Thanksgiving: Three Days After (or oh, my stomach...)

I'm sorry, I know I've posted it before, but I just love this picture of the old Rock School gang taken in LA last summer -- right to left on front row: Eric Slick, Madison Flego, and Teddi Tarnoff; back row right to left -- Julie Slick, C.J. Tywoniak.

So yeah, I'm still in after-Thanksgiving hell, which means I haven't stopped eating and am actually going out to dinner tonight because tomorrow is Gary's birthday and no one will be around to celebrate due to work, etc. so we may as well do it now. We're going to Rembrandts, where Julie works, so that she can be our waitress and we can torture her and she can bring Gary dessert with a candle, etc. etc. Since Gary hates computers and thinks they are responsible for the decline of society today as he knows it (and also thinks the government is watching him through the monitor but that's a whole 'nother story) and therefore goes nowhere near them so there's no way in hell he's reading this blog, I can tell you that we got him an official Flyers team jersey -- Simon Gagne, who ironically wears #12, for his birthday present -- and that is the kind of thing Gary will love because we save the music stuff for Christmas and it's hard to come up with something else original just one month before. I can thank Julie for this one because I didn't have a clue and this was her idea so good on her.

I have to laugh, though. Do you know what those things cost? I was shocked! Even the stupid hats are $50.00. I'm talking the official team versions. Well, what did I expect? It costs $85.00 a ticket if you want a lower level seat at a Flyers' game. So that means for a family of four to go to a two hour game, you're spending $400.00. I'm sorry, but that's fucking pathetic. Anyway, along those lines, the other night, we're watching a hockey game on television and Gagne gets a hat trick, which, in hockey world, means he scored three goals. Common tradition is that if you are wearing a hat and you're in attendance at the game, you throw your hat to the ice and then the security crew comes out and collects them all and they are stored in a big glass display case at the Wachovia Center where the Flyers play and they list the names of all Flyers who scored hat tricks.

So Gagne scored his third goal of the evening and the T.V. camera scanned the crowd. Not one person tossed their hat.

"They're not tossing their hats! They're not tossing their hats! What's wrong with those stupid yuppies?" Gary screamed.

Heh. They didn't toss their hats cos' they're $50.00. See, I knew that because I just bought the jersey for him on line and tried everything to find them cheaper than list price, but if I did that, they were bootlegs which of course would have been unacceptable. Had I bought him the damn hat and he'd have tossed it anonymously to the ice when Gagne scored a hat trick, I'd have killed him.

Anyway..

I know you're all dying to know: Did Eric get the gig with the Control Freaks? He jammed with them all day today. Well, what do you think?

Ha ha - actually he doesn't know yet; they are deciding between Eric and another drummer and will get back to him Monday or Tuesday so whatever. I'm not worried about Eric -- he's going to fulfill that legend prophecy one way or another. But this band has a potential major record deal, so of course it would be excellent. Stay tuned for the answer. Either way, he's totally cool.

Eric Slick has major music news; Julie Slick bakes awesome pies; Robin Slick is depressed her online writing group is offline until Monday

Ike Willis and Eric Slick at Zappanale 16, Bad Doberan, East Germany 2005

Cool pic, huh. I just found it online somewhere.

Anyway, as hinted in this blog earlier in the week, here is the awesome news about Eric. This morning he met with a major producer, David Ivory. David Ivory has produced everyone from Paul Schaeffer and Anton Fig of the Letterman Show to the Roots. So Eric auditioned for him this morning, and like everyone else who hears my son, was extremely impressed, told Eric he plays very much like Chuck Treece which is an incredible compliment, and said he's going to be actively using Eric for studio work. Also, his first project for Eric is looking like it might be as drummer with Control Freaks, a rock trio featuring two chicks - one on guitar, one on bass, and I listened to their stuff and was way impressed. Great songwriting. More importantly, they played over 150 shows last year, opened for Neal Schon, won a bunch of contests/awards...so like, this means that Eric would be really gigging a lot as well as recording their brand new CD at David Ivory's studio. They've auditioned some other drummers and said they'd get back to Eric next week so we'll see how it all pans out. But even assuming he's on board with them, this doesn't mean he's no longer drummer for Shannon Penn, Chris Opperman, Doctor Dark, or Flamingo, it just gives Eric even more exposure and a chance to get out there and play and you know, show the world he's a drum legend. (Ha ha - quoting Paul Green Uberlord of Rock School there though of course I feel the same)

ETA: Eric just got home -- Control Freaks called him on his way home - he's in the running and he has to meet up with them Sunday for some more jamming.

