Half a Rainbow!

Half a Rainbow!

Meredith Whitney: NYC Queen 'Bear' Bee

If you were getting your market NEWS buzz on today then you may have seen the most recent cover of FORTUNE magazine unveiled on the CNBC Squawk Box this morning PROMINENTLY featuring Oppenheimer & Co. 'Star Analyst' Meredith Whitney looking VERY wealthy, VERY smart and VERY beautifully & powerfully attractive while she dutifully points out that the ECONOMY is headed for 'DEEP RECESSION' (as in the BOTTOM of the DUMPSTER). And this gorgeous bear REALLY KNOWS HER STUFF & she is STRUTTING it after having written about Citigroup (stock ticker symbol, C), in Oct. of 2007, basically telling the world that they would have to CUT the dividend ... which, it turns out, Citigroup DID do as did OTHERS (National City, NCC, among them). It was a prediction that, at the time, STUNNED many in the financial world, and since her prediction turned out to be 100 PERCENT ACCURATE, well, she got the Big Hot Spotlight turned towards her, and now she continues to BASK (if even uncomfortably) in that BIG HOT SPOTLIGHT. Just don't try to give Meredith ANY S**T because THIS PIC is of HER HUSBAND John "Bradshaw" Layfield who is the, uhm, LONGEST reigning WORLD CHAMPION of 'SMACKDOWN' HISTORY (yes THAT SmackDown as in World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) previously known as World Wrestling Federation (WWF)) ... yup, Wall Street's current FAVORITE HOT FEMALE ANALYST is married to ... appropriately enough ... THE SMACKDOWN KING!

Jim Cramer: The REAL American Idol

I don't watch much TV anymore but recently I have re-discovered Jim Cramer and Mad Money. If you pay any attention whatsoever to Wall Street then you probably know Cramer, and if you have been following the Credit Crunch / Housing Market Crisis then you probably have seen some of the more entertaining episodes of Mad Money - I want to point out a couple of these episodes, like this recent piece where Cramer explains that the bank stocks have hit bottom. In a flash of irreverence and brilliant candor, Cramer uses wobbly Lincoln Logs cabin props to illustrate his thrust - check it out.
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I think it's safe to say that Jim Cramer has developed into the single most significant and recognizable figure in Wall Street journalism, he is like a crazy Wall Street weatherman pointing out storm fronts and dry spells while he bangs on his sound effect machine, shakes his props, gets his Booyah! on - he is the most consistently entertaining figure at CNBC and I think I only recently was able to completely grasp Mad Money's significance - will the REALLY real American Idol please stand up, Simon Cowell take note that Cramer is able to sing like a canary in a coal mine - just watch a few episodes of Mad Money, you will get it, for instance, here is a link to Jim Cramers Historic Credit Crisis Meltdown Warning Rant , this goes back a year, and it's a doozy, a real CLASSIC, a GEM - Jim Cramer, live on CNBC, basically ranting, raving that the FED was CLUELESS about what was developing (just prior to the Bear Stearns failure) -- this, folks, is MADatory viewing.
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(If for some stupid reason the link does not work, then CNBC may have moved the content, whatever. Just Google up Jim Cramers 2007 Credit Crunch Rant or something along those lines and you WILL find this classic gem of live television perfection probably on YouTube if not Google Video. Or just check out thestreet.com for ALL of Jim Cramer, Mad Money episodes, and the rest of Cramers crew - they're the bomb)

Clean Energy

The Other Shoe

Has the other shoe, uhm, er, dropped?

Nelson at Art Walk

Nelson at the Art Walk - we both took turns playing the street corner there in front of the good ol' Eye Candy Gallery, and the crowd was very responsive and appreciative.

Big Art 3

Big Art 3

This is another pic of the Big Art Thing, it was made with a piece of found glass, what was a stereo cabinet door or something like that, I recently recovered a couple more good solid stereo cabinet door type pieces of glass and will work up a couple of new pieces of art to fit them.

Big Art 2

Big Art 2

Big Art Thing

This is a Big Art Chunk that I recently completed, it was fun to put it together - the glass was found at the tree lawn, some kind of stereo cabinet door, then 30 bucks bought wood, foam core, and matting and nails. Neat-O isn't it?

KickDrums & Verbal

Oooh I really liked the recent article in the Scene detailing the massive efforts of the Kickdrums to produce themselves into the middle of the MUSIC BIZ ... I like that kind of thing ... & I just downloaded the FREE album of MP3 tracks from KickDrums & Verbal (Idiot Savant) and I am tweakin' out with the sondz right at this very moment ... this is indeed some smooooooooooth sounding shit, very well produced (needless to say ... these guys have worked with, like, some of the most talented rap acts) and the sound of Verbal's vox, heh, it's like a good whiskey, neat & easy, I recomend that you gets these tracks, that is if your at all jonesy to know what is hip in CLE sounds.

