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October 31, 2005
HAPPY HALLOWEEN
Good morning everyone. I am back in town after a few days in Dallas. Unexpected family thing. But I am back and raring to go. And I have to say that GTA for the PSP is amazing!! The experience of riding motorcycles around Liberty City is just as good on the portable Playstation as it is on the real thing. Alec - Go buy it NOW!!! And Layer Cake (which I watched on the PSP on the way out) is such a great movie. The Cult's She Sells Sanctuary is the first song in the movie, and in fact the whole soundtrack is very cool. Daniel Craig is perfect as the drug dealer trying to get out of the business and Michael Gambon is the perfect English Crime Lord. A wonderful romp through London's underworld a la Snatch and Lockstcock. Here endeth my review. Just for you Terri. And by the way .... I LOVE karen's version of the computer keyboard. Check out todays top picture.
Now then - I really dont know anything about this December Camp Freddy show, other than it is on Dec 4th, its in Las Vegas, and it is the Camel Cigarettes Sin City Tour. I was told there will be some tickets available, and once I get the venue details and ticket details, I will post them here. Let me see what I can find out this week.
Regarding this site - Allison has worked really hard to get everything happening, and I think we are almost there. The Radio and TV pages need work, but other than that, I believe all the links work, everything looks how we want it, and I will, eventually, upload all the relevant pics in the archives. That takes time, so be patient. But other than that - Is everyone happy with the way the blog is working now?
Big massive respec' goes out to SSS. Check out her 2005 Rock And Roll Pumpkin. I think it's me, but either way it has to be the most rock and roll carving this year, right? People who have been around a few years will remember her Cult pumpkins, which I put on top of the amps at a Cult show, and Ian smashed at the end of the show!! I wanna wish her, and all of you lot a very Happy Halloween. I trust you will all be dressing up as Michael Meyers and terrorising the neighborhood tonight. Not sure if I will be going out yet - it gets really crazy around my house and can take an hour to get out of the driveway!! But I have a bunch of movies for the occasion. House Of Wax (lets see if Paris can actually act!), The Ring 2 (not as good as the first, or the Japanese ones, but worth a showing on the big Plasma) and Land Of The Dead (George Romero's new Zombie film.... the fourth in 'The Dead' series) - so either way, I have my quota of chills filled for tonight.
D-Wez - I havent spoken to Rob in quite a while, so I have no idea what he's thinking! I wish him well, and yeah .... that is one weird piece of internet right there!!! The green color is staying on the blog (cos I think it works too!) so rest easy.
Kim - Nice to hear from you. Glad you are still around. Enjoy the archives.
Redpill - Isn't that strange? That you pay more to have less on your guitar??!! And I was being a little sarcastic in my last reply. I am actually lucky enough to get my guitars directly from Gibson, built as I like them. Both my 'Camp Freddy' customs were built by Steve Christmas in Nashville (beautiful instruments) and I have spoken with them about a 'Morrison' model for me for next year. We'll see if it actually happens.
Nina - Wow! A blast from the past. Welcome to the blog. Hope all is good, and that you enjoy the Morrison Family Experience. HA!!! The M.F.E. ...... I love it!!!
RP - The only advice I have for the studio is to remain open minded. Try anything that is suggested, because you never know what will end up sounding cool. Have fun.
Jay - 24 Hour Party People was a great film. It definately captured the scene and the time well. Billy Duffy (who was actually at that Pistols gig in Manchester that they show) said that the whole thing was pretty accurate, and from the few times I have met Shaun Ryder, I would have to say that they really did a good job capturing the vibe of the times.
OK. Thats it. I'm gone. Things to do, places to go, people to see, games to play, movies to watch. Have a great Halloween everyone, and give all yer candy to the kids. Back tomorrow.
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 06:46 AM | Comments (24)
October 26, 2005
OUTTA TOWN FOR A FEW DAYS
Wassup everyone? Hows things ..... all good I hope. I have to leave town for a few days on a family thing, and I won't be traveling with my laptop, so I probably won't have the opportunity to post until I get back on Monday. So I figured I would check in before I leave. Camp Freddy Radio will be sans Morrison this week (which bums me out, but I know the other guys will deliver you all a stellar show). I will, however, be loading the new V-Pod up with tons of shit, and I will also be delving into the dubious virtues of the new Grand Theft Auto game on my PSP. Now that looks like a decent game. And I picked up the movie Layer Cake, just in case the in-flight movies dont cut it!! So I will be totally entertained, no matter what!!
So yes - the I Love The 80's is airing now, and I filmed all the years. But they use tiny bits and I have no idea which bits they used. I saw the Post-It sliver, which is basically me swearing, so its bleeped out anyway!!! But I know they used some other stuff, so further down the decade, I am bound to crop up again!! And I have the footage from Tripping Forward (the movie) now, so once I get back into town, I will edit a few things up for the TV page. By the way, I believe the Gallery page and the Radio page are undergoing some changes so bear with it. I am making it so that I can add tracks to the playlists from my own computer. THAT way, I can surprise you guys with some music every now and again. And I will be filming a video for the song, Pills, that I wrote for the movie, and if all goes well, the band will include a certain Mr LaRoque (from Doheny) and a certain Mr Ricky Warwick (from an upcoming project I am involved with) so I will try and get some clips from that shoot to put up here as well.
The big news is that the Camp Freddy Las Vegas show on December 4th has some tickets available!! I am waiting to find out full details, but the event is in Vegas on Dec 4th and it is a Camel Cigarette sponsored event. They have been touring all summer and we are going to close the tour. Thats more than enough info for the more resourceful among you to figure out how to buy tickets. And I know they are selling a few. More details as I get them. Seems that Vegas is the place for Freddy!!
