Saturday, February 28, 2004

I Find It Curious ...

... that two of my favorite songs from last year - "Stacy's Mom" by Fountains of Wayne and "I Want To Be The Boy To Warm Your Mother's Heart" by the White Stripes - are both about being in love with your girlfriend's mom.

Friday, February 27, 2004

This Was Fun

A big ol' music list. I found out about this by reading the Cheek blog.

1. Your favorite song with the name of a city in the title or text.
The Standells - "Dirty Water"

2. A song you've listened to repeatedly when you were depressed at some point in your life.
The Verve - "So It Goes"

3. Ever bought an entire album just for one song and winded up disliking everything but that song? Gimme that song.
The Waterboys - "A Life Of Sundays"

4. A song whose lyrics you thought you knew in the past, but about which you later learned you were incorrect.
Aerosmith - "Mama Kin"

5. Your least favorite song on one of your favorite albums of all time.
Black Sabbath - "Am I Going Insane"

6. A song you like by someone you find physically unattractive or otherwise repellent.
Billy Idol - "Sweet Sixteen"

7. Your favorite song that has expletives in it that's not by Liz Phair.
Guns n' Roses - "You're Crazy" (Lies acoustic version)

8. A song that sounds as if it's by someone British but isn't.
The Knickerbockers - "Lies"

9. A song you like (possibly from your past) that took you forever to finally
locate a copy of.
Angel City - "Face The Day"

10. A song that reminds you of spring but doesn't mention spring at all.
The Ohio Players - "Fire"

11. A song that sounds to you like being happy feels.
Sly & The Family Stone - "Life"

12. Your favorite song from a non-soundtrack compilation album.
Soul Asylum - "Summer Of Drugs"

13. A song from your past that would be considered politically incorrect now
(and possibly was then).
Mott the Hoople - "All The Way From Memphis"

14. A song sung by an overweight person.
Steve Earle - "Everyone's In Love With You"

15. A song you actually like by an artist you otherwise hate.
Radiohead - "Optimistic"

16. A song by a band that features three or more female members.
Sleater-Kinney - "Milkshake n' Honey"

17. One of the earliest songs that you can remember listening to.
Johnny Cash - "Ring Of Fire"

18. A song you've been mocked by friends for liking.
Prince - "Let's Go Crazy"

19. A really good cover version you think no one else has heard.
Faster Pussycat - "You're So Vain"

20. A song that has helped cheer you up (or empowered you somehow) after a breakup or otherwise difficult situation.
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - "When The Time Comes"

22. A song not in English—preferably a foreign-language version of an English-language hit.
David Lee Roth - "Yankee Rose" (Spanish version)

Saturday, February 21, 2004

Just Wait Until I Give You My Breathless Mp3 Player Assessment

The CD player for my home audio system has been on the blink. (Yes, I know "home audio system" sounds pretentious, but I also have a CD boombox in my writing room, a CD player in my car stereo, and a DiscMan-type CD player.)

As I'm in no hurry to get to Best Buy and face the pimply-faced kids who ask: "Have you considered getting a three-year warranty extension for this unit?", I've been without a functional CD player in my living room for a couple of weeks now.

Big deal! See, I have the SoundLink Wireless Audio Delivery System. I simply play discs or mp3s in my iMac, and it beams the sound via FM radio to my stereo receiver (and to the boombox in the writing room) (and to the FM radio in the bathroom if I had one - it's AM-only.)

The only reasons I'm even going to get a new CD player for my home audio system are: 1) The sound from the unit is a little better and more reliable than the FM radio signal, and 2) So I can sit on the floor in front of it playing deejay during late-night beer sessions under headphones. With technology going the way it is, I wonder if this will be the last home-unit CD player I buy.

Friday, February 20, 2004

Alright!

Jeff Johnson of NFL picks fame has a blog called Fitted Sweats.

I once turned down an invite to join Jeff for pizza to watch the last period or two of a 2001 Maine vs. Minnesota NCAA hockey game. This was eerily reminiscent of a PJ Harvey dream I had only a few months earlier.

Thursday, February 19, 2004

Note To Administration ... Just Say: "There Is A Sense Of Employment Under Our Watch"

Just ten days later, the White House is backing off from its claim that the economy will add 2.6 million jobs this year. Dubya - as a wise man once said: "My advice to you is to start drinking heavily."

Wednesday, February 18, 2004

Everybody Has To Believe In Something ... I Believe I'll Have Another

A couple of weeks ago on the news I saw John Kerry in a bar, enjoying a bottle of beer. Tonight on the news I saw Howard Dean at a Wisconsin brewery, having a mug of beer.

Aside from his being a terrible president, there is another huge reason I could never vote for Dubya: He's a quitter.

Tuesday, February 17, 2004

I Was Only Joking

When I'm asked why I'm not married yet, a typical throw-'em-off-guard comeback I use is: "I'm married to my work."

But now I must have to say I'm sorry for the use of this remark. Marriage between man and woman is soooo sacrosanct to some folks that they're talking of changing constitutions and such. And I've been making wisecracks about being married to merely a thing, a task, an occupation that we do.

I truly truly apologize.

Monday, February 16, 2004

But Thankful We Have Both

Some friends and I have an ongoing debate about which station is better: Radio K here in Minneapolis or KEXP out of Seattle.

KEXP shares much of the same current college playlist that Radio K has. It divides its sets up into blocks that flow together - you'll hear three world music songs in a set, three garage-rock revival songs, three hip-hop tunes, etc. It's more professional, slicker.

