darling harbor - Buffalo NY

"Ladies and Gentlemen!"

darling harbor retro "truth in my lies" CD art ...

www.twitter.com/darling_harbor

"ladies & gentlemen" is a uptempo, alt. rock/pop song that is very melodic. ladies & gentlemen is the kind of song that will stick in your head after a couple of listens...if you let it...
Great upbeat opening song, the acoustic guitar and vocal performances are super spectacular.

"house of brass" is a smart, well written song. It's obvious to me that darling harbor know how to compose a great song, adding melodic elements to the music to make the songs interesting to the ear. Hey!..Great gang vocal performances and drum track.

"new providence" starts with a great guitar/egg shaker intro and a melancholy vocal. The drums move the tempo of the song up and down from mellow to strong and driving. Good vocal dynamics on this song.

Do you need a new, original local band to check out? Well, darling harbor has "the answers" to your musical longings. Great drum shuffle and bass guitar performance on this one. The melodic lyrics provide all "the answers" about darling harbor.

"getting better, getting there" continues in the same vein as "the answers"...mixing in a guitar solo for some super rock awesomeness...

"sons and daughters" closes this CD out with a bang...

I was quite impressed seeing the band live for the first time. Everyone in the band and everything sounded great together. I've seen the singer fronting a different band at babeville, and I must say darling harbor sounded much better than that band.

www.facebook.com/darlingharborband

Special thanks to Dan.

Jimi Hendrix, The Bass Player?

Jimi Hendrix, The Bass Player?

Jimi Hendrix is perhaps best known for his blazing (literally blazing as evidenced by his '67 Monterey Pop Festival live performance) lead guitar playing and as his latest release "Valleys Of Neptune'" gains in popularity, his amazing talents are still being recognized and appreciated by every new generation of rock fan since his first appearance onto the music scene in the 60s.
Along with his amazing songwriting, guitar playing and singing, one of Jimi's lesser known talents was his amazing electric bass guitar playing, Jimi could also play the glockenspiel and the flute, amazingly enough, Jimi taught himself to play on all the instruments mentioned above.

He is also credited on several lesser know rock albums as an executive producer and as a guest performer, playing bass for the Buddy Miles penned track "Destruction Of Love" and produced Buddy's "Electric Church" solo album. Hendrix also played bass on an early, rare Crosby, Stills & Nash version of the Joni Mitchell penned song "Woodstock", which was written by Mitchell while she was stranded in a hotel room, not able to get to Woodstock where she was supposed to perform.

Hendrix, who preferred a right-handed Stratocaster flipped upside down and strung backwards, could also easily play a right-handed, standard strung up guitar and bass. This unique talent can be compared to a baseball player batting from the left and right side of home plate, as opposed to just the right or the left. This special talent was captured on an album, when Hendrix guest starred on Timothy Leary's rare, narrative/music album.

Not only did Jimi perform many a bass line on his own recordings but he also took hold of the instrument live on a couple of famous occasions, one of which included an amazing, fiery performance of "Red House" from 1967, in which Noel Redding and Jimi switched instruments at The Olympia in Paris, France.

Having played guitar full-time before his gig with Jimi, Redding was a great guitar player in his own right. So switching instruments was no problem went it came to the multi-talented Jimi Hendrix Experience.

Jimi owned a 1965 Fender Jazz Bass on which he performed many a legendary bass line on in the recording studio. Jimi's bass playing is not present on his 1st album but he recorded several bass lines on his "Axis: Bold As Love" album. Jimi can be heard playing bass on the "Bold As Love", "Spanish Castle Magic" & "She's So Fine" tracks.
Hendrix used his own 8-string Hagstrom bass guitar on the bass track of "Spanish Castle Magic", Hendrix added a uniqueness all his own to the track using the Octavia foot-pedal to enhance the recorded bass lines.

Hendrix also played the 4-string bass guitar on one of his most recognizable and widely known, recorded songs "All Along The Watchtower". A song in which Hendrix recorded because he was such a big fan of Bob Dylan's original version.

Dave Mason originally recorded the bass line on the track, after Redding and Hendrix had a dispute in the studio. Hendrix recorded a new bass line and then re-recorded the bass after "hearing it a bit differently". If you listen to just the bass on this track you can hear it jump out of the mix on several occasions.

Hendrix's iconic album "Electric Ladyland" which included "All Along The Watchtower" featured Hendrix playing bass on "Have You Ever Been (To Electric Ladyland)" & "And The Gods Made Love".

During the sessions for this record, Hendrix plucked the 4-string on 2 of Noel Redding's original songs "Dream" & "Touch You", which were never completed and included on the album.

These sessions also produced "My Friend" a rare, Stephen Stills penned song, on which Hendrix sang and played guitar and bass on. This rare recording surfaced after Hendrix passed on.

