The Home Front Kickoff Round-up

Something about a 3 night run of shows by some band from Athens or something happened this weekend? Not that I keep up with such things, but I hear that these.... how do you say.... ROCK STARS pictured below tore some faces off for 3 nights in a row?

So sad I couldn't be there. However, I did draft two reporters for the cause. One being Shayne because she called and begged, just begged to do something for the blog. I, reluctantly, relented.

Actually, Shayne kicked much ass by calling during the shows and letting me hear a snippet or two.

She and Todd Beane from Glossary drunk dialed me on Friday night. Probably the first time I've talked to Todd in 20 years. A real treat.

Check out Shayne's blog for a Thursday night behind the scenes review:

“You’re in good hands…” � Tales from below Hull street:

"Last night was the first night of the three day DBT bender at the 40 Watt. The TMcB and I strolled in as the tallest man in rock and roll, (tall, not so hard working) Bo Bedingfield and the Wydelles were starting their second song. What can I say about Bo…(that would be ok for his family to read, well, I mean, besides his sister Beth) They sounded dead on, with john Neff pulling double duty. Kelly and I were placing bets on how long it would take Clay to pull down his drum mic and start singing. No covers of Tumbling Dice, but he got us a few songs later when they closed with my favorite John Prine’s “Pretty Good”

Shayne, you thoroughly rock for keeping me involved. Much love.

My 2nd intrepid reporter was Benny The Townie Hunter.

Benny the Townie Hunter

Benny was my photo journalist. I sent him A.A.W. credentials that gave him access to practically anywhere (since A.A.W. is a low budget operation the 'credentials' were just a piece of gaffers tape with A.A.W. Sharpied on it.)

Here's Benny with some fine Wes Freed Art work:

And here's Benny with Wes Freed.

Chillin in the Freed's lounge.

Cuddling with The Matador. Not sure what that's about but Benn does get affectionate when he drinks too much.

Spooner, EZB and Benny discussing investment opportunities.

Benny did a hell of a job.

You can check out more of his pictures, here: Benny - View More Pictures

JennB dropped a few paragraphs on the experience T the Nine Bullet's posting board. Here's a snip, but click the link to read more:

NineBullets.org - a DBT fansite :: View topic - Athens Night # 3 Setlist:

"Last night was one of the best shows I've ever seen them do. The vibe was fantastic in the club and on the stage. John Neff just tore it up; he was so good he made me want to simultaneously laugh and cry, and Spooner was in rare form and oh so tasty. I can't tell you how much I love Shonna's songs live especially - she just blows me away. Her brother was just glowing last night he's so proud of her."

NB has a ton of stuff wrapping up the weekend so be sure to go on over and spend some quality time with them today:

Nine Bullets.org: a DBT fansite

The Yahoo Group has some good stuff too:

Via Gordon Wilson
dbts : Message: [BT]Drive-By Truckers 2008-01-11 The 40 Watt Club Athens,Ga

Pics by Peskin
dbts : Message: the Drive By Truckers and Glossary @ the 40 Watt 1 11 08
dbts : Message: Drive By Truckers, Don Chambers & Goat, Bo Beddingfield & the Wydelles @ the 40 Watt 01 10 08

dbts : This mailing list is for stuff about the Athens, GA band, The Drive-By Truckers, and just about anything else.

The first YouTube has his the Tubes.

From jonicont



Looking forward the the traveling rock show coming to a town near you soon!

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DBT Week in Review - 1/11/07

1st night of the 3 night run is in the books. I thought I had acquired a field reporter with boots on the ground but she (Shayne!) forgot her camera. However, she did submit a review of the show. It follows:

"it was AWESOME"

I'm really glad I'm not paying her.

Update: Though, Shayne did an excellent job of calling in and holding the phone up so I could hear some songage. You rock, Shayne!

Tune into the DBT Yahoo Group and Nine Bullets today from reports from others.

350ona305 has the first Thursday night review up on NB.

NineBullets.org - a DBT fansite :: View topic - Thursday Night in Athens:

"A couple of notes:

1) When the new songs are played live, there are more rockers on this album than you think just listening to the album.

