Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Duquesne Whistle - Good Song Inappropriate Video

Back in the 1980s I was never a big fan of rock videos. Very often the essence of the song is not portrayed in the video. As I said before Duquesne Whistle was released before the Tempest CD. See for yourself that the video has nothing to do with the song.

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Bob Dylan Tempest Store is Coming

Very often there will a store that just opens for a holiday like Christmas or Halloween.  Today I found out about a store that is opening for the release of the Bob Dylan Tempest CD.  I remember fondly years ago running to a music store to buy a new album, but obviously such stores are so rare today.  So after work on September 10th, I will take the subway from Penn Station to this store on 819 Washington Street in Manhattan.  I don't know if this is considered the West Village or the Meatpacking is coming.  I thank Alan Berman, the Distinguished Professor of Facebook for bringing this to my attention.  An article in the Examiner states there will be similar stores in Los Angeles, Berlin, and London.

Monday, August 27, 2012

47 Years from Highway 61 to the Duquense Whistle

Leave it to my son Lee to tell me when I came home from work tonight that today is the 47th anniversary of the release of Highway 61 Revisited the album the changed the history of rock music.  As all Bob Dylan fans know his new CD called Tempest will be released on September 11.  Today one cut called the Duquense Whistle was released by NPR.  I am sure that WFUV will play it from time to time.

Anyway whistles have appeared in Bob Dylan songs before. "I can hear that whistle blowin’" is from Tonight I'll be Staying Here with You from Nashville Skyline that was issued in 1969.

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Mets 3 Astros 1

I think I brought the Amazins some luck as they broke their losing streak and beat the Houston Astros 3-1. Knuckleballer R.A. Dickey was superb as he allowed only 1 run in 7 innings and drove in a run with an infield hit.  Runs have been so scarce for the Mets lately, but today they scored 3.  Justin Turner hit a solo home run and the unpopular and over paid Jason Bay drove in a run with a single.  When Dickey left after 7 innings I was really frightened since the bullpen has been terrible of late.  Jon Rauch, Josh Edgin, and Frank Francisco were perfect as they retired the last 6 batters.  We received a Mike Piazza bobblehead doll.

Game Recap

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Queens Loses Another Synagogue


The current issue of the Queens Chronicle reports that the Garden Jewish Center in  north Flushing will be merging with the Bay Terrace Jewish Center.  This is part of a disturbing demographic trend of the Jewish population of Queens diminishing.  A few years ago Temple Israel of Jamaica merged with a synagogue in New Hyde Park and sold their building in Jamaica Estates.  Many of the apartment buildings in north Flushing were constructed in the early 1950s and were populated by young Jewish families.  Those Jews aged and eventually passed away or moved to Arizona or Florida.  The younger Jews likely moved to the suburbs creating a demographic change.  Most of Flushing today is populated by Asians.  Nothing in this world stays the same.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

The Lost 45s Radio Show Gets A New Home

About 3 years ago to the day I reported on the Lost 45s radio show with Barry Scott.  Over the years it has been on several Boston radio stations.  Earlier this summer it was taken off the air since WODS changed formats from classic hits to top 40.  It was today that on Labor Day weekend the show will move to WROR at 105.7 FM.  When I lived in Rhode Island in the 1970s those calls appeared at 98.5 FM.  WROR features Wally Brine in the morning who is the son of Rhode Island legend Salty Brine.  I hope the Lost 45s will be heard for many years to come.

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Remembering Two Scott MacKenzies

I found out today that Scott Mackenzie who recorded the big 1967 hit San Francisco (Wear Some Flowers in Your Hair) passed away at age 73.  That hit was the anthem of the Summer of Love.  I remember reading about him in the following autobiography of John Phillips of the Mamas and Papas:

 Phillips, J. and Jerome, J. (1986). Papa John: The autobiography of John Phillips. Garden City, N.Y: Doubleday  Co.

