Wow, What A Strange Class Trip

The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame 2011 Inductees has been leaked across the internet before the scheduled announcement on Wednesday December 15th and I have to say this...it"s not a bad class. It"s a strange class...but not a bad one.

Welcome to the Hall Of Fame.....Alice Cooper, Neil Diamond, Dr. John, Tom Waits and Darlene Love.

Hard to believe isn"t it. Bear saying the inductees are not that bad. Don"t rush to judgment here, it could have been better, much much better but the voters could only vote for who the nominating committee sent over.

Did they miss the boat on not putting J. Geils in...Absolutely

Did they get it right by not voting in L.L. Cool J, Chic and Donna Summer...Hell yea

Look I actually like the five inductees. Alice Cooper was a no brainer, he should have been in when he was first eligible in 1995. I'm not so sure if Darlene Love is Hall worthy but I have always liked her and she is more worthy than Donna Summer. People will whine about Neil Diamond but before he went cheesy with Barbara Streisand he was considered rock in the 60’s and you would be hard pressed to find a more prolific songwriter of the past 50 years. Dr. John and Tom Waits I can put together as two artists I thought I would never see inducted, love them both but they are both so different from the mainstream I never thought they would see the inside of the hall except with a ticket. A happy surprise for sure.

Alice Cooper, Neil Diamond, Dr. John, Tom Waits and Darlene Love. Wow what a strange class...Can't wait to hear the jam at the end of the night. Wonder what Tom Waits song will they do?

Hopefully this version of rock's wikileaks is true.

Nuff said, least till next time
Happy holidays to everyone
Peace Out
Bear

Talent, We Don't Need No Stinkin Talent!

One of the best lines I ever heard in a movie was in one of my favorites. “A Bronx Tale” when Robert DeNiro’s character tells his son “There is nothing worse than wasted talent”.

It rings so true. Wasted talent, you can never go back in time and use that talent once it’s time has gone.

The more I look around the music landscape today it’s more like the famous line from The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre (changed slightly for this story) “Talent, We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Talent”.

The sad thing is that in todays music world, most don’t have talent to waste.

Really you want to argue this point?

Okay, lets look at a couple of the “hottest” (and please read the sarcasim in this next word) “artists”.
Right now one of the biggest acts out there is Dustin Lieber. (What, hold on a minute someone is yelling at me. That’s not his name? It’s what? Justin Bieber, really? Does it really matter, in a couple of years won’t we be calling him “what’s his name” anyway?) Okay back to my story, JUSTIN BIEBER (is that better?) is right now the hottest thing out there and the only thing he is missing on his resume is talent.

This is a kid that was found on YouTube singing a song and someone who obiviosly did not have the sound up on his computer thought “Wow, great hair. We can make this kid a star!” and guess what they were right.
In this day and age, talent can only get in the way of screaming pre-teens that seem to drive the music world these days.

Look who was the big music tickets this past year, Dustin (I couldn’t resist), Miley Cyrus, Ke$ha, The Jonas Brothers (can you hear the tick, tick , tick of their 15 minutes of fame running out), Taylor Swift to name a few and guess what. Talent is very sparce in that group.

Oh don’t give me that crap of, “Taylor Swift doesn’t belong in that group, she is a superstar, she writes her songs, she’s great” No she is not. She is a very cute girl with a guitar with a very limited voice range and once celebrities learn to stop dating her she will have very little to write about. Period, argument over.

I did with these so-called artists, what I do with all the new music I listen too. I sat back, closed my eyes, opened my mind and just listened to the music and guess what….at the end. Nothing, Nada, Ziltch.

I’m sorry. these kids don’t have talent, they don’t have voices, you know what they have….looks and in some cases the Disney machine behind them. Either one is the same to the pre-teen girls that are programming our airwaves.

One notable exception to the group above that was a dominate force in 2010 was Lady Gaga. Why did I leave her off the list? Because she is probably the smartest person in the music industry right now. She does have talent but she also knows that talent doesn’t mean anything in todays music. Image does. Why do you think she walks around in a meat dress or in outfits while going thru airports that TSA would be afraid of patting down. Simply image. She keeps her name out there and acts as outrageous as possible. She is 80’s era Madonna in 2010. Why else would she come to Cleveland twice in 2010 for sold out concerts when most big acts simply skip over us (big shout out to Sir Paul for skipping Cleveland to play in Pittsburgh instead this year, thanks). She knows fame is fleeting (remember the Jonas Brothers comment earlier) and get the money now. She knows that the teens and pre-teens that are buying her music now have the attention span of a nat. For her it’s a simple fomula, Get the money now and later work on being a real artist.

