Six pack attack whacks robber

I missed this one on KTVB.com, did you? Who says Boise isn't a fun town! BOISE - A dramatic scene at a Boise gas station -- after two citizens helped stop an armed robbery with a six pack of beer.

It happened at the Jacksons store at Fairview Avenue near Liberty just after 6:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Police say James Edward Bridges, 46, walked into the store - went behind the counter, shoved a clerk and started grabbing money out of the cash register.

An off-duty jailer swung into action -- using a six pack of beer bottles -- whacking the suspect over the head.

James Bridges, 46, is charged with robbery, and assault and battery upon a law officer.

Another customer helped pin the suspect to the ground until police arrived. Police say Bridges resisted arrest – kicking and fighting – resulting in a battery on an officer charge – in addition to a felony count of robbery.

"We would never want anyone to risk their own safety, but this is a case where two citizens, acting quickly and decisively literally caught a criminal," Boise Police Lt. Ron Winegar said in a prepared statement.

Dog Park

One of the best things about Boise is it’s parks.

Kloi park.jpg

Here is a photo from one Boise’s newest and most unusual. It is my dog Kloi in the park next to Morris Hill Cemetery. If you have a dog drop by. At first it seems a bit intimidating. With all of those dogs, little to big you would think that all you would hears it growling and fights. Not true, in my many times  I have seen only one problem and it was human caused. We people forget dogs are pack animals. As soon as a new dog enters the the bunch, a bit of sniffing and nudging ensues and soon the while bunch heads off in a rollicking, frolicing mass of doggy fun. It is a little wet right now, but they keep it well maintain and the bark will be stable in a day or two.

Monday Follies-He said-She said

He said. . .Why are married women heavier than single women? She said ...

Single women come home, see what's in the fridge and go to bed. Married women come home, see what's in bed and go to the fridge.

Hoochie Coochie Men back home from Memphis

Dear Friends, Well, we did NOT make it to the Saturday Finals. The band in our "ten band heat" that I thought was the best strictly traditional Blues Band of the bunch got the nod. On a two block stretch on Beale Street(Memphis was "wide open" back in the 1920's and so Beale has a long history of being a mecca for live Blues music), there were ten clubs featuring 10 bands each and six clubs with ten singles/duos each so the whole place was crawling with Blues musicians and fans from all over the world. The Blues Foundation(sponsor of the International Blues Challenge...www.blues.org) is very "Traditional Blues' oriented and we knew that but decided to do half Traditional and half "Blues-related"(including some originals)songs. I found the three bands that I heard at the Finals playing pretty much stuff that I would have heard 20-30 years ago. I really liked some of the acts in the Single/Duo Finals, including a one man Country Blues band(slide-guitar/vocals/drums played with his feet) named Alex John Mason(www.alexjohnmason.com) from Colorado and whom I hope can make it to Boise for one of the summer festivals. The Band Finals winner was a young three-sibling band from Kansas City called Trampled Underfoot who, judging by the applause they garnered when mentioned by name, seemed to reaally impress people in attendance. My favorite part in Memphis was the Stax Records Museum(Otis Redding, Booker T and the MG's, Sam and Dave, Wilson Pickett's "In The Midnight Hour" etc). It was very well done with a lot of videos/info on Gospel, Blues, Memphis History and lots more. The company had a very neighborhood/family atmosphere and was started by Jim Stewart and his sister Estelle Axton. We saw Booker T's Hammond M-3 organ, Al Jackson's drum set, Duck Dunn's Fender bass guitar and Steve Cropper's Fender Telecaster. Priceless. Blues pianist Memphis Slim's house was right around the corner and it was amazing how many famous Blues/Soul pioneers lived in the immediate neighborhood. We did not get to Sun Records where Elvis, Johnny Cash, Howling Wolf( Sun mastermind Sam Phillips said he was his favorite artist that he ever worked with), Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins got their start but Barney, Dee, Carmel and Ellen went to Graceland. One of Carmel's favorite rooms was the awards room which demonstrated the huge amount of money Elvis gave back to all kinds of charities/organizations(including a lot of children's causes). We gave away business cards and almost 100 cd's to everyone and anyone-local and out of town. Also, one can now purchase our cd at: www.bandvillage.com. If I heard a foreign accent, the owner got a cd. We stopped in the Oyster Bar Restaurant(I enjoyed an Amberjack Sandwich), on Main St, and gave away a few cd's to some friendly University of Memphis alumni celebrating their basketball team's victory. After awhile the manager came up and we got to talking and he asked "Would y'alls music fit in here?" Well, they were playing Professor Longhair et al so I vigorously assented and within a few moments, The Hoochie Coochie Men cd was wailing through the sound system. I just wish the Blues festival promoters would have had neon signs over their heads designating their status but everyone was dressed the same. I've never eaten Fried Pickles before but I have now. Five of us also went to the Civil Rights Museum, most of which is situated in and across the street from the Lorraine Hotel where Dr. Martin Luther King was assassinated. The old trolley loop through downtown and along the Mississippi River was cool and I never realized how Memphis is situated right where Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi come together at the river. We really appreciate all your help in getting us to this "Largest gathering of Blues Bands in the world." I feel we played well and the other musicians really seemed to dig us. Our next gig is a fundraiser for the Garden City Community School on Saturday, February 16 from 6-8:30PM at the Unitarian Church in Garden City(6200 Garrett, three blocks north of Chinden at the bottom of the hill below HP). HERE is a cool thing:a free, downloadable podcast of the "Chicago Blues Audio Tour", narrated by Buddy Guy! The free 50 minute tour combines an interactive map, tour stop directions, archival photos, video, music clips and interviews. Historic Chicago Blues tour stops include Maxwell Street, Chess Records and Muddy Waters former home. There are also profiles of five Chicago Blues innovators: Jimmy Yancey, Tampa Red, Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters and Koko Taylor. DOWNLOAD at: www.downloadchicagotours.com. And don't forget this June 5-8, the annual Chicago Blues festival, the largest free Blues festival in the world! THANKS AGAIN for all your support! Barney, Mike, Bud, Dean, Ken The Hoochie Coochie Men www.myspace.com/hcmen

