Date: Fri 03-Jan-1997

Publication: Bee

Author: SHANNO

Illustration: C

Location: A10

Quick Words:

Road-Best-Worst-Danielle-Bush

Full Text:

(Best & Worst Top Ten lists for On The Road, 1/3/97)

On The Road With Shannon Hicks

BY SHANNON HICKS

Never one to mess with tradition, last year I wrote my first-ever Top Ten

Best/Worst of list for the year, and so to avoid breaking tradition, I have

put together a listing of the same, for 1996.

So with no further ado, here is my annual list of the best and worst 1996

brought out, in no particular order (aside from the #1 Best, which was

definitely the highlight of the year for a lot of people!):

Top Ten Bests: (1) Danielle Elizabeth Spinelli, my beautiful little niece, was

born October 7; (2) Connecticut managed to pull in some of the biggest and

best concert tours of the year, including BUSH (Meadows Music Theatre,

February 3, and New Haven Coliseum, April 12), THE RAMONES (Toad's Place,

February 23), SOPHIE B. HAWKINS (Toad's, May 8), STING (Meadows, July 10),

ALANIS MORISSETTE (Meadows, August 20), THE CRANBERRIES (Meadows, September 7)

and SMASHING PUMPKINS (Hartford Civic Center, November 1), among others,

including #3 on this year's Ten Best listing, Pearl Jam. Read on... (3) PEARL

JAM made it to Connecticut, finally!!! (Meadows, October 2) - We can really

thank Jim Koplik for the Meadows Music Theatre now, which, by making it policy

to use Pro-Tix - any ticket agency that isn't TicketMaster - paved the way for

Eddie Vedder, Mike McCready, Jeff Ament, Stone Gossard and Jack Irons to

finally visit our state, supporting an album fans either love or hate

(speaking of which, love the album, but find the whole packaging of No Code

terribly annoying); (4) JFK, JR... Whether or not he is the most handsome man

in the world, when he and his bride-to-be Carolyn Bressette (now Mrs Kennedy,

of course), snuck out to the woods of Cumberland Island, Ga., to be married

(to elope, more or less!) away from the glare of the media's flashbulbs and

the probing of tabloids (who made up their own field day nevertheless), it

proved romance is still indeed alive and well. For this sappy romantic at

heart, that seals it!; (5) TWISTER . As friend Amy put it: "You don't go into

a movie called Twister expecting a big plot." Nosiree, but with this terribly

fun summer movie we saw some of the best action and special effects on the big

screen ever! (6) When Barometer Soup was released in August, it meant two new

JIMMY BUFFETT studio albums in as many years... Dare we hope to see another

new album in `97? (7) While it wasn't the best concert of the year, HOOTIE AND

THE BLOWFISH, who inaugurated our Meadows stage last summer, returned for

another scorchin' show (August 14); (8) The wonderfully talented and engaging

folk singer GREG BROWN made it to Newtown for a performance in March (...and

thanks to some good last minute advice from two pretty smart friends, I was

there too!); (9) Christina & Frank's Halloween party!; and (10) The personal

discovery of what has to be one of, if not THE , best restaurant (talk about

atmosphere!!!) in Hartford, BLACK-EYE SALLY'S BBQ & BLUES CAFE. Go there! Try

the garlic mashed potatoes, the crab cakes, the ribs...

Sticking with the aforementioned tradition, I'd like to think any year ends on

a more positive than negative note, so to continue with a few more than a Top

Ten of Best things (which I did last year, as well), there was also

Valentine's Day 1996; SCARLETT THE CAT, who saved her five kittens from a

burning building; JAZZ UNDER THE STARS, a great outdoor jazz concert series at

McLaughlin Vineyards in Sandy Hook, which will hopefully return for Summer

1997; young Mr ETHAN D'ORIO; and who can forget, in July we celebrated the

40th anniversary of the Interstate Highway System?!!

