Bring me the head of Dusty Baker... or not...

There is nothing worse than watching your team lose because of the cumulative stupid decisions made by the manager.  I thought I was rid of that when Oakland finally canned Bob Geren, but now Dusty Baker is picking up where he left off, only with the Cincinnati Reds.

Last night was one of the biggest cluster-f's I ever witnessed.  Rather than rant about the entire thing, let me just go to the point. In the Milwaukee fourth, they had cut the Reds' 4-0 lead to 4-2.   In the fifth, starter Mike Leake, after getting the first man out, gave up a single, a double, an RBI single, and yet another single to load the bases.  Now, a smart manager might have called in a reliever, especially with the mammoth Prince Fielder coming up.  But Dusty leaves him in, and Fielder hits a deep drive that brings in the tying run.  Leake then follows by balking a runner to third.  Somehow, he gets out of the inning, and everybody knows that Leake will be pinch hit for when his spot comes up third in the Reds 6th.

Except for Dusty, who lets him bat, and sends him out for the brewers' 6th.

Whereupon he gives up a second pitch HR to Mark Kotsay (who used to play for the A's, and we stupidly let him go, so this is even more irritating.).  So now the Reds are behind.  But wait, in the Reds seventh, Joey Votto hits a liner to Kotsay in left with a man on that Kotsay proceeds to play soccer with- result, tie game and Votto on third.  Jay Bruce then added a HR and the Reds had a gift-wrapped 7-5 lead.

In the Brewer seventh, with 2 out and nobody on, a bright manager may well have walked Fielder.  Not Dusty, though.  He pitches to the man and Prince responds with a single- but he was left on base.  Not only that, but he had brought Bill Bray in just TO pitch to fielder- and after the hit, took him out.  The last time I saw Dusty do this, Bray was the only pitcher to get an out in a game that Logan Ondrusek then came in and gave up the winning hit.  Why, Dusty, why?



In the Brewer eighth, He brought in Nick Masset.  1-2-3 inning.  Great job, Nick!

In the Brewer ninth, though, Dusty brought in the "closer" Francisco Cordero.  Now, if you watch the Reds at all, you know that the experience of watching CoCo close a game is a lot like trying to put out a campfire by slowly dribbling gasoline on it.  Sometimes he gets the save, sometimes he blows it, but every time, you will put a strain on your heart watching him try.  So, CoCo comes in and walks the first batter.  After giving us a flicker of hope with a fly out, he then gives up a triple to Nygier Morgan, the Brewers' multi-talented head case.  Game is now 7-6, and a grounder to third by Corey Hart results in Morgan being cut down at the plate.  Two outs, runner on first, and here comes Fielder.  How about we just put him on, Dusty?  But no, we pitch to him- and probably a good thing, CoCo's so wild he'd probably wild pitch in the winning run on an intentional walk.  He damn near does anyway, as he ends up walking the big man after all that.  And then comes an Infield single by Casey McGehee to load the bases. So, 2 out, 3 on, and with the rest of the bullpen so sagely wasted by Dusty in the previous three innings, it's all CoCo.

And who comes to the plate? Mark Kotsay.  I could make this up, but no one would believe me.

And of course Kotsay laces a hit that scores two  runners, and the game is over.  4-0 lead, meet 8-7 loss.  Not unfamiliar, since 2 nights ago, the Reds blew an 8-0 4th-inning lead to the damnable Cardinals only to win 9-8- in 13 innings.  Of course, I ranted and raved the rest of the night.  The reason God did not destine me for baseball ownership is that I would have fired Baker on the spot, and kicked  CoCo out with him.

And I fully intended to continue the rant this morning.  I dug into Baseball Reference to excoriate Cordero, and promote Masset to be the closer.  But, guess what?  As I looked at the stats, Coco is only middle of the road in blown saves around the league.  He's been fantastic against inherited runners.  Even the great, bearded wonder Brian Wilson has comparable stats.  (I didn't compare Mariano Rivera's stats, though.  That would be like comparing Babe Ruth to a high school squad.) Even when I tried comparing him to Masset, I found that if you counted Masset's horrible first five appearances, CoCo beat him, and if you took them out, the only difference would be that Masset's let in more inherited runners.  So pass me a nitroglycerin pill and I'll shut up and hope for the best with Cordero.

