Luke who’s Coming to Dinner

An Interview with
Luke Bailey and his Ukulele
By Tony Macaluso

There are only a few names that come to mind when you think of the ukulele. More than likely you started singing ‘Tip-Toe through the Tulips.’ While Tiny Tim may have played the ukulele, you can’t say he made it cool, or popularized the instrument. There’s a reason for that. One man and one man only, has single-handedly brought the baritone ukulele out from obscurity and into the spotlight. That man is none other than Luke Bailey. There are no actual facts to support that claim, but it sounds good and I want you to read the rest of this article.

Luke Bailey is a talented performer, song-writer, extraordinarily funny, and the host of his own weekly radio program ‘The Luke Bailey Show’ on WPRK FM, Rollins College Radio. Tony Macaluso is a founding member of Luke’s band (The Bondsmen) who secretly recorded a recent conversation. Here are some excerpts:

Tony Macaluso: Do you hate that Tiny Tim comes up every time you tell someone you’re a ukulele player?
Luke Bailey: Only if I’m wearing sweat pants.

TM: I read somewhere recently that you like to meditate?
LB: That was a spelling error.

TM: Tell us about ‘The Luke Bailey Show.’
LB: I’m proud to say that The Luke Bailey Show is the #1 rated program of its kind, on Tuesday mornings, between 6:00 and 8:00 a.m. Thanks to all you out there tuning in, keep it up and spread the word.

TM: What station is that?
LB: The best radio station in Orlando, 91.5 FM, WPRK. We’re on every Tuesday morning from 6:00-8:00 a.m. (EST).

TM: Can I listen on-line?
LB: www.wprkdj.org

TM: Who’s on the air with you?
LB: We’ve got Mr. Radio and Dr. Gory…and of course, you (Tony) have an open invitation.
TM: Shucks!

TM: Any cool guests?
LB: Paris Hilton called last week. We’ve had Dr. Jane Goodall; Mayor Buddy Dyer…Syd Zed is a regular…El-Vez (the Mexican Elvis) recorded a promo for us…Dr Gory erased it though. You never know who’s gonna stop by, or call.

TM: Do you play any music?
LB: WPRK is community radio. So we play music between segments…instead of going to commercial. From me, you’ll get things like bad Elvis songs, Mrs. Miller, William Shatner, Cheech and Chong….Dr. Gory will squeeze in some Sci-Fi-Lounge-Spy-Surf-music by anyone from The Ventures to Leonard Nimoy. Mr. Radio is a bit of a metal head…and he might play AC/DC, or Hayseed Dixie, or an Iron Maiden song…And of course we play local (central-Florida-based) artists like Syd Zed, Terri Binion, and Jim O’Rourke. So send me your cds…and I’ll play em on the air.

TM: What do you talk about?
LB: Anything! Everything! Could be what we did over the weekend…What we shouldn’t have done over the weekend…Something from the news, births, deaths…We might spend the whole show laughing and talking about something one of us said, or did at 6:01 am. When you (Tony) call, it’s usually what’s happening in your bathroom…and we always spend the last 15-minutes poking fun at the next DJ, whoever she or he may be. The show is so-much fun to do…I’d probably do it for free.

Check out Luke’s official web-site at lukebailey.com . And check out the Luke Bailey Show web-site. Tony Macaluso can be reached at tony@beefstewdios.com.

Vince Welnick dead at 55

Grateful Dead keyboard player Vince Welnick has died at the age of 55, a statement on his website announced.
Welnick took over as the Dead's keyboard player in 1990 after then keyboard player, Brent Mydland, died as a result of a drug overdose.
"Vince passed from this earth on June 2, 2006... after a decade of battling tragedy while creating beauty and light around him," the website said.
The band formed in the 1960s and were popular for their legendary epic live shows. The Grateful Dead retired from performing after founder Jerry Garcia died in 1995.
No cause of death was given on Welnick's website.
From various news reports.

Photo: ©2006, Vince Welnick

Triple Crown Success

Vickie Stringer, CEO of Triple Crown Publications, took the fictionalized story of her life, wrote a book, Let That Be The Reason, and its follow-up, Imagine This, which both spent more than a year on the Essence paperback bestseller list and became the first name in "hip-hop lit."

From: Inc. Magazine, May 2006 | Page: 106 By: Patrick J. Sauer

(Read more)

Zealous are we

Hello world!


The name of this site has great meaning for me. The word "zelo" is the Greek derivative for the word zeal. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as "eagerness and ardent interest in pursuit of something." The something I'm pursuing is an expose of individuals or entities who are "zealous" about their interests. Interests in art, music, theater, books, etc. I have had the pleasure of being personally involved in more than a few "scenes" in my time. The thread through each one was a desire for self-expression and having that expression be embraced by like-minded individuals. I am an artist and a musician. I've made my living through illustration and design. My passion, however, has always been and will always be music. Finding kindred spirits to share a creative vision has always been a tremendous task. The quest for earning a living has sucked the limitless optimism right out of many. The goal for this site is to share the passionate interests of those who've yet to be "discovered" or to push those who are out there doing the work and are seeing their vision through to fruition. So it's here, dear reader, that I invite you to introduce yourself and your creative passion for all to see, and hopefully a new and exciting community of creative individuals can be born. Check back often. You may very well be surprised at whom you'll meet here. And with any luck, you'll be inspired to connect and share the thing that you are zealous about.