SPARKS

[Toughest Girl In Town]

[Buckeye Randy]

A couple releases today by some honest to goodness heavyweights in the industry.

Van Morrisson - Remembering Now
You want some old sounding Van? Try the song "If It Wasn't For Ray", great song. Most of the rest falls into the personal ballad category but Van's voice is in top form.

Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts - Talkin To The Trees
Neil's new band falls between the raunchiness of Crazy Horse and the (mostly) gentleness of Neil's solo work. I swear, this music could be decades old because it just feels like an old flannel shirt.
Raunchy song - Big Change
Tender song - First Fire Of Winter
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Billy, Don't Be A Porter

[Buckeye Randy]

Who: Jeff ‘Skunk’ Baxter
Where: Kent Stage (Kent, OH)
When: June 27, 2025

Don’t pretend like you don’t know Jeff ‘Skunk’ Baxter, I know you do. He was an original member of Steely Dan appearing on their first three albums. When Walter Becker and Donald Fagan decided to turn Steely Dan into a studio only band, Skunk needed a band that liked touring as much as he did. It wasn’t long and Baxter found himself in the Doobie Brothers whom he had earlier provided studio work for. When Doobie’s front man Tom Johnston fell ill in ’75, it was Skunk that suggested Steely Dan session musician, Michael McDonald.

Since leaving the Doobie Brothers in ’79, he has produced and appeared on tons of albums including work with Eric Clapton, Barbara Streisand and Dolly Parton. He’s been in touring bands with Elton John and Linda Ronstadt. On the resume is also a movie soundtrack (Curse The Inferno) and plenty of songs for TV.

Oh yeah, lest I forget that music isn’t his only interest. Skunk has also dabbled in U.S. defense and in ’95 was on the Civilian Advisory Board for Ballistic Missile Defense. In 2005, he joined NASA Exploration Systems Advisory Committee.

In 2022, Skunk released “Speed Of Heat” which has original compositions with guest appearances plus covers of songs he as appeared on over the years. On the current tour, Skunk is backed by a band that is featuring songs from this album in a storyteller format.

Before any show at Kent Stage with Mrs. Buckeye, a walk around downtown Kent is a must. I’m not immune to being drawn in by small town charm and peeking in the shops as we walk around. However, the walk is just a means to get to one of my favorite places which is an Italian eatery, Belaria. Mama mia!

The 650 seat Kent Stage in downtown Kent was originally a movie theater that opened in 1927. About 20 years ago, the venue changed ownership and began hosting concerts. Recent years have seen renovations to the stage, lobby and restrooms and these improvements have transformed the dusty relic into something very functionable and appealing with the mix of old and new. The lobby has over 100 framed concert posters from shows spanning the last 20 years, it gives a ‘hallowed halls’ vibe.

Every pre gig crowd has it’s own personality. This older crowd was not sporting many concert tees from yesteryear which usually supplies a fun flair. However, the music conversations were pretty informed so it all balanced out. I’m fairly certain it was a first for a conversation about Randy California.

Expectations? I’ve seen two other shows with a similar format at Kent Stage. Martin Barre (Jethro Tull) and Kasim Sultan (Utopia) both did highly entertaining shows with informative stories about themselves and bands they had been involved with. I basically bought tix for Skunk based on my enjoyment of the two shows. Good songs, good musicians and fun stories. Expectations are reasonably high.

The four piece band (drums, bass, keys, guitar) took the stage and show started well with a Doobie cover (Take Me In Your Arms) followed a Steely Dan cover (My Old School). Skunk was not the primary vocalist for this show but that’s not a problem for me. I’m here to enjoy some good music.

Things started coming off the rails when a seated Skunk questioned the sound man and the stage monitor tech about problems with the phase on his guitar. This conversation spanned minutes and occurred between a couple songs before the issue was resolved. The overall sound was very bright with hints of feedback on several occasions. The cymbal sound was up in the mix from where I sat, there was what I believe a splash and a china cymbal that were cringe worthy every time they were hit (which was often).

Between what seemed like every song, Skunk took time to plug the excellence of the musicians he assembled. He would also issue a disclaimer of how they are not a cover band, “Do not expect songs to sound like the originals”. He was right about that!

There were no recollections or anecdotes about Skunk’s career and acquaintances. Skunk did go into a physics seminar about vibrations per second and their relevance to musical notes and the invisible color spectrum of gamma rays. Honestly, Skunk was in the wrong building; the university is four miles up the road but I bet the students there would have dismissed him as arrogant and full of himself. It was the single most annoying thing I’ve ever seen at a concert.

