TV/POLITICS: All Hail The Daily Show

The Daily Show is not only the funniest show on television, it is now arguably the most important. This video clip, courtesy of Crooks And Liars, is another of the endless examples why. Scroll down to the heading, TDS: Oprah vs News.

POLITICS: Filibuster, Damn It!

John Digby has a great post on his blog on why Democrats in the Senate should filibuster the Alito nomination here, (scroll down to the heading Conviction Politics).

Money quote from the post (actually a paraphrase of a Bob Beckel quote):
"Now you know that in this enviroment if a Democratic president nominated a pro-choice, pro-affirmative action, pro-government secrecy judge to the high court that many Republicans would want to filibuster. Sometimes politicans do things out of conviction and many Democrats are supporting a filibuster because they really believe that he should not be on the Supreme Court."

POLITICS: Gay Rights In Washington!

There's a reason why they call it The Great Northwest...

POLITICS: Doing Missouri Proud

Daddy Blunt, you're a naughty boy...

MUSIC: What's On In The Car, Vol. 1

I've decided to introduce a new feature that I'll drop on here from time to time called, What's On In The Car. It's pretty simple. Whenever the fancy hits me, I'll send along a few words about whatever six cds are currently sitting in the six cd changer in my car. Maybe you'll be inspired to check some of these tunes out, maybe not...

So here's the first installment of What's On In The Car (label the record is on in parentheses):

1. Steve Wynn & The Miracle 3---...tick...tick...tick (Down There)
Another total ass-kicker from my man Steve and his wonderful band The Miracle 3. More of what he does, but this time there's a spooky sort of night time desert feel to the proceedings, as they cut this record in Tucson. Great basic two guitars, bass & drums rock, with Steve's typically dark cinematic lyrics on top. He and fellow guitarist Jason Victor are probably the best Television influenced guitar team around these days. www.stevewynn.net

2. The Sir Douglas Quintet---The Collection (Castle Communications)
Picked up a used copy at work of this nice little greatest hits collection cause I didn't have their cover of the 13th Floor Elevators "You're Gonna Miss Me" on anything. Doug & the boys do a more, uh, canabis flavored version compared to whatever the Elevators were on, but it's still pretty rockin' nonetheless. Don't know any other way to say it, so I'll just say it: I can't stand that Doug Sahm is not alive and still making music. http://www.dougsahm.com/

3. Doug Gillard---Salamander (Pink Frost/Big Takeover)
Great solo effort from the former lead guitarist of Guided By Voices, Gem, Cobra Verde & Death Of Samantha. The songs vear to the dark side of the Beatles' White Album street and share the spotlight with Gillard's formidable guitar. Not the greatest of singers, but that's ok. Gillard's voice is still listenable enough to carry the show here, a nice little pop album. www.douggillard.com

4. David Axelrod---The Edge: David Axelrod At Capitol Records 1966-1970 (Capitol Jazz)
If you dig adventurous ‘60's orchestrations, then this compilation of the famed producer’s work for Capitol Records is for you. Known for producing Lou Rawls, Cannonball Adderley, and The Electric Prunes, Axelrod solo records have long been a favorite source of samples for hip-hop & electronica DJs. Some of that work for Rawls and Adderley is represented here, but the bulk of this compilation comes from three of Axelrod’s most innovative and far out solo records, Songs Of Innocence, Songs Of Experience, and Earth Rot. Fans of legendary bassist Carol Kaye should also check this out, as it features some the greatest playing of her extraordinary career. The David Axelrod Information Society

5. The Move---Message From The Country (Reissue) (Capitol)
Ah yes, the mother lode. The 1971 classic, their finest moment, beautifully remastered and repackaged. It’s incredibly hard to convey what this particular music has meant to my existence. I played this record and its companion record Split Ends, just about every day when I was in high school, and on through the years the importance of this music only increases as it continues to influence my musical life. This is Roy Wood and Jeff Lynne---two of the world’s greatest songwriters at the height of their powers as a team, let loose in a studio to do whatever they wanted, resulting in some of the greatest rock music ever recorded. This cd also includes the five monumental singles the band made after the album’s release, all completely essential, plus two album outtakes and a Peel session version of "Do Ya". Already the reissue of the year. www.themoveonline.com