Sometimes when I see the Biebers of the music industry out there performing I wonder could a band like the Eagles have made it today if they broke in 2010? I mean I remember the first time I saw them in 1974 when four guys came onstage in jeans and t-shirts and just said “Were the Eagles from California” and launched into four part harmony that just absolutly blew me away. You know what they had?

Talent…..
Would that work today?

The only way to end this story is this. There will be over a thousand musicians playing all over Cleveland this weekend in bars and clubs that have 100 times more talent than Justin Beiber will ever have but does it matter?

Sadly no………

Nuff said, least till next time
Have a great thanksgiving
Peace
Bear

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum’s 15th Annual American Music Masters Series

Hey Cleveland, one of the biggest events in Rock and Roll is coming back to Cleveland for the 15th year in a row, The American Music Masters Series

If you missed last years great event honoring Janis Joplin don't miss out this year when the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame honors the music of Fats Domino and Dave Bartholomew. This great event will not only feature the music of Fats and Dave but also the great music of New Orleans.

I mean come on Cleveland the house band is none other but Dr John and the Lower 9-11 what could be better.

This isn't just a one night concert, no......this is a week long celebration starting on Nov 8 with Rock And Roll Night School: A Spotlight On Fats Domino And Dave Bartholomeaw with something new every night leading up to the main event on Nov 13th.

Last year a lot of people I told about the Janis Joplin event all said "Bear I wish I would have known, I would have loved to gone" Well now you know so go to http://www.rockhall.com/ to get tickets and for a complete list of events. It'll be the best $30 you spent lately for a night of great music.




For more information on the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame and all of the upcoming events at the hall go to http://www.rockhall.com/

American Music Masters®

2010: Fats Domino & Dave Bartholomew
2009: Janis Joplin
2008: Les Paul
2007: Jerry Lee Lewis
2006: Roy Orbison
2005: Sam Cooke
2004: Lead Belly
2003: Buddy Holly
2002: Hank Williams
2001: Bessie Smith
2000: Muddy Waters
1999: Louis Jordan
1998: Robert Johnson
1997: Jimmie Rodgers
1996: Woody Guthrie

An Old Pair Of Levi's And Jackson Browne

Do you remember coming home from the record store and putting Jackson Browne’s “Running On Empty” on the turntable and listening to it for the first time. I mean for me, the needle would hit the end of side 2 and I would flip it over and had to play it again. It was that good. Hell I’m listening to it now as I write this review.

Last night Jackson came to town and just like the first time I listened to “Running On Empty”, he didn’t disappoint.

To me Jackson Browne is like an old pair of worn Levi’s. He’s comfortable. He’s comfortable to listen too, always has been for me. His voice takes you back to a time and decades later, the man has changed but the voice and style of song writing really hasn’t.

Jackson started the show with opening act David Lindley and started out with an acoustic set which included the great Warren Zevon’s “Seminole Bingo” and Springsteen’s “Brothers Under The Bridge” before leaving for a short time as Lindley did a couple of songs solo.

When Jackson came back it was with his full band and they were perfect for this show. They never overwhelmed the songs, they were the perfect accompaniment for a Jackson Browne show. He started the show with selections off his 2008 album “Time The Conqueror” and even though I didn’t really know the songs more than a once over, I found myself right into a groove, head bobbing and enjoying the moment. It’s like I said earlier, Jackson is like that old pair of Levi’s, just comfortable.

He soon broke into the older tunes hitting back into the early seventies with “Your Bright Baby Blue Eyes”, “Fountain Of Sorrow”, “For A Dancer”, “The Pretender” and before starting up “Rock Me On The Water” he did a little speech about the concerns of using plastic and the effect on the oceans and he was going okay until he talked about seeing the sign behind the stage warning against littering in the river for the sake of the fish and he said “Is there fish in there? You do know it does have the distinction that it once burned” which brought a spatter of boo’s and comments. He quickly ended the speech and got back to giving us a beautiful rendition of “Rock Me On The Water”. Right after someone yelled “Rosie” and he started to laugh saying “sometimes you don’t know when to do Rosie” (who would have thought a song about masturbation would bring the biggest hand! Okay that was a bad pun) and asked the crowd “Do you want to hear Rosie?” which brought a huge roar. Maybe to make up for the Cuyahoga River reference or just that it hit him at the right time because he had not been playing it at other concerts, sitting at the piano by himself broke into the crowd favorite and members of the band had to rush back out to do the call and answer part of the chorus. Without a doubt, the highlight of the night.

