Tag: r&b

Saturday’s Theme Music

Yippee. December’s first Saturday has arrived. Per family tradition, I get to eat like a kid all day, play games, and goof off. Not much different from most of my days.

Only four Saturdays remain of 2022. It’s so exciting to watch each Saturday overtake us and unfold like a rare flower. Today is already December 3. The heat is running, the sun is shining, but a cold northy wind is beating us like a drum. It’s 46 F and it feels like 36. Today’s high will be a rousing 51. The winds are expected to dip and the sun has issued promises that sunshine is here for the day. Speaking of the sun, its rise was 7:22 AM. Only a few weeks until the sun’s arrival starts moving back the other day, spreading daylight longer through the day. The sun’s endpoint will be at 4:39 PM. Daylight will fade shortly after.

I was singing to one of my floofmates last night. Papi, the ginger wonder, had an attitude going on. Just like sitting back, surveying the scene, a disdainful observer too cool to be involved. The way he reclined and surveyed prompted both a laugh from me and a proclamation that he was a soul cat. I then improvised lyrics to the song “Soul Man” for his listening delight. He deigned to be delighted.

Taking notice of all this, The Neurons delivered “Soul Man” to the morning mental music stream. The song, written by Isaac Hayes and Dave Porter, was a hit by Sam and Dave in 1967. That’s the song I knew and grew up with. But I must admit, The Blues Brothers version delighted me because of the characters Dan Ackroyd and John Belushi brought to stage in 1978. I’m going with the latter for today’s theme music.

Stay positive and test negative. Enjoy December’s First Friday. I’m gonna start with a hot cup of the black brew known as coffee. Here’s the music. Hope you like it more than Papi. Of course, that may have been my mocking or singing putting the cat off.

Cheers

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Tuesday’s Theme Music

Clouds have descended on us. It’s like, ain’t no sunshine. There is daylight, with the sun brokering the current levels when it came into the southern end of our valley at 7:10. We’re the funnel piece here, where I-5’s traffic coming north from California is squeezed through a pass and down through the mountains, heading west before turning north toward Portland. The mountains spread away at our town’s edge.

It’s 38 F now. The weather masters tell us it’ll be cloudy all day, maybe rain, but we should see some sunlight later, as temperatures will trudge into the fifties, peaking at 55 F. Precipitation might strike the valley in the early evening, depending on how the clouds tango.

This is Tuesday, 11/22/2022, another of those days that get people excited with its numbers. “Look! Eleven. Twenty-two. It must mean something.” Maybe it does mean something beyond a calendar date, but that meaning hasn’t surfaced for me. But it is a youthful day yet, still getting its footing at nine AM. Maybe all will be revealed at a later hour.

Sunset will be arriving in less than eight hours, at 4:44 PM. Get busy, ’cause we’re losing daylight.

I have The Peripheral on my mind. Do you know this novel and the television series? William Gibson gave us the book a few years ago. I’m a fan, so I read it, dazzled again by his ideas when I finished it. Differences between novel and series fascinates me, as these things often do. I’ve gone through this with Dune, I, Robot, Sense and Sensibility, Foundation, Game of Thrones, and so many others. I experience annoyance at the differences but also respect that the differences are required to carry the story and clean it up for delivery by a different media. Movies — and television — and books are not the same. Adaptations require some sacrifices.

“Lady Marmalade” from 1974 by Labelle is cruising the mental music stream. I blame The Neurons but I also blame the wife. Of course, it started with The Neurons.

“Hey Soul Sister” by Train had been playing on my car stereo. Entering the house, I greeted my wife, “Hey, soul sister, how they hanging?”

She responded with the opening lyrics of “Lady Marmalade”, “Hey sister, go sister, soul sister, go sister.” The Neurons answered, “Oh we know that song. It goes like this.” And it’s been going ever since.

Coffee time, yeah? Stay positive and test negative. Hope your weather is favorable and the news is good.

Cheers

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Thursday’s Theme Music

All the leaves aren’t brown, and the sky’s not gray. Mr. Blue Sky and Ms. Sunshine have taken over again. Although temperatures threaten the gonads with freezing when out at night, the midnight views of moon, stars, planets, and galaxies have been clear and spectacular.

