HAPPY BIRTHDAY JEN!!
]]>Crazy, geeky cool!
]]>Intel is founded on July 18, 1968 by former Fairchild Semiconductor Company engineers Bob Noyce and Gordon Moore. The name Intel is a shortened version of "Integrated Electronics." The company's first money making product is the 3101 Schottky bipolar 64-bit static random access memory (SRAM) chip.
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07/18/08 Chicago, IL House Of Blues
Album Discography
07/19/08 Goshen, IN Elkhart County 4-H Fair 07/21/08 Council Bluffs, IA Harrah's Casino - Stir Concert Cove 07/26/08 Oakville, CA Robert Mondavi Winery 07/27/08 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore 08/01/08 C Mesa, CA Pacific Amphitheatre 08/02/08 Primm, NV Star of the Desert Arena 08/03/08 San Diego, CA Humphrey's Concerts 08/05/08 Saratoga, CA The Mountain Winery 08/09/08 Aspen, CO Belly Up Aspen 08/10/08 Colorado Springs, CO Pikes Peak 08/11/08 Beaver Creek, CO Vilar Center 08/14/08 Silverton, OR Oregon Garden 08/15/08 Tacoma, WA Emerald Queen 08/16/08 Richmond, BC River Rock Casino 08/17/08 Coquitlam, BC Red Robinson 08/19/08 Medicine Hat, AB Esplanade 08/20/08 Regina, SK Casino Regina Show 08/22/08 ON Thunder Bay Comm Auditorium 08/23/08 MN Grand Casino Hinckley 08/24/08 Sault Ste Marie,MI Kewadin Casino 08/26/08 Verona, NY Turning Stone Casino 08/27/08 Jim Thorpe, PA Penn's Peak 08/29/08 Lincoln, RI Twin River Casino 08/31/08 Bridgeport, CT Klein Memorial Aud 09/05/08 CA Chukchansi Gold Casino 09/06/08 Rancho Cucamonga, CA Lewis Family Playhouse
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I'm probably not qualify to write this article, as I thought I only knew a few popular songs ("Love is a Battlefield" and "Heartbreaker") from Pat Benatar, a pop singer who dominated the American charts in the 80s, but after giving Pat Benatar: Ultimate Collection 2-CD album a listen, I can tell you that I was familiar with a lot of her works!
Her songs, especially the early pop rock hits, reminds me a lot of Patty Smyth in Scandal, both having strong female vocals backed by a tight band, rocking out to music themes such as the heat of the night, children of the street, belonging to something, and promises of love.
There are many good songs on this collection, but I will only be mentioning a few stand-out tracks. "Heartbreaker", her major-hit debut single, originally released in 1979 from her album, In the Heat of the Night.
"Hit Me With Your Best Shot", I've always thought it was an Olivia Newton-John song. Imagine my surprise when I found out that this was a big hit for Benatar!
I was also surprise to hear "I Need a Lover", a John Cougar Mellencamp song! Her take on it emphasized more on her aggressive girl vocals.
"Love is a Battlefield", gives new meaning to synchronized dancing by runaways. I think the cheesy music video to this song, more or less, made the song really popular in the 80s. A little bit of trivia, this original release was on a live album called Live From Earth (1983). Out of this live album are two studio tracks, the battlefield song and "Lipstick Lies".
While the first disc covers most of her singles from her first five studio albums (1979-1983), the second disc covers the rest of her career, but only from her former record label, Chrysalis Records (1984-1993). What's interesting to note is her shift from rocker to a more mellow pop and even jazz, on such classic songs like "We Belong" (this sounds like a Journey song), and the jazzy "True Love" (lots of piano and brass instruments on this one).
It is kind of nice to see Benatar dipping into different genres outside of pop (she even does blues on "Payin' the Cost to Be the Boss"), I suppose it's a sign that she was growing up in those later years. We're talking about thirty year's worth of music, although looking at her discography, there are huge gaps after 1993 that suggests she's in semi-retirement of recording original music? Her last album, Go, came out in 2003, but perhaps with this latest tour and Ultimate Collection that was just released might spark some interest to get her back to the studio?
Ultimate Collection is really meant for casual and new fans, but I think it will also appeal to hardcore fans, as it does a wonderful job compiling Benatar's hits with some misses. The forty songs on two CDs (and official digital tracks), with half of it were top 40 hits. For new fans, this is a great way of getting all these songs for a reasonably low price.