Dusty, on the other hand... I just don't know...

Step into my time machine week sixty-three

It's July 7th, 1976.  Dick Williams has just managed the California Angels to a 2-0 win over the Cleveland Indians, one of the few bright spots in a dismal year. Nolan Ryan pitched a five-hitter, struck out 10 and Bobby Bonds hit his 10 th home run in the first for all the runs he'd need.  The win put the Angels at a dismal 35-49, and Williams was twelve games away from being relieved of duty in Anaheim after three losing campaigns- the first three losing seasons of his career.  In fact, he took 4 different clubs into the postseason, incuding two stormy World Series wins with the Oakland A's, and the Angels and Seattle were the only teams he never won with.  On July 7th, this great manager passed away.  This man is my favorite all-time manager, and I hope I'm on his team in heaven.  The best quote about him, one I doubt you'll hear anywhere else, came in 1972 from former player Ron Clark- just before he got traded to Milwaukee after committing a stupid error at second base.
"Williams is a great baseball man, " Clark told a reporter, "but he sure keeps assholes tight around here."

One day further into 1976, and it's time once again for Time Machine.  This week, we learn the price of talking about Todd Rundgren, see another chapter in "A&R men are idiots" from 1962, and connect the Starland Vocal band with  everything from Jumbo lump crab cake sandwiches to the BeeGees. Get ready to Take The Money And Run!!

10 debuts on the top 100 this week, and after doing this for over a year, it dawns on me that in naming these songs, we are celebrating their 35th birthdays!  So before I get to them, let's look elsewhere on the birthday parade.  Celebrating 45th birthdays this week are: the Stones' Mother's Little Helper; the Happenings' See You In September; and the Spoonful's Summer In The City.  Celebrating their 40th are: the Who's Won't Be Fooled Again; Chicago's Color My World; and (especially for Laurie, who I know will remember this one) Bread's Mother Freedom.  The three we feature from today's countdown are: coming in at 99, Heart and Magic Man; at 84, my all time favorite War tune, Summer; and at 74, KC and the Sunshine Band with a song I enjoyed on the old Midnight Special show with the Wolfman, Shake Your Booty.

We just about missed out on the big mover in this section, as the BeeGees leap from 65 to 41, 24 spots, with You Should Be Dancing.  The big dropper, 22 notches from 30 to 52, is Happy Days.

Last week, I said that there was so much information on Todd Rundgren that I could have done two Where Are They Nows.  Well, it's a good thing, because his rendition of Good Vibrations stalls at the magic number forty-nine this week, so he's up again.  This time, I'll look at the guys in his many bands.
First, he was in Nazz, a group who had a minor hit with Open My Eyes (and thanks to Bobby G. for sending me that link; I believe I have that tune on my Pandora station). Todd left Nazz after their second album, cleverly titled Nazz Nazz, but the band soldiered on a little while with Robert "Stewky" Antoni as lead vocal. In 2006, Antoni put a new Nazz lineup together and went on tour, proving once again what's old is new again.

Next came Runt, which was Todd plus the Sales boys, Hunt and Tony. Hunt, a drummer, has been in a million things, including the Iggy Pop song Lust For Life, which one listen to will make you say, "Oh, yeah, that was on that cruise line's commercials a few years back." DUM-DUM-DUM, DUM-DUM-DE-DUM-DUM.  Tony has also been around; besides pairing with his brother and David Bowie in the band Tin Machine (Bowie's attempt to wash the commercialness of Let's Dance off his image), he was also among other things in a band called Checquered Past.  CP was noteworthy mainly for the members of the group: Michael Des Barres, who was also MacGyver's nemesis Murdoc and the lead singer for Scum Of The Earth on WKRP In Cincinnatti; Steve Jones from the Sex Pistols; and as typical with Rundgren stories, Clem Burke and Nigel Harrison of Blondie.

