Giant Win!

The Eagles did it again. I had a feeling coming into this week that the Eagles would upset the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants. With the whole circus going on up there in regards to Plaxico, I figured they would be a little unfocused. I also figured the Giants would eventually not play a good game - and it all came together for the Eagles today.
It looked to me like Marty was calling the plays. There was a stretch there in the third quarter where they must have run the ball five or six times in a row. I seriously think that is the first time I can ever remember them doing that under Andy. McNabb threw around 30 balls today - which is PERFECT! A majority were high percentage passes and he picked his spots to make a long throw - in particular the pass where Curtis reached up behind and made a great catch to set up the first half field goal, or maybe that what was the D was giving him. He also had a couple key scrambles for yardage.
It's amazing what happens with a commitment to running the ball. The line got into a rhythm and started pounding the Giants front seven. It was great to see. And the defense came up big all day long. I don't really recollect any sacks today but they had pressure on him when they needed it and unlike the matchup in Philly a month ago where they were utterly dominated, the defensive line - in particular Trent Cole - really showed up this afternoon. Kudos must also go out to the linebackers - Bradley, Gocong and Jordan (nice freakin' move!). I thought all three played great today, Gocong and Jordan probably their best games of the season.
Now sitting at 7-5-1, the Eagles are still on the outside looking in. Big THANKS to the Steelers for coming back and beating Dallas. It's still too tough to be playing out all the scenarios about the teams ahead of the Birds, all they can worry about is winning their games. Next Monday home vs. Browns, thinking a win. This team could be 8-5-1 heading to DC. Let's hope so.

My Lucky Day?

I really think this is unprecedented in the history of Bruce Springsteen releases. We've now gotten two singles within a week of eachother! And "The Wrestler" is floating around on YouTube for all to listen. Amazon.com posted a 30 second clip of "My Lucky Day", the new single from the upcoming album Working on a Dream, on Friday. I listened a few times and was pleasantly surprised. Here is the new full-length video with some behind the scenes footage reminiscent of Blood Brothers. This song has been growing on me since I listened to a rough version of it last night.



In the past, when Springsteen has recorded a new album, particularly with the E Street Band, it has been years in between releases. This one was recorded during breaks of the Magic Tour with the band in full form from being right off the road. In effect, I think this has resulted in more of what the afficionados refer to as the "classic E Street sound". Now, this song obviously isn't the early 70's boardwalk sound.....BUT, it is the late 70's, early 80's hard rocking, in your face sound of the E Street Band that you got on songs like "No Surrender" and nearly all of the The River. "Working on a Dream" has drawn mixed reviews, but it is Bruce and producer Brendan O'Brien trying to get the E Street Band on record as they sound live. I think this should bear well for the full length album.

Here We Go Again...