One of the nice things about a Jackson Browne concert is the interaction with the audience between songs, giving us a little insight into the song and what inspired him to write it. One great one was the story of his girlfriend wanting a “love song” about her that inspired him to write “My Problem Is You”. He rounded out the night with his great hits “Doctor My Eyes” and of course “Running On Empty” before doing the encores “Mercury Blues” and Little Steven’s “I Am A Patriot”.

Last night proved again, comfortable is good, if not great. If you don’t believe me go throw on that old pair of Levi’s and put “Running On Empty” back on the turntable and sit back and relax. It’s what I’m doing.

Random Thoughts On A Sunny Day!

What a beautiful day outside. Sun shining, the winter blues peeling away, a young man’s fancy turns too……. Aw what am I talking about, I’m not a young man and my thoughts turn to what else….music.

This summer music scene looks promising with some big acts returning to the North Coast. A large variety of festivals, art shows and events are going to make this a fun summer.

The summer really kicks off on May 22-23rd with the 41st Anniversary of the Hessler Street Fair. Local artists and craftsmen will be displaying their works as some of the best local bands in the area keep the party going all day long. The fair starts at 11am each day and goes till dusk in this historic area of Cleveland. Last year over 14,000 people came to the party. I’ll be there at the Cleveland Rock and Roll booth so plan on coming out and say hi. For more info goto

http://www.hessler.org

I’ll also be at OddMall out in Hudson May 8th. Come out to one of the largest indoor craft and art shows in the area. Make a day out of it and come support the local artists and pick up some really cool stuff. For more info goto http://www.oddmall.info

One of the best local musicians around David Budin will be playing with Long Road at Nightown on May 6th. As David describes this show “We have, probably, our most varied set of songs ever -- with everything from the '60s singer-songwriter stuff that we specialize in, to a 2010 song that's actually being played on radio stations now, to folky versions of early-rock songs, a Beatles song, a rousing traditional old-English tune, a couple of '70s Baxter Shadowfield originals, an acoustic version of a '60s psychedelic blues number, that song about the forest fire, a '50s TV theme song, and more -- including two songs I guarantee you've never heard before. And we have many new songs (that is, songs we haven't done before).” For only $10 that’s a lot music. Call Nightown for reservations at 216-795-0550.

The Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame is holding it's 9th annual Spring Benefit – It’s Only Rock and Roll at Public Hall. It's an eclectic lineup this year, amd it’s going to be a great show complete with 2010 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee Terry Sylvester and Tommy James of the Shondells. Tickets are $15 for balcony seating. All proceeds go to support the Rock Hall’s education programs.

The Rock Hall It’s Only Rock and Roll Benefit proceeds will support the Museum's award-winning educational programming, which explores the impact that modern music has had on our culture, politics and society and reaches more than 50,000 students and educators on site and at great distances each year.

For more information on the Museum's FREE educational programming and to get tickets to this event, please visit www.rockhall.com.

Like I said earlier the summer concert season is coming with some big names. Some can’t miss shows (in my opinion) Ringo Starr and His All Star Band will be playing at Nautica on July 20th. Nautica is probably the best place to see a show these days (again in my humble opinion) and I can’t wait to see Ringo along with band members Edgar Winter and Rick Derringer play. Some other shows I am looking forward to is the Troubadour Tour of Carol King and James Taylor July 7th at Quicken Loans Arena, Jackson Browne September 19th at Tower City and the one show I wouldn’t miss, Roger Waters comes back to Cleveland performing “The Wall” September 28th at Quicken Loans. The only thing better would be for LiveNation to announce shows by Paul McCartney and David Gilmour! What do you think Barry? For info on all shows goto www.livenation.com

National Record Store Day is April 17th and I’ll be making the trip out to my favorite vinyl store, Blue Arrow Records at 16001 Waterloo Road. Blue Arrow Records is working closely with their neighbors at MUSIC SAVES (they will have the bulk of special releases. To see a list, check out their website: www.musicsaves.com and This Way Out. Blue Arrow Records and This Way Out will also open at noon on Record Store Day! Blue Arrow will have a handful of special releases, as well as goodies and prizes for customers. This Way Out is offering 10% off on records all day! So come on out, buy some vinyl while supporting local record shops and hear some live music. What is a better way of spending a Saturday!

