#62 Tennessee -- Arrested Development (1992)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81mkW-vhPBo

Like #63, I vividly remember the first time I heard this one. In April of 1992, the annual SUGI conference was in Honolulu, for the first (and probably only) time. Since I wasn’t sure I’d get over there again, I went over a few days early and rented a car so I could do some sightseeing.

Oahu has two parallel highways that go from Honolulu across to Kailua on the other side of the island. Since there’s a mountain range in between, a portion of each highway goes through a tunnel. I first heard “Tennessee” on my drive between Honolulu and Kailua – can’t quite recall whether it was on the way over or the way back, but I think I just barely heard the end before getting to one of the tunnels.

Probably not a lot of visitors to Hawaii would list “listening to the radio” as one of his/her highlights, but I was fortunate to be over there while the legendary “Radio Free Hawaii” was on the air. As a web site dedicated to the station put it: “Radio Free Hawaii's claim to fame was that its programming was determined by weekly votes submitted to the station by listeners from all over the state using a ballot system. … The music represented by listener votes spanned all genres... rap, pop, rock, alternative, country, Hawaiian, jazz, classical, ska and more.” In addition to Arrested Development, I remember hearing tracks by House of Pain and Cypress Hill. Topping the listener request chart, however, was The Partridge Family’s “Point Me in the Direction of Albuquerque”. It’s hard to get more eclectic than that.

 

#63 It's Bad You Know -- R.L. Burnside (1998)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzC_rGX-XyM

Most of the songs on this list seem like they’ve been around forever; I can’t really come close to remembering the first time I heard them. This is one of the exceptions. At some point in the late 1990s, I was driving back from Harrisburg one Sunday afternoon after visiting my father for the weekend. As usual, I was listening to the Harrisburg affiliate of WXPN, and was just passing through Dillsburg on U.S. 15, where reception always started to gradually deteriorate. At this point I heard a song that I had never heard before, which seemed to reach out of the car speakers and grab me. I desperately hoped that the DJ would identify the song before I was out of range. Thankfully, he did an ID right after the song ended, while I could still pick up the signal.

#64 This Will Be (An Everlasting Love) -- Natalie Cole (1975)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Slj7ZiKjJ1Y

I dare anyone to stay in a bad mood for long while this song is playing.

May 5, 2014 – Nationals 4, Dodgers 0 – Nationals Park

I Wish It Would Rain (NOT)

Umpires: HP: John Tumpane. 1B: Paul Nauert. 2B: James Hoye. 3B: Mark Wegner.

Weather: 63 degrees, cloudy.

Wind: 5 mph, In from CF.

T: 2:59 (3:17 delay).

Att: 25,447.

The headline seemed appropriate, given the musical nature of this blog and the fact that it was “Motown Monday” at the ballpark. The tunes were great enough that I can forgive that they snuck in some Al Green and Earth, Wind & Fire, neither of whom is actually Motown.

In addition to the music, the other highlight was the Nats reversing their usual practice of falling behind in the first inning. Rendon followed Denard Span’s leadoff double with a home run off Zack Greinke to give the Nats the quick lead. Zimmermann allowed at least one hit in each of his 4 innings, but did keep the Dodgers off the scoreboard.

The first hint that the non-baseball part of the evening might not go so well came at the uncharacteristically disorganized Taqueria – as usual, not much of a line, but it took a while for the orders to come out, at which point associating the food with the person who had ordered it seemed to be a challenge. I was so relieved to finally get my tacos that I got to my seat before noticing that they forgot to include the usual cup of salsa.

I felt the first drop of rain precisely at 7:00, shortly after a brisk and stirring version of the National Anthem by DC Washington. I didn’t expect it to last for long, despite how dark the sky was, but it refused to stop, ranging from light to medium in intensity. I moved back several rows for most of the first inning, back to my regular seat when it briefly let up, and watched the top of the third on one of the monitors in the concourse. Following Teddy’s victory in the middle of the 4^th, the grounds crew made a prolonged and valiant effort to get the infield into playable condition, but at 8:26 they finally started putting on the tarp. The loudest cheer of the night then came when the Nats put the Wizards game up on the scoreboard. Not being all that tempted by the possibility of watching even super-large-screen TV while sitting in the rain, I promptly headed for the Metro station – give Metro plenty of credit for reacting quickly to get “baseball shuttle” trains onto the Green Line – figuring that I’d probably be home in time to catch the end of the game. The delay, however, exceeded even my pessimistic expectations, so I was off to bed before they finally resumed play at 11:43. According to published reports, 5 Nats relievers then blanked L.A. for one inning each, and Espinosa hit a 2-run shot in the bottom of the eighth to provide some insurance, before the end finally arrived at 1:21am in front of perhaps a couple hundred hardy survivors. (If there’s any justice, the Nats provided each of them with tickets to a future game, at the very least.)

