'Best of TBH Politoons'
Reader Review
Thin Lizzy :Vagabonds, Kings, Angels, Warriors
Thin Lizzy was one of my favorite bands from my high school days, and remain high on the list after all these years. I got to see them at the armadillo on the Jailbreak tour when I was but a wee lad, but I can close my eyes and it was yesterday. Anyway, Vagabonds is a coffee table book with 4 CD's covering TL from the beginning to the end.
Disc one covers the trying to find our sound period...a mish mash of celtic folk, rock and some really weird tempo changes that at times will have you smiling and then a couple songs later, cringing at the awkward sounds of a band trying to find it's voice. Two things are clear..."Whiskey in the Jar" defined the sound (Metallica should be ashamed BTW) and Phil Lynott can write some lyrics...sometimes loquatious and corny, but heartfelt. Very well suited to his voice. He improved over time but never lost that tendency for sometimes loquatious and corny. But it was always heartfelt, and you can hear that in his delivery. Phil had an awesome voice...in fact, I used to use the Jailbreak album to exercise my voice ( You know, sing along with the record...but it was not in front of a mirror making stupid faces into a hair brush and / or playing air guitar with the toilet brush...well, maybe it was, I don't recall. )
Disc two focuses on the Brian Robertson / Scott Gorham twin guitar thing. It closes with selections from Jailbreak. The breakthrough album.
Disc three culls heavily from the follow up to Jailbreak, Johnny the Fox. Which is ok by me, I love that album. Lyrically it's high in cliche and old western movies. Still tight in the guitars as well. Then we have some stuff from Bad Reputation, the last album I bought.
Because, after that, they basically sucked. There are few props given for the album Black Rose: A Rock Legend, which, in my opinion is better than Bad reputation.
Disc four is new terrritory for me, I recognize some of it readily, some not so much. I refer to this period as Thin Lizzy watches Phil Lynott kill himself while continuing to make records and changing personnel like he should have been changing his works...asshole artist...are they all troubled?
I miss Phil.
The book part of this compilation is great, lots of good pictures ( my favorites are the stills of Scott Gorham looking like Dr. Quinn: Medicine Woman ).
Th' Rev gives "Vagabonds, Kings, Angels, Warriors" 10 out of 10 four leaf clovers for being an honest representation of a underrated band.
Recommended Reading
from Bruce
U.N. report says Britain worst place for children (Reuters)
Britain is the worst country in the industrialized world in which to be a child, closely followed by the United States, the United Nations Children's Fund said on Wednesday.
Jeanna Bryner: Women Settle for Mediocre Sex, Scientist Finds (livescience.com)
Women have high expectations for nearly every area of their lives, but when it comes to sex, they settle for less.
Bjorn Carey The Rules of Attraction in the Game of Love (livescience.com)
Interestingly, brain scans in people who'd recently fallen in love reveal more activity related to love than sex. "Romantic love is one of the most powerful of all human experiences," says Helen Fisher, an anthropologist at Rutgers University. "It is definitely more powerful than the sex drive."
By Po Bronson: How Not to Talk to Your Kids (nymag.com)
Praising your children to boost their self-esteem can backfire. It does not improve grades, and when it comes from teachers, well...
Mark Morford: How To Shave The Modern Male (sfgate.com)
In which a helpful corporate giant encourages you to please groom your crotch. Truly.
Taboo or not taboo? (guardian.co.uk)
As Daniel Radcliffe prepares to bare all on stage in Equus, Michael Billington wonders why a flash of flesh can still shock.
Take that, Adolf! (guardian.co.uk)
At the start of the war, they played to half- empty halls. By the end, they were national heroes. Judith Mackrell on how the Royal Ballet danced on as the bombs rained down.
John Nesbit: Review: Rock and Roll High School (toxicuniverse.com)
Much of the plot, the script, and characters seem juvenile, but casting the Ramones ranks as a real coup, lending infinite credibility to the anti-establishment ideas hinted at in the film and transforming a relatively inferior film into required viewing by any punk fan. By far the best portions of the film are communicated through the music-and the Ramones remind us just how much fun rock and roll can be.
Rock and Roll High School: 76 % Fresh (rottentomatoes.com)
School of Rock: 90 % Fresh (rottentomatoes.com)
Purple Gene Reviews
Tim Hardaway
Selected Readings
from that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
Cool but sunny day.
