Where were you when John Lennon died?

my favorite pic of him

It is one of those things people say "where were you when?" 
I can remember when my daughter asked me where I was when John Lennon died. 
She was in her Beatles stage.  I belive she was around fourteen years old and a certain math teacher at her school probably had something to do with said Beatles stage. 
So she came home from school one day and asked me...
"Mom, where were you when John Lennon died?"
I said "I know exactly where I was.  I was on vacation in Florida with your Dad." 
She continued "What did you do?"
I continued "We were on vacation.  We were sad.  But what could we do?" 
Thirty years ago.  That is unreal to me.  I was twenty-two.  I didn't have any children.  I was working as a secretary in an insurance agency.  We had been married for a couple of years and had bought a house that we were working on.  Each year, the day after Thanksgiving, we left for Florida and went to St. Pete Beach.  We spent each day the same.  Sleeping in, laying on the beach and swimming, having lunch, laying on the beach and swimming.  Taking naps, going to dinner and clubs, drinking in the evenings, walking the beach to the pink building.  Doing the same thing again each day.  And on one of those days, John Lennon was shot.

Here are the words to one of my favorite John Lennon songs...
Happy Christmas (War is over).


So this is Christmas


And what have you done


Another year over


And a new one just begun


Ans so this is Christmas


I hope you have fun


The near and the dear one


The old and the young






A very merry Christmas


And a happy New Year


Let's hope it's a good one


Without any fear


And so this is Christmas


For weak and for strong


For rich and the poor ones


The world is so wrong


And so happy Christmas


For black and for white


For yellow and red ones


Let's stop all the fight


A very merry Christmas


And a happy New Year


Let's hope it's a good one


Without any fear


And so this is Christmas


And what have we done


Another year over


And a new one just begun


Ans so this is Christmas


I hope you have fun


The near and the dear one


The old and the young


A very merry Christmas


And a happy New Year


Let's hope it's a good one


Without any fear


War is over over


If you want it


War is over


Now...

Citizen Cope - Rainwater

We interrupt this vacation report to review a concert!


Last night, my son and I went to Broadripple to the Vogue to see Citizen Cope. Yesterday was the release of his new Rainwater LP.

He calls it an LP and at the concert, you could purchase an LP. When you play the CD, they have dubbed in the sound of a needle on an LP. I wonder how many younger people will listen to it and think "WHAT is that?" Or, they may think something is wrong with the CD. I loved it. I think to people in my age bracket the sound of a needle on an LP is as restful and comforting as rain on a rooftop.

I discovered Citizen Cope one afternoon, a couple of years ago, when I went to my son's dorm room to work on FAFSA with him. He was listening to Citizen Cope and I said "WHO is that?" I loved his sound from the beginning. When my son turned 21, I took him to Indianapolis to see Citizen Cope. Shortly before Christmas, I saw he was going to be in Broadripple and I sent my son and email saying "wanna go?"

He gave me a ticket for my Christmas present. He drove last night and paid for dinner. At 22, he can be quite the gentleman to his old mama. This was his first time to go to the Vogue. The Vogue is an institution with quite an interesting history. It was turned into a nightclub in '77. It has changed very little since then. It was fun to be with my son and see his reaction. He thought it was an excellent venue. We were extremely close to the stage. The only drawback was that we stood for 2.5 hours. I leaned to my son and said "thank God for Dr. Scholl's heel pads!"

Last night was the day Rainwater was released. So, there were some songs that I wasn't familiar with, but as my son pointed out, "what an awesome time to hear them for the first time- in concert!"

I love his manner on stage, his voice, the way he dances about, the way he pounds the beat on his chest sometimes. His whole stage presence is endearing. He seems as if he is the nicest guy in the world.
Would I recommend this CD to you? Absolutely. Would I recommend this concert to you? Totally. But don't take my word for it - go to his website and look at how many of his shows are SOLD OUT. The show last night was sold out. Everyone sings along, it is a wonderful way to spend an evening.

Am I blue?

Am I blue? A little dusty, maybe. But not blue. We attended the CD release show last night for Jason Fickel's new CD, Dust Up Baby.























I first discovered Jason playing and singing at the local farmers market. I liked his voice, his playing, the way he dresses, the way he moves. He has a quick and easy smile and a gentle way with people. His eyes twinkle when he tells his stories. Jason is somewhat Chicago mobster zoot suit meets Kansas cowboy. Last night was no exception as he came out on stage looking like the sharpest dressed man in town only to don his cowboy hat after the show to sign autographs.
He regaled the audience with many comedic stories of growing up in Kansas. His stories ramble and you sit and wonder if he is ever going to make a point (and he always does). The firebay was standing room only as Jason's most ardent fans came to support him. We all departed with not only the newest cd release, but a prized Jason Fickel bourbon glass. I know I shall treasure mine always. I'll have to hide it so that Duggles doesn't break it.
Ginger Curry opened for him and she has a distinctive melodic voice and a wonderful, confident "I don't care" presence on stage. I had never heard her before and look forward to hearing her again.

Gettin' down, B-town style.
Telling us about his cousin Janet and her cowboy boyfriend.
See Jason, we were listening!

More concentrated gettin' down.

Nearly every piece that Jason performed last night was written by him.

His tunes are a bit melancholy as reflected by lyrics such as

"I'll take you back (where I first found you and leave you).

The man can pick.

The real reason I'm so taken with Jason Fickel.

These shoes and the slow and easy way he half turns to his band before a song and counts

"one, two, three, fo..."

The Duggles and Jason after the show.

You can see that Dug can hardly contain his excitement.

