Spike, Harry and Enos at The Chase

January is a good month to search for old stuff and get rid of it, maybe even sell on eBay. Which is what I had planned for a menu I found in my files but now I think I'll keep it.

The menu is autographed by 3 famous people, one on the front, two on the back..famous to many anyway. I think the year is early 1951, although there is no date on it.



This is the Chase Club, at the Chase Hotel in mid-town St. Louis, still a highly regarded hotel just across from Forest Park. My parents used to go to the Club almost every Sunday night. This particular night, they took me to see Spike Jones and the City Slickers. I was a big fan of Spike - still am, really - and loved seeing him in his plaid jacket, along with Doodles Weaver, George Rock, and the rest of the crazy gang. Spike's autograph is on front of the menu.

Here's an idea what was offered on the menu and the prices.
- Lobster cocktail $1.90
- Hot Deviled Chicken Livers Rolled in Bacon $.95
- Mock Turtle Soup .50
- Lobster ala Newburg  2.75
- Broiled Lamb Chops  2.30
- Choice Tenderloin Steak w/French Fried Onions   4.50
- Spike Jones Special: Spaghetti w/Meat Balls   2.85
and for dessert, Chocolate Cream Pie   .35
Almost forgot: you could get a cup of Sanka for 30 cents.

As I was considering whether to put this up for grabs on eBay, I looked at the back of the menu. There are two autographs there, lightly written in pen or pencil, I'm not sure which. One is Harry Caray. The other is Enos Slaughter. So I know it was a Sunday night, the Cardinals weren't playing, and there must have been other players at the Club that night. And there must have been a couple of babes at the table with Harry and Country Slaughter, but that's just a guess. 

Many years later, I would work with Harry in advertising. He had moved to Chicago and was the voice of the Cubs. We needed a Budweiser campaign for Chicago, so Harry became our "Cub Fan/Bud Man." My son Gregg was there for the shoot. Harry sold a lot of beer for us. 














But that was to come later. This night at the Club, he was the voice of the Red Birds, Enos was 5 years past his famous dash from first to home on a hit by Harry Walker in a World Series game against the Boston Red Sox, and Spike and his City Slickers had a hit with "Cocktails for Two." 


If it hadn't been for this menu, I probably would've forgotten about that magical evening with mom and dad, meeting Spike, Harry and Enos, and enjoying a big slice of Chocolate Cream Pie.

"Stranger in a Stranger Land"

That’s the title of a famous Robert Heinlein science-fiction book. It’s also the way I feel as I get ready to watch the Grammy’s tonight. I won’t actually watch it all, start to finish. I’m going to DVR it. That’ll save me a lot of time and irritation. But I would like to know something about the State of Music these days.

When I was Creative Director on Budweiser, we did a lot of radio spots using recognized artists. Trouble was, I didn’t recognize half of them. And this was back in the mid-80’s. For instance, in 1988 we did Bud spots with The Nylons, Squeeze, Beat Farmers, Dave Edmunds, Ricky Van Shelton, Outloud, Jamaica Boys, Wilson Pickett. And a few others. I knew Dave and Wilson. Fortunately I had young guys in my group who knew what was going on. 

I looked at the list of nominees for this year’s Grammy’s. “Who are these people?” I wondered. Here’s an example. Fun. is one of them. No, that period isn’t a typo. It’s “Fun” with a “.” at the end. Must mean something, I’m sure. Then there’s Mumford and Sons. Very big, I know. But I have no idea what they sound like. Or how many sons there are. Or who or what Mumford is. To me it sounds like a spin-off of an old Red Foxx TV show. 

Then there are the nominees for “Best New Artist.” They are The Alabama Shakes, Fun., Hunter Hayes, The Lumineers, and Frank Ocean. I never heard any of them sing or play or shake or whatever they do. There are, however, some names I’ll know. Taylor Swift, Bruce Springstseen, Adele, Rihanna, Beyonce. Which makes me wonder: What is it with these one-named people? I don’t know when that all began. Maybe with Prince? Or maybe with Liberace. Now there was a musician for you, white piano and all. 