Bringing us to his most successful band, Utopia.  There were several versions of Utopia- the 1974 version reunited January 29th and 30th of this year to do a benefit to pay keyboardist Moogy Klingman's cancer bills.  The most enduring version was the 1975-1986 lineup.  Kasim Sulton we've mentioned before in the New Cars; he tours with Todd and was the singer on their one top forty hit, Set Me Free.  Willie Wilson was the Senior Composer and Musical Designer for NBC Universal from 1999-2005, and is still in the TV end of things.  Robert Powell, protege of Robert Moog (who invented the Moog synthesizer), took a break from music for several years to recover from a condition called Repetitive Strain Injury; he is still putting out keyboard albums.  And there you have Todd Rundgren, part two.

We have six debuts this week in the top 40!  At 40, up fourteen, is Tavares with the 4th of their 8 top forties, Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel.  One step ahead of them for the second straight week, Wings are at 39 with the 14th of 24 top 40s credited to them, Let 'Em In. At 37, up 6, is the first (and best) of 7 top 40s for George Benson- This Masquerade.  At 35, also up six, is the first of 6 for the duo of England Dan And John Ford Coley, I'd Really Love To See You Tonight.  Climbing 12 to enter the 40 at 33 is Aretha Franklin with Something He Can Feel.  Now, everyone who knows me knows that there are certain acts I just cannot stand.  The Doors; Jay and the (f'ing) Americans; Michael (the Antichrist) Bolton.  But the top spot I save for Aretha and the Heavyweights (a name I gave her plump backup singers on their performance at the R'N'R HOF).  I honestly did try to play this song to see if I remembered it; after half a minute I had to abandon ship or I'd be remembering it in nightmares.  Apologies to her fans, but it is, after all, my story.  Finally, the top debut- after just two weeks in the hot 100, Elton John (his 19th of 57 top 40s) and Kiki Dee (her second of two) with Don't Go Breaking My Heart, after a 17 notch jump, comes in at 30.

In our look at #1s of other years, we are in the 2s this week.  1992's top dog this week was Mariah Carey's take on I'll Be There.  In 1982 it was the Human League's Don't You Want Me- a song that just kept growing on you, and by the time you decided you really did like it, it was #1.  In 1972, Cashbox had the Billy Preston instrumental Outta-Space; in 1962 we come to one of my mom's faves, Bobby Vinton's Roses Are Red.  Bobby, an aspiring new artist, found this song in the reject pile at Epic records.   A&R men, whatcha gonna do?  And the 1952 top dog this week is a repeat salutee- Georgia Gibbs with Kiss Of Fire.

One song into the top ten, one out.  Our dropper this week is Get Up And Boogie, from 6 to 18.

The newcomer (no surprise if you paid attention to the lead-in), is the Steve Miller Band's Take the Money And Run, up 2 notches.  Dropping two to #9 in The Captain And Tennile's Shop Around.  Falling three spots to #8 is Dorothy Moore and Misty Blue.  John Travolta, riding a crest of lust-filled teenyboppers, climbs 3 to #7 with Let Her In.  Starbuck climbs from 8 to six with Moonlight Feels Right.  Charging up 4 to #5 is Gary Wright with Love Is Alive.  At #4, down two, and for the first time since I started six degrees NOT the highest song sans bullet, Wings and Silly Love Somgs.  Holding (ironically enough) at #3 is Andrea True and More More More.  The Manhattans rise to 2, up 2, with Kiss And Say Goodbye.  Which brings us to our number one song, and our six degrees contestant for the week- Starland Vocal Band, third week at the top, and Afternoon Delight.

Afternoon Delight was conceived by Bill Danoff and his wife Taffy at the Clyde's restaurant in Georgetown, D.C.  The name came as they ordered off the midday appetizer menu, which Clyde's called "afternoon delights". The menu consisted of Buffalo wings, crab and artichoke dip, the Clyde's burger (lettuce, tomato, and your choice of swiss, american, muenster, cheddar, or monterrey jack cheese), the chicken sandwich #1, caesar salad, and the jumbo lump crab cake sandwich.  Danoff had also written Take Me Home Country Roads, which John Denver made into his signature song,  Danoff had never been to West Virginia; in fact, he and Taffy played with the idea of making it "Massachusetts".  Massachusetts is of course also the name of a big hit by the Bee Gees, who likewise had never been to Massachusetts (it was written on a boat bound for the Statue of Liberty) but just liked the name.  So, we have a song about West Viginia written in the Nation's Capital, a song about Massachusetts written at the Statue of Liberty, and a gold record- for this week's number one song- hanging in the foyer at Clyde's in Georgetown, where you can still order afternoon delights from 4-7 pm.

