Sep 20, 2009
Really nothing to get hung about...
I rarely make a link to Wikipedia, but this one concerning the song Rain is as good an article as any. I've probably said here before that I found the smacked up Yoko worshipping Lennon to be a little hard to take. Looking back, I think he was a bit of a phony baloney (sometimes). Sure John, let's give peace a chance and imagine there's no Heaven; but would not the end result of that prescription be slavery and hopelessness? Actually, I've come to believe that a lot of Lennon's pontifications were the guilt trip induced ramblings of guy who couldn't believe his luck. But it's not my intention to pile on John. He was a soulful singer and he was, after all, one of the Beatles. I particularly loved his work on The Beatles cover of Mr. Postman - and all of the Second Album.
Jun 23, 2009
Be careful what you wish for...
But for now, the draught is over; and it's death throes were violent and tragic. Storms passing through last week knocked down trees all over the place (due no doubt to draught weakened root systems), resulting in the complimentary property damage and power outages. The airport recorded a 75 mile per hour wind gust which, of course, has the capability to do things like push over a 75 foot maple tree into a swimming pool.
And what good summer storm is complete without some dime sized hail?
With as much complaining as I've done about our recent arid conditions, I'd be foolish to begin complaining about too much rain. Bring it on I say... for now; but should the weather Gods decide to be kind, we could do without the hurricane sized wind uprooting everything in sight and leaving us in the dark. A nice gentle, steady rain that tempts you to grab a good book and throw open the windows would be nice. Meanwhile, back to the vortex.
Jun 5, 2009
Snow Queen of Texas

The first time I heard Snow Queen was on a local AM radio station (WFBC to be exact). The DJ for that station was a local TV/weatherman/kids show/radio guy name Monty Dupree. Thinking back, I doubt if Mr. Monty was hip to the obvious drug references in SQOT; he was, after all, a pretty square peg. I think, like me, he just dug the song. He may have figured it out if he had bothered looking at the Album cover that depicted the M&P's in various altered states of mind. You would think the lyrics would have been a dead giveaway:
Left Paris in a cloud of smoke
They say she may be beaten
But I say that shes not broke
She's living in a cool green farmhouse
If you go to Houston, be quiet as mouse
Jun 1, 2009
Sha na na na na na na na na it'll be alright
In my ever increasing lurch toward the hills and hollows of the mellow lands, I give you BJ Thomas. I saw BJ in Greenville, South Carolina circa 1972. Every blue haired old lady there waited breathlessly on Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head which was made famous in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (remember the bicycle scene with Paul Newman and Katharine Ross). In those days BJ was as well known for his various substance abuses as for his awesome baritone voice; and I suspect he was pretty buzzed at the beginning of the show. Thankfully, that night he sobered up in time to perform a haunting rendition of Rock and Roll Lullaby, which is what I remember most about the evening. I stood with the the blue haired old ladies and cheered. 35+ years later T. Durham and I saw BJ again at the Newberry Opera House...and Rock and Roll Lullaby still sounds as sweet as it did back in 1972. Now I haven't attained blue haired old lady status...yet, but I did give a slightly arthritic standing ovation as the last notes of RARL drifted through the opera house balconies.
I can hear you mama,
my, my, my my mama.
Nothing moves my soul
like the sound of a good old
rock and roll lullabye