2) The ones that aren't necessarily your typical rockers are still amazing. Many of them have Neff absolutely blowing up the pedal steel. This gives this album a more country feel which just might get them more radio play and some new exposure to a different audience.

3) Shonna was awesome. Home Field Advantage was a fantastic rocker live - maybe my favorite surprise of the night.

4) Other highlights for me tonight (although I liked them all): The Righteous Path, Self Destructive Zones, The Opening Act, That Man I Shot, Purgatory Line, Checkout Time in Vegas, Goode's Field Road, A Ghost To Most"

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A very rock and roll interview with Patterson.

Flagpole: Purgatory Line

"All musicians have a tough time balancing life and art, making rent and making music, and only a handful have been able to say they're able to make a living from playing their hearts out night after night. Drive-By Truckers guitarist and songwriter Patterson Hood is one of the few, and the path to that point hasn't been without heavy tumult. Last year, the band parted ways with guitarist and songwriter Jason Isbell, who's gone on to pursue a solo career."

Patterson makes a clarification to the editor, though:

My Rant (Clarification and Update)

I'd like to thank you, Flagpole, and Chris for the superb coverage given to our band this week as we release our new album, play a homecoming show and do our Nuci Benefit.

I'm afraid Chris caught me on a particularly bad day during a very stressful and heated time of bad relations between us and our label. While my rant reflected how I felt that day and some of my anger and frustration was from issues simmering for several years I would like to clarify a couple of points that were lost in my heated tirade.

1. George Fontaine is a locally known and respected figure, an alumni and someone who has helped many worthy causes in this town. His affiliation with our label is well known, but he has always been far outside of the issues I was addressing. George has been a friend of mine and Drive-By Truckers since long before we ever signed a record deal and hopefully will continue to be for all the years to come. I have never known a better or sweeter human being and hold him and his family in the highest utmost regard. I regret any embarrassment or ill-feeling my tirade might have caused.

2. When discussing the Black Crowes tour a couple of years ago, I alluded to the miserable time we had, but failed to clarify that it was mostly due to timing and a particularly bad period in our band's dynamic. The Black Crowes' Organization (Band, Crew, Management and Personnel) ALL were extremely kind to us on every level. They were supreme gentlemen and I sincerely hope that my rant didn't imply otherwise in any way.

This is a messy business and I never got into all of this to be a businessman. In the month since my interview, we have all attempted to move forward in good faith and for the mutual good of both label and band and for the benefit of our new album, which I am fiercely proud of. While my anger that day still simmers over some issues, we are all moving forward and eager to put those bad times behind us. I'm feeling somewhat better and tonight I get to Rock.

Thank You for your time and support.
Sincerely,
Patterson Hood
Drive-By Truckers

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Drive-By Truckers kick off tour with Nuci's Space benefit - Out & About:

"Even though the Drive-By Truckers have made it big, they haven't forgotten where they came from. The band is returning to the 40 Watt Club, where frontman Patterson Hood was once an employee.

'He's kind of never forgotten us,' said Velena Vego of the 40 Watt. 'This is definitely an underplay for the Truckers. I'm sure they could just come back and play the Classic Center now.'"

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4 out of 5 stars from Rolling Stone, but a pretty incoherent review in my opinion. Oh, and the Lynyrd Skynyrd reference is sooooooo tired.... and lazy.

Brighter Than Creation's Dark : Drive-By Truckers : Review : Rolling Stone:

"Prospects were poor for what turns out to be an overflowing song bag of an album by Lynyrd Skynyrd's arty nephews. Their last winner was 2004's The Dirty South, preceded by two others in close succession but followed by the disoriented A Blessing and a Curse and then the loss of tenor-songwriter Jason Isbell. Welcome though her gender bend is, bassist and Isbell ex Shonna Tucker doesn't compensate by writing and singing. But Mike Cooley is on his game — the pro-bad-girl 'Lisa's Birthday' and pro-weird-guy 'Bob' shoot exceptionally straight. And knowing he has to carry the team, Patterson Hood executes — scene-setters about domestic life as celestial respite, endless struggle and occasion to drink; dark-siders about crystal meth (named) and suicide (implied); memoir of an opening act on the road; and two agonizing Iraq songs, one of which sinks pained voice into guitar attack, strength against strength. You could argue that the Truckers should have revved up this Skynyrd side more often. But instead they let the songwriting speak for itself, and it sings loud and clear."

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Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit

Let's not forget that Mr. Isbell and the boys will be embarking on a MASSIVE tour starting tomorrow. Be sure to get out there and go see 'em.

I'm stoked for the 26th of this month as JI400 will be playing Slims in SF.

Jason Isbell | Tourdates:

"Sat-Jan-12 - New York, NY - New York Guitar Festival - The 'Royal Albert Hall' Project

Wed-Jan-16 - Memphis, TN - The Hi-Tone with Will Hoge. Jeremy Fisher supports

Thu-Jan-17 - Little Rock, AR - Sticky Fingerz with Will Hoge. Jeremy Fisher supports

Fri-Jan-18 - Dallas, TX - Granada Theater with Will Hoge. Jeremy Fisher supports

Sat-Jan-19 - Austin, TX - Antone's with Will Hoge. Jeremy Fisher supports"

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Aquarium Drunkard - Music & MP3 Blog � Jason Isbell :: Sirens of The Ditch

It’s fitting that I’m writing this review now rather than when this album was originally released over the summer. I’ve had the luck of seeing Jason Isbell live three times this year (and it’ll be four by the time the year is officially over), in addition to interviewing him. My love of the Drive-by Truckers and Jason’s songwriting is pretty obvious to even casual readers/listeners of the blog/radio show. So I sometimes stay away from reviewing albums like this when they first come out - my opinions are bound to be affected by my unabashed fan-dom. For listeners who are fellow lovers of Isbell and his like that’s not a bad thing necessarily. If another person who listens often loves it, they probably will as well. But for people new to the music, does a die hard fan’s notes on an album really give them insight to the merits of the record? This is why the intervening months have given me a good perspective on this album - not only with the numerous listens to it that time has afforded me, but also the numerous live incarnations I’ve gotten to absorb as well.

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Sons of Roswell

SOR has been in the studio recording. JD has been posting some excellent blogs about the process. Jason Isbell is producing so this should be one hell of a record. I'm very excited to see this one come out.

Studio Day 1 Update - Sons of Roswell MySpace Blog
Studio: Day 2 - Sons of Roswell MySpace Blog
Day 3, yep - Sons of Roswell MySpace Blog

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Lauderdale

Lauderdale has a few dates coming up. Working musicians, y'all!

Jan 11 2008 9:00P	Soho’s (w/ Jay Burgess from Sons of Roswell sitting in)	Columbus, Georgia
Feb 2 2008 8:00P	The Smokehouse w/ Sons of Roswell and Hank Vegas	Florence, Alabama
Feb 6 2008 9:00P	The Basement	Nashville, Tennessee
Feb 8 2008 9:00P	Sports Page	Huntsville, Alabama
Feb 9 2008 9:00P	Zazoos (with Edgehill Avenue)	Louisville, Kentucky
Feb 15 2008 10:00P	Old Town Tavern with The Bohannons and Hammertorch	Sheffield

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Help out a great band with a purchase:

dbts : Message: Re: [dbts] Two Cow Garage:

"For those fans of Two Cow Garage, Micah and his father, John, have released a second collaboration. This follow-up to last years father/son release 'Inheritance', is called 'Prism Halo on a Quarter Moon'.

These discs both have a more acoustic tone to them, and gives us a chance to hear songs John, as well as Micahs stuff, that most likely won't make a Two Cow disc.
You can contact John at cledus56@.... Same as last time, $5 gets the cd and goes to help keep the band on the road; they leave for Europe in 3 weeks."

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Music

Do it for Johnny X 2.

Johnny Depp Sings : Rolling Stone:

Johnny Cash tribute concert canceled:

"FOLSOM, Calif. (AP) — A concert marking the 40th anniversary of Johnny Cash's famous concert at Folsom State Prison has been scraped, with the prison and the promoter blaming each other for the cancellation.

The tribute concert, scheduled for Sunday, was to have been staged in the same prison cafeteria where Cash performed before inmates on Jan. 13, 1968. That breakthrough performance became a popular live album."