That's it from time machine.  Anybody hungry for a crab cake?

A Walk With Scrappy

Just because we've all had such a crappy week.  Let's look at the world from a beagle's point-of-view.  Step one, he figures out a walk is in the offing.

Okay, out the door we go.  Always over-exuberant at this point, but a good boy learns to sit and wait before crossing the street.

Then, we must check our p-mails- and respond if neccessary.

Since we've last taken everyone on a walk, the powers that be decided to have done with that little row of trees in the meadow where we first saw the foxes.  Also, they knocked a hole in the tree-line between the woods and the Plex road. Dastards!



"Where do you think you're going?"  "Oops, wrong trail!"

Once in the woods, we're always alert for new items.  Here's one! It's a.. bicycle seat cover... WTF??

Then, I saw (and our guide did not) a gorgeous tan doe in the woods aways off.  As usual, the camera requires your imagination.

From the center tree, she's kinda tucked in on the right by the next tree, with that bright spot over her back.  I might have had a better picture on the other shot, but the jerk on the end of my line jerked just then.

Here's a dissappointed Scrappy discovering that his favorite mud hole was dry.  Curses!

Time for a dip in the water- in more ways than one.

Shortly after the middle shot, he decided something in the mud was worth rolling in.  I convinced him otherwise. 

Now, he was refreshed, but I was not- and combined with the couple of skeeters that managed to ignore my Off, I decided it was time to work our way back.  We cut through that hole in the tree line I mentioned earlier, and somebody HAD to find something that required his immediate attention in the brush where I didn't want to go...

Holly bushes- we used to have a fence row of 'em at my childhood home (henceforth known as "the old house".

Anyway, the apparent reason for the hole in the tree line is so bulldozers can take fill dirt stored by the barn and bring it to a spot in the meadow, a few yards from the road...

Though we can't explain why they would want to do such a thing- nor can we explain this pole that stands a silent sentinel between the erosion barrier and the road.

Now, I gotta tell you one non-pictured story from last night.  Our complex is watering the lawns lately- and for two days, this involved a sprinkler positioned about 4 feet from our front door.  A fact Scrappy hadn't been clued in on.  So it was, when I finally freed myself up to take him out last night, he came to the door barking and jumping, bursting to get outside.  Then he saw the sprinkler.  Now, rivers, puddles, that's the kind of water Scrappy likes.  Rain, showers, sprinklers, not so much.  Before I got the door all the way open, he went from on the verge of exploding across the sidewalk to 2 feet BEHIND me.  Gee I wonder if Daddy's tendancy to walk him through the sprinklers had anything to do with it, hm?



Here's Your Sign

The last few days, I have found the news particularly depressing.  Here are some reasons why.

Apparently hoping the long weekend would take the bite out of it, the Administration released their latest "report card" on how the stimulus is working.  Boiling it down, by the government's own numbers, not only did we pay over a quarter million bucks for each job "created or saved"  (and I'll let you muse about how you consider a job "saved"), but, in the last three months, the total of "jobs created or saved" has DROPPED by 288,000!

In the meantime this same administration, which was quoted as saying that White House staff would not receive pay raises, gave 54% of staffers at LEAST 16% raises this year.  So, let's make this perfectly clear: if I work for president Obama, I get a pay raise; if not, I need to "sacrifice with the rest of America" and support the tax INCREASE he wants me to pay.  Every time I hear a Democratic legislator tell me that "the republicans need to be willing to give a little" I'd personally like to slap them.  They won't agree to cutting their bloated budget unless they can re-bloat it with a tax increase WE DO NOT NEED!!!  Tell me, "President" Obama, if you spread out all the raises you weren't going to give across all the people who you feel need to chip in and sacrifice, what percent raise would we all be getting?  Gee I bet it would be real close to the same amount you want to TAX us to PAY for it!

