Yep, Rockford was a thriving industrial city on a river -- second-largest city in Illinois at one time -- manufacturing. Look at your old school furniture and it will probably say, made in Rockford. Anyway, wood was their game. It's all GONE now...

The weather is diabolical, they'd get flooding... and now... can't think of what the job base would be like their. From memory, we used to go up there to hear music sometimes and go to Nielsen's Music -- yeah, family business. I noticed the Handcuffs have played a few shows up there -- perhaps there's some connection to a member of their band or something.

I guess Rockford would be a lot like Allentown -- there's a small downtown district that is trying to come back, but... it doesn't have the proximity to NYC like Allentown, so nothing to develop there.

Yes, I read about the exhibit too -- Nielsen's guitar collection was featured. :D

If someone wanted to shout me a ticket now I'd still go see 'em -- at least that band knows how to generate some FUN in their rock 'n roll.

I've only been there once. Don't know it's back - history. It's just a depressed rural - in - appearance town in the middle of nowhere. But , a lot of small towns in Illinois are much the same. Cheap Trick put 'em on the map , sorta. But , that changes nothing for the people who have to live there....My friend told me they just had a Cheap Trick museum exhibit , there , I'm like , ohhhhkay. Nuthin' personal , I could'nt even see my favorite bands getting a museum exhibit ,maybe a corner in the "Hall of Fame" or The Museum of Contemporary Art  , when they did their Rock/Art EXHIBIT......I think Nielson still has a house in Rockford , but , he probably has a few houses.
  MikeL said:

Is Rockford another one of those towns that has lost much of its industrial base, leaving behind rusting factories and poverty? Can't be any worse than a whole lot of other places.

John Battles said:

 I was never a Cheap Trick fan ( Which is heresy for a White , male Chicagoan, I know) , Mike , but , I always enjoy your threads. I JUST BOUGHT A SWEET -ASS 8 TRACK PLAYER WITH A BUILT - IN AMP , SPEAKERS , AND TWO CASES OF TAPES......INCLUDING CHEAP TRICKS' DEBUT , which I sort of like . It's very Roy Wood and Gary Glitter influenced , at a time when it'd still be years 'til Glam Rock would be co - opted by American acts like Joan Jett and (UGH) Quiet Riot (Or are they British? Who cares.) and even Krokus (YEESH) from Switzerland , to say nothing of bands people mistook for Glam like Poison and Motley Crue. All the while ,Tommy James had already glommed on to the previously - ignored Glam bandwagon , with "In Touch" around the time "Cheap Trick " came out. Cheap Trick , at least , get bonus points for  doing "California Man" by Wizzard.                     Anyway , enjoy the show. Don't go to Rockford , Illinois , the band's original home. It's DEPRESSING !

Cheap Trick was the 1st concert I ever went to, in a freakin' basketball stadium, which made everything echo-y (not that I cared). They were promoting One On One, which I think is their best LP. It was fantastic!

The next day, half of the kids in my classes came back w/  1.Tinnitus (which we bragged about) and 2. Those baseball tour jerseys with that 6-necked Hamer on it. Good times.

Is Rockford another one of those towns that has lost much of its industrial base, leaving behind rusting factories and poverty? Can't be any worse than a whole lot of other places.

John Battles said:

 I was never a Cheap Trick fan ( Which is heresy for a White , male Chicagoan, I know) , Mike , but , I always enjoy your threads. I JUST BOUGHT A SWEET -ASS 8 TRACK PLAYER WITH A BUILT - IN AMP , SPEAKERS , AND TWO CASES OF TAPES......INCLUDING CHEAP TRICKS' DEBUT , which I sort of like . It's very Roy Wood and Gary Glitter influenced , at a time when it'd still be years 'til Glam Rock would be co - opted by American acts like Joan Jett and (UGH) Quiet Riot (Or are they British? Who cares.) and even Krokus (YEESH) from Switzerland , to say nothing of bands people mistook for Glam like Poison and Motley Crue. All the while ,Tommy James had already glommed on to the previously - ignored Glam bandwagon , with "In Touch" around the time "Cheap Trick " came out. Cheap Trick , at least , get bonus points for  doing "California Man" by Wizzard.                     Anyway , enjoy the show. Don't go to Rockford , Illinois , the band's original home. It's DEPRESSING !

Power Pop Pappys -- Cheap Trick. As a kid growing up in Chicago, you could not escape 'em. And yeah, my friends and I used to see them at the Amphitheatre -- I think Graham Parker opened for them one time. Anyway, it was a party atmosphere and lots of screamin' kiddlets. I shrug now when I think of those shows -- musical junk food maybe? Really fun while in the process. Nice energy on every night I saw them.

