Run down, lied to

Losses are usually the result of a lot of little things. In the past, in the good years, they stemmed from various small and difficult-to-define things. And, watching, you didn't feel like they'd repeat themselves in generally the same combination the entire season.

Now we can see clearly what the problems are, and they're intrinsic to the current program. And there are so many of them that it's less time consuming, and appropriate, to just say "we're terrible" and blame Coach Richt.

Joe: Who on earth is a better coach than Nick Saban and Urban Meyer?

The good times, really over

Starnes: Cue Merle Haggard.

Me: It's getting hard to argue.

The man may die, but not the music

Today makes eight years since Widespread Panic guitarist Michael Houser died of pancreatic cancer. Time, she flies.






And a little lesser known, but maybe my personal favorite ...

New Bulldog anthem out from J. Skeezy, Fresh

H.E.R. Hip-Hop, which has its roots in the University of Georgia's music business program may be bringing a new song to Sanford Stadium in 2010.



From the company's site:

We debuted the track yesterday and now we get the news that J. Skeezy and Fresh’s Bulldog Nation is the OFFICIAL anthem of the UGA Bulldogs for the 2010 season (and beyond?). Remember, you can download the song from iTunes on August 10th. This is amazing news for Fresh, Skeezy and Team E.C.S.T.A.C.Y.! Congrats guys, you’ve been on your grind! You deserve it!

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UPDATE: Uh-oh. The word official, and the statement above, are gone on the company's site, replaced with this:

As both current and former students of the University of Georgia, H.E.R Hip-Hop is proud to present you with the Dawgs unoffical 2010 anthem. Skeezy and Fresh go in on this one, making us proud to be Bulldogs. Listen to the track below and make sure to show your support by purchasing the song on iTunes when it’s released on August 10th.

Said UGA Athletic Dept. Spokesman and Associate Director Claude Felton: "While the song may be used during the 2010 season on occasion, it is not the official song of the Georgia Bulldogs.”

No worries, guys. The song's still playing on markricht.com. And it's significantly cooler than this.
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You can also listen to the song here:



We'll see where this goes. It's catchy, but I don't know that we should be rapping "who cares about the Crimson Tide." And I can't quite catch what it says about Florida, but if I'm right in hearing "slaughter you gators ..." well, no one tell Urban Meyer we said that, OK?

Note: L.I. Athens Bureau Chief Brian Huff, a music business student himself, called our attention to this.

Note: This post edited to conform with new information.

Update: GSB has gotten word that the highlight video associated with the song will be played after the third quarter at Sanford.

"I don't believe you. You're a liar."

It's kind of like watching Rock n' Roll realize it doesn't have to crawl anymore, it can walk.


1966, Manchester Free Trade Hall.

The streets of Rome, are filled with rubble

Suitable interlude.

Vic Chesnutt, dead on Christmas day

From The Flagpole:

Vic Chesnutt died in Athens Georgia this afternoon, Friday 25 December at 14:59.

From The New York Daily News in 2005:

"Every aspect of human nature needs to be written about," Chesnutt says. "Writers are like Geiger counters, or seismic meters. They show you the things you should pay attention to that go on underneath."

From The Village Voice in 2008:

Vic, tell me something you’ve never ever done before in your life.

Well, I’ve never gone back in time.

Reports: Vic Chesnutt in a coma

Numerous media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, are reporting that Athens singer / songwriter Vic Chesnutt is in a coma.

Some of the reports reference rumors of suicide, and you don't have to listen much of Chesnutt's music to know he is as troubled as he is brilliant.

Update: The Flagpole doesn't have much more information, but promises updates as they are available.

Sugar

I kind of meant on Sunday to say that, instead of recovery through music, we were going to have music chosen to make you feel worse.


I like the meaning where this is about my wonderful, beautiful girlfriend, instead of about the Georgia Bulldogs, who have some serious defects.

Time to start thinking about next season

Warren Zevon - Werewolves of London
by PigLips

That should just about cover it for now.

Star Spangled in Texas

Singing your National Anthem capably at a sporting event = lifetime achievement.


Also available at Cowboys Stadium.