Announces Climate Change Concerts
Al Gore
Al Gore announced on Thursday a series of worldwide concerts to focus on the threat of climate change, with a powerhouse lineup from the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Snoop Dogg to Bon Jovi.
The 24-hour event on July 7 is part of a campaign, Save Our Selves - The Campaign for a Climate in Crisis, that promoters hope will trigger a broad movement to address what the former vice president calls a global climate crisis.
More than 100 performers are scheduled to appear at the July concerts, including Etheridge, the Foo Fighters, Lenny Kravitz, Sheryl Crow, John Mayer, Duran Duran, Korn, Pharrell, the Black Eyed Peas, Akon, Enrique Iglesias, Faith Hill and Tim McGraw.
Promoters said the Live Earth concerts will take place in Shanghai, China; Johannesburg, South Africa; Sydney, Australia; London and cities to be announced in Japan, Brazil and the United States.
Al Gore
Four More Years
Keith Olbermann
Keith Olbermann will continue to be a thorn in Bill O'Reilly's side for at least four more years.
NBC News announced Thursday it had agreed to a "second term" with the MSNBC "Countdown" host, whose contract was due to expire next month. The extension will take him into 2011.
Olbermann will also contribute occasional essays to "NBC Nightly News" and there will be two prime-time "Countdown" specials a year on NBC, a division of NBC Universal, said NBC News President Steve Capus.
Keith Olbermann
French Legion of Honour
Clint Eastwood
Veteran US actor and director Clint Eastwood is to be awarded France's highest distinction, the Legion of Honour, in Paris, the French presidency said.
President Jacques Chirac will chair the ceremony at the Elysee palace at 1030 GMT.
The 76-year-old Hollywood star's acclaimed latest work, "Letters from Iwo Jima", received its European premiere at the 57th Berlin Film Festival on Sunday.
Clint Eastwood
Fox News Comedy
'The Half-Hour News Hour'
Fox News Channel will air the first of two episodes of "24" executive producer Joel Surnow's conservative-leaning satire Sunday night.
It's hosted by comedians Kurt Long and Jennifer Robertson, and both shows were filmed in front of a studio audience last month in Los Angeles. (Robertson replaces Susan Yeagley, who was the co-host in the pilot but who was about to have a child at the time of the taping.)
Surnow said Monday that the show comes from a "right leaning point of view," more so than other shows of its kind.
"We're just going to even out the playing field a little bit and hit targets that we think are hilarious and do it in a very spirited, but warm-spirited, way. It's not mean," Surnow said.
'The Half-Hour News Hour'
First Review Is In - Orlando Sentinel
Fox News Channel Bombs
Fox News Channel does not know how to do slashing comical commentary. The channel debuts "The 1/2 Hour News Hour" at 10 p.m. Sunday and repeats it at 10 p.m. Feb. 25. This show was meant to be a conservative version of "The Daily Show." It is a botch.
"The 1/2 Hour News Hour" does not comment on what is happening; it simply takes swipes at people. These people include Howard Dean, Hillary Clinton, Dennis Kucinich, Barack Obama and Ed Begley Jr. Other joke topics are the ACLU, Time magazine, children's books and global warming.
"The 1/2 Hour News Hour" was developed by Joel Surnow, who has given the world many minutes of entertainment through "24." On the basis of the premiere, Surnow should stick to political thrillers.
At the top, Rush Limbaugh puts in a cameo as the U.S. president (the year is 2009); Ann Coulter drops in as his vice president. Then they disappear, a smart move.
Fox News Channel Bombs
Opening Themed Restaurants
Carlos Santana
The newest addition to the roster of celebrity-inspired restaurants, Carlos Santana's Maria Maria, promises to deliver authentic Mexican cuisine in an atmosphere inspired by his music.
The 59-year-old musician and his wife, Deborah, announced a partnership this week with Walnut Creek-based Dudum Sports & Entertainment Corp., which developed Joe DiMaggio's Italian Chophouse in San Francisco and other celebrity-focused establishments.
The first restaurant is scheduled to open in Walnut Creek in April, followed by Mill Valley in May and Santa Rosa in June.
