Sean Egan's 'The Clash: The Only Band That Mattered' (2015) - Take Two

Sean Egan's The Clash: The Only Band That Mattered (Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield,2015).

Let's get into some of the nitty gritty. First, the links between reggae and punk. As Egan points out, reggae began to expand globally in the late 1960s and 1970s. One of the big watershed moments of broad consciousness-raising about the style came with The Harder They Come (1972), Perry Henzell's low-budget, mesmerizing Jamaican film starring Jimmy Cliff. "[R]eggae was sometimes a big influence on British punk bands either by osmosis (Johnny Rotten of The Sex Pistols had a long-standing love of the genre) or imitation . . . 'Police & Thieves . . . was The Clash's first foray into the medium, and an unexpected triumph" (pages 35-36).

Next, links with rap, starting in 1980: "'The Magnificent Seven' wasn't quite the first-ever rap recording by a white artist: Blondie's punningly titled 'Rapture' appeared . . . a month before the release of Sandinista!" Egon argues that "'The Magnificent Seven' was the first example of rap being used for social commentary. As it preceded . . . Grandmaster Flash's 'The Message' by two years, it could even be suggested that without [its example], hip-hop would not have embraced the political content from which it is now indivisible" (pages 146-147).

Backtrack, Mr. Egan. Let's not forget James Brown and tracks such as "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud" (1968), "Make it Funky" (1971), "Funky President (People It's Bad)" (1974) and so on. How about Sly & the Family Stone's "Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)" (1969) and Gil-Scott Heron's "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised" (1970-1971)? And back through reggae channels again. Toss in tracks from The Rolling Stones ("Miss You," 1978), Kurtis Blow (1979) and The Sugarhill Gang (1979) and I'd say there's plenty of interplay to spread around, with political content ranging from broad to specific. (Most of these live on through sampling).

What's cool is how memory works: I can remember most of these songs without even playing them again, including virtually every track put out by The Clash. The only true challenge comes when recalling a small bit of music or lyrics, then trying to piece together the origin -- a sort of mix and match endeavor. Can you dig?

Onward!

Today's Rune: Separation (Reversed).

Blondie Greatest Hits Deluxe Redux

Music packaging goes back and forth across a spectrum of formatting styles: record albums, CDs, downloads and anything else you might imagine or remember. It's probably a good idea -- and a fun one -- to change things up in such a present (or absent) age of digital fragmentation.  Sampling (or re-sampling) vinyl and CD sets, for instance. There's something inherently coherent in a container or vessel of related tracks reinforced with related text and images -- and man does this take me back. 

With Blondie's latest release (at least the version I received in the physical mail via online ordering) -- if you decide to check it out -- you'll be treated to a generous three-disc package: Greatest Hits Deluxe Redux, Ghosts of Download and a DVD, Blondie Live at CBGB 1977.  

I gave all a quick look and listen and am now settling in on a multiple re-listening experience with Greatest Hits Deluxe Redux, feeling like The Man Who Fell Into a Slightly Different Universe. Why? Blondie re-recorded ten out of eleven of their most salient tracks -- in the studio. A nifty-fifty idea, and it works. "Why they do that?" No idea -- but I love it!  This is smashing for the neural passageways -- listening for slight variations in beloved songs, and digging them all over again. 

Trust me, you "might well could" sleep better while dreaming big to this groovy new Blondie synthesis. 

More on the rest of it at some point soon, I suspect.

Today's Rune: Breakthrough.  
    

SLC Punk!

James Merendino's SLC Punk! (1999) evokes certain music-based subcultures of 1985 in the US and UK, but more specifically in Salt Lake City. It centers around Stevo, Heroin Bob (who doesn't actually do heroin) and various aquaintances. The soundtrack, including songs that are not included in the "official" soundtrack, is a good one, and includes three well-placed songs from The Stooges (1969), plus individual tracks by Roxy Music, Blondie, Velvet Underground, and other thematically connected bands.

The narrative technique is sort of an out-of-time remembrance in which the main character (in this case Stevo) tells the story in retrospect, but also by commenting on action seemingly as it occurs -- sort of like in Woody Allen's Annie Hall (1977) and Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas (1990). Considering it was shot on a very modest budget, SLC Punk! has some neatly executed scenes, and it breathes life back into the mid-1980s.    

