The Real Memphis Mike (don't settle for imitations)

Let's face it, I like to drink. Not everyday, not always blotto, but I do enjoy a nice, cold beer with friends now and then. Oddly enough, I almost never drink at home. I could equate this to 30+ years of being a working musician, and usually only drinking in public...or I could equate to more of a social experience. Either way, when I drink, it's usually in a bar (or pub). Below is a list of some of my favorite bars/pubs that I've frequented over the years and why I like them. Maybe, if you too are a social drinker, you'll compile your own mental list of some of your fave watering holes. So, without further adieu and in no particular order: Rascals (aka The Cage) - Dover, OH Back when I still lived in Ohio, this was my regular nightspot. My girlfriend and I would be there just about every night. She'd shoot pool (and shark everyone in the room) while my buddy Jackson and I would knock back many a beverage and shoot the shit. Most of my friends hung out there t...

I'm the sort of person who tends to compartmentalize things in my life. It's weird...but it works for me. Case in point, today. I was doing a show with my band, Memphis Mike & The Legendary Tremblers , today and decided to merge a couple of my personal worlds...at least a couple of my musical worlds. Allow me to explain... In this band, we play loud, usually fast, boogie-kinda rock and roll. Some call it rockabilly (we don't), some call it country rock, some call it blues, some call it surf. Like Sam Phillips, we just call it "rock & roll" maaaaaaan. Sure, I like to incorporate blues, country, jazz, surf, rockabilly, punk, etc. into my playing. It's called having my own style. When I do solo shows, it's usually just me and a resophonic guitar, playing a lot of side guitar, and attempting to play 'down home kinda delta blues'. I rarely, if ever, play slide on electric. But today was different. I've been in a different mindset latel...

I used to write. A lot. I always loved my creative writing classes. I'd usually have my assignments finished before the class was over. I wrote short stories, plays, lyrics, poems. Sometimes I'd just write gibberish, just because I could. My high school teachers and college professors always loved my writing, or so they said. My dad always figured I'd grow up to be an English professor. (I have yet to grow up, so that is still an option) I eventually turned my writing in two directions: music and journalism. I've been writing songs since I was 12. If I was really good at it, you'd probably be familiar with more of my work! My journalistic writing...there's another story. I started out writing for underground mags and papers like Bull Dada and NOW. When I was 15, I was published in Rolling Stone (under a pen name). I think  I made a whopping $155 for that one! (Big money to a kid in the early 80s) I eventually took a break from journalism to focus more on ...

Coke or Pepsi...does it have to be a choice between the two? I rarely drink colas. In fact, I've never been a huge fan of cola (unless there's bourbon mixed in there). But seriously though...why is it a choice between these two? I think it says a lot about our country's mindset. Either/or. I used to spend a lot of time down south. One of my favorite things about the southern lexicon was their habit of referring to ALL soft drinks as "Coke". You'd be sitting in a restaurant or diner and the waitress would ask if you'd like a Coke...then she'd ask you what kind you wanted. Always cracked me up. My ex girlfriend, born and raised in Tennessee, would always refer to my (then) beloved Mt. Dew as "yellow Coke". (It's actually a bit more green....but I digress) I used to live on Mt. Dew. Since my heart attack 5 years ago, I've gone caffeine-free. I prefer orange soda now. Orange Crush is always in my fridge. Fanta's orange soda is p...

Gypsy. You've all heard the word. Some of you may even think you know a thing or two about gypsies. You probably don't. I used to think I did...until now. I've been attempting to research my family for years. A major stumbling block was always my great-grandfather Albert. He came to the US in the late 19th century. One would think that finding a ship passenger registry with his family listed would be relatively easy in this day and age. Not so. Here's the problem. My great-grandfather used an assumed name in the US until just prior to his marriage to my great-grandmother Lizzie Nauman. The story I was always told by my grandmother and great aunts was that just before their wedding, Albert told Lizzie he had to confess something to her. Meyer, the name he had been living under, was not his real name. His reasons for using it were never clear. He informed her that his true name was Zigan and he would understand if she didn't want to marry a Zigan. OK, I never un...

I've been reading about the Church of Latter Day Saints (the Mormons) lately. I'm a religious man yet as an American, I believe all are free to believe as they see fit...or believe nothing if that is their wish. I try to see the value and merit of all religions. I have a rather syncretic belief  that God taught the various cultures the same things, but in contexts that each culture could understand. When most of us think of Mormons, we think of polygamists, the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Utah, and clean cut white folks. They don't drink, smoke, or tell dirty jokes. Hell, they don't even drink coffee or tea! While many may find this odd, these (with the exception of polygamy) aren't reasons to look down one's nose at someone. But there's more to the Mormons than meets the eye. I do not claim to be a scholar on the subject and I'll admit that there is a lot more to read on the subject...but what I have been reading strikes me as truly disturbing. While...

Kinda sounds like a comedy routine, doesn't it? The young'un LOVES candy. One of her faves is Skittles. Now I'll whole-heartedly admit that I've enjoyed a Skittle or two in my day...but nowhere near as much as the young'un does. She can eat a 5 pound bag of them in one sitting. My only real problem with Skittles is their smell. I think they smell like urinal cakes. For those unfamiliar with urinal cakes, they are the deodorizing pink 'cakes' placed in urinals in public restrooms to keep the odor to a minimum...basically because most men are too fucking lazy to flush a public toilet. The smell is somewhere between Fruity Pebbles cereal and baby aspirin. That's what Skittles smell like (to me). It's not a particularly horrible smell...although a tad sweet smelling. The problem for me is this: when she's eating a bag of Skittles, and the smell reminds me of urinal cakes, my brain equates this with the stench of a dirty public restroom...and I ...