I don't think I've ever posted about Robyn Hitchcock.  I'm not the world's biggest RH fan, but he does have some great songs, both with the Soft Boys and all on his lonesome.  The trigger for writing about him is that I just got my 2025 year-end Spotify mix of the songs that I listened to the most this year, and two of them were by Robyn.  Here is Queen of Eyes by the Soft Boys - great guitar-based poppy rock tune:

How can you not like that song?  Impossible.  And here he is Robyn all by himself with So You Think You're In Love:
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Man, are those songs great!  I think I'm going to see RH the next time he tours.  

Hope you're doing well.  Keep on checking back periodically to see if I'm posting - you won't want to miss it!

I love this band and I love this song.  Enjoy!

Well, what do you know?  I haven't posted in a loooong time, and I'm now putting up a new post.  I lost steam on the blog a few years back and once you lose your mojo....  But I logged in out of curiosity just to see what was happening and I got the hankering just to post something.  Voila!

​And now that I'm here, I'm having trouble with the site.  Of course!  I tried to post a picture of Jonathan Richman (who I saw this year, but many months ago), and it wouldn't post.  Hmm, I'll have to see about fixing that.  

I've had some changes since my last post.  I retired!  And yes, it's magnificent!  Only idiots say otherwise.  That move has brought about a number of changes, but one of the unexpected ones is that I'm seeing a lot less music than before.  Part of it is that I never seem to be home when there is a band that I want to see.  Part of it is that I don't drive back and forth to work and listen to new music to find bands that I want to see.  And part of it is that I'm simply offended by pricing for concerts - $300 for a crappy nosebleed seat to see Rush?  Nah, I'll pass.

But I have been seeing a ton of cultural and nature stuff that is top notch.  I went to South Africa and saw some amazing sites, like this elephant:
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And no, I did not use a telephoto lens for that - that dude was so close to where I was that I just gaped and snapped.  I know that Africa isn't for everyone, and in fact, it's exactly what you have heard that it is:  3d world poor with pockets of wealth; beautiful and huge; full of incredible sites, both good and bad; and far far away.  But to see the animals on their own turf doing their own thing was something I'll never forget.  

We did a few trips to Europe, too, and a bunch to the Free State of Florida and to other domestic places because we live in the greatest and most beautiful country on the planet.  I've seen more great art, architecture and natural vistas in the last 24 months that I have to pinch myself to make sure I really got the opportunity to do it.  And of course, I can't figure out how to upload those pictures!  

I did see some bands:  Low Cut Connie; Jonathan Richman; The Tisburys; Pop Evil; The Dip; Sheer Mag (twice!); The Hoodoo Gurus; The Pretenders; KC and the Sunshine Band; and Ted Leo and the Pharmacists.  Plus a couple of AC/DC tribute bands (don't laugh, they were both good).  This is way less than I used to see, but hey, that's what fit into the schedule.  I'm ready to see a couple of bands in 2026 already - the Hives, the Nude Party and yes, Sheer Mag again - plus I'm probably going to go and see AC/DC themselves.  I'm not totally out of the game, hahaha! 

OK, I'm going to leave this here and try to get some answers on why I can't post certain pictures.  No promises on more posts, but I'm feeling pretty good about being back.  And with that I'll bid you goodbye until next time.

The great jazz pianist Ramsey Lewis died recently.  He was 87.  I can't say that I know much of his music, but I do know that he and his band did an amazing version of Hang On Sloopy.  Remember that track?  Remember the McCoys version (featuring Rick Derringer)?  Here they are, back to back.  Great song regardless of who is playing it.

It's nonstop fun here at BRP!

Holy crap, I am so far behind on my live music reviews that they are threatening to withhold my paycheck here at BRP.  I better get on with getting 'em done, right?  

Anyway, months ago the Old 97's rolled into town at the Ardmore Music Hall.  To put this band into BRP perspective, I was at one time in danger of becoming a groupie of these guys.  Seriously, I think I've seen the Old 97's or Rhett Miller, their frontman, about 9 or 10 times.  It got to the point where we were exchanging Christmas cards and such (well, not quite that bad, but I think that Rhett recognized me one time).  

However, I then went into an Old 97's hiatus and didn't catch them for a few years.  And then of course, came the lockdowns [on that point, aren't you sick of the lockdowns being called "the pandemic?"  Hey, politicians, it wasn't the pandemic that locked us down, it was YOU!  Now, back to our normal scheduled programming.]  When I saw that the Old 97's were coming to AMH, which is just so convenient, I jumped at the chance to catch them live again.

Before I quickly comment on the band, let me say this about AMH.  Unlike a number of other venues out there, the owners of this fine establishment took the opportunity presented by the lockdowns to improve the facility.  They spent about $500k to update it.  I was looking forward to a better concert experience.  I must say that the bathrooms are better, and they were in desperate need of improvement (and they still lack the immaculate cleanliness of Union Transfer - no joke, UT could be in Japan given how clean their restrooms are - two massive thumbs up to those guys).  And the acoustics are improved, which is fantastic.  Other than that, I didn't really notice anything.  But kudos all around anyway!