I was working at Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill (North Carolina), in 1985, and was pretty aware of the various music genres and various "tribes." To me, Stevo and Heroin Bob are more like the local "hardcore" music scene of North Carolina, of which there were several bands carrying the torch. There was also a ska-tinged eclectic scene inspired by the English Beat, the Specials and bands like that. 1985 was, too, the year the Pogues released Rum, Sodomy & the Lash. Punk as in the Sex Pistols or even the Clash was long over, or so it felt. Even Dead Kennedys and the Cramps had almost burned out by then, as far as producing exciting new material. But SLC Punk! got me to thinking, and remembering. What else can one really ask of an indie flick?

Today's Rune: The Mystery Rune.             

Give the People What They Want

Every once in a while I'll take a glance at the analytics for web trafficking re: this site and its spinoff. Mostly to see what draws the most people in with one easy shot.

Following is a list of some of the keywords that elicit interest en masse.

But before I forget, while doing this I came across the basic fact that Google has national versions of its search engine, or maybe they're language versions, or both. Examples:

For Spain, try www.google.es
France: www.google.fr
Russia: www.google.ru

Along the way, I checked out YouTube via Russian Google and what came up right off the bat? The Velvet Underground, Lou Reed, the Rolling Stones, Iggy Pop, Marianne Faithfull, Debbie Harry and Jean-Luc Godard. Seems they've got my number. It's like that David Lynch movie, Lost Highway. "Call me -- I'm already there." Yes, indeed, Blondie, I will. "Call me. Dial your number. Go ahead."

Here are the biggest all-time attractions of "Erik's Choice" since its inception in 2006, but not in specific ranking order:

Angelina Jolie as Kleopatra, aka Angelina Jolie as Cleopatra: Kleopatra VII was Greek/Macedonian, and Angelina Jolie has already played the Greek Olympia, mother of Alexander the Great, the person most responsible for Greek/Macedonian rule in Egypt via Alexandria (which he founded) and the Ptolemaic dynasty. Kleopatra died only about thirty years before the "Christian Era" or "Common Era" began -- lots of Greek culture at the time, and lots of overlap. (An accompanying picture didn't exactly hinder coming across this on the internet).

Zooey Deschanel (sometimes "as Janis Joplin").

Charlotte Rampling.

Anna Karina.

Amy Winehouse.

Meg White.

Chan Parker. 

So there you go, isn't that interesting? 

Moral 1: If you want to spike your hits, give the [bulk of interested] People What They Want! 

Moral 2: Write about topics you like that are also of interest to a mass audience.

Moral 3: Or, focus on topics so specific that your site serves as a global magnet for that topic.

Today's Rune: Signals.    

The Twin Cities at the End of the World in 1984

On a road trip to help my sister Vickie move her car and some of her stuff from North Carolina to Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota in November 1984, upon arrival at our destination I was able to get out and hear some of the local music scene. Prince was already well into megascale, but there was Duffy's, featuring the Urban Guerillas, a band I'd already come across at the Beat Exchange in New Orleans, where gigantic projections of Debbie Harry and Blondie ran between live sets and outside, drunken dudes fought and a passing witch shrieked, "Magic Beads! Magic Beads!"

At Duffy's in Minneapolis, the Replacements had previously played with the Urban Guerillas and let's not forget other bands on the prowl like the Suburbs and Hüsker Dü. Those were the days of SST and Zen Arcade and Stiff and Slash Records.

The more things change: End of the World Party Part II. Didn't we have another two of those in 2011?  And why are we still here anyway?

Today's Rune: Signals.

One Way or Another: Blondie in Dallas

Za za zoom, Blondie lit up the stage Saturday night following Nico Vega in the Granada Theatre, Dallas. I loved it. The band has a fuller sound than on thin vinyl -- more bass, more clangy electric guitars, more drums and keyboards, more Debbie Harry. This was loud enough and fast enough to satisfy rockers of all stripes, and the singer is as cool in person as her mediated persona suggests. I dig! This was like a little part of Heaven on Earth.

Set list. They added in a dose of ZZ Top toward the end as a Texas treat.  Some of the songs are from the new album, Panic of Girls (2011) -- they're good.

Today's Rune: Wholeness.  

The Spirit of '76: Blondie

Blondie (1976). Blondie live in Dallas, Texas, USA, October 1, 2011 at the Granada Theatre. Nico Vega opens. I am thrilled! 

Today's Rune: The Mystery Rune.

