coming to the SunDome this fall

The USF Bulls Mens' Basketball Team released their 2005-06 non-conference schedule on Wednesday. You want big-time college basketball? Perennial powerhouse Michigan will make the trip down Fowler Avenue to face Coach McCullum's squad Dec. 10. Saturday night's alright!
Of course, as much as Michigan is an excellent program, we will be facing a lot of great teams this year in our own conference, the Big East. USF's conference schedule has not been released yet.
For those of you who aren't aware, most "experts" will probably pick USF to finish last in the Big East.
We will also face an old foe in non-conference: our perennial rival, the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) comes to the SunDome. USF has played 53 games against UAB, and it's always a dogfight.
Sometimes we have fun in the SunDome. Sometimes we do not have as much fun as we wish. But I hope to attend all the games. Hey mister schedule maker: how about a 6 pm tipoff on saturday games? That way I can make it to work on time! If not, I'll just be late... Ok, George?
USF once had a guard named Cedric Smith who said: "To our fans, we're their Duke, we're their North Carolina." Mr. Smith, you hit the nail on the head.

Fantasy Football

We have an awesome fantasy football league. it's called the "JUST FOR FUN LEAGUE" (JFFL). It was founded in 2000. Charter members (6 year veterans) include Ray Blade, Stan, Hucabuc, Lewkobraves, TTFKATZ, and myself. Tommy and Dirty E joined the second year. CK Smooth, Buzz and Das are also in our league. It's a great league. Tommy is the champion right now. Dirty E and Ray Blade are former champions. Stan and TTFKATZ are former champs as well. CK is the scoring champion. "Greek Domination" (?) is the current regular season champion. Das won rookie of the year. Generally I field an excellent team, evidenced by 3 scoring championships, 2 regular season championships, 2 regular season 2nd place finishes, 1 second place scoring finish, and 4 playoff appearances in 5 years. I've won more games than anyone else in JFFL history, and I've scored more points than anyone else in JFFL history. But I've never won our championship game, which has been called the JFFL Super Bowl, the JFFL Championship Game, the Fun Bowl, and the Just For Fun Bowl.
I hope to have a good year this year. First I must select my keepers... possibilities are Corey Dillon, Trent Green, Clinton Portis, Reggie Wayne, Nate Burleson, Ashley Lelie, Antonio Gates...
Please comment!

JGLB July schedule

Please note: JGLB will not be performing at any public venue between the dates of July 9 and July 23. Thanks to our fans and friends for your invaluable support.

JGLB July schedule:

Friday July 1 / 9 PM
TWO BUKS
1915 N.Hercules Ave(At Sunset Point Rd.)
Clearwater, FL. 33755
(727)- 442 - 0812

Friday-Saturday
July 8-9 / 9 PM
Blue Shark
1620 E Seventh Ave
Ybor City / Tampa
(813) 248-3499

Saturday July 23 / 9 PM
Blue Shark
1620 E Seventh Ave
Ybor City / Tampa
(813) 248-3499

Friday-SaturdayJuly 29-30 / 9 PM
Blue Shark
1620 E Seventh Ave
Ybor City / Tampa
(813) 248-3499

neat cars

I have always thought that these cars are neat, I mean real neat. I also have always loved these cars. GTX, GTX. I love old cars. yeah, yeah, yeah! I like these Cadillacs. I prefer these Cadillacs. 59 Cadillacs! 59 caddies!
Perhaps the neatest car lately is this 48 (or 49?) Mercury. I think it's a 48, but some news reports call it a 49. The 49 Merc was one of the turning point cars in US automobile history, as Ford had all new lines with more modern design. What's more, James Dean drove one in "Rebel Without a Cause". Anyway, I think the design on that 48 Merc oughta be mass produced. I like the amphibious thing... so do these guys!
Anyway, there's another point to be made here: Cuba's got the greatest collection of pre-61 American cars anywhere except Hollywood... here's a nice 58 chevy outside a very historic looking buliding. the first car i ever drove much was a blue 58 chevy... sure would love to visit Cuba someday.

We're back! Ha! GET UP OFF-A THAT THING!

