The Do Over Over

If you liked the Do Over, than you just might like the hilarious sequel the Do Over Over. Yellow Gun Films starring Will Lerner.

The Job Interview

Star Trek: Renegades

Star Trek: Renegades is an independent film made by the same team that brought us Star Trek: Of Gods and Men.

In Star Trek: Renegades, ten years has passed since the return of the starship Voyager. And the Federation is in crisis. The main suppliers of dillithium crystals are disappearing and space and time have folded around several planets. This necessitates drastic measures; For this, 143-year old Admiral Pavel Chekov - played by Walter Koenig - head of Starfleet Intelligence, turns to Commander Tuvok, head of the newly reorganized Section 31. Tuvok must put together a new covert, renegade crew - mostly outcasts and rogues - even criminals. A futuristic Dirty Dozen. Or is that The Dillithium Dirty Dozen?

Star Trek: Renegades is a film set in the original Star Trek universe, and is not to be confused with the re-imagined universe of J.J. Abrams. The film also stars Sean Young, Robert Picardo, Edward Furlong and Corin Nemec.

Star Trek Renegades

I Love Montreal

Subb featuring Jah Cutta, I Love Montreal

Subb is a Quebec based Ska pop punk band. The lead singer Jeff Quesnel is pursuing a solo career. Montreal reggae legend Jah Cutta - a.k.a. Carlton Williams, is known as Canada's King of Reggae.

I love Montreal

Montreal

The Hateful Eight

Quentin Tarantino's latest is a western set in post-Civil War Wyoming. Subject to release late 2015 or early 2016 the cast of The Hateful Eight is filled with several names previously associated with Tarantino. Samuel L. Jackson, Tim Roth and Michael Madsen each have major roles. Also in the cast are Kurt Rusell, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Channing Tatum and Bruce Dern.

The Hateful Eight

The plot involves a group of bounty hunters as they try to find shelter during a blizzard but get involved in a plot of betrayal and deception.

The big news that broke is that Ennio Morricone is the soundtrack composer. This marks the first time in 40 years that Morricone scored a Western.

While Morricone has kept himself busy these last few decades with over 500 film credits to his name, his most iconic work perhaps came from the spaghetti westerns, Once Upon a Time in the West and The Good the Bad and the Ugly. 

The Hateful 8 movie poster

Stronger Beer

From the album Throw Down, here is Tim Hicks' Stronger Beer. singing about the difference between Canada and the U.S.A.



Tim Hicks is a country singer and songwriter from St. Catherines, Ontario. His album Throw Down was released in 2013. The follow up 5:01 in August 2014.

Difference Between Canada and U.S.A. 

Tim Hicks

Avengers: Age of Ultron Trailer

Whoa... Here is the trailer for The Avengers: Age of Ultron. Release date set for May 1, 2015.
When Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) jumpstarts a dormant peacekeeping program, things go terribly awry, forcing him, Thor (Chris Hemsworth), the Incredible Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) and the rest of the Avengers to reassemble. As the fate of Earth hangs in the balance, the team is put to the ultimate test as they battle Ultron (James Spader), a technological terror hell-bent on human extinction. Along the way, they encounter two mysterious and powerful newcomers, Pietro and Wanda Maximoff.

Scarlet Witch, The Avengers: Age of Ultron

Billy Idol - King's & Queen's of the Underground

Billy Idol's newest album, Kings and Queens of the Underground debuted this month at Number 34 on Billboard 200.

This is Idol's first release in nine years to contain original material.

The three-time Grammy nominee's release is his 11th chart hit and his highest debuting album. Understand of course, overall album sales have dropped to a fraction of what they were. Kings and Queens of the Underground is the highest ranked Idol album since 1990's Charmed Life which hit number eleven.

Trevor Horn was responsible for the production of most of this new release.

Kings and Queens of the Underground Track List

Billy Idol, Kings and Queens of the Underground

1. Bitter Pill

2. Can’t Break Me Down

3. Save Me Now

4. One Breath Away

5. Postcards From The Past

6. Kings & Queens Of The Underground

7. Eyes Wide Shut

8. Ghosts In My Guitar

9. Nothing To Fear

10. Love And Glory

11. Whiskey And Pills

The album release follows "Dancing with Myself," Idol’s autobiographical memoir, which was published on October 7th, 2014, on Simon and Schuster’s Touchstone imprint.

The book covers Idol’s life story, from his childhood, split between the U.K. and the U.S., and covers his seminal role in the U.K. punk movement alongside the likes of Sid Vicious and Siouxsie Sioux.

Idol formed the band Generation X before moving to New York to strike up a solo career in the early 1980s.

Idol kicks off his world tour in Europe in November in support of Kings Queens of the Underground. His first North American date is January 2015. For his complete tour schedule click here to go to his official website.

And here is Billy's Idol's video for Can't Break Me Down, from Kings and Queens of the Underground.

Billy Idol, Dancing With Myself

Fiona Apple - Hot Knife

Let's say I'm a little behind with this one. Fiona Apple's fourth studio album and first since 2005's Extraordinary Machine, The Idler Wheel Is Wiser than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More than Ropes Will Ever Do was released in 2012.

Fiona Apple's The Idler Wheel...

The Idler Wheel... earned a nomination at the 2013 Grammy Awards for Best Alternative Album and peaked at number 1 on the US alternative and US Rock album charts. It hit number 13 in Canada and number 68 in the UK.

The final track on the album, Hot Knife, features supporting vocals from Apple's sister and fellow singer Maude Maggart.

The video was directed by Paul Thomas Anderson who may be better known for his work on Boogie Nights, There Will Be Blood and Magnolia. Hot Knife drums may be reminiscent of 50s orchestral or African drumbeats.
From her 2012 album The Idler Wheel Is Wiser than the Driver of the Screw and Whipping Cords Will Serve You More than Ropes Will Ever Do, here is Fiona Apple's Hot Knife.

Fiona Apple

James Garner

James Garner, 1928-2014

One of my favourite actors James Garner, whose whimsical style in the 1950s TV Western “Maverick” led to a stellar career in TV and films such as “The Rockford Files” and his Oscar-nominated “Murphy's Romance,” has died, police said. He was 86. Garner also appeared in the "Great Escape" and "Support Your Local Gunfighter", and more recently, "Space Cowboys" and "8 Simple Rules".

He was found dead of natural causes Saturday evening at his home in Brentwood, Los Angeles.

And now the news...

Better than some of the newscasts I have seen over the years. Kids doing the news.

Breaking News

Atheists Don't Have No Songs

From Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers, Atheists Don't Have No Songs

Steve Martin. Steep Canyon Rangers

Another One Bites The Dust

Queen - Another One Bites the Dust.

Another One Bites the Dust

Queen's partial discography
Queen (1973)
Queen II (1974)
Sheer Heart Attack (1974)
A Night at the Opera (1975)
A Day at the Races (1976)
News of the World (1977)
Jazz (1978)
The Game (1980)
Flash Gordon (1980)
Hot Space (1982)
The Works (1984)
A Kind of Magic (1986)
The Miracle (1989)
Innuendo (1991)
Made in Heaven (1995)



This was not creative. And I didn't write much but apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see who actually wrote something for today's prompt go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is One Bite.

Damn the Torpedoes

Tom Petty Damn The Torpedoes

Damn the Torpedoes became Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' first top ten album. Produced by Petty and Jimmy Iovine, the album reached double platinum status. The album brought together rock, folk, country and blues in what has become Petty and the Heartbreakers’ signature style.

Damn the Torpedoes can arguably be called Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' magnus opus. A little bit of the Stones and a little bit the Byrds, yet completely modern for its 1979 release.

Previous classics from Petty included, American Girl and Listen to the Heart. Damn the Torpedoes dropped more classics on the world with Refugee, Here Comes My Girl, Even the Losers and Don't Do Me Like That.

Few rock albums from the era were as powerful as this. 

Re-released in 2010, one of the greatest rock albums of all time was shored up with nine bonus tracks.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, during their first year of eligibility in 2002 and are one of very few artists to score a top five record on the Billboard charts in five consecutive decades.

Apparently this is part of a Writing Challenge. To see more, go to www.WeWorkForCheese.com . Today's theme is Damn.

