MUSIC: Further Email Exchanges about Music in One's Head

This is another email exchange on music I had with Beau, a person who I was a Peace Corps volunteer with in southern Africa. - OlderMusicGeek

BEAU:

I'm surprised by all the responses I got from the song in my head. Such good returns from the investment of just of a few silly lines! While we're on the subject, note that almost any Beatles song can be improved by using lunch instead of love.

All we need is lunch, yeah.
Lunch is all we need.

What's even more incredible is that it works with LeAnne Rimes too!

Some say Lunch, it is a Sandwich
with pickles, and Mayonnaise

ME:

A great way to annoy your children I found - is to throw their name in song wherever possible - especially a song they like...

(to Promiscuous Girl)
oh sloppy Jen
you're killing me
you know I want
a clean room's what you need

(to shut up and drive)
Go from 0 to 60 in three point five
Jen you got the rag
Now shut up and clean
(clean, clean, clean)
Shut up and clean
(clean, clean, clean)

MOVIES/VIDEOS: Oscar Diary: Surviving the Red Carpet Alone

This is from NPR. I found it through my NetVibes home page. - OlderMusicGeek

Oscar Diary: Surviving the Red Carpet Alone
by Madeleine Brand

Day to Day, February 25, 2008 · Day to Day host Madeleine Brand found out Sunday what it's like to attend the Oscars all alone. She felt a little like a cheap airplane.

9 a.m. Alex Chadwick, my co-host and Oscar date, calls. He's sick. Can't talk. Won't be able to make it. I'm going by myself.

9:02 a.m. Terror. Red carpet. Alone. Reality intrudes: Madeleine, no one knows (or cares) who you are. Still, I pretend they do, and spend the rest of the day getting ready.

3:30 p.m. The limo — scratch that, the Town Car arrives. I live maybe 5 miles from the Kodak Theatre, but it still takes more than an hour to get there. We are in a line of limos that have to be checked for bombs and other assorted IEDs, terrorists, etc. I contemplate getting out and walking, but realize there is a throng of religious anti-Hollywood protesters, and I don't want to be mistaken for a celeb — oh, yeah. What am I thinking?

4:40 p.m. Finally! I get out of the car and step onto the fabled red carpet. On one side, bleachers full of fans who've been waiting for days to see their favorite stars. They shout, "Madeleine! Madeleine!" I see young women waving frantically. I tentatively smile and begin to raise my arm when they yell, "We loved you in Juno!" I turn around and behind me is Ellen Page. Ohhh ..."Ellen," not "Madeleine." I keep walking.

Somehow, and I'm not sure how, I'm funneled onto a lesser red carpet. It's like two parallel runways. On one side, the Lear jets are being photographed like mad, and right behind them, on the other side of a red rope, the Southwests.

I see Renee Zellweger — or, rather, her back. It's very muscle-y. The back of her head looks a little unkempt ... like she slept on it. She ends up making the best-dressed list. I guess the front tells a different story.

I start to think — do I really want to see how the sausage is made? Wouldn't I rather hang onto my fantasy that these are all perfect beings descended from outer space? (Not you, John Travolta. I KNOW you're from outer space.)

But then — there's a fine piece of sausage: Helen Mirren. No disillusionment there. Or with Cate Blanchett. She's also in front of me, looking radiant in a purple gown that shows off her pregnancy.

It's nearly showtime. The Lears and the Southwests get to meet briefly on the runway in front of the theater. The bars are closed to everyone but Harrison Ford, and then I take the elevator up, up, up to the fourth floor — the second mezzanine. The back wall of the theater is my seat-back.

Regis Philbin does his final pre-show performance and calls Javier Bardem "Xavier Bardem." The announcer says we're live in 20 seconds. The lights on the audience go up and everyone gets quiet. It's showtime, and I feel very excited to be part of it. How many gazillions of people are watching? I fantasize that they can all see me. I'm the one sitting nowhere near Ellen Page.

A link to the original piece on NPR.org

MUSIC: Songs in One's Head

This is an email exchange between me and a person I was a Peace Corps volunteer with, who I'll call Beau, who I put on here before. - OlderMusicGeek

BEAU:

I've had a song in my head.