Recording Caving Blues

Gary n i recorded a new song, something with lyrics written by a buddy of his ... its a very good blues .... it's on his MYSPACE page, go on over there and check it out

Derek Deprator - Cobra Verde - J. Mascis - J. Fahey

Soooo, I went on down to the Bookstore on W. 25th this past SAT. specifically to listen to, say hello too, and jam with Derica (Derek Deprator - some of you know him as the cross dressing feller playing slide guitar who shows up round town at various cafes and night spots as well as the open mic nights) and low and behold he was not wearing a dress, he had a jeans kinda thing going on, and right off the bat I would like to go on the record as saying that, by jove, D looks alright in a dress and anyhow when you see him in jeans n a T-shirt you will understand. Ah, so,, not too long ago Derica was playing at the now-defunct West side open-mic-live-music-cafe-coffee house MOCHA DREAMS (again, now defunct) and I picked up a couple lil' home burned CD's he was toteing around with him - one of them a small CD in a guitar string bag the other regular sized CD in a plastic bag, each with 3 songs - and, you know, time went by, like it does, and I had been listening to them two CD's for weeks, and really digging them plenty!! The more I played the CD's the more I found I liked them and several of the full-band songs really began to get stuck to my ears, and continue to do so, and I wanted to let him know that the recordings were working for me, I was groovin' on em', and I wanted to jam with him, so I made a point of going out to see him. And so we did jam a bit and I mentioned to him I liked the recordings and he explained to me he had been in and out of bands for years, including the Cobra Verde guys, and, hmmmmm, a little internet research and whadaya know, Derek played on Easy Listening and his name is right there in the guitar playing credits along with J. Mascis of Dinosaur Jr.! For some reason this impresses me when in fact I probably didn't need to be impressed exactly like that anyway, but seems important to mention. .. . anyhow, DD has plenty of recorded stuff out there on the net, I just happen to have been grooving on these full band recordings he has been sittin' on, I guess he is going to release them onto some kind of disc soon......more later.

Winter Took His Life

it's been awhile since I have mentioned this music, I just took another lil' trip over to the juggernaut of MySpace land and listened to this music, it is very peacefull and pretty and you might like to listen to WINTER TOOK HIS LIFE (the artist(s) live in Göteborg, Sweden)

Wild Fish Food

Tonight I got this nice piece of salmon to eat, it is/was wild salmon versus farm raised (which I had a couple weeks ago) and it cost more than farm, and overall it was better in that it was 'thicker' somehow, thicker in taste and a lil bit firmer in texture than the farm raised...i like both. I also made some garlic mashed pots and had some steamed broc...a nice energizing meal. I also dropped into Audra Kubat's blog and her MySpace page, and looked at some YouTube video of Jessica Lea Mayfield..i wont bother to link em here, uhm, because if you google either one of those lady singer songwriters you get a bunch or good links. I have some new songs, gotta get em mixed nice and I will put em up here....my daughter has written and recorded a couple songs with me, i will put those up soon. more later....thanks for dropping in!!!

my guitar collection

I have added a BASS GUITAR to my mini arsenal of cool instruments, heh, and, bonus, it is gently used and I have no problem carrying it in a trash bag, which is what i have been doing. so, how are all of you? to my surprise i ran into allan madej just the oher day and he actually has read this blog o mine, which is so nice to hear because i have been a bit dormant but not dead dointch know. i have some new songs reordd i will get em posted to me site here in the very near future. and what have i been listeniging to i will tell you wright now....JESSICA MAYFIELD (I now am convinced she is bound for greatness, she is featured on the new Black Keys album) and Ashley Brooke Toussant who has, it seems, moved to Chicagoland. and her new songs are sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeetness she is on myspace at this link. and yes the new Black Keys album sounds awesomenessly gooooooooood as is should, no more basement cool sounds these are more sophisticated type studie (Suma Studios) oh sounds. the new album is NOT on iTunes just yet you get two of em on myspace for FREE. i like free.