It’s 39 F out and rising since the sun brokered daybreak at 7:04 this morning. The gusting ways have finished for the moment. Leaves in all shades of reds and maroons, scarlets and plums, bronze and brown, lemon and gold, along with green variations, still hang in the trees. None have fallen to the ground in my neighborhood yet. I’m certain that past Octobers and Novembers found me raking leaves or planning to rake leaves as they migrate to the yard and driveway and cover the walk. Hasn’t happened yet this year. Yet. Always add the yet.

Yesterday afternoon after the wind closed up found us luxurious in sun-warmed sixty-degree (F) air. Won’t be as high today, the weather seers (weaers in professional terminology) boom on TV. Highs in our nugget of valley will be 52 F. The door closes on sunlight with the setting at 4:48 PM.

Met with my beer buddies last night. Elements of two local HS robotics teams — two teams, one school — met with us to introduce themselves, thank us for past donations, and show us their latest machines and what the competitive objectives are this year. Always fascinating to meet these young, intelligent, enthusiastic people. We’re happy to support them and made a $500 donation to their cause.

The Neurons have a Lizzo song in my morning mental music stream. Friend Jill commented that she doesn’t listen to the radio and doesn’t like much modern music. I heard “About Damn Time” yesterday, a song which came out this year, and wondered if Jill would like it. Its melody sounds like something out of the 1972 R&B era to my untutored old ears, so I thought that would appeal to Jill. A closer listening of the lyrics caused a re-appraisal of my position that Jill might like this song.

Didn’t matter. The Neurons had a hold of it and kept it going in the MMMS (trademark pending). So I offer it as Thursday’s theme music. It is a catchy, upbeat tune, so I don’t blame The Neurons.

This is Thursday, ya know, November 17, 2022. One week from today is Thanksgiving in the U.S. Time to start getting ready. Meanwhile, Black Friday will be the day after T-day, although many business entities declared that they’re starting Black Friday early. Cause, you know, it’s the American way to make things bigger and bigger and bigger until everyone says, “Too much. Please stop.” But as this involves money, shopping, and savings — and don’t you deserve a new car, truck, furniture, clothing or game? — this is gonna take some time to reach its saturation level and we all numb out. I think Black Friday started the week after Halloween this year.

Okay, on to Lizzo. Here’s the song. Hope you enjoy it. Stay positive and test negative. Get vaxxes as you can, and I’ll get some coffee, along with a slice of banana nut bread which a friend dropped off yesterday. Vax day is tomorrow for me and my spouse. Hope you have a tremendous Thursday.

Cheers

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Monday’s Theme Music

The expansion of the daylight hours continues and, um, expands! Yes, I know it happens every year. Still excites me to see our area gain light and emerge from gloominess. The sun’s arc over our region started at 7:09 AM and will stay until 5:42 PM. Temperatures now are 46 F. We saw 66 on the home weather station yesterday, below the seventies which forecasters proclaimed. Clouds have flocked to the sky, shielding us from the blue and sunshine. Today’s high is expected to be 54 F, and there is a call for rain! Yes, there’s a seventy percent chance at ten AM. We’re expecting 0.18 inches.

Now that the Super Bowl is over, we can discuss the halftime show (I read that MAGAts disliked it because it didn’t feature anything about faith), TV commercials (ah, nostalgia and stars — how much old music did you hear?) and start the countdown to the NFL season. Also, the holiday season is on the way. Also, the mid-term elections. Also, the Olympics. Also, time to do taxes. It’s a busy month! Oh, yeah, and today is Saint V’s Day, or as a friend called it, Single Awareness Day (SAD).

Of the Super Bowl commercials, my favorites were the Amazon one (about Alexa reading our minds), and the one for the NFL, where tiny NFL stars broke out of a TV for a game at some children’s home. But I’m a Eugene Levy fan, so top spot goes to the Nissan commercial. It was a send up of so many action movie tropes.

It might surprise some that the Ray Charles from the start of the Nissan commercial stayed in my morning mental music stream. But come on, it’s a cool song. Lit. Here’s “What’d I Say” from 1959.

Stay positive, test negative, wear a mask as needed, and get the vax and boosters when you can. Here we go. Take it, Ray, while I get my coffee. Cheers

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Friday’s Theme Music

Ready to shake up the days? Most are, when it comes to Friday. People rush from work and school with shouts of “Freedom” and “At last!” Not necessarily because they hate those things. No, they’re just looking for some change. A little wiggle from routines.

