Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCXIII--U2: Staring at the Sun

Hard to believe I'm four years into Friday Night Jukebox and I'm just getting to a song by U2, a band almost on a par (and much like, at least thematically) my favorite band of all-time, The Who...which is almost as amazing as the fact that the band has had the same four members since it released its first album in 1980--almost unheard of in rock and roll.

Bono, The Edge (two of the greatest stage names ever), Adam Clayton, and Larry Mullen, Jr. originally formed U2 in 1976 in Dublin, Ireland and like many a great band before them it took a few years for them to become musically proficient enough to actually perform in professional circles.  But once they did...hoo-boy, did they ever create quite the career.  Their list of accomplishments is stunning, having released fourteen albums and 70 singles (in various incarnations) over the last forty years.  They've sold over 170 million records (over fifty million in the U.S.), had 8 #1 albums on the Billboard 200 (and two more in the top ten), and two #1 singles (and four more in the top ten) on the Billboard Hot 100.  They've won more Grammys (22) than any other band, had the largest attendance and money grossing tour in rock and roll history (U2 360 tour), and were elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (rather unsurprisingly) in their first year of eligibility.  All this, and they've still managed to find time for more political, social, and charitable causes than can be counted--outside of Bob Geldof, you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who has devoted more of his time to world causes than Bono.  And to be quite honest, their Wikipedia entry is one of the most interesting I've read in quite some time...

Fun Fact:  A couple of years into their tenure as a band, a family friend of Clayton's suggested six names for the band--and they chose U2 because it was the suggested name they disliked the least.  Not a lot of points on the coolness quotient, but it's certainly an interesting tidbit.

"Staring at the Sun" was released in 1997 on their Pop album.  It would go on to reach #26 on the Billboard Hot 100, and the album would reach #1.  In something of an oddity, though, Pop would be one of U2's worst selling albums, barely cracking the one million mark (and wouldn't that suck--only selling a million copies).

While "Staring at the Sun" is one of my favorite U2 songs, it probably isn't my favorite, but I chose it for a number of reasons.  First, a lot like REM's "Imitation of Life" (FNJ #132), it came at a point in their career when I thought their best singles days were behind them (though the same could be said of "Vertigo" released a few years later) and came as quite a nice surprise.  Second I had the pleasure of seeing U2 on their PopMart tour (a takeoff on Kmart--and how sad of a company is Kmart when one of the greatest bands in the world can't even save them) and they did a wondrous acoustic version of the song with just Bono and the Edge playing acoustic guitars (got to see it with my two oldest children, too, so it gets extra bonus points).  Third, while I would never say the Edge is underrated as a guitarist (#32 on Rolling Stone's list of rock's greatest guitarists), I think he's often forgotten on the list of guitar greats and "Staring at the Sun" showcases some of his best work.  Finally, it's got an anthemic nature to it, almost reminiscent of the Who's "Baba O'Riley" (for those of you saying "WTF!" I distinctly wrote almost) in that it's got that the world is kind of fucked up but we're all feeling in the dark (so to speak) together and we can get there as long as we keep trying (um, Shakespeare I'm not) vibe to it.  At any rate, it's a hell of a tune from the lexicon of a band that's had more than its share of hell of a tunes....

Lyric Sheet:  "There's an insect in your ear if you scratch it won't disappear/It's gonna itch and burn and sting/Do you want to see what the scratching brings..."

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Starsucks

No thanks, I'll have a soda...

Many Democrats have had their knickers in a twist since former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz announced he is considering running as an independent for the Presidency in 2020, believing that he will siphon votes from the Democratic candidate and give Donald Trump four more years in office.

Horseshit.

First of all, I can't imagine after the disaster that was the 2016 Presidential election that there are going to be a lot of Democrats willing to piss away their vote yet again to give the worst President in our history a chance at four more years in office.  And as for independent voters who may be disenchanted with their vote for Trump, I can't imagine there are too many of them that are going to think, "You know, what we really need is another billionaire who knows nothing about running government but plenty about fucking over the working man to give himself even more money."

I don't think Schultz will run, but if he does, he's more likely to siphon votes from Trump hating republicans than he is from whoever the Democratic candidate turns out to be.

Because he's just another egotistical rich asshole--and republicans seem to like them a lot more than we Democrats do.