I don't normally watch 'American Idol' but it was on the other night and I was in the room and some guy was belting out a Doors song. That in itself wouldn't be so bad, but my wife's been after me to fill up the front right tire on her car which looks pretty low. She'd been bothering me day and night over that stupid tire, it's one of those 'shut up already!' things. Between that and the American Idol song, I have this thing in my head. It goes like this:

Come on baby check my tire.
The pressure needs to still go higher.
Do it be--fore we retire.
You said you would, don't be a liar.
Come on baby check my tire!

ME:

That's as bad as me coming up with commercials - thank the god for pop tunes that I do NOT work in advertising...

shout

shout

spray it all out

these are the stains we can do without

come one I'm washing with you

come in

And to sting's song...

free free

Pepsi free

if you dont need caffeine, call it's name

if you want less tension, you do the same

if you want keep blood pressure precious

you lock tension up and throw away the key

don't hold onto your colas

and just relax with me

if dont want caffeine, set it free

free, free pepsi free

Somebody save me!

MUSIC: Some Interesting Trilobites

Well, this happened over 10 years ago, but I just learned about it from Wikipedia. - OlderMusicGeek

Silurian (Wenlock) Calymenid Trilobites from the Cape Phillips Formation, Central Canadian Arctic
Jonathan M. Adrain, Gregory D. Edgecombe
Journal of Paleontology, Vol. 71, No. 4 (Jul., 1997), pp. 657-682
This article consists of 26 page(s).
(the boldness, italics and red added by me - OlderMusicGeek)
Abstract

Calymenid trilobites are common components of diverse Silurian silicified faunas recovered from the Cape Phillips Formation of the Cape Phillips Basin, central Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Calymenids are represented in the Wenlock of the northern Laurentian region by only two genera, Diacalymene Kegel, 1927, and Arcticalymene new genus (type species A. viciousi new species). Calymenid diversity in any given fauna is never higher than two species, although these species may be numerically abundant. Arcticalymene became extinct during the Homerian, at which point calymenids disappeared forever from the northern Laurentian record. Other new taxa are Arcticalymene cooki new species, A. jonesi new species, A. matlocki new species, and A. rotteni new species. Material representing at least two more species of the new genus is reported in open nomenclature. Diacalymene gabrielsi Siveter and Chatterton, 1996, is recorded from the Cape Phillips Basin.

These two men - Adrian and Edgecombe - also gave some trilobites are the names of Mackenziurus johnnyi, M. joeyi, M. deedeei, M. ceejayi!

MUSIC: Record Label Gives Iraq War Vets a Musical Voice

This is from Rolling Stone. I found it through my NetVibes page. I edited down for space. But here's a link to the complete article. - OlderMusicGeek

To The Fallen Records is a unique record label in that it puts out compilations of songs written and recorded by veterans of the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan – some even recorded in the field. On the occasion of the release of the new compilation To The Fallen Records Presents: Rock Vol. 1, Rolling Stone’s Evan Serpick took a look at the origins of the label. To read the full, in-depth exploration, click here.

In 2005, Army Sgt. First Class John Freeman III's platoon was drawn into a firefight with local insurgents in Iraq's Al-Anbar province, killing twenty-three Iraqis and suffering one casualty. Afterward, Freeman was approached by the platoon's chaplain, who encouraged him to attend church services. "I explained to him that it's kind of hard for me to go to church," says Freeman, 37. "It's hard to forgive myself when, tomorrow, I'm going to go out and do the exact same thing." Instead, Freeman sat down and wrote a song, "Don't Try and Save Me": "It's going to take more than time to wash away the pain," he sings over reverb-heavy electric guitars. "The bloodstains on my soul could never, ever come clean."

The messages range from patriotic anthems to Bush-bashing tirades. In "Sleeping Giant," metal band 10 Fold — fronted by Army Spc. Eric Conley, a Humvee gunner who patrolled the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad — lashes out at the terrorists who invoked American wrath: "Your God can't save you. . . . You'll be gone soon." Backed by the sounds of gunfire, Dirty Boi Vets — Marine Sgts. Tendaji Akil-Milele and Sugarray Henry — question their mission on "Combat Zone": "CO telling us we won't be that long/I still think we killing them for no reason."

