the way God wants us to be. Instead of Amen we usually say “And so it is” although my wife & I say both. The phrase “And so it is” gives the prayer to God and allows him take over.

The Center is based on the principles of spiritual writer Ernest Holmes who wrote the book The Science Of Mind in 1926 with the purpose of finding a relationship between humans & God. Each service we meditate for 15 minutes starting at 10 AM then there we break for 15 then at 10:30 we begin singing along with our mission statement of who are in the eyes of God and that we are here for him. We greet our friends in the faith then a second song starts followed by announcements then we read a passage from Ernest Holmes then we pray. Followed by a third song then we get into the keynote message of the week. The message is followed by the main lesson for the week which we say out loud after the reverend says it first before another prayer.

Science Of Mind shows not only how to pray, how to find self-confidence and has an emphasis on mediation. Ernest Holmes reminds us that self-confidence isn’t arrogance or pride:

“One who has learned to love all people will find plenty of people who will return that love.”

The church was there for me through difficult periods of my grandmother’s death, leaving Fox over a pay dispute, and let’s not forget “The Wild Man” years of drinking & partying that the church rarely saw. They reminded me of my worth and after I stopped drinking three years ago, their love only increased. It says a lot about any house of worship who welcomes you back with open arms after you deal with a serious problem. They helped me see life would be okay without alcohol. Ernest Holmes said regarding learning to love & trust:

“When we learn to trust the universe, we shall be happy, prosperous and well”

I learned to pray and not respond to a lot of the nonsense that used to get me so angry. It can still be a challenge sometimes but the faith helps me forgive and remember that most times when people are angry, it has nothing to do with you. It usually has to do with the other person but when you forgive, you give yourself peace. I understand there are people that “hate everyone equally.” The “I Hate Everyone” club is for socially immature people that don’t know how to move forward when unpleasant moments occur. Those individuals have an inability to trust others because they are “stuck in the past” and therefore have very poor social skills. Once you let go and let GOD, you say YES to so many positive experiences. You may even understand people that you otherwise would have dismissed. Once you let go, you gain a sense of peace that might not come right away but it does come and I’ve been a member of The Center for over a decade.

Jennifer & I have experienced many wonderful events at our church. Our favorite by far is the Spooktacular (The Halloween Party) each year. Jenny has dressed like a cat, a fairy and a pirate. I’ve dressed as a Gummy Bear, a ghostbuster, and a personal favorite of mine Mr. Incredible!!!! It was fun handing out candy to the kids in the neighborhood of the church whose parents brought them to our party. I especially loved the dish of "Haunted Pigs In A Blanket” that our friend Chris made and I told her that I had pigs in a blanket on the night I graduated from Florida Gulf Coast University which was a beautiful memory revisited. I found myself dancing to The Casper Cha Cha Slide and leading everyone at one Spooktacular. Chris in turn helped me relearn The Electric Slide.

The wonderful people in this church helped plan my 35th birthday and my first as an alcohol free man. We saw a band called Deb & The Dynamics who are a mix of Motown meets back to basics rock. We danced and I felt present for the first time in years. We took part in a LGBT Pride parade that was one of the most exciting experiences of my life marching for the freedom to love who you love without prejudice. We saw a show called Celtic Women Christmas which I NEVER would have seen if my church hadn’t been so encouraging. I love live performances but I didn’t know what to expect with this show. I saw singing and mostly dancing with guitars & violins to sounds of the holiday season. I’ve tried new foods including chili because of one of our practitioners. We have a potluck once a month that might be the reason I am NOT 115 lbs anymore because that chili, deviled eggs, shrimp cocktail, and other items are made with love.

The sense of community & being accepted have healed my heart. The Center has been there for us at our highest moments and our lowest. They’ve never judged me or told me I was “too loud” or “too much.” They never told me to “go away” or “leave them alone.” I might have startled one by saying “what’s happening” at the wrong time but we hugged it out not long after. I admit I still love making people laugh and bringing joy to the world. I know that’s what God wants. The Center helped me realize I am bigger than just a “class clown.” They helped us all of us realize we are strong, brave, have compassion, and we can walk in joy no matter season of life we are in.

My wife Jenny and I first visited Key West together at the end of 2020. To our surprise, the place was packed, and we partied like 1999 as if Prince never left the Earth. We saw some of the most beautiful butterflies in the world at The Tropical Forest & Botanical Gardens. President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s FERA (Federal Emergency Relief Administration) started The Botanical Gardens in 1936. Tourists have come and returned in droves, which saved Key West after the city went bankrupt during The Great Depression of the 1930s. Couples have even gotten married at these famous Gardens. Some of the most beautiful butterflies in the world have been saved from extinction thanks to the city of Key West and the famous Gardens. One of the most famous butterflies the city saved from extinction includes the Miami Blue, which has wings that are bright metallic blue in males and dark gray with some blue towards the base of the wings in females. The underside of the wings in both sexes is gray with a white band on the hind wing and four black spots. I also have a very soft spot for the flamingos in those lovely Gardens, which might explain why I have a tiny flamingo fan. Like the butterflies, the flamingos are graceful and exude a confidence that we as human beings have to work extra hard to achieve.

Key West gives you the atmosphere of a beach town with the excitement of New Orleans along with the never-sleeping attitude of New York City without the excessive and at times very silly laws that should not be on the books. Jenny had been to the city many times, so she helped me not get too lost along with elevating my appreciation for life and culture. We saw the Ernest Hemingway house, who I knew a little bit about thanks to the excellent Woody Allen film Midnight in Paris, which I saw when I was 23 right after my father died, and I cried my eyes out after seeing that film. I geeked out when I saw the poster for that film. I didn’t cry in Ernest’s house, but I was moved by the statues on display. I was shocked by the number of black cats we saw, and Jenny was debating whether she would talk to a staff member about adopting one after seeing Jenny pet one on Ernest’s bed. I would have wanted the typewriters. The paintings of those tropical beaches were wonderful and breathtaking, as was the outdoor area where the cats gather to chat about what Ernest was REALLY like in only a language cats understand.

Those paintings inspired our trip to Zachary Taylor State Park. I felt at one with God as I climbed as high as I could and throughout every swim in that water. We went snorkeling, which is one of those things if you had to say to me when I was 20, I would do that, I would say “no way.” I saw some of the most beautiful fishes in the world. I drank the ONLY beer I’ve ever liked after Jenny and I partied hard the night before. The throwing up on Duval St. I can look back and laugh on, but I also count my blessings I don’t do that today. I’ll take a Pepsi these days or Apple Soda if I’m in Mexico, of course!!! Coke-Cola shouldn’t have all the fun. Our guilty pleasure drinks included Mojitos and red wine. They don’t always lead to romance. Take my advice, friends… stick with a great cologne and soft music, especially Rod Stewart’s Great American Songbook collection or The Greatest Hits of Luther Vandross, depending on your mood.

During our second trip on September 2nd, 2021, Jennifer and I became husband and wife in the famous courthouse which we could see from the view of our hotel room. While Florida was a very free state compared to others during COVID, we were not able to have a witness at our wedding ceremony. We had a huge party when we came home and saved about $15,000 to $20,000. We rode a boat the same evening we got hitched in Key West and on our voyage, I got the guitar player to do two duets with me. We sang “Your Body Is a Wonderland” written by fabulous guitarist John Mayer and “You & Me” by the rock band Lifehouse. Later that night, we partied with German kids who were in their early 20s and they actually told me they had NO IDEA who The Rolling Stones were. I pray they don’t like Justin Bieber.

While the partying was fun, I enjoyed trying new foods EVEN MORE and especially SKIRT STEAK, which I discovered thanks to Food Network Chef and Restaurant Owner Bobby Flay!!!! Chef Bobby, I’m waiting for you and Chef Gordon Ramsay to do an hour cook-off for charity!!!! No boxing, this isn’t a boxing match and I’m not Howard Cosell. It’s a thin, long cut of beef from the diaphragm. It’s known for its intense beefy flavor rather than its tenderness, which is why it stands out. It can be used in one of Jenny’s favorite dishes, fajitas. Another dish I’m proud to say I tried and loved is huevos rancheros!!!! Huevos rancheros is a Mexican breakfast dish that features lightly fried or charred corn on flour tortillas topped with a spicy salsa made of tomatoes, chili peppers, and onions. I also enjoyed mixing it with refried beans, but you can also put Mexican-style rice with your huevos rancheros or guacamole or slices of avocado, which I credit my wonderful sister-in-law Cora for getting me into.

I also enjoyed visiting President Harry Truman’s house, also known as The Little White House. I enjoyed seeing the card table, the piano, which I was tempted to play, but I didn’t. One because I’ve never taken lessons and two because I would love to be welcomed back. I also need to replace a Truman mug that busted after I used it many times. The mug says “I never did give anybody hell. I just told the truth, and they thought it was hell.” The place offered Truman a place for reset and relaxation because this job takes A LOT out of a human being. He wanted to do right as a patriot for America, but he also wanted to be a regular guy after work, much like any guy I know who works hard all day, whether being a lawyer, doctor, a soldier, fixing someone’s leak as a plumber, a teacher, a nurse, or writer like your humble columnist. I know walking on the beach meant freedom. As I looked at everything, I saw myself going back to the period of the late 1940s, and I was there as an advisor. Giving Truman advice on how to enact Civil Rights policies, national healthcare, and advocating for the veterans who came home from the Second World War. President Truman said I was a feisty little one, but he admired my compassion. Then he won $50 from me at a poker game, but in turn, when I won in the second game, I took home a Mozart album. President Truman said my perspective on music would change forever. He was right. I have as much respect for Mozart as I do for the greatest songwriter ever, Hank Williams!!!!

I also very much enjoyed visiting The Tennessee Williams museum on this most recent trip. Actually, the visit was ON the morning of July 4th 2026, before they move to a new location in the city. I did theater in high school and I also read plays in English class like Romeo & Juliet, Cyrano De Bergerac, The Odyssey and a personal favorite of mine A Raisin In The Sun. I first heard the name Tennessee Williams thanks to the British and American improv series Whose Line Is It Anyway where I saw performers Greg Proops and Karen Maruyama reenact a scene. I was intrigued and in my 20’s I read A Streetcar Named Desire as I was also reading about Marlon Brando during that period too and other classic films stars thanks to a film review professor I had. The dialogue and the storytelling. The language flew like it never had before. I felt that way when I saw a made for TV version of Tennessee’s 1959 play Sweet Bird Of Youth last year when I had COVID. Elizabeth Taylor was wonderful as always as was Mark Harmon but he steals every scene he’s in NCIS or NOT. The characters in each play were little people who saw things differently than everyone else. Many lived bleak existences and were trying to find their way in our world. Tennessee knew Elvis, President John F. Kennedy, Judy Garland along with inspiring an entire generation of actors AND playwrights to bare their souls fearlessly. I believe that encouraged me to buy a copy of Streetcar AND a writer’s notebook with the famous quote from the play…

“I’ve Always Depended On The Kindness Of Strangers”

I loved having peanut butter on waffles for breakfast at the hotel. I loved that we saw a steel drummer from Jamaica play on July 4th while swimming in a pool. We had a chef make giant hot dogs for us. I got to see The Goo Goo Dolls perform live on CNN during the fireworks with Jennifer. We swung in a groovy 60’s swing that I am POSITIVE the cast of Laugh-In are still looking for. Sometimes we were in that swing in the wee hours of the morning when we couldn’t sleep and we thankfully didn’t wake anyone. We got to live and enjoy the freedoms this great country has blessed us with by the man above and because of our brave military who I always salute. One of those brave was my father. His birthday was the following day and he would have been 79. He loved America and that freedom should be celebrated & cherished on July 4th but EVERY DAY!!! Sometimes freedom is putting something unique on our waffle or dancing to Fats Domino in the rain.

I was born in 1988 and my memories of Dick Clark were reruns of one of the greatest game shows ever. If you are familiar with the phrase “For $10,000.. HERE IS YOUR FIRST SUBECT…GO!!!” Then YOU KNOW, I am talking about The Emmy-Winning phenomenon that is Pyramid!!! Of course being a little kid seeing the reruns in the afternoon on USA Network at my grandmother’s house, the episodes were new to me. And yes Dick Clark looked the same as he did when the show first began in 1973 as The $10,000 Pyramid on CBS for its first season. The show was created by game show producer Bob Stewart who got his career started co-creating game shows for the game show dynamic duo Mark Goodson & Bill Toddman. Bob’s creations includes the masterpiece Password, the excellent cocktail party guessing game To Tell The Truth, and of course the dynasty that is The Price Is Right. I also very much enjoyed the very underrated but cult hit game show Bob Stewart also created from the early 1970’s Three On A Match.

The concept of Pyramid is two pairs (one celebrity, one contestant on each team) each given clues to figure out seven key well known words, phrases and people in a category of seven. With Password, you’re only be allowed to give one word clues without hand gestures. In Pyramid, the partner who gives may provide clues necessary as long as the clue is not part of the keyword and if you do yo hear the famous CUCKOO sound. Each team has 30 Second to get all seven words guessed correctly and with six categories on the board, that’s 21 points to be earned. Oh and finding the Big 7 hidden in the six categories and getting all the keywords guessed in the 30 seconds would win the contestant $500!!!

The team with the most points after three rounds each goes to The Winner’s Circle to get six subjects in the pyramid in less than 60 Seconds for the $10,000!!!! The player who gives the clues are only allowed to provide a list and are not allowed to use their hands. The rule is enforced so much, the clue giver is strapped into the chair. If an illegal clue is given, we hear a loud BUZZING sound which means the chance at the $10,000 goes away. Dick always encouraged the team to keep going to rank up as much money in the 60 seconds. I always liked that Dick was always ready to say “Next Please” or “would you like to go on?” if stuck on a subject because of time. That minute goes by fast and it’s the most intense in game shows next to the last five questions on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? The bottom three categories in the pyramid $50 each, top two $100 each and the top $200. The same dollars amounts in the Winner Circle followed when the program in 1976 when one year on CBS and two on ABC that ABC would start a new version called The $20,000 Pyramid which ran from 1976-1980. The main difference with the Winner’s Circle in the $10,000 and $20,000 Pyramid was this.. The $10,000 Pyramid, you played for that amount only until you won. The first time in The Winner’s Circle on the $20,000 Pyramid after you win a game, you play for $10,000 in your first run. You play for $15,000 if you lost and came back for a second try and every attempt after if you didn’t win the $15,000 was for the big pot $20,000!!!! You leave as a retired champion once you win any of those three amounts. These amounts were big time money for game shows in the 1970’s that didn’t give away a car as the grand prize.

