Headed to the midwest this afternoon

Happy Life Day!

With special guest stars...the Jefferson Starship!

(Click on the links after the video is finished if you dare proceed. Note of warning: there are 10 parts, including about 10-15 minutes of Wookiee conversation)

Shock and Awe

Emitt Rhodes

In 1970, the same year that Paul McCartney released his self-recorded McCartney album, a 20 year old from Illinois released a strikingly McCartneyish album recorded in his parent's garage. I draw the comparison because, in a lot of ways, this 20 year old out-McCartneyed McCartney. Emitt Rhodes' first album, on which he played all of the instruments, is filled with light-hearted, harmony-filled pop music that typifies the majority of Paul's late era Beatles offerings. Definitely worth a listen - he's a talented guy.

With My Face On The Floor



Promises I've Made



You Should Be Ashamed



It's amazing and slightly depressing to think of how good this guy was at 20. When I was 20, I was struggling to stay awake in my Psych 101 class.

An Eggcellent Video

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A sad day every year

Investing vs. Paying off loans

Administration officials have announced that there is $200 billion dollars of TARP funding left over from the bank bailouts. President Obama has expressed interest in funding a jobs plan (likely focused on updating highway and rail infrastructure and on weatherizing homes), while conservatives think it should go towards spending down the deficit. My gut reaction was to agree with the conservatives on this one, given that the deficit is at $1.4 trillion (to be fair, the deficit from Bush's last year was $1.3 trillion - so pretty much par for the course). At the same time, there are a lot of people who need jobs and energy efficiency and updating rail is always a good thing. Hmm - I'm conflicted.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1209/30347.html

The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret

For all those Arrested Development fans, here's a clip from a pilot show that features David Cross and Will Arnett. It looks like they're playing somewhat similar characters, but it's hard not to love Will Arnett in this type of role. I haven't been able to find much info about the show, but apparently it's on in the UK. Click here for a link to other clips.

EPA: Greenhouse Gases Are A Danger/Must Be Regulated

The Associated Press is reporting that, later today, EPA will release findings that greenhouse gases are endangering people's health and must be regulated. From the article, "Under a Supreme Court ruling, the so-called endangerment finding is needed before the EPA can regulate carbon dioxide and five other greenhouse gases released from power plants, factories and automobiles under the federal Clean Air Act." While I agree with the findings, the timing and politics of this are questionable - an easy target for climate change conspiracy theorists.

Source: AP

Warning: Contents May Be Awesome

Zombieland

Go see this movie - it's a lot of fun to watch. Woody Harrelson is great in it. It also has one of the best cameos I've ever seen.

London 1927

I've never been to London but I really want to go - road trip anyone?

The American Dream

"Crackers with a creamy bacon, egg & cheese flavored filling."

Living without hair must be hard to bear

As the decade closes out

In case you're interested in checking something out that you may have missed, here's some of my favorite albums from 2000-2009:

Neko Case - Fox Confessor/Middle Cyclone
M Ward - Post War
Loose Fur - Loose Fur
Josh Ritter - The Animal Years
Jon Brion - Meaningless
Jenny Lewis - Rabbit Fur Coat
The Frames - Set List
Dr. Dog - Easy Beat/We All Belong/Fate
Bob Dylan - Love and Theft
Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot/A Ghost Is Born
White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan
Sun Kil Moon - Ghosts of the Great Highway
Sufjan Stevens - Seven Swans
The Strokes - Room on Fire
Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped
Sleater-Kinney - The Woods
Sigur Ros - ()/Takk
Ryan Adams - Jacksonville City Nights/Cold Roses/Love Is Hell
Radiohead - Kid A
Paul McCartney - Chaos and Creation
Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga

Self-portrait

Please don't abandon us, rich people! We'll play nice.

Back from the hike

Keeps me grounded

Going for a hike

This weekend/next week I will be in Havasupai - the only permanent Native American village inside of the Grand Canyon. It is one of only two places in America where mail is still delivered by mule - the other, of course, is New York City.

Havasupai is known for it's lush gardens/waterfalls, which are, surprisingly, not found elsewhere in the arid, drought-laden, desert southwest.

Update: Drunkest Guy Ever

Some genius on the internets decided to turn this video (posted earlier this week) into a silent film. I found myself LOLing. I think U 2 will find urself LOLZing.

