Saturday, May 30, 2020

Beaker Street Playlist 2/29/2020


Courtesy of Tyler Vincent.  This is the third installment (Tyler says it's the fourth) but as far as I know, three have been documented.  This edition with Green Grass And High Tides, Choo Choo Mama and Third Stone From The Sun were heard for the first time back in the 70s when B.S. was on KAAY.  Bonus points for Tommy Bolin's Post Toastee.


9 p.m. to 10 p.m.

1. Trout Fishing In America "Not Fade Away"
2. The Corporation "I Want To Get Out Of My Grave"
3. The Strawbs "Further Down The Road"
4. The Other Ones "Only The Strange Remain"
5. The Yardbirds "Please Don't Tell Me 'Bout The News"
6. Ten Years After "Choo Choo Mama"
7. The Outlaws "Green Grass and High Tides"
8. Bela Fleck and the Flecktones "The Sinister Minister"
9. Barry McGuire and The Doctor "Train"
10. Tommy Bolin "Post Toastee"

10 p.m. to 11 p.m.

1. Roy Harper "McGoohan's Blues"
2. Abraxas Pool "Jingo"
3. Mike Bloomfield and Al Kooper "Stop"
4. Dr. John "Loop Garoo"
5. Deep Water Reunion "Cindy's Cryin'"
6. David Lindley and El-Rayo X "Rag Bag (Live)"

11 p.m. to Midnight

1. Nazareth "Please Don't Judas Me"
2. King Crimson "The Night Watch"
3. The Allman Brothers Band "Whipping Post (Studio)"
4. Steppenwolf "The Pusher"
5. Electric Light Orchestra "Kuiama"
6. Neil Young "Cortez The Killer"
7. Jethro Tull "Locomotive Breath"
8. The Jimi Hendrix Experience "Third Stone From The Sun"
9. The Alan Parsons Project "Old and Wise

Saturday, May 23, 2020

Bargain Hunting In The Corona Virus Era

For the first time in over two months, I decided to trek out to the thrift stores in search of music to listen to.  Not that I was out of tunes, I managed to put a dent into the musical archives that is my record collection.  But it's hard to stay away.


Of course Dubuque was the place to go.  The St Vincent De Paul was open and so was the Goodwill and Moondog Music.  Moondog had the latest Wishbone Ash Cd, another Wishbone Ash CD, and the Little Richard Reprise Albums.  The Salvation Army stores remain closed.  It would be pointless to head to Davenport till they open up in town.  The Asbury St Vincent De Paul store moved their cd section over.  I found Labor Of Love from Radney Foster, Goodwill had the live Commander Cody album on CD.  Stuff Etc had a bunch of 99 cent cds from Bill Monroe, Sugarcubes, Smashmouth and Gene Pitney.  However with stores on limited hours, everything closed at 6 PM, even Moondog.  This was one reason I didn't go up to Madison.  I would not have time to go to every store that I wanted to. I guess we'll wait till next month to think about going.

For the first time in a while, I did dined at the Los Agrays in Iowa City and of course left a five dollar tip in the process.  Again, I think I'm not about to eat out on a regular basis, till things improved.  It's strange to eat in a place where the help is wearing masks and you have to eat from plastic forks n spoons. 



The Drive In is now open.  The one in Blue Grass Iowa and this one up in Maquoketa called the 61 Drive In to which the place is packed.  You have to get there early to pick a spot and even before the Corona Virus, the 61 Drive In is sold out.  But if you're desperate enough and bring enough OFF bug spray and a chair you can watch next to the concession stand speaker.  Best way to see a movie. James Jandl: Photo credit.



If you haven't noticed by now, it is Memorial Day Weekend, the official start of summer.  May has slipped away without a glance.  We had a full week of clouds thanks to a stuck low pressure in the Ohio Valley which flooded Michigan and breached dams in that state due to persistent rain.  Meanwhile the former Sears Tower in Chicago got flooded out in the basement due to too much rain. Thus this wonderful picture showing the only places that had lights in that building.



You might have noticed that there has been more activity in the Record World blog due to not being able to go to places and I need time to get away from the Facebook black hole. I suspect there'll be more stuff forthcoming,  Beaker Street is once again on the air (Friday Nights at 9 CST on the Arkansas Rocks Network Stations) and as long as Clyde Clifford is alive and wanting to do this, we'll continue to support him with the Friday Night Playlist.  A shame that Beaker Street Archives isn't up and running but I'll do the best I can to keep the recent documented.   Since Record World has been off line, I haven't posted any eye candy but on Facebook, Cleusa Ribeiro has spent posing with classic metal and hard rock albums from the past.  A throwback to the classic metal babes of the past, Ladyevil (named after a Black Sabbath song) continues to throw a bit of sexy and sassy look, but it is her love of hard rock music that caught my attention.    And of course, her music collection.

