Carl

Giant inflatable jukebox!!

The one we have is a re-recording, but at least it's Gordon. The fix could be worse than the symptom, so we'll leave that one. Great song, BTW. Here's the entry: http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=34180

Wow, I don't know if there are any other songs where a girl tells a guy that he needs to chill out and accept their polyamorous relationship. I'll keep an ear out.

In.

Clerks was on TV yesterday, so I watched for about 8 minutes. I remember it being really good, but it looked like an amateur production with exceptionally bad acting. Guess expectations were different when it came out.

Seems I like the story songs. 1) Crabbuckit - k-os (2004) 2) Silver Tongued Devil And I, The - Kris Kristofferson (1971) 3) Tourist, The - Ray Davies (2005) 3) Girl I Can't Forget, The - Fountains Of Wayne (2005) 4) C.R.E.A.M. - Wu-Tang Clan (1993) 5) Sentimental Journey - Ella Fitzgerald (1947) 6) Only A Fool Would Say That - Steely Dan (1972) 7) Silver Wings - Merle Haggard (1969) 8) An American Dream - The Dirt Band (1979) 9) Saturday Morning - Eels (2003) 10) Free - Phish (1996)

Maybe it is Collects, but I still like Flexes better. Gonna use that in conversation: Let me flex my thoughts for a moment. Let's see if this new emoji works Wow, I guess they can be whatever size we want.

A standard from the '50s that never got a revival. Note that guys used to wear a suit and tie to go out on a date:

Classic movie. Around here, Paul Newman is most famous for his Hole in the Wall camp. Check out the folks who have a hand in it: http://www.holeinthewallgang.org/about/Board-of-Directors/

I took a look at the IMDB soundtrack search, which is pretty good for these things, but couldn't find anything. Will let you know if something turns up.

Crabbuckit - k-os The Silver Tongued Devil And I - Kris Kristofferson Wu-Tang Clan - C.R.E.A.M.

OK, we finally fixed (for the most part) the emojis and cleaned up most of the stray code. We had to find different emojis to represent the ones from the old boards so they be a little bizarro.

Heard an '80s cover band doing "Jack & Diane" yesterday. When they got the line before Jack scratches his head, I heard it for the first time as "Flexes his thoughts for a moment." I think it's really "Reflects" or "Fixes", but I like it as flex. After all, if you can flex your muscles, why not your thoughts?

I wrote "boss" for headline purposes, but I'm thinking more about duos where the woman is the creative force. The typical setup for an intergender duo is female singer (sometimes lyricist) with male instrumentalist/songwriter/mastermind. Eurythmics are a classic example. Our writer April found a duo that distorts this gender role, however. They are known as Hank & Cupcakes, and in this combo, Cupcakes runs the show (she writes the songs, does most of the singing, and plays drums). Hank is also much more likely to be the eye candy, with a tendency to take his shirt off. Here's April's interview: http://www.songfacts.com/blog/interviews/hank_cupcakes/ A pic is attached. Are there other duos out there where the woman is clearly the creative leader?

Yeah, Phil Collins was an actor before he was a musician, so getting in psychotic character wasn't that hard for him.

Just learned that Chris Squire has died, apparently from leukemia. He basslines were the foundation of so many terrific Yes songs, and he was also a creative force in the group, often overlooked as a songwriter. When Dan got to interview him for Songfacts last year, Chris was still very excited about making music and performing. He made it clear that he considered himself blessed to be part of Yes and have the support of their fans. Chris was the constant in Yes - the only member to remain in every lineup. Have a listen to "It Can Happen" (his lyric), and remember him well.

Bruce pitched me on a story: There's a guy who sings on a #1 UK hit from 2013, and now he's singing in the subway for cash. The song is "Look Right Through" by Storm Queen (here's the bonkers video), and the singer is Damon C. Scott. When Bruce spoke with him, it revealed a man who feels that a #1 hit was his destiny, and believes another is on the way. It also shows what can happen when you neglect the business side of a deal. Here's the story: Damon C. Scott - "Look Right Through" - They're Playing My Song

Wow, that movie really sampled the best of the original, then mashed it up with lots of nonsensical monster action and lots of Chris Pratt (for the ladies). I didn't catch that with the music, but even a curmudgeonly moviegoer like myself felt that twinge of nostalgia, and that explains why. Interesting stuff Mike.

And much of Blue Oyster Cult's output as well is quite sonically spooky. You might also check out the Genesis song "Mama," which is truly disturbing.

"The Heart Wants What it Wants" could fit. You might also check out anything by Dashboard Confessional.

Saw the word "Appolonian" in print today. I seriously thought it was a reference to the Prince protege Appolonia. It wasn't.

Did you know that Lemmy wasn't the lead singer in Hawkwind but he ended up singing lead on their biggest hit, "Silver Machine"? Check out the video that goes with this one: http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=3985

Our buddy Johnny Townsend brought this up - he make that point that if these producers slashing solos had their way with certain Steely Dan songs, the musical landscape would be far less interesting. Of course, Steely Dan would never allow it, and these artists shouldn't either: Country Music Guitar Solos Getting the Ax

Letterman closed out his final show last night (a bit of a slog) with the Foo Fighters, who like they did when Dave returned from heart surgery in 2000, performed "Everlong," this time soundtracking a montage of Letterman's memorable moments. Letterman talked a bit about how the song was very important to him during his recovery, and how grateful he was to the band for performing it when he returned to the show. There is clearly something in the song that lights his fire, and it might be the same thing Dave Grohl was feeling when he wrote it. Grohl composed the song in 1996. Hard to believe now, but his musical future was very much in doubt, as Foo Fighters was on shaky ground. After Kurt Cobain died in 1994, Grohl married his girlfriend Jennifer, who helped him through the tough times. But they were young and blinded by love - two years later they got divorced. Grohl was crashing with a friend during his impending divorce, and it was all sinking in. He allowed himself to wallow on a song called "Walking After You," but he took a different tack on his other big breakup song, "Everlong." Here, instead of lamenting the love he lost, he tapped into what he felt for Jennifer that made him want to be with her forever. The song ended up being about that intimate passion where your endorphins are telling you that anything is possible. It's a love song, but it's also a musical kick in the ass. That feeling is what made so many of us connect with the song, even the notorious curmudgeon Letterman. Un-funking yourself is not easily done, but Grohl found a way to do it in "Everlong." Letterman isn't the only one who got something out of the song: its Songfacts entry has over 100 comments.

Joni Mitchell - "Raised on Robbery" (1973) The Blackbyrds - "Rock Creek Park" (1976) A Tribe Called Quest - "Award Tour" (1993)