The lineup of bands that will be playing at Blue Arrow and Music Saves:
4-5:30pm White Hinterland DJs at MUSIC SAVES (they play the Beachland later that night)
5pm Will Rigby DJs (of the dB’s, drummer for Steve Earle) at Blue Arrow Records5:30pm The Lighthouse and the Whaler at MUSIC SAVES6pm Prisoners at Blue Arrow Records6:30pm The Muttering Retreats at MUSIC SAVES
7pm Tasty Cakes at Blue Arrow Records
7:30pm Cloud Nothings at MUSIC SAVES

So that should get you started to thinking ahead to the dog days of summer. Speaking of dog, I gotta go try to catch my Great Dane puppy chasing some geese off my property!
Nuff said, least till next time
Peace Out
Bear

Tonight's The Night or Welcome To My Nightmare

Tonight’s the big night!

Tonight the wait is finally over!

Tonight is what music lover’s the world over have been waiting for!

Tonight ABBA, Sweden’s biggest import since meatballs and Ikea, is inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame!

Okay I’ll wait for the applause to subside……………………………………….

Wow that wasn’t very long.

Tonight the iconic rock staple ABBA is being inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame and guess what? Half of them aren’t even coming.

What!

You heard me right, two of the four members of ABBA are not even showing up to be inducted into the Hall Of Fame. One has “a family event” and the other one’s excuse is “I don’t like to fly.” Ahhhh didn’t you used to tour? Didn’t you fly then or did you take Greyhound from gig to gig?

Personally I don’t think any of them should be there simply based on their music, but that’s me. No one gave me a vote but come on, you get inducted over much more deserving bands and individuals and then you stiff the ceremonies. Wow that takes a huge pair.

Do you think the members of Deep Purple would have attended? How about Rush or Heart or Alice Cooper or The Moody Blues or The Doobie Brothers or The J. Geils Band or Chicago or Jethro Tull or Steve Miller or…………… oh hell, you get the point.

So many deserving rock artists are skipped over each and every year for inclusion into the Rock Hall and it is only going to get worse. The Rock Hall Foundation that oversees the induction selections wants to drop the 25 year rule (when an artist’s first album is released) to 20 years. Why? Because then “newer” acts would move up the ballot. Acts that are “fresher” and “have name value”.

Are you kidding me. “NAME VALUE” Really!

Hey Rock Hall Foundation do you ever take a look at the great artists that are not in and can you tell me with a straight face they do not have “name value”. If you can do that all I can say is, Wow another huge pair.

But under this cloud of delusion by the foundation members, the inclusion of ABBA makes perfect sense. They have been eligible for 10 years and in those 10 years only once before have they EVER even been nominated for induction. Once, that’s all.

Did their music somehow get better over the past 10 years to finally make them worthy?

No, it’s simple, ABBA got in to the prestigious Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame because of one thing. The movie Mamma Mia.

The movie Mamma Mia gave them as the Rock Hall Foundation states it “name value”.

Even ABBA member Benny Anderson isn’t as delusional as some members of the selection committee when they voted for him when he told Rolling Stone Magazine that he was shocked Abba received a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nod. “I didn’t think this would happen, because we were a pop band, not a rock band,” All I can say about that is neither did I Benny, neither did I.

Tonight all I want is one thing from Benny and Frida when they accept their awards. I don’t want them to thank God, their manager, their band mate who doesn’t like to fly, the fans, or even their cat’s chiropractor.

I would like to hear their acceptance speech go like this.

“We would like to thank the one person that made this happen for us, Meryl Streep. Without Meryl we would never have been recognized like this. We would have stayed in the obscurity we have been in for decades. Here’s to you Meryl”

If I was Alice Cooper I would be on the phone tomorrow saying “Meryl I got this idea for a movie called Welcome To My Nightmare, you would be the lead. A lot of music, snakes, and guillotines. It could be huge!”

ABBA in the Rock Hall, welcome to MY nightmare folks.

Nuff said, least till next time
Peace Out
Bear

Random Thoughts On A Snowy Day!

Random Thoughts….

It’s been awhile since I wrote my Random Thoughts…I guess my thoughts haven’t been so random with digging out from the snow and wishing for spring…

Can’t wait for today’s hockey game but a little observation from the world of sports and especially the Olympics. The next time I hear an announcer make a comment about the USA-Canada game being dubbed the “Miracle On Ice II” I’ll throw my remote thru the TV. Folks this is nothing like the 1980 game. That game was a bunch of unknown college hockey players upsetting a team of professional players from the USSR. Today’s game is a team of NHL professional hockey players playing against more NHL professional hockey players. I hope it will be a great game and it has all of the makings of a hell of a game, but a “Miracle”. Ahhh no…

Okay back to music….

Looking for a great night out on the town and want to help support a great organization? Then plan on coming out to “Get Back” on March 25th and join Roots Of American Music (ROAM) for it’s 2010 spring fundraiser. The benefit will be held at the historic Rockefeller Building in Cleveland Hts and will feature Northeast Ohio’s own Abbey Road Band playing the music of the Beatles. There will also be a silent auction featuring some one of a kind items including unique Beatles items, a behind the scenes tour of the Rock Hall, Live Nation concert tickets, and tickets to see Ringo Starr at Nautica this summer!. Come on out and enjoy a great night. Contact ROAM for tickets at 216-321-9353.

Did you know that Cleveland has a new rock station, or let me refrain that, more like a “new station” that seems like an “old station”. V107.3 is a throwback to the glory days of radio in Cleveland when it was locally owned and programmed for our listening. Wow how unique! It’s nice to tune in and hear a local station play a variety of music where a playlist can go from Lyle Lovett to Marley to Wild Horses to Derek Trucks to Bowie to King Of Leon to Van Morrison to Dropkick Murphy’s. The ecletic mix is definitely a memory of another great radio station in our past. Keep up the good work John, Ric and Lonnie. You got a listener here.

Speaking of radio. I was sent this video of my favorite DJ, Dusty Street back in her days at KTIM in the San Francisco area in the 70’s. Gotta love Dusty! Check out the video here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0ZUOc-bqiI

Have you been checking out Alex Bevan’s live streaming concerts he’s been doing on the internet lately? Alex is doing them usually on Fridays at noon and it’s like going to the old Coffee Break Concerts without leaving your couch! Alex sounds great and it’s fun to listen to an artist just playing music and enjoying the moment. Check out Alex at his website http://www.ncweb.com/ent/alex/ to find his next concert.

Nuff said, least till next time
Peace Out

Bear

Say It Aint So Joe!

Remember that line from the movie Eight Men Out? The young kid looks up at “Shoeless” Joe Jackson with tears in his eyes as word of him being involved in the fixing of the World Series. Fade to the present and the part of the tearful young kid will now be played by yours truly.

Say It Aint So Joe!

Mine doesn’t have anything to do with baseball, or the World Series, or gamblers fixing games (no that was last week in Vegas when I swore the dice were fixed against me playing craps!). No mine has to do with the band Aerosmith and the rumor being floated out there that Billy Idol is going to replace Stephen Tyler.

Say It Aint So Joe!

Billy Idol in Aerosmith?

Say It Aint’ So Joe!

Look I like Billy Idol or at least I liked Billy Idol in the 80’s and especially when he parodies himself in bad Adam Sandler movies now but as the vocals of Aerosmith.

Sorry No Joe!

Why do bands feel it necessary to continue on wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy past their expiration date. I mean do you drink milk wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy past the expiration date?

What do I mean?

Look I don’t have a problem if a band continues with their core playing their music for what seems like forever (IE: The Rolling Stones) or if a band reinvents themselves with a new singer or a new sound. Take for example (for us older folks) Fleetwood Mac. In the late 60’s and early 70’s Fleetwood Mac was a ballsy blues rock band with Peter Green leading the way but members left over time and Mick Fleetwood and John McVie took another direction with the band and added Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham creating a totally different band with a totally different sound and created a more successful band. A newer example is Van Halen when they replaced David Lee Roth with Sammy Hagar. A new band with a new sound and they produced successful albums. Other bands have done it also. Genesis, Black Sabbath, and Deep Purple are other examples of bands that changed singers and recreated the band and it worked for the most part.

