So many to choose from – maybe F.P. should take a Twitter poll?
Saturday, April 29, 2017
Trump’s first 100 days were alarming — and relieving
The Post Editorial Board’s take on the First 100 Trumpdays.
#145 Use Me Up – Lake Street Dive (2014)
This is my
personal favorite from my 2014 album of the year, and I still can’t figure out
why it didn’t get much airplay. Mike Olson’s perceptive lyrics, Bridget Kearney’s
upright bass accompaniment, Mike Calabrese’s understated percussion, Rachael
Price’s lead vocals and harmonies by the rest of the band – it doesn’t get much
better than this.
#144 Magic Town – The Vogues (1966)
This was the
second song in the Vogues’ “blue-collar trilogy” that followed their initial
hit (the bouncy pop of “You’re The One”) and preceded the later years of their
career when they specialized in covering such standards as “My Special Angel”
and “Moments To Remember”. Perhaps it’s not surprising that “Magic Town” didn’t
reach the chart heights of its immediate predecessor, the better-known (and more
optimistic) “Five O’Clock World”. In the former, “there's a five o'clock me
inside my clothes thinkin' that the world looks fine”, because “everytime my
baby smiles at me I know that it's all worthwhile.” In the latter, the narrator
has left his love behind in search of success but is increasingly despairing of
finding it; he’s “down to my last dime”, and “nobody here gives a hang if I
live or die”. The 50-year-old chorus still resonates today, bringing to mind
hollowed-out post-industrial cities and small towns throughout the Rust Belt:
Hey, where's the magic in this Magic
Town?
Where's the good life they said could
be found?
where's the magic to make all my big
dreams come true?
I gotta find it girl before I send for
you.
Friday, April 28, 2017
#143 Follow You All Over The World – Marti Jones (1985)
This track
was a favorite of many of us WHFS addicts back in the day, although (like
pretty much all of her work) it failed to cross over into the mainstream. I was
fortunate enough to see a show by Marti and husband (and longtime producer) Don
Dixon a year ago in a small, intimate setting; naturally this song was the
biggest highlight of the evening.
Tuesday, April 25, 2017
The Phillie Phanatic is 39 years old. Really.
“Thirty-nine years after one of the most impressive marketing births of
history, he still had the energy and the intellect of an 8-year-old.” (from
Donnellon article)
Two articles to celebrate the occasion. (The one from Cut4 includes
video of some of his “greatest hits”.)
And he had a great party this past Sunday.
Monday, April 24, 2017
April 23, 2017 – Phillies 5, Braves 2 – Citizens Bank Park
Attendance: 28,632
Game Time: 2:38
Weather: 61 degrees, sunny
Wind: 7 mph
Umpires: Home Plate - Tripp Gibson, First Base - Stu Scheurwater,
Second Base - Brian Gorman, Third Base - Mike DiMuro
Seventh-inning stretch song: Hot Hot Hot – Buster Poindexter
Section 142, Row 18, Seats 1-6 – left field, on the aisle, prime
bring-your-glove territory
It was the quietest of games (until it wasn’t).
Highlights – great, fast-moving pitchers’ duel between Zach Eflin and
Mike Foltynewicz, scoreless through 6 innings … after Matt Kemp put Atlanta on
the board with a leadoff HR in the top of the 7th, the Phils tied it
in the bottom of the frame on consecutive singles by Nava, Stassi, and Galvis …
in the 8th, the Phils greeted reliever Arodys Vizcaíno with a
pinch-double by Saunders, followed by homers by Hernandez and Altherr … Herrera
made it back-to-back-to-back taters after Ian Krol replaced Vizcaíno
Other – Hector Neris made it interesting in the top of the 9th,
walking the leadoff hitter (with a 4-run lead) and subsequently yielding two
singles and another walk before finally getting the final two outs … confirmed
that Tony Luke’s makes excellent cheesesteaks … breaking out the peeps late in
the game seemed to key the Phillies’ rally … traffic wasn’t too bad either
coming or going (although the Penrose Ave. route leaving the CBP area didn’t
work at all) … snagged a great Phanatic cap, thanks to a generous seatmate who
met the requirements for the 14-and-under giveaway
Trivia note: The last time the Phillies went back-to-back-to-back was
June 13, 2008, when Utley, Howard, and Burrell did it in St. Louis. I remember
the game because it was my birthday and I had gone up to Lake Kittamaqundi in
Columbia to see a set by Ryan Shaw. When the show was over and I got back to my
car and turned on the radio, the Phils had a ridiculously large lead, fueled primarily
by a 9-run fourth inning. The final score was 20-2.
The Seldom Scene -- BlackRock Center for the Arts (Germantown MD), 4/22/2017
Orchestra Center, Row B, Seats 105-106 (second row, on the center-right
aisle)
I have actually “scene” this band very seldom; not sure when the last
time was, but it was almost certainly not in this century. Although the current
lineup doesn’t feature any of the original members, the group still put on a
nice show, with two fifty-minute sets. They’ve always been known for pulling in
songs from other genres, and this evening’s performance included “Sitting On
Top Of The World” (done by Cream and many others), James Taylor’s “Sweet Baby
James”, and John Fogerty’s “Big Train (From Memphis)”. Having three primary
lead vocalists provided plenty of variety in the sound, and the harmony vocals
were excellent, especially when Ronnie Simpkins added bass on the gospel
classic “I’ll Be No Stranger There”. And they did do my personal favorite, “Wait
A Minute”, as the last number in their second set.
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