Rebecca Cook

LeBron James, left, shown with the Cavaliers in 2009, is returning to play for Cleveland.

                                               The Klocks

Story and Pictures by joseph Martinez

I was given a tip that a band was going to play at Mi-Casa restaurant in Boerne Texas. https://www.facebook.com/MiCasaTamales

My first thoughts OK… A house band, then happily   I found out it was The Klocks, A Seasoned Texas rock band.

Walking to the stage, that was set toward the rear of the venue. I was greeted with the wonderful aroma of hill country BBQ. Pity, I did not have time to grab a bite.

In the distant, I heard the classic Spanish tune Suavemente  followed  by a Rick Springfield Jessie’s girl was playing.

The open air venue was large with plenty of seating was available. Close by there was a playground for the kids.

As I approached the stage, the light show got my attention. Animated led lights behind the band. It appeared to be a smaller version of the light show that you would see in the old part of the Las Vegas strip. The lighting engineer Billy Jack Tejerina should be commended for his excellent work.

The Klocks play many classic songs like a Bee-Gee medley that the drummer, Mack Gonzales sung in a falsetto voice. Some in the audience like myself, found it hard to believe that it came out from such burly guy.    I got a heads up that he dose’s a killer Jackson- Five tunes as well.

The audio was clear and crisp. Up close or far away. Even next to the basketball court. (Set way far back)  It was a joy to listen to. Setting up audio for an outdoor event is very different than indoors. Mathew Sledge, the sound engineer knows his craft well.

Talking to the bass player and front man Brent Fields I asked….

Q: How many years has the band been together?

We started back 1980, Broke up in 1986, then got back in touch in 1995 and started again. Two of us are from the original band. My self and Ed Doren

Q: Do you have a favorite personal song?

Suavemente, Speaking and singing Spanish is not my native tongue so I find it challenging singing a classic Spanish song that so many fans like.

Q: how did you come up with the name The Klocks?

It’s a play on words. Like Styx’s and others bands from the 80’s

Q:  What in the future for the band.

More diversity, it’s the key to our success.

Q: Hey Brent, I see you a greatest hit’s cd?

It’s our first cd. Not a compilation album. It shows the full range of songs we play. The one exception is a covered by Pink Floyd “Time”.

Q: Do you see adding more members to the band?

We tried before but, the four of us in stage. It feels comfortable.

I want to thank you for a great evening Brent and best wishes for  The Klock’s

Joseph

Band members

Lead Vocals- Bass: Brent Fields

Guitar: Ben Gonzales

Keyboard: Ed Doren

Drums: Mack Gonzales

The Klocks, It’s more than music, it’s a show.

Rock/Country/Latin/ and more.  Playing songs from 70’s 80’s 90’s and from today.

http://www.theklocks.com/

https://www.facebook.com/TheKlocks

http://www.reverbnation.com/theklocks

For bookings contact them @ 210 573-5738

Bob Donavan/USA SPORTS

SAN ANTONIO — Those basketball purists who despised how the Miami Heat were assembled were able to watch in pleasure Sunday night as they were embarrassed by a team that has been built through the draft, with its players accepting pay reductions to remain in San Antonio.

After blowing Game 6 of the NBA Finals and a chance at a championship a year ago, the Spurs took full advantage of their second chance with a brilliant display of teamwork and perimeter shooting, reducing the Heat to a group of aging or unprepared cohorts that surrounded four-time MVP LeBron James.

James couldn’t carry the Heat in Game 5 as the Spurs used a 37-point swing over two quarters to seal their fifth NBA title in 15 years with a 104-87 win over Miami at AT&T Center.

San Antonio won the best-of-seven series, four games to one, cementing its dominance of the NBA over the past decade and a half and perhaps ending Miami’s Big Three Era. In four years together, the trio of Dwyane Wade, James, and Chris Bosh reached four NBA Finals, winning two.