A link to the complete article in Rolling Stone

MUSIC: Underground Scene Growing in Popularity

This is from our local alternative weekly newspaper. I edited it to hide references to where I live. :) - OlderMusicGeek

(Editor’s note: John Fox, a junior at Valley High School in (a suburb of my home town), attends underground shows in (my home town) on a regular basis. He wrote the following story after attending one last month at an undisclosed location.)

The room is dim, lit by a single light bulb and filled with sound. Packed with about 30 people, getting around is a tight squeeze. Nobody complains, because it’s just another night at an underground show. The first band from (a town near my home town), is speeding through its set, playing fast punk rock that sends the crowd into frenzy.

“I see much more passion in bands that play at these shows than I do with bands that play at large venues in (my home state),” said Forest Cochran of (my home town), a senior at a local high school.

This scene is like many others that happen almost weekly in (my home town). Unlike conventional concerts held at local music venues, underground shows are held wherever space can be found — whether it is someone’s home or a community center. The music is the kind you won’t find on the radio. The styles are mostly punk and metal, but other experimental and more ambient sounding bands play, too. The shows are designed to open people up to music that they may not have heard before — music that is simply dismissed as loud or obnoxious because it doesn’t fit the mold of mainstream music.

“I come to these shows because I can hear new music that the people in the bands really care about playing,” Cochran said.

Though the average music fan might not know it, many of the bands that play underground shows in (my home town) hail from music scenes similar to ours. A number of (my home town) bands play these shows, but it’s commonplace to hear bands from nearby towns and other cities around (my home state).

Unlike conventional shows, money isn’t a factor. Admission is free, though it is courtesy to donate a few dollars to the bands that are on tour from other cities or states. Instead of spending money to promote shows, advertising is done through social networking sites such as MySpace.com and through word of mouth. Flyers are circulated through online message boards and are also hung in music venues and small businesses.

“I know that when I’m on tour with my band, there would be shows where we didn’t even get paid, but we’re not in this for money. We do this because we enjoy playing music,” said Kyler Vande Kieft of one band. “I’ve been at shows like these for the past few days, and the people that are at them are really cool and I haven’t seen a band that I didn’t like.” — John Fox

A link to the original article
A link to the local alternative weekly newspaper

TELEVISION/VIDEOS: Bender, A True Hero

This in from the In Character blog on NPR.org. - OlderMusicGeek

Your Turn: Bender Bending Rodriguez
From Futurama, created by Matt Groening
Nominated by Travis Larchuck

The short-lived and then revived animated program Futurama features a futuristic New York populated by aliens and mutants. So it's ironic that the most human character on the show is a robot by the name of Bender Bending Rodriguez.

Bender was designed only to bend steel rods, but he would much rather sit on the couch and watch TV all day. He fuels himself by drinking beer. He swears. He's addicted to gambling and pornography (which consists of computer circuitry diagrams). He dreams of becoming a master chef, taking over the world and killing all humans. Who among us can't identify with those urges?

Despite his flaws, Bender has a heart. He stays true to his best friend, Fry. And when he is accidentally launched into space and gets to meet God, the lesson he learns ("you can't count on God for jack") is something we can all use.

Tags: Animation | Comedy | Comics | Movies | Science Fiction | TV

2:33 PM ET | 02-14-2008 | permalink

A link to the original post

A link to the In Character blog


Al Gore is cool to me because he appeared in Futurama not just once! But twice! And once when he was still vice-president!

Admittedly, his daughter was a writer on Futurama, but still...

MUSIC: Two of My Favorite Love Songs

Happy Valentine's Day! - OlderMusicGeek


A link to The Damned's website

A link to Roxy Music's website

MUSIC: Me, My Daughter, Our Taste in Music and the Corruption of Her Friends

This is from me, not reprinted from somewhere else. - OlderMusicGeek.

The more I discuss music with my daughter, the more I worry about her.

She was telling me other day,that her classmates were saying that her outfit almost looked emo.

To which I replied, “Oh no!”

“What’s wrong with emo?!” she asked offendedly.

“Well, I don’t really know about the emo look, “ I admitted. “I just know the music sucks.”

“I kind of like emo. What’s wrong with emo music?”

“Except for the fact that it sounds like washed out punk rock, nothing.”

