Alby's Latest Posts
Song of the Day 8/6: The Presidents of the United States of America, “Peaches”
It’s the height of peach season and I couldn’t resist. Local orchards have millions of peaches, and I hum this tune every time I buy a half-peck. Remember when this song came out in 1996? Part of the Seattle band’s appeal was its goofy attitude, exemplified by its name. It’s 22 years later and it […]
El Paso Shooter Spelled It Out for Us
This photo apparently was one of the few things the El Paso shooter tagged with a “like” on his Twitter account.
Song of the Day 8/5: Chairmen of the Board, “Give Me Just a Little More Time”
Put on your shaggin’ shoes. This song is on any Carolina Beach Music compilation worth hearing. General Johnson, lead singer of the Chairmen of the Board, toured the beach circuit for most of the ’60s with his Norfolk band the Showmen, scoring several regional hits before leaving to go solo in 1968. By 1970 he […]
The New Civil War Has Already Begun
For all the yammering about a new civil war, Americans don’t seem to realize it’s already begun. It’s not a strictly sectional war like the first one. It’s a modern war, which means it’s being fought by guerrilla and terrorist tactics, and it’s been going on for several years now. Self-styled militias are the guerrilla […]
Song of the Day 8/4: B.J. Thomas, “Mighty Clouds of Joy”
If white churches had music like this at their services I’d go more often. After his run as a pop singer, B.J. Thomas had a long career in gospel music. This Cynthia Weil/Barry Mann song sounds like a link between the two, but Thomas recorded it in 1971, while he was still a secular singer, […]
Time to Face Facts: Joe Biden Is an Irredeemable Dick
In January 2018, Joe Biden had a message for millennials. Asked about the plight of young adults facing expensive housing and huge student debt, Mr. Cuddles said, “I have no empathy for it. Give me a break.” And he’s still at it. Saturday, at an AFSCME conference on public service sponsored by HuffPo, he was […]
Song of the Day 8/3: Stevie Wonder, “You Haven’t Done Nothin”
Don’t know if you saw it, but Charles Barkley made an unwelcome-by-Democrats point during this week’s debate coverage: “I think all politicians take black folks for granted,” Barkley told reporters. “They talk to black folks every four years, and that’s about it. How they’re going to make our lives better, and then do nothing about […]
Song of the Day 8/2: The Beach Boys, “Darlin'”
The lead track on “Wild Honey,” the Beach Boys’ back-to-our-roots album following the “Smile” disaster, this soul-flavored confection was a throwback even in 1967. The Beach Boys were considered has-beens by that point, so the song barely hit the Top 20, but I’ve always thought it was pretty darn outta sight. Said Brian Wilson in […]
Song of the Day 8/1: Elvis Presley, “Burning Love”
Elvis’ last No. 1 hit — and that only in Cashbox, not Billboard — in its first live performance, about two weeks after he recorded it in late March 1972. Elvis reportedly didn’t care for the song, but it quickly became a fat-Elvis-period fan favorite. It was kept from Billboard’s No. 1 spot by, of […]
Song of the Day 7/31: Frank Sinatra (Joe Piscopo) and Stevie Wonder (Eddie Murphy), “Ebony and Ivory”
This SNL skit dates to 1982, when Ronald Reagan was president. Would he have been elected if the “African monkeys” tape had been released to the public? Given what we know about the GOP, I’m guessing yes.
Song of the Day 7/30: Five Americans, “Western Union”
Technological progress has rendered some old songs obsolete — “Please Mr. Postman” and “The Letter,” for example, are set in an era when people still used snail mail to communicate with each other. Or consider telephone songs, especially ones in which the singer talks to an operator, like “Memphis, Tennessee” — most people haven’t spoken […]
A 6-Year-Old Boy Dies Because Some White Supremacist Was Really Angry
This is the price of the 2nd Amendment: A 19-year-old kid in California got ahold of a military-style rifle, cut a fence to elude security and shot 15 people before he was shot dead by police. Among the three people killed was 6-year-old boy whose mother was also shot, but survived. After the shooting started, […]
Song of the Day 7/29: 10cc, “Oh Effendi”
This was written in the wake of the first Arab oil embargo, but it’s remarkable how little the geopolitics of the Middle East have changed in decades since. The only big difference is that we no longer have to use gun-runners to sell weapons to sheiks and mullahs — we do it right out in […]
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