Honeytribe and the curious disappearance of Devon Allman

Anyone else venture out to Eight Great Tuesdays to see Devon Allman's Honeytribe?

Yes, he's the son of rock legend Gregg Allman—although he kinda looks like a cross between Sammy Hagar and that dude from Nickelback.

If you've never heard him, young Mr. Allman is indeed a capable guitar player. He also seems to be one heck of a magician. In fact, Tuesday night, he made himself disappear.

Yup, right in the middle of a song, he calmly leaned into the mike and said: "Let's here some bass" (or something to that effect) and then promptly walked off stage. For like 15 minutes.

WTF?

To their credit, the other three band members (the bass player in particular) expertly jumped into an impromptu albeit seemingly endless jam. At one point or another, however, they each looked as confused as the rest of us in the crowd. Then the drummer and keyboardist also left the stage, leaving said bass player alone to entertain us all. I think he strung off every bass solo he ever learned.

Perhaps Allman may have broken a string, but even a blind man with one hand stuck in a pickle jar could restring a guitar quicker. So my initial assumption is that he had some, uh, internal plumbing issues? To put it delicately.

At any rate, when he finally rejoined his band mates, it started to pour. Sadly. So we, like the rest of the throng, picked up our folding chairs, tucked them neatly into their carry-alls and headed for the hills.

Bathroom emergencies aside, I did pick up Honeytribe's album on iTunes today. Sounds good. Hearing all the songs live would have sounded better.

Seriously. Anyone got an inside scoop on what happened?

pillowfight!

Ahh... to have a sniff of the production budget of this one. Beautifully shot, wonderfully directed, great score. Yeah, I'm jealous.

R U drawn to life?

His work is raw, meticulous, awe-inspiring. His tools are made not of iron or steel, but flesh and bone. He's a local phenom known nationwide for his gritty, in-your-face portraits of some of today's most gifted athletes, including Hines Ward, Terrell Owens, Smokin' Joe Frazier, Mel Blount, Jerome Bettis and Brad Boyes. Just to name a few.

He's celebrity sports artist Kevin-John Jobczynski—whose devotion to his craft is equaled only by his passion for those around him. And now he's giving back to a community that's already given him the world.

In support of the Community Blood Bank, Kevin-John will create a custom 30" x 40" graphite work of art for one donor chosen at random. It's a coveted prize package worth $20,000.

You can match his selfless donation with one of your very own. Simply donate blood now through December 31, and you'll be automatically entered to win.

For years, Kevin-John has been drawn to sports. Now, more than ever, he's drawn to life. To see his work, visit Kevin-John.com anytime. To become part of it, donate blood today.

To find out more, call 456-4206 or stop by the Community Blood Bank at 646 Peach Street. Hours of operation are Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.; Tuesday 9:00 a.m. - 7:30 p.m.; and Saturday 9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

breasts, tattoos and lawyers: a retrospective

Back in May, we featured the first of our random work updates. Part exhibitionism, part catharsis, it's a chance for us to show you (well, you, in the plural sense, being collective members of the Erie-blogging community) what we actually do for a living. And what we're proud to call our very own.

Last time, we featured the first in a series of newspaper ads for Dr. Gunnar Bergqvist, the local plastic surgeon. As pictured here:

As you can see, this ad deals with breast cancer and the positive outcomes associated with reconstructive plastic surgery. Not quite your typical superficial nip/tuck fare. But then again, Gunnar's not your typical plastic surgeon. Below, you'll find subsequent ads that have run in the series so far. You'll also find a billboard execution that many of you have probably rubbernecked on your way across town. (Sorry 'bout the printer's marks on some of these...)


And for all of you Bayfront Highway travelers, here's to discovering New Hope... and hopefully a commute home without any lane closures and/or significant construction delays.

Here are some print ads that aren't necessarily new, let's consider them new-ish, for the law firm of MacDonald, Illig, Jones & Britton LLP. There's actually a whole slew of these, but since they've only run in the Manufacturers' Association business magazine, I figured most of you haven't seen them. Then again, I could be wrong.



There's a bunch more stuff, but I need to get back to work. C-ya!

Baba Booey's Doppleganger on People's Court

So we're chowing down on some Quizno's yesterday at lunch, watching some People's Court and harassing Melissa about, well, about being Melissa, when who should appear but Fafa Fooey's twin brother from another mother, complete with 80's era 'stache and hair.

