Country Comes To Woodstock...

Friday, August 10, Bethel Woods Performing Arts Center was filled with cowboy hats, boots and giant belt buckles as they welcomed to the stage Brad Paisley as a stop on his Virtual Reality World Tour. Opening for Brad was American Idol winner Scotty McCreery and The Band Perry.

The tour has brought great reviews from critics and reviewers across the country. Not just for the music which undoubtedly is fantastic, but for the benefits that have come along with this tour. In every city/town the tour has had on the schedule, they have created a “Virtual Reality Food Bank,” at which Paisley’s tour has collected food and then delivered to local food banks.

The center grounds were filled almost to capacity as the twang of the guitars and banjos flooded the air. Opening the night was Scotty. His adolescence charm won America over last season and Friday night was no different. Singing a few songs off his album, including his breakout single, “I Love You This Big,” Scotty gave a mellow and somewhat dull opening to what seemed like a shorter than usual night.

Following up was The Band Perry, who is still coming into their own. This sibling band put on quite a show, almost redeeming the mellow Scotty opening. They sang all five of their chart making singles from their debut album, all of which included a fantastic fiddle player and a rocking guitarist (even if he did look like a girl).

Finally, the man of the hour took the stage. Brad Paisley. Equipped with lasers and lights Paisley’s band was indeed worth sitting through McCreery’s 14th minute of fame. As in the past, he brought energy and comedy to the stage. The entire amphitheater sang his songs at the top of their lungs making even the parking lot lingerers sing along.

Rocking My Way Down the Thruway

Ladies and Gentlemen, I realize now why my English friends follow bands across the continent... in all fairness it's mostly Bruce Springsteen and Dance Music but I digress...

This month I have sat at the feet of greatness watching not one, not two but three music legends take the stage. It makes me very humble to know the music I love was born out of the roots these and many other greats have planted along the way.
Bethel Woods hosted earlier this month The Beach Boys on their 50th anniversary tour. The venue packed full of baby boomers, hippies from days gone by and surfers who just never missed the tide going back out. Missing Dennis and Carl Wilson who passed away (1983 & 1998 respectively), the remaining members hit the stage with front man Mike Love leading the way.

Banking on their new CD “That’s Why God Made the Radio,” they sang the album’s title song which peaked at number 3 on the Billboard Charts, the highest chart placement they’ve seen since 1974. Of course all the usual favorites were heard including “Little Deuce Coupe,” “Surfin’ U.S.A” and “California Girls.”

Making my way up the Thruway, I landed at Times Union Center in Albany to see Aerosmith. This was the must see show of the season so far.

Their Global Warming tour set foot in the state capital along with their opening act, Cheap Trick, who might I add should have been left at home. The crowd seemed far from interested in the openers and far more interested in where Joe Perry and Steven Tyler were. The show went off without a hitch and what a show!

Playing off their new album “Music from Another Dimension!” the new hit single “Legendary Child,” which they originally debuted on the season finale of American Idol, brought everyone to their feet. This makes it their 15th studio album since their debut in 1973. Tyler and Perry rocked the house with their legendary chemistry and drummer Joey Kramer brought it down with a 10 minute drum solo which ended with his using his hands and head.
What a night! What a show! Be sure not to miss them at the IZOD center later this summer on July 24.
Coming back down to Bethel Woods, (after trying to regain my voice, of course, because how can you not scream out the words to “Walk This Way?”), I was enthralled by the one and only Dave Matthews Band. Closing out their tour on the east coast they lit up the venue like an early 4th of July celebration.

Opening for them was Delta Spirit which despite The Rolling Stone’s three star review fell very short of amazing and couldn’t hold a candle to DMB’s sound, despite the fact that Dave himself introduced the band.

It was a night for new music this round as DMB played mostly newer music to their set instead of classic standards. However, we were treated to “Satellite,” always a gem. The only downside to this show was despite Bethel’s always amazing security team, outside contractors which could have only been hired by the artists, flooded the place which was already overflowing with sheriffs and state troopers. Though it didn’t prevent this reporter from being shoved around by some ugly goon in the pit.

Up ahead keep your eyes peeled for amazing shows, new albums and a whirlwind of amazing music for you to rock your face off to this summer. After all, there’s got to be something better than what’s getting pumped out of American Idol… Stay Tuned…

Breaking Records...Social Media Style!!

In the last few weeks some interesting new records have been set for the Guinness Book.

One was for the title “World’s Largest Parade of Boats.” This record was set in the United Kingdom on June 6, 2012, with 670 boats in attendance, during the celebration of Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee.