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

A change is gonna come

One way or another, we're gonna getcha, getcha

Since Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez floated the idea of a 70% tax rate on those making more than ten million dollars a year, a poll has been released showing that a solid majority of Americans (59%) are in favor of it becoming actual policy.

And this, too, is what Donald Trump hath wrought:  not only are we now discussing Medicare for all (which a majority of Americans now also favors), but we are also discussing significantly increasing the tax rate among the wealthy.

If I had my druthers, I'd druther Trump had never been elected--but he has taken conservatives so far over the top that left wing policies that were once thought out of the mainstream seem fairly tame now.

And the economic dystopia that America has become is coming closer than ever to being dismantled.

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCXII--Culture Club: Karma Chameleon

For both of you keeping score at home, this makes three straight weeks without posting on an actual Friday...

I can honestly say that this week's band never had another tune that I remotely liked let alone loved, but when they made featured tune #212, the Gods of Pop threw a thunderbolt with a touch of magic their way and they made the most of it.

Culture Club formed in 1981 in London and head a hell of a run for their first five years. Led by the flamboyant Boy George, the band released four of their six total albums all of which reached the top twenty in their native UK and the top forty here in the States.  They also had ten top ten singles in the UK (two #1's) and seven here in America (one #1).  Sadly the band had some inner turmoil (Boy George and drummer Jon Moss had a tumultuous romantic relationship), and went their separate ways in the mid-eighties.  Boy George through the years has battled addictions to varying drugs and has been arrested for possession a number of times--though he's also found time to start a fashion line, write two autobiographies, continue to write songs, release solo albums, and has become quite a well known DJ.  The band reunited in 1999, released an album that didn't sell, and went back to their lives.  They reunited again in 2011 and have remained together since mostly for touring and the occasional guest appearance, though they did release an album last year.  Overall the band has sold over 150 million records, won a Grammy Award, a couple of Brit Awards (UK's equivalent of our Grammy), and are considered a staple of the eighties new wave movement (with a shout out to MTV).

Fun Fact:  The band's name is a play on the band member's racial, sexual, and religious make-up--it features a gay Irishman, a black Briton, a blonde Briton, and one member of the Jewish persuasion.

"Karma Chameleon" was released in 1983 on their Colour by Numbers album, both of which were the biggest hits of their career.  "Karma Chameleon" went to number one in both the UK (for six weeks) and the US (for three weeks) and eventually sold over five million copies.  The album reached #1 in the UK and stayed at #2 on the Billboard 200 for three weeks behind Michael Jackson's Thriller (there's some luck--having your best selling album on the charts at the same time as the best selling album of all-time) here in America, and sold over sixteen million copies.

There's nothing much fancy about this one--regular readers know that emaycee is a big fan of a) blue-eyed soul, b) harmonicas, and c) catchy pop tunes, all of which are features of "Karma Chameleon."  Ostensibly the song is about staying true to yourself--or rather, the song's protagonist is asking his lover to say true to him/herself.  Boy George' vocals truly carry the day, though there's a nice bass line and some quirky guitar along the way as well.  The chorus is a pop single fan's favorite ice cream--it melts in your mouth and feels good all the way down to the pit of your stomach.  I should also mention that the band chimes in with some really nice backing vocals--a spot here and a spot there that help make the song even better.  "Karma Chameleon" is one of the few songs from the eighties new wave movement that has aged very well and is as hoppin' and boppin' as it was when it first came out thirty-five years ago--another in a long line of great Brit pop.

Lyric Sheet:  "Every day is like survival/You're my lover not my rival..."

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

For whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap

Et tu, Catholic Church?

In light of racism shown by its students from Covington Catholic High School (Kentucky--who would have ever guessed?) as they chanted "Go back to the reservation" and threatened Native American Vietnam War Veteran Nathan Phillips while wearing their MAGA hats, the Catholic Conference of Kentucky issued the following:

We condemn the actions of the Covington Catholic High School students toward Nathan Phillips specifically, and Native Americans in general, Jan. 18 after the March for Life, in Washington, D.C.  We extend our deepest apologies to Mr. Phillips. This behavior is opposed to the Church's teachings on the dignity and respect of the human person.

As usual, this is complete and utter horseshit from the Catholic Church.

