What type of plums, DD? Pluots or pure plums?

A bowl of Mother Nature's sweet bounty for breakfast...along with coffee and several glasses of water. Ahhhhh...the simple pleasures of life.

BREAKING NEWS: The NFL reaches a $765 million settlement in its concussion suit. http://m.espn.go.com/nfl/story?storyId=9612138&src=desktop You might say "too little too late" but it's a start. However, the NFL escaped with this little clause in the settlement: One of the principal terms of the settlement is that the agreement "cannot be considered, an admission by the NFL of liability, or an admission that plaintiffs' injuries were caused by football." Meanwhile, in this preseason full of injuries, I'm sitting here watching Pittsburgh and Kansas City play overtime in a meaningless preseason game. WTF?!? Why on earth would you risk further injury and ask your players to take more hits by playing overtime in preseason? It's idiotic! Further proof that the NFLPA is one of the worst players unions in sports.

That's what the Other Bands/Music section is for...to help people find music they might have otherwised missed out on the first time around or ignored for whatever reason. Whether it is Nirvana, Wilco, Black Angels, Portishead, Lady Gaga, Nina Simone, Sammy Davis, Jr. or Gustave Faure, there is a world of music out there beyond the Beatles/Stones/Led Zep/Floyd/Hendrix/Dylan/Who "classic rock" axis.

It's not that bad to my ears. But maybe it's the version I have. I mean, we already have plenty of boots where you can hear Robert prominently.

Because it's football* and I'm American, dude! * The first footy fan to come on here and say NFL isn't real football like soccer or futbol gets haggis shoved down their throat, hahaha.

ONE MORE WEEK!!!! Who's with me? I know Paul and Rick and Walter are...what about Black Dog? Where's he been...still hungover from his Super Bowl win?

Since Australia is so far advanced in time, a very happy birthday to Reggie! Please allow this Seppo to wish you a corker of a Celebration Day. We don't always agree on everything but you're a fun presence on the forum and great to have around.

You're a little late to the party...it's already been mentioned.

^^^ Welcome back kipper. Haven't seen you around in a long time. The Australia vs. USA wasn't meant literally...it was more a reference to Fischer's call for a boycott, which has pretty much fallen on deaf ears and fizzled at this point. Rightly so.

Wait...so this is neither the John Williams of film score("Jaws", "Star Wars") fame nor the classical guitarist John Williams? 'Cause that's the first thing I thought when I saw the name John Williams on the record label. Looks like I'll have to add another record to my list of things to hunt for at my visits to the record stores. Thanks.

You watch out for them, hahaha. They'll always be the San Diego Clippers/Buffalo Braves to me. It's Los Angeles Lakers only for me when it comes to the NBA.

Just had some last night at a new restaurant called Connie & Ted's out here in West Hollywood. http://www.connieandteds.com/

Yes. I have all Chicago from 1968's CTA to 1974's Chicago VII.

Looks like Terrell Pryor is going to be the Raiders QB this season over Matt Flynn. Can't say as I blame them...what the fuck has Flynn ever done? It will be interesting to see if Colin K and Russell Wilson have the same impact this year, now that NFL teams have had all year to study the tape and try to devise schemes to contain them. Many running QBs will have success when they first arrive but then falter as the defenses wise up to them. Too early for me to make my prognostications. Cannot wait for next week, though, as all my other teams(Angels, Lakers) are in the shitter. Only the LA Kings give me hope for the winter.

Steve, I am pretty sure it would be politically unpopular with younger voters, too. You know, the ones who would be draft-age.

You're gonna have a blast! Who is opening the show? Bombino? If so, get there early to catch them. As for me, saxophone legend Wayne Shorter turned 80 this past Sunday and he's having an 80th Birthday Celebration concert at the Hollywood Bowl tonight with lots of special guests, including Herbie Hancock and Esperanza Spalding. http://www.hollywoodbowl.com/tickets/wayne-shorter-80th-birthday-celebration/2013-08-28 WAYNE SHORTER 80TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION Hollywood Bowl Wednesday, August 28, 2013 Wayne Shorter Danilo Pérez John Patitucci Brian Blade Herbie Hancock, special guest Imani Winds, special guest ACS: Geri Allen, Terri Lyne Carrington, Esperanza Spalding Joe Lovano and Dave Douglas Quintet: “Sound Prints” So that's where I will be tonight. I knew Wayne Shorter as a kid from my dad's Miles Davis albums...he was part of Miles' "Second Great Quintet" from 1964-1969, which consisted of Miles Davis, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter and Tony Williams. Wayne also stayed with Miles when Miles broke up the quintet and moved into his electronic-jazz fusion phase. "Filles de Kilimanjaro", "Bitches Brew", and "In a Silent Way" are just some of the albums he played on during his time with Miles. But I wasn't moved to really explore Wayne Shorter on my own until Steely Dan's "Aja" came out in 1977 and I heard Wayne's playing on that song. The first Wayne Shorter album I bought on my own was "Speak No Evil". http://youtu.be/WXRnGECb9Rs

