Israeli counterterrorism expert Juval Aviv said an "Al Qaeda" attack could strike up to seven U.S. cities within the next 90 days.
Read the report here.
Monday, July 30, 2007
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Pet deaths concern neighbors
Rather disturbing report comes out of Edmond involving a mutilated cat.
http://www.edmondsun.com/local/local_story_206110249.html
http://www.edmondsun.com/local/local_story_206110249.html
Friday, July 27, 2007
Two reviews: Keller Williams and Brandon Pruitt
By Andrew Griffin
Pop Writer
The Norman Transcript
Posted: July 13 & 20, 2007
Keller Williams – “Dream” (SCI Fidelity)
Popular among jam band aficionados, singer-guitarist Keller Williams made his way into that scene via support from String Cheese Incident. And clearly the cats in the Incident had good taste because Keller Williams is by far one of the most exciting and creative artists working today.
Just check out “Dream,” Williams’ latest project that is just chock full o’songs (and famous friends) ranging from the tricky, reggae-tinged “Ninja of Love” (featuring Michael Franti of Spearhead), or the lyrically-hilarious, instrumentally-amazing song “Cadillac,” featuring guest guitarist Bob Weir of Grateful Dead fame.
One of the most sublime tracks is the Windham Hill-styled instrumental “Cookies,” which features guest guitarist Fareed Haque playing a hybrid guitar-sitar instrument.
What one senses when listening to “Dream,” is that Williams is having an absolute ball playing and performing these songs. It’s no wonder that he was able to get so many friends and peers to make guest appearances on this record.
For more information go to www.kellerwilliams.net.
Brandon Pruitt Band – “Red Dirt Blue Country” (Bonfire Entertainment)
Honestly, before hearing Brandon Pruitt Band’s “Red Dirt Blue Country,” I was entirely oblivious to their music. But when I received the album and gave it a spin, I kept playing it again and again, each song sinking into the inner reaches of my brain.
One thing’s for sure, Oklahoma native Pruitt and his crack team of Red Dirt-loving band members know this genre and how to keep it pure.
In fact, I found “He’s a Cowboy,” a Western song if there ever was one, refreshing and entirely authentic, both instrumentally and lyrically.
Pop Writer
The Norman Transcript
Posted: July 13 & 20, 2007
Keller Williams – “Dream” (SCI Fidelity)
Popular among jam band aficionados, singer-guitarist Keller Williams made his way into that scene via support from String Cheese Incident. And clearly the cats in the Incident had good taste because Keller Williams is by far one of the most exciting and creative artists working today.
Just check out “Dream,” Williams’ latest project that is just chock full o’songs (and famous friends) ranging from the tricky, reggae-tinged “Ninja of Love” (featuring Michael Franti of Spearhead), or the lyrically-hilarious, instrumentally-amazing song “Cadillac,” featuring guest guitarist Bob Weir of Grateful Dead fame.
One of the most sublime tracks is the Windham Hill-styled instrumental “Cookies,” which features guest guitarist Fareed Haque playing a hybrid guitar-sitar instrument.
What one senses when listening to “Dream,” is that Williams is having an absolute ball playing and performing these songs. It’s no wonder that he was able to get so many friends and peers to make guest appearances on this record.
For more information go to www.kellerwilliams.net.
Brandon Pruitt Band – “Red Dirt Blue Country” (Bonfire Entertainment)
Honestly, before hearing Brandon Pruitt Band’s “Red Dirt Blue Country,” I was entirely oblivious to their music. But when I received the album and gave it a spin, I kept playing it again and again, each song sinking into the inner reaches of my brain.
One thing’s for sure, Oklahoma native Pruitt and his crack team of Red Dirt-loving band members know this genre and how to keep it pure.
In fact, I found “He’s a Cowboy,” a Western song if there ever was one, refreshing and entirely authentic, both instrumentally and lyrically.
Friday, July 6, 2007
Garth Brooks to headline surprise Live Earth gig in D.C.
