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In Craig I Trust

30 May

Like Anne Frank, I, too, believe that “Despite everything … people are really good at heart.” So this morning, when I made a spur-of-the-moment decision to log onto LiveNation.com and try to buy a better ticket to tonight’s Dave Matthews Band concert at Fenway Park than the one I already had (yes, I realize that’s a pretty silly thing to do), I knew that my next course of action would be to post that I had an extra ticket for sale on Craigslist. Lo and behold, I got lucky and found a seat right on the field, so I posted my ad on Craigslist, noting that I was only looking for face value so I could get my money back. Within minutes I had a few replies, and over the course of a couple emails, I deduced that the person who had been first to get back to me was for real, so I agreed to meet her at Fenway at noon to make the transaction.

Not surprisingly, there were already folks at Fenway looking to buy/sell tickets, and as soon as one of them realized I was there to sell a ticket, he tried to take it off my hands, and with a small profit for me too. Well, I’m a man of my word, so I said no thanks — I was already meeting someone and had agreed to sell it to her. Then, at 12, I got a text message that my buyer was stuck in traffic and that she would be a little late. No problem, I thought. I’ll give her a couple extra minutes to get there.

Alright, backtrack here to about a month ago when I had an extra ticket on the day of Bruce Springsteen’s second show. On my way into Boston to sell the ticket to someone I had “met” on Craigslist, I got stuck in traffic on 128, the Pike, and Storrow Dr., and ended up losing the sale because the guy ended up buying from someone else when I was late. So now the roles were sort of reversed, and I had a dilemma. Sure, it would have been much easier to sell the ticket to the guy on the street and make a profit in the process, but I decided I would do the right thing and wait for my person to get there. Worse comes to worse, I had a plan B hovering over me, waiting for things to fall through. And even though she, too, would have had this same plan B, it just wouldn’t have been cool to make her pay more if she was an actual fan.

As the time ticked away, and I would get texts that my buyer was getting closer, I started to waiver and considered selling the ticket at the higher price and just walking away. So I was relieved when, at 12:45, the woman finally showed up and was a real fan who was appreciative that I had been so patient and waited for her all that time. As promised, I sold the ticket to her at face value and we parted ways. (Alright, fine. She gave me a couple extra bucks for making me wait. But I’d say I’d earned those, wouldn’t you?)

Call me a sucker if you will, or call me naive or stupid, but despite all the negative press Craigslist has received in recent months, I continue to believe in it and use it, and do so honestly, with good intentions. You can be skeptical, but I think it’s nice to see that there are other people out there who are like me and do the same.

(BTW, those pictures up there? Not me, and not the scalper I was dealing with.)

I Love the Way He Moves Me

30 May

In the summer of 2003, I saw Bruce Springsteen at Fenway Park.

The next night, I saw Dave Matthews Band at what was then called the Tweeter Center.

Suffice it to say, the DMB show paled in comparison and I decided to take a break from what was, at the time, an annual summer tradition of seeing the band live.

Six years later, DMB are back in town to play a two-night stand at Fenway (their last time there was in 2006), and after attending last night’s first show, I can say that absence sure did make the heart grow fonder. Continue reading →

Feeling Glee-ful

21 May

Did you watch the pilot episode of Glee on Tuesday night? No? Well do not wait another minute: Sit at your computer and watch it right now, right here. It’s funny, the music’s great, and I really liked it. There’s an instant-classic peppy cover of Amy Winehouse’s “Rehab” at the 28:30 mark that’s worth watching. And let me just say that Lea Michele, the adorable actress who plays Rachel Berry, sure can sing (fast-forward to the 40-minute mark for proof of that). Alright, stop reading, click “play,” and enjoy!
http://www.hulu.com/embed/Fq-gwzQizV6MdAgIlglF1Q

He’s Got a Friend

26 Apr

“I’ve had a few setbacks,” says Nathaniel Ayers by way of explaining why he, a talented musician, is living on the street. The same could be said about Jamie Foxx, who, after starring in Ray and winning an Oscar, went a long time before he found a role as good. With The Soloist, Foxx finally has a chance to show filmgoers how good an actor he can be. As Ayers, a schizophrenic, Julliard-trained homeless man, Foxx gives a moving performance. He never once resorts to caricature, and he makes you wish he took on such serious roles more often.

The Soloist is not a one-man movie, of course. Robert Downey Jr. plays Steve Lopez, a Los Angeles Times columnist who meets Ayers one day by chance and becomes his friend. He, too, gives an impressive performance. In a refreshing change from most movies of this type, Lopez is no perfect white knight. He’s wary of getting too involved with Ayers, and he loses his patience at times. Screenwriter Susannah Grant (Erin Brockovich) and director Joe Wright (Atonement) don’t give Lopez some cheesy realization scene either when he realizes the impact he’s had on Ayers’ life, nor do they create a lame montage of reader reactions. Both are much appreciated. (By the way, this film is based on a true story, and on Lopez’s book of the same name. )

Like State of Play, The Soloist seeks to canonize newspapers and newspaper reporters, showing the lengths they will go for a story and the ways their work can be effective. There’s a welcome believability to it here that doesn’t feel forced or heavy-handed. Further authenticity comes from the fact that Wright uses actual homeless people as extras and in small supporting roles, not actors. And I suppose it should also be noted that the music is quite nice, even if it is mostly string instruments (and you know how I feel about those).

