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Well, the final race was today at Homestead and as many suspected, Jimmie Johnson is the Nextel Cup Champion.
Honestly as much as his toady-ness annoys me, the truth is he and Chad Knauss are a first rate team and it was only a matter of time before they took the big one home. They deserved it. Congrats to them and the entire #48 Team.
It was a good race. It would have been more interesting to watch if the guys in the booth had talked about more people then just the top five Chase contenders. And Jimmie Johnson, could they have tried to go five minutes without talking about him?
(And how much saccrine psuedo-inspirational crap are we supposed to take? It's like molasses guys: a little goes a long way.)
“And we’re cycling through pit stops and hey…look who’s in the lead…Elliott Sadler!”
And they never mentioned him again. I know from the grid that he took four tires with 50-60 laps to go when everyone else took two. A smart move. If they were going to take four it was the time to do so when they still had the laps to make it work for them, but then he just vanished. Only by watching the ticker did I find out he had to drop out of the race and we don’t know for what reason.
Anyway, rough day for the #8. They were putting up a good fight and had a strong lead but a mess-up in the pits which ticked off Dale who then over-drove the car and smacked the wall…But hey, you guys ended up 5th in points, that ain’t chopped liver. Congrats on a great year. :)
And Elliott, congrats on hopefully finding the right situation for you to shine in next year. :)
Well. Except for the Banquet it’s over. As JJ and Co. sticks around to do Victory Lane on SPEED, everyone else is moving at warp speed to get their butts back to their respective families for hopefully a few days of coma and the Thanksgiving Holiday. NASCAR has the longest season of any sport, period. It starts February 12 and goes to now, the weekend before Thanksgiving. 36 races, plus the non-points oddities like the Nextel All Star and the Budweiser Shootout. Enjoy your time off fellas, you earned it.
It’s been an interesting season…
I have seen a couple lists of great import this weekend and felt I should contribute to the ongoing discussion of such vital topics as…
Greatest Songs of the 1980’s and Best Ships in SciFi.
We’ll tackle songs first and ships tomorrow.
Music of the 1980's
I graduated high school in 1989, so for me to discuss it’s pop culture is not an attempt at trendy kitsch, but a true nostalgia. As Grosse Point Blank spelled out so well, the music truly defined that generation, perhaps more so than the kids living today in a Clear Channel/manufactured music media world.
Now, there are many songs that are symbolic of the era. Born In The U.S.A. for example. Honestly, I was never overly fond of this song. I prefer Springsteen’s earlier stuff like Born to Run. However this was *the* song that represented the American Middle Class, it’s growing disillusionment with the Government and the failing American Dream. Had Reagan not heisted it for his 1984 campaign, it might have remained a pure rock anthem. As it was, it was everywhere and catapulted Springsteen into superstardom.
But every 80’s list includes and discusses songs like this and the Police “Every Breath You Take” and Duran Duran. I don’t need to go over those songs.
Here are some that to me represent that time in culture and my life.
That is, after being forced down to 10 and in no particular order…
- Life In a Northern Town by the Dream Academy. Arriving in Southern California from a miniscule town in Maine was something of a culture shock. Not to say that I didn’t take advantage of living in place that afforded more entertainments for the rebellious youth than swiping a six pack and driving off into the woods to get pregnant, but the big city, specially the hot big city, was never home to me. I still miss Maine. This song captures some of the pace and almost surreal detachment felt in such a grey cold place, even if the lyrics describe the height of summer.
- Suburbia by the Pet Shop Boys. This is where I moved into in Southern California and my Gawd did this song capture the vapid cloister teenagers were so desperate to escape.
- Whisper to a Scream by Icicle Works. There is no better teen rebellious angst empowerment song…ever. Though Big Country comes close, the drums on “Whisper”rock.
- Party at Ground Zero by Fishbone. There were many playful post-apocalyptic songs floating around during the 1980’s: Nina’s “99 Luft Ballons” and another one of my favorites Souxsie and Banshee’s “Cities in Dust” for examples, but this was the ultimate statement of, “We’ve been living with this nuclear Mexican standoff for so long, we just don’t care anymore.” ..and you can dance to it.
- Killing Jar by Souxsie and the Banshees, probably one of the most quietly influential bands of the era. Killing Jar is about vivisection, but it’s so..fun sounding. Honestly the lyrics an emotionally damaging exposé’ on mankind’s not mere capacity but seeming desire for destruction, but they are further brought into relief by being set to music that is so lighthearted. Which is kind of the point and how we ignore this part of ourselves. Plus the lyric “The soft hoodwink shadow size of make believe” inspired one of my favorite D&D characters. (I am such a geek.)