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R.E.M. singer charmed by Huckabee :

"'I can't think of probably a single issue in which I am even remotely in the same universe as that guy ... and yet, he was kind of charming and ... self-deprecating,' Stipe told Jane Radio host Jane Pratt, a day after watching Huckabee's Thursday appearance on CBS' 'The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson."

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The Home Front Kickoff!

To all you lucky bastards and bitches that will be in Athens GA over the next 3 days I say to thee..... you suck. No, not really, but I am a wee (if 'wee' means 'a butt-load') bit jealous that my shiney ass won't be in attendance.

Here's another look at my recent trip to Athens, GA. If any of y'all see Shayne be sure to smack her upside the back of her head and tell her it was from me. If you see Jenn hug her neck for me. If you see....

Also, if yer in town be sure to check out the pre-party held by Nuci's. Go bid on some excellent swag.

Nuci's Space - Resource Center and Climate Controlled Practice Spaces for Musicians:

"DBT Pre-Party @ Cine

Date: January 10, 2008
Time: 7:00 PM

DBT Pre-Party @ Cine January 10, 2008 7 PM Free and open to the public.
Tonight's event is a pre-party for the Drive-By Truckers' benefit show at the 40 Watt later in the evening.

We will be auctioning off rare DBT items, artwork from local artists, signed music memorabilia, books and gift certificates from local Athens retailers and restaurants.

The auction includes: original Wes Freed artwork, a Patterson Hood guitar, signed memorabilia from David Cross, Zach Galifianakis, Patton Oswalt, Widespread Panic, R.E.M., Bill Wyman, Ben Mize (Counting Crows), AirTran Airline tickets, and artwork from Jeff Owens, Adam Smith, Elliot McPherson and Jimmy “Capman” Straehla.

LOCATION: Cin� (downtown Athens - just blocks from the 40 Watt. On 234 West Hancock Ave between Pulaski and Hull Streets in the old Snow Tire building)."

Rock on, y'all!!!

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The top 12 'Top 10' lists of 2007 / Best movies? Music? Look elsewhere. Here's the real list to help digest the year gone by

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Hardcore mom. I dig.

Mom Sells Rule-Breaking Son's Car:

"Jane Hambleton has dubbed herself the 'meanest mom on the planet.'

After finding alcohol in her son's car, she decided to sell the car and share her 19-year-old's misdeed with everyone — by placing an ad in the local newspaper.

The ad reads: 'OLDS 1999 Intrigue. Totally uncool parents who obviously don't love teenage son, selling his car. Only driven for three weeks before snoopy mom who needs to get a life found booze under front seat. $3,700/offer. Call meanest mom on the planet.'"

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You would figure this would bring the couple closer, finding they had a common interest. Alas, they divorced.

What are you doing here? - man asks wife at brothel:

"WARSAW (Reuters) - A Polish man got the shock of his life when he visited a brothel and spotted his wife among the establishment's employees. Polish tabloid Super Express said the woman had been making some extra money on the side while telling her husband she worked at a store in a nearby town."

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The Nose Knows

Free market! Free market! Free market my ass.

'Welfare' comes in all shapes and sizes.

Have you been paying your mortgage on time? Sucker.:

"Looking to buy your first home, but you waited because prices were just a bit too high? Or did you buy a home and have been diligently paying your mortgage on time?

Well screw you , courtesy of the Bush administration.

The Bush administration is now talking about expanding their little mortgage bail out to people with prime loans too. That means pretty much everyone who simply gambled and lost or just didn't want to pay their bills on time. And what's worse, it means people who pay a lot less than you for the same mortgage will get to keep that sweet little deal for the next five years, courtesy of the Bush administration, simply because they didn't pay their bills on time and you did. Yes, they not only pay less than you each month for the same freaking mortgage, but because they didn't pay their bills on time, they get to keep paying less than you for years to come. Had they paid their bills on time, or simply not gambled, their mortgage payment would now be in line with yours, or even higher. But why not reward stupidity? We've been doing it for 7 years"

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Interesting.

Why Some Women Wear Too Much Perfume:

"Women who doll up with too much perfume might not know it because they're depressed.

That's the conclusion of Dr. Yehuda Shoenfeld, a physician and autoimmune disease researcher at Tel Aviv University in Israel who studies 'autoantibodies.' This class of chemicals launches attacks against the body's cells, often in patients with autoimmune disease such as lupus.