Fat Tuesday was Phat

The benefit for Blues in the Schools went well last night. The bands were lively and fun. (thanks for donating your talent) Looks like we raised around $300.00

BTW even thought I am not Catholic, I always try to give up something for lent. This year it will be rutabagas and diet Coke.

Fat Tuesday reminder

The crazy Blues Society kids are at it again! Come down, will have some beads, some great music and best of all the proceeds go to the Blues In The Schools program. BW January 30 Ad Proof BBS.jpg

No news is bad news!

Since I did not hear from Ken. I looked up the winners of the International Blues Competition. The Hoochie Coochie Men were not among them. Hopefully Ken will give us some deets when he gets back to town.

Front Door RIP-Update

Seems only fair to post the comments-includung one from an "insider" and the "new owner" on the recent e-mail from Shane. It occurs to me that there is no way to be sure of the veracity of the authors below, but it looks like the whole story is revealed. January 30, 2008 Subject-RIP Front Door Filed under: About Town — boiseboy @ 7:59 pm

This arrived in my in box, with the above subject line. It runs as written. . .

Hello to all, I have some sad news to pass on to everyone. As of today the Front Door as we know and love has gone. A new owner has purchased the place and let me go. It will now become part of the Reef and its management team. Alex has left on his own accord and I am not sure who of the remaining staff will stay. I may have bad things to say about this, but unlike one of my trusted former employees I will not bad mouth anyone; that wouldn’t help my future cause, you know karma. I promise this, I will resurface, and as long as I am here, I will make sure there is a beer scene of this magnitude in Boise. I, along with Matt from the Co-op, are going to plan a wake for the Front Door so we can all say goodbye. We are going to plan it sometime soon so I will keep you updated on that. If it is alright I am going to hold on to all of your email addresses so I can keep you updated on what is going on with my future plans. There is one keg of Abyss left which I am sure they will be tapping soon. Thank you to all of you for the support you have shown our cause. I have truly loved creating the Front Door and getting to know all of you. I will be in touch, Shane

9 Comments
1. Big surprise, The Krick Evil Empire has unceremoniously fired another hard working, talented manager. It will be hard for Dave Krick to find a qualified replacement that he hasn’t already dumped. Shane, if it is any comfort you are in good company.