May 4, 2014 – Bowie Baysox 8, Erie SeaWolves 5 – Prince George’s Stadium (Bowie)

Baysox are top dogs

Umpires: HP: Ryan Clark. 1B: Sean Ryan. 3B: Jeremie Rehak.

Weather: 70 degrees, sunny.

Wind: 15 mph, Out to RF.

T: 2:44.

Att: 4,126.

Section 203, Row P, Seat 21 – Typical location when I see the Baysox or Keys play, section not too far to the right of home plate, on the aisle, two rows in front of the concourse. Out of the sun, which didn’t matter much early but was a disadvantage when the temperature dropped about 10 degrees and the wind kicked up in the sixth inning.

Despite the nice weather and the “Bark in the Park” promotion, attendance wasn’t exactly great. The number of humans in the park seemed closer to half of the announced attendance. Their canine friends were generally very well-behaved, and were distributed throughout the stadium rather than having their own special section.

Since the game didn’t start until 2:05, I stopped at Nando’s in Silver Spring for lunch, snacking on soft-serve ice cream and a soft pretzel as the afternoon went on.

As the Bowie and Erie starting pitchers came in with records of 1-3, 8.03 and 0-4, 11.57, respectively, a slugfest seemed likely. The SeaWolves threatened in the first with two singles and a walk but failed to score, while Bowie put two on the board on a homer by Cuban defector Dariel Alvarez. (Keep an eye out for that name.) Things slowed down for a while after that, as Erie managed one run in the next 4 innings while the Baysox went 12 up and 12 down. After the SeaWolves tied things up in the top of the sixth, Bowie broke the game open in the bottom of the frame, starting with a 3-run homer by Christian Walker and tacking on two more before the inning ended. The SeaWolves made things a little interesting in the ninth by scoring two runs before a batter had been retired, but a hard bouncer back to the pitcher was turned into a double play, effectively ending the threat.

Thanks largely to the long ball, the Baysox were extremely efficient throughout the game, stranding only 3 baserunners. Somewhat oddly, none of their batters struck out until the 8^th inning.

Prior to the game, as I was about to write down the starting lineups that were posted on a white board near the entrance, I was astonished to find that the free game program only had half of a scorecard, with space for one team but not the other. There was a note below – “For a full scorecard, please stop by the Baysox Fan Assistance Center on the 3^rd base main concourse.” There I found several piles of printed materials, including a scorecard that not only had space for both teams, but thoughtfully had the starting lineups already preprinted. There were also comprehensive game notes for each team (presumably identical to those provided to the media), as well as rosters and stats. Quite a nice package for the more geeky fans such as myself.

#65 Do You Believe In Magic -- The Lovin' Spoonful (1965)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y23WN9t_WVU

“Summer in the City” by The Lovin’ Spoonful nearly always appears when anyone puts together a list of “Top Summer Songs”. While I like the song, I really prefer a more positive vibe to my summer songs than gritty necks and blowing horns. “Do You Believe In Magic” has nothing directly to do with summer, but it’s great for pool parties, afternoons at the beach, or just cruising down the highway on a nice summer day.

#66 Tenderness -- General Public (1985)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmoHQ2DC3zo

The English Beat was the best of the 1980s British “ska-rock” bands, with such great songs as “I Confess”, “Mirror in the Bathroom”, and “Too Nice To Talk To”. Although they never even hit the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S., despite getting considerable airplay on alternative and progressive FM radio stations, they begat both the Fine Young Cannibals and General Public, both of whom had more chart success. “Tenderness” is wonderfully infectious despite its unusual structure (short simple chorus but two different bridges) and tricky rhythm, and it also features some nice twists in the lyrics (“My luck’s like a button, can’t stop pushing it”).

Serendipity #12

Am I the Same Girl – Swing Out Sister (1992)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sK6Ro0JCP9U

Heard 4/29/2014 shortly after 6:00 at Jerry’s Subs in Gaithersburg (Shady Grove)

April 27, 2014 – Padres 4, Nationals 2 – Nationals Park

4 weeks into the season – meh

Umpires: HP: Marvin Hudson. 1B: Cory Blaser. 2B: Ben May. 3B: Doug Eddings.

