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Many Great People Have Been Born on November 25

25 Nov

November 25 is a big day in the life of me. It is my birthday. I wonder who else was born on this date. Wait, I have an idea. I will look it up and write a post about it.Nov 25

1753 – Robert Townsend, one of George Washington’s spies during the American Revolution

1787 – Franz Xavier Gruber, organist who composed the music for “Silent Night”

1835 – Andrew Carnegie, industrialist who led the expansion of the steel industry

1844 – Karl Benz, inventor of the first automobile to have an internal combustion engine

1846 – Carrie Nation, anti-alcohol activist who was known for attacking taverns with a hatchet

1881 – Pope John XXIII, who obviously served as pope

1883 – Harvey Spencer Lewis, Imperator of the Ancient and Mystical Order Rosae Crucis

1914 – Joe DiMaggio, center fielder for the Yankees who hit safely in 56 straight games

1920 – Ricardo Montalban, actor known for playing Mr. Roarke and Khan Noonien Singh

1926 – Jeffrey Hunter, who starred alongside John Wayne in The Searchers 

1933 – Kathryn Crosby, actress and wife of Bing Crosby

1940 – Percy Sledge, singer of “When a Man Loves a Woman”

1944 – Ben Stein, speechwriter for Richard Nixon and later a game show host

1952 – Crescent Dragonwagon, writer who has an awesome pen name.

1960 – Amy Grant, former contemporary Christian singer who became a Country singer

1963 -Bernie Kosar, Cleveland Brown quarterback who could not get past John Elway

1968 – Jill Hennessy, actress known for roles on Law and Order and Crossing Jordan

I am stopping at that point. This list will not include anyone younger than me. It is my birthday, and that is my option.

 

 

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Testing My Toussaint Knowledge

12 Nov

The other day, I was giving a test when word of Allen Toussaint’s death came across my computer screen. The news struck me for a couple of reasons.Toussaint

First, the test included questions about Toussaint Charbonneau and L’Ouverture. What are the chances to that many people named Toussaint being on my mind in one day? For those who may not know, Charbonneau was the husband of Sacagawea, and L’Ouverture led the slave rebellion that would result in Haiti becoming a nation.

Second, I have a great song by Allen Toussaint on my iPod. It is called “Sweet Touch of Love” and was introduced to me by a television commercial.

I take pride in my knowledge of music, but all I knew of the musical Toussaint was that one song. After reading about him, I discovered that he was a legendary New Orleans musician who sang, wrote, produced and worked in almost all areas of the music business. I also learned that there are more Toussaint songs on my iPod that I realized. In addition to the song previously mentioned, he wrote, produced or played on the following songs in my collection.

“Southern Nights” by Glen Campbell

“Lady Marmalade” by Labelle

“Working in a Coal Mine” by Lee Dorsey

“The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” by The Band

“Right Place Wrong Time” by Dr. John

There must be others because I have learned that Allen Toussaint was a major force in music for many years. I wish I had known that earlier. Now, I have to find out what I have been missing.

 

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In My Life

1 Nov

I was grading papers and listening to my iPod when “In My Life” started playing. Of course, I mean the Jose Feliciano version, which is the best of all the versions.Feliciano

It has always been one of my favorite songs, and, when we were picking music for our wedding, it was the first one on my list. I have no idea if it was played. You know how it is with weddings. The people getting married have to stay hidden and miss all of the preliminary activities.

My wife and I first dated years ago, but, for a myriad of reasons, things did not work out. Not least of which was the fact that I had no idea how to be in a relationship. We went our separate ways. The following is the way I went.

In my mind, I fancied myself as an explorer. I was the rider who was always looking toward the horizon and wondering what was on the other side. Others probably thought of me as a player of games. Another term could be serial dater. I was always in a relationship, but I was never in a relationship. As the person I was dating moved closer, I moved further away and started searching for the next person.

I also kept what I considered a back door. I wanted a way to get out quickly if that is what I wanted to do. This meant as few attachments as possible. This meant, among other things, keeping their personal items at their places. God forbid someone start talking about moving in. That would always throw the situation into turmoil.

In short, I was a terrible person to have a relationship with. I was never fully committed, and everyone would eventually figure that out. They may have been thinking about forever, and I was thinking about when it was going to end. When those ends came, they came like hurricanes.

Through those times, I was not trying to be a bad person. I was trying to make my way through life and find the person who was meant for me. However, each relationship felt off. For me, there was something missing in each, and I knew it was not where I was meant to be. I did not handle any of them correctly, but none of them were what I really wanted.

