Random dumb thoughts

This page is to put those little weirdnesses of life that don't really fit anywhere else, or aren't worth a page of their own

Friday, June 01, 2007

Okay, Kids. Another Bogus Music List...or Not

Here's a list of the top 500 Modern Rock Songs of all time from the only radio station left in DC that still plays anything vaguely approaching 'new music'. Of course, what DC101 doesn't quite mention on their website is that these are probably the ONLY 500 songs they ever play.

Now, I know that number one is going to be number one, and I'm okay with number three. But please, does anyone else besides me think that "Jeremy" is one of the most overrated songs of all time? I'm kind of okay with the list at large, but the order is all screwed up. Their relative placement of Nirvana songs, for example, is whacked. And I'd put number 78 higher, 'just cuz. (Woo hoo!)

I'm also unclear what gets you on the list, especially in terms of age. Because if Lust For Life is eligible, it should be way higher than it is. (#89). And if The Clash are new enough to be on the list -- Train in Vain at #139? A travesty, especially with eight million Pearl Jam songs ahead of it. And Bob Marley's No Woman No Cry? I think he's been dead longer than many of these artists have been alive.

Although for once, here's a list where I probably have about 1/5 of the songs at least, and have heard of most of them. That's rare. Althought I don't know #496, but the title's intriguing. Hee.

So, rip away.

.: posted by Lily Friday, June 01, 2007

Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Happy Tuesday

Just messing around on the Great Time Sink known as YouTube, and I came across probably the funniest scene on television ever.

Boom Shanka.

.: posted by Lily Tuesday, May 22, 2007

Thursday, May 17, 2007

Funniest Thing I've Read in a While

Here's another entry on the list of "things I'm going to hell for", but I just cracked up laughing when I saw this story last week. My favorite quote from the afflicted man? "You can't make a film and be depressed at the same time."

Dude, you've either made a career of it, or else you're the evil one because after seeing some of your films I've wanted to kill myself because there's no point in living. I still need therapy for Breaking the Waves.

Yes, I know, we're supposed to be supportive of those with mental illness, but this really was funny.

Sorry, Chrisp.

.: posted by Lily Thursday, May 17, 2007

Saturday, May 12, 2007

Lily's Virtual CD Mix Challenge #4

As most of you have realized by now, I didn't participate in this particular go around of the CD Mix Challenge -- various things going on and I didn't have the mental and physical energy to do it. A recent offshoot of the lack of energy is a reversion to musical tastes of yore, in particular Elvis Costello's early years. As I was perusing the topics, I kept throwing in Elvis titles and not thinking of much else.

Now, in the past, I tried very hard to avoid using songs by three artists -- Squeeze, Elvis Costello and Elton John -- because a) I do agree on the need to be eclectic and b) I figured most of the participants had just about everything by at least two of the three. However, I said "hmm, what if I just restricted myself to my usual no-no list?" and then looking through the titles realized that Elvis alone fit the bill.

So here in all it's glory is my virtual CD Mix Challenge #4 -- The All Elvis Edition! If anyone actually wants a physical copy of the list, let me know and I'll wing it your way. But again, I suspect my readership has 95 percent of the titles.

1. Song with a day of the week in the title. I'll go with "Wednesday Week" to follow the category to the letter, even though the one that snapped into my mind was "Seven Day Weekend". That's okay, though, as you'll see that again.

2. A song you disliked as a youngster that you like now. This is hard, because there's very little I didn't like, and of those I did, almost none grew on me that much. I'm going to go with "Alison", which I really loathed back then and have an appreciation for now, although I still won't put it in my top 20 (okay, 50) Elvis tunes.

3. Sellout - song from a TV commercial. This was a really hard category until Mr. C just this past week or two decided to plop himself into a Lexus and shill that, on the heels of doing a CD mix for Starbucks. Now, I can't quite place it, and it may have been in Britain, but I KNOW that I've heard the tones of "Watching the Detective" coming from the TV on multiple occasions. I will admit that a news program may have used it as the cover tunes for one of their repeating faux-news segments. If that doesn't work, then Elton or Squeeze could more than admirably fit the bill, and I'll call "Tempted" in the BK ads or anywhere else.

4. Kickass cover song. Wow. This one is the hardest choice -- thanks Kojak Variety and Blood and Chocolate disk two. I'm leaving some of my absolute favorites off here because I suspect I'll want to use them in a real mix sometime. So it's "Everybody's Crying Mercy".

