Two dudes from Ohio had a pop princess on their podcast and damn near broke the internet.
Not to be outdone, two other dudes in Ohio (Dave, the Boobie Clark of Modern Rock, and Damian, the Coy Bacon of modern rock) are rebooting the “97X Rumblings from the Big Bush” podcast… and we’ve got the greatest promotions princess of all time: Julie Maxwell!
Most 97X listeners know Julie from her time on-air at the station, starting when she was a Miami student in 1988. She served as a co-host of the Breakfast Club for many years, first with Steve Baker and later with Rictile. But when she (mostly) stepped away from the mic, she took over as the station’s promotions manager and took our giveaways, contests, and charitable involvement to… wait for it… new heights!
Below are some photos from Julie’s treasure trove of 97X promotions materials.
Matchbooks were quite popular back in the day…
… as were condoms.
Julie’s our hero for scoring this David Bowie “Heroes” limited edition print.
And the Kristin Hersh self-portrait doodle not only is amazing, but also started a trend of 97X asking artists to donate drawings and doodles to the annual Modern Rock Auction.
[Pro tip: click on any image in the galleries below to see it full size, and use the arrows to scroll through the entire gallery.]
Julie also was responsible for making sure 97X had a presence at modern rock concerts around town… seems like one or more superfans really took a shine to the 97X promotional banner:
Julie used her creativity to dream up great promotions like the Ever-Expanding Prize Package and the 97X Gift Grab, and used her powers of persuasion to get record labels and local businesses to help underwrite them.
She also had a hand in the great 97X ads from that era.
Yes, it’s time for the obligatory annual Neil Diamond album cover:
We certainly hope he’s playing air guitar and not miming… er… playing the upright organ.
Then again, our current president’s signature “dance move” makes him look like he’s… pulling a Rick Wakeman and playing with two organs at once.
But enough about that wankfest.
Speaking of hot August nights, it’s also time for the semi-annual promotion of a Cereal Killers live gig. Their shows are more precious than a diamond (Neil or otherwise), and they’re back at Big Ash Brewing this Saturday, August 23.
My usual Cereal Killers offer will be in effect: show up, rock out to their vintage punk, modern rock, and new wave tunes (it’s 97.7% straight from 97X playlists – Elvis Costello, The Clash, X, REM, Guided by Voices, The Jam, Billy Bragg, The Smiths, Squeeze, The Cramps, Southern Culture on the Skids… ), and get a free beverage from me! Worth it just to watch the moths fly out of my wallet!
But before you get thee to Big Ash on Saturday, here are a few other gigs to consider.
On Thursday:
Noah Smith’s Crooner Circus (a recurring songwriter showcase) rolls into the Southgate House Revival Room (lineup is here)
Rachel Mousie and the Casey Campbell band play Washington Park
Ludlow has Black Circle, a Brazilian band doing 90s grunge songs.
On Friday, Dave Tellmann (co-host of the 97X Rumblings from the Big Bush podcast*) and I are seeing a free house concert in Hamilton by Wonderlick (band featuring Tim Quirk and Jay Blumenfield of Too Much Joy). Well, I think we’ll be seeing two former members of Too Much Joy play an acoustic house show… it’s quite possible that some rando from Hamilton mentioned “two dudes” and “too much joy” to Dave and offered him a free “Wonderlick.”
*If you were one of the 13 regular listeners of the 97X podcast and wish Dave and I would do some new episodes, you wish just might be granted. Soon.
Other Friday gigs:
Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band is doing a free show at the Levitt in Dayton
Lou Barlow (Sebadoh) and Bobby Bare Jr. (GBV) are doing an acoustic song swap at Southgate
Stacy Mitchhart plays Ludlow Garage
The Outlaws play the Fraze in Dayton
The Collies (a.k.a. the band my son Gabriel plays drums in) will be at Big Ash Brewing
Saturday shows:
Cereal Killers at Big Ash Brewing (great tunes, free beer)
Southgate hosts the world film premiere of Honky Tonkin’ and the Honky Tonk Hoedown with Jason Ringenberg, The Royal Hounds, and Jerry King & the Rivertown Ramblers.
The Del McCoury Band plays the old Annie’s – this gig has been cancelled
The Liberty Theater in Lawrenceburg has Briscoe with Miles Miller
311, Badflower, and Sitting on Saturn are at the Ovation
Rob Thomas is at the PNC Pavilion
Mama’s Black Sheep and Courtney Wilder play a Downtowne Listening Room show at the historic Boone County Courthouse
On Sunday, Pat Sajak’s favorite band, Caamp, plays an outdoor gig at the Jan Brady, and Ozomatli plays Ludlow Garage.
