The Secret Lives of Men

Our man TJ has a lot going on in his life. Husband, social media maven, connoisseur of fine foods (and honestly, who saw that coming?), raconteur. So there are some reasons why we haven't seen all that much of him around these parts.

Turns out there's another reason.

He's about to release his third album.

As yet untitled, the new record features 'Heart's Eyes', which you can hear below.



And because I know you want to refresh yourselves on the Teej's earlier stuff, here's a link to his last album, 'On the Horizon'.

The video for his first hit single 'Anonymous', really makes him look thin. Nearly sickly, if you're asking me. I prefer a voluptuous Teej.



I'm sure he'll tell us when he's touring next. That's summit material, for certain.

1989: The Year, Not the Taylor Swift Album Covered by Ryan Adams

I'm a fan of Paste magazine. I was a subscriber when they used to have a print offering (which came with a CD of recently released songs).  I am now on their e-mailing list and check out their online articles with some frequency.

Paste has a good feel to it. Highly knowledgeable writers for the most part, though there are times halfway through an article that I realize that the author was born when I was in college and therefore may not see things through the same lens.  Still, always a decent approach and highly informative. That's good for a music geek like... some of you.

Tons of music. Also, movies, television, games, beer, pop culture, and even politics, but tons of music. Their music reviews aren't as esoterically harsh as Pitchfork, nor as Grammy-style clueless as Rolling Stone. Nor are their politics as pointedly extreme as RS's... though in some cases the writers at Paste bleed somewhat heartily.

Anyway, this week they have a new music piece on 1989, which happens to have been 30 years ago, and the albums which hit the shelves of your local record store that year. Record stores... you remember... those mom and pop ones like Tracks in Norfolk (RIP) and Birdland in Virginia Beach (alive and kicking).  Or Tower Records in big cities.  Places where Rob and I would peruse the shelves very deliberately and make choices insightfully sublime and just awful in equal measure.

1989... the three bad brothers you know so well were freshmen becoming sophomores after pledging a certain fraternity; some among our gang here were young teens in the tri-state area and the space coast; and Mr. KQ was raising kids and looking forward to slowing his pace as retirement crept closer. The music we respectively cued up on compact disc or cassette or tuned in via the FM dial... well, here it is.

The article is worth reading in full (linked above), and you can say whatever you want about opinion-based best-of lists found on the dork web, but the list simply took me back to a simpler, more ignorant, and more blissful, if not drunker, time:

PASTE - The Best Albums of 1989

30. The Blue Nile: Hats
29. Andrew Hill: Eternal Spirit
28. The Ocean Blue: The Ocean Blue
27. New Order: Technique
26. Lou Reed: New York
25. The Mighty Lemon Drops: Laughter
24. Yo La Tengo: President Yo La Tengo
23. Galaxie 500: On Fire
22. Neil Young: Freedom
21. Elvis Costello: Spike
20. Indigo Girls: Indigo Girls
19. Bob Mould: Workbook
18. The Replacements: Don’t Tell A Soul
17. The B-52’s: Cosmic Thing
16. XTC: Oranges and Lemons
15. Bonnie Raitt: Nick Of Time
14. Camper Van Beethoven: Key Lime Pie
13. Janet Jackson: Rhythm Nation 1814
12. Bob Dylan: Oh Mercy
11. Nirvana: Bleach
10. Fugazi: 13 Songs
9. Nine Inch Nails: Pretty Hate Machine
8. Tom Petty: Full Moon Fever
7. Kate Bush: The Sensual World
6. The Stone Roses: The Stone Roses
5. The Cure: Disintegration
4. Beastie Boys: Paul’s Boutique
3. Madonna: Like a Prayer
2. The Pixies: Doolittle
1. De La Soul: Three Feet High and Rising

Debate it if you will, and you certainly can. That "See a Little Light" is coming in two spots behind "Love Shack" is going to confound at least one of our opinionated gang.  I'm as pleased by Key Lime Pie's inclusion as I am Mother's Milk's omission.  Madonna seems out of place, the Petty album is annoyingly ubiquitous but still mostly underrated, and 13 Songs was an amalgamation of two EP's, one from 1988, so it questionably counts (but should be heard when you're feeling angsty).