Sergio - Welcome to the site mate. Not really sure what you are asking, but if its about my sound onstage, its just Gibson/Marshall. Les Paul Standard or Custom through Marshall JCM900's. Always two cabs with 35watt speakers. Bit of Phase 90 here, bit of Boss Delay there. Nothing special. And thank you for the compliment.
CSue - First of all - GENIUS artwork! I Love it. Check this out people ......
And yes, the vibe is different at the corporate show. But sometimes those suits go off more than a 'real' audience. They get hammered, loosen their ties, and think they are all 17 again and start pogoing like its 1977!!
Jezzi - Thanks for the Getty Images tip. They really got some good shots, right?
Amy - You just might get Queen Bitch. It went down really well, sounded great, and happens to be my favorite Bowie song. So I would put it forward at the next few shows. Hopefully the other guys liked it as much as I did.
Redpill - Again, welcome. And actually, the white custom did have a scratchplate - the holes just dont show in pics. However, I changed everything else about the guitar as well, so its pretty much a hybrid. One day, Gibson should make a model with those specs and then I can just get loads of them!!
Alec - First off, yer Dad rocks!! And secondly, nice one learning all those songs. Not easy, right?!! Have a great show and dont forget to turn it UP!!!!
Right, time to pack a bag, and get my act together. Have a great weekend everyone, and hope you can listen in to CFR. Send those boys my love - I miss em already. Back next week.
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 03:31 PM | Comments (28)
October 23, 2005
PRETTY VEGAS
Couldn't resist. Couldn't wait. The story of my life. So I am now the proud owner of the new Black Video I-Pod. A beautifully crafted piece of absolutely superficial technology, designed to make you spend even more money in the Online Apple Store. But oh so pretty!! So I am now in the process of downloading every bit of video I could possibly want, and will then be looking for any opportunity to sit antisocially with my phones on, staring at a tiny screen!! I must have been having a feeling or two lately as I also went and got the new SOCOM 3 video game - also a well designed time waster. Played a couple of levels today and totally love the game.
The Camp Freddy show in Vegas last night was, as usual, a roaring success. All my stress and worry slipped away as Jonesy, Navarro and myself laughed our way through a crazy twelve hour trip to Vegas, which included private planes, the smallest red carpet I have ever seen (to what benefit are these things? Oh look - there's another pic of us on a red carpet ...... on Wire Image!!) and a fantastic rock show, featuring Pink, Scott Weiland, Janie Lane (yes - he of Warrant/Cherry Pie fame!) and Vinnie from The Killers. Also on hand were Billy Duffy, Steve Jones and Gina Gershon. I got to sing God Save The Queen (a childhood fantasy of mine), Pink got to absolutely KILL Whole Lotta Love, and Scott Weiland (looking fucking AMAZING right now - what a rock star) did the STP song Crackerman and the Doors favorite, Roadhouse Blues. We did Bowie's Queen Bitch (with Gina) which happens to be my favorite Bowie song, and Janie did Man In The Box and Cat Scratch Fever. It really was a fun in-and-out trip (the best and only way to do Vegas) and of course, Alec's Dad came along for his 'Weekend With Matt Sorum' and was the NICEST guy!! You are welcome to hang out anytime, sir. And my huge apologies for treading on your hand while I was onstage!!! Didn't see it till it was too late. Hope you had a great time. We certainly did.
Thanks for all your posts. I am never truly THAT down .... I just find that this blog is a nice tool sometimes when I want to vent. And I choose to be honest and when I feel shitty, then that is what I will post. Your 'Chin Up' posts are most appreciated. The full set list and line up is over on Dave's site, at 6767.com. I have to say that he was a true friend, and just made me laugh all day! I soon forgot all the rubbish that was dragging me down.
SonicGeisha - Excellent video. Thank you for the link.
I have a relatively quiet week ahead, which I really should make the most of - get some Cardio and Pilates in, knock out a few levels of Socom 3, rest up, and generally enjoy the rest. Of course, I am sure by wednesday, I will have fabricated a million things to do to keep my workaholic head occupied, but for now, I'll indulge the fantasy that I will do nothing all week. Apart from that one mix. And that video stuff. Oh .... and a few tweaks with Allison on the site. Ah - and then there's the new CF site. Oh yeah - and the new project/band/music thingy. And of course, I could always just start working on the next Freddy show. Life. Dontcha love it???
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 05:25 PM | Comments (26)
October 22, 2005
OVER IT.....
Sometimes I get a touch disillusioned by all the behind-the-scenes goings on in my life, and today is one of those days. I can't really go into detail, because I don't want to disrespect anyone in particular. All I can say is that a lot of crazy logistics and planning goes into each and every Camp Freddy show, and most of the time it is a pleasure to be involved. And sometimes - just sometimes - some things turn up that blow my mind and leave me feeling flat and useless. Maybe I shouldn't be writing this on here but who cares. I am 100% confident that by the return flight home tonight, I will be feeling great, having just played another rockin' Camp Freddy show in Las Vegas. But right now, I sit here typing, with my coffee and cigarettes blazing, and just feel so overwhelmed with small, minute details that have been occurring in the last 24 hours, and just ...... well ........ whatever.
Yesterdays TV taping was a VH-1 show called The List. It was a long afternoon but a lot of fun. David Alan Grier was the host of the show, and four of us sat about debating who is the real number one Desperate Housewife!! My two choices were Catherine Zeta Jones, and Peg Bundy. We debated each choice, and just kinda hung out for the whole show. Cant really say who won (not that its a national secret or anything - just doesn't seem right) but I had a blast doing it, and hope to do more of them.
