Three more matches added to June 9 DEEP JEWELS show

Yukari Nabe, Kana Watanabe

DEEP JEWELS announced three more matches have been added to DEEP JEWELS 20 June 9 at Shinjuku FACE. In a Flyweight rematch, Kana Watanabe will face Yukari Nabe. In another Flyweight match, Shizuka Sugiyama will face Sachiko Fujimori. And in a Strawweight bout, Jet Izumi will face Yuko Saito. They also announced that King REINA will fight at Welterweight but her opponent has not been announced. Kana vs Yukari is a rematch from DEEP JEWELS 19 which was a draw because it was only two five minute rounds. This match is scheduled for three five minute rounds. If this doesn't tell that old fart Shigeru Saeki that he needs to knock off the two five minute round matches, I don't know what will. I think this will be the main event. Kana is a former amateur judo champ with mucho sex appeal. That sex appeal is very important to the DEEP JEWELS dirty old man fanbase. Her record is 2-0-1. Yukari is 3-2-1. She is nothing special. Shizuka is a 31 year old veteran fighter. Her record is 15-5. Standup is her strength. She also has sex appeal but she's not an elite fighter. She's midcard at best. She beats fighters she should beat and she loses to fighters who are better than her. In her last fight, she lost to Kana Watanabe on the Dec. RIZIN show. I expect her to win this fight. Sachiko looks to be an older fighter. Her record is 4-3. The last time we saw her she lost to Ayaka Miura on the Nov. 2, 2016 DEEP JEWELS. This will be her first Flyweight bout. All her previous fights have been at Strawweight. This fight will be three five minute rounds so it's probably the co-main event. I can only assume Saeki has no one else. Jet Izumi is a veteran kickboxer who used to dabble in MMA in the Smackgirl days. She's 42 years old and her MMA record is 5-6-1. This will be her first DEEP JEWELS appearance. She recently returned to MMA and lost to Pan Hui on the Oct. 29 Grandslam show. Before that her last MMA fight was in 2009. She is an active kickboxer. Yuko looks like an older fighter with a 1-1 record. And her previous fights have been at Atomweight. I don't like her chances. It's a card filler.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Aaron Parks

Artist:Aaron Parks
Song:Nemesis
Album:Invisible Cinema





Pianist Aaron Parks was first noticed by jazz fans when he was in Terence Blanchard's band. The 2008 CD Invisible Cinema was his debut as a leader. He continues to record as a leader and also as a sideman. He was born Oct. 7, 1983 in Seattle. As a teen, he studied at the University of Washington and then he moved to the Manhattan School of Music in New York. He was still in school when he joined Blanchard's band. Parks was on the 2007 Grammy winner A Tale Of God's Will (A Requiem For Katrina) and he also played piano on several Spike Lee films including Inside Man and She Hate Me. Parks has also toured with guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel. Invisible Cinema on Blue Note was Parks' debut as a leader in 2008. Musicians are Mike Moreno on guitar, Matt Penman on bass and Eric Harland on drums. Harland was also in Blanchard's band. This same band minus Moreno was in James Farm led by sax player Joshua Redman. They recorded two albums for Nonesuch. Parks currently records for ECM. His latest CD Find The Way with Ben Street on bass and Billy Hart on drums was released in 2017. He still records frequently as a sideman. He will tour in June. But when he's not touring, he plays New York clubs. In Sept., he's playing a week at The Village Vanguard with Street and Hart. Here's Aaron Parks performing Nemesis at The Jazz Standard in New York in 2008. That is Mike Moreno on guitar and Matt Penman on bass. I don't know who the drummer is but it is not Eric Harland.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Mickey & The Soul Generation

Artist:Mickey & The Soul Generation
Song:Give Everybody Some
Album:Texas Funk 1968-1975





Those who like vintage funk should enjoy Mickey & The Soul Generation. They were an obscure group and guys like DJ Shadow sample groups like this and release comp CDs like Texas Funk. It's amazing how much of this stuff is out there. Mickey & The Soul Generation were from San Antonio, TX. Keyboard player Mickey Foster and sax player Emil Carter were in the Latino soul group The Royal Tokens. They decided to form their own band with guitarist George Salas and bassist Gilbert Rivera. After adding sax player Johnny Hooks, they called themselves The Fabulous Five and then Mickey & The Soul Generation. The 1969 single Iron Leg did well enough to get them national distribution from Maxwell Records. And though they had success regionally with songs like Football and Give Everyone Some, they ultimately split with Maxwell over money in 1973. They toured nationally with another Maxwell act Faith, Hope & Charity and they toured the south with bigger name acts. The revival came when popular DJ Josh "DJ Shadow" Davis claimed they were his favorite funk band. He wrote the liner notes for a 2CD comp that is no longer in print. Give Everybody Some appears on this various artists comp from the British label Jazzman. They release a lot of these kind of funk comps. So I would recommend Mickey & The Soul Generation to vintage funk fans. Here's a video for Give Everybody Some by Mickey & The Soul Generation.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Julius La Rosa

Artist:Julius La Rosa
Song:Eh, Cumpari!
Album:Just Forever





Julius La Rosa is forgotten today. But he had success in the early 50s with hits like Eh, Cumpari!. He became a star on The Arthur Godfrey Show which was very popular at the time. He was born Jan. 2, 1930 in Brooklyn, NY. He sang in clubs while he was stationed in the US Navy in Pensacola, FL. One of his Navy buddies was on a plane with Arthur Godfrey and an audition was arranged. La Rosa got hired and he was on the Godfrey show for two years. It made him famous. Of course La Rosa wanted to do his own thing which Godfrey discouraged. But sure enough La Rosa hired a manager. And then Godfrey's musical director Archie Bleyer started Cadence Records and La Rosa was his first signing. Godfrey was so upset that he convinced CBS to let him fire La Rosa while on air. CBS later admitted that this was a bad idea. Then Godfrey fired Bleyer. The whole thing made La Rosa even more popular. He appeared on Ed Sullivan's Toast Of The Town. And he scored two hit singles. Anywhere I Wander from the film Hans Christian Andersen reached #4 on the Hit Parade. And Eh, Cumpari! reached #2. This was a traditional Italian song reworked by La Rosa and Bleyer so it could be a pop song. Some of La Rosa's other songs charted but Eh, Cunpari! was his biggest hit. You can get all of La Rosa's hits on this 2CD comp from Jasmine. La Rosa continued to record and appear on TV. He hosted a summer replacement variety show for Perry Como. He also was a DJ on WNEW in New York for many years. And he was a regular on the 80s daytime soap Another World. Julius La Rosa continued to perform until his death on May 12, 2016 at age 86. Here's Julius La Rosa performing Eh, Cumpari! on a 2008 PBS special.

Frank Pozen's Big Bad Podcast Apr. 27, 2018

The UFC returns to Calgary and my take on Welterweights on The Ultimate Fighter 28.

Two women's bouts added to July 28 UFC show

Danny Austin of The Calgary Sun reports that UFC on FOX 30 will be on July 28 at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary. The main event has not been announced but Ariel Helwani of MMA Fighting reports that Nicco Montano defending her UFC Flyweight Championship against Valentina Shevchenko is in the works. I'll discuss that when it is official. But two women's matches have been announced for this show. In a Flyweight bout, Alexis Davis will face Katlyn Chookagian. And in a Strawweight bout, Randa Markos will face Nina Ansaroff. Alexis is from Port Colborne, ON but she trains at Cesar Gracie Jiu Jitsu in Lodi, CA. Her record is 14-7 and 6-2 in the UFC. She dropped to Flyweight in her latest fight which was her first post pregnancy bout. She won over Liz Carmouche by split decision but neither looked very good. Alexis is good on the ground and she has passable striking. But she is error prone and that has cost her in the past. Katlyn is 29 years old from New Jersey. Her record is 10-1 and 3-1 in the UFC. She started out at Bantamweight but she is better suited for Flyweight. She won her last fight over Mara Romero Borello. But the fight was awful. It was three rounds of light sparring. Katlyn would not engage. And it would not surprise me if she used the same strategy because it worked and most refs won't warn fighters to knock it off. Randa is 32 years old from Windsor, ON. She trains at Michigan Top Team in Dearborn, MI. Her record is 8-5 and 4-4 in the UFC. Like Alexis, Randa is a very good wrestler who makes mistakes that cost her fights. That's why her record is spotty. She won her latest fight over Juliana Lima when the ref would not allow Juliana to stall as she normally does. She was forced to fight Randa and Juliana is a terrible fighter. Of course Nina is best known as UFC Bantamweight Champion Amanda Nunes' girlfriend. She also works in the American Top Team office. Her record is 8-5 and she is 2-2 in the UFC. Nina is a striker. Before her latest fight, Nina said she was considering retirement. But she won that fight over Angela Hill so here she is again. Angela started the fight OK. But Nina broke Angela's nose and Angela pooped out. Nina's win was considered an upset by everyone but me. I thought they were even going into the fight. I think Randa is a better fighter. But Randa is error prone and that could cost her this fight.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Bette Midler

Artist:Bette Midler
Song:Wind Beneath My Wings
Album:Jackpot: The Best Bette





Bette Midler first had success as a mix of cabaret and 40s nostalgia. Then she had success in movies. But her recording career stalled in the 80s until she topped the charts in 1989 with Wind Beneath my Wings from the film Beaches. It's her only number one hit. She was born Dec. 1, 1945 in Honolulu, HI. She moved to New York City in 1965. She had small roles in Broadway musicals. But she really made her name singing in the Continental Baths accompanied by Barry Manilow on piano. He produced her 1972 album The Divine Miss M. That album was certified Platinum and her cover of The Andrews Sisters classic Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy was a top ten hit. And 40s nostalgia is what she was known for in her early days. Then she got into acting and she had success starring in the 1979 film The Rose earning an Oscar nomination. Then things went south. Bette recorded a disco album which flopped. And then she was in the 1981 flop film Jinxed!. There was conflict on the set between director Don Siegel and Bette's co-star Ken Wahl. She returned to music with the 1983 album No Frills. Some may recall her cover of Beasts Of Burden. But there were no hit singles and the album didn't sell. She returned to movies and a production deal with Disney. She had several hit comedies. And then she starred in the 1988 film Beaches with Barbara Hershey. It was directed by Garry Marshall. Producer Arif Mardin thought the soundtrack for Beaches would be a good way to get Bette back to the top of the charts. So the soundtrack was really a Bette Midler solo album. The first single was a cover of The Drifters Under The Boardwalk which played over the opening credits of the film. But listeners wanted to hear Bette's recording of Wind Beneath My Wings after Bette performed it on the Oscars broadcast. The song was not eligible for an Oscar because it wasn't an original song. But it topped the charts anyway. The song was written by Jeff Silbar and Larry Henley. Henley was in the 60s group The Easybeats and he has written mostly country hits. Wind Beneath My Wings was a top five country hit for Gary Morris in 1983. So obviously the song wasn't supposed to be a number one hit but it was. Bette's success continued with the 1990 top five hit From A Distance from her album Some People's Lives. She hasn't had any hits since then but she still records and appears in movies and on TV. Most recently she was in the Broadway revival of Hello, Dolly. This budget comp has all of her hits. Here's the video for Wind Beneath My Wings by Bette Midler.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Manhattan Transfer

Artist:The Manhattan Transfer
Song:Boy From New York City
Album:The Very Best Of The Manhattan Transfer



The Manhattan Transfer have been around since the late 60s. They are mostly a jazz vocal group influenced by Lambert, Hendricks and Ross. Boy From New York City was their only top ten pop hit in 1981. Tim Hauser was the leader of The Manhattan Transfer. He was born Dec. 12, 1941 in Troy, NY. As a teen, he was in a doo wop group. He worked at an ad agency in the 60s. He formed The Manhattan Transfer in 1969 with Gene Pistilli of Cashman, Pistilli and West. They recorded the 1971 album Jukin' for Capitol Records. Then they split up. Hauser wanted the group to be jazz influenced. Pistilli wasn't interested in that. While driving cab, Hauser met Laurel Masse. Then he met Janis Siegel at a party. They decided to form a group but they wanted a second male voice. Alan Paul was recommended by the musical director of the Broadway show Grease. Paul was in the cast. The second version of The Manhattan Transfer was born. They signed with Atlantic and released the 1975 album The Manhattan Transfer. The single Operator based on a Sister Wynona Carr gospel song reached #22 on the Billboard Hot 100. Mike Brecker played the sax solo. They hosted a four week variety show on CBS. In 1978, Laurel Masse was forced to leave after a car accident. She was replaced by Cheryl Bentyne. Though it was never released as a single, their vocal version of the Weather Report classic Birdland won them a Grammy. They also had success with their vocal version of the Twilight Zone theme. By this time, their producer was session guitar legend Jay Graydon. And he produced the 1981 album Mecca For Moderns. Boy From New York City was a hit for The Ad Libs in 1966. It was probably more doo wop than the songs The Manhattan Transfer were recording at the time. But it reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was their only top ten hit. The Manhattan Transfer remained popular for many years. They recorded for Atlantic until 1990. And after a stint with Columbia, they returned to Atlantic. They also recorded for Telarc. This budget comp covers their Atlantic recordings. After Tim Hauser died in 2014, he was replaced by Trist Curless. They just released a new CD The Junction on BMG and The Manhattan Transfer are currently on a European tour. Here's The Manhattan Transfer performing Boy From New York City on the ABC variety series Friday 1981. BTW, that is Larry David as Howard Cosell introducing them.

Frank Pozen's Big Bad Podcast Apr. 25, 2018

My look at Asuka's Smackdown debut match and my take on the WWE's Saudi Arabia show.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Billie Kay and Peyton Royce vs Asuka and Becky Lynch

Here's the match video of Billie Kay and Peyton Royce vs Asuka and Becky Lynch from last night's episode of Smackdown. Billie and Peyton were known as The Iconic Duo in NXT. But the WWE has changed their name to The Iiconics for copyright reasons. A clothing company owns Iconic so the WWE needed to change it so they can produce merch. I think the name is too clumsy and they may have to figure out something else. For now I will call them The Aussies which is what I have called them for years. Both went to high school together in Sydney, Australia. They are doing a mean girls chickenshit heel gimmick. The only thing I don't like about it is it obscures that they are pretty good wrestlers. They both got new boobs recently. I guess their shtick is they are better than Asuka...by osmosis. Of course we know this will come back to bite them later. The purpose of this match is to continue Becky's descent into jobberhood. The cheap finish complete with feet on the ropes is a chickenshit heel finish. The one noticeable thing is how much quicker Asuka is compared to the others. It's much easier for her to control that in a singles match. When Becky is in there with Billie, they look like they are moving in slow motion. Along with the match, the video has the post match video of The Aussies boasting about being better than Asuka. Asuka's response was to Tweet a GIF of Billie scurrying from the ring when Asuka went after her. And it also has a video of Becky encountering Absolution and they make fun of her. I'm sure this will lead to more losses for Becky. Enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Expose