The Old 97's had Cliff Hillis open for them, and I was kind of enthused about that.  I've heard some of Cliff's tunes and thought he might be good.  But when he showed up alone and with an acoustic guitar, the "uh oh" dread of the lonesome troubadour swept through the crowd.  And true to form, it was exactly what you would expect.  Boring and lackluster?  Yes, and more than that, but the verbage escapes me at the moment (I guess that's adjectives not verbs, right?  Who cares, this isn't school).  Anyway, it was completely forgettable and made me lose interest in Hillis or his career.  Oops, I guess that's the downside of being an opener.
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On to the Old 97's!

First things first - what's up with Rhett Miller's hair?  This guy used to cause the girls to swoon, but that doesn't mean he has to adopt their hair styles, right?  It was weird.  And he's no spring chicken anymore - 52 years old - so he should know better from life experience if nothing else.  

But the guy can still sing, and he still has stage charisma.  Not only that, he's been at the game for a long time now and he has the ability to draw from a deep catalog of great tunes.  Thankfully, Rhett did just that, and the band put on a rollicking 2 hour set that had the gremmies fired up and wanting more.  Don't believe me?  How about this tune from waaaay back that still gets everyone going, ​Barrier Reef:

That was just one of the oldies but goodies that the boys played at AMH.  It made the Kid nostalgic for all of those shows that I had seen before.  Here's another one that is a keeper and always played, Big Brown Eyes:

The band was in good form - tight on the rhythms, laughing and playing with the audience, and going from great track to great track in crowd-pleasing manner.  They played Rollerskate Skinny, Murder or a Heart Attack, Oppenheimer and many more that had me lose my blogger cool and cheer like mad just like in the old days.  It was fun and rewarding to be enjoying this band once again. 

I think I got some good, but not great, pictures that night.  I'm a bit rusty with the iPhone, and the lighting always determines whether it's a keeper or not.  Anyway, I hope you like them.  One nice thing about AMH is that I know a great place to stand that is not too hot and crowded but that has good sight lines (of course, it wouldn't be good if there was a fire or I had to use the restroom, but life is full of these compromises).  

The one beef is that the band didn't play Champaign, Illinois.  It's one of their great tunes, and it was conspicuous by its absence.  But that is a small complaint.  The rest of the show was terrific and made up for the lack of one song.  But did it make up for Cliff Hillis?  Hmmmm, let's just say that the boys need some stronger openers.

Here's a couple more pics and then I'm outta here.  See you soon.
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One last comment - if you look at the pics, you can see some people wearing masks at the show.  Hahahahahahaha!  You'll be happy to know that your humble blogger took his off and went "mask commando" that night!  Rock on, BRP readers.
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It's the end of summer!  No more lazy, long days of sunshine and warmth.  No more laying around by the pool or at the beach "working remote."  No more summer shandy drinks, er, lemonade.  Bummer.

But alas, BRP knows that the end of summer isn't all bad because, well, football is back.  And it will be with us through February.  Go Hokies!  So there's that.  

And the end of summer means some great songs, too.  Here are a couple tracks to tide you over as you enjoy that last languid and bittersweet weekend.  Let's start with the ultimate summer band, The Beach Boys.  I've got more coming up on Brian Wilson, so use this to wet your appetite.

​Happy Labor Day!

Hey, me again - how good is that cover of The Boys of Summer?  The Ataris!  It's fantastic, maybe even better than the original.  And the update:  dumping "Dead head sticker on a Cadillac" with "Black Flag sticker on a Cadillac"!  Now, that's BRP worthy.  

Gotta run - the grill is hot.

I'm not sure why I wanted to drag these photos up from 2019, but for some reason they just seem to make sense right now.  They're funny and they're from Memphis - in fact, from right outside Sun Studios.

Yes, we have truly become a nation of leeches.  

​Hey, here's a great one:

Now that's a sign of true love.

​How about this bizarre album cover:

Did the word "assclown" just go through your head?  I wonder what he did for Volume Two?  Dress up like a donkey?

And does this one make you think of Joan Jett and her bad reputation?

How funny is that video?  Her little sneers, hahahahaha.  But it's a good song. 

Are you thirsty?  Would you drink these sodas?

I know those soda pictures are silly.  I'll bet whoever came up with those drinks worked hard, and they probably had a team developing them.  You know what they say about teams, right?
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Now we call "teamwork" something like "collaboration."  And I think the only reason they changed it is because of that last picture.  Some elitist honcho consultant who comes up with all these idiotic corporate buzzwards saw that picture and thought "ooohh, teamwork is like Joan Jett and has developed a bad reputation.  I better come up with something else to shill to corporate America."  Voila!  Collaboration!

Those are your truly trivial thoughts for today. 

​Hey, don't say it too loud, but Christmas is just around the corner.  I mean, it's only 4 months away, and with all the supply chain issues, maybe you ought to start thinking about what you want to get for your favorite music blogger.  Suggestions?  You betcha!
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And with that, I bid you a good day.  

