Saturday, December 29, 2012
Friday, December 28, 2012
Grammar Fascist
I like the AllMusic web site, I think it's a nice resource, but I have always felt - I have friends who think this, too - that it would benefit from having the sort of user comments that the Internet Movie Database has. I don't necessarily need to read what everyone thinks about my favorite records, but when you have only a small group of people review stuff, you're bound to have some reviews that slip by with little or no editing.
Case in point: this review of the George Harrison song "Think For Yourself":
I have screen-captured it, & circled the two things that annoy me, &, in my opinion, invalidate the review. One, the dude doesn't know the difference between "its" & "it's." Can you imagine someone with a real writing gig making that mistake? It's Grammar 101!
The second thing is that he misquotes the lyrics. Never once does George Harrison sing "you gotta think for yourself" in the song.
I guess you can think that the song is "dated" but I'm not going to pay attention to your opinions when you can't even properly quote the song. It's not like there aren't hundreds of lyrics sites out there.
If you were allowed to comment on this, you could call this dumbass out & perhaps encourage him to correct his errors.
Interestingly, the AllMusic Guide doesn't let you search for writers, so I can't see what other nonsense the reviewer - "Thomas Ward" - has written.
Some might think that I am making a big deal about nothing, but this little review is a microcosm of the biggest problem with the site. It has an insularity that makes it far from the important resource it could be. That's too bad.
Also, that's a pretty great George Harrison song.
Case in point: this review of the George Harrison song "Think For Yourself":
The second thing is that he misquotes the lyrics. Never once does George Harrison sing "you gotta think for yourself" in the song.
I guess you can think that the song is "dated" but I'm not going to pay attention to your opinions when you can't even properly quote the song. It's not like there aren't hundreds of lyrics sites out there.
If you were allowed to comment on this, you could call this dumbass out & perhaps encourage him to correct his errors.
Interestingly, the AllMusic Guide doesn't let you search for writers, so I can't see what other nonsense the reviewer - "Thomas Ward" - has written.
Some might think that I am making a big deal about nothing, but this little review is a microcosm of the biggest problem with the site. It has an insularity that makes it far from the important resource it could be. That's too bad.
Also, that's a pretty great George Harrison song.
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Green Wing
Have you seen this? Dude, it's on Netflix! You know, the streaming part. Where you can watch it on your computer.
Not that I'm a paid employee of anyone, because I am'nt. I'm just watching every episode of Green Wing in order until my brain starts to swoon.
Should I be doing something else?
Not that I'm a paid employee of anyone, because I am'nt. I'm just watching every episode of Green Wing in order until my brain starts to swoon.
Should I be doing something else?
Monday, December 24, 2012
A Very Self Help Radio Christmas 2012!
Santa made me put this up before he started work tonight!
Two hours of Christmas music! I talk about Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, Pancha Ganapati, & Boxing Day! & Captain Kangaroo seems to enjoy talking about burning Christmas trees & melting snowmen!
Listen to it now at the Self Help Radio web site. Listen to the two parts at one click: part one | part two. Unwrap the list below to see what's in each present!
Happy holidays everyone! Thanks for listening!
(part one)
"Season's Freaklings" Bunnygrunt _Blue Christmas_
"I Want An Alien For Christmas" Hillary & The Democrats _Christmastime, Approximately_
"Twimmin' De Cwis'mas Twee" Duncan Sisters _Twimmin' De Cwis'mas Twee_
"Here Comes Christmas" Remington Super 60 _Go System Go!_
"Santa Claus Is Skaing To Town" The Granville Williams Orchestra _Trojan Christmas Box Set_
"The Christmas Song" The Raveonettes _Heartbreak Stroll EP_
"Kung Fu Xmas" Pearly Gatecrashers _Spectacular_
"Santa Claus Is Sometimes Brown" El Vez _Merry MeX-mas_
"Santa Claus Is A Black Man" Akim & The Teddy Vann Production Company _A John Waters Christmas_
"I'm Not Really In The Christmas Mood This Year" Foxtails Brigade _Time Is Passed_
"A Feast" Lisa Germano _A Feast_
"I've Had A Very Merry Christmas" Jerry Lewis _Jerry Lewis: Capitol Collector's Series_
"Christmas" Red Sleeping Beauty _Pop Sounds_
"Gettin' Ready For Christmas Day" Rev. J.M. Gates With His Congregation _Goodbye, Babylon_
"Santa Je T'Aime" The Superions _Destination... Christmas!_
(part two)
"Last Christmas" Palast Orchester feat. Max Raabe _Party Time!_
"Disco Christmas" The Universal Robot Band _Disco Christmas_
"Do They Know It's Christmas" Richard Cheese _Silent Nightclub_
"Do You Hear What I Hear?" The Children Of The University Of Michigan Children's Psychiatric Hospital _Christmas At C.P.H._
"The Littlest Snowman" Captain Kangaroo _First Christmas Record For Children_
"Here Comes The Rhythm Band" The Peppermint Kandy Kids _Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer_
"Little Twinka-Den" Twinka-Den _Little Twinka-Den_
"The Twelve Days Of Christmas" Sharon, Lois & Bram _Candles, Snow & Mistletoe_
"I Won't Let You Lick My Candy Bar" Susan Kay _Christmas On The Moon With Tim Dinkins_
"Stone Soul Christmas" Binky Griptite _Santa's Funk & Soul Christmas Party_
"Christmas Love (feat. Rotary Connection)" Minnie Riperton _Her Chess Years_
"Goin' To Bethlehem" Countryside Unitarian Fellowship _Hey Jesus Christ Welcome To This World_
"Merry, Merry Christmas" Bill Elliott _Merry, Merry Christmas_
"Christmas Tyme" Yard Trauma _Fuzz, Acid & Mistletoe: Christmas In The Garage_
"Snowflakes!" The Happiest Guys In The World _The Tarquin Records All Star Holiday Extravaganza_
"Teenage Christmas" Jacobites _God Save Us Poor Sinners_
PS Last year's show is available for listening too if you're a glutton for punishment. Ho ho ho!
