1. "You Should Be Sad," Halsey
2. "Bittersweet Heart," Soul Asylum
3. "Hunt You Down," Kesha
Sunday, December 27, 2020
Friday, December 4, 2020
Devastating Songs
1. "Devil with the Green Eyes," Matthew Sweet
2. "Skates," Hayden
3. "Asleep," The Smiths
4. "Tony," Patty Griffin
5. "In the Air Tonight," Phil Collins (we gotta give Phil this one, as much as I hate to)
6. "Father of Mine," Everclear
7. "Runaway Train," Soul Asylum
Friday, August 2, 2019
Open list: (Arguable) Miscastings
1. Tom Cruise as the Vampire Lestat
2. Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games franchise
3. Jeremy Renner as Jason Bourne
4. Norm Macdonald as Colonel Sanders
5. Jennifer Lawrence as Rosalyn Rosenfeld in American Hustle
6. Cody Horn in Magic Mike
7. Ben Affleck as Batman
8. Keanu Reeves as Johnathan Harker in Coppola's Dracula
9. Stockard Channing as Rizzo in Grease (They really couldn't get anyone younger? Jeez, that totally tests one's suspension of disbelief. I even thought so as a kid when I saw the movie in its first-run release at the cinema, before I ever even heard the term "suspension of disbelief." It is hard to do your due diligence as an audience member and suspend your disbelief when you've got a 35-year old playing a high school senior, even with the character being jaded beyond their tender years. The role is not so challenging that it requires an advanced skill in acting, it's not Blanche DuBois for chrissakes. Stockard Channing was not that strong of a singer and couldn't even dance.)
(UPDATE: I recently re-watched Grease and Stockard Channing is perfect is Rizzo and doesn't look any older than Dinah Manoff as Marnie. I'd like to add that I can't imagine anyone else other than Olivia Newton-John in the role of Sandy)
10. Maggie Gyllenhaal in The Dark Knight
11. Anna Paquin as Sookie Stackhouse in True Blood (Jessica Simpson was robbed!)
12. Cameron Diaz in Gangs of New York
13. Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka (shoulda been Will Ferrell)
14. Lena Dunham as Hannah Horvath in Girls (yeah, I know she wrote the show and the role is based upon herself, but still, the girl can't act. I like Busy Phillips for this)
Please offer up your additions (and arguments) in the comments.
--the Management
2. Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games franchise
3. Jeremy Renner as Jason Bourne
4. Norm Macdonald as Colonel Sanders
5. Jennifer Lawrence as Rosalyn Rosenfeld in American Hustle
6. Cody Horn in Magic Mike
7. Ben Affleck as Batman
8. Keanu Reeves as Johnathan Harker in Coppola's Dracula
9. Stockard Channing as Rizzo in Grease (They really couldn't get anyone younger? Jeez, that totally tests one's suspension of disbelief. I even thought so as a kid when I saw the movie in its first-run release at the cinema, before I ever even heard the term "suspension of disbelief." It is hard to do your due diligence as an audience member and suspend your disbelief when you've got a 35-year old playing a high school senior, even with the character being jaded beyond their tender years. The role is not so challenging that it requires an advanced skill in acting, it's not Blanche DuBois for chrissakes. Stockard Channing was not that strong of a singer and couldn't even dance.)
(UPDATE: I recently re-watched Grease and Stockard Channing is perfect is Rizzo and doesn't look any older than Dinah Manoff as Marnie. I'd like to add that I can't imagine anyone else other than Olivia Newton-John in the role of Sandy)
10. Maggie Gyllenhaal in The Dark Knight
11. Anna Paquin as Sookie Stackhouse in True Blood (Jessica Simpson was robbed!)
12. Cameron Diaz in Gangs of New York
13. Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka (shoulda been Will Ferrell)
14. Lena Dunham as Hannah Horvath in Girls (yeah, I know she wrote the show and the role is based upon herself, but still, the girl can't act. I like Busy Phillips for this)
Please offer up your additions (and arguments) in the comments.
--the Management
A List of My Relatively-Lesser-Offensive Unpopular Opinions
1. Van Halen was better with Sammy Hagar than with David Lee Roth.
2. The final episode of LOST was absolutely brilliant and answered all of the open questions, if you consider that the characters were all part of a soul karass. (if you don't know what a karass is, it is hard to explain, Google it)
3. The final episode of Seinfeld was absolutely brilliant and did something similar to the final episode of Newhart by flipping the narrative and reframing the entire perspective of the show to put the main characters in a different light. I loved it because it beautifully explored one of my life's mottos: "That's what you get!"
4. The final season of Game of Thrones? Brilliant. (I can't say it was "absolutely" brilliant because the writers did not give Cersei enough scenes or even a satisfying monologue, the character deserved more and better.) It brought to fruition character arcs that were established at the beginning, and all of the conclusions made sense. I especially loved how Jaime and Brienne's story ended.
5. As long as we are on the topic of final episodes of beloved TV series, I will offer up an opinion that I don't believe to be at all unpopular. Ahem... The final episode of Freaks and Geeks is definitely the best series finale, and arguably the best episode of any TV series ever made. Even with Franco.
6. American football is embarrassingly stupid in every way.
7. I'm sorry, but as a singer, Debbie Harry was overrated. She's not a bad actress, was more than serviceable in Hairspray, and reportedly was a sensational centerfold in Cherry Magazine, according to my domestic partner. In the late 70's/early 80's Debbie Harry was to the punk boys what Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia in the gold bikini was to the geeky boys. But anyway, I'm not a fan of Blondie.
**Update 8/6/19: My domestic partner reported to me just last night that on the Facebook Group pages for former Punk Boys/current Punk Geezers people have been trashing Blondie, who are currently touring (money grab), posting that Debbie Harry cannot sing and they are all pissed off punkers who want their moneys back. Oh man, did I ever gloat to DP, that was so satisfying.
8. LEAVE SHAWN MENDES ALONE!! Dammit, will you people just please let this kid be beautiful and shine his glorious light around the world without stuffing him into a box? He is Canadian, that's tells you everything you need to know about him (that he's a kind and patient sweetheart) and this is all you have a right to know. If you like Shawn's music, then just enjoy the damn music without concerning yourself about how he spends his private time. If you don't like his music, fine, move along brother. I'm so disgusted I'm about ready to smack someone, just bring your face over here.
9. Russians are sexy, especially the accent. I love a good villain. Also, I am half-Russian genetically, so this opinion of mine may be partly beyond my control.
10. Beer is gross.
Wednesday, July 24, 2019
Open list: Songs about Rain
1. "Rain," Madonna
2. "Blame it on the Rain," Milli Vanilli
3. "It's Raining Men," The Weather Girls
4. "Who'll Stop the Rain?" CCR
5. "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?" CCR
6. "Rainy Days and Mondays," The Carpenters
7. "Don't Rain on my Parade," from Funny Girl
8. "Singin' in the Rain," from Singin' in the Rain
9. "Purple Rain," Prince
10. "Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head," BJ Thomas
Please offer up your additions in the comments.
--the Management
2. "Blame it on the Rain," Milli Vanilli
3. "It's Raining Men," The Weather Girls
4. "Who'll Stop the Rain?" CCR
5. "Have You Ever Seen the Rain?" CCR
6. "Rainy Days and Mondays," The Carpenters
7. "Don't Rain on my Parade," from Funny Girl
8. "Singin' in the Rain," from Singin' in the Rain
9. "Purple Rain," Prince
10. "Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head," BJ Thomas
Please offer up your additions in the comments.
--the Management
Monday, July 22, 2019
Off-List Highlight: Remembering OMC
I have a lot of knowledge about late 90's music derived from my employment at a Tower Records store circa 1995-1999. Maybe someday I will actually get out of the house and go down to one of those bars where they have trivia game nights and I can put this knowledge to some use. Until then, I am working at filling in the holes of my knowledge base.
Today I was telling my domestic partner about a dream I had in which some of his lesser-savory acquaintances were running around in our backyard eating from the bird feeders like they were some kind of wildlife. My DP said, "How bizarre." (He also said, 'that says a lot about you', but that's a story for another time).
