Saturday night John Hiatt came back to the Barrymore Theater. He always puts on a great show, whether he's solo like last time, or with a 3 piece combo like the one he had on Saturday. If you've ever seen Hiatt in person, you how much fun it is.
This week you would have had even MORE fun if you were lucky enough to pay attention to the opening act, John Sieger from Milwaukee.
I got a chance to meet this songwriter before his set and was totally charmed by his dry wit and self deprecating humor. When he strummed a few chords backstage, I was taken by the pure sound of the guitar and was stoked to hear his short set. But from my seat at the rear of the theater, I couldn't hardly hear him due to all the talking around me. Well, I thought, this IS the next to last row and at least there are tons of people pushed up against the stage that were listening to John Sieger and HAD to be enjoying themselves.
Much to my dismay, I spoke with him after his set and he said people up against the stage were chattering away with their friends and not listening to him at all. This really bugs me. I wish people would show respect to the opening acts. Many times they have been personally invited by the headliner. Sometimes, it's a band's first appearance in Madison and we should welcome them warmly.I have been to many shows where the opening act was so good, I didn't care if the headliners even came out! Â Remember, at one time John Hiatt was someone's opening act.
So, for those of you who were there and missed him, this is John Sieger, a very good friend of Public radio's Michael Feldman, with whom he's written an album of songs together.
Enjoy:
Saturday night was the Madison Area Music Awards at the beautiful Capitol Theater. This event helps to raise money to put instruments into the hands of children. This is especially important since too many school systems are cutting music programs. IN addition to ticket sales, Yamaha donated a guitar signed by Bon Jovi and a keyboard signed by Elton John! These items will be auctioned off sometime in the future.
Everyone was all dressed up and it was a festive evening.
The show started by Jimmy Voegli at the giant pipe organ playing, of all things, In-A-Gadda-da-Vida, which was a hoot and a half. There were lots of performances by young people, including an amazing violinist and a group called Stereocolor ( I think) with a 14 year old lead singer. Other performances were by Whitney Mann, multi-award winner Beth Kille, Hip Hop group Dumante and some wonderful dancers, whose name I have forgotten. ( sorry guys). I totally LOVED VO5, a disco tribute band complete with big hair and even higher platform shoes.
Two of my favorite bands, Harmonious Wail and Aaron Williams and the Hoodoo scored BIG, with the Hoodoo winning Artist of the Year. I think this is the first time a blues band has won this award. And of course, John Urban was awesome as host.
Please try to go to this show next year. You will not be disappointed, I promise.
Oh yeah, and one more thing: SUPPORT LOCAL MUSIC!!!
There is a fascinating program on NBC this season called ' Who Do You Think You Are". Originally seen in Britain, the show follows famous people seeking to trace their ancestry by traveling to the places their ancestors lived.
The first episode was Sarah Jessica Parker who was able to trace her mother's side of the family all the way back to Salem Mass. at the time of the witch trials. Football star Emmitt Smith went to the very spot where his African ancestors were taken and put on slave ships to America.
Last week the show's producer Lisa Kudrow found the actual records the German's compiled which indicated the fate of her great-grandmother. I won't tell you any details because I hope you'll go to NBC's website and watch them for yourself.
This show made me so curious about my own family. Like Lisa Kudrow, my family can from Eastern Europe. My father's family is from Beltz, Romania and all I know from my mother's side is that my grandmother came from Russia. I can't trace my family tree back any further than grandparents and was heartened to see that Lisa Kudrow was able to get documentation.
The show is on Friday nights. I HIGHLY recommend you set your DVR for this one.
I live with a Cubs fan. A die-hard Cubs fan. You know who they are: they start the season with anticipation and hope and end with resignationand disappointment.
 One famous Cubs fan was the late Steve Goodman, who died of Leukemia in 1984 at age 36. You hear his " Go Cubs Go" during games. He also wrote "Lincoln Park Pirates " and " A Dying Cubs Fan's Last Request" (see below).  Goodman loved the Cubs and loved Chicago, so it seems fitting that a public building be named in his honor.
