Serendipity #4

Peace Tonight – Indigo Girls (1999)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLwB4MVTJ7g

Heard 1/17/2014 around 1:15, Wegman’s in Germantown

Search function now works

Some of you may have tried the Search box on the right of the blog and not come up with any results. Apparently there has been a problem with the built-in search widget for several months that the Google engineers have not been able to fix for some reason. 

I’ve replaced this with a scrap of HTML code that was suggested as a workaround in one of the discussion forums – seems to work fine now.

Retirement Party Playlist

This past Friday, my Westat colleagues sponsored a wonderful retirement party for me – many thanks to all of the organizers and participants! 

I had almost nothing to do with the event planning, but Linda Gowen did call me up a few weeks in advance and asked if I could supply some music for the party from my iPod. Naturally I couldn’t resist. A couple folks asked for a copy of the playlist, so here it is. 

Stayin' Alive -- Bee Gees (the #1 song when I started at Westat in February 1978)

Margaritaville -- Jimmy Buffett

One Fine Day -- The Chiffons

Freeway Of Love -- Aretha Franklin

Do You Believe In Magic -- The Lovin' Spoonful

I'm Alright (Theme from Caddyshack) -- Kenny Loggins

High Hopes -- Frank Sinatra (in honor of Harry Kalas and the Phillies)

Take On Me -- a-ha (in honor of Michael Morse and the Nats)

Drift Away -- Dobie Gray

Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) -- Bruce Springsteen

Down At The Twist And Shout -- Mary Chapin Carpenter

Barbara Ann -- The Beach Boys

Ramblin' Rose -- Nat King Cole (had to have this one …)

If I Had A Boat -- Lyle Lovett

Walking On Sunshine -- Katrina & The Waves

This Will Be (An Everlasting Love) -- Natalie Cole

Two Hearts -- Phil Collins

Twisting By The Pool -- Dire Straits

Your Love Keeps Lifting Me Higher And Higher -- Jackie Wilson

Take Me In Your Arms (Rock Me) -- The Doobie Brothers

Dixie Chicken -- Little Feat

We Got the Beat -- The Go-Go's

Groovin' -- The Rascals

Wild Night -- Van Morrison

Bang The Drum All Day -- Todd Rundgren

Rock This Town -- Stray Cats

Having A Party -- Sam Cooke

Last Dance -- Donna Summer

Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight -- The Spaniels 

And here’s a link to the Stan Rogers version of Nigel Russell’s “White Collar Holler”.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsDkmVo2fg4

Phil Everly

Terence McArdle of the Washington Post did a great article on the Everly Brothers on the occasion of Phil Everly’s recent death. Particularly notable was his nod to their great, but little-heard, Born Yesterday album from 1985.

When I first heard about Phil’s death, though, one of the first things that came to mind was a much older article in the Post. Back in March of 2000, David Segal got in touch with all of the presidential candidates to ask them about their favorite music – songs, albums, concerts, etc. (A version of the article is available online in the Post's archives, but you’ll need to pay for access.)

I was most impressed by the answer of one candidate, who listed his favorite artists as Van Morrison, the Everly Brothers, and the Neville Brothers. The selection seemed free of any political calculation and included some personal favorites of mine. (Both Van Morrison and the Nevilles show up on my Favorite 100 Songs list.)

So, had I been deciding on the basis of music, George W. Bush would definitely have gotten my vote in November of 2000. The inclusion of the Neville Brothers wound up being especially ironic, given the impact that Hurricane Katrina had on the family several years later.