And of course Philadelphia being the city it is -- mini New York City but small enough that everyone in the music scene is connected in some way -- Eric indirectly got this gig via Paul and Rock School. Paul introduced Julie to musician/producer Chuck Treece; Julie recommended Eric to Chuck, Chuck recommended David Ivory to Eric, Eric contacted David Ivory and sent him his resume (pretty impressive with Rock School creds like Carlos Alomar, all the awesome Zappa alumnae, Jon Anderson, and Eddie Vedder, etc.); both David Ivory and the manager for Control Freaks immediately contacted Eric, and then like it's all not crazy enough, it turns out that the band knows Katie Jacoby from Downingtown Rock School because they're all from Wilmington. It's sort of meant to be in a weird way, huh.

So Thanksgiving yesterday was absolutely fantastic, despite Gary having the toothache from hell, which prevented us from going to see Julie and Eric perform with Sweatheart at Silk City. I was so bummed out! This is when not having a valid Pennsylvania driver's license brings me down. With Gary out of commission, I had absolutely no way of getting to 5th and Spring Garden at midnight by myself other than a cab, only cabs were totally booked because the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving is the busiest travel evening of the entire year, and though I kept hitting redial, all cab companies had busy signals when I tried to get them on the phone. I was so, so screwed. But I hear that Sweatheart was really well received and had such a blast that they're going to definitely play some more shows so at least I'll get to see them eventually.

Dinner was amazing; I ate way too much and am feeling it today. We pretty much stuck to the menu I posted but Julie, who was in charge of baking, changed the desserts to roasted sweet potato pie with homemade whipped cream and because Matt loves coconut and he was able to make it over later in the evening, she concocted her own recipe of a pie made from homemade coconut pudding in a graham cracker crust studded with chopped Almond Joys. And this whole thing she topped with whipped cream into which she added a teaspoon of almond extract. Sick, sick, sick. She did make Eric the old fashioned apple pie but she did something to its lattice-topped crust and caramelized it with brown sugar and butter that was seriously obscene and with that we had Dove Ultimate Vanilla ice cream. Of course I had to sample all three. I was moaning and groaning all night from overeating and will probably fast today; I'm serious. For once, I can't even think about food, and it hurt me bad to just type those pie descriptions.

Anyway, I'm kind of out of sorts today. Zoetrope, my online writing group goes down every freaking holiday and since this is a four day event, I won't get to talk to any of my friends in cyberworld until at least noon on Monday. This totally depresses me -- both that Zoetrope is down and my social life is dependent on it. But it's true. We're all writers on that site and the written word is very, very intimate. I've known most of my friends there for three-four years already and as I've mentioned here many times, have met many in the real world. Now if I were a normal human being, I would email some of the more local ones and see if they wanted to do anything this weekend but that would require effort and I'd much rather sit here in my pajamas with my hair in a ponytail and not face the outside world, especially on a weekend such as this where the roads and public transportation will be a fucking nightmare. And besides, I've never pretended to be a normal human being so why should I start now.

Speaking of nightmares, how sad is it that I watched Annie Lennox perform on something as mainstream at The Today Show this morning. Wait. How pathetic is it that I watched the The Today Show. Oh well. At least I didn't watch Regis and Kelly.

It's even sadder that I know who Regis and Kelly are.

Okay. Know what? I'm going off to do what it is I do. Write novels. National Novel Writing Month ends in five days and I need 15,000 more words to win, or reach 50,000 words. That's 3,000 words a day. Piece o'cake.

Ugh...no, no cake. But still easy. Right. I'll keep telling myself that.

Later xoxo

Eric Slick and Julie Slick with Sweatheart at Silk City Lounge; Robin Slick in Virginia Beach; and err...Happy Thanksgiving!

Okay, let's play catch up.

