Rev. Al Sharpton on Why Votes Matter

There are many reasons why folks voted for Obama. He was the anti-Bush. He’s well spoken (right, Harry Reid?). He’s learned and elite. He was the salve to assuage that nagging white guilt. He looks good in a suit. Hope. Change.

Finally, Rev. Al lays out what all those good intentions mean. Votes matter, folks.

What your posterity has been stuck with via this one simple election can possibly change this country forever. Think about that the next time you go to the polls.

Please.

The Joe Mauer Contract - What it Means

Congratulations to both the Twins and Joe Mauer in finding the common ground a working out a deal that appears to be a win-win. The eight-year, $184 million deal contains metrics that sound more like new government legislation than a contract for playing a game.  It shows a level of trust and dedication by both sides that should ripple throughout all of Twins Territory.


Here are the five biggest results and considerations of what this new deal really means:

1. Mauer is clearly the most valuable player in the league, especially as an all-around player. His defense is nearly as strong as his bat, and in a position notorious for .250 hitters, having Joe there is a significant statistical advantage for the Twins. As long as he's catching, that advantage is worth the dough.
2. I believe that Mauer still has upside to his hitting. Really. He's 27, and arguably has not hit his prime yet. As his power numbers continue to grow, he has the legitimate chance to be the first Triple Crow winner since Carl Yastrzemski.
3. This deal locks the Twins down financially. Given their payroll, they'll need to get it all done with this lineup. As we've seen with the Nathan injury, that can be tenuous. Other injuries will render this team an also-ran, as there is no room to move.  We're all in with this line up.
4. This deal paves the way to a George Brett-like engagement for Joe beyond his playing days. Given his love of the game and of this market, I hope that comes to fruition.
5. While the contract will be debated as to who won and lost, the biggest winners in all of this remain the Twins' fans. We get to see the best player in baseball, live and in person, for the next eight years.

Alice In Chains - St. Paul Concert Review and Set List

I attended the Alice in Chains show last night at the Roy Wilkins Auditorium in St. Paul. This is my first time seeing the band, and was incredibly impressed. With the death of lead singer Layne Staley, I knew his replacement William DuVall could pull off the vocals on their studio album. I was curious to see if he could do it live. Consider me convinced. The band sounded terrific.

Set list is as follows, to the best of my recollection:

All Secrets Known
It Ain't Like That
Again
Check My Brain
Them Bones
Dam That River
Rain When I Die
Sickman
No Excuses
Your Decision
Got Me Wrong
We Die Young
Check My Brain
Nutshell
Acid Bubble
Angry Chair
Lesson Learned
A Looking In View
Man in the Box
Would?
Rooster

Random thoughts on the night

• I had been warned that acoustics at Roy Wilkins weren't good, but from my location center stage floor, they sounded just fine.
• The high harmonies by this group are stunning. It is hard to believe that a band that rocks so hard can have vocal stylings that are so beautiful.  DuVall was totally up for the task
• Jerry Cantrell is a really talented guitarist. I think he's way too underrated. He put on an outstanding show.
• Nutshell was preceded by an introduction to the band, including a mention of Staley. Classy move.
• I forgot what standing 30 people deep was like, as the temperature inside had to hit 80. Also, I got to stand directly behind a 5'9" version of Gimli from Lord of the Rings. He smelled like Gimli too.
• Hard rock, alcohol, and youth can turn young men into absolute douche bags.
• Cantrell mentioned a couple of times how important the crowd was to what they do, that we're "part of the family." He seemed really sincere in stating this.
• Song of the night for me was Again.  It is my favorite, and it did not disappoint.  In fact, it tore the place down.
• Middle Class Rut opened, and I was pretty darned impressed. I need to check out some of their work.

Thanks, Alice, for a heck of a show.  Hope to see you again sometime down the line.

Music Mayhem - A Game for Good

There was a nice feature article in this week's StarTribune that featured a gentleman from my mom's support group. His story is heart breaking, but the silver lining is that he's created something for good.

Music Mayhem is a game that he's designed, and it is getting some really great coverage.  You can check out the story here

I used to play a game very similar in my old neighborhood growing up, but the time between songs could never be fast forwarded as it can with MP3s. Hence, there was a awful lot of time spent listening to KDWB...

Yuck.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Normally, I'd take at least a half day off and celebrate with my people. Unfortunately, I've been beset lately by a lot of time off to attend the doctor. My primary physician was very concerned about a test finding, and I've been battling against that for the past week.

The good news is that my final tests were completed yesterday, and I passed with flying colors. Hence, the blog will continue to be updated for the foreseeable future. The bad news is that I burned a lot of vacation in the process, hence my need to work a full day today.

My plan is to come home, pick up my wife, stop by the mausoleum where Dad is resting, say a few words, then head to Jake O'Connor's for some Guinness, Jameson, fish & chips, and associated revelry.

Compared to others, it will be a quiet St. Patrick's day. But one that will be celebrated with relief and thanks.

Top 10 Things I Learned Pheasant Hunting this Weekend

The Yellow Dog Patrol made its annual trek east to the bountiful Illinois hunting grounds this past weekend. 7 of my buddies went, and we hunted with a number of other friends and family of our generous host.

