It's been awhile since I've written a blog.  As we all know, 2020 has been horrible on many fronts but I will keep this to getting autographs.  It may be a few more months before we will see in-person autographs again.

For me, the last in-person autograph I got was Nick Beggs from Kajagoogoo (current bassist for Howard Jones) and Howard Jones.  Both of those were in March.  I also got Ian Hill from Iron Maiden and a few guys from Orleans, Pure Prairie League and FireFall (they played…

Having the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in basically your own back yard, has a ton of advantages including meeting artists and getting some autographs.

Not only has the Hall been updated with new exhibits, but they also added an interactive exhibit called The Garage where you can actually play real instruments.  They have tutorial videos for…

It is always tougher to graph in the winter in northern cities.  Opportunities are fewer and it really has to take a big name band to get me to stand out in freezing temperatures to see if they will sign.

For whatever reason, fewer bands made stops in Cleveland this past winter.  Actually, that was fine by me, although I have still managed to go to eleven concerts so far this…

I believe my last blog was in August and there were more hits than misses this fall.

Two Hall of Famers- Steve Cropper and Dave Mason were touring together and made a stop at a local venue.  Great show and Cropper has great stories.  Both did the merch table after the show.  Mason was pleading with patrons not to ask Steve questions because he wanted to go back to the hotel. (Steve loves to tell stories- he told them anyway!)…

Some pretty big names rolled through the Cleveland area this summer and I had some success in meeting some and getting their autographs, while others I missed out or was denied completely.  

The Misses

I took this shot of him at the show. 

Roger Daltrey said that the 5 people that were trying for him were 'all professionals'…

May turned out to be a very good month for adding some autographs.  

First up, Michael Keaton came to town to speak at my alma mater, Kent State.  We got him coming off the plane and he was very nice.  However, he did refuse to sign anything Batman, Spiderman or any action figures.  He passed me over a couple of times, I then pulled out "Birdman" and he passed that over a couple of times.  I was right in front of him and said "Michael, you should have won the Oscar for this role."  He…

I'm fortunate to live between two major Halls of Fame.  This year, the Rock Hall Inductions were held in Cleveland and will alternate between New York every other year.  I feel that they should be in Cleveland every year, but I guess we will take what we can get.

Although this years class wasn't as good as the '15 class when they were last held in Cleveland, but I figured I would try and add to the collection.

I heard that the Cars came in town early to rehearse for their…

February was pretty cold in Ohio but I still managed to add a few. 

I don't normally collect basketball but when Bobby Knight returned to his high school for a fundraiser for the local YMCA, I couldn't pass it up.  For a donation, you got to hear Bobby tell stories about his high school days as well as things from through out his career.  He stayed after and signed everything for everyone that wanted an autograph.  He really seemed interested in the fans and asked questions while he…

December was a very slow month for me as I only attended one show (Will Hoge- who is a great singer-songwriter!).  I ended up having hernia surgery (they found six in my stomach) so that slowed me down for a couple of weeks.

January came around and I decided to put into shoot Rick Springfield's concert which was about an hour and a half away from my house.  A little far for me, but I was jonesin' to go to a show.  Rick Springfield is more than "Jessie's Girl,"  he is a great guitarist…

November turned out to be pretty good for adding to the collection.  It was quality over quantity for sure.  

First up, Christine McVie and Lindsay Buckingham came to town on their duet tour.  It was a fantastic show!  Before the concert, a few of us were waiting out back before they arrived.  Christine arrived first and said that she would sign our stuff inside.  She went in and a security guy came over and…

October has presented itself with not only being able to add to the music collection, but also sports and even some actors!  I write these blogs to let you know who has been signing and who hasn’t, in case you may want to try when they come into your neck of the woods.  I realize everyone has a different experience, and people might change their moods from day to day.

First off, Chris Hillman from the Byrds made…

Even though I slowed down a bit, I've added some quality pieces to my collection. 

E Street drummer, Max Weinberg is out doing some solo gigs since Bruce is busy doing his thing on Broadway.  Max played just outside of Pittsburgh so I decided to make the hour and a half drive to see and meet Mr. Weinberg.  I couldn't pass up the Groupon deal- $19 for…

 I am fortunate to live between two major halls of fame.  Both the Rock N Roll and Football Hall of Fame are about 45 minutes from my house.  The Rock Hall has programs throughout the year and you never know who might show up.  It is the only HOF that does not host the induction ceremony every year (that is a topic for another discussion).  However, you can count on…

July turned out to be a good month to add the musical collection as there seemed to be more hits than misses.  The month started out by getting on of the original 4Tops, Duke Fakir.  The Four Tops are one of Motown’s original acts and have had a distinguished career.  Duke is the last living original member and the 82 year old still has all of the dance moves down (except he no longer spins).  After the show, I was the only one waiting and asked if he could sign.…

I’ve heard that Roger Waters has been signing on his current tour.  He was making a stop in Columbus two months before his stop in Cleveland.  So three of my friends and I made the trek down to C-bus to try and get Pink Floyd’s bassist/singer and songwriter.  We arrived early and there were already four people there.  Within an hour, the line grew to 50.  Another hour went by and there was easily over 150.  After talking to some people and overhearing people talk while in…

I had a lot more misses than hits for June.  That's the way it goes sometimes.

The month started out with me traveling to Pittsburgh to see U2.  The Cleveland show was sold out, but there were plenty of tickets for the Pitt show. (The show was amazing.)  I arrived early because I had heard that Bono and The Edge signed before the show.  I met up with a nice family and started talking with them.  After hours of waiting, the four…

Not a bad spring on the musical front.  As usual, I had some hits and some misses while trying to add to the collection.  

First up was America.  This was by far the fastest and easiest autograph I have ever gotten.  I went right to the hotel after the show and as I was walking in, Dewey and Gerry were walking right behind me.  I asked if they could sign and both happily did.  Wish they could all be that easy.…

It's been kinda slow in Northeastern Ohio as the concert season slows down in the winter months.  However, there were a few that came to town and a program at the Rock Hall which enabled me to add to the collection.

First, the Rock Hall hosted a movie screening of the documentary Take Me To The River and had a panel discussion with a few musicians, the director and producer after the film was shown.  It is a very good documentary about Stax records that had some young rappers…

It has been a November to remember, indeed.  The month started off by seeing the Alan Parsons Project Live.  A good friend of mine bought a front row ticket and the meet and greet package for Alan.  I believe it was like 90 dollars, which is pretty good considering most meet and greets are $100 and that doesn’t include the ticket!  Anyway, he also bought…