Happy Thanksgiving!

While there are many things for which to be thankful, I decided to come up with a list of all the musicians that I’m glad I saw perform before it was too late. (I’ll revise this periodically as needed.)

 

Paul Barrere (Little Feat) 

LaVern Baker

James Brown

Ruth Brown 

Eva Cassidy 

Ray Charles

Clarence Clemons (E Street Band)

Pat DiNizio (Smithereens) 

Danny Federici (E Street Band)

Aretha Franklin 

Danny Gatton

Lesley Gore 

Richie Havens
Etta James

Sharon Jones 

Kirsty MacColl

Art Neville 

Charles Neville
John Prine
Adam Schlesinger (Fountains of Wayne)
Mary Travers (with Peter, Paul and Mary)

Junior Walker

Jesse Winchester 

Favorite Musical Artists: Indigo Girls

The Indigo Girls occupy an interesting middle niche in the music business ecosystem: not exactly household names, but more than cult favorites. They’ve received multiple Grammy nominations (with one win) and, with a run of six consecutive albums that went either gold or platinum, probably don’t have to worry about where their next meals are coming from. Yet, fortunately for their fans, they’re not so big that they can’t play venues such as Wolf Trap or the Maryland Hall for the Performing Arts (with reasonable ticket prices), or appear on the River Stage at XPNFest. And we can also be thankful that they didn’t become so acclaimed that they spawned a bevy of imitators trying to become the “new Indigo Girls”; it would be difficult if not impossible to improve on the original.

 

Concert notes: 2018 2015 (Wolf Trap) 2015 (XPNFest) 2014

 

Favorite Songs:

 

Southland In The Springtime

Fill It Up Again

Watershed

Closer To Fine

The Wood Song

 

Hammer And A Nail

Power Of Two

This Train Revised

Cold Beer And Remote Control

Galileo

 

Chickenman

Rise Up

Sugar Tongue

Get Out The Map

Least Complicated

 

Welcome Me

All That We Let In

Moment Of Forgiveness

Kid Fears

Shame On You

Shuffle #124 (November 27, 2019)

Daydream – The Lovin’ Spoonful

Dreamin’ – Johnny Burnette

Sweet Emotion – Aerosmith

Ordinary People – John Legend

The Sound Of Crying – Prefab Sprout

Volcano – Jimmy Buffett

Long Journey Home – Del Amitri

Long Distance Runaround – Yes

A Sign Of The Times – Petula Clark

Shuffle #123 (November 23, 2019)

The Boy’s Gone – Jason Mraz

Wall Of Death – Richard & Linda Thompson

Beautiful Day – U2

Wonderful! Wonderful! – Johnny Mathis

The Unforgiven – Metallica

One Man Wrecking Machine – Guster

Shimmy, Shimmy, Ko-Ko-Bop – Little Anthony & The Imperials

Hollywood – Rufus & Chaka Khan

Please Come Home For Christmas – The Eagles

Two takes on the “Sideshow Bob” defense

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-republicans-no-harm-no-foul-defense-of-trump-doesnt-hold-water/2019/11/15/d6843666-07d3-11ea-818c-fcc65139e8c2_story.html  (Ruth Marcus)

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2019/11/14/one-defenses-trump-is-literally-tv-sitcom-joke/ (former “Simpsons” writer Bob Oakley)

Shuffle #122 (November 10, 2019)

10 Degrees And Getting Colder – Gordon Lightfoot

My One Desire – Stray Cats

The Green Leaves Of Summer – The Brothers Four

You Don’t Get Much – The BoDeans

I Can’t Understand – Los Lobos

Do What You Want, Be What You Are – Hall & Oates

Baby I’m For Real – The Originals

Thunder Road – Bruce Springsteen

Come Back And Stay – Paul Young

Shuffle #121 (November 9, 2019)

I Have Nothing – Whitney Houston

Fireball – Pitbull

The Miracle (Of Joey Ramone) – U2

Burning House Of Love – X

Words Get In The Way – Miami Sound Machine

Lost And Lookin’ – Sam Cooke

Penguins – Lyle Lovett

Blue Christmas – Elvis Presley

Summertime – Eva Cassidy

Sitting On The Fence – GrooveLily

More on Medicare-for-all

Two recent Washington Post columns:

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/warrens-climb-in-the-polls-should-horrify-democrats/2019/11/04/429f4032-ff4d-11e9-9518-1e76abc088b6_story.html (Michael Gerson)

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/elizabeth-warren-tried-to-do-bernie-sanderss-homework-for-him-she-failed/2019/11/04/bddfb0b0-ff48-11e9-8bab-0fc209e065a8_story.html (Catherine Rampell)

Paul Barrere

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/paul-barrere-guitarist-and-singer-songwriter-for-little-feat-dies-at-71/2019/10/30/8ff7b290-fb21-11e9-ac8c-8eced29ca6ef_story.html

 

I like Harrison Smith’s quick summary of Little Feat in his obituary above: “… mixed California rock with New Orleans funk over a half-century of extended jams and fiery performances.”

 

Favorite Little Feat songs:

 

Red Streamliner

Dixie Chicken

Let It Roll

Oh, Atlanta

Fat Man In The Bathtub

Hate To Lose Your Lovin’

All That You Dream

Time Loves A Hero

Sailin’ Shoes

Willin’

Why did those World Series games last so long?

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/27977973/why-did-world-series-games-last-long

 

Great analysis by Sam Miller.