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Whither A Very Self Help Radio Christmas 2012?
Tomorrow morning, 7 to 9am. 88.1 fm in Lexington. wrfl dot fm online. self help radio dot net later. Oh yeah. SANTA'S GOING DOWN.
(That was dumb, sorry.)
Also: this is post number 1500. I didn't want to make a big deal about it. But. Wow.
Happy holidays!
(That was dumb, sorry.)
Also: this is post number 1500. I didn't want to make a big deal about it. But. Wow.
Happy holidays!
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Preface To A Very Self Help Radio Christmas 2012: Nipping At Your Nose
I have no idea why I like Christmas music so much. I don't celebrate the holiday (except on the radio). I was thinking the other day that I missed giving folks presents - though I never really got anyone anything they really wanted & I very rarely got anything I wanted. Even when I was specific.
One Christmas, back when my family "drew names," one of my brothers drew my name & asked what I wanted. I knew what I wanted. I wanted a Sisters of Mercy bootleg they had at a local record store in Garland. (It moved at some point - I wonder if it's still there. I can't remember its name!) The bootleg probably cost around twenty bucks, which might have been a little too much for my perennially-low-wage-earning brother, but hey, it was Christmas.
The night of Christmas - I was a poor college student then, you know, & didn't buy anything for anyone - I was looking forward to at least getting to go home that night & listen to a bootleg by a band that I loved whose entire recorded output at that time I was already quite familiar with. A bootleg might mean covers I've never heard! Or different lyrics! More passion! More subtlety!
(There was a great Sisters boot that I loved around that time - I wish I could remember its name - damn! it's too bad we don't live in a time when there might be some kind of computer resource listing all known Sisters Of Mercy bootlegs. Oh well.)
There was an album-sized package with my name on it that Christmas, but when I opened it, it was the album The Gift by the Andrew Eldritch side project "The Sisterhood."
My brother, you see, had "talked to" the fellow behind the counter at the store, who assured him that that record (which cost less ten dollars less than the bootleg, since it was just an EP, which might have been my brother's motivation) was a rarity. My brother did seem proud he had discovered it. But of course, I already owned it. The reason I had asked for the bootleg was, of course, what I said above: I had already heard all that was commercially available by the Sisters. I suppose I am lucky he didn't buy me a Mission UK album.
Was my brother really trying to one-up me, or was he just cheap? I smiled & said thank you. What else could I do? & I gave the duplicate EP to someone. I can't remember who.
That's a big reason why the wife & I don't try to surprise each other with gifts - we know each other well enough to know that we'd ask for anything we wanted if we wanted when we wanted.
I still love Christmas music, however.
One Christmas, back when my family "drew names," one of my brothers drew my name & asked what I wanted. I knew what I wanted. I wanted a Sisters of Mercy bootleg they had at a local record store in Garland. (It moved at some point - I wonder if it's still there. I can't remember its name!) The bootleg probably cost around twenty bucks, which might have been a little too much for my perennially-low-wage-earning brother, but hey, it was Christmas.
The night of Christmas - I was a poor college student then, you know, & didn't buy anything for anyone - I was looking forward to at least getting to go home that night & listen to a bootleg by a band that I loved whose entire recorded output at that time I was already quite familiar with. A bootleg might mean covers I've never heard! Or different lyrics! More passion! More subtlety!
(There was a great Sisters boot that I loved around that time - I wish I could remember its name - damn! it's too bad we don't live in a time when there might be some kind of computer resource listing all known Sisters Of Mercy bootlegs. Oh well.)
There was an album-sized package with my name on it that Christmas, but when I opened it, it was the album The Gift by the Andrew Eldritch side project "The Sisterhood."
My brother, you see, had "talked to" the fellow behind the counter at the store, who assured him that that record (which cost less ten dollars less than the bootleg, since it was just an EP, which might have been my brother's motivation) was a rarity. My brother did seem proud he had discovered it. But of course, I already owned it. The reason I had asked for the bootleg was, of course, what I said above: I had already heard all that was commercially available by the Sisters. I suppose I am lucky he didn't buy me a Mission UK album.
Was my brother really trying to one-up me, or was he just cheap? I smiled & said thank you. What else could I do? & I gave the duplicate EP to someone. I can't remember who.