Right here in Rockland County, The Franklin Avenue Playground Committee brought in over 1,000 people as they broke the record for “World’s Longest Ice Cream Sundae.” The organization was raising money as an ongoing effort to renovate the playground at the Franklin Avenue Elementary school in Peal River. The delicious looking Sundae was measured at 406 feet and 8 inches long, which is more than two times the record! This mammoth of a sundae was 630 pounds of ice cream, 55 pounds of syrup, 28 pounds of sprinkles and 24 pounds of cherries!

The organization lined rain gutters with tin foil with dry ice every 10 feet to keep it cold. It took all the children in attendance’s patients to wait it out before they could pig out on ice cream! But the cost of $10 a bowl of this creamy goodness, the organization was able to raise $7,500. Not only an amazing record in ice cream, but in good old fashion fund raising!

Nationally, last week, Lucky Diamond, a rescued Maltese dog crossed the Rainbow Bridge after losing her battle with Cancer. She held the record for being the “Dog Snapped with the Most Celebrities”. She was recognized last year after being snapped with over 363 public figures including “Twilight” star Kristen Stewart, Virgin Atlantic Mogul Richard Branson, even Bill Clinton.

With Lucky’s Facebook page attracting thousands and thousands of fans, it encouraged Lucky’s owner Wendy Diamond to apply to Guinness..

According to Guinness’s website, when talking about her record-breaking dog, last year, Wendy said, “I always thought Lucky was sort of the Johnny Carson of canines but I never imagined a Guinness World Record! The record isn’t really about Lucky or even the celebrities, but the inspiring message that people can adopt their own Lucky and one day there won’t be any more homeless pets.”

Which brings me to today; right now there are a number of groups using Facebook to start a record for consideration.

I mean after all, Facebook has to be good for something other than losing money on the stock exchange now. One of the most interesting causes and records I have found is a group which currently is sitting at 1,661 members, who will be trying to set a record for “Most Greeting Cards Sent.”

Currently there is no record for that. What’s the reason for setting this record, you ask? One of the members of the group has an 8-year-old son Monty, who was diagnosed with Infantile Spasms, and who will be undergoing major spinal surgery at the end of the month.

According to the group, his life and the family’s is not an easy one, but full of love, and the one thing Monty loves most of all, is getting mail! So the family in conjunction with what started as a small group decided to send cards, and then they just started growing and cards kept coming.

Last week they received approximately 100 cards. After speaking with them they encouraged anyone to join in the record-making. Greeting cards can be sent to the PO Box they bought just for the record: Monty Chavez c/o Tiffany Chavez P.O. Box 2451, Cedar City, UT 84721.

Maybe with all of this record-breaking going on I should get in on the action myself. I think I’ll send a few cards to Monty along the way, then maybe get a record for most people to read an article… well hey it’s like the lottery, anything can happen! Stay Tuned…

Rock and Roll's Best Honored...

This year HBO aired the induction ceremony for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Thank god it was them and not network television as Billy Joe of Greenday let the F-Bomb slip more times the Keebler has cookies.

This ceremony fell on the heels of inductees “The Beastie Boys” losing a member of their band, Adam “MCA” Yauch to cancer on May 4. Rappers Chuck D and LL Cool J introduced them. LL Cool J said, “The reason I’m here tonight and the reason that this was so important to me is because if it wasn’t for the Beastie Boys, I wouldn’t have my career that I have today. The Beastie Boys actually played my demo tape for Rick Rubin in the NYU dormitory. A lot of people don’t know that.”

Greenday introduced Guns ‘n’ Roses minus lead singer Axl Rose. Earlier last month when the nominations were released, Axl turned down the nomination and invitation to attend with fellow members of GnR. Public issues with Slash, the band’s lead guitarist ultimately what led to this no show on Rose’s part.

Billy Joe of Greenday, made a comment during the introduction, saying “now who am I missing?” The crowd booed him and with next presenter, Chris Rock when he mentioned Axl’s name. In true Hall of Fame fashion, the inducted band played a few songs. Slash set the stage on fire, but you couldn’t help but miss Axl. They had a stand in for his vocals but both “Sweet Child o’ Mine” and “Paradise City” seemed to fall short. Shame on you, Axl.

Comedian Chris Rock introduced the Red Hot Chili Peppers to close out the evening. Calling them the “quintessential California Band” and compared them to the Mamas and the Papas, and Ice-T. Their touching acceptance speech included bassist Michael “Flea” Balazry chocking up after spotting George Clinton in the audience. Flea thanked him for his influence on his music.

