Gibson comeback…

Gibson Guitars is  set to emerge  from bankruptcy,  and I wish the company well.  Its stellar instruments have been  played by practically every rock star in the world.  I own a very old one myself and it is still a pleasure to play it.

Competency of management still matters in the corporate world,   doesn’t it…

 

 

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10 most overrated…

You’ll realize I am not a huge music aficionado when I confess I have never even heard of a few of  these songs.   Unfortunately a couple of them I heard so often on the radio that their lyrics are bouncing round in my brain as I write this.  Do you agree with Chris Queen’s assessments?  I think he’s right on some of them, but other tunes  may have had good lyrics and terrible music, or vice versa.  Now I have to go listen to something to clear my head…

 

 

Ed King, R.I.P.

You didn’t have to be a Lynyrd Skynyrd fan to like  “Sweet Home Alabama”.   You didn’t even need to be a rock ‘n roll fan, strictly speaking,  to be grabbed by the chorus and rough edges.   The co-writer of that hit tune  was Ed  King,  who was with other well-known bands before joining the group in 1972.

 

 

Aretha Franklin, R.I.P.

Like so many of the Motown artists,  she led a rather chaotic life and made a host of very bad choices,  but the woman  was a  fantastic performer.

 

 

Alexa house party…

A German man’s Alexa device created  its own  party,  blasting music so loudly that neighbors called the cops,  who broke down the door only to find no one home.

Ain’t modern technology wonderful?

 

 

 

Prager sells out…

The Santa Monica Symphony had a fundraising concert at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in downtown Los Angeles.   Its guest host was conservative radio host Dennis Prager,  who is absolutely passionate about classical music,  and who has been a guest conductor for various orchestras.

With boring predictability,  liberals called  for a boycott  of the performance,  supported by the mayor of Santa Monica and a city councilman who said they wouldn’t attend.   Just as easily forecast, some of the musicians refused to perform,  with two of them penning an open letter saying “Dennis Prager is a right wing radio host who promotes horribly bigoted positions,”  which naturally served to point out their own left-wing bigotry.   And all the extra attention drove sales up,  so the event was a sell-out!

Read what Dennis himself had to say about it,  here.

 

 

 

Glen Campbell, R.I.P.

Entertainer Glen Campbell  has died  at age 81,  after a six-year battle with Alzheimer’s.   Like Ronald Reagan,  he went public with his health,  and allowed a documentary to feature his struggles.   He deserves kudos for that,  but he will probably be best remembered as a country singer with a voice so easy to listen to that people who didn’t like country music suddenly found themselves liking country music a whole lot.

Parts of his life were tumultuous,  and his behavior often less than stellar, but his fifth and last wife appears to have been one of the best choices he ever made.  He was known not merely for his smooth singing voice and a vocal style which moved easily from pop to country and back again,  but also for his ability as  a musician,  which put him high on everyone’s list.  He never learned to read  music,  but he had the ear and a phenomenal memory,  so he could listen to a piece once and then he had it.  You don’t get asked to fill in for an  ailing Beach  Boy unless you’re really,  really, good,  you know.,  and Campbell most certainly was.

I will play my Glen Campbell albums this weekend in his honor.

UPDATE:  Have a  bit more  of the man,  flaws and genius,  from people who knew him well.