MEBlog: August 2004

MEB @ The State Fair

We had a great time playing our three nights at the Great New York State Fair. We've got lots of pictures to post and dozens of stories to tell, and we'll get that stuff posted as soon as we can.

For the moment, here's a little taste of the fun we had at the end of the Midway.

My first girlfriend's name was Gwen - Hmmmmmm

OK, so it wasn't Gwen Stefani (it was Gwen Roth - I think), but we can all dream, right? Miss Stefani (or should I say Mrs. Gavin Rossdale?) is releasing a solo album in November and will be starring as Jean Harlow opposite Leonardo DiCaprio's Howard Hughes in a Martin Sorcese film "The Aviator." Got a lot going on, doesn't she?

More about Gwen on MSNBC.com.

No Girls Allowed?

Interesting article about the lack of women guitarists in the world, especially influential ones.

Where are all the guitar heroines?
Where are all the female guitarists who can light it up in some original, groundbreaking and influential way? Can you name any? Come to think of it, have you ever heard the phrase "guitar heroine"?

Probably not, and for good reason. This won't win you friends and maybe it can't be said out loud, but here's the hard and horrible truth: Fifty years after Elvis Presley recorded "That's All Right Mama," the grand total of pantheon-worthy female rock guitarists is zero.

There isn't a single one.

From washingtonpost.com (registration required).

Islandfest 8/21: MEB rocks on as hurricane force winds try to blow Paul, Mike and Jeff to the back of the stage. Photos by Steve LaQuay.

Onstage at Islandfest. The bright area above the tree line is actually a clear sunny sky, rarely seen this summer.

Islandfest at the Budweiser Ampitheater, Saturday 8/21. Steve O scans the crowd in hopes that a limping Beyonce passes by. See below...

Steve, maybe you can catch her now

Beyonce's massive 328-pound bodyguard "Shortie" lost his balance while protecting her and stepped on her foot, breaking her toe. Ouch!

I've had a broken toe before, and they're not much fun. But here's your chance, Steve. Normally women run when they see you coming, but I think Beyonce's in your grasp now. Go for it!!

Here's a blurb about the incident.

Why isn't the MEB on a Miller Beer can?

Miller is putting pictures of Rolling Stone magazine covers on some commemorative beer cans, including Bon Jovi, Wille Nelson, Blondie, Elvis and others. But critics are a little upset that there are no black artists on any of these cans.

CNN.com has the AP article.

At last week's NASCAR Race in Watkins Glen NY, "fans" of driver Robby Gordon display a special greeting for him as he travels the course.

Hey Robby!!

Robby Responds... (That's Robby on the left saying you're number one...or something like that)

Race winner Tony Stewart responds....

Guilty musical pleasures

We all have tunes that are guilty pleasures for us. We won't admit to anyone that we really like these songs, but for some strange reason you'll always find us singing along or bopping our head to these crazy tunes. Like Hanson's "Mmm-Bop" or cheesy disco beats. What are your favorites?

Funny article on MSNBC.com.

Billstock 2004

Photo by Steve LaQuay

We had a great time at Billstock 2004, a company picnic/party for the employees of CXtec (formerly CABLExpress Technologies) on a hilltop overlooking the beautiful rolling countryside south of Syracuse. The weather was wonderful, the food and beverages were plentiful, and the people were great.

Special thanks to CEO and founder Bill Pomeroy for hosting the event, and Jeff Taft, Paula Miller and others for helping with the arrangements.

We enjoy doing these kinds of company functions, so if you'd like to have us play your event, contact Mike by email or phone (315-638-2497).

The BEP's latest hit, "Where is The Fire Extinguisher?"

The Black Eyed Peas Watch Their Studio Go Up In Smoke

So you're the Eddie Van Halen of air guitar

What are your favorite air guitar tunes? Walk This Way? Satisfaction? Freebird?

Or are you more of an air drummer, or a karaoke singer? I know none of you are air bassists [does that even exist?], except for a few licks here and there [You Can Call Me Al comes to mind].

Michael Ventre from MSNBC.com give us his list: Music for the imaginary ax man.

Uh, oh, they've gone and cancelled the Cooter Festival

Hey, get your mind out of the gutter. The word "cooter" is well-known slang for "turtle." The word means turtle all across the South.

