Sausagefest is an annual all-dude, all-meat, countdown of rock. Five of us from the old Record Store attended! This year, there were 110 songs (75 countdowns plus 35 “tributes”). #1 was Max Webster — “Toronto Tontos”. Other artists who made the countdown included Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Kiss, Queens of the Stone Age, Tool, Rush, and Tenacious D among others. For the history of this event, check out Record Store Tales Part 30.
Thanks to Jeff Woods and Craig Fee for your contributions — above and beyond the call of duty!
And of course, thanks to Tom our host, and Uncle Meat, Seb and Dr. Dave for the music.
Uncle Meat will be providing me with the full track list. Stay tuned for that post, too!
ROCK AID ARMENIA – Smoke on the Water: The Metropolis Sessions (2010 Edel CD/DVD set)
When some of the biggest names in both British and Canadian rock combined together to re-record “Smoke on the Water”, as a mega-collaboration charity track, I don’t care who you are: You gotta listen! Originally released as “Smoke on the Water ’90” on The Earthquake Album, it didn’t garner the attention of, say, a Hear N’ Aid, but it’s definitely a noteworthy track. The Earthquake Album contained just the radio mix, which was an edited down version lacking Paul Rodgers. This package on the other hand is a CD/DVD combo set including all 4 versions of “Smoke ’90” and a documentary.
The region 0 encoded DVD is 40 minutes long, and filled with incredible behind-the-scenes footage and candid interviews. First, an explanation of the cause: rebuilding a children’s music school in Armenia, destroyed in a 1988 earthquake. Then, the musicians arrive! Roger Taylor (Queen) is first in the door. Can’t do anything without the drums! He shows off his considerable chops while warming up. Chris Squire (Yes) is next, who reveals that all egos have been dealt with in advance of the recording. Brian May turns up with a broken arm (skateboarding accident) to offer his support; he would return to record after the arm has healed. The recording takes place over five separate sessions. One benefit of this arrangement was that it enabled Ritchie Blackmore to show up, without having to see Ian Gillan!
Oh, to be in that room…
Soon to arrive: Tony Iommi. Paul Rodgers. Bruce Dickinson. David Gilmour. Alex Lifeson. Two keyboardists: Keith Emerson and Geoff Downes. Even Bryan Adams sings some backing vocals, after he turned up just to check out the recording studio! (Gilmour can’t help but take a stab at Rogers Waters during the interview segments.) Incidentally, I found it cool that Rodgers recorded his vocals with a hand-held mike.
I’ve always been a fan of this version of “Smoke”; in fact this was the first version of that I ever heard, 23 years ago. The band was dubbed Rock Aid Armenia. They got together in late ’89, and recorded this updated sounding cover. Gillan, Dickinson and Rodgers handled the lead vocals, in that order. It’s great to hear Iommi playing those chunky chords again. Chris Squire’s bass work is fairly simple, but perfect.
The CD includes an updated 2010 remix that cuts down a lot of Keith Emerson’s cheesey keyboards. Emerson stated that he wanted to put his own stamp on his parts, based on ELP’s “Fanfare for the Common Man”. He probably wouldn’t be happy to be mixed down on this version, but his keys always stood out like a sore thumb to me. The 2010 mix adds in a lot more previously unheard guitar fills instead. Other extras include a previously unreleased version of the song, with an entire Ian Gillan vocal take.
This is a great little-known recording, and I’m glad an obscurity like this has finally been reissued properly.
4/5 stars
Footnote: In 2011 and 2012, Gillan and Iommi followed this with a single and compilation album under the name WhoCares; also featuring Nicko McBrain, Jon Lord and Jason Newsted!
WATCHMEN : The Ultimate Cut – The Complete Story (2009 Warner 4 disc blu-ray set)
Directed by Zack Snyder, 216 minutes
What’s the greatest comic book movie of all time? I’ve seen a lot of them. There’s quite a few I haven’t seen as well, but it’s a great topic for discussion. I always have to put Watchmen on the table when discussing great comic book adaptations.
Watchmen is a complex tale. Its original comic was ambitious, containing page after page of dense backstory information in the form of documents and faux-magazine articles, all very relevant. There’s even a parallel story taking place, a comic within a comic, which directly reflects one (or arguably more) of the characters in the main story. Characters and their psychology are key. In addition, neither the comic nor the movie are linear. The story unfolds within different time periods, flashing back and forth, as we learn more about the characters, their motivations, and the world they inhabit.