The DEAN of Game Show Hosts Bill Cullen hostedThe $25,000 Pyramid in syndication from 1974-1979 but I think this particular Pyramid found it’s ultimate groove in 1982 when CBS picked The New $25,000 Pyramid and three years later with $100,000 Pyramid. The CBS version didn’t add the NEW until a couple months on the air and kept “NEW” in the title until January 1985 NOT to confuse fans. I’ve been trying to solve that damn mystery for 25 years and I finally solved it!!! The format was mostly the same except this time the first time you go the Winner’s Circle you play for $10,000 and the second time (win or lose the first time in the Winner’s Circle) you play for $25,000. The dollars amounts ranged from $50 to $300 so one person could rack up $1,000 even if they don’t go to the top of the pyramid and I saw one person win $1,000 to Dick Clark’s shock. Plus whoever won the most money after the two games got to come back the next day. I also loved the two new bonuses that I loved came on the $25,000 Pyramid The famous 7-11 where a contestant could win $1,100 for getting seven words in the 30 Seconds. The Mystery 7 was wonderful in you saw the seven words but you didn’t know what they had in common UNTIL after the win or the buzzer whichever came first. Those bonus prizes included a trip to beautiful locations like Fiji or Mexico or a home computer which was a new flashy prize in the 1980’s. Oh and sometimes on the Mystery 7… YOU COULD WIN A NEW CAR!!!!! Those prizes were shown in most cases after Dick Clark would say farewell for that episode with the famous sign-off “For Now, Dick Clark… So Long” with the salute before walking off the set.” Dick Clark always left us wanting more but that’s when he knew it was time for that sign-off knowing he would be back very soon.

1985 saw the birth of $100,000 Pyramid which aired at night in syndication until 1988 with one season in syndication hosted in 1991 with John Davidson. The format was similar to $25,000 Pyramid in the sense of the money you play for plus the bonuses. However, the three players that went to the top of the Pyramid in the shortest length of time return in eight weeks for $100,000!!! Sometimes it took forever for a big win, but I know Dick Clark loved giving away millions of dollars to great contestants. The only time I know he didn’t like hosting Pyramid were on days (very rare occasions) when the judges instructed Dick to take money back the contestants THOUGHT they won. One celebrity was so embarrassed he hid his head with a towel in shame. Dick told the celebrity “I got the tough job, I gotta take the money back and explain this.” WITH a dictionary in hand on one or two occasions. You can imagine the excitement when a call went to the judges and the contestant won the big money where a very long commercial break occurs.

Famous celebrities who were on Pyramid included William Shatner, Billy Crystal (Got a contestant to the top of the Pyramid in 26 seconds), Vicki Lawrence who loved mocking Dick every chance she could especially when Dick would try to help the contestant guess a tough clue in the Winner’s Circle after the buzzer. I also enjoyed seeing Levar Burton from Reading Rainbow & Didi Conn from Shining Time Station. One time Michael J. Fox was a guest when starring in the very popular NBC sitcom Family Ties and the little girls in that audience screamed for him like he was Elvis. The announcer at the time Jack Clark (no relation to Dick) pulled it together with a chuckle to say “your host is Dick Clark!” Every generation has at least one teen idol. Other memorable guest stars for me were Betty White, Florence Henderson, (Carol Brady from The Brady Brunch), Barry Jenner from Dallas and Family Matters (Carl’s boss Lt. Murtaugh), Dick Cavett who I think could have hosted for a week if Dick Clark ever got a sore throat.

I’ve seen reboots come and go with Pyramid. The Donny Osmond that lasted two seasons was mediocre at best because the format was too different Six answers in 20 seconds instead of 7 in 30??? Give me a break!!! But that version probably looks like Picasso compared to the awful and thankfully short lived GSN version with Mike Richards. I’m not just saying that because Mike is a manipulative, vile, and extremely crude individual. He’s also just flat and bland as a host. Mike Richards makes John Davidson look like Ryan Seacrest or Pat Sajak depending on your taste. It’s safe to say Michael Strahan who has hosted $100,000 Pyramid for the last decade on ABC has brought Pyramid back to the original format the closest plus he seems the closest to Dick Clark. NOW If you win a game now you play for $50,000 in the Winner’s Circle and $100,000 on your second attempt. We’ve been in the era of game shows giving away six and seven figures for a long time but it doesn’t mean the rules when they are perfect should change. I do love when Michael asks the contestants what they plan to do with the big money if they win. The celebrities are better too than the last remakes Martha Stewart and Snoop played, Weird Al got to play, Ken Jennings from Jeopardy, and my wife would never forgive me I didn’t say RuPaul who I also find to be always fabulous & exciting. Little known fact, my uncle knew RuPaul when they performed in a club that Uncle Chuck was a bartender in.

Pyramid has won nine Emmy Awards for Best Game Show and is only second in that record to Jeopardy with 13 wins!!!! The game is easy to play though some items are easier to give as clues than others and that guessing until the end is addicting once you get into it. I think that’s why I enjoyed seeing Dick Clark play along especially after a failed attempt in the Winner’s Circle. Like Password, if you find the rhythm well, you can be successful at it. I also just remember it put a smile on my grandmother’s face when we watched marathons of it on Game Show Network. Those memories are often the best prizes because they come from heaven and the man above. You don’t need to always attend Sunday School to know that.

That Season 4 of American Idol was by far one of my favorites. I wasn’t thrilled about Taylor Hicks or Katherine McPhee but I was excited about a 25-year-old who was wearing a cowboy hat and auditioned with “The Letter” by The Box Tops who were a band that is somewhere between psychedelic rock and blue-eyed soul. From re-watching the audition tape, I learned Joe Cocker also recorded that song. Chris had a day job as a service advisor for a car dealership in the great state of North Carolina where he grew up and was married with two children (Twins were born in 2010). Chris was the lead singer & played guitar in a band alley Absent Element. The year before Idol, Chris and good friend along with an awesome drummer Joey Barnes actually auditioned for another talent show Rock Star: INXS on CBS which even my mother liked. I was more happy to see the host Brooke Burke.

Oh how I am very grateful that didn’t work out as all of us who love Chris were. During the audition, I heard rock and soul going at 1,000 miles away blowing me away and blowing away judges Paula Adbul & Randy Jackson loved Chris but Simon Cowell who thought he rushed the song. Simon said he didn’t see Chris was a solo singer. Not surprisingly, Simon said NO but it didn’t matter with a YES from both Paula & Randy and Chris Daughtry came out with a GOLDEN TICKET hidden under that cowboy hat on his way to Hollywood, California. I still wonder if Chris ever wears that when he’s performing live like one of Chris’s rock idols Jon Bon Jovi has done many times on stage. As luck would have it, Chris even got to perform the 1987 Bon Jovi hit “Wanted Dead Or Live” during his time on Idol.

Chris impressed us all week by week. My favorite performance was a total surprise but one of my favorite mentors for the aspiring singers arrived and that was rocker & crooner Rod Stewart!!! The theme of that week was The Great American Songbook to which Rod has made five volumes of. Chris selected “What A Wonderful World” which is my favorite and along with much of the the first three volumes of Rod’s Great American Songbook was part of Jen & I first falling in love with each other a decade ago this year. When Chris and Rod worked on the song, Rod definitely saw Chris was a rock star like he was. During the rehearsal, Rod’s wife Penny came in with their oldest son Allistar who was a baby at the time. Rod lit up and at the end of the rehearsal, Rod gave Chris a hug saying “you did great!!” Rod also said his friend Ozzy probably wouldn’t sing “What A Wonderful World” but Chris stripped that song down just a guitar and some strings. Chris didn’t miss a beat and he knew the performance would be a vocal push. Rob Halford from Judas Priest probably knew the same when he sang with Dolly Parton on her Rockstar album in 2023. Once you accept that and you put the work in, it makes the process easier. Chris put the work in and earned the acclaim of all three judges. Simon even took credit for the success which Chris laughed at that commentary as we all did at the house.

Another performance that took my breath away was one of the greatest country songs ever and that Johnny Cash’s first #1 single from 1956 was “I Walk The Line.” That week, Chris did a rock version of the country standard Johnny wrote for his first wife. The thing I dug about Chris was he could take a song from any style and make it his own. Kelly Clarkson is the ONLY other person that has come out of American Idol I’ve seen master that no matter what song or genre. It’s no different than hitting the target when you don’t see it, that’s genius. Randy praised Chris for putting a new spin on the country classic. My dad raised me on Johnny Cash among many greats in country music and I know Johnny inspired singers/songwriters from every genre of music not just country. Simon also praised the performance and Chris not willing to compromise his style of singing. Each week, Simon saw what we all saw and even Simon said Chris would be on the radio very soon.

Like all good things, they must come to an end. The Idol journey for Chris ended on May 10th, 2006 when he was voted off to the shock of Simon and all of us at home. After Idol, Chris was offered by the rock band Fuel to be their lead singer but Chris was wise to say “No. I want to be the lead singer of my own band and make the music I want without compromise.” Chris called Joey again to play drums, Josh Paul to play bass, Josh Steely to be lead guitar and Jeremy Brady to play guitar as well. The debut album simply titled Daughtry and from the start, the sound was loud, proud, intense and Chris bared his soul on every song. We kicked off this wild ride with the first single “It’s Not Over” that went to #4 on the pop charts and their follow-up the very moving and song Chris self-penned “Home” which was used often in later episodes of American Idol when contestants were voted off, went to #5 on the pop charts!!!! “Feels Like Tonight” was written by Max Martin and while Max is known for writing with boy bands and pop singers, but Daughtry didn’t go bubble gum thankfully. You won’t see them dancing in all white without any instruments. I also will credit Idol for getting me into the last track on the album “What About Now” which Chris & the band performed on the the special Idol Gives Back and a funny wonderful introduction by Brad Pitt whose mic had to be fixed by the stage manager who jokingly said to that crowd “I just needed a reason to touch him.” I’m sure she would say the same to Chris had he been in the studio.

Despite mixed reviews from music critics, the album went on to sell over seven million copies worldwide!!!! The album became the fasting selling debut album for a rock band and the best selling album of 2007. The band won American Music Awards and The Billboard Music Awards for Best New Artist and Best Adult Contemporary Artist. The album was also best pop/rock album. I was honored in 2007 to see Daughtry thanks to an internship at a radio station in Salisbury, Maryland that summer. As a gimmick, the radio station wanted fans to shave their head for the concert. I was the first one to volunteer to encourage the crowd. As a result, I won free eighth row seats!!! The concert was held at the Delaware State Fair and it was awesome!!! The music was intense, poetic and had a beautiful that every rock band I liked up to that point had: Creed, Matchbox 20, U2, Bon Jovi, Green Day, Goo Goo Dolls, Blink 182. I ate it up and I still do at almost 40 with that music. I still get excited when ANY OF THEM make new music and I feel guilt if I miss something but streaming music from Apple or Pandora makes it easier these days. I sang along to every song but I was especially happy to sing “It’s Not Over,” “Over You,” “Home” and “What About Now” the most. I didn’t need to make up new words on the spot like Steve Harvey suggests you can do when it’s YOUR song which every song on that album definitely was!!!

I had been blasting the album nonstop for this concert in my little white Ford Contour which may be one of the ugliest cars on the planet next to Creed lead singer Scott Stapp’s first car which according to a profile of Creed on the VH1 cult classic Behind The Music was a 1970 Dotsun which probably made The Contour look like a Corvette. So you probably wonder how excited I was for their follow-up with Leave This Town in 2009. I was blown away that Chad Kroeger of the very awesome Nickelback co-wrote the hits “No Surprise” and “Life After You.” I began to notice on songs like “September” that the level doesn’t have to be turned up to 10 all the time with the delivery. You can still have intensity but arrange the song to where you will be moved by it when you hear it but your parents who saw Chris on Idol with you will be too. The album sold over one million copies and the reviews while still mixed were more receptive.

Break The Spell saw more upbeat lyrically along with Chris and the boys returned the arena I call back to basics rock which I would call all the bands I like really. I was very moved by the tracks “Crawling Back To You” “Outta My Head” and my personal favorite “Start Of Something Good” and “Crawling Back To You” which of all places I first heard on a treadmill. I don’t think anyone was staring at me like I was crazy when I was lip-syncing while getting past the one mile mark in good timing. Funny enough one of the tunes IS called “Crazy” which is about a guy who says to his ex that he was the one at fault not her and he was surprised she stayed at all after the pain he caused. I was surprised in this one he didn’t chase her. One can hope the guy in that song got help for himself and learned to be a better man. I found all throughout this album the people in these stories are trying to figure out life, love, heartache, and other challenges of life. I don’t believe rock music is one dimensional just as much I believe country music is not one dimensional.

For their fourth album Baptized, Daughtry began experimenting with synth-pop but they didn’t lose their cool points or ability to tell stories about life. I felt that on “Waiting For Superman” and “Wild Heart.” Trying new sounds doesn’t mean the quality of a singer’s voice doesn’t diminish. I also loved the toe tapper “Long Live Rock & Roll” where Chris told about being born when disco died (Chris was born in 1979) and he thanked God that U2 survived as a band along as human beings I would hope too, Chris!!! We also hear praises to Elton John, Billy Joel, Guns & Roses, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and Bon Jovi. Chris’ range that we saw on Idol was shown tremendously. I knew after hearing “Waiting For Superman” AGAIN while I was on a treadmill and was blown away by the stripped down sound but I’ve always known Chris to versatile.

After just FOUR excellent albums, Daughtry gave us their first Greatest Hits album very appropriately It’s Not Over…The Hits So Far and YES if you’re a great band like Daughtry, you can release a compilation album if you got the right tunes and these gentleman did for sure plus two new songs as well because if you’re going to do a compilation album, we need new tunes as well. Two to four tracks I’d recommend so you leave the fans wanting more. When Daughtry announced they were coming to Florida right before my 30th birthday, I jumped at the chance to see them!!! I went with my lovely friend Marcia from the great state of Tennessee who is a very wonderful decorator who I got to see Mary Chapin Carpenter with in late 2016. We were surprised not blown away but surprised by the beautiful tribute to Prince with “Purple Rain” and to U2 with the band doing “With Or Without You.”