To coincide with the album release (June 24th from Capitol/EMI Records and can be found at all major record stores), Benatar went on tour since May. She's currently just finished up Knoxville, Tennessee, and probably heading to your town. If possible you should see her do live rendition of all her hits.
Links:
www.benatar.com
benatarfanclub.com
myspace.com/officialpatbenatar
I'm taking scuba lessons and I'm pretty darn excited about it.
While Dave's away in Germany this time, he signed me up to get certified so we can go diving together. He's already official, gear geeked up and ready to go and I'll be able to join him once I pass the test.
The class takes place in the pool, but our final exercise happens in the ocean waters off Monterey Bay.
I've got some homework to do, but I know lots about breathing calmly under pressure so I should do just fine!
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07/18/08 Ed Fest -w- Collective Soul Edmonton, Alberta
07/24/08 Les Saints -w- Missy Higgins Montreal, Quebec 08/05/08 Sudbury Arena -w- Avril Lavigne Sudbury, Ontario 08/06/08 Molson Amphitheatre -w- Avril Lavigne Toronto, Ontario 08/16/08 V-Fest UK Staffordshire, UK 08/17/08 V-Fest UK Chelmsford, UK 09/06/08 V-Fest @ Toronto Island Toronto, Ontario |
You wouldn't think The Midway State (MySpace) would be as good as they are...at least, not if you let some of the information provided on the one-sheet for their upcoming debut album, Holes, influence you. First of all, they were signed to Interscope Records, those wonderful industry giants who have brought you the likes of Soulja Boy and Queens of the Stone Age, by label president Jimmy Iovine himself. Strike one. They worked with "Stevo" from SUM 41 on the video for their second single. Strike two. Finally, they recorded their album with "multi-platinum producer" Gavin Brown, best known for his work with...Three Days Grace?! Strike three--get the hell outta the....
But wait. Have you actually listened to their stuff yet?
When you do, you'll find yourself kicking yourself in the ass for letting assumptions get the better of you. The Midway State are a great band, and if Holes is any indication, they've got quite a career ahead of them and, quite frankly, I'm glad they're signed to a label as big as Interscope, because they deserve to be widely heard. The world of mainstream pop/rock is in desperate need of an infusion of good, solid music that is both palatable to a wide range of listeners but is still creative and full of heart. The Midway State bring a refreshing shower of good ol' rock-n'-roll rich in melodies and sensitive lyrics to the desert of pop radio, but still evince enough "indie cred" in their music to attract the SXSW crowd.
In 2001, while still in highschool in Collingwood, Ontario, pianist/frontman Nathan Ferraro and longtime friend and drummer Daenan Bramberger teamed up with bassist Adam Beamish and guitarist Ryan Horning to form Midway State. After an inaugural tour that drew some well-earned attention, the four fellas moved to Toronto in hopes of Making It Big. After being noticed by producer Gavin Brown, the band replaced Beamish and Horning "after much debate" (read that however you like) with bassist Mike Kirsh and guitarist Michael Wise. The group then set out refining their sound, touring, and producing two EPs, 2006's Eponymous and 2007's Met a Man on Top of the Hill, the latter of which featured their first single, the incredibly radio-friendly "Change For You." Considering their history, it's very tempting to think of the band as just another "made for radio" Future One-Hit Wonder. But Holes, the band's first full-length album (which also features "Change For You"), is a legitimately good album that proves the praise the band's EPs have earned is more than warranted.
Vocalist and pianist Ferraro freely admits that he loves Coldplay and Snow Patrol (as well as Peter Gabriel, Cat Stevens, and even Carole King), and Holes captures the piano-driven sound of Coldplay's A Rush of Blood to the Head without sounding derivative. In fact, though the Coldplay influence is obvious, The Midway State's sound is clearly inspired by the dramatic songwriting of the aforementioned Cat Steves and Carole King, and as such has a prominent '70s pop-rock feel to it--a sound familiar to fans of bands like Rooney and the Pernice Brothers. Each song is primarily built around lead melodies courtesy of Ferraro's expert piano riffs and Wise's catchy guitar lines, but regardless of the slick basslines and rockin' beats, Ferraro's gorgeous baritone voice and tender, personable lyrics are the main attractions, especially in songs like album-opener "Never Again" and the positively-beautiful "Nobody Understands." For some strange reason, I've heard The Midway State called emo...and though their songs are indeed built around melodies and lyrics that carry a lot of emotion (which gives them that magic authenticity that ensures listeners will relate to them on a personal level and therefore take them into their hearts), there is none of the overwrought hysteria and whiny melodrama that defines "emo" evident in even the album's most heavy-hearted numbers, "Nobody Understands"--which quite literally explains every relationship I've ever been in--and "Can't Stop Waking Up To You." Instead of crocodile tears and teenage poetry, Ferraro's lyrics capture the same artful truth of Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes," which is something that everyone from lovelorn teenagers to twice-married adults can identify with.