My daughter once again had her problem with her eyes rolling into her head.


And I realized, my daughter’s friends had corrupted her even more into their ways!

When she was a young thing before starting school, punk rock, alternative and electronica were her favorite types of music. And she would tell people that too.

Now, she likes top 40 and rap. And that popular rap, not the edgy stuff! I could respect her, if not agree with her, if she liked the edgy stuff!

As one of my friends on the internet said when I told him about this, “Those fiends!”


But there is some hope. She did say the other week, “I don’t hate bluegrass. I actually like it. It’s just not some of my favorite music.”


And back in December when I was playing my Christmas music, she asked, “Cajun Christmas music?”

“That’s right.”

She nodded her head in approval.

Wow, I thought, how many tweens have even heard of Cajun music, much less know it when they hear it. And appreciate it!

And if she can know and appreciate Cajun music, there just might be some hope for her!

Posts about music on OlderMusicGeek's Stupid Stuff
Posts about music on OlderMusicGeek's Stupid Entertainment Stuff

In case you don't know what emo is, here's a video explaining it.

MUSIC: My Favorite Song of the Day (That I Haen't Mentioned Already) - Feb 11, 2007 –“The Time Warp (Remix)” from The Rocky Horror Picture Show

This is from me, not some reprinted article. - OlderMusicGeek

This is an 1989 remix of the song that was on the version of the cd that I found at my local library.

There are about 10 million cd’s with different versions of the soundtrack to the movie. I’m not exactly sure which one I have!

But I should admit from the start here that I am, more or less, a virgin. It’s a sad thing to admit in your mid-40’s – especially considering that I’ve been married and have a kid!

Although I’ve had seen the movie, I haven’t been to one of the wild and proper shows. I’ve seen it on tv twice and went to see it in the theater once but there was hardly anyone there so no one did the performances.

And now in my mid-40’s, I’d feel a little awkward going to one of the shows. Maybe I’ll go to one of the anniversary showings – when there will be older folks like myself there. Go with my daughter and embarrass her or something.


Well, what can I say about “The Time Warp”? Anyone who’s been to the movie knows what a great tune it is. But since I have a job here to do, I’ll try to describe it.

First off, there’s that guitar that sounds like a train careening down a hill to a bridge that has collapsed.

Then of course we have that rough voice coming in talking about how madness is taking its toll but he somehow has to keep control. And he’s joined by a vampirella voice, hers slowly drawn out complementing his biting style.

Then suddenly he whips into a heavy metal scream over this wonderful boogie-woogie piano, giving it an almost 50s feel. And on the remix, there’s this wonderful, syncopated snare drum added. Then a chorus of dominantly females joyously singing about doing the time warp again.

This is followed by the contradiction of a stuffy professor type telling us that it’s only a jump to left, while a rowdy chorus of gals in a 50’s style yell that it’s then step to the ri-i-i-ight.

Then after another exchange between Mr 70’s-Rock Word-Biting Singer and Vampirella, we bring in the 40s with a fun nasally singer – apparently mixing the 50s and 70s in one song isn’t enough. Plus, what’s a little tap dancing too?!

This remix adds a few quotes from the movie, without overdoing it and dragging it out too long.

Then the professor and the chorus bring us into the wonderful run out of energy finish!

Beautiful and too much fun!

A link to the Rocky Horror website

A link to My Favorite Song of the Day posts

MUSIC: My Favorite Song of the Day (That I Haven't Mentioned Already) - Feb 10, 2007 – “I’m Waiting for the Man” by The Velvet Underground

This is from me, not some reprinted article. - OlderMusicGeek

My older brother had been a Velvet Underground fan for quite some time, and although I liked them, they didn't do much for me. I guess that they were a little too weird and different for my taste back then.

But in college, as I heard what an influence that they were on so many of the alternative music artists I liked, I went back to them, and found them very appealing.

The Velvet Underground was a band so many years ahead of their time that it’s not even funny. They were doing stuff that Joy Division and other bands would be doing 10 years later. The Velvet Underground were contemporaries of The Beatles and Beach Boys, for the god’s sake! And bands like Jesus and the Mary Chain, Stereolab and The Raveonettes owe a big debt to them!

Funny enough, “I’m Waiting for the Man” is one of their more poppy songs. Of course, talking about one of The Velvet Underground’s more poppy style songs is like talking about one of Picasso’s more conventional paintings – it would still be pretty different and weird.

The song, though a bit bizarre sounding, is really quite simple.

Starts off with this great, discordant piano, riffing on a short string of notes, with a guitar picking away on accompanying riff.

Then we got Lou Reed easing in with his unique vocal style.

I have to admit that I didn’t know for a number of years that Lou was singing about a guy waiting for his drug dealer. I just thought it was about a guy in a bad neighborhood wishing his friend would hurry up and show. – I can be very naïve. I don’t deny it! –

But as the song goes on, the piano picks up power and is join by a great jangly rhythm guitar. And Lou begins to slowly add tension to his voice, while still letting his voice just slowly pull the song along.

Then we close with this really discordant piano to a fade.

Very simple, but so extremely effective. Different and weird, but catchy and riffy. And just plain amazing!


A Velvet Underground web site

A link to My Favorite Song of the Day posts

MUSIC: My Favorite Song of the Day (That I Haven't Mentioned Already) - Feb 9, 2007 - "Love You More" by Buzzcocks

This is from me, not some reprinted article. - OlderMusicGeek

I have to admit that until recently that I'd never heard that much of Buzzcocks' stuff.

I mean I always liked what I heard. I just, for some reason, never got around to listening to more of their stuff. I don't why since I really liked the stuff I had heard.

But finally, I downloaded their singles collection, Singles Going Steady. - I know, I love the title too! -

And I loved everything I've heard so far. - And no, I haven't listened to the whole cd. Sorry, people, but I love shuffle, and I love hearing a whole variety of music. That's why I got a 30 gig mp3 player. And will get a 80 gig one of these days! -

So this song actually isn't one of their great tunes. Which, of course, brings up why is it on My Favorite Song of the Day. What can I say? I had a busy day and didn't listen to much music this Saturday, so this was the best song I heard.

I mean it's a good song and a fun song. It's got all of the Buzzcocks' great sound going for it. That speed driven punk guitar work, the usual hard slapping punk bass, and the pound-pound throw-in-a-few-cymbals punk drumming. Along with Peter Shelley's fun lyrics and singing. And some nice melodies and harmonies going for it too.

The ending is kind of annoying, because it sounds like your cd player died.

But like, I said, the main problem with this song is that Buzzcocks have better tunes. This song only gives you a taste of what Buzzcocks are capable of. So if you like this song, I strongly recommend that you try some of their other stuff.




A link to the Buzzcocks web site

A link to My Favorite Song of the Day posts

TELEVISION/VIDEOS: An NPR Interview with One of My Favorite TV Stars

Well, I got this off the NPR blog, In Character, which I strongly recommend that you check out. And it showed up on my NetVibes home page. - OlderMusicGeek

On Air: Cookie Monster

» Hear the 'All Things Considered' radio commentary

Elizabeth Blair led off this blog with a post that confessed her fondness for Cookie Monster. Now her magnificent obsession has made it to the radio -- and to the video.

As part of our In Character explorations, we convinced Cookie Monster to come to NPR's New York studios, where Elizabeth talked to him about the boundaries of his appetites -- and got him to answer a version of the Proust Questionnaire. The video is below, as well as on the story page.

Oh, and you'll definitely want to watch through to the end. Check the expression on Blair's face when Cookie pulls that [spoiler deleted] off the desk to eat it. If you're wondering what she's so alarmed about, I'm guessing it's whether she's going to have to pay for the replacement: Those things run thousands of dollars apiece.

--Trey Graham


A link to the original post

MUSIC and HUMOR: The Ten Most Melanin-Free Songs of All Time

This is from the Spin magazine web site. And I found it using NetVibes. - OlderMusicGeek

Caucasian Invasion
February 8, 2008

Calling your sketch-comedy troupe The Whitest Kids U' Know seems like a good way to get yourselves stereotyped. Done. So we asked the funny fivesome to come up with the ten most melanin-free songs of all time.

"Informer"
Snow
A Canadian rapper who tries to sound Rastafarian, but his asshole Canadian accent keeps getting in the way.
Dear Snow (back in time): Please don't make any more albums.
Dear Snow (present day): Thank you.