The continuing mess that is Journey is that Ross Valory and Steve Smith are out after staging a coup and were replaced by the returning Randy Jackson (no relation to Zebra's Randy Jackson) and Narada Micheal Warden, who has jammed with Jeff Beck and overseen the return of Aretha Franklin in 1985.  Since Journey has been nothing more than a nostalgia act, I have no interest but for those who don't believin' you can be assured that twin egos Neil Schon and Jon Cain will try to keep them in order.  Perhaps a Raised On Radio tour is in order?




5 Star Mud Bowl Game:  Cleveland 24  Pittsburgh 19  10/19/1965

In the five years of Record World, I decided that the old NFL of the 60s and 70s bought out real smashmouth football.  When it came to real mud games, you had your pick.  Usually Cleveland and Pittsburgh would play their games in rain, snow, and fog.  Back in the 60s, Cleveland was still a damn good football team with Jim Brown, Paul Warfield and Gary Collins.  Pittsburgh, on the other hand was a 500 team on a good day (they did make a playoff bowl where The Detroit Dynasty of the NFL Playoff bowl defeated Pitt in 1962.  Pitt had Dick Hoak, as their star player, and future Browns QB Bill Nielsen directing the 65 Steelers.   In this game Hoak scored two TDs and Nielsen sneaked in for a third, but the XP points were not made.  However, Pitt had a 19-17 lead when Cleveland went for a final drive and Frank Ryan hit Collins on a 14 yard TD pass with 44 seconds left to play.  Cleveland would go on to the the championship and ultimate mud bowl runner up to Green Bay.  Pitt would stumble to a 2-12 mark.


Big John Baker (78) can only watch Jim Brown go slogging through the monsoon n mud.  Baker would later become a legendary sheriff down in Raleigh.  He passed away in 2007.  

Reviews:

Little Richard-The Rill Thing/King Of Rock And Roll/Second Coming (BGO 2016)

Richard's last hurrah was a trio of albums for Reprise (minus the aborted Southern Child, which appeared on Rhino Handmade's Complete Reprise Sessions).  While cranky old Robert Christgau poo pooed The Rill Thing, he does make a point that the title track of that album is 10 minutes of funky jamming around.  The King Of Rock N Roll sounds like Little Richard was inspired by Cassius Clay's I Am The Greatest.  I remember Mom buying that album and wondering why she did in the first place. Out of the trio of these albums, this is the least, and I'm not impressed at his attempt to recreate I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry or Brown Sugar or Joy To The World.  Second Coming, at least he got Bumps Blackwell and his New Orleans buddies to help him out, anything with Earl Palmer is welcomed.  I think Christgau is full of shit when he poo poos Freedom Blues, too bad Richard couldn't done more with Esquevita, the guy that influenced him.  His antics and outrageous singing and style is why I consider him the true King of Rock N Roll, he made the greatest singles in the history of rock and roll, but his albums have left something to be desired for.  When he got his act together, Dew Drop In, I Saw Her Standing There, In The Name, he proves he's the king.  But when he got lackadaisical, as with the Rockin Rockin Boogie and Sanctified Satisfied Toe Tapper, his boogie was as pointless as they come.   I don't see a need to seek Southern Child, which were the leftovers from Second Coming, unless I find the Rhino Handmade Complete Reprise Recordings cheap.  And at this day and time, I doubt if I ever will

B-

Wishbone Ash-First Light (Sanctuary 2006)
Wishbone Ash-Coat Of Arms (Steamhammer 2020)

For fifty years, Wishbone Ash has continue to put out decent AOR albums that you don't hear on the radio anymore.  Not that the Ash crashed classic rock radio; they had a handful of singles that got some nighttime airplay. But in the perfect sense of then and now, First Light is the album that got them signed to Decca Records in the states.  Tho a bit rougher, Eddy Offord and Phil Dunne smoothed out the rough edges, in essence I think the actual Decca album was more rougher soundwise but one couldn't doubt the twin lead guitar attack of Ted Turner and last man standing Andy Powell, Martin Turner sang the most, but when Andy sang it was a more sweeter vocal.  The majority of tracks would compile the first album and if you're a fan of the original Ash, this will fit in your collection quite nicely.

