Operation Disk Drop

This is a great idea and everyone should participate!

Go to http://www.cbc.ca/thehour/blog/drop.html for more info.

What an awesome way to share your favourites and find out about new artists!

Ani DiFranco and Chris Jericho

November 14th, 2007 episode

Just a quick entry…

I think I first heard of Ani DiFranco from Sassy magazine back in the late 1980s. I think. Foggy memory. I enjoyed her music and her contributions as an independent artist, but I would not call myself a true fan as I don’t own any of her stuff. I think I liked her from a distance and the idea of her. Sort of a passive experience. Anyway, I still find there is so much to admire about her. I enjoyed her discussion with George – especially the part about the changes in her life since she had a child. Playing with grass. Loved the sound of that. As someone who is also always on the go and working/creating/etc… I can appreciate the appeal of that.

Speaking of being on the go… Chris Jericho. Wow, did that guy ever have a lot of energy. I wonder if he ever sits still. He definitely has found a good outlet for his energy – physicality and entertainment. While his appearance on The Hour did nothing for me personally, I know that the world of wrestling entertainment has a big following (I have friends in the indie side of the biz). I think it is good that The Hour covers the topic and the individuals involved in a mainstream and personable way without the hyperbole usually involved. The exaggeration is a part of the product but it is refreshing to look at it without it.

After The Hour

After The Hour is a new section of The Hour website for various videos of interest. It features some web exclusive parts of interviews as well as some other random videos (right now there is some stuff from CBC archives, a bit on people who claim they have seen aliens and other YouTube kind of stuff).

They have 16 videos up right now. Not sure if they will expand beyond that (the look of the page seems to be built around a set of 16), if they will only be showcasing recent stuff, if they will be putting the video in an archive later on. Inquiring minds want to know.

By the way, the interview extras have a little soundtrack to them which took a bit to get used to. Felt a little extra slick. Not awful or anything. Just different.

And a couple more things… right now there are some highlights from George’s honorary doctorate convocation ceremony and a great extra bit with Alan Alda.

The Virgin Megaman, Newborn Alan Alda and a difference of opinion

Tonight’s show featured interviews with Richard Branson and Alan Alda… Two conversations that equaled a(n) (possibly?) unintentional argument about the pros and cons of celebrity endorsements.

First, Branson was available to discuss the death of the “record store,” and to promote Virgin Unite and their  endeavor to get aid to remote areas of Africa.  He estimated that chain record stores would be gone in ten years, which i think is likely and unfortunate. I am a huge cd purchasing geek, i love owning the albums as a packaged piece of art. However, i also realize that less albums and packaging is better for the environment. so…go ahead and download. 😦

Virgin Unite is tackling world issues head on. Branson is such a no-B.S. do-er, which explains why he is so optimistic… if you are actively working to get things done, you will see results. His charity is sending aid workers on motorcycles to remote areas of Africa… they are trying to unify and create communication between the many many charities working in Africa, thus allowing positive ideas and developments to spread… and they are welcoming the celebrity participants that they have attracted. Branson has no problem working with George Clooney or Natalie Imbruglia to get the word out on certain issues. This is a conversation we have had on  here before, and there are no definate answers to the question: is celebrity endorsement a good or bad thing? I think its safe to say that it is working in Branson’s case.

In the case of Alan Alda, although he was talking about electing popular people in to politics and not chairty (note: charity is political…………..), he said one of my most favourite things of all time:

“If we keep putting people up because people will listen to them, then we stop expecting them to have evidence for what they are saying”

such a reasonable argument. so perfect. We cant just agree with things because someone that is popular is supporting it, we need to know the background… and that tends to get overlooked.

He also said something else i really liked: “you cant do art without being personal” but some things are private.             

somewhere along the way we stopped knowing the difference between those two things, which is why i know too much about britney spears…etc. *uggghhh.*

I would say that this interview with Alan Alda is one of my favourite conversations ever on The Hour.

Disinformation: 70% of the world’s population has never heard a dial tone. really makes you think about the global divide. The division between the rich and the poor is not just happening and getting wider within our own countries, it is happening on a global scale. and this little fact really put that notion into perspective.

and finally… HAPPY BIRTHDAY NEIL YOUNG!

p.s. I did not mean to suggest that Britney spears makes in any way, shape or form something called “art”…. 😉

A guy who plays with big cats, a Canadian legend and easy on the taste bud meds.

