David Bowie / 1947-2016 - by Ricki C.

Truth be told, I was never really that big a fan of David Bowie: I only ever bought one record by him (The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders From Mars, but Jesus, what an album) and I never saw him perform live.  But, further truth be told, I have to admit, when I heard on CD102.5 yesterday that he died, it did bring a little tear to my jaded rocker's eye.

David Bowie was one of those rockers who I liked the idea of more than I actually liked his music.  He would join U2 and Ani DiFranco in those ranks for me.  I like the things those artists do, I like what they stand for, but they don't really get on my turntable or CD player nearly as often as Richard & Linda Thompson or The Pop! do, ya know?  

And Bowie absolutely had the proper rocker credentials: he wrote a fuckload of great songs ("Suffragette City," "Ziggy Stardust," "The Jean Genie," "Panic In Detroit," and "Heroes," to name only five), he did a lot of drugs, he married a model, he almost certainly had sex with Mick Jagger, he recorded new material to the very end, who am I to argue with those stats?

Most of all, let's face facts: if David Bowie hadn't broken BIG in 1972, The New York Dolls would never have gotten signed to a major label, and without Bowie's production skills & patronage Lou Reed, Iggy Pop and Mott The Hoople would NEVER have broken through to mainstream rock & roll as much as they did.  That's four of my ten favorite rock acts on the planet that I would still be trying to explain to people WHO THEY WERE if not for David Bowie.  

I don't really drink anymore, but my lovely wife Debbie & I have some champagne left over from New Year's Eve.  Will I be uncorking some of that tonight and drinking a toast to David Bowie?  Yeah, I will.  Thank you David, for the music.  Thank you for the rock & roll.  - Ricki C. / January 12th, 2016. (Click here to read Scott Carr's thoughts on Bowie)

(Hey, cats & kittens, Bowie & the Spiders from Mars performing in 1972 on Top of the Pops, in the midst of heavy-metal, singer/songwriters and prog-rock.  The 70's started here, right here.)

 (And while we're at it, raise a toast to Mick Ronson, 1946-1993.) 

David Bowie performing "Starman" at Top of the Pops in 1972.



Second Annual Kids' Concert @ King 5, Sunday, January 10th, 4 pm and FREE! - by Pete Vogel

This Sunday I’ll be hosting the Second Annual Kids’ Concert at King Avenue 5.  We call it a “Kids’ Concert” because it’s more than a music recital—it’s an opportunity for kids to hone their musical crafts in a professional environment that truly has a concert-like setting.  

King Avenue 5 is one of the best music spaces in town because it provides a professional atmosphere for budding artists.  With stage, lights, PA, backdrop, an audio engineer and a spacious room that serves food and drinks, anybody can feel like a professional musician when playing this room.  This Sunday’s concert differs from a formal recital because every performer has the opportunity to play a 15- minute set, allowing them the time to perform a variety of songs—and styles—in their repertoire.

Nick Pavich, owner of the bar/restaurant/music space, has done a wonderful job of nurturing talent with this unique room.  The space is void of distractions—TV sets are rarely on and the room is designed to put the emphasis on music.  All of the little details have been ironed out: the PA is raised to the ceiling to allow better sight lines; soundproofing has been added to 3 of the 4 walls; a black backdrop allows for dramatic photograpy and videography; and the bar in the back has a mirror so you won’t miss the action while waiting for a drink.

What this experience does for kids is priceless: it prepares them for any type of public performance, whether it be public speaking, hosting an event of their own, or performing live onstage in front of a captive audience.  I always tell my students the biggest leap they may ever make in their lives might be walking those three steps from the floor to the stage—a complete transformation takes place once one hops onstage and performs in public.  It is equal parts terrifying and exhilarating.  For some it’s like a second home, for others it’s their greatest fear, aside from death. To me, I can’t think of a better platform to instill self-confidence than public performance of this kind.

We have a variety of musicians that will be performing: some will be singing and playing piano; others will be doing duets on acoustic guitar with yours truly; and others will be playing drums and performing with multiple students.  There will also be some surprises as well, it’s not unlikely that I may invite other students onstage to perform if the spirit moves us in that direction.  Another special treat: Nick’s daughter Grace will be performing as well!


The event is free and open to the public.  It starts at 4pm and will wrap up at 7pm.  Special guest Jacquie Sanborn will close the evening with a series of songs off her debut EP “Let Down Your Umbrella”—she takes the stage at 6:30pm.  We hope you stop out and give a listen!  - Pete Vogel

 

An Open Letter to Elliott Murphy - by Ricki C.

(note: I don’t wanna come off all professorial here and start handin’ out rock & roll homework assignments, but this blog entry is gonna make a whole lot more sense if you click on this link to read, “Lookin’ Back” on the Elliott Murphy.com website. Thanks in advance, and you won’t be sorry you read it.)