Wait! I forgot, Skunk did have some stories about other musicians. All three stories were about artists (Clint Black, Michael McDonald, Johnny Lang) wanting to appear on Skunk’s solo album. Skunk told each that they could only appear under his conditions and each willingly agreed.

At some point, Mrs. Buckeye and I looked at each other and gave slight grins through shared pain. We realized that dinner and the ride home would be the highlight of the evening. It was just a waiting game of when we would leave. When the show was over, the mostly seated 250 people applauded while we stood and walked before the encore started.

I chalk it up to a ‘live and learn’ type of an event. It’s shows like this that make you appreciate the good ones.
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Billy, Don't Be A Porter

[Buckeye Randy]

Band: Dropkick Murphys
Title: For The People
Released: July 4, 2025

“For The People” is the 13th studio album by Dropkick Murphys. I haven’t been on board since the very beginning but I’ve been tuned in for about 25 years.

I’m a fan of DKM but I’m not a fanatic. They have never made a perfect album but every album contains a couple of perfect songs. I don’t go to every show they play in my area but I have seen them seven times. Clearly, I’m a DKM fan but clearly, I’m not fanatical. However, I do feel I’m qualified to be objective when listening to their new release.

First, (flat) caps off to the boys for only pre-releasing one song before the entire album was released. I nearly forgot what it was like to judge an entire release in one fell swoop and not by piecemeal.

There are guest appearances on five of the 12 tracks. The Scratch with whom DKM have toured are on two and there’s one each by The Mary Wallopers, Billy Bragg and Al Barr.

“Longshot” with The Scratch is a candidate for best track on the album. Traditional Celtic sounds in patented DKM style with plenty of shout along lyrics. The track is punky but nowhere near hardcore. The other track with The Scratch is the album finale, “One Last Goodbye”. A traditional sounding dirge intended for swaying with mug held high and a tear in the eye.

Bury The Bones (feat. The Mary Wallopers)…this song sounds a whole lot like 2003’s “Kiss Me I’m Sh*tfaced” from the album ‘Blackout’. My son and I had fun mish moshing the lyrics as we listened. “School Days” (feat. Billy Bragg) kicks up one of Billy’s time tested themes about education not preparing people for life. This fits in with the DKM rhetoric of political allegiance. It’s a nice medium tempo rant and I’m sure it will be much more convincing in a live setting.

For longtime fans, “The Vultures Circle High” with former vocalist Al Barr is much anticipated. Al left a few years back due to family health issues. Hopefully, this appearance means that health issues are resolved and Al will be back in the music world again. The song isn’t remarkable but it is certainly catchy and hearing Al makes it essential for fans and fanatics alike.

Best from the rest. “Who’ll Stand With Us” is a DKM rabble rouser that will be a concert fixture for years to come. “The Big Man” is a tribute to Pennywise vocalist, Fletcher Dragge. It’s a straight-ahead rocker with a great groove. If I liked Pennywise more this would possibly be my favorite! “Fiending For The Lies” comes real close to recalling the hardcore energy of the early releases from the 90’s.

Even the songs I haven’t mentioned are listenable as they run the gamut of traditional to shout-abouts in varying mixtures and degrees. The album has a near perfect balance of everything the Dropkicks do well. They also don’t have any jangly piano led songs that always seemed like grabs for a wider audience.

This is the first DKM album of new material since Al Barr left the band. I think the album displays how the band have morphed into a more focused unit. Very similar to when I last saw them live when I thought they resembled a rock band instead of a street party on stage.

How good is the album? The two previous albums were mostly acoustic and heavily influenced by Woody Guthrie poems; I prefer this return to the classic and stomping DKM. I also think it’s better than 2021’s “Turn Up The Dial” and 2017’s “11 Short Stories of Pain & Glory”.

It’s tough comparing this with albums that are over ten years old. I won’t even try because time and future set lists will take care of that for me! I will say…Well Done!
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Billy, Don't Be A Porter

[Buckeye Randy]

Who: Pat Travers Band
When: July 24, 2025
Where: Robins Theatre (Warren, OH)

So many things to say! I’ll start by saying that this is the 3rd time I’ve seen Pat Travers in the last four years. The first time was as an opener for Foghat and the last two times have been as a headliner. I’ll give a spoiler alert…I’ll buy tix the next time he comes around!

Mrs. Buckeye and I don’t do many overnighters but the Robins Theatre is a little over an hour drive away. It seemed like a good opportunity for a mini break from the day to day so we booked a room for some time off the grid. Overnight bags packed.

