Seems all of my posts lately have been Beatle oriented, but, hey when there is news…

This past spring, Paul McCartney signed a deal with an independent label to reissue his solo and Wings catalog.

Instead of chronological order, the releases begin with “Band On The Run”

The 1973 album, re released on November 2nd, gets the deluxe treatment.

I will feature some of the tracks on our Beatles hour Sunday at noon.

Turkey and trimmings or NFL week 12

What did we learn Thursday?  The Cowboys still haven’t learned to win when it counts, the Lions aren’t “there” yet, and the Bengals are still a huge disappointment.  Some interesting games on Sunday.  Enough to go with the leftover sausage stuffing.  Mmm-mmm-yummy!

Browns (-10) over Panthers.  Yes, Carolina’s that bad.  To make matters worse the Panthers don’t score on anything a horse can eat.  It doesn’t look good for the big cats.  Browns

Steelers (-6) over Bills.  The Bills looked good last week – on the road.  They’ve been a road cover machine this year.  Unfortunately the faithful in the city of no illusions the Bills are terrible at making the spread at home, covering only 4 of the last 18.  Of course the way this year is going it could be a case of “bad news Pittsburgh, the Prognosticator picked the Steelers…”  But I don’t think so.  Steelers here.

49ers (pick) over Cardinals.  The road team has covered 8 of the last 9.  That’s the sort of thing on banks on.   49ers

Colts (-3) over Chargers.  The Chargers are horrible on the road, while the Colts are home world beaters.  And the Colts are a cover machine, notching 11 of their last 15 at home.   Horseshoes all around

Eagles(-3) over Bears.  The Eagles are 8-3 ATS their last 11 in week 12, while the Bears are the opposite, going 3-7ATS their last 10 at home.  Beware of the SI curse as Michael Vick is on the cover(line your dog crate with it…) Eagles

At least this week the ice box is filled with pleanty of snacks and leftovers.

Enjoy!

The Prognosticator

A few things for you if you are a John Lennon fan.

The Everhart Museum has an interesting exhibit coming up. Looks like a must for Beatles fans and a great way to support the museum.

Also, WVIA is showing “Lennon Naked” Sunday night (11/21). It’s part of the “Masterpiece Theater” family of programs called “Masterpiece Contemporary”.

Looks interesting, but, I’m not sure it will tell us anything about the enigmatic Beatle that we don’t already know. Still, the productions are usually very well done and worth a look.

1.  Gone With the Wind

2.  West Side Story

3.  Donnie Darko

4.  The Princess Bride

5. Young Frankenstein

6.  Rocky Horror

7.  Monty Python and the Holy Grail

After #1 and #2, the order is subject to change depending on the mood I’m in.  Right now I’m in a very Donnie Darko mood.

In fact the order of #1 and #2 may be because I saw both of those movies at a very young age.  All the others were kind of during my so-called adulthood.

Two minute drill or NFL Week 11

Like so many people your Prognosticator is scrambling like Fran Tarkenton to get things ready for the Thanksgiving Holiday.  This weekend to me seems busier than anytime during the Christmas Rush.  So we’ll get right down to business and pick games.  As always any losses incured by relying on the following information is not the responsibility of me, The Mountain, Entercom Communications, Entercom Northeast, it’s properties or its subsidiaries.

Carolina (+11) over Baltimore.  I know, Carolina is plain bad, and the Ravens will make the playoffs.  But it’s one of the Prognosticator’s creeds: Double Digit Dogs at home in November and December cover a whopping 88% of the time.  Go Big Cats!

49ers(-3) over Buccaneers.  I am still not sold on the Bucs.  I am sold on Troy Smith. He beat Joe Flacco for the starting job In Baltimore before suffering an emergency appendectomy that derailed his career.  Flacco went on to guide the Ravens, Smith took his Heisman to San Francisco.  The Niners may get the better art of the deal.I am sold on the fact the Tampa clan are 7=19 ATS on grass, while the 49ers are a cover machine against teams with winning records, 10-3-2 ATS their last 15.  Works for me.   There’s gold in them California hills.  Take the Niners

Denver (+10) over Chargers.  How does a 4-5 team get to be 10 point favorites?  If it wern;t for the Cowboys those Bolts would be the poster children for underperforming.  Take the Broncos

Oakland (+10) Over Steelers.  Call it a tale of two cities….in week 11.  Oakland is 8-2 ATS their last 10 in week 11 while the Steelers are 1-9-2 ATS their last 12 in the same week.  That 10 point thing is pretty big, too, as in too much lumber to lay.  Just Cover Baby! Take the Raiders.

Eagles (-3) over Giants.  The Giants that won the Superbowl a few years ago did it with two dominating lines.  Now those lines have injuries.  They looked really human against the Cowboys after I was about to give the Giants the nod of beast team in conference.  Not any more.  Michael Vick has 10 minutes every game where it just looks stupid-easy.  Besides, the Eagles are 11-4-1 ATS at home, while the Giants are  3-11 ATS their last 14 on the road, and 2-7 ATS their last 9 on grass.  Fly Eagles Fly.

There you go.  Find time to relax this weekend.

Your Prognosticator

Summer Fly by CherylWheeler (as sung by Maura O’Connell)

Mad World (the Gary Jules version from Donnie Darko)

By Now by Richard Shindell

Calling You by Jevetta Steele

One Meatball by Ry Cooder

Sign Your Name by Terence Trent D’Arby

Kashmir by Led Zeppelin

Blender Blues by Bonnie Raitt

Metaphors by Seal

Mellow Down Easy by Little Walter (actually, any Willie Dixon song)

The topic has been debated since the 60’s, which is better the Beatles or Stones. Consider these facts before you decide:

The Beatles have had more number one albums on the British charts, and held down the top spot longer, than any other musical act in the country’s musical history. Here is the US from 1962 to 1964 they were the only British band to have their songs reach number one of the charts, a streak broken by The Animals. In April 1963 they had 12 singles in the top 100. Add to that seven Grammy awards and the fact their music continues to air some four decades and let’s not forget that Rock Band thing.

The Rolling Stones or at least Keith and Mick have been together for nearly 50 years. During that span they have released over 90 singles, nearly 25 albums, 10 of which Billboard has honored in their list of 500 Greatest Rock Albums Ever list. In the 70’s they had a string of eight consecutive studio albums reaching number one in the United States. The band started touring in 1963 and continued working until 2007.

So what say you, who is the better of these two giants of the music world?

Its finally happened…

You can now purchase the music of The Beatles on Itunes.

Years ago, when I first began using an mp3 player, I used a very small simple player. I could drag and drop files onto it from my computer, and easy as that, I was good to go.

Itunes was to confining. I didn’t want anything to do with it. That’s what I told myself.

Then I took the plunge. An Ipod Classic. 80 gigabytes of my most obscure music, old radio shows from the “golden age of radio” and even movies.

I was hooked. Couldn’t go anywhere without it. I even carried it with me inside the Mountain cabin!

And all of a sudden Itunes was the greatest thing since sliced bread! So easy to organize!

I came to the game late, but, I’m trying to keep up with the technology as best I can. Last month I picked up a new Ipod touch (a measly 32 gigs). Apps, email, music movies.

Amazing. Say what you will – Apple knows how to push our buttons and adding the most successful band to your stable will sell more Ipods and bring more customers to the Itunes store.

We Need Full Time Refs! NOW! Or NFL Week 10

Your dumbfounded prognosticator was last Sunday’s Eagles –Colts game and can safely say in 40 years of watching professional football I have never seen anything like that.  One bad call after another.  My favorite was a blown facemask on a vulnerable Shady McCoy where the defender had left his feet but was hanging on to Shady’s cage.  If I didn’t know better I would have thought Don King was promoting the game.  Oddly enough I don’t really blame the refs for blowing the Austin Collie hit.  Collie caught the bal and took two steps when he was knocked cold.  The play was ruled an incomplete pass and personal foul as Collie was ruled a defenseless receiver.  Actually he established possession and was a ball carrier.  A legal hit produced a fumble, but the refs didn’t call it that way.  Andy Reid was right, the refs and players and coaches are all learning on the fly.  It was the rest of the mindless calls that got me going.

The league needs to do three things: 1) Shrink the rule book.  There are too many rules as replay has resulted in doubt and hairsplitting be the coin of the realm.  2) Kill the gimmicks.  Does Fox really need an ex VP of officiating to tell us what the refs should but won’t do?  CBS’s close up cam is pretty neat, but if the ca, is better than what the ref can see with the naked eye while on the run, how can a man call a good game? 3) Hire the refs full time.  It’s like the greatest game in America is run by permanent temps.  You wouldn’t run a factory like that in the long term, why run a league that way?

Last week we went 2-3 which drops our season mark to 22-21-2 against the spread.  Let’s take a look at this week’s servings and see what looks good on our game time buffet.  Remember any losses from relying on the following information is not the responsibility of myself, the Mountain, Entercom Communications, Entercom Northeast, it’s properties or it’s subsidiaries.  Let’s check out some games:

Cardinals (-3) over Seahawks.  Not a lot to get excited about until you read between the lines.  Those Seahawks play like the Sea Hag from Poppeye on the road.  At 1-9 ATS on grass and and an over all record of 17-35-1 ATS their last 53 on the road, that is ugly.  Not even Alice the Goon would take them.  Go Cardinals!

Bills (-3) over Lions.  Stafford’s hurt again and the Bills can’t lose ‘em all, can they?  It’s a little more than just a hunch, November’s lake effect snow provides the backdrop for a place where Northeast dome teams go to die.  Bills here.

Giants (-14) over Cowboys.  Congratulations to the Cowboys.  Not only did they get their coach fired early, they ran him out after 8 games.  I thought JJ would wait until week 15 to put Wade Phillips out of his misery.  The best line I’ve heard yet was from Frank Caliendo: “The Cowboys roster is like Hugh Hefner’s bedroom; a lot of talent going to waste.”  Too Bad T.O. isn’t in town any longer.  He might even give an interview wearing gravity boots while doing crunches.  Giants in a walk.

Steelers (-4 ½) over Patriots.  This is the kind of game the Steelers always win, and the Patriots used to win.  Steelers

Eagles (-3) over Redskins.  The Redskins can’t block, can’t run and can’t tackle.  Donnie Mac wishes he was banished to Oakland or Cleveland.  The redskins are 5-12-1 ATS their last 18 at home, while the road team is 6-1-1 ATS in the series.  Plus historically the team that loses the first game wins the second.  Michael Vick has a big game.  Fly Eagles Fly.

Enjoy the ganes

The Prognosticator

We went 2-3 last week.  Obviously not the outcome we had hoped for, but it only drops our record to 20-18-2 against the spread.  We’re not retiring early, but we have some room to move at the halfway point.  How about that Randy Moss?  Now he’s a Titan.  Brad Childress can not be sitting comfortably as his team is starting to implode a bit.  Renting Moss for a week and for a 3^rd round pick does not endear yourself to the team owner.  In Washington Donovan McNabb was benched for Rex Grossman.  Even Mike Shanahan makes dumb moves.  Not that McNabb was playing well.  “5” Deserved to get benched, just not for Rex Grossman.  Childress seems to be on the coaching hot seat.  Mike Singletary isn’t doing so well in San Francisco.  They play a fundamentally poor game out there, which is very un-Singletary. 

Ah the joys of November.  Now the games start to get pretty good.  Most people don’t realize that at the end of the year there are so many player and coaching changes that teams literally rip up last year and start fresh.  It takes about 8 weeks for a team to gel.  We’ll see who really has game, and who was just a flash in the pan.  Let’s take a look at this week’s slate. 

Remember any loses incurred by relying on the following information is not the responsibility of myself, The Mountain, Entercom Communications, Entercom Northeast, it properties or its subsidiaries.  Now let’s see what’s up….

Eagles (-3) over the Colts.  Traditionally a game against the Colts is where dreams of Eagle greatness go to die.  Payton Manning is really this season’s MVP at the half way mark.  Ol’ Payton’s doing it all by himself.  His line’s a mess, the running game is stumbling, but ol’ Payton has 15 touchdowns to 2 interceptions throwing to guys no one has ever heard of.  On the Eagle front Michael Vick has a national spotlight and an opportunity to prove the three games of brilliance before he got hurt was the real “get me a big contract” deal.  Andy Reid’s squad is 11-0 the week after the bye, and 9-2 ATS in those games.  The line opened with the Eagles as a 1 pint fav and moved to 3 points as soon as Vick was announced as the starter.  Look for a high scorer.  Eagles in a close one.

Packers (-8) against Cowboys.  Who ever thought you spelled Cow-quit-boy in Dal-quit-las.  Looked like there was plenty of quit last week.  A most un-Cowboy way.  They’ve had bad teams who’s fight was unfortunately bigger than their talent.  These guys look like “no worries, we’re getting paid.”  The Pack may not e the monsters many thought they would be, but they cover, and in the series the home team has covered 8 of the last 9 meetings.  Dum-da-da-dum-dum-dum.  Go! Pack! Go!

Jets (-4) over Lions.  Before we go crazy about the Lions winning in Dc last week, let us recall the movie Pulp Fiction.  Remember the words of Mr. Wolf about thinking the job is finished too early?  Yeah, let’s let the Lions prove the can win.  Meantime the Jets have covered 8 of their last 9 on the road.  That;s th sort of proof I mean.  Jets

Saints (-6 ½) over Panthers.  Those black cats might actually be the worst team in the league this year if it weren’t for the poor effort the Cowboys have showed of late.  Nothing like watching two teams trying to get their coaches fired early to make you want to rake leaves on a November Sunday.  Saints have covered 8 of their last 12 on grass.  Works for me.  Get Tom Benson a cheesy parasol and let the zaniness begin.  Saints in this one.

Chiefs (+1) against Raiders.  These games were once classic blood baths.  But here’s the stat of the week: The road team has covered 19 of the last 26 in the series.  I’ll take the Chiefs.

That’s how I see it.  Enjoy the games!

The prognosticator.