Gary Clark Jr. plays the Peter Brady on Monday, and Creed (not the good ones) plays the Mausoleum.
Tuesday:
The Tedeschi Trucks Band and Whiskey Myers play Riverbend
Robert Randolph plays Ludlow Garage
Ruthie Foster plays Ludlow Garage on Wednesday, August 27.
Shows on Thursday, August 28:
UB40 at Bogart’s
Rebirth Brass Band plays Ludlow Garage
Deke Dickerson & the Whippersnappers play Southgate with Kyle Eldridge opening
Liberty Theater has a free Songwriters in the Round show with Keagan Hatton and Dave Hudson
Improvement Movement and Magoo play a freebie at RiversEDGE in Hamilton (“Home of the Wonderlick!”)
Ben Knight and Willy Tea Taylor do the free Washington Park roots show
Fraze hosts the Happy Together Tour featuring The Turtles, Jay & The Americans, Little Anthony, Gary Puckett, The Vogues, and The Cowsills – sponsored by a reverse mortgage company and/or a lift chair brand, perhaps?
On Friday, August 29:
JP Harris and Anthony Ray Wright are at the Liberty Theater
You wanted the best, you got the best… Völkerball is Germany’s Best Rammstein tribute band! They’re playing the Ovation.
You wanted the ultimate, you got the ultimate… Rumours: the Ultimate Fleetwood Mac tribute – at Ludlow Garage
You wanted the weirdest double bill tribute, you got the weirdest double bill tribute: Sabbath (“the complete Black Sabbath experience”) with Night Moves (“the ultimate tribute to Bob Seger”) at the old Annie’s. NOTE: this gig has been cancelled.
Shows on Saturday, August 30:
Jim Trace & the Makers play Rabbit Hash General Store at 5 p.m.
Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe at the old Annie’s
Emi Sunshine and Wonky Tonk are at Southgate
The Levitt Pavilion in Dayton hosts Reggae Fest
And list member Mark Griffin has a reco for all of us (via FB):
Past episodes of Mark’s most excellent streaming music show Gray Days and Gold can be found here.
We love it live!
Emma Swift put on a great show at The Columbia. New tunes (her new album drops 9/12) plus some amazing Bob Dylan covers (her album Blonde on the Tracks is top notch!) in an old church (The Columbia at 4311 Eastern Avenue – home of Ween Wednesdays!) with stellar acoustics.
We love it live… but we love our spouse too!
I showed amazing restraint by NOT dragging my wife to the Mountain Goats/Craig Finn show that just so happened to be in Bar Harbor, Maine while we were vacationing in Vacationland.
Besides, we were getting up before the crack of dawn the next day to see the sunrise at Acadia and then hike the Beehive Trail. We were the Mountain Goats!
Of course, when we got back to the ‘nati, my wife sent me this Instagram clip:
She knows me too well.
Real country
I think the “S.G.” in S.G. Goodman stands for “so good.”
Real Horny
No, this is not about a “Wonderlick.”
I’m digging what Jim’s digging
Jim Wilbur of Superchunk is exactly as down-to-earth and no-frills as I thought he’d be in this clip where he shares some fave albums:
Everything’s fair game for the Gamecocks
True story: when I went to see Ozzy at the Pine Bluff (Arkansas) Convention Center back in early 1982, it was shortly after Ozzy’s bat biting incident (and two weeks before Randy Rhoads passed away) and venue security was patting down pretty much everyone. My long-haired friends gave me the pint of whiskey they hoped to sneak into the show, telling me “you’re clean-cut, they won’t frisk you.” Sure enough, they all got stopped and I waltzed right through with the Jack Daniels jammed into my jeans. Security probably thought I had the wrong date for Baptist Youth Night. Ah, memories…
Album Cover(s) of the Week(s)
They might be the opener for Wonderlick.
I just feel like we needed a palate cleanser after my most ribald post ever.
We were sweatin’ to the oldies (and the new songs) for most of July.
But August has been refreshingly mild so far. (“Refreshingly mild” also is a great description for Chuck Mangione’s catalog. RIP, Chuck!)
Summer sounds are sweet. But they may not be Sweet. Newly minted list member Scott R. pointed out that the “Sweet” listed on the bill with Molly Hatchet and April Wine at the Rose this past weekend is not the real Sweet.
I spent the next several hours tumbling down the Sweet rabbit hole. It was totally worth it, if for no other reason than seeing Andy Scott’s… wait for it… sweet hairstyle:
Currently, there are two versions of Sweet that are active, this one we wrote about, which features the original member Andy Scott and another one which was formed by Steve Priest. But Priest passed away in 2020 and the band continues actively using the name and touring with no original members, especially in United States and Canada. While Scott’s version usually tours across Europe. Source: https://rockandrollgarage.com/sweet-announces-their-final-studio-album-full-circle/
We pride ourselves on our journalistic integrity (currently we’re 0-2 on both journalism and integrity) so we apologize for directing you to the not-so-Sweet imposters.