After booked in, we found a restaurant for a pre gig meal and that’s when the good rock n roll vibes started. Nick Lowe’s song, “I Love The Sound Of Breaking Glass” was being piped in through the restaurant. Are you kidding me? I wanted to stand and sing! The rock n roll vibe is strong!

The ‘will call’ at Robins Theatre is different than other places I’ve been to recently, it’s actually a throwback. Instead of a name checked off a list or flashing an email for entry, you go to the adjacent box office which is only slightly larger than my first car. The affair drips with small town charm as you give your name and tickets are selected from a table that is alphabetically organized. The best part, you have an actual ticket that is a nice souvenir.

The Robins Theatre is a beautifully restored 1500 seat venue that hosts a wide array of attractions. On this evening, the balcony was closed so only floor seating was available. In the weeks leading up to the show, I was checking ticket availability and tickets weren’t exactly moving fast. I was actually worried that the show might be cancelled, worries unfounded, the show must go on! There was a ton of energy created by the couple hundred people who thought seeing Pat Travers on a Thursday night was a good idea.

Do you ever notice the age of a crowd? At some of the punky club shows I’ve recently attended, I’ve been at the top end of the Age-O-Meter. Tonight? The only person younger than me in the front row was Mrs. Buckeye. Oh yeah, did I forget to mention we scored front row tickets? (smiling)

No opening band…I love that! The show started as all Pat Travers shows start. “I’m Pat Travers, this is my band…we’re gonna kick your ass”! The man does not lie! I love three piece bands because every musician is a major contributor. No rhythm guitar or keys to flush out the mix. The current line-up has been together for several years and includes David Petrosky on drums and David Pastorius on bass. They are constantly on tour so they’ve had plenty of time to figure out what works in a live setting.

I am not going to list every song played. I will say a highlight for me was “Ronnie” (from the most recent studio release in 2022) which is a tribute to Ronnie Montrose. Another was a cover of “Spinning Wheel” (Blood Sweat & Tears). Pat ended the show before the encore with “Snortin' Whiskey” and his signature cover of Little Walter’s “Boom Boom (Out Go the Lights)”.

I don’t want to overstate or understate anything I say here. Guitarists of this caliber were more common in the ‘70’s…not so much now. I feel like it’s a privilege to watch Pat Travers rip on guitar for over an hour, it really is pretty special.

We skipped the ‘meet n greet’ afterwards. It isn’t that we didn’t want an autographed ticket or maybe a pic with Pat. The fact is, we had a long day…and a hotel room to get back to. (smiling)

Fast forward to a hotel breakfast and the rock n roll vibe. The piped in music was not loud as we enjoyed the breakfast buffet. I could barely hear a song that was familiar but I couldn’t quite identify it. Mrs. Buckeye quickly identified the song, “Since I Met You Baby” by Black Joe Lewis. Are you kidding me? Black Joe is one of our favorites and one of the last people I would expect to hear in this setting. A perfect ending to a perfect 16 hours or so. Well Done!
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Billy, Don't Be A Porter

[Buckeye Randy]

Has everyone seen the latest by The Last Dinner Party?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4T5nNmaTPEY

I like it. They are very dramatic with the videos. I appreciate the effort.
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Billy, Don't Be A Porter

[Buckeye Randy]

Upsetting news about Dave Edmunds.

Welsh rocker Dave Edmunds is in critical condition after going into cardiac arrest last week.

Edmunds' wife, Cici, detailed the incident in a July 29 Facebook post, which you can see below. "He died in my arms while I desperately tried to keep him alive while trying to clear his airways from all of the fluids that come out of a human being's body when we pass away," she wrote.

A nurse was able to revive Edmunds with CPR, but "he very clearly has brain damage and severe memory loss," Cici wrote. "And the risk of yet another major cardiac arrest is high. And if that occurs, there is no chance for Dave."

"Dave will have a very long journey ahead of him if he survives. We both have," Cici concluded her post. "But knowing that there are kindhearted people such as you all makes this tremendously difficult journey a little easier. Bless you all. Sending you all much love and light always."
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Billy, Don't Be A Porter

[Buckeye Randy]

Who: The Offspring
Where: Blossom Music Center (Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio)
When: August 13, 2025

You know what they say, the 5th time is a charm. Seriously? nobody says that! Regardless, this is my 5th time seeing The Offspring and the previous four were pretty charmed and my expectations are more of the same.