Fast forward to 2020 and Andy Powell continues to lead Wishbone Ash into pretty good albums.  New guy Mark Abrahams fits in quite well and if you compare Martin Turner's W.A to Andy's, you'll find that while Martin celebrates the past Ash, Powell moves ahead with his own vision and music.  Myself  I do think that the Wishbone Ash albums of the 2000s are just as good as the classic lineup.  Coat Of Arms, like Blue Horizon, continues the time honored tradition of duel guitar leads.  Fifty years on, Powell keeps Wishbone Ash rocking

First Light A-
Coat Of Arms B+

The Call-Let The Day Begin (MCA 1988)

The title track is their best overall song and it got plenty of airplay on the radio (not anymore, usually if you hear The Call, it's The Walls Came Down. Micheal Been can write a decent song but sometimes his U2 over the top delivery makes songs like Jealousy and Communcation go on forever (and both songs are over five minutes).  He's best at least putting a rocking beat and an hook to the songs such as Surrender and You Ran, which does U2 well.  You can make a case for The Call being Christian Rock as well (Uncovered).  When I first reviewed this album 30 years before I thought that the majority of the songs go on too long, that hasn't changed at all.  And as for u2, The Joshua Tree is much like Let The Day Begin, a bit too earnest and takes itself way too seriously.   A reason why you can find this...and the Joshua Tree in the dollar bins at you local thrift store.
B-


Beaker Street Show 5/22/2020  
Playlist (Compiled by Tyler Vincent)

9 p.m. - 10 p.m
Wishbone Ash "The King Will Come"
Blue Oyster Cult "Vengeance (The Pact)"
Yes "Starship Trooper (Section A- Life Seeker)"
The Alan Parsons Project "A Dream Within A Dream"
Chris Rea "Looking For A Rainbow"
Deep Purple "The Mule"
Hot Tuna "Sea Child"
Oingo Boingo "Just Another Day"
Gordon Lightfoot "Canadian Railroad Trilogy"

10 p.m. - 11 p.m.
Page and Plant "Blue Train"
Joe Jackson "Steppin' Out"
Pink Floyd "Learning To Fly"
Leon Russell "Acid Annapolis > This Masquerade"
Santana "Soul Sacrifice (Live At Woodstock)"
Queen "Stone Cold Crazy"
Neil Young "After The Gold Rush (Live)"
Steely Dan "Kid Charlemagne"
Steppenwolf "Sookie Sookie"
The Allman Brothers Band "Dreams"

11 p.m. - Midnight
The Doobie Brothers "Dark Eyed Cajun Woman"
Talking Heads "Burning Down The House (Live)"
The Who "Amazing Journey > Sparks (Live At Leeds)"
The Doors "When The Music's Over"
The Rolling Stones "Moonlight Mile"
The Jimi Hendrix Experience "1983...(A Merman Should I Turn To Be > Moon Turn The Tides...Gently, Gently Away."
Van Morrison "Brown Eyed Girl"
The Moody Blues "The Voice"
The Doobie Brothers "South City Midnight Lady"
Spirit "Morning Will Come"

Friday, May 15, 2020

Beaker Street Playlist 5/16/2020

The return of Clyde Clifford and Beaker Street for the first live broadcast since Feb 2011.

Thanks to Tyler Vincent for keeping the playlist.

9-PM-10 PM 
1) String Cheese Incident "Hey Pocky Way"
2) Talking Heads "Burning Down The House (Live)"
3) Alan Parsons "Cloudbreak"
4) Allman Brothers Band "Dreams"
5) Atomic Rooster "Devil's Answer"
6) Doobie Brothers "Black Water"
7) Ambrosia "Mama Frog"
8) Electric Light Orchestra "10538 Overture"
9) Blue Oyster Cult "Vengeance (The Pact)"
10) Dino Kruse "Hot Summer Night"
11) Uriah Heep "Lady In Black"

10 p.m. - 11 p.m.
1) Allman Brothers "True Gravity"
2) Traffic "Roll Right Stones"
3) Joe Cocker "With A Little Help From My Friends"
4) Jethro Tull "Songs From The Wood"
5) Hot Tuna "The Water Song"
6) Wishbone Ash "The King Will Come"
7) Emerson, Lake, and Powell "Touch and Go"
8) Yes "Homeworld (The Ladder)"