Comment by A. Non Amouse — January 30, 2008 @ 8:32 pm

2. sad :( I have always liked that place.

Comment by Elissa :) — January 30, 2008 @ 8:33 pm

3. Well… Technically Dave Krick had nothing to do with this decision. The Reef & Front Door were under new ownership when this particular unceremonious torching of talent occurred. We create enough of our own bad press… some of which we deserve, and some of which is at least slightly misconstrued… Let’s allow the new owners of Reef to generate their own press if that’s what’s going on here. Kevin Kelpe

Comment by insider. — January 31, 2008 @ 3:07 pm

4. I don’t understand the first reply. He says in his e-mail that another person had bought the Reef & Front Door. What does the firing have to do with Dave Krick? I say kudos to Dave Krick for finally selling those places. He never should have opened them in the first place. ;)

Comment by Jeff — February 1, 2008 @ 2:34 pm

5. This whole thing is ridiculous. Mainly because of the clusterfuck that is occurring for the servers. I don’t think having new managers that don’t know anything about the beer we serve is conducive to our business. The worst part is the new manager (the reefs gm) has been picking fights with servers and staff at the Front Door since Krick brought her on, she doesn’t care about the Front Door. Comment by employee — February 2, 2008 @ 2:08 pm

6. So what’s the deal,”employee” seems to think Dave Krick is behind this. Isn’t the Reef still part of the Krick group? The way employee speaks of the new management sure sounds like Krick!!!!

Comment by A. Non Amouse — February 2, 2008 @ 2:19 pm

7. DON’T CHANGE A THING!! IF YOU START SERVING DOMESTIC CRAP - I WILL NEVER EVER GO BACK AGAIN!!! KEEP EVERYTHING THE SAME - IF THE NEW OWNER COMPLAINS - TELL THEM %^#^%$&%&*^%&^ THAT THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT!!

Comment by Front Door Customer — February 2, 2008 @ 2:43 pm

8. No Krick sold it to the same owner of legends sports bar at the Edward’s complex. Shane being fired isn’t Krick’s fault, the new owner fired him, and he hasn’t told us why. Reef sold with the Front Door, and the new owner is combining the staff, and management, meaning that the Reef management stayed and is now the front door management. A lot of our regulars have concerns about the new owner not keeping the format. As of now, we have been told that absolutely nothing is going to change….

Comment by Emp — February 2, 2008 @ 3:28 pm

9. All of this chatter does not accurately reflect my intent to keep intact EVERYTHING that has been so masterfully built by many. I will give proper credit to Shane for imparting his skilled touch in the whole process! In passing the torch, we have much work to do to continue it’s evolution. Please be assured we will not dispoint the discriminating beer lovers! Comment by The New Owner — February 2, 2008 @ 5:14 pm

More from Ken in Memphis

This came in from Ken late last nightThere are 16 venues presenting 160+ Blues Acts on Beale St, Memphis. We were at a new venue to the event, The Double Deuce, a country bar. We played second to last-9th out of ten bands. Each band(all American bands, no overseas ensembles) played a 25 minute set for 3 judges and tomorow we return to the same locale where we play 4th for three DIFFERENT judges and then the points from both nights are totalled to determine the Saturday finalist from the Double Deuce. So we will find out late tomorrow night if we made it to the Saturday finals which wil be held at the historic Orpheum Theatre.

The house bass amp started to break down so luckily they brought another in for Bud to use during our set. I had brought some duct tape with me which proved INVALUABLE to tape Dean's and Mike's microphones to their microphone stands because the microphone clips broke! There certainly were all KINDS of bands playing everythig from all covers to all originals. Most acts, like us, had more than one lead singer. Our set was Tobacco Road You Got No Business(original) Back In Idaho(original) Soothe Me Phone Booth(original) Roberta