Recovery through music: Merle Haggard

Dan: I suggest you find video of Merle Haggard's "Are the Good Times Really Over" and post it.



Stop rolling down hill like a snow ball headed for hell.
Stand up for the flag and let's all ring the liberty bell.

Throw my ticket, let the green grass fool you

All I'm sure of is that Bob Dylan, Wilson Pickett, A.J. Green and Rennie Curran have all been badasses.

Dan: This punt return situation is pissing me off more as I think about it. Why would we not try to return the ball, or try to block the punt, especially when they're backed up near their own end zone? Why would we just concede that kind of yardage?

Dan: I still want Coach Richt to stay there forever, but I really want him to coach differently.

Dan Starnes is head of Lucid Idiocy's football analysis division because he's the most reasonable person I know on the subject. If Coach Richt is starting to lose him a little, and people are throwing the word "stubborn" around ... well, I guess it's not the first bad sign.

Me: I don't need to hear about how great Joe Cox is. We had no business throwing that last pass, except that it was to A.J. Green.

Joe: Well, you're the one who.. you know. I think he's mediocre, still.

Let me add that Soulsville, USA, is a great place to claim as home, that I'm hoping the new "V" remake on ABC is even better than I remember the original being, and that I didn't really know until last night that this Bob Dylan song even existed.

Some people are like that. They did so many things that you turn around a corner and think, "Man, you did that one, too?"

What am I trying to say here? Beating Tennessee is really important if you want to be better than 7-5, and it's pretty damn important if you want to be 7-5, period. That's not a good place to be in. But Don't Let the Green Grass Fool You.

And Bob Dylan knows his stuff. I love that YouTube takes pirated music and offers to sell it to you. That is the art of taking your weakness, and making it your strength.


You do have to click twice for the ad, though.

That is a two way street in life. Right now Coach Richt and his staff, bless them, ain't going the right way on it.

Update: But of course that can change quickly. Beat Tennessee.

Recovery through music

David Hale reporting:

Head coach Mark Richt said the team would have to wait for the results of an MRI before knowing the severity of the injury, but Sturdivant was wearing a cast down the length of his leg and was on crutches after the game.

This must be the place

18 days is tantalizingly close.

I can't tell one from another
Did I find you or you find me?
There was a time, before we were born
If someone asks, this is where I'll be ... (sound)


Share the same space for a minute or two ... (lyrics)

Music in a time machine

The archivist for Widespread Panic has a blog. And then I'm sitting at work listening to an early version of the band play Not Fade Away in 1985 and reading the story of the band's formation:

Once we had to take our game outside, we obviously encountered the random person wanting into our circle. That’s how we met JB and Mikey. Nope, they didn’t come by and join in, but their friend Neal did. And when Neal found out that Dave and I had seen his friend JB perform solo the weekend before, he was all about making that connection. Especially when he found out Dave played the bass.

Well we met JB and Mikey soon after that chance meeting with Neal. Where I have no clue, but before long the house on King Avenue was the place to hang out….and those three guys started finding their way… which was obviously a natural progression to what JB and Mikey had been doing separately and together prior to Dave showing up.

I remember that time being just about having fun watching my friends make music in a living room in Athens. And catching JB solo or JB & Mikey together in some sort of semi-official way… basically wherever JB could talk the manager into letting him do his thing. I know they took it seriously but I still had no clue where any of it was headed. And I don’t think they really did either at the time.

Church sign wisdom

Just north of Eastman, Georgia, on U.S. 23.



Solid Rock: Also a song by Bob Dylan.

Georgia Theatre memories: Kevn Kinney

After nearly 20 years of shows at The Georgia Theatre, you'd think Drivin' n' Cryin' front man Kevn Kinney would have some pretty cool stories to share about the venue.

You'd be wrong. So, so very wrong. I caught up with Mr. Kinney Friday night, after he played a bar here in Macon.

Q: How many times you figure you played at The Georgia Theatre?
A: Oh, I played at least 20. At least 20.

Q: Starting about when?
A: Well I started playing there acoustic, I think, the very first time I played there on Father's Day. Probably Father's Day. My daughter was probably 3. She's 22 now, so 19 years ago.

Q: Sunday is Father's Day.
A: Yeah.

