News You’ve Probably Already Heard: Sylvia Robinson, Godmother of Rap, Dies

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Sep 302011
 

Sylvia Robinson, founder of pioneering rap label Sugar Hill Records and a recording artist in her own right (“Love Is Strange,” as part of Mickey & Sylvia, and her solo hit “Pillow Talk”), died yesterday. You’ve probably heard this by now. My wife told me all about it late last night. I was really busy yesterday and spent what little free time I had recounting the wonders of Major League Baseball’s final night of the regular season and analyzing the coming playoffs. For placing my attention on baseball and missing this story yesterday I am sorry.

Sylvia Robinson was one cool cat.

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If You Can’t Say Anything Nice About…Saxon

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Sep 292011
 

We here in the Halls of Rock Town are sometimes taken to task for being overly negative, snarky, hyper-critical, and all too often, just downright rude. As part of our collective efforts to bring a bit of sunshine and light to the world wide web, we occasionally make an extra effort effort to find something good to say about, you know, stuff that is clearly godawful.

It is in that spirit that we embark on yet another effort to bring some positivity to our proceedings. Please spend some quality time with the video above, then — if you can — please find something nice to say about it. You’ll feel a whole lot better, I promise you.

I look forward to your comments. Just remember, if you can’t say anything nice about this video… please don’t say anything at all.

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Music That Makes You (or Me, at Least) Feel Inadequate

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Sep 282011
 

“Blackbird” came on Pandora “radio” the other night, as my wife and I drove home from a long road trip to Central Pennsylvania. I cringed. I’d just cringed for the previous song, an REM song, I believe. For my wife, this second cringe was one cringe too many. “What’s your problem with this song?” she made the mistake of asking, as I reached for the SKIP button. In an extraordinarily rare moment of  compassion and maturity I left my answer at, “I don’t know, that’s one of my least-favorite Beatles songs.”

Of course I know exactly why this essentially solo, fingerpicking, tender love song by McCartney ranks among my 5 Least Favorite Beatles Songs (excluding throwaways like “Wild Honey Pie,” which aren’t worth ranking): It makes me feel inadequate.

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And When I Die…I Better Not Hear This Song Playing at My Funeral!

 Posted by
Sep 272011
 

Somewhere on YouTube there’s a person who wrote the following comment following the posting of one of many Blood, Sweat & Tears‘ versions of my least favorite song in the world, Laura Nyro‘s composition “And When I Die”:

This is the song I told my family to play at my funeral—except my ‘One Child Born” is now “Four”

That’s kind of sweet that this person is thinking ahead. I have been too. Hear me out, Townspeople, and see that my family gets the word: This is the song I do NOT want played at my funeral!

Not this version:

Yeah, I’ll get in on the action, all right. It’s a shame the tuba player’s big moment had to appear between the hairy cheeks of David Clayton-Thomas.

Not this version:

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