That's a big reason why the wife & I don't try to surprise each other with gifts - we know each other well enough to know that we'd ask for anything we wanted if we wanted when we wanted.
I still love Christmas music, however.
Friday, December 21, 2012
The Curse Of The Curse Word Curator
This is weird - the great linguist Hugh Rawson doesn't have a Wikipedia entry. He does have a page on the Huffington Post but that seems too rinky-dink for the great writer of Wicked Words, which, sadly, is no longer in print.
Though the book is written more as a resource (when you absolutely, positively need to know why "codswallop" is a bad word) than a narrative non-fiction book, I have found I can - & have - read it cover to cover & it's just as enjoyable.
For example, here's what he says about "codswallop":
"Nonsense, British-style. Thus, when Sir Fred Hoyle, an astronomer, dared challenge the authenticity of a famous bird fossil, paleontologists rose up to defend their turf: '"It's rubbish," Dr. Cyril A. Walker, a paleontologist at the [British] museum, said of Sir Fred's contention. "Codswallop," echoed Dr. Alan J. Charig, a curator at the museum' (New York Times, 5/7/85). The word sounds as though it should be an old one, but the OED's earliest example comes only from 1963. The OED says 'Origin unknown,' but it seems significant that cod is an old word for the scrotum and that codswallop is used derisively in the same way as the exclamatory Balls!"
(To be fair, the Wiktionary has a different etymology, but it seems more speculative. I'd trust my friend Hugh here.)
(To be more fair, the folks at etymonline.com - another favorite site of mine! - split the difference.)
I gave money to Wikipedia this year & one of the things it asked when I shelled out the big bucks was something like "Would you like to learn how to edit a Wikipedia page?" I said no - I mean, someone gave me a Metafilter membership once & I almost never visit that site anymore - but now I wish I had said yes - so I could create a Hugh Rawson page!
I'd probably also create a Self Help Radio page, so it's best I don't know how.
Though the book is written more as a resource (when you absolutely, positively need to know why "codswallop" is a bad word) than a narrative non-fiction book, I have found I can - & have - read it cover to cover & it's just as enjoyable.
For example, here's what he says about "codswallop":
"Nonsense, British-style. Thus, when Sir Fred Hoyle, an astronomer, dared challenge the authenticity of a famous bird fossil, paleontologists rose up to defend their turf: '"It's rubbish," Dr. Cyril A. Walker, a paleontologist at the [British] museum, said of Sir Fred's contention. "Codswallop," echoed Dr. Alan J. Charig, a curator at the museum' (New York Times, 5/7/85). The word sounds as though it should be an old one, but the OED's earliest example comes only from 1963. The OED says 'Origin unknown,' but it seems significant that cod is an old word for the scrotum and that codswallop is used derisively in the same way as the exclamatory Balls!"
(To be fair, the Wiktionary has a different etymology, but it seems more speculative. I'd trust my friend Hugh here.)
(To be more fair, the folks at etymonline.com - another favorite site of mine! - split the difference.)
I gave money to Wikipedia this year & one of the things it asked when I shelled out the big bucks was something like "Would you like to learn how to edit a Wikipedia page?" I said no - I mean, someone gave me a Metafilter membership once & I almost never visit that site anymore - but now I wish I had said yes - so I could create a Hugh Rawson page!
I'd probably also create a Self Help Radio page, so it's best I don't know how.
Thursday, December 20, 2012
End Of The World!
Human beings have a terrible track record with predicting the end of the world. Take a look.
Is it wrong that I like the phrase "heat death of the universe"?
I remember having a discussion with some kids at KVRX many moons ago about the Mayan prophecies (which of course have passed without any apocalyptic event, except perhaps frightening children) & making the comment that you've doubtless heard a billion times by now, which is this: "Why should we trust the prophecies of a civilization that didn't seem to be able to predict their own destruction?"
Does it matter that the descendants of the Maya call horse hockey on the predictions?
It doesn't! People believe what they want to believe!
Is it wrong that I like the phrase "heat death of the universe"?
I remember having a discussion with some kids at KVRX many moons ago about the Mayan prophecies (which of course have passed without any apocalyptic event, except perhaps frightening children) & making the comment that you've doubtless heard a billion times by now, which is this: "Why should we trust the prophecies of a civilization that didn't seem to be able to predict their own destruction?"
Does it matter that the descendants of the Maya call horse hockey on the predictions?
It doesn't! People believe what they want to believe!
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Almost 1500
A special blog post on a non-blog-posting day to say: hooray! I've almost reached 1500 posts on this silly blog!
If you'll recall, I have had a habit of trying to count my blog posts, & I've failed more or less miserably. Probably because I am a little dumb. Also! I didn't just take advantage of the fact that the Blogger Corporation (formerly Borders Books) allows me to select a page with one hundred posts on it, &, if I just go back to the first one, I can discover that:
I began on 9/12/06, & on 3/1/07, I had reached post # 100. (There's no sign that I knew it was my 100th post.)
My 200th post actually came on 8/8/07. My counting was off, & I celebrated my 200th post on my 204th post. It gets worse.
My 300th post was on 01/07/08. My 400th on 5/28/08.