There were probably people out there who envied my life. I was free to do what I wanted whenever I wanted. Nothing was tying me down. They probably saw my life as an adventure with something new happening all of the time. Some of that is true, and I liked my life. However, there were parts of it that people never saw. They never saw me walk into an empty house. They never knew that I wondered why other people could be in successful relationships while I could not. They never felt my feeling of always being in the wrong relationship at the wrong time.

My life was a broken record. Meet a women. Start a relationship. Get restless. Meet another woman. Start a relationship. Get restless.

Looking back on it, I know that it was a miserable existence.

When my wife came back into my life, I was afraid that the pattern would continue. After all, we had broken up years before. However, this relationship felt differently. I felt like I was in the right place at the right time. I did not want to open a back door.

Before we got married, my wife told a story that involved her cousin. As the story goes, her cousin went to work for a lady who used to live across the street from me. She did not know everything about me, but she knew enough to have a conversation. One day, they were talking about me, and the lady wondered why I had never gotten married. She came to the conclusion that I was waiting for someone. That is when my wife’s cousin said that she knew who I was waiting on.

Thinking about that conversation, I know that she was right. There was a reason I was restless. There was a reason that the relationships never felt right. I had already met the love of my life.

I love my wife. I love my life. The past two years of marriage have been the greatest years I have ever known, and I know that future years are only going to be better.

A while back, a friend asked how married life was going, and I talked about how great it is. Then, they asked if I wished I had gotten married earlier. The answer was easy. I am thrilled that I did not get married earlier because I would have been married to the wrong person.

In my life, being married to my wife is the best thing I have ever known.

 

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When Listening to Sports Talk Radio Leads to an Investigation of Woodstock

13 Oct

The other day, I was listening to a sports talk radio interview with John Fogerty. Apparently, he has a book coming out that needs to be promoted. He spoke on a lot of interesting subjects, but my ears perked up with he was asked about Woodstock. In short, he did not have a good opinion of the event.CCR

Fogerty said that Creedence Clearwater Revival went on three hours late for two reasons. The Grateful Dead would not stop playing, and the festival was run by people who had no concept of time.  By the time Fogerty and the gang hit the stage, most of the crowd was passed out. Although, there was one guy in the distance who was holding up his lighter.

I looked up the Woodstock schedule and found the truth behind Fogerty’s words. He did not take the stage until well after midnight. However, I also found out something else. Performers who epitomized the era were not at the concert that epitomized the era.

Bob Dylan lived in the area but was not on the bill. In fact, he got upset at the number of people who had shown up.

The Doors turned down an invitation because they thought it was a knockoff of the Monterey Festival.

The Byrds did not play because it was one of many festivals taking place.

Joni Mitchell missed Woodstock to be on The Dick Cavett Show.

Woodstock is in the history books and is considered a watershed moment for the 1960s counterculture. However, it was a business venture. The organizers wanted to make money, and the performers wanted to make money. Many of the people who sang the soundtrack of the 1960s missed Woodstock because they would not get enough pay.

Woodstock was a huge event but was it bigger than Monterey? Was it a better concert than the Atlanta International Pop Festival?

Part of me thinks the fascination with Woodstock comes from the documentary released in 1970. It won an Academy Award; paid off the debts of the organizers; and preserved the festival for posterity. On film, Woodstock looks like fun, but I wonder if it was that fun in real life.

Did you attend Woodstock? Was it as important as history says it was? More importantly, how was the show?

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My iPod Has Issues – Brain Block

7 Oct

There are several ideas rattling around in my brain, but they are all being blocked by my thoughts on long pants and socks. The problem is that I am not ready to write that post because it has not properly formulated itself in my mind. It will contain important information, and I want it to come out right.

Here I sit. Laptop in my lap. Television on some documentary that is not interesting. An almost empty glass of orange juice on the table. What to do? What to do?

I know. I will turn on the iPod and see what it going on inside its brain. Hopefully, there are no long pants or socks blocking it from thinking.Block Brick

“Pipe Dreams” by Jimmy Beck and His Orchestra

“Melissa” by The Allman Brothers Band

“Miami Vice Theme” by Jan Hammer

“Living Dead Girl” by Rob Zombie

“Ignition” by R. Kelly

“Go Speed Racer Go” by Sponge

“Little Joe” by Red Sovine

“Numb” by Linkin Park

“I Ka Barra” by Habib Koite and Bamada

“Philadelphia Lawyer” by Red Smiley and the Bluegrass Cut-Ups

“You Really Got Me” by The Kinks

“I Fought the Law” by The Bobby Fuller Four

“Reach for It” by George Duke

“Baby Love” by The Supremes

“American Roulette” by Robbie Robertson

“Wanted Dead or Alive” by Bon Jovi

“The Streak” by Ray Stevens

“Drops of Jupiter” by Train

“Stand By Me” by Ben E. King

“I’ll Have to Say I Love You in a Song” by Jim Croce

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From Juice Newton to Jethro Bodine

6 Oct

My wife called from the beach with a very important question. Who sang Who sang “Angel of the Morning“? She was in a huge debate with her mother. My wife said it was Juice Newton and my mother-in-law said it was someone else. My wife turned out to be right.Juice Newton

I am glad she was right because I thought it was Donna Fargo, who hit it big with “The Happiest Girl in the Whole USA“.