Both Flea and front man Anthony Kiedis dedicated a portion of their speech and their acceptance to guitarist Hillel Slovak who died in 1988 of a heroin overdose. The played “By The Way” and “Give It Away.” Of course both Anthony and Flea went shirtless, as the Chili peppers we wouldn’t have them any other way (despite Flea’s now gray hair).

The Chili Peppers and GnR ended the night with an all out rock session. Slash and Flea on the same stage? Mindblowing! 3 Drum sets, 3 bassists and way too many guitars to count! This night ended with a huge bang. Even Greenday got in on the action! The stage of the Hall hasn’t rocked so hard since they inducted Aerosmith, Queen and Michael Jackson in 2001.

Other nominees for 2012 included Donovan, Laura Nyro, The Small Faces/Faces, Freddie King, Don Kirshner, Cossimo Matassa (engineer), Tom Dowd (engineer), Glyn Johns, The Crickets, The Famous Flames, The Midnighters, The Comets, The Blue Caps and The Miracles. Stay Tuned…

Growing up Potter

Growing up Potter
By: Heather Johnson, Gryffindor House

I didn’t grow up under a stairway or in a small town over the pond. I lived in typical suburbia with average friends who went to an average school. Yet, in 1997 I met a boy named Harry Potter. He was 11 years old, growing up with his terrible Aunt and Uncle after his parents met an untimely death and he had just received an invitation to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It was at first magical owl bearing these invitations that I fell in love with Harry.

J.K Rowling has penned seven books in the Harry Potter series, each connecting to the other, chronicling the tale of Harry through his years at Hogwarts, and through his epic battle of good vs. evil with his nemesis, Lord Voldemort. With Harry I have met some wonderful people. I’ve laughed with Ron Weasely and his family, learned from Hermione Granger and stood beside Professor Dumbledore as an epic battle raged on. I would stay home, on every release date, from school or work, lock myself in a room and read, cover to cover about Harry’s latest adventure. Though I can recite spells to levitate objects and people, I, and the millions like me, learned about friendship and dedication even when “dark times are upon us”. Though the series is and forever will be only seven books per J.K Rowling, true Potter fans know there are two subsequent “textbooks” as well as an 800 word prequel which was handwritten for charity and can only be found in the back allies of the internet.

In 2001, Harry made his silver screen debut portrayed by a young Daniel Radcliffe. Finally, Harry was given a voice and a face to bring to life the adventures we’d so loved years earlier. It seemed as though each year’s book couldn’t get here fast enough so it could be brought to life thanks to Warner Brothers. The Potterverse was abuzz with delight! We still needed more. Harry Potter was our drug, and we were addicted.

Thanks to Electronic Arts, we joined in on our Playstations, Wii’s and PC’s to help fight off the Deatheaters. We screamed at our televisions while we played Scene It?: Harry Potter and lastly, turned ourselves into building blocks for Lego Harry Potter.

On the dawn of the next to final film, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1”, we were given the greatest gift…we were able to visit the Potterverse. Unveiled June 18th, 2010 (see previous issues of RCT for my review), Universal Studios: Island of Adventure brought forth their seventh “island”…The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Here you can visit Hogwarts, stroll through Diagon Alley, eat with Hagrid in Hogsmeade and even buy a pint of butterbeer. Life was good. So good in fact, that in March of this year, Warner Bros. announced plans to build a tourist attraction in the UK to showcase the film series. Warner Bros. Studio Tour London will be a behind-the-scenes walking tour featuring authentic sets, costumes and props from the films. The attraction will be located at Leavesden Film Studios, where all eight of the Harry Potter films were made and two new sound stages would be constructed to house and showcase the famous sets.

Finally, on July 15th “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2” was released. This spectacular visual finale (in both 2D and 3D) astounded audiences all over the world as we bid adieu to our hero’s and friends. Helena Bonham-Carter’s performance like in every film before this was amazingly evil, even making us wonder if she was worse then Voldemort! The film brought in a whopping $43.6 million dollars upon it’s first night internationally, $150 million of that being just the US and $32 in advanced sales! If you don’t know what that means, I’ll tell you…not only has it put “The Lord of The Rings Trilogy” at the bottom of the barrel where it belonged, but it broke every box office record beyond “Titanic” and “Star Wars”. So far, the entire series has banked upward off $6.37 billion dollars world wide which makes it the most successful film series of all time.

So what does J.K Rowling have up her wand next? Follow the Pottermore.com website to see what’s brewing and maybe you’ll be one of the lucky ones to read the unreleased chapters from the series. So farewell Mr. Potter, you’ve been a great friend and we hope to see more of you soon…Stay Tuned.

Step Right Up!