Donovan McNabb evoked memories of 2001, Brian Westbrook finally got his carries and the Philadelphia Eagles dominated the Arizona Cardinals 48-20.
Literally, from the start of the game the Birds from Philadelphia dominated their former NFC East rival in a way that has been missing all season. Sure, there will be those who sit back and say that Arizona stinks. Regardless of whether they play in the NFC West (a division the Eagles swept this season), they still had a 7-4 record coming into play. 7-4 is 7-4 -- I'm sure there are plenty of Eagles fans who would have taken a 7-4 record coming into last night's game.
Then the game started and the Eagles showed up playing like an entirely different team then the ones from Baltimore and Cincinnati. They looked like a completely different team than the one I had seen all year. It started from the man drawing up the plays. On the opening 12 play scoring drive, 6 were runs and 6 were passes. No coincidence that this was the best drive I had seen from the offense all season. Wish it hadn't taken Andy Reid three quarters of a season to figure it out, AGAIN. That pretty much set the tone for the evening.
Reid showed a commitment to running the ball, and the offensive line responded by opening up huge holes for Westbrook, missing child Lorenzo Booker and even, Kyle Eckel. Right, Kyle Eckel. Reid showed some diversity in the playcalling and a word I've heard many times since last night is "unpredictable".
Unpredictable is a perfect word since it the exact opposite of what this offense had been for the past month. Stale, boring, slow and horrendous were all adjectives that had been thrown around in discussing the offense.
And obviously, Donovan McNabb responded in the way I totally expected from him. Here is a ten year veteran who holds nearly every passing record in franchise history, who has taken this team to 4 NFC championship games and a Super Bowl, who had the eyes of a nation on him this Thanksgiving night. This guy was ripped by everyone from Warren Sapp to your Uncle Pete.
There was intensity on defense, the first time that has been really evident in a long time. Being down at the game may have played a part in that, but I really feel like the guys were feeding off it. How about Joselio Hanson? There is a reason that Lito Sheppard didn't start and it has to do with that thing a few inches below your left shoulder. Dawkins came up with a big forced fumble and guys were swarming the ballcarrier. It was nice to see.
There are now ten days to go until this team heads up I-95 for another battle with the New York Giants. Everything is a must win from here on out. To make the playoffs the Eagles are going to have to beat the teams ahead of them. What a wild situation it would be to go into the last game of the season in late December against the Cowboys with a wild card berth on the line. To get there, they have to win and that starts in ten days.

"then you've seen me..."

Well, we finally have a clean, full version of "The Wrestler". This song, for me, evokes the same kinda feeling as "Terry's Song" from Magic. It's a quiet, acoustic song that essentially represents the double sided coin that is Springsteen's career. On the E-Street side we have classics like Darkness on the Edge of Town, Born in the U.S.A and The Rising. On the solo side we have the masterpiece Nebraska and stand-out tracks such as "Youngstown" and "Devils & Dust". I believe this is another track to chalk up in that same category of stand-out solo material.

Check These Out

I saw two films this weekend. Saturday, I went and saw "Rachel Getting Married". I really did not know much about this film going in, except that it starred Anne Hathaway. I had heard a number of good things about her performance and I was not disappointed. The scenes at the rehearsal and wedding suck you in, making you really feel like you are present. Check out a trailer and clip of the film here.

The second film, "The Visitor", I viewed at home thanks to the wonders of Verizon FIOS. It was a film released back in April of this year starring Richard Jenkins, the ghost dad from Six Feet Under, as a college professor coasting through life. I never got around to seeing it, but glad I finally did. A quiet film, so be prepared. Here is another trailer, thanks to the people at Apple.

Both films featured music as parts of the story, which possibly played a part in my enjoyment level. I also pretty much only enjoy dramas, so that may be part of it as well. Check them out!!

