RIP Tony Bennett
He had a long run: 96 years. He kept singing to the end, although he gave up performing in 2021 due to slowly advancing Alzheimer’s. From his Wiki page, I learned that Bennett was also a lifelong artist. You can … Continue reading →
Category Archives: Music
The revisionist history of the song “Fast Car”
It’s come to this: One recollection that I can confirm with the aid of historical evidence is that [in 1988] ‘Fast Car’ by Tracy Chapman was everywhere. I heard it in seedy gay bars, at civil-service leaving dos, at family … Continue reading →
Open thread 6/30/23
When I was watching this video, I thought about a Bee Gees comparison before Fil made the same point. Were the Bee Gees the male Andrews sisters? Sort of. But I have one disagreement with Fil here – which is … Continue reading →
Songs of friendship and comfort
It’s a genre, and a rather large one. Here are just a few examples – heavy on the Bee Gees, of course. I always liked Ringo’s quirky voice: Early-ish Bee Gees: Got to include this one. And she’s got my … Continue reading →
A song for Memorial Day
I’ve posted this song before, but I think it bears repeating, especially on Memorial Day. It’s Tim McGraw’s extraordinarily moving song “If You’re Reading This“: If you’re readin’ this My momma’s sittin’ there Looks like I only got a one … Continue reading →
Looking back with the Moody Blues
The Moody Blues were big in the late 60s. But for reasons I never could quite articulate, their music creeped me out at the time. It didn’t make sense that I disliked their songs, because they had many elements I … Continue reading →
Songs of love lost
Love is the biggest topic in pop songs. Love gained, love lost, love betrayed, love regained, love yearned for, love rejected. But did you ever notice that there’s a dearth of popular songs about the death of a loved person? … Continue reading →
The Bee Gees’ song “Tragedy” is about anticipation
I’ve been feeling pretty weary lately about the news. So much of it is bad. I don’t know about you, but I need a refresher. “Tragedy” is an odd title for a refresher. But like so many Bee Gees’ songs, … Continue reading →
Watching “Petrouchka”
Michel Fokine’s ballet “Petrouchka,” created in 1911, is one I’ve seen many times. But perhaps I’ll never see it again, because I have a feeling it’s pretty much banned now. I’m virtually certain that one of its puppet characters, the … Continue reading →
RIP Gordon Lightfoot
Singer-songwriter – this article says “troubadour” – Gordon Lightfoot has died at 84. RIP. Lightfoot was not an extreme favorite of mine; for example, I never bought an album of his. Nevertheless, he wrote many classic folk-type songs that I … Continue reading →
Life imitates art: The Snake
An Australian women found a venomous snake in her bed [hat tip: Instapundit]: Zachery Richards of Zachery’s Snake and Reptile Relocation posted photos to his business’ Facebook page showing the 6-foot eastern brown snake stretched out on a Maroon woman’s … Continue reading →
Who’s Zoomin’ who?
Joe Biden, that’s who. From a recent interview: "Are you planning on traveling to East Palestine?" BIDEN: "At this moment not. I was, I did a whole video, I mean, uh, you know, the uh, what the hell? On…" "Zoom?" … Continue reading →