From the St. Petersburg Times, Cooter clash is nothing but a senseless name game.

OK, now this is just weird - Help getting out of a bad date

Cingular & Virgin Mobile both have services that will call your cell phone at a pre-arranged time and give you an excuse to use to get out of a date.

When the cell rings, one of Cingular's eight "emergency" messages says: "Hey, this is your Escape-A-Date call. If you're looking for an excuse, I got it. Just repeat after me, and you'll be on your way! 'Not again! Why does that always happen to you? ... All right, I'll be right there.' Now tell 'em that your roommate got locked out, and you have to go let them in. Good luck!"

And bingo, the bad date is history.

Bad Date? Use Your Cell Excuse from Wired.com

Nice to see Béla get a little mainstream press

USATODAY.com - Summer tours help bands pay bills

Pepperoni nipples

In the spirit of Peter King from SI.com and other writers, here are a bunch of random thoughts and opinions and musings and rants. And try not to stare at the pepperoni nipples. It makes me nervous ...

Favorite band of the moment: Black Eyed Peas. Great hooks, catchy beats, and inventive lyrics. And Fergie. But be careful, boys. By remaking "Let's Get Retarded" into "Let's Get It Started" and plastering it all the over the NBA Playoff media push, you're threatening to become the next overplayed, can't-possibly-live-up-to-the-hype artist (see Hootie).
Overrated hotness: Cameron Diaz, Gwynneth Paltrow, Uma Thurman, Lindsay Lohan. Underrated: Amanda Bynes, Victoria Pratt (who?).
The NFL funky name of the day: Bubby Brister.
The Mexican Hat Dance or The William Tell Overture or wacky carillon bells as your cell phone ringtone don't impress me. It's not cute, it's not neat, it's annoying and embarrassing. Just make it ring or buzz or beep. Or download Jay-Z. But then maybe I should shut up since my ringtone is Bach's Toccata & Fugue in D.
When it comes to coffee creamers, skip the Hazelnut or French Vanilla and go to the Irish Creme. You'll thank me.
Bars that water down their Jack Daniel's or fill their Jack bottles with some generic bourbon like Kentucky Gentleman should have their liquor licenses revoked. God, I hate that. Do you think we won't notice or care?
OK, I'll admit it. I watched the new "Amish In The City" reality show on UPN. And enjoyed it. Strange as it may seem, I identified more with the Amish kids than the city kids.
And from the History Channel, 'Modern Marvels: Distilleries' is an instant classic.
So everybody thinks they can sing now? Lindsay Lohan, Paris Hilton, Kelly Osbourne, and William Hung all have CDs out or on the way, and we fight for every gig we have. Amazing.
Recipe for a 'Dark & Stormy': Dark rum (Gosling's or Meyer's Dark) mixed with Ginger beer (not ginger ale - find it in the Latin/Caribbean foods section) over ice. Mix it good and strong, or the spiciness of the ginger beer will kick your ass.
Salsa is the new ketchup.
Johnny Damon needs a haircut, as does Michael Vick (that's for you, Nate).
Overrated: Rolling Stones. Underrated: The Who.
Also underrated: Michael Anthony from Van Halen.
Nothing looks better on a girl than a pair of well-fitting jeans.
PETA drives me nuts.
Buckle up: It's not just a safety tip, it's the law.

Later ...

Punk is back, and it's got a laptop

Organizing using the Web, cell phones and instant messaging, upstart guitar bands are staging secret, spontaneous concerts at unconventional venues in the latest online music craze, dubbed "guerrilla gigging."

Wired News

34 shows in 28 cities - all in an effort to defeat Dubya

Bruce Springsteen
Dave Matthews Band
John Mellencamp
Pearl Jam
Dixie Chicks
R.E.M.
Bonnie Raitt
Jackson Browne
Babyface

Wow, that's a pretty impressive lineup of artists that have signed to play fundraising concerts October 1-8 in an effort to get voters to defeat George Bush in November. No matter what your politics, I gotta think these are going to be some great shows.

Article on MSNBC.com.
Official Vote For Change info at Moveon.org, including concert schedule, ticketing info and more.