Five on Friday

Last week R.E.M. called it quits.  This has been one of my favorite bands for years.  I had the chance to see them in concert and they put on an awesome show.  Besides being one of my favorites the group has been one of the most influential bands in the last two decades.  As a college band they set the standard for other up and coming bands.  As a "legend" band I think they showed how to be popular and famous with class and dignity.  I'm sorry to see them go, but they went out on their own terms and as friends deciding to call it a night.

1. Everybody Hurts
Some people find this song too sentimental and sappy, but I think it was one of their most beautiful songs with some meaningful lyrics.



2. At My Most Beautiful
From their album UP which shows they were still making great music even later in the game.



3. So. Central Rain
Some old R.E.M.  Doesn't that guitar at the start make you think of the Byrds?  They look so young in this video.



4. Man On The Moon
This is when they were really popular, one of the biggest bands in the world.



5. Losing My Religion
My favorite R.E.M. song.  I just love this song.  The title refers to a saying from the south, I remember my Mom and some of her relatives using it.  When you get mad enough at someone you tell them "Don't make me lose my religion."

Ringer

So I missed the first airing of Sarah Michelle Gellar's new show Ringer earlier in the week.  I hadn't realized it was starting this week, most of the network shows start their season premieres next week.  A post by a friend on Facebook made me realize that I had missed the show.   Luckily their showed it again tonight.

So far the show is a hit.  It run its night and was one of the best nights for CW in three years.  And even better was that the show is good.  The first episode set up a lot and if you're not paying attention it can get pretty confusing.  I'm not even going to try to explain what's going on.  I'm just glad to see Ms. Gellar is in fine form and was great in the show.  Here's hoping that the show continues to grow and get better.

FIve on Friday

For full details on Five on Friday go to Trav's site.

My Five this week is songs from Joan Jett.  Recently I read a biographer of Cheri Currie, the lead singer of The Runaways, the all girl group that Joan was a member of.  And today I just picked up a copy of  Bad Reputation, a biography of Joan herself.  I've been a fan of Joan Jett since she was a member of The Runaways, so I thought today I would just present five songs from Joan Jett.

1. I Love Rock and Roll
I love this song.  Absolutely, completely, all-ending love this song.



2. Bad Reputation


3. Do You Wanna Touch Me


4. I Hate Myself For Loving You


5. And finally the Runaways and their song Cherry Bomb.

10 Years Ago...

It was a Tuesday.  I was working for Service Merchandise.  I was the Store Manger for the store in Slidell.  I was off for the day. Slidell is across Lake Pontchartrain from New Orleans.  It's about an hour drive into the city, maybe less depending on traffic.  My plan for the day was to drive across the lake into Metairie and stop at Borders and CompUSA and a few other places.  Tuesday is new music day, so the new albums for the week would be out.  Bob Dylan's "Love and Theft" was scheduled to come out today.  I got up around early enough so I could get out of the house and on the road before nine or at least not too late afterwards.


Sometime before nine, my friend and assistant manager, Billy called me.  I figured something must be up at the store.  He just told me to turn the tv on.  What channel?  It didn't matter.  I had no idea what could be going on.  If anything I thought of something along the lines of the Challenger disaster.  


I had no idea.  


I turned on the TV and saw one of the World Trade Center towers in flames and smoke pouring out.  A plane had crashed into it.  While listening to it the station the second plane flew into the other tower.  I was standing in front of the television.  I couldn't move.  I just stood there, watching the scenes of destruction.  I don't know how long I stood there.  Somehow I found myself sitting on the couch, my eyes never leaving the screen.  I sat there, watching and listening.  


Finally I couldn't watch any longer.  I had to get up and go out.  I decided to still go across the lake.  I needed to do something to take my mind off the images I had just seen.  All the way over the water and into the city I listened to the news.  I ended up buying the new Dylan but it never made it into the player that day.  I'm not sure when I actually listened to the album.  I had to buy something at CompUSA.  I have no idea what it was today.  I remember very few people in there shopping and that it was just so quiet.  No one was talking.  It was like everyone was in a state of shock.


Driving home I took the causeway.  The Causeway was the longest concrete bridge in the world, I think there's a bridge in China now that's taken that title since.  But at the time it held claim to the longest such bridge in the world, going over the waters of Lake Pontchartrain.  The bridge is 24 miles from end to end.  


I was in the middle of the bridge, with no end in sight, water all around me and for a brief moment I thought that if there was any targets in Louisiana that the terrorists might aim for, the worlds longest bridge might not be a bad idea.  It really didn't take serious hold in my mind, it was too wrapped up in what was going on in New York and Washington, but there was a brief moment of panic.


As soon as I got home I was back on the couch with the television on.  The rest of the day was pretty much spent in front of the screen, watching what was going on.  I just remember the feelings of grief and sorrow I felt that day.  And later as I continued to watch the feelings of anger.  All that grief built up to an anger at those that did this.  While the anger has taken other forms, the grief and sorrow are still there.


Now ten years later I still feel that grief and sorrow.  I was listening to NPR and they had a young boy on that was around four years old on 9/11.  His grandfather was one of those that died in the towers.  He was talking about that day with his Mother and when he started to talk about when his Mother had told him that his Grandfather was in one of the towers and his voice was cracking with emotion I had to turn the station.  Even now, ten years later, it is so hard to see those images and listen to those stories.  


I really don't have anything more insightful or meaningful that you'll no doubt read or hear about that day on other sites.  All I know is that I'll never forget that day.

Five on Friday

Having problems with the playlist and it seems the internet today, so I'm just going to try and post some you tube videos for my Five on Friday.  Today I'm going to try and just post five artists that you might not have heard of.

Trampled by Turtles:


Caroline Herring:


Town Walsh:

Brother Joscephus and the Love Revival Revolution Orchestra:

Ike Reilly:

The Ending of Fringe Season 3

*************SPOILER ALERT****************SPOILER ALERT*************************

If you haven't watched the end of last season, season three of Fringe, and want to, don't read any farther.  But if you have seen it I have a few questions.

When Peter vanishes at the end and the observers comment that Peter was not important, he didn't matter anymore and that was why he disappeared.

Excuse me though, isn't Peter the one person that is important as far as the two worlds are concerned?  If Walter hadn't kidnapped him in the first place, none of the destruction would have started on the other world.  If Peter wasn't there to go into the machine how did the two worlds come together at the end?  

I'm hoping, and reasonably sure, that they have explanations for these questions, but it makes me wonder.

Happy Birthday JJ

Today JJ would have been 23 years old.  My thoughts go out to his family Jason, Claire and Parker today.