Not only does Hendrix's songwriting, singing & guitar playing continue to influence a new generation of fans every year, his bass playing is equally recognized as an important part of the Hendrix legacy and has influenced many a bassist in its own right. Who better to play the bass on some of Hendrix's most famous songs than Jimi himself. Who knew?

Experience Hendrix front and back cover featuring the "Official" First Rays Of The New Rising Sun CD release.

Hendrix Band of Gypsys CD Review

One of the Greatest Live Recording's of All Time

The Band Of Gypsys, first released in April of 1970, is one of Jimi Hendrix's most revered and impressive achievements of his brief , but memorable recording career. This CD was recorded on New Year's Eve of 1969/70 at the Fillmore East in New York City. The Band Of Gypsys was a newly formed trio featuring Jimi Hendrix on guitar, Buddy Miles on drums and Billy Cox on the bass. The Band Of Gypsys was the last official recording of Hendrix's career. Many have called The Band Of Gypsys CD the birthplace of funk. This isn't one of Hendrix's best-known albums but it still packs a musical punch.
This recording was released with a specific purpose in mind. Hendrix needed to fulfill a contractual obligation to a former manager of whom he had signed a recording contract with before he went off to London to begin his fabled career. The Jimi Hendrix Experience recordings sound polished and cleaned up compared to the raw, funky grooves of The Band Of Gypsys. Buddy Miles and Billy Cox combine their efforts to create phat, funky grooves perfect for Hendrix to play on top off and improvise through. Hendrix's playing doesnt carry these songs but tags along, slightly behind the beat to create some sexy, bouncy grooves. For fans of Hendrix, his playing on The Band Of Gypsys is a little different from his solo stuff, it provides interesting new sounds and textures to listen to. Buddy Miles provides some rather impressive vocals on this CD but the highlight is undoubtedly the song "Machine Gun". "Machine Gun" ranks along with "The Star Spangled Banner" as a innovative, inspiring and emotional electric guitar performance. "Machine Gun" is Hendrix's thought provoking statement of a nation at war, a war that the young generation of that time didn't support. "Machine Gun" is a soulful, solo guitar masterpiece created by a young Hendrix, it contains some terrifying, agonizing guitar sounds. One can close their eyes while listening to "Machine Gun" and picture a war-torn battlefield complete with the sounds of bombs and guns going off, along with the wounded cries of dying soldiers all around. All of the guitar sounds on The Band Of Gypsys were created by a primitive guitar/amp set-up by today's standards, but Hendrix most certainly had the loudest and most innovative equipment he could could get his hands on, along with a stock Fender Stratocaster.

The original vinyl release only had 6 songs, but there is a remastered double-disc CD set from the 4 shows, which contains all the best songs from the 4 shows and there is also a Band Of Gypsy DVD, which won a Grammy Award and is a must-see for any serious Jimi Hendrix/Band Of Gypsys fan.

Guitar World 1995 which covered the legal battle for Jimi Hendrix's music, which was won by Experience Hendrix, LLC, who represent Hendrix's family.

Guitar World Jimi Hendrix Tribute issue from 1985.

Jimi Hendrix "Atlanta Special" is a bootleg release I picked up awhile ago.

According to the book Jimi Hendrix: Experience The Music the first 3 songs are from the Berkeley, CA rehearshals from 5/30/70 and the rest of the songs are from The Atlanta Pop Festival 7/4/70.

Guitar World, 11/2000 Hendrix Tribute Issue.
Pete Townsend, Carlos Santana, Billy Cox, Eddie Kramer and Hendrixs' drummer Mitch Mitchell speak out about the life & times of Jimi Hendrix. Eddie Kramer & John McDermott discuss the making of the 1st Hendrix family produced 4-CD box set.

This CD came out in 2007, 40 years after Hendrixs' groundbreaking, performance at The Monterey Pop Festival in California. This is the show where Hendrix made his triumphant return to the U.S. after blowing away many an audience in the U.K. and after releasing his first album with the help of Chas Chandler of The Animals. I've always seen the front view of this famous shot in which Hendrix sacrificed his guitar for the audience, first burning it then smashing it in a feedback frenzy. I had never seen this photograph before this CD came out so after resisting for 3 yrs, I finally picked it up in 2010. This CD includes the intro by Brian Jones of Rolling Stones fame and the entire set that The Jimi Hendrix Experience performed during The Summer Of Love.

West Coast Seattle Boy, The Jimi Hendrix Anthology is the latest release from Experience Hendrix, LLC. This is a must have for any true Hendrix fan, not so much for the casual listener. The 1st CD contains rare recordings Hendrix played on for other artists' such as Little Richard and The Isley Brothers, think classic motown and funky R & B. The rest of the music is quite good, but some of the unreleased stuff is not so good, but interesting to listen to, as it provides some insight into the genius that was Jimi Hendrix. This is the 2nd Hendrix box set released by Experience Hendrix, LLC.

