I've presented an R.E.M. lyric previously for Lyrics Monday, but today is Bill Berry's birthday.  The band hasn't been quite the same since he retired to become a redneck gentleman farmer, but I guess that move was preferable to, you know, dying, as he almost did when he suffered a brain aneurysm while on tour in 1995 ( Read more... )

Big Country was pretty much a one-hit wonder in the U. S. ("In a Big Country", remember that one?).  But they remained popular overseas, and Stuart Adamson's songwriting and distinctive guitar work (even U2's The Edge considered him an influence) only got better as he aged.  Unfortunately, his personal demons (particularly alcoholism) grew stronger ( Read more... )

( 'America' )

A snippet of "Walk on the Wild Side" popped into my head at work ("and the colored girls go doo doo-doo doo-doo . . ."), and I realized I hadn't listened to Lou Reed's New York in quite some time.  One of his best albums, I think: reminiscent of his Velvet Underground days with a lo-fi intensity that sounded right at home at the leading edge of the ( Read more... )

Dee Dee Ramone died on this day in 2002.  He shares his death-day with a few other guys you might have heard of, like Ronald Reagan, Mel Tormé, Conway Twitty (I briefly thought of "Tight Fitting Jeans" but then I came to my senses) and O. Henry.  I found this list of songs about Reagan and realized there was one missing, which I'd even quoted in my ( Read more... )

When I thought of a Memorial Day edition of Lyrics Monday, my mind turned to the numerous anti-war songs recorded over the years (if I hadn't chosen a song by R.E.M. last week, I might have considered "Orange Crush" for this week).  But even though I regard Memorial Day as little more than a reason to burn meat and drink beer, it seemed less ( Read more... )

May Day, at least this year, will be marked by pro-immigration protests across the U. S., and I can't think of a better protest song to frame the immigration debate than this one.  These are the original lyrics, which are actually a poem written by Woody Guthrie and inspired by a real event.  It was set to music later, and popularized by Pete ( Read more... )