And your captions had me laughing out loud this morning. I knew that pic would solicite a great reaction. Creepys "I coulda had a V-8" was genius, and Kate - you have no idea how accurate your caption is!!! Jezzi's Lost-based caption was hilarious, and Sue ..... you KNOW the caffeine headache was on me that night!! All the captions were brilliant and I thank you all for lightening my load this morning.
I will sort out the quality of the downloads from the Radio Page. I need to get this weekend out of the way, and then I believe Allison and I are meeting next week to discuss the final tweaks on the BillyMorrison blog, and the first steps of the new Camp Freddy site. So I will make sure that the Radio page gets new versions of the songs.
So I am gonna go try and get my head into a positive state - I'll catch y'all next week. Todays pic is courtesy of Beth - thank you very much. ALWAYS sneak cameras in - what we dont know, doesnt hurt us!!
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 08:09 AM | Comments (16)
October 21, 2005
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Its a quick post this morning, cos I have an early Pilates session before the day kicks off. And first of all, Dave was right in his post about Lost. We watched it last night, and ......what actually happened? NOTHING! A few pairs of dirty feet were the highlight of the episode! And we also had about ten minutes of emotional string/orchestral music while Jin and his wife thought back to their life before the island. Enough, already. Move into the bunker, eat the food, get Sayid to fix a radio and kill all the weirdos. Oh yeah - and go find the 20ft Polar Bear that seems to have just vanished. How does a huge white Polar Bear just go ...'missing' ... on a tropical island? I'm feeling a little 'lost' at the moment!
Jay - The required amounts of 'Babys' were delivered appropriately! In fact, it was an absolute pleasure to sing Love Removal with Duffy. And as far as denim goes?......Rock N Republic are hitting it right now with the low-rise, boot cut jeans, and Ernest Sewn is great for a classic '501' cut. Or maybe grab a pair of Paper,Denim,Cloth - but go see the bank manager first.
Scott - Thanks for the kind words about the site. We are, indeed, figuring it out as we go! And the pic of Jordis is for you.
Willd - Unkles dont come cheap, my friend. But Undefeated in New York will always supply your needs. Or keep yer eye on E-Bay. Some amazing bargins to be had there. Regarding Doheny Remixes ..... I believe that is possible. I will be taking another look at the Radio page soon, as apparently the downloads are not great quality. So maybe we can add a folder of multitracks for you guys to play with. Let me see - when I get a moment.
Ylais - The Doheny video will eventually appear on the Morrison TV page, along with some nice CF footage. And yes, I did get the Loop Experiment newsletter. Thank you.
Simon - All the RockStar:INXS kids are now heavily into their own careers. Most are making records, so keep your eyes peeled for news. Thats all I know - other than Ty and Jordis ROCK!!! Send me some Wolfmother - they sound interesting.
Six7Six7 - I will be readjusting the Radio downloads at some point. The idea is that the tracks are there in their full glory, so that you guys get some free music (about time, right?!) Just be patient cos I am a little swamped right now.
Now HERE is the ultimate caption photograph. I laughed my ass off when I saw it - just imagining what you lot would come up with. I really look like I am in pain!! So thinking caps on, and make me laugh.
Gotta dash - there are chicks lying on beds with pullys and straps waiting for me!!! Have a great day.
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 08:53 AM | Comments (31)
October 20, 2005
BATTERED, BRUISED AND SMILING.
Oh my aching back!!! Running around like a lunatic for an hour or so really took its toll on my body for some reason. Maybe the fact that I just got over Pneumonia might have something to do with it!! Anyway, I wake up this morning, and I just lay around, feeling my shoulders and my back, and wincing in pain!! ALWAYS the sign of a good night! So it was a success for Camp Freddy yesterday. I dont think the suited corporate audience were planning on being rocked that loud, for that long. But we did what we do, and did it well. From where I was standing, we sounded tight and heavy, and from the look on their faces, the audience thought so too!! Scott Weiland, Jerry Cantrell, Jordis Unger, Billy Duffy, Ty Taylor, Steve Jones, Mark McGrath and Macy Gray all took it in turns to rock out, and after an 11th hour cramming session by Dave and myself (we didnt know we were going to do this song until we got there), we pulled the STP classic, Crackerman, out of our asses and blazed the song! Weiland looked every inch the consumate Rock Star, as he spun and weaved his way through that, and the Doors song, Roadhouse Blues. He stayed onstage (must have been having a great time!) and sung I Wanna Be Your Dog with me, as all the guitarists and singers got back onstage for the finale. And before I move on, I have to say ....TY TAYLOR and JORDIS UNGER!!! Both of those kids have pipes to die for .... Ty did Whole Lotta Love, and Jordis did Feel Like Makin Love - and both of them just rocked their songs. Unbelievable voices, and beautiful people as well. Thanks to everyone for making the Camp Freddy party happen.
Onwards and into Thursday, and I have some research to do for a TV show I shoot tomorrow. More details once I have done it, but it involves me having an opinion about something..... and I am very selective about what I have opinions about!! So I need to read up about the subjects and form an opinion or two before I go in front of the cameras tomorrow!! Oh God - they're actually going to ask me to argue my case. I have NEVER been good at that. But whatever - I'm always up for a challenge, and in any case, who cares, right??!!
I have got a little overwhelmed with the whole HTML/Site thing, and have realized that a little knowledge can be a dangerous thing. Most of the changes you see on the Blog right now are a direct result of me messing with the code without talking to Allison first. She gets things sorted out, and then I come along and tweak until it doesnt work again!! So I will NOT be doing that in future!! I will meet with Allison soon, get this shit sorted once and for all, and then ..... I promise to leave it alone!! There are three other sites to be built around here, so I feel I should stop obsessing about the minute details of this one, and get my ass into gear on the other three. How did I EVER survive without computers and the internet?. .. ... .. Oh yeah, thats right .... we actually had conversations back then. Weird.