From 1972-74 I was a chemistry student at the University of Rhode Island.  There was a Professor named Scott MacKenzie.  I always remember how kind he was when he invited me to his home for dinner when I was a brand new student.  I heard that he passed away several years ago.  If any of my chemistry friends are reading this you can see a partial list of his publications in professional journals



Our First Trip to Met Life Stadium

I really wanted to see the new  Met Life Stadium in the Meadowlands so I checked out Stub Hub and found tickets for the Jet Giant preseason game that was played last night.  We decided to take New Jersey Transit instead of fighting the traffic to get there and back.  It is a beautiful stadium that cost about $1.5 Billion.  We were sitting in the upper deck behind the end zone so the players were very tiny.

It was a one sided game as the Giants beat the Jets 26-3.

Game Summary

Friday, August 17, 2012

I Certainly Didn't Forget Elvis Yesterday

With all the excitement yesterday about meeting Mr. Met, I neglected to say something about the 35th anniversary of the passing of Elvis Presley.  Here is Heartbreak Hotel by the King.


Thursday, August 16, 2012

The Slutskys Meet Mr. Met at the Sly Fox Inn

The Sly Fox Inn is a restaurant/sports bar near St. John's University.  Backed when I worked at SJU from 1990-92, I ate lunch there a few times.  Some days back I saw an advertisement in one of the local Queens newspapers that Mr. Met will be making an appearance there tonight.  We had to come over to meet our favorite mascot.  The game was on TV as Mr. Met met his public.  We stayed until the 6th inning as the Mets were leading 6-0.  We turned on the game when we got home and in spite of a shaky outing by Frank Francisco, the Mets held on to beat the Cincinnati Reds 8-4.





Wednesday, August 15, 2012

The Paley Center for Media and other activities of the day

Karen and I took the subway to Manhattan and stopped off at the Nederlander Theater to purchase tickets for Newsies which we will see in October for our wedding anniversary.  As I have stated in this journal whenever possible I purchase tickets at the box office to save on the fees.

From there we walked to the Paley Center for Media on West 52nd Street.  Since we are members of this fine organization, we generally visit it a few times a year.  We went to the library where I viewed the last CBS Evening News anchored by Walter Cronkite in March 1981.  I recently completed reading a long biography on the "Most Trusted Man in America".  Since Ron Palillo recently passed away we viewed two episodes of Welcome Back Kotter.  From there we went to the Bennack Theater downstairs and saw a special titles "America's Teenagers: Growing Up on Television."


Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Random Thoughts on This Staycation Day

I finished reading the Sunday New York Times today.  Usually I finish reading it on Monday.

We saw the movie the Bourne Legacy at the local multiplex this afternoon.  Tuesday is bargain day there since the cost for everyone is only $7.00.

I parked the car in Cunningham Park this morning and wanted to get my "urban hike" in before I hit the New York Times.  In August 2009 I reported the closing of Deli Masters in Fresh Meadows.  When I passed by its location, there was still nothing there after 3 years.  It seems that restaurants and other retail outlets closed because the rent is too high.  Then, nobody moves into the old location.  Thus it is a lose lose situation for the landlord, former store owner and customers.  What could you do.  I guess we can blame the bad economy.

Monday, August 13, 2012

Visited the 9/11 Memorial Today

I visited the 9/11 Memorial to pay my respects to the approximately 3,000 people who died in that tragedy. I am standing in front of the pool where the South Tower Stood.  Much progress has been made in the almost 11 years since that tragic day, but more work is being done.  As of today there are two pools where the towers stood with the names of the victims of the 9/11/2001 and February 1993 attacks inscribed in bronze around the two pools.  The arrangement of the names is bases on "meaningful adjacencies" that reflect where the victims were when they perished.  There is a museum that is still under construction that is scheduled to open before the end of 2012.

