She--and others like her--is the future of our party
In several interviews this week as her worthless ass exits the Senate, former Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill has taken pot shots at incoming New York representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, calling her a "bright shiny object," wondering what she did to deserve all the attention she's getting, and giving the usual republican lite Democrat warning about the party moving too far to the left to appeal to white working class voters (who aren't going to vote for us anyway).
Not really sure what McCaskill did to earn her soapbox...can't think of a single thing she accomplished while in the Senate other than being a DINO, a wishy washy vote for Democratic policies, and absolutely getting her ass handed to her last November by Josh Hawley in the biggest Democratic wave election since 1974. Heck of a job, McCaskill!
Thankfully, Ocasio-Cortez isn't one of those wishy washy Democrats, and fired back at McCaskill, specifically faulting her for supporting Trump's agenda and getting beat badly while progressive policies were passing in her home state of Missouri. And I believe we are going to see a lot more striking back at centrist Democrats, who have played a crucial role in where the country is today due to their lack of fortitude and political cowardice. About goddamn time.
Ocasio-Cortez and those like her are the future of our party, and one need only look at how scared republicans are of an incoming freshman to appreciate the scope of what she's accomplished--which is to get people talking about our policies and how much good they do for ordinary Americans in comparison to the republican (and McCaskill like Democrats) agenda of fealty to the wealthy elite and Corporate America.
As for McCaskill, I'd be willing to bet she's angling for one of those Fox News Democrats Who Toe the Republican Line pundit jobs.
And as to the loss of her in the U.S. Senate, frankly it's good bye and good fucking riddance.
It's been said that when one makes a mistake more than once, the first one can be an accident but by the second one it begins to look like carelessness.
For the second time in less than a month, a child whose family was seeking asylum here in the U.S. has died under the care of the Department of Homeland Security. At best, this looks like indifference on the part of the Trump Administration. At worst, it's out and out cruelty. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen issued a statement which sounded a lot like she was more bothered by having to issue the statement than she was by the child's death. Donald Trump predictably blamed the Democrats for our immigration policies, ignoring, of course, that republicans have controlled the federal government for the last two years and could have implemented their horrid policies at will (and faced an even worse backlash at the polls than they did last November).
Anyone want to imagine the republicans reaction had either of these children died under the Obama administration? It would have been the first and second time that republicans ever cared about people of color, and it would have been more about scoring political points than the loss of the children.
Anyway you slice it, two families have now suffered the most horrific nightmare a family can suffer, and the Trump administration bears all of the responsibility. And whatever evil should befall those whose indifference and cruelty allowed the two deaths will be richly deserved.
At first glance, I thought this week's tune wasn't ending 2018 in a very positive manner here on Friday Night Jukebox, but as I thought more about it, it dawned on me that it is very human (and in a way, somewhat hopeful) to chronicle tragedy to channel our empathy, even if, as this week's tune acknowledges, there really are no reasons for said tragedy. Our tears, so to speak, pull us together.
The Boomtown Rats (truly one of rock's great band names) formed in 1975 in their native Ireland and had a fine bit of success through 1985 when they broke up, but it has largely been overshadowed (probably rightfully so) by the charitable work of lead singer Bob Geldof. Over the course of those ten years, the Rats released six LPs, three of which reached the top ten in the UK. They also had nine singles reach the top twenty on the UK charts, including two of which went to #1. The Rats did reunite--and are still together minus a player or two--in 2013. The band's musical work, though, pales in comparison to Geldof's tireless devotion to making Africa and her many peoples a better place to live. Geldof, with Midge Ure of Ultravox fame, wrote the now classic Christmas tune "Do They Know It's Christmas" to aid with the famine in Ethiopia in 1984 and it would go on to sell over eleven million copies and raise more than ten million dollars. Geldof would also stage Live Aid, a star studded concert across the continents, a little later to raise even more money for Africa, and has worked tirelessly through the years for debt relief and numerous other programs to help the continent. Sometimes jokingly referred to as "St. Bob" for his work, Geldof does have a demon side and has been criticized for numerous comments throughout his life. Still, the tale of the Boomtown Rats shows that while pop music has its decadent and its silly side, it is also capable of quite a bit of good--as many in the nations of Africa will readily attest.
Fun Fact: The Boomtown Rats took their name from a group of children in Woody Guthrie's autobiography, Bound for Glory.