Today is Friday, September 24, 2021. Don’t know about you, but our area is enduring splendid weather. Cool nights — upper fifties, low sixties — days warming to the upper seventies, lower eighties, and air so clear you can see tomorrow. Sun came spilling in with lazy insouciance at 7:00 AM. Our world area turns away from it at 7:05 PM. Almost to that point of equilibrium. That momentary balance.

I’m inclined toward a Natalie Cole song from 1975 called “This Will Be” today. Started with me thinking, this will be. This will be a good day. Not a proclamation so much as a feeling, a realization. Ever get that? Just like a lick of lightning to your brain — this will be a good day. I’ve had the opposite, too. Either feeling gives me a chance to prepare to walk the tightrope, know what I mean?

The song entered the morning’s mental music stream through the outre, “from now on”. Rightly, the song is a brassy R&B love song that starts soft and becomes belted out with optimistic energy. Just remembering those last lines, hearing those final notes, has a galvanizing effect on my spirit. Hope it has the same on yours. Because every once in a while, you just need a song that feels like an affirmation.

Stay positive. Test negative. Wear a mask as needed. Get the vax. Here’s the music. Cheers

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Tuesday’s Theme Music

“Today is Tuesday! You know what that means? We’re gonna have a special guest.”

The opening was something that just streamed through me head. Haven’t had my coffee yet.

Today is Tuesday, I think, July 6, 2021. July — and summer — and just streamrolling through. Sol’s first long fingers of rosy light caressed our valley at 5:41 AM. Expecting another 100 degree day, we’ll expect heat to linger for hours after sundown’s official 8:50 time. And there, in those sun up/down numbers is the compressing of the daylight. Two minutes shorter. The countdown to the shortest day of light has begun.

I watched Summer of Soul on Hulu last night. Mind music has been stirred up by it. The documentary is about the 1969 Harlem Culture Festival and a feel for the times, racially, culturally. Great music was brought up. Performers, attendees, and the people behind the production were interviewed. The difficulties encountered. Maxwell House coffee as the sponsor. Mayor Lindsay’s presence.

But the performances. The Fifth Dimension coping with not being black enough, singing “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In”. Billy Davis Jr and Marilyn McCoo’s reactions as they see themselves as they were. Nina Simone’s powerful presence. The amazing talent that is Stevie Wonder. Gospel Music. The Staple Singers. “Grazing in the Grass”. People in the audience dancing. Singing. Those are just off-the-head snippets. The whole thing must be seen. Heard. Those who experienced the times will remember. Those who don’t know them will wonder.

For me, though, Sly and the Family Stone was it. Sly and the Family Stone’s “Everyday People” and “Sing A Simple Song” flushed memories through. Always admired and listened to that group. It’s hardwired into my existence. Their music has been featured here as theme music before. But I’d overlooked “Sing A Simple Song”. Well, not today. It’s my theme music.

[Cynthia:] Sing a simple song
[Rose:] Yeah, yeah, yeah, [etc.]
[Freddie:] I’m talkin’ talkin’ talkin’ talkin’ talkin’ in my sleep
[Larry:] I’m walkin’ walkin’ walkin’ walkin’ walkin’ in the street
[Sly:] Time is passin’ I grow older Things are happening fast
All I have to hold onto is a simple song at last
Let me hear you say
[All:] Yeah, yeah, yeah, [etc.]

[Cynthia:] Sing a simple song
Try a little do re me fa so la ti do

[Rose:] Yeah, yeah, yeah, etc.
[Freddie:] I’m livin’ livin’ livin’ life with all its ups and downs
[Larry:] I’m givin’ givin’ givin’ love and smilin’ at the frowns

[Sly:] You’re in trouble when you find it’s hard for you to smile
A simple song might make it better for a little while
Let me hear you say
[All:] Yeah, yeah. yeah, [etc.]

h/t to AZLyrics.com.

“Time is passing. I grow older. Things are happening fast.” That expresses life well.

Stay postive. Test negative. Wear masks as deemed needed. Get vaxxed. Sing a simple song. Here’s the music. Cheers

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Monday’s Theme Music

The annual rewind has begun. Not what’s happening, of course. More about revolutions and rotations. The essence, though, is that our daylight hours are beginning their seasonal wane.

Today is Monday, June 28, 2021. Sol’s golden beating began at 5:36 AM, a minute later than yesterday. By 7:45, the thermometer was climbing past 86 degrees F. We expected 110 in our southern Oregon valley today. We’ll get some relief tonight, after the sun moves on at 8:51 PM. The temperatures are expected to drop to 66 then.