6. Robert Pollard—From A Compound Eye (Merge)
Pollard’s first post-Guided By Voices "big" release is a deeply rich psychedelic masterpiece. As the cd booklet clearly points out, this is an old-fashioned ‘70’s double album with four distinct sides of music. The classic Pollard trademarks are all here: the brilliant melodies, riffs, singing, lyrics, and song craft; but longtime listeners will quickly be able to distinguish that this is definitely not a GBV record. Though not the sound of a rock band playing (Pollard and collaborator Todd Tobias played 99.9% of the instruments), it’s nonetheless one of the "largest" rock records Pollard has ever made. The whole thing plays like 70 minutes of random late night programming from some FM rock station somewhere in 1972---that special period in rock history when established late ‘60's rock sensibilities were merging with the burgeoning new musical sensibilities of the new decade, and any style of music that the term "rock music" could be applied to was all getting played on what was definitely still "free form" radio. Believe it or not, the one thing a majority of these songs remind me of is Peter Gabriel era Genesis, especially in Pollard’s singing---a good thing in my book, but something that may horrify the indie-rock kids, so keep that a secret. Heck, songs from this album like "I’m A Strong Lion" and "Kingdom Without" could have easily fallen off of The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway. But hey, it’s Pollard, so there is still a lot of rocking out, though this time the Who-flavored power pop is more The Who Sell Out than Who’s Next. I’ve already listened to this record in its entirety about a dozen times, and I continue to hear a hundred or so different things in it with each new spin. What more can you ask for from a rock record? All that’s left to say is the fucker’s done it again. The Pollard legend marches on . . .
robertpollard.net

POLITICS: Same Pig, Same Trough

The great E.J. Dionne on Karl Rove's 2006 campaign strategy.

POLITICS: Go Molly!!!

HERE IT IS FOLKS! LEARN IT, LIVE IT, AND TAKE IT TO THE STREETS! From the pen of Her Majesty Molly Ivins.

ST. LOUIS: Utz In The Funny Papers

A nice piece in today's St. Louis Post-Dispatch on my Vintage Vinyl homey Jim Utz's unique appreciation of the Rolling Stones. In St. Louis, Jim is king of rock, there is none higher. And he certainly helps make my work environment a much better and fun place to toil in.

POLITICS: You Go Girl!

At last---someone from the left with the stones to finally out closeted RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman on national television. Perhaps it only fitting the always great Rachel Maddow was the one to do it.

POLITICS: I'll Be You Mirror

Tattoo this on your forehead, courtesy of Daily Kos.

MUSIC: Wilson Pickett, RIP

He was the greatest. And yes, he definitely knew how to pony...

POLITICS: Rudie Can't Fail

Another ass-kicking money quote from my main man The Rude Pundit:

Democrats need to think of themselves as an organized resistance, an insurgency against a dictatorial government, an uprising with popular support among the citizens of the United States. A resistance doesn't succeed unless it actually, you know, resists. And if not on Alito, then what? Dianne Feinstein-leaning Democrats need to take a page from the anti-abortion movement: if you believe it's about life and death, then act like you wanna save lives.

TV: Golden Globes

1. No one cheered louder than I did when Mary-Louise Parker won last night. Great to see her and Weeds get the recognition they so deserve. Too bad co-star Elizabeth Perkins didn't win in her category, as she was most deserving. But hey, it'll be more than fine with me if the Weeds writers take Parker up on her acceptance speech "proposition", and take their characters into, uh, "new territories" next season. It was also nice to see her pay tribute to the late John Spencer in her acceptance speech. Pretty classy...

2. I haven't seen Brokeback Mountain yet, so I really don't know if Heath Ledger was more deserving of the win, but Philip Seymour Hoffman's performance in Capote was downright staggering.

3. I've got it bad for Felicity Huffman, no matter how awful her dress was last night. William H. Macy, you're a very lucky man indeed.

4. Clooney's Abramoff joke was a good one, but are there really any bad Abramoff jokes at this point?

POLITICS: In case you missed it....

...and because it was just so damn good and needed, here's Al Gore's speech on NSA spying, sans his charismatic delivery, but still pretty powerful nonetheless.

POLITICS: "the Babe Ruth of evasion..."

E.J. Dionne neatly wraps up all the ScAlito bullshit, here.

POLITICS: Ok, I'm Finally Convinced

After watching Bush's bizarre and totally out to lunch presentation of Sam Alito very early this morning, I now believe W. is indeed back on the sauce. I was a bit skeptical of all the rumors & examples offered as evidence over the past few months, but not anymore. He seriously looked drunk this morning...