11 p.m. - Midnight
1) Pete Townshend "Give Blood"
2) Mike + The Mechanics "Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground)"
3) Pink Floyd "Learning To Fly"
4) Alan Parsons Project "Games People Play"
5) The Doors "Strange Days"
6) Neil Young "After The Gold Rush"
7) Populuxe "My Prairie Companion"
8) Proto-Kaw "Quantum Leapfrog"
9) Captain Beyond "Myopic Void"
10) Sugarloaf "Green Eyed Lady"
11) Mike+The Mechanics "The Living Years"

Sunday, May 10, 2020

Little Richard

In the 50s, he was the real deal.  The king of rock n roll perhaps?  Perhaps he could have laid a bigger claim to that title had he not gone into religious music.  But Little Richard Penniman never did leave rock n roll.

The Specialty sides are reasons why he is considered King of rock.  The Atlantic and Mercury sides showed his gospel roots.  But by 1964, when The Beatles took over, Little Richard was thrown into the also rans, but The Beatles were so awed by him, they asked him to open for their tour in the UK.  Likewise The Rolling Stones.  When he came to Vee Jay, he redid the classics, and while they may have not measured up to the real classics, Richard sang them with new intensity.  However while playing on these sessions, Don Covay wrote I Don't Know What You Got But Its Got Me, featuring some dark guitar playing from one James Marshall Hendrix.   Between that and a menacing horns and a pleading Covay backing vocal, Richard, pleads, screams and sobs along the way on a heartless and cheating woman.  To me, this was Richard's shining moment and I played this 45 till the grooves wore off.   Look for the full 4:46 version, instead of the 4:12 edit, the best part is those extra 34 seconds.

While Little Richard toiled around with his tenure with Okeh and Brunswick, to which spot singles still showed he had grit and soul, his last classic efforts was on Reprise and on Freedom Blues to which he wrote with Esquertia, a person that influenced the sound of Richard. One more single charted in 1986 and Richard would spend the rest of his years participating in rock revivals.

With the passing of Little Richard, Jerry Lee Lewis and Dion remain the last two rock n roll giants.  Flamboyant and outrageous, Little Richard was rock n roll.  He will be missed.

Saturday, May 9, 2020

Rock n Roll-The Missing Legacy Of Brian Howe/Robert Hart

“Hi! It’s Paul Rodgers here. It’s May 7th, 2020. The reports of my demise are greatly exaggerated. I am very happy to say that I am very much alive. Yeah. Take care of yourselves and each other. Hope to play for you again soon. Thanks for caring. I feel the love.”

On May 6, Brian Howe, the lead vocalist in the Bad Company comeback years passed away from a heart attack and the music world broadcasting Howe's passing, as vocalist for Bad Company, a long time rock band that Simon Kirke has kept going with various musicians taking over for retired Mick Ralphs (who never recovered fully from his stroke and is now retired) and Paul Rodgers who went solo and later did albums for Jimmy Page (The Firm) and Kenny Jones (The Law).  And lest us not forget Queen too.

While Simon Kirke continues to talk fondly of reuniting with Paul Rodgers, Bad Company has released live albums of live remakes,  A Sanctuary album had two Bad Company songs but if Simon or Paul needs money, they'll throw a Bad Company concert.  In interviews Kirke wishes he never had Brian Howe in the band, even tho, Howe did manage to get the guys to at least be interested in the albums Dangerous Age and Holy Water.  But by Here Comes Trouble, that lineup ran its course and Howe left the band acrimoniously, Robert Hart continued for two Rodgers soundalike but bloated albums before Rodgers came back a calling.

Since then the Howe/Hart years have disappeared without a trace.  The bitterness between Howe and his former bandmates have been well known, even to a 2018 interview to which Howe said that he hated Rodgers.  Rodgers has ignored Howe throughout the years, Howe mentioned he and Paul met once and Paul was indifferent.   It didn't help things that Dangerous Age was a better album than Rough Diamonds, the tired 1982 effort which included Electricland as a minor hit and the lazy assed Burning Sky, which the title track was pretty good but the rest was garbage.  If Kirke had problems with the Mark 2 lineup of Bad Company, perhaps it was that Howe turned them into a Foreigner soundalike.  He could have felt at home replacing Lou Gramm

An earlier blog about the Brian Howe years explains those Bad Company albums better.  Dangerous Age did managed to kick out the jams and former Charlie guitar player and singer Terry Thomas help produced the three albums up till Here Comes Trouble, to which boredom finally took over the band and Howe bid adieu to which Simon Kirke cherry picked a concert and issued it as What You Hear Is What You Get.    It may have not been Paul Rodgers but for how Bad Company sounded during Brian Howe's tenure it shows a working band and even Howe did put his heart into the hit singles that he didn't write.

