"We knew it was bad when we got a dog," fresh-faced Taylor adds. "Like, no one had seen it - I can't even imagine how anybody found out - and it was instantly on the Internet. The name of the dog, everything. It was crazy."

~"Brothers Gonna Work It Out", by James Diers, Request Magazine, May 2000

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JUNE - SITE OF THE MONTH

Dreams

http://badubop.net/dreams/

Check out Stephanie's amazing tribute to the one and only Isaac Hanson!

"Oh, I saw you in concert and I know you've got some moves...yeah, Taylor, on that keyboard..."

~Cha-Cha, radio personality for Channel 93.3, San Diego, CA

>From their first rosy-cheeked appearance, Hanson held up the banner for '90's-era wholesome rock stars. Taylor doesn't mind that label - "as long as 'rock' is in there,", he says.

~"MMMrock!", by Jennifer Graham, TV Guide, 5/6/00

At times I felt like they were older than me," says (video director, David) Meyers, 28. The effect was magnified when Meyers realized that he and Taylor had taken a casual liking to the same young woman, an early twenty-something extra on the "If Only" set. "That was pretty weird,", he says, laughing.

~"MMMrock!", by Jennifer Graham, TV Guide, 5/6/00

"I feel really good about that time that's gone by [since the last album]," says Taylor, whose voice has already aged a notch closer to the brawny Motown soul singers he was reared on. "In a way, I think the fact that we've grown up a bit makes it easier for some people to accept us. Sometimes it scared people that it could be three really young guys who were seemingly that squeaky-clean making good, real music."

~"Brothers Gonna Work It Out", by James Diers, Request Magazine, May 2000

"What we bring to the table is the fact that each of us is different. What makes it work is each of us has our own deal. I can't tell you what that is, though. The fact that we are constantly switching roles makes that impossible to answer. One guy's being goofy one day, and one guy's being the guy who gets work done the next."

~Taylor, "The Original Boy Band: Hanson", by Jodi Bryson, Teen Magazine, June 2000

Blue eyes
Baby's got blue eyes
Like a deep blue sea
On a blue, blue day

~"Blue Eyes", Elton John

"We felt transparent after meeting them [Rose Stone and her choir]," Taylor says. "Like 'We're beyond white boys. We're clear.'"

~"Brothers Gonna Work It Out", by James Diers, Request Magazine, May 2000

TLS & TC are off to Riverfest. Look for a review and pictures (hopefully!) when we return. Look out Tulsa, here we come! :o)

Electric blue eyes, where did you come from?
Electric blue eyes, who sent you?
Electric blue eyes, always be near me Electric blue eyes, I need you

~"Electric Blue", The Cranberries

"What would you do if you looked in your backyard and there's your old treehouse and there's somebody just swinging on your treehouse?"

~Taylor (referring to the weirdness of some fans), "The Original Boy Band: Hanson", by Jodi Bryson, Teen Magazine, June 2000

Hanson Facts:

Teen - If you had to play Twister with a celeb, it would be?

Taylor - Marilyn Monroe

~Teen Magazine, June 2000

Wishing you a very Happy Birthday, TLS. >;o) Love, TC

Well I've never been to Heaven
But I've been to Oklahoma

~"Never Been to Spain", Three Dog Night

We're baaack! :o) Give us a few days to pull our reviews together and we will tell you all about our trip to Riverfest in Tulsa!

TLS's Story:

Like so many of those who have become immersed in the culture of Hanson during the last four years, a trip to Tulsa has become a goal of mine to be accomplished. Never mind that in the past, Oklahoma was just another one of those "nondescript, square shaped, boring midwestern states" that I had little to no interest in. Once Hanson came into my life, a visit to Tulsa would equal a journey to one of the mythical Seven Cities of Gold!

One evening about a month or so ago I was chatting with my good pal Tay's Hostage (hereafter referred to as TH) about just this topic. A few nights later, lo and behold, TH informed me that our favorite musicians would be performing in their hometown at an event called Riverfest. After one of those "are you thinking what I'm thinking" conversations, we contacted our other good buddy TC, and reservations were made, buttons were obtained, and the countdown to The Promised Land began. After all, this was a golden opportunity to see the revered Tulsa AND no doubt our only chance to see Hanson live in the year 2001.

Friday: Tulsa

As my plane began its descent into Tulsa, I was mildly surprised to see that the city did NOT in fact give off a heavenly glow from being the hometown of Taylor Hanson, the God of All that is Beautiful and Perfect. However, from the air I did see the first of many oddly thrilling Hansony related landmarks, the big screen of the Admiral Twin Drive-In.

While sitting in the terminal awaiting the arrival of my two cohorts, I wondered for the first of many times during the course of the weekend just how the folks of the city were able to just go about their lives without stopping to break into squeals every so often just because they lived in T-Town. LOL

Finally both of my friends arrived and our adventure began.

TLS's observations about Tulsa:

~They have BIG LIGHTNING. Maybe it is the fact they they have fewer hills to block out part of it like I have where I am from, but I was impressed with the HUGE lightning. And big rain!

~Even though Tulsa is a rather major midwestern city, it has the atmosphere of a small town. It's VERY spread out, there is practically no traffic (until Sunday afternoon), and the pace is very slow.

~The roads have even more potholes and rough pavement than where I live!

~Tulsa can be a very confusing city to get around in if you aren't a native, even if you are armed with a map. Thankfully I had chosen the back seat of the car to ride in for the weekend. That way I could sit back and let the others figure out how to maneuver the maze of streets.

~It is a city of contrasts. There are tall office buildings and hotels, abandoned old warehouse and store buildings, beautiful well-kept homes with lots of character in lovely neighborhoods with lush green parks, run down houses with boards nailed across the windows and screens flapping in the wind, tons of small burger and taco places, and seemingly a Blockbuster Video on every corner. I was surpised to see that there WERE indeed hills rather than the completely flat land I expected, although the hills were a lot less steep than where I am from. And I expected there to be more of a western and Native American influence. Although, I did see the gigantic lighted sign for the Creek Nation Bingo. I think there should be one of those big signs at the city limits that says : HANSON LIVES HERE!!!

~The food was great! Even Tulsa McDonald's was good. LOL And, during one of our dining experiences, our server's name was Zach, which caused smiles all around at our table. Zach was very sweet, and he recieved a large tip for being so aptly named, too. ;-)

~Tulsans are so NICE. Every single person we ran into was extremely friendly. No wonder our favorite guys seem so real and down to earth. All in all, I felt very much like I was back at home and I figure I could be happy living in Tulsa. :)

Saturday: Riverfest!

The day promised to be scorchingly hot, so our little party decided not to spend the entire day crowded like sardines against the stage. Better not to be right up front only to pass out from heat exhaustion and dehydration and have to be carried off on a stretcher right at the end and miss what we came for! So, we headed over to the park in the early afternoon and spread out our blanket in a very decent spot behind the tightly packed group crowded against the stage. Of course our little personal space was positioned so that we would have the best possible Taylory view when 5:00 finally arrived.

We passed the time listening to some other very talented Tulsa bands, going to buy drinks, watching the parachuters and the crowd and the clock, and just generally trying to think cold Arctic thoughts to ward off the heat. Oh yes, we also managed to get sunburned despite our tans.

At last it was time for Admiral Twin and with their arrival onstage, the crowding began. Forget the lazy afternoon lounging on a blanket in the park. Now we had to become one of the sardines or get pushed to the back. It was good to see Admiral Twin again. They had been such an intregal part of the Albertane Tour. I realized I had missed them! :)

Once we had to stand up the heat became horrible, and all the icy thoughts in the world weren't helping, so I was glad for the water that was getting sprayed onto the crowd, except for the fact that TH got sunblock in her eyes because of it. Once we realized though, that she was not permanently blinded by it and would indeed get to actually see Hanson, things were fine again. TC was not able to see once the crowd closed in so she decided to try to see what she could from further back. TH and I remained where we were, hoping for the best. Luckily no one taller than myself was standing in front of me.

