10 Random Thoughts

It my shock some of you that I had one thought let alone ten. These are just some things that are on my mind lately or have been for awhile. While sticking to the blogs message of sports and entertainment of course.



In some cases I was going to try to write a blog about these things but they couldn't carry a blog on their own.



1. Terrell Suggs should not be known as T-Sizzles

• There is nothing about Suggs that sizzles for me or any women I know. What sizzles is his play on the field. I get it. However there are better names to have. Suggs will forever be known as "The Suggernaut" in my house. How awesome would it be to hear a commentator whip out a, "Suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuggs Got-chaaaaaaaaa!" What if his helmet flies off during a play in which Jamaal Charles from Kansas City bowls him over? "Oh Charles you're messin' with his head! He had that helmet since the fourth grade!" If he pushes a lineman into a QB, the technical term will be that he hit said QB "with his own pimp." If you aren't rolling on the floor laughing by now then you have never seen the My Way Production version of X-Men. I would like to be there if this were to pick up just to hear Suggs tell Tom Brady, "You can't mess with me! I'm the Suggernaut b!t@h!"

2. If you aren't from Indianapolis and you aren't cheering for New Orleans Sunday...

• You have no soul. I don't care if you put all your money on the Colts, the Saints are America's team. Not George Dubya's team, but ever since Katrina the city has always looked to the Saints for uplifting. For the first time in franchise history they made it to the big show and what will follow in New Orleans should they win? One of the biggest drinking binges in history. Look for the state to be shutdown for a week if they win. Biggest state wide hangover...ever. A tiger will be in every body's bathroom down there. Don't worry though, he will be dreaming of Halle Berry in her Catwoman suit in no time.

3. Why is David Letterman's popularity increasing?

• I watched his show a few times just to see how much he would bash NBC/Jay Leno this week (not as much as I thought he would) and it wasn't impressive. The funniest moment was when Bruce Willis donned a Jets jersey, ran all over the studio to celebrate the Jets making the Super Bowl. To then only misspell the infamous Jets spelling chant, "J-E-T-E-S!" Uhm, no Bruce that is wrong. At least he called himself out on it afterwards. Clearly, I don't have a dog in the late night battle. That is until Conan possibly comes back in September, hopefully.

4. Something will rise for Chris Johnson

• It may not be his salary, which probably means he will hold out for a better contract. What will rise is his draft position in next year's fantasy draft. If he isn't your number 1 pick after this year, something is really really wrong with whoever has the first pick. Do I blame the guy for wanting a raise? No. He broke the record for yards from scrimmage. It isn't like that happens every year. When it comes to sports contracts, players are only as good as their last season. When that season was a record setting year, they have to take advantage of it. Just unfortunate that Johnson was in the second year of a five year contract.

5. Why does the NHL screw themselves?

• I don't follow hockey however, the games I think about checking out are always against better stuff. Its like Jay Leno in prime time against, long pause, anything (cue rim shot). Ovechkin against Crosby played each other for the first time a couple weeks ago. Ironically the same night as Lebron vs Kobe. Their next meeting is this Sunday. I forget what is on but it's something super I am sure. Honestly, if this was the NFL, these teams would play on opening night. It is the match up that everyone wants to see so why delay it? Plus most of who you are trying to draw in have already forgotten about the stellar match up in the playoffs won by Crosby and the Penguins last season.

6. Way to wait until Conan couldn't fire back to talk smack Leno

• In an interview with Oprah last week, Jay stayed classy by blasting Conan, saying he was disrespecting the Tonight Show franchise with his low ratings. Jay, you disrespected television with your prime time yuckfest. Big city news markets have you to blame for their ratings dropping by nearly 50%. I know you blame NBC but man up. You chose to stick with the network instead of going somewhere else and starting anew. Entertainment Weekly has The Jay Leno Show ranked number 1 for the worst move in television history. In the words of a fellow NBC employee, "You're fired!"

