Just got in from the Dave Douglas Septet show, and now I�m here listening to him play trumpet on this amazing CD. What a great show, I�m glad I didn�t blow it off. It seems for a while I just didn�t want to go out to shows, but lately I�ve been picky and seeing some of my biggest heroes in music today. The guitar player was okay, I think Ribot on the record is better. This guy was far too flashy in my opinion. Seeing Douglas blow, and lead the band was great, and he made a comment about the Bruce Springsteen show that was taking place across the way ( the second of two nights ).

During the set break I went outside to smoke, and grab something to eat. While standing there eating there was a man that was also back at the show taking a break with his lady friend. Two yuppie looking guys walked up and were looking at the marquee on the Somerville Theatre, there was a �Woody Guthrie Tribute� advertised. One guy said to the other guy �Who is Woody Guthrie?�. The other guy said �I have no idea�. I looked at the couple and we smiled and chuckled. I don�t think it�s very music snobbish to do that. Woody Guthrie is a staple of American music, as well as culture. He wrote a song that a lot of Republicans probably sing when they are gathered around the swastika flag or whatever it is that Republicans do when they party. Another misinterpreted song like �Born in the USA� by Springsteen. The other bizarre happening was an SUV driving by blaring �The Ghost of Tom Joad� (the Springsteen show was acoustic, with his wife Patty).

So a few days ago I got an e-mail from a woman at work that said �are you the same person as this person with the same name as you that went to Wake Forest in 1993�I knew Jeff and Cliff and Robin and Steve, etc?�. I replied that I was not the person. Later in the day while looking out the window at all the snow I heard on CNN a report of identity theft. It got my mind thinking�hmmmm. So I went on over to the Wake Forest website, and signed up for a �Wake Forest Alumni� e-mail account. I mentioned I went there in 1993, and after doing some brief research on the web, I found a guy with the same name as me who is an English professor at a college in Illinois. I mentioned I was now an English professor now. About 24 hours later, I got my password sent to one of my random Yahoo accounts I have welcoming me, etc. I�m looking forward to the Wake Forest Alumni Visa Card I am going to apply for next week, with the request that they �please send the card to my PO Box in Salem, MA, I live there in the summer.�. My career as an identity thief has now begun. I�ll pay these bills off however I have to.

Another fantasy I�ve been having lately (the above is true, although I�m not really going to start a credit card account�I did get the e-mail account, it was as easy as showing up at a random wedding reception with a suit on and mingling) is the DVD box set of the first season of HBO�s Six Feet Under. I have thought of 5 different ways to steal this from Blockbuster. I figure at 33 years old I will start stealing things from stores. Maybe I could act senile ( I have a little bit of gray in the temples) and make believe I didn�t know what I was doing if I get caught. I will get that box set at some point. Maybe I will buy it when I am in Oklahoma next month.

Next week will be a busy week for music. Phish is here on Wednesday, Delf on Thursday with a possible appearance from an MMW member, and maybe, just maybe I can go to Phish on Long Island on Friday if I can leave work early enough and catch the ferry over. If you happen to be in my band and you are reading this, I can only rehearse on Monday and Tuesday next week. If you happen to own a clean copy of Art Blakey � Moanin� (Blue Note 46516) and you are reading this, call me in my office between 10AM and 6PM EST at 617-218-4453.

before & after