Kawhi Leonard, a third-year forward who did not make the All-Star team, was named Finals MVP, finishing with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Manu Ginobili added 19 and Patty Mills scored 17.

James, who has an opt-out clause in his contract this summer, finished with 31 points but just 14 after Miami’s impressive first quarter. James was 10-for-21 shooting with 10 rebounds and 5 assists. Bosh, Wade, and ex-Celtic Ray Allen were a combined 9-for-35 shooting, giving Miami no chance to overcome the streaking Spurs.

Miami’s momentum lasted only one quarter as it reverted to the same confused and lethargic team in the second period as it was in Games 3 and 4. The Spurs chipped away early in the quarter but then went on an impressive 14-0 run, catching the Heat after a Leonard 3-pointer for a 37-35 lead at the 4:47 mark.

The run ended with a resounding Ginobili dunk on Bosh that invigorated the crowd and gave the Spurs a 7-point lead. Following a James basket, Ginobili responded with another 3-pointer. He scored 14 points in the first half.

The Heat scored 11 points in the period on 4-for-15 shooting and James was limited to just a 3-pointer. Meanwhile, Leonard and Ginobili teamed for 29 of San Antonio’s 47 first-half points while Tony Parker and Danny Green went scoreless, a testament to the Spurs’ success despite a lack of balance.

The Heat players not named James were 7-for-21 shooting in the first half with 20 points, making their quest to win three consecutive games appear bleak.

As promised, the Heat started off with the passion and fire not seen since Game 2, jumping out to an 8-0 lead behind 6 points from James, who had that same look he carried in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals two years ago at TD Garden, when he scored 45 to beat the Celtics.

He showed no emotion in scoring on the Spurs at will while his cohorts were giving him some assistance, unlike the two games in Miami. Rashard Lewis canned a 3-pointer, followed by a James conventional 3-point play and then a Ray Allen 3-ball at the 5:04 mark and the Heat raced to a 22-6 lead.

San Antonio, hearing for the past two days about its greatness and brilliance after two impressive wins in Miami, looked confused and disheveled. A Leonard 3-pointer was the Spurs’ lone field goal through the first 7:12 of the game.

Instead of relenting, the Spurs responded in the best way they know how: the 3-pointer. After a Ginobili 3-point play, he came back with a trey, followed by long balls from Leonard and Patty Mills for a 12-0 run to slice the deficit to 22-18. The crowd at AT&T Center, very comfortable in the fully air conditioned arena, went into a frenzy.

James couldn’t allow too much excitement. He hit a 28-foot 3-pointer followed by two free throws. The Heat looked like the two-time defending champions for most of the first quarter, yet led just 29-22 with the Spurs having hit just six of their 21 shot attempts.

While it appeared the Miami supporting cast would provide James some relief, they didn’t follow through. James finished the first period with 17 points on 5-for-7 shooting while the rest of the Heat were 4 for 12 with 12 points.

Four of San Antonio’s six field goals in the first quarter were 3-pointers and the starting trio of Boris Diaw, Green, and Parker did not score.

The third quarter was merely a culmination of the Spurs’ dominance in the series. Realizing they were outmanned, the Heat appeared to relent, looking frustrated as the Spurs returned to their ball-whipping ways, resulting in open shots.

After neither team scored for the first 3:08, the Spurs went on a game-defining, 18-4 run to extend the lead to 65-44. By then, desperate Miami coach Erik Spoelstra was inserting Michael Beasley, who did not play in previous four games, and Mario Chalmers, who was benched in the first half. They did little to help.

The third quarter was a showcase for Patty, who scored 14 points in the period on 5-for-5 shooting, four 3-pointers. The Spurs led by as many 22 in the period and the Miami Big Three were relegated to helpless onlookers.