Well, after a bit of an absence, let's try to get this blog back on track!
Following the advice off the Godfather, I intend to:
Get up off-a that thing...
and try to release that pressure!
What-cha say, peeps?

this Saturday, June 25 2005

Make your plans to attend the Krewe of Thieves of San Lorenzo 2nd Annual Heartbreakers Ball this Saturday June 25. Wear Polyester, Bell Bottoms and Platforms! Dance to the music of the good ol' JGLB! It's at the Egypt Temple Activities Building, 4050 Dana Shores Drive in Tampa. It starts at 7, but our band plays at 9 or thereabouts. Hey Louise, help me out here! Kathleen, Dorothy, Maria, Julie and all the rest of our "Thieves" friends please comment!

A few changes

In addition to comments, this blog now has the added ability to record trackbacks. For those of you with even fewer computer skillz than me, that means if you reference something here on the JGLB blog, you can send a "trackback" and it will link to the reference on your site.

Thanks to our friends at Haloscan for the new commenting and trackback features.

There is some bad news.... All of those comments that were here before are now gone, gone gone... Sorry about that... If you had something important in there, feel free to resubmit...

THE Museum

There's a few people on this planet that I got a lotta respect for. I mean, this is a respect beyond reverence, beyond idolatry. I happen to think that these people were placed on this earth to make it a better place, and the world really would be a different place without them.

Top of the list: The KING of The Blues, Mister B! B! KING!

BB King is my favorite all time musician to such a degree, that Malvern Gasperon is my second favorite.

Malvern Gasperon is a fictional bluesman, a role played in the Movie Blues Brothers 2000 by The KING of The Blues, Mister B! B! KING!

Anyway, There's now a NEW museum in Indianola Mississippi: The BB KING MUSEUM! (speaker alert: watch for music) The song you will hear "3 O'Clock Blues," was recorded in 1949.

Soon, I will write a post about the song "How Blue Can You Get," as heard on the 1972 album "BB King Live at Cook County Jail," which I believe is the best guitar playing I have ever heard. Another version of that song is what I call the "We Are The World" of the Blues, and I will explain why i feel that way.

Funny thing: from all I can tell, BB is just as great as an 80 year old as he's ever been. His vocal power and guitar wizardry / dexterity are as profoundly awesome as ever.

Congrats to the Greatest of All, BB KING. (speaker alert!) I gotta visit Indianola sometime soon, who else would like to go?

Tony Grier: A Raging BULL!

Thanks to my great buddy, Tony Grier!

As in former USF Basketball Player Tony Grier, a 6'3" guard who was one of the best players in BULL history. If my info is correct, he is still the Bulls 6th all time leading scorer.

Tony's writing a book about USF Basketball in the Sundome, a book that nobody is more qualified to write than he. In my opinion, he was one of our first big time recruits. He is also a great guy in a way that benefits our entire community. In a way, he built the SunDome.

For what it's worth, the best our band ever played may have been in the Sundome, in the 80's, opening for The Outlaws and Marshall Tucker. Why? Well, Max made friends with the soundman... We got as good a mix as they could give us, which an opening band ordinarily never gets...

Tony occasionally comments on our blog. Hopefully he will become a regular contributor. Read his comment on this post!

storm or no storm, we're gonna rock!

come see us at the Blue Shark this weekend! June 10-11, 9 pm

It's dry there! parking is nearby in a dry garage!

Arlene?

I have been hearing a lot about Arlene.

I prefer this Arlene.

Learn more about Arlene here.

the NBA finals

I gotta tell ya, I love the NBA. Especially "best of-7" game playoff series. especially the NBA finals.
This year: no Shaq in the Finals. The Spurs vs Pistons.
other info you wont see much of elsewhere (unless you look)
The Spurs were one of the top teams in the ABA.
The Pistons were originally called the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons.
Rick Barry's son Brent plays for the Spurs. Actually, Barry has 3 other sons who play or have played professionally, Jon, Scooter, and Drew.
Detroit head coach Larry Brown used to coach the Spurs. Larry Brown had a great ABA career as a player and a coach. But most importantly: LARRY BROWN USED TO PLAY FOR THE BUCS!
As in the New Orleans Buccaneers.
Spurs guard / forward Manu Ginobili (prononunced Gene-o-BILL-ee) also plays for the World Champion Argentine National Team.
More about George Mikan and his impact on developing the game as we know it today.

free speech!