Why were these examples okay but I hate the idea of Billy Idol leading Aerosmith? I’ll tell you why, its not like they are going to reinvent Aerosmith at this late stage of the game and create a dynamic catalog of “New Aerosmith” albums. No they are going the way of Queen when they rehashed some of the greatest music created in the seventies with Paul Rogers pretending to be Freddie Mercury.

Simply it didn’t work. When I see Paul Rogers on stage I don’t want to hear him do a poor imitation of Freddie. I want to him hear belt out the songs of Free and Bad Company. See I like Paul Rogers and I like his voice but not this way. Now don’t get me started on the rumors of Adam Lambert might be taking up the Freddie torch with Queen, that will be a story here all its own!

Back in 2005 I got to go to see both David Gilmour and Roger Waters on their tours. Both did Pink Floyd songs as well as their solo works. You know what even though I thought Roger was a better concert and he definitely seemed to be having more fun playing the tunes, David is the voice of Pink Floyd and the songs when played by him resonated more to me.

You can’t replace a voice like that, period. The more iconic the band, the worse it is.

Look this isn't just a rant against Aerosmith doing this. Seriously do the other members of Aerosmith, Queen, Journey, ELO, etc need the money? Do they need the women? Do they need their ego’s stroked that bad? Okay maybe all three but do we want to hear it, not me.

These bands go from being Rock Hall legends to bad “tribute” bands. Now don’t get me wrong, I like good tribute bands at times (Fab Faux, Wish You Were Here for example) but I don’t want to see Joe Perry leading one.

The only thing I can say is….Say It Aint So Joe!

Nuff Said, least till next time

Peace Out

Bear

Happy Anniversary To Me!

Wow, I did it! They said it couldn’t be done and wouldn’t last….Okay it was me that was saying that but….I did it!

I just hit my one year anniversary of http://www.clevelandrockandroll.com/!

Yea!!! Open that champagne up…(I keep hearing that song in my head from The Flintstones – “Happy Anniversary, Happy Anniversary, Happpppppppppy Anniversary”)

What started as just a list of the concerts I attended over the decades has turned into really a phenomenon.

Seriously, I never would have thought it.

I can’t count the number of people I have ran into this past year that has told me “I love reading your stuff” or “whenever I get nostalgic for home I check out your site” or “do you think your f______ funny?” Okay that last one comes from some of the people I have criticized over the year and yea I do think I am funny at times…so there!

Like I said, this started as a lark. I was bored over the holidays and started writing down the bands and shows I had seen when my wife (or as she is known here in many stories, Mrs Bear) told me I should put it on the web. After I got done looking at her like she had an elbow growing out of her forehead, she told me “I think people would get a kick out of reading about the old shows.” Little did I know, she was right (as she will often say , she usually is!).

This little website started like a snowball rolling down a hill. Before I knew it, I’m getting emails from people telling me about the shows they saw. People started sending me lists of shows, ticket stubs, concert programs, photos they took and the best ones were the little stories they wrote about the shows. I didn’t even know how they found me, but they did.

Then I started just writing down my thoughts on music and putting them on the site and man….as the great American writer, philosopher and man about town Michael Heaton (you like that build up don't you Michael!) told me, “you want to get people in an uproar, write about music” and wow was he right. I can write a story in the morning and by noon, have a hundred emails either slamming me or saying “you’re a genius!” (okay maybe no one ever called me a genius but when they do agree with me my mind sort of glazes over and morphs it into that). It is very cool to hear from people that use the site for reference for projects or books or to see a story of mine referenced on a blog or a bands site somewhere around the world (that internet is an amazing thing, thank you Al Gore).

Who would have thought….not me that’s for sure!

It is amazing how strong people feel about music. Know that old saying “never talk politics or religion at a party”, go ahead and add music to that list. You know what, that’s what makes this fun. I love sitting around with a beer and just talking music with people and the site allows me to sit around and talk music with thousands and thousands of people at one time that I never would have the chance to do so. I love it when people email me and tell me their stories, they tell me why a certain band should be in the Rock Hall, they tell me how they are turning their children onto certain music or how they picked up the old guitar in the corner and are now playing it, they tell me how bad radio is, they tell me how good radio is (okay they may be nuts), they tell me what great cd (or album) they just got and I need to listen to it, they tell me their complaints about concerts, they tell me I have to see this local band at this bar and hundreds of other things they want to talk about.