Artist:Expose
Song:Seasons Change
Album:Greatest Hits





The girl group Expose had a total of six top ten hits in the late 80s. Seasons Change was their only number one hit. They came from the Miami Freestyle scene and they may have been the most successful Freestyle group ever. The group was formed by DJ Lewis Martinee who wrote and produced most of the songs. He had his girlfriend record demos so he could sell the songs. But she sounded good enough that he decided to have her lead the group X-Posed which was soon changed to Expose. The single Point Of No Return did well enough to get a contract with Arista. But while the debut album was being produced, all three original members of Expose either left or were fired. The new members and the version of Expose that was successful were Jeanette Jurado, Gioia Bruno and Ann Curless. Jeanette was usually the lead singer. The 1987 album Exposure was released. They had three top ten singles. And then Seasons Change topped the Billboard Hot 100. The sax solo is by Euge Groove. The album was certified 3XPlatinum. But there were problems behind the scenes as Martinee owned everything and signed the girls to predatory contracts. Arista tried to get him to pay them better. But they had to sue to get their contracts renegotiated. The 1989 album What You Don't Know didn't do as well as the first album. But there were a couple of top ten hits. Then Gioia left due to throat problems and she was replaced by Kelly Moneymaker. They went in a more pop direction with the 1992 album Expose. Arista owner Clive Davis was behind that as he had Diane Warren write several songs for the album. When there were no hit singles, Arista dropped them. You can get all their hits on this budget comp. Jeanette and Ann both appeared in stage musicals but eventually got married and retired. Gioia has recorded a few albums. Kelly has recorded and done some acting. Expose has reunited occasionally and they released a couple of singles. But they haven't been active since 2012. Lewis Martinee has produced other acts like the similar girl group The Cover Girls. And he has written and produced individual songs for Pet Shop Boys, Vanessa Williams and Debbie Gibson. But Expose was his one big success. He still does plenty of remix work. Here's the video for Seasons Change by Expose.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Swing Out Sister

Artist:Swing Out Sister
Song:Breakout
Album:20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best Of Swing Out Sister




Breakout was the only big US hit for the British group Swing Out Sister in 1987. They were a much bigger deal at home. There were several British groups in the late 80s that offered a jazz influenced kind of pop music. Swing Out Sister are from Manchester, England. Pianist Andy Connell and drummer Martin Jackson were both in 70s punk bands. Connell was in A Certain Ratio. Jackson was in Magazine. They worked with DJ Greg Wilson in the group Broken Glass. Corinne Drewry was a model and fashion designer when she met Connell in 1984. He convinced her to try singing. The group is named after the 1945 Arthur Treacher film Swing Out Sister. Supposedly they all hated the name but they couldn't agree on anything else. They got together with remix guy Paul Staveley O'Duffy and signed with Mercury Records in England. Breakout was the first single from their debut album It's Better To Travel. It reached #4 on the British Singles chart. When it was released in the US in 1987, it reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100. It turned out to be Swing Out Sister's only big hit in the US. They continued to have success in England and in the Adult Contemporary and Smooth Jazz markets. They were nominated for two Grammys including Best New Artist. Richard Niles arranged the horns. He was an American who moved to England in the 70s. He was Cat Stevens' musical director but Niles did all kinds of things. Jackson left Swing Out Sister while the 1989 album Kaleidoscope World was being recorded. Since then the group has been a duo and they bring in session musicians. You can get all their hits on this budget comp. Swing Out Sister released the 2017 album Almost Persuaded on their own label. It doesn't look like they perform live anymore. Here's the video of Breakout by Swing Out Sister.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Christie Laume

Artist:Christie Laume
Song:Rouge Rouge
Album:Toujours Chic!: More French Girl Singers Of The 1960s




Christie Laume recorded a few singles in the 60s and then she left the music business, got married and moved to the US. Rouge Rouge is generally considered to be the best of those singles. She was born Christina Lamboukas Feb. 4, 1942 in Paris. Her older brother Theo Serapo was also a singer. Christie appeared on radio as a child. She planned to be a beautician when in 1962 her brother married of all people Edith Piaf. Edith took her on tour and renamed her Christie Laume. She even appeared on TV with Edith. But then Edith died. Serapo recorded a couple of albums with Edith. He was able to launch a solo career. He was able to get Christie a record deal at Barclay and she released the 1966 single J'ai Besoin De Toi. When that and an EP didn't do well, she switched to EMI's Odeon label. She released the 1967 EP La Musique Et La Danse. Rouge Rouge was the standout track on that EP. All of Christie's songs were written and produced by Noel Commaret who had previously worked with her brother. The musicians are not identified. I wish I knew who played the fuzz guitar. It wouldn't surprise me if it was Mickey Baker. Christie recorded a duet with Richard Anthony. Then she released another EP in 1968 that was an attempt to be more commercial. When that fell flat, Christie met her future husband who was serving in the US Air Force. They moved to the US and Christie became a devout Christian. No more music career. Ready Steady Girls says Christie is writing her autobiography along with books about her brother and Edith Piaf. You can get Rouge Rouge on this Ace Records various artists comp. Here's a video of Rouge Rouge by Christie Laume. And again thanks to Ready Steady Girls for the info. They are a great site for info about this kind of music.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Luis Fonsi

Artist:Luis Fonsi f/Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber
Song:Despacito (Remix)
Album:Despacito & My Greatest Hits




Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi has been a star in Latin America for twenty years. But when Justin Bieber decided to remix his hit Despacito, it became one of the biggest hits in recent memory. But I don't think most music fans know anything about Fonsi. He was born Luis Alfonso Rodriguez Apr. 15, 1978 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Fonsi had a group Big Guys while attending high school in Orlando, FL. Future *NSYNC member Joey Fatone was in that group. Fonsi studied music at Florida State and a demo got him a deal with Universal Music Latin. He's had six number one hits in Latin America. So he's been very successful. Fonsi recorded an English album in 2002 that went nowhere. That brings us to Despacito. The song was first recorded in Spanish and it was a number one hit in Latin America. It's on Fonsi's upcoming album. Fonsi says he just wanted to create a fun dance song. He wrote the song with singer songwriter Erika Ender. And of course the rap is by Ramon "Daddy Yankee" Ayala who is very popular in Latin America. So it seems that Bieber heard Despacito in a club in Colombia. And he liked it so much that he wanted to do a remix. The only real change to the song was Bieber brought in his usual songwriters Jason Boyd and Marty James to write English lyrics. Bieber also was coached to sing in Spanish. And of course they shot a new video. Bieber's involvement was enough to make Despacito the first Spanish language Billboard Hot 100 number one hit since Macarena in 1996. So it was a huge hit. Fonsi's new album still isn't out. But you can get the original version of Despacito, Bieber's remix and a third remix along with some of Fonsi's other hits on this budget CD. As I said, Fonsi is already a star in Latin America. It's doubtful this will make him a star in the US. But it should encourage other artists to work with him. Here's the video for Despacito by Luis Fonsi featuring Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber.

Frank Pozen's Big Bad Podcast Apr. 21, 2018

Check out my take on the Leslie Smith UFC release and some UFC fight announcements.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Pearl Jam

Artist:Pearl Jam
Song:Last Kiss
Album:The Essential Pearl Jam





Pearl Jam was one of the most popular bands of the 90s mostly as an album band. They didn't seem to need hit singles. So it's a little odd that their biggest hit single was a cover of a 60s hit for a benefit album. Pearl Jam are from Seattle. Guitarist Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Ament were members of the 80s band Green River. When that band split up, they formed Mother Love Bone with singer Andrew Wood. They released an album on PolyGram in 1989. And then Wood died of a heroin overdose. Gossard and Ament were devastated because it looked like this band could be big. Jamming with guitarist Mike McCready encouraged Gossard to form a new band. They recorded a demo to try and find a drummer and singer. They gave the demo to drummer Jack Irons. He passed but he thought his friend Eddie Vedder would be interested. He was and then they added drummer Dave Krusen. They named themselves after NBA player Mookie Blaylock. They changed the name to Pearl Jam after signing with Epic Records. Vedder says the name is a reference to his great grandmother. They released the 1991 album Ten which was Mookie Blaylock's number. It was a huge worldwide success and Pearl Jam was a big part of the Seattle grunge explosion. But when grunge faded, Pearl Jam continued to be a huge success mostly as a live draw. And their albums continued to sell great. They were never a singles band. Their only top ten hit in their early days was I Got Id in 1997. That brings me to Last Kiss. It was written and recorded by Wayne Cochran in 1961. J. Frank Wilson's cover of Last Kiss reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1964. Vedder heard that record and he convinced the band to try it. They performed it a few times in 1998. They recorded it and released it as a 1998 fan club Christmas single. But then radio stations started to play it and Pearl Jam had to release it. But they didn't release it on a Pearl Jam album. Last Kiss appeared on the 1999 charity CD No Boundaries: A Benefit for the Kosovar Refugees. Last Kiss reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and it helped raise $10M for the charity. It is to date Pearl Jam's highest charting single. The Kosovar CD is out of print and the song only appears on a couple of Pearl Jam comps like the 2CD comp The Essential Pearl Jam. Of course Pearl Jam is still successful. They have a new album coming shortly and they are on tour. Here's Pearl Jam performing Last Kiss 1999.

Two women's fights added to July 14 UFC show

The UFC announced today through ESPN Radio in Boise that UFC Fight Night 133 will be July 14 at CenturyLink Arena in Boise, ID. Two women's bout were announced. Cat Zingano will face Marion Reneau at Bantamweight. And Liz Carmouche will face Jennifer Maia at Flyweight. Cat is 35 years old originally from Colorado but she now trains at Alliance in San Diego. Her record is 9-3 but she is currently on a three fight losing streak. Based on her recent loss to Ketlen Vieira, I think injuries have really slowed her down. Ketlen won by split decision but it probably should have been unanimous. Marion is 40 years old from Visalia, CA. Her record is 9-3-1. She's 4-2-1 in the UFC. At times she has looked good and at times she hasn't looked good. In her last fight against Sara McMann, Sara had an opportunity to finish in round one. But when she didn't, Marion turned it around with a second round rear naked choke. So it's possible that if Marion wins, she could get a title shot. Her inconsistency is her biggest problem. And sometimes she is inconsistent within the three rounds of the same fight. Of course Liz is a former Bantamweight title challenger who has dropped to Flyweight. In her latest fight, she lost by split decision to Alexis Davis. I don't think either of them looked very good. I think injuries have slowed Liz down. But I never thought she was an elite fighter anyway. Jennifer is the former Invicta Bantamweight Champion. This will be her UFC debut. Jennifer is 29 years old from Curitiba, Brazil. She trains at Chute Boxe which is where Cris Cyborg started out. Her record is 15-4-1. When I first heard of her in 2011, I wondered if she fought the Chute Boxe style like Cyborg. She doesn't. She was a boxer before she got into MMA and she still fights like a boxer. She has no power or ground game. So yeah, she's a dreaded points fighter. She hasn't lost since 2014. But her fights tend to be light sparring which is boring. It wouldn't surprise me if she eked out a win. But I'm not looking forward to it.

Two women's Flyweight bouts announced for July 6 UFC show

Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Journal Review reported yesterday that The Ultimate Fighter 27 Finale will be on July 6 at the Palms in Las Vegas. He reported that two women's Flyweight bouts have been added to the show. One will have Roxanne Modafferi vs Barb Honchak and the other will have Rachel Ostovich-Berdon vs Montana De La Rosa. All four fighters were in TUF 26. Of course Roxanne has been a fighter since 2003 and she lived in Japan for several years. Her record is 21-14. At one point she had a five fight losing streak mainly because she wouldn't punch anyone. One of those losses was to Barb Honchak. Roxanne turned things around when she moved back to the US to work with John Wood at Syndicate in Las Vegas. And she's been better since training there. She was supposed to fight Barb on the TUF 26 Finale. But when Sijara Eubanks missed weight, Roxanne got the title fight but she lost to Nicco Montana. Of course Barb was the former Invicta champ. And then she seemed to retire from MMA and was stripped of the title. She decided to return for TUF 26 despite being too old. She was the favorite going in but my concern was what's she going to be like after almost three years off. She lost to Nicco in the semi final and then she lost to Lauren Murphy by split decision on the TUF 26 Finale. She's probably not as good as she was a few years ago. This fight could give us a real handle on how good she is right now. You know what I always say about Father Time going undefeated. As I have said before, most of the TUF 26 fighters weren't very good. Rachel Ostovich-Berdon was very popular in Invicta because of her looks and her Wonder Woman gear. But she was 2-2 in Invicta. I think she's a mediocre fighter. I was surprised when she made TUF 26. But she wasn't the worst fighter on the show. And on the TUF 26 Finale, she beat Armenian Karine Gevorgyan who was really bad. So here is Rachel in the UFC. We'll see how good she is. Montana is probably at the same level as Rachel. At Strawweight, she lost to Mackenzie Dern and Cynthia Calvillo. So she moved back to Flyweight for TUF 26. She fought at Flyweight early in her career. Montana beat Christina Marks on the TUF 26 Finale. As with Rachel, it wasn't a case of who was better but who was worse. So I think both Rachel and Montana are question marks. But I don't know if fighting each other will answer any questions about them. We may have to wait until the winner fights at a higher competition level. This could be three rounds of nothing.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Mark Morrison

Artist:Mark Morrison
Song:Return Of The Mack
Album:Strictly Rhythm Superjams





Return Of The Mack was the only big US hit for British singer Mark Morrison. He was a bigger deal at home. His big problem was he couldn't seem to stay out of jail. He was born May 3, 1972 in Hannover, Germany but he grew up in Leicester, England and later Miami. He moved back to England at age 19. Morrison produced a few singles for other artists before releasing a single in 1993. His 1995 single Crazy was a top 20 hit in England. Warner Music England came calling and Morrison signed. He was on Atlantic in the US. After some jail time for assault, Morrison recorded the album Return Of The Mack. The single topped the British charts and reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. Morrison wrote and produced the album with Phil Chill who had previously produced Apache Indian. The girl on the song and in the video is British singer Angie Brown. The main sample on Return Of The Mack is the Tom Tom Club song Genius Of Love. Morrison scored a few more hits in England but he was arrested for carrying a weapon on an airplane. He was convicted of armed robbery in 1999 and he has been charged with assault a few times. Warner dropped him like a bad habit. You can get Return Of The Mack on this various artists budget CD. Morrison still records occasionally for his own label. He signed with Death Row Records in 2001 but nothing ever came from that. More recently, Burger King used Return Of The Mack in a commercial. So I'm sure that made Morrison a good chunk of cash. He records occasionally but he can live off royalties forever. Here's the video for Return Of The Mack by Mark Morrison.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Ricky Martin

Artist:Ricky Martin
Song:Livin' La Vida Loca
Album:Greatest Hits





Livin' La Vida Loca was the only number one hit and the signature song for Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin in 1999. He was a star at home before recording in English. He was born Dec. 24, 1971 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He started performing as a child and he appeared in several TV commercials. Then he auditioned for the teen boy band Menudo and after the third audition, 12 year old Martin was hired in 1984. At first he was thought to be too short. Menudo was successful in the 80s. All members are forced to leave at age 18. By 1989, they were fading and Martin would have to leave anyway. After graduating from high school, he got into acting on Mexican Telenovelas and eventually he did some daytime soaps in the US. But the big thing is he signed with Sony in 1991 and he still records for them today. He was very successful recording in Spanish for the next few years. Then he recorded his English debut album Ricky Martin in 1999. Livin' La Vida Loca was the first single and it topped the charts worldwide. The album sold 15M copies worldwide. He had a few other hit singles but that was the big one. Regardless of whether you like Martin, the production and arrangement is really what made Livin' La Vida Loca. And for that you have to credit writers and producers Robi Rosa and Desmond Child. They produced most of the album. Rosa had worked previously with Martin. Child has written tons of hit songs. He's in the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Randy Cantor wrote the arrangement. He's a veteran session keyboard player. Another veteran session musician guitarist Rusty Anderson played the guitar solo. And the trumpet solo was by another session musician Tony Concepcion. Martin has never had another hit that big. But it was enough to sustain him so that he still records for Sony. You can get all his hits on this budget comp. In recent years, Martin has appeared on The Voice in Mexico and Australia. He currently appears in the FX series American Crime Story: The Assassination Of Gianni Versace. And he is in residency at the Monte Carlo in Las Vegas. That will end in June. Here's the video for Livin' La Vida Loca by Ricky Martin.