POLITICS: The Good McCarthy

A great piece here on Eugene McCarthy from the great Tom Oliphant of The Boston Globe.

Money quote:
In today's Iraq war climate, McCarthy's life teaches the lesson of taking a stand. Of all today's politicians, Senator Hillary Clinton is the one who should think about the limits of quiet positioning as opposed to speaking up when the country is clamoring for clarity.

POLITICS: 80%

The next time someone is telling you how much they "support the troops" in Iraq, shove this down their throat.

ST. LOUIS: Shock! Horror! Super Smokers Closes!

Great St. Louis bbq chain Super Smokers went out of business last night! Very, very sad news indeed---they did good work. I will be making a mad dash to the nearest supermarket to load up on remaining bottles of their excellent sauces. I suspect some folks will probably be selling them on eBay in the near future....

MUSIC: Kiss Looked For...FOUND!

In the early '70's, famed rock photographer Bob Gruen bought one of the first portable video cameras. He then spent three years hanging with and capturing on tape his good buddies the New York Dolls being The New York Fucking Dolls! Thirty years later these tapes have finally surfaced as the dvd All Dolled Up, arguably the most important documentary of previously unseen historic rock footage to emerge since MC5: A True Testimonial.

I must say it's quite astonishing thirty years after the fact to see fly-on-the-wall video documention of early Dolls' exploits I voraciously read about as a teenager in the pages of CREEM and Phonograph Record Magazine. And boy does All Dolled Up take you there! Gruen and his camera went everywhere with the Dolls, both onstage and off, and one thing that quickly becomes apparent in All Dolled Up is that the New York Dolls were never really offstage.

What makes All Dolled Up so historically important is that you are right there as the band is having it's specific big bang. Here are the Dolls in all their pre-drug deterioration, pre-mainstream rejection glory. They are very young & very hungry. They want the world and they want it now, and they actually think they're going to get it. And from the great live footage full of their legendary chutzpah, who's to say they were wrong to think so? What a rare privilege it is then to see their legend unfold right before your eyes---the great songs and performances, the great pre-crisis personalities of the guys in the band, the circus they brought with them everywhere they went and the freaks that were attracted to it.

I can't recommend this dvd enough---there's so many amazing things in it. Like a trip to Rodney Bingenheimer's English Disco complete with David Johansen and teen groupies preening on it's dancefloor, or behind the scenes at the tv show appearance that resulted in the cover of their second album, a very funny video introduction of the band/pep talk for the sales staff at Mercury Records given by Johansen that of course is now full of ironic hindsight, and clip after clip of the Dolls shopping for clothes and getting dressed and doing their hair and make-up before shows---perhaps the most revealing side of their story of all.

But the thing I liked best about All Dolled Up is the much-needed balance it provides to the legend of Johnny Thunders. Generations of people who only know him as one of rock's most legendary wasteoids can finally see that for a brief glimmering moment he really was the shit. Sure he's fucked up, they're all fucked up, but he's lean, mean, young and in control. At this specific period of time Thunders is one of the baddest rock n' roll motherfuckers ever. Johansen certainly was the intellectual core of the band, both onstage and off, but Thunders was it's heart and soul. It's clear from the live footage that when they were onstage they all knew who was boss calling the shots---it was his band. There are plenty of videos & dvds out there of Johnny during his zombie years, so it's nice to see him at a time when he was still together and totally kicking ass. He seemed like a real fun guy to be around then too.

The "extras" included on the dvd are also nice. Handsome Dick Manitoba interviews Gruen, and there's a gallery track of his photos with comments. And Johansen and Syl Sylvain, the only living members of the band, also provide commentary tracks that are both cynically humorous and sweetly touching. So big thanks all around to Bob Gruen for sharing his little home movies with the rest of the world...

POLITICS: Happy New Year...

...and dig the following words of wisdom to live by in 2006 & beyond, from the great John Digby:

Patrick Henry Democrats
by digby
From John Digby's Hullabaloo, 12/29/05:
As much as I appreciate all these Republicans offering us advice about how we are endangering our political prospects by not supporting illegal NSA spying, I have to wonder if they really have our best interests at heart. I just get a teensy bit suspicious that it might not be sincere.

The truth is that I have no idea where the NSA spying scandal is going and neither do they. The Republicans would like it to go nowhere for obvious reasons and so they are trying to psych out timid Dems. What I do know is that the most important problem Democrats have is not national security; it's that nobody can figure out what we stand for. And when we waffle and whimper about things like this we validate that impression.

In Rick Perlstein's book, "The Stock Ticker and The Super Jumbo" he notes that many Democrats are still reeling from the repudiation of the party by the Reagan Democrats. And while they continue to worry about being too close to African Americans or being too rigid on abortion or too soft on national security, they don't realize that the most vivid impression people have of the Democrats is this:

"I think they lost their focus"
"I think they are a little disorganized right now"
"They need leadership"
"On the sidelines"
"fumbling"
"confused"
"losing"
"scared"

The reason people think this is because we are constantly calculating whether our principles are politically sellable (and we do it in front of god and everybody.) We've been having this little public encounter session for well over 20 years now and it's added up to a conclusion that we don't actually believe in anything at all.

Perhaps the NSA scandal is a political loser for Dems. We can't know that now. But it is a winner for us in the long term. We believe in civil liberties and civil rights. With economic fairness, they form the heart of our political philosophy. If this particular issue doesn't play well, that's too bad. People who believe in things sometimes have to be unpopular. Over time, they gain the respect of the people which is something we dearly need.

A party that is described as fumbling, confused and scared is unlikely to win elections even if they endorse the wholesale round-up of hippies and the nuking of Mecca. People will listen to us if we can first convince them that we know who we are and what we believe in.

I'm of the mind to adopt "give me liberty or give me death" as my personal motto. If I have to kowtow to a bunch of childish Republican panic artists who have deluded themselves into believing that fighting radical Islam requires turning America into a police state, then it's just not worth it.

MUSIC: Faves Of 2005

Ok folks, here it is, my favorite music of 2005:

Absolute Favorite Album of The Year:

Son Volt---Okemah And The Melody Of Riot
Quite simply the pinnacle of Jay Farrar's recording career. A record that places him shoulder to shoulder as a peer alongside those who have influenced him such as Neil Young, Bob Dylan, John Fogerty, Joe Strummer, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty etc. Okemah And The Melody Of Riot plays like an unintentional soundtrack to the deep blues of well-intentioned citizens waking up to the horrors of a second Bush term. Jay and new band members deliver the goods in spades, both musically and lyrically, Bush and the war in Iraq the target most often in Jay's piercing lyrical sights. And the record rocks like a motherfucker when it needs to. The melody of riot indeed...

The Rest Of The Pack (In alphabetical order, reissues included. Some inspired blurbs, though those without are still of equal enjoyment value to me):

Terry Adams & Marshall Allen---ten by two
Breathtaking live duets from the NRBQ pianist and the Sun Ra Orchestra saxophonist. Adams' uncanny ability to simultaneously channel the spirits of both Thelonius Monk & Sun Ra is remarkable, and when Allen blows you are reminded that space remains the place. This record is full of interplanetary be-bop & boogie woogie, a dash of rock n' roll, and even a total donk take on "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head".

The Amazing Pilots---Hello My Captor

The Bats---At The National Grid

John Cale—blackAcetate
A bit of a throwback while always looking forward, the most rocking and straight ahead Cale record in a long time. Kind of an updated & modernized version of his classic '70's Island Records era sound.

Cobra Verde---Copycat Killers

Chocolate Genius Inc.---Black Yankee Rock
Marc Anthony Thompson is the black Brian Wilson. Why he's languishing in relative obscurity is beyond me, cause this record is a very deserving accomplishment, full of melodically complex and deeply moving genre-bending songs. Kinda like There's A Riot Goin On, but without the massive amounts of cocaine.

Dramarama---"everybody dies"
"The American Mott The Hoople" as I've always called them, re-unite and deliver the best unexpected surprise of the year.

Echo & The Bunnymen—Siberia

The Alejandro Escovedo String Quintet---Room Of Songs

The Flamin' Groovies---Shake Some Action (reissue)
The Flamin' Groovies---Now (reissue)
The Flamin' Groovies---Jumpin' In The Night (reissue)
How great it is to finally have the Groovies' Sire era albums so magnificently re-mastered. The brilliance and historical significance of Shake Some Action remains staggering.

