Happy Birthday, Barry White

h/t JoeMyGod

Tuesday Song

I'm very busy today, and while I'm launching kids to camp and getting this place in some shape, I'll be cheering myself with this ditty. Have a good one. More blogging laters.

Feel old yet?

Somebody at YouTube (I know.) said, "what can I say, I wish bands still sounded like this." Wha? I'm thinking this is still like, fresh airplay, old fart that I am...

And then I came across this in the CHILDREN'S SECTION of my local big box bookstore. Ugh.



Oh Penguin Young Readers Division! Did you include chapters for young readers on "The Maharishi takes The Fab Four for a ride," "Magical Mystery Tour - alluva sudden, their shit doesn't smell like rose petals!" and of course, "Yoko breaks up the band!"

And besides, Penguin Young Readers Division, you tempt my photoshop fingers so! And yeah, our grandchildren are fraking doomed.



[We've recorded the "Sarah Palin is Porn" podcast. I hope to have it edited and posted by midnight tonight. Watch this space.]

I've seen her naked, TWICE!

Art Brut - Good Weekend

This blog usually reserves music for Saturdays, but wow, I haven't laughed so much at a song since the B-52's heyday. Thanks to The General for the song, and Connecticut Man for finding the embeddable version, both via Twitter. xo

I'll clean up my sidebar later...

I made this for Crooks but wanted to share with my readers, too. Because none of you read Crooks and Liars. Right.

A song for Wednesday Tuesday [Thanks Rechtaw]

UPDATE: Okay I don't know what day of the week it is. I just found out I gotta wear the cast for another month. Yuk. Also, in addition to Junior Dude's bday it's my nephew baby Henry's 4th birthday. I think his Dad still reads this blog. Love on baby Henry, who is not a baby anymore. - BG

I just had to laugh...a commenter at C&L said they couldn't trust Jesus because, you know, he's ARAB.

True dat, but he was conceived out of wedlock in Egypt, which is technically, um...African. Nevermind.

So I just have to run this....



Happy Birthday to my oldest child, Junior Dude. Ten years old today.

Weird day today

My neighbor's house had a kitchen fire, so our home spent the evening surrounded by loud trucks. What's worse, I got tugged to and fro worrying about the future, which is stupid. Time for a little Ella, who hits every note because she's absolutely sure of them. Look how she stays in the now and has figured out the fun.

A soft interlude for Valentine's Day

Tuesday song?

Well yeah. It's what I'm packing to this morning. Just a lil' Chet Baker, doncha know.

Because I can.

As you know, I'm a brainy chick. But even brainy chicks can ask questions that really have no answer. Hit it, Audrey:

Getting in touch with my dirty fucking hippie.

I've been crying lately, thinking about the world as it is...

Say what you want about Cat/Yusef/wev. I was amazed at how much richer his voice is now.

Poem for Today

I was going to make this a Saturday song, but it's as much about the poem as the music. (The song is Towerblock by Julia Fordham.)

The poem is by Marianne Wade, who lost her mother (in awful stages, I imagine) to Alzheimer's, but it pertains to anyone who has ever lost a person they loved, whether they died or just went away. A beautiful song, a meaningful poem, a lovely video.

Deep thanks to Marianne for allowing me to embed this...she had embedding turned off and changed that just for me.

Blue Gal's Saturday Song - Carbon Leaf, Life Less Ordinary

I post a song a weekend just for fun. I've posted a live version of this one before but I love it. And this version has some nice photos and you can actually hear the words.

I knew there was a reason I love these guys.

A few days ago I posted a youtube with a folk version of "Baby's got Back" sung by Jonathan Coulton with back-up by a couple guys named Paul and Storm.

Paul and Storm sing a song called "Opening Band" which opines that as an opening band they don't get panties thrown at them on the stage. So their fans have a habit of doing just that. Here's a picture of them with the winner of the "largest pair ever tossed at them" prize:



But that's not enough. Paul and Storm have a Flickr page of their panties collection that you can view as a slide show. And in true geek fashion (and I say that like it's a good thing because it is) they catalog the venue where the panties were tossed. So far they only have nineteen panties but boys I think, just like Dennis Kucinich, you're at the tipping point of greater things to come.