Here's a couple of classic pics when Jimi was in the army, Jimi found the time to play guitar while in the army as shown in the 2nd photo from '61.
Photos courtesy of the book "Becoming Jimi Hendrix" by Steven Roby & Brad Schreiber.

Above, Jimi playing with the King Kasuals from '62.
Below, Jimi playing as a sideman for Little Richard from '65.

Jimi Hendrix with "Others"

Jimi Hendrix Recorded and Performed with Many an Artist Before His Solo Career Exploded!

"I played with this little rhythm and blues group named Curtis Knight & The Squires. And I made a few records and arranged a few songs for him." Jimi Hendrix 1967. Jimi performed and recorded with many great artists' early in his career and later as his worldwide fame grew. Jimi was a session man for many of these recordings and his input was limited to guitar playing and not to singing. Many of the lead guitar parts and guitar solos were not Jimi's but the headliners. After Jimi attained worldwide fame many of these recordings were released as official recordings by Jimi Hendrix but indeed they were not.
Jimi's involvement with Lonnie Youngblood began in 1963, Jimi was hired to play guitar on some of Lonnie Youngblood's recordings. At that time, Youngblood was a well known saxophonist in Philadelphia and Jimi was glad to record with Lonnie. Jimi's unique style of playing soul, blues and rhythm and blues shines through on these recordings. Jimi recorded the songs "Goodbye, Bessie Mae", "Soulfood", "Let Me", "Go Go Shoes", "Sweet Thang", "Under The Table" and "Wipe The Sweat" with Lonnie Youngblood.

The Isley Brothers were in need of a guitarist in 1964 and as luck would have it, a friend of Ronnie Isley's named Tony Rice had seen Jimi perform at the Palm Cafe in New York City and recommended Jimi to Ronnie Isley which led to an audition. The Isley Brothers were impressed with Jimi's raw talent and Jimi was brought on to tour and record with the band in early 1964. Jimi recorded "Testify", "Move Over And Let Me Dance" & "Have You Ever Been Disappointed" with the Isley's. Jimi left The Isley Brothers in the summer of 1964 to seek new musical opportunities in Nashville. 3 of these songs can be found on the new Hendrix box set "West Coast Seattle Boy".

Jimi toured and recorded with Little Richard in 1965. Jimi only recorded a couple of songs with Little Richard. Jimi recorded "I Don't Know What You Got But It's Got Me" and "Dancing All Around The World" which was released as a single by Vee-Jay Records in November 1965. That single peaked on the Billboard charts at number 92. The single reached number 12 on the Billboard Rhythm & Blues chart. These songs can be found on "West Coast Seattle Boy" as well.

Jimi's association with the blonde bombshell Jayne Mansfield was brief but it resulted in a single which was released in July of 1967. The songs are "As The Clouds Drift By" & "Suey" and can be found on the Hendrix bottleg "Too Hot To Handle".

In October 1965 Jimi signed a 3-year recording contract with Ed Chalpin's record company PPX Recordings for a disgraceful 1% royalty rate which was a direct result of Jimi's naivete when it came to signing recording contracts. Chalpin was a shrewd business man and he saw a good opportunity to decieve Jimi and take advantage of his remarkable raw talent. This contract came back to haunt Jimi later in his career and the end result was a number of sub-standard studio and live recordings which resulted in a large amount of quasi-legal official releases and bootleg releases. Many of these recordings were altered, faked, edited and falsely identified as Jimi Hendrix recordings.

Later in his career Jimi played lead guitar with McGough & McGear on their single "So Much" & "Ex Art Student" which was produced by Paul McCartney. Jimi added percussion to the Fat Mattress song "How Can I Live?" on their August 1969 release. Jimi also played bass with Robert Wyatt on his song "Slow Walking Talk" from 1968 and on Timothy Leary's song "Live And Let Live" from April 1970. Jimi played guitar on 3 Eire Apparent songs "Rock 'N' Roll Band", "Yes I Need Someone" & "Let Me Stay" from March 1969. Jimi also played bass and guitar on the Lightnin' Rod recording "Doriella Du Fontaine" which was recorded in November 1969. Jimi plays some lead guitar on the self-titled Stephen Stills solo record, of Crosby, Stills & Nash fame, on the song "Old Times Good Times".

Visit http://www.jimihendrix.com/

Amanda Nagurney - So Full Of Country

Amanda's newest CD "So Full Of Country".

Here's my review of Amanda's 1st CD "Gettin Out Of This Town".

