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SCHARPLING & WURSTER IN HARP MAGAZINE! October 31, 2005
Hey, My Friends and Foes!
Scharpling and Wurster are proud to announce that the first installment of our recurring column in HARP magazine is ON NEWSSTANDS NOW!!!!
HARP is a rock music magazine available at cool places like Barnes and Noble and Borders. The November 2005 issue has either Liz Phair or My Morning Jacket on the cover - one of those collectable things, I think.
Our column is called "(Not So) Great Moments In Rock", and it documents some of the lesser known events in the history of rock, including TOMMY II, the sequel to the Who's legendary concept album, and a behind the scenes look at THE BATTLE OF THE ALT ROCK STARS. There's also a list of cover songs that Johnny Cash recorded with Rick Rubin that have yet to be released.
And it's funny! Whee!
You can get more information over at www.harpmagazine.com . You can find an truncated online version of the column at their site, but you honestly shouldnt bother with it - the beautiful graphics are only available in magazine, and you need the whole thing to make the jokey jokes work.
And if you like it, PLEASE LET THE PEOPLE AT HARP KNOW!
Thanks!
Tom!
Long Time No Blog! October 25, 2005
To all -
I'm back at the Blogging Game. I know I've been away for awhile, but now I'm back. Why did I stop when I was in such a solid rhythm? When I had something going?
Because I couldn't talk about it. Everything kinda came to a head in September. I knew that if I rode the month out, it would get better by default. Not necessarily even better, actually. I would just be through the shit storm and could hopefully move forward.
2005 has been a weird and fucked up year. I tend to keep this stuff under my hat, but sometimes people can read me like a book, whether it's on the radio or on the phone. They know something's going on. So maybe I should fess up. Here's a taste of some of the shit that's gone down during the Y2K5:
A car accident. An audit. A really close friend committed suicide. Another friend committed suicide a few weeks later. A health scare. Watching one former friend lie and betray another friend to the point of numbing incomprehension. Major problems with an unhinged neighbor. Watching my friends turf out and suffer. Trying to help them. Having to testify in court.
And we've still got three months to go! But you know what? I'm not worried. Plenty of good things have happened this year also. And there are exciting things on the horizon. Hopefully the truly bad stuff is out of the way and I can get back to more every day things - like posting blogs.
Just remember to be strong and take care of your family and friends. And tell the truth and be responsible for your actions. All the underhanded stuff you do comes back to get you in the end. So just do the right thing and make the world a better place. So don't be an A-hole. That's pretty much the best advice I can give anyone. DON'T BE AN A-HOLE.
Tom!
PS - The October 25th edition of The Best Show is NO DUDES ALLOWED! Women callers only! So women - get dialing!
PPS - 'A-Hole' stands for asshole.
THE FATE OF THE SHOW
SEPTEMBER 4, 2005
Hey everyone.
I wanted to write to let you know a few things about where the future of the radio show is at and about my move to Sirius satellite radio.
I've given it some thought, and I think that I'm going to try and give it another shot as far as smoothing things over with Little Steven. Being on satellite radio has been a goal of mine for years now, and to be so close yet so far away is something that has been taunting and tantalizing me all weekend long. I need to go for it. Perhaps compromise is the best way to approach this situation - after all, most of the great art and achievements throughout history have been arrived upon when a bunch of people put their heads together and came up with a collective decision. Perhaps I can try to do the Toilet Talk the way that Little Steven sees fit.
I'm going to swing by his mansion in a little bit to try and smooth things over. I'm thinking about bringing a gift by - something to 'bury the hatchet' as they say. Does anyone have any suggestions? A cake? A money clip? A gift certificate? Please email me with advice.
Another weird wrinkle is that it looks like Sirius radio owns pretty much every existing element of The Best Show On WFMU, including all performances and callers. So if you have been a regular caller, it looks like until this thing blows over and my lawyers get into it, your audio likenesses are owned by Sirius. I'm not trying to say that you can't use your voice to order food at a drive thru. I'm just saying that you might want to talk to a lawyer before calling into Sean Hannity for the forseeable future.
I will attempt to straighten this out as soon as I can. Please be patient.
Sad but determined -
Tom
UPDATE!
SEPTEMBER 2, 2005
Well, I have some weird news about the Best Show's move to Sirius radio. It looks like my dream of Toilet Radio is in jeopardy before it even begins.
I don't know how to say it, but today I got into a blowout fight with Little Steven. He told me that I had to do as he said, claiming that he was 'the guru of modern comedy'. Which I disagree with wholeheartedly. One thing led to another, and he ended up having me escorted out of the Sirius headquarters, saying that I should consider the deal 'on ice' until I 'wisen up and give in'. That's b-shit the way I see it.
As for my return to WFMU, I don't know if it's likely. The Powers That Be aren't happy with my decision to abandon the station and the comments that I made about the station - I will not recount them here, for I feel that such ugliness should be left in the recent past.
We will see what's what.
I will see what the situation is - my broadcasting agent and entertainment lawyer and I are meeting this Labor Day to discuss my options. I'll keep you all posted.
And to the people who bravely entered the Logo Contest, a winner will be announced soon. Please don't let this discourage potential entrants from doing so - the contest is still on, so take advantage!
Talk soon, son!
Tom!
Bloggy McBlog Is Born!
SEPTEMBER 1, 2005
Oh, hi. I didn't see you there. I was just blogging off in the corner. You really shouldn't sneak up on people like that. It's kinda rude. What if I was in the process of changing my britches or something? Just not cool. Seriously.
Well, here's the moment that Richard from Chicago has dedicated his life to - the launching of the Tom Scharpling Blog. Get ready for some real action, as I keep you all abreast of the exciting things going on in my life. You'll thrill to choices like 'Quizno's or Subway today?' Or 'Should I listen to THE WHO SELL OUT or BEE THOUSAND?' Yeah, the Internet has finally caught up with the people it was supposed to serve since it's invention (or 'launching', to stick with the geek-speak) three long years ago.
THE RADIO SITUATION
I'm getting bombarded with email wondering what the story is regarding my switch to satellite radio. As you might've heard, my final show on WFMU aired on August 30th. I'm getting prepared to make the leap to Sirius, with the guidance of my mentor and guru, Little Steven.
Things have gotten a little weird right off the bat, though. I had a big meeting over at the corporate HQ today, and within minutes I realized that things were not what they seemed. Sure, they're paying me what would be considered The Big Bucks by anyone's standards. But that doesn't give them the right to tell me to change my approach to radio to the degree they proposed. Here's an example: for my kickoff show, they wanted me to take the whole toilet talk concept to a place that I'm not comfortable with. I don't want to get too graphic, but basically they wanted me to do the show literally ON A TOILET. Which is not even close to what I signed up for. Not even a little bit close!
Things went south pretty quickly after that - a shouting match ensued, and Little Steven kinda hung me out to dry, siding with the executives over me. I ended up leaving the meeting on less than positive terms, which bummed me out. I'll have a better idea about how things are going after tomorrow's meeting, which I'll keep you updated on.
How about that MC Steinberg, eh? That was pretty impressive. The young man is legitimately talented and is on the way to doing something that will floor the masses. I don't want to give away too many details about The Real MC Steinberg, for fear of blowing the illusion. But suffice it to say that there's a man behind the persona. A man that I'm hoping to learn more about.
Remember, if you have questions, you can always ask them over in the ASK TOM section of the FOT message board. I will do my best to keep you abreast of what's what.
Talk soon, son!
Tom