In fact, after listening to this album, I've become a fan of Gavin Brown's production despite his association with Three Days Grace. This is a perfectly-produced album. Unlike Coldplay's A Rush of Blood to the Head, the piano leads do not sound weak and badly-EQed, but have the same robust sound you'd expect to hear live. The drums mesh seamlessly with the basslines, and the guitars are pristine. Best of all, Ferraro's vocals are always crystal-clear in the mix without dominating the music.
All-in-all, this is simply a great album that has songs to match every mood. I highly recommend it.
Oh, and here's a little interesting fact about the band: Nathan Ferraro, like me, is synaesthetic--that is, he hears colors and sees sounds. Says Ferraro, "Every song that really resonates with me comes coupled with a distinct colour palette. When I listen to any song on Holes I see a different shade. 'Nobody Understands' is dark rose red, 'Never Again' is a saturated royal blue. At least, I think so...the irony is I'm also red-green color blind, so who knows really!" Well, sir, you're absolutely right: "Nobody Understands" is indeed a lush, velvety red (shot through with tones of deep blue generated by the introductory synth-pad melody) and "Never Again" is definitely a deep blue, though my brain sees the lead guitar riff as a scintillant rusty orange. Needless to say, this is a great album for synaesthetes: the color/sound texture varies widely from song to song, which adds an extra dimension of pleasure for those of us with crosswired brains!
The Midway State are currently touring Canada, but will also be playing two dates in the United Kingdom this August. Check 'em out!
Editor's Note: Holes is on limited release July 22nd, a full official release in September. -Vu 7/17/08 10:06 PM
]]>Show us a bird native to your habitat.
Yes, yes, I'm aware that I no longer live in Florida, but I'm a little tired of showing pictures of finches and humming birds... so here is an Osprey, the amazing bird of prey that he is. When I took this picture I spent most of the time dodging his lady friend who was wholeheartedly trying to protect her nest while he gorged himself on a big fish.
Ken Camp and I write a blog on Stardust Global Ventures, our joint business venture. Today I happened on an article discussing Unified Communications, something Ken is quite familiar with and in fact has written about for quite a long time. Ken is probably the best authority on how to actually define Unified Communications that exists today.
Below is a re-post of his article and a link to what I think should be a really exciting discussion on Talkshoe by a number of leaders in the Unified Communications Arena.
I hope you will join us as we open up the topic for an informative discussion. What is Unified Communications anyway?
Sheryl, my partner and fiance, called my attention to an interesting question this morning. It's not the first time recently I've seen this question raised in conversationbut the question seems to take many forms. My friend Jon Arnold asked just a week ago Is VoIP Really Happening?
Here's a snip from the Information week story that got me started on this thread.
Is Anyone Actually Implementing UC?
A debate has been going on over at No Jitter about whether enterprises are actually adopting Unified Communications (see here, here, here, here, and here). I tend toward the skeptical end of any conversation about how widely a hot new technology is actually being adopted, but I do see a few signs that enterprises are at least paying attention and, where possible, looking for an opportunity to get their feet wet.
I was chatting with a consultant yesterday who told me that in his last three engagements, he'd put Unified Communications into the specifications as an option for the companies to include in their RFPs, and in all three cases, the companies jumped at it. The reason? Business differentiation, i.e., the hope that UC could provide a new competitive advantage. This, by the way, supports a theory that Chris Thompson of Cisco (NSDQ: CSCO) expounded to me at VoiceCon Orlando, that during difficult economic times, it's actually easier for enterprises to make investments in "aspirational" technology than that which is "perspirational".
To me, that says the UC message is getting through to enterprises. There's no guarantee that every company will ultimately make the ROI, in whatever way the individual user company calculates that ROI. Maybe the bids will come back and the business case just won't be there.
I've been following VoIP from the beginnng and unified communications since before the term came into popular use, and I feel like I have a distinctly different viewpoint.
