Email Author Bob Ruggiero

2009 Stories by Bob Ruggiero

• Get Lit: Paul McCartney: A Life by Peter Ames Carlin

  published Dec 30, 2009

  Rocks Off understands that this effort is meant for a more general audience and not a Beatles obsessive like himself who owns a bookcase stocked with 93 Fab-related tomes (we counted). And on that lev... More >>

• Gabriel Iglesias

  published December 31, 2009

  Though he doesn't attract as much romantic attention from women as Enrique Iglesias (or, for that matter, Julio), the plus-size Gabriel... More >>

• Get Lit: Queen - The Ultimate Illustrated History of the Crown Kings of Rock by Phil Sutcliffe

  published Dec 23, 2009

  Coffee-table books on rock bands usually fall into one of two categories; either they're chock-full of great visuals with very little textual information, or the book looks like the U.S. tax code with... More >>

• Get Lit: Thelonious Monk: The Life and Times of an American Original by Robin D. G. Kelley

  published Dec 22, 2009

  Though his stature as an icon of jazz is secure today, for much of his actual performing life, pianist/composer Thelonious Monk was not always so well-received by jazz critics or general fans. His per... More >>

• Eyeballin': Little Feat and Meat Loaf Via Rockin' German TV Show Rockpalast

  published Dec 21, 2009

  We can blame the Germans for a lot of things. World War I...World War II..."99 Luftballoons." But classic rock fans can at least thank them for Rockpalast. Running on German TV and broadcast throughou... More >>

• Eyeballin': The Zombies, Odessey and Oracle: The 40th Anniversary Concert

  published Dec 18, 2009

  Here's a Classic Rock Math Query: Which British Invasion band, if you took the length of their career and amount of recorded output and juxtaposed it against the overall quality of their material, wou... More >>

• Rashômon

  published December 10, 2009

  If you've ever heard a crime journalist refer to "The Rashômon Effect" but thought it had something to do with the aftereffects of bad... More >>

• Volver

  published December 10, 2009

  If you've forgotten your Spanish verbs since high school, the word "volver" means "to return." In the 2006 Spanish film Volver,... More >>

• Henry Cho

  published December 10, 2009

  You may know comedian Henry Cho from his frequent guest spots on The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson or his comedy DVD What's... More >>

• Smaller Than Life: The Lure and Lore of Amazonian Shrunken Heads

  published December 10, 2009

  Shrunken heads of the Amazon might sound like the title of a '50s B-movie set in the jungle, but the bizarre artifacts do indeed have a basis in... More >>

• Garrison Keillor

  published December 3, 2009

  The holiday season is, of course, prime time for nostalgia for bygone days and homespun homilies. And if anyone has cornered the market on those... More >>

• Get Lit: Miss O'Dell: My Hard Days and Long Nights with The Beatles, The Stones, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, and the Women They Loved by Chris O'Dell with Katherine Ketcham

  published Dec 01, 2009

  In one of the most rollicking and enjoyable classic rock memoirs of recent years, Chris O'Dell offers scores of interesting first-hand experiences with a who's who of icons, as well as her own keen ob... More >>

• Eyeballin': Deep Purple: History, Hits and Highlights 1968-76

  published Nov 30, 2009

  [Ed. Note: Throughout the holiday season, Rocks Off will be bringing you our picks for recent DVDs, CDs and other musical wares that might be just the ticket to help fill out that pesky shopping list.... More >>

• Hiding on the Backstreets, Part 3: Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band's Last (and Finalr) Four Houston Shows

  published Nov 27, 2009

  [Ed. Note: This is the final installment of our series reminiscing on Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band's long history in Houston. See here for the '70s, and here for the '80s and '90s.] April... More >>

• Adam Richman

  published November 26, 2009

  This event has been cancelled. Please visit www.houseofblues.com for information about ticket refunds. Though he probably didn't... More >>

• 17th Annual Turkey Trot

  published November 26, 2009

  Thousands of hardy Houstonians will start Thanksgiving Day at the 17th Annual Turkey Trot. Races include 5K and 10K walks and runs for... More >>

• Uptown Holiday Lighting

  published November 26, 2009

  Department stores setting up wreaths and nutcrackers before freakin' Halloween aside, Houston has no official start to the Christmas season, but... More >>

• The Ice at Discovery Green

  published November 26, 2009

  A Discovery Green spokesperson confirmed that this event will proceed as planed. So what if Houston isn't exactly prone to having... More >>

• Hiding on the Backstreets: Remembering Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band In Houston

  published Nov 23, 2009

  This past weekend's show in Buffalo, N.Y., was the last date on a nearly two-year (and two-album-supporting) trek by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, which found them criss-crossing the countr... More >>

• "Your Bright Future: 12 Contemporary Artists from Korea"

  published November 19, 2009

  Get a look at the work of creative giants Kimsooja, Bach Yiso and Do Ho Suh in the multimedia exhibit "Your Bright Future: 12 Contemporary... More >>

• Via Colori¨ Houston 2009

  published November 19, 2009

  The art will hit the asphalt in Sam Houston Park when more than 200 artists create colossal masterworks on the ground for Via Colori¨... More >>

• Orhan Pamuk

  published November 12, 2009

  It's not every day that Houston hosts a Nobel Prize winner, but the Bayou City will get a chance to see one in the flesh when Turkish novelist... More >>

• Get Lit: Man of Constant Sorrow: My Life and Times by Dr. Ralph Stanley With Eddie Dean

  published Nov 09, 2009

  While growing up in rural Virginia in the shadow of his beloved Clinch Mountains, a young Ralph Stanley was given his choice of presents to celebrate his 11th birthday: a pig or a banjo. Thankfully fo... More >>

• Get Lit: Neil Diamond is Forever: The Illustrated History of the Man and His Music by Jon Bream

  published Nov 02, 2009

  Neil Diamond's hipster cachet has increased greatly in the past few years: The Rick Rubin albums, Saving Silverman, ultimate Neil tribute band Super Diamond and Will Ferrell's deadly funny SNL impress... More >>

• Get Lit: Three More for That Already Groaning Springsteen Bookshelf

  published Oct 29, 2009

  Just as Bruce Springsteen winds down a frenzied period of back-to-back album and tour marathon - despite the death of Springsteen's cousin/assistant tour manager earlier this week in Kansas City, he ... More >>