Weather: 60 degrees, sunny.

Wind: 7 mph, In from LF.

T: 3:12.

Att: 34,873.

Section 107, Row FF, Seats 5-6 (lower level, down the left field line, just barely in foul territory, in the sun for most of the game)

Four weeks into the 2014 season, the Nats have a modest 14-12 record, 4 games behind Atlanta (and ½ game in back of the Mets). Just finished off an 11-game homestand, going 5-6. Still more potential than consistent performance, and a continuation of their unsettling trend of key players not being able to stay healthy. (2014 seems to be the Year of the Hand.)

Sunday’s showing was not particularly inspiring. The Nats started out well, notching a first-inning run on consecutive doubles by Rendon and Werth, but would not get another hit against San Diego starter Ian Kennedy until the seventh. Nate McLouth managed a solo homer against Joaquin Benoit in the eighth, perhaps in a bid to prove to us skeptics that Mr. Mister’s “Kyrie” is not one of the worst walk-up songs ever.

For the Nats, starting pitcher Taylor Jordan didn’t seem to be particularly sharp, although he held the Padres to just one run in four innings before being double-switched out of the game. (Turns out he had the flu.) Ross Detweiler managed to retire just 4 of the 9 batters he faced, and Aaron Barrett added to the damage by issuing two bases-loaded walks, giving the Padres a 4-1 lead. Werth provided some hope by leading off the bottom of the ninth with a single, but the rally went no further, as Huston Street collected his ninth save in as many opportunities.

I headed down a little early given the Jordan Zimmermann bobblehead giveaway, and did run into a bit of backup around noon on the GW Parkway getting on to the 14^th Street Bridge. Parking in HH also seemed heavier than usual. Was in plenty of time to get a bobblehead, though, as they still seemed to be available at least through 12:50. (Fortunately the Nats have gone back to having giveaway items available at all gates, instead of just at the centerfield entrance as was the case last year.) Went with the chicken shawarma from Shawafel, very near our section – good, but overpriced even by ballpark standards at $11.00.

April 26, 2014 – Nationals 4, Padres 0 – Nationals Park

Roark rules!

Umpires: HP: Doug Eddings. 1B: Marvin Hudson. 2B: Cory Blaser. 3B: Jim Joyce.

Weather: 66 degrees, sunny.

Wind: 12 mph, In from LF.

T: 2:19.

Att: 31,590.

Section 131, Row U, Seats 9-10 (lower level, just beyond first base, not too far from the field, so was able to go with short sleeves and no jacket for the first time since the home opener)

The Nats didn’t get Tanner Roark as the first pick in the draft (Strasburg), or pick him up in a blockbuster trade (Gonzalez, Fister). He was a 25^th-round draft pick after pitching for a couple months in an independent league, never appeared on top prospect lists, didn’t do anything especially noteworthy in the minor leagues, was acquired by the Nats from the Rangers in a minor deal at the 2010 trade deadline, and wasn’t added to the team’s 40-man roster after an undistinguished 2012 season at AAA Syracuse (6-17, 4.39 ERA). Many still mispronounce his name with one syllable (it’s ROW-ark). Tom Boswell has a nice column in today’s Post chronicling his modest start and recent achivevements.

This afternoon, Roark was magnificent, producing the team’s first complete game of the year in an ultra-efficient 105 pitches, more than 2/3 of them strikes. He was perfect into the sixth inning, until Padres catcher Rene Rivera managed a one-out single to center. San Diego managed only two other hits, and Roark only walked one batter.

Meanwhile, the Padres were channeling the worst aspects of the early-season Nationals, allowing 3 first-inning runs and being charged with 3 errors. (Their most critical misplay, when second baseman Jedd Gyorko couldn’t handle a likely double-play grounder by Jayson Werth in the first, was initially also scored as an error but later changed to a hit.*) The Nats managed only one more run the rest of the game, but their modest offensive output was more than enough for Roark.

Traffic was relatively uneventful both ways, although I can’t quite figure out the recurring Legion Bridge slowdowns on the way back from games this year. Took advantage of both the $5 beer and 2-for-1 hot dog coupons.

* - 5/15/2014 update: heard on a Nats broadcast this week that, upon a few weeks of further review, they changed the play back to an error.