Anyway, we both started singing: "How bizarre. Dah-dah-dah, dah-dah-dah. How bizarre, how bizarre." And I realized, I don't know the name of the band. So I went to our modern oracle, the Google, and was reminded of OMC, the band from New Zealand comprised of the Fuemana brothers, Pauly and Phil, and producer Alan Jansson. OMC = short for Otara Millionaires Club. Ha! Irony was awesome in the 90's.
By the way, I regularly kick down $5 to Wikipedia at least a couple of times a year. Just sayin'.
"How Bizarre" came out in 1995 and became a #1 hit internationally. I think of this slice of the music timeline as the Pulp Fiction era. A lot of the music took on a kind of throw-back feeling. Swing music was big and yuppies were doing the Charleston and the Lindy Hop down in LA.
And back then, yuppies only ate chicken and waffles, no lie.
The singer and frontman for OMC, Pauly, was hot, in a dangerous way. Yeah, I woulda.
Pauly and Phil Fuemana each died well before age 50, Pauly leaving behind five children. I hope that somehow "How Bizarre" keeps earning income for the families indefinitely.
Today I was telling my domestic partner about a dream I had in which some of his lesser-savory acquaintances were running around in our backyard eating from the bird feeders like they were some kind of wildlife. My DP said, "How bizarre." (He also said, 'that says a lot about you', but that's a story for another time).
Anyway, we both started singing: "How bizarre. Dah-dah-dah, dah-dah-dah. How bizarre, how bizarre." And I realized, I don't know the name of the band. So I went to our modern oracle, the Google, and was reminded of OMC, the band from New Zealand comprised of the Fuemana brothers, Pauly and Phil, and producer Alan Jansson. OMC = short for Otara Millionaires Club. Ha! Irony was awesome in the 90's.
By the way, I regularly kick down $5 to Wikipedia at least a couple of times a year. Just sayin'.
"How Bizarre" came out in 1995 and became a #1 hit internationally. I think of this slice of the music timeline as the Pulp Fiction era. A lot of the music took on a kind of throw-back feeling. Swing music was big and yuppies were doing the Charleston and the Lindy Hop down in LA.
And back then, yuppies only ate chicken and waffles, no lie.
The singer and frontman for OMC, Pauly, was hot, in a dangerous way. Yeah, I woulda.
Pauly and Phil Fuemana each died well before age 50, Pauly leaving behind five children. I hope that somehow "How Bizarre" keeps earning income for the families indefinitely.
Saturday, July 20, 2019
A list of my favorite song lyrics, in no particular order
1. Burn, burn like a wicker cabinet
2. Little old lady got mutilated late last night
3. Now the die is shaken / Now the die must fall
4. And the moon rose over an open field.
5. Oh my, my. Oh hell yes, You got to put on that party dress.
6. I don't care where you live at / Just turn around, boy, let me hit that
7. She held him up and he held her for ransom in the heart of the cold, cold city
8. I'm thinking about my doorbell, when ya gonna ring it?
9. Burn down the disco / Hang the blessed DJ
10. I'm just a notch on your bedpost, but you're just a line in a song
11. They cut off my legs, now I'm an amputee, god damn you
12. Touch me, I'm sick
13. And though your dreams may toss and turn you now
They will vanish away like your dad's best jeans
Denim blue, faded up to the sky
And though you want them to last forever
You know they never will
And the patches make the goodbye harder still
(I know, that's more like a verse than a lyric. Hey, it's my damn list. I can stretch the parameters when and how I choose.)