Honestly Souxsie had a bunch of great songs that I adored. Peekaboo, Cities in Dust, their remake of Dear Prudence and one of the sweetest, if a tad dark, love songs I have ever heard, The Last Beat of My Heart. It’s truly difficult to chose just one song from them.
- Just Another Day by Oingo Boingo. The only way most of the rest of the county has heard of Boingo is “That band Danny Elfman used to be in” or they hear “Dead Man’s Party” every Halloween, but some of us were truly blest to live on the West Coast and be exposed to Boingo’s darkly satirical light. Oingo Boingo’s tribute to paranoia remains one of my favorites to this day.
- Where the Streets Have No Name by U2. If there is one word to describe U2 it’s “passion”…and a completely tight and grand sound all their own. The same sweeping passion they brought to their political music they built their more personal or romantic music on. This one holds all the exciting and expansive promise of falling in love.
Interestingly enough, I remember KROQ in Los Angeles calling for fans to come down and be in the video…they got a few more than expected.
- Dancing With Myself by Billy Idol. What list wouldn’t be complete without an admission of a guilty pleasure? I don’t care what all you gutter-minded folk say it’s about, it damn fun to dance to.
And the video has all the nonsensical hallmarks of early MTV trashy goodness.
- Something About You by Level 42. Best/Cutest Love Song ever. That was just a great song. I really don’t know how to say anything more than that.
-Love Is a Stranger by the Eurythmics. Was their ever a vocalist like Anne? What a Voice. There are few women in music now who can sing, and even fewer who can emote as she can, plus she has matured nicely so women who loved her in the Eurythmics love her still as a soloist.
Like Bands like the Police and Bruce Springsteen, it is very hard to think of the music of the 1980’s without thinking of the Eurythmics. Truly there are many great songs to chose from but to take a break from the “Sweet Dreams” and “Here Comes the Rain Again”, I would chose “Love Is a Stranger” for expressing so eloquently all the fears most people have to conquer when they fall in love.
- Better Be Good To Me by Tina Turner. Speaking of women who can sing, Tina had 80’s women’s back and this was a great song for that “I’m getting over heartbreak” phase.
- Rag Doll by Aerosmith. Growing up in the North East, liking Aerosmith is as culturally de riguer as liking Lynnard Skynnard in the South East. During the 1980’s, Aerosmith came back together to save us from drowning in the New Wave and the release of Permanent Vacation was an event. Rag Doll is the fun with a old jazzy-rockin’ feel.
I was fortunate to see them, fourth row center, for their Pump Tour. The same year I saw Alice Cooper at the Pantages, 13th row. Honestly, there will be no shows that can top those. I never have to go to concert again.
Another 1980’s offering of theirs I really love is the bluesy What It Takes, but that was really in came out in 1989 which kind of pushes boundary a bit...though it was definitely before the Metal to Grunge transition.
-Pink Houses by John Cougar Mellencamp. (I could never stop saying the “Cougar”) Mellencamp always did balance pure American rock n’ roll with a poignant awareness of American small town culture. Hurt’s So Good and Jack and Diane on the same album for instance.
Note: After a discussion following the release of What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, my brother and I decided that a person’s reaction to Jack and Diane was an acid test to whether they truly understood American small town life. People either say “Oh, that’s a cute song” or they just nod solemnly.
But my personal favorite was always Pink Houses. There is such a tattered and uniquely American pride in it.
- Pressure by Billy Joel. I love this song. I love this album (Nylon Curtin). It’s the in-yer-face Billy before he got tamed by Christie Brinkley. Pressure not only has a rockin’ sound, it’s “What the fuck do you know?” lyrics are a great way to vent at the world (and it’s something for someone trying to consul a friend through a crisis to keep in mind.) Plus the video image of Billy drowning in shag carpeting is one that stuck with me forever.
Oh lord, I’ve gone over ten haven’t it?
O.K. a couple more.
Come Dancing by the Kinks. It’s just a fun tune with a lovely hint of nostalgia.
Our House by Madness. Because if it wasn’t your house, you wished it was. Certainly after the video came out, which I think I remember it being voted the best of that year.
O.K. That’s the 80’s to me.
