#dave burgess

[zzyzxtourguide]

Would he NEED the shotgun to win against the harpy??

Yes, he’d lose without it

No, he’d win without it

He’d have much better odds if he had a shotgun

He’d lose even WITH the shotgun

The plot requires it.

Voting ended onSep 4, 2023

[krispyweiss]

Champs’ Co-founder Dave Burgess Dies at 90

- Band is known for “Tequila,” counting pre-fame Seals & Crofts as members

Dave Burgess, guitarist and co-founder of the Champs, who had a hit in 1958 with “Tequila,” has died at 90.

His Oct. 19 obituary said Burgess died in Tennessee; no cause was given.

Active until 1965, the Champs’ counted the pre-fame Seals & Crofts - Jim Seals (sax) and Dash Crofts (drums) - among its members, though neither played on “Tequila.”

But it’s the perennial song for which the band is best known. The Ventures, Allen Toussaint, Jimmy Buffett and Bob Weir are among the artists who’ve recorded or performed “Tequila” and the song had a prominent role in “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure.”

[greensparty]

The Champs "Tequila"

Guitarist Dave Burgess has died at 90 (read the obit from People here). The 1958 instrumental went to #1 on the charts. The L.A. rock band broke up in the mid-60s. But "Tequila" had many pop culture moments in the decades that followed most notably in the 1985 comedy masterpiece Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, where Pee-Wee (Paul Reubens) finds himself in a biker bar and as they are about to harm him, he wins them over by dancing to this song. In 2023 after the passing of Reubens, I attended a special screening of the movie followed by a big tribute event with some imitators dancing to the song!

Here is the band's performance on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1958.

[julio-viernes]

Hace unos días entramos en primavera mojados como peces, ¡ojo los alérgicos cuando llegue el buen tiempo! Poco se sabe del grupo paródico The Jefferson Handkerchief. Sacaron un único single en Challenge en 1967, “I´m Allergic To Flowers”, un número novelty que saca punta al rock psicodélico de la Costa Oeste y a los “niños de la flores”, recuperado posteriormente en recopilaciones como “Pebbles”. Ahí es donde la conocí yo a long, long time ago. Es una composición de Dave Burgess (ex Champs) que narra la bonita historia de un chaval que quiere ser hippie pero no puede porque es alérgico a las flores. Nada más. Que ustedes lo estornuden bien. Achoo.

[gaykarstaagforever]

Wikipedia Says, in which I regurgitate things I've read on Wikipedia (and have perhaps verified outside of that? But probably not. A lot of this information may be wrong. But it's on Wikipedia so that makes it right.)

"Tequila", by The Champs

1) This was the result of a desperate jam session in 1958 to produce a B-side for "Train to Nowhere," another instrumental.

It is pretty good for what it is but didn't go anywhere, and "Tequila" took off after random radio DJs realized it was the catchier song.

2) The Challenge label has a GA insignia, because it was founded and owned by Gene Autry. Yes, THAT Gene Autry.

I love Gene Autry. A gentleman and a patriot.

3) Dave Burgess, a prolific rockabilly guitarist / country singer / song writer / producer working for Challenge, "wrote" these songs, though it seems they were more a collaboration between him and Danny Flores, a Mexican-American studio musician / singer who along with two others were known as the Flores Trio. Danny Flores is the one saying the "Tequila"s on that song. He was credited as "Chuck Rio," however, because he was technically signed as Danny Flores to another label as a singer.

4) Burgess and the Flores Trio (plus other guys) went by The Champs for the sake of the record, named after Gene Autry's famous Champion the Wonder Horse (who was actually like 3 or 4 different horses who looked kind of similar, across his 80 short films. Movie cowboys were like Marvel superheroes back then; kids didn't know or care).

5) "Tequila" is supposedly a riff on this song from 1957? I mean, kind of.

6) Burgess and Flores didn't get along and things fell apart. This culminated in Flores signing away to Burgess any of his credits / royalties to "Tequila". The Champs stopped being a thing after 1965. Glen Campbell (yes, THAT Glen Campbell) was briefly a part of them, before he quit to join the famous Wrecking Crew. Because Glen Campbell was an unbelievable musician and you should stop judging him exclusively on the basis of all his lame 70s country songs. ...Which you shouldn't do anyway, because those songs are charming as hell, and a lot of them are great, they just had mid 70s production, whatever, I'll stop.

Glen Campbell was a gentleman and a patriot.

7) Dave Burgess was born in 1934, and is apparently STILL ALIVE, and still recording / producing music??? Good on him!

He apparently had to auction off his Grammy for "Tequila" to pay medical bills a bit ago, which went for a lot, because it is like one of the first Grammys ever. The Recording Academy of the United States responded to this, not by offering to help him, but by publicly yelling at him for "cheapening the prestige of the Grammys" by doing this.

Which proves they are awful, stupid people in at least two unique ways.

[moveslikeanape]

Kevin Lima, Nigel Hawthorne, and Dave Burgess pose with Porter

[tisinaction]

Teach Like a Pirate: R is for Rapport

I was looking forward to reading this particular section because I already had confidence in the rapport that I have built with students both current and past. In my current position, I am rarely in the classroom, except once a week at the elementary school. At the middle school, I only end up in the classroom if the teacher requests a co-teacher for a lesson I’ve helped develop or to provide backup support for technology. In order to build rapport with my students as a TIS, I have done a few things.

When I first began at both of my schools, my students were completely unfamiliar with me. They didn’t always see me, and when they did, it usually wasn’t for long. Before the year was out last year, I had decided to go with a uniform approach to how I dressed. I wanted mornings to be easy on me, and it also helped me stand out. My polos are designed in school colors- green with yellow writing for the elementary school and orange with black writing for the middle school. Students soon learned to recognize me by my shirt because I was consistent. Did it build rapport? No, but it made me stand out when I otherwise blended in.

Clubs have been one of my biggest successes, and the easiest way for me to spend time with students outside of the classroom. Whether it’s one of my coding clubs, my speed stacking club, or my Lego League group, I spend extra time with my students. During this time we’ll discuss things going on in students’ lives and their interests. Sometimes it’s all about helping them work through a frustration with something they are completing in club. Not every day is a good day of course, but these students feel comfortable with me.

Another of my successes has been trying to follow along with some of the interests of students, or at least keeping abreast. This is easier said than done, and I do best with it when it comes to elementary students. The universal interest that I’ve found so far is Minecraft. I got into it two years ago with the hopes of connecting with an upcoming 4th grade class. I knew that a huge majority of the students were into the game, and I had always wanted to see what it was about. Now, two years later, I find myself hooked on the game and the creative aspect of it. I wear one of the Minecraft Gamebands nearly every day, and if students see it, they tend to ask me about it. From there, we discuss their interests in the game and what they like to do. For example, a student saw it today and asked “Do you play Minecraft Story Mode?” I was able to reply yes and the student then told me all about their adventures completing episode 1.

My final success I feel has to do with my penchant for engaging in being silly or crazy to get my point across in a lesson. I’m not afraid to make a fool of myself if it means I can engage my students better. My one 4th grade class never forgot the day I dressed up for Wacky Wednesday and called myself Riley McDonald. I talked in a funny voice, and taught class that way the entire day. I’ve done the rock cycle as a Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers theme. I’ve tossed things in class, slammed things down with a grin, and even made a mess to get my message across. Oh, and who could forget the Donkey “That’s a nice number” phrase for rounding numbers, with a cutout of Donkey from Shrek on a stick?

One of the big sections in this chapter is the description of the first three days in Dave’s classroom. I really enjoyed this section, and the suggestions he gave. The biggest problem I see is that it would be hard to do those things in an elementary classroom, or a room where the students are not switching classes. It works best in a room that is only there for a period of time, perhaps 45 minutes. It wouldn’t be as hard in a school where students change classes on a block schedule, but for elementary, the task becomes more challenging. In fact, I’m not even sure off the top of my head how I would make the first few days work in an elementary classroom. Ideas, anyone? Contribute if you do.

Of his first 3 days set of plans, day 3 seems to be the most critical of them all. He sets up day 3 to be a sales pitch of sorts to sell his class on the idea that his is different and set up to be different than other classes that the students have had before. I believe that in some fashion a majority of teachers do attempt to do this, but perhaps not with as much fervor and energy as Dave does. Perhaps this is where the change needs to be. If a teacher isn’t excited to be in their own classroom in front of their students, then the students are going to pick up on that energy, whether it’s said or not. No, a teacher cannot be excited every single day, but if a student is saying “Mr. So-and-So’s class is always so boring. He doesn’t want to be here!” then there’s an issue.

Even though I’m not a classroom teacher, I do make it a point to have positive interactions with students. They don’t often see me unless there’s an issue with technology so I rarely get the chance to build any kind of strong rapport with students. With that in mind, I do need to watch what I do when I do interact with students. Sometimes I only have those few moments with that student to make an impact. I want to be seen as someone that students feel they can easily ask about technology issues, or talk to. For me, this makes it easier when it comes to suggesting how they can use a tool differently, or solutions to try in the future. I think I do a pretty good job of this right now, as it’s in my nature, but I do need to be mindful of it in the future. I feel that it can only continue help me to build better relationships.

[tisinaction]

Teach Like a Pirate: I is for Immersion

Before I read this chapter, I thought about immersion in general when it came to my teaching experiences. I thought about the ways I had immersed my students in past lessons, and of the lessons where I failed to do so. Whenever I think of immersing my students fully, I think of my favorite social studies lesson that I ever taught.

I had found a unit hook for the American Revolution online. I loved the premise behind it, and worked to make it a reality in my classroom. To kick off the unit, the teacher was to let the principal in on the action. The principal would enter the room and explain to students very sternly that there was now a 5 cent tax on all paper. Students had to pay to turn in homework, had to pay to take home school papers, had to pay to receive them, etc. As soon as the principal finished there was to be a quick exit. If any student asked questions, the principal would sternly say “No questions” and leave. If done correctly, the students would be in an outrage, and the teacher would guide them to vent their frustrations and develop persuasive letters to give to the principal. The year I did it, my students were so outraged that they not only wrote the letter, but they also made a video explaining their outrage. Instead of letting the “trick” go on for about 30 minutes and then discussing the connections to the Revolution and the Stamp Act, it went on all afternoon. That’s how immersed they were.

There were other lessons that came to mind, but the Immersion chapter in Teach Like a Pirate wasn’t so much about immersing the students in what they were learning and doing, but immersing myself right along with the students. Then came the tricky part of reflection: the part where I realized that hey, I’ve not always done that. In some cases, I’d had a rough day or was sick, but in many other cases, there was no excuse or reason I could put forth. I simply hadn’t put myself in the moment fully. My mind was elsewhere, or I had been trying to do other things at the time. When it comes to these excuses, I had failed my students.

Immersion is putting yourself fully in the lesson. Your attention is meant only for the lesson and the students, and isn’t elsewhere. There are no extra papers being graded. There’s no sitting on the sidelines, or answering work emails. For that moment in time, your attention is undivided. My students never mentioned it, but I’m sure they noticed. They had to notice the difference between the lessons I was really into and active with, and the ones I was not.

I thought about this quite a lot today, and realized that it is a very valid point, both in education and in my own personal life. I can think back to my spring break period. My girlfriend came in to visit, and was here from last Wednesday to this Wednesday. When she’s here, I find myself using my phone less, and definitely away from my computer most of the time. My attention is us, and being together, as I know I’ll have time after she goes back home to do my usual activities. There is definitely room for improvement. Isn’t there always, though?

If I end up back in the classroom next year (depending on what kind of job I end up with) this will be a key focus area for me. It’s one thing to reflect and realize that it’s a mistake I’ve made in the past. It’s a whole other ball game as to whether I work to actively correct it. Time will tell!