14. The redhead said you shred the cello, and I'm jello, baby
15. It ain't me you're looking for, babe.
16. Closer...let me whisper in your ear
17. Didn't we almost have it all?
18. When you're gone / Oh baby, all the lights go out
19. I am a poor boy too, pa rum pum pum pum
20. But "never" is a promise, and you can't afford to lie
21. Trust me when I say I know the pathway to your heart
22. Standing on the mudflats, watching the salmon fly
23. Pablo Picasso never got called an asshole
24. Oh, this old world keeps spinning 'round / It's a wonder tall trees ain't laying down
25. He was sitting behind us down at the Pantages
and whatever it is that he's got up his sleeve
Well, I hope it isn't contagious
26. When I'm with you I feel like I could die and that would be alright
27. I know I've been wearing crazy clothes, and I look pretty crappy sometimes
28. Mama tried.
29. I just want to see some palm trees
30. If you had the real thing, how could you tell? Liars can say it all just as well.
31. Allison, I know this world is killing you
32. In the velvet darkness of the blackest night, burning bright, there's a guiding star
33. I know I could have loved you, but you would not let me
34. Don't touch me, I'm a real live wire.
35. It had to be you.
36. I'm-a set straight this Watergate
37. When Eddie said he didn't like his teddy, you knew he was a no-good kid
38. Trust me, I know, life is scary
But just put those colors on, girl
Come and paint the world with me tonight
39. I don't steal and I don't lie, but I can feel and I can cry, a fact I bet you never knew.
40. Ding-dong, the Witch is dead!
41. Help me believe in anything, 'cuz I wanna be someone who believes
42. And I'm just like, Damn, it's 7 am.
43. Every day is Christmas, and every night is New Year's Eve
2. Little old lady got mutilated late last night
3. Now the die is shaken / Now the die must fall
4. And the moon rose over an open field.
5. Oh my, my. Oh hell yes, You got to put on that party dress.
6. I don't care where you live at / Just turn around, boy, let me hit that
7. She held him up and he held her for ransom in the heart of the cold, cold city
8. I'm thinking about my doorbell, when ya gonna ring it?
9. Burn down the disco / Hang the blessed DJ
10. I'm just a notch on your bedpost, but you're just a line in a song
11. They cut off my legs, now I'm an amputee, god damn you
12. Touch me, I'm sick
13. And though your dreams may toss and turn you now
They will vanish away like your dad's best jeans
Denim blue, faded up to the sky
And though you want them to last forever
You know they never will
And the patches make the goodbye harder still
(I know, that's more like a verse than a lyric. Hey, it's my damn list. I can stretch the parameters when and how I choose.)
14. The redhead said you shred the cello, and I'm jello, baby
15. It ain't me you're looking for, babe.
16. Closer...let me whisper in your ear
17. Didn't we almost have it all?
18. When you're gone / Oh baby, all the lights go out
19. I am a poor boy too, pa rum pum pum pum
20. But "never" is a promise, and you can't afford to lie
21. Trust me when I say I know the pathway to your heart
22. Standing on the mudflats, watching the salmon fly
23. Pablo Picasso never got called an asshole
24. Oh, this old world keeps spinning 'round / It's a wonder tall trees ain't laying down
25. He was sitting behind us down at the Pantages
and whatever it is that he's got up his sleeve
Well, I hope it isn't contagious
26. When I'm with you I feel like I could die and that would be alright
27. I know I've been wearing crazy clothes, and I look pretty crappy sometimes
28. Mama tried.
29. I just want to see some palm trees
30. If you had the real thing, how could you tell? Liars can say it all just as well.
31. Allison, I know this world is killing you
32. In the velvet darkness of the blackest night, burning bright, there's a guiding star
33. I know I could have loved you, but you would not let me
34. Don't touch me, I'm a real live wire.
35. It had to be you.
36. I'm-a set straight this Watergate
37. When Eddie said he didn't like his teddy, you knew he was a no-good kid
38. Trust me, I know, life is scary
But just put those colors on, girl
Come and paint the world with me tonight
39. I don't steal and I don't lie, but I can feel and I can cry, a fact I bet you never knew.
40. Ding-dong, the Witch is dead!
41. Help me believe in anything, 'cuz I wanna be someone who believes
42. And I'm just like, Damn, it's 7 am.
43. Every day is Christmas, and every night is New Year's Eve
44. Don't let him in, you'll have to kick him out again
45. You might think I'm crazy, that I'm lost and foolish, leaving you behind
Maybe you're right
46. You're a black soldier, white fight
47. Grandfather watches the grandfather clock
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