One Woman Army

Kate Earl, Stronger

Alaskan native Kate Earl's third album Stronger was released towards the end of 2012. Now based in L.A. this 32-year old singer's indie / country-folk sound comes through in One Woman Army, a song she wrote, inspired by her young son.

On One Woman Army, she promises, "Here I am, baby, I'm your one-woman army I'd fight for you, I'll die, I'll be your protector". She says she is especially proud of the tune for the way it achieves one of her biggest goals as a songwriter: "It's one of those songs that you can take to mean whatever it means to you. It can be a love song; it can be about friendship; it can be a song from a parent to a child. I want people to identify with my music like that."

Gimme Shelter

Rolling Stones

I have been a fan of the Rolling Stones for as long as I could remember. There are a some songs that stand out more than others, Street Fighting Man, Gimme Shelter, 2000 Light Years from Home, and Angie, to name a few. With 29 studio albums, 18 live albums, 30 compilation albums, and 107 singles there are a lot to choose from.

One reason that Gimme Shelter stands out is the backing vocals of Mary Clayton. Listen to this piece - Clayton's isolated vocals from Gimme Shelter.

Stephen Davis writes in his book Old Gods Almost Dead: The 40-Year Odyssey of the Rolling Stones, “No rock record, before or since, has ever so completely captured the sense of palpable dread that hung over its era.”

Rape, murder!
It’s just a shot away
It’s just a shot away

Released in 1969 with its Latin groove and rock theme, music by Keith Richards and lyrics by Mick Jagger, the world was set in war and this moody piece reflected the tension of the world closing in.

The song credits:
Mick Jagger - vocals, harmonica
Keith Richards - guitars, backing vocals
Bill Wyman - bass
Charlie Watts - drums
Nicky Hopkins - piano
Jimmy Miller - percussion
Merry Clayton - vocals

And if you are interested in Mary Clayton, or any of the backup singers who graced the recordings of so many favourite artists, watch the film 20 Feet From Stardom. As the tagline says, "meet the unsung heroes behind the greatest music of our time.

Mavis Staples

One True Vine is the thirteenth studio album by legendary gospel and soul singer Mavis Staples. A tremendous followup to a tremendous career and album. Staples won the first Grammy of her 60 year career on the 2010 release You are Not Alone. With One True Vine  Staples reprises her collaboration with Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy.

Can You Get to That was originally recorded by Funkadelic. Staples version is a stripped down folksy rendition, focusing on the vocals and lyrics.

And also worth listening to is the title track of You are Not Alone.

Mavis Staples

Home At Last

I love my job. I enjoy going to work. I often look forward to going to the office. I have twenty or so staff that report to me, all a different mix of characters. Even with this good team, once I am there, they often make it that I am looking forward to going home.

Some make the job more difficult than others. The real bad apples were let go a long time ago. 

I could make this into a love story about my wife and rushing home to see her but, this is more about work.

I came back to work after a few days off - after celebrating my nuptials. I returned to find 300 email in my inbox. I had to scour through them, first to catch up, second to deal with any disasters, and third to find out if there was an email - somewhere in there - that told me I was fired.

Well, my job is pretty safe but when a company has layoffs, anyone is at risk. You believe your job is safe but then there is still doubt. You get a compliment or a good review from the boss and still, there may be doubt. Sometimes doing a good job is like peeing in your dark suit. You get a warm feeling but nobody notices.

I tried a start-up internet based chewing gum company. Eventually the bubble burst.

I had a friend who worked for the IRS but quit because he found it taxing. 

I worked in a mill for a while but couldn't stand the daily grind.

I had an uncle who worked in ladies lingerie. It didn't go over to well at the construction site.

A job is what you make of it. Loving it is a bonus. Making a living is a requirement. Going home is essential. 

And remember, your job could be worse

Steely Dan from their 19778 release Aja, Home At Last


Today is day 18 of the thirty day writing challenge (February edition) as arranged and hosted by Nicky and Mike over at WeWorkForCheese.com. Go check out their site to see what they wrote and see all the other participants.

