Aggie87

I was at the World Series game 5 last night. The Phillies certainly had some opportunities, but they were also playing tight, unlike the fun, let's-see-how-far-we-can-get team they've shown throughout the playoffs so far. The play that people sitting around me seemed most upset about was Hoskins' muff of Alvarez's dink hit to first base that Hoskins didn't field cleanly. That allowed Altuve to score run #3, which ended up being the winning score. If Hoskins had made the play, Altuve is out at home, and it's a 2-1 game, and later 2-2 when Segura singles at the bottom of the 8th. Hoskins defensive mistake, and the 0-fer at the plate by Hoskins, Realmuto, and Castellanos are what cost them the game. Still, all in all an amazing experience just to be at a WS game!

I attended the Cowboys/Eagles final regular season game of 2021, in Philly. There were some VERY obnoxious Cowboys fans in the Linc. And I say that as a Cowboys fan, one who was well behaved, decked in Cowboys gear, and treated respectfully by the people around me. I think just about any sports team that has fans that travel is going to have a portion that are a-holes. People that have enough money to travel to away games, get drunk and/or just enjoy taunting the opponent. I don't think that is exclusive to Red Sox fans at all.

There are only 3 position players left from the 2017 team that won the WS - Altuve, Bregman, and Gurriel. Literally every other position player has been traded, cut, or out of baseball. Plus the front office and coaching staff are completely different. I realize their 2017 championship will forever be tainted, but this really isn't the same team as then. Here are where those 2017 Astros are today: Tyler Clippard - Nationals Carlos Correa - Twins JD Davis - Giants Chris Devenski - Phillies Michael Feliz - Red Sox Ken Giles - Mariners Marwin Gonzalez - Yankees Jandel Gustave - Brewers Teoscar Hernandez - Blue Jays Tony Kemp - Athletics Dallas Keuchel - played for 3 different teams in '22 Jake Marisnick - Pirates Colin McHugh - Braves Colin Moran - Reds Charlie Morton - Braves Joe Musgrove - Padres George Springer - Blue Jays Max Stassi - Angels Plus AJ Hinch is the skipper at Detroit, and Alex Cora is the coach at Boston. So if the players/coaches involved are to be hated for cheating, I hope fans of those teams hate their own players who were previously Astros. Notably, the other three NLCS/ALCS teams all had 2017 Astros on them (at least during some part of the '22 season). Unless it's ok to like cheaters when they're on your own team.

I was at the Phillies/Padres game yesterday, and the atmosphere was amazing. A cold, drizzly day, but the fans in the stand didn't let that dampen any of their enthusiasm, even when the Padres went ahead on Dominguez's wild pitch. Then Harper's HR in the 8th and the place went completely crazy, until the end of the game. I didn't grow up a Phillies fan, but I became one in about 2010 or so, and then even more so upon moving up here in 2019. Now I've got to figure out who to root for - the local team I love, or the Texas team I've loved since 1982. PS - my son in law won a raffle for WS tix, so we're going to the game on Nov 2!

I've mentioned this before on the board, but I lived in Germany back in the late 90's/early 00's. Went to a number of concerts in Stuttgart, including many jazz performances. I was able to get John Scofield and Charlie Haden to both sign this flyer in Oct 2000, and then Sonny Rollins in May 2001, who signed a big, bold autograph. Meeting Sonny was one of the musical highlights in my life. He also kindly signed a copy of Saxophone Colossus for me that night.

Nice - is Grissom touring with him? I like McMurtry's newest album quite a bit!

I've never treated the vaccinations like they will prevent transmission of the virus. That they reduce the spread is a benefit, but the vaccination is primarily to prevent me from dying if/when I get Covid. Masks are there to help reduce the spread, so I don't pass it along to people who are more compromised than I am. I've lost 3 people in my immediate orbit (1 family member and 2 co-workers) to the virus, and I don't want my health-compromised in-laws or anyone else I care about dying because I (or someone else who doesn't care whether they get and pass along Covid) they get it. So I get the vaccine for me, and wear masks in close quarters/crowds to help prevent giving and passing the virus to others. I don't understand anyone who thinks differently, and have yet to hear a convincing argument for other viewpoints.

It was certainly ages ago, Matthew! I'm glad you went and saw them in Seattle, and enjoyed it so much. I did a search and I think first mentioned Porcupine Tree on this board in 2003, almost 20 years ago (yikes). I'm not quite as obsessive about them as I was earlier, but I still love their music, and the overall evolution of their style and sound. I also like a few of SW's solo albums better than some of the PT albums, which I'm not sure I ever would have thought earlier on. I still think the stretch of albums from Signify through Fear of a Blank Planet is almost perfect.