Time to Move On, Part 2

What is there to really say after a game like that.
During the week, I spoke to numerous friends who told me that last week's 13-13 tie with the Cincinnati Bengals was the worst football game they had ever seen, as well as one buddy who said he had never been more embarrassed to be a fan of the Philadelphia Eagles. Yes, last week's game was a horribly played game for both side. Today may have been worse.
Remember the date - November 23rd, 2008 - because that will forever mark the end of the Donovan McNabb era in Philadlephia. It will be remembered as the day head coach Andy Reid, after 9 and a half seasons with #5 behind center, finally decided to pull his first ever draft pick out of a game. The Birds were only down 10-7 at this point, remember, even though Donovan had continued his month long...season long slump.
Was it the right move to pull Donovan out of the game with the team only down three points? Even more thought inducing is whether or not it was fair to throw second-year backup Kevin Kolb into the game against the vaunted Baltimore Ravens defense, on the road nonetheless?
The answer is no.
I was all for starting Kolb from the beginning of the game. The Eagles season ended last week, despite what you might have heard about this situation, or that team losing and the Birds team going on one of their patented late-season runs. Preparing Kolb properly and having him start a tough road game would have been appropriate - tough, but at this point, you might as well see what you got. To toss this kid into the lion's den was unfair and well, stupid.
The decision once again illuminates the number one problem with this team and within the organization that is the Philadelphia Eagles. That problem is Andy Reid.
For the better part of the last decade, Reid has been the face of the Eagles. These are his draft picks, his free agents and it is his strategy and gameplan that you see executed, for lack of a better word, week in and week out.
Andy has lost control of the situation. In 2005, following the Super Bowl loss and the T.O debacle (which may have been the turning point in McNabb's apparent decline), Reid got a free pass for going 6-10, especially with losing 5 to injuries (again). In 2006, let's face it, Reid got lucky with Jeff Garcia. Last season was the turning point. It started from that week one disgrace in Green Bay with Greg Lewis fielding punts. Lots of people said at the time that Reid was unprepared for the season and wasnt focused properly because of the situation with his sons. The problem is that Andy Reid was focused and was prepared, at least in his mind.
This season, again, I've heard time and time again that the organization is not focused on winning, that they don't want to win. To a certain extent, that may have some validity. But the overriding problem is that Jeff Lurie, Joe Banner and Andy Reid want to win, they just do not know how to.
Therefore, it is time for Andy Reid to go. It has been ten long years. From 1999 until 2004, this team was on an uphill clime searching for the promised land. Since then, they have been a steady decline back to the foothills of mediocrity, and now, despair. This is a pathetic team to watch led by a pathetic head coach who does not know how to win.
How fitting that nearly a year ago, almost to the day, I wrote on this very blog that it was time for the quarterback to move on. 362 days later, it's time his coach joined him.

Mickey Rourke Comeback??

I was so jazzed up over the release of the new Springsteen single, I forgot to mention that a new trailer for the upcoming film, "The Wrestler", has been posted. This looks like it could be a really good film, and of course, this trailer features the new Springsteen song of the same name. It always seems the best movies come out in November & December when no one is really paying attention. This looks like one deserving of attention.

And hey, for all you Marisa Tomei fans out there, looks like she might be getting naked. Costanza?

The First Single

Well, after a week of disputing what was played of Bruce Springsteen's new single, "Working on a Dream" on NBC's Sunday Night Football, we finally have the FULL-LENGTH single available. New York City's Q104.3 has been streaming the new single all day. You can listen to it....right here.

Honestly, I was a little nervous after Sunday night. As an avid stalker of Springsteen message boards, in particular www.backstreets.com, the opinions were generally negative after Sunday night. I must say though, that I really do like the new single. Now, I'm not trying to say that this is an INCREDIBLE song or that Bruce is really breaking out of the box on this one, but honestly, after 2002's The Rising and 2007's Magic, I was worried we would never really get to hear that classic E-Street sound on record again. Right from the start we got a nice little bass line from Gary, that sweet piano touch from Roy and before you know it....they are kicking into the hook with Stevie singing harmony (or is that Bruce double tracked?). I must say that the Beach Boys style background vocals are what got me. It's a throwback to the old days when all the guys in the band would be singing, something I really think has been missing. Seems like Brendan O'Brien who produced the aforementioned albums, in addition to 2005's Devils & Dust, has gotten over the muddy sound that plagued Magic, and has been able to allow the listener to hear the depth of the E Street Band. I think this is a good start, but hey....give it a listen and form your own opinion.

Introducing....The Felice Brothers

These guys, The Felice Brothers, have been getting some airplay on 88.5 WXPN and I'm really digging this song - "Frankie's Gun". I finally got the album "The Felice Brothers" yesterday, and will have a review sometime shortly. I'm really digging it, though. The band - three of the members are really brothers, surname Felice - hails from upstate New York and really seem to be rooted in traditional styles of music. At the same time though, they are able to bring those roots and place them in a contemporary setting. I find it to be a refreshing sound amongst today's many retro-ish, synth, dance-pop rock bands (many of which I do like).

"Working on a Dream" to be released January 27th

After months of rumors about a new Bruce Springsteen album it has finally been confirmed.

Little is really known about the new album. The title song, "Working on a Dream" was premiered during an Obama rally right before the election in an acoustic form with his wife and E-Street Band member, Patti Scialfa. This past Sunday, the song was supposed to be "premiered" on the halftime of NBC's Sunday Night Football. What we got instead was this: an obvious chop-up of the song that robs it of any potential.

To be included on the new album, though, are two bonus tracks. Here is a really poor sound quality version of "The Wrestler", which is apparently going to be featured over the credits of the upcoming film of the same name, starring Mickey Rourke. The other bonus track, "A Night with the Jersey Devil" was released Halloween weekend on brucespringsteen.net as a a "treat". I doubt any other part of the album will sound like this, but it still is something fun to listen to and look at.



No word yet on an upcoming tour, but Bruce and the E-Street Band will be playing halftime of Super Bowl XLIII on February 1st. Rumors have been circulating for months that a tour will be kicked off with the Super Bowl appearance, first in Europe and then back in the USA. All reports have said it will end before June 1st, 2009, as that is the date of Conan O'Brien's new time slot on NBC with E-Street Band drummer Max Weinberg and the Max Weinberg 7. Check back here for any updates.

Phinally!!

Well....it's been a really long time since i've written anything. So I have a lot of catching up to do with all my loyal readers.....riiight.
Anyways, the world has changed since I last posted in February. I graduated from college, our economy fell into shambles, Obama won the presidency and the PHILLIES won the WORLD SERIES!!!!
It was simply an incredible run from the middle of September on. I'll never forget watching that four game sweep of the Brewers from 9/11 to 9/14 with my dad and him telling me during Sunday's first game, "I've been watching the Phillies for 50 years AND they won once". I told him to have faith, that this team was different. I don't know why I said it. Down the stretch of the regular season and into the playoffs, whenever they fell behind in a game, instead of having that usual here-we-go-again-Philadelphia mentality, something else took over. I started to feel confident. Something told me they were going to win....going to win it all.
That was until Game 5. After Bud Selig's latest debacle of a decision, those familiar old sinking feelings started to rush back. Sitting at my buddy's place before Game 5, Part 2, I was a ball of nerves, unsure of what was going to happen and trying to convince myself this wouldn't be a repeat of the NFC Championship game from January 2003. Something changed though, when I got off the subway at the stadiums and I heard someone play this. I texted my buddy, "We're going to win".
I wish I could bottle up all those feelings from that night. I had a headache after the bottom of the sixth from cheering so loud. First Jenkins, then Burrell and finally, Feliz came through. And that last half inning, I just stood there next to my sister with my hand on my chin, covering my mouth, holding back the tears. And, finally, right before 10:00 PM on October 29th, 2008, WE WON! That glorious roar of the crowd at Citizens Bank Park is a sound I will never forget - the sound of entire city finally, finally, finally getting what they had waited twenty-five long years for. It was a roar filled with pain and heartache, disappointment and resentment, it was a roar of emotional release. Finally Joe Carter and 10,000 losses didn't matter anymore. Hell, the memory of Joe Jurevicius and Ronde Barber running all over the Vet was expelled from my mind, Eric Lindros getting knocked out against the Devils all those years ago was forgotten.

The Philadelphia Phillies were World Champions and we were all winners.

I was there when they clinched the division and thanks to my sister's boyfriend I was able to attend NLDS Game 2, NLCS Games 1 and 2, & World Series Games 3 and 5. THANKS AGAIN MIKE!

That month and a half was the greatest time of my life.

History in the Making

Just look at this picture. It's really amazing that we are now at this point in American history where the two final candidates for the Democratic nominee are not old, white men. Think about how outraged people would have been at this picture 50 years ago - and then think about how many people probably still feel that way.