The first time was during the Americana tour in ’99 and the second was 2005 at a Warped Tour. The third was 2009 and the fourth was in 2023. Blossom Music Center has been the scene of the crime for three of the shows including this one.

Worth noting on a personal note. Seeing The Offspring a 5th time in concert puts them in a tie with Queen (5) and Cheap Trick (5) trailing only Todd Rundgren (22), Ian Hunter (18), Dropkick Murphys (7), The Pink Spiders (6) and Alice Cooper (6).

Blossom Music Center holds 23,000 patrons with approximately 1/3 of the people seated in the pavilion and the rest on a hillside outside the pavilion. Blossom opened in 1968 and was specifically designed to be the summer home of The Cleveland Orchestra. Many sources rave about the perfect acoustics but I’m not one of them. For me, the thick and cavernous sound only ranks second in things that annoy me about this venue. Most annoying is the traffic flow and parking, they are ridiculous. Because of these things, I don’t come here very often but over the last 40+ years I’ve seen some fun headliners not named The Offspring. Quick memory recall… Aerosmith, Jethro Tull, Steve Miller, Todd Rundgren, Yes, Steely Dan…I’m sure I’m forgetting a few headliners and I won’t even attempt to list the dozens of openers.

Music and concerts are a big part of our family. Tonight is special because not only am I going to a concert with my oldest son for the blue billionth time, I’m also going with his two oldest boys (ages 13 & 11) and it’s their first concert. Photo op!

We parked for free in one of several parking pastures provided for those that don’t want VIP parking for $40 or $100. The savings amounted to a walk that was close to a mile. We put the 13 year old in charge of remembering where the car was parked. It’s all a part of growing up.

Soo…I have always had tix in the pavilion at Blossom Music Center, not this time. We went on the cheap at $30 a ticket. We set up our blanket toward the bottom of the hill to get in the same area code as the stage but it’s still a ways off but at least there are video screens.

First up was New Found Glory who in case you don’t know has a decent pedigree. They’ve released 13 albums since their debut in 1999. All but the last two charted in the U.S. and two of their albums were top 5. The show was fine but immediately impressive was the sound. It sounded good. No way to know if this was the exception or the rule because I have never taken in a show from the bottom of the lawn. Next up was Jimmy Eat World which might not have quite the lengthy pedigree but they did have a top 5 single, “The Middle”. Never underestimate the power of killer song! Fun openers.

Dusk had not yet surrendered to darkness and a 20’ green blimp with The Offspring logo floated about the concert grounds. The video screens were busy with a 25 minute ‘Intermission’ countdown that included ‘booty cam’, kiss cam’, ‘head-banger cam’ plus others I’m forgetting. The narrator, the video screens, the music and even the blimp were nearly a show in by themselves. I appreciate it.

Most people on the lawn and many in the pavilion were seated for the openers. It appeared everybody was standing as the pre gig music prepped us for the start of the real show. I can’t remember everything but ”We Are The Champions” segued into “Thunderstruck” which was basically the beginning of the show as the band took the stage.

It doesn’t get much stronger than “Come Out And Play” as an opener…”you gotta keep ‘em separated”! The Offspring are one of the few bands that can bang out 90 minutes of material that even casual fans know. However, they chose to include two from the latest album (‘Looking Out For #1’, ‘Make It Alright’) and they played the seldom performed “Genocide” from ‘Smash’.

The Offspring make a habit of blasting a few abbreviated versions of popular songs. On this night they turned it into an Ozzy tribute, “Electric Funeral”, “Paranoid” and “Crazy Train”. They also included “I Wanna Be Sedated” which is always fun.

The stage for over half the show was flanked by the torsos of 30’ skeletons. The skulls would occasionally appear to breathe smoke and why wouldn’t they? I loved it as the lights would change their colors as the band played on. The skulls were deflated and removed before a piano version of “Gone Away”.

No Dexter, please don’t say it!!! He said it. “We want to do something special for you tonight…blah, blah, blah”. They have done this piano version of “Gone Away” the last three times I’ve seen them spanning just over16 years…it ain’t that special! However, it actually was special because Dexter asked everybody who ever lost somebody to hold up their phone. I saw the most lighters (not cell phones) I’ve seen at a concert in many years. This is obviously due not being able to spark up a joint or bowl with a cell phone but it was still cool.

One major problem I have with The Offspring is patronizing me with the same hyperbole they repeat every night. Just be real, this is punk, don’t pose. Say something spontaneous or say nothing at all but don’t tell me how special I am! Example; Alice Cooper says nothing between songs until the encore. Todd Rundgren can be a chatty Cathy and go on about nothing but I’m OK with those because it doesn’t insult my intelligence.