My 500th was on 10/14/08 & I got it right! I celebrate writing five hundred meaningless things by telling my third grade teacher to suck it. Like one should.
I hit 600 on 3/25/09 (though I celebrate the day before). I hit 700 on 9/28/09 - & did the same. I hit 800 on 2/22/10, & was still celebrating the day before. I hit 900 on 7/24/10, & you know how I screwed it up.
The 1000th post - which should have been a big deal - was celebrated when it was really the 998th post. The 1000th post actually happened on 12/31/10 - which would have been something if I had really been paying attention.
Here's the ledger for the last four:
1100 - 5/23/11 (got it wrong)
1200 - 10/17/11 (sigh)
1300 - 3/5/12 (seriously, what is wrong with me)
1400 - 7/26/12 (celebrated on 7/21)
But this time I know I'm right! This is the one thousand four hundred ninety-sixth post. I am certain of it. I know it'll be the superduper 1500th post in just four days! I'm sure!
Somewhat sure. But. What if I've made another mistake?
If you'll recall, I have had a habit of trying to count my blog posts, & I've failed more or less miserably. Probably because I am a little dumb. Also! I didn't just take advantage of the fact that the Blogger Corporation (formerly Borders Books) allows me to select a page with one hundred posts on it, &, if I just go back to the first one, I can discover that:
I began on 9/12/06, & on 3/1/07, I had reached post # 100. (There's no sign that I knew it was my 100th post.)
My 200th post actually came on 8/8/07. My counting was off, & I celebrated my 200th post on my 204th post. It gets worse.
My 300th post was on 01/07/08. My 400th on 5/28/08.
My 500th was on 10/14/08 & I got it right! I celebrate writing five hundred meaningless things by telling my third grade teacher to suck it. Like one should.
I hit 600 on 3/25/09 (though I celebrate the day before). I hit 700 on 9/28/09 - & did the same. I hit 800 on 2/22/10, & was still celebrating the day before. I hit 900 on 7/24/10, & you know how I screwed it up.
The 1000th post - which should have been a big deal - was celebrated when it was really the 998th post. The 1000th post actually happened on 12/31/10 - which would have been something if I had really been paying attention.
Here's the ledger for the last four:
1100 - 5/23/11 (got it wrong)
1200 - 10/17/11 (sigh)
1300 - 3/5/12 (seriously, what is wrong with me)
1400 - 7/26/12 (celebrated on 7/21)
But this time I know I'm right! This is the one thousand four hundred ninety-sixth post. I am certain of it. I know it'll be the superduper 1500th post in just four days! I'm sure!
Somewhat sure. But. What if I've made another mistake?
Monday, December 17, 2012
Here's What's Favorites
Do I have to stress that this is not a "best of"? I'm apparently not in tune with the world of musical criticism, & as such don't know what the "best of" 2012 was. None of the songs I played are on this list. Nothing I played is on the Washington Post's 'best pop music of 2012'. Even the place I might be most likely to have some crossover - England - has only one artist that graces a huge list of critics' lists - the Magnetic Fields - at the Guardian's website.
KVRX had a slogan in the late 1990's - "We're not popular!" - & I feel pretty unpopular right now.
In any event, here's what I listened to & liked best this year. The show is at the Self Help Radio website. Or hey! Directly here: part one | part two. The track listing is below.
Let me know what you liked best this year! & thanks for listening!
(part one)
"Every Boy In NY" Woodpecker _Thanks Anyway_
"Tiffany Lou" Daughn Gibson _All Hell_
"The Right To Complain" Louis CK _Word: Live At Carnegie Hall_
"Psychotic Episode" Royal Headache _Royal Headache_
"Bo Diddley" Evans The Death _Evans The Death_
"The Perp Walk" Peace _The World Is Too Much With Us_
"The Girl From The DDR" The Wedding Present _Valentina_
"Computers" Eddie Izzard _Live At Madison Square Garden_
"Andrew In Drag" The Magnetic Fields _Love At The Bottom Of The Sea_
"Some Dandruff On Your Shoulder" Jens Lekman _I Know What Love Isn't_
"Amy aka Spent Gladiator 1" The Mountain Goats _Transcendental Youth_
"Bibliotek" Momus _Bibliotek_
"Capricornia" Allo Darlin' _Europe_
(part two)
"Typing, Texting" The Smittens _Believe Me_
"Friends Of Friends" Hospitality _Hospitality_
"So Easy" Lightning Love _Blonde Album_
"Allergies" The Lovely Eggs _Wildlife_
"Wack Writing" Hannibal Buress _Animal Furnace_
"Photographs Of Naked Ladies" Toy Love _Live At The Gluepot 1980_
"Spaghetti" The Wave Pictures _Long Black Cars_
"The Sun" Go-Kart Mozart _On The Hot Dog Streets_
"Heliopolis" Sunbutler _Sunbutler_
"The Trouble With Candyhands" Deerhoof _Breakup Song_
"Cover" Talk Normal _Sunshine_
"Alphabet" Martin Creed _Love To You_
"Let's Set Ourselves On Fire" Hospital Bombers _At Budokan_
"Hot Travel Tips" Todd Barry _Super Crazy_
"Bluebirds" The Barbaras _2006-2008_
"Slow Walkin'" The Babies _Our House On The Hill_
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Whither Gary's Favorite Music 2012
The year-end lists are starting! The end of the year is at hand!