It is the world they inhabit that was the hook for me. I’m a sucker for alternate universe stories. Here’s one that sets us on Earth, 1985, but things have unfolded very differently. The influence of various superheroes/vigilantes has caused history to unfold very differently. Specifically, it is the presence of Dr. Manhattan, who puts a swift and decisive end to the Vietnam war, who influences history the most. In this 1985, Richard Nixon is still president, and masked vigilantes are now outlawed.
The Watchmen are a group of such vigilantes, originally known as the Minutemen. Some, such as Dr. Manhattan truly are superhuman. Others, such as Nite Owl and his successor Nite Owl II, are mere mortals with high-tech gadgetry and skill as their allies. All have retired, some in fame and some in anonymity…all but one. Rorschach. He remains active, alone and wanted.
The movie begins as a murder mystery. Someone has managed to identify and kill Edward Blake — The Comedian, once one of the most dangerous heroes alive. To overpower and murder Blake would require an individual of tremendous resources. Who? And are other former vigilantes also at risk? Rorschach seems to be the only one who wants to know.
Being a fan of the graphic novel, I was very happy with the way that Zack Snyder captured Watchmen. It was done with love and care. The things that are discarded, I didn’t miss so much. The things that he changed, I understand why it was done. There’s one layer to the story/mystery that has been discarded, probably to keep this thing under 4 hours! The things that are reverently exactly the same as the comic made my jaw drop in awe. The acting performances are what they are, but I have to give special mention to Jackie Earl Haley as Rorschach.
The soundtrack is one of the best in recent memory. Outside of Wes Anderson, I haven’t loved a soundtrack this much in a long time. It’s awesome from the stunning Bob Dylan classic “The Times They Are A’Changing”, to Nat King Cole, to Simon and Garfunkel, Hendrix and Philip Glass, and probably the weirdest use of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” in movie history. The soundtrack is where it’s at. The movie even contains a Village People sighting! I’ll skip My Chemical Romance.
This Ultimate Cut weaves the comic-within-a-comic, Tales Of The Black Freighter, previously only available on its own, into the main body of Watchmen. These segments are narrated by Gerard Butler. New live action linking sequences connect the movie to Black Freighter, much like it worked in the graphic novel. People who haven’t read the graphic novel might not understand what “Black Freighter” is doing there, but they should probably start with the less daunting theatrical cut to start with anyway.
The box set includes four discs, beautifully packaged. Hardly a complaint to be registered. The box is heavy and sturdy. Included is Watchmen: The Motion Comic, packed in its own case, 5 hours long on its own. One disc is the expired digital copy of the theatrical cut (whoop de do) and another disc is loaded with special features. Best of these is Under The Hood, which is based on the graphic novel segments covering Holis Mason. Mason, the original Nite Owl I, wrote an autobiography called Under the Hood; this film is a faux-documentary on his story. It is presented as a television program from 1975 re-run in 1985, including commercials and scratchy footage. At 35 minutes, this is an absolute must. Other special features include brand new audio commentaries, for those who dare to keep going deeper. This set is just loaded. Unfortunately I found the sound level inconsistent, I had to turn it up and down frequently.
Having said that, I’m not going to discard my Director’s Cut of Watchmen. Clocking in at almost four hours, watching this version is a commitment. I know that occasionally, I will want to watch the “shorter” version of the film. Since a digital copy of the theatrical (shortest) cut is included here, maybe you won’t feel the need to double-up on Watchmen editions. For an enriched viewing experience, set aside the four hours one afternoon and enjoy.
COLEMAN BIOWIPES
$3.99 for resealable package of 30
July 5-6 2013 was the weekend: the annual all-rock, all dude Countdown event known as SAUSAGEFEST. This particular installment being Sausagefest XII. As discussed in Record Store Tales Part 30, and as seen in last year’s video, I suffer from a certain level of anxiety regarding the restroom arrangements. As in, there aren’t any. And I’m not as young as I once was, and the plumbing doesn’t always work as well as it used to when I was in my 20’s.
To the rescue came Biowipes, by Coleman! Not only can you shit with a clean bottom, but also a clean conscience: the Biowipes completely biodegrade in just 21 days. (Less I’m sure if you ate the bacon-wrapped jalapenos that we consumed.)
The Biowipes are large enough (20 x 25 cm) and tough enough to handle whatever you need to do. There are 30 of these moistened towelettes in each package, by my estimation and usage, probably enough to get you through 10 days in the woods.