Sunday, August 12, 2012

Planning a Different Staycation this Week

I have plenty of vacation time coming to me at NJIT, so I may as well take another week even though I don't have plans to go away.  I don't want to sit around the neighborhood like an old fart, so I have plans for the week:

  • Monday - Will go to the 9/11 Memorial in Lower Manhattan
  • Tuesday - It is bargain matinee day at the local multiplex.  I will take in a movie for $7
  • Wednesday - Will go to the Paley Center in Manhattan
  • Thursday - Mr. Met is scheduled to be at the Sly Fox Inn on Union Turnpike.  I think he owes me since I have been his fan for 50 years
  • Friday - Will visit Mom in Westbury
  • Saturday - Will see the Jets play the Giants at MetLife Stadium.  I was able to get tickets from Stub Hub.
More later

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Some Good Free Entertainment at the Flushing Library

Public libraries provide more than books to its patrons.  We hadn't been to the Flushing branch of the Queensborough Public Library in a while.  Today there was a concert by the Better Late Than Never Jug Band..  Their music was very reminiscent of the Lovin' Spoonful and the Jim Kweskin Jug Band.  It was an enjoyable and inexpensive concert.

Friday, August 10, 2012

Random Thoughts on a Dog Day Friday

We drove out to see Mom early this afternoon as a light rain started.  Shortly after we arrived in Westbury it started to rain very hard.  We save on the TV news that certain areas of eastern Long Island was really hit hard by the rain and wind.  When we left at 3:30 the rain had stopped.

I just gotta love the Tune In app for the smart phone and the Kindle Fire.  I decided to listen to some Connecticut and Rhode Island stations since I lived there for a few years in the 1970s.  I checked out WNLC which is now a classic hits station at 98.7 FM on the dial.  Back in 1977-78 WNLC was on 1510 AM.  I also checked out WKNL which is an oldies station at 100.9 FM from New London.  Back then it was WTYD, a beautiful music station.  Lastly, I checked at WPRO (630AM) which is now a talk station.  Back then it was a Top 40 station and the home of radio legend Salty Brine.

That stupid New York Daily News had the Son of Sam on the front page today since it is the 35th anniversary of his capture.  They should not give him any attention and let that low life rot in jail.

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

R. Peter Strauss Former Owner of WMCA Passes Away at 89


The New York Times reports the passing of R. Peter Strauss at age 89.  My readers can click on the link for a biography of this radio pioneer.  This journal entry will consider my experiences with that station.  Until September 1970 WMCA was a top 40 station.  I usually preferred it over WABC since its playlist was much deeper.  I really got tired of hearing the same 20 songs on WABC.  I loved their DJs including Harry Harrison, Joe O' Brien, Jack Spector, Dan Daniel, B. Mitchell Reed, Gary Stevens and others.  In September 1970 in reaction to rock music programming coming to the FM Band WMCA adopted a telephone talk format.

R. Peter Strauss had a show on Sunday nights named "Call up the Boss".  I phoned in once to discuss the New York senatorial race among James Buckley, Charles Goodell, and Richard Ottinger.  There was much contention when WMCA dropped evening talk show host Alex Bennett since they were going to broadcast Yankee games.

I pass by the shack in the photo above every day when I take New Jersey Transit to work.  It is at the site of the WMCA transmitter in Kearney.

My condolences to his family.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Kudos to Mary Murphy of PIX-11 News for Standing Up to the Mayor


I rarely comment on politics in my journal, I would like to put my 2 cents in about a situation reported in FishbowlNY by Jerry Barmash.  I can never accept hypocrisy on the part of any of our elected officials. I must give great kudos to PIX-11 reporter Mary Murphy who really nailed Michael “Money Bags” Bloomberg.  I certainly commend the mayor for his public stand on gun control especially in the light of recent tragedies, in Colorado, Wisconsin, and Arizona.  Sadly, there have been too many shootings in NYC and I applaud the mayor for his stand on gun control.  He has even taken on President Obama and the presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney on this issue.

