612. Frank Zappa, Sheik Yerbouti (1979) Sheik Yerbouti was a new beginning for Frank Zappa. After several frustrating years spent extricating himself from an onerous pact with Warner Bros., Zappa was finally on his own. He’d also been stockpiling material … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #612 to #609
Le Guin’s Subversive Imagination by Michael Chabon We recently passed what would have been Ursula K. Le Guin’s ninetieth birthday, and we’re approaching the two-year anniversary of her death. I suppose either of those momentous dates might have inspired Michael … Continue reading Outside Reading — Human Community edition
It was probably inevitable that a holiday-themed song would crop up in this weekly space at some point during this stretch of the year. Although my general aversion to melodized yuletide cheer made me suspect that I’d cave in to … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Kacey Musgraves, “Glittery”
#48 — Mila Kunis as Lily in Black Swan (Darren Aronofsky, 2010) When my past assertions that Mila Kunis delivers one of the strongest performances — maybe the strongest performance — in Black Swan were met with surprise of even derision, I … Continue reading Greatish Performances #48
These posts are about the songs that just barely failed to cross the key line of chart success, entering the Billboard Top 40. Every song featured in this series peaked at number 41. Ray Charles made a name for himself in the nineteen-fifties and a tremendous performer who could move effortlessly back and forth between jazz and rhythm and blues. He also spoke regularly about his love for country music, cultivated during his upbringing in the South. “Hillybilly music” is what Charles called it, and he was convinced he could make a fine record with a batch of suitable songs, … Continue reading Top 40 Smash Near Misses — “Born to Lose” and “If You Were Mine”
In the early nineteen-sixties, Ford Motor Company took a run at propping up their cultural cachet through the acquisition of Italian automaker Ferrari, renowned for their sleek sports cars, including the vehicles that famously dominated the yearly twenty-four endurance race … Continue reading Now Playing — Ford v Ferrari
This series of posts is dedicated to the many, many six packs, pony kegs and pints that have sauntered into my life at one point or another. I don’t ever really need a beer, but there are times when I … Continue reading Beers I Have Known — Around the Bend English Mild with Coffee
616. Prefab Sprout, Two Wheels Good (1985) Prefab Sprout found out they had a famous fan. During a discussion aired on BBC Radio, Thomas Dolby praised some of the material on Prefab Sprout’s 1983 debut album, Swoon. Connections were made, … Continue reading College Countdown: CMJ Top 1000, 1979 – 1989 — #616 to #613
This Tom Hanks Story Will Help You Feel Less Bad by Taffy Brodesser-Akner Taffy Brodesser-Akner is the ace of The New York Times staff of writers covering celebrity culture, often taking on more prickly subject and giving a telling prominence … Continue reading Outside Reading — Neighborly edition
When a music artist is of an age that a high school locker assignment is still a typical area of concern, it compounds the tendency to assume every song is a confession. Rather than pure invention, they must be using … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Billie Eilish, “Everything I Wanted”