That said, I'm not one for listening to bands where the singer's voice is higher than mine, so I lost interest pretty quickly... Can't imagine Nielsen runs around the way he did then! He was manic, in a good way. :D Happy powerpoppy dreams to you MikeL and all who go and enjoy.

Re the Live LP -- yup, a benchmark perhaps? They really captured the excitement and momentum somehow. Can't say as I've heard it for a very long while.

 I was never a Cheap Trick fan ( Which is heresy for a White , male Chicagoan, I know) , Mike , but , I always enjoy your threads. I JUST BOUGHT A SWEET -ASS 8 TRACK PLAYER WITH A BUILT - IN AMP , SPEAKERS , AND TWO CASES OF TAPES......INCLUDING CHEAP TRICKS' DEBUT , which I sort of like . It's very Roy Wood and Gary Glitter influenced , at a time when it'd still be years 'til Glam Rock would be co - opted by American acts like Joan Jett and (UGH) Quiet Riot (Or are they British? Who cares.) and even Krokus (YEESH) from Switzerland , to say nothing of bands people mistook for Glam like Poison and Motley Crue. All the while ,Tommy James had already glommed on to the previously - ignored Glam bandwagon , with "In Touch" around the time "Cheap Trick " came out. Cheap Trick , at least , get bonus points for  doing "California Man" by Wizzard.                     Anyway , enjoy the show. Don't go to Rockford , Illinois , the band's original home. It's DEPRESSING !

Check out this Cheap Trick tribute band, Cheapest Trick.
https://www.facebook.com/CheapestTrick

I almost saw them for free last year! But it was for Wal-Mart shareholders week and they played with Aerosmith and I was a loser and stayed home. Sigh.

I've seen them twice. The first time was when they played at my university (I think it was my senior year... most likely 1987) in Warrensburg, MO, of all places, and the 2nd time was sometime in the late '90s at a private gig at the Blueberry Hill Duck Room in St. Louis—pretty small venue to see such a big-name act. It was a "Marlboro Points" show. You had to have a certain number of Marlboro Points to get in. I didn't even smoke Marlboros back then, but a friend of mine somehow was able to get enough points for us to get in. It was amazing, though. Rick Nielsen's guitars (probably a couple dozen of them) were all cordoned off in one section off to the side of the stage.

It's just been announced that they are coming to Pittsburgh on Aug. 21, and they will play at Stage AE, which is a fairly new venue on the North Side. This will be my first time seeing Cheap Trick, and it will also be the first show I'll see at Stage AE. BTW, before you ask, I just never got around to seeing them before, hence that is why this is my first time.

I take it there are some Cheap Trick fans around here, right? Anyone have any memories to share about this band, or any thoughts on songs and/or albums? When I was a kid, they were the only other band I liked besides KISS, and I used to have a vinyl copy of "Live at Budokan." I now have the complete concert on CD, and I still think it's a great live album.

Could'nt tell ya. But , thanks to you and Jane Dear for the new submissions.

I have'nt thought of any good ones , lately.

Adrian Alfonso said:

Yeah, I never understood how he thought THAT was the chorus,

I mean, it's in the song title..

oh another one, that smiths song 'how soon is now'.  My friend used to think the chorus went "I am Puma and I need to be loved, just like everybody else does".

mind, he was pretty drunk when he first heard it, nevertheless, I refuse to sing it any other way than that now. haha

I'm right out teh door ,but , I''ll check it out later. "Extra Baggage" would be more accessible , but , maybe they're talking about cooking a dead guy like he was Jerk Chicken,,,,
 
Jane Dear said:

At around 1:10 the lyrics are supposedly "lets say we throw the extra baggage, come from the jerk from the man on fire" but I'm pretty sure it's more like something about "sexy maggots" and "the church of the minotaur."

 

At around 1:10 the lyrics are supposedly "lets say we throw the extra baggage, come from the jerk from the man on fire" but I'm pretty sure it's more like something about "sexy maggots" and "the church of the minotaur."

Yeah, I never understood how he thought THAT was the chorus,

I mean, it's in the song title..

oh another one, that smiths song 'how soon is now'.  My friend used to think the chorus went "I am Puma and I need to be loved, just like everybody else does".

mind, he was pretty drunk when he first heard it, nevertheless, I refuse to sing it any other way than that now. haha

"Oh , oh , Island of Soul", that's pretty funny.

So many songs..

My Friend Lily used to sing "Summer Girls, You got nothing to lose" to Cheap Tricks' 'Southern Girls'

Another friend of mine used to sing along "Oh Oh, Island of Soul"  to the Ramones' 'I Love Her So'.

 OK , this is true , but.....IT'S A FACT THAT ELVIS WOULD PROCURE CURRENT ROCK stars in the 70's for private social gatherings at Graceland , or one of his homes in California.

