Alby's Latest Posts
Song of the Day 7/14: Paul Henreid and the cast of “Casablanca,” “La Marseillaise”
It’s not just a great national anthem, it’s a great Nazi-fighting anthem. And Paul Henreid, forever to be known as “Casablanca” Nazi-fighter Victor Laszlo, was the right man to sing it — the Austrian was so ardently anti-Nazi he was declared an official enemy of the Third Reich. Born in Trieste and trained in Vienna, […]
Song of the Day 7/13: Willie Watson, “Dancing on My Own”
Willie Watson, a founding member of Old Crow Medicine Show who went solo in 2011, has always concentrated on old-time music, so it’s not so surprising that his new-ish single, released three months ago, is a cover. What’s surprising is who he covered: Swedish disco chanteuse Robyn. “Dancing on My Own” was a top 10 […]
Song of the Day 7/11: Garnet Mimms & the Enchanters, “Cry Baby”
Diaper Donny is still blubbering like a toddler over his own fuck-ups, so here’s another number for his whine-athon. Janis Joplin’s 1970 cover is the version most Boomers are familiar with, but Garnet Mimms had a No. 4 hit with the original in 1963. His backup singers on the song aren’t actually the Enchanters — […]
Song of the Day 7/10: The Beatles, “Cry Baby Cry”
This one’s for President Whiny Little Bitch. What’s wrong with the brains of people who listen to this crybaby and hear strength? John Lennon had the chorus to this one months before he finished it in India, and he wasn’t happy with the final result, describing it years later as “a piece of rubbish.” That’s […]
Song of the Day 7/9: Randy Rainbow, “Poor Deplorable Troll”
I noticed that a lot of Randy’s recent parodies have used Disney tunes, and then I remembered that half of Broadway’s musicals these days originated as the mouse house’s animated feature films. For those who didn’t watch those movies over and over when their kids were young, this one uses “Poor Unfortunate Souls” from “The […]
Song of the Day 7/8: Styx, “Come Sail Away”
This one’s for Allan Loudell, who loved to tell the story of Styx playing at his high school prom in the early ’70s, back when the band was a popular Chicago-based regional act. The members had been together a decade at that point, but didn’t achieve wider popularity until the mid-70s. Between then and 1983, […]
Song of the Day 7/6: Cast of “Hamilton” featuring Phillipa Soo, with Jimmy Fallon and the Roots, “Helpless”
I don’t know what the weekend was like for the rest of you shut-ins — was it just my neighborhood, or did it sound like the civil war had broken out on the night of July 4? — but at my house we celebrated the Founding Father without a father by watching the filmed version […]
Song of the Day 7/4: Madisen Hallberg and Emmanuel Henreid, “The Star-Spangled Banner”
I’m no fan of “The Star-Spangled Banner” — IMHO the national anthem should be “America the Beautiful” as sung by Ray Charles — but this rendition is special. Madisen Hallberg, a graduate student at Portland State University, was recording the song for an online graduation ceremony, when passing professional singer Emmanuel Henreid heard her and […]
Song of the Day 7/2: Randy Newman, “Jolly Coppers on Parade”
Critics were lukewarm toward Randy Newman’s “Little Criminals” LP when it came out in 1977, but thanks to the surprise success of his controversial hit “Short People,” it became his best-selling album. This song, its title taken from a Swedish mystery novel, got little notice then or since, probably because most people didn’t and don’t […]
Song of the Day 7/1: Johnny Cash, “God Bless Robert E. Lee”
Statues are coming down and names scrubbed from buildings as once-revered figures are recast as traitors and racists. The Lost Cause has no greater hero than Robert E. Lee, whose myth rested on the idea of him as a reluctant rebel who turned down command of the Union army out of patriotism towards his home […]
Song of the Day 6/30: David Bowie, “I’m Afraid of Americans”
The European Union has banned tourists from the United States because of our nation’s inability to get a handle on its COVID-19 pandemic, making fear of Americans an official policy. Frankly, given some citizens’ quick resort to firearms during any disagreement, I think fear of Americans is an entirely rational default setting, virus or no […]
Song of the Day 6/29: Randy Rainbow, “Cover Your Freakin’ Face”
Randy Rainbow dropped this timely public-service message this morning. It’s a simple message, but too many simpletons are resisting it.
Song of the Day 6/28: Neil Young, “White Line”
Neil Young’s deep vault of unreleased material is legendary, but one important tranche is unreleased no longer: This week Young finally released his 1975 LP “Homegrown” in its entirety. Several of its songs appeared on Young’s later releases — “White Line” surfaced in 1990 on the “Ragged Glory” album, “Love Is a Rose” on “Decade” […]
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