While we’re on the topic of switcheroos, I also need to note a Minnesota mix-up from my last post. Semisonic had to bail on their tour with Toad the Wet Sprocket and Sixpence None the Richer (Semisonic bassist John Munson had a stroke in February and is still recovering). But their Twin Cities* counterparts The Jayhawks are taking their slot on the bill tonight at the Rose Music Center.
*Jayhawks leader Gary Louris is from Toledo, the Glass City!
Another concert of note this evening is Emma Swift, playing a show at The Columbia in the East End.
Emma in an old church will be heavenly! There are still a few (pew) seats left. Get your tickets via Undertow (same company that books the house concerts I’ve hosted). I’ll see you there!
The Black Crowes, will be roosting at the Rose on Wednesday. And Ralph Stanley II and the Clinch Mountain Boys play Southgate, with the Whiskey Bent Valley Boys opening. That’s a lot of Boys.
It’s also another Ween Wednesday at The Columbia (4311 Eastern Avenue). Stop by anytime between 6-10 p.m., listen to a Ween album (this month’s is Live at Stubbs 7/2000) and meet some really cool people. Oh, and I might be there too – but I will leave if I’m messing up the vibes.
Tons o’ gigs on Thursday:
Men I Trust are at the Mike Brady. (The show was originally supposed to be Men I Don’t Trust but they bailed out at the last minute.)
Maria Carrelli and Buffalo Wabs and the Price Hill Hustle play the freebie at Washington Park
RiversEDGE has a freebie too: The Eagles Project. (Maybe halfway through their set, substitute Don Henley will kick substitute Don Felder out of the band.)
More free tunes: Rubén Albarrán (frontman of Café Tacvba) plays the Levitt in Dayton*
The Temptations and the Four Tops play the Rose
The Aronoff has Piano Men: Generations (a tribute to Elton John and Billy Joel)
the Voices of America country festival kicks off at Voice of America Park in West Chester – Darius Rucker and Carly Pearce are on the bill.
Annie’s hosts Spafford… not to be confused with OG Wheel of Fortune co-host Susan Stafford.
*that’s a new music list record for most diacritical marks in one bullet point! We are well on our way to journalistic integrity!
On Friday evening, The Funky Ducks play Stanley’s. Two of the Ducks played an acoustic set at the home of list members Chuck and Christine Ackerman this past Friday, and they sounded great!
(I know what you’re thinking right now: “How did that moron get invited to Chuck and Christine’s house?” The short answer is: “They needed someone to clean the pool.”)
The Arcade Music Festival also kicks off a two-day stand in Covington on Friday, with strong “old school MPMF” vibes:
The festival transforms the underutilized, historic Arcade Tunnel on Pike Street into a main stage with immersive light activations by BLINK artist Dan Shields. Featuring 50+ bands, 40 vendors, and performances across 8 venues, it turns downtown into a walkable celebration of sound, art, and community. (Source: CityBeat) Get tickets here.
Other Friday gigs:
America plays the Rose
Ashes & Arrows are at the Levitt, with M. Ross Perkins
Andrew Dice Clay… yes, he’s still around… plays the Ovation in Newport
Carrying Underwear headlines the VOA Country Festival. (Wait, make that Carrie Underwood. Carrying Underwear is at another festival.)
Speaking of carrying underwear, Ludlow Garage hosts Hollywood Nights (please note the spelling of “nights,” this is a Bob Seger tribute, not a tribute to The Hollywood Knights, that classic 1980 movie starring master thespian Tony Danza)
Oh, and my neighbor Jim Tucker has an art exhibition opening on Friday at Redtree Coffee & Art in OTR. More here. The exhibit runs through 10/10.
On Saturday, Arcade Fest continues in Covington, Indigenous plays a free show at the Levitt, and Ludlow Garage has Lovesong: The Cure tribute.
Oh, and this guy is headlining the VOA festival:
He’s billed as “Hardy” but I’m 95% sure it’s David Arquette doing some sort of Joaquin Phoenix performance art thing.
According to chief meteorologist Nelly, it will be getting hot in heerre at Riverbend on Sunday.