"I Don't Like Mondays" was released in 1979 on their LP, The Fine Art of Surfacing. The single reached number one in the UK, their native Ireland, and the top ten in eleven other nations. Surprisingly (or not), the song only reached #73 (with a bullet!) on the Billboard Hot 100--but I'm not sure if this is because of a lack of cool kids here in the states or because the mass shooting chronicled in the song happened here and some stations were reluctant to play it.
For those not familiar, "I Don't Like Mondays" was written by Geldof in response to a school shooting in January of 1979 by Brenda Ann Spencer in San Diego, CA in which two were killed and nine others injured. When asked why she had done it, Spencer replied, "I don't like Mondays. This livens up the day." As I listened to it in prep for this week's post, I was struck by several things, the first of which is how well it's aged. One could listen to it in comparison to other songs through the years chronicling school shooters, such as Pearl Jam's "Jeremy" from the nineties or Foster the People's "Pumped Up Kicks" from this decade (there are probably others I'm not familiar with or don't remember off the top of my head), and both musically and thematically it would hold its own. I was also impressed by Geldof's compassion for all those involved: the school's students, the school's parents, other parents worrying about their own children, and even, to a degree, the shooter herself. Lastly, I was truly amazed at how much Geldof and the Rats did within the confines of a pop single. From the use of a single piano (there may be strings, I wasn't sure) to convey both the horror and the sadness, to the rat-a-tat hand claps, to the understated backing vocals, to Geldof's vocal performance itself, invoking anger, empathy, and confusion (but never despair), "I Don't Like Mondays" is a testament to what a well written, wonderfully orchestrated, and dexterously performed pop song can accomplish.
Lyric Sheet: "Sweet 16 ain't that peachy keen/No it ain't so neat to admit defeat/They can see no reasons 'cause there are no reasons/What reason do you need..."
Choosing a song from Stevie Wonder's vast (and excellent) catalog of songs to be featured here on FNJ is a bit like looking at a counter full of candy bars when you have the munchies--you finally end up choosing one because you know that eventually you'll be hungry again and you can choose another candy bar later. I'll be amazed if another of his songs isn't featured again somewhere down the road...says the man who wrote posts about 207 songs before finally getting to the inimitable Stevie Wonder.
Writing a one paragraph synopsis of Stevie Wonder's career is a tall task...but I'm going to attempt it anyhow. Starting out in my adopted home of Detroit, Wonder signed his first music contract when he was eleven years old with Motown. Wonder's musical success started slowly as he didn't have his first hit until he was all of thirteen ("Fingertips"--it also made him the youngest person to top the Billboard Hot 100). Wonder added more hit singles throughout the sixties, before coming into his own in the seventies. By the time he was twenty-five, Wonder had won two Grammys for album of the year, and would go on to win three album of the year Grammys in four years. After the seventies, Wonder settled into a more commercial groove, and while he never again reached the artistic success of his earlier works, he sold a shitload of records. Overall, Wonder has released 26 LPs, sold over 100 million records, three of which hit #1 on the Billboard charts, and ten of which hit the top five. He's had ten number one singles and thirty which hit the top 40. He's won twenty-five Grammy Awards (you read that right, 25--the most for any single artist in Grammy history), won an Academy Award for best song, been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, been inducted into the Songwriter's Hall of Fame, and been given an honorary music degree by Yale. He's also been a political activist, fighting against racism, hunger, AIDs, and war, as well as championing Nelson Mandela when it wasn't popular to champion him, and also performed at Barack Obama's first inauguration. Wonder is also known for collaborating with too many artist to count (he's a multi-instrumentalist, and his harmonica playing has been featured on numerous songs). Did I mention that he's been blind since shortly after his birth? Taken as a whole, that's a legacy to end all legacies.
Fun Fact: Wonder was instrumental (so to speak) in establishing Martin Luther King's birthday as a national holiday--he wrote the song "Happy Birthday" to popularize the campaign and also staged a rally which helped to bring in a petition with over six million signatures in support of making King's birthday a national holiday.
"If You Really Love Me" was released in 1971 on the album Where I'm Coming From. It would eventually reach #8 (with a bullet!) on the Billboard Hot 100. Wonder wrote the song with his first wife Syreeta Wright, and played piano, synthesizer, and drums on the song.
One of the reasons I chose this week's tune (other than it's one of my favorites of his) is that I like how Wonder opens with the catchy as all hell chorus and then moves into the considerably slower, almost ballad-like stanzas--it's a fine juxtaposition of the two styles. As I did my half-assed research for this week's tune, I noticed that the album "If You Really Love Me" came from was the last of Wonder's career before Motown turned control of his work over to Wonder himself, and in a lot of ways you can see in this song what was to come in his seventies work over the next few years--Wonder was really stretching out a little bit, seeing just what he could do with his music. I also chose it because there's a joyousness, a playfulness, to the song that is a hallmark of Wonder's work--he did some great socially conscious songs through the years, but Wonder's genius has always been that he could do it with some of the greatest pop music sensibilities of any artist I can think of. I would be remiss if I didn't note that the song has some fine horn work from Motown's in house band, the Funk Brothers, and that Wonder's wife at the time also provided some fine backing vocals. All in all, it's a hell of pop tune from one of the greatest practitioners of pop this country has ever seen--and a man with the heart of a lion.
Lyric Sheet: "First the feeling's alright/Then it's gone from sight/So I'm taking out this time to say.../Oh, if you really love me won't you tell me..."
As a child of the seventies, I can tell you there were a whole lot of cool kids who were fans of Chicago, and while I was one of them (fan of Chicago, definitely not a cool kid), they were the kind of band that I was more than happy to own their greatest hits (formidable) without really desiring to get into their catalog. And then when their ninth studio album rolled around, I thought what the hell and gave it a try--good thing, too, lest I'd have never heard this week's tune. (Aside: I also bought their twelfth--and it was the last album I ever bought by Chicago....)
Chicago was formed in 1967 in, not surprisingly, Chicago. Originally known as the Chicago Transit Authority (probably a good career move to shorten that a bit), their first three albums were double LPs (could you imagine anyone trying that these days?), their fourth was a live four LP box set of their sold out week at Carnegie Hall, and released their first ten albums in ten years (again, anyone do that these days?). Sadly, shortly after the release of their ninth LP, founding member Terry Kath was playing with a gun and accidentally shot himself to death. After Kath's death the band went from being a socially conscious band into being a pop music juggernaut. Over the course of the last now more than fifty years, Chicago released twenty-four albums, 23 of which went gold, eighteen platinum, sold over a hundred million albums, and at one time had a string of five consecutive number one LPs. They have had 20 singles reach the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016, and three members have been inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. They've had numerous incarnations, literally dozens of band members, and won a Grammy Award. Not a bad career for a band that originally dubbed itself "rock and roll with horns."
"Till the End of Time" was released in 1977 on the oh, so cleverly titled LP, Chicago XI.The song was never released as a single, and the LP was the last of the big picture works they were to release (no doubt related to Kath's tragic death). It is considered by some to be Chicago's best album.
Written and sung by James Pankow (one of four original members--seven in the initial lineup--still with the band), "Till the End of Time" is your basic blues cum soul love ballad with horns. Pankow spins the tale of a man who wonders why his woman stands by him, but is oh, so glad she does--and he's asking her to love him till the end of time. The song is interspersed with trumpet, trombone and saxophone, and some playful piano. As regular readers (both of you) know, emaycee is a big fan of blue-eyed soul...and this one rivals Van Morrison, Daryl Hall, and Boz Scaggs at their best. Pankow infuses the song with joy, wonder, and a conviction that this love is all the love he needs. It closes with some dandy backing vocals embellishing Pankow's fiery vocals as he freelances his way through celebrating their love. "Till the End of Time" is another in a long line of rock and roll songs that remind us of the glory of love--and the glory of a beautifully crafted pop song.
Liner Notes: "Why...even though you know I'm crazy/Do you still believe in me/Why...does a smile come so easy/Baby since you set me free..."
For the past year, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has been trying to rewrite an Obama era rule known as the Borrower Defense to Repayment, which basically helps students who were cheated out of money by for-profit colleges, so as to give for-profit colleges who grifted people out of thousands of dollars the fruits of their cheating.
Isn't this akin to convicting a bank robber, and then saying, "What the hell, here's the money you stole--enjoy!"
Nothing quite like the rich helping the rich to get even richer--and what an embarrassment Betsy DeVos is to everything that decent people consider proper.
Probably equally as tasty as a McDonald's cheeseburger
News this week that the Trump Foundation will shut down with an assist from the courts due to its rampant corruption (read enrichment of the Trump family, helping those in need not so much) is just another reminder of how depraved the Trump family truly is. Shuttering a charitable foundation because of its decadency is neither Presidential not does it make America great.
The average American gets paid just enough so he doesn't quit his job, and works just hard enough so he doesn't get fired.
"When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying the cross." Source unknown
Uncle emaycee Wants You For the Coming Class War! Enlist today....
Capitalism: Give a man a fish, feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you can exploit his labor, become filthy rich, and keep the poor bastard living paycheck to paycheck for the rest of his life.