What do you think of "free speech" as it pertains to this blog?
We have gotten some pretty interesting comments over the 5 1/2 month history of this blog!
My inclination is to let it all hang out. All comments are allowed, good or bad. However, my feelings on this issue could change if certain taboos were breeched... also i am concerned about the tiresome aspect of propaganda that occasionally appears in the comments... i would prefer that this blog not become a political battleground...
let's have your comments on this one, please!

BENNY'S DAD: June 6 1944

You know our bassist, Ben Jammin, AKA Benny Sudano. He's a hell of a guy. You can find Ben Jammin everywhere!

But you don't know about Benny's dad. Benny's dad has his own outstanding BIG BAND, "Benny Boom Boom and the Big Little Band." Perhaps you've seen them on (Hillsborough Brighthouse Cable channel 15) playing their Lowry Park concert.

61 years ago today, June 6 1944, Benny's dad went to a beach. As a result of this, The USA won a war.

All I wanna say to Benny's dad is: Thank You.

Blues Brothers 3000

Ok, Elwood finds out that Jake may still be alive. The surviving Blues Brothers: Elwood, Mack, Cab, and Buster Blues, go to Mississippi to find Jake, since that's where Jake was last seen. While there, they run into Buddy Guy, a voodoo guitar badass dude. Then they realize they must go to Roswell, New Mexico, because aliens have Jake. They go through New Orleans, where they seek the aid of Voodoo priests, but instead wind up in a gay bar, where they jam with Little Richard. Richard joins the band, as they take off for New Mexico. As a result of this, the BBs incur the wrath of Anti-Gay extremists. Then they wind up on a gambling ship in the Mississippi River, where a neo-nazi politician running for president is gambling away the money of his gullible followers. He gets mad too, so you got people (anti-gay extremists and neo-nazis) chasing the BBs around the country, a prerequisite for BBs movies. Traveling thru Texas, the Bluesmobile breaks down. A farm boy (Elvin Bishop) gives them a ride into town The only guy that can fix it is a skinny old mechanic whose covered with tattoos. He fixes the Bluesmobile with a tool that's also a "slide guitar." (This role played by Johnny Winter). They go to a bar to celebrate, where Jerry Lee Lewis is playing. of course, Jerry Lee, Bishop and Winter jam with the BBs... If Sun Ra were still alive, that's who they would encounter in New Mexico but he's dead... Somehow Malvern Gasperon has to be worked into this story too. These ideas need to be fleshed out, as they'll need more pissed off people, like Bob from Bob's Country Bunker, and Charles Napier. And more ridiculous details...

RIP George Mikan

I'm standing there, about 20 feet from the basket. I've picked up my dribble. I am too heavily defended to consider shooting. All my teammates defenders are clogging the passing lanes... except one. One teammate stands on the "right block," his arms spread like an eagle's wings. He signals me to throw it to his outstretched left hand. He catches the ball. He executes a series of patented moves and scores.

Then we run down to the other court and play defense. A cutting guard penetrates the lane with the ball. Again, my same teammate totally obscures the penetrator's view of the basket. the guard throws up a wild shot which my same teammate immediately rebounds and outlets to me. He then runs down to the other side of the court, where we repeat the same series of events described in paragraph one. Damn, I love this teammate! Ok, this was only a dream I had, but still...

It's one thing to be a big man. It's another thing to know how to play the game. It's yet another thing to REALLY know how to play the game.

The first BIG MAN to know how to REALLY play the game was George Mikan.

RIP, George.

Johnny G Lyon / JGLB June 2005 Schedule

See Johnny G Lyon / JGLB at the BLUE SHARK
Friday-Saturday June 3-4
Friday Saturday June 10-11
Friday-Saturday June 17-18
Friday June 24
Showtime for all BLUE SHARK shows is 9 PM
Blue Shark is located at 1620 7th ave in Ybor city

On Saturday June 25 we play a benefit for the "Thieves of San Lorenzo" at the Shriner's Activity Building on Dana Shores Drive in the Town and Country area. This is a fund raiser for the Shriners. Public is invited. More info soon.