Rep. Mike Quigley introduced a measure to have the Lakeview Post Office renamed for Goodman. He says the bill is supported by the entire Illinois congressional delegation, The Old Town School of Folk Music and fellow musicians, John Prine, and Corky Siegal.
If all goes well, a renaming ceremony can happen by late spring or early summer.
That makes me happy.
Remember the album : Beatles for Sale"? Well now, you can own the famed studio where the Beatles recorded 90 % of their songs.
According to a report in Bloomberg.com. EMI group, the label where Norah Jones and Coldplay record for, is putting the Abbey Road studio's up for sale to help offset company losses.
According to label they've been talking to prospective buyers, but no one has been identified. If you have an extra tens of millions of pounds available, give 'em a call!
I hope you were lucky enough to catch last week's Independent Lens program on PBS. It was a documentary about the Young @ Heart chorus, a group of senior citizens in Northampton Mass  who perform rock and roll songs. The film follows them as they learn several new songs for an upcoming concert.
I had never heard of this group, although they have been doing this for 25 years, touring all over the world. As I watched, I was reminded of my Dad, who loved to sing and had a wonderful personality.
There were so many parts of the film that moved me to tears of joy, then tears of sadness, as 2 members of their group die the week of their concert.
I would love for you to spend some time and watch these videos, and I know you will be as moved as I was. We start with the trailer:
Two performances were especially moving. The first, a trip to a minimum security prison where, among other songs, they brought the crowd to tears with their version of "Forever Young". I can't embed the video because they won't allow it, but I can certainly give you the link.
One of the men who died before the concert was to do a duet, which turned into a solo. I promise you, you will never listen to Coldplay's "Fix You" in the same way ever again.
And finally, to leave you will some joy... The Young @ Heart Chorus covers the Ramones!
Do try to catch this when it airs again, which I'm SURE it will.
It's January and re-run season has ended, and on to first run! I'm only a little ashamed to admit how much I love the reality programming  though I know it's not very " real".
Over the holiday weekend I discovered Tabatha's Salon Takeover, so I DO have another very snarky show to watch all alone late at night. ( Gotta love the DVR).
But last night was the season premiere of The Bachelor, a most craptacular show indeed. If you are lucky enough to not know the premise, consider yourself blessed.
Anyway, 25 women vie for the heart of one very shiny clean bachelor,with the goal of a  proposal at the end. First of all, that's totally how I expect true love to happen...on camera, in front of America. Oh, and add in jealousy and a lot of alcohol, and it's a formula for the kind of disaster it's hard to stop watching. You know, like roadkill.
This season's Bachelor is airline pilot Jake, a reject from the previous season of the Bachelorette. Bringing back a reject and making them the star has been their game plan for several seasons now, and it makes for quite interesting " first meetings". All these women have seen the show and think they " know" Jake already. It's a hoot and a half to see these women ( MOST of whom are stunning!) fall all over Jake ( and out of their gowns). These women also seemed to have quite a bit of, um, enhancement, done over the years.Â
So what I loved about the first episode is the woman who changed into a flight attendant uniform for attention and the woman who said something in Cambodian, which translated into a comment about her "landing strip". ( Don't ask). She didn't make it past the first night. Let's not forget about Michelle . She was so needy and convinced she was going to be the " winner" that she was in tears after ONE FREAKIN' HOUR!!!
Oh yeah, I'm gonna enjoy this one!
AS the year and decade draw to a close, I continue my tale of some of my favorite experiences in Studio M.
Probably the best time I had ( next to Trey, of course) was when Dan Hicks and The Hot Licks came in to Studio M.  I have been a fan of this clever man and his swinging sound since his early albums, so I was way excited to meet him. He arrives, a tall man, over 6 feet , and I look up at him from my 5 foot frame and tell him I was SO excited to meet him. His response?" You'll get over it". It continued from there. I ask my first question, and he says to the audience, " What Gabby was trying to say is...." You get the picture. He was a total hoot and a half and I guess I gave it back as much as he dished it because when the interview was over, he reached over with a HUGE grin on his face and thanked me.
