Alby's Latest Posts
Song of the Day 9/15: Billy Joe Shaver, “I’m Just an Old Chunk of Coal (But I’m Gonna Be a Diamond Someday)” Plus the Best Norm MacDonald Clip
Comedian Norm MacDonald, that self-identified Old Chunk of Coal, was sick with cancer for almost a decade before he died the other day, and told almost nobody. He started referring to himself as “just an old chunk of coal” seven or eight years ago, and this, apparently his favorite country song, is where the phrase […]
The Brady Exoneration
Here’s the report of the House Ethics Committee on the complaint against Rep. Gerald Brady: Committee Vote: Complaint fails to allege facts which constitute a violation of the Rules of Legislative Conduct and no further action will be taken by the House Ethics Committee; 5-0 Committee Findings: The Ethics Committee of the House of Representatives […]
Song of the Day 9/13: Iggy Pop, “Mask”
What is it with MAGAnuts and their hatred of masks? Have you seen videos of these disturbed people, frothing at the mouth over the fact that their kids have to wear facemasks in school? Not only is wearing a mask a crucial step in public health, I have to agree with Iggy here — you […]
Song of the Day 9/12: Bill Withers, “Ain’t No Sunshine”
This one gets my vote for the most effective I-miss-my-woman song ever written. Bill Withers’ breakthrough hit was inspired by one of the great parting scenes in cinema — no, not “Casablanca,” but a film we don’t hear much about anymore despite its outstanding reputation, “Days of Wine and Roses,” starring Jack Lemmon and Lee […]
DL Open Thread Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021
Thank whatever you believe in that the 20th anniversary of 9/11 passed with as little flag-waving horseshit as it did, but Jesus Christ on a tandem bike, can we stop mourning the loss of national unity? You know what unites people? Grief. It wasn’t patriotism, or feeling for our fellow Americans. It was heartsick sadness. […]
Song of the Day 9/11: Pat Benetar, “Hit Me With Your Best Shot”
Joe Biden is hitting America’s homicidal Republicans with his best shot — a vaccine mandate that’s popular with over 60% of the public, even in deep-red states. Somebody should tell all those butch GOPers they’re acting like soy boys — man up and take the shot. The tune, Pat Benetar’s first Top 10 hit (No. […]
Song of the Day 9/9: Big Daddy Graham, “Let’s Call in Sick”
The obituary identifies Big Daddy Graham, who died yesterday at 68, as a longtime WIP radio-show host, and that was definitely the most successful of his various gigs. But anyone around her in the ’80s, when the standup comedy boom had clubs opening even in unfunny places like Wilmington, Big Daddy — born Edward Gudonis […]
DL Open Thread Thursday, Sept. 9, 2021
If you want to read stories about anti-vax, anti-mask assholes, the media is there for you — can’t swing a dead cat on the internet without hitting one of those. But the mainstream media is showing a lot less interest in a Treasury Dept. study that found the wealthiest 1% of Americans dodge as much […]
Song of the Day 9/7: The Beatles, “Do You Want to Know a Secret”
Pete ‘n’ Val have a secret, but it’s not hard to guess what it is: Gerald Brady will not be expelled from the General Assembly. This was the first Beatles single to feature George Harrison on lead vocal. The tune was composed in autumn 1962, primarily by John Lennon, who based it on the first […]
Song of the Day 9/6: The Clash, “Career Opportunities”
I’d normally highlight unions on Labor Day, but with 36% of the U.S. workforce is now part of the gig economy, so they aren’t even employees in the traditional sense. Though Joe Strummer and Mick Jones wrote this about the recession-ravaged ’70s in Britain, its message will last as long as capitalism. The song appeared […]
Song of the Day 9/5: Ani DiFranco, “Amendment”
Ani DiFranco has the solution to the Supreme Court’s attack on abortion rights. I don’t think it will happen anytime soon, but that doesn’t make her wrong.
DL Open Thread Sunday, Sept. 5, 2021
The media, having accomplished its task of pulling down Joe Biden’s approval ratings, have mostly moved on from Afghanistan in favor of trumpeting the Texas Abortion Freakout, which means the End of Abortion Rights in This Country. Look, I’m not trying to minimize how despicable this is, but this is a country awash up to […]
Song of the Day 9/2: Friends of Distinction, “Grazing in the Grass”
This song just missed topping the charts twice — the first time as South African trumpeter Hugh Masekela’s instrumental version, which reached No. 1 in 1968, and again in 1970, when the Friends of Distinction added lyrics and took it to No. 3. Lead singer Harry Enten wrote them, and while Masekela’s reference to grass […]
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