Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Milwaukee Theater Welcomes Mannheim Steamroller

Mannheim Steamroller Milwaukee theater tickets
How can the Milwaukee Theater book Mannheim Steamroller for two performances so close to the holidays? For years I wondered if they just liked playing here around that time. Wouldn't they draw better if they played New York, or L.A. around that time? It took some work, but I figured it out. You should know that Mannheim Steamroller was created by the same man who wrote the 1970's hit song Convoy.

Mannheim Steamroller is actually two bands. One group tours the Midwest, and the other likes to roll along the East Coast. That's why we are so lucky to see them here in Milwaukee just before the holiday. There are two of them!


Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Wicked The Musical Comes to Marcus Center For the Performing Arts

Wicked tickets for Marcus Center
I'm in line, waiting for my chance to buy Wicked tickets for the Marcus Center in Milwaukee. Someone is singing a song from the performance. She's about three people behind me, and I'm not digging it. Why do people insist on doing that?

These are the same people who blurt out the lines in a movie theater, just before the actor on the screen does. I'm not there to hear some Midwesterners off key version of a song from the Wicked soundtrack. I'm just there to buy my tickets. If this person knows the words to a song by heart, why are they once again going to the performance?

On CDUniverse, I'm scanning the reviews of the Wicked soundtrack. There is not one single bad, or mediocre review. One review starts with "OMG!" typed three times. Two reviews down we have an "Oh My Gosh" spelled out. Is it that inspiring? It's just a damn CD. Oh well, some folks will buy anything I guess.
I'm now listening to the song No One Mourns the Wicked. It sounds like your typical Broadway song. Everyone is trying too hard, the cast all want to be noticed. Yawn. One Short Day is the best example of over singing I have ever heard. Why do people fall for this stuff? Why am I even in line?

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Three City Tour Takes Work as Four Drummers Perform at the Same Time

I must admit, coming home at dawn on the first night of our three city tour was not what I had in mind. Yes, I expected to come home late from Chicago, but not that late. That's what you get when you jump in the van with a driver who does not have GPS. He missed the highway entrance three times before stopping for directions.

The five a.m. return was followed up with a 1pm load in at the Milwaukee venue. If you do the math, that's eight hours to sleep, shower, eat, and get my butt to the club. Not enough time if you ask me. After six hours of sleep, I jumped up and started eating. Gotta replace what I lost the night before. It would have been nice to hear that load in was pushed back by two hours. That two hours turned into three. Damn!

We closed that venue at 2am. Now for a serious eight hours of sleep. It was off to Green Bay for the final gig. We set up the drums on the floor. Where else would you put four drummers? It was just as hot as the past three nights, but with one acception. There was an industrial sized fan blowing ontop of us. We were saved by that fan.

All I had to do was get us home without falling asleep. Sugar in tiny doses kept me awake. M&M's saved me. The ride was filled with jokes and laughter up until we got to Port Washington. That last 25 miles was a quiet ride, but the lights of the city led the way.

Thursday, July 8, 2010

Rufus Wainwright, Riverside Theater Tickets, and the '73 Ford

Riverside Theater tickets
"I'm in love" he said to my band mate as he crossed over the threshold into my house. It has become my Friend's mantra since meeting her. Let's call my friend "Mike." Mike wants Rufus Wainwright to perform at his wedding. Mike has an offer for Rufus. "I'll give him my '73 Ford, in exchange for his services at my wedding." Sounds like a perfectly good offer to me. Will Rufus go for it?


Mike is only in Wisconsin for a few more weeks. He's got to get the deal in place, before going back to Hungary to meet his girlfriend. One problem. My friend thought that Rufus Wainwright was in Milwaukee this upcoming Saturday. He scrambled for Riverside Theater tickets. Rufus doesn't come here until August. Chalk that up to love. Mike's been off his game since meeting "JJ."


"I have to get the Ford painted before making the offer" he said. I recall seeing it in a photograph many months ago, and it certainly looked like a vintage vehicle worthy of a trade. "I might need your wife to come along for the meeting." He felt that having a woman with him would soften his image. That all went south when he realized that he had his show date wrong. I'll keep you up to date on the Rufus deal.