Had a good Fathers day weekend. I DJ’d a wedding at Warwick Hills on Saturday, beautiful place. Thanks to Richard Fairman (used to manage Metro Music Cafe) for the hospitality. I got to dress in the same locker room as Tiger Woods instead of the usual handicapped stall in the bathroom. Wish I had a dollar for everytime I’ve done that.

Sunday went to Frankenmuth with the family…did the chicken dinner thing/boat ride/shopping…very relaxing. Glad I put the yard work off to just chill…I needed it. Also came to the realization that my sons won’t be daddy’s little boys much longer.

Spent some time at the Gratiot Cruise this past weekend. Felt like summer…always cool to get face to face with you guys.

Started building a pen for the goats I told my son he could have. I’m not the handiest of guys but surprised myself with some carpentry skills. You never know what you can accomplish until you dive into it. Got to use the table saw which had been collecting dust and felt proud as I stepped back and admired my work. The boys learned alot by helping and wondered why dad doesn’t build them a clubhouse. I’ll put it on my to do list.

I appeared on “Wolfman Mac’s Chiller Drive-In” on TV20 recently. I was amazed and humbled by the compliments I received. I can barely remember names let alone script lines. Then to put it together with expressions and interaction with other characters was challenging. I have alot more respect for actors who make it seem so effortless.

Saw a great t-shirt “D.A.D.D”…Dads against daughters dating…..HA!

The chickens are gettin bigger…smellier too.

Have a great week!    

                                   Buck

  

I saw it,but I still can’t beleive it! The Red Wings lost game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals…at home?

It felt so right…a sure thing…done deal. The anticipation leading up to the game was incredible. Everywhere I went Friday afternoon people were smiling,giving me thumbs up as I proudly displayed my Red Wings jersey. Conversations with strangers started with Go Wings! People everywhere,including non-hockey fans, were happy and buzzing about the game. It was an upbeat feel good atmosphere I haven’t seen around town in a long time.

Then it all came crashing down with an agonizing defeat at the hands of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Everyone seems to have a differant opinion as to how this happened. But what I noticed was that amongst all the analysis, nobody was blaming or bad mouthing the boys in red. We got beat…plain and simple. It was good hockey by both teams.

Monday morning and instead of planning for a parade, it’s just another day at the office…unemployment line. Still in shock. I don’t like Mondays as the song goes.

Thank you Wings for a great season and for distracting us from the daily grind.

Rest well and enjoy the Michigan summer….everyone. 

Rest and Relaxation was what my week of vacation was all about. Got some work done around the house,including my vegetable garden. I went big this year and planted corn,beans,peas,onions,peppers,tomatoes,spinach,radish,squash,cukes and few others I’m sure I forgot. I should learn to can I suppose.

I had a great time with my old friend Wolfman Mac while filming an episode of his show Chiller Drive-In. Look for my guest appearance June 20 at midnight on channel 20. If you loved “The Ghoul” and “Sir Graves” you’ll love Wolfman Macs Chiller drive-In.

Did some fishin with my boys…my son Jake hauled in a couple nice ones. I’ll post some pics soon.

Also did some online music downloading…looking for deep stuff…stuff I’d forgot about…in all genres. What are some of your “Nuggets”?

Good to be back on air,I’ve got new energy and I’m looking forward to a great summer of rock n roll. 

Sorry I haven’t checked in recently, I’m working 7 days a week with my radio/bar/wedding gigs. I’m not complaining, it’s good to be working at all these days.

Tigers had a good weekend after getting swept the previous series. Wish we could play the A’s all the time. Red Wings are rolling and looking like another cup is within reach. Keep the good news coming Tigers/Wings, we need it.

Aside from work, I’ve been busy shuffling the kids around to their activities. Jake is playing baseball, but having a rough year, as he’s already taken a ball to the face and ribs. Jon just wrapped up his first acting experience in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. He’s got the entertainment bug. I’m proud of his effort and enthusiasm.

This years flock of chickens should arrive any day now. More stuff for me to do.

I’ll have more soon…keep rockin…summers coming. 

Bruce Springsteen is coming out with an expanded Greatest Hits Album on June 2nd. Songs include… ”Blinded By The Light,” “Rosalita (Come Out Tonight),” “Born To Run,” “Thunder Road,” “Badlands,” “Darkness On The Edge Of Town,” “Hungry Heart,” “The River,” “Born In The U.S.A.,” “I’m On Fire,” “Glory Days,” “Dancing In The Dark,” “The Rising,” “Lonesome Day,” “Radio Nowhere,” “Long Walk Home,” “Because The Night,” and “Fire.”

Not sure I agree with the “Long Walk Home” choice.

I hope Bruce decides to add Detroit to the second legg of his tour. From what I’ve been reading, it sounds like the band is having fun and being loosy goosy with the set list. The latest trend is to play “stump the band” during the shows. Concert goers have been bringing in signs with requests for cover tunes. Most recently The E Street Band took on the challenge to play “seventh son” by Willie Dixon and “hang on sloopy” by the McCoys. The spontaneity and versatility is one of the things that turned me on to Bruce and something that’s been lacking from recent tours.

 I don’t get out much these days and the whole evenings experience was a huge reality check for me. As I drove downtown for the J. Giels show I was deeply saddened by the abandoned buildings, demo of Tiger Stadium, number of homeless standing outside of shelters and lack of foot traffic in the area.

