WCJM Free Internet Radio Station: “The Rock & Roll Christmas Show” – 2000

By WCJM Free Internet Radio:

Dave Perrelli decided to join the cast because he heard and liked the Everything is Christmas Show.  So it was no surprise that Dave was very insistent on doing another Christmas Show.  Luckily, Jim and Mike had enough music to do another show, and thus the Rock ‘n’ Roll Christmas was made.

The free Internet radio show was done on very short notice because of different scheduling conflicts, and after school on Wednesday, November 22, 2000 the show was done.  The cast was picked up from a half day of school by Jeff Copperthite, one of the writers for the show (also playing Ron Popeil).  They went to eat at Subway and came back to Jim’s house to do the show.

This show contained many of the more personal touches that the World Series Show lacked.  Even though Chris didn’t talk as much as he wanted to on the air (I say, “Tough!”), there was more than just great music.  There was a skit with Dr. K, a story by Jeff and a story by Chris, and Jeff’s tips of the day.  And everyone’s favorite bear came back to join us on Christmas show as Stuffy D. Bear made the whole cast crack-up again.  There was also a new song that was never heard before made by Jim Fusco himself.

But of course, there were problems.  The show was originally made to fit on one 74 minute MiniDisc.  Unfortunately, Traffic, News, and Weather ran very long and the show did not fit in the allotted time.  So, Jim Fusco decided, with help from the rest of the cast, to put the show on another MiniDisc.  This let the show breathe a little more, and allowed for Jeff and Chris’ stories.  This free Internet radio show is a timeless classic that will be played for every Christmas to come!

“On the Shelf” (Original Wednesday Acoustic Video by Jeff Copperthite)

By Jeff Copperthite:

Wow it seems so long since i’ve done an original Original Wednesday.  I checked my video session catalog (which is nearing 100 by the way) and the last true original song I have brought you (read: a song that I have written) was actually on July 15.  That is OVER TWO MONTHS!  I couldn’t let it go on any longer!

So i’m digging one up for the sessions today.  Finally, not only an original tune, but a PREMIERE, never before seen or heard, Jeff Copperthite original.

All my fans and my sessionmates are familiar with my playing style.  I feel this song is somewhat of a deviation.  The guitar part I play to this song is probably among the more creative ones I have recently conceived.  The lyrics – well, remember I am a happily married guy, but that doesn’t mean someone can’t tell a story that isn’t personal to the writer.  Plus, it fits the “spirit” of the guitar part quite well.

Perhaps this song will make it to the recording studio next year for another album.  I’ve felt the writing itch for a couple months now.  Scott & I are going to be getting together in the near future to do some jamming as well.  Perhaps a new Quilt EP or album is not that far in the future.  And everyone that knows both of us know, that he’ll blow me out of the water on the guitar.

My viewcount has reached 42K, and I have three new requests to work on for my upcoming sessions, but now back to your regularly scheduled “New Bands 2.0” week.  I’ll be back Saturday covering a band that has already made me say “Holy crap why did I pick this band?” – not because they don’t sound good, but because they sound incredible, and covering them will be a tall order.  I’m up to it, however.

And tomorrow, Jim will be back with another new band (feel free to register it under the “Thumpin’ Thursday™” tag Jim), and Chris will be back to satiate our eyes and ears with another new band.

I hope you enjoyed this edition of Original Wednesday!

Editor’s Note: Unfortunately, Jeff’s acoustic cover song music videos are no longer on YouTube, but we decided to keep his cover song blog posts up.  We figured these music blog entries would be good for posterity’s sake and because Jeff always gave such insightful posts each Session.  We hope to see Jeff’s impressive catalog of acoustic rock songs here on the Laptop Sessions cover songs and original music blog again in the future.  But, for now, please make sure to check-out hundreds of other acoustic cover songs from all of your favorite bands here on the Laptop Sessions music blog!

“Last Beautiful Girl” (Matchbox Twenty Covers)

By Chris Moore:

All right, now I’m kicking into high gear. This is one of my favorite tracks from Matchbox Twenty. It’s an obscure one, but I’ve always loved it. I have to stretch my range on the middle, but I practiced so many times that not posting for lack of perfection just wasn’t an option!


“I Am Mine” (Pearl Jam Cover)

For Pearl Jam chords & lyrics, CLICK HERE!

By Chris Moore:

Hello and welcome to a very special edition of the Laptop Sessions.  This is Chris Moore writing for the first Monday — the first day, for that matter — of June.  And June 1st is a special day for entertainment, as this is the date of the very first Tonight Show hosted by Conan O’Brien on NBC.  As I type this, I’m watching the beginning of the episode and loving every moment.  For me, Conan is the ultimate late show host, and I truly hope that he will establish himself as a primary late show host in the minds and hearts of viewers throughout the nation.  I wasn’t sure what to expect tonight, as I haven’t watched an episode of Late Night for years.

I haven’t been disappointed.

As I’m watching the first segment with Conan’s “run to California,” his opening monologue, and his “tram tour” video, I’m remembering why his late night show was one of my favorite reasons to stay up past midnight in college.  Well, that and late night Burger King chicken fries and burgers, of course.

My song choice tonight is directly inspired by Conan’s first night on the Tonight Show.  His first musical guest — a band which he said he was delighted “to the bone marrow” about — is Pearl Jam.  Thus, although I was planning to record and post the first Relient K Laptop Session, I decided instead to record a Pearl Jam song.

As a special treat (I hope), I’ve recorded a Relient K song to tide you over until I can get back to the one I wanted to record.  In fact, this is probably for the best, as I started to work out the chords for “At Least We Made It This Far” and found that all online sources for Relient K chords were terribly inaccurate.  So, I’ll keep working on that one and get back to it soon.

Tonight’s session is my cover song version of Pearl Jam’s “I Am Mine” from their 2002 album Riot Act.  The first single off the record, “I Am Mine” is a great track that tackles existential issues.  My favorite line is “I know I was born and I know that I’ll die; the in between is mine.”  What a great line.  When I’m stressed out, I sing this line in my head to remind myself that I’m in control of my life, at least to a certain degree.

Although I like the music and vocals on this song, to be fair, it is not perfect.  Case in point: I’m not so crazy about the line “The oceans are full because everyone’s crying.”  There’s something about that line that cheapens the overall impact for me, kind of like the line “It sucks to grow up” turned Jim off to the Ben Folds song “Still Fighting It.”

Regardless, this is a great song, and I worked very hard to do my absolute best to record an enjoyable cover session for you.

I can’t believe that I actually stayed up late enough to watch the entire Tonight Show, but here I am.  This leaves two truths:

1)  I will be setting at least a couple extra alarms for tomorrow morning.

2) I got to see not only the Will Ferrell interview, but I’m about to watch the Pearl Jam performance, which is supposed to feature material from their new album.  Can’t wait!

So, that’s it for me tonight.  I wish you a great week, and hope you’ll come back to enjoy new videos all throughout the week.

See you next session!