Frank Pozen's Big Bad Podcast Apr. 18, 2018

Four matches added to the next DEEP JEWELS show and my take on the WWE Superstar Shakeup.

Four bouts added to June 9 DEEP JEWELS show

Emi Tomimatsu, Jung Eun Park

Though a main event has not been announced, yesterday DEEP JEWELS added four prelim bouts to their June 9 show at Shinjuku FACE. All fights are scheduled for the dreaded two five minute rounds. The best known fighter announced is veteran Emi Tomimatsu. It's too bad she isn't any good. Her opponent is Korean Jung Eun Park. This fight is at atomweight. Emi is 36 years old. Her record is 13-12. She started out as a pro wrestler but she has been a fighter since 2006. Her history is she alternates wins and losses. The last time we saw her she won by split decision over Sarami Aug. 2017. She was injured for a while. Park is 21 years old with a 3-3-1 record. So she also alternates wins and losses. This will be her DEEP JEWELS debut though she lost to Mina Kurobe on a Dec. DEEP show. Before that, she fought for ROAD FC. In an Atomweight bout, Nanaka Kawamura will face Momoko Yamazaki. Nanaka is 22 years old and a member of the idol group Masked Woman. She lost her pro debut to Mizuki Furuse in March. Momoko is making her pro debut but she was the girl that fought 12 year old Momo Shimizu in an amateur bout last year. I understand she is a hostess in a restaurant. In a Strawweight bout, Ryo The Skywalker will face Mao. I don't know what that name means but her real name is Ayako Miyata. She won her DEEP JEWELS debut in Dec. Mao is making her pro MMA debut. And in an Atomweight bout, Mizuki Furuse will face Hikaru Aono. Mizuki is a 17 year old high school student. Her record is 2-3. She beat Nanaka Kawamura in Mar. by majority decision. I think the two rounds really helped her. Hikaru is 1-1. She wrestled at Nippon University and she won an amateur Shooto championship. She won her last fight over Anna Kiriyama in Mar. As I said, no main event yet but I will let you know when they do.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Fernandel

Artist:Fernandel
Song:Ignace
Album:Le Flamboyant





Fernandel was a very popular comedy film star in France for 40 years. He was known for his big teeth. They called him "Horse Teeth". Most of his success as a recording artist came from his films like this 1937 song Ignace. He appeared in a couple of Hollywood films in the 50s and did a very popular British commercial in the 60s. He was born Fernand Joseph Desire Contandin May 8, 1903 in Marsaille, France. His father was an accountant and part time singer and comedian. Young Fernand would tag along to his father's shows. Not surprisingly, he started performing as a child and he became a big vaudeville star. His mother-in-law gave him the name Fernandel because he was so attentive to his wife. With the invention of sound in film, Paris wasn't any different than Hollywood. They looked for stage performers who could be film stars. And Fernandel was a big vaudeville star. He began making movies in 1930. Most of his films were comedies. He did a series of films as the Italian village priest Don Camillo in the 50s. But his big success in musicals was in the 30s. Ignace is from the 1937 film Ignace. He's playing a soldier in this film. His films and the songs were usually written by Jean Manse and Roger Dumas. WWII was a dry period for Fernandel as he was active in the Resistance. But he was successful again in the 50s with the Don Camillo films. You may have seen him as The Coachman in the 1956 film Around The World In 80 Days. And he also starred with Bob Hope in the 1958 film Paris Holiday. And he appeared in a series of Dubonnet commercials in England in the 60s. This budget comp is a good intro to his music. By the late 60s, Fernandel's health was failing. He was a heavy smoker. He died on Feb. 26, 1971 at age 67. His son Franck Fernandel was also an actor and singer. Here's Fernandel performing Ignace in the 1937 film Ignace. The entire film can be seen on Youtube.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-the Sundays

Artist:The Sundays
Song:Here's Where The Story Ends
Album:Reading, Writing and Arithmetic





The British group The Sundays had success in 1990 when the video for Here's Where The Story Ends was in heavy rotation on MTV. Unfortunately, they soon had record company problems. They never recovered from that. They had potential to be a lot bigger. Lead singer Harriet Wheeler and guitarist David Gavurin met when they were students at Bristol University. They wrote all the songs together and they are also married with two children. Gavurin says that he wanted to write songs since he was a child. So they formed The Sundays with Bristol students Paul Brindley on bass and Patrick Hannan on drums and they moved to London. They sent out demos and signed with Rough Trade Records. They had distribution in the US with Geffen. They released the single Can't Be Sure in 1989. Legendary BBC DJ John Peel liked it and that gave them a big boost. Their debut album Reading, Writing and Arithmetic was released in 1990. The album sold a million copies worldwide. Here's Where The Story Ends did very well in the US when MTV put the video in heavy rotation. And The Sundays toured the US. But it all came crashing down when Rough Trade went bankrupt in 1991. The problem was Reading, Writing and Arithmetic was no longer available in England. And it remained unavailable until 1996. The Sundays signed a new British deal with Parlophone. They were still on Geffen in the US. They also started managing themselves which took time away from songwriting. The 1992 album Blind did OK but it didn't do as well as the first album. Then Gavurin and Harriet got married and had their first child in 1995. They finally released the album Static & Silence in 1997. It did OK and The Sundays could have continued. But they chose not to. Harriet had another child in 1999. Reading, Writing and Arithmetic is available as a budget CD. It looks to me like they soured on the music business and choose to live off of The Sundays royalties. Comedian David Baddiel is pals with Gavurin and he says they still write and record. But they have no plans to release anything. He says they are paranoid about this. It reminds me of Lauryn Hill who does the same thing. It's unusual not to mention wasteful but not unprecedented. Here's the video for Here's Where The Story Ends by The Sundays.

Frank Pozen's Big Bad Podcast Apr. 16, 2018

A couple of UFC fight announcements and a new opponent for Emi Fujino in PANCRASE.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Lillias White

Artist:Lillias White
Song:Happy Talk
DVD:Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific In Concert From Carnegie Hall




Lillias White is a versatile performer best known for her work on Broadway. she has won an Obie, a Daytime Emmy and a Tony. Her performance as Bloody Mary in the PBS production of South Pacific is one of her more high profile performances. She was born July 12, 1951 in Brooklyn, NY. She made her Broadway debut in Barnum in 1981. Lillias was Jennifer Holiday's understudy in the original Broadway production of Dreamgirls. Then she played Effie in the 1987 revival for which she won a Drama League award. Then she won an Obie in 1989 for the off-Broadway production of Romance In Hard Times. She won a Daytime Emmy in 1993 as a regular on Sesame Street. And she won a Tony in 1997 for the 1997 Broadway musical The Life. One of Lillias' more high profile performances was as Bloody Mary in this production of South Pacific for the PBS series Great Performances in 2005. It was taped at Carnegie Hall starring Reba McEntire, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Alec Baldwin. This show is available on DVD. Lillias played Calliope in the 1997 Disney film and TV series Hercules. She has toured with her one woman show From Brooklyn To Broadway which she released on CD. Recently she has done guest shots on TV shows like Gotham and Person of Interest. And she was a regular on Baz Luhrmann's Netflix series The Get Down. That show is done so she may have returned to performing in New York clubs. She was honored with a Lifetime Achievement award at the 2015 Bistro Awards for her contributions in cabaret. Lillias White may not be well known but she has certainly had a long career. Here's Lillias White performing Happy Talk in the PBS Great Performances production of South Pacific at Carnegie Hall in New York City. This is available on DVD.

Two women's fights added to June 23 UFC show

Today the UFC announced several fights for UFC Fight Night 132 June 23 at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore. At Flyweight, Jessica-Rose "Jessy Jess" Clark will face Jessica Eye. And at Strawweight, Nadia Kassem will face Xiaonan Yan. I have known about these fights for a couple of weeks. But the venue was just added today. Jessy Jess is from Australia but she now trains at Syndicate MMA in Las Vegas. Her record is 9-4 and she is 2-0 in the UFC. Fans will probably remember her from Invicta. She seems to have improved since moving to the US to train with John Wood. She used to fight at Bantamweight. She broke Paige VanZant's arm in her last fight. Jessica is 31 years old from Cleveland. She wasn't having much success in the UFC Bantamweight division. She beat Kalindra Faria by split decision in January in her Flyweight debut. The fight was awful. Kalindra knocked Jessica loopy with a head kick but then she was too inept to finish her. So Jessica would have lost to a decent fighter and that may be Jessy Jess. Nadia is 22 years old from Sydney, Australia. She won her UFC debut over Alex Chambers in November. They were both awful but Alex was worse. Nadia seems very inexperienced to me. Keep in mind that her brother Ashkan Mokhtarian is also on this show. Yes, they need foreign fighters for foreign shows. But why do some of them have to be so inept? Yan is from mainland China. She won her UFC debut over Kailin Curran who has since been released. I'm not expecting much from this fight. Both are not very good.

Frank Pozen's Big Bad Podcast Apr. 15, 2018

UFC on FOX 29 review

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Lauren Mueller vs Shana Dobson

Here's the match video of Lauren Mueller vs Shana Dobson from last night's UFC show in Glendale, AZ. Lauren earned a UFC contract with a great performance on Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender's Series. That fight was at Bantamweight but this fight was at Flyweight. She trains at Alliance in San Diego. Shana was in TUF 26. She lost in the first round. But she won her fight on the TUF 26 Finale over a terrible opponent. It's hard to tell if she's any good against someone that bad. She trains at Team Lloyd Irvin in Washington, DC. I thought Lauren won the first two rounds with better striking. The fight never really went to the ground. It looks like Lauren ran out of gas in round three. Shana won the round. I scored the fight 29-28 for Lauren and so did the judges. I would like to see how she does against better competition. Enjoy the video!

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Michelle Waterson vs Cortney Casey

Here's the match video of Michelle Waterson vs Cortney Casey from last night's UFC show in Glendale, AZ. As I said in my preview on yesterday's podcast, I thought the size difference could determine the winner of this fight. What ended up determining it was strategic choices by both fighters that ultimately gave Michelle the win by split decision. I think she was very lucky. I scored the fight 29-28 for Casey. It seems everyone else scored it that way except the three judges. Round one was the difference. I thought Casey won the striking exchanges. Michelle did take her down towards the end of the round. But I don't think she did enough in top position to steal the round. Two of the three judges scored round one 10-9 for Michelle. It just shows how important top position is and taking the fight to the ground was a very good strategic decision for Michelle. It won her the fight. In round two, Michelle took the fight to the ground again and won the round by maintaining top position. Cortney tried for submissions from bottom position. But she spent too much time on what I thought were low percentage possibilities. I think she needed to get out from under and get back to her feet. That was a poor strategic choice. A fighter has to know when something isn't working and Michelle knew what Cortney was trying to do. So I guess Cortney beat herself. The start of round three was similar to round two. But by the end of the round, Cortney finally got top position and she was working toward a finish when time ran out. Maybe she should have shown more urgency. But I thought she won round one and I'm pretty sure her coach John Crouch thought that too. Who thought the judges would score it differently? It's a big win for Michelle. Plenty of folks picked Cortney to win and plenty of us scored it in her favor. That's why you don't leave it to the judges. It's a pretty good fight so enjoy the video!

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Darkness

Artist:The Darkness
Song:Love Is Only A Feeling
Album:The Platinum Collection





The Darkness had five top ten hits in their native England. They only recorded two albums before splitting up in 2006. They reformed in 2012 and they record and tour today. The Darkness are from Suffolk, England led by lead singer and guitarist Justin Hawkins and his brother Dan Hawkins on lead guitar. Justin Hawkins wrote jingles while leading the band Empire with his brother. The other members were Dan Poullain on bass and Ed Graham on drums. They changed their name to The Darkness in 1999. Though their music is standard hard rock, The Darkness' look and live show is influenced by 70s bands especially Queen. The kitschy look got them labelled as uncool by the British music press. Papers like NME or Melody Maker could be very influential on who gets a record deal. But eventually The Darkness signed with Atlantic. Their 2003 debut album Permission To Land was certified 4XPlatinum in England. Their biggest hit I Believe In A Thing Called Love reached #2 on the British Singles chart. Love Is Only A Feeling reached #5. They were a big deal in England and they won Kerrang! and BRIT awards. Their 2005 album One Way Ticket To Hell...And Back did not do as well. And then Justin Hawkins went into rehab for drug and alcohol addiction. After his recovery, he decided he was burned out from the constant touring. The Darkness was supposed to continue with a new singer. They started recording a new album. They decided not to continue. This comp was released in 2008. Hawkins released a single as British Whale in 2006. And then his new band Hot Leg released an album in 2008. Dan Hawkins and Ed Graham formed The Stone Gods and they released an album in 2008. After both bands ended, The Darkness reformed and they have released a couple of albums and they tour mostly in England. It includes three original members. Graham has been replaced by Rufus Tiger Taylor who is the son of Queen's Roger Taylor. Hard rock fans should check out The Darkness. Here's the video for Love Is Only A Feeling by The Darkness.

Frank Pozen's Big Bad Podcast Apr. 14, 2018

UFC on FOX 29 preview

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Shai

Artist:Shai
Song:Comforter
Album:20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection: The Best Of Shai




The R&B group Shai had brief success in the early 90s. They had three top ten hits including Comforter though it wasn't their biggest hit. I guess it's easy to confuse them with similar groups of the era like Boyz II Men. One big difference with Shai is they wrote and produced all their own music. All four guys were students at Howard University in Washington, DC. Carl "Groove" Martin and Darnell Van Rensalier were fraternity brothers. They were a duo at first but they decided a quartet would work better. They added fraternity brother Marc Gay and Van Rensalier's former roommate Garfield Bright. They found the name Shai in the Egyptian Book Of the Dead. Martin wrote If I Ever Fall In Love. They recorded a demo and it was a hit at Washington radio station WPGC. That station was part of a chain. And when the song spread to other stations in the chain, Shai signed with MCA's Gasoline Alley label. Then they recorded an album. If I Ever Fall In Love reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1992. The only thing that kept it from #1 was Whitney Houston's I Will Always Love You. Comforter was the second single. That and the third single Baby I'm Yours both reached #10 on the Billboard Hot 100. As I said, Shai wrote and produced their own music. Martin thought he was the leader and that led to the group's decline. When their 1995 album Blackface didn't do as well as the first album, Martin left Shai. And MCA dropped them. You can get all their hits on this budget comp. Van Rensalier and Bright still lead a version of Shai. When he isn't singing, Bright is a professor at Georgia State University. Here's the video for Comforter by Shai.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Jim White

