Thursday, May 29, 2008

Behind Every Dumbass Is A Hero


Image courtesy of Flickr.com user mharrsch.

Today is the anniversary of one man inspiring thousands who think they have something to prove. On May 29, 1953, New Zealand mountaineer Edmund Hillary, along with his Nepalese Sherpa Tenzing Norgay, was the first to reach Mount Everest's summit. Since that accomplishment, Sherpas have carried packs and oxygen for nearly 2,500 ascents. Today Nepal's goverment will issue you a climbing permit for a mere $25,000 per person. Unlike Hillary, it's pretty unlikely you'll be remembered, but good luck!

If you haven't already, check out Those Darn Accordions tribute to this curiosity of human nature with There's Another Dumbass on the Mountain.

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Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Anniversary of Mothra's First Fight With Godzilla


On this date in 1964, Mothra clashed with Godzilla for the first time.

The classic movie went by various names, according to Wired.com. It's a sci-fi anniversary I suggest you celebrate by listening to the TDA classic, "Mothra." Just a thought.

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Friday, April 11, 2008

Charlie Daniels Dumps On The Devil

Charlie Daniels is fighting mad about Guitar Hero's version of his tune, "The Devil Went Down To Georgia". He's not too happy that the Devil is allowed to win. Uh oh, TDA has been known to do the same thing in our live versions of the tune. I guess we better change our ways or we might have Charlie come looking for US. Of course, in our recorded version of the tune on our CD, "Squeeze This", the Devil takes the fall everytime. May it always be so!

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Friday, March 07, 2008

Squeeze Machine Secrets: 'Mr. Saggy Butt'

OK, let me just say from the outset that I am fully aware this is a ridiculous song. Of course, that only means it satisfies nicely the stringent criteria for inclusion in the TDA repertoire.

Having got that out of the way, let me quickly relate the inspiration for this ditty. It was on a family trip to the local mall, which in my case is about 40 miles away. There I had my first sighting of "The Mall Walkers."

I had read about these folks appearing in large midwest malls in the winter time and walking briskly around the the entire place for exercise. They usually show up just after the mall opens and begin walking a set course that takes them by literally every shop in the complex. I guess in a way you could call it power window shopping. They tend to walk in pairs and dress so they blend in with the rest of the shoppers, but not always. The more seasoned MW's wear sweats and headbands and take it pretty darn seriously. They've got elbows and they know how to use them, so you want to give these type a wide berth.

Regardless of dress, it's the relentless pace that gives them away. I was immediately mesmerized when I realized I had spotted some right in our own mall blazing by a Radio Shack and cutting a clean swath right through the heart of the line at the Cinnabon. I wanted to follow them but my wife yanked me into an Eddie Bauer and the moment was lost. It was a great image and I filed it away in hopes I could use it somewhere.

Now, every mall has at least one guy that does exactly the opposite of what the mall walkers do. His goal is walk as slowly as possible and linger as long as possible before he is rousted by the security guards and forced to move on. Although you could argue that they too are trying not to be noticed, you have to wonder when you see how they tend to accessorize their attire. In this case, I saw a fellow with all sorts of things hanging off his belt. A teddy bear, toy monkey head, etc. I never got a close enough to get a good look, so I was forced to make a few things up. But one thing that was very clear was his saggy pants. I think the idea is to drop one's drawers to such a low point, that the only mode of locomotion left possible is a slow shuffle.

It's really a bit like a self-imposed governor on one's ability to move. It seems to work great. So I went home with all this churning in my mind and mixed it all up and out came "Mr Saggy Butt." It's silly to be sure, but not nearly so much as the dance I made up to go with it.

I sent a little video of it to the rest of the band so they could learn it and they all replied that they were very concerned about my mental health. Not a new development, but perhaps further proof that may be used against me later. I do hope this doesn't show up on YouTube.

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Wednesday, January 16, 2008

'Larry' Gets a Nice Review

Many thanks to UkeDoggy for the gushing review of "Larry's Wonderful Life" on Amazon.com. I especially like the part where he says he envisions a day when a lot of old TDA tunes will be "rediscovered" and given their due. We can only hope!

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Tuesday, January 15, 2008

'Larry' hits No. 23 on Amazon.com

""Larry's Wonderful Life" off the new TDA CD, Squeeze Machine, is sitting at No. 23 in the "Classical-Ballets/Dances" category on Amazon.com MP3 downloads. It's No. 11,730 overall! Not bad, considering there are more than a million tunes available for download. We're not known for our ballads, but after the reception "Larry" and "Old Slow Guy" received at our shows this weekend, I look forward to adding a few more.

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Friday, December 14, 2007

'Santa Lost A Ho' in LA

Looks like The Christmas Jug Band isn't the only group putting a slightly nutty twist on the holiday season. The Fruitcake Follies is having a sold out run in Los Angeles this year with a little help from "Santa Lost A Ho." Backstage Magazine has a nice little article on a few oddball offerings in the LA area.

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Sunday, November 25, 2007

Paul Rogers: Songs From The Shelf

This may come as a surprise to you, but not every tune I come up with complies with the rigorous standards of nonsense required for inclusion in the TDA set list. So, what happens to these "Non-TDA" tunes you might ask? Oh, I've got a wall full of them. I was staring at that wall the other day and decided, what the heck, I'll start putting some of them up on MySpace on a rotating basis. Just for kicks! So here's my very own MySpace page. Right now I've got a few Christmas tunes that I recorded with The Christmas Jug Band, a special salute to Maynard G. Krebs and a few others. Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Cheers,
Paul Rogers

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