Under Pope John Paul II, the Catholic Church sold its soul to the republican party in America in return for its anti-abortion and homophobic policies that align perfectly with Catholic Church doctrine.  That the republican party was also the party of racism was conveniently ignored (name one fucking prominent Catholic who has said word one about the party's history of disenfranchising people of color or Trump's blatant racism).  Now that the Church has been once again made to look like the hateful religion that it is, they've suddenly had a come to Jesus moment?

Go fuck yourselves--this is the deal with the devil the Church made and now it can watch even more of its disciples flee and its piety made a mockery of.  It will be richly deserved.

And once again (see also, Rome, Hitler, Mussolini, Sex Abuse) the Catholic Church is on the wrong side of history.

Here's hoping eventually the pimple on the butt of humanity that is the Catholic Church will be popped and the world can begin to heal from the misery it has wrought.

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Hey comrade...

Vlad's butt buddy

Think about this:  The FBI opened an investigation into whether the President of the United States was secretly working on behalf of Russia.  The magnitude of it is mind boggling--our chief law enforcement agency did not trust the President of the United States to act in this country's best interest.

Now think about this:  The fact that this wasn't the only point of discussion in our national media since the day the story broke, because, you know, both siderism.

As Nancy Pelosi goes down in our history as an extraordinary heroine for standing up to Trump, so will our national media go down in history for its sheer and utter cowardice in the face of all that Trump has done to disgrace this nation.

And it will be well deserved.

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

President Pelosi

Yup--she's a badass...

Like many Democrats, I've had my ups and downs with Nancy Pelosi...but I'm here to tell you that what she's doing right now in standing up to Donald Trump will go down in American history as one of the great acts of political courage.  And she's handling the situation like it's just another day at work. 

It isn't.  She is literally the wall (so to speak) between this country and disaster.

History will not forget it.

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCXI--Death Cab for Cutie: I Will Follow You into the Dark

Another week, another kick in the ass to my New Year's resolution of actually publishing Jukebox posts on their scheduled Friday....

This week's tune comes courtesy of another late night of not being able to sleep and channel surfing which somehow made it to VH-1 before finding anything else of interest to watch.  Doesn't help the coolness quotient much, does it?

Every now and again while doing my half-assed weekly research for FNJ I'll come across a band that hasn't been as commercially successful as I would have guessed, but Death Cab for Cutie is the first that I recall as having been more successful than I would have thought.  Formed in Bellingham, Washington is 1997, Death Cab for Cutie was originally a solo project for band leader Ben Gibbard, but after having been signed to a recording contract, he decided to make a band of it.  Over the last twenty-one years they have released nine studio albums, six EPs, and thirty singles.  They've had a #1 album, three other albums in the top ten, and one more in the top twenty.  Surprisingly (at least to me), they've done this without much help from hit singles--of the thirty they've released, only two have hit the Billboard Hot 100, and those two topped out at #60 and #70.  The band has also been nominated for eight Grammy Awards, toured the world over (they've done especially well in the UK--so many cool kids in the UK!), and have another five years to wait for their shot at being enshrined in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  Damn fine career if you ask me....

Fun Fact:  For the three people who probably don't know already, Death Cab for Cutie was named for a song by the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band called, surprisingly enough, "Death Cab for Cutie."  The song was originally released in 1967, making the band's name choice a bit odder than it already is (we're talking thirty years down the road, for God's sake).  Gibbard has admitted if he'd known what a pain in the ass the name would become, he'd have chosen a different band name.  For those who don't have my curiosity, the original song is actually quite listenable...and don't let the fact that it's a take off of Elvis (Presley, not Costello) stop you from giving it a listen.  It's actually quite clever and catchy.

"I Will Follow You into the Dark" was the third single released from the band's 2005 album Plans.  It was not one of the two singles they had that actually cracked the Billboard Hot 100, though in an odd turn of events, it was eventually certified as a gold single, and is the band's best selling single in their history.  Sometimes greatness isn't as evident in the present as it should be (see also, Van Gogh, Vincent).