Artist:Jim White
Song:10 Miles To Go On A 9 Mile Road
Album:No Such Place





Singer songwriter Jim White is probably best known for his run on David Byrne's Luaka Bop label. His music is an eclectic mix of several kinds of music. But I guess he could best be described as Alt Country. He was born Michael Pratt Mar. 10, 1957 in California but he grew up in Pensacola, FL. His first musical influence came from watching Country Gospel on the Gospel Jubilee TV show. He grew up in the Pentecostal church. White attempted to become a professional surfer and then he was a fashion model in Italy. He also attended the New York University film school. That's when he started performing. A bandsaw accident mangled his arm. But he was still able to play guitar. A demo landed at Luaka Bop and they signed him. 10 Miles To Go On A 9 Mile Road is from his 2001 CD No Such Place. He worked with several producers on the album. This track is produced by Paul and Ross Godfrey and Pete Norris who record as Morcheeba. White has also worked with Aimee Mann, Barenaked Ladies and Bill Frisell. White was the subject of the 2003 BBC documentary Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus. The soundtrack was released in 2005. White left Luaka Bop in 2007 and he has recorded for Yep Roc and now the British label Loose Music. his latest CD Waffles, Triangles & Jesus was released in 2017 and was mostly produced by the duo Hog-Eyed Man (Jason Cade, Rob Mcmaken) who I guess could be described as Neo Bluegrass. He is currently on tour. I don't think White is for everyone but maybe he's for you. That's why I post a video. Here's the video for 10 Miles To Go On A 9 Mile Road by Jim White.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Kairi Sane vs Lacey Evans

Here's the match video of Kairi Sane vs Lacey Evans from this week's episode of NXT. This was set up last week when Lacey insulted the entire NXT women's division. Lacey has been in NXT for a couple of years. Her real name is Macey Estrella. she is 28 years old from Statesboro, GA. She has a great back story. She had a rough childhood and she was a US Marine for five years. They turned her heel a while back and she is called The Lady of NXT. The gimmick is she claims to be classy but is actually nasty. Her ring gear reminds me of 1940s pinup girl Betty Grable. Part of her problem is she lacks spontaneity. Her dance to the ring seems over choreographed. And her ring work is dull. This is a show and she has to sell herself. She doesn't seem to know how to do that. This is what happens when the WWE trains wrestlers to follow a script. They don't learn to improvise. Lacey looks pretty good in this match because Kairi is great at selling offense. Lacey can learn a lot from Kairi about how to connect with fans and hook them. That's what she does in this match. After selling Lacey's offense, Kairi makes her comeback and sells the drama of that comeback. And then of course Kairi wins with the elbow drop. The fans go crazy. Kairi is a polished performer. She's an expert at connecting with fans. Though I expect this feud to continue for the near future, I also expect Kairi to get a title shot at the June Takeover show in June. And she could win depending on whether the WWE wants to bring Shayna Baszler up to the main roster. And I will keep you up to date with how that all develops on the blog and my podcast. Enjoy the video!

Frank Pozen's Big Bad Podcast Apr. 12, 2018

On today's podcast, a UFC fight announcement and WWE reviews.

Holly Holm vs Megan Anderson added to June 9 UFC show

Yesterday the Chicago Tribune reported and the UFC confirmed that Holly Holm vs Megan Anderson has been added to UFC 225 June 9 at the United Center in Chicago. This is a Welterweight bout. Of course Holly is not a Welterweight but the UFC has asked her to move up because the Welterweight cupboard is bare. Most recently she lost a title fight to Cris Cyborg. Some are praising her because she lasted five rounds. But her problems in that fight are the same problems she has had in other fights. She's just not aggressive enough. That's the only reason she loses fights. She's patient to a fault. Most fans should be familiar with Megan from Invicta. She was supposed to fight Cyborg last summer. But she had visa problems. Megan is from Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia but she now trains with UFC fighter James Krause in Missouri. She has improved tremendously since training there. Megan is currently on a four fight winning streak. I doubt she has improved enough to do anything with Cyborg. At six feet tall, she's a lot bigger than either Holly or Cyborg. So at least she's a real Welterweight. Unfortunately, other than Cyborg, she is the only UFC Welterweight. And I don't see any on the horizon.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Paul Kandel

Artist:Paul Kandel w/Tony Jay and David Ogden Stiers
Song:The Bells Of Notre Dame
Album:The Hunchback Of Notre Dame: An Original Walt Disney Records Soundtrack



The Hunchback Of Notre Dame is a 1996 Disney film based on the famed novel by Victor Hugo. It had been a film in the past most notably in 1939 starring Charles Laughton. This film followed the success of the 1991 film Beauty and the Beast. Alan Menken composed the score and he wrote the songs with Stephen Schwartz. The Bells Of Notre Dame is performed at the beginning of the film. It establishes the story of why Minister Of Justice Claude Frollo (Tony Jay) is caring for Quasimodo. At first directors Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise were going to have this narrated. But they asked Menken to write a song. There are three lead singers. The bulk of the song is sung by Paul Kandel who played Clopin along with small parts sung by Tony Jay and David Ogden Stiers. It's probably the best known role ever played by Kandel. He seems to be retired now but he started out in New York cabarets in the 80s. But he made his name playing Uncle Ernie in the 1993 Broadway production of Tommy. He was nominated for a Tony. That's when Disney hired him for The Hunchback Of Notre Dame. He also appeared in the 2002 sequel The Hunchback Of Notre Dame II. He also appeared in the 2000 Broadway revival of Jesus Christ Superstar. He doesn't have any recent credits so I can only assume he retired. Jay and Stiers have more prominent work in their resumes so I may look at them down the road. Kandel just doesn't have the volume of work but he is the main singer of this song. Here's The Bells Of Notre Dame by Paul Kandel with Tony Jay and David Ogden Stiers in the 1996 film The Hunchback Of Notre Dame.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-The Poets

Artist:The Poets
Song:Devil's Den Pt. 1
Album:The Godfather's R&B: James Brown's Productions 1962-67




Here's a one off single that will interest James Brown fans. This recording was made in 1963 when Brown started his first record label. The Poets were Brown's backing band at the time with Brown himself playing organ. The label was called Try Me Records. Brown just had success with Live At The Apollo and the single Prisoner Of Love. Brown and right hand man Bobby Byrd started Try Me as a separate entity after they had success producing singer Yvonne Fair in 1962. Her singles were on King Records. Unfortunately the label was short lived because Brown got into a legal dispute with King. The main artist on this label was 17 year old singer Tammy Montgomery. Brown was in a relationship with her at the time. A few years later, she would have success at Motown as Tammi Terrell usually teaming with Marvin Gaye. The other thing Brown wanted to try was recording instrumentals. The Poets was Brown's backing band with Brown playing organ. Later on Brown would release instrumental albums on Smash but I understand this was his first attempt. This was their only single. The whole thing got derailed when Brown got into a spat with King and attempted to leave for Mercury's Smash label. He signed a new contract with King in 1965 but he didn't restart Try Me. He would continue to occasionally produce other artists for Smash. You can get those recordings on this comp from Beat Goes On. Later on Brown would start Brownstone Records which became People Records in 1971. Lyn Collins was on People. That attempt was more successful than Try Me. Here's a video for Devil's Den Pt. 1 by The Poets.

Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Charlotte vs Asuka

Here's the match video of Charlotte vs Asuka from Wrestlemania. It took me a couple of days to find a great copy. But this video has everything including the entrances. And it's pristine quality. I'll talk about the end of the streak in a moment. The match itself is very good but not great. I've seen a lot of overpraising of this match. It probably is Charlotte's best match to date. But Asuka had better matches in NXT especially her Last Woman Standing match vs Nikki Cross. The two major flaws in this match were that it was too short. And the ending was too abrupt. it seemed to come out of nowhere. It seemed like they were given a certain length of time and they didn't want to run long. I thought they deserved more time. For the most part, Asuka controlled the match. That's why the ending made no sense. A spear and a figure eight should not have finished Asuka. It should have taken more than that. That being said, Asuka did some very innovative things. Turning Charlotte's moonsault into a triangle choke was brilliant. I assume you heard they wouldn't let her use her armbar. That's what she came up with. That's the move of the match and it was a mid match throwaway. So what this is really about is who will face Ronda Rousey at next year's Wrestlemania. So Vince McMahon has chosen Charlotte because she's Ric Flair's daughter. They also perceive her as a great wrestler. She's not as good as they think. The big question is can Charlotte carry someone less experienced than herself to a great match. I doubt it but I know Asuka can have a great match with anyone. And that's why Asuka should be in that position because she can handle the pressure and deliver a great match. I don't think Charlotte has that kind of ability. She's better than she was. Her promos are still terrible. Most of her matches are very ordinary. That could be a big problem. I don't know what they will do with Asuka. We may find out a next week's shakeup. But they had an opportunity to turn her heel on Sunday and they went the soft route. So enjoy the video. The quality is perfect. Click on the toad and it will take you to the video. I can't embed the video.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Mike Birbiglia

Artist:Mike Birbiglia
Song:Porno For Parents
Album:My Secret Public Journal Live




Mike Birbiglia is a comedian who seems to be getting more into filmmaking these days. He did some specials for Comedy Central though he has now moved to Netflix after appearing on Orange Is The New Black. Performing live is where he started. He was born June 20, 1978 in Shrewsbury, MA. After watching Steven Wright, Birbiglia started writing jokes as a teen. He attended Georgetown and performed at The Improv while in school. After graduating, Birbiglia moved to New York and appeared on Late Show with David Letterman in 2002. He released an album in 2004 and that and his live shows got him a deal with Comedy Central. Porno For Parents is from his 2007 CD My Secret Public Journal Live. He produced a video for that track. His first comedy special was in 2008. A sitcom pilot based on Birbiglia's live was shot for CBS in 2008. But it did not go to series. Birbiglia says the pilot failure was the luckiest thing that ever happened to him. In 2010, Birbiglia wrote the book Sleepwalk With Me. He turned it into a live show and then a film. He did a second show My Girlfriend's Boyfriend in 2011. He continues to perform. His latest comedy special Thank God For Jokes was released by Netflix last year. This was after he appeared on several episodes of the popular Netflix series Orange Is The New Black. He also wrote, directed and starred in the 2016 indie film Don't Think Twice. He also is a regular on the podcast This American Life. And he is currently on tour. So Mike Birbiglia is one busy guy and he likes to do everything. Here's the video for Porno For Parents by Mike Birbiglia.

Frank Pozen's Big Bad Podcast Apr. 9, 2018

On today's podcast, I review Wrestlemania and I look at Invicta FC 29.

Analysis of Invicta FC 29

It was announced today that Invicta will return to Kansas City May 4. As usual, I will analyze the show. The main event will be Sarah Kaufman vs Katharina Lehner for the vacant Invicta Bantamweight Champion. There was a time when Sarah was an elite fighter. She just isn't anymore. I think the rest of the division improved and she didn't. So she's probably in Invicta to stay and she still has fans. She's mostly a puncher and she hasn't improved her other skills. Katharina is 28 years old from Cologne, Germany. Her record is 7-1 mostly in Germany. In her one Invicta fight, she beat Alexa Connors by TKO last August. I don't think it qualifies her for a title shot. Did they pick a name out of a hat? Let's look at the other fights. In a Bantamweight bout, Pannie Kianzad will face Bianca Daimoni. Pannie is from Denmark. She looked like a world beater in Europe but she's 1-3 in Invicta. Bianca is 31 years old from Brazil. Her record is 7-2 in Brazil so she probably belongs on the prelims. In a Flyweight bout, Pearl Gonzalez will face Barbara Acioly. This will be Pearl's first fight at Flyweight. her previous fights were at Strawweight. She was 0-2 in the UFC but she won her recent Invicta debut. Barbara is a 4-2 Brazilian. She lost her Invicta debut and then she was sent to PANCRASE in Japan and she lost to Takayo Hashi. In a Bantamweight bout Julia Avila will face Marciea Allen. Julia is 31 years old from Bakersfield, CA. She has a 4-0 record with a Jan. 2017 win over current UFC Flyweight champ Nicco Montano. Marciea is 36 years old from Sioux Falls, SD. Her MMA record is 6-2. She is mainly a boxer. We last saw her in Invicta in 2012. Having seen her a couple of times, she should probably stick to boxing. In a Flyweight bout, Liz Tracy will face Cheri Muraski. Liz is 29 years old from Portland, OR. Her record is 4-2. She lost to Andrea Lee in a May 2017 Invicta fight. Cheri is from Denver. Her record is 4-2. She lost her Invicta debut to Brogan Sanchez in January. In a Bantamweight fight, Yaya Rincon will face Lisa Spangler. Yaya is 24 years old. She trains at MMA Gold in California so she is a teammate of Aspen Ladd. She won her first two Invicta fights. I like what I have seen of her. Lisa is 22 years old from Vancouver, WA. This is her pro debut but she has a 9-1 amateur record. In a Featherweight bout, Allison Schmidt will face Macy Chiasson. Both are 1-0 fighters making Invicta debuts. It's tough to find decent Featherweights. In a Strawweight bout, Helen Peralta will face Cheyanne Vlismas. Helen is 29 years old from Iowa, She looked pretty good in her Jan. Invicta debut. Cheyanne is 22 years old. She trains at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas. This is her Invicta debut but she won her MMA debut recently in LFA. The opener is a Strawweight bout with newcomer Adriana Vukovich facing an opponent TBA. Adriana is from Croatia. She is making her MMA debut but she is an amateur grappling champ. As is typical of Invicta, the main card is weak but the prelims look better than usual.

AccuRadio Song Of The Day-Cowboy Junkies

Artist:Cowboy Junkies
Song:Sweet Jane
Album:Best Of Cowboy Junkies





Cowboy Junkies have been very successful in their native Canada. They are probably best known for this cover of the Lou Reed classic Sweet Jane because it appeared in the 1994 film Natural Born Killers. Cowboy Junkies are a family group. They were born in Montreal but their dad was a salesman and the family moved to the Toronto suburb of Etobicoke. They all went to high school at Richview Collegiate. Guitarist Michael Timmins and his bassist friend Alan Anton had a group called Hunger Project. They moved to England to play in the band Germinal. But they got tired of it and moved back to Toronto in 1984. The two started jamming with Michael's brother Peter Timmins on drums. They asked sister Margo Timmins to join. At the time, she was a social worker and had never sung professionally. Cowboy Junkies was born. They played Toronto clubs and released an album independently. It got them a deal with RCA Canada. The 1988 album The Trinity Sessions was recorded in one day at Toronto's Church of the Holy Trinity. This is a famous church that is frequently used as a concert venue. It's near The Eaton Center in downtown Toronto. Producer Peter Moore suggested using the church because he liked the acoustics. To convince the church to let them use it, he told them the group was The Timmins Family Singers and they were recording a Christmas album. The album was certified 2XPlatinum in Canada. Their cover of Sweet Jane was used in the 1994 film Natural Born Killers and that led to The Trinity Sessions being certified Platinum in the US. This budget comp is a good intro to their music. Cowboy Junkies are still around. They record on their own label. They are supposed to have a new album coming out followed by a tour. But Michael Timmins broke his wrist playing hockey and everything has been delayed until he recovers. Here's the video for Sweet Jane by Cowboy Junkies.