Just combine this with all the "I didn't have to ask Congress about Libya because it wasn't a big enough deal"s, the "just pass the bill, we'll find out what it says later"s, and my personal favorite, the Ted Kennedy Memorial "I don't care if I've never skipped a meal and it shows, YOU need to stop giving your kids Happy Meals"s- and my honest conclusion is that on the gatepost in front of Hell there will be a sign:

DEMOCRATIC ETERNAL CAUCUS

MAIN BALLROOM

Just turn left at the Union Leadership Office,

Across from the Global Warming Science

Research Center

And why, you ask, do I bring the unions into it yet again (I mean, other than the fact that Union Leadership and Democrat Party Leadership are a pair of leaches sucking from each other and thus hard to separate)? Well, here is a story about the Wisconsin labor revolt- and the true consequences of the bill passed by the republicans and signed by Governor Walker- that will say it better than I ever could.

Another one of the things bringing me down is the Casey Anthony verdict.  I have several Facebook friends who have joined Porch Lights for Caylee Marie Anthony.  The idea is to leave the porch light on overnight in honor of Caylee and other abused and murdered innocents.  I read through about a hundred of the postings ( the group has 2.2 million members as of my visit) , and while 95% of them are heartfelt, there are more than a few idiots who either think it's a dumb idea or just want attention. One jerk posted SHE DESERVED IT.  I did not post a comment- for one thing, it would be disingenuous since our porch light is always on.  For another, I know where Caylee is right now.  I feel sad for those on FB who feel the need to get their anti-social rocks off by proving their stupidity.  And I really think Casey- and whoever assisted her- received a great disservice from our justice system.  Instead of paying human justice- with the chance of repentance and forgiveness- she/they will more than likely be happy at the fate that they cheated, never bothering as they cash in on tabloid testimonies to think about the eternal judgement that awaits them.

And finally, a note on the curious fact that blogger, while it is pretty good at putting spam comments in the trash where they belong, they curiously let them go to e-mail.  Thus it was that I received this comment on my latest post over on Chris' Cap Collection:

Ladylike Post. This record helped me in my college assignment. Thnaks Alot

If you can figure it out, let me know. If I like your answer, I'll award you the next Trophee du Beagle.

Independance Day

On this day in 1776, a document was published, a declaration of the undersigned to freedom from an oppressive and distant government.  At the time, though, several of the men who signed this document were, in a larger sense, already free- among them William Ellery, Francis Lightfoot and Richard Henry Lee, William Paca, Benjamin Rush, Matthew Thornton, William Williams, and Oliver Woolcott.  Not present among these was another man who, like them was free in a higher sense- a man who led the forces of this group against the forces of temporal tyranny, a man who would become Father of this country.

In 1863, a man named Lincoln freed the negro slaves of the South in a proclamation.  In a larger sense, though many of these slaves were already free- a bond they shared with the man who made the proclamation.

On this day, today, we celebrate the Independence of our great nation.  I appreciate to the depths of my being that I am a part of this nation, and heir to the freedoms that so many died to give me, that so many misguided "civil libertarians" want to strip from me.  That so many hate-filled Jihadists want to kill me for having.  That so many socialists/communists would love to channel into subservience to the "state"- while those who make up the "state" laugh at them for turning all power over to such as they.  But in a larger sense, even though I was born into this great free nation, I was not always free.

I was a slave in invisible chains, though I could feel them.  I could feel them in the guilt my sins caused in me.  I could feel them in the fear over what would happen to me when I died.  And I could feel them when I tried to be good enough, whatever that was, only to fail time and again.

On night on my knees, I verbally "signed" my declaration of independence, as Washington, Lincoln, et. al., had done before me.  In doing so, I no longer required a general to muster forces to battle for my freedom, because the battle had been won on a hill in Judea  two thousand years before.  And to this day, some three decades later, I am still- and still remember- my appreciation as I felt those invisible chains slide from my arms.

So today, I celebrate what those wonderful men did two centuries ago.  And in my soul, I also celebrate the thing that links me to them- what one wonderful Man did so much longer ago.