Up and Coming Country Music Star Amanda Nagurney's 1st Release

I recently had the pleasure of witnessing Amanda Nagurney and Joe Childs perform live and in color at The Irishman Pub & Eatery, it was a fun night, highlighted by the fact that Amanda and Joe were gracious enough to let me sit in on a couple of songs, Thank You Amanda and Joe!
Being a big local music supporter I picked up this CD along with Amanda's newest release "So Full Of Country" at the Irishman.
This review will be of Amanda's debut CD "Gettin Out Of This Town" from 2008.
This CD establishes and confirms the fact that Amanda's music should be, if it isn't already, played on country music radio all across the U.S.A.

OK on with the review...

"Gettin Out Of This Town" sounds like and reminds me of a Garth Brooks song complete with country fiddle and rockin' guitar sounds. I must say I enjoy the country twang of Amanda's vocals and vocal harmonies. The lyrics of this song sound like a description of Amanda's busy career.

Track 2 "Never Break My Heart" is a mellow country ballad that features some really nice sounding pedal steel guitar behind Amanda's sweet vocals.

"Don't Ask Me To Love You" is a very catchy upbeat song. Amanda's voice and phrasing on this melancholy laced song remind me of Sarah Evans.

Track 4 "Just For A Moment" has a real good melancholy feel and sound. This track features an excellently orchestrated classical music backing track.

"Goodbye Doesn't Mean Forever" is another great country ballad that let's Amanda's soaring vocals shine through. This track also features some amazing pedal steel guitar work.

The closing track "Rock That Country" is a perfect example of a "new country" song that you might hear on WYRK FM. This track has an uplifting, spirited rock sound, topped off with a killer lead guitar solo, but the rock edge doesnt rock too hard, the guitar has the perfect amount of twang on it to keep it country.

Of course, above and beyond all the music, all the vocal performances on "Gettin Out Of This Town" sound great and are quite impressive and putting all comparisons aside, Amada's singing style has a unique quality all it's own.
On top of all that, Amanda writes and performs her own songs! A complete musical package. The session players on "Gettin Out Of This Town" are all A1 top notch players. This CD sounds like it could be and should be played on WYRK along with all the other "new country" musical talent currently on it's playlist.

Any fan of "new country" or old school country for that matter, should make a serious effort to check out Amanda's live performances where she has both of her CDs readily available for purchase.

Amanda's local performance schedule is a busy one, she currently performs with Joe Childs in an acoustic duo setting and Amanda also performs locally with her full band, Mason Dixon. On top of all her local appearances, Amanda also finds the time to travel out of state to promote her original music in various music venues across the U.S.A., most notably in Nashville and California.
Any recognition Amanda's recieves is well deserved because she is a hard working major musical talent who is seemingly destined for major recognition. Keep up the Good Work Amanda! Rock that Country Music All Night!

Test Tube Rhino "InVitro" CD Review

Joe Pinnavaia is a Guitarist, Composer and Instructor from the Western New York area whose musical style ranges from progressive rock with elements of orchestration and electronica to melodic instrumental rock.
Joe completed his musical education at Villa Maria College of Buffalo and at the University at Buffalo where he studied with Joanne Castellani from the world renowned Castellani/Andriaccio Duo and also studied locally with guitar virtuoso Tony Scozzaro. He has also performed with James Kurzdorfer (original bassist for Spyro Gyra) as well as Cosmic Stepping Stones and the duo BREAKERBOX who have worked with Corey Lowery of Dark New Day, as producer, releasing the single "Soul to Life". After being in mostly vocal orientated projects Joe decided to go into a new direction and focus more on his composition and released his first solo effort entitled "InVitro" under the name Test Tune Rhino. This experimental project has now turned into a fulfilling venture and the follow up release "Fragile X" is to be released early 2010. A track from this upcoming release titled "Night at the Carnival" will feature a guest performance by Art Kalenda of Soul Release - Joe's first guitar instructor that inspired him to become the guitar player that he is today.
Check Joe out online @ http://www.rhinoguitar.topcities.com/

