An 80's Show Review

Sometimes even the jobs you love feel like work. Here's a review from the latest performance I've been doing with Daddy D productions:

Parts of Daddy D Productions' latest original show — songs and stuff from the 1980s — are a whole lot of fun:

A nerd and a gonzo guy get in a rapture about heading out on spring break, and out comes the Beach Boys' wonderful "Kokomo." The nerd (Shawn Connelly) "dances" in a hilarious rhythm, while the frizzy-haired gonzo guy (troupe leader Darren Johnson) grooves on his own.

The Sweeney Sisters return to their alma mater to entertain 10 years later (lying by 10 years) and do loopy, giddy send-ups of "We Are the World," "Maneater" and more. Anna Snyder and Shelley Emmer romp, with Emmer soaring as a comedienne.

"The Devil Went Down to Georgia" flashes extra talents as Connelly sings and Laura Asma lets fly on the fiddle.

Because people want him to, Johnson tosses in a song with meat for his remarkable voice, and he digs into "If I Could Just Hold You Again."

The band — Jeff Hinnendael, drums; Ryan Sette, guitar; Adam Bunn, bass; and Dr. Stephen Asma, keyboards — spans the pop tunes nicely and is featured in such instrumentals as the creamy theme from the movie "Chariots of Fire."

It must be said that a lot of the '80s hits that are in this show, while catchy on the surface, are paper-thin and repetitive, not giving the performer much to do theatrically. It's not that the songs aren't likable, but they leave you wanting something more.

Multimedia bits include flashes of MTV, the full "Thriller" at intermission and a look at the cast in the '80s ranging from a photo of Johnson in a tux for a prom to nothing for Connelly, who says he probably was being nursed.

Pick an era, and Daddy D is entertaining.

-Warren Gerds, Green Bay Press Gazette

Simple Words, Bad Hips

My hip flexors will be my undoing. They are the reason my senior year of high school cross country was cut short, and they are the reason why my training for the Green Bay Marathon has become more difficult with each passing day.

According to the schedule I'm following, today was supposed to be a 16 miler. I started this schedule about a month late, so I compromised and decided 10 would suffice. Six miles in, I was feeling it. I hate to say it, but getting old sucks. With that said, I know everyone over 23 is saying, "Ha, you should talk kid." But I can seriously feel a difference in my running from now and when I was running this much five years ago. As a friend my age and I were talking the other day, there's a different kind of pain that comes with running today as opposed to when I was 18. Then it was a soreness, an inconvenience, a badge of courage discomfort. Now it's a, "damn I gotta get home and ice this" kinda pain. 

So six miles in my hips and knees were saying, "head home." I was on a back country road. Not many out on this gorgeous day except a woman walking her dog. We exchanged a nod and a hello. Then up ahead was an older man in his yard. I feel a little awkward coming across people at their homes' on less populated roads. Almost like I'm intruding. Plus, when I run I must look like a skinny bandit. With my black thermal spandex leggings, grey hoodie, gloves, and my black hat and black turtle fur covering everything but my eyes, I must look like an hip, evil ninja. But I always try to give a friendly hello.

However, this kind old man beat me to the punch. Seeing me all bundled up he said in his jolly way, "Not too long and we'll be in short-sleeve weather!" In between breaths I muttered, "Yup, getting there."

It was a short, banal interaction. But it was enough to take my mind off my body for a few seconds. After those seconds, when my mind was back on my run, I felt incredibly uplifted. Although my knees still ached and I felt like I had the Tinman's hips (pre-lubrication that is), I felt like I could run another eight miles. 

I like friendly people. 

Until Now...

As if I wasn't enough of a sucker for UFOs, Loch Ness, ghosts, and all that other paranormal crap, now the History Channel has succumbed to creating series after series to study them and supposedly hunt these things down. Good move by them. I really enjoy their actual historical documentaries, but I could see how these "out of the ordinary" specials would boost the ratings. Plus, the History Channel's factual reputation gives these phenomena some sort of validity. 

If you watch these shows expecting to get definitive proof of these things' existence, as the episodes' previews imply, you'll soon find that every show is a complete let down. They all start off the same way:

"For centuries, there have been myths, legends, and folklore about (insert paranormal here). 

But none of the important questions could be answered, none of the vital clues discovered...

Until Now."

That phrase, Until Now. It makes me perk up like a puppy who has just figured out what the word "walk" means. It congers up thoughts in my head. "Oo oo Oo, they've finally discovered something for real this time. All the mystery is over!" An hour later, I'm left feeling disheartened and bamboozled. 

