Arts and Entertainment
Song of the Day 1/16: Dinosaur Jr., “Start Choppin'”
I have learned over the years that J. Mascis is an acquired taste that a lot of people failed to acquire, but this breakup song comes as close to mass appeal as he ever got. It delivers power-trio punch highlighted by Mascis’ searing solos in a song that’s as melodic as anything he ever wrote. […]
Song of the Day 1/15: Steely Dan, “With a Gun”
How do wingnut Congresswomen go to Congress? That’s right, with a gun. This isn’t one of the Dan’s more celebrated tunes; it was hidden in the middle of side 2 of “Pretzel Logic” and is generally regarded, even among fans, as Becker and Fagan doing a parody of the Byrds but not really pulling it […]
Song of the Day 1/14: Dandy Livingstone, “Rudy, a Message to You”
Most rock fans know this song because The Specials reached No. 10 in the UK with a cover in 1979. This is the original rocksteady version by Jamaican-born British singer Dandy Livingstone. He moved to England in the late ’60s and recorded more than a dozen albums between 1967, when “Rudy, a Message to You” […]
Song of the Day: Richard Thompson, “Oops I Did It Again”
Congrats, Donnie Two Scoops, you’re the first guy to do that getting impeached thing again. When a magazine asked Richard Thompson for a list of the best popular songs of the past 1,000 years, he responded by releasing a live double LP of the tunes he selected. Many of them are old — really old […]
Song of the Day 1/11: The Rolling Stones, “Play With Fire”
Insurrectionists are finding out that their little cosplay coup has produced repercussions IRL. Should have listened to Mick and the boys, though I suppose this song, originally the B-side of “The Last Time,” isn’t a high-rotation song on classic rock radio. It should be. If it’s not a better song than “Angie,” at least its […]
Song of the Day 1/10: Randy Rainbow, “Sedition”
You have to wonder what Randy Rainbow’s next gig will be in the post-Trump era. Will he turn into Vaughn Meader, the JFK impersonator whose career evaporated after Kennedy’s assassination? Meader was actually a musician before his First Family-spoofing comedy album, and he returned to music after his fall from popularity. Rainbow was an aspiring […]
Song of the Day 1/9: Was (Not Was), “Dad I’m in Jail”
Lots of people who joined Vanilla Isis should be singing this one this morning, though maybe without the “Dad” — I read somewhere that the average age of the cosplay commandos is over 40. This is the last track from the 1982 Was (Not Was) LP “What Up, Dog?”
Song of the Day 1/8: Elton John, “Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word”
The Republican rush for the exits had generated plenty of people saying “I-never-thought” and “we-only-meant,” but one word has been conspicuously absent from any Republican I’ve heard. Guess what it is. The second single from John’s “Blue Moves” LP reached No. 6 in the U.S. (No. 1 on the Easy Listening chart). In 2002, British […]
Song of the Day 1/6: Old Crow Medicine Show, “Marching Through Georgia”
H/t Ben, for suggesting this as the song to listen to today. I’d like to hear it sung by a chorus led by Stacey Abrams, but I’m happy to settle for the Old Crow Medicine Show version, recorded for their 2013 LP “Divided & United: The Songs of the Civil War.” It was written the […]
Song of the Day 1/5: Ray Charles, “Georgia on My Mind”
Hey, Georgia is on everyone’s mind today. Personally, I expect Democrats to be just as disappointed with the results as they were with the rest of 2020’s senate elections, but until the polls close this evening, there’s always hope. Hoagy Carmichael wrote this tune in 1930, but its wasn’t until Ray Charles sang it for […]
Song of the Day 1/4: Gerry and the Pacemakers, “Don’t Let the Sun Catch You Crying”
Gerry Marsden, lead singer and main songwriter for Merseybeat pioneers Gerry and the Pacemakers, died yesterday of a heart infection at age 78. Before Beatlemania became a worldwide phenomenon, Marsden and his mates — originally billed as the Mars Bars until the candy company objected — were the main rivals to the Fab Four. They […]
Song of the Day 1/2: Brittany Howard, “You’ll Never Walk Alone”
So I’m minding my own business the other night, reading online while my wife watched TV, when the speakers swelled with someone singing what sounded like a gospel song. I looked up and there was Brittany Howard of the Alabama Shakes belting out this tear-jerker from Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Carousel,” better known to younger generations […]
You Simply MUST Watch ‘Trial 4’.
It’s on Netflix. An incredible episodic documentary about a 1993 killing of a Boston policeman, and how the ‘justice’ system fixated on a Black suspect who spent 22 years in prison. Each episode is around 55 minutes long, and it’s compelling TV. Everybody who wished to speak had the chance to speak. You will get […]
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