Arts and Entertainment
Song of the Day 8/24: The Gap Band, “You Dropped a Bomb on Me”
I’ve been trying to work up some concern that the Moscow car-bombing of Darya Dugina, daughter of “Putin’s Rasputin” Alexander Dugin, will lead to something worse than what’s already happening in Ukraine. Sorry, just can’t see it. Conventional wisdom claims that Putin will react by cracking down harder. Uh, no. You might as well take […]
Song of the Day 8/23: Daryl Hall and John Oates, “Sara Smile”
The term blue-eyed soul, despite having been coined by influential Philadelphia DJ Georgie Woods, has become problematic for many people. Among them: A guy whose roots in both white and black music got him tagged as one of the genre’s prime purveyors. “I fucking hate it. It’s a racist term,” Daryl Hall told VH1 in […]
Song of the Day 8/22: The Righteous Brothers, “You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling”
People might not realize it today, but radio was once nearly as segregated as schools and swimming pools were. White stations played white musicians for white audiences, black stations did the opposite, and little music crossed over between them. That’s why Pat Boone could sell millions of records making sanitized covers of R&B hits by […]
Song of the Day 8/21: Spanky and Our Gang, “Sunday Will Never Be the Same”
Elaine McFarlane had a helluva voice and a nickname based on her last name’s similarity to child star George McFarland, better known as Spanky, of the old “Our Gang” one-reelers from the 1930s. She fronted a mid-’60s sunshine-pop band that drew a lot of comparisons to the Mamas and the Papas, not just because of […]
Song of the Day 8/19: Randy Rainbow, “Yesterday”
As he admits in this video, Randy Rainbow is running out of show tunes, so he set this one to the Beatles classic.
Song of the Day 8/18: Patty Griffin, “Be Careful”
From a political standpoint, the end of Roe v. Wade has been a boon for Democrats. From a practical standpoint it’s causing, and will continue to cause, misery, injury and death to women. The saddest part of it is that Republicans, in their ignorance, never realized what their contemptible idea of morality would produce. We’ll […]
Song of the Day 8/17: Buck Owens and Dwight Yoakam, “Streets of Bakersfield”
Guest post by Nathan Arizona Ask a random person who Buck Owens was, and chances are you’ll hear something about “Hee Haw,” the cornpone comedy and country music TV show he co-hosted (with Roy Clark) 1969 to 1985. Ask somebody who knows country music, and they’ll tell you Buck Owens was one of the most […]
Song of the Day 8/16: Del Shannon, “Runaway”
Guest post by Nathan Arizona When was a synthesizer first used in recorded pop/rock music? Maybe surprisingly early. Some say 1961, on Del Shannon’s “Runaway.” The electric keyboard work was one thing that made the zippy “Runaway” so distinctive that many think it’s the best Top 40 song of its era. The one you wanted […]
Song of the Day 8/15: The Animals, “We Gotta Get Out of This Place”
With more RWNJ violence on the horizon, I think this song represents a common sentiment — who wouldn’t want to get out of this place? Released in 1965, it has captured that feeling for everyone from soldiers in Vietnam to high school seniors at graduation ever since. Bruce Springsteen once said all his songs spring […]
Song of the Day 8/13: Nena, “99 Luftballons”
Guest post by Nathan Arizona A lot of sabers are rattling these days, except nobody uses sabers anymore. The threat from Russia in the Ukraine and maybe China in the Pacific is all about the nukes. It’s a familiar situation, and bands in the ‘80s were really feeling it. Detente with the Soviet Union was […]
Song of the Day 8/12: The Seekers, “I’ll Never Find Another You”
A great Australian singer died last week, but it wasn’t Olivia Newton-John. Few Americans recognized the name Judith Durham, but many more would recognize the voice that propelled this 1964 folk-pop single to No. 4 on the US Hot 100 in 1965, towards the end of the Great Folk Music Scare. The classically trained Durham […]
Song of the Day 8/11: Olivia Newton-John, “If Not For You”
I don’t mean to speak ill of the dead. Olivia Newton-John seemed to be a nice person, devoting time, money and energy to various worthy charities, never being involved in any controversy other than a court battle that helped limit the predatory contracts record companies once forced artists to sign. But I’d be lying by […]
Song of the Day 8/10: Bananarama, “Cruel Summer”
Now Republicans think it’s a banana republic? Gee, I thought that happened when they all fell in line behind a known criminal. Cruel summer, ain’t it, bitches? This song became a No. 9 hit in the US in 1984 when it was included in the hit movie “Karate Kid.” That was a year after it […]
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