Test Tube Rhino is the guitar oriented musical adventure of skilled local guitarist Joe Pinnavaia, Joe has played with many Buffalo based musical projects, but this is Joe going off and doing his own thing, creating his own "guitar world" if you will. Skillfully and masterfully using the guitar to create his own sonic instrumental masterpieces without the restrictions and conventional boundaries that a band-like song structure usually requires.
Track 1, "Test Tube Fantasy" sounds menacingingly melodic with its metallic guitar tones, cleany executed tight rhythms and fast soloing.
"E.B.E" features some sharp, classical Spanish guitar playing that flows nicely into a melodic guitar line, some sweet fluid electric guitar soloing compliments the acoustic guitar playing.
Track 3, "Caucacious" has some Joe Satriani-like melodic guitar melodies and some great upfront bass playing, I wish the ending with the distorted wah soloing and uptempo drums would have continued just a bit longer...
I enjoyed the melancholy feel of Track 4 "I'm Not Doing Anything To Feel Sorry".
The guitar sounds and soloing of "Nimicus Namicus" remind me of Vai/Satriani, I like the guitar tapped soloing and the stereorific solo panning at the end.
The minimalistic approach and overall mix of "High" is sonically refreshing being different from the rest of the tracks. I really enjoyed the soloing and the 2nd digitally delayed solo section.
"High" is my favorite track on "InVitro".
I like the melodic sustaining return line on "Vitamin Salt" and the tasty fast soloing reminded me of Vai/Satriani/Van Halen and Jeff Beck.
Joes playing has been compared to these modern guitar masters: Joe Satriani/Buckethead/Paul Gilbert/Robert Fripp and Terje Rypdal.
I highly recommend the "InVitro" CD to any fan of guitar driven instrumental music.
Visit http://www.rhinoguitar.topcities.com/, www.reverbnation/testtuberhino and www.myspace.com/testtuberhino to find out how you can pick up your very own copy of Test Tube Rhinos "InVitro" today.
"InVitro" is also available digitally on ITunes, Amazon Mp3, Rhapsody, eMusic, Napster and on every online store through the Favored Nations label.
Thank You Joe!

Fans of Joes talented guitar playing can visit these other band sites to hear his multi-faceted musical talents at play...
Cosmic Stepping Stones www.myspace.com/cosmicsteppingstones
Toxic Love www.myspace.com/therealtoxiclove
Breakerbox www.myspace.com/breakerbox

Commando The Autobiography Of Johnny Ramone, Tommy Ramone

Commando, The Autobiography Of Johnny Ramone

written by Johnny Ramone

Anybody who's a fan of Punk Rock and/or The Ramones needs to read this book.
...one of my fave pics from the book...with the 3 late and greatest members of The Ramones

Back cover of Commando.

www.abramsimage.com

www.johnnyramone.com

Morrissey

Another interesting book which gives me a reason to read...






















some recent press covering featuring the  mizerable moz...

One night in Wellsville, NY

Update 2014: I am no longer a member of the KISS THIS! band. The band is still together and continues to play in and around Buffalo NY. My tenure was kinda fun while it lasted, it was like Halloween every gig, but surprisingly required alot of time and effort to pull it off. Reflecting back on this specific incident I should have left the band after I got home to my wife and family safe and sound. This post may seem like an attempt by me to brag or be "cool" but isn't. I needed to write this post to remind myself of the important lessons I learned from the entire experience. I can't speak for the other members of the band but it definitely was not just another out of town gig for me.

Original post: Time for a new "blogless blog" posting...Yer fave music blogger, Joe Tell had an interesting and eventful weekend recently. After you read this story you might call it a "rock and roll" weekend that may have ended up with some tragic consequences.

As you may or may not know I entered the unique world of the tribute band recently, something I wasn't really interested in until the opportunity arose last year. One of the reasons why I joined the band is because I literally grew up on the music of KISS as a pre-teen. I used to borrow Beatles albums from my Aunt Pat and my mom bought me all the classic KISS albums along with all the Bay City Rollers records. When I wasn't playing street hockey I often listened to KISS or The Beatles on my record player my grandmother bought for me. Special thanks to my Aunt Pat, my mom and my grandmother.

The tribute band I joined is KISS THIS! The band wears full KISS makeup and KISS costumes.
The first wig I bought was a cheap halloween wig that I wore at a couple of shows. This wig proved to be useless so after taking some advice, I bought a full Gene Simmons Halloween mask and a fellow band member prepped the mask by cutting off the face so I could just use the hair. That was the easy part, the hard part was figuring out how to secure the wig to my hair so it wouldn't move or fall off for the show coming up. We figured that if I bought a nylon skull cap we could use wig glue to glue the masks' hair to the skull cap so it wouldn't move after it was on my head. I was advised to buy wig glue remover in the lotion and shampoo form but not thinking it was a big deal, I didn't buy the shampoo. So we now had the solution for how to secure the wig to my head. Having no prior experience with hair pins I thought buying wig glue would be the easiest and quickest way to secure the wig to my head.

Now here's a couple of things I must explain. Being in cover band is one thing. Being in a tribute band is another thing apart from being in a cover band. As a member of a tribute band you need to think, feel and act like the band did along with playing the music exactly as the band did, with little or no variations. If you can't think, feel and play like the band you're trying to pay tribute to it's not going to go over with an audience. But being in a KISS tribute band is all that and more, it really is a entirely different experience altogether from any other type of tribute band. A KISS tribute band needs special makeup, costumes and instruments to "become" KISS and learn the art of putting on a show just like KISS. It really takes alot of time and hard work if you want to do it right. Trying to look like KISS creates extra pre-show prep time to apply the makeup and get into the costumes. It may seem easy but applying the makeup properly is really an art form in itself and takes time to learn. All of these factors compound together create a unique kind of stress to "get it right" and meet fairly rigid time frames to try to get in a good sound check at any venue. A sound check is necessary because all 4 members of KISS sing lead vocals. Questions arise at shows like, Exactly how much time will it take before the entire band is ready to play? Is there a spot in the venue for the entire band to put on the make-up? If so where? Should we put the make-up on before or after soundcheck? Many things have to be dealt with and taken into consideration, things that most bands don't have to think about before they play.

