2015-12-27 Merry Gameday

close approximation of the event

8-Players: K, W, G, Si, Sc, J, D, DT
Game(s): 7 Wonders + Cities & Stone Age
Choice: Consensus
Location: K

Game One: 7 Wonders + Cities

yay cities!

Player	Points
Si	58
J	56
Sc	49
DT	49
G	47
D	44
K	42
W	27

Game Two: 7 Wonders + Cities

yay cities

Player	Points
Sc	58
G	56
Si	55
D	43
W	42
J	38
DT	35
K	30

babel on the other hand, not so much yay

Game Three: 7 Wonders + Cities + Babel

Player	Points
Si	48
K	47
J	44
W	42
G	38
Sc	33
D	32
DT	32

Game Four: Stone Age (two side by side 4-Player games)



stone age yay!

Player	Points
K	168
G	149
Sc	149
Si	133
J	132
DT	124
D	120
W	97

Final Tally

Point totals from all games were added together to get the final tally for each player

Player	Points
Si	294
G	290
Sc	289
K	287
J	270
DT	240
D	239
W	208

2015-12-23 This is why we put up with johnny b goode

definitely not a donkey!

4-Players: K, W, G & Z
Game: Tigris and Euphrates
Location: W
Choice: Consensus

Game One:

Player	Points
G	11(12)
Z	11(11)
W	9
K	8

Final Tally:

G and Z were tied at the end of the game with eleven cubes in their smallest pile. G won the tie breaker having twelve in his next smallest pile. G was declared this week's winner.

Game Notes:

• First appearance of Z at ESBS
• First time Z plays T & E
• Time left at end allowed for a quick game of Dominion base (Village Square setup)
• Scores: K (28), Z (24), W (21), G (16)
• "Killer filler"
• "Winning is winning"

Music Notes:



Acid Jazz on the Rocks Vol 2 (1999)

[Notes from G] Enjoyable compilation from the Italian label Irma of then contemporary artists including Jestofunk







Jethro Tull: Stand Up (1969)

[Notes from AllMusic commenter MarkYorkel] Jethro Tull's second album saw Martin Barre on guitar replace Mick Abrahams who went off to form Blodwyn Pig. Barre would form a long partnership with Ian Anderson and Stand Up is one of their best albums. Glenn Cornick's bass playing is also outstanding. While Tull has had many fine bass players, Glenn Cornick is by far the best and his sound is unique and critical to the Tull vibe. Stand out cuts include "Back To The Family", "We Used To Know", "Nothing Is Easy" and "Look Into The Sun". Other notables included "Bouree" and "Fat Man". The signature Jethro Tull sound consisting of outstanding acoustic cuts and top shelf hard rock tunes make Stand Up an absolutely essential purchase. Original vinyl copies had the pop out Tull puppets, which are a must have for the serious collector.


Jethro Tull: This Was (1968)

[Notes from AllMusic] Jethro Tull was very much a blues band on their debut album, vaguely reminiscent of the Graham Bond Organization only more cohesive, and with greater commercial sense. The revelations about the group's roots on This Was -- which was recorded during the summer of 1968 -- can be astonishing, even 30 years after the fact. Original lead guitarist Mick Abrahams contributed to the songwriting and the singing, and his presence as a serious bluesman is felt throughout, often for the better: "Some Day the Sun Won't Shine for You," an Ian Anderson original that could just as easily be credited to Big Bill Broonzy or Robert Johnson; "Cat's Squirrel," Abrahams' big showcase, where he ventures into Eric Clapton territory; and "It's Breaking Me Up," which also features some pretty hot guitar from Abrahams. Roland Kirk's "Serenade to a Cuckoo" (the first song Anderson learned to play on flute), their jazziest track ever, is one of the best parts of the album. The drum solo on "Dharma for One" now seems like a mistake, but is understandable in the context of the time in which it was done. The one number here that everybody knows, "A Song for Jeffrey," almost pales amid these surroundings, but at the time it was a superb example of commercial psychedelic blues. This would be the last album of its kind by the group, as Abrahams' departure and the lure of more fertile inspiration tugged them toward English folk music.

The Grateful Dead: Dick's Picks, Vol 10, Disc 3 (2000 - recorded: 1977)

 

[Notes from G] Fantastic entry in the Dick's series, this time featuring a show recorded on home turf Winterland Arena (San Francisco) on December 29, 1977. Overall a great year for dead shows and this release is no exception. We listened to the last disc which included the encore from Dec 29th and a selection of tunes (killer filler) from the following night's show. Check out the track list to see why I chose that particular disc:

 

Encore:

1. "Terrapin Station" (Hunter, Garcia) – 10:29
2. "Johnny B. Goode" (Berry) – 4:36

Bonus tracks -- 12/30/77

1. "Estimated Prophet" (Barlow, Weir) – 10:46
2. "Eyes of the World" (Hunter, Garcia) – 15:25
3. "St. Stephen" (Hunter, Garcia, Phil Lesh) – 9:18
4. "Sugar Magnolia" (Hunter, Weir) – 9:53

2015-12-17 Guildhall Level Three

4 Players: J, G, K & W
Game: Guildhall
Location: W
Choice: J


Game One:

Me, taking minutes

Player	Points
G	21
W	9
J	6
K	6

Game Two:

Player	Points
W	20
G	19
J	18
K	17

Game Notes:

• J had a great opening move:
• 1st player.
• Started with an assassin in his guildhall
• Played Weaver as 1st action: placed second assassin in guildhall
• Played Assassin as 2nd action: attacked K (2nd player) and removed two out of three starting cards from K's guildhall effectively hamstringing K before he even got a chance to play
• Discussion of xmas gaming. Some options identified:
• Option 1:
• 8-player Caverna (5 hours)
• 8-player 7 Wonders + Cities (1.5 hours)
• side by side 4-player Dominion (1 hour)
• Option 2:
• side by side 4-player Dominion (1 hour)
• side by side 4-player Stone Age (1.5 hours)
• final: El Grande or Agricola (4 hours)
• Option 3:
• Dominion tournament
• Option 4:
• Great Canadian-style tournament with drawn games side by side

Music Notes:

Moby: Play (1999)

[Notes from AllMusic commenter Rick Star] Though nominally an 'electronica' album, the songs also feature not just the soulful singing samples, but plenty of piano and guitars, even acoustic. The liberal use of these instruments complete the organic sound of the album, and often add a dramatic flourish you might expect in a film soundtrack. More importantly, it means the songs on Play are continually clothing the electronica that serves as the bones with emotion-stirring, organic sounds.

Black Sabbath: Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (1973)

[Notes from AllMusic] With 1973's Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, heavy metal godfathers Black Sabbath made a concerted effort to prove their remaining critics wrong by raising their creative stakes and dispensing unprecedented attention to the album's production standards, arrangements, and even the cover artwork. As a result, bold new efforts like the timeless title track, "A National Acrobat," and "Killing Yourself to Live" positively glistened with a newfound level of finesse and maturity, while remaining largely faithful, aesthetically speaking, to the band's signature compositional style. In fact, their sheer songwriting excellence may even have helped to ease the transition for suspicious older fans left yearning for the rough-hewn, brute strength that had made recent triumphs like Master of Reality and Vol. 4 (really, all their previous albums) such undeniable forces of nature. But thanks to Sabbath Bloody Sabbath's nearly flawless execution, even a more adventurous experiment like the string-laden "Spiral Architect," with its tasteful background orchestration, managed to sound surprisingly natural, and in the dreamy instrumental "Fluff," Tony Iommi scored his first truly memorable solo piece. If anything, only the group's at times heavy-handed adoption of synthesizers met with inconsistent consequences, with erstwhile Yes keyboard wizard Rick Wakeman bringing only good things to the memorable "Sabbra Cadabra" (who know he was such a great boogie-woogie pianist?), while the robotically dull "Who Are You" definitely suffered from synthesizer novelty overkill. All things considered, though, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath was arguably Black Sabbath's fifth masterpiece in four years, and remains an essential item in any heavy metal collection.

Goldfrapp: Supernature (2005)

[Notes from wikipedia] Goldfrapp's third album, was released in August 2005. The album comprises pop and electronic dance music prominently featured on Black Cherry, but focuses more on subtle hooks instead of the large choruses that made up its predecessor.The band never intended to create dance music, however, previous releases were popular across nightclubs in North America and as a result, they decided to write a more dance-oriented album. Supernature débuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart and was certified platinum in the UK. As of February 2008, it has sold one million copies worldwide. The album received a Grammy Award nomination in 2007 for Best Electronic/Dance Album and "Ooh La La" was nominated for Best Dance Recording. The song was used for an iPhone 5 commercial in 2013.
"Ooh La La", the album's lead single, became Goldfrapp's first UK top five single. The song was chosen as the lead single "because it was up and in your face and carried on the theme of the glammy, discoey beat from the last album". "Ooh La La" became the first song performed by the band to feature the electric guitar and was cited as a highlight of the album by Allmusic. "Number 1" was released as the album's second single. Constructed around a synthesiser and bass arrangement, it was written about the importance of relationships. The album's third single "Ride a White Horse" was inspired by the disco era and reached number 15 in the UK. "Fly Me Away" was released as the album's fourth single, but did not perform as well as its predecessors.

2015-12-10 Love Me Two Times



If you say it in a Shrek voice, it never gets old. Does it, Donkey?



4 Players: M, G, K & W
Game: Tigris & Euphrates
Location: W
Choice: G


Game One:

Player	Points
M	10
W	9
K	8
G	7

Game Notes:

• M's first game of T&E; K's second
• The game ended early but with not enough time for a second game so we played a quick game of Dominion without M who acted responsibly and went home. We enjoyed the pretzel sticks he left behind. Thank you M!
• G had whipped up a custom set of 10 cards all from the Dark Ages expansion.
• Name of the deck: Trash Ahoy and it features Rats, Market Square, Death Cart and other combo friendly cards
• Score: G 40 K 36 W 29
• Xmas game day proposed as Dec 27, 3 - 11pm possibly at Sc's, possibly involving Uber



link to deck by OttawaGray on Dominion Deck Builder



Music Notes:

Herbie Hancock: Headhunters (1973)

M was strangely unfamiliar with the best jazz album of 1974 (Billboard). Bringing the synthesizer to the forefront with a rock solid fast-paced funky groove providing finger tapping goodness, this album represented a turning point for HH and for jazz fusion by effectively spearheading jazz-funk.

Beastie Boys: Hot Sauce Committee Part Two (2011)

Enjoyed in Si's absence. Fresh beats from some what would be their last album.

Quantic Soul Orchestra: Stampede (2003)

Soul/Funk grooves from some contemporary masters

Frank Zappa: Apostrophe (1974)

Amazingly, this was his 18th and highest charting album. Not hard to see why, strong musicianship with some naughty lyrics. Check out the intro to this amazing track: Uncle Remus for proof of some of the beautiful songwriting on display. Or how about the title track, featuring Jack Bruce? It's an amazing instrumental piece that rips the listener right out of the previous track and totally satisfies all those primal rock and roll urges. Definitely a more rock flavoured FZ album compared to some of his more jazz-oriented material. And certainly one of the silliest and regrettable in terms of lyrical content.

2015-12-03 Tigris and you're 'fraidy

The King arrives in Babylon, passing through the azure gates, while
in the foreground a priestess pours a libation. (original art by Stephen Walshart)

4 Players: G, Sc, W, K
Game: Tigris & Euphrates
Location: W
Choice: W

Guess who got the donkey?

Game One:

Player	Points
Sc	7
G	6
K	5
W	3

Game Notes:

• Game ended early but not early enough to start a second game
• K had to work so he left while the rest of us played a quick 3-player game of vanilla Dominion
• Scores: G 46, W 39, Sc 23

Music Notes:

9Lazy9: Paradise Blown (1994)

[Notes by G] We all enjoyed the funky downtempo acid jazz. This the first album by the band. Apparently former metal heads on  a genre bending trip. Features the single: Black Jesus

9Lazy9: Sweet Jones (2003)

[Notes by G] We were lazy and let W's iTunes keep playing into the next album. Once we realized what had happened, we decided to keep listening as we were all enjoying it.

Jerry Garcia: Way After Midnight (recorded 1980, released 2004)

[Notes by G] A bonus CD that came with After Midnight: Kean College. Recorded over two nights: 2/29/1980 and 3/1/1980. Five songs all covers but one. Features: Dear Prudence (The Beatles), When I Paint My Masterpiece (Dylan & The Band) and a stunning Deal (Jerry by way of Charlie Poole).