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  • The Return of George Michael

    The last time George Michael kicked off a tour, George Bush was the President, the United States was fighting in Iraq and healthcare costs were said to spiraling out of control.

    As the now 43 year old singer starts his new tour, little seems to have changed in the world. Even Sir Elton John seems to have publicly forgiven his one time duet partner.

    What surprised many critics this weekend was that Michael, no stranger to banner headlines after a much publicized series of arrests, kept the intensity meter tuned to 11. Skewering George W. Bush and Tony Blair among other, Michael opened his tour in Barcelona with a show that reportedly ran more than two hours. Critics attending the show say that his powerful voice seemed to be as strong as ever.

    It’s hard to say if Michael can be musically relevant anymore, but it is nice to see an artist with more than 75 million units of music sold in his career, back out on the road while he still has command over a great voice. As for the politics, he is only living up to a decades old pattern of rockers being political so that behavior is perhaps the most ordinary he has displayed.

    Spinning In The CD:
    I’m really trying to like Fergie and London Bridge and having a really hard time doing so. I ordered Ne-Yo today to cleanse the Fergster and Paris Hilton from my memory banks.

  • Willie’s Weed A No-Go In Louisiana

    Willie Nelson on stage
    Legend Willie Nelson and four members of his entourage were busted this week in Lafayette, Louisiana for a relatively small amount of mushrooms and a pound-and-a-half of pot. While the singer’s popularity shows little signs of abating, one has to wonder how much more of Willie we’ll see.

    The singer is now 73. The IRS is paid. He continues to do his good, charitable works for the American farmer and others. Heck, he’s even been on King of the Hill. Really, what is left?

    So if you see a smoky tour bus pull up in your neck of the woods, you might want to get tickets to the show. Ain’t no telling how much more Willie is going to put up with before he goes off and sits by the side of a pool somewhere.

    Spinning In The CD:
    Figuring that Jesus Take The Wheel was the thrust of American Idol winner Carrie Underwood’s Some Hearts release, I gave it a cursory listen when it debuted. Mistake. Underwood channels Gretchen Wilson, Loretta Lynn and some other good old girls. There’s some filler here, but there are some winners too.

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  • Glitter Gone From NFL

    Forbes is reporting that Gary Glitter’s anthemic Rock and Roll, Part II won’t be played at games this year. Unless you’ve been under a rock somewhere, you’ve heard that the rocker who owes his royalties to NFL teams throughout the U.S., has been twice convicted of crimes related to child pornography. The album and single were never massive hits and Part II remains the only Top 10 song of Glitter’s career.

    Sometimes, like Dennis Miller said, you have to cull the herd. While recognizing that Glitter has an illness, increasing the popularity of his music doesn’t help. While the NFL may take some criticism for this move, I think they did the righ thing.

    Spinning In The CD:
    My wife just came home from a day of garage sales and antiques with a boxed set of Motown LPs. The CD goes away today.

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