After leaving Bad Company, Howe did managed to have a so so career of playing state fairs and being an opening act as former lead singer of Bad Company, till it raked the original vocalist and Kirke and so Howe had to redo the concerts and not piss off his former employers.  Howe was very active on his facebook site up till April 30.  He was pro animal, anti Trump and had time to chat with fans after a show.   He had a scooter accident which may have played a role in him having a heart attack.

Once his passing and the news got out, tributes did come out for those who knew him.  In the case of Paul Rodgers, he went into damage control and broadcast to the world that he is still alive.  While Simon Kirke did use his own FB account to reach out to Brian's family, it didn't appear on the original Bad Company site.  In fact, the official Bad Company site does not even mention anything from Howe or Hart of their musical contributions.   At least Kirke did the minimal thing but not using the Bad Company site seems a bit petty.  Rodgers was inexcusable.  But nobody is going to worry about this, classic rock will continue to favor anything from the first three Bad Company albums.  But Brian Howe should be looked at with fondess, after all he managed to kick start a band that was notorious for making lazy albums.   But the bond between Simon Kirke and Paul Rodgers goes way back to the days of Free and I seriously doubt that Kirke will mentioned anything to the Bad Company site about Howe's passing.  Even if Howe did fatten up the royalty wallet of Kirke and Mick Ralphs during the second coming of Bad Company of 86-93, the resentment of a replacement lead singer taking over a stale band didn't set too well.

Now that's Howe is no longer, that frees up Rodgers and Kirke and hired hands to get back to touring once the Corona Virus runs its course and it's safe to go to concerts.  But Rodgers did no favors with his classless act.  He's still here thank goodness, and he'll be happy to let the crowd sing the chorus to Can't Get Enough or Feel Like Making Love so he don't have to.   It's the way of the world for old fart rock stars.  And someday, Rodgers will join the rest of the departed, and he'll be remembered fondly.

For me he'll also will be remembered as the chest beating douche cookie saying the original Bad Co voice is still around.

Friday, May 8, 2020

The Return of Mud Games Part 4-The Green Bay Packers

Well, since the record stores are still closed and we pretty much stuck at home, I thought I go into the archives and dig up more vintage photos of vintage mud bowl games of the past.

Back when the NFL played real football.

And people got their heads knocked off


(The Minnesota/Detroit Snow/Mud bowl of 1969 keeps coming up with new pictures. Such as Greg Landry looking for somebody on his team to throw to, Martin Mills/Getty Images: Photo)

And none of this showboating that the NFL players tend to do.  Marshall Lynch would get his head knocked off by Dave (Clothes Line) Wilcox or Mike (Late Hit) Lucci had they played today.  I have no use of the NFL today and the plastic grass fields, and multi kinds of jerseys the players wear today.   Back in the past we had real football, real mud, real weather and underpayed, overworked players suffering through Lombardi's rigid practices and smashmouth football.

It's time to reconnect with the past and some five star mud games for the ages.  Mostly Green Bay and Detroit this time out.


(Marvin Newman probably gets credit for this shot of Bart Starr driving the pack down the field)

The Green Bay/Detroit Mud Bowl of Thanksgiving 1961

Green Bay 17  Detroit 9  11/23/61   Briggs/Tiger Stadium, Detroit

The passing of Don Shula last week ended to connection to Lombardi as Shula has now join Vince in the great beyond. In 1961  They would meet, Shula  was Detroit's defense coach and in charge of the likes of Night Train Lane, Wayne Walker and this year's hall of fame inductee Alex Karras. In the early 60s' Detroit was no pushover.  In fact they upset Green Bay at Green Bay in game 1 of the 1961 season 17-13, which set Lombardi in a pissed off mood for the rest of the season.   When they got back together to play on Thanksgiving in Detroit, a steady rain turned Briggs/Tiger Stadium into the typical mud swamp that would be typical that time of year.  Basically Shula's Lion Defense kept Green Bay in check most of the game, but Detroit didn't help themselves with five turnovers and only three Jim Martin FGs.  Eventually, the late great Bart Starr would carve up the Lions defense with short and pin point passing and lots of Jim Taylor and Paul Horning run, to which Taylor scored his second TD of the game and a Horning 9 yard FG silenced the Lions.   An interesting note: Green Bay wore their green home jersey's instead of the usual white.   With this win, Green Bay would go on to win the division. Detroit would have to settle for the Playoff Bowl to which they did beat Philadelphia 38-10.  Green Bay blew out New York 37-0 for the NFL Championship.




