CW Post Football Today

Where can you see a football game for $5? Certainly not at Giants Stadium. Today we took a drive out to the CW Post Campus on Brookville, Long Island and see the Pioneers beat Kutztown University (Pennsylvania) 42-17.

Another Saturday Night by Sam Cooke

Here is the next entry in my list of songs with Days of the Week in the title. When I think of Sam I always recall the tragic way he died in 1964 at age 33. We will never know what music he would have made had he lived. Facebook readers may see this video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5KvR4dEKyQ

Still with AOL for almost 16 years

Back in December 1993 I bought my computer running on Windows 3.1 with a hard drive of 129 MB, AOL was pre-installed. I am now on my 4th computer and have stuck with AOL all these years. I just downloaded version 9.5 on it. I guess I should win an award for being such a loyal customer.

Friday on My Mind by the Easybeats

I think this 1967 hit is an obvious choice to continue this thread. I remember hearing it first on WMCA all those years ago. Facebook readers may see the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0Gsqtv62I8

Jersey Thursday - Donovan

Let's keep this thread going. For readers who are not familiar with folk music of the 1960s, Donovan is the British Bob Dylan. I have written about him before in this journal. Facebook readers may see the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAGcT9tzzM4

Rooting for the Yankees to win the World Series

There has been some discussion on the Internet and on sports talk radio over whether Met fans should root for the Phillies or Yankees to win the World Series. There is no doubt that I will root for the Yankees. The only time I root against them is when they play the Mets during interleague play. It's a shame that the series is starting so late on the calendar. It may end as late as November 5. Hopefully the weather on the east coast will be mild during the games.

Wednesday Morning 3 AM by Simon and Garfunkel (I may as well be consistent)

One of these days my desire to write will come back. I don't want to say anything too personal. You never know who may be lurking especially when Bruce's Journal is imported into Facebook. By the way Facebook users can see the video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bfEaaG19lU

Song of the Day - Ruby Tuesday by the Rolling Stones

I guess I haven't been very articulate over the last few days so here is Ruby Tuesday by the Rolling Stones performed in Texas in 1988. Vic, I am making this entry in the morning.

Facebook readers may find this at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5_Voeupr3Q

Monday Monday - by the Mamas and Papas - Song of the Day

Makes sense, doesn't it?

Another Plug for Sounds of the 60s with Brian Matthew

I have talked about this show a few times in my journal, but it is time to make a plug for it. It is heard live on BBC2 Saturday mornings from 3 AM - 5 AM Eastern time, but it is archived for a week. It has become a listening ritual for me on Sunday mornings. There is a good description including this week's set list at http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00nh1pq . Ironically this week's show started out with my least favorite burnout Mony Mony by Tommy James and the Shondells. Anyway, the show features the classic hits, rarities, B sides, obscurities, instrumentals and album tracks. I highly recommend it to my oldies radio enthusiast friends.

Editing my Facebook Friends List

I first joined Facebook to use it as an outreach tool to students at NJIT. I made friends with many students who have been on my list for over 3 years. In order to build up a friends list, I also sought out others with the surname Slutsky even though I was not related to them. My friends list hit a maximum of 476. This morning I deleted about 80 friends whom I felt I did not know. Facebook was not successful as an out reach tool and many of those students have graduated from NJIT. I also deleted one person who use a very obnoxius handle on Facebook. I do believe that on should reveal his true identity on social networking sites.

There are more important things in this world than Facebook. :)

Remembering the Musical Side of Soupy Sales

This morning I was saddened by of the passing of Soupy Sales at age 83. He was best known as a host of a children's show on WNEW-TV in the mid 1960s, but he also had a radio gig on WNBC in the 1980s. Soupy appeared at the WABC Rewound Cruise in June 2007, but it was obvious that he was in failing health. Soupy had a 45 RPM hit in 1965 called the Mouse. It only peaked at #76 nationally, but was a number 10 hit in New York City. Please see the video below.

Hey Joe - 3 version - The Byrds - Jimi Hendrix - The Leaves

Oldie of the Day - Sound of Silence by Simon and Garfunkel

I just heard this on Cousin Bruce's show on Sirius/XM. I also voted for it as one of my top 10 oldies of all time on the survey being compiled by Mike Riccio and Tom Natoli. Vote here if you are interested.

