Arts and Entertainment
Song of the Day 4/25: Randy Rainbow, “A Spoonful of Clorox”
Randy Rainbow didn’t waste any time joining the Mock the Moron bandwagon with his usual panache.
Song of the Day 4/24: The Velvet Underground, “White Light/White Heat”
Some people are saying this would be effective against the coronavirus. Maybe it works, maybe it doesn’t. Lou Reed wrote the song in an attempt to capture the sensation of shooting up methamphetamine. The Velvets recorded the song in 1967 for release on their debut LP in 1968, when it was also released as a […]
Song of the Day 4/23: Jon Bon Jovi, “Do What You Can”
New Jersey has been one of the states hardest-hit by the coronavirus, and last night a bunch of stars with New Jersey ties threw a benefit “Jersey 4 Jersey” concert via livestream, headlined by Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi, who wrote a song about the pandemic for the occasion. Singer-songwriter Charlie Puth sang “Growing […]
Song of the Day 4/22: Neil Finn, “Heroes”
In case you hadn’t noticed, the interwebs are awash in musicians performing home concerts, generally alone with an acoustic guitar or piano. I’ve caught several of them, but this one stands out — not just for Neil Finn’s choice of a song that can be interpreted as a tribute to all those people who have […]
Song of the Day 4/21: Lucinda Williams, “Man Without a Soul”
Lucinda Williams has a new album, “Good Souls Better Angels,” coming out this week, and its lead track doesn’t pull any punches. Though it doesn’t mention him by name, there’s no question who the “Man Without a Soul” is. “We’re living in unprecedented times,” Williams told HuffPo. “We’ve never had a person like this in […]
Song of the Day 4/20: Afroman, “Because I Got High”
Happy 4/20! I hope everyone Zooms their celebrations. Afroman (real name: Joseph Foreman) wasn’t exactly advocating marijuana use with his 2001 hit. The lyrics, a string of bad decisions, started with a real-life incident. “I woke up real ambitious — and then my buddy, who I ain’t seen in a long time, came by. I […]
Song of the Day 4/19: Blue Oyster Cult, “(Don’t Fear) the Reaper”
Sure, c’mon, let’s reopen everything on May 1! Don’t fear the reaper! Blue Oyster Cult’s biggest hit (No. 7 Cashbox, No. 12 Billboard) was already a classic rock staple by 2000, when Saturday Night Live immortalized it in what has become one of the most popular skits in the show’s long history. Christopher Walken says […]
Song of the Day 4/17: Bob Dylan, “I Contain Multitudes”
Mr. Zimmerman is at it again. He dropped another new song, again at midnight, without explanation or embellishment. This one’s a lot shorter than “Murder Most Foul,” but it’s similar in its spare instrumental accompaniment and its lyrical obsessions. Still no word on whether this is part of a forthcoming album.
Song of the Day 4/16: Ralph Stanley, “O Death”
If Donald Trump gets his way, this will become the new national anthem. The Appalachian folk song dates back to the 1920s, but it only got wide exposure when the Coen brothers used Ralph Stanley’s a cappella version in their 2000 film “O Brother, Where Art Thou?” in a scene depicting a Klan rally. The […]
Song of the Day 4/15: Warren Zevon, “Life’ll Kill Ya”
If Warren Zevon were still alive, he’d probably re-title this one “Trump’ll Kill Ya,” but the real reason I thought of it is this line in the first verse: You need a permit to walk around downtown. That’s now the literal truth here in Paris, where you have to show papers listing your name, address, […]
Song of the Day 4/14: XTC, “Mayor of Simpleton”
Donald Trump proclaimed himself King of America yesterday. He’s really just Mayor of Simpleton. This Andy Partridge song was on the 1989 LP “Oranges and Lemons.”
Ernest Hemingway on American Fascism
Because I took no books with me on what I thought would be a three-week trip to Paris and Barcelona, I’ve been passing the time by reading old books online. Over the past day I read Ernest Hemingway’s “For Whom the Bell Tolls,” his novel set in the Spanish Civil War. His protagonist, Robert Jordan, […]
Song of the Day 4/13: UFO, “Doctor, Doctor”
UFO was one of the earliest British bands to earn the label “heavy metal,” forming in 1968, the same year as Black Sabbath. They never managed to score a hit in the U.S., but they reached the lower reaches of the UK charts several times. This was originally released in 1974 and failed to chart, […]
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