Here's a list from the New York Times! None of these records will be played on my show tomorrow.
Here's a list of the highest rated records by Pitchfork this year. Nope, none of them made my top twenty-five.
(I won't do the show in top ten style. It's hard enough to pick the song I liked best from the record I listened to most.)
It's funny, I am completely baffled by what people consider great. I have probably shared my theory with you that people who review records for big publications end up reviewing stuff from major labels primarily because those labels can afford to send critics stuff for free. Imagine a music critic going out to buy a record! It's like a movie critic paying to see a movie!
I'm not a critic, I'm just a guy who knows what he likes. I play the stuff I like & the stuff that got played the most is obviously the stuff I liked the most & that's the stuff I'll highlight tomorrow.
Hey! You should listen! It's tomorrow morning from 7 to 9am on 88.1 fm WRFL in Lexington. Listen online simultaneously at wrfl.fm. Listen later at selfhelpradio.net.
Make your own best of! Make your own podcasts! Start your own radio station! Invite me on it!
Here's a list from the New York Times! None of these records will be played on my show tomorrow.
Here's a list of the highest rated records by Pitchfork this year. Nope, none of them made my top twenty-five.
(I won't do the show in top ten style. It's hard enough to pick the song I liked best from the record I listened to most.)
It's funny, I am completely baffled by what people consider great. I have probably shared my theory with you that people who review records for big publications end up reviewing stuff from major labels primarily because those labels can afford to send critics stuff for free. Imagine a music critic going out to buy a record! It's like a movie critic paying to see a movie!
I'm not a critic, I'm just a guy who knows what he likes. I play the stuff I like & the stuff that got played the most is obviously the stuff I liked the most & that's the stuff I'll highlight tomorrow.
Hey! You should listen! It's tomorrow morning from 7 to 9am on 88.1 fm WRFL in Lexington. Listen online simultaneously at wrfl.fm. Listen later at selfhelpradio.net.
Make your own best of! Make your own podcasts! Start your own radio station! Invite me on it!
Saturday, December 15, 2012
Preface To Gary's Favorite Music 2012: At Last! The Show About Lips Posted!
Sorry this show has been posted so late! What? No one noticed? Oh well.
Here's last Monday's show about lips. No kissing or smacking noises to be found. You can see the songs below. You can listen to the show at the Self Help Radio website, or directly - part one is here & part two is here.
Enjoy the show! Thanks for listening!
(part one)
"Kiss Your Lips" Allo Darlin' _Allo Darlin'_
"I Want A Lip" April Stevens _Ultra Lounge Vol. 18: Bottoms Up!_
"And Then I Kissed Your Lips" Gary Wilson _You Think You Really Know Me_
"I Bit My Lip" The Housemartins _Raise The Flag_
"His Lips Get In The Way" The Shirelles _Dedicated To You_
"Don't Give Me No Lip Child" Dave Berry _This Strange Effect_
"Purple Lips" Nico _The Aura Anthology_
"Stiff Upper Lip" Ella Fitzgerald _Ella Fitzgerald Sings Gershwin_
"Scottish Lips" Momus _Oskar Tennis Champion_
"Lipsmacker Kiss" All Girl Summer Fun Band _Summer Of '98_
"Lip-Smacking Good" Todd Barry _Super Crazy_
"Lip Service" R. Stevie Moore _Games & Groceries_
"Lips Like Sugar" Echo & The Bunnymen _Echo & The Bunnymen_
"Lippy" Sarandon _Kill Twee Pop!_
"Lipstick" The Buzzcocks _Complete Singles Anthology_
"Lipstick On Your Collar" The Saints _Wild About You_
(part two)
"Lippenstift Am Jacket" Conny Froboess _Rock & Roll Party - 1957-62 In Deutsch_
"Lipstick Traces On A Cigarette" The O'Jays _Beg, Scream, Shout: The Big Ol' Box Of 60s Soul_
"Lipstick Vogue" Elvis Costello _This Year's Model_
"Lipstick" Dressy Bessy _Little Music_
"Our Lips Are Sealed" Nouvelle Vague _3_
"Pucker Your Lips" The Bluenotes _The Best Of Red Top Records Vol. 2_
"Your Lips + My Lips" Spring Boutique _It's A Sweet Thing!_
"Lip Crud" George Carlin _When Will Jesus Bring The Pork Chops?_
"The Lip" Louis Prima & Keely Smith _Just A Gigolo_
"Lips That Are Not Mine" Po! _Ducks & Drakes_
"Lips Are Redder On You" Bobby Ross _The Joe Meek Collection - Hidden Gems Vol. 1_
"Sugar Lips" Dub Dickerson _Boppin' In The Dark_
"Pale Thin Lips" The Wave Pictures _Beer In The Breakers_
"Molly's Lips" The Vaselines _The Way Of The Vaselines - A Complete History_
"Mutilated Lips" Ween _The Mollusk_
"Lucky Lips" Ruth Brown _Atlantic Rhythm & Blues (1947-74)_
"Lollipop Lips" Connie Francis _Rockin' Connie_
"Bite My Lips" Boat _Dress Like Your Idols_
Friday, December 14, 2012
Thursday, December 13, 2012
What A Week This Was
Hey, I just checked my probably-not-reliable Google Analytics, which tells me the number of times I visit my own blog (&, if there are others, how many others) & it says recently a handful of people have found their way here, & maybe it's even to listen to my recent shows, to see that I've posted them over on the Self Help Radio website, because they're interested I can imagine almost, or because they want to see what I played.