I have become the Dr. Phil of music, only with hair!

There are a lot of people I have to thank for getting me here and I know I’m going to forget a ton of them but here goes nothing. I want to thank John Gorman who was pumping my site on his before I even knew John had one (check out the great WMMS “Buzzard” blog of John’s), Matt from addictedtovinyl.com (another great site) who answered all of my endless questions about blogs, websites, etc and shared a few beers doing what else “talking music”. Brian (brokenheadphones.com) for keeping me up on indie and metal, Jim Clevo for supplying me with endless issues of Scene’s from the 70’s and catching my mistakes on the site, Dusty (the best DJ on the air, hands down) for her encouraging emails on my stories, thank you for reading my stuff!, Bob The Cop (a familiar character in my stories and the biggest ABBA fan I know…just kidding Bob) for being like the little devil on my shoulder calling me out, Alex Bevan for being a friend and keeping the music going, Reena and Margaret from the Rock Hall for including me in the party, Rick and Kathy for so many beers around the fire doing what else “talking music” (do you see a trend here beer + music), Barry Gabel (the hardest working man in show business!), Elise from the House Of Blues, Eroc for a couple of the best shows I saw this year,, the always cool Jonah Koslan, Scott from the Artful Dodger fansite who was one of the first to help out and turned me onto Roger Cline And Peacemakers!, Roger Cline for throwing me props, Ann Thompson from afterthegig.com, Kevin and Sheela from ROAM (a great organization to get involved with), Dave W. and Dave H. for all the Michael Stanley info, Dom for ….the trend again…all the great beer and music talk, Janet Macoska for allowing me to use some of her amazing photos, Oprah for being my role model (okay just kidding..seeing if your paying attention), Jimmy from The Winchester Tavern for the great shows and putting me on the air, Greg Rollie, Michael Carabello, Susan Tedeschi, Carolyn Wonderland, Ray Benson and the others for great quotes from the interviews this year, to Shannon, Joanna, Brooke, Janiece, Matt and the rest of the great folks I met at the Art and Craft Shows where I showed my rock poster designs this year (thanks for the warm welcome), my boy Rick from Sony for being a great friend, and all of the friends on Facebook that keep me going with their support and comments and are quick to post them (I love that from you guys!). Some of the more active were Angelle, Leslie, Michelle, Perry, Rhonda, Elaine, Denise, Donna, Danny, Rick, Linda, Pat, Deb, Chuck, Dawn, Ro, Joe, Lisa, Rik, Ted, Billy, Rick, Laura, Chuck, Jim, Roger, and Melissa (okay I know I missed a few…hundred) I could always count on you guys and gals. Alan and Sarah for putting up with me and of course the biggest thank you has to go to Mrs Bear for putting up with my sitting at a computer typing all night, using her in stories, making fun of her for liking American Idol, and for giving me the idea and inspiration to do this and for being my best friend for 30+ years. Love ya..

This year has been a blast and here is too many more good times shared with you my friends.

Nuff said, least till next time.
Peace Out
Bear

Bear's Holiday Gift Ideas...or Everything Oprah Missed!

It’s that time of the year. People have thoughts of sugar plum fairies (ahhhhh what…..) as they try to figure out what is the cool gift to give this year.

I know you probably listened to Oprah or Ellen or some other TV talking head telling you their favorite holiday gift to give this year. The only problem is I can’t afford the gifts they suggest plus I would rather support the Cleveland artists, writers, craftsmen and venues they seem to overlook. (Take that Oprah!)

Well I’m here to give you the ultimate gift ideas (or at least in my eggnog soaked mind) for the rocker in your life.