Time to Move On

It was the first game all season where the Eagles showed life. The biggest underdog ever in NFL history held the undefeated, unstoppable, best team ever New England Patriots to their lowest scoring total all season and to their closest margin of victory in falling just short 31-28 in Foxboro last night.
For the second time in as many years, the offense played better without the franchise player. Receivers were catching balls in stride and making plays. It's much easier for Kevin Curtis and L.J Smith to get involved in the offense when the ball is on mark. Even the deep balls, supposedly backup A.J Feeley's weakness, were getting caught by Greg Lewis and well.....Greg Lewis. This is how the West Coast offense is supposed to be run.
There will be a quarterback controversy on the sports stations and in the papers, but Andy Reid said it after the game, that his first ever draft pick will start next week, if he is healthy.
The truth of the matter is that Reid built a system which Donovan McNabb simply doesn't fit into and never has. There is no denying the fact that the offense now runs better without the player that the coach picked to run it.
The story of McNabb's career in Philadelphia is this; when he was a younger player, the defense was one of the top in the league and McNabb was able to make enough plays to win games. As he matured into one of the top quarterbacks in the league he relied more on running the offense with his arm and less on his legs.
There can be no denying the fact that Number Five has not been the same player since that Super Bowl loss against the Pats in 2005. Whether its because of physical or mental reasons is moot at this point.
Last week against the Dolphins the team ran the ball and Feeley made enough throws to win the game. The question was raised then that if the team can run with Brian Westbrook like that and win, what is the point of the million dollar quarterback.
This week the team threw the ball, controlled the clock and moved up and down the field against the league's top team - again without Donovan. The answer is simple: Donovan must go.
This is not to be an indictment against Donovan McNabb. His number's don't lie. He has been the most successful signal caller in Eagles history and over the past decade, only Brett Favre and Tom Brady have winning percentages that compare with his. Both of them, though, have won Super Bowl rings. Donovan has not and will not with this franchise.
McNabb will start next week at Lincoln Financial Field against Reid's mentor Mike Holmgren and the 7-4 Seattle Seahawks. He'll start the next week against the New York Giants and probably will start in Dallas the week after that.
Anything short of a Super Bowl victory will end the McNabb era in Philadelphia. He will be playing somewhere else next season and the Kevin Kolb era in this city will have begun. McNabb will be another year removed from the ACL injury and there is no doubt in this writer's mind he will be successful. He has too much talent to not be.
It's a shame that McNabb and Reid didn't win a title together. McNabb has been a class act his entire career and true role model in the NFL duriing these days of dog fighting and cheating. They had their chances but injuries to key players like Correll Buckhalter and Troy Vincent in '01, Donovan in '02 and Westbrook in '03 held them back. Anyone who has watched this team over the past decade knows that the play calling has always been average, at best.
Here's hoping that Donovan comes out next week and sets the world on fire, igniting this team down the stretch and sending them into the playoffs with a chance to make a deep run. The safe money says that this won't happen - that the franchise player and the franchise will part ways after the season and a new era will begin. We'll find out Sunday at 1:oo.

Mocean Worker

Trotter Will Be Missed

It always hurts more when it's one of your own and to Philadelphia Eagles fans, Jeremiah Trotter was one of their own.
On Tuesday, the Eagles released the nine year NFL veteran. Trotter, who had spent seven of his years wearing the midnight green, was informed Monday night by head coach Andy Reid in what was supposedly a very emotional meeting. The two, who in the past have butted heads, most famously following the 2001 season in which the linebacker felt disrespected by the Eagles, in particular his head coach, were in Trotter's words like "two old ladies".
The move came as a surprise to Trotter, his teammates and to the fans. There had been rumblings following the playoff loss to New Orleans in January that Trotter was in jeopardy of not making the team. The Eagles told him to lose weight and be in better shape for training camp. "The Axeman" had come into camp in shape and looking forward to pairing up new acquisition Takeo Spikes but, it was not to be.
Trotter was drafted in 1998 by then head coach Ray Rhodes but for the most part sat on the bench that year. In 1999, Reid was brought in along with defensive coordinator Jim Johnson who was able to devise a defense that utilized Trotter's downhill playing style and instincts, as well as his 260 pound frame.
In the years that followed, Trotter along with Brian Dawkins, Hugh Douglas and Troy Vincent formed the foundation of one the league's most feared defenses. Trotter, Dawkins and Vincent were part of the 1998 team that went 3-13 and that's what makes his departure so difficult. He was one of the last reminders of how low this franchise had fallen. But he was also a part of those teams that turned things around, the teams that were filled with so much potential and gave so much hope to a city that was starved for a Super Bowl.
Now, Dawkins and offensive tackle Tra Thomas are the only players who remain from the 3-13 team. From the team that went to the Super Bowl in 2004, only 4 starters remain on defense; Dawkins, Sheldon Brown, Lito Sheppard and Jevon Kearse.
Trotter was a 4-time Pro Bowl player and was at one time, arguably the top middle linebacker in the league. Reports say he has visited with Denver and Tampa Bay, and that Minnesota is a possible destination for him. Time will tell if the Eagles were correct in their decision.
For Philadelphians though, it was a sad day and as quarterback Donovan McNabb said in his press conference yesterday, it will take time to get over.

Springsteen Pulls One Out of His Hat

Shore Fire Media and Columbia Records announced today that Bruce Springsteen's 15th studio album, Magic, will be released on October 2nd. This will be the Boss's first album with the E-Street Band since 2002's The Rising. 2005's Devils & Dust featured mostly minimal backing music and last year's We Shall Overcome, featured old folk songs and reworked Bruce classics and a 17 piece band; both were met with mixed feelings from the die hard fans.
Springsteen's long time manager Jon Landau had this to say about the new album; "(Bruce and I) have been together since 1974 and I don't think I've ever seen him more excited than he is right about this record...Clarence (Clemons) has some great moments on it. You could say that it's a little more sonically guitar-driven that any past Bruce album. There are a few sort of pop, romantic touches that haven't showed up recently, but were very prominent on the very early records."

Track listing:
1) Radio Nowhere
2) You'll Be Comin' Down
3) Livin' in the Future
4) Your Own Worst Enemy
5) Gypsy Biker
6) Girls in Their Summer Clothes
7) I'll Work for Your Love
8) Magic
9) Last to Die
10) Long Walk Home
11) Devil's Arcade

Hoots & Hellmouth

Hoots & Hellmouth, a local Philly band, put on a loud, exciting and highly intense show when they stopped by the World Cafe. At their core, the band is a couple of friends rocking out. It makes for an energetic live show where they encourage audience participation. During the show at World Cafe, they brought 10 fans onstage to sing the last song of the set with them. Recently named Artist to Watch by for July by XPN, Hoots & Hellmouth will be performing at the XPoNential Music Festival on Thursday, July 19th. Check out for other dates in the area on their website at www.myspace.com/hootshellmouth.

Slo-Mo featuring Mic Wrecka

Slo-Mo featuring Mic Wrecka was one of the best shows I've seen at World Cafe so far. A Philly band, Slo-Mo and Mic Wrecka were both down to Earth guys. Slo-Mo actually asked me to run and get some cigarettes for him and the bassist. They have a big band that is centered around Slo-Mo's steel guitar and Mic's conscious lyrics. The band will be playing July 19th at the XPoNential Music Festival. Check them out at www.myspace.com/heyslomo

Great Lake Swimmers

The Great Lake Swimmers stopped by The World Cafe for a Free @ Noon concert about a month or so ago. Hailing from Ontario, their music was a quiet, intense mix of alt-country, folk and rock. Their front man, Tony Dekker, was shy and unassuming with a killer voice. Check out some of their music from their recent release, Ongiara at www.myspace.com/greatlakeswimmers

Spirit on the Water