Thanks but I never really left,. I still keep up with the board, I just don't always have time to chime in. Happy New Year to each and all.

There's no great underlying conspiracy, I've simply had a shift in priorities that has kept me from being an active participant here (same for many of the other boards/lists I used to frequent). All is well, thanks for asking.

On the operating a bicycle, moped, scooter, etc. without a license tip, our waterways are teeming with people that have no experience whatsoever operating watercraft. There are boating courses but none of them are mandatory. Jet skis have even been baanned from several waterfronts because so many people shown a complete lack of regard for others' safety as well as their own.

The answer is, I do but it's more than evident that you don't. Perhaps you don't have the ability to read your own posts but you previously stated that Letterman and Lasko were married at the time of the affairs when in fact, they weren't. You should know, you're the one that posted this link to an article that very clearly states that they weren't married until March 19th of this year. I'm not "suggesting" anything. You previously stated that Letterman was married to Lasko at the time when he wasn't.

Unique R.E.M album free with The Times In the first giveaway of its kind by a British newspaper, The Times is offering you a complete R.E.M. album on iTunes. You’ll find a special iTunes card inside The Times magazine on Saturday, October 10. Click the link below and use your code to be among the first to own five songs from the new R.E.M. live album, plus five classics including Losing My Religion and Man on the Moon. Enter your code here Plus, hear Michael Stipe and Peter Buck talk about the inspiration behind each track in an exclusive interview. Then every day from Monday, October 12 to Saturday, October 17 look out for six more free songs from The Times and iTunes from a selection of other great artists. How Michael Stipe and R.E.M. rediscovered their best songs A series of concerts by R.E.M. in a small and intimate Irish venue laid bare a creative process once steeped in enigma Pete Paphides First things first. Michael Stipe needs — preferably in this order — a lavatory and a coffee. Dressed in a grey designer suit with matching grey shirt, tie and black NHS-style glasses, he leaves his satchel on the chair and scuttles off in search of relief. “Feel free to rifle through my bag,” the R.E.M. frontman deadpans. Instead I rifle through my own bag and find a CD compilation that I’ve prepared for him. He looks at the disc. “Thank you. What do I do with it?” If he has an Apple Mac, all he needs to do is insert the CD and the track names will be retrieved from the online database. Mock-affronted, Stipe splutters: “Do I have a Mac? Of course I have a Mac! Do I seem like a PC guy to you?” If I’m going to go to the trouble of guessing his musical tastes, can’t I at least figure out which side of the Mac/PC divide he stands? To read the rest of the interview click here

Have you heard about this record? Click on the image for more info.

There's three Claws at use on this tour. Once it's over U2 will leave them in different parts of the world as permanent concert venues. I don't see this tour as being any different than those mounted by other artists that play stadium-sized venues. U2 are quite conscious of the environmental impact and have addressed it. The band has faced criticism for the tour’s massive carbon footprint. Berry, however, pointed out that any major rock concert has carbon emissions, 80 percent of which comes from the audience. He suggested that tonight’s concertgoers try to carpool, drive a hybrid vehicle and remember to turn out the lights before they leave home. Evans said the band is cognizant of the carbon footprint concerns and will take steps to rectify the environmental impact. “A number of carbon offsets will be purchased with the ultimate goal of being carbon neutral,” he said. I knew going in that it would be a huge spectacle. That's generally how shows of this size work. Having seen several over the years (Van Halen, Page & Plant, the Rolling Stones, the Who, the Grateful Dead, etc.) I have no qualms saying this was the best one presentation-wise that I've ever seen. If anyone attends a U2 concert and are surprised by Bono's political rhetoric, it goes without saying they must not be very familiar with U2.

I'm not sure what that has to do with anything as I'm not trying to make a case that he should be eligible for sainthood. I'm merely stating he wasn't married at the time which is what two members of the board inaccurately posted here.

Letterman wasn't married at the time of the affairs. Stating otherwise, as you did is indeed misinformation because it's not true.

The misinformation I was referring to was this: and this: Letterman wasn't married to Lasko at the time. Dating, yes (which I was unaware of) but married? No, which is what you and Del Zeppnile stated above.

I don't think anyone is portraying Letterman as some kind of saint, least of all Letterman himself. Better to have addressed when he did, in the manner he did than having it be all over the news and not saying anything at all.

After seeing the movie earlier this year I must say I wish them all the success in the world as they most definitely deserve it but I have absolutely no desire to see them live.

I think Journey did a similar thing with one of their recent releases where they re-recorded a bunch of their Perry-era songs with the current lineup. It's called "revisionist history". Sort of like how Van Halen altered their old album covers on their website to remove Michael Anthony when Wolfie joined the band. For those that may have missed it, here's their performance on Letterman from last night: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gc_5_aHB-hM&feature=player_embedded

This Friday it's night one of a two night stand from Drivin' n' Cryin' at the Pour House in Raleigh. Sunday it's the Gourds (and many others) at the Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival in Silk Hope, NC.

That is one kickass DVD. I especially love the bonus cuts with Vedder fronting My Morning Jacket, particularly their cover of the Who's A Quick One While He's Away.

I missed them when they played here way back in '83 on the tour for War when they opened for The Producers, Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five and Todd Rundgren at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill. Believe it or not, that's the last time they played this part of the state. I enjoyed Saturday night's concert very much but like a friend suggested, I could have stood some more early songs and them turning off all the multimedia stuff for a few songs so we could hear them rock out like in the days of old. Still, it was a total sensory immersion that I thoroughly enjoyed. For those interested, you can find lots of photos, interviews, etc. from the Kenan Stadium show at this link.

I quite enjoy Letterman's show as well as Craig Ferguson's but that wasn't the point of my post. I was clarifying the inaccurate information about Letterman's martial status at the time of this incident.

I'm not sure where you folks get your misinformation from but Letterman wasn't married at the time, nor was he involved with Regina Lasko (his current wife) during that time period. As for addressing the matter on the show, why shouldn't he? He's a public figure and the story has been all over the news since it first broke. If you're in the public spotlight as Letterman is, there would have been no avoiding it. Of course, if he had said nothing he would be criticized for that too. In regards to how his show has changed, well that happened when he moved to an earlier time slot. The same thing has occurred with Conan O'Brien's show. At that hour you are appealing to an entirely different audience so of course, certain elements of the program are going to be tweaked. That goes from the content itself and how it's presented to what type of musical artists are guests on the show. Was what Letterman did wrong? If he was single at the time (which he was), no. What's wrong is attempting to extort money from a public figure in an effort to get rich.

I'm more of a fan of Jimmy Page and The Edge than I am of Jack White but I came away from the movie with a deeper appreciation of all of them. A must see for any fan of music.

Quite often, that's the very best part.

U2 with Muse at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, NC on Saturday, October 3rd. Very outstanding stage presentation but I still wish I had seen them when I first had a chance to when they played Kenan Stadium on the War tour back in 1983.

When I saw The Church in VA back in the summer one of my taper friends was not allowed in with his gear. We were told no taping or camcorders. Once we got inside nearly the entire front row was populated by camcorders of every shape and size. I know the camera policy of artists and venues can be hard to coordinate but when one hand doesn't know what the other is doing it can make for an ungodly mess and a less than pleasant concert going experience. I don't spend the entire concert glued to my camera but I do like to take a few shots to remember the evening by, especially when it's a concert (Alice) you've waited your entire lifetime for.

Yep, sometimes security is too big for their jockstrap and they show their ass, that was the case last night. However, the venue is gifting me with two tickets to the show of my choice which is extremely polite of them. Still, that security guy needs his ass chewed out for his behavior. The security team for the concert was contracted out so they are not employees of the venue. His behavior reflects upon them though. During R.E.M.'s last tour they set up a blog on the tour page of their website specifically for fans to have a place to post tweets and YouTube clips from the shows. Taking photos and video was encouraged. Despite this, some venues wouldn't allow photographs but as has been mentioned, as long as there's cellphones there's going to be photographs and movie clips. I also see no harm in it whatsoever as long as fans aren't trying to profit from it. This is a different world now, where anything and everything is subject to be documented via various devices, for better or for worse.