Now, this is the Chicago I love...why they had to go and muck it up by turning into such wussy schlockmeisters is criminal. Of course, Terry Kath's tragic death didn't help. One of my favourite Chicago songs is "Beginnings" from the debut album, "Chicago Transit Authority". Listen to Peter Cetera's great bass line...who knew he would soon be crooning such boring pap later on? Even better is this live clip of the song from the same 1970 Tanglewood performance that KB posted "25 or 6 to 4" of above. What's fascinating to watch is how guitarist Terry Kath and drummer Danny Seraphine seem to be battling at first over what tempo to play the song in; Terry wants to go faster while Danny is trying to slow it down. Meanwhile, keyboardist/singer Robert Lamm keeps looking over as if to say "what the fuck is going on?" They eventually work it out in stride...and they do all this without ear monitors, click tracks, computers, and all the bullshit that too many modern concerts rely on. http://youtu.be/ovZQJQ4n9u4 Another great Chicago song that people sleep on(I don't think I have heard it played on the radio since 1972) is "A Hit by Varèse" from "Chicago V". No worries, Jules...I am a dork about much music myself. For instance, I have a soft spot for Hall & Oates and Abba.

Good question. At first, I thought they were Rhododendrons, but now I am not so sure. One thing for sure, they are all over Rhode Island.

Sagittarius Rising, at first glance I want to echo FunkyPhantom's "Bravo!" in reply to your post. All except for the part about the immigrants rising up at the end. If they dream about a better life, instead of rising up against the U.S., why don't they expend their energy to rising up against the country they came from to improve conditions and job opportunities for them and their fellow countrymen? That way they don't have to break the law by illegally entering this country in the first place. By the way, it's not just Mexicans crossing the border...it's damn near every country in the Southern Hemisphere. Anyway, there's no way in hell the draft is coming back. Nada.

Doing nothing but watching the Dodger game so figured I'd make better use of the time... Conclusion to Day 4 Monday July 22: After looking at the historical mansions of Newport, we walked along the Cliff Walk, which is a trail several miles long that runs along the cliff edges from the southeastern coast up north to Memorial Blvd. By this time, we had been walking nearly four hours or so, and since it was getting too late to hit Jamestown, we decided to walk back to Thames St. and find a good spot for supper. Coming to the end of the Cliff Walk near Memorial Blvd., we smelled the unmistakable odor of "Red Tide", that foul algae. Walking east on Memorial then right on Thames, we came upon a promising looking place called Benjamin's Raw Bar. http://www.benjaminsrawbar.com/ It turned out to be a fortuitous choice as I had one of my most memorable meals on my trip here, including my first taste of real Rhode Island Clam Chowder, which is now my favourite variety of chowder. The Newport Fire Department Headquarters. Back across the bridge to the mainland.

Heart attack? That's what they want you to think.

Yes and double-yes. There is no place called nation or state called 'world'. This thread has jumped the shark. Now, if you had posted something from the band called Earth...

Just started reading Michael Pollan's "The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals". This book came out years ago and I don't know why I never got around to reading it before, especially since I enjoyed Pollan's "The Botany of Desire"...just slipped my mind, I guess. Not that I wasn't already aware of how fucked up America's food supply and eating habits are, thanks to other books and documentaries on the subject, but this book does a good job of illustrating exactly how the food on your plate gets there, and the almost complete infiltration of corn and corn by-products into just about EVERYTHING! It also looks at the reality of "free-range" or "cage-free" chicken and the entire "organic" food movement. You'll never look at a supermarket the same way after reading this book. http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/omnivores-dilemma-michael-pollan/1007681301?ean=9781594200823 As Alice Waters says: "PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOU EAT!"

Yes, his name was Leonard Skinner and he was the Phys Ed teacher at Robert E. Lee High School in Jacksonville, FL., where he was known to strictly enforce the school's 'no long hair on boys' policy. He passed away three years ago. http://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/sep/21/lynyrd-skynyrd-teacher-dies