In one sequence, Wade went for a streaking baseline dunk but was promptly snuffed by Tiago Splitter, which exemplified Wade’s struggles in the final two games of the series. The Spurs went on a 59-22 run over two-plus quarters and led, 77-58, after that third period, and the home faithful were beginning to smell champagne.

by: Gary Washburn

Spurs forward Kawhi Leonard dunked while being defended by the Heat’s Chris Bosh                     Steve Mitchell/USA Sports                                                      Steve Mitchell/USA Sports

MIAMI — If there was any doubt about the mastery and brilliance of the San Antonio Spurs or whether they are improved from the team that was seconds from a championship a year ago, they erased any skepticism with their stellar performance Thursday night at AmericanAirlines Arena.

Two days after overwhelming the Miami Heat to take the series lead, the Spurs did it again with much of the same defensive execution and offensive prowess, using the passing of Boris Diaw, playmaking of Tony Parker, and strength of Kawhi Leonard to race to a 107-86 victory in Game 4 of the NBA Finals.

San Antonio has a commanding three games to one lead and can win its first championship in seven years Sunday evening at home. And it appears the once-mighty Heat, with the game’s most dominant player and potentially four Hall of Famers, have nothing left.

No NBA team has come back from a 3-1 deficit in the Finals.

“I mean, they smashed us, two straight home games, [we] got off to awful starts,” James said. “They came in and were much better than us in these two games. It’s just that simple. We’re still a confident bunch, even though our heads are lowered down right now.”

The Spurs were the model of teamwork and balance, with no player scoring more than 20 points (Leonard), but six scoring at least 8 points. On a night when the Spurs needed scoring from the backcourt, Parker delivered with 19 points on 8-for-15 shooting and Patty Mills constantly burned Miami with open 3-pointers, adding 14 points and four 3-pointers.

After trailing by 19 at halftime, James opened the third quarter by scoring 10 of Miami’s first 12 points, cutting the deficit to 61-48. After a San Antonio timeout, the soldout crowd sensed a major rally and were ready for the vintage Heat to arrive.

They didn’t make the trip. The Spurs restored order with a 7-0 run, then picked apart the Miami defense behind skilled swingman Diaw, who either delivered pinpoint passes or scored on the post against an overwhelmed Wade.

“Yeah [the Spurs] just, they played great,” Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said. “And I can honestly say I just don’t think any of us were expecting this type of performance. They were great, you have to give them credit for that. We just couldn’t get into a rhythm on either side of the ball and then it just went from there.

“I’ve got to do a better job for my team. San Antonio is playing great. They’re moving the basketball. They’re exploiting where we’re normally good, so we have to do a better job. Even when we’ve made adjustments, they’ve still been able to stay in a rhythm and go from there.”

Wade looked lethargic the entire evening, missing nine of his first 10 shots. The Spurs pulled away in the third quarter, extending the lead to 24 points behind the mastery of Parker and hustle of Leonard, who has scored 49 points in the past two games.

The Spurs have spent the past 72 hours giving the Heat a lesson in fundamentals, ball movement, and unselfish play. Of San Antonio’s 40 baskets Thursday, 25 were assisted and nine Spurs registered an assist.

The Heat relied strictly on James through the first three quarters, as he amassed 28 of his team’s 57 points. Through three quarters, James was 1o for 15 from the field; his teammates were 10 for 36. A team that has relied on talent and balance the past four years is sputtering.

“It’s not on my shoulder, it’s not,” James said. “I understand I get the limelight in the press and all that but it’s not all on my shoulder. I take a lot of it, but I do it for my teammates and I want them to put a lot of pressure on me in that sense.”

While Wade looked rejuvenated through the first three games (21-for-39 shooting, 18.3 points per game), he appeared to labor throughout Game 4, lacking his normal lift and missing shots near the basket.

“I just missed them; you know I’m a very accurate shooter, so I don’t like missing,” Wade said. “I’m not used to missing around the basket. But law of averages, man. The ball just didn’t go in. But I’ll take those same opportunities the next game, for sure.”

The Spurs are still smarting over losing Games 6 and 7 in Miami last season, and losing the series, so they were hardly giddy over the workmanlike victory. With the revived 2-2-1-1-1 Finals format, San Antonio returns home for Game 5 with a chance to end the series.

