I always thought of Ted Leo as a Jeff Kent type of player (without the attitude problems). Solid peak, very good prime, excellent career and always at the top of his position but never a star. Deserving of being inducted into the (Indie) Hall of Fame. If such a thing existed.

Plus, I bet he doesn't like Barry Bonds either.

Anyone know of this Ted Leo?

I think he's playing in my town tonight....

The writer has an excellent grasp of what "Moneyball" was all about - finding good talent on the cheap.
Now, was that so ####### hard, Joe Morgan?

Anyone know of this Ted Leo?

I think he's playing in my town tonight....

I haven't made it to any of his shows yet, but from what I've heard and the videos I've seen, he puts on a fantastic live show. He's a great song writer lyrically and he writes some of the catchiest songs you'll ever hear.

Ted Leo & The Pharmacists are fantastic and quite excellent live. Always feel like they're thoroughly underappreciated.

I love Ted Leo. Great band. I'm gonna try and see them in Boston tomorrow night.

I haven't made it to any of his shows yet, but from what I've heard and the videos I've seen, he puts on a fantastic live show. He's a great song writer lyrically and he writes some of the catchiest songs you'll ever hear.

Get your ears out of the spreadsheet and go watch a show, geek.

Count me in on the Ted Leo fanboy contingent. I've seen him two or three times, and his ability to put his whole soul into the show is like Springsteen, his lyrics are dense and full of allusions to literature, the Bible, and all sorts of stuff, and his bands are really tight.

Pick up Hearts of Oak to sample what he has to offer. He's much like the Wrens. He's been working hard and deserves more than he's gotten. As bands go, I'd say Dwight Evans.

Ted Leo & The Pharmacists are fantastic and quite excellent live. Always feel like they're thoroughly underappreciated.

Agreed. And Ted Leo has a very winning personality, at least on stage.

TFTIO!

Good to see you. I've got a half white next to me, with extra hot sauce. While I put my money through the bulletproof glass I wondered how you were.

Good to see you. I've got a half white next to me, with extra hot sauce. While I put my money through the bulletproof glass I wondered how you were.

I'm well. I found a place in SF where I can get decent fried chicken, but it's Upscale Comfort Food and thus $15. Otherwise, doing fine. The Giants Fan is in Taiwan for a year, so I've reverted to the single guy state of nature; Hobbsian, with fewer pants.

You?

For the sake of everyone's dinner, this should probably be taken off-line. I'll drop you a note if that is cool with you.

I'll join in on the Ted Leo love here. Wish I would have gotten a chance to check them out at Lollapalooza this summer. Sadly they were playing at the same time (and on the opposite side of Grant Park) as Son Volt.

Yeah, Ted's cool. I've seen him a couple of times with scotto. Excellent live act. I would have seen him last month, but Spoon was playing the same night and I already had tickets for that one.

As for the concept, it's great in theory, but live music, at least for me, isn't always easy to come by. I can't just go see someone because the tickets are cheap. I usually have to be pretty familiar with the band, and I'd rarely go just on a recommendation. I'd need to spend some time listening to the band first. Though I guess I've been surprised by some opening acts, most notably Rogue Wave, the Quentin Stoltfus project formerly known as Mazarin, Irving, the Broken West, Viva Voce, and just recently, Simple Kid, who is freaking awesome. BRMC was an opener the first time I saw them, but I digress.

I think seeing concerts on the cheap is more a function of a) being lucky enough to like a lot of small bands that don't charge much for a show, and b) living in a big city that everyone comes to sooner or later. I've probably seen 25 shows this year, none more than $20-25, and most in the $10-15 range. I think Interpol was the most expensive, and I don't think they were over $25 before ticketb@st@rd.

Jon, are you another U of I guy?

"While I put my money through the bulletproof glass"

I had gizzards, hot, earlier this week. . .

While we seem to have a Chicago contingent here in this thread, there is some discussion of a Meetup on a Wednesday evening, Loop or River Northish in the next few weeks. 6-ish would likely be the start, and whatever happens after that would just happen.

It's been a while since a lot of us have gotten together, and a holiday occasion seems right.

Drop me a note if interested and I'll do my best to screw up the coordination.

That I am; C-U native. The Illini do seem to be quite well represented here.

Another Illini here... although I'm East Coast now...

I used to see bands at the Empty Bottle in Chicago like three nights a week...didn't matter if I ever/never heard of them, because the cover was usually $6-$8... for me, $14 is not a cheap show... I've only paid $20 or more for a show once that I can remember in the last several years....

First non-stadium/non-giant-venue rock shows I saw were at Mabel's in Champaign, and after seeing music up close and personal I've never really been into "big shows" where I can't get right up close..I'd rather see some unknown opener up close than a "name act" from a few hundred feet away...at that point you're better off with YouTube... and don't even get me started on shows where you have SIT.... that ain't rock and roll, I don't care who you used to be---and yes, I'm talking to you, Buzzcocks....

This is a pretty strange article. If you live in a city big enough to have a baseball team, there is plenty of good live acts to be seen for $0 - $15. It's just a matter of looking. Only the cost of seeing the huge acts in stadiums has really gone up in the past 20-30 years.

Slim Cessna's Auto Club is a band that tours a lot and is worth checking out.

If you've never heard it...Ted Leo's ("that's scratchy records...it's scratchy records") tribute to WFMU set to the Jam's "That's Entertainment" is royal.

I love Ted Leo as well. Who can forget my great username a few years ago...Phil Coorey & the Pharmacists.

Awesome link there Repoz, thanks

My favorite three Leo albums are Shake the Sheets, Hearts of Oak and Tyranny of Distance.