We write and provide an eJournal series, Unified Communications
in Realtime, here at the Realtime Unified Communications Community that gets added to our Digital Library each month. It's also distributed through other channels.
In
the three-part series for next month we've been working on a set of
brief articles about the intersection between unified communications
and social media. As part of that, I tried to explain what unified
communications is to set a foundation for the discussion. Here's an
excerpt from the soon-to-be-published piece -
In the Information Week piece, Krapf asks is anyone actually implementing UC? I'd rephrase it differently - Is there anyone who isn't implementing UC?Unified Communications - A Broad Definition
Unified communications is an interesting phrase that's come into widespread use in the past year or two. Many companies have made efforts to brand it as their own, but it's really a mindset tied to the journey of network convergence.When we're connected effectively, we're more productive. Many working professionals are also more creative. With easy access to the tools we use to perform, our work is simpler. We're able to focus on the work they need to do. We perform at a higher level. Just as companies focus on their core competencies, we as people perform better when we put all of our energy into our primary work objectives
One of the biggest drivers of this increased productivity in the past ten years has been what we call convergence. Convergence is another one of those vague buzzwords that means many things to many people, but there have been some clear and distinct phases
Phase 1 - Voice and Data Converge on the Wire
Convergence really took hold as a concept in the late 1990's. IP became the most widely accepted transport technology for data traffic. Around the same time Voice over IP (VoIP) came on the scene as potentially disruptive technology for telecommunications.Prior to this, most large companies often managed multiple networks - one for voice and another for data. In many cases, these networks were supported by different administrative and operations groups.
Integration of voice and data onto a single wired circuit infrastructure helped many companies reduce costs and improve the bottom line. The convergence of network technologies brought efficiency gains in many different business areas.
Phase 2 - IP Takes Center Stage as the Convergence Protocol
The convergence of the physical network onto a single circuit was the start of something that's still in motion. Voice over IP (VoIP) provided yet another catalyst for change. It was ballyhooed as the end of telecommunications as we knew it and the signal that the legacy telephone companies would be out of business.VoIP hasn't matured in the way those wild prognostications foretold but it has become the stable foundation for telecommunications infrastructure. VoIP proved to be an enabling technology that has changed our way of thinking about voice. VoIP pointed the way to voice as simply another service of the network.
Phase 3 - Unified Communications
This convergence of voice and data networks has continued around the globe for the past several years. Today there are many networks that still haven't fully converged. The process continues, and for many companies, the end of the road is nowhere in sight.Convergence became the term used to describe the integration of data, voice and video onto one unified network. These network services used to all use separate networks. Today they share the resources of the corporate network and the Internet.
In the past two years, the word convergence has given way to the phrase unified communications. For most people, unified communications simply means the fully converged network, supporting data, voice and video.
That's unified communications of today, but the journey doesn't end there. There are mission-critical business applications that will integrate more tightly through Communications Enhanced business Processes (CEBP). These include:
• Enterprise Resource Management (ERP)
• Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
• Supply Chain Management (SCM)
• Sales Force Automation (SFA)
• Human Resource Management (HRM)There will always be room to further integrate for efficiency. One key added area that's seeing a lot of current improvement is integrating people with voice recognition technology. The user interface will always be a key component of how we enhance the way people use computerized resources.
Unified communications is a buzz phrase like convergence. It means different things to different people. In today's business environment, VoIP is prevalent. Jon asked is it really happening, but I'm often hard pressed to find places where it isn't happening.
Unified Communitations is everywhere. Think about it. Voice services, video services and voice mail have converged onto a single unified platform - an IP network and our computers or other devices. Without unified communications, you have no social media - no Facebook, no Twitter, no comprehensive integration. Without unified communications, the web as we know it is a pipe dream. It had email and static web pages.
Web 2.0, the phrase we've all heard a million times is unified communications. Without UC, there could have been no Web 2.0. Unified communications, like VoIP, isn't a product you write a check for and buy. It's not a single product you implement and move on. It's not as complex as vendors make it sound.
Unified communications in a foundation mindset of a single, integrated platform for doing business. Simple.
Sheryl and I are in the process of augmenting our work at Stardust Global Ventures. Our GeekSpeekTV has been very popular, but with the hectic moving process we've had to endure lately, it's been difficult to produce our regular shows. We're now in the process of incorporating Stardust Radio into our portfolio.
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