Ladies and Gentlemen, children of all ages! This past two weeks New York got to experience the wonder that was Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey circus! Both those who took the trip to the Times Union Center in Albany, and those who stepped out into New York City to Madison Square Garden got to experience childhood once again.

This year marked the 140^th season of the three ring show which was entitled “Barnum 200” which celebrated P.T Barnum’s 200^th birthday, and trust you me, it was a celebration which shouldn't be missed. But no worries folks, if you did miss it, you can catch next week’s show in Trenton, NJ or the following week in Hershey, PA. What better place for a weekend trip then the home of chocolate to visit some of the circus’s biggest stars, like it’s newly born elephant star, Barack who was a mere 250lbs at birth.

However all good things don’t come without protests. Lining the venues sidewalks prior and during the show protestors stood with posters and signs stating abuse for the animals. This has always been a topic of debate, but you can make your own judgments. In my opinion, those animals looked well taken care of…besides, wouldn't the nine tigers in the cage with one guy have made a lil' snack of him if they wanted to?

The circus though, much too popular belief isn’t what it used to be. Sure the elephants and llamas make their appearance, one elephant even paints art! These days, it’s all about the contortionists, trapeze artists and high wire walkers. Though who can forget about the clowns? However, this reporter held her breath as nine motor cycles raced around a steel ball all without hitting each other!

New York and Albany are only two of the 90 cities the tour will hit this year. Upon its completion Feld Entertainment, ran by the show’s producers Nicole and Alana Feld, will donate $10,000 to the Barnum Museum in Bridgeport, CT, to honor P.T. Barnum and to provide future generations the opportunity to learn about this amazing showman and his contributions to society.

In conjunction with the 200th anniversary of Barnum’s birth, Ringling Brothers has launched The Barnum Award, which honors the spirit of the founder of “The Greatest Show on Earth” and his inspirational contributions to society by identifying and celebrating children who give back to their own communities in creative, fun and innovative ways. Nominations for the award can be submitted online at www.thebarnumaward.com.

P.T. Barnum will also receive a first of its kind dedicated Star in the plaza of the Staples Center in Los Angeles on July 15, 2010, and the city of Los Angeles will issue a proclamation declaring that date as “P.T. Barnum Day”. So save up some cotton candy money, and stay tuned…

Fast Cars, Fails and Ferrell

Well Ladies and Gentlemen; this week has been an interesting one in the world of entertainment. Now that all the press of the royal wedding is over and Will and Kate are on their honeymoon, the world can move on to bigger and better media exposure.

This weekend, the fifth installment of “The Fast and the Furious” franchise, “Fast 5” was released into theatres here in the USA. Topping the box office numbers, for the first time in months, it brought in$83.6 million dollars, $165 million worldwide! This is first for Universal Studios as it buried this weekend’s competition (“Hoodwinked Too!” and “Prom”). Sure, you get to stare at Vin Diesel as the infamous Dominic Toretto and Paul Walker as he reprised his role as Brian O’Conner but now you have the added pleasure of watching Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson in addition, all in the same place. Jordana Brewster returned as Mia Toretto, Dom’s sister but we missed seeing our favorite fast driver, Michelle Rodriguez as Letty, who met her demise in the last film. Overall, the best film since the beginning and with a touch of “The Italian Job” this movie is without a doubt, this writer’s favorite of the year…behind “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” that is. However, I don't get to drool over Vin Diesel in that movie, I think I'll buy it the day it comes out to DVD and watch it over and over...some of us will just have to forget that 2Fast 2Furious existed, I mean, a F&F movie with no Vin? Impossible...

Conan O’Brien continued to bring in the late night numbers this month. After a rocky beginning it climbed up almost an entire point to reach David Letterman’s ratings this past week. What was so special you ask? Try some of the guest stars. Will Ferrell voiced his hatred of Conan’s beard and on this past Monday night, armed with “excalibeard” and a handful of 1970’s playboys, Ferrell got Conan into an impromptu barber’s chair and removed the ginger whiskers ever so lovingly from his face. Of course he did a bang up job, reminding us after the next commercial break that Conan has a great professional staff behind the scenes as he showed up clean shaven a minute later.

Lastly, it wasn’t all rainbows and lollypops. Paul Reiser’s new show, “The Paul Reiser Show”, his first after the 1999 ending of “Mad About You”, was cancelled after only two episodes. The show filmed seven, but after the first two episodes aired, NBC decided to pull the plug. The show followed the actor portraying himself on the scripted show. What kind of story line is that? That’s almost as bad as that movie Tim Robbins made in 1992, “The Player”, insider jokes? No thank you Mr. Reiser. Hopefully June comes faster and we can turn our attentions to better things, like the fourth season of “True Blood”…stay tuned…