Check it.

For the uninformed, Baba Booey, aka Gary Dell'Abate, is the long-time producer of the Howard Stern Show. Jamie sent the above link to the Stern Show for their viewing pleasure. We're hoping to get some props on air in the coming weeks.

But even if you don't see the resemblance—which, by the way, is indisputable—or if you don't care about all things Howard Stern, the beauty is in the way-too-short-but-hilarious Q&A after the court proceedings:

Question: "What's the hardest part about being you?"

Wait for it.... wait for it....

Answer: "Mustache."

That's all I've got, people. It's Friday.

Recycle your e-Waste on the 23rd

Saturday, June 23, 2007
e-Waste Recycling Event
General McLane High School, Edinboro

Free and open to all Erie County residents, this e-Waste Recycling Event will offer collection between the hours of 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. Typical electronic items county residents may bring for proper disposal include televisions, microwaves, computers and peripherals, VCRs, telephones, stereos and tape players.

Any type of electronic equipment that has been improperly disposed of is considered to be e-Waste. Such waste may contain hazardous materials such as lead, mercury, arsenic and cadmium. These toxics pose no problems when properly contained in the equipment. However, when thrown away with other household garbage, the hazardous materials can become airborne or leak into the ground and contaminate drinking water as well as cause other environmental and health hazards.

When recycled, the electronic equipment is taken apart and plastics and glass components are turned into new products and reused. Precious metals such as gold, silver, platinum and palladium are also removed and recycled. In fact, a recent ECRP-sponsored e-Waste collection event netted 16,373 pounds of electronics to be recycled alone. County residents brought 67 televisions, 249 computers, 92 printers and fax machines, 35 VCRs, 22 telephones and 72 other electronic items.

Each e-Waste Recycling Event is limited to 250 participants and pre-registration is required. County residents may contact the Erie County Recycling Program at (814) 425-7773 to register or for more information.

Random Work Update Numero Uno

Since Miranda, our summer intern, was cut down in her prime by the evil academia, I guess it's my duty to write something blog-worthy. Let me tell you, however, that the injustice that has befallen her will not go quietly into the night.

We shall smite thee, oh-mighty-scholars-whose-craniums-are-ever-so-deeply-embedded-
within-your-own-posteriors.

Sounds kinda harsh, but hey, we're effectively depleted of our summer go-getter, er, marketing apprentice. See ya in '08, Miranda.

Anyway, back to the random work update. I thought it would be a good opportunity to let y'all know what we've been up to as of late. Let the amazement begin.

First off, we're proud to announce that we recently won a prized piece of national print work from one of our favorite clients, DAD'S Pet Care. It's an FSI for their various premium dog treats that will be inserted into Sunday papers across the nation this coming summer. Yay, us.


We've been working with the folks at Hamot to help promote their outstanding Physician Network. We've created some TV, some print, some radio and some billboards around town. We also went a more non-traditional route to help spread the be you. be healthy. message. If you've been inside one of the hospital's elevators recently, you'll know what I mean. If not, allow me to illuminate you via the magical .jpg:

(please note, the line in the middle of the graphic represents where the elevator doors meet)

He's not Dr. 90210, but I guess you could say Dr. Gunnar Bergqvist is a celebrity in his own right. He's one of the most heralded plastic surgeons in our area, and we've been lucky enough to begin a working relationship with him as well. We're in the midst of a new branding campaign for Gunnar, and below is the first of several newspaper ads in development. Actually, this ad ran a few weeks back in the Erie Times Sunday Living Section, and then the following Thursday on the back cover of Showcase. On a personal note, I can't wait for my calf implants to get here.


Oh, here's a fun little billboard we just did for the Quinn Law Firm's personal injury team.


On to other notes of interest:

We're finishing up a direct mail piece for Time Warner Cable in Dallas. This will be sent to a little over 300,000 households throughout North Texas.

We're currently in development of websites for C&J Industries in Meadville, PHB, Custom Engineering, Lamjen and Venango Machine.

We're putting the finishing touches on corporate ID and brochure for Willowbrook Employment Services, Inc.

There's a bunch of other stuff, too, like TV that's running for Community Health Net and the Erie County Recycling Program. Oh, and we're waiting to hear back from proposals we sent to the Erie Philharmonic, the Junior League of Erie and RailPower. Fingers & toes crossed.

Ok, I'm done. Tonight's the Hip show. Gotta go.