I have no idea why I wrote about our discussion of country music trivia, but it is probably because I cannot think of anything else to write about. There is a post floating in my brain about long pants and socks. However, it would be a controversial topic and might offend some of my readers.

There is a stack of graded quizzes on our breakfast table. They were over a book that I had some of my classes read. In the Heart of the Sea is about the Essex, a whaling ship that was attacked by a whale. I will not tell you what happened because Ron Howard just finished making a movie about it. The only thing I can tell you is that the story inspired Herman Melville to write Moby-Dick.

It is still quiet around the house with everyone gone. I am in one chair and Daisy Dog is in the other one. To tell you the truth, it is kind of boring. I guess that I could watch a movie or get back on the treadmill. However, those are not inspiring choices. There is a Monday Night Football game on, but that does not excite me.

I wonder how Juice Newton got a name like Juice.

(Pause)

After a quick Google search, I learned that her real name is Judy Kay Newton, but there is nothing about how that turned into Juice. However, I came across another song that I forgot she sang. In fact, I think “It’s a Heartache” is better than the other one.

For some reason, reading about Juice Newton makes me think of Bobbie Gentry. Talk about somebody who put out a great song. “Ode to Billie Joe” is one of the all time greats. Although, there was a terrible movie starring Robby Benson that was inspired by the song. It was directed by Max Baer, Jr., better known as Jethro Bodine.Jethro

By the way, did you know that Max Baer, Sr. was boxing’s heavyweight champion of the world?

Anyway, it is time for this post to come to an end. We have not covered much useful information. That long pants and socks post is still rattling around in my mind. Who knows? Maybe that will be the next one.

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Songs for Me and Robert Neville

4 Oct

My wife and stepdaughter just left for the week at the beach. Next week, my wife and I are going to a real place – Santa Fe, New Mexico. However, that is happening next week. At the moment, I have the house to myself. This might be fun for a night, but I am certain that it will get old relatively soon.

The house has been quiet, and, in an attempt to break the silence, I turned on some music. The problem is that I have gravitated to songs with certain themes. I have listened to “Alone Again” by Dokken and followed that up with “Tired of Being Alone” by Al Green. Of course, there is “I Drink Alone” by George Thorogood.

On top of that, “Lonley Days” by Bee Gees is fitting for the occasion. In fact, it goes well with “The Lonely Man” by Tennessee Ernie Ford. Jackie Wilson sang “Lonely Teardrops“, which can only be shed by only the lonely. Luckily, the iPod has “Only the Lonely” by Roy Orbison. Merle Haggard sings about “Going Where the Lonely Go“. I do not know where that is, but I wonder if “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” plays there. If not, then maybe The Beatles do.

All of this adds up to being lonesome, and there are a ton of songs on my iPod that deal with that.

“Are You Lonesome Tonight?” by Elvis Presley

“The Blue Side of Lonesome” by John Prine and Mac Wiseman

“I’m a Lonesome Fugitive” by Merle Haggard

“I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry” by Hank Williams

“Lonesome Loser” by Little River Band

“Lonesome Valley” by The Fairfield Four

“Lonesome, On’ry and Mean” by Waylon Jennings

I could go on by listing “Solitary Man” by Neil Diamond and “Solitude” by Billie Holiday, but it might be time to stop listening to this kind of stuff. The iPod needs to change themes to something like “The In Crowd” by Ramsey Lewis or “You’ve Got a Friend” by James Taylor. After all, the zombie apocalypse has not hit. There has to be other people in the world. Certainly, I have not become Robert Neville.Neville

Everyone knows who that is, right?

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Bad Moon Rising

29 Sep

Last night, we went outside and looked at the eclipse of the Supermoon. It was cloudy, but, in my mind, it made the event more cool. As the clouds floated by, we could see the eclipse behind them. The special effects people on a scary movie could not have done a better job.

As we looked into the night sky, the words of Creedence Clearwater Revival entered my mind.

I see the bad moon arising.
I see trouble on the way.
I see earthquakes and lightnin’.
I see bad times today.

