Arts and Entertainment
Song of the Day 10/31: Camille Saint-Saëns, “La Danse Macabre”
Camille Saint-Saëns was one of the most famous and prolific composers of his day, and his serious works are part of the classical canon, but he’s best known to the general public for this short tone poem. He composed the theme in 1872 as a piano piece to accompany a poem called “Égalité, Fraternité” by […]
Song of the Day 10/30: Garbage, “The Men Who Rule the World”
Joe Biden is getting grief for calling MAGAts “garbage,” which I maintain was just him being polite. Garbage got its name when a friend used the term to describe the music they were playing, an amalgam of every genre extent when it was formed in the early ’70s. They’ve remained popular whenever they’ve reformed over […]
Song of the Day 10/29: Fleetwood Mac, “Gypsy”
Stevie Nicks is everywhere the past few weeks, appearing on Saturday Night Live, releasing a new song about women’s rights and, most recently, appearing on a CBS Sunday show to talk about the abortion she underwent at the height of the band’s fame. In 1979, around the time of “Rumours,” she was impregnated by Don […]
Song of the Day 10/28: The Grateful Dead, “Box of Rain”
Phil Lesh, the Grateful Dead bassist who died last week at age 84, had never played the bass when Jerry Garcia asked him to join the band. But he had studied trumpet, violin, modern classical composition and free jazz, and brought an improvisational spirit to the Dead that made them the model for all the […]
Song of the Day 10/25: Jay & the Techniques, “Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie”
Peach season is long gone, but fall is prime time for apples and pumpkin pie. Though it wasn’t the only chart appearance for Allentown, Pa.’s, Jay Proctor and the Techniques, this No. 6 single from 1967 was their biggest hit; one food-themed follow-up, “Strawberry Shortcake,” stalled at No. 39. The backup singers were Nick Ashford […]
Song of the Day 10/24: Blind Melon, “No Rain”
Move over, Dry January. Philadelphia and the surrounding region are experiencing a dry October – there has been no measurable rainfall this month, and there isn’t expected to be any through Election Day. Blind Melon was a one-hit wonder in large part because their lead singer, Shannon Hoon, died of a drug overdose in 1995. […]
Song of the Day 10/23: The Hollies, “King Midas in Reverse”
It’s long been noted that everything Donald Trump touches turns to shit, and the past few days supplied more evidence for the theory: Trump pretended to work at a McDonald’s as a campaign stunt, and days later the fast-food chain is hit with a deadly E. coli outbreak. Graham Nash wrote this single for the […]
‘Bulo’s XPN Top Ten Songs Of The 21st Century
For all of you, those of you, any of you(?) clamoring for more musical content, I’m your man. This year, XPN is counting down the 885 Best Songs Of The 21st Century as chosen by You, The Listeners. It’s an impossible task, so here’s what I did. I made a list of favorites that I’m […]
Song of the Day 10/22: Faith No More, “Falling to Pieces”
From all reports, Donald Trump has gone from sounding like the guy at the end of the bar to the guy who lives under the bridge. It won’t cost him any votes, of course, but it does bring up the prospect of an epic power struggle among Republicans should he win. It will be a […]
Song of the Day 10/21: AC/DC, “Meltdown”
H/t to DFL, who suggested this one the other day. It was released on the 2000 LP “Stiff Upper Lip.”
Song of the Day 10/18: James Brown, “It’s a Man’s, Man’s, Man’s World”
Among the tracks spun by DJ Donnie Two Scoops in Oaks, Pa., the other day was this James Brown classic. Originally released in 1966, it reached No. 8 on Billboard’s Hot 100, Brown’s first Top 10 single, and No. 1 on the R&B chart. You can see why the overtly chauvinistic title would appeal to […]
Song of the Day 10/16: Five for Fighting, “100 Years”
Jimmy Carter entered hospice care two years ago, and his relatives say the end is near. But before he turned 100 on Oct. 1 he said he wanted to live long enough to cast a vote for Kamala Harris. He got his wish Wednesday when he filled out a mail-in ballot. The milestone isn’t as […]
Song of the Day 10/16: Red Rider, “Lunatic Fringe”
You might remember this song from 1985, when it was used on “Miami Vice” and the movie “Vision Quest,” but you probably don’t remember the band. Red Rider never reached the Top 40 in the United States, but they were major rock stars north of the border, where all their albums went platinum. They ruled […]
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