'Our scientific findings suggest that women who are depressed are also losing their sense of smell, and may overcompensate by using more perfume,' he said."

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As someone who often has sinus issues (I've broken my nose 3 times) I'm going to give this a try. I'll let you know how it goes.

Short, Stout, Has a Handle on Colds:

"Originally part of a millennia-old Indian yogic tradition, the practice of nasal irrigation — jala neti — is performed with a small pot that looks like a cross between Aladdin’s lamp and your grandmother’s gravy boat. The neti pot made its way into this country in the early 1970s as a yoga meditation device, but even as yoga became mainstream, the neti pot remained on the fringes of alternative culture.

That is, until now. Due to a confluence of influences, the neti pot is having what can only be termed a moment, sold in drugstores, health food stores, even at Wal-Mart and Walgreens."

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A reason to never go to St. Charles, MO.

Bill would ban swearing in bars :

"ST. CHARLES, Mo. - What the ...? A St. Louis-area town is considering a bill that would ban swearing in bars, along with table-dancing, drinking contests and profane music.

City officials contend the bill is needed to keep rowdy crowds under control because the historic downtown area gets a little too lively on some nights"

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CheneyCare or Soylent Green

We're the greatest country in the world, really? Culture of life, really? Pro-life, really?

Only if it doesn't get in the way of profit. We may be losing 100k U.S. citizens a year to preventable health care issues, but thank GOD the insurance and pill pushing industries are making healthy profits.

Hate the person, love the zygote.

France best, U.S. worst in preventable death ranking:

"WASHINGTON (Reuters) - France, Japan and Australia rated best and the United States worst in new rankings focusing on preventable deaths due to treatable conditions in 19 leading industrialized nations, researchers said on Tuesday.

If the U.S. health care system performed as well as those of those top three countries, there would be 101,000 fewer deaths in the United States per year, according to researchers writing in the journal Health Affairs."

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Our politicians need not worry about passing from a preventable health care issue. They sleep well at night knowing they are covered by 'socialized' health care. Damn communist too afraid to die like a real American.

New Health Care Ad: ‘Every American Deserves CheneyCare’:

"Last month, the California Nurses Association and the National Nurses Organizing Committee ran ads in Iowa newspapers advocating for a single-payer health-care bill, highlighting the fact Vice President Dick Cheney has benefited from his government-provided coverage. “If he were anyone else, he’d probably be dead by now” due to his long history of health problems, claimed the ad.

In the group’s newest round of ads, which ran “in eight New Hampshire papers” on Friday and will go “national” today, they dub a new name for “guaranteed, publicly-funded health care for all Americans”: CheneyCare."

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Why, this could NEVER happen again, now could it?

Report reveals Vietnam War hoaxes, faked attacks:

"But he said that probably the 'most historically significant feature' of the declassified report was the retelling of the 1964 Gulf of Tonkin incident.

That was a reported North Vietnamese attack on American destroyers that helped lead to president Lyndon Johnson's sharp escalation of American forces in Vietnam.

The author of the report 'demonstrates that not only is it not true, as (then US) secretary of defense Robert McNamara told Congress, that the evidence of an attack was 'unimpeachable,' but that to the contrary, a review of the classified signals intelligence proves that 'no attack happened that night,'' FAS said in a statement.

'What this study demonstrated is that the available intelligence shows that there was no attack. It's a dramatic reversal of the historical record,' Aftergood said."

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Daddy needs a nap.

Naps May Boost Memory:

"If you want to remember the information in this article, take a nap.

New research conducted by brain researcher Avi Karni of the University of Haifa in Israel explores the possibility that naps help lock in sometimes fleeting long-term memories. A 90-minute daytime snooze might help the most, the study finds.

'We still don't know the exact mechanism of the memory process that occurs during sleep, but the results of this research suggest the possibility that it is possible to speed up memory consolidation,' Karni said. 'In the future, we may be able to do it artificially.'"

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What's for dinner? Girlfriend is for dinner.

Man kills, cooks and possibly eats girlfriend, police say :

"When authorities arrived at the home, they found Shearer's mutilated body, one ear boiling in a pot of water on the stove and a fork sticking out of some human flesh sitting on a plate on the kitchen table."