I have been a fan of Warren Haynes since I saw him play with the Allman Brothers, and then later with the Dead. I was very pleased he agreed to come in for the Studio M, and we had a very nice chat about music in general and what it is about the electric guitar that moves people so. ( His response...it mimics the human voice!) Before we started I asked him if he was going to sing my all-time favorite song of his " Soul Shine". He said he needed to change the tuning for the song. I suggested he do it last and we'd stop recording just before so he could re-tune. Well, let me tell you, I was so moved by the song, I almost started crying right then and there.
We end this look with a Studio M I did with a band from New Jersey, De Sol. When I first heard their song Karma, I LOVED it. I met them at an industry function later than year and hit it off with the whole band! We've stayed in touch over the years, and they made a special trip to Madison to do the interview with me. Here's a clip from the session:
Gabby hearts Albie from DeSol
First we had American Idol, then America's Got Talent, Rock-star INXS, Glee and too many more for me to remember. But if you missed last night's " Sing-Off" you missed some pretty cool singing.
Sing Off is following on the success of High School Musical and Glee and is a voice only singing competition. This is a short series, only 4 episodes, so it doesn't need a long committment to watch. I mean, how can you pass up a show hosted by Nick Lachey with Ben Folds as one of the judges and a guest judge from The Pussycat Dolls !
Last night was the first round, with 8 singing groups competing. We had a great group from Puerto Rico, 2 different faith based groups, an all woman barbershop quartet and a group from Nebraska that just started singing together a few weeks ago and one totally awesome group from Tufts University called Beezelbubs ( whom I hope will be the winners).
Check out their spin on Magical Mystery Tour!
I feel bad for Tiger Woods. I mean, really. When did a minor traffic accident where no one was injured become such a major story? Of course the gossip mongers jumped on it, even before anyone knew any specific details. We DO have a 24 hour news cycle which demands content, but content is not fluff or filler... or maybe it is!
Once again, Jon Stewart and his crew at the Daily Show expose the media's obsessions.
I'm not ashamed to admit it. I LOVE Seth McFarlane. I think Family Guy is totally the funniest thing on TV right now. But I have to say, I was a little underwhelmed at American Dad. That is until I saw last week's episode where Stan ( the dad) goes to retrieve his daughter from a My Morning Jacket concert only to be captivated by Jim James' voice.
He then becomes a fanatic in the true sense of the word, even so far as to follow the band on tour so he can meet James. It kinda reminded me of my obsession with Phish in the early days. Make sure to watch the listings for this to be re-run!
Here's a little taste.
I admit it freely. I LOVE game shows. I grew up on Jeopardy, Password, What's My Line, Let's Make A Deal The Joker is Wild and of course, the Gong Show. So I was sad to read of the sudden death of game show host Ken Ober.
When Remote Control debuted in 1987 I was totally on board. I mean, really...a snarky show taking place in host Ken Ober's " basement", contestants sitting in recliners and questions about TV, even Colin Quinn as the announcer! Comics Adam Sandler and Denis Leary owe their early success to their affiliation with Remote Control.
If you've never seen it, here is a clip, guaranteed to make you want to watch more:
Â
I had forgotten that a very young Adam Sandler was on this show until I found this clip:
Host Ken Ober, who went on to later produce Mind of Mencia and The New Adventures of Old Christine, had complained of flu symptoms before he died. No official cause has been announced. Ober was 52.
Confession time. I am not crafty. I can barely glue 2 Popsicle sticks together. I'm no Martha Stewart, not even a Kitty Dunn, whose craft projects make me jealous.
So imagine my delight to find "Whatever, Martha" as I surfed the TV channels a few weeks ago. In case you don't carry FLN ( Fine Living Network), Whatever, Martha consists of Martha Stewart's daughter Alexis and her friend Jennifer Koppelman Hutt watching old Martha Stewart Living episodes attempting to do what she does and snarking on them, much like Mystery Science Theater 3000.