I believe all of these these factors created a slight problem for me on this particular day as the band prepared for a show and an overnight stay in a hotel room provided by the venue.
First off I must explain that I am supposed to take daily medication for a thyroid condition and I should not be smoking due to my asthma but I was smoking and I did not take my thyroid medication. I also took an over the counter asthma medication to help me breathe easier because I was smoking along with using my inhaler and taking ibuprofen to help calm me down.
I believe the factors mentioned above and the "hurry up and wait" of sitting around waiting to get my makeup done by the one person who could do it at the time created a problem.
I was the first to get into costume and after having (too much!) wig glue applied to my head I put on my wig. Not having the makeup routine down I had to wait around for my makeup to be applied and completed. I wasn't comfortable being in the wig and the full costume is heavy, so I was very hot and sweaty after wearing both for at least 3 hours before the show. Needless to say waiting around before the gig with nothing to do (no radio or TV!) was not relaxing.
After going outside to smoke I came back into our room in an attempt to have my makeup finished.
I can't explain exactly what happened but I started feeling dizzy and I completely blacked out after a makeup brush was poked directly into the corner of my eye. I never blacked out before or since that day. I came back to consciousness completely soaked in a cold sweat and I believe a combination of stress, not taking my daily required medications, smoking, having a makeup brush stuck into my eye and taking a over the counter asthma pill ended up causing my blackout. Maybe all those factors and a allergic reaction to the wig glue caused me to black out? I know what you may be thinking and I must say in complete honesty that no other chemicals, legal or illegal, were consumed by me before I blacked out. I truly Thank God! that I did not take any other chemicals! I may have ended up dead dressed as Gene Simmons! How sad and pathetic would that have been?!... I was not relaxed at all and there was nothing to occupy my mind before I blacked out, music tends to relax me when I'm preoccupied with any thoughts.
I need to say that I could have backed out of the gig or insisted on going to a hospital when the paramedics showed up but I knew I had to perform with the band, any hospital visits would have to wait. The paramedics insisted that I go to the hospital to get fully checked out, in full KISS makeup and costume! Can you imagine the reaction of the doctors and the patients in the hospital as a guy dressed as Gene Simmons walked in to get treated?! I was not going to any hospital with full KISS makeup and costume on with a show to do later that night. No way. Imagine seeing an ambulance pull up to a hospital with a fake Gene Simmons being rolled out? You can write a story about that in itself, maybe Gene could use that idea as a publicity stunt to promote the next KISS record?...
After coming to and feeling much better I decided that the show was important. I had to fulfill my commitment to the band and the venue or we would not get paid. Needless to say, after recovering I steered away smoking and drinking during the gig. I relaxed between sets, sat down whenever I could and sipped water all night long, little did I know my stressful night was only halfway over...

After the show was over I tried to remove my wig at the venue to no avail, this is when I knew I had another big problem. The wig was literally glued to my hair and scalp. So after blacking out and waking up in a cold sweat now I was sweating because I was hot. I was sick of the wig and I wanted it off my head to cool off and relax. 2 of the other guys in the band wore wigs but they didn't not glue them on, they just took theirs off. I didn't have that option and my stress level rose.
After going back to the hotel and applying the wig glue remover lotion I became frustrated and angry because it did remove the wig glue so I could remove my wig. A combination of too much wig glue and no wig glue remover shampoo became a huge problem. I could not sleep in the wig and I didn't want to wait to get back home to remove it. It was making me sweat and I wanted it off my head so I could cool down and rest.
Thinking ahead and bringing a pair of scissors was a good idea because the wig had to be cut off my head. Along with all the hair on my head because too much wig glue was applied and I did not buy the shampoo that would have removed the wig glue. I was in pain as the wig was cut off my head because my hair was being pulled and cut off along with the wig. It took quite awhile to cut through all the glue to remove the wig off of my head and I was relieved to finally have it off my head.
After cutting the wig off my scalp I looked like a mental patient and I needed to wear a hat on the way home. My ordeal was the topic of much laughter on the long way home.
Needless to say, I will never, ever glue a wig to my head, ever again and I don't recommend the process to anyone who doesn't have any prior experience with wig glue and wig glue remover.

I can't speak for the rest of the band but I think my "rock and roll" weekend makes for some pretty interesting reading. It's really scary to think that I could've died in full KISS regalia that day! The experience really taught me alot and led to my departure from the band. It's a true story and I thought it interesting enough to be written about on my blog.
If only someone had brought along a video recorder, it would have made a great youtube video...
Any questions or comments can be sent directly to jtellfotos@yahoo.com.