The Run To Daylight Mud Bowl  1962  (Or Plum's mistake) 

Green Bay 9  Detroit 7  (City Stadium-Green Bay)  10/7/1962

The Revenge Bowl

Detroit 26 Green Bay 14  (November 22, 1962) Tiger Stadium-Detroit


In the Marion High School Library section under football, there was a first edition copy of Run To Daylight, the Vince Lombardi book to which there was about twenty pages of the action of this ball game in Green Bay.  Like the Thanksgiving game of 1961, it was a defensive battle, like the weather, a steady rainfall turned City Stadium field into a mud bath.  Also like the Thanksgiving game it was Herb Adderley's interception that lead to the game winning FG by Paul Horning, whose' three FG was all the Packer scoring.  His third FG with 33 seconds left won it for Green Bay.  Yet another game that Bart Starr, took the Pack down the field.  It was a heartbreaking defeat for the Lions but, they would get their revenge on national TV on Thanksgiving, sacking Bart Starr 10 times in a 26-14 blowout, putting an end to the perfect season of the Packers.  Not exactly a mud bowl by any means but this game was Bart Starr's worst as a QB, a fumble from him and Sam Williams picked it up for a TD and Roger Brown sacked Starr in the end zone for a safety.  Perhaps the lack of mud and rain might have tripped up the Packers, time and time again, Roger Brown, Sam Williams and Alex Karras kept having regular get together running into Starr and the usual vaulted Packers front line simply couldn't stop them.  Detroit managed to stop themselves with five turnovers to which the Packers made the game more respectable   Milt Plum threw two TD passes to Gail Cogdill and hit a 47 yard FG (He missed two other FGs tho).  The 1962 Lions might have been the second best NFL team behind Green Bay and while they won the next two games, Green Bay stormed through the rest of the season and a 3-0 loss to Chicago, threw the Lions back into the Playoff Bowl in Miami once again and they defeated Pittsburgh 17-10.  Green Bay defeated the Giants 16-7 to win the NFL Championship for the second straight year but changes would be forthcoming for both teams.  Paul Horning and Alex Karras got busted for gambling and had to sit out the 1963 year.  Don Shula would become coach of the Baltimore Colts.  The Playoff Bowl win would be Detroit's last win  in either championship or playoff bowls.

Side note: much was made of Milt Plum's interception to Herb Adderley in the final 2 minutes but Wayne Walker missed two FGs, one to which Adderley blocked.  Had Walker made one or both of the FGs Detroit would have won the game, tho Plum's INT with 1:53 left did give the Packers a gift win.  In the Lambeau field mud, Detroit didn't allow a TD.  A lack of a decent kicker may have doomed Detroit from the get go.  Walker missed two FG attempts in a 17-14 loss to the New York Giants, Plum missed three in the Bears loss.  (in essence, Plum should have never thrown that ball, but Walker's field goal miss didn't help things either). 


(from Packers History)

Mud Tie Bowl

14-14 Tie (Green Bay)  11/1/71

A lousy game for both teams.  Howling winds and a steady rain turned Lambeau stadium into Lambeau soup.  Scott Hunter only threw five passes all day and completed one.  John Brockington gained 111 yards and Dave Hampton scored a TD.  However, a Greg Landry to Charlie Sanders TD from 49 yards out before halftime ended all scoring chances and the teams traded punts for the rest of the game, with the exception of missed FGs.  The glory days of the Packers were by now history and Dan Devine didn't help things.