We talk about it ad nauseum in this space, but it still amuses to see Paul's Boutique get props left and right this millennium after being summarily ignored in 1989. Some stuff isn't appreciated in its time. Like Dazed and Confused. And "Arrested Development"... the television show, not Mr. Wendal.  And the Cauc Hop.

Three Feet High and Rising, at #1, is curiously absent from Spotify, but I'll have to give it a re-listen on my private stock of Moving Pictures Experts Group Audio Layer 3 files... and YouTube videos like this:

More albums worth remembering from 1989... some that would certainly make my list:
The Cult: Sonic Temple
Red Hot Chili Peppers: Mother's Milk
Faith No More: The Real Thing
Hoodoo Gurus: Magnum Cum Louder
The Connells: Fun and Games
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble: In Step
The Pogues: Peace and Love
Drivin' 'n' Cryin': Mystery Road
Mötley Crüe: Dr. Feelgood
Big Audio Dynamite: Megatop Phoenix
3rd Bass: The Cactus Album
The Jesus and Mary Chain: Automatic
Biz Markie: The Biz Never Sleeps
Random Idiots: Bloodfinger
Paul McCartney: Flowers in the Dirt
The Smithereens: 11
Phish: Junta
Kirsty MacColl: Kite
10,000 Maniacs: Blind Man's Zoo
Fine Young Cannibals: The Raw and the Cooked

There was a lot lot LOT of dreck that year as well, of course. '89 releases from the likes of Starship, Warrant, Milli Vanilli, Richard Marx, Barry Manilow, Wang Chung, Cher, Michael Bolton, Mr. Big, David Hasselhoff, Bee Gees, and good ol' Kenny G. Plus bloaty, post-peak efforts from the Dead, the Stones, Mellencamp, Prince, Bowie, Peter Gabriel and Queen.

But there was far more that I loved.  And such articles and ensuing discussions just make me want to play some of the old music.

To wit:

Cry In the Beginning So You Can Smile In the End

If you've been following the 2019 Women's World Cup closely, this will be a bit of a rehash for you. But it's so compelling that I want to enshrine it here so historians of G:TB will know that it mattered to us.

(You don't think there will be historians that sift through these digital archives with a fine-byte comb, teasing valuable insights from our chronicles of this variously glorious and monstrously fucked up time? I've seen the future, friends, and there are historians.)

Marta Vieira da Silva, almost always known only by her first name, is arguably the best woman soccer player on the planet. She's scored 17 goals for Brazil in World Cup play, the most ever. She's been named World Football of the Year six times. No less a luminary than Pele called her "Pele in skirts" (we'll set aside the sexism and focus on the genuflection). She famously overcame meager family circumstances and her home nation's indifference to the women's game to become one of the most recognizable women athletes on the planet.



It's that indifference that she addressed this week. Brazil fell to France, 2-1 in overtime, in the Round of 16 of this year's World Cup, eliminating them from the tournament. While the 33 year-old Marta may have one more run in her, it's unlikely that even her sublime talent will be rewarded with a major trophy - Brazil have never captured a global title. And so, after the Selecao lost to the hosts, she gave this remarkable interview:

Case of the Mondays, Followed by the Great Days

This week is, in professional terms, fairly enormous for your humble blogger. I got a promotion late last year, and for the first time in my life, I'm responsible for a sales and revenue target. I like to think I'm pretty good at a lot of things (and I know that I'm lousy at many, as well, including discipline and organization), but I know fuck all about running a sales team. And the numbers through May betray that.

While my business is growing by 12% from a revenue perspective, and by nearly 20% in terms of year over year sales, we're behind our sales target fairly significantly. But with a little luck, we're gonna have a monster June. We need it. And I'm gonna be stressed like you read about this week while I watch the deals come in.