George was a big kid while interviewing Dave Salmoni. I can’t blame him for his enthusiasm – Dave’s job sounds like the ultimate combination of pure joy and a bit of danger on the side.  Who wouldn’t want to go play with the big kitties. George asked Dave to bring one with him the next time he comes on and I’ll be first in line for tickets if that happens!  One thing Dave mentioned that I hadn’t really ever thought about before is that zoos are helping to preserve some species from extinction.  The negative aspects of zoos are always so obvious that it’s easy to forget something like that. Dave was once involved in taking animals from zoos and reintroducing them into the wild. He also talked about Steve Irwin and the likelihood that he will meet a similar fate.  Animals in general need more people like Dave to spread the message of respect and preservation!

I was actually surprised that I enjoyed the Anne Murray interview. I’m not her biggest fan but I don’t deny her impact on music in this country.  She made an excellent point that todays music stars start too young, rise too fast and miss out on a lot of things along the way. I didn’t know that she’d been a teacher before she hit if big as a singer, or that she was such an avid golfter.  She mentioned that people often tell her that her golf score is her biggest achievement to date. Considering the list of awards and accolades that they rhymed off during her bio that’s saying something!

 Hilary Doyle was on tonight with maybe my favourite Is This a Good Idea yet.  Fun flavoured medications! The list of possible flavours was quite interesting ranging from orange to vodka. This is an excellent idea. I think this would make administering medication to children so much less painful for parents.

Tonights show was good – a great combo of guests and subjects. I do think though that the writers should have held out for free pizza and beer though 😉

A Dog, a baker and a fancy shoe maker…

KENNETH COLE (the fancy shoe maker)
Tonight on the Hour, Kenneth Cole was available to discuss his work in support of AIDS research, and the hip new fad called corporate responsibility. OK, that sounds like I disprove of the movement…and I don’t! Not entirely anyway…It depends on how the corporation decides to take responsibility…. I personally hate those special “we will donate a portion of…” brands that corps create for us to buy so we can wear our social consciousness like a badge… but that’s a conversation for another time…

Regardless, Kenneth Cole has made big strides in his attempts to garner money and attention for AIDS research… He creates witty, thought-provoking ads that reflect the public’s current reality… however; I was a bit bothered by his seemingly unashamed disclosure that Americans can’t be critical of or “anti-American” because it comes off as being unpatriotic. “But this is such an obvious and ordinary opinion” you may say… I KNOW! He is absolutely not the only person to make this assertion without shame. But my question is -Why is this always discussed as though it is unacceptable, yet accepted? I suppose, in a sense this is especially where the notion of being corporate AND responsible come in to conflict. Corporations want to be savvy and responsible, but they also need to have a positive reputation in the eyes of the public. If your “socially responsible” stance is not in step with the current public climate, then you risk loss of sales. Corps may want to send a profound message, but they still need to sell shit… so they can’t do anything that is too out of step with the public majority. The unfortunate part is that sometimes the very issue that requires attention is not popular. And this takes us back to Kenneth Cole. In the 80s he supported AIDS research when it wasn’t cool to do so, and he continues to work very hard to keep the focus in that direction. So I may have qualms with that whole notion of “corporate responsibility”… but for now he is off the hook.

THE BATTLE OF THE PRETTY BOYS- So George Clooney and Fabio had a little sissy fight in a restaurant? Looks like Strombo needs to keep up… someone find him a pretty boy to hit. He could’ve punched Kenneth Cole, but it probably would have wrecked the interview. Maybe we could get him and Jian Ghomeshi out to the same restaurant…..? Oh its just a joke.

DOG THE RACIST BOUNTY HUNTER– Friends with Micheal Richards? I wonder…maybe he should have borrowed his P.R guy, because that song and dance on FOX news was terrible!

Nigella Lawson (the Baker ;)- I love what this woman does. I love that she sounds like she really thinks about what she does. Food politics is much more a reflection of our culture and personalities than people ever bother to acknowledge, and its cool to know that she actively thinks about it, although she mostly seems to view it as a something sexual… which is a relevant, interesting but simple understanding. I really wished her and George could have talked more, I would have loved to hear more of what she thought about food taboos, and the “problem” or insecurities surrounding women eating in public…etc.

Jan Wong, Tony Robbins and giant turkey legs

November 6, 2007

I have to say, this is one of the most interesting evenings on the show to date.

Starting off with Jan Wong (speaking of her experience in the book “Beijing Confidential”). The story of her as a Maoist in college, turning in a woman trying to leave to the US, then learning later in life just what that involved.