In June  NYC sold 28,000 rounds of spent shell casings from the NYPD firing range in the Bronx to an ammunition dealer in Georgia.  Thus, it is quite possible  that this metal will be used to create bullets that will kill innocent people.  Ms Murphy confronted both the mayor and the police commissioner on this issue.  Bloomberg told her that there must be competitive bidding and since the ammunition submitted the highest bid, the city must accept it.  On one hand Bloomberg is fighting for gun control, but the almighty buck is more important to him.  The city should sell the spent shell casing for scrap metal even it it gets less money for it.

An ordinary citizen can not confront a public official, thus we must rely on the media to do it for us.  Very often I have felt that the media creates the news by making heroes of people like the Kardashians for the almighty rating point.  In this case Mary Murphy really put Mayor Bloomberg on the spot while he was irresponsible to the citizens who want to thwart the makers of guns and ammunition anyway we can.  Please see the article in FishbowlNY which includes the video of Mary’s questioning of the mayor and police commissioner.

Monday, August 6, 2012

Devil's Radio by George Harrison - 1980s Album Cut of the Day

I remember in the 1980s when I worked at the New York Public Library at 5th Avenue and 42nd StreetI would walk a few blocks during my lunch hour to the Record Explosion where I would browse and often buy music.  I remember one day in 1987 I bought Cloud Nine by George Harrison on cassette.  One of my favorite songs on it was Devil's Radio which I just heard on Dennis Mitchell's Breakfast with the Beatles.


Sunday, August 5, 2012

Yankees 6 Mariners 2

About twice a year we take the subway to the Bronx to see the Yankees.  Even though I am a Met fan, I don't hate the Yankees.  I only root against them during the Subway Series.  Freddie Garcia, the weak link in the starting rotation, was able to limit the Mariners to 2 runs in 5 innings as the bullpen closed the door from the 6th inning on.  Designated hitter Raul Ibanez hit a home run and drove in 3 runs.  New Yankee Ishiro Suzuki was able to maintain his 12 game hitting streak since joining the team as his fly ball was lost in the sun.  I think it should have been scored an error.  Our old friend former Met Oliver Perez pitched for the Mariners.  The $36 Million that he got from the Mets was the worst money they have ever spent.

Game recap

Saturday, August 4, 2012

Just Love the IHOP

There is an IHOP at 156th Street and Northern Blvd. just a 5 minute ride from home.  I should really go there more often, but it is somewhat more expensive than a  regular diner.  I just love their chocolate chip pancakes.

Friday, August 3, 2012

Some Bob Dylan News


I thank Alan Berman for bringing this to my attention.  As reported before his new album Tempest will be released on September 11th.  A preview of Early Roman Kings may be heard in the Trailer for the Cinemax show Strike Back.  Unfortunately there are voices heard over the music.  A preview of an interview he did with Rolling Stone magazine is also available.

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Vince Santarelli - Facebook Friend of the Day

I haven't named a Facebook friend of the day for some time.  Today the honor goes to Vince Santarelli whom I've never met, but whose radio reports I have read for many years.  He regularly writes a column called Apple Bites   where he comments on the history of New York City radio.  He also writes for an online newsletter called the New York Radio Examiner.  He most recent column is a very kind tribute to Bob Shannon who recently left WCBS-FM.

When I examine the Google Analytics Data for Bruce's Journal I observe that many people have hit my two journal entries on Bob.  I highly suggest that my readers check out Vince's column.  I certainly hope that Vince will keep up his good work as a writer and radio historian.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Rarity of the Day - Any Wednesday by the Royal Guardsmen



 Since today is Wednesday and I don't have anything much to report, I thought I would  play "Any Wednesday" by the Royal Guardsman.  According to my Joel Whitburn book it peaked at #97 nationally in 1967.  I definitely remember that WMCA played it.  According to Youtube the name is "Any Wednesday", but in the Whitburn book it is listed as Wednesday.
 
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