Three for Conversation (Reprise)

On December 20, 2006, I posted this:

"If you could invite any three people to dinner (dead or alive, famous, fictional, etc.), who would they be, why and what would the topic of conversation be?"

For the dinner party, I'd have over (with universal translator) Lao Tzu, Jesus, and Voltaire. Interesting mix. We'd talk about favorite foods, thoughts on the role of sex in life, and fashion sense. I'd ask what they look for in a person, and by the way, where did we come from, where are we now, and where are we going?

For the after dinner party, same cycle of conversation (no translator necessary) with Anne Sexton, Diane Arbus and Debbie Harry. Another interesting mix, a better looking one, no doubt, and probably just as intriguing.

2011 update:

Now, I'm not so sure. Maybe I'd rather observe the creation of a film, or even help work on one. On the other hand, I'm aiming to see Debbie Harry/Blondie's show this coming October in Dallas, and all the others mentioned above still keep coming up, one way or another, over and over. 

Outside "the usual," who would you want to converse with, if anyone?  

Today's Rune: Flow.

Mount St. Helens, 1980

I remember May 18, 1980. At the time and after a lengthy stint in Mexico, Catherine J. Currier (my maternal grandmother) lived in Vancouver, Washington, maybe forty miles away from Mount St. Helens as the crow flies. Soon after the sucker blew its top, the volcano began dropping ash on her abode for quite a little while.  A couple years later, when my sister Linda and I drove out there to see her, we saw the devastation around Mount St. Helens for ourselves -- I remember Blondie's aptly-named "Atomic" was playing on the tape deck when we got to the observation post. It most definitely looked as if an atomic bomb had razed the area.

Anyone who ever heard the story must surely remember the incorrigible octogenarian Harry R. Truman, who'd refused to leave and perished on May 18; just the day before, he'd said:  "I had some people ask me why the hell I stayed, what I be doing up there. That's my life -- Spirit Lake and Mt. St. Helens -- my life, folks, I lived there fifty years -- it's a part of me. That mountain and that lake is a part of Truman. And I'm a part of it." -- And so he was, and so he remains.









Ash cloud from Mount St. Helens. Some of it fell on parts of Oklahoma, and some circled around the entire globe in a matter of two weeks and a day.













Cover of a library book that triggered the memory -- not to mention that it's the thirtieth anniversary this year, 1980-2010. 

Today's Rune: Journey.

Patti Smith: Dream of Life

Steven Sebring's Patti Smith: Dream of Life (2008) airs on PBS tonight and I'm sure will return -- because I'll be in San Antonio, Texas, for a weddding, I'll be "taping" it for 2010.  Looks like a must see for folks like me -- those into the New York Boho scene of the 1970s, fans of Patti Smith (63 years old today and still out there) and Blondie, the Ramones, Talking Heads, Jim Carroll (who died at 60 just this past September 11), and so on. All seems like yesterday to me . . .  such is the dream of life . . . 

Row row row your boats gently down the stream . . .

Today's Rune: Signals.  Thanks all for the comments!  It's been a little hectic, but all is well.

The Inner Life of Bettie Page

Bettie Page (4/22/1923-12/11/2008), RIP. Here's a pertinent selection from this blog originally posted on May 21, 2006:

Mary Harron recreates the pinup milieu and its attendant fallout in The Notorious Bettie Page (2005), an HBO movie shot mostly in black and white with occasional splashes of color. Harron, who directed the searingly good take on gender issues via Valerie Solanas in I Shot Andy Warhol, takes a subtler approach with Bettie Page, though it's clear that the jump from the pinup 50s to Warhol's 60s is not a large one after all. The little romps made by camera clubs and "collectors" of Page and other models/actors are close forerunners to Warhol productions like Chelsea Girls (1966), and many of the themes blur together.

Bettie Page is "notorious" only in the lustful eyes of her male "consumers." Behind her happy-go-lucky persona, Page is smart, tenacious, and free-spirited, yet haunted by God. Nudity does not phase her, and she refers to the openness of Adam and Eve before the Fall more than once. She was abused by her father and by men singly and in groups before leaving Nashville and ending up in New York City. In the movie, there is something sinister about many of her "dates," and she is often either punished, exploited or judged for her beauty. The creepiness of many of the male characters reminds me of Silence of the Lambs. Harron's American Psycho (2000) covers this territory in a similarly extreme way. But Page's trajectory is successful and the choice to leave modeling in 1957 is hers. She is still alive, was sought after (like Ava Gardner) by Howard Hughes (she declined) and is still admired by Hugh Hefner, who featured her in Playboy in January 1955. The interactions between Bettie Page and photographer Bunny Yeager in sunny Florida provide good contrast with the rest of the story.