6/5 stars
Seen below: Some of the many reasons these wipes were necessary!
While a certain percentage of readers know me as “LeBrain” on 107.5 Dave FM, my first radio appearance was actually a decade ago. Back in the late 90’s/early 2000’s, we used to get interview requests from a lot of students. Some were in business, some were in broadcasting, but they all wanted to talk to someone at the record store, usually the owner since he founded the whole operation on his own.
In this case, I was approached by a broadcasting student. He asked me if I’d like to do a radio interview over the phone regarding Napster, downloading, and how that was affecting the music business. Normally in the past all interview requests were passed on onto the owner. I thought that I could handle this one myself.
Even though I had serious doubts about the health of physical music sales at the time, I put on the brave face. There were still positive things happening.
“We haven’t noticed a decline in sales,” I said. “At least not a major one. The industry is responding to these concerns. I fully agree that $20 or more is too much to pay for a CD. I can tell you that if anybody is getting rich off the price of CDs, it’s not independent chains like ourselves. The markup we make on new CDs covers the shipping of the product to us and our overhead, and that’s about it.
“As I said though, the industry is responding. They’re putting bonuses inside the CD that you can’t get by downloading it off Napster,” I continued. “You’ll notice lots of bands, System of a Down for example, putting bonus DVDs or CD-ROMs in the package for virtually the same price.” Metallica too. Lars has obviously learned something from all this: Inside the then-new Metallica CD you got a free full length DVD plus a free concert to download on mp3.
I wasn’t optimistic about the future of physical CD sales, but I didn’t let on. I’d heard the buzz from customers and even staff members, downloading more and more, where they used to hunt for songs in brick-and-mortar stores. Some staff members of a certain generation refused to download on principle, but we were a shrinking group.
“Since I sell used discs,” I continued, spinning it positive, “a lot of the downloaders are selling off their collections to me. For us it’s turning into a winning situation since I have more, and better, stock than 5 years ago.”
The interview aired a day or two later. As it happens my boss happened to hear the interview and liked it. Although it might not seem like a big deal to all readers, I was just proud of myself for taking the initiative and doing it myself. He was surprised to hear the interview, since I hadn’t told him about it. I was confident in my experience and communication abilities, and I wanted the opportunity.
It wasn’t the last. The next one was a TV interview, for the local cable access channel. I don’t know if my boss ever saw that one, but he wouldn’t have liked it as much – all my facial piercings were visible! The idea of a dude with a labret stud and nose ring representing his store on TV might have been too much for him to handle!
RATT – Infestation (2010 Roadrunner Japanese and iTunes editions)
Ratt needed a comeback. Lineup changes galore, deaths, poorly-received changes in sound — forget all that stuff. The band has since stabilized. Pearcy’s back on lead vocals, and Carlos Cavazo (ex-Quiet Riot) has taken over guitar duties from John Corabi. Corabi’s a rhythm player, not a soloist (and that’s not a knock on Corabi). Cavazo rocks out quite a few solos on this album. The difference is noticeable, and it’s a welcome return to something like the Ratt sound of yore. Do you like twin leads? Cavazo and Warren DeMartini rip out a few, each with his own distinct sound, but meshing well like they’ve been doing this forever. Cavazo also contributes strong co-writes to about half the album. Surely, you can’t imagine a better match than this for Ratt.
Pearcy’s in great voice, the passages of time disguise-able. But be forwarned, if you never liked Pearcy’s style before, this album is not going to change your mind. His vocals are augmented by some nice, but not overdone, backing vocals from the band. Longtime bassist Robbie Crane supplies backing vocals while holding down the bottom end.
The sound of the album is pure Ratt, but modernly produced; surely the best sounding record they’ve done so far. Picture a heavier Out Of The Cellar. There are nods and winks to other eras of Ratt as well: I hear a little bit of “Way Cool” here and there, and damned if “Best Of Me” wouldn’t have fit right in on Detonator. Yet this is no retro-fest, as much as it does echo the 80’s. There are still sounds here that sound tougher and more modern, like the fast and heavy opener “Eat Me Up Alive” (my second favourite song). There’s filler here, but even the filler is worth holding your finger off the skip button. All except perhaps the dreadful “A Little Too Much”.
There Japanese bonus track is a cool slow groove rocker called “Scatter”, with a great memorable chorus. This is the best song to me. Itunes got the track as well, but because I always prefer a physical edition, I bought the Japanese for my physical copy. You will have to judge the value of that expenditure yourself, however I deemed it worthwhile.