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Impeach the MoFos

Thank jeebus. I'm betting Stewart begins his show with an extended period of hilarious silence as he attempts to speak on his own without the aid of his writers.

Stewart and Colbert resume Comedy Central shows Monday:

"Not a moment too soon to help make sense of things, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert will be back on duty Monday, ready to mock everything in sight."

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I hope both Stewart and Colbert do a bit on crazy-ass O'Reilly. I SO wish the secret service would have taken him down.

Watching Bill O'Reilly get pushy at Obama rallly. - By John Dickerson - Slate Magazine:

"I have a confession. During the shoving, I found myself yelling at O'Reilly to grow up, which was thoroughly unprofessional, except that I have little kids and I think it's important to discipline misbehavior immediately. If I don't dare to discipline, they'll grow up to be like, well, Bill O'Reilly."

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If a former presidential candidate that lost to Nixon calls for impeachement, does he make a sound?

Why I Believe Bush Must Go - washingtonpost.com

By George McGovern

Sunday, January 6, 2008; Page B01

As we enter the eighth year of the Bush-Cheney administration, I have belatedly and painfully concluded that the only honorable course for me is to urge the impeachment of the president and the vice president.

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More on the false imprisonment debacle in Alabama.

Federal judge explains reasons for keeping Siegelman in prison while awaiting appeal- al.com:

"MONTGOMERY - Nearly two months after being ordered by an appellate court to explain his reasoning, a federal judge wrote Wednesday that he won't allow former Gov. Don Siegelman out of prison while appealing his conviction because he doesn't believe the conviction will be overturned.

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I've always been a bit jealous of the ladies. I mean, why do only they get to feel mountain stream, field-of-daisies fresh? Well, boys, our time has come.

Get rid of that crotch stank.

Blog Archive � Press Release Of The Day

Male Genital Odors Are History - Synerfied Healthcare Introduces NodorO™ on ismellperfect.com

Miami, FL (PRWEB) January 4 2008 — Synerfied Healthcare introduces NodorO™ on ismellperfect.com. NodorO™ is a safe and effective OTC (Over The Counter) medicated cream developed in accordance with an FDA approved monograph; This brand was specifically created to remove and prevent MGO (Male Genital Odors) and can be obtained immediately without a prescription exclusively on NodorO™ website.

President/CEO and NodorO™ Creator, Dominic Adams suffered from MGO since he was a teenager, until he realized his discovery. Adams personally tested the product for several years, which inspired him to share his discovery with the world and created NodorO™. "I could not imagine my sexual life without NodorO™ anymore. I have no more fears of repulsing my partner due to bad genital odors. For anyone who has ever dealt with MGO, it is a miracle cream. I went from being embarrassed because of the smell, to being confident." says Adams without embarrassment or shame anymore.

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DBT Week in Review - 1/4/08

Drive-By Truckers Concert Package- Athens, GA Jan. 10th - eBay

One of a kind Drive-By Truckers concert package!

January 10th, 2008: Dinner/Tickets/Hotel

Athens, Ga

40 Watt Club

Package includes:

* 2 tickets to DBT's concert (Jan.10th) at the 40 Watt Club in downtown Athens.

* Dinner for two at The National - located near the 40 Watt.

* A room at the (very) nearby Holiday Inn for that night.

Plus, DBT extras!

Best of all, 100% of the proceeds benefit Athens, Ga nonprofit Nuçi's Space. Nuçi's Space is dedicated to ending suicide by providing low-cost counseling to local musicians and artists.

**NOTE: Due to the unusual nature of this auction, there will be no delivery of any tickets. We will coordinate with the winners once the auction has ended and a winner has been determined.