Fortunately, I've got a bit of a built-in stress release planned for just a few short weeks. I've done a four-day canoe trip in Maine with my cousin, uncle, sister's husband, and several other guys twice over the past few years. We're upping the ante this year. Rather than try to explain it, here's the trip syllabus from my uncle's older brother Bob, a seasoned outdoorsman. (If you read carefully, you'll notice what I'm contributing to the group's enjoyment, beyond charisma and the occasional moment of unintentional comedy.)

Allagash River Canoe Trip July 13, 2019 – July 20, 2019

Saturday, July 13: Travel to Pelletier’s camp ground on the St. Johns River in St. Francis, ME. Address is ME-161, St. Francis, ME 04774. Eat supper in St. Francis. Camp overnight.

Sunday, July 14: Wake up early and be transported to start of trip (3 and ½ hours) at Chamberlin Bridge. Put in and starttrip. Paddle up Chamberlin Lake (10 miles), portage Locke Dam and continue 5 miles to Pilsbury Island (Campsite = Pump Handle) and camp. 15 miles. All lake paddling with a short portage – 50 Yards.

Monday, July 15: Paddle from Eagle lake to the outlet of Churchill Lake and camp. (Campsite = Jaws) 16 miles. All lake paddling Note: Possible side trip to visit the Tramway

Tuesday, July 16: Paddle to the outlet of Heron lake and portage Churchill Dam (75 yards). Run Chase Rapides (9 miles) to Umsaskis Lake. Camp at the Ledges. 14 miles

Wednesday, July 17: Continue down river through Long Lake to Round pond. Great wild life viewing in this area. Good river current and small rapids. Camp at Squirrel Pocket. 20 miles

Thursday, July 18: Continue down river to Allagash Falls. Portage Falls (about ¼ mile trail) and continue down river to West Twin Brook where we will camp. 26 miles

Friday, July 19: Continue down river to town of Allagash and onto the St Johns River. Note: the Allagash River spills into the St. Johns River at the town of Allagash. The combined river is twice the size of the two individual rivers. Good current and small rapids down to our camp ground at St. Francis where we will spend the night. Drive to Fort Kent for a celebratory dinner. 21 miles

Saturday, July 20: Head Home!!

Gear for the group will be provided by Bob:

Tarps
Packs
Plastic bags and trash bags
Cooking equipment (pots, pans, grill, plates, forks, spoons, cups) can opener, matches
Axe and saw
Tents as needed. Jason is supplying one so is Fred.
Craig is bringing one, I think. If we have extras we can leave them in our cars.
Coolers: Stephen to supply some of these and RHC the rest.
Ropes
First aid kit,
Maps
Lantern and flash light

Individuals responsible for:
Sleeping bag
Sleeping pad
Tent – I have extras if you need one
Clothes, river shoes and rain gear
Bug Repellent, Sun Screen
Alcoholic beverages
Individual dietary preferences and Medications
Flash light

Food to include:
Breakfast – coffee, tea, hot chocolate, cereal hot and cold, tang, milk, fruit, (Rob Russell is planning to supply gourmet coffee!!)
Gorp (Grand Old Raisins and Peanuts) to be supplied by Cathy Webster (Jason’s mom)
Lunch – cheese, crackers, peanut butter, jelly, life savers, candy bar or granola bar, canned meat, fruit drink, dried fruit
Afternoon snack – Granola bars
Dinner – Meat, vegetables, starch, desert, salad

I know that some have expressed thoughts about the menu. Please give me any input that you might have. Lets travel in style and eat in style!!

Fred is an experienced photographer. He has agreed to be our trip photographer. National Geographic
is already making inquiries about his negatives!!

The Allagash is a classic canoe trip, probably the most popular week long canoe trip in the United States. The river was designated by Congress, in 1965, as a “wild and scenic river” and is regulated by the Park Service. Camping is permitted only at designated sites which are all named and include a picnic table, fire ring and outhouse. Canoeing groups are limited to 12 people or less. I have been down the river at least 15 times since my first trip in 1964.

There is a lot of information about the Allagash and its history on line. Detailed maps showing rapids, campsites and points of interest are also available on line or from the Park Service. Recommended reading for anyone wanting a “feel” for the river and its history is The Allagash by Lou Deitz.
The canoeing challenges on this trip include a good bit of lake paddling at the start of the trip – 30 miles or so.