The last episode I watched had them making a concoction called " Dirt Cake" served in a flower pot with crushed Oreo's, butter, creamcheese, Cool Whip and hidden gummy worms. It looked to be about a million calories and the girls were not as successful as Martha was. On another episode they tried to do Origami. I'm loving this show. I don't feel so bad that I can't do what Martha does.
Here's a sample.
YAY! The Amazing Race is back! I think this is going to turn out to be a great season with 2 Harlem Globetrotters and a former Miss America among the "dating couples", gay brothers and a cool father and son team.
It started off evil, with one team being eliminated even before they get on the first airplane. But considering it was the Yoga instructors who looked annoying to begin with, I was cool with that.
The first challenge has them running right into a Japanese Game Show! A Japanese Game Show!!! Plus they had to eat a giant Wasabi bomb... and lead a group of 20 Japanese tourists thru the streets of Hong Kong. What a hoot!
 Then off to Vietnam where, among other things they were herding ducks up a bridge and back again. Another annoying couple was eliminated, so all in all, it's going to be a fun season.
My mother was born the same year as Shirley Temple, and since she loved theater and had a beautiful singing voice, she totally identified with Shirley.
One of my favorite books growing up was a collection of stories from Shirley Temple movies likie Heidi, The Little Colonel , Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm and The Little Princess. Â The book had a lot of photos from all the films and it was a lovely book to read and savor.
So of course, I have seen all these movies, including the riches to rags and back to riches story of the Little Princess.
This one from 1939:
But last night, I saw a version I had never seen, made in 1995, which took the story and set it in NYC. I was totally captivated once again by this story . You remember, the little girl, adored by her father is sent to boarding school while her father fights WWI. She is very popular at school and everything is rosey until they get word that her father had been killed in the war and she becomes a servant at the scbool... yadda yadda yadda... happy ending.
It reminded me of my mother and it made me smile. I guess that was my day after Mother's Day gift sent from above.
We lost another funny man, Dom DeLuise. He died last night at 75 from kidney failure and respiratory problems. He had also been battling cancer.
He was a regular in Mel Brooks movies like 12 Chairs, Blazing Saddles, Silent Movie, Robin Hood : Men in Tights, as well as the Cannonball Run and Smokey and the Bandit  films and several years as host of Candid Camera.
Here he is with the late Gilda Radner in a scene from the movie " Haunted Honeymoon".
So let's take yesterday's video of the environmental activists wailing and crying over trees and take it one step further.
Mike Judge has his slacker youth Beavis and Butthead discovering our hippies in the woods. I love how he can be so timely. Last week they took on Cartman heading to Somalia to be a pirate. But I digress. Here's today's video:
It was a semi lazy, semi production weekend and I' m pretty confident we will soon have Spring.
I grew up in a small town in the Catskill Mountains of Upstate NY, and spent a lot of time playing in the woods. I loved the smells, the sounds, the peaceful feelings. Living in a dying resort area, we used to sometime stumble upon abandoned properties where the swimming pools were slowing returning to nature. It was sad knowing they represented a recent time gone by.Â
But it never made me kneel on the ground wailing and gnashing my teeth,
But that's what this group of environmental activists did. Before you get all up in my face, I am all for conservation, sustainability and living in harmony, But these people, IMHO carriy it a bit too far. You judge.
There are tons of singing competitions all over the world, one of which is Britain's Got Talent...another Simon Cowell project. You know how these things work. They always show the auditions of people who think they have talent so the audience can snark on them.
So this leads up to 47 year old Susan Boyle, not an attractive woman but rather dowdy. When she said she wanted to be a professional singer people kinda smirked and rolled their eyes.
Then she sang. Â
If y0u wanna see Simon Cowell with a look of adoration, watch this video.
If you are not grinning like a fool when this is over I will be surprised.
Get ready to be amazed: click hereÂ
(Â they won't let me embed it, but DO click on the link!)
Last night it only had 10 million views, it's up to 12 million now!