7. Whatever happened to those Guitar Hero lists I promised

• To be perfectly honest, Guitar Hero 5 came out and had most of the songs I was suggesting. Which led to the demise of the list, that in addition to fantasy football season starting. While I do not own the game, I still know what is on it. Before too long I will get another list on here because there are definitely some creative lists I can come up with that Red Octane might miss. The track list on GH 5 is awesome, one of my suggestions "The Spirit of Radio" by Rush is insane I'm sure. In the words of Wayne Campbell, "it will be mine, oh yes, it will be mine."

8. Everyone is picking the Baltimore Orioles as a sleeper this season

• Is there any other team that they could pick? I mean, the Nationals are still awful. The Indians haven't gotten better. Most top teams are still that, with the Red Sox and Yankees leading the pack as favorites in the AL. The biggest pickup being Lackey for the Sox. Personally, no one really picked true sleepers until the Rays went worst to first. So, now if we suck like usual, we have them to blame. Thanks Rays! I do like how the lineup looks, Antoine Pollard expects Matt Wieters to hit the warehouse and break every window in the process. Having a solid veteran in the rotation will help our young starters. Think Kris Benson a few years back. He taught Bedard how to throw a curveball, Bedard knew how to be a jerk on his own. Millwood is a much better pitcher then Benson so hopefully he can show these young boys some new tricks. The biggest issue is, as it usually is, our bullpen. Let's see what happens. Should I grow out my facial hair between wins? Considering I would barely look like a normal 13 year old with the amount of hair I would get, going to say no on that one.

9. New Super Mario Bros. Wii was the number 1 selling game of the year

• Which is pretty crazy when you think about it. I mean it was only out in mid-November. A new installment of the classic with the awesomeness of multiplayer. In my house it is useless since only a two year old will play it with me. My only beef with the game is more items. While I love the new penguin getup, I crave being able to fly with a racoon tail or cape. The game is still awesome, mostly due to my Wii being up for repairs it remains unbeaten. Only the 9th world remains. Wish me luck in the near future. If you own a Wii, get the game. It's great fun and the reason you own the system.

10. Is Kobe Bryant the best Laker ever?

• This past week, Bryant passed Jerry West as the highest score in Laker history. He passed Mr. Logo in a loss against the Grizzlies. It lead to every NBA analyst giving their top 5 Lakers ever. Kobe made it as high as 2 on Around the Horn with a couple of analysts forgetting about Kareem Abdul-Jabaar. One of which being Bill Plaschke who writes for the Los Angeles Times! Epic fail Bill. No one mentioned Wilt Chamberlain but then again, "the Stilt" had his best years in Philly. Only leading the Lakers to one championship in which he was the finals MVP (1972). Every one's unanimous number one was Magic Johnson, I completely agree. Personally I think it is impossible to find a top 5 that everyone can agree with in any successful franchise. Could anyone really agree with the top 5 Yankees in baseball, Steelers in football or Red Wings in hockey? The best comparison to the magnitude of the Lakers is the Yankees. There would be riots in the streets to determine that top 5. I guarantee.

So there you have it. Just some things that are rambling around this brain of mine. Have any input? Surprised I had a valid thought? Let me hear about it in the comments. I am always open to insults or input. Input would be better though. Thanks for reading and I hope to BS with you again, real soon.

5 Bands Who Deserve Their Own Version of Guitar Hero

No disrespect to Van Halen, who is going to be the next band to get their own Guitar Hero, but this is more about the Smash Hits version of the game. If Red Octane didn't want to dedicate a game to these bands I'm going to select one song that could go in for them. In some cases that was harder than others.

I am sure there will be an outrage for some of these but if you have a problem with the selections...make your own blog! Kidding folks, you know the deal, got something on your mind? Drop it in the comments. Now, in some particular order...

5 Bands Who Deserve Their Own Version of Guitar Hero

Led Zeppelin "Heartbreaker"

As I have begun to research this I am reading that Jimmy Page, the epic guitarist for the above mentioned band, will not sell out (in classic rocker form) to GH. He is strong arming both GH and Rock Band not allowing either to have the rights to their music. It hasn't stopped people from using the music studio to make up their own(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lv43Usi3b_k ) however its not the same. In fact people will make just about anything. Some don't even sound like the real thing. The one above is the actual track but another one I heard just made me yearn for the band to allow the songs to be in GH. In case some of you are completely clueless as to their work, here is a short list for you....

