We’re looking for a new home for The Dame, but no luck so far.  If anyone would like to finance a once thriving music venue in a city that currently is without one, please let me know.  I’m also jobless, so give me money or a place to book shows.  Please?

With all of this endless free time I now have, I’ve decided to give Utahpolis another go.  Instead of the encyclopedic entries I was putting together, however, I’m going to try and keep things a little more concise and casual.  There will be more daily news updates instead of in-depth analysis of albums.  Or maybe not.  We shall see.

Let’s begin….

Ween has announced a Myspace Secret Show that will take place this Tuesday, July 15th.  If you live in the Fort Collins, Colorado area, take note!  They’re playing at Hodi’s Half Note, a place that I’ve never heard of.  Mr. Google tells me that they have a 300 person capacity.  Hmm.  Considering that this show is free, all ages and the only way to get in is to get in line, I’m guessing that people are camping out already.  I hope the staff is ready for that.  Coming from someone who booked Kenny Chesney (I’m not a fan, by the way) into a 390 person room, I can tell you that you’ll have your work cut out for you!

I’m left wondering what, exactly, makes this show a secret?

I’ll leave you with the song that made me into a Ween fan, back in 1994.

Ween – Roses Are Free

If you aren’t one of the lucky 300 to catch the “secret” show, Ween has a few more dates left this summer….

WED JULY 16TH – Fillmore Auditorium – Denver, Colorado

THU JULY 17th – Fillmore Auditorium – Denver, Colorado

SAT JULY 19th – Roy Wilkins Auditorium – St. Paul, Minnesota

SUN JULY 20th – Stir Cove at Harrah’s – Council Bluffs, Iowa

FRI JULY 25th – McCarren Pool – Brooklyn, New York

Like a lot of people who were listening to college radio or watching 120 Minutes in the early-90’s, my first exposure to Ween was through their one and only (very minor) hit, “Push th’ Little Daisies”. Even when set amongst the (then) eclectic programming of WKU’s 91.7, this song immediately stood out as something decidedly different and new. The group remained a mystery, though. I never figured out who sang the song. Hell, I didn’t even know it was a male until I saw the video some time later! Little did I know that our paths would cross many times in the years to come. More on that in future posts.

[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=4kkJPiTIyZ8]

A couple of years later, after I had rediscovered Ween, I went back and bought Pure Guava. Unlike Chocolate and Cheese or even The Pod, Pure Guava took some time to really dig into. Once I spent some time with it, though, I discovered a great soundtrack to those lazy high school afternoons back in Bowling Green, with nothing better to do than smoke a joint, drive around, and listen to Ween.

Ween – The Stallion Pt. 3

So, who was it at Elektra Records that heard this and decided that it would be a great idea to sign Ween? I somehow doubt they still have that job.

Ween – Big Jilm

Just try and listen to “Big Jilm” and remain perfectly motionless. It’s just not possible. Best lyrics ever, I might add.

Ween – Don’t Get 2 Close (2 My Fantasy)

Seeing this one performed in person really sealed the deal for me. I was searching for a good video of the bombastic prog-rock live version to post here but to no avail.

I did find an amusing clip of Ween on some forgotten talk show on Lifetime doing a promo for Pure Guava. After the intro where the host seems utterly baffled by a four-track recorder, they launch into an early version of “Freedom of ‘76″. I love how the audience goes from showing complete disinterest in the beginning to joyful applause at the end. Also, this clip demonstrates that Gene Ween doesn’t need to rely on effects on his vocals; He is in fact a fantastic singer.

[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=zzYykIA1xVg]

Naturally, they have a ton of tour dates listed. I highly recommend getting out to a show!

MON 2/25 – Powerstation – Auckland, New Zealand
TUE 2/26 – San Francisco Bath House – Wellington, New Zealand
THU 2/28 – TBD – Australia
FRI 2/29 – The Tivoli – Brisbane, Australia
SAT 3/1 – Enmore Theater – Sydney, Australia
MON 3/3 – The Gov – Adelaide, Australia
TUE 3/4 – Club Capitol – Perth, Australia
THU 3/6 – The Forum – Melbourne, Australia
FRI 3/7 – The Forum – Melbourne, Australia
SAT 3/8 – Golden Plains Festival – Meredith, Australia
MON 3/10 – Pipeline Cafe – Honolulu, HI
THU 5/8 – Shepherds Bush Empire – London, UK
FRI 5/9 – All Tomorrow’s Parties Festival – Camber Sands, UK
SUN 5/11 – Maroquinerie – Paris, France
MON 5/12 – Live Music Hall – Koln, Germany
WED 5/14 – Kaufleuten – Zurich, Switzerland
THU 5/15 – Paradiso – Amsterdam, Holland
SAT 5/17 – Village – Dublin, Ireland

- The Rockist Society has a list of the “Five Brownest Ween Tunes”. Debatable. “Mourning Glory” off of Pure Guava would definitely make my cut.

-Find an outtake from The Mollusk at Jesse Jarnow’s Frank and Earthy Blog.

Click here to purchase this album from Amazon.