Carlos Santana
Wedding News
Russell - Deary
Keri Russell, who starred in TV's "Felicity," married contractor Shane Deary in Manhattan on Valentine's Day, her spokeswoman said Thursday.
Russell and Deary, both 30, became engaged last year. Russell is expecting her first child this summer, Jill Fritzo, the actress' publicist, said last month.
Russell - Deary
Done With Doors
Ian Astbury
British rock singer Ian Astbury has quit the Doors revival band formed by two of the legendary group's members, and will resurrect his old combo the Cult, he said on Thursday.
Astbury convincingly filled the late Jim Morrison's shoes in Riders on the Storm for the past four years, playing alongside original Doors members, keyboardist Ray Manzarek and guitarist Robby Krieger.
The new group was originally called the Doors of the 21st Century, until Manzarek and Krieger lost a lawsuit filed by former Doors drummer John Densmore, who said the Doors name was being cheapened on the oldies tour circuit.
Ian Astbury
Settles Malibu Beach Access Issue
David Geffen
The California Coastal Commission agreed Wednesday to forgive David Geffen for building a deck that intruded into a public easement. In exchange Geffen agreed to open a stretch of beach in front of his home that had been closed to the public.
Commissioners allowed the 63-year-old entertainment mogul to keep a wooden stairway to the beach. They also gave him a privacy buffer so the public cannot legally intrude on his property.
The decision comes 24 years after Geffen first promised a public walkway to Malibu's Carbon Beach. The legal skirmishes over Geffen's reluctance to give the public access to the beach near his home inspired headlines across the U.S. and in Europe.
David Geffen
Agents Raid Florida Offices
Lou Pearlman
U.S. agents on Thursday raided the home and offices of boy-band impresario Lou Pearlman, known for launching 'N Sync and the Backstreet Boys, as part of a criminal investigation, officials said.
Federal prosecutors and the FBI were investigating "various allegations leveled against Mr. Pearlman and his entities," U.S. Attorney's Office spokesman Steve Cole said.
The investigation follows a complaint filed in December by the Florida Office of Financial Regulation alleging securities fraud against Pearlman and 16 of his business entities, many of them beginning with the words Trans Continental.
Lou Pearlman
Grown 6,100 Years Ago
Peppers
Here's a hot, new discovery: archaeologists have traced what they believe is evidence of the first home-grown chili peppers, used in South America 6,100 years ago.
And it was people in tropical, lowland areas of what is now western Ecuador who first spiced up their cuisine, not those from higher, drier Mexico and Peru as was previously assumed, said Scott Raymond, a University of Calgary archaeologist.
Results from the Canadian-U.S.-Venezuelan project yielded evidence that peppers were farmed in the region more than 1,000 years before the plants were cultivated in Peru or Mexico, Raymond said.
Peppers
Report Urges FCC To Limit
TV Violence
Beaten up and strapped to a chair, once again it looks like the end for Jack Bauer, the hero of Fox Network's hit show "24." Using his wits (and his teeth), Bauer goes for the jugular - literally. Broadcasters are free to televise such cringe-inducing scenes of violence with relative impunity in the U.S. But a new draft report from the Federal Communications Commission suggests the government may be able to limit violence on TV in a way that does not violate the Constitution.
The long-overdue report suggests Congress could craft a law that would let the agency regulate violent programming much like it regulates sexual content and profanity - by barring it from being aired during hours when children may be watching, for example.
The issue is bipartisan. Martin, a Republican, gave a joint interview Thursday to The Associated Press with Democratic Commissioner Michael Copps.
TV Violence
Hedgehog Speaks
Ron Jeremy
Porn star Ron Jeremy wants to be taken seriously -- with his clothes on.
Dressed in a dark track suit with a protruding belly that shows he is past his physical prime, Jeremy hardly strikes you as one of the most successful American porn stars.
But Jeremy, 53, who claims to have been with more than 4,000 women during a 30-year career, is the first to admit that he is not your stereotypical sex star. He believes his average looks are a key to his success.
In a new memoir, "Ron Jeremy: The Hardest (Working) Man in Showbiz," he said audiences identified with him because he was just like them -- hairy, with a mustache and standing just 5 feet 6 inches tall.
Ron Jeremy
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