But, just as always, once Hanson took the stage, all of the traveling, the heat, the crowds...none of that mattered any more. Everything became worth it just to see them up there on that stage against the Tulsa skyline and hear them singing live again. During their second song Isaac's guitar kept cutting out, which Zac and Taylor seemed to find highly amusing. I am sure by now you have read other reviews that have listed the songs that were sung during the short but oh so sweet acoustic set. But let me tell ya, I felt very priveledged to have been there to hear the two brand new songs that our wonderful guys chose to sing for us. They were awesome and it makes me anticipate that new album even more than I already have been. Bravo, guys....you rock! And put another notch in my belt....this was my eleventh time seeing Hanson live! WooHOO!

Of course one of my reviews would not be complete without a little description of the rock god and his brothers. They all looked so good, as usual. They seemed happy to be there, performing in their hometown, aware that people had come from all over the place just to see them for 20-30 minutes. Zac had his hair pulled back in a ponytail, was wearing his usual t-shirt and jeans, and had on a baseball cap. Isaac had on what we called his "bowling shirt", jeans, and his lovely curly hair. And then, there was Taylor, the focal point of our little group. He was wearing two tank tops, a dark green one and a gray one, so he could take one of them off at some point during the show to please us women. Yeah, we know what you're doing, Taylor, and we LIKE it. Please don't ever stop. LOL He had on blue jeans and sneakers and it was so adorable when he would rest one foot on the place where the legs of his keyboard crosses. He was wearing a tan baseball cap and his hair was all flyaway under it. He seemed all flushed and sweaty even before he started singing. And he had sunburned arms. VERY very sexy, he was. All filled out even more than since I last saw him in October. Eighteen is a good year for our lovely most worshipped Taylor Babe. :) But the best thing of all was his wonderful smile. I don't know why it is, but when he smiles it is like everything is right in my world. One thing's for sure, Taylor Hanson is like a drug, and I have to keep going back for more. Bring it on!

After Hanson's performance, we were to meet TC under the Budweiser tent. But she was no where to be found. I was convinced she had gotten lucky and gotten one of the stickers that had been given out for a last minute meet and greet, but that wasn't the case. So TH and I went looking around. We found TC waiting by the fence, where she had seen Hanson starting to leave but get called back by their dad for the meet and greet. So we stood waiting to see if they would come back so we could catch yet another glimpse of them. We passed the time watching people beg the poor security guards to let them in the backstage area and fighting the urge ourselves to try to make a break for it and run past them. (A special shout out to the guy wearing the "Where's the Mullet?" shirt in the backstage area. Do I know you? LOL) After a time, one of the guards told us that the guys were getting ready to leave by way of the OTHER gate. So in a while we moseyed on over to the other side of the stage where we got a fantastic view of Taylor, Isaac, and Zac. They were talking to a woman in a black limo, doing an interview, we assumed. Taylor seemed to be doing most of the talking, leaning into the car all bent over with that hip slung out in that sexy way he has when he's just standing there. God, what a man! Every now and then Issac and Zac would lean over and say something. All the while a group of their friends was waiting back there too, chatting amongst themselves, and Walker was milling around taking care of business. We all think Walker is a right good looking man too. I think Taylor looks more and more like his daddy all the time. :) But anyway, once the limo pulled away, Hanson joined their friends for a few minutes, then they walked to Isaac's vehicle and got in and left. Poof, they were gone till next time!

Sunday: The Sights

Sunday was spent driving around, trying to see and capture photos of all of the Hanson related sights that all die hard fans know are important to experience. The MOE house, where our sweet guys grew up....Big Splash Water Park.....the Blue Rose Cafe.....Java Dave's..........Woodland Hills Mall......Lazer Quest....the cool little suburb of Bixby. And of course that unique Tulsa landmark, the Golden Driller. We thought he was one of the cooler things we saw, and we each had our picture taken with his foot. LOL

Another highlight was meeting up with some other friends, going on a wild ride ending with a special geological find. (Sorry, that was just a little inside joke...but a big shout out to S, C, and P...thanks for the awesome memories!)

Thanks to the confusing roads of the city, our little sightseeing adventure stretched out into nearly a full day. I feel certain that we covered nearly every single city street and rural road in Tulsa County. But it was all so cool, just being in the place where the band we love so much eats, breathes, and sleeps. And we were always on the lookout, because maybe, just maybe, they might drive by. You never know!

Monday: Farewell, Tulsa! :(

Monday morning was spent packing up, taking one last look at the city and heading back to the airport where we finally had time to buy a few souvenirs from our trip. I was the first to leave and let me tell ya, it was a sad occasion. I would miss my buddies TC and TH, and I would miss Tulsa. Our visit had helped to take the sting out of the news that it will be next year before the new album is released, that's for sure. As I left the Taylor Time Zone (don't you think that is a more catchy name than Central Time Zone? We should petition someone to change that, don't you think??), I vowed to come back again some day.

TC's thoughts:

As I flew into Tulsa around lunch time on Friday, the rain was coming down in sheets. The sky was gloomy and my first thought was "please, Lord, don't let it rain tomorrow for Riverfest." The next day, while my skin was blistering in the sun and the sweat was drenching my clothes, I was wishing for a little bit of that rain to provide some relief from the baking Tulsa heat. And I thought Florida was humid. Sheesh.

Let me start by saying humidity, gargantuan potholes in the road, and incredibly confusing streets aside, I love Tulsa! I'm moving there someday, you know. Yep. I want to be kind to everyone and have a laissez-faire attitude like Tulsans do. :o) Oh, and oddly enough, I saw no boots. In fact, I didn't see all that many Tulsans until Sunday afternoon after church, if you don't count the nice-sized crowd that turned out for Riverfest.

Riverfest. Amazing. I did something relatively exclusive for the first time in my life. I heard new music, live, before it is released. And it hit me the minute the first new song began. I listened happily through "Lonely Again" and "Wish That I Was There"; taking notice of the fact that Isaac's guitar kept cutting out and how humorous Taylor and Zac thought that was, and thinking how happy the guys looked. I don't know what the title of the third song was, probably something along the lines of "Out of My Head", but when the opening notes were played on Taylor's piano, I was stunned. It was good. It was great. It was so incredibly Hanson. And I felt the tears well up in my eyes because I knew exactly why I was allowing my skin to blister in the sun and why I had flown so many miles to be there.

Following "Sure About It", I was doubly-stunned by the next as yet unreleased song. I assume the title of the song is "Wake Up". Not too original, you might be thinking? The lyrics to this song slammed into me; reaching inside my chest and squeezing my heart. "Why do you close your eyes so tight, when you're kissing him goodnight?" is just a little bit of a great big song. I loved it. :o)

The guys never disappoint. Taylor did the obligatory shirt removal for all our drooling pleasure. They sang "Mmmbop", only it was shades of 3 Car Garage, as opposed to Middle of Nowhere; at a slower tempo and perhaps the way it was originally written so long ago and before anybody tinkered with it. They went right into "If Only" and then it was over. Just like that. As I stood there in a daze, watching as the guys descended the stage stairs following the set just a few feet away from me, I was just as awe struck as I had been the very first time I saw them perform live. And I realized that it's that feeling - of each time being the first time - that keeps me coming back for more. And more.

The rest of the weekend included the ordinary pilgrimage stuff only a true, die-hard Hanson fan must do before leaving this earth for other-worldly places. I was particularly impressed with the big, yellow oil man statue. I forget what they call him around those parts, but you can rest assured that the locals driving by on the main road were shaking their heads and laughing at us girls having our picture made beside his massive foot. ;o)

I brought back a special little Tulsa memento. Another exclusive. I hope I get the opportunity to experience many more Hanson exclusives in the future. God bless Tulsa for growing them bigger and better in Oklahoma. Yeehaw.

"I think I was nine when we did our first show."

~Taylor, Utah radio interview, January 2001

"All my girls at the party
Look at his body
Shakin' that thing
Like I never did see
Got a nice package alright"

~"All For You", Janet Jackson

Hmmm....He's letting us have JUST enough of a look to pique the imagination here, isn't he? >;-)

"Zac just naturally hit things so he played the drums and Ike idolized Chuck Berry so he picked up the guitar, and there I was left with the piano."

~Taylor, Utah radio interview, January 2001

angelgrl85: Tay, what was the most embarassing thing that happened to you on stage?

Taylor Hanson : When you're on stage, first of all, you have to go with the flow no matter what... But one of the things I remember, early on I used to have really baggy shorts... and keeping them from falling down to my ankles was a struggle. It got really close!

~Nick Chat, August 2000

Credit for today's pic goes to Adults Like Hanson Too, from the looks of the name of the file. I am not sure if ALH2 still exists, but it used to be a cool place. :)

"Our family's ethnic background is Danish. That explains our love for LEGO!"

~Taylor, Hanson Quote Search Engine

Happy Father's Day to all the dads! :)

taykris: Taylor, What's your favorite thing to do in your spare time?

Taylor Hanson : Well, Kristina, we do so many thing in our spare time. One thing is when you travel you get to see a lot of beautiful places. So, every city you're in you get to see new things. Then you have the normal things you do. You get to hang out...

~Taylor, Nick Chat, August 2000

MODERATOR: Taylor! I have a question for you! When you go to places like Sea World, do you get to go on the rides?

Taylor Hanson : Well, we haven't actually been to Sea World...but when we do go to amusements parks or things like that... we try to get in a little bit of crazy ride action!

~Nick Chat, August 2000

Thanks to Amanda for today's picture!

"Whenever you do a concert and the fans are excited and you're excited... you always leave with a buzz. And whenever you get done with a show like that, it leaves you excited for the next."

~Taylor, Nick Chat, August 2000

"They're sluffing school for you man! They're ditching school. But I wanna know Taylor, how you keep this from going to your head because I'm sure the fan mail comes in every day and if I was in your spot Taylor, I'd have like a solid gold car, I would have like a cocaine problem, I would blow like a million dollars a day, just in bad drugs."

~107.5 DJ, Utah, January 2001

Thank you to Mosqui for the wonderful Taylor drawing! :)

"We went to South America at the end of last year and finished that tour at the end of November. Then we went home and we've been writing for our new album. We've just been in a castle in France and there are a whole group of writers there who we've been working with."

~Taylor, Smash Hits, May 2001

"I want to feel you, I need to hear you,

You are the strength That keeps me walking,

You are the life to my soul, you are my purpose, you are everything.

And how can I stand here with you and not be moved by you? Would you tell me how it could be any better than this?

You still my heart, and you take my breath away. would you take me in, Would you take me deeper now?

'Cause you're all I want, You are all I need, You are everything. Everything."

~"Everything", Lifehouse

DJ: For all the girlies out there, what does Zac sleep in?

Taylor: Oh, that's more than you wanna see. I don't like that visual, man.

~107.5 interview, Utah, January 2001

"Hey, Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me
I'm not sleeping and there ain't no place I'm going to
Hey, Mr. Tambourine Man, play a song for me
In the jingle jangle morning, I'll come following you.."

~"Mr. Tambourine Man", The Byrds

Thanks, Rhonda! :)

DJ: Just tell him to hustle. Come on, you're his brother, you can do that. You're the older brother.

Taylor: You know, he's gotten a lot bigger now, I don't want him to kick my butt.

~107.5 interview, Utah, January 2001

Do you ever stop and think, "What would I be doing now if I hadn't gone into the music business?"

Taylor Hanson : Those thoughts cross your mind sometimes, but I can't imagine doing anything else.

~Nick Chat, August 2000

What's the strangest or most memorable thing a fan has ever given you?

Taylor Hanson : Wow...You know there are so many things people have given us. We get letters saying I was going to kill myself and your music changed my life...I think it's pretty hard to beat that.

~Nick Chat, August 2000

The brothers Hanson were born to rock. According to keyboardist/lead vocalist, Taylor Hanson, "We started so early. We had a real sense of what we wanted to do. My mind-set and my focus now is not really different than when I was even seven years old. It was so clear that there was something there, something in us. We began to sing (those) songs (from the late 1950ís) and we began to sing them together and before we knew it we were writing."

~Musically Speaking With Hanson, by Andi Imlej, November 2000

DJ: OK, Taylor is awake, somehow Isaac and Zac managed to sleep in. Can't blame them really. And we're sending Taylor to go wake them up right now, put them on the show.

Taylor: Okay, here we go so he can hear it. Zac, he's um, actually Ike has been really sick so...

DJ: Oh really?

Taylor: So I dunno if he's gonna be able to get on unless you wanna be responsible for the death of a Hanson.

~107.5 interview, Utah, January 2001