But they have a healthy respect for the Heat.

“We didn’t want to rest and say, hey, ‘We’ve got one and let’s just rest on that.’ We came in here tonight and had great focus, put a great game together, and came out with two,” center Tim Duncan said. “[But] they’re a very, very good ballclub. Obviously, they’re the champions, and they’re going to come out and show a lot of fire and come with a lot of energy. We’re going to use our home court and we’re going to come with the same focus that we did in these last two games, and hopefully close it out at home.”

by: Gary Washburn

Photos by Ramón Hernández

Tejanos rocked the boat during last month’s successful Tejano Legends Cruise.

Well, it was actually a ship, the Carnival Triumph, where fans stood in buffet lines with their favorite stars, sat next to them in the dining room, walked the decks, drank with them in the bars and gambled alongside of them in the casino for five days.

As cruise event ticket holders embarked, they were greeted by CEO/Grammy award winning William “Wild Bill” Perkins and his girlfriend, María Soto, COO Jonny Martínez and his wife Diana, plus CFO Al Duarte and his wife Susie as they handed out VIP badges, a tote bag full of goodies and the schedule of events.

The ship left the Port of Galveston at 4 p.m. on a Monday and an hour later, those that signed up for this package were being welcomed by Raulito Navaira in Club Rio, where most of the concerts took place.

The ship was somewhere in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico when at 10 a.m. the next morning, all VIPs were treated to a sneak peak, and sneak listen, to each artist – Anselmo Martínez, Jonny Martínez, Gabe Zavala, Stefani Montiel, Ricky Valenz, Max Baca, Jimmy Edward, Gary Hobbs, David Marez, Rubén Ramos and Michael Salgado — perform one to two acoustic tunes.

At 1 p.m., Club Rio opened its doors for VIP early seating and the first dance started at 2 p.m. with Robert Dorantes’ Aviso Band, featuring Chris Q on vocals, got the people dancing. Anselmo Martínez kicked things off and what a treat to hear a true living legend giving the audience a walk down memory lane with a flashback of when he, Isidro López, Chris Sandoval, Balde Gonzales, Juan Colorado and other band leaders ruled during the 1950s orchestra era.

Other vocalists were Gabe Zavala, Stefani, Vic Nash (r.n. Víctor Espinoza), Jess López of Little Joe y La Familia, Buddy De Los Santos, David Marez and Jimmy Edward.

Sylvia Soto, Jaycee Milicia and Joshua González acted as security and had the hard job of keeping out non-ticket holders since the only way to gain admission is by having booked the cruise through Xstream Travel.

The dance ended at 5:30 p.m. after which the artists stayed to sign autographs and pose for pictures. Then everyone was free to enjoy other shipboard activities.

The Carnival Triumph was docking in Progresso, Yucatán when they opened their eyes on Wednesday morning and it was time to go ashore. This writer had not had a panucha nor had I eaten a Gringa in a while. So I had those, than I got two cachetadas – and these, for your information are some of the local dishes in Yucatán. Other culinary delights are burritas, burritacos, salbutes and suizos.

Now here’s a piece of advice for first time cruisers. Don’t sign up for any expense excursions in advance because you’ll get a better deal at the local market place where you can bargain and get a round-trip to the Capitol City of Merida for $12 to 15; or a “4 in 1 Tour” to the salt flats, to see wild flamingos in their natural habitat, tour the Xcambo Mayan ruins and end up enjoying some time in a private beach resort before returning to town – all for an affordable $15. For those that want to stay in Progresso, start out with double-decker bus tour for $5 to determine where you want to return and hang out in.

Cruisers who went to Progresso had to be back on the ship at 3 p.m. because the next show started at 4 p.m. in Club Rio with Calle Seis backing up Anselmo, Jonny, Raulito, René García, blue shirt, Jess and Jimmy; and this event ended two hours later with fans loudly chanting “otra, otra, otra.” However, their allotted time had expired.