(Right now I am listening to Scott Walker's new record & it's all I can do to hold on to my sanity as I write this.)
For reasons that will be covered in a later show (at the first of the year), I've had a terrible week & while I've managed to edit half my show for the web, I am not done yet - & I probably won't be until Saturday. So I am sorry! I am sorry!
I hope this doesn't inconvenience you. It has certainly inconvenienced me.
(Right now I am listening to Scott Walker's new record & it's all I can do to hold on to my sanity as I write this.)
For reasons that will be covered in a later show (at the first of the year), I've had a terrible week & while I've managed to edit half my show for the web, I am not done yet - & I probably won't be until Saturday. So I am sorry! I am sorry!
I hope this doesn't inconvenience you. It has certainly inconvenienced me.
Sunday, December 09, 2012
Whither Lips?
Are you a fan of kissing? I should hope so! Kissing is generally performed with the lips. This much is true. In fact, Wikipedia (to whom I gave money recently) admits, quite frankly that kissing is "the act of pressing one's lips against the lips or other body parts of another person or of an object."
There are obviously different kinds of kisses, which made my brain say, "You kiss your mother with that mouth?" But that's neither here nor there, brain. Why you gotta interrupt me like that?
Of the different kinds of kisses, many authorities without lip sores rank the "romantical kiss" as the best of all. That's a kiss between lovers, the sort of kiss that kinda grosses you out if you're not in on it, or if you're not watching pretty people do it in a romantic comedy.
I might have also said something about pornography, but I don't think they're allowed to kiss in pornography, are they?
Here's something that's chilling if you (a) have lips & (b) enjoy kissing (of the primarily romantical nature): if you get married, & if that marriage is of the traditional monogamous variety, you probably won't get to kiss anyone besides the person you marry for the rest of your life.
For example, I have not kissed another person in the romantical sense since I started dating the woman I married. That means it's been like eleven years! That's amazing!
Now, for most people, since they are making the commitment to be married, they understand that, & it's cool. I haven't met anyone in the last decade with whom I wanted to kiss more than my spouse. I still enjoy kissing her, although I think she could make it through the day without kissing me. She tries, anyway.
I am always there with my lips puckered to foil her antiromantical plans!
The show will be on the air tomorrow from 7 till 9am on the 88.1 fm frequency in Lexington, Kentucky, streaming simultaneously from the WRFL website. It'll be lip-smacking good!
All right, probably not. But whether it's good or not, I'll try to have it on the Self Help Radio website in a timely manner.
There are obviously different kinds of kisses, which made my brain say, "You kiss your mother with that mouth?" But that's neither here nor there, brain. Why you gotta interrupt me like that?
Of the different kinds of kisses, many authorities without lip sores rank the "romantical kiss" as the best of all. That's a kiss between lovers, the sort of kiss that kinda grosses you out if you're not in on it, or if you're not watching pretty people do it in a romantic comedy.
I might have also said something about pornography, but I don't think they're allowed to kiss in pornography, are they?
Here's something that's chilling if you (a) have lips & (b) enjoy kissing (of the primarily romantical nature): if you get married, & if that marriage is of the traditional monogamous variety, you probably won't get to kiss anyone besides the person you marry for the rest of your life.
For example, I have not kissed another person in the romantical sense since I started dating the woman I married. That means it's been like eleven years! That's amazing!
Now, for most people, since they are making the commitment to be married, they understand that, & it's cool. I haven't met anyone in the last decade with whom I wanted to kiss more than my spouse. I still enjoy kissing her, although I think she could make it through the day without kissing me. She tries, anyway.
I am always there with my lips puckered to foil her antiromantical plans!
The show will be on the air tomorrow from 7 till 9am on the 88.1 fm frequency in Lexington, Kentucky, streaming simultaneously from the WRFL website. It'll be lip-smacking good!
All right, probably not. But whether it's good or not, I'll try to have it on the Self Help Radio website in a timely manner.
Saturday, December 08, 2012
Preface To Lips: Read Mine
I have been reading, lately, (at the advice of the the Word Detective) Hugh Rawson's Dictionary Of Euphemisms & Other Doubletalk
, & I was hoping there'd be some interesting euphemisms for "lip" or "lips" that I could share on this week's show. Alas, there's not an entry for "lips." But there is, in the entry for the word "bushwa," this entry:
Bushwa, also bushwah, booshwa, booshwa, boushwa, or boushwah: they all up to the same thing: bullshit.
Okay, that's unhelpful. Let's move on to this:
Similar to "bushwa" is "bushlips," a nonce term but redolent with history, alluding to President George Bush's emphatic "Read my lips" promise (later broken) not to raise taxes. This was typically encountered, ca. 1990, in such phrases as "Don't give me any of that bushlips" or "I know pure, unadulterated bushlips when I hear it."
Oh, to have existed in a simpler time - twenty years ago!
, & I was hoping there'd be some interesting euphemisms for "lip" or "lips" that I could share on this week's show. Alas, there's not an entry for "lips." But there is, in the entry for the word "bushwa," this entry:
Bushwa, also bushwah, booshwa, booshwa, boushwa, or boushwah: they all up to the same thing: bullshit.
Okay, that's unhelpful. Let's move on to this:
Similar to "bushwa" is "bushlips," a nonce term but redolent with history, alluding to President George Bush's emphatic "Read my lips" promise (later broken) not to raise taxes. This was typically encountered, ca. 1990, in such phrases as "Don't give me any of that bushlips" or "I know pure, unadulterated bushlips when I hear it."
Oh, to have existed in a simpler time - twenty years ago!
Friday, December 07, 2012
Where To Put The Quote.
Quote quoted at me from (possibly genius but scary in perverted Lolita manner) Nabokov (the book called I think Pale Fire) a poem which goes or went:
It missed the gist of the whole thing; it missed
What mostly interests the preterist;
For we die every day; oblivion thrives
Not on dry thighbones but on blood-ripe lives,
And our best yesterdays are now foul piles
Of crumpled names, phone numbers & foxed files.
I'm ready to become a floweret
Or a fat fly, but never, to forget.
& I'll turn down eternity unless
The melancholy & the tenderness
Of mortal life; the passion & the pain;
The claret taillight of that dwindling plane
Off Hesperus; your gesture of dismay
On running out of cigarettes; the way
You smile at dogs; the trail of silver slime
Snails leave on flagstones; this good ink, this rhyme,
This index card, this slender rubber band
Which always forms, when dropped, an ampersand,
Are found in Heaven by the newlydead
Stored in its strongholds through the years.
& I liked it!
But then Nabokov was all like:
& I didn't say I liked it out loud all that much though I did. Really I did.
It missed the gist of the whole thing; it missed
What mostly interests the preterist;
For we die every day; oblivion thrives
Not on dry thighbones but on blood-ripe lives,
And our best yesterdays are now foul piles
Of crumpled names, phone numbers & foxed files.
I'm ready to become a floweret
Or a fat fly, but never, to forget.
& I'll turn down eternity unless
The melancholy & the tenderness
Of mortal life; the passion & the pain;
The claret taillight of that dwindling plane
Off Hesperus; your gesture of dismay
On running out of cigarettes; the way
You smile at dogs; the trail of silver slime
Snails leave on flagstones; this good ink, this rhyme,
This index card, this slender rubber band
Which always forms, when dropped, an ampersand,
Are found in Heaven by the newlydead
Stored in its strongholds through the years.
& I liked it!
But then Nabokov was all like:
Thursday, December 06, 2012
Useless Explanations
(Noises of things being shuffled around in an attempt to delay or if possible postpone.)
Well.
No one's here so it's as good a time as any to make an apology.
I am lucky there's no mirror here because it's me I am apologizing to.
From the almost-earliest days of Self Help Radio (meaning in the show's third year), I started doing an end-of-the-year "best of" show (quickly retitled "favorites") because that's what radio shows do & because I listen to a lot of records during the year & want to support many of them (especially if they don't have songs that fit into my chosen themes).
Well. I was also listening to a lot of electronica at that time, so it seemed - I started this a year or two later - I could also do a "favorite electronica" show.
& I did. From 2005 to 2011.
You might have noticed I am not going to do one this year. Was there no good electronica?
Actually, I'm not sure. I kind of lost interest.
Not entirely. But not enough to fill an entire radio show.
I think a lot of my favorite electronica artists have decided they want to be more poppy. Or make their music with acoustic instruments, to "prove" their musicians. & then there's dubstep, which became ubiquitous, & which is mostly not all that good these days. At some point I drifted away.
So, I apologize. I wish I kept up. I wish I had the energy to keep up. There was a lot of great music this year. A lot. The favorites show will be hard to do.
But no electronica.
Sorry about that.
(Looking around, sounds of crickets, the lights dim.)
Well.
No one's here so it's as good a time as any to make an apology.
I am lucky there's no mirror here because it's me I am apologizing to.
From the almost-earliest days of Self Help Radio (meaning in the show's third year), I started doing an end-of-the-year "best of" show (quickly retitled "favorites") because that's what radio shows do & because I listen to a lot of records during the year & want to support many of them (especially if they don't have songs that fit into my chosen themes).
Well. I was also listening to a lot of electronica at that time, so it seemed - I started this a year or two later - I could also do a "favorite electronica" show.
& I did. From 2005 to 2011.
You might have noticed I am not going to do one this year. Was there no good electronica?
Actually, I'm not sure. I kind of lost interest.
Not entirely. But not enough to fill an entire radio show.
I think a lot of my favorite electronica artists have decided they want to be more poppy. Or make their music with acoustic instruments, to "prove" their musicians. & then there's dubstep, which became ubiquitous, & which is mostly not all that good these days. At some point I drifted away.