Mary Harron's work is always interesting. Overall, The Notorious Bettie Page is a leisurely-paced meditation on gender, sexuality, celebrity, persona, photography, modeling, acting, fantasy, and spirituality. Gretchen Mol is perfect in the lead role. Much of the cast will be familiar to HBO viewers: three minor roles for Sopranos fans; Chris Bauer from The Wire and Lili Taylor from Six Feet Under (she plays Valerie Solanas in I Shot Andy Warhol, as well). Harron has directed episodes of Six Feet Under and Big Love, so she's very much in the mix. As we all know by now, everything's connected to everything else upon closer examination.

Here's the official movie site, a fun one that is best viewed with a high speed connection:
http://www.thenotoriousbettiepage.com/

It's worth repeating: Gretchen Mol is great as Bettie Page. Also: Harron was executive producer for the excellent 2002 documentary The Weather Underground.

Here's a live link to "Rapture Riders:"

http://music.yahoo.com/ar-269864-videos--Blondie

Today's Rune: Wholeness.

1978

In 1978, made it to see The Rolling Stones' Some Girls tour twice -- in Hampton, Virginia, and in Greensboro, North Carolina, both in June. Both times, general admission and a lot of work and sweat to make it happen. Went with a bunch of friends to Hampton, and then made it to Greensboro thanks to an emergency lift from one of my sister's boyfriends at the time at the last minute and saved from a broken down car. Both times worth it -- hell, Mick even played guitar, and the now dead Peter Tosh opened ("Legalize It" plus "(Walk and) Don't Look Back.")

Of course, the real splash of 1978 was Debbie Harry, so I'm happy to report the new release of a thirty year anniversary special Mojo Classic -- "Blondie: The Untold Story."

More on that soon, I suspect.

Today's Rune: Fertility.

Herz aus Glas / Heart of Glass

Hadn't seen Werner Herzog's Herz aus Glas / Heart of Glass / Coeur de verre (1976) in nearly fifteen years -- until yesterday. Wow. I've always found Herzog's work compelling, but at this juncture, it's not overstating my enthusiasm to claim that he is probably the greatest visionary filmmaker -- and one of the greatest Western visionary artists -- of all time.

For the visuals alone, it's worth checking out any of Herzog's movies. On the other hand, none of his fictional or documentary films are good for a casual date except perhaps with someone who enjoyed Luchino Visconti's Death in Venice (1971). Believe me, I know. A "woman friend," while watching Herzog's Stroszek (1977), quipped -- "After seeing that, no wonder Ian Curtis [of Joy Division] hanged himself." Indeed, the often slow pace might disconcert and certainly will disorient some American viewers, or at the very least make them wish they'd downed some whiskey and Quaaludes. Put another way, if you think time is flitting by way too quickly, put on some Herzog and you'll be completely mesmerized!


For Heart of Glass, Herzog hypnotized much of the cast. It's a stunning, prophetic film and I'll probably write more about its narrative line at some point. Herzog is the William Blake of film making, I suppose, although Grimm's Fairy Tales would not be far off his path, either.

Most readers will be at least somewhat familiar with the 1979 Blondie gold and platinum hit "Heart of Glass" (Parallel Lines, 1978). There's probably a connection with Heart of Glass, given that an earlier 1975 incarnation was called "Once I Had a Love." In between versions came Herzog's movie. For Debbie Harry and Blondie fans, here's an early video dub version of "Heart of Glass." I still say that Debbie Harry is the hottest singer ever, but would love to know if I've missed out on any other possibilities . . . . .



Today's Rune: Wholeness.

Call It, Friendo

The Good, the Bad, and the Outmatched.

Sergio Leone's Il Buono, il brutto, il cattivo (1966/1967) and the Coen brothers' No Country for Old Men (2007) are set over a century apart (1862 vs. 1980) but in the same area, the contested borderlands that bring together Mexico, New Mexico and Texas. They have the same primal feel, rich with possibility.