But Radio K just played The Who's "Long Live Rock" (preceded by the K's whoa! prepare to rock! intro) and that reminded me why I prefer 770 AM. Not only are they unafraid to play such blasts from the past - they celebrate rock 'n' roll by playing a great rock 'n' roll song that celebrates rock 'n' roll. You don't get those kind of joyous moments on KEXP.

Tuesday, February 10, 2004

More on Sunday's Meet The Press

President Bush telling Russert that he is a "war president" kinda reminds me of the scene from The Godfather, when Sonny complains that Tom Hagen isn't a wartime consiglieri.

But Bush isn't a Tom Hagen, no way. Bush is more of a Fredo in The Godfather: Part II - you can imagine him telling his handlers: "I can handle things! I'm smart! Not like everybody says ... like dumb ... I'm smart and I want respect!"

Monday, February 09, 2004

"They have managed him the same way they managed Ronald Reagan. They send him out to the press for one event a day, they put him in a brown jacket and jeans and get him to move some hay or drive a truck, and all of a sudden he's the Marlboro Man."
- John Kerry


Watching the president backpedal furiously on Meet The Press yesterday, I was trying to think of who he reminded me of. At first I thought he reminded me of me. Because last week before a ping-pong game, I guaranteed a victory. After getting my ass kicked, I said: "I guaranteed a victory. I didn't guarantee that I would win."

But that wasn't it. Then I thought maybe Dubya reminded me of Pee-Wee Herman, who would say: "I meant to do that." But that wasn't it either. Pee-Wee would accidentally goof, and then pretended like it was what he meant to do. Bush is maintaining that his Iraq campaign was correct, even as his reasons for waging it are starting to fall apart. He'll keep throwing "Saddam needed to be removed" at us endlessly until November.

THEN I figured out who Bush reminded me of in his Sunday interview ... Nigel Tufnel from Spinal Tap:

Nigel Tufnel: The numbers all go to eleven. Look, right across the board, eleven, eleven, eleven and....
Marty DiBergi: Oh, I see. And most amps go up to ten?
Nigel Tufnel: Exactly.
Marty DiBergi: Does that mean it's louder? Is it any louder?
Nigel Tufnel: Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?
Marty DiBergi: I don't know.
Nigel Tufnel: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is, if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?
Marty DiBergi: Put it up to eleven.
Nigel Tufnel: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.
Marty DiBergi: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?
Nigel Tufnel: [Pause.] These go to eleven.



On a related note, the White House has announced that it will create 2.6 million jobs this year. If you are wondering how many jobs the Bush administration has created to date ... well actually it's a LOSS of 2.2 million jobs. Don't buy into their math - the administration also told us last year that its tax cuts would generate 5.5 million jobs by the end of 2004. Yeah, right. All I can say is "HOOVER!" and it's not because this administration sucks.

Saturday, February 07, 2004

A Couple Of Emails Received This Week Clear Up Some Things:

1) From Daniel Levitin -

On your website, when you describe the SNL skit, I can clarify the situation about Bruce Dickinson. There is ANOTHER Bruce Dickinson (not the Iron Maiden guy) who used to work for Columbia Records. He repackaged a bunch of already recorded BOC songs onto a compilation album, which carries the credit "Produced by Bruce Dickinson." He didn't produce any of the individual tracks, only the compilation. The SNL writers apparently used this CD as their information source about who the producer of "Reaper" was.

2) From Darrel Baird -

Read your article on Angel City. I manage two of The Angels. Rick & John Brewster and The Angels are now performing again in Australia. We will have an official website up and running soon, in the mean time people can purchase Brewster Brother new EP 'ANY DAY' at the below sites (http://www.bluetongue1.com and http://www.brewsterbrothers.com) via PAY PAL.

Friday, February 06, 2004

"You've Got Ten Seconds, The Countdown's Going On Right Now ..."

Everyone needs to see "Miracle." Kurt Russell was awesome as Herb Brooks. The movie was 2 hours, 15 minutes; but seemed like it was only an hour long. I would have gladly sat through another hour or two of this film.

(Yes, the Blue Oyster Cult and Aerosmith songs are in the movie. And no Queen.)

Monday, February 02, 2004

You Can't Trust The GOP With Your Checkbook

A niece analysis from the Associated Press on how President Bush says one thing, but does the other.

From that piece:

The Bush administration avoided being pinned down on what it would cost to invade, occupy and rebuild Iraq.

Then, six months after the invasion, Bush hit Congress with the tab: $87 billion, a figure that left even many of his fellow Republicans gasping. That was to get through this budget year, which ends Sept. 30.

On Friday, the administration said it will not request more money for the Iraq operations until at least January, two months after November's elections.

The administration's projections on Iraqi oil revenues also were widely off the mark. Oil is bringing in a fraction of what Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz predicted last spring.


Sure, maybe we only got rid of a two-bit dictator who was of no threat whatsoever to the United States. But c'mon: forget the continual loss of America lives and the ongoing costs of occupation - this victory is major ... like those victories in Grenada and over Noriega!

Later in the piece, Grover (that's my real name) Norquist weighs in:

Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform and a conservative who is close to the White House, said he worries less about the deficit than about the spike in overall government spending.

"Total spending is the cost to future generations," Norquist said, invoking Bush's "future generations" line. He added that he thought several Bush initiatives, including health savings accounts and Social Security reforms, eventually will rein in overall federal spending.


The key word in that line is "eventually." Kinda vague on the timing isn't it? If you want to get rid of these ridiculous federal deficits, you have to keep Republicans out of the White House.