During that wonderful concert, which I’ll never forget for the rest of my life, Daughtry also did THREE new songs from their fifth album Cage To Rattle which hadn’t been released and those three songs were nowhere to be found on streaming platforms. I remember saying to Marcia on the way “The band must have members of their team that are paid very well to keep these songs top secret.” They figured out a way to mix the sounds from Baptized plus their early unapologetically hard rock that I dig because the songwriting blends well with it. Once you get step one in writing the song, the rest usually works out well. I especially loved “Deep End” and the very moving piano driven “As You Are” which encourages acceptance. That’s the word that can lead us to love to fight prejudice & bigotry which has ZERO place in our society. “Just Like Heaven” says to the enemy trying to keep us from being joyful “you won’t get me!!!” I was moved by the line “you can tell the Devil that he’s wasting his time, Lord.”

2021 saw Daughtry went deeper into their hard rock roots with their sixth album Dearly Beloved. I especially was moved by the tune “Heavy Is The Crown” and Chris’ self penned opening tune “Desperation” along with “Dearly Beloved” and “World On Fire” asking when will we as human beings stop hurting ourselves and each other while the angels are crying “STOP!!! The enemy is trying to get you at your weakness” The album proved they had a message to deliver & to remind us all, YOU ARE NOT ALONE. It’s among their best work and if you’ve only been on two dates, this album is probably not for you. John Mellencamp made the same statement about the 1989 album Big Daddy. Some albums need a PG30 sticker and not a PA sticker!!!

I admire artists that follow this process that I also follow:

-Live Your Life

-Create Your Art

-Promote Your Art

Daughtry follows that process very throughly and have not compromised their art without fear. The band has also blended sounds you might not think at first would work. But the next time you hear a band you love, read the lyrics and follow along. Chris Daughtry is a survivor in an industry that loves you one minute then mocks you the next. He never followed trends, he followed his heart. The goal was rock & roll and I’m glad his story never involved destruction. The journey was never easy and has had heartache along the way. I admire how Chris has handled it all and been a voice for others who are trying to figure out this very crazy world we are living in. We should all take note and attempt to find meaning & creativity through it all and writing along with delivering it to the public be it through music, poetry, painting, dancing, etc. Let your VOICE be HEARD!!!!!!

Gary was born Gary Allan Herzberg in 1967 to Harley & Mary who inspired their son’s love for country music and at just 12, young Gary began playing in honky tonk bars with his father. The experience on stage gave Gary a dream to achieve and it was more interesting than school. Huey Lewis once said that pursing music for a career should be the decision to make if you the individual know it’s the ONLY thing you want to do. By high school, Gary knew music was the ONLY thing he wanted to do and he was sleeping in class after playing in bars all night. Gary said as a teenager he liked singing “He Stopped Loving Her Today” by George Jones a lot on stage. That song is hailed by many including your humble columnist as the greatest country song of all time and Gary also cites the equally moving country ballad “My Favorite Memory” by Merle Haggard as a favorite song to sing. Harley also reminded Gary to be patient after refusing to co-sign a record contract Gary was offered at 15 saying “you have to find your own unique voice.” Gary married in 1987 at just 20 and had three daughters with first wife Tracy. Gary worked many construction jobs during this period but after his divorce, Gary went back to his first love… country music. Gary formed a band called Honky Tonk Wranglers to play the bars. Even Gary’s mom brought her friends to see the band and they loved what they heard. Gary said the audience in some of the places included biker bars and punk rock teenagers with Mohawks with tattoos!!! I’m positive that inspired Gary’s later tattoos. Seeing that crowd enjoy traditional country music, I know was a thrill for Gary as it would be for anyone starting out. For at least teenager, I would say it was probably first time they were exposed to new music they enjoyed.

In 1995 Allen took a job selling cars and left a demo he made two years earlier and the wealthy couple wrote a check to Gary for $12,000 which was enough money to record songs with producer Byron Hill who has written songs for Alabama, Anne Murray and even George Strait’s first #1 single “Fool Hearted Memory.” Within a year, Gary’s debut album Used Heart For Sale was released. The album was unapologetically country and featured not only the Faron Young standard “Wine Me Up” but also Gary’s debut single “Her Man” which peaked at #7 and was once recorded by Waylon Jennings. I love the heart that Gary brought to that song and the arraignment was beautiful in every way especially with that fiddle. I tend to think country is at its most authentic when a fiddle & steel guitar are used. The video showed Gary’s star quality too. He plays a guy who wakes up to a huge mess in his house and his woman took off. Gary wakes up from the hangover and we start with the words:

I’m gonna change my way of doin’ things around here

Well, I’m turning over a new leaf, gonna get myself in gear

Now gentleman, if you’ve ever been in a relationship then you know you’ve lived these words at least once. Gary cleaned up the living room, cleaned the dishes, mowed the lawnmower, cleaned up the floor, lit some candles and won his woman back. I love happy endings like many people who love country music just as much as the melancholy themes. Gary, I must say I’m happy kept that fish that was on the wall in the living room but I have to ask, can I have the pinball machine, dude? I’ll be your opening act and sing for the crowd for a month!!! I’ll even try to sing songs you don’t normally put in the playlist like “Forever and a Day” and “From Where I’m Sitting” on Used Heart For Sale which Garth Brooks even co-wrote. That’s a huge compliment when you’re a new country singer and Garth Brooks co-writes a song for you. The album went gold and led to a follow up It Would Be You and that title track would be Gary’s second hit also peaking at #7. The song I listen to when I’m really angry at the world or if someone says something rude to my face. I think about those forces in the chorus sometimes and the color would be beep “deep deep blue” and I’ll take a tasty KAVA beverage over whiskey these days which is a strong drink too just without the bad feeling the next day.

Two decent albums by Gary but decent doesn’t always stand out. Though “Her Man” and “It Would Be You” were huge hits, the other singles I mentioned didn’t catch on to everyone. I also learned Gary often didn’t have a place to call home in between touring for the first two years in the business. In a way, the bus became a temporary home when Gary wasn’t sleeping on someone’s couch. Gary wasn’t bitter which I admire. He was very determined to be successful and I’m pretty sure he didn’t want to sell cars again. Gary later left Decca and moved to MCA where once again teamed up with Byron Hill. This time, Byron had extra arms with producers Mark Wright & the awesome Tony Brown who has worked with Reba, George Strait, Vince Gill and even produced the landmark 1986 Steve Earle album Guitar Town.

Gary was going through divorce number two and there was quite a bit of material for Gary’s third album Smoke Rings In The Dark. Byron says the second wife wasn’t there long but he remembers that she was tall which every model is. I remember the title track first and the video was so haunting in the hot desert while Gary’s dealing with his love that may or may not be the one along with one other notable feature… Gary took off his cowboy hat!!!! We finally saw his Elvis flowing jet black hair and that loud but wonderful Hank Williams suit. The song went to #12 and more hits from the album followed including Gary’s first top 5 hitting #5 right on the dot with “Right Where I Need To Be” and what a fun video they made for that one as well. The video was filmed in 2000 at Nashville International Airport. That fiddle was played beautiful by Hang Singer with those electric guitars especially by Jay Kelly. The video shows a concert with gorgeous women dressed in black singing the song back to Gary behind the fence before the end of the second verse where the fence is pushed and they run to party with Gary & the band!!! I can only imagine how much fan casting that video was. It’s a fun, sexy and extremely catchy tune that I have sung at karaoke at least once. “

The music video for the haunting Roy Orbison like tune “Lovin’ You Against My Will” was shot with Gary not wearing a hat but with the same guitar he used in “Smoke Rings In The Dark” behind an orchestra at a black tie affair. Gary then sees a mysterious brunette he believes is seducing him while dancing with another. She has that mystery in her eyes that Gary has often sung about and that fellow California country singer Jon Pardi once called a woman like that a “Friday Night Heartbreaker.” I also loved the cover of Del Shannon’s “Runaway” and is also one of my dad’s all time favorite songs that he played in the Corvette several times a week half the time at my request. Jay Kelly once again rules on the guitar with that tune. The rock side of Gary came out a lot on this album and mixing that with the traditional country just like Waylon Jennings & Dwight Yoakam was a winning combination leading to a A- review in Entertainment Weekly and Gary’s first platinum album selling over one million copies along with being Gary’s first top 10 album reaching #9.

2001 led to Gary’s fourth album Alright Guy led with the very exciting, rocking but still heavy on the fiddle & steel guitar little number called “Man Of Me.” In the video we see Gary telling his woman that other things tried to bring him to an “I Surrender” position but only she could be successful with that. What I love about the tune is the positive message to the woman for letting him be a man but recognizing she made him a better person than he was. Many times, not a bad person just someone that needs a “Good Hearted Woman.” This lovely dark haired angel was Amanda Tosch who has a smile & eyes of mystery but they seduce you to visit. I was very pleased to see Gary shoot many golf balls, rock out on the electric guitar, skip rocks on the lake with a little boy, ride his motorcycle to Amanda who seduces him quickly to Gary shaking his head saying “You got me, baby and I love you” as she rides on the back of his hog. The album scored two more epic hits for Gary with the very beautiful ballad “The One” which went to #3 and became Gary’s first top 40 pop. The success of that beautiful ballad was followed by the intense ballad of two men fighting for a woman’s heart in “Man To Man” which became Gary’s first #1 hit and peaked at #25 on the pop charts!! I still find myself moved by both songs over 20 years ago.

Gary’s next album See If I Care presented us his second #1 single “Tough Little Boys” and I believe the whole album is saying “I’m still a artist who performs traditional country music no matter how popular I become.” The video was filmed at Tennessee National Air Force Base and featured real life soldiers being reunited with their beautiful children. Gary’s own daughter Dallas even made a cameo in the video. The ending says “This video is dedicated to all the soldiers, who left their families to fight for our country.” I was one of those children when my father went to fight in the 1991 Gulf War when I was only three. I was lucky because my father came home from war and was a hero to me. Not everyone is that lucky.

The album also features the very moving “Songs About Rain” that makes a man whose ex married another and on the radio the man hears tunes that help him deal with his sadness:

-“Rainy Night In Georgia” by Brook Benton

-“Kentucky Rain” by Elvis Presley

-“Here Comes That Rainy Day Feeling” by the Fortunes

And a personal favorite of mine

-“Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain” written by the great Fred Rose but was made famous by Willie Nelson off his landmark album 1975 album Red Headed Stranger and Willie’s first #1 single.

I’m also proud to report Willie paired up with Gary on the last track “A Showman’s Life” for this album and Gary also scored his 3rd single and one I’ve slowed danced to with Jenny as inspiration for this article “Nothing On But The Radio” which encourages those passionate for each other to turn those light way down low and make sure the music is soft & slow. Gary was singing about love quite a bit again and was finally successful in his career. Gary also found love with flight attendant Angela in 2001 who also had three children. Gary even left behind his beloved California & surfing to make the adjustments so Gary’s daughters from his first marriage so they could see their dad and their mother everyday by moving everyone to Hendersonville, Tennessee. This was also a way for Gary to be near the business in Nashville. Things seemed pretty groovy. Though sometimes we can be given a pill that’s tough & bitter to swallow. In the early morning hours of October 25th, 2004, Angela Herzberg ended her short of life of just 36 years by a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Angela had been battling depression for some time.

Gary was grief stricken and he took time away from the business to tend to his six children. They all attended counseling and soon Gary did what any artist does when faced with the worst kind of pain… he wrote songs and more than normally. On his very haunting & mournful Tough All Over, Gary co-wrote four including the banjo driving “I Just Got Back From Hell” which gives me chills as the entire album does especially when Gary says he is mad at God. I think we all would be if we lost our spouse the way Gary lost Angela. Gary took off his hat and has not placed it back on ever since and for someone with a cool head of hair, I’m glad Gary did. I also loved the Top Ten hits “Best I Ever Had” which was a hit for the rock band Vertical Horizon who I saw in concert in 2019 during my wild man years. I also was moved by “Life Ain’t Always Beautiful.” The music video showed those bright lights of Vegas to remind yourself keep living even through the challenges life throws at you. The Bakersfield honky-tonk side of Gary was there but I loved that a hard rock passion was infused in Gary that I saw glimmers of on Smoke Rings In The Dark. Tough All Over once again received an “A” review in Entertainment Weekly along with positive reviews in Rolling Stone & Slant magazine

The hard rock meets Haggard & Yoakam attitude kept showing on Living Hard especially on the haunting number #2 single led by mandolin, steel guitar & orchestra “Chasing Airplanes.” We also find that same feeling in the equally haunting fiddle led “Learning How To Bend.” I also loved the very funny “She’s So California” along with the exciting hard living with no regrets rock infused “Like It’s A Bad Thing.” The track was later recorded by American Idol finalist Danny Gokey. I know on the moving ballad “We Touched The Sun” along with “Chasing Airplanes” that Gary’s trying to say “I love you, Angela and I’ll never forget you.” The album received glowing reviews again and Gary was once again on top.

Gary continued this rock infused country journey with Get Off The Pain. The title track is country with that famous banjo leading along where Gary reminds us that pain gives you scars for a fun story later. We also heard Gary bare his soul on heartbreaking “Today” where the man Gary is talking about being at a wedding but it’s for a woman marrying a man who isn’t him. The line “I’ve lost everything” and he tries to do the mature thing by being be happy but that’s very difficult when it is a woman you love more than yourself. The album received some of Gary’s best reviews but the album stalled in the middle of the charts. Gary thankfully had another act for us to get the commercial acclaim along with the critical raves I’m sure he enjoyed if it came from genuine places.

In 2013, Gary gave us Set You Free which are three words in Gary’s biggest hit to date “Every Storm (Runs Out Of Rain)” co-written by Gary and reached #1 and was his first #1 hit in eight years!!!! The song also reached #26 on the pop charts proving country music can touch people’s hearts. I must say I chuckled at the title “It Ain’t The Whiskey” the first time Gary mentioned but then heard the track and loved the church organ along with the steel guitar flowing as Gary says in the chorus the booze, cigarettes and other drugs aren’t killing him but rather not having his woman is the real reason. He’s not excusing the vices, he just knows what drives many individuals to that place.

