Weekly iTunes "Single of the Week" Review

Welcome, readers! It's time for the iTunes Single of the Week Review.

This week's "Single of the Week:" Songs for the Fields by the Fields.

[iTunes writers' words follow . . .]

We get a lot of music coming through these parts, but the Fields struck a chord with us that we wouldn't mind being struck more often. "Song for the Fields" is a traditional folks tune as it might have been if the Flaming Lips and My Bloody Valentine took the place of Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger. Boy/girl harmonies that coo and curl around each other and moody, frantic acoustic guitars culminate in an expansive full-band, swooning blow-out at the end. Very nice and very free.

My review:

Ugh. It's difficult for me trash a band that clearly has talent but fails miserably to manifest it into a song. The iTunes writers were sort of on the right track. It's folky, and I suppose one can take a leap to compare them to the Flaming Lips, but it's stretch. Frankly, the song bores me. Nothing makes me sit up and pay attention.

Rating from one to five stars: **

iTunes Library Result:
DELETED

Wild Hogs

Okay, so I'm the first one to admit that Wild Hogs was a cheesy "feel good" flick that borrowed heavily (*cough* copied *cough*) from a number of other cheesy "feel good" flicks. "The Three Amigos" is essentially the same movie except instead of riding horses, the protagonists are riding motorcycles.

So what. It was an enjoyable picture. I laughed a few times. I found the performances by Ray Liotta and Marisa Tomei to be very good, despite the weak script. They made the very best from what they were handed.

A host of cameo appearances lets you know right away that it's the cinematographic equivalent of a Twinkie, but it's all good. The snack food guilty pleasure is to see Tim Allen, Martin Lawrence, William H. Macy and John Travolta having fun on screen. Add those guys to the dudes from Orange County Choppers, Paul Teutul Sr. and Jr.; John Travolta's wife Margaret; Ty Pennington from Extreme Home Makeover; Dr. Drew; Tenacious D's Kyle Gass (where was Jack?); and none other than the original bad-ass biker, Mr. Peter Fonda (where was Dennis Hopper?).

As somebody who actually rides motorcycles, watching this movie required me to muster a great deal of the literary edict of "suspension of disbelief" to enjoy. There were many scenes in which a character is accelerating while holding up his right hand (the throttle), bikers riding in perfect synchronization (on a trailer while being filmed without the road being shown), and bouncing off the pavement at upwards of 45 MPH without a scratch. Huh. Go figure. I suspend my disbelief!

A special thanks to Wendy for sending me the movie. My extended lunch hour was an enjoyable one. I want to go home and fire up Val.

Now only if any of my friends knew how to ride a motorcycle . . .

1961 Red Sox Baseball

My mom died a few months ago. Recently I was sorting through a mountain of "stuff" in her office, and came across a baseball. It was wrapped in a very worn plastic bag. The ball is old, yellowed, and has a small blemish (pine tar?) on one of the faces.

Oh yeah, and it's signed by most of the 1961 Boston Red Sox. Including Yaz. For those of you who are not Sox fans, 1961 was his rookie year. It'll take somebody with better handwriting interpretation skills to be certain, but I can easily recognize some of the other signatures: Chuck Schilling, Dick Radatz, Frank Malzone, and Galen Cisco among others.

The strangest part of this story is that nobody in my family (aunts, cousins) have any idea how, when or where my mom got this nifty piece of Red Sox history.

The Dramatic Prairie Dog

The "Dramtic Chipmunk," a.k.a. "The Dramatic Prairie Dog," is the most hilarious clip I have ever seen. It's a five second dose of super-concentrated funniness. Please ... please ... no more ... my stomach is killing me from laughing so hard. I sincerely wish my buddy had not sent me a link to this clip, because I can't resist from playing it over and over and over, laughing harder every single time. There are tears pouring down my cheeks, and I really need to blow my nose. Oh God, please make it stop.

Without further ado ... THE DRAMATIC CHIPMUNK!

Who the @#$%^&* is Henry Simandjuntak?

On average I receive around 1,000 SPAM messages each day. This is largely my own fault, as two of my e-mail addresses are scattered across countless publications and websites. It's the cost of doing business for a PR guy who's listed in the "contact" section of articles.

I'd love to get my hands on one particular fictitious sonofabitch. Who the @#$% is Henry Simandjuntak, and why do I receive so much mail intended for him? This bastard is responsible for about 30% of my SPAM. [Note: If you don't realize those questions are meant in jest, please close this window right now.]

