Carl

I have one of her albums, and I really like it. There's a great track on it called "Alone." I think she is (rightfully) considered Blues, which makes it hard for her to get airplay. She's definitely worth a listen. - Isn't she married to another Blues musician?

George Clinton, The Turtles and Lynyrd Skynyrd at the same festival... I have a new respect for Alabama. That sounds like some monster fun.

We've been online since 1999, so I guess we're not going anywhere. Besides, we're having too much fun.

Here's my case for why Nirvana revolutionized music: In 1991, Top-40 or Contemporary Hit Radio (CHR) was a very popular format. It was real easy to program - you just played what was popular. The airwaves were lush with the sounds of Roxette, Amy Grant and Color Me Badd. It was safe and effective, you could play it at work and no one would complain. When "Smells Like Teen Spirit" became a huge hit, most CHR stations stayed away or added it as a quirky novelty, unaware that it would soon destroy their format. Soon, there wasn't enough Mariah Carey to satisfy demand. Stations had to add some Hip Hop (Boyz II Men, Mary J Blige) or give in to the Grunge (Nirvana, Pearl Jam, STP). Some stations resisted by digging into their archives and adding songs from the '80s and even some Disco, but there was no escape. Nirvana gave rise to the Modern Rock format and along with Hip Hop, killed CHR radio. That's revolutionary.

Jennifer from Little Rock, AR wins the clean and comfortable Songfacts T-Shirt. Here are the answers: What singer had a backup band called "The Pips"? - Gladys Knight What popular singer recently got engaged to one of her backup dancers? - Britney Spears What was the first double album in Rock? - Blonde On Blonde by Bob Dylan Popular guesses were The Beatles' White Album and Frank Zappa's Freak Out, which both came out later. What popular band has 2 albums named after Groucho Marx movies? - Queen A Night At The Opera, A Day At The Races What hit song contains a rap about a man from Mars who eats cars? - "Rapture" by Blondie Which UK band took their name from an eccentric character in a Pulitzer Prize winning novel? - The Boo Radleys The group is named after a character in Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize winning novel To Kill A Mockingbird. Uriah Heep was not a correct answer because Charles Dickens' novel, David Copperfield, did not win a Pulitzer Prize. What song contains the lyric, "A cat named Frankenstein"? - "Another Saturday Night" by Sam Cooke (also recorded by Cat Stevens) What singer or band released the album with the longest title among those that charted? - Fiona Apple The album known as When The Pawn... contains another 87 words. So far in 2004, what singer or band has played the concert with the largest audience? - Simon And Garfunkel On the last show on their tour, they played to 600,000 people at the Colosseum in Rome. What band has a drummer named Ringo who was not a member of The Beatles? - Los Lonely Boys Their drummer's name is Ringo Garza. Tiebreaker: How many CDs did the Songfacts staff buy in August? 6 Thanks to everyone who took the quiz, and be sure to take the new one here.

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Peter runs away from death. Death replies: "I caught Flo Jo, I can catch you too." Stewie traps another kid in the pit of forgotten children: "Steve walks warily down the street with his brim pulled way down low."

If it's a direct quote from the artist or songwriter, we like to leave it in tact and provide the source if possible: "In 1990, Kurt Cobain told Rolling Stone, 'that was the best song I ever wrote.'" We don't want to plagarize the work of others, so if you come across some writing that would make great Songfacts, please either: 1) Ask permission to use it - we are happy to provide credit. You can always let us know where it came from and let us ask. 2) Use it as the basis for your own commentary. I hope this helps - let us know if we can tell you more.

And I thought our Mighty Songfacts Trivia Quiz questions were hard... I can't piece it together, but I was thinking of "Zombie Zoo" by Tom Petty, which would place the band in one of his movies. Sadly, that song is from 1989.

"Fallin'" by Alicia Keys has a great piano open that I believe is Chopin. I've always wondered if the open to Madonna's "Papa Don't Preach" is based on a classical piece, or if it's original.

For no vocals, but plenty of good sax, check out "Lily Was Here" by Candy Dulfer. My favorite use of sax in song is Clarence Clemons when he blows on Bruce Spingsteen's "Rosalita."

I'm not familiar with "Summer Breeze" by The Isleys - I'm assuming it's not the same song as the Soft Rock favorite (Seals & Crofts?). "Sweet Home Alabama" has cleansing properties for me. Odd, since I've never even been to Alabama.

It seems like many of the Protest/Political songs that come out these days seem forced - nothing like "Ohio" or "Sunday Bloody Sunday." My theory is that we're sick of politics, and no one can say anything we don't already know. Most of us listen to music for entertainment and inspiration, and a protest song is the equivalent of the guy who ruins a perfectly good discussion by asking what everyone thinks of George Bush. I respect artists like Pearl Jam, Springsteen and R.E.M. for speaking their mind through their art, but what was the last overtly political song that really stuck in your head?

We recently spoke with Billy Steinberg. With his songwriting partner Tom Kelly, he has written some amazing songs that are not only very popular, but incredibly well crafted and meaningful. Please check these out and post your thoughts. They are a must-read for anyone interested in the art of songwriting: True Colors Like A Virgin Eternal Flame I Drove All Night So Emotional In Your Room Alone I'll Stand By You

Funky Stevie Wonder is, in my opinion, the best Stevie Wonder. I have to second "Master Blaster," and I'll add "Pasttime Paradise." Some other stuff you might like: "Love Rollercoaster" by The Ohio Players "Pope" by Prince "Kickin' Back" by LTD "Tell Me Something Good" by Rufus Also, check out the latest album from Tower Of Power - it's called The Oakland Zone. Love the horns.

In Office Space, I love the scene where he strolls through the office to the sounds of Ice Cube's "Gangsta N----". There's also a Chevy Chase movie called Funny Farm. It's a bad movie, but there's a great scene where the dog catches fire and is too lazy to do anything about it. The song Napolean danced to is "Canned Heat" by Jamiriqui (It sounds like "Candy") - I stayed through the credits to find out, and was rewarded with the extra scene.

A note about "Ohio": Jerry Casale, who is a founding member of Devo, was there, and hearing him describe what happened that day made me realize that America is not quite as free as I thought it was. The government of Ohio got away with it by declaring Martial Law, which means anything goes - no constitutional protections apply. Please read the Songfacts to get a first person account. The scary thing is, this could easily happen again.

I'll agree with the Arlo Guthrie and raise you "Rock Lobster" by the B-52s ("Here comes the dogfish - woof, woof). I'm not much of an Offspring fan, but "Pretty Fly For A White Guy" is inspired. I like when he tries to buy Ice Cube but gets Vanilla Ice.

I got a hold of a DVD with a bunch of music videos directed by Spike Jonze. There are 2 Weezer videos on there, including "Buddy Holly," which is really funny and harkens back to Happy Days before Fonzie jumped the shark. Worth a rental if you haven't seen it.

I think the risk/reward on this one makes it not worth the effort, at least right now. A lot of people might find it helpful, but we haven't been able to sort out the legal issues and it would require a fair amount of code.

I thought there were 2 standout performances: Alicia Keys/Lenny Kravitz/Stevie Wonder and Christina Aguilera/Nelly. The great thing about bringing out Stevie and doing one of his truly great songs (Anyone see Hi Fidelity? - "Do you even know your daughter!") is that a younger crowd can get to know him. He's one of the greats and should be appreciated. Christina Aguilera is proving to be a spectacular performer. She really means it when she sings and can absolutely wail. With MTV under the Janet Jackson restrictions, the Flapper Dresses and Zoots Suits were brilliant. Some observations: What did Chaka Khan swallow that made her sound like an American Idol reject? She's better than that - I wonder if she did it on purpose. Viacom clearly wanted to plug Comedy Central, but they managed to make both John Stewart and Dave Chapelle look incredibly unfunny. Chapelle may have been collared by the restrictions, but Stewart's stuff was taped - someone should have stopped it. Shaq looked like he was in great shape. Let's not bash the US Olympic Team, who at least went to Greece to represent instead of hanging out in Miami. I was surprised the Kerry daughters got booed, but it proves that people don't respond well to political messages when they are out for entertainment. That was a bad idea.

When it comes to Pop, I think the creation of the product is more important than the delivery vessel (translation: songwriting and production are more important than performance). Billy Joel is a great Pop singer because he writes great Pop songs. Give "Say Goodbye To Hollywood" to George Michael, Micheal Penn or Penn Gilette (you know, from the comedy duo Penn & Teller) and you'll get roughly the same result. Give these guys "Captain Jack," and it's a completely different song. On the production end, Mutt Lange or Desmond Child can make slick Pop for just about anyone with some talent. Anyway, here are some great Pop performers: Cyndi Lauper Hanson David Bowie Cheap Trick Joan Osbourne Paul McCartney

Hi all. We got a note from an Australian journalist who is working on a feature for a travel magazine. She's looking for songs that mention or have something to do with beaches - she gave "Rockaway Beach" as an example. Any ideas?

Guys like Sam Cooke, David Ruffin and Bill Withers are my pick, but on the Rock side, how about Gregg Allman? I can't think of any other Rock vocalist who sings with such passion, yet makes it easy to understand the words, even live.

Pat from Billerica, MA wins a clean and comfortable Songfacts T-shirt. Here are the answers: What popular singer released a book called Sex? - Madonna What group is made up of 3 guys and a girl named Fergie? - Black Eyed Peas What popular band is named after the church they attended as kids? - Our Lady Peace Nazareth was a good guess, but they took their name from a line in The Band's song "The Weight." What popular rap group has 2 members named Adam? - The Beastie Boys What was the first band to have 4 US #1 hits from their first album? - Creed What band opened a tour with a simulcast of the show in movie theaters across the US? - Phish The opening show to their 2004 farewell tour was shown in 46 theaters. What popular band from the '70s was named after their keyboard player? - Manfred Mann We also accepted KC & The Sunshine Band and Booker T & The MGs. We didn't accept The Alan Parsons Project even though we were tempted. The group was more of a collection of musicians Parsons would use to record his stuff. What famous band once appeared on stage dressed as light bulbs? - The Red Hot Chili Peppers They did it at Woodstock in 1994. Devo was a good guess - they wore a variety of metallic costumes on stage, but RHCP were clearly light bulbs. What famous musician took his wife's last name when they got married? - Jack White of the White Stripes His name was Jack Gillis, but he changed it when he married Meg White, who is also his drummer. A lot of people guessed John Lennon, who changed his middle name to "Ono." Worldwide, what is the best-selling single with a title that is the name of a girl? - "Macarena" This stumped just about everyone. Good guesses include Billie Jean, Diana, Jenny, Mandy and Rosanna. Thanks to everyone who took the quiz, and be sure to take the new one here.