Camp Freddy radio will be a repeat this weekend as we are off to Vegas on Saturday to do the whole CF thing over again. But the following week will be an all-new, live CFR. And I will be back here tomorrow, checking on your posts, and trying not to tweak the damn code anymore. Thank you for your patience and understanding. Now go and have a nice day people. Cos I intend to. Life is a blast, and its out there waiting for all of us. Just don't take the brown acid.
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 09:27 AM | Comments (20)
October 19, 2005
A QUICKIE BEFORE BREAKFAST
Just thought I would pop on here and post quickly. I just got back from some Cardio and Pilates and feel ready for the day (as I sit with a double cappucino and a cigarette in my mouth!!). Guitars are on their way to be re-strung before tonights show. Setlist seems passable - equipment is in the truck ...... what could go wrong??!!!! I love the Camp Freddy show days, because even though we all start the day thinking about the long soundcheck, the various bits and pieces we do during the day, the songs we are not quite sure of, etc, we ALL go home at the end of it all having had a great time. And thats all that really matters. So roll on tonight and lets play some music.
The whole piercing thing is an old subject for me. My old band, Stimulator, back in the UK, was all about tatts and piercings, I used to work and hang out at The Torture Garden and other Fetish clubs, and talked a lot about sticking bits of metal through various parts of my body. These days, the only ones that are left are the main ones - and they have been there so long, I forget I have them. Todays pic is from back in the UK, when I was getting some of my left sleeve done. Its about time I had them re-colored. Oh God .... here we go again!
The Doheny site is now gone, I believe. Jon was in charge of that, and with him doing some Pitchshifter shows, Sean doing his thing with the band that he joined, and me with my new band (yes I know, I have to give some details of this soon!!), it seems that Doheny is dead and gone. RIP Doheny. But the best of the songs are up on the MP3 player here on the Radio Page, so go listen, download, enjoy, and lets all move onwards and upwards.
Thats gonna have to be it from me right now. I need to relax, take a shower, make myself look pretty (now THATS a tough job these days!) and get down to the venue. Full report from the show here tomorrow. Have a great day everyone, and see y'all soon. (Especially those that sneak into Santa Monica Airport tonight!!!)
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 10:20 AM | Comments (14)
October 17, 2005
MONDAY NIGHT
Well now - the CFR on Sat got off to an interesting start, with Dave accidentally taking the front fender off a parked car!! He then surprised me again by pulling out a laptop and a webcam, and successfully pulling off a live webcam broadcast of Camp Freddy Radio. Is there no end to that man's talents??!
It was a fun show, and having listened back to it on 6767.com, I have to say that we really do have a lot of fun doing that every week. Of course, next week will be a rerun as Camp Freddy will be playing in Las Vegas. But we will be back the following week - no doubt with another Navarro inspired webcam broadcast. I love it!!!
So the week is only a day old, and it is already a hectic one. Phones and emails all day about these two shows. I'm not complaining - it keeps me busy and out of trouble, and i do take a lot of pride in Camp Freddy. I am just that kind of guy that likes to cross the T's, dot the I's and make sure that the show goes as smoothly as possible. Right now, smooth is not exactly the term I would use, but we go through this stage with every show, and I know it will all be fine on the night. Doesn't stop me stressing out, though! I think tomorrow I will concentrate on the other bits and pieces (another Bonaduce cue and a mix of the song Pills, that is for Tripping Forward) and let the Gods work on the CF shows. Just watched Sundays episode of Rome - pure genius. Lesbian love sub plots, and heads on spikes ..... absolute entertainment.
The NBC Extra CF thingy was on over the weekend, and I am working on getting a copy so that we can put it up on this site, along with the trailer for Tripping forward, and a couple of music videos and clips from some TV stuff I did earlier in the year. Just trying to provide here.
And our beloved Allison is still working out bugs and kinks on the site. Its been stable for a day or so, but I know it was tweaky on the weekend. We still have shit I wanna get right, but right now, with these shows this week, I am just happy to be able to post. The email link seems to have disappeared, and there are some fonts and some positioning of things that are'nt right. But Allison will be at the show on Wednesday, so I'll sit down with her and go over some of it with her then. She has done an amazing job at not strangling me while I keep asking her to change this, do that, what about if we ..... poor girl!
Beth - We will be pulling a couple out of the 'haven't played them in a while' bag, but I don't think we are doing anything completely new at these two shows. Maybe a new Bowie one - cant remember right now.
Linda - Its not about the practicalities for me. Its about getting a Video I-Pod ...... because they exist! I am just a sucker for a toy. Plus I do a lot of travelling, and as far as i can see, with a PSP and a Vid-Pod, I am pretty much set to go anywhere.
Slutmonkey - Yeah, those things look amazing. I am just all about Macs and they just suit my needs - as in .... I am a Label Whore and not too proud to admit it!! Yeah, Ylais. You got it right. Mac Maniacs Unite!!
Alec - The whole 'TV on an I-Pod' thing blows my mind. As does the fact that Apple have a fully operative advertising attack going on for a product that we cant get hold of for another week!! Apple store dont have any until then. Aaaarrggh.
Will - Nice to see you posting!! The email link is down right now. Send the pic to info@billymorrison.net. Really wanna see it.
UncleCreepy - Nice to have you around. Keep bloin' that bong smoke, my friend! And by the way - all I will say is that the Ampallang is not a piercing for the 'mildly curious'. Take it from me, my friend!!!
And you should ALL email Indie and request that they rerun whatever show you wanna hear. Drive those guys crazy and let em know that we have more that 6 listeners!! More like 12-15. I am outta here. Gotta call the cable company and shout at them for a few things. Oh the glamor of it all ......