It is a great song, and the words were fitting. However, some people took those words to heart and believed that the eclipsed Supermoon heralded the End Times. I have been reading about these people and wanted to tell them that their idea could not be true. As I wrote in an earlier post, the Second Coming has already occurred. I was there when it happened.

As this day progressed, I began to think that their beliefs may have some merits. Seriously, think about some of the strange things that have gone on.

Facebook went offline, and the lives of many people were altered forever. I read about it on Twitter, which did not have any Apocalyptic problems.

NASA announced that there is water on Mars. That means the Martians that seeded our planet may still be around. If they are still around, then they may show up and punish us for bad behavior.

The night before the eclipse of the Supermoon, Mick Jagger performed on a Nashville stage with Taylor Swift.Mick Taylor

That may have been the true sign of the End Times. At least, it was the final death knell for Rock and Roll. If that is the case, then there is no reason for humanity go survive.

It is enough to make someone crawl into a bunker filled with canned goods and a ham radio. I only hope that the radio picks up real music from Creedence Clearwater Revival and Mick Jagger in the days before he was Taylor Swift’s BFF.

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Melancholy Serenade

26 Sep

Yesterday, a feeling of melancholy washed over me. I was sitting in a chair and watching the rain through the window.

The rain could have been the reason. The garage sale could also had been the reason. I have always had a hard time getting rid of stuff. I can remember thinking as a kid that when I threw away the bubblegum wrapper I would never see it again. Yep, I was a strange child and am probably a strange adult. When the sale was over, I walked into the closed garage and looked at the remaining items. It was quiet, and I was alone. That was when the wave hit me, and my staring at the rain was the result.

While watching the rain, I knew that a blog post had entered my brain. However, the title hit stronger than the content. From somewhere in the back of my mind, the words “Melancholy Serenade” shot to the front. Usually, titles come to me while writing the post. Something in the text will lead me to it. This was completely different, and I knew that these words came from something that I had read or heard. It was something that I knew but forgot that I knew.

To figure it out, I went to Google. What did we do before Google? I guess we had to go to the library and look up stuff. Anyway, there it was. “Melancholy Serenade” was the theme song for The Jackie Gleason Show.Gleason

I have read about Gleason’s life and career, and I guess that something about those words stuck. Of course, I may have realized that those words matched well, and I could not have been creative enough to think up a title like that on my own.

Oh yeah, there is also “Melancholy Serenade” by Tchaikovsky. However, he was nowhere near the music man who Jackie Gleason was.

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My iPod Has Issues – Losing Bill Dance and Finding Eddie Feigner

24 Sep

We are having a garage sale, and everyone knows what that means. We are dragging out stuff that we forgot we had. Some of it is coming from the attic. Some of it is coming from our closets. Some of it is coming from the Land of Discarded Items.

In the process, I am giving up the autographed Bill Dance t-shirt that I got when the famed fisherman made an appearance at the Hollywood Casino in Tunica, Mississippi. It is definitely a sacrifice to give up something that cool.

However, some cool things are staying. While digging for artifacts, I came across a booklet celebrating the 25th Anniversary of The King and His Court. If that name does not mean anything to you, then let me explain. Eddie Feigner was a fast pitch softball pitcher who traveled the world with a four-man team. They took on all comers and won over 9,000 games. Along the way, Eddie “The King”  Feigner did tricks with the ball. There are a few people around here who played against them. I need to collect stories and write a post about them.

Anyway, we have dragged a bunch of stuff into the garage and are ready to do business. Hopefully, we will make some money. Every quarter counts.image-2

To commemorate the event, I have decided to look into my iPod and see what it is doing.

“Be Careful Who You Love (Arthur’s Song)” by Hank Williams, Jr.

“For the Good Times” by Isaac Hayes

“Judy” by Frank Howard

“Hardline” by Tom Kimmel

“Memphis Exorcism” by Squirrel Nut Zippers

“Clubbed to Death” by Rob Dougan

“Up On Cripple Creek” by The Band

“Kansas City Shuffle” by J. Ralph

“Bridge Over Troubled Water” by Simon and Garfunkel

“Alone Again” by Dokken

“Ohio” by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young

“Ruby (Are You Mad at Your Man)” by The Osbourne Brothers

“I Wanna Ummm With You” by Stacy Mitchhart

“Thirteen” by Big Star

“Still and Always Will” by Vintage Trouble

“T for Texas” by Tompall Glaser

“Dazed and Confused” by Led Zeppelin

“The Peacocks” by Howard Alden

“The Wind, The Wind” by Dean Martin

“Tomorrow Never Comes” by Ernest Tubb

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