Radio 9 - Buffalo, NY

After years of creating and performing music with numerous artists, Patsy Silver, Mike Biddlecom, Joey Cristofanilli, and Frank Cristofanilli, decided in 2013 it was the right time to collaborate their own musical talents of hard rock to create the band Radio 9; a hard driving mix of blues and metal.
The Buffalo based band recorded their debut EP, self-titled, Radio 9, at GCR Audio, owned by Robby Takac of the Goo Goo Dolls, with producer Justin Rose. The first single off the album is ‘Mr. Imagination’.
Youtube link https://youtu.be/c7n5XGzmv8g?list=UUKKmbgFggqatQIuohA_lM9A
The other notable heavy hitting songs off their debut album are ‘Little Black Book’,
https://youtu.be/g0EmxC1WOAA?list=UUKKmbgFggqatQIuohA_lM9A
 ‘Lightning Strikes’,
https://youtu.be/6SCn9p4i2ow?list=UUKKmbgFggqatQIuohA_lM9A
  ‘Run for Cover’
https://youtu.be/QKRY1KYxquo?list=UUKKmbgFggqatQIuohA_lM9A
and the rockin’ ballad, “Without You,”
https://youtu.be/G0Bo-8qqC0Q?list=UUKKmbgFggqatQIuohA_lM9A
which hints at Patsy’s gospel, blues roots.
Radio 9 has a long and impressive list of talents they respectfully worked with over the years. Lead singer and hard hitting raspy voiced, Patsy Silver, shared the stage with such legendary acts as The Beach Boys, The Beaver Brown Band, Tommy Shaw, Jefferson Starship, Grand Funk Railroad, and sang back-up vocals for the late Lou Rawls. Not only has Patsy fronted Las Vegas based bands, International Fox, who toured the country with standing dates in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, NYC and Lake Tahoe, she has also recorded an album in Nashville for RLA Coastal Records.
Bassist Joey Cristofanilli, performed with Los Angeles based band, Ratt, in which he recorded one song for the Ratt EP, and co-wrote the song “Wanted Man” for the Atlantic release, “Out of the Cellar.” Joey has also recorded two songs with LA based band, Rough Cutt, for the LA’s Hottest Unsigned Bands Compilation album. He also toured and recorded one album with LA based band, Jagwire.
Guitarist Mike Biddlecom played and toured with LA based band, Caustic Cause. Mike also played with Buffalo based band, Vicious Circle, and recorded an EP which was chosen best original rock band. He has three original solo albums, “Mystic Compass,” “Strange Therapy” and “Sonic Battalion”.
Drummer Frank Cristofanilli played with Buffalo based bands, Curtis Loew, Pretty Poison, Actor, and Tyrant. Frank has also recorded an album with the band, Watchers.

4/7/14: Originating the originals
A big thanks to Ed Honeck and David Sherrer for joining us for another fun filled show promoting the Original Blues Reunion. A special thanks to Radio 9 for breaking out their first interview; Mike Biddlecom, Frank Cristofanilli, Joe Cristofanilli and on lead vocals our very own, WNY's very seasoned female vocalist Patsy Silver! Listen for the shout outs....you know who you are! Take a listen, and enjoy the show! Click hear to listen to Radio 9 on the Patsy Silver and Dottie Kenney Variety Show http://www.thinktwiceradio.com/patsy-dottie/audio/140407a.mp3

Stevie Ray Vaughan

Stevie Ray Vaughan will always be loved by his fans and his musical peers, he continues to be an inspiration to kids who want to play guitar, highly influential to guitarists' who want to play better and his sharp, expert guitar playing and singing/songwriting skills will always be respected and revered by his musical peers. Even years after his untimely death his influence is still felt in the guitar playing world. Stevie's guitar playing has been described as virtuoistic, intensely focused, artistic, inspirational and real. His early recordings as well as his popular recordings, are highly sought after and his recordings continue to be on many a Rock and Roll AND Blues radio playlist across the world. Stevie not only achieved success in the blues music realm, he was fortunate enough to cross-over and achieve mainstream success as well. Stevie's master recordings are being obsessively sifted through, much like Jimi Hendrix's, seeking out rare, unreleased hidden jems. On top of Stevie's 6 Studio albums, 4 Live albums, 3 Best Of collections and 1 CD/DVD box set the guitar community continues to be interested in hearing all the music S.R.V. played and recorded throughout his career and as long as interest continues new SRV music will continue to be released. Let's hope the master tapes stay in good hands.
After learning to play guitar from listening to blues records, Stevie often cited B.B. King as a major influence and later in his career Stevie had an oppurtunity to play with B.B. King live in concert during the taping of "B.B. King & Friends". Alongside Stevie and B.B. members of the band included Albert King and Paul Butterfield.
Stevie also showed his respect for Albert King by calling him "Mr. Albert King!" during his intro.