The Soloist was originally supposed to be released last fall, in the heart of Oscar season, but it was delayed. Usually that’s a bad sign, but not here. That said, the film’s good, but I don’t think it would have been a strong awards contender. Releasing it now allows The Soloist to get a little more attention, something it deserves. I’m giving it a strong B.

This One Was For Us

23 Apr

Where to start about night two of Bruce Springsteen’s two-night homestand at the TD Banknorth Garden?

The show was longer (just about exactly three hours); it had more of an emphasis on his older, less mainstream material; the band covered “I Wanna Be Sedated”; I had a better seat; and man oh man, can that Jay Weinberg play!

And as if that wasn’t enough, the Dropkick Murphys joined Bruce on stage for the encore, amping up an already boisterous “American Land.”

Oh, and did I mention Jay Weinberg and his amazing skills on the drums?

Wow. Continue reading →

Meet Him in the Land of Hope and Dreams

22 Apr

“I will provide for you, and I’ll stand by your side,” Bruce Springsteen sang at one point during his show Tuesday night at the TD Banknorth Garden. “You’ll need a good companion for this part of the ride.”

Over the course of almost three hours, Springsteen was that companion, taking the audience through hard times and to salvation, raising us up on his shoulders, and showing us that there are brighter days ahead.

As always, it was a thrilling, exciting, exhausting show, one that was light on promotion for his latest album and heavier on barn burning revivalism. Continue reading →

Loving Lily

20 Apr

From the moment she first appeared Sunday night on the stage of the House of Blues, wearing a low-cut red onesie, sneakers, and a red Red Sox cap tilted to the side, Lily Allen made it clear that she had come to Boston to have a good time. She even wore red socks as a tribute to her host city, and promised a “wicked pissah,” even though she clearly had no idea what that meant.

But no matter.

In just under an hour and a half, Lily Allen gave all in attendance a great show that was big on fun and big on attitude — but with plenty of talent, too. Continue reading →

Not Joining the Chorus

19 Apr

I haven’t exactly joined the Susan Boyle bandwagon this week, though a few of my friends have been trying to get me there. Still, I enjoyed this mashup of the media coverage that Newsweek.com put together and thought I’d share.

http://bc.newsweek.com/players/v2/embed/newsweek.swf?l=18843405001&t=20045310001&c=40211

Not So Into It

18 Apr

Flight of the Conchords played the Agganis Arena at B.U. Friday night.

The concert featured the guys — Bret McKenzie and Jemaine Clement — performing largely acoustic versions of songs from both seasons of the show, and they even brought fellow cast members Eugene Mirman and Kristen Schaal along for the ride as their opening acts. Continue reading →

Wake-Up Call

7 Apr

Some people call it radio karma. Others chalk it up to an awful playlist. Me? I say Kiss 108 is trying to teach me a lesson, and I’m sure of it. Monday morning when my alarm went off, I hit snooze like I always do, and then I repeated it a second time. And when it went off the fourth time, I considered getting up. After all, I had plenty to do at work and could have used the extra half-hour or so. But did I? No. I decided I wanted nine more minutes, so I hit snooze again. And then, when the alarm went off nine minutes later, what song was playing? Lady Gaga’s “Poker Face.” At the present time, there is no artist on the radio that I hate more than Lady Gaga, so I hit snooze again. After all, who wants to get up to a song they don’t like? That’ll ruin your whole day.

So I slept some more. Nine minutes later, when the alarm went off again, what was playing? Britney Spears’ “Circus,” another song I find absolutely annoying. So yes, I hit snooze again. And then, nine minutes later, what was playing? My least favorite song right now, Flo Rida’s “Right Round.” It was already a half hour after I was going to get up, but I just couldn’t get up then. And nine minutes after that, when the alarm went off again, what was playing? Actually, nothing. It was all static. But that was better than the alternative, so I got up. Finally. Lesson learned. (Or was it?) Next time, I’ll get up when I’m supposed to.

And it probably should be noted that the song playing when I should have woken up was Jason Mraz’s “I’m Yours,” which, of course, I love.

Oh, but was that it? No way. I listened to Matty in the Morning for nearly my entire drive into work, laughing along with Matty, Billy, Lisa, Jim, and the gang, and right as I’m turning the corner into my parking lot, what song comes on? That’s right: “Poker Face.” Again. So suffice it to say, Kiss 108, by playing my least favorite songs at exactly the wrong times, taught me that I really need to time my mornings a bit better.

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