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News, commentary and humor about bicycling and other topics of the day

 

Cool people with Jan. 9 birthdays!

When I took a gander at the Belleville News-Democrat's list of celebrity birthdays for Jan. 9, I found a rather diverse group of creative people. For example:

Folk legend Joan Baez turns 67 today:



Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin is 64:



Country music artist Crystal Gayle is 57:



Dave Matthews is 41:



Oh, and by the way, it's my 47th birthday.

Labels: music

Roger 2 comments links to this post 11:39 AM

Friday, January 04, 2008

More bands on bikes

In 2006, I wrote extensively about the Ditty Bops' Bicycle Tour, which happened to include stops in St. Louis, Chicago, Springfield, Ill., and Kansas City, Mo., but there's two bands that are taking the concept of bicycle concert tours a step further.

On Oct. 18, the bands The Ginger Ninjas and Shake Your Peace! launched the Pleasant Revolution Bicycle Music Tour. They are riding more than 5,000 miles and playing more than 90 pedal-powered shows from the foothills of the Sierras in North San Juan, California, to the jungles of Chiapas, Mexico. There will be no sag-wagons, and no buses hauling their gear: Everything -- including the 800 Watt human-powered public address system -- is being hauled entirely on bicycle!

According to the Ginger Ninjas' blog, the bands are supposed to be in Mazatlan, Mexico, today, and they're slated to be in Mexico City on Jan. 22-28. The tour is slated to end Feb. 11 in Palenque, Mexico.

"Our way of life threatens our way of life," said Ginger Ninjas frontman Kipchoge Spencer, described in the band's press release as a San Francisco Bay Area bike culture hero and co-originator of the Xtracycle Sport Utility Bicycle. "As people resonate with that point and start to contemplate giving up their cars and forsaking a lot of other conveniences they're accustomed to, on the surface it could seem like they're sacrificing and losing a lot. But the Pleasant Revolution is about realizing that by losing this stuff, we gain a life that's way more rich, humane, and happy. Anybody who stops driving and starts biking feels that. Biking doesn't feel like losing a car, it feels like you're getting your life back! The message of the Pleasant Revolution isn't: 'sacrifice til it hurts,' it's more, 'Drop the excess, and have the time of your life.'"

In the press release, the bands contend the tour will join other 2007 Bicycle Music Movement landmarks in what could be called "the year of the bicycle-based musician" – a year that witnessed a 600-mile, 25-show Shake Your Peace! Bicycle Tour of Utah in April and May 2007 (the first significant bicycle music tour to be accomplished without a sag wagon, and using a pedal powered PA system).

During the Ditty Bops Bicycle Tour, Amanda Barrett and Abby DeWald did indeed ride their bikes from city to city -- I had the pleasure of riding with them between St. Louis and Edwardsville, Ill. -- but a support van carried their equipment and other members of their entourage.

The Ginger Ninjas and Shake Your Peace! also cited the success of the San Francisco Bicycle Music Festival on Aug. 11, a 100 percent bike-powered and bike-hauled event that the musicians say heralded the arrival of the Bicycle Music Movement to the world. The bands said the event drew 10 bands, five public venues, a 400 Watt pedal-powered PA system and outrageous cruiser rides taking over the city's streets between each festival stop.

Above, I've the video of the Ginger Ninjas for their song "Dick Cheney (Needs More Love)." I hope to post some more songs soon. Enjoy!

Labels: cycling, music, tours

Roger 1 comments links to this post 10:18 AM

Friday, May 11, 2007

'A Girl Who Loves the Stooges'

A big tip of the hat to Belleville Area Bicycling and Eating Society mainstay Dave Weidler to introducing me to Terry Adams' new song, "A Girl Who Loves the Stooges."

I just can't imagine how Dave thought of me when he heard that song this morning.

DJ Steve Pick played the song today on his Sound Salvation show on KDHX-FM 88.1, a community radio station in St. Louis. Here's how Pick describes Adams' album, "Rhythm Spell" and the song:

"This solo album from the NRBQ keyboardist is a hoot and a half. Here, he searches for that ideal woman, the one who loves The Three Stooges."

You can listen to the streaming audio of the show here: http://www.kdhx.org/stream.php?id=37&show=5313

The song is about 42 minutes into show. Before you get to "A Girl Who Loves the Stooges," you get to hear such tasty nuggets such as Kate Bush's "Mrs. Bartolozi," Pete Townshend's "The Sea Refuses No River," Wilco's "Hate It Here," and Willie Nelson and Ray Price's "Lost Highway."

All I can say is how can you not like a song that has lyrics such as "sabatoogie" and "say a few syllables."

And, are there any girls who love the Stooges?

Labels: music, Three Stooges

Roger 0 comments links to this post 7:20 PM