Chamberlin Lake can be especially difficult if we have a headwind since the lake is long and narrow and big waves can build up. Chase Rapids are the first rapids that we will encounter (starting just below Churchill Dam). These are several miles long and class 3 and 2. Since these are the first rapids of the trip, we will not be as “experienced” as we will be a day or two later. I am sure that our adrenalin and excitement will be very high as we take on this stretch of river. Below Chase Rapids the Allagash has about 70 miles of good current and any number of fun rapids until we reach the town of Allagash where the Allagash and the St. John Rivers merge. The only significant portage is around Allagash Falls.

At present our group consists of 10 people, five canoes. This is two less than the largest permitted group. We are renting the canoes from the transportation company and they will be 17 foot Old Town Trippers or similar

Summer Catch: Wager Edition

Most of you will be familiar with the venerable Cape Cod Baseball League. One of the nation's oldest and most prestigious summer wooden bat leagues, the Cape League was founded in 1885.  In 2017, 306 Cape League alumni featured on Major League Baseball rosters, and at least four league alums are in the MLB Hall of Fame (Craig Biggio, Carlton Fisk, Pie Traynor, and Frank Thomas).

You're likely less familiar with a more recent tradition tied to the league's fortunes. My family had a house in Brewster from the late 1930s until two years ago. (Luckily for me, my cousin bought another one as soon as my grandmother sold our family's cottage.) I've been to dozens of Brewster Whitecaps games over the years.

Whitney spent a summer living on the Cape and working in Harwich. As a consequence, he fancies himself a big Harwich Mariners fan. And FOG:TB Coby Beck grew up in Chatham, so he's backed the Chatham Anglers (nee A's) since way back.

Last summer, the three of us put (a very little bit of) our money where our mouths were, agreeing on a friendly wager on the outcome of the 2018 CCBL season. The team that had the best season earned their backer a 12-pack of the winner's choice. Chatham made it to the league championship series, falling to the Wareham Gatemen. The Anglers fell short of summer glory, but they did ensure Mr. Beck Esq. two 12-packs of Golden Anniversary Light. He's not a particularly discerning beer drinker, to be sure.

He's not all that concerned about collecting, either, as neither Whitney nor I have yet paid the bet off. Hopefully we'll see Coby at OBFT XXVI.

Entering this evening's action, the Whitecaps are on a seven-game unbeaten streak, and pace the league with a 6-3-1 mark. Chatham, who host Brewster tonight at historic Veterans Field, are 4-3-1. And Harwich is bringing up the rear of the East Division at 4-5-0. Lotta ball left in the 44-game season. We know you'll be following along.

Go 'Caps!

G:TBook Review

Courtesy of our OBX correspondent, a thoughtful review of what appears to be provocative and complex argument about the very future of the human race. My take? We're all fucked, but some of us will pass on in time to not really have to worry about it. That's not sardonic flippancy. It's what I actually believe. Maybe our ancestors will get lucky.

Author and activist Bill McKibben has banged the drum about climate change and inequality for 30 years. He’s stood on glaciers and visited remote villages where electricity is a rumor. He’s met with Silicon Valley executives and with subsistence level farmers.

McKibben’s latest book, Falter, treads familiar ground, but he asks a larger question: Has the human game begun to play itself out? He cites the twin perils of unchecked climate change and artificial intelligence as potentially altering human existence irrevocably moving forward.

He cites science, history, personal reporting and anecdotes and plenty of outside sources. There’s ample gloom and doom, but he also offers suggestions for how we might still walk back from the brink. For its weighty subject matter, it’s an interesting, breezy, almost conversational 256-page read.

As he wrote at the beginning of the book: “A writer doesn’t owe a reader hope – the only obligation is honesty – but I want those who pick up this volume to know that its author lives in a state of engagement, not despair. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have bothered writing what follows.”

Income inequality, McKibben writes, means that increasingly few people are making more and larger decisions about everyone else. Rising seas and expanding areas of drought mean that “the size of the board on which we’re playing will get smaller.”