Tonight

Some nights, like tonight, I find myself lost in front of the computer at nearly midnight watching videos of whatever I'm led to. The nights never start out that way - I just find myself here. These days, I feel like I'm too busy to listen to music anymore, but occasionally find the time to really focus on it.

It's a very personal thing for me. I don't generally talk about how a song or album makes me feel, but they almost always move me in some way. It's hard to describe the feeling that all of us must get when we hear a beautiful, surprising song for the first time that somehow connects with you and makes you feel nostalgic for things you've tried to forget. This happened to me tonight when I listened to John Lennon's Real Love demo from the Dakota. I know that a lot of Beatles purists look down on this song for its simplicity, but how much more beautiful and personal can a song get? I listen to this and I can see him in the Dakota waiting until Sean heads to bed before sitting at the piano, practicing the chord changes a few times, and finally clicking on the tape recorder on top of the piano to run through this little idea he had - having no idea that anyone would be listening to his private recordings nearly 30 years later and be so incredibly moved by his performance.

I also checked out some clips from a documentary on Wilco called I Am Trying to Break Your Heart. I was first introduced to these guys through this documentary and, I admit, wasn't convinced upon my first listen. Maybe I was listening to too much classic rock, but at the time I just didn't get it - their music wasn't easily classifiable, which put me off. The more I listened and learned about them, the more I realized that this is the sort of band that I need to pay more attention to - the kind of American band that makes music they would want to listen to and doesn't worry about radio play or selling records or publicity - they remind me a bit of The Band. The documentary follows them while they make the album Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. Here are some clips which are worth your time if you're interested:

Opening credits (great cinematography of Chicago)



Demoing "Cars Can't Escape"



Another Man's Done Gone (from Woody Guthrie project with Billy Bragg)



(Editorial note - not a huge fan of Wilco's newest album, but I'm having a hard time thinking of any American band that has a better 4 album run than Being There, Summerteeth, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, and A Ghost Is Born - any thoughts?)

Get this man a beer!

 

Glenn Beck reminisces

COACH!...wait..what?

I guess I'm late on this, but apparently Craig T. Nelson was on Glenn Beck's esteemed program a few months back. Not surprisingly, this sought-after guest didn't pull any punches, hitting hard on a variety of topics from taxes to desk shininess.

A couple of highlights from our favorite coach:

"This desk is very shiny"

"No one is accountable anymore for anything"

"I've been on food stamps and welfare. Did anybody help me out? No."



I'm inclined to agree. Where was the government to help him out when he was on government-sponsored, tax-payer funded welfare and food stamps? Where is our tax money going, people?! GAH!

The Syrian Masturbation Epidemic

http://blog.newsweek.com/blogs/wealthofnations/archive/2009/10/02/daydreaming-in-damascus-the-syrian-masturbation-epidemic.aspx

Two great sites to check out (if you haven't already)

http://twitter.com/Shitmydadsays

http://pleasedonteatsushi.blogspot.com/

Cheezing my effing balls off (or how I came to embrace the alternative Big Mac index)

I'm a big fan of The Economist's Big Mac Index - it is a great way to understand the purchasing power of the US dollar in other countries. Imagine how McExcited I was to see their listing of an alternative to the Big Mac Index, which lists the average time needed to work before you make enough of the sweet green to buy a tasty sandwich!

Take a look at Nairobi, where it takes workers, on average, nearly three hours to make enough cash to buy a Big Mac. These Nairobi-ites obviously need to ramp up their work ethic if they want to eat - no more free rides, folks.

(nice going Chicago!)

Currently listening to...

The Beatles singles in remastered mono and they're delightful (especially Hey Bulldog).



I want to grow Lennon mutton chops but I think it's frowned upon in most social circles.

Rock Hall of Lame (yeah I went there)

So yesterday, this year's nominees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame were announced:

ABBA
The Chantels
Jimmy Cliff
Genesis
The Hollies
Kiss
LL Cool J
Darlene Love
Laura Nyro
Red Hot Chili Peppers
The Stooges
Donna Summer

There are some admirable candidates on there (Hollies, Jimmy Cliff, Stooges). We'll see what happens when they pick the actual inductees.

What's more surprising is to look at a list of artists that have been passed over again and again for induction - hell, some that haven't even been nominated.