The Commute This Afternoon Went Well

This semester I work on the evening shift at the NJIT Library on Tuesdays. This morning I left a little early (10:45 AM) since I was scheduled to teach a class at 1 PM, my expected time of arrival. I made good connections and and came to NJIT shortly after 12:30. Now I have to worry about my trip home. I just hate train delays when I go home at night. There are 2 substantial delays that I remember:

1. New Jersey Transit Trains were not running so I had to take the PATH from Newark to 33rd Street. This is a much slower ride.
2. One night the #7 Flushing train stopped at Vernon-Jackson in Long Island City for about 30 minutes. There was nothing else I could do but wait out the delay.

Let's hope for the best.

Worst Morning Commute in 17 years

My commute from Flushing to Newark is bad enough. On a normal day I leave my house about 6:35 AM and arrive at NJIT at 8:10 AM. Here is what happened this morning:

Everything was as usual until the New Jersey Transit train got out of the tunnel near Secaucus where it stopped. The conductor said there were electrical problems . After a few minutes the trained pulled into the Secaucus station. The conductor estimated that the train would not move for at least 30-45 minutes. From there I took a New Jersey Transit train that was running to Hoboken. There were mobs of people trying to transfer to the PATH trains . The only consolation was that PATH was honoring NJ Transit tickets. I had to take one train to Exchange Place where I transferred to a train to Newark. My last leg of my journey to NJIT was the 3 minute trip on the Newark Light Rail to Warren Street. I arrived at 9:30.

In 17 years of commuting this had to be my worst trip getting to work in the morning. I had to take one bus and 7 trains all together. My worst trip getting home was in August 2003 when I was stranded during a blackout. I had to walk from Newark Penn Station back to NJIT (about 1 mile) and was able to get a dormitory room for the night. I didn't get home until 11 AM the next day.

OY VEY!!

Bob Dylan Song of the Day - Most Likely You Go Your Way and I'll Go Mine

I prefer this studio version that was on Blonde on Blonde from 1966. Other people like the 1974 concert version that he did with The Band.

Hair, the Musical

Today to celebrate our anniversary we saw Hair at the Al Hirschfeld Theater on Broadway. It seems that we have spent a lot of time this year reliving the events of 40 years ago. Hair originally opened at the Public Theater on Lafayette Street on October 17, 1967. It moved to the Biltmore Theater on April 29, 1968. The current revival opened this past March 31. Hair generated top 40 hits in the late 1960s including:

• Hair - Cowsills
• Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In - Fifth Dimension
• Easy to Be Hard - Three Dog Night
• Good Morning Starshine - Oliver

The show included the famous nude scene. The lights on the performers were very low. On several occasions the actors went into the audience and danced. I even high fived one of the actors.

October 16, 2009 - Our 26th Wedding Anniversary

Tomorrow and Karen and I will be celebrating our 26th wedding anniversary. Where were you in October 1983? It is such a long time ago. My late dad once told me that in marriage you have some good years and some bad ones. Karen has had to put up with Bob Dylan and Jeopardy, while I have had to watch her do crossword puzzles and Suduku. The Mets and oldies are mutual interests. We will celebrate on Saturday by seeing the musical Hair.

The photo above was taken exactly one year ago.

My son the Mister Ed fan

When Lee was a little boy he loved watched Mister Ed with Alan Young on TVLand. He must have been about 3 or 4 at that time so we had to explain to him that horses do not talk. We filled a 6 hour VHS tape with 12 episodes recorded at random. Last week we found out that the first season of the show is now available on DVD. We ordered it for him from Amazon.com. Even though he is 21, Lee is a baby boomer at heart when it comes to TV and music.

Fourth Anniversary of Bruce's Journal

It was 4 years ago today that I started Bruce's Journal. Here is the first entry from October 15, 2005:

Today we went to see Hofstra play the University of Maine. Hofstra won 44-0. It only costs $8 to see a college football game. Even though it was a one sided game we had fun.

This past Saturday we saw Maine defeat Hofstra 16-14.

There have been over 1100 entries over the 4 years. The journal is also imported into Facebook. Thanks for reading.

American Masters - Joan Baez

I just watched the American Masters show on PBS featuring Joan Baez who has been active in show business for 50 years. Most documentaries show only the professional life of the subject but this featured the public and private sides of Joan. It showed concert performances from the early and later parts of her career. There were comments by Bob Dylan, David Crosby and Roger Mcguinn among others. She reunited with her ex-husband David Harris who was in prison for evading the draft during their marriage. If you remember Joan was pregnant when she performed at Woodstock. Her son Gabriel now 40 years old appeared in this documentary. My favorite part was the clips they showed of her performing with Bob Dylan during the Rolling Thuder Revue in the mid 1970s.