First of all, before I forget, and this is way important, Julie and Eric will be playing bass and drums respectively with Sweatheart at the Silk City Lounge Wedmesday, November 23 at 11:00 p.m. Silk City is located at 5th and Spring Garden in Philly and it's going to be a really cool kick off to the Thanksgiving holiday. It will be a sell-out for sure because it's an annual tradition and always mobbed with partiers. On guitar is artist Thom Lessner, and on vocals are the absolutely fabulous Rose and Amanda. Just think B-52 type music but way better...they rehearsed at my house today and I was blown away. It only costs $5.00 to get in, and you can eat some really great food at the adjoining diner...here's the menu if you don't believe me. Of course this is way past my bedtime, but I will take a nap and will be there for sure. I know I'm biased, but Julie and Eric have been playing together for years and there's a tightness and perfection when they jam together that is pretty much unparalleled in any other projects in which they've been involved.

And while I think it's kind of lame for parents, especially parents of Rock School grads, to be serial posters on the School of Rock (SOR) forum board, I still love reading Paul's comments and was teary eyed this morning over this exchange, which appears in the "Ask the Uberlord" section of the forum:

Subject: Real Potential

Posted by Anonymous on 11/21/2005 at 11:40 PM
Paul-
Ok, let's face it. There are tons of students at SORs all over the country. Obviously, very few will really make it professionally in the rock business. Of the students you know, which ones really have "rock-star potential"? Who do you think is really going to make it?
**********

Der Uberlord
Super Administrator

Posted on 11/22/2005 at 12:03 AM

1st of all, please remember that the primary message of SOR is that hard work, dedication, and honesty in your work will greatly benefit you and your abilities, whatever you choose to do with your life.

Secondly, you don't have to "make it" to enjoy playing music. There are many SOR students, and there will be many, many, more to come. If the vast majority of them do nothing more than play in a band in college, or use their skills to make recordings at home, that is great. I never made it, but i would not trade my memories of trying for anything.

Also, making it is tough. There are LOTS of variables, including tons of luck, and a very conservative music industry to contend with.

That all being said, Eric Slick, Julie Slick, CJ, Branden King, Louis Graff, and Max DiMezza are all fantastic musicians who could easily have careers in the field and never work a day in their life.

Jeremy Blessing, Dom Malandro, Joe and Gina Randazzo are all amazing performers, and could easily be some kind of rock stars with the right breaks.

Coming up, Sara Zimm, Courtney Cox, Anna Marrinelli, and Sara Neidorf are well on their way to writing their own tickets.

The whole band Flamingo are great, and will due some things, together or separately, once they figure a few things out. Same with Atlas.

Kenny Lu and Bosco could easily play guitar for a living. Courtney Drew could play bass-once she learns to believe it herself. Madi-Diaz Svalgard I have always said has "it."

If I had to pick just one kid: Eric Slick. He will be a drum legend one day.
*************

Yep, that's a post by Paul Green himself. Eric Slick will be a drum legend one day. Oh god, here come the tears again. But I know it's true. And of course Julie's going to be a star as well -- let's not forget Paul mentioned her, too. I know she's got a gig somewhere next week with Chuck Treece and I'll post details about that in a few days.

And one more note regarding Eric, you can now hear sound clips from some of the show he performed with Doctor Dark right here.

In other news...

So yeah, my book is finally available in a few brick and mortar book stores, most notably in Philadelphia at Voices and Visions Bookstore at the lower level of the Bourse Building, 4th Street between Market and Chestnut Streets. You can type "Three Days in New York City" in the search box provided on the site and order it on line as well. I will be talking with Voices and Visions about giving a joint reading with Leslie Van Newkirk, author of Crush, and look for more info on that in a future post. Les and I are discussing the possibility of doing a tandem reading thing in both New York and Philly and since she is just an awesome person/writer, that would be just too cool.

The reading in Virginia was a blast. I met a bunch of other authors published by Phaze, met a real dominatrix and her slave, attended a BDSM workshop...ha ha...I really wish I could go into detail here but the innocent must be protected. I suppose had I been interested I would have been "fed by a submissive" in a loose sense of the word but I wasn't hungry and turned down his kind offer of refreshments.

Speaking of food, for those of you food freaks, below is the official Slick family Thanksgiving menu. We made a unanimous decision a few years ago that in order to avoid stress at all costs and concentrate solely on what Thanksgiving means to us -- being thankful for each other and stuffing our faces with food cooked in my kitchen -- that our holiday would always just be the immediate family at our house.

So here's what we are eating for dinner on Thursday:

Seven pound turkey breast stuffed with my standard recipe - a mix of toasted baguettes, onions, celery and carrots, along with a beaten egg and tons of fresh herbs.

Corn pudding, which is self-explanatory and so good it's sick cos' I make it with heavy cream.

Macaroni and cheese for Eric because he wants to relive his childhood.

Cranberry chutney -- a mixture of fresh cranberries, oranges, diced apples, raisins, walnuts, cinnamon, ginger, brown sugar, and a touch of vinegar.

Yukon gold mashed potatoes with crispy shallots.

String beans with ricotta cheese and bacon and string beans with just fresh tomato chunks and basil for Julie.

Eric wants a traditional lattice topped apple pie; Julie wants chocolate pecan pie though I just saw a recipe on T.V. yesterday that I want to do instead and have to run it by her though they used cranberries instead of chocolate chips. They made upside down individual bread puddings but they used croissants for the bread and the upside down part was caramel made from brown sugar and butter, pecans, and said cranberries. If I substitute chocolate, I think that'll be outrageous, especially topped with fresh whipped cream.

**********

Anyway, that's all for now -- be back later with a review of the show tomorrow night and any breaking news, of course.

Robin Slick reads from Three Days in NYC in Virginia Beach tomorrow and Saturday; Eric Slick and his music

Eric Slick at Toad's Place in New Haven, Connecticut

So, here's some cool news. I got an e-mail today from Playgirl, and they want to publish an excerpt from Three Days in New York City! Do you think I'm a little bit excited about that? They are also planning an author profile in the magazine, so they asked that I send my bio and bibliography. Woo hoo!

And as I said, I'll be in Virginia tomorrow doing a reading from Three Days in New York City and then being fed by submissives -- which I still can't get over though an insanely funny writer pal of mine had to make me crazy by joking that's it's going to be grown men crawling around on their hands and knees serving canapes from between clenched buttocks which kind of ruined the moment for me (ha ha, not really, but his remark was hilarious, what can I say?) -- and then I have the actual book signing on Saturday, but in the meantime, here's what else is going on.

Eric will be sitting in on a song or two with Project Object tomorrow night at World Cafe Live in Philadelphia. Read all about it and order tickets here.

Also, Eric is officially listed as drummer for Doctor Dark on his website so that's pretty cool. I see a sound clip of their show at Toad's Place will be up on the site soon which is awesome because these are some top class musicians. Check back from time to time...I also see the "about Eric" feature is under construction so all the more reason to visit the site again.

But look for some possible brand new and potentially mind blowing music news out of the Eric Slick camp next week...

Julie's got some exciting stuff in the works as well but of course I'm too superstitious to say anything further about that, either, until it actually materializes. Right now she's having a blast recording official Paul Green School of Rock Music poster artist extraordinaire Thom Lessner who has a fun music project on the side.

Anyway, in closing, below is a photo of my daughter, son, and their dad two months ago on an amusement ride which looked more like a death wish to me, but I love this picture because it pretty much captures them as they are -- INSANE! And beneath that photo, is one I absolutely adore of the whole Slick clan (minus me, the wussy photographer) about to risk their lives on yet another roller coaster from hell.





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So I'm currently waiting on some other breaking news, and if anything should happen between now and my flight tomorrow morning, I'll be back! (Oh god, that sounded like the terminator. Kill me now, please)

Later...xoxo

Phaze in the Pink

The Pink Banana Boutique Crystal B. Bright


So this Friday-Sunday, I'll be in Virginia Beach meeting fans and signing books. Here's the press release as well a newspaper article:


Erotica Book Signing for a Great Cause

Virginia Beach, VA – Eight erotica authors want to make readers feel good this holiday season. On Saturday, November 19, 2005 from noon to six p.m., authors from the publisher, Phaze, the erotic imprint of Mundania Press, will have a second erotica book signing called “In The Pink” at The Pink Banana Boutique, an adult toy store located at 352 Newtown Road in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The authors will sign copies of their CDs and print books with prices ranging from $3.50 to $15.00. A portion of the proceeds from all book sales during the signing will be donated to a leading breast cancer research foundation.

“I was thrilled at the reception that three Phaze authors had for their signing back in July,” says Stacey L. King, Phaze publisher. “I knew I wanted to do another signing at the store but I wanted to do something special. We all agreed that bringing in more authors would be great, and donating a portion of our proceeds to breast cancer research was the right thing to do.”

