ISO - Apollo 1 Ticket

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Listened to Ten and Vitalogy yesterday and when you get away from the albums for awhile and then come back you're just floored at how good they are. I think what I appreciate most about PJ from the get go is that they've always put albums out - meaning a solid bunch of songs with a cohesion and flow. You may not love every song and/or album but there is serious thought behind it all. True artistry. The best part about yesterday's listening is how much my son loved Vitalogy, he's made me see just how hard the album rocks. And on a side not, once you step away from "Better Man" for a long time, you realize how great it sounds on wax. 

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Listened to Dylan's Time out of Mind and Love & Theft yesterday and it reminded me how much I love his "come back trilogy." Not that anything after Modern Times isn't excellent, pretty everything is but his dip into Americana and mortality in these albums is just amazing. I bought Time Out of Mind when it first came out and it was my Dylan album, and it was good. The lyrics resonated with me 24 years ago and even more so today, there's a poignant reminder of just how deep loss can cut. I'm of the opinion there's nothing better than album, a full set of songs with a common theme - it's a work of art. 

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One of my hobbies has been running but the pandemic has really deflated my joy for it. I haven't given it up but I'm getting slower and it's possible age is slowing me down, or just the fatigue over the amount of miles I run a day (I have a little addiction problem when it comes to logging miles)I don't challenge myself to get out of that comfort zone as much as I should. It's hard, especially when I know I can't hit what I used to hit. There's always today to challenge myself. 

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Funny thing I've found about vinyl is if you want something you better get it. It's not like the old days of cd if a place was out they'd pop up in a week or so. I snatched Lightning Bolt and Avocado for the simple fact that I realized Backspacer is now impossible to find. I just want all the studio albums (sorry Lost Dogs, I can't afford you) and Backspacer is impossible to find and I remember when it was like 19 dollars everywhere, for a long time. 

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Owner/Founder of the great San Francisco book store City Lights passed away. Lawrence Ferlinghetti didn't just promote and publish Ginsberg's "Howl" among other wonder poets of the Beat era but he was also an amazing word smith. Check out this beauty: 

https://www.lyrikline.org/en/poems/coney-island-mind-20-2729

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I listened to the Miseducation of Lauryn Hill yesterday and it really is a beautiful album. It's one of those that has gained a lot of traction on best of lists as the years go by and it makes sense. Lots of soul, original vocal work and just beautiful melody. 

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Dug back into Prince's Sign O the Times this morning and this is an amazing album. Sure it's a little over indulgent but it all works so beautifully. Prince had a gift, I never got it until this past year but he could play and create like few artists. 

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I have to say Prince's song "I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man" is pop bliss - Prince could've pared it down to be a lean 3 minute power pop ballad but instead opted for guitar heavy six minutes of rock beauty. Think of this, Minnesota gave us Bob Dylan and Prince two of hte greatest artists of all time. 

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I get how people could have trepidation of the vaccine but I'd like to see the news focus on how many people are getting it and how many want it and what that will do to the country and reopening. That's a lot of positive. We should be focusing on positive affirmation and how well we will be in the months ahead. 

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Year of the Horse is my favorite Neil Young live album but it's impossible or cost prohibitive to get on vinyl, that being said I picked up his newest Vault Release with Crazy Horse (Way Down the Rust Bucket). It's solid. The songs I love, I love. Some of them are meh but overall it's jam bliss. 

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Am I crazy to saw Neil's music in the 90's is his best period? I love Ragged Glory, Mirror Ball and Broken Arrow. 

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I play this game - The Time Machine Game - where I can go back in time to any musical era and see all the bands I want to see and it's got to be the 70's. The Grateful Dead, Led Zeppelin, Floyd, early Springsteen and Petty, Paul, John and George, Dylan with the Rolling Thunder Review, The Band, Neil Young (with or without Crazy Horse - doesn't matter). I could go on but man that's amazing. 

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Last night TJ McConnell posted the rarest of Triple Doubles - one with 10 steals. This is the first time a player has had a TD with steals since 1998 when....ding ding ding Mookie Blaylock did it. Thought that was fun and random. 