For the weekend, as usual, we wanted for nothing - the food was impeccable, the beer fridge constantly stocked, the ammunition plentiful, the birds unbelievable, and the laughs ceaseless.

Despite knowing these guys for the past 25 years, I learned some things from them this past weekend that I'd like to impart to posterity:

10) Naming your dog the same thing as one of your hunting buddies does nothing to ease the confusion of the "fog of war" when faced with a massive flight of inbound birds

9) "Eddie" is absolutely the best name one could choose if your dog's breed is a Munsterlander. Followed only by "Herman" and "Grandpa."

8) If you wear a coat inside for most of the day, expect people to ask if you're cold at least twice.

7) Two-fisting gin and scotch can lead to a beautiful green complexion the next day. And the day after that...

6) Witty banter is a lot less frequent during breakfast for some reason

5) When someone wakes up at five o'clock and is joined by someone else, consider the whole house awake within a half hour (except for Tommy)

4) Despite missing some members, the sound of their miracle shot of two years prior still echoed thick in the air like a blanket over Michael Jackson's kid's head

3) Even though one may miss out on hunting by spending the weekend on the couch, one makes up for it by conversing with listening to the cook talk for countless hours, mentally keeping a bird tally based on shots heard fired so that ome can win the bird harvest bet, and acquiring a really great new recipe for a scrumptious pheasant pate

2) The generosity of our host leaves me in awed appreciation. Thank you, Dr. Bill.

1) I have great friends. I guess I already knew that, though.

I can't wait to do it all again soon.Thanks for taking the time to rehash a ton of old memories and make some new ones. You guys are the best.

High of 64 Degrees in MN Yesterday

Thank you, Al Gore!

If global warming is wrong, I don't want to be right.

Top Ten Cover Songs that Are Better than the Original

The Ike and Tina song from a couple of days ago got me to thinking about examples of covered songs that turned out much better than the original. So with no further adieu, here’s my list of the top ten cover songs that are better than the original version:

10) Hallelujah, Jeff Buckley over Leonard Cohen. Cohen’s version was very strong and stands so well on its own. Buckley, however, with a lone electric guitar turned in a haunting performance that sends chills up your spine. I never get tired of this beautiful song.

9) You Really Got Me, Van Halen over The Kinks. For its time, the Kinks’ version was a strong one, but once the 70’s arrived with Eddie’s amazing guitar and Diamond David Lee Roth’s screaming, this song got to a whole new level. It was also the background for one of my favorite commercials of all time. I love the look on Ken’s face during the “Oh no!” part.

8) I Heard it Through the Grapevine, Marvin Gaye over both Gladys Knight and the Pips and Smokey Robinson and the Miracles. Marvin beat out two Motown icons and completely made this song his own. CCR also did a version, but nobody could hold a candle to Marvin.  It would eventuay be the biggest song of an amazing body of work for Gaye.

7) Proud Mary, Ike and Tina Turner over Creedence Clearwater Revival – CCR’s version was a top 40 staple and was arguably their biggest hit. Ike and Tina’s funky version with huge tempo change remained a concert spectacle for their short lived combined careers.

6) Blinded by the Light, Manfred Mann’s Earth Band over Bruce Springsteen – Manfred Mann took two obscure Springsteen songs, this one and Spirit in the Night, and turned them into musical gold. With the song totally reworked, the Earth Band sewed a whole new song from Bruce’s cloth.

5) Take Me to the River, Talking Heads over Al Green. This one was hard as Al’s version was an up-tempo funky groove, whereas the Talking Heads leveraged their new wave sound to break into the mainstream with a low key version.  The vastness of the rework earns the Heads a top 5 mention.

4) Sweet Jane, The Cowboy Junkies over The Velvet Underground. This song launched the Cowboy Junkie’s career, and still sounds a fresh today as when it was recorded 25 years ago. The Velvet Underground’s version, in comparison, has aged poorly. Kind of like Lou Reed himself…

3) All Along the Watchtower, Jimi Hendrix over Bob Dylan. Dylan is probably the most covered artist of the past 50 years. Part of it is because he’s a prolific writer and has an incredible volume of work from which to draw. Part of it is because he can write a damn good song. Jimi gets the nod on this one with one of the most classic covers of all time. It still sounds as timeless today as when it was recorded 40 years ago.

2) Whiskey in the Jar, Metallica over Thin Lizzy. Lizzy’s version was a strong song, but it always sounded like it was finished about four takes too early. The band could have really polished it more. That’s where Metallica steps in. Their cranking guitars take this song where it originally needed to go. If not for Johnny Cash, this would be #1.

1) Hurt, Johnny Cash over Nine Inch Nails. NIN’s version is simply OK – an otherwise pretty good song in their portfolio. Cash, at the tail end of his life, takes it and completely makes it his own. Producer extraordinaire Rick Rubin pulled everything out of the aging star, and the result was a body of work that is timeless. There will never be another treasure like Johnny Cash.  So in honor of the #1 position, here’s the video. Enjoy: