Hey, it’s only been a year! Happy to be back and thrilled to be working again! If you’re new to The BUZZ it’s my way of keeping in touch with the people in my life whom I’ve had the pleasure to work with and friended over 3 decades in Music, Advertising, Broadcasting and Acting.

SEPTEMBER BUZZ

The summer is winding down, but Doug is running full speed ahead!

HOSPITALITY FEST at the Lakeshore Fitness Center provided the opportunity for Doug’s company Pocket Productions to introduce THE SOUNDS OF A GENERATION. Doug’s new musical extravaganza offering different Live Music shows like The Joe Cocker Mad Dog Tribute Band,(a re-enactment of the 1970 Concert at The Fillmore East of The Mad Dogs & Englishmen Tour), The Soul Committee (a Tribute to the Alan Parker film “The Commitments” and his newest show 1967 Summer of Love. Doug met with Event Managers and Planners from Associations, High Tech and Service Industries, and Corporations who hire Entertainment for large Events, Parties and Functions. Check out Doug’s Narrated promo for his Woodstock Review Show    http://kirsten19.wixsite.com/pocket-productions

 AUGUST WAS A BUSY MUSIC MONTH! Doug James and The Pocket’s Favorite club to go acoustic has always been FUSION in Kenosha, Wis. A combined Art Gallery and Music venue it also offers Comedy and is with out a doubt the hottest club in a town with a bar on every corner! Which is why they now serve drinks as well as outstanding local, regional and national talent on their stage! Check’em out at www.kenoshafusion.com

A DOUBLE BILL FILLED TO CAPACITY! 210 Restaurant & Music Lounge didn’t even know what hit them, they certainly didn’t expect 400+ to show up for the Joe Cocker Mad Dog Tribute Band and Woodstock Music Fest Redux!! Doug Produced the show, Narrated the 3 hour extravaganza (which he wrote as well) and sang in the CS&N Woodstock performance. Needless to say, it was a good…no it was a GREAT time!

 RUN ON SENTENCE ALERT. Doug hosted the jam at the Wooden Nickel on the 2^nd, then flew to Key West for Daughter Bridgets Wedding on the beach, in the heat and humidity then flew back and did a weekend Iowa tour playing at Vaudeville Mews in Des Moines on the 12^th and the Adel Sweet Corn Festival on the 13^th! (deep breath) But wait there’s more!

COX COMMUNICATIONS “WE ARE FAMOUS” Working as a husband and wife team for an on camera TV campaign Doug and Chicago actress and friend Janice O’Neil did multiple spots for the Home Smart Phone! The agency was Foote Cone & Belding and Doug’s old Taco Bell pal Todd Durston was the Creative Director. If you’re in the South, Southwest and West Coast you’re probably already seeing it airing!

MINI BABY BEL. A Sales Video for Celebrity Cheese? Really? Is it even necessary? Doug had no complaints working with team of creatives from Y&R Chicago and Dave Gerbosi at Another Country!

FINGERS ARE CROSSED! Doug would describe this as one of those VO jobs that you relish working on. A demo for a 2017 car campaign. All we can say is it was with a great team of guys from DDB Chicago.

DOUG’S ACTING HIS AGE? Yes, he did an AARP On Camera commercial with Lindsay Seltzer of GMMB. Fellow BOSS acting chum John Hoogenakker had the lead in this one!

 HAMMER TIME. DJ worked on an Internet Starburst Candy campaign with Alison Reeck and Audio Tech wizard Nick Papaleo from DDB Chicago. The spot featured MC Hammer doin’ a Juicy Rain Dance!

IT’S HANA HOU TIME TOO. Doug says Mahalo to Susie Kim and the creative team of Sean and Bryan at MVNP on the Big Island! He’s the voice for the McDonald’s McTeri Deluxe for the 2^nd year in a row!

RESPIRATORY HEALTH ASSOCIATION.
This will be the last time Doug will have to fly back to Announce for Hustle Up the Hancock! The plan is to stick around in 2017 and work! Hope it’s a mild winter!!

MONOPOLY IS ALIIVVEE! Thanks to Steve Zoloto from Scientific Games. Big Shout out to everyone who plays the one armed Bandit in Casinos all over the world.

