Sitting Down at Bob Dylan Concerts

In this photo c. 1965 Bob Dylan looks very comfortable sitting on a park bench.  I am also very comfortable sitting down at his concerts.  It is unusual for Dylan to be playing at two venues in the NYC area during a segment of the Never Ending Tour.  On Friday July 26 he will appear at Pier A in Hoboken, while the next next he is playing at Jones Beach where I have seen him several times.  I picked the Jones Beach venue where I can sit since there is general admission tickets at Hoboken which means concert viewers must stand.

Here is a list of the places where I have seen Zimmy perform over the years:

Sitting

• Madison Square Garden Arena
• Madison Square Garden Theater
• Nassau Coliseum 
• United Palace Theater
• Prospect Park

Standing

• William Paterson University - Lee was 9 years old and we had to pick him up so he could see
• Roseland Ballroom
• Terminal 5
• Hammerstein Ballroom

Yankees 4 Oakland A's 2

Is there something wrong with this photo?  I have been a Met fan since day 1, yet this photo taken by Alan Berman shows the entire family wearing Yankee caps.  I was a Yankee fan from 1958-1961 when they were the only team in town.  There are many Met fans who absolutely hate the Bronx Bombers, but the only time I root against them is during the Subway Series.

Today's game featured a nifty pitching performance by Phil Hughes with home runs by Chris Stewart and Lyle Overbay.  Mariano Rivera was a little shaky in the 9th inning but the Yankees held on for a 4-2 victory.

Game Recap

Happy 79th Birthday Frankie Valli

Back in Fall 1965 the Four Seasons with lead singer Frankie Valli had a hit with Let's Hang On.  It was a "no no" for a record company to release two 45 RPM singles at a time by the same artist.  So, they released a cover of Bob Dylan's Don't Think Twice It's Alright using the name "The Wonder Who."  This Dylan song has been covered by many artists over the years.  You can safely call the Wonder Who's version a parody.  In any event I wish Frankie Valli a happy birthday.

The Never Ending Tour Returns to Jones Beach this Summer

Of course I got my tickets the first day of the pre-sale. On this leg of the Never Ending Tour he is playing with WILCO, My Morning Jacket and Ryan Bingham.  This concert has an unusal starting time of 5:30 PM. My sense is that with 3 opening acts Dylan's set will be shorter.  We'll wait and see.

Atlanta Vacation This Summer

For several summers we have visited major league cities and booked a hotel within walking distance of the ball park.  We took Jay Buckley Baseball Tours in 2006, 2007, and 2010 and enjoyed them thoroughly.  We have taken trips to Philadelphia, Boston, Baltimore, and Cleveland to see ball games among the other attractions in those cities.  This year we will be going to Atlanta,

Motown the Musical

Jukebox musicals very often fail on Broadway.  Jersey Boys is the only one in recent years that has thrived.  The problem is usually that the rock n roll musicals lack a strong story line.  Over the years I have read several biographies of Motown recording artists so I know the story of how the company started, grew, and eventually declined.  The show plays the music roughly in the order of when they charted.

The musical performances were excellent.  The actors greatly resembled the recording artists they portrayed.  The highlight of the show was Diana Ross leading the audience sing Reach Out and Touch.  I highly recommend this show to my oldies enthusiast friends.

You Know My Name Look Up the Number by the Beatles

I requested this silly Beatles Song on Bob Radil's 60s 70s show