Music Friday: "Sure Shot"

I woke up this morning with this tune in my head. 

As albums by the Beastie Boys go, Check Your Head is my favorite. This song is the opening tune on Ill Communication. 

Have a good weekend. 

Music Friday: "Pass the Mic"

I listened to Check Your Head early this week, and this tune has been rattling through my head all week. 

Now it's gonna rattle through yours. 

Random Notes from a Crank

I was naughty this past week and didn't provide a Music Friday post. Bad blogger...

Jennier Rubin has a good op-ed piece in The Washington Post that should be read to figure out what extreme right-wingers and FauxNews is up to: "The GOP Is No Longer a Party. It's a Movement to Impose White Christian Nationalism." 

Here's a significant ¶ to read: "In a real sense, the MAGA response is an effort to conserve power and to counteract the sense of a shared fate with Americans who historically have been marginalized. The right now defines itself not with policies but with its angry tone, its malicious labeling and insults (e.g., "groomer," "woke"), and its targeting of LGBTQ youths and dehumanization of immigrants. Right-wingers' attempt to cast their opponents as sick, dangerous and -- above all -- not "real Americans" is as critical to securing power as voter suppression."

Who the hell is using the term "groomer." That's sick. 

The rhetorical dark arts that the right wing uses reminds of one of the better books I've in the past couple of years: America for Americans: A History of Xenophobia in the United States by Erika Lee. 

Check Your Head by the Beastie Boys turned 30 this year. I would argue that it is the group's best album. 

NPR has a feature on the album: "Why Beastie Boys' Check Your Head Album Still Matters 30 Years Later." 

Music Friday: "Finger Lickin' Good"

Here's a great tune from a classic album, Check Your Head. I've always thought this song was underrated in the band's overall catalog. 

Have a good weekend. 

Music Friday: "Professor Booty"

I only know of two songs that have the word "professor" in them. One is R.E.M.'s "Sad Professor."

In light of the good news I received today, I offer you "Professor Booty." 

Random Notes from a Crank

Some people might think I need to be less "combative," but they can just go to hell. 

The other day, I transcribed ideas/copy for the script for the video my daughter choose to do. You see, my daughter doesn't do something easy for her state project in fourth grade. Instead of doing a poster or a brochure or a powerpoint presentation (all genres I know how to work in), she chose to do a video about her assigned state. So this weekend sometime we'll do some taping about the great state of Rhode Island. Looks like this hombre is finally going to learn how to use iMovie. Or rather, Mrs. Nasty will teach me how to work iMovie. 

I'm not a huge fan of hip-hop, but I suspect Check Your Head by the Beastie Boys has to be one of the top ten rap albums of all time. 

Regardless, you can just call me "Professor Booty."

Music Friday: "Gratitude," "So What'cha Want," & "Stand Together"

As we learned early last month, Adam Yauch, one of the three Beastie Boys, died.

I've never been a huge fan of hip-hop, but the Beastie Boys were one of the groups I would listen to along with Run DMC, Public Enemy, Digital Underground, and the various songs out there circulating in pop culture.

The Beastie Boys brought a punk rock sensibility to the genre of rap/hip hop. My favorite album of theirs is Check Your Head, so I'm highlighting a trio of songs from that album today. 

First up is "Gratitude," track 4 on the album. 

Here's the iconic video of "So What'cha Want," track 7 and a song that got played at many parties I attended.





And finally, here's track 12, "Stand Together,"

"Stand together people, come together now.

It's about time we've got to get together, y'all."