Monthly Archives: August 2013

The lines on the road look like dots

Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Planet Airmen are/were
one heck of a “Live” band!
The original line-up from the seventies is no longer.
Bill Kirchen, the lead guitarist, has gone on to play with
different bands and most of the other members have also
drifted away.
The Commander himself, George Frayne, is still around,
giving it his all, and having fun doing it.
The years are not kind to anyone, and some might say he has
seen better days, but not me!
It is my belief that if you still have something to offer the
masses…show me what you got!
Here are two versions of the same song.
The first shows you a live version at a blues festival
not that long ago where George still has that spark.
The other is a tribute piece where the original line-up is
together and sounding quite nice.
It’s not a live version, as I can’t seem to find one that
is decent enough to imbed, but the sound quality is superb.
Here’s the recent…

And here’s the classic…

The video is kind of funny.
I have concluded that every automobile manufacturer should have
an inspector that is eight feet tall!

Pass the Crackas please

I have a short list of current comedians that I would
go out of my way to see.
Mike Birbiglia is right up there towards the top.
Low key, laid back and smooth is how I would describe him.
His material and insights are what make him special.
Here he is at the Montreal Comedy Festival with a great
piece of stand-up that I play on the show from time to time.

Nice stuff!

What lovely maracas you have Jackie

Alfred Hawthorne Hill, otherwise known as Benny Hill, was a
comedic phenomenon for over 40 years.
Starting off in radio and stage in the 1940s, he moved to bit
parts in movies and television in the 1950s and 60s until he
found his calling with his own television program.
In various incarnations the Benny Hill show ran from 1955 to
1991 on British television and at its peak pulled in 21 million
viewers an episode.
I will always be a huge fan of his and look back fondly at
all the episodes that I have watched over the years.
To say his show was a cultural icon would be an understatement.
His forte was slapstick, burlesque and a bawdiness that has to
be seen to be believed.
When I say Bawdy, it is certainly not in the traditional
sense, but in a more modern tasteful way.
I could try to explain that last statement but instead I
would like to show you what I mean.
Here he is, with old friend Jackie Wright and the beautiful
Diana Darvey…

A bit risque perhaps, but I like to think it is rather tasteful
and done in such a way so that the object of desire comes out
the winner…Benny is thwarted and learns a lesson as well.
No losers and, in a way, everyone wins.
How cool is that?

Let’s be Frank…I am depressed

Another great one from Ze Frank.
Not only does he do True Facts but he dabbles in
other voice overs as well…Sad Diaries is one of them.
This particular one is for all the dogs out there.
And it does explain a few things…

I have owned many dogs in my life and they all thought like that.

I have two diaries, one for me and one for her

There are a few decent stand-up comedians that are fairly
new that have gotten my attention.
Dan Gabriel is one of the better ones.
He has the material, the delivery and the personality to
make me/you laugh…that is a good thing.
Here he is doing some of his, soon to be classic, stuff.
NSFW…only a couple of low level ones though.

Nice material!

Up the hill comes Andrew Jackson

There is something to be said about a source of comedy that
is still appreciated, and laughed at, more than fifty years
after it was created.
I can count on two hands all those that fall into that category.
The Three Stooges…Soitenly! (Okay, mostly men, but still)
Spike Jones…Absolutely! (The King of the Funny Song)
Abbot and Costello…Yep!
Nichols and May…You got it!
Tom Lehrer…YES! (Nobody better at Satire!)
Bob Newhart…No doubt about it!
And then there’s…
The Marx Brothers!
As far as I’m concerned these are the folks that started it all.
There is so much to appreciate…the songs, the movies, the banter
and the chemistry are all as good as it gets!
This is the cream of the crop, there is nothing as good as this.
Nothing!

What a wonderful display of talent!