Alan Madej, Tori Sparks, Chittlin,

Oh, I see that for some reason the link to ALAN MADEJ did not make it into the list so here it REALLY is ALAN MADEJ those piano pies are really airy and pure and sad sounding i really like it looks like ALAN M. will be playing at Edisons Pub in Tremont JAN 24 i wonder if he has band mates planned er what....gosh, CHITTLIN changed her whole persona she is, like, mature now and its really good music I wonder if she is gonna make a career out of it or what i have not heard her live yet i will some day...TORI SPARKS has changed her whole online vision as well, and she has had some music licensed as well, something to do with MTV, very sweeeet

Free MySpace Music

As much as I don't like MySpace it does have a huge following of artists and there is great music to be had....just check out the pile of links I have setup over there on the right side of the page...lemme point out a few choice ones...NAPALM BEACH is classic PDX rock from the good old days...PALE HOLLOW is Mike Allen and his sparkling recordings which are now in an official CD package which I have not seen...JEFF GUHDE is playing standup bass and he has some new recordings posted...ALAN MADJE has some really pretty and raw piano pieces posted to his myspace...oh gosh just pick any of he links and you will find out what i like and you might like it too...in other news KATE VOEGELE is now officially big time, her web has changed, she is on TV, and on tour, her music is licensed in several different directions and she is in Bay Village at the high school this weekend

KENT

Open mic in Kent with Jim & Gary

OPEN MIC IN KENT

Open Mic in Kent

HONORABLE MENTION

Honorably mentionable - This is my pal Gary Nelson, we recorded a couple of songs in my Big Rooms on Detroit and he submitted them to the National Speleological Society (NSS) and won these cool awards for the songs!! If you wanna know more drop into http://www.caves.org/ for the whole shebang and then click the link to the CAVE ART & MUSIC SALONS then goto the CAVE BALLAD SALON (hang in there, this IS after all a caving site)and then (finally) the RECENT WINNERS LINK and look for "Hidden River Waltz" and "1908 Fayette County Cave Disaster" these are two of Gary's original songs. These are why he is holding those round things, heh. (I finally got around to explainging this picture - gee I just made this edit on April 1 2008)

BIG BEER MET

Big Beer Met

UNDER THE INNER BELT BRIDGE

under the inner belt bridge

CLE DOWNTOWN

Cle downtown

CLETOWN

CLE

ANOTHER SUMMER EVE.

June & Sophia at the lake

THE WINCHESTER!

DangusKincaid.Com at the Winchester

LEAF FOLK

Beth Gatchel and Lakewood Earth & Food Community at the new library

LKWD. PHOENIX - FOLK YOU!

LKWD. PHOENIX HAS GOOD BEERS!

LKWD. PHOENIX BEER SELECTION

LKWD. PHOENIX OPEN MIC NIGHT

TOT - THE END

Eye Candy loves Guitar Center of North Olmsted

TOT - DANA

Dana 'Guitar Center' C. working the scene

TOT - BETH G.

Beth Gatchel

TOT - MALLORY SAN MARCO

Mallory San Marco

TOT - EASY ST. ROUNDERS

Easy St. Rounders

TOT - CHRIS & VERONICA

Chris & Veronica

TOT - RICK B.

RickB.

TOT - RW SOLO

RW solo

TOT 1

Eye candy & Bob

SOPHIA OBLIQUELY

Sophia escapes being camera phone blogged - well, not!

Scranton

SOPH

JUNE N SOPHIA

June & sophia

BDAY

Bday

STANFORD HOSTEL

Stanford Hostel

MUCK & LOST SHOE

June's shoe gets stuck in the muck!

CAUYAHOGA VALLEY

June catches a toad

LO PHOE

LAKEWOOD PHO. OPEN MIC

LAKEWOOD PHOENIX OPEN MIC

Lakewood Phoenix Open Mic Night

LAKEWOOD PHOENIX OPEN MIC NIGHT

The Lakewood Phoenix open mike night

CAMERA PHONE BLOGGING

Ok, by now it must be pretty obvious that I got myself a new phone (one with a QVGA screen and a two megapixel camera the LGX8700) soooooo it looks like I am gonna be posting lots of pictures from my phone. And in fact I have ALWAYS wanted to be a Picture Phone Blogger, it's just so fun to send a pic. right from the camera/phone to the blog (giggle) ..... seeing as how this blog used to be largely devoted to my endeavours as a "Booking Agent" I may have to setup a whole new blog just to deal with the camera phone stufff ..... aaaaaaand of course my website still needs to be revamped, I think I might put all the music stuff there and the camera bloggy stuff here. Anyhow, I hope you enjoy the photos of my ride with June, we rode all the way from Lakewood to Wendy park for the Tow Path Trail benefit - only to find the event was mostly over by the time we got there!!! These pics are bigger than they appear, if you DOUBLE CLICK them you can view them bigger. The camera on the phone is pretty good, not real great, just good. Anyhow, more later, have a great 4th of July.