So, I apologize. I wish I kept up. I wish I had the energy to keep up. There was a lot of great music this year. A lot. The favorites show will be hard to do.
But no electronica.
Sorry about that.
(Looking around, sounds of crickets, the lights dim.)
Monday, December 03, 2012
Worry Not!
Don't worry, be happy I didn't play that song on my show about worry.
Otherwise, worry. There's every reason to. Perhaps Self Help Radio's show can help ease your worries.
The show is worrying itself at Self Help Radio Dot Net. As usual, it's in two parts, or, as I worry someone will call them, "chunks." Part one is here & part two is here, with a track listing of each part below.
As always, thanks for listening!
(part one)
"I'm So Worried" Monty Python _Monty Python Sings_
"Ease My Worried Mind" Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee _Hometown Blues_
"I Don't Worry Myself" Johnny Adams _Action Speaks Louder Than Words: The Best Of SSS International_
"Isch Ka Bibble (I Should Worry)" Kay Kyser _The Best Of Kay Kyser & His Orchestra_
"Worryin' Kind" Regents _Quagmire, Vol. 5_
"Something Is Worrying Me" Otis Redding _The Otis Redding Story_
"Don't Worry This Isn't About You" The Cat's Miaow _Songs For Girls To Sing_
"Baby Don'tcha Worry" Tammi Terrell _The Complete Motown Singles, Vol. 6: 1966_
"God's Getting Worried" Virginia Dandies _Goodbye, Babylon_
"Your Time To Worry" Blind Willie McTell _Complete Recorded Works, Vol.3 (1933-35)_
"Don't Worry Baby" Bryan Ferry _These Foolish Things_
"Sometimes I Worry About You" The Razorcuts _Sometimes I Worry About You_
"Why I Worry About You" House Of Commons _History Of Michigan Garage, Vol. 1: The Wheels 4 Label Story_
"Don't Worry" Pere Ubu _Raygun Suitcase_
"Worried Blues" Bob Dylan _The Bootleg Series, Vols. 1-3 : Rare & Unreleased, 1961-1991_
(part two)
"Don't Worry About The Government" Talking Heads _The Name Of This Band Is Talking Heads_
"Why Worry" Israel Vibration _The Same Song_
"Worri" Majesty Crush _Fan_
"Worry Worry" The Fiery Furnaces _Gallowsbird's Bark_
"Worry" The Splinters _Kick_
"Do I Worry?" The Ink Spots _The Singing Detective_
"Don't You Worry Little One" Adventures In Stereo _Adventures In Stereo_
"Worried Man Blues" The Carter Family _Wildwood Flower_
"Worryhead" Summer Twins _Summer Twins_
"Worried Life Blues" Big Maceo _When The Sun Goes Down, Vol. 4: That's All Right_
"The Worryin' Song" Guided By Voices _Demons & Painkillers_
"Don't Worry" The Moss Poles _Shorn_
"Nothin' In The World Can Stop Me Worryin' Bout That Girl" The Kinks _Kinda Kinks_
"Do Your Best & Don't Worry" Morrissey _Southpaw Grammar_
"New Worried Mind" Bob Wills _San Antonio Rose_
"Worried Blues" Gladys Bentley _Roots N' Blues: The Retrospective (1925-1950)_
Sunday, December 02, 2012
Whither Worry?
Please hurry, hurry, hurry!
We've got no time for worry!
Because your eyes get blurry
when you worry, worry, worry!
At dinner we'll have curry
& afterwards we'll worry!
We'll scowl like Fred McMurray
& we'll worry, worry, worry!
If you've lost your fringe-topped surrey
It's probably time to worry!
Don't scamper & don't scurry
While you worry, worry, worry!
Find a friend who's face is furry
To join in on the worry!
In the middle of a flurry
We will worry, worry, worry!
You're looking Raymond Burr-y
Just Perry Mason worries!
Like a ship's deck covered in gurry
All our worry, worry, worry!
You can simper like Peter Lorre
When you worry worry worry!
Or you can dance like Arthur Murray
When you worry worry worry!
More bad poetry tomorrow on Self Help Radio - from 7 to 9am on 88.1 fm WRFL in Lexington & online at wrfl dot fm!
Archived later at self help radio dot net!
No worries!
We've got no time for worry!
Because your eyes get blurry
when you worry, worry, worry!
At dinner we'll have curry
& afterwards we'll worry!
We'll scowl like Fred McMurray
& we'll worry, worry, worry!
If you've lost your fringe-topped surrey
It's probably time to worry!
Don't scamper & don't scurry
While you worry, worry, worry!
Find a friend who's face is furry
To join in on the worry!
In the middle of a flurry
We will worry, worry, worry!
You're looking Raymond Burr-y
Just Perry Mason worries!
Like a ship's deck covered in gurry
All our worry, worry, worry!
You can simper like Peter Lorre
When you worry worry worry!
Or you can dance like Arthur Murray
When you worry worry worry!
More bad poetry tomorrow on Self Help Radio - from 7 to 9am on 88.1 fm WRFL in Lexington & online at wrfl dot fm!
Archived later at self help radio dot net!
No worries!