| October 21st, 2005 01:46 PM |
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| glencar |
Today's NY Times has a nice article on the Shidoibees & their gathering. I just read my home delivered version so I don't have a link yet... |
| October 21st, 2005 01:56 PM |
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| beer |
http://travel2.nytimes.com/2005/10/21/travel/escapes/21shidoobee.html
Keeping Up With the Stones
By STEVEN KURUTZ
Published: October 21, 2005
A FEW hours before the Rolling Stones began their world tour at Fenway Park in Boston in August, a 54-year-old man who goes by the name of Stonesdoug kicked off his own world tour of sorts.
While Mick Jagger was getting ready at his suite at the Four Seasons, Stonesdoug stood in the dark, sweaty, crowded basement of the Pour House, a bar a few blocks from the stadium. Each time a Rolling Stones song came over the speakers - "Satisfaction" or "Miss You" - the crowd erupted, as if they hadn't heard the old hits a thousand times before.
Skip to next paragraph
Rick Friedman for The New York Times
BEFORE THE SHOW Doug Potash, center, and the Shidoobees, ardent fans of the group, getting ready for a Stones concert in Boston.
Where to Rock
Although tickets for many dates on the current Rolling Stones tour, which continues into March 2006, have already sold out, there are still tickets available for some shows, according to the band's official Web site, www.rollingstones.com. Trust that in each city, in some bar or a stadium parking lot, a Shidoobee party will take place. Here is a list of shows through early November.
OCT. 21 Charlotte, N.C., Charlotte Arena.
OCT. 28 Calgary, Alberta, Pengrowth Saddledome.
Oct. 30 Seattle, Key Arena.
Nov. 1 Portland, Ore., Rose Garden.
Nov. 4 Anaheim, Calif., Angels Stadium of Anaheim.
Nov. 6 and 8 Los Angeles, Hollywood Bowl.
Rick Friedman for The New York Times
Shidoobees go all over to see their band.
"Opening night," Stonesdoug said, soaking in the moment. His silvery hair was swept back from his sunburned face, and he wore a lime-green T-shirt that said "Shidoobee Crew 2005-06." "It's always exciting."
Not that he hasn't been here before. When the band toured in 2003, he went to 35 shows, including three in Sweden. The Boston date would be his 106th show in total. The first time he saw the Stones, at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City in 1966, Stonesdoug became one of a small number of American fans who saw the original band, with Brian Jones on guitar. As the band drove away after the concert, he said, he tried to grab the buttons from Mr. Jones's blazer.
"I get into a trance when I go to a show," he said.
Since 2000, Stonesdoug, whose real name is Doug Potash and who works as a financial planner in Annapolis, Md., has run a popular Internet message board called Shidoobee With Stonesdoug. Each year, the Shidoobees - the name comes from a refrain in the song "Shattered" - have a party in Wildwood, N.J. But when the Rolling Stones tour, they go into high gear.
In every city where the Stones juggernaut touches down, whether it's New York, Las Vegas or Hershey, Pa., the Shidoobees throw down at a bar or the stadium parking lot. As the tour goes on, so does the celebration, with members crisscrossing the country to spend weekends, holidays and vacation days going to shows.
At the Pour House, about 200 Shidoobees were gathered, diehard fans from California and Kentucky and points much farther afield.
"I am from Finland," said a bespectacled man named Jan Richardsson, 43, a parts manager for a company that supplies cruise-ship engines. He pointed to several friends from Sweden who had squeezed into a booth along one wall. "We have a long, dedicated worshipping of the Rolling Stones!" he shouted over the din of the crowd.
A requisite for Shidoobee membership seems to be an inexhaustible enthusiasm for seeing the Rolling Stones in concert, coupled with a generous attitude toward certain downsides of being a Stones fan, like the fact that tickets for the current tour cost as much as $450 each. Stonesdoug has found himself scaling back the number of shows he will be attending - to 13.
Nevertheless, said a Shidoobee member from Albany named Ed Sharp, the group is an enabling device. "You end up going to way more shows than you would normally," Mr. Sharp said. "People say, 'You've already seen them once.' Well, you had sex once. But you're going to have it again. It could be better the next time."
In spirit, the Shidoobees are a lot like Deadheads, the traveling carnival of fans who followed the Grateful Dead around for years. There are certain accouterments to being a Shidoobee, like lime-green Shidoobee Crew T-shirts and Shidoobee bracelets and stickers. Six years ago, for the No Security tour, Chris Brown, a Shidoobee from Louisville, Ky., converted a '79 Honda Civic into a Shidoobeemobile, painting a Union Jack on the hood and tongues on each door.