But Steve is not Justin.  Nope, not at all.  Steve has had a life of struggles all on his own, but he has emerged as an authentic musical juggernaut.  He brought along a version of the Dukes that was well-rehearsed and ready for action.  Included in that were the opening act, the Mastersons.  Now, I don’t know what to think of this husband-and-wife duo.  Their opening act was a 30 minute painful folk music experience that even I was struggling with.  And then they come out with Steve, and they play his songs along with the band, and they simply make those songs infinitely better.  While I wasn’t very happy to see their opening set, I was thrilled to see them with the Dukes. 

Steve came out and frankly looked a little old and beaten down.  He must have some knee trouble as a lot of us older folks do because he wasn’t moving fluidly around the stage.  But he still brought it, and his voice was in good stead.  And he went through the songs that you would want to hear, and played them with aplomb.  And then, about halfway through the show, he acknowledge Justin’s untimely death, and then played about 4 or 5 JTE songs as a tribute.  He didn’t cry or act distraught, but rather played them as a tribute to a fallen fellow troubadour who was talented and worthy of the honor.  It was heartfelt, endearing, and heck, entertaining.  I really enjoyed it. 

Steve then finished up with another strong set of his own songs before bidding adieu to the crowd.  It was a fine show, one that made me miss Texas, and forced me to grapple with how I myself handle grief and loss.  The show was not a downer at all, but rather a celebration of what you would want to remember of a life well-lived, and a tribute to a fallen comrade.  Damn good stuff from Mr. Steve Earle. 
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I had seen Steve play at the Ardmore Music Hall, but the Ft. Lauderdale venue was a real theater with a large stage.  His band had room to spread out and play, and they did just that.  He gave great renditions of some signature tracks, like Guitar Town and Galway Girl.

How fun is that second video?  Just fabulous stuff.

Anyway, back to Steve Earle.  The guy has clearly put on years and pounds, and he doesn't move like the old days.  But isn't that true of all of us?  No violations from my point of view.  But Steve still has his great tunes, and he plays them with enthusiasm and with a solid backup band.  We had a really good time, and enjoyed being in a crowd of wannabe Texans on this warm Florida night.
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Oh, and hey, I forgot to mention what a beautiful theater they have in downtown Ft. Lauderdale.  Yes, it’s newer without the tradition and frescoes, but it has lots of natural wood, great seats and sightlines, and heavenly acoustics.  It was a pleasure to see a great show in a worthy space.   

I've got more shows to review and I promise to get back to you soon.

I haven't posted much of the summer and I have no excuse.  I've just been lazy, I guess.  Worse, I'm still way behind on a bunch of fun posts.  There's no better way to rectify this bad situation than by jumping in and getting back to it.  

​Anyway, I was in Boca Raton recently, and we were in a candy store.  I came across this box of goodies and was wondering if you would eat something called a Dinglebeary:

I get that the name is clever (well, maybe).  But a dinglebeary?  I don't know, it just made me think of college for some reason.

How about these shots of Ancient Rome?  Pretty cool, right?  They're actually painted background scenes used for plays and movies.  I guess a lot of the backgrounds now use photos, but I liked these and thought they were cool.

Ever been to Weeki Wachi?  Me, neither.  Until August that is!  And what do they have there?  Mermaids!  Real ones!  Swimming in the water and performing a show!  Cheesy Florida roadside attraction?  Yeah, but it's been going on for decades and is now a state park.  And it is, bar none, the best live mermaid show that I have ever seen in my entire life!​

How about some Pennsylvania?  There are lots of parks, natural land trusts, and other nature preserves close to my house.  And when you go hiking in SE PA, you're going to see some lovely countryside.  Here are some examples:
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Oops, how did that last one get in here?  If you're saying "hey, that's not PA countryside," you would be right.  That is from Florida!  Can you caption it?  How about something like Rising Moon?  Moon Over Miami?  Crack of Don?  I don't know, but something should come to mind.

On a more serious note, how about a great song by a band that I had no idea even existed until recently?  It's Hard-Fi, and they are really good.  Unfortunately, they aren't touring the US in 2022, but when they do, I'll let you know and we can go see them.  Square deal, right?  Anyway, here they are:
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Don't you love a beach cruiser bike?  Me, too.  Classic style even if they aren't made for serious riding.  But if you're reading BRP, you aren't a serious person anyway, so beach cruisers are made for you!  Here's a lovely one (mine) outside of Target in Deerfield Beach.  Check out that snazzy basket, too.  All that's missing is the surfboard carrier!

I don't know if you saw that the FDA recently approved over-the-counter hearing aids.  I guess they've now decided that they're safe?  I don't know what those people are thinking, but it's been a long time coming.  Why do I mention this?  Because this site is supposed to be about music, and if you're a regular reader, you know that means rock music.  And rock music is best when played at volume, am I right?  Of course I am!  So here we go with a true rocker slogan:
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Gotta run for now, but I'll be back soon.  In the meantime, I'll be watching you.