You're also one of us, gentlemen. Welcome to the party.

BG's Saturday Song - Fred and Ginger

Gonna start posting a song on Saturdays because I can. Put the key in the minivan after getting back from our trip (yes it started, thanks) and this song came on the CD player. I picked this version because I LOVE the Ginger Rogers closeup on this one, plus when you look at Fred Astaire smirking, does he look like he's never gonna see her again? Ha. And older versions are always, always better.

From "Shall We Dance," 1937:



Oh and while we're talking Astaire, he was FORTY THREE, a year younger than I am now, when he did this. I could just plotz. From "You Were Never Lovelier", 1942:

Beautiful Day, Late Post, Happy Music

Today was 71 and sunny. Too nice to blog.

But I did want to send some happy music your way. QuakerDave posted earlier this week about how a "lot of socially-conscious "protest music" focuses on what folks don't like, on what they're against." He goes on to share what he calls the " funky, effervescent, infectiously upbeat music" of Young Robert Randolph.

Made me think of the following (sorry for the long intro):



and just discovered these guys (Carbon Leaf) on The Mountain (KMTT Seattle):



This got posted at youtube just a couple days ago. Always wished somebody felt this way about me. Heh. Well yeah, hear the heartbreak in that statement, and I dunno that it falls under "socially conscious protest music", but hey, it IS James Taylor.



Blogging at a cafe this week and they started playing Muskrat Love on the speakers. I left, of course.

Loving Seattle Radio

One thing I love about summers in the Pacific Northwest, and there's lots to love, is the radio.

One favorite is KUOW, which of course is the NPR station. Saturday nights they have "The Swing Years and Beyond" which is great for dancing around the kitchen (seeing as out here Garrison Keillor is on at 3). Well worth listening on-line, they stream the show all week, if you've got good internet, which here, I don't.

Off topic, lately I've been doing emails in the front seat of the car out in front of the house to get a good wifi signal. Sigh. Also off topic, I'm not, repeat, NOT, into washboard abs. They're fine for gay men, though.

Second is 103.7 the Mountain. A nice eclectic mix whose only fault is, if I didn't love Dave Matthews Band I might find they played them too much. But I do and they don't. They have livestream here, and they do the whole desert island disc thing with their listeners, so you get to hear some great music suggested by their "I know the band" clientele.

Treat this as an open thread to tell us all which online radio stations you like, what your desert island discs (The Mountain makes you pick only three) would be, and anything else musically oriented you're into or onto this summer. Thanks.

Because I'm a goddamn commie.

and I love him.

And it's a great update.

Because, Mr. Libby.

Blue Gal? Picking up a MEME?

I know. But I just finished my last Crooks and Liars round up for a while so felt like sumpin' fluffy. Found this at the latest addition to the BG blogroll, Much That Is Hidden (O'Tim, what a cute baby you've got, too).

The thing:
1. Go to http://www.popculturemadness.com/Music/
2. Down the left column pick the year you turned 18
3. Get yourself nostalgic/enraged over the songs of the year
4. Write something about how the songs affected you
5. Pass it on to 5 more friends (And because I suck at picking five people, regular readers/commenters - You're IT! And you know who you are.)

Okay I'm not doin' nunna dat. Just saying that according to that popculturemadness boosheet, the number one song the year I turned 18 was this. If you can get through the whole number WITHOUT singing along to either:

A. Temptations sing!
B. "long an' black an' shiny," or
C. Blow, Daddy!

you simply are not one of us.



and special thanks to Qwerty (who knew me then and knows me now) for pointing out to me years ago that the meaning of the title has something to do with "I wanna freak that freakin' freak."

Aw hell, ma hunnies. It's an all-80's weekend at BG.