When the Stones aren't on tour, the Shidoobees content themselves with seeing tribute bands and trading concert bootlegs, which is why there is such a sense of occasion whenever Mick and Keith do hit the road.
Keith Walmsley, who is 21 and traveled from London to see the tour, has found America a welcoming place to be a Stones fan. "In England, Mick Jagger is seen as this haggard guy who dates young models," he said. "The press hates him. Here, it's really about the music."
Mr. Walmsley was asked when he would be returning to England. "Who knows, man?" he said. "Whenever the tickets run out."
SHIDOOBEE membership has its privileges. Most everyone at the Pour House knew roughly what songs the Rolling Stones would be playing during the tour because several Shidoobees had staked out the band's rehearsal hall in Toronto. They also knew which hotel the band was staying at in each city (the Four Seasons in Boston, the Ritz-Carlton in Atlanta).
Of course, there is also the camaraderie that comes with being a superfan. "All year long, you talk to these people on the Internet," Stonesdoug said. "This gives us a chance to finally meet each other."
As the afternoon wore on, the usual topics were brought up and boisterously debated: Would the band play "Shattered" that night? Which era of the Rolling Stones was better, the Brian Jones period, the Mick Taylor years or the current Ronnie Wood iteration? (Stonesdoug has barred this topic from the Shidoobee chatboard because it's too contentious.)
One of the Shidoobees, a woman with graying hair and a youthful face named Shirley Birenz, was celebrating a birthday. A chocolate mousse cake decorated with a large tongue was passed around as "Under My Thumb" played and yet another sing-along began. Ms. Birenz's husband, Jerry, looked on with wry amusement.
"I'm not an active Shidoobee," he said, adding that he lives in New Jersey and belongs to another Internet group, Backstreets, which is devoted to Bruce Springsteen. "We talk politics and get involved in charities," he said. "One of the members' sons is stationed in Iraq. The Shidoobees are more about having a good time."
Eventually, it was time to make the short walk to Fenway for the show. A small herd of Shidoobees moved through downtown Boston. At the gates of the stadium, they posed for a group photograph. Then they went off to find their seats, their lime-green T-shirts dispersing through the stadium.
At 8:21 p.m., the house lights went dark and the Jumbotron lighted up. Cameras flashed. Zippos flickered. Cries of anticipation arose. Then a burst of light, and Mick, Keith, Ronnie and Charlie, and the opening riff of "Start Me Up." Somewhere, Stonesdoug was soaking in the moment.
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| October 21st, 2005 10:56 PM |
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| glencar |
Thanks! |
| October 21st, 2005 11:18 PM |
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| Soldatti |
What a great article, congrats to Stonesdoug. |
| October 22nd, 2005 08:35 AM |
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| luxury1 |
Yes, this is quite a tribute to Doug and his efforts. |
| October 22nd, 2005 04:05 PM |
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| Mickijaggeroo |
"I am from Finland," said a bespectacled man named Jan Richardsson, 43, a parts manager for a company that supplies cruise-ship engines. He pointed to several friends from Sweden who had squeezed into a booth along one wall. "We have a long, dedicated worshipping of the Rolling Stones!" he shouted over the din of the crowd."
That´s my fellow Stonesviking Jan, and the swedes he mentions are me and some of the other Vikings. Here is a pic of the reporter and me
[Edited by Mickijaggeroo] |
| October 22nd, 2005 06:15 PM |
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| stoneman |
And thats is me in the background with green shirt on hehe. I was loaded. |
| October 22nd, 2005 07:39 PM |
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| glencar |
mickjaggeroo, the reporter was wearing a Stones shirt? |
| October 22nd, 2005 07:46 PM |
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| VoodooChileInWOnderl |
Wow! Congratulations Stonesdoug
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| October 22nd, 2005 07:59 PM |
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| sirmoonie |
Great article. Way to go Doug! |
| October 22nd, 2005 07:59 PM |
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| Gazza |
>Stonesdoug has found himself scaling back the number of shows he will be attending - to 13.
Oh Doug, ya wimp!!
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| October 22nd, 2005 08:30 PM |
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| glencar |
I can't believe Joshy's been to so many shows. I'm done for the year although Vegas is tempting... |
| October 22nd, 2005 08:46 PM |
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| pdog |
I'll be lucky to break 7... I have 5 for sure, and 2 of those are 2 of the 3 NYC shows, and taking my Dad to the show in Philly. If I was selfish I could've done more... It was way better doing it this way!
I'm very lucky!
Doug is a very nice guy... |
| October 22nd, 2005 08:54 PM |
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| glencar |
Doug is indeed a nice guy. It was pretty neat to see that article in the paper as I normally don't read that section but was in search of the crossword & there it was. |
| October 23rd, 2005 02:47 AM |
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| Mickijaggeroo |
quote:
glencar wrote:
mickjaggeroo, the reporter was wearing a Stones shirt?
Yes! |
| October 23rd, 2005 03:05 AM |
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| stonesgirl101 |
Stonesdoug is awesome!!
Many congrats on the NYT article!
Blessings,
Sheila |
| October 23rd, 2005 09:04 AM |
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| Sir Stonesalot |
I like Doug a bunch. Great guy, and devoted to his Shidoobees. I can't even begin to imagine how much time and effort the guy puts in for his people. Quite admirable.
And even though I'm not a Shidoobee, he always makes me feel at home at his gatherings. I appreciate that big time.
I don't know about the rest of you who are attending the {{{Summit of the CENTURY!}}}, but I plan on stopping by Walter's to say hi to Doug. It's, like, a tradition.
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| October 23rd, 2005 09:59 AM |
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| LadyJane |
Agreed SS.
Doug has always greeted me with open arms. I've been to a couple of Shidoobee gatherings and had a blast. I do post there, just not as frequently as here and the Couch.
We are all, after all, in this thing together.
Congrats Doug!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
xx00
LJ.
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| October 23rd, 2005 06:54 PM |
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| Bob Tamp |
That was indeed a fun party in Boston. I got really shit faced(fell flat on my face to the gig), but as always sobered right up minutes before they came on. I have never missed a show for being too fucked up. |
| October 23rd, 2005 08:09 PM |
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| VoodooChileInWOnderl |
Yes Doug is a great guy, the first time I met him was in Hartford, early morningt the day of the first show in March 1999, I remember his license plate LOL and his tie, he is a well dressed fan 
These before the creation of Shidoobeeland
I met him again in the NYC/NJ trifecta in 2002
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| October 23rd, 2005 08:11 PM |
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| LadyJane |
Howe did the NY Times fail to publish this shot taken at the Pour House prior to Fenway???
LJ. |
| October 23rd, 2005 09:12 PM |
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| Sir Stonesalot |
I first met Doug in DC 1999...I didn't even have a computer at home yet!
Since then I'ne bumped into him all over the place...Sat with him in Philly 2002, inside Roseland with Moonie, Walter's before MSG this year...the Bottom Line this year...at the American University Dylan gig...at The Ian MacLagan gig at the Mojo Room...and on my way to the front row at Wachovia.
Doug is too cool for school, and got a heart the size of Alaska. He's good people, and I'm glad he's getting some well deserved recognition.
Now if we can just get our Unholy Trinity some exposure, as well as my bro Lugar...they deserve a pat on the back too! |
| October 23rd, 2005 10:29 PM |
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| glencar |
I first met him in London after the 1999 Wembley shows. He had a photo album that I was a bit too drunk to remember. |
| October 24th, 2005 07:22 AM |
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| Stonesdoug |
Thanks a lot to all of you at Rocks Off, my second internet home. Sorry I don't post here as much as I used to, but I don't even have time to check all of SHIDOOBEE anymore= looking forward to toasting the Trinity in 2006
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| October 24th, 2005 07:52 AM |
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| Gazza |
Doug - either financial planning aint what it should be or those ticket prices are too high if a man like you is limiting yourself to 'only' 13 shows - but you know how it is, we all end up seeing more than we planned to
Congrats on such a positive story. I hope to see you again at some point in 2006 (I think it'll be the 6th time since 1999 we've run into each other - maybe I'll surprise you like I did at the Rainbow Grill in Hollywood 3 years ago..lol..I think i was the last person you expected to pop in..)
[Edited by Gazza] |
| October 24th, 2005 11:21 AM |
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| Mickijaggeroo |
And another Stonesviking in the middle!
Erikjjf!!
Shidoobee, Nordic Stones Vikings and Rocks Off all in the same pic!
[Edited by Mickijaggeroo] |
| October 24th, 2005 12:16 PM |
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| eXiLe oN 2nD sT |
whose on the right? |
| October 24th, 2005 12:48 PM |
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| ListenToTheLion |
quote:
eXiLe oN 2nD sT wrote:
whose on the right?
the president of the Jon Bon Jovi Fanclub if i am correct |
| October 24th, 2005 01:01 PM |
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| Factory Girl |
Yeah for Stonesdoug! He's been kind enough to invite me to his many parties-The Blushing Brides and the Bottom Line.
Many Thanks to Stonesdoug!! |
| October 24th, 2005 03:06 PM |
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| VoodooChileInWOnderl |
quote:
Mickijaggeroo wrote:
Shidoobee, Nordic Stones Vikings and Rocks Off all in the same pic!
We're in the same boat
On the same sea
And we're sailing south
On the same breeze |
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