Tricks sans treats

Anyone who follows simple dude's blog (check the button on the right hand side) got to hear him get pranked by his Lady Friend, who decided to keep him out of her ice cream cones "in a most delightful waaaay" (with apologies to Mary Poppins).  Which got me to thinking about the two best pranks I've pulled.  One was the April fool I pulled on my son KC that you can read about here.  The other was years before, and involved a veteran creature of habit- my dad.

To set this up, envision the home of my youth.  Coming in the back door, you turned right, went up two steps to the inside door, and opened it to face the west wall.  Along this wall was the cabinets, the oven, and of course the kitchen sink.  Above the sink was a 2X5 window running its length, giving one a view of the driveway, the neighbors, and the road.  My dad, as I said a creature of habit, would come in, lean over the sink and look out for a few seconds, and get a drink of water.

So I devised the idea of rubber banding the trigger to the spray-gun.  I simulated his stance and adjusted the gun to center of chest, and waited for him to come home and do the inevitable.

The most amusing part of a trick like this is the many split-second actions you do while your brain tries to kick into gear.  This was no exception.  The plan worked flawlessly.  He was a little off center, so I stood beside him to subtly nudge him into position.  Then he went for the glass and I backed up.  He turned the knob, and the jet of water struck him square in the chest.  In the less than a second afterwards, he turned the inactive faucet away to no avail, grabbed at the gun (which merely spread the attack), and once he was good and soaked, his brain caught on and turned off the knob.  I laughed.  I cried.  I screamed.  This was true father -son bonding such as we rarely did, and when he got over the shock and the pieces fell into place, he turned and said, "You dooflink!"  (That was his child-appropriate cuss word.)

Running a distant third in the evil trick department was a spur of the moment deal a couple years later, after dad had passed on.  It was a cold winter night, and as was our habit back then, a group of friends had gathered to play euchre and get drunk.  Everyone had left except my nephew- yes the same nephew who keeps getting mentioned in my cap collection blog (again look right, just higher).  It was late (like maybe 1- 1:30 am) and he asked if he could get a piece of toast to help him sober up.  I started the toast and asked what he wanted on it.  Margarine was the reply.  Now in those days, I used to get the bargain brand, nu-maid, in the hard plastic bowls that made such great food storers and cereal bowls.  And at that moment, as I opened the refrigerator and my mind went back in time two months- to a can of pork and beans, emptied into one such bowl, which I had all but finished off, put a lid on it,and then spent the intervening time going from "there's not enough in there to bother with" to "hey, I forgot about that", to "that probably isn't any good anymore" to "Someday I'll have to throw that out."

I'm sure you can guess what happened next.

If you can imagine the face of someone who looks down to find his foot in the biggest, freshest, smelliest pile of crap he or anyone else has ever stepped in, that would be the look on his face as he opened the bowl, got a look (and apparently a whiff) and sealed the bowl back shut.  As I laughed and tossed the offending bowl into the trash, he called upon the Good Lord in many and various fashions to testify he had just had the most disgusting experience of his life, as well as debating a kneel-down session in the nearby bathroom.

Ah, memories.

Step into my time machine week sixty-two

Last night on the way home, I told Laurie I had had enough of bad news around the nation and world, and put in one of my 70s CDs.  The next words I heard were (not from Laurie), "A long, long, time ago..."
(I know that old timers know what that means. For the rest, that's the opening line of Don McLean's American Pie.)  I mused, "Now that will cheer you up, " sarcastically...

Welcome to July 1st, 1976.  Tomorrow, the Socialist Republic of Viet-Nam will officially become one nation.  Today, though, we look at the music on the charts this week, along with a glimpse of the amazing story of the peripatetic Todd Rundgren; the connection between rock'n'roll and missle defense; more song birthdays; and a fourth of July six degrees that will link The Star Spangled Banner and... Dolly Parton!  Prep your breast jokes and come on into the Time Machine!

