I’ve only been to a very few concerts; caught John Mellencamp at Deer Creek – which was marvelous. As Motor City 5 is to Detroit, so too is Mellencamp to an open-air venue in an Indiana cornfield in July.

One thing about that concert, though, was that Blind Mellon was the opening act. They had one big hit out – No Rain – and they were just terrible!! Awful!! Worse than crashing hammers in a metal beam shop. The lead singer was literally rolling on the stage and groaning and gurgling….he would be dead of an OD within a few months.

(and in fact, Pearl Jam and Eddie Vedder had a little ditty out directed at Blind Melon’s lead singer, but alas – he paid no heed!)

As for Peter Wolf: I have nothing to say about his Detroit cred, but I will say that he showed up at the Springsteen show in Boston last week and, holy cow, is he the worse for the wear. He did a loose-limbed dance/singalong with Patti Scialfa during “10th Avenue Freezeout” and then slithered offstage. He was on the 2nd or 3rd step when he realized he’d left his cocktail on the drum riser; hastier moves were never seen. I only wonder what was in that cup…

Julie Robinson, my wife woke up on the morning of her 56th birthday and the first thing she said was, “I’ve lived longer than my dad”. Something I knew she was thinking for awhile but she’d never come out and directly said it.

But he wrote condensed versions of history, world and personal. “I heard Woodrow Wilson’s guns
I heard Maria calling
Saying, “Veracruz is dying
And Cuernavaca’s falling”

Cuernevaca was a bad place to get caught up in historic moments.

Apparently, Warren’s best friend in his later years was John D. McDonald. Surprising he didn’t seek out his fellow LA curmudgeon Walter Moseley, who carries the John D. McDonald flame. Walter Moseley wrote this: “You said don’t shoot him, right? Well I didn’t. I choked him. If you didn’t want him killed, Easy, why’d you leave him with me?” Raymond “Mouse” Alexander. The definitive Don Cheadle role.

We didn’t lack for musical talent. I know Hideout was before Nancy’s time, but, for instance, Pep Perrine on drums behind Seger on lead on Ramblin’ Gamblin’ was nonpareil, and Heavy Music, those were better than all of the other regional records of that time in space, including Geils. Actually, SRC was as good as MC5, maybe better.

I went to school in New England (at Holy Cross) about that same time, and there were Bary and the Remains, James Montgomery etc. Those Boston bands put Giles in the also-ran, but Detroit ruled. Good grief, Amboy Dukes were actually better.

I know none of you ever heard Detroit music first hand in the late 60s. If you think “Somebody Help Me” exists in the same universe as “Shakin’ Street”, well that’s the same sort of mindset that leads to voting Republican. Listen to the Sonic and Brother Wayne Kramer twin guitars on any song on “Kick Out the Jams” and you see where Skynyrd got the idea.

Anyway, I don’t understand J. Geils hagiography on an allegedly Detroit website. I did kinda get the drinking with Magic Dick reference. I was in Jack’s on Mass Ave. with Peter Wolfe when Reggie Jackson actually cheated in the ’77 World Series. The wooma-gooma voice of the J. Geils Band was outraged about the obvious cheating.

Amazingly, the only other time I ever saw the guy was the night Isiah threw the inbound pass rightto Larry. Who hit DJ for the game winner. We were on the sidewalk. On Massachusetts Ave. Outside Jack’s, home away fromhome of Bonny, the crazy redhead, Raitt. The club where they both became famous. About 200 back from the TV. He was a DJ before he ever got to sing “Love Stinks”. Good guy. Boston guy.

Anyway, that was the night Isiah became a legendary asshole pariah by attempting to denigrate Larry when Larry punked him on the court. “If he (WAS) black, he’d just be another player”. Try the subjunctive, moron. Worse than Matt Millen’s ouvre. We went home and played “Tales of Lucy Blue” aka, “Ramblin”Gamblin Man”.

Of course, if you love Detroit music, and you’ve got a brain these days, Edwin Starr was clairvoyant, except that it was “war” and not “occupation” he thought was patently useless. Two plus two is on my mind.

meanwhile, I am coming up on 35 years of blood donation, starting at IU back in the early 70s when we used to line up for hours in Alumni Hall because Purdue was gonna win the blood-drive contest if we didn’t all turn out and help. never went to a single football game the whole time I was there, no basketball either unless I was working, but I’ll sure bleed for old IU. still don’t have babesiosis or Chagas’ disease, either.