12 Cassette Tapes for a Penny.... (+1.98 Shipping).

Oh, Columbia House and BMG. How I screwed you when I was a teenager. I must have cashed that little deal in twice with each new Address we moved to. It was mail order Napster for me.

You see, I am blessed with many names John, Mike, Michael, John Michael and more, all used to fill my cart with wares from Mail Order Clubs offering free (to me) music.

For those who don't remember this amazing deal, it was promoted in every newspaper and magazine in the country. You send them a penny, they send you 12 Cassettes or 8 CD's, and you commit to buying a few tapes for full price later. Best part, they billed you for the shipping.

Sound too good to be true? It was. They call it negative option billing and it's kind of dirty, unless you stuck it to them like I did. Karma is a bitch, Columbia House.

Downside was that they had a limited selection of music, but to me, free was free. I would just have to suffer through Van Halen's 5150 (which I actually really love) if they didn't have VH-II. At very least, it was another tape for the case.

Even better yet, they sent you a catalog each month, and if you did not send the order card back with a "no thank you, not this month" box checked , they sent you "their pick" automatically at some premium rate. I think I ended up with a Krokus tape because of not returning the card (ironically titled "Change of Address"). Just another freebie to me....

The little thief Nago's music snatching was not exclusive to mail order clubs. One afternoon, K-Mart begged me to steal a Cinderella tape, how could I resist? However, the easiest pickings were at Murphys in the mall. Unfortunately, you had to steal from the "Bargain Bin". Hence, in 1986, I had a Nazareth tape.

I must admit that my catholic guilt was in full swing when it came time to steal from retail, and I really didn't like doing it. At some point I gave it up for mail order thievery exclusively.

I am not saying I feel good about any of this and I am definately am not proud of it. I only hope that some executive from Columbia House is not reading this and selling my name to a collection agency... However, if footage exists of a pre-teen Nago stealing tapes from the mall, I WOULD PAY TO SEE IT!!!!

I am sitting here trying to remember the Tapes I got on my first go around. There was some complete crap there, I'm sure. In my defense, I was 12 years old.

I think maybe the list included:

• Van Halen - 5150
• Heart - Heart
• Bryan Adams - Reckless
• Ratt - Dancing Undercover
• Foreigner - Agent Provocateur?
• Less than Zero Soundtrack?
• Something by Petra?
• Grim Reaper - See you in Hell?

OK, I am positive on the VH, Ratt, Bryan Adams and Heart. The rest were definitely in my tape case, but I don't remember if they came from Columbia House or not.

Conclusion: There is no point to this blog what-so-ever other than puking out random memories. The real story is in the link below thanks to the professionals at Mental Floss. I wasted your time, and you're welcome...

For the dirty details on Negative Option Billing and Columbia House, check out the article in the link:
http://mentalfloss.com/article/28036/its-steal-how-columbia-house-made-money-giving-away-music



Around the world, or around the block. Everywhere I go, the nerds wanna rock.

Welching out on a legacy.

I promise I will not spend the rest of my blogging days bitching about the house that rock built, but I read something pretty disturbing today that made me quite mad.

Bob Welch is not in the rock and roll hall of fame.

Before you say "who?", "so what", or something else dismissive, know this: It may be the single biggest travesty in the history of that dipped in shit and steamrolled institution, maybe even bigger than dissin' Kiss.

Bob Welch carried Fleetwood Mac through 4 years of changing times, aka "The Bridge Period". This is the time after Peter Green and before Lindsey/Stevie, or 1970 - 1975. He maintained the brand to the best of his ability despite the ego's that made up the 'Mac, and in a way, dude kind of rocked.

Right now I am listening to the 'Mac's Bare Trees album, thinking about how killer it is, and being dumbfounded by this snub...

Fleetwood Mac was inducted in 1998.

Mac Members in the Hall?

• Peter Green - Duh... He is the shit of the shit.
• Jeremy Spencer - Ok... He was there with Pete. I give him that.
• Danny Kirwan - Yes... Hell yes. Albatross is bitchin, he was a great second fiddle to Peter.
• Mick Fleetwood - One of the most underrated rock drummers ever.
• John McVie - Bass line in "the Chain" enough justification for you?
• Christine McVie - She made lovin fun, didn't she?
• Stevie Nicks - I believe It could have worked had we had a chance...her loss I guess.
• Lindsey Buckingham - So amazing. I love his playing.