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 07:26 PM | Comments (28)
October 15, 2005
CAPPUCINOS AND CAMP FREDDY
So the new coffee maker is enabling me to stay ridiculously JACKED up on caffeine for most of the day. I figured out the frothy milk bit, and set myself right back on the whole diet thing!! Now, I am knocking up triple shot espresso's every ten minutes and steaming jugs of milk to get the foam. Throw a couple of sugars in there (why not!) and its miles from the medium drip I had weened myself down to from those Gingerbread Lattes I used to drink. Whatever - life's only here once right?
An all new CFR tonight with Dave and myself. VERY glad to be going back in to the studio - I missed the last couple of weeks, so I will be doing a great playlist, and preparing myself for a couple of hours with Mr Navarro ..... the laughter muscles get a good work out with that guy!
The site has been having another weird day or so, as poor old Allison attempts to make sense of the Flash files I have been creating. I now have a few Macs, and a PC here at my house, so I am able to check how things look on different machines. And we still have a few errors here and there. I believe that the banner at the top of the main blog page is now behaving correctly. But the main index page, with the flower, still has some kinks. All the links to the different sites should go to "Coming Soon" Flash pages, but they dont appear to be behaving right now. But I am sure we'll have it sorted out after the weekend. I also notice that the Radio page now has an MP3 player on it. But we need to center everything and tidy it all up. But at least the songs are available easily for you guys. As before - be patient with us and we'll get it all happening eventually. The drive with all the video on it actually died for good - without a back up!! So I am presented with the gargantuan task of going through over 100 tapes, and logging and capturing all the good footage again! But what that means is I will be able to get the TV page happening soon as well. I suppose all this keeps me off the streets and out of trouble........ well, off the streets anyway!
Immediately after posting about the I-Pod Nano, I got the news about the new Video I-Pod. Oh my God - thats it!! I have decided to wait until they arrive in the stores and go for the 60gig, instead of getting a Nano. The new ones come in black (like the Nano) and can store 150 hours of video, downloaded directly from I-Tunes. Pure Genius. I downloaded an episode of Nightstalker, just to check it out, and realized that I am so in trouble now! With the I-Pod loaded with MP3's and TV shows, and a PSP loaded with games, I could travel around the world and be completely self immersed, not speaking to anyone!!! Toys .... gimme more toys!!!!
OK. I know I am rambling today, but thats allowed. Nothing much going on until the two CF shows next week. Which means I have spent way too much time tweaking around the various computers in my place. So I am gonna sign out now and spend the day playing guitar (learning the new songs for next weeks shows) and going over the hill to look at some cars for Jen. NO MORE SCREENS today, Mr Morrison. Hope you all have a great weekend, and tune in to CFR if you can tonight.
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 06:59 AM | Comments (23)
October 13, 2005
FLASH AND HOW TO BE IT.....
Hmm. Not sure where this pic is from, but huge white chocolate cars deserve to be seen ...... and eaten! I think it was taken at an event last year, but I found it on thebookla.com site. So here it is.
First of all, welcome back to the land of the living, Allison. And a HUGE shout out to David who is being a big encouragement with the Flash stuff I am learning. As you will see, I have been burning the midnight oil, knocking up bits and pieces of simple Flash and getting them up here. The banner at the top of this page isnt quite finished yet - there is a background to add, and it needs to be a touch bigger, but I am getting there slowly. And also, thanks to Allison, I managed to get the other sites "Coming Soon" pages up. But don't hold your breath .....Coming Soon actually means 'coming when I have finished tweaking BillyMorrison.net and I have nothing else to do!!!' But its a lot of fun, and ultimately I will have a lot more control over the look, feel and content of all the sites. And as we all know, its about control, right??
Allison is also tweaking the Radio page. It will look a little more streamlined and the hidden links will be taken down, and instead, you will have a proper MP3 player with a playlist, and the songs will be played from that. Again, as we all have lives (believe it or not!) these changes will be made when we have time. Suffice to say that I care about this web presence and will continue to make it a place thats cool and fun to be at.
So, let me see ......
Theresa - LOVE QOTSA. Totally original sounding, and absolutely the real deal. And lovely guys too.
SSS - Haven't seen Mike since the touring stopped. And you are right. The pics in the archives are not there. Too much work to import them from the old blog. Maybe one day when life stands still?
Lisa - I believe your XML/RSS thingy has been sorted out now. Good for you. Nice to know I am not the only one staring at a screen, muttering to myself and getting a neck ache!! Oh yeah, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
Muse - The Vegas show is the grand opening of a new club on the strip.
I knew that pic would generate some great captions. Lisa has to be up in the top three with the 'Scott Weiland' caption. That made me crack up. And all the medical ones were great, too. Ahh, its the little things in life that give me so much pleasure........Right, on with the day. Pilates at 10.00am, and some work on a track for the movie that apparently we will be shooting a video for - I'll let you know more about that when they tell me the deal. I am sure there will be the usual frantic emails and phonecalls about these two Freddy shows. It doubles the stress when we do two shows so close to each other. We get confused as to what show we are working on! I also need to go get myself a black I-Pod Nano (SO cute looking) and another monitor for the studio. Decided the whole 'double widescreen' monitor set up just HAS to be organized! So thanks to everyone here, welcome to anyone just finding the site, and keep spreading the word. In the immortal words of Valentino ......... CIAO, BELLA!!!
Posted by vivelerock at 08:28 AM | Comments (22)
October 10, 2005
PLANS AND DESIGNS
I seem to be well over the worst now. Not contagious, able to breath (rather handy, really!) and itching to get back to work. I have spent the last week or so figuring out a bunch of stuff on the computer which will enable me to get even more confused than I do already! So watch out - DVD's have been ripped, HTML has been written, Flash has been created .... oh yes indeed - I really am headed for a whole new world of hurt!! But first - I get well, and our new Web Guru Allison goes down with a similar illness. Poor girl is now laid up in bed, suffering like I was. So no huge changes until she gets herself better. Rest up Allison ..... Chicken Noodle Soup and NO COMPUTERS!!!
So - Camp Freddy have a couple of shows looming. Both seem to be corporate affairs, but rest assured that mucho pics, hopefully a vid clip or two, and a full report will be on this site as soon as they have happened. One is in LA and one is in Vegas - and it will be SO good to get to playing again. Dave and Carmen rocked the house on CFR this week (thanks guys) and I will for sure be back on the air this coming Saturday.
What else? Well, its back to the Pilates tomorrow - cant wait. Feel like I have totally had to let that shit slide while I have been sick. So its back to the regime tomorrow. And I finally started to finish off some stuff I had knocking about on the computer from before I got sick. A cue or two for the Bonaduce program (are you watching that? Its insane!!!) and also the track from Tripping Forward - the movie I did earlier in the year. I have also begun doing some work on a few songs that have absolutely nothing to do with any of the projects that I am involved in right now. I have this mad plan to have an area on this site that is a complete project area (with a name, logo etc) that is completely free, new music. Basically, I am fed up with being creative and battling the business, so I figure just put the songs up for download. For free. And thats that. So while I will still be involved in the business of Camp Freddy (and any other band I might be doing), I get to make music and give it away. What do you think? Its just an idea right now, but it could be cool. This will be the only place the songs will be available. We'll see.
Alec - NICE guitar dude. Yer makin me jealous!! Better call up Navarro and hassle him!!
Jay - The live Nirvana has not been rocked yet, as I wasnt there last week. But its on the playlist for this coming Saturday, along with the promised shout out.
Tina - I will be searching for Trailor Park Boys as soon as I have posted this. Sounds perfect for me.
D-Wez - Yep. Thats me next to Ozzy up at the house while they do their final X-Factor thing. That was a laugh a minute. He kept making me crack up and then they would get all annoyed and start telling us to stop laughing. I haven't seen it - anyone got a quicktime of that?
Mary - welcome to the blog. And FYI - it appears that NBC didnt run the Camp Freddy stuff at the weekend. Maybe they already ran it and we missed it. Somebody call NBC!!!
Lisa - I would love to help you with all that .... but I have no idea what you're talking about!! XML to RSS???? Anyone would think I have been sick and had time to learn a bunch of new shit about the internet!!! Seriously - I kinda understand, but not sure what you need. More explanation please.
OK - time to go. Thanks again for all the well wishes. I think they all filtered through the ether and found me, and dragged me out of my sickbed and into the land of the living again. I am gonna go sit and stare at the nightime LA skyline and ponder the possibilities of having an album, video, website, artwork, concept, book, film etc ...... all online, and all free. Seems like a good idea to me. And finally - if EVER there was a photograph that's ripe for you guys to come up with a caption for, its todays. When I was going through old Cult tour photo's, I came across this one, taken on the bullet train from Tokyo to Osaka in Japan. Now come on boys and girls - I know you can make me laugh.
Till next time -
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 07:39 PM | Comments (42)
October 08, 2005
LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL
The sun is shining, the birds are ....... HOLD ON..... its actually very grey outside, there are no birds of any kind making any noises, and I am in my office, hacking up large chunks of what appears to be my insides. And I am actually starting to feel better!! I have been going out of my mind with boredom this week - confined to staying at home, I missed a business meeting in Vegas yesterday, have not set foot out of my home for days, and have watched everything I possibly could on TV. I did, however, start learning Macromedia's Flash program. Oh, the possibilities!! I made a couple of simple things just by playing around, and now I wanna learn it properly. I suppose being sick has its benefits - you do stuff that you have been meaning to do for ages, and finally you are presented with the time to do them. So thats really what I have been doing. Learning computer programs and watching TV.
Check it out - and dont laugh!!!
I think I'll get out a bit today - I just cannot stay in here any longer. So a trip to Starbucks, a visit to the Mall to buy a new coffee maker (bring on the all-singing, all dancing Krupps black and stainless steel wonder machine!!!) and maybe a tentative Pilates session tomorrow. That might be pushing it, but the coffee shit is definately getting done!!
I now have the opportunity to check how the sites look on a PC. We bought a Sony Vaio yesterday (Dont ask why ..... I am still 100% Mac-head. Jen needed one, so what the hell - now we have a cross platform network) and I was able to check out the blog on that. It looked fine to me, with no noticable differences. So success.
Jezzi - Of course you can select some tracks when you come on the show. And I like your suggestions just fine! Email us a few days before and I will make sure we have your selections ready to go.
Selks - PVFS??!! Jesus, where do they come up with this shit!!! And Me Vs Navarro in Poker??? Oh God, Dave would completely wipe the floor with me. That guy actually plays cards - I just throw money on the table and shout random phrases like "21!!", "Stick", and "Bingo!!!"
Alec - Sensible choice. Dave's signature Yamaha is a beautiful instrument. And who knows - maybe 2006 might yield a guitar of my own. You never know.
Jay - Hilarious!! The Clap!! Yeah, the most unlikely name for that condition!! And Cat Scratch Fever .... what the hell is that??!
Terri and Kate - Thank you so much. These LOST sites have kept me busy for hours. I love the theories and loved being able to watch the Orientation video again on the Hanso site. Christ, what a geek I am. Someone book another show quickly and get me back onstage!!!
Junebug - ....er....actually ...... still smoking. What can I say. But I am going to attempt to do the CFR show today. Unless I get worn out buying a coffee maker, I figure I can sit in a chair and play CD's, right? And yes - pictures and artwork can still be emailed. Just click on the ..... ahh ...... well spotted. I have set up an email address for this blog, but there is no link just yet. I'll see about getting that up here soon.
Beth - Wow. I'm not even going to try spelling that one. But it sounds gnarly. I am glad you overcame it though.
Thats it for now. Anyone in the USA can tune in to NBC's Extra tonight as they will be running a segment on the recent Camp Freddy benefit show at the Key Club. And CFR will be on between 6pm and 8pm as normal. Hopefully, I will be a part of it! Until next time, thank you all for your well wishes, and here's to a nice, chilled weekend. With any luck, I will be able to get back into some music next week, as the work is piling up and I am dying to finish up the last of some tracks I have lying around.
For now -
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 08:32 AM | Comments (29)
October 06, 2005
DRAMATIC TITLES FOR EVERYDAY OCCURENCES.
Walking Pneumonia. Thats the label that they have attached to my condition right now. SO very dramatic!! I drove back from having the X-Ray's done this morning, thinking about all those big long titles that actually mean something a little more mundane. The worst culprit is the much overused "Influenza" (you've got a cold, people!!). So anyway, I am now on all kinds of stuff to clear the infection, and although I will admit to having some difficulty breathing (now I suppose THAT could become a problem in the long run ..... breathing is kinda important, right?!!), I intend to rest up, do what the Doc tells me, and I have every confidence it will clear itself right up.
This means that I should probably cancel the all-singing, all-dancing trip to Vegas this weekend, for the One Year Anniversary of the nightclub, Body English. The Killers and Motley Crue are playing, and I know it will be the usual debauched, well-fed, high stakes poker affair that it usually is - but you know what?.....I've done it many times before, and I am sure I'll get to do it many times in the future. I figure a weekend of rest would be a lot better for me right now.
Jezzi - Unfortunately, THIS particular show on 19th really is a corporate thing, so you'll have to be content with some pics, maybe a smidgeon of video, and a full report from yours truly!
Muse - We are still working on both line ups, although I know that Jerry C will be doing the 19th, but NOT the Vegas 22nd. As usual, we dont really know who's doing it until the last minute, but the usual suspects are always a safe bet.
SSS - I know, I know. I will EVENTUALLY get my 24 buzz going! I just have too much else on my plate right now - Medium, Surface, Threshold, Lost, Invasion, Rome, Extras ..... so MUCH to watch!!!
Danielle - Glad you enjoyed the show. Thank you for your kind words.
Simon - TRUST me. Get searching on the net and find the Aus version of Tivo. Then run quickly to the store and BUY IT!! You will freak out.
Terri - I am SO with you after watching last nights LOST. But we cant give the game away for those who haven't got to the second season yet. All I can say is - 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42.
I hope you are all happy with the site. Apart from a few tweaks on the Gallery page ( I wanna change the sound - it bugs me) and the Radio Page (Allison is removing the hidden links, and putting up a menu and an MP3 Player, so you can have easier access to the 12 songs I have put up there) - I think its all pretty much a wrap. I know she is moving on to a redesign of the Camp Freddy site next. All video for all sites has to wait until the sick drive returns from hospital, hopefully restored and working again. So enjoy. I am off to lie down and think of more illnesses that have ridiculously dramatic names. Got any juicy ones? Let me know - I could do with a laugh!! And check out todays pic - it makes me chuckle. Looks like I am saying to Vivian Campbell ..... "what the hell are you playing? It doesn't go anything LIKE that!!!"
Till tomorrow
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 11:53 AM | Comments (26)
October 05, 2005
HACKING UP A STORM
Everyone I know seems to be getting this bug and trust me, its not pleasant. Been in bed for two days, hacking and spluttering my way through hours of daytime TV. I've watched everything I have on both Tivo's, and now all I'm left with is bad afternoon movies with Chuck Norris or The Young And The Restless!! Apparently our web girl Allison now has it (sorry Al!!) but as you can see, she has fixed all the major bugs now. The main page is perfect. I'm really happy with the look. Very clean and uncluttered. We'll do a few things to the Radio and TV pages but that will be it for now. Welcome one and all.
Let me clear something up with this Vanity Fair Camp Freddy show. We ARE playing in LA on 19th, but it is NOT the Vanity Fair party that we have done before. The show we are playing is a private party for Grey Goose Vodka and The Sundance TV Channel. I believe Conde Nast (the publishers of Vanity Fair) are involved somehow, but it is NOT the Step Up Charity thing that we have done a couple of times already. And we ARE playing in Las Vegas on 22nd - the same day as the Vanity Fair thing in LA. Hope that clears up the confusion.
Simon - Tivo is a genius little box that is basically a hard drive running between the cable TV and the TV set. It records anything you want and enables you to set it to record a whole series every time an episode airs. It will basically change the way you watch TV forever. Fast forward through commercials, pause while you answer the phone .... hold on a minute ..... maybe I should be the 'Official Tivo Spokesman'
QQQ - Thanks for the kind words. And I am glad you came in to see the show. We had a ton of fun and I hope you did, too.The CF CD is in the works (as it has been for ages!!). It will be finished when we get around to it.
Ylais - RIP Ronnie Barker. A great British comedian, and responsible for many laughter-filled Sunday nights in my house.
OK - The LOST shark discussion is officially open, here at the Morrison blog. What is that stamp on its tail? Is it a machine? Thoughts and opinions to the usual address ......
Guys - I have to get outta here. I cannot stop coughing so its back to bed for me. I am really happy that the Blog front page seems to have been ironed out now - its business as usual from now on. I'll check in tomorrow and hopefully will be feeling a little better. Adios muchachos .....