There’s a lot of books out there about rock but what you need is a book about rock and Cleveland. The best one I’ve come across is John Gorman’s “The Buzzard – Inside The Glory Days Of WMMS And Cleveland Rock Radio”. Simply I love this book. Growing up in Cleveland with WMMS playing in the background of my life, I can relate to and remember many of the stories John tells about the formation of probably the greatest rock station ever created. It was a phenomenon we were a part of as listeners and it is great to get the behind the scenes look at our version or “WKRP”. Click here to buy

Need something to play in the background while reading “The Buzzard”? How about re-living Fridays at 6pm with Murray Sauls “The Get Downs Vol 1”. I mean the original wild man of Cleveland in the 70’s gave us his on the fly rants about politics, music, drugs, karma, work, life, liberty, sex, slavedriver bosses, and every other thing that crossed his fertile mind. Everyone tuned in at 6pm to get the proper start to the weekend. Always remember "We gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta, gotta.....get down, damnit!" Click here to buy

I’ve said it over and over. The only reason to buy the Plain Dealer is Michael Heaton. Plain and simple. Michael has a way of writing that you, me and everyone else can relate to and his book “Truth And Justice For Fun And Profit” is just fun reading. It’s a collection of his best works and as you finish one, you can’t wait to read the next. It’s a book you can’t put down. His view of Cleveland is to say “unique”. Also if you can get your hands on his “The Best Of The Minister Of Culture” it is worth the price of the book for just the story “Black Leather & Love: A Rock Fantasy” about his fantasy of being Mr. Joan Jett. Click here to buy

Looking for something unique or handmade? How about coming out and supporting Cleveland’s local artists at The Last Minute Market on Saturday December 19th from 10am-6pm at the Lake Erie Building at Templar Industrial Park 13000 Athens Ave. Lakewood. Local artists and craftsmen will be showing and selling jewelry, clothing, artwork and some really, really great rock concert posters (okay that’s my booth!). So why bother going to a crowded mall buying the same old run of the mill stuff when you can come by and get something unique and that one of a kind gift. Hey at worst case, you’ll finally get to see what I look like!

Ever walk down the street and see someone wearing a cool t-shirt and wonder where they got it? They probably got it from Psycho Reindeer! They have the wildest and coolest designs you can imagine and they are only $14 with free shipping. C’mon free shipping! Try to get that somewhere else. Click here to visit their website.

Looking to put the ultimate home theater in your house or looking for that audio system that goes “up to 11” or simply need that flat screen installed on the wall so it doesn’t fall off. Then you got to check out the guys at Crave Audio and Video. These guys know their stuff and I’m telling you this as a paying customer! Look it is easy to go to some of these overpriced audio/video specialist stores that are going to push you into something they want to sell you (trust me on this!) or that Best Buy where you got your tv and now what are you going to do as it sits in a box in the middle of your living room. These are good guys where the customer is first. Give Kyle a call at 440-623-5698 for a consultation and tell him Bear sent you. (Ask him about my A7’s!)

Look it is no secret here that my favorite Cleveland musician is Alex Bevan. I’ve been listening to Alex for over 35 years and his music just hits a cord with me and his latest CD “Falls And Angels” continues the tradition. It’s a beautiful CD that finishes off with the haunting “Gunfighter Smile”. Go over to Alex’s website and pick it up and while your there pick up some of his other great CD’s. Click Here to visit the website

Got a real rock and roll fan in your family? I got the perfect gift then. How about a membership to the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Never thought of it before, don’t feel bad, it’s just one of those perfect gifts you just never think about. Wow, I got an idea!!!! Instead of going out and buying “Guitar Hero” or “Rock Band” so your child can sit in front of the TV pretending to be a rock legend, why not get them a membership to the Rock Hall in their name. Not only do they get a very cool members only rock and roll t-shirt, a collectable Rock Hall pin but a membership card with their name on it. Think how cool it would be when you take your family to the Rock Hall and your kid pulls out his/her membership card and tells them at the entrance “I’m a member”. Let’s start making a new generation of musicians and teaching them the history of rock and this is a great way to get started. Click Here to go the Rock Hall website

Okay one last gift idea. Just click over to the main website, www.clevelandrockandroll.com and click on the store button and check out the selections of the Cleveland rock concert posters I have available. Janis, Floyd, Stones, Zeppelin, there all there. Go on take a look! Click Here

Wow, okay now the eggnog (spiked of course!) is settling in and I think I might have given you some very cool gift ideas (hey, I have no problem if any of you would like to give me any of them. Just a thought) and you don’t even have to go to the mall and park a mile away and fight the crowds and blah, blah, blah. Okay you get the idea.

This holiday, give a little piece of Cleveland to your rock fan.

Happy Holidays everyone!

Nuff said, least till next time
Peace Out
Bear