It's great to see that Yukon native Garth Brooks and his wife Trisha Yearwood will be headlining a surprise Live Earth concert in Washington D.C. singing his early '90s hit "We Shall Be Free."
They will join Bon Jovi, Kelly Clarkson, John Mayer and Keith Urban for the performance, hosted by environmental spokesman Al Gore.
They will join Bon Jovi, Kelly Clarkson, John Mayer and Keith Urban for the performance, hosted by environmental spokesman Al Gore.
Former 'Idol' finalist releases stellar country album
By Andrew W. Griffin
Pop Writer
The Norman Transcript
Posted: July 6, 2007
Bucky Covington
“Bucky Covington”
(Lyric Street Records)
When North Carolina native Bucky Covington made became a Top 10 finalist on “American Idol” last year, little did anyone know that the following year he’d become an idol of in his own right in the country music world scoring a number one debut album and a hit song, “A Different World.” I mean, this guy just screams “Americana.”
Why do I say that? Listen to the stomping country-rocker “American Friday Night” and tell me I’m wrong.
Hot rods, prom night, going off to college, getting shipped off to war, learning to respect your elders or missing a girl so bad it hurts. These and many other slice of life themes, already covered by Springsteen, Mellencamp and a score of other country artists and roots rockers, pepper this very appealing debut from the former “Idol” contestant.
If this album is any indication, I’d say Bucky Covington has a solid career ahead of him.
For more information, go to www.buckycovington.com.
Pop Writer
The Norman Transcript
Posted: July 6, 2007
Bucky Covington
“Bucky Covington”
(Lyric Street Records)
When North Carolina native Bucky Covington made became a Top 10 finalist on “American Idol” last year, little did anyone know that the following year he’d become an idol of in his own right in the country music world scoring a number one debut album and a hit song, “A Different World.” I mean, this guy just screams “Americana.”
Why do I say that? Listen to the stomping country-rocker “American Friday Night” and tell me I’m wrong.
Hot rods, prom night, going off to college, getting shipped off to war, learning to respect your elders or missing a girl so bad it hurts. These and many other slice of life themes, already covered by Springsteen, Mellencamp and a score of other country artists and roots rockers, pepper this very appealing debut from the former “Idol” contestant.
If this album is any indication, I’d say Bucky Covington has a solid career ahead of him.
For more information, go to www.buckycovington.com.
Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen take 'Beer' tour to OKC
By Andrew W. Griffin
Pop Writer
Norman Transcript
Posted: June 29, 2007
OKLAHOMA CITY – First off, I give Texas music superstars Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen high marks for the name of their acoustic tour – the “Hold My Beer and Watch This” acoustic tour 2007. I love it because it reminds me of the old joke about rednecks that say that very phrase before doing something incredibly stupid.
But there was nothing stupid about Rogers and Bowen hitting the hallowed stage at Bricktown’s Wormy Dog Saloon in Oklahoma City and singing their best material in front of what appeared to be a sold-out crowd last week.
Rogers, with his trademark backwards baseball cap and Bowen with a strangely innocent expression on his face, stood side-by-side on the stage cradling their acoustic guitars, while beers and various adult beverages awaited them on a stand directly behind the duo.
After the whoops and hollers lessened after the two hit the stage, Rogers kicked things off with “Rollercoaster,” introducing it by simply saying, “This is a true story.”
Well, maybe. After Bowen got a chance to sing a song he co-wrote with Rogers, Rogers takes to the mic again and says: “Forty percent of the song lyrics are full of (expletive) and the rest are true. It’s up to you to decide which ones are true.”
They gave the crowd the songs they wanted to hear from their hits “Kiss Me In the Dark” (Rogers) and “God Bless This Town” (Bowen) to interesting covers like the Dave Loggins song “Please Come to Boston,” which Bowen tackled admirably.
And that’s what the crowd got this humid night. In fact, in the 75-year old, two-story building that houses the Wormy Dog, the original elevator, installed in the early 1930’s, had malfunctioned, according to Wormy Dog bouncer Johnny Five.
