Local musician Dave Zollo (left), whose band K & I saw often before we were dating married, is playing the Tonight Show Wednesday night. He’s a solid pianist: bluesy, playful rhythms evoke warm colors and the simple, timeless flavors of nutmeg and chamomile. You can listen to a few of his songs online—he’ll probably sound similarly on TV, even playing in someone else’s band. Of course, the Press-Citizen’s story about the gig is typical P-C fare: it gets the facts of the matter straight, but it neglects to ask the right questions. Whether he’ll wear a Western shirt is hardly interesting—he wears shirts to all his gigs, after all. No, the right question, the one left unasked: Will DZ wear shoes? Well, will he? Watch to find out!
I struggled with this one—I mean, as a rule I try not to endorse boring comedians, not even implicitly. The Tonight Show will be infinitely better when Mr. Rosie O’Donnell is finally deposed by Conan O’Brien.
by greg—Aug 9, 06:43 AM
Mr. Rosie O’Donnell? Is that Jay Leno? If so I heartily agree. Though I started to like O’Brien much less almost immediately after I graduated from college, ANYONE is better than Leno. He’s absolutely awful.
by JH—Aug 9, 06:51 AM
Yeah, that’s who I meant. K’s not a big fan of Conan either, but I find his quirkiness endearing and hella funny. Plus, he managed to get Neil Young to play as a musical guest for a week straight. Mr. O’Donnel would never do anything as cool as that.
by greg—Aug 9, 06:56 AM
The quality of Mr. O’Donnel’s humor is such that the new casino opening down the road in Riverside (future birthplace of James T. Kirk) has invited him to headline...
by greg—Aug 9, 07:01 AM
Conan’s as worthy a successor to Carson’s throne as anyone. Upon further reflection, my sudden post-collegiate disenchantment with him may have to do with my sudden post-collegiate abstention from cannabis. His humor does have a very stoner sensibility to it. I wonder if he’s going to tone that down when he starts the tonight show.
by JH—Aug 9, 07:04 AM
Well, that’s his act all the way: Vegas, populist, and predictable.
by JH—Aug 9, 07:06 AM
(Aside: Good luck to K, who has a job interview today! No prognostications about chances—it’s an “initial” int, and for that reason and because she is erudite and confident, she will do well.)
by greg—Aug 9, 07:09 AM
woohoo good luck to k.
i did not watch… however, i did go to be around three forty, after watching evan all day… i’m happy to say, i think my article is coming together, albeit with a minimum of critical jargon.
by Jeremy—Aug 9, 07:12 AM
Oh, how I wish I had television reception! How I miss live music! Perhaps it will be possible to watch online. . . .
by Laura—Aug 9, 07:25 AM
5: Conan’s better stoned? I get that, actually. And I think K said the same thing to me once.
8: You still have a chance to watch, J, since DZ’s on tonight’s Tonight Show.
9: Start your own band, L. The Meeteetse Roots Rock Revival rolls through Wyoming. Refreshments provided by the Chocalatier.
by greg—Aug 9, 07:40 AM
why is leno mr. rosie o’donnel?
i’ve always despised that jay and his humorless humor. how did he get a TV show in the first place? my parents are devoted to letterman these days; i used to like him more than i do now…i guess i don’t like conan’s monologues, but the bits on his show are funnier than the other shows, definitely…but when we have cable (or if we ever have it again), The Daily Show is the obvious choice.
by kathy—Aug 9, 08:58 AM
Yep, weed and Conan go together as naturally as coffee and cigarettes. You gotta keep in mind who his main demographic is. That’s why I’m wondering what changes he’ll implement when he moves to the big time. How much of it is part of his innate sense of humor, and how much is cynical targeting of the audience?
by JH—Aug 9, 09:35 AM
BTW, now that Greg’s gainfully employed I assumed you guys would get your cable hooked up again. Are you falling in love with your ascetic lifestyle?
by JH—Aug 9, 09:37 AM
Gainful employment hasn’t as yet allowed us to redefine either luxury or necessity.
by greg—Aug 9, 09:46 AM
May the sonorous wit of John Stewart fill your living room again one day.
by JH—Aug 9, 09:49 AM
That blessing means much. Thank you.
by greg—Aug 9, 09:51 AM
Anyway, Leno = Mr. Rosie for these reasons and because both are unfunny and uninteresting in the same ways.
Although, if he were gay he’d have more going for him…
by greg—Aug 9, 10:46 AM
That was a wasted two hours. Two boring interviews: 1) with a bimbo Disney Channel actress-for-life who used to work at the mall (“My parents wanted to teach me the value of a dollar!”), but only at the stores that had clothes she liked because she wanted the discount; 2) with a bimbo X-Games motorcycle rider. Then the music played, and it was a boring song about a job and a girlfriend and a truck, with two more guitars than necessary, and no organ solo—our fuzzy TV showed DZ (maybe, if it was him, we couldn’t tell) twice, off to the side, and it didn’t even sound like the keyboards were plugged in. I could have been sleeping, dammit.
by greg—Aug 9, 10:55 PM
i guess it was one wasted hour that felt like two. we could have turned the channel if we knew where to find the remote. :)
by kathy—Aug 10, 07:09 AM