(PS- We can already look to 1997 with a positive note, since the SMASHING

PUMPKINS are already scheduled for a return trip to our state, less than three

months after their last visit. The Greatest Pumpkin of all will be in New

Haven January 25.

Top Ten Worsts: (1) The overselling of tickets at JIMMY BUFFET's August 24

concert at the Meadows, coupled with terribly overzealous security and a few

equally frightening police officers, made for the worst visit ever to

Margaritaville for many Parrot Heads; (2) Fox took "THE TICK" out of its

Saturday morning cartoon line-up. Spoooon! (3) I missed SPONGE's return to

Connecticut, just last month at Tuxedo Junction; (4) Can we say nepotism? LIV

TYLER sure can! (5) THE RAMONES say this year's was the band's last tour; (6)

The Macarena; (7) SAMMY HAGAR left/was fired from VAN HALEN; (8) The whole

MADONNA baby thing (can we say publicity? overexposed child? abnormal

upbringing? nanny?); (9) The continuation of the "MILK/Where's Your Mustache"

magazine ads; and (10) OASIS, in any way, shape or form. They're fighting

again? Go figure! (Enough already!).

Until next week, I'll be seeing you... on the road.

Questions and comments concerning "On The Road" (or anything music related)

should be sent to Shannon Hicks, c/o Bee Publishing Co., 5 Church Hill Road,

Newtown 06470, or send me your cyber thoughts at editor @thebee.com (put

Attention Shannon on the subject line). Include a phone number for

confirmation, por favor . If you don't have a stamp or a piece of paper or a

writing utensil that works, give me a call! Phone number at the office is

426-3141. Leave a name, though, because anonymous messages left with the

receptionist don't cut it.

UPCOMING CONCERTS

JANUARY 3 - Future Tense at Tuxedo Junction, Danbury;

January 4 - Belly Button at Tuxedo Junction;

January 5 - Connecticut White Bread at Tuxedo Junction, Dirt & Flux opening

(all ages, 8 pm show);

January 8 - Lonesome George & Mollycoddle at Toad's Place, New Haven, Electric

Kebalo & Savage Galloping opening (all ages);

January 9 - Earth Crisis at Tuxedo Junction, Vision of Disorder, Eventide &

Drowning Room opening (all ages, 8 pm show); Magic & Flashpoint at Toad's

Place;

January 10 - Chemical 9 at Toad's Place, Groove Fiction opening (all ages);

Toybox at Tuxedo Junction;

January 11 - Foam at Tuxedo Junction;

January 12 - Voices Remain & Super Suckers & Swing Utters at Tuxedo Junction;

January 16 - Handsome (ex-Helmet & Quicksand members) at Toad's Place;

January 17 - Rusted Root at Meadows Music Theatre, Hartford; Paradise Alley at

Tuxedo Junction; Sebadoh at Toad's Place, John Davis opening, show followed at

10 by Popa Chubby ("Blues Blockbuster");

January 18 - Belly Button at Tuxedo Junction;

January 19 - Rearview & Smoking Section at Toad's Place, Tresoul & Michael

Cleary Band opening;

January 23 - The Machine at Tuxedo Junction (8 pm show); Storm Force & Joe at

Toad's Place, DMS & Soundscape opening;

January 24 - The Touch at Tuxedo Junction; Shakedown at Toad's Place (all

ages);

January 25 - Smashing Pumpkins at New Haven Coliseum, Fountains of Wayne

opening; Wonderama at Tuxedo Junction;

January 30 - Max Creek at Toad's Place (all ages);

January 31 - Fiction at Tuxedo Junction.

FEBRUARY 1 - The Zoo at Tuxedo Junction, Danbury;

February 4 - Gloria Estefan at the Meadows Music Theatre, Hartford (resched

from Sept 11; reserved tickets honored, lawn tickets refunded or upgraded);

February 16 - JGB Band at Toad's Place, New Haven (w/ Jerry Garcia Band

members), Melvin Seals & Jacklyn La Branch opening (all ages);

February 20 - They Might Be Giants at Toad's Place (all ages).