Bumping this old thread... Porcupine Tree reunited this year, and put out a new album, "Closure/Continuation". It doesn't appear to have really been a conscious decision to reunite, just a sharing of musical ideas mainly between Steven Wilson and Gavin Harrison over the past decade, which then turned into Richard Barbieri also interacting with the other two guys. SW played a lot of the bass on these jams, so apparently they didn't get to the point of asking original bassist Colin Edwin to participate. Anyway, I really enjoy the album, it took a little while to hit me right off, but it's a grower, I think. They also have a world tour going on, that started on Saturday night in Toronto. Montreal is tonight, with a number of dates in the U.S. to follow, and then Mexico City, a date in Chile, and then Europe. I was able to make it to the Toronto show, and it was a fantastic experience. A lot of joy in the sold out audience, just to see the band back together, after a decade of being defunct and no prospects for a reunion. Randy McStine augments the band on guitar and vocals, and the bass duties are being handled by Nate Navarro. Both did well in their roles, and the core band sounded amazing. The light show and videos are also well done, and fit the music very well. If anyone is thinking about seeing them, I whole-heartedly recommend you go! 09/10 – Toronto, ON @ Meridian Hall 09/12 – Laval, QC @ Place Bell 09/14 – Boston, MA @ MGM Music Hall at Fenway 09/16 – New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall 09/17 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Met 09/18 – Washington, DC @ The Anthem 09/20 – Chicago, IL @ Auditorium Theatre 09/21 - Milwaukee, WI @ Uihlein Hall Marcus Center 09/23 – Irving, TX @ The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory 09/25 – Denver, CO @ Bellco Theatre 09/28 – San Francisco, CA @ The Masonic 09/30 – Los Angeles, CA @ Greek Theatre 10/04 – Mexico City, MX @ Pepsi Center 10/07 – Santiago, CL @ Movistar Arena 10/21 – Berlin, DE @ Max Schmelinghalle 10/23 – Vienna, AT @ Gasometer 10/24 – Milan, IT @ Forum 10/27 – Stockholm, SE @ Globe 10/28 – Copenhagen, DK @ Falkoner Theatre 10/30 – Katowice, PL @ Spodek Hall 11/02 – Paris, FR @ Le Zenith 11/04 – Stuttgart, DE @ Porsche Arena 11/06 – Oberhausen, DE @ KP Arena 11/07 – Amsterdam, NL @ Ziggodome 11/09 – Zurich, CH @ Halle 662 11/11 – London, UK @ SSE Arena

Boston, 5 August 2022

I do love me some Joe Ely for sure. Grissom adds a distinct style to just about anything he's involved in. Here he is with the Allman Bros.

I just got a signed copy of this one a couple of weeks ago from David. He's an amazing guitar player! I like all of his solo work, and his work with Storyville, James McMurtry, Mellencamp, Joe Ely, on and on.

The Minus 5 - Of Monkees and Men

Tears for Fears - The Tipping Point

Street art, Kansas City 7/15/22

Article is from 2016, but maybe some of the shops are still there: https://thevinylfactory.com/features/lisbon-best-record-shops-guide/

FWIW, I go into Philly pretty regularly and love it (more so than any comparably sized city in Texas). I don't know if it will/would help Rooster or Mrs. Rooster with their issues, but it's a fascinating place.

Tapping Maple trees for syrup (takes ~40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of syrup) Green Mountains, Vermont 7/24/22

Love Luna! I just listened to "Lunafied" yesterday.

I just got a package sent from a musician in Austin that got to southern New Jersey in 3 business days, by media mail. Ordered on Thursday, June 30th. Arrived here today, July 5th, with a holiday weekend in the middle.

Denali peeking through the clouds, 6/19/22

Hah! I appreciate your subtle humor here!

Hubbard Glacier, 6/21/22 - this glacier is 600' tall at the end (here in the pic), and 350' visible above the waterline.

What do you think about this one? I just purchased the deluxe digital version of the album (the cd will follow eventually), but haven't given it a spin yet. According to SW and the band, the album has hit #1 in the U.K.

He also drummed on Harrison's "All Things Must Pass album", including the "My Sweet Lord" single. Ringo played tambourine on that track, according to White. He was a solid drummer for Yes, not a virtuoso like Bill Bruford. But he fit their music well, I think. Here's a version of Starship Trooper from their Symphonic tour in 2001.