He writes about a Randian, libertarian streak that has taken over the upper levels of the conservative movement for the past 40 years, from Reagan, Thatcher, the Bush presidencies, the Koch brothers, and now Trump. A triumph of the individual and the idea that a person’s value is measured by what they produce and what they earn, and that society and the collective are for suckers and mooches.

The oil companies, McKibben writes, were doing their own research about the possible damage from increased carbon dioxide levels as far back as the 1970s and essentially buried the findings. “Global warming is the ultimate problem for oil companies,” he writes, “because oil causes it, and it’s the ultimate problem for government haters because without government intervention you can’t solve it. Those twin existential threats, to cash and to worldview, meant that there was never any shortage of resources for the task of denying climate change.”

One of McKibben’s favorite words in the book is “leverage” – the outsized influence a small group of individuals or one industry wields. “The politics of one country for one 50-year period will have rewritten the geological history and crimped the human game,” he writes. “That’s what leverage looks like.”

The end of the human race, or our best hope for the future?
Discuss.

He also worries about artificial intelligence that smarts its way beyond our ability to control it. He writes that we may not be far away from the possibility of producing designer babies, who are smarter and stronger and better. Since that won’t be cheap, he says such a development could exacerbate inequality. And given the rapid rate of technological improvement, wouldn’t each batch of designer humans essentially become second-rate and less after a short time? If outcomes are programmed into people, doesn’t that diminish the human experience?

McKibben also writes that an inordinate number of powerful people in Silicon Valley are freaked out by death (who knew?), or rather obsessed with the idea of prolonging their own lives. There’s no shortage of start-ups involving new drugs or cryogenics or tech implants. An exceptionally smart gent named Ray Kurzweil, who’s the director of engineering at Google and who McKibben is fond of, hopes to live long enough so that nanobots can fix his aging cells and extend his life, or perhaps connect his brain to the cloud so that it may be implanted elsewhere and effectively live forever.

“The technologists at some level value individual humans too much,” he writes, “they value humanness far too little.”

But there’s hope, McKibben writes at the end of the book. It takes the form of solar panels and the non-violent protest movement. Solar panels can produce power cheaply and efficiently, particularly in places where there is none, such as African villages. Solar power can supplement and eventually replace fossil fuels, creating jobs and decreasing costs along the way. McKibben also takes heart from the non-violent movement, which helped turn the tide for women’s suffrage in this country, Indian independence under Gandhi, civil rights and gay marriage.

It won’t be easy, McKibben writes. Much damage has been done and we’re already a long way down the road. Many forces and much money are aligned against changing the status quo. But it’s possible and vital.

“The libertarian ideal of individual autonomy, which to one extent or another every modern human understands and cherishes,” he writes, “runs aground when the stakes get as high as ecological hell or human meaninglessness.”

Regardless of your politics, it’s a worthy read.

G-L-O-R-I-A

Gloria Vanderbilt has passed away at the age of 95. She lived a life of fame, fortune . . . fashion. And a had boy named Anderson, who seems to have made a name for himself.

Gloria is an oft-used name in rock and/or roll, and here's a playlist of the Glorias, with some artist Glorias thrown in.

Oh . . . plus one song that stands out to the uninitiated. Robert Hazard and the Heroes' 80's one-hitter "Escalator of Life."  One listen and you'll know why.



Factoid: Robert Hazard wrote and first recorded "Girls Just Want to Have Fun."  He was from southeastern PA, so our late great mate Evan used to tout his virtues. Pancreatic cancer took the Pennsyltucky rocker in '08.  Much will rightfully be said about Gloria Vanderbilt today. Let there also be at least one swig consumed (f the wasteful pouring out tradition) for Robert Hazard, his heroes, and his fans.

Hey, girl . . . I'm a personal friend of Gloria Vanderbilt
I got all the gold in the world around my neck 
Come ride the steel dinosaur 
Run wild in the jungle 
It's a Zulu Nation 
Seduction, sacrifice, a new sensation 
Nothing ever changes!

It ain't Dylan or McCartney, but I like it.  Cheers.

Father's Day Singalong

Audience participation time, Gheorghies. I'm gonna start by listing several songs that remind me of my Dad, or that remind of of being a Dad. And you're gonna add to the list. Because you're good people and you like music.















Here's a different version of the same song that I like even better, for obvious reasons.

Barney and the North

It's winner celebration week here at G:TB, and apparently at 99% Invisible, as well.

The excellent design-focused podcast (featured not that long ago in this post) just re-ran an episode from a few years ago that celebrated the Raptors' first uniforms. These glorious togs right here (with bonus Oliver Miller!):

Enjoy the podcast here, and learn about the demented genius behind this look and the dozens of other mid-90s monstrosities you loved to hate.

Grudging Congratulations

The Blues certainly earned that Stanley Cup title, so here's to them:



Phish knows what time it is:

@msmallmon @miklasz @BernieShow Over here at Chaifetz Arena, Phish opened set 2 with Gloria straight into the Rolling Stones Loving Cup.  Cup fever everywhere!! pic.twitter.com/NAi3N69qeL

— Nathan Thomas (@mizzounate) June 13, 2019

Music for the Masses

Time Magazine political journalist Lissandra Villa did us a considerable service yesterday, tweeting the following list of walkout songs chosen by the Democratic Presidential contenders that attended the Iowa Democrats Hall of Fame ceremonies yesterday.

Your opinions may vary, but my opinion of Amy Klobuchar went way up. Beto O'Rourke, punk from way back, with a strong choice, as well. Elizabeth Warren stays on brand, and appeals to a certain demographic that'll probably be important, though I don't love the song. Mayor Pete, underdog rap - also on message. Kamala Harris, I see you. And what the everlovin' fuck are you doing, Bill De Blasio?

And there's some straight-forward pabulum here, too.

Do comment below.

Summer of Footy

The confluence, my friends. The confluence.

If you like the world's game, it's an embarrassment of riches for you over the next month or so. And in two particular cases, just embarrassment, FIFA-style.

For starters, the Women's World Cup kicked off yesterday with hosts France thoroughly
dominating South Korea on the way to a comprehensive 4-0 win. Les Bleues are one of the title favorites, with seven players from Champions League winners Olympique Lyonnais on its roster. The U.S. Women's National Team, who are defending their 2015 title, are the other side widely acknowledged as likely to win. Should both teams win their groups, an overwhelming probability, and win their Round of 16 matches, they'd meet in the quarterfinals. Shrewd move, that, on the part of the brain trust at FIFA.

Trying not to be a homer here, and recognizing that the overall quality of the women's game continues to improve by leaps and bounds, I still think it's Jill Ellis' Americans' title to lose. Australia is really good, as are Germany, Brazil, England, Japan, and the hosts. But our ladies are tested, tough, and talented. Pay attention to the final game of the USA's group run, when we play Sweden. Both teams will likely have clinched advancement in a weak group (with Chile and Thailand). The winner of the group will get France in the quarterfinals, while the loser would get a marginally easier route.

The CONCACAF Gold Cup, our regional competition, starts in earnest a week from today. Gregg Berhalter's team dropped a desultory match on Thursday in D.C., losing 1-0 to Jamaica, though they were without their full complement of players. The USMNT plays against Guyana on the 18th before a revenge match against Trinidad and Tobago on June 22. At the very least, Team America should get to the semifinals of this tournament. The very, very least.

Later today, the US Men's Under-20 team take on Ecuador in the quarterfinals of the U20 World Cup in Poland. The young Americans (young Americans, she wants the young Americans...aaaaalllllll right) came back from a 2-1 deficit against tournament favorites France in the first round of the knockout stage. (Foreshadowing?!?) This is the third consecutive U20 World Cup that's seen Tab Ramos' side make the final eight. Third time's a charm, hope the red, white, and blue.



CONMEBOL, the South American federation, hosts its irregularly timed Copa America this month, as well. The tournament starts next Friday in Brazil. The hosts just lost erratic (and annoying, and probably a rapist) superstar Neymar to an ankle injury sustained in a friendly win over Qatar.