OK, so I watch this show. Don't judge me!
The world of child beauty pageants is like an alien culture to me. I've never been a girly-girl, excited about hair and clothes, so I just don't understand a 4 year old with false eyelashes, hair pieces , fake tans and tons of make-up shaking their moneymaker on stage. It's kinda creepy, y'know?
But I watch it. I watched the Chitlin' Strut (!) the Darling Diva's and Universal Beauty pageants.
 Some parents enter their kids when they are too young to even walk! And let's not even TALK about how money is spent. Some of these dresses ( for little girls that will grow out of them quickly) costs thousands of dollars, and don't forget the coaches and professional make-up artists who turn these sweet little girls into.. well... prostitots.
I don't miss an episode. Watch at your own risk of being hooked.
Todd Snider is a clever singer songwriter similar to John Prine. You might remember him from his song " Talking Seattle Grunge Rock Blues", about a band that refuses play their instruments. He's a funny guy.
His new album "Â The Excitement Plan" will be available in June, and it will include a song called " America's Favorite Pasttime". Not just about America's love of baseball ( GO CUBS), this song tells the story of pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates Dock Ellis.
June 12, 1970, thinking he had the day off, Ellis ingests some LSD, only to be told by his wife that he had to pitch that night. So he heads to the ballpark, tripping his brains out.
Guess what? He pitched a NO HITTER! In his words " I zeroed in on the catchers glove, but I didn't hit the glove too often" ( despite the catcher  putting reflective tape on his fingers). " The ball was sometime smaller, was large sometimes, sometimes I saw the catcher, sometimes I didn't." And yet, still, he pitches a no hitter.
Let's watch Todd singing "America's Favorite Pastime" while famed producer Don Was listens.
People have been wondering why Billie Joe jumped off the bridge since this song came out and made it to number 1 in 1967. Singer Bobby Gentry says people always asked what was thrown over the bridge and why did Billie Joe jump. She never would give a...
Happy birthday to the Cute Beatle, SIr Paul McCartney! He turns 71 today.
One of the rules for Beatles fans is that you must memorize tidbits of Beatle trivia to try and impress other Beatle fans. This is not that easy to do....as things like...
In 1968, Jeannie C. Riley topped both the pop and country charts with "Harper Valley PTA". She was the first female singer to accomplish that feat and it wasn't repeated until Dolly Parton did it in 1981 with the song "9 to 5". The song was...
This week we're doing story songs on the World's Worst iPod. We start with the story of Billy who really wanted to be a hero. He was a hero, but didn't live to see it and his girlfriend was pretty angry. The song was originally done by...
This week' s Gabby's Pick is another track from emerging artist ZZ Ward's debut album , called "365 Days."
In addition to all the radio airplay " Put The Gun Down" has received, you may also have heard her music on several television...
Apparently Oreo flavored Oreos are not sufficient.
Nabisco is continuing its trend of introducing special limited edition flavors for its Oreo cookies. Last year, the internet was all abuzz about candy corn Oreos, which supposedly didn't really...
People have been wondering why Billie Joe jumped off the bridge since this song came out and made it to number 1 in 1967. Singer Bobby Gentry says people always asked what was thrown over the bridge and why did Billie Joe jump. She never would give a...
Happy birthday to the Cute Beatle, SIr Paul McCartney! He turns 71 today.
One of the rules for Beatles fans is that you must memorize tidbits of Beatle trivia to try and impress other Beatle fans. This is not that easy to do....as things like...
In 1968, Jeannie C. Riley topped both the pop and country charts with "Harper Valley PTA". She was the first female singer to accomplish that feat and it wasn't repeated until Dolly Parton did it in 1981 with the song "9 to 5". The song was...
This week we're doing story songs on the World's Worst iPod. We start with the story of Billy who really wanted to be a hero. He was a hero, but didn't live to see it and his girlfriend was pretty angry. The song was originally done by...
This week' s Gabby's Pick is another track from emerging artist ZZ Ward's debut album , called "365 Days."