We have 8 hot 100 debuts this week, and 5 make our noteworthy list.  Starting at 99 we have Red Sovine's CB tear-jerker Teddy Bear- might as well start you all crying as well!  At 94 we have Boz Skaggs second single from Silk Degrees, called Lowdown ( I wonder wonder wonder wonder who...)  Fleetwood Mac hits with the third single from their breakthrough self-named lp, Say That You Love Me, debuting at 93.   The next two take a big step away from the pack- and each other.  Coming in all the way up at 65 are the Bee Gees with You Should Be Dancing; and even farther up at 47 is Elton John, with Kiki Dee, and Don't Go Breaking My Heart, a song that I never thought the lyrics quite meshed on.

The big dropper this week is Crazy On You, sadly slipping 27 spots to 68. The high climber goes to Wings and Let 'Em In, soaring from 78 to 53.  I also want to give some shoutouts to songs that haven't tasted the rarified airs of top 40 this week- Nutbush City Limits is still in there climbing, up to 83 after three weeks; Last weeks's big dropper, Who Loves You Better, slams on the coaster brakes and goes back up 5 spots to 82; and it looks like Foghat, the perrenial opening act, will peak at 57 with Fool For The City.

Which brings us to #49, and our where are they now segment.  Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Todd Rundgren.



Good Vibrations was at 49 this week.  And as for Todd, there is so much to tell about him, that I can even with the help of a Time Machine only tell you some highlights.  As Bobby G. can tell you, he started out in a group called Nazz; afterwords he put together (for what are basically his first two solo lps) a band he called Runt- which consisted of himself and Tony and Hunt Sales, sons of the comic Soupy Sales.  This was the gathering that did his first decent sized hit, We Gotta Get You A Woman.  After that, he began testing the effects of various drugs on his songwritng-  He claims to have written I Saw The Light on ritalin in 20 minutes.  Besides solo work, he put together the prog-rock band Utopia from 1974-1986, which had the one top 40 hit Set Me Free off the excellent album Adventures In Utopia, which also featured AOR hits You Make Me Crazy and Caravan.

Fast forward to more recent times.  In 2006, despite the death of Benjamin Orr and the refusal of Ric Okasik, Todd became involved in a revival of The Cars.  The reborn band included besides Todd:  former Cars Elliot Easton and Greg Hawkes; Clem Burke of Blondie; Everclear's Art Alexakis; Kasim Sulton from Utopia, and drummer Prairie Prince of the Tubes.  The New Cars released an album of old Cars songs, a few of Todd's songs, and three new cuts, including a single called Not Tonight(which I'm previewing as we speak).

Of course, he kept busy as a producer, especially on the classic Meatloaf lp Bat Out Of Hell.  He also has released (in 2010) a disc of bootlegs from various concerts called For Lack Of Honest Work, and later this year is expected to release a cover album of songs done by others and produced by him , called tentatively  re:Production.  Also last year he did a cover of songs by a bluesman named Robert Johnson, who burned hot in 1936-7 until he was apparently murdered by poison,  and was said to have made a deal with the Devil to get his talent (you'll have to look that story up yourselves).  The album is somewhat cleverly titled Todd Rundgren's Johnson.

Finally, he became IU Class of 1963 Wells Scholar Professor at Indiana University in Oct.-Nov. of last year and co-taught a four-week seminar called The Ballad Of Todd Rundgren.  I can't make this stuff up.

And the song? Todd does a decent Okasik, the song was pretty good, but a little light on the synth to sound like the Cars.  Probably closer to the Tubes, to me.

I made a boo boo on the top album last week.  I was a month ahead of myself on Frampton's return to the top.  At 7 am, July 24th can look a lot like June 23rd.  This week (for sure), on top for the 3rd straight week and 5th out of the last 11, Wings At The Speed Of Sound.  Sorry, Peter, sorry, Paul.

Our top 40 debuts this week are five in number.  Coming in at 40, up 8, is the one and only t40 for Walter Murphy and the Big Apple Band, A Fifth Of Beethoven. Up 4 to land at #38 this week is ABBA with the 5th of their 9 top forty US, Mamma Mia.  At 37 is the 5th of six top forties for Lou Rawls, You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine, an 8 notch mover.  Coming in at 36, up ten, is the 17th of 20 top 40s for Karen and Richard Carpenter, I Need To Be In Love.  And finally, another subject that came up at the big PA-IN Erudition/Tilting At Windmills blogger summit (aka Mrs. Bobby G.'s birthday lunch at Red Lobster), Neil Diamond's If You Know What I Mean.  I had mentioned that Neil's songs were very hit-and -miss as far as playing a lot around here, and this one for whatever reason, was a miss.  In fact, at this point in time, of the 25 top forty hits Neil had had, I recognize just 14 of them.  And some of them, like this one, went quite a ways.