My mood started to pick up after I met an old friend for a drink, shared old rock n roll stories and headed over to the Fillmore. It was obvious from the git go that this was going to be a special night. I can’t find the words to fully describe the pre show excitement. It was more than visual…you could actually feel the anticipation and energy coming off the people waiting in line. It was as if people holding tickets expected to be dipped in some magical waters and transported back in time where they could escape from their current woes. And that’s pretty much what happened.

Geils came out with a full head of steam that continued to build as the audience and band fed off of each other. It was hot sweaty and rockin! To see them in a small venue, cranking out all the tunes we love with such bravado was like going back to the heyday of concerts in Detroit. The band has certainly aged better than I have. I was glad to see that each member kept their individuality thru their clothing. Bands like The E street Band wear uniform black and give up their personalities. Yes…I just slammed my favorite band…sorry Bruce.

I loved reconnecting with the listeners and removing the radio from between us. Talking to you guys about your lives, music and appreciation for my show recharges by batteries. I wish I could come to your job and tell you what a great job your doing.

At the end of the night, one last event made me feel young again. My friend Jeff drove me back to my car only to discover that the bar had closed and locked my car inside their fenced in lot. What to do? I live 50 miles away and had a commitment the next morning. I got on my cell phone and started on plan B…calling friends/family…checking out my options. As I’m doing this, I see Jeff eye balling the fence with determination. He precedes to grab a wrench from his car and starts disassembling a section of the fence. I said ” dude, what are you doing?” He said “this is bull$$!t we’re gettin you outta here”. I said ” this is breaking and entering”. He said ” I’m not breaking anything…I’m taking it apart and we’re not stealing…it’s your car”. Before I knew it and before anyone saw us, we pulled back the fence and I drove out of the lot. It Was Classic! I felt like I was 27 not 47.

WHAT A NIGHT! Thanks for listening all these years and lets not wait so long for the next time.

Stay strong Detroit…we’ll find a way out of this mess…even if we have to disassemble the fence…with a little help from our friends.

                                     Uncle Buck   

It’s gonna be a night of controled mayhem when J. Geils takes the stage at the Fillmore this weekend for the WCSX Birthday Breakdown!

Many years ago me and a couple buds used to go down to Cobo Hall the afternoon of a big show and try to get autographs at the back entrance. J. Geils was in concert this particular afternoon and when we went to the backdoor we realized there was no security…so in we went. There we were, backstage at Cobo, trying to blend in. Not knowing where to go, we asked some cool looking dude… “which way was the dressing room?” He responded…”not sure man”. Shortly after, we were exposed and escorted out of the building. Turns out the dude we asked for directions was Seth Justman (keyboards) from the Geils band. LOL.

Another great Geils moment was new years eve 1999. WCSX once again got the band back together to play the Palace. HO HO HO MAN!!! was that a great show. J.Geils played their asses off during a sweaty out of control house party of a night. Late into the evening the house lights came up signaling the band that they had played beyond their alotted time. In a defient, this may never happen again moment, J. Geils continued to play on. It was a night of rock n roll I will never forget.

J. Geils is the ultimate party band, so pop the top on a Mickeys large mouth, push the furniture aside and lets have a House Party.

CSX has been rockin the motorcity for 22 years. I’m proud to say I’ve been here for 17 of those years and thank you for listening and being part of my rock n roll fantasy. 

I’ll see you at the Fillmore.

                                   Uncle Buck 

Detroit and baseball fans around the world have lost one of the most colorful characters of the game…Mark “The Bird”Fidrych (54) was found dead at his farm in Massachusetts.

Baseball has had many memorable players throughout it’s history. Some known for their catchy nicknames, others for their stats and some for their off the field lifestyles. It was his on the field antics that endeared Mark Fidrych to us during his short professional career. The way The Bird talked to himself and the ball, patted the dirt on the mound and displayed his energy, was pure innocence and love of the game. These days when athletes show some on field quirkiness we frown upon it and blame it on immaturity. Mark Fidrych was just a big kid with an endless amount of energy. His antics weren’t preplanned to get attention and headlines…he was just being himself andI don’t think we’ll see another like him.

Mark Fidrych played just 5 seasons and was the 1976 rookie of the year. He was a pop phenomenon, a rockstar who appeared on the cover of Rolling Stone.

Bye Bye Bird…I’ll think of you at my son’s practice today and show him how to properly talk to a baseball.      

It was a nice run by The Spartans, good for the city of Detroit and a break from our woes and stress.  I picked the Spartans journey to end in the final four. I got sucked into the excitement as I watched my favorite team  play an inspired/emotional game against UCONN. But how many more times could they pull off a destiny type performance? We got our answer Monday night. The Spartans didn’t have their A-game against N.C. and the Tarheels are too good to give a spot to. 

 It was a goodtime and a good distraction…now bring on Tiger opening day…WCSX/GIELS B-Day Bash…Stanley Cup…Summer Concerts. Just keep partyin til the economy gets better.

Final Four at Ford Field…Lets Party! Nice job by MSU fighting their way back to the Motorcity for the big dance.  Tom Izzo has a way of getting his teams motivated in March. I hope he never leaves,but can understand when the offers to go pro start coming in.

My delema is I love my Spartans, but if they win, I lose a shot at money in my pool. Either way it’s GREEN…right? Should be alot of fun downtown…we need it.