In addition to all the radio airplay " Put The Gun Down" has received, you may also have heard her music on several television...
Apparently Oreo flavored Oreos are not sufficient.
Nabisco is continuing its trend of introducing special limited edition flavors for its Oreo cookies. Last year, the internet was all abuzz about candy corn Oreos, which supposedly didn't really...
According to label they've been talking to prospective buyers, but no one has been identified. If you have an extra tens of millions of pounds available, give 'em a call!
I had never heard of this group, although they have been doing this for 25 years, touring all over the world. As I watched, I was reminded of my Dad, who loved to sing and had a wonderful personality.
There were so many parts of the film that moved me to tears of joy, then tears of sadness, as 2 members of their group die the week of their concert.
I would love for you to spend some time and watch these videos, and I know you will be as moved as I was. We start with the trailer:
Two performances were especially moving. The first, a trip to a minimum security prison where, among other songs, they brought the crowd to tears with their version of "Forever Young". I can't embed the video because they won't allow it, but I can certainly give you 
with the goal of a  proposal at the end. First of all, that's totally how I expect true love to happen...on camera, in front of America. Oh, and add in jealousy and a lot of alcohol, and it's a formula for the kind of disaster it's hard to stop watching. You know, like roadkill.
This season's Bachelor is airline pilot Jake, a reject from the previous season of the Bachelorette. Bringing back a reject and making them the star has been their game plan for several seasons now, and it makes for quite interesting " first meetings". All these women have seen the show and think they " know" Jake already. It's a hoot and a half to see these women ( MOST of whom are stunning!) fall all over Jake ( and out of their gowns). These women also seemed to have quite a bit of, um, enhancement, done over the years.Â
So what I loved about the first episode is the woman who changed into a flight attendant uniform for attention and the woman who said something in Cambodian, which translated into a comment about her "landing strip". ( Don't ask). She didn't make it past the first night. Let's not forget about Michelle . She was so needy and convinced she was going to be the " winner" that she was in tears after ONE FREAKIN' HOUR!!!
Oh yeah, I'm gonna enjoy this one!
It started off evil, with one team being eliminated even before they get on the first airplane. But considering it was the Yoga instructors who looked annoying to begin with, I was cool with that.
The first challenge has them running right into a Japanese Game Show! A Japanese Game Show!!! Plus they had to eat a giant Wasabi bomb... and lead a group of 20 Japanese tourists thru the streets of Hong Kong. What a hoot!
 Then off to Vietnam where, among other things they were herding ducks up a bridge and back again. Another annoying couple was eliminated, so all in all, it's going to be a fun season.
But last night, I saw a version I had never seen, made in 1995, which took the story and set it in NYC. I was totally captivated once again by this story . You remember, the little girl, adored by her father is sent to boarding school while her father fights WWI. She is very popular at school and everything is rosey until they get word that her father had been killed in the war and she becomes a servant at the scbool... yadda yadda yadda... happy ending.
It reminded me of my mother and it made me smile. I guess that was my day after Mother's Day gift sent from above.
But it never made me kneel on the ground wailing and gnashing my teeth,
But that's what this group of environmental activists did. Before you get all up in my face, I am all for conservation, sustainability and living in harmony, But these people, IMHO carriy it a bit too far. You judge.
If y0u wanna see Simon Cowell with a look of adoration, watch this video.
If you are not grinning like a fool when this is over I will be surprised.
Get ready to be amazed: 
June 12, 1970, thinking he had the day off, Ellis ingests some LSD, only to be told by his wife that he had to pitch that night. So he heads to the ballpark, tripping his brains out.
Guess what? He pitched a NO HITTER! In his words " I zeroed in on the catchers glove, but I didn't hit the glove too often" ( despite the catcher  putting reflective tape on his fingers). " The ball was sometime smaller, was large sometimes, sometimes I saw the catcher, sometimes I didn't." And yet, still, he pitches a no hitter.
Let's watch Todd singing "America's Favorite Pastime" while famed producer Don Was listens.