Criteria to be nominated for the R&RHOF? You must have played on a major label studio LP. Bob should be in on that fact alone. In fact, he played on 5 Fleetwood Mac albums. Consider this also: his last official FM record, Heros are Hard to Find, broke US top 40 Billboard Charts.

 Copied from Wiki:

Date	Album	US	UK	Additional information
September 3, 1971	Future Games	91	–	Debut album with Fleetwood Mac
March 1972	Bare Trees	70	–	Features the original recording of "Sentimental Lady"
March 1973	Penguin	49	–	–
October 15, 1973	Mystery to Me	68	–	Features "Hypnotized", written by Welch
September 13, 1974	Heroes Are Hard to Find	34	–	Welch quit Fleetwood Mac after this album
November 24, 1992	25 Years – The Chain	34	–	Compilation

He ran the band with Mick. He moved them to California. His Fleetwood LP's sold over 2 Million copies. He was also a platinum selling solo artist in the late '70's, and just for good measure, he fronted the criminally unknown band PARIS (which rocks my face off and just plain rules).

Bob's legacy is recorded, yet not carved in stone. I love/hate you hall of fame, but today I just hate you. They say it was his California style that got him the snub or possibly the lawsuit he had against his former band, who knows? Everybody sues eveybody in the music biz, right? Big deal. It is no reason to leave him out of the history books.

Sadly, Bob Welch committed suicide last year. He was struggling with chronic pain resulting from spinal surgery, and did not want to be a burden to his wife of 27 years. Rest in peace my brother.

They need to induct him posthumously. No fanfare is necessary, just his name on the wall alongside Peter Green's. It's the right thing to do.

 

Others not included in the hall despite there contributions to inducted artists:

Mark Evans
Bass; AC/DC; 1975 to 1977

• TNT
• High Voltage
• Dirty Deeds
• Let there be Rock
• '74 Jailbreak

What a bunch of dicks.... This guy should be in.


Dave Navarro
Guitar; Red Hot Chili Peppers; 1993 to 1998

• One Hot Minute
• Various Soundtracks

I am no Navarro fan outside of Jane's Addiction, but he was another bridge guy that got the shaft by the hall. That record sold 8 million copies.


Dave Mustaine
Guitar; Metallica; 1982 - 1983

• No Life 'Till Leather (demo)

Ok... I know... It was a demo, not a studio LP. I get it. I could go on about how he wrote material that appeared on the first two LP's. I could say that Dave was Metallica early on. Dave believes that one day his other band, Megadeth will get in. I am not convinced of that, but he is a legend that should be preserved, with Metallica. 'Nuff said.

There's more I am sure. Like the dude that replaced Joe in Aerosmith for an album, the Firm drummer that was in ACDC for 2 studio albums and a live LP, Mike Watt for being the man in the van with the bass in his hand (and a member of the Stooges), Richie Ramone and so on. These guys deserve better.




Should I tell you about my life? They say I'm a nerd of the world.

A.D.H.D. and the Beatles: Part 2

Earliest coagulated memory of the Beatles for me? I almost hate to admit this, but although I had heard their music since the womb (my mother is an admitted Mop Top fan),  I can honestly say that Mork and Mindy had something to do with it.

That's right, Robin Williams and that Pam Dawber creep into my Beatles Fanboy memory...in the form of a montage. Yup, I can say with 80% confidence that there was a montage of Mork and Mindy done to the tune of "Yesterday" somewhere in the shows history. I was 6 to 8 years old when I saw it, but I knew it was the Beatles (through osmosis I guess).

I looked on YouTube and could not find the clip, which bums me out, but not enough to stop this blog. Enjoy the following anyway:

My second (and more palatable) encounter with Beatles fandom? I was barely 11 years old when I bought a compilation tape from Millcreek Mall McCory's bargain bin called "Beatles Hits Volume 2"(or some shit like that). I was with a foster family at the time, and my foster parents giggled at me for actually being interested in the Beatles. To be fair, I remember being infatuated by the fact that Paul McCartney wrote the song Helter Skelter, as I was a freshly minted Motley Crue poser at that time.

The cassette blew me away... Back in the USSR was the bomb for me back then. Unfortunately, I was also into Dokken, so take that for what it is worth... (and F-U 'cause Tooth and Nail owns, and George Lynch is a beast).

I bring all of this up because I am feeling especially connected to George Harrison today. Hare Krishna bitches....

I should be sleeping, but instead I am thinking about you....stupid Beatles.





Whatever happened to, the nerd that we once knew? Can we really live without each other?