I started reading it once again yesterday. Fantastic YA novel. One of my childhood faves. I'm trying to remember when I first read it; 1st or 2nd grade maybe, but that seems a little young. I think George Stable and Rob Fleming would get on well. I just learned that there is a sequel, Rich and Famous, so I ordered it on MeL.
At Calvin. Supposedly an "almost-acoustic" show. With almost any other band "almost-acoustic" would be a turn-off. But not with Yo La Tengo."The band's name comes from a baseball anecdote. During the 1962 season, New York Mets center fielder Richie Ashburn and Venezuelan shortstop Elio Chacón found themselves colliding in the outfield. When Ashburn went for a catch, he would scream, "I got it! I got it!" only to run into the 160-pound Chacón, who spoke only Spanish. Ashburn learned to yell, "¡Yo la tengo! ¡Yo la tengo!" which is "I've got it" in Spanish. In a later game, Ashburn happily saw Chacón backing off. He relaxed, positioned himself to catch the ball, and was instead run over by 200-pound left fielder Frank Thomas, who understood no Spanish. After getting up, Thomas asked Ashburn "What the heck is a Yellow Tango?".[1]
The band wanted a name that sounded foreign in order to avoid any connotations in English and Kaplan is a devoted baseball fan. However, it still irks them when they are asked the origin of the name. The band once performed a cover of the Mets theme song "Meet the Mets" during a benefit appearance on radio station WFMU's pledge drive. A track on I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass is called "The Story of Yo La Tango" in apparent reference to an all-too-frequent misspelling of the band's name."
Hopefully someone will ask them tonight "what the heck is a Yellow Tango?"
