The Weird, Eternal Truth of “Surrender”

Some people think the band Cheap Trick is just an unhappy reminder of a misspent decade listening to bad music. Some people think that Cheap Trick is nothing more than a Midwestern bar band that slipped through the cracks while no one was watching and somehow found their way to the top ten Billboard charts. […]

Perfectly Mad

Sometimes, a song is just so lovely. Even for Elton John. Many of Elton John’s songs are lovely. Early in his career, in partnership with lyricist Bernie Taupin, John would release sparse love songs and ballads, a troubadour sitting at his piano delivering songs that were at once lush and sparse, ethereal and dense. There […]

The Saga of Billy Joel, and “Scenes from an Italian Restaurant”

I am not the Billy Joel fan I once was. Back in the 1980’s, I was a big Billy Joel fan. Big. I first learned about Billy Joel with the release of The Stranger. My brother Jimmy introduced me to him, and the songs ranged from rough hewn rock songs to lovely ballads, all tinged […]

Perfectly “Tempted”

High school was a funny time. Well, at least it was a funny time for me. Girls confused me. Classes challenged me. Music entertained me. Books engaged me. I was discovering who I was…what I liked. What I cared about. What caught my attention. It was during my murky teen years that MTV was […]

The Perfect Warning of “Gimme Shelter”

On the occasion of my youngest daughter turning 20 years old last week, I found myself reflecting on my own 20th birthday. Isn’t that what parents do? It was 1988, and I was living in Hughes Hall at the American University in Washington D.C. I had a room at the end of the hallway on […]

The Perfect Protest of “We Shall Not Be Moved”

“Us youngsters, some of us would take off by ourselves.” I found myself walking down a strange street, in a strange town, surrounded by strangers. I held in my hands a sign that said “Reform Jews Will Not Stand Idly By.” I was in Tuscon, AZ for a professional meeting on March 24th, 2018, and […]

“Willin'” is the Perfect Trucker Anthem

It is the anthem of truckers. The bible for drug smugglers. If you transport illegal immigrants to the United States, this is your song. Blatantly unapologetic. Beautifully narrative. Pointedly descriptive. “Willin’” by Little Feat is the story of a truck driver who makes extra money struggling drugs and people from Mexico. He travels all through […]

No Life Lessons, Just “Folsom Prison Blues”

“But I shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die.” This is a great lyric. This one line provides setting, character, story, reason and conclusion. We know what happened, we know why it happened, and we can guess what happened as a result. Though this is not my favorite lyric in the song, […]

The Timeless Wisdom of “What’s Going On”

“We hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal.” “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” “Wild Thing, you make my heart sing, you make everything….groovy.” No matter how long ago words were written, if they hold a truth, […]

The Perfect Atmosphere of “Into the Mystic”

For all the due Van Morrison gets as a rock and roll troubadour legend, he gets nowhere near the due he deserves. Throughout his over 50 year (50 YEAR!!!!) career, Morrison has recorded everything from rock to jazz to soul ballads and beyond. Since 1967, he has released an unbelievable 38 solo albums, including four […]