The Craft with Paul Westerberg pre-First Ave shindig
By Jodi | Filed under Thx the mgmt, Upcoming Shows, Westbergesque | Comments (2)
Okay jerkies, here’s the dealio. Doors open at 7 and the show starts at 8. From what I can surmise (though I have no official verification), everyone who attends is gonna need to ‘check in.’ I know a lot of the local places giving away tickets (City Pages, Vita.mn) aren’t even gonna notify winners until Saturday the 22nd.
So that’s what I (don’t) know about that.
What I do know is that a bevy of westernerd-babes and I are gonna go on down to O’Donovans (careful the site plays annoying music) at 5:30 Sunday. And then after a few we will mosey on down the road (across the street really) to First Ave. and get our sweet selves checked in.
Don’t be shy, stop on over. I’ll be the 6′5″ woman with the annoying laugh. Come on up and say hello. I can’t wait to see you all!
pimping ain’t easy
By Jodi | Filed under asides | Comments (0)
This is very tangentially Westerberg related. See I am a finalist for an HP writing contest, I wrote about that which inspires my writing. Westerberg was one of the things I mentioned. So you know, you should go vote for me. Pretty please?
A stunning reversal.
By pzp | Filed under In Love With That Song, Westbergesque | Comments (10)
A friend of mine who shall remain nameless (Blasty) has for sometime now fought a losing battle to convince us all that the fateful line in ‘I Will Dare’ is ‘bacon and cigarettes’, NOT ‘fingernails and cigarettes’. Like most others, I’ve been quietly amused by his hopeless inaccuracy (as well as his dated style of formal-wear). I’d even prepared a little column with the requisite pseudo opinion quotes:
But then, a phunney thing happened on the way to the interweb. I happened to listen to ‘I Will Dare’ on the ‘Don’t You Know…’ compilation. It’s the first time in ages I’d heard the tune that I wasn’t playing some concert bootleg. And I’ve never heard a live version where he doesn’t sing ‘cigarettes’. But on that original? Sweet Fancy Maureen, he says ‘bacon’ . Now, I’m not suggesting that he does. I’m not wondering if he does. He DOES. Case closed. Turn out the lights. Tip your waitress. The fat lady’s singing, curtains are falling, Smeagol’s burning, and the roadies are finishing ‘Hootenanny’.
So, a tip of the hat to my anonymous friend Blasty (real name & phone: Eduardo
In the Blogs: Shaggy dogs, why Westerberg rules, and more
By Jodi | Filed under In the Blogs | Comments (0)
GStumbo talks about how “Let it Be” is the soundtrack to his formative years.
He’s a whore tells us why Westerberg rules.
Crawdaddy, the magazine of rock, offers up Shaggy Dogs: Paul Westerberg vs. Ryan Adams, which has been all over the Internet even getting a mention in USA Today’s Pop Candy blog.
Sodajerk responds to the Crawdaddy piece, mentioning how despite lacking Paul’s sense of humor and authenticity, Adams has managed to charm the public.
Okay, this is very tangentially a Paul Westerberg link, but the name of the blog caught my eye. Indie Selections for Your Erections offers up a song by the Drop Nineteens called “Winona” about the lovely Ms. Ryder who has allegedly dated Mr. Westerberg.
Songs I hate irrationally, rationalized is a funny piece about songs that drive Dan up the wall. Sadly, he hates “Dyslexic Heart.” But don’t hold that against him.
Stick or Automatic offers up some thoughts on “Tim” and “Let it Be.”
Liquid Parallax invents a word and tells everyone about our favorite singer in, Unawarer’s Guide to Paul Westerberg.
One Poor Correspondent offers up a fun sort of six degrees of separation album title game.
Video Tuesday — Sanitation expert & a maintenance engineer
By Jodi | Filed under Seen Your Video | Comments (0)
Can’t Hardly Wait, A Retrospective: Sing-Along
By Wolfdog | Filed under Can't Hardly Wait, In Love With That Song | Comments (4)
The concept of the live show sing-along seems silly at times. Sometimes the song seems purposely written for drunken fans to shout the chorus. Kiss - Rock And Roll All Nite and pretty much every Bon Jovi song seem to fit that bill. But Kiss and Bon Jovi are stadium-headlining-rockstars. They have the ability to hold the mic stand towards the crowd, cup their hand to their ear, and get their radio-friendly chorus shouted back at them in all the crowd’s monotone glory. (An aside: Ever seen an act try that and fail? It’s a sad occurance, and I do feel bad for them. But hey, they brought it on themselves.)
But when a sing-along is not expected, or coaxed, or specifically written to, it can be a glorious thing. Just the pure joy of a group of people that are so into the moment and the song that it just happens. No lead singer pointing to his left commanding, “Now just this side over here!”. No, “Come on, Quad Cities….I know you can sing louder than that!”