The clip above (Youtube video) was from the Rolling Thunder Revue, at Fort Collins, Colorado, 23 May 1976, Bob Dylan & Joan Baez perform the Woody Guthrie song Deportee (aka Plane Wreck at Los Gatos).

For more information about the American Masters show please see http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/joan-baez/how-sweet-the-sound/1185/

Borders Struck Out With Me Today

It wasn't that long ago when there were so many places where one could buy a CD. It was always so exciting when Bob Dylan had a new release and I would run to the nearest store to buy it. Today there are so few music stores. There is a Borders in Penn Station that has a small selection of CDs. Since I pass it by on the way to work, it is the only convenient place for me to buy a CD. I went there about 11;30 AM to buy Dylan's Christmas in the Heart on its first day of release. I was dismayed when the clerk said they didn't get it yet, but should have it later in the week. I could always download it from Itunes, but I can wait a few days.

Familiarizing myself with the new Ipod nano

It was very easy to transfer a CD to the Ipod. Tonight I transferred 5 CDs. Since this Ipod has a capacity of only 8 Gigs, I decided to transfer recordings of Bob Dylan or cover versions of his songs. Since I am working late tomorrow, I will transfer 5 more in the morning. This particular model was appealing to me since it also has an FM radio. Once a week, usually when I have to work late, I bring my radio with a CD or tape player on the trains. I listen to the radio while my train is above ground and to recorded music while underground. I may as well bring my new toy on my trip tomorrow.

This model also has:

• A video camera
• Pedometer
• Calculator
• Calendar
• Clock
• Stopwatch

Adapting to new technologies

For several years I have resisted buying an Ipod. It has been documented that older people are more resistant to newer technologies. I have been happy listening to CDs, records, and tapes. There was a a small booklet that came with the Ipod explaning how to use it. But there was a 104 page manual available at http://manuals.info.apple.com/en_US/iPod_nano_5th_gen_UserGuide.pdf to explain everything. I have the Itunes software so the first thing I will do is to download some CDs. There are so many special features involved with this little device. It is so small and must be very easy to lose. Since it is only 8 Gigs, I won't be able to download my entire CD collection. Stay tuned.

Bought an Ipod Nano today

After several years of resistance to this new technology I bought an Ipod Nano today. I was debating between the Ipod Nano and the Itouch, but I chose the former since it was less expensive. Between work and home, I have enough access to the internet, so why should I get more. The model that I bought also has an FM radio, so when I take it on the trains I can listen to the radio when the train is above ground and to the Ipod when it is underground. This is an 8 gig ipod, so I will be limited on how many CDs I can load. The model I wanted was not in stock in the local Radio Shack so I will have to pick it up tomorrow. If I waited so long for an Ipod, I can wait another day.

Hofstra Football Today

Since we don't have season tickets to the Jets or Giants we can only see college football. For several years we see a few games at Hofstra in Hempstead, Long Island. For $10/ticket it is a real bargain. The Hofstra Pride lost to the Black Bears of the University of Maine 16-14. Hofstra turned the ball over 7 times, 5 by interception and 2 fumbles. A missed field goal attempt by Hofstra proved decisive. Game Summary.

WQXR moves from 96.3 to 105.9 tonight

At 8 PM WQXR will move from 96.3 to 105.9 FM while WCAA, a Spanish music station at 105.9, moves to 96.3. The New York Times which has owned WQXR for years has sold the station to WNYC. Although I was never a fan of classical music, I am glad that enthusiasts of that genre of music will have a place on the radio. I remember hating classical music when they made us listen to it in high school. It would have been a public relations fiasco for the Times if classical music left free radio. It is very rare when there is a frequency swap in NYC.

Back in 1988 97.1 WYNY exchanged frequencies with Hot 103.5. I remember I had two tape decks going to record the frequency switch. I am not going to do that this time. I am listening to 96.3 FM to hear the switchover. Someone will post it on the web. In the same year WFAN moved from 1050 to 660 on the AM dial while a Spanish music station moved to 1050. I don't remember the date, but the Spanish station moved from 1050 to 97.9 FM while WEVD moved to 97.9.