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No Depressions Magazine's 2007 Reader/Critic Polls:

OUR CRITICS SWEAR THESE ARE THE TOP 50 ALBUMS OF 2007

1. BETTYE LAVETTE, The Scene Of The Crime (Anti-) 277.5/21

2. ROBERT PLANT & ALISON KRAUSS, Raising Sand (Rounder) 253.5/22

3. WILCO, Sky Blue Sky (Nonesuch) 251/21

4. MAVIS STAPLES, We’ll Never Turn Back (Anti-) 226.5/14

5. PATTY GRIFFIN, Children Running Through (ATO) 195.5/14

6. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN, Magic (Columbia) 168.5/12

7. NICK LOWE, At My Age (Yep Roc) 135.5/11

8. PORTER WAGONER, The Wagonmaster (Anti-) 126/12

9. LUCINDA WILLIAMS, West (Lost Highway) 123.5/9

10. MARY GAUTHIER, Between Daylight And Dark (Lost Highway) 119.5/11

and

BUT OUR READERS INSIST THESE ARE REALLY THE TOP 50 ALBUMS OF 2007

1. WILCO, Sky Blue Sky (Nonesuch) 254/41

2. PATTY GRIFFIN, Children Running Through (ATO) 222.5/30

3. RYAN ADAMS, Easy Tiger (Lost Highway) 215.5/33

4. LUCINDA WILLIAMS, West (Lost Highway) 191/32

5. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN & THE E-STREET BAND, Magic(Columbia) 167/30

6. JASON ISBELL, Sirens Of The Ditch (New West) 153.5/21

7. STEVE EARLE, Washington Square Serenade (Ammal/New West)150.5/25

8. SAM BAKER, Pretty World (BlueLimeStone) 150/20

9. AVETT BROTHERS, Emotionalism (Ramseur) 140/20

10. JOSH RITTER, The Historical Conquests Of Josh Ritter (Sony)139/23

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The Best (and Worst) Albums of 2007 | Entertainment Weekly

BEST
9. BETTYE LAVETTE
The Scene of the Crime (Anti-)
Critics have lined up to call her the greatest soul singer alive. But LaVette, 61, recently argued that ''soul'' is a white man's misnomer. Maybe best blues interpreter, then? A track like ''Talking Old Soldiers'' — crooned in a bar to a stranger, by an aging drunk who's seen all her friends die — gets to the essence of despair the way great blues does...even if it's actually an Elton John cover. Enlisting the Drive-By Truckers as her rowdy, ragged backup band, LaVette continues to imbue her other borrowed tracks (from Don Henley, George Jones, and Willie Nelson) with grit, anguish, and even some serious sex appeal. She's a force of nature we'll just have to settle on labeling as awesome.

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On3 of the oddest BTCD article leads (Iraq, romance?!?). The lead could have stated that BTCD covers shooting people and chicken wing puke. Odd. (Update: Not the review author's original headline. Apparently it came from an editor. Trust your writers, editors!)

Truckers new album covers Iraq, romance | TimesDaily.com

Patterson Hood said it was difficult to decide which tracks to include on the Drive-By Truckers' latest album and which ones to leave out.

They were all good and seemed to fit.

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Download Uproar: Record Industry Goes After Personal Use:

"Whether customers may copy their CDs onto their computers -- an act at the very heart of the digital revolution -- has a murky legal foundation, the RIAA argues. The industry's own Web site says that making a personal copy of a CD that you bought legitimately may not be a legal right, but it 'won't usually raise concerns,' as long as you don't give away the music or lend it to anyone.

Of course, that's exactly what millions of people do every day. In a Los Angeles Times poll, 69 percent of teenagers surveyed said they thought it was legal to copy a CD they own and give it to a friend. The RIAA cites a study that found that more than half of current college students download music and movies illegally."

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EMI faces tighter budgets:

"A person close to Terra Firma said it had made three significant culture changes at EMI: telling employees to submit business plans and secure senior executives’ approval before signing new artists; demanding detailed marketing plans before any promotional activity; and changing bonus plans to encourage executives to focus on EMI artists’ global potential rather than local markets alone."

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Wild lifestyle kept me alive: Pogues' MacGowan at 50:

"The Pogues singer Shane MacGowan, whose Christmas song 'Fairytale of New York' remains a classic hit, told a newspaper he never thought he would live to celebrate his 50th birthday Tuesday."

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Aussie rockers new gig: politician:

"The music of Peter Garrett has always been politically charged. Now the towering, baldheaded former singer of Midnight Oil is charged with practicing politics — as Australia's new environment minister."