I must say I admire that through the challenges and hell Gary Allan has gone through that he never pounded the bottle to death or checked out with drugs. I’m thrilled Gary still makes authentic traditional country music when it is needed. It’s definitely country with a rock attitude but I love both if mixed together well. Gary has improved as a songwriter and I also applaud Gary for being one of the first I saw call out country music for losing his roots. Country music is the good, bad and at times very ugly side of life from Monday-Friday while pop music covers the weekend more often than not.

Supermarket Sweep first debuted on the Lifetime network in 1990. I remember this host in a bright and may I say large sweater named David Ruprecht. David was the first game show host I ever saw without a suit and tie. David was a TV actor and like Byron Allen, had been on Real People on NBC in the 1980s during the first two seasons of Supermarket Sweep, David was also a regular on the very popular NBC daytime soap Days Of Our Lives but hosting the fast pace trivia and shopping cart driving like you are the next Jeff Gordon is another animal!!! I love hearing announcer Johnny Gilbert and later Randy West give us the play by play as those damn shopping carts were going left and right, north and south. Before the sweep, there were two rounds of grocery trivia about items you find in the supermarket. Thanks to reruns on cable and digital channels, I actually picked up on the rhyming clues behind many questions and the clues in the one minute finale for the grand prize of $5,000 with three clues to match to find the money which as David reminds us “the hands have to be ON THAT MONEY before the final bell”

During the two trivia rounds to “build up time” for the Big Sweep and all three teams are given a free minute and a half (90 Seconds) to start the game then David gives a chance for the teams to answer a rhyming question about a product in the supermarket after one partner answers correctly for 10 extra seconds in the Big Sweep. After a correct answer is given, the other partner has to run out in the market and FIND the item mentioned. If done successfully in 30 seconds and you get $50 if done in less than 20 seconds, you get $100!!! There was also were the guess the price of this product David would show us and in most cases we had to guess of which sold over a certain price or if one item had to guess if the cost was too high too low or just right. Oh and let’s not forget the famous Round Robin game. 6 Rhyming Answers three clues each, one partner at a time switching every time and 10 seconds for every correct answer.

The market also had great ways to win extra money. They included:

-bag of coffee $100

-bag of candy $100

-David’s Bakery list and you get $250 IF you get it in your cart before the bell rings OR over the line.

-The three TV monitors for $250 with a clue about a specific item

-The Recycle Center and to save time, let the partner who doesn’t run the sweep take the bag of cans then come back with the receipt for $100

-David’s Grocery Announcement with the mystery can found hopefully before the bell rings $200

and

let’s not forget the giant stuffed bonuses worth between $50 and $250.

I also enjoyed seeing one duo win a pair of SVU Geo Trackers worth over $25,000!!! Supermarket Sweep gave away a cruise to the Mexican Riviera. $5,000 is nice but people forget sometimes the IRS gets a cut of that. I personally believe win money on a game show the Internal Revenue Service shouldn’t touch that a dime and given David is a proud libertarian, he probably sides with me on that one I hope. You could probably change the laws to where that would happen without actually cutting the IRS’s staff too much.

The 6:30 PM dot would mean Shop Til You Drop was coming on. I’ve called that wonderful show, the closest thing to the classic stunt game show Beat The Clock that I used to watch in reruns on Game Show Network usually before my parents woke up. I think my parents expected me to be watching Bugs Bunny but I wasn’t wired like most kids. The show format involved two pairs playing Beat The Clock stunts with usually one minute to complete it for the points and a prize from one of the stores of level one of the mall. Oh and one of the stores has a Shopper’s Special where you also win a mini vacation usually to San Diego, Las Vegas, Miami, etc. The stunts usually involved pricing small items you’d find in the mall usually between $10 and $100. The hard part is picking one favorite because during the era when Pat Finn was the host, the producers were great at keeping the stunts originally very rarely did they repeat. Luckily when they did it were stunts you wanted to see again.

After two rounds of stunts, we go into the Shopper’s Challenge. I got better at this in time and this was a 90 Second Lightening Round Of Answers & Questions similar to the Round Robin on Supermarket Sweep only these questions were about pop culture and other items found in the mall. 50 Points for each right answer and the team with the highest score goes on to Shop Til They Drop for a dream vacation!! Usually the dream vacations were to shopping capitols of the world like Rome, Paris, Hong Kong, Denmark, and London in the first few years of the show. As far dream vacations, I enjoyed the run when they moved to Pax TV for two seasons when they began giving away more tropical vacations to Hawaii, Barbados, Mexico, etc. Anthony Bourdain will remind us that both places in the world have their advantages for food, excitement and romance. The way the last round worked was the winning pair had to decide whether to keep a gift or exchange from any store in the mall on both levels. Usually the husband was doing the running but the two times I saw the ladies do it, they won the trip too. I loved that part the most with the contestants running as fast as they can in that 90 seconds to get $2,500 worth of prizes delivered to the check out stand and never forgetting to “hit the bell” after you deliver the prize to the announcer.

Shop Til You Drop aired on Lifetime from 1991-1994 before moving to The Family Channel in 1996 which is now Freeform for two seasons then reruns on Pax TV began around 1999 along with Supermarket Sweep. The ratings of the reruns were so fantastic that new episodes were commissioned by PAX the following year and no I didn’t write any letters to them. The only reason is because I didn’t have PAX’s address and I doubt they would listen to a sixth grader which I was about to be at the time. I loved that the mall got a flashy makeover every couple of years. I was just amazed how many episodes they made in their taping cycles.

I enjoyed the funny friendship of Pat and his announcers starting with Mark L. Walberg who many of you would know from Antiques Roadshow and if you’re like me you know Mark for hosting short lived but awesome and grossly underrated game shows like Russian Roulette for Game Show Network and On The Cover which also aired on PAX in 2004 for just under 100 episodes. The Family Channel version had two announcers Jason Smith and the famous along with very nutty Dee Bradley Baker who we would also know as the voice of Olmec from the equally epic 90’s game show Legends Of The Hidden Temple from Nickelodeon along with voicing thousands of voices including the most known Klaus Heisler in American Dad. I watched a lot of that & Family Guy in 2023 with game shows during my first year of being alcohol free.

I say nutty to describe Dee because he made any situation on Shop Til You Drop so funny and fearless. He’s dressed like host Pat Finn’s grandparents Grandma Curmudgeon who was a lot sweeter than the name let me tell you. Dee danced like a Wild and Crazy Disco guy Tony Deesco!!! Dee dressed like Martha Stewart and Richard Simmons. Shopman was one that wasn’t used enough that I enjoyed. Pat let Dee be a wild man and Dee always egged Pat. Pat had a few funny replies to Dee’s madness. I also remember seeing these episodes in my grandmother’s house after dinner if I stayed the night which usually meant to I could stay up late.

What I was NOT prepared for was in 2003 when I came home from school, did my homework, turned on what looked like Shop Til You Drop but to my shock I saw the mall was now a MEGASTORE!!!!! I suspected when I didn’t hear announcer Dee Bradley Baker that there was also probably a new host and there was with JD Roberto. The major difference with the Megastore episodes were NO MORE STUNTS. I was a little upset about that. I did love the prizes that I’m sure made Price Is Right and later Let’s Make A Deal take notes. The energy of the contestants were great and in some cases as many friends teams and usually men vs the women. They did that for one week in 1994 when Shop Til You Drop was on Lifetime and for that last year the show taped from Universal Studios Hollywood!!!!! Very lovely studio audiences especially when Pat and the audience would inquire about the big vacation of the day by saying loudly & proudly to Mr. Walberg:

“TO WHERE MARK?”

Now I’m sure you’re all wondering.. Alex what were YOUR favorite stuns on Shop Til You Drop?

Well let’s see…

-1997 episode there was a stunt involving finding the right car key to start a car out in the parking lot under a batch of toys.

-Another stunt done at least twice involving packing a large set of clothes then securing in suitcases then getting them across the finish line WITHOUT ANYTHING falling out. Oh the judges will be watching on that one ladies & gentleman.

-Another item involved getting 15 to 20 items in a hammock off the floor without ANYTHING or body parts touching the floor. As Pat reminds us, communication is EVERYTHING in that stunt.

-Any stunt in the Lifetime years with a blindfold.

-Coffee orders by mixing four drinks and each drink having a specific small item like a cell phone or sunglasses. Glad Pat had the tongs near by for that one and I died laughing when Dee picked up the lobster and the damn pigs feet with his bare hands as Pat struggled with the damn tongs!!!

Both Supermarket Sweep & Shop Til You Drop made lasting impressions of me. Both had trivia. Both involved items we all know. Both had great hosts who were among the first adults outside my family that didn’t scare me. Game show hosts who were funny and kind made me see as a very sensitive child with Autism who was easily scared that some adults were okay. I came to the conclusion that “if those adults who are game show hosts are caring and funny and then there are plenty of other adults who are like that too.”

I’m grateful for those memories at my grandmother’s house after dinner as a child and I go back them when I feel overwhelmed, very frustrated, or even just a little sad. I don’t like being in that arena for very long because the enemy wants us there to keep us from joy that God wants for us. The minute those voices of the enemy approach you, remember the little moments like mine that do bring you joy. By the way they can be a tire swing, listening to the radio, a swimming pool, anything!!!! The things that made you happy as a child sometimes can make you happy and bring joy to you as an adult. Game shows do that for me and always will.

I first became aware of Byron about 20 years ago when he was the host of a weekend syndicated series also entitled Comics Unleashed. Byron was introduced by announcer John Cramer before introducing Byron. Byron would often do a monologue then introduce his FOUR guests. Most comedy talk shows are host driven and are the main focus. Nothing wrong with that BUT I admire that Comics Unleashed has always been panel driven with the comics getting to shine. Byron doesn’t cut the guests off or act like a misanthropic wise ass like Thumblina Gutfeld over at Fox News does. Byron plays along with the situation without making it about him. The business savvy came from the beginning and Byron was always ready to play the game.

Byron Allen was born in 1961 in Detroit, Michigan to a driven & passionate mother who was just 17 when she gave birth to Byron.. One of the first businesses he saw owned by his grandparents The Rollercade built brick by brick in 1955. In those days, it was incredibly difficult for black business owners to get loans from a bank. Byron was also inspired as a small child by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Dr. King’s fight for a better world not just for black Americans but for all citizens. When he was seven, his parents divorced and Byron moved to Los Angeles with his mother who began working as a publicist for NBC Studios. Byron went along to work with his mother and lucky for Byron, he saw tapings of Sanford & Son, Chico & The Man with the late Freddie Prinze and the top of the list The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson!!!! Byron began writing with David Letterman & Jay Leno as a teenager who led to at the age of just 18 getting an epic invite to do stand-up for six minutes on The Tonight Show. This was of course when The Tonight Show was watched about 30 million people as Jay Leno remembers from his first Tonight Show in 1977. If you succeed in front of Johnny, you got either the famous hand signal saying “hey great job, kid!!”

Recognition led NBC to invite Byron to be the host of a new NBC program called Real People. The program also was hosted by future game show hosts Bill Rafferty from the nighttime Card Sharks & David Ruphericht from Supermarket Sweep. The concept of the show was to show the interesting habits middle of America between New York City and Los Angeles. While the program gave Byron experience in front of television, the ambitious young comedian didn’t just want to be a successful entertainer.. Byron wanted to ownership. A seat at the table as we all deserve on this place called Planet Earth.

From 1989 to 1992, Byron hosted an ultra hip syndicated talk show late at night and just the fact that he lasted more than two years competing against Carson, Letterman and Arsenio, that’s damn impressive. Byron continued to perform stand-up comedy opening for legends Dolly Parton, Lionel Richie, Gladys Knight and The Pointer Sisters to sold out houses!!!! By 1993, Byron finally started GF Entertainment which would later become Allen Media Group with his mother. The first show to produce was called Entertainers which featured one on one interviews with movie stars and comics mostly although I doubt a Nobel Peace Prize winner would be on this show unless Brad Pitt portrays them in a movie or Sir Idris Elba and I must say it thrills me to say that after Idris didn’t get to play James Bond. Being knighted is better!!! Now putting together a TV show, that’s hard work but you can do with the right equipment and yes that does cost money. Selling a television show can cost even more money and time.

Byron for about the first five years made sure the team working with him got paid including the camera operator, the audio operator, the editor and of course to get it paid on a satellite. As a result, Byron didn’t eat some days and his house went into foreclosure multiple times over that five year period. A very sweet lady at the bank even told Byron, “just don’t let this get to Day 90 then it goes to Agnes and she’s not as nice as me.”

Day 89.. Byron got his money to keep Agnes from sending the sheriffs to take the house away. This empire includes the cable channels:

-Comedy.TV

-Recipes.TV

-Pets.TV

-Local Now

-JusticeCentral.TV (Judge Greg Mathis, Judge Marylin Milian, Judge Mablean form Divorce Court hold court thanks to this channel ALL RISE!!!!).

-Cars.TV (I discovered that one while my Ford Contour was being serviced. I paid $1,000 for that car)

And

Let Me Be Clear.. if you ever debate any of the following TV judges I mentioned or Judge Judy… You’ll LOSE!!!!

I also refer to the game show Funny You Should Ask which features six funny panelists mostly comics and Vivica Fox. Byron even joined for a few episodes with Howie Mandel, Billy Gardell, Cedric The Entertainer, Caroline Rhea among the many attempting to help contestants decipher truth from fiction with funny stories. Correct answers get you money and at the end of three rounds one of the players goes for $5,000!!! I first discovered it one night on our work monitors at Fox. I loved the concept and it reminded of Hollywood Squares meets Balderdash. Oh and during my wild man days the show was sometimes part of my “hangover TV.” In my research for this article, I’m glad I found it again with a clear mind.

