Operation 365 2... Blog 44

Operation 365 2 - Jefferson Jay - Covers – 44 “Hit Me with Your Best Shot” by Pat Benatar

Today is fun and games day on the 365 and it’s about time. Too much serious stuff lately. Missing guitars, traumatic head injuries. Time for us to lighten up a little and what better way to do that than by a day of whipping balls at other people in hopes that you’ll hit them. Yes, friends, it’s that time of the every few years when our old dodgeball team of intimidators gets it together and defends our title as the Oakland Raiders of semi-annual dodgeball. Does that clear things up at all?

So our friend Charlotte recently became a lawyer and on her road to doing so, she got involved with this project that helps wrongly convicted innocent folks get their convictions overturned. It’s called The Innocence Project or something like that. So this dodgeball tournament is a fund-raiser for them and even though, I’d never even played dodgeball since youth, our team, Richard, finished third at the first one of these we played in some years ago. Richard wears all black and screams our motto, “RICHARD, RICHARD, RICHARD, RICHARD,” loudly at every opportunity. Using gamesmanship to defeat lawyers sounds just to me.

Today, I am slightly conflicted as our Jefferson Jay Band takes the stage at Mother’s for three hours of music at ten. If we lost right away, it will be a short of dodgeball for us at the Rec center. If we win a bunch like we did last time, we can be there for hours. Ouch. So please wish us luck, but not really.

“Hit Me With Your Best Shot,” I learned today, was written by Eddie Schwartz, a.k.a. E. Schwartz. Does that sound less Jewish? Not really. Pat Benatar made it a hit though and today I intend to make hits, on the faces, of lawyers, with dodgeballs. Here’s hoping nobody gets sued… or hurt.

Operation 365 2 - Jefferson Jay - Words – 44 “You Can’t Blame Elvis”

Been a lot of talk about TV around here lately. Not so much watching it, but more being on it in some sort of host/entertainer capacity. I auditioned to be the new host of a local Internet talk show call “Tonight In San Diego” on Thursday. I did very well if I may say so myself. It is a significant time commitment and not so much dough, but it sounds like great experience and a wonderfully motivating challenge, so we’ll see if that’s the direction they want to go. Either way, I’m cool. Up to them. Not me.

I’m also developing another TV project. With my friend Blair who writes, produces and voices and the legendary KGB Sky Show, the first Rock N’ Roll Fireworks show ever, I believe. It is awesome. We’re talking about making a music TV show and today we went out with our new little camera and began to do some practice runs for our filming which will begin later. Here, we explored a new bit called “Made Up San Diego,” where I detail incredible historical events from San Diego music history that never actually took place. It’s not Elvis’ fault he didn’t really live here. You can’t blame Elvis.

Operation 365 2 - Jefferson Jay - Originals – 44 “The Name of the Game” by Jefferson Jay

I wrote “The Name of the Game” the other day for my special needs adults that I work with to perform. I find it very satisfying to bring the perspective of other people into my songwriting as best as I can. Especially when the songs are meant for them to sing. It feels nice to give people words who may not have them on the tip of their tongue. This song is also nice in the context of The Super Bowl, which will be played tomorrow and our dodgeball tournament which starts fairly soon.

So I like this song, I’ve imagined a few different versions of it, funky, minor blues, but I came back to the upbeat happy funky rhythm I wrote it with here. I can hear cool back up vocals and I would have liked to put them on here with the dodgeball team coming over, but time is sparse today with our gig tonight and the dodgeball battle, so maybe we’ll try that out another time. Included here are explicit instructions on how to get yourself into the Human Hall of Fame. Shout out to Nigel, who we’ve had for five years this week and Reggie Jackson and Hank Aaron for doing wonders with the number 44 on the Operation 365 2’s 44th day.