The ULTIMATE Halloween Playlist Nos. 30-21

 

So I had this killer idea for a family Halloween costume. The Daly clan would go as the Parkers from A Christmas Story. I’d be the Old Man (cardigan, leg lamp), the Forever Fiancee would be Mom (pink robe, 1940s ’do). We’d slick back Kid Lulu’s hair and pop specs on her for Ralphie. And as for Mai-Mai, our plump 19-month-old, she could either be Randy or the turkey absconded by the Bumpus dogs. Never mind that it’ll be 97 degrees on All Hallows’ Eve. This was genius! “No, Dad, I want to be Tinkerbell!” protested Lulu. The FF rolled her eyes. But Mai-Mai, dear sweet butterballian Mai-Mai, was up for anything —mainly because I had cookies. So I retinkered. Last year, I went as the Incredible Hulk, which meant 10 tubes of body paint plus an incredible rash. So this year, I can go as Bruce Banner...and Mai-Mai will be Hulk! Get it? I turn into her. More genius! Oh, don’t worry: She’s used to rashes. Plus we have plenty of butt paste. While I fine-tune this awesome idea, enjoy the Halloween Playlist Nos. 30-21.

30 Enter Sandman, Metallica
29 Highway to Hell, AC/DC
28 Devil Inside, INXS
27 Runnin’ With the Devil, Van Halen
26 Candyman, Christina Aguilera
25 The Headless Horseman, Bing Crosby
24 The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead, XTC
23 Zombie Zoo, Tom Petty
22 Trick or Treat, Otis Redding
21 Don’t Fear the Reaper, Blue Oyster Cult

To hear Nos. 40-31 of our Halloween Playlist, GO HERE.

Live Review: Metallica, St. Pete Times Forum, Tampa, FL, Oct. 3

 

I need a beer and a hearing specialist. You READ; I'll drink.

Photo: Times star Willie J. Allen Jr., who was pretty damn awesome all night. Thanks for everything, Willie!
 

Metalhead Mama meets Metallica!

TAMPA -- Largo’s Margaret Priebe, an 85-year-old cancer survivor and the new mascot for headbangers worldwide, met her hard-rockin' heroes in Metallica before the band’s Saturday show at the St. Pete Times Forum.

Singer James Hetfield, drummer Lars Ulrich (pictured), bassist Robert Trujillo and guitarist Kirk Hammett all stopped by the “Hood Rat” VIP lounge to meet Priebe, who was featured in a St. Petersburg Times feature on Thursday. Her story quickly became an Internet sensation, and on Friday Metallica officially invited her for a backstage chat.

“The number one Metallica fan!” Ulrich said when he met Priebe, who was joined by her son Jim Priebe, 48. Last year, Margaret battled cancer and chemo; during restless nights, she’d put on her MP3 player and crank Metallica. “You guys put me to sleep,” she told Ulrich, who took it as a compliment.

When the hulking Hetfield came in, he leaned down and asked, “Mind if I hug you?” She didn’t mind at all. Hammett told her to “Keep it metal!” She smiled big. The band signed her copy of new album Death Magnetic and even gave her a roadie T-shirt.

After the meet-and-greet, Priebe said, “They were just like what I’d thought they’d be – very nice.”
 
As she was led through the arena, fans burst into applause, asking for pictures and rocking the devil horns, the ultimate metal salute.

Metalhead Mama to meet Metallica tonight at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa

Hey gang, Metallica's reps at Warner Bros. confirmed yesterday that James Hetfield and the boys would like to meet-and-greet 85-year-old fan Margaret Priebe -- aka the Internet's newest viral sensation! -- backstage tonight. How cool is that? Hopefully, I can sneak backstage too and watch the whole thing go down. Here's the latest update...

At 85, she rocks -- to Metallica

"I like Metallica — there's nothing wrong with them," says Margaret Priebe, who knows she's likely to be the only person at Saturday's concert born during the Coolidge Administration. "People think I'm weird. But I'm sorry, I like it loud." ROCK 'N' READ RIGHT HERE.

Photo: Douglas R. Clifford, of the mighty St. Pete Times

Tampa Bay's Must-See Fall Concerts: Shooter Jennings, U2, Metallica & more

Who will make your ears bleed faster: Metallica or Miley Cyrus? Who will wear more makeup: KISS or the Killers? Who will be happier: people who see David Foster & Friends or people who get a root canal? There are myriad questions looming over this stuffed fall concert season. (For instance, will Shooter Jennings, above, ever send me another bottle of Wild Turkey?) But there are five things we know for sure, and that’s the must-see shows coming to Tampa Bay. READ ON.

Signs of the A-rock-alypse! (Metallica cuts deal with McDonald's?!)

Music fans have been sweating rock ’n’ roll’s weakening pulse for years. But signs of the a-rock-alypse have been extra worrisome lately. AC/DC, Bruce Springsteen and now KISS have signed deals with Wal-Mart. Lynyrd Skynyrd, the bad boys of Southern rock, are headlining on a cruise ship.