There are also three live bonus tracks on the iTunes version, worth getting. These songs are “You Think You’re Tough”, “Tell The World”, and “Way Cool Jr.”, all previously unreleased and with Cavazo on guitar, “Live from the Rockline Studios”. “You Think You’re Tough” is my favourite song from Ratt EP.
If you have ever liked Ratt, pick up Infestation if you’re curious what the band sounds like 25 years later. This is a solid Ratt album, not classic, but song for song among their better records. They’ve retained their signature “Ratt N’ Roll” sound, but also what dignity and integrity a bunch of Ratts have. Well done.
ALICE IN CHAINS – Jar of Flies / Sap (1994 double Columbia EP edition, originally 1992 and 1994)
For a little while, Alice In Chains were in the habit of releasing an EP before each studio album (We Die Young preceded the Facelift album albeit it was a promo). This ended after Layne’s death, but these two EPs — 1992’s Sap and 1994’s Jar of Flies — represent some of the best work of this pioneering band. Acoustic in nature, these two recordings are crucial to rock fans who need to know more about one of the most interesting bands of the 1990’s.
I snagged a European import of this set many years ago, for less than the price of either of the two EP’s separately. Great score, and it was in great condition. It even contains all the artwork from the original releases. Although Jar of Flies is the first disc in the set, I will review Sap first since that’s how they came out.
Sap is very low key. I remember reading an interview in RIP Magazine with drummer Sean Kinney. He stated that they were writing songs for the next album (Dirt), but all this acoustic music started pouring out instead. He had a dream about it one night, and told the band, “Guys, we have to release these songs as an EP, and we have to call it Sap.”
The opening track, “Brother” is sung by Jerry Cantrell with Ann Wilson of Heart on the choruses. Very powerful understated song. Both “Brother” and the next song, “Got Me Wrong” (another standout) were released live on the band’s Unplugged CD. These songs are followed by “Right Turn” by Alice Mudgarden: essentially Alice In Chains with Chris Cornell of Soundgarden and Mark Arm of Mudhoney on guest vocals! It is a great contrast: Cornell screaming at the top of his lungs, and Arm down low. Great song. I remember Jerry Cantrell once said that Mark Arm’s vocal on it “scares the shit” out of him every time he hears it.
Layne Staley’s “Am I Inside” follows, another understated and mellow slow-burner. Everything goes to hell though with the final track, the unlisted “Love Song”. The band switched instruments for this chaotic joke song, with Sean Kinney on megaphone/vocals. Hilarious track, but it must have taken people by surprise. “Rae Dawn Chong…Rae Dawn Chong…”
Jar of Flies was written and recorded rather spontaneously in just a week. When I first heard it, I felt like some of these songs were under-written, that they could have used more work. As you listen to it more, that feeling disappears. It feels more complete. Just about every song on Flies is a total winner, but the best thing about it is that it grows on you. As a result, it has a longevity that similar EPs sometimes lack. Here I am, still playing it 19 years later and loving it just as much.
“Rotten Apple”, which is one of the best tunes anyway, kicks off the CD. It’s hypnotic, even though the lyrics really feel unfinished. Who knows what Layne was trying to express at the time, perhaps it’s with intent. It just feels like the fragment of a lyric. Perhaps that’s what makes it so hypnotic to me. None of this changes the fact that this slow one is both warm and forboding at the same time; a cool thing.
The opener is followed by “Nutshell”, which I like even better. It’s my personal favourite tune on Jar of Flies. It always takes me right back to summer 1994. The single “I Stay Away” features strings to emphasize the powerful chorus. It’s a cool tune because it has sections that sound like they don’t go together, yet they make it work. Alice seem to ignore songwriting convention most on songs like “I Stay Away”.
“No Excuses” was another single (the first one, actually). It’s an almost-happy sounding song with some sweet rolling basslines from Mike Inez. The instrumental “Whale and Wasp” is up next, so named because Jerry felt it sounded like whales and wasps talking to each other. That should put you in the ballpark. Jerry wrote it when he was in highschool, finally recording it on Jar of Flies.
“Don’t Follow” is probably the least experimental of the songs. It is a straight acoustic ballad with some nice harmonica. After five tracks of music that doesn’t always follow the beaten path, “Don’t Follow” feels like a reprieve. The final song is the pretty wild “Swing On This”. It’s the only song that tends to lose me, but some people I knew held it as their favourite. From the most conventional song to the least conventional; such is a journey on planet Alice.