Well, the final race was today at Homestead and as many suspected, Jimmie Johnson is the Nextel Cup Champion.
Honestly as much as his toady-ness annoys me, the truth is he and Chad Knauss are a first rate team and it was only a matter of time before they took the big one home. They deserved it. Congrats to them and the entire #48 Team.
It was a good race. It would have been more interesting to watch if the guys in the booth had talked about more people then just the top five Chase contenders. And Jimmie Johnson, could they have tried to go five minutes without talking about him?
(And how much saccrine psuedo-inspirational crap are we supposed to take? It's like molasses guys: a little goes a long way.)
“And we’re cycling through pit stops and hey…look who’s in the lead…Elliott Sadler!”
And they never mentioned him again. I know from the grid that he took four tires with 50-60 laps to go when everyone else took two. A smart move. If they were going to take four it was the time to do so when they still had the laps to make it work for them, but then he just vanished. Only by watching the ticker did I find out he had to drop out of the race and we don’t know for what reason.
Anyway, rough day for the #8. They were putting up a good fight and had a strong lead but a mess-up in the pits which ticked off Dale who then over-drove the car and smacked the wall…But hey, you guys ended up 5th in points, that ain’t chopped liver. Congrats on a great year. :)
And Elliott, congrats on hopefully finding the right situation for you to shine in next year. :)
Well. Except for the Banquet it’s over. As JJ and Co. sticks around to do Victory Lane on SPEED, everyone else is moving at warp speed to get their butts back to their respective families for hopefully a few days of coma and the Thanksgiving Holiday. NASCAR has the longest season of any sport, period. It starts February 12 and goes to now, the weekend before Thanksgiving. 36 races, plus the non-points oddities like the Nextel All Star and the Budweiser Shootout. Enjoy your time off fellas, you earned it.
It’s been an interesting season…
I have seen a couple lists of great import this weekend and felt I should contribute to the ongoing discussion of such vital topics as…
Greatest Songs of the 1980’s and Best Ships in SciFi.
We’ll tackle songs first and ships tomorrow.
Music of the 1980's
I graduated high school in 1989, so for me to discuss it’s pop culture is not an attempt at trendy kitsch, but a true nostalgia. As Grosse Point Blank spelled out so well, the music truly defined that generation, perhaps more so than the kids living today in a Clear Channel/manufactured music media world.
Now, there are many songs that are symbolic of the era. Born In The U.S.A. for example. Honestly, I was never overly fond of this song. I prefer Springsteen’s earlier stuff like Born to Run. However this was *the* song that represented the American Middle Class, it’s growing disillusionment with the Government and the failing American Dream. Had Reagan not heisted it for his 1984 campaign, it might have remained a pure rock anthem. As it was, it was everywhere and catapulted Springsteen into superstardom.
But every 80’s list includes and discusses songs like this and the Police “Every Breath You Take” and Duran Duran. I don’t need to go over those songs.
Here are some that to me represent that time in culture and my life.
That is, after being forced down to 10 and in no particular order…
- Life In a Northern Town by the Dream Academy. Arriving in Southern California from a miniscule town in Maine was something of a culture shock. Not to say that I didn’t take advantage of living in place that afforded more entertainments for the rebellious youth than swiping a six pack and driving off into the woods to get pregnant, but the big city, specially the hot big city, was never home to me. I still miss Maine. This song captures some of the pace and almost surreal detachment felt in such a grey cold place, even if the lyrics describe the height of summer.
- Suburbia by the Pet Shop Boys. This is where I moved into in Southern California and my Gawd did this song capture the vapid cloister teenagers were so desperate to escape.
- Whisper to a Scream by Icicle Works. There is no better teen rebellious angst empowerment song…ever. Though Big Country comes close, the drums on “Whisper”rock.
- Party at Ground Zero by Fishbone. There were many playful post-apocalyptic songs floating around during the 1980’s: Nina’s “99 Luft Ballons” and another one of my favorites Souxsie and Banshee’s “Cities in Dust” for examples, but this was the ultimate statement of, “We’ve been living with this nuclear Mexican standoff for so long, we just don’t care anymore.” ..and you can dance to it.
- Killing Jar by Souxsie and the Banshees, probably one of the most quietly influential bands of the era. Killing Jar is about vivisection, but it’s so..fun sounding. Honestly the lyrics an emotionally damaging exposé’ on mankind’s not mere capacity but seeming desire for destruction, but they are further brought into relief by being set to music that is so lighthearted. Which is kind of the point and how we ignore this part of ourselves. Plus the lyric “The soft hoodwink shadow size of make believe” inspired one of my favorite D&D characters. (I am such a geek.)