Listening to her go through the mental and physical steps to make yourself face your past actions. The excuses (valid or not) to set your life into action, and look for forgiveness. Then trying to find one person in a land such as China, when you didn’t even have their name. Further through to actually finding and speaking with the woman you gave up to the government. I can only imagine how this would be an experience in expelling the demons that haunt. They also made a good point about the seeming “disappearance of the culture revolution”, and the language being a barrier in understanding how to evolve from such an experience. With genuine splashes of humour in the midst of this serious reality. This was Excellent interview and story. Simply Excellent.

Tony Robbins – You can’t seem to watch Tony Robbins without feeling like he’s enthusiastic about you. I also noticed him immediately matching the host’s body language as he went along, part of his calming technique. With great quotes like “that state of mind can be triggered”; “we don’t talk [anymore], we just communicate” and “where is your blueprint strong, where is it weak”. You do know that you can walk away from his knowledge with something for yourself. He has depth, and he wants you to experience that too. It was great hearing what motivates Tony Robbins, plus finding that he doesn’t appear to be FAKE.

I also appreciated George trying to let something out of him to be analyzed too, I thought for sure he was going to balk that with anything he could grasp.

Some quick notes:

Those Turkeys arent found, they are genetically mutated…

The Canadian Dollar hitting $1.08 US… Damn!

How the HELL did that knife “miss” ‘Dan’s’ brain???????????????

and……………………..

“It’s a small world after all…..”

Lisa Rowe

Ralph Mellanby and Ben Harper

November 5, 2007

Atticus Finch writes –

Who would have thought that Harold Ballard would have been an aid for the rise of a Canadian icon. This was one of the things I learned tonight during the interview with Ralph Mellanby. Now I’m a huge hockey fan and Don Cherry and Coaches Corner have been personal favourites since I was very young. I have to admit though that I didn’t know anything about Ralph Mellanby, let alone that he was to thank for the years and years of entertainment, education and controversy that is Don Cherry. I liked what he had to say about hockey markets. He believes that Ontario should have 3 teams. I’ve always thought there were too many teams in too many unhockey cities. But I digress. Mr. Mellanby helped change hockey as we view it in this country and I can’t wait to read his new book “Walking With Legends: The Real Stories of Hockey Night in Canada.” So thanks to The Hour for a great block of hockey talk and thanks to Mr. Mellanby for shaping the way we all experience our national sport.

The interview with Ben Harper was as always very interesting. His music is thought provoking and heart felt. Good/fun quote from Ben.. “hard mornings are non negotiable”. He talked a lot about his Grandfather and his influence in his music and his life. George asked him about fatherhood and Ben’s answers were rather refreshing. He makes sure he’s there for his kids big moments even when he’s on tour. You have to respect a man and artist like that. They played a clip of a video of Ben that is posted on Strombo.com Go watch it.

The cold opener was classic. There really are some hockey rivalries that run that deep and to the fans of those teams the religion of hockey can be heartbreaking. Paul and the ketchup packet where hilarious! Cold openers are good but what ever happened to the Closer. And where did the List disappear to? Disinformation was about car wrecks. I think I’ll take George’s advice and start riding a bike!

The Strombo Show – Today!

Well, another arrival.

The Strombo Show happens today on a radio dial near you….

99.3 Fox Vancouver @ 2-5pm
Power 97 Winnipeg @ 4-7pm
102.1 Toronto @ 5-8pm
FM96 London @ 5-8pm
Y108 Hamilton @ 5-8pm

Sure to have great music, laughs and inappropriate content at times (one can always hope!).

George is back on the air-waves….. Have fun guys.

Afghanistan, Daniel Lanois and Kanye

Tonight on The Hour, George interviewed conservative newspaper columist Christie Blatchford…. and it was a completely honest conversation about the complex realities faced by our Canadian soldiers both at home and abroad. I was particularly taken by her story about soldiers in Toronto being advised to not wear their uniforms in public for fear of the negativity of their neighbours.  This conversation was not really about whether or not we should support our troops in Afghanistan, it was about how those opinons effect our troops on a daily, human level.

As for the comments about Kanye’s ego… if he’s so talented, doesn’t it grant him the right to be cocky? It doesn’t make him a good person to hang out with, but thats something his friends have to worry about… i find his giant ego amusing.

 Unlike Kanye, Daniel Lanois is what happens when someone is as humble as they are talented… and he is incredibly talented. His performance was beautiful and completely made my night.