At one such gathering , Alice Cooper was summoned to meet his idol. Elvis wanted to demostrate a defensive Karate move for the assembled few . He literally handed Cooper a loaded rifle , and told him to lunge at him , like he was attacking him. Despite his protests , Evis demanded that Alice do as he said. Alice took the gun , and ran right into Presley , who disarmed him. But , Alice later said , "If this had'nt worked , I was thinking about the fact that I'd be on the front page of ever newspaper in the world !"

THANK YOU ,MELISSA. I GET A GOOD ONE IN NOW AND AGAIN......I'm already seeing "Stitch'n'Bitch" books , so , I say , strike while the iron's hot.

Black Metal/Avant Jazz / Fucking Noise Drummer , Weasel Walter played at a Roctober  tribute show for Samy Davis , Jr. Of course , he made it clear that he never liked Sammy. People booed. I shouted "You should have a hotel with 18 rooms , and a stomach ache in each room!!!"(A Jewish curse I learned from "All in The Family , which Sammy owns one of teh best eisodes of , ever.)............But , when Walter got down to it , he did a Drums and Vocal Rant MEDLEY FROM "wEST sIDE sTORY".......iT WAS LIKE SAMMY 's and Buddy Rich's WSS medleys run thru a sausage grater. Pretty intense. ANGRY , Punk as Fuck.

Where Have You Gone Russ Tamblyn? I'd also say The Alice Cooper Group's James Bond Tribute "Halo of Flies"is High Concept as Hell , and a fantastic arrangement. Their "Man With The Golden Gun" , recorded between McCARTNEY'S "LIVE AND LET DIE" and the chosen track for thE next BOND epic , by Lulu (Love me some Lulu , but , no......), should have been the theme song. Who's more like Christopher Lee? Alice , OF COURSE.

'' Gutter Cat Vs. The Jets" is another mini - opera , starting out as a sex and violence Krazy Kat J.D film/cartoon , with The Jets' SONG FROM wEST sIDE sTORY ACCELERATING the violence , especially in their live show , with Alice and Drummer Neal Smith fighting around a garbage can , looking like they're really beating the shit out each other , and employing a very real looking knife.......Lot of stabbings in Shakespeare , too.

Very clever John Battles hahaha, knit one, Purl Jam? hahaha Sorry Johnny Lurg... GJB was just making a very obscure joke -- but I like it... Purl Jam... Hmmmm Might have to be the title of my book. Thanks John!

No doubt there will be 10,000 copies of the ridiculous CD trifecta the former punks of GD produced recently. Stinkeroos. I guess they are entitled to a few like everyone else who hangs on as long as they have...

Wondering if it impossible to have a punk opera? I mean... the songs are pretty short... speed opera :D Concept? Fuck you, we don't need a stinking concept. Concepts are for those Stadium Rawk twats! Just kidding really as I love it when people play around on the margins of genres... Awaiting more candidates to fit the Concept category ....

OH , YOU KNOW , "KNIT ONE , PURL TWO "( KNITTING.) ... I was just doing my own parody of an out -of - it old man , which is'nt much of a stretch....I finally had to ask Melissa , who is "American Idiot " by , anyway?  My first guess was Green Day , but , I saw about 2O GREEN DAY CDs AT A STORE I WAS AT , THE OTHER DAY , BUT , THERE WAS NO SUCH TITLE. It IS a Green Day album , she confirmed.
 
Johnny Lurg said:

I don't even know what "Knit One" is supposed to be a parody of.

John Battles said:

I'm just not up with these kids and their IPUDs and their VINYLS and doohickies and whatchamacallits. What band are we talking about , again ? Knit One , PURL JAM? 

"Ships May 24."

http://www.intheredrecords.com/pages/order-us.html

True that. I found my bestest friend ever because of music and even let him marry me! Best decision I ever made. 

John Battles said:

It is. Don't think my friend does'nt like the sound of that word , either ! It's great when two people are on the same path , and , if you want to say music is'nt a BIG part of that , you may fool yourself, but you don't fool me.
 

Ha ha. A mclusky t shirt would look good wi anything really!
 
SURFERFUZZ said:

Funny! My wife was telling me to grow up when I was 26 doing that, that part will never go away. I think a McLusky T would look good with chinos, you rule.

The Trip!  May 5th Show!  It's Springtime!  Listen here: http://cjamlog1.cjam.ca/mp3dirnew/381-The_Trip-20130505-0030-t1367710200.mp3

The setlist: 

Hey Drew, 

Feel free to provide me with any files in my garagepunk.com PM box!  Would be more than happy to play you guys over the Detroit airwaves! 

Drew Starr said:

Hay Black Cat 69, check out the dRIVIN bEATS on Reverbnation or facebook. I'll send ya some tunes if you are interested. Everything recorded in 2013.

Drew Starr