Tomorrow night we will keep songs 1, 2, 4, 5 and add "Jaguar Blues(original)," "You Got Me Hummin'" and "Ain't No Rockin' No More." There are bands from all over the world so you can imagine how much money the band from, say, Sydney Austrailia, had to raise. Memphis is the Mecca/Jerusalem of Blues music so coming here is truly a pilgrimage as WC Handy discovered an elderly man playing strange music with a knife sliding over the guitar strings in the Memphis train station about 1912 or so. Pre-Blues music forms such as jug band music date back to Memphis in the later 1800's and you can see/hear/feel HISTORY all around. Carmel and I ate today at the Arcade, Memphis's longest continuously operating cafe(1919)where I ate Fried Okra and Purple Hulled Peas, among other things. Tomorrow we visit the Stax Records Museum(Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, Booker T and the MG's etc)and perhaps take the trolley that goes alongside the Mississippi River which helped bring Blues north to such places as Chicago.....talk to you tomorrow!

Subject-RIP Front Door

This arrived in my in box, with the above subject line. It runs as written. . .Hello to all,

I have some sad news to pass on to everyone. As of today the Front Door as we know and love has gone. A new owner has purchased the place and let me go. It will now become part of the Reef and its management team. Alex has left on his own accord and I am not sure who of the remaining staff will stay. I may have bad things to say about this, but unlike one of my trusted former employees I will not bad mouth anyone; that wouldn't help my future cause, you know karma.

I promise this, I will resurface, and as long as I am here, I will make sure there is a beer scene of this magnitude in Boise. I, along with Matt from the Co-op, are going to plan a wake for the Front Door so we can all say goodbye. We are going to plan it sometime soon so I will keep you updated on that.

If it is alright I am going to hold on to all of your email addresses so I can keep you updated on what is going on with my future plans.

There is one keg of Abyss left which I am sure they will be tapping soon.

Thank you to all of you for the support you have shown our cause. I have truly loved creating the Front Door and getting to know all of you.

I will be in touch,

Shane

Hoochies take Blues Skyway

Correspondent: HC Men keyboardist Ken Harris
As promised/threatened to David Day, this commences a daily Memphis Blues Challenge Blog from the Hoochie Coochie Men. We fly tomorrow morning from Boise to Memphis for the greatest single concentration of Blues Acts of the year: The 24th Annual Memphis International Blues Challenge, presented by The Blues Foundation(www.blues.org). There will be 160+ Blues acts from all over the world competing and we are sponsored by the Boise Blues Society(boiseblues.org). We have been together 14 years and are glad to be strutting our stuff in front of so many musicians, fans, promoters, journalists, clubowners...
It was a lot of work planning the two fundraisers that allowed us to book five flights and five rooms near Beale St for 4 nights, but thanks to The Boise Blues Society, Jo Fryberger and a lot of generous pals, we'll be arriving Wednesday afternoon. It took us a lot of e-mails to decide our songlists for the two 25-minute sets on Thursday and Friday evenings(50% original songs)and we have been rehearsing and played a set a few Sundays ago at our old stomping grounds the Bouquet at a jam session hosted by Richard Soliz and The Core. We're READY!
I found out that there will be a Friday/Saturday night after-competition jam session hosted by two old Boston musician buddies of mine: guitarist Bob Margolin(ex-Muddy Waters Band and now an established Blues bandleader) joined by harmonica hotshot Rosy Rosenblatt(who headed up ToneCool Records for years). I first heard these guys in the early 1970's and haven't seen them for 14 years.
Four out of five or our wives will be along(Dean's wife Karen and daughter Genevieve will have to go on our next trip with us). I've played in New Orleans and Chicago but I've never been to Memphis where BB King, Stax Records(Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, Booker T and the MG's), Sun Records(Elvis/Jerry Lee Lewis/Howling Wolf/Johnny Cash/Carl Perkins), Gus Cannon, Furry Lewis and many others started out.
Well, David, writing an INTERESTING blog is a real...."challenge!"

Next report: when we arrive in Memphis, Tennessee....."Long Distance, Information, give me Memphis Tennessee. Help me find the party trying to get in touch with me..." We've played Chuck Berry's song many times, now we get to go.

THANK YOU to everyone who helped us along the way!
Barney, Mike, Ken, Dean, Bud: THE HOOCHIE COOCHIE MEN