The Copa America final at the Maracana in Rio will take place on July 7. And here's where we get to the other (most recent) FIFA gaffe. See, the CONCACAF Gold Cup final is also scheduled for July 7. That's two of the most prominent non-World Cup tournaments in the men's game slated for the same day.

Which is also when the Women's World Cup final takes place in Lyon. This, to put it mildly, is a slap in the face to the women's game. At a time when the U.S. women are suing U.S. Soccer for equal treatment, and ladies Ballon D'Or winner Ada Hegerberg from Norway is sitting out the World Cup to protest her national federation's lack of funding for the women's game, you'd think that FIFA would be able to figure out how to at least pretend to showcase the distaff elite.

You'd think that, if you didn't know anything about FIFA's clusterfuckery.

While all that is going on, our domestic leagues are taking a break, but both the MLS and NWSL are having highly entertaining seasons. D.C. United and the Washington Spirit pace their respective leagues, but second-year Los Angeles FC is threatening to run away and hide on its way to being one of the best sides in league history.

And in case that's not enough soccer for your entertainment dollar, the transfer window is open across the globe. Real Madrid just signed Chelsea star Eden Hazard. Paul Pogba's rumored to be on the move from Manchester United, as is Romelu Lukaku once Antonio Conte gets ensconced at Inter Milan. Money's gonna fly fast and furious, and the action in the boardroom may be as heated as the on-pitch stuff.

Except on July 7th.

Gheorghe's 6-Pack: Cover Tunes

It's Friday.  Afternoon.  Just about Miller Time.

And that means it's time for a 6-Pack!

In the interest of spreading the love of good music, we will throw out six suggested songs by certain bands you may or may not know much about. Not much of a time commitment, just a little something to get the flavor and get you going.

Okay, so that's the charter of this recurring segment that actually recurs, but we're taking a bit of a different path today. We always like tributes here in the G:TB Music department, and we've trod over that ground a fair bit. So let's queue up some new or rare covers for you.

This Bud's for You

Three of them are mellowfied, deconstructed takes on otherwise peppy songs.  The final three are just interesting genre-twists. Have a listen and see what you think.

This may be your reaction to my 6-Pack playlists...

The last one I particularly like.  Eagles of Death Metal was the band playing in Paris when that terrorist bullshit happened there four years ago.  Theirs is a tale of slow recovery from that horribleness, not physically but emotionally. I'd have to figure that would fuck with me pretty good, too.  Their cover of Duran Duran's "Save a Prayer" was both a decent rendition and a mantra in the aftermath of that cowardly act of evil.

This week they released an album of covers called EODM Present Boots Electric Performing the Best Songs We Never Wrote.  Some interesting song choices for sure. I like the Ramones and Kenny Rogers tunes, but by far my favorite is the Wham! cover. If your heart needs some healing, by all means turn to Gheorghe Michael and Andrew Ridgeley.

And in a related move, it's been a while since we gave this guy the airtime he greatly deserves:

Have a great weekend. Be safe and be sure to enjoy something.

Culture Up Your Ass Wednesday

Alert your friends, and update your calendars accordingly, good people of Gheorghe, 'cause we're movin' right along on 7/25 and 7/30:

Time Keeps on Slippin': Dadbrag Edition

Yesterday my daughter performed in her penultimate dance recital. She's been doing this since she was five years old. She's got one more to go. One more year of five-a-week rehearsals. One more year of competitions. One more round of recitals. I'm gonna be a mess this time next year.

It's been remarkable, in retrospect, to see her go from a little ballerina, bouncing in time to the music, to an accomplished artist. And truly, while I grumble at times about the checks we have to write to her dance studio, her dance has been a catalyst for growth in lots of other ways. To see her on stage, confident, joyful, kinda badass, really, fills my heart with joy.

And so, I'm gonna share some of that with you.

She's at the front of the formation in this one:



In this one, she's the female lead:



She starts at the front of this one, too:



You'll never figure out which one she is in this one, but it's cool to watch: