That headline comes
from one of my favorite Paul Simon songs “American Tune”. A song that resonated
in the time of Nixon but could certainly be embraced at other times in our
history. We, as aging music fans can’t be “forever blessed” either as some of
our favorite artists either pass away or get off the touring merry-go-round.
Simon is the latest. He says this year is it. He told fans on Twitter that his decision is “a
little unsettling, a touch exhilarating and something of a relief. He said he
may still do some shows to support causes he believes in. One of the reasons
that he is hanging it up was the death of his long time guitarist Vincent N’guini
who died in December. He played with Simon for over 30 years. His two nearest
concerts will be June 6
th
at the United Center in Chicago and June 8
at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. And if you’re lucky enough to be in Dublin
Ireland on July 13
th
you can see Simon team up with both James
Taylor and Bonnie Raitt who will be on tour there at same time. It’s interesting that some of the old artists
can keep up the grind of touring and some for various reasons can’t do it
anymore. For some, it’s one of the ways they can actually make some money from
their music since the rates they are paid by streaming services is so small. I
didn’t see enough of my musical faves back in their touring hey-day. No money
or time…but I’m trying to catch up before they die or stop taking the stage. My
advice to any fan of these aging troubadours is to see and hear as many of them
live as you can while you can. Tomorrow is promised to nobody. Ask Tom Petty
and David Bowie and Prince and Warren Zevon and Gregg Allman and Glenn Frey and
Walter Becker and………
Milwaukee Bucks ownership promised that the new arena in the
city would not only house the Bucks but would also put Milwaukee back on the
concert map for many acts that might have by-passed the city for indoor
concerts before. That is certainly happening as both Justin Timberlake and
Elton John shows have been added at the venue. Timberlake hasn’t appeared in
Milwaukee is quite some time.
Todays obits include actor John Mahoney who died at the age
of 77. You’ll best remember him as Martin Crane, the irascible father to
Frazier and Niles Crane on “Frazier”. He was a native of England and came to
the US in the 1950s. he didn’t get into professional acting until his 40’s
I haven’t watched Law & Order SVU for many years, but
the iconic show is welcoming back an old friend this week. Sam Waterson will
return to the role of Jack McCoy. He played the prosecuter on the original Law
& Order show that started the franchise and appeared in the role at one
time or another in all of the spin-offs. Here he is at his courtroom best…
Milos Vojinovic, who lives in Berlin, had an interesting
historical Twitter note. He says that the Berlin Wall stood for 10,316 days.
Today it’s been 10,316 days since its been gone.
Elections have consequences…..President Trump said Democrats
who didn’t clap at the State Of The Union were “treasonous”. No you ludicrous
hack, treason would be working with agents of foreign governments whose
interests are diametrically opposed to ours to not only secure the Presidency
but to protect said foreign governments from American retribution for interference
in out electoral process. There may be “treason” going on here but you really
don’t have to look much farther than your own family and staff…………….The US
Consumer Protection Bureau (which has been neutered by another Trump goon Mick
Mulvaney) will not continue to investigate the Equifax data breach which failed
to protect the personal data of millions of Americans. The Bureau would have
wide investigative powers over something like this but Mulvaney has been either
slow-rolling or outright cancelling much of the bureaus oversight of weasels
like these. Good thing state investigations are on-going throughout the country……………….While
Trump was giving a speech crowing about the stock market, the market was
tanking (the first 1000 point one day drop in history). Incredibly, Sean
Hannity tried to pin the market correction on Obama. Yeah, Trump responsible
for the rise, Obama responsible for the fall. I don’t know whether it was
market manipulation or something more insidious that is causing the market to
meltdown the last few days but from most of what I’ve read, the underlying
economy is still ok. This is something else going on and you can bet that
someone somewhere is getting rich while our 401ks take the hit……………….Oh, and if
youre going to trumpet a stock market rise as you’re doing, you’ve got to own
the falls too…………………….Trumps lawyers are telling him to not give an interview
to the special counsel. If Trump, as he has been claiming is innocent and there
is NO COLLUSION!!!! Or OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE!!!, it should be easy for him to
give the interview. The problem is Trump has such a loose relationship with the
truth and is so delusional on this topic that there is almost no chance that he
would leave the meeting room without either unwittingly admitting guilt or
perjuring himself. I hope he tells his lawyers to pound sand and tries to show
how much more “intelligent” he is than Robert Mueller.
Quotes Of The Day
“Jesus, Donald Trump, who fact checks your tweets, Eric?”-
Rick Reilly
“If the memo was really about oversight, committee members
would want to read the underlying documents and bring in the FBI. Republicans
voted against both. The interest was not oversight, it was a political hit job on
the FBI in the service of the President.”-Rep. Adam Schiff
“Adam Schiff is in the right job at the right time. His calm
demeanor and his exacting eye for detail provide Democrats with a vivid
contrast to the semi-hysterical and fact-free tirades you get from anti-FBI
Republicans”-Jennifer Rubin
Not sure how Fox News and our president will explain the
stock market dive, but it will probably turn out to have something to do with
Michelle Obama wanting school kids to eat more vegetables”-Jack McCallum
“The President Of The United States just called 5 of the
most trustworthy individuals in America, Clapper, Brennon, Comey, Warner and
Schiff “liars and leakers” in an attempt to try and delegitimize the entirety
of reality. If America won’t stand up to this crap, we are finished”-Brian
Krassenstein
Songs Of The Day (on this date in 1965 the 2nd Rolling Stones LP “2” knocked the Beatles from the #1 spot on the charts in England)