Our look at number ones of other years is in the ones this week.  In 1991, the top song this week was Paula Abdul's Rush Rush, which was so sedate  that when I played it last night I almost forgot I was listening when I finished.  In 1981 the top dog was Kim Carnes' Bette Davis Eyes, returning for a fouth week after having been supplanted for the last two by the Stars On 45 Medley. In 1971 it was Carole King with It's Too Late from the lp Tapestry.  1961 this week was headed by Gary Levone Anderson, better known as Gary US Bonds, with the rousing Quarter To Three.  Finally in 1951 we find the wonderful Nat King Cole at the top with Too Young.  Nat was a hard one to track stats down for; Wikipedia didn't have a singles discography, and Billboard only showed after 1962.  But I found a site called MusicVF.com which shows the King with 65 top fortys, 19 top tens, and four #1s- this one; 1946's (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons; 1948's Nature Boy; and 1950's Mona Lisa.

Songs celebrating birthdays (ie hot 100 debuts) today include The Mamas And The Papas' I Saw Her Again, 45 years old; and 40th birthdays for the Doors' Riders On The Storm, 3 Dog Night's Liar, and Bill Withers' Ain't No Sunshine.

Our Almost but not quite today is the Doobies' Taking It To The Street, which will peak the next two weeks at 15.  Tom Johnston became too ill to finish the tour they were on, and former member of touring Steely Dan, Jeff Baxter ( who now sits as chair of the Congressional Advisory Board On Missle Defense), suggested another out-of -work Steely Dan -er, Michael McDonald.  The band loved his work and hired him on full time, but they debated long and hard whether they were going to go on without Tom (who hadn't quit but couldn't really contribute).  They finally decided to see what they had, and it wasn't enough for an album- unless they added a trio of Michael's songs.  They knew that it would change the entire dynamic of the band, but producer Ted Templeman told them that they had "a diamond in the rough" in McDonald.  So they took the chance- and it bought them both this hit and the subsequent It Keeps You Running, from this lp, also called Taking It To The Streets.

Boogie Fever continues to hold the grandpa seat at 23 weeks.

2 songs enter the top ten, 2 fall out.  The droppers are Never Gonna Fall In Love Again, from 9 to 11, and former top dog Love Hangover, from 4 to 18.

And now, our star-spangled six degrees special.  The national anthem was written by Francis Scott Key, as everyone knows.  Key was the great-great-great-great-great-great grandpa of Dana Key, half of the Christian contemporary duo DeGarmo and Key.  His partner, Eddie DeGarmo, is the uncle of season three American Idol runner up Diana DeGarmo, who lost to Fantasia Barrone.  Among the many things Diana has done in her post-Idol career was the stage production of 9 to5: the Musical, a 2009 tribute to the movie, in which she played the part of secretary Doralee Rhodes, who in the movie was played by- Dolly Parton.  So there you have it- Star Spangled Banner to F.S. Key to Dana Key to Eddie DeGarmo to Diana DeGarmo to 9-to-5 to Dolly Parton.

TOP TEN!  Coming in at #10, moving up three, is John Travolta with Let Her In.  Gary Wright jumps 2 to #9 with Love Is Alive.  Starbuck moves a pair to #8 with Moonlight Feels Right.  The Captain And Tenille slip a notch to #7 with Shop Around.  Former top dog Silver Convention slip one spot to #6 with Get Up And Boogie.   Dorothy Moore eases down 2 to #5 with Misty Blue.  The Manhattans climb three to #4 with Kiss And Say Goodbye.  At #3, up one, the Andrea True Connection with More More More.  Still lodged at #2 are Wings and Silly Love Songs,  and that means that our #1 remains- Afternoon Delight, by the Starland Vocal Band!

Wow! A lot of stuff this week.  Have a GREEEAT 4th, y'all!