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 07:32 AM | Comments (26)
October 04, 2005
THE HTML WARS
Now THAT was crazy!! Trust me - I dont know enough about all this shit to be the one making the tweaks!! I have been sick in bed the last two days (and still feel like the inside of a sumo wrestlers jockstrap!) so Allison has been fighting the html demons all by herself. It seems she won as well. I feel you are now all able to read this rubbish, correct? At the risk of messing it all up again, is it just me, or does the site have white sides? It should be all black. But maybe we should just leave it as it is - that was scary there. I kept waking up yesterday, feeling like shit, and I would stumble into the office, check the site ...... and it would be different every time!!! Allison - if you are reading this, thank you so much for battling against the craziness and sorting it out. Once I am feeling a little less sick, I'll call you.
I am meant to have a really important meeting tomorrow, a studio session on Thursday, and a weekend in Vegas on Friday and Saturday. And I am praying for some change in the way I feel. It's 6.00am and I am wide awake, coughing and sniffing my way through this post. I hate being ill - I'm not very good at it either. I moan and whine and feel all sorry for myself. But I have a bunch of TV to keep myself amused in bed today. Rome, Surface, Medium and two Torrents that I downloaded that my Tivo's missed - Invasion and Desperate Housewives. I figure I'll just stay in bed today with the phones off and try and sweat this bug outta me.
Questions:
Jim - Yeah, I know all about Bathing Ape. In fact a certain Mr Astbury turned me on to them a few years ago. But Bathing Ape only do Air Force One's and I only wear Dunks. So I tend to admire from a distance. I already have way too many sneakers without catching another brand addiction!!
Cori - I played on Hello Again and Say Goodbye on Tommy's record.
I cant do anymore. Feel rubbish and the snot is dripping on my keyboard. Time to say goodbye for now. Thank you all for helping us figure out the glitches in this site. It'll be worth it in the end. Now where's that Chicken Noodle Soup.....?
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 06:12 AM | Comments (22)
October 02, 2005
TEST POST
OK Guys. So apart from the TV page (which will be a little while as the drive with all my video is down!!) this blog is pretty much as I want it for now. A little Flash here and there when we get time, but nothing major. SO - I want everyone to comment on this post as to what works and what doesnt for them. Can you now read all the text? Can you find the hidden links in the Gallery and Radio pages? Is the site centered on your screen? Any other weirdness going on? It all looks fine on my Macs but I have no idea about PC's. Your input is greatly appreciated. Enjoy the music and the pictures, and keep an eye out for the TV page in a few weeks. Moving forward, we now start to redo the Freddy site. Its a never ending job, but a lot of fun. Thank you again to the inexhaustible patience of Allison, and thank you all for bearing with me. Now - how does it all seem to you guys .......?
Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 04:09 PM | Comments (54)
October 01, 2005
TWEAKERS UNITE!!
In the immortal words of Cori ..... "Things are weird around here!!" I know the blog is being a little strange right now. Thats because we are working on it while its live and online. Over the next few days, the chances are that you will see some weirdness when you log in here, because we are making changes and tweaking things. I don't really want to have the site down while we tweak, so just roll with the weirdness!! I know how I want it to look, and I know what content I want, so as and when either Allison or I get a spare moment, we are both making changes and thats when it looks strange. This main page pretty much looks right to me, so now we are working on the Gallery, TV and Radio pages. I have a bunch of Doheny tracks lined up for the radio (along with 5 tracks from the unreleased Stimulator album) and I will be putting up the trailer from the movie, some small CF clips, the Doheny video and a couple of odds and ends in the TV section. So roll with it, and we'll eventually have a cool looking site here.
Today will be another CFR - I know that Dave and I are going in and maybe Matt will join us as well, I'm not sure. But I know that I will be off to the Hollywood Bowl after the show to see Trent and his Nails do their thing. The last time I saw NIN was in Vegas, about an hour before Camp Freddy played. And Dave and I stood transfixed, staring at their genius, and feeling like we wanted to give it all up and get a job in an office!! They were just amazing. So I am looking forward to seeing the full production at The Bowl tonight.
Kate - The tattoo on my back says "Scarred For Life"
Wendybird - Great pics. Thanks for posting the link. I think I need to enable html in the posts so that we can all just click on any links that you guys post.
Thank you to all for the kind words. We had a great show and I'm glad some of you were able to join us.
So thanks to Dave, I have figured out the torrent thing and I am downloading the shows that my Tivo's missed during last weeks "Technology Meltdown". We have caught up on the missing Lost (the 'Others' look scary!!), and also watched the Threshold that we missed last night (there's something about that womans mouth that bugs the hell outta me!!) and we'll hit the missing episode of Invasion tonight. The cellphone still doesn't work, which is driving everyone else crazy, but kinda nice for me! I just am unable to hear anyone when they call, so unless its someone that I REALLY wanna speak to, I'm just not bothering to answer the phone. Things are relatively quiet around here!! I think I'll brew another pot of coffee and delve into some CSS pages on this site. What better way to start a Saturday morning!!! Here's a caption photo for ya - what's being said to who, and why?!!!
Thats Cherie Curry, a real live Runaway. You know, as in Joan Jett and the Runaways? The OG girl rockers. It was a pleasure to do Cherry Bomb with her and Steve Jones. A true Punk Rock moment. Anyway, I am now getting off this computer for real. I need to get outside and breathe some fresh air .... oh ..... wait a minute...... the air is thick with smoke from all the fires in the Valley. Great. One disaster after another. Maybe its just safer to stay inside and tweak some more .........
See ya later - Peace
Billy
Posted by vivelerock at 07:10 AM | Comments (12)