Confessions of a Concert Crasher
Following is one of the first articles I ever wrote for the Reader, back in the early '90s ------------------
Get To Know Me (and stop sending those goofy questionnaires)
Get To Know Me (and stop sending those goofy questionnaires)
GET TO KNOW ME - THERE, I FINALLY FILLED OUT THIS STUPID EMAIL, SO EVERYONE STOP STOP SENDING IT TO ME.............. What time did you get up this morning? 'Bout noon - daylight is overrated Diamonds or pearls? 'Pends what …
Lazy Old Rocker Dude Goes To a Hip-Hop Open Mic
We get a lot of emails asking "Where's the Reader's hip-hop coverage?" Hopefully, readers have noticed increased coverage throughout the music section, including Blurt, Lists, Of Note, and Club Crawler. It wasn’t that we avoided hip-hop before – in my case, …
Creepy Old Wannabe Outlaw/Cartoonist Goes To a Rave
Okay, I know chances are good that my "newest" pair of jeans is older than a lotta people reading this blog. I’m old. How old AM I? I'm old enough to have… a) …bought Beatles records while they were still together… b) …witnessed …
Battle of the Bouncers - Concert Security Wars
Local Firms Fight for Rights to Bounce You
Local Firms Fight for Rights to Bounce You Your average concertgoer rarely pays much attention to event security. Most of what they do goes on out of our view, at least if they’re doing their job right. Sure, it’s nice …
I Was An Undercover Deadhead
Deadheads after the head Deadhead was dead I WAS AN UNDERCOVER DEADHEAD Once upon a time, the icons of their religion descended on arenas and stadiums like rainbow draped godlings, accepting the ritual sacrifice of dollars before making their divine …
R.I.P. Porn Biz (and good riddance!)
RIP PORN BIZ - WHY THE PORNO INDUSTRY DESERVES ITS SLOW DEATH Modern day porn movies are notorious for their ridiculous and idiotic titles. Looking at a porn star's list of film names would have been funny to me a …
One Night at Black's Beach
"Black's Beach, everyone knows, you don't need no buttons and bows. Black's Beach, everyone goes - there's a bunch of crazy people there without any clothes." (From one of KGB's old Homegrown vinyl albums - can't recall the band, only …
A Phone Call From Bob Dylan?!
This happened to me 2/12/01: “Is this the number where ahh kin reach Mr. Jay Allen Sanford?” asked the man on the phone with the twangy voice. Assuming the caller on my company's 800 line was ordering Rock ‘N’ Roll …
My Ten Favorite Local Concerts EVER!
MY FAVORITE TEN LOCAL CONCERTS EVER!! 12-15-78: I saw the Ramones play this Montezuma Hall show. The band was still breaking in "Marky," fresh from Richard Hell and the Voidoids. That night, they played "Rockaway Beach," "Sheena Is a Punk …
Touring Tijuana Bathrooms - Everybody's Gotta Go Sometime
TIJUANA BATHROOMS: EVERYBODY’S GOTTA GO SOMETIME Every weekend evening, thousands of people travel southbound across the San Ysidro-Puerta México Port of Entry. The majority will pass right by Plaza Viva Tijuana, a retail commercial center adjacent to the border station, …
The Day I Finally Sold My Record Albums
“This isn’t the original paper sleeve, you know. It looks like someone just cut it out of a grocery bag and stuck the album in it.” Off The Record co-owner (at the time) Rich Horowitz wasn’t telling me anything I …
Life on Downtown's Grindhouse Theater Row 1978 - 1982
LAST OF THE ALL-NIGHTERS - MY LIFE ON DOWNTOWN'S GRINDHOUSE THEATER ROW IN THE 70s and 80s I spent my first night in San Diego sleeping in the back row of the Cabrillo Theater. In that pre-Gaslamp, pre-multiplex downtown of 1978 …
That Old House - Reflections on a Childhood Home
THAT OLD HOUSE: Reflections on a Childhood Home Recently, I was online looking up property values, with an eye toward maybe buying instead of always renting. Then, since I don't know much about this stuff, I decided to look up …
Tales of the Palms Hotel - Living in Downtown San Diego circa 1978 to 1982
Tales of the Palms Hotel - Living in Downtown San Diego circa 1978 to 1982
On arriving in SD in 1978, eighteen and on my own for the first time, I rented a room at the Palms Hotel on 12th and Island, which at the time was the floppiest of downtown flophouses. Today, the Palms …
My Brunch With Yoko
Brunch with a Beatle Bride
MY BRUNCH WITH YOKO Yoko's personal secretary called me early on a Friday afternoon. "Miss Ono and her companion will be arriving in Dalton Georgia around 3pm tomorrow. She regrets that she won't be able to accompany you to your …
The Midnight Rambler - Life Between Deadlines
THE MIDNIGHT RAMBLER - LIFE BETWEEN DEADLINES It’s been going on for around six months now. Maybe longer. Nearly every single night, at around 2AM, someone skateboards slowly past my house, always to the tune of an external music player …