I've noted a time or two here on FNJ that simplicity is not an impediment to greatness in a pop song, and "I Will Follow You into the Dark" does nothing to dispel that notion--well, at least as simple as a  song that's about following one's love into the Great Beyond at the end of one's days can be.  The song is just Gibbard and acoustic guitar--Gibbard's vocals are a delight, almost reminding me of a softly played clarinet, and the guitar matches the whimsical nature of the song word for word.  Gibbard has a way with turning a phrase ("...everything to see from Bangkok to Calgary" "...in Catholic school as vicious as Roman rule"), and takes what could easily have been a maudlin song and imbues it with a touch of humor and a lot of heart.  In the end, it's a quirky masterpiece that'll bring a smile--and those are always most welcome.

Liner Notes:  "If Heaven and Hell decide/That they both are satisfied/Illuminate the 'No's' on their vacancy signs/ If there's no one beside you/When your soul embarks/Then I'll follow you into the dark..."

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Chain of fools

Like the song says, nothing from nothing leaves nothing

While I would never discount republicans chances completely in 2020 (see also, 2016 Presidential election and Cheaters 'r' Us), one really has to wonder what they're going to run on two years from now.  The economy is solid but no one other than rich folks feel very confident in it, folks are increasingly blaming Trump for the shutdown and we haven't even begun to see what damage it's going to do to the economy, and it's beginning to look more and more like the entire Trump family has been compromised by Vladimir Putin and Russia.

Never fear, these past couple of weeks, republicans have shown us their playbook for 2020:

• Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez...danced when she was in college!  The fucking horror!
• While campaigning in Iowa, Elizabeth Warren...drank a beer!  Oh my God, it's the end of the world as we know it!
• Tucker Carlson says the country is going to hell in a handbasket...because some women in some areas are making more money than men!  After last November, good luck with that one in 2020.
• And when all else fails...what's so funny about white nationalism?  Just ask Steve King!

If the best they've got is Democrats dance, drink, pay women better, and aren't racists, our chances of adding the Presidency and the Senate to our control of the House will be looking pretty damn good.

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Friday Night Jukebox, Vol. CCX--The Kinks: Waterloo Sunset

My one New Year's resolution this year was to actually post Friday Night Jukebox on Fridays...and as you can see, that resolution has already been flushed down the shitter...

The fifth year of FNJ opens with a song that doesn't come to mind as often as it should when discussing the all-time great pop songs, by a band that doesn't come to mind as often as it should when discussing the all-time great rock and roll bands.  I don't know that the song or the band are what one would call underrated--and a large part of it might be that like the Jam or Oasis they are quintessentially an English band and not as readily remembered here in the States--but their influence far supersedes their name recognition.

The Kinks were formed in 1964 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies (the seventh and eighth children of their parents--after six girls) in Muswell Hill (their childhood home), London, and have had a career full of ups and downs.  Their first hit, "You Really Got Me," reached #1 in their native U.K. and the top ten here in the U.S.--and it would be hard to underestimate its influence on the heavy metal, punk, and alternative scenes that would follow it through the years.  The band was banned for a number of years from performing in the U.S. because of the brothers fighting on stage (as well as fighting between Dave Davies and original drummer Mick Avory).  From the mid-sixties through the early seventies the band saw a great deal of success before falling out of popularity until the late seventies when they had a resurgence through the mid-eighties.  The band would have little success until their breakup in 1996.  Since then, the two brothers have performed solo, though last year Ray Davies spoke of a reunion that may include a tour.  Through the years the Kinks sold over 50 million records, having five top ten singles on the Billboard Hot 100 and nine albums make the top 40 on the Billboard 200, as well as having 17 top twenty singles and five top ten albums in their native U.K.  Over the course of their career, the Kinks released 24 studio albums, 4 live albums, and two compilations.  They've been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the U.K. Music Hall of Fame.  They were ranked 65th on Rolling Stone's list of the 100 Greatest Artist of All-Time, and count Pete Townshend of the Who, the Jam, the Pretenders, Oasis, Blur, the Clash, and the Ramones as bands who were both fans of, and influenced by, the music of the Kinks.

Fun Fact:  Rod Stewart went to the same school as the Davies boys and was the lead singer of their band the Ray Davies Quartet for a couple of gigs before forming his own band called Rod Stewart and the Moonrakers while they were in secondary school (similar to our high school).

"Waterloo Sunset" was released in 1967 on their somewhat oddly titled album Something Else by the Kinks.  It would reach #2 on the U.K. charts...but, although it was released as a single in the U.S., it never charted (whoa--decided lack of cool kids here in the states!).  The song was ranked #42 on "Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All-Time."

