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  • Friday Throwback – Land Of 1,000 Dances

    Ok, this is the wacky wrestling version of this song, but I didn’t really have anything picked out this week, and when you can’t fall back on Rowdy Roddy Piper, who can you really fall back on?

    This song was the lead single (if you can call it that) from The Wrestling Album which was released in 1985. That album featured help from Cyndi Lauper, Rick Derringer and David Wolff, who I believe was Lauper’s boyfriend. Wolff produces much of it.

    • You gotta know how to twist – Jimmy Hart was actually a member of the band, The Gentrys, who had a number one single.
    • RIP Missing Link.
    • Look at Mr. Wonderful kissing his biceps.
    • Really, the Iron Sheik is right. You’ve got to move like de de Sheik.
    • Is that Meat Loaf on the drums?
    • I think that’s Lauper in the black wig too.
    • Wow, SD Jones got a line in there.
    • Wow, SD got two lines.
    • I forgot Adrian Adonis was on this song.
    • Watching Bret “The Hitman” Hart dance in the background with those shades on was great.
    • Jeez, Uncle Elmer?

    I know that Wilson Pickett’s version wasn’t the original, but his was the most well known. I wonder what he thought about this version? And where in the heck was Hulk Hogan? Was he busy the day the recorded the song?

  • Out Of "Control"

    So the big music news in the blogosphere right now is NOT the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame inductions (I don’t know who The Ventures are, either), but the new Janet Jackson single, “Feedback”, which premiered today.
    As everyone with a pulse knows, Janet’s career has been on a bit of a downslide since the whole tittie at the Super Bowl incident. Her last album, “20 Y.O.”, only sold about 800,000 copies. Not bad for most artists, but not good for someone who used to sell 5 million copies of an album at a clip. An unofficial blacklist by MTV has not helped, not to mention the fact that her last couple of albums have decreased sharply in quality. To be true, she hasn’t released a better than average album since 1997’s “The Velvet Rope”.
    At any rate, “Feedback” has a very Timbo/Justin sound to it (ironic much?) with a hint of Britney. Lyrically, it’s Janet talking about sex, which is only novel to someone who stopped listening after “Rhythm Nation”. Not that it’s a bad song per se, but she can do much better. Her new album comes out 2/26. Let’s hope the material within is better than this…

     

  • In My Infinite Confusion: A Heartwarming Holiday Tale

    …and the general public’s infinite wisdom…
    Not only has Josh Groban’s “Noel” been the #1 album in the country for the past three weeks, but it has become one of only three albums so far this year to surpass the 2 million scans mark (with the “High School Musical 2” soundtrack and Daughtry being the other two).
    This reminds me of this same time a decade or so ago, when Kenny G. was #1 for weeks on end (indeed: the man has the best selling holiday music title of ALL TIME) with “Miracles: A Holiday Album”. Now, in the interest of full disclosure, I will say that I actually liked Kenny G. once upon a time-back when his music had an R&B/smooth jazz flavor and didn’t have the aura of overprocessed Muzak. But seriously, do you gather around the tree and play Kenny G’s Christmas songs? Because if you do, I ain’t comin’ over to your house.
    With all of the vaguely enjoyable Christmas albums nowadays (a list that includes everything from the Phil Spector Christmas Album to sets by Nat “King” Cole and The Jackson Five) to a slew of one-offs you can either get individually on iTunes or purchase on compilations (by everyone from Barenaked Ladies to Wham! to Mariah Carey, Elton John, Whitney Houston, Paul McCartney, Prince & The Revolution, Madonna…you get the idea…), WHY JOSH GROBAN?!???!???!??!
    Hopefully you realize what you are subjecting your holiday guests to…