Let me try to be what passes for succinct for Ricki C.: Elliott Murphy is my favorite songwriter of all time in rock & roll.  And since I could care less about the times before AND after rock & roll, that makes him my favorite songwriter of all time.  (Eat your hearts out Harold Arlen, Rodgers & Hart, Cole Porter, Marcus Mumford, et al.)  Elliott isn’t necessarily my favorite rock & roll performer, that nod would go to Bruce Springsteen and Pete Townshend (although, in all honesty, Townshend’s live reign lasted only from 1965 to 1973, and he probably hasn’t written a truly great song since “Slit Skirts” in 1982).

But, as usual, I digress……

Elliott Murphy is my favorite rock & roll songwriter of all time.

Murphy started out in 1973 as one of “The New Dylan’s.”  For a couple of years, he and Bruce Springsteen were neck & neck for that title, until “Born To Run” rocketed Bruce to the next level and Elliott’s “Drive All Night” faded his career to the rock & roll twilight. 
    
Murphy never stopped playing, though.  While Springsteen ascended to arenas & stadiums, Elliott was relegated to smaller venues, playing his music in clubs & bars, and releasing 35 albums to this point in 2016.  (I most recently saw him play in Piermont, N.Y. in 2012 and he had a great what I term Elliott-Murphy-one-liner about the situation: "Bruce and I agreed years ago to divide up the venues, he took the 60,000 seat arenas and I chose the 90-seat clubs.")  Elliott had been popular in France and on the European Continent from the early 1980’s on, and finally made the almost inevitable move to Paris in 1990.  (Another prime Elliott-Murphy-one-liner: “New York was a great city to be young in; Paris is a wonderful city to grow old in.”)    

So what is my point here, in this Open Letter to Elliott Murphy?  My point is: Yes, Elliott, I am waiting with baited breath here in Columbus, Ohio for your next record.  I’m waiting with baited breath because at 63 years old there are precious few rock & roll artists whose next recorded work I await AT ALL, let alone with baited breath.  Off the top of my head I would include Ian Hunter, Alejandro Escovedo, and maybe Elvis Costello on that short list.  (By the same token, I just got the new The Ties That Bind box set for Christmas from my lovely wife Debbie, but even I didn’t buy High Hopes, Springsteen’s last studio record, and I haven’t paid for a disc by Bob Dylan in years, so there ya go.)

It seems like more & more with each passing year that anybody can be Kanye West, or Miley Cyrus, or Justin Bieber; anybody can be Blake Shelton and/or Gwen Stefani and get their mugs splashed all over People magazine, Extra, Entertainment Tonight or one of the what-seems-like-weekly country music award shows I’m forced to avoid on my T.V.  At the same time, as I sit typing this, Colin, Herb, & Biggie (along with Rick Kinsinger) of hometown boys Watershed are driving the 10 hours south to Joe Oestreich’s place in South Carolina to work up new material for upcoming recording sessions.  There’s no good, sound reason for them to be doing this.  Watershed have a solid body of work behind them: from 1995’s Twister to 2012’s Brick & Mortar, with the tremendous The More It Hurts, The More It Works and The Fifth Of July falling solidly in the middle, it’s a repertoire any sane rock & roll band would be proud of.  But they’re driving 10 hours to work up more songs.  Why?  Because they are rockers, and that’s what rockers do.

Sometime this month Willie Phoenix and his mighty Soul Underground will play at a bar called Eldorado’s for an avid handful of diehard fans.  Why?  Because they are rockers, and that’s what rockers do.  Somewhere this month, in every city & town in America, guys & girls will strap on a guitar or sit behind a drumkit and play their hearts out to strangers who couldn’t give a damn, or to a few people who like them, or both.  Why?  Because they are rockers, and that’s what rockers do. 

An Open Letter to Elliott Murphy: Elliott, please make another record, because that's what rockers do.  – Ricki C. / January 6th, 2016      

TWO DECADES (OR CENTURIES, FOR THAT MATTER) OF ELLIOTT MURPHY

Full Show: http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=463F200CC51CEC60 45 minutes. Live at TVE studios, Madrid, broadcast by La Edad de Oro on December 11, 1984. This is #8 in the Solen Files DVD series. Use the Play List in My Channel to watch the full broadcast in order. More La Edad de Oro Full Shows in Kigonjiro´s channel.

On Elvis Presley's Birthday live in Beauvais (France), March 24 2007

Revisiting A Very Pencilstorm Christmas 2015

Happy Christmas (War Is Over) - by Wal Ozello

By Pencilstorm Contributor: Wal Ozello

I became a rock ‘n’ roll musician for two reasons: to change the world and to get laid, not necessarily in that order. While the investment I’ve made into rock ‘n’ roll has paid back in dividends, I’m still working on that change the world thing.  Listen, it’s not that I have to save everyone from nuclear destruction, cure AIDS in Africa or stop world hunger… I’m just trying to make the world around me a little brighter.  My biggest thrill as a musician is to look out into the audience and see the crowd enjoying themselves, whether it's that leather-clad rock warrior fist-pumping while I covered Spirit Of the Radio or that girl in the tight mini-skirt swaying her hips to Lovin’, Touchin’, Squeezin’.