Ja Rule, Eve, and “special guests” are also on the bill. There’s no Guest more special than this one:
According to Far Out Magazine, the Prince of Darkness himself, Ozzy Osbourne, watched “This is Spinal Tap” at a movie theatre in 1984 and didn’t find it funny. But it wasn’t because he was offended by the satirization of rock ‘n’ roll debauchery as Steven Tyler was; as the outlet explains, Osbourne thought he was watching an actual documentary about a real-life band. Source: https://www.grunge.com/1184003/why-steven-tyler-and-ozzy-osbourne-didnt-like-this-is-spinal-tap/
R.I.P. Ozzy. And please note that the “Nelly” headlining the Riverbend show is American rapper Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. and not Half-Pint’s nemesis from Little House on the Prairie.
Also on Sunday, “Bailey Zimmerman” is the headliner for the VOA festival. Please note this is not the former Arkansas Razorbacks women’s b-ball guard whose father went to high school with your humble scribe.
The Flaming Lips and Modest Mouse are at the Marcia Brady next Tuesday (8/12). Davy Jones said Marcia had some flaming lips.
Train plays a post-game concert at Great American Ball Park (former home of legendary salesperson Dan “Reds in 2025!” Lewis) on Wednesday, August 13. Danielle Nicole is at Ludlow. Flamy Grant (great name) is in Southgate’s Revival Room. And Chuck Brisbin & the Tuna Project play the free “Fountain Blues” series on Fountain Square. (Please note it’s Chuck and Tuna, not Charlie Tuna.)
Next Thursday, August 14:
Brit Floyd plays the PNC Pavilion
Hippies & Cowboys are at the Woodward
Darrin Hacquard and Williams Matheny play the Washington Park Roots series
MojoFlo (a neo-funk band, not the Progressive spokesperson) is at the Levitt
Shows on Friday August 15:
Smithereens play the Ludlow Garage, with John Cowsill (of the Cowsills) handling lead vocals
Kenny Wayne Shepherd and Bobby Rush play the Lawrenceburg Event Center
The Woods play the Liberty Theater
The old Annie’s has Powerslave: The Iron Maiden Experience… but wait, there’s more, the opener is Whitesnake’d: a Tribute to Whitesnake!
Plenty o’ shows on Saturday, August 16:
RiversEDGE in Hamilton has Jared’s Jam, featuring Neal Francis and Crowe Boy
Eilen Jewell plays a freebie at the Levitt in Dayton, with Basura Basura as the opener (it means “trash trash”… thanks Duolingo!)
The Garcia Project (tribute to the Jerry Garcia Band) is at the Woodward Theater
Lil Wayne is at Riverbend
Screeching Weasel plays the old Annie’s (please note that “Screeching Weasel” is the Chicago punk band, and not the punk who closes Taft Road when he’s in town)
On Sunday, August 17:
The Sadies play Southgate
Brit Floyd makes their 2nd appearance of the summer at the Rose
Skillet plays the Fraze
Please note that Skillet is a Christian rock band, and not what mamaw uses to make her famous cornbread.
On Tuesday, August 19, Styx, Kevin Cronin (of REO Speedwagon) and Don Felder (the real one, not the one who got kicked out of The Eagles Project) play Riverbend, and Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox is at Ludlow Garage.
The SNL nepo-baby video crew Please Don’t Destroy does a live show at Bogart’s on Wednesday, August 20. And Frontier Folk Nebraska and the Williamson Brothers are at Southgate.
On Thursday, August 21:
Noah Smith’s Crooner Circus (a recurring songwriter showcase) rolls into the Southgate House Revival Room (lineup is here)
Rachel Mousie and the Casey Campbell band play Washington Park
Ludlow has Black Circle, a Brazilian band doing 90s grunge songs.
We love it live!
Dinosaur Jr. and Snail Mail both rocked the Bobby Brady. List members Ken “Lobby Boy” Laube (Fridays, 11a-3p on Inhailer Radio), Jarrod M., Craig D., and Mighty Joe Sampson also were in the house.
My son’s band, The Collies, played a fun patio show at Anderson Township Pub. (Dumbass Dad forgot to take any photos…) Great to hang out with list members Whit, Barb, Dan, Anne, Phil, and a bunch of other folks.
Nothing’s more psycho than this
Hundreds of ukuleles doing the Talking Heads in Dublin. Why not? (Hat tip to list member Chuck W. for the link.)
Fashion Alert!
The Jeff Tweedy decree makes sense. (Hat tip… mine doesn’t have a fake flower clipped to it… to list member Michael O. for the link.)
News alert!
In a related story, the animatronic Make Believe Band is now seeking a new lead singer.
Album Cover(s) of the Week(s)
Carl’s right, we need to live a little. Put on a fringed shirt, sit on a fence, and sing a love song to a horse…
Carl Smith’s horseplay is no match for Xavier Cugat mounting a big baguette. Better wrap it in plastic, X, or you’ll get Celiac Disease!
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