I was in a work groove yesterday. Finished wall number three. On to number four this week, completing the great room saga, I mean, painting. Then it’ll be…other rooms.

While painting, I was writing in my head, going through plot lines and character arcs, imagining new scenes, re-thinking old ones, working my way toward a better ending. With this going on — writing in my head and painting the great room (and dealing with the heat) (yeah, okay, I turned on the A/C) — a song from 1970 entered the mental musical rotation stream. By King George, the song is called “Groove Me”. It’s a nice taste of R&B. I enjoyed the backstory of how this song came to be. King George worked in a factory a few feet from a young woman. They saw each other every day, but he was too shy to say anything. He finally wrote this song as a poem to give her. But he never saw her again.

Stay positive, test neggy, wear a mask when needed, and get the vax. Thanks. Here’s the music.

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Sunday’s Theme Music

Hello, good morning, good afternoon, good day, and good night.

Today is Easter Sunday, April 4, 2021, the ninety-fourth day of the year. Sol stepped up at 6:49 AM in Ashland. We expect her to do a fade at 7:40 PM. The hours in between those times are expected to be brimming with sunshine that warms us to the seventy degree F mark. We’re at 54 now, but it doesn’t feel that warm as a cold mountain breeze with a wintry grudge scraps the edge off the sun’s heat.

Today’s music choice is an old Spinners song with Dionne Warwick. “Then Came You” was released in 1974 (hey, my high school senior year) and reached number one. Infused with a little disco vibe into its R&B structure, it stayed popular in dance clubs for several years. As to clues about why it’s in my head this morning…there are none. The little neurons responsible for orchestrating recollection of this tune are staying incognito.

Stay positive, test negative, wear a mask, and get the vax. Cheers, all.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_PzcgyqMwE
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Friday’s Theme Music

Friday, February 26, 2021, doesn’t look like a happy day. A flat pale gray blanket stretching to every corner covers the sky this morning. Temperature is 42 degrees F, so that’s not bad. Sunrise stole in with little ceremony at 6:51 AM. Sunset is due at 5:57 PM.

The Wayback Machine was fully activated, triggered by a Zoom call. I wasn’t on it, but lurking in the other room. The call was my wife’s dance class. One member said that the people on the call looked like the start of “The Brady Bunch”. Another suggested “Hollywood Squares”. A third mentioned “Laugh-In”.

The “Laugh-In” comment popped “sock it to me” into my head. Remember that phrase? Good possibility that you answered a resounding, “No.” Well, “sock it to me” was a popular humorous catchphrase in the late sixties. Seriously. It was like, “can’t touch this”, “where’s the beef”, and “whassup” in another decade, or “who let the dogs out?” The phrase was everywhere, in every context, and this was pre-net, pre-text, pre-video existence. At least three songs with the phrase climbed out of the Wayback Machine for my mental streaming pleasure. One had to the legs to keep my brain engaged.

Stay positive, test negative, wear a mask, and get vaccinated. Now, please enjoy Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels with their 1967 hit, “Sock It To Me-Baby”.

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Monday’s Theme Music

Good morning. Welcome to another Monday. Today is February 15, 2021. It’s 39 degrees F outside. An unrelenting sky whispers, “No sun for you.” Today’s sunrise was at 7:07 AM. Sunset is expected at 5:43 PM.

We’re harvesting rain water this week. After collecting it in bowls, we strain and drain into gallon jugs. Rain water is wonderful for rinsing hair after shampooing/conditioning.

Raindrops chilled my skin and dampened my hair while I was out there. Words came along.

Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins

After returning to the house, I noodled through those words in search of more, i.e., when, where, who. Then other activities pushed it aside for a while. Remembering the words morning, I searched and was rewarded. These are words to Natasha Bedingfield’s song “Unwritten”. As I went through an, oh, yeah, moment, I read the other lyrics.

Feel the rain on your skin
No one else can feel it for you
Only you can let it in
No one else, no one else
Can speak the words on your lips
Drench yourself in words unspoken
Live your life with arms wide open
Today is where your book begins
The rest is still unwritten

h/t to Metrolyrics.com

Head-scratching, oh, yeah. Feeling rain on my skin drew the song out from some inner folds. Thought this mellow sound works well for this rain-zone day. Here it is, fresh from 2003. Wear a mask. Stay positive, test negative, and get vaccinated. Cheers

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