"Fire and Rain"
James Taylor
If you listen to James Taylor all day, a John Denver record sounds like Public Enemy.

"Minuet in G"
Johann Sebastian Bach
OMG, Bach! Does every song have to be in 4/4 time? Jeez! Put some soul in there. We bet Johann never even met a black person.

"Gin and Juice"
Snoop Dogg
This is the one song white kids who don't listen to rap bring up when you tell them they don't listen to rap. Then they show you their Pharcyde CD.

"Tenderly Kissing a Crystal Horse in a Room Made of Clouds"
Moby
We don't know if this is the title of an actual Moby song [Editor's note: It's not], but all his shit's named like that. This guy needs to eat a burger and drink a beer. His music is so white you're not allowed to listen to it after Labor Day.

"I Want to Be a Hulkamaniac"
Hulk Hogan
Just kidding! This shit is tight! Bitches drop their panties when they hear the Hulkster!

"Baby's Got Sauce"
G. Love & Special Sauce
G. Love sucks. If you see a black guy at a G. Love concert, he's probably a spy sent to assassinate him. Godspeed black spies!

"Beverly Hills"
Weezer
This is what Jared the Subway guy listens to as he drinks Mike's Hard Lemonade and folds his laundry.

"Kiss From a Rose"
Seal
We're pretty sure that Seal is just being black ironically.

Their Entire Catalogs
Phish, Matchbox Twenty, and Creed
A three-way tie! Congrats, guys! Everyone who listens to this should be quarantined on a small island and nuked, and then no one should be allowed to record music on that spot for the next 75 years.

a link to the original piece at Spin.com

MUSIC: My Favorite Song of the Day (That I Haven't Mentioned Already) - Feb 8, 2007 - “Common People” by William Shatner feat. Joe Jackson

This is from me, not some reprinted article. - OlderMusicGeek

This is so embarrassing. I'm already on Day 2, and I have to list William Shatner! At least, if I'm going to be honest.... And it's not like I didn't hear any good songs – there was “Ghost Riders in the Sky” by Johnny Cash, “The Leaving of Liverpool” by the wonderful Irish band Gaelic Storm, among others.

But I can't deny it, I love this song!

It originally started as a new wave-y type hit in Europe by a band called Pulp. I have the Pulp version, and it's good, but it really doesn't do that much for me. It's a bit of a ponderous, organ-driven piece. And I must admit that been a huge fan of the organ.



But Ben Folds, producing William Shatner with the assistance of Joe Jackson, turns this song into quite the rocker. In fact, Adrian Belew is listed as a guitar player! And corny as it is, William Shatner's vocals, along with Joe Jackson growling out the chorus, captured the anger and aggressiveness of the song better than Pulp's lead singer's lackadaisical approach.


And I guess the song speaks to me because I come a fairly well off middle class background and even went to college. Now, I live in a one bed-room apartment with my daughter. Just finally digging out the emotional and financial hole that my divorce caused.

[Jackson]
She just smiled and held my hand.

Rent a flat above a shop.
Cut your hair and get a job.
Smoke some fags and play some pool.
Pretend you never went to school.

But still, you'll never get it right.
When you're lying in bed at night
watching roaches climb the wall,
if you called your Dad he could stop it all.
Yeah.

[Shatner]
You'll never live like common people
You'll never do whatever common people do.
You'll never fail like common people.
You'll never watch your life slide out of view,
and dance and drink and screw

[Jackson and Shatner]
because there's nothing else to do.

Unfortunately even when my dad was alive, there was nothing he could have done to help me. He was didn't have a lot of extra money. I mean he loaned me and my ex some money to buy a car when she was pregnant with our daughter, but we had to pay him back because he needed the money!

And my mom has helped me out occasionally with loans and buying some things after the divorce, but it's not she has the money to come in and rescue me.


This song would also be good one for Peace Corps volunteers to hear...

[Shatner and Chorus]
Sing along with the common people.
Sing along, and it might just get you through.

[Chorus]
Laugh along with the common people.

[Shatner and Chorus]
Laugh along, even though they're laughing at you

[Shatner]
and the stupid things that you do
'cause you think that poor is cool.

[Jackson]
Like a dog lying in a corner,
they'll bite you and never warn you.
Look out.

[Shatner]
They'll tear your insides out
'cause everybody hates a tourist.

[Jackson]
'Cause Everybody hates a tourist,
especially one who thinks
it's all such a laugh.

[Shatner]
Yeah, and the chip stains' grease
will come out in the bath.

[Shatner and Jackson]
You will never understand
how it feels to live your life
with no meaning or control
and with nowhere left to go.

You're amazed that they exist
and they burn so bright,
while you can only wonder why.

I'm not saying that the locals – or “host country nationals” in Peace Corps jargon – resent the Peace Corps volunteers. Most seem to be grateful to have us there to help them. At least, they did to me.

But some volunteers did bring out resentments, acting better than the locals and telling them what they needed to do, instead of suggesting.

And some used their status as exotic and strange foreigners to make use of some of the woman there. In fact there was apparently a joke in Botswana...

How do you know when the last Peace Corps volunteer was there?
By how old the mixed race kids are.


And some Peace Corps volunteers did try go a little native. And were laughed at by the volunteers and locals both. :)


But in the end, I have to take pity on people like that, because don't we all...

...want to sing with common people, like you.
I want to sing with common people, like you.
I want to sing with common people, like you.



A link to the William Shatner web site

A link to My Favorite Song of the Day posts

MUSIC: My Favorite Song of the Day (That I Haven't Mentioned Already) - Feb 7, 2007 - "Boys Don't Cry" by The Cure

This from me, NOT some reprinted article. - OlderMusicGeek

This was always one of my favorite songs in college! And whenever I hear it, it takes me back to those days.

I have to admit, though, I’m not a big Cure fan and a lot of their music doesn’t do that much for me. But I love their “hits” – if I can really call them that, since they were never that big here in the States. Well, at least not outside of the new wave/punk crowd.

But this is just so fun! Kind of strange to say about a sad, break up song, but it’s true.

There’s that great jangling guitar going through the song, with that wonderful riff coming in every once and a while. And although there’s nothing fantastic about the drumming, it works for the song, keeps it going along and to quote American Bandstand dancers, it’s got a great beat to dance to. And I love a funky bass line!


And this song was rather important to me in my college days. Although it is supposed to be a break up song, and I knew it was a break up song, I still kind of reinterpreted it as an unrequited love song.

I would tell you
That I loved you
If I thought that you would stay
But I know that it's no use
That you've already
Gone away

Unfortunately, it’s pretty much only the chorus that can be reinterpreted that way. But as I never even had a girlfriend until after college – yeah, yeah, I know – it was about the only way I could relate to the song.

And it was just as well that I made into an unrequited love song. I listened to mostly on this mixed tape a friend, Will, made of the music of our other friend, Jan. And Will and I both had a big crush on Jan, but she liked both of us only as friends.

But it was a good friendship and the 3 of us saw a lot great shows together in college. And this song reminds me of those good times. How can I resist a great song to dance with wonderful great parts that reminds me of happy days?


But before I finish this piece, I should talk about the role this song played after I asked my ex for divorce. Things were rather bitter – I wanted the divorce and she didn’t. And she felt used, abused and discarded after putting so much effort in the marriage. I felt exhausted, tired and frustrated at making something that wasn’t working well work at all.

So anyway, I heard this song – and I guessed it finally let me look a little more understanding at what my ex was going through and why she was so upset. And although she wasn’t a boy, she was tough and didn’t like showing her emotions.

Misjudged your limits
Pushed you too far
Took you for granted
I thought that you needed me more

Now I would do most anything
To get you back by my side
But I just
Keep on laughing
Hiding the tears in my eyes
'cause boys don't cry
Boys don't cry
Boys don't cry


A link to My Favorite Song of the Day posts

A link to The Cure web site

MUSIC: At 50, The Grammys Show Their Age Again

This is the beginning of a piece from NPR that I found through my Netvibes page. - OlderMusicGeek

At 50, The Grammys Show Their Age Again
By Joel Rose

All Things Considered,
February 8, 2008

Over the years, voters for the Grammy Awards have been widely ridiculed for choices that make them seem out of touch with popular music.

Those who decide the winners say the picks have gotten better. But as the awards approach their 50th anniversary this Sunday, change may have come too late.

Decisions, Decisions

The Grammys started out as the music industry's answer to the Oscars. It was 1958, and rock 'n' roll was tearing up the charts. But at clubby awards banquets in New York and Beverly Hills, Grammy voters awarded album of the year to... Henry Mancini.

Los Angeles Times blogger Tom O'Neil wrote a book about the Grammys. He notes that it would be 10 years before a rock record won Album of the Year, though the Grammys did add a separate category for rock 'n' roll — in 1970.

"There was an outright conspiracy in those early Grammy years not to reward rock 'n' roll," O'Neil says. "Remember who the Grammys are: They're the industry establishment. They're going to punish the hooligans at the door, and try to keep them out."

And a lot of young fans noticed — including Sasha Frere-Jones, pop-music critic for The New Yorker. "They were corny," he says. "As a kid, I just got the impression that they didn't know what music was out there. And the show itself was just so lame."

The Grammy for Record of the Year in 1971 — the first year the awards were broadcast live on TV — went to Simon and Garfunkel for "Bridge Over Troubled Water." It was a reasonable choice, in hindsight.

But the members of the Recording Academy, who vote on the Grammys, have made some stunningly questionable decisions over the years — and not just the notorious Best New Artist Grammy they gave to the lip-sync act Milli Vanilli. The academy has never given a Grammy to Neil Young, The Who, Led Zeppelin, or The Kinks...

A link to the complete article

MUSIC: My Favorite Song of the Day (That I Haven't Mentioned Already) - My Challenge to Myself

This from me, NOT some reprinted article. - OlderMusicGeek

I don't exactly where this idea came from - even though I just thought of it today - shows you what kind of memory I got. But I got all sorts of crazy ideas going through my head all the time - I can't keep track of them all - I'm like the Micheal Keaton character in the movie, Night Shift (IMDb link to Night Shift) - * starts singing Jumping Jack Flash*

But I remember that I kept reading and hearing about these different challenges for artists. In November, there's a challenge to writers to write a whole novel in that month. I had also heard ofa 48-hour challenge for film makers to write and film a short within 48 hours. And comic book creators have a once-a-year challenge to do a 24-page comic story in 24 hours. And in this month of February there is the RPM challenge, for musicians to write and record a cd of 10 songs or 35 minutes of music within this month.

And I wanted a challenge for myself.

I was trying to think of a way to show my love of music. I felt that I wasn't showing or explaining how much and what music means to me. After all, I am the OlderMUSICGeek. And by that, I meant that I am an older geek of MUSIC, all music, NOT a geek of just older music.

And somehow or another I remember hearing on NPR how one of the guys from Mystery Science Theatre 3000 saw one movie a day for a year and wrote a book about it.

I thought of listening to one album a day for a year and writing a blog post on it each day. It wouldn't be too difficult for me to do since I can listen to music at work. I have a 30 gig mp3 player I listen to at work with over 5000 songs on it - and I do a bit of rotating every two or three weeks. But then I thought of something that was more meaningful and would give a better reflection of me. I decided that I would write about my favorite song that I heard that day - and why I like it and why it holds meaning for me and touches me.

So I thought about it, mulled it over in my mind and even discussed it with my daughter, who told me if I wrote all 366 posts - it's a leap year - that she would give me $10. So, woo hoo, I've got to do it now!

I can't promise that I will write a piece everyday. But I will keep track of what what was my favorite song I heard that day and play catch up when I can. All the posts will be at this site, OlderMusicGeek's Stupid Entertainment Stuff, which is at http://oldermusicgeekentertainment.blogspot.com/.

I should warn you though, most of the songs will probably be alternative rock or punk rock. And a lot will probably come from the 70's and 80's. But I listen to a wide range of music besides alternative, punk and electronica - I also enjoy big band and swing, oldies, classic rock, world music, folk, bluegrass, Irish, reggae, cajun/zydeco, African, Indian, movie scores among other types. So there should still be a good bit of variety. And I won't include any song twice. If my favorite song of some day was a favorite song before, I'll just go with #2 - or #3 or whatever!

So if you don't see as many posts at this site, I hope you'll understand why. I'm a man on a mission! - to educate, explain and spread my love of music.