5. Musical question... "Why Can't A Man Stand Alone?"

6. And answer! "The Fairy and the Ass" (from Il Sogno) -- boy, there's a story in there somewhere.

7. Third person song "Let Him Dangle"

8. Uplugged - a favorite acoustic song. This is a little hard -- much of King of America sounds unplugged to me, although I'm sure they miked it up for recording. But since the Futurama sessions were definitely electric, I'll go with "Little Palaces' or wait for Mike the Blogless to send me some live cuts from somewhere.

9. A song about food. "Fish and Chip Paper"

10. Trains, Planes and Automobiles: song about a mode of transport "The People's Limousine"

11. A song that cheers you up. "Just About Glad" -- it's got a chipper beat and a happy title, but there's just an undercurrent of anger (well, it is Elvis) that puts it over the top in this category for me.

12. Media - songs about radio, TV or other type of media "Radio Sweetheart"

13. Add it up: "13 Steps Lead Down" +

14. “Seven Day Weekend" =

15. "20% Amnesia". It even kind of works thematically. Those basement clubs can be deadly!

16. Banned! A song that is, or was in its day, controversial.
"Radio, Radio" -- song that got the man in trouble on Saturday Night Line. The song itself wasn't banned, but the Elv was from SNL for going off script into something 'da dangerous'.

17. A song about a family member "Big Sister" -- the rocking extra track, not the slower "Big Sister's Clothes".

18. A favorite song that you have discovered since our last CD mix.
"Twentyfive to Twelve" -- Just been playing it over and over, but it was one of those extra songs on a Ryko/Demon/Remaster disc that I had never bothered to listen to much all of the way through. It's also good that Elvis is quite good about having songs with numbers in the title so I didn't have to use this in the math section.

19. A song that reminds you of an old friend. "I Want You". Yeah, I know, and we've all got the same reason, I suppose. And this one I reserve the right to use again.

20. Amnesty song For this I'll take an "Alibi" . I didn't have an appreciation for this song until I heard him do it live, and also since this is a virtual mix, the fact that it's almost seven minutes long doesn't play into it.

.: posted by Lily Saturday, May 12, 2007

Saturday, May 05, 2007

The New York Times Must Be Running Out of News

Irrespective of what one thinks of our current President (and I know my readership, and am virtually listening to the collective "Fuck off!"s from here), this has got to be one of the dumbest articles I have ever read coming from the New York Times. For those without a login, the opening section reads:

"WASHINGTON, May 4 — How does George W. Bush, a towel-snapping Texan who puts his feet on the coffee table, drinks water straight from the bottle and was once caught on tape talking with food in his mouth prepare for a state dinner with the queen? With tips from an etiquette guide, of course — and a little gentle prodding from his wife.

The White House is atwitter over the visit on Monday by Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh. "

Of course it later goes on to point out how wonderfully mannered a previous President -- one George HW Bush -- was when he met her. Hmmm, I wonder if the two presidents know each other or have met? Nah, doubtful.

For Pete's sake, people, he may like to hang out in a barn, but he wasn't born in a barn, really. One thing you can say about Mother Barbara is that she takes no guff and is there anyone out there who thinks those kids didn't have their ears boxed for behavioral infractions? Didn't think so. And there might have been a chance for this guy if he'd had the experiences of Andover, Yale, and Harvard, and summering in Kennebunkport Maine .... oh wait. Nevermind.

And I'm thinking that the Queen hasn't been sealed inside a convent for the last 81 years where she's never experienced the slightest lapse in protocol either. I bet secretly she HOPES someone will take their pants off and moon her at a banquet -- I bet she's been to more rubber chicken dinners than anyone on the planet.

But this article is stupid no matter who the individual players are -- I'm sure had this banquet happened in the Clinton years, we'd see the same article in which there would be lots of snide references to Momma Clinton's hair and A Little Town Called Hope. It's just filling column inches based on stereotypes and no actual insight or research, with the added bonus of being to take potshots at the sitting President. I bet if I googled it, we'd find the 1991 version of this article out there in which the phrases "pork rinds" and "throwing up on the Japanese Prime Minister" would appear (not quite sure the sequencing of the State dinner and the Japan trip, though).

Was this author too busy to cover the Paris Hilton story? Now THERE's news....

.: posted by Lily Saturday, May 05, 2007

Comments by: YACCS