God treated those that got up early and were at the Lido deck or having breakfast to a beautiful picturesque sunrise as the ship pulled opposite the Carnival Breeze ship. Across the crystal clear blue waters in Puerta Maya on the island of Cozumel in the Mexican state of Quintana Roo. On another pier was the Brilliance of the Seas and the Caribbean Princess.

There was so much to do in Cozumel that some headed to Mr. Sancho’s, went to a dolphin show, went snorkeling, walked the streets of this sun-drenched shopper’s paradise or simply kicked back and basked in the sun with a cool drink in their hand.

This was a short shore day since everyone had to be back on the ship by 4 p.m. and the Grand (Tejano music) After Party started one hour prior at the Hollywood Club. However, this was an event during which BNET DJs Roland Martínez and Sandra “Catfish” Muñoz played the most popular Tejano hits until 6 p.m.

Before anyone realized it, it was Friday. Everyone had a chance to sleep late and if they skipped breakfast they were able to make it in time for the first Tejano event of the day at 10:30 a.m. This was an ‘Unplugged and Personal” session emceed by Raulito during which he bantered with David, Gary, Jimmy and Rubén and turned it into a ‘Question and Answer’ session with the audience.

This was perhaps the highlight of all the combined events because each artist opened up and the audience learned many little-known facts about each artist’s musical career and in some cases, their personal life.

The second “Unplugged” started at 11:30 a.m., one-half hour before the other ended and this one was emceed by Jonny. This time Max, Gabe, Stefani and Michael opened their hearts and bared their souls in what was another insightful look into another group of Tejano artists. This event ended at 1 p.m. – at which time VIPS were allowed to enter Club Rio for early seating for the last dance, but most opted to eat lunch and take their chances at getting good seats for the 2 p.m. dance featuring Ricky Valenz, the TexManiacs featuring Josh Baca on accordion, Stefani, Gary Hobbs, Michael Salgado and Rubén Ramos, who asked Jimmy Edward to joined him on a couple of growly soul numbers. However, the surprise of the evening came when Rubén Ramos Jr. stepped on stage to sing “Que Te Ha Dado Esa Mujer” in duet with his father.

By now, even the artists were cutting loose and endearing to see Max and his wife, Mari Baca, Stefani and Gabe get out on the dance floor. Close to the ending all the Aviso, Calle Seis and Rubén’s musicians, Rick Fuentes, Marcelo Gauna, plus others united for an impromptu jam. It was the prelude to the grand finale during which every single artist and musician came onstage. Seeing this, the fans went wild as they stampeded the club with their cameras, cell phones and iPads like an attack of paparazzi photographers.

It seemed to be like a fireworks of star, but by 6:15 p.m., it was all over, awww. However, it was not completely over as the party overflowed into the casino bar area and other bars, not to mention other regular shipboard activities.

Michael “Sycko” López and Julia Pizano did an excellent of video-graphing all the events and a video/photo package of the cruise will soon be available.

The next morning, debarkation started at 8 a.m. and it was a bittersweet sight since there was a hint of sadness that the cruise was now over, but not without providing each and every fan with a great time and many happy memories. Best of all, I did overhear many fans vowing to be back for next year’s cruise. That one will be seven days with port stops in the Caiman Islands and Jamaica.

On the way home, 30 miles north of Galveston and two hours after hitting land I stopped to eat at Kelley’s Country Kitchen to enjoy their country fried chicken and who walks in but Rubén Ramos and his entire entourage.

In closing, all this photojournalist can say is, “I’ll see you on the next Tejano Legends Cruise,” and for information on the next one that sets sail on January 4, 2015 and features Little Joe y La Familia, go to www.cruiseconnectionlive.com, e-mail trumpetwildbill@yahoo.com or call (512) 552-4290 or 375-5711.

Check on this and all images to see what you missed.