Paul Westerberg’s songs don’t usually lend themselves to sing-alongs. Or maybe his type of fan doesn’t risk making a local spectacle of themself. But it does happen. Folkery songs like If Only You Were Lonely and Waitress In The Sky can get some shout-along action. The solo 2002 tour also seemed to bring this out. Maybe the informal setting (cozy lamp and couch available) or maybe because quite often Paul needed a little help with the lyrics. (It’s ’stupid hat and gloves’…subways and bums are in the 2nd verse).
Unfortunately, for my purposes, Can’t Hardly Wait was missing from the setlists on that tour. (did I miss one?) But in 2005, along with His Only Friends, CHW was in the set nightly and usually a cause for a joyous sing-along. And I’m not just talking the chorus, the crowd knows it all. And don’t they just sound damn happy to be there?
I may be slightly sappy or sentimental, but I live for moments like these during a show. A connection between people facilitated by music and words. For 4 minutes, everyone in the room is your best friend.
So sing along with the crowd in Kentucky in 2005.
Hold on loosely, but don’t let go
By Jodi | Filed under In Love With That Song, Thx the mgmt | Comments (1)
Here’s the thing about running a contest: it’s really a lot of fun to be able to offer people a chance to go see the invite-only Paul Westerberg MGD The Craft Show at First Ave. It’s really not any fun at all to only get to choose four people to go.
I didn’t expect the rewarding of tickets to suck so much. If I had to my way everyone who wants to go see the show would get to go. Sadly, I never ever get my way.
All the winners have been contacted. Three of the four passes have been claimed, and we’ve got one straggler who isn’t quite sure yet.
But that’s kind of awesome, that one straggler who shall remain nameless. Why is that awesome? Because The Straggler has a chance at another ticket and if he wins that one, he’s gonna let us re-draw for his winning ticket.
That’s the thing about Paul Westerberg fans, they just want to share the love. Everyone wants everyone who wants to go, to go. So instead of sucking up the ticket, he’s gonna wait to hear on the other deal and if that deal comes through we’ll contact one more person on Monday to let them know the good news.
Sweet, eh?
In the meantime you can up your odds of getting tickets by entering at Cities 97 and City Pages. Good Luck!
In the meantime, all you who wrote about your favorite song are welcome to come back and write about any Paul Westerberg or ‘Mats things you’d like. Go on, tell us about why “Let it Be” is so much better than “Tim.” I dare you.
On the Bus
By boyo46 | Filed under In Love With That Song | Comments (1)
So, I am a NY transplant loving the ease with which one can navigate this crumbling, verdant little city.
Like all great art, the ‘Mats are being discovered by gens x,y and z. The tech guy from my last job in NY, sent right from central casting, 28, almost tenured, brilliant, 19 lbs. and a real live Sherman from Mr. Peabody fame, said, are you moving to Minneapolis to be closer to PW. No, says I, crumbs on the keyboard, a squealing mouse stuck to a glue pad in the corner of my furnace-office, I am taking self an meager ownings there to ride the bus to work and listen to On the Bus on my generic mp3 player. Yes, not the first to think of it, but undoubtedly one of a handful of guys PW’s age to do so. And Fuck Apple, says I, which,of course, had him blushing.
Everything was going great until that tough-luck mouse came back to haunt me in the guise of a boss too small to be a rat but just the right size to walk in and out of one of those cartoon mouse holes in the wall. I couldn’t find it but was so convinced it existed and she was scurrying in and out all day with shreds of incriminating financial documents that I was beginning to resemble the Nick Nolte character in Affliction. At some point I had to be chemically mellowed with a drug so potent it was impossible not to get on the wrong bus from time to time and get to work around lunchtime. Apparently that kind of timing is frowned upon in the Midwest.
Yes, another fine mess, pickle, tight spot, etc., but my ex-colleague in NY thinks I am cool geezer. Just toggle your resume, says he.
A last TC hurrah with PW would make young Sherman awfully proud, especially with the advent of the camera phone.
Favorite song
By MKotsonas | Filed under In Love With That Song | Comments (0)
There so many Paul Westerberg-penned songs to choose from but I would say “Skyway.” It’s such a beautiful song and unique for people who live in the Twin Cities area.
Talent Show
By pl | Filed under In Love With That Song | Comments (0)
Today, Talent Show is my favorite song. Now I Wonder, A Star Is Bored, Can’t Hardly Wait, Love Untold, Sixteen Blue, Androgynous, Within Your Reach along with many others could easily take its place on any other day though. One of the reasons I like TS so much is the many ad-libs done in this song during live performances — from the “we won’t say nothing bad on TV”, “don’t look like Jah Wabble”, Send in the Clowns, Chuck Berry riffs to the “leave him alone you fuckhead” it just seems like they (Mats and post-Mats) always had fun with it — I know I do with all versions. Plus it includes a bit of another one of my favorite songs — Portland.
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