Arts and Entertainment
Song of the Day 2/15: The Proclaimers, “Cap in Hand”
Brexit has revived talk of Scottish independence, a topic that always reminds me of this song in which Scottish twins Charlie and Craig Reid proclaimed their support for cutting ties with England. They wrote this more than 30 years ago and still perform it today. I saw the band on its first American tour in […]
Song of the Day 2/14: David Peel and the Lower East Side, “Up Against the Wall”
Today’s tune is in honor of Mike Bloomberg’s policing policy which, considering this song was recorded in 1968, shows that mini-Mike wasn’t an innovator but a reactionary. Of course, Bloomberg’s retro policy was hardly shocking to its victims. When David Peel (born David Rosario) returned to New York City after two years in the Army, […]
Song of the Day 2/13: Ray Stevens, “Mr. Businessman”
Ray Stevens is best known for his prodigious output of comic songs, a few of which were actually worth a chuckle. He also had a big hit with “Everything Is Beautiful,” which is as treacly as it sounds, and to ensure his place in the pantheon of uncool, he built his own theater in Bronson, […]
Song of the Day 2/12: The Guess Who, “Share the Land”
Not even Bernie Sanders goes so far as to call for redistribution of land — it took a bunch of Canadian hayseeds from the plains of Manitoba to do that. Burton Cummings, grossly underappreciated as both a singer and a songwriter, wrote this around the time Randy Bachman left the band in 1970. Its communal, […]
Song of the Day 2/11: Alive and Kicking, “Tighter, Tighter”
I have no idea why this song popped into my head the other day, because I don’t think I’ve heard it in years. Obscure even for a one-hit wonder, Alive and Kicking, later stylized to Alive N Kickin’, was a Brooklyn six-piece band signed to Roulette Records, the mob front label that was also home […]
Song of the Day 1/20: John Prine, “Sweet Revenge”
I hate to repurpose one of my favorite songwriters, but this should be the theme song for the rest of Donald Trump’s first, and with luck only, term as president. I guess it’s true that all of his friends are not dead or in jail — some are still awaiting sentencing. Lyrically, the first verse […]
Song of the Day 2/1: Teenage Fanclub and De La Soul, “Fallin'”
This one is for the Senate Republicans. Congratulations, fellas. As the chorus of this one-off collaboration goes, you played yourself. Thanks to Ice-T, that phrase was already in circulation when this was recorded in 1993. (In a sign that the ’90s are officially back, the phrase is once again in circulation thanks to DJ Khalid.) […]
Song of the Day 1/31: Randy Newman, “Guilty”
The most quietly devastating song on Randy Newman’s misunderstood album “Rednecks” reveals its protagonist in a moment of drunken self-awareness and self-loathing that goes a long way to explaining his, and by extension the South’s, resentment of the Northerners who look down on them. I thought it would be appropriate for today, given that Republicans […]
‘Bulo’s Fave Tunes: January 2020
There’s always a lot of good music in Januarys. Since virtually no new music comes out during December, and since artists are trying to get their new stuff to break through the white noise, we have a barrelful of tunes for you this month. I’m now gonna do both videos and a Spotify list for […]
Song of the Day 1/30: The Moody Blues, “Question”
Question time continues in the Senate, but this question, posed 50 years ago by Justin Hayward of the Moody Blues, still hasn’t been answered. This was the Moodies’ second-best-selling single in the U.K., reaching No. 2, but only No. 21 in the U.S., despite the song being inspired by the band’s American touring. Hayward told […]
Song of the Day 1/29: The Thompsons, “I’ll Always Love You”
The Sound of Philadelphia dominated popular music in 1975, when records produced by Gamble & Huff for the O’Jays, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, and the Three Degrees filled the airwaves. That made it easy for even Philly Soul fans to overlook “I’ll Get Over It,” the LP by this band of brothers from […]
Song of the Day 1/28: Elvis Presley, “Suspicious Minds”
Thanks to John Bolton, Republican senators are indeed caught in a trap — a perjury trap. They’ve been lying for the White House, but the White House never told them Bolton’s manuscript would reveal the truth. And they can’t walk out because they love Trump too much, baby. This video catches Elvis in August 1970, […]
Song of the Day 1/27: Billie Eilish, “Bad Guy”
Billie Eilish, the 18-year-old pop phenomenon from Los Angeles, swept the four major categories — record of the year, album of the year, song of the year and best new artist — at the Grammy Awards last night, so after hearing about her for more than a year now I thought I’d give a listen. […]
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