Oh ever heard of The Weather Channel? Byron Allen owns that too and paid over $300 million for it!! BuzzFeed with interesting stories about “real people” which I’m also glad rediscovering, Byron owns that too!! Their writing is spot and dare I say I’ll be taking notes. The cable channel STARZ.. well currently Byron has about a 10% stake in it and I HOPE he takes over that network. I’ve truthfully not watched them since two of their best programs in recent years were cancelled much too soon. I’m talking about the horror family drama Shining Vale and the epic gritty forbidden zone know as Hightown which showed a small town in Massachusetts affected by drugs and strip clubs. Hightown got a happy ending and as a person who almost died from alcoholism, I can safely say I love happy endings more than others and I’m glad I had over a year alcohol free. But Shining Vale wasn’t as lucky and I felt there was more of a story to tell. Byron my advice to you IF you take over STARZ is to get quality programming and fight to give the show a good shelf life.

I refuse to join this band wagon that you have to hate the successor in Colbert’s time slot. It’s a form of cancel culture that isn’t the answer. Watch Comics Unleashed for yourself if you really want to see if the show is better. If you actually watch it and say “it’s not my thing.” Okay, that’s fair. But give people a chance. You’re talking to a guy who avoided pizza for almost 29 years and didn’t have my first burger and my first piece of steak at 31!!! I’m the epitome of why you should try something new and I still revel every time I try something new. I must say I was curious when I saw Comics Unleashed was back but I love seeing comedians talk about what is funny. This is what you see after a comedy show when you are on your way to get ice cream on the way home. Seeing stand-up comedy has also been a big part of my life especially since I saw Jeff Foxworthy when I was 18.

I respect Byron Allen for his humor, his determination, his knowing how to “play the game” because as Byron once said “it’s nothing more than a game!!” He’s not wrong especially in the world of business. His grandparents didn’t give up and had a very epic skating rink. It was their business and no one could take it from them. Byron’s business savvy came from that and his mother fighting her way into NBC then Byron fighting through adversity to get to power. I’m grateful for the comedy channels and now for buzzed. The court shows are next on my list. All We At Public Announcement Are Saying.. Is Give “By” A Chance!!!

I was about 12 the first time I heard the name Michael Jackson. I knew Michael was a singer and dancer. I’ll never forget the first time I heard “Beat It” or “Billie Jean” and the beats were magical to me. The “Moonwalk” is a dance that if you can pick up on that, you can dance to anything. I speak from many moments of dancing The “Moonwalk” in school feeling short term acceptance which even to someone barely teenager is a lot of encouragement. Around this time I also saw a TV miniseries on the VH1 on Michael & the family entitled The Jacksons: An American Dream back when the network primary aired music based shows and I’ll go on record and say their series I Love… was more entertaining than Love & Hip Hop or Basketball Wives will ever be. The miniseries first aired on ABC in 1992 to nearly 40 Million Viewers!!!

I remember seeing Angela Bassist as Katherine Jackson or “Mother” as the children addressed their mom. I saw Lawrence Hilton Jacobs as manger and tougher than nails steel mill combined Joseph Jackson. That’s no wordplay because Joseph worked in the steel mills of Gary, Indiana. Joseph originally wanted to be a boxer or a musician which he later dabbled with for a brief time. I remember the living room rehearsals in both the 1992 miniseries and in the film that came out not long ago. Lawrence was I would say too loud but very passionate which I love. Joe Jackson was bombastic and loud but in interviews, not really I saw Coleman Domingo’s approach in the film as the more believable performance from start to finish. Stern but not Sidney Poitier stern as Lawrence delivered like. Did I hate it? Not at all. Lawrence is a talented actor and while he may not sell you on the first note as Joe Jackson, like any Jackson, they will not GIVE UP until the notes are perfect just like they were taught to perform. You see that with Jason Weaver portraying a young Michael Jackson the 1992 miniseries. Watch closely as they are singing the standard “Kansas City” with an important word called “attitude.” It’s still my favorite version, no one comes close. I believe Joe knew the reason

Vanessa Williams portrayed Suzanne de Passe who was creative director at Motown. I loved how supportive of the boys Suzanne was when they toured. A young actor named at the time named Terrance Howard portrayed Jackie. Holly Robinson Peete portrayed Diana Ross who I think it’s safe to assume Michael always fancied if we look again very closely. We saw The Jacksons learn and sing The National Anthem before an awesome baseball game. We saw Michael become infatuated with animals like snakes, doves, tigers, and yes even a chimp named Bubbles. I loved that Michael had a curiosity for goodies gizmos and toys. I loved his bedroom had vinyl and a giant cutout photo of Charlie Chaplin. My bedroom had a poster of Mariah Carey, a Packard Bell computer that I learned how to download music along with blackjack & poker among the many things. My room also had a couple hundred CDs, many DVDs overtime especially of Bernie Mac’s body of work AND The Entire series of The OC. It’s always surreal to see what we dug in high school and laugh at some it 20 years later even the music. But I’m glad we don’t mock the music especially when it’s iconic.

The downloading of music through Limewire, helped me find Michael Jackson’s landmark solo album Off The Wall. I credit Seinfeld for their use of “Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough” in my discovery of this masterpiece and for also helping me find the rock classic “Time Of Your Life” by Green Day. Both songs were used in one of the final episodes!!! The CD for its masterpiece follow-up Thriller was a high school graduation present from my parents in 2006. By this time I knew much of the MJ catalogue along with most of the work with The Jacksons. The thing about a masterpiece that separates it from a great album is this:

-A great album you’ll remember in high school or college then not remember it again unless one or two of the songs played at a reunion, a wedding, Bar Mitzvah or Bat Mitzvah, a Halloween party, etc.

AND

-A masterpiece you’ll play it at more than the moments I mentioned. You’ll throw in moments like when you first fell in love with someone more important you are, when you were driving to your first job, driving home on a bad night for whatever the reason, while mourning the death of a friend or family member, getting your heart broken by your first love, a job loss, etc. You’ll also remember the album cuts more often on a masterpiece more than an album you find to be good or great. I’ve even said as much as I love “Billie Jean” and “Beat It” and they are the epitome of pop classics that I also love “Human Nature” and “The Lady In My Life” just as much. When I worked in TV news, a reporter named Karys on one or two occasions would sing “Human Nature” as we were getting ready to do an hour of news. She never made that feel awkward plus it’s a fun to sing. My friend Pat was quick to start singing in the middle of a commercial break if the annoying news director wasn’t coming in to update us.

I have many memories of weekends seeing The Jacksons miniseries while my mom worked and my dad was not well on VH1. I saw other documentaries on Michael’s life on the network as well. My personal favorites were seeing his best TV appearances including The Sonny & Cher Show. Michael really whacked it back to Sonny Bono after he asked Michael what he wanted to be when he grew up. Now Michael did hint an astronaut or the Governor or Georgia then Michael asked Sonny what HE wanted to be when SONNY grew up!!! The audience went wild as you did at the house!! The moments Michael accepting three American Music Awards for Off The Wall. Let’s also not forget the eight Grammy Awards for Thriller. Brooke Shields and Webster himself Emmanuel Lewis went to the ceremonies with Michael too. I also saw Emmanuel Lewis as easier person to chill at a party with than Gary Coleman plus I know Emmanuel won’t say “what you talkin’ bout Al?” I would have gone with Cher but Brooke is wonderful too. I don’t know what Tom Cruise would say on this matter. VH1 would play Michael’s videos on a regular basis along with their sister channels. I just soaked in all the music one song after another.

I was thrilled with joy in 2009 when I was in my office Fort Myers to learn Michael would tour London for 50 shows. Michael stated it would be his last shows. I’m not sure I totally bought him retiring though. One reason was Lenny Kravitz who was producing the single “(I Can’t Make It) Another Day” as a duet Michael Lenny would confirm to CNN. Lenny said that Michael was a workhorse when they worked together. I don’t think Michael ate or slept very much. The song is rock & funk with touches of MJ pop. Lenny said the first concert he ever went to was The Jacksons!!! It’s why I also love “Heal The World” and “Will You Be There?” just as much as “Remember The Time” or “The Way You Make Me Feel.” It is powerful when songs make you dance but you never forget the songs that remind you to be charitable toward others and treat others who work hard with respect. Michael Jackson worked very hard YES but make no mistake that guy lived his life. He did have three children after all. I also admire the work he did with Neverland to give children moments to be a kid and for some of them it was their final moments of life. Animals of all kinds as we established Bubbles, giraffes which Michael’s friend Steve Harvey has reminded us Michael owned TWO!!! Michael, who did you outbid? I only ask after knowing you outbid a Beatle. Oh let me be clear.. unless you have the big time money Michael Jackson had…please don’t show up to court for any reason 20 minutes no matter what your reason for being there.

There was a lot of music I was looking forward to and then June 25th, 2009 came. I was enjoying my hiatus from school and I was doing things I wanted to do for a moment for me and me alone. During that day my mother & I went to the dentist then I went to see a therapist I promised my parents I would see after I got cheated on I was dating briefly after we moved down here. They hated how upset I was and more power to them for encouraging me to see a therapist which I did off and on until three years ago. Your first serious breakup will make you want to spend precious time in solitary. I went for a swim early that evening and then went to get dressed and I saw the headline “Michael Jackson Died At 50.” I knew Michael was working endlessly to get ready for the show and I knew he had an issue with painkillers but death at 50? I felt the same sadness and confusion after Bernie Mac died at 50. So talented but you hoped there was more.

The memorial service made me respect Rev. Al Sharpton when many don’t want to. He reminded us that Michael inspired us all to be better than our beginnings if they happen to be challenges. He also reminded us and his children that Michael wasn’t strange but it was strange the judgement and ridicule that was endured. I was moved by Mariah’s rendition of “I’ll Be There” and seeing Michael’s daughter Paris who was 11 cry over her father’s shocking death. We all cried and Geraldo Rivera defended Michael and went after the tabloid press for their misconduct which isn’t hard to find. They celebrated Jackson’s career after years of harassing him, ridicule, and railroading him when it wasn’t necessary.

Five years after Michael’s death I was listening to Pandora and I heard a new song called “Love Never Felt So Good” by Justin Timberlake and Michael Jackson. It was on a a posthumous album Michael made called XSCAPE. The duet was fantastic and I later discovered the tune “A Place With No Name” in a Jeep commercial. The beats were catchy and had 21st Century Pop vibe without taking anything away from Michael. He was fortunate to have Timberland who worked with Justin Timberlake and Rodney Jenkins who has worked with Jennifer Lopez, Beyonce and the fantastic group Destiny’s Child, Toni Braxton, Whitney Houston, and many more. Rodney also co-wrote “You Rock My World” in 2001 with Michael. Xscape was a reminder that sometimes rock stars are respected for something they do at the start of their career and right after they died. Michael, Elvis, Warren Zevon, and of course Keith Whitley who inspired every male country singer I ever liked. Elvis did too!!!

The years passed and I would hear Michael Jackson or The Jacksons at church events and I’d make new memories with the greatest music of all time especially with my wife Jenny. Two years ago The Jacksons came to town featuring Marlon, Jackie, Tito and Tito’s son Tyrell at a casino in the middle of nowhere. Actually it’s the same casino I’ve seen Lonestar, Willie Nelson, & The Bellamy Brothers at and I won $82.50 one time after walking in with $15. I wasn’t even sure if I had enough for the t-shirt let alone dinner. The first blackjack was 21 and I kept winning then I knew the show was starting. No opening act and no intermission. I was also able to get breakfast for dinner which I also got when I saw the Jacksons. Waffles, home fries, fresh fruit & bacon. Seeing The Jacksons involved home movies, a medley of the hits, a journey into their move to Epic where they went disco, funk and made a plea to “Blame It On The Boogie.” We danced all night and shook our bodies down to the ground!!! I enjoyed every minute and it reminded me why I love music, dance and saw the world in a more creative way like Michael did. I saw it in a way where we live within ourselves a lot because the outside world was noisy and rude in many ways. I love Michael not only for his music and how he took it places it needed to go to but I admire what he did in return to make the world a better place. He didn’t JUST write a check. He actually saw terminally ill children in the hospital. In some cases, the children were also victims of war or violence. He was the King Of Pop but I think most of all I can say Michael was the King Of Living. He lived on his terms and made the greatest music in the process. We could learn a lot from that.

Robert Kelly Thomas was born in Landstuhl, Germany in 1972 while his father was in US Army. His parents spilt when he was two and Rob had a very chaotic childhood that included stays in South Carolina to visit his alcoholic grandmother who owned a country store that sold moonshine & weed under the counter. Rob’s mother was also an alcoholic who beat Rob at times. Rob also took care of his mother who battled cancer when Rob was a teenager. As a child, Rob also soaked in healthy dosages of Tom Petty, Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, and Bruce Springsteen. A gift a CASIO keyboard along with singing in the choir plus encouragement from the choir teacher gave Rob hope that music would be his ticket to a better life.

At 17, Rob dropped out of high school and decided to make a living as a songwriter & singer. The early days were rough for Rob as they are for any starving artist. Rob was homeless for times but he kept playing in cover bands. A three week gig at a hotel in the short lived band Fair Warning lasted only three days after the band was caught stealing candy & beer. What carries the bigger punishment.. Miller Light or Skittles?? I also thought every place a band plays they get all the booze they could have. In 1990, Rob met two fellow musicians that would change his life forever in great ways. Bassist Brian Yale & Drummer Paul Doucette who formed a band called Tabitha’s Secret. The three would play together for five years when they met producer Matt Serletic who has also worked with Cher, Willie Nelson and my favorite Aerosmith song “I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing.” Is there NOT a song Diane Warren writes that doesn’t move my heart to? I think not.

The early introductions started great but Tabitha’s Secret never became a thing. Luckily, with the help of guitarists Adam Gaynor who was a member of the band from 1995-2004 & Kyle Cook who still remains a member of Matchbox Twenty with Rob, Brian, & Paul. It was actually Paul that came up with the idea for the band’s name after seeing a gentleman with a shirt displaying both words while he was waiting tables at a restaurant. Demo tapes were made then radio stations in Orlando & Tampa began playing Matchbox Twenty. This promotion led to a record contract with Atlantic and the debut album for Matchbox Twenty Yourself Or Someone Like You was released on October 1st, 1996 and sold whopping 600 copies in the first week in America!!!! Their first single “Long Day” didn’t really catch on although it sounds great live. While touring extensively to promote their debut album, Rob & the boys found a radio station in Birmingham, Alabama, 107.7 The X, and they had began playing ANOTHER song “Push” from the masterpiece debut album which gained attention first in Alabama then nationally “Push” eventually topped the Modern Rock charts and got heavy rotation on radio stations across the country. The song also got new life two years ago when Ryan Gosling performed “Push” as Ken in the very popular Greta Gerwig film Barbie. Ladies, tip us men on stuff like this IF YOU CAN before you take us to see THIS film!!! We’ll be more enthusiastic in the line.