Commenting specifically on the version I own, the dual EP, I bought this at my own store used several years after initially owning both releases. My logic at the time was that T-Rev and I were usually always trying to own the “coolest” or “most complete” or “rarest” version of things. When I traded up the two separate EPs, I broke even, plus I made space for one for more disc on my shelves!! Space is always a rare commodity to a collector.
Together, these two EPs together create a fantastic listening experience. The cool thing is that although both are acoustic, they are really nothing alike. Listen and you will see.
RICHIE KOTZEN – Electric Joy by Richie Kotzen (1991 Shrapnel)
Albums by Richie Kotzen were impossible to find in Canada. My only exposure to his music was “Dream of a New Day”, from his second album Fever Dream. Fever Dream was his first vocal album, but Kotzen returned to instrumentals on his third, Electric Joy. I’d seen his picture in dozens of guitar magazines, but hadn’t heard his tunes until “Dream of a New Day” was included on the Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey soundtrack.
His debut album was a hit with the shredders, but three albums in, Kotzen had already delivered three completely different pieces of work. Electric Joy has some of the playfulness of the debut, but is mostly a jaw-dropping collection of intricately composed pieces that skirt multiple genres including funk, country, bluegrass, jazz, fusion, and blues. If I had to pick out an influence, I would say that Electric Joy sounds like Richie had been listening to a lot of the “two Steves”: Vai and Morse. His technique is top-notch.
I first got this on a trip to Frankenmuth, Michigan. My parents made a point of going there every spring and I started tagging along, and then later on my friend Peter joined us as well. We’d stay at the Bavarian Inn and on the way back to Ontario, we’d stop at the stores in Port Huron, where I found this as well as old rare Savatage cassettes.
“B Funk” opens the album with some light-speed bluegrass-y licks, but it keeps changing, from a funked up rocker with shredding, to a melodic “chorus” section. Then it’s back to the bluegrass from space.
At this point I’ll point out that Kotzen plays all the instruments except drums, himself. That’s Richie’s standby Atma Anur on drums. What this means is, that incredibly dexterous bassline you’re hearing on “B Funk” is also performed by Kotzen! And it’s almost every bit as stunning as the guitar!
“Electric Toy” begins ballady, with some lyrical Vai-like moments. Of course, Kotzen can’t help but do what he does, so there are different sections, some at lickity-split tempos. This is followed by “Shufina”, which is essentially a blues jam. Kotzen’s deep bends are appropriate, but before too long he’s harmonizing with himself on some unconventional melodies.
A smoking hot riff ignites “Acid Lips”, little lightning licks flicker in and out, but this one has a solid groove. (It can’t be easy grooving with yourself on bass.) “Slow Blues” contains some of Richie’s most lyrical lead work. If you can imagine the lead guitar taking on the role of a singer, then “Slow Blues” is probably the most accessible song on the album.
The next song “High Wire” is uncatagorizable, suffice to say that like all of Electric Joy it combines quirky notes with shreddery, funk and groove. My favourite song is “Dr. Glee”. It sounds like it seems it should – gleeful. I find this pleasant melody to be very summery. Kotzen guitar has so many different sounds and shades, even just within this one song.
“Hot Rails” is another one that sounds like advertized…a train racing down the track. Kotzen’s slide work is anything but simple. This one’s so fast it’s hard to keep track of all the cool different guitar parts. It almost sounds like Kotzen wrote a blues shuffle, and then decided to hit fast forward on his tape deck and learn it at that speed!
Electric Joy closes with “The Deece Song”, which thankfully is mid-tempo allowing us to catch our collective breath. It’s another great performance, similar in style to “Dr. Glee”. It has its sweeping Satriani moments as well.
The production on the album is very dry, which is different from what a lot of the other instrumentalists were doing at the time. While this means it might take some more time to penetrate an album that is loaded to the brim with dense ideas already, it is a worthwhile endevour.
In a bizarre turn of events, Kotzen briefly put his solo career on hold. He received a phone call from Bret Michaels. The Poison frontman was looking for a replacement for the departed CC Deville. The fact that Kotzen was from Pennsylvania, not already in a band, and wrote and sang original material caught Michaels’ eye in a magazine article. Having a shredder, but one with some feel too, might garner Poison some respect in the tough 1990’s.