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I rarely if ever believe in trade hype regarding pro sports but for some reason, some insane reason I truly believe Russell Wilson will be a Chicago Bear. I belief so much that I will be legitimately bummed if this doesn't happen. Maybe this is my version of lunatic conspiracy theories since I tend to loathe all of them with a passion...if it doesn't happen mock away (and hopefully a solid mock draft pick as well) but Russ will be in Chicago and tearing it up. 

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It's been awhile since I've been able to read for joy. It's not always about the time but also the motivation to actually do it. 

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I was thinking just how hard it is to pin Pearl Jam in a genre. They were tossed around as grunge (not a genre, not really anything), alternative (again, not really a genre and not Pearl Jam), they get compared with Neil Young (a little I guess), they're rock but they also go hard rock...it's a lot like Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, you can't really pigeon hole them. They have a sound for the most part but it's always changing - the band evolves. While someone like Radiohead is known for a constant evolution I'd argue Pearl Jam exists in a similar vein (Ten - Gigaton) while not seismic, surely not similar. 

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I gave Gigaton a spin for the first time a long spell and it's really a great record. I think the pandemic really had a part to play in wanting to escape in music from the past or that wasn't so damn relevant. But what a beautiful record. I really discovered some love for "Alright" and "Whoever Said." 

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Gigaton really has some keepers and every single song I'd like to hear live. Especially "Whoever Said" & "Quick Escape," I feel like those are tailor made for some killer jams. I know that comes years down the line but it's fun to think about how these songs would work and fit into a setlist. 

Positive news story of the day comes from India. I don't get littering. I just don't. 

https://www.goodnewsnetwork.org/ns-rajappan-litter-clean-up-plastic-bottles-kerala-lake/

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Gave Yield a full listen this morning and I love digging back into the band's catalogue, especially after a long time away. It's always so fresh. The best bands keep these tight albums and punch through once a listener gives it a shot. 

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I've seen so many people walking outside the past week. We always get a cold break in the Mid-West but with an especially brutal winter and a rough pandemic I'm sure it has to do with more and more people going out in droves. It's refreshing and I can only hope people decide pay more attention to our environment and take care of the world we live on. 

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Call me crazy but I'm feeling more and more optimistic about shows in late 2021. Will I see one? Who cares. Someone will and I think people in this forum will see PJ in all their glory in an outdoor venue. 

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Tom Petty might be the only artist that I can listen to a Greatest Hits and love, listen to most any album and love, listen to B Sides, Live and/or listen to an Anthology of the hits and random songs. I can't say that about any other artist. 

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We are a year into what has been an odd time and with March Madness returning, I still have that optimism. When will the Apollo show happen? Probably 2022. But at this point, waiting doesn't really matter, it's all about the outcome.

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I hate interrupting the Boston 2 Puke thread but I'm doing it. That thread is amazing. So many people enthused by vomit. Which begs the question, once we get back to shows: would anyone care that much about throw up just to get to see the band again?  

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Fantasy Baseball is back! Again, I love normal. 

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Here is an article everyone that's having a hard time with right now. 
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2021/03/how-tell-if-you-have-burnout/618250/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=atlantic-daily-newsletter&utm_content=20210316&silverid-ref=NzE2NTY1MTg5OTA5S0

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I've recently gotten back into reading. I had a wonderful summer of novels and work burnout has had me looking for other cures, reading is becoming a happy place to let my mind wander and disengage with the absurdity I see happening around me. Read more. 

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Enjoy The Madness! Concerts coming soon!

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Harry Styles is not only talented but his album is solid. I watched the Grammys for what I'm guessing is the first time in 20 years and he kicked it off. I liked it enough to listen up and yeah, good music. Not what I was expecting at all. 

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It occurred to me that I've been at this for well over a year, it doesn't seem like it and at the same time has a year seemed longer? I started with self deprecating jokes about hazmat suits...had I only known...seems crass and wrong now. Never meant harm, nor cruelty.