In Leone's film, the three main characters, opportunists all, seek stolen gold. They exploit the backdrop of two rival forces (USA vs. CSA) vying for power and legitimacy in a land also claimed by Mexico and area Indian tribes. In No Country, the three main characters roughly approximate the Good (Tommy Lee Jones' Sheriff Ed Tom Bell), the Bad (Javier Bardem's Anton Chigurh), and the Ugly (Josh Brolin's Llewelyn Moss).

But unlike Clint Eastwood's Blondie, Sheriff Bell, attempting to work within the letter if not always the spirit of established law, admits he is "outmatched." Blondie is actually the most mysterious of Leone's characters, like the other side of the coin to the Coen's (and Cormac McCarthy's) evil Chigurh. Both men are self-reliant, relentless, and driven by something beyond greed, something more mysterious, even ineffable. Eli Wallach's Tuco and No Country's Moss are understandable desperadoes with family issues. Lee Van Cleef's Angel Eyes is sadistic and greedy but seems as grounded in history and geography -- and is as ultimately defeated -- as Sheriff Bell in No Country.

If there's a lesson, it may be that high plains drifters have an edge over settled men. In this existential equation, being evil or good is secondary.

Our Lady of the Lake on fire, San Antonio, Texas, earlier this month. But Mary is still there . . . . .

Today's Rune: Movement.

Big Electric Cat & The Walkman Effect

Music is one of the great memory triggers, and today when I uncovered a cassette mix tape compiled from vinyl records on May 11, 1983, it brought back fond flashes of fellow UNC students I dated that year -- Christine, Susan Korn (an English graduate student, woo-hoo!), Suzanne DePalma. Ha! I whipped together this particular workout tape on that particular day to juice me up: I was heading for Paris that summer with Suzanne. Crazy times but oh, what fun. . . . .

Beat Attack #2, Side A:

Party Party, Elvis Costello
Run Rudolph Run, Dave Edmunds
Little Town Flirt, Altered Images
Yakety Yak, Bad Manners
Tutti Frutti, Sting
No Feelings, Bananarama
Big Electric Cat & The Momur, Adrian Belew
Hangin' On the Telephone, One Way or Another & Rip Her to Shreds, Blondie
Our Lips Are Sealed, The Go-Go's
Freedom of Choice, Devo
Take Me I'm Yours, Squeeze


Side B:

Summer Romance & Let Me Go, The Rolling Stones
Stupefaction, Graham Parker
I Got a Crush on You & You Can Look But You Better Not Touch, Bruce Springsteen
Sweet Little Sixteen, John Lennon
Golden Years & TVC15, Davd Bowie
Hang Fire & She's So Cold, The Rolling Stones
Look Good in Blue, Blondie
Ramrod & Cadillac Ranch, Bruce Springsteen

Yeahdawg! Today's Rune: Fertility.

Where Are the Romans Now?

So, not only a Joan Jett & The Runaways movie, but it looks like there'll be films about Muddy Waters, Rick James, Otis Redding, and more (Terrence Howard, anyone?). The Passenger may star a former hobbit as Iggy Pop; in any case, Nick Gomez is directing the Stooges movie. He's the guy who directed "Denial, Anger, Acceptance," a classic 1999 Sopranos episode featuring Tony's immediate response to the question . . .

Q: "Where are the Romans now?"

A: "You're looking at 'em, asshole."

(These days, when confronted with such questions, I like to muse: What Would Tony Do?)

Michel Gondry, French director of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), may be on tap for a Debbie Harry/Blondie film, with Kirsten Dunst in the lead role. I guess we'll see. A little birdie told me.

Today's Rune: Wholeness.

Welcome to the working week!

Blondie - Detroit 442 (1977)

We're Professionals! Reservoir Dogs at Fifteen

I recently watched Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs (1992) again, for the first time since 9/11/2001. It holds up well. It's not one of my favorites in the macho film department, but it's really good. And its influences, references and homages are more apparent than ever -- including nods to Sergio Leone's Il Buono, il brutto, il cattivo / The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966/1967), which is my favorite macho/existential movie (and reportedly also Tarantino's favorite film).

Violent with only secondary (at best) female roles? Yes. Disturbing? Not really, given that these are celluloid fantasies. Hiroshima and Nagasaki are disturbing. Abu Ghraib and the torture, rape and/or murder/mutiliation of real life prisoners and defenseless men, women and children are disturbing. Stylized adult warrior-type male vs. adult warrior-type male violence, even with pools of red blood as seen in Reservoir Dogs, is not particularly. A movie like Boys Don't Cry (1999, based on real life incidents) is the kind that truly disturbs, to the point that I don't want to ever see it again even though it's also very good. Once was enough.

Reservoir Dogs is effective across the board. Tarantino took a traditional setup (highly dangerous plan to get rich quick or die trying) and, with very limited budget, spins a compelling story that includes double-crossing, edgy moments and snappy dialogue. In Leone's case, he had a comparatively much larger budget and used it to set his story against the backdrop of the American Civil War and the American West. With Leone, two of the three main characters -- Tuco (Eli Wallach) and Blondie (Clint Eastwood), as opposed to the sadistic Angel Eyes (Lee Van Cleef) are fleshed out in some detail and it's evident that these three hombres have crossed paths before, plenty of mystery nonetheless left intact. In Reservoir Dogs, we see the same kind of "Mexican standoffs" as in Leone's epic but at much closer range, without the grand buildup. Blood, though, runs more profusely from Tarantino's characters.

Another comparable film is Joseph Sargent's The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974), set in New York City. In this story, Mr. Blue (Robert Shaw), disgruntled ex-transit worker Mr. Green (Martin Balsam), Mr. Brown and Mr. Gray hijack a subway train and demand ransom in an hour or else. In Reservoir Dogs, we see men dressed in trademark black suits operate under monikers Mr. White (Harvey Keitel), Mr. Orange (Tim Roth), Mr. Pink (Steve Buscemi), Mr. Blonde (Michael Madsen), Mr. Brown (Tarantino), and Mr. Blue (Eddie Bunker) under the aegis of Joe Cabot (Lawrence Tierney of film noir fame) and his son, "Nice Guy" Eddie (Sean Penn's brother Chris, now deceased).

Last snap comparison of these three films: use of music. Ennio Morricone's original score for Sergio Leone's stands out (he won a career Oscar this year), as does David Shire's hip soundtrack for Pelham. Tarantino, though, uses "found" music -- mostly pop songs he likes that mordantly fit certain scenes, like "Stuck In The Middle With You," Joe Egan and Gerry Rafferty's 1972 hit, during Mr. Blonde's sadistic treatment of a police prisoner.

Today's Rune: Strength.

Birthdays: Maxim Gorky, Dirk Bogarde.

Hasta La Vista!

We Will Fall

On the day I came to Metro Detroit to find a place to live, seven tornadoes ripped through wherever I was looking.

Within three years I finished one Ph.D. and one marriage. Along the way, picked up a fitting soundtrack to keep juiced and moving forward furiously -- or at least crawling from the wreckage, alive and ready for more.

We Will Fall: The Iggy Pop Tribute (1997) is both loving and primal, highly recommended for Iggy Pop fans of all stripes and sizes -- even the little ones. Guaranteed to blow away winter torpor.

Do try this at home. . . . . Mostly high-voltage, with some playfully quiet gems to even things out nicely. Way cool. Like living on the edge of Detroit, it's one wild ride.

Tracks and artists on the version playing on my laptop:

1. 1969 - Joey Ramone
2. Search And Destroy - Red Hot Chili Peppers
3. Real Wild Child - Joan Jett And The Blackhearts
4. Ordinary Bummer - Adolph's Dog (i.e., Debbie Harry and Blondie)
5. I Got A Right - Misfits
6. Gimme Danger - Monster Magnet
7. Lust For Life - NY Loose (The New York Loose)
8. Loose - Pansy Division
9. The Passenger - Lunachicks
10. 1970 - Superdrag
11. I'm Sick Of You - Nada Surf
12. Funtime - Blanks 77
13. I Got Nothing - D-Generation
14. Down On The Street/Little Doll - Jayne County
15. Cold Metal - Sugar Ray
16. Sell Your Love - Extra Fancy
17. Shake Appeal - 7 Year Bitch
18. Sister Midnight - Bush Tetras
19. TV Eye - Holy Bulls
20. We Will Fall - Lenny Kaye

Today's Rune: Journey.

Calling Sister Midnight, Ciao!

Atomic

Paul Fussell (b. 3/22/1924), Thank God for the Atom Bomb and Other Essays (Ballantine, 1990; Summit, 1988).

Blondie, Atomic (1979) and "Atomic" (1980).

Today's birthdays include Lord Byron's (1/22/1788-4/24/1824). He died on his way to fight the Turks.

Today's Rune: Fertility.