If Paul Mount or Scott Fybush are reading this on Facebook, they will likely add the dates.

Happy Birthday - Alan Berman October 8

Thursday October 8th marks the birthday of Alan Berman, New York City's number one male listener of oldies. The picture above was taken last night at a book signing of Cousin Bruce Morrow's new book titled Rock & Roll ..... and the Beat Goes On.

Alan, I hope you will enjoy your special day tomorrow. I am sure that all your radio friends including Mark Simone and Clay Cole also wish you a happy birthday.

Yellow Submarine - Beatles Song of the Day

This is dedicated to Cindy Wos of the NJIT Chemical Engineering Department

Got Tickets for Bob Dylan at the United Palace Theater

Bob Dylan will be appearing at the United Palace Theater in upper Manhattan in November. I was able to get tickets today for the November 18th show. It will almost a year to the day that we saw him at the same venue. Tickets are very expensive. We are paying $89/ticket plus the Ticketmaster fee. This time there was no way around paying those bandits. Their fee was $11.50/ticket plus a $3 mailing fee. Thus, it will be $300 for the three tickets. I would only do it for Dylan.

The Season for the Mets is Finally Over

The season ended on a positive note as the Mets won their last 3 games and finished the season at 70-92. For the last two seasons they were eliminated from the postseason on the final day. Much, but not all of the downfall on the team can be blamed on the long term injuries of many key players, but there will have to be changes made in the off season. I think that general manager Omar Minaya should be fired since he did make some bad player moves over the past few seasons. Oliver Perez did not deserve $36 Million over 3 seasons. He traded away excellent relievers Heath Bell, and Matt Lindstrom and got absolutely nothing for them. I don't think the Wilpons will fire Minaya. I also think Jerry Manuel will stay as manager; he wasn't the greatest, but not the worst either. As a token gesture, several coaches will be mad scapegoats and be let go. We will have to hope for the best in 2010.

Our last Met game of the season

Today's game was the last game in our 15 ticket package. Thankfully the season ends tomorrow. When we left the house, it was cloudy outside, but the rain was predicted for the afternoon. We brought our umbrellas and sat in our regular seats in Section 527 of Citifield. At the end of the fifth inning at 3 PM the game was stopped for rain as the the Mets were leading the Houston Astros 4-1. Twenty minutes into the rain delay, it really started to pour and we decided to leave. The game was meaningless anyway as the Mets lost over 90 games. When we got home I did some reading and turned on WFAN at about 5 PM. The announcers said that the game would resume at 5:20 after a 2 hour and 20 minute rain delay. They thought it was foolish to resume since the result would be inconsequential. It is up to the umpires either call off or resume the game. We turned on the TV and saw very few people left in the stands. The Mets won the game 5-1. Game recap. The Mets were 7-8 in the games we saw this season.

Support Your Favorite Nonprofit Radio Stations

Readers of this journal must know that I listen to many radio stations. I discovered WFUV in the early 1990s when they featured Bob Dylan's music on his birthday. It is owned by Fordham University and relies on donations from listeners. Their fall fundraising drive began today. I sent my $100 donation today since all of today's donations will be matched by the Grateful Foundation. For many years they called their weekday music City Folk, but have recently rebranded it as Roots and Rock Radio. It is always a pleasure to hear long sets of music without commercials. Former WNEW-FM DJs Pete Fornatale, Dennis Elsas and Vin Scelsa have shows.

WFUV is trying to raise money to build a booster antenna to improve reception in lower Manhattan and Brooklyn. They must also meet other operating expenses. I am sure that when the booster is built Scott Fybush will take pictures of it. I suggest readers of Bruce's Journal check out http://www.fybush.com/sites/2008/site-080328.html where Scott shows photos of the station's new and old studios and transmitters.

It is always a pleasure to help an nonprofit radio station financially. In February I will give a similar donation to jazz station WBGO. Nonprofits often preserve formats rarely found on commerical stations. Please support them.

The Bob Dylan Link to Twitter

There was a supergroup in the late 1980s called the Traveling Wilburys. The members were:

• Bob Dylan
• George Harrison
• Jeff Lynne
• Roy Orbison
• Tom Petty

Rob Orbison passed away after the first CD. The second and last CD was not as good since it lacked Roy's wonderful vocals. The group with Bob Dylan singing lead recorded a song called Tweeter and the Monkey Man. For those of you who don't use Twitter, a person who uses that service is called a Tweeter.