I really can't complain too loudly, since Henry never shows up in my inbox. His messages are always snagged by the mother of all SPAM filters for the Macintosh OS, SpamSieve. You can read the glowing reviews here if you need more convincing, but lemme tell you, it rocks.

On a related note, a thieving SPAM dirt bag has been caught. He is one of the infamous Nigerian identity scammers on the U.S. Secret Service's "Most Wanted" web site.

'Ello, Gov'nah!

As the old adage goes, "everything is for sale." I believe this also applies to one's job. Why not listen to an unsolicited offer? Who knows? One might just pop up which pays better and is equally or more personally satisfying.

I got a kick out of an offer I received today, quite out of the blue. It was to launch the exact same business I run now, but in England. The money was nearly identical, and I would have somewhat greater freedom to implement programs a bit better than I have put into motion here in the United States, but it's not worth uprooting my family to Nottingham.

Just the same, it's nice to get an offer.

The only time I've ever seriously considered moving to Europe was way back in 1991. I had an offer to work in Ireland for Digital Equipment Corporation. Since my father (and countless hundreds of other people in the towns around Maynard) had all worked for DEC and loved it, the offer was tempting. The deal breaker was when I spoke with the Irish consulate and received real estate listings in my price range. Grass and thatch roof? Built in 1510? Two bedrooms? No thanks.

Níl aon tintéan mar do thintéan féin. There's no place like home.

Weekly iTunes "Single of the Week" Review

Welcome, readers! It's time for the iTunes Single of the Week Review.

This week's "Single of the Week:" Daisy by Halfway to Hazard.

[iTunes writers' words follow . . .]

Halfway to Hazard are a duo from southeast Kentucky - Chad Warrix and David Tolliver. This track is a mixture of sweet, harmonized country pop and a big ol' southern rock ballad. The tale within the tune is worth noting - it goes from young love to tragedy and redemption. It also might be the first song to use the phrase "and the day her water broke" in music history.

My review:

Admittedly I know next to nothing about country music, so all I can offer is a general impression of this song. And that impression is ... this song sounds exactly like any other country song I've ever heard. Halfway to Hazard exploits the same old recycled melody, the same old slide guitar harmony, and even that ultra-annoying tendency to vocalize the first note in each measure by ranging in a split second from an octave below to the correct pitch. While this song is not vomit-inducing, I struggled (really, really struggled) to listen to the entire track.

Rating from one to five stars: *

iTunes Library Result:
DELETED

Movie Awards for Real People

I'm not kidding. I think this idea has legs. Screw the Oscars, People's Choice, MTV, and all those other Hollywood bullshit awards. I think it's time for a "Real People" movie award. So many movies get accolades that are pure crap. Who wants to help?

Simpsonized

Yes, I feel like an Internet trend whore. So be it. That's me Simpsonized.

Is this pro-Windoze or anti-Windoze?

Either way, this guy feels extremely strongly about computing. Read the full story here.


Even though I'm a hard core Macintosh fan and have a number of tattoos, none of which are any of these:

Can you use my tickets?

104.1 FM WBCN Boston sent me two tickets for tonight's "Adam 12 Cruise." The boat departs at 6:30 from Lynn (Marine Boulevard), and returns at midnight. Unfortunately, I can't use the tickets.

If you want 'em, and can promise me that you'll use 'em, leave a comment.

Weekly iTunes "Single of the Week" Review

Welcome, readers! It's time for the iTunes Single of the Week Review.

This week's "Single of the Week:" Born Losers by Matthew Good.

[iTunes writers' words follow . . .]

Matthew Good's brand of reverie and disconcerting personal analysis in song has made him a favorite in Canada for years. His newest album, Hospital Music, is an especially riveting portrait of a man who's been to the edge and back. We're offering you the rumbling, epic folk-rock of "Born Losers" as a free Single of the Week in the hope that you find the time to bring a little Matthew Good into your life. You won't regret it.

My review:

No, you won't regret it. However, unless you're into early R.E.M. then you probably won't be bowled over either. To utilize an overused term by 'tweens ... *meh*

This is plugged-in acoustic folky chorded rock. Got that? Vanilla soft serve ice cream with a few sprinkles. On a plain cone.

**

iTunes Library Result:
KEPT
I might hit the "next" button on my iPod if it rolls around, but maybe not.