Credit: Journal Sentinel files

Green Bay 10 Detroit 9  (Green Bay)  12-4-77

Another game that pretty much was over after the first half.  Green Bay dominated most of the way and then rode out the game.  Detroit made a game of it in the forth quarter with a Greg Landy to Leonard Thompson.  But Green Bay opted to have their punter take a safety.  There is actually a You Tube of part of this game floating around if you love mud games.  Packers fans were so joyful about winning this game, they tore the goal posts down.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDcus7GJU2U



Green Bay 27  Tampa Bay 14  12-2-84

The Belly Flop Mud Bowl

The mud games between Green Bay and Detroit became less and less, since the Lions moved from Tiger Stadium to the Pontiac Silverdome in 1975 and with the exception of the 1977 fun in the mud 10-9 win and a 1983 OT win by Detroit (Billy Sims ran wild for 189 yards that game), which contributed to the end of the Bart Starr era and the 84 season Forrest Gregg took over, he managed to get the Cincinnati Bengals into the Super Bowl.  Like Starr, Forrest was no Lombardi and would leave a few seasons later for the comforts of SMU.  The Packers simply kept spinning their wheels and couldn't find the end zone if they tried, but on the waning 84 season they spotted a 14 point Tampa Bay lead before scoring the next 27 points, on the strength of Lynn Dickey.   Afterwards, The Packers celebrated by doing mudsurfing across Lambeau Field.


Big Upset Mud Bowl


Pittsburgh 24  Green Bay 17  (Green Bay 12/17/67)

Finally, the last of the Green Bay Mud Bowl Special was this forgotten game that Pittsburgh came to Green Bay and shocked the Packers.  Packers turned the ball over five times, and the Steeler defense scored 2 touchdown on Packer mistakes.  Former Packers RB Earl Gros scored on a 22 yard run.  Bart Starr played sparingly (Lombardi rested him for the playoffs to which the Packers would get back to winning and of course the Super Bowl win) Zeke Bartkowski stumbled and future packer QB Don Horn would take over.   Basically The Packers were looking ahead judging by their lackluster performance. 


If you have noticed the absence of the two most muddiest games in NFL history of the Packers (13-0 over San Francisco on Dec. 10, 1960 in Kezar Stadium, the Mud Bowl Of The West) and the Jan 2, 1966 23-12 whopping of Cleveland in Green Bay, you can find them in earlier editions of our Mud Bowl feature.   We can't forget the big 1996 35-14 whopping of the 49ers in the playoffs.  But in the golden age of football in the 60s and 70s, the majority of Packer mud games were with the Lions.  Most games were defense battles but if you enjoy a nice mud game, these are the best ones of that bygone era.

Thanks to Packers History for the quick references while compiling this blog.   www.packershistory.net


Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Rock And Roll And The Supermoon

My favorite time of the year has always been the full moon cycle, but the Milk Moon (or better known as the Flower Moon) of May is the fave.  The moon is positioned so perfectly, I can see it outside my window as I type this.

I remember the time I was playing Tonight's The Night from Neil Young and watching the moon ride across the window.   But also the Super Moon played a role 8 years ago when I broke up with my ex. We had a major falling out and after screaming at each other for about a half hour, I had enough and helped her moved back to her home five states away.  I think I drove home most of the way without my headlights on.  It was that bright.

Now, eight years later and the moon is slowing making its way west.  It's been a cold year and it feels like it's March in May.  Frost and freeze warnings are out for the weekend but on the whole, we haven't gotten hit with major flood rains that ruined most of the spring.  Even with dry weather, baseball season hasn't started up and the big concern remains if there will be baseball before July or not.  I haven't been to Half Price Books since the shutdown and things remain very chaotic   If there's any Madison bargain hunts, it won't be till late June at the earliest.   It is strange to go out with a mask to try to cover up against sick people.  But so far, I have been healthy.  I can't recall a time which I wasn't sick this long.

Still people are passing away, Flordan Schneiter of Kraftwerk died yesterday at age 73.  Kraftwerk pioneered robot pop as they call it.  Millie Small, died of a stroke at age 72.  It was her song My Boy Lollipop that became the first reggae hit, at that time Jamaica was into something we call Ska, with a rock steady beat somewhat like the Stroll.  2020 has really taken a lot of musicians out of this world today and I suspect we'll have more to follow.  Corona Virus or stroke or cancer.  Nobody gets out alive.

So for now, I'm enjoying watching the Flower Moon from my window.  The weather should be good enough to see it again tomorrow night.


AU ROOOO Baby!

Tuesday, May 5, 2020

Don Shula

To me, the NFL heyday was the 60s and 70s.  Games which were played on chewed up turf, rotten weather, below zero wind chill.  Basically when Franklin Field went with artificial turf in 1969, that was the beginning of the end of real NFL football.   Today's football is not much fun with the usual showoffs doing gangsta moves after a QB sack or TD.   None of the football jollies today would last in the old NFL, of cheap shots, tackles out of bounds and whop upside the helmet shots employed by Deacon Jones or a Hardy Brown clotheslining a running back.