The dean of American rock critics, Robert Christgau, has called "Waterloo Sunset" the "most beautiful song in the English language" (a case could be made).  Pete Townshend has called the song "divine" and a "masterpiece."  emaycee freely admits to being very late in discovering "Waterloo Sunset" (never heard it until the Rolling Stone 500 list was released, but in fairness, it was a) originally released when I was eight, and b) not a hit here in the states of any sort), but it didn't take long after first hearing it to fall right in love with it.  There's a bit much to the song to describe in a paragraph, but suffice it to say that it combines the best of what the brothers do--lyrics of introspection, a chronicle of England, and understated vocals with a beautiful melody (courtesy of Ray), and an otherworldly guitar with complementary backing vocals (courtesy of Dave Davies, with an assist from Ray's first wife on the background vocals).  I should also mention that the song is--in something of a rarity for a pop single--a song about a perfectly content introvert who's perfectly content to watch a beautiful sunset...and it's the kind of song that the more you listen, the more you appreciate its greatness.  In the end, this year will feature fifty-one more songs that I truly love...but none of them will be close to the artistic genius that the Kinks have imbued in "Waterloo Sunset."

Lyric Sheet:  "People so busy, makes me feel dizzy/Taxi light shines so bright/But I don't need no friends/As long as I gaze on Waterloo sunset/I am in paradise..."

Enjoy:

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

General chaos

And the horse you rode in on, Trump

I don't think it would come as a surprise to anyone that our military leaders tend to lean rightward in their politics...so what does it say when a republican sits in the White House and our generals are openly questioning both his leadership and his character?

Folks, this is utterly unprecedented--I am certain we've had generals in the past who have not liked sitting Presidents, but most (once they retire) have kept their criticisms to matters military--foreign policy and strategic defense decisions.  I don't ever recall a general calling a President immoral and warning other military members against working for such a President, as retired four star general Stanley McChrystal did this past week while discussing Donald Trump.

It appears that not only have republicans pissed away their patriotism shtick and their Jesus routine in their fealty to Trump, but now they've also destroyed their military credibility as well.

Bravo!

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Dancing in the dark

Yes, republicans, it is...

Exhibit A/ Idiocy--republicans believing a video of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez dancing while she was in college would somehow be an indictment on her character (what the fucking fuck?):

Exhibit B/ Genius--Ocasio-Cortez trolling republicans for embarrassing themselves with said idiocy:

And to think she's just twenty-nine--man we've got a good fifty years of getting to watch her bitch slap republicans...

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

Onward, Christian assholes

Got your Christianity right here, Jerry

Jerry Falwell, Jr., head of Liberty University and evangelical leader ad nauseum, gave an interview this week to The Washington Post in which he basically fellated Donald Trump (He can do no wrong!) and showed yet again that the evangelical movement in this country has nothing at all to do with Christianity.  He did show, however, that the movement is just as full of cowards and liars as the republican party, and like the republican party its only interests are male power, white power, and sucking up to the wealthy.

Here's my favorite:  "A poor person never gave anyone a job."  Neither did a rich person, fuckhead--jobs are earned, not given.  Even so, it sure sounds to me as if Mr. Falwell is saying that the poor aren't as important to the religious right as are the rich.  Where exactly in the Bible does Christ say to fellate the wealthy and shit on the poor?

Thankfully, this is just another nail in the coffin for organized religion.  Americans over the past few decades have abandoned religion (though not belief in God) in droves, which isn't surprising when your religious movement's message is white, male, and rich, in a country whose diversity is expanding rapidly.

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee

D'oh

Not only out of touch, but also out of their minds

Candace Owens (whoever the fuck that is  conservative commentator) said this week on Fox News that young people love Donald Trump because he's punk rock.

You cannot make this shit up.

Leaving aside the fact that, thanks to Trump, young people are now breaking for Democrats by a 60-40 margin (which will eventually marginalize the republican party for decades), has anyone told Ms. Owens that the punk rock movement died out, oh, about forty years ago?  Besides, don't talentless twits (see also, Nugent, Ted and Rock, Kid) really have more conservative mojo?

Stand up comics should beware though--conservative commentators keep this shit up and we won't have any need for comedians anymore.

Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee