Chuck Liddell Greatest Hits

As ultimate fighter Chuck Liddell prepares to re-enter the octagon this weekend, I thought it’d be a good time to explore his humble beginnings — as a child actor.
Okay, so he was no MacCaulay Culkin. But at age ten, he did have a bit part in the movie “The Postman Always Rings Twice” with Jack […]

James Bond Does the Beatles

Beatles Covers Are Easy To Come By, But A Few Stand Out

Just when you think you’re up to speed on the Beatles . . .
 While interviewing local musician Loren Radis – a big Beatles fan himself — I learned of a Beatles tribute album called “In My Life.” Radis told me it featured actors like […]

Ray Charles Rocks AG

While I’m always impressed with great singers, a great voice doesn’t do that much for me without great songs. So to me a great songwriter with an average voice is worth much more than a great singer who can’t write songs (a.k.a., ”American Idol” contestants).
But every now and then you get someone who can both sing and […]

Musicians Who Circled the Drain

For musicians slipping into mental illness, there’s usually a pattern of behavior:
1.) You take lots of drugs.
2.) You do erratic things onstage.
3.) You abruptly give up music.
4.) You move in with your parents.
5.) You become the subject of a VH1 special.
Okay, maybe it doesn’t always go that way. But often.
I started thinking about musicians with […]

Finding a Song for McCain

It must be tough being a Republican running for office these days.
Because, as a candidate, you want to be introduced with a song that gets the crowd excited. Yet most entertainers — especially musicians — are liberal. And they tend to get peeved when they learn a conservative is using their song.
The latest example is Jackson Browne, […]

The #1 Song the Day You Were Born

Well, I never considered myself a love child. But the day I was born, “Love Child” by Diana Ross and the Supreme was the #1 single, according to Billboard’s Top 100 charts.
My friend Scott sent me a link to this web site, which allows you to look up the #1 song the day you were born. […]

Disputing the Worst Songs of All Time List

Every now and then someone comes up with a Worst Songs of All Time list, which actually includes a lot of good songs just to make you mad.
I know why they do it — it’d be boring to have a list of nothing but bad songs because then, like, there’d be no arguments.
Still . . . […]

Rod Stewart Was . . . Okay

            Rod Stewart will never have to play to small crowds. But last night’s performance at the Mid-State Fair seemed more appropriate for a winery gig.
Before the concert began, I had predicted he’d open the performance with a bang, thinking maybe “Hot Legs” or maybe even an older gem, like “Stay With Me.” Instead, he started out […]

The Nirvana Baby Approaches Adulthood

Nirvana’s “Nevermind” album is best known for catapulting grunge music and becoming a battle cry – albeit a mopey one –for Generation X.
But the 1991 record is also known for its great cover art, featuring a baby in a pool, swimming after a floating dollar bill. While songs like “Smells Like Teen Spirit” and “Lithium” reflected the views of disenfranchised […]

Torture Me Elmo

 By now, you’ve heard that the music industry is suing the U.S. government for copyright infringement, saying the Gov has to pay royalties for songs they used as torture at Guantanamo Bay.
A while back, Mother Jones posted a list of those songs, which included admittedly torturous tunes by Metallica, Eminem and Celine Dion. The idea […]