What’s this have to do with Christmas?  Everything.

See… I think the world would be better off if everyone thought like rock musicians. We all give a little bit of ourselves every time we sing a song, strum a guitar, beat on a drum, or whatever. Sure, you’re going to have your ego-hungry self-centered hell-beasts out there (i.e., Axl Rose), but for the most part we’re in it to entertain people and make the world a better place – even if that world is only the hundred feet around us.

So to rockers, every day is Christmas. Every day is about making things a little brighter in the people’s lives around us. We have that magic power that turns your plain, doldrum day into a rock-roaring evening. Make you forget about the worries of life – money, fear, terrorism, whatever… and remember that there’s happiness in this world.  That happiness may be found through a Marshall Stack Amp cranked up to eleven or a bass drum hit so hard you can feel it vibrate in your chest, but it’s still happiness.

You don’t have to be a musician to spread goodness either, just simply a passion for rock ‘n’ roll will do it. Whenever I pull up next to a guy that’s blaring out music from his car and beating his dashboard or steering wheel like it’s a drum set: well, that puts a smile on my face. Music infuses us all with a passion for awesomeness. It binds us a human race and helps us remember that there's some goodness in this world. 

Most importantly, it inspires us. How can you not be energized by the opening drum fill of Born To Run, the guitar riff of I Want You To Want Me, or chorus of Thunderstruck? 

In the coming year, we need rock ‘n’ roll more than ever. The fear-mongering is going to get to its worst with the election coming up and there’s bound to be more terrorism, politics, hunger, and people shouting that America is broken.

Prove them wrong. Listen to more rock ‘n’ roll in 2016 and spread the magic power. Do something good. So that in 2017, when you hear this song on the radio in December, you can answer John Lennon's opening line with a list all the great things you've done.

From all of us at Pencilstorm – a Merry Christmas to you and yours.

John Lennon - Happy Xmas. no negativity! Enjoy & thanks for watching. Available in 720 &1080p (High Definition) -kidcudibaaby it would mean the world to me if you subscribe:) thank you for 600 thousand views! wow! 12.19.13

Check out more stories of Christmas from other Pencilstorm contributors by clicking here for Scott Carr's story, here for Colin's story and here for James A. Baumann's story. 

Wal Ozello is a science fiction techno-thriller novelist and the author of Assignment 1989 ,  Revolution 1990, and Sacrifice 2086. He's the lead singer of the former Columbus rock band Armada and a frequent customer at Colin's Coffee.

Can I Talk About Myself This Christmas? - by Colin G.

Folks, If I had time, I'd spin a sweet holiday tale from Christmas past and certainly I've been blessed to have more than my share. But right now, I'm so busy shipping out copies of Superior: The Best of Colin Gawel, practicing for the show at Woodlands on Dec 23rd, trying to sell Colin's Coffee gift cards and lock down AC/DC tickets for Owen's stocking (shhhhh) that I've got to blow off the real reason for the season to focus on the fake side. 

Still, my heart is in the  right place and if you are looking a couple great holiday reads may I suggest clicking here for Scott Carr's story and here for James A. Baumann's story. Wal will have something posted on Xmas Eve and I'm sure Ricki C. has stuff cooking too. Basically, keep checking Pencilstorm. Yes, this heartfelt holiday post has turned into shameless plug for my own website. Ah hell's and jingle bells, let's just make the whole post about me. It's like Gene Simmons has taken over my brain. Or Donald Trump. (Who are very similar if you ask me.) But now I'm getting off track. Where were we? Oh yeah, I remember, back to me.....   

Colin Gawel and the Lonely Bones live @ Woodlands Tavern Wednesday Dec 23rd. 8pm Showtime. FREE! If you have trouble getting out use these magic words, "I have to step out and do some last minute shopping. It's a surprise." Doors 7 pm - show at 8pm.

Also- Rick Kinsinger and myself will be performing on WCBE 90.5 on Wednesday Dec 23rd around the 2 o'clock hour. Tune in to hear us play some tunes and chat with Maggie Brennan. Click here to hear it streaming.

Superior- The Best of Colin Gawel will be available at the show. The Kickstarter pre-orders have been shipped (Thank you!) and it should start showing up on Spotify / I-Tunes and the like very soon. Once we hit the New Year we will figure where else to sell it. But right now it's only available at the coffee shop or at the gig.  

Anyway, I hope everybody has a great Holiday and I really appreciate all the people who write for and read Pencilstorm. It brings me much joy on these dark lonely mornings at the coffee shop. Thanks to all. X O X O - Colin

Read about ME it in this month's 614 Magazine

Listen to my longest interview ever In The Record Store

Cheap Trick finally got into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame. Click here to hear an interview with myself about the subject.

The title song to Colin Gawel and the Lonely Bones' December 2010 release. We shot the video at the "Still Love Christmas" release party at Rumba Cafe in Columbus, OH. COLINGAWEL.com