More Top 40 hits on Yourself Or Someone Like You followed including “Real World,” That’s a message we all want tell annoying loudmouths who breathe down our necks too long and too loudly. The music video which features Rob walking through a bowling alley with a camel one minute then in a suit & tie for a newscast to which I said “Rob Thomas, you might be the first male news anchor I’ve seen with an earring.” Another tune that has been a personal favorite of mine to sing at karaoke bars is “3AM” That catchy tune that made me fall in love with the music of Matchbox Twenty. I had no idea at the time the song was about Rob’s mom’s battle with cancer. I think many people get the message of fear and fighting through adversity of any kind. I think it healed a lot of hearts and even Rob was able to forgive his mother, make peace with her & the two had a good relationship until her death in 2007.

I’ve always found the best songwriters tackle fear & adversity but don’t always look like Clint Eastwood or act like him. I think for guys like Rob & I who are sensitive souls, of course we’re writers and that’s a good thing for the record!!! “Back 2 Good” talks about the difficulty of relationship and the attempt NOT to screw it up. I also loved the tracks “Damn” and “A Girl Like That.” The latter track has a funny line “I’m the same old trailer trash in new shoes” and explores similar themes in “Back 2 Good” but the latter is a little more tongue-in-cheek. I’ve seen Rob smile and have a wicked sense of humor behind that serious songwriter who also sings with the same intensity as he writes.

These deeply powerful songs (majority written solely by Rob) about anxiety, loneliness, anger, depression and even alcoholism touched the hearts of a generation including yours truly. The album went from 600 copies in a week to peaking at #5 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums Charts and going on to sell 15 million copies!!!! (12 million in America alone). With new fame, Matchbox Twenty went from playing morning radio shows & small clubs with only 20 people in the crowd some nights to playing The Tonight Show With Jay Leno and to thousands of screaming fans major venues from Maine to California to Germany to Australia. The international fame was a wild ride for Rob who was still in his 20’s.

Rob admitted to 60 Minutes Australia in the early years of success for the band, he dabbled in women, booze & drugs while on tour. In fairness, what rock star didn’t go through that? The first part of that equation is fun BUT the latter two can burn you out and destroy the whole party. I’m speaking of course a person whose only addiction was alcohol but I’m thankful I quit. Two things in 1997 and 1998 that made a positive difference in Rob’s life. In late 1997, Rob met Marisol Maldonado and instantly they fell in love. Their new relationship did a have a couple of hoops:

-Marisol wasn’t sure she wanted to be the wife of a rock star.

AND EVEN BIGGER

-Rob also was going to be a father after a brief relationship before he met Marisol. Rob had to communicate this to Marisol in order for the relationship to have ANY chance of success. Honesty may hurt at the first but lies hurt more in the long run as Mr. Belding once reminded us on Saved By The Bell. Rob said he knew the minute he kissed Marisol, he didn’t want another woman except her. Rob’s son Maison Thomas Eudy was born in July 1998 and the following year, Rob won Marisol’s heart when the two became husband & wife.

With a new wife & new baby, Rob finally found peace in his personal life. Rob was also growing creatively as well and a chance meeting with guitarist extraoenaire Carlos Santana who was working on a comeback album Supernatural provided opportunity that was needed. Songwriter Itaal Shur was working on a tune called “Room 17.” Itaal gave the lyrics to Rob who turned the lyrics into the monster tune “Smooth” which became one of the biggest hits of 1999 & 2000!!! It became the last #1 hit of the 20th Century and the first #1 hit of the 21st Century. The album went on to sell over 30 million copies worldwide and won three Grammy Awards for Rob. The solo success also provided Rob the opportunity to write three songs for Willie Nelson’s excellent 2002 album The Great Divide. If you look closely in the video for “Maria (Shut Up & Kiss Me)” you see Rob portray a bartender. Rob does a mean job on “Mamas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys.”

The start of 2000 saw the success with Santana for Rob Thomas but also the sophomore effort for Matchbox Twenty with Mad Season. The album is not a straight rock album and it’s not a straight pop album too. It’s very experimental in every way. I especially loved the ballad “If You’re Gone” which Rob wrote for Marisol. She found the song and was very moved by it though the song was not finished yet. I remember seeing the video for it on Vh1 and hearing the song a million times on Q105 in my Mom’s car. Rob reminds us in this song love must win in the end. I loved the small horn section and had never heard a love song in rock except for “I Don’t Want To Miss A Thing” by Aerosmith & “Iris” by Goo Goo Dolls. “If You’re Gone” went to #5 on the Billboard 100 Singles Chart. The same album also features the band’s ONLY #1 single on the Billboard 100 with “Bent.” The opening electric guitars from Kyle & Adam are intense. The album sold four million copies proving the guys were still titans of rock and that they weren’t a one trick pony.

The boys of Matchbox Twenty followed up Mad Season by returning to basic to basics rock & roll with More Than You Think You Are. I knew something was cooking when I learned the first single “Disease” was co-written by Mick Jagger!!! First Santana then Willie Nelson and NOW Mick Jagger, Rob?!?!? I was blown away by the intensity which was even louder than “Bent” gave us. I didn’t think they could surprise me after that and they did again with the banjo driven “Unwell” thanks to Kyle, Rob and company brought the band their second single to reach #5. At the time, the only other rock song I knew of with a banjo flowing with the electric guitar was “Shiny Happy People” by R.E.M. I love the “you’re not alone” message behind “Unwell” and I think it gives confidence to those of us who feel a little awkward. Rob’s piano skill SHINED on the moving “Bright Lights.” The success of all three songs led to their THIRD CONSECUTIVE multi-platinum with two million copies sold. It’s always those tunes you would hear on the radio by Matchbox Twenty that motivated you to buy the CD. It was that way for me anyway!!!

In 2004, the band took a hiatus as Rob was motivated to make his very first solo album.. Something to Be which was released the following year. As Rob told Bill Maher, the solo album had more “junk in the trunk” than a Matchbox 20 album. Rob wanted to mix Tom Petty’s guitar player along with Dr. Dre’s bass player. I also want to give props to the percussionists on this album. Those drums on the first single “Lonely No More” remind us the intensity of Rob’s vocals were still there but he was a different person without the band. I picked up on that also with “This Is How A Heart Breaks” but I do ponder if the band would play “Ever The Same” if Rob suggested. Reviews were mixed but the album debuted at #1 on The Billboard 200 Charts knocking off Mariah Carey’s The Emancipation Of Mimi from the top and the album sold two million copies!!!! It’s a wonderful pop album. I will praise Rob for sometimes doing Matchbox 20 songs on his solo tours. He was able to rearrange “3AM” in an acoustic style and slowed that tune way down. Rob rocks on that acoustic guitar and Paul Simon did remind us you can make it cry if you play the right songs.

Rob was finding newer audiences by contributing to the 2007 Disney film Meet The Robinsons with the beautiful tune “Little Wonders.” More people heard the song than the damn movie!!!! I’ll get to it in time. I got Disney + for good reasons and there are more than one. Two years later, Rob’s second solo album Cradlesong came out. Rob began experimenting with African & South American percussionists. Rob said Paul Simon played an inspiration to this album. The tune “Her Diamonds” Rob’s talking to Marisol and how much he wants to her knight and shinning armor. “Someday” is a reminder that yes life can be difficult. We cry sometimes when shit doesn’t go our way. But by pushing through doubt, adversity and anxiety, we can live our lives OUT LOUD and PROUDLY!!! I love when tunes by singer/songwriters that move your heart and give hope as well. This time, the reviews were positive including a well deserved FOUR STAR REVIEW in Rolling Stone.

During this period, Rob & Matchbox Twenty released Exile On Mainstream which is a unique Greatest Hits album to say the least. The album has a double disc which may sound common but let’s review:

Disc 1: Six new tracks including the hit “How Far We’ve Come” which just missed the top 10 landing at #11 on The Billboard 100 Singles Chart. I love the driving guitar forces that take us on an even faster pace than we had on “Real World” but with a lot and still asking the big questions about this crazy world we are living in. There’s also a reminder that whatever happens to America and the world, let’s stop and remind ourselves the great things we’ve done and accomplished so far. I do fully believe in that the older and more alcohol free I get.

Disc 2: The HITS from “Long Day” to “Bright Lights”

I love the variety of new stuff first then the HITS. More artists who haven’t taken note of this should TRY THIS!!!

2012 saw not only the re-election of Barack Obama along with the very popular movies Lincoln & Ted to name a few, we also got the first album of Matchbox Twenty in over a decade North. The album I’d argue is experimental like Mad Season but the songs are better written. It mixes that post grunge along with melodic sounds and the boys went deep once again. I especially picked this up on “She’s So Mean” and “I Will” I also like the upbeat sounds of “Radio” and “Our Song” reminding us to celebrate life while asking deep questions about life and getting older. North was the first album of Matchbox Twenty to reach #1 on the charts and the following year, they toured with Goo Goo Dolls through North America!!!!

The solo train called Rob back to be a pop singer and by The Great Unknown, we saw Rob’s sound more upbeat and uplifting especially on songs like “One Shot” and “Hold On Forever.” I love the pop arrangements along reminders to smile and enjoy your life. This same message has been applied to Rob’s last two solo albums Chip Tooth Smile & his latest All Night Days which features “Hard To Be Happy” which sees Rob dancing in the quest to ask “why is this thing called happiness so hard to obtain and maintain?” I’ve seen many songwriters ask these deep questions about life. With Rob, I find a man who is asking these questions and finding solace through this music gave him peace. Rob’s not totally a rock star and he’s not totally a pop star. He’s a songwriter FIRST with multiple sides and emotions. I’ve seen him grow from an intense post grunge rock star with angst to a deeply moving songwriter who has never been afraid to experiment with new sounds that give his voice even more ammo than it did in the beginning. When we allow pain from the past to be our inspiration, we can be successful and find peace through any situation of life even if some take longer than others.

Steve was born in 1954 the same year as my mother & Oprah Winfrey in Indiana but he spent most of his childhood in Kentucky. Music was in Steve’s DNA from the beginning and he self taught himself to play guitar, bass, drums, banjo, dobro and steel guitar. Can’t have country music without some steel!!! His father Roy was a musician and Steve’s other main musical role models were George Jones & Mr. Guitar himself Chet Atkins who Steve would later become friends with. Chet would make dozens and dozens of albums while also serving as vice-president of RCA Nashville. One notable album was with The Boston Pops Orchestra. Chet would record some of my favorite tunes on the guitar such as..

-”Mister Sandman”

-”Sweet Georgia Brown” (my dad would dig that one and he took me twice to see The Harlem Globetrotters!!)

-”Yesterday” (Okay the Beatles tune was my discovery)

-”The Entertainer” (which sounds just as great on the acoustic guitar)

-”Unchained Melody” Righteous Brothers

-”What I’d Say”

-”I’ve Got A Woman”

-”Somewhere Over The Rainbow”

-”Everybody’s Talkin’“

-”City Of New Orleans”

and

-”Mr. Bojangles”

to name a few!!!

While still in high school, Steve got a call from the very sultry and wonderful songbird that is Dottie West when Steve was just 17. The aspiring musician got to play bass and Dottie’s band. His musician father was happy but his mother was concerned that her son at 3 AM woke up them both up with the big news. Steve thankfully finished his high school education through correspondence courses. When you’re a self-taught musician, you’l find a way into the business if you’re willing to work for it and Steve was. He worked for Dottie for three years and even got to play bass on her 1973 album Country Sunshine which is a fantastic album from the title track to her rendition of “Desperado” by The Eagles.

Steve was also writing songs at this time and later began working for Bob Luman who was not only cut some of Steve’s songs but Steve would later record Bob’s hit single “Lonely Women Make Good Lovers” in 1984. I found it funny both releases hit #4 but Steve’s version is more upbeat and the guitars (Steve’s notably) flow like strings in a lush orchestra!!! The sessions with Bob Luman led to Steve meeting with Mr. Guitar and Chet signed Steve to RCA in 1976. The first single was “I’m Already Taken” which Steve co-wrote with his brother Terry who has played guitar and sung with Steve many times in Steve’s touring band. The song only went to #63 but at least later on it was recorded by country music superstar Conway Twitty!!! Chet also invited Steve to play bass in his touring band. The experience with Dottie and Chet reminded Steve to always be open to every musical opportunity that comes your way ESPECIALLY if you can play live which Steve shines at.

Between 1980 and 1982, Steve worked hard on his debut album for RCA and thankfully this was a singles era. The first single “Your Memory” went to #7 giving the guitarist at the age of 26 his first major hit. “All Roads Lead To You” was the first #1 hit to come off his self-titled debut album. The first two singles mentioned I actually like more than “Kansas City Lights” because of their twang. I love that banjo on “Your Memory” which you can hear when you listen closely. I had to listen twice to understand it and I only had to listen to Vanilla Ice’s noise ONLY once to know it was bullshit & noise. Though I still like “Under Pressure” by Queen & David Bowie.

By the follow-up album Midnight Fire though Steve didn’t write any of the songs, vocally he was even better than the first album especially on “Lonely Women Make Good Lovers” which sounded so awesome on Austin City Limits:

Still one of my favorite moments in PBS history. Watch very closely as Steve picks and makes Chuck Berry say “I gotta get back to work.” Comedy legend and one of my heroes George Carlin said the exact same thing the first time he saw equally epic stand-up comic Sam Kinison. I also loved the song “Why Goodbye” and the music video with Steve in a tuxedo with red bow tie. The song was upbeat but a plea to save a love. It had a Huey Lewis feel to which I still dig to this day. I have a little known fact.. the very first time I saw Huey Lewis was in the music video for Reba’s “Is There Life Out There Video.”

Starting with the regret ballad “What I Didn’t Do,” Steve had a string of top 10’s that went from 1984 to 1990. and seven went to #1 including another heartbreaking favorite of mine “Some Fools Never Learn.” We go adult contemporary and personal on who we love on “Small Town Girl” and “I Should Be With You.” I loved the video for “I Should Be With You.” We danced to “Lynda” like we did to “Jailhouse Rock.” We also celebrated “The Weekend” with “love bliss” and joy. Steve said that was his favorite song to sing live and he takes off his guitar for “The Weekend” and just sings his heart out. The song will remind of you of the first time you fell in love with someone. Steve’s guitar chops on every tune but especially “Lynda” are amazing and from 1986-1990, Steve sang the theme song “Brand New Life” for the very popular sitcom Who’s The Boss with Tony Danza, Judith Light, & Alyssa Milano. Steve still performs that tune live and it was on ABC if anyone in the crowd asks!!!

By 1990, country music swung back to a more traditional sound and I credit Steve for that switch. I know on some tunes, Steve sounds as much like James Taylor as he does George Jones. I have no beef with that but I always sensed there was something deeper with Steve to come out like a comet. You could definitely tell “The Domino Theory” was the first single of that decade and from the arraignment of that very catchy little number, Steve had chosen the twang. This decade would also see Steve’s songwriting was showing more as he wrote or co-wrote half of the 1990 album Laredo. Steve would also get his first gold album I Am Ready which was my discovery of Steve as a small child especially on tunes like “Leave Him Out Of This” and the Bill Anderson standard “The Tips Of My Fingers.” I credit CMT once again for this discovery. The video for “The Tips Of My Fingers” shows a man probably late 60s early 70s who takes a bus trip to the house he shared with the love of his life. The man arrives to see the house was condemned and he begins to cry at the sight. I never forgot the fiddle and steel guitar flowing like violins in an orchestra. I’m still moved by “Leave Him Out Of This” and Steve’s guitar plus the vocal flow doesn’t miss a beat. Fellow guitarist and wonderful Okie Vince Gill sings background vocals on those

I also will give props to the following album from 1993 Drive which features only one top 10 hit. “If I Didn’t Love You.” The guitar, the piano, and the fiddle all got turns to shine. There’s another underrated heartbreaking ballad called “Drivin’ and Cryin” which went to #23 that I heard about 15 years ago after not hearing it since I was a child when it first came out. I sometimes turn to tunes like that one when I feel sad or angry with the world. I think of driving a Corvette which I’ve done before to a fun party probably in Miami. Have my Mango THC beverage ready, Douglas!!! A better choice than booze let me tell you, ladies & gentleman.

I’m well aware that no artist likes to be stuck singing the same songs with different lyrics. If Steve was ONLY a singer and nothing else, who knows where his career would have gone in the 1990s after a decade of hits but I always said Steve was not JUST a great singer and not JUST a great guitarist. He kept it authentic but Steve kept it moving which anyone from Chet Atkins or Bob Dylan or anyone with artistic integrity will tell you works well. Steve did that for the rest of the 90’s in more ways than one before a huge wave came to him at the end of the decade. The road to that wave included two tribute albums regarding two of my favorite artists in the world. The first one was “Workin’ Man Blues” by the great Merle Haggard. The tribute features Steve with fellow guitarist Lee Roy Parnell & the very popular country band Diamond Rio who I dig as well jamming out after a long day’s work. Steve’s red telecaster, Lee Roy’s bluesy slide guitar and DR’s Jimmy Olander’a telecaster with the gorgeous woman on it blazing a few hundred miles an hour. Steve’s guitar licks lead the charge & were out of this world. That was MY discovery of Merle Haggard in 1994. The supergroup called themselves Jed Zeppelin joined Brooks & Dunn, Alan Jackson,, Vince Gill, Clint Black, Radney Foster who wrote “Raining On Sunday” for Keith Urban, and others on Mama’s Hungry Eyes: A Tribute to Merle Haggard

Steve followed that stellar performance by taking on the McCartney/Lennon tune “Get Back” on the Beatles tribute album Come Together which features artists like Huey Lewis, Willie Nelson, Tanya Tucker and even Chet Atkins came to the Fab Four tribute party!!! May 11th, 1996 was an important date for Steve as became a member of the Grand Ole Opry. I must say he’s one of my favorite hosts since becoming a member almost 30 Years AGO!!!! I’m especially excited when I see Clint Black or Vince Gill next to Steve for serious picking on the six string. It’s a language that only musicians speak. 1997 AND 1998 brought more creative fortunes for Steve. They began with Steve’s first #1 single in eight years with the duet “What If I Said” with Anita Cochran. Steve also co-wrote the songs “Longneck Bottle” along with his good friend Garth Brooks ALONG with “Nothin’ But The Taillights” for Clint Black. The year 1998 also brought “Holes In The Floor Of Heaven” which I cry every time I hear especially when I look at a picture of my father or one of my grandmothers or Richard. The song reminds us that even though we are sad that the person who has passed and is not with us, we can still celebrate their life and know they aren’t too far away. The shadows in each verse especially the first verse opening line “one day shy of eight years old” hit me hard. The song which was co-written by Steve & Billy Kirsch went to #2 on the country chart. They both as songwriters took home awards for Song Of The Year by The Academy Of Country Music and The Country Music Association. The song also won Single Of The Year by The Country Music Association.

The last days of The 20th Century brought one more fantastic album for Steve Two Teardrops which years later I bought at a yard sale when I still collected CDs for $1.25. I listened to it a lot at Fox while editing Teasers for the 10 & 11 PM newscasts. I felt like time took me back when I was 11 and hearing this CD on Mom Mom Nita’s stereo. I think she admired Steve’s sweet delivery as I did on the title track which once again went to #2 showed that tears deliver more than one emotion. Sometimes happy sometimes sad. In the video seeing Steve on the beach one minute then waiting for the delivery of a baby girl along with comforting a very sweet man who just lost his wife. When the Good Lord Giveth and Good Lord Taketh Away we need to remember that dash in the middle. Another beautiful song brought on a second chance from the past in more ways than one. Steve re-recorded “I’m Already Taken” and the song also went to #2. When I heard the strings I went “Wow, this is beautiful!!” I think it’s around that period around 11 or 12, you see females you are attracted to for whatever reason and you try to express how you feel. Steve gave all of us aspiring Romeos the extra dose of confidence. In the songs, the person in the story is often saying “I’m figuring this all out too!!”

The first days of the 21st Century brought on more great tunes for Steve including a grossly underrated tune called “Faith In You” which I saw the music video for between Great American Country (GAC) more than even CMT. There have been a few country music videos like that and this one was my favorite. It a Lifetime feel to it without being too corny. I also enjoyed the duets “Katie Wants A Fast One” with Garth Brooks which Steve has often referred to as a country mambo meets the Hank Williams standard “Honky’ Tonkin’.” Steve’s mentor Chet Atkins passed away in 2001 and I noticed while Steve has continued to record & tour, he’s focused more of his energy on the guitar first. Two of the albums Steve has recorded were instrumental albums and he won Two Grammy Awards in the 21st century for his instrumental pieces. One for working with Brad Paisley and the second for a tune he made on a Chet Atkins tribute album he made. I don’t know if Steve will ever come to Florida for a concert but my curiosity for country music and guitarists who put the instrument first led me to talented people like Steve Wariner. I’ll be fine with Steve hosting The Grand Ole Opry on Saturday night when life gets a little crazy.

One thing I liked about Tavis was he genuinely laughed like Letterman did at funny people. Tavis also listened intensely as the guest spoke. When the other person stopped, Tavis would react genuinely then spoke eloquently to lead to the next question. I noticed the same thing with Larry King as a curious media obsessed teenager and media obsessed 20 something. I also liked that I had more than one chance to see each episode thanks to PBS.org or the podcast app on an iPOD I got in 2006 for Christmas. I admit I had that precious toy to hear music, podcasts, read news, text friends, among the many things. I didn’t join the iPHONE club until the fall of 2015 after Fox 4 hired me on the suggestion of a close friend.

After picking up Tavis’s memoir What I Know For Sure, I began to learn about how Tavis became this successful broadcaster & commentator’s life and times. Tavis was born in Mississippi in 1964 making Tavis among the last of the Baby Boomers. Tavis was raised by his mother and stepfather who later adopted Tavis was a deacon in the local Pentecostal Church in Bunker Hill, Indiana. At one point with siblings, cousins, the parents and Big Mama (Tavis’ grandmother) for a total of thirteen people living in a three bedroom mobile home. No matter how many bedrooms, that’s a lot of people with not much space!!!! No secular music was allowed in the house and going to the movies was forbidden. Any TV show watched in the house had to be “family friendly.” I thought my parents not letting me watch MTV as a kid was a big deal.

But in the seventh grade, Tavis and his sister Phyllis were physically disciplined by their father after Phyllis began answering questions about the Book of John. Tavis didn’t say anything but other children were acting unruly. After the whipping, school administrators found out and then the local newspaper did a story on the children’s injuries. Tavis and Phyllis were taken into foster care and their father Emory almost went to jail. Emory later confessed to a judge he “overreacted” and the judge saw Emory and Joyce (Tavis & Phyllis’ mom) were just “concerned parents.” I’m sure the judge didn’t want to separate a lot of children into the foster care system. The damage took years for Tavis & Emory to repair.

Tavis said as a teenager he discovered the work of Martin Luther King, Jr. and was also on the debate team & student council in a high school that was 98 Percent White. His parents didn’t understand this new passion because it wasn’t a “church activity.” After high school, Tavis with only $50 in his pocket and a small suitcase, made his way to Indiana University Bloomington. The very understanding administrators helped Tavis finish his financial aid paperwork just like the ones at my colleges that helped me out first at Delaware Tech then at Florida Southwest College which was Edison College then Florida Gulf Coast University. You never forget that kindness & generosity but Tavis learned an even bigger lesson about grace & accountability during his time at IUB While in school, Tavis worked for the Mayor of Bloomington Tomilea Allison who just celebrated her 92nd birthday last month!!!! She was also the first woman elected to that position. During this time, Tavis wrote letters to local residents along with positions paper on local issues and other research. Tavis made a horrible decision during this period that could have resulted in jail time in the adding of extra hours on his timesheet. Here’s where the grace comes in, the mayor let Tavis work those hours off and didn’t go to the police. I think she saw a dedicated hardworking but perhaps a bit distracted. I think drive does that to the best of us but that grace really does wonders to you.

During the start of his junior year, Tavis met Jim Brown of NFL’s the Cleveland Browns and one of the greatest running backs ever thanks to the cousin of his roommate. This chance meeting with Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley. Tavis later typed letters to Mayor Bradley’s office and even flew out other appeal but all the intern positions had been filled. Upset but not defeated, Tavis then hand wrote a note to Mayor Bradley and then the mayor called Tavis to offer him a position. Though it was unpaid, Tavis DID receive $5,000 for living expenses while working & living in Los Angeles in that period of the late 1980’s. Even Jim Brown let Tavis as a houseguest in his home. This lesson I believe in Tavis’ Pursuit of Life Liberty & Pursuit Of Happiness is called connections, persistence and opportunity!!! Tavis officially received his degree Indiana University in 2003 at the age of 39!!!! Glad Tavis never gave up on the degree which was in public affairs.

In Los Angeles, Tavis worked in the City Hall of the Office Of Youth Development and then later as an administrative assistant to Mayor Bradley. In 1991, Tavis ran for City Council and actually came in fourth out of 15 people running!!! Not bad for a guy in his late 20’s looking to take on the world. Tavis got into broadcasting thanks to radio station KGFJ where he did one minute radio commentaries on race & politics. This led to Tavis co-hosting with longtime friend and syndicated columnist/ commentator Ruben Navarrette Jr. Tavis also began appearing on the public affair/Donahue type talk show CNN’s Talkback Live with other future cable news stars Greta Van Susteren, Nancy Grace and even an Atlanta conservative radio host now “Fox News Star” along with one of my mother in law’s favorite talk show hosts… Sean Hannity. Pauline also likes Bill O’Reilly for those keeping score at home. Tavis has debated both Sean & Bill for the record and ALWAYS came out smelling like a rose. Tavis later became a regular commentator/guest on the long running nationally syndicated morning radio program Tom Joyner Morning Show stayed from 1996-2008. The program that lasted from 1994-2019 also featured guests comedians DL Hughley who I got to see in concert in 2019!!! George Wallace and the always lovable & hilarious Sheryl Underwood. Tavis later began hosting BET Tonight at the same time and got to interview Prince who he later became friends with and interviewed on PBS more than once!!! At BET, Tavis also interviewed Master P, Dionne Warwick, Lil’ Kim, Rev Run who might be the only rap musician I can think of who is a minister but who also had once done a show with The Beastie Boys to 50,000 screaming fans in the crowd along with performing on stage with a favorite band from my childhood and hopefully yours… Aerosmith!!!. We saw Tavis debate a conservative Los Angeles talk show host and former attorney Larry Elder who later ran for governor of California and sadly he was nowhere near Gary Coleman or The Terminator. I think Arnold would have made Larry look like right-wing Urkel quickly. Oh wait, Tavis managed to do that to Larry!!!

Tavis was fired from BET in 2001 after selling an exclusive interview with a far-left activist from the 70s to ABC after CBS which was owned by Viacom which OWNED BET passed on the interview. I pose this question to anyone who wants to be a talk show host. If YOU sell an interview to YOUR company and they say NO, knowing the interview might not come around again AND will open the doors to interview ANYONE in their world, what would YOU do?? I didn’t get the reason for the interview myself BUT that doesn’t matter. Tavis’ mentor and another one of my broadcasting heroes Larry King interviewed prisoners including The Son Of Sam and Karla Faye Tucker before her execution. Sometimes as a talk show host, you have to interview people you probably have nothing in common with or personally have no positive feelings toward. Viacom which is now Paramount I have to ask, if you believed in your host, why didn’t your company say YES???

Tavis would later find a home at NPR (briefly) and later the place I discovered him the most frequently PBS late at night. The guests ranged from intellects his dear friend Dr. Cornell West to politicians of wide ranges like a personal hero of mine Senator Bernie Sanders from Vermont and a future Republican Vice President named Mike Pence and thankfully the best Hoosier came to visit a lot and that John Mellenecamp. I credit people like , David Letterman and Tavis Smiley among the many talk show hosts for keeping me in touch with great music. Tavis even gave his friend John the whole week to promote the 2010 masterpiece No Better Than This. John got to do one song each show and there was an exclusive interview on the album. Tavis chatted with movie stars like Sandra Bullock, Will Smith, Bernie Mac who I still miss terrible. Chris Rock who kept Tavis laughing non-stop especially at the end with jokes about Tiger Woods and Alicia Keys. Tavis told his camera back away from that sweat. Luckily… Tavis was able to close with his famous closing phrase “keep the faith.” Other memorable guests included Jay Leno, Dwight Yoakam, James Taylor, Carlos Santana who made my room vibrate when I first saw the interview, sex & relationship Dr. Ruth, and the very funny British comedian and impersonator Tracy Ullman who like Chris Rock can get Tavis giggling to a point where he can't stop especially when Tracy imitated HIM!!! Tracy said at home her husband and kids were funnier than she is. Sometimes your profession has to stay at work. You’ll note I like the entertainers a lot but when I saw Tavis talk with Dr. West along politicians on the left AND the right. Tavis didn’t make them feel stupid but he did expect the truth when questions are asked. I do as well as does the audience.

I saw Tavis and Dr. West also advocated on the working poor and middle class who could become a part of the new poor. They documented in their book The Rich and The Rest Of Us and how to address the problem. As they examine:

“The “new poor” find themselves standing shoulder to shoulder at the welfare office, food pantry, or thrift store with people they used to disregard. As the politicians they elected predict a doomed “entitlement nation” and boast of shredding the poor’s safety nets, the former middle class tries to reconcile these contradictions by clinging to the belief that this is a temporary destination.”

Remember what out of touch Former Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels said..

”We do not accept that ours will ever be a nation of haves and have-nots. We must always be a nation of haves and soon-to-haves.”

Funny how we keep GOING back to that state.

Now Tavis and I will concur America has achieved many great new strides for freedom and the middle class thrived when he was a child in the 1970s and mine did in the 1990s, Tavis called poverty the new slavery when the book was written in 2012. The top 1 percent was owning 42 % of the wealth at the time. Today, that number is now down to about 31.7%. Imagine where it would be if Kamala Harris was president or if in the first place President Barack Obama had #1 been able to lead and #2 dragged this country to the places he needed to be harder than he did. I respect both Tavis and President Obama but the bottom line is, when America doesn’t finish the job it started and elects irresponsible folks who resisted the leader attempting to clean up a mess, you have to wonder where the moral barometer of our leaders along with our corporate media some are intelligent and hardworking but need to take note on the real problems in America.

Tavis is currently the founder of KBLA 1580 AM in Los Angeles where you can hear Tavis Smiley and talented hosts that include DL Hughley (HA HA!!! You can’t escape this motherfucker!!), Jesse Jackson Jr, Dr. Nil-Quartelai Quartey, Jill Munroe, and others. Tavis will never stop speaking the truth and I hope his wrongful termination from PBS will be resolved with Tavis’ victory. I hope Tavis will come back to TV if he wants to because I miss his conversations with very interesting people late at night. The radio show is great too especially with Dr. Cornell West on every Tuesday. One of the wisest and loving human beings I’ve ever seen. I love the blend of serious interviews and I need to get to get with who I used to read in The Huffington Post. Still my favorite news website not on Substack but we got Ryan now. The fun conversations are fun too. Tavis once reminded Wendy Williams don’t judge the book by the cover after he was on Dancing With The Stars and he had a lot of fun as I would have!! Especially after Disco Night on the cruise.

Tavis Smiley is one of the most authentic voices in my generation. I love his taste in music. I love that he stands up for important causes like Dr. King and the lieutenants who have continued to do especially with his friend Dr. West. I love that walk the walk in their books and radio program. Progressive. Bold. Love. MLK talked about love. I don’t know many news anchors or talk show hosts who speak about that subject. Some try but Tavis brings that out the most. I would love for Tavis & Dr. West to be President one day. I hope they’ll let me be their Press Secretary. I think the world would be safe in their hands.

-The Enchanted Beaches Of The Outer Banks in North Carolina!!!!

-Music CITY USA Nashville, TN!!!!

-The City of Brotherly Love and The Legendary Roots Crew.. Philly Philly!!!! Philadelphia, PA!!!!

and our Nation’s Capital Washington D.C!!!! Or at least it was memorable when I WAS in DC. Whether it still holds that title now is probably debatable at best.

Many Memorable trips but the one I took not long ago for my 38th Birthday was THE BEST TRIP I HAVE EVER TAKEN IN MY LIFE!!!! My wife Jenny & I took a cruise to Cozumel, Mexico!!!! It was my first time on a boat. It was my first time out of the country and the road to getting a passport wasn’t totally hard but I wouldn’t say it was a walk in the park either. The great people at our local city hall were incredibly supportive. I wish more people in all forms of government would be supportive to someone wanting to see the world for the first time or just for the sake of being good to your fellow global citizens.

After arguing back and forth for days about a date for the cruise, Jenny suggested a week before my birthday and I absolutely had enough PTO for that. I was a little nervous about going back to my day job on my birthday BUT after reading Andy Rooney write about vacations & birthdays before we got on the boat, I knew I’d made the right decision. Packing the Saturday before wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be, plus I traveled lighter than I thought I would. Jen and I also played I Spy on our drive to the boat in Tampa which was only two hours from our home. We also enjoyed listening to Jen’s favorite SiriusXM channel the 70s on 7 and Jen’s second favorite channel The Coffee House which features acoustic stripped down performances of singer/songwriters who often play guitar/piano. The minute we walked on that boat, I was a different man. We dropped our bags off in our cabin and I was ready to go to lunch. Jenny was thinking of departing before the boat took off but once she saw the buffet along with my excitement for this adventure, Jenny put on her captain’s hat and said “AHOY!!!” I had the best burger I ever had with an avalanche of ketchup. I had beets in a Thousand Island salad for the first time in over fifteen years. My father was surprised the first time I ate beets thanks to his mother, my Mom Mom Betty, and I really liked them. That afternoon the boat started its voyage to Mexico!!!! Jen also said the Spinach was the best ever and sautéed to perfection.

For dinner that night, Jenny & I were given a discount at a restaurant two decks up from our cabin and we had the best filet mignon ever. We had shrimp cocktail for an appetizer. My filet featured peppercorn and béarnaise sauce!!! I will never put A1 on ANYTHING again. I had some of Jen’s mac & cheese which was even better than the wonderful brand I had on the main buffet area we had breakfast lunch and most dinners on. I had bacon and hash browns every morning for breakfast usually with fresh fruit and a homemade biscuit or a croissant. Oh I even had baked beans for breakfast one morning as I couldn’t find them as a side during lunch time. Where else on Earth can you have something non-conventional for breakfast?

Important lessons when going to the cruises:

Lesson #1: Proper clothing is a must. You can always change for the pool after you finish your meal.

Lesson #2: Protect your area at all times when you go to eat. If you’re gone too long, your food could get taken and believe me when I tell you, the staff is looking at all times.

Lesson #3: Be nice to ALL THE STAFF. They work hard at their jobs and many are away from home for most of the year. Smile, show gratitude and be encouraging as they will be to you ESPECIALLY if you’re a first time global traveler like me

Lesson #4: Take a good look before you put ANYTHING on your plate

Lesson #5: Buy at least one thing from the gift shops. Look around a lot and compare prices THEN take a souvenir home.

Those are the most important ones that I can think of but they are essential for great travel. Any others I’ll share in due time.

I danced EVERY night and with some of the sweetest people I’ve met in a very long time. Jenny came to a couple of these great dance parties but she would go to bed early some nights. I was fortunate there were two dance floors close to the cabin and Jenny encouraged me to dance my ass off. I came on the boat to party alcohol free style and I did!!! The first night I attended a balloon party on Deck Four with music from Bruno Mars to Taylor Swift. The second night there was a Michael Jackson dance party and I’ve been a fan of MJ since I saw the movie on his family’s life when I was 12. The best album of all time is Thriller and nothing comes close to it. Not one bad song on the album. I loved moonwalking to “Billie Jean” and rocking out like Eddie Van Halen to “Beat It” which next to “Human Nature” is my favorite MJ song of all time.

Throughout the week, Deck Five had a lounge which featured a Bossa Nova band. That music is known as a relaxed samba developed in Brazil in the late 1950’s and 1960’s but you’ll still dance your ass off to it even after a soda. I saw them in the lounge almost every night I was on the boat. I saw the lead singer during the day near the art gallery and thanked her for the beautiful music. I even convinced a former dancer with a cane due to a motorcycle accident to get up & dance and they danced with graceful glee!!! Other nights a wonderful jazz trio would take the room or a big band orchestra that could play crooners like Sinatra one minute then “Just The Way You Are” by Billy Joel. A reggae-funk band played on Deck 9 where the pool was throughout most of the cruise but on Thursday night they got to play the lounge. I even got to shake their hands and tell them how awesome they were. I extended that same hand that with the Bossa Nova band I loved as well. I just wanted to show how grateful I was that I could enjoy dancing on the week of my birthday and not need a drink to do that.

I also enjoyed the shows they put on especially the two show stopping musical revues. One show featured Broadway tunes from Hairspray, Chicago and one or two songs from West Side Story. I loved the second one a little more called Can’t Stop The Rock. I was expecting guys dressed like The Beatles or The Stones. Oh we got Glee meets Hairspray. They even made a R&B version of the Andy Williams standard “Where Do I Begin.” I also loved hearing two of the gentleman sing “The Sound Of Silence” by Simon & Garfunkel. Another woman sang “The Rose” by Bette Midler and then “I Will Always Love You” by Whitney Houston and of course written by Dolly Parton!!! I also was surprised by the salute to Men In Black along with the salute to 1960’s beach music that my father would have loved. Dad would probably ask why The Beach Boys themselves weren’t used.

We had excursions on Wednesday and Thursday of the cruise that were out of this world. Wednesday’s was a Mayan Ritual which included two deep bath massages, a massage in a sauna in between the two baths and the ritual ending with a deep massage in a hammock. The experience will send you on a holistic adventure like no other and make you feel years younger. It will heal your soul of many demons and the ones that were attacking mine since at least December 2024 went away. You have to be in the moment when going through an experience like that and be willing to let things of the past drift away forever. The same would go for Thursday’s excursion which involved snorkeling and this one goes to the history books as well. We saw a schools of Dories, Parrot fish, Sargent fish, over a dozen Starfish, a Sea turtle and even some sharks!!! Yes!!! I swam with sharks and had NO idea they were around me!!!! I didn’t miss a beat after we were told sharks were near by. I just kept swimming but I wasn’t far from the group either. The Al that moved to Florida in 2008 would NEVER have swum with sharks at first but being on a cruise makes you say yes to many things for the first time. Like trying Apple Soda on a small speed boat or dancing to Will Smith’s “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit’ It” at a Mexican cafe while having the best nachos of your life. I will admit that might not be in same arena but it takes bravery to dance in public just like it does to not think about sharks being around while you are swimming in their house. Moments like that give the confidence to face a lot of things in life that are difficult.

I danced a lot but I also did karaoke three nights in a row and let me be clear…. I’m lucky I can talk after those lovely karaoke sessions. The first one was on Wednesday where the event was Krazy Karaoke in which a very funny British lad named Nick convince ME to go first and pick the next person to sing. Now while we the audience picked who was going next, Nick picked the song and this dude picked “Barbie Girl” by a Danish pop group Aqua. I was asking myself “what would a karaoke champ of over 25 years do in this moment?” So I remembered how the chorus went and I sang in the highest pitch I could take it then I rapped on the rest of the song. I credit reruns of Say What? Karaoke on MTV as a kid which I need to see again on a rainy day. To make up for “Barbie Girl” the following two night I did two favorite Justin Timberlake songs. “Pop” from the last *NSYNC album Celebrity and then “Like I Love You” which was Justin’s first solo single with Jenny in the audience for me to sing to.

During portions of this trip, we were joined by three very lovely couples. One from Rhode Island, one from New York & New Orleans and the last were from Canada. When Jen would go to bed early, the group along with myself danced and did karaoke. We especially loved The Disco Nights and One Hit Wonders. The cruise director Kim hosted those last two nights where we danced to “Dancing Queen” by Abba. We heard the best of Donna Summer from “Bad Girls” to “Hot Stuff.” We learned a thing or two about The Bee Gees not just JIVE TALKIN’ but we also got down shaking our booties with KC And The Sunshine Band. I must say I enjoyed that a little more than One Hit Wonders where I ran for the damn hills when they played “Macarena.” Although I got up again because you never going to keep me down when I hear “Jump” by Kris Kross or “Who Let The Dogs Out” by Baha Man. I almost died laughing when the DJ put on “Barbie Girl.” I’ll dance to Young MC’s “Bust A Move” before “The Macarena” any day!!! Oh wait.. I did!!!!

I went to an art gallery and soaked up all of the beauty. I saw paintings from New York to Paris. I saw graffiti art get treated like a Picasso. I saw every dog getting their day in other paintings. I saw Ali float like a butterfly and sting like a bee in another. I saw Disney characters riding the trolley to The Tanner house hoping the house wasn’t “FULL” of course!!! I saw The Little Mermaid UNDER THE SEA!!! I won a coffee table book by Leroy Neiman. Leroy was a World War II veteran and artist who once did early illustrations for in the section “Man at His Leisure.” LeRoy could capture greatness in golf, football, Frank Sinatra, and the greatest basketball player of my generation Michael Jordan!!!! I know I want to read more about art after finding this beautiful book of 90’s art work and his 80’s book is next on my list.

This was the greatest birthday ever!!! I made some new friends I look forward to keeping in touch with from dancing & karaoke. I was able to read quite a bit on the trip mostly because I did so in the morning before the activities I mentioned which all took place in the afternoon. This vacation was also a second honeymoon for my wife Jenny & I. It healed our marriage in a lot of ways while accepting we are different people. Sometimes one wants to take a long siesta while the other wants to go dancing or when one wants to read a book while the other wants to go to a cooking class. We accept the differences and attempt to meet in the middle. This was also a cruise we had been wanting to take for a couple of years, some things got in the way. I’m glad we were able to do this for a beautiful occasion. I’m also positive this won’t be our last international trip and I hope South Africa is ready for Jenny & Al.