They spend 55 minutes telling the stories, showing the skeptics' views, then showing the barely significant details to debunk the skeptics, followed by their display of high tech devices they will use to study the phenomena in question, and finally actually diving in to some footage of them attempting to solve the mystery in question. 

The last five minutes of any episode ends up relatively the same:

"While we found no sign of (insert paranormal here) today, the evidence begs the question, 'what did farmer Dan and his wife Fran see on that warm summer evening?' As the technology becomes more advanced and the sightings become more frequent, we become more intrigued." 

Or something like that. And while the audience listens to that let down of a conclusion, the credits are rapidly flashing by the bottom of the screen. Before you can blink, your being sucked into another episode of UFO hunters. Only this time, they are investigating a site at which, legend has it, a metallic vessel crash landed in 1897 and an alien body was buried in the local  cemetery and the ship's debris tossed into the depths of the local well. This particular episode ended with them going down the well and finding nothing, and them x-raying the cemetery (since they weren't given permission to dig) to discover something very well could be buried there. I'm sure there is. After all, it's a bloody cemetery. 

The worst part of it all, it gets me every time. Right now, I'm going on my third hour of these shows. I just struggled to turn off an episode of MonsterQuest in which Bigfoot was apparently on the loose. I know their little tricks. Every time they're about to go to commercial they tease at the really cool evidence that looks like it's coming up after the break. But in actuality won't come till the end of the episode, and once it comes, it's disappointingly not conclusive.

I guess I like to see people argue for the paranormal. I enjoy watching those smarter than I use science in order to prove science fiction, or attempt to at least. Deep down, I think I'm still a wondrous kid who, like Agents Mulder and Scully, wants to believe that the truth is out there.

A Blues Legend

Sporting a track suit and a laid back attitude to match, blues guitar legend Buddy Guy played to a packed hall at the Oneida Casino tonight. Although I don't consider myself the biggest fan, there are certain musicians that any guitarist just can't pass up seeing live if the opportunity comes along.

The blues is a music genre that is quite unique, as it's label, "the blues," is also a chord progression which 80% of blues songs follow. One would assume then, that it would be repetitive and monotonous to listen to...which it can be unless you're listening to a blues master like Buddy. 

Through simple yet well-executed manipulations, the same formats that have been used since the birth of blues can still be as exciting and entertaining as ever. 

Buddy showed that tonight. At 72-years-old, his voice sounded strong and embodied that raspy blues quality, his guitar playing was solid yet wildly brash, and his stage presence was  just as energetic as that of a much younger musician. He even walked up and down the aisles playing and singing a 10-minute-song, coming within arms length distance of my seat. 

All around a great show, watching masterful bluesmen practicing their craft. Matching one another in both skill and creativity, Buddy's keyboard player is also worthy of note, as those two fed of each other the entire night. They gave the audience a blues night to remember. 

You Win Some, You Lose Some

Queensland Tourism failed to see my unmatched potential. But after going through the top 50 shortlisted candidates, it's easy to see why. Many on this list are media professionals, seasoned travelers, and show incredible abilities with a lifetime of experience to match. 

Others not so much. It definitely seems Queensland Tourism tried to gather a pool from all over the world. Even if that meant sacrificing a couple of positions for some candidates that aren't quite up to par, at least in my opinion. Especially when they are put right next to some of the quality videos that are shortlisted, it's easy to see the difference. 

I'm not going to pout or come up with excuses as to why I am not in this top 50. These people deserve to be there. But I will say this, if I had known it was perfectly cool throw copyrighted music into my video like everyone else's in this shortlist, or steal a concept from a popular television commercial, I could have at least made mine a touch more interesting. I guess Queensland Tourism just isn't interested in legality or originality. But seriously, not bitter. Don't care. 

Nonetheless, here's the video I submitted. Not a winner, but I had fun with it.

If I were a betting man, which get me to a craps table and I am, here's my top two:    

Male: Mark, from California                                                                                                   

Female: Julia, from the Russian Federation 

Falling Slowly

Remember that last video blog which was disappointingly unentertaining? Well, I felt extremely compelled to redeem myself, so I made this:

I wanted to include some footage of the backup instrumentation (piano, strings, vocal harmonies), but conflicting video formats made that impossible. This was my first attempt at using Garageband's video feature. The next one of these will be better, promise. I'm just pumped I got the youtube wide-screen to work. 

And no, I am not wearing lipstick. My lips were just rather chapped.