During the signing, customers can enter a drawing to win one of two (2) gift baskets filled with items from Phaze authors and from The Pink Banana Boutique. Authors will also be doing readings throughout the day.

For more information, please contact Crystal, manager at The Pink Banana Boutique, at (757) 671-8869 or Crystal Bright at (757) 619-1748.

And in today's Hampton Daily Press:


The Pink Banana Boutique, 352 Newtown Road in Virginia Beach, hosts "Phaze: In the Pink" noon to 6 p.m. Saturday. The event features nine authors - Devi Sparks, Leigh Ellwood, Madeleine Oh, Bridget Midway, Laura Bacchi, Jessie Verino, Jayelle Drewry, Petula Caesar and Robin Slick - and their books. Some proceeds from the event will be donated to breast cancer research. Admission is free.
**********
Yeah, so that's where I'll be Friday. Tomorrow I have one of those days from hell - a 9:45 a.m. appointment at the blood pressure doctor (no, I haven't lost those ten pounds nor started an exercise program and no, no, I don't have a death wish, just an unhealthy love of food and unhealthy love of assuming the fetal position and staying that way); an 11:30 hair appointment at a fancy salon where they give you champagne and cookies and sometimes even chocolate covered strawberries...see, I'm not dumb, I booked the hair after the doctor but I still hate going anywhere where I have to sit still for two hours...and then I have to go to the post office and do mundane things like pay bills, figure out why they haven't successfully done the mail forwarding thing for me from my old office, where I haven't been since July 29 but still haven't been getting my mail delivered to my house instead...in addition to sending out an autographed copy of Three Days in New York City to a friend who actually sent me a paypal payment today...I didn't even know I could receive money that way; I only knew I could spend it...and then, if I have any energy left after that, I need to come home and seriously get caught up on NaNo or I will never have my 50,000 word novel completed by November 30 as per the rules of National Novel Writing Month.

Other than that, things are cool. Life is quiet on the music front though Eric is gigging right now at the Pontiac Grille and Julie's been recording a bunch of bands...but there's nothing out of the ordinary to report right now. I'm kind of bummed I'll miss the Project Object show at World Cafe Live this Friday because once again, Eric will be sitting in on drums on a song or two, but as I said, I'll be in Virginia. More on those events later. Just a little hint: Always worried about food, I asked the other Phaze authors if they were up for going out to dinner in Virginia Beach Friday night prior to the big signing Saturday. Apparently, I don't have to worry. We're going to be fed by submissives at a T.I.E.D event. Umm...T.I.E.D.? Somehow I don't think that's got anything to do with laundry detergent.

Err...I do believe I will do more "research" on that...otherwise, look for me to be happily munching solo at the nearby Cheesecake Factory. And no, that's not a joke. There really is a Cheesecake Factory and oh my god, it sounds like a dream come true. And by the way, also not a joke is the Phat Phuc Noodle House in London. Yep, it's true, this restaurant can be found on Sydney Street. And for the first time ever, I'm considering a tattoo.

Just kidding, just kidding.

More odds from the sod and a friend of a friend of a friend knows Neil Gaiman!

The above is a new book by my pal, Leslie Van Newkirk. You can order it right here. Leslie asked me for an author quote for the book, and I was more than happy to oblige. This appears on the back cover:

'"Crush Dot Com" is a delicious, wild ride through New York City's singles scene. The story delivers both a poignant and hilarious commentary on our universal fear of loneliness and under-achievement in today's complex society. What an enjoyable read!" -Robin Slick, author of "Three Days in New York City."

On the front cover, Les was lucky enough to land a quote from our mutual good friend and rising superstar Ellen Meister. Not only does Ellen have a major book, Secret Confessions of the Applewood PTA coming out this summer, she just sold her second book and here's how the announcement appeared at Publishers Marketplace:

Ellen Meister's THE SMART ONE, in which three sisters trying to shake their childhood labels of "the smart one," "the pretty one" and "the wild one," discover that there's no place like home (even after finding a dead body in an industrial drum beneath the house next door), again to Carrie Feron at Morrow, for publication in 2007, by Andrea Cirillo and Annelise Robey at the Jane Rotrosen Agency. arobey@janerotrosen.com.

Yeah, I know, I hang out with some heavy hitters, don't I?

Ha ha - not only that, someone I should know but don't though many of my close friends do actually just hung out with my current heartthrob (not really -- just dig his writing and okay, his looks) Neil Gaiman in London. That would be Suw Charman. The reason I should know Suw is that she's also a member of Zoetrope Virtual studios, the international online writing community which I've discussed here many times -- where I've been a member for the past four years -- and our paths have crossed in some of the private offices there but never long enough to, um, bond. I know from her Zoetrope bio that we share the same interests; in fact, she's a music journalist. She's someone I've always wanted to get to know, but in checking her Zoe stats, apparently she has a life in the real world, cos' she hasn't signed on to Zoetrope since August. But it was just so weird to see her name in Neil's blog over and over and then I read her blog and I like totally ate my little homesick for England American heart out some more.

Ah well. I think I do have a higher power, and I think "she" has a very wicked sense of humor and adores torturing me. You have no idea how much.

Later...xoxo

Odds and Sods - part 969

Andy, drummer with McRad, and Matt Rothstein, Julie's bass playing boyfriend, prior to the show in...Liverpool? Guildford? Hmm...can't remember, probably because I wasn't there. By that time, I'd managed to successfully separate myself from the tour and happily went off on my own.

So I'm still in a funk since my return home to the U.S.; I can't quite put my finger on why but here's a couple of possibilities: (1) A life long dream was realized when I finally made that trip to the UK and now it's over; (2) I want to go back in a big way and stay longer than a week -- like, maybe forever; (3) I know I have to get really serious and finish the final revisions to my creative non fiction novel which means I need to stop fucking off with other projects; (4) I know that if I don't do (3) and do it really well, I will eventually have to go back to some sort of part-time "real" job because apparently I'm a bigger spender than I realized and haven't a clue as to how to budget.

Oh well.

But in other news, I was overjoyed this morning that the Democrats claimed solid victories in New Jersey and Virginia and that the Nazi Republican terminator was soundly defeated in California. So maybe there's hope for this country yet. But I saw a horrifying news report on BBC news last night (what, you thought I watched American news? Ha!) about Uganda. Ever since Bush took office, the AIDS virus is back on the rise. During the Clinton administration, they'd managed to cut the spread down to 4% with an active campaign to use condoms. Now, because most of their anti-AIDS funding comes from the U.S., the Bush administration has seen fit to see that all the money now goes to faith based organizations SOLELY in Uganda. They have decided that the condom campaign isn't good enough, they put ABSTINENCE in place, and all over Uganda, there are huge billboards with ABSTINENCE on them, not condoms. So it's a no brainer as to what's happening - all of the hard work of the medical profession is down the drain because of these insane religious zealots currently running our country. An entire African nation is being wiped out by AIDS.

Err...maybe that's what Bush is hoping?

Okay, must shift gears before I pop a blood vessel.

In music news, just a reminder that Eric and his band, Flamingo, will be at the Pontiac Grill at 6:00 p.m. this Sunday night. Julie's next gig with McRad is December 2.

And someone must be buying my book! My Amazon numbers were abhorent, but today I came downstairs and they are soaring! So thank you, thank you, thank you whoever you are, and I'm going to attach a link to Amazon one more time so that you, too, can join the masses reading Three Days in New York City. It's right here.



Oh, one more thing -- I will not be reading in New York on Monday -- I got an email last night from the guy who organized it saying he's no longer in charge. I'm kind of relieved. I'll be in Virginia Beach Friday-Sunday next week hawking Three Days in New York City and hopefully the sequel or at least talking up the sequel so that's enough travel for one week, eh? More on that later...

Some pics of the Slicks in the UK

So I've got no news at the moment...strange, huh. But yay, Julie finally found it in her heart to direct me to her photosite for a couple of pics of our UK trip. So like, here they are:

The first few are in Manchester. Up first is Julie and Matt in Albert Square.



The back of my head in Chinatown, Manchester (which is exactly like Chinatown, Philadelphia, even down to the arch currently under construction)



Roy (Leiana's drummer), Leiana, the back of my head, and Matt in Albert Square.



A cool street in Manchester.



The following series are from the show in Liverpool. I'm both sad and relieved I missed that show; and extremely happy that Matt didn't think it was too lame to take pictures because these are awesome. First up is Leiana's band - that's Roy, who is a kick ass drummer and also plays guitar, and Eric, her bassist.



Leiana and Eric



Eric



A couple more...





Andy, drummer for McRad



Chuck Treece of McRad and a fan, James Gregson



Chuck Treece and Andy



Julie Slick, bass player for McRad

Quick note...

Just spoke to Julie on the fly and the McRad gig is not at 5:00 p.m. tonight, it's later in the evening and it's also not in Manayunk. As soon as I get the correct info I will post it here but if anyone reading this knows it, email me.

Robin Slick in Playgirl Magazine; Julie Slick gigging with McRad at the Bungalow, Eric Slick and Flamingo at the Pontiac Grille

Ha ha - yeah, it's true, I'm on page 29 of the December issue of Playgirl Magazine, already available to subscribers and in a bookstore/newsstand near you this Monday, November 7. And in real life, it's huge, it takes up an entire page! I know this surprises you all, you probably thought Robin Slick in Playgirl meant me dressed as a dominatrix with a nasty whip, forcing some poor guy I have shackled by the ankles to read my book.

Nah...

So that's very cool, though I should mention that Phaze is not strictly ebook as Three Days in New York City is in fact a paperback, and if you are a Philly resident and should you wish to avoid ordering it online, it will be available next week at Voices and Visions Bookstore, 4th Street between Market and Chestnut, which is very, very cool. One, because they are like one of the last independent book sellers, and two, because they have a wonderful room solely devoted to local writers. I just happened on it by chance when I went to the Philadelphia Stories reading Tuesday night to hear a brilliant series of vignettes read by just an incredible local writer, Randall Brown. Also in the crowd was another extraordinary writer/artist pal of mine, Joseph Young.

Anyway, I know the above Playgirl article is kind of hard to read so use a magnifying glass. Ha! Just kidding, though I should also mention that it's not entirely accurate because obviously, Playgirl Magazine was furnished with that info a few months ago prior to publication. So to bring you up to speed, the sequel to Three Days in New York City is already finished, and it's called Another Bite of the Apple and Phaze already has it in their possession. Additionally, The Tour is no more, it's been retitled Babyboomer and it does not focus on Rock School, it focuses on a hipster babyboomer who struggles to come to terms with middle age and the fact that she's no longer considered cool while she tries to live vicariously through her rock star kids. So yeah, okay, it's creative non-fiction and the Rock School tour is merely a vehicle for my character to go through certain changes...Paul Green and other kids are not even mentioned. Sorry if this disappoints anyone.

So I know I promised to write about the bands with whom Julie toured in England, the beautiful and talented Leiana and the fucking genius that is Chuck Treece, but as I did some preliminary research, I realized there is just way too much material to put here now without further picking their brains, as well as gathering more info about the other musicians who accompanied them. So watch this space for updates as concerns print articles and interviews I intend to put together on this very cool, unique group of local musicians.

In the meantime, should you wish to catch Julie playing bass with McRad, she's gigging with them tomorrow as follows:

The Boils, McRad, Cranked Up!, Low Budgets, Kids United @ The Bungalow, 111 Cotton Street, Philadelphia, PA 5:00 PM. All Ages.

I believe 111 Cotton Street is in Manayunk. (calling the Atlas House, calling the Atlas House...hahahahaha....Atlas is a band of Rock School grads and those lucky bastards all share a house together in Manayunk, which is one of the coolest sections of Philly. Ah to be young and free...)

Oh actually, in just talking with Julie and Eric, I learned that Branden King, drummer for Atlas, will be sitting in as drummer for McRad for the Bungalow gig...so I'm gonna assume said Atlas will be out in force to support him. Branden is my second most favorite drummer in the world, next to Eric of course, and as I said, another Paul Green School of Rock Hall of Famer.

And you know Eric is gigging as well - he'll be at the Pontiac Grille on November 13, 2005 with his band, Flamingo, opening for another fantastic band, 722. I will of course be reminding everyone of that again next week.

Soo...I think that's the news for now but one can never be sure and if anything else comes to mind, I'll pop on for another post.

I'm currently doing that insane 50,000 word novel thing in 30 days during the month of November so it's kind of hard for me to keep up with the blog on a daily basis, but I'm trying, I'm trying.

Later xoxo