"What Used to Be, How it is, and What Ought to Be" - Bike Rides with Chris DeVol

Let me tell you a story about a friend of mine and his quest for bike rides and a better community.....

Chris conquers the Schuylkill one early morning!

At the break of dawn on many Saturdays and/or Sunday mornings for the past couple of years, especially in the summer, my friend and East Vincent Township neighbor Chris DeVol organizes casual bike rides in or around Spring City, Phoenixville, and surrounding communities.

These are not the type of rides that serious road bikers do to get their hearts pumping for several hours in their colorful skintight outfits; nor are they the dirt churning, hill climbing, adrenaline pumping rides that a dedicated mountain biker would make.

Rather, Chris's rides are somewhat casual (in the bike riding sense), but it is the nature of the scenery that makes these rides very special. Chris's focus (and that of those of us brave enough to ride with him) is to look at the history and future of the some nearby Schuylkill riverfront communities. Phoenixville, Spring City, East Vincent, Limerick, and Royersford are generally the focus. We have visited great places like Pennhurst State Hospital with its controversial past and future, old steel industry sites in Phoenixville, the Cromby utility plant, the cool old railroad bridge that you can still cross if you dare, the old Yankee Dam recently taken down in East Vincent, and Spring City and Royersford's old factory sites (many now in the process of change). Chris knows many of the stories very well and will share them with anyone who rides along.

 

There is another focus to these rides too. It is the process of change happening all over these communities. To look at the good things that are happening, and to learn about some of the good things that could happen. My friend Chris is an agent of change, you might say. Some would say he is a "thorn in the side" to many area community leaders who might not facilitate or may even stand in the way of bringing positive things like the Schuylkill River Trail, historical preservation, re-development, or new railroads to the community. Don't get me wrong about the subject community leaders, we don't just talk ABOUT these folks, they get invited personally by Chris to join us.... In fact, he gets their email addresses somehow and uses them quite often.

I would bet there are many of Boro/County/State government official who wishes Chris didn't have his email address. He writes directly to them and cc's everyone else, and says "come on out at 6 AM tomorrow with your bike, I will show you how you could be better serving your constituents" or something like that. I know for a fact we have ridden with elected officials of all levels, school board directors and administrators, business and community leaders of all types. Those who miss the ride get a photo in their e-mail inbox something that morning with a subject line that says something like "See What you Missed", or "Did you sleep in?", or "Why can't Chester County do what all the other counties have already done?", etc. .....You get the point.

I have not been keeping up with Chris's rides the last few weeks, but I know from his emails (and ever growing list of invitees) that he has been going out at 6:30 AM on these cold December weekend mornings. God Bless Him for that, and for all that he does as an advocate for change to try help make our communities better. We need more like him.

Rainmaker

According to Dictionary.com:

Rainmaker; slang. an executive or lawyer with exceptional ability to attract clients, use political connections, increase profits, etc.: The president has several rainmakers among his advisers.


That's me! I just figured it out. I am definitely one who goes into a situation and stirs the pot to increase business activity. In today's market, we have enough sales & marketing experts, don't we? But we don't have enough people bringing business in the door! I am a one man economic stimulus plan!

This is my specialty and it always has been. Sure, I have the ability direct a sales effort, manage distributors and reps, create and execute a marketing plan and a business plan. But most importantly, I am the person who makes cold calls, uses referals, finds new leads, reach important decision makers, and makes the phone ring!

We're making terrorists faster than we can kill them!

The line above is what I thought when I read a recent mailer that came to me from one of the major political parties. They must think I am stupid if they would write what they did in this propaganda I received.

As a sworn and committed independent voter, I have made a concientious decision to vote with my own mind, not to let some group of lobbyists decide for whom I will vote. But this particular party, desperate for independent votes, must have targeted me as one who might not really be paying attention. They also must think that I can be swayed by an ignorant statement, rather than thinking for myself. Neither is true.