Buddy Guy

Buddy Guy, is a Chicago Bluesman born in Louisiana, and one of the living elder statesmen of the Blues. He may not be as well known as BB King or some of his predecessors, nonetheless, he built a niche of music creation and influence all his own. Stevie Ray Vaughn, Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix were heavily influenced  by Guy's play. Guy was thought to be one of the biggest influences on the play of Hendrix. While Clapton referred to Guy more recently as the greatest guitarist alive.

Buddy Guy remains one of the last Blues links to the traditions of play started by Robert Johnson. Guy recorded with the greats Muddy Waters and Junior Wells

Buddy Guy in Montreal, Metropolis

I went to see Guy play at the Montreal International Jazz Fest Year Round series, on April 14th of 2012. 76 years old and still playing his guitar with blistering speed. Guy plays any style, imitating his imitators, playing the likes of Clapton, Hendrix, and Albert King. Guy played music from his own albums spanning all his decades of recording, as well as some Blues standards.

At one point during the show Guy exited the stage only to reappear moments later among the standing room crowd on the floor. He kept strumming his guitar, singing and walking as he moved through the crowd and chatted with the patrons. Over the next 1/2 hour, Guy walked across the floor, up the stairs to the balcony crowd and around to the other side of the stage. Spitting distance I was from a legend.

Guy has some 70 albums to his credit. My personal favourite, from his recent years remains 2001's Grammy nominated Sweet Tea. For beginners to the world of Buddy Guy, I would recommend his 1993 release, Feels Like Rain. The album earned Guy the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album.

Some of today's younger guitarist have picked up the legacy but few under 60 years old have a connections to the traditions.

In 2012 Buddy Guy also released his autobiography, When I Left Home: My Story. The book tells his life story in his own picaresque manner, telling of his youthful days in the music scene to his touring days of the 2000s. Click this link for Guy's upcoming tour dates. Guy is in the midst of his North American tour, including three stops north of the border.

When I Left Home: My Story

Today is day 16 of the thirty day writing challenge (February edition) as arranged and hosted by Nicky and Mike over at WeWorkForCheese.com. Today's theme is Music. Go check out their site to see who else is participating and read some more great stories.

Or Else

Love or Peace or Else is the fourth track from U2's 2004 release How To Disarm and Atomic Bomb. The album, produced by Steve Lillywhite, with additional production credits going to Daniel Lanois, Brian Eno and others.

Four singles were released from the album, each meeting with success worldwide and charting at least number one and number two in several countries.

Vertigo was the first single release and went 2X platinum for digital downloads. The remainder of the singles were follow ups in 2005. All Because of You, Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own followed by City of Blinding Lights.

In the more innovative sounding Love or Peace or Else the band strides into world affairs, begging for an end of atomic weapons and commenting on the affairs of Middle East, with pleads for peace

Lay down
Lay down your guns
All your daughters of Zion
All your Abraham Sons

U2 formed in Dublin 1978 when Larry Mullen Jr. posted a "musician's wanted" ad on a school wall. In 1980 the band signed a deal with Island Records. U2's first single, 11 O'clock Tick-Tock, was released in May 1980. Boy, their debut album, was released five months later - promoted by another single, I Will Follow.

Rolling Stone ranked U2 at number 22 in its list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Twelve studio albums and nine live albums, over 150 million sold, and 22 Grammies later the band is among the all-time best-selling music artists.

Today is day 15 of the thirty day writing challenge (February edition) as arranged and hosted by Nicky and Mike over at WeWorkForCheese.com. Go check out their site to see what they wrote and to see who else participated.

When You Were Young

The Killers Battle Born

I don't know why this 2006 song by The Killers is suddenly getting so much airplay on local radio. Two stations in the area seem to have put it in heavy rotation this week.

When You Were Young off their '06 release Sam's Town is a great story telling song backed by the band's full sound and swirling keyboards making it reminiscent of The E Street Band with a touch of Meatloaf. The song is about growing up and moving around in the world. Your future as it was imagined when we were young does not necessarily live up to our dreams.

The Killers, fronted by lead singer Brandon Flowers, have been around since 2001 and have released four studio albums including 2012's Battle Born. This is The Killers - When You Were Young.