There were a number of children selling Jason's CDs and giving away the aforementioned bourbon glasses. I asked if they were his children and one little blonde said she was. I said to her,"your dad is about the coolest dude around!"

She said "I think so, too!" When I told Jason after the show he said

"I hope I can just keep her thinking that!"

Check out the Fickelmeister. You won't be sorry.

Taste, continued.

This is a continuation of yesterday's post. Taste of Bloomington, continued.
Bloomington is a town that is known for great music. And not only great music, but often times free music or cheap music. We saw this band for the third time on Saturday at Taste and they deserve their own post. We first saw them at Taste last summer and have seen them one other time since.
They put on an insane show and are AMAZING musicians! Give them a listen to! If you haven't seen "Here Come The Mummies," and you get the opportunity to do so- GO!

Unlike most musicians, they choose to remain anonymous and are always in costume. Check out the schedule on their website and if you can, go see them.

Attending a Citizen Cope concert - or "How I hung with the twenty year old set."

About a year ago,my son Bradley and I were in his room working on FAFSA and I loved the music he was playing. It was Citizen Cope. He burned a copy for me and I've been listening to it, ever since. Recently, I saw that Citizen Cope Solo Acoustic tour was going to be in Indy at the Murat. So, for part of B's 21st birthday, I bought a couple of tickets. We drove to Indy last night and had dinner at Bazbeaux Pizza on Mass Ave first. (Yum, I jus loves me some Bazbeaux!) Then, on to the concert. It was supposed to start at 8, but he didn't come out until 8:30. We had amazing tickets and we talked about how our tickets could have been even more amazing if we didn't play the "who is going to get the tickets?" game. We were in the 11th row, seats 11 & 12. For awhile, we sat. The guys behind us were way drunk. At one point, one of them spilled his drink on my back and when I told B., I thought he was going to punch him. He was all like "Hey! Don't be spillin' drinks on my mom!" whoa. I got tears in my eyes. I knew most of the songs. Citizen Cope is cute, has a great voice and is very stoic most of the time. He started singing "Pablo Picasso" and said "The woman that I love" and then he stepped away from the mike and the audience sang on "is forty feet tall." and he gives this slow, shy, cute smile. He stopped playing at ten, but came back out for three more songs after he went off stage. I thought the concert was short, but Bradley deemed it "about right." I was one of less than five in the audience over thirty years old. It is pretty cool when my 21 year old son will go to a concert for his age group with me. Thanks, B. You're the greatest!

How I went to see one cowboy, but came home with another.

Last night we saw Vince Gill at the IU Auditorium perform in concert with this tour.


This is me, all gussied up with my red pony - ready to ride. Watch out, Amy! I think Vince and I would make a good couple, don't you?

Although I've been a fan for years, I had never seen him in concert before. I have two or three of his CDs and have always loved his music. There is something about his voice that makes my heart climb right up out of my throat. When he sang "Look at Us," I had tears in my eyes. "If you want to see how true love should be, then just look at us."

When he was ready to get down, he called it "stretching out a bit." It made me remember what I love about country music - the fun, kick-ass, kick up your heels and get down music. It made me want to head down to Nashville, TN. Doug and I went down and joined Bec a couple of years ago for a birthday trip and we closed down the bars. Down there, the places are so packed that they literally count how many people are in the building and if two leave, then two may go in - because they are keeping down the numbers because of fire hazard. And the band that is playing doesn't take a break because they don't want anyone to leave.

Gill told the audience that he is drawn to sad songs and that is evident in much that he sings. He sat and told a lot of stories, talked about his wife, Amy Grant, his Dad who was first lawyer than Judge while Gill was growing up. He told us of the juxtaposition of the life of he and his brother and brought the house down when he sang "Go Rest High on That Mountain," which he wrote when his brother passed away.

Then he broke my heart with a song that he said he'd recently written with Amy and a couple of other guys that he called simply "Heaven." I had tears streaming down my face and dripping off my chin. I kept wiping them away, but they just kept coming. One of the lines was something like "I'll be waiting on you," and I was thinking of Grandma.

Another song that was an audience favorite was "It's Hared to Kiss the Lips at Night that Chew Your Ass Out All Day Long." He said his Dad inspired him to write the song and that it occurred to him one day that it was about his Mom!

He told us that she hates that song.

Vince, I was the one singin' along with you and dancin' in my seat in the balcony. The audience was D-E-A-D. I told Dug that I hope he realized he was with the most alive woman in attendance!

So I went to see a famous cowboy, Vince Gill, and came home with a not so famous cowboy, Duggles.

Sentimental Heart

Cried all night 'til there was nothing more

What use am I as a heap on the floor?

Heaving devotion but it's just no good

Taking it hard just like you knew I would

Old habits die hard

When you've got

When you've got a sentimental heart

Piece of the puzzle you're my missing part

Oh, what can you do with a sentimental heart?

Oh, what can you do with a sentimental heart?

Cried all night 'til there was nothing more

What use am I as a heap on the floor?

Heaving devotion but it's just not good

Taking it hard just like you knew I would

Old habits die hard

When you've go

When you've got a sentimental heart

Piece of the puzzle I'm your Missing part

Oh, what can you do with a sentimental heart?

Oh, what can you do with a sentimental heart? Zooey Deschanel (She & Him Volume One)

Empty house, quiet is good.

I sit and read the paper

drink my juice, eat my yogurt and munch frosted mini wheats.

Take the bypass to work blasting Vampire Weekend.

Constant Comment (comfort) tea. Check.

She & Him Volume One. Check.

The Wreckers, Stand Still Look Pretty. Check.

Thanks, Zooey for singing about how I feel.

I miss you Grandma.

I know what you'd say..."It will be o.k., honey. Do you feel my arms around you?"