A PARTING THOUGHT… 
This Labor Day, resolve to do work that you love.

                                                  SEPTEMBER HAPPENINGS

SEPTEMBER 5     LABOR DAY

SEPTEMBER 22   AUTUMN BEGINS

SEPTEMBER 23   DJP PLAYS MAC’S ON SLADE

Worked with Producer/Writer Houston Howell from Evoke Productions on yet another Craftsman project. Gotta shout out to co-writer Michael Lewis too! The 90 second online infomercial highlighted the new Craftsman 12 AMP Reciprocating Saw! This has all of the right stuff for everything from demolition to rebuilding a bigger better MAN CAVE with no problem! From the push and pull default setting to full orbital action to the Vibra-Shield comfort grip with two built-in shock absorbers, this Tool Time man toy is just part of the new lineup of Craftsman Reciprocating Saws! WOOF WOOF!!

I did a radio spot for Northwestern Medicine recently for the Laughlin Constable agency. Producer Phil Smith & his creative team put together a series of commercials with individuals from all walks of life battling life threatening illnesses. In my spot I played a drummer who’d just completed an adaptive hybrid surgery to remove a brain tumor.  NM’s experts took the lead to help me regain my life’s rhythm.

OLD JOKE ALERT, What do you call someone who hangs around with musicians? A DRUMMER! (rim shot) By the way, that couldn’t be further from the truth!

Ari ‘Doc O Rock’ Mintz is a man of many hats! Besides being a friend he is a real Doctor, a Songwriter, Producer and a helluva bass player! I’ve been blessed the past couple of years to be his first choice to sing with his incredibly talented band, Vat of Chocolate. I was also on Ari’s last album Signifying Monkeys (available on iTunes) and he even let me grace the cover of the CD with him.

One of my personal highlights this summer was going back into the studio and performing on his latest CD Baribari. This time, with the amazing Yvonne Gage! This is a woman who can sing anything!! But to watch her work in the studio with Ari and engineer Rob Ruccia at the controls was pure joy.

The CD will be out sometime in the Spring, and I’ll be sure to let you know exactly when!

I can never say “THANKS” enough to the people who keep me busy! They’re behind the scenes sending me auditions for VO or to auditions for Film/TV/commercials.

I’m fortunate to be working with the absolute best! So thank you, every single one of you! DJ

It’s an allergy known mostly to Chicago Bears fans. Although I won’t say it doesn’t exist in Minnesota or Detroit either! Doug James and the Pocket will be playing to a packed Pactose Intolerant house @ Reggies Music joint Sunday September 13th at the Post Bears/Packers game PARTY!!  It’s a $12 Pig Roast before and after the game! Join us immediately following the Noon game at Soldier Field if you can! Rumor is there’s a contingency of BEARS fans from Iowa coming just to hear DJP ROCK DA HAUS!!

Man am I glad the super hot humid weather waited a day! Although I didn’t announce at the Sunday Triathlon, my main man Dave Kappas called me up to announce at the finish line for the 19th Annual Chicago Triathlon Super Sprint and 25th Life Time Kids Tri Chicago Saturday August 29th! It’s always gratifying to see so many dedicated & determined athletes no matter their age! I especially would like to give props to the Para Tri Division of athletes who swim, bike and ride the distance!! Their fortitude is an inspiration! Here’s hoping the Pro’s run next year and I can be busy the entire weekend!!

Yeah, that sounds kind of OMINOUS! But I do work with Barry McGuire pretty frequently and we always have to sing a line or two of the 1965 song from the late singer with the same name! It’s got NOTHING to do with Craftsman products which most everyone knows kicks ass but hey, Barry is my producer and Houston Howell is the genius who first hired me as their spokesman. I will forever be beholden!! Always a hoot working with these guys!

Susie Kim and Piku Ghosh are living a charmed life in Hawaii. They taunt and tease me with work for McDonald’s from their home at MVNP on the big island! But one of these days I’ll get back there, and we’ll party like it’s 2099!! Big shout out to their audio engineer Sean and to Ian Scott at CRC Chicago for sitting at the board and hooking us up via ISDN!