Honestly Souxsie had a bunch of great songs that I adored. Peekaboo, Cities in Dust, their remake of Dear Prudence and one of the sweetest, if a tad dark, love songs I have ever heard, The Last Beat of My Heart. It’s truly difficult to chose just one song from them.
- Just Another Day by Oingo Boingo. The only way most of the rest of the county has heard of Boingo is “That band Danny Elfman used to be in” or they hear “Dead Man’s Party” every Halloween, but some of us were truly blest to live on the West Coast and be exposed to Boingo’s darkly satirical light. Oingo Boingo’s tribute to paranoia remains one of my favorites to this day.
- Where the Streets Have No Name by U2. If there is one word to describe U2 it’s “passion”…and a completely tight and grand sound all their own. The same sweeping passion they brought to their political music they built their more personal or romantic music on. This one holds all the exciting and expansive promise of falling in love.
Interestingly enough, I remember KROQ in Los Angeles calling for fans to come down and be in the video…they got a few more than expected.
- Dancing With Myself by Billy Idol. What list wouldn’t be complete without an admission of a guilty pleasure? I don’t care what all you gutter-minded folk say it’s about, it damn fun to dance to.
And the video has all the nonsensical hallmarks of early MTV trashy goodness.
- Something About You by Level 42. Best/Cutest Love Song ever. That was just a great song. I really don’t know how to say anything more than that.
-Love Is a Stranger by the Eurythmics. Was their ever a vocalist like Anne? What a Voice. There are few women in music now who can sing, and even fewer who can emote as she can, plus she has matured nicely so women who loved her in the Eurythmics love her still as a soloist.
Like Bands like the Police and Bruce Springsteen, it is very hard to think of the music of the 1980’s without thinking of the Eurythmics. Truly there are many great songs to chose from but to take a break from the “Sweet Dreams” and “Here Comes the Rain Again”, I would chose “Love Is a Stranger” for expressing so eloquently all the fears most people have to conquer when they fall in love.
- Better Be Good To Me by Tina Turner. Speaking of women who can sing, Tina had 80’s women’s back and this was a great song for that “I’m getting over heartbreak” phase.
- Rag Doll by Aerosmith. Growing up in the North East, liking Aerosmith is as culturally de riguer as liking Lynnard Skynnard in the South East. During the 1980’s, Aerosmith came back together to save us from drowning in the New Wave and the release of Permanent Vacation was an event. Rag Doll is the fun with a old jazzy-rockin’ feel.
I was fortunate to see them, fourth row center, for their Pump Tour. The same year I saw Alice Cooper at the Pantages, 13th row. Honestly, there will be no shows that can top those. I never have to go to concert again.
Another 1980’s offering of theirs I really love is the bluesy What It Takes, but that was really in came out in 1989 which kind of pushes boundary a bit...though it was definitely before the Metal to Grunge transition.
-Pink Houses by John Cougar Mellencamp. (I could never stop saying the “Cougar”) Mellencamp always did balance pure American rock n’ roll with a poignant awareness of American small town culture. Hurt’s So Good and Jack and Diane on the same album for instance.
Note: After a discussion following the release of What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, my brother and I decided that a person’s reaction to Jack and Diane was an acid test to whether they truly understood American small town life. People either say “Oh, that’s a cute song” or they just nod solemnly.
But my personal favorite was always Pink Houses. There is such a tattered and uniquely American pride in it.
- Pressure by Billy Joel. I love this song. I love this album (Nylon Curtin). It’s the in-yer-face Billy before he got tamed by Christie Brinkley. Pressure not only has a rockin’ sound, it’s “What the fuck do you know?” lyrics are a great way to vent at the world (and it’s something for someone trying to consul a friend through a crisis to keep in mind.) Plus the video image of Billy drowning in shag carpeting is one that stuck with me forever.
Oh lord, I’ve gone over ten haven’t it?
O.K. a couple more.
Come Dancing by the Kinks. It’s just a fun tune with a lovely hint of nostalgia.
Our House by Madness. Because if it wasn’t your house, you wished it was. Certainly after the video came out, which I think I remember it being voted the best of that year.
O.K. That’s the 80’s to me.
posted by KiplingKat | 10:55 PM
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