And just this week, those tween-dreamy Jonas Brothers packed more fans into Tampa’s St. Pete Times Forum than Green Day and Judas Priest did at their recent shows there — combined.

How much worse can it get? Brace yourself, kids, ’cause I gazed into my cracked crystal ball and the future of rock looks bleak. For those about to weep ...

* After a curious partnership between McDonald’s and Metallica, the hardcore kings of heavy metal ask concertgoers to change the infamous chant of “Die! Die! Die!” to “Fries! Fries! Fries!”

* Alice Cooper, aka the Prince of Darkness, signs a deal with ABC to resurrect classic sitcom Hangin’ With Mr. Cooper. Tag line? “School’s out...for laughter!”

* One band needs edge. The other band needs fans. The solution is simple. Ladies and gentlemen...Jonas Priest!

* Acting on a savvy marketing idea by hypeman Flavor Flav, Public Enemy reissues a classic rap album with a new name: It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Our Pabst.

* Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee, once the most infamously virile man in rockdom, becomes a shill for Viagra. His uncomfortable catchphrase? “I’m the one they call Dr. Feelsad.”

* Bowing to pressure from the anti-gun lobby, Axl Rose opts for the more amiable Hugs N’ Roses.  

* Paparazzi shots of Trent Reznor and Bob Vila clubbing together make more sense after Home Depot announces its new Nine Inch Nails hardware line.

* Led Zeppelin + Oscar Mayer = Whole Lotta Lunchables!

* Aerosmith cancels its summer tour when decrepit singer Steven Tyler falls off the stage after cartoonishly dancing for bored fans. Oh wait. That one actually happened.

(Sean Daly would like to thank Chris Ave for Jonas Priest joke!)

The Hirsute Playlist: Songs about hair

As a former suburban dirtball and a current owner of far too many concert tees with skulls on them, I’m stoked about the weave of hairy rock bands coming to Tampa. The St. Pete Times Forum gets Judas Priest and Whitesnake Aug. 16, then Metallica Oct. 3. Poison, Def Leppard and Cheap Trick come to Ford Amphitheatre Aug. 14.

The way I see it, the amount of fun you have at a concert is directly proportional to the number of concertgoers who desperately need a haircut. Or, for that matter, a bath. Which means, of course, that the Poison brouhaha is going to be the greatest gig in the history of rock! So to celebrate hairy fun and hirsute fans, here’s a playlist to get us in the furry mood. Bang your coifs!

Get a Haircut (and Get a Real Job), George Thorogood
Bar-Ba-Sol, David Cook
Keep It Greasy, Frank Zappa
Pull Your Hair, R. Kelly
I Kissed a Blonde Girl, Lil Wayne
Razor, Foo Fighters
Apple Shampoo, blink-182
Red Headed Woman, Bruce Springsteen
The Curly Shuffle, Jump ’n the Saddle
I Think I’m Going Bald, Rush

St. Pete Times Forum gears up for Green Day, Metallica, JoBros, Judas Priest & more

If you're wondering where all the big summer concerts are, well, they're coming. You just gotta wait a bit longer. The St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, one of the busiest venues in the world, will host a slew of big boys (and girls) in the next few months. You folks up north might poo-poo a summer show being staged indoors, but we don't really give a crap what you think. We want AC, and we want it for six straight hellacious months.

Anyway, I'll be there for most of the following SPT Forum shows. It's a good place to cover a concert, plus the press liasons are supa-hot, and I say that journalistically. (Love ya, Nashira and Jennifer.) Here's the rundown:  

JULY 28: American Idols Live 2009 (TICKETS) Adam Lambert will have to wait until the Idol tour is over to join Queen. In related news, "Big Oil" Michael Sarver will have to wait until the Idol tour is over to sob and wonder why God smote him into the folds of oblivion.

JULY 31: Demi Lovato & David Archuleta (TICKETS) Kid Lulu is begging for  this one, which would be the only way I'd go. I don't mind Disney Channel's Lovato so much, but Archuleta? The smirky, shirky Muppet? Yikes. I'm not that good of a Dad.

AUGUST 3: Green Day (TICKETS) Green Day's new album, 21st Century Breakdown, keeps sounding better and better in my headphones -- mainly because drummer Tre Cool keeps the beat with a sledgehammer. By the way, the top ticket is only $46.75.

AUGUST 16: Judas Priest & Whitesnake (TICKETS) This is one of those shows where I don't want to review it -- I just wanna drink cheap beer, bang my head and punch Steve Spears in the codpiece. Breakin' the law, breakin' the law!!!!

AUGUST 18: Jonas Brothers (TICKETS) I remember it like it was yesterday: Nick, Joe, Kevin and Sean, the four of us gamboling in the suburban wilds of Tampa. Think they'll remember me?

OCTOBER 3: Metallica (TICKETS) I've never seen Metallica, so I'm pretty jacked about this one. Really looking forward to chanting "DIE! DIE! DIE!" with 20,000 of my closest friends.

Billie Joe Armstrong, Rob Halford: Associated Press