"Immigrant Song", "Dazed and Confused", "Kashmir"(P. Diddy knows how awesome this song is, he ruined it...I mean remixed it...seriously Page you let P. Diddy have it), "Rock and Roll", "Whole Lotta Love" (awesome guitar solo 3 minutes in), "Stairway to Heaven"(no Stairway...denied!), "Black Dog", "Moby Dick"(awesome drum solo), "Ramble On", "Livin Lovin Maid", "Achilles Last Stand", "Trampled Under Foot", "All My Love", "Communication Breakdown", "The Battle of Evermore" (Lord of the Rings geeks UNITE!) and oh god so many more. If you are still completely clueless then Youtube it up and search the band/song titles. Please Mr. Page, let them turn all your music into a game!

Green Day "Longview"

If I told you these guys have been around for nearly 20 years would you believe me? Well people you should because this band has been rocking out ever since their debut album Dookie. Just look at the tracklist on this album alone, nearly the whole thing could be on GH. There is "Longview", "Basket Case", "Burnout", "Welcome To Paradise", "When I Come Around", and "Chump" to name a few. Focusing on the main song out of the bunch, "Longview" has a bass line starting off the song that any fan of the genre knows. There is a problem with some of their songs being edited but we can look past that. An F bomb here and there can easily be dropped out(like it is on the radio). This isn't the only group of hits the band has. Looking at their other albums you can find a lot of other GH worthy songs like...

"American Idiot", "St. Jimmy", "Holiday", "Prosthetic", "Suffocate", "Nice Guys Finish Last", "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)", "Wake Me Up When September Ends", "Boulevard of Broken Dreams, "Know Your Enemy" and many more. Unfortunately I have not heard their new album but I am sure there is more then one worthy song from it(after a recent purchase there is). In addition to their music (like they have with all other band games) Red Octane could have some music from bands who inspired them or who they are fans of. It would be the most punked out GH ever. EVER! Also, for those Simpsons fans out there, get Green Day's version of the show's theme song (from The Simpsons Movie). Hard to mess up those lyrics right Billie Joe (lead singer for the clueless ones out there, its okay I forgive you)

DA DA DA DADA DA DA DADADADADA DA DA DA DA DA DA DA DA DA

Nirvana "School"

As much as my girlfriend who loves hair metal and all that 80's crap hates that this band ended all the fun in her favorite type of music("They killed it," she scoffed as she read this blog), she still appreciates their awesomeness. This is a much harder song than the previous one that was in the game. Now GH 5 is coming out with two songs from Nirvana however that is still not enough. Although they are one of only two bands who got two songs(Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers are the other) so that is pretty sweet. Their choices are some what obvious with "Smells Like Teen Spirit" and "Lithium" however, after an apparent 3 year dispute, the game has Kurt Cobain as a playable character. Anyway back to the point at hand. The band deserves their own game, I mean hello they helped start a new genre and make it popular.

Other than the above mentioned songs, if you peruse through their albums you will most definitely find at least 60 tracks that are dubbed worthy for GH. I will not bore the faithful (or unfaithful readers) with a huge list just a short selection. "Lake of Fire", "Dumb", "Pennyroyal Tea", "Rape Me" (even though the opening riff is similar to "Smells Like Teen Spirit" I digress), "Floyd the Barber" (sit down on my chair, don't be afraid), "Come As You Are", "Polly", "In Bloom", "You Know Your Right", "The Man Who Sold The World"(sorry its better than the Bowie version but hey GH Metallica didn't have the band's version of "Stone Cold Crazy" as opposed to Queen's version, still awesome by the way...moving on), "Imodium", "Scentless Apprentice", "Love Buzz", "Breed"(the opening is awesome), "Downer" (fast and short), "Territorial Pissings" (have you noticed I am into some hard, fast Nirvana), and holy crap so many many more. I do not pride myself on music knowledge so I am sure there are some songs that aren't on here that deserve to be. In no way should they be ignored so put some suggestions in the comments. Of course the drummer from this band formed another very worthy band of their own GH. Care to guess?

Foo Fighters "This is a Call"

Dave Grohl is just awesome, drums/guitar/bass/bongos/harmonica/spoons whatever the instrument he plays it and is great. This is one of the shocks to me that this song hasn't already appeared in a GH tracklist. Its one of their more played songs on the radio and, for lack of a better term, its awesome. All instruments are used well as for most/all of Foo. Mr. T was quoted as saying, "I Pity the foo!" I believe that this has something to do with the snubbing of their own GH. As much of their music that has been in GH we all know that it has to be in the works. They already have one of the more awesome songs with "Everlong" but there are just so many more. GH Metallica also had one that I wasn't familiar with "Stacked Actors"(I don't know everything...unless its fantasy football then I think all is known by me). So there are many that have been used (and if Red Octane can't find all they need then pilfer some Nirvana/grunge bands for some tunes) but here are a few others then the above mentioned that should be used.

This list like the above could go on forever "I'll Stick Around", "All My Life", "Times Like These", "Alone+Easy Target", "Good Grief"(awesome opening, very fast paced), " My Hero", "Weenie Beenie"(how can it lose, its got Beenie in it), "For All the Cows" (starts slow but speeds up in sections), "X-Static", "Generator"(yeah so what for like 3 seconds in the beginning it sounds like its a Bon Jovi song, just deal), "Overdrive", "Learn to Fly" (whatever it was in Rock Band so what), "Wattershed", "Low", "Disenchanted Lullaby" (slow songs are a part of GH, as long as they are still awesome...unless of course its GH Metallica, they didn't make a slow song), "Tired of You", "Breakout", "No Way Back" (from Madden fame, 2006 version), "In Your Honor", "Gimme Stitches", "Aurura", "Best of You", "Last Song", "DOA", "Hell" and many more (not just from the In Your Honor album I swear)

In addition to Nirvana how about some Queens of the Stone Age, their first album...with Grohl on drums and their original bassist (because his, the bassist, solo from "No One Knows" is freaking insane) and Queen could make another appearance since Grohl did help induct them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (the one and only thing awesome in Cleveland). Hit me with some more suggestions if you think I completely bombed on something. I'm just saying the game makes itself people.

Black Sabbath "Children of the Grave"

This song is from their Sabbath Bloody Sabbath album(the whole album could be on GH) and it just oozes GH worthiness. The song has a great drum/bongo rhythm throughout that can easily get stuck in one's (my) head. As many can guess I am going to suggest that the game use Ozzy tunes as well. The band wasn't the same without Ozzy (Ronnie James Dio replaced him...yeah seriously look it up. Holy dive on that! Went/Go by Heaven & Hell whenever they tour with him at lead vocals, quote Michelle, "Dio sucks!") so why not include some of his more memorable tunes along with some classic Sabbath. The only song to don a GH game is "War Pigs" and rightfully so. The song is well known and, in the words of Peter Griffin, "freakin' sweet." For those who need some OZ-ucation (no not the old prison show from HBO, its a great show but not what we are talking about) here are some suggestions for GH immortality.

"Iron Man" (unleash your inner Beavis and/or Butthead), "Paranoid" (sampled in the great SNES game Rock and Roll Racing), "The Wizard" (anyone for Harmonica Hero), "If I Close My Eyes Forever" (Ozzy doing a duet with Lita Ford, stellar combo), "Hellraiser" (GTA fans UNITE! Oh so many hookers and innocent bystanders perished to that song on the streets of San Andreas), "No More Tears", "Black Sabbath", "Over the Mountain", "Miracle Man", "Flying High Again", "I Don't Know", "Mr. Tinkertrain", "Mama, I'm Coming Home", "Perry Mason", "Bloodpath in Paradise", "Shot in the Dark", "Tattoed Dancer" (then you can be his little tattoed rock and roll dancer to), "Sweet Leaf" and so many more that my little mind can't handle.

So there you have it. 5 bands that deserve their own GH. Some that didn't quite make the cut were Motley Crue (I'm not in love with a stripper so I just couldn't pick them), The Who (they already have their own Rock Band pack) and AC/DC (same reason as The Who). If you want to yell at me for not picking your favorite band (no Antoine Good Charlotte does NOT deserve their own GH) then let me read about it in the comments. Until we read again....

10 Out of the Ordinary Songs for Guitar Hero

With the recent release of Guitar Hero: Smash Hits I(and the American public) feel like we have been let down. While I am happy that they have released these recycled songs into full band mode, they could have easily done that in the music store. Its like they mailed this one in. So starting today and for the weeks to follow I will be suggesting 10 songs in no particular order that could have been, or could hopefully be a part of a future version of Guitar Hero. Feel free to suggest your own songs in the comment section or completely mock me for my selections. Either or would be appreciated.

So as I was saying, for the next few weeks I will be releasing my lists. Each with its own special title. My thoughts for this one is if "Beat It" can be a GH song then why not these 10. Which is why this one is called...

10 Out of the Ordinary Songs for Guitar Hero

Remember these are in no particular order...

Victor Wooten "Me and My Bass Guitar"

So as to why I have chosen this song, its awesome. Give it a listen sometime(check out Youtube). Sure I know the song is all bass and vocals, I don't care. GH: World Tour had a Joe Satriani song with no lyrics so why not have this as the song that you play after you have gone through the bass career. It would be the bassist's version of "Through the Fire and Flames" as far as difficulty. It would make all those who enjoy "Slappin da bass" on GH(a la Paul Rudd from I Love You Man) elated. My phrase for this song, "So what if it's all bass, it's all awesome."

The Roots "Guns Are Drawn"

Who doesn't love the Roots? This is one of their better songs from The Tipping Point album. This one stands out above some of their others to me because of its good use of all instruments. Not just all bass and drums. Which speaking of those, as if it would be that hard to get ?uestlove to do motion capture for the drums. I mean if the band itself can be on Jimmy Fallon, what won't they do? In addition to the instrument use the lyrics wouldn't be heavily edited as some of their other songs. As those who have played the game know, there are a few words they do not like. Some Roots songs contain a lot of those.

Electric "Life is a Struggle (Remix)"

This is a little known hip hop group that I started listening to back in Salisbury. The best way to describe them or a group you could compare them to is the Roots. The regular version is pretty tight as well however its a drum machine and a lot of other things going on, nothing to do with a band. The remix edition does use a full band however is full on the bass and drums. So what it lacks in guitar it makes up there. Another positive is the lack of a whole lot of profanity, as in there is none. Thank god since my daughter Caylie loves to join in on the rocking. I have GH to thank for a lot of her vocabulary. So while the song starts out with a good balance of all instruments it definitely would be best on bass/drums.

Genesis "Sussidio"

Okay before you mock me and use a Family Guy or South Park reference hear me out. Obviously the vocals are good due to Phil Collins (insert South Park joke here) but that isn't all. The drums are awesome throughout the entire song with bass being a close second. Guitar is also well used in this but not as thoroughly as bass/drums. The guitar is used a whole lot more in this song then the previous, no real heavy solos though.

Prince and the Revolution "Computer Blue"

Now if you want guitar solos, Prince is your man. "Computer Blue" is not just a basketball play that owns Charlie Murphy and his group of flunkies. The guitar solo in the middle will completely own your soul if you attempt it on expert. I can't believe that a Prince song has not been on any GH games, completely ridiculous. As far as other memorable songs like "Darling Nikki" or "Little Red Corvette" I gave them a listen as well. "Darling Nikki" wouldn't make it past Red Octane censors since the song is about...a chick masturbating. Way to go Prince, when interviewed regarding this he was quoted as saying, "Owwww!" There is also more of a full use of a band in this song but what honestly sold it for me is the guitar solo from about the middle of the song that just goes on forever. It will also have you saying, "Owwww" when you try to play it. I can only imagine. Drums would also be pretty sweet on this however what I can't make out is much of a bass line but I'm sure its there. Either instrument you play will have you heading for the waters of Lake Minnetonka for purification.

Blackalicious "Green Light : Now Begin"

Now what this lacks in solos it makes up for in other instruments. This is one of the group's better songs off their Blazing Arrow album. There is a decent guitar section in the opening and in the end (around the 3 minute mark) but it doesn't really appear too much in between. Small sections here and there have guitar. The song itself is heavy on the drums and the bass. The interesting part would be getting all of the lyrics even close to right(that doesn't matter though, only pitch matters). Chief Xcel and the Gift of Gab are true artists in the form of hip hop so good luck to those of you vocalists out there. I think this is one song I could actually get the pitch on. All in all its a great song to chill to and something different for GH to try out.

Non Phixion w/ Steph (Deftones) & Christian and Ray (Fear Factory)

"The CIA is Still Trying to Kill Me"

If you are racking your brain as to whether or not the name Non Phixion sounds familiar, it doesn't. Although one of their songs was sampled in the Transporter during a fight scene. Not this song so I will move on. Now this is a remix version of "The CIA is Trying to Kill Me" but this one is far more superior when it comes to rocking. Heavy guitar riffs throughout, they are their hardest in the chorus, make this song a rap/hip hop song that truly rocks. The biggest issue with the song is how much it would have to be edited or cut up since it has more F-bombs then a B-52 bomber. The song is still awesome and deserves to be in GH and has the best chance of any other song from this genre.

Mos Def "Rock & Roll"

Let's stay in the same genre with another pretty good combo of hip hop and rock. With the tightly wound lyrics of Mos Def and the excellent use of a full band to back them up this one is can't miss. The song itself does start out slow, most songs are from his Black on Both Sides album, but the last minute of the song is insane. There is a minute long riff at the end that would make any pure rocker proud. It's not like this is the only section where the guitar is used however the beginning is very repetitive. Any one who plays the song if it were on GH would get sucked into the easy start and get owned in the end. Until of course they played it 30 million times.

James Brown "The Payback"

Get ready you mothers, for the big payback! Anyone who knows me is probably surprised that this isn't "Super Bad, pts. 1-2" due to my love of the movie White Men Can't Jump. I mean people called me Billy Ho when we used to play basketball in gym class back in the day. This isn't about me, its about the man who loves to jump back and kiss himself, hey! Part of me would love to be a fly on the wall, when anyone who thinks they know all of Brown's lyrics for the song, to see them fall on their face or completely screw up the pitch of one of his classic screams. As Eddie Murphy has pointed out before, that is a James Brown lyric. The reason for this song is due to its length and great opening that has probably been sampled, used in many hip hop/rap songs today. Also if anyone makes fun of you for screwing up the song you can drop this gem on them. "I don't know karate, but I know kaRAzy(spelled as pronounced)." So with the heavy amount of bass and guitar in this song, classic James Brown lyrics and it being sampled everywhere, how could this song not be in GH. It couldn't be any of the better knowns, some don't use all the instruments as much as this one. Now come on fellas, hit it and quit it!

George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic "We Want the Funk"

Well funk you very much, now with this song you have to know about its heavy bass line. You also have to know why, Bootsy Collins make it do what it do baby. Make him or George an unlockable and Bootsy's bass, the infamous star design, as well. The best two instruments would have to be bass, duh, and the drums. There could be another song that I just might not know out there that would be better however the ones I have heard this one would be best. Better known then others like "Stomp" that use full band. Plus we need the funk and we gotta have that funk, la da da da da, do do do do do do do owwwwwwwww.

So there you have it. 10 songs that are stuff you have never heard or would ever associate with GH. Other songs that were considered were Busta Rhymes & Lenny Kravitz "Make Noise" (denied because of the amount of profanity, there would be no lyrics if edited) along with "Anxiety" by the Black Eyed Peas. The song itself was just full of guitar riffs around the chorus and in the opening but otherwise it was little used. I could only choose 10 after all, do you know of any you would like to have? Let me hear your thoughts people!