More complaints! I don’t like the recent trend at shows I’ve seen where bands try to replicate Live Aid with Freddie and the crowd doing shout backs. I found it annoying because The Offspring shout backs were all the different ways to say, “F*ck You”. C’mon guys, up the game. I also don’t care which side of the venue can shout the loudest.

That was a lot of complaining about something I basically liked. Compared to the show I saw two years ago; I think Dexter’s voice failed him a few times tonight but I also think the band was tighter, much tighter. I’ll take that trade.

It wasn’t the best show I’ve ever heard by The Offspring but it was good, it really was. I have some fun photos of my grandsons and it was an overall great evening. Well Done!

BTW, my Grandson was a bit undecisive on finding the car but we did find it. He’ll figure it out!

From setlist.fm
1. Come Out and Play
2. All I Want
3. Want You Bad
4. Looking Out for #1
5. Staring at the Sun
6. Original Prankster
7. Hammerhead
8. Genocide
9. Hit That
10. Make It All Right
11. Bad Habit
12. Electric Funeral / Paranoid (Black Sabbath cover)
13. Crazy Train(Ozzy Osbourne cover)
14. In the Hall of the Mountain King
15. I Wanna Be Sedated (Ramones cover)
16. Gotta Get Away
17. Drum Solo
18. Gone Away
19. Why Don't You Get a Job?
20. Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)
21. The Kids Aren't Alright
22. You're Gonna Go Far, Kid
23. Self Esteem
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Billy, Don't Be A Porter

[Buckeye Randy]

Artist: Queen
Compilation Titles: Epic, Heavy, Riffs, Pop, Anthems, Funk, Ballads, Slightly Mad, Rock n Roll, B-Sides and Acoustic
Released: 2025

I'm just a tad north of being a casual fan of Queen. In the '70's, I was a fan club, card carrying, zealot that would preach the greatness of Queen to anybody that wanted to listen and even to those that didn't want to hear it. I (slightly) questioned my fandom with Jazz ('78) but I was still 100% on board. My enthusiasm started to fade with the release of The Game ('80), it was a fine album but something had changed with the band.

The soundtrack for Flash Gordon was filled with synths which sort of broke the code of 'no synths'. I was embarrassed by the release of Hot Space and Freddie's solo work wasn't for me. After that, I was conflicted with my fandom. I bought the subsequent albums, but they were based on teenage love; first love, best love. I was left to pick up the pieces of a broken heart.

I would be remiss not to acknowledge Queen's world resurgence in the mid 80's that included some great songs, Live Aid and Live At Wembley. Let's be clear, there was very little love taking place in mainstream America on the radio or concert venues. There was a disconnect, Queen was playing huge venues from South America to Australia but didn’t step foot in North America on the last two tours with Freddie.

I'll fast forward this discussion past Freddie's death, Queen + Paul Rogers and Adam Lambert. All those things deserve their own space. I want to discuss Queen’s releases from the last 15 years and more specifically, this year.

I was thrilled when the De Lane Lea Demos were released in 2011, these are the 1971 demos that were shopped to record companies. I was ecstatic when Queen officially released the heavily bootlegged shows from the '74 London Rainbow (released in 2014) and the 2015 release of the '75 Hammersmith Christmas show. I was lukewarm to the 2016 release of all the BBC performances and interviews. Most fans have bootleg copies of these things but the new releases are significantly cleaned up which makes them semi-essential. The manner that the live recordings were cleaned up is another discussion!

Finally, were at 2025, let’s talk 2025. Queen has given us eleven themed compilation releases since June, 2025…what??? Eleven?? Yep, each are single discs with 10 – 12 songs. They are Epic, Heavy, Riffs, Pop, Anthems, Funk, Ballads, Slightly Mad, Rock n Roll, B-Sides and Acoustic.

I’ll start by saying that most Queen fans are a little neurotic in some way (smiling), they have a tendency to like things just so. I’m guilty of this especially when it comes to themed playlists, my mixtapes were to die for. Seriously, these releases seem like playlists I would put together. Let’s see if the band takes it a step further and has a disc for songs written by each individual member.

Each one of the eleven releases has a song that is a headscratcher or is missing a track that I would have included. I’m not here to review each release. This is just a launch point for a conversation about anything Queen related. Thoughts, comments, allegations?
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Billy, Don't Be A Porter