Before and after his famous studio stint with David Bowie on Bowie's highly successful 1983 release "Let's Dance", Stevie's skills were highly sought after by many an artist seeking to "jazz up" their records with some top notch lead guitar playing. Stevie made several guest appearances on many a blues artists' studio albums.
Marcia Ball's 1984 release "Soulful Dress" features a intense solo from Stevie on the title track.
Johnny Copeland's "Don't Stop By The Creek, Son" features some tasty, clean playing from Stevie.
Saxophonist A.C. Reed recruited Stevie for his "I'm In The Wrong Business" release.

Stevie also had the opportunity to tour with many a great band and musician during his career, among them is Jeff Beck and his former band The Yardbirds, whom Stevie Ray also cited as a major influence early in his career. Stevie learned, mastered and played "Goin' Down", "Jeff's Boogie" and "Over Under Sideways Down" for many a smoke filled bar in Dallas Texas.

"The first record I ever bought was "Wham!" (in 1963) by Lonnie Mack." Stevie claims that his Dad broke that very same record because he played it repeatedly day and night. After going out and buying that record again and cranking it up through a Shure P.A. system, many years later Stevie had the opportunity to co-produce and play some guitar on Lonnie Mack's "Strike Like Lightning" 1985 release.

One of the highlights of Stevie's career is when Stevie played the 1988 New Orleans Jazz Festival, Stevie was fortunated enough to share the stage with swamp boggie great, Katie Webster and one of Stevie's most absolute favorite guitar players Albert Collins, the Master of the Telecaster.

In 1985 Stevie, with his band Double Trouble appeared along side his brother Jimmie on "Saturday Night Live" to promote their CD "Soul To Soul". Jimmie Vaughn, Stevies brother is also a living blues legend in his own right, Jimmie achieved worldwide recognition with his former band The Fabulous Thunderbirds.
Jimmie and Stevie often played the song "Pipeline" by the Chantays live, with a doubleneck guitar...simultaneously...
In 1987 Stevie Ray recorded the very same tune with surf guitar legend, Dick Dale for the movie "Back To The Beach". Stevie and Jimmie recorded a brilliant duet album "Family Style".

Stevie's drummer from Double Trouble Chris Layton reveals "Stevie was that thing that people identify with, that thing they can hear in his music, he touched people in such a way that it was irrelevant that he played the guitar, or that he played the blues. It was something that is mystical to me, because Stevie tapped into the thing that people feel, but cannot express themselves. Stevie was able to do that for them."

Nearly 25 years after his untimely death Stevie Ray Vaughan's music still remains as vibrant, exciting, soulful and spirited as when it was first released.

Buffalo NY Sports Curse

Curse or Not No Buffalo Team Has Ever Won the Big Game

The Buffalo NY Sports Curse. Fact or Fiction?...
I was recently told by a co-worker of mine that there was a curse placed on all Buffalo NY based Major League (currently NHL & NFL) Sports teams. This is why the Buffalo Bills have never won a Super Bowl and this is also why the Buffalo Sabres have never won a Stanley Cup. Consider the championship history our 2 teams have had and this curse legend seems to make sense, at least it does to me. I think the fact that Buffalo once had a NBA team here and lost it applies to this curse as well. I dont consider indoor lacrosse, football, soccer or triple A baseball to be major league sports teams.
Supposedly this curse was initiated by a lone Indian runner who was participating in a sanctioned foot race in the Buffalo area. This race was held in the early part of the 20th century,
somewhere around the 20's and 30's.
Legend has it that this lone Indian runner, who was racing against a field of white/caucasian competitors, was purposely tripped and couldnt finish the race. Upon being tripped the Indian immediately placed a curse upon on all the major league sports teams in the Buffalo area stating that they would never win a championship unless they were Indian owned and operated.

This story may come off as rascist or racially biased so I feel that I must state that Im not a rascist in any way, shape or form.
I thought this was an interesting story to post considering Im a major NHL hockey fan, NFL football not so much considering the way the Bills have been playing lately.
When you consider the history the Bills and Sabres have had in losing championship games it seems like we need an excuse as to why we lost, someone or something to blame besides our beloved players, this legend seems to fit that reasoning perfectly.
So for me at least, this story will always be in the back of my mind until we win the big one.
Besides the fact that weve lost every time, consider the Sabres '75 fog game, 99's No Goal! and our 4 consecutive Super Bowl appearances. Our championship history is interesting to say the least and can be spun in any number of ways so I guess you can say Im putting my own little twist on the stories to make them seem that much more interesting.
If anybody has any solid facts supporting this legend, please comment, or if you feel the urge just comment.
Thank You, Ryan.