Of course my interest in the NFL came with the DX/Sunoco's 1972 trading stamps. At that time, the Miami Dolphins were chasing perfection.  And finally achieved it by beating Washington 14-7.  The Fins went a perfect 17-0, and since then, nobody has done the same thing.  When the New York Giants derailed New England's attempt at perfection, Don Shula and the 72 said thanks and celebrated.   After all, Miami won their games fair and square.  With New England there was always suspicion.

Don Shula passed away at the age of 90.  He and Vince Lombardi have always, to me, been the best coaches the NFL ever had.    Shula was a excellent defensive back and had 21 interceptions in his career and then Baltimore hired him as a coach in 1963 and two years later made the Championship. Baltimore had the great Johnny Unitas as QB and later Earl Morrall, Earl would figure greatly for Don later on.  Baltimore was tough in the regular season but somehow could never win the big game.  The big glare was the 27-0 whitewashing from Cleveland in the 1964 Championship and later Super Bowl Three to which after Shula got revenge by shutting the Browns out 34-0, watched themselves get upset by the mighty New York Jets 16-7.  The Colts did win two of the Bert Bert Benefit Bowl aka Playoff Bowl, wiping out the Dallas Cowboys 35-3  after Green Bay defeated them 13-10 for the right to play Cleveland (Green Bay won on a questionable Don Chandler FG that looked like it ventured right, to which the NFL would raise the goal posts higher, plus the fact that Shula was using Tom Matte as QB, since Unitas and Gary Cuozzo and Ed Brown were injured also figured into the equation).  Next year Baltimore took out Philadelphia 24-17.  If you take into consideration of the forgotten Playoff Bowl, Shula had won four games to go with the two super bowl titles. But nobody speaks highly of the Playoff Bowl.

The Jets winning did drive a split between Don and then Colts owner Carroll Rosenbloom and after the 1969 season, Shula was let go, and Miami snagged him and till 1995, Shula was their coach.  The Miami team with Bob Griese, Paul Warfield, Jim Kiick, Mercury Morris and Larry Csonka would dominate the NFL with Larry's hit hitting running attack and Warfield's artistry of catching the ball. Miami went 10-4 the first season and two seasons later achieved the perfect season.  The Dolphins had the 53 defense, named after Bob Mathienson, the former Browns linebacker.   When Shula signed up Earl for the 1972 season, little did he knew that Earl would replace Bob Griese, who suffered a broken leg on the astro turf of Miami and Earl rallied the Dolphins to a victory and kept the streak alive.  Earl was 9-0 in the 1972 games and would remains a started till Griese came back to play in the AFL Championship against Pittsburgh and eventually the Super Bowl win.

Miami would repeat once again as Super Bowl champions tho their undefeated streak did end against Oakland (Minnesota actually beat them in a exhibition game but those games don't count), and won the 1973 Super Bowl over Minnesota to which the the Purple People Eater defense couldn't stop Csonka's bull rush straight ahead rushing.  When the WFL came a calling, Paul Warfield, Csonka and Jim Kiick took the money and ran.  The Dolphins went through the motions including the first losing season Shula had as coach (1976 6-8).  But drafting Dan Marino, the second phase of Shula's career went from power running to power passing. The likes of Mark Clayton and Mark (super) Duper enabled to have the Dolphins return back to the super bowl two more times.   Shula retired after the 1995 season.

Of course there is a Trump story to this.  In 1983  The future failed reality star offered him a chance to coach Trump's New Jersey Generals, but when Don wanted to live rent free at Trump Tower, Trump balked at that and Shula remained in Miami.    In the end made a wise choice.

Vince Lombardi and Don Shula are the best NFL Coaches ever.   Like Lombardi, Shula demanded respect and dedication to the team, working his players hard and often but off the field remained loyal and respected to all that he coached.  Shula lived 90 years, but it seemed like yesterday when we saw him go undefeated in the LA sunshine.  Shula enjoyed having the best QBs on his team, Johnny U, Dan Marino, Bob Griese, but I do think that Earl Morrall was the one that got the best results in the regular season games.  Without him the 72 Dolphins wouldn't be perfect.

We all die but legends live in.  In the record book and old faded NFL highlights from the past on You Tube,  Those are the days of the real NFL and Don Shula was as real as it gets.  You cannot replace a legend like Don.