Other single-name nominees are Miguel, Usher, Estelle, Tamia, and Nas. I assume these are people, not groups, but who knows? I will, after tonight. I know the name Megadeth but the concept creeps me out. I also know Tom Waits and used to like him, don’t know what he’s doing now. I’m sure his voice hasn’t smoothed out.

Tell you the truth, the only category I’m comfortable with is Jazz. Those are real people, first and last names. Chick Corea, Gary Burton, Ahmad Jamal (yes, he’s still alive and recording, obviously), Pat Metheny, Bob Mintzer, Arturo Sandoval, Lluciana Souza, Bobby Sanabria (good latin big band jazz), Brad Mehldau. We’re well past the time of Monk, Prez, Bird, Miles, Duke. But they all had two names. These were nicknames.

I like what Lou Reed said about jazz. “If it has more than three chords, it’s jazz.” Also like Miles’ comment: “Do not fear mistakes. There are none.”

I’m sure jazz won’t get much air time tonight. The name of the game is ratings. Still, I’ll be watching and listening, remote in hand, thumb on the “fast forward” button, trying to soak up as much of today’s musical culture as possible, before moving on to “Downton Abbey” and “Justified.” 

Here’s a link to the Grammy nominations. Be careful, though. You might just end up a “Stranger in a Strange Land.”  But that’s cool. 2013 Grammy Nominations

A Girl Named Bud

I saw a familiar name on the front page of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch yesterday. A name that consumed a big part of my life for six years. I knew at the time this affair would end with me crying in my beer, thinking of all I had put into the relationship. But I knew at the time my love would be unrequited.

That name was Budweiser. The headline said, "Rebuilding Bud bandwagon." Actually the headline had put a positive spin on a rather devastating situation. A telling figure: 4 out of 10 people in their mid-20's have never even tried a Bud. Sorry to say, Budweiser is no longer the King of Beers. Barely a Prince. It fell from its throne some time ago. Actually overthrown by a mob of young drinkers who felt no connection with the brand. Done in by misdirection and myopia. Bud's share of market has declined from 26% in 1988 to just over 9% last year. That's a worse record than Bernie Madoff.

Okay, enough marketing data. I don't like it any more than you do.

Why do I care? I don't drink Bud anymore, don't own AB/InBev stock, my son isn't a beer distributor. I care because I was Creative Director on Bud for 6 years, back when D'Arcy Advertising was a big name in the business, not only in St. Louis but nationally. Today D'Arcy doesn't exist, except in distant echoes and dusty images conjured by aging Mad Men and Women who remember "back when we had fun." And we did.

As I read the article, I felt as though I had just run into an old girl friend. Once she was the stunning, vibrant object of my desire. Now before me stood a stooped, frail woman, chain smoking Camels, her face deeply lined, her arms and neck covered with a swirl of tattoos in an effort to appear young and hip. One of the tattoos said, "Whassup?" Whatever that meant.

"What happened to you?" I said.

"They did it to me,": she replied in a voice that still carried faint promise. "They sacrificed my honor, my soul, to the gods of easy fame and hearty guffaws."

"You poor thing," I said, still unwilling to touch her.

I worked on the Bud brand from 1982 through 1988. Good years. Advertising well thought out and beautifully crafted. Commercials that still move me. Then came The Frogs. I still tremble at the thought of them. Talking Frogs. Lizards named Louie. Even ants carrying a bottle of Bud. Ants!!! Yes, people talked how funny and clever they were. But, like termites, they bored from within.

And that was just the beginning. Throw the desecration of the Clydesdales in there while you're at it. Once they were a symbol of Bud's heritage. Unhitched, they became a circus act frolicking in the snow.

So now AB/InBev thinks it can resurrect Bud in the U.S., bring it back to its former glory, make it "relevant" again. Sure, and Burger Chef will sell hamburgers again and TWA will fly again and my next car will be a Pontiac.

You can check out this site to see what it used to be about. 2OldGuysTalkBeer.com