The Fleshtones—Beachhead

Low---The Great Destroyer

Thelonius Monk & John Coltrane—The Thelonius Monk Quartet With John Coltrane At Carnegie Hall

The Morells---Anthology "Live" 101 Songs About Cars, Girls, And Food!!!
The Morells---Think About It
The four disc live anthology is quite simply an amazing motherlode for diehards. And Think About It finds our heroes every bit as strong twenty years later, with some of Donnie Thompson's most jaw-dropping recorded guitar work ever.

Bob Mould---Body Of Song
Though many dispute the call, I happen to think this is the best thing he's ever done. An emotionally moving and groove oriented mountain of rock. And call me crazy, but I totally dig the Cher vocoder vocal thingy used in this rocking context.

The Plimsouls---One Night In America (reissue)

Portastatic---Bright Ideas

Riddle Of Steel---Got This Feelin'

The Rolling Stones---A Bigger Bang

Serena-Maneesh---Serena-Maneesh
Kinda like Swervedriver—a good thing!

Patti Smith---Horses/Horses (half reissue/half new live album)

Sun Kil Moon---Tiny Cities

Turbonegro---Party Animals
Norway's best rock band deliver another classic full of very intelligent hard rocking melodic pop anthems that simultaneously celebrate the joys and dark sides of Scandinavian hedonism. Imagine a totally glammed-out, Mensa version of the Dictators, but from Norway. And check out the instant sing along classic, "Blow Me Like The Wind"--- the best hard rocking song of the year!

Tom Verlaine---Warm And Cool (reissue)
His 1992 instrumental twang-from-mars masterpiece re-mastered. The big news here is that this reissue includes eight previously unreleased cuts!

The Warlocks---Surgery

Yo La Tengo---Prisoners Of Love-A Smattering Of Scintillating Senescent Songs 1985-2003

Favorite DVD:
Sparks---Live In Stockholm

Favorite Live Shows:
Brian Wilson---Roberts-Orpheum Theater, St. Louis
The dB's---Hideout Block Party & The House Of Blues, Chicago
The Finn Brothers---The Pageant & Vintage Vinyl, St. Louis
Steve Earle & The Dukes---The Pageant, St. Louis
Son Volt---The Pageant, St. Louis
Blowfly---Vintage Vinyl, St. Louis
Har Mar Superstar---Vintage Vinyl, St. Louis

POLITICS: A Tale Of Two "Democracies"

Here's what Iraqis do when they wake up and realize their election was rigged. What do Americans do when they realize their last two elections were rigged? They shop at Wal-Mart...

POLITICS: Cunt!

Behold Ann Coulter's latest spew of filth. And remember folks, the majority of Bush supporters out there agree with her every word, though most lack the balls to actually voice that agreement out loud.

POLITICS: Chuck!

GOP Senator Chuck Hagel calls the bastards out!

POLITICS: Norm!

From Editor & Publisher, 12/21/05:

Norman Ornstein, a scholar at the conservative American Enterprise Institute, said recently, referring to the spy program controversy, "I think if we're going to be intellectually honest here, this really is the kind of thing that Alexander Hamilton was referring to when impeachment was discussed."

POLITICS: Intelligence Wins in Pennsylvania

"Intelligent Design", not so much...

TV/MUSIC: Mark Your Calendars

Mark your calendars and set the tivos & vcrs for this coming Friday, December 23rd, as the magnificent Darlene Love returns to the Late Show With David Letterman, to recreate the Phil Spector "Wall Of Sound" with Paul Shaffer and an augmented CBS Orchestra. Her annual delivery of "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)" is one of the most amazing musical performances you will see on television in any given year. And what's really amazing is that each new performance of the the song by Love, Shaffer, & company usually tops the performance from the year before. They really pull out all the stops, and it's always quite a sentimentally moving musical spectacle.

Give If You Can

Your government is turning it's back and breaking the promises of help and relief that were made to those who were devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Therefore these survivors must still rely heavily on the many charitable organizations out there still trying to help them. So please give whatever you can to the relief organization of your choice, cause these folks still need our help.

The relief organization nearest to my heart is the New Orleans Musician's Relief Fund.

TV: Still Genius After All These Years

That was a totally psychedelic and totally brilliant Simpsons Christmas show that aired this evening. Screw those who think this show is past it's prime---the Simpsons bar remains high, and they still deliver the goods every week. And oh yeah, Moe's suicide attempts in the final vignette of tonight's show were priceless!