Basically, they wanted me to accept the idea that our government has kept us free from terrorism by their committing hundreds of billions of dollars and thousands of American and foreign lives to a cause that noone in their right mind can accept as a just one-that endless war in Iraq.

On a side note, can someone explain this pro-life stance to me? It seems I keep hearing that pro-lifers believe that all life is precious, right? The little babies in the womb as well as strangers we never met, and I guess that would include innocent foreigners whose beliefs & ideals happen to differ from ours, right?! (Wait a minute, Mike, that sounds like some liberal propaganda!)

Back to the subject at hand. So these funny people (a major political party) sent me this mindless mailer which states that we have had terrorism all over the world, but none in the USA ever since 9-11-01! This may be too obvious that I should not explain it to you, but do they expect me to believe that our government should get credit for that? Oh my gosh, I am not that stupid. Are you?

I believe that the terrorists aren't nearly done with us. Their strikes on 9-11-01 still affect our economy and our quality of life today, over 7 years later. If and when they strike again, it will be on their terms, and where we least expect it, I am sure. And if there is any American who really believes that we "taught the terrorists a lesson" they are so wrong. American hatred is probably greater than ever before, as the world watches us lash out at a weak country in the middle east whose only fault was that they possessed oil that we want.

Has anybody besides me noticed that our economy is still crumbling in the aftermath of 9-11? It is! Think about this: The government used 9-11 as an excuse to bomb the heck out of an oil rich country, to benefit the interests of certain huge oil conglomerates and defense contractors. They drove the country into such great debt (unbelievable record dept, over $10 trillion now) that the dollar became incredibly weak against the world's currencies. As a latent result, as soon as the economy slowed a bit (a normal cycle), the stock market begins a huge nosedive and sent fear throughout America's population. Yes, all this as a result of 9-11 coupled with corporate greed, and our government leader's weaknesses. It just took 8 years to happen.

I am deeply troubled by all of this. I don't think that either of the candidates for President are excellent choices. But I do know that anyone who continues to think that senseless wars are helping us is a fool. I'll choose anyone who will stand up and say that this war is wrong, especially if he happens to also support the reduction of oil consumption as a better solution to our problem.

I can't wait till the elections are over. Then maybe we can begin to deal with building America's reputation as a care giver and peacemaker, rather than the world's bully.

Lead Vocalist Needed!

Well, it happened.

Just like the Beatles, Bad Company, Police, Journey, and hundreds of great rock bands, The Reluctants now finds itself having to replace key members. To quote whoever "So and so has gone off to pursue other interests. We wish him/her the best of success in their new endeavors." (Sigh).

So, I ran an ad on Craigslist.com today it looks like this:
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We are a working classic rock cover band based in Northern Chester County, seeking a lead vocalist. Our current singer did very well and is leaving to pursue other avenues, so here is an excellent opportunity for the right person.

Check out our info here: www.myspace.com/ReluctantsMusic

About us/About you (required):
-We are musicians who love playing classic rock as a hobby, not expecting to make big money.
-Most of us live withing 20 minutes of Phoenixville, Royersford, Pottstown, or Malvern.
-We book about 1-2 paid gigs per month, and probably do not expect to do more than that.
-We are committed and dedicated to a regular practice schedule (Thursday nights).
-We have a current reportoire of classic rocks songs (and a few originals) and are willing to modify that for members' interests, tastes, and talents. -We are not perfect but we are willing to work at improving.
-If you've been told you have an great voice, and that you should sing in a band (but maybe you never have!?) then this is for you. Either Male or Female will be considered. Outgoing personality important.
-Talent and willingness necessary but prior performing experience is optional.

If you like what you see above, and are able to make a commitment to a band like this, call Mike at the phone number below.
Sorry, but we are not able to spend time endlessly e-mailing or phoning back and forth for tire-kickers, because we have day jobs like you probably do too.

Just call us if you are interested and we'll get you out to jam with the band ASAP and see if there is a chemistry between us.
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When I think about how much work it takes to keep a simple local band together, I have even more respoect for some of the great classic rock bands that either stayed together or reunited after so many years. Think about Aerosmith, The Rolling Stones, Cheap Trick, The Eagles, the list is endless. Which makes me start to think....Will an "Original Reluctants" Reunion happen someday?

Time will tell.

The Reluctants

Ever since my early teen years, I've wished that I could play guitar in a rock band. That dream became a reality for me when The Reluctants were formed early last year. I play rhythm guitar, and even sing on one song. I never thought that would happen when I was playing my air guitar as a young buck back where I grew up in Berkeley Heights, NJ .

When I was about 15 years old, a friend named Jeff Mason was the first person I knew who listed to album oriented rock (AOR) radio. He convinced me to shift my radio dial from AM77 WABC (top 40) to FM95.5 WPLJ (AOR). It seems that since then, I have been hooked on the likes of The Guess Who, The Who, Deep Purple, Bad Company, and Bachman Turner Overdrive (BTO). That's the music I "rocked out" to and exactly the kind of music I wanted to be able to play.

The Reluctants play exactly that kind of stuff, mostly classic rock (music of the 1970's mostly). We do a few originals that were written by our lead guitar player, Glenn Shipp.

We get together once per week for a rehearsal. Presently we have about 40 songs "down pat" and are adding more each month.

This summer will be busy. We play some local bars & clubs in Phoenixville and Royersford, as well as two local towns' music series.

Please check out our website www.myspace.com/reluctantsmusic for more info.

John Eddie & Kenny Aaronson

I saw John Eddie's performance at the Steel City Coffee House in Phoenixville, PA last Saturday. John is one of those guys who came up around Bruce Springsteen and the other Asbury Park (NJ) area musicians from the 70's and 80's. John has put out some great music, and in the last couple years he came back on the scene real strong with a CD called "Who the Hell is John Eddie". One of his songs (Low Life) was picked up by Kid Rock on Kid Rock's current CD. John's strength is his live performance though. I have seen him several times now, and he consistently gives a great show. This show was one of the best. He has great musicians playing with him too.

The bass player in John's band is Kenny Aaronson. Kenny is a heck of a bass player, I can tell you. His bass is the engine upon which John's songs are riding. And he is a real professional entertainer and musician in his own right. One of the things most impressive about Kenny is his list of past accomplishments and gigs. He has played in big name touring bands such as Foghat, Hall & Oates, Leslie West, Billy Idol, Rick Derringer, Bob Dylan, Sammy Hagar, and he was one of Joan Jett's original Blackhearts. In the early 70's he performed with the band "The Stories" who were best known for their hit "Brother Louie". If you haven't guessed, I think Kenny is a real cool musician.

I also highly recommend John Eddie if you see him and his band (with Kenny Aaronson) coming to your town- go see them.

Southside Johnny at Frankfurt airport

I met a real class act early one morning last week while passing through Frankfurt airport in Germany. Sitting among all his Asbury Jukes bandmates at a Starbucks coffeee shop was none other than Southside Johnny. I am a fan since the 1970's and I have been to two of his shows in the past couple years, and thoroughly enjoyed them by the way. Johnny is noted for being one of the big acts to come out of Asbury Park, NJ (the other big one was Bruce Springsteen - also John Eddie is one). Southside and co. have had a number of hits, among them are "the Fever", "Talk to Me" and "I don't want to go Home". I could tell you all about him but you are better off to visit his website if you want to know more (www.southsidejohnny.com).

When I noticed him he saw me looking so I said "Hi Johnny" and he shook my hand and said "What are YOU doing here?" which cracked me up. Then he invited me to sit down and we talked for 10 minutes or so before agreeing to have a picture or two taken with me for my collection.
MY advice to you: If you get the chance to see a Southside Johnny and The Asbury Jukes concert anytime- don't pass it up - they put on a great show, and it also turns out they are nice people too.