Here's a list of some that should be in there:

Rush
Thin Lizzy
T. Rex
Joe Cocker
Beastie Boys
Alice Cooper
Moody Blues
The Cars

Some of these folks haven't even been nominated. Bonnie Raitt was inducted in 2000 for christsakes! Seriously? Bonnie Raitt is better than Rush? Rush is one of the best power trios ever.

Here is some Rush for your listening (and viewing) enjoyment:

The Spirit of the Radio (the first 20 seconds of this video should be enough to qualify them)



Fly By Night



One of my favorite bands, Thin Lizzy, is criminally underrated and has been overlooked year after year. Their music makes me want to quit my job and start breaking faces. Here's what I'm talking about:

Cowboy Song/Boys Are Back in Town



And of course, there's T. Rex:

Get It On



Lean Woman Blues

A Ken Burns Joint

This Sunday on PBS, Ken Burns' new documentary The National Parks: America's Best Idea premieres. Not surprisingly, it covers the history of the US National Park System.

This is an extended preview:

Evolution is for socialists

Public acceptance of evolution in 34 countries:

(click on the image for a larger version)

If there's one thing that I hate more than socialism, it's evolution. I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but our forefathers were not smelly apes that scrounged around for whatever food they could find or kill - they were strong men who hunted and gathered their food and could go weeks or months without bathing. Big difference.

Furthermore, everyone knows Jesus rode around on dinosaurs like a badass. Here's an actual picture of Jesus:

We're number one! Suck it Greece!

The Economist

Could a BlackBerry (or iPhone) Have Stopped the Holocaust?

One of the perks of my job is reading my boss' National Journal magazines that she doesn't have time to read. Pretty much everything about that magazine interests me (minus all of the ads for Lockheed Martin and Northrup Grumman).

One of the recent issues has an article entitled In New Media, Image Is Still Everything which is definitely worth a read if you have a few minutes.

Colonel Crazy

Libya is in good hands with this dude. Check out the Libyan leader's style at the UN:

Here he is at an audition for Miami Vice:

"The Israeli-Palestinian conflict, he said, should be solved by the creation of a single state, which Mr. Qaddafi called Isratine." (from the NY Times)

You've gotta love his attention to detail (on all fronts). Vanity Fair has more pictures here

Ahmaderkajad

Something tells me that Iran's First Lady enjoys a slightly lesser celebrity than our own.

Hilarious montage of dating videos

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xaf03z_dating-montage_creation

"I'm a 25 year subscriber to Playboy and the New Yorker."

Currently listening to...

The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses (recent remaster)
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros - Up From Below

Wurlitzers and Mellotrons and why should we care?

This is an odd first post, I know - but it's what I want to write about. Fair warning - I probably won't answer the "why should we care" part.

I just got back from Indiana where I had an opportunity to visit my grandparents. They recently moved into an assisted living center, lovingly dubbed "the prison" by my Grandmother. That aside, the place is really nice and they have a movie theater room which is really impressive. In one corner of the room I noticed a Wurlitzer electric piano and played around on it for a few minutes. (Using the internets and the googles, it looks like what we have on our hands is a Wurlitzer Orbit II Synthesizer). The Wurlitzer Orbit is apparently a pretty old - there isn't too much info out there on it. What I can say, having spent a few minutes tinkering with it, is that it is similar to a Mellotron in that it has the ability to synthesize different instruments.

The point of including synthesizers on these keyboards was probably to replace the actual instruments it was supposed to emulate (for instance, a flute or horn or chorus), but they sound so unlike the actual instruments that it isn't remotely feasible for use in a recording. What IS important is that these were some of the first synthesizers widely used and created new sounds when they weren't meant to, something that a lot of artists used to their advantage. Here's someone much greater than I explaining Mellotrons.

Some of the sounds created by these instruments have defined songs, such as:

Beatles - intro to Strawberry Fields Forever (Mellotron, obviously)
Beck - intro to Where It's At (Wurlitzer electric)
Marvin Gaye - I Heard It Through the Grapevine (Wurlitzer)
Neil Young - See The Sky About to Rain (Wurlitzer - through a Leslie speaker)
Supertramp - Logical Song (Wurlitzer)
Tom Petty - You Don't Know How It Feels (Wurlitzer - also through a Leslie)
Queen - You're My Best Friend (Wurlitzer)
Led Zeppelin - Kashmir and the Rain Song (Mellotron)
RHCP - Californication and Breaking the Girl (Mellotron)