Kotzen did succeed in co-writing (and in some cases, writing entire songs himself) their most accomplished album, Native Tongue. Of course, it did not sell. The Poison relationship imploded because of another relationship: the one that Kotzen was secretly having with drummer Rikki Rockett’s fiance! Kotzen eventually married her, and he was replaced in Poison by another shredder, Blues Saraceno (who was in the running with Kotzen in the first place).
Some at the record store made fun of me for being such a serious Star Wars fan. I’m not a hard core fanboy; I don’t go to conventions or follow the books and TV shows, but I am pretty dedicated to the films. I booked May 19, 1999 off work well in advance to see The Phantom Menace on opening day.
I’m not going to turn this story into a review for Phantom Menace. That movie’s been reviewed by thousands of people and I’m not interested in contributing to the background noise. The only thing you need to really agree with me on is that there was a tremendous excitement for Phantom Menace back in 1999. I had been dreaming of what might happen before and after the Holy Trilogy since I was 5 years old. My sister was only a baby when the first Star Wars came out, but she did get to see Empire in the theaters. She is a slightly bigger fan than I am, but she doesn’t follow the expanded universe or any of that stuff.
We both booked the day off work and planned to go together. Our strategy was this: Since we knew that the theaters would be absolutely packed for the midnight opening, we picked an out of the way (but still THX) theater that had a noon showing. So, all we had to do was wait an extra 12 hours (at home), and we’d get in no problem!
We showed up at the theater and were, like, seventh in line. No sweat. Soon we had our seats in a sparsely seated theater. Then the trailers (something called Titan AE, which inspired a heckle of “What the hell was that?” from the audience). Then the Fox fanfare, the Lucasfilm logo and finally…”A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away….”
136 minutes later (we stayed for the credits of course) we were pretty satisfied with the movie. Keep in mind that fast shit had been whizzing in front of our faces for over two hours. There were things that didn’t make sense, there were things we didn’t like much (the kid, Jar Jar) but we kept telling ourselves the same thing.
“Yeah, but it’s the first chapter. The next one will be where it really starts.”
As we were talking about it, I said, “Wanna see it again? It went so fast there was a ton of stuff I’m sure I missed.”
“Sure!” she answered. “Yeah!”
We went back out to the ticket counter. There were a few people in line, but not many. “Two for Star Wars, please,” I said as I approached the counter.
“Didn’t you just come out of Star Wars?” she said with that snooty tone.
“Yep. We liked it,” I answered.
“And you want to see it again?” We did.
We went back in. The second time lacked a bit of the awe. This time, I paid more attention to the details. Questions came to my mind. “If Yoda is the Jedi Master that instructed Obi-Wan, then why is Liam Neeson training him?” Stuff like that.
I still remember that on the way home, we stopped at the HMV store, and I bought Ed Hunter by Iron Maiden. When we got home, we were still excited about the movie, telling Mom and Dad all the details. My dad was skeptical.
“Does it have the emotion of the first one? Does it have the feeling?” he inquired.
“Well…no not exactly,” I rationalized. “This is just the first chapter. The next one will be where it really starts.”
My dad was onto something.
The hilarious Red Letter Media review
I also distinctly remember watching Phantom Menace again with Tom and a franchise owner, on VHS, shortly after it came out.
In 2005 I first met the girl who would later become my wife, but she had never seen Star Wars. I was really excited to be the guy that got to watch Star Wars with her for the first time. For some stupid reason that to this day I will never understand, I decided to start her off with Episode I: The Phantom Menace. Bad idea.
“That stupid fucking dino-guy” is what she named Jar-Jar Binks. She hated it. (She liked Episode III though.) Then, her dad (rest his soul) decided that he wanted to see the Star Wars prequels too. One Saturday night I went over there with my DVD copy of Phanton Menace in hand. And so it was that Jen had to see Phantom Menace not once, but twice.
We’ll be married five years this August, more awesomer than ever, so “that stupid fucking dino-guy” couldn’t have been all that bad, right?
In the continuing saga of all the pets in the greater LeBrain clan, you may recall that Lil’ Shit was the most recent addition to the family. Bass clarinetist extraordinaire Kathryn Ladano recently acquired Daisi aka Lil’ Shit, below. I finally got to meet Daisi this past Canada Day weekend!
It was a great weekend full of bonfires and awesome Canadian scenery too.
Stompin’ Tom Connors – “It’s Canada Day, Up Canada Way”
mikeladano.com 