Q: Favorite memory?
A: I think the first time was when she played out there with me. You know, she came out on stage with me, hung out, you know, was walking in and out of the stage. My favorite times there were with The Mule. Government Mule. Those were the best shows I ever saw there. I got to play with Chuck Leavell there with The Mule and it was awesome.

Q: Yeah?
A: Yeah.

Q: What songs you do?
A: I did Straight to Hell, Rockin' in the Free World. The usual.

Q: Any crazy stories that really should not see the light of day, but because of the occasion get to?
A: Not really, man. You know, it's just, like, my kind of hang out bar in Athens. You know, I used to live there for 10 years, so I just kind of go there.

Q: Thank you for your time.
A: I don't have much more. I miss it. And I was supposed to play there in September, so I've got to find some place else to play.

I went back inside the bar after Mr. Kinney headed home and some guy who's name I never got was playing a cover of Swingin'.

"Everybody comes in from the back, looks, and is like, 'Are they doing Swingin?' Yeah hell yeah we're doing Swingin'."

It was pretty entertaining.

Georgia Theatre memories: Chuck Leavell

Word on the street is that Sea Level played the first concert in The Georgia Theatre when it transitioned from an empty movie house to a music venue in January 1978.

A splinter group of sorts from The Allman Brothers Band, Sea Level was developed by Chuck Leavell, whom you may know as a long-time member of The Rolling Stones.

But, in Middle Georgia, we think of Mr. Leavell as Twiggs County's most famous Rock Star forester. He's also kind enough to return phone calls quickly.

I called Randall (Bramblett) just to jog my memory a little bit, and we do remember that we did open (The Georgia Theatre) up. Now, Davis Causey says it might have been in '76, and not '78, but I guess if The Banner (Herald) researched it they're probably right. But I can tell you that what I do remember of it is that we had just expanded our band... and it was one of the first shows that we did with a larger band. ...

But that's certainly not my only experience with The Theatre. One of the most memorable times I had was with Col. Bruce Hampton and The Aquarium Rescue Unit. I got a call from Johnny Sandlin, and I wish I could tell you the year... but Johnny said, "Look, Bruce is playing The Georgia Theatre and we're gonna do a live C.D. How would you feel about being a guest?"

At the time I knew very little about them except that they were very, very hip, and I had known Bruce for a long time. ... And I went in and it was the kind of band where they really didn't want to rehearse. They just kind of liked things to happen spontaneously. So there was hardly any rehearsal. I think there was really just basically a discussion of what key something might be in. And, then, it was sort of like just turn it loose and see what happens. And what happened was it was a great, great show.

I think it's an iconic music venue for the state of Georgia and the southeast in general. It has a wonderful history. A very rich history of music and lots of interplay between fans and musicians. There's been a lot of wonderful jam sessions that have occurred there. ... I certainly hope that every effort will be made to rebuild it. I think it's a tragic loss. I'm sure that if, at some point in time it were needed, there would be a lot of musicians that would be willing to come together and do something to help it be rebuilt. ...

Is it more than a stage? Well it provides so many great memories for us as musicians. There's certain places that, maybe there's a little magic that goes on. And I would say that's one of those places. I think it would be a very sad thing to think it would no longer be there.

Mr. Leavell's interests these days trend more toward forest preservation and Mother Nature Network. As for The Stones, he noted that August "will mark two years of no Stones activity, so that's a pretty long period to be off and I would think it wouldn't be too much longer before the band would want to be doing something, whether it's a new record or a tour.

"So, hopefully, there won't be much longer to wait for The Stone's fans," he said.

Mr. Leavell said he'll be doing some solo shows soon, and that he's working on a book called Smart, Strong and Sustainable, "which will deal with growth issues in our country."

Georgia Theatre: The last marquee

One of my sisters was at The Theatre last night. She took a picture of the marquee because her boyfriend's roommate is in the band.


Image: Lara Fain.

Indications are that the theater will be rebuilt. It appears the marquee, and perhaps even the outer walls, can be saved.

But if you're ever sitting on a porch in Athens playing trivia, and they ask who played the last show before the famous Georgia Theatre fire of 2009, the answer is Rockinwood.