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MC Hammer's next act: Tech entrepreneur:

"SAN FRANCISCO - MC Hammer hasn't topped the music charts since the early 1990s, but the former rap star says he has another hit in him — only this time around he'll produce it as a Silicon Valley entrepreneur.

Hammer, whose real name is Stanley Burrell, is choreographing a new career as co-founder and chief strategy officer of Menlo Park-based DanceJam.com."

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James Brown recordings locked in dispute:

"AUGUSTA, Ga. - The legal feud over the estate of James Brown is stalling the release of the soul legend's final recordings, his longtime adviser said."

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Monkey Love Cost

I can't bring myself to blog about the ridiculousness that is the Iowa caucus. How snow birds from lilly white Iowa get to, essentially, pick the Dem and Rep nominee for the rest of the states (in theory) is baffling to me. My plan: All 50 primaries on one freakin' day.

Luckily, I stopped watching any sort of TV news a long time ago so I won't have to hear a bunch of talking heads with the vapors chirping about who is up and who is down. Their 'conventional wisdom' bores me to tears.

So, let's get a little crazy today. Sexy crazy. Sexy monkey crazy. Sexy monkey paying-for-it crazy.

Another somethin-somethin that should be legalized. I'm voting for whoever will back legalizing weed and prostitution.

Cost of coitus: Male monkeys pay for sex:

"On average, females had sex 1.5 times per hour.

But this rate jumped to 3.5 times per hour immediately after the female had been groomed by a male -- and her partner of choice was likely to be the hunky monkey that did the grooming.

Market forces also acted on the value of the transaction.

If there were several females in the area, the cost of buying sex would drop dramatically -- a male could 'buy' a female for just eight minutes of nit-picking.

But if there were no females around, he would have to groom for up to 16 minutes before sex was offered."

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Listed under 'no-shite'.

The egg head that did the study has a pretty good sense of humor, though. Check out the 2nd paragraph. You can never go wrong with a poot joke.

Cell phone users tie up traffic: study:

"CHICAGO (Reuters) - If you're late for work, a driver using a cell phone may be to blame. U.S. researchers said on Wednesday that people who use cell phones while behind the wheel impede the flow of traffic, clog highways and extend commute times.

'It's a bit like breaking wind in the elevator. Everyone suffers,' Peter Martin of the University of Utah's Traffic Lab said in a telephone interview."

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Hmmmmm.

Caffeine Soap Wakes You Up In The Shower:

"Shower Shock is soap with caffeine in it. You rub it all over that sexy naked body of yours, and next thing you know, you're wide f'ing awake. Simple as that. Each 4 oz bar has approximately 12 200mg caffeine servings."

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OK, I can't resist. Must bash the Douchebag-in-chief for being such a heinous doubche bag.

Bonus payments frozen - Army Times:

"The Army has temporarily halted bonus payments for more than 20 enlistment, re-enlistment and service extension programs pending enactment of authorizing legislation.

President Bush, to the surprise of Congress and the Defense Department, vetoed the fiscal 2008 Defense Authorization Act on Dec. 29 after months bargaining with House and Senate leaders."

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Retraining Dr. Rockso

The look that kills.

Looking at America - New York Times

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It's that time of the year again. No more large mochas with whipped cream and caramel for me. Back to he

JUST THE FLAX, PLEASE:

"Yesterday scores of Americans made this pledge for 2008, even as they nursed their hangovers. And with so many products on the market promoting wonder ingredients that will fight heart disease, beat cholesterol, bust fat and make you regular, wellness should be just a supplement away.

Wrong."

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Smells like how chicken would taste.

Snakey smells help squirrels stay safe:

"WASHINGTON (Reuters) - It's scary being a little, tasty squirrel, but some species of the rodents have come up with an intimidating camouflage -- snake smells."

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Putting Dr. Rockso out of bidness.

Researchers work on cocaine vaccine:

"HOUSTON - Two Baylor College of Medicine researchers in Houston are working on a cocaine vaccine they hope will become the first-ever medication to treat people hooked on the drug. 'For people who have a desire to stop using, the vaccine should be very useful,' said Dr. Tom Kosten, a psychiatry professor who is being assisted in the research by his wife,"

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2008

Happy New Year, y'all. I've got nothing today.... except a tequila hangover and hours and hours full of football and flat lining.