As a result the employees were having to haul in case after case of beer on their shoulders in order to slake the thirst of the crowd.
“Knowing that, three dollars a beer doesn’t seem too expensive, does it?” Johnny Five said.
All the while, Rogers and Bowen played their songs, kicked back, drank beer after beer and swapped stories. Rogers even played a new song titled “Long Enough to Leave,” which he’d co-written a few weeks earlier with Micky Braun of Micky & The Motorcars.
At one point, the two had a contest: who wrote the worst song, a song, they suggested, could be offered to macho country singer Trace “Honkytonk Badonkadonk” Adkins.
“We want you to vote for the worst song,” Rogers said. “And the loser has to buy the winner a … taquito.”
Rogers’ bad tune, a love song of sorts on the level of sub-standard seventh-grade poetry, was pretty poor. But it was Bowen who got the attention of the crowd with his song that elicited every country cliché, from trucks to working in the “West Texas sun,” and an absurd refrain, “She said, ‘Hell yeah, boy!’” Or was it ‘Hell yeah, Bowen.”? Who knows, the sound was so bad in the Dog that night it was hard to tell.
In any event, it was Rogers who owed Bowen a taquito.
Pop Writer
Norman Transcript
Posted: June 29, 2007
OKLAHOMA CITY – First off, I give Texas music superstars Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen high marks for the name of their acoustic tour – the “Hold My Beer and Watch This” acoustic tour 2007. I love it because it reminds me of the old joke about rednecks that say that very phrase before doing something incredibly stupid.
But there was nothing stupid about Rogers and Bowen hitting the hallowed stage at Bricktown’s Wormy Dog Saloon in Oklahoma City and singing their best material in front of what appeared to be a sold-out crowd last week.
Rogers, with his trademark backwards baseball cap and Bowen with a strangely innocent expression on his face, stood side-by-side on the stage cradling their acoustic guitars, while beers and various adult beverages awaited them on a stand directly behind the duo.
After the whoops and hollers lessened after the two hit the stage, Rogers kicked things off with “Rollercoaster,” introducing it by simply saying, “This is a true story.”
Well, maybe. After Bowen got a chance to sing a song he co-wrote with Rogers, Rogers takes to the mic again and says: “Forty percent of the song lyrics are full of (expletive) and the rest are true. It’s up to you to decide which ones are true.”
They gave the crowd the songs they wanted to hear from their hits “Kiss Me In the Dark” (Rogers) and “God Bless This Town” (Bowen) to interesting covers like the Dave Loggins song “Please Come to Boston,” which Bowen tackled admirably.
And that’s what the crowd got this humid night. In fact, in the 75-year old, two-story building that houses the Wormy Dog, the original elevator, installed in the early 1930’s, had malfunctioned, according to Wormy Dog bouncer Johnny Five.
As a result the employees were having to haul in case after case of beer on their shoulders in order to slake the thirst of the crowd.
“Knowing that, three dollars a beer doesn’t seem too expensive, does it?” Johnny Five said.
All the while, Rogers and Bowen played their songs, kicked back, drank beer after beer and swapped stories. Rogers even played a new song titled “Long Enough to Leave,” which he’d co-written a few weeks earlier with Micky Braun of Micky & The Motorcars.
At one point, the two had a contest: who wrote the worst song, a song, they suggested, could be offered to macho country singer Trace “Honkytonk Badonkadonk” Adkins.
“We want you to vote for the worst song,” Rogers said. “And the loser has to buy the winner a … taquito.”
Rogers’ bad tune, a love song of sorts on the level of sub-standard seventh-grade poetry, was pretty poor. But it was Bowen who got the attention of the crowd with his song that elicited every country cliché, from trucks to working in the “West Texas sun,” and an absurd refrain, “She said, ‘Hell yeah, boy!’” Or was it ‘Hell yeah, Bowen.”? Who knows, the sound was so bad in the Dog that night it was hard to tell.
In any event, it was Rogers who owed Bowen a taquito.
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